"Making camp here would be most unwise. Let us ride out the remainder of the day and rest. I am anxious to reach Veir, I would hate to have house interests unrepresented in council."
Tholan nods, going over to check the fallen Fowls to see if there is anything of significant value before mounting up and preparing to ride, his eyes open and constantly on alert.
The aging wizard looks over the items left by the dead. “Hm.”
He stuffs a cloak and two punching daggers into his pack, and waits for the readiness of the rest of the party.
I agree, We have little choice in the matter. If we are running low on time I could always ride ahead. Not many can match my skill on horseback.
"Riding ahead alone would be an excellent way to be assassinated. Resilient though you are, caught alone and without aid you will die. We ride together."
"Agreed."
Anga sits watching the discourse offering nothing. From his lack of movement you can tell he's of no mind to part ways with the group yet.
"Sometimes large risks must be taken. Not many can best me mounted it is far worth my life to for MY HOUSE to have a presence at the council. However, I prefer the safer plan."
“Contradictions aside, our time wastes. Let us make for Veir.”
The wizard urges his horse into a trot around the barrier and onward down the road.
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Two days finds your little band of dust sodden nobles and retainers in Veir. The streets of the capital are dark and dirty by the east gate. The buildings are close set and the inhabitants are as dingy and decrepit as the worn cobble stones.
As you worm your way up to the High Circle many of the city's denizens note your arrival: some with awe, some with something else...
Finally, after many hours of travel, you spot Villa Rudianos. The pink stone glows in the fading afternoon light and it is in that light you notice that something is indeed wrong.
The grand oaken gates to through the villa's outer walls hang shattered on battered hinges. Red graffiti depicts rude images of the defiler's limited esteem of the House Rudianos. It is clear that much of the wealth of this expansive manor has been swiftly carted away not more than 3 days ago.
A lone figure prowls the deserted foyer just inside the mansion proper.
The wizard studies the damage as he approaches, and then calmly tugs the reins to stop his mount thirty feet from the gate when he sees the mysterious figure. Thaegrin sighs impatiently, and mutters briefly before addressing the stranger before him. His hands flicker a silvery sheen.
“Stop. Identify yourself.”
A ragtag band appears on the horizon, and Ezkal looks up from his investigations. One of the travelers looks familiar...
"Hail! Tholan! Brother! Is that you?" Ezkal waves to his kin.
Tholan's brow furrows as he hears the familiar voice, then raises as a grin spreads across his face. "I'll be damned. Ezkal, it has been far too long. What brings you to these parts?" Tholan spurs his mount forward, dismounting quickly to clasp forearms with his brother. "There is nothing to be concerned about Thaegrin, this is my brother. Well, his presence here means there may be some fair worry, but he is unlikely to be the cause."
Jathus holds his horse at a slow pace, while the astonishment sets in. Jathus still angered by the offense makes eye contact but is at a lack for words. I need to send word, I doubt my father would care enough for daily letters. It is his fault that he hasn't instilled an iron fist into the slaveborn. This is not my path...
While the rest of the group began hello'ing each other Jathus dismounts, passing one his daggers to the prisoners. "Cut yourself free! As promised you are released. I will not report or aggres you in any way. If your looking for work, I'll provide a safe home for you and your families provided you swear loyalty, as well as if you have any information about the Fowls in the forest I will pay good coin for it. Otherwise make your exit, speak good of me for I wont speak of you at all."
He gave a passing nod for Helena to make sure their release went smoothly.
"Jathus Rudianos the Stormend, explain your presence here."Emotionless and still raw the death of Wraith still controls his mind.
"I was sent here by our household to discuss the release of Tholan from your care. I arrived here just a bit ago to discover Villa Rudianos in this state. Looking at the rubble, I've determined that two separate groups have been here. One group destroyed the villa but they left NO tracks. I have yet to determine how this is possible, but I know for sure I read the tracks correctly. The second group just came in to loot what was left. I had thought your group had already arrived and was pained to think my brother had died here." Ezkal said as he pointed out tracks to the others.
Thaegrin eyes the brother suspiciously.
“I appreciate your insight on these vandals and thieves, Ezkal. I must ask that we table Tholan’s release for another time, as more pressing matters are at hand. Do not take offense at this; we are tired from a trying journey, and you find us ill-prepared for such a discussion.”
