"It will be done then, expect to see me tomorrow morning, I suggest you sleep soon. You'll be expected to work tomorrow Kai and Gideon will need to be taken to the hiring point and Ophelia and Gryffen will need to assemble at the meeting point independently of the other two. I am going to find a cart and enough of something to fill it." Dejan bows to the comany and departs.
OOC - Going to leave it at this for the rest of the day and this evening I'll keep going presuming everyone is ok.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
"Do your best to find an animal that is at least a little bit good-natured, Dejan. I don't want to spend the entire trip arguing with a stubborn donkey."
She rises to her feet, and starts towards the door, nodding to the others with a smile. "We've been sent to our beds, boys. Best to do as your told."
"As you will my lady." Dejan says sketching a theatrical bow from his chair. He then stands and nods to the others "I have much to do, hopefully once you are on the road I will be able to catch up on all the sleep I have missed recently. I will see you at sun up and hopefully your escape from the city will go without a hitch.".
After the soldier turned spy departs the group follow Ophelia's advice and head off to their beds enjoying the opulence of the Fountain once more. The morning comes too soon for most, only Kai has really had time to rest but the others aren't doing badly and breakfast perks them up.
Dejan arrives as they are finishing looking pleased with himself. "Everything is ready, there is a wagon with a very well trained and docile mare for you to bully mercilessly my lady. The wagon is well stocked with some well crafted leatherwork which you can sell if you need extra money in Ameni, the whole lot should be worth about 400 gold pieces I'd say. You two can take the horses that are stabled here and follow me, whilst I need you two to arrive at the East Gate in one hour's time." The first part aimed at Kai and Gideon, the second at Ophelia and Gryffen." He moves to leave, then turns "Master Gryffen, it has been a pleasure, Ophelia it has certainly been memorable. The drinks will certainly be on me when you return, I have every faith you will do so. Remember to keep me appraised via the Sending Stones when it is safe to do so, if you believe them to be compromised send a message including the word "Unequivocally" and I will understand the situation and if there is any way to assist you I shall."
With the two soon-to-be guards in tow he leaves without a backwards look.
The trip takes both parties about half an hour, the men make slightly better time but are held up by an incident in the Cracks, one of the worst areas in the city where it seems there was a significant fire in the night. By the time Ophelia drives the wagon with Gryffen sitting alongside her down the same street it has calmed down and they arrive at almost the same moment. Dejan walks his horse over to a very fat man, who is clearly presiding over the forming caravan and after a brief whispered discussion introduces Gideon and Kai to him, naming him as Master Alson. Alson, looks the men over and seems impressed although he tries to play it down, before offering them the standard wage of a gold a day and ten as a bonus for the caravans arriving intact.
They are shown where the other guards, six of them in total are gathered. One of the men, a head taller than the others makes it clear that he is in charge of the rotations and is Alson's second in command, named Gabor, but to be called "Chief" by the men, which has one of the others roll their eyes not quite discretely enough to avoid getting caught and then cuffed round the head. He comments that "You two look a cut above the usual dregs he gets given." which goes down as well as would be expected from the other men.
Ophelia makes her way over to Alson shortly later and on behalf of Gryffen and herself has the wagon attached to the caravan as a whole. Her charm carries her through, and her claims to be extremely proficient with the crossbow resting on the seat next to her so no harm either. Given a spot near the back of the line they are ready to depart.
The whole party have time as the caravan gets ready to move out to see that there are 14 wagons, mostly fairly small and light, and an approximate number of about 25 people as well as the eight guards. Most of the people seem veterans of this life, tradesfolk who make this run often enough to know the drill and the caravan gets away without incident.
With only one cart behind her and all the others in front Ophelia gets to see a dusty version of the road ahead as the others throw up dust from their hooves and wheels as they go.
The guard duties involve half the men being on duty at any one time, as they leave Gideon and Kai are selected as the out riders and ride out a hundred yards of the caravan checking ahead for anything of note. But this close to Dzendalin they don't expect any trouble and see none as they go, after a few hours they are called in by the Chief and told to rest for a bit, with two others sent ahead. The ride is calm and level, several rest breaks for the horses and the people take place without incident and they make good time. Alson seems pleased and puffs away on his pipe sitting as a passenger on one of his own wagons, he owns four of them himself, surveying the countryside with a good natured manner.
