"Yea,...that's an affirmative" the Mariner slowly backs away and heads back to the ship at a moderate pace. "We're outta here, Cats, Brother."
"Ayep, let's get the cat outta here," Cats follows Mariner. "C'mon Catless."
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Brother Butterfly observes Naerel’s service and notes the classic signs of a cult of personality. Though some worshipers of Hanspur secure their cults through fear and (often accidental) sacrifice by drowning, Naerel has found another path. The man has some real divine power, and uses it to maintain leadership of Riverton and promote the economy rooted in the town’s port. His evening services seem more about theater than worship. As long as Naerel’s popularity remains secure there is little to fear from the man. Humor the madman a bit and he and his followers would very likely be a helpful friends, with benefits.
Embarrass him, though, and be prepared to reap the whirlwind.
By the crazed look on his face, and the surprised shock on the faces of his flock, Fearless just made the Watchmen the proverbial fly in Keoghtom’s Ointment.
****
Pursued by a mob, bruised by stones, and stained with mud, the Watchmen flee to the Sellen Starling, cut free from the docks, and limp away from Riverton with a half-repaired rudder and the last shreds of dignity.
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Damn it FEARLESS!!! Damn you to Rovagug's prison!!
Brother Butterfly zoooms to safety aboard the Sullen Starling. He prepped for escaping fast, and while he doesn't "run" -- his long strides get him away quickly. He looks at the ruder and asks a prayer to Desna.
Desna - Help the travelers leave the town that some half whit halfling ruined. Two halves make a whole! Desna make it so!
Cast Make Whole. Use the pearl of power and cast it again.
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Fearless looks back in shock. "Oh I am soooorrrrry!" He draws it out in exaggeration. "Those were true wackos that were likely to kill us all. Or at least me." He points to his chest with his index finger creaking on the leather. "We were lucky we got out when we did."
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Cats tries to catch his breath after running for the ship. I mean, he's terrified, but also plenty amused.
"Catless, when I finish laughing, remind me strangle you," Cats laughs and tries to catch his breath, highly amused. "Oh man, did you see the look on Catterfly's face as he had to *run*. I thought he was going to pass out! HA!" Cats chuckled and giggles with delight. "I bet the only time he's moved that fast is when someone was offering a free harem massage."
Cats huddles against the side of the boat, giggling at the narrow getaway.
"Oh man. This is one memory I don't want to lose."
Fearless breaks into a laugh as well. "You are telling me! I had to run twice as fast with these legs." Fearless gestures towards his shortened frame.
For the next few days the Starling limps south from Riverton. On the third day the boat leaves Kallas Lake behind, and resumes its journey along the Sellen River. At a bend in the river, not far from where the point at which the borders of the River Kingdoms gives way to the southern nations of Kyonin and Galt, lies the small town of Dabril.
Once a land of high ideals known for its free thinkers, poets, and artists, Galt is now governed by mob rule and chaos. After the death of Aroden and the rise of House Thrune, the people of Galt decided to throw off the foreign rule of Cheliax, along with their own nobles who had colluded with that fiendish nation. A bloody revolution followed in which many, many nobles lost their heads. Unfortunately these executions did not end the bloodshed and within five years, the severed heads of the ministers of Galt’s new government rolled down the steps of the guillotine. In the 50 years since, over a dozen governments have ruled Galt, rising and falling like the waves of a stormy sea.
As Skywin guides the Starling up to a small dock the smell of roses drift in upon the wind. Located along the northern border of Galt, Dabril seems to have largely avoided the ruin left by decades of anarchy. Hyacinths and narcissi dot the meadows surrounding the town. Across the water to the west lays Kyonin, its meadows bright with elven starlilies.
"Hey Catless, do we...do we have anything more to do in the Dreamlands? Not that I want to go back, but if we have more to do, then we should do those things we need to cat, you know?" Cats asks Fearless.
"It's been pretty boring on this tugboat. That's probably why Catiner is so angry all the time. He's bored, huh?" Cats asks, looking for anything to do besides sleep.
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Jasper drinks up a lot of his alcohol supply that he purchased on the prior city/ trip.
At some point, he stumbles to the top deck.
Big Guy! Kast-man! Picture Muse! He says jovially. Pointing to Mariner, Cats, and Fearless in that order.
Are there other dream places that we can go to? Cabin fever may be setting in.
He overhears Cat's question, and while it mirrors his own, he loves that others agree with his brilliant wisdom.
still inebriated, he puts his hand to Cat's cheek. and pats it a couple times. That's the smart Kast-Cats- Kast.
*******
Upon seeing Dabril.
Beer run!!
"There is a lot more to do there, but I need time to research more to figure out where we need to go." Fearless kicks the large pile of books.
Cabin fever may be setting in.
Beer run!!
"Yea let's get some solid ground and sanity under our feet", the Mariner says with murderous tone. Having been counting supplies in the hold and sharpening everything with a sharp edge, including his paranoia, to a meticulous hone.
"Skywin, pull over and let the men stretch their feet."
Dreamlands Tribute Items:
*Viscount’s signet ring - Researched and Collected
*Feline tail - Researched and Collected
*Skull of ghoul royalty - Requires research (dungeoneering, planes, religion)
*Green stone idol of a water lizard - Requires research (history, planes, religion)
*Night hag ambassador’s heartstone - Requires research (arcana, nobility, planes)
*Captain’s tricorne - Requires research (history, local, planes)
*Red webbed foot - Requires research (dungeoneering, history, planes)
As the other depart for a beer run Fearless sets back down into his books as he knows he has a long ways to go. "You go on ahead. Let me figure out a few more of these."
Cats eventually gets so bored he goes down to help Fearless with research. He comes into the room and sits in a chair.
”Can I help with the research, Catless? I can read, you know. I many big words,” Cats says, picking up a book. ”Where do you want me to start? Do you have one with lots of pictures?”
Know (Local) - Captain’s Tricorne
The Mariner looks about for any dockside tavern or activity, then heads in that direction. "Don't stray far Brother."
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Brother Butterfly “Tianshais” the Mariner and drags him into Dabril to find a tavern. In a short time they find themselves seated at a halfway respectable cafe with a more than respectable vintage of Kyonin syrah in hand. Six hours later the Mariner returns to the Sellen Starling with the round cleric shouldered like a sack of potatoes.
Over the next day, as the rudder is straightened and reset and Brother Butterfly sleeps off his bender, Fearless digs into Lowl’s books once more. Cats offers to help, but his advice is so wrong that Fearless can’t help but wonder if Butterfly sent him to sabotage the research.
The Skull of Ghoul Royalty
According to a folio regarding extraplanar undead, the ghouls of the Dreamlands are far more social— though no less wicked—than their bestial kin in the waking world. They have rich histories and large communities led by royalty. A discourse on the dread Plateau of Leng explains that a more powerful form of ghoul inhabits regions where the Dreamlands connects to Leng. These Leng ghouls are shrewder than their lesser kin.
Eventually Fearless learns a phrase to reach a ghoul necropolis in the Dreamlands Underworld.
Green Stone Idol:
The water lizard referenced is no mere animal—it is a representation of Bokrug, one of the unimaginably powerful Great Old Ones. A horrid treatise collating rumors of the Great Old Ones asserts that Bokrug lives in a vast, unnamed lake in the Dreamlands. A race of alien creatures founded the city of Ib on the shores of the lake and worshiped Bokrug there. An idol of green stone was central to their rites.
A quasi-historical dissertation relates how Ib was destroyed by proud and warlike humans disgusted by the aliens’ bizarre rites and unusual physiognomy. The victorious humans were from a city called Sarnath. After destroying Ib, the folk of Sarnath carried away a strange green idol and housed it in one of their temples. The idol disappeared from the temple soon thereafter.
Fearless learns the phrase needed for the occult ritual to access Sarnath.
”Lung ghouls?! What the cat are lung ghouls, Catless?” Cats seems confused about something or other. ”I already don’t like ghouls much, and I can’t imagine that lung ghouls are going to be much catter.”
Cats wonders if the party will be going back to the Dreamlands soon.
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Brother Butterfly, with a head pounding from a terrible hangover can only nod up and down when told about the Ghouls of Leng. He shakes his head from left to right when told about having to search for a disappeared idol of An Old One.
He croaks out something. Leee
then decides it's too much effort and lies back down on Mariner's bed - which he has claimed for the whole sea voyage thus far.
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Fearless takes a look at the boots, though his fragmented mind swims with information. "I have no clue what a Lung Ghoul actually is, just how to get there. That would take a few more days. Right now we have the way to get into two more areas, which one first?"
He smacks the bottle out of Brother Butterfly's hand. "And I need you to be thinking straight for once. You nearly get me killed everytime we are in there."
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You nearly get me killed everytime we are in there.
Now, that's not accurate. I nearly and once DID get Mariner killed everytime he is in there. If you are going to place blame, let's at least be accurate.
The Caravansarai -- Mariner dead.The ballroom - Mariner almost held and eaten by ettercaps. But I DID help with fix that.
Razmiran -- I think he got placed in jail and poisoned.
Brother Butterfly knows quite a bit about leng ghouls.
The ghouls of the nightmare dimension of Leng are far more powerful and more intelligent than their lesser kin that haunt and caper in the lonely graveyards of the Material Plane, yet they are also more prone to discussion and debate with intruders. Ghoul warrens that burrow deep enough can inexplicably cross over from this world to Leng, allowing the ghouls of that realm access to this world. Leng ghouls delight in feasting on dead flesh and consider themselves gourmets of rot and decay, treating a full coffin as a sumptuous banquet table.
Leng ghouls maintain complex societies and extensive warrens when they colonize reaches of the Material Planes, digging deep below the surface graveyards they choose to haunt. These creatures are not only driven to gather victims to slaughter and bodies to ripen—they also seek out forbidden texts and magical scrolls to augment their ever-increasing stores of knowledge, which often rival the greatest of wizardly libraries in size, although their subject matter tends to be limited to necromancy and the study of forbidden rites. A Leng ghoul can sometimes be convinced to let a particularly delicious-looking intruder go (relatively) unharmed in exchange for new lore.
Although most Leng ghouls venerate the Great Old Ones or Outer Gods (they have a particular affinity for Nyarlathotep), a rare few of these creatures retain more of their humanity than merely their living intellect. These unique few drift away from evil in their pursuit of magical lore—while they still hunger for dead flesh, many try their best to feed only on those who died naturally or willingly offer themselves up to the carrion feast in return for favors. While many eventually succumb to the temptation to feed on fresh kills in time, a rare few manage to maintain nonevil alignments.*
”So...all we need to do is cat in, and steal a Lung Ghoul Royal head? Uh, that doesn’t sound easy. In fact, it’s making me queasy,” Cats moves to the side of the boat, a brief wave of seasickness hitting him.
He looks over at Brother and he’s recounting all the times he’s only almost gotten Mariner dead. He’s glad he’s not on that list. In fact, Brother has been pretty good at keeping him alive, and he appreciates that.
”Okay, fine...so are we catting to sleep so we can retrieve a rotting ghoul head, are we? Well, let’s get catting.”
Cats is ready to sleep.
Fearless tosses the book back into the pile. "None of this has been easy!" He begrudgingly sets up the dream circle once more. "May as well get too it."
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Brother starts to go for a bottle of wine. But a part of him- a strong and willful part rooted in fear - makes him stop. The Dreamlands area will be more dangerous that anything faced before.
I'm gonna speak with Desna for a long while. I want to also burn some incense.
He uses incense of meditation, and he keeps himself from drinking.
Two victories.
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On the Mariner's one arm are the names of those he defiled in the past. On the other arm are little hash marks on the inside of the forearm, made with a razor point of a dagger, on how many times he's been almost all-dead - there's about twenty since waking up in Briarstone. He was about to argue the point but just smiles at Cats, I got more lives than you.
Looking very apprehensive about surely getting murdered again in the Dreamlands, "Maybe we better supply up while we're here in Dabril. You know, something like a corpse or a forbidden book to barter with? Anything like that in this shanty town?"
"But Fearless, didn't you say that things can't be taken into or out of the Dreamlands? I mean we gotta find it there right?"
"Seems that way." Fearless shakes his head. "I know very little of this world and am learning on the fly."
Cats nestles in to sleep in the dream circle, trying to be comfortable for the tasks ahead.
