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"You got it!" Tiffany throws the group a thumbs up, then sprouts two wings and shimmering silvery feathers. "You make it sound like getting bugs in your mouth is a bad thing, Wadi! It's snack time!" The purple flower she had picked sits in her left wing. Eagle Avian Tiffany takes to the sky and gets a birds eye view Blackcove, looking for people, or giant crabs - anything!
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McKieg sighs, the windswept cliffs, the sounds of the gulls, and the rustling scrub grass dotted with wildflowers a balm to his soul. "This would make a fine home." If I ever find an intelligent and wise elf lass, willing to settle down. Yuelral willing, of course, a beautiful one.
The dwarf looks at the position of the sun, trying to reckon the time of day. He nods at Sheela's suggestion. "An inn would make a good first stop. We can make inquiries there, and then seek more information, if time permits."
Initial eagerness to find lodgings and perhaps a drink and a warm meal slowly gives way to unease as you descend down to the village proper and realize that you are alone. Clearly Adler was right; something is not right. Resolving to find out just what that might be, Luurg imbibes his lemony concoction while Sheela summons her servant. Tiffany then changes forms and takes to the sky to see what she can see...
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Having shifted into her beautiful avian form Tiffany takes to the skies, having to flap just a little bit at first to gain altitude. Once she makes it a short distance past the rooftops she slips into the sea breeze as a ship might slip into an ocean current, buoying her higher and higher until the entire village is laid out before her like a page from a picture book. As she circles around, her keen eyes take in the numerous buildings below. Many of them appear to be homes, cottages on raised stone foundations with weathered wooden walls and thatched roofs. All of them show what must be generations of wear, tear, and repair.
Continuing to wing towards the northeast Tiffany spies a series of long docks haphazardly balanced upon rickety wooden stilts. They stretch out from the village, protruding into the waves. One dock ends at a dilapidated shack and seems ready to fall into the sea at any moment. As she dips a little lower she also spots what look to be several fishing boats dotting the water not too far from shore, all of them occupied.
From the docks Tiffany swings around and bears west, heading over the water towards the lighthouse they'd seen from the top of the cliffs. This imposing structure rests on a jagged stretch of rock that juts out several hundred feet from shore. The crashing waves have worn away most of its paint, yet the lighthouse gleams like a dirty bone white against the dark cliffs of the cove. Large windows punctuate the cardinal directions on the second floor, and the top story glows with a bright red light of obviously arcane origin. A very short distance to the southwest from the lighthouse Tiffany spots what appears to be a grounded keelboat buried in the sand. Large piles of washed-up junk, nets, glass floats, and other debris litter the beach here.
Finally, as she continues to wing her way around towards the southeast and back to the cliffside path, Tiffany can see a small church built of stained coral that sits atop a rocky outcropping overlooking Blackcove. Carved steps wind precariously up the cliff to the temple.
While there might be other landmarks and places of interest that she can't discern from the air, Tiffany returns to the group feeling quite assured that she's at least picked out a few places that might serve as good starting points to investigate.
As Tiffany takes off to scout out the village from the air, the rest of you resolve to try and find an inn or some other type of gathering place in the hopes of finding other living souls. You set out along what passes for a street, cautiously peering around for shop signs or anything else of interest. Most of the buildings seem to be homes of heavily-weathered wood, sitting atop stone foundations. It almost seems as though whatever happened here happened quickly for the doors to a few of the homes hang ajar, flapping and banging in the wind.
As you come to the end of the street you also see a slightly larger building with an old, dilapidated sign hanging askew that reads:
Gerlach's Curative Curios
The windows to this shop are closed and boarded up, as is the door. It appears to be in 'relatively' good condition otherwise.
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"Bugs not make gud snacks. Apples make gud snacks. Wormz in apples not gud." Luurg mutters as bird Tiffy flaps away.
