cinaed

(Day 17 of Veksdan)

When Audacity takes Diana down to the bar to get a hangover cure, they find Losh still tending bar. He seems completely unaffected by all the alcohol he drank the night before, offering Diana a mug that smells slightly unpleasant and tastes bad but does diminish the queasiness and her headache. Losh suggests a greasy, heavy breakfast, offering breakfast to the heroes of Avisrune.

Hava and Galowen have come in together and are slumped at a table. They’re both helping themselves to a second breakfast, served by a hungover waitstaff and Collie. Collie drifts around, doing her job as a waitress, as Diana joins Hava and Galowen at the table.

Audacity and Az head out, both in magical disguises, with Az donning an ordinary human man’s facade. Audacity has plans to send his letter via a monastery but learns that there isn’t an official Asalorian temple in Radiscune. The main temple in the city is for Rova on the campus grounds.

Radiscune is largely a secular space, though many worship Rova. Most countries have a main god they worship, with Valnore worshiping Alaeymena for many reasons including Springrest, Avisrune focused on Arayla and Rova, Kastvar on Asalor, Previdian Arayla, and Striog on Rova and Roshka. Striog boasts itself as having the most numerous worshippers of Rova.

Upstairs, Yolov wakes up alone. He realizes that it’s ten o’clock. He’s alone, so no one is there to see him scrub at his face and frantically mutter to himself about not doing Calm Emotions again before he begins to anxiously pore over Es, choosing his spells for the day.

That done, he casts Sending to Daveena, who besides serving the Archive and being the professor of theoretical necromancy also teaches about shadowplane magic.

“Hello. Uncovered that Sworn Edge kidnapped Dailiir to Shadowfell. Lieutenant Marion’s connection there extensive enough to cause physical transformation. Welcome advice about Shadowfell, Shadowplane magic.”

Hava realizes that Yolov hasn’t come down for breakfast. She gets there just as Daveena’s response comes back, short and succinct: “I’ll be sending you resources. Keep an eye out.”

Az and Audacity find themselves at a post office, which has a long line of worried people trying to send letters to friends and family reassuring them that they’re alive and weren’t injured in the Radiscune attack. As they get in line, Audacity notices a figure darting through the shadows, trying to follow them unobtrusively.

When he nudges Az and tells him, Az looks over and sees nothing.

Audacity realizes that it’s definitely a person who gets lower to the ground and darts across to a nearby alley, scrambling behind some boxes. He recognizes Tommy, the boy that he and Az rescued during the dragon fight.

When he tells Az who it is, Az is puzzled and suggests going to talk to him, losing their place in line. Audacity puts a hand on his arm before Az approaches, saying Tommy was trying to be stealthy and trying not to draw anyone else’s attention.

When they approach the crates Tommy is hiding behind, he scrambles back and falls down before he bounces to his feet and asks if it’s them. Az assures him that they are, and Tommy says he wasn’t sure, they looked different.

Az asks how he knew who they were, and he says he saw them change and was watching them at the inn. Audacity asks what’s going on.

Tommy thanks them, tugging at his sleeves and saying he would’ve gotten crushed and grabbed by the shades if they hadn’t saved him. He explains that ‘we’ owe them a favor.

Az, knowing Mixie well, recognizes a member of a thieves’ guild when he sees one. He glances around, trying to spot the other people Tommy’s brought with him. For a half-second he doesn’t see anything other than a fat bulldog before small green hands tug the dog out of sight.

Tommy repeats that he owes them a favor.

Audacity nods and holds out his hand to shake Tommy’s. Tommy shakes it firmly and says they have a deal. Audacity asks how they can get a hold of him if they need him. Tommy says that they’ll have someone following the Hooligans all the time and that all they have to say is that they need the favor and his crew will help.

Az asks if they can meet the rest of his crew. Tommy heaves a sigh and says that he guesses they can meet Raleigh and Cona. With the big bulldog in tow, two little half-orcs, the girl approximately thirteen years old, the boy nine, scramble their way out of the alley.

