The Sultan's Claw | Midday

Garavel gives a tired smile at Morife and Zahur and says, "If only it weren't for the gods-forsaken gnoll tribes. We've got our work cut out for us, even with all of the manpower the princess has assembled for this expedition." The man's voice is low and cool, though not unkind. Soon after speaking, his head whips back around and he's cupped a hand to his eyes, shading them from the sun.

"Is... is that a fire?" His voice rises a bit higher, a hint of concern in his tone. Garavel gives his camel a nudge, urging the animal faster. "Hurry! There is something wrong!" The guide takes off in a puff of sand and dust, and it's all the party can do to keep up with his elevated pace. After a few minutes hard ride, the group arrives at the Sultan's Claw proper, to chaos unfolding.

The caravan is bustling with activity and yelling voices fill the air. The penned animals prance in agitation, tugging at their restraints and bleating loudly. A clutch of confused goats and livestock wander the grounds around the wagons, unattended. Perhaps a dozen men and women rush around the campsite, chasing down an animal or hastening toward the center of the cluster of wagons and tents near the gnarled Sultan's Claw, carrying buckets of water. One of the wagons is on fire!

Lush orange and red flames engulf an elaborate wooden wagon emblazoned with painted moons and stars. A gout of smoke pours from an open door, and as the party approaches, an ill wind blows a number of colorful fortune-telling Harrow cards from inside the wagon. One of these singed cards blows right into Andrei's chest, fluttering there for a moment. Then, the worst happens. Errant flames from the wagon lick the hanging branches of the Sultan's Claw above, and the entire tree is quickly engulfed in flames. The dry heat from the past week has left everything in prime condition to burn to cinders.

Suddenly, the central flap of the most elaborate tent in the caravan flies open and a regal woman, clearly Princess Almah, steps out into the midday sun. "Douse that flame!" she shouts to the men surrounding the wagon before turning to the party. "Ah, Garavel!" she says, "And just a moment later than the nick of time, as usual." Almah shakes her head slightly, then looks at the rest of the party. "Find some way to help!" she barks, before taking off toward the burning wagon. Garavel quickly dismounts his camel and follows Almah.

Almah, Garavel, and four soldiers dressed in the distinctive red chitin-plate armor of the Pactmaster Guard run back and forth between the burning wagon and an uncovered wagon about twenty feet away. The uncovered wagon contains a huge barrel, and as they open a spigot at the bottom, it's clearly full of drinking water. Their efforts are slowly working to douse the flames, but more and more of the wagon crumbles to soot while they struggle to bring pail after pail of water to the wagon and tree. At the foot of the water wagon, several more pails await hands to carry them.

Four burly mercenaries struggle with an enclosed wooden wagon within feet of the burning one, struggling to move the heavy vehicle out of harm's way. Nearby, a red-headed halfling kneels next to a pair of severely burned mercenaries who tried to enter the burning wagon when the flames first erupted. The halfling healer is able to attend to one of the two suffering mercs, a man who howls in pain, but is not able to help the second, a woman who's breathing is shallow and labored.

Spoiler: Andrei
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The harrow card that flew into you depicts the Cyclone. This signifies an unstoppable force that tears through everything in its path. The card portends war, arson, and destruction.


Spoiler: OOC
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There's several ways to help out here.

1. Put out the fire: You may join Almah and Garavel and ferry water from the water wagon to the burning one. The current method is very inefficient, but all of the npcs are too frazzled to think of anything better to do. You can direct the NPCs if you have a better idea, or even try to lift the water barrel with a Strength check.

2. Move the endangered wagon: The four mercenaries will aid if anyone helps push the endangered wagon out of the way. This too will require a Strength check.

3. Heal the wounded: The two wounded, burnt mercenaries are being tended to by a healer, but he's clearly out of his depth with such extensive injuries.

4. Deal with frightened animals: Use Handle Animal to try to corral and calm the frightened animals running about. Several people chase them, clearly the animals are important to the expedition, and the ones that are loose run the risk of getting lost in the nearby wilderness.