Aid another (Heal):
Tristan tries to forage a little for some food for the poor horse.
In the hope that the fierce horse is at least grateful for the food, Tristan tries to calm it.
Aid another (Handle animal)
Untrained: If you have no ranks in Handle Animal, you can use a Charisma check to handle and push domestic animals, but you can't teach, rear, or train animals.
Shalelu CHA check in lieu of Handle Animal
Halgor CHA check in lieu of Handle Animal
Lamsfel CHA check in lieu of Handle Animal
Lamsfel and Tybus carefully open the door to the shed, and a massive warhorse rushes out, its black coat flecked with foam and its eyes rolling. It neighs fiercely, rearing up and half spinning around as you all scatter back, but the pile of provender you have accumulated catches its attention, and it drops back to all four hooves, dancing nervously, nostrils flaring. Slowly it steps forward and lowers its muzzle to the hay and thistles you collected, and the elf and the magus approach it from either side, murmuring soothing words as it settles in to eat. After a few long minutes, the horse has calmed down entirely, and - once it looks up from the food - seems calm enough to be lead across the bridge, where it heads straight for the small creek you followed to reach Thistletop in the first place and begins to guzzle down the fresh water. By that point, it has adjusted to your presence enough to allow itself to be used as a pack animal, which conveniently allows you to stack up your battle trophies and looted spoils for transport back to Sandpoint.
The trip back is uneventful, and you reach the small town not long before sunset. Shouts of surprise, alarm and then excitement echo down from the town walls as the sentries spy your return and finally make out who you are, and by the time you are crossing the Sandpoint Bridge over the Turandarok, you see Sheriff Hemlock and Mayor Deverin both hurrying up the road toward you.
A dockside urchin then sailor all his life, Tybus had never had much to do with horses. So couldn't explain the flashes of insight that let him help soothe the massive beast. That is, until he thought again about the exotic sword he carried. Something about "the way of the horse and bow" came to mind as he patted the horse's flank, and suddenly, he knew what name to give it: Tomodachi.
As the town officials hurry to greet them, Tybus can't help but scan the crowd for other familiar faces. One in particular.
Tybus does not see her. He knows, somewhere inside, that he probably never will again. But how long will it be before he stops looking?
Shalelu turns to you all and says, "If you want, I can handle the official reporting if you want to take care of any more... personal... business. I'll catch you up at the Rusty Dragon later."
"I can meet you at the Dragon later, as well. I'm going to seek out Sandru Vhiski to see if there's news."
Tybus shakes his head. Of course, though it's seemed like days, they had only been gone a day and a half.
He turns to Shalelu, I'm happy to go on with ye, but I'm sure Ameiko will want to know what we've achieved. If ye think ye can handle the reporting and make sure our promises to Orik be kept, then I'll see to her.
Tristan looks at the horse in awe, keeping a safe distance and watching it closely. "I'll go with you if you don't mind, brother" he says to Halgor. "See you all at the Dragon.
I'll go with you, Tybus. I'd like to let her know that Nualia is no longer a threat to Sandpoint.
Lamsfel puts a hand on Shalelu's shoulder. "Thanks. We could not have done this without you. We'll be happy to meet with Mayor Deverin and the Sheriff if they request it. I also think we need to see Ameiko."
He heads down the street toward the Dragon with the others.
As it happens, Sandru is most likely at the Rusty Dragon too, so Halgor and Tristan initially find themselves accompanying the others to the tavern. Once the arrive, however, they do discover he is not there, and Bethana mentions that he was headed off to Madame Mvashti's if they want to track him down at the old mansion.
Ameiko is serving her trademark spicy stew to her evening dinner crowd when you walk in; several patrons look up nervously when they hear the door, but smiles and looks of relief follow the recognition that it is the Heroes of Sandpoint that have just entered. Ameiko herself smiles broadly on seeing you, but it doesn't last long; the worries and strain of the last several days wear away at the smile like waves on a beach, grinding it down. Still, there is undeniable happiness in her voice as she approaches you all, giving Lamsfel a hug and squeezing Tybus' and Tristan's hands as she says, "Thank the Rose you're safe and back. Come in, come in! Everyone, look who has returned from their mission against the Thistletop goblins!"
