Wild:36 Grin And Barradin

Starring: Nathaniel, Bo, Fuelwen, Splat , Brilla
Guest Starring: Aunt Tildrena, Cousins, Churgin, Charles (Cornugon), Brilla's ancestors/ghosts
Challenge: Theddy, Demons, Fruit Sellers, Murder of Crows, Tooth Beast
Location: Barradin
Date Played: 20 May 2010

How many Cosbies are here, anyway?

Fuelwen: Off the ship, we encountered a Cosby and his fishermen. At the time, I wondered how many such creatures were on this island- surely, he could point us to Theddy. But the party gave him a pass, and went on to find Brilla's family.

Brilla: I had hope that some of the poxing on my lands that happened during the Demonsiege would have gone by now, but alas, Barradin still bares her scars.

There was a gelatinous creature known as a Cosby on the docks along with a few fishermen. seeing as how a Coasby named Theddy has my Aunt Tildrena captive, we decided to ask it where Theddy can be found. This was a bit fruitless as he was nearly impossible to understand. Fuelwen and Nathaniel were able to eventually hash out what this Cosby was saying, and he pointed us toward the direction of the Hall of Founding, my destination to begin with.

Meanwhile, in the Hall of Founding

Fuelwen: And find them we did. In the courtyard outside of the temple, I learned that Brilla's people prefer to prolong childhood beyond any reasonable extent. A cousin of hers had a retinue of peers in tow, and despite being around my age, he was still in school. It was difficult not to scoff. Despite their obvious immaturity, I joined them for a tour of the town and the surrounding areas.

Brilla: When making it to the Hall of Founders, I was greeted by my cousins Tanoa and Quineus. Fuelwen took a little interest when he found out that Quineus decided to stray from some of his teachings and pursue a martial career. This quickly turned a bit sour for Fuelwen, though, as he learned that my race stays in school through their mid-teens. I'd try to explain it is something that the less savage and long lived races do, but I feel it would be lost on him.

I also ran across Aunt Tildrena near the Hall. It was a bit bewildering, as she was supposed to be kidnapped. Nonetheless, I was glad to see her safe and I could then talk to Churgin, the leader of Barradin.

He was deep in trance within the Hall, talking to those that have passed. Knowing my place, I waited patiently. Nathaniel did as well, wanting stores from one who has also been around for many ages.

Unfortunately, Bo decided to stir up some trouble during this time. He entered the hall and appeared to be doing some odd things with the ancestors that were not quite great enough to go through a complete sacrificial ritual.

Churgin eventually finished his communion and we were able to speak. I told him of Amon and it corresponded with some of the Karsites on the island acting in strange ways. He decided to ring the bells to summon all that were near the Hall of Founders so that would could make the announcement to help spread word to avoid summoning Amon and to quarantine those bound to him until we could prepare a proper binding ritual.

Where the Wild Things Are (Potentially Eating Children)

Fuelwen: While the others did whatever they were up to around the temple, the children took me out into the woods. A broad circular valley marked the wilderness, and they showed me that the creatures were twisted and brutal in this area. We hunted a fiendish deer, which did nothing to sate my appetites, but did allow me to show my superior skill. The children had been tracking a dire boar, promising that someday, they would take it down. Again, it was hard not to scoff- I could have handled the boar without much effort, but had we attacked in a group, at least one of the children would have died. I was tempted to push the matter, but one of the children retained enough sense to know that death awaited them in the boar.

I explored deeper into the woods. I suspected that the twisted creatures were caused by magic leaking from the portal that the demons used to attack Barradin in the past. I didn't get to find the portal itself, instead I found a fiendish tyrannosaur. It was my turn to recognize a challenge beyond my strength. I withdrew and took the children with me. I returned to the temple to relate what I had learned.

Brilla During all of this Fuelwen took Quineus and some of the others into the wilding to go for a hunt. When I returned he was really excited about two things. The first was that he wanted to hunt a fiendish tyrannosaurus. This didn't come to much of a shock to us. The second, though, is that he may have discovered a portal to the Abyss. Once we found out this information, the ground began to quake.

The Hall began to quickly come apart; rocks and rafters fell on us at a rapid rate. In a hurry, I grabbed my father's urn and darted out the door. I know perhaps I should have grabbed one from a higher circle, but family comes first for me.

There's Always Room for Demons

Fuelwen: I was correct, there was only one Cosby on the entire island- Theddy. Shortly after I returned to the temple, a battle began, as summoned demons and Theddy's minions attacked the town. A devil offered us aid, which I let Bo and Brilla negotiate. I know enough not to bargain with devils. Still, it was nearly trivial to subdue the fishermen and restore order to the town. But the delay allowed Theddy to hole up in his stronghold.

We attacked. It was guarded by Tooth Beasts and a Murder of Crows. The battle did not go well- a trap had been laid that caused fear in all who looked at it; my mettle broke and I ran.

Brilla: Those possessed by Amon decided to attack during this time. Interestingly enough, a Cornugon named Charles flew in, observing the situation. He said he had a way to help us through this event, as it was somewhat tied to the Blood Wars. With devils, there is always a catch. I was reluctant to make any deal with him but welcomed him to follow us as I would weigh the options as the situation unfolded.

Churgin seemed unsure of the situation, and did not want to sully his hands with devils. I told him that I would take responsibility for what is happening now and lead the front to end this affair. If this were a failure it would shake his hold of leadership, something we can not have with our people struggling to rebuild themselves after such a terrible incident not so long ago. I can only hope that I succeed.

I give the order to subdue those bound by Amon as it is not their fault they are acting out. I bind Buer to minimize casualties on both side. It was effective, and much of my already thin bloodline was saved.

We soon learned that the cosby on the docks was Theddy and that he had a keep on the island. Also, it appears that Theddy is attempting to bring the demons back to Barradin. We decided to head there in a hurry, Charles on tow. He seemed a bit amused, but that is a devil for you.

Theddy's keep was heavily guarded by beast and magical traps. They were defeated easily enough, though they did scatter our group with a variety of fear effects. We will need to regroup before making a secondary assault. Hopefully we can avoid more traps as our group seems ill prepared to deal with them.

Rewards

Wiki reward: +(1/3) to any base save - Fuelwen, Brilla (Please remember to mark this source.)