After the date and at the meeting, Piper looks at the map. He writes: "A lengthy trip, to be sure. No doubt you'll guide us just fine. Who'll be accompanying us on the trip?" 'Now, let's see what I can remember...'
Masamune tries to see if the items they found will be repaired before the caravan leaves.
Alara hovers over Piper's shoulder as he reads the map.
"I generally run a small caravan. I currently have three wagons ready - a covered one for passengers, an uncovered one for cargo and supplies, one for Mother Koya. I will drive one and my two drivers, Bevelek and Vankor, will handle the others. That leaves the five of you and Ameiko to ride on the covered wagon or on horse." he says, nodding at Masamune.
"Make that "six of you". I'm coming as well," Shalelu says as she strides into the common room and drops her pack on the floor at her bench as she sits down.
Ameiko's face lights up as Shalelu throws her lot in with the caravan. "I was hoping you would join us. I would have asked, but I did not want to make my family burden yours as well."
"It is no burden. Sandpoint does not need my protection as much as it once did. Sheriff Hemlock has most things well in hand. Besides, I think there are others who would appreciate such protection as I can offer more." Shalelu directs the comment at Ameiko, but her eyes also flick toward Alara.
Piper searches his memories for stories he has heard of the lands north of Sandpoint...
Parts of the journey will pass through territories of two different Shoanti tribes - the Shriikirri-Quah (Hawk clan) and the Tamiir-Quah (Wind clan). Native Varisians are generally on good terms with both, although the Wind clan youths will sometimes raid caravans in adolescent shows of bravado - most such raids are not intended to cause much harm and are mainly for bragging rights. Sandru has rarely had any trouble with either.
Of the towns on the route, Ravenmoor has the mildest reputation as an insular, bucolic village. Wolf's Ear, while not currently notorious, was once a haven for lycanthropes - all driven out when Magnimar asserted authority over the region. Roderic's Cove, now under the domination of Riddleport, was once known for being a long-term holdout against Riddleport's criminal influence. Things are currently mostly peaceful there, but the locals are known to be quite resentful of their current bosses.
Once past the towns, the caravan will go through the Velashu Uplands where the locals raise some of the finest horses available in the region.
Piper smiles as Shalelu throws her (figurative) hat into the group. He writes: 'Glad to have you aboard, Shalelu. No doubt, your hunting skills and your knowledge will be much appreciated.'
He writes: 'For those of us who are unfamiliar with the area, here's what to expect." With one hand at the chalkboard and another at the map, Piper begins his analysis. He circles two areas on the map. He writes: 'These two areas are Shoanti territories. The Shriikirri-Quah or the Hawk clan and the Tamiir-Quah, also known as the Wind Clan. The native Varisians are on good terms with the two Quahs. But some younger Wind clan members will sometimes attack caravans; mainly for bragging rights. Though, Sandru's caravans have had little trouble with the Shoanti. Must say how good of a caravan leader you are, eh, Sandru?'
He erases the board and continues to write, moving his finger to the first town, Wolf's Ear. 'Wolf's Ear. Once a haven for all manner of lycanthropes, nowadays the shifters have been driven when Magnimar made its presence known in the region.' He shifts to the next town. 'Ravenmoor. A quaint little town known for its reputation for the pleasantness of the countryside and its ignorance of outsiders. We might need to be careful here due to the fact we have a few from outside of Varisia, as well as different races and cultures amongst our party.'
He erases the board once more and, with his free hand, points at the next location: Roderic's Cove. 'This is where things get a little more concerning. While it's not Riddleport, Roderic's Cove is still under that dominion of the pirates. It had a reputation of being a holdout against Riddleport's criminal influences. From what I hear and remember, it's currently peaceful over there. But, there are some tensions between Roderic's Cove and Riddleport. When we get there, we need to stay on our toes."
Erasing the board a final time, he moves his finger the rest of the way with the road. 'After that, we're going to go through the Velashu Uplands. The region's finest horses are raised there by the locals.'
He sits back, looking around the table. He writes: 'Anyone have any questions?' The young bard also tries to remember anything about the climate, geography, the terrain to expect, more information on the Shoanti Quahs the caravan will come across, and the like.
