23: Aurora Borealis
General Summary
Weather and waves had battered the ship, leaving them in search of a place to dock to assess damages. What fortune it was, then, to see a lovely village in the distance, one blessed, it would seem, by a shimmering aurora borealis dancing above their rooftops.
As the Efreeti’s Fortune sailed closer to the village docks, the merriment of festivities reached the crew’s ears. After the ship was docked and anchored, the party made their way into the town square which was done up for the Festival of Lights, according to a halfling they questioned.
Looking up from his porridge, the halfling was glad to answer Aralia’s questions about the festival. He informed her that it was to celebrate the aurora borealis, and that there was much to do. He recommended the fortune teller, the tug of war championship, and The Hunt.
He informed that The Hunt is a gathering of the village’s best hunters to track down and bring back a mythical beast. When asked about what the beast is, his answer was vague. The beast, it seemed, was sometimes one thing and sometimes another. One had to trust their instinct to bring home the right creature, lest they lose the hunt and be ridiculed.
The group spent their day in the idyllic village with its aurora borealis shimmering visibly overhead even in the daylight. They went shopping and had their fortunes told. Jin-e, as Kirei, was told a fortune of a great destiny in the shadows, and the fortune teller worried it was too late for the assassin to turn away from the darkness. The “priest” was unfazed by this information. Aralia was told a fortune about being a great balancing force, but was warned to beware the dark side of the moon. Vash took the kids with him shopping and to enjoy the festivities.
At one point, members of the group even commandeered the stage to provide entertainment.
In the evening the festival included a free feast before The Hunt. Various groups gathered and registered themselves for The Hunt. The party chose the name The Cupcakes (or something to that effect). They met some of the other groups, and were particularly interested in a lone hunter who called himself “The Shadow.” According to other hunters, “The Shadow” was the main contender, and had won during previous hunts.
The group tried to get some information out of him while Jin-e took to poisoning his food while he was not looking. Unfortunately, they did not glean much information from the stoic man and he must have been finished eating as he did not seem to fall ill from the poison.
The Hunt began and different parties set off in different directions. With Fern as a guide, the Cupcakes trekked across the snowy landscape in search of their mysterious prey. They met with very little for a long while until they saw some figures standing off in the distance, up on a hill, appearing to be on the look-out.
Jin-e went to sneak around through the woods to see if these were friends or foes, but found another group hidden in the foliage. In an attempt to negate any potential danger from these two, he made an attempt to cut the bowstrings while remaining hidden. Unfortunately, he was detected, and the group, believing they were under attack, instantly retaliated.
The smaller of the hidden enemies appeared to be an assassin, and he turned his sharp skills on Jin-e in response to the supposed attack. As the battle came out into the open field, the others joined in, including the two who stood guard on the hill. They, seeing who seemingly started the fight, attacked the other group and not the Cupcakes.
In the end, the tall one of the hidden group was defeated, and the halfling, who they realized was the one from the village who had kindly given them information, was nearly killed. He begged for his life and, with his wish granted, he made his way back to the village.
The two on the hill explained that they were simply looking out for the mysterious prey but saw fit to stop the infighting that they had seen. They left the scene as well. The Cupcakes carried on their search.
They later discovered a low valley, about ten feet down, wherein lay the entrance to a mine and a small shack. Across the way was a set of stairs which most of the group used to climb down. Jin-e jumped to the roof of the shack to keep watch as the others explored.
Aralia sent Fern and two large conjured snakes into the mine to check it out. Jin-e attempted to sneak into the shack but broke the glass on the window instead. They learned the shack belonged to “The Shadow,” who was strangely resting inside, sitting at his fireplace. Vash knocked on the door and proceeded to have various disagreements with “The Shadow”, insulting him in various ways such as by calling him a “sack” and saying his home smelled like pee.
Meanwhile, a yeti appeared at the entrance to the mine and a fight broke out to fend it off. Working together, the Cupcakes made efficient work of the creature, ending with Aralia shrinking it down as a tiny rodent. They planned to return this creature to the village to claim the prize, until The Shadow laughed at them for assuming this creature was the one they were meant to hunt.
At this point, the team split up, with Aralia following Fern off on the trail. Gabriel learned some lore about the hunter, learning that he was indeed a terrific and revered hunter, and that he was beloved by what sounded like a goddess. Jin-e took it upon himself to attempt to assassinate The Shadow, and though he successfully snuck up on and attacked the masked man, he was unable to kill him. What resulted was a chase wherein Jin-e attempted to escape. The others mostly stayed out of the conflict, not wanting The Shadow to turn his wrath on them as well. Up the stairs and through foliage Jin-e fled, using invisibility. Unfortunately, the great hunter followed the tracks in the snow and ended Jin-e’s life.
Then, The Shadow did something that took the group by surprise, and raised Jin-e as a loyal zombie. The group had been informed in the village that necromancy was forbidden, so this surprised them. The Shadow wanted the group to leave him and his new “pet” alone, but Vash managed to intimidate the hunter into releasing the zombified assassin into their care. Disgruntled, the hunter agreed and left the scene.
Gabriel used his powers to light to end the zombie’s undeath, and then to bring him back to life. In a twist that surprised all who were present, Jin-e did not return to his old self and instead came back to his zombie form. With little else to do at the moment, Gabriel ended his undeath yet again and Vash stuffed him in their Bag of Holding to deal with later. They assumed Aralia might have a way to bring him back.
The group caught up with Aralia, who, with Fern, had tracked down a creature. It was alone at the base of a large cliff, practically cornered in by the group. They attacked, thinking to make quick work of the beast, but were shocked instead when it transformed into a three-headed beast–a chimera!
A great battle ensued. Each head took different actions against the group as the beast took flight repeatedly, staying out of range. It took some time, but the group realized they needed to take out the heads individually and were eventually successful in taking the creature down.
The group set off back to the village, hauling the defeated creature with them. What they found was another twist that none expected. As they exited the village, following the aurora borealis up above, they found, not the bustling village of merriment that they had left, but the long-forgotten ruins of one instead. The aurora overhead faded away and the beast they hauled along disappeared into similar rays of light that scattered into the sky.
The group was left with many mysteries after this adventure, and were left without the grand reward they thought to win, but they had grown stronger in their efforts.
Notes
Players present:
Aralia - Katie
Vash - Juston
Jin-e - Armando
Gabriel - Victor
Report Date
17 Jun 2023
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