(D&D 5e) The Plague of Nightmares IC

[Awful]

Yvonne nodded.
"I wish to see this letter, yes."
She gave Trauborn a look.
"I intend to leave tomorrow as soon as possible; whether you come or not. The good Lady Yuria is in need; I won't linger. Is there any place here to obtain a steed? Even a draft horse is quicker than walking."

And that said and answer gained, she would head to the Vates.

[Requilac]

After getting to camp, Jynx and Manda goes off to look for warmer clothes. She is more worried about Manda's comfort over her own and tries to see if she could find something for him.

As befit for a small town, the Wandering Goat General Store virtually has any nonmagical good that you could need to be here. From clothing, to tools, to provisions, to textiles, everything that is necessary to live in this small town could be found here. It is probably the biggest building in town, but even then its roof is so low that you can't imagine how anyone but a dwarf finds it comfortable here.

You could probably fit yourself into clothes made for younger children with fair ease, but Manda is going to be a far greater challenge. Eventually you decide that the best way to make clothing for Manda is by purchasing some sort of thick fur and then weaving it yourself into a sort of sweater for him. It probably wouldn't be too great of a challenge for you to do, but it would take some extra time.

Yvonne nodded.
"I wish to see this letter, yes."
She gave Trauborn a look.
"I intend to leave tomorrow as soon as possible; whether you come or not. The good Lady Yuria is in need; I won't linger. Is there any place here to obtain a steed? Even a draft horse is quicker than walking."

And that said and answer gained, she would head to the Vates.

As you are walking towards the temple, the captain walks slightly behind you as he answers your question so quietly that you struggle to hear it. "You could probably pick up a steed from McTharmon's stables, I am sure you saw it as you walked into town. You will not find any horses that are of the breeding you are used to, but his steeds tend to be fairly sturdy and have good endurance. "

It takes only a minute or two to reach and walk into the temple. Torbera is there by herself trying to research what you think is a spell, but you aren't knowledgeable enough to know for sure. She really only glances up at you before returning to her work. Traubon unlocks one of desks and pulls out a sheaf of parchment, and after spending a few moments sifting through it pulls out one of the papers. He hands it to you, and you can immediately recognize it as the letter from Yuria.

As you are picking this up, you are slightly surprised as Torbera breaks from her trance and speaks. "My lady, while you were away another letter was brought in. It is from a Father Artorious and is addressed to you. I will just give it to you now." She gets up and mechanically hands you the letter before promptly returning to her former position.

You go to read the letter from Artorious and are surprised to find that you struggle immensely to see what it is saying. Father Artorious is an expert calligrapher, but this writing is horribly sloppy and if you didn't know better you would mistaken it for nonsensical scribbles instead of letters. He must have either suffered an injury to the hand, was under extreme agitation, or both when he wrote this letter. You can only make out a few words and phrases, but the very limited picture you get is a disturbing one:

"Dire crisis... cursed place on.... Umbra... the insects are everywhere... monastery... artifacts desecrated... transformation... worms crawling through the walls... the Sword of Vitay... please help immediately... comes on the next full moon (the next full moon is only four days away)... hopeless, helpless... dead maggots in the water... please help...Farther Artorious "

[Jrpergande78]

Jynx takes time to sew together a barding of sorts for Manda that will keep him warm. It didn't take long to remember how to create a proper barding, but it was a bit more difficult than normal due to him being a giant snake, but Jynx had perfected the technique for such a job. She smiled and hummed or spoke to Manda as she worked diligently.

....then, once we finish with that, we can go somewhere where you will be happy, wouldn't you like that? Where would you like to go? What would you want to do? Really? The mountains? Oh I figured you would have wanted to go to the jungles, or swamps....

[Awful]

The Knightess read Yuria's letter carefully. As a noble, she was of course literate, but she had never cared overmuch for reading.
"Hmm," was all she said in response. It hadn't said much she didn't already know.

She looked up in surprise as she was handed a letter from none other but Father Artorius. How on earth had he known she was here?

Her features sank into a concerned frown as she beheld the messy scribbles, half of it unreadable. The old man had always been calm and composed. Clearly, however, he was deeply in trouble - and something was happening soon.

Yvonne felt a brief moment of guilt - she'd been full of thoughts of Yuria, she hadn't considered the old man. And now he was in danger.
"Where is this letter from? What monastery? Something wicked is afoot, and he needs my help."

Yuria needed help - but hopefully that alliance with the Umbra would keep her alive until Yvonne could come. By the letter, Artorius was running out of time very, very soon.

