Pagma covers her ears but the pain still rocks her, causing her to cry out in pain. Releasing one ear she rummaged in her satchel, grabbing her last two fire bombs and tosses them at the twig people.
She hopes to either destroy the red hooded one or leave it open for one of the others to kill it.
Lastly she grabs a healing potion to force down her friend's throat.
Jing-De releases Tsukiyo's wrath on their foes and then tends to some of his wounds.
Pagma's bomb incinerates the red-hooded thatchling, reducing it to a burning heap! She splashes a second one, the flames still proving quite damaging to the dry bodies of the undead!
Jing De's ray goes wide, but Sakura and Kamo are able to swiftly finish off the remaining enemies!
A search of the area reveals irregularities in the charred soil that you recognize as shallow graves. Exhuming them reveals two skeletons, as well as a red cloak that looks like the one the thatchling wore in its illusory disguise...
Happy as a lark her fire took down the evil weeds, she turns a little disgruntled as she looks through her pack "I'm out of fire now, so I hope we don't run into any more of these twigs. Still plenty of other tricks though." finding what she wanted, she took the pink healing potion over to Sakura "For you"
Disgruntled turns even more sour as she sees the bodies. "Skeletons, so that means they have been here a long time." her mind drifts back to stories about red cloaks and those that wore them.
Sakura moves methodically alongside Kamo, administering aid to all companions with the practiced precision of a seasoned warrior. They clean and bind the wounds, their hands moving with care to avoid inflicting further pain. The siblings work in tandem, their efficiency born from a bond strengthened through numerous trials.
Once the last bandage is secured, Sakura’s gaze shifts from her companions to the surroundings. She lifts the cloak, fingers tracing the edges as she folds it. Each crease she makes is a silent homage to the departed, her respect for the fallen palpable in the quiet reverence of her actions. It’s a warrior’s gentleness, a subtle strength that recognizes the value of remembrance and the importance of closure, even for souls they never knew.
"Do you think destroying those thatchlings was enough to put the spirits to rest?" Kamo questions.
Sakura pauses in her contemplations, considering Kamo's question. "It's a start," Sakura might respond thoughtfully, her voice steady. "But spirits tied to such turmoil often need more to find peace. We should perform the proper rites for these souls, give them the respect and acknowledgment they lacked in death."
Sakura looks to her companions, her expression one of solemn inquiry. "I'm not versed in the rites that these souls may need," she admits. "Does anyone know the proper customs to lay restless spirits to peace?"
"I don't." Pagma was never one for ritual and churches seemed full of them. Despite that she seems sad that she doesn't, because helping on rest seems like something wonderful to know.
She looks to Jing, who has always seemed the most spiritual of the group, her gaze hopeful.
Fortunately, the funerary customs of Willowshore aren't too complicated. You bury the skeletons in proper graves this time and say a few prayers over the sites to consecrate the remains. Once you have completed the task, Sakura feels a sudden sense of gratitude. She looks down at the folded cloak in her hands and realizes that the spirits of the dead want her to take it as thanks for your kindness.
A thorough search of the surrounding buildings turns up nothing of interest. It seems that this line of investigation has come to a dead end. It would be a good idea to rest here before either heading back to Willowshore in the morning or exploring more of the hinterlands.
As the peace seems to settle over the area, Pagma gives her friend a shoulder squeeze, and a whispered 'good job'. Pagma's own mind never runs to things like this, which she is starting to think is a flaw.
The alchemist chews on this when the idea of camping is brought up, bringing up a series of minor complaints since she does not like camping. "Civilization was formed for people could have roofs and beds." she knows that isn't exactly true, but at the moment that doesn't matter.
She does know sense though, and their little band is beaten and battered a bit, so she helps set up, makes tea, and scents the firewood with a clove mix that soothes the mind.
The discovery that the cloak is imbued with magic catches Sakura off guard. It's a tangible link to the spirits they've just laid to rest, a sign of a world beyond her keen blade and the battlefields she knows so well. She examines the cloak, feeling the texture of the fabric between her fingers, contemplating the duality of her existence where violence and compassion often intertwine.
Sakura drapes the cloak around her shoulders, feeling the weight of the gratitude it represents. Turning to Pagma, she offers a small, silent, proud smile in return for her shoulder squeeze.