At last it is time to call the travelling to a halt for the night, Alson and the Chief direct the wagons into a "U" shape and the guards are set to patrol. The drivers and passengers are able to get some quiet time between stopping and needing to sleep and neither of Kai or Gideon are on the first watch, so the whole party is free to do what they wish, the two working as guards know that they have three hour off then three on and then six off before the wagons roll out again the next morning (think about rests).
How do you each spend your time, socialising, resting, sneaking about?
Gryffenplays a popular little tune on his pan flute, attracting some attention from some of a family, some traders, and a pair of guards traveling with the caravan. After he is finished playing, he strikes up a conversation with the father of two boy, who are about 10 and 8 years old. His name is Farahk and he hails from far to the northwest of the capital.
"You would risk the lives of your family to travel all the way across the country?"
Farahk nods. "I do not make the decision lightly," he says in a serious tone. "But my youngest is quite ill. We found no help in the capital, so we keep moving east, looking for a healer who can give us good news."
Gryffenlooks at the little boy, who did not look sick until he really looked at him in this moment.
"What is his plight?" the halfling asks.
"A disease of the spine," says Farahk. "On bad days, he cannot stand."
Gryffenwatches the boy run with his brother, laughing. Today looks like a good day. "Does death lie at the end of this disease?"he says bluntly.
Farahk is quiet for a long time, perhaps perturbed by the halfling's dark line of questioning. "We do not know but every healer we have seen says he will likely die."
Gryffenpurses his lips and pats the arm of the much taller man. "Make his days happy,"he says. "Make them count for something worthwhile."
Farahk tears up. "He is just a boy."
Gryffensmiles. "He lives each day like the rest of us."
Silence falls upon them and Gryffenbegins to play his pipes again. This time, the song is a melancholy one.
Cresting a small rise above the caravan he pulled the reigns of his mount bringing them both to a gentle stop, the horse shuffled uncomfortably underneath him longing to stretch its legs on the open road a fine beast he thought surely wasted carrying the likes of us between Dzendalin and the east. Gideon quieted the beast with a stroke of the neck it affirmed his touch with a shake of the head nostrils flaring, behind him the sound of Gryffens pipes found its way to his ears a pleasant tune for sure. Casting his gaze forward the road unwound before him his mind filled with thoughts of the past, the last time he took this road he rode east to west vowing to start his journey forever taking two steps forward and one back, but whatever he did his thoughts always returned to the east and his home. Heavy clouds now hung lazily to the north a gentle breeze played at his face and hair Gryffens pipes he noted had taken a melancholy tone, one to match his mood for sure. Gideon tightened the grip on his spear and pushed the mount to the next rise his job not finished for the day.
At the back of the caravan (where Ophelia surmised new faces were relegated to by the more established traders) things had not been pleasant. For some reason, the wheels of the cart in front of her, the one 3rd from the back, produced an inordinate amount of dust, billowing directly into her face. Ophelia spent the best part of the journey trying to figure out why, with no success, and attempted to shield herself from the worst of it, with little success. When the caravan finally stopped for the night, Ophelia was dirty, tired, and grumpy.
In spite of a desire to hunker down and sleep/sulk on her bedroll, Ophelia mustered her remaining energy to join the other drivers and traders by a fire, listening to their conversations and gossip while she occasionally coughed to clear the accumulation of dust in her throat.
The warmth of the fire begins to envelop the half-elf, and she shuts her eyes, slumped against the wheel of her cart. One of her slightly-pointed ears cocks in the direction of two older voices coming from behind her, outside the caravan perimeter, and she stops dozing. She picks the pertinent details of the conversation out from the general noise of the campsite, noting that the voices are slurred slightly, and that the owner of one voice is whispering rather loudly, as a drunk in a secret conversation is want to do...
"...old bastard finally gave up then, the illness took him last month apparently, left poor Ola with considerable debts...no idea of any other family... no one's taken over his share of the contraband... left me a letter with instructions, and a bottle of his favorite...back at my cart..."
Ophelia listens to the clinking of glass, possibly the pouring of the aforementioned bottle, as she moves round her cart to bring the owners of the two voices into view. The two men stand close together in the fading light, one fat, one thin, both middle-aged. The thin one announces the toast. "To old Pick, may the Gods look favorably upon his misdemeanors..." A chuckle from the pair follows, and the two bid each other goodnight.
