The guard begins to lead Ellie toward the armory, located just southwest of Market Square, a squat two story stone building with tiled roof. Sheriff Markham, he says, may be found in one of the wings leading off the armory. When Ellie changes tact and inquires about carved scrimshaw, the guard say, "Sure...sure, but Sheriff Markhamm is just right there."

His voice changes now, less official and more personal, "Maybe after I get off shift, we can make a proper time of it. That way we won't be rushed." He hesitated slightly when saying 'we', as though he made a conscious decision to choose that pronoun as opposed to another. He also leaned in just a bit, enough for Ellie to catch a whiff of the man's body odor. He smells faintly of fish and smoke. Not altogether an unpleasant smell, but definitely a little on the musky side.

Fore once, Ellie was glad that her facial expressions were mostly covered by her wrappings. She cocked her head to the side, then answered in a sweet voice; "Not an unpleasant proposition, but is it safe for you to be seen casually with a girl who is about to question your boss's direct order? I could end up causing a lot of trouble, I won't lie."

In reply to Thane Harkensen (msg # 80):

Dalgura grinned and decided that Thane wasn't too bad for a human.  "I'm here because my Goddess sent me.  I know...I know.  That sounds like an escape clause or something doesn't it?  Like if things go wrong I can just say my Goddess needs me elsewhere.  Sometimes I wish it were so.  Morgrim probably wishes it were so sometimes too since my brother has an overly protective streak in him and thinks he has to go and protect me."

It was obvious that Dalgura didn't think that it was a bad thing that Morgrim had his protective streak and that it was somewhat amusing that he felt he needed to protect her.  She looked around for a bit and then leaned in as if conferring a secret to Thane and Helda.  "Don't tell him I told you this, but it's nice knowing that he has my back."  Dalgura sits up straight again and rubs her hands together as they warm up.

"My Goddess told me to come in this direction but not why.  It is best to just go along with her plans for me since she has been so good to me.  It lends a bit of a mystery and excitement to the whole thing.  I will admit I'd rather she had told me about this trip a tad earlier in the season when the weather was better but I come from good stock and will make the journey but if there is one thing that I have learned about the Gods...you do things on THEIR time schedule and not on yours.  Mistress Silverstream, you said you were coming to visit your uncle.  Isn't this a tad late in the season to just get up and come for a visit?  Are you planning on staying for the winter then?"

"Not in daylight I won't," Kira replied to Morgrim with a lopsided grin, though she wouldn't deny she'd thought of doing just that a moment before.  Once he was away with Ellie and the suddenly besotted guard, she turned back to the man with concern etched in her features.

"Did anyone come with you?  I saw a woman out there when the yeti were attacking.  She wore white robes and had elk antlers on her head," she asked while moving closer, knowing the bit of warmth wouldn't help much but couldn't stand there bundled in good conscience.

"Nonsense Ellie," Morgrim replied with good humour. "I'm sure the two of you will have a wonderful time. But for now let's have a word with the good sherrif." Approaching the doors of the armoury Morgrim laid his hand upon the door and tried to open it. If it did not budge he knocked and made application for a visitation with the sherrif.

Ellie smiled sheepishly and nodded in deference to Morgrim, waving bye to the guard. She then turned to follow the dwarf, rolling her eyes.

"Better luck next time," Arnan said to the guard, keeping a straight face.

"Too bad -- did you see how blue her eyes were? I'll bet that she's a real looker underneath all of those robes."

I'll try and keep this fellow busy. I'm not sure what Ellie and Morgrim have in mind -- or Kira either, for that matter. But taking a potentially troublesome playing piece off the board is never a bad idea.

Location: The Common Room of Kelvin's Comfort

Dalgura, Thane and Helda share drinks and fellowship at the tavern, their spirits warmed by both spirit and hearth. Helda listens with earnest as Dalgura relates her calling to these far northern realms, many miles between her and her native homelands in the warm lands to the south. Helda explains she is well traveled across the Sword Coast and North, but has never ventured further south than Waterdeep.

All this to say, meeting not only one, but two gold dwarves in Icewind Dale is quite a surprise. "A pleasant one," she quickly adds in.



Helda nods in assent to Dalgura's words, "Wise words indeed. Who can truly know the minds of the Gods?!" She goes on to say she is sure Dalgura's calling will be known soon.



