Downtime: J.J.

For the first time in years, he answered your missive. Perhaps your patron has not truly given up on you after all. If you could just find something more to give him, he might bring you back into his good graces.

JJ has never been happier. Finally completing a task for his patron, making several new friends, and saving several innocents from harm, JJ is riding high. Sad to see the group split for a bit, JJ nonetheless has his own personal items to attend to. First on his docket is to contact C again. Hoping that with JJ's recent success C would be more talkative, JJ is eager to learn more about the mysterious creature the librarian mentioned.  JJ also decides it's time to visit his guild again and look for better armor. The battle with the water monster has weighed on his conscience and JJ is well aware of his own mortality now. He also is keen on maybe earning some extra funds so he could perhaps upgrade his cart. 

Your patron's words flash in your mind. "The Preserver's agents work against me here. My collection must wait. Ivaran has a task for you." Following up with Ivaran reveals that the presence of a dryad working for another archfey known as the preserver has been confirmed. He isn't sure where she is keeping her base of operations, though, as dryads are linked to great trees and there are few trees in the city, all of the public ones having been ruled out. Without her tree, he says, stopping her will be only temporary. He asks that you use your Mask to trail the dryad and gives you details about how to find her. He cannot be missing for long enough to accurately trail her to her home tree, but he suspects that you can be. After a stop in at the local guild of leatherworkers and a quick exchange of credentials to get the guild discount on a set of well-made armor, you set out to find the dryad and follow her in disguise. She herself is disguised as an elf maiden, but Ivaran's information about her routine marks her from the crowd. Following her takes most of a day, as she stops and speaks with a number of people too quietly to be easily heard. More than once, small items are traded between her and one of her contacts. Eventually, however, she enters a temple to Haborh the forest god, and as she closes the door to an inner cloister, you glimpse a copse of trees kept hidden from the public eye. It seems that her tree must be hidden within. ((You can buy any leather-made goods at a 5% discount, due to your friendships with the guild.))

The next day, JJ will try to infiltrate the temple using his Mask to make it seem like he's one of the workers within the temple. Once inside, he will examine the copse of trees and attempt to be as inconspicuous as possible until the dryad comes back. He's carrying his tinderbox in his back pocket just in case. He wants to catch the Dryad alone near her tree and have a conversation before doing anything potentially destructive.

Sneaking in goes smoothly enough, your disguise protecting you from all but the most suspicious of gazes. You slip through the doorway and find that there are indeed many trees here, well hidden from the city outside. In fact, this massive room holds a tiny forest, less than an acre across but somehow complete with undergrowth, moss, mushrooms, and even a tiny stream that runs from one end of the room to the other. Looking up, you expect to see sky but instead see only a magical light near the ceiling which presumably provides all the light these plants require. One of the trees stands out from the others, and something tells you it belongs to the dryad. Sitting down at its foot to wait, you find yourself oddly peaceful. After some time, the elf maiden you saw yesterday enters the room and approaches the tree. She seems initially surprised to see you there, but approaches. "Pardon me, acolyte, but do you not have duties to attend this day?"

JJ will try to convince her to switch sides while remaining relatively honest with her. His argument is: A. There's a hit on her head from a rival Patron to The Preserver. B. He already knows what she is, who she works for, and where her tree is located.  C. He's passed that info along to the rival Patron. Now everyone that works for It knows exactly where and how to kill the druid. D. The dryad is bound to the tree and can't really go anywhere. E. JJ does not want to kill the tree, either through burning or poison. Several reasons:     i. The fire or poison could spread and JJ doesn't want the temple destroyed or Haborh pissed off.     ii. JJ prefers peaceful solutions and does not want to harm the dryad. It does not deserve destruction. JJ will try to shed fake tears at this moment to add to his sincerity.     iii. JJ does not mind nature and prefers not to destroy it. F. If the dryad switched sides or became an informant, the hit would be off her head. G. The rival Patron only wants to reduce The Preserver's influence in the city, not necessarily kill the dryad. H. There are only 3 ways this could end:     1. She kills JJ. In which less peaceful people come and burn the temple to the ground.     2. She refuses to switch sides. JJ is left with no choice but to kill her and the tree.     3. She switches sides to become an informant. 

The dryad makes a counteroffer. If you defect, her master would be all to happy to reduce the number of people deliberately causing chaos in the city. His most fervent hope is to keep everything as it is forever. As she is a true fey and not a mortal, she has no say in her lot; she is bound to the Preserver in her soul and could not change that even if she wanted to.

"Change is part of nature though and even you cannot escape it. What is spring without winter? Plants grow where once forest fires raged. People age and eventually pass away. Change can bring destruction and chaos, but also brings growth and renewal. Although I do not agree with your ideal, I am willing to further consider your offer. Meet me on the East Road Bridge tomorrow afternoon and we can discuss more." JJ will then leave the temple. The next day, JJ will disguise himself as a normal townsperson and wait next to the temple for the dryad to leave. After she's left, JJ will change disguise into a temple acolyte and proceed towards the dryad's tree. He will finally use his tinder to start a fire on the dryad's tree, fan the flames a bit, and leave once it seems the fire will consume the tree.

