"Acquire us rooms," Tyronius instructs one of his men curtly as he stiffly dismounts, "Aerendir, you will continue to tend to," he glances at the numerous faces glancing out of doors and windows about them, "'Sir Varonil' upstairs. I will see to it that you are provided with whatever this tavern can provide to aid in your efforts."

The words 'though I suspect that may be little' remain unspoken.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:43, Thu 28 Mar 2019.

"He'll be fine," Aerendir says. "The only thing endangering his health at the moment is your wagon. It's not like the thugs of Thane go around coating their swords in black lotus extract; he will recover in a week or so. If you don't insist on moving him again."
This message was last edited by the player at 05:46, Thu 28 Mar 2019.

Even as he speaks, the pair are approached by the guard captain.

"Prince Tyronius," he bows respectfully, bordering on obsequiousness, "Were you successful in locating Sir Var-" he breaks off as his eyes widen, alighting on Marabir's injured form in the wagon, "By Eurnir! What happened to him?"

"He was..." Tyronius debates just how much of his brother's encounter to divulge, "Waylaid by bandits," he decides at length, "Fortunately I came across him and was able to scare them off."

"These footpads are becoming quite a menace," the guard captain shakes his head darkly, "Wasn't that varim again, was it?"

Tyronius gives a slight smile.

"No, not this time."

"That we know of," Aerendir puts in darkly.

The guard captain gives a dark grunt of agreement with Aerendir, before bowing once more to Tyronius.

"Well, I'm glad you were there to save the day, Your Highness. If myself or anyone in this town can assist you in any way, you need only ask. I shall be in the guardhouse."

"Very good," Tyronius nods as the captain departs, before resuming his conversation with Aerendir, "I will not be waiting a week," he says flatly, "I am prepared to wait two days. If he cannot ride by that time, he will be travelling back to Carendisal in that wagon."
This message was last edited by the player at 00:12, Fri 29 Mar 2019.

"Your Highness," says Calvorn delicately as he joins them, "Perhaps it would be wiser to wait until 'Sir Varonil' is fully healed. As Aerendir says, the fastest way for him to heal is rest. I will dispatch a message to your father informing him of the situation."

Tyronius still does not look convinced.

"Which lords in this vicinity are loyal to the Carendils?" he asks the agent, lowering his voice, "We are too exposed in this village, and would do better in a fortified manor or fortress."

Calvorn considers this.

"Lord Borandis has a fortress up at the the Endal Foothills," he says, stroking his beard thoughtfully, "But it's two day's ride from here, and in the wrong direction from Carendisal. Lord Vordren's estate, perhaps? It's certainly closer. He has recently returned from the Southern Border, I believe."

Tyronius nods.

"Ride to Lord Vordren first thing tomorrow morning. Inform him we shall be joining him for," he sends Aerendir an unimpressed glance, "A week. Oh, and inform that guard captain to pass on the message of our whereabouts to Caled when he returns."

Calvorn bows respectfully.

"Your Highness."

With that he turns and strides off toward the guardhouse.

"You're picking now to be worried about Caladormists?" Aerendir says, unimpressed. "After charging in with twenty knights in full heraldry and openly telling everyone who you are? Look, the Caladormists are a bunch of rag-tag extremists, nothing more. If they were going to be a problem for you, I highly doubt you'd have made it this far north at all. They're not the sort of people who are idiotic enough to attack a prince of Thane when there are other heirs and several hundred witnesses to try their families with treason after their inevitable failure."
This message was last edited by the GM at 07:39, Thu 30 Dec 2021.

"I am not worried about anyone," Tyronius retorts coldly, flushing slightly at the many eyes that are upon them, "But one week is enough time for even the most unorganised rabble to launch an assault of some kind, and I do not intend to lose good men unnecessarily should someone decide to do so. We ride for the Vordren estate in the morning, and that is an order."

"Fine. Your Highness. But again, you are grossly overestimating them. The only good men you are likely to lose on this trip are three of the four you sent off with that assassin and the Lady Veldorn."

With this not very respectful statement, Aerendir stalks into the inn, apparently having a different idea to Tyronius's men about just what qualifies as an acceptable speed for getting supplies and services for Marabir. (And it's clear that, whatever Bernard the Barman's personal reservations may be at accepting a knight obviously favored by a Prince of Thane into his inn, he does remember Sir Varonil with fondness and he's sensible enough not to voice any doubts in front of twenty knights and one irate high elf armed with a pouch of carens.)
This message was last edited by the player at 01:53, Fri 29 Mar 2019.

The remainder of the evening passes without incident. Marabir is taken up to a room which the barman assures them is his finest. Tyronius nobly contents himself with the second finest, across the hallway. Nod insists on helping Aerendir look after Marabir, although this 'help' takes the form of Nod nodding off to sleep within less than ten minutes of reaching the room. Tyronius' guards take shifts, standing guard at the town gate, the tavern, and the stable while their companions sleep. It is not until a couple of hours before dawn that trouble strikes.

The pair of knights stand at either side of the gate, within the flickering firelight. The local Lastorn gate guard stands just inside the gate, struggling not to fall asleep in front of the pair. Neither of the three notice a shadowy figure streaking along the shadow of the wall beside the gate. The first thing the guard on the left feels is a dagger slashing his throat. With a garbled gasp he collapses to the ground. His companion has barely time to reach for his blade when a pair of crossbow bolts fly out of the darkness, each thudding into his chest. The shadowy figure finishes him off before he can even attempt a garbled cry. He then turns to the white faced Lastorn guard who cowers, speechless in the shadow of the gate, motioning for the lad to remain silent.

"We only want the Prince," he murmurs softly.

OOC: Cahlad Rayne dealt 28 points of vitality damage to Thanian Warrior.
Cahlad Rayne dealt 19 points of wound damage to Thanian Warrior.
Caladormist dealt 28 points of vitality damage to Thanian Warrior.
Caladormist dealt 10 points of wound damage to Thanian Warrior.
Cahlad Rayne dealt 14 points of wound damage to Thanian Warrior.

This message was last edited by the player at 07:41, Thu 30 Dec 2021.

The guard is quick to nod shakily, though he can't seem to look away from the body of the dead man and looks as if he is in danger of being ill.

The shadowy figure might be smiling under the mask which covers his face, giving the guard a bracing pat on the shoulder as he passes through the gate and into the shadows of the darkened town beyond.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:56, Wed 28 Aug 2019.

Inside the tavern, Aerendir, keeping watch next to the snoring Nod, stiffens and stands, shoving Nod's shoulder to wake him. Opening the shutters, he peers outside into the gloom.

OOC: Aerendir rolled 25 using 1d20+22.  Listen Check.
Aerendir rolled 27 using 1d20+22.  Spot Check.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:36, Fri 29 Mar 2019.

Aerendir can see no sign of the pair of guards who were stationed by the gate. He can see the town guard standing at his post as usual, however. Then suddenly he spots a shadowy figure moving through the street towards the stable, dagger drawn. The pair of guards who stand outside seem to quite oblivious to his approach.

OOC: Calhad Rayne rolled 18 using 1d20+14. Hide.

Aerendir also notices a number of armoured figures moving into the torchlight outside the town wall. He counts at least a dozen, though there may well be more in the darkness beyond. He also cannot see the gate on the other side of town from his position in the room.

Apparently deciding that regardless of motive, all cloaked figures heading towards the stable with drawn daggers are safe targets, Aerendir takes aim and fires.

OOC: Aerendir has dealt 43 points of vitality damage to Calhad Rayne.
Aerendir has dealt 9 points of wound damage to Cahlad Rayne.
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:55, Fri 29 Mar 2019.