Torbin's brow creases in worry, "Let us hurry to Phandalin and see if he arrived safely. If he did not, we can always backtrack to this spot and start searching. Plus, even if he was taken, he will want us to secure this wagon not abandon it here on the side of the road".
"Wait, what?" Arrius says, hurrying over to Peren and looking at the pipe.
After a moment, Arrius pinches the bridge of his nose and closes his eyes in thought, mumbling to himself. "Okay, so Gundren is probably in trouble... But Radell probably won't make it to town on his own... But the trail will be colder if we take the time to finish the trip first..."
Taking a deep breath, Arrius then addresses the group. "Any way you slice it, things are bad. I think the best we can do is this: let's get an idea of which way the goblins' lair might be, so we have an idea which way to go... but then let's get Radell safely to town before we go exploring. While we're in town, we can also try to get more information, then come back out here and see if we can find Gundren. What say you all?"
Nariella feels a wave of sadness for her companions. They must be close to him...this will be hard for them.
She lets out a sigh and says, "We saw roughly which way the goblins went...I'm not sure we can take Radell and this wagon any further off the road to investigate. Its not safe. I agree with Tobin that we should get to Phalandin as soon as possible and ask around, before coming back. Gundren could have escaped to town...or he could already be..." Nariella trails off thinking, No. Don't say it...its not your place..
She gives Arrius and apologetic look and says, "We need to see Radell to town..."
Radell looks to the lot of you and nods. "I appreciate the concern. Let's get you lot to town and checked in. Maybe Gundren and guard made a break for it and made it there. I hope anyway..."
Walking over to the wreck, he frowns some. "Not much for lifting, but I can help clear some of the debris. Fastest way would probably be to break it down and chuck the pieces to the side. Not sure how to handle the horses though..."
With that, he starts grabbing some of the planks that were busted free, throwing them to the southern side of the road. "And make sure you grab that pipe. If Gundren is in town, he's liable to be wanting a smoke."
Peren assists moving the remains of the wagon out of the way. When that is done, he ties off the tracers on the dead horses and starts to drag them off the road.
Tirbin assists in moving debris, he struggles but pushes hard and does not complain.
After about fifteen minutes, the cart is broken down and shoved off the side of the road, the horses joining it moments later.
"Right, there goes. Let's set up again and head to town as fast as possible. Shouldn't take more than an hour or so if we hustle." Radell quickly scrambles back up onto his wagon.
"Right then, let's get going," Arrius says as he climbs up to resume his perch on the wagon, this time in a sitting position. "Let's keep an eye out for more ambushes, or clues, as we go."
Peren mounts his horse and turns it about to look at the ambush site and then off into the wilderness.
"Yes, let us be off..and swiftly as we can. I have a very bad feeling about this!"
Nariella nods, silently returning to her position on the left of the wagon.
Tirbin rides on the back to speed up the process of getting to town.
After several hours, Radell's wagon finally clears the woods, the town of Phadalin appearing before the party.
"We should go straight to Barthan's. If Gundren made it to town, I bet my lucky coins he went there. Barring that, least we'll, umm... You know..."
Flicking his reins, he urges the wagon forward and into the town.
"Yeah, that seems like a good place to start," says Arrius, nodding.
"Right." Nariella says with a nod, despite not feeling optimistic. "Perhaps, while the wagon is being sorted, some of us can investigate around town...see if there is any news of Gundren or information about these goblin raids? Y'know, save time...cover more ground..."
"A solid plan Natriella, I will walk around and see what I learn".
Tobin begins walking around town and asking whether anyone has seen Gundren or at least a dwarf with his description.
Investigation
"I will go to Barthan's with Randell and see if they have any information. Let us meet back there in 1 hour. Sound good?"
"Come to think of it," Arrius comments, "For thoroughness' sake, one of us should check with the local authorities. Might as well be me." Nodding to Peren, Arrius agrees: "One hour, got it."
"Excellent. I will check the inn to see if Gundren ever checked in. Then, I'll ask around the marketplace to see if the merchants and traders have any information regarding the goblin ambushers. See you all in an hour."
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Radell looks to Peren and nods. "I appreciate the company at least. Come on."
