Aubin is exhausted dealing with the antics of the goblins. He looks at the herd of reindeer "Who are those people in the distance?" He turns when he sees Sabetha exit the wagon "Well even more bad news. Lets have a short rest before pushing the sled the rest of the way."
He pulls his winter clothing tighter around himself thoroughly disliking how cold it is.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
If it was a wild herd of reindeer without anyone tending it, Sabetha would consider hunting one to help feed both the goblins and the party. But if there are humanoids marching with the herd, that would be poaching. She squints to get a better view of the animals and what the humanoids are that are walking with them.
When the party does arrive near Bryn Shander, Sabetha quietly approaches Blackberry and Elk Running. "I am leaving myself in your hands. Please use half of my share of the payment to buy Izobai's supplies and return so you can exchange the goods for, well, my freedom."
She has a brief vision of just how easy it would be for the Cassalanters and their devilish allies in Waterdeep to dispose of Sabetha, the lowliest of faction agents. So stupid and trusting. Puts her faith in goblins and strangers. She imagines them laughing in their luxurious villa.
With a grimace, she shakes it off. When the group leaves Sabetha with the goblins to collect their reward for the sled of iron and Oobok's remains, Sabetha spends a bit of time speaking with Izobai. Inside the goblin leader's wagon if needed. Two of the things Izobai had said...
"I must ask you of two things you said, Izobai. First, the men driven mad by crystals." She shows her the scrimshaw doll of her father. "I never truly knew my father but by all accounts, he was a cheerful man. And yet I have this likeness of him. Apparently made in Lonelywood to the north. Is this what the men driven mad look like? Do you know anything about the crystals that are the source of the madness? Please, anything you can tell me."
"As for the devil-worshippers..." she bares her teeth, unable to keep the hostility out of her face. "Bad enough with the Frostmaiden's touch here. Which devil lord do these people worship? And where? There is nothing more dangerous than devils and those who have made a bargain with them."
The party leaves Sabetha behind and makes their way to Bryn Shander. Hard as it is to believe, without the Goblin's help, things go more slowly, but not as much as you expected. Either you've grown more used to the toil of pushing and dragging the sled or the Goblins just weren't that much help. In any case, in an hour you are back on the road outside of Bryn Shander and shortly thereafter you find yourself again at the Westgate.
Pushing the sled through the town, you make your way to the Dwarves' safehouse. Hruna greets you at the door, looking much improved. She is still missing a finger or two but the obvious signs of frostbite are mostly faded away. As you pull the sled up, she immediately goes to the shrouded remains of Oobok, climbing up and kneeling over them on the iron. With tears in her eyes, she asks you to go get Korux and Storn from inside. As you enter the house, both dwarves are in the main room, resting, but upon seeing you they leap to their feet and head outside. There the three friends take a moment and stand soundlessly around the body of their lost companion. Then they carefully take the remains inside.
As you follow, you see the dwarves carefully lay out the remains, gather bowls of water, and start cleaning what is left of their friend. They weep as they do so and sing, in Dwarvish, what is obviously a song of mourning. Before she sets to work, Hruna takes you aside and says, "We thank you for this deed. We were worried that our friend would be lost to us forever, never buried with his ancestors in our people's home. You have done us a great service." She looks in her bag and pulls out 6 gemstones, handing them to each of you and then pausing with the last one in her hand.
"There was another. Was she...was she lost as well?"
Blackberry observes the funerary rites with curious reverence. Afterwards, he answers Hruna, "Our companion Sabetha remained outside of town with some scavengers we met. She asked us to collect her reward for her and purchase supplies with it and return to her with them."
Aubin takes his hat off and bows his head. He takes the gem and was about to say something, but stops himself as he can see the dwarves are grief stricken. He steps outside even though he detest the cold to give the dwarves some privacy.
I will ask them for the introductions a bit later. Perhaps I can just drop Hruna's name to see the town leader.
Hruna gives Blackberry an odd look when he tells her about Sabetha and then watches Aubin leave. She shakes her head and gives the gem to Blackberry. "Please take it to your friend and give her our wishes for her good health."
"Please take the cart to Garn Blackiron's smithy. He paid for its delivery. Then please bring it back here. We'll use it to return our friend home," she says sadly. "My friends, should you ever visit the Dwarven Valley, please ask for me, Hruna Flintforge of Clan Battlehammer. I would be happy to show you some true dwarven hospitality."
As you leave to take the iron to Blackiron Blades, Korux breaks down sobbing, bent over the body of his friend. The last thing you hear are his wails of sorrow.
Garn Blackiron is very pleased to see you and, particularly, to see the iron. So pleased in fact, that he decides to give you all a 10% percent discount whenever you shop at his store. At this point, Uthal and Aura tell the rest of the party that they enjoyed the adventure, but that they are ready to go their separate ways. Perhaps the grief of the dwarves has led them to contemplate their own mortality.
