The man stares hard at Alya, unsure of how she could know the things that she is saying.
He stands, squares his shoulders, and faces all of you. "You want this mudhole? As far as I'm concerned, it's all yours. You let me go, and I'll walk that way," he points back from the way he came, "and find my fortunes elsewhere. Agreed?"
If there's no opposition to his departure, he gathers his things and starts tromping away from the campfire, heading away from you and your party, back towards the larger coastal cities of Taldor.
If you check the other guard, he is carrying a longbow and arrows, a longsword, and studded leather armor.
----
After you finish regrouping, you continue down the road to Railford. Valon was correct, it's not far off. Atop a hillock stand half a dozen small stone cottages surrounding a tall brick and timber building topped with a massive tin-covered water drum. A sign over its looming doors reads Railford Distillery est. 4693. From a squat brick building sharing an adjoining wall with the distillery rises a long cylindrical chimney. A low, moss-covered cobblestone wall surrounds the entire property.
Throughout the town, windows are dark and shuttered, but you catch glimpses of furtive eyes sneaking glances at you. As you get closer to the distillery itself, one window opens and a voice yells, "This is our town, you thieving bastards! GET OUT!" just before a rotten vegetable flies out and strikes Sun in the shoulder. A similar cry comes up from a few other houses, and more projectiles fly out - here a cabbage, there a bottle, even an errant brick!
None of these find their mark, but it's clear that the people in town believe you to be members of Grald's crew.
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Lady Alya watches him go, warming her hands the hole time.
Once he is out of ear shot she tells the others what she learned from his mind.
"So there you have it"
She nods a Sun,
"Thank you for your help there, I did not want to kill needlessly."
Once they search the dead man and have moved on she rides once more her pony. She takes none of the dead mans things.
Once in the town the food fight starts she shouts
"HOLD, WE ARE FROM THE PATHFINDERS, HERE TO HELP NOT TAKE YOUR LAND!"
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ignoring the man and letting him go, she mounts Ruby and continues on her way.
Upon approaching the town she just mutters a bit and then laughs out loudly
"Your land is yours, we are not here to take it, we here to give it back if it comes to that"
then turning her attention to the group "Looks like they want to feed us"
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Sun calls out to the departing would-be thief, "Gods be with you."
If no one objects, he takes the longsword, draws it and swings it around. "My town militia insisted all able-bodied men and women ... and half-orcs ... learn to fight with a longsword. May as well keep it handy." He wraps the scabbard belt around Wu Kong's backpack so the sword is available if he needs it. Sun himself is at his limit of gear so that taking on more would slow him down.
Later that same day ...
After enduring the unwelcoming barrage, he adds to the words of Alya and Zylencia, "We dispatched two of the brigands you want to be hitting with these fine examples of produce," Sun called back, gather up some of the vegetables. "We would speak with Master Railford about aiding the Pathfinder Society. We will help you defend your town if want someone who can offer more potent attacks than fruits and vegetables."
The lettuce is a little soggy and dirty, but not too rotten.
After a couple minutes, a group of townsfolk come forward, led by a grizzled veteran. "Pathfinders, eh? Been a time since I seen any of your lot. I'm Dalard Fritch," he shakes hands with any of you so willing, "and I can speak for Railford, especially if you're serious about helping fight of Grald's men. Becher headed out two days ago, to go looking for something in the swamp - some cache where his father hid the deeds to the distillery, and the town.
"I was counting on him being back today, but just this morning one of his men stumbled into town, sick with fever and raving about walking corpses setting on Railford's group just when they found what they were looking for. You want to help our town? You gotta help us find Railford - and fast! Grald's coming back to claim the town in the name of the Emperor right soon. I can get you in to see Jessup and hear his tale for yourselves - he's the one what came back raving. Might give you some clues as to what you'd be facing. Otherwise, what can I tell you?"
Jessup Bose lies in the care bed of the local healer, his festering wounds being cleansed with live leeches.
- Valon recognizes the tell-tale signs of ghoul fever, and that the man is in critical condition. He will die tonight if he does not receive the proper care.
If you ask him, he tells his tale: “Becher led us through the swamps down an old trail to what used to be the barrel-aging caves. Them caves where vinters would set the casks ta dry ‘em out an give ‘em good flavor. When we got there, the caves was all boarded up, so it took us a while ta get in. The place was flooded, barrels floating everywhere and it had a foul stink to it. We poked around a bit till Becher found the back office. Inside, there was this strongbox where he said the deed was. That’s when they came... these things rose out of the muck and started attacking. Dead folk with sharpened fangs. We tried to fight ‘em but they was too strong. They tore Padrik’s arm right off and started eating it... we tried to get out the way we came in. I made it out, but some of the creatures started following us, escaping. They blocked the entrance, trapping Becher and Walmont inside and after that the entrance collapsed on them. One of the creatures that followed me tried to grab me and took a bite out of my leg, so I ran. I ran as fast as I could. I don’t know what happened after that.”
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After Fritch talks She says.
"It is good to meet you Dalard Fritch, I am the Lady Alya De Qill, I and my fine associates here where set to investigate just what is going on here. We know of Grald and his men. Now two less as has been said."
