---

---

You have clearly become heroes of Sandpoint, both individually and in the aggregate.  As Cato was walking down Main Street, baker Alma Avertin charged out of her shop to offer him a fresh-baked loaf of bread and worried comments that he must be wasting away.  Much to her embarrassment, Cydrak Drokkus tracked down Liseth and tried to talk her into auditioning for his new play, not-very-subtly insinuating that having such a famous personage in the cast would help ticket sales.  Pisca's visit to Savah's Armory greeted her with an instantaneous offer of 20% off anything in stock for her or any of her heroic friends.  And when Kellan stopped at the Hagfish on an errand, the entire tavern broke into cheers and plied him with free drinks.

The four of you are, for lack of a better term, celebrities.  And not in small part because, as all of you have heard from various Sandpoint locals, Aldern Foxglove has been singing your praises to anyone who will listen.

As the appointed hour of seven arrived, you headed down into the common room to find a table in the northwest corner set with an immaculate white tablecloth and very fine-looking dishes.  Three ornate silver candlesticks held lit white tapers and the silverwear gleamed from a recent polishing.

Aldern Foxglove sat at the head of the table, looking resplendent in the finest of Magnimar fashions, his dark blue coat and its gold stitching perfectly setting off his pristine white shirt.  Amazing smells issued from the kitchen; you are sure that Ameiko and her staff are putting their best efforts into the meal you will be served this evening.

Aldern broke into a huge smile when he saw you enter the room.  "My friends," he said, in a loud, stentorian voice.  "My rescuers!  Please, join me for a celebration of your heroism and," he laughed, "my continued existence!"

---

---

Kellan came down the stairs in a newly washed off white cambric shirt, brown pants and boots. Freshly shaved and scrubbed his blond hair had taken on a golden sheen and he looked renewed by his day off. A dagger hung off the leather belt around his waist, although the weapon looked polite enough and polished to boot.

Giving a nod as he entered the reserved section of the rusty Dragon he smiled and moved to shake Aldern's hand.

"You really didn't have to do this Mr. Foxglove, but thank you, all the same"  selecting one of the chairs he gingerly took a seat, obviously unused to dining in such luxury, he even looked down to make sure that his dagger would not scratch the finish on he chair.

"You are looking well, I have to say, that is quite a coat" he gestured with his off hand, admiring the garment.

---

---

Aldern grasped Kellan's hand warmly, then gestured him toward a seat with a smile.  "As much as it pains me to disagree, Mr. Storval, I did indeed have to do this.  I would be greatly remiss if I did not reward the heroism you and your companions showed in front of the White Deer last night."

"And thank you."  The noble smiled at Kellan's comment regarding his coat.  "It is my favorite!  Although I have come to realize that in certain situations," he gave a self-deprecating grin, "utilitarian armor is much better raiment than even the finest of Magnimarian fashions."  He slapped Kellan on the back.  "I am quite fortunate that it was your choice of dress last night!"

---

---

The gnome appeared at the appointed time, and, surprise of surprises, she was dressed in a skirt and and blouse rather than her Shoanti leathers.  A crimson sash overlaid an underbust corset of the deepest burgundy, which separated her long night-black skirt from her creamy white blouse - a frilly thing that, revealed a generous amount of gnomish cleavage.  As they say, the clothes make the gnome, and that seemed very much the case with regard to Pisca.  She walked and carried herself much differently than she had in the leathers.  She was very much the lady, albeit a Right-Sized one, far smaller than the human's around her.

"Good evening, Mister Foxglove," said the gnome as she once again held up her hand for the human to kiss.  This time, however, her attention was less upon the man, and more upon a nearby chair.  As attractive as skirts and dresses might be, they were not designed with climbing in mind, a climbing that would be necessary if a certain gnome wished to get herself up into a human-sized chair.

---

---

"Good evening, Miss Neep Freemish," Aldern responded as he knelt, took her proffered hand, and gave it a gentle kiss.  "You look lovely!  I must apologize for my deplorable manners yesterday evening.  I was somewhat out-of-sorts, as you might guess, from all the commotion, but that is no excuse for rudeness and I plan to make it up to you tonight, starting now."

He walked back behind his chair, leaned down, and came back with a stepped wooden box.  "I hope you won't think me too forward or in violation of your people's customs," he said, leaning down and placing the box next to Pisca's chair, "if I have procured this for you.  I did not want such a finely-attired lady to bear the ignominy of either climbing the chair like a cliff or having someone set you upon it."  He bowed, then looked up to see her reaction.  "I hope it meets with your approval?"

---

---

"Why Mister Foxglove, what deplorable manners might you be speaking of?  Nothing that I noticed, I assure you."

"Oh my.  How terribly considerate of you, Mister Foxglove."  Pisca's mouth formed a soft O of surprise as the man returned with a set of stairs perfectly proportioned to her dainty steps.  "You are the consummate gentleman, are you not.  You most certainly know how to treat a gnome."

With delicate and deliberate steps Pisca ascended to her seat.  Once there she slid into a side-saddle position from which she could rise to her knees upon occasion for extra height, a thing which she does now.

"You are so gallant, Mister Foxglove.  May I call you Aldern?  Thank you so very much for inviting us to dinner this evening, Aldern."  With her elbows resting on the tabletop, her chin in her hand, Pisca gazes up at the human noble with her large violet eyes.  "Mister Foxglove?  Aldern?  Have you ever considered sponsoring a library?"

Cato entered the Rusty Dragon, surprised to see the finery set up for their dinner with Aldern Foxglove.  He walked over to the table, noting Pisca and Kellan's fancy new clothes.  Cato himself was wearing his finest robes, though he had made a conscious effort to avoid dressing in the latest fashions, as Aldern had done, instead settling for clothes which, while very nice for Sandpoint, wouldn't have attracted a second look in Korvosa.  A set of relatively new breeches, clean pressed shirt, and a dark vest made Cato look presentable but ultimately forgettable next to the flashy Foxglove, which was fine with Cato.

The wizard took in the falsely obsequious manner of the noble and barely managed to suppress an involuntary shudder.  Aldern reminded Cato of some of the worst parts of his youth; of countless dinner parties and formal events with nobles feigning interest and Cato being forced to (ultimately unsuccessfully) act out the same roles.  That had ultimately ended up with him being forced to join the Hellknights, forced to desert, and forced to flee across Varisia.  Of course, it had also led to him finding Sandpoint, Brodert, Kellan, Pisca and Liseth.  So maybe it wasn't all bad.

Cato dredged up the memories of his youth, and gave Aldern an elaborate bow, flashing a wide smile and holding out his hand to Aldern.  "Thank you for the invitation, Aldern.  The Rusty Dragon looks amazing!  I'm looking forward to our feast."

Unsurprisingly, Liseth arrived last to the dinner at the Rusty Dragon.  She entered with Kerr, holding his arm and wearing a modest white dress.  Her skirt reached down past her knees and her blouse was buttoned all the way up to her neck.

The lavishly appointed section of the inn set aside for their benefit was easily spotted.  Liseth saw that she had arrived just after Cato and that Kellan and Pisca were already seated.  She tried her best to keep her anxiety from showing on her face but squeezed Kerr's arm tightly when the girl slowly, almost reluctantly, began walking towards the nobleman and his table; seeking much more than simple physical support from the other acolyte.

Upon arriving Liseth released Kerr's arm, just for a moment, to curtsy politely, "Mr Foxglove.  Thank you for inviting us to such a lavish dinner."  Before the nobleman could take her hand she had already grabbed Kerr's arm again.  Liseth's anxiety crept into her voice, "This is Kerr Mollin.  I hope you don't mind that I asked him to come to the dinner with me..."

---

---

Aldern Foxglove turned to greet young Cato Crispin and noted that the scholar was evidently not as happy to be there as his two companions.  The noble gave Cato a considering look that lasted an almost-imperceptible moment longer than it really should have while Cato bowed and thanked him for the invitation.  But the deliberative look was gone before Cato straightened; there was no evidence of any reticence as Aldern enthusiastically shook the young wizard’s hand and pointed him to his seat at the table.

“No more than I look forward to it, Mister Caelin,” he nodded in response to Cato’s pleasantries.  “I have been greatly anticipating . . .”  But the noble was distracted before he could finish his sentence.

“Miss Thoradin!”  Aldern flashed Liseth his biggest, most genuine smile.  “I was concerned that you might not be able to make it!”  He placed a hand over his chest.  “Truly, I do not know if my heart could have fully recovered from such a blow.  And I must say that you look quite lovely this evening.”

Aldern gave Kerr a short bow as Liseth introduced him to her fellow acolyte.  If his eyes hardened for just the briefest instant, the look was gone before anyone could be sure.  “Of course, milady, how could I refuse you a guest?  Especially Kerr Mollin!”  He nodded at Kerr.  “Father Zantus has often told me he would be lost without your invaluable assistance.”

Aldern swept his hand over the table.  “Unfortunately, I did not anticipate your arrival.  I shall have the staff set an extra place for you.  Tarvis, would you mind?”  He gestured to a nondescript man sitting at a table in the corner, who until now had escaped everyone’s notice.  Tarvis stood and headed over to the kitchens.  “Thank you.”  Aldern called after him before returning his attention to the group.  “That is Tarvis, my aide d’affairs.  Like Father Zantus with Kerr, I’m afraid I would be completely lost without him.”

Almost immediately, two serving women emerged from the kitchens with an extra place setting.  They quickly rearranged the table to accommodate an additional guest, and were gone as quickly as they had arrived.  While they worked, Tarvis quietly returned to his table in the corner, seating himself and sipping a glass of something that looked suspiciously like water.

As the serving women departed, Aldern gestured to the table.  “Please, everyone, be seated.”  As Cato, Liseth, and Kerr moved to their seats, Pisca brought up the subject of library sponsorship.  Aldern looked at her seriously, but with a hint of a smile touching the corners of his mouth.

“You are most welcome, Miss Neep Freemish."  He looked around the table.  "And, all of you, please do call me Aldern."  He returned his attention to the inn's sole gnome.  "To tell you the truth, I have never really considered sponsoring a library in Sandpoint.”  He gave a regretful shrug.  “Magnimar has several wonderful libraries, and those interested in such things generally gravitate toward the city.  While I appreciate Mister Haladan’s efforts to expand such interests in Sandpoint’s citizenry, I’m not sure a library would be the people's first priority, if indeed I was to sponsor some sort of a public-works development here.”

Aldern stood.  “That said, if funding such a project is your goal I may have something for you that will assist in achieving it."  He winked at Pisca.  "Tarvis?”  The unassuming man rose again, this time carrying four packages.  Each one was delicately wrapped in paper of vibrant colors, tied by an elaborate ribbon, and identified by its recipient’s name elegantly written in an almost calligraphic style.

The noble smiled.  “These are my gifts to each of you for saving my life last night.  I was foolish to leave the White Deer with only a recently-purchased canine for protection.  That foolishness nearly cost me everything.  So the contents of these packages are a very, very small token of my esteem for each of you and I simply will not hear of you returning them to me.”

---

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This message was last edited by the player at 09:31, Wed 18 Mar 2015.

Kellan eyed the package with his name on it with a grin as Tarvis produced it. When it was set in front of him he nodded his thanks to the major domo before looking over to their host.

"I honestly don't know what to say...I'm kind of overwhelmed." He gently pulled apart the wrapping, saw a hint of what was within and smiled in slight disbelief, pulling the rest off to reveal a bottle of expensive Taldan Fire-Brandy, as well as five platinum coins that clink as they fall out onto the thick tablecloth.

"Wow...thank you...just...thank you...It is a fine, fine gift sir" he pulled out the bottle and admired it, turning it over in the candlelight and watching the colors of the liquor shift. "I'm sure this will be put to good use" hefting the bottle a little towards their benefactor

He opened the pouch and glanced in before politely pocketing the amount, his face betraying his happiness at the gift as he glanced around in curiosity to see what the others received.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:47, Wed 25 Sept 2013.

Disappointment ...

Like a palpable gloom it settled over the gnome.  Flop on the table and heave a heavy sigh.  Aldern Foxglove would not fund the library.  Flopping and heaving.  That's just what she felt like.  That's what failure felt like.

Don't flop, Pisca.  Don't heave.  If you do, then he'll know that you've failed.  The future is a long time, Pisca.

So said the voice of reason.

The refusal that he gives today may be the acceptance that he gives tomorrow.  Or next week.  Or next month.  Or next year.  But if you show him you've failed today, how can he rely on you to ever build a library that is a success?

Oddly, the voice of reason sounded a great deal like Aunt Hattie.

"Of course, there are indeed many needs and differing layers of priority in any community, Aldern," Pisca replied without flopping or heaving.  She smiled and took a sip of a spice mulled wine before continuing as though with any other run of the mill dinner conversation about, say truffles or pigeon racing.  "Though I would ask you to look beyond a library as a monument to scholarly works.  A library is an investment in children.  And, as an intelligent community minded person such as yourself must know, an investment in children is an investment in the future.  People love children.  And they think very highly of those who care for their children and their children's future."

"But, no need to commit to anything tonight.  All I ask is that you think about the idea, Aldern.  Oh ... is this for me?"

The gnome smiled, both on the outside and on the inside.  That had been highly satisfactory.  She sounded very good to herself.  Better than she thought she could have sounded.  It was a nice feeling.  Better than flopping and heaving a sigh.  And now presents ...

Pisca tore at one corner of the wrapping, before looking up at the others, anticipation gleaming in her eyes.  Her grin widened just that little bit, just enough to say, 'Alright, here we go.'  Then she opened the package all of the way up.

Five platinum coins.  Five!  And what was this?  The gnome unrolled the fine leather case within which were pouches for shims and picks, drivers and pries.  She drew a tool from its leather slot and put one end into her mouth to taste its function.  "Philipot clamp," the gnome declared.  "Thank you, Aldern," Pisca smiled.  "It's beautiful."  Then she looked about to see what Lysa and Cato had received - almost as good as getting something yourself.

Studying Aldern's reactions, Cato mentally kicked himself.  The last thing he wanted was for Aldern to start talking, particularly if the noble started doing it in Korvosa or Magnimar.  Must act normal.  Don't arouse suspicion.  Why was this so hard for Cato?  One of the perks of living in Sandpoint was that so little here reminded him of his old life.  He just had to get through dinner tonight.  That wouldn't be so hard.

Cato took his seat, exchanging a few pleasantries without thinking, until Tarvis delivered the gift to his seat.  Cato unwrapped it, catching the heavy platinum coins in his hand and staring in marvel at the heavy book in his hands.  A first edition of On the Empire of Thassilon?  This book was hard to find even in big cities, how the devil had Aldern managed to get a new copy on a day's notice?  Unable to help himself, Cato opened to the first page of the book and started to read the words within, becoming completely lost in the book.  He couldn't wait to show this to Brodert.  He and the sage had discussed Brodert's theories about the Old Light several times, and Brodert claimed some of the research in this book backed up his claims, but the sage hadn't been able to find a copy in decades.

Cato realized he had been staring at the book for far too long, and ignoring his host and the rest of his companions.  He looked up, not surprised to see the evident craft and expense involved in their gifts.  "Thank you, Aldern.  I mean really, this is wonderful.  Where were able to find this book in Sandpoint?"

Liseth watched him uncomfortably and continued to hold Kerr's arm when Mr Foxglove once again began to pour his attention upon her.  She tensed up when he took notice of Kerr and nearly shrank away from the nobleman upon seeing what she interpreted as anger flash across his eyes.  But the girl exhales and relaxes when Mr Foxglove has another place at the table set for Kerr; hoping that the nobleman isn't just masking his true feelings with practiced etiquette.  She spoke in a quiet voice, "Thank you Mr Foxglove."

When the table was rearranged Liseth took a seat next to Kerr and as far away from Mr Foxglove as she could.  It was quite clear that she was uncomfortable with the way that the nobleman spoke and acted towards her.  She did try to listen to the conversations happening around her though; especially interested in Pisca's proposed library for Sandpoint.  It sounded like a good idea to her, and Liseth nodded along with Pisca's reasoning.  Even a small library would be a benefit to the community.

The conversation stopped when Mr Foxglove had gifts delivered to everybody.  Well, everybody except Kerr; but that was understandable since he didn't know that Kerr was coming.  Liseth just hoped that he didn't feel left out.

She looked at the gift in front of her with a mix of reluctance and mild suspicion.  Liseth really didn't expect gifts to be given out during the dinner, but she was relieved that there was one for everybody and that Mr Foxglove hadn't just singled her out.  She didn't know what she might have done if she had to open a gift for herself in front of everybody and they had nothing.  Though that didn't stop her from having nervous butterflies flitter about her stomach.

