"See, I knew you were all too fond of me, Annaryth!" says the 'old man' sarcastically.

Wulfric sets out with his two companions back the way they had entered the village, avoiding questions if they can but otherwise deferring to Respar if they need a story on where they are going.  If pressed into action the disguised 'Prince' will answer something along the lines of "reagents, my boy...roots, mushrooms, herbs, etc."

Respar, Kiven, and Jesla head west out of the town. They find the place they'd landed the night prior easily enough. The ship is still there, beached in the shallow cove where they had left it.

The home of Reeve Valison proves simple to find, aside from the local chapel, it is easily the largest building in town. A well dressed halfling answers the door when Eya makes her presence known. "Yes, may I help you?"

  Annaryth nods at the sight of the ship. " I hate to sink this boat but we have no choice. I long to hit the open sea and travel where I want and not at the whims of others. Maybe we just leave it here.   If all else fails it is a way out.   I do not trust any that we work for. We are merely tools that they use and cast aside after their use is over.   " She looks from the boat to the others.   " What do you two think?" 

Martha approaches the well dressed halfling and says, "Hello there. My name is Martha Rose. I'm hoping to open up a shop here in town and was told that Master Valison would be the one to talk to about potentially renting Jannete Millry’s old home. May I speak to him? I don't mind making an appointment if he's busy."

The halfling nods, "I am afraid he is not here at the moment madame, he is having his customary Oathday lunch with Father Donnagin and Captain Eddarly. You are welcome to stay and await his return if you wish, though I must warn you that it may be an hour or two."

Respar looks to Jesla and Kiven.  "I too would prefer to be free of orders, but until this brand is removed, I don't see much choice.  As to the boat, the longer it is here the more likely someone finds it.  If they identify it they might start looking more closely at newcomers, which we really don't want.  I wish we could save it, almost as much as I wish the plan for bugbears using it to hit the docks when the battle begins, but I don't think it practical.  So, with many regrets, I vote to sink it."

"I suppose lighting it on fire from here might draw some attention..."  Kiven laments that it may take effort to sink this thing.  "Care to cut a hole in her and push her out into deeper water, Tigress?"

  Jesla shrugs and says,  " So be it.  I'll take care of it. " She takes her handaxe out and cuts a large hole in the bottom of it.   Jesla then gets behind it and shoves it out so it will sink off the bank.  After the boat is sunk she walks back out with dripping wet clothes.   I'll need to dry out before we return.   " She looks sadly out to where the boat rests submerged.   

The ship slides out onto the water, and starts to slip under as it fills with water. Soon enough the tip of the mast sinks out of sight. It takes a while for Jesla's clothes to dry out in the chilly air, but they're bone dry by the time the trio walk back into town.

Martha nods and replies to the halfling, "Very well. I'll return in a couple of hours then as I still have a few errands to run. Thank you very much for your time, Mr..... I'm sorry, what is your name sir?"

Eya heads to find Jacobian Scaramore the local hedge mage.

The halfling nods, "Very well madame, we shall await your return, I am Mr Darby."

Scaramore's place proves to be an unassuming building near the south end of town called The Illuminated Scroll. Martha opens the door and find the place filled to the brim with books and scrolls. A dusty old man sits scribbling at a desk, without looking in Martha's direction he says in a bored sounding voice, "How can I help you today, need a notarized document, legal advice, or perhaps a spell? I should note that contrary to recent rumors, no, I do not have anything that can make people fall in love. Hmph, such a ridiculous notion."

"Hello there, my name is Martha and I'm relatively new in town. I just came to browse your wares. I'm still a novice at spellcasting sadly. What spells do you have available in the form of scrolls?"

The wizard looks up from his desk, mild surprise on his face as he actually looks at Martha for the first time. "Oh? A fellow student of the weave? Of course, you are most welcome to look through what I have on hand. What brings you to such a backwater?"

He hands you a list of spells, each with its own description of the effects. Those available at this moment as a scroll are noted as such, others can be scribed into scrolls if required.

Respar looks for a market, intent on buying some special cuts of meat or unusual produce.  His intent is to bring it to the inn and into the kitchen.  He wants to buy more than the group needs, so the staff can have the extra.  He will look around, and still do his best to befriend folks. 

Martha's eyes light up with a genuine joy, unseen since they first met the Cardinal. "Yes...yes sir, I am a relatively new student of the weave. This is an amazing list of spells. I have to say I didn't quite expect all of this," she says with a tone of genuine shock as she looks over the stock of spells. 

"You must be Master Jacobian Scaramore. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance. My family and I are just new merchants hoping to open up a little alchemy and oddities shop here in town. We found a potential location that used to be a vacant home that we were hoping to rent. I still need to meet with Master Valison to try and work out the details. In the meantime, I've been browsing the various shops in the town. I had heard of a couple powerful mages at the keep from some of the townsfolk, but I didn't expect to find such a wonderful list of spells right here in town," she admits with a smile. "How did you end up here yourself, Master Scaramore?" 