As for you, you hurry back to the Goblins with the things that Izobai had written on her list. When you arrive, Izobai has the Goblins load her wagon with the materials. Sabetha is there waiting for you. It is already dark, but Bryn Shander is not far away. You reach the Northlook Inn about 2 hours after nightfall. Which you realize is only about 4 in the afternoon. You have been up since 10 the previous night and you have pushed a heavy sled a long distance. You are welcome to go ahead and turn in or role-play or to pursue further goals in Bryn Shander. Once you have had a long rest, you will be level 2.
(OOC: congratulations on the conclusion of the campaign's first quest).
Aubin bids Uthal and Aura good bye and walks into Northlook with leaden feet and goes to the back counter to order food "Whatever you have for dinner I will have it" He slumps into the nearest chair and devours his food when it comes.
He lingers a bit soaking in the warmth of the Inn. He looks to his companions "I am done for the day, good night"Aubin heads to his room and drops his pack and gear on the floor and falls asleep as soon as his head hits the pillow.
The events of the last couple of days have given Blackberry much to ponder, and a wide range of emotions have accompanied those events. He too will take his leave of his companions for the evening, secretly worrying that he will wake up to morrow and it will all have been a dream. As he lays in his cot, staring at the ceiling waiting for Morpheus to come, he absent-mindedly fiddles with his snow globe, turning it over and over in his forepaws, as he drifts into the world of dreams.
Sabetha's mind is reeling by the time the party return to her and provide Izobai with the supplies. From the cold and exhaustion certainly, but also from what she has learned and the letter proposing truce and negotiation from the leader of the goblins of Karkohlok. She takes her leave of Izobai and accepts the remaining 25 gold pieces of her payment. She decides that she will relay all this information tomorrow when spirits and energy might be higher. She unattunes from her Ring of the Narwhal for the moment so as not to draw undue attention with her horn.
She takes her leave of Uthal and Aura for good, and the rest of the party for the night, thanking them for seeing her plan through. She heads straight to Blackiron Blades. There she introduces herself as the last member of the party so that she can take advantage of the 10% discount and tries to find the least poorly-made longsword that she can find, buying it at the discount for 13 gold pieces and 5 silver. She then attempts to ask after the alternate Inn suggested by the initial posting she had seen at the Northlook. The Geldenstag’s Rest Inn. If she can find a cheaper room and meal there, she takes it, hoping to ask after the Dannika who had posted a job to help research magical beings at the Northlook. Otherwise returning to the Northlook.
Either way, she steels herself and finds an open area and forces herself to practice in slow, flowing motions with the longsword held in both hands. Emptying her mind and losing herself in the exercise despite her screaming muscles and deeply weary mind. For one hour. Two. Until the dance becomes as natural as her own breathing. Only then does she let herself slump to her chosen Inn, eat quickly and fall asleep in her room. Sabetha falls asleep instantly, but has restless dreams for a time. Of a snowstorm with white devil horns, of ferocious frost giants and mammoths, of her bones themselves being transformed to a dark, demonic crystal, of sculptures of ice, beautiful and perfect and terrible. She is so small and Winter is so big. She finally finds peace as she remembers what a legendary Harper had said once, long ago.
Elk Running remains silent as Oobok's remains are presented and tended to by those who survive him. She quietly hums along with the song, familiar with the words. She remains quiet for the remainder of the travel, contemplating what she has seen and ruminating on the past.
At the inn, despite their difficult work, she has no appetite. She simply finds her way to a bed and enjoys the rare luxury of an inn mattress.
You ask around for The Geldenstag's Rest Inn and are directed toward the area around the Eastern gate to Bryn Shander. Upon arrival, you see an old building, much weathered, and seeming to tilt slightly toward a neighboring shop, as if looking for further support. Entering, you see a large room with a scattering of tables and chairs, sparsely populated. There is a pale, dark haired woman seated at table, a black cat crawling between her legs. At the bar there is an obvious beggar woman, possibly a recipient of the Innkeeper's generosity, messily devouring a bowl of stew. By the beggar stands a gray-furred, female tabaxi, who smiles upon your entrance and walks over to greet you.
"Welcome to the Geldenstag's Rest Inn! I am Myrtle, your host. May I offer you a bowl of stew and a hearty ale?" She is already somehow leading you to a table.
As you are seated, she brightly says, "Judging by your appearance, you are not from the Ten-Towns. What brings you here to our town and my inn?"
