The Circlestone Injustice Episode 5: Into the Woods

17 Elient, The Sword Coast

Remy, Connor and Anahita hit the beach and have a lovely few hours in the surf. Indeed, Remy tries to surf, but finding a piece of driftwood to accommodate a Tortle of 1001 pounds turns out to be trickier than one might think!

Towards the end of their sandy sojourn, Connor spots a mysterious cloaked figure standing high up on the cliff, apparently watching the companions. Remy tries an old Tortle trick (it was taught to him by Sanacatch, an old Tortle he once met) and waves at the stranger; they do not reciprocate. By the time the trio has regained the cliff-top the figure has vanished without a trace.

The gang breaks camp and heads East, following Vittori's instructions for finding the Stanipavel Manor. Things go pretty smoothly and they enter Neverwinter Wood just as darkness falls. Some time into the woods they come across an usual feature in the form of a natural amphitheater. In the bottom of this basin is an unlikely spiral pattern of mushrooms. Deciding that discretion is the better part of valour, and suspecting the Fey may be involved, the party starts skirting the depression, pushing on for House Stianipavel. It is at this point that Remy decides that he recognises those mushrooms as "party 'shrooms" and despite the protestations of his friends, and in Maena's case, the physical intervention, he storms into the woodland bowl and starts munching!

At that point all manner of weirdness kicks in and things get very Fey indeed, Connor trips for no reason, Jonathan seems to hallucinate a dark ominous presence and boot laces mysteriously tangle. There is even the hint of an ethereal music in the air (This Monkey's Gone To Heaven).

Luckily, with her usual calmness, J'Wi uses a simple cantrip to mend some of the damage caused by Remy's scoffing, and this simple demonstration of good intent seems to send things away from the ridiculous, and if not to the sublime exactly, at least to the benign.

A floating carousel of lights then guides the party out from the magical circle and back on the path to Vittori's house.

Eventually they arrive at the road he had described and they travel more comfortably until they see two figures in the foliage on either side of their pathway.

These turn out to be guards from the Stanipavel property, watching the road to the house. After a brief period of parley, a minor misunderstanding, a very large gentleman's arrival and some paperwork, Vittori arrives and everyone is escorted to the homestead.

The property is extensive, expensive and looks very welcoming to the group who have been several nights on the road.

They begin to enter and are greeted by Vittori's grandfather, and head of Clan Stanipavel, Dragar Senior.