Daniel shakes his head letting out a big gasp of air as he catches his breath.
Were it not for you distracting its attention, I doubt I would have had the opportunity to land the final blow. It should be my apologizing as well. I nearly failed to keep you safe. What good is a guard if he cannot do that? His expression is one of worry mixed with pain, as he mentally stops himself from running his hand along the area the crab had grabbed him. He grimaces as he goes to move and follow the others stopping mid step.
After a moment he asks. Does anyone have any healing items?
Here, let me help.
Astella lays her hands on Daniel and casts a spell.
Then she picks up several rocks from the beach, replenishing the supply for her sling.
____
When the humming sound starts, Astella tries to identify where it is coming from.
When she sees the woman ahead drop something into her backpack, she tries to see what it is.
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”Don’t be so hard on yourself luv. We all be a wee bit rusty, I shot three arrows at the beast and nary a one hit. If it wasn’t for Daniel we all might of found ourselves as crab food,” the Druid says earnestly.
"Thanks, Rowan. That's kind of you to say. But... you mean Daniel did this by himself?" Estelle wonders, slowly pushing herself back up and grimacing at the remaining gashes.
"Of course, it's not enough to run into someone named like him, but I have to be immediately rescued by someone looking like him too..."
She mulls over the knight's following words. "Well... it sounds like you saved us, while I couldn't even land a single hit. Between the two of us, you did much better by any measure. My old captain would be furious if he saw me just now."
She then hobbles over towards the crab's carcass, her leg wound obviously not fully healed. "Ow. This... stings a lot. But it's probably better to save healing for Daniel. I'll just hang back. And... let's take the crab with us. Maybe we can sell the meat at the inn? Or perhaps they'd want part of it as a trophy to display or such. It seems like a waste to leave it behind."
"Is she the one collecting all the seashells?" Estelle asks, trying to also get a better look.
And... let's take the crab with us. Maybe we can sell the meat at the inn? Or perhaps they'd want part of it as a trophy to display or such. It seems like a waste to leave it behind."
From the distance, it is hard to tell what the woman just put in her pack, but it seems Estelle is making a fair assumption.
The woman walks a bit farther and, seemingly not seeing anything of further interest, turns around, and spots the team.
"Hello. You're not from around here, are you?", the sound is muffled over the distance.
Astella walks closer to the woman and says
No, we aren't. We are trying to do the Scavenger Hunt. Are you from around here? Perhaps you could help us with some information?
"Scavenger hunt? I heard about that.
Emerald Isle's got a small amount of residents, so gossip travels fast."
"I live in that hut over at the edge, with my mother."
She holds out a hand...., "I'm Sally, and what is it you'd like to know?"
Rowän gestures to the beach, We we’re wondering what happened to all the shells? And where we could find some?”
"Nice to meet you, Sally. I'm Stella. My group is trying to find some items on this list. Like she said, one of them is a seashell. Do you know where they are? We think we saw your footprints along the beach, so you probably know better than us," Estelle says pleasantly, but not moving closer.
Somewhat glumly Brunhild added ”Just look at us. We could use all the help we can get.” Given the rather shoddy quality of their equipment and the bloodstains on Estelle, they certainly did not look like successfully adventurers.
Well, let's see. Perhaps you could tell us where we're likely to find the items on this list?
She shows her the list:
--Decorative floor tile
--Longbow
--Musical Instrument
--Red potion
--Seashell
--Wealthy Hat
What do you think? Any ideas?
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Sally takes the list to read over.
"A floor tile? What an odd one. There's no building that has those...hmm.", she pauses as if remembering something.
"There used to be a temple of the Faith of the Moon somewhere on the Isle. If you'd find the entrance i suppose it's worth a look."
A now lesser practiced faith, the worship of the moon is done by scattered groups nowadays.
"Longbow. The weapon merchant or blacksmith, i'd assume. If not, you'd have to get lucky in your search.
Musical instrument? We don't make these on the isle. Maybe there's someone in town who could tell you more.
Red potion. Ah, now those are fairly easy to come by. You could likely purchase one from the town's alchemist. If not, try finding some widowsweep-berries. A dark red berry that, if prepared correctly in decent enough quantity, can be distilled into a minor healing extract. Just needs a vial or small bottle to put it in. They grow in the forest."
