SR-5: Smelling Lucky

Retracing steps into the hidden grotto where a sleeping shore troll lay sleeping, the party began to setup a perimeter to launch their ambush. Unfortunately, a ill-fated footstep, upon a path safe yet hours before, triggered an explosive rune and sent the cavern into chaos. Turtle-like creatures sprung up alongside an angry troll to besiege the party's position. A dense and damp melee ensued which ended with a dead troll, broken shells, and a revealed apparition: Underbarron Mirawa himself.   Licking wounds, the party immediately inquired as to why Mirawa would follow them invisible and questioned whether he had rigged the explosive runes that nearly led to their demise. The underbarron denied any involvement in such trap stating instead that his suspicion was concentrated on the strange smell emanating from Thalix Wavewhisper. As a Liiohtian, he explained he was capable of olfactory detection of extra-planar influence, and in the swarmling bard's case, that of an Archfae. And not just any Archfae, but Calidris, The Luckswain who has supposedly decided to influence Thalix's life for mysterious purposes. Mirawa was suddenly very wary of the party, desperate to be rid of their presence given a vague history with Archfae he hinted at. He quickly led the group to Lavender so he could be rid of them.   Mer and the group met Lavender. He explained that Magnolia had asked him to find a wizard capable of deciphering Nelevari encryption runes and then to wait for his arrival in Barrunkilldon. Supposedly to decrypt the contents of the mysterious orb in Mer's posession. Lavender had the wizard's corpse, which was of little use for his body was scarred and transformed with a black bark-like material rendering even the vocal cords useless in any sort of Speak with Dead situation. Lavender wasn't overly sympathetic, stating that he never shared Magnolia's grander schemes for his species and that this favor was something he was only willing to entertain because of the respect he had for Magnolia as his captain in the Blue Reapers. Luckily, Mer knew a guy by the name of Stevlar Stevlin who could help out instead, though it would involve some travel to Caventoca where he was last said to be.   The party decided the next step was to follow the lead to Stevlar. During this time, Cicero Hak Sor had his Akiri help to host a soup kitchen. While hosting, Thorburn Harrow was nearby giving a speech which riled up the Ohrvari; the group split between thinking Harrow was too radical or not radical enough. While appreciative of the soup, the crowds quickly became rowdy and the Sagradians had to step in to disperse with Harrow fleeing from them and the crowd. Uncertainty in The Tangles was rising, with whispers of the Gray Spinner raising to shouts and threats of violence looming. Cicero also received a letter from Sophus that seemed ultimately dismissive of the concerns Cicero had raised. After the soup kitchen, Gaius the Akiri expressed, rather rudely, his frustration with Cicero's leadership and the pointlessness of their actions in the city. With this in mind, Cicero dismissed his Akiri, left the shrine to accompany his new friends, and contemplated his place in the Haukri Dento.