Eli blinks a couples times, backing his head up a little when Julious winks at him. He cracks a smile and waves to the elf. Eli then headshakes to Lana, "I'm not lost, ma'am." he says respectfully while blushing lightly from her question, but still smiling. He waves a hand and causes a glowing, blue spectral hand to materialize. "So then, let's get this investigation started." He says as he then causes the hand to open the door of the carriage so he can see inside. He then readies magic missile in case something hostile should jump out. He's not stupid... despite all the commotion outside, that doesn't mean there aren't hostiles waiting inside.

(Minor Action: Mage Hand conjured at the door to open it without need to move the hand.)
(Readied Action: Magic Missile in the event of anyone outside of the carriage being attacked.)
(Let us know when or if we should roll initiatives. Unsure what would normally be the case here, but I'd imagine that due to nobody else acting on the door, that Eli can still ready an action even though he didn't have an initiative roll. Am I correct?)

The carriage is unoccupied.  Inside the carriage, Eli finds three benches - two along either side, and a wider one along the center.  The benches are built into the the structure of the wagon.  Bolted to the floor in front of the benches are two dozen sets of chains and shackles.  Anyone familiar with big-city law enforcement will recognize this as a typical prisoner transport wagon.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:37, Sat 22 Nov 2008.

Michael walks around after Eli opens the door and looks inside, and recognizes what this wagon must have been used for and says, “Well that explains the lack of horses, whoever must have been kept in here must have took off with them. But if they killed their guards to escape, where are the bodies of the guards?”

Then the realization of someone else approaching and that someone is sneaking around dawns on Michael as he adds, “We better start searching, and someone needs to go to Unity to let them know of this situation as this could well be beyond our capability to handle, since the ability to either overpower and kidnap guards or to destroy them so utterly to not leave a corpse and without leaving a trace on the wagon or the surrounding area isn't a simple task. I just hope whoever is hiding out there isn't one of the criminals that have escaped. but we can't rule out that chance. Also I hope that whoever is approaching won't mistake us for the criminals.”

At first Shale is annoyed when the elf with the hawk manages to notice he is in the area as the gnomish warlock thinks to himself, 'I need to practice more on my hiding skills.'

However, Shale's eyes go wide when he hears that the wagon was used to ferry prisoners, that could have been quite powerful, and that there is suspicion he is such a criminal... While there is part of Shale's mind that wants him to use that as a prank, the sane part of his mind, decides that would be a bad idea. However Shale realizes that it is not possible to continue hiding without incriminating himself so he speaks up as a gnome walks out into view, although for some reason he seems obscured slightly in shadows, “I'm no criminal, but if there are ones that are dangerous out there, how do I know it is safe to come out here into the open? After all, the shadows are pretty safe, as most criminals go after the targets out in the open before searching or harder targets to hit. So if any of those criminals are out here, odds are they would have gone after you guys, which would give me plenty of time to run away. But since you have pointed out that I'm in the area, hiding doesn't offer as much protection,” as Shale makes a mental note that the elf with the hawk is the on in the group that might give him the most trouble if it comes to him hiding and running away, since the others don't really look like they would be very good at finding hiding people, although the gnome does consider that they could be good at it, but just decided to keep their mouths shut regarding the matter to not tip their hands.

_{[OOC: Shale is using Shadow walk and will keep pacing back and forth to sustain it.]}
This message was last edited by the player at 18:34, Mon 24 Nov 2008.

By now the approaching carriage is visible.  It's smaller, fancier, and pulled by a single horse.  The rider is a plump, clean-shaven human wearing fine clothing and smoking a pipe.  Probably a prosperous merchant carrying goods from Unity.  He leans over in his seat to try and get a better look at the police carriage blocking the road and the travelers gathered around it.  He looks curious, if a bit annoyed at the roadblock.

http://spreadsheets.google.com...3bxPD0pRTTaeQIJj6Zdw

(Horses take up 4 squares, but google docs doesn't show that well.  Did my best to make the horse look like a single large fig, not 4 horses.  Same with the carriages.  That's one horse, not four.)
This message was last edited by the player at 20:25, Mon 24 Nov 2008.

Reverie perks one of her odd ears to hear Shale better. To answer Shale, Reverie says

"Trust is funny, silent one, it goes two ways.
How do we know you aren't a criminal as you claim?
Perhaps you could start by telling your name
And what all, by now, you've heard us say?"

Reverie looks over her shoulder to her right to see the approaching carriage.

"It appears we have company
And it seems he's from Unity."

Reverie is satisfied concerning the carriage being empty, but still finds this whole situation disturbing due to the fact those people who escaped could be out ready to hurt people or worse.

