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"What the----?" starts Laesah as the fungal critter drops down from the trees.
Laesah steels her breath to disease, retreating within her mind.
Dear Grandmother, I do this to help my fellow friends. I care not for angered vengeance.
Anadi Laesah quickly scuttles down to the combatant and rapidly bites at the critter, her form blurring with the rapid kinesis.
Haunt coughs wetly, then reflexively yanks his rapier from its sheath and aims it at the mushroom man. With an effort, he takes a calming breath and uses a moment to think before he acts.
What is this thing? And how can I end this combat quickly, before any of my friends get hurt?
The amurrun's blade doesn't waiver as he uses his free hand to quickly pull a small whetstone out of one of the many pouches on his vest. He scrapes it once along the edge of his rapier before reaching inside his vest to pull out the medallion bearing Tlehar's face.
Haunt clears his throat to speak, all levity gone from his voice. "Be careful. This is a myceloid, and that spore cloud can give you Purple Pox. It'll take a couple of days, but the disease could kill us if we don't get some help soon."
COUGH.
"Also, slashing weapons work best, so cut away."
Maddox recovers from trying to climb the tree and assesses the situation he sees unfolding in front of him with the purple mushroom.
From down below, Maddox assesses that the best plan of action will be to fire at the mushroom with his shortbow. He draws it out, loads it and fires.
Maddox aims and fires off his second shot with the Shortbow, hoping to strike again.
The second arrow sails by, missing its target.
Initiative
1. Myceloid (2 damage taken)
2. Much (13 damage taken)
3. Haunt
4. Laesah
5. Maddox
The myceloid doesn't even flinch as the arrow knicks him. He scowls at Much, while held tightly in his teeth and telepathically screams in rage inside your mind, trying to break free.
Free of your grasp, he lashes out at Much again
Landing a decent shot to the ribs.
But Much is able to swat away the followup attack.
Much's ribs hurt. She drops to the ground with low grunt and wobbles over to her gear.
Gathering up her stone rope, Much stumbles forward to bring the myceloid back into range, uneager to get anywhere near its fists again. She sets her weapon into a steady spin above her head.
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Laesah's mind races as Much gets battered by the fungal foe.
It's acting territorial, like it's protecting its home, or --- Her eyes focus on their target, the scarlet mushrooms --- youngsters.
"It's protecting its nest!" Laesah calls out in her curious arachnid voice. "We should attempt to subdue it! Much, get yourself safe."
The anadi scrambles in front of Much and prepares an attack should the myceloid attack her or her friends.
Haunt moves around the tree to flank the myceloid with Laesah.
"OK, but I hope you're right about this!"
Haunt unconsciously traces strange patterns in the air with his amulet as he slices gently at the mushroom man with his rapier.
◆: Stride
◆: Strike
◆: Strike
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Haunt shakes his head as he steps into the flank. "Those mushrooms aren't its kids! Its kids are what's going to grow out of our dead bodies if we come down with the Purple Pox! Don't just restrain it, take it down!"
Maddox takes another glance at the situation at hand and fires again at the thing in the tree.
Deciding that firing from where he's standing probably won't be beneficial to the group, Maddox turns his attention towards Much, who has just jumped out of the tree and looks to be in pretty bad shape. Maddox reaches a hand out to try to provide aid.
He doesn't think he helped Much, but he also doesn't think he did any damage either. However, he knows how he can still be helpful, plunges his free hand into his bag, grabs a lesser healing potion and feeds it to Much as she stumbles towards him.
Initiative
1. Myceloid (19 damage taken)
2. Much (6 damage taken)
3. Haunt
4. Laesah
5. Maddox
The Myceloid was able to ignore the arrow that hit it, but the slashing rapier leaves a mark, parting mushroomy flesh with ease. It opens its mouth in a silent scream of pain that you "hear" in your mind, not your ears. Then it lashes out again.
