Douena has kept up a running commentary as the group moved along the beach, pointing out all the "sights of interest" along the way, like, This is where we fought the big crabs, and This is where we saw the lady growing yellow flowers, and I found my necklace. As they approach the mechanical crab, she runs ahead excitedly and says, "And this is the scarecrow crab ... and this is Pezock! Pezock, this is Sasha and Aerys and Jask -- he's a little sick right now -- and Ishirou and Gelik," she introduces rapidly.
"I'm afraid there isn't enough room to fit you all inside," Pezock says. "You'll have to stay outside. You can be my rear guard and set up behind the crab. Until we're ready to march, that is!"
Gelik's eyes narrow. "I don't recall agreeing to be an army or a pack or marching anywhere," he mutters. Pezock doesn't seem to hear him though.
Sasha approaches Pezock inquisitively. "You're a tengu, aren't you?"
Pezock tilts his head. "So what if I am?"
Sasha shrugs. "Just confirming. I've never met a tengu before." She holds out her hand. "As Douena said, I'm Sasha."
Pezock tentatively takes her hand and shakes it. "Pezock."
There's still a couple of items that need to be identified.
Bracers
Wand
When they arrive at Pezock's Crab, Urza works to attach a tarp to the outside of the crab and use some branches to tack it down into the sand. He does what he can to enclose the area with other pieces of tarp as well.
Douena sighs. "I don't suppose there's time to make it back to the fungus island today, not if we're going to set up camp properly. Pezock, would you mind if Gelik came into your shell for a while? He's sort of a scholar or something; anyway, we need him to look at a book we found, and it's better done out of the weather." She sidles up to Gelik. "You'll be much dryer and cleaner inside," she murmurs to him enticingly.
Once Urza has a tarp set up to keep off the rain, Douena will insist Jask go in and settle down to rest. She'll spend ten minutes inquiring about his symptoms and seeing what she can do to ease them.
Mahjik scuttles through the near vicinity of Pezock's home - not more than half a kilometer radius around it. He looks for anything he might consider noteworthy: trails, foes, beneficial plants and herbs, traps, and so forth.
There's still a couple of items that need to be identified.
Bracers 1d20+5
Wand 1d20+5
Once Urza has a tarp set up to keep off the rain, Douena will insist Jask go in and settle down to rest. She'll spend ten minutes inquiring about his symptoms and seeing what she can do to ease them.
Mahjik scuttles through the near vicinity of Pezock's home - not more than half a kilometer radius around it. He looks for anything he might consider noteworthy: trails, foes, beneficial plants and herbs, traps, and so forth.
The only trail he notices is the one leading from the old Crow's Tooth camp to the southeast of Pezock's crab, which the party has noticed previously, but not followed. He does find a few plants with edible berries.
Douena sighs. "I don't suppose there's time to make it back to the fungus island today, not if we're going to set up camp properly. Pezock, would you mind if Gelik came into your shell for a while? He's sort of a scholar or something; anyway, we need him to look at a book we found, and it's better done out of the weather." She sidles up to Gelik. "You'll be much dryer and cleaner inside," she murmurs to him enticingly.
"Yes, I suppose I will," Gelik says. He straightens his back, adjusts his hat, and marches forward towards the crab.
Pezock moves slowly to the side, watching Gelik intently, but says nothing. The gnome heads into the crab and sits down to read.
Douena smiles slyly as Gelik goes into the shell. "I figured he'd avoid work as much as possible, anyway; he might as well be making himself useful somehow. Jask has something called red ache -- at least that's what they called it back in Varisia," she tells the others. "The rash is coming on now; he's going to look something like Mahjik after he picked the berries. The good news is, it's pretty hard to die from it, but it's also pretty hard to get rid of. There was an old human on the outskirts of Whistledown who had it for years. The town ladies used to bring him food and sew him clothes and leave it on his doorstep; they wanted to take care of him but were afraid of catching it."
You set up camp behind the giant crab, while Gelik works on deciphering the logbook. There won't be time to head out to the fungus island and make it back before night, so you settle down there for the remaining time in the day.
After a while, Gelik emerges from the crab and pulls Lorenz aside.
Mahjik returns from his forage - enough fresh new plant produce in hands to enrich the food for tonight with a bit of variety. Seeing that not much along that line has been done (everybody being too busy setting up camp) he begins to prepare food.
"Pezock! Allow me to thank you for your kind hospitality - it can't be easy having a whole troupe like us just waltz out of the trees and pitch a camp. I don't know what you like, but if you're interested, we have more than enough food. Can I offer you some when it is ready?"
Mahjik returns from his forage - enough fresh new plant produce in hands to enrich the food for tonight with a bit of variety. Seeing that not much along that line has been done (everybody being too busy setting up camp) he begins to prepare food.
"Pezock! Allow me to thank you for your kind hospitality - it can't be easy having a whole troupe like us just waltz out of the trees and pitch a camp. I don't know what you like, but if you're interested, we have more than enough food. Can I offer you some when it is ready?"
"He likes ... those ... things," Douena answers promptly. "He had a bunch of them the other day and kept offering us some. What were they called?" She looks at the berries Mahjik has gathered. "Birds back home liked berries," she says to Pezock encouragingly.
When she sees Gelik emerge and talk to Lorenz, her eyes narrow. Considering that she has the most intense interest in anything having to do with the fungus -- well, and Mahjik, but she keeps forgetting about him -- she decides she is justified in casually moving closer and trying to hear what he is saying.
Pezock glares at the berries and then at Douena. "I am not a bird," he says. Then he snatches some berries and eats them. After that, he returns inside the crab, grumbling as he goes.
When she sees Gelik emerge and talk to Lorenz, her eyes narrow. Considering that she has the most intense interest in anything having to do with the fungus -- well, and Mahjik, but she keeps forgetting about him -- she decides she is justified in casually moving closer and trying to hear what he is saying. 1d20+9 1d20+7
Gelik glares at Douena. "Do you mind?" he says. "We're trying to have a conversation."
"And I'm trying to hear it," Douena replies, dropping her pretense. "What's the Nightvoice? The ship? Does it say anything about the fungus in there? How to stop it?" She shifts her weight anxiously from one foot to the other, obviously nervous about the information Gelik may have read.
Mahjik scuttles through the near vicinity of Pezock's home - not more than half a kilometer radius around it. He looks for anything he might consider noteworthy: trails, foes, beneficial plants and herbs, traps, and so forth.
The only trail he notices is the one leading from the old Crow's Tooth camp to the southeast of Pezock's crab, which the party has noticed previously, but not followed. He does find a few plants with edible berries.
...
Is that abandoned camp just south of the mechanical crab on the shiv map?
Lorenz smiles and claps Gelik lightly on the back. "That's wonderful, my friend. I'm so happy that something good came out of that experience." He speaks quietly but pays no mind to Douena's intrusion.
Is that abandoned camp just south of the mechanical crab on the shiv map?The only trail he notices is the one leading from the old Crow's Tooth camp to the southeast of Pezock's crab, which the party has noticed previously, but not followed. He does find a few plants with edible berries.
...
"The Nightvoice is a ship, obviously," Gelik says to Douena. "As for info on the fungus, I don't know yet. I'm still reading. I was just conferring with Lorenz here about a few details. Now, if you don't mind..."
He leads Lorenz further off to the side. When Douena follows, he sighs and says, "Oh very well. I was going to tell everybody everything anyway. The Nightvoice was a large Pathfinder exploration vessel from Almas that disappeared in this vicinity several decades ago. Some time back, I asked Lorenz here to keep an eye out for it. He expressed interest in joining the Pathfinders, and a find like this would give him a good way in. Not to mention, it would also help me, as...ahem...I'm a bit...um...out of favour with the Pathfinders at the moment and um...this would help me regain favour."
He pauses a moment. "At any rate, I'm still working on deciphering everything in the log. It's very heavily water-damaged. However, I can confirm that they appear to have found a strange leathery pod in a seaside cavern. It burst open and infected the crew with russet mold spores. Only their captain resisted infection. What happened after that, I haven't figured out yet. You'll need to give me more time."
"That is already very helpful - I suspect we will find the whole of the story when we rummage through the mold island. Thanks Gelik." Mahjik chimes in. "Wise woman stirs the pot to the left, unless she stirs it to the right. I've added some greens to the stew today; a change of pace is as good as a holiday, as she would say."
"I think I'd like to take a look at the camp Pezock mentioned. There could still be something there for us."
"The Nightvoice is a ship, obviously," Gelik says to Douena. "As for info on the fungus, I don't know yet. I'm still reading. I was just conferring with Lorenz here about a few details. Now, if you don't mind..."
He leads Lorenz further off to the side. When Douena follows, he sighs and says, "Oh very well. I was going to tell everybody everything anyway. The Nightvoice was a large Pathfinder exploration vessel from Almas that disappeared in this vicinity several decades ago. Some time back, I asked Lorenz here to keep an eye out for it. He expressed interest in joining the Pathfinders, and a find like this would give him a good way in. Not to mention, it would also help me, as...ahem...I'm a bit...um...out of favour with the Pathfinders at the moment and um...this would help me regain favour."
He pauses a moment. "At any rate, I'm still working on deciphering everything in the log. It's very heavily water-damaged. However, I can confirm that they appear to have found a strange leathery pod in a seaside cavern. It burst open and infected the crew with russet mold spores. Only their captain resisted infection. What happened after that, I haven't figured out yet. You'll need to give me more time."
Douena shows not the slightest interest in Gelik and Lorenz's Pathfinder plans. "So they didn't eat the fungus then? It blew up at them?" she says hopefully.
"Wise woman stirs the pot to the left, unless she stirs it to the right. I've added some greens to the stew today; a change of pace is as good as a holiday, as she would say."
"...because Mahjik is making less sense than usual," she adds in a hoarse whisper, casting a concerned glance at him over by the cooking fire. "Maybe the berries were just poisonous," she goes on cheerfully. "I'll go see if Pezock is coherent." She ducks into the crabshell.
"I think I'd like to take a look at the camp Pezock mentioned. There could still be something there for us."
Mahjik looks at the sky, mentally adjusting distance and progress over the jungle trails. "You're right, I'd like to get about still a bit before bed; I think time is "
I actually meant tomorrow. I figured that the rest of the day would be spent setting up camp here.
Lorenz listens to Gelik's description of what he's uncovered in the logbook with some interest.
"If the Captain hadn't succumbed to the infection, I wonder what happened to him? I hope he didn't get eaten by the cannibals. How long ago was all this, Gelik, do you know? Or maybe I should give you more time before I ask any questions. Sorry."
As Gelik returns to reading, you finish setting up the new camp and settle down for the evening.
Eventually Gelik returns with some additional information about the Nightvoice. "As I said, the ship's captain, one Havner Ames, managed to resist the infection. It seems he decided to get rid of the pod, which had closed up on itself and was pulsing with what he called 'a foul life'. I presume he feared for his life as well.
"However, without a crew, the Nightvoice was now adrift on a current that would take it to Sargava. It was all Captain Ames could do to alter the ship's course on his own so that it instead crashed against the rocks along the small island where you found it. I should note that I can find no indication that the island was covered in fungus at the time. Now, there are parts of the log that are so badly soiled that I can't work them out completely, so perhaps there is a mention of it, but I don't think so. Once the ship had crashed, Captain Ames decided to find a place to hide the bulb away where it could do no more damage. That was the final entry in the log. I dare say Captain Ames never made it back and probably died somewhere on the island."
Douena leans forward, showing much more interest in this "performance" of Gelik's than any of the others with which he has graced the party. "So the ship crashed on the island, and he left with the pod thing? Sounds like we have to find the pod and destroy it. Maybe that will stop the fungus from spreading." She pauses. "You said the Nightvoice was 'without a crew.' What did the spores do to them? I mean...," she lowers her voice, "is that what we found in the hold?"
Gelik shuffles his feet a bit. "Well, that section of the log has been greatly damaged, so it's hard to be sure of their final fate. But they were infected by the mold from the pod. The bodies in the hold would be a good guess as to their final fate. Not pleasant at all from your description."
He clears his throat. "Yes, well... Lorenz, my boy, a word." He pulls Lorenz aside again.
He pauses, possibly noticing any eavesdroppers. "And the others as well, of course," he adds. "If you'd like, I can teach you some secrets that will improve your ability to charm others, should you ever decide to pursue skills in that area. Not something you're likely to encounter to need on this island, but you never know when it might come in useful. Unfortunately, there's nothing else I can really do in a short timespan."
After speaking a moment with Lorenz, Gelik says loudly, "And I'll teach anybody else interested as well!" He then marches over to get something to eat.
Too busy thinking about russet mold to pay attention to Gelik any longer, Douena is surprised by his loud offer. "What? Teach us what?" She looks around to see if anyone else knows what he's talking about.
Lorenz smiles broadly for the first time since stepping foot on the fungus enshrouded island and says quietly in response, "Thank you, Gelik. I would be honored to learn whatever you can teach me. And I would appreciate your support amongst the Pathfinders as well."
He stops himself from hugging the gnome and instead crosses his arm and clears his throat before speaking more loudly. "I guess we just need to see if we can find the captain and destroy that pod if it still exists. Maybe it's just a matter of finding the place on that little island with the most mold."
"You don't suppose," Mahjik appears next to Gelik almost abruptly "that your lesson could specifically help me improve my skill to copy and imitate?" "Some fish stew? It has plant things in it."
1d20 + 8
"You don't suppose," Mahjik appears next to Gelik almost abruptly "that your lesson could specifically help me improve my skill to copy and imitate?" 1d20 + 3 "Some fish stew? It has plant things in it."
Gelik grabs a bowl of fish stew. "That particular skill, no. However, with time, I might be able to teach you to improve your comedic timing. That might help you." He sits down to eat.
"Thanks Gelik, I appreciate it. I hope that one day I will refer to you as wise man says."
"You don't suppose," Mahjik appears next to Gelik almost abruptly "that your lesson could specifically help me improve my skill to copy and imitate?" "Some fish stew? It has plant things in it."
"Pshhh," Douena scoffs as she comes up to examine the pot. "You don't need Gelik to teach you; that was a good imitation of Makoa." She pokes around the stew half-heartedly. "Maybe if Jask gets better, he can teach someone else how to cook. Did you just take some of everything you found and throw it in here?"
"I don't know about the rest of you, but I would like to hear another passage from the Abendego Cantos."
"Pshhh," Douena scoffs as she comes up to examine the pot. "You don't need Gelik to teach you; that was a good imitation of Makoa." She pokes around the stew half-heartedly. "Maybe if Jask gets better, he can teach someone else how to cook. Did you just take some of everything you found and throw it in here?"
"Why yes little one! In my home town this is referred to as a karri. Unfortunately I did not find any karri leaves, or fire peppers, or cadmon seeds, though I did get a little coconut in there. So yes. A karri. Enjoy!"
After everyone's had a chance to get some food, Gelik starts into the next segment of the Abendego Cantos.
He has obviously recovered from last night's less-than-stellar performance and gives a truly breathtaking performance this evening, full of passion and movement. Aerys, Sasha, and Jask clap heartily when he's finished. Even Ishirou looks moved.
Following the performance, you settle down for the evening.
To Douena's surprise, the "karri" makes for a passable supper. Gelik begins his performance before she has finished her serving, and by the time she does, she thoroughly forgets to get out her collection in case she gets bored. As the stars come out, she moves down toward the waves to commune with Desna.
After seeing that the food doesn't make anyone sick, Makoa eats his share quickly. One could almost say he 'wolfs' it down.
That night, after Douena goes toward the waves to pray, he leans back to llok at the moon. It reflects in his eyes eerily, and finds it very relaxing to stare at. He doesn't notice his is qhispering prayers to Nature..
Navior
"... ... ...wow. ...could you have imagined that a work of such depth could have flown from the quill of our Aerys? Wise man truly does seek wisdom in all forms and shapes."
Lorenz is greatly moved by Aerys' poem, clapping enthusiastically as tears roll unabashedly down his face. "Beautiful," he whispers and is otherwise speechless.
"So, what do you think of the poem so far?" Aerys asks. "There's still a lot to come of course. We're only about a quarter of the way through, but I was definitely impressed by Gelik's performance tonight. I had a few reservations about his performance after the first section, tonight's was brilliant. So, what did you think?"
Ishirou nods. "I was very impressed," he says. "She has great talent, as does Gelik in his presentation."
The dawn comes with more rain, although not the storm you had yesterday. This time, it's just a light shower, and it has finished by the time you finish breakfast. Then the sun comes out and the temperature starts to heat up again.
Jask looks stronger today, and he prepares breakfast as usual. However, his rashes are more noticeable despite his greater level of activity.
After breakfast, Gelik goes to read over the next section of the Abendego Cantos in order to prepare for tonight.
As Gelik heads off, Jask says, "I'll talk to Pezock today about the cannibals and try to compile as much information as we can about them. That way we can make our move against them as soon as possible after you've dealt with the fungus."
"So, what do you think of the poem so far?" Aerys asks. "There's still a lot to come of course. We're only about a quarter of the way through, but I was definitely impressed by Gelik's performance tonight. I had a few reservations about his performance after the first section, tonight's was brilliant. So, what did you think?"
"Well, I think it's a brilliant piece. I've told you that before. But I do have a bias for the author and all." After that small admission, Urza blushes a bit and makes himself busy stoking the fire.
Mahjik folds the bracers around his lower arms. "And you're sure these will magically keep me safe?" he asks Urza, "They seem pretty sturdy; at the very least they should help nudging some attacks aside. I'll try them. Thanks!" Mahjik beams at Urza.
As Gelik heads off, Jask says, "I'll talk to Pezock today about the cannibals and try to compile as much information as we can about them. That way we can make our move against them as soon as possible after you've dealt with the fungus."
Douena sits down next to Jask momentarily. "Speaking of 'dealing with the fungus,'" she asks, "do you know anything about russet mold? If we find this pod thing, how do we kill it without it blowing spores at us like it did the crew of the Nightvoice? Do we stab it or burn it or what?"
"Well, I think it's a brilliant piece. I've told you that before. But I do have a bias for the author and all." After that small admission, Urza blushes a bit and makes himself busy stoking the fire.
Aerys's eyes widen and for the briefest moment, she actually looks a little angry. Then she turns away and takes a deep breath. "Um...thank you," she says. She looks a little embarrassed after that and stays quiet.