Adventure #25 - Lessons from the Blue Jelly

General Summary

Adventure #25 - Lessons from the Blue Jelly 12/13/24
Players: Karl: Erberk Toruń with Numbers Seth: Gimp Chris: Dimple Nackle Kira: Tesh Sean: Felicity
Synopsis: As the the next full moon approaches, the small group of adventurers secretly helping Laerwynn manage his lycanthropy meet again to discuss how they can improve upon their means of containing him. Although the silver-plated steel containment cell has successfully held him in without showing signs of breaking, Laerwynn has broken through his chains every time. Dimple discusses his experiments of testing the effects of Id Moss and Bloodroot on Laerwynn's blood sample, but both tests has no effect. Dimple then suggests exploring sleep powder vapors or mind-affecting drugs to calm him down, and Ragnar suggests using the Tree of Serenity, a mystical tree that produces flowers which yield a calming effect when inhaled or ingested, but it is a sacred tree to Ragnar's Druid tribe. Dimple offers that if he is able to acquire some seeds, he could grow a Tree of Serenity in his mystic greenhouse, and Ragnar says he must commune with nature for guidance on the matter. Ragnar then departs for the same ancient Druid grove that Azalea visited for her coming of age trial, and meditates in the peace and calm of the forest. In his mind, he sees visions of the Tree of Serenity, as well as a vision of him returning to his tribe to seek favor to cultivate the seeds for Laerwynn's cause. The result of his pilgrimage is yet to be seen, and his vision becomes hazy as he returns to consciousness. He then returns to the group and shares his vision with them, and they decide that a party will join him in traveling to his tribe in hopes of bringing back the seeds. Then Erberk brings up the issue with Laerwynn's chains breaking, and suggests the possibility of using an Immovable Rod to pin Laerwynn's hands to the ground before he transforms, and Jebodiah counters the idea with his concerns that perhaps Laerwynn gets into such a frenzy right from the beginning because he feels trapped and bound, and agrees, offering that perhaps Laerwynn should instead be free to roam the cell. Oriana chimes in, and suggests a new idea: supplying enrichment type items and activities within the cell to distract him and, such as puzzles or toys that dogs might enjoy. Jebodiah supports this, and after presenting the idea that a werewolf is quite literally an untamed wolf trapped in a man's body, he adds that perhaps some fresh meat should be included to satiate Laerwynn's hunger. Erberk offers to craft the toys/puzzles out of metal so it can take a beating, but Azaela disagrees, saying that wolves chew on bones and wood for mental stimulation, jaw strengthening, oral heath, and stress relief, and that objects made out of breakable organic material might better satisfy Laerwynn's bestial cravings of destroying something. She also adds that more natural things in his cell might make make its feel less sterile and more like a natural home. Dimple offers that a leather ball should be commissioned, and that he can look into ways of strengthening bones to last longer so they don't break as quickly, while Tesh suggests using the old bones found in the empty giant eagle's nest at the top of the old wizard tower. Oriana adds on the idea, that perhaps the bones or leather could have something like peanut butter smeared on them, and Gimp wonders at the possibility of something equivalent to catnip for werewolves. Then, after the group spent all this time figuring out ways to improve upon Laerwynn's containment conditions, Oriana out of left field suggests stuffing Laerwynn into a Bag of Holding during his transformations instead. Then, she suddenly remembers that the not only would Laerwynn suffocate after 10 minutes, but that the bag itself is still vulnerable to damage from Laerwynn on the inside, and she scraps the idea. Erberk changes the subject, and suggests that the ingredients from the Tree of Serenity could be put inside the toys, and Schmibblefritz offers the idea of mixing those ingredients with peanut butter stuffed into a dog toy and calling it "the Ganja Kong". With the ideas agreed upon and put in place, the group disbands the meeting and departs from the Elderflower. On the way out, Erberk catches Azalea, compliments her suggestions during the meeting, and then asks if she would like to have dinner with him at the Bread & Bone bakery to catch up, and Azalea accepts his invitation.
