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50th Spring, Week 8

I haven't even had my Maiden title a full week and The Coven have given me a task. I received a scrying mirror call from Crone Cressida, Head of The Coven, asking me to investigate the local newspaper. She explained that they had noticed that The Highland Herald has been reporting on stories that were happening in alternate dimensions.

I'll admit that I wasn't aware we were part of a multiverse, but I was informed that The Coven possessed a special scrying pool which allowed them to communicate across the many dimensions. They suspected that the newspaper had somehow acquired a similar artifact and need me to verify.

I headed straight out to The Herald's offices. Upon arrival I didn't find a magical artifact, instead I found a stressed out reporter called Anamias Meldrake, frantically writing while muttering "too many stories in my head" repeatedly. He looked like he hadn't slept in days.

I found a mirror and drew on the required runes to call Crone Cressida back. Multiverses are far beyond anything I had come across in my studies or in Faye's books so I definitely needed help with this one. When I explained that there didn't appear to be an artifact, the stories were coming through a person Cressida turned pale. By the sounds of it, Anamias was suffering from Singulitis, a very rare ailment which linked the patient with all of their multiverse counterparts. It came with the perks of combining the power and knowledge of each version of them, but also came with the risk that it combined any illness or injury. It only took one of them to be fatally wounded and they would all drop dead.

It was near impossible to cure as all versions had to be treated at the same time, in different ways. After discussing his symptoms, we decided that this one would require a treatment which would calm him down, make him forget the events of other dimensions and, as it was fae magic which allowed the communication between dimensions, cancel this out. She left me to make and administer the treatment while she went to alert the other covens of the multiverse to our findings.

I checked my books and found that dryad's tears would treat all three symptoms but they are extremely bitter and are best administered with something extremely sweet. I know that magical candy rock can be found on Moonbreaker Mountain, which would be perfect.

To find a dryad one must first find her tree, so off to the forest I went. I didn't get far before I found a glittering stag headbutting a tree, it appeared to be struggling to shed its gem-like antlers. I approached slowly and with a flick of my wand detached the antler. It turned to me, startled, but after a moment it recognised me as a witch and bowed to me in thanks. It scampered off leaving me with the precious antlers.

I delved further into the Grove continuing to search for a dryad. After a couple of hours I was no closer to finding a dryad, but I did find an unusual plant. It was a clump of blue, tubular structures which glowed slightly. My guess is that it is a insectivorous plant as the blue glow seemed to be luring swarms of flies to the plant. I would have liked to study it further but I had to press on.

It was shortly after finding this plant that I had my first encounter with an elf. He greeted me and asked what had brought me to this part of the Grove. I told him that I was looking for reagents for a potion. He called over two more elves who offered to help me in my search for a dryad.

The four of us continued on, I was definitely in Elf territory for we stumbled upon an elf on a throne trying to resolve an argument between a dozen elves. As soon as I got too close, the arguing elves disappeared. The elf on the throne thanked me for scaring them off, smiling at the fact that she would be able to relax in peace now. I wished her a peaceful afternoon and carried on searching.

It was at this point that I finally found a dryad. As I approached she came running towards me, a large smile on her face. Unfortunately as she got closer the smile faded. She explained that she thought that I was Faye because of my hat. I was surprised when she explained that she and Faye had been an item. The dryad, Juniper, showed me a carving she had made of Faye. I could see why she confused me for her, Mother McHeather, while older, had a very similar style of dress to me. It wasn't hard to collect the tears, Juniper was heartbroken after Faye suddenly broke it off and disappeared. I spent some time comforting her.

 

Next I made my way to Moonbreaker Mountain. The elves travelled with me as far as the edge of the grove before bidding me farewell. Thankfully I found some candy rock quickly, although I was ambushed by a sphinx as I was trying to harvest it. She asked me a riddle, I was in a little flustered so I blurted the first thing that popped into my head. It wasn't the right answer. The sphinx got her claws out and chased me back down the mountain. Luckily I had managed to harvest enough of the candy rock for the potion.