Raleigh straightens up and introduces himself. Audacity shakes his hand. Cona crosses her arms and says that Tommy told them not to come out. Tommy admits he did, but points out they’ll need to know each other. Audacity tells her that Az didn’t see them until he pointed them out and offers his hand, but Cona refuses to shake it.

Az bends down and extends his hands to the dog as well. The dog snuffles and slobbers onto his hand. Raleigh calls off Sniff, but Az says he has a dog himself and summons Sabbara.

Az scratches her behind the ears as Raleigh exclaims that it was cool and asks how he did it. Az says magic, and Raleigh asks real magic. Az tells him real magic, he’s never been good at magic tricks. Raleigh tells him that they know someone who does real magic but they’re not supposed to talk about that.

When Az suggests the kids meet the rest of the party, Raleigh asks Tommy, who says okay while Cona looks annoyed and asks if they have to. She caves when Raleigh looks appealingly at her.

Cona offers to deliver Az and Audacity’s letters to the post office on the other side of the city, but Az realizes she means to steal whatever’s valuable and dump the letters. He tells her that it’s okay, it’s just letters for home. She loses interest and tells Tommy he should take them. Raleigh immediately asks if he can go too.

Az lifts Raleigh onto Sabbara’s back, the tiny half-orc easily fitting there, while Audacity asks Az in Infernal whether he thinks they have time to go to the other post office. Az says they probably don’t, though he doesn’t know what everyone is getting up to. They debate involving the kids in their day, but both decide that the kids are pretty stubborn and feel like they owe a debt and will follow them anyway.

They switch back to Common and lead Raleigh and Tommy back to The Silver Captain. Cona disappears immediately. Raleigh is only visible because of Sniff and Sabbara, but Tommy prefers to dart in and out of the shadows.

As they’re walking, Audacity realizes that Tommy is pickpocketing passerby and tucking the stolen items into Raleigh’s pockets. When they get to the inn, Audacity checks his pockets and confirms they weren’t robbed.

Hava has just come upstairs to find Yolov, while waiting for Daveena’s response, has finished casting Identify on the vials Zorash gave them previously: two potions of invulnerability and two potions of longevity. He also just created a spell scroll with Es and tucked it away. She asks him what he’s doing and he explains about the potions and his exchange with Daveena.

She mentions the breakfast, and then amends that it wasn’t a suggestion when Yolov clearly begins to double-check that he doesn’t have anything else he needs to do. He asks her if Calm Emotions usually does that, and she says usually not, she just thinks he was really stressed. She insists on him eating, and he slowly agrees.

Az manages to coax Raleigh and Tommy inside with the promise of food.

Yolov and Hava come downstairs just as Az assures the group that he didn’t adopt these kids.

Raleigh boasts that he will be taller than most of them when he grows up, and Diana agrees. When Az calls for food for them, Losh double-checks that they mean Raleigh and Tommy too, and offers them both rolls. He asks in Orcish if they want him to leave out a bag tonight. He also reminds Raleigh and Tommy not to steal from the party, they’re heroes.

Hava asks what the plans are for today, and Az says that they need to visit the Puppeteer and perhaps go around to the suspects again as well.

Hava says that she has a suggestion to visit a shop called The Little Hen. She reminds them of Lorin mentioning a mercenary group, including a sea elf, investigating that missing caravan. She derails briefly to congratulate Audacity on a week’s anniversary of his death, earning Raleigh’s awe that he died and got better.

Then she explains about her missing sister, how her twin sister disappeared when they were both very young, the equivalent of elven thirteen, and that she began traveling to find her. Dailiir is currently a priority, but Hava wants to reach out and learn more.

Tommy pipes up that the Little Hen is thirty minutes east of The Silver Captain. It’s where all the rich people go when they hire mercenaries. He keeps trying to get Mother to hire them, but she won’t until they’re older.

Diana distracts Raleigh by offering a ride on Adrin as the party weighs their options.

