Captures:

Giant Hyena: 1 F, 1 M

Giant Vulture: 3 M, 1 F

Owlbearer Rodeo Drive

I saw a notice in the Inn about escorting some owlbears to their home a day's walk from Luma. The notice said to meet at Nala at MATES. At MATES Nala was standing near the entrance with a chalk board with their name written on it and three of us gathered around. Nala is an 8ft-tall goliath with pale white skin with sky blue marks across it and a pure white mane of hair resembling a cloud puff, crowned by flowers, and sky blue eyes. Dressed in a cropped white blouse with red accents and detailing and a pair of baggy black and red pants and carrying a greataxe. Alice a young looking eldarin sorcerer and Aspitha an elf wizard wearing glasses.

Sakura Rannera-Paxton was at the reception desk and asked what our approach would be? It was at this point that we found that nobody was clear on how we were going to escort the owlbears; or why owlbears, which generally live in forests, should be in that arid area. Sakura asked about "Druid's" reasons for wanting the owlbears and there seemed to be some confusion when it was explained that she had two male owlbears and she shape-shifts into female owlbear form.
The owlbears in MATES' care are completely tame. The story was that some person who was captive and used to brood their eggs. The exploring party brought that person back to Luma and the owlbearers came too.
Nala pointed out that with the owlbears gone the number of hyenas had grown and the same game had almost disappeared. Sakura pointed out that returning the owlbears, which had dominated the area and grown in numbers so that other animals had lost numbers would just unbalance the area again. And it is a dry area getting dryer. Perhaps, people said, attention should be paid to why it is getting dryer? Or to ways of bringing water to the area. Nala had an idea and purchased a Decanter of Endless Water that she would give to the 'Druid' to avert the water crisis.
Sakura told us that MATES want hyenas to set up a breeding program, specifically a second female. Sakura talked about replacement of the velociraptor population in farming land with domesticated velociraptors as an ideal example of how the ecology of areas could more easily be managed by domestication. That might be true, I thought, but then the areas are no longer free.
The owlbears had been in the north of the Owlbear Rodeo region. In the south was some mechanism that sounded extensive and potentially active.
Nala gave us Speak With Animals spell-wrought tattoos and we went and talked with a group of owlbears. They liked the idea of having more room than they currently had at the overcrowded MATES are. I asked why they left their previous home and went to Owlbear Rodeo? They replied that it "was very confusing, as we were in our places, hunting, grey fog enveloped them and left them in Owlbear Rodeo where they met the Great Bear who taught them and lead them to Luma when the adventurers came. He could then escape his curse." Sakura told us about the fog, a dark time, the fog surrounded the farmlands and there were constant attacks by monsters that came out of the fog. Then adventurers started arriving. After the fog vanished the surrounding lands were revealed.

Six adults decided to come with us accompanied by three juveniles. The younger cubs, Sakura said, could be transported by teleport if we could bring something from that place back to Luma - something that belonged there like a chip of rock. Sakura provided saddles so we can ride some of the adults. Sakura rode Duskclaw and I rode Thunderhowl. The other adults were Featherbeak, Flowerbait, Dreamsnare and Graspwing. The three juveniles were Terrorscowl, Tailwind and Jumpleg.
In the Vermin Grasslands we saw Aurochs in the distance but avoided the herd. As we were about to climb over a rocky saddle we saw Giant Vultures above and they must have been hungry as they swooped to attack us. Two were killed in the fight. I succeeded in putting one to Sleep, and that one was captured. Sakura grapped with one and finally persuaded it to listen to her offer of free food and water at MATES. Phoenix jumped into the fight from a LEG airship and helped Sakura after Aspitha cast Fly on him.
Further on we encountered a pack of seven giant hyenas. Four were sleeping fitfully south of the path we needed to take, three were bitterly grumping about the lack of water and of food. We would need to pass between the two groups. Clever use of the Decanter of Endless Water by Nala and Phoenix drew the three awake Giant Hyenas away and we got them away over a bridge over a rocky chasm before the Hyenas could attack them. It was a tense time and I held myself ready to cast Web at the choke-points to cover our movement.

We found two owlbears and the shape-shifting Satyr "Fluxia" in a cavern that looked to have been, or is, a shrine or temple. Around a basin were three stone foxes (?) and there were arcane glyphs on some of the stones. I wondered about it's origins and whether LEG had sketches of it.
Sakura monitored the dragged giant vulture. It stirred and needed 4 more doses after seven hours and then again after a further nine hours. In the morning Sakura gave me some tranquilizers and instructions to monitor the Vulture with as I as the only one not in a hurry to return to Luma. I remained in the cave for pickup. In all sixteen owlbears were returned to the region and two giant hyena, one male and one female, and four giant vultures, three males and one female were brought back to MATES.