Lamsfel returns the hug with a smile. "Thank the Rose and the Song of the Spheres. We let a few escape to warn the other tribes not to threaten Sandpoint, but most of them won't ever threaten anyone ever again."
Grimly, he adds, "The surviving tribes will be fighting over who gets to take over Thistletop for a while, I suspect."
An uneasy, knotted tension ever since the Glassworks in Tybus had been slowly lessening throughout the journey back to Sandpoint. Upon seeing Sandpoint's walls, and the relieved faces of the townsfolk, the tension had almost left him entirely. The feeling threatened to return at Lamsfel's words and Ameiko's damaged smile, but he fought it off with the assistance of the good food and company.
Piping up to the crowd, Tybus says, We got 'em, folks! Shalelu's giving the full report to yer sheriff, and no doubt ye'll hear the official decree tomorrow. No sense in worring tonight!
In a voice loud enough for Ameiko to hear, he says, Nualia be dead, for real this time. Lass was real damaged. Had scars on her belly, and a hand that was changed into something monstrous. I never knew your Nualia, but this one, there was nothing good in her. World's better off without her.
Oh, and Ameiko, when ye've got a chance, there's something we found, may be of importance to ye. I'll show ye when there's fewer folk around. He gives her a smile.
The tavern's patrons take the announcement with overwhelming relief and celebration, shouting and cheers. Apparently the same tension Tybus was feeling had been hanging over the whole town, and it begins at last to loosen everywhere.
As Bethana suddenly becomes a blur trying to fill drink orders, Ameiko pushes closer to the group - so she can still be heard over the sudden hullabaloo - and raises an eyebrow at Tybus. "What did you find?"
With a look of excitement and a lopsided grin, Tybus puts Song of Sparrows on the table, still in its laquered sheath.
Ye probably recognize these characters here. The goblin chief had been using it. We... dissuaded him. Gan recognized it for what it is. Song of Sparrows. And your family name. He points them out, in case Ameiko doesn't notice at first.
Looking contrite, he continues, I studied the sword with me magics, and, well, used it in our later fights. It's got a lot of power to it, and it helped us out. I hope I didn't offend you by taking it up without your leave.
Ameiko looks shocked and surprised by the sword, reaching a hand out to touch it with something not unlike reverence. "My... family's sword?" she asks unnecessarily, but apparently uncharacteristically at a loss for another response. After a moment, the rest of Tybus' words sink in, and she quickly adds, "No, no, no offense, of couse not. I'm glad it helped you. But... where did it come from? How did the goblins get it?"
Sense Motive
Lamsfel watches the woman's reaction and is unsure what to make of it. "What do you know of the sword, milady?"
Tybus waits for her response to Lamsfel's question.
When it comes time to answer hers, he shrugs. No idea how they got it, or how long they had it. The chief nearly did me in with this blade. He acted like he wanted to talk with us, but I got the sense that it were a ruse. He had a warchanter with him.
Gan holds a finger up and speaks quietly, as if not wanting to interrupt.
I...I believe it was Tsuto who gave the blade to the goblins. I'm sorry to have to tell you this, Ameiko.
Ameiko shakes her head in answer to Lamsfel's inquiry. "Nothing," she answers, shaking her head with confusion. "I was born in Sandpoint, my father in Magnimar... it was my grandparents who crossed the Crown of the World from Tian Xia, but I've never really known much about them. I don't really even know why our family would have a sword like this! We're glassmakers, not warriors - my father was furious when I left to become an adventurer rather than help him run the Glassworks. Where would this have even come from?"
At Gan's comment, Ameiko pales slightly, but nods. "I guess... yes, that would make sense," she agrees slowly. "Although it doesn't explain where the sword came from originally. But yes, I'm sure that's what happened." She hefts the blade experimentally, trying it first with a one-handed grip (that looks rather awkward) and then with a two-handed one. In her hands it seems more like a over-large scimitar than an exotic blade from a distant land, but it still lacks the finesse she showed with her borrowed shortsword before. "I... thank you, for returning it to me. I... don't have much of my family to hang onto right now. This... helps, a little."
Tybus smiles at Ameiko gently.
