Return to the Ravine

Now that we have our team fully reconnected, we had to decide what the fate of our prisoner would be. After some wizardly discourse between them and Avindir, it was decided to set them loose upon the wilds. When Makaan said it was effectively a death sentence, the prisoner advocated for the punishment. According to them, it was a justified response to the kidnapping. Also, it turns out the dragonfolk was an old school chum of Avindir! What a small world. There was something about admiration of Avindir's independence too, but I was distracted by not really paying attention.
 
I was given the dwarf's pony, named Clyte. I don't mind; ponies are more my size and tend to be agreeable to me. When I was befriending Clyte, Calliope and Avindir discovered that the ruins were of temple origins, dedicated to a human deity of battle, strength, and bears. That's neat; it might be why I was able to receive an omen from Thuses. Perhaps there is still some lingering hallowed ground?
 
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Nonetheless, we had to hurry south towards the coast and the ravine camp of the cul;t. It took us four days, and I felt that we as a group were struggling during the trip. I, of course, was competent and consistent. I am, after all, a professional.
 
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We found, on the second day of travel, a small farm with a single elderly human woman tilling the field. She was clearly struggling to do the task, and without any farm hands around, it was clear she wouldn't finish it. We gave our salutations and offered to help her out for the afternoon; we are not heartleass. Her name was Lifuth and her husband recently passed away. He was buried in a shallow grave, which was remedied by my cohorts. While they worked on the gravesite and the field, I tended to her. Her body was worn down by years of hard labor. I could *sense* with my qi that she was not long for this life. I offered to apply my masseur skills and help make her comfortable, but I knew that it was a mercy before the end. I've found that most people don't deserve to have their final breaths be labored and full of pain. With a silent prayer to Aen, lord of compassion; Ibris, lord of matrimony and life; and Thuses, lord of the dead, I beseeched the spheres to give her a kindness and mercy she shan't find on this realm.
 
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On the fourth day of travel, we found corpses tied to posts. There were symbols and words (Draconic, I believe) carved upon their bodies. According to Avindir, they were some sort of warning.
 
That evening, we took respite in a cave and I was first watch. As one of the members of the vanguard who saw into the dark the worst, it is reasonable that I would have a watch that was closest to the daylight. I heard the sound of a large cat, likely a predator, but it left us be.
 
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On the fifth day, I awoke outside and performed by stretches and morning rites. It turns out that Avindir's watch was quite energetic. He showed an arrow with strange fletching; apparently a coatl's feather, likely molted. It was fired by a pair of orc hunters who advised against being here.
 
We ignored the hunter's words of warning, packed up our camp, and proceeded to the ravine. It was very abandoned when we arrived. Cold fires, discarded tents, and detritus of a small army were left behind. I slinked into the shadows to be safe, as I am best at. While doing so, Makaan and Calliope tried to follow in my steps, but were less apt at it. They were found by the same two orc hunters, camping in front of the Cave of Ominous Warnings. They saw the two vanguard and decided it was time to leave. With no hunted prey in sight, it was clear that they dropped it off as food for someone in the area. We were not alone.
 
There was some discussion of Calliope wanting the feathers or to go see the coatl or something of that sort, but the orcs made it clear that it was gifted to them from a sacred rite. I understand wanting to keep your cultural treasures close at hand and not viewed as a tourist's commodity.
 
We proceeded into the cave, where I smelled sweat, musk, and heard ambiguous animal noises. When we entered, I saw peaking around columns some kobolds; they must have crafted the space.
 
We proceeded to have a rousing fight, where cultists and kobolds assaulted us. They flung daggers at me, but I was too swift for their poor aims to track. Down the cave, some dragonfolk mage conjured a cloud of grotesque, putrid smoke. I was unable to truly fight in there, so I mostly stuck to the reserves as an enlarged Makaan took the charge. Once the cloud was dispelled, we were able to see the dragonfolk (apparently a woman?) and I landed a particularly striking blow on her, sending my qi rippling through her form. I was quite proud.
 
As the party proceeded to loot and raze the room, I did my job and scouted the rear to ensure we weren't being ambushed. Aside from an over-inebriated cultist, I went back to the first room and saw a passage we'd yet explored. I slid down the rock wall, saw some very curious but unknown mushrooms, and then heard a band of kobolds approach. This made sense; there was no kitchen or cookery seen yet and we know that kobolds tend to be a servant caste in this organization. Surely the few kobolds we've encountered wouldn't be all there was, and we also knew that the hunters were supplying food. With cold, barren fires outside the cave, it made sense that there'd be more utility in this part.
 
I retreated back up the ledge and signed to the cat that there were kobolds approaching. If Kipi was truly a familiar to Avindir, then surely they would be able to pass along the message.
 
Well, it turns out they did, and Avindir showed up alone. I tried to gesture to hide and observe, but he chose instead to strike the kobolds with a blast of exploding force. Our presence detected, a new fight started.
 
It did not go well. Avindir slid down a ramp, only to be grabbed by the mushrooms. I saw the ceiling in the next chamber littered with what appeared to be giant insect bat things, which did not bode well. Kobolds were flooding through the gap. I began to use resources and effort to keep Avindir safe until Makaan arrived, then focused on keeping him safe too. Avindir retreated back over the ledge, then we managed to put down the kobolds with a divinely conjured beam of silver light (from Calliope) and brute strength (from Makaan). Tired, injured, and frustrated at our lack of coordination, we heard the sounds of the giant draconic beastly being that killed the guard outside the Timberpass keep shout towards us.
 
The violence for the day was far from over. Batis must be pleased.