And a mention of the Sword of Vitay. She'd heard of it, of course - the sacred blade of her goddess, wielded by her champions for the good of life and light. If she was worthy of it... It would certainly be of great aid in Yvonne's future battles, and there would be battles.

[Zergrinch]

As for spell scrolls, I umm, really don't have any that you could use. Unless you have a servant of a god here (cleric or paladin). But I might know of a couple of spells which you could put into your spellbook. I will show them to you once we have finished up here."

It takes only a minute or two to reach and walk into the temple. Torbera is there by herself trying to research what you think is a spell, but you aren't knowledgeable enough to know for sure. She really only glances up at you before returning to her work. Traubon unlocks one of desks and pulls out a sheaf of parchment, and after spending a few moments sifting through it pulls out one of the papers. He hands it to you, and you can immediately recognize it as the letter from Yuria.

As you are picking this up, you are slightly surprised as Torbera breaks from her trance and speaks. "My lady, while you were away another letter was brought in. It is from a Father Artorious and is addressed to you. I will just give it to you now." She gets up and mechanically hands you the letter before promptly returning to her former position.

Zuzu waits for an opportune moment to interrupt the Vates.

"Um, Miss Torbera? We've done our part in taking care of the Wendigo. Do you think you could show me those spells you talked about?"

[Requilac]

Jynx takes time to sew together a barding of sorts for Manda that will keep him warm. It didn't take long to remember how to create a proper barding, but it was a bit more difficult than normal due to him being a giant snake, but Jynx had perfected the technique for such a job. She smiled and hummed or spoke to Manda as she worked diligently.

....then, once we finish with that, we can go somewhere where you will be happy, wouldn't you like that? Where would you like to go? What would you want to do? Really? The mountains? Oh I figured you would have wanted to go to the jungles, or swamps....

Your snake should really despise and even be nearly incapacitated by the freezing temperature, but Manda appears to be doing fairly well, at least with his "barding" on. You haven't really ever brought Manda to a place this cold before, but he might have had some past experience with freezing temperatures before you met him. That, and the fact that Manda probably isn't even a creature from this Plane of Existence may give her extra resilience.

Yvonne felt a brief moment of guilt - she'd been full of thoughts of Yuria, she hadn't considered the old man. And now he was in danger.
"Where is this letter from? What monastery? Something wicked is afoot, and he needs my help."

Torbera shuffles her hands and feet in a slightly awkward manner, which could really be meant to convey a variety of different emotions. "This letter is issued from the Church of the Just Light. It's the only one specifically focused on Vitay in the fief to my knowledge. It's not called a monastery by name, but given the behavior of the inhabitants of it, monastery is a very fitting title. I haven't been there ever since I met with the Council of the Octon to determine whether we were going to sell the plot of land to the Church, and that was decades ago. Father Artorious was there to purchase the land, but I don't have the slightest clue what he has been doing since then. One thing is for sure though, whatever he was doing he wasn't trying to attract attention to himself."

You have indeed heard Father Artorious refer to the church as a monastery before, so that isn't that out of the ordinary.

Zuzu waits for an opportune moment to interrupt the Vates.

"Um, Miss Torbera? We've done our part in taking care of the Wendigo. Do you think you could show me those spells you talked about?"

She flashes you a slight smile, which is actually a gesture you can understand from a Native to Senckried for once. "Yes little one, you may examine any of the books on magic that we have open to the public. Sadly, our library here is small and really only consists of spells for priests, not arcanists. I am sure that some could be done through your method though. "

Zuzu may choose to add any wizard spell to his spellbook that both (a) is seen on both the cleric and wizard spell list, and (b) do not violate any federal laws on magic. Laws on magic ban spells that do any of the following: enchantments that can deprive targets of their free will (calm emotions and charm person is acceptable but command and dominate person are not) , illusions which implant images into a target's brain, any form of prolonged dimensional travel, and magic which raises the dead.

[bc56]

Yaotl has little interest in shopping, or in learning new magicks. He instead spends the brief downtime alone, contemplating the few memories he has left, and wondering who the woman who keeps appearing in them is.

[Zergrinch]

She flashes you a slight smile, which is actually a gesture you can understand from a Native to Senckried for once. "Yes little one, you may examine any of the books on magic that we have open to the public. Sadly, our library here is small and really only consists of spells for priests, not arcanists. I am sure that some could be done through your method though. "

Zuzu may choose to add any wizard spell to his spellbook that both (a) is seen on both the cleric and wizard spell list, and (b) do not violate any federal laws on magic. Laws on magic ban spells that do any of the following: enchantments that can deprive targets of their free will (calm emotions and charm person is acceptable but command and dominate person are not) , illusions which implant images into a target's brain, any form of prolonged dimensional travel, and magic which raises the dead.

