"Well met Sir Alhurst, and everyone else as well."
"It's quite a ways from Calimsham, although I've not met this Balthasar that you mention. Is there someone you are looking for?" "Perhaps you are here to see the new priest of Savras, Dolan? Are you from the church?"
Kysstaa:
"Hehe, yes, I apologize, a letter was sent to our caravan leader from a Farian Shardbender and an Elaron Swiftbrook. we have come to meet with these two and see what they need from Balthasar, do you know where we could find these two?"
With his arms in his sleaves, Dreav says, "Tell us of this priest of Savras."
"Ahh, Farian and Elaron, two very nice guests indeed." Berene motions for you to follow her, and she leads you all to the entrance to the inn, of which she is the proprietor.
"They were nice enough, paid for their rooms in advance in gold coins, and were quite pleasant in the evenings, entertaining the few trapper/furriers that are still using the foothills to the south for hunting."
She opens the door and motions everyone inside, smiling pleasantly.
"The two were inquisitive types, asking a lot about the ruined keep down to the south. All most of us know about that old thing is that it protected us 'til the rage of wizards, that's about all I know at least. They mentioned that they may be looking into the ruins, something about buried treasures there. What's odd is that they were always so bright and cheerful, and they left all of a sudden and didn't even say a word. They even had 3 days' stay left on their tabs, but I suppose that's the way with you adventuring types, huh?"
The room to the inn is well lit by a skylight, allowing a great deal of natural light into the inn, you can see that Berene is quite proud of her little establishment, especially since it is in the protective walls of the haeler itself. There is a second floor, but the main lounge/bar area is as open as can be, given the nature of the haeler. Inside, there sits a Halfling Male, garbed much like a wilderness trapper, even with a couple of snares he's working on.
"Hi Otis," Berene says warmly, and the Halfling nods, barely glancing up from his work. "Anyway, Mr. Greenrobes, Dolan and his wife, Kindra, are the newest priests of Savras. The former priest, Tarianrias, had taken them under his wing, but he was getting along in his old age, and he passed a couple of months ago. May Savras see him to his proper resting place" Berene makes a small oval gesture at the mention of the former priest. "If you're interested in staying for a day or two, until those two come back, you're more than welcome to, if'n you want the common room, it'll be 2sp a night, if you want private rooms, I only have a couple, and they're 2gp a night and sleep 2 people comfortably. There's a wash basin in the back by the kitchen, all are welcome to use it. I have some lamb kotosoupa and bread if you'd like something to eat, other than those horrid 'rations' you call it, and it's 1sp and comes with a half loaf of my special sweetbread."
She steps behind the bar and begins washing some dishes that were obviously used recently. She is a happy little hin.
all:
Borden, Tham, and Dreav:
Tham isn't shy about food, even if he manages to keep fairly trim and in shape.
"I'm drooling like a hin in a bake shop . . . er . . . no offense intended. I'd love some stew."
To the DM:
If he does, he'll wink, raise his eyebrow, and run his tongue across his lips, just to see how the man reacts.
"Thank you for your kind hospitality in welcoming us. Before we get too settled I would like to ask you about the Chauntean shrine near here. When was the last time anyone here was in contact with the priestess and are there other shrines of faith in the area that might be visited?"
DM:
I know that we weren't sent here to deal with strange rituals happening in Chauntean shrines, but we can't just let what happened there be lost. Those that did it must pay.
"Well, sir, Daraene is a nice Chauntean, but she covers a large area. She covers our Haeler and another Haeler about a day's walk north, and I think she travels to Tashluta once or twice a year as well, some sort of pilgrimmage I think. She's usually here about every 15 days or so, sometimes a little later on the count of the little orphan girl, Seraphene, she got last summer in Tashluta. She's due at the end of this week to bless the wheat and the vineyards, as she has for years.
"As far as other faiths, I've got my little shrine to Yondalla here," "and then there's the Watchful Tower of Savras to the north, which I'm sure you saw coming in from the road, it's not all that hard to miss. Everyone seems to like Dolan and Kindra. Heck, when Kindra's in town, she puts on an illusory puppet show for the children, telling the best kid stories, or at least the handful of children here in the haeler seem to think so." "Life here's pretty simple, actually. Grow the wheat, grow the grapes, then make some wine and beer, and throw a party."
"Bye, Berene, I've gotta get this snare out tonight. I'm hopin' to catch Lil' Willie tonight. I should be back after midnight."
"Otis, you be careful. Rumor has it that there's a band of Kobolds that've moved into the castle, and I know that's where you think Lil' Willie is. There aren't as many trappers using the foothills nowadays, and you know that's the reason why."
