Shipwrecked in Saltmarsh

((Races lost negative modifiers in general I believe.  Shortly before Tasha’s but close to the same time.  It’s quite a todo amongst some because it’s part of an effort to strip stereotypes from the written rules of the game (Strahd updated to use more accepted terms for the Vistani I think it is?) and such. Since some races were created as a kind of fantasy version of stereotypes...  of course some are fanatically against this because they feel it robs them of... I dunno.  They’re against anything they feel is PC or inclusive?  Because they should have the right to... be non PC and  to be nonwelcoming if they choose?  Anyway, if you’ve missed all the debates and noise and brouhaha, just be thankful!))

The party settles in to a mellow and restful couple of hours in the fishy-smelling Snapping Line. Mid-day business is thin, so the party commands the tavern.

Dain examines the golden items carefully. The human skull (20 gp), apple (5 gp), rose (5 gp), and set of five small discs (balance weights, 5 gp each) all appear to have been cast with solid (if somewhat impure) gold, in molds. The renderings are simple and not very artistic, but they were fettled very carefully to remove any trace of seams. (The value of the raw gold is only marginally lower than the items in their current forms.)

Dain smokes his new pipe as he carefully examines each object, and reminisces aloud about the battle with the skeletons and the dead alchemist. As he exhales the smoke, it does not dissipate, but rather lingers over Dain's head. After a few minutes, the smoke forms moving shapes that reenact the skeletal battle in that old, long-sealed cellar. After about five minutes, as this realistic performance is complete, the smoke dissipates.

Molo tunes up his dulcimer preparing for the evening performance. Fianna asks Hanna about the old bridge, but doesn't learn much. ("It's really old!") Before Kelnan can disappear into his studies, Katernin reminds the party that Krag is expecting them about now for the burial of Lucky, together with any sort of ceremony you wish to perform. ("No portals, no sacrifices, nothing destructive," you recall him saying.)

(BTW: One correction: Katernin also doesn't need to pay lifestyle expenses, as she has a self-sustaining, if meagre, shrine "business".)

(Is everyone headed to the burial ground? Do you have any special wishes for Lucky's burial? Shall Katernin lead a service of any sort?)

((Katernin will... give me a moment to find my notes))

     Fianna of course attends the service.  She watches it all with a respectful demeanor but stands apart from any ceremony or prayer. She will put a silent hand upon Lucky's casket and wish his next life more suited for the name he carried in this one... And she likely will slip a dagger into his casket, so he will be armed wherever he goes next.

FYI: The burial ground is conveniently located next to Winston's store and Katernin's shrine. Kelnan also senses a fellow academic in this Krag, the gravedigger. While a bit lowbrow, he might be a useful scholarly connection.

Molo will go with. 

Dain will go to the service.

Additionally, he will ask Molo is the little one can benefit from the pipe as it seems to be related to story telling.

Molo will take it before even considering if it’s true.

(The pipe has been added to Molo's inventory.)

It's bone cold when you arrive at the burial ground. The exposed hilltop looks depressingly desolate. Krag is sitting outside, eating a big bowl of something none too appetizing looking. You see a fresh hole in the ground further up a hill, and what you assume to be Lucky's body under a rough cloth tarp next to it. A second body rests near Krag, covered similarly.

He looks up. "Oh, good!" he says in welcome, giving a crooked smile.

     Fianna gives Kraft a brief, sad smile and says hello.  A gentle touch of his hand (and some Prestidigitation) spreads some warmth, even if just temporary.  “Thank you for tending to this,” she says.

Dain will stand to the back, not knowing this young lad but having some sympathy as he was clearly killed in the same place and by the same folk that Dain had been captured by.

Krag has dug a deep and beautifully geometric hole, and has a simple wooden marker he has prepared. He has a clever portable winch to lower the body down, upon a plank. There is no coffin. Most of the party gathers around the hole, and looks to Katernin expectantly.

