Ruinë sends a burst of positive energy across the battlefield, healing only those that are wounded and need medical attention.
Ashlion smashes his bulette to death with a few heavy blows from his maul! Ruine heals the party, then Grelda gives Ash an extra boost of vitality before paralyzing the bulette attacking Tom! Tom and Tasha each score hits on their foes.
Tasha's opponent scores a critical hit with its teeth, but luckily it fails to further capitalize on the attack as she dodges its claws.
Tasha continues to stab at the strange beast.
Tom tries to hold his guts in with his off hand!
"Hold still for a second!" the cleric complains when Tom is dancing throwing daggers all around. "I can't patch you up if you move like that!"
Ashlion and Tom kill the paralyzed bulette before it can recover. The barbarian then runs over to flank the last bulette with Tasha, allowing the tiefling to score a glancing hit. Ruine heals Tom while Grelda boosts Tasha’s vitality and hurls a projectile at the bulette.
The final landshark burrows down into the ground, fleeing to preserve its life!
”Thank you! Thank you!” the shoonies yip happily. ”You’ve saved our lives! Please, take this in thanks!” They hand you a shoony shovel.
The shoonies are happy to stick around and chat with you for a while. They can tell you many rumors about the town of Matten Cleave and its environs:
“Matten Cleave has been the richest farming in the grange for as long as anyone can remember, but that’s all been changing the last year or so. A blight has been spreading through the area from the southeast farms.”
“The Verdant Passage is the coastal road and main tradeway that leads to Willowside. It’s got the best farmland on Kortos, but some of the farms have begun to fail of late. That’s the first time that’s happened on the Verd from as far back as I can remember.”
“The Wellspring Tower is one of the legendary towers that dot this part of the island—they’re all in ruins. Nobody goes to the Wellspring Tower much.”
“The tower out there is called the Wellspring because a sweet water spring bubbles up at its base, though I heard it dried up. The best way to reach it is on a little footpath from Ferny. Otherwise you end up climbing over half the fences in the district.”
“Ferny is a small village of shoonies. Their pipeweed and hops are fantastic, let me tell you.”
“A mean ol’ cuss named Currew up and died in his sleep about a year ago. The grocer’s delivery boy found him stone dead. No family and no will, so the place is just moldering out there.”
When you tell them that you are part of a cirucs, the shoonies promise to bring their entire clan to see the next show in Matten Cleave. They mention that they particularly enjoy a good spectacle--any tricks involving alchemy, fire, or magic are sure to be a hit! One of the shoonies also mentions a cousin named Booralu who works as a gravedigger in Castinlee and sings to the spirits of the dead; she recommends the heroes talk to Booralu as a possible unique circus act.
Eventually, you bid the shoonies farewell and complete the journey to Matten Cleave. Matten Cleave is little more than a stop on the Verdant Passage and a central gathering place for the 2,000 or so residents in the area to bring their crops and discuss local business. The village has several storehouses, a good wainwright, two blacksmiths, and a nice inn and tavern called the Sea of Clover. A wide, flat shelf of land has long served the community as a gathering place to discuss important village matters, and it makes a good place for the Circus of Wayward Wonders.
The letter of introduction Opper Vandy provided you with allows you have a smooth meeting with mayor Marta Lieschari. You can set up your tent right away if you want to perform a show here first!
That night, as Grelda lays in Ashlion's arms, she reaches over to a box on the dresser and pulls out a pair of white silk gloves adorned with red hearts. She slides them on, and the hearts begin to glow faintly. "I bought these in Escadar before we left," the witch says. "They buoy the spirit of the one who wears them when she is near someone she loves. They will bolster us when we are together, Ashlion. Love will carry us through any challenges we come upon."
|
"OF COURSE MY WITCH WIFE!" Ashlion replies with a wide grin. "THEY MAKE YOU LOOK EVEN MORE LOVELY. AS LONG AS YOU ARE WITH ME THERE IS NO CHALLENGE THAT WE CANNOT CONQUER. AND ONCE TYGRAH CAN JOIN US AGAIN WE WILL BE UNSTOPPABLE."
