Ep 29: "Holes and Hope"

The group started their mornings apart as usual. Cyl walked through the park and painted black flowers on benches for Whatever. GB delivered a pie he had baked to Ivy at the Beer Forge. Saxi spent her morning in Pinbòl’s skyloft, in fear of being noticed by the Nocturne now that she knew she had a connection to them. Pip walked through the Pearl District, advertising services to be a Pet Whisperer. Primeheart brought a barrel of the Skyroot dirt, rich with nutrients from the decayed plant matter within, to the Tea Garden for his plants. Lark went to the Green Iron Village to commission a Decanter of Endless Oil for Mo.

The party met and groomed each other in a petting train started by the less humanoid members of the group. Ivy ate lunch with them and the party gathered its thoughts about that day’s plan.

As they made their way through Barrel Run, a Nocturne walked down the street toward them and stopped to look at a misplaced planter on an abandoned building. As it began to walk away, a sphere of light erupted from the planter and engulfed the Nocturne, building, and part of the ground. Only part of the Nocturne and a large hole in the ground remained, revealing the sewers below. The party saw the symbol of the Mark of the Five. Lark made a print of the Mark and discovered the paint was still wet.

Cyl climbed up a nearby building and saw many more flashes of light throughout the district. The party decided to investigate the incidents after giving testimony to Haley at the first crime scene. Lark sketched the remains of the building and the Nocturne.

Cyl and GB separated from the rest of the group so that they could cover more ground and investigate the other attacks. Near the bridge, an attack left a Nocturne decapitated and the remnants of civilians that had been caught in the burst. No credible witnesses were found.

The party, minus Cyl and GB, decided to look for Zreet to ask about the people in the Mark of the Five group. Without Prestidigitation, the rest of the party was stumped as to how they could get the attention of Zreet. No fireworks in were kept in the safehouses. Primeheart cast Light on a stone and, after a failed attempt, had Lark toss it into the air.

Pesk showed up just as Zreet came walking around a corner. Zreet was unaware of the Mark of the Five group, but told the party that they should be spending their time gaining information and recruiting. Time was running out and they were not ready yet.

At a loss for what to do next, the party decided to make their way around Cinderhaven to do errands. Saxi picked up her paycheck at the spa and was given a letter, marked with a G, that had been left for her. It invited her and a guest to have dinner with the King, the Queen, and Zeknar Feddles. She could meet the author of the premier book on Lamina Island. An idea that thrilled, and terrified, her given her lack of memories.

At the docks, Harbormaster Theo, after the group greased his palms, admitted he had seen the Mark. It was on a crate from the Dancing Chain, a ship owned by Captain Railmon. On a manifest, two people were listed as having picked up the crates. One was Larloo Sarsk, an attractive gnome woman, possibly “Daisy” from the ferry. The other was Shalil Bluehorn, a very tall bovine man with shaved down horns.

The party then moved on to the Brell Estate, so that everyone could meet Swazi. The gardens were overgrown at the Brell Estate and Primeheart vowed to fix the lawn. He promised to leave artsy slopes around Pip’s holes to mimic hills, but still allow Pip to have his burrow. Tybalt answered door, and told them that his wedding to Nathan had been called off. He invited the party inside and thanked Primeheart for agreeing to fix the lawn.

Pesk got Swazi, the colorful treefrog-like grung, from upstairs and he introduced himself wearing a bracelet as a crown and a curtain as a cape. The group assembled in the kitchen and Primeheart talked to Swazi about the Resistance and invited him to join it. Swazi, who seemed to not fully understand, agreed and went back to his food. The goliath then got coffees and whiskey to take upstairs to Tybalt.

He invited Tybalt into the Resistance and tried to impress upon him  that the noble could make a difference.He admitted that Nathan was in danger, as much as anyone else, if Primeheart were found out. He also, somewhat reluctantly, told Tybalt that Seldanna would be equally in danger and was a part of the Resistance. Primeheart said that he would be working on the Brell Estate lawn and would be available to chat if needed. He then went back to the others in the kitchen and told them about his conversation with Tybalt.

Saxi expressed her concern that, though Lark and Primeheart were right to try and recruit more people, they needed to think more carefully before just inviting everyone they met. She openly said that she hoped Tybalt would not tell anyone about the Resistance.