The Potter's Guild -- July 2025

The Potter's Guild opened with two major troubles facing the Detectives: An Egg of Ending warped into a World-Ending Egg by the Sea Fox and Niddhogr, and a teensy bit of trouble from the lid on the jar holding the Umibozu prisoner. Both were leftovers from the previous adventure, with the story of the egg going back to April's "Turf & Twig."

Madame Drak's 3-Penny Mystery dream came in one form this week: Contact with the Nine Dreamers went offline as they gathered Dragonmages to fight the Umibozu trying to open a Blue Void. Rebecca the Dragonmage gathered Sayehmoosh, Mr. Blackthorn, and Merneith the Time Raveler to stop the Umibozu from using the Dragon's Eye Stone to open the portal to Mt. Draig. It was an epic battle that happened offstage, so to speak, while our heroes continued into the Norse realms.

Naturally, they discovered one more world-ending trouble: A rune carved into Yggdrasil, the World Tree, that opened the door leading into the roots of the Underworld. Word of this one came from Hallr, the leader of the Potter's Guild. This secret guild worked with the Detectives in 2016, so our team was able to learn from the records of that case.

The Potter's Guild stands for Protectors of the Tree: Every Root Sings. Their business card reads: If you have to ask which tree, you're not ready to join us. Hallr described them as: Planters, Orchardists, Treefriends, Timbertenders, Elementalists, Rewilders, and Sproutkeepers. They're also: arborists, botanists, cultivators, farmers, foresters, florists, gardeners, growers, groundskeepers, naturalists, pollinators, and woodlanders.

The guild hired our detectives to investigate the rune's origins. So the team took the Oroborus to the base of Yggdrasil, to examine the clues left at the site. Things turned dangerous quickly, as a swarm of serpents attacked with freezing venom. A trap had been set into motion, and our heroes soon founds themselves plunging down serpent holes leading to an iron cage deep within Niddhogr's lair.

He knew the Heroes of the Dragon's Eye might be called -- and made sure to welcome them with open arms of iron. He just neglected to mention that those open arms were locked around them.

Fortunately, their skillful use of Dragonwings, artifacts, and sneaking upended the ancient dragon's plans. They escaped and disarmed the Blind Serpent guarding the path of fire that surrounded their cage. Being fire dragons helped them sneak through the fire, and teamwork helped dispel the magic.

The team looked around for the cause of all of this mayhem, hoping to have a word with Niddhogr, but to their surprise, he was missing from his lair. The rune of unfettering and unlocking had helped him escape -- introducing yet another trouble: The danger of triggering Ragnorak.

How many world-ending issues can a single mystery include? Quite a few, it would seem.

Our heroes snuck back up the tunnels to the open door of Yggdrasil. The floating eyes were everywhere. Some belonged to invisible serpents ready to warn Nidhoggr if the detective's escaped. Some belonged to Odin's two ravens. They met Hugin (Thought) first, and discovered that Odin's thoughts were a bit scattered that day, but he desired to meet with the Heroes of the Dragon's Eye before they traveled too far in his realms. Mugin (Memory) remembered the Heroes of 2016 and the first time a rune was carved on the tree.

The team also encountered Ratatoskr, the squirrel who delivers messages between Niddhogr and the Eagle. He had a copy of Niddhogr's last message to the Eagle. Our team deciphered the runes and learned that Niddhogr went on vacation to a volcano in Iceland.

When the team finally reached the open door, they found a cloaked figure examining the rune. He calls himself Grimnir, the Hooded One, but our detectives soon discover that the All Father himself has come from Asgard to see about this rune.

The rune is well-made by someone with much skill. It couldn't have been made by Niddhogr himself, since he was fettered at the time of its making. So Niddhogr had help.

Odin was happy to see his Friends of Dragon, and granted them permission to travel throughout his realms in search of answers and solutions. Our team examined their artifacts and jewels, and decided on a bold plan to bring Niddhogr back. One of our more experienced detectives had an artifact of summoning, designed for returning artifacts stolen during their quest. If they knew what was stolen, who had it, and where they were, the artifact was guaranteed to work. 

They asked if they could use this on Niddhogr. They knew who he was, where he was -- so the answer was: "You're welcome to try it!"

The group made a plan to contain Niddhogr once he returned. Three of the detectives would use their Secret Keepers from "The Night Wanderer" to summon the Greek deities Hades, Artemis, and Athena. They would help the detectives take down Niddhogr's powers until he could be fettered once again.

