The woman, garbed in leathers, shakes Trunt's hand. She has a strong grip. "My name's Savah and you are very welcome." the woman says.
Zandril tumbles past just as Vinder takes another swing. Then the young man is up the stairs. Behind him he hears Vinder, "Don't you let me see you back around here!"
Zandril makes it out the door surprising a couple as he hops about putting on his boots. As he gets his last boot on and is buttoning up his shirt as he walks away from Vinder's, an older lady approaches him with a basket. She hands it to him and says, "For what you all did yesterday, share it with your friends won't you dear?" After she departs, a quick peek shows it is two loaves of fresh bread and what he believes to be preserves.
As the others walk back to the Rusty Dragon they get similar treatment as did Zandril. By the time they get to the inn, everyone has a pastry, meat pie, vegetables, fruit, or cheese. Upon entering, the proprietor, Ameiko, greets you with a smile and asks if you are joining Lord Foxglove in the private dining hall. She then leads all those affirming as much to the dining room. Foxglove sits at a large table (it actually seems like it is three tables put end to end but with a series of tablecloths to cover the gaps).
Isabella spends the day much as she always does - checking in on those injured by the most recent spate of trouble. She seems rather occupied with this business and doesn't take the opportunity to go looking for shopping deals.
By the midafternoon, though, she is quite hungry, and she does show up at the Rusty Dragon with a basket over her arm, filled with various donated comestibles.
She curtsies delicately to Rowan and says, "Good afternoon, Mr. Ellis. It's a pleasure to see you again. May I take this seat?" She indicates the chair next to him.
Valtyra smiles when Brodert answers the door, "My name is Valtyra and my companion is Wrath. We come from the Magnimar lodge where we study Thassilonia. Because we are very junior members, the elders sent us here to learn more of the ancient artifacts. They mentioned you as a possible contact and source of information about the remains of Thassilonia in the area."
She continues, "Would you spare some time to help us on our way? I'm a bit overwhelmed by the magnitude of our task and the profuse number of possible places to start. If you could spare time at some point, I would love to learn from you about what you know, where some good places to begin researching would be, and how we can coordinate with you or even better, assist you."
"I guess any time is as good as the next, come in, come in," the man beckons.
Once they enter he shows them to a small table covered in scrolls and maps. "I never can seem to get things tidied up. Now, places to start researching. The most obvious, which is what drew me to the town, is the Old Light. It's a tower about a quarter mile north of town. I think it was some sort of guard post before the fall. I don't think it was a light at all. I think it was a beam like those the wizards throw around only much larger." the old man shares.
Valtyra follows the researcher into his home, "Thank you for your time, we weren't sure when would be good."
Her eyes light up at all of the maps and scrolls and she begins to pour over them, "My father was a merchant and when I was young I used to spend lots of time pouring over maps and thinking of all of the exotic places they showed. I've never lost that thirst for travel and learning, this opportunity by the Lodge was exactly what I was hoping for."
Turning to Brodert she asks, "I take it you haven't had a chance to explore the tower itself?"
"There's no entrance, not at ground level anyway. I was too old to be acting like a goat up on top of that thing. She must have been mighty when whole but she still stands over a hundred feet and sits on a high cliff which adds another hundred feet at least. I've gone up and done some rubbings of the visible runes though."
"Well, I'll definitely have to look at ways to get up there," she says and stares off for a second, trying to think of how to solve that problem.
"Did the runes say anything specific?" she asks.
”Oh, there was a protection rune, and preservation. A third rune that the talking heads in Magnimar say means light, I say means fire, hence my thoughts it was a weapon.”
At lunch (assuming all have made it unless you specify skipping on purpose)
”Ahh my friends, you have made it. Grand, absolutely grand. Miss Valtyra, I have taken the liberty of reserving you a seat next to me. I have so many questions for you. Everyone, please have a seat.”
As you sit down you notice a small bag next to each place setting. When Aldern sees some curious looks he says, ”The bags are merely a small token of my thanks. Now, let’s eat and get to know one another.”
