26/07/2022 - The merchant and the tooth fairy

The party realises that during the encounter with the displacer beasts Lizzie has gone missing. Kunai picks up the trail noticing some overturned grass indicating steps into the forest in the south. He can tell that she was running. After a little while they find Lizzie spooked but when she sees Elyan approach, she is reassured, as one is always reassured to see a friend in a time of need. Elyan and Lizzie nuzzle each other.  Meanwhile Narko was left to figure out how to skin a cat. Unfortunately, the way he chose was decided the wrong way and the displacer beast hide comes off somewhat ripped and tattered. The party throw it into the bag anyway.

The party set out eastwards hoping to find the smoke that Kunai saw rising above the forest. After a while travelling rough animal paths, they see a hybsil (= centaur - horse + deer) heading towards them. Narko's small-~~man~~centaur syndrome comes through, and he asks if the hybsil is bigger than him. It's not, its 4ft tall, and it greets them in sylvan. The party ask what plane they are on and explain that they are trying to find a way back to the material plane, yada, yada. But all that is forgotten when the hybsil finds that the party might be interested in its wares. The hybsil is a travelling merchant of course. After much negotiation, the hybsil (who only much later do we find out is named Delili) sells Elyan a healing potion, some goodbery wine, a bonnet bee in a jar, a ring of quell snoring, a hand mirror, a faulty bag of tricks, a candle of counting sheep, and a belt of defiant length for some gold. Kunai buys a halfling tooth necklace and a bag of beans in exchange for some gold and a future favour. Delili promises that the favour won't involve killing or anything illegal or morally reprehensible. Shopping montage over the hybsil tells the party that they do not know a way back to the material plane, but they recently met someone who has been to that plane. A couple of hours travel, with Delili carrying much, much less stuff. Along the way Elyan asks if the island is really on the back of a turtle the Delili says it is, and that it's head is to the very south. And that, yes, you could probably go talk to it if you wanted. They arrive to find a camp with a 1ft tall tent, and Delili really just stands there as the party greet the being in the tent. She is a 6 inch tall fairy with one sock and a huge hammer. She's called Almond. She seems really interested in the party, particularly in their teeth. Turns out she's a tooth fairy and a dentist. Her dentistry card said "QUINTEDENTAL. Why pay? Just ask the fey". She tries to convince Kunai that he has some real rotten teeth, and that he needs her to work on them, but he doesn't buy it. She also gives him a sweet that he doesn't eat. They talk about all sorts of things, and the tooth fairy keeps calling the halflings boring. It seems like she is looking for a more adventurous life than that of a dentist. Elyan asks about the turtle - Almond has dubbed the turtle Brian and says that she hears him singing sometimes. Almond knows a way to get to the material plane at a place called the Gallery, some kind of burial mound. She agrees to take the party there if they will follow her so she can go and take care of some business first. She needs to go to a satyr town and the whole round trip will take about a day (it is currently about 1.5 days since the party left the herdsfolk). They agree to go.

Almond had warned them of the mushroom forest they would pass through, and so it was a surprise when everyone was surprised by a mouthful of spores. Only Almond didn't succumb to their hallucinatory effects. For a brief moment Narko and kunai saw visions of swirling ghostly demons and attacked Almond and Elyan with savage brutality. Elyan just saw trippy colour dancing before his eyes that will surely inspire his music. As the party regain their senses, they see a bunch of large myconids emerging from a fallen tree ahead of them. Narko touches his runes to make himself bigger. Almond incredible hulks it and uses the power of her rage to grow large as well. The mushrooms are roughly chopped. The party sit around in sporeland talking until more spores burst from the bodies of the myconids. Narko continues with his small-horse syndrome slip and starts commenting on Almond's expanded size. All but Kunai manage to withstand the spores. For 4 glorious minutes Kunai starts talking in babbles and can cannot understand what the others are saying either. The party decide it is time to get out of the sporelounge. Elyan has found Lizzie again. Off they head towards the satyr town.

Night falls and the adventurers cannot see their feet. They decide to set up the bag again and invite Almond for a tour. Most of them smoke some of Narko's weed, and they have all just fallen asleep when they hear banging coming from the kitchen door. Someone or something is trying to get through. They all awaken and move out into the hallway as the banging grows louder. Narko realises that the shouting, which seems to be getting more anxious and aggressive is in orcish and the only word he understands is "princess". The door breaks down and four heads attached to two large bodies walk into the room dressed in armour. Just before we end, Kunai peers past the intruders to see through the door behind them. That's definitely not what the kitchen looked like.