The Black Unicorn

What with the lack of jobs lately, the Guild has been taking on a few unusual jobs. Requests that perhaps wouldn't otherwise be taken on. Jobs in Am'shere for instance, are rare indeed, mostly being taken care of by those that live there.

Certainly, it's a broad shift in the weather from Alexandria to Am'shere, and one step through the gate tells that to be true. The village elder of the village in Am'shere that you're sent to is a bronze-scaled sith-makar. A female of some height and width through the shoulders. She looks like someone that takes no flack from anyone. She has her arms crossed across her chest as she gives you the common greeting and gets right to business.

"Peasssce on your nessstsss. Thisss one will get right to the point. There have been attackssss. Sssneaky sstealingsss. Our huntersss are being hunted. If one isss sslow, their blood isss found, but no printssss or hint of what took them. Our animalsss are being taken in the night. We need... help." She seems reluctant to admit this last part, and grinds her teeth together.

The shift from Alexandria to the jungle had quickly encouraged Dolan to shed his winter gear, roll it up and stuff it in his pack. He'd listened to this quietly, the unusual lifestyle of the sith-makar prompting him to hold up, shut up, and listen up. "Yeah? You seeing signs of a struggle, or just - blood and nothing else?" he asks when the explanation is done.

Dirk has only been to the jungle once before. The sweltering heat and humidity do not agree with the old snowbeard at all. Lulu seems similarly discomfited, fluffing up her feathers and hooting indignantly as they pass through the portal. "Aye, I know, lass, I hate it too," the old ranger grunts. He's already starting to break a sweat. "But a job's a job, an' Lady knows we're nae made o' coin." He squares his shoulders as the sith addresses them, tipping back the brim of his tricorne. "Peace on yer nest, marm," he says. "Not tae fret. We'll find whatever it is attackin' yer people an' put an end to it."

MAC-B1G's faceplate rotates constantly for some time following the abrupt change in biome. It tromps to the initial briefing point with the others and then receives the task overview. After parsing the data, it queries,"Assault locations: localized, dispersed, other?"

"Ezcotzin struggled." This assertion seems determined, and she grinds her teeth some more. "But huntersss were unable to track! Thisss one can not believe that our bessst hunter wasss taken with hardly a fight."

After a moment she stares at the golem with his questions and only glances briefly at Dirk's reassurance. "Thiss one will believe when it isss done. What isss... 'localiszed, dissspersssed' mean?"

GAME: Dirk rolls Sense Motive: (5)+3: 8
GAME: Dolan rolls sense motive: (19)+17: 36

A cheeky, warm grin spreads across Dolan's face for the question. "He's asking if they were all found in one small area, or all over the place," he translates good-naturedly. The expression lingers, but fades then, and he just nods. "We'll see what we can find. Dirk here's no slouch as a tracker, himself. So were all of the people taken alone at the time they were taken? Was there ever enough blood to suggest that more than one went missing at a time?"

"Affirmative," the construct confirms to Dolan following the translation. This query posed, MAC awaits further intelligence or direction from this and other inquiries made. In the interim, its faceplate pans in a slow seven-hundred-twenty degree rotation of the surroundings.

Dirk tugs at his beard, glancing between his comrades, before looking back to their sith employer. "Well, marm... I've only been tae the jungles 'round Mictlan once," he says. "But I've heard plenty o' stories 'bout how the jungle can kill ye. None of 'em are pleasant. Even yer sharpest hunter might've been caught unawares." He shifts uneasily on his feet. "Beats cannibal savages. They shrink yer head afore they cook ye an' eat ye. Ergh." Lulu flutters her wings and fluffs her breast feathers. "Hoo!" Seems she doesn't care for the idea of cannibal savages either.

"Ah!" The female sith-makar nods seriously. "All huntersss taken one-one-one. All animalsss taken one-one-one. Egg-watchersss on high alert. No egg-sssnatchers! No hatchlingsss taken." She puffs up her chest a little at this, proud. "All huntersss taken in the jungle. Animalsss sstolen from pensss."

