Savien has surprised expression on his face at the straightforward responses. I guess that actually was the right approach. Good to know...
"There's four hundred gold to split if we're successful. You'd get a fair share. Plus, who knows what we find in there. People have been avoiding it since I was a kid."
The guardsman scratches his head like he hadn't planned this far. "Uh... My name's Savien." He looks questioningly at Vak. "You in?"
With the flourish of blue that swirls Blitz's visible skin, you would be hard pressed to discern the classic pale sylphs are said to be. His obnoxiously pointed ears look almost as if he had his flesh warped purposefully to over-accent his Djinn heritage. His silvery hair is mostly buzzed with a spiky patch at the very front. He looks at his comrades to be...
"Not only the money involved, but a chance to improve ourselves-not to mention a way to ease another's pain and possibly save some lives...this seems to be turning out to be quite the bargain. I am Blitz, and as I have heard card players say...I'm all in!"
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Sureliah chuckles, looking to the younger woman and smileing still... Ma'am, I'm more than capable of helping you myself. You forget That elves train from birth, for twice your human lives, in either the magics or the martial arts. I have learned a few tricks that may help of we encounter anything harmful...
Four hundred, split among . . . how many? Six? Vak'rogh considers a moment. And the difference for drinking after, then! That is, if your lowlander brews are of worth . . . . The big half-orc trails off before asking: And how does this . . . coin . . . become ours? If it's there for taking, I will take! But the . . . rules -- Bah! Useless things!! -- may be trouble. What is the task??
Vak turns his head again to survey the room, confirming his ragsome quarry is still present.
"That's only if all six actually make it with us and survive, which seems... unlikely." The guardsman casts a dubious glance toward Sureliah and Julio. "My guess is we'll end up with a hundred each. But even if, by some miracle, they do survive, sixty gold is a decent wage. Even if it takes a few days."
"The task? Just find two people. Or their corpses. Bring them back if we can.
I know what they look like." Savien shrugs.
An incredulous look comes over Vak's face. What this foolishness?! You ask help, but believe the helping will die? That is not "help", Funny-man Savien -- that is . . . turning to Akula for help, What is word? дэспатызм!
The warrior's expression hardens. We have saying in mountains: Альпініст, які сумняваецца падае. 'The climber who doubts falls.' You plan some to die, but would save self. Why ask help?!
And under his breath he mutters Sixty-six.
"Help makes death less likely." Akula rumbled. "He is honest."
Kerowyn looks at Sureliah for a long moment and says, ”Well you are a grown woman...even if your parents have not yet seen it. The road is a dangerous place. Be cautious.”
Then to Blitz, ”Laying it on awful thick aren’t you...what am I saying...it doesn’t matter. Thank you.” Her eyes are still rimmed with red but the talk of business seems to have helped her get a hold of herself.
At Savien’s mention of corpses she draws a deep breath but nods. She then says to Vak, ”Дапамогу ці не дапамагаюць. Барацьба ці не змагацца. Ешце ці не ядуць. Жыць ці не жыць...it is your choice.”
”Now do any of you have anything else to say or can I tell you the rest of what I know?”
Savien glares at Vak for a moment before turning his back and storming away, shaking his head. This is going to be a very frustrating experience...
At the bar again, Savien glowers around at everyone, pointedly not looking toward the half-orcs. "If there's something more to tell, tell. I have preparations to make, and there's no sense waiting around."
Yeah... why not rush to my own death? Savien, you've made some dumb choices in your life, but this? With them?
Savien's scowl deepens.
Wincing at the guardsman's sharp tone he asks, "Madam, our new comrade is correct. What else can you tell us of your children's plans? We will need to know everything you can think of so that we can rescue them as soon as possible."
Perplexed by Savien's seeming lack of confidence in those who've declared to go, Vak rises from his seat and follows him toward the clutch of people. He is about to speak to Savien again when he pauses to listen to the lady who led the meeting, briefly interjecting: Vak'rogh hears you.
