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Berion cups his hand in his chin, lost in thought.
"It's hard to say. A team needs to get there as fast as possible, but the wagon team needs protection, as rival interests could try to make sure that it never arrives.
I'd suggest that you leave enough men to guard the weapon train and send the rest with us. However, we won't wait for anyone if they fall behind. Getting to the starstone first is imperative.
On the reward:
"I am grateful for the reward, but would really like to have a piece of the starstone for ourselves. I am an accomplished crafter, and would like to see what I can do with the material."
"Fair enough points, all of you. We'll send you in as an advance party with a guarded wagon train following as closely behind as would be practical. I am certainly willing to share in the find. Assuming there's starmetal of any quantity there, I'll be happy to grant each of you enough to craft an item or two. Hopefully that will satisfy you elves. I am willing to perhaps part with a small additional amount, but we must see how much there is!"
"Now, as to the dangers you'll face. There can be no doubt - no whatever - that the great astronomers of Kalvar and Ardivandria will have noted this event. They will have a harder time determining an exact point of impact, but they'll send a search, undoubtedly by magiocal means. We simply cannot ward our entire realm against this! Kalvar will send an Operative. Pay close attention: if you see a lone seacher wearing a black coat with a lighting bolt pin on one collar and and a hand on the other do not attempt to engage them. Operatives are highly skilled in magic and unarmed combat, and are selected from among the most elite candidates possible throughout Kalvar. Whenever something of importance comes up requiring discretion, you can depend on them sending an Operative. Ardivandria is a more traditional country and is more likely to sned either a plainclothes scout or a small band like yours. Once our adversaries have located the find, they will not hesitate to move it away by magical means. This is a race that you must win! can you be ready to depart within the hour?"
Rizzo pipes in, excited. "I agree with Berion. It sounds like its going to be a race. I accept your task, your Highness."
Ever since Berion confirmed that he, too, would be required to attend the feast with all the nobles of the area, Caelin has been really, really quiet—and really, really jumpy. He continually places himself behind the taller party members, occasionally ducking his head or pointedly staring in the opposite direction as they move past some of them. Sitting at the dining table, the others may notice he seems particularly pale and doesn't seem at all interested in the story-telling going on.
Truth be told, Caelin has heard the story of the King and Amgar the Tyrant before. In fact, he could probably recite that damn tale himself, the number of times his early-year tutors rammed it in to him. A child of the court could not be ignorant of the formation of the capital, after all, nor could a child of wizardry be ignorant of such powerful magics.
But more to the point—his father was sitting two tables away. And Caelin was 99.94% sure that Alistair had spotted him. His ears burned with the sensation of someone watching him quite closely. Considering their last shared words, Caelin suspects that his father—given the chance—would not be happy to see him here. Or, worse, would demand he remain here at the castle again...
The sudden flash of light and apparently crashed falling star gives Caelin a moment to catch his breath, and he too must admit that the event piqued his curiosity. He actually gets up to investigate with Sera and Tessara, but quickly snaps back to attention with the telepathic orders of the wizard. ...Though he quickly wilts soon after, not wanting to face the royal table in front of his father and the rest of the nobles he knew. (At least the royal family would likely not know him from a slice of bread.)
Surprisingly, though, the words from the king and his wizard are really quite fascinating. Skymetal! Adamantium! Star steel! Caelin's eyes shimmer with excitement upon hearing these words, rumours of which he'd read about in his studies but—of course—had never seen such things in real life. In a moment, the stress and trepidation hanging about Caelin's form melts away. "You would really let us have some of the skymetal? Really? Oh, how I would love to study it! The famous scholar Shaiyn Essendin wrote of the process of forging star steel, but I can't help but think that his methods were wasteful and that we could make much better use of such a rare resource with different processes… uh," Caelin pauses mid ramble and flushes, bowing his head ever-so-slightly to the royal table. "Forgive me for going on like that!"
He glances at the group, "My interest in this is purely academic, and I am by no means suited to a quick and stealthy strike force, but if I can assist with anything I am happy to do so."
Tess folds her arms. Get three and secure the area at all costs, but not if it means fighting. Speed is our only option here. "We're going to need horses."
"I have a donkey?" Caelin offers weakly. "And a cart!"
Tess shakes her head. "Donkeys are slow and carts are worse. If we want to have any chance we're going to need some horses." She gives the old wizard a look with amusement in her eyes. "Unless we can teleport there."
After trying to run away after the elves, Tomm will will walk back to the King's table sullenly chiding himself.
Ugh, ye can't be such a little kid anymore Tomm, buckin' authority just ain't the way to be now.
Tomm will listen interested as the King explains the prize, and most importantly, the challenge of being the first nation to acquire the starmetal. Something of a patriot, Tomm shows an eager look when the king turns to he and his allies for their help, but he seems more interested in the competition.
