Adventure in Dan-thurás

Quote from Naiya_Varma >>

This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.

The road narrows gradually as the afternoon wears on, the giving way to rougher ground, scattered stone, and hills that rise a little closer with every passing mile. Long shadows begin stretching across the road ahead while the wagon creaks steadily onward beside Lethira’s measured stride.

When the figure appears along the roadside, her attention settles on him almost immediately. The stacked shoes catch her eye first. She says nothing at first, simply watching.

Then Flins flicks a silver piece toward the beggar. “That was more generous than he asked for,” she says calmly.

Her attention settles on the beggar again, then briefly along the stretch of road around him. Nothing about the scene feels immediately dangerous, but something still feels off. She steps a little closer toward the roadside, her tone remaining gentle and even.

“You’re a fair distance from Cairdell, or any place for that matter” she says. A small pause follows. “Has the road been unkind to you… or people on it?”

Insight Check 21

To determine whether the begger's behavior seems genuine. (Inspiration was used)
NOTE: The dice roller is whak. The Insight check should be 16 NOT what ever value it is giving whenever I edit the post.

 "Well I don't have any copper on me right now."

“You’ve still been very kind,” the beggar answers, in a slightly clipped tone. Lethira notices that the beggar seems to be trying to get rid of Flins as quickly as possible, without anyone asking too many questions.

Rutrow still in the wagon notices the exchange and starts paying more attention to both the beggar and the surrounding area.

Insight 14

Perception 18

Lethira watches the man settle near the roadside, the battered shoes cast aside beside him. The smoothness of his feet despite claiming the road has been hard on him. The faint strain in his voice, as though he’s working slightly harder at sounding helpless than helplessness usually requires.

 “The road usually leaves more on the soles than that,” she says gently, her gaze lowering briefly toward his feet before lifting again.

As she speaks, she begins moving slowly around him rather than standing fixed in front of him. The movement is unhurried, as though simply giving the man room while they talk. In truth, she’s watching him, where his attention moves, whether he stands up, how focused he is on the wagon and the others on it. One hand lowers casually near her side as she moves, fingers turning in a small, subtle gesture toward the front of the wagon. Just enough for Flins to understand that something here is not right.

 Her eyes drift once more toward the discarded shoes before lifting back to the beggar himself. “And you haven’t passed anyone else today?” she asks calmly. “No riders coming east? No travelers ahead on the road?”

She leaves the questions open rather than pressing them, she is not all that interested in the answers. The purpose is to extend her reason for being in front of him, allowing the silence to extend itself as she continues to take in the stranger.

Perception Check: 12

Quote from MrDicestone55 >>

His manner is in fact suspicious, in that he is hiding something and he is not what he says he is

 Mia scrutinizes him but says nothing.

Quote from Character77006 >>

Rutrow still in the wagon notices the exchange and starts paying more attention to both the beggar and the surrounding area.

Insight 14

Perception 18

 Rutrow, knowing and known by the people of Cairdell, is a little leery of the stranger. Being a native of Cairdell, he recognizes from his accent that he isn’t a local, but what gets his attention is his shoes; despite appearing in tatters, he recognizes the subtle craftsmanship involved in making convincingly worn shoes and wonders, perhaps aloud, whether something other than feet could fit in such a sole, for he sees the beggar’s feet are not unusually large, unlike those of his traveling companion Orien the bear.

Quote from Naiya_Varma >>

Lethira watches the man settle near the roadside, the battered shoes cast aside beside him. The smoothness of his feet despite claiming the road has been hard on him. The faint strain in his voice, as though he’s working slightly harder at sounding helpless than helplessness usually requires.

“The road usually leaves more on the soles than that,” she says gently, her gaze lowering briefly toward his feet before lifting again.

As she speaks, she begins moving slowly around him rather than standing fixed in front of him. The movement is unhurried, as though simply giving the man room while they talk. In truth, she’s watching him, where his attention moves, whether he stands up, how focused he is on the wagon and the others on it. One hand lowers casually near her side as she moves, fingers turning in a small, subtle gesture toward the front of the wagon. Just enough for Flins to understand that something here is not right.

Her eyes drift once more toward the discarded shoes before lifting back to the beggar himself. “And you haven’t passed anyone else today?” she asks calmly. “No riders coming east? No travelers ahead on the road?”

She leaves the questions open rather than pressing them, she is not all that interested in the answers. The purpose is to extend her reason for being in front of him, allowing the silence to extend itself as she continues to take in the stranger.

Perception Check: 14

 ”No, none save you,” the beggar answers Lethira. She and now Flins, whom she signaled that something was amiss, notice his unusual shoes. Flins, once a street urchin himself, would recall that such tattered footwear paradoxically belong to a rich man.

Lethira for her part notices that for a man resting his feet, he keeps his shoes unusually close at hand, as if he suspects that someone might steal them; a detail Rutrow also notices.

Rutrow also notices that the beggar is perspiring, but it is not sweat borne of hard labor; something Rutrow knew all too well.

Quote from MrDicestone55 >>

Quote from Character77006 >>

Rutrow still in the wagon notices the exchange and starts paying more attention to both the beggar and the surrounding area.