If you check the bag you find they each have fifty gold in them. Aldern, like a good host, does not talk much about himself but asks a lot about his guests. Where do you hail from? What brings you to Sandpoint? How long are you going to be in town? He shows particular interest in Valtyra going so far as to invite her to see his townhouse in Magnimar. His family estate is being renovated so it is not presentable at this time.
Then, about half an hour into lunch, Aldern says to the crowd at large, ”I know what we should do, a boar hunt. I’ve been told there is good hunting out in the Tickwood. Any takers? I’ll need a couple of days to make arrangements of course.”
Rowan graciously thanks the townspeople for his gifts as he makes his way to lunch. He takes his seat in the dining hall. When Isabella asks to sit with him, he nods. "Of course you may. Good to see you as well."
When it is his turn to speak, Rowan says "I'm from a little village not too far east of here. I was raised by the town's priest, so I decided to join the service of Erastil to follow him. Spent most of my time helping folks out with whatever problems they were having. I came to Sandpoint for the festival and to see that new church. I suppose I'll be staying until we can get to the bottom of this goblin situation."
Rowan responds enthusiastically to Foxglove's hunting suggestion. "I'm always game for some hunting! I'm in."
Valtyra takes the proffered seat next to Aldern "Thank you, I appreciate it."
When the bag is pointed out, she will stow it in a pouch on her belt without looking inside it, "Again, thank you. You needn't have, but it is appreciated."
Valtyra, also being an experienced conversationalist, definitely tries to ask and listen to Aldern as much as possible, but she also recognizes that the host deserves his proper due out of respect and provides more info than him. Having had her share of men paying attention to her, she will carefully never flirt with him and her body language will indicate genuine interest in the discussion, but not more than that. It's definitely obvious she's been raised to pay attention to etiquette, but always in a gracious way and not snobby.
She will explain she has come from the Magnimar Pathfinder lodge to investigate Thassilonian ruins in the area and Wrath and her are going to aid Brodert in his research. She will deftly steer the conversation away from her family as it is quite a painful subject for her.
At the offer to visit his townhouse in Magnimar, she sincerely replies "I would love to see it when its done. As you can guess from why I am here, I'm uncertain as to exactly when I will be back home. I will look forward to it and will contact you when I return."
After Aldern suggests the boar hunt, she looks thoughtful, "I have never been on a boar hunt. Being more of a scholar, I tend to avoid physical altercations. I will be happy to go along though. In the city there are few opportunities to get out into nature and I'd love to see more of the area."
Delight upon his face Camil beams, "Thank you sir! I'm Camil D'este, originally of Riddleport, but I've been here in Sandpoint for a few years."
Tucking the pouch into his shirt he continues, "I'm an apprentice Alchemist here in town, but my chosen profession is cards! I try not to mix business with pleasure, but perhaps later we can settle into a friendly game for those interested?" Camil casts a smile across the room.
Considering the offer Aldern makes Camil pauses, "Well, I suppose I've never been boar hunting, but I'd be interested in seeing what its like. Aren't boars dangerous? I try not to involve myself in too many things which could hurt, that's more Zandril's department" Camil adds, poking fun at Zandril's propensity for swordplay.
"But I suppose we can all bring a few tricks to bear should the boars get offended by our presence. And then we'll have boar to eat!" Camil flashes a grin down the length of the table, taking in the very diverse crowd gathered at the Rusty Dragon.
Zandril listens to Foxglove's introduction and quickly secures the pouch to his belt double-checking that his shirt is hiding it from view. "I am humbled by your generosity. I live here in town when it suits me and I'm not working on the merchant ships." Zandril smiles at Camil's jab at him and rubs the red mark on his jaw absent mindedly, "Though I don't go actively seeking it, I do find that trouble tends to find me often enough." He quickly changes the subject, "Boar hunting sounds like an interesting proposition, and I'm almost as good with my bow as I am with my sword." As he says the last part his eyes shift from Foxglove to Rowan briefly.