His gaze moves to the gate, to the villa foyer. “Did you search inside? Shall I assume the office was ravaged as well?”
As he waits for an answer, Thaegrin rummages though his pack for a couple scrolls rarely used, Prestidigitation and Mending. The court wizard quietly thinks back to remember what he can of Tholan and Ezkal’s Thane, the strength of his dominion and trade, and the terms of Tholan’s custody.
Tholan motions for Thaegrin to pause when he sees a scroll of Mending. "That spell isn't worth wasting a scroll on. Tell me what you wish mended, and I will do so." He turns back to his brother, taking a quick glance around the rubble. "They left no tracks, you say. Did they leave any indications as to how the damage was inflicted?"
"The damage was done by some unearthly means. If I didn't know that it was a group of men, I would have stated this was caused by natural disasters. Earthquake damage, tornado gale force winds and the like. As for the 4 thieves that came in after looting, it seems they knew exactly where everything was. I can make at three normal sized men, and one smaller creature, almost of childlike size." Ezkal explain. He turned to the Ferawen who had spoken.
"My apologies Ferawen. I haven't yet explored deeply into the buildings. I was still checking for signs of life and tracking."
"So magic was used here. Unfortunate, that complicates matters. Is there any sign of which direction the thieves headed when they left? Your... skills may come in useful in prompting cooperation, brother. Surely someone must have seen who was here."
"You remember the days where I practiced Confession on you do ya? Har har!" Ezkal bellowed as he gave Tholan a hefty smack on the back.
The wizard tucks away his scrolls as he listens to the brothers.
No tracks… earthquake, high winds…
“As touching as this reunion may be, daylight will be gone in a few hours, if you wished to pursue these looters.”
“I would suggest someone to ask neighbors if any other houses have suffered similar crimes.”
Thaegrin urges his horse into the foyer, and dismounts. At a pace careful not to disturb anything just yet, he slowly makes his way around the wreckage with palms turned outward. He wears a sharp scowl in concentration.
After a thorough sweep of the courtyard, the old arcanist steps up to the mansion doors. He studies the door for a few minutes.
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Tholan grinned ruefully. "Yes I do. I've learned a few tricks of my own. House Rudianos has at least had the grace to teach me well in my chosen field." He moves to follow Thaegrin, looking to see if he can spot anything of note, and see if he can discern the strength of the spellcaster from the damage left in the enviroment. He also begins to search for any further signs of where the thieves may have entered or left.
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Thane Oltryg Sorensen controls port Iteon on the southern coast of Thelkon. His wealth is mostly in trade by sea and the insurance of ships.
20 years ago, Thane Sorensen declined to insure a ship bound for Erenon that was scheduled to carry a cargo of slaves for House Rudianos. He declined to insure because he knew the ship to be leaky. Instead he held back the shipment of slaves thinking to send them on a more seaworthy vessel. However, storms sprang up and the shipment was delayed 9 months. That missed year ended up costing House Rudianos untold thousands of gold since they could not fulfill their slave orders on schedule. That is one of the reasons House Rudianos is now a minor house.
To insure this never happened again, Lord Rudianos sent men to abscond with Thane Sorensen's oldest son. However, the men made a mistake and kidnapped Tholan, the Thane's younger child, instead.
Outraged, Thane Sorensen prepared his men for war. However, the manifestation of Tholan's powers was seen as a blessing on the Thane's house and the threat of House Rudianos killing such a sign of favor from the gods could not be ignored. Sorensen agreed to commit Tholan to the care of Lord Rudianos until such time as Tholan's father relinquishes control of the family holdings to his oldest son, Ezkal.
Ezkal concentrates and focuses his attention on the ruins.
"I believe that once we have satisfied our interest in this rubble we should begin to question the locals. Both to discern their feelings toward us, and to see if we can get a better grasp on what has happened."
"I tend to agree." Jathus out of touch with his usual self the attack on the house had brought on his hatred for his father, and with the death of wraith he had no one to confide in.
