As Lauranna chirps away, a curious seagull lands nearby be. "Cheep. Cheep" it replies, looking up to the stranger expectantly.
Glancing back towards the docks, you see a small building with a sign that reads 'Port Authority". Another sign on the door states "Out". Glancing up and down the beach, it seems only a handful of children have decided to visit today; None of which seem to have noticed you.
As Lauranna chirps away, a curious seagull lands nearby be. "Cheep. Cheep" it replies, looking up to the stranger expectantly.
Glancing back towards the docks, you see a small building with a sign that reads 'Port Authority". Another sign on the door states "Out". Glancing up and down the beach, it seems only a handful of children have decided to visit today; None of which seem to have noticed you.
Wondering what she said to birds Lauranna points out some edible garbage and while the birds are occupied she rushes off to talk to the dockworkers.
"Cheep- I mean hurrumph. Uhh-" What do guys talk about in these situations? Oh wait, I know! "Aye lads, I'm just out here drainin' the old lizard. You know what I mean. Heheh. "
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"Empty? What do you mean, empty?" he calls back. Syllyn will approach the Port Authority and observe for a few minutes. Assuming nothing happens, he will go in and see if there is someone he can converse with.
"What's this I hear about protecting the beach? Do you need a hand? Me and my friends are fairly good at the protection thing."
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Purnel approaches the children, "What are you playing?" "Anything fun happening?"
If he can get one to chat, "You come to the beach often? I am looking for a expert to happenings at the beach." "Have you seen a barge birth on the beach and do anything strange?" "Maybe with people with strange clothes on being very protective of their ship."
Seemingly disappointed with Lauranna, the bird flitters towards the garbage and begins pecking through it. Scampering back over when the half-elf chirps, it replies. "Cheep. Ch-chEEP?"
Glancing towards you, the man smiles. Spotting your pun he chuckles momentarily and sets a crate down. "Well done, sir. He aint gonna find anyone of importance in there. They're out for the day. Did you need something?"
Inside you spy a lowly servant sweeping the floor of the a cramped office. Looking up as you call out, he frowns. "Do what?"
As several of the children take off down the beach, one looks you over. Calling to his companions, he smiles. "Tis a just a shorty."
"We're just skipping rocks, no biggy. We come here from time to time. See lots of things come and go. Most people protect their belongings, don't they? You looking for anything specific?"
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"Don't know exactly what I am expecting to uncover really. Just heard that from time to time barges would beach full of folk from a strange religion. I don't even know why they come here. I thought by observing one I might be able to make a little coin out of it." "Maybe get them to buy painted sea shells or sell city maps to places in town."
Purnel shruggs, "I am new here looking for my way to things"
Purnel will skip a rock or two and wait to see what the kid will say.
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"What's your name kid?" "Well, XXXXX, here is a silver piece to watch for a barge with religious folk land." "You get a second if you come tell me at the YYYYY." "Ask for Puglas. He will know me and my room."[/b]
Purnel then heads to a dock worker, "What can you tell of strange religious barges coming in here?" "I am new here and want to see if I can make a little coin on these tourists." "You know, sell them souvenirs, mementos, that sort of thing." "Do they have any set time they arrive?"
"I'm kinda sad we came this time of year. I mean it's almost Crystalhue."
With a start at the sound of the half-elf, the seagull flies away.
"My name? Uh, you can call me John. I..." he begins, but at the mention of the religious intent of your inquiry, he stops short. "I can't help you."
Turning to leave, he stops and turns back. Quietly, he whispers "You might try the Forest's Bounty. Guy by the name of Reginar drinks there."
Without another word he scurries off towards his friends.
"I...what? Yes, being useful is good. Talking about the church of the 'Living God'?"
"Careful what you say. I don't know anything about them."
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"Check that, the kid did give me a name and place to ask." "At the Forest's Bounty and ask for Reginar is all I have to try." "Can you ask your friend there if he knows of a bar by that name?"
Purnel seems a little discouraged that there was no barge here.
