"Hmm. Well, time to see if we can find any dangerous mechanisms and disable them, I guess?" Leaf-On-Wind suggests thoughtfully.
You carefully examine and open the smaller doors to clear any threats behind you. The first room is a dusty storage room that has been ransacked. You can find nothing of value or danger here.
When you open the second door, the room seems similar to the first: a storage room ransacked by scavengers. However, Ephie senses the presence of a magical aura within this room. Once you begin moving the open crates and cast aside lids to search the room, you find dried blood on the floor. Another crate deeper, you discover the desiccated remains of a pair of ether stalkers. At least, you think it is a pair. The remains appear and disappear at random in between blinks.
At the back of the room, you find the most surprising thing of all: the portion of the stalker's nest within the universe contains a body. A silver-scaled kobold appears to have been trying to retrieve a rusted shield within the nest but fell afoul of the sticky, poisonous mucus the stalkers use to make their nests and trap their prey. When you get closer, you realize the kobold has succumbed to the delirium in the poison and is quite dehydrated but alive. Rulean and Leaf-on-Wind realize that it will take at least a day of dedicated care before the kobold is in any condition to move on his own.
"I know I said we should at least finish clearing this floor, but it's too dangerous to leave him here and we can't bring him along in this condition," Clover remarks, opting to stand guard near the door while Rulean and Leaf see to the kobold. "Do you think he's stable enough for us to carry back out?"
Chani pokes - or at least tries to poke - at the remains of the ether stalkers. "Fascinating. Not ghosts, but not quite all here."
He looks cautiously at the Kobold. "I know nearly nothing about Xulgath. I only know a little about Kobolds as well. But my understanding is that they would not likely be working together." Chani ponders for a couple of seconds, remembering the mutilated body in a previous room. "I don't know what would bring this one here."
"We'd have to be really careful carrying -- it might be better to try and get some fluids into them first and clear any remaining toxins before considering that, just the same." Leaf-On-Wind offers with a far more conservative view.
"We should definitely get them out of that mess, though."
Rulean tries to share some of his water with the kobold. “Here, drink this!”
“I am willing to carry them if need be. I agree, saving a life is more important than immediately continuing this exploration.”
Looking at Givzib, he says “You don’t get a vote on this.”
The kobold splutters a bit and struggles weakly. He also mumbles in his sleep for a few moments before lapsing back into silence and full unconsciousness.
Looking around, Rulean asks “Did anyone under what they said?”
"Unfortunately, I don't." Chani considers for a moment. "Though perhaps someone at the carnival camp will. We should hurry back with this one in any case. They do not appear to be in very good shape."
Chani grabs hold of the kobold and drags them out of the slime as gently as possible.
That done, he bundles up the little one and heads out of the tunnels.
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With the kobold and the random bits and bobs in his pockets out of the way, Ephie can confirm that the rusty shield is magical. Swiping that from the sticky ether stalker nest, you make your way out of the Arodenite ruins and begin the climb to the surface.
"Givzib was going to suggest just that! That you save the poor, wretched dragonling," he nods to himself. "Givzib is very kind-hearted. You will see."
The quasit turns invisible shortly before you reach the surface, and you cannot tell if he is still with you or stayed behind by the time you reach the sinkhole. By the time you reach the circus camp, it is dinner time. Cubby and Aditya Kanbalis meet you at the path.
"Who's that?" the head of the Featherfall Five asks.
"He looks like he's been through the wringer," Cubby notes.
"Who's that?" the head of the Featherfall Five asks.
"He looks like he's been through the wringer," Cubby notes.
"We are not sure," Chani replies. "Someone we found who didn't attack us on sight. Are there any other Kobolds in camp? Or at least someone who speaks Draconic?"
"Let us look at our array.
Interesting! Your defining card is The Carnival reversed. Normally it would represent illusions and false dreams, but this indicates clarity and true dreams..."
A plant-influenced kobold wearing what appeared to be an improvised fortune teller outfit was demonstrating her ability with the Harrow to one of the roadie-sorts while waiting for someone with a measure of authority to accept her plea for audition.
Amber had started by looking at Madame Dusklight's crew, but it didn't take a genius to realize the place was a nasty disaster waiting to happen to someone and one thing she fled her snarl was due to far too many expectations...
Amber was BORED. While the circus was kind of exciting and there were all kinds of neat people to meet she didn't want to step on the toes of the performers -- or get hers stepped on by accident!
She watches for someone, anyone with apparent authority to come back, then perks up when someone asks about languages!
"I'm fluent in Draconic, both visual and verbal!" she offers excitedly.
“Please, this kobold isn’t fully conscious. If you could translate what is said…Wait, who are you? I don’t think we have met before.”