Liseth decided that she would watch everyone open their gifts first.  Fine brandy for Kellan, a fancy tool case for Pisca, a rare tome for Cato.  Five platinum coins for everyone in as well.  Expensive gifts; but Mr Foxglove handed them out as though the price was nothing.  Finally it came down to her, and she knew that she couldn't let the mysterious present remain unknown.

Carefully, Liseth peeled back the wrapping and opened the box that it concealed.  Immediately her eyes grew wide as she gasped in astonishment.  Then her face blanched and the girl began to shake before she reached into the box to extract the item for everybody to see.  In her hands was an extravagant silver necklace encrusted with brilliant emeralds.  The five platinum coins remaining in her gift box pale in comparison to what the value of that single piece of jewelry must be.

"It...it..."  Liseth stammered and her body continued to tremble as she stared at the necklace in disbelief.  "It's a necklace..."

---

---

As soon as the packages were delivered, meal service began.  It started with a buttery lobster bisque that everyone agreed was amazing.  The bisque was followed by a salad garnished with candied walnuts, blue cheese, and sun-dried tomatoes, topped by a savory dressing that was apparently a Kaijitsu family recipe.

Aldern Foxglove smiled at Kellan as the guardsman revealed the bottle of fine Taldan Fire-Brandy.  “You need say nothing, my friend, other than to assure me that you will put it to good use, as you have already done, and drink to my health while you enjoy it.”   He gave Kellan a conspiratorial look and lowered his voice.  “You might want to share some with Alergast Barett,” Aldern looked about as if the big man might be hiding under a table, “as he is the one that told me of your shared affinity for the beverage.”

The noble looked over at Pisca.  “I see that you are extremely invested in the idea of a Sandpoint library.”  He nodded.  “Your civic-mindedness does you credit.  Let me say this; if you are able to find other backers for your project, and obtain the mayor’s approval, I could be convinced to contribute to your effort.  In fact, you may even use my name as a supporter to the extent that it might open doors . . .  or purses.”  Aldern’s lips quirked up before he sat back in his chair, a serious look on his face.  “I have quite a deal of my own equity tied up in a project that should be coming to fruition very soon.  If it is successful, as I have every reason to believe it will be, I will be flush with funds and, I must say, very likely to be in a charitable frame of mind.”  He winked.

As the conversation continued, the main dish arrived:  Ameiko Kaijitsu’s famous curry-spiced salmon, garnished by fried onions and accompanied by spicy crisped potatoes, stringbeans with shaved cheese, slivered almonds, and sun-dried tomatoes, all washed down with an early winterdrop mead.

As the group ate, Aldern looked to Cato.   “I don’t want to spoil the magic, but where do you think I might go if I was looking for a rare book on short notice in Sandpoint?”  The noble raised an eyebrow and grinned.  “You would be surprised at Master Haladan’s resources, my friend,” he continued, somewhat mysteriously.  “He does not keep all of his available books on his shop’s shelves.”

“It is indeed a necklace!”  Aldern clapped his hands together with delight and smiled as Liseth removed her gift from its package.  “A beautiful necklace for the loveliest of ladies.”  Aldern rose and moved around the table, extending his hand toward the young blonde.  “May I?”  He took the jewelry and fastened it around Liseth’s neck.  It was really quite stunning; the emeralds offset the white of Liseth’s dress with what seemed like a sparkling green fire.

“Incredible.”  Aldern breathed as he stepped back, brushing Liseth’s shoulder with what might or might not have been inadvertence.  “It is better than I had hoped.  Truly, it was worth every penny, and you are clearly the woman meant to wear it.”  Aldern smiled broadly as he returned to his seat, then looked around the table.  “How is everyone enjoying their meal?”

---

---

This message was last edited by the player at 19:38, Wed 25 Sept 2013.

Kellan looked on approvingly as Pisca and Cato received fine gifts as well. He was about to set the bottle he received off of the table when Liseth opened her's. Kellan's expression changed from concern to an awkward pensive one as she pulled forth the extravagant gift. It was obvious in his mind that from Foxglove's behavior up to this point, now cemented by the decadent jewelry that he seemed to have intentions towards Liseth. The age difference and Foxglove's rumored marriage history put an unsavory undertone to the gift that seemed to ruin the mood for the young Guardsman.

He straightened a little and looked between Liseth and Foxglove sparing a knowing glance towards Cato and Pisca as well. "That's ah..." He paused as if framing his words carefully "That necklace is a remarkably generous gift Mr. Foxglove" looking to the the nobleman now. Kellan was acutely aware that despite his recent celebrity status, he was from about as common a birth as one could manage and he was addressing one of the eminent personages in the region, one that had just given him a very generous gift and hosted a dinner in their honor.

He paused mid spoonful "It is delicious, I don't believe I have ever had such a fine meal, if I may" he resumed "where ever did you find such a fine piece in Sandpoint? It seems far beyond anything I have seen the local merchants offer" he asked, partially out of a suspicion growing in his mind, but also to break the ensuing awkward silence.

Boooookkkk ...

Pisca the Zombie Book Monster turned her head slowly, almost sluggishly.  The light caught by the white riffling pages, captured the otherwise dull senses of the Zombie Book Monster.  Zombie Book Monsters were said to have responded to the soft thump of a closing book cover from as far away as half a mile.

Boooookkkk ...

The unlucky books that had run afoul of the Zombie Book Monster were often stalked by the Zombie Book Monster's walking fingers.  The fingers shambled and lurched across the tops of tables, slowly but inexorably drawing nearer and nearer to the books, who, frozen in panic could do nothing but ...

Pisca?  You're at dinner with guests.

The gnome smiled, ensuring the others at the table that all was well, and that she was enjoying both their company as well as the marvelous dinner.  She leaned in upon the two fingers she had pressed against the table as though this had been nothing but an idiosyncratic pose - simply resting on an elbow, but in a different form.  No matter that they had been slowly working their way across to Cato's new book.

"That's a very pretty necklace you have there, Lysa," said the gnome in casual tones.  "Pretty.  Very tasteful, Aldern," she said.

Cato had to give it to Aldern.  He certainly knew how to reward and entertain.  The nobility always did that well.  And yet, as he ate the tastiest meal he had had in...months, maybe years, he couldn't shake the feeling that this was some sort of entertainment for Foxglove.  Shower the rabble with presents and food, to encourage their cooperation.

Cato sighed.  If he was going to be saving lives anyway, it was certainly nice be richly rewarded for it.  He kept up his facade and tried to enjoy the email and ignore the doubts at the back of his mind.  He thought Aldern might have a few suspicions about what Cato was thinking, but the noble was so intent on fawning over Liseth that he seemed to brush off anything else.  Which was another matter that made it harder for Cato to enjoy the meal.  He had met more than a few nobles in his past who had a wanton disregard for the personal rights of the less fortunate in Korvosa, and could do some truly horrific things without really thinking about it.  Still, Liseth seemed to have a good head on her shoulders and Cato trusted the young woman's instincts.  She could stand up to rampaging goblins; how much trouble could a noble be?

Cato cleared his throat and looked to their host.  "This is truly an amazing meal, Aldern.  I can't believe it, but I think Ameiko was holding back when she prepared food for the festival yesterday.  What did you have to offer for her to outdo herself yet again?"

Cato glanced over at Pisca's hand, which was a good deal closer to his book than it had been before he had lost himself in his own thoughts.  "I agree with Aldern, Pisca.  Your idea of a library for Sandpoint is quite a good one.  Who's to say that only those in big cities should benefit from education?  I could help you come up with a good selection of books for those interested in history, and I'm sure I can convince Brodert to part with a few spare copies of books he had to start your collection."

The gnome took no apparent notice of the human girl's discomfort and dilemma.  Quite without warning, though, she slipped delicately over the side of her chair and stepped down onto the tiered box that their noble host had so kindly provided her.

"Excuse me, gentlemen," she said to those gathered at the table, "someone has to use the little gnome's room."

"Um ... Lysa?  Would you mind accompanying me, please?"  She smiled at Liseth and she smiled at young Kerr Mollin.  "You don't mind me stealing your girlfriend for a little while, do you?"  She lifted the hem of her skirt and gingerly descended the stairs, her feet clad in soft embroidered slippers.  "If you don't mind," she said, and reached up to Liseth to take her hand as she reached the human girl's side.

"While we're gone, you boys can talk about all those rough things that boys like to talk about," said the gnome over her shoulder.  "We'll be back in a bit.  Ta-ta," Pisca tossed over her shoulder.

Liseth's discomfort only grew when Aldern Foxglove rose from his seat to move around the table and insisted upon fastening the ostentatious jewelry around her neck.  She shivered, despite herself, when his hand brushed her shoulder.  It felt to her that she was a rabbit who had wandered into a cleverly constructed trap; and the hunter was eying her hungrily.  Her voice was hollow, nearly sounding frightened, "Thank you Mr Fox...um...Aldern.  It is a very pretty necklace..."

When the nobleman left to return to his seat Liseth kept her eyes on him but reached a hand under the table to grab one of Kerr's.  She squeezed his hand tightly, as though attempting to absorb from him all of the comfort that he could give.  An unpleasant thought suddenly occurred to the girl; if she was the rabbit that had wandered into a trap, then Kerr must be the other rabbit who she had unwittingly convinced to walk in with her.  She never intended to place Kerr in trouble, and certainly hoped that Mr Foxglove wouldn't hold a grudge against him.

She tried to distract herself by enjoying the fantastic meal but wound up focusing her attention on the food to such a point that she missed the conversations going on around the table.  Nervous as she was, Liseth could eat only little of the food; her anxiety dulling the otherwise delectable spread.  Then she heard Pisca speak her name; in the way that only the little gnome had ever used.

Liseth looked up from her plate to see Pisca descend from her chair and walk towards her, extending a hand upwards and asking her to accompany her away from the table.  "Yes, of course I'll go with you," she spoke perhaps too eagerly as the teenage girl stood from her seat and took Pisca's offered hand.  Any excuse to leave the table for even a moment was a highly attractive proposition.

---

---

Kerr Mollin had not been incredibly enthused by Liseth’s idea that he accompany her to Aldern Foxglove’s dinner in honor of her and her three fellow veterans of what Kerr now thought of to himself as the Battle of the White Deer.  Kerr knew Aldern was an important and influential man on a first-name basis with Father Zantus; he had no desire to get on the noble’s bad side by crashing his private party uninvited.  Yet the young acolyte had not shared these reservations with Liseth, mostly because the dinner was an opportunity to spend time with her and in Kerr’s mind such opportunities were to be seized upon and cherished whenever they occurred.

Unfortunately, now that Kerr was actually AT the dinner things were much worse than he had originally feared.  The way Aldern had greeted Kerr gave him the feeling that he was distinctly unwelcome, despite the man’s polite acquiescence to his attendance.  As the dinner progressed, he felt more and more that his presence next to Liseth was something the noble perceived as an annoyance.  It was uncomfortable, but Kerr bravely soldiered on, if only to be there for Liseth in her hour of need; she was clearly discomfited by the man’s actions.

Kerr was dumbfounded when Liseth opened her package to reveal an emerald necklace that seemed fit for a queen.  He was not sure how to react when Aldern walked over and fastened the chain around Liseth’s neck; while the man was doing nothing objectionable it still seemed very wrong to Kerr.  He gritted his teeth and held on tightly to Liseth’s hand.  He was glad that she seemed not to be taken by the man's well-groomed good looks, sophisticated air, sparkling personality, and obvious wealth.

Now that Kerr thought about it, he could not really say why she was NOT swooning over the man.  Kerr was enough of a realist to know that he couldn’t compete with the noble in any of those areas.  But fortunately those areas seemed to be of less importance to Liseth than Kerr would have thought, and he was very glad for it.

Kerr felt a surge of gratitude towards Pisca the gnomish woman when she stood and invited Liseth to join her on a trip to the facilities.  Kerr wished that he could somehow escape Foxglove’s table and that he and Liseth could go spend time together far from the gaze of any nobility.  As it was, Kerr had to sit there and pretend to enjoy the dinner and the conversation.  Well, he didn’t have to do much pretending with the dinner . . . it really WAS quite good.

Kerr sat and tried to enjoy the amazing meal while he waited for Liseth and Pisca to return.  He wondered what they were talking about.

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This message was last edited by the player at 06:16, Fri 27 Sept 2013.

"Why don't we sit here?" suggested the gnome.  She had indicated a pile of crates stacked outside the back door of the Rusty Dragon.  "I suppose you've guessed by now, Lysa.  I don't really need to use the little gnome's room.  But you looked like you needed some air.  Or maybe some water.  Or ... wait ... "  Pisca disappeared back inside the inn where she collared a server and engaged in a short whispered conversation.

"Well, anyway, you looked unto-sorts in there," she said after she returned.  "Which is something that I just made up.  It means being out of sorts because of something untoward, and I've been trying to figure out just what that something is.  I've come up with several ideas.  It could be that your underclothes are damp.  Or something in the food has given you a rash.  Or you owe more taxes on your farm than you can afford to pay now.  But I'm pretty sure that last one is not it."

At that moment the server appeared with a small-ish cup.  "Thank you."  Pisca accepted the cup from the server and presented it to Liseth.  "Here.  Drink this.  Well, don't drink it.  Sip it.  It's ... well, lets just call it strong, shall we?  I call it a Green Gnomish, and they just happened to have all the different fruits, vegetables and alcohols here at the Rusty Dragon to mix one.  Sip it slowly.  It will give you courage.  It will give you the strength to face adversity.  It will also make your tongue feel furry, and it will clear your head.  Well, no.  It won't do that last thing."

"Now, tell me what's bothering you."

---

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As the men watched Pisca and Liseth depart, they noticed a group of attractive young women seated at a table down in the bar area.  These women seemed to be staring at Kellan, but quickly looked away whenever they drew his attention, bursting into fits of giggles before leaning their heads together and whispering.

After observing this behavior for a minute or two, Aldern Foxglove gave Kellan a smile and a wink.  "Unless I miss my guess, it looks as if Sandpoint's most eligible guardsman has a fan club."  He looked at Kerr and Cato and lowered his voice, as if sharing a secret.  "Do you think we should invite them over so that they can meet their hero in person?"

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Kellan smiled a little as he watched Pisca descend her custom made staircase, helping himself to another forkful of what could easily be the most delicious meal he had ever consumed. It seemed the girls had the situation well in hand, and Kerr looked like he was weathering the dinner like a champ.

He paused mid forkful as he followed Aldern's gaze back towards the bar.  He grinned despite himself upon seeing the pretty girls, turning just a faint shade of red under his farmers tan and redirected his gaze towards his plate. Laughing a little nervously he sipped his drink as their host promoted him to invite the cadre over.

"I...uh" he looked very much the farm boy just then, rubbing the back of his head sub-consciously. He was obviously unused to the attention. "Hero is a strong word" he tried with a bit of humor "Something tells me that they may have heard about a certain dashing nobleman in a blue coat handing out necklaces..." He glanced back over to the girls with a smile as if expecting to find Amele Barett above them holding marionette strings.

He looked to Cato as if to gauge his opinion, and also as his only other comrade in arms at the dinner table.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:58, Thu 26 Sept 2013.

Liseth gratefully took a seat on a crate when directed by Pisca, happy for the chance at fresh air and a reprieve from the dinner.  She placed her hands into her lap and concentrated on simply breathing and trying to follow the gnome's train of thought; watching curiously when she popped back inside the inn for a moment before returning.  Liseth started to speak after Pisca finished listing off the various things that she thought might be troubling her, but stopped when a server arrived to give a cup to the gnome.

Politely accepting the cup from Pisca, Liseth looked down at the liquid when she heard the gnomish girl's description of the beverage.  A faint frown formed at the edges of her mouth, "I don't...handle alcohol very well."  But at Pisca's insistence the girl took a small sip from the cup; after which she coughed.  Liseth immediately lowered the cup and brought a hand to cover her mouth; eyes widening as even that small amount of liquid seemed to flow to every part of her body.

Then Pisca brought up the real reason why she wanted Liseth to follow her outside.  Liseth's gaze cast all about as though she was making sure that Foxglove wasn't nearby to hear her.  The girl set the cup on the crate next to her and rubbed her hands uneasily while looking at Pisca.  "He...scares me.  Mr Foxglove.  The things that he says, how he acts towards me.  The look in his eyes."  Liseth shuddered slightly and frowned before reaching a hand up to touch the necklace that she had been given, "And this...this isn't the sort of thing that should be given to someone who you only met yesterday."  She frowned again, "This necklace is more valuable than everything else that I have put together.  Why would he give it to me unless..."  A third frown crossed her face.

