The day after the “Moonies” came and left, the Captain visited the mad Bishop Umrovide. A strange conversation ensued in which they exchanged blustering about heroism and raising Arvonesse and such. The Bishop said that the Light of Makan would help defeat the sea-trolls in that sunken city. Then Ahappi visited Baron Ron, who had recovered a bit and admitted, oddly enough, that the daytime brought him succour from some of his torments. Ahappi pressed him for action on Vran the Conjurer in the tower up north, asking for forces to fight him, but Ron insisted that he needed hard evidence of malfeasance and would only act in proportion to that. Then, meeting with the sage-wizard Evakranem, Ahappi described how the “living rust” worked at the Drowned Castle and the excited Zzaburi asked for 2, 4 and 6 week water samples from the area.
Meanwhile, Miguel spent time bonding with the sailors after getting them thoroughly drunk in town. He learned that one, Curly, had developed an obsession with the leader of the Moonies, but on inquiry decided that it did not interfere with his loyalties.
You returned home to Aria's Well to learn that the farmers had been struggling with a blight of nasty black grubs: disgusting, aggressive, elusive thumb-sized plump things with big jaws that were eating their crops from the roots up, and causing concerns about your food supply come winter (it is Fire Season, year 1622, remember). The peasants were miserable from bug infestations in general, too.
It turned out to be fortunate that Lars Windchare the itinerant scholar/naturalist and his bodyguard Riftoyz the troll were in town lately and you managed to track them down at their camp in the swamps. Lars proudly displayed a preserved grub in a jar after they said they knew of your troubles. Lars said these grubs were undocumented and he was studying them as a new project. Privately with Fraud Shaven, the troll said:
"On Jruztela we call these Never-Grow-Ups. They do not belong in the Hurtplace- like Uz, too hungry, too little food here, not like Wonderhome. Gorakiki sings of the curse they suffered: once they grew to be great, gorgeous, shiny black beetles, the Sage Scarabs, our ancestors called them. But when we came to the Hurtplace, evil Hoomanz cursed the scarabs with wicked sorcery, and ever since they have been these fat babies, always angry and hungry. Now even Gorakiki does not love them, and they have no mothers, called by sorcery and spawned from the Chaos void itself."
Eventually that conversation drifted to the Uz and how Gorakiki cultists from Jruztela might be able to help, although Riftoyz seemed reluctant to outright offer to get this help but once asked was serious about trying. He replied:
"Uz can help the good Hoomanz. Maybe Uz get clues on how to solve the curse and bring back the Sage Scarabs if we do, I wonder. But... it is outside my power and that of Argan Argar. I must bring other Uz, if they will come; Uz that can sing songs of Gorakiki. I should warn you, good hooman Shaven, their songs may come at a price. I do not understand how you hoomanz work; you hide your mothers away like they are a shame and a burden. So do you, hooman Shaven, make the deals? I am a deal-maker; a bond-builder, that is what my god Argan Argar tasks me to do in the Hurtplace. I cannot speak for what price the singers may ask for, but I can bring them to broker a deal with you hooman Shaven?"
And so Riftoyz sent a message somehow to contacts in Jruztela, and you had to wait for a reply. During this time, you heard that the Moonies had stopped at New Arvonesse and dealt with them more hospitably than St Thosos had- Baron Ron was incensed, sending Jett to that port to deal with the matter…
Furthermore, a ghost was seen atop the Vadeli tower in Aria's Well and you climbed the stairs to see it. It was the shade of St Thosos, as you expected. Soon enough, Ahappi struck it with his spear but it just laughed silently (had it been laughing or crying before? You could not tell as it made no noises, seeming to lack the ability– or a tongue?).
The Ouori came to visit; Gumthunooreebou and 4 other males; carrying their “Great King”'s thanks for ridding them of the Drowned Castle curse, which turned out to be very generous thanks: a black cube of Truestone, solidified Law from the Spike of pre-Time (!!!), which on contact revealed its power: stored magics of the Night Dragon (Become Draconic Wyrm, Cold -Blooded, Disease Resistance, Dragon Claws). Reeling from this amazing gift, you thanked them and they returned home, promising to tell Omen that the Captain was now happy, and saying that they did not know what that strange, ?time-shifting? animal/vessel was, but they did not like it and wanted it destroyed.
Finally, your Uz helpers came, but not as you expected. They floated in, inside a giant balloon-creature or arthropod construct! It was a spectacular sight to see it drifting in across the ocean and reefs as it approached your village. But who were they and what would they do?
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