After a few hours travel we find ourselves miles away from the mass grave of the Su-Ape pack that attacked us and we start to see the signs of invasion as well as battle all around us. We stumbled across a small village if it could even be called that, the homes made underneath the spider webbed roots that hold the large mangrove tree's above the water as walls of both mud and wood are stacked against the roots holding them in place. We cautiously enter the village but many of us aren't prepared for the savagery that we witness upon walking through the burnt down entrance. Wooden X's are impaled into the ground at random places within the village and the corpses of various creatures are nailed to the beams, their limbs spread to the farthest extent they can be and in some cases further as torn flesh at the joints can be seen. I walk past a smaller display and notice the form of either a child or small humanoid nailed to the display, pieces of its body have been carved off or burnt as its mouth is frozen in a scream of pain. Small mushrooms with faces that stand barely a foot tall are smashed or impaled with arrows or spears, their defenseless bodies not shown mercy from whoever attacked this place.
"Ok everyone I know this isn't exactly encouraging but on the bright side there's nothing left here for whoever did this to come back for so it should be fairly safe for the moment. I want everyone to pair off and search for any salvageable supplies meaning food, fresh water, medicine, ammunition and weapons, etc. Also check for any survivors and if found alert me immediately." I say loudly as I hear the murmurs of agreement as everyone begins walking deeper into the small village and checking houses leaving me with Harold as my partner.
"Harold be honest with me, is this something the bullywugs would do or should we be scared?" I ask quietly as the gnome takes a few seconds of inspecting a hacked apart corpse laying nearby before shuddering and looking back to me.
"This doesn't make much sense Sir Noortain. These displays look like ritual displays I've read about but they're only performed in the abyss, and this body here was killed by two completely different weapons. This piercing wound through the stomach is definitely the work of a bullywug spearman since the head is still inside the wound but this slash across the neck is a common display of power from a Meazel to warn off others from their territories. But Meazel's are hate filled creatures to begin with, they don't work with other creatures and wouldn't leave their homes for anything short of an army. To have one attack a village with so many other weapon types shows it was part of a force. Whoever or whatever is gathering forces is definitely not natural and we need to be wary." Harold says in a worried tone as he walks back towards me and we enter a smaller hut near the back of the village. After walking through the hanging grass that acts as a door I'm shocked at the destruction within the small home. Most of the food has been thrown to the ground and trampled, any furniture is laying in pieces scattered around the floor and the body of a gray scaled carp faced man hands from the ceiling beams, a hooked spear left in between the beams with the hook sliced through the poor creatures face.
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"Kua-toa, young one to by the looks of it. Usually these guys are hunted since they tend to be easily turned into brainwashed master mages but this is just barbaric. And its almost like whoever razed this place to the ground wanted to make sure whoever saw it learned that there was no mercy and that nobody was exempt." Harold mutters as we begin looking through the wreckage in the hopes of some decent salvage. After dragging out the remains of a mattress from the fireplace I can't help but to laugh in happiness as I pull out a wooden box the size of a shoebox. After calling Harold over we open the box and smile at the sight of several small glass jars filled with different colored liquids as well as a few broken ones and some bandages made of vines and leaves.
"This will definitely help since we don't have many potions with us. Lets head back out since this place is a lost cause." I say as Harold nods along at my suggestion before we make our way back towards the village center before Slab is seen sprinting towards me with Jawbone close behind him.
"Master we've found a survivor as well as a native beast that I want. We also lost contact with several of the men near the eastern side of the village including Wug. Tugta says the last thing she remembers is a sad song coming from the bog and then everything went black." Slab says quickly before cackling nervously as we nod and sprint towards the area everyone else is in. As we approach the group I see Mog standing over a large body laying on the ground, red fur covers its form as large gashes and puncture wounds coat it. After Harold rushes over and attempts to help heal the creature I decide to use inspect on it.
(Gorillian Hatchet Man Level 19)
Gorillian's are massive warriors that share many qualities with ape creatures. Standing close to 10ft tall and weighing hundreds of pounds these savage warriors wield devastating weapons in their two sets of arms. Many of these creatures are intelligent and form or join area's that require a strong fighting force. Usually White furred, rare variants have been found and usually show differing personalities as well as abilities to their common cousins.
Walking closer I finally get a clear look at the creature and can't help but feel a slight intimidation at its appearance. Deep crimson fur coats most of its body with small shoulder pads and a chest piece made of some sort of shell equipped to it. two large tusks jut from its bottom lip and it's four arms are splayed out in different directions as its chest barely moves up and down. After a few seconds I realize I can feel a pressure and as I look towards the creatures face it's eyes are focused on me, the black orbs shining slightly with a red tinge as its lips curl into a smile.
"Yo, so I guess they didn't get me huh?" It whispers in a ragged voice before coughing once and passing out.
"Ok Mog and Harold do your best to get this guy up and talking, Sheer I want you to focus on weakpoints just in case this guy is hostile but keep him breathing I have questions. Slab and Wake your with me we're going to search for the others, once we find them we bring them back then deal with this beast you think could be helpful, gather our salvage, and press forward. This place gives me bad vibes all around." I say as everyone nods before Tugta approaches and insists on joining us. After a few minutes of argument I agree and the four of us head into the swamp to search for our missing members.