The dinner evening arrives, and Tesh busies herself with Erberk’s request to arrange a private dinner for two. Using items readily available, Tesh lays out a quaint but intimate dinner setting on a small table draped in a maroon cloth, complete with two wooden chairs and a single candle flickering in the middle of the table. A basket of various sliced breads sits beside a pitcher of cold water, along with a charcuterie board of berries, nuts, meats, and cheeses, all carefully selected with a Druid’s palate in mind. Erberk, dressed notably nicer than usual, arrives early and sees that Tesh’s efforts are thoughtful and tasteful, and he thanks her warmly for her work. Then, standing next to one of the chairs, Erberk waits for Azalea with anticipation. As soon as the clock strikes 7:00, Azalea opens the door and enters the bakery, and a gentle smile forms on her lips as she sees Erberk and the dinner setting. Her typical plant-based attire blooms liberally with small elderflowers throughout the leafy vines, continuing into her curly red hair, and a purple iris flower nestles behind each of her elven ears. She and Erberk exchange friendly greetings, and as Azalea approaches the table, Erberk pulls out a chair for her and she takes it. While Erberk rounds the table to take his own seat and his back is turned, Azalea catches Tesh’s eye from the kitchen and with twinkling eyes silently mouths to her “This looks amazing! Thank you!”. Tesh nods with a smile, and Erberk takes his seat. The evening goes swimmingly, as Azalea and Erberk reconnect over some delicious food and good conversation. Erberk catches Azalea up on the discoveries with Numbers, the tower, Priestess, and the many mysterious surrounding them, and his growing business at The Father’s Forge. Azalea shares her excitement about the number of citizens in town making bonds with birds at her sanctuary, how close the giant eagle eggs are to hatching, and the town’s desire to have the Sister Tree be used as a watchtower for the city using her birds to warn of coming danger. Erberk and Azalea continue to chat about Laerwynn’s condition and how to improve it, and occasionally Tesh will peek out to see if there is anything they might need. As the evening draws to a close, Azalea thanks Erberk for such a special night and expresses her gratitude for the chance to catch up after being so busy.
A few days later, the party meet up in the Elderflower to wait for Ragnar to arrive so they can depart on their journey to his tribe. While they wait, they make small talk that eventually leads to the topic of the 11 jars of mysterious black goop that they found in the wizard's tower, and wondered whatever became of them. Tesh, who had already cast the spell Purify Food and Drink, tells the party that it regenerated into an electric blue preserve of some kind and that it had not yet been opened or inspected further. After going to her bakery and returning with a jar, Erberk immediately cracks it open, spreads some on a slice of bread, and eats it without hesitation, and Dimple does the same not long after. The two discover that the jelly has a sweet and unique floral flavor, and they feel interested and curious about it while they consume it. Suddenly, Erberk and Dimple don't just feel curious; they feel absolutely engrossed in the endless possibilities of the pairings of the blue jelly with different types of bread and other foods. During their enthusiastic discussion, Bobblin brings out an order of his Mystery Meat, and Erberk and Dimple are tempted to try some with blue jelly on it. Erberk resists the urge, but Dimple's curiosity dominates his mind, and he consumes the meat, which not only tastes delicious, but also gives him supernatural insight to the next question someone asks him. Pappy pops by the bar to see what all the commotion is about, and he too tries some Mystery Meat with some blue jelly at the urging of Erberk. Not only does it cause gold coins to fall out of his mouth, but it also fills Pappy with unbridled excitement, and he jumps on the bar and starts dancing joyfully. Still engrossed in the bread pairing possibilities with the blue jelly, Erberk insists that everyone should go over to Tesh's bakery and try the jelly on all kinds of breads, and abruptly the party does so, leaving Pappy behind to continue dancing on the bar.
