GM Blake's PF2 Extinction Curse Campaign

Game Master Blake's Tiger

If Song can see the Priestess, she gives her an Electric Arc.

◈◈ Electric Arc (DC 19)
Electric Arc: 2d4 + 4 ⇒ (3, 2) + 4 = 9

And then an arrow to the eye!

◈ Short bow+I.C.: 1d20 + 9 + 1 ⇒ (20) + 9 + 1 = 30
Piercing damage: 1d6 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2
Deadly?: 1d10 ⇒ 3

Now that all of their foes seem to be taken care of, Clover calls to Snowy as she hustles over to Rulean and their missing man. "It's okay sir, we're from the circus and we're here to help," she calls out, lowering her spear slightly as she gets close. "Are you hurt?"
______________

If we're still in rounds, Command Animal & Stride x2; Snowy will also Stride X2

Watching the priestess get sucked around in the Moat of Air is only interesting for so long. Song returns to the Abbot. "We're here to set things right, and we will help you clean up this place., or just get you out of here if you prefer."

Then all the adrenaline that had been propelling Song gives out, and she stumbles to the floor, shaking. "I just need to rest a bit first."

Ephie creeps to the edge of the pits, fascinated by them. Any recall knowledge on both/either? Are they really bottomless?

While the others offer to help the abbot, Ephie — after being bitten and scratched — finally gets a rope tied around Mr. Splinters' feet. He lowers the poppet upside-down into the "moat." As long as he doesn't see anything that would make it TOO dangerous.

Through bravery we conquer the unknown, Mr. Splinters! He pauses to let the cursing subside.

Can you see anything of interest down there, such as an angry priestsess?

He will continue plumbing the depths using Mr. Splinters as the weight until he runs out of rope, hits the bottom, or the familiar calls out to stop.

This isn't your cut scene, but it needed a transition.

"From the circus?" Harlock croaks. He clears his throat and tries to stand, accepting Clover's aid. "Wherever you came from, thank you for stopping her." He walks slowly, clearly his body aches, to one of the statues of storm elementals and picks up a staff that was leaning there. The head of the staff is carved to display a variety of animal heads and has a brass monkey affixed to the side. He offers this to you and says, "Please, take this as reward, and anything else of value you found, please keep. I owe you that at the least."

He instinctively moves towards Song-of-Air when she stumbles, but he is not particularly fast and looks worse off than the tengu for the moment. "Yes. A rest. The lost hermits have not let me go more than a few hours before beating me again. Rest would be welcome. There are rooms here. If you escort me, I will clear the way."

Ephie quickly pulls Mr. Splinterrs out.

It's positively gale-forge down there, but the priestess is in there, and lives yet.

Ephie will describe what brave Mr. Splinters saw.

"Well, Threndel was never the most athletic of us, so I doubt that she will escape," Harlock says weakly. "Just the same, she does have one of the rods that controls the sanctum doors, so it might be wise to post a guard outside just in case."

He leads you out of the sanctum and down the side hall off of the grand hall. "Please, stay here in the guest rooms as long as you like. Feel free to use the smaller rooms at the front if you're not comfortable sharing the rooms. I--Oh. I should formally introduce myself. I am Harlock Hamdeel, the abbot of the Hermitage of Blessed Lightning." He pauses to sigh, looking at the blood stains on the floor. "And a terrible failure. I can't believe I didn't realize what Nemmia was doing before it was too late." He looks at each of you, holding your gaze meaningfully in turn with his own, black-eyed and bloodied-eyed sorrowful gaze. "I am sorry for the suffering my misled brethren have caused."

Here you take the opportunity to, first and foremost, present Song-of-Air's affliction and your fears for her. "Oh, my dear, I am so sorry. The brothers and sisters never let me rest, so I can barely perform mundane tasks let alone magic. I will need to sleep and pray to Gozreh before I can attempt any miracles." Disappointed as you are to hear this and as hard as it is to judge time since you entered the hermitage and encountered the ghouls, Harlock assures you that there is time to do what needs to be done. "Do not let go of hope."

Harlock shows you were you can stay. He takes the sheets stained with his blood from the bed where he was kept captive. "I will find you clean sheets."

After he has returned from surveying the horror of the Abyssal depravity and after you have all had time to bathe and rest a little while, Harlock gathers you around.