Eli huhs? when he hears Shale. Hearing Reverie respond to Shale, Eli nods and says, "Honestly, you can't blame us for being on the lookout, sir. And proof you are not a criminal would, ironically, require you to trust us. But what I can tell you is that I myself am the son of a Kei Lord visiting Unity, which is just a 10 minute walk north of here. I am Eli of the house of Sierra and I promise protection for anyone here. After all... Unity requires evidence before someone can be pronounced a criminal. And if there was a present danger, wouldn't they have sprung on me and the others present by now?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:50, Mon 24 Nov 2008.

(OOC: The bold yellow H is Eli's mage hand... what's the other H?)

Julious looks to the beautiful hume girl known as Lana "This is a stash of magical herb from my homeland the taste is quite good and the affects are ever so intriguing"

Julious stands there in the crowd for a few and his ears begin to perk as he hears the new arriving carriage. He looks out in the distance.

"It looks like we have more approaching visitors ladies and gentlemen, this is actually turning out to be a quite inquisitive  day... what can be in stored for us as we sit here pondering"

He turns back to reverie "Um by the way reverie you are a amazing little critter you are the first of your kind that I have seen"

Lana, her usual inquisitive self, looks to Julious speaking rather softly.

"Kind Julious, perhaps I may sample this herb for myself with you later?"

Hearing the carriage approaching, she turns her attention towards the carriage approaching, unsure of what to say or do next.

While Michael finds it odd that both Julious and Lana would rather discuss herbs than deal with the situation of a seemingly abandoned prisoner transport wagon, and an unknown individual of unknown background that has recently come out of hiding, Michael does not comment upon such priorities right now.

Instead, Michael comments about the individual who has yet to reveal his identity, “Eli's quite correct. And judging by your comment, stranger it is doubtful that you are native to Unity as very few people who grow up there have the 'hide from trouble and avoid responsibility by staying out of sight' attitude that you have displayed. So where are you from?”
This message was last edited by the player at 21:58, Wed 10 Dec 2008.

Shale listens carefully to what everyone says, although Shale looks a bit skittish as, for a moment, he feels that everyone is focused on him. However once Shale realizes that Julious and Lana do not seem to be paying him any attention the gnome seems to calm down a bit. However, he continues to be as mobile as before, as the gnome continues to pace back and forth enough to sustain his Shadow Walk ability. It is difficult to determine if the cause of the gnome's movement is due to being energetic, or nervous, or maybe a combination of both.

Despite the concealing shadows the gnome's walking cloaks himself in, the gnome can be seen to nod as he says calmly, “Fair enough, my name is Shale.” Shale then turns to Michael and says, “While I, and my family, do infact live in Unity now, we hail from Luskan, where I was born. All I can say is that old habbits die hard. Especially when they are habbits that have kept your family alive and safe through dangerous times.”

The portly driver of the approaching carriage stops his horse, leans back in his seat enjoying his smoke and listens to the conversation while waiting for a chance to pipe in.

"Ho there," he calls out in a friendly voice, "Lost your horses?"

http://spreadsheets.google.com...3bxPD0pRTTaeQIJj6Zdw

Reverie smiles at Julious and nods to him respectfully. Upon hearing the man in the carriage speak up, however, Reverie answers him:

"It's not our horses that are lost,
But someone else who'll pay the cost.
This carriage was abandoned here
With neither horse or person near...
Perhaps you could assist us, dear?"

Reverie says the last part with a hopeful expression as she laces her hands together.

Eli nods, agreeing with Reverie's statement and smiling some since her poetry is getting to him. "It's a prison carriage. I suspect the prisoners broke out and took the horses with them. Though judging from the lack of bodies, they must have taken the officers and drivers hostage. Which in itself is an impressive feat... most criminals escaping have little regard, if any, for the life of their captors."

Suspect? Regard? The way this kid talks sure matches his appearance. Definitely a prodigy arcane understudy who happens to come from a wealthy family. He dismisses the magic hand.

Julious smiles and passes his pipe to Lana

"Well friend this is some of the best from my home village, something us elves take deep pride in, its hard to find and only the worthy may get there hands on such a prize"

Julious then turns his attention to the newly arriving man in the carriage and looks him over.

"It is quite odd that this carriage is sitting here by its lonesome with no driver or horses...its quite queer indeed, So friend tell us more about yourself what brings you to this neck of the woods"

Julious turns to Eli and whispers  in his ear, "Do you think he is trustworthy?"

Knowing Eli seemed to have a good head on his shoulders for being so young he thought Eli may have some insight on the matter.

Lana samples Julious's herb pipe.  It was a wonderful taste as she makes note of everything around her.  Between everyone talking to someone else, Lana just made notes in her head about the situation.

"It seems that Gnome there, Shale is also a warlock.  His pact could be anyone's guess, but he sure is skittish.  Something about that guy, Michael puts me at a little unrest as well."

Turning her attention to Julious and Eli, she makes note of them as well.

