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Current Situation
- Day 2 the Feywild: (1 long rest at Skabatha's house)
- While Barrett and Ander hunt for a sign of the Rasa said to be tracking the group - specifically Rascal - Dhann, Ely, Rascal, and Z explore a bit of Downfall and prepare to enact their plan to abscond with Lorna's hourglass.
Session Summary
- Ander replies to Ely's message to let her know there is no sign of the Rasa yet. Ely also asked about the rod that he and Rascal were supposed to go look for, and if he knows anything about it. He says he doesn't actually know what it's for, but to talk to Engle as the Blink-dog might know more.
- Z says he'll make a +2 AC vest for Rascal, as long as he gets to pick the colors. He also says he had a dream about a new pair of pants, called Sycopants. They're pants that can help with charming folks by whoever wears them.
- During the festivities, Dhann uses the Stone of Sanctum from Vajra Safhar to see if he can observe any of the orbs Ely has seen with the Gem of Seeing. He sees three orbs that match the description of the non-disappearing ones that Ely saw. The way they move reminds him of fireflies.
- He also spends some time observing the conversations around him. Dhann picks up a slight buzz about some sort of revolt or rebellion to overthrow the current king, but the sense is almost like this is common and it's a plan made before. Dhann also sees a single Bullwug slip a piece of paper of some sort to three others. Seems more like Downfall politics than anything to do with the gang and Lorna. This also seems to be a common discussion point of the evening. The last conversation bit he picks up of interest is some mention of a "bronze frog that has eaten lost things." Some of the Bullywugs wonder if the group of strangers in their town are going to recover the lost things. Dhann makes a note to tell the others about all of this. Ely thinks she might talk to the King and Captain about Lorna, but can't think of any questions at present, as so much has happened lately.
- Lodging is a bit damp and much more sized for giant amphibians but the rooms are comfortable enough to settle down in and get a night's sleep. While separate rooms have been secured, everyone gathers in one, to decompress, as well as make conversation easier. Dhann activates all functions of the Sanctum besides the fog. Z spends some time making new bracers just in case some damage needs to be negated during the heist. Dhann watches, hoping to be able to give Guidance but watching Z work, the Cleric can't really gauge just what Z would need the Guidance for, because the Bard just moves so quickly and professionally. In fact, he makes this newest set in almost half the time it used to take him.
- Dhann fills in the others about what he saw with the Stone of Sanctum, and the bits of conversation he was able to pick up on. The discussion then moves to talk about Lorna's:
- The house is at least three stories, with standard house amenities for the hag, but also has a sort of lab. From this, it's rumored she exports some sort of good, as if her lodgings have a sort of factory within, producing something. This "stuff" is in containers and drops out of a trapdoor straight into the lake. It is then boated away. There have been sightings of a sort of shadowy figure in the night, boating these containers away.
- It is not known if she can see invisible things, but she has many "strange and unusual powers."
- The chimney is presumed to drop the group on the second floor. The lab is assumed to be on the first floor.
- An inventory is taken of all items and potions that might help with the plan.
- Dhann plans to make a Heroes' Brunch to bolster everyone in defense of potential abilities Lorna may have.
- It sounds advantageous to split into two groups - one to sneak in, and one to be the "face" if a face group is needed.
- Ely and Rascal will be the stealth duo while Z and Dhann will work as the face team. Z is happy with this, saying he'll need a moral code to go with him and Dhann remarks they're already returning something stolen, so they're off to a good start.
- Ely also lets the group know that she has two shots of her Bright Moon's Blessing to help bolster any constitution that might flag in the face of magic or travel.
- Z tells the group of a new spell of his, called Whirligig, where he spins and spins and spins and effectively causes damage. This could be great in sending Lorna into a sneezing fit.
- Z and Dhann agree to take the barrel route.
- Rascal interjects regularly to remark that certain ideas sound cool, or fun, or to repeatedly ask, "What could possibly go wrong?"