Tailing the fat one back to his cart, Ophelia watches him throw the now-empty bottle into the back of it, before heading off into the darkness, probably to relieve himself. Spying his personal belongings poorly covered by a blanket, she rifles through them until a document rolled up in a backpack catches her eye. A quick skim of it's handwritten contents reveals a will of sorts, signed by an 'Andrzej Kozalin', addressed to a 'Jarek Bedzin'. Though the contents seem benign, Ophelia's eyes catch the code words used by those in a similar line of work to herself, the document actually providing details of a small smuggling operation, and information on future shipments and opportunities. The half-elf's expert eye picks up the style and intricacies of Pick's handwriting, along with the various code words he used, and she commits them to memory.
Carefully placing the document in the backpack, Ophelia retires to her own cart, and produces a selection of writing materials from her backpack, intent on creating her own document. A short while later, satisfied with her handiwork, Ophelia arrives at the fat man's cart, and makes her presence known with a cough.
"Eh?" The fat man squints at her in the relative darkness, his annoyance at being disturbed clear to see.
"Forgive me sir, are you Jarek Bedzin?"
"That I am, one of the wealthiest traders in Ameni, I'll have you know. What do you want, girl?" Jarek's chest puffs out in importance to a circumference almost matching his stomach.
"My name is Adria Kozalin, sir, and my grandmother, Ola, bade me travel in this caravan and make contact with you." Ophelia steps forward and hands him her forged letter from old Pick. Jarek mutters as he reads through the letter, recognising his associate's handwriting.
"You understand the contents of this letter, girl?" Jarek's tone moves from annoyed to serious.
"I believe so, sir. My grandfather wanted me to help pay off his debts after he was gone, and is requesting that I be able to make use of your 'connections' to do so. He told me a little of your work together... I may not agree with some of the choices you both made over the years, but I will not see my grandmother slip into poverty, while I have the opportunity to help her."
Jarek reads the letter a second time. "Bloody Pick! Fine. Speak to me again when we reach Ameni. I daresay you're not cut out for this work, but your grandfather and I were like brothers, and I will honor his request. Now leave me to sleep."
Ophelia politely wishes him good night, before returning to her bedroll, a satisfied smile crossing her face as she falls asleep.
Kai merely feeds and waters his horse at the end of the day observing everything going on around him and fascinated by the various interactions. He particularly smiles at seeing the young boy overcome his difficulties and run and play with his brother. He quietly whispers "oh spirits of my fathers, look favourably on that young boy"as he summons a bear spirit to impart its strength to both boys who suddenly find themselves able - without knowing why - to leap and jump much higher than they ever had before.
The day passes, the party make acquaintances amongst the other members of the caravan, but still do not know many of the people, the guards rotations keep them from spending much time with each other and the possibilities for recreation seem limited while they have such free time. As Ophelia tries to get in with some of the other traders and Gryffen spends time observing the people as they go about their business.
As the second day of their trip gets underway a squall springs up seemingly from nowhere and they are buffeted by some high winds for a little while and progress is slow there is no sign of the weather staying bad and the get underway after lunch in better form. As the day is ending Alson tells Kai in passing that they lost about 4 miles due to the weather and will try and push a little faster the next day to make up for it but it is not a concern at this time.
The evening draws in quickly and Kai and Gideon rush to get some sleep after a quick meal knowing that they will have to be up in a few hours for their next spell watching for danger. The land is wide open out here and only the odd copse of trees like the one they are using as a windbreak provide anything in the way of cover so attack seems unlikely, but the guards must still follow their watch patterns carefully.
Ophelia spends a little time with Jarek and gets to know a little more about the man but not much about his business which he doesn't seem inclined to talk about this evening. Gryffen decides to stretch his legs and takes a walk around the camp, for the most part it is quiet, the people are tired and the darkness comes fast so folk tend to sleep early and rise early. Despite this Gryffen does see something to catch his eye, he had almost walked past the couple before he noticed it but he sees a large man, one of the guards that he doesn't know by name talking quietly to a young girl, no more than sixteen years old, with a pretty face and long blond hair. The halfling pauses, the tone seems dark and the girl looks a little anxious although in the half light it is a bit hard to tell, he is too far away to hear what is being said but the body language of the guard seems to indicate he is not willing to let the girl move away, although she doesn't seem to be actively trying to get away from him.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
Gryffenwill take this opportunity to circle back unnoticed and try to eavesdrop on the couple. He pulls the hood up on his cloak and creeps closer to listen in on the conversation.
