Chapter 1: Welcome to Point pleasant
One door closes, another opens.
Their tale in Nessie Island may be over, but their story is just beginning.
Part I - Hey You, You're Finally Awake
Slipping in and out of consciousness, Seven, Twitch, Namira, & Cyrell can only hear and smell the environment around them. Heavy machinery contradicts natural scents that fill whatever room they're in. They hear the sound of a voice speaking threats before slipping unconscious again.
The next few times they awaken, the voice feeds them, shares stories & encourages the party to recover soon.
After an unknown amount of time the party is able to fully regain their senses finding themselves in some type of workshop. Twitch investigates the machinery which takes up an entire wall and extends 15 feet high and guesses its some type of enormous time telling device. They also find mysterious vials that they try mixing together only to find out it seemingly taints the mixture. Cyrell takes some.
On a desk at the side of the room, a small snowglobe sits, inside Nessie Island is clearly visible although the landscape is brown and gray instead of its previous lush green. The party further explores the tower, Namira pretends to be sleeping.
The party goes to leave the tower they are in when a halfling bursts through the door spilling oatmeal on the floor. He introduces himself as Pierro and invites them to sit and eat with him while explaining that the party has been unconscious for a week and he has taken care of them. Traveling between planes is dangerous without proper preparation, and they are lucky that they only traversed a miniature plane, not a major one such as the feywild or Astral Sea or they surely would have died. The halfling shows a clear low disposition towards Cyrell, throwing his oatmeal in a puddle on the table without offering a bowl.
When Cyrell asks about it - Pierro explains he sent his son to Cyrells magic academy only to learn that he was killed taking an advanced curriculum' in a letter from leviticus. Cyrell tries to explain he had no knowledge and is enemies with Leviticus, but Pierro is not quick to believe it. Pierro also explains since they've been asleep Cyrell has become very unpopular amongst a few select groups although most do not know what Cyrell looks like and would not recognize him.
The party asks many more questions to try to understand whats going on. Cyrell shows the mysterious vials and asks what they are - which Pierro responds by accusing him of trying to steal. Further wary of Cyrell, Pierro teaches them about messenger spirits which are contained within the vials. They are a temperamental evolution of sending stones. They work by harvesting the souls of creatures as they die which can then be used to deliver messages across vast distances quickly. Unlike sending stones, they can't be intercepted. Although it isn't uncommon for lesser spirits to get distracted before delivering the message.
Twitch, Namira, and Cyrell also find out more about Seven, who is part of the mark VII series of warforged created for the Empire during the war. While most have been shut down, Seven's line remains operational for the sole purpose of the creation and maintenance of magical artifacts. Pierro had asked Seven to investigate what has happened in his miniverse, which was meant to be shown off in a scientific expo. Since no life seemingly remains inside - his invention is worthless to the scientific community. For destroying his miniverse, and keeping the party alive Pierro asks if they would be willing to do him a favor by retrieving a magical amulet. Pierro admits he is in debt to a local thug named Groglick, and having this artifact would help him to settle his debt. To Pierro's delight the party agrees. He teaches them where to go (a local fruit stand) teaches them the secret knock and passphrase needed to enter before sending them on their way.
Part II - Meeting the locals
A training montage occurs and several heroes feel a bit stronger.
The party ventures out into town. Point pleasant is a humble farming village of little renown. As they walk towards the village square they hear side chatter involving a play that was outstanding from writer who previously was seen as awful and that that the local wizard is a bit loony and unhelpful towards the towns problems. Twitch investigates a bookstore trying to find a book on poison making and is able to find a old torn up volume on pest control for farming which he buys for a few copper.
Seven, Namira, Twitch, and Cyrell make it to the fruit stand guarded by a sleeping human in a straw hat. He is selling old rotting fruit with a distinct lack of variety. Seven is able to reiterate the password correctly, but they begin to fumble when performing the knock. The merchant gets nervous, but Cyrell is able to quickly settle the situation by performing the correct one.
An unspeaking dwarf lets them into a dark room lit with a single candle. Several other dwarfs sit around a table playing a game of cards. Groglick invites them in.
After lengthy discussion and deal making, Groglick has the party sign a contract which puts them in the temporary employ of his group. Along with a bunch of other...typical...contract stuff. No need to read the fine print. Groglick likes the party, and thinks they can have a prosperous relationship and asks them to deliver a shipment of goods from the nearby town of Ostlen safely. Groglick will pay for the delivery as a sign of goodwill. The delivery is scheduled to arrive in a week, although may be held in the shipping warehouse earlier.
The party hides their true objectives, and leave before they ask about the amulet Pierro requested. However, Groglick does mention because they are partners, they can browse his exclusive stock which is hidden in the town library and managed by the librarian. They have a mystery box of magical gear all much to expensive to afford.
The party goes to retire for the day in the Lazy River inn - the most well known location in point pleasant that has a river which runs directly down the middle guests can float in rafts in. A golem stands at the end of the building and lets out big bursts of air which pushes guests back up the river before floating slowly back down, only to repeat. A beautiful vocal performance is going on.
The party rents a room, Twitch tries to seek out a potion shop and does find an alchemist in town. The shop owners are scared of a goblin entering their store and refuse to do business with one.
Twitch hides in a nearby alleyway until they close shop before performing a live action version of mission impossible to rob the shop. He gets in and is able to obtain a few potions, herbs, and some coin. Before Twitch can exit - a guard notices the open door which Twitch forgot to shut and goes to investigate. He looks around, but Twitch is critically good at sneaking in tense situation. The guard sees and hears nothing, before believing that the shopowners must have forgot to lock up. Twitch, breathing a sigh of relief, pees inside the store to leave his mark before escaping nimbly back to the alleyway. He meets up with the party in the inn, but is told he needs to wash off in the river after becoming filthy from crawling through the dirt. Twitch initially refuses, beginning to provoke the staff, before accepting his bath time.
The next morning, as the party is eating breakfast, the town is filled with gossip about last nights robbery. Nobody is able to put together that outsiders likely did this, as they have no hard proof..but many folk are skeptical of the goblin arrival. They are always thieves and cretins.
Seven, Namira, Twitch, and Cyrell begin off on the road to Ostlen to investigate the package.
Part III - The beer merchants
On the way to Ostlen, there is a merchant in the middle of the road yelling for help. The party is naturally skeptical. He claims he is a beer merchant trying to sell his concoctions and was attacked. Thankfully, from over 50 yards away Seven's vocal comprehension unit is able to work flawlessly and picks up a strange reading in the way the merchant speaks. It sounds...rehearsed. The party immediately move to attack. Knowing the gig is up, his cronies appear from the woods and a fight breaks out.
The merchant bangs on the door of his beer cart and several skeletons drop to the ground and begin rushing towards the heroes. Namira gets tired, and doesn't want to fight leaving to nap in the bushes.
Seven shows off a brand new burst of acid tearing through all skeletons in his direct path and makes quick work of most of them. The beer merchant targets Cyrell and tells all his minions to attack, which is able to knock cyrell to the ground bringing him to deaths door as he is repeatedly stabbed by skellies laughing as they do.
The battle is short, and the heroes prevail, killing the bandits with no hesitation. Looting the bodies, they find a mysterious note signed by 'M' asking for dead bodies to be sent using a teleportation spell...The party stands over the dead, wondering what to do next.
The party finds a note on the corpse of the "beer merchant"