Insight 14

Perception 18

 Rutrow, knowing and known by the people of Cairdell, is a little leery of the stranger. Being a native of Cairdell, he recognizes from his accent that he isn’t a local, but what gets his attention is his shoes; despite appearing in tatters, he recognizes the subtle craftsmanship involved in making convincingly worn shoes and wonders, perhaps aloud, whether something other than feet could fit in such a sole, for he sees the beggar’s feet are not unusually large, unlike those of his traveling companion Orien the bear.

Quote from Naiya_Varma >>

Lethira watches the man settle near the roadside, the battered shoes cast aside beside him. The smoothness of his feet despite claiming the road has been hard on him. The faint strain in his voice, as though he’s working slightly harder at sounding helpless than helplessness usually requires.

“The road usually leaves more on the soles than that,” she says gently, her gaze lowering briefly toward his feet before lifting again.

As she speaks, she begins moving slowly around him rather than standing fixed in front of him. The movement is unhurried, as though simply giving the man room while they talk. In truth, she’s watching him, where his attention moves, whether he stands up, how focused he is on the wagon and the others on it. One hand lowers casually near her side as she moves, fingers turning in a small, subtle gesture toward the front of the wagon. Just enough for Flins to understand that something here is not right.

Her eyes drift once more toward the discarded shoes before lifting back to the beggar himself. “And you haven’t passed anyone else today?” she asks calmly. “No riders coming east? No travelers ahead on the road?”

She leaves the questions open rather than pressing them, she is not all that interested in the answers. The purpose is to extend her reason for being in front of him, allowing the silence to extend itself as she continues to take in the stranger.

Perception Check: 14

 ”No, none save you,” the beggar answers Lethira. She and now Flins, whom she signaled that something was amiss, notice his unusual shoes. Flins, once a street urchin himself, would recall that such tattered footwear paradoxically belong to a rich man.

Lethira for her part notices that for a man resting his feet, he keeps his shoes unusually close at hand, as if he suspects that someone might steal them; a detail Rutrow also notices.

Rutrow also notices that the beggar is perspiring, but it is not sweat borne of hard labor; something Rutrow knew all too well.

 "Were you perhaps a noble or maybe a rich merchant?"

At this the “beggar” starts squirming before adopting a manner of baseless swagger. “Why should I tell you?” He scowls. 

At Flins’ inquiry, Peregrine Joe start scrutinizing the stranger’s face; perhaps he recognizes him…

18

“Balthazar?” He asks. “Is that you?”

“Balthazar” squirms a bit more, losing starch under the questioning and Lethira’s unwavering gaze.

Lethira notes that the shoes remain close to his hands protected like something valuable.

When Flins asks whether the man was once a noble or wealthy merchant, her eyes shift briefly toward him, acknowledging his suspicion. She continues to remain calm, her fingers brush lightly across the mark of Vaelith worked into the scales over her chest, and her voice lowers into a quiet, resonant cadence.

“Solvaris.”

The word sounds both dissonent and harmonious at the same time. A moment later, the discarded shoes jerk sharply across the dirt and scrape a foot or two away from the beggar. Lethira watches him rather than the movement itself as that matters more.

Then her gaze settles calmly back onto him. “So what happening here, then?” she says quietly. Her eyes now locked on him while the wind stirs softly around the roadside.

Action: Cast Thaumaturgy on shoes

19
He makes a grab for the shoes and drags them back, no longer concealing their value. His manner is now less suspicious and more fearful. “You haven’t seen any bandits, have you?” He asks as he frantically works to put his shoes back on.

Joe looks at the others knowingly but says nothing.

Quote from Naiya_Varma >>

Action: Cast Thaumaturgy on shoes

 *Hilarious use for Thaumaturgy BTW. I completely forgot that that was a thing*

Lethira watches the shoes skid across the dirt, but it’s the man’s reaction that settles the last uncertainty in her mind. The moment they move, he snatches after them with sudden panic, dragging them tightly back toward himself hurriedly forcing them onto his feet again. Whatever careful performance he’d been maintaining falls apart, replaced with fear.

 When he asks whether they’ve seen bandits, her expression softens slightly. “No,” Lethira answers calmly. “Not yet.” She continues, “but people don’t usually guard shoes like that unless they expect someone to take them,” her tone gentler now. Her gaze rests briefly on the sandels before returning to his face. “Lets start over,” she says quietly. "How have I come to find you in this particular place, at this particular moment?

“I got business in Cairdell,” he says, less panicked this time. “Also I heard that bandits had been troubling my buddy Joe.”

”Don’t patronize me,” Joe grumbles in response. “Maybe is it ME that you haven’t seen any bandits. Have you tried swimming while inside a sack? I don’t think so. If you’re so worried about bandits, why don’t you grow a pair and deal with them yourself, Fatsides,” he retorts. “You still have that magic Boom-Stick I gave you for your 257th birthday.”

”Yeah, yeah, sure, right after you get a brain and stop getting robbed so often, Bumblebrain” Balthazar fires back. “I’ve known you for a century and more, and you still haven’t used your Missile Wand against those bandits.”

