The Fantasy Blues

"Maybe your next song should be a little more... beer friendly," Gowron suggested. "Play to the crowd." Tez thought about it, and spent the next few songs writing furiously. By the time he got up for his second attempt, "Midnight Drinking Song" passed from his lips to the crowd's ears, and everyone raised a glass or two to it.

"Here a drink, there a drink, in your underwear a drink!"

With Onen and Mundo off to compete in the Port Harbor Drinking Contest, Tezor led the party into town to check out the festival and sign up for the Music Contest...

They found it at the open bazaar on Bizaare Street. A booth labeled "Conteste Registrationes" caught Gowron's eye, and a cute halfling female caught Tezor's. She marched right up to him and introduced herself as Lily Longflower, and would he be interested in singing? Very much, he replied somewhat nervously. Lily walked him through the process and got him set to perform between Slag the fire troll (on slagpipes) and Mirth the Giggling Clown.

Athos, Porthos and Aramis brought a round of drinks to the table, and Gowron settled in with a cup of sweet mead. He looked around nervously. he wasn't exactly a 'crowd person'.

The competition was spirited and occasionally hilarious. Olena the Banjo Queen opened the show, and got the crowd warmed up with lightning speed. Slag then brought the house down (almost literally) when balls of magma flew out of one pipe and up into the tent. Mirth didn't seem to take the contest too seriously, farting and belching a forgettable rendition of "Flight of the Bumblebee". Then Tezor stood up in front of the crowd of strangers and sang a sweet tune called "The Fantasy Blues".  The crowd was enthusiastic, though it wasn't clear whether they loved the song, or were just relieved that it hadn't been farted.

Tezor ended his contest with a rousing thigh-slapper, "The Mighty Keg". The performance earned him third place in the contest (behind Olena and Slag) as well as a job offer. A man named Bailiwik, whose uncle owns The Barking Spider, offered him a paying gig whenever he wanted one. Tez politely passed, and took his 100gp winnings back to the table, where Lily was waiting for him.

Unfortunately, there was also a big green troll waiting for him as well. It seems the troll wanted to talk to Liliy, but Lily only wanted to talk to Tez. Tempers flared, and it was only the nightsticks of the three Guidos that kept the peace (and kept Tex from being eaten).

Here's where Gowron asked to find old Ben Firenze. They were directed to The Yawning Portal, where Ben introduced them to his female companions, Faith, Hope and Verity. Verity then offers to do a reading for Gowron, in order to show him his path. He draws five cards from a deck, each card  symbolizing a step on the path. 

The Ten of Swords • The Hermit

The Two of Pentacles • The Knight of Wands

The Tower

Verity gives these cards to Gowron as a reminder of the steps on his path. He thanked her, and motioned for the group to step outside.

It was then that, through the din of a hundred drunks, that Gowron hear Moonbreath's howl. The wolf had agreed to stay outside town while the everyone fested, but Gowron sensed trouble in the white wolf's cry. The party dashed to the trailhead where they last saw Moonbreath. But instead of the wolf patiently waiting their return, they found Moonbreath had been corned... by a clown.

Mirth had Moonbreath pressed up against a tree, threatening him with something the party couldn't see. But when Gowron called out, Mirth panicked, and dashed into the woods down a dark pathway. Gowron called to Moonbreath to get him! and everyone followed. 

Running pell mell down a wooded pathway at night isn't always the greatest strategy, but at least they did it with an elven ranger in the lead. His sharp eyes could discern twist and turns in the low light, and they could spot the patch of banana peels that appeared suddenly, right in front of Gowron. With a twitch, he switched from running to sliding, surfing down the path in a slippery yellow streak. Tez nimbly and smartly avoided the peels altogether. The three Guidos were not so lucky. 

The banana peel trick had been a success, though, as Mirth had slipped out of sight. So had Moonbreath, and Gowron's heart sank as he saw lights up ahead. The forest gave way to a large field, one that had a rather robust circus planted in the middle of it. Gowron looked left and right, to no avail. Both Moonbreath and the clown were nowhere to be seen. He asked a passing Swami (who was badgering a muscle man) if he had seen a white wolf. "We don't have one of those," he squeaked from behind a pair of yellow buck teeth, 'but if you know where I can get one, I'll pay you a fair price."

"Over there!" Tez pointed to a tint tent where Moonbreath was being tempted into the back flap by a sinister green hand waving a raw steak. Gowron made a dash for the tent, arriving just as the flap closed. He cautiously drew his sword and peeled back the flap. It was dark inside. Really dark. He whispered a word in elvish and his sword gave off a faint light. Still, it did not penetrate the eerie darkness within. He lit a candle and thrust it forward. It barely lit the few feet in front of him, but he could now see straw on the floor, and the edge of a mouldy mattress. 

Tez caught up and entered the tent from the front. He peeered inside and could barely see Gowron's candle. They met at the center of the tent, and found the bed, some crates, a barrel and an empty birdcage hanging from the top of the tent. Seeing neither the owner of the hand or Moonbreath, the two searched every bit of the tent. When Tez opened the chest, he found something: a ladder that descended deep underground. Gowron and Tezor looked at one another. Things were getting interesting...