Tales Under a Burning Sun

Old ashik cocked his head to one side, looking like a curious Aarakocra, and listened with intent to the sounds of the night outside the Mekillot slave wagon. He was positive that he had heard a long slow whistle. He gathered all of the captured folk towards the centre of the wagon, away from the exterior walls and told them all not to be worried. To calm them all the old ashik, his voice containing a much stronger timbre than it had shown previously, continued to tell his tale. Scar asks the Kenku what else has happened since the Company of the Cloaked Inix entered the earth tombs, Reechet tells them that six Giants left Stonegard and waded out into the silt sea towards the South Ledopolus bridge. They attacked the bridge but only destroyed a quarter mile of it, which is less than on previous occasions. The Kenku had also spotted that the 'Fat men' were travelling towards the ruins on the east beach. The Company say farewell to Reechet and the Kenku and, roping themselves toge...

Outside the mekillot slave wagon one of the guards left her post to step into the darkness behind a jumble of rocks. She wanted a moment of privacy away from the usual jeers of her male colleagues while she relieved herself. But the moment never came. As soon as she stepped into the moon shadow cast by the boulders she locked eyes with someone in the dark, and before she could scream an alarm an iron hard fist had broken her jaw and knocked her unconscious. Inside the mekillot slave wagon the old ashik continued to tell his tale, waiting for the signal that he hoped would be coming. The nimble Balboa dives to one side as the iron blade slashes downwards from the ceiling of the passageway, he avoids the worst of the blow but is still slashed across his arm. Scar rushes to his side and drags him backwards before first aiding his wound, while Kank steps forwards and examines the floor of the passage. Seeing nothing, Kank steps forwards and peeks around the corner of the junction and can s...

Huddled in the cells in the dark centre of the mekillot wagon the captured people of the small village beside the muddy oasis listen to the silence of the night. Even the old ashik was quiet, seemingly listening intently for something. After what seems like an eternity of quiet the old ashik shakes his head, looks around the dark slave pens and once again starts to tell his tale. Having pulled himself away from the fight with his useless legs dragging behind him, Arthur quickly quaffs a Weezer honey and waits a moment for it's healing properties to kick in. As he feels his injuries repair themselves he slowly climbs back to his feet ready to charge back into the fray. The whole statue sweeps with it's mighty greataxe and the powerful strike cleaves straight through Miloch's right leg, the Human warriors collapses backwards away from the melee. Kank swings again with the Greathammer of Galaxyl and smashes a large chunk out of the bisected statues arm, but the stone guardian ...

That night, as the slave camp settled down, the old ashik got all of the captives from the small village by the muddy oasis to huddle in the centre of their cages away from the exterior walls of the mekillot wagon. He wouldn't tell them why, but since they had been abducted the old man had seemed to grow in confidence and take the lead in decision making for the group. The sibling brothers, who had spent a lot of time with him, also noticed that the old ashik seemed to stand a little straighter and his voice was stronger than before. At that moment his voice, quietly but powerfully, started to tell his tale once again. Scar lashes out with the Sword of Kemalok and catches her attacker in the head with a glancing blow, but the skeletal figure continues to try and bite her. Arthur swings with his Troll maul and once again shatters the leg of a skeleton. But then the tide starts to turn and both Scar and Miloch receive nasty blows, with Miloch being hit in the arm and Scar clawed acro...

Once the guards had collected the empty slave bowls and left the former residents of the village by the muddy oasis locked within the four cells in the depths of the Mekillot wagon, the old ashik stood up and looked around at everyone. His voice was quiet, but held strength, when he told them all to not sleep but be ready. To keep them all awake he continued to tell his tale. The Company of the Cloaked Inix wish farewell to Reechet and the colony of Kenku and continue to climb the steep pathway up towards the Dreaming Caves. When they arrive at a large boulder partially blocking the path, Kank creeps passed it and finds a large cave entrance the is thirty foot across and fifteen foot high at it's highest point. Seeing that the cave is empty, Kank moves beyond it and moves up to where, based on Sabertine's map, he expects to find another cave mouth. He does and so he beckons forwards the others and they descend the slope into the cave. The slope drops into a lower natural cavern...