"Son, if those Grauls get ahold of you, you'll wish you was dead. Better to be eaten alive than fall into their hands...who knows what they are up to."
Kellen nods understanding at Cesten. "Just so I know we ain't talking about your grumpy neighbors or some-such. These Grauls are a menace then...that's what I wanted to know."
When he gets a chance, he'll bring this up with Thordak: "Sounds like these Grauls are Ogre-kin and a threat. Sounds like something in your bailiwick of knowledge, friend."
"If we encounter them, we'll deal with them, but I think our first priority is to get to the Fort and check on the Black Arrows."
Praxim steals a few glances at Shalelu, checking in.
"That's a pretty thing," Lym says, her voice seemingly lazy, but her eyes boring into the serving girl's through her veil. "Does it mean anything?"
Lanna quickly jerks her arm from Shalelu's grasp and covers the tattoo with her sleeve. "It's...nothing. Nothing. Just a mark like he said." She says, nodding at Thordak. "I've...I've got to get back to work now." She spins around from her chair and bumps into Shalelu. Red-faced and with her head down, she mutters "sorry miss," and heads back into the kitchen.
When he gets a chance, he'll bring this up with Thordak: "Sounds like these Grauls are Ogre-kin and a threat. Sounds like something in your bailiwick of knowledge, friend."
"Ogre-kin?!" His eyes narrow, putting two and two together. "The lass hasn't seen her boyfriend in a bit over a week; he's a Black Arrow; there's been no word from the Black Arrows..." A grim look appears upon the dwarf as he glances over at the waitress. Leaning in, "I'm willing to bet the Black Arrow problem and the Graul problem are one and the same. Might wanna be keepin' this bit of info from the lass until we know more about the situation. And I'd say we best get started as soon as possible. If there is a connection between the two, then time is against us."
Kellen nods agreement with Thordak, and when the girl walks away, adds: "My thinking as well, if the Arrows been hunting them, perhaps someone retaliated. Or maybe this lamia you all have spoken of had a hand in helping the Grauls."
Seeing the girl's reaction and everyone's response to the Sihedron Star, Kellen makes a face of annoyance before speaking. He does so casually and only for those of the group to hear: "Hunting monsters and helping a bunch of mercs is one thing, but what else is going on here? The girl's got a star tattoo the same as Tomaru's amulet and you all look like a bloody Hellknight just claimed this inn for Cheliax. What gives with this thing?"
"The letter from the lamia around here said that she marked her subjects and bred the greed in them deliberately, like a shepherd breeds strong sheep with good coats," Praxim says once the serving girl has departed. "We need to find out where she came by it."
"Ogre-kin?!" His eyes narrow, putting two and two together. "The lass hasn't seen her boyfriend in a bit over a week; he's a Black Arrow...
"That does bear investigation, but I suggest we look into the missing Black Arrows first. Their could be good folk whose lives are in danger.""
"The letter from the lamia around here said that she marked her subjects and bred the greed in them deliberately, like a shepherd breeds strong sheep with good coats," Praxim says once the serving girl has departed. "We need to find out where she came by it."
"Wait. What? What letter is this? She 'marked her subjects'? And this star has something to do with that? We have one girl here with the 'mark', and subjects is more than one. We might want to see if we can find more of these." She stands up, gathering her gear from the floor nearby. "I'm going to take a look around the village. Maybe someone should go see the mayor, or whatever they have here, ask about the fort and this woman marking the people. She may still be in the village." Standing in the door, she looks back over her shoulder, "I'll be back."
"I wish I'd splurged on a spell to read minds," Lym says, shaking her head. "But I thought other spells were more important. No matter; I shall remedy this oversight the next time we're at a magic goods supplier."
"We don't know the pull this person has in this town. It would be reckless to point blame her without knowing more about the situation. If we're not going to find out about the fort right away, then let's exercise some caution in this investigation."
"She probably doesn't even know the significance of that tattoo. If we could find out where she got it, that would give us a good place to start."
"You know you're right." Tomaru doesn't take his eyes off the serving woman. "Maybe she would open up to me if I showed her my amulet. I'll go talk to her." Tomaru gets up and goes over to Lanna when she's away from the patrons. "I'm sorry about that. My companion is not the most civilized individual. But I did notice your mark," he shows his amulet, using his body to shield it from casual view. "and I'd like to talk to you about it. Maybe we can get together when your shift is over?"
Diplomacy includes Charming (if she finds me attractive)
Bit of Luck
Diplomacy includes Charming (if she finds me attractive)
"Well..." She says cautiously. When she sees the Sihedron amulet, her eyes go wide. "Did you know Lucrecia?" She whispers. She had one of those...you know...amulets. She promised me I could have it...before...before...the accident..." Lanna gasps, tears coming to her eyes. "Kethran and I were supposed to go on the Paradise that night...I could've...well, we...we could've died!!"She bursts into tears and runs back down a hallway behind the bar.
The innkeeper, Cesten, comes over to Tomaru. "Is there a problem here? Why do you want to upset my serving girl like that? Poor lass has enough going on without strangers causing trouble."
Lym calls over to the innkeeper.
"Sir innkeep! What's our bill so far? And what is the price of your finest red wine, please? I think I might like to treat my friends to the very finest, most expensive vintage you have!"
Lym calls over to the innkeeper.
"Sir innkeep! What's our bill so far? And what is the price of your finest red wine, please? I think I might like to treat my friends to the very finest, most expensive vintage you have!"
Cesten looks over at Lym, looks back at Tomaru, and back at Lym. He slowly turns away and heads back behind the bar to fetch a bottle of wine. After a moment, he returns and sets it on the table in front of Lym. "My finest. All the way from Korvosa." He says in his deep, rough voice. "Drink up, and stay away from Lanna. We have enough problems here, if you've been listening, and we don't need strangers coming to town and stirring up the pain folks are trying to put behind them." He looks down at you. "Try the Mayor if you're all fired up for answers. That'll be 75 gold for all the drinks and the wine."
Tomaru quickly covers up his amulet. "Actually, sir, we don't mean any harm. We were only looking for someone. Lucrecia by name. We were told she could be found at the paradise. Lanaa was overcome when I asked her about it." Tomaru counts out 150 gold. "The extra is a tip for the fine service and as an apology for any trouble we may have inadvertently caused."
Diplomacy includes Charming (if he finds me attractive)
Bit of Luck
Diplomacy includes Charming (if he finds me attractive)
The room goes silent.
"Lucrecia? Lucrecia!? You are too late stranger. Lucrecia is dead." Cesten says. "She died when the Paradise sank a few weeks ago. Along with two dozen or so good folk. They'll be missed...all of 'em." The burly innkeeper gathers up the coins and turns away. He pauses for a moment, then adds, "You can count your rooms in this. First serious business I've had in weeks."
"It sank? What do you mean it sunk?" He tries to look distraught and disbelieving rather than clueless.
Bluff
Cesten grimaces. "The Paradise was a gambling boat. Games, drinks, and other entertainments. Lucrecia ran it. Damn near tore this town apart, it did. Half of Turtleback Ferry loved the Paradise, the other half hated it. Lucrecia was a quite a looker, turned heads wherever she walked, and knew it. As you may expect, wives about town hated her."
I hated the Paradise too. Stole business. Drank a whole bottle in celebration when news came she went down. Sad for the people who went with her of course." He adds, quickly, but sincerely. "But we didn't rightly understand what she did for us. You see, the Paradise brought people from all over the region to its games and such. Gnomes from the Sanos, folk from Pendaka and Ilsurian, even them rangers from the fort came down once in a while. The damn barge may have taken my business, but them folk spent a lot of money elsewhere in town."
No one really knows what happened. The Paradise was on one of its nightly cruises on Claybottom Lake. Late that night, after everyone was fast asleep, there was a stir in town. Seems one of our hunters - Haln by name - was coming up the road from the south, hurrying along as it was late and all. Anyway, he burst into the village raising all kinds of noise, waking up the Mayor and all. His story wasn't pretty. He saw the Paradise, far out on the lake, tilted at an odd angle, lights winking out one by one as the barge slipped under the water." Cesten stops. It is very quiet in the tavern, as everyone listens to the innkeeper. The only sound is the crackling of the fire in the fireplace. Somewhere outside, you can hear a dog barking. Cesten sighs.
"Lost some good people that night. At least half from this village. Some folk tried to dive the lake and find the wreck, but it were too dangerous what with the gar and all. Oh. And there was an "investigation" by some fool from Ilsurian, but he was too interested in getting back home than investigating. Can't say I blame him , I guess. The rains came about that time, made the roads a mess."
"Someone from Ilsurian, you say?" Lym asks. "Did he leave a name? Did he find out anything useful at all and share it with your good people?"
"You mean it just sank? Was it on fire? Did it look like it was under attack by a creature or multiple creatures? Specifically trolls?" he asks with a raised eyebrow, remembering the water trolls all too well.