My father brought this, he is laid back and distant from the troubles of the world. He cares not for diplomacy compaired to how much he cares for his food. He is far to greedy and obviously this is some sort of conspiracy against the house. In the manors defense we find it lacking. To attack a mans home is the same as to out right kill him. Someone will pay for this, just like the bastards in the Forrest. His brain was mashing many thoughts and feelings. Yet, his responses to the party were weak and obvious. He knew he needed to take his reigns back, but lacked the will.
"No matter the clues or cause we need to rebuild and take back what My House once was. This sort of attack and its pairing mockery will be sorted and there will be a just and swift punishment. For now, I am a target. These bastards were obviously going after me. I will heed your earlier words Thaegrin. My unrelentlessness must be compromised and I must adapt a safer approach. We must find out what we can about the attack from our sources, and we will need to remake the manor. Anga focus your efforts around questioning the populous, while Thaegrin and Tholan please explore and find out as much as you can about the actual attack."
"Ezkal, I promise that if you bare with me we will enter talks about your brother. He has saved my life and I value him greatly. "
“Arcane energies are manifested in several different paths. The type of magic used to cause this destruction point toward mages with a more naturalist approach to the higher mysteries. Of this sparse initial evidence, an estranged shaman of the wilds would be a likely culprit, but there is too little information for any conclusions.”
“And forgive me for saying so, Sir Jathus, but I would prioritize the safety of your older brother Drostan. I believe such investigation was tasked to the Halfblood. Given the disarray of this villa, it is possible those who did not leave tracks were your brother’s abductors, probably those sympathetic to the Fowls of the Forest. However, this is mostly conjecture.”
Thaegrin turns to enter the villa, but stops and adds, “Also, we must remember why we are in Veir. Sir Jathus, I will join you in council attendance tomorrow. For tonight, I require solitude for effective study.”
The wizard searches the mansion rooms and halls for evidence to this hypothesis. He also hopes to find an office relatively unmolested.
"I suspect that summoning of elementals played a substantial role in the destruction here. A group of men, somewhere between 2-8 of them were involved in the summoning. We would do well to be wary."
"My priority is the council. My brother is lost, hopefully we will have more than a body to recover."
The wizard carries his pack into the former office, and takes a wide shallow bowl from the kitchen. On a loose sheet, he scrawls:
Enter at risk of transmutation into vermin. Do not disturb.
~Thaegrin Variel
He posts this on the outside of the door and closes it.
Once inside, he draws the curtains on any windows, and leaves his bedroll over the space between the door and the floor. The scholar pushes the stout table up against the door. He looks about the room once more, to ensure he is alone.
He searches his pack for the mandragora mixture, and pours it into the shallow bowl. Next, he retrieves from his pack a book, Follicles Folly, and turns to a page named “Bearach Rudianos”, and pulls a lock of hair secured to the page. On one of the workbenches, the arcanist hovers over the calming surface of the concoction. As he does this, a third incandescent eye opens on his forehead. With intricate gestures and mutterings, his fingers outline sigils that glimmer a deep chromatic blue. He ends his murmured incantations with, “Beararch Rudianos”
Fiercely pinching the lock of hair in one hand, he turns all three eyes to the pooled mixture in the bowl.
Tholan moves to examine the front gate to see whether it would be worth spending time Mending the gate. He also takes a look around to see if there are other obvious breaches around the compound, or if other defenses seem intact.
Thaegrin drags away the table, shoulders his pack, and paces through the villa until he finds the Halfblood. He waits until the newly hired men are out of earshot, and quietly murmurs to Anga. “Something or someone inhibits my divinations to locate Bearach Rudianos. This lends to the possibility that he is alive, and hidden by a mage similar to my caliber.” the wizard’s voice rises to a more conversational tone, “I was eager to visit the market while daylight remains. I hoped you would be inclined to join me, if for no other reason than to enjoy a moment’s peace from the demands of the young lordling. You never know what the streets might tell you.”
Thaegrin’s irregular business with Anga Facion gave him a vague idea of the Halfblood’s skill set, but he also sensed contempt for those gifted with long life. Given his silence for the last half of the journey, the wizard was also curious what this man of shadows might be thinking, if anything.
Content that his portion of the investigation was over, Exkal finds a flat surface and settles down pulling out a blank scroll and his inkwell. Jotting down glyphs and words, he sets about working on scribing a scroll for future use.