"Indeed, quite late. Later than I would have liked!" She explains the cold doesn't bother her too much, she was born to it. But after spending 15 years away, she has grown accustomed to the comforts afforded elsewhere. "Icewind Dale is not a bad place," she reassures, "but it is a place where one must fight for survival. Life is not easy here, to be sure."

Helda further explains the dwarves of Kelvin's Cairn are a very small clan, the vast mineral resources nearly depleted, but still eager to delve deeper in hopes of striking rich veins beneath the mountain. Add to these challenges the struggle of hunting for food for survival, fending off orcs, giants and other creatures, leaves little time for study and other pursuits. It's a hand to mouth existence and she wanted more for herself than to merely survive. Had she not left Kelvin's Cairn, she would have not honed her craft at jewelry making, which is her true calling in life.

She further explains she came north expecting to arrive and depart before winter set in, but its unnaturally early onset may make departing before spring quite difficult. Unfortunately she had already made preparations to make the journey north and arrived in Luskan when the weather turned for the south. Additionally, she had already sent word to her uncle would be coming north, to see for herself rumors of a new ore discovered beneath the mountain. "Black Ice is what my kin are calling it. A new ore! This could be the spark that makes my clan's struggle worth the toil!" she says with gleaming gray eyes.

Helda is prepared to winter at Icewind Dale, perhaps working with the newly discovered ore, before returning to Mirabar with some new wares to offer discriminating clientel.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:45, Fri 13 Jan 2017.

Location: Bryn Shander Market Square



The barbarian shakes his head and says, "No. I came alone, with my King's blessing, to seek aid in defeating the Ice Witch. Some of our tribesmen spoke against it, but I was able to win over King Jarund despite our shaman's counsel to defeat her on our own."

Upon hearing Kira's description of the woman she saw after the yeti attack, the barbarian claims it must have been the Ice Witch she saw.

"Please, you must help me. Break me free or win my freedom. Don't let this injustice stand!" he implores.

"I give you my word, Hengar son of Dethgar Aensvaard, Warrior of the Elk Tribe. Everything I tell you is true, on the blood of my clan, it is." The barbarian looks into Kira's eyes, without blinking once, a long impassioned gaze.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:17, Sat 14 Jan 2017.

Location: Bryn Shander Armory

The enamored guardsman leads Ellie toward the armory, somewhat annoyed Arnan and Morgrim have decided to tag along. There is a word for men who get in the way of another man trying to work an angle and it came to the guard's mind as he led the trio into the armory.

The guard has the trio wait in a small antechamber near the entrance. Another guardsman is preoccupied with sharpening a knife while whiling away the hours, but he looks up when they enter and sizes each up in turn. The two guards exchange a brief greeting, before the market guard, Talan, tells the other the nature of the adventurers visit. The knife sharpener grunts, clears his throat and goes back to his task.

Excusing himself, Talan departs through a heavy door to retrieve the sheriff. The knife sharpener continues his task, the sound of whetstone on metal oddly punctuating the awkwardness of the scene.

The party hears loud but muffled conversation through the door before it is thrown open, Talan and another man appearing in the threshold--Sheriff Markhamm.

The sheriff is a tall, broadly built, rough-looking man. An angry scar runs from brow to cheek, narrowly avoiding the corner of his left eye. He booms, "I'm the Sheriff here. Talan says you wanted to talk about the savage outlander who brought trouble to Bryn Shander. Say your piece and be done with it."

The knife sharpener continues to sharpen, never looking up from his task.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:54, Sat 14 Jan 2017.

If only he'd had someone else with him, someone to stand with him when someone apparently framed him.  It was too easy to blame a lone outsider but Kira wasn't going to stand by and do nothing.  She looked into his eyes and held his gaze, her own just as fierce and promising.

"I have no intentions of letting injustice happen," she stated softly but almost a growl.  "_{I will appeal to the sheriff's logic first but if that does not work, I swear to you I will find a way to get you out of here,}" she whispered.  With a regretful step back, she nodded to him and then turned on her heel to rush to the building where it was said the sheriff could be found.

---

OOC:  If Morgrim has already gained entrance, Kira will simply go through the doors to catch up with him and Ellie.

Leaving Hengar at the market square, Kira glances back and sees him chained there, essentially naked, and knows time is of the essence. Native or not, no mortal will survive the night exposed to the elements. The Frostmaiden is not so kind as to allow it.

Kira hurries along and catches up with the others just as the Sheriff makes his entrance. The knife sharpener looks up when the door swings open, a swirl of flurries entering the antechamber. "Close the damn door," he grumbles before going back to his task.
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:04, Sat 14 Jan 2017.

