That will almost certainly mean trouble on the way, not to mention the cave. But I guess I'm willing. Besides, Maol would be lost without me.
She squeezes Agromoite's arm playfully, And I'm working on this one.
Then she remembers that she's not happy with the Marshall, so she glares at him.
Maol smiles at Pip, then turns to look at the party, "Does anyone wish such a cloak? "
I'll bet the cloak that someone in this town wants it. Right now we have limited bartering power. Magic is good for that, or so I'm told.
Maoldrurra wonders why he hadn't thought of that.
The elf turns back to the Marshall Adjutant. "You have hundreds of orcs surrounding Southwatch. What makes a dozen orcs in a cave worthy of your attention?"
The marshall replies "A dozen orcs can take a supply wagon or some goods and still be a pain. I don't want to split and distract my troops so this is where you come in."
Agromite also give Pip a sideways glance, impressed that fencing the item sprang to mind so quickly for her.
He turns to the rest of the group. "Not quite my usual calling, but I'm game if you are. And getting rid of orcs is never a bad thing!"
Very true. I'm in.
She wonders to herself if the Marshall will be willing to send an adventuring cripple into danger or if he'll insist that she stay.
Setvron seems intrigued by the mission.
"So are we expected to get the supplies back, or are the orcs the bigger problem? I don't think any supplies that have been in orc hands for any amount of time would be worth using."
"It depends on the supplies, food will likely be gone, but if the supplies are something else it could become another problem."
The scribe says "He said can so was making a hypothetical statement"
Stevron glares at the general.
"Okay so the mission is to stop some orcs before they become a problem."
Stevron looks at the rest of the group.
"So do we head out now, or wait a day to rest?"
As long as they give me Nimbus back, she shoots a dirty look at the Marshal, I should be ok. I've only used one spell today.
The human is wise. Maoldrurra nods to Stevron.
"Marshall Adjutant, we have traveled far already today and are injured from the attack during our trip. If we are to set out today, I would ask for healing for the injured members of the party."
all fixed.
The marshall replies "I will also add todays lodging for free to the reward."
Well then. We shouldn't waste part of a reward, should we. That would be impolite.
"And I fine reward it is too: a comfortable bed and a hot meal sounds great to me before another long road to orc caves."
Stevron smiles.
"Well it would be rude to say no, so..... Let's enjoy ourselves here while we can."
Who knows what we could find in this little place as 'guests'
"Thank you, Marshall. My companions and I accept your offer."
The marhsall replies "Your welcome" A messenger comes down form within the keep and says marshall "Lord Gauntwood would like to speak to you."
Pip limps over to Maol again and bids the Mashal farewell. She is looking forward to a good night's rest with a bed.
Stevron bids the marshal have a good day before turning away, and heading strait for a bath if they have one.
Agromite's eyes linger for a second longer on the nice pen set, but he quickly thinks better of it. Giving a nod to the marshal he turns to leave with his companions.
Now I really wish I hadn't run out of itching powder
The party moves to an inn inside the castle inside A an elderly taldan man says "Where are you adventerers from"
Pip watches for responces on people's faces as she responds, Cheliax, a village under Devil's Peak.
The elderly man responds "wow that is a long journey. See any devils there?"
Pip nods, but quickly adds, But from a long, long way off as I was traveling. The closest thing to a devil I saw growing up was the Strix, but they didn't bother my family or I. We weren't human.
Agromite has a little trouble believing this sweet thing would make up a story like that, but also cannot believe she actually saw any devils. He remains quiet, content for the others to command the attention of the people they encounter so he remains unnoticed in the background.
Pip catches Agromite's eye and winks. Was she telling the truth? Was she lying? Both? Neither? She was obviously having fun, which ever it was.
The old man asks "A what?" after trying to remember.
"Those are the creatures that can fly, and hate humans correct? I believe that they are thought to be devils due to their dark coloring, and that this has caused them to hate the humans who hunt them."
Pip nods again at Stevron's analysis. I grew up in the foothills of Devil's Peak. The Strix didn't mind me, as long as I didn't climb too high.
Maoldrurra nods. " I don't know Devil's Peak or the Strix. What is the land like and what is the nature of these people?"