(OOC: I just need to finish last night with Sabetha and we'll move on to the next day; don't forget to subtract 2 gp for each night you stay at the Northlook)
Her hazel eyes are covered with a milky film, giving them a dull blue-gray appearance. Her hair is black—or ages-unwashed brunette? Hard to say. Stringy and flat, it falls just beyond shoulder-length. Her skin is pallid and clammy, and her mouth, cheeks, and neck are viciously scarred, as if she had been slashed repeatedly long ago.
She wears fine, albeit soiled and tattered, clothes: tall leather riding boots, black-velvet trousers, a purple blouse still caked with dried blood—you can’t fail to notice several gashes in the fabric—with a pin-on amber brooch affixed below her neckline. Her winter outerwear is draped lazily on the seat next to her, the fabric in the upper-chest area also rent and bloodstained.
There is neither food nor drink on the table before her. A softly purring black cat weaves among Eva’s legs below the table. She reaches down occasionally to stroke it.
No one sits at any of the adjacent tables, but a dapper man with greased-back brown hair sits opposite Eva. He is utterly immobile and says nothing while she lectures him. “Oh Alfred,” she complains, “why have you taken us to this gods-forsaken place?”
All this would seem much more disturbing if Eva didn’t give off a counterintuitively affable vibe. Despite her morbid state, she seems to be pleasant—even approachable?
When the tabaxi who calls herself Myrtle addresses a newcomer to the inn, Eva cranes her neck unnaturally far to the right to face them. She waves her left hand before her with a dismissive air. A dim blue light flashes on her left-hand ring finger, and Eva’s motionless “interlocutor” Alfred vanishes.
Myrtle smiles at the mention of Dannika. “A lovely girl,” she says, “recently arrived from Waterdeep, here to study with the herbalist Halla. She has some idea about how to change the weather back to normal, though she won’t tell me what it is. Strange that. I’m sorry to tell you that she is away from town at the moment, but she’ll be here tomorrow, starting at around midday. That woman over there,” she points at the pale woman with the cat, “also came in asking about Dannika. She’s…ah…a strange one. But she is affable enough. There’s something off about her eyes, though, and she has obviously been attacked. I asked her about it and suggested she seek healing, but she insists she’s fine. Another stray…”
”In any case, let’s get you settled. A room for the night is 5 silver and meals are two silver each. My fish stew is famous; you look like you could use some. Do you travel a lot? Where have you come from? What’s your name? What brought you to Ten-Towns?”
What a skilled faction agent I am, falling for the hard sell. Hopefully I don't end up poisoned or kidnapped. I actually feel better that she's asking for my coin. And this seems as good a place to avoid notice as any. And the seemingly ... dead... woman with the cat and the... servant?
Sabetha decides to take the risk and hands over 7 silver pieces to Myrtle. "Thank you. I am Sabetha, from Waterdeep as well. I'm here to... help."
Leaving Myrtle's other questions unanswered, she turns to the woman at the other table. "My... ah, Lady. You came asking after Dannika's job as well? Research into magical beings at Icewind Dale? It would be wondrous to be able to improve this endless cold and dark. Shall we work together? I just finished a job retrieving lost goods from the dwarven valley that were bound for Blackiron Blades along with several other adventurers at the Northlook."
Sabetha looks more closely at the woman and tries to hide her surprise at her wounded, and frankly, dead appearance.
"Your cat is lovely," she ventures, attempting to recover her equilibrium. What a couple days it's been...
Eva rises, approaches, and proffers her pale and rather desiccated right hand to Sabetha, "My name is Eva Tudor. Enchantée."
The black cat follows soundlessly and gazes up at Sabetha. "And this is Ténèbre, but everyone calls her Teb. Easier to say. Did you hear that, Teb? This kindly woman thinks you’re lovely." The cat's green eyes flicker as it closes and opens its lids in acknowledgement.
"Yes, I too am responding to the advert in the Northlook, where I last saw my husband, Alfred. Have you seen him? I've been looking for him." Eva snaps her fingers, and a miniature three-dimensional image of a man appears in the air alongside her—the same man you'd seen seated across from Eva moments before; the hologram, as it would be called in later centuries, spins slowly, offering perspectives of Alfred on all sides. Eva snaps it away again.
“As for the advert, well, I’m lost here in this barren land with only five gold to my name, so I need to earn some money. I adore magical beings and was particularly enticed by ‘incredible danger unlikely’. I’d like to avoid further mishaps, you see.”