Alara blushes as Shalelu looks at her. Her arms felt better after a couple of days in town, but the thought of a long trip out of town made them tremble a bit with excitement.
"Just one--how hospitable are the Uplands?" She asks, scratching her head. For that matter, did she remember anything else about them?
He listens quietly as they prepare. He had hopes of finding a bit of supplies to help people stay up during their journey.
Both Alara and Piper are aware that the Uplands are rugged but not particularly inhospitable. Something like this:
New Zealand - Rohanscapes
Perhaps a bit cool with stiff winds, cold winter breezes, damp summers. The locals are Ulfen-stock nomads who settled the region to follow the wild horse herds rather than live lives of constant raiding. As such, they're reasonably peaceable, more interested in trade than raid.
Piper writes on the board: 'The Uplands are not inhospitable. But they're very rugged. Stiff winds, cold winter winds, and damp summers. The locals are Ulfen-stock nomads who follow the wild horse herds. But, the locals are more interested in trade rather than raids.'
Alara nods. "Yep! Definitely good to hear--maybe we can get some awesome horses for our caravan!"
She blushes and looks at Masamune. "No offense towards Duty, of course--he's a great horse too!"
Item repairs: There is time to get items repaired (like the masterwork chain mail and the rusty wakizashi) - and sold as deemed necessary.
During breakfast at the Hemlock house, Piper looks to his father and writes on his chalkboard: 'So, when will the transfer of my birth father occur? Must be getting close.'
"Doctor Habe is pretty much ready to take the prisoner," Belor says. He then regards Piper with a thoughtful eye and rubs his jaw, a sure sign he's concerned, before he continues. "You are your own man now, Piper, and you can make your own decisions. But Vincent is ... free... with his outbursts. You do not need to give him the opportunity to see you again. He has done everything to lose that privilege and nothing to regain it."
Piper thinks for a moment before writing: 'I know. I just need this. I need closure. I'm going north soon and I don't know when I'll return. I'd rather see this through.'
Belor accedes to Piper's request and, round about late morning, takes him to the garrison where his notorious father has been imprisoned. A specially constructed wagon with metal reinforced sides and exterior locks waits outside. Shouts can be heard coming from within the building and getting closer.
In short order five guardsmen can be seen wrestling a sixth man through the exterior doors and into the open. "You cannot survive the Great Fall! All of you, you and your lecherous wives and treacherous children! I will slay the youngest first.." His voice trails off as he sees Piper. A moment later, in a much calmer sounding but no less disturbing voice, he says, But first, I have unfinished business that needs taking care of.
As he sets about organizing the caravan and laying in supplies, Sandru tracks down his sister Rawnie. He asks for a reading of portents for the journey to Brinewall, but it isn't long before his sister sees through his pretense and he confesses his true reason for visiting.
"I know you still blame Ameiko for Alder's death but it is not as simple as that. We all were captured, myself included, and he rescued me as surely as he rescued Ameiko. Am I not to blame as much as she is?"
He sighs, "I do not expect to convince you today, sister. But I beseech you to bury that particular hatchet for a time. Mother Koya has decided to come on the journey and take the road at last and I would appreciate your company for her sake. After the dangers I have faced, it would put my mind at ease if you were there to watch over her with me."
"Your presence there didn't cloud his judgement, Ameiko's did, that vixen stole Alder's heart and had he been thinking a little more clearly, I'm certain you both would have come back alive." Rawnie states, staying close to the line she always spouted off when Sandru tried to convince her otherwise. "But I guess for now, I can set aside my differences with that vixen to make sure that you and mother Koya remain safe, and besides, if I were to be left here without Koya or yourself it would be too lonely."
Hearing his father's raving and ranting, Piper freezes. 'What's going on? He's never been like this. What Great Fall is he speaking of?' He quickly regains his composure and doesn't reply to the man's lunacy, trying to figure out what he means by 'Great Fall'.
The walk to the garrison isn't a pleasant one for Alara. She insisted on going with Piper when he told the gang he was going to oversee the transfer of his father to the sanitarium.
