The 30th of Eleasis
Nighttime at the Firefly:
The group speculates on the lightning bugs. Nevil asks Inman if they are natural or magical. Boz examines one and speculates that they are to prevent open flame in the library. They are the light source throughout this Cellar library and living/guesting area. When gathered together into lanterns they provide adequate light. But many are also flying free throughout the cellar.
They munch on the BLTs brought by the kenku and drink the water. Under the beginnings of protest from Nevil and Atalaya, Sorrow asks if he can be excused as he wants to look through the books in the library above us. Even as Atalaya is trying to tell him that he needs to sleep, Inman jumps up, grabs his hand and the two run out boyishly, ready to start looking at books.
Nevil, Atalaya, Cirili, and Boz finish the bedtime snack that the kenku (Krinkle) brought and then ready themselves for bed. They retire early expecting an early morning.
The night passes uneventfully.
1st of Eleint
Morning: A Musical Awakening
Sorrow and Inman likely stayed up too late, still appearing in their rumpled clothes from the day before and appearing rather tired.
The group readies for their 7am meeting. Sorrow is elated and very cheerful, extolling the library above.
Sorrow: This place is amazing…. This library right here, you could spend a year in it.
When not talking Sorrow is humming a tune, and Nevil is too, and then Inman also. None seems aware of the other’s matching tune. Atalaya watches them in puzzlement.
Sorrow and Inman head off to find coffee. The rest of us finish getting ready and follow them to the kitchen. The kenku (Krinkles) greets us and hands us coffee and asks if we want cream. Nevil states that she always drinks hers black, but Atalaya immediately asks for both cream and sugar or honey. The kenku brings these and then gestures to the pastries on the workspace. Whenever the kenku speaks she uses a different voice, mimicking think that she has heard others say. Nevil is still humming the tune that is invading her head. Krinkle tells us that we can eat our breakfast upstairs to the big table there
Upstairs we find Inman and Sorrow as well as Ebdner, Gailby and T’kulah (a catwoman… Tabaxi??) Ebder is attempting to focus on the books piled around him, as is the catwoman. Atalaya carefully checks to be sure there are no books where she plans to eat. It seems that a part of the table has been cleared off as an eating space.
Ebder the father in the library from the night before is there eating and his daughter, Gailby, is skipping around the library and singing the tune the others are humming. Nevil asks Inman the tune, he does not know its name. She asks Sorrow, who also does not know the tune. Which seems strange, Sorrow always knows the name of the tunes he hums/plays. The Gailby is asked, but she also doesn’t know the tune’s name. Ebder is quite annoyed at the disruption. He seems very short tempered this morning. Nevil asks Ebder is he knows what the tune is that everyone is humming. He doesn’t and is very bothered by it as it is making it difficult to do his research.
Varnyn comes down into the library, slamming and locking the door behind her. She approaches the group. “I’m sorry. I’ve locked us into the library.” Atalaya asks “Why?” She collects her thoughts then explains a magical earworm was thought to affect the Avowed hundreds of years ago but it was not seen again until now. Varnyr explains that “When I first got here there was a book merchant who seemed to have started this musical earworm curse. He and those affected were locked away to keep it from spreading further among those in Candlekeep. She does not know/remember what happened to the merchant after that. She says that she “has alerted the Avowed and sealed the entrance.”
K’Tulah, the catwoman, says, “I didn’t come here to be trapped. I don’t like not being able to leave.”
Nevil ritually casts Detect Magic. The people who are glowing are: Inman, Sorrow, Gailby, Nevil, Ebder, and Varnyr. The catwoman, Vaz, Atalaya and Cirilli are not.
Varnyr says that “They know something is going on and hopefully will send some information.”
People discuss what to do. “I think we need to find where it was originating, a couple of hundred years ago.”
Atalaya asks what book(s) the merchant used to get into Candlekeep.