A wild swing at Haunt that he easily ducks under.
Which sets up a another strike that is much more on the mark.
Laesah interrupts the attacks and lands a few glancing blows, but it serves to remind the Myceloid what a bad position it's in. It tries to fall back, running to get on the opposite side of Haunt, and break up being surrounded, if just for a moment.
Much greedily sucks down the potion Maddox offers her, hoping that the eyes she makes at him over the top of the bottle convey the depth of her gratitude.
The sound of a fleshy fist striking Haunt brings her head back around.
Furious, Much whips her stone-rope after the retreating fungal fiend.
She steps forward, eager to strike again.
And again!
The Myceloid is reeling from the combined attacks of Laesah and Much. It doesn't look like it can take much more.
Meeting Much’s appreciative gaze, Maddox feels like she’ll probably live to see another day. He turns his attention back to the situation at hand and again, considers the best path forward.
Again, he thinks he's probably not in the best position to attack right away but decides it's at least worth it to try to end this fight.
The arrow soars by, way off its target. Maddox lines up his shot and tries again.
And one more time.
Trigger The subject of your Esoteric Antithesis would damage you or an ally within 15 feet of you.
Requirements You’re holding your amulet implement and are benefiting from Esoteric Antithesis.
You forcefully present your amulet to turn away harm. You or a target ally within 15 feet gain resistance to all damage against the triggering damage. The resistance is equal to 2 + your level.
Haunt ducks the myceloid's first attack, but the second one blow is aimed solidly at his vitals. At the last moment, the amurrun spins his amulet through the air, and the strike is partially deflected -- only by millimeters, but it is enough to reduce the resulting wound to something bearable.
Haunt turns as first the mushroom creature and then Laesah run around him, leaving him still positioned to take advantage of the flank. He slices at the myceloid with the temporarily sharpened edge of his rapier.
Haunt flails out with two wild swings, so far off target they send him off balance. The Myceloid laughs, a noiseless moment, just a shaking of the shoulders and a sensation of condescension and mirth within your minds. And then...
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Zakkar was the old warrior who tried to make a soldier out of the adolescent Samirr after he proved to have little innate magical ability and washed out of his first apprenticeship, to a sorcerer (like his parents). Zakkar often complained about the inability of his second-hand apprentice to pay attention to anything that wasn't moving, malodorous, and poisonous, fire-breathing, or deadly in some other horrifying way. One of the rules he tried the hardest to drill into the young amurrun's head was that he should never turn his back on an enemy.
Samirr had once seen a swashbuckler fight in a tournament, striking down one opponent after another, with a style that was all leaping, tumbling, and spinning. Zakkar spent months breaking the would-be warrior of the idea that somehow spinning around in a circle during melee - leaving his adversary free to strike at his back or move out of reach - was the key to victory.
Partway through his first lunging attack at the myceloid, Haunt trips and almost falls on his sword (literally).
Grunting, he staggers up and back just in time to keep his feet. But he backs up a half step too far, so that when he slashes again at the evil fungus, his target is just out of reach. Already off-balance and surprised by the lack of resistance, the amurrun follows the extended swing around in a circle, somehow managing to close that half-step gap just as the arc of his swing takes his blade through the myceloid's midsection, cutting it neatly in half.
“Too bad. He could have been a fun guy! Get it? Fun guy? Fungi?”
Zakkar would plotz!
The evil mushroom disposed of, you still have the matter of the mushroom gathering from up in the tree. As you climb up and get them, you notice a small collection of treasures in the crook of the tree. Namely: a holly bush feather token, a wolf fang, and a hand of the mage.
Mushrooms in hand, you still need to make the oil. Pressing the oil from the scarlet caps is simple and requires no check, but it does require gradual squeezing that takes 1 hour. You also have a bag of bones to make oil out of, but those require equipment from back at the school.
As the wave of spores rolls over her, Much's head snaps back reflexively...