He grasps one of Grelda's hands and places it over his muscular chest. "THE GLOVES ARE MOST ACCURATE. FOR YOUR ALREADY HOLD MY HEART."
Grelda grins, and the hearts on the gloves glow even brighter. "Oh, Ashlion!" she says, climbing on top of him and pressing her lips against his. "You are as sweet as you are strong. I hope that soon I can join Tygrah as a mother to your children."
When discussion of setting up their tent here happens, the cleric nods and understands, they are performers after all. "We can certainly get the tent situated, but I, uhm, was hoping we could perhaps track down this Swinten thing a little further first."
"I know that performing brings us coin, but it sounded like people were dying because of this haunting and I feel like that should be our first priority." she says with as humbly as she can. "That is, if you agree."
Asking around town about the Swinten farm, you learn that the place was bought at auction by a cruel and miserly man named Currew. When he died suddenly 14 months ago, he was not mourned by the local community. With no known heirs or will, his farm went into probate that has yet to be cleared up through the circuit magistrate. Currew’s evil reputation has served to keep curious locals away.
The ramshackle farmstead lies down an unused track 2 miles south of Matten Cleave. This farm is worse for wear. The fields around it are abandoned and overgrown, beginning to show the telltale yellowing of the local blight that afflicts these lands. The farmstead itself is simple enough, consisting of a house and a lone barn. The barn appears ramshackle but still in stable condition. Though much of the house’s roof is gone, its walls remain intact. A front porch festooned with two decorative columns, now warped and cracked with age, are the only hint of former prosperity. The door of the house hangs open limply on its hinges.
"Yes, we should investigate the farm," Tasha says with a nod and a grin in the half-elf's direction.
When they arrive at the desolate plot of land, before going inside, Tasha begins looking around for a family cemetery of any sort.
There doesn't seem to be any cemetery on the farmstead. It is likely the Swintens were buried in town.
Tom takes some time to check inside the farm house.
The roof over the main portion of the house collapsed some time ago, allowing the elements to have their way. Roof beams and broken shingles lie atop the crumpled remains of simple furnishings. A door still stands in the wall of the roofed, northern portion of the house, as do an intact fireplace and chimney.
The door is locked, and resists Tom's initial attempts to open it, but eventually, he gets it open. This bedroom is surprisingly intact given the destruction in the rest of the house. There are no windows, though there are sills and frames on the walls as though to indicate where windows should be. A single narrow bed lies against the far wall, its moldering blankets twisted as if its last occupant did not rest easily. Beside the bed is a simple night table bearing a single lit candlestick that provides a dim radiance to the otherwise darkened room.
"I don't know," Tasha says with narrowed eyes. "Is there magic here?" she asks, her eyes seeking out Ruinë and then Grelda.
A few moments after you enter the room, the candle blows in an unseen wind. A chill fills the air, and you can hear a voice beginning to mutter the words “Vandy” and “Swinten” over and over again...
She listens closely, trying to understand what she is saying.
Ruine can't quite make out what the muttering voice is saying.
Suddenly, Ashlion can see the ghostly image of a sickly old man lying in the bed, screaming and ranting. The ghost's eyes meet his, and the half-orc's mind is assaulted by overwhelming terror!
Success: The target takes 4d6 mental damage and is frightened 1.
Failure: The target takes 8d6 mental damage and is frightened 2.
Critical Failure: The target is so afraid it might die. It must attempt a Fortitude save; if the target fails, it dies. On a successful Fortitude save, the target takes 12d6 mental damage, is fleeing until the end of its next turn, and is frightened 4. This effect has the incapacitation trait.
"Ashlion!" Grelda shouts as her husband begins to bleed from his nose. She strains to hear the muttering over the sound of destruction. "I can't make out what it is saying! Ruine, you must exorcise this spirit!" She grants the cleric guidance on her next attempt.
