"Hmmm, there where a few horses with the bandits we first fought with here. We did take a few of them, but the rest might still be here." Autumn looked to Herger before leaning over and whispering something to him.
** spoiler omitted **
He blinked when she mentioned the amount of coin now in their possession but merely nodded. He responded to her whisper in kind leaning closer and trying to respond as quietly.
He nodded at Titian's wisdom in thinking about calling it a night early. There was always so much to do in the early morning hours. Still he had a few other chores to tend to before he could call it a night.
Autumn smiled at Herger, glad to hear he agreed with her idea and even modestly praised it. Then she looked back to the others, "I need to check on a few things before calling it a night." Autumn said as she stood from the table. "Bright an early tomorrow gentlemen! Don't be late, it is rude to keep people waiting." She said with a smile before she turned away and patted the side of her leg for Frostbite to follow her. This however allowed those who glanced at her leaving to notice something they couldn't have before... the wolf tail upon the young woman. One would be forgiven in thinking it was just a decoration or trophy from some hunt... till it moved! That was when they could tell it was actually her tail!!
After leaving the common area Autumn made her way back to Oleg. "Oleg, I was wondering if you happened to have any of those horses from the bandits left around here?" She asked.
Elirious extends his lower lip and nods his head thoughtfully, that would work, I hope this Oleg is amenable. If this charter nonsense is as lucrative as it sounds I need to insert myself into it by hook or by crook!
Elirious rises as Autumn leaves and quickly finds himself following her, giving a sheepish smile he raises a hand defensively, "I was just going to speak with Master Oleg."
At Autumn's question he raises his brows awaiting Oleg's answer before going about introducing himself.
As Autumn, and Elirious step out the front door of the inn, they see Oleg rounding the outer gate, whistling. Which is unusual, he tends toward the dour. Farther behind Oleg comes a warrior in a green long coat. The coat covers his armor, mostly; the visible chain links are dulled gray.
Oleg answers Autumn's question: "Yeah a couple. Commander Garess tries to scoop all the horseflesh around here, but he don't get it all."
Autumn chuckled a bit as Oleg commented on Kesten. "Didn't bring enough horses Kesten?" She asked in a joking tone. However she did swiftly return her attention to Oleg. "We have a few more come out here to help us with exploring but two of them are missing a horse. We cannot have them traveling on foot so I was hoping to use the IOU you gave me for their horses. Is that agreeable to you?" Autumn asked.
Elirious gives a respectful bow, "Elirious Alothian, one of the horseless duo, pleased to make your acquaintance Master Oleg, and Commander Garess of course. I would greatly appreciate it if I could borrow a horse, and I can provide collateral should it be required, though I confess it would slightly pain me to do so. I am a storyteller by trade, though I have travelled the River Lands for long enough to be many things besides, and reputation means a lot to a man of my trade. What I am "subtly" hinting at is that I am not so much a fool as to think a horse worth offending one of the men at the heart of a new settlement I plan to frequent."
"I'm turning my troop into a cavalry squad. Commander Garess explains. "We marched here on our own two feet, now I've got almost half my men on horseback." He seems proud of the feat.
Oleg smiles at Autumn. "Of course you can have the horses, Autumn. The tack and saddles you'll need too."
Oleg's eyes twinkle with amusement as he answers Elirious. "I think Miss Autumn is doing the horsetrading on your behalf."
Oleg claps his hands together twice. Come, let's eat." He includes everyone with a broad, sweeping gesture. "Sit with Svetlana, and me, and tell us of your travels."
Autumn smiled brightly. "Thank you Oleg, it will help greatly!" Autumn said happily as the group turn to walk back to the main area. "And yes Elirious, that is what I was doing. Ensuring both you and Drazen will have horses for tomorrow."
Then she moved closer to Kesten as he seemed very pleased about the fact he'd gotten a fair amount of his men horses. "Turning them into cavalry? How are they taking to that?" She asked. "Oh, one of our new members seems to be a knight from Brevoy. He maybe able to help you and your men." Autumn told him.
Eager to begin the exploration of the region, Drazen heads into the sleeping area and chooses an unoccupied bunk. He performs his nightly prayers to Erastil, and then commits himself to sleep. The voyage here was exhausting and what is to come will likely prove to be no less testing.
"They like the idea well enough. Most ride like a sack of potatoes, though." The commander shrugs, he had known teaching the common soldiers how to ride would be difficult.
"I always appreciate the chance to talk tactics with those that have the training."
"I know the feeling of that." Autumn said with a smile. "Being able to talk about your trade with people is a good thing to have." She agreed. Though there where few in which she could speak to of hunting and such but that might change.
"Come on Bo... Ulfgar. No doubt I will be leaving in the morning, but I'll make sure you have the coin to purchase a few things to outfit yourself.There is a lot of work to be done."
He said rising from the food tables and making sure to pay Miss Svetlana for the food and drink. He thought about looking for where miss Autumn had moved off too but there would be time enough to talk in the morning as the traveled. He made his way to his bunk in the place.
Elirious shoots Autumn a sheepish grin, "Well I didn't like to assume... But thanks, and my thanks to you to Oleg, Commander, I confess I feel better with a horse at my disposal even if it is a borrowed one. Would it be alright for me to take a look before I seek my bed? I do not mean to call into question your care, but my old Master always told me a man should tend his own mount so he only has himself or the gods to blame if anything should go wrong."
All being well he heads over and does his darndest to select the best mount available, if offered a choice, and then gives the beasts a good brush down and attempts to win its favour by plucking the most succulent looking grass he can find nearby and feeding the beast.
That done he returns to the common room, tells a couple more tales and after settling with Svetlana makes for the bunks.
Morning comes, crisp and cool, with clear sky. It promises to be another fine spring day. The smell of frying bacon wafts gently out from the inn's kitchen. Svetlana, and Elbreth are busy making breakfast. Scrambled eggs, bacon, biscuits, a savory sausage gravy. There are apples, cored, baked and stuffed with raisins to finish it off with.
Oleg can be found in his office going over ledgers, Kesten Garess is with his men, rousting them out of bed for morning drills. He is doing this without any trumpet fanfare. Instead a rooster is crowing with energetic regularity.
Autumn gave a small laugh as she looked at Elirious. "I think that is the first thing to shows real work you've ever said."
After speaking with the a bit longer, Autumn and Frostbite when to their bunk and welcomed a night of sleep. There was a lot to do tomorrow after all.
When morning came Autumn and Frostbite where up and active. She wanted to make sure they had everything they would need for the trip out. Then it hit her, they no longer a tent... With spring came rain and they'd already been caught in it once before. So before breakfast she made her way to Oleg's knocking softly on the door. "Oleg, you don't happen to have any tents I could buy off you do you?" She asked.
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A few minutes before sunrise the young cavalier quickly raises and dresses and arms himself and moves in toward the kitchen
Looking at the breakfast Titian can´t help but smile.
"I take some eggs, bacon, some gravy, bacon and 3 apples and some bacon."
Munching happily he smiles."Excellent, excellent. May I have some more!"
As Autumn joins he nods and greets her.
"Good idea."
"Thank you." Autumn said with a smile. "And good morning to you Titian." The aasimar said. "I hope there will be enough tents, but I guess in the end we could doubt up. Only four of us should be sleeping at once with one on watch after all."
Again, poor Drazen seems entirely out of his element. Sure, he has an obviously brand new kit, and his outfit is fitting for an adventurous explorer. But it is evident that he has never ridden a horse and never set out into the wilderness.
"What can I do to help?" he asks no one in particular when he sees the others preparing for the journey.
"Nah, I like horses, it isn't work if you like it, it just kinda a subspecies of doing what you want," Elirious replies to Autumn before heading off to tend his newly borrowed equine.
The next morning he wakes and prestidigitates himself clean before slouching over to gratefully accept a plate of scrambled eggs, "Thank you kindly M'am, you will forever have a place in my heart."
Yawning he moves over to the group giving a tired little wave as he stretches, takes a seat and realizes he has no cutlery, with a shrug he summons a piccolo and uses it to push scrambled eggs into his waiting mouth.
"I usually make do without a tent, I can usually find something to hang my hammock under. Never really liked the idea of them anyway, its like being a kid under the covers, you sort of feel like you are protected, but if it comes down to it its just a thin bit of material between you and the night."
"Just need to get some tents then we'll be ready. Oh! See if Svetlana has that basket I asked for last night please?" Autumn asked Drazen.