But the smell isn't as foul as she expected, less death and more old leather.
She shrugs and turns to find Maddox.
Seeing him, she approaches and gently puts her forehead against his. She meets his gaze, nods and turns to gather the rest of her gear.
Haunt's triumph doesn't last even as long as it takes to pick the scarlet mushrooms, as he deflates with an agonized groan. "Oh, yeah, I was definitely infected. If I don't shake this in the next 24 hours, I'm going to feel a lot worse, and I'll use whatever strength I have to go join the nearest colony of mushroom people. So when I collapse and die 24 hours after that, I won't be alone when my body blows up like an overstuffed sausage left too long in the sun and explodes to let a new mushroom man step out of my entrails. But sure, let's milk some mushrooms and then squeeze some caterpillars."
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Laesah reflexively curls up in a ball when the fungal foe explodes.
The anadi sneezes as the wave of fungal goo washes over her. Unsteadily, she uncurls from her semi-protective ball after suffering the aftermath.
"Colours....leaves....floating. Milk the caterpillars, yes? Seek fungi? I will climb...."
And rather unsteadily, Laesah staggers up the tree and collects the magical items stored there (quite obviously not the fungi). She returns to the ground and transforms once more to the bipedal Laesah you know. Her braided hair seems unkempt and loose.
"Friends....rainbows have fingers with which to sing the body. We are one, yes?" She sniffs the air. "I smell music!"
Much looks at her inebriated packmates with concern.
I think we need to get them back to campus. What do you think Maddox? We'll walk back past the caterpillars regardless. We can decide whether to harvest them once we make sure that they aren't going to explode into some sort of mind-altering substance as well. Much says
Much frowns as she considers their quandary.
"Do you think you can identify what we've found on the way back?"
As you approach the area Anchor Root described, you don't find any caterpillars. You weren't expecting to see them easily, since you were warned they would be hard to find, but you are confident you are in the right place to start your search. You also recall her saying the fuzzy‐looking caterpillars are extremely painful to touch and must be collected very carefully.
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Laesah confidently sticks the desiccated hand in her mouth, runs the holly bush branch through her untidy fringe, and stick the wolf fang in her ear. She then identifies them each and abruptly activates the holly bush token.
"Lovely pick-me-up, yes. Crumpets with cream? Why yes, thank you very much..."
"Kitties like cream?"
The anadi has retreated into a fugue state punctuated by intermittent giggles as the team arrives at the caterpillar harvesting site.
“Oh, uh, thanks. Are you sure we should eat these? Aren’t holly berries poisonous... I see, you’re eating one, well, OK.”
Haunt cautiously nibbles at one of the berries, eyes widening when he is healed a little instead of dying faster. “Hey, these are good!”
He eats the rest, and the worst of the wounds inflicted by the myceloid begin to close.
Haunt is able to locate the caterpillars. Right before he grabs one in a stupefied haze, he remembers that they are painful to the touch. Chef Yao gave you these specimen jars, but nobody told you how to get the bugs in them.
Much looks at Haunt, concerned.
"I wasn't the chief healer in our pack, but I'll see what I can do."
"If we have to kill the caterpillars eventually, is there any reason not to just spike them on our daggers and drop them in the jars? It seems like the safest path forward."
Much starts skewering caterpillars and dropping them into the jars. There's still a bit of hunting to find them, but after about 30 minutes, you've filled almost all the jars you were given with caterpillar corpses. You feel confident you have enough.
Maddox helps Much shepherd their inebriated colleagues away from the disastrous situation with the evil purple mushroom and towards the caterpillars to the South. After Much tries to patch up Haunt, he pitches in and tries to help as well. Thinking this is something he wants to do well at, he concentrates and feels the nanites surge through his body as he takes a look at Haunt's injuries.
