STATIC 22: Goats & Ghosts

General Summary

Wherein Corinna and Sharkbait find themselves in city governed by chaos

Awash in the Float

Corinna Himmelswander and Sharkbait tumbled through void and echo and discovered themselves Displaced in an unfamiliar city. Hardened veterans of The Displacement by now, our Blinkertons wasted little time in taking stock of their situation, which is roughly thus: they're in a strange city, surrounded by strange phenomena--not the least of which is this palpable phantasmal energy that seems to permeate this place. In fact, that same energy seems to actually animate phantasms, including three such entities that quickly accosted our heroes and roasted Corinna's Gattish accent pretty hard. Sharkbait took umbrage to that and attacked. This proved to be, perhaps, ill-advised as he quickly got his ass straight handed to them. Fortunately, two bystanders intervened in this contest--one an automaton fighter smelling faintly of salt and the other a halfling rogue with a noble bearing. This intervention turned the tide of the battle, and, afterwards, Skipjack--as the automaton calls himself--invited this group to adjourn to his nearby fishing cabin to figure out just what the hell is going on. Sensing comradeship, all agreed.
It turned out that Skipjack and Osborn Moonspark--our halfling rogue--were also Displaced from New Carydam and are familiar with some Blinkerton colleagues--namely Nero Rubicant and Hypatia. This made sense to Sharkbait and Corinna, as all of this Displacement seems to revolve around connections, and sometimes very clear personal connections.
They explained that the city they're in is called Myrgraf, and it is the domain of Khuldrossa, Lady of Delightful Discord. She exists to spread chaos and her city is an extension of that, rife with factions continually striving for power throughout its ten distinct districts. This district is called Goatknob and a struggle for power looms large in its future. It seems that the dominant faction in this area, a gang called Seether's Children, was all but destroyed in an explosion at The Children's Hour, which functioned as their headquarters. The entire leadership of the Children seemed to be consumed in the blast, which occurred just last night. Simultaneously, the entire district has experienced a thickening of the constant phantasmal energy that surrounds it, cutting it off from the other districts in the city. This happening--called the Float--is often seen as an extension of the Goddess of Wanton Chaos' will, as she seeks to inject delicious instability into her realm.
The chaos this time seems to be taking the form of a power struggle. There are four factions that might emerge victorious from this challenge:

• Lizardskull's Lot--based out of Capra's Public House, the Lot are led by Melver Trillmork and are known to be keen navigators of the byzantine tunnels and catwalks that run throughout the city. Osborn is affiliated with the Lot.
• Ratkings--the leisure of Myrgraf is Ratking business, and Khar Flintale oversees this from an office in the Goatknob Benevolent Society.
• Anatraxan Brethren--officially neutral in any faction dispute, the devotees of Anatraxus offer both mediation services and information to other entities. Voyiva is First Chosen among the Brethren.
• The Ghost Pier Folk--the fisherfolk of the Phantom Sea desire a seat at the table in deciding the affairs of Goatknob. Their spokesperson, Darvala, aims to achieve just that. Skipjack is part of this community.

It became clear, as Osborn and Skipjack explained the current political and social moment in Goatknob, that this is a community on the verge of a conflagration. And maybe it is the job of our heroes to navigate this potential powderkeg as best they can to a desirable outcome. If the Displacement is about connection and circumstance, then maybe that's why they are here?

Another Investigation Commences

In order to start untangle these various threads, it was agreed that it would be a good idea to try and figure out if foul play was involved in the explosion at The Children's Hour and, if so, who might be responsible. So, our heroes decided to do what they do--arguably--best: investigate.
They headed to the smoldering ruins and did some poking around. This work, however, prompted a bit of an emergency for Corinna Himmelswander as whatever is currently "hiving inside" her decided to make itself known (see STATIC 10: Complications & Crackeel Landing). This resulted in her heart feeling like it just might explode, and despite attempts to conceal her status from her new friends, Skipjack insisted on escorting her to Dr. Phinneas Chestmaw for examination. The good doctor drew just a whole heck of a lot of blood and promised results in a little while.
It was then decided that the best way to continue the investigation was to ask for eyewitnesses. And what better eyewitnesses could there be than the many goats roaming Goatknob? An audience with the Anatraxan Brethren may well be required.

And That's Where We Left It

We'll discover what information the goats can provide during our next session.

Varied & Sundry Details

• Corinna and Sharkbait spent quite a bit of time together during the Displacement of their compatriots. As such, they developed a fondness for one another. Corinna found the protective instincts she has for Fritz also manifesting in her relationship to Sharkbait. And Sharkbait, in turn, taught Corinna a bunch of words to songs she might not wished to have known. Also, they resolved the issue of Sharkbait's "rival" together. How did that happen? That story will also be told...
• There are some who call Skipjack's cabin on the Ghostpier the "Jack Shack," for reasons that need not be elucidated here.

Character(s) interacted with

• Dr. Phinneas Chestmaw--a healer, of sorts.

Report Date

07 May 2023

Primary Location

Goatknob

Secondary Location

Myrgraf