"Aye, yer right Tess, we'll be needin' ta move quick if we're to beat our rivals to the prize. An if we leave immediately, before other nations have a chance to rally any scouts we stand a fine chance o' gettin' there first an clearin' a path for the rest o' tha boys ta follow."
Nodding to Tess and Tomm the king says: "I would be happy to provide you with horses. Captian Wenger? Please find six good mounts and have them delivered saddled, bridled, and provisioned to the Parade Ground. Brendle, old friend, do you think that you can aid these folks on their journey?"
The mage speaks: "Unfortunately I wasn't able to triangulate the exact point of impact of the star. An impact of this size will generate a large plume of dust, however, so I'd expect you can track it down once you're close enough. I can teleport you to the town of Hemridan, very close to the foothills. It should save you a few days' ride at least. I'll need some time to make the necessary preparations. Now, once you get to Hemridan seek out a man named Gilbert. He's a young mage who works as a clerk for the minign company. He's an expert on minerals and ores - he'll be able to certify if we've got our hands on the adamantum. Also, we'll be sending our wagon teams through to Hemridan, so please get in touch with them as soon as you locate the ore. I'll meet you at the parade ground in half an hour. Good luck."
The elder man departs, and the king offers his well-wishes too. Then he excuses himself. Captian Wenger heads off to see about the horses. If there's anything you want to do before heading out, now is the time.
Rizzo takes his leave. Half and Hour! That's not much time. He quickly makes his way to the abandoned church that Marius had claimed as his abode. He quickly tells him the king was sending him on a mission and that Marius would have to find someone else to bring him his wine for a while. He hugs the old man and wishes him luck and then he runs back to the inn. Grabbing his gear he dashes back to the town square, arriving in the nick of time.
Given that everyone else seems content with the arrangements, Seraphyna quickly fetches her gear from the hole in the tree where she had hid it and is the first to return to their rendevous point. Good thing about being on the run, you travel light and are ready to move on in a flash.
Tess tests the string on her bow, shuffling through to account for her arrows. She strikes up a conversation with Tomm as they wait. "I suppose it is good I did not partake of alcohol during the celebration. Perhaps another time." She looks at one of her arrows, then takes an apple out of her pack and turns to Tomm with a sly smile. "Care to see if you trust me as an archer?"
Tomm, like Tess brought his pack to the fair and will wait around with her for the others to return.
"Ha, good!? Yea missed out! Sure there'll be hours on a horse but..."
Tomm's face will drop as realization sets in.
"Eh, we'll it was worth it. So yer an archer eh? I'm a fair shot mehself, but yer a quick one, I'm sure you're better. I trust yeah!"
Tomm's face will drop as realization sets in, again.
" What do ye have in mind?"
Tess laughs, a rare carefree laugh that only occurs when she has a bow in her hand. "The challenge is as old as the dwarves. Just stand here, and by the gods don't move." Tess goes on her tiptoes, pushing Tomm into a crouch and putting the apple on his head. She has him stand back up and remain still, then paces out thirty feet and slowly draws her best arrow. She lets the bow hang loosely in one hand with the arrow held on the string with the other, staring at the apple with a deep intensity for a good ten seconds. Then she breaks the silence by raising her bow and whipping off the shot before Tomm can flinch.
The arrow flies cleanly, neatly piercing the flesh of the red fruit and sticking to the wall behind Tomm. She smiles, going over and pulling the quivering shaft free, splitting the apple in half. She tosses one half to Tomm and takes a bite out of the other half, twirling the arrow. [b]"Think I'm ready to go.[/ooc]
Tomm will nervously begins suggesting taking the head off of the arrow when Tess draws her bow, and his eyes will go wide with amazement when she expertly threads the arrow through the apple.
"Fate!? That was pure skill, well done lass! I'm certainly not worried to have you shootin' arrows while I'm swingin' me axe!"
Caelin hurries off back to the inn where they all first met. He's a little excited, but also nervous, a thousand questions going a million miles per hour through his mind. He hurriedly collects all his belongings, tips the innkeeper, and... approaches the stables.
The wizard eyes up his donkey with some trepidation. That elf, Tessara, was pretty scary about not being able to bring ol' Brandywine with him. Too slow, she said. Caelin gently strokes the mule's muzzle with a smile. In the end, he winds up fixing the donkey to his cart and directing it to the parade ground.
When Brendle appears, Caelin will speak to him. "I can't just leave Brandy here with no-one to feed him or care for him! Not to mention all my belongings. Well... master's belongings, mostly." The young smith eyes up his meagre possessions with a smile of mirth. "What should I do with it all?"
Brendle looks over Caelin and his cart.
"Well, we could put him up in the king's stables while you're gone. But if you think it won't slow you too much...well, what's the harm? You can stable him in Hemridan too, if you need to. Well now, let's be on our way!"
