The next morning, the air is still pleasantly warm albeit a little bit stale. People come out to live their lives and don't talk much about the previous evening. Mostly they are relieved to have survived. Despite the less than happy mood, it seems the threat has been thwarted.
A few guards patrol the streets. To those local to Sandpoint, there are more guards than usual, but it seems they're only there to give a sense of security, and it seems to be working. As people see the guards, they chat more. It seems that the town will recover quickly, as these are a resilient people.
As the party show their faces, people immediately recognize them. They come start conversations and offer a new pie they made. To Ribitta, she has never been treated like this, as well as Mashaka. Tanwen gets the feeling that she isn't only getting attention due to sexual attraction, and Elan realizes that people don't shy at the sight of his otherwordly eyes. Brand feels that he might sell anything he wants to these people, remembering his mercantile years.
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"Elan," Brand says as they exit the Rusty Dragon, "I'm headed to the jails to speak with some of those goblins. I want to know how so many of them got in. I checked the defenses when I arrived, they were a little lacking but that many invaders should not have gotten in without an alarm being sounded."
Mashaka wakes up the next day as if coming from a long and restful night. She feels reinvigorated, and steps out of bed mumbling prayers without specifically naming gods or other entities - in truth, without making any sense at all. In her mind, though, she feels fulfilled and leaves the room with a joyful attitude.
As she comes downstairs, the first one she notices is the Dwarf. She approaches him with her mismatched, unnerving eyes, and smiles in yellow rotten-looking teeth.
Hi! - and she waves to him, and then to someone non-existing at his left shoulder.
Ribitta heads to the jail and volunteers her services as an interpreter. The positive attention unnerves her, and she spends much of the walk there trying to duck and avoid it, but all the same, she doesn't hide beneath a cloak or hood or mask.
After Brand and Mashaka finish their conversation , the dwarf and Ribitta go to the barracks. They are immediately recognized and, per their request, taken to the goblins.
All five of them share the same cell, and they haven't wasted their time redecorating with their own filth. You get there in time to see Looler, a somewhat slow minded guard, separating two goblins which started to fight, while the others cheered.
Aren't we all walls? Aren't we all shy? Aren't we all ones? - she replies, clearly understanding the conversation.
Red beards and green goblins. - she completes, crossing her arms behind as she walks, leaving the weapon hanging free on her belt.
Meanwhile, Elan and Tanwen sleep their worries off.
"I don't speak goblin and if no one does perhaps we could try tracking them." Elan says.
"Yess," the tiefling hisses, squatting and keeping her eyes separately on the two fighting.
"What questions do we have for them? I have my own, but," she sucks in air through her teeth and clicks her tongue.
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"How'd they get in? There were guards at all major entrances, there should have been an alarm given if they had come in through one of those. Why did they attack? They were really just a nuisance. There were not enough of them to overrun the town. What did they hope to accomplish?" Brand says and then scratches his beard as he ponders other questions.
"Not enough, yes, but there were many of them, and from more than one tribe. Unusual for goblins," Ribitta muses. She holds off on questions, allowing time for Elan to pitch in.
Mashaka does accompany Brand and Ribitta, but stay silently in the back, arms crossed behind her, for times making a serious face. It's hard to say if she's actually acting with seriousness towards the issue, if she's mocking the whole situation, or if she doesn't even know what is going on right now and just trying to go with the flow.
Tanwen was unused to the attention of others to the degree that she experienced as a result of being labeled a hero. Normally, Tanwen could manage to attract maybe a solid thirty percent of the attention in a room and she might be happy, however, Tanwen now found herself attracting much more attention than that, and the young woman didn't exactly know what to do.
As a result, the Ifrit tosses and turns most of the evening. For although she had never been one to struggle to fall asleep, at least once she'd gotten over the fire three years ago, Tanwen couldn't figure out what all of this meant.
On the one hand, she might finally have a chance to become an adventurer. On the other hand, she'd have to leave home, leave the community she had just defended, the community she had spent her entire life as a part of.
Tanwen was torn, and she needed advice. Honestly, she needed advice yesterday, and probably shouldn't have tried to sleep on it, but the long day had left her tired.
Tanwen knew she'd need to talk to Kaye of course, as she'd need to explain to Kaye what was going on, and if she was to go on any sort of adventure, if she were to be a true hero, she couldn't stay employed at The Pixie's Kitten.
"I know that there's more to the world than just Sandpoint." Tanwen says to herself after she finally gets out of bed and kneels next to the bed. "I know that I can better spread the teachings of Arshea outside of Sandpoint..."
"I know that this is all that I've ever wanted..."
So why do I feel so dissatisfied? With her hands clasped over the holy symbol of Arshea on her chest, Tanwen looks to the ceiling of the room.
