Stone Soules Summary: To Do Battle with the Sphinx
The party made plans to attack the sphinx. They began making extensive plans, even contacting Duntill & Illic for assistance. There was much debate over attacking the sphinx, with Snag and Quick presenting the most resistance and Gerald and Alegra being uncertain. Most others agreed to kill him.
These plans turned out to be for naught when the sphinx approached the Stone Soules one day to address the party.
The sphinx revealed its vast mind reading powers and almost infinite other abilities, but he did not do anything to prove anything to anybody. He will chagrin his mistakes in vastly annoying the party, blaming it on a few thousand years away from lesser life forms. He announced that although he could easily crush them, one cannot expect to live a few thousand more years if he makes an enemy out of established society. There is no need to call on heavy hitters, he plans to move out. There is much more archealogical work to be done in other parts, and it is time to move to new work. Since his only real friends are Snag and Quick and there is much work to do in the Southern Waste, he would like to move with them.
He decidecd that it would be very difficult to move his vast possessions, and would like help to move them. He offered to pay the party a hefty sum to move his possessions to the highway and put them on a wagon. Then, he and his entourage will accompany the wagon at a distance through lands that might not welcome a sphinx, and move in near the hobgoblins, "Who he feels he can trust". He will want to leave money with the party to mail him reports about the city and events there.
When the sphinx made its announcement, Gerald listened and paid attention respectfully. At some appropriate point, Gerald briefly whistled a single note at a moderately low volume in a feable attempt to subtly gain the sphinx's attention. He then concetrated and tried to "broadcast" thoughts to the sphinx in expectation of it being able to hear his thoughts. However, the sphinx gave no response.
The sphinx, mind powers or not, is an egotistical jerk, and unlikely to share his knowledge with worms like yourself. You are still a much inferior life form even if he cannot fight a civilization of you.
It was obvious to Gerald that the Sphinx is overpaying the party vastly and, will not actually be as kind as above, but the sweetness of the deal was obvious to anyone without homicidal intentions.
The sphinx was violently against any magical transport other than his own, and his possessions defy easy transport that way.