(2025-02-01) Trolls of Stranglethorn

Details

Author:	Alli
Summary:	Aitne, Dane, Jocoza, and Paluuva head down to Stranglethorn, and they explore some troll ruins unsettled by the cataclysm.
Rating:	T for Teen

Arc: Archaeology 101

Atley marches up, chewing on a tough strip of salted jerky.

Aitne is hidden behind a map she has unrolled and is holding up to peruse. It looks like a map with dwarf legs and some odd untidy pigtails.

Atley grunts and marches over to her, inclining his head. "Professor. Wot've you got there?"

Aitne drops the top of the map to blink at him above it, and then smiles. "Sir Atley! Just studying the locations of some newly-exposed troll ruins, since the Shattering."

Atley knits his brow, and takes a moment to mull it over, shredding another strip of jerky with his teeth. He chews politely before following up with, "Newly-exposed? Sounds promising. And dangerous."

Aitne beams. "Aye, exactly!"

Jo's flying machine comes in for a landing nearby, and she pushes back her goggles to beam at Dane and Aitne. "Did I hear newly-exposed ruins? Those have to be the best kind of archaeology, don't they?"

Atley raises a hand to keep his hat on his head as he nods in respectful acknowledgement to Jocoza.

Aitne nods fervently, and then eyes Jo's flying machine. "Captain Sparkwire, that's a fine device ye have there."

"Bit loud, innit' Cap?" Atley growls with good-natured amusement.

"Why thank you!" Jo's smile brightens, and she carefully settles it down, turning the ignition off. She hops down to join the other two. "You get used to the noise. Small price to pay for flight."

Atley grunts and admires the machine with a nod. "Certainly looks durable."

A nether ray soars down from above, carrying the esteemed Ambassador Paluuva. She dismounts and gives the alien creature a gentle pat. A smaller ray circles overhead.

Atley turns on Paluuva and inclines his head respectfully. "Ambassador." He takes another bite of jerky.

"Archenon poros, my friends." Paluuva greets them with her usual cordiality.

"Ambassador, hullo!" Aitne holds up her map again and waves it rattling at the others. "We were just discussing troll ruins uncovered by the Shattering."

"Paluuva! Glad you could make it," Jo smiles. "Looks like there might be some newly-uncovered troll things to see around here."

Paluuva's already-glowing eyes light up even more. "Wonderful! I've quite enjoyed expanding my study of the trolls."

"May pose a threat," Atley adds. "No telling when it comes to tuskers."

Aitne beams. "Shall we head out, then? We can work our way from the north. There's Zul'kunda here on the coast…."

Atley grunts and swings himself aboard Thoras. "On your mark, professor."

Jo hops back onto the machine. "Let's head out!" She lowers her goggles.

Atley grunts. "Still about, then." He says, gesturing to the Bloodscalp Trolls.

Aitne eyes the trolls ahead resignedly. "Aye, they must be moving back into the old places as they're exposed."

Jo hops off her machine and surveys the living trolls. "They're going to get in the way of archaeology."

"Well, nothing for it. The archaeology must go on," Aitne declares.

"Perhaps I can parlay with them," Paluuva offers.

"They'll not be bargained with. Not this lot." Atley growls, drawing his weapons.

Jo nods firmly. "We can avoid them as much as possible. You know, non-interference or whatever."

"If you're of a mind to try, Ambassador, I won't deny you." Atley says.

We kill a few trolls.

"So…we're not parlaying, then." Paluuva sighs.

"You speak trollish, don't you?" Jo asks. "You could see if they'll let us explore in peace?"

Atley keeps a strict gaze on the perimeter as they move into the ruins.

Aitne looks surprised. "Well, I've never had much luck with it myself, but if ye're keen to try…."

"My Zandali is limited," Paluuva admits. "But I fear they're unlikely to be receptive now that conflict has begun."

Atley grunts. Atley does not seem heartbroken.

"The ruins are spectacular, though, ye must admit," says Aitne, pausing to admire a wall.

"Trolls are not terribly trusting to being with," Paluuva explains, then nods to Aitne. "Beautiful, aren't they?"

Atley squints at some stonework. "How old, do you wager?"

Jo is small, and slips around the trolls as much as possible. Many of them don't seem to mind or note the group's presence.

"It is difficult to say for certain," Paluuva says to Atley. "Many thousands of years, at least."

Atley grunts. "Their time ended, long ago."

"The time of the Gurubashi Empire, perhaps. But trolls are remarkably resilient, and all indications suggest the Zandalari are still thriving."

Atley growls reluctant agreement. "For now."

"Aye, they've been cropping up around the place in recent years, haven't they?" observes Aitne.

Jo nods at Paluuva. "The ones here don't seem so keen on building, but they're certainly still around. And the Zandalari are off on an island somewhere, I believe."

"Near Kul Tiras, so I've heard," Atley says. "We came across a number of them in Zul'Drak. A small contingent."

Paluuva nods, "They have, yes. They've had a presence here in Stranglethorn, and yes, they also sent those representatives to Zul'Drak to address the matter of the Drakkari killing their gods."

Atley turns to side-eye Paluuva. "Have much dealings with them, yourself?" he inquires curiously.

Paluuva smiles. "Not as much as I'd like. It isn't easy to find a troll willing to speak with me."

Atley cranes his head in a nod. "Not so easy to find a troll worth speaking to in my experience, my lady."

Paluuva gives Atley an amused smirk. "Have you spent much time trying to find a troll worth speaking to?"

Atley grunts and shakes his head, raising his gaze to peer at the sky. "Haven't spent much time trying to catch clouds, either."

Jo sifts through some fragments of metal. "I feel like this is maybe part of some kind of knife? There are missing pieces though, and I can't quite figure out the whole."

Aitne trots over to see what Jo has. "Ooh, that's a lovely piece, though. If we can find more fragments of it, ye'll have quite the heirloom."

Atley glances over at Jocoza's find and grunts.

Jo nods at Aitne. "I'll keep an eye out. I'm certain I can piece it back together, if I can find all the pieces."

Aitne beams. "Down the coast a bit?"

Atley grunts. "Right."

"There is a site along the coast I'd like to take a look at, yes," Paluuva says.

The team heads down the coast of Stranglethorn.

Jo follows Paluuva via flying machine. "We have encountered a number of trolls, along the way. Cobalt Company has, I mean. A regrettable few of them were interested in talking," Jo says.

Atley grunts. "More interested in deifying blood drinking monsters."

"We thought the Drakkari were willing to collaborate against the Scourge," Jo points out. "But then actually they just wanted to double-cross us, join the Scourge, and/or kill their own gods."

Atley grunts meaningfully at Jocoza, look briefly darkening.

"I imagine these ruins were once a coastal outpost for Zul'kunda," Paluuva muses.

Atley eyes Paluuva. "A port city?"

"Perhaps more port than city," Paluuva responds.

Jo looks around. "I can imagine that. The docks are gone, but then they would be. Water can be destructive, over time."

"The same can be said for the artifacts, I fear. This close to the water, and in sandy ground… well, we'll see what we can," says Aitne.

Atley grunts. "They're a savage folk. Always have been, but I can see the value in investigating their past, and eliminating possible avenues they might have for power in the future."

Paluuva uncovers something familiar: a bat fetish. "Yet another fetish of Hir'eek."

"Ah! Hir'eek. A popular loa, aye." Aitne nods. "Let's move inland and see what we can find in better soil."

Atley grunts.

"I wonder if there's a reason all these Hir'eek fetishes are turning up now," Jo muses. "I mean, I know they're old, but sometimes things are found when they want to be found."

"Be careful. These are raptor grounds, it seems," Paluuva warns.

Atley raises his head and grunts.

Baxter makes a scratchy rasping noise and darts around Aitne's ankles happily.

"We may be lucky enough to turn up fossils, in that case!" says Aitne.

Atley eyes Baxter, and then Aitne. "Where was it you said you found that, professor?"

Aitne smiles at Dane. "Here in Stranglethorn, in fact!"

Atley grunts and gestures around vaguely. "We may be among his kin, then."

"The little guy might be excited," Jo says, smiling at the small reanimated raptor skeleton.

"Aye, he was at the edge of a trollish ruin, but there were fossils in the earth there too. I assume it's some sort of trollish magic that animates him." Aitne smiles fondly at the little skeleton.

Paluuva uncovers a few bits of buried bone. "Here are some interesting finds, but nothing out of the ordinary."

Atley looks over what she has and grunts.

Paluuva smiles at the skeletal raptor. "Perhaps a beloved pet a troll could not bear to part with."

Baxter scrabbles happily at the dirt with taloned feet.

Atley eyes Baxter with a detached gaze.

"If ye'd like," says Aitne, "we can go to the place I found him. D'ye know where the arena is?"

Atley grunts at Aitne.

Paluuva nods. "I am familiar."

"Let's just trot down there and I can show ye the place," Aitne says.

"I've never actually been there, never had reason," Jo muses.

"I've seen it from afar, during our work here," Atley adds.

"Well, now, I was outside the area proper, naturally. You'll see a raptor ground there, and that'll be the place," Aitne says.