She searched for some kind of understanding in Pisca's face.  Maybe the gnome had experienced something like this before?  "Ms Freemish, I don't know what to do.  I don't want to make Mr Foxglove angry with me, but..."  Liseth let the sentence trail off, unfinished.

It was one of those moments of clarity that never really comes out so clear for the blinding light of inspiration.  You know that you've come upon something new and terribly epiphanish, but it's partially obscured by all that horribly glowy insight.  This was, for Pisca Neep Freemish, one of those moments.  This was when Pisca realized that humans simply did not experience youth in the same way that gnomes experienced youth.  Humans were babies.  They were not just young.  They were inexperienced.  They simply hadn't had the years.

"Lysa ... Liseth," the gnome began, "sometimes you have to face your fears.  This is especially true if you're not really sure whether they're real and actual fears yet or not.  Sometimes they're not, really.  They're more the fears of fears.  You're afraid that these things will be fearful when you don't really know for sure whether they actually will be or not."

"We have Bloat Mages in Kaer Maga, and even to this day it's said that Bloat Mages will catch and eat young gnomes to increase their magic powers.  Well, as a baby gnome, I was terrified of this.  We all were.  We'd be playing in the streets and alleys and someone would shout, 'Bloat Mage!' and we'd all scatter screaming in terror."

"Well, one day, for some reason that I don't remember very clearly now, I'd had enough of this.  From many safe places of hiding, I'd seen adult gnomes pass by Bloat Mages without drawing the least amount of attention.  I'd even seen gnomes in conversation with them.  So, I decided that this eating of gnomes was nonsense and I was determined to confront my fear.  I found a Bloat Mage shopping in Down Market, and as casually as I could muster, I walked by him.  He didn't pounce upon me.  He didn't grab at me.  He didn't even seem to notice me.  It was a rather astounding feeling, I'll tell you.  My version of what was real and what was not was right.  I walked by again.  And again and again and again.  Finally the Bloat Mage did reach out and stop me.  He demanded to know what I was doing, and when I told him what I was doing and why I was doing it, he burst out laughing."

"Later, of course, I found out that some Bloat Mages do, in fact, eat gnomes under the mistaken impression that it will increase their magic.  But that's neither here nor there.  The fact is that I asserted my vision of what is real and what is not real.  I insisted upon it and it became so.  Aldern Foxglove has given us these gifts as heroes of Sandpoint.  He gave them to us for saving his life.  He said so.  Believe that and it will be so.  Believe that and your fear of his anger will cease to bother you.  Or, at the very least, it will go and hide in a corner.  Believe that in your heart and enjoy the dinner.  Talk to him as though he were a favorite, though somewhat inappropriate, uncle."

"Be strong, Lysa.  In the end, it may be your version of reality verses his.  Believe.  And make sure it's yours.  Remember we're behind you.  Me, and Kellan and Cato, and your sweet human boyfriend too.  We believe what you believe."

"Drink your gnomish, dear.  It has spinach in it.  It's good for you."

Cato smiled as Pisca and Liseth left the room.  He hoped Pisca could calm down Liseth somewhat, though it would probably be healthy if the girl was a little suspicious of Aldern.  Kerr seemed to be a much better match for the young acolyte than the nobleman.  And the young man seemed to be doing surprisingly well, considering the awkward position he was in.

Cato looked up as Aldern starting talking again.  What was the man going on about now?  Cato followed Aldern's eyes, and saw the blushing young women, who actually matched Kellan's expression and face very well right now.  Cato smiled a little.  "Why is it I can bend reality to my whim, but poking a few goblins with a pointed stick attracts all the women?"

Cato's smile waned as he thought more about Aldern.  Was there an ulterior motive behind what the noble was proposing?  Cato mentally kicked himself.  Not everything every noble did was part of some nefarious plot.  They had saved the man's life, after all.  He was obviously attracted to a pretty young woman.  There wasn't anything wrong with that, as long as the noble could take no for an answer.

Cato finally shook his head in response to Aldern's original question.  "I'm rather enjoy this nice meal, and learning more about you, Aldern.  This project you have coming to fruition soon...it sounds fairly mysterious when you talk about it like that.  Is it connected to your family estates in Sandpoint?"

---

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Aldern looked at Cato with confusion.  "My family estates . . ."  Then he laughed.  "Ah, yes.  No, my family estate is not in Sandpoint proper.  It's about six miles southwest of here, down the Lost Coast as the crow flies, although it of course takes much longer to actually travel there.  Take a right at the Foxglove River."  Aldern grinned.

Then the noble sighed.  "But no, my family estate is about as far from an income source as something can possibly be.  Renovating it has been an absolute nightmare.  It was abandoned after my parents died."  He leaned over towards Cato and Kellan, as if sharing a secret.  "Did you know that I lived in a Magnimar orphanage for a time?  It's true.  So I'm not entirely the hateful blue-blood you take me to be."  He gave Cato an inscrutable look.  "Oh come now, Mister Caelin, I did not get where I am in business without developing the ability to read people.  I know you probably think that I am either a fop or a soulless seeker of power.  Trust me, I am neither.  I am not your . . .," he searched for the proper word, ". . . traditional noble."  Aldern gave them a merry smile.

"But think what you will; most people do."  He looked at the door through which Pisca and Liseth had departed.  "I wonder what is taking the ladies?  I hope that they are . . ."

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Aldern Foxglove was interrupted by a young, well-built redhead who had just entered the Rusty Dragon.  The woman had given the inn's main room a serious, searching look; when she saw Kellan, her face lit up.

"Kellan!"  The woman waved as she walked across the taproom towards the group's table.  "I am so glad that I found you!"  She sighed and dipped her head.  "Can you help me with a problem?  My father has been far too concerned with Katrine's sordid private life to pay attention to pest control at the store."  She rolled her eyes as if to indicate she thought her older sister's alleged escapades were not worth worrying about.  "There is this huge rat in the General Store's basement.  Maybe two, but definitely one.  I told my father, but he was too distracted by whatever Katrine might be up to at the lumber mill to pay me much attention."  She looked extremely affronted.

"I have to do inventory in the basement TONIGHT, but I can't do it with that rat around!  I asked Tal Harden to help but he said he wasn't allowed to leave his patrol for a rat problem, especially now considering the recent attack.  He said he'd seen you heading towards the Rusty Dragon.  So I was wondering if . . . oh."

The woman suddenly realized that Kellan was actually at a dinner rather than just drinking with friends.  She flushed crimson.  "Um.  I'm sorry."  She looked around the table.  "Hi Kerr!"  She nodded at the acolyte.  She looked at Aldern and Cato.  "I'm Shayliss Vinder."  The girl gave a curtsey.  "I apologize for my rudeness, and I hate to interrupt your dinner, but would you mind if I borrowed Kellan for a bit?  I promise to return him!"

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This message was last edited by the player at 19:47, Tue 24 June 2014.

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Aldern Foxglove stood and bowed to Shayliss Vinder.  "Greetings, Miss Vinder.  I am Aldern Foxglove."  The girl paled as she realized exactly whom she had interrupted.  The noble waved his hand dismissively.  "No, please don't apologize.  It sounds like you are at your wit's end, and I can personally vouch for the wisdom of your choice in rescuer; Mister Storval is a genuine hero."  He turned to Kellan, giving the young guardsman a wink and a smile.  "Please don't let us keep you from helping the damsel in distress with her rodent problem."

A thought struck him.  "But before you go, I hereby invite you four to go boar hunting with me tomorrow morning.  At a civilized hour.  Shall we say ten?  I will meet you at the Goblin Squash Stables.  And do not worry if you do not have a mount; I shall purchase one for every attendee who needs it.  Will I see you there?"

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This message was last edited by the player at 07:20, Fri 27 Sept 2013.

Kellan raised his head and looked around as he heard his name called, predictably first to the group at the bar with a hint of hope on his face, then to Shayliss with a somewhat surprised look. "Evening Shayliss, everything alright?"

He wiped at the his mouth with a napkin as she explained her plight before nodding with an easy smile "Sure, of course, it's not a problem." He assured her as he scooted back his chair and turned once again to Foxglove, having significantly softened towards the man as the night had proceeded.

"Thank you for understanding Mr. Foxglove, you really have been too kind and I would be honored to join you for that hunt tomorrow morning. Your gift, this fine dining" he gestured to the table "I can safely say I never thought I would be enjoying such privileges in the company of nobility. So again, thank you" he smiled and moved to shake the mans hand. "I won't forget it"

With his host thanked he turned to Cato "Your more than welcome to come help if you feel inclined" he suggested with a grin "although the girls may be a little surprised to come back to find us gone...I should probably find them before I go"

Then to Shayliss "I'll go upstairs and suit up then walk you back over to the store?" He suggested as he began for the stairs.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:36, Fri 27 Sept 2013.

Liseth sat quietly and listened to when Pisca began speaking, holding her hands up to her chest.  There was a small fit of curious blinking when Liseth wondered exactly what a Bloat Mage was during Pisca's anecdote, and why they might eat gnomes; but not once did the girl speak or try to interrupt until the gnome had finished.

With a look down at the drink set next to her, Liseth took her hands down and placed them back in her lap.  At Pisca's insistence she reached for the strange drink and took a sip from it before grimacing.  But she trusted that the gnome wouldn't have her drink it if the beverage was going to harm her.  After taking another sip she seemed much more calm.

"Its just, nobody has ever acted that way to me before."  She took another sip, "So...overbearing.  I know that he said the gifts were because we saved him yesterday, but when we did he almost didn't even notice the rest of you when he took my hand and then stared right into my eyes."  Another sip, "And then when I arrived at the dinner he stopped talking to Mr Crispin mid-sentence so that he could greet me and talk about how...well...you heard what he said."  Liseth blushed slightly and took yet another sip from the drink in her hand.

"Thank you though.  For saying that you'll support me.  It really means a lot to me."  Maybe it was Pisca's Green Gnomish getting to her, but Liseth set the drink on the crate again and reached her arms down to give the gnome a hug.

The girl straightened back up after a thought occurred to her.  "Um, Ms Freemish, you called Kerr my boyfriend again.  I've never had a boyfriend before."  Liseth picked up the cup again and took another sip from it.  "I do like Kerr a lot; he's fun and silly and so nice."  Uncertainty suddenly appeared on her face, "Did I do wrong when I asked him to come to Mr Foxglove's dinner with me?  I think that I might have gotten him into trouble with Mr Foxglove..."

Bringing the cup up to her lips again Liseth stopped and peered inside of it, "Oh.  It's all gone.  Did I drink all of that?"
This message was last edited by the player at 17:41, Fri 27 Sept 2013.

Cato tried to keep a straight face as Aldern recounted his troubled youth, but his mouth betrayed his thoughts in a quick frown.  Had he misjudged the nobleman so much?

"I'm sorry Aldern.  Obviously, I'm judging you like every other traditional noble I've met."

Cato watched Kellan stand up.  "I don't think the Hero of Sandpoint needs help with a little rat problem, but I'm more than willing to help if you think you need it.  Otherwise, I'll wait here and keep Aldern and Kerr entertained until the girls come back."

There's a technique to hugging humans.  You can't put your chin on their shoulders as you would with a Right-Sized person.  You must basically resign yourself to becoming a pet woodchuck or some other such small affectionate burrowing mammal.  And so it was that Pisca nestled herself in Liseth's bosom returning her hug.

"There now," the gnome said once she was released.  "Feel better?  Hmmm.  Yes, I believe you do."  Pisca looked over the lip of the cup along with Liseth and burst into a soft tinkling laughter.  "I'm thinking that you must be feeling much better."

"Why don't we go back in and rejoin the boys?"  The gnome scooted her bottom off the edge of the crate and hopped down to the ground.  "Just remember, that sometimes you have to insist on your own way.  Mister Foxglove may have been the first person to act this way toward you, but he won't likely be the last.  You have to be strong and have confidence that your way is the right way."

"And, you know, Lys, when you think about things, it's probably better for everyone all around?  Aldern as well as you.  He has his own world, after all.  He'll likely need to marry a woman with wealth and power someday.  That's the way of wealth and power."

"As for your young man, if Aldern Foxglove is the sort of person to cause the kind of trouble that you're imagining, don't you think that trouble would eventually find Kerr Mollin anyway?  Think about it.  But now, because you invited Kerr today, you have the chance to see Aldern's reaction to Kerr in person.  If anything's going to happen, you have a much better chance to anticipate it and to do something about it."

"Well, ready to rejoin the others?"  Pisca Neep Freemish straightened her skirt at the doorway, providing the human girl with the time to compose herself.  "Alright.  Good."

"Sorry to keep you waiting."  Pisca swept back into the room with a smile.  Though the gnome was the smallest person in the room, her presence made her the equal of any of the humans present.  "We didn't miss anything scandalous while we were gone, did we?"

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Aldern Foxglove nodded happily as Kellan accepted his invitation.  “I look forward to our hunt!” He smiled as the guardsman made his way upstairs to change.  He then turned his attention back to the meal.  While Miss Vinder had been speaking, the Rusty Dragon staff had served the pièce de rèsistance . . . a crème brulee with some sort of maple flavoring that was absolutely to die for.  Silence reigned all around as those at the table sampled the irresistible offering.

When they had finished consuming the delectable dessert, Aldern Foxglove put a companionable hand on Cato’s shoulder.  “There is no need to apologize, my friend.  I know how nobles can be, and I know how many of them richly deserve their bad reputation.”  He lowered his voice.  “I must say that I find you to be more, how can I put this, socially-experienced than your friends.  You come from a well-to-do background, do you not?”  The man raised an eyebrow.  “No need to answer; clearly you would not be toiling in Sandpoint if you were on good terms with your family.  And whatever secret you might have is safe with me.”

A shadow fell over his eyes as he gave Cato a serious, searching look.  “But if you would not mind some unsolicited advice; here is mine:  try and mend fences.  You never know when your family might be taken from you, and trust me when I say that you will miss them every day that they’re gone.”  With that, the smile returned to Aldern’s face as Kellan came down the stairs, bid them farewell, and left with his distressed damsel.

The noble looked around as Pisca and Liseth returned to the common room.  “Nothing scandalous, more’s the pity,” he replied to Pisca’s query.  “Although the younger Miss Vinder came in and purloined our guardsman for rat-clearing duty.  I am certain that it is nothing a well-trained armsman like our Mister Storval can’t handle, although we will certainly miss his company.”  Aldern put a hand over his chest.  “You have also missed my invitation to a boar hunt!  I am inviting all of you to join me on a hunting trip to the Tickwood Forest on the morrow before business calls me back to Magnimar the following day.  I will be purchasing steeds for you, should you require them.”  He smiled.  “Mister Storval has promised to go, and I am hoping that the rest of you will as well.  At the hour of ten tomorrow morning, down at the Goblin Squash Stables?”  Aldern gave them all a hopeful look.

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Cato listened to Aldern's advice.  It was certainly easy advice to give, and Cato wished he could mend the damage with his family and return...well, not precisely to his old life.  It certainly wasn't as meaningful or interesting as what he had found in Sandpoint.  He didn't think he had cared for anyone in Korvosa half as much as he cared for people in Sandpoint.  But it would be nice to be able to speak to his brothers and sister again, as well as his mother.  His father never seemed to have much use for him, but maybe that could be changed as well.  But Aldern didn't know what he was asking.  The Hellknights would imprison, possibly kill, and definitely torture Cato for his desertion.

Cato gave a slight, almost unconscious nod at each of Aldern's correct guesses.  He was on the brink of saying something, but the return of Pisca and Liseth stopped any attempt at that.  He wasn't quite sure what he wanted to tell them, yet.

Instead, Cato took a deep sip from the after-dinner digestif.  Ameiko's port certainly went well with the dessert.  And helped him settle his thoughts.

He eagerly nodded in response to Aldern's offer.  "Ah, yes.  A boar hunt.  I've only, um, read about those.  It would certainly be interesting to see one in person.  I feel almost silly asking this, but is it dangerous?  I've read about a number of incidents, but I'm never sure what's been exaggerated for dramatic effect."

There was a fuzziness, a tingling in Liseth's mind that felt like clarity.  A small part of her said that it was something else entirely, but what was important was that she no longer felt nervous, or anxious, or scared concerning Mr Foxglove.  Pisca's advice must have really sunk in.  Or something else that Pisca did really sunk in.  Either way, Liseth couldn't remember the last time she had felt so confident.

"Hello Kerr.  Mr Crispin.  Mr Foxglove.  Kerr."  Her head bobbed between each person as she said their name, "Sorry that we kept you all waiting so long."  She took her seat next to Kerr and looked at her plate, "This isn't what I was eating when I left.  Is it?  I don't think that it is."  Liseth plunged her fork into the crème brulee and took a small bite before she started to giggle, "That's okay though.  This tastes a lot better."