As the group walks down the street Luurg uses Leafy to push open doors and holler inside for anyone as they go "Hello dare? I'mma Luurg, we come to help yous." He says over and over into the abandoned buildings until Sheela stops at one that looks interesting.
"Curative Curios?" Says Luurg as he pronounces the words slowly. "Dis mebe a fruit store! But boards mean dat da fruit all gone or moldy. Mebe dey gut sum dried fruit, dats not bad."
If no one responds from the knocking he pulls out a crowbar from his overly stuffed backpack and goes about removing some boards to open up the door. Doing his best to not damage anything.
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As the others glance about the area Wadi briefly debates whether to use some protective magicks upon himself before discarding the idea. Best to save my limited resources here...
As Sheela knocks on the door and receives no answer he gently touches her arm, "I think this place is deserted. If there are others here then they must be gathered elsewhere. We should try to find them."
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Nearing the edge of Blackcove, Tiffany turns back and flaps her wings with fervor, eager to report on her findings to the party. She does a barrel roll just as she's about to land, her talon turning into a webbed foot as she wild shapes back to her original form. Beads of water line her waterproof skin.
She pads up behind the group as they knock on the door, clearing her throat and puts on her most formal voice. "This is your Blackcove 24 Eyes in the Sky reconnaisance report. I'm Trade Princess Tiffany, and good afternoon.
She spreads her arms to indicate the surroundings. "If you look northeast, you'll find the docks. The shack there isn't recommended for inspection as reports say it may fall apart. However, fishing appears to be picking up, with several fishing boats seen - all occupied - along the docks."
"Moving to our west, we have our lighthouse. Much of the paint is stripped away, but that hasn't stopped one eager traveler - or perhaps a castaway? - from visiting. A grounded cargo-capable working boat, or keelboat, is buried in the sand just to the southwest of the lighthouse."
"Finally, we've got a spiral staircase leading up to the quaint Blackcove church atop the cliff overlooking Blackcove. This has been your Eyes in the Sky report. Have a lovely day!"
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McKieg looks up, squinting. "This overcast sky makes it difficult for me to determine the time of day. Anyone have a clue?"
"Odd that the village seems abandoned. If we've time before nightfall, we should take a look around. I'd like to visit that temple on the cliffs, pay my respects."
McKieg looks to grippli princess. "Tiffany, are those fishing boats close enough to hail their crews? Perhaps we should introduce ourselves."
As the group approaches Curative Curious Luurg knocks at some of the other houses the group passes, using his longspear to peek inside the ones whose doors hang open. Judging by the interior of these homes many of them have been abandoned; washbasins tipped over, fishing nets that hang half-knotted on the walls, partially-eaten meals being picked at by small crabs and other scavenging creatures. Other homes, however, seem to have been abandoned not recently but years ago - sand from the cove piled up in the corners and the furniture rotted and covered in mildew. Still others have even crumbled or washed out to sea, leaving little more than rubble and stone foundations in their wake.
Upon reaching Curative Curios Sheela boldly knocks at the door but receives only silence for a reply. Satisfied that they've done their due diligence where polite society is concerned, Luurg then produces his crowbar and gets to work on unblocking the door. In the meantime, Tiffany rejoins the group and describes what there was to see from the air. Based on her report it seems that the only other living people in Blackcove - as far as all of you know anyway - are either out in their boats or possibly at the lighthouse.
McKieg considers all of this as he squints up at the sky, reasoning that it must be early afternoon by now though it seems later due to the dark skies and light rain that continues to fall.
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After unboarding the entrance to Curative Curios Luurg cautiously tries the door to the shop...
*CRACK*!
...and the stone foundation upon which it rests suffers some damage as the entire building shifts, leaning slightly askew. The door to the shop is, perhaps surprisingly, unlocked.
Only silence continues to emanate from within.
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"Whoopsie. Hrm" Mutters Luurg as he hears the sounds of broken come from his work. He eyeballs around to see if he can spot and hopefully brace the damage so they don't have the building cave in around their ears.