Harlock sighs wearily. "I suppose I should start at the beginning. The Hermitage of Blessed Lightning was established here to protect and learn from the Erran Tower, an ancient landmark a few miles inland. You might have spotted it on your journey here. We hermits know very little about it. It was created by Aroden thousands of years ago. At its summit is what we call the aeon orb, so named because it orbits the summit of the tower the way an aeon stone orbits the head of its owner.

"Lore passed down to me from previous masters of the hermitage suggests more. The aeon orb is a powerful artifact. It enriches life for dozens of miles in all directions, making the land more abundant, the seasons milder, and harvests more bountiful. In just the past few generations, however, this bounty has faded. The soil is drying out. Vegetation is stunted, and some crops won’t grow at all. Birth rates among animals are declining. Some here at the hermitage blamed the townspeople of Abberton for this decline, but I suspect a different cause: I think the aeon orb’s power has begun to fail. The Isle of Erran is dying.

"I’ve tried to the understand the aeon orb and perhaps restore its power, but its nature eludes me. While I’ve made a few trips into the Erran Tower over the years, nothing there provided any clues. On my most recent visit, just a few weeks ago, some foul-smelling creatures hurled spears at me before I could get close. They are xulgaths, I believe reptilian humanoids you might have heard called troglodytes. I spied on them from a distance. There are at least a dozen, and they are accompanied by large lizards and several demons. It was an unpleasant surprise, but I soon had my hands full dealing with the newcomer Balenni and the resentment she stoked among the hermits and didn’t have a chance to investigate further. It seems obvious in hindsight, but the sudden rise of demon worship here must be connected to the demons accompanying the xulgaths in the Erran Tower. I overheard a few of the most debased priests say they’d planned to visit the Erran Tower and speak to someone named Cavnakash. I believe Cavnakash is the leader of the xulgaths, and he must have some power over demons.

"You have done so much for Abberton and my hermitage already, but there is more to do. You have show great bravery, fortitude, and righteousness in facing the demons that infested these halls. It will take people like you to cleanse the Erran Tower of the demons and xulgath infesting it. The townsfolk would stand no chance against the xulgaths let alone demons." He pauses a brief moment. "Then perhaps we can work together to restore life to this land."

“I am Rulean, one of the performers with the Circus of Wayward Wonders. Pleased to meet you.”

He will then give everyone else a chance to introduce themselves.

“I am not sure it is really Nemmia who instigated this. There was a visitor just before the troubles started, perhaps you remember them? They may have brought the corrupting influences and Nemmia just was the first to be corrupted. We would like to discuss this more, but I think you need a night to rest first.”

Looking to the group, he says “I would feel more secure if we all stayed together and had someone always on watch. Either I or Leaf should do what we can for treating Song’s disease.”

Looking to Abbot Hamdeel, he asks “Would you like one of us to treat your wounds as well?”

He listens intently as the abbot talks of the Erran Towers.

“I don’t think we can just leave demons be. We may want to go back to town first, but these towers do sound like something that needs investigation. With Nemmia’s actions against the town, I don’t think they have the resources to do that.”

Song stands up with dignity. "I am Song-of-Air, acting Ringmaster of this circus. Let me help you clean the sheets." She prestidigitates them clean, and then says in a small voice, "I'm not in shape to even think about what we're doing tomorrow."

Still shaking with her recent mutilation and with ghoul fever, she bows to the Abbot and then crawls into bed. The fever is bad, and she has trouble keeping warm, but the sleep is exactly what she needs.

"I would not say no," Harlock says with a smile and then coughs and winces, holding his ribs. The iruxi tends to the abbot's injuries, which are numerous but designed to be cruel rather than lethal, while Leaf-on-Wind begins tending to his sister for the night. Nobody hears anything from the inner sanctum while they stand guard.

Morning arrives, though you only know because Harlock informs you that it is so when he comes to Song-of-Air's bedside. The abbot looks improved in spirit if not entirely in body, though the bandages cover many of the cuts and bruises. The feverish tengu is still awake, having only managed a few fitful moments of sleep between chills and aches.

"I will begin this small repayment of the debt I owe you," the abbot says. He takes the leaf and raindrop amulet from around his neck and holds it over Song-of-Air. He begins to murmur a lengthy prayer to Gozreh, most of which you cannot make out. He draws symbols in the air over Song-of-Air and raises his hands, beseeching.

