It seems ages ago the party slowly arrived in Silver City following the defeat of the Gnoll raiding party and the mysterious disappearance of Miriam. The party settled into their rooms to recover and come up with a plan to find the missing heiress. Tronc and Kovacs decide to start asking around town and hunting down leads. Jean takes the opportunity to visit his family orchard, despite his tragedy and Eira accompanies him. Arriving as dusk Jean and Eira are greeted by Jean's younger cousin Michel who he charged with the orchard after leaving it and his tragic past behind him. Michel informs him over the course of a few days that the orchard is doing well and the cider brewery is growing but slowly. Most recently he has been troubled by a patch of trees that are "off". He can't identify an illness or a poison but they look unhealthy and the fruit ruins cider batches. Easy enough to avoid but the illness is slowly growing. Jean and Eira view the patch during the daylight and easily find the ill trees but cannot immediately determine the cause. They do find some suspicious tracks around the trees and decide to await the night and see if anything reveals itself. Not long after dark a group of young humans unsuccessfully sneaking into the patch of trees. The spread out and began pouring something on the trees at the edges of the illness. Jean confronts the group with Eira providing cover from the trees. They almost come to blows but Jean cannot bring himself to attack the youth. Their sad story is bound up in his own. They are suffering the loss of family and security in the face of the tragedy at the mine. Eira does discover the Jeans history but sees his character revealed. Jean does not turn in the children seeking revenge on him but instead hires them to work on the orchard and earn an honest wage. Perhaps easing some other's pain, Jean keeps carries his with him a bit longer. Returning to Silver City, Jean and Eira cannot find their companions. After some waiting they decide to search out their companions and ask around about Miriam themselves. Posted on the board in the center of town they see many notices and flyers. Most are for jobs or local attractions including a visiting circus. Scattered here are there are posting for missing children. They are approached by a man on the street who appears nervous and disheveled. Introducing himself as Brother Marcus who serves at one of the local orphanages. He asks the heroes (recognizing Jean) to search out the missing children. Many children have disappeared in recent weeks and he is worried. Lacking much other directive and driven by a sense of duty, Jean and Eira agree to look into the matter. Asking around and interviewing other children they determine to visit The Midnight Circus which it seems, many children had visited. On the way to the outskirts of town they find their companions, weary and returning from another fruitless search for Miriam. Arriving at the fairground they find the Circus is just setting up! This is not the Midnight Circus. This is a new company The Traveling Salvation Show run by a humble but handsome human named Brother Love. He has heard of Mommy Fortuna and her Midnight Circus. Nothing good. He wishes them well, blesses them and sends them on their way. Trailing the most obvious road with the assistance of Jean's wolf Ouzel they find them after a week or so of tracking. In the night they spot a campfire in the distance off the main road. Jean quietly moves into viewing distance and spies an old woman sitting around a roaring campfire alone. He watched her for a bit before she stood up unsteadily and checked the doors and locks on the four wagons around the fire before letting herself into the last wagon. After some debate, the party tries to present themselves to Mommy Fortuna but despite the warm light shining out of the small leaded windows no one answers the door. It opens into a darkness. Tronc ventures inside and sees a small bare room before it goes completely black. Then he finds himself in a fun-house maze. He ventures in. His companions worried as his disappearance rush in after him but find themselves in an identical room. Venturing out they find Tronc in the fun-house maze and continue together. They determine it id designed to force people (likely children) to follow a specific path. Some doors are in fact Mimics and behind the creatures are the remains of devoured victims (again, mostly children). The doors that are not Mimics lead to an enchanted rooms with sparkling orbs at the center. Tronc, Kovacs and Jean all succumb to the urge to grab the orbs. Tronc and Jean fight off a "fluttering" feeling in their chest but Kovacs immediately begins to act unlike himself. He is acting and begins to transform into a bird! The party rushes to find an exit, encountering one more Mimic and Jean and Tronc begin to show signs of physically transforming into birds as well. They find the exit which returns them to the door of Mommy Fortuna's wagon only to find Mommy and four other creatures waiting for them!