I'm glad to be returning it to ye. I'll be happy to tell ye what I saw, when I studied it. It can guide a person along the ways of yer people's honorable warriors. The... heh, the language left me. Samurai, I think it was. What's more, the spirits in it can be awoken, which will give it even more power, if there be someone with the skills to do it.
Tybus doesn't press, but offers any assistance Ameiko may want with the sword. Before the evening closes, and before he's had too many, Tybus steps out to check up on the horse.
I'm going to go check up on Friend -- no, that's not right. What did I call him? He looks stunned for a moment, searching his memory. Tomo-- Tomodachi?
As word spreads about the end of the goblin threat, the town is slowly and a little uncertainly caught up in a new wave of celebrations. Some whisper of the role Nualia played in the events begins to circulate as well, and the townsfolk seem unsure how to feel about the news - the specter of the Late Unpleasantness seems to hang once more over the town for several days, and a number of locals suggest not only that she might have killed Father Tobyn and started the fire that destroyed the old Sandpoint Church, but also that she might have seduced Tsuto into killing his mother; the death of Lonjiku's wife Atsuii from a fall off the cliff near their estate has long been believed to have been an accident, but given that happened at almost the same time as the Sandpoint Fire, a few in the town have begun to wonder about it.
After staying in town a few more days while he makes sure Ameiko is holding up, Sandru and his caravan move on, taking Halgor with them; Koya Mvashti goes with them as well, carrying Desna's blessings off to the roads of Varisia as is her wont. As the days wear on and no further signs of trouble appear, Sheriff Hemlock sends the extra men he borrowed from Magnimar back home, but a number of citizens seem to have taken to the idea of a more robust city watch, and Hemlock soon finds he has a sizable pool of volunteer militia to draw upon should he need them.
With your recommendations and Shalelu vouching for him as well, Orik joins the town guard; he quickly becomes the resident swordmaster for the new militia, a position he takes to with surprising ease. His satisfaction is perhaps aided by the fact that, seemingly out of nowhere, Sir Jasper Korvaski, the former paladin of Abadar who now runs the Sandpoint Mercantile League, takes custody of Lyrie. The paladin arranges for her to study with Brodert Quink, the town's local Thassilonian expert, and Ilsoari Gandethus, the wizard who maintains the Turandarok Academy, while working off her "debt to the community" for aiding, however distantly, Nualia's plans for the town. (Local gossip suggests Ameiko had something to do with Jasper's decision, although neither comments on the rumor.) An initial flare-up of Orik's jealousy is quickly quelled when Jasper rather pointedly introduces him to Jasper's boyfriend, and all involved seem somewhat satisfied with the arrangement. Most of the rest of Sandpoint does not take too kindly to Lyrie, although they seem reasonably quick to forgive Orik; it is also not clear that Orik's romantic aspirations have any chance of coming to fruition, but he has not, as yet, given up hope.
Shalelu, for her part, spends a few days with you and Ameiko at the Rusty Dragon before departing once more. When she leaves, though, it is with an unaccustomed air of gravitas, and she spends some time in discussions with Mayor Deverin and Sheriff Hemlock about how the town will handle what she expects to be an extended period away from her adopted home. She does not apparently wish to get into the details, but if asked, she shrugs and replies dryly, "Let's just say I've recently become aware of the importance of family and re-establishing faded ties."
As for Ameiko, she soldiers on; though it is clear that she has been deeply shaken by the events of the last few weeks, she does not lose her sense of self, continuing to run her tavern and occasionally sing for her patrons much as she did before. A couple of days after your return, a pair of simple wooden hooks appears on the wall near the end of the bar; Song of Sparrows rests there, in its sheath. A number of customers ask about it, but Ameiko just shakes her head and smiles, offering nothing more than a challenge: "Why don't you tell me a story about it?" "The Story of the Sword" becomes a new pastime at the Rusty Dragon, with competing tales of fictional derring-do raising laughter and thrills once a week. The winner has their tab for the night paid off, and it becomes something of a race between drinking enough to find inspiration and drinking too much to carry off the story right...
And so, life in Sandpoint returns to something like normal, for at least a time. But nothing lasts forever, and the seeds sown on the night of the Swallowtail Festival have not yet all blossomed. But that is another tale... at least for now.
