Hall of Illusions
PB
It’s been a strange few hours with even stranger companions, but I’ll do whatever it takes to recover 7up (saying that name still feels strange and not quite right – maybe some mead will jog my memory). Like I was saying, strange companions like that Melina! She comes off as a fierce fighter (good for a fight) one minute, but in the next moment she gets a tree sap lollipop the size of her head and it completely goes to her head and she seems no more than a hatchling.
Anyway, we finally made our way over to the feasting orchard and I was able to get a proper mead from this Gnomebert fella and it came with free entry into a custard pie eating contest; right up my alley with honor on the line (and a stupid cupcake) – I. Would. Not. Lose. Competition was two off-duty witch light hands (which hardly seemed a challenge) but then Barnabus took up the call, mead in hand, and I finally had a worthy challenger in that Owlin. We made short work of the 2 hands in those 60 seconds, but Barnabus stopped at 9 while I continued on to 10. Did he stop on purpose?? No matter, I bargained for a 2nd mead instead of the silly cupcake, and once I had it that gnome ate the cupcake and vanished (lucky I went for the mead instead, who knows where he disappeared to…).
We made our way over to some Gondola Swans with actual swans as the gondolas/gondoliers/both? That Amrynn fella with the one hand spoke to one and asked if there was anything interesting on the lake. That swan, Featherbrain or something had the gall to sigh at us as if he were better than us, but he still gave us the ride. Amrynn, Barnabus, and Fable (don’t know much about her, but Tabaxi are like that – I’ll need to be patient. Many think barbarians are idiots that rush in without thought, but I’m of the ‘Shellfolk’ first). We rode along and had to put up with these questions that only the ‘Wise Shells’ in our tribe would bother asking. I did get to punch Barnabus though to see if he was real. One question wasn’t so bad – what is joy? Amrynn said a good book (he seems the type), I said for me joy was mead (at the present at least) and I also said for Melina it was sweets since she was still back at shore with the giant lolli; Fable stayed quiet.
The last answer must have made the swan happy as we finally started to get something out of this ride. First, we learned that the carnival was set up each time with the help of Mr. Witch’s watch. Wonder how a watch can set anything up? Next just felt like gossip – something about a strong man Bugbear (wonder how strong? Would he mind a challenge?) who had lost his ‘Hatch mate’, Hurley, and hasn’t been the same, a singing mermaid named Palacia that had been proposed to by a talkative mime named Candlefoot (aren’t mimes supposed to be quiet??) who apparently lost his voice and has been sulking ever since. Don’t know why, you’d think with his voice gone, he’d be a much better mime. We learned about something called the Monarch of the Witchlight that gets a fancy crown to wear in a ceremony that happens at the end of this Big Top Extravaganza thing if they brought the most joy to the carnival. Some halfling that loved to eat won last time apparently (wonder how many pies they ate in the contest – was it more than me??). The last of the carnival folk we learned about was the centaur, Diana, that runs the carousel. It seems she claims she’s not a centaur though and is often heard complaining about a poor horse.
We got off the swan ride and headed to the Big Top since the extravaganza was just beginning. We finally saw this Mr. Light, an elf in a discoball jester suit with butterfly wings. He introduced the acts including fairies, a fire breathing tiefling, a falconer, snack clowns and finally a Bugbear with a pumpkin on his head who kept lifting heavier things, even a farm plow with audience members on it. He was about to introduce the mermaid, but Burley whispered something to him at which point Light asked the audience to show what we could do.
We decided to go for it. Fable went to throw darts and Amrynn helped. Melina, finally done with that lolli, decided she wanted to do a strongman performance. I offered to help and retracted into my shell so she could juggle me. I wasn’t sure she could manage since I’m over 30 stones, but the fighter was back and she did not let us down as I emerged on the final toss to wild applause. I managed to pick up some coin for our performance and split it with the group. Apparently this got us an audience with the bosses as we were ushered out of the big top to a nearby tent, past a smoking clown giving Burley the stink eye, to where Mr. Light and Mr. Witch were waiting.
Witch was also an elf, but completely different. Short, well dressed. Light said his shiny stick was called the WitchLight vane and it measures joy and cheer. This seemed silly so I stepped outside to talk to Burley. I tried to ask him about his ‘hatch mate’ that he lost, but he didn’t want to talk about it. I asked about the clown that he was staring down and he said Thaco was the oldest one at the carnival but wouldn’t say anything further.
The rest of my companions finally came out and headed over to that Thaco clown, where he made balloon animals for them. Well, that’s what he claimed, they all sort of looked like noodles but I overheard he made a shark, rabbit, swan, and mouse. Burley and I joined the party and started walking off until he eventually pulled us off the path past some thornbushes that broke away to let us pass. He told us the bosses were keeping things from us and that we should look into it. I was getting ready to go make them tell us, but then Burley said they were good people and asked us not to hurt them. If we could do that, he would help us. Melina wanted something to prove we could trust him (Wouldn’t his word be enough? One’s word is tied to one’s honor).
Apparently we needed to get Light’s Vane and Witch’s pocketwatch. The party agreed the best chance would be at the crowning but that we’d likely need some help from some of the workers we’d met already. We were close to the Hall of Illusions so headed there to try and speak to Candlefoot (how we’re supposed to speak with someone who lost their voice is beyond me). On the way, we stopped at a cyclops staring contest where Fable and Melina tested their mettle. Fable sat down but couldn’t withstand the gaze from strange cyclops that had no smell. Melina managed to make the cyclops blink and won a bottle of Witchlight wine. I asked her for it and she reluctantly turned it over after I promised to get her another lolli. As we got close to the Hall of Illusions, we saw a halfling couple standing near a glass cabinet. The male was proposing when she just fell down laughing (poor fella). He ran off into the hall of illusions past a dark elf without getting his ticket stamped. Barnabus said it all happened because of a Tasha spell, and I asked if we could go save the halfling male. Amrynn and the others tried to talk to the mime that was also in front of the tent (turns out it was Candlefoot). Not sure what they said but we all got our tickets stamped and headed in.
Mirrors. Strange mirrors where our reflections age as we walk past. In one, it showed me as an egg. I don’t like these mirrors (I want to smash them). After some searching, the others spotted the male halfling staring into a mirror, a mirror with a reflection of a little girl with a pig mask. We rushed over and the halfling seemed to snap out of it. He said the little girl had asked if he had any regrets and to follow her (lucky we got to him first). We ushered the fella out, name of Reuben, and Candlefoot was waiting outside looking relieved (at least I think that’s what a relieved clown looks like) and we were able to get the fella’s ticket punched and back over to his lady (they told me her name was Ren).