For a moment there's silence and then she seems to think of something else you might find helpful. "All taken alone. All rear-guardsss or ssscoutsss. No huntersss in the main group. No cannibalsss!"

"So whatever this is, is picking off of the edges, taking whatever it thinks it can get without being seen," Dolan concludes, waving a hand at Dirk. "Dirk, they're distressed enough," he warns. It's a gentle thing, but a warning, nonetheless. "So we stay together. No splitting up, no going on ahead. The noise is okay, it's not a bad idea to draw attention. With any luck, we'll draw _its_ attention and see if it doesn't decide to show itself."

"Acknowledged." MAC focuses optics upon Dolan briefly before it moves to scan the perimeter as it might from here. Only a few thudding, tromping steps are taken. A lack of noise may not be an issue. "Recommendation: patrol of perimeter."

Dirk winces a little bit. "Er. Sorry," he says, shuffling his feet. He looks over to MAC and nods his head. "Aye, that's a good idea, both o' ye," he says, nodding to Dolan as well. "Head out, trek through the jungle, an' see if we can lure this beastie to -us-. Then we can bring it down, an' be back tae Alex in time fer supper!" He shuffles his boot on the floor. "Assumin' we dinnae run across the head-shrinkin' cannibals. Or catch the jungle fever. Or get bit by some manner o' poisonous insect." He starts counting off on his fingers. "Et by giant spiders. Infested wi' spore-molds. Sunk in quicksand. Aye, jungle's got a -lot- o' ways tae kill ye." He pauses, and his cheeks pink up under his beard. "Er. Sorry. I'm doin' it again, aren't I?"

The female sith-makar hisses at Dirk, and looks at the others with a slightly more dubious expression than she'd been wearing before. "Thisss one will let you do... what-ever." With that said, she stalks off, allowing you to do... whatever it is that you intend to do.

"Dirk, I said _stop_." One of Dolan's gloved hand raises to cuff Dirk across the back of the head, but it's too late as the female stalks off. He lets out a sigh, and lets the hand drop. "All right. Checking the perimeter is a good idea. Let's only go out into the jungle if it doesn't show itself. You ready?"

GAME: Dolan rolls perception: (5)+13: 18
GAME: MAC-B1G rolls perception: (10)+14: 24
GAME: Dirk rolls Perception: (3)+14: 17

Dirk grunts, staggering a bit at that cuff to the back of his head. He catches his tricorne before it drops to the ground, scowling up at Dolan as he rubs the back of his head. "Oww! Dana's teats, I -said- sorry, didn't I?" he grumbles. He sets his hat back atop his head, looking towards the edge of the village. He unlimbers his thunderbelcher, racking the slide. "Right. We'll check the perimeter first. An' then head out intae the jungle. See if we can find this whatever-the-hell an' kill it."

"I think you pissed her off," Dolan counters, all smile gone. "Good enough, let's get going." He reaches back and loosens his blade in its harness on his back. "Hopefully we an make this quick."

MAC-B1G tromps its way across the encampment to depart it and then pivots to patrol along its perimeter, per decided directive. Its faceplate traverses near perpendicular to its direction of travel, scanning the jungle beyond. Upon one such panning circuit, its focus narrows, though travel does not halt. "Biological detected. Initial identification: herbivore. Activity: grazing. Threat index: 0.23"

Now that MAC-BIG has pointed it out, through the dense foliage you can make out a horse. A slender, vaguely little horse. It is black and it is indeed munching away at the plants near it. It blinks at you and starts to wander off into the jungle. It doesn't seem to know or care about any dangers in the jungle. Could this be one of the villages' animals?

GAME: Dirk rolls Knowledge/Nature+2: (14)+14+2: 30

Dirk squints through the heavy jungle foliage. "Wait a tick... do sith'makar even -keep- horses?" he wonders aloud. He takes a step forward, but then sucks in a gasp. "Great Gilead's Ghost! That's nae a horse! That's a -unicorn-!" He starts trundling forward, sweeping a hand over his shoulders. "C'mon, lads! Unicorns are supposed tae be lucky!" He scurries off through the jungle, hoping to catch a closer look at the fabled creature.

