Session 23 Report
General Summary
- The party entered the village meeting. They were greeted by the village priest, Master Huang, who warned the party not to trust Michael. He explained how he didn't know the exact details, but he heard from elders that Michael had a violent incident in the past, and that the only reason he wasn't excommunicated was becaue the leader of a temple in Shengdu swooped in to bail him out.
- The meeting begins, with the council leader revealed to be the shopkeeper the party bought boat fixing supplies from earlier. He calls attendance, and all of the other council members, including Donovan's father, are present. In total they are the captain of the guard, the shopkeeper, the innkeeper, the barkeep, the orchard and tea fields owner, and the blacksmith. Master Huang has a special consultant position
- Gui Wu gives updates on the ongoing construction as a result of the village revitalization project, along with revealing a propsoed slogan: The Village of Tea and Honey. This sparks a heated debate among the villagers. Mr. Lufei suggests asking the party for their opinion.
- The rest of the council members give updates: The captain reports that there are increased monster sightings nearby, which coincides with Master Huang noticing increased Spiritual activity. The orchard owner reports that the bees have been produced rust colored honey that tastes off, and is halting honey sales until then.
- Gui Wu announces that with the death of an elderly woman that lived alone, the construction company has proposed demolitioning it to make room for a planned building. This unsettles the villagers. Master Huang objects, saying that the restless Spirits recently are due to the construction that is currently happening.
- The village people mention Daina and her baby, with suspicions that she is a witch, especially since she keeps her baby hidden under a veil. The party comes to her defense, but the village people are still outraged. Finally, Gui Wu intercedes and suggests Master Huang Spirit Sense a terrified Daina.
- He obliges, and after a moment asks Daina to lift the baby's veil. After hesitation, she does so, revealing the baby to have fangs and light colored eyes, sending the villagers into a frenzy.
- Mr. Lufei eventually stands up and yells at the villagers, telling them they are acting like children. He suggests Daina move into the recently deceased woman's home, or he will continue to shelter Daina and Mateo, as he has seen no reason to believe they have malicious intent. He reiterates Master Huang is there to protect them if anything bad happens. He also calls out Gui Wu on asking him for the money his son sends home so much, and the two begrudgingly decide to settle it after the meeting.
- The meeting ends uneasily, as the villagers can be seen glaring at Daina and her baby on the way out.
- The party returns back to the inn and checks up on Mei and Yinghua. Fanna goes to the garden and meditates in front of the statue of the ancient High Elf hero, before the Spirit of a woman appears to them. The guide Fanna to where the device Donovan made as a child was last seen, before disppearing. Fanna tries to find it, but only finds broken pieces of bamboo.
- Mr. Lufei returns to find Fanna cutting at the grass behind the statue to try and find the capsule. After yelling at Fanna, he reveals how Donovan always was bothered that he never could find the device, even though he easily figured out how to make more advanced devices quickly. A scared child from the meeting runs up to him, admitting he knows the real reason the elderly woman died--A stray brick fell on her head while she was walking by a construction site, killing her, forcing Gui Wu and the construction workers to cover the incident up. He also reveals an angry mob is coming to the inn to go after Daina and her baby.
- Mr. Lufei runs inside and warns Daina to go to her room. After some argument, he agrees to let the party help him defend her.
- The angry mob eventually arrives in two groups. Cormac Min, the captain of the guard is with them, as he reveals that they would've gone either way if he didn't come with. Mr. Lufei publicly expresses disappointment in him.
- Mr. Lufei tries to dissuade the mob, but they assume he has been possessed or put under a spell. He looks to the party, and they immediately take action: Fanna produces a Major Image, sending the two groups running, and chases after them. Brooks warns Mei and Yinghua and tells them to grab Daina and Mateo. Together, Mei and Yinghua, the party, Daina and Mateo, and Mr. Lufei run to the boat the party left in the tea fields the day before.
- Brooks carries Mr. Lufei to the boat, much to his chagrin. Some tea field laborers witness this and end up being very concerned.
- Fanna eventually teleports to the rest of the party, and everyone works to push the boat toward the river. In the time it takes for them to push the boat to the river, the angry mob runs back and follows them.
- Fanna uses the spell Slow on the mob, then pushes the boat downhill, with Amanti using his necklace made from the Ming River Dragon Pearl to raise the river water to meat them. Mei and Yinghua furiously paddle the boat away as Fanna boosts with Thunderwave.
- The slowed mob runs after the party, forced to stop at the riverbank. Just then, the spirit of a woman that Fanna saw appears on the edge of the river. She bows to the party, then summons several Sun-Kissed Clouds to appear at her feet. She then gestures towards Daina to take out an item from her pocket--It is the remaining piece of the device Donovan made when he was younger. Using her magic, the woman manipulates the device to use the last remaining magic it has to grow a bundle of Sun-Kissed flowers. Mr. Lufei recognizes it as his late wife--Aoife.
- Aoife bows once more, before disappearing. The stunned and confused mob eventually decide to retreat.
- The party decides to have Mei take Daina back to Shengdu using her magic, where she can hopefully find safety there. Daina sadly reveals the truth, in that the baby is indeed a Spirit, or at least partially. The baby is a result of when she was lured to shelter by a Spirit disguised as a mortal man. She also reveals that she found Donovan's device behind the statue when she was walking there. The party writes a letter explaining the situation, stamping it with Soup's pawprint. Mr. Lufei gives Daina the 20 gold Fanna gave him earlier, saying that she needs it more. Daina insists she pay him back somehow, and reveals how he actually had been letting her stay with him for free her entire time in Lidong, but he refuses. Though Fanna tries to encourage him to go with Mei and see his son in the capital, Mr. Lufei insists that he'll go back to the village and deal with the aftermath. He bids the party goodbye, thanking them for their help, and tells them to make sure his "idiot son isn't chasing boys in the capital" the next time they see him. A confused and shocked Mei leaves with Daina.
Character(s) interacted with
Yao Lufei, Daina, Mateo, Mei, Yinghua, Master Huang, Lidong Villagers, Other Lidong Council Members (Cormac Min [captain of the guard], Gui Wu [shopkeeper, leader of council], Diarmuid Tian [barkeep], Blathnaid Wei [orchard and tea fields owner], Zheng Nan [blacksmith])
Report Date
22 Aug 2023
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