The area is mountainous to the point of insanity. Cliffs and near-vertical peaks are common. My village was on the outskirts, but it was still perilous. I got this falling off one of those cliffs. . She lifts her skirt a bit to show her mangled foot.
The Strix weren't bad if you weren't human. If you were human they had a te dency to slaughter you on sight. Humans have been encroaching and raiding their land for years, and they've kinda taken it personal.
Pip drops the act of lameness in the inn. When she's done she spins and dances her way across the room and up the stairs to her room, delighting in the stares she generates. She strips off her heavy travel clothes and dives into bed.
Stevron finds a nice bath, and relaxs for a while before finally deciding to go back, and get some rest.
Finally a time when I can stop watching my back for a while.
Even knowing it was an act, the drastic change in Pip's behavior catches Agromite off guard. Nuttier than a fruitcake, that one.
The thought of a soft bed is very tempting to the gnome, but his curiosity about this unusual place gets the better of him. He orders a drink and finds a corner table, quietly drinking while keeping his eyes open to his surroundings.
'Casing the joint' has such a negative connotation.....nothing wrong with being observant and learning as much as I can about this place and these people.
The party finds a nice comfortable bed but the castle seems a little cold and drafty with its stone floor and the party wakes up for a new morning to rise.
Pip wakes rested and cozy with the large (for her) blanket doubled up and wrapped around her like a cocoon. She stretches and swings out of bed. The cold stone shocks the sleep from her system and she yelps as she hops across the floor to her thick boots. She throws the rest of her cloths on quickly and throws open the window. The wind greets her by name as it pours through the open shutters. Pip hops up onto the window's edge and sits with her legs dangling outside. She stays like this for a good hour and revels in the wind's embrace as it whips past the upper floors of the Inn.
Stevron wakes up feeling refreshed, and rested. He pulls out a small book, and begins to read it pulling out numerous objects from his coat, and mixing them in small vials. After about fifteen minutes he begins checking that all of his explosives are in their proper place, and heads down to the common room for breakfast. After he is done eating he heads to the stables, and checks up on his horse. Feeding it an apple from his hand Stevron then makes sure that the horse has been well groomed.
As stevron walks out of the inn a little voice calls down to him from above, Hi Stevron! Wonderful morning, no?
Anna wakes up and does some light stretches in the morning before getting breakfast with the rest.
Stevron looks up startled.
"Uh.. Yes this is a wonderful morning. What have you been doing this fine morning?"
Pip takes a deep breath and sighs. Listening to the wind. It doesn't have much to say this morning though. Except some complaining about some windmills getting in the way of its blowing a few miles north of here.
Pip slips out of the window, spins, and catches herself on the ledge before dropping to the window below her, catching herself again, and dropping to the ground beside Stevron, all without using her lame foot. She grins up at him and says, Just like climbing in Devil's Perch! Let's go see if Nimbus has eaten that stuffy Marshal's horses yet.
"Alright."
Stevron follows Pip towards the stables.
I wonder what Devil's Perch is like to make people who can do all of that even with a lame foot. Might have to visit sometime.
"So what was it like growing up in Devil's Perch?"
By the time Agromite wakes up he can already hear the bustle of activity from the common room below. He's never been an early riser, much more of a night-owl than a morning-gnome. When he finally finds the strength to pull himself from the comfortable bed and makes his way downstairs it seems that only Anna is at a table eating.
"Morning! I was hesitant at first about the room being part of the reward, but I forgot how nice it was to sleep in a bed.....hard to give up, but the mission calls right?"
After giving the serving wench an order for a light breakfast he turns his attention back to the curvy woman. Nice enough to look at, but way too tall!
"So, where are the others? Haven't started out without us have they?"
Pip smiles at the memories of growing up. The best word I've found to describe Devil's perch is "vertical". Cliffs turn into sheer mountain faces at a moment's notice, and the massive shifts in elevation lends itself to great, persistent fog banks. My town was perched at the edge of the mountains. I grew up climbing, and continued to climb, even after I broke my foot.
Maol seems to have gotten out of bed but is not really in the mood to talk much.
"Hmmm seems like an interesting place. Do you hear from your family there often?"
By this time the have probably gotten to the stables, and Stevron opens up the door for Pip.