I won't ask for guidance, for I know I have the freedom to make my own choices. I won't ask for glory because I know that I have the freedom to retreat. I won't ask for fame or fortune...
"Arshea, give me the strength to make the right decisions and the dexterity to execute those decisions. Give me the constitution to handle the consequences of my actions and the intelligence to learn from my mistakes. Give me the wisdom to know when to retreat from failure, and the charisma to lead the charge to victory." After she finishes, she bows her head in silence for a moment before rising and getting ready for the day.
I guess I'll check in with Kaye in a bit, she might be upset about me skipping last night and I might need help to calm her down first... But who could help Tanwen calm down Kaye?
"I guess Ameiko is as good a person to ask for advice as anyone else." Tanwen reasons, after all the Tien woman had promised her free drinks.
Arriving at the Rusty Dragon, Tanwen asks aloud, "Is Ameiko around?"
As Tanwen gets to the Rusty Dragon, many recognize her and say hello and their thanks for her heroics. Of course, they didn't know the size of her contribution to the fight, as they saw all five people as the heroic group.
This early in the morning, the tavern is not so full, so Tanwen sees Ameiko quickly. She has somewhat tired eyes, but her movements aren't the least slower for it. She comes greet Tanwen saying "So, how does it feel being the hero?"
Elan nods to Ribitta as if to say go ahead and start.
Ribitta nods back. Turning to the goblins, she squats by their cell and tilts her head to a right angle. "Hhoww did you get in? Whhyy did you attack Sandpoint? Wwhatt was your goal in attacking?"
She repeats her questions in goblin, adding one of her own also.
She bares her teeth and slams her fist into the bars, shaking the cell.
The goblins all jump up and shut up as Ribitta talks. Even the guard looks away. They cower before her, but the shortest of them is the first to recover from the first impression left by Ribitta and speaks in goblin.
"P-P-Pretty lady will not hurt goblins, yes? P-Pretty lady is nice! Like leader, no? Yes, yes, leader is one of the longshanks, like pretty lady. We got in through gate, was open for us! Leader very smart, like pretty lady.
We attack longshanks town to kill and pillage, of course! Pretty lady makes fun of Mot-Mot, but Mot-Mot not so stupid, see?
We play nice with Licktoads because boss-goblin Big Gugmut tell us to."
Ribitta reaches in and pats the goblin on the head, once.
She stands and turns to the others, murmuring. "They don't know much," she sniffs and glances back at the cage with one eye. "They say someone left a gate open for them, that they came here to kill and pillage, and they are being led by a goblin boss and a tall pretty woman."
She turns back to the goblins, eyes blinking slowly, and independently of each other. "Tell us more about the pretty lady, Mot-Mot."
At this point Elan looks over at the goblins and says "Which gate was left open. We need to see this and possibly track them back. Also what did the pretty lady do while they were causing trouble."
Mot-Mot replies to Ribitta in a very broken common "Lady? What mean lady? Leader-person? It look like that", and points to Elan. Then, points at the slow-witted guard and says "No, like that.... Hmmm, maybe like that" and points to Mashaka in the back. "Longshanks very equal in Mot-mot eye"
As Elan joins the interrogation, the goblin says in a condescending tone "Front gate, yes. Very big."
Another man is being held in the garrison cells and says loudly "Can I have some water please. Mister Looler, sir... People talking to the goblins, please... Some water." The half-witted guard Looler grumbles and says a half understandable "Later!"
As Tanwen talks to Ameiko, a woman enters the inn and goes sit at a table by herself. She looks strong and carries an enormous sword. The halfling Bethana goes take her order. She seems confused and asks some confirmation in a squeaky voice. After confirmation she goes into the kitchen. The large woman looks around her, although not menacingly. Afterwards, a child comes running inside the inn and tells something to Ameiko into her ear and then runs out again.
"The hero huh? I was just defending Sandpoint, I'm sure you would've done the same." In fact, Tanwen wasn't even sure that Ameiko hadn't fought to protect Sandpoint. "It's odd. I always wanted to be an adventurer, a hero, I just never got the chance, now I have and I don't know what to do." Tanwen finally answered Ameiko's question, just to have the woman with the enormous sword catch her attention.
"I always thought someone like that would be the hero." She adds, indicating the strong woman. "I'd given up on being a hero after Wade Deverin died and Gaven no longer had time to train me. I'd dedicated myself to serving Arshea in my time at The Pixie's Kitten, and I didn't know that I had the right to hope for more."
Sure, Tanwen's parents had the farm she could inherit, but that had never been her dream and even though she may have settled with her position at The Pixie's Kitten, she wouldn't settle for being a farmer.