Zuzu greedily peruses the cleric spellbooks until he finds some that he actually understands.

Apparently, there is a clerical cantrip that creates an illusory ringing of a bell, that appears to hurt a creature more if it is already damaged. Certainly a clever application of magic to create a sonic attack.

His eyes then gloss over two higher-level spells, both necromancy in nature. One spell assaults the hearing and vision of the target, while the other protects a corpse from decaying or being raised as an undead - again, very useful given the situation in Senckreid.

Finally, he finishes his deep dive on a spell he feels that he is on the cusp of understanding, but cannot quite comprehend given his limited comprehension of the mystical arts. Apparently, the spell allows him to send a short message to any creature across any distance, and receive a message in return. Perhaps, if he can decipher it in time, Zuzu could use the spell to communicate with the master.

Having decided on the four spells, Zuzu presents his selection to the Vates. "Ma'am, may I have these pages for further study?"

Spoiler

Show

I am selecting Toll the Dead (cantrip), Blindness/Deafness (lv2), Gentle Repose (lv2), and Sending (lv3).

Zuzu can neither cast nor transcribe level 3 spells, but he will be able to at the next level up.

I am aware that cantrips cannot be taken as spell selections, but it IS my choice of cantrip for the level up, which technically hasn't happened yet. At least this way, I can tie the new cantrip he gets at Level 4 to the story.

[Awful]

"...I see," the Knightess said at last. She gave the letter one last look, then turned her gaze to the child at her side.
"Here, child. Look at this."
She deposited the letter in his hands.
"Know you of any magic or beast this might apply to? Maggots in the water and the walls, and something comes on the full moon. I have heard of werewolves, of course, but this talk of insects? Nothing I know of."

[Zergrinch]

"Hmmm," Zuzu says as he scratches his head, "I know of a cantrip that can create the sensation of being bitten by many insects. The Master also has a book on has higher tier magics that come to mind. First is a Tier 2 spell that makes insects grow very big. The second is a Tier 3 spell that conjures a swarm of locusts. However I think these count as nature spells, and a druid like Mr. Snakey is the best person to ask."

Spoiler

Show

Intelligence (Arcana) check to see if Zuzu knows more than this. (1d20+6)[21]

[Requilac]

Finally, he finishes his deep dive on a spell he feels that he is on the cusp of understanding, but cannot quite comprehend given his limited comprehension of the mystical arts. Apparently, the spell allows him to send a short message to any creature across any distance, and receive a message in return. Perhaps, if he can decipher it in time, Zuzu could use the spell to communicate with the master.

Having decided on the four spells, Zuzu presents his selection to the Vates. "Ma'am, may I have these pages for further study?"

Torbera squints her eyes out you and goes back to the habit of using gestures which you can't understand. "Who do you plan on communicating with? The ability to speak with creatures from another plane of existence is an awfully... specific power to ask for. And given the recent circumstances, it seems much too... useful." There is an almost menacing slur to her voice that you haven't heard from her before, and it is ever so slightly intimidating.

"Hmmm," Zuzu says as he scratches his head, "I know of a cantrip that can create the sensation of being bitten by many insects. The Master also has a book on has higher tier magics that come to mind. First is a Tier 2 spell that makes insects grow very big. The second is a Tier 3 spell that conjures a swarm of locusts. However I think these count as nature spells, and a druid like Mr. Snakey is the best person to ask."

Spoiler

Show

Intelligence (Arcana) check to see if Zuzu knows more than this. [roll0]

As your mind wanders towards the cycles of the moon you suddenly have a eureka moment where you recognize that the next full moon falls on November 1st. A holiday called Savane occurs on that date, but it isn't really practiced anymore in Braughlmark except in a few small and isolated villages. On this night it is said the veil between the Dreamlands and the Material Plane is thin, allowing otherworldly creatures to more otherwise cross over. Although this phenomenon is usually agreed upon by scholars to be a thing that does occur, its effects have been greatly exaggerated. The Ethereal Plane and Astral Planes do thin on that day, but it would only make a functional difference inside Planar Crossing, which are so rare that you don't believe that you have ever actually seen one. So unless Senckried is somehow riddled with Planar Crossing, which you are fairly confident you would have realized by now if that is the case, nothing should be greatly changed by it.