And so far, it appears Alara's fears are well-justified. Vincent's sudden shift in tone when he sees Piper is enough to put her on her guard, one hand resting on the nunchaku at her side. She glances at Piper, letting him know she's here for him.
Piper glances at Alara with a small smile, silently thanking her.
Masamune also travels with Piper, but he keeps his sword arm free in case the madman attacks. Especially when he seemed so calm right after seeing Piper.
Belor shakes his head. "Doctor Habe would call this one of his 'episodes', and they are happening more often. He will rave about some Fall for a while and then quiet down into the bastard we are all accustomed to, mean and petty but not mad. Then, suddenly, he goes into an episode. Father Zantus has been to see him in case there is some magical affliction but he has found none. Habe hopes to offer him some respite through treatment, but I have my doubts."
Vincent looks directly at Piper as if, with his glare alone, he could pierce Piper's flesh and drive the life out of his broken body.
"Your murder most foul, as yet unpunished, still stains your soul and pains mine. I have failed so far but one day I will purge that pain. Then I will rest. So you watch your back, boy!"
Belor yells "Gag him!" to his constables who, ungently, force a leather strap across Vincent's mouth.
As the constables gag Vincent, Piper slightly narrows his eyes. 'The Great Fall.... what have you've been getting yourself into while you were in there, father?'
Alara snorts at Vincent. "Good luck with that."
She takes Piper's hand and squeezes it.
Piper squeezes Alara's hand back and signs to her. 'I may have a couple theories on what he means by the 'Great Fall'. I'll explain later.'
Alara sighs, drumming her fingers on her nunchaku. "Please do..."
Do I remember anything like that?
Hearing the words, Ash reaches out his scarred hand and places it on Piper's shoulder and gives him a nod, letting him know that he has his back for this.
Piper gives Alara a smile of thanks and gives Ash the same smile with a nod in thanks.
With Vincent silenced, the constables force him into the caged wagon and firmly shackle him into it. Shortly, the detail of half a dozen constables, the wagon, and Sheriff Hemlock is on its way with you in company.
It's a matter of only a few miles to get to the sanitarium so the journey is only about an hour. Vincent sits in the cage glowering silently at Piper the whole time. An occasional unintelligible murmur escapes his lips.
As you get closer to the sanitarium, his activity does increase and he fidgets with his breath coming faster, almost panting at times. The constables it he detail react by becoming increasingly watchful. The tension thickens.
When the three story brick manor and its sign (reading "The Saintly Haven of Respite') comes into view, Vincent tries to throw himself at the cage's door but is hindered by his shackles.
The constables initially startle at Vincent's sudden activity but when it comes to naught, there's a bit of nervous laughter. "Steady," Sheriff Hemlock calls out.
A quintet of men await the cart and its charge at the entrance to the sanitarium. Four burly orderlies flank a thinner, bespectacled man wearing a white tunic. "Welcome, Sheriff. How is our patient today."
Belor answers "He is a bit frisky, Doctor. Be wary."
"We deal with patients in the throws of lunacy and other afflictions of the mind on a regular basis. I am confident we can handle this one as well."
And with that, they begin unloading Vincent.
Vincent, having surreptitiously chewed through most of his leather gag, tears through the last of it and starts to shout, "I will come on you in the cold dark! I will feel your hot blood again, boy! You can't escape me!"
The four orderlies assist the constables in manhandling Vincent while Doctor Habe observes closely.
Meanwhile, just outside of Sandpoint, Koya joins the conversation between Sandru and Rawnie.
"Sandru tells me that you will be joining us on our journey, my daughter. Desna has blessed me that I will have so many of my children sharing the road with me, and I am glad. But how do you read the Harrow, Rawnie? What portents to you see ahead of us?"
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"I am blessed as well to be joining you Mother Koya." Rawnie says with a smile, taking out her harrow deck and shuffling it a bit. "I suppose there is no harm in asking the cards what is in store for us." She says as she lays the cards in front of herself and begins drawing cards and placing them face down.
