The half-orc puts both feet into the sack and attempts to hop forward at the signal.
Come on Torgen, don't let your clan down!
I should have picked a smaller sack
Meraina giggles as she starts hopping like a bunny rabbit...
...an unco-ordinated drunk bunny rabbit, that is...
Brialla looks at the competition. Not sure about the half-orc, but I should have an edge on my cousin. And my legs have got to be longer than the dwarf's. So, here it goes!
She runs.
Stumbling at first, Brialla soon hits her stride.
You all fall down at the start of the race, and pick yourselves up and keep trying. Brialla makes good forward progress after that, and Killiuk falls one more time before managing to move forward.
After falling over one more time, the half-orc gets the hang of it and hops to the finish line.
Meraina gets up and tries again...
...and fails spectacularly.
It's a good thing the ground is soft...
Seeing Brialla and Kiliuk bounding ahead at the front, Torgen sets his sights a little lower; not being last! With a devilish "Eat my dust!" directed at Meraina, he redoubles his awkward jumping.
You've got this. Just a little further... thinks Brialla.
As the half-orc nearly takes her, she surges ahead, sacking the competition!
Smiling at Brialla as the winner, Yarla takes a few minutes to talk to you between races.
Kiliuk finishes behind Brialla, and barely keeps Torgen from passing him after the dwarf figured out how to really take advantage of his stability. "Carth said you, ah, know people. Have you ever met anyone around here from the Korgren family?"
"Well done Brialla, and you were right behind her Kiliuk" Torgen helps Meraina and sheepishly apologies for the trash talk.
"Sorry I got a bit carried away there"
He then approaches Yarla and waits for her answer Kiliuk before lauching into his own question:
"I'm following a shipment of ceremonial axes on behalf of the Skyforgers. This crate left Port Ice bound for Silverhall you see, by way of Highdelve firstly. Do you know if it made it this far?""
"Thanks, Torgen." Brialla replies with appreciation. "You all made sure to make it a competition! I was sweating out there."
Turning to Yarla, she asks, "I have heard about a woman named Richelle who has worked with the jeweler and told that she may have some noteworthy designs. Do you happen to know where I might find her?"
It's fine...I know bots tend to get competitive...no blood, no foul...right? she says with a smile
Torgen- "I think my company did help move some of their goods through Highdelve, but without looking at my records, I can't be sure. Unfortunately, my apprentice, Tolwin, keeps those records, and he's not at the jubilee this year—the fool boy got mixed up in some effort to rig the Bloomgivers' election in his favor. You'll have to come back tomorrow, when you can bet that I'll be sending him up these buildings to take down the winter shutters!"
Kiliuk- "There's a woman named Gilda who's made a name for herself sewing exquisite outfits in Grayhaven. I'm not sure if her family
name is Korgren, but my apprentice, Tolwin, would know. He keeps the records of all the artisans we do business with."
Brialla- "Richelle is probably with Tolwin somewhere, since they got into trouble together and got banned from the festival."
Murmurs of alarm from the western end of Protectress Square soon become shrieks of shock. Two people stumble into the square—a young dark-haired man and a light-haired woman- half walking and half relying on the shoulders of friends. Winces of pain cross their bloodied faces. Somewhere, someone shouts, "The Bloomgivers have been attacked! Someone get Aurelliax!" The crowd around the Bloomgivers hushes and parts, and a
tall, authoritative woman strides purposefully toward the injured youths. A grim look on her golden-eyed face, she reaches a hand lovingly toward the Bloomgivers. Aurelliax addresses the Bloomgivers in a commanding voice that carries across the square. "Kameer. Kara. Young ones, what has happened here?" The Bloomgivers pause to catch their breath before answering. "We're so sorry, Aurelliax," Kara says. "We were picking the brightblooms when those bullies set upon us. They took us completely by surprise, and they stole the Golden Pendant right from Kameer's neck! We barely got out with our lives!" Kameer nods. "It was Richelle and Tolwin! They're up on Dendra's Slope, and they've still got your amulet!
At this news, several individuals, including the proprietors of the jubilee's events, emerge from the crowd. Turning to Aurelliax, a white-haired woman—the town's mayor, the crowd's whispers— bristles with anger. "I've had enough of those two! Clearly we should have punished them more harshly!" she says. " Aurelliax, would you be so kind as to retrieve the villains? We'll get your amulet back, and those two will get the justice they deserve in our stocks."
The golden-eyed woman looks at the mayor ruefully. "These bullies are two of your own, yes?"
The mayor gives a regretful nod.
"I'm terribly sorry," Aurelliax continues, "but I'm afraid I can't directly help. You see, I promised your forebears that I would never interfere in the town's interpersonal matters. I cannot turn my wrath against any of your town—not even if they might deserve it."
She turns to the crowd.
"Are there any among you who are willing to be heroes for Highdelve? Could you retrieve these bullies and my amulet? I assure you all that I will award those successful most generously!"
Feeling charitable towards the townsfolk, Kiliuk raises his hand. "I'll do it." But I sure hope I won't have to do it alone....
"Well. Well. Well. Getting those designs is going to be far more difficult than I had hoped." Brialla sighs.
When Kiliuk steps forward and volunteers, Brialla gives a quick glance toward her cousin. She shrugs, then steps forward.
"I will hunt down Richelle and... Towlin? Was it? And bring them back alive!" vows the ranger.
Whew. Not alone, then.
Well, if she's in, so am I...
"Aye, and me too! Rigging an election and now stealing an amulet? Those too have a lot to answer for!
Torgen tries to keep an eye on Kameer and Kara, he'd like to have a word before they set out.
Aurelliax thanks your for volunteering, and explains that you must venture up Dendra's Slope, find her golden amulet, and bring the attackers back to the village for trial.
"I'm a stranger here. What do you mean, Bloomgivers? And what's special about the Amulet? Apart from it being Golden, I mean." Good thing Mom made me practice speaking with capital letters.
Torgen is naturally suspicious, and wants to make sure that before he might have to fight the two accused, that he's as convinced as possible of their wrongdoing.
He intersperses his questions along with Kiliuk's
"I'm not from around here, could you please describe Tolwin and Richelle? What's this business about an election, did they have something to gain from it's subversion? Do you have any idea why they might have attacked you?"
He strokes his luxurious beard while he asks his questions, deep in thought.
Brialla glances at the "woman" identified as Aurelliax. "We were led to believe that you were a dragon." The ranger states with suspicion. "Is that true? And, if so, why do you hang around this village?"
She pauses for a moment, considering her next inquiry, then shrugs and asks, "And do you happen to have any nice rings in your horde?"
Brialla would know that dragons can take on human form if they want.
You all overheard stories during the festival that this dragon acts as a benevolent protector for the town.
Kiliuk and Torgren get the following answers:
"We were about to load the cart with brightblooms when something hit me in the back of the head—I think it was a rock," Kara says. "Before we knew it, Tolwin was pummeling Kameer and Richelle had thrown me against a boulder. 'Wait until we crash the jubilee!' Richelle said. Someone needs to find out what they have planned!"
The high point of the festival is for two young people, the elected bloomgivers, to collect brightblooms from the countryside and bring them into town to give to everyone. Tolwin and Richelle tried to cheat to get themselves elected as bloomgivers, and were punished by being banished from the festival entirely.
"Hmmm."
Torgen strokes his beard and wonders at the tale, before apparently giving up making sense of it at this stage with a shrug of his shoulders.
"We'd better get on after them if we hope to stop whatever they have planned!"
He checks that his weapons and supplies are sure before confirming he's ready to leave.
Brialla remembered the stories about dragons taking human form. She never imagined until now, though, they should would ever actually meet one!
"Lead the way to Dendra's Slope!" Brialla urges. "We don't want the trail to grow cold."
Yes..we don't want to hurt them...
Kiliuk grins, showing his teeth. "I'm sure we can convince them that fighting isn't in their best interests."
The adventure does not appear to give any way to purchase a weapon, unfortunately.
You make your way up Dendra's Slope until you are near the area where the attack happened.
Please place yourselves in the revealed portion of the first map. I'll reveal the rest and describe what you see after everyone's there.
Kiliuk grins, showing his teeth. "I'm sure we can convince them that fighting isn't in their best interests."
"But, I'm still going to have my bow at the ready." Brialla replies. With bow in hand, she heads to the slope.
"Aye but don't loose if you don't have to eh?"
Torgen keeps his axe and his hammer both securely in his belt loops.
I have placed a token for Meraina, and revealed the map. Where would you like to go first? The interesting locations are labelled.
"I can't see anywhere to hide in that campsite, but the two Ne'er-do-wells could be hiding in that shack, let's start our investigation there"
Kiliuk nods. "Watch out, though. It looks pretty old and fragile."
Brialla draws back her bow and moves toward what appears to be a gap in the shack. She peers inside.
The outside of this dilapidated shack is moldy and has walls full of holes. Its rotted doors hang open on broken hinges.
Seeing nothing to give her pause outside, Brialla enters into the shack and looks around.
Unwilling to trust the structure with his greater mass, Kiliuk hangs back and watches for potential ambushes.
Torgen wanders in and casts his eye about, on the lookout for signs of bullies and thieves.
There is a dirty bedroll in one corner as well as three daggers and 6 days' worth of trail rations. You find a small bundle in a hole in the wall near the bedroll. Inside is a journal, a scroll of scorching ray, and four potions of cure light wounds. The journal's final entry bears today's date and reads:
"Thought I'd rope those stupid kids into my plan to attack the jubilee. Of course, it backfired. They beat up the flower pickers, but then they taunted the beast in the cave. Somehow, it stole that expensive amulet they found on the boy. Now, I must figure out a way to get the amulet back before I unleash the monster on the villagers! Bother!"
Reactions are welcome, and then please let me know where to next.
Kiliuk reads the journal over someone's shoulder. "Someone was going to set a monster on the villagers? I think Aurelliax would be able to deal with it, unless there's something special about the amu--sorry, Amulet."
"Bad news all around. The flower pickers are hurt, the village is in danger, an amulet is missing, and the jeweler entrusted the jewelry designs I need with some 'stupid kid'!" Brialla laments. "Let's see if we can't catch them and then warn the village."
Kiliuk nods. "We might be able to tell how long it's been abandoned."
A rusty metal pot sits over an extinguished campfire in this hastily prepared resting stop. Three logs are pulled near the fire, and in between are several marks scrawled in the dirt.
The marks scrawled in the dirt are crude drawings of a two-headed stick figure that's shown emerging from a cave and running toward some houses.
The rock formations surrounding the cave are identical to
the rock at the west end of the map (area C4). These drawings seem to indicate sketching out some sort of plan involving a monster in the cave to the west and Highdelve.
(where next, everyone?)