"My good sir, we'll split up into to two groups, some with boar spears awaiting the beast and the other will ride around the area and flush them toward the spear wielders. Anyone have a preference? We should be able to head out in the morning, probably meet me next door at the stables." Aldern offers.
Unlike Valtyra, when the money is placed before Runt she is stunned and, almost immediately, opens it and starts counting the gold. She briefly considers scooting out of the place and buying that alchemist fire she had to pass on, but sticks around to hear the other's stories. She is amazed at the variety and the freedom they all have to choose their own paths in life. When her turn comes she does not know what to say, and worries that she might say too much. By this point she has realized that Lamashtu is not appreciated around here wheras in the temple Runt was 'strongly encouraged' to worship the fiend. Runt never liked her patron but kept it a secret, consoling herself with the fact that she only worshiped one aspect of the divine being, the part that dealt fairly, if not kindly, with aberrations like herself.
"I am Runt. I grew up around monsters and lots of horrible goblins. Some of the monsters are OK, but some are not. I left. These people found me and now we're... friends. Yes, friends. I've never had a friend before and now I have lots of them. I like it here."
And where they go, I go.
Lavanor is surprised by how grateful and generous the townsfolk are. It felt good to be appreciated. He wondered how differently he would have been received if this had happened at Crying Leaf.
When they reach the market during their tour of the town, he reaches down to feel his coin pouch. Not having anything to spend, he doesn't look around.
At lunch, he finds a seat and picks up the bag. The sound of clanking metal and the weight of the bag makes him curious, so he peeks inside. His eyes get wide when he sees the gold coins and he quickly closes the bag and puts it in his belt pouch. "Thank you very much. You are too kind." Maybe I can look for something at the market after all.
When their host suggests a boar hunt, Lavanor eagerly agrees to join. "I can handle a spear to let the less martially inclined stay on the horses and hopefully out of danger," he says with a smile
Rowan gives a slight shrug as Zandril brags about his talent for archery. He did win the competition. I'm still not sure whether it was true skill or mere luck.
"I will take a spear. I don't have much experience on horseback."
Wrath explains that he is from a secluded conclave of Dwarves in the Mindspin Mountains. He briefly tells of the Way, that it is a manner of seeking self perfection. He has recently been given his vice-name and sent out to learn more about the world. He was sent to join the Pathfinder Society, and upon them learning that he could read and write Thassilonian they sent him here to study. He's been traveling with Valtyra ever since.
"I've never ridden a horse before, nor have I hunted now that you mention it. I could hold one of the spears, but I'm doubtful I will be of use in this endeavor."
Zandril looks at Foxglove, "Where will you be during our hunting expedition? I have no preference," nor experience for that matter, "though I have never heard of such methods. How much experience do you have hunting?"
"I usually ride with the hounds. I've been on two hunts though this would be the first I have kind of planned on my own. I hear the spearing is exhilarating, however I have not done it myself. My first hunt, a large Ulfen man speared a good sized boar. Then the hunting party closed on the sound and helped bring the beast down. The second hunt we either failed to flush one or the spearmen were not in the right spot so we failed to get one. I hear the Tickwood is an excellent, wild location and we are likely to flush two or three good sized pigs. It should be exciting."
The evening continues with Aldern answering questions and asking many. Finally, of those who have stayed, he excuses himself stating the morning will come early. Again, he recommends everyone meet him just after sunrise at the stables next door. With that he heads off to his room.
Runt will tag along but, like Wrath, is not interested in actually hunting. Not for the same reasons though, she just thinks it would be foolish for a little person like her to face a huge mountain boar and would rather have the others take all the risks.
"I'm not really a hunter, but perhaps I can help if anyone is accidentally wounded," offers Isabella.
The next morning all who want to participate show up at the stables. Aldern has three attendants with him and they are bustling about with spears, horses and several dogs. He rents enough horses for everyone and then without any significant delay the entire group heads out of town via the south bridge.
