The Seal Incident

The Seal Incident
Date	07/12/2025
Storyteller	Aru
Tier	Trainee
Player Characters	Ariyu, Kora Caroli, Sabelle, Muldog, Tris, Uravas - "Cap'n Stardust"
Rewards	50 gold, 2 Scrolls of Illusory Disguise (Rank 1), Scroll of Shrink (Rank 2), 2 Scrolls of False Vitality (Rank 2), Scroll of Invisibility (Rank 2), Wand of Pest Form (Rank 1), Crafter’s Eyepiece, Bracelet of Dashing, Anylength Rope, 250 XP
Result	Success
Author	Uravus (Johnny Supernova)
Downtime	15

In which six adventurers solve the ultimate mystery.

Log

An Excerpt from The Ballad of the Jongleur Three : A Factual and Historical Recounting of Cap’n Stardust’s Adventures as Penned by Sava Ru Book 1, Chapter 12

Dramatis Personae

Uravus - Cap’n Stardust, Leader of the Jongleur Three

Ariyu - Cap’n Stardust’s younger sister, member of the Jongleur Three

Muldog - Hobgoblin Investigator Extraordinaire

Sabelle - Cleric of The Living God

Kora Caroli - Psychic Gambler, Mediator of the Oceans

Tris - An adorably ominous doll

--

If one were to believe that the punctuality of the Good Cap’n Stardust would have improved in the time of his life between this chapter and the previous, one would be gravely mistaken. As we had illustrated before, Pirates are anything but punctual (and the term anything, in this instance, does truly mean anything, for pirates are masters in all things.). Fortunately, for Uravus, he had his sister with him yet again. Unfortunately for Uravus, his mastery of time, or lack thereof, had begun to rub off on his sister.

And so, in the twilight hours of winter, and the nascent morning of the first spring snow, Cap’n Stardust and Ariyu rushed to the northern gates of Onadbyr.

“Uravus! I told you we had to leave earlier!” Ariyu said, with some frustration.

“Ah, sister, but you perceive, we are still on time.” Uravus said, conciliatory, we might add.

“Brother. You will perceive, we will be there five minutes before the notice asked us to be.” Ariyu said, with growing frustration.

“Five minutes! Think of the adventures we could have in five minutes!” The Pirate protested.

“Think of the scouting we could do. Pick up the pace!” Ariyu said, as she took off. Uravus, for his credit, realized this argument was now moot, for it was folly to keep pace with Ariyu and attempt to match wits with her in a verbal arena, for she could do both at once, and few could do one or the other alone.

With minutes to spare, brother and sister arrived to meet the requester for their next adventure. Fortunately, they did not need to wait long for the rest of their troupe to arrive. Some had already arrived, and others were en route at that very moment.

The first to arrive at the scene (to Ariyu’s frustration, for she always wanted to be the first to arrive at the scene of any play), was the investigator Muldog. A hobgoblin from the Mountains up north, and an archaeologist by trade. We would also stress that he wore a hat that Uravus considered quite impressive.

The next to arrive was a walking, talking stuffed rabbit named Tris, of the Night Watch. Warriors with swords less honed than Uravus would have found the doll ominous, and reader, we must admit that in our recounting of this tale, we personally found the mere description of this figure to be unnerving. It is not meant to be no slight against Tris, but it was as if this particular doll had an incredibly intimidating stature.

Finally, but certainly not least to arrive were Kora Caroli, the psychic gambler and Sabelle, the cleric of the Living God. We do not mean to imply they arrived at the same time or travelled together, but as they are both regulars in these books, and in the interest of brevity, we have deemed fit to include them together.

Uravus greeted Sabelle like one would greet an old friend, with a warm handshake and a pirate’s hug. Discerning readers might raise an eyebrow at this, and we, unfortunately, must take a moment to address this. We are sure that you are, no doubt, aware of vile rumors and reprehensible accusations against the Enigmatic Cleric. So pervasive were these rumors, that Muldog and Tris were beset by insidious voices in their head levying aspersions against the Sabelle’s character.

To his credit, Uravus spoke out against the ill will proffered by the newer members of this troup. We must stress that the Good Cap’n Stardust was, and still is, unaware of any ill intent from Sabelle. Moreover, we have spent an inordinate amount of time investigating such rumors and gossip, and find there is no merit in the things said about Sabelle. This will be the only time we will speak of such matters.