As Maddox pokes and prods at Haunt with his healer's tools, his hand slips and he takes another chunk out of Haunt. He then apologizes profusely to Haunt for a good half hour, assuring him that we'd find a better healer back at the school. On that note, he suggests to the rest of the group that perhaps we should head back to the school and get help with the resources they gathered.
You return back to Mariama and Anchor Root (and a still-dozing Chezire). Anchor Root does her customary deep neck baring towards Much, and then looks alarmed when she sees Haunt and Laesah. "You are ill! And injured!" She says, quickly casting Heal on Haunt.
Mariama grimaces, even as the some of Haunt's wounds start stitching together, and says, "Yeah, man, you guys look like shit" She overhears some of Laesah's trippy babble and grins, saying, "Wait, you're f#!%ed up. I want in on that." She sticks out her tongue and starts walking over, getting ready to lick Laesah.
"No!" Commands Chezire, still on the ground with his eyes closed, but his paw raised. The shock of him speaking makes Mariama pause a moment. "Just wait a second until Thema gets here. I messaged Haibram to bring her the moment these pox-addled unfortunates showed up."
On cue, Thema, the elf from the Leshy Gardens comes in on a Phantom Steed and dismounts. She pulls a wand from her belt and waves it over Haunt and then Laesah, counteracting your Pox. She grumbles to herself as she rests a finger against your neck, and a checks your temperature with the back of her hand. Then she reaches into her satchel, pulls out some wet looking bandages, and slaps a poultice on each of your necks. Looking more satisfied, she mounts back up, nods once, and rides away.
"I'd just as soon not wind up sharing my dorm with Fungus people, Mari. If you could sometimes have a care for what you lick, I'd take it as a kindness." Chezire says, rolling over to turn his back to the group.
Mariama looks disappointed, but says, "OK, well, if that's all settled, let's get that oil ready so we can wiggle these fingers and ruin the day for some fay."
Anchor Root giggles happily at the rhyme, and says, "R-r-r-ight. Someone will need to render the bones down to oil. That'll take some skill. The mushrooms just require some pressing, and the caterpillars..." She pauses for a moment and looks at the jars filled with dead bugs. Tears rim her eyes at the sight of their corpses and she stops talking.
Mariama covers Anchor Root's ears and says, "You can go ahead and just squish them up. Use a stick or something so you don't touch them. Then it's magic time."
She pulls a set of cold iron bells from her bag and explains that the oil will be used in a ritual intended to grant them real warding powers. Usually, the bells only work because the gremlins believe they do. If the ritual works they will carry actual magic, based on that belief.
"Pretty cool, right? I came up with it." She says. From the ground, Chezire lets out a mighty snore, that somehow expresses disbelief. Mariama groans and says, "Fine, you got me, Koride came up with it.
Maddox steps up, hoping to prove himself after his fairly disastrous luck of late. Again, he concentrates hard on the bones, begins to faintly glow, and feels the nanites surge.
Satisfied that he might have done a good job, he returns the oil to Mariama to move to the next step.
Much shifts uncomfortably in the corner.
"Anchor Root, could you heal me as well please? My ribs haven't mended completely."
Much lifts he armor to expose her side for healing and turns to the pack.
"If we need to craft something, I can try to aid whoever is most skilled."
Mariama looks impressed. "This is good work, Fire Breather. And I saw you get all glowy, too. Badass."
Anchor Root collects all the oils and then returns to Much, showing her throat and then producing a healers kit, hands and voice shaking. "I-I-I am sorry, Great One. I only had the one spell prepared." She winces a bit, as if expecting a blow. When that doesn't happen, she gets to work.
As she finishes her treatment, she glances to where you keep your kucklebones and says, with no trace of stammer"Terima kasih para leluhur. Merupakan suatu kehormatan untuk melayani lini Anda." She again bares her throat towards Much, and backs away.
"My gods, you are so f$*$ing weird, Roots, I love it." Mariama says with no hint of sarcasm.
To the rest of you, she says, "OK, let's make with the sparky wiggles." She wiggles her fingers and begins to glow similarly to Maddox when he uses his nanites.
