Lyraesel takes in the noise and activity of the city, noticing the state of many of its inhabitants. "Probably easier to avoid notice here than anywhere else in this city."
"I can help with a place for you to stay Kelda." Byron offers as he looks around the town.
"So what would you suggest where we can find a guide to get us through the crown?" Adrian asked Kelda as he made his own rounds for anything interesting.
Aiko seems flatly neutral as the group heads to the next settlement. Crossing the Crown isn't common and it's going to draw attention no matter what they do.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Kelda's eyes widen at Byron's offer. "You would offer to share your bed with me? I did not know you were so brazen. My father would not approve, but you seem brave and strong, if not smooth of tongue. I will consider your offer." There's a brief sparkle in her eye before she turns serious again. "The tavern there is the best place to start gathering the information you seek. Then perhaps the beggars or the watch. They see much."
at the bar
on the street
with a guard
Lyraesel notices ravens following and watching the party. Adrian and Byron are able to count them and identify which ones they saw where. And the number grows...
When Zaraleva asks one of the beggars about who might attack them, the man flinches and looks around furtively. "Heh! hmmm...You ask questions about them. THEY ask questions about YOU! Heh! Sleep with one eye open.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Byron blinks and says, "I...was just offering to cover the cost of your room. But...ok."
Byron follows along behind but lets the others with smoother tongues handle asking questions.
2. The
3. Who is trying to kill us
4. Who sent the Ulfen and what killed the prisoner (arm-rings, 'Aril's Hammer')
Zaraleva at the bar:
The bartender nods as he dries off a mug he'd just finished washing. "A Tian sword? You might have some luck with old Fynn. He collects Tian stuff, will talk your ear off if you get him started on swords or the like. He's an amber merchant, got a shop in the Amber Quarter." Asked for more information, the bartender gives Zaraleva the man's full name (Fynn Snaevald) and vague directions to his home in the Amber Quarter.
Zaraleva with a guard:
The guard frowns as he leans against his spear. "That sounds like Asvig's Longthews' ring. Why do you ask? You have some trouble with his men?" Asked for more information, the guard tells Zaraleva Asvig Longthews is a local ring-giver (a term used for a minor chieftain or landowner who maintains a standing body of followers) with a farm somewhere outside of town.
Zaraleva tips the bartender well and thanks him.
"I don't know what they were thinking, but a small group of them attacked our caravan. Is there some rule we don't know about? A tax on outsiders? Protection money?"
Byron keeps an eye out for anyone paying a bit too much attention to the group as Zaraleva asks around for leads.
When the group is away from prying ears, Lyraesel brings up a key point. "THe raiders we let go, if they were sent to find out about Amieko or heard that anyone is looking for someone like her, they will definitely bring more trouble looking for us."
100% agree with Lyraesel.
"Then that's more reason for us to stay he as little as possible," Adrian replied with a sigh. "Let's find this swordsman, a Crown guide and get the hell out of this place."
Sunday, 12 Arodus 4724
Kalsgard is a bustling metropolis of nearly 80,000 souls. Someone from a sleepy little town like Sandpoint might not think it should take too long to get from the relatively unpopulated Bone Quarter, where Sandru had settled the caravan and the group found temporary housing, to the Amber Quarter, where the merchant Fynn Snaevald lives.
But the group finds instead that between the crowds, the bridges, the gates, and the confusing streets, it takes most of an hour to find Snaevald's shop even with good directions and a local to guide them. Kelda doesn't even seem to think this is abnormal. Luckily, this far north summer days are long, and there are hours yet left of daylight.
The lintel over the front door reads "Snaevald" in the trade language as well as Skald's borrowed dwarven letters and a little wooden plaque set into the wall next to the door has a hand-painted representation of a whale, indicating the whale oil and amber merchant's primary business.
Byron keeps an eye out for anyone paying a bit too much attention to the group as Zaraleva asks around for leads.
[dice=Perception]d20+14
Byron once again notes the abnormal number of ravens congregating on rooftops nearby, but with the crowds in the streets it's hard to tell if anyone on the ground is following them.
As the group is making its way to Fynn's shop, Aiko says, "You all keep going. I'm going to break off into the crowd and watch for anyone trying to follow us."
The ninja vanishes into the press of bodies.
"Good day, friend, we are looking for Master Snaevald. We are told there is no greater expert on historic swords and if he has the time, we have much to discuss."
Before the monk could get a word off on Aiko with a reply, the ninja was already gone. He looks back with a sense of unease but presses forward. While inside, he notices creatures that have to be seen to be believed. Nevertheless, he waits to see a reply.
Entering Snaevald's shop, the group sees all sorts of whale oil products on shelves and barrels of the raw material stacked behind the counter along with a locked display case of amber statuettes and amber-decorated items. A wide counter cuts the large room in half, and a slender and wiry old man with long, straight white hair and a beard that covers his chest sits behind it, copying notes from receipts and invoices into a thick ledger. He looks up as the group enters, quickly sizing up Adrian, Byron, Lyraesel, and Zaraleva as they come in- Kelda had opted to wait outside.
"Good day, friend, we are looking for Master Snaevald. We are told there is no greater expert on historic swords and if he has the time, we have much to discuss."
The old man's neutral expression turns friendly at the compliment and mention of his hobby. "No greater experts, eh? Well, old Fynn knows a thing or two about some swords, that's for sure." Fynn quickly eyes the hilts of the weapons at everyone's belts. "What exactly do you have in mind? I can tell you who you should talk to if it's out of my field of expertise."
As the group is making its way to Fynn's shop, Aiko says, "You all keep going. I'm going to break off into the crowd and watch for anyone trying to follow us."
The ninja vanishes into the press of bodies.
Aiko disappears into the crowd and is gone, certain no one could possibly be following her now. Unfortunately, the crowd is so thick here that she can't be equally certain she has spotted anyone following them. As she keeps watch for spies she sees Kelda take up guard outside Snaevald's shop, apparently to keep anyone from following the group but also plainly marking where they went.
Byron removes the sword in it's sheathe and holds it out for Maseter Snaevald. "We found this blade and thought you might have some knowledge about it."
"I see what you mean, thank you."
"Shall we adjust our focus, then? Perhaps to ancient Minkaian swords? Do you know of Suishen?"
Fynn takes the sword from Byron and looks it over. From his movements you can tell he's an experienced collector but after a few seconds he shakes his head and re-sheathes the weapon and offers it back to Byron. "When I saw you take it out I hoped it was a jian that someone had put a crossguard on but it looks like it's just a Taldan style blade. I don't know much about swords made on this side of the world. There are a couple steel merchants I could recommend, or a collector I know of if it's particularly valuable."
"I see what you mean, thank you."
"Shall we adjust our focus, then? Perhaps to ancient Minkaian swords? Do you know of Suishen?"
Fynn looked surprised. "Suishen? How do you know that name?" He looked genuinely curious, leaning forward and his face lighting with interest.
"We were told a fantastic tale of a great leader forced to sell his prized sword to buy a boat and escape unimaginable horror. If you know more of the story, we would love to hear it."
"And the collector you mentioned, do they buy and sell? Or even craft magic weapons?"
Adrian narrowed his eyes, but continued speaking. "We came across it while we retrieved the sword and was hoping you could make of it in a way we couldn't."
"And the collector you mentioned, do they buy and sell? Or even craft magic weapons?"
"Ove Halderson, in the Ice Quarter. He buys more than he sells but I have heard of him selling if the price is right. He buys and sells scrimshaw as his main line but he does have a nice collection of swords."
"Now if you want something new-made or enchanted, you'd want to go see the dwarves, yeah? Stone Quarter. The best of the best are the ones closest to the Great Temple of Torag, but you'll pay dearly there, if you can even get anything commissioned- some of them have waitlists years long, with ring givers and heroes waiting for a custom blade. But if you're looking just for ready made steel, I'd go over to the Ice Quarter. Audgunn Viggosdottir has a shop near the founder's stone, she has fair prices for good steel. I know she buys and sells from visitors."
"We were told a fantastic tale of a great leader forced to sell his prized sword to buy a boat and escape unimaginable horror. If you know more of the story, we would love to hear it."
Fynn nods and sighs, shaking his head. "I don't know about a great leader. He told me some cock and bull story about being a nobleman from Minkai to drive the price up, but everybody knows all the Minkaian nobles from the Five Families were killed in the civil war a decade before I even saw him. It was a beautiful sword, though, and enchanted like nothing I've ever seen before."
"I paid him his weight in gold and more, then tried to wear it around like an idiot." Fynn smiles at the memory. "I was never much of a swordsman but I know enough to defend myself. I thought a magic sword might make me a match for some of these real warriors we get around here but I never had a reason to use it, even back when I used to be a hotheaded youngster." The old man's smile fades. "Something always felt off, wearing it. Didn't sit right in my hand, tugged at my belt like a stone, the balance was all wrong in spite of the perfection I could see when I looked at it." He shook his head. "Hung it up over my mantle after only a few weeks."
He points at Zaraleva. "Reason I was surprised you asked about it- well, other than that being over 60 years ago- is that it was stolen right out of my house just a couple weeks back. Broke in and killed Oleg, poor man, and grabbed Suishen off the mantle. Took nothing else. I haven't heard of anyone trying to pawn it, either, so they must have wanted it specifically."
"I am sorry to hear about the theft and death of your friend. If you do not mind me asking, was Oleg killed with the blade or something else?" Byron asks.
"No sign of who took it?" Lyraesel asks.
"Hmmm...too late for Speak With Dead. Maybe Locate Object?" ponders Zaraleva aloud.
"I am sorry to hear about the theft and death of your friend. If you do not mind me asking, was Oleg killed with the blade or something else?" Byron asks.
Fynn shrugged, face skeptical, but nodded. "Friend? I suppose he was. He'd served me for decades and was a good man. His wife was surely upset. I paid for his cremation and let her take a few days of rest from her duties."[b] He sighed. [b]"As to your question, Oleg was still alive when I got home. The only description the could give was that one of the masked intruders was much taller than the others and seemed to be in charge."
"No sign of who took it?" Lyraesel asks.
"He said they were all in black with their faces covered. I reported the robbery to the city’s watchmen, but nothing ever came of it. Bunch of lazy louts, the lot of them."
The old man eyes the group and comes to a decision. "Let me make you an offer. I don't really care about getting the sword back. It's beautiful but it's just an ornament on my mantle. By the law, I'm entitled to weregild for Oleg's death. If you pursue the sword for me, you'll be within my rights of blood vengeance on the thieves. If you can discover who did this, exact my vengeance against them to defend my honor and property rights, and recover the sword, you can have it as a prize and will be entitled to keep whatever else you recover in your pursuit."
"Oh. I apologize for your loss." Adrian blinked then rubbed his head in embarrassment for reading the situation all wrong. When the old man told them of the offer, he bowed his head in response. "We will do what you ask to avenge him. Do you know how he retrieved the sword in the first place?"
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Aiko finally reappears, having found no signs of a tail. At some point she took the opportunity to change back out of her adventuring garb and into her entertaining garb, meaning that she has switched to a form-fitting Minkaian-themed acrobat's outfit with a colorful trailing sash and exuberant makeup. Eat your heart out, weebs.
She enters the store in complete silence and takes up a position behind the (taller) party members with a brief and wordless bow.
"I guess this gives us a bit of a lead. Do you remember which guard supposedly took your report?" Byron asks.
"Oh. I apologize for your loss." Adrian blinked then rubbed his head in embarrassment for reading the situation all wrong. When the old man told them of the offer, he bowed his head in response. "We will do what you ask to avenge him. Do you know how he retrieved the sword in the first place?"
Fynn nods his appreciation at the group's agreement. "He told me it was a family heirloom, brought all the way over the Crown of the World from Tian-Min. It was a beautiful sword, at that. Likely commissioned by a Minkai noble family, but a real samurai would never have sold his family's sword. I suspect he took it off his master's corpse during the trip or it was the weapon of an enemy. He didn't seem like a thief, but an opportunist? I could see that, yes."
"I guess this gives us a bit of a lead. Do you remember which guard supposedly took your report?" Byron asks.
The old merchant nodded. "Hardbein Arnulfson. They call him Hardhands. Hard-head is more like it. He's watch thane for this part of the Amber Quarter."
"A man named Longthews is probably pretty tall. Maybe this was his gang and they are being paid to stop us."