Several long minutes later, there is the sound of distant thunder--certainly some effect of the magic as thunder could not be heard so deep within the mountainside--and then Harlock's hand that holds the amulet crackles with arcs of electricity. A single drop of water beads around the wooden representation of a raindrop, grows heavy, and then drops onto Song-of-Air.

Harlock lowers his hand and quietly says, "I give thanks to Gozreh for his mercy."

With no further fanfare or manifestation, the spell is complete, and Song-of-Air feels completely fine, albeit missing a few clumps of feathers that need to regrow.

Although not a follower of Gozreh, Ruleans pays his respects for the blessing bestowed.

After that, he says “We need to discuss some things and come up with a plan.”

“I hope you will forgive us, but we read your journal Abbot Hamdeel. In it you mention a scholar visiting a few days before the troubles began. Can you tell us more of this person? I dislike coincidence.”

“Can you tell us more of Nemmia? By the time we met her, she seemed quite insane.”

“What shall be done with Threndel? She also seems quite insane and corrupted.”

"The mess hall tells me that many of my brothers and sisters went insane," Harlock says quietly. "Only the insane could do such things." He pauses and considers for a long moment. "I finally noticed how far Nemmia's reach had spread after Balenni arrived, and she certainly didn't help matters. However, Nemmia's feelings towards civilization and the townsfolk began years before that and is probably my fault for sheltering her so much.

"Nemmia was a foundling left at the hermitage's doorstep," he continues. "I raised her like a daughter. We taught her our ways. She was a devote student of Gozreh. A few years ago, she asked permission to leave the hermitage to see the world outside. I granted it. When she returned, she was incensed by the difference she saw on the island compared to how it was described in our historical texts. The changes she saw--wrought, I now believe, by Aroden's failing aeon orb--she blamed on the people and made the mad suggestion that we cull the townsfolk like a herd of deer in order to obviate the damage to the island. I--I didn't fully understand what was happening with the tower and the orb and wasn't ready to make my thoughts public. With her ranting and raging in front of me, I made a rash decision and decided not to tell her about the tower. I thought that if I kept her busy in the hermitage, her ire would fade, so I forbade her from leaving again.

"I was wrong. While she didn't talk to me about it anymore, I now know that she began infecting some of our brothers and sisters with her idea. Threndel was one of her first converts, I believe. Not everyone was filled with the same hate as Nemmia toward Abberton, but enough agreed that they should do something. So a conspiracy formed beneath my nose while I focused my efforts on discovering a way to repair the orb. Balenni was a traveling scholar who came to the hermitage.

"Nemmia and she took a liking to each other and became lovers. In retrospect, she must have been a wizard who shared some sort of magic or ritual with Nemmia. The conspirators became more vocal after Balenni's arrival and before long, I had been taken prisoner by my own brother's and sisters. Some time after that, Balenni left, and then the demons began to walk the halls of the hermitage."

He sighs sadly. "I truly failed them all. The ones who I did not protect from corruption, and the ones who stayed true and were killed by their brethren." Water begins to pool in his eyes.

Song reaches out and hugs the Abbot. "You have returned me to myself, and I cannot ever thank you enough for it."

"I am a circus performer. But I believe in love and joy and the laughter of children, all of which will be hard to come by if this demon infestation continues. I will help you cleanse this corruption. As for Threndel, I see no reason to rescue her. I worship Andoletta and see no reason to redeem those who despoil innocence and have no remorse or mercy themselves. Perhaps they truly went insane but mental illness is not an excuse to harm and torture others. They made their own choices, Abbot. Please, do not blame yourself when you gave them love and they returned back hatred."

She takes his hands. "Blame the demons. Blame the failing orb. But please, do not blame yourself. This village needs more of the love and kindness you have to offer."

“Could you describe this Balenni? Since a name can easily change between one town and the next, I would like a physical description.”

It is fine giving my character a description without having to make one up for the player.

“Please remember that you stayed true to yourself while many of the others did not. Fighting off corruption is difficult, but having done so you have learned from it. When you rebuild the monastery, make sure you build a community that works with the town like you have worked with the mayor.”

Pulling out the religious texts of Abadar, he says “You may find assistance from the church there, given the sacrifice that your librarian made to preserve these texts. I plan to make the priest in town aware of that.” He then puts the texts away again.

“There is something that I still fail to understand. Why is there a need to keep information about these towers secret?”

"You did the best with the information you had," Clover agrees, gently. "That's all any of us can do, really. Everyone else made their own choices, too. You can't be blamed for what Nemmia and the others chose to do."