"Did he?" Morgrim mused, scratching his beard as he stared up at the ceiling in confusion. "No. That doesn't sound right. I wanted to ask you about the man tied to a post in the market. Could be he's a savage. Could be he's got himself mixed up in some sort of trouble. I don't rightly know these things. So far as I'm concerned you're all humans, and one of you looks quite nearly the same as the next at waist height. Here I almost confused you with Arnan."

"Not so the man in the market of course. His midriff is bare in the middle of a blizzard. We dwarves call that a 'tell'," Morgrim said tapping the side of his nose knowingly.

"You see, my tender hearted friends and I were just wondering what the case against him is if you'd be kind enough to indulge a road weary dwarf's curiosity. Weary from bringing much needed goods to your town and defending your gate against yetis of course. But I do digress! What was it I was saying again? Oh yes! We were just wondering out loud what sort of crime this fellow could have committed to see him strung up in the bitter cold so, when suddenly it occurred to me 'Hey, Morgrim, that Sheriff Markham fellow sounds like a decent chap. Very salt of the earth. Or ice. Or - well - whatever it is you folks like up here. Fish maybe?"

"Anyhoo! I'm sure he wouldn't mind telling you if ye' just asked him kindly on account of how very, very helpful you've already been for the town and wouldn't you know it, its not even supper time!"

Dalgura listened and nodded while she sipped her drink.  She knew how potent it was and she wanted to be awake when Morgrim came in.

"A new ore?  How exciting.  You mentioned jewelry too.  What else are you carrying?  I haven't bought any jewelry in a long time.  I am asking to we would have a better idea of what kind of security you would need.  Do you only have one wagon or more?"

Thane dug into his food with gusto.  A large and solid man, the cold of the travels and the limited rations surely put a strain on his body's reserves of energy.

Still, he ate quickly and efficiently, not at all making a mess or being disgusting in his manners.  He seemed content to let Dalgura do the bulk of the speaking, although he did interject now and again.  Like now.

"That new ore sounds interesting.  I wonder if it's dangerous?  Or if your clansmen might accidentally uncover something best left alone," he said a bit darkly.  Realizing that what he said probably didn't come out right, he clarified.  "You know, like busting open a drow tunnel or something.  I've fought against some drow before and frankly the thought of them gives me the jeebees."

Ellie eyed Morgrim curiously. He certainly had an odd way of speaking... still, she supposed that was the gist of what they wanted to start with, and she waited patiently before speaking her turn.

The sherrif listens to the dwarf ramble, clearly agitated to be disturbed from whatever he had been doing. When the topic turns to Hengar's crime and punisment, Sheriff Markhamm leans in a bit closer, his jaw visibly clenched. When Morgrim finishes, the sheriff responds in a slow and measured tone.

"Look, most of you aint from here. That much I get. This aint the southlands. Here, a man who will aint willing to work for what he gets is no man. He asked for what he got when he broke into Madame Alcott's store and tried to make off with her lockbox. Next thing you know, townsfolk are talking about it, how Bryn Shander is overrun with ruffians and thieves. And we're going into winter early. We can't stand for wanton thievery without doing nothing about it!" He's now worked up.

Taking a breath, he continues. "You have our thanks for protecting that caravan, but you just don't know how things are up here."

Markhamm further explains townsfolk are now complaining about some ruffians that came up from Luskan, running an extortion racket for 'protection'. Then the Reghed barbarian breaking into Brinna Alcott's store. And now the yeti attack. On top of all this, the onset of winter a full month and then some early!

"That barbarian's likely to have brought the damned yeti here if you ask me!" he seethes. "Aint been no yetis at the gates ever and now there are!"

When that has settled in, he adds, "I am more likely to take the word of Ten Towner than the word of a savage. Madam Alcott's got roots here. The savage doesn't!"

Meanwhile, back at Kelvin's Comfort



Clearly delighted that Dalgara seems amenable to the journey , Helda responds, "Oh, most of the wares in my cart are my tools. And a few pieces I haven't yet finished. Given my stay will be longer than I originally intended, I may have some work to occupy my time over the next few months." She finishes with a playful laugh.

She explains she has but a single cart, pulled by two sturdy draft horses, which she indicates should be sufficient to make the journey to Dwarven Valley.

Still back at Kelvin's Comfort..



"Oh I dare hope not," Helda responds. "If that were the case, I would expect my uncle would have sent word."