"It's for gladatorial fighting of some sort, is that right?" Jo asks, eyeing the stone walls.

Atley grunts. "Seems that way. Warrant a great deal of blood's been shed here."

"That's my understanding, aye. Used to be a trollish arena but the pirates or the goblins or some nonsense took it over." Aitne squints up at the walls.

As they crest a hill, Atley grunts in agreement and nods at the nearby goblin outpost.

"Oh!" Jo exclaims, laying out metal fragments.

Aitne looks faintly disappointed. "The raptors seem to have cleared out, though I can't say whether that's the Shattering or the goblins. Shame. Still, must be some — oh?" She turns to Jo.

Atley grunts inquisitively and looks over.

"Mm?" Paluuva peeks over. "What have you found, Jocoza?"

"Well, a knife, I suppose," Jo says, looking down at it. For a gnome, it might be a sword. "Maybe… an eating utensil? Trolls are very large."

Atley looks to Aitne.

"Ah! Aye. An eating-knife, no doubt." Aitne nods.

Jo beams. She did archaeology well!

Atley pauses, and turns, straightening up. "Lookit'."

Atley points out a skulking Elder Shadowmaw Panther.

Jo looksit.

"Oh? Oh! Handsome fellow." Aitne beams at the panther.

"Cheeky." Atley comments on the panther.

Aitne laughs. "Cheeky!"

"Well, if we want to leave the cats to their prowling, we can move closer to the new outpost. Livingston?" Aitne consults her map again.

Atley grunts.

"Yes, let's not disturb them any further," Paluuva agrees.

"I'm happy to follow wherever the artifacts might be," Jo smiles.

We head to near Livingston, and get to work on archaeology again.

Atley squints at the mohawks roaming around down below. "Skullsplitters." Atley glances around warily before he takes out his arcanoscope and gets to work.

Jo follows along, tweaking the magic she's using to weld the knife pieces together.

Aitne hums, un-warily, as she trots along with Baxter at her heels.

Atley discovers something, and takes a tedious moment to unearth it before he stands, look darkening. He holds up an aged weapon. "A sacrificial dagger. I've seen its like before."

Jo peers at it. "It does look familiar somehow, doesn't it?"

"Oh!" says Aitne. "Oh! That's extraordinary!" She beams. "That's a Drakkari style, ye see. More evidence of exchange, perhaps!"

"Oh, it is? I mean, oh, it is!" Jo peers at the dagger more closely.

He knits his brow at that and glances down at the dagger again. Atley takes it by the hilt and learns the weight of the object. He flips it around and catches it by the blade, holding it out to Aitne. "Warrant the Explorer's League will have better use of it."

"The Explorer's League will be verra interested, if ye do wish to submit it." Aitne nods at Dane enthusiastically. "But it's your find, naturally."

"I've no use for it," Atley insists, looking like he's ready to be rid of the object.

"Do you mind if we look around a bit further in?" Paluuva gestures to the east.

Atley grunts in the negative.

"Oh, aye, east!" Aitne declares.

Paluuva discovers another fetish of some kind, apparently fashioned from a lizard foot.

"Ooooh, lovely!" says Aitne to the un-lovely item.

"Ooh, that one looks creepy," Jo says. She sounds delighted.

Atley lifts a brow, and looks from Paluuva to Aitne. "Is there some way to make certain none of these artifacts are cursed?"

"This one might have been, but I suspect it is more of a charm." Paluuva examines it closely. "Though I think any magic it once held has long since drained."

"Cursed? Oh, well." Aitne blinks like this has never been a concern of hers. "I suppose if we had a… mage, or a druid among us…?"

Atley just grunts.

"Oh, I'm a mage," Jo tosses out. "There's no active curse, or I'd have spoken up."

"Oh! Oh, well, lovely! We're fine." Aitne beams again.

Atley grunts at that. Atley adjusts his hat with a few firm tugs and glances around at the Ruins and Skullsplitter trolls assessingly.

"And each of ye has turned up an artifact or two!" Aitne beams some more. "A verra productive trip."

Jo stretches her shoulders. "I should probably get back to headquarters before too long. But I feel like we've gotten a lot of good practice in. With knives and charms and such."

Atley grunts. "Steady progress, today. You lot travel well."

"Indeed. This is an excellent region for archaeology, with all the ruins about, if you're ever of a mind to practice your hand alone," Aitne says.

Paluuva nods excitedly. "I'm eager to compare our discoveries to my previous notes from trollish studies."

Aitne smiles at Paluuva. "Be safe, all of ye!" she says.

"Let me know, next time the group is meeting!" Jo says, hopping back on her machine. "I have a busy schedule, but I'd love to make it if I can."