During the trip, Piper keeps his eyes forward, occasionally looking at Vincent in his peripheral vision. As Vincent begins to become more active, Piper sweats a little. When the madman tries to run for the door, Piper becomes startled... before relaxing at the sight of the shackles doing their job. As they unload Vincent, Piper remains silent, an unreadable expression on his face. At the shouting, Piper feels the hairs on the back of his neck rise, the shiver down his spine, the sweat on his brow, and the flashes of that day going through his mind. As the orderlies and the constables tangle with Vincent, Piper steps over to Doctor Habe. He writes on his chalkboard: 'Doctor Habe. A pleasure to meet you. I'm Piper Hemlock, the Sheriff's adopted son and Vincent's actual son.' He turns to Vincent before continuing. 'Hopefully, you can get him some measure of peace. I don't know if this will help, but when we picked him up for the transfer, he mentioned something called the 'Great Fall'. I find it strange because he's never mentioned it until now. I do have some theories about what he means. The Earthfall that destroyed the Azlanti and the Thassilonian. Some other apocalypse connected to a cult. Maybe the Old Ones or Groteus.'
Seeing Rawnie begin a Harrowing, Piper looks on in interest.
A look of grimace occurs on Rawnie's face as she places the next to last card down face-down and she pauses before placing the last card in place. Even without flipping the cards, she knew what card she had placed in a true match, and she was certain Koya could tell as well, she almost wanted to pick up all the cards she had just laid down and start over, but she didn't.
She flipped the first card, The Vision and then the card below it, The Betrayal, and the card below it, The Eclipse.
"The Eclipse, a card of self doubt and loss of purpose, it seems that there is one among us, perhaps one who is strong in faith, who has doubted themselves in the past, who may have lost their path." She pauses to look around, knowing that this card could represent any number of people who would be part of the caravan, including herself. "If we take The Vision into account here, this person may have spouted off knowledge which to many of us would seem like nonsense. It is also possible that the imagery that is invoked by The Eclipse is relevant here, the sun is blocked out and panic and madness reign."
She takes a final look at the first column of cards before moving onto the middle section. She flips the uppermost card, The Marriage before flipping the middle card, The Queen Mother. She does not flip the third card, "The Marriage represents a union of people or ideas, it is possible that this refers to our caravan itself, which can bring forth new power, but the chance of bringing together that which should never be brought together exists as well. The Queen Mother is knowledge, I believe that this card is signifying that the cards themselves know more then they let on, or perhaps it is referring to the fact that we all know what the card I did not flip in this column is." Indeed, the card that lie below The Queen Mother was misshapen and obviously marked, there was only one-such card in Rawnie's entire harrow deck.
"The Crows..." She names the card before finally flipping it, letting it sink in for a moment and taking a gulp of air to gather her courage to move forward. "Beware the crows, for they represent murder thievery and shocking loss." Rawnie bites her lower lip, struggling to continue. "It is possible that one among us is a murderer or a thief, or perhaps someone has recently dealt with a shocking loss...Or is still grieving." Under her breath, Rawnie utters a short prayer to Desna, wishing for her deceased younger brother, Alder, to watch over them.
Rawnie knew that no one would blame her if she ran out and never finished this harrowing, but she also knew that if she didn't she would very likely miss any warnings that the cards were trying to deliver. She moved onto the final column with a deep breath. She flips the first card, The Desert, and then the second, The Locksmith, before finally flipping the final card, The Keep. "Sandru, I didn't ask before, but where will our journey take us, this card," she indicates The Desert, "Would imply that we will be traveling to a place so bleak that we must certainly be prepared before we get there. However, if we make it through The Desert, it seems that it can lead to great things. Taking into account the Locksmith, I would say that The Desert leads to the keys to unlock someone's destiny." With the cards interpreted, Rawnie takes a final look at the spread before feeling that she is satisfied with her interpretation. "Beware the crows, lest the same mistake happen again." she utters a warning one last time as she lets the others look upon the cards.
Alara glares at Vincent as he tries to escape his bonds, her nunchaku readied and waiting.