We hope that the reader will forgive us for our momentary divergence. We assure you that this will be the only time we will deviate from the topic at hand, that is to say, the recounting of this adventure.

The one who called for help was a Kobold Fisherman named Fisherman Gale, who illustrated this by introducing himself to the group with the words “Hello, I’m Fisherman Gale!” He led the group from the gates, and, a man of efficiency, talked as he walked. “Been fishing the northern shores for 10 years, most of me life! Just need you to take a look at the shore about 7 days north of here. Things have been real peculiar.”

–

The Trip to the Shore took seven days, and during this trip, our adventures busied themselves with conversations, banter, and consideration of the threats facing them. Uravus, wishing to see the road, had placed himself at the front of the wagon, with his new friend, Fisherman Gale.

The wagon was pulled by a mule, a creature helped in the utmost respect by Uravus, and we hope, the reader as well. Uravus asked Fisherman Gale, “Tell me, friend, what is that mule’s name?” Fisherman Gale, shook his head, not out of anger, but of respect. “Ah. It ain’t me place to say. You’ll have to ask him.”

And so, Uravus asked the mule for his name. The mule did not answer, though it was clear, from his reaction (or lack of), that the mule understood Uravus, and had simply deemed him not worth conversing with. Uravus puzzled over this mystery for a moment, then realized the solution was in front of him. Or, more accurately, behind him, in the wagon.

“Ariyu!” He called out, invoking the word of power that would summon his sister, that is to say, her name. “I need help!” Fearing the worst, but expecting considerably less than the worst, Ariyu poked her head out of the wagon to see what Uravus had needed. “What is this mule’s name?”

Had Uravus asked for a lesser chore, Ariyu might have shown her ire. However, she was not one to turn down an opportunity to deal with animals, and thus, turned her eagle eyes to the mule. “Ah, Mister Donkey, what is your name, sir?” she asked.

The Mule stopped the wagon and turned to look at Ariyu. He stared her down. She stared back, her eagle eyes never wavering. As he searched the mettle of her soul, she searched his, and realized his name was Bartholomule. She said as much, “His name is Bartholomule, I believe.”

Uravus nodded to Ariyu, then to Bartholomule. “A wise name for a wise friend.” Fisherman Gale grinned at this. “Yes, he’s a fine friend and a fine business partner. He’s been at it longer than I’ve been alive!” As the Fisherman said this, Bartholomule snorted. It was clear that though the mule did not dislike the words his friend had said, he felt some embarrassment in Fisherman Gale stressing his age. Realizing that the emotions in the air were in danger of being dashed by a verbal blunder, Uravus made his exit to the back of the wagon to congregate with the rest of the group, who had begun to play a rousing game to pass the time, in which Uravus happily jumped in.

“I spy, with my third eye, something quite magnificent!” The Cleric declared.

“Is it the wind at our backs, propelling us to adventure?” Uravus asked, cheerfully.

“Ah, that is quite magnificent, but he is not quite that.” The Cleric said.

“You can see from your third eye? What if I poke it?” Kora Caroli asked.

“If you are not going to guess, I shall take your turn, is it the knowledge that we are traveling with great friends into another adventure?” Uravus cut in, eager to keep the game apace.

“Oh, that is quite nice, but no, he is much grander than that!” Sabelle said, with a growing weariness.

“Is it a creature of they Fey? The first world?” Tris asked, hopefully.

At this Sabelle shook his head. “No. None of that rubbish. I think I have lost my appetite for this game.”

And on this somber note, we must inform you that the rest of the travel was largely uneventful and slightly uneventful as well. .

–

Fisherman Gale had a small shack he liked to stay in while fishing up north along the coastline, and it is here where the wagon had brought them. Along the beach were a legion of adorable seals idling along the coastline.

“I never took you for a kennelmaster, you’ve so many dogs!” Sabelle declared with wonder at the collection of critters.

“Ah, those are the seals. I can’t get rid of the pests.” Fisherman Gale said with a shake of his head.

“Aw, but they seem like such gentle souls.” Kora Caroli added.

“Not since the Rift opened. They’ve been acting strange. Seals keep winding up dead on the shore.” Fisherman Gale stated, as he made his way up the beach. “That’s why I brought you all out here.”

“Hrm. They are seals? What are they sealing?” Tris asked, as she surveyed the collection of critters.

“Never been able to figure that out, myself.” Fisherman Gale said.