"Mr Storval left already?  He has to fight rats?  I hope he's okay.  Rats can be sneaky.  And mean.  And some are really tricky too."  Then Liseth leaned forward to whisper as though sharing a secret, "But actually, I had a little pet rat once that was so cute with his little rat nose and his rat whiskers and his funny rat tail.  He must have been the nicest rat ever; I can't remember what happened to him."  She turned to Kerr, "Kerr, do you have any pets like that?"

Liseth blinked when she realized that Cato and Mr Foxglove were talking about boars, "Boars?  Boars aren't good pets.  Boars are so boorish."  She giggled again at her joke, then looked closer at each of them, "Oh!  A boar hunt!  My father and brother go on boar hunts sometimes too.  They never took me though.  Nivlak said that it was too dangerous; and I think he's right.  One time he came back with a big gouge taken out of his mail armor.  He said that the boar ran all the way up his special boar spear; it even ignored the crossbar on it that was supposed to make sure that it couldn't do that!  But he was okay."  She smiled, "I always got to help cook when they brought a boar home though.  Have you ever tasted my boar roast?"  Liseth stopped and thought for a moment, "No, you probably haven't."

She grabbed Kerr's hand excitedly, "What do you think Kerr?  We could go and watch the boar hunt.  It would be my first time!  And we could even take snacks and food with us and have a picnic too!  We could both ride Heily, I'm sure that she wouldn't mind."  With a pause she looked Kerr in the face before giggling once more, "You might want to hold on tighter this time though."

A thought suddenly wedged itself into Liseth's slightly addled mind as she pursed her lips in concern, "Father Zantus might miss us if we took the whole day off like that though.  I think that there is still a lot of work that needs to be done in the Cathedral.  Maybe we should ask him if it's okay before we agree to go along."

Then she realized that her lips were already pursed so she leaned forward and kissed Kerr on his cheek, "Thank you for coming to dinner with me Kerr.  You're so sweet."  Liseth smiled slyly at him, "You know, Ms Freemish keeps telling me that you're my boyfriend.  Is she right?"
This message was last edited by the player at 05:54, Sat 28 Sept 2013.

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Kerr was a little stunned.  What had Pisca and Liseth been DOING outside?  Liseth had come back a lot less timid and a lot more, well, forward, it seemed.  "The creme brulee really is something, isn't it?"  Kerr ventured as Liseth proceeded to drop a spoonful on her tasteful white dress.

He was reaching for a napkin to help her clean up as the conversation suddenly turned to pets.  "Animals?  Well, my parents have a farm, so I was around a lot of animals when I was young.  And I had a dog named Wellsers, because we found him as a puppy when he fell into our well somehow . . ."

But Liseth had already moved on to the subject of boors . . . or boars.  "I think a boar hunt would be fun, if Mister Foxglove doesn't mind me coming along?"  He looked over at the noble, who surprised Kerr by nodding agreeably.  The man seemed to be laughing at Liseth's condition, which Kerr found to somehow be both rude and totally appropriate.

Kerr sighed when he thought of Heily.  "I'm not sure Heily would want me riding her, Liseth, even with you.  She's your horse, after all . . .and I'm sure Father Zantus would be okay with it, he's friends with Mister Foxglove."

Kerr put a hand to his cheek in wonder as Liseth kissed it.  "Um." He said purposefully.  "Uh."  His mind seemed to have taken a brief vacation.  "Urm?"  He questioned as Liseth brought up the subject of him as her "boyfriend."

"Um, Miss Pisca seems to be a very wise gnome."  He nodded down the table at Pisca and gave her a weak smile.  "Who am I to gainsay her?"

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"That's absolutely right, Kerr Mollin.  No one gainsays the gnome.  The gnome knows things," she said.  But, for the moment, though, for Pisca Neep Freemish, the only thing worth knowing, on the whole of Golarion, was her dessert.

Mmmyomp. Tpk-puk-pkpk.  "If the hordes of the fey ever break from The Barrow, they are definitely coming for this dessert."  Pisca licked the spoon to get every last bit of the sweet creaminess from off it and onto her tongue.  "Ameiko!" the gnome called out, "I must tell you, that this is the best thing that I have ever eaten since the last best thing that I've ever eaten."

"Well, if Lysa's going boar hunting and Cato's going boar hunting.  And, I have to assume that Stomper's also going boar hunting.  Then I have to go too.  There's an unspoken rule, Aldern," said the gnome, gesticulating with her spoon as though brandishing a sword before leading a charge into battle, "an unspoken rule that all members of an adventuring group must go boar hunting together.  It's like the one that says all girls must go to the powder room together except that it's different."

"And you say you're buying us ponies, Aldern?  Yeah!  That's what this gnome says about that.  Yeah!  I love ponies."  And then, "Thank you, Aldern," said the gnome after her effusive expression of love for ponies.  "I'm not so sure how I'll like killing boars.  But we'll give it our best try now, shan't we?  And ... if we don't like it.  We won't be doing that again."

"What time did you say that was again?"

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Aldern gave Cato a quick look, trying to determine if he was kidding.  "Dangerous?  Of course it's dangerous!  It wouldn't be a sport if it wasn't dangerous," he said, drawing out the last word for emphasis.  "That said, you shall have Kellan, a guardsman, myself, a hunter of no mean experience, and my men-at-arms, who are there to help should it prove necessary.  Besides, the danger of the hunt will be but a small thrill beside the danger you faced before the White Deer yesterday evening!"  Aldern clearly thought that a boar should prove no great obstacle to the warriors he had observed the night previous.

The noble looked bemusedly at the clearly-inebriated Liseth and the ebullient little gnome.  "I greatly hope that you will like it, Miss Pisca.  We shall be meeting at ten tomorrow at the Goblin Squash Stables.  And if you might allow me to say so . . ."

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Aldern was interrupted once again by the Rusty Dragon's front door.  This time it opened to admit Sheriff Belor Hemlock and Alergast Barett, the latter in uniform.  Sheriff Hemlock looked around the taproom and, when his eyes alighted on the party, he started towards the table.

"Aldern, I'm sorry to bring your get-together to a premature close, but I am in need of Miss Neep Freemish, Mister Caelin, Miss Thoradin, Kerr, and Guardsman Storval."  He looked around the table; Alergast looked concerned but remained quiet.  "Where IS Guardsman Storval?  I heard he was here."  His mouth twisted with displeasure, but he forged ahead regardless.  "Father Zantus requests your presence in the Boneyard as soon as practicable," he said to Pisca, Kerr, Cato, and Liseth.  "He's found something, and he would like you to be present before he investigates further.  Do you mind, Aldern?"

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This message was last edited by the player at 00:48, Mon 30 Sept 2013.

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Aldern waved his hand graciously.  "Please, Belor, whatever you need.  We were almost finished anyway."  He looked around at the party and smiled.  "Good luck with your Father-Zantus-inspired investigations.  I will see you tomorrow at the hour of ten at the Goblin Squash Stables.  And thank you so much for attending my dinner!"

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This message was last edited by the player at 01:00, Mon 30 Sept 2013.

Cato rose from his seat, and bowed politely to Aldern.  "Thank you.  I'd expect the same if we ever save your life again.  See you tomorrow morning, Aldern."

Cato turned to the Sheriff and Alergast.  "I'd be happy to go with you, gentleman.  You just missed, Kellan, unfortunately.  He left with Vin's daughter not too long along.  She needed help with something in the basement."

Cato glanced over at Liseth.  The girl probably wouldn't want Zantus to see her in this condition.  He walked closer to the two men.  More quietly, he said, "To tell the truth, I think Liseth's had a fair amount of excitement for one day as well.  Does this require all of us, or is it something Pisca and I can handle, and fill in the rest in the morning?"

It took a moment for Liseth's muddled mind to digest Kerr's roundabout answer to her question.  But once it had the girl squealed in delight, "So you ARE my boyfriend!  This is so exciting!  I never had a boyfriend before!"  Liseth leaned forward once again and planted another kiss on Kerr's other cheek.  "I don't think anybody has ever had a sweeter boyfriend either."

Liseth looked up and across the table at Pisca when the gnome began to speak about her love of ponies.  She leaned back into her own chair and away from Kerr, "You love ponies Ms Freemish?  I love ponies too!  And horses!  Tomorrow I can introduce you to Heily!  She's the prettiest horse ever."  Reaching down to the pouch at her side, Liseth produced the figurine that Kerr had bought for her yesterday, "Heily looks like this."  She giggled again, "Only the real Heily is a lot bigger than this Little Heily."  Liseth gently placed the figurine on the table as though it were a priceless artifact, "Kerr bought this for me at the festival.  Didn't I tell you that he is so nice?"

Moments later the dinner was interrupted by the arrival of two Sandpoint guardsmen.  Liseth listened curiously to them when it was said that the dinner had to be put to a premature end.  "Oh!  Father Zantus needs our help?  We should go right away!"  Liseth stood up from her chair and took a shaky step away from the table before she stopped and gasped.  Quickly turning around the girl half stumbled in her haste to get back to the table and to retrieve her treasured Heily figurine.  She gingerly placed it back into the safety of her pouch.

Then Liseth looked at Kerr, grabbing his arm to pull him out of his seat "Come on Kerr!  Father Zantus needs our help."  Once she had Kerr in a standing position, Liseth took him by the arm; then finally looked across the table at Aldern Foxglove when he thanked them for attending, "Oh, you're welcome Mr Foxglove.  Or, thank you?  Um...goodnight!"

Pisca looked down at the hard carved figure in her hands.  "Yes.  I'm sure that she's the prettiest horse.  Ever, Liseth."  There was a stillness in the gnome's face - tension upon waters nearly afraid to move.  Her eyes were pinched with a touch of sadness.  "Yes, nice.  So nice."  She placed it back onto the table in the exact spot that the human girl first put it and then turned it so that the little figurine was at just the right angle.

"Well, if you'll excuse a gnome, I have to go upstairs to change before answering the call of Father Zantus."  Pisca slipped off her chair and onto the ever considerate wooden stairs.  "You've been the perfect host, Aldern Foxglove, and this gnome gives you her thanks for a truly memorable evening.  I also thank you tremendously for the use of your name in my little project.  Don't be surprised if others contact you about the library."  The gnome curtsied and lifted her skirts as she turned and descended the stairs.

It was a quiet gnome that ascended to her room to change.  She had not said anything during those last few moments of the dinner.  The human girl had seemed so happy.  Perhaps that's what it was like to live a short life.  To love so strongly.  Because the biggest problem with horses and ponies - and the gnome supposed that this was true for humans as well - the biggest problem with horses and ponies is that they died.

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Alergast Barett nodded at the revelation that Kellan had gone to the General Store to help with a pest problem.  "I'll head over there to pick up Guardsman Storval, then, Sheriff."  He looked at Hemlock for approval.  "And we'll meet you up at the Boneyard?"

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Belor Hemlock looked at his lieutenant.  "Sounds like a fine idea to me, Barett," he said, gesturing to the door.  "We'll see you there after you dispose of the rats.  Try not to be TOO long about it."  He grinned at Alergast, who rolled his eyes as he left the Rusty Dragon to go pick up Kellan.

Sheriff Hemlock returned his attention to the group.  "Thank you for understanding, Aldern."  He gave the noble a short bow, then winked at Cato.  "I think Father Zantus will understand his acolyte having a drink or two at a celebratory dinner given in her honor."  He looked up the stairs.  "I believe all we need is Miss Freemish to return, and we are ready to depart?  Or does anyone need anything else?"

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The gnome came running down the stairs, not at all the prim and proper young gnome she'd been only moments before.  Dressed in her frontier leathers and geared with weapons, she skidded to a stop with a *tap*tap*tap* of gnomish boots.

"Ho-gay," she puffed.  "I'm ready.  Lead the way."

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Sheriff Hemlock held the door for the group as they made their way out of the Rusty Dragon and onto Market Street.  They headed over towards the southern town square, and then up Festival Street, going past the theater, finally turning onto High Street to get to the northern town square and the cathedral.

"I want to personally thank each of you for your services to the town yesterday evening," the sheriff informed the group as they began walking.  "I'm not sure we'd been able to hold the goblins off if it wasn't for your efforts at the cathedral and the White Deer.  I don't even want to think about what might have happened if they'd managed to set the cathedral on fire."

He gave each of you a serious look.  "You are all heroes.  And I mean real, flesh-and-blood heroes, not the ones that you read about in the storybooks."

He coughed and looked away.  "But enough of me fawning over you.  What are your plans for the future?  Kerr, I know you're here with Father Zantus, and young Kellan is with the Guard, but what about you, Cato?  Are you planning to stay with Sage Quink for the foreseeable future?  And you, Liseth?  Are you planning to make your acolyte position something more permanent?  And Pisca," he gave the gnome an even look that might or might not have indicated that the sheriff knew more than he was letting on, "what about you?  Staying in the area?"  The night breeze off the ocean brought a chill to the air as he asked his questions.

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This message was last edited by the player at 03:05, Tue 01 Oct 2013.

Liseth held securely on to Kerr's arm for support when the group set out from the Rusty Dragon with Sheriff Hemlock.  She seemed to be having more trouble walking straight than she usually did and actually leaned against his body; forcing the other acolyte to bear the bulk of her rather minute frame.  She slowed almost to a stop when the Sheriff asked his question of her and the others; the act of doing two things at once, replying and walking, nearly too much for her incapacitated faculties.

"I'm not a hero Mr Sheriff Hemlock."  There was a pause as Liseth considered that particular form of address, then she continued, "At least I don't think that I am.  I didn't fight any of the goblins.  Mr Crispin and Mr Storval and Ms Freemish did all of that.  I just fixed their injuries is all that I did.  So that they could keep fighting the goblins."

A long moment was spent considering what to say next, the girl's addled mind trying to figure out an answer that she wasn't even sure she knew.  Liseth spoke slowly, "I don't know.  It took a lot of convincing by Father Garrick before Daddy let me come to Sandpoint by myself to visit the Consecration Ceremony for the Cathedral."  She frowned in concern, "Daddy probably won't be very happy when he learns that goblins attacked the town.  I should write him a letter so that he knows I'm okay."

Returning to answering the question, Liseth stole a glance up at Kerr, "I'd like to stay in Sandpoint for a while though.  All the people here are so nice.  Except for the goblins.  And Father Zantus needs all the help he can get at the Cathedral.  That's why I wanted to come here, by the way.  So I can study the gods at the Cathedral, since so many of them have a presence there.  I want to ask them why I have so much divine energy, even though none of them seem to want me to serve them..."  She went quiet for a moment.

Then Liseth began to share more, perhaps more than she might have had she not been inebriated at the moment.  "Did you know that my family worships Sarenrae?  It's always been like that.  My brother Nivlak is even a Paladin for Sarenrae."  Her voice gained a tone of awe, an obvious amount of hero-worship involved in Liseth speaking of her older brother, "He's the strongest and bravest and noblest knight that there is."

She became despondent when she continued, "I was supposed to become a priestess of Sarenrae.  A cleric.  Everyone thought that was what I was supposed to do when Father Garrick said I was gifted with the divine.  But when the time came She rejected my service..."  Tears started to well up at the memory, Liseth's joy and happiness of just moments before replaced by a sudden depression as she stopped talking.
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 23:09, Mon 30 Sept 2013.

The gnome tipped her hat back with a thumb, the better to look hummies in the eye no brim in the way.  "I intend to see a library built, Sheriff Hemlock," so said the gnome to the Sheriff.  She smiled a sunny smile up at the head of local law enforcement in Sandpoint.  But, aside from this smile, she gave no indication - if this vague and sunny smile could even be considered an indication - that she had noticed a particular look given to her by a particular sheriff of the particular town of Sandpoint.  "What do you think of that?  And I have Aldern Foxglove's support in this too."

"Yup.  There's nothing that keeps the gobbies away better than the printed word.  Did you know that goblins have an aversion to reading, Sheriff?  Yes they do.  Accuse a goblin of reading sometime.  You'll see."

"And speaking of which, how's the investigation going?  Into who was behind that attack?  Who do you have heading it up?  I'm interested in finding out who has the right stuff to pull at least three of the goblin tribes together and make an attack in the way they did.  I think it had something to do with the cathedral.  I think it did.  Which means, that they may be back."

Cato heard the Sheriff's question and tried to continue walking when that issue was brought up again.  What exactly did he want to do?  He was glad when Liseth and Pisca immediately answered the question, giving him a few more minutes to think.