"So...there will be six of you then...more than I thought I would get...Regardless...as I mentioned, Talgen and Sharwyn left a couple of months ago. They were just so determined to go explore the old ruins, despite what people around here say about them. I don't know what drove them. I...They found a paladin named Braford to accompany them as well as a woodsman named Karakas. Talgen has always been good with a weapon and Sharwyn had spent most of the past few years being tutored by a wizard down in Oppara so it seemed like they would be more than a match for anything they would find. Still, it's pretty wild country up toward the citadel so who knows what they found. I explicitly told them that if they felt like they were in too deep that they should hightail it out of there..." Here she sniffs and shakes her head.
"Anyway your guess is as good as mine what happened." She looks at Savien, "I don't know if you've ever been up to the ruins or not...but it is a little over a day from here by foot up the old road. I've never been up there myself but it's possible you can find somebody else who has. There's always been rumors about the place being haunted or being the home of some giant beast so I wouldn't be surprised if information is scarce."
"For those of you who need it, I can offer you lodgings for the night at Maude's before you go...plenty of rooms available right now. I'll also tell Garon to cover your meals tonight. I think that's all I know but will answer any questions you have."
Savien sighs. "No... I haven't been. There's no reason to go up the old road. The new road's just faster." The guardsman shakes his head to himself, still brooding. "That said, I'm sure I could find it. The old road used to go to it from what I heard."
Who knows. Maybe Talgen and Sharwyn are just up there at the citadel having a grand old time and just forgot to come home. We could be back in two days! Savien shakes his head again at his internal sarcasm, though his mood does lighten slightly as he turns to the others.
"My shack is on the old road just outside of town. If you're still as eager in the morning, meet there after dawn and I'll lead us to the citadel. Bring a bedroll if you don't want to sleep on the ground." Savien looks over at Sureliah with an uncertain expression. She better not try to bring a damned bed or something.
Shaking his head one last time, Savien adds, "There's a sign out front. Says 'Trapper's Shack: don't be stupid'. I don't recommend going past that."
He then tries to regain his composure, "Yes, err, uhh....just trying to put things in perspective. Sorry. ma'am!"
Julio turns to the sullen young man and says, "That sounds like a wonderful idea sir. In fact I believe that you should be leading this expedition. You seem to have some of the local knowledge that none of the rest of us possess. Being a member of the town guard should mean that you are used to giving orders so it only seems like a natural fit for us."
He snaps to attention, heels clicking together, and salutes the young man, "Yes sir, I shall meet you before dawn at your residence on the old road at the edge of town."
As the discussion continues, the party notice two others have joined the conversation. One is a female gnome with flaming red hair wearing attractively cut priestly robes bearing the angel of Sarenrae.
She smiles at the group and says, "Welcome to Oakhurst. My name is Dem Nackle, although around here I'm known as Corkie. I had hoped that Kerowyn would find more help from our neighbors...but like she said, they really are not the best candidates for an adventure like this. Please accept this donation from my church to help you on your way."
With that she hands Sureliah four small flasks containing a mostly clear liquid.
"Feel free to come around the church whenever you are in town...you too, Savien. Haven't seen you much lately."
The other newcomer is a rather well dressed human male. He smiles at Dem and holds out his hand to each of the visitors. "Corkie, you put us all to shame with your kindness. My name is Vurnor Leng and I am the mayor of these parts. Please don't hesitate to make use of my office if you think it will help. The safe return of our town's inhabitants are my TOP concern. Now if you will excuse me, I have more pressing needs to attend to."
Sensing that Savien is soon to leave, Vak calls to him. Savien! You must be shown to trust stone you climb; I go with to teach you this! We get far! You see! He shakes his head again, unsure of what to think of the dour man.
Turning to Mrs. Hucrele, Vak'rogh offers a grand, if toothy, smile. You right! It is to choose! How you know words of the Orc?? Good words! The brute is trying to return the favor she gave, speaking in the other's tongue, but proving less proficient than he thinks. A place to rest? What is . . . "Maw-dz"? Sleep is good for Vak'rogh and Kazh, to be strong to teach next sun!
