Yeldrid frowns. "That is right annoying. Why can't we cross this river?"
The turtle creature considers Yeldrid and her band for a moment. "Oh, well that's all well. It's well to not want to fall in, and it's well to realign things horizontally. That's all well." It yawns. "Just don't try to cross, or I'll break your spine."
"I am fond of my spine unbroken as it is. Is there somewhere else we can cross? Or is there something we can do to cross?"
"I suppose you could ask one of my siblings." It gives a langorous shrug. "But they can be just as stubborn as I, and some of them dwell in sections off the path."
"Why can't we cross this river?"
The creature points out the log bridge. "I worked very hard to construct this bridge, you know. Overhead alone was very expensive, and then there's maintenance. . I'm supposed to let others cross for free?"
With this, the empty-headed turtle gives a sharp grin. "Oh, but there is something you can do to cross. You must simply beat me in a wrestling match!" The little creature lets out a gurgling cackle. "If any one of you can pin me, I will let you across. But if you cannot, you have to answer one of my questions!"
Isamu considers himself, then Rex, then Yeldrid. He looks back at the turtle-creature.
"Ah... what sorts of questions would these be?" he asks.
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The creature points out the log bridge. "I worked very hard to construct this bridge, you know. Overhead alone was very expensive, and then there's maintenance. I'm supposed to let others cross for free?"
"The log?" Rex asks looking dubiously at the "bridge". It didn't look hard to construct or had much overhead just sitting there. When was maintenance last run anyway?
He too looks at the creature and their physiques. Pinning him would be difficult if he was confident he could break their backs. "Yes. What questions?" He made it sound ominous but what was the harm in a question?
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Yeldrid clicks her tongue.
"Maintain? Mate, I've seen some bridges in my time. I'm pretty sure I just put down an even sturdier bridge than that by placing some sticks together and nailing it down. And that was a ladder. No, I don't think this bridge of yours is even to guild specifications at all. I am a ranking member in the Bridge and Ladders Merchants Guild, you know. And if you really were demanding a toll for this bridge it would need to meet guild standards first. Including certificates and licences permitting you to toll your bridge as a certified bridge or ladder designer. Which come with a hefty fee! As a guild member, I could commence you into the guild and, on top of that, certify your bridge. It will cost you, of course."
Yeldrid pulls out the small, miniature ladder she carries with her. A sign of her membership of the guild. Which is real. And of which she is a member. But is not actually allowed to certify bridges, only ladders. Nor is she actually allowed to charge anyone for it either.
Whether a ladder is employed as a bridge or in the traditional way changes very little, mind you. A bridge is merely a means of reaching one place from another, as is a ladder. The only difference is the construction.
Isamu considers himself, then Rex, then Yeldrid. He looks back at the turtle-creature.
"Ah... what sorts of questions would these be?" he asks.
"Whatever questions I like." The turtle creature shrugs. "I can be curious without an agenda."
It seems to pause, looking back at Yeldrid. It clicks its tongue. "The Bridge and Ladders Merchants Guild? I've never...I mean, yes, of course. Of course I've heard of them." It frowns down at the water, muttering something in the same gurgling tongue Raguen used.
It seems to listen a moment, then looks back at Yeldrid. "Alright. What's the price?"
"Four times your asking toll price. It's to make sure I have the right specifications for the right bridge, and to ensure your bridge matches the toll price and the certificate you carry. I'm assuming animals do not count towards the toll price but are considered luggage, correct? This is standard practice of course. Anything that cannot sign a contract is, of course, exempt from all toll fees. I'm sure you can recognise the logic in this."
Yeldrid pulls out her sawback knife and whispers to Isamu "Go get a lot of sticks, a bit of bark, and some stones. Get a nice flat piece of bark if you can find it. We're going to do some bushcraft.'
"What's your name, might I ask?" Yeldrid asks the creature.
The creature blinks. "But...my asking price is a wrestling match. Or questions."
"Then four questions. I'll let the guild know of your payment"
"...fine. What are your questions?"
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"What....is your name?""
"What....is this rivers name?"
"Whose fire is that across the river?"
"If, at 5am, a human farmhand in a horse-drawn cart hauling potatoes to market started his journey from a farmsteed 10 miles away, moving at approximately 3 miles per hour, would the farmer arrive to market in time for its opening at 8 AM?"
Isamu can't quite keep from staring a bit, but he shakes himself slightly and moves to follow Yeldrid's instructions. He doesn't feel comfortable about fooling the... creature, but he has to admit it's preferable to anyone's spine getting broken.
