S9: How Important is Time?

A final investigation over our fleshy abomination offers no new clues as a telltale electrical static and purple hue teleports it back to Savi’ir’s pit.

A cryptic message received by Glug pre-battle causes the group concern and they find themselves in a mad dash to save Gruddy -- after determining less nude was a better option than fully nude. 

Backtracking and retracing their previous path through Grimshackle Mokon and Fey leave no tower unturned, Alora finds a penpal letter from Kraghorn thanking the party for their friendship. Unfortunately, for Kraghorn, his bloody ear was left with the note along with an ominous dagger and a future warning. 

The party speedwalks their way past the mine, noticing now it is occupied by… occupants. Interests are peaked, but not enough for a drop-in-visit.

Back to Pillory and a quick look in Gruddy’s tent reveal that Gruddy is indeed not home. Dirt and others are worried as everyone seems to genuinely like Gruddy. Dirt was about to add it to his new missing person board that is becoming quite full.

Alora, Glug, Mokon, Fey, and a very uninterested/sloth-like Nom all head to the mine with strong feelings of distrust and kidnapping. The entire group finds the miners to be quite nice and seemingly non-kidnappers, maybe. Nom finds them quite snugglable. Glug distrustfully breaks up the feel-good vibes with some directed questions. Not convinced of the sincerity of the man in charge, Glug charms the pants (almost) off him creating a temporary boy toy situation.

TIME TO SPLIT THE PARTY!!!

Glug and Alora head back to moderately pilfer Gruddy’s home. While the rest stay back to socialize and sleep… mostly sleep.

Once back in town, Glug and Alora find:

• Gruddy is a decent artist
• Gruddy has a busy work schedule
• Gruddy is visiting Cleets for a quick rub-n-tug (probably)

With some deductive reasoning by Alora and Glug they determine that Cleets is the man of the hour.

TIME TO SPLIT THE PARTY THREE WAYS!!!!

Glug sprints to the mine to tell the others arriving winded, but… well, mostly just winded coming face to face with a jaded and cranky miner boss that he had dumped previously. 

The group is exhausted. Mokon, Fey, and Nom want to spend the night in the dank, cold, hairy, sweaty, and friendly mine. Glug insists with a prestidigitated bog of eternal stench on Nom’s entire body resulting in some thrown punches and a WHOLE lot of vomit. Mokon, Fey, and Nom opt to leave… Nom is not pleased. 

During this time Alora heads in to chat up Senior Trogg about Cleets and finds him shoulders deep and re-frothing the pickle ale. Dirt has zero idea where Cleets lives, but their friend Stedman does. Alora wakes Mr. Pukey Pukey with a hard slap, Stedman responds with a harder… well, full set of… anyway. Stedman loves to talk about his woes to therapist Alora especially once he “unwinds” behind the building for exactly 42 seconds. Once “relieved of the pressure” Stedman is ready to lead the group to Cleets, except the group has not yet returned, so therapy is in session.

The party reunites by only the good graces (and the lack of time needed in the session) of their beloved (and handsome) (and masculine) (and smart) (and charming) DM.

Stedman easily leads the group to Cleets home which is in various states of disrepair. Nom aggressively pushes Glug through a door for past wrongs. An old, thin, and starving dog is chained in the corner. Fey makes friends, feeds him, and releases him to be eaten by wolves in the nearby forest… er… I mean releases him to be free. Searching the home the group finds very little other than a journal of Cleets past explorations. Alora and Glug decipher the scribblings/ramblings of Cleets determining he probably has gone to the abandoned mansion mentioned in his journals.

Time for well-deserved shuteye. The group barricades the stairs making Cleet’s casa nuestro casa (yes, I looked up our in Spanish… the things I do for you… the things I do.) Fey takes some time to learn her mouse may be smarter than he once was. With a long rest complete only hours from a level of exhaustion, the group wakes refreshed and leaves, except for Mokon who backflips out a window with grace and style, to find the previously mentioned mansion. Following the lackluster clues, they easily find the mansion on the coast, on the hill.