After leaving town you take a small dirt road (or cart path) that heads east. It takes about a half hour to get to the Tickwood. During that time Aldern shows he is obviously smitten with Valtyra. He laughs at any remark remotely close to funny, compliments her continuously, boasts about her actions the day of the attacks, and states that it will be her karma that brings them a boar today.
Those wielding spears are stationed on the west side of the Tickwood within a hundred feet or so of one another. Close enough to hear each other but far enough apart that you cannot see each other. The others head off to the east to drive the pigs your way. The one group is set in place and the other has been on the move for about 10 minutes when both groups hear a loud bellow as if from a bull and then a large shadow passes between the spearmen and sun. With the tree cover they cannot see what it was, but they are reminded of the stories of the Sandpoint Devil.
Other than the shadow, it turns out to be an excellent day for boar hunting. The huntsmen manage to flush out a couple of pigs and drive them in the right direction. Wrath and Rowan find themselves hustling to intercept the running pigs but close enough to get ahead of them. Each man is able to spear a pig for they charge once they see men on the ground. Others close in such as Lavanor and Zandril and the horse mounted crew as well. When all is said and done, they are headed back to Sandpoint with two pigs, each about a hundred and eighty pounds.
Rowan wakes up early the morning of the hunt and heads over to the cathedral for his daily prayer to Erastil. He prays for a successful hunt. Returning to the stables, Rowan can't shake the feeling that they are just wasting time that should be spent working to stop the goblins. His worries fade once he gets out into the woods. Hunting has always been one of his favorite passtimes, and he is excited to try out a noble's method of hunting boar.
Almost as if through divine intervention, Rowan lands his spear, and with a little help from the riders, the pig is slain. "Magnificent hunting everyone! Erastil has given us his blessing. Tonight, Sandpoint will feast on boar. Tomorrow, we begin a new hunt, not for beasts, but for the goblins who threaten our homes!"
Runt gets up, picks up her nest and dons it, and joins the others for the hunt. She finds herself smiling as the excited group laughs and jokes and boasts all the way to the hunt and gets caught up in the excitement of the hunt's success. There was even a nice lunch! Tired but happy she returns to the inn with a couple of new friends.
Riding terribly with the group but enjoying the day outside, Camil wonders at the abilities of those around him and the thrill of the hunt. When both groups rejoin he will approach Lavanor, "What was that terrible noise out there? Surely that wasn't a boar right?"
Grinning at the cleric's words, "Rowan, do you have any idea how the goblins would have gotten into town anyway? It just seems so odd that they would have attacked in the center of town while the guard was drawn off."
To Valtrya, "Thank you again for the loan, please let me repay you, if not in coin than in a drink later with this boar feast! Its a professional courtesy to me, as it would be a bad habit to carry a debt too long. "
Trunt joins the others at the table with Foxglove an accepts his purse gratefully and mentions that he grew up in Nybor on the edge of the Sybor forest but he's spent the last few years travelling Varisia. Trunt is worried about finding out what happened to his family, but when he hears about Foxglove's manor in Magnimar, he agrees to go on the hunt as well. "I'm not much of a hunter, but I have some small experience with animals, do you have a pony that I might ride with the horsemen?" Not being a hunter, Trunt enjoys seeing their abilities in use and questions about what they are looking for and how they know where the boar might be and all the details that go into hunting.
Wrath is quite surprised at his success during the hunt. "It just darted right out of the bush there, and it wasn't happy to see me!" he laughs heartily.
Upon hearing Rowan's comments, and while the group starts to pack up, Wrath blurts out his thoughts: "Perhaps we should have been hunting down those goblins today... If they were to attack right now we wouldn't be there to assist the guard. I can't help but feel a little uneasy." I should know better than to be distracted with this hunt. Another test, I should know better. The Keepers taught: to sow seed without a wall is to set a feast for monsters.
Luckily, Wrath's nightmare of doom does not come true. Instead the heroes of Sandpoint ride home victors once more. Ameiko greets everyone with a smile and has the attendants take the pigs out to the river to dress them before they start the cooking.