Many thanks to Chris Guerette, who joined us that afternoon and found himself playing Niddhogr on the fly. His personal knowledge of Norse mythology, D&D DM (Dungeon Master) skills, combined with some great tagging, made this a game to be remembered! It also freed me to take photos -- so check out the Dragon's Eye Facebook page for an album of shots of this epic battle!

Our detectives managed to bind Niddhogr to his lair once again, and then met with him to learn more about the rune and the World Ending Egg that he transformed. He was understandably reluctant to help them after they spoiled a perfectly good vacation, but three Winter Crowns of the Cailleach opened a crack that led to his heart, causing him to spill out the three things that might change his mind: A Golden Apple from Odin's table in Asgard, a Cup of Inspirational Water from the Well of Mimir, and a Good Fortune from the Norn.

Our team left Niddhogr to secure these three items, debating about how to fulfill the technical words of the request without granting him world-endangering boons. As they journeyed back to the open door, they discovered yet another visitor examining the rune, which flaired as his hand passed over it.

This gentleman was big and bold, dressed in armor -- clearly a warrior of great status. "I am Heimdel, Guardian of Bifrost! I am here to tell you that Odin has changed his mind! Your services are no longer needed, now that Niddhogr has been returned! You are ordered to return to your own realm this moment!"

Our team met this with suspicion, and opened their Dragon's Eyes. They were not surprised to find brilliant red hair, sparkling eyes, and a huge grin under all that disguise. Loki was astonished to find himself so easily recognized by mortals, and inquired about the source of their extensive knowledge of his misdeeds. He felt deeply maligned -- and then outraged as he learned about this person named Marvel who owned the copyright to his name. The Norse god lifted his bare foot to show the (C) tattoo that proved that only he owned the copyright to his own name!

Faced with the failure of his first attempt to send the detectives home, Loki offered to get the items Niddhogr requested at a small price: A teensy bite of the Golden Apple, a tiny sip of the Water of Inspiration, and a 10% share of the Good Fortune from the Norn.

Our detectives did not need the Secret Keepers to know that this was not a good deal. They turned the god of fire down, only to learn that he held a secret bit of leverage. He had captured the Teacup Trolls and the Fairy Dragon who could make their Dragonstones.

The Detectives were frantic. They love the Teacup Trolls and the Fairy Dragon. 

They called 911: "Hello, this is 911. What is your emergency?" This didn't help. 

They called 911 Magic Police: "Hello, this is Rebecca the Dragonmage. You are the Magic Police!" 

They pulled it together and made a plan.

They created three teams: One to heal. One to take down Loki. One to counter his magic with their own. 

Loki turned into a a fiery sea slug and slipped into the lava rivers leading down to Niddhogr's lair. The detectives cast a spell removing the glamour, and the team froze him in place.

He turned into a fox to flee by foot. The magic team cast a spell removing the glamour, and the chasing team caught him one more time.

He turned into a fire dragon, and the magic team countered this as the team on the ground took down his powers. Once they had him tied in place, they freed the Teacup Trolls and Fairy Dragon.

Then they used Odin's oak leaves to summon the All Father and his ravens, Hugin and Mugin. Odin sent Loki to prison (again) leaving only the Rune and the World-Ending Egg to handle, and the Dragonstones to create.

The Teacup Troll and Fairy Dragon made their Dragonstones, drawing upon the magic of mud and dream. 

Odin asked the detectives to summon the Potter's Guild as well, so they could counter the magic of the rune. Hollr and 12 guild members arrived. They redirected the Unbinding power of the Rune to unbind Niddhogr's magic to the Egg of Ending. 

The Egg of Ending was finally restored to its original nature as an ending for Rebecca's time with the Dragon's Eye Detective's Agency. The detectives discussed hiding the egg to prevent that from happening, but the egg had its own agenda.

It hatched, producing an adorable baby shadow dragon with two heads.

Our team of detectives was delighted with the new baby and resigned to its presence. They carried it off to a party in Asgard, filled with fireworks, singing, and dancing -- and a spontaneous round of "Happy Birthday."

Even Niddhogr had something to celebrate -- they sent him some pizza. Recognizing her team's compassion, Rebecca has offered to work with Odin about supervised vacations for the poor dragon.

 

Thank you to our wonderful detectives for a fun week of adventuring! I am in awe of the drawings our team has been making for the past three weeks. They capture the story so well -- and speak to the power of story to inspire other art forms. Like musicals -- the last few weeks have included so much song, that my heart is light and I am looking forward to seeking out the books, the musicals, the movies the children have recommended for exploration during retirement!