As Gryffen Gideon drops off to sleep, Kai lies on his back studying the stars of this place and thinking of what has happened and what he has done since leaving the valleys of the northwest. As his Grandfather used to say "there are circles within circles and sometimes they interact in ways you can't always foresee and don't expect!"
You hear a conversation between the two, the guard is pointing out the dangers of the trip and suggesting that they come to an "arrangement" to ensure she receives extra protection, he is not phrasing it as a choice. The woman is clearly intimidated and unwilling but the man's behaviour indicates he isn't planning on taking no for an answer.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Gryffen will sneak even closer, coming up behind the guard. Stealth (with advantage): 28 The halfling will draw his sickle and hook it under the man's crotch, looking up with his face in shadow.
"She's a fine looking lass," Gryffen says. "But don't make yourself the threat you deem to protect her from. I can remove your lust for you, if you cannot control it yourself, friend."
"It will be done then, expect to see me tomorrow morning, I suggest you sleep soon. You'll be expected to work tomorrow Kai and Gideon will need to be taken to the hiring point and Ophelia and Gryffen will need to assemble at the meeting point independently of the other two. I am going to find a cart and enough of something to fill it." Dejan bows to the comany and departs.
OOC - Going to leave it at this for the rest of the day and this evening I'll keep going presuming everyone is ok.
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
Lyreis - Level 6 Elf Fighter - Eberron: Omega
DM - Dzenda: The Cracks - DM - Dzenda: Whispered Tales
Happy with that DM, assume Gideon retires for the night. !!
Yup
DM - Storm King's Thunder - The Gods Respond
DM - Four bards walk into a bar...
Cracitus Tibicen (Tibi) - Aarokocra - Rogue [Swashbuckler] / Fighter [Battlemaster]
Ophelia
"Do your best to find an animal that is at least a little bit good-natured, Dejan. I don't want to spend the entire trip arguing with a stubborn donkey."
She rises to her feet, and starts towards the door, nodding to the others with a smile. "We've been sent to our beds, boys. Best to do as your told."
Kai grins at Ophelia’s statement and again decides discretion is the better part of valour,
DM - Storm King's Thunder - The Gods Respond
DM - Four bards walk into a bar...
Cracitus Tibicen (Tibi) - Aarokocra - Rogue [Swashbuckler] / Fighter [Battlemaster]
"As you will my lady." Dejan says sketching a theatrical bow from his chair. He then stands and nods to the others "I have much to do, hopefully once you are on the road I will be able to catch up on all the sleep I have missed recently. I will see you at sun up and hopefully your escape from the city will go without a hitch.".
After the soldier turned spy departs the group follow Ophelia's advice and head off to their beds enjoying the opulence of the Fountain once more. The morning comes too soon for most, only Kai has really had time to rest but the others aren't doing badly and breakfast perks them up.
Dejan arrives as they are finishing looking pleased with himself. "Everything is ready, there is a wagon with a very well trained and docile mare for you to bully mercilessly my lady. The wagon is well stocked with some well crafted leatherwork which you can sell if you need extra money in Ameni, the whole lot should be worth about 400 gold pieces I'd say. You two can take the horses that are stabled here and follow me, whilst I need you two to arrive at the East Gate in one hour's time." The first part aimed at Kai and Gideon, the second at Ophelia and Gryffen." He moves to leave, then turns "Master Gryffen, it has been a pleasure, Ophelia it has certainly been memorable. The drinks will certainly be on me when you return, I have every faith you will do so. Remember to keep me appraised via the Sending Stones when it is safe to do so, if you believe them to be compromised send a message including the word "Unequivocally" and I will understand the situation and if there is any way to assist you I shall."
With the two soon-to-be guards in tow he leaves without a backwards look.
The trip takes both parties about half an hour, the men make slightly better time but are held up by an incident in the Cracks, one of the worst areas in the city where it seems there was a significant fire in the night. By the time Ophelia drives the wagon with Gryffen sitting alongside her down the same street it has calmed down and they arrive at almost the same moment. Dejan walks his horse over to a very fat man, who is clearly presiding over the forming caravan and after a brief whispered discussion introduces Gideon and Kai to him, naming him as Master Alson. Alson, looks the men over and seems impressed although he tries to play it down, before offering them the standard wage of a gold a day and ten as a bonus for the caravans arriving intact.
