555/3/38. We
brought back the Gnartroll head that Gary Gnartroll provided for us.
The Ga took it without comment -- they're hard folk to impress, those
Ga. The next day brought an easy task: someone had to spend the day in
a dark cave keeping company to a crazy proto-Ga. Well, we walked over
to the cave, whose entrance was barred from the outside. Nothing could
be heard or seen inside the cave, which didn't look that big.
Should we send Krelga? She was willing to go, though we'd probably have
to push her to get her to fit through the opening. We thought about
sending Nakaro, but he'd be just as likely to kill the little fellow as
talk to him. In the end, someone knocked me out and they pushed me
inside the cave like the brave men they are.
I woke up to a splitting headache, only to see the proto-Ga staring at
me from the back of the small cave. He was sitting with his knees up,
perhaps sizing me up from all I could tell. I tried talking to it, but
he didn't respond. Then I tried singing. Badly. My friends, waiting
outside, pleaded for me to stop. The proto-Ga was more direct, going
for my jugular. I had to repeatedly stab him to make him let go.
Luckily he wasn't dead, so at the end of the day I could rightly say
that yes, I did spend the whole day with the proto-Ga.
555/3/39. There are days when I think the Ga are just using us as slave
labor. Take today's test, number 5. There is a hill with a tunnel
running through it which the Ga use as a thoroughfare. Unfortunately, a
recent landslide had covered one of the entrances, forcing the Ga to go
over the hill instead of through it. Particularly hard on the children
and elderly. Our task was to clear the landslide.
Now, doing a quick calculation, it was going to take us a good season
to clear the roadway, with only seven people and three beasts of
burden. Even if we convinced a lot of people to help us, it was going
to take longer than the one day they gave us to do it (must every test
be done in one day?). This one had us stumped. We needed someone big to
help us.
Tev spotted a giant moth-thing on a distant hill. Certainly, the only
reason it's there is to help us, he thought. So off he went to talk to
it. Small loss since a dog doesn't clear boulders well. Timroth and I
resignedly started clearing boulders whilst everyone else argued.
Occasionally we heard Tev howling at us, but since we don't understand
his yelps we ignored him. Eventually he came back, saying that Mothra
had turned down his offers. It seemed to be protecting its nest.
|
By the end of
the day we had barely cleared any rocks, obviously
failing this test. Our first failure by some accounts, though I'm not
too sure what the testing criteria really are. This worthiness thing
could very well involve how we handle victory and defeat, rather than
what we accomplish.
555/3/40. Showing that "just because it's there doesn't mean we use it
now", today we had to retrieve an Abbabak egg. What's an Abbabak? Some
sort of giant moth-thing. Like that one? Yup. Hmm, how hard could it
be? It's only a giant moth. So we trekked up to it, all the while it
eyed us from the moment we started to climb its hill.
Apparently, Tev had left a lasting impression, because as soon as we
got within range the Abbabak started throwing rocks at us. We
backtracked, then Timroth and I went unarmed to talk to it. Too bad we
couldn't understand its hissing language. It sort of seemed to
understand us. But how do you use trickery when you can't communicate
directly? No way we're we going to ask it point blank to give up a kid.
We returned to the group and, not wanting to fail two tests in a row,
decided that our best chance lay in a suicidal frontal assault up
Hamburger Hill. Timroth amended the plan, suggesting that he and Tev
could sneak around back while we demonstrated in front of the Abbabak.
Ok. So we gave them 20 minutes before we started trudging up. I cast
Darkness to hide us as the Abbabak started pelting us with rocks.
Unfortunately, the Abbabak spotted Timroth and Tev, making it a
desperate fight ot The Eagle's Nest. We charged up, Krelga providing
cover fire as Tev and Timroth were thrown out of the nest. Tok, Nakaro,
Reg, and I reached the nest at the same time, grabbed an egg and ran.
The Abbabak chased us down, one by one, making us return the eggs. But
Tok had outwitted the beast, for he had taken two eggs and hidden one
of them. Later on we retrieved the egg and gave it to the Ga, who will
probably make it into breakfast tomorrow. |