Thank you again to Chris Guerette, who portrayed Niddhogr with much skill and drama! The red glow of courage emanating from the detectives as they waited for their spell to bring Niddhogr was very much real! Thanks for a truly memorable portrayal! Your D&D players have a wonderful GM!

Here is a link to the Dragon's Eye Facebook page for the art.

The Great Turtle Con

Our second mystery of the summer featured a story called "The Great Turtle Con." Oma, Avo, and Eru, the first three Dreamers, sent the Detectives back to Kuroshima for the coming of the Azure One, the Blue Turtle revered by terrapins all around the world. It was "turtles all the way down" for this adventure, with turtles and turtle eggs all along the beach, turtles in the crystal blue waters, and even a celestial turtle in the sky.

Our team carried the World-Ending Egg back to the island, hoping to learn how to return it to its natural state: A Dragon's Eye ending with the retirement of Rebecca the Dragonmage. Last week's detectives heard the marine biologists talking about a Turtle Con, so they returned to the same beach.

Fuka and Kiba, the Shisa (lion-dogs), were still guarding the beach, and asked the team to get permission for the new detectives to be on the island. They headed to the shrine of Amamikyo. The fruit bats were still giving them trouble, zapping them when their invisibility spells failed.

Amamikyo was gracious, as always, and blessed the team with another Luck Cat. This time, they chose the Black Cat that wards off demonic and evil forces. They knew they might encounter the Sea Fox, and chose black to combat her magic.

Amamikyo revealed what happened to Umiyako the Sea Fox from last week's adventure that turned her against the world. She was once a beautiful, nine-tailed kitsune who lived on the island of Kuroshima. She had a small shrine, and people left flowers and food and other offerings for her. Over time, people began to forget about her, and her powers began to fade. 

As she grew more desperate, the kitsune lost the letters of her name on the beach, and the waves took them into the sea. She turned herself into Umiyako, the Sea Fox, and dove into the ocean to find them, but the letters were lost in the depths of the sea.

Umiyako grew angry. If the world turned away from her, she would repay them by turning away from the world. She found Doro the Seaslug and his friends planning the birth of a Dragon's Eye ending egg, and saw her chances. She bespelled Doro, turning him into Sludge the Slug, and sent him and his friends to the Turf and Twig to work their evil magic on the poor little egg of ending.

The detectives knew the rest of the story, and added another set of tasks to their to-do list: Find and restore the kitsune's shrine, locate the letters of her name, and return her to her former self.

On their way back to Fuka and Kiba, the team ran into more trouble with the Fruit Bats. Thanks to the team's random suggestions, the leader of the fruit bats now had a Secret Keeper. He hoped to use it to reveal the lies the detectives were telling him, but he was foiled by the detectives when they decided to tell him the truth about who they were and why they were there.

The leader of the fruit bats could not believe his adorably large ears. They were trying to help the bats escape from the spell cast by Umiyako! He gathered the fruit bats for a court hearing, and the bats voted to trust the detectives and secretly help them. What a red glow of courage came from those little bespelled bats!

Our team continued to the Kuroshima Research Station, where a small conference of marine biologists was meeting to discuss the most recent findings about turtles. The detectives met Kehlani, an American researcher from Hawaii who was helping with the conference. She took them through the small exhibit halls, where they found tanks with turtles, coconut crabs, and other marine creatures. 

Kuda the director was an immortal friend of dragons, so she was able to help the team with the location of the broken shrine. A handy spell protected our detectives from the island's infamous pit viper as they headed off into the tropical woods to locate the ruins. With their dragon eyes open, they soon found the shrine and the two Inari spirits who guard it.

They went to work restoring the shrine with magic and decorating the stone altar with a lovely array of wildflowers and bark. Umiyako came rushing back from the sea, sensing that someone was disturbing her home. When she discovered how beautiful it was, she melted into tears at the thought that someone had done such a kindness. When she learned it was the heroes she had been hunting, she was horrified at all the cruel things she had done. The detectives made gentle suggestions for reparations, and she went to work on those, as they dove into the ocean to search for her name.

They hired tiny deep-diving turtles to find the letters, and soon puzzled the pieces back into their correct order. The Umiyako's true name was Hoshitsuki. Upon learning her name, the Sea Fox turned back into a 9-tailed Kistune -- and we have many lovely drawings to show this on the Dragon's Eye Facebook page.

Finally, the detectives could return to their search for the Great Turtle Con held by the sea turtles. They turned themselves into sea dragons and headed off into the deep blue waters surrounding Kuroshima.