They are shown where the other guards, six of them in total are gathered. One of the men, a head taller than the others makes it clear that he is in charge of the rotations and is Alson's second in command, named Gabor, but to be called "Chief" by the men, which has one of the others roll their eyes not quite discretely enough to avoid getting caught and then cuffed round the head. He comments that "You two look a cut above the usual dregs he gets given." which goes down as well as would be expected from the other men.
Ophelia makes her way over to Alson shortly later and on behalf of Gryffen and herself has the wagon attached to the caravan as a whole. Her charm carries her through, and her claims to be extremely proficient with the crossbow resting on the seat next to her so no harm either. Given a spot near the back of the line they are ready to depart.
The whole party have time as the caravan gets ready to move out to see that there are 14 wagons, mostly fairly small and light, and an approximate number of about 25 people as well as the eight guards. Most of the people seem veterans of this life, tradesfolk who make this run often enough to know the drill and the caravan gets away without incident.
With only one cart behind her and all the others in front Ophelia gets to see a dusty version of the road ahead as the others throw up dust from their hooves and wheels as they go.
The guard duties involve half the men being on duty at any one time, as they leave Gideon and Kai are selected as the out riders and ride out a hundred yards of the caravan checking ahead for anything of note. But this close to Dzendalin they don't expect any trouble and see none as they go, after a few hours they are called in by the Chief and told to rest for a bit, with two others sent ahead. The ride is calm and level, several rest breaks for the horses and the people take place without incident and they make good time. Alson seems pleased and puffs away on his pipe sitting as a passenger on one of his own wagons, he owns four of them himself, surveying the countryside with a good natured manner.
At last it is time to call the travelling to a halt for the night, Alson and the Chief direct the wagons into a "U" shape and the guards are set to patrol. The drivers and passengers are able to get some quiet time between stopping and needing to sleep and neither of Kai or Gideon are on the first watch, so the whole party is free to do what they wish, the two working as guards know that they have three hour off then three on and then six off before the wagons roll out again the next morning (think about rests).
How do you each spend your time, socialising, resting, sneaking about?
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
Lyreis - Level 6 Elf Fighter - Eberron: Omega
DM - Dzenda: The Cracks - DM - Dzenda: Whispered Tales
Gryffen plays a popular little tune on his pan flute, attracting some attention from some of a family, some traders, and a pair of guards traveling with the caravan. After he is finished playing, he strikes up a conversation with the father of two boy, who are about 10 and 8 years old. His name is Farahk and he hails from far to the northwest of the capital.
"You would risk the lives of your family to travel all the way across the country?"
Farahk nods. "I do not make the decision lightly," he says in a serious tone. "But my youngest is quite ill. We found no help in the capital, so we keep moving east, looking for a healer who can give us good news."
Gryffen looks at the little boy, who did not look sick until he really looked at him in this moment.
"What is his plight?" the halfling asks.
"A disease of the spine," says Farahk. "On bad days, he cannot stand."
Gryffen watches the boy run with his brother, laughing. Today looks like a good day. "Does death lie at the end of this disease?" he says bluntly.
Farahk is quiet for a long time, perhaps perturbed by the halfling's dark line of questioning. "We do not know but every healer we have seen says he will likely die."
Gryffen purses his lips and pats the arm of the much taller man. "Make his days happy," he says. "Make them count for something worthwhile."
Farahk tears up. "He is just a boy."
Gryffen smiles. "He lives each day like the rest of us."
Silence falls upon them and Gryffen begins to play his pipes again. This time, the song is a melancholy one.
Cresting a small rise above the caravan he pulled the reigns of his mount bringing them both to a gentle stop, the horse shuffled uncomfortably underneath him longing to stretch its legs on the open road a fine beast he thought surely wasted carrying the likes of us between Dzendalin and the east. Gideon quieted the beast with a stroke of the neck it affirmed his touch with a shake of the head nostrils flaring, behind him the sound of Gryffens pipes found its way to his ears a pleasant tune for sure. Casting his gaze forward the road unwound before him his mind filled with thoughts of the past, the last time he took this road he rode east to west vowing to start his journey forever taking two steps forward and one back, but whatever he did his thoughts always returned to the east and his home. Heavy clouds now hung lazily to the north a gentle breeze played at his face and hair Gryffens pipes he noted had taken a melancholy tone, one to match his mood for sure. Gideon tightened the grip on his spear and pushed the mount to the next rise his job not finished for the day.