He sets down the crowbar and proceeds to pull out a bag of tools, rope, pitons, a drill, and a wire saw. "Luurg gud at dis 'tuff, you see."
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Adyr is more cautious than his companions.
"The place looks unstable...perhaps one or two of us should go in... the weight of all of us on those creaky floors might spell disaster. I will remain outside and keep watch."
Adyr will remain outside and remain vigilant, short composite bow in hand, just in case.
As the group looks on with some unease Luurg continues to defy half-orc stereotypes, assuring them that he'll be able to fix the building rather than wreck it. After giving the shop a quick once-over Luurg quickly determines that the stone foundation is beginning to suffer horizontal cracks in its surface, evidence of water pressure from the highly saturated ground. While it's possible, and actually quite easy, to reinforce the structure walls with the materials he has on hand, Luurg knows that it's only a short-term solution. Epoxy would be effective in repairing the cracks for a more long-term solution; perhaps something he can investigate in-depth at a later time.
Once the walls of the shop have been braced and reinforced as much as Luurg can manage he carefully swings the door open. Light spills into the abandoned shop, illuminating a small, paper-strewn counter and numerous shelves. Bits of glass and cork stoppers litter the floor, which is scorched and discolored in several places from the concoctions that once sat upon the shelves. The only other exit from the shop's front area appears to be a doorway behind the counter, covered by a tattered blue curtain. Aside from the mess, this part of the shop seems to be empty.
While Adyr and Wadi opt to wait and keep watch outside, McKieg gingerly ventures into the shop and begins looking around. At first glance there doesn't appear to be much to find; what potions and alchemical items there were have long-since fallen to the floor and shattered and the majority of the papers that lie scattered about are too damaged by water and mildew to decipher. However, the dwarf does manage to find two intact scrolls tucked away on a shelf behind the counter.
Both are scrolls of Comprehend Languages.
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Having located the two scrolls with his first cantrip, the warpriest, using the crystal prism of his holy symbol as a focus, casts another orison to enable him to read the magic spells written on them.
"Yuelral blesses us with a gift of magic, two scrolls of comprehend languages." McKieg answers Sheela, holding them out in his scarred, meaty fist. "It's a spell I can cast, but I don't usually prepare it. Who would you like to have them?"
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"Pretty cool, my dwarven pal!" Tiffany slaps her hand on the stoic dwarf's back. "I don't think I can read those scrolls properly though! Like, too bad, so sad, right?"
"Let's move on. How about we check out the docks? I want to see if those fishermen have any fresh crab legs for us!" The grippli points off in the direction of the boats she saw earlier.
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Luurg follows the strange dwarf inside the hut and looks around, poking with leafy and looking at the strange reagents and potion bottles lying about. "Luurg learned much stuffs long time ago from Orc tribe shaman. She real mean lady, but real smart Orc."
After they finish checking things out he squeezes outside through the doorway, his belly brushing against the supported doorway frame, leaving a fresh scratch across his breast plate. "Oops, scratchy." He blurts out.
He lets the others decide the next spot while he eats a handful of pruney looking cherries. Nom Nom
Though Luurg's keen eye sweeps the remnants of the bottles and vials that litter the floor and the shelves, he's unable to find anything remaining that would still be usable. Feeling anxious to find out what's going on and hoping that you can perhaps hail someone in one of the fishing boats, you collectively turn to leave the abandoned shop and make your way to the docks. As you do, the building shifts again as a particularly strong gust of wind hits it...
*KERSSHHH!*
...and the sound of shattering glass is heard from somewhere beyond the tattered curtain!
As you step through the curtain you enter into a short, dimly-lit hallway. Three more doors branch off from this hallway; one to east, one to the west, and the third to the north. Neither of the first two doors are locked and a quick peek into the eastern room reveals a small, ransacked bedroom while peeking to the west reveals a small kitchen and dining area. Clearly the shop owner not only conducted business in this building but it was also their home.