They found a trail of turtles swimming along a magical current that led to a great spiral of turtles singing about the Blue Turtle. "I am the Blue Turtle! Come to me, friends, and we shall join the Aonuma!" sang a beautiful blue turtle. All of the turtles were mesmerized, swimming toward their hero. The Secret Keepers began to glow, but the detectives had their Dragon Eyes open, so they could see what the turtles could not: The Blue Turtle was not a turtle at all, but an Umbozu in disguises.

An Umibozu is one of the most horrible of Yokei. The word means "Sea Monk" -- but this is no gentle priest with a blessing, but a black shadow of a monk that rises from the sea. This one was trying to capture all the turtles in a giant black void of a mouth.

Our team sprang into action, calling on their magic spells and abilities as sea dragons to take down the power of the Umibozu. They managed to drain it of magic, and then shrank it in size. They popped it into a tiny jar, sealed the lid with magic, and then sealed that with the Dragon's Eye Stone they were carrying.

The heroes removed the magic spell keeping the turtles mesmerized, saving them from the great turtle con, the fraud the Umibozu tried to cast upon them. Once the turtles were spell-free, they could hear the true song of the Blue Turtle coming from the sky above the ocean.

All the turtles and our heroic sea dragons swam upwards and broke through the waves. Looking upward, they saw a great leatherback turtle with a deep blue shell spangled with stars and an inner sun, drifting to the ocean along a shooting star from the Perseid meteor showers. Magic of the sea and stars sparkled all around her, and she graciously created a turtle island so they could all meet.

The Great Turtle Con was on again -- a fabulous festival of all things turtle. There was dancing and singing, and turtle magic all the way down. There was a feast -- and a meeting for the detectives with the Blue Turtle.

She gave them a Time/Space Jewel crafted by the fire lizards of the sun and cooled in the clouds of Suisei, the Water Star (Mercury). She used Celestial Mud to craft the amulet, and a serpent appeared on each one, curling around the jewel in the form of the Oroborus. Each detective's Oroborus was a little different from the others, each tailored to their personal magic.

After a weekend of celebrations, the Detectives returned to their homes. That night, Izu the Reveler and Ula the Dazzler came to them in their dreams. The heroes turned into dragons and flew with the Dreamers into the Night Sky for one more ride with the dragons.

 

Many thanks to the detectives who joined me for this lovely adventure! it was fun returning to an island we already knew. There were hints from "The Sea Sheep" that had surprises -- the Pikachu a marine biologist was seeking turned out not to be from the game Go, but was a sea slug that looks just like Pikachu!

Visit the Dragon's Eye Facebook page to see the amazing watercolors from this week. 

The Sea Sheep -- July 2025

Our first adventure of the summer was "The Sea Sheep." This delightful mystery picked up where "The Turf and Twig" ended. Sludge the Slug and his minions escaped from the Jeweled Moon Cage, trapping their Tomte guards in shadow vines. They stole the world-ending dragon egg and disappeared into a whirlpool made within a teacup.

Fortunately, his minions were goofing around with the sea urchin locket that held Sludge's secret message, telling them where to go. (Those minions! Always dropping clues for our detectives to decipher!) Our team made quick work of the cipher, and headed to "Heart Island" -- Kuroshima in the Yaeyama archipelago of Okinawa, Japan.

They found the beach where the rock has been carved into the shape of a cow, and using their Dragon's Eyes (third eyes that see invisible and magical things), they discovered two portals. The portals were guarded by two Shisa, lion-dogs named Fuka ("Luck") and Kiba ("Fang").

The lion-dogs sent our travelers to a local Shinto shrine, where they met with Amamikyo, the goddess who created the Okinawan islands. She was very sympathetic to their cause -- world ending dragon eggs are a pesky nuisance to creatrixes. 

She gave them a choice among three Luck Cats. The white one boosts very roll with random magic in their favor, the black one fends off demons and evil creatures, and the gold one brings random jewels that can be used for more spells. Our team chose the white Luck Cat. 

The detectives snuck back along the path above the beach, meeting fruit bats, marine biologists talking about a Turtle Con coming the next week, and random beach goers. They encountered a wild island boy called Kijimuna. He really earned the red star in his shadow (showing he walks a path of chaos). He tried to trade their jewels for his, which were chaos jewels (very unpredictable!) He challenged them to a game with all kinds of twists and turns -- clearly skewed in his favor. The team wisely negotiated the terms so they might gain the secrets he had about Sludge.

Kijimuna revealed that Sludge and his minions were really sea slugs returning the the Scared Realm of the Umiuchi. He overheard them talking about ending the detectives as they arrived in a little whirlpool by the beach. They were talking about Sludge's friend, a sea fox.