It is that evening, during the pig roast that Mrs. Barrett come rushing into the Rusty Dragon. Isabella is nearest the door, Mrs Barrett looks at her and yells, "My husband is battling a goblin in our son's closet! Please help." The inn falls silent for a brief moment as everyone processes what she just announced.
In the morning Zandril makes his way to the stables to meet with the hunting group. He takes the spear from Foxglove and shakes his head, "Such a clumsy weapon." My big mouth got me into this mess. Zandril hunkers down in the brush with the other spear wielders and waits for the boars to be flushed out. As he hears the commotion and the boars charging he readies his spear and slips and falls in the brush just as he hears the high pitched squeals of a stuck pig as Rowan and Wrath bag tonight's dinner. Quickly getting up he relaxes his spear, "Well done everyone, it looks like we got big enough boars for half the town!"
After the hunt, Zandril cleans up and heads back to the Rusty Dragon a bit early to sit at the bar, have a drink, and converse with any of the patrons who are willing to listen to the story of the great hunt or the great goblin slayers. As the room fills with the aroma of roasted boar, Zandril's mouth waters with anticipation and is about to take his first bite when Mrs. Barrett rushes in. Looking at his plate, Zandril hesitates for a moment before standing up with a sigh, "Lead the way mam, I'll help." Zandril hurriedly takes a quick bite and looks around the room, "This better still be here when I get back!" His eyes then shift to the others makes his way toward the door, "You all coming?"
Hearing Mrs.Barrett, Wrath jumps up and rushes to the door. He looks over when Zandril speaks up, and then looks around at the others to see their response.
Sitting in the Rusty Dragon listening to Zandril tell his stories of the hunt, Camil relaxes for most of the afternoon. This being a hero thing pays pretty darn well!
As Camil sits with Zandril and who ever else is present, Mrs. Barrett’s dire news draws Camil from his seat. Sighing longingly at the steaming boar he rises, grabbing a tankard of ale to carry with him as he unwinds his scarf from his neck. Right after you Z, lets work on saving the day again!
Casting glance at Lavanor, Please tell me we don’t have a goblin infestation in the sewer or something like that, this is seems absurdly coincidental.
Runt grabs a couple of hunks of meat in both hands before she charges off to follow her new friends, her napkin a forgotten and impromptu loinguard. Frankly she was rather confused by everyone putting the little cloth on their laps and tucking it, but she has been trying very hard to learn the customs and fit in, so in it went.
On the way to the forest, Lavanor looks a little uncomfortable in the saddle, being used to walking places instead. He tells of his experiences hunting and does his best to inform those who haven't what to expect. When they arrive, he helps direct some of the others where to go.
With the recent goblin attack, Lavanor is a little nervous standing alone in the woods. He crouches down with a large tree at his back while he waits, focusing on the sounds around him and constantly scanning the area for any movement.
When he hears the loud bellow, he tries to pinpoint where it came from and is puzzled as to what it is. But when the shadow passes overhead, he freezes in place, a shiver running up his back.
Once the boars start running, his focus switches back to the hunt. Eager to prove his abilities, he is disappointed when nothing comes towards him. Hearing Wrath yell, he runs over to help. "Well done. It seems you shouldn't doubt yourself so much."
When the group is back together, he also congratulates Rowan on his kill. In response to Camil's question, he shakes his head. "I don't know. I've never heard such a sound. A shadow passed over head, so unless a boar learned to fly it was something else. I'm just glad it didn't see us."
With the added gold from the day before, Lavanor excuses himself to visit the market while dinner is prepared.
Stopping at a table of alchemical items, he spots a wooden tube that is similar to something he had seen at the alchemists shop in Crying Leaf. Pretending he doesn’t know what it is, he asks and is told it is a simple firework so he buys it.
Pleased with his purchase, he heads back to the Rusty Dragon to show the others his new item and try the boar. He sits with the others, enjoying the food and drink, when Mrs Barrett runs in. He pauses for a moment to make sure he heard correctly, then sets his drink down to go help at Zandril’s urging. ”You may have a point Camil. I think tomorrow we may have to search the town more thoroughly,” he says as they leave the inn.