"Dirk, don't go off alone!" Dolan fairly shouts after him, both sides of his face twisting into an ugly scowl. "After him, stay with me! Nobody goes off alone!" Shaking his head, he breaks into a run, glancing back to see if the warforged is following, and hoping desperately that he is

MAC-B1G turns to follow and remain in sight of the others, if not an immediately-still-cohesive unit. "Query: define 'unicorn.' Expound on probability-altering effects." It has no data on such creatures, nor this biome as a whole.

GAME: Aftershock rolls 1d20+10: (8)+10: 18

As Dirk dashes along to try and catch up to the unicorn; quickly vanishing into the foliage there is a sudden roil of black and orange that clammors over him. If he hadn't been moving so fast, it would have bowled him over. Whatever it is, it vanishes into the jungle just as quickly as it came. The village behind you is gone. The horse or unicorn is ahead of Dirk by a handful of feet. And something - something - is out here with you.

GAME: MAC-B1G rolls perception: (18)+14: 32
GAME: MAC-B1G casts Toughen Construct. Caster Level: 10 DC: 14
GAME: Aftershock rolls 1d20+10: (8)+10: 18
GAME: Aftershock rolls 1d20+10: (8)+10: 18

MAC-B1G's optics pivot as the darting splash of colors nearly strike Dirk and move off. "Potential threat detected! Defensive measures engaged." Several nodules on the construct's chassis glow briefly and additional plating telescopes over its shell for additional reinforcement.

GAME: Aftershock rolls 1d20+10: (9)+10: 19

Out of the shadows comes a striped form. Black and orange and full of teeth and claws. It tries to pounce on top of Dirk a second time, but misses him with both claws. It manages a third blow while he angles his weapon, but it misses also.

GAME: Dirk rolls shoot+2: aliased to Ranged+1-3+2: (10)+12+1+-3+2: 22
GAME: Dirk rolls shoot+2: aliased to Ranged+1-3+2: (7)+12+1+-3+2: 19
GAME: Dirk rolls shoot+2: aliased to Ranged+1-3+2: (3)+12+1+-3+2: 15
GAME: Dirk rolls shoot+2: aliased to Ranged+1-3+2: (3)+12+1+-3+2: 15

Dirk yelps as the great tiger leaps at him. "HEEK!" He ducks and rolls, coming up onto one knee. He swings up his thunderbelcher and pops off two shots, ducking a swipe of the claws between blasts. "BAD KITTY! NO TREAT!" he growls, racking the slide. "Carefeul lads, these tigers can be tricky!"

GAME: Dolan rolls weapon1+2+2: (10)+11+2+2: 25
GAME: Dolan rolls 2d6+6+2+2d6: (4)+6+2+(6): 18
GAME: Aftershock rolls 1d20+10: (11)+10: 21
GAME: Aftershock rolls 1d20+10: (7)+10: 17

Dolan roars, the sound of the leather harness hitting the ground lost in his raised voice. "THAT'S WHY!" Sword raised, he rushes in to close the distance, shouting, "Daeus' light be the predators' bane!" The blade flashes down, blood sprays, and the tiger goes down. He takes a deep breath, slowing down, and lowers the blade. "That was close."

After Dirk engages, the construct lifts one primary manipulator and appears preparing to take direct action... only to witness Dolan dash in to strike the beast down. It hesitates, collating, before lowering the limb. "Evaluation: threat neutralized."

Another tiger pounces out of the woodwork, aiming for MAC-BIG this time, but it over-shoots the construct and lands on its feet close by. Meanwhile the unicorn prances into the area, glaring at the group of you it lays its black horn on the tiger and... Magic knits the tigers wounds together. There's something wrong with how the tiger looks in the aftermath of this magical healing however. The wounds stay sticky-black and ooze. The tiger growls something that sounds like gratitude to the unicorn and the unicorn dips its head.