Singular Syrup

[MEMORY***] [MOOD***][FAE***] +4 Sweet 46s

1. Bring Dyrad's tears to the boil stirring widdershins.
2. Take off the heat and crumble in Candy rock.
3. Continue stirring, clockwise this time, until the candy rock has melted and the mixture turns into a syrup.

The syrup should be consumed all in one go at midnight.

52nd Spring, Week 8

I was woken up by an unnatural sound last night. It was so eerie that Eithrig and I couldn't get back to sleep. A few of the villagers came to the cottage asking if I knew what it was. They were not pleased to discover that I didn't know either.

As soon as the first rays of sunlight peeked over the horizon, there was a harpy at my door with a message from The Coven.

"Last week a patient was discovered across the multiverse. His name was Anamias Meldrake and he was suffering from a rare Ailment called Singulitis which was causing every version of him to combine. Normally this Ailment is caused by those seeking power and while each of the Anamiases you cured were innocent bystanders, it turns out that the Ailment was in fact caused by one version of him.

However, between us we failed to fully cure the Ailment. Instead the witches Tibby and Astrilda, likely inspired by the witch Kadhan, sought to use Strands of Fate to ensure their version of Anamias survived. This has had an unusual effect.

When the Singulitis reached its collision point, Anamias Meldrake disappeared from every known reality. At that same moment, a terrible ethereal scream was felt throughout the multiverse. Anamias survived but barely. He is kept alive against the terrible illness that wracks his body by the power of 2 Strands of Fate. From what we have been able to gleam, he is already searching the multiverse to get revenge against those that failed him. Already several witches have disappeared, taken away to a place outside of any known realm.

We will work on creating a way to reach Anamias. A ritual that will allow passage to his realm beyond the realms but we all must decide what to do once we find him."

There was a ballot with the letter asking us to decide whether he should be executed or cured. This shocked me. Yes, one of them caused this mess and had now taken some witches, but I could not condone the murder of all the innocent variations of him. I cast my vote in favour of curing him.

53rd Spring, Week 8

I spent the rest of yesterday studying Faye's journal and decided that I really need a coracle so that I can start foraging in the Blastfire Bog. I went into town to see how much it would cost to buy one, thankfully I had enough. I was feeling excited until I got home to find my cottage ransacked. The intruder had left a note: 

"You may have evaded me but you are on borrowed time, witch."

I guessed it was from Anamias so I consulted Crone Cressida. She said that The Coven has spent the last few days in deep research and has discovered that Anamias is returning to a realm known as Castle Nowhere. It is a realm with no natural pathways leading to or from it, essentially rendering it isolated in the void between realms. This is a problem as it means the only way to get there is to perform the Rite of Realm Rambling. She said that she would send me a potion recipe which I will need as Castle Nowhere is between realms, that means there is no air. No heat. Nothing.

This whole thing is making me very uneasy.

54th Spring, Week 8

The recipe has arrived. It includes a list of rare ingredients that I've never heard of. The message said:

"You will need to make 2 Doses of this Potion. One for you and one for Anamias. Though we are still working on the cure for his uniquely advanced Singulitis.

Realm Rambling Potion Requirements:

Unreal Flower ★★★ – MAGIC – Strange (10)

Requires a WAND to Collect

This flower is often overlooked as the Strange has many weirder things to see but look closer. Notice that it isn’t actually there. These flowers are illusions produced by fragments of a magical asteroid.

Stone fragments can be CRUSHED for [LUNGS]

Trapped Light ★★★ – MAGIC – Any Locale (13)

Requires a WAND to Collect

Sunbeams bounce and fade as they seek to fill cottages, groves, and hollows but it is possible, rare as it might be, for one to become trapped. These eternal lights can be harnessed for lanterns or for special potions.

Light can be added RAW for [HEAT]

The Dominant Sign ★★ – ANIMAL – Any Locale (??)

The Rite of Realm Rambling requires a hair from someone born under the current sign. In some realms this might be the 12 sacred animals or be tied to mythological figures like the twin sisters or the goat-fish. It is up to you to determine what the current sign is and to find someone who was born under it.