”WHY YOU”—Joe basically flies from the wagon seat, tackles Balthazar, and the two roll about in the dirt, throwing wild punches and insulting the other’s ancestors like raging CoD or Fortnite streamers. 

Quote from MrDicestone55 >>

“I got business in Cairdell,” he says, less panicked this time. “Also I heard that bandits had been troubling my buddy Joe.”

”Don’t patronize me,” Joe grumbles in response. “Maybe is it ME that you haven’t seen any bandits. Have you tried swimming while inside a sack? I don’t think so. If you’re so worried about bandits, why don’t you grow a pair and deal with them yourself, Fatsides,” he retorts. “You still have that magic Boom-Stick I gave you for your 257th birthday.”

”Yeah, yeah, sure, right after you get a brain and stop getting robbed so often, Bumblebrain” Balthazar fires back. “I’ve known you for a century and more, and you still haven’t used your Missile Wand against those bandits.”

”WHY YOU”—Joe basically flies from the wagon seat, tackles Balthazar, and the two roll about in the dirt, throwing wild punches and insulting the other’s ancestors like raging CoD or Fortnite streamers. 

 "Will you two stop wasting time?" Flins says irritated

Quote from MrDicestone55 >>

“I got business in Cairdell,” he says, less panicked this time. “Also I heard that bandits had been troubling my buddy Joe.”

”Don’t patronize me,” Joe grumbles in response. “Maybe is it ME that you haven’t seen any bandits. Have you tried swimming while inside a sack? I don’t think so. If you’re so worried about bandits, why don’t you grow a pair and deal with them yourself, Fatsides,” he retorts. “You still have that magic Boom-Stick I gave you for your 257th birthday.”

”Yeah, yeah, sure, right after you get a brain and stop getting robbed so often, Bumblebrain” Balthazar fires back. “I’ve known you for a century and more, and you still haven’t used your Missile Wand against those bandits.”

”WHY YOU”—Joe basically flies from the wagon seat, tackles Balthazar, and the two roll about in the dirt, throwing wild punches and insulting the other’s ancestors like raging CoD or Fortnite streamers. 

 *Fortnite streamers is crazy.*

Mia starts and puts a hand to her crystal in case something else happens.

The two angry merchants pay no mind to them, but one of Balthazar’s shoes falls off during the fracas.

Mia is going to cast mage hand and try to grab it without him noticing. Can I make a Sleight of Hand check?

No need for a check; the two merchants are far too preoccupied with inflicting the greater amount of emotional damage upon the other; the remarks overheard include stuff like “Your mother was a hamster and your father reeked of elderberry!” “Did your face throw up or was that your mother?” “Why the blue robe, birdbrain; is it to hide that you’re a chicken?” and “Bob Ross can’t call you a ‘happy little accident,’ you bag of gold and of grease!”

The hand falls almost immediately when it picks up the shoes, and it takes all of Mia’s mental fortitude to manipulate it. When the hand dropped the first time, there is a noticeable jingle from the shoe. 

Quote from MrDicestone55 >>

No need for a check; the two merchants are far too preoccupied with inflicting the greater amount of emotional damage upon the other; the remarks overheard include stuff like “Your mother was a hamster and your father reeked of elderberry!” “Did your face throw up or was that your mother?” “Why the blue robe, birdbrain; is it to hide that you’re a chicken?” and “Bob Ross can’t call you a ‘happy little accident,’ you bag of gold and of grease!”

The hand falls almost immediately when it picks up the shoes, and it takes all of Mia’s mental fortitude to manipulate it. When the hand dropped the first time, there is a noticeable jingle from the shoe. 

 Mia grabs the shoes from the mage hand and then pockets them.

Lethira watches the situation unravel with the quiet patience of someone realizing the danger on this road may be two elderly merchants left unsupervised together for too long, as the pair disappear into the roadside dirt in a tangle of robes, fists, and deeply personal insults. Flins’ demand for them to stop as ignored, as Lethira closes her eyes briefly. Then her fingers brush once more across the mark of Vaelith worked into the dark scales over her chest, and her voice lowers into the calm, cadence used moments ago.

“Solvaris.”

A moment later, when she speaks again, her voice carries outward with impossible clarity across the roadside and hills beyond it, not angry, not strained, amplified.

“Enough!”

The grass bends sharply beneath the sudden force of it. Bettye jerks her head upward while the wagon horses stamp uneasily against their harnesses.

Lethira’s gaze settles evenly on the two men still wrestling in the dirt. “You are both entirely too old for this,” she says, her voice calm, though no less impossible to ignore. Her gaze watches them for another long moment before she glances at toward Mia. She says nothing. Only raises one eyebrow slightly as she walks back toward the wagon and rests one hand gently along the neck of the horse, until the nervous stamping eases beneath her touch. “Easy,” she murmurs softly. “None of this concerns you.” The horse settles gradually under the steadiness of her voice.

Lethira glances once toward the hills ahead, then back toward the others. “We should keep moving,” she says simply. A small pause follows as her eyes drift briefly toward the two merchants still covered in roadside dirt. “If they still feel compelled to murder each other in another mile, they can at least do it while traveling west.”