After a brief pause, "I asked several master smiths in Mirabar whether there were any known records detailing this new ore, but sadly yielded little in this area. Quite exciting!" she exclaims with a gleam in her eye.

As to the mention of drow, Helda says their domains are further south, but quickly adds in the fact there are numerous passages beneath the earth, most of them unmapped and quite dangerous, so anything is possible especially where drow are concerned.

"But dear me, I hope not," she continues. "A dark mind you have Thane. I think you either need more Firebrandy, or less!" she says with a chuckle.

"Of course, of course!" Morgrim nodded understandingly. "I know things must be very different up here. We southerners are soft folk," he added unironically.

"You did have a guard make note of the damage inflicted upon poor Miss Alcott's store during the break in of course? And no doubt you can confirm whether the stolen lockbox was recovered on the barbarian's person? Oh no, you did say tried to steal didn't you. So Miss Alcott must have fought him off? An impressive feat for a merchant. Miss Alcott is a very strong woman?"
This message was last edited by the player at 15:10, Sat 14 Jan 2017.

A life was on the line and while Morgrim was doing his best, it was taking far too long in her book.  "I understand more than you think, like how things can get so busy that it's easy to blame an innocent person for something just because they are different.  That man came to ask for help and if you have a bunch of ruffians it would be all too easy for them to frame someone.  Did you bring in a holy person and use the truth spell or ritual or whatever it is they use?  In the name of justice, I respectfully request you bring that man inside and have him questioned with the truth spell.  I believe he is innocent of the crime and he is most assuredly innocent of bringing the yeti.  I saw, with my own eyes, a woman in white robes and antlers.  When I described her to him, she matched no description of anyone in his tribe.  And I will give that statement under the truth spell," she stated emphatically.  "Do you really want an innocent person's death on your conscience?" she asked, hoping to appeal to the man's goodness ... if he had any.

Morgrim tried to keep his face carefully blank and his gaze level with Markham's though an astute observer would notice a short intake of breath. Nonetheless he waited patiently to see the sheriff's response.

Morgrim and Kira had taken the lead in speaking with Sheriff Markham, which was fine with Arnan. The scout leaned back against the wall with his arms crossed across his chest, and silently studied the blowhard. The man seemed quite the bully, and no doubt intimidated many people with his blustering.

But not me, you puffed-up bag of wind, Arnan thought silently to himself. I'd love to drop you down about ten miles outside of town -- alone, with no one to pay attention to your rants -- and then we'd see what you're made of. I'd wager that you haven't got anywhere near the stones that barbarian out there has got. I'd much rather have him watching my back than you.

The sheriff looks away briefly when questioned about the particulars of the crime and subsequent investigation. Morgrim judges Markham's body language to be defensive, the man a bit uncertain himself about the details.

"There was no fight..." he concedes, then indicating that while Miss Alcott is a tough woman, she would be no match for the barbarian if it came down to it.

He then goes on to say there were some inconsistencies in Miss Alcott's story, heard from secondhand sources. Apparently she originally told some townspeople the barbarian stole some bolts of cloth. Later she claimed it was personal effects from her store. Then it was her lockbox, which held a sizable sum of money.

"The box was never recovered," he admits, his eyes cast down at the ground. "But Madam Alcott's a good woman of character. She has no reason to lie about it. It makes no sense for her to sot up her own good name just to see someone strung up."



The argument of the woman with elk antlers does little to sway the sheriff, since Hengar himself is a member of the Tribe of the Elk. This, if anything, further convinces the sheriff that Hengar is implied in the yeti attack. "Hard coincidence for a member of their tribe to show up at the gates," he says.

He then admits no priest was brought in to question the accused. The sheriff questioned Miss Alcott and Hengar and made his judgment, as these are his responsibilities. He claims there is a priestess in town, Mithann, who might be willing to help. He recommends the adventurers speak to her directly if they want to further chase down this rabbit hole. In his mind, the issue is settled. He also stormily suggests if the newcomers are not satisfied with his judgment they can, "take it up with Duvessa." This being the Town Speaker, Duvessa Shane.

"Thank you, Sheriff, you've been most kind," Morgrim says with a nod of his head. He turns to leave without further question, and only sparing a brief glance for his companions. It was clear the dwarf considered their present line of questioning closed, whether or not his companions agreed.

Morgrim will wait to see if anyone intends to leave with him, and then he will go find Brina Alcott directly.