Ravenous

The trip out to the villages isn't a long one, by the time the party gets there the sun is starting to set over the horizon. The villages are going about their business. If anything the villagers seem sleepy and easy going in this small hamlet of Sleepyshire.

Gull stretches, having walked the journey mostly out of respect to his colleagues, as opposed to flying with his familiar. "Well, finding an old man might be tough in Alexandria, but finding a stranger or a newcomer should be pretty easy in a small village like this one. Especially once we rule out merchants and other such."

Yelrona has been thinking, throughout this trip, about what might be causing the wave of temporary famine... and coming up with nothing. Thus far, the effects have thankfully been temporary and mild, but these sorts of things tend to get worse unless the root causes are addressed. She nods in agreement to Gull.

"Unless they are hiding!" Pipes up what might be the shortest member of the group. Though the stomping artificer armor he wears at least makes him seem taller. At least a little bit. A smidge? Maybe.

"Or invisible. Or last. Oh that is usually why we have to find people right because they are lost?" Keldin really likes to chatter if no one has noticed yet. The halfling stomping along happily and seemingly tirelessly as he switches from one subject to the other. "Maybe he's enchanted to be invisible! Or cursed! Or..." A pause. "...who are we supposed to find again? I seem to have missplaced the paper..."

Yelrona smiles fondly at Keldin, enjoying not being the shortest person in the party for once. <> she admits, in the Halfling tongue... it has been too many years since she had the opportunity to use it.

Vaalyun wanders along with the others, his bill over his shoulder - he barely uses the thing, but as a cleric of Althea, he feels obligated to at least haul it around. "Just because it /looks/ like a person doesn't mean that it /is/ a person. There are lots of things that can wear the face of a man that are not."

"Some of them wear it like a hat," Rona mutters under her breath.

Gull nods. "But if prior reports are that there was an old man visiting before the incidents, and he departs after the incidents, everyone else noticed him. Let's try things the easy way, first, hmm? Check in at the inn, maybe?"

The villagers notice the arriving party members and wave to them in a friendly manner, "Welcome to Sleepy Hol... err Sleepyshire." looking a bit sheepish, 'The old name gave us a lot of bad reputation, never did know why." then motions to the village, "The hour grows late, you are welcome to make lodging here for the evening and partake in dinner. We typically eat as a community being so small, care to join us?"

Gull glances left and right at the group. "Well, if such is normal practice, then we would be happy to participate. I didn't bring anything for the pot, but I can contribute for my share."

"Oh thank goodness! I'm glad I'm not the only one!" Keldin says with obvious relief, only realizing after the fact that she spoke his own language. <Oh! You can speak like a Traveller! Wonderful! Its been awhile since I got to practice. Ever since I left home to find /adventure/!>

He's very enthuaistic he is.

There is though a friendly wave as the villagers greet them. "Should we ask if any of them are someone elses face?" This is asked towards Vaalyun. "Or any evil hats?" A beatpause. "I hope they aren't! Because my Master always said /never/ pass up the offer of dinner. And he was a successful dwarf! So I feel I should follow that advice!"

"Happy to join you all," Rona replies cheerfully, then chants a brief prayer to Tarien for enlightenment. "If you don't mind my asking... what's on the menu?"

Vaalyun just gives a /look/ at the idea of asking the villagers whether anyone is wearing someone else's face. It's not the sort of thing that one discusses over dinner. The villagers guide you to a large hall where plats are being set out. The elder motions to a few, "Plates for our guests." and the food is put out. Meager portions by any standards, but well to do for such a small hamlet. Meat, patatoes, and some carrots. The elder sits down and smiles, "We thank the gods for our meal, and hope for their blessing in the comming harvest season." then starts to eat.

Gull pauses, placing his utensils back alongside his plate. "Er, elder. I'm afraid the culprit may have struck the food. There's something very wrong with the meal. I apologize, but could we delay dinner to investigate?"

Yelrona examines the food more carefully, attempting to discern more details about the enchantment on it.

Most of the villagers are already eating and only pause as the party starts to mention enchanted food and something being wrong. Only they glance to their food and start to eat, seeming more and more hungry despite how much they eat.

You paged Yelrona with 'Just maggots, the maggots appear to be the source of the magic. The magical type though is divine in nature, but doesn't really match any standard school. best guess would be alteration and transmutation.'