Rulean pauses mid sentence as he realizes that he doesn’t recognize the kobold speaking to him. They look like a circus performer. Maybe they got hired while they were below ground?
Tikomel occasionally mumbles and mutters in draconic.
"Hah. Got you, cretin..."
"Over here... Behind you..."
"This isn't over, you miserable cat..."
"Second things first, then! I'm Amber... or Madame Darkmoon if you'd prefer a 'stage' name! I was looking for the person in charge of hiring or at least the camp for a possible place to rest and/or work for a while." She bows with a bit of a flourish, the hand producing an apple for Rulean. "Fresh produce for free, too, but it needs to be eaten quickly"
She heads over to the silvery kobold and listens intently, nodding every so often before getting a puzzled expression.
"They were most unfortunate in their choice of companions and had a falling out. It would seem that in the process of said falling out they wanted to kill a sad cat. How peculiar."
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Chani looks down at the unconscious Kobold. "'Sad cat', hrmmm... I don't think that is referring to me. I haven't met this one before. However," he mentions to Amber, "it may still be best if you stay here. I may not be seen as a friend when this silver one wakes up."
With a nod, Rulean says “Pleased to meet you, Amber. I’m Rulean.”
At mention of a sad cat, Rulean says “Could this sad cat be silver and grey, with a fondness for maroon top hats?” Mistress Dusklight
"Rulean? Nice to meet you! And that describes the head of that other circus I was gonna go to but the place looked trapped worse than a trueblood snarl and that doesn't seem like a good place to work. That's why I started traveling because I was tired of running into slow teeth all the time."
She nods to Chani. "Even though you don't look like the other one the fur might cause problems -- no offense."
Tikomel stirs restlessly. Then opens his bleary eyes. Seeing vague humanoid shapes nearby, he struggles to get out of the blanket he is wrapped in. "Aaaahhhh. I'll fight you all. You'll never take me down. You'll be sorry you -" He blinks and gets a better look at Amber. Then looks around at the rest of his surroundings and anyone else who is there. Wait. Who are you. And where am I?"
Oh good! They do know how to speak Taldan!
Rulean walks over and squats down next to the kobold.
“Hello, I am Rulean and you are in our circus camp. We found you injured and unconscious in a chamber beneath the city.”
“You are safe here, but if you want to leave we will not prevent it. We would like to know how you got to where we found you.”
“What is your name?”
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"I am Tikomel. Unconscious, was I?" Tikomel frowns for a minute, apparently trying to remember something. "I am a wainright with the Celestial Menagerie. Or at least - was. To be honest, not one of any particular note, so maybe I should have been suspicious when I was picked to go on a trip to inspect a new carnival wagon." Tikomel glares and growls a bit. "But then that blasted cat just turns me over to a bunch of thugs. They tied me up good, they did. Not good enough though. I got loose and snuck out. Or at least - snuck around. Couldn't find the way out."
He finishes getting himself free of the blanket. "But yeah, I am leaving. I'm going back there to find those thugs and give them a piece of my mind. The spellcasting piece. Right square between their stinky eyes." He stands up, but is still a bit wobbly. He makes his way to the doorway though. Then looks out of it to the bustling carnival. "Just... as soon as you tell me where that is."
Spirited! I like that. They might be a little impulsive.
“So you were hired by Mistress Dusklight?” Rulean’s eye ridges raise a little at that. “It may not be the best idea to confront her at her own circus. Too many roundabouts to support her there and I suspect she intended you to be sacrificed to a demon.”
Once Tikomel has had time to process what he has said, Rulean fills him in on what the group found and mentions their plans to go back down and stop what is happening.
You make some new acquaintances and get to know them over breakfast. Others of you decide to stay in the camp and attend to the mundane--and slightly safer--work of the circus. When all is settled, you head back toward the Arodenite ruins to deal with the xulgath and hopefully discover their plans.
Along the way to town, you run into a leshy .
The descent to the ruins is uneventful. It does not appear that the xulgath leaders from the lower levels have bothered to check in with the forces here to discover that they are slain. Givzib manifests on the way down. "You have a very interesting crew in your circus!" he comments, indicating that he followed you all the way there. "Do you think I could join?"
You return to the corrupted pool where Ephie explained that there may be a clue to cleansing the waters hidden in the mosaic if only you clean away all of the gore and grime. It takes several hours of work. Givzib does not help at all.
The mosaic on the wall is revealed to be a carpenter building a chair, a musician playing a lute, and a scholar copying a text. Rulean recognizes these as three tasks sacred to Aroden. After a bit of intellectual debate, you conclude that if you perform each of these sort of tasks within the room, the water will be cleansed.
Chani meets with the others over breakfast. "From the sound of things, Mistress Dusklight has many plans going on at once. You mentioned seeing some of the Celestial Menagerie leaders here in town trying to prevent the carnival here from setting up, yes? We may want to check in on that as well. With Tikomel here being so eager to help with the caverns below, we may have enough people to split up and take care of both fronts."
As plans are made over breakfast, Rulean says “Someone should inform Chief Constable Andera Paldreen of what we found and what we suspect of the Celestial Managerie. If people are disappearing in her town, she is going to want to know about it.”
——
Having figured out the meaning of the mosaic, Rulean is willing to take either the part of the musician or scholar.
New friends, Mr. Splinters! What do you think?
FRESH MEAT The doll's eyes glitter and he makes stabbing motions when Ephie bumbles about, tinkering with his penny arcade miniatures.
Now:
Tikomel is feeling quite a bit better after getting some food at breakfast. While eating, he pulls out a bunch of loose folded papers out of a pocket and studies them while eating.
New friends, Mr. Splinters! What do you think?
FRESH MEAT The doll's eyes glitter and he makes stabbing motions when Ephie bumbles about
Tikomel grins over at the doll. "You volunteering to keep me on my toes then, huh?"
He also spends a bit of time after breakfast gathering seemingly random things of little value from the carnival - or rather, the carnival trash bins. Bits of twine, small sticks of various sizes, a few rocks, some strips of burlap, things like that. One prized find was a small strip of sheet metal about an inch wide and almost two feet long. "Always amazing the things people throw away."
-----
Tikomel follows the group into the nearby city and down into the underground temple. "So... It's just here unnoticed below a city? Strange."
When they get to the room with the mural he helps clean things up. "I vaguely remember coming through here. I wasn't so interested in what was on the walls though."
He also spends a few minutes and makes a small weapon out of one of the rocks and sticks and a bit of twine to hold it all together.
When the time comes to do the ritual, Tikomel follows Ephie's lead. "I can build lots of things. Not so good at dancing though."
Focus Points; 3: □□□
Cantrips:
Shield
Frostbite
Ignition
Caustic Blast
Telekinetic Hand
Rank 2 (studious):
Mirror Image
Sure Strike
Rank 3:
Flame Wisp
Cave Fangs
Rank 4:
Draw the Lightning
Fire Shield
A gleam runs along the mosaic, outlining the carpenter building a chair.
Rulean wracks his brain for a song that would appeal to a worshipper of Aroden. At first his voice catches, but after clearing his throat he does a reasonable rendition of the song.
A gleam runs along the mosaic depicting the musician playing a lute.
Hmmm. The dead god…
Ephraim relates the story of how Aroden raised the Starstone and the surrounding seabed from the ocean floor to create the Isle of Kortos and the surrounding islands. On each isle he created a tower and hung a light above it to shine his blessings upon the land. Upon completion of the tale, the mosaic of the scholar is outlined in a gleam of light.
In a flash of white light, the pool is purified and becomes crystal-clear water. However, before you can appreciate the success of your ritual, the broken silver diadem you collected from the xulgath leader in the chapel begins to glow. The water of the pool glows blue in synergy. A vision appears as a reflection upon the surface of the pool.
Faint reflections appear within the waters of the pool. Robed humans kneel in a sun‑drenched atrium beneath stained‑glass murals proclaiming the glorious deeds of their god. Dark blotches form around the images, spreading like ink spilled upon a clean page. As the darkness spreads, the scene changes. A tall, fierce xulgath with two tentacles waving from his back stands before an audience of his kind in the temple’s atrium. He bellows, "I speak with the voice of Zevgavizeb, and I do his will. Will you join me in this sacred quest for vengeance?" Though he is speaking in the draconic language, you all understand his words somehow.
A familiar xulgath with a hefty maul holds his weapon aloft in salute and agreement. A hulking, muscular xulgath at the front of the crowd nods her head, her mouth twisted into a snarl. A female xulgath with stonelike skin steps forward, raising a hand to indicate the group crowded around her.
"We are with you, Sarvel Ever‑Hunger," she growls.
"Why not take the orbs?" A timid voice interrupts. A collective silence falls over the assembled xulgaths, and all eyes turn to the creature that spoke. His eyes dart around the room and he bows deeply to Sarvel before continuing. "Zevgavizeb commands fury and violence, but life could be better for us here below. Why do we not steal the orbs back, and remake our home of Vask?"
"Our holy vault is lost to us now," Sarvel proclaims.
"Most of our people are like you, Vesshak, unimaginative and fallen from the grace of our forebears. You would rebuild a great civilization with your stone tools, fight House Shraen with your brittle spears?" Sarvel laughs and shakes his head. "No, Vesshak. Our destiny is tied to destruction, not creation. We must repay the sun‑drinkers for their ancient crime. When the orbs are sundered and the isles made barren, Zevgavizeb will show us the way."
