The Deep, Deep Down (08)
The Riddle Gardens
Lantern 5 - possibly
Momentum: 6, Health: 4, Spirit: 4, Supply: 4. Tension: 2
Morwen
The caves are damp and smoky.
“Jackpot!” Wilkin exclaims.
Indeed, these caves appear to be full of a variety of mushrooms. Unfortunately, the point of the contest was to find new and unique fungus. Without Alcippe, how are we supposed to know what’s new and what’s growing in every yard in Lumina?
“Well, I know my mushrooms back home. I’m going to assume, I hope, that if it’s known to me, it’s known in Lumina. The trick is not poisoning myself in the process.”
Secure an Advantage + Wits. 9 v 6, 7. Strong Hit. Momentum: 8. +1 Forward.
“I’d like to offer myself as your test subject,” Wilken offers.
“I thought you couldn’t eat,” I said.
“No. I can’t chew and swallow, but I can consume substances via smoke. If you burn the mushroom and put me over the smoke, I should be able to provide an analysis. I was well versed with several mind-altering substances when I had a body.”
“You and I need to have a talk about this past of yours. You have me very curious.”
“It’s colorful, but best told over several shots of bourbon. Then again, who knows what I’ll be experiencing soon,” Wilkin said, gleefully.
We selected a fungus that we decided to name Pinata Shaggy Polyps.
Fungal Record - Downcrawl Oracles
Name: Pinata Shaggy Polyps.
Primary Fungal Domain and Effect: Vocat - Extreme enthusiasm for everything.
Secondary Fungal Domain and Effect: Heros - You smell terrible and can’t hide it.
I used the sickle knife to harvest and it flickered with lights as I did so. I broke off a piece of the mushroom and put it in a bowl. The remainder I folded into a paper envelope and labeled.
Then I set the mushroom piece on fire and placed Wilkin over the bowl. I watched the lights in the sockets of his skull that acted as his eyes. His sockets began to sparkle and flicker with other small lights.
“This is delightful! Oh, this was SUCH a good idea! Morwen, you really should try this! We are definitely going to win this contest. And then we’ll take these back home and grow them for EVERYONE. We’ll cure all misery. Everyone will be happy and they’ll make us royalty!”
Wilkin went on like this for quite awhile. Meanwhile, I made notes. I was a little jealous of his experience until I noticed the smell.
The mushroom had burned quickly and I had cleaned the bowl, so it wasn’t that. It was definitely Wilkin that smelled. I’m not exaggerating when I say he smelled like death. I had to leave him to his excited ramblings and go across the cave from him.
Ideally we’d wait at least one lantern before experimenting on another mushroom. Unfortunately we had no idea what we’d need to win this contest. I don’t think we can assume that we’re going to find everything we need in this first cave. Even in a cave like this, it’s probably going to be a mushroom that’s hard to find.
Wilkin started to wind down so I held my nose and went back over to him.
“Good…Night!” he swore, “What is that horrible smell?”
“That’s you. I hope it washes off. Let's go back into the closet room and see if we can find some soap.
I carried him out in front of me, my nose averted as if that would help, and we returned to the first room. I set Wilkin in a corner and went searching the other doors.
Colorful landscape tapestries.
They were too nice to be ruined by rolling Wilkin up in one, tempting as that was.
Dresses, gowns, and loafers.
I like the idea of sitting Wilkin on a pair of fancy dress slippers.
Umbrellas and parasols.
Hrm…could I carry him at the end of an umbrella?
I found the longest one that was still functional and took it with me.
Barrels full of water and ale.
Excellent!
I took a ceramic bowl that probably once had a plethora of fruit and filled it with the ale. I took it back out to Wilkin and bathed him as best I could.
I had approached the task as though I were washing a pumpkin, but I soon realized this was a really personal activity.
“I’m sorry. I should have asked you before just sticking you in a bowl and handling you like a dirty cup,” I apologized.
“I understand,” he said, “and the ale is rather pleasant, I have to admit. I don’t quite taste it so much as feel the memory of tasting it.”
Am I able to wash off the smell? Yes!
Thankfully the smell washed off bone. I’m betting if a person had ingested it, it wouldn’t be so easy.
“I think we’d better explore other areas. If the cave with all the mushrooms is this close to the entry then Arcite Meadows would have already discovered what was unique and either returned here or have moved on.”
4 Clubs - The Performer - No, Not without shifting around priorities.
“But if we don’t find Arcite, we need to gather as many samples as possible,” Wilkin argued. “It’s obvious that the cave has the perfect growing conditions. I can’t believe they’ve fully explored everything in that room.”
“Well we can’t sample too many mushrooms in a day - we risk adverse interactions between samples. Two mushrooms might be safe, each on their own, but when combined they could be deadly. While we’re waiting to be able to test another dose, we can at least explore the other areas.” I suggest.