To Elirious she chuckled a bit. "You say that now, but wait till the real rain hits and you'll be begging for a tent." She warned him.
More than happy to help, Drazen looks for Svetlana. Going through the camp, he greets all those he knows by name. He may not know his way around in the wilderness, but he certainly has a way with people...
"Good morning," he greets Svetlana with a smile. "Autumn asked me to see if you have a basket for her?"
"I usually just make a shelter from branches, spend the last few years knocking about in the Riverlands without a roof more often than not. But, well yes, if there is a tent available when it is raining I would be angling for an invite. But worst comes to the worst sleeping against your horse with your cloak and hammock over your head keeps you dryish, especially with a prestidigitation here and there."
He had risen with the dawn, spending the early portion of it in prayer to Erastil focusing his mind for the days upcoming challenges. Once down he found his son. Leaving with him enough coin to... provide for himself as a man... he supposed. He wasnt one for crying, but if he had been for one tears they probably would have been flowing. Letting him know they would be back shortly. He moved to prepare his horse.
He came across the newly formed party talking about cold and rains and could only chuckle as an Ulfen man could.
"A tent could come in handy. Spring storms can catch a man or woman sick, yet springtime is a time of renewed work. To plant the seeds of a productive summer, to set the seeds to feed your family. Its no time to be sick, thats for sure.
He said simply as he finished readying his horse.
"Rightly so." Autumn said as she gave a nod to both Titian and Herger. "Sadly It looks like this spring we'll be missing out on planting the fields in favor of charting the land. Also with how many we are, I'd love to get a pavilion but I doubt there is one here and even if there is I doubt I could afford it." Autumn told them with a small laugh.
Frostbite, who felt she had waited long enough for her breakfast, headed over to the table and gave puppy eyes to the first person she saw that had bacon.
"Tents, yes I have a couple in stock." Oleg shows the way to his storage shed. After a minute, he drags out three canvas rolls. "Two small, one large. Autumn sees that the poles are rolled up in the center of the canvas. "Demand for tents is fairly high, I'll have to order some more." Says Oleg, mostly to himself.
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Svetlana sighs. "I'm a little in short supply, but I can loan you one. Bring it back, though." The innkeeper brightens as she hands over a large wicker basket. "New folk have been moving in lately, maybe we'll get a basket weaver."
Svetlana smiles, pleased at the complements, she makes sure that everyone has enough to eat. "Later, in the summer we'll have fresh fruits. Berries too."
"Well, it'll keep us dry." Autumn said before she handed over fourty gold. "I'll take the big one and one of the small tents. I'm sure the gents won't mind sharing till a few more tents come in." She said before lifting the two tents onto her shoulder and heading over to Solstice. "I agree. Let me finish getting this tents tied on and grab a bit of breakfast to eat on the way and we'll head out." Autumn requested.
"We'll make sure to bring it back full," Uzma promises with a smile, taking the basket under his arm. He joins with the others, both nervous and eager to get going...
Elirious shrugs, "You can make a fair shelter with cut sod, grass, or even turf at a pinch. My Master was very good at such things, though I confess I never picked up all of his skills. But mostly I have not had the coin and opportunity to pick up a tent in the same period of time. I'll gladly share if nobody minds, its certainly less work and likely warmer."
Fetching his borrowed mount he feeds it a couple of breakfast apples and scratches its muzzle, before mounting and unfurling the banner upon his spear a grand thing depicting a blue dragon, that might also be a winding river, coiling about a golden egg.
"Ready when you are to ride into the unknown, seeking adventure..." He glances at Svetlana and smiles, "and berries? Radishes? Whatever the basket is for"
Herger and Autumn know the way back to the radish patch; crossing the open country from Oleg's to the forest goes quickly. Traveling the thick forest takes much more time. The trail is winding, and care must be taken to avoid low hanging tree branches. Still, mid afternoon brings you to the radish patch. The area remains unchanged, and deserted at the moment.
Taking the newcomers under his proverbial wing during the trip back to the radish patch, he gives them the short version of their time here so far, bluntly describing the bandit raid on the trading post, the arrival of the guards, the battles for the bandits in the wood all the way to fighting the mites, then the kobolds terrible shamen.
When they reached the radish patch he peered carefully all about looking for any hidden kobolds or the like.
He pulled out the handy evertool he had found fighting the shamen and made it into a simple spade to help remove the rare turnips from the ground for the basket.