Murmurs of assent drift through the mass of xulgaths as the scene fades, replaced by clear water rippling over a bed of pearlescent stone.
"What are you all staring at?" Givzib asks.
"Well, that was weird," Tikomel comments. "Maybe we should have just left it dirty. I still don't think I want to drink from the fountain. Who knows what kind of hallucinations that would cause."
"Weird? No no, that was just the sign we've been looking for!"
The feminine-sounding voice comes from the doorway from whence the group came, where stands a small leshy, her body composed of gnarled, twisted vines and leaves. Standing next to her is a being of medium size - not a leshy, though - that appears to be some manner of viney tumbleweed on legs. The pair each sport the same small rune on their foreheads (or close enough for the tumbleweed creature) that pulses with a soft, yellow light.
"For city-walkers you've all been surprisingly hard to catch up to, but we've finally done it! And at just the right time too, by the looks of it," the leshy continues. "That vision proves that you're on the right track and that we've been on the right track tracking you and-oh, what're the weapons for?" She stops, having only just noticed that the group is clearly on edge...
“That may explain the aspect of the thief…” Rulean muses.
A little startled at the leshy’s appearance, Rulean turns around. Seeing that mean no immediate harm, he says “Hello, who might you be?”
“That may explain the aspect of the thief…” Rulean muses.
"I'm not a thief," Tikomel says in mock outrage. "At least, not of anything of value."
When the new arrival comes in unexpectedly, Tikomel goes into a defensive stand. When the leshy just talks calmly for a bit, he relaxes and his curiosity takes over. Since the question of who these two are has already been asked, he stays quiet and just watches them intently.
“That may explain the aspect of the thief…” Rulean muses."I'm not a thief," Tikomel says in mock outrage. "At least, not of anything of value."
.
Somewhat surprised by Tikomel, Rulean says “I meant Aroden. He had several aspects, one of them was the thief. I believe their contribution was showing that things had value.”
"Well, I'm Greenbrier and this is Rumbleweed," she gestures to the plant-creature standing beside her. "And you're trying to help the land, right? That's what we want, too."
The leshy anxiously wrings her hands as she looks around at each of the group. "I don't know if you can feel it, but I can. The land, the plants, it's all withering away. And no one seems to know why and most don't even seem to care!"
"So I decided that *I'd* do something about it. But even with Rumbleweed's help it's been hard because we didn't really know where to start. So we just started asking anyone we met that would actually stop to talk with us. That, uh...that didn't work out too well, not until we finally wandered into a little human village. Abbington or something? Anyway, they told us about you and your circus and that you might be able to help us. So we've been trying to catch up to you since, but it's been slow going with just the two of us..."
The creature named as Rumbleweed clears his throat and finally speaks.
"We stand out just a bit."
With a chuckle, Rulean says “I tend to stand out most places as well.”
“We have found out much of why the land is withering, but there is still a lot we don’t know. It is all related to the towers.”
Rulean briefly describes what they know of the towers, the xulgath and Mistress Dusklight. He includes the information from the vision he just had.
Gesturing towards Givzib as he looked directly at them, he says “We even have them offering us information and help, although I do question their motives.”
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Givzib opens his demonic eyes wide and pouts a little. "Givzib has the most innocent of intentions."
Givzib opens his demonic eyes wide and pouts a little. "Givzib has the most innocent of intentions."
Rumbleweed slowly crosses his arms across his chest.
"Hm."
"Easy Rumble," Greenbrier remarks, giving her friend a pat. "Sometimes you have to take what help you can get, right?"
"But that doesn't mean you lower your guard. We learned that the hard way already, didn't we?"
"Um! A-anyway, that vision about the orbs. If the things they said were true, then these orbs...used to belong to the xulgath? Really? If that's true, then I wonder who stole them in the first place?"
With this clue, which may be more puzzle than clue and a new friend, you continue on deeper into the buried Arodenite temple. You approach the double doors made of ebony carefully and once reasonably certain it is safe, press them open.
This chamber has towering ebony doors to the east and west. A stone statue of a human man clad in a flowing robe has one hand raised in a gesture of warning and a burning brazier held in its other hand. The statue looks as though it has been broken and reassembled several times. It stands directly in front of the western door. Other than several chunks of stone and black wood scattered across the floor, the room is bare.
Ephie, still absorbing these new events, pauses and detects magic.
“So, any guesses as to how to evade whatever that statue is warning about?”
Rulean tries to recall any religious symbology or stories, especially associated with Aroden, that may give a clue.
EPHRIAM THAT GLUED-TOGETHER STATUE IS LIKE ONE OF YOUR FIGURINES. ONLY IT LOOKS LIKE IT WAS MADE BY SOMEONE WITH TALENT.
Don’t forget, I carved you! And that statue is magic.