Rex looks at Yeldrid confused. Bridge and Ladders Guild? Was that a thing? And the mini ladder? Where did that come from? He was almost positive Yeldrid was lying but she wrapped it so well in a logical argument he wasn't 100% sure. And then the...other creature seemed to be either playing along or had fallen for it. So what just happened? He felt like he was chasing a squirrel bouncing from one tree to the next. It was currently in the other creatures tree and he waited patiently for it to answer.
"What....is your name?""
"What....is this rivers name?"
"Whose fire is that across the river?"
"If, at 5am, a human farmhand in a horse-drawn cart hauling potatoes to market started his journey from a farmsteed 10 miles away, moving at approximately 3 miles per hour, would the farmer arrive to market in time for its opening at 8 AM?"
"Daguen."
"It's not a river, it's a stream. Its name is Neragu."
"Is he with you? He's a real nuisance. Insists he has to cross to get to town. At least he didn't put a ladder down, though." Daguen blinks heavy-lidded eyes. "He should be back soon. Went off to urinate downhill from Neragu. I'll say this for him; he's polite enough."
"No. He would arrive at about 8:20, but the market would have left without him. Markets don't stay still, Lady Kitty Person. Like rivers and streams, they have minds of their own."
It occurs to Isamu that, for all Yeldrid's cleverness, she didn't bargain for them to cross
"Wonderful, wonderful....Once my companion returns with the materials, I'll set up your certification plaque and making sure this bridge is up to scratch."
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"There are some sticks over there. And there. And there. And there's a rock. And some bark," Rex says, pointing out things for Isamu without actually carrying anything. He wasn't sure why they were looking for such things but he could at least find them. Was Isamu looking for something in particular? They were hard to miss.
Rex demonstrates that his bark is better than Isamu's sight, or something equivalently pithy, as Isamu finally returns with Yeldrid's supplies and Yeldrid gets to work. The turtle gets out of the water and sits down on the shore, twiddling its clawed thumbs uncomfortably. It's definitely the same kind of creature as Raguen, albeit a bit bulkier and rounder. Its eyelids droop as Yeldrid works. Trin, on the other hand, looks fascinated, and will not stop asking Yeldrid questions. "What's that? Why're you doing that? Why don't you lay the sticks this way instead of that way? What's a guild?"
Yeldrid has just gotten started on the truss when she, Rex and Isamu all hear the same sound: A cheery, high-pitched whistling from up the path. The tune is quite strange and unfamiliar, though it might vaguely resemble a few local drinking songs—at least, the cadence sort of does. Daguen fully opens one eye, listening, then lets out a small groan. "Ah, now, then. He's back."
And making his way down the trail with his eyes closed, performing a little clapping shuffling dance as he kicks a pair of pebbles in zigzags across the path, is a little goblin in a bright red cap. He wears simple workman clothes, with a pair of suspenders to keep his pants up. His black shoes are very well-kept and quite pointy.
As he's starting to turn toward the campfire, one of his eyes peeks open, and he sees the party. He stops in his tracks. His whistling dies down until he is silent and still, staring at them in mute surprise.
Yeldrid, always eager to demonstrate her ability, explains each element as she goes along and why to Trin. Maybe he'll learn something.
She's enjoying the opportunity to flex her creative muscles.
When the goblin arrives, Yeldrid looks up from her work and shoots the goblin a fang-filled smile.
The goblin blinks. It chatters back at Yeldrid. Goblin is actually sort of like Common, but it has the cadence of Common spoken backwards.
The goblin seems to recover itself slightly, looking at the other two. "Oh, you two don't speak the 'guage, I trust? Fair, fair." He doffs his hat. His voice is chipper and friendly, but with an odd clip to it, as if his voicebox is a music box skipping over the odd note or word. "Call me Cappy! It's a lovely to meet you. Dealing with this sour kraut, I see?" He wrinkles his nose as he looks at Daguen, who glares. "Good luck. I've been waiting here for a whole day-and-a-half! A real to make someone wait that long to cross a stream!"
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"Uh. No," Rex confirmed. Then a little quieter to the others. "Is that a halfling?" He was pretty sure they weren't green but he had never seen one either. He seemed pleasant enough though. "Raguen is no longer allowed to charge until becomes a full guild member...if I understood the conversation." He looks at Yeldrid for confirmation.
"Good day to you, Cappy," Isamu says, giving the person a bow. "I am called Isamu."
"Hey!" Daguen shoots Rex a scowl. "Raguen's my sister. Don't you go applying her name to me without her permission; you haven't even met her!"
