BrOp's PFS #7-05 School of Spirits (Inactive)

Game Master Branding Opportunity

Sad smiles with his heart and eyes and mouth as Egmund finishes his poem. He lets a solitary tear run untouched down his face. He grips his club tighter, knowing that he doesn't want to test Egmund's feelings in that way.

Egmund nods in agreement a slight blush colors his cheeks.

Shams-ud-Din wrote many beautiful works. My favorite of his is called "With that sweet moon lanugage".

He again closes his eyes as he recites. His eyes move as if he is reading the words from a book.

Admit something;

With that sweet moon
Language,
What every other eye in
this world
Is dying to
Hear.

Egmund's smile is sheepish as he admits, "Poetry has always spoken more to me than the Chronicles do."

leia jumps off the carriage...
to get her weapon cord.
... and some earplugs...
... and, come to think of it, a potion of touch of the sea, and an alchemist's fire. Ya never know

During the carriage ride, J sits in rapt attention, listening carefully to the recited poetry. After Egmund finishes she whispers, "I never knew that Pathfinders were lovers of poetry. I thought it was all about kicking in doors and rescuing priceless antiquities from the hands of dark cultists." She spends the rest of the trip inquiring about all of your past adventures, stopping you numerous times to ask questions. She seems to be quite taken with all of you.

After attending to your purchases in the Coins, the coachman turns his hack to the southeast, heading for the Precipice District. As promised, he stops a good four of five blocks from the edge of the abandoned part of town and lets everyone out. He quickly turns the axebeaks around and heads back into the populated part of town with all possible haste.

Once you have all checked your weapons and belongings, you make your way through the streets toward your destination.

---------------

A few moments later you head down a back alley to avoid walking around an enormous warehouse that sits at the edge of the Precipice District. As you are about to turn the corner to leave the alley, a group of six young hotspurs comes waltzing around the corner from the other direction and nearly collides with you. The leader, a boy no more than 20 or 21, lets out a high squeak, and bellows. "Watch where you're going, you louts!" They are all dressed in the latest Qadiran fashions with turbans, flowing scarves, heavy eye shadow, and impressive-looking jewelry, and carry large scimitars at their side, but it is quite obvious that they are not native Qadiran. Your best guess is that they are from some of the rich Absalom families that have strong ties to Qadira, and perhaps emigrated from there several centuries ago.

When one of the hotspurs notices J he calls out a curse in (poorly pronounced) Kelish, and points her out to the others. "There's one of those cowardly abolitionists! What are you doing in this part of town, slave-lover? Shouldn't you be attending to the needs of the poor in the Puddles?" He laughs, and the others join in, obviously convinced that the joke was very funny.

J is frozen in place and obviously terrified.

I've read a glossy about some of the important families in Absalom, do any of these fit the profile. It would be great if I knew the names of these youths.

Knowledge (Nobility): 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (13) + 10 = 23
Knowledge (Local): 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (3) + 10 = 13

"I don't want to be intrusive, but does Scion Lord Kerkis know you are wondering the streets harrasing women? It would be my utmost pleasure to inform him, but I'd rather see both our groups respect each other and go their own way. We've got important things to do and I suspect you've got better things to do as well, wouldn't you say?" Lilybeth says with a smile.

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 16 ⇒ (16) + 16 = 32

Davnet listens to the poetry, seemingly unmoved, and wonders what it is that humans see in it. So many words, and they mean not what they say... "Full Moon eyes"? Is Egmund suggesting he is a lycanthrope, or wishes to be? I must keep my eye on him.

---
When the "Qadiran" toughs appear, Davnet is momentarily confused. "Why are these men dressed in another culture's costume" he whispers to Leia. "Is it the day of Seven Veils?"

When the men make their joke, Davnet at first laughs, a hollow, mirthless chuckle that grates on the ears. When he realizes his colleagues are not joining in the custom, he stops suddenly. "Ah, I see... a one-sided joke, or 'insult', has been told at our expense." He waits patiently for Lilybeth's comment to elicit a response, staring at the jokster intently.

"It is as the lady says, there are better things to do today than for us to clash. Let us all just take this as one of those things that happens in the city and go our seperate ways." Egmund adds calmly.

Diplomacy assist for Lilybeth: 1d20 + 16 ⇒ (5) + 16 = 21

J is frozen in place and obviously terrified.

Sad Rock sits next to J and steps in between her and the jerks protectively, then his turns his back on them and faces J.

"Sad here to protect you. Sad is brave," Sad says, offering his fist for a Lastwall fist bump. "J is brave too."

Egmund calmly waits to see how the situation develops.

At the mention of Scion Lord Kerkis, the leader's head spins to look at Lilybeth and Egmund. He then looks at your assembled group, paying particular attention to your armaments. His face contorts in a sneer, as he spits out: "Fine, have it your way, but know that your little experiment will fail any day, Eagle Knight. Come on, guys!"

The group of "Qadiran" hotspurs move past you, bathing you all in their loathing. As one of them moves past J, he fake-lunges at the young woman. J lets out a shriek and falls backwards onto the packed dirt street. For a split second, a green-tinted after-image appears where she had just been standing. The image, which actually looks more like an emaciated, pre-teen boy, immediately "falls" back down, merging with J's body on the ground.

Two of the hotspurs' eyes grow wide with fear seeing this happen. "Get out of here, guys, she's some kind of freak!" They push the others in front of them, and all quickly disappear around a corner.

J still lies in the dirt, visibly shaking.

Assuming Davnet is unable to intervene when the youth lunges, he points after the fleeing thugs as his face contorts in rage. "Khal'reth ftaghan!" A dark line appears in mid-air, and slowly tears open, revelaing a black extradimensional space beyond. A winged thing streaks out of the opening, flapping after the youth. A grim smile appears on his face as the shadowy flyer harasses the youths as they flee.

Assuming that Sad Rock hasn't already done it Egmund softly helps Junia back to her feet.

If Sad Rock helps Junia up, Egmund will move between Junia and the retreating hotspurs before beginning to speak.

"Raw violence is always scary the first time you encounter it. You did better than most. You didn't lash out in fear. You didn't run. You didn't make the situation worse."

"Those were boys posturing for each other. Trapped by their roles into behaving as they think a real man would. They are not to be feared. Pity them their and their small worlds."

"Smile and know that you are not alone. We are all freaks of one sort of another."

Egmund smiles and looks around at the group, "Embrace who you are and live a rich life full of amazing people."

Assuming that Sad Rock hasn't already done it Egmund softly helps Junia back to her feet.

It stuns me that they even got close enough to Sad and J to scare her...such is the way of box text and exposition. Then again, he did have his back to them.

Sad helps J to her feet, feeling quite embarrassed that he could not protect her from youths.

"They not hurt you. You brave."

Lilybeth will prestidigitation the dirt off her clothing, while trying to make sense with what just happened.
Knowlegde (green-tinted after-image): 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (19) + 10 = 29

She also tries to comfort J.

"Ignore those guys, they're just bullies. Bored little boys pretending to be men. Rest assured, real men don't act like that!"

"nice one kid. you nearly kept your nerve. you'll learn to keep a lid on it with some real experience. " she says to J, since she did a good job with nearly hiding her fears.

"But. So no one's going to talk about that other thing? 'Cause that was freaky too, to me. Are you, 'You' in there J? ", she gestures at J's head once the other guys have helped her up off the ground.

Egmund shrugs.

"I guess after being a Pathfinder not much strikes me as odd anymore. If it is not threatening I tend to let it slide."

It seems worrying that J scares this easy. Some brash youths is not near as scary as the things we'll likely to meet at the Drownyard. Also being that scared near Egmund seems unnatural! He makes me feel so much at ease.

Davnet pulls himself away from the fleeing not-so-toughs and looks thoughtfully at J, trying to think of what might explain the green "ghost" we saw.

Knowledge (arcane): 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (5) + 5 = 10
Knowledge (planes): 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (5) + 9 = 14
Knowledge (Cthulhu Mythos): 1d20 + 98 ⇒ (13) + 98 = 111 - whoops, never mind.

"Miss Ju... J," Danvet begins, gently. "Do you know a thin young man, greenish complexion?"

Assuming Davnet is unable to intervene when the youth lunges, he points after the fleeing thugs as his face contorts in rage. "Khal'reth ftaghan!" A dark line appears in mid-air, and slowly tears open, revelaing a black extradimensional space beyond. A winged thing streaks out of the opening, flapping after the youth. A grim smile appears on his face as the shadowy flyer harasses the youths as they flee.

The youths flee in terror as the black-winged creature from the nether realms tears into them, and quickly disappear from sight.

As Sad Rock helps J to her feet she thanks him. "I'm sorry, that was very un-Pathfinder-like of me." She dusts off her clothing and nods to each of you in turn. "Thank you very much for your assistance. It seems real-life adventures are quite different from the ones found in books."

"But. So no one's going to talk about that other thing? 'Cause that was freaky too, to me. Are you, 'You' in there J? ", she gestures at J's head once the other guys have helped her up off the ground.

J grows somber as she looks at each of you, seemingly gaging on whether to reveal her secret. Finally she sighs and states: "I guess I should tell you, considering who you are and where we are going. I’ve been keeping him a secret for far too long in any case.”

The same incorporeal figure you just saw steps out of J.’s body, appearing as a green-tinted apparition that resembles an emaciated 14-year-old boy with sunken cheeks and hollow eyes. He is wearing a school uniform consisting of a blouse covered by a vest. His legs end just below the knees, trailing off into nothingness as he floats above the ground at the same height he once stood in life.

The figure looks at you trepidatiously, fidgeting the way young boys do. "Hello," he speaks in a whispered voice that is clear but sounds like it is coming from quite a distance away. "My name is Grishan. I'm J's friend. We were exploring the necropolis together when the earthquake happened and became trapped there. I died a few days later, it seems, but when I came back to my senses, I found that I was in the form I now inhabit. I soon found J in her sarcophagus and protected her there for many years. I've continued protecting after she was rescued and have been by her side ever since."

J interjects. "I've had to keep Grishan a secret. It was bad enough being the adult freak that looked like a child. My mother and our servants don't know about him as far as I know, although I'm sure they suspect."

J stammers a bit, her voice catching with raw emotion. "Is this normal? Am I normal?"

FYI: It's a DC 15 Knowledge (arcana) check to reveal the info that I put in the spoiler text to Lilybeth above. Sorry I didn't mention that earlier.

"I've actually read about this. Grishan might be a phantom, which would make you a spiritualist!" Lilibeth sais to J.

"Not normal in the sense of average, but who wants to be average!"

J looks to Lilybeth. "A spiritualist? What's that?"

J looks to Lilybeth. "A spiritualist? What's that?"

Lilybeth looks through one of her books.

"Ah, here it is!"

Spiritualist

Attuned to the spirits of the dead, a spiritualist forms a bond with a phantom—a returned spirit that has unfinished business but did not become undead. This spectral ally can alternate between forms, emerging from the safety of the spiritualist's mind to take on an incorporeal form or an ectoplasmic body.

When the dead are chained to the mortal world by strong emotions, they inevitably descend toward the Negative Energy Plane, warping and twisting into undead. A spiritualist bonds with one of these spirits before that transformation is complete, providing a safe haven for this phantom and gaining a powerful servant in exchange.

Becoming a spiritualist is not a calling—it's a phenomenon.

When a creature dies, its spirit flees its body and begins the next stage of its existence. Debilitating emotional attachments during life and other psychic corruptions cause some spirits to drift into the Ethereal Plane and descend toward the Negative Energy Plane. Some of these spirits are able to escape the pull of undeath and make their way back to the Material Plane, seeking refuge in a psychically attuned mind. Such a fusing of consciousnesses creates a spiritualist—the master of a single powerful phantom whom the spiritualist can manifest to do her bidding.

Now this complicates matters... there is a dead person present, which changes all human customs. But the dead person has not stopped moving or speaking... I have no idea how to behave.