After a pause, and hearing Rulean's very sensible question, Clover can't help but add one of her own. "You said Aroden created the aeon orb, right? I can see why he would've done it for humanity's sake, but have you ever got any sense of what Gozreh thought about it? Since it, um, seems a little like an overstep on Aroden's part, at least to me..."

Nabi was listening. All she knew about Aroden was that he was an ancient god from the dawn of humankind.

And for her, ancient gods equal valuable antiquities to acquire and sell at the best price.

How he was prayed and worhipped was stuff she glady lets Rulean and the other known.

"Balenni is a blond-haired of Taldane descent. She wore the robes of a traveling monk," Harlock answers.

He nods and smiles as you try to comfort him. "Your words are kind, and I thank you for them. I was trying to discover what was wrong with it and how we might restore or repair it. I hadn't told the brothers and sisters yet because I didn't want them to try something in their eagerness that might make a situation none of us understood worse. I still do not have a clue how to restore the aeon orb, but demons and xulgath tampering with it cannot be good.

"The historical records indicate that Aroden created the tower, yes. Gozreh tends to not concern himself with the actions of the other gods unless they threaten the natural world. Since the aeon orb's power enhanced life on the island equally without regard to whether it was wild or civilized, I believe Gozreh was pleased by it. There is plenty that Aroden did for man that Gozreh did not favor. Much as he is frustrated with Abadar."

Nabi shares that there is a tower on the Isle of Kortos where he placed the Starstone--a chunk of star material from Earthfall--which he raised out of the ocean. Mortals travel there to take something called the Test of the Starstone to try to become gods. A few have actually succeeded since the tower was erected. He was very involved with humans and even defeated the Whispering Tyrant, Tar-Baphon. When he walked the world disguised, he took on one of twelve guises: artist, beggar, craftsman or artisan, farmer, fisher, hunter, merchant, scholar, shepherd, soldier, tailor, and thief.

P.S.: Don't look up Aroden in any Wiki because it now spoils this AP.

"Ooh, yes. I think I heard of that once. Weren't both Iomedae and Cayden ascended there? It sounds like a spectacle odder than anything our circus has to offer."

"Norgorber too," Clover adds with an expression of distaste. "Proof that anyone can join if they're...I don't know, clever or lucky enough, I guess. Anyway, I guess that makes sense if the orb just works on the land itself, whatever state it's in."

She considers all that they've learned since coming to the Hermitage, brow furrowed. "It sounds like we should get out there sooner rather than later but we also need to get you back to Abberton. We didn't have much trouble on the road itself but if there's demons and other shady characters skulking about, well...I'd feel better if you didn't travel alone."

Ephie rushes over to hear about the tower, somewhat oblivious to the abbot's plight. I cannot wait to see such a thing for myself! He starts babbling about all the science he can do there.

Did you hear that, Mr. Splinters? The Aeon Orb is equally benevolent to both the natural and the synthetic, so you should be safe. The doll, however, is on his belly leaning over the edge of the wind moat, giggling at priestess's futile efforts. He's been at it all night.

"So..." Song says, "Our plan is to escort the Abbot to Abberton, check in on our circus, and then head off to that tower?" Song pauses. "Should we finish that priestess off? I don't like her, but starving to death is a terrible way to go."

"No. Thank you. I understand why you would offer and it is very kind of you, but I will stay here," Harlock replies to Clover. "There is... much... to clean and many souls to lay to rest. You are, of course, welcome to stay here as long as you need to recover. When you're ready to depart, if you're heading back to Abberton, give Jae my regards and my apology for what his people have suffered."

He clears his throat. "Yes. To see to Threndel."

The abbot heads back through the grand hall and touches the ornate door with the rod of entry. There you are all able to see the results of what the eerie marionette was able to witness first hand.

Threndel, having broken her neck in her efforts to climb out of the wind moat, is currently floating supine on the intersection between the wind and water moats. She looks remarkably peaceful--like she is merely sleeping--and the blood from her injuries during the battle have been washed from her robes. Her hands lie over her heart, and an uncorrupted leaf-and-dew drop medallion rests between them. "That is probably a mercy," Harlock says with a catch in his voice. As he approaches the moat, a wave forms in the tumultuous moat and pushes her onto the tile. He takes his own cloak form his back and lays it atop of her before lifting her up.