Ophelia
At the back of the caravan (where Ophelia surmised new faces were relegated to by the more established traders) things had not been pleasant. For some reason, the wheels of the cart in front of her, the one 3rd from the back, produced an inordinate amount of dust, billowing directly into her face. Ophelia spent the best part of the journey trying to figure out why, with no success, and attempted to shield herself from the worst of it, with little success. When the caravan finally stopped for the night, Ophelia was dirty, tired, and grumpy.
In spite of a desire to hunker down and sleep/sulk on her bedroll, Ophelia mustered her remaining energy to join the other drivers and traders by a fire, listening to their conversations and gossip while she occasionally coughed to clear the accumulation of dust in her throat.
The warmth of the fire begins to envelop the half-elf, and she shuts her eyes, slumped against the wheel of her cart. One of her slightly-pointed ears cocks in the direction of two older voices coming from behind her, outside the caravan perimeter, and she stops dozing. She picks the pertinent details of the conversation out from the general noise of the campsite, noting that the voices are slurred slightly, and that the owner of one voice is whispering rather loudly, as a drunk in a secret conversation is want to do...
"...old bastard finally gave up then, the illness took him last month apparently, left poor Ola with considerable debts...no idea of any other family... no one's taken over his share of the contraband... left me a letter with instructions, and a bottle of his favorite...back at my cart..."
Ophelia listens to the clinking of glass, possibly the pouring of the aforementioned bottle, as she moves round her cart to bring the owners of the two voices into view. The two men stand close together in the fading light, one fat, one thin, both middle-aged. The thin one announces the toast. "To old Pick, may the Gods look favorably upon his misdemeanors..." A chuckle from the pair follows, and the two bid each other goodnight.
Tailing the fat one back to his cart, Ophelia watches him throw the now-empty bottle into the back of it, before heading off into the darkness, probably to relieve himself. Spying his personal belongings poorly covered by a blanket, she rifles through them until a document rolled up in a backpack catches her eye. A quick skim of it's handwritten contents reveals a will of sorts, signed by an 'Andrzej Kozalin', addressed to a 'Jarek Bedzin'. Though the contents seem benign, Ophelia's eyes catch the code words used by those in a similar line of work to herself, the document actually providing details of a small smuggling operation, and information on future shipments and opportunities. The half-elf's expert eye picks up the style and intricacies of Pick's handwriting, along with the various code words he used, and she commits them to memory.
Carefully placing the document in the backpack, Ophelia retires to her own cart, and produces a selection of writing materials from her backpack, intent on creating her own document. A short while later, satisfied with her handiwork, Ophelia arrives at the fat man's cart, and makes her presence known with a cough.
"Eh?" The fat man squints at her in the relative darkness, his annoyance at being disturbed clear to see.
"Forgive me sir, are you Jarek Bedzin?"
"That I am, one of the wealthiest traders in Ameni, I'll have you know. What do you want, girl?" Jarek's chest puffs out in importance to a circumference almost matching his stomach.
"My name is Adria Kozalin, sir, and my grandmother, Ola, bade me travel in this caravan and make contact with you." Ophelia steps forward and hands him her forged letter from old Pick. Jarek mutters as he reads through the letter, recognising his associate's handwriting.
"You understand the contents of this letter, girl?" Jarek's tone moves from annoyed to serious.
"I believe so, sir. My grandfather wanted me to help pay off his debts after he was gone, and is requesting that I be able to make use of your 'connections' to do so. He told me a little of your work together... I may not agree with some of the choices you both made over the years, but I will not see my grandmother slip into poverty, while I have the opportunity to help her."
Jarek reads the letter a second time. "Bloody Pick! Fine. Speak to me again when we reach Ameni. I daresay you're not cut out for this work, but your grandfather and I were like brothers, and I will honor his request. Now leave me to sleep."
Ophelia politely wishes him good night, before returning to her bedroll, a satisfied smile crossing her face as she falls asleep.
Kai merely feeds and waters his horse at the end of the day observing everything going on around him and fascinated by the various interactions. He particularly smiles at seeing the young boy overcome his difficulties and run and play with his brother. He quietly whispers "oh spirits of my fathers, look favourably on that young boy" as he summons a bear spirit to impart its strength to both boys who suddenly find themselves able - without knowing why - to leap and jump much higher than they ever had before.