"Right!" she responds to Grelda once she see Ash in agony, moving beside the man. She tries to recall from her studies what would be the best course of action to exorcise the spirit.
Unfortunately, her training fails her and she cannot recall exactly what needs to be done here.
Seeing bedlam commence in response to the supernatural, Tasha knows only one way to deal with chaos ...
"Begone foul spirit!" she snarls in her best crowd dispersing voice. It appears, however, that the will behind the force isn't intimidated by tall lavender women.
Ashlion smashes the bed to splinters, but the haunt remains. Ignoring Ruine, Tasha gets a glimpse of the ghostly old man as her mind fills with terror!
Squeezing her eyes shut, Ruinë tries to think hard on what it was that she needs to do for an exorcism. Think, think, think! she says, trying again.
This time, the proper prayers come to Ruine’s mind. She holds forth her holy symbol and invokes Sarenrae’s power. Holy flames fill the air, and the spirit cries out as it is sent on the Great Beyond.
Tom manages to pick up on what the spirit was saying: ”Old Lady Swinten’s broke, and Rogor Swinten can rot in his grave. Should’ve sold me that acre, Rogor, your widow is gonna’ starve. Don’t tell her about Vandy. No, no, no. Now Vandy’s money is blood money. Blood money now. She rides with spurs of fire; the Night Lady, oh, the fire it burns!”
A chest of drawers by the door holds only old clothing and mouse droppings. However, the bottom drawer has a false back. Within is Currew’s hidden stash: 2 pp, 13 gp, 1,017 sp, and three pearls worth 100 gp each.
The barn turns out to be empty. It seems you have found all the clues to be found here.
With the nightmares lurking in her dreams, the fear that the haunt attempts to generate is comparatively nothing and the tiefling brushes it off without even a thought.
"So Currew had something to do with this," she says. "And who is the Night Lady?" she asks, looking to Grelda and Ruinë .
"I do not know," Grelda says. "But I believe the answer to that question lies elsewhere. Perhaps if we continue investigating around the region, we will learn more."
Relieved she was finally able to put the spirit to rest, Ruinë helps search the area for additional information before agreeing with Grelda. To Tasha she responds "This Night Lady, she might be what is driving this?"
"Let us continue searching, there must be more clues to help us understand what is going on."
You return to Matten Cleave and start preparing for a circus performance. Grelda spends the majority of the week promoting the show and creating anticipation among the town’s citizens.
As the evening of the show approaches, you see that the shoonies you rescued were true to their word. An entire clan of the doglike people has shown up to watch the show, overflowing from your tent!
Tasha tumbles into the spotlight to scattered applause. Internally she cringes at such a small response, but then remembers that in a community this small, their audience may comprise the entirety of the village's population.
"Welcome One, Welcome All!" she announces to the crowd with a bow and a wave of her hat. "To the circus of Wayward Wonders! I am Tasha the Fair and will be your humble host this evening, privileged to present to you entertainers both wondrous and wonderful!"
She gestures towards center stage. "To begin with tonight, we present to you a pair of sisters that will amaze you with their feats of juggling and incendiary excitement! The Flamboni Sisters!"
The crowd applauds as the Flambonis do their thing, warming up the crowd for the spectacles still to come.
"Give them a hand, Ladies and Gentlemen!" Tasha shouts out as she retakes the spotlight. "And just pour some water on that, Sir. I'm sure the hair will grow back in no time at all."
"And now to continue our theme of the evening, we bring to you another pair of fire handlers that will astound and amaze you. In one ring, Fireproof Flynn!" One hand gestures towards stage left. "In the other ring, Ruinë the Flame!"
Ruinë is thankful to not be in the spotlight as the key performance. With much of the pressure off, the cleric is able to work through her routine like clockwork. She doesn't deliver a knockout performance like the last time, but with her innate abilities it doesn't take much to deliver stunning results.
Working through flying fire rings and making look like gliding through the air is so easy anyone can do it, Ruinë completes another successful performance.