Vak steps closer to the large woman, probably too closely for polite interaction, and whispers, gesturing: Who rag-man there at game-bench? He know a thing -- moved when you talk of ru-ins. Tried to hide it, but Vak sees him.
Things were moving quickly and all falling into place with much less work than he had expected. There were forces at work here that few would notice. Akula stayed quiet, stood near Vak'rosh and simply listened.
Julio turns to the sullen young man and says, "That sounds like a wonderful idea sir. In fact I believe that you should be leading this expedition. You seem to have some of the local knowledge that none of the rest of us possess. Being a member of the town guard should mean that you are used to giving orders so it only seems like a natural fit for us."
He snaps to attention, heels clicking together, and salutes the young man, "Yes sir, I shall meet you before dawn at your residence on the old road at the edge of town."
Savien raises an eyebrow at Julio, surprised at the endorsement. Hmm.. smarter than he looks, maybe? The guardsman shrugs, unsure what to think, exactly. "You might not be so bad, Mustachio. See you in the morning."
Sensing that Savien is soon to leave, Vak calls to him. Savien! You must be shown to trust stone you climb; I go with to teach you this! We get far! You see! He shakes his head again, unsure of what to think of the dour man.
Savien eyes Vak shrewdly as the half-orc talks to Hucrele. That orc is obviously crazy. I hope he doesn't try to give out too much advice. The guardsman snorts as he turns away. Trust stone, huh? That doesn't even mean anything.
"Feel free to come around the church whenever you are in town...you too, Savien. Haven't seen you much lately."
Savien awkwardly scratches his head, looking somewhat guilty. "I've been... uh... real busy lately..." Yeah. Real busy drinking.
Sureliah pockets the bottles, not wanting to give anything to the other party members until she is sure they need the potions... Thank you my lady, ai shall make sure these potions are put to good use
Savien walks right up to Sureliah and stares her in the eye for a long moment before shaking his head and walking toward the door. I'll deal with that issue later... If she skips town with those, I'm not gonna be too happy though.
Who rag-man there at game-bench? He know a thing -- moved when you talk of ru-ins. Tried to hide it, but Vak sees him.
Kerowyn subtly turns her head to see who Vak is talking about. She turns back to the half-orc, lips tightly pressed together but with no emotion in her eyes. She turns her back to the man and keeping her voice low, says, "His name is Vin...lived hear a long time on the edges of town, doing small jobs. Getting into small time trouble. Then all of a sudden a few years ago, he starts showing up right after midsummer every year with a wagon load of apples to sell. Here's the thing though, they aren't your normal apples...they are a special kind of fruit that can heal wounds, cure illnesses...you name it. Nobody knows where he gets the stuff, and the fruit doesn't stay fresh too long but he sells out right away, every year. Makes enough money to avoid working until the next midsummer."
Incredibly, Vin does not seem to have realized that Vak and Kerowyn have been discussing him.
"Was it the same year your town come under threat and rid yourself of the orcish hordes that he started showing up with his bountiful harvest? If so, is there anything you can think of that would correlate the two besides the time frame?"
Kerowyn rubs her chin for a moment and says, "Never thought about that before...but no, I don't think so. Vin started selling...must be close to 10 years ago. The orc raids were what...", she looks over at Garon, "Garon - Orc raids were 4 years ago right?"
The Barkeep walks over and says, "Five. It was five years ago."
Julio waits patiently while the final discussion are made with the group. When things begin to wind down he approaches Kerowyn, "May I have the honor of walking you home this evening. With all of the other troubles you have had, it is the least I can do to make sure that you arrive home safe. Maybe you could point out some of the more interesting places in town and tell me about its history."
After the meeting, Blitz returns to the counter and orders two drinks, one strong and one watered down and instructs the barkeeper to give the strong ones to Vin and the watered down ones to Blitz if hr orders any more. He takes the drinks to the table Vin is sitting at and sets the strong one down in front of him,
"You look like you could use a drink! Mind if I sit down....friend?"