Perhaps even all four! Horses run on all four, you know. - said Mashaka, completing Brand and trying to be useful. She then approaches Mot-Mot, the goblin.
You are also a pretty lady! - she says, holding both her hands together with the fingers popping.
A whole baked chicken with carrots and potatoes on the side is brought to the large woman and she begins chunking it down hungrily. Ameiko watches the large woman calmly as she ponders Tanwen's words.
She says "You know, I don't really know much about the gods' whims, but I'm pretty sure that your god cares about you. You know, seeing how watchful you are of her teachings. My advice to you is don't look too much into the future. You are by far the smartest one in Koye's place and I think that you'll find your path, and soon. If you ask me, settling down isn't the worst thing, you just have to do it in your own terms. And if your terms dictate something else, you'll know your path when you see it. I believe you already have last night."
She doesn't mention the large muscular woman.
As Mashaka calls the goblin a pretty lady, the goblin looks to the sides and takes an imposing stance.
The tiefling mutters a response to Brand, "Big Gugmut, they say."
She trails her fingers across the bars and walks across the front of the cage, still crouching.
"You're right of course, I wouldn't even be questioning leaving the life I had unless it was for something I really wanted." I mean an adventurer is a much more dangerous job and I doubt the pay is that much better. "I'm just not looking forward to telling Kaye, I'm not sure how really."
Tanwen had only really quit one job before, then again, she had only really had one job before. It had been much easier to quit working at the Two Knight Brewery, after all, there was only one knight left there. This was different, everything that Kaye said she could give Tanwen was still there, the Chelish woman just wanted more.
"How would you tell everyone if you were quitting your job?" Honestly, this was probably a strange question to ask Ameiko, as I'm sure no one would ever expect Ameiko to quit.
The goblin cowers before Ribitta and says almost crying in Common "Mot-Mot doesn't know, leader had secret mission." Then he recomposes himself, glad to know the answer to the second question. He says "Gugmut, errr, Big Gugmut leader of best goblin tribe, the Mosswood!" He looks to the sides, afraid to be scolded for messing up the boss's name, but he nothing happens about it. Instead, the other goblins start yelling at Mot-Mot saying that the Seven Tooth tribe is better, and a yelling dispute begins.
At first, Ameiko doesn't know how to react to Tanwen's question, but then says "Just good-bye and good luck. No one owes anyone any explanation.", hoping few words were better in this case.
Ribitta nods at Brand, pulls away from the cell. "Thank you Mot-Mot. You were very cooperative."
Uncaring about the Mosswood tribe, she doesn't realize that Gugmut likely has no pull over the other tribes.
Stepping back to the background, Mashaka blows a kiss to the goblin and then keeps staring at Ribitta and the others, as if curious as to what was going to happen next. She clearly doesn't have anything else to do - or anywhere else to go - and likes sticking around the people which fought with her before without trying to kill her.
On the way out of the garrison, the kid called Sid who two days before talked to Father Zantus about the church's consecration comes talk to Elan and Brand, but doesn't attempt to hide what he says to the others.
He says in an attempted official voice "Masters Brand and Elan, father Zantus asks you if you can make it to the cathedral's consecration in two hours." With incredible effort, he remembers the rest "The ceremony will be more intimate, but the presence of Sarin-Sarenrah's priests will be appreciated." Unsure whether he should linger, he runs off.
Although not invited by name, Ribitta and Mashaka know that consecration ceremonies always involve some display of divine power, from which they could learn something if they pay attention. However, it could be a waste of time also.
In the Rusty Dragon, a similar scene happens with Tanwen. After Sid delivers his message, this time more confidently, but still mispronouncing Arshea's name, Ameiko says "Sid, did you eat today? Get something from the kitchen. Sid, come back! Eat something!" Despite Ameiko's protests, the child runs out of the tavern without looking back.
"That just seems...impersonal..." Tanwen remarks looking at Ameiko. "But I guess it's going to be regardless."
Tanwen stands up and says her thanks to Ameiko as Sid pops in to deliver his message.
"For Arshea's sake, it's Arshea, ARE SHE AH!" Tanwen yells back at Sid. It was bad enough that Tanwen was being called out specifically to come to the consecration, the kid could at least learn how to pronounce the name of the Spirit of Abandon.
I'm wanted at the consecration? Me? There were thoughts rushing to the young Ifrit's mind as to why she specifically might be wanted for the consecration. Sure, Tanwen was one of the few clerics of Arshea in town, but Tanwen also had a history with the old cathedral.
After a moment to gather her thoughts, Tanwen lets out a short sigh and looks back at Ameiko. "I guess that means my time is limited. I should speak with Kaye before the consecration, I owe her that much." Then with a smile she parts with Ameiko and makes her way to The Pixie's Kitten.