At the Bread & Bone, Tesh pulls out a variety of bread, and Erberk starts slapping the blue jelly on various pieces and hands a slice to Tesh to try. As Tesh eats the bread with blue jelly, Azalea stops by the bakery to pick up some bread leavings for her bird sanctuary, and joins her friends. Erberk insists that Azalea try some, and smears blue jelly on his fingers and sloppily puts some directly into her mouth. When he does so, Azalea's expression becomes flush with infatuation for Erberk. Too busy to notice, Erberk then offers Felicity a slice of bread with blue jelly, but she claims that she is allergic to bread and cannot have any. Upon hearing this, Tesh begins feeling sad that Felicity is allergic to bread, and suddenly her sadness completely overwhelms her as she weeps loudly. Erberk then crassly smears more blue jelly into Azaela's mouth, and her infatuation grows dangerously as she licks blue jelly off of Erberk's fingers. Dimple attempts to understand the effects of the blue jelly, but finds his mind is totally boggled. Felicity takes a moment to consider her observations and what she knows about magic, and she deduces that the blue jelly somehow amplifies emotion. As Tesh weeps loudly, Azalea's attention turns to Tesh, and her strong infatuation for Erberk is immediately replaced with empathy for her crying friend, and Azalea joins her on the ground in her weeping. At this point, Gimp demands Erberk to hand over the blue jelly, but Erberk vehemently refuses, running over to a table to scarf down more of it. Dimple asks Tesh if all the jelly jars are the same, and immediately Tesh stands and bolts to the kitchen and casts Purify Food and Drink on another black jar, which turns into the same electric blue. Exceedingly disappointed, Tesh takes the jar and smashes it on the ground. She tries another jar with the same result, and again smashes that jar on the ground too. Out in the store front, Azalea has weep-crawled her way to Erberk's table, and when she sits in a chair to join him, he shoves even more blue jelly into her mouth, causing her to go into a comatose state. At this, Gimp attempts to forcefully take the jelly from Erberk, but Erberk, crazed on too much jelly, leaps over the table and bolts out of the door outside. Gimp gives chase, and it doesn't take long for his long half-orc legs to catch up to Erberk's short ones, and Gimp tackles him to the ground and pins him. Erberk begins to babble incoherently, and then slowly falls into the same comatose state. Yet again, Gimp through his limp body over her shoulder and brings him to the Lady Lenora Church of Sarenrae for healing. The next day, Erberk wakes up in a bed beside Azalea, and is informed that they both overdosed on whatever the blue jelly was, and that Ahlysaaria had to pump their stomachs to save them. Ahlysaaria explains that they will be fine, but simply need to rest for the day for their strength to return, and urges them not to consume the blue jelly until more is understood about it. Azalea and Erberk thank her, and spend the rest of the day in each other's company.
The following day, both Azalea and Erberk fully recover from their conditions and return to town. Now that they are well, the party gathers once again at the Elderflower to regroup from the delay of the blue jelly incident, and go over their plans to go with Ragnar to the ancient Druid shrine in the forest, and use the portal to travel to Ragnar's tribe in hope of acquiring seeds of the Tree of Serenity for Laerywynn's sake. Agreeing on the plan, they make haste to the forest, reach the portal, and successfully travel through. On the other side is a tribe lush with vegetation, flowers, tree houses, and gardens of all kinds, all tended to and being enjoyed by Ragnar's tribe. Ragnar's kin greet him, and the party notice that some of the druids are getting intimate with the nearby shrubbery. Shortly, the party arrives at the chief's tent, where they are welcomed in warmly. The party cut to the chase; they make their case for wanting to use the seeds of the Tree of Serenity to use the blossoms to calm their werewolf friend while in he is in the werewolf state. The chief considers it, and explains the effects a bit more clearly, including drowsiness, hunger, laziness, and that the werewolf could develop an addiction if used too often. The more the party hear about the mind effects of the Tree of Serenity, the more they think about their own experience that they just had with the blue jelly, and decide that perhaps drugging Laerwynn every transformation might not be the best solution or provide a better quality of life for him. The chief commends them on their wisdom, and offers that perhaps providing a large enclosure for their companion would allow him to feel free during his transformations, and the party thanks the chief for his suggestion. After farewells all around, the party depart empty handed for their journey home, and consider the advice the chief had offered.

Report Date

13 Dec 2024

Primary Location

Aberystwyth