The gang returns to Isopod Towers with rope and big ambitions. We make straight for the gold brazier, ready to haul it through the roof, and when we spike it, Bishal and Yama suffer an arcane blast, knocking the latter unconscious.
Opening the ceiling with a pickaxe takes time, and attracts a handful of cattle-sized isopods. An impressive magical illusion from Qui scares most of them off, but the last one stands fast and cuts Bishal up with its many claws, knocking him out. Ade looses some war oil and Umesh grapples the sea creature into it, but still, it lashes out, KOing Qui! Finally, Ade strikes with his spear, and Umesh's mighty claw rends the thing's armour, leaving it lifeless.
After a stop in the Yellow City, including a quick run-in with familiar port authority Nishi, and a meeting with Vazé, master of antiquities, we turn the brazier into cash, selling to House Bipana. The slug we meet is quite agitated for some reason we can't discern. We return to the Topaz Isles.
Our fourth day of sailing is clear and sunny. We spot a new island, not on our maps. It's beautiful and smells of sweet nectar. There's a buzz in the air: a twitchy, jumpy anxiety that persists in the background of our perception. We pursue the island's centre to find the grandest palm, though the sun itself behaves strangely in the sky. A quick scout reveals stone ruins in a valley, and a forested mountain.
We reach the mountain's base and camp for the night, until a six-legged, mossy boar wanders into our campsite with four prehensile tendrils of ivy probing our goods. We engage it but lands some blows on Ade. Umesh frees his mighty worm! It glows in Bishal's moonlight spray. The worm, and an angry Ade, make short work of the boar, and Ade feasts upon its flesh.
Later, we press on up the mountain. We spy collapsed, ruined huts, and an overgrown stone watchtower. Still, we see no grand palm, though we do spy an enormous bird thumping a tree. It calls out, and others call right back.
Then, a silky voice through dense silence. It warns us away, and we, as is custom, ignore it, until a rotund fellow steps out from the jungle, telling us again, "You may not like what you find." Bishal challenges him to a game, to which he assents. Umesh asks, "What is the strongest spell?" which is obviously "Grease Palm." The man asks about a crab and a river, we Umesh deftly solves. Cheerily, the man permits us to pass if we promise not to hurt any plants or animals.
We proceed into a clearing of thick mud, strung with bones and shells, but in a weird instant, it's gone, and we're back in the jungle. Time is strange in this place. In the night, a tremendous, glittering peacock springs upon us, stunning the gang with its peculiar beauty — all but Umesh, who does his best to communicate with the creature. It departs while the rest of us greedily catch our breath. Still, more beasts assail us! A centipede with six glittering eyes, but we scare it off with fire.
Like a shot, the sun rises, and the island is bathed in golden light. But where could be the palm?
Opening the ceiling with a pickaxe takes time, and attracts a handful of cattle-sized isopods. An impressive magical illusion from Qui scares most of them off, but the last one stands fast and cuts Bishal up with its many claws, knocking him out. Ade looses some war oil and Umesh grapples the sea creature into it, but still, it lashes out, KOing Qui! Finally, Ade strikes with his spear, and Umesh's mighty claw rends the thing's armour, leaving it lifeless.
After a stop in the Yellow City, including a quick run-in with familiar port authority Nishi, and a meeting with Vazé, master of antiquities, we turn the brazier into cash, selling to House Bipana. The slug we meet is quite agitated for some reason we can't discern. We return to the Topaz Isles.
Our fourth day of sailing is clear and sunny. We spot a new island, not on our maps. It's beautiful and smells of sweet nectar. There's a buzz in the air: a twitchy, jumpy anxiety that persists in the background of our perception. We pursue the island's centre to find the grandest palm, though the sun itself behaves strangely in the sky. A quick scout reveals stone ruins in a valley, and a forested mountain.
We reach the mountain's base and camp for the night, until a six-legged, mossy boar wanders into our campsite with four prehensile tendrils of ivy probing our goods. We engage it but lands some blows on Ade. Umesh frees his mighty worm! It glows in Bishal's moonlight spray. The worm, and an angry Ade, make short work of the boar, and Ade feasts upon its flesh.
Later, we press on up the mountain. We spy collapsed, ruined huts, and an overgrown stone watchtower. Still, we see no grand palm, though we do spy an enormous bird thumping a tree. It calls out, and others call right back.
Then, a silky voice through dense silence. It warns us away, and we, as is custom, ignore it, until a rotund fellow steps out from the jungle, telling us again, "You may not like what you find." Bishal challenges him to a game, to which he assents. Umesh asks, "What is the strongest spell?" which is obviously "Grease Palm." The man asks about a crab and a river, we Umesh deftly solves. Cheerily, the man permits us to pass if we promise not to hurt any plants or animals.
We proceed into a clearing of thick mud, strung with bones and shells, but in a weird instant, it's gone, and we're back in the jungle. Time is strange in this place. In the night, a tremendous, glittering peacock springs upon us, stunning the gang with its peculiar beauty — all but Umesh, who does his best to communicate with the creature. It departs while the rest of us greedily catch our breath. Still, more beasts assail us! A centipede with six glittering eyes, but we scare it off with fire.
Like a shot, the sun rises, and the island is bathed in golden light. But where could be the palm?
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