Tham
Kysstaa
"Kobolds? How far off is that castle for you to seem so at ease about having kobold neighbors? I have always heard that they can be vicious, savage little creatures." "Excuse me, but that stew is just excellent. You have got to tell me your secret. In all our travels together, I have never had food this good before."
Party:
DM:
Also, trying to give a little showcase to the party how, even as a Paladin, I'm willing to stretch the whole honor code if it helps us out. She has no idea that "in all our travels together" consists of 2 weeks on the road, so while it is the truth, it doesn't actually mean anything...
"Well, oh scaled one, the priest of Savras, Dolan, has told us that they are no worry for now. He, personally, found a runner to contact a group of adventurers known for removing such infestations. Dolan said it would be a little bit, but he sees nothing in the immediate future from the kobolds. Personally, I'm glad we are all here in the haeler. If we were just in some small village without a wall, I'd be worried."
"As to the stew, it's a special family recipe and it's a secret"
"Why do I get the feeling that Chauntea's priests never said a word about anything bad coming up either . . . I'd rather trust my own eyes than a distant god and what he chooses to reveal," Tham says, under his breath, more to his companions than to the hin attending them.
"No offense, your Mistyness," Tham says to Dreav.
"The Mists are known, above all else, for the truthfulness of its divinations. Perhaps we should extend the hand of peace to these little scaled ones; I'm sure it will provide a slight diversion that will shed no light on events of late."
The inn is quiet for a bit as everyone eats and wonders at where the two Balthasar sent you after are. There is, of course, some small talk about the stew, and general questions about the haeler, but otherwise it's fairly quiet for about an hour. At that point, a middle-aged man, roughly in his forties, comes in.
"Hi Berene, you got any of your stew left after servin' them?" The man asks.
"Of course, have a seat, I'll have some up in a moment, sweetbread this time or not?"
"Sure." And he throws his silvers on the bar, then sits down at a table facing the bar from the corner.
Berene becomes a blur for a moment as she cuts the bread, a whole loaf, as well as fixes a larger helping of stew for the man.
Kysstaa:
All:
"Hi there, the name is Borden. My friends and I are new to this place and was wondering if you could help us out with a few questions that we have."
The grungy human, a smith of some sort by the look of him, looks up to Borden from his black blasted face and singed beard and says, rather grumpily, "I got no time for adventurer's troubles. I'm the best smith within four haelers, and I'm just here to eat, 'specially from your type."
He loudly speaks towards Berene, "Where'd these guys come from, these the specialists or are they just passers-by."
Berene finishes her preparation and brings the man his food, "Rey, you know good an' well that you shouldn't talk like that to travelers." She turns towards Borden , "I'm sorry, good sir, but Rey has been extra busy lately with orders. He's the only smith for four haelers, and with the rumors of kobolds and the supposed disappearances lately with the trappers and such--"
"Now see here, little woman, you oughtta know better 'n to bring our troubles up. I can't stand for that and I don't wanna hear no more about it. Half 'a my trappers haven't come for their monthly snares, and that's just in the past six weeks. The only one I'm gettin' any business from as of late is that lazy good for nothing Otis!" Rey shouts as he interrupts. "You want information, pointy ears? I'll give the lot of you information. Come by the smithy in the mornin' and I'll tell you everything you want." He snatches up the stew and the loaf of bread, and takes the entire bowl out of the inn as he storms out.
"No apology is needed, we are after all strangers here and though we might not be adventurers, we certainly look the part. But now my curiosity is peaked, what can you tell me about these missing trappers?" [ooc]Borden will return to his seat as he asks Berene questions regarding the trappers.
"Ahh good sir, Rey's just a bit on the edgy side. He says that a few of the trappers have come in with stories of some sort of beast maulin' the trappers in the hills. Something about claw and bite marks all over their legs, and it looks like the beast just killed for fun. That's got quite a few of them in an uproar, let alone whether or not there's kobolds movin' into the foothills, too. I personally don't believe it, as my business would've died off too, but my business has stayed about the same, even better since Otis started using this as his base of operations for his trapping business."
"And this Lil' Willie that Otis was talking about is the beast you are referring to? If that is the case, then Otis has more courage than he seems to be trapping something that seems to target trappers."
"Ahh, Lil' Willie is what some think are causin' the attacks. But Otis has seen the little wolverine before. He don't think he's the one doin' it, but he thinks that he'd better prove it by trappin'. Honestly, I don't think anyone knows what is causing the attacks." Berene says.
For the DM:
Tham is listening in on the conversation, and trying to discern if the halfling is holding anything back or putting on a front for our companions questions.
Sense Motive d20 5 + 6 = 11
Berene pushes a couple of ales towards Moonpate and Tham.