"Yeah, let's get this over with."
Performing the occult ritual again, Fearless opens the staircase and the Watchmen descend into the dreamlands...
Emerging from the mists at the bottom of the stairs, you find yourselves in an enormous underground cavern dimly illuminated by multicolored phosphorescent fungus. Before you, chanting in a dark tongue, kneels a group of humanoids with canine-like features, rancid green flesh, and legs bent backwards and ending in hooves.
”Iä!! Iä! Nyarlathotep, mggoka'ai vulgtmm!
Nyarlathotep, c’mgulnah hafh!”
Beyond the chanting ghouls, dozens of other ghouls prepare for battle. Some arrange themselves into strike teams, others strap on makeshift armor, and a few spar with one another.
The chanting ghouls grow suddenly quiet and one rises, his clawed hands held aloft in a sign of peace.
”Our call has been heard and you have come. Will you aid us against our enemy?”
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Jumping on the solution before the others can pull a Ray Stantz.
Yes. We are The Watchmen and heard the call!
Do you want a diplomacy check?
”What? You called for cats?” Cats looks at Brother, then to the ghouls as if expecting them to attack at any moment.
”Who is your enemy? And what do you cat of us?” Cats asks.
He looks at the ghouls with his Cat’s Eyes.
Emerging from the mists at the bottom of the stairs
::ack ack!::, the Mariner waves away the nostril effects. Then eyes focusing on the ghoulish natives, "Oh -hey, umm" A little caught by surprise being put on the spot, he looks to Brother for some carefully chosen words.
Fearless looks confused and whispers. "A call?" He then looks back to the ghouls. "What enemies?"
Nice..., the Mariner nods.
”I am Wilkins.” The leader of the ghouls says. ”A large tribe of gugs currently occupies an underground necropolis nearby. It is a place of importance to ghouls and their presence is a defilement of our history and tradition. We have gathered our forces to drive them out, and summoned you forth to help us take a strategic point in the necropolis called the Plaza of Bones. Will you accept this gift and lend your strength to our attack?”
The ghoul digs into a pouch at his side and produces a handful of shiny yellow gemstones.
"Nice to meet you, uh, Wilkins," Cats looks to the pouch and then back to Wilkins. "Oh yeah, we're good gug slayers, I'm pretty sure. But we can't use them pretty stones much where we come from. We need something a bit different. We need, and this may sound a bit grizzly, a royal ghoul skull, you see? Do you have one of them?" Kast smiles.
"We're really good at killing stuff. Mind you."
Wilkins tilts his head in a curious expression.
”My army is small, and has no nobles. However, the Plaza of Bones contains the mausoleum of Scarcrim Vost, a ghoul prince destroyed many decades ago. The mausoleum would likely contain Scarcrim’s skull.”
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Cats smiles.
”Well, good then. And then show us the glugs you want us to cat?” Cats asks. ”We’ll kill for the skull. That’s the cat.”
”We’ll fight fair and hard for your dead prince.” Cats can’t believe he’s having this discussion, but since this is a dream and weird stuff happens in dreams, he’s just rolling with it.
”Hey Catless, do you have any idea why the glugs and lungs are fighting? Who’s probably right?” he whispers a question at Fearless.
"No clue, why they are fighting, but they think we are trying to graverob the skull and aren't happy about it." Fearless whispers back as he is busy looking at a sword that appeared back into their hands in the Dreamrealm.
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Brother takes in the situation and atmosphere. He tries to be diplomatic.
As you can see, your incantation has summoned a willing and capable party.
Part of your incantation involves negotiating a price for service. You have summoned us to reclaim holy and special territory from your enemies, yet we also don't want to desecrate the area we will liberate.
We are not grave robbers. If the price we ask is too steep, maybe we can add an item of magic to balance the scales.
But, the price and magical bindings that you started need to be agreed upon. If they can't be agreed upon, then your spell will unwind and we shall go back to the lands which we originate.
Brother has a stiff upper chin. He's negotiating from power. They can either agree and get their prize, or disappear back to Galorian and return in a day or two to significantly weakened army of Lungs and Gugs. If his friends were more stealthy, he'd probably go with Plan B as his preference.