"Cleaning this entire abbey by yourself? That is a tremendous undertaking." Song sighs. "If this is what you wish... But it seems a lonely and arduous time. At least let us help you gather and bury the bodies of your dead before we go."

"Unless your waves can prepare the rest of the bodies as they did Threndel?"

"I'm sorry," Clover offers, genuinely saddened as the magnitude of what's happened at the Hermitage - all the lives lost - really sinks in. "Song's right, let us at least help you with your dead before we go."

Rulean is also willing to spend a day helping the Abbot clean.

Nabi is willing to spend a day searching around the abbey for a good sunny place to hide while other work.

And for some food, interesting trinkets or small valuables, and anything that could help their future travels

On cleaning day Mr. Splinters's face is transformed into an unnatural, grinning facsimile of Ephie's. Master's form

His eyes never blink while he digs grime out from tiles with an awl and sweeps away cobwebs with a brush.

Somehow, he always seems to be kicking up dust and making annoying little noises wherever Nabi is trying to daydream.

"That is kind of you, and I will accept any help you're offering," Harlock says with a smile. "Because, no, I cannot control these elemental wells."

He instructs you to gather as much of the ruined wood as you can find. The hermits here had been interring their dead in the catacombs out of local tradition, but Gozren practice is a sky burial. On the cliff outside the hermitage, you all build a great pyre and painstakingly collect every corpse and remain from within and place it upon the wood.

Nabi finds nothing that you have not already found while avoiding anything that would be construed as helping, and Mr. Splinters devotes his devious energies to being a karmic thorn in her side.

Once all of the remains have been placed on the pyre--except for the ghouls, which were tossed into the ocean, but even the animals--Harlock speaks a few words over them, referencing the natural cycle. At the end of it, he calls down lightning, which strikes the pyre and sets it ablaze without scattering it.

The rest of your days can be spent scrubbing blood from the stone walls and floors, repairing and restoring what could be, and washing blood and filth out of the bed sheets.

When you are ready to set out, Harlock offers you a final boon. "I will tell you what I can about the tower. I explored it on several of my trips. The rooms were empty and abandoned during my visits. I'm sure the xulgaths have made use of at least some of them since."

He unfolds a rolled parchment to reveal a hand drawn map. "The entrance to the inside of the tower is forty feet above the ground. The tower is more of a ziggurat, so the climb isn't that hard. One thing you should know is that there must be a gelatinous cube in the tower. The halls and rooms are too clean for such an old ruin. Gelatinous cubes are giant oozes that simply crawl around and eat whatever they creep over. I haven't seen it, but I recognize the signs.

"Now, there's a secret vault here," he points as he speaks. "The door is very hard to find. I passed it many times before I noticed the seam. Push the section in and downward, and it will slide into the ground. It rolls back out and into place after a fifty count. The second floor has two rooms with binding runes. I'm not sure about these. They could probably be used for summoning. The spiral stairs here lead to the top of the tower where the aeon orb is."

"A...gelatinous cube? What?" Clover blinks, trying to recall if she's heard of such a thing before. She also glances at her companions to see if any of them might have an idea of how to deal with such a thing.

+8 Nature if applicable for Recall Knowledge.

"Okay, so...prepare to do some climbing, probably, a gelatinous cube, and xulgaths for sure. Hmm, do we know much about xulgaths?"

Ephie nods excitedly, practically salivating at the idea of getting to see an Aeon Orb up close.

Fascinating. Oh. What about the demon-pup? Can you take care of him?

Recall knowledge on the cube & xulgaths?

"They're fierce hunters," Harlock answers Clover. "Despite their crude crafting methods, they're just as cunning as anyone on the surface. Don't underestimate them."

He looks over at the empowered wolf. "Of course! Rehabilitation of wildlife is the work of this hermitage. It may take time to grow our numbers, but Gozreh's faithful are spread throughout and many do travel. This will be a refuge for learning and care of the wild things once more."

Clover has never heard of a gelatinous cube until now. Ephraim remembers from earlier after reading Harlock's diary and pondering them that xulgath are an ancient and once advanced race of reptilian humanoids that live deep underground, but a catastrophe led to a technological decline. He further recalls, first, that they are not a monolithic race (even more varied than orc culture), and, second, that they are not cold-blooded like reptilian animals and their life so deep underground makes them resistant to cold.

Ephie also knows that touching a gelatinous cube will paralyze a living creature. This is how it captures prey even though it moves so slow: unwitting mice or insects touch it and get absorbed (or an unlucky sleeper is engulfed).