GAME: Dirk rolls Knowledge/Arcana: (11)+3: 14
GAME: Dirk rolls Knowledge/Arcana: (17)+3: 20
GAME: Dirk rolls shoot: aliased to Ranged+1-3: (20)+12+1+-3: 30 (THREAT)
GAME: Dirk rolls shoot: aliased to Ranged+1-3: (3)+12+1+-3: 13
GAME: Dirk rolls dmg: aliased to 1d12+1+6: (6)+1+6: 13
GAME: Dirk rolls dmg: aliased to 1d12+1+6: (10)+1+6: 17
GAME: Dirk rolls dmg: aliased to 1d12+1+6: (9)+1+6: 16
GAME: Dirk rolls dmg: aliased to 1d12+1+6: (10)+1+6: 17

Dirk's eyes get wide as tea saucers as that unicorn works its magicks on the tiger. And despite having its wounds healed, the great feline looks even -more- dead than it did before. "Beards o' me -fathers-! That's no unicorn!" he grunts. He taps his bandolier, and the gems studding the loops shift their pattern, turning from points of green to red. He takes aim and fires off a shot. It slams straight into the unicorn center mass, blowing a massive chunk of nasty viscera out the other side. "Think this might be some sort o' demon, lads!" he calls to the others as he racks the slide once again. "Use cold iron if ye got it! Or the blessings o' the gods!"

GAME: Dolan rolls weapon1+2: (17)+11+2: 30
GAME: Dolan rolls weapon1+2-2-5: (1)+11+2+-2+-5: 7 (EPIC FAIL)
GAME: Dolan rolls weapon1+2-2-5: (20)+11+2+-2+-5: 26 (THREAT)
GAME: Dolan rolls weapon1+2-2-5: (19)+11+2+-2+-5: 25 (THREAT)
GAME: Dirk used a Bullet.
GAME: Dirk used a Bullet.
GAME: Dolan spends ONE use of BANE.
GAME: Dolan rolls 2d6+6+2+2d6+4: (5)+6+2+(4)+4: 21
GAME: Dolan rolls 2d6+6+2+2d6+4+2d6+6+4+2: (9)+6+2+(4)+4+(8)+6+4+2: 45
GAME: MAC-B1G rolls weapon4: (20)+14: 34 (THREAT)
GAME: MAC-B1G rolls weapon4: (11)+14: 25
GAME: MAC-B1G rolls weapon4: (13)+14: 27
GAME: MAC-B1G rolls weapon4: (14)+14: 28
GAME: MAC-B1G rolls damage4+damage4: aliased to 3d6+9+3d6+9: (12)+9+(12)+9: 42
GAME: MAC-B1G rolls damage4: aliased to 3d6+9: (10)+9: 19
GAME: MAC-B1G rolls damage4: aliased to 3d6+9: (9)+9: 18

Dirk's shout elicits an even blacker scowl from Dolan, the half-twisted face a mask of fury. "Oh, it's like that, is it? DIE!" The bloody greatsword flashes again, a focused and deadly strike that sends the massive fanged head rolling and bouncing bloodily across the jungle foliage. The body slumps lifeless to the ground, and he wears a feral grin as he turns his attention to the demonic unicorn. "That's one. Now for you, you little shit. Put you out of your misery."

MAC-B1G is nearly struck by another, hidden, tiger even as the first receives expedited repairs. The construct turns to its attacker, additional plating sliding into place over vital areas of its chassis. "Additional threat detected. Neutralizing." Primary manipulators as raised and tri-lobed 'fists' are thrust at the carnivorous fauna via hydraulic extension of its limbs. The force crushes key frame components and renders internal systems inoperative. The result is neutralization, if ...sticky.

The unicorn rises back to its feet. Blood and ichor drip from its dark hide, the hole in its middle knitting closed. It's grotesque watching this thing heal the damage that should have put it down permanently. "Kill me." The thing croaks, and you realize abruptly that this thing can _communicate_. "My mate is dead."

It steps forward, lowering its horn. "My companion is dead." An inky tear is blinked from it's golden eye. It can weep. "A devil came to grant my wish... And now all that is left to me is the corruption of the gift that was given to me."

