Session 4 - Kohuru

The funeral service was a simple affair. It seemed that a fair number of the villagers were in attendance, though perhaps most were family members. Sari-Avi introduced the fallen as Kenesh and Nahi then handed the ceremony over to Dabar with a word about two having been taken from Densem and one having returned. Dabar spoke a good word over them. When he finished, Hagmed lit the biers, and the dancing flames snared my attention. This world may not be the place I had expected to find when I left the enclave, but even here death still reigns.

I don't know how long I was lost in those thoughts, but as the flames were growing smaller, Gann approached me and offered his house as a place where we could reside. He said that he has room to spare having lost his family and Alwain has not seen fit to expand it again. It saddened me that even such an act of kindness could not escape the painful touch of death. In hindsight, it was fitting that such dark thoughts crowded my mind considering where I was, but it is not like me to dwell on such matters.

I found Dabar and Arina in conversation and asked Dabar what his thoughts were on Gann's offer. He saw no ill-will or danger in it, so Arina, Toara, and I went there while Dabar went to find Malek.

Gann's house was a quaint place, and one I easily imagined having once been filled with the love and laughter that comes with a strong family. Instead, we slept quietly on the simple mats. Strangers, yet again, filling the space, serving as a reminder of what had been lost though hopefully providing a measure of comfort as well.

~~~~~~ 

We awoke early the next morning and my gloomy thoughts had been slept away. Hagmed had brought us some dried fish and after eating ravenously, I felt whole again, thanks to Dabar once again praying to Alwain on my behalf. As an added blessing, Gann's family had experience in the wood we were headed into, and he provided us with some direction on where to go.

Dabar led us quickly from Densem. I don't know what his hurry was, but he kept looking around and ducking when he saw someone. I don't know what his problem was - either he had an altercation while he looked for Malek last night or his eulogy had not been well received. Maybe that mystery will be solved upon our return. We left the village without incident and were soon in the woods.

~~~~~~ 

Malek keeps calling himself a bear and named his wolf Cousin, and until now I thought he was just crazy. But considering the way he led us along the Wuma Amwa, I'm starting to wonder if he might be telling the truth. His keen eyes had us find the pile of stones Gann had told us about, and I saw him catch a fish right out of the air as it jumped! Despite all my Hulathi training, I don't know if even I could have performed such a feat.

Turning South, he led us deeper into the woods, which grew denser and darker. Our progress continued to slow, and we began discussing when to stop for the night. We decided to press on just a little bit further when Malek suddenly halted at the top of a ravine. Dabar loudly called out to him, and before we knew it, a pair of tiger beetles were upon us!

Despite their size and speed, we made relatively quick work of them, though not before they had mortally wounded Dabar. Arina had pulled him from the jaws of one even as Malek slew it, but there's a hole where his eye had been, and were it not for the acacia resin and Arina's skills, he may have entered into Alwain's eternal embrace.

Having slain the beetles, Malek and I dug through one of the mounds in the glen, finding a beastman's hand (still wearing two rings). The glen bore evidence that we were not the only ones to have fought tiger beetles, yet despite that, Malek spotted tiny deer tracks heading South. Could it be an ayal? Also in that direction, though more southeasternly, was a very clear trail of mushrooms heading into the forest.

I don't know which direction we'll take, but I should get back to Arina and Dabar. He was such an aid to me after our last battle, that I feel I ought to do what I can to help him in return. And we really do need to set up camp somewhere…..

Session 3 - Kohuru

Now that the skirmish was over, we gathered the fallen and tended to the wounded. While Malak tried vainly to take their champion's weapon from the wagon, we became acquainted with those we rescued: Hagmet, Albier, Beriti, and Zakar. They had been foraging for supplies to sell to Jepeth. Zakar's wagon of herbs had been taken, but the others were still intact. I don't think Hagmet will end up with much profit for the fish they caught for she has a voracious appetite! And one matched by Malak who also seems to be fond of dried fish.