Once the madman has been safely incarcerated, Alara turns to Piper. "The Great Fall? I heard something about it myself, actually... in ancient times, when Earthfall was coming, the elves made the decision to leave Golarion to escape the catastrophe. When we returned, we had (and are still having) a hard time resettling our lands by virtue of others getting there first."
Her face turns somber. "I remember something like that happening more recently... I never learned the whole truth, but there was a conspiracy to cause another Earthfall over Varisia. Piper, do you remember the day when a star fell to Devil's Elbow?" She looks at the bard, shifting from foot to foot. "That might have had something to do with it..."
And Celwynvian... where Vallis went and never returned...
Piper nods solemnly. He writes: 'I have heard about something like that, though I was in Absalom at the time. A lot of bards left the College for Riddleport, hoping to use the event for inspiration and to gain recognition. But, that was stopped, wasn't it?' His eyes go wide as he quickly turns to Alara. He writes furiously: 'You don't think... that he might expect it to happen again, do you?! Or maybe that he might have a hand in it?!'
Alara puts a hand on Piper's shoulder. "Calm down, Piper. Vincent's a raving lunatic--I'd take anything he says with a grain of salt." She looks him in the eyes. "And yes, the whole Earthfall Part Two was stopped... I even got to meet the ones who did it."
Piper calms down a bit. Hearing that she met the Heroes who stopped the Second Earthfall, Piper looks in awe. He simply signs: 'Wow. How'd you meet them?'
Alara blushes and looks down. "Well, I didn't ACTUALLY get to meet them... I was just there when Queen Telandia thanked them for all their hard work." She looks back at Piper, her eyes shining. "See, the Earthfall conspiracy extended all the way to Kyonin, from what I was able to learn. I was just another face in the crowd at the time..."
She straightens up. "They were a strange bunch, certainly--a dark-skinned human who moved like a kitsune, a savage-looking warrior woman with a sword that looked like it was bigger than me, a green-haired gnome girl with a leopard for a pet, and finally, a half-elf dressed in black with white hair." She blushes again. "If anything, I regret not introducing myself to them sooner..."
Especially the dark-skinned one...
'Doctor Habe. A pleasure to meet you. I'm Piper Hemlock, the Sheriff's adopted son and Vincent's actual son.' He turns to Vincent before continuing. 'Hopefully, you can get him some measure of peace. I don't know if this will help, but when we picked him up for the transfer, he mentioned something called the 'Great Fall'. I find it strange because he's never mentioned it until now. I do have some theories about what he means. The Earthfall that destroyed the Azlanti and the Thassilonian. Some other apocalypse connected to a cult. Maybe the Old Ones or Groteus.'
Habe perks up at Piper's writing. "Ah, so you are the 'infamous' boy at the heart of Vincent's madness. I have heard a great deal about you, none of it flattering, I'm afraid - at least not as Vincent's tells me. But I have hopes that we may yet find a root to his madness and offer both of you some relief."
At the mention of the 'Great Fall', Habe nods, "His references have been growing darker and more grandiose of late. He no longer dreams of hurting just you, but also of hurting and killing many more. I believe whatever the cause of his condition, it is growing to a point that it will be revealed, and once revealed, I hope to treat it aggressively and thoroughly. I should not expect it to actually be related to the ancient Earthfall. I believe it is imagery he has latched on to as a reflection of an interior darkness."
He writes to Habe. 'As far as I know, he's been like this since mom died giving birth to me. You said that he's been getting worse. I saw him before my team went into the marsh to deal with the goblins. He wasn't rambling about some Great Fall. Any theories about the drastic shift from hurting me to hurting everyone?'
Piper's eyebrow raises. He signs: 'Your face is red. Something you want to tell me?' A playful smile graces his lips.
Alara cringes a little. "Well... they were pretty damn good-looking." She pales a little. "Well, not like you, of course. You're cuter than all of them put together."
Yeah, even the half-elf... with his open shirt and killer abs and luxurious white hair and STOPITRIGHTTHERE!
Piper smiles at Alara. He signs: 'Don't worry, dear. I'm just playing with you.'