In talking with Harlock, you also understand that the tower is a little less than a full day's hike from the hermitage but a three day hike if you start from Abberton.

During the time spent cleaning, Rulean inquires with the abbot what the name of the librarian was. Sufficient that my character knows, you don’t need to make up a name.

Believing that there is nothing wrong with hard work, Rulean does not hesitate to help with the cleaning tasks.

——

“Wish we had some idea what the demon’s plans were for the tower.”

“Thank you for the map and warnings about what to expect there.”

Do you mean it would take three days total to travel to Abberton and then the tower?

To the group, he says “Although I hate the delay, I think we best go to Abberton before we go to the tower. Hopefully there are some useful supplies we can get while there.”

Nabi, despite her unwillingness to do anything too physical, tries to boost everyone's morale by cooking for the troops in the monastery, staying in the kitchen for most of the days.

Or maybe she plans to poison everyone and steal all the gold and valuables, who knows?

Craft cook, untrained?: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (17) + 1 = 18

"Yeah...I think that'd probably be best, too," Clover agrees. "Everyone'll start wondering if we're gone without word too much longer. I hate leaving Harlock here alone, but hopefully the xulgaths and anything else out at the tower aren't expecting to hear anything from the Hermitage anytime soon, or maybe at all."

After a simple breakfast of fried cakes and whatever more interesting food you brought with you, you bid farewell to the abbot and the wolf you rescued. The ash from the pyres still stains the cliff, but what few things were left after the fire were pushed into the sea below. "Gozreh's wind at your back," Harlock blesses you as you begin the narrow descent along the cliffside.

Once safely on level ground and not needing to worry about slipping off into the ocean, the hike becomes eerily peaceful after the gruesome few days at the hermitage. The wind rustles the tall grasses beside the path on the way to the road and small, white clouds drift lazily across a bright blue sky. It is still a long hike though, and the sun begins to set before you reach Abberton. It proves more expedient to head directly to your circus for the night than to wake anyone in town.

The night owls of the circus see you coming and welcome you back, offering warm mugs of ale and reheating hash for your supper. You learn from the Professor and Cubby that nothing exciting has happened since you left other than the mayor returning. His bruises and the stories he told of his treatment at the hermitage had them worried.

The next day, you can rise at your leisure and return to town to speak with Mayor Aber and the priest, Nellyn.

The mayor is delighted to see you safe and sound and even more so to hear that his friend, Harlock, has survived the ordeal. He invites you in for yet more breakfast and to listen to your tale. It saddens him to hear of all the death and any talk about the aeon orb seems to sail over his level of understanding.

Nellyn is similarly pleased with the return of Abadar's holy texts. "Thank you! I am glad that you found them. I never would have expected that the demons would take them, well, out of the town," he says as he retrieves the lockbox. The church has made fair progress restoring the furniture within the chapel, you notice. The mural is still a ruined mess. He opens the box and removes the brooch and onyx dog figurine. "These are yours, as promised, and you will return my crossbow so that I may protect my church." The last said with a pointed look at Nabi.

You can talk with NPCs and shop before setting out again.
Remember that purchases here are very limited.
Dont' forget to update your macros.

“At some point, you should also give thanks to the hermitage. The librarian there gave his life protecting these texts from the demons.” Rulean tells Nellyn. He recounts the scene of the librarian and the texts. “Although it is a day away from town, you may want to figure out a way to expand the community so that the people there feel they are a part of this town as well.”

He also asks Nellyn to have the texts carefully reviewed. Make sure nothing as changed in them.

"Usually, no news is good news," Clover remarks, relieved to see that things have apparently been quiet while they were gone. "The other circus, Mistress Dusklight's Celestial Menagerie...are they still here in town or have they moved on?"

Macros updated!

Song doesn't want to crowd Nellyn. After giving him her respects, she steps outside for a bit to breathe the fresh air. After all the recent events, she feels restless to see her circus people alive and well. Hearing about them is not enough.

"Are you still moping?" Her familiar hops to her shoulder. "You need to snap out of it. It's depressing to be around. You know what you need? Spells! Magic! It's time you started learning more!"

Song looks at Oolong in exasperation. "I nearly died. I get infected with ghoul fever. I got mutilated. Aren't I allowed to be a grump?"

