Pale Lothi speaks in a humorous voice, with just a hint of sarcasm...
What "variant" of b#$*~? There are many variants you see, each one deserves to be accorded a measure of respect... Lest she decides to cut your head off...
Ahiko lofts a brow silently at Vermundr's outburst.
I wish I knew what a Jadwiga was... but I do get the reference to the witch who got away... so perhaps Jadwiga might be some kind of witchhunter or a type of witch.
She notes Lothi's shortbow and considers a long moment... Maybe not a witch then.
While in the tavern you see your Varki friend come in and she says, "Salve!!!!"
Looking up Lothi studies the Varki and speaks in an amused voice, Varki, strange to the bones they be... Although to be fair anyone is going to go insane where they typically live...
Ukshahka looks at Lothi, never having met him before and concentrates her attention on Vermundr, Ahiko and Kalistrine, "Shoot, I am glad to have found you three, seems as though you fired that strange man. Anyway, where you able to find Ulf?"
"We think he'd been taken aboard Snorri's funeral ship. We mean to rescue him in the morning, before it leaves at dawn. This one claims he can help", the young ulfen explains with a gesture at Lothi.
The Varki woman says, The funeral will be postponed until tomorrow evening due to poor weather."
I recommend raiding this funeral ship during the time Ulfen have breakfast, many would tell you to strike at dawn... That is nonsense, all the good bandits in Irrisen struck while breakfast was being had, that way everyone was in their houses... It made it much easier to quell resistance often by simply burning the inhabitants alive within their own dwellings... The true valuables in Irrisen at least were the livestock after all...
Kalistrine is quiet after the Longhouse fiasco, and makes herself quite clear on not wanting to talk about it to the others with growls and snarls. When she reaches the tavern where Pale Lothi is located, she makes straight for the bar and begins drinking.
”We strike in the morning then – while they break their fast. Let’s be ready for a siege this time”, the young ulfen warns.
We may wish to see if any local alchemists be about, some liquid fire thrown onto your longhouse tends to keep one rather busy...
Ukshahka looks at Lothi and says, "Where did you find this new guy? A frontal assault on the funeral ship of a Jarl, are you freaking insane!?!!???!!!! Not to mention that there is a fairly good chance that the King will be there as well. There will be hundreds of warriors and who knows how many guests. The smartest thing to do is to sneak on the ship before they fire it and get what you need and go without invoking a unnecessary fight."
"That doesn't sound much easier", the young ulfen muses. "Any ideas? I can be stealthy but Kali moves like an ox."
In an amused and wicked voice Pale Lothi speaks...
Let's start the party ahead of schedule, I hear that ulfen ale and beer in particular are highly flammable... Large fires tend to make people panic, especially when their buildings tend to be made of wood and contain barrel after barrel of ale in them... If we can start a fire large enough we can exploit the ensuing chaos, we need to scout the place out first for two things. The first thing is where are they keeping all the ale, the second is where the target is...
"I agree that sneaking in and getting what we came for and sneaking out again sounds like the best plan. I'm not much of a sneak myself, but I'm even less sure in a frontal assault."
Ukshakka says, "Well if we wait till nightfall tomorrow, we can use some canoes and sneak aboard before they fire the ship. Does anyone know how to pilot a canoe?"
Kalistrine walks over to the table, her dark eyes intense if somewhat unfocused, a cup of strong whiskey in her hand. "What you say about me?! I move with the grace of a Lion!" she says, before trying to kick Vermundr's chair out from under him.
"Kali, hon... he didn't mean anything by it... he's just a little drunk... let it go this time, please." Ahiko tries to placate Kali a little by turning things around, and trying to imply that it is Vermundr who is is drunk and not thinking clearly. Obviously telling Kali SHE is drunk would just get a worse reaction from her.
to Vermundr, she whispers... "Just play along, friend..."
"Come, come, you two, we are on the same side, let's save our hostility for our enemies. We have a task to complete and have to work together."
She turns to Ukshakka and says, "I'm sorry, I know little of boats, other than how not to fall off or out of one, which means to sit very still and not rock the boat. But I am a fast learner, so I'm willing to be taught."
The young ulfen shakes his head in denial of the question. ”I’ve been on lots of ships but never had to pilot one.”
