Hunting the Sky Devil

Savros and the crew had managed to bring together the Kingdom of Thikip, a syncretic Desmian kingdom on the outskirts of the Fey Borderlands. They were protected from raiders by the renewed Treaty of Neutrality - but that is not the only threat any more. A winged creature kept circling overhead, and an alien river monster had attacked them during their earlier battle. Refugees from the Borderlands were arriving in Thikip, bringing reports of increased raids and more strange monsters. Savros and their squad agreed to investigate these claims in order to better understand this threat and make some allies along the way.

Next Steps

Before setting out into the wilds, the squad went back to Kidon to shop and resupply. They purchased a mule, cart, some new weapons, and medicine. Savros checked in with his family to let them know about his new calling, and was unpleasantly surprised by a message from an old enemy: the Nightmare that has still been using him as a host and plaything. The Nightmare offered relief and even power in exchange for Savros bringing fear to people in Kidon - starting with his family. Savros refused, and started avoiding his family entirely. 
Savros and the squad headed back to Thikip and assessed their options. Torin, the other expedition member haunted by the Nightmare, agreed to help Savros in their endeavors and joined the inner circle as some extra muscle. They gathered rumors of monsters in three villages of that corner of the Borderlands: Silta, a hamlet to the East; Getaran, a fort and trading post to the West; and Tulurav, a fort to the Northwest. The gang decided to head East first, away from the lands of the Violet Company. Along the way, Teva found out about Jacob's paladinhood and was not impressed.

Investigating Silta

The group arrived to Silta having a bad time: farmers were fleeing inside the village gates as an enormous quantity of Fey-warped wolves swarmed around the area. Savros and the squad drew these wolves to themselves and fought them off, at the cost of their mule and some sharp injuries to Torin and Jacob. Their taking on the wolves did make them quite welcome by the people of Silta, and they were able to recover back at the elder's hall. They asked about the rumors of monsters, and the people spoke of a strange winged creature sometimes seen overhead and of a mysterious shape that sometimes was seen in town at night. People were disappearing from their homes, even when they barricades the doors and windows, with no sign of forced entry. Local wildlife had also been driven towards the hamlet, making it dangerous to travel in or out. 
The team investigated, and found signs of people being dragged through their chimneys. The townsfolk said that the monster was sometimes seen flying to the nearby mountain, and that there was a small community of hermits that lived there that might know more. The squad found the homes of these hermits empty and ruined, with signs of violent struggle. There were signs of residence, with scratching on the walls in an unknown language and clear signs of looting. The squad found the evidence of the creature stalking them and managed to escape back to Silta before anyone was grabbed. 

Hunting the Sky Demon

The squad informed the people of Silta of the news, and rallied them together in an armed militia. The vulnerable were barricaded in a secure building with a few to guard them, and the rest of the village armed up and headed out. But the Sky Demon was no less active - it seemed to be herding the local Fey-touched boars towards the town, on a path to intercept the militia and threaten those left in the village. The militia was able to evade the boars and catch the Sky Demon in the woods. They saw the monster for the first time in the open: a round center body that was a pulsing orb of flesh wrapped in malformed arms and tentacles, a large beak emerging a distorted human mouth, several extremely long barbed tentacles hanging down from the main body, and two huge batlike wings. The Sky Demon, caught in the open, grabbed Jacob and ran. 
The group was able to cut down Jacob, save him from bleeding out, and injure the Sky Demon. The forest was set alight in the process, and the militia had to retreat to protect their village while the squad pursued the wounded beast to the mountain. Teva and Savros scaled the rocks of the mountain, but were ambushed again mid-climb from the monster hiding in the mountain crevices. The monster was killed before it could send them plummeting to their deaths, and Savros climbed through the crevices to find its nest. Inside the nest was more alien language, mementos of its kills, collected body parts of its victims that seemed to be very mashed together, a paralyzed still-living victim, and a weird Desmian holy symbol that was warped and mutated and warm to the touch. 
Teva and Savros dragged the survivor and the monster's corpse back to Silta, to much celebration. Mayor Kupa, the head of the militia, promised the group perpetual welcome and offered the Kingdom of Thikip their alliance. The Mayor also gave Savros her greatest weapon: high-quality Mathari  poison, tainted with Gem Plague to ensure that any survivor would regret not dying while they could. They got a new mule from the hamlet and headed back to Thikip, monster-corpse in tow.