In regards to the worms, that could be a lot of different things really. Insects show up a lot in almost all forms of spellcasting, so it is fairly difficult to identify what it could specifically mean. You know that there are some curses out there could cause small creatures such as maggots to be attracted to specific areas, but these curses vary widely in their specifics so you would need more information to tell what is going on. It also occurs to you that perhaps someone is causing the infestation by simply transporting the insects there through completely mundane means. You can't really tell with the information given.

[Awful]

Torbera squints her eyes out you and goes back to the habit of using gestures which you can't understand. "Who do you plan on communicating with? The ability to speak with creatures from another plane of existence is an awfully... specific power to ask for. And given the recent circumstances, it seems much too... useful." There is an almost menacing slur to her voice that you haven't heard from her before, and it is ever so slightly intimidating.

Yvonne had half-listened to Zuzu and Torbera's exchange, but as the menacing tone slid into her words Yvonne's eyes narrowed. Her gaze turned sharply on to Torbera.
"What are you implying, Vates?" she cut in brusquely. "The child, for all his youth, has acted both bravely and honestly so far. If you have some suspicion, spit it out, else I'd suggest you keep your agreement. We've done nothing but help you so far, and hardly given cause to doubt our motives."

[Jrpergande78]

After barding Manda with hides to help keep him warm, Jynx decides to search the others out to see what they were to go to next or what next to do. They arrive as the Vates was speaking badly towards her new Gnome friend, and listen to what Yvonne had to say.

Speaking to creatures from other dimensions would be very useful to us as we try to break this plague, Chances are, the one or ones responsible for it comes from another dimension. I mean historically speaking this is the issue, we can'thunt down the cause, and therefore find the cure. Of course I believe the valiant Lady Yvonne in her evaluation of young Zuzu, but to say that he shouldn't learn a spell because of a fear you have, albeit a bit silly fear, well that'sjust preposterous.

You can tell that the little Gnome would have gone on longer if Manda hadn't interrupted her by licking her in the face.

[Zergrinch]

"Um yeah, I remember something. There's this festival of the dead called Sabane when the ethereal and astral planes thin, and it is possible for otherwordly creatures could possibly cross over. How close is it to 1st November?"

Zuzu is immensely gratified at Yvonne and Jynx's spirited defense of him, to the point of tearing up. Which of course he quickly wipes away since big boys don't cry. But, he is tired. It has been a long day, and the young gnome does not want to press the issue and spoil their relationship with the Vates.

"Thank you for your kind words, but I don't want to press the issue. If Miss Torbera doesn't like the Sending Spell, then I can just take this spell that makes you appear as dead. Or maybe this one!" he says cheekily, pointing to the Animate Dead spell.

Spoiler

Show

If Torbera continues to object to Sending, take Feign Death instead.

[Requilac]

Yvonne had half-listened to Zuzu and Torbera's exchange, but as the menacing tone slid into her words Yvonne's eyes narrowed. Her gaze turned sharply on to Torbera.
"What are you implying, Vates?" she cut in brusquely. "The child, for all his youth, has acted both bravely and honestly so far. If you have some suspicion, spit it out, else I'd suggest you keep your agreement. We've done nothing but help you so far, and hardly given cause to doubt our motives."

Torbera maintains her same tone of voice, but doesn't noticeably change in body posture to match it. There is a possibility that you may have simply misinterpreted what the tone meant. "What I am implying is something that is clear without words to describe it; foul things are afoot, and they don't always appear in obvious guises. You yourself witnessed the attack of the guerillas, the Order's base so close to town and Yuria's letter, you know as well as I do that the Umbrans have their moles everywhere. Its always the people you last expect who are the most dangerous, my lady. Now, you may have done nothing too suspicious yet, nor has the Servant of Yig or the drow, but Zuzu has. Do you recall how he almost tortured the rogues who ambushed you in the street, while they where pacified and before the trial was even done? He was being brave and honest then indeed, but for none of the right reasons. Now I am not sure whether that means he is involved with a cult or not, but I am not taking my chances. "

After barding Manda with hides to help keep him warm, Jynx decides to search the others out to see what they were to go to next or what next to do. They arrive as the Vates was speaking badly towards her new Gnome friend, and listen to what Yvonne had to say.