She then waits while the others shake his hand and introduce themselves.
"Dalard I want you to let the town know. Our group has some highly skilled and trained fighters. Help has come, I know how fear can grip a community. The pathfinders sent us to support you anyway we can. If its getting Dalard back with the documents then we shall, but be warned. By the sound of this Grald, he will not be stopped by paper alone. So best get look to protecting what you have and we will do our best to deal with him. Now lets see this hurt man and find out what he knows of Railford and the rest."
She looks to those she is with to see if they agree.
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A man wearing the colours of Sarenrae staggers around the corner.
Oh, hello..I am Therin...sent here to help you with this mission. I am sorry I'm late...got held up on a ship a ways back...messed my schedule up by at least a day...luckily I managed to catch a ride here with a merchant heading here. Is there anything I can do to...oh, my word...that looks nasty. Mind if I take a look at it? he says, looking at the man's wounds.
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Valon shakes Dalard's hand and listens as Lady Alya speaks with him.
Following along to meet Jessup, the monk stands and listens silently as the man speaks, using the time to look the man over. As Therin begins his own inspection of Jessup's wounds and general condition, Valon speaks. "I'm no expert in medicine and healing, but I have seen this before. Those must have been ghouls in the cave. This is definitely ghoul fever." He points at the wound on his leg. "Probably from that bite."
He pauses a moment and shakes his head before he turns away from Jessup and continues, more quietly than before. "It's bad. Real bad. Looks like it's hit him hard and fast, even for ghoul fever. Unless this works," he says with a gesture toward Therin, "he won't survive the night."
Dalard thanks you all for offering to help. "You don't know what this could mean for our town. It's not like you'll come in here and take the place over - Grald and his men'll nearly wipe us out. Here, a few things to help you find Becher." He hands you a scroll tube and a potion. "Perhaps your priest of Sarenrae can make use of the scrolls - they remove diseases. The potion can free someone who has been paralyzed. Who knows what might have befallen Becher? I hope you don't need to use any of them."
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The townsfolk set you down the way that Becher went, which should lead you to the caves where they barrel age liquor from the distillery. After a mile or so of walking, the narrow footpath leads down a gentle but muddy escarpment, disappearing into thick tangles of shrubs and swamp-weed. At the base of the hill, the dirt path turns to soft sticky mud. It winds back through the shadowy mire. Nailed to a nearby tree hangs a moss-covered plank crudely cut into an arrow that points towards the mucky path. Beneath the moss, faded writing on the plank reads, “Barrel-Caves 2.5 miles.” The marker is the first of several that point the way to the caves.
You venture into the muck - it's over a foot deep, and makes for very slow going.
After a mile of trudging, all of you except for Sun and Zylencia (though Ruby seems to be feeling it), feel more tired than you should, even for these conditions. Alya suddenly detects a prickling sensation on one of her legs. Upon closer inspection, she discovers a pair of bloated leeches clinging to her right leg! You each make a quick check, and find that they are on all of you (except Zylencia, though they are on Ruby).
Gwenid: 2
Alya: 2
Therin: 5
Valon: 5
Ruby: 4
These can be pulled off, though it would likely cause you some damage. Or if you have some salt, you can salt them off for no damage. What do you do?
The leeches fall off after the application of salt, but many of you are still feeling the effects of their blood letting.
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Leaves her pony at the Village and walks with the others.
As she suddenly detects a prickling sensation on one of her legs. She has a closer inspection, and discovers a pair of bloated leeches clinging to her right leg!
"Check for leeches everyone"
She takes some offered salt and gets them off. Taking the pain.
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Sun checks himself and Kong for leeches and is relieved to find none. He helps the others find any that might be on them. Kong, seeing people looking for parasites, tries to help. When Sun combs though his fur, Sun gets a contented look in his face and enjoys the experience.
"These things remind me of the forces we are opposing,"" Sun observes. "Grubby leeches who want to suck the life out of this place. We must succeed so they get their just rewards. Unfortunately, it won't be as easy as dousing them with salt."
The path continues for about a mile and a half when it comes to the edge of a shallow bog whose waters rise above the muck, covering the tracks entirely. A patchy film of sickly-colored, rubbery fungus floats upon the surface. Near the water’s edge, three moss-covered planks hang cockeyed from a rotten wooden post.
You all quickly note where the film of floating fungus has been disturbed, likely by the passage of Becher and his men. To keep following the tracks, you have to go through the bog, or spend upwards of hours trying to find a way around.
Lady Alya recognizes the rubbery fungus floating on the mire as a local version of the shrieker fungus called a bog screamer. When the water is disturbed, the fungus senses it and emits a loud screaming noise for a few seconds, alerting nearby predators. It is non-toxic, but of course it has the potential to cause other problems for passers-by.
The bog itself looks to be at its narrowest point here for some distance in either direction - but it is still over 50 feet across, at least.
There are a variety of trees that could be grabbed onto to move across the bog without disurbing it, though this is unlikely to help Ruby.
Sure enough, as soon as you enter into the water there's a high-pitched shriek that resonates throughout the bog. You see the source just up ahead near a log, and near it another fungus stretches upward and begins lurching towards you.