It was then that Uravus was struck with a realization. He looked to the sky, to that horrific rift in the sky we all came to knew, and then he looked to the seals. “What if…” He began, and after searching for the words, realized the enormity of his next few words. “... they were the ones keeping the sky intact?”

“Well… They’re not doing a good job of it.” Tris said, and to prove this, she pointed to the sky.

“Of course not! They’re being killed! If we save the seals, we shall save the sky!” The Good Captain declared.

“I think they are just called Seals…” Kora Caroli added in.

“Tell me, Fisherman, are these fish from Heaven… or from Hell?” Sabelle asked.

Gale surveyed the beach, the adventurers, and the seals. “Perhaps there are two seals, one who brings shadow, and one who brings light.”

Seeing the conversation was ending, Ariyu and Tris approached the seals. Muldog, for his part, began to illustrate the scene, for he had never seen seals before. Upon closer examination, Ariyu and Tris noticed several of the seals had been injured, denoted by bits of blood and small bite marks on their persons. The seals, to their credit, seemed in good spirits and happily approached the two, dragging their adorable little bodies across the breach to say hello.

Reader, we must stress that these creatures were incredibly adorable, and moreover, they were the ones holding the sky together. To kill one would be the most grave of offenses. A sin against decency itself.

And so, while Tris tried to treat the wounds of the seals, she, unfortunately, killed one by mistake. Knowing that this stain on her soul could never be washed away, she panicked and ran to the shack. The other seals, fortunately, did not seem to mind, for as we all know, seals are forgiving and merciful folk. They knew that she had not meant to do what she did, even if such an act was the height of evil.

As Sabelle ran off to comfort Tris, Uravus noticed a large walrus, proud and noble, watching them atop a massive rock. He approached the Walrus.. “Hello! They know me as Cap’n Stardust. What might your name be?” He asked with a low bow, and a tip of his hat. The Walrus snorted dismissively. She had heard of Cap’n Stardust, all creatures had, and was not impressed. This was not a slight against Cap’n Stardust, merely stressing the long life and grand adventures the Walrus had already been on. Uravus stepped forward, and the Walrus rose on her tail in anger. And yet again, Uravus had to invoke the words of power. “Ariyu! Help!” He shouted.

Ariyu, already realizing that Uravus was in trouble with an animal and not a grave threat, approached. She eyed the Walrus, and asked, “Ma’am, what is your name?” The Walrus did not stop her approach, but did not state her name. Ariyu nodded at the discretion, and then looked at the rock the Walrus was perched on. “Can I share your rock?” She said, eager to get an eagle eye on the surrounding area. The Walrus pondered for a moment, then shuffled aside to make room for Ariyu, for she had also heard of Ariyu and knew she was a force to be respected.

Satisfied with his drawings, Muldog began to observe the seals closely. He did this by petting them. Uravus joined in, noting how adorable the seals were. From her rock, Ariyu’s eyes narrowed at the sight, not in opposition to the seals, but in opposition to Uravus’s thought process, which she had already deduced.

“No, Uravus! No more pets!” She shouted from her rock.

“Ariyu… Look at them. They need our help!” The Good Captain said, gesturing to the collective plight of the seals.

Ariyu looked at Uravus, then Muldog, then the adorable seals, and said, “Maybe just one… MAYBE…” She stressed the last word.

Uravus shuffled closer to Muldog. “Muldog, I need your help.” He began, keeping his voice low, and hidden from Ariyu. “We need to sneak one, or two, or three of these home. Can you hide them?”

The clever investigator had already devised three different methods of hiding the seals, and knowing brevity was the central plank of intelligence, that is to say, the soul of wit, simply stated, “Aye Aye, Cap’n.”

Upon further examination, the group realized that whatever misfortune that had preyed upon the seals was not on the beach presently. Moreover, it looked to be the same size as the seals themselves. The group was thoroughly stumped.

Kora looked out to the water. “If it’s all the same to you, I might be curious about what might be in the water.”

“I’m not sure going into the water is a good idea…” Muldog said.

“Well, I would know best about the water, wouldn’t I?” Kora Caroli retorted.

“Here, take this rope,” Uravus began, as handed Kora one end of a long rope. “If you are in danger, pull the rope five times. If you are alright, pull the rope twice. If you see a giant fish, pull the rope ten times. If you signal you are in danger, I will pull the rope, and get you out of the water.”