Kijimuna enjoyed the eyeballs of the fish our heroes gave him (for losing the game), and turned the fishbones into a golden amulet that would grant them the shape of Umiushi. Our sleuths returned to Kiba and Fuka, and soon were off for the portal, but the Dragonstone was glowing with a dream from Oma the First of the Nine Dreamers. She told them to ask the Umiushi to make them their own Starbowls.

The Detectives finally dove through the right portal. 

The Sacred Realm of the Umiushi is found within the intertidal zones of the ocean, away from the many predators of the coral reefs, yet far enough off shore to keep them in water as the tides roll in and out all day. Out team turned themselves into tiny Umiushi, which range in size from 4 mm to 70 mm (and a few that are 200 mm).

They followed a deep turquoise stream within the sea that led them to an underwater palace made of sea shells. They met Hoshiori, the High Priestess (Nori) of the Umiuchi, who is a Sea Sheep. She and her court revealed that Sludge is an umiuchi named Doro. He is her brother, who is known for being sweet and kind. He and his little friends usually make deep and dangerous dives into the deep, bringing up the Magic Mud that is used to craft Dragon's Eye Starbowls.

The detectives soon learn the reason behind this change of character in Sludge. They travel to a Kelp Forest deeper in the sea, and find a cottage made of shells hiding there, where Sludge is held in thrall by a spell cast on him and his minions. The spell was made by Umiyako, the sea fox.

She was not happy when our team managed to steal the world-ending egg back. They were about to undo the spell on Sludge when she found them. She naturally tried to lure them to her side of the situation, but they were firmly in favor of world-saving over world-ending. They used their dragon forms to grow large, and entangled her in the sea kelp. Then they freed Sludge and his friends and swam swiftly back to the sea palace.

There, the Umiushi sang their songs and danced their dances to craft Starbowls. Sludge and his minion friends dove for Magic Mud. "Leaf" molded that mud into bowls. Hoshiori and the other Sea Sheep drew upon the light of the sun and stars to make the stars, and thirteen little Starbowls were born. Koji the Nudibranch called upon the Moonrabbits for dice, while Kirakira the Sea Rabbit polished a little bag of jewels from the Fire Lizards.

The detectives met with Oma again -- and they met Avo the Cantor (2nd Dreamer) and Eru the Dancer (3rd Dreamer). Avo sings the first notes of the Dreamsong, introducing Sound and Silence into the world. Eru performs the first steps of the Cosmic Dance, introducing Movement and Stillness.

The Dreamers revealed that the world-ending egg has been transformed by the bespelled Sludge. It is not normally a world-ending egg. It is, however, an ending. An ending meant for the Dragon's Eye Detectives Agency, because Rebecca the Dragonmage is retiring. She's hoping to take a little vacation -- hopefully in Kuroshima, where she can meet with her sensei Amamikyo.

This why the Nine Dreamers are meeting with the detectives this summer. They need to prepare them for the next stage of their journey as Dragonmages. They will be meeting each of the Nine Dreamers, to gather the artifacts they need to become their own Dragonmage leaders.

This sad news was met with lots of air hugs and spirit hugs -- and the newly invented water hugs. It mirrors the outer world, where Rebecca has announced her retirement from Dragon's Eye Adventures.

Our team took the news in stride, and joined the Umiushi in one final dance party where they released their inner forms -- one of which was a very impressive kraken. That night, the three Dreamers came and the detectives turned into full adult dragons, soaring through the starry sky on wings as wide as the sky.

Many thanks to Adam Shaughnessy, who assisted me with this week's adventure! Adam is a fellow adventure play expert, a skilled educator and grants-writer from Connecticut. He has written two fantasy books in the Unbelievable FIB series for middle grades, and has a graphic novel and other writings in the works! Here is a link to his website.

Visit the Dragon's Eye Facebook page to see the two albums. One has more beautiful paintings like the ones on this page, showing the way our detectives drew scenes from the story. The other has the Umiushi they each made. 

Thank you to the detectives for a wonderful week! My stories are never complete until each of you arrives to add your own special magic to the mix! What an extraordinary journey we have had!

 

 

Summer 2025 Approaches!

The Summer 2025 season begins on Monday, July 7. 

We have four programs this summer: The Sea Sheep, The Great Turtlecon, The Potter's Guild, and The Shadow Dragon. There is still space in The Potter's Guild and The Shadow Dragon. 

My dining room table is full of  supplies and projects in the works -- sea slugs, turtles, dwarves, and mini soothsayer dragons. Here's a glimpse of the sea slugs in the works: