Henry glowers at Elsie with crossed arms at being referred to as simple bird farmers. "Why would Thasselonians set up here of all places if they aren't looking to trade?"
|
"I know you said you didn't know Blanton well, but do you know if Blanton's got any friends or family?" asks Otoro meekely.
"No, can't say I do. Didn't know him much beyond just a hello on occasion."
"Why would Thasselonians set up here of all places if they aren't looking to trade?"
Elsie shrugs. "Well, the merchant has been up at Stonehome for the last week. Maybe they're settin' up a trade deal?"
"But we do need a place to spend the night while our elder is at the stronghold," Bireli interjects both because they do need a place to sleep and in hopes that it covers Puddins mention of murder. "A farmer I spoke with said you rented out space to travelers."
"Figured we'd get here sooner or later. One of these days, someone'll have to build a proper inn he in town, ut in the meantime...Inn the meantime...get it? In the meantime, yeah I can help you out. It ain't much" she says, gesturing to the shop, "but I'll gladly rent you some space and lay out some bedrolls. My standard rate is five silver a night for the lot of you, and I'll even throw in a meal, no extra charge."
|
|
Elsie leads you to a large wooden table before disappearing into the back. She returns a short time later with a tray of individual grouse pies, the savory filling contained in perfect tender, flaky pastry. "Fresh made this morning." she says with a hint of satisfaction in her voice.
She takes a seat, with you, eating a pie of her own while giving you a few quiet moments to eat. "So you're here to see if Iron Harbor needs help, hm?" she says, after a while. "Well,..." She seems to pause a moment, as if deciding what to say. "I'll tell you, I am a little worried. Things have felt a little, hm, off in town recently. Not necessarily anything specific I could point to, but it's been a little weird since the Thassilonians showed up. And now you say Blanton showed up in Osprey Cove of all places, dead? Did you notice anything else weird on the way in?"
Otoro listens, knowing that the best secrets are often spilled over bread or wine.
That said he tries to buy some good will by sharing at least a bit of what they know.
"We were attacked, twice, along the way. Including creatures from the darklands."
Henry looks concerned. "What makes you think the Thassilonians have anything to do with Darklands creature and storms?" He asks. "Also Blanton mentioned something before he died. He said “Iron Harbor... rust...ship... all dead... before... too late... ”
"Wonder if someone down by the docks would know more about this ship, and what it is here for."
Otoro nods, being more comfortable at the docks than other places.
"Lets head down there and ask around, and then maybe go talk to the Thassilonians."
"Is there anything else interesting around town? This is my first time out of Os...I mean, this is my first time here."
"Sounds good. I don't think being too discreet is going to get us very far." Henry says eager to get this done, head back home to the comfort of his bed, as ths is the furthest from home he has ever been.
|
|
"Interesting? Hm. I guess you could go find ol' Derrol. He's a bit of a strange one. Not really a citizen of the village in the strictest sense. He's a kind of hermit, lives out in one of those old abandoned mansions in Gold's Ruin, I think. I bet he's got some interesting stories. Other than that...honestly, this big gaudy ship in harbor is the most interesting thing that's happened around here in a long time."
Heading down to the docks, you spend a little time talking to people in the area. You overhear some people grumbling about how Stonehome, which is the only temple to Gorum in the area, has been shut up tight since that Thassilonian merchant arrived, and no one has been able to get in for worship. Henry, meanwhile, having a little knowledge of Xin-Edasseril and by extension Thassilon in general, can tell that the ship moored in harbor--the Swordfish--has the markings and bearing of a wealthy merchant's personal ship, rather than a cargo vessel or ship of the navy.
Otoro nervously suggests "Maybe... maybe lets check out Stonehome before we wander out into the boonies looking for Derrol."
"We weren't invited, but it can't hurt to ask!" he says cheerily.
"Especially why they are locked up tight after one of their own just died." Henry points to the ship. "That is a ship of the wealthy if I have ever seen one." And he knows all about spotting wealth.
"If Stonehome is where things are happening, then that's where we should be!"
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
"Huh. I guess maybe that ladder summoning spell woulda come in real handy here."
Otoro asks "I don't see anybody, but lets knock and call out just in case."
"It wouldn't be right to climb over their wall," Bireli says. "We weren't invited, after all. We can ask Elder Ordwi about the meeting when we see her next."
"Maybe they are closed and we come back in the morning?" Henry questions the situation looking for ideas.
"I thought that this is where everybody was! What's going on?"
Otoro shrugs "I think Derrol in one of those old mansions was our next best clue."
|
|
Though the sun hasn't yet set, it is beginning to get lower in the sky as you head out of town to the west. In short order, you come upon the ruins of three large manor houses in close proximity. It's quickly clear that not only are these houses abandoned, but they were never finished being built in the first place. The western-most manor is little more than a foundation, while the eastern manor is partially collapsed. The central manor is the soundest of the trio, having been built even as far as most of a roof.
As you approach, an older man, his hair and thick beard of black hair speckled with gray, emerges from the house. His clothes were once fine, but have since been well worn and repeatedly patched or otherwise repaired.
"Hello, friends! Derrol's the name. Derrol Finnick. Used to be--well, used to be a lot of things, but most recently an underpaid architect, and now just Derrol. These are my houses! The rest of town doesn't like them because they think they're haunted, but I don't mind. Ghosts never bothered me much, and there's plenty of space. Not many visit Iron Harbor, but here you are! What can ol' Derrol do for you?"
