"We've gotta do the Drop! I mean, I'm sure fillin' in on basilisk'll be mighty fun too. I just don't have the best history with teams, you see."
Mal chews on her inner lip as she looks back and forth between the rest of the crew. "So Drop in the the afternoon?"
"Basilisk is entertaining, I suppose. Very traditional game!" Gig isn't the biggest sports guy, but considers the game an important part of Highhelm culture.
"I wouldn't mind seeing people do the drop. I'll leaving the dropping to you, though, Mal."
Diomira's Drop is located in the Depths, part of the countless tunnels and caverns that weave through Emperor's Peak beneath the core of Highhelm itself. The Rapid River drops into the Depths from Stonebreach; skirts the edge of Deep Fork; wends through Artist’s Walk; and then plunges over 100 feet off an underground cliff. The waterfall has been a popular destination since it was discovered by the first clans in the Highhelm area.
Its current name was coined in the early –4600s AR, when a daring woman descended the cliff next to the waterfall without any climbing equipment. It’s said Diomira’s journey was an undertaking to win the hand of one of the finest blacksmiths of her day—Sadrilde Gleamspark. Sadrilde declared she would not consider any partner unless they brought her a whetstone handpicked from the base of the falls. Diomira thought it worth the risky climb. Her bravery won Sadrilde’s attention and her hand in marriage. The romance between the two was memorialized in song, and the ballad’s lyrics inspired the waterfall’s current name.
Skeptics believe Diomira couldn’t have made the climb without at least a rope, since the rocks nearby are slippery from the waterfall’s spray. Certainly no one who has tried to recreate her descent has succeeded. Yet, every year, a few romantics like to try.
When you arrive at the Drop, you see a small group of onlookers enjoying the view. A kobold mans a small food cart selling kebabs. Seeing the determination in your eyes, the kobold scowls. "I've seen that look before. You're gonna attempt the drop, aren't ya? It's not a good idea. I wouldn't recommend it. You're really gonna do it, eh? Well, I'll go put the clerics on standby. You're gonna need a rescue once you get stuck, if you're lucky--or funeral rites, if you're unlucky!"
Gig picks up a kebab and looks up at the falls. "Well, I'll start making a puppet show about this." He casts an interested eye on Mal. "I've got just the puppet to start with. This will be very dramatic!"
Brijetta looks over the drop and decides quickly she's not that foolhardy. She decides while her new friends are busy here, she's going to see if she can find out what's happening at the stable. She's no detective but she doesn't want any of the animals to be hurt.
Mal stretches to her tiptoes, sets aside her carapace shield, and takes the steep decline at a run! Sure feet spread broadly help her keep her balance until the grade gets too steep to do anything but cling to the rocks with every limb she can find!
Her fingers work their way into every crevice; she even takes a brief moment to make her hands more clawlike for a break.
But eventually, her hand slips. She can't regain her handhold so she just kicks off from the wall as hard as she can to at least not bounce off the cliff face the whole way down!
This is really far.
People really do this?
Maybe I should have listened to the explanation.
And then she is mercifully unconscious.
Though Mal tumbles toward the end of her descent, the crowd still gasps at her display of skill and daring. They cheer when she hauls herself back up from the bottom of the cliff, bruised but not broken.
”Well, she made it further than most! Nice going!” the kobold vendor says with a grin, handing Mal a complimentary kebab.
Uhe smiles weakly looking up at the Drop.
Still a bit full from me breakfast....
Mal wobbles as she gets back to the top, but her smile doesn't. "Gonna need just a touch o' rest."
Pulling out her healers tools she quickly daubs and plasters her bangs and scrapes, and tightly wraps the one sprain.
"Good as new!"
Once Mal has recovered, you head back up to Stonebreach. Stonebreach, the district that runs throughout the bottom layer of Highhelm, is a place of contradictions. Named for the only entrance to Highhelm by road, it is both cosmopolitan and insular, a place where the diligent farmers and cleaners that labor in the backdrop of Highhelm live side-by-side with enterprising merchants and traders from distant lands. Breachers, as most locals call themselves, take pride in this, seeing Stonebreach as an essential crossroads between the surface and the rest of Highhelm—a place
where residents are a bit more open and less traditional than in the rest of the city and where personal passions are as important as the work done for city and clan.
Seeking to help the rancher whose stable is allegedly being sabotaged, you make your way to his business, the House of Six Nails (named for the number of nails used to affix a horseshoe). As you draw near, you can see several augdunars milling about. Selectively bred for their strength, endurance, and what dwarves often call loyalty (with some critics calling it “mind-boggling stubbornness”), augdunars are a specialized mule breed unique to the Five Kings Mountains. They’re difficult to raise and rarely sold to outsiders, so demand remains high.
The stable's proprietor is busily repairing a stone fence using equal parts rock and profanity. His mood brightens, though, once he realizes that his potential saviors are here. Although frazzled and sleep-deprived, he’s a good host, pulling out a few chairs and sharing some coarse (yet tasty) flatbread baked earlier this morning.
"I appreciate you coming to lend aid. Name's Ektar Beetsmith. Bought this place from Karya Tolphaga—a legend among horse breeders, though she recently retired. Figured it was time for me to strike it rich with ranching augdunars. We Gelderon folks, we keep properties in the clan when we can, so she sold it to me at a fair price just a few months back. Good deal, right?"
He half-heartedly kicks the stone fence as he answers his own question. “Phah! Been hell, it has! Someone’s been breaking fences, hiding tools, bleeding the mules, and making a right mess of things!" He looks about with a scowl and sniffs derisively. "Much as I’ve kept watch, I haven’t been able to catch the vandals in action. Tried calling in family to help, but they’ve all politely declined, like I’m some pariah. This needs proper investigation, and I have some funds set aside to make it worth your while."
"This is a proper mystery! I can't believe someone is targeting the augdunars. What a villain!" Gig huffs, indignantly. The stubborn mules are practically the mascots of the city!
"Could it be the augdunars?" Brijetta asks, as usual seeming to speak more to herself than anyone else. "Maybe they're not happy. Why would anyone else want to hurt Ektar? He gave us flatbread, so seems nice. That's better than a punch in the arm."
"I reckon it might be gremlins, li'l fey that can get themselves up to all manner o' mischief. I've heard of all kinds of 'em breakin' things, or takin' things, but bleedin' mules isn't a real common trick. There's powerful many kinds of 'em though."
Ektar grunts. "Thought it might be local kids causing trouble. Then I thought it might be thieves. Stayed up a few nights on watch just to see for myself, but never spotted a soul, even though someone got into the shed and messed things up proper. Augdunars got a mean streak and sharp wits, so they can cause some damage when angry. But whatever’s responsible shows finesse. Maybe fey. Maybe even a poltergeist!
"Damage really got bad around three weeks ago, and nearly every day there’s some new misfortune. Honestly, it’s like the House of Six Nails refers to some Kuthite torment!"
Ektar throws up his hands. "And I don’t know why my family's ignoring me! They helped me wrangle the gold for a down payment, but since then, they’ve shunned me like I’ve done something wrong. Talk to them if you like," he grumbles, "because they won’t talk to me."
Once you are ready to explore, Ektar unlocks the facility for you to investigate. There are three main areas:
The Workshop: Largely unchanged over Ektar’s tenure, this large shed houses various tools for grooming, cleaning, and feeding livestock. That includes a small furnace suitable for heating and shaping horseshoes, with a modest stockpile of coal and iron bars. Despite Ektar’s best efforts, the workshop is in disarray. Noteworthy damage includes several spilled grain bags, a dozen iron bars jammed into the unlit furnace, tools hidden in various places, and damaged furniture.
The Barn: Although designed for housing and training horses, the stable itself has been partly renovated. Many of its inner walls are knocked out while the columns remain, creating a more open space for augdunars to shelter in small groups when they’re not grazing outside Highhelm. The ground floor has over a foot of compacted soil sitting atop the cavern’s stone, scattered with straw and droppings the exhausted Ektar hasn’t cleaned up yet. A few small traps for catching pests are set along the periphery. Several augdunar droppings are smeared near the ceiling at one end of the barn. At the other end, a hay loft creates a partial second floor, though the ladder that should access the loft is in splinters.
The Paddock: A fenced-in arena originally designed for exercising and training horses covers most of the property, though it now allows the new augdunar residents some room to roam. A thick layer of silty sand covers the entire area and provides a soft surface for running. Part of Ektar’s herd is stationed here, amounting to 26 augdunars. Most of them are passing the time clustered together, but a few stand apart or wander over to inspect you.
Since the owner mentioned the shed specifically, Gig starts his investigation there.
"Hmm. Quite the mess. Seems pretty random. Is there any pattern to it?"
Mal's feeling pretty good about her guess about what's happening to the tools and things, so she heads out to investigate the herd.
Speaking softly to calm the beasts, Mal gives their overall health a once-over.
Uhe enters the House of Six Nails. The dandy dwarf absently rubbing a gloved finger along a bench for dust. He looks up at the approaching farmer.
Ektar Beetsmith. Nice to meet you. Uhe Stonethorn and friends ready to find the culprit(s) responsible for the vandalism.
Uhe turns his blue eyes to roam about the place.
Could use a bit of a sweep and dusting, eh. Nevertheless, we shall get to the bottom of this particular problem. The sweeping and dusting advice is free.
Uhe begins to wander about the shop.
Investigative Skills: Crafting, Perception, or Thievery; Arcana or Occultism
The Investigator does indeed Clue In anyone else exploring the Workshop.
Brijetta heads for the workshop, straight as a nail she learned to make as an apprentice, before she turned her attention to softer, more malleable and valuable metals.
"Hello," she calls out, looking at the furnace, "can you tell us what's happened in her? Why have you gone so cold?"
As Mal inspects the augdunars, she sees that most of them have minor maladies like small sores, welts, patches of missing hair, and are slightly gaunt from being too stressed to eat properly. The wounds are randomly distributed around the animals’ bodies, though few wounds appear above their shoulders. These injuries don’t resemble any conventional patterns of animal abuse, which should alleviate concerns that Ektar might be a cruel or negligent caretaker.
***
Uhe notices that many of the scattered tools in the workshop are hidden on high shelves, having been placed atop level surfaces (not under or squeezed between anything). The few exceptions are larger and appear to have been violently driven into surfaces, like a pitchfork that’s lodged into a crate. This suggests the lighter items might have been relocated using telekinetic magic like mage hand.
Meanwhile, Brijetta assesses the overall damage. Gashes in a stool indicate someone struck it a few times with a small blade, leaving deep gouges that indicate considerable strength but little subtlety. The spilled grain bags show signs of being slashed and then neatly overturned, again showing the culprit has considerable strength. A random assortment of tools are missing, not anything tied to a particular task or trade.
There's nothing else to find in the workshop.
Mal continues to investigate the paddock, hoping to find some additional signs of what else might have been in here.
With nothing of interest found in the shed, Gig moves on to nose around the barn, picking daintily through the straw and trying to avoid stepping in too many droppings.
Mal isn't able to find any tracks or the like inside the paddock.
Gig has more luck in the barn than he did in the workshop. He pokes around the assorted traps, snares and snap-jaw traps designed for catching small prey like rats. A few remain armed. The others are sprung but show signs of having been triggered ineffectively, as if someone had sprung them from a safe distance.
Additionally, he notices that the augdunar droppings seem smeared on the wall, not thrown. This suggests either that someone climbed up there or that the droppings were telekinetically manipulated, such as with mage hand.
Not quite knowing what to do next -- she's not a detective -- Brijetta wanders after Gig, looking around the barn. At his suggestion -- is he just trying to get rid of me? -- she scrambles up to the loft to look around. Despite being small for a dwarf, her time at the forge means she's relatively strong.
Brijetta is able to clamber up to the barn's loft. There are several dozen hay bales here, one of which is partly disassembled, its straw having been used to make a makeshift nest about 2 feet across. A few trinkets litter the nest, including several braids of white animal hair and a crude chain made from shoeing nails that have been bent into tiny links.
There are no more clues to be found in the barn.
Brijetta scrambles back down, quietly telling Gig what she found, since he actually seems interested. Maybe he wasn't just trying to get rid of me...
Once the party reassemble, the Investigator begin piecing together the various clues from the three vandalized locations.
The dwarf ticks off a finger.
The Paddock. Seems a disease may have been inflicted upon those poor creature purposefully.
Uhe ticks off a second finger.
The Barn. Seems our vandal(s) purposefully smeared feces on the walls, disengagedtraps and let their displeasureshow there. It'spersonal.
The dandy dwarf ticks off a third finger.
The Workshop. Tools purposefully set out of conventional reach. Tools violently stuck into tables. Telekinetic powers and brute strength are on display in there.
Uhe turns to the Farmer.
The perplexing thing about this is why is someone(s), or something(s) angry with this shop?
Cricket follows Mel towards the Padlock. He lets her look at the animals while he focuses on other areas.
Cricket notices that the augdunars seem uncharacteristically skittish. The majority have herded together less to socialize and more because they’re on alert, their eyes darting about and scanning the seemingly quiet paddock. A few augdunars are brave enough to wander alone. However, an augdunar with a dappled, mostly white coat seems to have been exiled from the herd.
Pointing that animal out to Mal allows her to examine it more closely. She sees that it is particularly haggard, having several tufts of hair missing, small half-healed lacerations, and bruising from where the augdunar has collided with the stone fencing during attempts to escape the paddock.
Further searching the area, Cricket sees that the soft sand would be ideal for preserving tracks were it not for the two dozen augdunars here; hoofprints abound. Even so, the ranger can identify some small humanoid tracks left by a creature likely about 3 feet tall. The steps are cautious, as if the person were moving slowly, and the tracks sometimes shuffle around a set of augdunar prints. The mysterious figure’s prints are erased by other traffic, but a few of them seem to head toward the barn.
Brijetta avoids saying anything that will make others think she's stupid.
"What could it be!? I've no idea, but it's not any kind of common occurrence, or I am sure that I would have heard of it."
Gig is as hopeless at this as he is at smelting. He has a lot to learn!
Uhe scratches his beard a bit perplexed.
A buffef and angry squirrel with a white fur fetish?
"Well... it's for sure a gremlin, but that's not tellin' me anything 'bout which kind it is. I reckon we could hang some bells if'n we get our hands on some? Or we could just hide out an' watch the nest 'r the white furred critters."
"Oh, it is not a gremlin." Cricket says, shaking his head. "Yes, it is a fey, but a house spirit, an angry one that is perhaps feeling disrespected."
"Dvorovoi I think they are called, house spirits that likes to care for animals but hates animals with white-fur for some reason." He says, shrugging, before turning to Ektar. "You have a choice to make, Mister Ektar... you either find some way to get rid of this house spirit or you make amends with them. I suggest the later, because once pleased they will take care of your augdunars better than the best employee you could ever hope to find."
"I think he is living on the barn's loft. You'll probably have to sell your white-furred animals and leave meals for the spirit. Be polite and patient, formally introduce yourself and every animal you have."
"Oh! Yes, of course, I'll do my best," Ektar says. "But, uh, I ain't great at making amends. And I don't know much about faeries except for children's tales! Maybe you could stay here a bit and help me with the process?"
Brijetta -- sure the dvorovoi isn't going to want to talk to her -- sets about trying to fix the stables up. The metal, as always, seems to talk to her, helping her set it right.
Gig warms up his pipes with a little humming, then launches into his song.
"Sorry dvorovoi,
We've talked to the mules
and told the new guy
he has to follow the rules"
"Ohhhh. House spirits. Plumb forgot about those. No wonder ma is always sayin' I need to visit more."
Despite her chagrin, she brightens at the increased clarity of the situation. "Thanks Cricket! I guess at this point you've seen everything at least the once, huh? An' the fix is dead simple!"
Gig's song gets off to a rocky start, but gradually improves. Brijetta busies herself fixing up the stables while Mal kindly treats the animals and performs some classic rituals.
After several minutes, there's a shimmering in the air as the house spirit makes herself visible. She resembles a young gnome woman with donkey-like ears, and she wears an expertly tailored tunic made from an old grain sack.
"Hmph. Very well, I accept your apology," the fey says, arms crossed over her chest. "For now, at least. Me name's Algerschmick. The lady who used to run this stable knew what to do to make me happy, but this lout never took any steps to do so!"
Ektar grumbles and scratches at his beard. "How was I supposed to know you were even here? Karya didn't tell me there was a house spirit living here!"
"That's not my fault," Algerschmick says, sniffing disdainfully. "Anyway, I've got a few demands on how to be treated if you want me to stop my mischief."
The house spirits spends the next few minutes negotiating with Ektar. He balks at a few of her demands, yet they’re overall inexpensive offerings and minor rituals like setting out a bowl of milk every third day, announcing himself before climbing to the loft, and stabling no white-haired animals here. With a little cajoling, Ektar agrees. The two shake hands, and the house spirit vanishes again.
Ektar turns towards you. "Well, I guess that's that, then. Thank you for your help." He pays you the promised reward of 20 gp.
One of the deal’s conditions involves no white-haired animals, and that means the dappled augdunar must go. Ektar hopes you might adopt and name the creature. In addition, Ektar pulls in favors with Clan Gelderon to secure either light barding or heavy barding for a creature of your choice, plus a steadyfoot tassel. If you aren’t interested in companion creature gear, he can instead secure a future discount on buying an animal staff or greater animal staff, reducing the price by 50 gp.
"Oh, what should we name you?" Brijetta murmurs as she leads the augdunar away, not quite sure what she will do with it. But they can't leave it here, clearly. It's in danger, and it's not its fault that no one likes it.
She decides to head to the Round Market, to see the people from Dongun Hold, where she grew up.
Brijetta marvels at the technological wonders from her homeland.
Brijetta looks disappointed as she realizes her uncle didn't make the trip, though the chances of that were astronomically small. She decides to wander around the market, to see if there's any food for her new augdunar.
I need to think of a name! I want it to be a good one...
She's so focused on thinking of a name, however, she doesn't really pay much attention to what's going on around her.
Uhe just stares from Algerschmick to Ektar during negotiations. His repair work a bit shoddy....
While Brijetta is poking around the market, Gig investigates the lead on translators. He is at least fluent in Elven, as many interesting histories are written in the language.
The fall of Lastwall, the rise of the Whispering Tyrant, military collaboration with Kyonin, and early hints of diplomatic dialogue with Belkzen have increased demand for language teachers and conversation partners. Most of these schools are in King’s Crown and cater to powerful clans, so serving as a tutor could you build powerful friendships.
Languages like Chthonian, Elven, Hallit, Jotun, Necril, and Orcish are in high demand, with a lower demand for Empyrean, Gnomish, Goblin, Petran, Sakvroth, and Varisian.
Gig lets his allies know that he'll be working on making some connections and spends 3 days poring over elven texts.
It takes a bit, but Gig finally gets into the groove of being a tutor, and soon he is passing on his knowledge of the Elven tongue.
In the meantime, the rest of you gather up all the remaining leads within the city of Highhelm:
The antics of a bored cloud dragon youth living at the Cloudspire Embassy has frazzled neighbors. Anyone who can discourage her pranks or keep her entertained would be a hero.
Violent food poisoning incapacitated dozens at the Silvercap Tavern, which has shut its doors until further notice. Its owner seems desperate for independent investigators to identify what afflicted her customers.
A kobold youth recently disappeared, and some believe he entered the Blacknoon Gauntlet. His community is desperate for his return and seeks someone to brave the gauntlet for a rescue.
Domesticated crabs have recently lashed out at passersby in the Depths. Their Pearlcask tenders seem eager for outside help, fearful that guards might just cull the offending crustaceans.
"We should go help that kobold," Brijetta says, her voice firmer than usual, if still quiet. She knows she's not going to be able to do it herself, but she can't just let the poor boy -- or his family -- suffer!
"Oh, I've heard all kinds of stories about the Blackmoon Gauntlet." Gig's tone implies that none of them are good!
"I agree, though. We should help someone if we can."
Once you travel to the Depths, you head to the Burrows, an eclectic neighborhood of cramped tunnels and hardscrabble inhabitants. As you inquire about the missing kobold youth, an ysoki named Ussa quickly finds you. She’s a young ratfolk with tan fur and a figurative finger on the Burrows’ pulse, which makes her an invaluable contact for nearly anyone getting business done in the neighborhood. She guides you to a less busy tunnel, gives you a discerning look, and asks a few questions to confirm you’re here to help, not make more trouble. Once certain, Ussa shares what she knows.
“My friend Fazil fancies himself a thief. He’s got a good noggin and a good heart, but he thought joining the Blacknoon would be his path to a good life. We all pitched alternatives, but he ran away recently. Almost certainly entered the gauntlet—bad choice, bad choice—and hasn’t been seen since.” Ussa gently tugs at her whiskers with worry. “Blacknoon lets anyone enter to get one of their coins, and it doesn’t lift a finger to help anyone who doesn’t make it out.
“Fazil’s been gone a few days already. I don’t think he’s getting out without help. Maybe you can be that help? Give him a little life coaching while you’re at it? The Burrows don’t have much coin to spare, but I can get a collection going.”
Brijetta looks dismayed. She's between a hammer and anvil. This all sounds awful, but they can't just let the kobold die because he made some bad choices. Her expression firms up.
"We'll go find him!" she declares.