“Captain, I don’t think that’s necessary. I can send a message to your mind.” Kora said, flatly.

“Ah, I understand that you are saying words,” Uravus began, then concluded, “only, I do not understand the meaning of them.”

Kora Caroli demonstrated, by sending a message directly to Uravus’s mind. Uravus, for his part, jumped at this, for a pirate’s mind is their most precious inner sanctum, and to invade such a sacred ground was a considerable offense. “I am a psychic!” Kora’s words echoed in his mind, to placate his fear.

Uravus thought for a moment, then responded, in kind. “Ah, a medium. You could foretell the future! And solve this mystery right now!” He both spoke and thought these words. Kora Caroli shook her head at this.

“One thing at a time.” She said, before jumping into the water.

Cap’n Stardust looked out into the ocean, rope in hand, and he did what he did best: he wondered, and then he reflected. He thought of his sister, Arumi. She had sequestered herself in the library of Onadbyr to study the mystery of the rift in the sky. How would she react when she found out Uravus and Ariyu had solved it on their own?

He imagined such a conversation. “Oh, Uravus, you were so smart to realize the seals kept the sky sealed.” She would say to him. “I’m proud of you, brother, and moreover, the Jongleur Three is a fine name for a group of adventurers.” He smiled at this thought. He couldn’t wait to solve this mystery and return home.

Kora Caroli’s words in his mind reminded him that they were in fact, still at work. “Captain, there’s something in the water, pull me up!” She asked, directly in his mind.

Uravus thought for a moment. “What’s the code phrase?” He sent back, with his own mind. A moment later, he realized he had, in fact, not given her a code phrase and pulled on the rope to retrieve her from the water. “My apologies, I had forgotten that I had not given you a code phrase. You see, I have given Arumi and Ariyu one hundred code phrases to memorize in case we need to communicate in secret.”

“Nevermind that.” Kora Caroli said, “I saw something in the water. Something shimmering.”

“Well, what was it?” Sabelle asked.

“I’m not sure.” Kora admitted.

“Perhaps a flying shark.” The Cleric opined, then said. “Perhaps you should go back in.”

Uravus nodded at this. “If you see a flying shark, send me code phrase: ‘Help! A flying shark!’. If it’s not a flying shark, send the phrase ‘On wings of Blue, Pull me Through.’” He said these words as he grabbed the rope again. Kora Caroli shook her head at this helpful advice and very clever set of code phrases. “I think, I shall send another message instead.” And thus, she dove back into the water. Moments later, her voice echoed in Uravus’s mind for rescue, and thus, he pulled on the rope to retrieve her from the water.

“I saw a seal with red eyes in the water.” Kora said, breathlessly, for the sight of the seal was quite frightening. “It saw me, then swam away.”

As the assembled group puzzled over this, the wise, but nameless Walrus nudged Ariyu, from atop the pedestal they currently shared. The Walrus then raised a mighty flipper towards the host of seals, for they had collectively begun to swim away. Ariyu, seeing this, focused her keen eyes on tracking the seals, and led the group further down the coast line in pursuit of the red eyed seal and the normal eyed seals.

They tracked the seals further up the coastline. Amongst the large assembly of animals, three stood out to Uravus. And so, the Captain marched up to them, bowed, and said “Hello, they know me as Cap’n Stardust.” He held his hand out to the seals, a symbol of respect, hospitality, and courtesy all at once. Only a pirate could perform something so masterfully diplomatic.

One of the seals flopped away from the pack towards Uravus. It considered him for a moment, and then bit him. Uravus then realized the seal's eyes were red, and quite evil. Looking around at the collection of seals on the beach, the group realized several of them shared these qualities, and what was more, they were making their way to wage war against our brave adventurers.

Uravus shook the Seal off of him and drew his sword. “Very well, scoundrel. Let this be our final battle.” The seal flopped to the ground and fixed him with a cold glare. It nodded in agreement. One way or another, only one of them would leave this battle alive.

The rest of the group sprung to action. Muldog, with his keen mind and keener hammer, began bringing his fury down on the impostor seals. Ariyu had already strung her bow with several arrows, and made quick work of her targets, for she had never missed a shot before and today would not be the day she began. Sabelle summoned forth a skeleton warrior of some sort to cleave through the oncoming storm of angry seals, who were, we assure you, as villainous as the seals the rest of the party fought. Kora, with her powerful mind, fried out the minds of the seals that stood against her. And Tris, seeing that the seals were in fact, quite deadly, summoned a helpful magic tree to protect her companions.