Speaking to creatures from other dimensions would be very useful to us as we try to break this plague, Chances are, the one or ones responsible for it comes from another dimension. I mean historically speaking this is the issue, we can'thunt down the cause, and therefore find the cure. Of course I believe the valiant Lady Yvonne in her evaluation of young Zuzu, but to say that he shouldn't learn a spell because of a fear you have, albeit a bit silly fear, well that'sjust preposterous.

You can tell that the little Gnome would have gone on longer if Manda hadn't interrupted her by licking her in the face.

Torbera now is now standing up, but she almost does so in a vaguely bowing posture so that she is still a head lower than Yvonne and Yaotl. "Indeed, such power could be incredibly useful in breaking this curse. That is why I asked "what" the child wanted to contact before outright denying him. If he gave a satisfactory answer that I found to be honest I would have given it to him."

"Um yeah, I remember something. There's this festival of the dead called Sabane when the ethereal and astral planes thin, and it is possible for otherwordly creatures could possibly cross over. How close is it to 1st November?"

Zuzu is immensely gratified at Yvonne and Jynx's spirited defense of him, to the point of tearing up. Which of course he quickly wipes away since big boys don't cry. But, he is tired. It has been a long day, and the young gnome does not want to press the issue and spoil their relationship with the Vates.

"Thank you for your kind words, but I don't want to press the issue. If Miss Torbera doesn't like the Sending Spell, then I can just take this spell that makes you appear as dead. Or maybe this one!" he says cheekily, pointing to the Animate Dead spell.

Spoiler

Show

If Torbera continues to object to Sending, take Feign Death instead.

Torbera stares at you as you speak with a flat face, but it takes much longer than it should for he to actually say anything. "Yes, that is fine. I am sorry. I hope you understand."

Zuzu would know that Sabane is only three nights from now. And also to clarify, there is no way that Animated Dead would be included in the spellbook Torbera gave you. Magic that raises the dead is the only kind that is illegal in Senckried.

[Zergrinch]

Zuzu bows wordlessly to Torbera, wounded at her accusations, and walks out to find an inn. He will spend some food for himself and Toady, and spend two hours to transcribe the spells he found from the necromancer's spellbook (Protection from Evil and Good; False Life), before he goes to sleep.

[Requilac]

Having all of your errands complete, you return to the Black Sheep inn for some much needed rest. Luckily, you all aren't ambushed by spirits and the night passes without event as you all manage to rest. Many of you are disturbed by nightmares and those of weaker will may even wake up multiple times in the night, but no external factor interrupts your sleep. Finally the morning shines through the boards once again and awakens you. This time, it almost seems ironically peaceful this morning, which is actually troubling in its own right given the recent turn of events.

You all gain the benefits of a long rest and are now level four.

Breakfast is served to you, and it tastes about as bland as you would expect from a place such as this. Despite the fact that Senckried culture seems different from the rest of Braughlmark in so many ways, the food here is completely identical and has absolutely no exotic flair. It didn't really snow too horribly much last night, but the ground is still covered in crunching frost this morning, shining like a sea under the light of day. As usual, nobody is really about, which is quite unusual for a small community such as this.

Now what would like all your characters to do from here. I sent a relevant OOC post on this matter. ?

[Zergrinch]

Zuzu wakes up two hours before breakfast, and spends that time transcribing yet another of the spells he was able to secure (Gentle Repose) into his now-respectable spellbook. The master would have been pleased.

The little gnome had learned much from the recent encounters. Yvonne's own frustration with being unable to hit anything with her javelins spurred him to develop homing magical bolts adapted from an arcane spell he has studied and seen before. Unfortunately, part of the spell is fueled by a patron bounded to the warlock caster. As such, Zuzu is unable to completely duplicate Eldritch Blast. But, at the cost of a little more magic, it was still possible to adapt the cantrip of force into a homing magical missile, which the gnome now adds to his repertoire.

Second, the Mi-Go's rune proved to be of use as well. While he was unable to adapt the rune's explosive potential, he was able to focus the magic inward instead of outward. On paper, the creation of an otherworldly dimension cannot be more different from an explosion, they do work on similar principles. Zuzu could not wait to try them both.

At breakfast, he nonchalantly asks Yvonne. "So, the festival you asked me about is like two days from now. Do you think we can get a lead if we go to your monk friend?"

