R. Nergigante Archer

Sayjida is one of the most experienced guides for those wishing to cross the Krokhan Desert and is well trusted by the many caravaneers who ferry supplies from the trade depots of the Valdemar Strait to the bustling bazaars of Velyzar. She is no stranger to monsters such as the ravenous stingmaw or the multi-fanged dunestalker — her first employment saw her transporting kegs of the finest Aravian pearl-plum wine through the man-eating ant-lion mounds of Howling Bluff, with nary a drop spilled. With this experience, Sayjida could quickly assess whether tales of monsters were true, or if they were the results of overexcited traders, their minds dazed by the insufferable heat. But when several caravans all reported seeing giant spikes punched into the walls of a commonly traveled valley — Sayjida knew she had to investigate. When a convoy she was accompanying rested at an oasis located near the valley, Sayjida took her bow and explored it. Throughout the valley were, just as the rumors said, huge black spikes, driven into the red rockface of the valley’s walls. She couldn’t so much as score them with her knife. They were as hard as granite and rough to the touch. Curiosity didn’t usually pay, Sayjida knew, but she pressed further into the valley. As Sayjida rounded a corner with an arrow notched, she encountered something she never expected. Surveying one of the spikes was a small feline creature, in a hunter’s outfit and furiously taking notes. It identified itself as a Palico, a hunter’s aid from another world who had traveled here from beyond Teleria. Sayjida had barely begun to respond when an almighty bellow emanated from deeper within the valley. She didn’t need to be told twice – she quickly beckoned her new companion to follow her, and they sprinted out of the valley. Once they were safe, Sayjida listened to the Palico’s tale. If this Ruiner Nergigante was not removed, it could roam further afield, bringing chaos to Velyzar’s vital trade routes, and severely damaging her bottom line. Sayjida offered to defeat this monster, and the Palico rejoiced, immediately presenting Sayjida with what looked like a journal, replete with notes from previous hunts that would be vital for defeating this foe. Sayjida led the Palico back to her caravan’s stop-off point at the nearby oasis, and ensured her new friend was out of sight. Should one of the caravaneers spot the talking feline, they would cage it and it would be on its way to a Velyzari bazaar before sunrise. As the Palico slept, Sayjida labored in the desert moonlight, using whatever scraps she could steal from unguarded wagons for all manners of traps and alarms. That same night, she stole back into the Nergigante’s valley and rigged a gauntlet of traps that she hoped would at least tire the monster. The next morning, the pair journeyed back to the spiked valley, avoiding Sayjida’s tripwires, heading to where the two had first met. After an exchange of knowing nods, the two began to bellow and shout, as if they were trying to wake the entire Krokhan Desert. When the ear-splitting roar of the Nergigante joined the choir, they may even have been successful. It was a monster unlike anything she’d ever seen. Bristling with six-foot long black spikes, it emanated a primal anger — one hardened by years of strife. The giant, furious beast barreled towards Sayjida and the Palico, unfurling its spiked wings and readying to smash them with its jet-black horns. The pair sprinted for their lives, a hail of spikes following them in their desperate flight. The Nergigante charged through each of Sayjida’s traps, none of them slowing it. Rocks fell from the valley’s side, triggered by Sayjida’s tripwires, and the Nergigante jumped over them effortlessly. Bolas burst from the ground to tie the beast’s legs, but its spikes cut through the rope before they could find their mark. The chase spilled out into the open plain, where Sayjida finally spun round to face her pursuer. Sayjida unleashed a hail of arrows — spikes of her own — at the monster. Arrows and spikes are said to have littered the valley after the hunt. Caravans soon resumed traveling through the valley, their way marked by curious spires of black rock, which many swore were bone. Sayjida returned to her duties, now clad in armor studded with part of those self-same spikes, and wielding a fearsome bow to match.