Components

Goals

QUEST GOALS:

• Investigate the Greater Demon Cult
• Get Arstam safely back to Adava so he can pay everyone
• Rescue Abet, the medic, from the Feywilds
• Protect the Fey Borderlands from the forces brewing in Nefka
• Protect Thikip
• Investigate instances of Ederstone monstrosities in the Borderlands

NEW GOALS

• Investigate Silta (DONE)
• Slay the Monster of Silta (DONE)

Relations

Allies

Savros' Family:

• Parents, Fyra and Dareo: Fyra and Dareo are well-to-do Kidon cobblers who own a shop in the nicer part of town. The middle-class as we know it doesn't really exist at this point, but its a fairly secure existence compared to the rest of Kidon, with their shop and home secured by the Cobbler's Guild. They are kind but pragmatic people, and sometimes a little blunt and direct.
• Ida: Ida is the oldest sibling of Savros' family. He is a full-time cobbler, is married, and is primed to take over the family business after Fyra and Dareo retire. He is warm, friendly, optimistic, and a little distant. He has lived a life free of violence, and seems to exist in a happy bubble of ignorance for how bad things really are. Wife is Fenail.
• Rinn: Rinn is Savros' older sister. She is constantly torn between staying as a cobbler and leaving Kidon, and has been struggling in her professional life and relationships for it. She is protective of Savros and worried about his struggles - she had a near-death experience during her coming-of-age and knows how quickly things can go badly. Dating Nema, a Selkie.

Teva Fisher's-daughter: Teva is one of Savros' childhood best friends and squadmates. She only made it into the artisan district of Kidon through her family's long history in the city and a great deal of luck - otherwise she would be with her parents in the unsanitary dockside district. Teva is quiet and awkward, but perceptive and capable. She sees herself as a hero, and strives to protect as many people as possible from the traumas inflicted on her. This can lead her to act a bit brashly and violently towards those she perceives as evil, but she has a good heart.
Jacob Krivika: Most of Jacob's family lives in the Northern Palisades district - a part of town where Feywild merchants come to trade, city guards are often absent, and the citizens are unprotected from the great stone fortifications of the main city in the event of an attack. The Krivikas have connections to kin in the Feywilds that they trade with, and Jacob's parents used a lucky break from that trade to open a shop in the artisan district. Jacob is a bit of an outsider for this, but has become a bit of a social butterfly despite (or perhaps, because) of this. Jacob is kind, friendly, and gentle, preferring diplomacy to violence. He is not very skilled in the arts of war, but he is a capable outdoorsman and negotiator. Currently an Ishkibite paladin.
Torin: Torin is a fine fellow from the lands of the The Platinum Order, and a veteran of the wars against the Seruvians.

Neutrals/Bystanders

Mayor Kupa: The most experienced warrior and merchant of Silta and their elected emergency leader. Has a lot of experience in the Feywilds proper. Friendly, professional, and direct. 
Elder Avri: An old man with signs of Feywild mutation, ex-mayor of the town of Silta. He likes talking and telling stories, and he has many tales of his times working in Desmia and the Feywilds as a mercenary. He apparently had a relationship with a pirate-queen in Esken many years ago (or so he says). Was found paralyzed in the monster's lair, but was saved.

Plot type

QUEST

Parent Plot

My Big Violent Desmian Wedding

Subplots

• Hunting the Displacer Beast

Related Locations

• The Fey Borderlands