Bloodhawks are Delicious with Paprika

Tuala, Dryali, Manu, Hikawera, and Kaikoa were all seated in Arnari's office, as she wearily started ticking off the various missions for Freelancers they could do as a group.  Everyone was bleary-eyed, but Dryali kept his goggles on so the others couldn't see.

• Children of Āhua - there are bloodhawks attacking travellers on the road to Mantzur, south of Cliffshadow.  Drive them out, and figure out why.
• Taleisin of the Orderly Stones monastery wants Freelancers to make that kobold den go away.

Dryali interrupted.  "They're monks!"

Arnari took a sip of her restorative tea.  "Make it go away."

Kaikoa asked, "Supplying explosives?"

Arnari's reply was simply "No."

• Track down Gillian of the Daystar Cult.  Find her and report back; she might have too much muscle to take out.
• There's a grblin staging camp to attack Marshfork.  Destroy and dismantle.

Kaikoa asked, "Can we get explosives to deal with the grblins?"

Arnari's reply was still "No."

Hikawera lit the end of his finger on fire.  "Use flour wrong...."

Kaikoa got down to business.  "Where are the bloodhawks?" he asked, just as Tuala sang out "NO Fui Fui!"

Everyone was cranky!  Arnari waited for quiet, then explained, "The fee is more, but why attacking?"  Dryali again objected, "Why don't Children of Āhua know?"  Arnari snapped, "They're busy!" to which Dryali exclaimed, "What!"  Really, when are Children of Āhua busy?

Kaikoa looked predatory.  "At worst, we can eat bloodhawk, which is delicious with paprika."  Tuala broke into a cat-smile.  "This is a recommendation," he declared.

The group discussed Arnari's offerings, as she sipped more restorative tea.  "Grblins are too far," "kobolds mean Fui Fui," Kaikoa declared, "I'm too hungover for Daystar bullshit!"  Arnari told them, it would be 100gp each, and between 30-50gp for discovering the origin of the problem.

Everyone rose, and left to prepare for departure… Kaikoa made sure to stop by the kitchens and stock up on paprika, on his way to the stables to pick up Mordant, his hippogryph.

They left Cliffshadow in good order, Kaikoa circling overhead on Mordant, and Dryali behind the others, with his hand crossbow ready.  Despite his vantage, Kaikoa didn't see much in the way of bloodhawks, and his view diminished even further as the road entered the forests in the Haven Hills.  He landed and started riding on the road with the others.  Tuala kept in front, pointing out bloodhawk sign to the others.

Out of the trees, 8 bloodhawks swooped to attack!  Dryali dropped one with his hand crossbow.  Hikawera lit one on fire.  Then they were upon the Freelancers!  Everyone was hurt by beak or claw, except Mordant, because Kaikoa intervened.

Tuala drew himself up, and began an incantation.  Images of tiny skyliths and thalassae circled about his head, and then he finished and they disappeared.  3 bloodhawks, and Manu, fell to the ground, sleeping.

"Oops," Tuala said.

Kaikoa swung his sword at the bloodhawk who attacked Mordant, but missed.  Dryali, sizing up the situation, constructed a protector eldritch cannon, which started to pulse [temporary hit points every turn], making everyone feel better.

Hikawera gave Tuala a scathing glance, then dragged the sleeping Manu out of the way of the fighting, then sent thunderwave down the row of attacking bloodhawks, killing two, injuring a third, and waking up Manu with all that noise.

That left three bloodhawks awake and able to attack, and they did!  The one that had been injured by thunderwave struck Hikawera, but the ones attacking Dryali and Mordant missed.

Tuala sent a firebolt past one of the bloodhawks, and Manu sent a skeletal hand at another, which dodged it; Kaikoa swung his sword and missed again.  Dryali pulled out his rapier, skewering his, as the protector pulsed again.  Hikawera drew a short sword and slew the bloodhawk that had attacked him.

The remaining bloodhawk attacked Mordant, but Kaikoa intervened again, causing it to miss.  Tuala backed up from it, and it attacked him too, but also missed.  He sent another firebolt at it, but went wide.  Manu sent another skeletal hand at it, which grasped it at the base of its neck, causing visible necrotic damage as it hung on.  Kaikow slew it with his longsword.

