'Vulture's compound' is a building located within the Scorpion Den. It
is a large, wealth-imbued structure owned by Vulture and inhabited by his organization, Talons of Power.

## Description

Vulture's compound is one of the most well-fortified structures in
Pyrrhia, lined with mines and traps. Its entrance is a wall as high as
six dragons, and is accessed by pushing a particular brick in and then
pushing a lever down to reveal the sliding entrance to the compound.

The compound is covered in vast amounts of ostentatious wealth. It is a
sprawling palatial complex, the only marble anywhere near the Scorpion
Den, and it had gold dripping from every surface. There are
emerald-studded doors and black diamond eyes bejeweling all of the
statues. Through one garishly grandiose door, there is a pavilion where
the floor and columns were inlaid with tiny turquoise, gold, and white
tiles, and the ceiling is covered with mirrors, while the floor is made
of cool marble. There is a dais in the center, with a bowl of dates
beside it and a metal sheet hanging behind it.

A white marble walkway leads to a courtyard marked out by a circle of
potted palm trees, all in giant clay pots that are painted gold. In
center of the floor, there is a trapdoor, just barely big enough to
squeeze a medium-sized dragon through. The trapdoor is made of bars, and
leads down into a long, dark shaft, from which the sounds of splashing
and a low, ongoing hissing could be heard.

The night air typically smelled of burned coconuts and Vulture's
perfumed oil, and there is an oasis pool not too far away from Vulture's
observatory. There are several garden pavilions and tiled pathways.
There is a pear orchard with a small building located in the center. It
is built low to the ground, with large windows on all sides, and
candlelight flickering within the dim interior. The outside is decorated
with a turquoise-and-amber tile mosaic of snakes and lizards chasing one
another endlessly.

There are canopies and pavilions, as well as a stand of cacti, a
fountain, and several statues of Vulture.

The land surrounding the compound is lined with traps, from explosives
to axes.

## Notable features

### Vulture's observatory

Vulture's observatory is a small, beautiful black building, with a dome
set up higher than all of the other structures within the compound.
Diamonds twinkle like stars everywhere, scattered throughout the walls
and columns. Moon shapes are carved all around the outside of the
building, from crescent to full, outlined with milky pale moonstones.
The interior is covered with blue cushions and large silk pillows on top
of soft silver, black, and dark blue carpets where dragons lie down and
look at the sky. On two sides of the dome, telescopes point at the sky,
and star charts line the walls. It is a re-creation of the old
observatory within the SandWing stronghold. The dome is open at the top.

### Vulture's storehouse

Vulture's storehouse is a shed that appeared to be a storehouse for
food. It smelled of cinnamon, dates, coconut, smoked ham, live pigs,
fancy cheese, lemons, humans, dried fish, and live ducks. It had a lock
on its door. Inside it contained a large cage in one corner, where five
humans lived among straw.

### Vulture's treasury

Vulture's treasury is located on the outskirts of the compound. It is a
small fortress that bristles with long spikes.

## History

### The Jade Mountain Prophecy

#### Darkness of Dragons

Qibli and Winter were brought to Vulture's compound by Sirocco and
Rattlesnake. Sirocco revealed the entrance to the compound, and Qibli
and Winter were then introduced to Vulture, who was busily engaged
watching two humans attempt to escape a maze in front of him. Winter
argued against Vulture's plan to kill the loser, and offered to pay
Vulture for the humans. Vulture declined, revealing that he knew the
truth about Winter's banishment from the Ice Kingdom. He then attempted
to convince Qibli that Onyx would be a better option for the SandWing
queen rather than Thorn. Vulture sent one of his Talons of Power to
bring forth Chameleon|Bog, who admitted the false truth of Moorhen
bombing several SandWing cities with Plants|dragonflame cacti. Vulture
then invited Qibli to see his mother, Cobra, while Winter stayed within
the marble pavilion. Qibli was horrified to realize that Vulture had
supposedly been keeping Cobra imprisoned since Qibli left with Thorn.
Vulture then led Qibli to his observatory, where, after pretending to
write valuable information about Thorn and the Outclaws, Ostrich was returned to Qibli. Cobra then used a chakram to kill
all of the stationed Talons of Power guards, and they were eventually
able to escape the observatory.

Qibli and Winter rescued several humans from Vulture's storehouse, and
were then intercepted by Bog. They fled back to Cobra, busy with
obtaining the Obsidian Mirror from within Vulture's treasury. They then
were forced to knock Sirocco and Rattlesnake unconscious, and then set a
ball of dragonflame cacti aflame before fleeing towards the SandWing
stronghold.