Unable to find the source of the shattering glass to the east or west, only one option remains - the northern door at the far end of the hallway. This door also appears to be unlocked and as you stand outside of it you become aware of a strange sound coming from the other side, a wet, raspy, spluttering sound...
Unable to resist, you carefully crack the door open just enough to see inside the room ahead. The first thing that you see is a surprisingly sophisticated-looking lab of alembics, stills, and glass tubes lets off a foul odor; clearly this must have been the owner's workshop where his concoctions were created.
But then you hear that same wet sound, louder now. Your gaze shifts towards the back corner of the room...and then you see it. A large tank lies shattered on the floor, a brackish-colored fluid puddled all around. Within the puddle lies a twisted, half-formed creature that possesses stubby, humanoid-like legs and arms but is partially covered with scales. As the small bit of light from the front of the shop filters into the room the creature twitches on the floor, head flopping around towards the source. Large, bulbous, unblinking eyes like those of a fish meet your gaze...the creature draws a wet, spluttering breath...and then is still.
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Luurg pokes his way through the curtain and disappears from sight. Luckily for anyone who is concerned about the lumbering orc, his weight and general lack of stealth makes it easy to hear him moving around. After peeking into some rooms the sound of him moves even further away for a few moments before coming back out a minute later.
Luurg peeks into the far room and squints his beady eyes as they scan the room, coming to rest on the weird fish thing that flopped out of the glass tank. "Umm... you.. fish.. ting? Dare? Hullo?" He keeps a tight grip on Leafy and pokes at the thing when it goes still, with the butt end. If he gets no response he heads back to get the others to help investigate.
The big fella pokes his head out the front door "Ummm dares dis ting in dare dat look kinda like half fish, half man? But not like normal half man, more like full man n half fish? Mebe kinda like what we lookin' fur?" He waves in the others, especially Boss Sheelur.
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"Well then. I'll... enter, then." Sheela sighs, then enters the building, trying to avoid damaging her fine shoes in any of the chemical residue.
"Ah. Hello there." Sheela hides her revulsion with a smile.
"My name is Sheela Kolphan. Who are you?"
If it doesn't seem to understand, Sheela will try one of the scrolls of comprehend languages.
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Having handed the scrolls to Sheela, McKieg turns at the sound of the breaking glass within, on the other side of the curtain. He follows Luurg, Tiffany, and Sheela, observing the fish-man. What is this creature? Is it sick or injured? Frightened or deceptive?
"Peace, stranger. We mean you no harm."
The strange fish-like monstrosity does not move when you gently nudge it with Leafy. A quick perusal of the room and the rest of its contents fails to turn up anything that would still be useful. On the bright side, it doesn't appear that any of the remnants nor the fluid spilled on the floor from the tank would be harmful to any of you.
The rest of you follow Luurg back through the curtained doorway into a short, dimly-lit hallway. Three more open doors branch off from this hallway; one to east, one to the west, and the third to the north. A quick peek into the eastern room as you walk by reveals a small, ransacked bedroom while peeking to the west reveals a small kitchen and dining area; the shopkeep's living quarters.
As Luurg leads you through the northern doorway at the end of the hall the first thing that all of you see is a surprisingly sophisticated-looking lab of alembics, stills, and glass tubes lets off a foul odor; clearly this must have been the owner's workshop where his concoctions were created.
Your gazes then shift towards the back corner of the room where a large tank lies shattered on the floor, a brackish-colored fluid puddled all around. Within the puddle lies a twisted, half-formed creature that possesses stubby, humanoid-like legs and arms but is partially covered with scales. Large, bulbous, unblinking eyes like those of a fish stare blankly; this creature seems to be dead.
And while McKieg hasn't ever encountered anything like this that he can recall, Tiffany and Luurg notice that it seems to bear some resemblance to a skum.