When she sees Pagma start to prepare refreshments, she nods and says "Good idea, Pagma-chan. We need to rest. Let me make sure the grounds are clear. Kamo, help Jing-De get the camp set up. I'll take the first watch. "
She sets off on a quick patrol around the immediate area to secure the perimeter.
After a quiet night, Kamo says "Ah, a much brighter morning. Should we see if putting those folks to rest cleared up the problems with the mist? I don't think we have another lead on the governor's disappearance, though we can keep our eyes open as we travel. Maybe we'll stumble onto his mansion out here, somewhere!"
You rest without incident, but unfortunately, the strange mists persist, rising up to prevent you from proceeding any further to the east. With no other options presenting themselves, you ride back home to Willowshore the next day. When you make it back to town, you report what happened to the elders. They encourage you to pursue the other two leads in hopes that they might ultimately help solve the mystery of the vanished governor.
Granny Hu speaks to you further about the strange mists preventing you from traveling too far away from Willowshore. "Our town is relatively self-sufficient, but without trade, the coming winter will be difficult. I'd like you to determine the extent of the effect that surrounds Willowshore. Do these strange mists merely prevent travel to the coast and to Karahai? Or do they completely encircle the region—and if so, to what extent?
"Following the mist in a circuit all around the region would be a long, potentially dangerous slog through trackless wilderness. Instead, I suggest you pay a visit to the Great Willow that stands on the hilltop just north of town. There dwells a local spirit whose connection to the hinterland wilderness should allow them to provide valuable insight into what’s going on."
***
Old Matsuki speaks to you more about Ugly Cute. "The guardian spider has stood vigil for many years at the edge of town. Its disappearance is concerning. You said you found tracks that suggested the statue got up and walked away toward the river. I have sent trackers from the Silvermist Lodges to look for clues, but so far, no trace of Ugly Cute has been found. Still, perhaps meeting with the hunters would be a good first step if you want to start tracking down the missing guardian yourselves."
***
In addition, as your reputation as the town's heroes spreads, several other citizens approach you with concerns of their own:
FIXING THE RANCH: Kum Soon-chong, the proprietor of Willowshore Stables, requests help in repairing the building, which was heavily damaged in the monster invasion.
MOVING DESNA'S SHRINE: Choe Chung-hu of the Milling Houses asks you to help him find a new home for the Desna shrine currently languishing in the Abandoned Estates part of town.
INVESTIGATE THE OLD EXPANSION: Old Matsuki has already started to worry that if the people of Willowshore are trapped by some sort of curse, they won’t have enough food to last the winter. He asks you to head north to an abandoned village and determine if it can still be reached—and if so, to explore it and gather enough information so that villagers can plant emergency crops there.
"Friends, I won't pretend that the thought of a giant spider on the loose doesn't unsettle me — it does. Yet, Ugly Cute is more than just a spider; it's a guardian, a symbol of safety for Willowshore, and it's our responsibility to ensure that safety is restored. We must meet with the hunters and track down where it has wandered off to. It's not just about a missing statue; it's about the peace of mind for our people."
She takes a breath, steeling herself for the task ahead.
Pagma gives a soft smile at her friend's bravery. "It is just a statue. Even if it moving, it is just stone. If we had a carver make at statue of that uncle of yours, then it became enchanted, it would not be your uncle"
'Thankfully' Pagma adds mentally.
"The hunters might have seen edges of the mist as well, so we can gather more information about where the edges are." she says before asking for a moment before they leave "Got to check on Papa, then I'll be ready."
"Very sensible, Pagma. It might look like a spider, but I doubt it's spinning granite webs or eating flies." Kamo agrees. "Hopefully the hunters have found plenty of clues. How hard can it be to find a giant statue?"
You meet with the rangers of the Silvermist Lodges, but they tell you their attempts to track Ugly Cute have yielded no leads; the rainstorms and the amount of time that passed while the hunters were recovering from the monster invasion did them no favors. Even the old hunter’s trick of “returning to the quarry’s home” to try to pick up the trail anew hasn’t worked. Despite several visits back to Spider Gate , no fresh clues have manifested.
