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HAMLET OF RIVERBEND
This village depends on its location near a river ford and its rich river soil to keep itself together. The large kingdom of Fellglas, to which it owes some nominal feudal obligations, ignores the region. The
road to the city of Bargrad is often the haunt of bandits, and the elves of the Vergrace Forest are much closer than the petty princes of Bargrad. Most the village’s excess grain and livestock goes to barter with the elves.
The village itself has little to recommend it: one tavern, one mill, and 20 houses that are home to the various families that have lived here for generation untold. The only house that stands apart is the large one that belongs to the Reeve; he and his two sons are responsible for keeping the village safe and the roads open.
Riverbend has a small shrine to the Forest God, though the village cannot afford a priest. The oldest woman in the village generally performs the rites at spring, midsummer, and fall. The shrine is ignored most of the time, unless the crops are in danger of failing, livestock are missing, or a child has wandered off into the woods.
THE REEVE KOLYA
The feudal presence, hand of justice, and defender of the weak in these parts is Kolya Oxbow. The Reeve sits just inside a large, well-kept
house at a large oak table. Two men with swords stand by the only door. The Reeve says “I am Kolya. I know you have heard of the tragic murder of Froderick's wife, Ellesandra. Froderick is the obvious suspect, but I believe she may have been taken by fey creatures. How can you help us against these terrible fey that threaten my beloved villagers?”
Kolya is a large man of perhaps 40 years, with enormous sideburns and the small eyes of a boar. His fat fingers twitch a bit, but otherwise he seems calm, even unnaturally steady in the face of several attacks on the village.
Yomi:
Elias says nothing initially, knowing better than to show his distaste for the Reeve's prejudice against the fey folk.
A tanned, heavily-muscled (for his kind) elf standing 6ft tall, Elias is dressed in buckskin, travelling boots and a suit of battered leather armour. He holds an almost primeval helm bearing a pair of antlers. Spiral tattoos in dark blue ink adorn his face and arms.
Everything about him bespeaks a quiet energy.
Used to the common prejudice against circus folks and well accustomed to curiosity that bordered on insolence, Eglantine holds herself erect, and listens intently to the Reeve. She has a certain sympathy for Froderick and his wife. To embark on a mixed marriage must have meant an uncommon bond between them.
She casts a sidelong glance at Elias and raises her hand. "Sir Reeve, I know something of prejudice. Might the fey have felt that the human world was treating Ellesandra badly and removed her?"
Elias doesn't react to the girl's question, nor her glance over at him, but steadily maintains his gaze at the Reeve and his soldiers.
Possible of course. Strange one, that girl. Always with the questions. Just as well I left Scáthach outside. She would fuss... he thinks.
Before you is a man about fifty in age with long grey hair. He wears robes in black, grey and purple tones. He walks with a limp and uses his gleaming scythe as a crutch. Terrible runes are etched on the scythe's blade.
"Master Reeve, you don't really believe that Ellesandra was taken by the fey, right?" declares Yomi, as he looks at the reeve with cold, emotionless eyes. "In fact, you believe that the woman was taken by some other party, yes?"
Elias looks quizzically at the old man, somewhat startled by his directness.
This could be interesting...
Eglantine turns to look at the old man with an acrobat's grace. "How outspoken. Do you know something that we don't?"
"Master Kolya certainly knows the answers to my questions."
"Well, Master Kolya, shall we take this commission with all the information that you possess or shall we continue in blissful ignorance that everything is well?"
"Master Kolya, you strike me as a good and upright man who does not wish to see justice fall on the wrong head. Please tell us the truth of what you suspect."
Yomi limps closer to the reeve looking directly into his eyes.
Bren stands to the side with arms crossed. The typically garrulous young man is unusually silent.
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Kolya stands up quickly from his chair, almost knocking it over.
"Now look, what is it, Yomi! The fey have been harassing my village for months. The only reason that one" -- with a gesture at Elias -- "is here is because he may have some insights into their twisted motivations. Every indication is that Froderick drowned Ellesandra. If you want me to just hang him, fine, I'll have the trial today and the devils with you. I'd heard you folk might be interested in making sure justice is done.
"If you prove to me that Froderick is innocent, 40 gold each for saving an innocent man's life. If you stop the fey incursions, as much more.
"Will that do?" he asks sarcastically.
Yomi:
"At least now, everything is clear."
"Tell us more about the fey incursions."
Yomi whispers to the Reeve
Yomi rattles off a series of questions to the Reeve.
"You say the attacks started months ago, how long ago?"
"How many attacks since then?"
"Any victims we can talk to? How many dead? How many injured?"
"Any idea on the number of attackers?"
"Do the fey prefer any specific area when making their attacks?"