"Anyone else have any other leads to check?"
As you Syllyn turns to go with the party, the servant replies. "I suppose you could check with the church itself. It'll be easy to find. It's not my place to say."
Purnell's sugar coated tongue finds a man willing to give you directions to the bar. Following the information, you easily locate your destination. The Forest Bounty is made from enormous timbers. A long hall, open at both the front and back, you find it full of long wooden tables and benches. Dozens of people gather here, eating, drinking, and laughing. nOne table of patrosn even carries on with a bawdy song that seems to have most of the folks smiling.
A serving girl smiles up as you walk in and points to a nearly open table towards the back. "You cuties can find seating over there, if you wish. A server will be with you shortly." She suggests, flashing a smile towards Lauranna. A male sits there, watching the crowd.
A robust man, wearing green and brown leathers, cloaked in a large bearskin, smiles as you approach. A longbow rests against the table next to him. A hearty laugh explodes from him as he speaks. "Welcome, friends. I heard that you may search me out. I am Reginar Lacklan. Please sit - we have much to discuss."
Sweeping out his arms, in a welcoming gesture, he nods to a large platter of forest vegetables arranged around a roasted boar sitting in the center of the table. "Please help yourself. I don't know about you lot, but sometimes...I need something besides fish."
The Forest Bounty is made from enormous timbers. A long hall, open at both the front and back, you find it full of long wooden tables and benches. Dozens of people gather here, eating, drinking, and laughing. One table of patrosn even carries on with a bawdy song that seems to have most of the folks smiling.
A serving girl smiles up as you walk in and points to a nearly open table towards the back. "You cuties can find seating over there, if you wish. A server will be with you shortly." She suggests, flashing a smile towards Lauranna. A male sits there, watching the crowd.
Ser Lauranna smiles and looks smugly at his fellows.
"Pardon miss, but do you have a booster seat for my friend?"
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"Welcome, friends. I heard that you may search me out. I am Reginar Lacklan. Please sit - we have much to discuss."
Sweeping out his arms, in a welcoming gesture, he nods to a large platter of forest vegetables arranged around a roasted boar sitting in the center of the table. "Please help yourself. I don't know about you lot, but sometimes...I need something besides fish."
Sylyn digs in with gusto, trying the new fare out while he asks Reginar, "What do you know of this church of some living god? We are interested in learning what we can."
Ser Lauranna smiles and looks smugly at his fellows.
"Pardon miss, but do you have a booster seat for my friend?"
Syllyn notices that the big smile manages to work the end of Luranna's mustache loose, and tries to catch her eyes while pointing to his lip.
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Purnel reddens a little at the reference to a booster seat. "Why would...nevermind. Remind me to pour salt in the next wound you get."
Turning to Reginar, "Thank you, don't mind if I do. I have had nothing but fish for several days. It really does get old. Anyway, how did you know we were coming to see you?" "I got your name from someone I met on the beach only a little while ago."
Purnel waits to here the answer. "Reginar, this is a nice spread. Do you eat here often? "That is a nice bow you have. Do you hunt for a living?"
Purnel listens and makes small talk for a minute or too. He asks about the weather and Tamran gossip. He then turn serious and asks, "Is this a good place to talk freely or would it be better to wait for the crowd to thin?"
Ser Lauranna looks quizzically at Syllyn. "Yes. I'm hungry too."
Further ruminations are cast aside after Purnel speaks up.
"Well, you always look so sad sitting with your chin just over the lip of the table. Besides, I'm the one who rubs the wounds in this group." she says with a quick nod, and then picks up and quickly reapplies her mustache.
"Let's start talking after the food comes. I hate being dragged away for treason on an empty stomach." Lauranna says with a wink.
Later that evening....
Lauranna settles back the booth after bleaching like an adorable squirrel might. "I'm stuffed."
"So what's the scuttlebutt, here abouts bub?" Lauranna asks in a conspiratorial tone.