And what of Captain Stardust? Reader, we regret to inform you that the Good Captain’s heart was not in this battle. Even though the Seals were quite deadly, he could not bring himself to bring his sword against them. So though he swung at many of the evil impostor seals, he had only inflicted harm against one, and it was not his hand that felled that particular seal. He was so dedicated to peace with these adorable creatures, that had it not been for the healing hands of Ariyu and the healing magic of Sabelle, he would have fallen that day.

At the end of the battle, Sabelle cried out, “My friends! I believe something is watching us!” The rest of the group turned to where Sabelle indicated, and saw that something, had in fact, been there, and what’s more, it was flying away! Ariyu, with bow in hand, rushed off to track it. The rest of the band followed close behind her. The pursuit took them further into the beach, to a small cove with a wrecked ship buried amongst the sand.

Before Uravus could remark on the tragic beauty of the crashed ship, some sort of evil wizard appeared amidst the wreckage. With tentacular limbs, and a wicked voice that could invade minds, the mage doth spoke. “Finally, souls worthy of taking.” then, without taking time to elaborate, the evil wizard threw a fireball at our dear adventurers.

As the smoke and sand cleared, our brave friends still stood, for each had just barely managed to dodge the oncoming fire. “Fly, my friends!” Sabelle cried out, using his cleric magic to propel each of his allies forward. The Evil Wizard, with friends of his own, sent a legion of flying monsters to beset our brave heroes.

Ariyu, ever vigilant, had already splintered off from the group and found a vantage point to shower the vile mage with arrows. The mage had foreseen such an attack, and his shield magic struck the arrows out of the sky before they could impact.

Kora Caroli dove into the water along the beach, finding it better to battle from an environment she was more comfortable with. With her mental magic, she begun to tie up some of the flying creatures and the evil seals that had joined the fray. Tris, likewise, used her own magic to batter the mage with a mental assault to tie up his faculties, though she had only found limited success with this line of attack.

Muldog charged across the beach, hammer in hand. He had calculated every possible move the Wizard would make, and then calculated every possible counter move, and he knew there was only one strategy that would win them the day. Thus, did he bring his hammer down on the mage, and thus did the mage strike back with his tentacular limbs, pinning the investigator to the sand of the beach. Ah, but our Investigator was not as hapless as he seemed, for he had seen several moves ahead, and knew that all hope lied with Captain Stardust.

And where was the Good Captain, you might be wondering? He charged across the beach, bringing his dueling sword across the brow of one of the flying demons. He knew his friends would finish it off, and thus left it standing. With the Mage’s hands tied up by Muldog, and his mind hampered by Tris, he was unable to affect the approach of the Good Captain, and by the time he was within sword range, all he could do was fling a fireball directly into the face of the Captain.

Muldog, now freed from the Mage’s grasp, dodged the fireball, but his friends were not so lucky. Tris barely weathered the fiery onslaught, but had enough strength to heal herself to live another day. Captain Stardust, scorched, but still standing, knew that if he did not slay this monster now, then he, and then his friends, would fall. He steeled himself, for he could not fail.

Cap’n Stardust stepped through reality, teleporting from one place, to the next, and stabbed the evil wizard. The Wizard stood on shaky ground, Uravus, knew he had but one chance left. With a flourish he cut a symbol into the wizard’s chest, the letter J. He followed it with four quick swipes, spelling the number 3. He cut the symbol of the Jongleur Three into the Wizard, and then, did he fall.

The threat to the seals had been stopped. Their work sealing the sky could begin again.

As Ariyu and Tris tended to the wounds of the group, Kora searched through the shipwreck, finding a collection of treasure to bring back to the group. Sabelle, regaled the party with his deductions, owing his knowledge to the Living God. The demons were shapeshifters, who spread their corruption through bites. When they had returned to the Fisherman, who’s name was Fisherman Gale, he had nodded keenly, and then said “Well, I don’t quite understand what you’re saying, but it sounds like you got the job done!”

And thus, our friends returned home. On the Wagon Ride home, Muldog shared a knowing smile with Captain Stardust, for he had done as the Captain had asked, and managed to hide a Seal amongst their party, and thus, did the Captain recruit another creature into the Jongleur Three.