Brendle begins chanting and something happens to the air. It twists in front of you until you no longer see the parade ground, but a peaceful-looking country road through the hills.
"Well, get on with you then. Just walk through this magical gateway and you'll be about a quarter of a mile from Hemridan. Best of luck!"
You head through the gateway, and feel an icy chill as you do. Once through, though, everything seems to be fine. You ride a short distance until you make out the rooftops and chimneys of a mid-sized town just ahead...
Caelin shivers as he passes through the portal, pulling his only moderately unwilling donkey along with him. The feeling was somewhat familiar--the sharp twang of coldness that accompanied his own quick flashes of teleportation--but this portal was clearly much more powerful than his minor tricks. He glances back at Brendle as he passes through, making a mental note to request the wizard teach him a few tricks, perhaps, in the future...
"What was the name of that man we had to find... Gilligan? Gilbert? Something of the sort," Caelin asks the group as they progress down the gentle country roads towards Hemridan. "I wonder where we'd find him? I've never even heard of this town!"
Truth be told, Caelin had not really heard of many of the small towns that dot the countryside... but that's beside the point.
Rizzo pauses at the gate. "Um, Brendle. Do we need some sort of letter of introduction or writ from the king? Or does Gilbert know we're coming." Truth be told, he seems leery of stepping through the gate-twisty thing. Regardless of Brendle's answer he thinks the wizard can't possibly keep this going for long and he steps through. So this must be Hemriden. he thinks.
Tomm will look very wary of such an overt display of magic, and getting his dogs through Brendel's portal will be more than a little challenging. Eventually Tomm will push them through and mount his horse with a frown. Tomm's horse proves to be skittish and unreliable, undoubtedly due to Tomm and his hound's attitudes towards the things.
"Bah,"
Tomm will say when they are finally safe on the other end of the portal, sitting on his horse with an unharacteristic frown.
"Never did like horses, dumb beasts. Ya know they'll die if they sleep in a corner."
Of course Tomm's prejudice has nothing to do with the fact that Stable Masters get paid more than Hound Masters.
"Nah, I've never been this far from the Gruneald before, never heard of this town. Though if this Gilbert knows the King's wizard I'm sure others will know him too. Just gotta ask around."
Tess glances at the edges of the gate with a curious look, stepping back and forth a few times before staying on the far side.
Tess looks ahead to the town, then spurs her horse. "Come, time is off the essence."
When the wizard creates the portal, Sera tries but fails to suppress her awe of the potent spellcasting. Approaching the portal, she does the classic reaction of putting a hand through, then pulling it back, putting it farther through, then pulling it back. When she does finally go through, she tries to go sideways, curious if one eye will be able to see her destination while the other remains at her point of origin.
She then spends a few solid minutes talking to her horse and seemingly reminiscing about old times before patting it on the nose and hopping atop it. "Lets go slow pokes!" she hollers, turning around in the saddle as the horse begins to meander away of it's own volition.
The group makes it into town safely. It's dark (same night you left Bernhold), and the streets are pretty quiet. You are riding towards the east, as best you can tell from the stars.
You pass a few shops and houses, and see a sign for an inn, called The Surly Mare, with a picture of a bucking horse below the name.
Further down the street you see a church, some stables, and a couple of very large buildings bearing the emblem of a crossed pick and spade.
Tomm chats with Berion as they ride,
"Oh sure. Get a well traveled horse an ye can lead 'er around with just the bit. Spurs are more fer gettin' em ta run, stupid things only respond to pain, though if yer good enough or they're scared enough they'll run good enough. I seen people skilled enough to ride 'em without even a saddle, though I doubt it's worth tha effort."
After reaching the town, Tomm will look longingly at the inn but say,
"Well, I dunno about tha rest o' ya, but I'm keen to find this Gilbert an get back on tha road. What say we stop by the inn an ask around fer 'im?"
Tomm will let out a snort.
"The King's wizard told us ta find Gilbert, who can tell us if this fallen star is worth somethin' er not. No offense but I'm inclined to listen ta him, not you."
"I figured it'd be best ta get him first, tha way we don't find ourselves defending tha stone only ta find it wasn't worth anything. Splittin' up is a fair idea, I'm guessin' tha building with a pick is the local miners guild probably where our stone expert makes 'is way. Though this time a night I figure he's getting somethin' ta drink or eat, tha's why I suggested tha inn first."
Tomm leads the group to the inn. The place appears to be doing a brisk business, even though the traditional hour for the evening meal has passed. After tying up his horse, Tomm leads the way inside. He scans the room looking for someone bookish, a bit like a younger version of Brendle. He spots his man. A slim, bespectacled man in his early thirties sits alone at a table reading a book and carefully eating some beef stew.