Autumn, who had taken the front of the line, called back from time to time if she felt Herger missed something or if she just thought the others might find something they left out funny. Though for the most part she was rather quiet unless spoken to. When they got to the radish patch and saw it was in much the same condition as they left it, Autumn took a chance to teach a bit herself. "These gentlemen, are moon radishes. They're rare but grow here wild." She told them as the moved over to the patch and dug one up to harvest. "You May see a bit of the chaos around here, that is from Kobolds. You see, those little guys love these things! To them this is a pint of ale. Yes it has the same effect too." Autumn said with a small laugh as she set the one she got into the basket. "These are what I brought back to try and see if Curley could get them to stay alive till they seed in summer. It is also why we will be trying to find this... Bokken fellow. Now as to why we are here, Svetlana would like a basket full of these as Oleg loves them. Herger has already gotten started, I'll help him. If you know how to harvest these that would be very welcomed help if not... look out for kobolds?"
With that Autumn made her way over to help Herger collected the radishes as Herger dug them up. "I had wanted to talk to you before we left, though it seems I got a bit side tracked." Autumn told the cleric with a small chuckle.
"I'll keep watch," Drazen proposes.
Seeing the cleric working with a spade and finding himself once again ill-equipped, Drazen finds a spot to keep an eye out for kobolds. Truth be told, he is wary and nervous. He keeps his hand on the pommel of his sword...
Elirious pulls an unenthusiastic face, but produces his any tool and transforms it into a shovel which he then offers to Titian and Autumn, "It might be easier with this. I don't think I would be very good at digging, so I will keep a watch with Mister Drazen. I can see to the horses to if you like, don't want any equine radish thieves."
He looks about for a handy tree and secures the horses, of thise who allow him to, where they can feed and be out of the way of the radish harvest while still close at hand.
Once this is accomplished he watches attempts to copy Drazen's look outing with limited success, mostly because he is watching the other man for cues rather than keeping watch. After a few minutes he attempts to conceal himself changing his outfit to match a nearby tree and leaning into the trunk where he blends seamlessly.
"Don't borrow it then? Do you want to use it Autumn?" Elirious says with a shrug, "I would dig, but I don't want to, or am allergic to farming, and, or radishes, am a conscientious objector - take your pick."
He moves off to tend for his own mount and those of any others who wish it and then hides himself to watch for kobolds, or other threats.
Autumn gives a shake of her head. "No, I think Herger and I have a good system going at the moment." Autumn answered.
"Oh Titian, Kesten said he was wanting to turn the men he brought down here with him into a cavalry unit, did he speak to you about it?" Autumn asked as she set another radish into the basket.
He frowned at the bard who very clearly was trying to avoid any physical work... but he shrugged and went back to gathering radishes.
"You wanted words miss Autumn, nows as good a time as any."
He began gruffly only pausing to glance about at the others. He lowered his voice and continued.
"Its good to see more folk moving around here...even if some of them seem less than thrilled about it."
He said very lowly trying to keep it from earshot of the young bard.
"Six? Oh, oh, yeah, six, maybe even seven," Elirious whispers, mostly to himself staying hidden for the moment.
He was clearly not paying much attention to anything but digging up radishes and speaking with miss Autumn. When Titian called out about the kobolds he blinked and looked up and about for them.
"Hello Sootscales!"
He called out hoping this could be solved peacefully. Though he had no clue where they were at.
"Yes, it would seem so." Autumn whispered back to Herger before she went into speaking properly again.
"I wish not to over step, but with how hostile this place can be I thought I should at least offer." Autumn began with a shrug. "I would like to offer my bow to Ulfger." She finally stated. "I was going to ask if I could make him one, but as I found a better one within the purple kobold's treasure well...I-" Autumn stopped short when hearing the others. "I guess we can finish this in a bit..."
Noticing quiet a few trying to sneak up, Autumn stood and waved Frostbite to her side. Then she called to the Kobolds in Draconic. "Do you not remember? It is us who helped your clan by slaying the purple kobold shaman! You do not need to hide yourselves. Come out and speak peacefully and I give you my word, none here will draw a weapon against you."
Drazen remains hidden, hoping to catch a few of the kobolds unaware...
The center kobold, and the kobold on the eastern flank advance, preparing slings as they come.