Pocky presses her right fist against her left palm and bows to Mara. “It would be my pleasure to pulverize a diamond for you. I will need the exercise between books. I can not afford to become soft.”
Pocky will do a bit of research of course, starting with Geography to find out what she can regarding the place where the gnolls are. Okeno, is it…?
”I can help, too,” Ci Ci offers. ”My family are jewelers by trade.”
Pocky feels like such a dork. “Right. Jeweler. You did tell me of this before… before the…” Monsters and bloody deaths, she decides not to say.
“Miss Barchetta, you are perfect for handling the diamond. And my physique isn’t the diamond-crushing type anyway. For me, the best exercise is to do jumping jacks.”
Pocky then does a backflip, her ki propelling her sixteen feet in the air. The ring of feather fall ensures a safe landing for the little nun.
“Oh, I may have outdone Jack with that one. Oh, and this sapphire ring! I never landed half that height so effortlessly.” She smiles at the ring, and says to it, “Oh, I could just kiss you! But, best not. Nun’s vows and all that.”
"Mara, what sort of funeral do you imagine for Kat? 1,000 platinum is a lot of money."
"Elder Thyrr... I read from a version of that damned book in the Dreamlands. I fear it was a mistake. I thought I needed the power to thwart Lowls. Do you know of a way to remove knowledge of such things from a person's mind?"
Mara looked a bit flustered and replied to Dervak, "Oh right, I was thinking 1000 gold pieces. No, I don't think Kat would have wanted anything extravagant. Do you know whether she wanted to be buried or cremated?"
"I don't know what Kat would have wanted, Mara. Can you ask her?
For me, if it comes to that, I would prefer to be cremated. Don't want anyone animating my remains as a zombie or whatever.
But, uh, only if you find that you can't raise me."
Theophilus glances nervously at The White Rabbit.
He is just counting down the days. He has been ready since we met all of you...
Speak with dead requires at least a skull, which you don't have. The Mari construct's wishes are very clear, it wants to die.
When Mara talks to Kat's spirit she is cooperative and answers any questions. She doesn't know why she won't return and adds that the speak with dead spell only allows her access to the memories she had in life, so it must be something her spirit encountered after death. Kat says to do whatever the custom is in Katheer which is cremation.
Okeno, is it…?
Mara, Dervak, or Theo share the name of the slaver Lowls has had dealings with before, Biting Lash. After days of pouring over books and using her own keen mind Pocky turns up these pertinent facts.
Gnoll Slavers of Okeno
The fleshfairs of Okeno, as the slave markets are known, are the largest in the Inner Sea region, and at any given time almost half of the population of the pirate city is made up of slavers and their merchandise.
Far from being outcasts, gnoll slavers are welcome and are considered to be the most professional of their ilk. They even have their own slave market known as the Laughing Fleshfair, on account of the way the bidding is done with laughing cries and barks, where, at least in theory, gnolls are the only traders allowed.
Although openly welcome in the city, the gnoll slavers are despised by many other humanoids that work the trade. This is often a case of simple professional jealousy, but it’s sometimes from a sense of loathing at how they treat their merchandise. The gnolls are paranoid about security, and operate in a web of deceit. Many take pseudonyms, and keep their slave pits veiled in mystery. Many of the gnoll slavers keep their merchandise in different locations, and keep their most prized possessions in fortified structures away from the fleshfairs.
One of the most successful and civilized gnoll traders is Hyena Princess Njano, a lady of great intelligence and influence. She is so powerful that she operates openly at the Laughing Fleshfair, and she knows every powerful gnoll in the city.
Biting Lash is a pseudonym, nothing more. Biting Lash primarily deals with people she already knows, eschewing the fleshfairs when it comes to selling her own slaves. She is highly paranoid about betrayal, and goes to great lengths to keep the details of her inventory a secret. She is known to use subordinates and spies to purchase new slaves at the fleshfairs instead of going in person. Like most gnoll traders, she likes anonymity, and even changes her appearance regularly.