Dryali sauntered up to the two sleeping bloodhawks, and hesitated.  One was injured, and the other whole.  He looked the question at the others, then slew the whole one.  Hikawera carefully picked up the injured one, and moved it away from the scene of the fight, as Kaikoa handed Dryali the paprika, then flew up on Mordant.  Hikawera returned, and they all crouched down, staying very quiet.  Dryali put the protector on his shoulder.

The bloodhawk woke up, shook itself, looked around, and flew off, Mordant easily following, far, far, behind.

Dryali started gathering the slaughtered bloodhawks, then paused, remembering Hikawera had been a servant in a high house.

Dryali: <inquiring> You can cook these?
Hikawera: <stiffly> I don't cook for others, any more.
Dryali: <arguing> You're eating too!
Hikawera: <condescendingly> I'll cook mine.
Dryali: …
Hikawera: o, very well.  Just this once.
Dryali: you could teach us.
Hikawera: as if that's happening without pay.

Dryali used his woodcarver's tools to produce skewers, and Hikawera held the skewers in his hand, cooking the birds with produce flame.  Dryali handed him the paprika.  He looked bored.

Kaikoa returned, just as the bloodhawks were done cooking, saying the bloodhawk had gone SxSE to a tall clump of trees.  Then everyone sat down to enjoy a delicious poultry lunch.  Manu used prestidigitation to flavour his skewers teriyaki.  Tuala added rosemary.

By the time they were ready to checkout the trees Kaikoa found, the protector on Dryali's shoulder faded out.  Also, they realized they were still pretty far from Mantzur.

They gathered their things, and followed Kaikoa to the trees he'd seen.  Looking at them, Dryali saw a bloodhawk nest, and immediately tried to hide.  Tuala, having vision more suited to noticing birds, saw 3 bloodhawks.  The entire group hid.  Tuala pointed out that the nest is quite recently built; it was not sturdy.

Then Tuala firebolted the injured bloodhawk, killing it.  Kaikoa flew up on Mordant, attacking another bloodhawk with his longsword, killing it too.  He called down to the others.  "There's eggs!   ...Stuff!"

"Get down here, you overgrown chickens!" Hikawera called out, which somehow magically caused it to be less graceful.  Manu drew on the Tides of Chaos, and hit the remaining bloodhawk with ray of frost, freezing it solid.  <narrator voice: Matt rolled a natural 20.>

Kaikoa inspected the nest, and announced his finds to the others:  11 eggs, with clothing scraps nestled around them, and a small piece of jewelry.  He threw everything but the eggs down.

Dryali looked through it and found an earring shaped like an apple blossom, silver and enamel.  Tuala said it was something of Āhua.

Kaikoa found nothing else.  He flew up to cast about the nearby area, but saw nothing.  Dryali climbed up to the nest, and looked around; there was no sign of anything in the other trees.  Tuala studied the stuff from the nest again, while Manu, used to the city environs in Cliffshadow, felt a bit aimless.

Kaikoa thought maybe they had been nesting to the south.  Hikawera pointed out some of them had partially healed bludgeoning damage.  Dryali asked, if the people-attacks had been for the bits of clothes to pad the eggs.  Hikawera said, "No.  They just usually pad eggs with whatevs from kills [fur, fluff, feathers, bits of cloth]."

Dryali and Kaikoa brought the eggs down from the nest.  These too would be delicious.  However, everyone was quite full from their prior repast of spiced bloodhawk.  They decided to bring the eggs to the Children of Āhua, who would be pleased to restore the balance by replacing the slain bloodhawks.  Kaikoa was pleased there would be more bloodhawks to eat, in future.

After carefully packing the eggs to prevent breakages and too much cooling, they loaded them onto Mordant, and took off southward.

They found a path southward in no time!  Curious as to its origin, they followed the path hurriedly, Hikawera in front.  It ended in a glade, surrounded by thick, bushy grass, and some bushes, which looked like it would be difficult to push through.  They were about 2 miles northwest of the encampment of the Children of Āhua.

As they looked around this new circumstance, two satyrs seemed to materialize on either side of the glade in front of Hikawera.  They were rough-looking, with leather jerkins and short swords – and nothing else.  "What you gonna give us!" one called out.