Before burning the beastmen, or more specifically ratakan now that I got a good look at them, Albier and Malak harvested their ears for the bounty while I went through the little bit of clothing they wore looking for anything of value. I managed to find 17 oddly-designed black gold pieces and some sort of map. No one in the group was able to make heads or tails of it, but perhaps someone in Densem might.

We agreed to journey with the survivors back to Densem, and the rest of the night passed uneventfully. We each took our turn at the watch: Malak and Cousin taking the first, Arina and myself the second, and Dabar and Toara the third. That arrangement seemed to work out well, and we may decide to make that our nightly rhythm. I know I slept better knowing I wouldn't likely be slain in my sleep.

~~~~~~~~

We arrived in Densem where Zakar, who had been quite impressed with Arina's administrations, introduced us to Sari-Avi. We explained why we were there and what we were looking for; she was grateful for our helping the caravan and freely answered our questions. When I showed her the map, she reacted strongly to the marking of the black tree - said that she thought the beastmen tribe had been long wiped out. (It turns out that Dabar is originally from Densem and they all thought he was dead too, so I don't know how much stock to put into her claim about the black tree tribe).

She couldn't tell us for certain where the few remaining ayal roam, but she gave us a direction to start. When we told her about the ayal's rebirth ritual, she turned hopeful for it provided an alternate interpretation of an old prophecy. If true, she seems to think we might be able to restore all the ayal - not just the one we slay. She also gave us a number of doses of layona and directions on where we could find layona trees if we wanted to take branches back to Arashad.

There's to be a funeral later this evening for those we weren't able to save, and while we waited for that, I asked around the village about the map as well as to find someone interested in the black gold I had found. No one could help me with the map, but a man named Gann was willing to buy the coins. I might have been able to get more elsewhere, but he seemed eager to acquire them, so if we find more, perhaps we could get a better rate.

I think the funeral is about to start.

The Takan of the Zaharets

Takan (l) ­­– Takan is the Luathi term for all of the degenerate beastmen which the Priest-Kings of Muadah bred during the darkness which came before the current age. Although the takan take many forms and shapes, the Luathi classify the most common of the beastmen based off the roles they observed during their enslavement by the Kingdom of Sin.

• Atakan – It is said that all takan possess a rapacious desire, but the atakan’s lust for flesh is legendary. The atakan stand nearly as tall as the giants, and they crave the flesh of men and hann alike. Strong enough to rip a horse apart, they are frequently found among the other takan, being used as enforcers.
• Gadakan – Muadah bred these beasts first, as creatures of burden and labor. Their dim minds were soon kindled with hate, and they were released into the wild. The gadakan possess strong regenerative properties, only able to be stopped by Alwain’s light, that of the sun or fire.
• Mavakan – These were the foot soldiers of the Barak Barad and therefore the most prevalent. Their simian-like forms provide them with greater strength than the average man, and their cunning is no less fierce.
• Norakan – These are the runts of the takan bloodline. Small and foul, they multiply even quicker than the rest of the takan. They live much of their lives underground, digging tunnels beneath the earth for the rest of the takan to use.
• Oritakan – These were the rulers of Barak Barad. Muadah filled the hearts of these takan with a dark and terrible will for domination, and they were the orchestrators of the Kingdom of Sin. All Luathi live in fear of the Oritakan, who brutally dominate the memory and history of the men of bronze.
• Retakan – Massive compared to the oritakan and the mavakan, the retakan are terrors in the dark. They are patient, stealthy, and sly moments before they burst forth into an explosion of carnage. Many a caravan has fallen to the predations of the retakan.
• Tsutakan – The Luathi refer to these beasts as hunters of men. For every ten men who escaped the lash of Barak Barad, the tsutakan returned with the bones of nine of them. Tsutakan still roam the plains around settlements of men, seeking small groups to carry off into the night.