"Elder Thyrr... I read from a version of that damned book in the Dreamlands. I fear it was a mistake. I thought I needed the power to thwart Lowls. Do you know of a way to remove knowledge of such things from a person's mind?"
"I have heard it's possible to remove memories. Unfortunately I can't cast the spell but I might know someone who can."
Pocky shares all that she learned, and though she doesn’t come off as a terribly emotional person, she does add one opinion after having paused to stare at her sapphire ring. “All slavers must die.“ She says this with conviction. There is no anger in her tone, nor does she bother to elaborate.
Theophilus just sighs, as they research...
Pocky shares all that she learned, and though she doesn’t come off as a terribly emotional person, she does add one opinion after having paused to stare at her sapphire ring. “All slavers must die.“ She says this with conviction. There is no anger in her tone, nor does she bother to elaborate.
"While I might wish that were so, Pocky - I was bought and sold myself - we are in a land where slavery is legal. That in itself wouldn't stop me from killing slavers, but we have a more important task and I really don't want to die fighting the entire city of Okeno or the entire nation of Qadira, or wherever Okeno is.
We have to find this Biting Lash and get information from them to help track down Lowls. Once we get that information I am happy to kill them... unless Allegra has given her word to the Godclaw that we wouldn't. I'm not one for the gods of Law myself but I am not going to betray my allies.If you find any slavers that you can kill and get away with, I wouldn't oppose you."
Dervak will seek out a scroll of Modify Memory.
"Mara, can you help Theophilus use this scroll on me? I want to forget ever reading from that book in the Dreamlands."
Biting Lash will not be forthcoming. We will need to attract her attention in such a positive way...
He smiles at the monk.
....that she will seek us out.
The White Rabbit looks at Theo with a
Who the f*$# is this guy?
expression.
Theo looks back at him.
What? Do I need to be insane all the time!
Theo then begins to twitch a bit.
Pocky returns Theo’s smile (unfazed by the twitching). “Eccentric, Theo.
“Does ‘Sanity’ describe a world in which people treat other people as property or meat or dolls or pawns? With masters who abuse the innocent, plain-faced and well-dressed, as if invoking mass-suffering places them on the upper-crust of social norms? Slavery is a pestilence, aligned with the Law of the Land.”
She makes eye-contact with the White Rabbit, to include him in the conversation, but her eyes again meet Theo’s when she concludes,
“I prefer your Crazy Train.”
"Pocky, Kat would have liked you."
“What was she like?” Pocky asks, stammering a bit with, “I’ll understand if you’d rather not say… but I do want to know.
“Better to honor her as a person than an anonymous soldier.”
"Kat could get outraged about the big-picture injustices of the world.
And she wanted to fix them.
Think she should have got into politics, like in Andoran or somewhere like that.
She also couldn't let go and couldn't accept losing Mari. Refused to let Mari die even though she was a... a floating skin in a jar. And wanted to die. Kat insisted she could fix Mari.
Me... I got a huge problem in front of me, so that's what I'll deal with. I'll do what it takes to solve the problem and not bother with the philosophy or politics. Because this thing is so much bigger and so much worse than the ordinary human evils of Golarion."
Pocky nods. “I should clarify my ‘all slavers must die’ comment then. I don’t expect to solve the world’s problems. It was more of…” An emotional response. Just admit this.
She doesn’t.
“…a recognition of the convenience. It is inevitable that we will battle some slavers, not because we will pick fights out of principle, but because the path to Lowls is through them.
“I am not opposed to speaking to slavers, if that is how we gather information. But if it comes to a fight, know that I am trained to incapacitate rather than kill. Slavers, however, will not receive this mercy from my hand.”
Theo laughs.
Ah, but who is sane in this crazy world, afterall? I am of the opinion that ones sanity is also ones covering over the atrocities that are perpetuated throughout that weeping world.
He points down to The White Rabbit.
I just so happen to carry my sanity openly.
The White Rabbit nods sagely.
The Mad Hatter then turns a bit serious faced.