After their introductory conversation, she sighs longingly, "That would be a wonderful job wouldn't it? Protecting the keep, learning and practicing magic to protect others. I would love to meet those mages someday. Say, have you met them? Like, in person I mean? What are they like?"

 Annaryth will take a lot of long strolls out of town.  She will be going to supposedly look for more herbs.   Her actual purpose is to get a better feel for the lay of the land and to just get outside a little bit.  

The wizard looks mildly embarrassed, "Ah yes, well that's a story for another time I think, it is not the most flattering tale. Suffice it to say that coming here wasn't something I aspired to."

When the conversation turns to the battlemages at the keep, his tone turns dismissive. "Those two? They're a pair of single minded sorcerers, no appreciation for the deeper mysteries of magic. Those arrogant twins are nothing more than weapons, good only for killing things, and even in that respect I'd rather have a few good soldiers at my back than a magic user that unstable."

Respar finds several stalls arranged in the center of town. Most are empty at the moment, but those in use are hawking various wares, mostly fresh foodstuffs. The most promising find there is a freshly killed dire boar. The massive spiked pig is being sold whole.

Martha crinkles her nose at the mention of sorcerers, "Ugh, that's a shame. I hadn't heard they were sorcerers. Sorcery can be impressive for sure, but it's so much more fun and interesting to learn spells the way they were meant to be learned, through proper study and hard work. There's something truly awe-inspiring about the weave and the science of it's manipulation. Magic can do so much more than harm and destroy, it's a shame that's all they focus on." Martha looks disappointed as she says all this, then continues, "Even some of these spells you have here, like this one that sets an alarm, or this one here that identifies the properties of an item, or this one that allows one to alter their body can all be immensely useful in the right circumstances. These are all wonderful, Master Scaramore."

"I would love to copy some of these from you, but unfortunately I'm currently in the middle of getting my business up and running. How much would you charge to copy a few of these? I'll have to double check with my assistant and my brother regarding our funds. I hope to introduce them to you soon if you'll have us," she says with a smile.

Respar looks at the enormous boar.  He had been thinking something a little less ostentatious, but then he thinks of a way to use it to add it to their cover story.  He approaches the merchant and inquires about the price.  He does his best to haggle the price down a bit, then purchases it out of his funds.  "Please have it delivered to the Dalliance directly.  I need to head there now and speak with the innkeeper.  A pleasure doing business with you."  He parts with the coin at the agreed upon price and returns to the inn, knowing the boar will be along shortly.

He enters the inn and calls out to both Barholds.  "Ho there!  My friends, I come with news, and an offer of a deal.  I hope I have not been too presumptuous.  I have just come from the market where I had hoped to find a nice little something upon which my group could dine this evening.  But there is a magnificent, fresh dire boar, being sold whole.  I thought about coming back to discuss it with you, but I was worried it would be sold before I could return.  I have taken the liberty of purchasing said boar and am having it delivered shortly.  I will gift it to you, and you can cook it as you see fit, and sell it at whatever price is reasonable.  There are two conditions, however.  First, my sister and colleagues dine for free tonight.  Second, since you have not had to lay out any coin whatsoever, but are supplying the cooking, we should split the proceeds, 50-50.  And I would love it if we can let people know that Rose's Elixir's & Solutions are sponsoring the special on the menu."  He fully expects Barhold to dicker the split in his favor, as the man has leverage since Dayven Rose has no other way of cooking such a large item, and he will not balk too much, though he will try to keep the split reasonable.  Though a part of him plans on getting his coin back when the assault on the keep takes place.  And if the he and the Barholds do strike an agreement, he plans to make sure word gets around town, especially to the keep.  Getting a few guards and officers, maybe even a few of the top brass, would be a great way to meet their targets.

Scaramore states, "Yes, well, I cannot say I'm surprised the locals neglected that detail, to most of them the differences between magi are as mysterious as magic itself. I must say it is quite refreshing to encounter one so eager to learn once more. Promise to talk theory with me now and again and I'm sure I can knock off a fair bit on my usual rates. If you have any particularly interesting spells yourself, perhaps even a straight trade might be doable. I am always interested in expanding my repertoire."

Respar manages to get the huge pig for an excellent price, handing over 40 gold coins for it. After it is wheeled on down to the inn, Barhold grins at the offer, but says, "Fifty fifty? You just bought it at the market, I could've done that and cut out the middleman! We're still doing all the work. I'm thinking you get a quarter of the profits." Fortunately the good natured man seems fairly generous in his negotiations. Eventually he says, "Tell you what, you can keep four tenths of it if you lot help out some with tendin' the fire, hauling ale and the like. This'l draw a bigger crowd than we usually handle, and you want your name attached to it anyways right? I don't want the boys callin' a strike on me in the middle of it! Ha!"

"We'll make an occasion of it, and tell most of the town to get their arses over here for some good eating Sunday night after chapel services. That'l give us time to marinate this pig up right proper."