J.J. is allowed to leave in peace, and returns to the temple while the dryad is away to meet him in person. However, his efforts to set her home tree on fire are less subtle than he would have hoped, and an acolyte spots him in the act. Before he can get away, several acolytes and priests of Haborh have captured him and the city guard, not recognizing him in his disguise, shackles him and throws him in prison. There, he is visited by Anha, the dragonborn high priestess of Haborh, who says nothing but stares at him for a long time, giving the uncomfortable sense that she is reading his thoughts. Eventually she leaves, still having said nothing. J.J. is left in silence for several hours, his fate uncertain, when a small female voice behind him suddenly gives a derisive laugh. "Oh, the big guy said you would be entertaining to work for, but he never mentioned what a fool you were!" Craning around, J.J. can make out the tiny features of a sprite, carefully inserting a key into his shackles. "Trying to take matters into your own hands. That was a solid healthy well-watered tree, even if you hadn't been caught, your little tinderbox would have done nothing more than give it the arboreal equivalent of a tattoo." The shackles pop open and the tiny woman walks around in front of him, seemingly standing on the air. "Well, grab those shackles, your master will probably want them for his collection. I'm going to open this cell, you'll use your other gift to change your face, and we'll walk right out of here. Or you will. I'll probably fly." And with that, she opens the door and vanishes, though you can still sense her presence in your mind. Following her plan goes smoothly enough. She guides you through a series of rooms apparently scouted out ahead of time which means you never actually pass by any guards. Once outside, you get a mental nudge. By the way, you should deliver those shackles to Ivaran. And explain the last couple days to him while you're at it. Delivering the shackles reveals that they are for your master's collection, a sample of fresh folly for his halls. Ivaran seems angry but not furious that you tried to solve the problem yourself instead of just reporting back to him like you were told; possibly because after you were captured, he felt a circle of protection go up around Haborh's temple that will keep fey creatures out. The dryad is now isolated from her home and her place of power, and he can work with that. The sprite, it turns out, was sent by the Collector to work with you in your endeavors. Her name is Lily and you quickly discover that her tongue is as sharp as the tiny sword she carries. ((Any other side adventures J.J. would get started on will be interrupted by the events of the next session))

Your return to the city is less triumphant that last time. Nothing in that undead-infested tin mine seemed to appeal to the Collector's needs, and you know the dryad is still doing something for the Preserver, though not what. On the plus side, you came back considerably wealthier yourself. ((You once again have downtime in Yenelas City. You can spend your downtime pursuing personal goals, trying to train in the use of new skills or equipment, or any other task you can think of.))

JJ goes to the store to sell off his leather armor (not the studded one he's wearing) and dagger. Whilst there, he will peruse the shops for interesting weapons and items (just wants to see what's available). In particular he will seek to buy a rapier. Lily has said the awkward, clumsy spear that JJ has been carrying makes him look like a peasant and a follower of the Collector should carry a more dignified weapon.

You are able to sell a set of leather armor and a dagger for a combined total of 3 gold and 5 silver. Looking around, you see a variety of exotic-seeming weapons and armor, but unless they are magical or you pursued special training by a master of the weapon they would be impractical for use ((All simple weapons and the more basic martial weapons are easy to find in any outfitter's shop. More unusual options like Tridents, Blowguns, Scimitars, and Nets will be findable with time, but are sold in speciality shops or neighborhoods where non-native populations congregate. It is possible that someone has magical gear but J.J. cannot tell it from flashy non-magical gear easily)). Turning, at Lily's stern insistence, to the more workmanlike styles, you find a rapier in good shape. It has a simple basket hilt made of thin metal bars in a plain grid pattern, and its blade is thicker and less stylized than most. When you point out that such a plain weapon is hardly an improvement, Lily retorts that any rapier is already an improvement, and besides the only reason this weapon seems so plain now is that it's young and hasn't developed its own personality yet. Seeing you examining it, the merchant ambles over and informs you that that particular blade will cost 25 gold pieces.

JJ will buy the blade at 25gp. He will then spend the rest of the time training with Lily outside of town in the use of his new weapon. While training together, Lily and JJ share stories and come to a better understanding with each other (after a very rocky start). They both agree to name JJ's new rapier Trust, as a sign and reminder of their shared bond.

JJ will also sell the spear.

The spear nets you another 5 silver pieces. With Lily's help, you learn to wield your rapier. ((As long as you spend part of every downtime practicing with the rapier, you are considered proficient. If you try to develop proficiency in another tool or weapon you may need to make checks to stay in practice, since this is still new for you)).