The Unseen Circle
The next morning, the party returns to the dock and finds Rugaroo. Once the payment for the first day is made, he provides them with a quick tour of the ship before they set sail. Though on the smaller side, it still has two masts, and standard though minimal defenses (including some “good sea knives”).
Once underway, it quickly becomes clear that, while Rugaroo is a competent sailor, he spends most of his time drunk or sleeping, and the party must step in to take up the slack.
Nine days into their voyage, Grig, who has been suffering from disturbing dreams, wakes clammy and unsettled. He moves above deck, where he has a horrifying vision; in it, he seems to look through a stranger’s eyes, and sees a bloody dagger. He rouses in time to see a very dangerous (though apparently non-magical) storm on the rolling in.
Grig alerts Rugaroo, who looks panicked and springs into action. He orders Nim and Toulouse below deck, but Nim casts Bull’s Strength on herself and grips the mast. Toulouse heads down the other sleeping members of the crew, and sends Dango and Kor up to help Rugaroo. Brin, Ikki, and Toulouse remain below deck, and attempt to bale out the seawater that flows in.
The ship and her crew survives the storm, but they suffer a broken mast. Thankfully, Rugaroo spots a nearby island, and limps the ship onto the shore so they can make repairs. Ikki takes to the sky to get a look at the interior of the island, but she is struck by a blade in mid-air; she is able to make a controlled descent to the ground with no further injury.
Four human women carrying spears emerge from the surrounding jungle. Nim attempts to explain the situation to the main warrior, KALIKA, but the party and Rugaroo are lead single-file into the strangely dry jungle. Grig attempts to cast Pass Without A Trace using a scroll, but one of the warriors takes it and destroys it. Eventually, the party is made to kneel, their hands bound and their weapons confiscated, as they wait for the island’s leader, THE GUARDIAN, to decide their fate.
[Once again, my notes are a little spotty - I was paying attention to the story & not writing things down. If I missed something or got it wrong, please let me know! - slod]
The group is taken aback when The Guardian arrives: she is just a young girl with a special necklace. She welcomes them and tells them that HANU considers them “hallowed guests”; when asked who Hanu is, she confuses them by saying that they are on Hanu. The Guardian also reveals that they have arrived in time for “The Harvest”, which involves collecting algae from the water, and they will be expected to help. She also mentions “THE UNSEEN CIRCLE”.
Further into the jungle, the party is escorted into a small village. The buildings here are made of coral and sandstone, and there are packed dirt roads. One of the nicer warriors, TETHYS, points out a couple highlights of the village: the tower that houses THE SERVANTS OF THE UNSEEN CIRCLE (which she advises them not to touch), and the hut where The Guardian lives (who she advises them not to disturb). She explains that The Guardian is chosen by Hanu.
The party is guided to a hut owned by DARUNA (the Yurtle), where there are beds for guests to rest. Some of the group goes inside to sleep, and some explore the village a bit. Inspired by a natural contrariness, they get closer to the tower and see several male figures around it. On the side of the tower is a protective sigil. They meet MAYLAN. He, like them, was blown onto the island by accident many years before, and decided to stay (aka “Driftwood”). He assures them that they can totally leave if they want to. The party is picking up on a distinct cult vibe to this whole island and its inhabitants.
Dango, Toulouse, Nim, and Rugaroo venture into the jungle to find a tree that could be used to repair the broken mast. It is very late by the time they finish, and while everyone else rests, Toulouse sneaks back to the tower alone. The tower is appears deserted, so Toulouse risks touching it. The material of the tower gives him a similar feeling to the piece of ickarium they found in Prytania.
Toulouse leaves and returns with Kor, Grig, and Brin. Using Identify, Brin is able to determine that the tower involves evocation magic, and has an ickarium core (meaning it’s not solid).
At dawn, Kalika wakes the party, telling us “it’s time”. There is a strong sensation that she is aware the party investigated the tower in the night, but nothing is said. The entire village is gathered in front of The Guardian, who is now wearing ceremonial robes, and smiling beatifically at the crowd. Others are wearing odd woven rope harnesses. The party is informed that they are responsible for the safety of those involved in “the harvest”, and are assigned their own harnesses.
Toulouse senses the ground moving, and eventually realises the village is actually hundreds of feet in the air. We are all moving on the back of a giant titan turtle (presumably Hanu?).
~ end of session ~
random notes
- Brin wants it noted that it was actually Toulouse who touched the tower first.