Valtyra rides to the forest in the morning and participates in the hunt, mainly by cheering everyone on. She'll engage in conversation with Aldren and graciously accept compliments and she rejoinders with compliments to Aldren as well. She tries to steer the conversation towards the hunt and the others as much as possible.
After the hunt, she'll go around and congratulate the hunters for their great job and thank them for doing the spear work instead of her. During the boar meal she'll ask, "I've heard rumors of the Sandpoint Devil, what is it exactly? Was that what flew overhead today?"
When the poor woman comes in to ask for help, she'll go with the others.
Trunt hears Mrs. Barrett and then Zandril's question and he jumps up and says, "I'll go with you! Mr. Foxglove, will you be accompanying us on this hunt?" Maybe there will be another reward in it for me. Trunt shoves a couple bites of roast in his mouth, burning himself and follows the distraught lady. On they way, he thinks, ...In a closet? That seems strange, I wonder if this lady is on the level.
Well, I'll have to find out for myself I guess. At least there's plenty of other people going.
Trunt has to run practically to keep up with everyone else, his small frame working hard to match the long strides of the others.
"Rowan, do you have any idea how the goblins would have gotten into town anyway? It just seems so odd that they would have attacked in the center of town while the guard was drawn off."
"I'm not sure. It's possible that they just slipped in while nobody was looking. Security was pretty light with the sheriff and his men being gone. It's also possible that they have some sort of secret passageway into town. I've only been in Sandpoint for a few days, so I don't have any idea what that might be."
"Perhaps we should have been hunting down those goblins today... If they were to attack right now we wouldn't be there to assist the guard. I can't help but feel a little uneasy."
"I'm not worried about an immediate attack. We killed enough of them at the festival that it should take some time for them to regroup. Still, there's no sense in waiting until it becomes a problem again to take care of it. We should start looking for their hideout first thing tomorrow."
"My husband is battling a goblin in our son's closet! Please help."
Rowan gets up from the table and follows the rest of the group to Mrs. Barrett's home. "We should try to capture this one alive. It might know something about how they have been getting into town or where their lair is."
The group of rescuers follow Mrs Barrett to her home. She starts to lead them in but Zandril stops her. She then explains the bedroom is down the hall on the right. Down the hall turns out to be an exaggeration. There is only one door on the right hand side of the small hallway that leads out of the kitchen which the outer door opens onto. Lavanor, who has the lead at this point, pushes the unlatched door open. A man lays on the floor, blood pooling around his feet. A young, shaking boy stands above the man holding a hammer, staring at the open closet.
"Could they be making tunnels? They do tend to live in warrens. I'll just check that closet out."
Runt approaches the closet, expecting a tunnel and no goblin. Will she be right?
Inside the closet runt sees the clothing slowly swaying and a moderate sized hole in the floor. The hole is big enough for her or one of the gnomes to go down easily. The bigger people would take a moment or two to slip into it. From somewhere in the pitch black hole she hears a goblin laugh and she shudders.
Covering her inital reaction she yells, "Aha! I was right. There is a tunnel here and I heard the nasty %&@."
She does NOT, however, go down after them, and stares down the hole from a safe distance.
Rowan pushes past anyone in the way in order to get to the injured man. He kneels down and casts cure light wounds on him, desperately hoping that the man is still alive.
Zandril sees Rowan attending the wounded man and heads toward the closet. He glances down the hole and shakes his head, "Does anyone have a torch or light of any kind?"
Valtyra will walk up to the hole and look down it for a few moments.
After she's had a good look, if she doesn't see anything within range or the tunnel twists some, she'll mumble a few words. One of her tattoos glows as a faintly luminescent, halfling sized, vaguely humanoid shape appears. She motions it down the hole.
Turning to the others she'll ask, "Anyone else want a look? Or possibly to chase it?
Zandril thanks Valtyra and takes a look down the hole as the light spell illuminates the way.