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When the creature doesn't move or respond Luurg leans in closer to have a look. He pokes and prods it, not the least bit grossed out. "Yup, DED day say. Wonder why dis person have half skum ting in here? Mebe we can find who dis hut is?" He heads back to the bedroom area and looks around for anything that may be a clue.
As you set about thoroughly exploring and examining the rest of the building you're able to glean a few tidbits of information. Now with a little better idea of what the dead creature might be thanks to Tiffany and Luurg's input, McKieg's keen eye notes that some of the bones in the limbs seem to be longer than the tendons and muscles, which are tightly stretched. He knows that these are signs of rapid growth, which could mean that the creature was undergoing a growth spurt of some sort...possibly naturally or possibly forcefully through the use of alchemy; it's difficult to say which. McKieg also notes a rudimentary set of gills, which leads the dwarf to believe that the creature was unable to breathe and suffocated when its tank shattered.
Both Luurg and McKieg also spot a dog-eared and ink-stained journal, discarded and half-hidden in the shadows underneath one of the workbenches. Many of the early pages feature nothing more than formulas for commonplace alchemical items such as a smokesticks and antitoxins as well as long lists of ingredients for these items and where to find them in the area. However, roughly halfway through the journal the content and tone of the writings radically changes; much of these pages have been splattered with ink and are largely unreadable but a few snippets are still legible:
'...thought of it makes my very skin crawl. By the gods, how long? All this time?'
'...has to be a way to halt the process, reverse it, even. But how?'
'...the process seems to occur naturally as a function of time and age...perhaps if I can replicate the change myself, then I can...'
'...thoughts keep turning to the waters, almost as though they call to me....no. No, I mustn't listen!'
'...on the island. Maybe the cure lies there?'
'...promised aid. For the first time in weeks my heart and thoughts feel light, and...'
'...same dream again. Every night now. Please...you promised, M-'
The last snippet is where the writings in the journal cease altogether. While a search of the living quarters fails to turn up anything of interest their ransacked state seems to indicate that whoever lived here likely packed and left in a hurry.
As to who lived here? The answer to that is, thankfully, easy to find - Gerlach. Even says so on the sign hanging outside.
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"Well, well, well! Detective Tiffany's on the case." Tiffany pulls out a monocle and begins pacing the room, speaking with the deepest voice she could put on as she absently taps on the journal. "I deduce that this Gerlach experimented with these fish creatures. Was he an alchemist like our friend Luurg here?" She pauses. "Indeed. That would be most obvious, do you concur? And upon review of his writings, perhaps this Gerlach became a skum," she throws up air quotes, "himself. It would follow, then, that this dead creature, quite possibly Gerlach himself, was an experiment." Tiffany puts her hands on her hips. "An experiment. Gone. Wrong."
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McKieg nods in agreement with Sheela. "Yes, we need to add 'the island' to our itinerary. Anybody remember seeing one as we approached the village? And a boat, maybe, to get there?"
To Tiffany he says, "A reasonable deduction, Princess."
"We'll hang onto this journal. Any useful alchemical items here?"
Once everyone's had a chance to examine the journal, McKieg stows it in his rucksack.
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"Nuttin' gud in here dare Dwarf-mang. All old and brok'd." He shrugs his heavy set shoulders in disappointment.
He nods along as he tries to follow Tiffany and her changed voice, looking a bit unsure at some of her statements. "Mebe dat him, but prolly not if he left. Look like dey packed n left not packed n swam in dat tank dare."
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Adyr grimaces at the mention of waterborne travel...
"If we are going to an island I think we should prepare for the worst possible scenario... tell me again, why are so concerned with this failed alchemical experiment? Shouldn't we try and find any remaining townsfolk before starting off? Also... if this creature isn't able to breath air... should we assume that they live ENTIRELY underwater. I don't know about the rest of you, but swimming and breathing water are beyond my abilities."