Heading into town, the locals glance up before going on their way. As you approach the provision store, a man lean and bald man steps out, a wide grin on his face. "Radell! You made it! I was starting to worry about you, lad. Did Gundren hop off the wagon to talk to Linene?" He looks at you, Peren, with a big grin. "Name's Barthen. You travel with Radell and Gundren?"
Walking around town, you talk to a number of folk ranging from miners to farmers to the odd merchant. None seem to have heard of Gundren's arrival, a few not even knowing who the dwarf is, asking instead if they mean Tharden or Nundro Rockseeker.
As you walk around, no one seems to really know where Gundren is, directing you to the townmaster Harbin Wester.
As you arrive at the inn, known as the Stonehill Inn, not far from the provisions store, there appears to be some loud ruckus coming from within. Stepping in, a pair of rough looking human men in their mid-twenties or so lean on the counter. The man behind looks flustered as he talks to them. "Alright, alright! No trouble here, promise." He reaches down and pulls out a small lockbox, opening it and handing a small handful of coins to the men. "Just don't bring my wife in on this, please..." Laughing, one of the men lean in.
"Just hope next time you have more silver, or we'll bring your wife in on this - With all of my boys here, too!" Laughing loudly, they start to walk out, leering at you, Nariella.
Torbin, a worried look on his face returns to Barthan's to inform his comrades of what he discovered.
Peren gives a wan smile to the man and shakes his hand.
"We were actually hoping that Gundren was here!"
He explains what had happened and shows the merchant the remains of the dwarf's prize pipe.
"We have to go back and find him. We will track that goblin that got away. I am sure it would head back to where the rest of its kind lives. I only hope we are not too late!"
You make your way quickly to Barthen's, finding Peren there talking to the balding man.
Barthen raises an eyebrow. "Wait, so Gundren isn't with you all? And goblins?" He looks to Radell who nods sullenly. "That's not good! Not good at all!" He paces back and forth for a second before looking at Peren. "He said he and his brothers, Tharden and Nundro found something recently, something major. His brothers are camped somewhere out of town now, so I doubt they would even know where he is..."
Radell raises his hand. "Calm down, Barthen. By Tymora, you'll pace to the Nine Hells and back like that."
Barthen sighs and nods. "Listen, you have to find him. He's a friend, so I'm sure you understand, right?"
Nariella eyes the men suspiciously, but quickly keeps her head down as soon as the men leer at her. I know a shakedown when I see one, but I'm by myself and I have to focus on Gundren. Don't get involved. Don't get involved. Don't. Get. Involved.
As they leave, she tries to get a quick glance as to the direction they are heading, before continuing her investigation. However, guilt starts to swell up and it become hard for Nariella to focus on the questions she is asking. Those men are almost certainly going to come back...and they threatened his wife...I mean, it could have something to do with the goblins and Gundren...Ok, probably not, but still...Your going to get involved aren't you?
With a deep sigh, she walks up to the inn keeper and asks, "Is everything all right? Those men seemed rather...rude."
Arrius will ask the townmaster what he knows of Dungren, report that he's missing, and ask if he has any tips about the goblins or the nearby area in case we have to go looking.
"Yes he is a friend, and once the others return here, we will make plans to search for him."
Barthen nods and sighs. "I appreciate it. I really do."
Radell dismounts from his wagon. "Well, chances of you getting there with any light are next to impossible, so least we can do now is make sure the goods here are dropped off. Nundro and Tharden may be back at anytime for it."
The man, sullen faced now, looks up and tries to change his demeanor. in front of you. "Oh, uh, yes, hello!" As he realizes by what you said in that you saw what happened, he frowns again. "I... I'm alright. Just... Just have to make sure I have more money next time is all. Going to have to raise rates, sadly. But please, don't trouble yourself with that. Names Toblen Stonehill, proprietor of Stonehill Inn, finest inn this side of Neverwinter. Need a room, traveller?"
After several minutes, you are guided to the Townmaster Hall. A rough knock on the door and you wait a moment. Right next to the door is a worn piece of paper nailed to the wall saying REWARD-Orcs near Wyvern Tor! Those of a mind to face the orc menace should inquire within."