We have been through Hell and High Water just to get to this point. Lowls has eluded our pursuit through many fearsome--although wildly entertaining--lands. This Book is not to be trifled with!
He does sneak a stern blue-eyed glance at The White Rabbit; who is seen unperturbingly polishing his nails.
He then turns a bit sad at the mention of Kat.
She was fearless. She had her goals, but she was always willing to place them aside, if they were counterintuitive with our mission. We do miss her.
The White Rabbit hands the gentleman a handkerchief.
We should prepare for our journey to the Island. It is located off the coast of Katapesh.
The White Rabbit is seen pulling out a map of Golarion....
Mara hoped to one day have the power to bring back someone in a state like Mari's, but she had to accept Marianna's clear wishes, and ended the skin construct's miserable existence. She arranged for a cremation and memorial service for her friend, to be held before the party left for Okeno. She sent a message to Cesadia Wrentz via a Sending spell, telling the head of the Sleepless Detective Agency of her former employee's untimely death. All this took its toll on Mara, but she couldn't shirk her duty to a fallen comrade.
Once the diamond dust was ready, she cast restoration spells over the course of three days, to restore the abilities drained by the Keeper of the Mysterium. She also assisted Theophilus to use the scroll for Dervak, to remove his unwanted memory gained in the Dreamlands.
“But if it comes to a fight, know that I am trained to incapacitate rather than kill. Slavers, however, will not receive this mercy from my hand.”
Dervak shrugs. "Fine by me. Someone in their right mind tries to fight me to the death, then by Gorum I try to respect their decision.
Now if someone tries to kill me and then tries to surrender and ask for mercy... well then it depends if we think they deserve it. But that hasn't happened a lot."
At the cremation, Dervak says a few words.
"Theophilus is right about you, Kat. You were fearless and you were dedicated to our mission.
We would not have made it through the Dreamlands without you. Golarion will be in your debt.
And, for all that I might not have understood it... you cared. Deeply.
May Pharasma judge you fairly."
After the Modify Memory ritual, he thanks Mara and Theophilus for their assistance.
Theo uses UMD.
The White Rabbit seems very interested in where the information goes....he has a net!
She largely leaves the discussion of slavers and prisoner taking to the rest of the group, but she does chime in with, "Killing in defense of ourselves is one thing, Pocky. A death sentence passed in another. But murder is something I won't abide." Her tone softens slightly. "I know you're better than that."
“It will be in self-defense,” Pocky assures Allegra. “Without provocation, and just as certainly, without mercy.
“To spare a slaver, after defeating him in combat, means the slaver comes home angry. When a slaver comes home angry, his slave suffers a beating. I know these beatings like the back of my master’s hand.”
There is no anger in words, nor elaboration.
Mara offered her opinion, guided by her faith, "I don't think all slavers are beyond redemption. I believe that some can change their views over time, and can be swayed by convincing arguments."
Mara sought out an ivory worker to carve a small statuette in her likeness. It wasn't a matter of vanity; rather it was needed as the focus of a new prayer to protect herself from harm. Once it was complete, she cast the prayer, accompanied by another curative spell, to be activated in an emergency.
After a couple of days research and preparations Elder Lythiin comes by, apparently raised from the dead, and presents you with his gear that you returned to Elder Thyrr. "Its the least I can do for recovering my body. Thank you, you'll always have friends in Katheer. I just hope the Mysterium can recover."
Dervak, Mara, and Theophilus dream
While preparing to journey Okeno you suffer horrific nightmares. In these dreams, you are being suckled by a figure that seems at first to be your mother. But you can’t see the figure cradling you clearly, you realize it has too many arms and smells wrong. To find relief from this sensation, you begins to gather flowers and weeds in yellow hues, mixing them into a pulp and smearing it on your lodging’s walls. In time, the shape resembles the Yellow Sign. Before the disturbing dream fades, you hear a faraway voice that says, “The influence of the Inmost Blot grows. More of them seek the forgotten city, and when its memory returns to the world, the seal will be broken and those that can’t be seen will fly again.”
Waking up from the weird and disturbing dream, Theophilus decides to not drink caffeine after nightfall.
I may have a need for poppies...
Pocky is amazed at the elder thanking the party for recovering his body! At the same time, she is saddened Kat could not return. Surely this woman who had a passion for fighting injustice had more decades left of natural life than an elder.
Pocky wonders, Is the mortal world so full of evil that Kat prefers to leave it behind? Or is she in paradise now?
She hopes that is the case. She also hopes to unleash her trippy kick combination on some gnoll slave-drivers. Maybe Mara’s right that some can be redeemed. Pocky expects that the redeemable are not the kind that would beat their slaves. The violent ones are the kind she expects as opposition…
But as far as tactics go, Pocky has yet to meet a small enough opponent for her Leg Sweep to be effective. So in her recent meditations, she has focused on harm rather than hinder.
After this morning’s meditation, she works out, then heads out to see what the others are up to. She is holding a half full goblet and ignoring the bead of sweat creeping out from under her habit and down her cheek. “Good morning,” she says with a bow.
Mara woke up from the nightmare bathed in sweat. Did she already know too much about Xhamen-Dor? How could one fight such an entity, when knowledge about it was itself dangerous?
In the morning she purchased some supplies and asked Allegra, "I was wondering if you could help me with a ritual I'm planning? A Prayer would help me; could you prepare one for tomorrow evening? I'll need to view the night sky to properly commune with the heavens."
Ci Ci comes back from the shops resplendent in a new silver white robe with gold embroidery on the hem, neckline and sleeves. The imagery seems to be symbolic sun bursts and flames interspersed with Celestial script.
In conjunction with her light-twisting cloak, she looks like she was carved from a piece of sunlight.
"What do you think?" she asks Pocky, as the person she assumes would be the most likely to answer the question.
Dervak likewise has new robes... black with a royal purple trim.
Throughout the purple hem meanders a single golden thread. At various places in the hem, embroidered designs of silver shears loom over that single golden thread.
"I like it," says the warrior to himself. "Yours too, Cerise."
Mara offered her opinion on Ci Ci's new outfit, "I think it looks heavenly!"
She told companion from the asylum, "You look very handsome in your new duds, Dervak."
Allegra looks up from a lump of clay she's been shaping. "I can prepare a Prayer for you, Ms. al-Katheeri. Do you require any other assistance with the ritual?"
"Miss Barchetta, thats, the new robe is quite fetching. Why, it almost looks like you've been flocked yourself. A right trio we make now." A slight twitch at the corner of her lip as she looks between Ci Ci and Pocky might be an attempt at a smile.
When Ci-Ci approaches the short person in the unmistakable blue habit, the girl turns. She is a human child! Though clearly, she is wearing the same outfit...
…with a couple of new accessories: a cloak that seems to emit a cool mist, and the leggings are new—less like what a ballerina would wear. These have a design that resembles arcs of lightning and swirls of wind. The motif matches the cloak… but that might have been designed for an actual human child who is older and taller. On Pocky, the cloak brushes against the ground.
And it is unmistakably Pocky’s voice. She may look like a child but…
“You resemble a sun goddess, Ms. Barchetta. I mean no offense to the Dawnflower, of course. You have excellent tastes. Perhaps I should consult you next time I become so frivolous with my earnings.”
…apparently nuns don’t take acting lessons.
Theophilus looks at the White Rabbit. The White Rabbit gives a thumbs up (keeping an eye on Mara).
Teleport?
The next day, Mara prepared for her ritual, preparing the appropriate prayers. After spending the day looking into the best way to travel to Okeno, she prepared a the evening meal for everyone.
After sunset, she alerted Allegraand assumed her crone aspect, then went outside to a suitable spot, and cast a couple of preparatory spells.
She indicated that now was the right time to cast the Prayer, and readied the scroll that she had bought. Once Allegra performed her blessing, Mara called on the heaven's spirits to grant her good fortune and started chanting. She read the scroll and followed up with her prepared spell.
