29 Dualahei 838

We leave the city and wander out to a swamp like land, Salt Wallow Bog, to the town of Middlemire. We meet some friendly people who worship the Untamed Mother and live on the edge of the Velvet Thicket, the forests to the South of the Swamp. Wonders talks to Angie, the woman who greeted us, asking her about the elven city, Eyaluna. We explain that we are looking to perform some prayers while at the site where the city used to be.
We’re told to talk to ‘Daddy’, as he is the only person who still goes into the ruined city that the swamp has reclaimed.
The team goes into a dilapidated church where ‘services’ are going to be held shortly for the Untamed Mother.
Father Wilo Elsbury is inside, ready to start the service.

There’s a couple dozen people inside the church - they are all a little worn and tattered but have attempted to make themselves presentable. Almost everyone in the church is gnomish, except a family of three dwarves that sit in the back. The dwarves appear slightly out of place as their clothing seems newer; they also seem like they aren’t as excited as the rest of the people in the church.
An older gnomish woman greets us, and tells us her name is Pam. We go inside and find ourselves a seat.

Father Elsbury stands up and begins giving an impassioned sermon about unity, being one with nature, and all peoples being connected through nature to one another. It’s around an hour-long sermon. Around the end the Father gives offerings of the ‘mother’s milk’ which seems to be a murky white tea. Everyone that takes the offering has acid resistance for the next 24 hours. Eveneem declines the tea.

The dwarven family gets up and heads for the door quickly, they don’t seem like they want to stay afterward as the rest of the people do. Ali introduces herself to the dwarves, who reply with their names. They are new to the area as well. They’re botanists who came to study the plant life. The dwarven father says that attending the church is basically mandatory. He seems to look down on the people a bit, but not with malice, more like pity.

After the services, Ali meets with Dav and the rest of the Dwarven family, and sees that he drew a tree with what looks like a house with doors. It seems that he saw it somewhere he wasn’t supposed to go “out west.” They flirt and make arrangements to meet the following day.

Wonders goes and talks to Angie and then Father Elsbury. Father Elsbury agrees to take the party to see Luna the moon tree, and the ruins of Eyaluna, which sound like they might have catacombs to explore. He cautions the party against going west or leaving the trails that the wildmother has shown him to be safe. He also invites us to stay at the local inn, the Eye uh’ Luna.