The Kitten wasn't far from the Dragon, and as a result, Tanwen only had a few moments to think about what she was going to say. Normally, Tanwen wouldn't have to say anything to the bouncers at the Kitten in order to come inside, but Tanwen knew that things wouldn't exactly be normal today.
"I need to speak with Madame Tesarani, is she around?" Honestly Tanwen wouldn't be surprised if she wasn't, and honestly, she wouldn't even be surprised if the Kitten was closed, a lot had happened yesterday and Sandpoint was still recovering, of course, the best place in Sandpoint for recovery was The Pixie's Kitten.
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Brand heads off to the Cathedral grumbling under his breath about ceremony when real things need to be done. "We might as well ask the priest if he has any idea why the goblins may have attacked. We also need to find a local who is familiar with goblins to see if they know of this Big Gugmut. I wonder if the town could field an expedition to root this Gugmut fellow out?" He muses to the others when not grumbling.
The bouncer makes a gesture to Tanwen with his hands that she recognizes with the meaning that Kaye is in her office, not wanting to be disturbed. This usually happens in three situations. Either she had to deal with money, or she had some sort of trouble with the joint, such as one of the workers or customers. The third possibility, which happened more seldom, was when she fought with her boyfriend.
Elan pats Brand on his back, "Ceremony is part of being a priest. We've two hours. I bet the sheriff may know about the local tribes and how they got in that gate. Where is the sheriff?" he finishes with turning to the deputy.
The deputy points to a door at the end of the stone corridor and says "He's in there, sir. But I wouldn't disturb him right now, he's in a foul mood."
The streets smell like a mix of pork and stew. Your stomachs grumble.
Mashaka slightly tilts her head and looks at Ribitta, smiling as she does so. The changeling for times had a somewhat maniac look in her eyes, and this was probably one of such times. Yet, she spoke softly, in a gentle way.
We should go too! This will be fun. - she says, not particularly paying attention to the fact Ribitta was a cleric as well - Maybe even the goblins will attack again... There! Can you imagine?
Despite what she was saying, she sounded a lot more sane than before. Maybe this was the closest to sane she'd ever sound.
As Mashaka discusses the cathedral event, the group of four is saluted by a passing guard. Even though he is on patrol, it isn't clear that he knows what a patrol means, therefore he stops to talk to people and munches on a piece of bread he is carrying. "Ravin, after you finish your duty, will you help me fix my roof? That racoon is back and is stealing my food!" says a woman in a cooking apron to the guard. He pauses, apparently considering doing the duty now instead of later. However, a dirty look from another guard in the garrison makes him resolute to do it later. He replies "Sure thing, missus Wallflower, I still have an hour to go!"
Near the Pixie's Kitten, a breeze from the sea blows and the seagulls fight over something, from the sound of it. Tanwen thinks the day is going to be slow, from the looks of it, especially since most men will stay close to their families after the scare from last night. The bouncer reaches into a bag and pulls out a particularly large sandwich which he starts eating right away.
Ribitta silently nods to Mashaka, agreeing to attend the consecration. When they arrive at the sherriff's and no one else steps forth, she heads on in first, unafraid of offending him.
"We know things about the goblins," she says.
”If Madame Kaye asks for me, I’ll be back some time after the consecration of the new temple.”
With Madame Kaye unavailable, Tanwen decides to head to the consecration.
They're beautiful ladies! - says Mashaka, expertly complementing Ribitta.
Ribitta rolls one eye over to glare at Mashaka. "We also know other things about the goblins."
Ribitta and Mashaka see the sheriff looking out the window sipping from a glass which, by the smell of the room, is probably alcoholic. He looks back at them and gets up, attempting to straighten his sleeves and trousers. At first he forgets he has a glass in his hand and he wets his shirt with the content, to only then put it down.
He says "Oh, hello. Thank you very much for your help last night. Without your help, many more people might have been killed before the guard would be able to deal with the situation." Despite being a serious person, his words come out a little too formal for the situation.
Without offering a seat, he says "You were saying something about the goblins? Something about beautiful women?" He seems a little confused and is about to say something but shuts himself up before continuing.
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In the corridor, a guard chases a large rat that has been pestering the garrison for weeks. The guard lives a fierce battle, with the mouse dodging his long sword and getting behind furniture. The guard, in his turn, attempts to not curse due to the visitors, but over time he gives up and says nasty things about the rat's mother.
Tanwen, on her way to the cathedral, smells many delicious foods on the way, reminding her that she hasn't had lunch yet. It seems that yesterday's leftovers are the talk of the moment. Elan and Brand feel the same pull towards the foods.
Elan finds some food as well and says to Brand, "We should probably check in with the priest to let him know we are here and at his disposal."