Well, thinks Sabetha, in the last day or two, while on the run from devils and their worshippers far to the south, I've recovered a ring from amidst confetti emitted by the mouth of a singing knucklehead trout on the wall of the Northlook which made me grow a narwhal horn on my head when attuned, witnessed frost giants riding on mammoths bound for some frozen sea, recovered the corpse of a hapless dwarf who had been decapitated by a yeti, killed one goblin and parleyed with their leader in her wagon pulled by polar bears, accepting a sled of iron to return to other dwarves along with a proposed peace treaty from a goblin chief intended for the speaker of Bryn Shander, found a tabaxi-run ramshackle inn where the proprietress serves free stew to beggars, and now met the apparently dead Eva, her pretty black cat (familiar?) Teb and the illusion of her (possibly late?) husband Alfred...
Sabetha meets Teb's gaze briefly with a warm smile, which continues when she looks up to shake Eva's hand, the young half-elf's pale green eyes both bemused and exhausted. She subconsciously brushes back long red hair from her cheek that isn't there because it is tied in a hasty bob behind her head.
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Eva Tudor. I am Sabetha Rai. You use magic. And need to earn gold, you say? I think you'd fit in with our group nicely, the ones staying at the Northlook. We are an eclectic bunch, but I hope that will not bother you? None of us has... died before to my knowledge," (she stumbles a bit on that, but recovers soon enough). "Though I can't be sure of course, I really only just met them on this last job. One is an Eladrin that may have been in a dormant state for a time, so perhaps that qualifies. Another a harengon with artifice and a sense of humor, and the last a mysterious hatted... bounty hunter perhaps. But safety in numbers is a cold necessity in Icewind Dale, from what I have seen. There is something deeply wrong with this place. I think the aforementioned 'incredible danger' will find you and me both soon enough, whether we will it or no."
“Safety in numbers, indeed…” 'Tis a lesson I should have learnt long ago, Eva reflects. “Gladly I’ll join you and your comrades if you’ll have me. As it now stands, I’m just wasting away in this inn. I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation with Myrtle. Shall we return to the Northlook to fetch your friends or wait here at Geldenstag’s until Dannika returns on the morrow? I leave it up to you.”
Aubin is exhausted dealing with the antics of the goblins. He looks at the herd of reindeer "Who are those people in the distance?" He turns when he sees Sabetha exit the wagon "Well even more bad news. Lets have a short rest before pushing the sled the rest of the way."
He pulls his winter clothing tighter around himself thoroughly disliking how cold it is.
If it was a wild herd of reindeer without anyone tending it, Sabetha would consider hunting one to help feed both the goblins and the party. But if there are humanoids marching with the herd, that would be poaching. She squints to get a better view of the animals and what the humanoids are that are walking with them.
Perception: 13
And gets a face-full of snow instead. They're probably frost giants and mammoths again...
Tanis(Ranger1): Shiverquill's Tempest City | Xarian(Fighter2): NioNSwiper's Tyranny of Dragons
Dyson/Eleo(TwilightCleric4): Vos' Beyond the Veil | Soren(ShepherdDruid5): Bartjeebus' Ravenloft | Ophelia(WildMagicSorcerer4): Ashen_Age's Risen from the Sands
Joren(EchoKnightFighter6): NotDrizzt's Simple Request | Sabetha(MercyMonk3): Bedlymn's Murder Court | Seri(NatureCleric3/DivineSoulSorcerer1): Bartjeebus' Greyhawk
(OOC Ok what is Blackberry supposed to be doing? Taking up a collection to buy the stuff on Izobai's shopping list?)
When the party does arrive near Bryn Shander, Sabetha quietly approaches Blackberry and Elk Running. "I am leaving myself in your hands. Please use half of my share of the payment to buy Izobai's supplies and return so you can exchange the goods for, well, my freedom."
She has a brief vision of just how easy it would be for the Cassalanters and their devilish allies in Waterdeep to dispose of Sabetha, the lowliest of faction agents. So stupid and trusting. Puts her faith in goblins and strangers. She imagines them laughing in their luxurious villa.
With a grimace, she shakes it off. When the group leaves Sabetha with the goblins to collect their reward for the sled of iron and Oobok's remains, Sabetha spends a bit of time speaking with Izobai. Inside the goblin leader's wagon if needed. Two of the things Izobai had said...
"I must ask you of two things you said, Izobai. First, the men driven mad by crystals." She shows her the scrimshaw doll of her father. "I never truly knew my father but by all accounts, he was a cheerful man. And yet I have this likeness of him. Apparently made in Lonelywood to the north. Is this what the men driven mad look like? Do you know anything about the crystals that are the source of the madness? Please, anything you can tell me."
"As for the devil-worshippers..." she bares her teeth, unable to keep the hostility out of her face. "Bad enough with the Frostmaiden's touch here. Which devil lord do these people worship? And where? There is nothing more dangerous than devils and those who have made a bargain with them."