Vin has a mildly surprised look about him when Blitz sits down. "Don't know if I could use another drink but I'll gladly drink one." He smiles at Blitz.
"Where are you in from? I don't think I recognize ya...and are you getting caught up in Hucrele's nonsense? Everybody always says how whip smart she is but then she lets her pups get too far from her skirts and needs them pulled out of the fire. They shouldn't be poking their noses where they don't belong."
"Southwest, from across the Inner Sea, is where I hail from. And, yes, I did have a notion of getting caught up in that nonsense...but now I'm not so sure. If there is any specific information you have that can convince me to change my plans, I would sure like to hear it!
He takes a moment to sip his drink and look around before saying, ”Look...buddy. All’s I’m saying is that if they are alive they will come home on their own. If not, something killed them...and they probably deserved it. If you dig too deep it will kill you too.”
He finishes his drink and begins heading for the door.
After Vin leaves without giving up any real specific information, Blitz pounds the table slightly in frustration, "Oh well...I guess one less time I will have to break rule number 3."
Magic apples? Hmmm . . . .
Vak turns back to the room at large, thinking furiously. Refocusing on Vin, and seeing him prepare to leave, the big half-orc busies himself retrieving a short length of rope from his pack.
Kazh! Come!
Having contented himself with the meat and full bowl of water, the wolf rises from his lazy pose and trots over to Vak'rogh, looking satisfied. At the sight of the rope, Kazh shivers in excitement, and his tail twitches back and forth, one, two, three.
Hunt?
She turns around and heads into her house.
Vak and Kazh head out the Ol' Boar moments after Vin leaves. Once outside, the sounds of the bar, his eyes adjust quickly to the darkness. There is no sign of Vin.
He looks up at you and then begins to speak. You talk for hours but remember none of it. None of it except for his last words to you. "Protect me. Sometimes nature fights against itself."
When you wake up, there is a thunderstorm to the north of town in the direction the Old Road takes.
A thunderstorm passes quickly with the dawn. With Savien's directions, you all quickly find your way to his shack off the Old Road. The information you have is that the Citadel lies between one and two days hike to the north.
About a half-mile up the Old Road north of town sits a small shack surrounded by a short fence. It looks like it may have at one point been professionally constructed, but over the years and after many repairs, it looks rather run-down. The older repairs on both the shack and the fence look like they were fairly well done, but several recent repairs look very amateur indeed. It's as if the repairs were done without any concern for form or appearance, or even for the proper sized pieces. The result is a fully functional, otherwise well-kept property with jagged edges, bulky braces and misshapen patches.
Out front, leaning against the fence is a young man who looks ready for anything. Savien has nearly a dozen weapons strapped on his person, including a wicked-looking polearm leaning against his shoulder. At his feet sits a backpack stuffed full of supplies and tools for the road. The young man wears a bored expression as he waits with the dawn for his new 'friends'.
True to his word, there's a crooked sign on the fence to his left that says "Trapper's Shack: don't be stupid" scratched in with jagged handwriting.
Blitz shows up rather early, he had no reason at all to dally in town-possibly seeming abit too eager again. He looks at Savien's abode.
"Built for necessity and seclusion, I may well be able to trust this human!"
He regards Savien, smiles a bit, and nods.
Akula came in from the other direction, well past Savien's sign. He appeared through the vegetation on silent feet. He had two large, steaming rabbits, freshly dressed and cooked, on a stick over his shoulder. He had a rabbit leg in his other hand and was chewing with satisfaction.
As he joined the group he held the stick out to the rest without a word.
Julio arrives at the meeting site on time. He is dressed immaculately for the road ahead. His hair is pulled back and tied with a leather tong to keep his dark locks out of his face. His weapons and gear show signs of being recently polished and oiled. He face and hands are clean and the is a slight hint of lavender in the air.