[Awful]

Seated at the table, the burly woman nodded as she tore apart a small loaf of bread.
"Indeed. Father Artorius is wise, and I trust him implicitly. At least he'll provide a different view to all the chaos in this province."
She looked up from her meal, catching the eye of Yoatl and Jynx.
"Yesterday I received a letter from an old friend, from a place named the Church of the Just Light not far from here. It was hard to interpret, but some evil was afoot - something about maggots in the walls and water, and something coming soon on the full moon. And within the text of the letter was the word 'umbra'. Our foes are at work there. Our next move should be to head there, to safeguard the people and relics there from this evil."
She folded her arms.
"The good Lady Yuria needs assistance, but she should be safe enough for a short while with this 'alliance' with Umbra. I intend to purchase a steed and head there once this meal is done; I'd recommend you come with me."

[Jrpergande78]

Jynx listen a moment as Yvonne explains what was going on. It pains her to hear people in trouble, but what worried her most was the cryptic letter talking about maggots.

Lady Yvonne, it appears that this matter weighs on you, and Manda and I will gladly come along and help the best we can. That said, do you have the letter? If you don'tmind I'dlike to read it so I can see the context the maggots you speak of is. Perhaps a fresh set of eyes can help shed some light on it. I won't promise I can get much from it....

Realizing she was getting a bit chatty, Jynx goes quiet and waits on Yvonne, as she eats the fruit she sees on the table.

[Zergrinch]

"I'll go check up on Mr. Thrognic and meet you at the stables. We have to buy clothes too, like Mr. Guard said. Here's the coin I collected from our fights."

With that, the little gnome swallows the remaining food whole, tosses a pouch containing 152 silver pieces in Yvonne's direction, and scurries out the door towards Thrognic's house while choking all the way.

In truth, Zuzu was more concerned with getting additional spells from the wizard and possibly trading in his completely defective scepter, but he is not going to admit it.

[bc56]

"Any cluesss that might end thisss sssicknessssss would be mossst ussseful. I ssshall join you." Yaotl doesn't need a steed. Shapeshifting is very useful.

[Awful]

Jynx listen a moment as Yvonne explains what was going on. It pains her to hear people in trouble, but what worried her most was the cryptic letter talking about maggots.

Lady Yvonne, it appears that this matter weighs on you, and Manda and I will gladly come along and help the best we can. That said, do you have the letter? If you don'tmind I'dlike to read it so I can see the context the maggots you speak of is. Perhaps a fresh set of eyes can help shed some light on it. I won't promise I can get much from it....

Realizing she was getting a bit chatty, Jynx goes quiet and waits on Yvonne, as she eats the fruit she sees on the table.

Yvonne placed the letter on the table for the strange little (well, all gnomes were) gnome.
"Go ahead. If you can glean anything from it, perhaps we'll learn something useful."

She caught the pouch of coins Zuzu chucked her way, raising an eyebrow at the clink of coins inside. Zuzu had been busy collecting up all the coins he could. It was beneath a knight to scavenge overmuch from the purses of the dead, but it couldn't be denied more coin was rarely a hindrance.

"You should take a look too, Yoatl. Perhaps your knowledge of wild witchcraft will hold a clue to it."

[Requilac]

"I'll go check up on Mr. Thrognic and meet you at the stables. We have to buy clothes too, like Mr. Guard said. Here's the coin I collected from our fights."

With that, the little gnome swallows the remaining food whole, tosses a pouch containing 152 silver pieces in Yvonne's direction, and scurries out the door towards Thrognic's house while choking all the way.

In truth, Zuzu was more concerned with getting additional spells from the wizard and possibly trading in his completely defective scepter, but he is not going to admit it.

You walk over to Thrognic's little shack, and are completely unsurprised to find that you can smell the incense before it even opens. The knocker on the heavy oaken door is slammed twice by your hand, and this time you can hear a raspy voice from inside allowing you to come in. You open the door, and are also unsurprised to find that all his herbs used for spellcasting and medicine are thrown around the room haphazardly. Thrognic is sitting on a wicker chair with a book in his hand called "The Legends of the Lightless Vaults of Zihnn", and looks up with a weird smile as he sees you enter.

"Hullo Lad. Juju, thas yer name, right? What is't that yer looking fer here little tyke? How'd the fight with the Wendi- go? Did you see what I did there. Wendigoe, wendi-go. Ha. Did Zuzu die? Have you used the prophecied objects I gave you yet?"

Yvonne placed the letter on the table for the strange little (well, all gnomes were) gnome.
"Go ahead. If you can glean anything from it, perhaps we'll learn something useful."

"You should take a look too, Yoatl. Perhaps your knowledge of wild witchcraft will hold a clue to it."