"No! And look, if you don't snap out of it, I'll..." The familiar thinks for a moment. "I'll sic Mr. Splinters on you! We'll double-team you until you cheer up!"

"AAAAAAaaaaarrrrghhh!"

She's so mad, she flaps her wings and jumps up and down. "Just leave me for ONE moment!" And then, realizing that Nellyn and her friends surely heard that, she stomps off.

Downtime

Puppetry Lore (T): 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (7) + 10 = 17

Ephie sits on a stool and tries to work on his act for people in town. His floppy hat sits on the ground before him.

Say, Mr, Splinters, did you hear? The world champion in ventriloquist was murdered yesterday.

HIS SCREAM WAS HEARD A MILE AWAY. HA. HA. HA.

OW!

The crowd mutters at the lame jokes written by Ephie, but they chuckle when Mr. Splinters bites and tries to stab Ephie with a tiny pair of scissors.

Around Town

Ephie spends the day practicing his "ventriloquist" act. He comes away with a handful of coppers (0.2 gp) for his effort throughout the day.

--o--

Back at the Circus

Song-of-Air storms off as only a tengu can. Finding her way back to the circus tents, she finds the Feather-Fall Five sitting outside their wagon inspecting their nets. "Can't be too careful anymore," Aditya yells at her and waves.

The bald Shoanti woman, Tahala, walks by on her way to the stream with a bucket. "The crow is a new addition," she remarks.

--o--

Goldenlaws

"The hermitage has always been a part of this town. As much as they wanted to be, at least," Nellyn says. The divine healing has erased the bruises and cuts from the cleric. "Honestly, we've never given them any trouble and the folk trade with them fairly when they come to town."

He looks over at Clover. "The lion and the woman are still in the town's jail. Haven't seen the other two since you showed them up."

"Huh...I'm surprised no one's come to see about her yet," Clover admits. "If for no other reason than because Mistress Dusklight isn't very share-y with her 'toys'. But I guess that's her problem and not ours."

Having asked the only real question that was on her mind, Clover moves to take her leave as well. "Thanks again, for everything. We'll have to head back out soon but if you need anything else while we're in town, just flag one of us down, okay?"

"I'm not just a new addition," Oolong says to Tahala. "I can subtract as well!"

Nabi seeks ways to get more money.

Doesn't matter if she has to use legal or illegal ways.

Goldenlaws

"The hermitage has always been a part of this town. As much as they wanted to be, at least," Nellyn says. The divine healing has erased the bruises and cuts from the cleric. "Honestly, we've never given them any trouble and the folk trade with them fairly when they come to town."

He looks over at Clover. "The lion and the woman are still in the town's jail. Haven't seen the other two since you showed them up."

With a chuckle, Rulean does admit “Well, it is a hermitage. I guess there is a limit on how sociable we should expect them to be. They will no doubt need help, now might be a good time to strengthen the ties.”

At mention of the people in jail, Rulean asks “How is the lion doing? I hope he is alright being confined like that.”

Rulean purchases some holy water and takes his leave. Other than trying to pick up a few other minor items, he spends much of his time helping the folks in town fix things. He visits the millers to check if there is anything he can do there.

Nothing further for Downtime.

--Around Town--

Nabi hangs out near the Mad Mug more than is probably appropriate. Whatever she was doing, she barely broke even (+0.01 gp).

--o--

At the Jail

Danika glowers in her jail cell. She has not taken the time to think on her behavior, clearly. Leandrus paces around the small cell, but he looks well fed and watered. There are a couple of buckets of water inside the cell. There is also a long pike pole near the door to the jail that wasn't there before. There are some teeth marks on the wood at the hook end.

--o--

Onward! To the Mystery!

Provisioned, fed, and rested, you say your goodbyes and set off down the road. Eventually, you break from the gravel path and head due west into the hills and brush at the center of the island. Before long, you see what must be the tower in the distance. It is great pyramid shaped structure over which floats a dot. The top of the tower is visible most of your hike, and you can see that the dot is circling the tower in a slow and erratic orbit.

Leaf-on-Wind and Song-of-Air both notice tracks of three-toed, bipedal creatures that travel in small groups passing along crisscrossing trails once you reach within a mile or two of the tower.

When told about the tracks, Rulean asks “Are they the tracks of the xulgaths that the abbot told us of, some type of demon, or something else?”

“If it is a patrol or hunting party, might be worth it to ambush them.”

“Do we need to worry about concealing our own tracks?”