Davnet raises both arms above his head in salute when Grishan introduces himself. "Greetings, Grishan. I am glad you are a friend of J's, and not ... otherwise."

"Thank you for trusting us with this information, Juni... J. I will keep your secret close."

J carefully reads the passage that Lilybeth presents her. "Wow, that's fascinating, and it describes me pretty closely. All except for the word "ectoplasmic". I don't know what that means."

Grishan seems a bit confused at Davnet's "salute", but returns a military salute of his own. J smiles at the interaction and nods in response. "Well, telling you seemed the only sensible thing to do since you had already seen him. Over the years, we've learned to share the same space so that others can't see him."

"I think ectoplasm is a slime-like substance, somewhat resembling like mucus, created by paranormal phenonema."

@Lily: You've just gone to meta for me. Brain 'asploded.

Sad Rock shakes his rocky head at the relevations. While he understands little of it, he accepts all of it. After all, who is Sad to call others 'monster' or 'weird' or 'different' or 'dislikable even for an inanimate object'? He would never reject others for being different.

Sad smiles at J.

J stammers a bit, her voice catching with raw emotion. "Is this normal? Am I normal?"

"Sad still friend. Sad not normal either. Sad still good packminder," Sad says, understanding the depth of not fitting in completely. "Sad have secret too. Everyone have secret."

Sad watches the thugs run off and is ready to continue on. Sad still stays by J's side, a more loyal protector one could not wish.

visibly relieved its not some form of posessions, Leia exhales. "Well. If that's all it is, I can understand forming bonds with those not of this plane. You're just sort of... connected... to the ethereal plane. "

J and Grishan both nod at your explanations. She then remarks, "Thank you for your kind words. I've been so isolated for so long that I'd quite forgotten that the world is a wonderful and diverse place. Even though my situation is ... unusual, perhaps it is not the strangest thing in the Great Beyond."

Grishan then speaks up, his voice sounding like it is carried in by the breeze. "While we are admitting out secrets, I have one as well, one that even J doesn't know. I've been the one encouraging J to sneak out of the house and visit the Precipice Quarter. Through our shared connection it seems my needs became her needs."

He then looks down at the ground, afraid to speak. When he finally lifts his head he whispers: "I wonder if you might do me a favor. There is something that I need to accomplish, something left over from my life. Something that if we can accomplish, will give me some peace. I don't mean to impose on you living folk, but would you be willing to help me?"

Lilybeth nods

"I'll gladly help if it would give you some kind of closure."

"As long as your request does not conflict with our tasks, I am sure we can help you."

Sad shrugs. He has never been a leader rock. He's always been a follower pebble. He does whatever is needed.

"Sad help."

A thought obviously flows across Egmund's face as he grins.

He shakes his head briefly before continuing,
"As long as it does no harm or serves a good cause I would likely be willing to help but I would hear it before I commit to anything."

"if it won't hurt a hair on J's head, and brings you some solace, Its the least we can do since your own time on this plane was cut short."

Both Grishan and J seem relieved that you are willing to help the boy apparition.

The phantom nods. "Thank you for your generosity. It all goes back many years to when J and I were students at the Tri-Towers Yard. I had been given a chance to assist the Eagle Knights of Andoran by ... well, by spying on the families of the other children at the academy. I was invited to the homes of many of our classmates and over time collected quite a bit of information about them. I collected my notes and hid them in a pre-arranged dead drop at the ... Arboretum Arcanis, I think. Yes, I'm pretty sure it was at the Arboretum. Sadly, the earthquake hit the following day and my contact was never able to pick up the packet. I've heard that the Arboretum still stands, and can't image that my small package would ever have been discovered. Might we travel there and see if we can find it? If it's still there, I could deliver it to the dead drop. Who knows, maybe someone is still checking it?"

He turns to J and hangs his head in shame. "I'm sorry I never told you about this, J. I thought you wouldn't like me anymore if you knew I had been spying on all of you."

J shakes her head. "Don't be silly, Grishan. You know I don't care about that. What's past is past."

"To the Arboretum!"

Let's get this over with!

A spy... no wonder he was denied a passage to the afterlife.