Tybus remained in Sandpoint for the rest of the season. He lived quietly, assisting in the patrols around the walls occasionally, and meeting often with the sheriff, mayor and Ameiko. He always met with Shalelu when she would stop by. He accepted drinks bought for him, but he rarely spoke of his experiences with the goblin attacks.
At the change of the seasons, just as folk started whispering about Tybus's behavior, he abruptly rode southwest, with his new horse. He moved to Magnimar and acquired an interest in a small cutter. For a few years, Tybus sailed out of Magnimar on the ship he eventually rechristened the Lina
Every few months, he would meet with Shalelu at Old Fang, a Dockway watering hole. At first, those meetings would be filled with hope for word from Shalelu about a certain water Oracle. As they continued meeting, however, and as new word never arose, Tybus and Shalelu would simply raise a glass to the "good old times" and reminisce.
Tybus eventually came to the realization that he had to bury what was merely a possibility and move on. While not easy, and not quick, it was inevitable, and he found a measure of peace.
Then Shalelu came to Tybus with a request. She had been asked to travel upriver from Magnimar to a place called Turtleback Ferry with a group of mercenaries. Tybus's vessel was shallow-drafted enough to make the voyage upriver -- indeed, he'd made that voyage every so often. Shalelu also confided in him that she'd heard that a human she'd once thought of as a father figure was at a fort upriver.
Tybus, of course, was glad to help, though she declined his offer of traveling further inland to explore the fort. Instead, she continued to escort the mercenaries as he moored in Turtleback Ferry and awaited her return.
A week later, Shalelu returned to the village, having found her step-father and made a tentative reconciliation with him. With the mercenaries moving on to retake a fort lost to ogres, Shalelu boarded the Lina and made ready to return to the coastline.
However, before they were able to launch, a massive lake monster attacked the town. Tybus piloted his ship out to allow Shalelu to rain arrows on it. It was a desperate fight, and the relentless ranged attack finally drew the monster away from the village. In its throws to escape, the creature smashed the Lina, pitching Tybus over into Claybottom Lake. Shalelu grabbed him and hauled him to shore.
In the aftermath of the monster's attack, Tybus and Shalelu eventually get passage back to Magnimar. With little left to his name but a horse, a cutlass and a spellbook, Tybus eventually made his way back to Sandpoint, four years older and surprisingly little to show for it.
Walking into the Rusty Dragon, Ameiko first smiles to see him, then sadly shakes her head. He shrugs at that, and takes a seat. In a symbolic gesture, he asks for the letter he left with Ameiko, and tosses it into the fireplace. They stand together and watch the parchment curl and blacken, the last of the burnt offerings.
Lamsfel remains in Sandpoint. Like Tybus, he takes his turn volunteering in the militia and hanging out at the Rusty Dragon. When the locals ask him about the goblins, he's always ready with an embellished version of events, some of which would take years to complete as they grow more and more fantastic with each telling, but none of his listeners seem to mind.
He makes sure to touch base with Ameiko daily, if only a nod of the head in the taproom. He had hoped to visit with Shalelu more now that he had returned, but he certainly understands as well as any elf that the road calls and you must heed it.
He sees Sandru and Halgor off and especially Koya, wishing them Desna's blessings and a safe return from a profitable journey.
It's with much regret that he watches Tybus pine away and he sincerely hopes that the man finds what he seeks when he leaves Sandpoint, but he can't help but feel that twinge of loss to see another good friend departing.
At least once a week, he stops by Mvashti Mansion to visit with Grandmother Niska and see to her health, especially since her daughter is on the road.
As with many of those in town, he volunteers for the militia and takes his turns on the wall. He spends considerable time working with the other militiamen alongside Orik. Feeling somewhat responsible for the man and helping him find a new path, the elf works to aid him in training the rest of the militia. He also makes a point of sparring with the man because of the difference between their chosen styles of fighting. Over time, the two develop a respect for each other if not a close friendship.
Generally, Lamsfel becomes a fixture in the town, helping where he can and doing his best to be a friend to anyone that will have him. He doesn't seem to have a source of income, but he always seems to have just enough to get by. When asked about the source of his money, he just laughs, "Money is a cause for worry. I prefer to live worry-free."