DM - Storm King's Thunder - The Gods Respond
DM - Four bards walk into a bar...
Cracitus Tibicen (Tibi) - Aarokocra - Rogue [Swashbuckler] / Fighter [Battlemaster]
The day passes, the party make acquaintances amongst the other members of the caravan, but still do not know many of the people, the guards rotations keep them from spending much time with each other and the possibilities for recreation seem limited while they have such free time. As Ophelia tries to get in with some of the other traders and Gryffen spends time observing the people as they go about their business.
As the second day of their trip gets underway a squall springs up seemingly from nowhere and they are buffeted by some high winds for a little while and progress is slow there is no sign of the weather staying bad and the get underway after lunch in better form. As the day is ending Alson tells Kai in passing that they lost about 4 miles due to the weather and will try and push a little faster the next day to make up for it but it is not a concern at this time.
The evening draws in quickly and Kai and Gideon rush to get some sleep after a quick meal knowing that they will have to be up in a few hours for their next spell watching for danger. The land is wide open out here and only the odd copse of trees like the one they are using as a windbreak provide anything in the way of cover so attack seems unlikely, but the guards must still follow their watch patterns carefully.
Ophelia spends a little time with Jarek and gets to know a little more about the man but not much about his business which he doesn't seem inclined to talk about this evening. Gryffen decides to stretch his legs and takes a walk around the camp, for the most part it is quiet, the people are tired and the darkness comes fast so folk tend to sleep early and rise early. Despite this Gryffen does see something to catch his eye, he had almost walked past the couple before he noticed it but he sees a large man, one of the guards that he doesn't know by name talking quietly to a young girl, no more than sixteen years old, with a pretty face and long blond hair. The halfling pauses, the tone seems dark and the girl looks a little anxious although in the half light it is a bit hard to tell, he is too far away to hear what is being said but the body language of the guard seems to indicate he is not willing to let the girl move away, although she doesn't seem to be actively trying to get away from him.
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
Lyreis - Level 6 Elf Fighter - Eberron: Omega
DM - Dzenda: The Cracks - DM - Dzenda: Whispered Tales
Gryffen will take this opportunity to circle back unnoticed and try to eavesdrop on the couple. He pulls the hood up on his cloak and creeps closer to listen in on the conversation.
Stealth (with advantage): 22
As
GryffenGideon drops off to sleep, Kai lies on his back studying the stars of this place and thinking of what has happened and what he has done since leaving the valleys of the northwest. As his Grandfather used to say "there are circles within circles and sometimes they interact in ways you can't always foresee and don't expect!"DM - Storm King's Thunder - The Gods Respond
DM - Four bards walk into a bar...
Cracitus Tibicen (Tibi) - Aarokocra - Rogue [Swashbuckler] / Fighter [Battlemaster]
(Hey, I'm still awake here, sneaking around and stuff!)
(Too many characters whose names start with 'G' I meant Gideon)
DM - Storm King's Thunder - The Gods Respond
DM - Four bards walk into a bar...
Cracitus Tibicen (Tibi) - Aarokocra - Rogue [Swashbuckler] / Fighter [Battlemaster]
(haha! There's no confusing the two for any other reason, at least!)
Gryffen
You hear a conversation between the two, the guard is pointing out the dangers of the trip and suggesting that they come to an "arrangement" to ensure she receives extra protection, he is not phrasing it as a choice. The woman is clearly intimidated and unwilling but the man's behaviour indicates he isn't planning on taking no for an answer.
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
Lyreis - Level 6 Elf Fighter - Eberron: Omega
DM - Dzenda: The Cracks - DM - Dzenda: Whispered Tales
Gryffen will sneak even closer, coming up behind the guard. Stealth (with advantage): 28 The halfling will draw his sickle and hook it under the man's crotch, looking up with his face in shadow.
"She's a fine looking lass," Gryffen says. "But don't make yourself the threat you deem to protect her from. I can remove your lust for you, if you cannot control it yourself, friend."
Intimidation: 20
(Great line - pity about the roll!)
DM - Storm King's Thunder - The Gods Respond
DM - Four bards walk into a bar...
Cracitus Tibicen (Tibi) - Aarokocra - Rogue [Swashbuckler] / Fighter [Battlemaster]
(I've got me a back up plan, but let's see what happens.)