"I gotta 'nother hole t' dig today," says Krag, making polite conversation. "Guard got his head crushed by smugglers, they said. Just brought 'im in. I gotta special section jus' fer the Guards." He points. "We sure go through 'em."

(Note: I haven't forgotten your downtime activities; we'll speed things up, but we'll also take this one day at a time. I just wanted to take care of the burial, first!)

When Katernin gets there, it's obvious she's been crying for a little while. She's changed from her armor into simple hooded vestments, a unicorn horn embroidered into the front. In her hands is a small bundle of flowers. She waits until everyone arrives before pulling the hood down, her hair braided into a crown, and pale gold eyes visible to the party for the first time. "I... um..." she trails off for a moment, "I'd like a sapling... but these will have to do," she holds up the flowers. "I was hoping I wouldn't have to do this so soon... Ehlonna is a goddess of life, woodlands, fertility..." she stops for a moment, taking a shaky breath.

She continues, "But she also knows that all life comes to an end. And when it does, she wishes her followers to turn over to their bodies to the woodlands and wild places, so that their bodies can be used to bring about new life. We're not losing Lucky... not really," she stops to take another deep breath, "he'll still be here, in our hearts, minds, and in the life he'll grant to these flowers. And every time that we feel we are forgetting, they'll be here to remind us that with every loss comes something new. If... if anyone has anything to say," she says, looking at each of the party members, "please," she waves at the area next to Lucky's body.

Molo clears his throat.

”Lucky was brought on the same journey out of wretched slavery with us. Fought at least as hard. And when he wasn’t fighting with a blade, he was fighting for happiness. He was a good person. And he deserved better.”

Fianna is hesitant, but eventually steps forward.

     “Life is about loss,” she says while looking at Lucky.  Then she turns to Dain who is standing at the fringes. “But also about gains.  We do not get to choose which our balances the other, all we can do is try to hold onto the memories of the joys rather than the losses...”

     It’s at this point Fianna puts a dagger with Lucky’s body.  “You are a fierce one, Lucky.  Stay that way, whatever comes next...”

     And then Fianna steps back.

Kelnan brings out a sheet of parchment he's written an old Elvish blessing on, folds it neatly, and places it in Lucky's hand.

"Pretty sure I said goodbye once already, but in any case... There weren't many decent crew on that evil ship, but they hadn't gotten to you yet. You deserved better, friend."

Once done, he goes to find Krag and quietly starts chatting.

"Death rituals really are fascinating don't you think? I once read of a tribe of wood elves that cultivated the bodies of their dead into the most lovely flower gardens. The book had these detailed drawings from the druidic botanist Llanavir. The colors were still so vibrant after nearly a century, he must have used some kind of magical ink. I tried to duplicate it once, a little powdered ruby in with the pigment.........."

He goes on as long as the gravedigger allows him.

Molo tries to just start playing his dulcimer as Kelnan continues talking to sort of “play him off.”

Krag lights up at Kelnan's chatter, and listens intently to his stories. He soon chimes in with a story about three-hundred year old rituals in the Hool Marshes in which the early Saltmarsh townsfolk would leave their dead for the massive alligators to feed upon. It goes on a bit too long. Only Molo's playing brings him back to his duty to finally lower Lucky into the hole. "Anybody care fer some stew?" he concludes. It doesn't appear to be anything meant for sharing.

The services quickly conclude. Krag has another hole to dig. Before he departs he offers Kelnan access to Fireborn’s personal library, which he manages, in exchange for his organizational help.

Returning to the inn, the evening concludes with an uneven and occasionally explosive performance by Molo on his dulcimer. 

Katernin plants the flowers on top of Lucky's grave, whispers one final prayer to Ehlonna to bless new life from old, before getting up and heading back to her own little shrine, too mentally and emotionally exhausted to participate in anything else.

Dain will drink heartily and hoist an occasional toast to Lucky.