Nevil asks the boys to pull the books they encountered last night. Sorrow said he was humming before the books, Inman was too. It was believed that Gailby started it first. Nevil asks the little girl about odd things she may have found in the library. She doesn’t recall any. Mentions she draws a lot. Nevil asks to see them. She takes Nevil, Atalaya and Cirilli to her room. Nevil and Cirilli sit on the floor with Gailby with Nevil trying to draw her out more. Atalaya looks around the room. She finds 3 drawings on the table, dolls and toys, a dragon marionette. Atalaya inspects the drawings and notices unsettling images with “accidents” of dismemberment. One is of a man with his legs sawed off, the next is of a boy underwater and grasping his throat (as if drowning) and the final one is of a dog grasping a severed hand in its jaws. There is a black cloud hovering over each scene.
The little girl says she felt compelled to draw them. When asked about the drawing she says that they were accidents that she felt she needed to draw. She says that she saw the accidents in her head. She is very concerned about whether or not she is going to be in trouble for drawing the pictures. We assure her she is not.
Atalaya connects the images to previous encounters with the Cult of Anyat. The gruesome pictures and the agitation by the people in the library seem very similar to the floor paintings and the stories they heard about what had happened on Jacob’s farm. Nevil asks Varnyn to call for a priest. Varnyn refuses to open the door. Nevil says to use magic to notify them. When Varnyn says that she can’t use magic Nevil says push a damn note through the door and call for a priest!
Atalaya talks about Gailby’s pictures and her concerns that this seem similar to the things we saw and heard about at Jacob’s farm and in Underwillow. Vaz and Sorrow look concerned.
The group consoles each other.
Nevil asks Ebder what he is researching. It’s languages for the cat lady (K’Tulah) in the corner.
He stands and slaps his hands down on the table in extreme irritation due to the earworm. Atalaya discretely pulls out her wand of paralysis, ready to use, but watches instead for any sign that Ebder is going to attack. Nevil mentions the drawings of his daughters and the possible connection with a cult. He tries very hard to contain himself. Nevil encourages him to spend time with his daughter and take a break.
Nevil is psychically attacked, her head aching as she seeing images of war and death. She braces herself over her knee and glares suspecting the catwoman at the table. The others see Nevil looking like she just woke up from a terrible nightmare. Inman runs over to Nevil, “Maggie!”
As Nevil glares at the K’Tulah the woman spits out, “Are you looking at me?” The woman protests as Nevil quickly casts divine sense. No one is evil. She backtracks and apologizes to the catwoman.
We ask about Candlekeep’s protections. Varnyr explains that there are wards on the library and the books etc. Everything is based to protect the books, not the people who are in Candlekeep. We question among ourselves whether this is a curse or some other type of magical effect.
Varnyn and Nevil speak through the door. Varnyn is honest, asking for merchant records, asking to locate Sprig and Nax, and to bring a priest.
Nevil tells Varnyr very firmly that this time does not count as part of our ten days to research here at the library.
Varnyr says, “I assure you it is not usually like this.” And that she “is very sorry. We are working on finding out…”
Searching the Firefly
Inman and Sorrow search for the books they looked at last night and any records related to the merchant.
Atalaya (who is now beginning to hear the earworm), Boz, and Cirili search the rooms below, starting with our own room. Then the room across the hall from us. Then Gailby’s room. Nothing is found in any of the guest bed rooms.
While that is happening Nevil goes to the kitchen. Nevil questions the kenku about how long she has worked in the library. She has been here several years and keeps the lightning bugs. Atalaya, Vaz and Cirilli join Nevil in the kitchen. While Nevil continues talking to Krinkle, Atalaya and Vaz begin searching the kitchen. She is very upset about the searching of her kitchen. We explain that we really need to search for hidden doorways or rooms because of what is happening. Krinkle isn’t appeased. Nevil promises her that she will help her straight the kitchen back up when she has the time. Nothing is found.
The room near the kitchen appears to be Varynr’s. It contains many shelves full of books, and chair and a floor pillow that Atalaya thinks she probably uses when she is trancing.
Eventually, the last room is the one at the end of the hallway. Gailby explains that it is the kenku’s room. We need to search the room without the kenku present, rightly assuming that she would not readily agree to allowing us to search there. Nevil takes that assignment and hops into the kitchen to create a distraction. She begins to “clean” the kitchen as promised earlier, but she is intentionally creating disorder to a kenku that can’t find the right words to express her disdain. Meanwhile, Atalaya, Boz, and Cirili search the kenku’s quarters. They find a secret niche in the area behind a decorative goat statue. Inside are some magic potions and a clockwork wooden book. (We find an amber ring, an ornate carved dagger, 4 ornate bottles with nothing in them, a bottle with a swirling cloud-like substance in it. (It reminds Atalaya of our smoke bottle potion but the ‘smoke’ is a different color.) There is another potion bottle. And a wooden clockwork book. The spine is dented. The title is: Shemshime’s Bedtime Rhyme.
Atalaya sends Cirilli to get Inman. When he gets to the room Atalaya gets Inman to cast detect magic while Nevil continues distracting the kenku in the kitchen. The book and the potions are magical. Wishing to follow the “no stealing” policy, they get Varnyn to explain the “non-thieving break in.” Varnyn speaks with Krinkle and the book is made public.
The book is taken upstairs to the central table to investigate the book.
We send Ebder, Gailby, and Varnyr back downstairs as we determine what to do next, not wanting anything to spill over onto them.
Fighting the Shadows
Nevil casts Divine Sense again. A cold black evilness starts forming in the room, breaking into 3 shadow forms scattered around us in the room. The book itself also has an evil aura. The shadows are definitely radiating evil. Atalaya turns to Cirilli and says, “This is a time to use your magic arrows.”
Nevil moves up to Shadow 2 and hits it with her morning star. The first hit does 13 damage which she amplifies (with divine smite… radiant damage?) for a total of 18 damage. The shadow swirls and dissipates. Nevil quickly moves around the table to where Shadow 1 is floating. She hits it with her morning star for 11 points of damage.
Shadow 1 moves forward trying to reach her with its hands. It swipes at Nevil and misses.
Atalaya pulls out Amaurea, her longsword, and makes two attacks on Shadow 3. The first hits, causing 9 points of damage. Her second attack misses.
Boz uses his psionic ability Telepathic Intrusion against Shadow 3. It does 1 point of psychic damage and its attacks against Boz are made at disadvantage until Boz’s next turn.
Shadow 3 attacks Boz, trying to reach him with its hand, but misses.
Inman: Sends a Witch Bolt at Shadow 1 and hits it, doing 7 points of lightning damage. We can hear the electricity crackling through the Shadow, but it remains floating.
Sorrow casts Bane on Shadows 1 and 3. Both fail their saving throws. (Must roll a d4 and subtract that number from its attacks and saving throws until spell ends (concentration 1 minute).
Cirilli shoots one of her magic arrows at Shadow 3. It hits and the Shadow dissipates. She turns and shoots at Shadow 1 with another of her magic arrows. This Shadow also dissipates when hit.
No further Shadows appear and we retrieve arrows and Sorrow mends the hole made in the bookshelf by Cirilli’s arrow.
We face the book again, and Inman uses the tip of his scimitar to open the book. When the book opens we hear the music playing from the book that has been plaguing everyone this morning. It is a ‘Pop Up” book. There are pictures depicting the same things that Gailby had drawn with evilly smiling Shadow forms floating above/behind the subjects of each picture. There is also a fourth picture depicting a child celebrating as a Shadow (frowning) is being ground in by a millstone. The music keeps repeating, but does not get to the end of the song. Perhaps because of the dented spine?
Atalaya wonders aloud if perhaps there is one more Shadow that needs to be released. (As she gives the picture a second look she wonders if perhaps the Shadows would never have appeared if the song was able to finish.)