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Laesah shakes her head, then winces at her headache. She misses most of the action surrounding the bone-rendering, but perks at the mention of a primal ritual.
"Grandmother Spider plays a central role in many of the primal rites in our lands," she sighs, the wrinkled brow of a residual headache evident on her face. "Perhaps I could do my faith in her some justice."
Mariama has a slight frown as it's clear that the magic isn't quite taking hold.
"Don't even sweat it," she says. "Rituals are freaking impossible unless you are some sort of prodigy like my man Roots here. Roots, do that shit!"
A couple hours have now passed, and the magic isn't done, but Mariama only looks moderately annoyed.
"Hey, if anyone else wants to give this a go, they can, but we've got the goods to get this done. The professors or the cops will be the ones to set these up in any case."
She makes the first thoughtful face you've ever seen on Mariama, and says, "I'm a little worried that these will hit ANY fey that come around, not just the annoying ones. Some fey are cool. Or at least interesting."
Maddox steps up, fires off his nanites, and tries the ritual himself.
He looks up hopefully, hoping he's done enough.
Maddox knows in his robot heart that he has definitely not done enough.
"I don't know if it helps, but our pack uses foci sometimes to help with rituals."
Much hands over what appears to be a small, hastily-made gnoll figurine.
The ritual is unfulfilled, but Mariama assures you this is not a big deal. You turn in for the night, getting ready for another day of tasks tomorrow.
When you arrive at the meeting place the next morning, Ignaci and a serene, middle-aged woman are there to meet you. The woman looks at Laesah and smiles, approaching her and stretching her arms for a hug.
"Leasah, it is good to see you. I hope you've acclimated well. I can't wait to hear about your adventures so far!"
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Laesah follows her companions the next morning after a restless evening unpacking her failures to complete the ritual that Mariama and the Cascade Bearers set before her team.
By Grandmother’s whiskers, that was pathetic, she silently berates herself. If the schools are using these tools to determine who to recruit…wait, is that Tzeniwe???”
As the pair of figures becomes clearer, Laesah’s pace quickens.
”Laesah, it is good to see you. I hope you've acclimated well. I can't wait to hear about your adventures so far!"
The anadi launches herself at the middle-aged humanoid, wrapping her in a too-tight embrace. She pulls away, her long thick braid of hair flopped over the other woman’s shoulder.
”Sister Spinner, I knew you were here! I was asking the wind and the Weave just this morning about you. I am well. You look good - as if the Academy life suits you! Please, let me introduce my friends.” She turns to the others.
”This is Haunter of Monsters, my amurrun chum. This is Maddox; he is known as an android. This is Much, fierce Kholo warrior. Everyone - this is my - what’s the word? - ah! Cousin. Her name is Strands-of-Glowing-Dawn Tzeniwe.”
Laesah pauses to let the others make introductions.
While Laesah and Maddox try the primary checks and Much attempts her crafting, Haunt glares at the, um, bone oil, mushrooms, and milked caterpillars.
Haunt bows to Laesah's cousin. "Pleased to meet you, Strands-of-Glowing-Dawn." He looks for a student's bead necklace. "Or should I call you Teacher Tzeniwe?"
Haunt bows to Laesah's cousin. "Pleased to meet you, Strands-of-Glowing-Dawn." He looks for a student's bead necklace. "Or should I call you Teacher Tzeniwe?"
Tzeniwe chuckles, still holding Laesah by the shoulders and smiling at her, clearly enjoying the moment. "Oh no, I am no teacher, just a student much like yourselves. A little older and maybe a little more tired," she says, with a wry edge. At that moment, from behind a tree, a spider form crashes into the back of Laesah's legs, and a small human-looking child leaps towards Haunt, grabbing him around the left knee and trying to sink his tiny teeth into the amurrun.
"HUGS!" They scream in unison.