When the party tries to figure out where Esrani’s shop is, Tommy realizes they’re talking about the toymaker, whose shop is about fifteen minutes away. Yolov agrees that they should go to The Little Hen after they speak with the Puppeteer, adding that he’d thought they would need to go into the mountains and try to find Iceclaw’s lair eventually. He also tells the group that Daveena is getting them information about the Shadowfell, though he’s not sure how.

Hava goes to take a quick shower while Losh packs up some food for Raleigh and Tommy. Tommy runs out to pass along the food to Cona, who disappears to bring it to the rest of the crew.

When they arrive at Esrani’s shop, there is an open sign. The dolls and clockwork toys are moving very slowly in the windows, which is slightly uncanny and makes everyone uncomfortable if they look too closely.

Yolov opens the door, greeted by the scent of warm metal and clicking items and a well-oiled smell.

The place is ostensibly a shop, but it looks more like a hoarder’s treasure trove. It is filled with odds and ends, clockwork toys, a piece of what will become a pocketwatch, a bunch of music boxes and watches. Hanging from the ceiling are dozens and dozens of marionette puppets. All of the marionettes are staring at the door.

Hava freezes up, unnerved by the sight.

There isn’t a counter, more of a figure perched in the corner on a stool. Yolov looks down from the sea of marionettes to realize that it is an automaton. It gets up with a clicking of metal limbs, with bright blue gemstone eyes and copper and porcelain mask that is shaped like a human face.

Facet asks if it can help them, and Yolov says they were hoping to speak with Esrani. The Tender suggested that they speak with him. Facet says the Tender, the keeper of the gardens, sweet as juniper berries, and Yolov confirms it.

Facet asks if it can help Az, who is looking at the pocket watches, before it goes to fetch Esrani. When the wait stretches into forty minutes, Yolov gets visibly antsy and frustrated, leaning into the hallway that Facet went down. It is a lightless corridor, filled with boxes and piles of things. There’s barely enough space for one person to squeeze through.

Yolov starts to pace back towards his friends when a man appears in front of him. Esrani is medium height, with silvery hair and stubble. Esrani speaks very quickly and very oddly, talking in metaphor and simile and shushing Yolov over secrets when Yolov starts to explain they’re from the Archive.

Yolov asks where they can speak secrets between themselves and Esrani, and Esrani leads them to his workshop where there is a half-finished marionette on a table and a bunch of potions scattered around.

Esrani notices Hava’s unease and asks if the puppet scares Hava. She says no, she just won’t look at him. He crouches down by the puppet and whispers that it’s okay, it’s not its fault, he’ll just go into the bedroom for the moment. He collects the puppet and puts it in a backroom before he returns puppet-less.

Yolov asks him about Dailiir and Marion, and gets a lot of roundabout talk about the Shadow and the Spirit, and how Marion wanted to become the Shade.

Realizing that they don’t understand, Esrani says he’ll try to show them, though it’s difficult to do without his puppets. He brings out three vials. He taps one and calls it the Shadow, who they killed. He taps another and names it the Wolf, meaning Dailiir, before he moves her aside. He taps the third and says it’s them, the ones doing the right things. The Spirit traded the Shadow for the Wolf, power for power, using the dragon as a distraction to get Dailiir.

He knocks the Wolf vial off of the table before he breaks the Shadow vial in his hand and says it was a pawn. He explains what’s left is this, holding up the vial meaning the party and promises not to break it.

Audacity points at the shattered vial representing Dailiir and asks if she was a distraction too. Esrani says no, the Wolf was hunting and needed to be put down. He doesn’t want that to happen, he likes her better than his predecessor. He thinks her heir will be good too, he’s heard good things.

Audacity asks if he knows how to find the hunted and hunting Wolf, and Esrani says they might find its prey. He asks if the Wolf’s mask is safe, and when Yolov brings it out, reaches out for it. His arm is heavily scarred, with a gem embedded in it. When he touches the box to the gem, the box opens to reveal the mask.

Through a circuitous route, clearly not able to talk directly even if he wants to, Esrani suggests that lonely people like the Tender tell stories to feel less lonely, though he doesn’t think it was the Tender who betrayed the Wolf.

He asks them who answers the doors, and Yolov says that it depends on the house, either the owner or the housekeeper, which makes Yolov think of Maviana. Yolov reminds the group that Lorin’s servant knew about Molly and ran his secret letters to her. He wonders how much else Lorin confided in her and how much she could pass along to the Sworn Edge.

Esrani asks if they want to see a magic trick. He takes a cog and forms a tiny copper wolf, which he hands to the ‘pup,’ Yolov. While Yolov puzzles over it, Audacity asks Esrani if he’s died recently. Esrani says he’s died many times. Audacity explains he’s only died once and spoke to Asalor. Esrani says he spoke to himself, mostly, when he died.

Esrani asks if he dreams. When Audacity says yes, Esrani states that he doesn’t dream anymore. He makes another trinket, one that is like a miniature glass flame, and gives it to Audacity.

Then Esrani instructs the group to tell the children to take what they want before he looks at Diana and tells her that there’s a box where she can find something for herself and the tall one, which Diana takes to mean Galowen.

Diana leaves carefully through the crowded corridor and finds the box Esrani describes. It mostly has discarded toys and a clock octopus, but also a clockwork dragon painted green like Adrin as well as a clockwork stag. She takes them both. Galowen is relatively unenthusiastic about the clockwork stag.

Esrani looks at the group as they begin to depart and says to go for the pocket watches, one on the left, and one on the right, before he announces the shop is closed.

As Hava makes her way to the watches, Az tells the kids they can take what they want. She goes for the one on the left first. It’s engraved with a broken tower and at the base of it is a dockside. When she opens it, inside it has a normal clock face but the top has fish stalls and moving ships coming into the dock.

Az picks up the other pocket watch. It is engraved with a beautiful beach. Inside is an image of dusk at the water, with sea birds swooping over the sea.

As he goes to show Hava and sees the one she’s holding, he recognizes the port of Bo’rava where he spent most of his childhood. Meanwhile, Hava recognizes the scene on the pocket watch Az is holding: the buildings and shores of her home island.

They exchange their watches as Facet turns the sign to Closed.

Hava asks about the watch. Facet says that the master dreams well and dreamed of this place to make this watch. Az asks if he dreamed of the party, and Facet says it doesn’t know the details. If they want to know more, they can return during business hours. Facet rattles off the shop hours with the caveat that the hours are subject to change since there’s only the single toymaker.

Audacity ushers the kids out, who say that they mainly hang out with Facet but Esrani lets them get anything they want when they visit. The kids add that they can’t come into The Little Hen because Mother says they can’t until they’re older.

Before they head to The Little Hen, Yolov casts Telepathic Bond. As they walk towards the shop, he begins to try and strategize how to draw Marion out with the mask, on the basis that Maviana is the leak.

The party debates Zone of Truth and the truth serum Juniper gave them, though Yolov isn’t sure if they want Maviana to know they’re onto her or instead let her eavesdrop and use the mask as bait to draw Marion and the other Sworn Edge out of the Shadowfell.

They all agree to think on strategy, with Audacity telling Yolov either way the fast talking needs to be done by someone other than Yolov. Yolov doesn’t disagree.

When they enter The Little Hen, a tabaxi called Intrepid greets them and offers them a discount on teapots. Hava leans across the desk and says she’s looking for something a little different. When Intrepid offers her a form for a specialized teapot, she tucks it in her bag and then explains that she needs to speak with the Mother.

Intrepid’s customer service expression tightens and he leads them downstairs. There’s a small, comfortable room where he lifts up the rug to reveal a hidden trapdoor. The party follows him downstairs as he calls out to Mother that they have guests.

There is a large room with a sofa and lounge chairs. It is a comfortable looking space that is clearly meant to appeal to rich, affluent customers. On one of the chaises there is a lounging black tabaxi picking at one of her claws and wearing nice, elegant clothing.

She looks up and asks what they can do for them. Then she spies Hava and leans forward and exclaims, “How wonderful! There’s two of them.”