"Can we have some refreshments?"
"One more thing. What would you accept as evidence that the miller's innocent? If we get a confession out of Ellesandra's murderers, would you accept our word that's what happened?"
A tall half-elf bard joins the group mid-conversation. "Tell me, good Reeve, do you have any idea why these attacks started ? Are there any other known cases of good townsfolk being taken by these vile fey-creatures ?"
"Do you wish the heads of the real murderers, Master Kolya?"
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Alsoy, your passive Insight is high enough to let you read Yomi's spoilers, above.
"Now look, what is it, Yomi! The fey have been harassing my village for months. The only reason that one" -- with a gesture at Elias -- "is here is because he may have some insights into their twisted motivations. Every indication is that Froderick drowned Ellesandra. If you want me to just hang him, fine, I'll have the trial today and the devils with you. I'd heard you folk might be interested in making sure justice is done.
"If you prove to me that Froderick is innocent, 40 gold each for saving an innocent man's life. If you stop the fey incursions, as much more.
"Will that do?" he asks sarcastically.
Catriana calls - "Justice. A noble word indeed, which I believe all of us good sirs and ladies in this room ought to hold. However, it is unfortunate that Justice has its price. Surely the good Reeve of this village would care more for justice in his good hamlet. I shall investigate into good Froderick's case myself, and shall do it with no charge. The fey incursions is another matter though. There must be a better... incentive for such a task."
Pat
"I've a sympathy for outcasts, being one myself. I'll help and gladly for a reasonable fee. Personal experience shows that the service paid for is the service valued. Of course, that payment need not only be made in gold. If Froderick's wife is alive and wishes to return to him, I ask for their acceptance in the village. Give them the opportunity to live among you without sidelong glances and whispered comments."
Eglantine adds her comments quietly.
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"You say the attacks started months ago, how long ago?"
Three or four months since they ramped up/i]
"How many attacks since then?"
[i]At least every couple weeks, though not all are attacks
"Any victims we can talk to? How many dead? How many injured?"
No dead villagers, but some dead travelers, hard to say how many as the bodies may not be found.
"Any idea on the number of attackers?"
No
"Do the fey prefer any specific area when making their attacks?"
The woods during the day, but they're more active at night, when they do things like take sheep and curdle milk
"Can we have some refreshments?"
Does this look like a tavern to you?
"One more thing. What would you accept as evidence that the miller's innocent? If we get a confession out of Ellesandra's murderers, would you accept our word that's what happened?"
Bring the murderers in, I'll get a confession.
""Tell me, good Reeve, do you have any idea why these attacks started ? Are there any other known cases of good townsfolk being taken by these vile fey-creatures ?""
No and no, though a couple times they've been chased off from stealing children
"Do you wish the heads of the real murderers, Master Kolya?"
Alive would be better, but I wouldn't complain much.
"Justice. A noble word indeed, which I believe all of us good sirs and ladies in this room ought to hold. However, it is unfortunate that Justice has its price. Surely the good Reeve of this village would care more for justice in his good hamlet. I shall investigate into good Froderick's case myself, and shall do it with no charge. The fey incursions is another matter though. There must be a better... incentive for such a task."
What, you want more money? You've seen this village. I'm talking about nearly 500 gold -- you want more, talk to Lord Reston.
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"I've a sympathy for outcasts, being one myself. I'll help and gladly for a reasonable fee. Personal experience shows that the service paid for is the service valued. Of course, that payment need not only be made in gold. If Froderick's wife is alive and wishes to return to him, I ask for their acceptance in the village. Give them the opportunity to live among you without sidelong glances and whispered comments."
Eglantine adds her comments quietly.
"The elf woman is dead -- Froderick said so himself. It's moot."
EDIT: "Or she's been taken by fey -- they don't give back their prey"
"Can I - we - speak to Froderick?"
"How exactly is poor Froderick accused for nothing less than murder, with no witnesses or body found ? Seems pretty strange for a humble bard such as myself. And the fey connection is slim at best. The woman could have run away to an elven lover in the woods." Catriana smiles. "I know I could do something like that."
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"How exactly is poor Froderick accused for nothing less than murder, with no witnesses or body found ? Seems pretty strange for a humble bard such as myself. And the fey connection is slim at best. The woman could have run away to an elven lover in the woods." Catriana smiles. "I know I could do something like that."
"The poor bastard said as much -- that his wife was in the pond. And Dargo, the smith, had heard them arguing earlier that night. As for the body, it probably just washed downstream.
"As for your tastes in lovers, well, your looks tell me what I need to know there."
"The poor bastard said as much -- that his wife was in the pond. And Dargo, the smith, had heard them arguing earlier that night. As for the body, it probably just washed downstream.