Seraphyna bounces up to the man, curious what kind of reaction her elven heritage with earn her, "Hello! My name is Seraphyna. Do you know a Gilbert? We just came through a magic portal from the King's Founder's Day celebration to talk to him. Have you ever been through a magic portal. It was SO COOL! I was in two places at once for a while, and I've never done that before. Just think of all the things you could get done if you were in two places at once. You could keep studying and studying while the other half of you eats food, does chores, and earns money! Well, I suppose it might be hard to eat, since you only have half a throat, and half a stomach. Hmm, That sounds messy. So, do you know a Gilbert?"
Seraphyna bounces up to the man, curious what kind of reaction her elven heritage with earn her, "Hello! My name is Seraphyna. Do you know a Gilbert? We just came through a magic portal from the King's Founder's Day celebration to talk to him. Have you ever been through a magic portal. It was SO COOL! I was in two places at once for a while, and I've never done that before. Just think of all the things you could get done if you were in two places at once. You could keep studying and studying while the other half of you eats food, does chores, and earns money! Well, I suppose it might be hard to eat, since you only have half a throat, and half a stomach. Hmm, That sounds messy. So, do you know a Gilbert?"
Tess stares as the words pour out of Sera. That's...one way to ask.
Rizzo walks up to the bartender and asks for a drink. "So that was quite a sight." he says. "Where do you think that falling star fell?"
Caelin yawns as they arrive at the inn, sliding rather awkwardly off his horse and stretching his legs. "I'll wait here and watch the horses," he says, leading his donkey cart out of the road and tying his horse's bridle to it. He then takes a seat on his cart, pulling out a large, thick journal and starting to scribble some notes in it.
Skymetal... Adamantium... a fallen star...
The youngish man looks quite flabbergasted at the exictable elf's greeting. He manages to stammer a response.
"Why...yes...I'm...I'm....Gilbert. Senior clerk at the Bancroft mining company and apprentice wizard. Sorry, I've met most of the elves in these hills. You two don't look familiar. You say the king sent you?"
The bartender looks at Rizzo and grins. "So you must've seen it come down too. Quite a sight, I must say! As for where it went down, I can't be sure. I didn't look like it made it all the way to the mountains, and they're 30 miles east. But it crashed a bit to the northwest, so it could be a bit farther on. It kicked up quite the dust cloud, let me tell you. You'll probably see traces of it still in the morning. Probably should talk to to old Walt over there." He indicates a weathered, graying man in hunter's garb. "He's the best tracker in these parts. I'll bet he can tell you more."
Sera's mouth snaps shut as Berion explains the situation in the most militaristic and least fun way possible. Then, deciding to inject a bit more levity into the situation, she pulls a copper piece from one of her pockets. "Wanna see a trick?" she asks, not really paying attention to the answer, "Now, I'll fling this coin over 10 feet away without trying. Oh, and try and go to the left." the last part addressed to seemingly no one. Then, she drops the coin and it falls down for about a foot before jetting off to the right, rolling under a distant table. Groaning, she grumbles about someone not knowing their lefts and rights as she darts under the table, appologizing to any patrons sitting at the table to retrieve her coin.
Well, then barkeep, give me Old Walt's favorite drink and keep the change. He pays with a 2 gold coins and carries the beverages over to the tracker. "Here you go my friend. You have quite the reputation as a tracker in these here parts. My name is Rizzo and I am very interested in getting to where the star fell as quickly and safely as possible. Could you help?"
@Berion and Sera: Gilbert's eyes snap into focus at the mention of the king and Brendle.
"Well...no, I haven't actually. I can rent one at the town stable, though. And I'm certainly interested in finding out what's in this fallen star myself. These things don't happen very often, as I'm sure you're aware. Could say it's a once-in-a-lifetime chance for me. Count me in! Uh...you're not expecting any trouble are you?"
@Rizzo: The old man looks up as Rizzo comes over. He grins when he sees the drinks in his hand.
"Pull up a chair lad! You seem like a young feller who's seen a thing or two yourself. Yeah, I'm a bit of a tracker. I could tell you tales, 'cept I expect you're in a bit of a hurry. I can help ye, but I don't work for free. Have you got any coin, lad?"
Tomm, distracted and still amazed at Sera's trick will come from behind Gilbert and give the thinner man a hearty pat on the back.
"Certainly nothing we can't handle! As ye said, it's the adventure o' a lifetime an I hate ta say it but we're inna bit of a hurry. We wanna get ta the landin' site an we wanna be sure ta get there first. That said, lets get goin'!"
Rizzo looks at the five silver and can't help but start laughing. "That makes a great tip, Berion. Thank you." He turns to Walt, including Berion in the conversation. "As you may have heard, my friend here and I have been sent by King Theodoric to investigate the event. So I can offer you a choice. Either tender us a bill for your services or have the King himself owe you a favor. But you are right, we are in a hurry, so I've no patience for negotiations."