- Bedding down for the night, Dhann takes the first watch, with Z taking second and Ely volunteering for the third. For the night, Dhann turns off the sound blocking of the Sanctum so that they can hear properly. For the first watch, nothing eventful happens. Dhann listens to the town quiet for the night and then wakes Z for his turn of watch. In the middle of his, he hears a some splashing from boats on the water, and then some sort of animal cry, like a small screechy rodent. There sound to be more than one. He takes a peek out the window and sees two new boats. Crates are being unloaded with cages of some sort of rodent. Two humanoids are dressed like trappers, and Bullwugs are helping to unload the cages.
- Z wakes Ely and and Dhann and lets them know what he hears. Ely looks through the spyglass and Dhann assists with some Guidance
- She's able to see quite a bit:
- The animals in the cages look to be some sort of ferret creature. They are screeching terribly as they try to escape their cages.
- It looks to be some sort of sales transaction.
- Dhann reminds Ely that the last items for Lorna's delivery that needed to be gotten were a cat, and an unspecified ingredient. He thinks the sound is quite horrible, clearly the animals are in distress.
- Elyana is able to gauge that this looks to be an agreeable transaction and is coincidentally happening in the middle of the night, not happening away from prying eyes.
- Dhann looks in the spyglass for several minutes and picks up that price discussion and haggling are happening. The trappers are saying they want more money as the creatures were hard to capture, while the Bullywugs are irritated that less than the agreed-upon number of animals is being presented to them. Dhann tells the rest of the group this and wonders if they might help settle the transaction to buy favor with the Bullywugs as well as use this as a way to make getting into Lorna's easier, or go more according to plan as her ingredients will be ready to be delivered with a successful sale.
- The trappers look like typical swamp trappers and one of their boats looks to be more of a home than a cargo boat. The trappers look to be a couple, with a human male and a half-elf female. They are wanting to be paid in "Dums," although none of the group has ever heard of this, nor does Dhann see any currency being exchanged.
- Ely wakes up Rascal (who has been in his human form since the fight with Dindrin) and the four of them go down to the dock to further investigate and perhaps settle the transaction.
- The Captain is on the dock supervising the sale and Dhann pulls him aside, asking in Common if this is the final ingredient for the delivery and the Bullywug lets him know that it is.
- It's explained the trappers do indeed want higher pay as the hunt this time was more difficult than usual. The trappers should have known better, so the Bullywugs don't want to agree to the steep price. Originally it sat at fourteen "dums" and the trappers are insisting on sixteen. The Captain explains that a "dum" is like a "future favor" that can be as simple as a meal or a small assortment of things. Sixteen is a steep price as the Bullwugs try not to be in debt at all, at any point.
- Ely asks about offering two favors up front, from them, to help the transaction go through. A meal would be an easy thing to do, or an exchange of alcohol. It's decided to offer the two trappers seats at the brunch the next day, and the Captain says he'll introduce the group to the trappers. The two of them look gruff and grumpy. Elyana offers two dums, inviting them to the meal. "One dum for each of you?"
- The trappers think about it and talk very quietly to each other for a minute, but Dhann is able to pick up that they do think getting a nice meal would certainly be a comfort after hunting rations. They look skeptical that a nice meal would be available in Downfall and it's at this time Dhann calls across to hopefully help convince them: "What flavor of food do you prefer? I can make anything," And the man seems extremely interested in this claim. He asks if this is true, and Dhann says, "If I'm given a good description, or if I've seen it, smelt it, or had it myself." With Ely's invitation and Dhann's persuasion, the man agrees to the deal quickly and the transaction is made.
- Dhann helps unload the last couple of cages and the group takes the opportunity to get a closer look at the rodents inside:
- They are large mammals that resemble large ferrets, about two feet long, not counting the tail. The tail is very leathery looking, with their furred bodies being dingy and mucky from their swamp dwellings. Dhann breaks up a ration, and, dropping it into the cages to see if that calms the creatures at all, gets a generous glimpse of grody fangs, but pulls back in time to keep from getting bitten. The critters stop screeching, now that they have something to chomp down on and the ration is quickly gobbled up. The animals are called Unknowns. They are the adult version of Unknowns.
