We arrive in the border town between the Black Dragon and Phoenix Clans as the shop-keeps are opening their doors to start the day. Deciding not to raid that dungeon saved us quite a bit of time, and I am optimistic about the future. The child has been silent since the previous night, and I believe Treash said something to him before bed. He appears sullen and disheartened.
Once in town we set about the normal routine of selling any spoils we have, and investigating what they have for sale here with our new found money. We are able to sell the Dragon skin and teeth and buy some expertly crafted dragon bone weaponry for most of the group. Its not magical, but the dragons innate magical abilities will probably help.
While about town, Kamala informs us she has met a man needing the help of some botanists and archaeologists. We remind her that we don't actually know much about those subjects, but decide to check it out anyway. If it won't take too long it might give a little income while we wait for the dragon bone weaponry to be made.
He is an elderly gentleman, and explains that he is opening a resort and destination getaway for the wealthy. He needs someone to go and check on the animals and plants there to verify their health and general status.It sounds easy enough that we can let Kish fake our way through it, but it also sounds far away. We explain our timetable to him, and how we have a prior commitment the next morning. We don't really have time to kill doing this sort of thing and prepare to leave, when he explains that he has an airship prepared and we should be able to make it back by morning at the latest. This is almost too good to pass up as it fits our time table perfectly. We agree, and are able to talk him into paying us quite well. His assistant leads us to where the ship is docked and we leave.
The airship is not only an airship, but a relatively luxury model. I haven't seen one of this quality before, and think some of the others haven't ever seen one at all. The Captain is a fairly proficient woman, and handles the ship with ease. I do my best to watch, and eventually she offers to walk me through the basics. After flying the ship, I have made up my mind to own one at some point. Rex and I begin running the math on our income to see what it would cost to buy our own, or hire her and her crew. We might be able to swing it with some clever negotiations at the purchasing table with the income from this job.
We arrive on the island and are given rough directions for the location of the enclosures. Most contain giant reptiles that seem about as hesitant of us as we are of them. They let Kish collect samples, and we are on our way quickly. In a few cases Qux and I have the same idea, and I notice him slipping some eggs into his bag of holding. I do the same, and all told at the end of the day we have 4 giant eggs and there is a fierce debate on how to prepare them, or even if we do. Kish is firmly against it and it will take some convincing.
The notable cage was the one where something went wrong. We found giant carnivorous reptiles. Quickly evident by the fact that one immediately swallowed Zathras. The cleric enlarged Kish and she managed to wrestle the beast down while we cut him free, but it was clear these were vicious.
One other cage had nothing inside, but a clearly broken roof. We found the occupants in another cage, feasting upon the smaller reptiles within. At this point we were all exhausted, and so since we had enough samples decided it was best to just leave and warn the old man that some of his animals had escaped.
We return late the next afternoon and are further behind on our trip. We resolve not to entertain any more of these side journeys, as who knows how long the King's health will hold. We manage to convince the old man to lend us his airship to get us to our destination faster, because of the unexpected hazards on the island, and we embark immediately. Also of note, the Captain refuses to sell us her ship, and we will need to buy our own. Qux seems to eagerly agree.
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