Kaikoa visibly swelled, on top of Mordant.  "The opportunity to run away… NOW."  From his angle, Dryali thought he looked vaguely ridiculous, but one satyr stepped back, unsure.

Hikawera's tone was more wheedling.  "Are you sure you want it?  It's really quite smelly," he tried to sound persuasive, but was unconvincing.

The satyrs drew their swords.  Tuala sent a firebolt at the one that had not stepped back.  Manu used message to intimidate him, but utterly failed <narrator voice: Matt rolled a 1.>

Dryali stepped aside for a clear shot with his hand crossbow, and waited; the satyrs attacked Tuala and Hikawera.  Dryali shot the one on the right, but missed.  Tuala was pretty injured <narrator voice: the GM rolled a 20> but the satyr attacking Hikawera missed.

Hikawera moved right, and the satyr missed again, and made his way into the brush; he then snapped his fingers and appeared as a nude human woman.  He wagged his finger at the satyr.  "Naughty, naughty!"  Hikawera winked, and headed into the trees.

Kaikoa hopped off Mordant, and attacked the satyr Dryali had missed, which everyone started thinking of as "Scruffy".  He clearly attacked to subdue, but swung wide.  Mordant flew up 10 feet.

Tuala backed up, and cast protection from evil and good on himself.  Then an exchange of blows that did not land, all around.

The satyr who'd attacked Hikawera was actually drooling, and chased after what he thought was a nude human female; he tried to tackle Hikawera, but tripped and fell.  <narrator voice: the GM rolled a 1.>  At this event, eight of the shrubs surrounding the glade woke up!  Their branches started flailing and they moved to attack the Freelancers.  They missed everyone.

Hikawera, still looking like a nude human female, moved back in the trees from the prone "Drooling", parallel to the fight.  He called out to "Scruffy,"  "Hey handsome, gonna try your hand over here?"

Scruffy turned his head.  "Heyyyyy," and Mordant bit him, then flew back up.  Scruffy tried to attack back, but Kaikoa intervened, causing him to miss.  Then Kaikoa whiffed in return.

Tuala, confused at having plants attack him, pulled out a daggar and slashed at the closest one, but missed.  Manu did the same, and killed his plant.  Dryali, remembering their experience at the orchard's edge in Haven, created a flamethrower eldritch cannon.  He gave it legs, and sent it forward, where it torched two of the attacking plants (and some of the grass).

The satyrs chased Hikawera.  Scruffy tried to grapple him, but failed.  

Kaikoa, who had not been there in Haven fighting shrubs with Hikawera, Manu, and Dryali, was wroth about the change in circumstances.  "You overgrown piece of mutton, what did you do to these plants?!"

The shrubs tried to attack.  The one Tuala failed to slash with a daggar took him out; he was an unconscious cat on the ground, with neither tail so much as twitching.  Another one struck at the flamethrower, damaging it.

Hikawera cast thunderwave on the two satyrs.  Drooling was knocked back, but Scruffy was not.  Maintaining the nude human female illusion, Hikawera tossed "her" hair.

Mordant was as unhappy about the shrubs as Kaikoa, and clawed one and bit the other, killing it[6].  Kaikoa wasn't sure how to hit the shrub, and whiffed; tried again, and still missed.

Manu moved to the shrub that knocked out Tuala, and slashed it with his daggar, killing it.  Dryali shot at another shrub with the hand crossbow, missing; but the flamethrower burned up another shrub.

The satyrs finally flanked Hikawera.  One of them grabbed him, amorous.  Boy, was he about to be in for a surprise.  The remaining shrub attacked Kaikoa.  Hikawera tried to break free from the satyr that had grabbed him, but failed; seeing Kaikoa's situation, sang out "O sweet mystery of life at last I found you!" inspiring Kaikoa.  But Mordant was trying (and failing) to stop the shrub from attacking Kaikoa.  Kaikoa slashed the bush with his longsword, and moved towards Hikawera, whistling for Mordant to follow.

Manu exclaimed, "You need to learn about real bad touch!"  The skeletal hand emerged from the ground, this time, reached up, and grabbed Scruffy by the balls.  His high-pitched scream faded into the forest as the necrotic damage spread upward from his gonads, killing him.  <narrator voice: Matt rolled a 20.>  The hand continued to hold on, after the satyr died.

