Firelight Tales of Exandria, Ch.7 - “Tiny Friends”
Thank you all for coming, and let’s tell some stories…
“When we last left the party, they had squared their debts and were embarking on an investigation of the strange sickness growing within the Bramblewood. Unfortunately, before they could question any of the local clergy about the cleansing of diseases, they discovered that the local Lumberjack’s Guild had been viciously attacked during their latest excursion into the deepest parts of the forest.
An angry mob had formed and marched on the Freeman’s Lodge, where the malcontent of the lumberjacks, farmers, and various other citizens had given rise to talk of direct action against their mounting troubles, and even whispers of a coup against the Margrave himself. Due to some sly choices by members of the party, such talk was undermined just in time as Margrave Brandon Zimmerset arrived to address the grievances of the assembly personally. In none so gentle terms, the Margrave reassured the populace of his determination and posted a bounty of 1000 gold pieces to any individual or group that could end the rising corruption in the Bramblewood, sparking a rush of adventurers to head out into the dark forest.”
Nakiya and Song grab a copy of the official bounty contract from the clerks at the Freeman’s Lodge. Unfortunately, this contract was far more ponderous and complicated than their previous job, with three pages of fine print crammed onto a single sheet.
Traveling back to the Temple Ward, and the Temple of the Platinum Dragon, the party meets back up with Leaf, who has been busy ministering to the wounded lumberjacks.
The family of one of the lumberjacks comes to see him, and his daughter takes a shine to the firbolg, following them from patient to patient.
Cezika examines the Margrave’s bounty and eases the party’s concerns by explaining that most of the fine print is bureaucratic nonsense, with two exceptions: those seeking to claim the bounty must provide physical evidence, and claimants must submit to a one week investigation to verify the corruption has been eliminated.
The party discusses the best course of action, deciding to try and meet up with Buddy despite not knowing if he will show at the meeting place.
The lumberjack whose family had visited warns Leaf that they shouldn’t go into the deep parts of the forest. He says that a circle of druids, known as the Green Men, have long been stymieing the efforts of the lumberjacks, hindering their advance into the woods. He had never known the Green Men to be overly violent before, but times may have changed.
When Leaf asks the lumberjack where his family lives, and he regrettably informs them that they may not have enough money to keep their home and may have to find new employment, the firbolg empties their pockets of gold to help. At first refusing to accept such a generous offer, the lumberjack relents and his child, Emma (the one who made friends earlier), gives Leaf her doll, Sally.
Emma: *hugs Leaf’s fuzzy head* “Tank you, beao fwiend!”
Players: *explode in sobbing*
As the party begins to head out, Song notices a despondent Zeal nearby, decompressing from the rigors of healing so many wounded. She asks Song if he knew how Dren, the head priest, can deal with so much pain and suffering and still put on a brave front; how he can bear the overwhelming feeling of powerlessness in the face of such misery and not surrender to his anger. Song tells her that a person just has to learn to live with the things they cannot change and do all they can to change what is in their power.
Zeal has an intimate, vulnerable moment with Song, and as he kisses her cheek Shadow appears and kisses Zeal’s other cheek.
Shadow: “I am sorry. Was that a courtship ritual?”
The party heads to the crossroads west of the city to find several groups of adventurers, mercenaries, and merchants setting up a staging area and makeshift market.
Nellywicke is there as well, hoping to offload some of her various knickknacks and back-stock. She sells the party some healing potions, a smattering of survival gear, and an instant-setup & collapsible multi-room canvas tent featuring her latest invention: interlocking metal teeth sewn into the seams of the tent, letting one secure its entrances and make the internal space customizable.
Song: “I like the sound it makes.”
Nellywicke: “Me too, isn’t it fun?”
Song: “Yeah, it is. You know what you should call it? A “vhuipper”!
With no sign of Buddy, Nakiya and Shadow lead the party into the forest, searching for some sign of the corruption. Eventually they begin to encounter parts of the wood where the trees are growing gnarled and the pervasive scent of autumn decay is starkly out-of-place with the summer season.
The party, sneaking through the foliage, comes upon the aftermath of a battle between some forest-dwellers and a pair of would-be assassins. Nakiya makes ready for battle, but a misplaced step by Leaf signals the Green Men to their presence so the party attempts diplomacy first.
Song can somehow communicate with them despite not understanding their foreign druidic language. Finding some common ground with Sylvan, Song, Leaf, and Ladryssa discover that the Green Men’s long-standing feud with the lumberjacks has now made them a target in the city’s attempt to root out the corruption of the Bramblewood.
One of the Green Men attempts to give Ladryssa a rudimentary education in the “Great Cycle” and how truly insidious the growing sickness of the forest is: not only threatening the safety and future of Westruun but ceasing the very cycle of life, death, and renewal nature depends on.
Despite his warnings, one of the Green Men agrees to take the party into the darkest part of the woods, near the base of Gatshadow, where the sickness appears to have originated. Sadly, the Green Man is crushed by an animated tree and the party is beset by twig blights.
Thwarting the attack by the very forest itself, the party tries to stop Ladryssa from hastily scaling the forest path up towards Gatshadow. In her moment of hesitation, Ladryssa is alerted to the presence of a trapped and wounded pseudodragon she narrowly missed in her attack on the animated tree. She and Leaf begin nursing the creature, which seems to have adopted the party, back to health.
As the group rests before pressing onward, Ladryssa spots the ephemeral form of a beautiful green woman striding through the dark wood. Ladryssa is suddenly struck by the dreamlike memory of being frightened by this woman and her sisters, chilling her to her core.