Hair can be added RAW for [MAGIC]

Once you have made a potion that uses these 3 Reagents, you will be ready. We will contact you when the ritual is ready, do not use your potion until then."

I can't access The Strange, but Faye's journal hints that the portal can be found in The Hollow so I will spend some time exploring and see if I can find it.

55th Spring, Week 8

I didn't get of to the best start. Meltwater from the mountain had flooded the main route through the dungeon. I managed to find an alternative route but it still required me to wade through ankle deep, freezing cold water. This took me longer than I would have liked.

Shortly after I got back on track, I had my first mimic encounter. My guess is that it must have been domesticated at some point because - rather than lying in wait for a hapless adventurer - upon seeing me, the chest bounded up to me and begged for food. Unfortunately I didn't have anything to give it. I will definitely bring something next time, just in case I run into it again.

I walked a bit further and noticed a sign that made my heart sink: "Do Not Enter: Construction In Progress." Great! Another obstacle. I peeked round the corner to find a bizarre, incomplete construction project. The walls were stacked high with large, irregular blocks of stone, some half-carved, some still rough and jagged. It looked like the builders were creating some kind of… vertical labyrinth? That look like it will be a pain to traverse when it's finished.

As I turned to leave the construction site, something small and furry caught my eye. A soft rustle from behind a pile of rocks revealed a tiny capercaillie chick —no bigger than my hand—shaking and looking utterly lost. It likely wandered into the dungeon and got trapped when the water flooded in. I scooped it up and gently tucked it into my basket.

The day was nearly so I decided to make my way back home. On the way back to the entrance I ran into one of the construction goblins. I was about to go for my wand when he said "No need for that. I'm on my break." He then asked if I was Faye's replacement. I'll admit that this caught me off guard. We stood talking a bout her for a little while.

I found out that Faye spent a large amount of her time down in the Hollow and was well known by many of its inhabitants. The goblin spoke of her obsession with the hidden spots of the dungeon, the ones created by the ambient magic that oozed through its walls, the places where the world folds in on itself.

As concerned as I was by the things revealed by that conversation, the sight of the little capercaillie I rescued running to its nest and being greeted by its mother soothed my racing thoughts for a minute. But they were soon back. What did Mother McHeather get herself into?

 

Ailment - bard boils

[BOILS**] [PAIN*]

Shock fish, fluid distilled for boils - Depths 3

Shadow shark, ink distilled for pain - Depths 6

Foraging

1. Red joker - find witch's broken wand (Q find Shadow shark)
2. Kelp forest - find Shadow shark and shock fish
3. As you swim through the cracks of a tall blue bricked building you see a marble fountain set into the floor. Water is cleaner than anywhere else. Take a vial for a single purify use.
4. A massive gar heading towards you. Swimming as fast as you can get to safety of a fallen building. Find shock fish

Downtime

Explore Hollow

1. 6 - You've wandered into an area where carnivorous plants have sprouted. Decrease the Timer by 1. How do you get out?
2. -
3. 4 - You stumble upon a little shop of sorts run by a small furry creature. It gestures excitedly to its collection of goods which range from rings to swords to journals and asks to trade. What do you give and what do you get? Zodiac Sign - Snake, Gain Dominant Sign
4. 2 - You wander into the den of a monster that has just woken up from their hibernation. Thankfully they are too groggy to fight just now. What do you do with this rare close encounter opportunity?
5. 7 - The Baron, a suit of armour possessed by a malevolent poltergeist, has cornered you. You’ll have to duel your way out. Draw 3 cards for yourself then 4 cards for the Baron. If The Baron’s total is higher, they score a wound on you. Lose 2 Foraging points. If your total is higher, they congratulate you with a reagent. Draw a card and treat it as a Dungeon reagent of the same value. 27-34 lose, -2 Foraging points
6. K - You bump into the Dark Ruler of the Underlands, master of shadows. They apologise and invite you to dinner in their throne room. What purpose does this dinner serve? A trap? A date? Something else? As part of their plans they open a portal to The Strange. Why? Every time you get this result, write about the encounter. Gain Trapped Light

 

Make second for the bard.