We met the Lord Mayor of Bywater, who seems a petty figure in a bland drama. But there is coin in his purse, and a willingness to part with it that is commendable to us. It seems his aim went awry in mistaking us for another band of Players who've been making a name for themselves in these parts. "Chewing the suckling tit too harshly," as the great Atherton was wont to say.
We made our way to the edge of town to pick up our wagon of supplies and begin our journey. It nearly ended our quest at its inception. We realized something was amiss, as no one was around to meet us as communicated. We approached the ajar entrance, and were met with a crash, and following oath and silencing command. Our hackles were raised!
What followed may have gone better with hindsight. In the wisdom of Atherton, "tread softly in the darkness, lest the light bite." We boldly crashed another entrance and interrupted a theft in progress. Their nefarious greed gave us the edge on action and we dealt them blows they couldn't return.
There were tense moments as we made our way through crowded stacks of goods and won the day, but win we did. But as Atherton himself always said, "winning dreams see no empty ways." It was a challenging fight, and we moved uncertainly with the test, but victory was ours at day's end.
After reporting what we'd learned regarding the Riflers to the city guard, confirming their ideas somewhat, we continued to Wendell to ensure all was well and trade able to move effectively again. We stayed at the Meeting House, and learned there were more factors in play than just the Riflers. There was a hunter at the inn cleaning a wolf pelt he'd found on a trail into the Wyvern Vale. Tuffy glanced at the carcass and declared the arrows used to slay it were gnoll arrows. We learned of the demonic gnolls at the temple where I studied, demonic beasts of terror and horror.
We made plans with Gareth, the hunter, to travel to the glen where he'd found the body in the morning. There are two other guest here at the inn tonight, Mavis and Terrence. I noticed Terrance speaking with Ildebrun at one point in the evening, but he seemed to keep to himself most of the night. There is something mysterious about him and the way he held himself apart from the festivities of the evening. He reminds me of the temple elders - watching, always watching.
Mavis was a real delight! She is a merchant traveling the river to get behind the mystery of the bandits too. She was everywhere all night, talking with everyone, laughing, buying drinks - the life of the party. She seemed really interested in everything we'd found out about the Riflers and their foiled attempt at robbing the Warehouse. There was palpable shock on her face as we related our tale. She must really feel for the merchants and their losses.
My watch is nearly over, and I'm ready to wake Tehc, our new companion, for his shift. He arrived late in the evening with a message for Attila to return to his order for a special mission, but agreed to travel with us in his place. He's an affable fellow, rakishly decked out with a bugle and flat hat, but sure loves his food! He seems to carry a bag of apples with him. Well, time to pass off the watch and get some much needed rest. As Atherton always says, "there's no sleep like the big sleep."
After reporting what we'd learned regarding the Riflers to the city guard, confirming their ideas somewhat, we continued to Wendell to ensure all was well and trade able to move effectively again. We stayed at the Meeting House, and learned there were more factors in play than just the Riflers. There was a hunter at the inn cleaning a wolf pelt he'd found on a trail into the Wyvern Vale. Tuffy glanced at the carcass and declared the arrows used to slay it were gnoll arrows. We learned of the demonic gnolls at the temple where I studied, demonic beasts of terror and horror.
We made plans with Gareth, the hunter, to travel to the glen where he'd found the body in the morning. There are two other guest here at the inn tonight, Mavis and Terrence. I noticed Terrance speaking with Ildebrun at one point in the evening, but he seemed to keep to himself most of the night. There is something mysterious about him and the way he held himself apart from the festivities of the evening. He reminds me of the temple elders - watching, always watching.
Mavis was a real delight! She is a merchant traveling the river to get behind the mystery of the bandits too. She was everywhere all night, talking with everyone, laughing, buying drinks - the life of the party. She seemed really interested in everything we'd found out about the Riflers and their foiled attempt at robbing the Warehouse. There was palpable shock on her face as we related our tale. She must really feel for the merchants and their losses.
My watch is nearly over, and I'm ready to wake Tehc, our new companion, for his shift. He arrived late in the evening with a message for Attila to return to his order for a special mission, but agreed to travel with us in his place. He's an affable fellow, rakishly decked out with a bugle and flat hat, but sure loves his food! He seems to carry a bag of apples with him. Well, time to pass off the watch and get some much needed rest. As Atherton always says, "there's no sleep like the big sleep."