When Theophilus suggested teleporting to Okeno, Mara asked him, "How well do you know the area we would be teleporting to? Wouldn't there be a chance of arriving in the middle of the sea?" She knew that Okeno was on an island between Qadira and Katapesh, and that the Teleport spell could be inaccurate, especially if the caster wasn't very familiar with the destination.
Pocky says, “I haven’t learned to walk on water yet. Besides, a boat ride sounds fun.”
Pocky wonders why she didn’t take swimming lessons like most of other nuns.
"I can call upon my power to gift me with the ability to fly for nearly the duration of dawn to dusk, but I can't grant that powers to the rest of you," Ci Ci says, giving a small shrug. "Teleportation would be astounding, but if we are not sure of the reliability of the magic involved, it is probably safer to book passage on a ship."
Theophilus looks back down at the White Rabbit. The White Rabbit adjust some stones on his abacus. He shrugs.
It seems like you may be a bit on the fence.
He smiles.
I wonder if we could travel via the Dream Lands.
"Oh, uh... I sold that ivory staircase that we used in the ritual. Figured we were done with it."
"I don't mind a boat ride."
"I'm amenable to boat travel. How long would that take?"
"I can call upon my power to gift me with the ability to fly for nearly the duration of dawn to dusk, but I can't grant that powers to the rest of you," Ci Ci says, giving a small shrug. "Teleportation would be astounding, but if we are not sure of the reliability of the magic involved, it is probably safer to book passage on a ship."
Pocky perks up at the very idea. “Not that I’d want to cross the sea in such a manner, but I weigh less than thirty pounds, and won’t die from a fall if you drop me.” She taps the sapphire ring when she implicates her immunity to plummeting.
“Worth noting, should you ever need to travel a vertical distance. You needn’t go alone.”
Flying… for hours!
"Good to know," Ci Ci replies. "I can stuff you in my haversack, if need be."
She gives Pocky a friendly wink.
"Good question. It will probably depend on what kind of boat we end up on. Where is this island, anyway, in the middle of a large lake, off the coast, or way out in the ocean?"
Theo removes the memory of the Dreamlands version of the Necronomicon for Dervak with a purchased scroll. It is surprisingly easy, the last time you tried something similar nearly everyone died. Dervak remembers the entire encounter and even remembers looking at the dread book, but when he tries to recall what he saw, it is a jumble. It seems the knowledge is expunged.
Mara and Allegra perform the ritual involving the destruction of a surprising amount of precious gems.
The journey to Okeno is around 450 miles as the witch flies, but a journey by boat takes a meandering 670 miles worth of journey. Both groups recognize a familiar boat captain, a half-ork with a purple fedora and silk clothing who goes by Junior. Dervak, Mara, and Theo as the captain who delivered Kat to Skywin's vessel. Allegra, Ci Ci, and Pocky as the captain who took them to Katheer. How he managed to seemingly be in two places at once is a topic you only briefly consider.
Junior says with an easy going smile, "Oh sure I can take you into a pirate-slaver den! Especially if you kill a few of them while you're there. Won't even charge you. But it will take about two weeks. Sounds like you might need to get there sooner than that."
Mara had been looking into the location of Okeno, so she replied to Ci Ci, "The island is in the Obari Ocean, halfway between Qadira and Katapesh."
She asked Junior, "So what would be our options for getting there sooner?" She way hoping for something that didn't risk drowning half the party.
Pocky knows Geography…
…but not sailing.
She simply asks Captain Junior, “Are you insinuating you can provide a faster way?”
Junior pulls at his silk shirt when Pocky gives him the hairy eye. "Uh.. well, yeah. I think. Yes. Yes I can."
He looks from side to side, "It'll take three days to grab all of you." Then he says as an aside to Pocky while side glancing at Theophilus and pointing at him 'discretely'"Are you sure about taking him? I think I say him eyeing my soap."