The Crossing Inn is a well-worn, heavy wooden structure perched above a row of keelboat docks on the east bank of the Trank River, south of the Phlan Path. It is a single level, with short perimeter walls and a towering faceted roof around a large central stone chimney. Upon entering, Krissina, Sera, and Glenda find a large, wood framed octagonal common room used for both eating and sleeping. It can comfortably hold up to 50 travelers overnight, and a good deal more if they squeeze in. At the moment, there is only a few staff with even fewer travelers.
A large man with a heavily scarred bald head watches you from a massive table near the front, next to a window. He fits the description of Romsan, the man who asked for you all to come... After a moment, he calls you over.
"Krissina, right? These are your friends? Welcome to Crossing Inn. I'm host and proprietor, Romsan Kal. I'm expecting another, a Paladin. Hopefully he'll be here soon, so take a seat and have a drink on the house."
One of Romsan staff comes over and he pours you each an ale from a clay jug, the front door opens again and in strides Hung and Rakish... the whole place tenses up and everyone is staring at the lizardman. It takes a minute before the staff member realises that Glenda's mug is overflowing and spilling onto the table. Romsan grabs a big cudgel and brandishes it, ready to charge...
Uncle Rommie! Sera squeals as she makes her way into the front of the common room. I'd ask how things have been, but I was with Krissie here and heard the news, and just had to come down and see if I could help! I'm a full fledged adventurer now dontchaknow.
When comes in, her eyes grow wide and a smile splits her face, Rakish! You're helping too?!? she charges the lizardman as if to bury him in a giant hug, only to stop a few feet before, remembering protocol and other such silliness. Well met again old friend... though you may not be that old... do you folk age at different rates than humans? Turning around to lead him to the rest of the group, Sera senses the unease in the room, GUYS, this is Rakish, he's a friend, and has saved my life a few times, and I've saved his! I don't know what's going on, but he's one of the good guys!
Rakish blinks at Sera, You voice bring shot to my ears, pink one.
His voice is deep - although some humans have been known to sing deeper - and gravelly.
Yes, the drums have brought me. The news of people taken have brought me. The rumors of the unnatural aggressiveness of my kind have brought me.
Such aggressiveness brought doom to my own Marsh, forced me to abandon the waters of my home and seek a life with humans. There is no desire to see the same befall this Marsh, but if it does, the innocent people within it's reach should not be harmed.
If we are unable to stop it, at least we can try to rescue those caught by its grip.
Gesturing to the Kenku, he says, Hung brings the hunt, as well.
In a voice that sounds like that of Romsan Kal, the birdman introduces himself.
"Greetings humans. I am Won Hung Lo, but please just call me Hung. I come from an aerie far from here, and met friend Rakish up river where he was good enough to assist me in discouraging several people from taking my belongings. I am most willing to help you in this endeavor."
Glenda tries to keep her drink in when the kenku announces himself as Won Hung Lo.
Rakish! Glad to see you! He practically cut down a black dragon by himself! Glenda says. She takes a sip from her mug. Her fish, Fynn, is jumping around in its pouch.
A man enters the inn, a mop of red hair adorns his head and falls a bit into his eyes. He wears the reinforced leather of a seasoned man, perhaps having served in an adventuring company before. The man is definitely not military, though, as anyone with experience can tell that he just does not have that kind of discipline.
There is a certain amount of fire in his eyes, perhaps it is the northern stock that can be seen running through his features that give it away, and he moves with a grace that shows that the thin blade at his side is not entirely for show.
He scans the room and heads to the bar, nodding a greeting to the other PCs gathered, Romsan, I presume? I am here about the missing folk. Tell me what you know.
The tension drops a little as Sera shows her familiarity with Rakish, Romsan lowers the club and rests its end on the floor, but he doesn't put it away...
"Well, I, hmm. Sorry, everyone's on edge at the moment and I've never had a lizard in my Inn before."
"There's been a lot of disappearances lately and, the drums every night. Some folk think the lizardfolk are behind it. Uh, if you've come to help, and you know Sera... take a seat. You too Won. Er, do lizards drink ale?"