Tanis(Ranger1): Shiverquill's Tempest City | Xarian(Fighter2): NioNSwiper's Tyranny of Dragons
Dyson/Eleo(TwilightCleric4): Vos' Beyond the Veil | Soren(ShepherdDruid5): Bartjeebus' Ravenloft | Ophelia(WildMagicSorcerer4): Ashen_Age's Risen from the Sands
Joren(EchoKnightFighter6): NotDrizzt's Simple Request | Sabetha(MercyMonk3): Bedlymn's Murder Court | Seri(NatureCleric3/DivineSoulSorcerer1): Bartjeebus' Greyhawk
The party leaves Sabetha behind and makes their way to Bryn Shander. Hard as it is to believe, without the Goblin's help, things go more slowly, but not as much as you expected. Either you've grown more used to the toil of pushing and dragging the sled or the Goblins just weren't that much help. In any case, in an hour you are back on the road outside of Bryn Shander and shortly thereafter you find yourself again at the Westgate.
Pushing the sled through the town, you make your way to the Dwarves' safehouse. Hruna greets you at the door, looking much improved. She is still missing a finger or two but the obvious signs of frostbite are mostly faded away. As you pull the sled up, she immediately goes to the shrouded remains of Oobok, climbing up and kneeling over them on the iron. With tears in her eyes, she asks you to go get Korux and Storn from inside. As you enter the house, both dwarves are in the main room, resting, but upon seeing you they leap to their feet and head outside. There the three friends take a moment and stand soundlessly around the body of their lost companion. Then they carefully take the remains inside.
As you follow, you see the dwarves carefully lay out the remains, gather bowls of water, and start cleaning what is left of their friend. They weep as they do so and sing, in Dwarvish, what is obviously a song of mourning. Before she sets to work, Hruna takes you aside and says, "We thank you for this deed. We were worried that our friend would be lost to us forever, never buried with his ancestors in our people's home. You have done us a great service." She looks in her bag and pulls out 6 gemstones, handing them to each of you and then pausing with the last one in her hand.
"There was another. Was she...was she lost as well?"
Tamryn - lvl 4 Wood Elf Rogue - Circle of Light Campaign || Drusilla - lvl 1 Half-Elf Ranger - Sleeping Gods || Grrzark - lvl 1 Goblin Barbarian - Danger at Darkshelf Quarry || DM - LTG - Curse of Strahd
Blackberry observes the funerary rites with curious reverence. Afterwards, he answers Hruna, "Our companion Sabetha remained outside of town with some scavengers we met. She asked us to collect her reward for her and purchase supplies with it and return to her with them."
Aubin takes his hat off and bows his head. He takes the gem and was about to say something, but stops himself as he can see the dwarves are grief stricken. He steps outside even though he detest the cold to give the dwarves some privacy.
I will ask them for the introductions a bit later. Perhaps I can just drop Hruna's name to see the town leader.
Hruna gives Blackberry an odd look when he tells her about Sabetha and then watches Aubin leave. She shakes her head and gives the gem to Blackberry. "Please take it to your friend and give her our wishes for her good health."
"Please take the cart to Garn Blackiron's smithy. He paid for its delivery. Then please bring it back here. We'll use it to return our friend home," she says sadly. "My friends, should you ever visit the Dwarven Valley, please ask for me, Hruna Flintforge of Clan Battlehammer. I would be happy to show you some true dwarven hospitality."
As you leave to take the iron to Blackiron Blades, Korux breaks down sobbing, bent over the body of his friend. The last thing you hear are his wails of sorrow.
Garn Blackiron is very pleased to see you and, particularly, to see the iron. So pleased in fact, that he decides to give you all a 10% percent discount whenever you shop at his store. At this point, Uthal and Aura tell the rest of the party that they enjoyed the adventure, but that they are ready to go their separate ways. Perhaps the grief of the dwarves has led them to contemplate their own mortality.
As for you, you hurry back to the Goblins with the things that Izobai had written on her list. When you arrive, Izobai has the Goblins load her wagon with the materials. Sabetha is there waiting for you. It is already dark, but Bryn Shander is not far away. You reach the Northlook Inn about 2 hours after nightfall. Which you realize is only about 4 in the afternoon. You have been up since 10 the previous night and you have pushed a heavy sled a long distance. You are welcome to go ahead and turn in or role-play or to pursue further goals in Bryn Shander. Once you have had a long rest, you will be level 2.
(OOC: congratulations on the conclusion of the campaign's first quest).
Tamryn - lvl 4 Wood Elf Rogue - Circle of Light Campaign || Drusilla - lvl 1 Half-Elf Ranger - Sleeping Gods || Grrzark - lvl 1 Goblin Barbarian - Danger at Darkshelf Quarry || DM - LTG - Curse of Strahd
(OOC Yay Level 2)
Aubin bids Uthal and Aura good bye and walks into Northlook with leaden feet and goes to the back counter to order food "Whatever you have for dinner I will have it" He slumps into the nearest chair and devours his food when it comes.