Vermundr grunts in surprise as his chair is jostled by the irate Kali. He looks like he’s about to complain but catches Ahiko’s glance and instead quietly reaches for his tankard again.
Kalistrine growls out a laugh and slaps Vermundr on the back hard. "Just a little friendly horseplay, Ahiko. It don't matter." she says, deflating slightly and slouching off back to the bar, shouldering her way through the crowd roughly.
A night time stroll would be a bad idea, if they are expecting trouble that's exactly the time they would expect you to go make it... Few would expect you to set a bonfire of ale in the middle of all of this, the chaos and smoke will serve as a better guise then any nighttime stroll could... However a third option does exist, it will require a distraction of some sort... Not as large as the aforementioned ale bonfire but something attention grabbing, I have many talents and one of those happens to be the secret of invisibility...
Ukshakka says, "Ale does not burn. So your plan is inherently flawed. Ale is a liquid and the alcohol content is not sufficient and pure enough for it to catch fire. King Blood Eagle is not a man I would choose to cross blades with.. He has killed at least two linnorms"
Vermundr groans in frustration. "We strike by cover of nightfall. Bring your magic tricks. We might need them anyway."
Pale Lothi raises an eyebrow...
The ale of Irrisen burns my dear, I know this from personal experience... Although to be fair the ale of Irrisen is made by orcs who have rather interesting brewing practices...
"So, it's agreed then we go in by boat under cover of darkness. Hopefully we can do this without attracting any attention... get in and get out with our goals completed and our skins intact. Sounds good to me... I have one more cure light wounds spell for the day... and can use the wand as well to finish healing up those who need it. However the wand is starting to get low and we should consider buying a new one if we can afford it. Now, who needs healing?"
Kalistrine is engaged in an argument with a portly Ulfen by the bar.
Ukshahka says, "Ok, I will meet you guys bright around 11am for our lessons tomorrow morning so we are prepared to go. Kali, don't let Vermundr drink so much, you can tell he is a lightweight."
Vermundr laughs and continues to nurse his ale. "See you tomorrow morning then."
So Ulfen, can you carry a tune?
As he says this Pale Lothi summons a fiddle out of thin air...
"TOmorrow mid-morning then... thank you." Ahiko goes back to watching the others from a short distance and sipping her own watered down wine.
"Of course, all northmen sing", the young ulfen boasts.
"Some just don't sing very well", he add with a laugh.
Let us start with a classic, were all dead men here. Lets see if you can match me verse for verse.
Pale Lothi begins to pluck the fiddle and then turn it towards a half somber, half comical tune that is the tendency among the songs of Irrisen's benighted peasantry...
In the fields of Irrisen there be only one kind of man, that's a dead one my lad. They may all claim to be different, yet they are not my lad. The peasant, the trapper, the cook, even the Jadwiga they all be destined for one fate my lad...
perform (string)
Vermundr bellows along with a layman's passion.
Lothi increases the tempo of the bawdy Irrisen drinking song and chants another verse...
The Hero, the thief, the wizard, the witch even the bloody priest are all walking dead men my lad like all of us they will be paying a visit to the boneyard right quick! None of us be avoiding the grave my lad, were all dead you see we just don't know it yet!
perform (string), to increase the tempo.
Though he barely knows the words, Vermundr boisterously sings along.
Lothi prepares the final verse by increasing the half bombastic, half somber tone of his music to a fever pitch...
Dancing in the freezing winds lurks a figure o myth my lad, he be called the reaper! When we see him in the freezing winds of this hell we all know two things my lad, one of us going of to the boneyard and the rest of us be a knowing that were all dead men here!
perform
Oblivious of how off-tone or out of sync he is, Vermundr happily sings along.
Ahiko winces at the performances from time to time, but more from a lack of understanding of the Western tonal scale, than true reaction to the individual performances.
When the song is ended, she sighs, and shrugs. "Very defeatest and sad song... death is just transitory after all... Nothing to be so somber about."
Wait my dear till you have spent a winter in old Irrisen, once you have my beauty you will understand the songs of my homeland... Now to crack another song out or to get a nice ale... Hmmm hard choice.
Kalistrine returns to the caravan blind drunk and passes out under a wagon.
Ahiko checks on Kali when she gets back to the caravan, makes sure she still has a pulse there under the wagon, then goes to her own rest to ready herself for her 'lesson' later.