Sad Rock nods, not truly understanding the nature of spying and dead drops, and follows J to the arboretum.

"Sad like harbor-eat-yums."

"Is your sole desire to take Grishan to the Arboretum, then?" Davnet inquires. "Or must we visit other sites in the yard?"

The party cautiously leaves the edge of the inhabited part of Abasalom, and enters the ruins of the Precipice Quarter. A small wall surrounds the entire neighborhood, but by helping each other get over it, it can be quickly scaled.

Inside the wall there is a drastic change of scenery. Not only have the streets and houses been abandoned for nearly two decades, leading to rampant weed and tree growth everywhere, but all the structures still show the signs of earthquake damage. In addition, a number of the buildings close to the edge of the quarter look like they have been completely taken part, most likely to aid in the reconstruction of the rest of the city, and are now nothing but large, rubble-strewn empty lots.

A short walk later you arrive at the ruins of the Arboretum Arcanis. A large copper plaque with its name still stands near the entrance, now overgrown with weeds and verdigris. Most of the Arboretum looks to be in ruins. The large crystal dome that once sheltered its plants is cracked, with a large central portion missing at its apex. Vines have grown through the cracks in the dome, so thick that the interior of the dome is concealed from sight.

The only accessible entrance leads to a foyer of some kind that is in shambles. Debris and dead or dying plant matter cover the mosaic-tiled floor. A gnarled black thorn tree still clings to life in a giant masonry planter. Two massive skylights in the ceiling afford a view of low-hanging, purple and black clouds above; the crystal dome is completely obscured. Piles of rubble obscure most of what once may have been doorways, but a single door to the west is free from debris.

Knowledge (history): 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (2) + 5 = 7
Knowledge (history): 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (19) + 5 = 24

"I remember tales of Beldrin's arboretum... a magical dome to grow plants. The earthquake damaged it, and twisted the magic... now it grows evil and sentient plant life. Even the ghouls avoid this place."

Davnet examines the scene before him carefully. (Cast detect magic and scan the doorway and room beyond.)

"We must be cautious. Perhaps I should send in... a friend... to determine if it is safe?"

The scan of the room does not reveal any unexpected magical auras to Davnet.

As the fetchling is concentrating on the spell, there is a slight rustle in the roots of the potted black thorn tree in front of you. One of the tree's roots seems to detach itself, revealing itself to be a small, gnarled, gnome-like figure with black, bark-like skin, a beard of green mold, an oversized, misshapen and bulbous head, and long, branched fingers. On his back he has numerous small sack-like growths about the size of a child’s fist.

"Greetings, masters all," he croaks in Taldane. "Welcome to the Arboretum Arcanis. My name is Majordomo Pip and who may you be? Young adventurers in search of fame and fortune?"

1d20 + 10 ⇒ (20) + 10 = 30 Know (nature)

Sad eye's bulge. He goes over to examine the mandragora.

"Oh, man-dragon. Nice one," Sad offer his stony fist for a sniff, if the mandragora wishes it. "Me Sad Rock. Sad *not* monster. Sad here to help friend."

Knowledge (History): 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (14) + 10 = 24
Knowledge (Nature): 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (5) + 10 = 15
Knowledge (Nature): 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (18) + 10 = 28

"Indeed. We're Pathfinders and we're here to fetch a small package left here about 20 years ago. Maybe you found something?"

"Majordomo... Pip?" Davnet has never seen a talking plant before. Perhaps he is some sort of "not monster" like Sadrock, but a creature of wood instead of earth? There are those who believe that there are not four elements, but five, with wood being the fifth... Davnet watches the creature carefully with great interest.

The Majordomo scratches his bulbous head. "A package, you say? What kind of package? Is it something interesting?"

J stands toward the back of the group, obviously quite interested in the strange being. After he finishes his questions, she think for a moment. "Gr ... I think it was left in or near a red lion. Does that ring any bells, Majordomo Pip?"

The creature nods his head. "I may be able to help you, but I think you need to talk to the Master Gardener first ... after you pay a small fee to help our maintenance costs, that is."