A Tern for the Better

Potha has journeyed far from home and has ventured to the very edge of the Sarakan world: Greater Losha. At the gateway to the rest of the world, Potha fell into the waiting arms of the Loshan Cult of Hiku. Now the rest of the world beckons; the great voyage begins.

The Secret Cult of the Dancing Moons

In the secret underground complex beneath the Sosella Cathedral of Mirizi, a performance began. Potha was one captive of six, all of whom were arranged in a semicircle before a forest of unusual statues. A great dance greeted the captives when the sacks were removed from their heads, a little threat here and a little enticing mystique there. After the flashy opening, the cultists set their captives free and beckoned them towards a selection of food and wines. Some of the captives seemed to be expecting this, others seemed certain that they would die. After the initial shock, the "guests" began talking among themselves; one captive told Potha that he chose to get captured to escape the looting of the city above; one captive seemed to accept his fate as death; and another was fully panicked. The cult was kinder to Potha than the others and afforded her greater status from the beginning, but the game was still set. Doors opened into multicolored rooms, and a series of 'escape room' style puzzles began. The fatalistic guest was poisoned and partially paralyzed. Only when Potha made her first mistake was she taken from the escape room by the cult, to the 'backstage' observation area. There was a board of 'transgressions' - secret markers of ill-doing that would decide how each captive would be treated in the coming days. The poisoned captive was already marked for death (having broken into the complex and captured rather than been taken). 
Having been 'welcomed', the cult praised Potha as Hiku's chosen and began with the giving of gifts. Twenty bundles of incense, an enchanted rapier, and a thrall of the cult - a butler (maybe slave?) named Sarket. Potha watched the rest of the cult's strange game play out; only the man marked for death died, the others were only frightened and forced to work as acolytes for the cult. Sarket guided Potha out of the complex and offered medical help; the two returned to the ships, and Potha's friends, better than ever. It was time to leave this town. 

The Last of Garadel

Potha left West Garadel behind, but Eastern Garadel still needed to be crossed. The journey wasn't a violent one, luckily. The ports weren't particularly dangerous, and Potha was done with exploring for a bit. The city of Prelka, in Zonostra, was a bit unpleasant - they were zealously, xenophobically Zihari and aggressively proselytizing, plus they had a large number of stolen Meako birds - but not dangerous per say.  
Instead, Potha bonded with the crew and her companions. She chatted with Losaro about their homelands, talked with Keen about what constitutes and cult and why he doesn't like Sarket, and with Sarket regarding being his own person. She also enlisted Captain Jyen for the call with Wimbo Aizitu, and asked the good captain for tips regarding Leviathan encounters. 

Are You There, Gods?

Potha called two Lunar gods during her voyage through East Garadel - Agamine the Lost, which she contacted herself, and Wimbo Aizitu, with Captain Jyen. Agamine was a difficult person to talk with, given his total rejection of authority and responsibility - he insisted that to even claim a divine mantle is to sow the seeds of hierarchy, and therefore that being a Lunar God is an act that he refuses to be accountable for. He also revealed that he noticed strange growths in the peripheries of Paradise that could not be auto-detected by the Lunar Gods, and that there growths were dragging away sleeping souls that no one else noticed or cared about. Agamine did not want to tell the rest of the Pantheon, though, since that would be both political and a distraction from mortal affairs. 
The Wimbo call was much friendlier. Wimbo supported Potha and gave unconditional positivity, and fully supported bringing the Pantheon back together. He also asked for advice regarding making up with Theia the Liberator; Potha advised that he listen, just fully listen, next time. 
Now, on the horizon, lie the Mejika Isles and a call with Emesh. What thrills, horrors, and treasures await in the Leviathan-infested waters ahead?

Components

Goals

QUEST GOALS

• Visit Holy Zeshema
• Reach the Empire of Shirpatra
• Meet up with the other Architects
• Scout out the equatorial area to learn more about the brewing doomsday

Relations

Allies

Coco and Cobi: Potha's moa and falcon respectively. Coco is a moa with a sweet tooth that is unusually friendly for a moa; Cobi is a falcon with a sense of determination.
Keen: Virtue's apprentice, who prefers a more hands-on and personal approach to assassination than their master. Keen is more aggressive, volatile, and xenophobic than their master, who they also seemed afraid of back in Loanua. Tentative friend of Potha. Scared of new places and people, feels like the world is out to get him, and traumatized by his training as a Hunter of Norinar.
Losaro of the Sacred Flame: Losaro is a member of the Riders of the Free Flame , a Saraka n zealot who sees sedentary life on the fireplains as an abomination (as well as generally distasteful). Losaro looks on Potha as an admirable companion, and supports her quest to protect the birds of Loanua.
Sarket of Sosella: A human cultist of Hiku who is paying off family's sin-debts in service to Potha; a "gift" from the cult to her. Professional and skilled in many areas - a tinkerer, a musician, an artist - he is the butler of butlers. He is also an adequate swordsman. He is both paladin and bard, which makes him a perfect conduit for the Muse.

Neutrals/Bystanders

Captain Jyen: A friend of Losaro who has helped the zealot out of many tough situations, Captain Jyen is an old Pearl Pangolin who rides around on a wheelchair and with a broad pink (perhaps once red) hat. Jyen is quite grizzled and scarred, and may have been a tough fighter once, but now he is enjoying a legitimate life as the captain of The Firebloom.
Lady Miza of Ezekos: A wizard from the Kingdom of Ezekos and the head wizard aboard The Magic Star, Miza is an old woman who loves to listen and talk with strangers. Despite being a prism, Miza carries snacks for humans and dryads (in the form of small cookies she always keeps on her) and makes sure that every sailor or mercenary she travels with gets regular treats. She likes Potha and has been recording Potha's experiences.
Gozeer: A magic item merchant and captain of the merchant ship The Magic Star, Gozeer is a prism from the Sacred State of Nalastra who has contracted Potha as a guard.
Leteja the Moonspeaker: Head of the Hiku Cult of Sosella. Revels in theatrics.

Backdrops

Locations

Sosella: A small city that is the capital of the Kingdom of Skarel - a small kingdom in Greater Losha . Known for its Lunar cult and massive cathedral.

Plot type

QUEST

Parent Plot

Waters Foul

Subplots

• Owls Not Well

Related Characters

• Agamine the Lost
• Wimbo Aizitu

Related Locations

• Greater Losha