He lingers a bit soaking in the warmth of the Inn. He looks to his companions "I am done for the day, good night" Aubin heads to his room and drops his pack and gear on the floor and falls asleep as soon as his head hits the pillow.
The events of the last couple of days have given Blackberry much to ponder, and a wide range of emotions have accompanied those events. He too will take his leave of his companions for the evening, secretly worrying that he will wake up to morrow and it will all have been a dream. As he lays in his cot, staring at the ceiling waiting for Morpheus to come, he absent-mindedly fiddles with his snow globe, turning it over and over in his forepaws, as he drifts into the world of dreams.
Sabetha's mind is reeling by the time the party return to her and provide Izobai with the supplies. From the cold and exhaustion certainly, but also from what she has learned and the letter proposing truce and negotiation from the leader of the goblins of Karkohlok. She takes her leave of Izobai and accepts the remaining 25 gold pieces of her payment. She decides that she will relay all this information tomorrow when spirits and energy might be higher. She unattunes from her Ring of the Narwhal for the moment so as not to draw undue attention with her horn.
She takes her leave of Uthal and Aura for good, and the rest of the party for the night, thanking them for seeing her plan through. She heads straight to Blackiron Blades. There she introduces herself as the last member of the party so that she can take advantage of the 10% discount and tries to find the least poorly-made longsword that she can find, buying it at the discount for 13 gold pieces and 5 silver. She then attempts to ask after the alternate Inn suggested by the initial posting she had seen at the Northlook. The Geldenstag’s Rest Inn. If she can find a cheaper room and meal there, she takes it, hoping to ask after the Dannika who had posted a job to help research magical beings at the Northlook. Otherwise returning to the Northlook.
Either way, she steels herself and finds an open area and forces herself to practice in slow, flowing motions with the longsword held in both hands. Emptying her mind and losing herself in the exercise despite her screaming muscles and deeply weary mind. For one hour. Two. Until the dance becomes as natural as her own breathing. Only then does she let herself slump to her chosen Inn, eat quickly and fall asleep in her room. Sabetha falls asleep instantly, but has restless dreams for a time. Of a snowstorm with white devil horns, of ferocious frost giants and mammoths, of her bones themselves being transformed to a dark, demonic crystal, of sculptures of ice, beautiful and perfect and terrible. She is so small and Winter is so big. She finally finds peace as she remembers what a legendary Harper had said once, long ago.
We are the song for those who have no voice.
Tanis(Ranger1): Shiverquill's Tempest City | Xarian(Fighter2): NioNSwiper's Tyranny of Dragons
Dyson/Eleo(TwilightCleric4): Vos' Beyond the Veil | Soren(ShepherdDruid5): Bartjeebus' Ravenloft | Ophelia(WildMagicSorcerer4): Ashen_Age's Risen from the Sands
Joren(EchoKnightFighter6): NotDrizzt's Simple Request | Sabetha(MercyMonk3): Bedlymn's Murder Court | Seri(NatureCleric3/DivineSoulSorcerer1): Bartjeebus' Greyhawk
Elk Running remains silent as Oobok's remains are presented and tended to by those who survive him. She quietly hums along with the song, familiar with the words. She remains quiet for the remainder of the travel, contemplating what she has seen and ruminating on the past.
At the inn, despite their difficult work, she has no appetite. She simply finds her way to a bed and enjoys the rare luxury of an inn mattress.
Sabetha:
You ask around for The Geldenstag's Rest Inn and are directed toward the area around the Eastern gate to Bryn Shander. Upon arrival, you see an old building, much weathered, and seeming to tilt slightly toward a neighboring shop, as if looking for further support. Entering, you see a large room with a scattering of tables and chairs, sparsely populated. There is a pale, dark haired woman seated at table, a black cat crawling between her legs. At the bar there is an obvious beggar woman, possibly a recipient of the Innkeeper's generosity, messily devouring a bowl of stew. By the beggar stands a gray-furred, female tabaxi, who smiles upon your entrance and walks over to greet you.
"Welcome to the Geldenstag's Rest Inn! I am Myrtle, your host. May I offer you a bowl of stew and a hearty ale?" She is already somehow leading you to a table.
As you are seated, she brightly says, "Judging by your appearance, you are not from the Ten-Towns. What brings you here to our town and my inn?"
