On Caravan Trail..
The sandstorm continues on its north to south course, paralleling the mountains. The caravan packs up, preparing to resume its trek. Shadya takes Nasir aside and gets his assistance in patching up the small amount of damage she took fighting the skeletons.
As they travel, Fiamma notes birds circling somewhat off to the right. Shadya informs the caravan master that she intends to investigate, and Orlando, Shadya and Fiamma ride off. They find a horse, riderless, defending a body from the carrion birds. The horse is suffering from lack of food and water. Fiamma and Shadya eventually calm the beast and give it water. Then we turn our attention to the body. He is lying on his back, dressed in the gear of the kingdom to which we are headed. It is obvious that he has provided food for desert scavengers. Investigation proves that he had taken an arrow in the back (although both arrow and arrowhead are long gone). It is not clear that the wound would have been sufficient to kill. Fiamma discovers that one of the laces of his jerkin is different from the others: it is a red ribbon akin to that we were given to identify ourselves to the caravan we must save.
Shadya wraps the body it its blanket and takes it and the horse back to the caravan. We will bury this unfortunate messenger in a less sandy camp. The horse once was a find beast and Shadya intends to do what she can to restore it to health.
That evening camp is made in the rocky desert. Shadya and friends bury the body and place stones to discourage further scavenging. They accept their watches - in the usual pattern they hold when traveling alone: first, Orlando; second, Shadya; third, Fiamma. During Shadya's watch she hears excited jackals and what sounds to be a voice in distress. Once again informing her fellow guards, she wakes Orlando and Fiamma and they ride into the desert. Led by Shadya's sense of direction, they come across a pack of jackals harrying a strange deer-like creature. Several jackals are already down, but Shadya, still disturbed by the messenger's death, shoots an arrow at a jackal, grazing it. Fiamma casts a light spell on the eyes of another. The pack runs off. Although the warriors attempt to calm the jackals' erstwhile prey, it is distrustful and somewhat aggressive. It bares its carnivore teeth and, eventually, slinks off. Shadya finds herself wondering if it was as much a victim as she had at first supposed. Fiamma recalls a legend of a creature that slays humans by using its human-like call of distress to lure them close enough to kill. Orlando cuts short Shadya's apology for disturbing her companions' sleep for such a thing by observing that, had they not encountered the creature in numbers, it might well have attacked Shadya rather than slunk off as it did. So, instead, Shadya expresses her thanks to her friends.
The next day's travel finds them passing another caravan and Shadya passes on the news of the creature with the human voice lure. Our caravan reaches the base of the mountains at dusk. As Fiamma and Nasir set up camp, they are accosted by two jackals. Although the jackals do not seem to want anyone else summoned, they lead Fiamma and Nasir out into the desert. There they find a council of jackals and speak with the King of the Jackals. He informs them that - in return for their destruction of the deer creature (which preys on both human and jackal) he promises information that may be of value. Fiamma agrees and the King appoints the two messenger jackals - Dazzle Eyes and Sore Paw - to guide the humans to the creature's lair.
Back in camp, Fiamma explains the task to the warriors, and they and Akbar agree to it. Dazzle Eyes and Sore Paw prove good guides and the group settles down outside the creature's foul-smelling cave to await its return. After several hours, return it dies, and the warriors determine to entrap it within its lair, preventing any chance that it escapes. The cave is a relic of some tectonic shift and the entrance is rather narrow. Shadya, bow drawn, leads the single file. Fiamma casts a light spell as the entrance opens slightly - and Shadya shoots. The creature whirls to the attack - biting with razor-sharp teeth - while Shadya drops her bow and draws her saif. There is little room for maneuvers, although Fiamma tries several spells and knife blows. Orlando - without a pole weapon - is helpless to assist. Thus the creature and Shadya fight it out, both inflicting horrid wounds on the other. Shadya is barely standing when, at last, the creature falls.
Fiamma darts in to explore and Shadya asks Orlando to watch over the half-elf, as Nasir and Akbar busy themselves stanching the desert warrior's injuries. They manage to get her nearly half healed.
The cave is rank with the remains of the creature's victims, and Fiamma finds various human skulls. Searching, she also finds a purse of coins (50 large silvers of unknown origin) and, inside, yet another purse containing a yellow feather. Akbar joins the treasure hunt and finds a dagger with a handle shaped like a bird; its beak is the blade.
The group returns to the Jackal King. He is pleased that they have accomplished their tasks and tells them that the man they buried the previous night had been dying as he came through the mountain pass. When he was buried, he had been dead for 3 days. It had been a slow death. Akbar hypothesizes that the arrow had been poisoned.
Later Fiamma asks Akbar to cast Det. Mag and Identify on the treasures they found in the lair.
[End of Run Note: Shadya is down 13 hit points.]
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