He sheathes the blade, as the voice finishes it’s laugh. The trance of staring into the blade finally ending, taking with it his energy as well. The urge to drop the blade in the mud creeps into his mine but he can’t bring himself to do it. Feeling no better than before he decides to settle for simple conversation instead of facts.
Putting the blade to his hip once again he decides to visit the smithy, knowing a little about the process and curious enough to start a conversation.
“Good evening Master Smithy, my name is Valen. I see the find craftsmanship with which you work that blade. I’m curious as to what you have for sale, or at the very least what you are able to create.”
** spoiler omitted **
As you cast your Augury spell in front of this smithy, you interpret the results to be generally positive. You're not really clear on your intended course of action, but standing in front of the building you get a nice, inviting feeling. You approach and greet him.
The Dwarven smith looks up from his work at your greeting. Your nostrils fill with the distinctive scent of burning coal and smelted iron. The katana which you reference has been carefully completed and set aside in the time since you passed by earlier and subsequently had your moment with your patron. He has moved on to hammering out a few cut nails when you approach. He takes a moment to survey your kit and recognizes you for an adventurer.
"G'day lad. Welcome to Morlin's Smithy. Name's Morlin....Morlin Coalhewer as ya migh' imagine. Boy 'ave ya come at a poor time. A season ago I'd 'ave been flush wit unique wares for ya to paruse..." He gestures with his hammer amongst his cluttered shop, which is mostly spear heads and short swords stacked atop the many benches. "Tha' piece o'er there is a recent leisure work o' mine. Been prayin' o'er it as I work, mostly ta give maself a bit o' peace o' mind at the end of the day. No special attachment to it mind you. Just a fun piece to take ma mind off what's been happenin' round ere. I'd be 'appy to part with it knowin' it might be used against those bloody hobgoblins. Not for free o' course. Ya interested in it ma boy?"
“Oh it’s no problem, merely a curious traveler with a need for arms and armor. Im not exactly flush with coin myself. I only have 24 gold to my name a few heirlooms. Was wondering though how things have been here, maybe I could help or maybe I could do a favor for you in exchange for a favor.”
Now, however, her years spent sharing the joys and sorrows of her family and neighbors had given her a keen appreciation of the value of each life, the value of each moment, particularly when human life was so short. It fueled her commitment to fight this incursion.
She imagined the scorn of her eldarin family, having pity for humans. They often made sport of tormenting humans with pranks, often with deadly outcomes. They laughed at the foolish humans who let their passions draw them into these traps. They deserved what they got.
Luanna never participated in their games. Elves suffer and die when monsters invade their realm. They die in petty wars. How were they any different than the humans? It drove Luanna to visit the plane where lived the humans, curious to better understand them. That led to her marriage and family, which she now was seeing as an extension of the man she loved.
Her eyes did not tear up, but they manifested the elven equivalent of tears: shades of red and violet around the edges of her opaque eye sockets.
As he holds it up and hands it off to you to test, it’s immediately clear how well crafted this weapon is. The weight is incredibly well balanced. You could easily see yourself being able to wield it one handed effectively, or two handed with a tremendous degree of accuracy and power.
”You help us out around here, and I’ll let the piece go for 150 gold pieces.”
“We’ll I’d help anyways but I’ll take you up on the offer Morlin Coalhewer. I appreciate such a fine blade, and I’m never one to turn down the chance to own such a work of great craftsmanship.” after holding it for a moment and feeling the blade he returns it with a smile.
“I’ll be off, but when I come back I’ll hopefully have the coin for your blade and you’ll have less to worry about around here.” . With that he gives a curt bow and heads to meet up with the others content in taking in the town and it’s ambiances.
** spoiler omitted **
He lets out a tremendous, barrel-chested laugh followed by a raspy cough that marks one who has probably spent too much time around burning coal. ”Good ta meet ya Valen. Ah’ll be seein’ ya around lad.”
As the afternoon draws on into evening of the first day in Drellin’s Ferry, you all gather yourselves at the table for supper in the Old Bridge Inn. You spend the time over supper discussing whatever implications the attack this close to town holds for the folk of Drellin’s Ferry, and by extension Elsir Vale. Your conversation is interrupted by the piercing squeal of a very tight exterior door hinge being opened. You all look up to see two figures enter the common area of the Inn. The first is a much taller and broader woman than average. Her long tight braids hangs past her shoulders, and her half plate is particularly well crafted. It looks to have been fitted to her slender frame and offers a remarkable amount of mobility. She carries a longer two handed sword strapped to her back, and her dark brown skin is showing signs of her age and a life spent in combat. Her eyes are weary looking and are marked by heavy bags underneath them. Those of you recently familiar with Drellin’s Ferry know her to be the Guard Captain Soranna Anita. She is well loved and respected by the townsfolk for her diligent attention to the security of the town.
Accompanying her is a man of late middle age. His snowy hair is neatly trimmed and he wears respectable red and cream colored robes. He carries a brass tipped walking stick that is ornately shaped into the image of a small bird. His light caramel skin betrays an easier life than his companion, and his hazel eyes are soft and warm. He and Soranna take a second to survey the Inn’s common room and then approach you.
”I wish I could greet you with warmer welcomes adventurers. Word has reached me of your arrival in Drellin’s Ferry. I sent for some help with our marauder problem, and I fear that our troubles have only become worse since that dispatch. I’m told you are the band of mercenaries sent to assist in this matter?”
Sten holds his wife-to-be tightly as she finishes the story of her and the kid's harrowing escape. He too cries at the loss of her father, a good friend, and mentor. As his Grandmother comes over, he straightens up and introduces her to Jil.
Sten settles in the room Jil has been staying in and offers up some money to help pay for their room and board. Once that has been completed he steps back outside and heads towards the ferry to examine the far bank.
Standing on the east side of the river, you look off at the far bank to inspect it for activity. As the sun begins to set over the tops of the trees in the later afternoon passing to early evening, you see the horse handlers unhitching the horses from the far side and loading them onto the ferry to be brought to the near bank. This is a divergence from typical, as there are nearly always horses stowed on each bank. The stable across the shore looks to be abandoned out of an abundance of caution. The river is a formidable barrier to any direct assault on the town, but it is far from uncrossable. In the dimming light and from the eastern bank, you cannot make out any details of the road that wends along into the sliver of the Witchwood that exists on the western side of the river.
Luanna embraces Jilyian with heartfelt sympathy and offers any healing aid the survivors might need. Once her grandson departs, Luanna checks with a local druid acquaintance and returns to the inn for supper.
When the guard captain and her companion approach the table and asked if the group was sent from Brindol, Luanna stands and answers, "We are. We had an uneventful journey until we got near Drellin's Ferry. We were attacked by several squads of hobgoblins, some hellhounds, and some kind of priest. We dispatched them but there were some casualties. How can we help deal with this dreadful incursion."
”That’s quite disturbing. I suppose introductions are in order. My name is Norro Wiston and I’m honored to introduce you to our Guard Captain Soranna Anita. I’m glad you’ve arrived. When we sent word to friends in Bristol for aid I wasn’t sure anyone would bother answering. I’ve lived here for quite a long time, and friends in the big city are rarer these days than they used to be.”
“In any event, I’m hoping you’ll be able to help us deal with the menace. The town coffers aren’t flush, but we’ve managed to put together about 1500 gold pieces as a reward for your aid. Most reports coming in from the homesteads that have been attacked seem to agree that the troops are coming out of the Wyrmsmokes. It’s small surprise, since the isolated attacks we’ve encountered every few decades also come out of the Wyrmsmokes. It’s a rocky landscape run wild with monstrous folk and goblinoid war bands.”
“I take it after your encounter today you’re still up for the task?”
As he talks you notice Soranna sizing up each of you. She seems to be watching your reactions to the offer Norro has laid in front of you.
Sten steps forward to speak to Norro.
"You know me and that my fiance's father was killed by these creatures and their home put to the sword. I need no pay to fight to protect this land from this threat."
He turns back to the rest of the group.
"I do not expect the rest of you to forgo the reward, this will just give you a little bit more each!" he gives a wan smile and steps back.
Luanna stands after Sten speaks. "I am Luanna Raumolossë, druid and friend of this community and the Witchwood. Hold your reward until the threat is passed. There will likely be rebuilding. Each hobgoblin killed is like gold in my pouch. Pay me by killing the enemy. We can discuss strategy when the meal is finished. I can fight, but I'm also a good spy when I change into various beasts that are natural to these woods. If anyone needs healing or herbs, I may be able to help that way as well."
Valen stays seated and listens attentively before injecting his own words.
“I’d be more than willing to help, it seems you folks out here could use all the help you could get. The coin is appreciated, but no need to bankrupt yourselves just to pay us. Enough to keep ourselves going helpful. Do you know anything else about these marauding hobgoblins?”
Norro nods towards each of you in turn that affirm your commitment to the job. ”Thank you Sten, Luanna, and Valen . Soranna and I appreciate your assistance. As far as information regarding the marauders, I’ll defer to my good counterpart here to fill you in.”
Soranna silently regards each of you positively in her appraisal of you. ”Counter to what we initially thought when the attacks first started, it looks like like a large tribe of hobgoblins has come down out of the Wyrmsmokes. What has, in the past, been isolated and small bands is way too organized and persistent to be fractured. I’m worried there’s a chance that they might put a force forth that is sizable enough to sack the town. And even more than the threat to our homes, the road is our lifeblood. If we can’t keep the Dawn Road open, merchants won’t come this way and we’ll lose all trade. We won’t be able to afford to live here, even if we can keep our homes here.”
Wiston senses the guard captain finish her piece and fills in the silence that follows, ”Your generosity is appreciated. Surely we’ll figure a way to reward your courage. I can answer any questions I’m able to tonight, but I’m afraid it looks like the answers we all seek,” he looks intently and Sten, ”and the revenge you seek lies in the Witchwood to the northwest. It’s a lot more wild and uninhabited than east of the Rhestwash. The proximity to the Wyrmsmokes has always made that side more treacherous.”
Luanna acknowledges the information with a nod and a look of contemplation before she offers. "We will confer and make a plan. We will need to rest and recover this night; but in the morning, I will prepare a set of spells that can serve a reconnaissance mission into the Witchwood to locate enemies and appraise their command structure, if they have one. As a druid, I have the ability to take the form of a bloodhawk. I will fly over the wood closest to the city. If no enemies are found, we can delve deeper, looking for other signs of their movements."
She makes eye contact with each of the others and continues if she senses no one wishes to object to what she has said so far. "If we locate any small groups, we can engage them. If they send a group too large for us, we can use guerilla tactics, taking out any that stray from the group. We can report when we have news. I'll prepare a spell that can get a message to the city."