The letter is nearly impossible to read given how completely awful the handwriting is. The lines on it are frantic and erratic, indicating a great state of anxiety on part of the write, but even that couldn't account for it all. He must have taken some injury to the hand or was writing in an incredibly odd position to leave it this way. Regardless, this certainly is the exact opposite you would expect from a monk's handwriting. If you didn't know better you would believe it was a child's drawing rather than a formal letter. You can only make out a few words and phrases, but even that is enough to create a disturbing scene.

"Dire crisis... cursed place on.... Umbra... the insects are everywhere... monastery... artifacts desecrated... transformation... worms crawling through the walls... the Sword of Vitay... please help immediately... comes on the next full moon (the next full moon is only three days away)... hopeless, helpless... dead maggots in the water... please help...Farther Artorious "

[Jrpergande78]

Spoiler: Nature History check

Show

(1d20+1)[17] History
(1d20+1)[18]

Jynx thinks back in her own woods in her past and tries to remember any lore passed down from ranger to ranger about curses involving insects. She passes the letter to Yoatl to read.

What do you think about it?

[bc56]

"I can deal with insssectsss and maggotsss. It sssoundsss asss if there isss a curssse upon thisss monassstery." Yaotl reads the letter, his face betraying no emotion at its contents.

[Zergrinch]

You walk over to Thrognic's little shack, and are completely unsurprised to find that you can smell the incense before it even opens. The knocker on the heavy oaken door is slammed twice by your hand, and this time you can hear a raspy voice from inside allowing you to come in. You open the door, and are also unsurprised to find that all his herbs used for spellcasting and medicine are thrown around the room haphazardly. Thrognic is sitting on a wicker chair with a book in his hand called "The Legends of the Lightless Vaults of Zihnn", and looks up with a weird smile as he sees you enter.

"Hullo Lad. Juju, thas yer name, right? What is't that yer looking fer here little tyke? How'd the fight with the Wendi- go? Did you see what I did there. Wendigoe, wendi-go. Ha. Did Zuzu die? Have you used the prophecied objects I gave you yet

Zuzu blinks in confusion; he's never had to deal with a senile person before. But it does not take long for the chatterbox to get started.

Umm, my name is Zuzu and I'm still alive, I think. I mean I'm not sure anymore because I have the plague and I might die soon so maybe you'll be right by then. But anyway I'm here to check in on you if you're okay because you got attacked yesterday. But it looks like you're okay now.

Anyway we beat the Wendigo yesterday. We knocked it unconscious and I wanted to capture it for study but the Knight lady said no and she chopped its head off. The Wendigo was being controlled by this color but I think the magic is gone because when I tried to put it on, I did not feel anything at all.

Oh yeah, there was this sorcerer guy who was commanding the Wendigo and he dropped this staff. I was wondering if I can trade in this staff for another item because I don't think I can use it very well. When I tried it against some undead rats, it did nothing to them.

Anyway the rats came after we embarrassed this mushroom thing but before we meet the Nagaraja. There was this kitty cat who joined us and we saw this weird monster from the Vaults of Zihin. I didn't want to kill it but Snakey said it was too dangerous and killed it.

The tabaxi became a gnome with a pet snake which was very confusing for me. But that was before we knocked out a necromancer and I got her spell book right here. And I'm not sure what happened to the drow lady but she just disappeared.

So now we are going to this monastery to help with their pest issues and I was wondering if you have a spell that can find me a familiar?

In quick succession, Zuzu shows Thrognic the Wendigo's collar, the Sorcerer's sceptre, a minor illusion of the Zihin creature, and the necromancer's spell book.

[Requilac]

Spoiler: Nature History check

Show

[roll0] History
[roll1]

Jynx thinks back in her own woods in her past and tries to remember any lore passed down from ranger to ranger about curses involving insects. She passes the letter to Yoatl to read.

What do you think about it?

You don't have a whole lot of context to work with, so it is fairly difficult to find out. You know that there are spells which allow for one to conjure and control massive swarms of insects, but these are exceedingly rarely used. In fact, you can't even name five people who you know have been able to do so, which among your circle is something out of the ordinary. And these spells have always just been temporary too, nothing along the grounds of a curse. This seems to indicate that perhaps this isn't magic from the Material Plane or the Gloaming Jungle of Sylwyth, but from another one of the four domains of the Dreamlands (of which Sylwyth is one).

Zuzu blinks in confusion; he's never had to deal with a senile person before. But it does not take long for the chatterbox to get started.

Umm, my name is Zuzu and I'm still alive, I think. I mean I'm not sure anymore because I have the plague and I might die soon so maybe you'll be right by then. But anyway I'm here to check in on you if you're okay because you got attacked yesterday. But it looks like you're okay now.