"As for your tastes in lovers, well, your looks tell me what I need to know there."
"Has Justice in this distant village reach such low a level ? Can a man be accused for murder so easily ? On account of some madman ravings and some shouts heard by a bystander ? Clearly, Good Reeve, you know as well as I that such dreadful accusations on the basis of such slim evidence are truly wrong."
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"Has Justice in this distant village reach such low a level ? Can a man be accused for murder so easily ? On account of some madman ravings and some shouts heard by a bystander ? Clearly, Good Reeve, you know as well as I that such dreadful accusations on the basis of such slim evidence are truly wrong."
"I'm hiring you precisely because of that concern. If it were just about the fey, I could find some mercenary fighters a damn sight cheaper. Now, are there any more questions that will help your work?"
Eglantine puts her hands in her pockets and sits down gracefully. "A map? Or at least some clues about where the fey were last seen would be helpful."
Elias stands up and says quietly, "I will accept even if none else here will. The money is not a concern to me. If others join me, that is well; I shall be outside. If not, then I will seek the truth myself."
With that he leaves the room and goes to keep his cat company. Upon finding Scáthach, he sighs, "If the others accept, we will have a job to keep them quiet, old friend. They like the sounds of their own voices a great deal."
Rrrr.
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Eglantine puts her hands in her pockets and sits down gracefully. "A map? Or at least some clues about where the fey were last seen would be helpful."
"A map? You do know there are only a couple dozen buildings here, don't you? Go down the hill toward the river -- that's the village. Go north or south from there, those are the farms. Go upriver a bit, on the woods road, and you'll get to the millpond.
"As far as the fey, Pellham said something about something spooking his horses last night, but when he got out to the stable, there were no tracks."
Satisfied, Eglantine rises and prepares to leave. "Of course I'll help. There was never any question." She smiles very slightly and walks outside.
The sight of Elias and his feline companion cause her no surprise. She delicately arches one eyebrow but makes no comment.
Cyrus turns his head from party member to Reeve and back as questions and answers fly about. His glances are more than following the conversations. They have a sense of deep insight trying to read the Reeve's thoughts to garner actual intentions. He remains quiet, though his facial expressions show the he has great interest in finding the truth in this "murder".
Elias nods at the acrobat as she passes.
"What was your decision?" he asks quietly.
"Help of course. We're all outcasts. If we succeed it may help us all, if we fail, nobody will really care."
Elias mulls this over.
"I will care." he says.
Elias mulls this over.
"I will care." he says.
"So will I. I have plans for my life that don't include dying stupidly. What I meant was, to the Reeve we're expendable. If we disappear, there's no need to send a search party or worry especially."
Cyrus nods confidently to the Reeve and proclaims, "Justice will be served."
He then exits and joins those outside. "Looks like we have some investigating to do. I suggest we find someone who has laid eyes on these so-called "fey" creatures. I'm not convinced it's the fey who murdered or abducted the woman. Should we investigate the millpond? Froderick's house? Pellham's stable? or talk to Froderick himself?"
"I don't want to go hiking into the elven wood if the murderer was here in town all along."
"Indeed, Justice will be served. And all over Fellglas the tale shall be told in taverns and marketplaces. We should start by questioning poor Froderick, the so-called murderer."
"To Froderick then... Master Kolya, the writ please."
"We're here to see Froderick, constable. Here's the Reeve's Writ."
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"We're here to see Froderick, constable. Here's the Reeve's Writ."
The man looks surpised, then lets out a braying laugh. "Haw! I'm no constable, I just got stuck here. Here, I'll look at that." Taking the writ, he mouths the words as he reads. "Here, come on in."
The guard leads the way into the stronghouse. There is a small cell in the building (with one of the windows); the rest is filled with grain bins. "Hey, Froderick -- you've got visitors!" He then stands back, toward the door but inside.
In the cell is a balding, haggard-looking man, plump but wan. His eyes light up briefly when he looks on the party, then he returns to staring at the floor.
"Stand up," says Bren harshly. "Face us like a man."
"Tell us about your wife."
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"Stand up," says Bren harshly. "Face us like a man."
"What are you going to do, hang me?" the miller asks belligerently.
"Tell us about your wife."
Now his expression softens. He remains seated, but does face the party. "Oh, Ellesandra. She was so beautiful. And so kind. Did you know she would make elvish breadballs for the children? And she let all the villagers fish from the millpond one day each month." At this point, his voice is breaking, but he tries to continue. "And then they tried to kill her. Or maybe did kill her." Now, he breaks into sobs.
"Look, we are here to help prove your innocence but you will not be gaining back your life if we do not succeed. So anything you can tell us about 'they' is important. Understand?"