Watching the mustache float to the ground, the woman raises and eyebrow but says nothing. With a nod, she signals another server who meets you at the table with a crudely crafted highchair. "Hope this helps."
Grinning at the scaly creature, "Straight to the point, eh? Though perhaps the most tactful way to deal with this town, I like it." Turning to the halfling, his smile turns. "Why Cygar sent me a note that you were enroute on his request. Did he not tell you of me? Well, no bother. You've found your way here, so you must be suitable pathfinders, yeah?"
As for eateries in this town, I do find myself here more often than not. As you stated, sometimes fish gets a bit...tiresome. Better variety here in my opinion. Can't beat the atmosphere either. Besides, there's only so many times you can here about that fish eating the blokes arm..."
"Ha! Wow! You're an inquisitive one! Yes, I do hunt from time to time. I've lived in this region most of my life. Joined the Society a few years back after locating the burial site of Emarry Oakheart by accident. I do what I can to help from time to time."
"I suppose it wouldn't hurt to wait a bit for the crowd to thin before getting into the nitty-gritty." admits the man. Filling you in on the skuttlebut of town with someone twice removed whoring around with the cousin of his neighbor up the street and the like, the crowd begins to die down. Getting on into the evening hours, it's reasonable the tavern will be closing soon.
Lowering his voice to a whisper, Reginar begins. "So, you want to know about the cult of Razmir...Here's what I know." Pausing to take a deep breath, he dives in. "They arrived in town about two yeas ago, first as a small band of missionaries. They soon raised the funds to build a temple, which was constructed over a year ago. Their power and influence has grown ever since, and the local guards seem to give them no heed, even going so far as to dismiss any reports of their foul practices." Looking around the room to ensure safety, he adds "Personally, I think the city guard helps protect the temple, watching out for thieves and intruders."
"Members of the cult go out frequently to aid the poor and proselytize. I think its just a cover for their more...'questionable' practices, if you catch my drift....extortion...thievery...blackmail... Saw with my own eyes as a group of them beat a man within an inch of his life. Their excuse was the humble cobbler had stolen from the temple. The damned guards just stood there, watching..."
"The temple is heavily guarded day and night by their own members. The public is forbidden to enter, so one would have to join their 'religion' to go inside." Pausing to spit on the floor, as if to clear a bad taste, he continues. "I've managed to find out they hold interviews at the Ranger's Lament for potential applicants. It's across the street from the temple. If you wish to see inside, that's your best chance."
"I did hear of a group went up north from the temple a while back. Couldn't have been more than a month ago when they returned, minus a few from the original group. Another group just headed north, led by a female cultist in blue robes. Might have been their leader? I'm not sure."
"I know that's a lot to take in at once...any questions so far? Unfortunately, we just don't know enough yet to take any overt actions against them."
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Syllyn listens intently and with great interest to the stories and rumors, his great passion being studying other cultures. This whole obsession with when and where and how to and not to have sex particularly fascinates him, largely because it makes absolutely no sense to him. He peppers the discussion with questions like, "Why is it more wrong to have sex with the cousin of your mate than another male? Is it even more wrong to mate with a brother?"
"That is a lot to digest - pardon the pun, or not. I think we have already decided to try to join the cult and get inside before we resort to stealth or violence."
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"Is there any restriction by race as to who they allow to join? Me being a halfling often gets me excluded from human groups." "Any chance we could capture a couple of the priests out and about?" "We could disguise ourselves as them and let the rest of us in." "We could also disguise ourselfs in crates and ship ourselves to the temple."
Looking to Syllyn, a bit dumbfounded, the man's face scrunches up. "Well...because...married people shouldn't copulate with people they aren't married to for one. And...you should never do such things with a...a sibling!"
Shaking his head, he returns to the matter at hand. "Yes, it's a lot of information to take in at once. To my knowledge, there are no racial restrictions."
Scratching his chin, he adds "I suppose you could try to capture a priest or two, but they tend to travel in groups so that may be difficult. As for the procedure to join? All I know for sure is there's an interview process. As to specifics, I'm at a loss."