"Sea shell. I have some with me, just 7gp for a shell."
"A wealthy hat. Pheh...some weird items Lord Markham has chosen.
Find yourselves some rich person, maybe? Though i have heard speak of a trade vessel having lost some cargo during a storm, perhaps there is something washed ashore elsewhere on the Isle. Pure speculation, of course."
Wow. So, if everything is going to cost money, I guess ... I don't know. How are we going to do this? I came here to compete because I was dead broke, honestly. I'm an archer, but I can't afford to fix or replace my bow... and honestly, even though I'm not saying they aren't worth it... Seven gold for a seashell? I have about 3 gold to my name, and unless they need a good voice around here, it is unlikely that I will be able to earn more anytime soon.
Hmm. We killed a giant crab recently. Do you think we could sell the crab meat to someone? Or... would you trade it for a shell perhaps?
”Aye. Do we look like we can spend seven gold on a seashell? How about ye make it three. Or...we can pool together for seven if ye take us to this temple?” She tried to negotiate...
At Estelle's words, Daniel actually lets out a laugh. Aye, my teacher is the same way. But, sometimes even the best of us can be caught unaware or put on the back foot. I suppose what I mean is, we shouldn't be too hard on ourselves. Your weapon is designed to keep distance yes? Try and stay behind me. I'm sure I will need the help if we encounter further dangers. Daniel will out of habit take out a small cloth and wipe away some blood from Estelle. Something he'd simply learned to do from his mother.
As he is healed, he thanks Astella. Estelle and Astella, that isn't confusing at all and certainly won't get me in trouble...
---------------
As the woman lists off the likely places to gather their required items Daniel nods. He had figured that those with wealth would be at an advantage in the games. He wasn't happy it turned to be true, and had hoped that to not be the case but only sighed at the reality of it. Once the woman listed the price of her shells he furrows his eyes slightly.
You would seek to try and take advantage of us with those prices? Or do you mean to say two simple sea shells would pay for a longsword normally?
Daniel will out of habit take out a small cloth and wipe away some blood from Estelle. Something he'd simply learned to do from his mother.
With Daniel's voice added to Rowan's, Estelle's spirits seem to lift. She chuckles at the mention of the knight's teacher being similar to hers. "I guess we were all put through the ringer in training, weren't we?" She quiets for a moment, then gazes back at the sea. "You know... it's odd. Despite how horrible the war was, I sometimes miss those days in boot camp. The sense of comradery that hung there, of coming together to defend your home. Being united in cause even with the many forest creatures, and still able to worry most about whether your captain would catch you doing something you weren't supposed to. It wasn't-"
She stops when she feels a wetness, and looks down to see Daniel adressing her abdominal and leg wound. "Wh-? Oh. I- Uh- Sir Daniel? Y-You really don't have to..." She stammers, growing progressively redder - but at the same time, not moving away. "T-thanks," she manages when he finishes, giving him a small, grateful nod, then quickly falling behind to take up her weapon as suggested.
"*Seven* gold!? For a seashell!?" She thinks, eyes wide at the blatant rip-off attempt. "Did she already know about which items would be on the list? So she could collect them in advance and ask any price? But that would make her... hm... related to someone working for the Duke? Or the Duke himself? Or am I overthinking it...?"
Do you think we could sell the crab meat to someone?
"You could try the Two Palms tavern in town. The cook is a decent one."
You would seek to try and take advantage of us with those prices? Or do you mean to say two simple sea shells would pay for a longsword normally?
"The winners become wealthy, so is a one time investment that much?"
Aye. Do we look like we can spend seven gold on a seashell? How about ye make it three. Or...we can pool together for seven if ye take us to this temple?
"I don't know the exact location, but i could take you to where it was generally said to be, and you can try from there."
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If we become wealthy, then no problem, but you also said that we are going to have to buy a lot of these other items. A longbow costs 75 gold by itself. We don't have that kind of money, so we're definitely not winning by spending the gold we have now.
How about you unofficially join our team and help us, and we'll give you a share of the wealth that we earn if we win? Right now we don't have much of a chance because we're desperately poor, but if we had a native on our side, then everyone's chance for getting rich goes up by a lot. What do you think? You can keep the seashell unless we get all the other things, so you won't be risking a loss unless we win. What do you think?