The crowd applauds Ruine's performance.
As Ruinë is making her exit, Tasha can't resist grabbing the half-elf and pressing a kiss to her forehead before taking her place in the spotlight again.
"And now ...! What you've all been waiting for! Our very own Somber Tom!" she says, gesturing towards the center ring.
Ruinë grins ear to ear and can't help but squeeing a little bit at Tasha's attention as she walks past. She says to Tom "Go get 'em!", casting Heroism on him as she does so.
The spotlight ignites on the center ring, Emma Flamboni is tied to a bullseye. A comical pile of explosives are piled beneath her, the wick running around the ring. The spotlight trails along the ground, following the wick all the way back to the flap leading back stage. Tom is standing there with a lit match and a blindfold, a rope tied around his waist.
The sound dies as he slowly ties his blindfold on. He strikes the match and drops it on the wick. As it burns down, snaking around the ring, Tom runs out into a large arc letting the rope swing him around the ring as he juggles his knives. Tom throws the knives trying to cut the wick over and over again, just missing the line of sparks.
The music rises in tempo and volume, raising suspense. The wick has almost wound it's way home, when the light goes out over Emma, Tom throwing the knife blindly, slicing the wick within inches of the explosion.
Tom and Ella bow deeply.
Tom's death-defying performance draws roars of approval from the crowd! The show has been stellar so far. It's time to bring it home for the big finish!
The big finish wows the crowd, who cheer and whoop and holler in excitement! Another successful circus show is in the books!
As you are counting the evening's earnings, three human siblings approach you. "Good evening. I'm Nelvy Gudfast, and this my brother, Rudon, and my sister, Wilfreda," says the oldest girl. "The three of us spent many years caring for our elderly grandmother, a priestess of Desna named Nelvy--my namesake. She recently passed away, may the gods rest her soul, and now we are free to leave Matten Cleave at last. We'd like to join your circus, please, for the freedom of travel and the camaraderie of a community. We know a large number of songs, and we are skilled dancers. We call ourselves the Sirens of the Spheres. Will you let us join you?"
Tasha bows her head at the three newcomers.
"You are welcome to join our family. The rules are simple. 'Family'," She gestures to include all the nearby circus members, "comes first. Everyone is expected to work to pull their own weight and no one is above any task. And finally, bring no harm to the Family."
~~~~
"Shall we seek out Wellspring Tower next?" Tasha asks the others after dinner.
"Thank you! Thank you so much!" Nelvy says.
***
Grelda nods to Tasha. "It seems a logical next step, should the others be in agreement."
Ruinë walks up to each of them an offers a soft hug, laying her head down on each of their shoulders as she does so. "Welcome to the family."
The next morning, you leave Matten Cleave, heading northeast along the Verdant Passage before taking a trail south towards the Wellspring Tower. The glow of the small sphere orbiting the top of the Wellspring Tower is visible from miles away, but even at that distance it is obvious that something is wrong. The glow is unsteady; dimming to a dull brown every few seconds.
The tower itself is an imposing structure. A mudbrick-stepped pyramid with four tiers and steep sides, it is clearly many thousands of years old. Two platforms protrude from its base and have ladders leaning against them from the ground. From the northern platform climbs a series of narrow steps all the way to a terrace balcony just below the first tier, some 150 feet up, where a great, cavernous doorway enters the tower’s interior. The entire tower appears to be covered in a network of fine cracks—these are actually dead, brittle vines that must have covered nearly the entire structure in a carpet of greenery. Like the dead creepers that cover the tower’s surface, the land around it for miles is likewise sere and lifeless. A dry watercourse extends from the base of the tower where there must have once been a babbling stream.
You're still about a quarter-mile away from the tower when you notice a roaring cooking fire atop the south platform. It seems that the tower is occupied...
"The death that surrounds this tower is unnerving." the cleric remarks, "And it would appear that our arrival may be greeted. What are the chances they will have some tea and be willing to negotiate?" she asks hopefully.