GAME: Dirk rolls Knowledge/Religion: (8)+3: 11
GAME: Dirk rolls Knowledge/Religion: (2)+3: 5
GAME: Dolan rolls knowledge/religion: (7)+11: 18

Dirk's jaw drops as the unicorn -speaks-. And it words move the old snowbeard's heart. "Blessed Lady," he mutters, lowering his thunderbelcher. "There... there has tae be some way we can help ye without -killin'- ye..." He turns his stricken gaze over to Dolan. "Dolan lad, there has tae be summat we can do!"

Slowly, Dolan sinks to his knees, the unicorn's tale striking him to the soul as surely as it does Dirk. He casts aside the bloodied blade, leaving it dropped in the grass several feet away. "Fucking wish devils. Seen that before. But - you know. I don't have to kill you, not if you don't want to," he tells it quietly. "I can take you back to my temple. If you truly repent - the Sunguards ought to be able to do something about the corruption. If you truly repent, come here, and I'll heal you as much as I can. It's a damned long trip back."

The unicorn lowers its head more, looking at the dead tigers and weeping silently. "I do not know if I can live without them, but this... this should not be. I _must_ repent. I must pay for my sins." It steps toward Dolan, wholly trusting, and wholly uncaring if that trust is betrayed. It is ready to die if that is its fate.

MAC-B1G has difficulties fully parsing this most recent data. The self-repairing (yet leaking) herbivore does not currently appear to be a threat, nor was it previously so directly. Its manipulators lower. Much, if not all, of the additional contextual cues are unintelligible to it, so it can only process the facts. Its faceplate shifts from the equine to its fellow taskforce units and returns to the damaged one. "Proper facilities available. Repair preferable to disassembly."

Dirk watches as Dolan goes to kneel by the unicorn. Seeing his friend disarm, the old snowbeard does likewise, reaching up to slide his thunderbelcher into its back holster. "I'm only a simple woodsman," he says. "But I do know that the gods are good. If ye put yer trust in 'em, they can make miracles happen."

"Grab the heads, the makari will want proof," Dolan tells his mates, absently rubbing at the bandage wrapped around his neck beneath the cloak. "Look. I'm sorry we had to do that. The makari village got upset and called out a mark on your companions. I'll take care of this, as much as I can." With that, he pulls from inside his breastplate the symbol of the stylized dragon, and begins the process of healing the unicorn as far as he is able.

GAME: Dolan casts Cure Light Wounds. Caster Level: 6 DC: 14
GAME: Dolan casts Cure Light Wounds. Caster Level: 6 DC: 14
GAME: Dolan casts Cure Light Wounds. Caster Level: 6 DC: 14
GAME: Dolan casts Cure Light Wounds. Caster Level: 6 DC: 14
GAME: Dolan casts Cure Light Wounds. Caster Level: 6 DC: 14
GAME: Dolan rolls 1d8+5: (1)+5: 6
GAME: Dolan rolls 1d8+5: (3)+5: 8
GAME: Dolan rolls 1d8+5: (8)+5: 13
GAME: Dolan rolls 1d8+5: (1)+5: 6
GAME: Dolan rolls 1d8+5: (8)+5: 13

The unicorn lays before Dolan, allowing the healing to course through its body. By the time he's done the unicorn looks... more very dark gray? And fully healed. It winces at Dolan's order to cut the heads off the tigers but doesn't say anything. In fact it says nothing at all for the rest of your trip to the village. There you are greeted and thanked for killing the animals and the unicorn stands silently by though it's clearly uncomfortable the whole time.

You take it all the way back to Alexandria with you, and people STARE. Even in Alexandria a black unicorn is an unusual sight. The priests are able to restore the unicorn to it's natural state, and it leaves you with the knowledge that there is a devil out there. One granting wishes to the desperate. One that serves powers that the unicorn knows not, but to command such power? It knows that such a price as it won was not easily given.

Eventually the unicorn - white once more - leaves and returns to the wilderness that it belongs to. Before it leaves it requests a brief audience with each of you, and promises that should you ever find the devil that it made its wish to, that it will grant you a boon to help you destroy it. All you need do is go to the forest at that time, and speak its name.

-End