Yelronaattempts to dissuade the villagers from eating. "Surely we can take a moment to offer a prayer of thanksgiving to the gods, for sharing their bounty with us?" Gull mutters a few arcane words under his breath, miming the painting of warpaint across his closed eyelids, before opening his eyes and looking around.

Yelrona reaches into the plate in front of her with gloved hands and pulls a maggot -- or at least, what she thinks is a maggot -- out of the food for closer inspection.

Vaalyun walks over towards Yelrona, and is peering over her shoulder. "What is that?" he asks, when she pulls something out.

"I am not sure," Rona replies. "But with Tarien's aid I intend to find out."

The villagers only continue to eat, until their plates are empty. Then they start to try eating the plates, candles, and table itself. Their hunger starting to grow ravenous very quickly.

Gull sighs. "Well, the good news is that there haven't been any ill effects on the people. It might be prudent to move them away from their possessions, however." The witch stands. "Everyone! There's another feast outside! There's an entire card, loaded with food! Please proceed out to the cart and eat your fill!"

"Whatever it is," Rona adds, "I think it -- and its brothers and sisters -- are the source of the magic cursing these people. What I don't know is, what is the source of this creature?"

"I know what this is." Vaalyun says, "I think I know exactly what this is." He walks towards the villagers, and reaches into his robes for his blue rose holy symbol, "We fought an demon not long ago - he got away. But he appears in the form of a man, but leaves a strange coin behind - square. He's made of maggots, and is insatiably hungry."

"Oh, of course, the CART," Rona continues, backing up the witch. "Foolish of us not to mention it earlier. You know how it is, they always travel a little behind us."

The villagers look up, and then towards the door. Then almost as a group they stand up and rush towards the door, "Food... so hungry... food." almost tripping over each other to get outside. As they get outside their cries for food turn angry, "There is no cart... they lied... I wonder if they are tasty." suddenly the talk goes to eating the adventurers.

Yelrona was afraid that was going to happen.

Gull laughs. "Afraid not! It would be quite dreadful to eat another person, anyways. Surely there's something in the area tastier than people, yeah?" He gives the other adventurers an exasperated look, then begins muttering under his breath more arcane words, a solid field briefly forming around him before fading away.

Vaalyun reaches into his pouch and pulls out a flask of holy water as the villagers look ready to turn on them. He begins to spray it around as he chants in Celestial, calling on the power of Althea to bless the ground and make it holy. Metaphysical and invisible light, the gentle glow of the evening star, begins to flow from him. "Althea, look down upon this place with your blessing."

Keldin had piled a plate full of potatoes and meat and the first bite was halfway to his mouth when Yelrona mentions something. There is a frown as he peers at the food. "Awww. Seriously? Enchanted food...that just isn't right. Are you sure?"

Then the pulls out a grub.

"...er..."

Suddenly the halfling is glad he didn't take a bite. "...though I've heard bugs are good eating. A goblin I met had a recipie even..." Then the villagers all get up as one and rush outside. "...right...defintally enchanted food..." He adds eyes wide as he stares at the mob now talking about having him and his new friends for dinner. Litterally.

"Er...guys. Come on. We're hardly more than a mouthfull. No need to look at us like that. Put the knives down...I really don't want to hurt anyone..."

The consecrate seems to have an effect, as the villagers move in they slow down and start to puke up what they have eaten. the others behind them rushing forward to eat the puke, only to enter the consecrate and puke themselves.

"Oh." Keldin backs up slowly as the villagers advance again only to double over and be...sick. "Oh that is just not right. Humans are so strange!!" He shouts as he backs up still further. "I'm...I'm not a mage here..." He adds after a moment. "...but maybe we should check the kitchen? While they are distracted...doing..." A pause. "...I think I might be sick."

Vaalyun watches, and tilts his head with disgust. Even for a healer, that much throwing up is hard to stomach. Fortunately, Yelrona stopped them from eating any of the tainted food. He presses forward with his holy symbol raised, and a burst of positive energy flies out from him in all directions. Apparently to no effect, though he has everyone nicely emptying their stomachs still. "Well, it doesn't like holy ground, that much is certain. The Star Mother protect us."