"The kid here, Eli, something is special about him.  That mage hand.  He's definitely an arcane understudy.  At such an age, to be that talented...I'm actually a little jealous.  It wasn't that long ago, my first spell didn't blow up in my face.  Julious is cool, but I'm not sure what to think of him yet.  He's kind enough to allow me to sample his prize though.  Very kind of him."

Still perplexed by Reverie's appearance, she has yet another interior monologue. (seems to be a pattern developing here, eh?)

I like Reverie, she's so cute!  But, it seems I don't know much about her except for her love of poetry."

Lana starts looking around the back of the carriage, looking for any clues at all.

12:43, Today: Lana Shihoin, rolled 7 using 1d20. Perception Check.

(I probably found the ground =P)
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:55, Mon 08 Dec 2008.

(OOC: Perception 7 beats the "easy" DC at lvl 1 according to the DMG update.)

Lana notices, and presumably points out, that noting in or on the carriage is broken, not the lock on the door, not the shackles, not anything.  She does not find any signs of a struggle at all.

Upon hearing Shale's 'introduction' and that the gnome says he originally came from Luskan, Michael understands a bit of why Shale's apprehension... as Michael remembers hearing that Luskan is quite a dangerous place compared to Unity. Michael then says, “Old habbits indeed, I've heard a bit about Luskan, but now isn't the time to dwell on how things are different here around Unity.”

As Reverie and Eli answer the driver's question, Michael doesn't speak up immediately as there is no reason for everyone to keep repeating the same thing to the driver. Although after a few seconds of considering what Eli has said, Michael then speaks up, “There is another possibility Eli. That someone other than the prisoners being transported instigated this. Whoever did this may have wanted the prisoners for their own reasons. However, that possibility raises similar questions to yours. Again, why would they take those escorting the prisoners? I can't see a reason unless it was to keep them as hostages. And I don't know who would want to do that. Although by not leaving any signs of a battle, it is clear that whoever did this definitely put some effort into covering their tracks and concealing their identity.”

_{[OOC: With Michael having a 9 in History, even a roll of a 1 beats the DC ten that would be needed to know common knowledge about the history of an area, so Michael would easily know the common knowledge about the history of Luskan.]}

As more attention is paid to the driver and the carriage than to himself. Shale seems to become less skittish and more curious about the situation. After hearing Michael and Eli talk about possibilities, Shale's curiosity finally gets the best of him, as he doesn't feel that he is in danger at the moment.

It is then that Shale approaches the carriage and starts looking underneath it as well as around it as the gnome mutters, “I'd love to learn how they managed to pull this off. Being able to help others vanish into thin air would be quite useful. Its one thing to be able to be able to transform into a misty and travel a short ways, but to be able to take others with you when traveling in such a fashion. Or simply simply teleporting them all... that is no parlor trick. But if they could do all that, why leave the carriage behind as such a big clue that something went wrong with the prisoner transport? It's almost as if they are daring someone to solve this mystery.”

[OOC: If Shale needs to make a perception check he'd be taking 10 which would result in a 9.]

"Name's Dolan Butterbur," the driver responds, looking much more nervous than before, "I'm a textile merchant on my way to Southport.  You're saying there's escaped prisoners nearby?  That's not good for business.  Not good at all.  But I suppose it can't be helped.  I'll go alert the authorities."

He leans forward to get a better look at the unusual collection of people before continuing.

"A bandit ridden road is no place for children and women," he says as he shakes his head gravely, "No not at all.  If you youngsters would like I could give you a ride back to Unity where it's safer.  I'll put out my pipe if it offends."

Reverie looks over at Shale and curiously watches him. She can't help but smile, thinking the gnome cute both due to his size and the fact he's so nervous. One of her ears wiggles at the sound of the coachman offering to take the women and children back (Reverie isn't sure herself whether she should be considered a woman or a child). She looks briefly back to the abandoned wagon and then to the coachman again.

"Well there's not much left we can do here
And the circumstances are rather queer.
Thanks for offering that ride to me...
I'd love to go to Unity."

Eli gives the abandoned wagon one more look before nodding and saying, "We're no good to anyone out here. Maybe Unity already knows about this and we can help somehow. Either way, it's our duty to report."

Eli leans closer to Julious and whispers, "We can trust this guy. Unity's not far away and he's far from suspicious. Besides... you seem like a capable man. If you come with me and the dark lady, I'm sure you can protect us if it's needed."

Eli heads for the wagon as well.
This message was last edited by the player at 12:36, Sat 13 Dec 2008.

Julious takes his pipe back when Lana is finished tasting.  He smiles and nods and moves with Eli to the carriage.

(( OOC: Posted by DM ))
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:09, Sat 31 Jan 2009.

"What a wonderful flavor," Lana compliments as she returns the pipe to Julious, "Thank you."

She joins Eli and the others in boarding the merchant's wagon.

(( OOC: Posted by DM ))
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:44, Thu 05 Feb 2009.