4 - We have leverage now

From The Wild Beyond the Witchlight
Session 1Session 3Session 4
◀◀▶▶
Ashira
Brolin
Frostbite
Ashira
Brolin
Frostbite
Ashira
Brolin
Frostbite

They can't leave without it!

Played on 8-12-2024
Day 10
by Ashira

Zephyr insisted we searched for Rubin, the halfling. So Brolin, Zephyr, and I entered the Hall of Illusions. It was a maze of mirrors. Some mirrors changed our appearances, making us look older or younger. In one I saw my childhood self… a strange feeling.

Brolin found Rubin staring into a mirror. In the reflection a girl in a pig mask was whispering something into Rubin's ear, and Rubin began walking toward the mirror. Brolin watched, curious to see what would happen, and I, too, was eager to find out. But Zephyr’s sudden shout broke Rubin’s trance. Whatever the mirror was about to reveal remained a mystery.

Outside, Dhanell shared a clever idea. He suggested finding the frog-like creature — a known thief — and convincing it to steal the pocket watch for us. Why take the risk ourselves when someone else could? It made sense.

Ring Tossing

As we searched the carnival, we stopped at a ring toss game featuring an almiraj as the target. I tried my luck but missed twice. Frustrated, I gave my last ring to Brolin, who convinced the almiraj to hop closer. With that advantage, he won — a miniature coffin filled with troll ashes. Strange prize.

Our search continued until Dhanell spotted an almost floating girl. She glided through the carnival and entered the Hall of Illusions, disappearing into a mirror. We questioned Candlefoot outside the hall, and he admitted he was required to let the pig-masked girl, the frog-like creature, and the floating girl in for free on orders from Witch and Light. His fear of mirrors prevented him from ever entering the hall himself.

Silversong Lake

Next, we visited Silversong Lake to see Palasha the mermaid. Her performance was mesmerizing, and the water and fish danced on the song. Afterward, she swam over to us. Palasha suspected that Witch and Light were being blackmailed but knew little else. She recommended speaking with the unicorns at the Carousel. Maeve decided to stay behind with Palasha, as the mermaid offered to give her some singing lessons.

The Carousel

The Carousel had four wooden unicorns that came to life as the ride began. Zephyr started talking to a wooden unicorn on the side. The centaur running the place explained we could paint the names on the unicorns and that they might help us. Some characters were already painted. I suggested "Carl" for the one starting with a "C", but Dhanell saw patterns I didn’t and named them all, including "Cart." A strange choice, but I let it slide.

After positioning the unicorns as Dhanell instructed, I jumped on Cart. The Carousel began to spin, and the unicorns spoke to us telepathically. They revealed that he Hourglass Coven consisted of three hags: Bavlorna Blightstraw (from the swamp), Skabatha Nightshade (from the forest), and Endelyn Moongrave (from the mountains). Skabatha, it turns out, is the one who stole my ability to smile. Cart also shared a cryptic clue: “The hag you seek sleeps in a dollhouse and can’t remember the first creature she sees when she wakes up.”

Others heard that Zybilna was frozen in time and that some Hall of Illusions mirrors are crossings to the Feywild, used by the 3 creatures. They steal things for the hags. Dhanell explained that activating the mirrors would likely require a secret word or object. This is what we need to get from Light or Witch.

The centaur seemed sad, and when asked about that she explained she was human once, but she had made a deal with one of the hags to be united with her favorite horse. Not thinking, I asked if there was also a horse head with her legs somewhere. My comment wasn’t appreciated. Oops.

The Heist

Finally, it was time to act on our plan to steal the pocket watch. Frostbite disapproved our "borrowing" scheme and decided to make a ride on one of the dragonflies. Brolin chose to scout the Hall of Illusions for the three creatures’ comings and goings, while the rest of us headed to the staff area. There, we found Kettlesteam. I called Burley’s name three times and the hedge opened. Burley suggested he would pretend to have captured Kettlesteam, and distract Light with that. It was a solid plan.

While Dhanell stayed outside, Burley and Kettlesteam distracted Light. Zephyr and I snuck into the caravan where Witch was resting. Zephyr kept watch outside while I crept inside. I carefully used my thieves' tools to detach the pocket watch from its chain without waking Witch. Success! We slipped away unnoticed.

Now, we wait till after the crowning of the monarch to confront Witch and Light. We have great leverage, because without the pocket watch, the carnival is stranded, unable to travel to other realms.

Session 1Session 3Session 4
◀◀▶▶
Ashira
Brolin
Frostbite
Ashira
Brolin
Frostbite
Ashira
Brolin
Frostbite

Updated on: 15:25