“You. You can’t sample too many.” Wilkin points out. “I don’t have a system that we have to wait through. I should be able to test one every hour or so.”
I really wanted to find Arcite. I was afraid we’d just return to Lumina with mushrooms they already knew about. On one hand, Alcippe had thought that other mushroom hunters wouldn't come here. On the other, it was obvious someone else was in this area. I don’t believe someone just shot darts at us for unrelated reasons.
“That person who shot darts at us, they could be down here as well,” I pointed out. “If that cave was a good source, wouldn’t they be in there?”
7 Clubs - The Magician - “Maybe. Power is not given freely.”
“Perhaps,” Wilkin considered.
“How about we alternate?” I offer. “We’ve got more than ten to fifteen lanterns to find mushrooms and have enough time to get back to Lumina. I’m still hoping Alcippe will turn up. But, if she doesn’t, I don’t know how long it’s going to take to get back down the canyon. Let’s spend the rest of today in the mushroom cave and, after I get some rest, we spend the next Lantern looking elsewhere. What do you say?”
Wilkin reluctantly agreed. I don’t know why, but maybe he’s feeling an after effect of the mushroom? As he says, he has no “system”, but we don’t know why he functions at all.
Before we returned to the cave, I took down one of the drawings and wrote on the back a note for Arcite and Alcippe, telling them where we were and to meet us. Then we returned to the cave.
Encounter, NPC, two folk dressed like cooks.
When we entered, we heard arguing. We followed the sounds to see two folk. They had bipedal squat legs, hairy bodies - shaped somewhat like a giant potato - very long arms, antlers, one eye on the end of a stalk on top of their head and one large eye in front above their mouth, and a shell like a snail on their backs. They were dressed like cooks.
“The glowing broccoli needs Star-Metal and Queen’s blood! It’s the only way to pair it with the heliotrope sausage!” One argued, waving a whisk.
“That’s ridiculous! Heliotrope sausage calls for Whirling Hasty Hazelnut with Widow’s Tears and Electric Blue. No one wants your backstabbing broccoli!” The other poked a finger at the first.
NPC reaction. 10. Kind.
“Excuse me,” I interject, “I’m so sorry to interrupt. I’m looking for a Flig Fungal Forager named Arcite Meadows. Have you seen her?”
Yes?
Ace Diamonds - The Whole Self. A space that shifts, familiar, yet distant. A mirror that does not show what is expected.
“Yes,” one of them says, “you might find her in the Looking Glass house. That is the place to go when you need something that is the opposite of itself.”
“Thank you. Can you tell me how to get there?” I ask.
“You’ll need to find the stairs down,” the other one says, “The Looking Glass house is on the second level.”
“And where are the stairs?”
The look they gave each other I recognized, can you believe this idiot?
“They’re where you find them,” one says, as if I’m a little slow, “you have to look for them in order to find them.”
“I see,” I say, not really seeing at all. “Thank you for your time.”
We walk away and they go back to their argument.
“What do you think,” I asked Wilkin.
“We should look for the stairs while looking for unusual mushrooms.”
Gather Information + Naturalist. 6 v 4, 9. Weak Hit. Momentum: 10. The information provides new insight, but also complicates your quest.
Hex crawl in the setting book: The Feeding Plateaus. Moth caterpillars feed on rotting fungi.
During our search we find giant caterpillars the size of cats eating rotting fungi.
“Do you think the fungi needs to be rotting for it to be good or safe? Should we find some that isn’t rotting?” I ask Wilkin.
Does he want to try the rotting fungi? No? Twist - Create, widespread, ability.
“Let’s find some that isn’t rotting. I think fresh would be better,” Wilkin decided.
Fungal Record - Downcrawl Oracles
Name: Tigerwood Slime Mane.
Primary Fungal Domain and Effect: Heros - Surefooted, minus 1 to travel encounter indicator. .
Secondary Fungal Domain and Effect: Fodur - Which gets you blackout drunk.
I find fresh mushrooms to harvest with my scythe. As I cut through the stem, a plume of spores spreads into the air. I think perhaps this is why they wait until the mushrooms are rotting, but I couldn’t avoid breathing in the spores.
Stair - Leaky - Down.
I couldn’t believe my luck when turning around, I spotted the stairs! And they were going down! I made a bee-line for them afraid they’d disappear, and started heading down.
“What’s going on?!” Wilkin asked.
“I found the stairs!” I said.
“I see that, but what about the mushroom? We were going to test it first!”
“It’s fine. Have it with me right here.” I say, patting my pocket.
Something dripped on my head. There were droplets of water all over the stairs.
“Are you feeling alright?” Wilkin asked, concerned.
“Fine! I’m FINE!”
Why was Wilkin suddenly such a worry-wort?