"Zachva! Zanvi! Stop!" Tzeniwe pleads to the children, who look about 4-years old. She glances at Laesah and says, "You know how it is, they get their poison coming in and they just want to bite everything."
She reaches a hand out and two glowing lines of energy snake out and wrap around the children, gently pulling them towards her. She tucks one under an arm and fixes the other with a practiced look that stops the child fussing for a moment.
"These are my little ones. My joy," she says sincerely, but with a hint of exasperation. "You are one of the only Anadi that they have met. I'm so glad to have you." She nods to the rest of you. "It is my pleasure to meet you all. I look forward to spending more time with you, when these children allow it."
Ignaci clears his throat, and says, "Right, everyone loves the kids. Who wouldn't, what with the yelling, and somehow managing to get through three locks on my door and wind up in my room drawing webs in my journals... Anyway, good morning!” Ignaci says with a smile. “As you’ve no doubt gathered, we’re here to task you with your assignment for the day. Our ever-thoughtful colleague Esi suggested that each of us petitioning to join the five different branches of the Magaambya take turns in requesting your assistance. Strands-of-Glowing-Dawn Tzeniwe and I are hoping to become a part of the Emerald Boughs. As I've said, that means we study the world as it is, and to study the world, we often go out into it, and meet its people."
“Today, you were to help us deliver the mail.” Ignaci produces a basket filled with letters and parcels. “It’s not a flashy task, but it’s vitally important to the members of the local communities. If you find you have time to listen, people are often very willing to share news with those engaged in crucial public service. But, from what I've heard, you guys have already had quite a week, and I we aren't going to bother you with it. Except for this one.."
Ignaci hands you a letter, addressed to Gozreh.
"Right, so just have to get this letter to a god. Totally no big deal. I thought it was a joke, but it's in the pile to be delivered, and we don't get to take things out of the pile, so off it goes. Somehow. If you can figure it out, we can call it even and I'll take care of the rest."
Perhaps it's the mention of Gozreh, but the rain starts to intensify to a near story as Ignaci finishes talking. Tzeniwe produces some broad waxed hats from her bag and puts them on Zacha and Zanvi to keep their heads dry.
”You two are SO CUTE I COULD EAT YOU!!!”
The two kids scream with joy when Laesah talks to them.
”Is there a temple to Gozreh on campus?”
Tzeniwe nods and says, "Not on campus, but just outside in the city. Most of the gods have a temple somewhere pretty near to the school."
She describes the place and its location - you could be there in about 30 minutes.
"I only know that Gozreh is a fickle god. Let's follow Laesah's thinking and head to the temple." Much adds as she rises up from her haunches.
You trudge through the rain to the Temple of Gozreh. The temple is a a set of walls with no roof. You enter the building and the rain continues to drench everything. The Priestess is a tall shisk, You recall Tzeniwe said her name was Possix, walks over, totally calm in the downpour.
"Welcome, you come on a blessed day, Gozreh favors you with this storm," Possix says, gesturing towards the sky. "How might I help you?
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"Hello! Greetings, I am Laesah Doul. I come from the Magaambya with a letter that...well, it's addressed to Gozreh." Laesah offers the letter to the shisk, though she tries to use her cloak to shield the letter from the downpour.
[b]"You can see that it's a bit of a puzzle, but we thought 'What better place to start?' And so, here we are. Do you have any idea who might need to see this or to whom it's intended?"
Possix takes the letter from you and turns it over, but does not open it. It is soaked in the rain.
"Gozreh is the god of the storm and the sea," she says. "As the sea is not available to us, I think you should take advantage of this storm and send this letter to the sky. Worshipers have been known to send letters on kites into the clouds for Gozreh to find."
She hands the letter back to Laesah with a smile. "I've always wondered why there are not more worshipers of Gozreh among your people. There are not many who would so instinctively understand how one could so clearly integrate two aspects of being. Our doors are always open."