Anyway we beat the Wendigo yesterday. We knocked it unconscious and I wanted to capture it for study but the Knight lady said no and she chopped its head off. The Wendigo was being controlled by this color but I think the magic is gone because when I tried to put it on, I did not feel anything at all.

Oh yeah, there was this sorcerer guy who was commanding the Wendigo and he dropped this staff. I was wondering if I can trade in this staff for another item because I don't think I can use it very well. When I tried it against some undead rats, it did nothing to them.

Anyway the rats came after we embarrassed this mushroom thing but before we meet the Nagaraja. There was this kitty cat who joined us and we saw this weird monster from the Vaults of Zihin. I didn't want to kill it but Snakey said it was too dangerous and killed it.

The tabaxi became a gnome with a pet snake which was very confusing for me. But that was before we knocked out a necromancer and I got her spell book right here. And I'm not sure what happened to the drow lady but she just disappeared.

So now we are going to this monastery to help with their pest issues and I was wondering if you have a spell that can find me a familiar?

In quick succession, Zuzu shows Thrognic the Wendigo's collar, the Sorcerer's sceptre, a minor illusion of the Zihin creature, and the necromancer's spell book.

Thrognic blinks at you mutliple times and seems to stare, but nothing in his demeanor convinces you that he was actually understanding what you say in the least bit.

"What's that ya say? You wanna spell that conjures a shapeshifting cat-snake hybrid that is spawned by mushrooms and makes drow dissapear? Wull, I don't have anythin' like 'at, but I do know a shpell that will allow ya to infuse a tiny little animal with special properties to transfirm em' into a magical familiar. You would need a critter here to do it O', like maybe that toad your holding!"

Toady gives Thrognic a stink eye, which is probably his normal facial expression now that you have come to think of it.

He continues, "And I actually knew abut' the thingie from Zihnn too! I held a scrying to check on ya, but all I found was that not-so-little bugger of a beast that the Snaky priest killed. I thought I remembered hearen' abut em' in my studies on Shihnn, so I pulled out a bug, and wadda ya know! That little guy is called a ghast! Its species used to be a o' rat, but the magic of Zihnn mutatated it into what it is now. Fascinating, righ'?"

He then suddenly realizes that the scepter is there and almost jumps up excitedly. "O! You wanna make a trade. Well let's see what good old granfather Thrognic has got fer ya to trade that staff fer!" He goes around his little hovel, picking up seemingly random objects that he somehow can locate with perfect clarity. Once he takes a few moments to finish, he hauls over all the objects that he brought and haphazardly drops them on the table. Four objects lie on the table which he has offered to trade the staff for, which he is apparently letting you examine before you trade them.

1) A box of tarot cards, decorated like a crashing wave and with ten blue gems inlaid in the box

2) A purple plague doctor's mask which is missing the parts covering the lower jaw, including the bottom half of the beak

3) A set of pan flutes carved from bone and decorated with raven feathers

4) A small silver ring with the symbol of a knight's helm on it.

[Zergrinch]

"Toady? Oh no he is more like a pet than a familiar. Toady is very stupid and too fat to be helpful as a familiar! I was hoping there is a spell to summon a familiar. I know my Master had a spell just like it."

Zuzu scrunches up his face. "What are these and what do they do?" he asks suspiciously as he casts Detect Magic by moving his pointer finger in circles around his eyes and intoning the words "Cognosco Incantamentum!"

[Jrpergande78]

After reading the letter and thinking on it a moment, she hands the letter back to Lady Yvonne.

I know of one or two nature spells a few Rangers and Druids can cast to summon insects, however it is temporary, and the insects tend to go back to where they come from. This, however, is odd. It sounds as though it is a curse, and a rather nasty one from how this is written. It sounds like it might have come from a different plane. We definitely need to get to this place as quickly as possible. I would prepare for bad news upon arrival, and don't expect a warm welcome.

If you know anyone who can remove a curse, I'd write them and have them meet us there, otherwise, we will likely have a bit of work ahead of us to do. It'sgood that I happen to know a few healing spells, which I usually save for emergencies, and happen to know that Manda is ready to get moving as soon as possible. I believe she is reminded of home here and wants to leave as quickly as possible.

Jynx begins to get up to gather her things and check on Manda before stopping and looking Yvonne straight in her eyes.

I don't know your relationship with this person is, and I don'tknow what to expect when we arrive, but I suggest you prepare yourself for the worst and hope...no pray for the best.