Jing-De mulls over where Ugly Cute could be and then it hits him! The Spider Gate isn't so much her home as it is her posting, so perhaps she went back to ... wait, where did she go back to? "Say, if the Spider Gate is Ugly Cute's place of work, where then would be her home?"
The ranger mulls it over for a few moments before positing a theory: Ugly Cute was “born” from locally quarried stone, so wouldn’t the creature’s “home” be akin to the source from which its components were originally harvested?
Willowshore Lore Success!: Both Pagma and Kamo remember that Ugly Cute’s materials were originally quarried from the Gorge of Fangs and Teeth to the south.
"That's brilliant, Jing-De! It makes perfect sense it would return to the place where it was created. Let us the gorge."
Sakura's words conjure a big bright smile on Jing-De's face. "Lets. Maybe we should compose a poem or song to Ugly Cute, so that when we find her, if we find her, we have something to placate her with. She must have left her station for a reason, right?"
Pagma thinks to all the reasons she enjoys going home after work (the fact she hasn't been to her job in several days now does tickle her sense of duty a little). "Maybe its Sore feet? Mine are always near breaking after a long shift at the inn. They have stone ones and all but still its been standing for a Long time."
She does like the poem idea though and says it, but has no skill in composing something like that.
You head south from Willowshore, the road turning into a rough and rocky trail about halfway through the day. You head west along Dragonfly Creek until you reach the Gorge of Fangs and Teeth. Located a few miles from the edge of the forest, this escarpment of stone was where most of the materials used to pave Willowshore’s roads and build its foundations and stone structures was quarried.
Soon after entering the gorge, you hear the sound of shifting and grinding stone. Ahead, you can see two slithering carpets of animated stones and mobile grit rasping and scouring over a large shape crumpled in a narrow cleft in the stone. As you draw near, you see that the shape is, in fact, Ugly Cute!
The two swarms of stones grind off of the statue as they move to attack you! You can see that each one has a tiny mouth made of split geodes!
Pagma quickly decides fire is less than ideal against rocks, so grabs two of her acid flasks and lobs them at the approaching attackers. "They came off of the statue? Should we put them back one later?"
"No, I think they were attacking Ugly Cute! We came just in time."
Kamo looks for a place to strike the swarming boulders, but he can't find a good angle. He decides to attack the other swarm instead.
for
Kamo recognizes the swarming aberrations as cobble mites. Tiny, unassuming, and typically harmless, they reside in mountains and cavernous regions, subsisting on scraps of food and gravel. When dozens of cobble mites congregate, they use their collective might to overwhelm and consume small creatures, much like a school of hungry piranhas attacking and devouring unfortunate animals. They resist slashing and piercing damage.
Pagma hurls two acid flasks, hitting one of the swarms and splashing the other one. The splash weapons seem quite effective against the swarms.
Kamo misses with his staff, and now he presents a prime target for the swarms. The move all over Kamo, grabbing him and dragging him to the ground before biting him all over! The acid runs its course.
Sakura charges in to attack, but is so distracted by the assault on Kamo that she mistimes her initial strike. Her second swing isn't much better, but she manages to pull it just enough at the last second.
◈◈
◈
Jing-De keeps his distance for now and bombards the hungry monsters with frost.
"Oh, my backside!"
"Oof, get them off me."
He struggles under the pile of rocks.
Pagma lobs her last acid bomb at the remaining swarm.
But her attempt to throw is way off since she doesn't want to bath Kamo in acid.
Drawing her dagger she moves up to help.
One swarm falls to Jing De’s spell, but the other one moves to encompass Sakura as well as Kamo, pummeling both siblings.
Kamo stands up, moves away from Sakura and swats at the swarm.
for
Jing-De moves to the side to get a clear line of sight at the remaining swarm.
Kamo and Jing De finish off the remaining monsters. Once they are defeated, Ugly Cute rises up on their eight legs, a bit wobbly and bearing plenty of chips and cracks, but still very much alive.
”Thanks, friends!” the spider statue says. ”I thought I was a goner! Jing De, Pagma, Kamo and Sakura, I am in your debt. How fare things in Willowshore?”
Sakura, concealing her surprise at Ugly Cute's newfound animation and speech, responds with the composure of a seasoned warrior who has seen many unusual things in her travels. She chooses her words to be both welcoming and direct, aware of the creature's importance to the community:
"Ugly Cute, Willowshore has faced its share of troubles in your absence, but we've held strong. We could certainly use your watchful presence on the town's edge again. Your vigil is a beacon of safety and a symbol of our resilience. We'd be honored to escort you back and see you reinstated to your rightful place."
You're talking to a gigantic spider statue. Everything is fine.
She respectfully nods to the creature, hoping to reassure it of its value and encourage cooperation in returning to its post. Sakura also carefully avoids expressing discomfort about the spider's form, understanding the importance of its role over her fears.
”So, you are the town’s new protectors? That is wonderful!” Ugly Cute declares. ”Willowshore is in good hands. I must apologize for abandoning my post. I had visions of an abandoned Willowshore left to crumble into ruins reclaimed by the forest after some sort of monstrous invasion. That is what caused me to awaken and head off into the forest. And that is where I found you! A group of faceless monsters had dragged you away while you were sleeping, no doubt for some nefarious purpose! I drove them away.”
The stone spider chuckles. ”So I saved you first, I suppose, and now you have returned the favor! I kept going, chasing those faceless things. But I ended up lost in the woods and badly damaged. I had to return to this place to recover.”
Sakura maintains her composure despite the spider's imposing form and its recount of events, recognizing the significance of Ugly Cute's actions.
"Your foresight and bravery are as sturdy as the stone from which you are carved, Ugly Cute. It seems we are more deeply in your debt than we realized. We would do well to remain vigilant. Your return to Willowshore is not just desired; it is needed."
She gestures to the town in the distance, reinforcing the invitation with a note of urgency.
"Are you, uhm, recovered? I'm not sure what to say. Can we help? We would like to guide you back to Willowshore, so you may recover fully and stand guard again."
"You are very kind. Let me rest here tonight to finish healing, the tomorrow you can escort me back to resume my watch.
"There is something else you should know. The mists surrounding Willowshore are the beginning of the town’s doom, a curse brought upon the region by an unknown force—one that I sense is tied to the faceless monsters who abducted you. These faceless monsters have claimed an old lumber camp to the west of town, near Ceiba River’s source. Perhaps clues about the curse can be found there?"
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Pagma goes pale at the telling of the faceless monsters, and very very very much wants a bath. "Do you what these monsters are called?" and then adds quickly "I AM sorry about painting your purple that time, it was a miscalculation!" the rocket was supposed to explode in the sky, then raining down on the tree tops to making the leaves speckled in violet dots. But instead Ugly Cute got it exploded right over it. "And I didn't know you could hear us either." she was worried about what she might have said around it through the years.
"Do you need any rocks or anything that would help?" she considered that it might eat them for some reason.
"Huh! Well, thank you for saving us. No wonder we woke up in a strange place."[b] Kamo stares intently at the animated statue. "Do you think you could tell us anything else about the faceless monsters?"[/b]
When the giant spider says he needs to rest here and heal, Sakura nods. "We will stay here tonight then. I favor spiders such as yourself, and it would be my honor to protect you this night while you recover."
When it starts talking about the faceless monsters, her jaw hardens "We have encountered a strange fog. I wonder if it is related to this doom or the curse we heard of earlier."
"After we take you back, we will look into the lumber camp."
All Ugly Cute can tell you about the monsters are that they resemble humans but with smooth, blank skin where their faces should be. The stone spider thanks Pagma for offering to gather stones but says it is not necessary.
"Of course, I could hear you!" Ugly Cute tells Pagma. "I have grown quite fond of the people of Willowshore over the years. Even when they accidentally paint me purple!"
As thanks for your help and as a apology for abandoning you in the woods, Ugly Cute breaks off a small piece of their enchanted carapace and gifts it to you.
The next day, you journey back to Willowshore. The townsfolk cheer at their guardian's return, and Ugly Cute climbs back onto their post at Spider Gate on the eastern edge of town. There, the guardian spirit will settle in to watch and observe, leaving the active defense of the town to you. If Ugly Cute has any revelations during their time of introspective guardianship, they’ll waken again to alert you.