About the time you finish seeing the sign, a rather rotund and bald man wearing worn clothes of one who tries to style themselves a courtier and smoking a long pipe opens the door. "Yes? What can I do for you son?"
"Yes, hello, my name is Arrius Bersk, of Neverwinter. I'm here to report a missing person, the dwarf Gundren Rockseeker. He was supposed to have arrived here recently, but I and other of his employees encountered evidence of his perhaps being attacked by goblins outside of town. I thought it responsible to alert the proper authorities. Additionally, I intend to go looking for him. Can you tell me anything about local goblins or any quirks of the nearby wilderness that would be helpful? I see from your sign here that there are not only goblins but also orcs in the area; anything else I should be wary of?"
"No thank you." Nariella replies, "I don't need a room at the moment. I just wanted to see if a dwarf named Gundren Rockseeker ever checked in. We were travelling behind him and we fear that he was taken by goblins on the road."
Still curious about the men from before, Nariella also can't help but ask, "Is it normal for men to be demanding money like that?"
Torbin approaches Peren, "Any luck? No one about town has seen or heard of him. I fear the worst. Perhaps once the others return we should see if we can discover any information about this Goblin we heard about from our ambushers".
"He has not checked in here, and the proprietor is quite worried. I will be heading back out to find him, and hope I can count on you and the others to join in the search."
Peren then inquires about accommodations for the evening for himself and the rest of the group.
The man raises an eyebrow as he takes a long draw from his pipe, puffing out a smoke ring and looking at Arrius sternly. "Gundren Rockseeker? Missing? Well, that's all and well, and I commend you on taking up the search. With no guard for the town to turn over to assist, I'm afraid you'll have to do. And yes, we have Orcs in the hills. Minor nuisance, but I have raised a bounty of 100 gold to the person or persons who can take care of them and bring back proof. Now, if you excuse, uh... Mister Bresk, right? I have business to attend to. Good day." He puffs the last of his smoke out not quite at Arrius but definitely in his direction before turning and closing the door behind him.
"Ah, I see. No, no Dwarves are checked in at the moment, though I do seem to have a room reserved for a Rockseeker." He pulls out a small book and nods as he reads a page. "Yes, Gundren Rockseeker and guest, reserved it for this ten-day by courier about a month ago. Haven't seen him, though I know there are other Rockseekers around. One got into a screaming match with someone about 5 days ago out near the common."
Setting the book down, he pinches his nose and shakes his head. "And no, no it was not until just a while back. Me and the other townsfolk have brought it up with the Townmaster, but Harbin Wester swears that their just mercenaries and they'll move on before too long." Huffing, he shakes his head. "He can move on for all I care. They're layabouts but they have numbers and seem to be organized. Live up in that ruin of a manor on the hill and I think they aren't budging until the town's gold and silver have run dry."
Radell, as he sets to work unloading with Barthen, looks up and then thumbs back towards the middle of town. "Stonehill is a pretty good place to put your feet up. And good call. A night's rest and you all will have the strength to go find Gundren!"
"Right then, glad I bothered," Arrius says to the closed door.
Reconvening with his coworkers, Arrius shrugs. "Well, all I learned was that the townmaster is entirely unhelpful, and that there are orcs in the hills near Wyvern Tor in case anybody wants bounty-hunting work after we finally finish our current employment. Anybody else have better luck?"
"The old manor you say? Hmm. I'll have to keep that in mind..." Nariella replies, her thoughts racing. "Anyway, thanks for the information and sorry for bothering you."
Nariella moves quickly to reach the meeting place, realizing she may already be late.
See the others already congregated, she tries to fill them in, "Sorry I'm late, but there was some trouble at the inn. Apparently there are some mercenaries holed up in a ruined manor that are shaking people down for money. The worst part is the townmaster isn't doing squat." Letting out a sigh of frustration, she adds, "Sorry, but stuff like that really boils my blood."
Realizing that this is probably not the information her companions wanted, she quickly adds, "Regarding Gundren...he was supposed to check in at the inn, but he never did. I did find out one piece of information, though. Apparantely one of his brothers got into a shouting match with someone near the commons, about 5 days ago." Looking concerned she asks, "Was anyone able to contact his brothers?
