Parliament of Owls
| Finishing the Job (Blighted City 22) | |
|---|---|
| Date | 07/28/24 |
| Storyteller | Unseelie |
| Tier | Trainee |
| Player Characters | Atticus, Cutter Black, Echostar, Peaches, Vliegen |
| Rewards | 175xp, 130gp, 5x Monkey Mask, 15x Sparklers, 2x Feather Token (Holly Bush), 2x Feather Token (Owl(Sparrow)), Flask of Fellowship |
| Result | Success |
| Author | Zoro |
| Downtime | 6 |
The associates had received word from a temple of Sun Wukong that their annual festival was being interrupted by daily attacks by owls. Under word from the Round Table Council five associates were dispatched to assist them, myself being one of them.
We met the villagers after three days of travel, and questioned the high priest, Hasana, for more information. The owls varied from what appeared to be regular owls to giant variants, to ones with stony flesh. Universally they carried a wisdom and intelligence quite unbecoming of owls, who are famed for their stupidity and often moronic natures. I do not care particularly for owls. They can be barely trained, and they are disgusting creatures that cannot fly in the rain. I'd rather have a good pocket lizard any day of the week, much smarter, and it can swipe coins for you.
We set out with the revelers the following morning and, as with the previous days, the procession was attacked by a group of owls as they made their way into the nearby woods to prepare for their celebration. The group consisted of several larger than average owls, a very large owl, a stony owl, and a group of owls working as one. They were beaten back, and upon doing so, they recovered their injured. We didn't kill any at this point, and the Sun Wukongians were able to move into the forest and prepare for their party. Preparations complete for the day we returned to the Vanaran town.
In the morning the owls made contact with us with a very poorly written letter. It was an invitation to parley, which I personally distrusted as some sort of trick. Owls are horrid creatures, and we should have really sent a message the previous day by cutting off a few more beaks if we wanted to actually talk to them. The group thought it best to meet them, and we made Hasana agree to postpone any preparations until after the meeting, which wasn't until that evening.
Heading out at that time we met with a strange elf-like child who had several owl features that identified herself as the Speaker. Despite my protests, the party agreed to go with her to the Moonlight Parliament, which is where these owls congregated. Surrounded, and cut off from communication, we met the leaders of the owl group: an Elder, who believed in reasoned arguments and was mostly looking to sleep the day away; a guard, who was easily impressed by japery and sleight of hand; a Big owl, who was impressed by strength; and a Knight owl, who wished for revenge against the village, but was easily cowed with a strong word. These four, and the speaker, engaged us in conversation and debate as we made the case for the village. After several hours of speaking we convinced them that the forest must be shared with everyone. The Sun Wukong worshipers would move their festivities to the night, and invite the owls to join them if they so wished. Thus, peace was established, at the cost of a lack of deaths at our hands. Council, I really must suggest that violence be more emphasized in the training of new associates. The idea that we are willing to negotiate with any manor lord or king of ferrets that comes across our path is absurd. It worked out this time, but I warn you, this softness has no place in our world.
--Cutter Black, Captain of the Night Guard