Jing-De bows and expresses his gratitude to Ugly Cute when it gifts them a powerful magic gauntlet. "Thank you, guardian of Willowshore. Rest now, you deserve it."
With Ugly Cute back where they belong, Jing-De knows the group still has plenty of problems left to resolve. "We should visit the Great Willow and see what the spirit can tell us about the mist."
"Agreed," Sakura affirms. "The mists may well hide more than just the physical paths; they could obscure the roots of deeper troubles. The Great Willow could shed light upon what our eyes cannot see. Great suggestion, Jing-De."
Willowshore’s Great Willow sits atop a hill overlooking town, a visible landmark and a source of pride among many locals. Said to be the first place Master Zhi Hui visited on her search for the Tan Sugi, the tree has endured through the years as one of the town’s symbols, yet no road or trail has ever been laid to the hill’s summit. Everyone knows that a spirit dwells within the tree, a kami who calls themself Great Willow and who watches over the town, yet few feel it’s wise to disturb or potentially annoy the spirit. As such, visits to Great Willow tend to happen rarely, and only at times when Willowshore needs advice from the spirit world—times such as those now facing the settlement.
In addition to seeking wisdom from Great Willow, the elders suggest that you organize an offering from the townsfolk to bring to the tree, in hopes of currying the spirit’s favor in protecting Willowshore. At the very least, bringing an offering should help make conversing with the spirit easier. The elders suggest an offering of wine or sake.
It takes you about twenty minutes to climb up the hill. The forest thins around the hilltop, leaving an eighty-foot-diameter clearing at its summit. Atop the hill in the center of the clearing grows the Great Willow—the only willow tree present in much of the forest. Looming at a height of nearly ninety feet, the Great Willow is also quite large for its kind. Yet the reason the Great Willow has held such a place of reverence in Willowshore’s history has more to do with the spirit said to dwell within it. At least a few years have passed since anyone has visited the Great Willow, but even from the clearing’s edge, it’s apparent that something seems amiss with the tree, for some sort of gray fungal growth has seemingly infested its lower roots.
As you approach, a spirit emerges from the tree. The little green humanoid figure stands only three feet tall. Their head is faceless save for two hollow pits for eyes and a third for a mouth. They adopt a defensive pose among the tree's roots, little fists upraised. "You there! Why do you dare approach the Great Willow?" the spirit demands in a hollow, echoing voice.
Jing-De inclines his head and then presents the jug filled with sake to the spirit. He steps forward and kneels down to put the jug on the ground. "We approach with a gift of sake, Great Willow. Please, accept our offer. In return, we ask you for counsel as a supernatural mist surrounds Willowshore and this mist keeps us trapped inside the town and its immediate surroundings."
The Great Willow lowers their fists. They cautiously approach the jug to inspect it, then they pick it up and take a long sip. "Ah. Good sake. Thank you," the kami says, their voice now tiny and childlike.
They pause before answering Jing De's question about the mist. They speak slowly and methodically, as if choosing their words carefully. "The mist. Yes. “Yes. I sense it too. It is a curse. A powerful one. I can feel its edges all around. We are in a cage now. When it happened on the first day of summer, I was confused. I was alone. I could not hear my friends’ voices. I jumped to visit my closest friend and they were not there, but a foul-tempered mushroom was, and I had to run away all the way back to here. Alone. I don’t know what to do. I dare not leave this tree again when this curse is all around, but I can look for its edges from here. I will tell you more, but before I do, I need to know my friend is safe. You will go to save her from the angry mushroom, and then I will help."
Sakura is happy that Jing-De can calm the Great Willow. "Consider it done. We will search out this angry mushroom and save your friend. Can you tell us what we should be looking for?"
After receiving the information, Sakura leads them on. While they search, she asks Pagma-chan, do you have any bombs for mushrooms? Or Jing-De, any anti-mushroom magic?"
She looks to Kamo and the only thing she can come up with is "Perhaps you can put them in your stew tonight?"
”Go to the willow grove south of town. On the western bank of the creek. You will see the mushroom. You will remove the fungus. Take this before you leave. A parting gift for the kind offering.”
The Great Willow presents you with a lesser rope of climbing made of supernaturally supple woven willow branches.