- From the dock, Rascal checks out the boats:
- There are two of them, one being a dwelling, even boasting a little chimney. The second one is obviously the trapping boat, with the trappers' gear. There are also wrapped bundles and other cages with other little creatures, for other deals and clients. Nothing really catches Rascal's attention as being curious, out of the ordinary, or particularly shiny.
- Z wants to go back to bed, now that all of this is done, so the group does go back to their lodgings. Before snoozing, Z attunes to the Robe of Eyes. As he attunes, Z also sees the floating orbs that both Ely and Dhann have mentioned seeing; he sees four of them. His sight into the Ethereal plane doesn't match Ely's sight - Z doesn't see color. He sees the duplicates, but it's all quite dark and difficult to discern compared to what Ely talked about. The deal settling took about an hour so they decide to sleep in a little bit to make sure they get a full night's rest. During Ely's watch, she only notices that the swamp finally fully quiets down from the swampy sounds of Bullywugs and bugs, around the wee hours of the morning.
- The morning is filled with Bullywug bustle as the inhabitants of Downfall prepare for dropping the supplies and surprise guests at Lorna's that sunset.
- Ely is looking to find a new spell component so it's decided that before brunch, a poke around potentially finding this for her at a little shop is a good way to spend the extra time. They find a shop called Trinket, Bobble & Charms and the group pokes around a bit. She doesn't find what she's looking for, but it's obvious that the shop is very much a curio shop of sorts, with items like "a very good thimble" and "a pie with bite marks already in it."
- Rascal begs for the thimble because it's shiny, and for the pie, because it's food. Ely takes them to the front desk and meets the two proprietors of the shop: they are Unknowns. Hooded, small, with masks, and they introduce themselves as Trinket and Bobble. They say that the price is, "The color of your eyes, if you don't mind," and Ely staunchly refuses. She offers the gold from a single lock of hair instead, and they agree. She cuts a lock, and handing it over - the two Darklings agree - Trinket pulls out an eye-looking marble and the gold is pulled from the hair to fill the glass. Ely now has the thimble, solid silver with pretty designs. She gives it to Rascal.
- Preparing the meal, Dhann asks what each of them would like, and the man leans in to Dhann and quietly whispers that he's very partial to the unique delicacies of Caer Westphal. Dhann is taken aback and a bit sickened, but says he'll do what he can. The man gives Dhann a wink, and the Cleric wishes he hadn't, as the man's eyelid is half gone. The woman is fine with any breakfast foods (thank Helm). When Dhann casts Heroes' Feast, a goblet of blood is manifested and the man treasures it like a fine wine. Dhann also prepares specific foods for his friends, as is becoming the tradition with this spell, and everyone partakes and benefits from the feasts' pleasant boosts.
- The gang tells the Captain that they'll enter in the chimney, so Dhann and Z will take one barrel while Ely and Rascal will approach from outside, staying on the roof or chimney. They will ride in the balloon's basket with the cargo and everyone else and then separate once the balloon drops the cargo off.
- Z expresses worry that Dhann won't approve of Z wearing the Sycopants and Dhann assures the Bard that he can wear whatever he likes, however he likes, as it's not Dhann's business or place to judge that, then makes the horrid pun of asking Z, "Are your Sycopants a new type of puntaloon?" Ely takes a swipe to smack the back of his head, but misses, and this marks Dhann's first vocalized pun. Ely is thoroughly disgusted and Z groans extremely loudly.
- The barrel is outfitted for passengers, with a bench inside and handles to steady oneself. Pet is carefully stowed with Z's belongings and is also in the barrel.
- The group also see the cages of Vlens, who are very snoozy in their cages and not at all riled up as they were the previous night.
- A call across the balloon launchpad of, "The smoke's stopped!" marks the time to launch the delivery is approaching.
- Ely takes some time to copy down notes from the Big Book of Bad Blood, specifically the parts about Skabatha Nightshade and Endolyn. Double checking for Ander's or Aiden's names, Ely doesn't find either. She then gives Dhann and Z the book and they stow it away for their own delivery. Z uses the time to inventory his scarf collection.
- Final preparations are made, and Z and Dhann hop in their barrel. The balloon is set to go and the ropes are chopped with an axe, and it takes to the air. Ely is in the passengers' basket with the two piloting Bullywugs.
