Malachi frowns slightly at Ashley’s comments on the tower, thinking back to his own look inside Vilus’ mind when he had tapped into those energies. “Fix the tower, how would we do that?  We would have to find it first, somewhere deep in the First Wood based on where we were in the tunnels, and the last time Vilus looked through it, it was…” Malachi shakes his head, not sure how to put it into words “dangerous.”

Malachi is silent afterwards as he quietly tries to navigate the tunnels without drawing the cave bear's attention. Stealth 14 rolled in channel. 

"the organisation performed an old ritual, to make me what I am. It's a tradition which is more for show these days, but it likely had roots in worship, they might know something about the tower, but I can't ask them anymore... We may find clues at the tower itself..." 

21 stealth rolled

Together, the group wanders back down the familiar path, keeping an ear out for the cave bear. At one point Ashley manages to stop everyone when she hears the bear coming, and Vilus quietly leads them on a small detour to avoid its path. But without too much delay, they are able to reach the exit to the secret compound and make it out to the street above, reflecting on what they've learned. The good news is that the fleet is diverted, but it is odd that they didn't find any remaining cultists. Though there is hope that Marigold's help will shed some light on the perpetrators of the council assassination.

As the group surface, Vilus gets his bearings of where in the city they are and then takes a stance leaning against a wall waiting for the others to clamber up to street level. "I'll take our youngest addition to where he can get some help, I don't mind if someone wants to come with us, but the others should go back and check on our own prisoner, I'm sure Marion will appreciate the relief, she needs some respite from her guard duty."

Smiling at the kid blinking in the sunlight after so much time being under ground, Ashley speaks up, "I'll join you, Vilus.  This kid sure needs some help and I'm hoping we can get him some soon."

Turning to her friends, "Don't open our present till we get back!" she teases about Marigold.. she really wonders what they are going to unveil there.

"I will be heading back then." Samir brushes his coat, clearing away any dust or dirt that he had surely picked up underground. "Try not to be too long away. There could still be threats out there that we couldn't see on the map."

Joren wavers, torn as to where his protection might most likely be needed.

Finally, he and his echo both nod in tandem, and he turns to follow Samir and the others back to their... 'home', though not before giving Mikael a thump on the back.  "Listening to what Uncle Vilus and Auntie Ashley are saying, yes?  Getting lucky, you, meeting the right crew here, being a magical type of lad."

The two groups begin to part ways, but then Mikael separates from Vilus and Ashley to turn to the others. He bows deeply. "Thank you all again for all your kindness. I'll never forget this."

Then Vilus and Ashley head into the tangled maze of buildings that is the rows. The others begin to head back to their shop. Arriving a few minutes later, Marion opens the door to greet them. Much of her vitality and colour has returned to her. "Welcome back. All has been quiet in your absence. Thank the Lady. What news?"

Malachi turned to follow Samir “I will join you in heading back, I believe we talked about trying to root around in Marigold’s mind to see if anything was left under there.  I should be able to help with that.”  He enters the shop, relieved to be back, and greets Marion “You are looking better. Thank the Lady indeed, and it looks like her influence is spreading. It also looks like the invasion fleet has turned north to go who knows where, and Vilus wants to tromp through the forest in the middle of nowhere to fix a broken tower.  Hopefully we can get something out of Marigold to help make sense of all of this.” Malachi tries to share what they learned with Marion, leaving ample space for Samir or Joren to add to the story as well. 

"Well that sounds like mostly good news," Marion says with a soft smile. "I've been busy checking in on our resident cultist every few hours or so." She holds up her sword, its edge stained with greenwood and treesap with flecks of sawdust. "Her prison has been trying to take root, and I think if we let it, she may become something of a permanent installation in the shop."

Joren grunts noncommittally at Malachi's account, and at Marion's response, though he does clasp Marion's shoulder and nod in approval at her recovery.  He leaves it to the arcane magicians to understand the workings of Marigold's arboreal prison.  Instead he turns to Samir, somewhat hesitantly.

"I have been sensing you doubt my suspicions, my friend," he confides in the half-orc scholar, "and perhaps you are correct.  Yet I am asking, may I borrow Shep's medallion?  I am wanting to do a circuit of this place inside and out, to look for any traces of yellow light..."