Gull, noting the mitigating effect of the consecrated ground, begins to sheperd the townsfolk over. "Step right up, high priority meal, plenty to eat, right over here! Come step up, eat your fill!" He takes on a persona of a circus crier, trying to get people to crowd into the consecrated ground. "Rona, can you go check out the kitchen? I'll stay here and help Vaalyun out, in case he needs anything."

Yelrona nods. "Courage and fortitude, stout Keldin!" she calls out. "And a good thought." She starts to move towards the kitchen, not too quickly, scanning for magic auras along the way.

Yelrona returns from the kitchen, shaking her head. "The kitchen is clean." She plucks another maggot from a plate and crushes it between her gloved fingers, curiously. To the villagers she asks "Did any outsiders help prepare your meal tonight?"

Some fo the villages have recovered from puking at this point and offers a pale glance to the adventurers, "No, we always make our food. It was clean when we searved it. What is going on, what god did we upset to be cursed in such a way?"

Yelrona says, "I don't know, but I intend to find out. Has _anything_ unusual happened in the last few days?""

"It wasn't a god. Tell me, did a strange man come through here recently, asking for food? And when he left, did he leave anything behind? A strange coin or something like that?" Vaalyun asks, as the villagers begin to recover from the effects of his spell - which, like a purgative herb, is for their own good.

The elder groans as he stands up from his own vomit, "yes... two days ago a elderly man. Famished, we fed him an dhe was on his way. He left behind a coin, a bit odd. Said we would be spared because we fed him." reaching into his robes and pulling out a square coin, "but said it would not be enough. That the food was not unique or extravagent enough to state his hunger."

Yelrona holds out her palm. "May I see that?"

"I'm pretty sure a god had nothing to do with it." Keldin says as he stands in the back of the room. "Well maybe an evil god. I've heard they do bad things like this. I mean on the scale of one ot bad this is /really/ bad. And gross. In a kill it with fire kind of way. Should we burn the kitchen? Or the magots? Or the coin..." A pause. "It's an evil coin isn't it? I bet its evil. It totally looks evil."

Yelrona frowns, taking the coin. "A token of evil magic... not cursed in itself, but serving as a marker for an evil spellcaster." Uncertain, she asks "Perhaps removing it from the village would be enough to spare these people further hardship? There must be some way to trace this back to its maker."

Gull tilts his head. "It's magical, at least. Its durability has been enhanced, and it's designed to be very easy for someone to find, if they know what to look for." He avoids touching the coin directly. "I would suspect that we should take this somewhere either remote, or somewhere very safe."

"It's not your fault, Elder. There is nothing you could do. He would eat everything, and it would not sate his hunger." Vaalyun frowns when he sees the coin, and notes, "I've got one just like that." He turns away and says to the others, "A maggot the size of a building. In fact, I saw it eat a building."

Yelrona says, "Where did you see it?""

A voice whispers in Yelrona's ear, "Take my coin, and take the responsiblity. You want to end my hunger, then feed me. Thrice challenged you will be, to feed me a willing sacrifice, to feed me something new I have never tasted before, or to feed me something so extravagent even kings cannot afford such a meal. feed me this, and again I will slumber until my hunger rises again." then a dead maggot falls out of Yelrona's ear.

"Eat a building? Oh man. That is way bigger than the maggot army I helped stop. I don't like that one bit. Though we didn't find any coins afterwards." The halfling continues to chatter as he steps near to the coin. "...can we track who did this some way. Or...I don't know..." A pause. "Holyfy the coin thing? Or just burn it. Burning helps things like this right? Master Ironeye was very into burning bad things."

"Show yourself, and we will feed you your own entrails, vermin," she replies matter-of-factly. "Is that extravagent enough?"

Gull frowns at the maggot. "Well. It sounds like this is one of many thrusts from whomever this particular enemy is." The witch turns to the elder. "I suspect that we have achieved our aim, here. We'll need to determine whether we can get ahead of whoever this is." He turns back towards the others. "And maybe start some kind of repository for information on this. Sounds like there's a lot of common knowledge that we may be able to pool."

"That is really graphic there...but...well who knows if he's had that as food. I don't think its very extravagent...I mean I wouldn't pay for it. But some people might! Some people are just strange."

Keldin continues to peer at the coin. "...which way did he go though...I mean...if we can track him we might can figure out where he's going and get ahead of him that way. Just a thought."

