Darnak thinks a moment before finally speaking. "Alright. Here's what I'm thinkin'. Seeing how it's a boar, it's not scared of anythin'. So, I'm gonna get it ta come after me. Once the beast is upon me, the rest of you surround it and attack while I keep it occupied. I highly suggest range weapons from the lot of ye. But if you must fight it up close, be prepared for it ta turn its tusks upon yerselves if ya hit it."
"Because I won't be hittin' it. I'm just there ta keep it occupied while the rest of ye finish it off. Are we clear?"
"You are a brave fellow, Darnak," Aldern says quietly so as not to startle the boar. "I think we will follow your plan."
Initiative
With little experience as a hunter, Menlo is somewhat taken aback when the boar appears, but his reflexes are lightning fast, and by the time he recovers his composure, one of the sharp metal rings he displayed earlier is already zipping through the air at the boar.
The chakram whistles through the air, and bites deeply. At first, Menlo looks exultant, but then it slowly dawns on him that he hasn't followed the plan. "Er... sorry guys..." he eyes the boar with rapidly growing apprehension.
Menlo draws first blood, and a significant gout of blood it is. The chakram hits the boar squarely in the side of the neck.
But the boar survives the blow and its temper is up. It rushes in toward its tormentor, but, fortunately for Menlo, the terrain is too rough and interspersed with thick vegetation for the boar to simply charge in at once. By the time the boar is done moving, Menlo is right up close and personal with it.
Perhaps doubly unfortunate, a second boar gets up out of some thick underbrush and also trots in toward the commotion. The squealing of the two boars raises quite a din.
As the plan quickly crumbles, "And then there's plan B," he states as a matter of fact before moving to attack.
Alesta tries to maneuver around the others to see if she can help out.
"Excuse me, sorry. Pardon me. Excuse me, can I please get through? Please?"
She held her morningstar hoping to use her spells in case of trouble.
"Rex, attack!" Aldern calls out to his new hunting dog. He reacts quickly to his command and bites effectively, tearing at the wound Menlo already inflicted. He even pulls the boar off its feet, leaving it prone.
Aldern, taken a bit by surprise by his new dog's success, calls out "Er, g-good boy. Good boy!" Meanwhile, he also aims at the other boar, opting to shoot the one in a bit of cover rather than the one in direct combat. The cover, however, proves too much for his shot and it misses.
Menlo initially steps away from the boar but then circles back around to keep the beast surrounded. He draws his rapier as he does so, but is unable to make an attack by so doing.
The boar decides it won't take this lying down and so tries to stand up - opening itself up to attacks from Darnak, Menlo, and Aldern's dog Rex.
Under an assault such as that, the boar fails to retain his feet and slumps to the turf.
The second boar moves in behind Darnak in an attempt to gore him. The monk, however, is too quick and nimble on his feet to be struck by so clumsy an attack.
Seeing one of the boars fall, Darnak turns his attention to the other one and attacks.
Firdall may have difficulty injuring the boar, but Darnak lands a blow squarely on his porcine opponent. It's not enough to put it down, however.
"Rex!" Aldern calls out and the new dog swiftly reacts with a painful bite to the boar's shoulder.
Menlo(bot) finds himself a bit farther from the fight than intended so he takes a hooked route to bring himself into the fight across from Firdall. He manages to thrust toward a vital area, though once again the boar proves too hardy to fall.
Alesta(bot) turns from her initial course and casts a spell. It looks like she's screaming but nobody save the boar fully hears it at its full amplitude.
The boar winces in pain from the sonic effect and seems to be dazed! It tries to shake the pain off.
Impressed by the resolve of the beast, Darnak continues his attack upon it.
Alesta lets out another ear piercing scream at the boar, trying not to catch any of her companions in the line of fire.
Darnak's strikes fail to bother the boar - its hide is too thick to mark such blows. But Firdall's claws do rend porcine flesh.
Another scream comes from Alesta. The boar squeals more in rage than in pain. Though grievously wounded, the boar fights on.
Menlo now takes his turn and tries to stab at the boar's vitals with his rapier. But he fails to line up his shot properly and the rapier goes wide of the mark.
The boar is weak on its feet. Rex attempts to go for the kill, but the boar manages to brush him off.
The boar tries desperately to gore Firdall to retaliate against his terrible claws. The cat man is too swift to be caught.
Firdall simply tears into the hapless boar. It cannot withstand so much injury and it collapses in a heap. Now, two boars lie on the ground, ready for dressing.
"Fantastic! I can see you have a great future ahead of you as a hunter, my friend," Aldern calls out, clearly pleased by the result of this morning's hunt. He slides down from his saddle. "We will be able to bring quite a prize back to Ameiko's fire pit, thanks to all of you. And Rex here, has been properly blooded as well. Come here, boy!" He then gives his new dog a treat from his pocket.
The boar carcasses are not too hard to clean, but the work is gory and smelly. Aldern breaks out the picnic prepared earlier by Ameiko. "Let us rest for a bit, friends, before we return to Sandpoint. You are doubtlessly thirsty and in need of food." He starts to offer bread and cheese around, but makes a point to offer the first piece of a sweet spice cake to Alesta.
Alesta smiles and thanks Aldern for the piece of spice cake.
"Thank you very much Aldern. Mmmmhh...this is good. Thank you again," she tells the nobleman in her melodic voice.
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Firdall gleefully finishes tearing dressing one of the boars, using his claws as much as tools to complete the work, then spends some time carefully washing off all of the gore.
After seeing the food brought out he exclaims, " Is that Ameiko's cooking?"
Firdall rushes over to help help himself to a generous portion, and begins to slowly savor it.
"It is Ameiko's cooking. She is a wonder, isn't she? And we'll be bringing these boars back for her to roast as well. Should be a fine feast."
Aldern relaxes in the shade, feeding some choice tidbits to his new dog.
"I confess I do not know too much about the current situation. Most of my life has been spent in Magnimar, a rather more urban location than its hinterlands. I do have roots in the area, though, and that's what brought me out to Sandpoint for a few days. Though I daresay that had I any inkling of such an attack, I might have not dared to leave the city."
"It is my understanding that goblins have always been a relatively minor problem - an occasional raid on a farm or travelers on the road. I believe that's why so many farms keep dogs in the area - goblins are supposed to be quite frightened of them. I guess in sufficient numbers even that fear can be overcome, hence my need for Rex, here, to replace Blackie."
"If you're interested in more of the area's history, Brodert Quink is probably the man you most want to talk to. He's a scholar of history. He believes that much of the area was once fought over during the collapse of the Thassilonian Empire. There certainly are many perplexing ancient ruins about.
"Well I say we head back ta town and see if we can find out why these buggers decided to attack. Or does this happen a lot?" he asks Aldern.
Aldern's eyes widen as he grins at Firdall's question. "I've had a look at some of the ruins, yes. Magnimar's full of them, particularly the great Irespan. I can't imagine why someone might have built a bridge so unbelievably huge, but the Thassilonians don't seem to have built anything small. Even the Old Light in Sandpoint is said to have once stood several hundred feet tall. It must have been a mighty lighthouse in its day,"
To Darnak's suggestion, he starts to stand up. "You are right, friend Darnak. We should take these boar back to Ameiko so the cooking can begin." He quickly brushes off his trousers and hands before offering one to Alesta.
"Allow me to assist you, Alesta. I hope you found the lunch to your liking?"
Alesta thanked Aldern for helping her up.
"Thank you Aldern. And yes, lunch was much to my liking. As an archaeologist, I tend to lose myself in my work and sometimes I forget to eat."
She laughs a bit before continuing to speak, "It's a hassle sometimes, but I guess in my time as an archaeologist, it's worth it."
She smiles at Aldern.
Once everyone is ready to leave, "Alright, let's move." Darnak then takes the lead and heads back toward town.
The trip back to Sandpoint is largely uneventful and pleasant. Upon arrival, people take note of the successful hunt and the party's heroic defense-inspired fame is still good enough to draw waves and congratulatory comments. Several children fall into procession, exited at the prospect of a boar roast tonight.
At the Rusty Dragon, Ameiko's eyes widen at the sight of the second boar. "I see you know how to make extra work for a girl. Guess who just got nominated to help! Prepping a boar for roast can be a bit grisly. I hope you have the stomach for it."
She does sweeten the offer of work with some beer and wine, so it's not like it's all bad...
"Roll up your sleeves, Firdall. You're about to get messy!" Ameiko says with an impish grin.
The prep-work for the boar roast is bloody, but before long the carcasses are turning slowly over a couple of fires and Ameiko has the adventurers engaging in kitchen duties more mundane than fighting goblins. Many an onion or carrot needs to be chopped, bread dough kneaded, and stewpots stirred.
Hours later, as sundown approaches, anticipation runs high as the smell of the roasting boars permeates the neighborhood around the Rusty Dragon. Father Zantus has been offering Desna's blessings on the food, taking a little sample here and there as he goes. Quite a crowd gathers. Cyrdak Drokkus from the Sandpoint Theater has let his performers out of rehearsals for the night so that they can drum up interest in the weekend's performance. Cyrdak, himself, holds forth with some entertaining anecdotes about the last few shows. Daviren Hosk is there, relatively anti-social at the end of one of the common tables, but a few tankards around him indicate he's determined to take part in the night's drinking. Even Sheriff Hemlock seems to be more at ease in the environment of the inn.
Aldern Foxglove seems well-enough at ease as he greets people about the inn, but though people are polite to him, they aren't particularly warm. A few even exchange a glance or two as he passes by.
Narrowing his eyes as he manages to take notice of the odd looks given Aldern by several patrons, Darnak leans in near Menlo. "Did ya notice that lad? Did ya notice the wary looks some of the patrons have been givin' Foxglove? Don't suppose you'd have any idea why, would ya? It's almost like they don't trust him or somethin'."
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Firdall cleans up after the hard work, and joins the party.
After some general carousing and occasional flirting with Ameiko, eventually someone introduces Firdall to the Sherriff.
"Greetings Sheriff Hemlock! Happy to meet you. I am Firdall Firetail, a new arrival in these parts. Have a mug of grog on me!"
Firdall signals for a drink for the Sheriff.
Gesturing at the rest of the party,
"My crew and I were part of the group that hunted the boar, and were looking for a way to help the town and ourselves with some Goblin hunting. Has the town put out a bounty?"
"Oh dear, I forgot to mention that I'm a vegetarian," Alesta says with a worried look.
Unlike others, she's okay if others eat meat. She had no problem with that.
Still she joined in the celebration by playing on her harp of a heavenly song.
Ameiko catches Alesta's comment about being vegetarian, "Now don't you worry a bit about not eating meat. What kind of inn would this be if we didn't have some varieties of dinner?" She heads to the kitchen and, a few minutes later, comes out with a dish of noodles and vegetables all in a fragrant garlic sauce.
The crowd is highly receptive to Alesta's song and she is soon beset with requests ranging from the sublime to the bawdy. The Varisians in the audience seem particularly moved by the music and a few additional instruments fiddles, drums, flutes, and tin whistles come out to provide further accompaniment.
Meanwhile, Sheriff Hemlock gruffly returns Firdall's greeting and accepts the offer of the drink. The taciturn sheriff doesn't offer up much small talk or opening pleasantries but cuts right to the goblin topic. "No bounty yet. The mayor and I wish to know more about the local situation before we commit to a bounty. But once we have the scouting report, we will most likely issue one. If you are looking for a bounty now, the man you want is Daviren Hosk at the Goblin Squash stables. He will pay for proof of kill, year round."
"If you don't mind Mr. Firdall, I was curious to learn more about you. I must confess that I haven't many catfolk in my travels. So, I was wondering if you could tell me about yourself," the feather haired aasimar archaeologist said to the catfolk.
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"There's not really much to tell. I come from a small village in the Mwangi expanse, Most of the tribe were hunters, and I trained with the rest of the clan. Then I ran into trouble. It was the classic tale: Two boys, a girl, a disagreement, a fight, a lucky shot and then a corpse. Since the other fellow was the chief's son, leaving the village seemed the best course of action at the time.
So I went to sea. It was great fun, the sailing and the fighting. I was a good shot with a bow, the fastest climber and a decent riggers. Unfortunately, one day we were finally run down buy a much larger ship, and it sunk us. I nearly drowned, and so I've decided to try my luck on land again."
There are plenty of townsfolk happy to listen to Alesta's music and happy enough that there was a group of stalwarts available to defend the town from goblins and so the rounds of drinks flow quite freely into the night...
Darnak's conversation with Menlo turns up no clues as to the townsfolk's attitudes toward Aldern Foxglove. But as the night wears on and tongues loosen (and Foxglove himself turns in), the gossip gets around about the unfortunate scion of the Foxglove clan - two significant elements to the story, in fact.
Aldern Foxglove is the youngest child (and only son) of Traver and Cyralie Foxglove - orphaned at a young age. When the kids were found at the manor, their father was dead by his own hand, the servant quarters had burned down, and Cyralie's body was found at the base of the cliffside the manor overlooks. The kids were taken in by relatives in Korvosa.
Local legend says that's not the first tragedy to afflict Foxglove Manor. Forty-five years earlier, the builders of the manor, Vorel and Kasanda Foxglove, their child, and their servants all succumbed to a virulent disease virtually overnight. The reputation of the manor is, therefore, quite dark and it's often referred to as "the Misgivings" rather than Foxglove Manor. Aldern's current attempt to repair and refurbish the place has been hampered by local laborers being reluctant to work there and brave the curse that must surely be on the place.
Alesha talked to Firdall about what his life was like in his village as well as what he liked and what did he do for fun. The aasimar found the catfolk to be quite....charming. She felt sorry for how he had to run away from his home.
She did her best not to drink since she always had a bit of trouble holding her alcohol but she was getting a bit tipsy.
"So tell me Firdall, what do you look for in a woman?"
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Firdall takes a deep sip of his drink and thinks for a moment.
"Well, pretty much what every male looks for in a woman, I'm really not too choosy,
She just has to be charming, able to hold her own in a fight, be able to keep me in line, and
most importantly, she need to put up enough of a chase to make it interesting, but not so much that she can't be caught!"
Firdall sighs and gazes longingly at Ameiko.
"And it helps if she is an excellent cook"
While it's not clear if it was distaste for the messy work of preparing the boar, or a distaste for the work itself, Menlo had fallen silent while doing the tasks needed of him. Now, with the mood a little more festive, he engages in some small acts of legerdemain and entertains some of the locals with some juggling. To those whose attention he draws, he spins various fantastic tales as he performs, the veracity of which is very difficult to judge.
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From time to time, Firdall occasionally "helps" Menio by calling calling out a warning, then tossing an odd object or two for Menio to add to his juggling, or tossing a food tidbit for him to catch and eat.
His aim, isn't too bad, but seems to be somewhat affected by his ale consumption.
"So Alesta... what do you like to do for fun?"
Eventually Ameiko rings a bell and cries out to all still there, "Alright, everyone. Last call! I hate to break up the party but some of us have to work here. If you want a good breakfast in the morning, I need to get my rest. You really don't want me cooking half asleep unless you're very tolerant what gets on the menu." Her quip is met by many chuckles from the company.
The local townsfolk who aren't staying at the inn start to drift out as they finish up their drinks. Menlo notices that there's a young woman who has been gazing him, and as she too heads out of the common room, she looks back over her shoulder somewhat seductively with a smile on her face.
"Oh I see. So, hic...Mr...hic...Firdall, what say you and I have some fun tonight? Just you and me. I would love to see how...hic...you're...hic...people...express love...and...hic...affection..the native...way...hic! I must say...you have...hic...have beautiful fur! Why it is...so...breath-taking...hic and attractive...I'm surprised you don't have a horde of women....hic...coming after you...hic...you!"
Alesta was clearly drunk. In the morning, she was going to have one heck of a hangover.