VIII. Shugluk Elf-Butcher
General Summary
Still reeling from Gault's sudden death, Dev quietly created a Tiny Hut in the on the edge of the pool beneath the Hill Giant's lair. The party piled in, finally, and drifted into a troubled sleep, back-to-back and down one member. Eight hours later, as the party awoke and grimly prepared themselves to resume their battle with the Hobgoblins, they were approached by an older Orcish man who introduced himself as Shugluk Elf-Butcher. He described a vision he'd had of the party's coming, telling them that they'd been sent by Gruumsh to do battle against the giants that had enslaved his clan. His clan he described as weaklings who had fallen out of favor with Gruumsh for being unable to defeat the giants themselves. The man seemed to have been familiar with Alizeh Wolfhound already, referring to her as the “Defender of the Trees”. The party requested that Shugluk show them where his clan was holed out in the caverns, as they wished to speak to Vy'Thek and coordinate a rebellion against the giants with her. Shugluk agreed, begrudgingly. With Shugluk accompanying them, the party decided their best next course of action would be to enter the adjoining cave and slaughter the Behir that had swallowed Gault the night before. They figured that the cave still needed to be explored as an option for an area the Tusk Takers didn't know about, as they were still vastly outnumbered. When the party made their way to the other side, the Behir tried to speak to them once again, as he had with Kohinoor the night before. Unfortunately, no one understood what it was trying to say. Shugluk assisted the group in slaying the Behir and several Carrion Crawlers that emerged at the scent of blood, only after Achilla went down during the fight. Once the cavern was cleared, Lady Kohinoor cut Gault’s body out of the Behir’s carcass and cleansed it of the creature's entrails. Shugluk offered to cast Speak with Dead, which the party took him up on. He warned that the process would offer no closure, as they wouldn’t be actually be speaking with Gault’s soul but rather an animating spirit--a fragment of his consciousness that only knew what it did in life. The party took turns asking him questions:
"Is there anyone we should notify in the event of your death?"-Tharduin Oakheart
"Markaya of Ivargrad...the only woman I've ever loved...and Prince Oberwerner von Offenweizen...tell him my debt is repaid in blood."Shugluk cut in for the second question.-Gault Harrow
"Who is the strongest person you've ever met?"-Shugluk Elf-Butcher
"Achilla...the Shield of Ivargrad..."Shugluk seemed excited by Gault's answer. Lady Kohinoor spoke next.-Gault Harrow
"Gault...I want you to know that you were worth saving, even if you didn't want me to. I--"-Lady Kohinoor
"He can't hear you."The words hurt. Despite Shugluk’s warning, Kohi had desperately wanted to say goodbye. But the semblance of Gault that they spoke to indeed offered no comfort, and instead unnerved her deeply. The party still had questions left to ask, but none wanted to ask them. Instead, Kohi and Shugluk spent the next hour preparing and holding a makeshift funeral for Gault. During the ceremony, Dev sang a song he had composed in Gault's memory. The performance brought Lady Kohi to tears. At last, whispering a prayer to herself, Kohi pushed Gault's body down the river that ran through the Behir’s lair and out to the pond Tharduin Oakheart had told them likely laid at its end.-Shugluk Elf-Butcher
Missions/Quests Completed
Slay the Behir