"No thank you Akula, I broke my fast this morning already before leaving the boarding house."
Turning to Savien he says, "Julio reports as ordered, sir." and snaps off another perfect salute.
Vak'rogh and Kazh arrive in timely fashion, Vak trundling easily along the road, Kazh loping about investigating the scents in the vegetation nearby.
When Akula offers the rabbit meat, Vak takes a portion and chews with gusto, making sure to share with the keenly-interested wolf. As he swallows the last and begins cleaning the greasy remnanta from his fingers, he regards Savien carefully before silently gesturing northward. Go, funny-man. Let's see if you can learn.
Savien nods at Blitz, in a bit of a lighter mood than that of the previous night, though not quite enough to smile just yet.
When Akula arrives with the rabbit, he does though, promptly tearing off his own leg and digging into it noisily.
And that's the state Julio finds him in when he arrives. "Mffh hey pfustacio," he spits through a mouthful of rabbit with a meaty grin, juice dribbling down his chin.
After the unexpected breakfast, when Vak gestures to the north, Savien gives him a broad grin. "Believe me, I'd love to leave that bint from the bar behind, but somehow I think Old Lady Hucrele would find out and get upset. Let's give her some time... Besides, she has the potions."
Savien seems a bit more upbeat this morning. Something about starting a new job always puts him in a better mood, even if this job is a bit dangerous. Plus, free rabbit. We'll see how long it lasts.
"Look, if we're going to be working together, we need to know a bit more than guesswork about each-other." This seems to be a small part functional conversation, and a small part filling space. It's as if Savien is worried things will get awkward with the mismatched group standing around waiting.
"My name's Savien. I'm a fair hand with a weapon and I can scout. My dad was a trapper so I know a bit about that as well." Savien looks at the members of the group with a serious eye, apparently taking note of them, stopping at the half-orc holding the rabbit. "I know their names. What do I call you?" The guardsman pauses thoughfully...
"Well, I have some ideas myself but you probably wouldn't like them..."
"Akula." the half-orc with the rabbit rumbled.
He didn't elaborate. Apparently he wasn't much of a talker.
Vak snorts a laugh at Akula's reply. Не вельмі прыязны, ён? Асабліва для тых, хто проста павінен быў атрымаць дапамогу. Гэта адзін мяне бянтэжыць.
Vak'rogh wanders to the far side of the roadway to find a likely-looking spot to sit and wait.
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Sureliah arrives a bit later, dressed in her leather armor, her red Skirt falling only to her knees, and her arms covered in a mix of fine red fabric and Leather cuffs, a design Common among elves. She carries a morningstar at her side, the head carved to resemble the sun, if the sun was covered in spikes.
The elven woman no longer wears her headband, but that does little to make her any less beautiful. She looks at all the men here and sighs, Well, it seems I didn't check how many of you where woman, so it seems I'm the only one... Shame
She moves over and examines the food. I would ask to have some, But I'm afraid they feed us at the boarding house she says, having a seat. It comes to my attention you all may be curious about what makes me qualified to come on this quest, well... I'm a mage, of sorts. My specialty is sommoning creatures, so I think I might let you all know that if I conjured a creature to fight with us, is should not turn hostile. Although like all creatures they will attack you if you attack them...
Blitz straps on his scizore, "I fancy myself as the "stick-and-move" sort of fighter. I feel my mother's magical lineage tugging at me,though-I may explore that a season or two."
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Sureliah reaches into her satchel and withdraws three of the four potions from before. I believe we should distribute these among us, I lay claim to the fourth, for it might not look like it but I do intend on fighting myself... she says, not really lieing but not telling the whole truth.
When... My fair Lady, shall I return? asks the voice in her head. She remains silent, not letting the others see her react. Not now, But soon
She sets the bottles down wherever there is a good place, of there is none she sets them on her lap. In my opinion, I don't think front line fighters should carry potions, not that they won't use them, it's just that if they get hit, it's more likely that they will be waisted on broken glass and torn armor.