"This town sucks."
Looking at the party, Barthen nods. "Right, name's Barthen. I guess you all know each other, yes?"
He frowns as Nariella speaks about the 'mercenaries'. "More like thugs. Been keeping business down ever since they moved in. Lot of loafs, if you ask me. And Nundro and Tharden are out in the hills somewhere last I heard, miss."
Radell goes over and taps Arrius on the thigh. "Now listen here, sir, we may be having some troubles, but Phandalin has been in worse straights and I'm sure we'll weather this one just as well as any other."
"The townspeople I spoke with asked if I were referring to Tharden or Nundro Rockseeker as they had not seen or even heard of Gundren. I hate to wait until tomorrow to begin searching. If we do rest here we should gather more information though on this Klarg the Goblin mentioned. We should know what we are getting into if we can. Best to be informed when looking for a fight as it may well change our tactics".
Arrius smiles at Radell. "Now now, I only said this town sucks. I didn't say I was gonna just leave it that way. Mom always taught me to leave things a little better than I found them."
Listening to Torbin, Arrius raises one eyebrow. "Never heard of...? Okay, that's an interesting detail. We'll have to be sure to ask whichever of the Rockseekers we first encounter. As for 'Klarg', I'm not sure anyone around here is going to know anything about him, so I think we might be on our own there."
Arrius sighs. "Well, as much as I hate to delay, heading out at night will probably just add us to the list of missing persons without helping Gundren at all. Let's get some rest and then head out first thing in the morning."
"Head to Stonehill and I will meet you there later, I am concerned about the Goblins having an actual identifiable leader".
With that Torbin spends an hour or so questioning townsfolk who appear to be either armsmen or hunters if they have encountered this Klarg.
Investigation
Nariella nods and says, "I think getting some rest is a good idea. We should be at full strength for whatever we may face tomorrow.
After several minutes, one of the hunters guides you to Lionshield Coster, a small but obviously well-established trade post. Stepping in, you find a number of foodstuffs, some work implements and, behind the large counter, a number of various weapons on armors.
The owner, a hawk-eyed human woman in her mid thirties, looks you up and down. "Is there anything I can do for you, stranger? Just got a small shipment of cider in. Only shipment I've gotten in a month, even."
After asking her about Klarg, she sighs. "One of them 'Goblin Chiefs' or some such thing. One of the local hunters caught a goblin in a trap a few days back, damnable thing kept going on about them for an hour. Between the goblins and these Redbrand fools, I might shut shop from the lack of supplies I have..."
The rest of you head to the Stonehill, where Toblen greets you all with a big smile. "Welcome, welcome. Ah! The nice Elf from earlier. Decided to get a room then? Only one electrum blue-eye a night!"
About that time, a woman comes in from a room behind him. "Blue-eye? Hun, why did you increase the cost again? Was it those Redbrand bastards again?"
He looks over to her, putting his hands up. "Now hun, we have guests..." She just smacks his hands aside.
"Don't you 'Now hun' me, Toblen. Thel is dead and his family gone without even a warning and now they hitting you up for more money? I have half a mind to head down to the Coster and buy that bow and show them what's what!"
Nariella stands at the desk awkwardly as the couple argues, until something catches her ear. "Wait a second! Are you telling me that these mercenaries have killed people!?!" she interrupts with a hushed, but angry tone. "...and the townmaster still does nothing?"
Nariella breathes heavily, looking from Peren to Arrius, as if she is contemplating something very rash, but trying to control herself.
Peren looks grimly at the innkeeper and his wife, but then shakes his head
"We have to find our friend first Nariella. Once he is safely back in town....well then we shall look into this problem. You have my word of honour
He look back at the innkeeper and smiles.
In the meantime I would like to rent one of your private rooms and your best meal for me and my friends. We can at least make sure your coffers are full if these fiends return", he says as he winks at the elves.
"Of course. I know that. Gundren's the priority," Nariella replies, saying the words to herself, as much as she is saying them to Peren.
"A room for me too, sir..." Nariella asks the innkeeper, as thoughts still weighing heavily on her mind. I suppose filling their coffers will keep them safe, for now...but what good is it, when these scum are only going to empty them...