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EDIT:
¨I am not so sure that we want to go chasing after something that pushed these goblins out of their home and into attacking this village in the first place.¨ Layali says skeptically of Gordon´s suggestion. ¨Perhaps we can try to discreently learn of the threat and see if it poses further danger to the village...¨
Layali takes the chief´s scepter and studies it for a while. ¨Perhaps I should hold on to this for the time being.¨
If one of the goblins is still alive (and tied up) Leifa will ask him/her what he/she was fleeing from.
Leifa secures a goblin survivor, then splashes water on his face to wake him up. When asked why his tribe left the mountains and attacked the village, he first tries to reply in Goblin, then groans and speaks in semi-proficient Common: "Strange monsters appear in caves. Nasty, stinky things. Can't live there. Could probably kill, but chief say might be hidden nest somewhere, better to move than maybe have more keep coming. So we come here, bring all our things to live. Except shiny stuff, chief said we could go back for that later."
¨Where there more of your tribe? Or were these attacks on the village all of your people?¨ Layali asks. ¨Perhaps you can sketch us a rough map of your caves and where these stinky creatures seemed to come from?¨
The goblin shakes his head. "This whole tribe. None left." He glares at you for a moment after saying that.
"Not good at drawing, and don't know where monsters come from. One day, just there. 'Don't worry,' chief said. 'Stonecrag easy,' chief said." He rolls his eyes.
Probing for a description, you manage to get that these creatures have wings and big mouths and that the goblin had no idea what they were. You're not sure, either.
"Should we call it a night and continue on with our journey to the ruins tomorrow morning?"
"I'm not sure Stonecrag is in immediate danger, and our trail threatens to grow cold while we get side-tracked. We need to continue, but I suggest the village send their own runner for aid."
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"I could use a good night's sleep before we press on. It sounds like the immediate threat has passed, though those winged creatures sound ominous."
The villagers happily offer you food and lodging for the night, and everyone sleeps well. In the morning, you awake to another day of fine weather, perfect for traveling. Your ride is uneventful, and you arrive at the edge of Linhaus as evening approaches.
Starstruck townsfolk begin to gather as their hero rides majestically (in their eyes) back into their midst. It's not long before Johann comes to greet you.
"You're back!" he says. "And... you got horses while you were out? Huh. Well, anyway, let's get to my office to talk."
Johann has people stable your horses while you are led into his office where you originally examined the mysterious fallen body. He sends an officer to fetch dinner for the lot of you, then asks, "So, what did you find out? Do you know what happened?"
"We didn't find out much yet, but we have a lead." Leifa will hand the mic over to Gordon, thinking the captain of the guard would want to hear everything from his town's hero.
"We didn't find much, but I'm now the hero of two more towns. We're on our way to the ruins to look for more clues."
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Layali listens as Leifa and Gordon share the adventures thus far with Johann. Once complete, "Were you able to learn anything else, or have there been other strange happenings while we were away?"
Johann listens to the report, nodding along. "You mean those big eastern ruins?" he says to Gordon. "Be careful, that place is dangerous. Though I guess I shouldn't be worried about someone like you, right?"
Johann turns to Layali as she speaks, then he replies, "Nothing's turned up in regard to the body or the warning message from the dagger, and nothing too weird is going on here in town; some kid got caught shoplifting, Mrs. Pobleus can't find her cat, merchant traffic is a little lighter than normal, and so forth. Pretty quiet around here, truth be told."
"We're just stopping here for the night, then we're traveling on."
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Sounds Good.
Leifa will search for Mrs. Pobleus's cat before calling it a night.
After retrieving the wayward feline from a tree, Leifa joins the rest of you for a hot supper, good night's sleep, and a proper breakfast. It seems a cold front rolled in overnight, and now you face dark clouds and cool rain for your day of travel. The townsfolk offer you some complementary hooded cloaks and bid you farewell.
Trudging eastward across the increasingly soggy countryside makes you glad you have mounts to do the walking. As the day wears on, the rain only occasionally lets up, and the sun never breaks through the clouds. It becomes obvious that camping outside would be a nightmare. Even with cloaks and tents, you'll be so drenched that it'll make for a miserably (or even dangerously) cold night.
Marching on toward evening, you begin to keep an eye out for shelter, but the rain is heavy and the sky is dark, making it difficult to spot anything from a distance. Eventually, however, the rocky foothills to the south (on your right) give way to a bit of open space beyond which a pond or lake can be seen. A modest homestead stands near the shore, with a house, a barn, and a shed or shack of some sort.
Gordon approaches the door, dismounts, and knocks politely, trusting his reputation has preceded him, and that he will find a generous soul at the home.
Layali tries really hard to let Gordon impress these fine folk and not complain about how miserable and uncomfortable she is...
A curtain, backlit by candles somewhere inside, is presently drawn aside just enough for a teenage human girl to peek out and see who's at the door. Her eyes go wide, and moments later the door opens just a bit.
"G-Gordon Lightfoot? The Gordon Lightfoot?" the girl asks in bewilderment. After glancing back into the house with a worried look on her face, she says, "Um, is there something I can do for you?"
Nathadriel stands back from the door a little way, holding the horses as Gordon speaks with the girl.
"Well, I been out here many long hours, and I haven't found a place that I could call my own. Not a two-bit bed to lay my body on...
Could you spare some room for some weary travelers for the night?"
The girl fidgets about nervously, glancing again back into the house.
"Um..." she stammers, "I-I'm not supposed to let anyone in... My dad's not home, and Mom..."
The girl again looks nervously behind her, then says, "Um, I guess it would be okay if you slept in the barn; I guess I can trust you not to steal anything, since you're, you know, you... Um, feel free to use the lanterns there to warm up... I'm sorry, I really need to go..."
She moves to close the door, but hesitates, as though searching your faces for approval (or at least acceptance) of her offer.
It seems like she would have let you in, if not for some higher priority that has her worried.
"Nice girl. Did you hear that? They know me here. Let's get in the barn."
"Thank you. Is there anything we can do for you in return? We are very skilled and resourceful people. We would love to help you with any problems you may have."
"Perhaps if we could speak with your Mother? It is very gracious of you to offer us the use of your barn in such terrible weather. I just feel as though perhaps the Gordon Lightfoot would enjoy something slightly more comfortable. Is your father also out in this terrible weather? Are you expecting him tonight?"
The girl shifts uncomfortably. "My mother, she... she's sick, and I need to tend to her..."
She feels lost, perhaps not knowing how best to treat her mother, but doesn't feel like she can ask for help.
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I am a priest, with some experience with heaing. Could I come in and speak to your mother? See if I can help?
The girl nods nervously, and opens the door wider to let you all in. Shutting the door after you, she directs you to a set of hooks for your wet cloaks, then leads you to her mother's bedside. In the bed lies a middle-aged human woman, breathing in a heavy wheeze and covered in sweat.
"I've been trying to keep her fever down with cool, wet rags. But Daddy and I don't know what's wrong with her, so I don't know what else to do. Dad went north to the Great Bridge hoping to find a passing merchant who might have medicine for sale, but that's half a day away so he won't be back until tomorrow, and she's not doing well..."
Um... a fever? Keep that fever down!
She's losing a lot of moisture; get plenty of water to keep her hydrated and flush her system.
There's an herb that helps bring fevers down when ground and put into water to drink. It's called Lakeleaf because it grows near lakes, and it has a four-pronged leaf. Getting some of that would help.
She needs fresh air, badly. Open up those windows!
Nathadriel approaches the bed with a comforting smile, examining the sick woman to see if he can deduce what's wrong.
Would you mind opening the window, Leifa? I think she could use some fresh air. Turning to the girl he nods encouragement. You've been doing well trying to keep her cool. She'll need to drink a lot of water also, do what you can to make sure she drinks a cup of water every hour.
Are there any lakes close by? There's a herb we may be able to find which grows near water - I think it would help your mother beat the fever.
Leifa will open the window and then go with Gordon to track down some lakeleaf.
Nathadriel snaps to action, putting his medicinal training to work.
Between Gordon's skills and Leifa's sharp elven eyes, the two of them are able to brave the rainstorm and successfully retrieve some Lakeleaf.
Nathadriel carefully begins preparing the lakeleaf before administering it to the sick woman.
Whilst he waits to see the outcome of the remedy, he stays up through the night, continuing to tend his patient and hoping for the fever to break.
After administering the Lakeleaf, Nathadriel and Layali stay up with the sick mother while Gordon dozes in a rocking chair and Leifa begins her nightly meditation.
Leifa finishes her nightly meditation and relieves Layali, who promptly beds down for the night.
Gordon wakes up, and learns from the elves that the ill woman looks to be out of danger for the night. As it's still relatively early in the morning, Nathadriel begins his trance, finishing at about the same time Layali is waking up.
A new day breaks. The sun is shining warmly, nearly every cloud having vanished from the sky overnight. The girl has a tearful conversation with her newly-safe mother, then thanks you all profusely. She says she has nothing valuable to offer you in return for your help, but that you're always welcome if you need shelter again in the future.
Bidding farewell to the girl and her mother, you mount up your steeds and resume your journey, now heading northeast toward the Great Bridge. You can see the massive stone structure ahead of you several minutes before you get there in the afternoon.
The Great Bridge is carved of bluish marble and arches slightly across its 200-foot span over the Serpentstream River. The bridge is 50 feet wide, supported by grand, sculpted columns reaching into the rocky water below. Each end of the bridge is flanked by a pair of huge stone columns, 30 feet high, each carved with varieties of Imperial iconography.
A non-permanent wooden fence runs the length of the bridge, dividing it into two lanes: one for moving north, the other south. Imperial officers guard the bridge on both ends, looking rather imposing with their green, blue, or red-painted armor (depending on station) and jet-black cloaks.
At the near (south) end of the bridge, a man leading a merchant wagon talks with one of the green-breastplated guards, who seems to be reviewing some papers. Off to the side, a few other merchant wagons (seeming to have no connection to each other, judging by their colors, styles, and so forth) sit in a circle, their occupants looking rather bored. Next to one of them is an alchemist, haggling with a man on a horse.
Similar scenes are distantly visible on the northern end of the bridge, with merchant wagons being slowly permitted access to cross, one at a time.
"Layali, see if you can get any information from the guards about happenings at the ruins."
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Layali approaches the highest ranking guard she can discern (assuming the red armored guy), making sure her signet ring is plainly visible.
"Good day captain, my companions and I are headed north. There is no need to delay our journey here, is there, we have no mercantile goods in need of taxation or inspection. Though, if you would be so kind as to share your most recent activity report for the north road and surroundings, I would be most appreciative." Layali gives him a coy smile.
Layali picks out a burly dwarf covered from head to toe in red-painted full plate armor and approaches. As she speaks, the dwarf notices her signet ring, then glances at her horns and tail.
"If I'm not mistaken," the dwarf replies, "You would be Lady Layali of House Amani, yes?"
Not waiting for a reply, she counts up that there are four of you and pulls four official-looking pieces of folded paper out of a satchel. As she retrieves a metallic notary clamp from her belt, she asks in a very routine voice, "What brings you across the Great Bridge today, Ms. Amani?"