Mini 24: Back to the Capital at Long Last Report

General Summary

26th of Keiltier 1524 continued 

Balthazar stepped into the tent and is amazed to find the space is significantly larger on the inside then it was on the outside. He looks back at the entrance to see beautiful mist of purples, pinks and blues through the flap of the tent. He sticks his head into the mist but quickly pulls it back in when he doesn't see the alleyway he was just in. A voice warns him against such things as sometimes things can get severed that way. A tall female fawn with glasses on the bridge of her nose is there to greet him when he turns around. 

She explains this is a cross between a bookshop and a library. She accepts trade for books and is always happy to trade back. She will accept gold, but would prefer trades. People are welcome to stay here and read the book if they do not wish to trade. 

Balthazar shows her the book on the rogue and would like to have more about him. She doesn't have more about him, but she does have some books about people associated with him. He trades for a book about the friendly rival to the rogue. She leaves him for a moment to go and get this book. During this time he gets a message from Galanith. 

Isabelle left the tent once Balthazar had gone inside, hunting for good maple treats. Her efforts were rewarded by a local shop run by a sweet older lady where she was able to pick up a maple cake, and maple rations. The rations come with positive affirmations in them for each day. She walks back to the tent to see it's gone before  heading back to the inn at 4:30pm to see there is currently no one there, so she waits patiently to see when people come back. 

Nobu, Galanith and Brienda all go out weapon shopping, with promises to teach Brienda how to use her new dagger and darts when they get back to the capital together. Galanith and Nobu stress the idea of protecting herself and are both committed to making sure she can do so. They even get her some special new shoes with room for a knife and a foot in them! 

At 5pm Nobu, Galanith and Brienda return to find Isabelle waiting for them at the inn. She tells them about the book tent and how it and Balthazar are now gone. They believe he has been kidnapped! They send a message to Balthazar, explaining the situation of the missing tent and asking if he is still in the bookshop. 

Via the message Balthazar quickly explains he'd only been in the tent for just over five minutes. He promises to be done quickly and return to them. 

Not long after having left Balthazar the fawn returns with the book he was after. Balthazar inspects the book to get a quick general look to see what its about. This book is about the Shadow Fox, another young rogue. It's a similar character to the rogue, but the first few chapters are talking about his youth and growing up with very humble beginnings.

Balthazar asks about the Umbracanti and is happy to hear the fawn knows about them. However, she reveals that would require a more hefty trade to share such information and while she would enjoy annoying someone in particular from this group, she would need something to make it worth upsetting this group in particular. Especially if they have not finished the rites and rituals set by the group. 

Accepting this, he also asks about the book he damaged, but she does not currently have a copy. A book of prophecies but yet no one can remember the name of the book. They do an exchange of blood so the fawn may be able to find Balthazar again should she be able to locate the book. In exchange Balthazar is given a magical key to hold onto as a sign of their deal. She explains that once per day it will provide him a small and private reading nook for an hour. 

Afterwards Balthazar leaves the tent, only to walk out onto the roof of the bell tower high above the city of Evaerlin with the sun only just beginning to set. 

The group is a little confused by Balthazar's message of only being gone minutes when he has been gone hours. They start theorising about kidnapping, drinking and other magical possibilities around this. They resolve to wait until after dinner in an hours' time to try and touch base with Balthazar again if he has not returned. 

After taking a moment to get his bearings, Balthazar casts feather fall as he jumps off the tower. This surprises the guards who were in the areas below as they panic slightly at someone jumping off the roof. He quickly heads back to The Bell, the inn near the bell tower. He spies his friends having dinner and heads over to tell them what happened. 

After dinner Balthazar tests the key he was given. Within the space, is a clearing that looks to be surrounded by a forest. In the centre of the clearing is a tree shaped into a chair for him to sit on as he reads. He spends an hour reading the Aether book. Over the course of the hour the light changes as if going from dawn to dawn, giving an indication for when his hour is up. Fireflies show up for the night section to give him light to read by.  

27th of Keiltier 1524

The party leaves Evaerlin at 8am to head for Happenstance. They talk as they travel about their future research and what can be done within the capital. The road is mostly peaceful for the day, though as they neared Happenstance they see a small white creature laying in the middle of the road. Galanith sees that its currently playing dead. The group goes around via the forest trees. As they do, they go right under where a woman with daggers is waiting for them. She jumps down to attack Isabelle as Balthazar warns her of the incoming attack. A total of four figures attack them and eventually are brought down by the party. 

A bloodburst occurs, hitting Balthazar, Isabelle, Galanith and Brienda before Nobu finally becomes blooded from this event. The small white creature is a yeti, who comes over to try and wake up the dead ranger from the group that attacked them. Nobu works with the yeti to offer it food and comfort, with the idea of it joining their group now its master is dead. The others search the dead bodies for anything useful or nice to take with them. They find: 

• A short sword
• Long bow
• 10 arrows 
• Studded leather armour 
• A staff of Khirdai
• 19 silver
• An empty vial labelled poison 
• Bag of copper
• A necklace of teeth (varying species)
• 3 spears
• Gold metal bracelet
• Pouch of gold

Galanith gives the staff to Brienda for now with the idea of adding it to her training list. They then grab what they want from the things found and head off. With the yeti clinging onto Nobu as his new friend. Isabelle gives the horses some good berries as they were injured in the fight. 

Arriving at Happenstance, they tell the guards about what happened and get a room for the night at an inn. Brienda jokingly bonks Balthazar to ask him to identify the staff. Galanith will spend a few hours training Brienda in how to use the staff properly. 

28th of Keiltier 1524

Their travels from Happenstance back to the capital without issues. They head straight to the castle to see if the council can see them, which they absolutely can. They leave the horses, Kaida and the yeti with the guards before heading in. As they enter the audience chamber, they notice that the Priestess of Sera is missing with a stand in for her. They greet the party and are eager to hear what happened while they were gone. For their efforts they have been gifted a building and lands to allow themselves to have a local location to stay while they access the royal library, and also so they can be on hand if the council would have any further need of them as royal problem solvers of a sort. 

They are given the basic rules and how the library will work, as the librarians will work with the party to supervise them but also to offer aid in their endeavours. They're escorted out and shown to their bastion.