Tham:
Dreav whispers into Tham's ear, "I don't want to know anything about this Priest of Savras."
All:
"I don't see any reason not to visit this Savras priest and see if he knows anything about anything in this town. He is a priest after all...he should know something..." "...then again."
For Dreav
"Yeah, and if I'm not mistaken, Savras folk have a thing for divination magic. So, unless the mists are fogging their brains too they should know something what is going on. Kobolds and necromancers is a foul mix that's going to require some more beers to deal with, eh Tham."
"I would think that necromancers and kobolds would equal shambling dead lizard-dog things, but what do I know?"
After finishing your drinks, as well as those that Tham purchases for all, you head for the tower. The walk takes about fifteen minutes outside of the haeler. The night air is humid, but nice. There aren't too many insects out this evening, which is a blessing for this time of year.
The Watchful Tower of Savras isn't nearly as impressive as you thought it would be from a distance. It is a simple tower built in an open field. The top of the tower bears adorning tapestries, showing some signs of wear, but all showing an unblinking, red-orange eye and a bluish orb below. The front of the tower, if a circular tower can have a front, bears a great metallic door bearing the symbol of the eye in many picturettes, viewing times of peace and times of war, times of pestilence, and times of abundance.
As Borden begins to knock on the metal door, Dreav walks right by, muttering something about surprises being good for diviners. Dreav opens the great door to an open chamber with a reasonably high ceiling. The main room is empty right now, but you can hear some shuffling from behind the priesthood's wall.
As this occurs, shadowy tendrils reach out for Tham, as he moves into some sort of focused stance.
Kysstaa coughs loudly and says "Anybody home?"
"Greetings, and welcome to the Watchful Tower of Savras. My name is Dolan. Are you here for a Talis reading or to absorb some of Savras' wisdom?" "And I do hope that you are here in peace, scaled one."
"Greetings Seerer. We are new to this area and wish to seek your knowledge for we are in dire straits."
"Yes, my friends and I have come to get the answer to some questions, if you don't mind."
"How is it that I may help with your troubles."
Dreav
Darkmeer
Dreav:
Mimicking the priest's gesture exactly, "Hello Grand High Priest, we were wondering if you would indulge us for a time."
"Well, we have a few questions to get some insight on. We were sent here by our caravan leader to look in on a business prospect that a few of his friends have found, however, now that we are here, our bosses firneds are no where t be found. We were hoping you could point us in the direction. Their names are Farion and Elaron. It is rather necesarry for us to find them since we have to meet back up with our caravan in a few days."
Dolan raises his eybrow at Dreav's gesture, and turns to Borden to speak.
"Good sirs, as you see, I've not been prepared for you. However, I do know of the two you speak of. They came into the Haeler, and told me that they would take care of the Kobold problem themselves. There was a runner, probably for reinforcements, as I don't see how two of them took down all of the kobolds themselves. In fact, they came here for a Talis reading before they headed into the hills to seek the kobolds."
Dolan takes a breath, and pours himself some wine.
"Perhaps you are their reinforcements? They may be in trouble, but I am unsure of the exact location of the kobolds, as Savras, in his infinite wisdom, has not revealed that to me. I don't believe them to be in the castle, as we have a local trapper that uses that as a reference point for his trapping, and I would think that the vicious creatures would attack if someone were near, if only to protect the secret of their location.
If you truly seek them, would you like a Talis reading to show you the way?"
He takes a drink of his wine, and awaits any other questions.
All:
DM
Taking in Dolan's mannerisms and studying his face, Borden uses his skills as an investigator to discern whether the cleric was lying or not.
DM
Dreav:
Borden:
To the DM:
Darkmeer
I want to purposefully say something to the contrary to see if this priest really is a priest of savras.
"High Priest, I was wondering if you took your Vision of the All Seeing Eye rights in Samarach? I had a friend who walked the Paths of Oracle there."
"No, I found my vision in a Haeler not far from here. Sadly, it was just before we were assaulted by a group of Yuan-Ti, and I was unable to help save the haeler during that time. Where have you walked through the mysts? Where is it that you all hail from, likely further than this 'Balthasar' is from."
"You, sir," "appear to have descended from someone further north, you have much sun upon your face, are you from Calimsham?"
"You have the look of a bartender, perhaps, but you may be a fine wizard some day. You, by the sound of it, hail from Sammarach, where Leira is served to this day. You hail from somewhere far away, and have blood on your hands now and much more blood seems to be flowing in the future. You... fine scaled one, must be of one of the tribes from the jungles that the Yuan-Ti have influenced, but you certainly have rejected them, although I see as much blood on your hands as his." "Am I accurate in my visions or incorrect?"
Borden:
Dreav: