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Message: <blockquote data-quote="the Jester" data-source="post: 1719163" data-attributes="member: 1210">Dirt Lobster12:30 p.m., 5/24/368, in the Brown Hills, west-central StrogassMartini pats his belly and burps gently.  Now that the group is out of the Buzzing Fens- even if only barely- he can really enjoy his meals again.  He looks around the group- many of them are sick with the buzzing bowels, but he, Federico and Jawbreaker can continue- along with their new companion, Timothy.  A simple mind, escaped from the Asylum of Advanced Mental Treatment, Timothy is very child-like, yet withdrawn and blank-faced much of the time.  And don’t call him Timmy, the ranger reminds himself, it freaks him out.  Compassion blossoms in Martini like a rose.  He wants to make sure the Asylum doesn’t get Timothy back.  And they’ll never put me in a place like that, he vows.  I’d rather die.The party finishes tidying up their mess from lunch and then moves on into the hills in the direction Jawbreaker had pointed when he climbed the tree.  Martini leads the way through the rough, scrub-covered hills.  This part of Strogass is dry; it doesn’t seem to have rained much here lately, given how yellow most of the grasses are.  Only hardy shrubs and the occasional small oak tree spring from the rocky dirt here.  As they walk, Federico gives Timothy a cloak and helps him hood himself to hide his face.  He also gives him a dagger- which he clutches in his right hand- and a torch, which he grasps tightly in his left, holding the two items up and in front of him.  “This way they won’t recognize you at the Asylum!” Federico announces cheerfully.  “You’re disguised, and we’ll just say you’re a boon adventuring companion!”Martini the ranger picks a pathway for the group that is fairly straight on their direction, trying to avoid larger areas of jumbled rock and sharp slopes.  As he moves he scans the ground ahead for signs of danger, and as his sharp eyes move over one area he sees movement.“Beware!” Martini cries, as three beetles charge out from behind a set of bushes, their mandibles clicking loudly.  They rush in to the group, trying to tear succulent chunks of flesh from the halflings, but our heroes backpedal and dodge enough to avoid any injuries.  Then Martini pulls out his greatsword a deals a mighty overhand blow to one, cleaving it nearly in two!  Its primitive form keeps moving, though barely.  Jawbreaker, meanwhile, connects with another with his greatclub, smashing one flat!  Greenish-yellow juice sprays out of it.  The barbarian laughs heartily.Federico is laboriously loading his crossbow, his tiny arms trembling with effort.  His tail quivers between his legs.The other two bugs, meanwhile, squirt jets of nasty brownish mist, somewhere between a vapor and a liquid, narrowly missing both Martini and Jawbreaker!  A nasty, acrid smell puffs into the air, and where the mist hits a sapling behind Jawbreaker it burns and eats away at it.“Bombardier beetles!” Martini cries.Jawbreaker grunts, shrugs and smashes, destroying the other unwounded beetle in a single shot.  He chortles gleefully as he spins to face the one that Martini cleaved almost in twain- just in time to see something splash out of Timothy’s hand!  A green blob of acid whizzes past the bug harmlessly.Federico has finally gotten his crossbow loaded and he grunts as he pulls it up to firing position.  He pulls the trigger.  Spang!  His quarrel shoots into the last bug, breaking one of its legs and finishing it off.  The kobold runs forward.  “Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy!” he cries.  “Dirt lobster!”2 p.m., 5/24/368 O.L.G.Roscoe Hempflower sniffs the air.  There’s something cooking.  He can’t tell what it is, but it smells good.  He scans the sky, spots the smoke and heads for it with enthusiasm.  He’ll be careful on his approach, but if whoever’s cooking that looks friendly, he’s gonna have a little fresh meat.When he gets close enough to see the cooks, it turns out it’s a couple of halflings and a kobold, which kind of rings a bell for him; and then he recognizes his cousin and approaches openly and with a grin.  “What’s up, Cuz!” he shouts to Martini.Martini looks quite surprised to see one of his clansmen out here, but they are halflings, after all, and they are known for their wandering ways.  He greets Roscoe affectionately and introduces him to the others, and soon the group is all eating dirt lobster together.  Federico is drooling eagerly long before it has cooked enough to eat, but he waits after burning his fingers reaching into the coals for some.Then, having had dirt lobster for tea time, they suck the remaining juices from their fingers and continue on their way.4 p.m., 5/24/368 O.L.G., the Asylum for Advanced Mental TreatmentOur heroes enter a clearing and halt.“Th-that’s creepy,” Federico whines.They stare at the building before them: the Asylum for Advanced Mental Treatment.Next Time: The Asylum for Advanced Mental Treatment!  What does that mean, and what’s going on here??</blockquote>

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