Henry looks amazed. "So they are haunted then? They look to be condemned." He glances around nervously. "We were wandering around town sight-seeing. That is some ship in the Harbor." He lets out a low whistle.
"So...there are ghosts here and you just don't mind? What about demons? What about underdark creatures?"
|
|
"Well, the ghosts do like to howl when the wind blows through at night...or maybe that's just the hole in the roof. Who can say for sure?" he says with a grin. "No demons, no underdark creatures, just me and these old houses and plenty of time to go fishing."
When Henry mentions the ship, he glances out to the water. "Yeah, sure is. Showed up about a week ago, and a delegation of Gorumites met them at the pier. I watched it from the cliff until they all headed up to Stonehome, and for the most part they haven't combe back out yet. Although I've been keeping an eye on them after dark on the nights when it's not too stormy. Saw them unload a big crate from the ship in the middle of the night, but they carted it up to Thunderhead Isle instead of bringing it onto the mainland. And I've seen some weird lights up there too a few nights."
"How far is this Thunderhead Isle? If we wanted to check it out..."
Otoro notes "We tried to visit Stonehome, but it was all closed up. It sounds like maybe they are up to something at night and we might get a better reception then. Checking out Thunderhead Isle first makes some sense though."
"Thunderhead Isle sounds like an interesting place to explore while we wait for the elder," Bireli says. "We'll need to find someone to lend us a boat, though."
He looks to Derrol and explains, "We hiked here."
|
|
"Thunderhead Isle? It's not far; you can see it there, across the harbor" he says, pointing to the island on the far side of the water . "Heck, you can walk out there at low tide. Honestly, though, I stay away from the place--went there once, years back, and felt like I was being watched. That was enough for me! But lately, I've been seeing weird lights up there late at night. Nothing bright. Thought I was imagining it the first time. And I doubt you can see them at all from down in the village. But up here, on this cliff, you've got a better view of Rusthenge, and yeah. Weird lights. My take is that them Thassilonians are up to something there, and makes sense since Rusthenge is one of their old buildings anyway, yeah?"
Turning to Bireli: "You hiked here? Did you come from Osprey Cove? I've always wanted to visit! Probably more to my liking than this place, from what I've heard. Iron Harbor's got a tough name and tougher people, and it's not really for me. I tried being tough and failed; I'd rather just fish and make art."
When Otoro mentions your trouble visiting Stonehome, he perks up. "I bet you can get in there if you're willing to be a little sneaky about it. It's well defended from the ground, but completely neglects defense from above. And being built into a hillside like it is, there's a fairly easy approach you could take from above. You might need to be a little sneaky, though. I can show you how to get up there, if you want. All I ask is that you sketch me a map of the interior while you're there. You should also talk to Elsie, over at her shop. I know she had been going in there pretty frequently to take care of one of their rams. She might have suggestsions, too."
Henry smiles a mischiveous smile. "We could sneak out away from Mother tonight and check out these lights at Thunderhead Isle?"
Demonica looks delighted.
"Let's do it!"
"You should!" Bireli encourages Derrol.
To the others, he cautions, "We'll have to make sure we head back before the morning tide, or we'll be stuck out there. Well, most of us."
"Derrol said that you might know a way into Stonehome. Something about a ram? We tried to go there and no one answered."
|
|
"Oh...yeah, I suppose I might know a way. And I am a bit worried about Ida--that's one of the rosethorn rams they Gorumites have been trying to domesticate. She's been sick, and must have been suffering this week since I haven't been able to get in and give her her medicine." She thinks for a moment, as if coming to a decision. "I'll tell you what: I'll tell you how to sneak in if you'll agree to take her medicine with you and give it to her. If you can sneak her out of there so I can take care of her properly, even better."
"They haven't let you in to keep tending their sick ram? That's terrible! They should have sent her out for you to care for her if they didn't want you visiting," Bireli says.
"Do you think she'll be okay until tomorrow or should we go now?"
Otoro ponders outloud "Maybe the island should wait another day..."
"You sure, we are heading there at night for a couple of hours. We can check out that in the morning." Henry asks, eager to inspect this island.
Demonica, thinking of her beloved sheep at home, looks anxious. "We have to make sure the ram is okay!"
”Right! An animal shouldn’t suffer because of bureaucracy!” Bireli says. ”If we get caught, I’m sure they’ll understand when we explain our reason.”
"Yeah you have to look after livestock properly. I'm not great at sneaking about, but maybe it's not so hard from above.
|
|
"Great! Here, I'll get her medicine!" Elsie jumps up and runs over to a cabinet. She draws out jar, unscrewing the lid and pulling out one of several biscuit with a strong herbal smell. "This is her medicine! Please make sure she eats it."
"Now," she says, "let's talk about getting in. I've never been inside the keep proper, but I've been inside the front gates. There's a courtyard, and the stables where the rams are kept are off to the left. Off to the right, meanwhile, is a small well. I definitely heard the sound of running water from the bottom, and I think it must connect to one of the underground streams that come down the mountain. Based on where it is, I'm pretty certain I know which one, too, and can show you how to get to it." She looks to the assembled group. "So...do you want to go tonight, or wait for morning?"
"It sounds like we'd better hurry!" Bireli says, mirroring his sister's energy and also apparently neglecting the difficulty of hiking in the dark.
Henry nods. "Let's get going before we get caught."