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"I think you should take her deal, Sally," Estelle finally chimes in. "You're a nice girl, a good peddler, and I can respect that you're trying to get ahead in the world by doing this. If I had to guess, you somehow knew ahead of time that the shells would be on the list and tried to collect all of them for yourself."
"But... you also need to be aware of the risks of asking this much. We can't afford that price, if only because we'll need to pay a healer to mend our remaining wounds too. If we don't, we could literally die, and I very much value my life over a seashell," she continues, in as gentle a tone as possible, and reveals the partially mended giant-sciccor wound with a grimace. "This group has at least two honorable knights, a strict dwarf and two sociable forest dwellers. Since we're decent people, if you don't agree to a deal of some sort, we'll simply walk away and try to get it ourselves. That leaves us both with nothing."
"However, there are other groups too. There was one in particular with three very sketchy men," She then says, giving a description to the girl. "...And if they can track you like we can, they might not walk away in our place. Instead, they might try to assault you and take it by force. Or at the very least, remember that you tried to swindle and obstruct their rise to power if they win. Isn't it also important who you'd prefer as the future rulers of this island and to invest in good relations with them?"
Sally rubs her neck and has an embarrassed smile.
"Knew ahead is too strong an assumption... heh heh.
I craft decorations from shells washed up here, but i may have overheard the word scavenger hunt and beach in the same sentence last week."
"Can't blame a girl for trying to be a little mercantile with the materials at hand."
She raises a finger in a matter of fact-ly way.
"I didn't say you'd be buying everything. Some can be bought, but could possibly be found if looking hard enough......and native? I believe the term is 'local'.".
..brief silence...
"Ah, you mean the future rulers of lands other than Emerald Isle."
She does seem to ponder Astella's proposal and Estelle's arguments on some of the other participants.
A mischievous smile slowly rises, ever so slightly, on her face. Her eyes look back at Estelle and Astella. "How about this. I'll help you on the offered terms but, should you win, you'll take me along to whatever lands you get in charge of. I've always wanted a trade shop of my own, and Emerald Isle, pretty as it can be, doesn't offer such an opportunity for me."
Little risk in accepting this offer, Rowän thought. Not wanting to interrupt the negotiations, she holds her tongue. If anyone asks her, she will agree to the Sally's terms.
Astella smiles.
Agreed, and welcome. That is a much better agreement than I thought we should be able to make, and binds us together in a better way than mere wealth.
She looks around to the others.
Are we all agreed?
Brunhild nodded. ”Aye. Welcome.” Her tone and posture didn’t show it, but she was glad that the negotiations had run away from her.
Sally grins, and shakes your hand quickly.
"Ok, then here's for you."
She takes out a pink shell from her pack and hands it over to Astella.
Brunhild's idea was good... why don't we head for where the temple was rumored to be next, although, perhaps we should sell the crab meat first? Thoughts, anyone?
Daniel shrugs. He didn't have too much real care in the reward, so long as he was able to fix his gear. Gear he still felt the kingdom should have paid to repair.
I don't have a reason not to accept. Though, be warned that coming with us will prove dangerous. I, and likely the others, will do what I can to keep you safe... But I am unfamiliar with the creatures on this island.
At Astella's question Daniel thought for a moment.
It depends on how long we think it will take. If only a couple hours, then it should be fine. But if searching this temple might take longer than a couple, I would wager it safer to try to take the crab to town first. While there we can take a look around for what exactly could be bought. And if there are more price hikes on said items.
Estelle smiles at the girl encouragingly. "Of course! We'd be happy to have you with us. Well, if you have permission from your mother, of course. Do you think she'd be all right with this, too? We might make quite a journey..."
When the next course of action is discussed, she shakes her head. "We should head back to the crab and take it to the village to sell first. The longer it's dead, the more the flavor is lost, and the more time flies, scavengers and other predators have to get to the carcass too. Trust me, I'm... ah, decent at hunting and I've ran into each of these problems before. And... if I'm honest, I'd prefer to try and get this wound healed at the healing service while we're there, too."
”Best we sell the crab first and use the gold gained to buy some of the items on the list, Rowän agrees with Daniel.
Can we scavenge for the ingredients for the Red Potion on the way back? If we can find enough ingredients and Sally tells us how, we might be able to heal ourselves with just the potions.
Well, if you have permission from your mother, of course. Do you think she'd be all right with this, too? We might make quite a journey...