Cappy looks between Daguen and Rex, cocking his head in a rather Rex-like manner. He places the cap back on his head, grinning. "Really! So you finally sorted crotchy turtle out! That's a real load my back." He advances and offers his hand to Rex. "A making your acquaintance, sir, a real pleasure!"
"So, what's your sirs?" Cappy asks, addressing Yeldrid and Rex. "I say, what's your name?"
"Yes, Rex, you're right. Once the bridge is in order, and certificates in order, he can start charging again."
Yeldrid doffs her hat, and says to Cappy, "I am Yeldrid Thozosh. I'm from a long way away, but also not too far away either. And, particularly, I'm a representative of the Bridge and Ladders Merchants Guild. I'm certifying the bridge." Yeldrid winks. "So, who are you then?"
Isamu considers Daguen, wondering whether or not mentioning that they'd met Raguen would be a good thing.
Rex was about to comment that they had met Raguen until the goblin approached, hand outstretched. Not one to ignore pleasantries, he takes the hand shakes firmly. "Rex. It is nice to meet you too. So where are you headed now that you can head there?"
"Oh, I'm just a traveling." Cappy skips over to his campsite, where he procures a lute. "Been on my through the woods—on my way, I say. I'm not going any-in particular, really. Just traveling. Performing. Storytelling. And you?"
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Lily blinks, and shakes herself out of her stupor. These bouts of amnesia are growing troublesome. She thinks to herself, looking about to see that she is not in fact in a butterfly-filled glade outside a tower, but instead in front of this merry band around a bridge. I hope it wasn't something we encountered here. Lily decides not to mention it, and chimes in "Oh, you know, just the usual; the forest seems awfully agitated lately though, I don't suppose you've noticed anything untoward in your travels?"
"Aah!" The goblin jumps, readying his lute as if to swing. He lowers it in surprise, seeing who just emerged from the bushes. "It's Lily Shadow, infamous gooder! I've heard stories about her, let me tell you!"
"Infamous gooder?" Isamu repeats. "What's so infamous about her?"
Lily blushes. "Look, it was one time, and I got better after that." She huffs. "We're trying to help this one," she points at Trin, "get away from some nasties; I'd be grateful for any assistance you can provide."
"Hm!" The goblin cocks his head. "Nasties hunting the little lost soul? How! Evil dealings the Writhing Wood, evil dealings." He doffs his red cap again to Lily Shadow. "Well, we haven't formerly introduced, but call me Cappy! I'm a teller and a player. It seems like we're in much the same direction!"
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Yeldrid has....achieved something. Essentially, she's driven large sticks into the ground on both banks to act as poles, and tied rungs of cordage made from bark between the posts to use while walking across to keep balance. She also tied a lot of cord around the trunk of the log to make for easier to walk across (so long as it doesn't get too wet), and attached it to the rope rungs to help keep the log in place. The cord is anchored with nets filled with stones at both ends to keep it from moving too much
The end result is essentially a very crude rope bridge, almost seemingly forming a net around the log. While essentially just for show and not really aiding the structural integrity of the bridge, it at least has all the appearances of a bridge.
She also has made a crude miniature bridge from twigs and twine, and hung it from a stick in the ground before the bridge.
"There we go. Certified and up to standard."
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Daguen stares at the bridge a moment, then climbed aboard, testing its weight capacity—which has not changed. "Well! I barely even recognize it! I had my doubts about you, giant cat, but you're a credit to the guild! I'll tell you what—we don't have to wrestle, if you don't want to. Just each of you that wants to cross pick some sort of contest of skill!" He cracks his knuckles. "Mind, I always prefer wrestling...
"The Guild Representative crosses for free, of course, as is customary."
Rex wasn't sure what to make of the ocnversation between Cappy and Lily so he decided not to try. There was something more to consider. What he could do as a contest to get across the bridge. He was fairly confident in his strength despite his size but he doubted could actually match the turtle creature seeing as it was so confident. His other skills laid in combat. And that sounded like it would end bad for someone. So what else was he good at? As he brought his hand up to scratch his muzzle he considered it for a moment. There it was. "What about a race? If I beat you to that," he says pointing at a bend down river, "then I can cross."
Daguen snorts. "A turtle versus a dog? What could go wrong?"
Lily considers that her best skill is probably sewing, and might give her away, and that answering a question is probably not in her best interests. "Yes, why don't we all have a foot race." Lilly chitters excitedly "That way we can all pay at once"
The turtle creature blinks. "Well, whoever wants to race me can." He flexes. "I am very fast, though."