Caine smiled wryly. "You gamble much, Ruhk?"
Ruhk chuckles a bit at that.
"You ought to know, you've beaten me more often than not.
The only thing I reliably beat you at is darts."
"In cards, the saying goes "play the table, not the odds."
"When the stakes are this high, we can't take chances."
"True, and you walk away with the pot more often than not.
So I say we follow your lead in this.
Funny how we never play dice eh? No skill, no reading...just luck. Or at least during an honest game that is.
Remember Jones and his "special dice"?"
"Yeah. You'll notice I never played with him. Dice is a lousy game and Jones is a lousy person."
"He probably won't be trying that again though...
You'd think a known cheat would pick his marks carefully right?
Guess why he hasn't been seen for a bit?
He tried to do that...to Payday."
Laurel stops and blinks at Caine. "Yes, that would actually be extremely helpful. I'm just so used to doing everything on my own that some of the more menial tasks have become second nature. Thank you, Caine!" She passes over a cauldron. "Fill it about halfway. And if Creed's thugs harass you, just tell them it's for me."
Caine was a bit surprised at being thanked. The last time they'd been here, he'd been pretty harsh to Laurel. He took the cauldron and headed out the door.
"Let's go then, we're on the home stretch now people, let's not slack off until we got this pig in the sack!"
Ruhk rubs his hands together and heads for the door.
"Let me take the cauldron Caine, if someone jumps us, you don't need to fumble for weapons, and I don't want to walk with Bethany naked."
Belladonna works furiously to get the cure made.
Caine handed the cauldron off to Ruhk and headed out toward the well.
Caine, Ruhk, and Zilka gather the cauldron and head out into the quickly darkening evening. They begin making their way towards the river and as the trio crosses through the streets Ruhk and Zilka both get the very distinct feeling they are being followed or watched; however, as you all look about, you cannot spot anyone that stands out among the people milling about or the folks moving from place to place...
Art, Belladonna, and Zirren remain behind with Laurel and with her instructions you all begin the process of creating the remedy for the sick of Falcon's Hollow...
Caine nodded resolutely. "Don't like this. Feels like when the winds go still right before a storm hits."
"Geez, I don't get it, why would anyone want to stop us?
Unless...someone else wants to take credit?
I bet Kreed would get one HELL of a smile if he could make it look like HE was responsible for the cure..."
Low Market
Given that it was nearly supper time in Falcon's Hollow, there was a line of people waiting at the newly dug well in Low Market with two of Kreed's thugs collecting a 'well tax' to cover the cost of digging the new well. The job was clearly rushed and poorly done as the water brought up appeared muddy and brown... There are at least ten people ahead of the trio.
Roots and Remedies
Art, Bella, and Zirren are each in the process of crushing herbs or gathering specific items for Laurel as she directs the process when there is a heavy pounding upon the door of the shop. "Open up, Laurel!" She pauses from her task with a frown as she looks at you all. "That doesn't sound good..."
"Oh for the love of...
Do we wait in line or try something else?
I am not sure we can even USE water of that poor quality..."
"Caine, what do you think, can we use water from the river, or would that taint it?"
"If we boil it first, it doesn't matter where we get it from." Caine shrugged. He was disgusted that now well water in a public space had been privatized. Kreed was practically a poster child of sins against how commerce was supposed to work.
Then he had a burst of inspiration. Abadar was answering him again. All Caine needed to do was ask.
"Let's go back. I got this."
Ruhk raised an eyebrow at that, but after seeing the conviction in Caine's eyes, he shrugged and nodded.
Hefting the cauldron, he began to head back towards Laurel's place.
"Bet the others are missing us already, hah!"
"Yeah. It's been a while since I had to think like this. I'm rusty." Caine said with a self depreciating smile.
Zirren glanced at the door with some worry. "Laurel, do you know who that is? Would you like me to speak with them, and ask them to leave?"
Laurel shakes her head. "I'm not sure, but it cannot be coincidental that you all arrive back with the cure and suddenly this, especially after three of your party departs the shop." She looks at the door. "Please do, Zirren, but be careful."
Belladonna draws her dagger, ready to fight whoever wants to mess with the cure.
Zirren nodded as he moved to the door. He didn't know who was on the other side of the door but the last thing he was about to do was let them force their way in. Hopefully they might listen to reason.
"Sir, I am not sure why you are here but Laurel is very busy with important work at the moment. What is your name? I don't know if you are here to demand she care for someone you love or to interfere with her work. But either way, it might be best if you were to come back later... there could be trouble if you don't."
Zirren's quiet, but forceful threat seems to get his point across as the thumping on the door stops. A moment a quiet is heard before the subject outside clears his throat. "Fine, but I will be back and then we'll see who has the trouble then!"
Caine, Ruhk, and Zilka makes their way back to Roots and Remedies. As they make their way through the streets, Caine spots Jeremiah the logger stomping away from their destination and his face is flushed with anger. He spots the trio and immediately ducks into a nearby alleyway.