Joren grimaces before adding, "... or purple."

Walking around the space and checking it thoroughly, Joren gets nothing out of the ordinary from the medallion... until he goes downstairs. He had been anticipating some yellow as he approached Marigold's cocoon, which has numerous roots leading from it, some severed, some newly grown, reaching down to try to burrow through the floor. What surprises Joren, however, is how faint the taint of Razmus seems to be down here. Instead, most of the medallion, when pointed at her wooden prison, is dominated by red

Joren stops, completely still, brow furrowed.  Until a week or two ago, he had never heard of the Ebb, nor the Red Huntsman, nor of any Talisman that could distinguish between his Dunamic echo effects and the Blue Lady's arcane or divine magic employed by spellcasters that he has seen.

He brings his echo near Marigold's arboreal cage, opposite himself.  Slowly, he draws his Dunamis Blade, straining his senses for... he knows not what.  Some resonance?  An echo of an echo?  Anything that might let him identify the nature of a possible kinship to this strange cocoon.

(If sensing nothing, Joren will call out to Samir, who he seems to recall also showed red when near Shep's Talisman?)

After hearing Marion’s story, Malachi follows Joren downstairs. “We can’t have Marigold taking root in the basement, that would ruin the place! A cultist in the neighborhood, no matter what form, has to be bad for business, bad for property values.”  Malachi looks over Joren’s shoulder and sees the red glow of the amulet “Red? Not what I expected. That is the Huntsman, right? Is it reading you, Joren?”

Standing near, Malachi feels a slight tug on his senses, like there is a gentle current pulling at his magical energies, though it is not strong enough to displace them. 

(Give me an arcana check)

After arriving back to the shop, Samir has busied himself in looking around for a map that he can use. In all honesty, he cannot remember if he has one himself or not so much of his searching involves being elbow deep in his satchel while trying to peer down into its contents. At Joren's call, he looks up owlishly before slinging his bag once more and heading down into the basement. 

"Joren? Everything ok? Marigold hasn't suddenly metaorphosed into a giant evil butterfly has she?"

Ordinarily, Joren would offer some thickly-accented riposte or gallows humor in response to Samir's question, yet this time yes face remains somber, feeling as if he is treading in deep waters.  Silently, he points at the overwhelming red upon the face of Shep's medallion.

"Never am I seeing so much red, Mal," he responds to the half-elf.  "It is not just coming from me, nor from our scholar friend here, though being true the two of us are causing some red when near.  I am thinking it is to do with the Red Huntsman, though I am scarcely knowing what that means."

He hands the medallion back to Samir.  "And almost no yellow being left on Marigold.  I am sensing that understanding what is happening here between the Flow, Ebb and Apogee is important.  We are knowing so little.  Samir, I am thinking you are our best chance at elucidating."

Joren will attempt to help any investigation Samir (or Malachi) perform by making himself, his Dunamis Blade and echo available to manipulate in proximity to Marigold's arboreal cocoon in case he can cause any resonance or reaction from the Red Ebb emanating from it.

"Oh... fascinating..." Samir finds himself almost inextricably drawn down the rest of the way into the basement where he takes the medallion from Joren's hand. His eyes shift steadily back and forth between the medallion and Marigold's cocoon as he closes the distance. "I'm not sure what to make of this, on the face of it, honestly. We know so little about the true divsions between the Red, Blue, and Yellow, not really." A shimmer of light flickers over the lenses of his glasses for an instant, allowing him to perceive the energies and structures that make up the magic around them and he sets to studying what is happening as best he is able.

“It’s drafty down here.” Malachi pulls his jacket a little tighter as he feels the sensation of a breeze and looks sharply toward Samir as he mentions metamorphosis. “That can’t happen can it?  I mean the metamorphosis, not the evil butterfly thing. What do you think is happening in there, is she dying? Healing? Or changing into something completely different?”

Samir looks for magical signatures, and sees the cocoon as a nest of transmutation, evocation, and abjuration magic. But most interesting are the thin wisps of magic that appear to be trailing off, but upon closer inspection are actually drawing in towards the roots from the air around. Like it's drawing in ambient magic from the air around to power its magic. The opposite of what he sees when someone like Ashley pushes her own magic outward.