Wren has plenty to say to Galadan on the trip out.
"You see Galadan, I think these swampfolk have been dallying...blah blah blah....demons...blah blah blah...an old rusty pitchfork....blah blah blah...under the exact same tunic!! Blah blah....and so I...blah blah blah...'mother, it's my body...'...blah blah blah...onions! Like I said, onions!"
"Wren dear, I'm sure there is some perfectly logical and natural reason for the long lives of these people..after all it's not as if they are living as long as your people are they"
Andrea tries to pay attention to the scenery as they travel but her mind is too occupied with thoughts of the poor benighted creature in the cell back in in the city.
Indeed - there is a rather mundane explanation. The water drawn from the well is infused with minerals. Coupled with the diet of fish makes and their relative isolation has made the swampers pretty healthy.
But in a region like Ustalav where dark magic is common people rather like to believe less mundane reasons.
All
Morast is a pituful hamlet with maybe some 20 houses and just over 60 inhabitants.
When you arrive in Morast you quickly meet up with Lazne - the village elder. He doesn't seem very pleased meeting you.
Lazne is a grizzled, middle-aged man with dirty grey hair and the skin the color of swamp mud. He chews on a foul-smelling swamp weed.
Spitting onto the ground he adresses you:
"What's you want. No need for furriners Morast has."
He punctiates this by spitting more of the fould juice onto the ground.
"We had nough problms - time the noble cityfolk leaving us alone again."
Despite the reception the party has been given, Aldous tries to be as hospitable and polite as possible, bowing formally.
"Greetings, Elder. My name is Aldous Preklikin. We are sorry to disturb you; we have no wish to interfere with your way of life. However, we are involved in the trial of the Beast, and have been charged with the task of collecting evidence relating to what happened here in Morast. Please, what can you tell us about what happened?"
Forcing himself to keep a ridgidly straight face while looking around at the squallor these people lives in Nym touches the brim of his hat and nods to the elder. "Greetings."
While Aldous and Galadan are speaking with the elder, Nym will casually walk to where Andrea is, and whisper to her..."Not that I wish to compare you to our friends here, but I believe you to be the member of our liitle band easiest for these people to relate to. Aldous is quite the diplomat, but he might need a mediator in this dealing."
"de justice must been done and burn it should.
With this words the Elder turns away from Aldous and towards Kevin.
"So you wanne hear what heppend. Started takn only lone villagers who been outside at night, but soonish bcame bolder and bgan to attack de houses. But not with us you can do. Me organized to set a trap for the Beast. Me remember that night well. The others of me town were lying in wait for the Beast, who attacked just after nightfall. Armed with torches, we attacked and wounded the creature—twas a huge, hulking brute about 7 feet tall. Da Beast took to the water, but the swampers gave chase in their boats, pursuing it to the village boneyard. Ther it was attacked by a blood caiman.
Lazne grins and spits out when retelling this part.
"de Beast yelled oaths and curses that even the worst whore in Lepidstadt would blush to say as the gator attacked it. Got a deep bite wound the gator made on the Beast's shoulder as it dragged the Beast under the water. All the Beast's blood tainted the us' burial ground, forcing us to abandon it and build another. But twas a small price to pay for the thing's death. Then me hear that the Beast still alive and captured. Telling the authorities i did. Should burn the Beast for all the people it killed from us. Will go there to see it burn I will. It probably ate them - the bodies.They nver been seen again."
Lazne then turns to Kevin
"The Caimans can be vicious if you don't know how to fight them. We from Morast a skilled in taking them down. They have very tasty flesh. The Caiman got him when the Beast tried to get back to its lair on the boneyard. It's a small island.
Not a good time now to go there. Darkness is nearly here. but we could get you to the island safely in our boats - for a small fee."
5gp for the whole group - this would be three boats - steered by villagers.
2 people in each boat plus one villager. It doesn't matter who is in which boat - unless you have priorities as the elder.
"Me can take the lady to ensure she is save."
With this words he points towards Andrea.
Wren is looking forward to her trip to the island and will happily pay out 1 gp for the trip (she assumes that it is round trip).
At an appropriate time, she will try to score some weed on the island.
On the way out there, Wren will chitter with excitement/fear at the prospect of seeing a Blood Caiman. She wonders if it is as big and ugly as she thinks...it must be to beat up on Stitches.
A tiny, miserable island rises from the swamp, a tangle of trees covering its dour, reed-choked surface. Hundreds of fetishes hang from the trees—simple, roughly humanoid figures made of sticks and bound with twine. Larger fetishes are planted in the ground on various parts of the island, leaning drunkenly in the soft mud.
Direction of arrival: North, East, South, West
Other GM roll low = M.
A large nest built of sodden swamp wood sits high in the boughs of a trio of tangled trees on the northwest side of the isle.
You don't find any gator tracks - but you spot some tracks that look more like a lion - only that it has to be a big one and they seem to suddenly disappear as if airborne.
There are also older tracks, humanoid and a burned down fire place in the Southern part of the island.
you spot some humanoid tracks. No gator tracks. There also seem some graves that seem to be carved in.
There is a fire place on the Southen part of the island.
"No signs of a reptilian creature, but I found these lion pawprints. And I have to say, I find this a strange location for lion's prints. Also, they do not fall at a lion's pace."
Galadan points out the prints to the others.
"There is also a strange nest of wood and mud in the northeast. Perhaps one of us could climb up the tree and see if any clues are within. Birds have a tendency to pick up strange objects after all."
He looks pointedly at Wren.