"I don't know specifically what their policies are on weapons, either. The priests I see about are all armed, so perhaps its ok? I'm sorry, but for as much as I've managed to glean, there is still too much we don't know."
"I also don't know how many of them there are. Most wear white robes, but some wear gray and I've seen a few in black. But with the masks they wear, it's impossible to tell if its all the same people swapping robes..."
"The Society and myself have a simple request of you. Infiltrate the temple and gain as much information as you can. I would advise against any needless risk taking at this stage. If you are able to do so, play along for now and meet up with me in a week to report what you've discovered."
Looking to Syllyn, a bit dumbfounded, the man's face scrunches up. "Well...because...married people shouldn't copulate with people they aren't married to for one. And...you should never do such things with a...a sibling!"
"Oh that's nothing. I think the Nagaji eat their own young. Or was that Ratfolk? Or was it Gnomes?" Ser Lauranna shrugs.
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I don't get it. Sometimes humans copulate with members of a different species, but copulating with one's mates sibling is bad? Take half-orcs for example! And what kind of explanation was that. I'm going to have to ask someone else as he is not very logical.
"Ratfolk, I'm sure. I know for sure the Nagaji do not eat their young."
"I think a quick visit to the temple today, to scout, and if we are polite, might set us up an initiation into the membership. What say you all? Shall we go attend a church service? I wonder if they have them this time at night."
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"A stakeout. That would be great. We could each watch a section of the temple and see what happens. After an hour or so we could meet back here and compare notes. If we are no further informed, we revert to posing as initiates. Three teams of 2 or 2, 2, 1 and 1? I don't care."
"But probably best to use buddy teams."
"Um, maybe it would be better to just walk around the place like we belong there than sneak around like stage villains."
Having agreed to scout the temple, you make your way to the center of town. Occupying an entire city block, the temple of Razmir is an imposing structure. Built of solid stone walls, the building stands two stories tall, with towers positioned every thirty feet along its circumference. These towers rise above the temple itself, each crowned with statues depicting the Living God. The temple has almost no windows, aside from a tall, stained-glass window on the east end depicting the mask of Razmir. The west end of the structure contains a courtyard, only accessible through a sealed barbican. Masked priests patrol the wall tops surrounding the courtyard, watching those below with a baleful attention.
The monstrosity is surrounded by a number of local businesses and wealthy residences. The city guard makes a larger show in this region, though it could be reasonably explained by the wealthy neighborhood...or perhaps the rumors are true about their tie with the temple...
Purnell, Lorqinor and Dylph manage to find decent vantage points from across the street. However, they find themselves having to duck back into alleys regularly as the guards patrol the region. The guards give Lauranna a strange look as she wanders about the nearly vacant street, but leaver her alone for the time being.
As Syllyn approaches, a cultist wearing white robes and the standard mask stops him. "Only members are allowed inside. You are free to offer a donation to Razmir from here and I'll see it gets to the proper place."
Intermittent groups of six cultists enter and leave the temple with no obvious schedule. Most of them seem to be dressed in white robes, though a couple here and there wear gray or black. All seem to be adorn with masks hiding their face.
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"Oh!? Well what if one wants to become a member? Or maybe wants to see if they want to become a member? It seems rather discouraging if one is not even allowed in the church! Are there services? Is this not actually a church? Why would you have to guard a church? That just doesn't make sense. Unless you have a rival church perhaps that wants to do nasty things? Is that it?"
After the flurry of questions, Syllyn cocks his head to the side, his crest flaring brilliantly, his fingers tapping out a rhythm.
"Of course this is a church! The temple of the Living God is also the home of his devoted though. Do we not deserve our own privacy?" replies the man behind the mask.
As the creature begins tapping his fingers, the man adds "Oh, we have a public service daily. It's held out here in the street before the temple. You are more than welcome to come to one. As for new recruits? There's a process given to prospective applicants."