(OOC: I just need to finish last night with Sabetha and we'll move on to the next day; don't forget to subtract 2 gp for each night you stay at the Northlook)
Tamryn - lvl 4 Wood Elf Rogue - Circle of Light Campaign || Drusilla - lvl 1 Half-Elf Ranger - Sleeping Gods || Grrzark - lvl 1 Goblin Barbarian - Danger at Darkshelf Quarry || DM - LTG - Curse of Strahd
Sabetha looks sharply at the tabaxi's face and body language, trying to guess whether Myrtle is up to something, seeming so eager to see her:
Insight: 6 ((rolled on DDB character sheet.))
Or just happy for a potential customer? No clue, but it does help in Sabetha's judgement that she seems to be helping a beggar.
"Thank you, Myrtle. I am looking for Dannika? She had a job posting at the Northlook regarding research into magical Icewind Dale beings?"
(Sabetha lacks the energy for many words right now and probably wouldn't answer the part about why she is in the Ten-Towns regardless.)
Tanis(Ranger1): Shiverquill's Tempest City | Xarian(Fighter2): NioNSwiper's Tyranny of Dragons
Dyson/Eleo(TwilightCleric4): Vos' Beyond the Veil | Soren(ShepherdDruid5): Bartjeebus' Ravenloft | Ophelia(WildMagicSorcerer4): Ashen_Age's Risen from the Sands
Joren(EchoKnightFighter6): NotDrizzt's Simple Request | Sabetha(MercyMonk3): Bedlymn's Murder Court | Seri(NatureCleric3/DivineSoulSorcerer1): Bartjeebus' Greyhawk
Eva must have been beautiful, before.
Her hazel eyes are covered with a milky film, giving them a dull blue-gray appearance. Her hair is black—or ages-unwashed brunette? Hard to say. Stringy and flat, it falls just beyond shoulder-length. Her skin is pallid and clammy, and her mouth, cheeks, and neck are viciously scarred, as if she had been slashed repeatedly long ago.
She wears fine, albeit soiled and tattered, clothes: tall leather riding boots, black-velvet trousers, a purple blouse still caked with dried blood—you can’t fail to notice several gashes in the fabric—with a pin-on amber brooch affixed below her neckline. Her winter outerwear is draped lazily on the seat next to her, the fabric in the upper-chest area also rent and bloodstained.
There is neither food nor drink on the table before her. A softly purring black cat weaves among Eva’s legs below the table. She reaches down occasionally to stroke it.
No one sits at any of the adjacent tables, but a dapper man with greased-back brown hair sits opposite Eva. He is utterly immobile and says nothing while she lectures him. “Oh Alfred,” she complains, “why have you taken us to this gods-forsaken place?”
All this would seem much more disturbing if Eva didn’t give off a counterintuitively affable vibe. Despite her morbid state, she seems to be pleasant—even approachable?
When the tabaxi who calls herself Myrtle addresses a newcomer to the inn, Eva cranes her neck unnaturally far to the right to face them. She waves her left hand before her with a dismissive air. A dim blue light flashes on her left-hand ring finger, and Eva’s motionless “interlocutor” Alfred vanishes.
“Memories,” Eva whispers.
Myrtle smiles at the mention of Dannika. “A lovely girl,” she says, “recently arrived from Waterdeep, here to study with the herbalist Halla. She has some idea about how to change the weather back to normal, though she won’t tell me what it is. Strange that. I’m sorry to tell you that she is away from town at the moment, but she’ll be here tomorrow, starting at around midday. That woman over there,” she points at the pale woman with the cat, “also came in asking about Dannika. She’s…ah…a strange one. But she is affable enough. There’s something off about her eyes, though, and she has obviously been attacked. I asked her about it and suggested she seek healing, but she insists she’s fine. Another stray…”
”In any case, let’s get you settled. A room for the night is 5 silver and meals are two silver each. My fish stew is famous; you look like you could use some. Do you travel a lot? Where have you come from? What’s your name? What brought you to Ten-Towns?”
Tamryn - lvl 4 Wood Elf Rogue - Circle of Light Campaign || Drusilla - lvl 1 Half-Elf Ranger - Sleeping Gods || Grrzark - lvl 1 Goblin Barbarian - Danger at Darkshelf Quarry || DM - LTG - Curse of Strahd
What a skilled faction agent I am, falling for the hard sell. Hopefully I don't end up poisoned or kidnapped. I actually feel better that she's asking for my coin. And this seems as good a place to avoid notice as any. And the seemingly ... dead... woman with the cat and the... servant?
Sabetha decides to take the risk and hands over 7 silver pieces to Myrtle. "Thank you. I am Sabetha, from Waterdeep as well. I'm here to... help."
Leaving Myrtle's other questions unanswered, she turns to the woman at the other table. "My... ah, Lady. You came asking after Dannika's job as well? Research into magical beings at Icewind Dale? It would be wondrous to be able to improve this endless cold and dark. Shall we work together? I just finished a job retrieving lost goods from the dwarven valley that were bound for Blackiron Blades along with several other adventurers at the Northlook."
