Chapter 82: Dragon-taming Tribe
The distance is too far, dice cannot perform detect, but dragons have distinct features, generally hard to mistake.
For example, green dragon, tail slender and long, taking up more than half of its size, like a flying giant lizard.
“Looks like an adult dragon, can’t afford to provoke it.” Anse silently flies back on the ship.
Adult green dragon’s challenge rating is 15, flight speed extremely fast, except dexterity poor, almost no weaknesses.
Poor dexterity isn’t even a weakness, large size creatures all have similar drawbacks, all dragons are like this.
“What’s wrong?” Salian sees Anse’s expression off, quickly runs over, expression tense.
“Nothing.” Anse takes a deep breath, “Saw an adult green dragon.”
“Ah…” Everyone is shocked.
Faerun also has dragons, but as human forces grow stronger, scenes of dragons ravaging cities are rare, many common people never see a dragon in their lifetime.
“Went east, maybe they also want to figure out what happened.” Anse strokes his chin, thoughtful.
Abel’s dragon forces are divided by dragon types, metal dragon and chromatic dragon are irreconcilable, fight on sight, no possibility of alliance.
That means the nearby area belongs to chromatic dragon territory.
This isn’t good news, because chromatic dragon belongs to evil alignment, green dragon, blue dragon tend lawful, others all chaotic evil, you can never guess what they’re thinking.
“Ahead… can we get out? Turn back feasible?” Salian has doubts, “If not, abandon ship.”
Not to mention an adult dragon, even a young dragon, they can’t handle it. A few poisonous breaths, whole ship crew down foaming.
“Plains ahead, about thirty or forty miles more.” Anse replies.
“Then let’s go see.” Salian knows going north unrealistic, “Don’t know how Silver Scale Bay is?”
“I suspect Underdark had realm convergence first, those underground creatures formed alliance, Baldur’s Gate probably can’t hold…” Anse can only speculate based on existing info, but likelihood high.
Moreover, he guesses these disasters just tip of iceberg, Toril everywhere maybe bigger upheavals happening, just not spread yet.
“All chaos…” Salian turns to gaze at jungle, silent for long.
Anse instead used to it, when he crossed over came, disaster followed like shadow, now dodged Silver Scale Bay calamity, finally one step ahead of disaster, worth celebrating.
【Quesser】 continues sailing, top speed two or three knots, trees everywhere, can’t go fast.
Sailing along, waterway gradually shifts southwest.
Waterway left sea cliff, cliff top relatively low Cloak Forest, right Ancient Jungle, every moment many dinosaurs try ways from Ancient Jungle into Cloak Forest, afraid miss one step no buffet.
Not that Abel stronger than Toril, Cloak Forest near human civilization, fierce giant beasts and monsters fewer, while Abel no human civilization, most places very primitive, monsters, beasts countless.
Anse didn’t wander everywhere just because strength improved, obediently stays on ship, dinosaurs besides challenge rating 8 tyrannosaurus rex, several super giant dinosaurs like pteranodon, triceratops, emperor dragon, strength not weaker than many dragons.
But even staying on ship, no peace, forest various dinosaurs too rampant, don’t take “frail” humanoid in eyes, sporadic attacks never stopped.
Anse welcomes all, even deinonychus, two ray of frost can handle, half day down gains hundreds experience again.
Most deinonychus life only under 30, proper glass cannon assassin, speed fast but not faster than ray.
During, he also captured alive two four-wing compsognathus, this creature chicken-sized, excels forest hunting, very agile.
But facing two mini dinosaurs with low IQ and attributes, his animal friendship fails repeatedly.
Not strength issue, but compsognathus just captured, still in combat status, high hostility, doesn’t eat his “charm”.
Anse not anxious, lock up starve two meals first, this thing like taming eagle, needs time bit by bit.
Evening, 【Quesser】 docks on a towering giant tree.
Night jungle extremely dangerous, Salian early orders stop ship, finds relatively wide waterway to rest.
On the ship no lights, even first floor dining room windows covered black cloth, lest light leak out.
Salian deliberately arranges crew with darkvision on watch, so at least won’t monsters sneak up undiscovered.
Dining room corner, crew finished dinner all required go down rest, non-essential don’t go deck.
Anse, Salian and Kalenno sit together, discuss tomorrow plans.
They three are ship’s combat mains, smart, can’t not worry.
As for first mate Colin and Kafka such spellcasters, can’t cast one spell, only do logistics.
“Tomorrow morning can leave forest, waterway joins a river, small river connects a lake and swamp, lake east side Cloak Forest Edge, terrain unchanged.
River and swamp around have tribe settlements, saw cooking smoke…” Anse explains daytime scouting.
“Lake is Abel’s lake, or original Sword Sea?” Salian asks.
“Abel.” Anse very certain.
“If necessary, abandon ship.” Salian grits teeth.
He reluctant 【Quesser】, but knows responsibility bring all home.
“Yes, follow coast highway north.” Kalenno suggests.
He most unwilling go south, mind all on sister life unknown.
“We responsible for all crew, better south to Candlekeep, settle then think other ways.” Salian understands his mood, but now Baldur’s Gate area demon den, can’t go.
“Too early think these.” Anse sees Kalenno want say more, hurries speak, “I go meditate, strengthen vigilance, shout if matter.”
“Good, Kalenno watch first half night, I second half.” Salian nods.
One day down, he despises dinosaur species deeply, either fighting or on way to fight.
Anse hums, drinks cup tea, gets up goes downstairs.
Ancient Jungle not only dinosaurs, any creature possible appear, maybe for night hunting specialists, humanoid that alertness very clumsy, listed on menu not strange.
Fortunately elf ship hull equivalent mobile castle, can’t resist cannon, but defend general creature attacks enough.
——
Morning, Anse perceives hull shake, starts slow accelerate, ears hear hull breaking water splash.
“Finally quiet.” He rolls over, closes eyes rests bit, still sits up.
Last night deck lively, constantly small-medium nocturnal hunters smell way sneak up, fortunately crew cautious, plus Nolnos help, no casualties.
Bloody smell attracts more predators, those predators surround waterway sides, instead become other predators’ prey, surrounding jungle chaos, killing, chasing lasts all night, all nerves taut, many no sleep whole night.
Most spirited instead Nolnos, fought half night still energetic, earned over two hundred experience, if not Anse forbid off ship, maybe it also join melee.
Salian at bow, watches Nolnos just washed from water come up, sighs deeply.
Really, what kind master what kind mount.
Anse simply eats breakfast, comes bow relieve Salian.
“Go eat, few miles more leave forest, I ride ahead scout.”
“Be careful.” Salian nods.
Ahead several primitive tribes, scout advance good, if Anse can’t communicate, others go waste.
Anse mounts Nolnos, leaps off deck, along waterway forward.
Forest edge animals clearly fewer, waterway wider, both sides see many footprints and primitive civilization traces.
Water sound gradually louder, round giant tree, sight suddenly wide open.
Twenty or thirty meter wide river meanders far, riverbank west side a tribe, living rough wooden houses and beast skin tents, many shadow figures busy, they size tall sturdy, about two meters, fur abundant, ears large, skin odd dark green or bronze.
‘Seems not Faerun race.’ Anse no matching race in memory for these features.
Most surprising, tribe also quite few dinosaurs, types many, mainly small-medium carnivorous dinosaurs, few large dinosaurs even saddled simple harness.
‘They can actually tame dinosaurs!’