Kellen after his initial inquiries and then listening in on Cesten's tale, nods quietly and spends his time looking at the crowd - trying to notice any unusual responses to the story - someone who looks nervous or suspicious.
Once the story is done and things have resumed, he turns to the others. "Sounds like we need to talk to the Mayor, then it's time we go check on the Black Arrows."
Having made his suggestion, he looks like there's more on his mind to say. "Something is going on..." Looking at the others he continues the thought differently:"Let me ask you, this lamia you've been hunting? Would she be willing to kill two dozen people at once - slaughter her flock to use your analogy - just because they were greedy?"
"Why wouldn't she?" Lym asks, shrugging. "Once they were sufficiently saturated with greed, she would want to extract -- harvest the souls, for whatever despicable use she has for them. Worse the luck, those people might not be dead -- yet. Depending on the method of extraction..."
"If she did extract her harvest, she'll be lying low for awhile, or else have skipped town entirely. Talk to the mayor, sure, but it sounds like our focus should be on the Black Arrows. Hopefully, we can worry about her later."
"Talk to the mayor, sure, but it sounds like our focus should be on the Black Arrows.
"Sounds like a plan, neighbor," Kellen adds in agreement.
Rhianni who has seemingly been in a trance turns to Lymm, "Maybe the authorities have more information on this Paradise and it's sinking. Or what the Black Arrows were doing for the town when they went missing. Let us make us of the time we have today to seek out the Mayor? Then we might know better the path we travel." The fortune teller puts her cards on the table, starting to search backpack, pulling out some sweet smelling sticks..
"Someone from Ilsurian, you say?" Lym asks. "Did he leave a name? Did he find out anything useful at all and share it with your good people?"
"He didn't find nothing, 'cause he weren't really looking. Never did get his name. The Mayor might know it."
"You mean it just sank? Was it on fire? Did it look like it was under attack by a creature or multiple creatures? Specifically trolls?" he asks with a raised eyebrow, remembering the water trolls all too well.
"Can't say really, didn't see it. Haln just said it were 'slippin' under the water'. I'd say go ask him, but he were one of the ones that went up to the fort and all. Suppose you still could if'n you go up there."
"I think we should at least talk to the Mayor before we move on," Lym mutters to the others. "I am fed up with going off half-cocked and unprepared. I want as much information as we can gather."
"Hm. Just slipped under water. That is curious. Thanks for the info; and I'll be for sure headin' that way," he nods to Cesten.
"I think we should at least talk to the Mayor before we move on," Lym mutters to the others. "I am fed up with going off half-cocked and unprepared. I want as much information as we can gather."
"Sounds fine, lass. We'll see the Mayor in the morning and then we can head out from there."
"Maybe for once we got lucky, and the lamia was on board that ship which suffered a random and freak accident that did our work of slaying the beast for us."
"If she was on board, she probably just swam away, souls in tow," Lym says, shaking her head. "Snakes are excellent swimmers."
The night passes comfortably, and dryly, in the Turtle's Parlor. The next morning dawns with dark clouds hanging low over the village, a steady rain coming down. There has been no sign of Shalelu all that night or in the morning. Cesten tells you that he hasn't seen her either.
A local man directs you to the Mayor: "Maelin Shreed, he were, masters. In th' big temple to Erastil down by th' lake." He gives you a funny look out of the corner of his eye as he turns away.
The Church of Erastil is the largest building in town. It easily identifiable from the village square. Upon arrival, you can see that the lake shore has grown dangerously close the back edge of the church. You are greeted by a large Garundi man in the simple robes of a cleric of Erastil. He takes each of your hands in one his own huge ones, and shakes them warmly. His smile is genuine as he welcomes you.
"Aha! Welcome to Turtleback Ferry, my friends!" he says in a deep, booming voice. "I trust your journey from Magnimar was simple enough? Good! I am Maelin Shreed, cleric of Erastil, and as luck would have it, Mayor of the village. Deadeye has seen to your arrival here in a troubling time for us. Please. Sit." He gestures toward some simple benches in the main hall, and sits himself. "Now, how can I help you, help us?"
Lym initially does not speak, but she is wearing the noble's outfit she purchased to draw out Vancaskerkin, the mad ghoul lord. With the veil hiding her face and gloves on her hands, she actually manages to look eleant -- though tall. She spreads her skirts in a polite curtsy, and then stands silently, watching and listening...
Lym initially does not speak, but she is wearing the noble's outfit she purchased to draw out Vancaskerkin, the mad ghoul lord. With the veil hiding her face and gloves on her hands, she actually manages to look eleant -- though tall. She spreads her skirts in a polite curtsy, and then stands silently, watching and listening...
