The Missing Lambs

Content Warning For Character Death

We meet Kalina, a cleric dryad, who joins Redra, Nix and Loralai Hexe, Gertrude and Elzaren. It is freezing in Circle Creek today. The technical term is "cold as balls". Kalina jokes that she is basically an Australian plant and not made for this weather.

Andaline welcomes the group. Loralai is confused about the whole guild being paid in lamb for the work they're going to do. But they discuss it and they agree to go. Andaline doesn't have all the information Loralai asks for, and she suggests they speak to Morris and Gertrude. Yes, another Gertrude. The group sets off towards the sheep farmers' homestead, and Loralai wants to pet the sheep.

Once they arrive, they see a beautiful little farmhouse. There is a fence around it, and inside that fence is a little vegetable garden where an ancient looking human woman is gardening. They also see a similarly ancient man. They must be the Halliburts. Gertrude is very excited that they have visitors and she invites them in for tea and cookies.

Gertrude is delighted that Gertrude's name is Gertrude. Morris, however, stays outside. He wants nothing to do with all this friendliness. Mrs. Halliburt knows the Hexe farm and knows that Nix used to be some kind of fleshy being. She's confused as to how he became metal. Loralai asks if she'll be able to come back and speak to the sheep as long as she doesn't expect that they speak back. Mrs. Halliburt says if they speak back, she should see a doctor.

Morris takes the group to see the sheep pen. Elzaren asks some questions and Morris reveals he found a dead lamb, at around dawn, the corpse still steaming. Nix examines the repairs that were done to the fence. They're competent, but done a lot. Morris explains they don't have a lot of help. It's just them. And they make do.

Loralai ponders whether perhaps it was wolves? But Morris says they don't really come this far out. It seems different from wolves. Wolves? You see teeth. But these are claw marks. After hemming and hawing on what to do, they set off into the forest with Kalina leading.

Once there it's obvious there are several sets of prints, several somethings are attacking and it's quite a few. The prints are bird-like, like large chicken feet.

As the light begins to fade, Nix takes the lead. They get to a point where it's pretty dense, but there's a little pond, quite a wet area of the forest. Loralai notices skulls and piles of corpses and bones and takes one. There's a lot of different woodland animals there, Deer, sheep, squirrels, but no predators, only prey animals. It seems like there's a nesting area here, but that's not something you'd expect from a bird creature.

Then they hear rustling of something large, moving, around human-sized, scraping of claws on rocks. From all directions, the group sees creatures that are dinosaurs (though the party, of course, does not recognise them as such). And they look very hungry with the beaks that look like geese from hell. It's time for combat.

The dinosaurs go first and are quite strong. Kalina and Nix both go down, but Loralai heals them. The group decides that they're in over their heads and they decide to run. As they do so they do find a way to trip up the dinosaurs.

The battle is fierce with many ups and downs. Nix and Elzaren try to get ahead of the group to lure the dinosaurs into the trap. But they are overwhelmed. Elzaren is able to be saved, but sadly, the damage done to Nix is too great. Eventually they defeat the dinosaurs, but at great cost. Loralai carries the body of her fallen brother back to the Anvil. Andaline immediately closes the tavern and kicks the customers out in order to care for her Horde.

The remaining party explains what happened, and Andaline advises she'll reach out to Malachi, an individual with great, arcane knowledge. She tells the party that the veils between the worlds were damaged, and that is part of the Horde's function. She also believes something else is going on, specific to Azurhia, and the Horde need to get to the bottom of it.

Drinks are had in honour of Nix, and the party disperses to work through their grief.