Sabetha looks more closely at the woman and tries to hide her surprise at her wounded, and frankly, dead appearance.
"Your cat is lovely," she ventures, attempting to recover her equilibrium. What a couple days it's been...
Tanis(Ranger1): Shiverquill's Tempest City | Xarian(Fighter2): NioNSwiper's Tyranny of Dragons
Dyson/Eleo(TwilightCleric4): Vos' Beyond the Veil | Soren(ShepherdDruid5): Bartjeebus' Ravenloft | Ophelia(WildMagicSorcerer4): Ashen_Age's Risen from the Sands
Joren(EchoKnightFighter6): NotDrizzt's Simple Request | Sabetha(MercyMonk3): Bedlymn's Murder Court | Seri(NatureCleric3/DivineSoulSorcerer1): Bartjeebus' Greyhawk
Eva rises, approaches, and proffers her pale and rather desiccated right hand to Sabetha, "My name is Eva Tudor. Enchantée."
The black cat follows soundlessly and gazes up at Sabetha. "And this is Ténèbre, but everyone calls her Teb. Easier to say. Did you hear that, Teb? This kindly woman thinks you’re lovely." The cat's green eyes flicker as it closes and opens its lids in acknowledgement.
"Yes, I too am responding to the advert in the Northlook, where I last saw my husband, Alfred. Have you seen him? I've been looking for him." Eva snaps her fingers, and a miniature three-dimensional image of a man appears in the air alongside her—the same man you'd seen seated across from Eva moments before; the hologram, as it would be called in later centuries, spins slowly, offering perspectives of Alfred on all sides. Eva snaps it away again.
“As for the advert, well, I’m lost here in this barren land with only five gold to my name, so I need to earn some money. I adore magical beings and was particularly enticed by ‘incredible danger unlikely’. I’d like to avoid further mishaps, you see.”
Well, thinks Sabetha, in the last day or two, while on the run from devils and their worshippers far to the south, I've recovered a ring from amidst confetti emitted by the mouth of a singing knucklehead trout on the wall of the Northlook which made me grow a narwhal horn on my head when attuned, witnessed frost giants riding on mammoths bound for some frozen sea, recovered the corpse of a hapless dwarf who had been decapitated by a yeti, killed one goblin and parleyed with their leader in her wagon pulled by polar bears, accepting a sled of iron to return to other dwarves along with a proposed peace treaty from a goblin chief intended for the speaker of Bryn Shander, found a tabaxi-run ramshackle inn where the proprietress serves free stew to beggars, and now met the apparently dead Eva, her pretty black cat (familiar?) Teb and the illusion of her (possibly late?) husband Alfred...
Sabetha meets Teb's gaze briefly with a warm smile, which continues when she looks up to shake Eva's hand, the young half-elf's pale green eyes both bemused and exhausted. She subconsciously brushes back long red hair from her cheek that isn't there because it is tied in a hasty bob behind her head.
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Eva Tudor. I am Sabetha Rai. You use magic. And need to earn gold, you say? I think you'd fit in with our group nicely, the ones staying at the Northlook. We are an eclectic bunch, but I hope that will not bother you? None of us has... died before to my knowledge," (she stumbles a bit on that, but recovers soon enough). "Though I can't be sure of course, I really only just met them on this last job. One is an Eladrin that may have been in a dormant state for a time, so perhaps that qualifies. Another a harengon with artifice and a sense of humor, and the last a mysterious hatted... bounty hunter perhaps. But safety in numbers is a cold necessity in Icewind Dale, from what I have seen. There is something deeply wrong with this place. I think the aforementioned 'incredible danger' will find you and me both soon enough, whether we will it or no."
Tanis(Ranger1): Shiverquill's Tempest City | Xarian(Fighter2): NioNSwiper's Tyranny of Dragons
Dyson/Eleo(TwilightCleric4): Vos' Beyond the Veil | Soren(ShepherdDruid5): Bartjeebus' Ravenloft | Ophelia(WildMagicSorcerer4): Ashen_Age's Risen from the Sands
Joren(EchoKnightFighter6): NotDrizzt's Simple Request | Sabetha(MercyMonk3): Bedlymn's Murder Court | Seri(NatureCleric3/DivineSoulSorcerer1): Bartjeebus' Greyhawk
“Safety in numbers, indeed…” 'Tis a lesson I should have learnt long ago, Eva reflects. “Gladly I’ll join you and your comrades if you’ll have me. As it now stands, I’m just wasting away in this inn. I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation with Myrtle. Shall we return to the Northlook to fetch your friends or wait here at Geldenstag’s until Dannika returns on the morrow? I leave it up to you.”