A few other patrons get up and move to other tables as Rakish and Hung approach.
----
"Romsan, I presume? I am here about the missing folk. Tell me what you know."
"And you must be Ravvek, thanks for coming to help. Take a seat."
Romsan sits down at the table now with you all and calls for another round of ales."I'll start now, if anyone else drifts in with the current you can catch them up on the information... Like I said There's been a lot of disappearances, People are frightened. The disappearances began about a tenday ago, the first night of the drums. Most say it's coming from the south, maybe as far away as the Twilight Marsh. The drums beat throughout the night. Each morning, someone is gone, often along with some of their livestock if they have any. The farmers and travelers are scared. Once the drums start, no one travels at night and no one feels safe, even behind barred doors..."
"We have a few clues. Some spotted clawed footprints where the kidnappings occurred. A few river dwellers claim to have heard splashing and movement on the river in the dead of night. Some fear that a new monster has moved in, but others think it's the lizardfolk in the Twilight Marsh. Ahem..."
"They're troublesome, but some of these disappearances are a long way from a marsh, and a few have even happened along the road. Not exactly lizardfolk hunting grounds. You know..." he gestures at Rakish.
"Oh, I can vouch for Rakish, we've worked together before, hopefully if the lizardfolk are involved we may be able to diffuse the situation with his aid. Unless Rakish or any of the rest of you have a better plan, we should just patrol the hotspots in the dark?"
Ravvek nods, I will need the names of the missing, as well as their families.
He looks at the others at the table, assessing them each with a nod stopping finally on Rakish, What is your name, lizardman? If it comes down to it, will you be able to kill your own folk?
Oh dear... seems dire Glenda says.
And if it's lizardfolk I hope not all of them fight like our friend here! she thinks to herself.
Glenda introduces herself to newcomers. I'm Glenda Huckleberry. One day I caught a fish that spoke, and now I'm here... she says.
Hung looks at her, and tilts his head as she speaks. He answers back to the halfling using her own voice.
"What kind of fish? Certain types can be very good luck..as can crickets."
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Er, do lizards drink ale?
Ale brings as much joy to my kind as it does your.
Not exactly lizardfolk hunting grounds. You know..." he gestures at Rakish.
These lands do not bring me knowledge; my home is far from here. I do not know how far the hunting grounds extend. But I do know that my kind do not always act on their own. Dragons often bring work to us. Humans often bring work to me. There may be a higher power behind the kidnappings, even if the lizardfolk are directly responsible.
What is your name, lizardman?
Rakish.
If it comes down to it, will you be able to kill your own folk?
Can you bring death to a human, human?
Ravvek nods, Fair enough, Rakish.
The human looks to everyone at the table, My name is Ravvek, and I am a servant of the people. I am not what you would call a Good man. I do what needs to be done, so... the man waves his hand in the air, The commonfolk do not have to. I bring them justice if I can, vengeance if I cannot.
He looks to each person meeting their gaze. Once he is certain they understand what he is saying, he continues, I welcome any help you offer, and can see that you each have skills that I may not. I hope that we can work together and bring these missing people back alive. If not, please understand that I will kill all of those that are responsible.
Ravvek lets out a breath, as if this speech has not gone well before.
Rakish looks at the man; his tertiary eyelids blink.
You bring truth to the world. You will bring value to our company.
Hung looks at her, and tilts his head as she speaks. He answers back to the halfling using her own voice.
"What kind of fish? Certain types can be very good luck..as can crickets."
"Well that depends on its mood. Some days it's a cod, some days it's a flounder. When he's in a bad mood he's a rockfish or slippery like an eel. It finds it amusing but it seems to be the source of my... magic. Honestly, I'd much prefer running a restaurant baking blueberry pie," Glenda says.
Krissina smiles warmly at Ravvek "While even I admit that sometimes bad things get done for good reasons, I'd rather we tried to resolve this with as little bloodshed as we can. I beleive that all evil has a cause and would rather deal with the root than the branches."
Sera blanches at Ravveks declaration to kill all those responsible. She turns on him, glaring up at him from her diminutive stature, Now Justice is all well and good, but ALL those responsible is a bit much don't you think? The parents of those missing are responsible, because if they hadn't played hide the oinker, the people missing would never have been around to go missing. If the herbalist and medicine women who helped them when they were sick hadn't cured them, they wouldn't have been in the location they were to have been taken. Thal's Balls, if they themselves hadn't chosen to do whatever it is they were doing when they were taken, they wouldn't have been taken! ALL is such a definitive and specific declaration, and I know how some people are with their vows. How about we say if you cant bring back those missing alive, you'll dole out vengeance on the ones who caused the fatal wounds. That would absolve those who participated in the lives of those missing from your fury? She then looks around a bit, shrugs with a lopsided smile and adds, What, contract law is something I have a lot of experience with.
Ravvekk cocks his head slightly at the half-elven girl, That is certainly one way to look at it, I suppose. I believe that you may be overthinking these things, though I admit that sometimes I do not think enough. How can you lay blame on the parent that was playing Hide the Oinker if their children were snatched away from them? How can you blame the healers and herbalists, if their homes are raided? Do you not think that they blame themselves enough?
The avenger smiles, But you are right, perhaps not ALL responsible. Those directly responsible? Does that satisfy you, little one?
Romsan Starts to speak several times but he's having a little trouble getting a word in edgewise while the party gets to know one another...
"Well, there's the Drystones, the Thistlethwaites, the flanigans... old Thompson. Hmm, who else..."
Suddenly the front door flies open and a young human man dashes in. His appearance suggests he's a farmer. He pauses and looks around the room before running up to the innkeeper. He's clearly upset.
"Romsan! The Renons are gone! Come to the farm. You have to figure out what happened."
Romsan looks at each of you in turn before looking back to the young man and says, "I'm not fit to come out of retirement for this, but these folks are here to help." He turns back to the party, "This is the best lead you're going to get. Taroo here can get you downriver to the farm. It's much faster than walking, or even riding the trails."
Taroo looks to all of you an almost jumps out of his skin at the sight of Rakish, but Romsan silences any questions from the young farmhand with a stern look... the farmhand fidgets around and doesn't take a seat, seeming eager to be off...
"Listen, I know it won't sound like much but some of the folks around have chipped in to a fund to organise search parties. I've put in quite a bit too... I can offer 50gp to be split between you. " Romsan says.
Rakish gets up and starts walking towards the lad. You will take us there.
"Are you sure you can't afford a little more than 50, sir? We're very effective!" Glenda says.
"Stinky waterlogged areas... Sounds just like the last one!" Glenda says.
In the young mans voice, Hung answers.
"Let us not waste time then. Direct us to this farm young sir."
Yeah, its one thing to fleece a government or wealthy aristocrat, its quite another to squeeze poor townsfolk who are just trying to survive. adds Sera as she gets ready to head out.
Krissina rolls her eyes at Glenda, "Duty calls, let's go."
Ravvek tries to commit the names to memory, but once the farmer bursts in, he stands, looking a little disappointed at the halfling's attempt at negotiation, That will be more than sufficient. I'm sure that we will find much more from those that did this, Glenda, was it?
Turning to the farmer, the man nods, As my friend, Rakish, said... take us. We will find them, and bring them back if we can.
Glenda lets out a grunt to respond but keeps her tongue. -_-
"Are you sure you can't afford a little more than 50, sir? We're very effective!" Glenda says.
[dice=Persuade]1d20+5
"Stinky waterlogged areas... Sounds just like the last one!" Glenda says.
"Ha, I know what it was like to be an adventurer, and every trick in the book to try and negotiate a better deal... I'll tell you what, I've still got a few magical trinkets from my adventuring days, I'll take a look through them and find something I can part with as a bonus... " Romsan replies to Glenda.
Taroo looks very nervous as Rakish approaches but nods, and replies, his voice a little squeaky. "Right follow me, we can take one of Romsan's keelboats and get back to the Renon's farm in no time. "
Taroo leads you all down to the docks and hops on board one of the boats there, the boat is 20ft long and about 8ft wide. There are enough poles that everyone can help to push and steer downriver and Taroo directs and helps as well.
As he helps to guide the boat downriver he tells you a little about himself and the Renon's
" I've been working on the Renon's farm for about two years, they're good people and I've got a little cottage on the property but I'd been away for a few days visiting family. "
"I was supposed to be back yesterday but it got dark early and I ended up staying at a friendly farm a few miles to the east. I got back at mid morning and... the doors had been smashed in, they were missing and some of the livestock too! "
Glenda winks at Ravvek.
"Well let's take a look. Tell us more about this Renon. The first time such a disturbance has taken place?" Glenda says.
"Some? Not all the livestock? Any blood?"
Ravvek nods, Makes sense for a smaller group. Take what you can carry. I wonder why take the people over livestock? Ransom, perhaps? Slavery?
To some, there is no difference between people and livestock. Meat brings sustenance no matter what bones it's picked from.
Ravvek shakes his head, suppressing a shudder, You are right, Rakish. I forgot who we may be dealing with...
Sera pales slightly at Rakish's comment, her fingers unconsciously fiddling with a carved tooth necklace. Have you eaten... pink skins... she asks, remembering how he refers to most humanoids.
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Do you still walk with life, Pink one? If so, I have not eaten you, yet. Rakish says. Clarifying over a long period of back and forth with several misunderstandings due to the lizardfolk's odd style of language, he explains that Sera is the Pink One, not all people.
Lizardfolk typically do not call people by the name they give themselves, but rather have a nickname unique to them.
But to answer the true question at hand, My enemies have brought nourishment to me. They will continue to do so. Have you not done this yourself? You hunt the elk and the horse. I do the same with the knight and the mage. All may be allies. All may be enemies. All are equal.
All are prey.
Ravvek suppresses another shudder, Show no fear...
Nodding in agreement to his lizard-friend, Hung speaks in the voice of a small girl.
"It is just nature. The strong survive and the weak do not. Sometimes the weak become food for the strong. We Kenku eat little meat in our diet, but we do understand hunters!"
He looks at the party and then cocks his head to the right and speaks in Glenda's voice.
"Shouldn't we be going?"
Yes, let's... Ravvek is glad to change the subject and continue on.
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"Hey! Why did you do that? That is creepy!" Glenda says when she hears Hung use her voice.
AS for Rakish, Glenda says. "Um.. okay. Just don't try halflings. We really don't taste good. Vile. Like bad, mouldy cheese."
"Hmm, I wonder what I taste like?" Krissina muses, she examines her fingers if as if contemplating them as food.
"Oh, blood? Yeah I think I saw a few drops... some of the furniture was broken, they were definitely fighting with something... "
"The Renons are good people, Mr 'n' Mrs Renon... just simple farming folk , like myself but a bit older. No kids though..."
It takes about half an hour of navigating the river before Taroo and Draco beach the boat on a gravel bar along the east bank of the river...
Hoping out of the boat, Ravvek, Draco, Rakish, Seraphyna and Hung all spot muddy footprints and a trail of blood drops near some stairs up to the riverbank proper...
"Oh no, that way leads to the Tralio farm! They must have been raided too!" Taroo exclaims when the footprints are pointed out...
We'd best hurry, Rav examines the tracks, Lead the way, Taroo.
"Oh dear... they're getting bolder!" Glenda says.
Investigation:
Hung joins the others as they carry on to the farm.
Sera ponders Rakish's reaction, and remembering when she herself threatened to have him eat some people. Ultimately deciding that the lizardman would NEVER eat her, she's far too cute to be dinner.
Hey look... these markings are from when a barge or riverboat slides up onto shore. I saw it a lot during my merchant days. OOOooo what's that! she exclaims, hoping over toward a rock where she is able to withdraw a weird smelling gourd canteen.
Hey Taroo, is this something you use farming? she asks, not really sure what the gourd contains.
What have you got there, Seraphyna? Rav halts briefly mid-step.