- Elyana sees dim lights in some of the windows, and also notes several pipes coming out of one side of the structure that seem to go into large casks accessible by the lake, if the water was a bit higher. While the construction of the entire house is very sturdy, the staircase leading up from the lake is extremely ramshackle. It doesn't look to be used often, or at all.
- While the Bullywugs think they're steering the balloon, the group now knows it's really the sentient balloon piloting itself to help with the delivery process.
- On the ride, Rascal turns into a raccoon and Ely looks through the Gem of Seeing again. The glowing orbs are now in a much larger number, and there's no real pattern to their flight and her peek into the Ethereal plane is the same as the day before, with color and outlines and light. The orbs, though, seem to change color depending on the direction they're floating, even if the change of color is very subtle. So these orbs may be a way to tell direction.
- The Bullywugs, once the balloon is over the chimney, begin tossing the cargo over the side into the maw of the pipe. Z and Dhann's barrel goes down and disappears into the darkness. Elyana Misty Steps onto the edge of the chimney to wait for her signal to enter Lorna's house.
- Meanwhile, in the barrel, Z and Dhann sense that the chimney seems much longer than it should be, and the barrel feels like it's definitively changing direction as it falls down and around what can only seem like a chute and sorting system for the different cargo items. The barrel falls and lands hard, the slats becoming loosened in their metal hoops as the construction of the barrel is compromised. They can tell from what they can see is they're in some sort of kitchen, and it looks like an absolute slaughterhouse within. Blood and gore smear the walls and floor while a little female Gnome-looking figure, armed with a substantial cleaver, chases two vultures that are fighting over a hunk of some sort of rotted meat. The smell in here is terrible and the place is utterly disgusting. A massive butcher's block is in the center of the room covered in a vast array of knives. The sounds of other crates bypassing the kitchen is heard from behind the two of them, so thankfully, at least, Z and Dhann have landed where they were expecting and planning to.
-
It’s the smell that hits Dhann first.
The air is sour with the tang of rot and iron, and Dhann’s caught breath registers the reek of old blood and flesh even as his eyes adjust the red, smeared absolutely everywhere, into focus. There’s not been gore like this since Mirt’s, since Iri- He can feel his throat jump with a gag that he somehow manages to suppress; a movement catches his attention.
Both the Bard and Cleric notice the little female figure leaping and swiping a giant cleaver at two vultures, even as the birds squabble over a fetid hunk of something Dhann doesn’t want to think too considerately on. So far, the three haven’t seemed to notice the two in the cracked barrel. The room itself looks to be a kitchen of sorts, turned slaughterhouse.
And then Ely’s voice glimpses into Dhann’s mind, alerting him to Ander and Barrett’s current danger, the Rasa, and that they might be on the way - the Warlock’s voice has barely dropped away when Ander comes appearing out of nowhere, crashing onto the cutlery atop the massive butcher block. He’s bleeding, badly, arm clamped across his abdomen. Barrett then, scar shining, slams onto the table, battle ready, eyes still tracking an enemy now out of sight - gods, he looks almost dead! The Monk is like a walking wound, he shows so much damage.
Ely! Twisting his arm so he can access the iBone in his cuff, Dhann responds, words whipping into Ely's mind. "Ander, Barrett're here - i̸̬͂i̷͚͌r̷͙̒ḯ̵̱̉d̸̤̏h̵̲̜a̶̼̭ỉ̶̤͆d̸̰͙i̸̧̤ !" The Cleric's voice is low, urgent, and slightly forced as he works to wriggle free of the boards and metal banding, careful of Z next to him. "Both wounded, watch yourselves - no idea where the ras- n̸̫̓ḙ̷̡̛ȓ̵̠͈g̴̭̚h̶͇̞ṛ̸͊̃ä̴͖̭ṋ̷͈̺ ! - is-"
He has to do something about those wounds before they bleed out. He needs out of this wreckage, he needs his hands, to help-
Helm, please let them not be pursued!
-
Next Time On...
Well, this is disgusting. And cannot possibly pass health inspection standards.