Kellen awakens early; does some sparring practice; and gets breakfast - trying to get a feel for what's going on in the township. When he sees the others, he comments on Shalelu's absence: "Your friend's been gone all night - is that common for her or should we try looking for her after we see the mayor?"
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Arriving to see the mayor, Kellen shakes the big man's hand and can't help but grin at his pleasantness. When the mayor asks how he can aid them, he looks first to Praxim or Rhianni to speak. If none else broach the subject, Kellen brings up the sinking:
"I'm under the impression your needing us to find out what's going with Fort Rannick. But speaking with the folks in the Turtle's Parlor, sounds like there's already been trouble with this gambling barge on the lake. You have any insight on what happened there?"
Tomaru also shakes the mayor's hand. He defers to Praxim and Lym in the meeting.
Praxim uses detect evil on the mayor. Assuming he senses nothing...
The elf is about to speak after his concentrating, but Kellen beats him to it. He waits for the man's response.
With the mayor to visit Rhianni takes extra care with her appearance, large gold rings hang from ears, her red and black bandanna holds her wild henna coloured hair in place. Silks of various yellows,reds and blue wrap around her torso, bangles hanging from them,as her flowing skirt floats above the ground. She walks with the company of adventurers to the mayor's office and looks with interest at Estaril's temple.
At the mayor's gesture she sits, smiling at the man. "Thank you for your kindness, we have rested well in your town after our journey, the inn is certainly a friendly place, as is your welcome. It was there we heard tales of rangers who helped protect your town, yet they have not be seen for some time. Black Arrows I think your townsfolk called them. If we can help you, we will but we would need to know as much as you know? And my friend Kellen, he has heard stories of death on the gambling barge, he and we would help your town know the truth of it, to help them come to terms with their lost relatives, if you can help us to further understand these happenings, then we all gain. To nuture your flock of townsfolk,as Estaril would will." Her questions and words soft with understanding sounds of honeyed tones.
"Where to start..miss..Rhianni is it? Perhaps I should start with the Paradise." Maelin rumbles.
"Months ago, a red-haired beauty calling herself Lucrecia came to Turtleback Ferry. She had half of the men swooning, and half the wives and girlfriends mad as all get out. She built a 'pleasure barge' as she called it, and named it the Paradise. It floated about Claybottom Lake, and plenty of folk from around the region would come to spend time - and money - on its avarices." He gets up and begins pacing, hands clasped behind his back. "I had my hands full dealing with angry wives, men who lost everything, and those who won big and drank far too much. Things were pretty divided around here, but the Paradise showed no sign of slowing down. If anything, it got busier. I have no idea to this day how so many folk with meager resources could afford the cover charges and prices on board that barge, but they did."
"I can help with that."
Shalelu stands in the door with a rain-soaked person, holding the bedraggled man by the back of his collar. Dragging him forward, she 'deposits' him on the floor in front of you. As she does so, she pulls down the back of his shirt, revealing a familiar tattoo.
"Tell them what you told me, Markus dear, and lets not have any more nonsense, or I will tell the Mayor here what I caught you doing."
"Okay..okay!" the man says, looking up at Shalelu and shivering. He stands up as Maelin offers him a hand, the Mayor casting a suspicious look at the elf ranger.
"What is that Markus? I believe I have seen it before on another. And what did this...person...drag you in here to say?" He rumbles.
The man begins, looking nervously from face to face, obviously intimidated by the group before him. "It's the 'Paradise Mark' " he begins slowly. "Its for free entry onto the boat, and benefits: winning bonuses and free starter cash, that sort of thing. Or was."
Maelin looks darkly at him. "And?"
"And I'm not the only one who had it, no! Lots of folks did! In town, outsiders, even some of them rangers! Now leave me be!" the man cries.
"How many in town, Markus? Maelin asks, standing over the man, his towering form causing the soaked figure to cower. You can see that the mayor is near-quivering with anger. "HOW MANY?"
"About...half." Markus says meekly.
"Half...." Clearly shaken, the Maelin sits down onto a bench with a thud. He covers his face with his hands, and all is silent for a few moments.
After a minute, she whispers.
"Time to go Markus."
With that the man hurries out of the temple. Outside, you can hear the driving rain on the roof and stained glass windows, rumbles of thunder in the distance....
"Half? And you mean to tell me that the boat that went under was composed of folks with that mark? How many people were on the boat, Mayor?"