"Hmmm, let's ignore him for now. I want the cure to be done as quickly as possible, because once it exists, it will be a lot harder for anyone to try anything."
Ruhk walks over to the door and kicks it a little.
"No worries, it's us this time."
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"Caine, who is that angry - looking fellow? I think we've met him before but I don't recall his name."
-Posted with Wayfinder
"Jeremiah." Caine said. "He's an axe hand. Had a run in with him when Boote and I brought back the Hobgoblin. He's not really a pleasant fellow, but I don't know if I'd call him a bad guy. Still, I don't trust him a lick."
"Ruhk, do me a favor. Give me the cauldron, and go get Sheriff Baleson. Tell him everything, and tell him we're worried about the crowd once word starts to spread."
Zirren stepped back away from the door and looked to the rest of the group in the remedy shop. "Was that too much? I fear I may have just made a small problem we might have been able to deal with now, get a lot bigger for later."
Ruhk raises an eyebrow.
"Well, look at you, being all sensible.
Getting out there and sweating some of that wine out sure did you a world of good Caine.
I'll get right on it."
Ruhk grins, shoves the cauldron into Caine's arms and runs off to get the Sheriff.
Caine rolled his eyes, but there was some truth to Ruhk's words that he couldn't deny. He'd been wanting a drink for two days now. He felt kind of continually nauseous and had a headache, but he was definitely feeling better now than he had on the boat ride.
He walked up to the door to the herbalist shop and knocked on the door.
"It's us. Open up."
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"My pop had a drinking problem for years. Things got better when he restricted himself to one drink at dinner and one drink before bed, every day. When he got the craving, he said, he knew if he just waited until the usual time, he'd get his drink, and that made it bearable. Humans shouldn't be drinking orc draught anyway, that's what got him in the first place."
"Everything in moderation, uh? Smart. I've heard that myself. Can't say I listened though. Thanks for hauling me up short. I needed it more than I knew."
Roots and Remedies
Laurel offers Zirren a shrug. "Not much we can do about it now, dear. Like to turn out to be nothing, but this cure... it could be something. Let's focus on the task at hand for now."
Sheriff's Office
Ruhk quickly rushes off to the small office/jail that Sheriff Baleson and his handful of deputies operate from. He knocks on the door and he recognizes the voice of Tabrik Splint, the handsome dwarven deputy. "Come in!" he hollers.
Zirren nodded before he heard Caine. "Alright, coming." he replied as he went back to unlock the door.
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"What really got pop out of the bottle was when he got a job he really liked. Had something to get up for every morning, didn't feel miserable at the end of the day. Maybe that's what's got you going now, eh? Something to stay sober for. Though, when we get this cure made, I'm gonna have me a celebratory whiskey or three and you're welcome to join me."
"That sounds... nice." Caine said wistfully.
When the door was opened, Caine set down the empty cauldron on the floor and say down next to it.
"There was a line. Water was dirty. Would have had to be boiled. I'm going to pray for a small miracle. Should be faster."
"I'm going out again. Lots of people in line for dirty water, and Kreed's lapdogs are charging for it. It ain't right." Caine said after filling the cauldron, and a few waterskis and pots for good measure, in case it was needed. "If nothin' else, it will divert attention away from what's happening here once folks figure out I'm giving away free clean water."
Ruhk steps in and favour the dwarf with a smirk that mirrors the one he usually wears.
"Heya smiley. Look, I think there may be trouble brewing down by the herbalist.
Long story short, we've got the stuff she needs for the cure, but it looks like things might get ugly.
We need to stop it before it starts."
"Well Caine, if you are about to cause a stir in town then you better be careful how you portray that. Not everyone is friendly to magically created sources of food and water. I once heard of a starving family neither accepting food nor warmth from the fire created by a mentor of mine while he was traveling the Southern Riverlands of Brevoy, because it was seen as untrustworthy witchcraft by the father. Completely ridiculous, I know. I mean Witches and Wizards magic has been proven to be similar but different along several key lines... but still not something to be overlooked.
If you think you need someone to be speak to people and calm them down, well I'll be here with Laurel, just in case something else happens."
Belladonna continues working feverishly on creating the cure. Nothing will stop her now.
So many things were going on around Nathaniel, but he was in a completely different place. There was, of course, no way for Lauren to know, but giving Nathaniel a job like preparing herbs was like telling him he could go home again.
With a focus and attention the others hadn't noticed, Nathaniel went to work. People spoke around him, things were moved, there was even a pounding on the door, maybe, but Nathaniel never took his eyes or hands away from the task at hand. He knew growing things, and he knew what the woman wanted. He intended to get the job done right the first time.
Tabrik is sitting at a simple desk with his feet propped on the top. "Hey Dandy, what're you doin'---" he stops short as he listens to Ruhk's concise explanation. "A cure? For the Taint? And trouble at Laurel's?" He plops his boots down onto the hardwood planking floor. "Who you think is going to make this ugly? Who'd want to mess with curin'---Oh. Best get the boss for this one. Go on back to Laurel's, I'll rouse the Sheriff and the rest of the boys. We'll meet you there shortly."