"That should be ok, i'm not 10 years old, you know. I just have to share the news."
She enters the hut and returns a little later.
"She'll be fine."
With Sally joined, you make yoyr way back, dragging the crab with 2 of you, to avoid slowing down.
Back in town, this draws some surprised glances, but nobody's stoppjng you for it.
The center of town is where you were headed, The Two Palms inn.
Dragging the dead crab inside, the innkeep lets out a most surprised: "What the? Sorry, what do you think you're doing, dragging in a dead crab?"
Further back, from what might be the kitchen, there is another man's voice. "A crab? An entire clean one? Buy it."
The tavernkeep looks back at you.
"Alright. One that big, 200, 210 lbs, i reckon. I can offer you 75 gold for it."
"That should be ok, i'm not 10 years old, you know. I just have to share the news."
She enters the hut and returns a little later.
"She'll be fine."
"Translation: I left a note and hope it will work itself out?" Estelle wonders, surprised at how fast that had gone. Especially considering the mother would now be living by herself, had just agreed to trust her daughter's life to a bunch of strangers without even meeting them, and might never see her again since she'd be moving all the way to eastern Erathia - to as yet unspecified lands, even.
But surely Sally wouldn't lie and just run away from home like that? She was just way too nice of a person!
"All right. Welcome, Sally! let's do our best to win this together." Estelle smiles brightly. "To the town it is!" she exclaimes, votes tallied in favor of that option. "Um... could you maybe help me move the Crab there, Sir Daniel? It's probably quite heavy and my leg still hurts..."
"Wow! That's a lot of money!" She at first excitedly whispers to the others. "Actually... is it? I'm not sure about local prizes, and I'm not the best haggler..." she adds, looking to the others to see if anyone wanted to negotiate for more.
Daniel wanted to go in and speak with the mother, to at least explain. He understood how mothers could get when family left. Alas, things moved quickly.
-----------
Daniel lets out a small sigh as they finally stop dragging the crab. He looks to the innkeep and thinks for a moment before deciding that it couldn't hurt.
Throw in a musical instrument, and you have a deal.
He looks to the innkeep and thinks for a moment before deciding that it couldn't hurt.
Throw in a musical instrument, and you have a deal.
"I'm the wrong one to ask for a musical instrument.
I believe Lord Markham may have invited a bard to play for the attendees. Aught be around here late afternoon, i reckon. Got a room booked for 'em for tonight, so fair chance they'll be here this evening, if not wandering town right now.""If the contest requires you to get an instrument, the bard would be a pot of honey for the flies, if you get my drift."
That's a good idea, thank you.
Astella thinks for a moment to see if 75 gold is a fair price.
If she thinks it is, she advises the group to accept. After all, they might be able to take down another one, and this was already the price of a bow.
Rowän reminds her companions, ”Remember, we are in a competition perhaps it’s best we take the offer. We don’t want to miss out on the real prize by standing here haggling over a few coin.” If no one objects Rowän will accept the offer.
”Aye. Especially when we can’t keep it fresh and haven’t any other buyers.”
Astella thinks 75 gold is a pretty sweet deal and, with Brunhild and Rowan suggesting the deal be done, the crab is exchanged for a pouch of gold.
Up ahead, from the direction of Lord Markham's house, you see a team entering, and briefly thereafter return, making off towards the beach.
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Well, should we buy the bow now? Let's see... the other possibilities are...
She reads from the list, adding her notes.
--Longbow (buy from merchant)
--Musical Instrument (bard to play late afternoon, Two Palms Inn)
--Red potion (widowsweep berries from forest, need small bottle)
--Seashell (Sally, agreed to take her with us)
--Wealthy Hat (trade vessel cargo?)
I think maybe either collect berries from the forest, try to find the temple, or try to find the trade vessel that Sally said may have lost some cargo. Perhaps the berries so that we don't go too long to miss the bard this afternoon? Splitting up might be faster, but that crab we ran into makes me think we should probably stay together... and that was the only healing spell I had for the day, so the berries might be needed for our own group if we can collect enough to make several potions.
The rest of her notes page reads
--Cat 5
--Tawny Band
--Tawny Knights
--Shields of Dawn
--Iron Shields
--Dawn Five
--Iron Band
--Broken weapons
--Need repairs
--Broken Band
--Broken Dawn
--Shattered Stars
along with a couple of scratched out options.
She doesn't read the last part, but does add
Oh, yes, Sally, since you are part of the group now, we are thinking about a group name. If you have any suggestions, let me know. Our latest suggestion is "Shattered Stars" ... I kind of like that one, actually.
"I like the 'Shattered Stars' as a name too. It might be a bit... 'pretentious' for a group that just started, maybe? But it's still a lot better than my suggestions," Estelle admits, taking a sip from her cup of mead and putting up a soft smile. "And it does sound very cool!"
When the subject of the next goal comes up, she puts a finger to her lips and considers. "On what to do next... I would suggest the forest too. It sounds less dangerous than an abandoned temple, and we could really use some healing potions. Even if we didn't need them for the contest. Hopefully, we can make it back in time for the Bard's performance. As for the gold... unless some of you need the bow right now , perhaps it's best to wait? That way, we might be able to pay the healing service if needed, and hope we can find the remaining gold in the temple."
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”Let’s move then.” Brunhild said. She couldn’t understand why a team name was so important to the tall-folk. But if it made them happy, then why complain?
Rowän suggests, ”we still have time no need to rush into picking a name.” After listening to the ideas she agrees with Estelle’s logic, ”Forest first.”
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Oh, I forgot the decorative floor tile, which is what we need to acquire from the old temple of the Faith of the Moon. Not sure there will be money there. If it is on the list, it is probably well known and picked over, but you never know. If we find missing contestants, there is always that reward of 1000 gold pieces offered for evidence of their fate, or bringing them back safely. Then we wouldn't have a money problem.
As to whether we should buy the bow now... we need it either way, since it is on the list, and I would be more helpful to the party with a bow rather than a sling if we run into something else we need to fight, but better to fail the contest than leave dead team members, so healing is still more important.
What time is the bard supposed to be here?
However, I do have profession woodworker, so... would carving a wooden flute count? I just don't know how good it would have to be, and I only have a +3.
My only issue is that if it is 15:30 already we are cutting it close with the bard, and that is our only lead on the musical instrument.
But light will turn dim around 18:00 or so.
Kn. Nature/Perception/Survival are the matching skills.
DC 13 nets 1 handful of berries.
Every 5 after it nets another handful of berries, up to 3 within the hour. 3 handfuls is enough for a red potion, time taken to distill it is 2 hours. Requires a bottle/flask to put it in, still.
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Oh, yes, Sally, since you are part of the group now, we are thinking about a group name. If you have any suggestions, let me know. Our latest suggestion is "Shattered Stars" ... I kind of like that one, actually.
"A bit of a negative approach, perhaps? Shattered even before you rise.
Then again, names and titles can change after events."
Estelle follows Daniel to the forest, keeping herself in front of the others. When they get there, she starts searching around. "From what I know, most berry plants like the sun but are tolerant of shade, and don't like being too close to trees. Maybe the trees suck up too much of the nuterition? Should probably search at somewhat open spots between trees..." Estelle thinks.
Not too long afterwards, she bows down near a collection of bushes, and smiles. "Got them!" she exclaimed in triumph. "But to be safe, you meant these types of berries, right, Sally?"
Sally nods.
"Yes, those are widowsweep berries.
Now if only we'd get a bit more. I think your friends are staring at a spot, maybe they found some more."
Rowan carefully looks around for the elusive berries. She is about to walk by a bush when Sally points them out. The druid's ears turn red at almost missing her quarry.
Rowan indeed found a bush with enough berries for a proper handful.
The others might have found even more still?
Astella spots another group of berries and wades into the bush to collect the biggest, juiciest ones, helping the group get as many as possible before they had to go back to talk to the bard.
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Daniel does his best to help, but he never really liked the outdoors. Preferring cities and the like instead. No, that isn't quite true. He greatly enjoyed the scenery around the waterfall. He just hated the hike to get to it that was filled with buzzing insects...
He is lost in thought and unhelpful for the most part. However, he trips and falls into one of the berry bushes as he absentmindedly walks around the area.
All in all, the search was productive, and the team had found enough berries for 2 potions.
Making their way back through the woods to town, natural light has dimmed.
Lanterns are lit throughout the town, illuminating the streets.
The Two Palms Inn has laughter coming from it.