It's with great excitement that he greets the caravan when it arrives back in town each and every time, as giddy as any of the children as he finds each of his old friends. When Tybus returns, Lamsfel is with Orik training some of the young men, trying to find what sort of weaponry they will be best suited for. When word comes that the sailor has returned, he excuses himself and literally runs all the way to the Rusty Dragon, bursting through the door and looking all around. Seeing the two of them somberly watching a letter burn in the fire, he guesses what it might be about and bites his tongue. Moving nearly silently across the floor of the taproom, he comes up between his two good friends and puts an arm around each, saying nothing.
Gan’s mind was not well-eased, despite his friends’ triumph over the infernal threat. He lingered in Sandpoint for awhile, awkwardly accepting praise and declining invitations to retell stories of his exploits.
He would visit Ameiko on occasion, and pass the time with his newfound friends when he could. But as the months passed, his mind grew more fragmented. He began to see things when nothing was there. The whisperings in the back of his mind intensified. He feared the worst—that the Faceless One was not what he thought, but some sinister force steering him to his own destruction.
As the doubt set in, he found his thoughts wandering to Tsuto—the torture, interrogation, and eventual suicide. Gan couldn’t shake the shame over the depths to which he had sunk to gain knowledge, noble purpose notwithstanding. He ventured back into the wilderness to seek some solace, but found only increasing guilt over his actions. He lived plainly, returning to town less and less frequently, and only to gain meager stores of food and water. Time and inactivity took their toll on Gan’s body, but the townsfolk remained grateful for his past help, and didn’t give voice to the concerns that they saw plainly.
The months continued to pass, and his introspection led him to what he thought were truths—evil begets evil, no matter what the intent. Seek knowledge through other means, though the road is longer and more difficult.
Though he felt more clear about his own morality, his guilt over his actions with Tsuto never left him. Gan believed he was being punished by this mysterious Faceless One—a belief solidified when Haigui stopped speaking with him, and eventually left in the dark of night. His magic weakened, the voices faded, and a mundane existence seemed imminent. Gan felt this was as it should be, that his parents’ vision for him was a fool’s wish, that he was too old for adventure, and that he was content to live out his days in quiet solitude, perhaps eventually finding the peace in his soul that eluded him.
He fell asleep with a lighter heart than he’d had in years, ready for a serene new life. He drifted off to sleep and dreamed of conversing with himself. His dream-self said: You are right to seek redemption, and to question all sources of knowledge. But you will never find what you seek, alone in the dark. Surround yourselves with those whose ideals set them apart—those who would give of themselves to help others. You must give up yourself to redeem what you’ve lost. Sacrifice is the only road to salvation.
As his dream-world lightened and the speaker started to fade, Gan realized something in the speaker’s eyes: it was not him as he first thought, but another old man. THE Old Man, herald of Irori. The knowledge came unbidden but certain, and with the knowledge came a snapping back to the waking world.
He opened his eyes and was surrounded by a holy light—a benevolent spirit sent by Irori to merge with Gan. Gan accepted the light, and his mind flooded with knowledge—past and present, and a sense of danger approaching at the edge of his senses. It was not too late to put things right. He set off to find his friends, the only ones who could help him in his quest.
The events of the last few days had left Tristan moody and withdrawn, and when he found out that Sandru, the object of his boyish affection, had left before he had managed to summon up the courage to talk to him properly, Tristan left Sandpoint in disgust.
Finding solace in nature, he spent his time roving about the countryside. Now and then he would finger the jagged edges of the breastplate he took from Nualia. "She had a gaping hole where her heart should be." There was simply nothing like her in nature, nor anything like Tsuto, both of them betrayers of their parents, making a mockery of their kinship.
Until then he had preferred bustling cities to the lonely countryside, but now he could spend days just lying in the grass watching birds. Nature had its share of brutality but there was no place for evil of the kind he had witnessed.
His great physical strength came in handy during harvest times and he had little trouble earning his keep, but he would never stay long in one place. Now and then he would return to Sandpoint to visit his friends, in the vain hope that Sandru would have returned. He never had, though. Not until now.