Dryali, not in a position to contribute to the battle, went over to Tuala, and cast cure wounds, reviving him.  He then started moving through the brush towards the remaining satyr.  The satyr, having grabbed Hikawera, realized a disguise was in play, and drew his short sword; but his swing was high, still thrown off by the disguise self illusion.

Hikawera did his best to draw his own short sword with a flourish that made it appear the sword was coming from between the bare breasts of the disguise self.  However such shenanigans were better suited for a performance, not a fight, and he overbalanced and fell backwards.  <narrator voice:  Lore rolled a 1.>  Hikawera batted his eyelashes at the satyr.  "Oops, so clumsy."

But the shrubs were defeated, and the only enemy left for the Freelancers was Drooling the satyr.  Mordant flew to Kaikoa, who mounted and attacked the satyr.  He did not bother trying to subdue, and wounded the satyr badly.

Tuala jumped up, as cats do, and started moving towards the satyr, hitting him with firebolt as he moved.  Manu tried for an encore with chill touch; the skeletal hand released the dead satyr's balls and moved only the live satyr.  The rot started to visibly spread from the hand.

Dryali, standing next to Tuala, shot the satyr in the head.

Dryali cast about, looking for… he wasn't sure actually, and didn't see anything either.  He picked up the flamethrower, and put it on his shoulder.

Kaikoa, who seemed very professional at looting bodies, found a pendant on one satyr, and a ring on the other.  Hikawera waited until Kaikoa was done, then set both bodies on fire.  Then he pulled out his ocarina, and settled into casting the necessary rituals for identify.

Kaikoa flew up to get a look around, and found an extremely established, but abandoned bloodhawk nest.  <narrator voice:  here, the GM explained how ospreys build their nests in the same place each year, so established nests are many feet tall and deep.>

Manu and Tuala climbed up to the nest, but found nothing interesting.  Dryali cast about for signs of habitation, but all he found was a place where the satyrs had been sleeping under a bush.

Hikawera identified these three things:

• Earring of Āhua - Earring shaped like an apple blossom, requires attunement.
  <Narrator voice: Earring contains 4 weak healing nodes. As an action, a character can use one node to heal 1d4 hit points at touch range. The item regains 1d4 charges at sunrise>
• Loquacious Pendant - Necklace, requires attunement.
  <Narrator voice: the wearer gains +1 to Charisma (Persuasion) checks>
• Ring of the Favored - Ring, requires attunement.
  <Narrator voice: once per day the wearer may roll a saving throw with advantage>

None of the eggs had gotten broken.

Continuing southeast, they did not have to go more than half an hour to find the Mantzur.  They were surprised; they'd been expecting a camp, or… something less permanent.  Certainly something a bit smaller.  Mantzur was the size of a town.  Also, it was strange to see trees in all different cycles.  Two apple trees were near each other.  One was in bloom, one bore fruit; neither should be so, this soon after the Tumultuous Holiday.

The leader of the Children of Āhua was Korfel Goltorah, a firbolg who was much taller than the Freelancers, and positively loomed over Dryali and Hikawera.  His skin was pale and freckley, and his blue eyes were startling under his shock of thick black hair.  As he walked, flowers bloomed in his footsteps.  He moved slowly, as one does when one is usually stronger than those around.

Kaikoa produced the eggs, and explained that they had slain the attacking bloodhawks, but felt they were displaced by these satyrs and their attack shrubs, and that the Children of Āhua would prefer the bloodhawks not to be wiped out.  Korfel accepted the eggs gravely, and said they would try to make things right.  As a reward, he produced 200gp each, reminding that Freelancers would require their 20gp fee.

Dryali then noted, "Shrubs attacked us, in Haven.  Also, a tree!"  Korfel was surprised.  "When was this?"  Dryali told him, "Two primes ago."  Manu nodded, Hikawera grew more intent.

Korfel was unhappy to hear about a tree, which surprised Dryali.  "We thought you already knew!  It is one reason that we came."  At this both Manu and Hikawera nodded agreement.

Korfel denied it.  "No!  We will send out scouts."

The Freelancers stayed with the Children of Āhua in Mantzur and returned to Cliffshadow the next day without incident.