Yelrona nods. "Good thought. I have some skill at tracking... it's worth a shot.

You paged Yelrona with 'Tis the legend of the maggot man comes to mind. A being cursed by Thul the canibal. To never die, to never have his hunger statied. There is no way you can think of in the common lore that says how to stop him. Though appears he may of given you three otpions.'

"Unless there's been a change, it is able to travel underground." Vaalyun says, to the others. He folds his hands behind his back, and taps his foot. "The swarms of maggots were a big hint that we were close, though we didn't know it at the time. I don't think he'll answer your challenge, though it's always worth a shot."

Yelrona stares at the coin for a long time, then nods. "The Maggot Man," she says ominously. "I've heard legends, but I thought that's all they were. A being cursed by Thul, the Necromancer, the Dread Breather... the cannibal. According to legend it is immortal, invulnerable. But... perhaps there is a way."

"The creature offered three challenges," Rona continues. "To feed it a willing sacrifice, to feed it something new, to feed it something so extravagent even kings cannot afford it. Or perhaps all three, I'm not sure. It said it would return to its slumber if I did. Whether it was telling the truth... I don't know."

"Does the way have something to do with fire?" Keldin asks helpfully. "I mean I bet not, but it would be so easy if it was. Just find whatever hole he is and fling a few grenades down it. Then we all go home." The little halfling sighs slightly. "It is never that easy is it? I sware stories ruined me. Its always that easy in the stories."

A longer pause.

"...and yeah. Yeah. Tracking someone that can travel underground makes it way more difficult...." A pause. "...well. Really." He glances towards Rona. "...why would it lie? I mean it doesn't seem to really fear anyone, and seems to just want to eat something fantastical. So its motivations are pretty base...right?"

Gull shakes his head. "Regardless, a willing sacrifice implies it won't be satisfied unless it eats something that can make a decision. And I'm unwilling to chart that as our primary course of action."

"Maybe," Rona replies. "Sometimes the creatures of Darkness lie because it's just in their nature. But I agree with you... it's probably telling the truth. Still, I would not willingly sacrifice so much as an insect to Thul's lackey."

Yelrona thinks for a while longer. "I think we should talk to the Vardamites. Vardama was once Thul's..." she trails off, looking rather as though she'd swallowed a slug. "Well. They were together, once, before Thul embraced the darkness. The Mourners probably know more of the Necromancer's lore than anyone."

Vaalyun looks down at the toe of his boot for a second before he squares his shoulders, looks to the others, and says, "Perhaps if it thought we were making an offering, we could lure it out into the open?"

"I am all for finding out more about this. After all you can never have enough information on things like this! Maybe they can figure out a way to stop him that doesn't involve feeding anyone to anything. Which really would be the best outcome here." Keldin chatters on before he looks back towards the villagers. "...er...but more imporatantly right now. Are the villagers all going to be ok? I mean...they were pretty bad off for a bit there...do we need to do anything else to...I don't know...demaggot the place?"

"I think so? Other victims have recovered, apparently harmlessly. Cleaning out the maggots would be a good plan, though." She seems lost in thought. "In the meantime... well, it can't hurt to try to track the beast." Wrily she adds "Or, rather, it can... but that's why we're here, I suppose." She begins to look around for signs of anyone walking out of the village recently.

There are signs of a older man walking out of the village, but less then a 100 feet out the trail vanishes into the ground and loose dirt. The dirt is full of wiggly maggots. Yelrona frowns. "Well. I suppose I should have expected that."

Yelrona says, "So, does anybody have any other ideas about next moves? I can talk to Vardamites, others can too... and I am not exactly sure what to do about the culinary challenges, but perhaps some research will turn up more."

"...yeah. Yeah. We should have..." Keldin agrees as he steps back from the wiggly earth. Steps high and stomps down hard with his armored boots. "...Vomit would really like to be here right now. He'd likely make a pie." He mutters before he draws a deep breath. "...I mean I'm no cook. But the city has to have a lot of cooks right?" A longer pause. "Talking to the Vardamites would be the best I think...I mean they have to know more about all this mess."

For lack of anything better to do, Rona begins to clear an area to start a fire. When she's done she will toss the infested food into the flames. Gull busies himself working to try to bring infected food into the consecrated area, seeing if it purifies.