"I'm not sure, Sheriff.  I've enjoyed the past year in Sandpoint.  Working with Brodert certainly has been interesting, and for the immediate future, I'm happy staying right here in Sandpoint.  I'm glad I did something for Sandpoint yesterday.  I feel like this town has shown so much generosity, not just to me, but to all the people of Varisia who now call it home.  Brodert thinks he might have taught me all he can, and it's time to set out into the wider world.  Libraries and scholars in Magnimar or other opportunities, he says."

Cato looks out at the town, a gleam in his eye for his newfound home.

"I guess for the immediate future, it's our duty to make sure that Sandpoint stays safe.  We should at least figure out why those goblins attacked, who was behind it all, and make sure that it never happens again.  It's seems a very strange thing for all the various tribes to organize themselves together and launch a coordinated attack.  Someone or something else must be behind all this.  Just like Pisca said."

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“On the contrary, I believe you are indeed a hero, Miss Thoradin,” Sheriff Hemlock smiled genially at the young acolyte.  “You stayed and helped your companions when you could easily have fled for your life.  And for your troubles, you were attacked by a fearsome opponent, if the stories I’ve heard are correct.”  He gave her an approving look.  “A lesser person would have run, or been rendered useless.  You, my dear, were not.”

He patted her shoulder comfortingly as he listened to her tale of deific disappointment.  “I certainly hope you decide to stay in Sandpoint for a while as you work things out.”

He turned to Pisca.  “A library, eh?  And you have Aldern’s support?  Well, you could be well on your way.  Can’t say I’ve seen much call for one myself, but have you talked to Chask Haladan about it?  Man knows his way around books.”

Hemlock cocked his head at Pisca’s theories regarding the goblin attacks and Cato’s follow-up assertion that something must have been behind it.  “Yes, well, Miss Pisca, if you’re looking for the investigation, here it is!”  He spread his hands wide to encompass the entire group.  “It turns out that the Boneyard was, how can I put this . . . disturbed during the goblin attack.  Someone broke into one of the crypts; Father Zantus only just discovered the break-in when he was beginning the burial ceremonies for those who died last night.  He contacted me, and I thought of you.”

“It may be that the entire attack was nothing but a distraction to allow whoever it was uninterrupted access to the Boneyard.  I’ve kept the area pristine; no one’s been back there since the attack other than Father Zantus.  So you will have the chance to do Sandpoint another service and put your prodigious skills to the task of determining what happened, why it happened, and who might be responsible.  For as you said, Miss Pisca,” the Sheriff inclined his head in her direction, “they may be back.”

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"Chask Haladan has agreed to be my head librarian," the gnome declared with the great authority of truth.  (Or, perhaps, the great authority of denial.)  "And it's not going to be a library like the kind that they have in Magnimar where books are just for scholars, learned men and gnomes.  Everyone will be able to read the books in my library.  Anyone in the town will be able to go in and read books about far away places, about how to build a boat, or stories of heroes and fanciful animals, learned treatises on the taunting of badgers.  Because of my library, Sheriff Hemlock, you could live to see in Sandpoint, a town in which everyone reads.  Can you imagine that?  A town in which reading is taken for granted?  Where the mere mention of someone who cannot read draws whispers of surprise and pity?  That is my dream for Sandpoint."

"Hmmm.  So what you're telling me is that you *don't* have anyone backtracking the gobbies to see where they came from.  Is that right?"  The gnome frowned with disapproval even as she turned the conversation on a dime.  "You didn't pass word around the town asking whether anyone's seen suspicious goblin-friendly types who'd been asking about town after the schedule of the opening of the cathedral?  Or the patrol schedules of the town guard?  Or the availability of extra lunches?"

"Hmmm," the gnome hmmm'ed again, but couldn't keep her concentration on that subject for long.  "You know, I wish we could have done this during the daytime."  Pisca took off her hat and gazed about into the dark of late evening.  "It's nice and silvery under the moon and stars.  But a little more light would help."  At that, the gnome quickly poked a finger at four different locations.  "Jibber."  She spoke the word of power and four dancing lights appeared to set up a warm and friendly glow.

Liseth nodded mutely to the Sheriff of Sandpoint when he explained why he thought that she was a hero.  She still didn't think of herself as having done anything heroic.  Heroes don't get as scared as she was, and they certainly don't hide behind bigger, stronger men when monsters show up...

"Thank you," She whispered sadly after Sheriff Hemlock tried to comfort her.  Liseth thought that she had gotten over the feelings of disappointment and rejection from all that time ago.  But something about tonight made the emotions almost as strong as they were after Father Garrick had said those five awful words, 'Sarenrae has not chosen her.'  Then she found herself crying into Kerr's sleeve as the group continued towards the Cathedral Boneyard.

After that she found paying attention to what the Sheriff told the others about the situation to be difficult.  But they'll probably fill her in after she managed to calm down...
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 06:43, Wed 02 Oct 2013.

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"Your head librarian?"  Belor Hemlock's tone indicated surprise and perhaps some doubt.  "You've recruited BOTH Aldern Foxglove and Chask Haladan for your project?  You are a persuasive young lady, Pisca."  The sheriff's gaze again lingered on the gnome slightly longer than absolutely necessary, as if he might determine exactly which techniques of persuasion she might have used, and if he had to worry about the use of such techniques on other townsfolk.

"We don't have the resources to track the goblins," he shrugged in response to Pisca's query about the investigation.  "We don't have someone with, say, a Shalelu Andosana's skills at our beck and call.  In any event, we can be almost sure that the goblins went back to their tribal areas.  Where the goblins are now isn't the question.  The question is why they unified and attacked us last night."

"I've put the word out for anyone who saw anything suspicious to talk to me or one of the other guardsmen, but no one has come forward to this point."  He gave Pisca a patient look.  "Remember, it has only been a day since the attack.  It's possible that someone will recall something important after they've had some time to recover.  Of course, there's no guarantee of that."

The sheriff shook his head as they arrived at the northern town square.  Father Zantus was waiting for them on the steps of the cathedral as Alergast Barett and Kellan Foxglove, slightly winded, jogged in to join the group from the west.

"Ah, I'm glad you arrived so quickly!"  The priest said, with a note of worry in his voice.  "Thank you for coming."

"Why don't you tell them what you told me," Belor encouraged him.

"Quite right."  Father Zantus nodded anxiously.  "I went back to the Boneyard earlier to prepare it for the burial rites when I noticed that the seals on one of the vaults were broken.  Apparently someone stole in undetected and violated it for some undoubtedly-foul purpose!"  The prelate looked incensed.  "It's sacreligious!  Here, let me show you . . ."

"No, Father Zantus," replied Sheriff Hemlock in a calming voice.  "We know what you saw.  There's no reason for you to go wandering back there in the dark with the rest of us.  Why don't you head back into the cathedral and we'll let you know what we find?"

Father Zantus looked as if was about to insist, but relented.  "As you say, Belor, if you think that's best.  Hopefully you all will be able to determine what was done and why this happened!  Kerr, Liseth, you're both familiar with the Boneyard.  Let the others know if there's anything else amiss in there that I failed to see."  After giving the party a blessing, he walked back inside the cathedral.

Sheriff Hemlock led the group around to the Boneyard's entrance.  As he unlocked the gate, he looked at the assembled group.  "This is a very unusual situation.  I'm open to ideas on how best to conduct this investigation."

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This message was last edited by the player at 06:51, Wed 02 Oct 2013.

Cato brought his hands up to mouth for a few seconds and closed his eyes and he thought through the scanty clues delivered by Father Zantus and Sheriff Hemlock.

"Father, before you go, two questions.  First, which vault was broken into?  Second, how often do you inspect the Boneyard?  Did this happen at the same time as the goblin attack?"

Cato looked at his companions.  "Maybe this is real reason for the goblin attack.  Maybe it was just a distraction for stealing whatever was in that vault."

Cato was quiet a few moments longer.  Then he addressed the Sheriff.  "I haven't too much experience with this sort of thing, honestly.  I think figuring out what was stolen, and who was in the vault might be able to give us an idea of who did it or why.  Whoever is responsible can apparently corral a number of goblin tribes into attacking Sandpoint.  They obviously don't care much for collateral damage, whatever they're trying to do.  We should proceed cautiously, but we need to find out what happened.  I can see if anything magical is going on, as well."

OOC:
Cast Detect Magic, inspect the Boneyard.  Cato will inspect the vault in question, as well.

Hummies don't always listen very well.  Or so thought the gnome.  And she should know.  She didn't always listen very well herself.  Pisca was just about to correct the Sheriff and point out to him that she had said backtrack to see where they had come from, including their staging areas and all that would tell of their movements before the attack, and not forwardtrack to see where the gobbies had run off to afterwards.  But, by the time she got through working that out, the conversation had moved on.  And besides, if they didn't have a tracker anyway, there was no point.  Not that there was anything inherently bad about pointlessness.  Apples, after all, had no point either, but that did nothing to stop them from being quite tasty.

"Umm ...  Were you saying anything?" said the gnome, who found that she had wandered metaphorically away from the others.  "Oh.  Right.  How to conduct the investigation.  Well, to start, it may not be the best idea to stop head clerics from describing what they saw.  Because we don't know what Father Zantus saw.  At least I don't.  He said something about violation.  Exactly what kind of violation?  Was this poo'ing on the floor?  Or something more esoteric with eye of newt and toe of frog?  We'll have to get Father Zantus back here to describe it.  No.  No need.  We'll have to go there ourselves anyway so we'll be able to see it ourselves."

"And we'll need and expert tracker to tell us from the foot impressions around the crypt, how many gobbies were involved," Pisca said this, clearly forgetting that an expert tracker was not to be had.  Then, "I can do that.  How hard could that be?"  With arms akimbo the gnome's eyes scanned the nearby ground.  "There.  See that?"  She pointed at a shallow depression made by the displacement of a loose cobblestone.  "That's a badger footprint.  I would say that he passed this way ... five days ago, coming from Junker's Way where he stopped to eat some garbage.  After coming here and making this track he went ... "  Pisca the Expert Frontier Tracking Gnome squatted down next to her badger footprint and sighted along the various different direction in which the animal might have gone.

"Wait.  This isn't a badger footprint at all.  Hmmm.  You know," admitted the gnome as she rose and brushed imaginary dust from the backs of her thighs, "this tracking is harder than I thought."
This message was last edited by the player at 23:42, Wed 02 Oct 2013.

Seeing Father Zantus in such a state shocked Liseth straight out of her depression.  She shot up into a standing position, and even though her eyes were still red from her recent fit of crying she payed very close attention to the priest.  He was actually angry...and he looked worried too.  Whatever happened must be really bad because she had never seen Father Zantus so mad before.  At anything!

"Yes, Father Zantus."  Saying that and nodding in compliance was all that the girl could manage when Father Zantus spoke to her directly.  She waited until Sandpoint's prelate left before she tugged on Kerr's sleeve.  "Kerr, Father Zantus is really angry.  Did you ever see him angry like that before?"

Liseth watched mutely as Cato, Pisca, and Sheriff Hemlock discussed the situation, seeming startled for just a moment when she took her first notice of the glowing orbs that were now following the gnome.  Floating ethereal lights in a graveyard at night brought to mind ideas that she didn't enjoy one bit.  But she quickly realized that they were just for extra light, and it didn't take her long to follow the idea herself.

She whispered a prayer, "Sarenrae, grant us the light of your sun," and reached a hand to grasp the focus at her neck; having forgotten about the extravagant emerald necklace that was placed over it.  So her hand found the necklace first, which began to shine as bright as a torch and dispel the darkness of the Boneyard.

"Maybe we should go inside the vault to see what has Father Zantus so...worried?"  She sounded reluctant.  Liseth wasn't sure herself if she wanted to lay her eyes upon whatever the priest saw.  Then her eyes were drawn to Pisca as the gnome mentioned needing to find tracks to see who might have been in the Boneyard uninvited.

"Umm...Ms Freemish, I don't think that you're doing that right."  The girl was watching the gnome curiously as she went on about badgers.  Then Liseth decided to see if she could help at all.  She walked slowly and carefully to Pisca's side, "Daddy showed me how to find and follow tracks in the wilderness.  He said that it was important that I know how to identify and avoid aggressive animals and other creatures; as well as know which animals could be hunted.  I might be able to find goblin footprints too."  With that Liseth rolled up her skirt to keep it from getting on the ground and knelt down to search the area around the vault for tell-tale footprints and tracks with Pisca.

OOC: I think that will call for a Survival skill roll from Racon.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:41, Wed 02 Oct 2013.

"Nooo ... " the gnome mused.  "You know, this could be a badger footprint if the badger in question had a clubbed foot.  Or maybe a clubbed foot and a severe lisp."

Well, it still wasn't easy.  But it was easier now that Lysa had pointed some things out.  It didn't hurt to have a trained eye.  But the gnome just could not get the knack of figuring out where the tracks were coming from and going to.

"If I were a gobbie, I'd probably enter the boneyard from the woods there."  Pisca pointed to the wall to the northeast.  "Maybe climb the wall.  Or ... "  The gnome turned further through an arc to where the river lay in the darkness beyond, visible, perhaps, only to her gnomish eyes which drank in the silvery moonlight.  Maybe I'd come in around the end of the wall where it meets the river.  Maybe even swim across and climb the bank.  There are no gnome-eating sharks in the river.  Or so I've been told."

"What do you see, Lys?" Pisca asked.  Her eyes picked out the odd print, but failed to make sense of the whole.  "Where did the little pee-monsters come from?"

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Perception 16, Taking 10 to see tracks.

Active Effects:  Dancing Lights.  Will renew when necessary.
This message was last edited by the player at 23:40, Wed 02 Oct 2013.

Kellan came jogging up to the bone yard side by side with Alergast, the younger had appreciated his mentor's understanding for privacy at the moment and would no doubt fill him in come time. Upon arrival they both walked up on the group, breathing just a little heavy after the jaunt in full armor.

Looking to each of his companions in turn he cocked an eye at Pisca's "tracking" methods before focusing squarely on Sheriff Hemlock. "Sir" he greeted him, punctuating the word with a nod. "How can I help?"

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Father Zantus turned at the cathedral door to respond to Cato’s questions.  “It’s the large vault near the wall in the back of the boneyard,” he said, a little mysteriously, before glancing at his acolyte.  “Kerr will be able to tell you more about it, but you should really go see it for yourselves.  As far as the timing, I’m almost sure it happened during the goblin attack.  I was preparing for the consecration ceremony in the Boneyard during the afternoon of the Festival, and did not see anything amiss.”

He looked at the assembled group with great seriousness.  “Please get to the bottom of this,” he asked, with barely-suppressed anger, before turning and heading back inside the cathedral.

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This message was lightly edited by the player at 04:56, Thu 03 Oct 2013.

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Belor Hemlock gave Pisca something that might be best described as a mild glare.  “I did not stop him from telling us about the exact kind of crypt violation, Miss Pisca, because he doesn’t know.”  The Sheriff seemed a small bit put out at the gnome’s critique.  “He did not enter the crypt himself; he saw that the seals were broken and immediately informed me of that fact.  As I told you earlier, we are the first ones to investigate the scene, so hopefully you and Liseth,” his intonation made it clear that he was counting mostly on Liseth, “will be able to determine what these tracks mean before they are too-much disturbed."

The Sheriff looked over at Kellan and Alergast.  "Let's hold up for a minute and see what our trackers and experts can tell us about this raid."  He folded his arms and watched patiently as Cato walked over to the crypt and Liseth and Pisca discussed the tracks' meaning.

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---

Kerr shook his head at Liseth.  “I don’t think I’ve EVER seen Father Zantus angry.”  He looked pensive as the party walked into the Boneyard.  “Oh,” he said, looking over the scene.  All could see that the vault in question was a 20-foot square stone structure standing near the wall.  The ceremonial seals on the tomb were broken and the door was ever-so-slightly ajar.

The dark-haired acolyte spoke a prayer and suddenly his holy symbol glowed with a bright light.  He held it up and towards the crypt in question.  “Oh,”  he said again, looking concerned and confused.  “That’s strange.  No wonder Father Zantus was so upset.”

Kerr turned to look at the others.  “That is not just some random vault.  It is the one used to house the remains of previous caretakers, priests, acolytes, and others who served at the Cathedral.”  He turned back to regard the possibly-plundered structure.  “I cannot imagine what object of value anyone could hope to find in there.”

Kerr looked over at Liseth to find her crouching low to the ground, talking with Pisca about the meaning of various tracks on the ground.  He smiled proudly; she had so many different skills!  Kerr himself couldn’t tell a bear track from a troll track, so he was happy to let the more-experienced persons present take the lead on that particular inquiry, especially when watching such persons was so very, very enjoyable.

---

---

This message was last edited by the player at 04:57, Thu 03 Oct 2013.

Kellan nodded in affirmation to the Sheriffs suggestion, leaning on bus pole axe as he watched the girls get to work. He periodically glanced this way and that as if expecting to find something unwholesome lurking behind the tomb stones or pushing up out of the hallowed ground.

"We missed you at dinner" he mentioned quietly to Alergast "Amele couldn't stand to let you out for the night?" He asked with a smirk

---

---

Alergast rolled his eyes.  "I really shouldn't be here right now."  The big guardsman responded with a sorrowful sigh.  "And I wouldn't be if Belor hadn't made things pretty clear to Amele."  Alergast laughed ruefully.  "I'll probably pay for that later."

"It's been a rough couple of evenings at our place.  Aeren saw a goblin light a dog on fire during the attack and then kill it right in front of him, so he's been having nightmares the past two nights."  Alergast yawned.  "He keeps on waking up howling in terror, poor kid, and that sends Petal into a barking fit, and that wakes Verah, who starts howling herself, so let's just say that sleep has been scarce."

"Plus, I don't think I was invited to your fancy dinner, Mr. Hero."  Alergast grinned at Kellan and put on his most innocent expression.  "I was just saving the town from being overrun by goblins."  He nodded with mock seriousness.  "It's a good thing you were around to save the nobility!"

---

---

This message was last edited by the player at 06:54, Thu 03 Oct 2013.

"One...two," Liseth was examining the ground closely, occasionally running her hands over slight depressions to determine their significance.  "Three...four," She stood up and and slowly began to walk from the entrance to the vault with the broken seals and trace a path slowly towards the wall of the Boneyard.  "Five...six," She was bent over while walking in order to be able to better see the prints that lay on the ground.  Suddenly Liseth stopped, "Oh..."

A frown slowly spread across her face as she hiked her skirt up once more and got down on her knees.  After looking up the wall of the Boneyard, she reset her gaze to closely examine the ground again.  She traced a particular print with her fingers and, still frowning, stood back up and followed the trail of slight prints closely; paying particular attention to this one set.  Finally Liseth reached the unsealed door of the defiled vault by following the tracks back to it, then she frowned again.

With a look at Pisca, Liseth stood up straight and brushed the wrinkles out of her skirt as she allowed the garment to once again fall to cover her legs.  Then she shot a disturbed glance around at all of the others assembled, "There was six goblins in the Boneyard.  And..." The girl frowned once more, "And there is another set of footprints that are with the goblins'.  Bigger footprints; bigger than mine."  Which may or may not be surprising considering Liseth's own dainty feet.

She continued, "It is hard to tell for sure who the bigger footprints belong to.  All that I can really say about them is that the person is bigger than a goblin; maybe as big as Mr Crispin or even Mr Storval."  Then the small girl pointed at the base of wall where she had knelt moments ago, "They got into the Boneyard there.  I think that they climbed the wall during the attack on Sandpoint.  All seven of them, the goblins and this other person that was with them."  Her finger traced the path from the wall directly to the opened vault, "They went straight into the vault after they got in to the Boneyard, they didn't go anyplace else."  Liseth frowned for a fourth time, "I think that this bigger person was in charge of the goblins.  And I think that he knew exactly what he wanted, and that he knew whatever it was was inside the vault there."  Liseth ended with her finger pointed directly at the unsealed door.
This message was last edited by the player at 06:29, Thu 03 Oct 2013.

"Brilliant, Lysa!"  The gnome grinned and surveyed the field of evidence, watching the gobbies sneak across the ground even as the young human acolyte of Sarenrae described them.  "Just brilliant.  I knew the leader was a Biggun.  Had to be.  I knew it," she said.  Then the gnome looked up into the faces of the collection of humans she had come with.  On her face was the wide-eyed look of an innocent who's just been wrongly accused.

"What?  I did.  Really."  But, whatever she'd meant by those words, whatever innocence she may have been defending, went by the wayside, tossed off, discarded like the rind of fruit now eaten.

"Well, lets have a look at the crypt now, shall we?  You say they broke the seals.  Lets take a look at what kind of seals were there and just how they broke them.  Smashed, I can imagine.  With great strength."  Pisca patted a small gnomish hand against the surface of the door, feeling its solidity.  She grabbed it with both hands and tried to move it, testing her strength against it.

"Hmmm.  Maybe we should have had Father Zantus come with us.  Unless you know this crypt, Kerr.  Can I call you Kerr?  Lysa calls you Kerr.  Do you know this crypt, Kerr?  Would you know whether or not something was ... missing?"

---

Perception 16 (Taking 10) to examine the seals and door(s).

Active Effects:  Dancing Lights.  Will renew when necessary.

Cato listened to Alergast's explanations of his troubles at home after the goblin attack.  The young wizard had certainly experienced a few sleepless nights after things he saw in service to the Hellknights.  He couldn't imagine a child going through the same thing.  He cautiously approached Alergast.

"Alergast, I've...um, read some things that might help with Aeren better cope with what he saw at the Festival.  I know it can seem strange, but seeing that kind of thing can really upset someone who's not prepared for it.  I can stop by tomorrow afternoon, in any case."

Cato shrugged his shoulders.  "If you think it will help, anyway."

Cato waited for a response for Alergast, then walked back over to where Pisca and Liseth were examining the Boneyard.

Despite their grim surroundings, Cato found himself chuckling at Pisca.  "I certainly find myself agreeing with you, Pisca.  There was someone behind the goblin attack, and it seems like they were using it as a cover to break into the crypt and steal something."

Cato nodded again as Pisca examined the door.  "Certainly, there was no magic at work here, or at least none that I can discern.  Just old-fashioned muscles."

Cato laughed again.  "Pisca, you're constantly one step ahead of me.  Hopefully, Kerr or Father Zantus can determine what was taken, and then we might be able to discern who's behind this, and for what reason.  This whole thing doesn't make a lot of sense, though.  It seems like someone wanted to deliberately hurt the town.  If all they wanted was to steal something from the crypt, they could have snuck in at night.  They probably would have been heard, but it would take the acolytes of the church a few minutes to get out here, by which time they could have escaped.  And leaving the crypt like this, they must have known their crime would be uncovered...especially given the fatalities the mob of goblins was sure to cause.  Off the top of my head, I can't think of anyone who would have such a grudge against the town."

Cato looked at Liseth, Pisca, and finally at Kellan.  "I guess most of us didn't grow up here.  Kellan, can you think of anyone who's felt so wronged by the town that they would deliberately cause this kind of chaos?"
This message was last edited by the player at 14:33, Thu 03 Oct 2013.

"That's a good question, Cato."  Pisca turned from the door of the crypt to give the good question a moment's thought.  "So what you're ... "  Something in the young mage's face seemed to catch the interest of the gnome.  She squinted her eyes under the brim of the big hat, peering to see something lost in his face.  She cocked an ear then, listening as if to a far off voice.

"Um ... no."  With a shake of her head, she dismissed the mysterious interruption and continued on with her line of query.

"So, what you're looking for here is a big person.  Not a goblin or a halfling or a gnome.  We're looking for someone with enough influence to unite at least three of the five major goblin tribes into a single attack.  We're looking for someone smart enough to plan this coordinated attack for the day of the festival.  We're looking for someone with enough hate for Sandpoint or enough love of panic and chaos to hurt as many people as possible despite the risk of discovery.  And, we're looking for someone who might have a use for something religious."

"Hmmm ...  Let me think about this," said the gnome as she gave the questions some thought.

---

Knowledge Local check, please.

Active Effects:  Dancing Lights.  Will renew when necessary.

Kellan nodded a little in sympathy with Alergast "Poor little guy, it's hard enough being young with an active imagination...having real life monsters running through the streets is enough to put a full grown man on edge,"

"Grudge against the town?" Repeating Cato's question as he seemed to think. "Not that I can really think of...that's kind of above my pay grade if it involves some kind of political or military reason to cause havoc here. As far as a personal one, Chopper is the only person I could really think of with that kind of hate in him, and the Sheriff solved that problem years ago" a Glance towards Hemlock

"Who was the last person to see the contents of this vault before it was sealed?" He asked the group during a break in the conversation.

---

---

Kerr looked even more impressed with Liseth’s tracking abilities when she was able to identify the number and type of the intruders.  He smiled at her, then remembered that they were there on more important business than mooning over the most beautiful girl in the world.

Although that was pretty important too.

“What could they possibly want in the vault, though?”  He asked.  “This isn’t one of those Osiriani temple-tombs the bards tell stories about, heaped with traps and treasures and magic.”

He looked at Pisca.  “It shouldn’t be too hard to tell what it was they took because, truth to tell, there just isn’t that much to take.”  He looked confused, then over at Kellan.  “I was in there as a young acolyte during the burial ceremony after the Late Unpleasantness, so I would have been one of the last people in there.  And there are just a bunch of tombs.  I mean, it’s nice, and clean, and it looks suitably impressive, but there are no treasures or valuables for tomb-robbers to plunder.”

Kerr studied the vault.  “I don’t know who would hate Sandpoint enough to organize the goblins to raid it.  I don’t know who would have enough influence with the goblins to organize them in the first place.  And I certainly don’t know why in Desna’s name they would want to go through all this trouble just to get inside THIS tomb.”  He gestured helplessly at the crypt.  “Your guess is as good as mine.”

---

---

This message was last edited by the player at 17:58, Thu 03 Oct 2013.

---

---

"Why, well, thank you, Cato," Alergast Barett said in response to the wizard's offer, looking both surprised and pleased.  "If you think you know something that might help Aeren, I'd be really grateful if you stopped by and talked to him."  He nodded appreciatively to the younger man.

"And tomorrow afternoon would be great."  The guardsman gave Cato a conspirator's smile.    "I hope you don't mind if I tell Amele that I've retained the services of an expert sage to help Aeren.  It will certainly help me out of the doghouse Belor put me in by dragging me out here in the middle of the night."

The big man returned his attention to the matter at hand.  "As far as a military or political reason to attack Sandpoint, I can't think of one.  Occasionally a couple of Sandpoint's five founding families have a spat, but that's generally kept to themselves and certainly wouldn't be taken out on Sandpoint proper.  And I can't figure a reason why one of them would feel the need to stage a raid on the preists' tomb."

"The goblins are always happy to raid; they're just disorganized.  Whoever organized them has to have some sort of influence with them.  I don't know how they would have accomplished that."  Alergast scratched the back of his head.  "We certainly haven't heard anything about anyone doing anything of the sort."

---

---

This message was lightly edited by the player at 18:19, Thu 03 Oct 2013.

"No.  Guess not.  Know.  Or do not know.  There is no guess," said the gnome to Kerr Mollin in a queer and unusual accent.  "Bruthazmus the Bugbear is intelligent enough," she added.  "And, he has influence with the goblins, a love of panic and chaos, and a history of killing or enslaving humans.  But why he would want anything from this crypt, I do not know."

"Hmph," the gnome hmph'ed.  "And I don't know of how he might be connected to Sandpoint either."

"But we're not going to find that out by standing around here.  Wait.  You said that you were the last one in here, right, Kerr?  And that was after the Late Unpleasantness.  Right?  That means the last time this was opened was five years ago.  Does ... that ... follow?" Pisca said, very much in the manner of a gnome sneaking up on an unsuspecting idea.

"Hmm.  I don't know whether or not that's significant or not.  But it may be.  It just may be.  Lets go."  And the gnome directed her floating lights through the doors of the crypt and then followed them in.

---

Perception: 16 (Taking 10) for danger or anything interesting.

Active Effects:  Dancing Lights.  Will renew when necessary.

Liseth beamed at the reactions she got from having been so successful in reading the tracks.  She never imagined that she would be using those skills that her father had been sure to teach her in such a way; but the fact that she was able to help so much when nobody else knew about tracking just made her ecstatic.  Even though she was still very concerned about what the goblins and their mysterious non-goblin boss were doing here in the first place.

"They wouldn't...want to do something with the remains interred in there would they?"  Liseth listened as Kerr mentioned that there was nothing of value within the vault, "Surely they wouldn't go to all of this trouble just to desecrate the bones of all of the former priests and acolytes..."  Suddenly her eyes widened at a terrible thought and the girl quickly made her way back to Kerr's side, limping speedily the entire time.

"Mr Crispin...um...Cato," She watched Pisca send her glowing light orbs into the vault then move to follow them inside.  "You're sure that they didn't use any magic when they sneaked into the vault?"  Liseth clung worriedly to Kerr's arm, standing partially behind him, and her voice became small and sounded frightened, "You know...bad magic.  Undead magic..."

If whoever did all this wanted to defile the tomb and those interred there, Liseth could think of no better way than to raise them into unlife.  A thought that was not helped by standing in a graveyard at night, even among all these friends.  But surely the Boneyard is a holy place where undead couldn't exist...right?

---

---

Pisca opened the door to the crypt; it swung open quite easily even for the diminutive (some might say Right-Sized) gnome.  As her dancing lights made their way into the crypt’s interior, she was shocked and surprised to see them illuminate four animated skeletons on their way out, skeletons that clearly had carnage on what passed for their minds.  Two moved to surround Pisca while the other two, claws outstretched, moved to interrupt the equally-surprised Cato's study of the crypt.

Pisca managed to avoid the claws of the first skeleton but was raked across the shoulder by the second.  The third skeleton got caught up in some of the vault's decorative shrubberies before it could attack Cato, but as it extricated itself the fourth skeleton hit the surprised wizard, who was unable to stumble backwards far enough to avoid a nasty claw wound to his chest.

OOC:  The surprise round is over.  Roll for initiative.  Players who roll higher than the skeletons’ 13 may post actions.

14:06, Today: The Raconteur, for the NPC Skeletons, rolled 13 using 1d20+6. Initiative.
14:05, Today: The Raconteur, for the NPC Skeleton 4, rolled 6 using 1d4+2. Damage to Cato.
14:05, Today: The Raconteur, for the NPC Skeleton 4, rolled 14 using 1d20+4. Flanking Attack on Cato.
14:04, Today: The Raconteur, for the NPC Skeleton 3, rolled 7 using 1d20+2.  Attack on Cato.
14:03, Today: The Raconteur, for the NPC Skeleton 2, rolled 4 using 1d4+2. Damage to Pisca.
14:01, Today: The Raconteur, for the NPC Skeleton 2, rolled 23 using 1d20+4. Flanking Attack on Pisca.
14:01, Today: The Raconteur, for the NPC Skeleton 1, rolled 5 using 1d20+2. Skeleton Attack on Pisca.

---

---

"Wah!  Skelies!  Bad magic, Lysa.  Bad magic!"

The gnome weaved and dodged among the towering bones of the walking skeletons.  The dead had come to life and the only thought that came to her mind was, Not fair!  Not fair, Bruthazmus the Bugbear isn't supposed to be able to do this!

---

14:32, Today: Pisca Neep Freemish rolled 7 using 1d20+4. Initiative.

Active Effects:  Dancing Lights.
HP 5/9
This message was last edited by the player at 23:18, Thu 03 Oct 2013.

The sudden confirmation of her fears caused Liseth to tighten her grip considerably on Kerr's arm as her heart pounded and her face paled.  She watched in terror as animated skeletons poured out of the crypt and used their terrible claws to rake and attack Pisca and Cato.

"Go away!"  She shrieked at the uncaring bones.  Then a glow appeared in the girl's eyes, that quickly spread throughout her body.  A bright white glow.  [Language unknown: "Anplan er are!  Adta peund eve manseting a toame ce!"]  The holy glow concentrated for a moment before bursting forth from Liseth, subtly but considerably different from the healing light she had channeled before.  The wave of light washes over the skeletons...

Standard Action: Channeling Energy to Turn Undead.  The skeletons must succeed on a DC 15 Will save or flee as though Panicked for 1 minute (10 Rounds).

14:30, Today: Liseth Thoradin rolled 21 using 1d20+1. Initiative.

Wow, take that Initiative.

"I didn't see signs of any magic in the Boneyard or outside the crypt, Liseth, I think we're..."

Cato lost his train of thought as he saw the skeletons coming out of the crypt.  He tried to backpedal, to turn and run, but he was moving too slow.  And the skeletons came on like an inexorable tide.  Cato screamed as the claws of one bit deep into his arm, and the wizard had to focus to stay on his feet.  He knew if he passed out from the pain, it would be over.

OOC:
20:06, Today: Cato Crispin rolled 8 using 1d20+6. Initiative.

This message was last edited by the player at 10:59, Fri 04 Oct 2013.

Kellan was still idly chatting with Alergast when the commotion of combat reached his ears, perking up he hefting his pole axe and stared intensely towards the crypt, his eyes attempting to discern what was happening in the among the shadows of the vault.

01:07, Today: Kellan Storval rolled 11 using 1d20+2. Initiative.

---

---

Kerr Mollin wasn't the most physically imposing of men, but when he saw the skeletons come boiling out of the crypt a change came over him.  He didn't get LARGER, really.  But it seemed like his presence expanded.  He looked up as he thrust his holy symbol of Desna into the air, yelling:


A burst of light emanates from the young acolyte.  It shatters the two skeletons attacking Cato and one of those attacking Pisca.  The remaining skeleton is staggered, but continues to press its attack, heedless of its companions' destruction.

OOC:
Kerr channels energy to damage the Skeletons (DC 16).

10:18, Today: The Raconteur, for the NPC Skeleton 4, rolled 15 using 1d20+2. Will Save Against Channeled Damage. (Fail, takes five points damage, killed)
10:18, Today: The Raconteur, for the NPC Skeleton 3, rolled 7 using 1d20+2. Will Save Against Channeled Damage.  (Fail, takes five points damage, killed)
10:18, Today: The Raconteur, for the NPC Skeleton 2, rolled 22 using 1d20+2. Will Save Against Channeled Damage. (Succeed, takes 2 points damage)
10:17, Today: The Raconteur, for the NPC Skeleton 1, rolled 12 using 1d20+2. Will Save Against Channeled Damage. (Fail, takes five points damage, killed)
10:15, Today: The Raconteur, on behalf of Kerr Mollin, rolled 5 using 1d6. Channel Energy Damage.
This message was last edited by the player at 17:28, Fri 04 Oct 2013.

---

---

"Die, fiend!"  Belor Hemlock drew his sword and moved to attack the remaining skeleton, but stumbled a bit in the relatively-dim light, missing the undead monster completely.

OOC:

11:53, Today: Belor Hemlock rolled 11 using 1d20+9. Attack on Skeleton 2.

---

---

---

---

Neither Sheriff Hemlock's attack nor Kerr's holy rebuke deterred the relentless automaton from its attack on Pisca.  While she managed to dodge one of the claws, the second impaled her; the tiny figure gasped as slid off the skeleton's claws, slumping insensate to the ground.

OOC:

11:57, Today: The Raconteur, for the NPC Skeleton 2, rolled 6 using 1d4+2. Claw Damage to Pisca.
11:57, Today: The Raconteur, for the NPC Skeleton 2, rolled 13 using 1d20+2. Claw Attack on Pisca 2.
11:57, Today: The Raconteur, for the NPC Skeleton 2, rolled 18 using 1d20+2. Claw Attack on Pisca 1.

Pisca is unconscious and dying at -1 HP

It is now the players' turn. 

---

---

This message was last edited by the GM at 19:04, Fri 04 Oct 2013.

"Pisca!" Cato roared as the gnome dropped to the ground. Barely even pausing to think, the wizard flung a glob of acid at the offending skeleton. The desecration of the bodies of Sandpoint's devoted servitors enraged the young man, and he put all of his effort into shaping the caustic attack.

OOC:
15:43, Today: Cato Crispin rolled 1 using 1d6. Using Sandpoint Scholar to increase damage to 2.
Assuming I can use that on a spell-like ability.
15:43, Today: Cato Crispin rolled 21 using 1d20+2. Ranged Touch.

HP:3/9

This message was last edited by the player at 20:13, Fri 04 Oct 2013.

Bony death.  Pisca Neep Freemish felt the stab of pain as the claw penetrated her armor and ripped flesh from her body.  Pain gave way to a miasma of dark, foggy, sort of cloudy stuff that gave off sparks of glittering light, and laughed with the silvery voices of the fey.  What remained of Pisca Neep Freemish knew, in that vague way in which all things know that they are alive, that she was being taken to the Barrow.  She would enter, passing through the many hands of the ancestral fey, before being shunted out into the vast unknown of infinite possibility.

The spirit of the gnome once called Pisca Neep Freemish, rose from its corporeal body.  It watched as blood drained from the horrible wounds in the delicate flesh.  The lovely features of the gnomish face were still and pale.  Up above, the Barrow of the Ancestral Fey beckoned.

You want me to go where?

The spirit of the gnome folded her arms across her chest and, getting a stubbornish sort of look on her face, refused to go.

---

12:32, Today: Pisca Neep Freemish rolled 16 using 1d20. Stabilize vs DC10.

HP -1/9

---

---

Cato's acidic bolt blasted into the skeleton, bursting it apart right in front of a surprised Sheriff Hemlock.  The rapidly disintegrating pieces of what was formerly the skeleton's body were flung back, leaving only the silent, still form of a gnome in their wake.

OOC:

The skeletons are defeated, and combat is over.  You may resume normal play.

---

---

In dismay, Liseth watched as her wave of energy was completely ignored by the undead skeletons.  She imagined that they would be laughing at her had they been capable of such an action.  Instantly she recalled Father Garrick's words to her when he was teaching her about undead and positive energy:

The holy energy of the divine that we channel in the name of the deities is anathema to the undead.  They cannot stand it.  The same light that heals the wounds of the living is painful against their unholy, cursed bodies.  They fear it, even those undead who are no longer capable of such emotion.  Believe in your own strength and that of the gods and you will have no need to fear them; for they will flee in fear of you.

But it would seem that Liseth isn't strong enough...and now her friends were going to suffer for it.

After this moment of sorrowful reflection on her own shortcomings Liseth's attention was grabbed when Kerr rose his own holy symbol into the air and shouted his defiance at the skeleton monsters.  And he even spoke the language of the heavens like Liseth did!  She was awed when the burst of energy that Kerr released was so much stronger than her own; watching as nearly all of the undead were destroyed outright by its power.

But not quite all of them.  Liseth gasped in horror as Pisca was struck down by the final remaining skeleton.  "Pisca!"  Her shout mimicked Cato's as she left Kerr's side to run/limp as quickly as she could to the fallen gnome's side.  Her fear of the undead skeleton standing over Pisca was outweighed by her concern that the gnome might be killed.

As she ran Liseth said a prayer, "Sarenrae, save this life with your blessed light..."  She braced herself for the skeleton's wrath, but before Liseth reached Pisca's side a bolt of acid blasted the undead apart; she didn't give herself any time to be relieved however, and the girl immediately dropped down on her knees next to the dying gnome and laid her hands across Pisca's bloody wounds.

15:14, Today: Liseth Thoradin rolled 8 using 1d8+3. Cure Light Wounds.

That should heal Pisca by 8 points, putting her back up to a less than lethal 7.

It had all happened so quickly that Kellan had not even closed with a skeleton, all the same he took up a defensive stance in front of Liseth as the acolyte worked on Pisca. His boots ground some of the bone underfoot as he moved Into position, trying his best not to think of the dishonored dead as he did so.

"Liseth? Is she going to be alright?" He called back without looking to her, eyes peering into the darkness half expecting more to shamble out.

"Musfugbl."  That was the first thing that the gnome said when she opened her eyes and saw the night sky up above.  Moon and stars, broken only by the ring of human heads looking down at her.

"Did I die?  I think I saw myself dead.  Or maybe I saw myself not dying.  Skelies!"  Pisca sat bolt upright, which might have bumped a few human heads if she had been a human as well.  "Where did the skelies go?"  The answer lay all around her in the bone fragments that littered the ground.  "Oh," said the gnome.  "Good job.  Someone."

"I suppose I have you to thank for my life again, Lysa."  Pisca pick herself up off the ground and dusted herself off.  "See Lysa.  You are a hero.  Heroes save lives.  You saved mine."  The gnome recovered her hat from where it lay on the ground and pushed the crown back into shape.  "Well, I wasn't expecting skelies.  But we can't let that sort of thing stop us from finding out what we came for, can we?  Jamming the big hummie had down on top of her mass of strawberry blond hair, Pisca turned again to the door of the crypt.  "Lets go in and find out what was done."

A few gestures and a word of power brought four more floating lights which proceeded the gnome through the doors.

---

Active Effects:  Dancing Lights.
HP 7/9

Cato's face twisted into a bitter smile as the last skeleton dropped from his acid bolt.  He was about to call for Liseth, but the woman was already there, and in a moment, Pisca had regained consciousness.  Cato let out a breath, and winced, the deep wound the skeleton had given him suddenly hurting now that the adrenalin from the fight had worn off.

"Liseth," the wizard panted, "would you mind?  I'm afraid the skeletons roughed me up as well."  He gave a weak cough.  "Not as much as Pisca..."

The wizard trailed off as Pisca bounded into the tomb, apparently oblivious to further dangers.

"Pisca, wait for the rest of us!  We should be careful in there.  Whoever raised those skeletons could have set other traps for us!"

Cato concentrated for a second and called forth once again the first spell he had ever mastered.  He wasn't sure why his wizard's sight had failed him so badly before, but perhaps the stone of the crypt had blocked out the necromancy from the skeletons.  Certainly, if there was anything else in there broadcasting necromancy or any other magic, he would see it before it hurt anyone.  Well, before it hurt anyone but Pisca.


OOC:
Detect Magic, again.  Scanning the crypt now that I can see the inside.

This message was last edited by the player at 23:56, Fri 04 Oct 2013.

Liseth finally let her relief show when Pisca sat upright and then stood, "No you didn't die; I can't do anything with the dead..."  She flushed when Pisca now was calling her a hero, but reached out a hand to try and stop the gnome when she moved to enter the crypt again, "Wait!  Ms Freemish let Mr Storval go first.  He has a spear and armor!"

But the girl withdrew her attempt to stop Pisca when Cato called to her in obvious pain.  Liseth stood up a bit shamefully, "Oh!  I'm so sorry Mr Crispin!  I know you're hurt too, I don't know what I was thinking!"  She quickly made her way to the wizard's side and laid a hand glowing with white energy on the injury that the skeleton had give him, closing her eyes and whispering a prayer.

The bleeding stopped and the wound closed, leaving only a red welt where it used to be.  "That should be better for you."  Liseth then walked back to Kerr's side, certain that there was no way she would be entering that vault first.  Or alone.

"Kerr, that was amazing what you did! I didn't know that you were so strong!"  She was still a bit awed by the power Kerr displayed when he destroyed all those skeletons.  "And you can speak the Celestial tongue too?  Did you learn that from Father Zantus?"

23:49, Today: Liseth Thoradin rolled 5 using 1d8+3. Cure Light Wounds.

5 Hit Points for Cato it seems.

Kellan let out a sigh of relief as Pisca came around. Despite himself he glanced back a few times as she made her recovery, but still had the majority of his attention focused on the entrance to the vault.

"So I'll be honest" he began "I thought that the living dead were a myth...up until I saw those things" he shifted his weight, the armor jingling softly.

"Is there anything I should know about them? I would make sense that the Kerr and Liseth would be gifted with the power to do...well, to do that" he sounded impressed "But anything else? Holy water or fire or something? Can we get infected with it?"

As Pisca moved to go inside he looked to her "I can go first if you would like"  he offered as she drew even with him,

The gnome tipped her head back, favoring the human with a quizzical look.  She looked up at the towering walls of the crypt, imparting upon the building much the same.

"Well, if you wish.  But, from where I stand, the building isn't really that big.  Four skelies come out.  How many more can be waiting inside?"  She hadn't even drawn her bow.  "I think we've seen our excitement for the evening, our little surprise from the person who organized this, who broke in during the festival."

"But that means we know more about him or her or it.  Raising the dead.  There aren't too many people around who can do that.  Or who'd want to.  Narrows the possibilities.  Raising the dead.  Knowing about the festival, the opening of the new cathedral.  Knowing about this crypt.  How many people could that be?"

"Lead.  Don't lead.  I don't think it matters.  But I think that the person we need to speak with after this is Father Zantus.  He may be new - well, sort of new, kind of new - in town, but he may know something of the history of such people here."

With a sweep of her arm, the gnome indicated that the guardsman proceed, directing her lights from behind to illuminate the way in.

---

Active Effects:  Dancing Lights.
HP 7/9

---

---

Kerr’s eyes widened as the three skeletons burst apart and the fourth staggered before Cato finished it off.  “Did you SEE that?!?!”  The young acolyte exulted.  “Father Zantus said I was one of best he’d seen at . . .”  Suddenly he realized what happened with Pisca.  “Oh, no.”  He said, rushing forward to help, but Liseth was there first with her healing magic.  He shared a grin with her as Pisca’s injuries knitted themselves together under the divine influence of Liseth’s spells.  He added his own healing magic to bring both her and Cato back to full health.

Kerr blushed and dipped his head at Liseth’s praise.  “Father Zantus told me the energy I could summon to dismiss the undead was unusually powerful.  I’ve just never had the chance to put it into practice before.”  He gave her a gratified smile.  “I guess he was right!”  He took her arm as she moved next to him.  “And I’ve been able to speak Celestial ever since I was consecrated to Desna.  Father Zantus says it’s her divine gift to me.”  He blushed again, as if he didn’t feel worthy of receiving such gifts.

Kerr looked at Kellan and shook his head.  “Skeletons can’t infect you with anything.  Well, nothing necromantic.  I suppose they could infect you with some sort of normal disease,” he stopped talking at Kellan’s panicked expression and sighed.  “I’m not helping, am I?”  He laughed.  “The short answer is that you don’t have anything to worry about.”

OOC:  Kerr casts Cure Light Wounds on Cato and Pisca, bringing them back to full health.

---

---

---

---

As Pisca’s lights danced their way into the tomb, everyone could see that the interior was curiously undisturbed for a crypt that so recently contained four skeletons.  The tomb was clean, aside from some sort of robe crumpled on the floor, and much less musty than one might have expected.  The inside of the vault was made of white stone, and statues of Desna, Erastil, Sarenrae, and Iomedae gracing the four corners of the room.   Sarcophagi were inserted into the walls; all but one remained undisturbed.

That one sarcophagus had been pulled out from the wall and opened; you could see that it was totally empty.  Whatever had been interred inside it was there no longer.

“Holy Desna!”  Kerr made a warding sign with his hand.  “That’s Father Tobayn’s tomb!  I was here for his burial.”  He moved slowly towards the plundered coffin, stopping a respectful distance away.  “But where is his body?  And from where did those four skeletons come?  None of the other sarcophagi are disturbed!”  He looked at the assembled group.  “I have no idea what this means.”

---

---

This message was last edited by the GM at 14:58, Sat 05 Oct 2013.

"Tobayn."  The gnome pronounced the name as though tasting it, rolling it around in her mouth, as though, through this act, she might gain somehing, this might, in some fashion or another, put her in possession of some secret knowledge.  "Tobayn.  Ezakien Tobayn, right?"  The gnome nodded her head.  "He died in that fire during the Late Unpleasentness."

"Tell me Kerr Mollin.  Did Father Tobayn favor a particular diety?  That diety wouldn't happen to be Desna, would it?  Same as yours?  And you wouldn't happen to know whether or not he had a rival back then, would you?  Maybe a devotee of a rival god?"

It wasn't difficult to pick a god from the pantheon.  Not after the speech that Father Zantus gave at the opening of the festival.  "Maybe ... " speculated the gnome, "a devotee of, say, Lamashtu?"

---

Active Effects:  Dancing Lights.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:18, Sat 05 Oct 2013.

Liseth smiled and released a laugh when Kerr revealed that his knowledge of the angelic language was a direct blessing from Desna.  "I started speaking like that when I was still just a little girl.  Not long after Father Garrick declared that I had a powerful divine connection."  She laughed again at the memories, "Daddy and Nivlak were at their wits end, I think.  From what they told me later, whenever I spoke the words would come out in a mixed jumble of Celestial and normal speech.  They had to beg Father Garrick to visit all of the time just so that he could translate what I was saying for them."

With a radiant smile Liseth grabbed Kerr's hands and stared up into his eyes, [Language unknown: "El ai ichas koralltin ad ndom erne.  Et is lipre meil un."]

Releasing Kerr's hands when Kellan asked about undead, Liseth took the other acolyte's arm again.  After Kerr finished telling about diseases that undead might carry she spoke as well, an edge of fear detectable in her voice, "No no no, Mr Storval.  Undead are very real.  They are everything that is bad and evil wrapped up in a scary package with claws and teeth and glowing or empty eyes..."  Some might find Liseth's intense fear of the undead to be irrational considering her capabilities.  But to her there was nothing more rational than being afraid of them.  "They are anti-life, and exist only to bring pain and death to the living."

She reluctantly entered the vault alongside Kerr after it was determined that there were no more undead waiting within.  Her face went ashen when it was discovered that one of the sarcophagi was raided and the priest's body removed, "They went to all of this trouble attacking Sandpoint with Goblins so that they could steal Father Tobayn’s body?  That's...that is just evil."  Liseth bit her lip before continuing, "They wouldn't...want to do any undead magic on him...would they?"

Taking notice of the crumpled robe on the floor of the vault, Liseth took a step backwards and away from it; getting behind Kerr as though she expected a tide of undead to spring forth from it.  She pointed at the robe, "That shouldn't be there."

OOC: Knowledge (Religion) to determine what Liseth knows about undead in general?  Chances are I might know more than she does, and I don't want to share too much.
This message was last edited by the player at 17:56, Sat 05 Oct 2013.

Kellan ambled in cautiously then stood in the rear corner as Pisca and Lizeth examined the tomb. His silence was a pensive one, he had known Father Tobayn as a child, not well, but he had been a pillar of the Sandpoint community. What stuck in his kind the most was remembering how miserable his parents had looked during the late unpleasantness.

He whispered a short prayer to Abadar, hoping that these mysterious circumstances were not the beginning of another trying time.

"Abadar, strengthen our walls and harden our hearts that that we may endure such assaults on the sanctity of our community, please look after Father Tobayn in death, and guide us to his defilers so that we may see justice done upon them."

It was silent enough to hopefully not disturb anybody, and when he finished he continued a more or less silent vigil over the others as they investigated,
This message was last edited by the player at 06:10, Sun 06 Oct 2013.

"I like Desna because she's a star goddess," Pisca added as she turned her attention to the robe in the center of the crypt. After going through the pockets she holds one side of the robe up to Sheriff Belor.  "Excuse me.  Could you hold this for a moment?"  The other side, she gives to young Kerr Mollin.

 "I'm going to have to get a starknife someday," Pisca continues as she circles the two men holding up the robe, examining it from both the front and back.  "Did you know that the Shoanti of the Lyrune-Quah hold Desna sacred.  All of their women warriors carry starknives."

"I wonder how they managed the skelies.  They must have been waiting down here for pretty long.  Good thing Father Zantus didn't open that door himself, huh?"

---

Knowledge local for any connections to Lamashtu.
Perception for examining the robe and the crypt as a whole.
Knowledge Arcana to know how one might leave four skeletons in waiting down here for two days or so.

Active Effects:  Dancing Lights.

Cato took a second to compose himself before following the others into the small tomb.  He had certainly seen violence before, but nothing quite so fast and random as that.  He had been killed before he even had a chance to do anything.  At this was in the relative safety of Sandpoint.  Following this through would likely involve confronting goblins on their home territory, which promised to be a great deal more dangerous.  Plus, they now had to deal with whoever had animated the skeletons.

"Whoever did this is probably a great deal more powerful than us.  Raising undead isn't something that Liseth or I could do, even if we wanted to.  Which means we're probably looking at a relatively experienced wizard or cleric.  Of course, it would take a less powerful wizard or cleric to simply command existing undead.  But then that still leaves open the question of how they got here.  Liseth, you didn't see any skeletons tracks outside, right?"

Cato nodded at Pisca.  "Liseth and Kerr, you must know a lot more than any of us what gods might oppose Desna.  Certainly, this seems to be a direct challenge to the gods worshipped here in Sandpoint."



OOC:
With a 10 on a knowledge Arcana, he'd get an 18, so Cato probably knows the basics of low-level spells.
Keeping my detect magic up, looking for more auras.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:02, Sun 06 Oct 2013.

---

---

Kerr nodded at Pisca.  “That’s right.  Father Tobayn was a priest of Desna.  But he was universally loved.  He did not have any rivals or detractors, even among the five founding families.  And it is rare that they unanimously agree on anything.”  He shrugged.  “I can’t think of anyone in Sandpoint who would want to do this to Father Tobayn’s remains just out of spite.  Maybe he fell out with someone before he arrived at Sandpoint?  That’s a complete guess, though,” Kerr admitted, “anything like that would have been well before my time.”

The young acolyte grasped Liseth’s hands in his own and smiled as she recounted how she had come to speak Celestial.  “That’s a lot like what happened to me.  Only in my case, Father Zantus had seen it before so he knew what was happening and explained it all to me.”  He gave her a hug.  “I can’t imagine how confused you must have been!”

Kerr drew back as Liseth spoke to him in their shared language.  “,” he responded, staring into her eyes.

Kerr wrenched his gaze from Liseth to look over at Cato.  “What deities are opposed to Desna?  Well,  Lamashtu certainly, they’ve been warring forever.  Desna also clashes with Rovagug and Zon-Kuthon for control of the night.   My Lady wishes for it to be a time of wonder and beauty, not fear and death.”

“So priests of those three dieties would be actively opposed to Desna’s works, although I don’t even know any followers of any of those gods, much less ones that would be set on defiling Father Tobayn’s remains.”  The young acolyte looked as if he was struck by a thought, then glanced over at Pisca.  “Although, following up on what Pisca said, Father Zantus might have died if he opened this crypt alone.”  Kerr looked concerned.  “So maybe this is some sort of attack on Desna?  I just don’t know enough to say.  This is certainly our first problem with the undead, at least as far as I can say.”  He held Liseth closer.  "I have a couple of starknives myself.  Maybe I should start carrying them more often."

---

---

"So it would seem that we don't have much to go on...other than the goblin attack itself." Kellan shifted his weight, the metal capped end of his pole axe clinking against the flagstone.

"Unless somebody knew Father Tobayn in his days before he came to Sandpoint, I doubt we are going to find much about him...it was some time ago and I would think that the fire destroyed most of his personal property."

Kellan moved over and looked at the space where the priest had been interned then back down at the robe, he looked a little sad at the thought of such a thing happening in his home town.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:50, Mon 07 Oct 2013.

"Wait!  You have starknives!"  The gnome whirled away from her examination of the robe, turning on the young acolyte and Improved Boyfriend of Lysa's.  Quite out of the blue she began repeating back some of the words that Liseth had said only moments before, "Nipo nipo, werint und heei thith n the iv."  But even before receiving a response, the gnome shook her head.  "No.  Never mind.  That couldn't possibly be right.  But I'll get it.  Some day."

"What I meant to say is that I'd be interested in seeing your starknives, Kerr Mollin.  But ... I don't suppose that's what I said at all.  Is it?"

"Oh well," she shrugged.  "I did find something interesting about this robe, though.  Whoever did this may not be a great deal more powerful than we are, Cato."  Tugging on the young wizard's sleeve, the gnome brings him around to a place from which he can see the tears in the robe.  She points to four places and the rips in the fabric where something has been torn away.

"One, two, three, four.  The skelies came from this magic robe.  Tear off a patch and it becomes an animated skeleton.  After the last one's been used, all you have left is an ordinary robe.

"That's how it was done.  Thank you, gentlemen, you can put the robe down now," she said to Sheriff Hemlock and Kerr Mollin.  Then, "I think you're right, Stomper.  I don't think we're going to find anything more in here tonight.  On the other hand, outside, though ...  Lysa, do you think you can tell how they left?  It can't be easy to carry a body out of here and hoist it over the wall.  Lets see where they went."

At this, the gnome directed her lights out the door of the crypt and followed in their wake.

---

Linguistics check to have made some sense of what Liseth said to Kerr.
Active Effects:  Dancing Lights.

Liseth paled slightly and shook her head violently at Cato's mention that she might ever be able to create undead.  She couldn't think of anything more horrifying than to willingly bring an undead into existence.  Why would anybody ever want to do that?  "No, no skeleton tracks were outside.  I suppose there could have been a skeleton wearing boots, that would make the track look like a normal person.  But skeletons don't weigh very much; their tracks wouldn't be as deep as a living person's."  She answered in response to Cato's question of her.

Nodding along with Kerr's explanation of Desna's divine opponents, Liseth kept her gaze fixed on the robe while Pisca examined it.  "I don't know anything about Father Tobayn, except that he held the position as Sandpoint's prelate before Father Zantus.  Maybe Father Zantus will know more about somebody that would want to desecrate his remains.  Or somebody who just hates Desna and Sandpoint."  She frowned when Kerr spoke about carrying starknives, "I don't like weapons.  But with everything that's been happening...goblins attacking the town, skeletons getting left in the Boneyard right next to the Cathedral...maybe it would be for the best."  The girl bit her lip for a moment in consideration, "Daddy taught me how to use some weapons.  Spears, maces, crossbows..."  She looked down, "But I don't think that I could bring myself to use them on a person.  Or even a goblin."

Her eyes widened in shock when Pisca finished her examination of the robe and Liseth held tighter to Kerr.  "It made the skeletons?!  They came from the robe?  Are you sure that its magic is gone?  What if it makes more?  We have to destroy it!  Burn it, or..."  She seemed to realize that she was making a spectacle of herself and stopped, "I'm sorry..."

It did prompt her into a fearful lecture on Undead though; perhaps compounded by Kellan's admission that he never thought they were even real before today.  "Skeletons like that are just the weakest and most common type of undead though.  You can't cut them or stab them with a sword or spear; they don't have any flesh on them.  You need to break them apart with a mace or a staff.  Holy water will always work on any undead though; it burns them like acid burns a living person.  But some undead are powerful and resistant to its effects.  And fire will usually work too."  Liseth cast her eyes towards Kellan, "See Mr Storval, Undead are very real.  They don't feel pain, they never get tired, they don't sleep or ever have to stop.  The only way to stop them is to destroy them.  But when you're fighting them, remember that they don't feel fear; you can't break their morale like you might when fighting a living opponent and make them flee.  Many undead, like those skeletons, they don't even have real minds.  They can't think or reason; they just want to kill the living."  She shuddered, "Some undead can think though.  Those are the really dangerous ones.  Be careful if you ever meet one."  Liseth clutched her holy symbol, "Because the only thing that can keep them at bay or make them flee is powerful magic or the divine power of the gods.  And sometimes even that doesn't work..."  She ended on a quiet note, reminded of how little she had managed to affect the undead with her own divine burst.  Once again thankful that Kerr was there to destroy them when she couldn't.

She breathed and calmed herself down, then watched as Pisca went to leave the vault, "I didn't see any other tracks, Ms Freemish.  They must have followed the same path back to the wall and climbed back over.  If there was six goblins they would have been able to carry Father Tobayn's remains easily enough.  And if they had rope they could have gotten back over the wall with them too."  She looked at Kerr then started to follow Pisca out of the vault, "But I suppose that I could check again, just to be sure.  I don't know what else they might have done though."

OOC: Another Survival roll?  Though I don't expect to find anything that I didn't see last time.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:34, Mon 07 Oct 2013.

Cato nodded at Pisca.  "Yes, that's exactly what I was about to say.  That robe still has faint traces of magic.  I would come to the same conclusion as Pisca.  It was some kind of magical item, but its magic has now been completely consumed, so it was discarded here."

Cato cringed when he saw the Liseth's reaction.  "Sorry, Liseth, that wasn't what I meant."  He had a hard time admitting to the next part.  Cato didn't like admitting he didn't know something.  "I just meant...well, Necromancy is an area of magic that I'm not at all well-versed in.  Partly out of natural inclination,  and partly out of desire to avoid it, I never studied much necromancy.  I guess I never really wanted to know it that well."  Cato didn't want to mention his similar aversion to illusions, as that might raise too many questions.  Cato gave a harsh laugh.  "Little did I know, I'd end up being attacked by skeletons in this little town.  I might have down so more reading."

Cato followed the group out of the vault and waited for Liseth's conclusions.

"Did you know that it's legal in Kaer Maga to create undead?" said the gnome over her shoulder.  "Well, in parts of Kaer Maga, that is.  It's restricted to the Ankar-Te district.  They're called Twice-Born.  They're mindless and do odd jobs.  They're owned.  Like slaves."

"Kind of smelly, though.  Sort of ... an acquired taste, I suppose."

"That sounds horrible" Kellan replied as they filed out "Doesn't seem right that a man can't find any rest even in death...and can you imagine the type of person who would do such a thing?, then live with it on a day to day basis...just, bizarre"

Kellan looked around with an ever growing appreciation for Sandpoint as they stepped out into the brisk night air. This was his home after all, born and raised with all it's humble little habits and customs. There was a part of him that wanted to experience Magnimar or Kovosa of course, but the few young people who had left for such cosmopolitan pursuits had inevitably come back, more often than not with stories of crowded dirty streets and towering buildings.

He imagined that Magnimar must be full of people like Foxglove, with their fine impractical clothing and flowery speech.

He looked over to his newfound friends "Do you think it's safe to reopen the Boneyard?"

---

---

Sheriff Hemlock's face creased with concern as the group discovered both the looted sarophagus and that Father Tobayn's remains were not longer in it.  He looked worried as they exited the vault.

"I'd appreciate it if you all would keep tonight's events to yourselves.  The last thing we need is to start a panic amongst the townfolk with stories of walking skeletons in the Boneyard and the vanishing remains of beloved clerics."  He looked at Kellan.  "Kellan, you remember the stories people told about the resurrection of Chopper when that couple went missing for a few days a couple of years ago?  Given the goblin attack, who knows what stories they would come up with now?"

The bald-headed sheriff looked at each member of the group individually for a few seconds, as if making a decision, then nodded and spoke.  "I've spoken to the Mayor and Father Zantus, and with their authority I'd like to deputize each of you as a special unit, answerable only to me and Mayor Deverin, whose responsibility is to determine what happened here, who is behind it, and what threat that might pose to Sandpoint."

"I except Alergast from this request, because I need his leadership more than ever with the regular guard duties.  I also excuse Kerr, who Father Zantus needs for much the same reason.  But you four," here he nodded at Kellan, Cato, Pisca, and Liseth, "have proven both your mettle and your discretion over the past couple of days; I can't think of a quartet I'd rather have looking into this matter."

He coughed.  "Speaking of discretion, I'd also like your word that you will keep the subject of this investigation confidential."  He stopped talking and waited expectantly for a response.

[OOC: This is just about all I have planned for you guys this evening.  Feel free to respond to the sheriff and talk amongst yourselves and/or to anyone else you feel you need to as much as you like, but once you're done let me know and we'll move on to tomorrow's boar hunt.]

---

---

This message was last edited by the player at 06:11, Mon 07 Oct 2013.

Kellan nodded in affirmation, doing his best to conceal his excitement at having been selected for the special detail.

"Yes sir, it will stay between us." He stated with confidence, a slight series of nods to the others. "I doubt this was an isolated incident, somebody went through a lot of work for all this, and I don't see the matter just fading away quietly. We will start fresh tomorrow and see what we can turn up"

Inwardly he was thinking that the boar hunt and his visit with Shayliss would probably take up most of the day, in turn he made a mental note to set aside some time to follow up on matters.

"I'll see you around" he stated to Alergast as he patted the man on his armored shoulder "I just received a little something from Taldor I am going to need your help with eventually" he cracked a faint smile to his old friend as he moved towards the exit.

OOC: Ready to proceed

"Hmm," the gnome humm'ed.  "I'd be glad to help," she said, after she'd thought things through.  "Because I hate a mystery.  Which reminds me, I'd like to see where this trail leads after they get to the other side of the wall.  Lysa?  What time do you usually wake up in the morning?  Do you think we could meet here to look over the ground on the other side of the wall before heading to the stables?"

Then Pisca tipped back her hat and under the light of her floating magic, she scrutinized the Sheriff.  There was a question on her lips, tickling like a curious butterfly.  What was the point of being deputized?  Why give them special authority when they couldn't even talk about what it was that they we're investigating?

The gnome opened her mouth to speak once.  Then twice.  But, in the end, she simply pursed her lips and asked, "Can we requisition weapons?  Cato needs a crossbow."

---

OoC: Good to go here.

After Pisca's brief description of the city, Liseth didn't have to think about it much before she decided that Kaer Maga was a place that she would never want to visit.  So far the only things that she knew of the city came from Pisca.  And a city full of gnome-eating bloatmages and undead servants (what kind of people would want to keep undead as their personal servants!?) sounded like a horrible place.

Liseth looked up from her second examination of the footprints on the ground and shook her head, "I can't find anything new.  If they did anything besides climb back over the wall, they must have done a really good job of hiding their tracks."  Then she stood up and listened to Sheriff Hemlock when he told everyone about deputizing them for a continuing investigation.

She swallowed; that was an awful lot of responsibility.  Likely dangerous too.  But the Sheriff wouldn't have included her if he thought that she wasn't able to help.  And Liseth did want to help; especially if there was somebody telling goblins to attack people, leaving horrible undead skeletons right next to the Cathedral, and desecrating a place of rest to steal the remains of a priest that nobody had ever had something bad to say about.  After a moment of silent consideration, Liseth finally nodded her head to the Sheriff.

"We can still tell Father Zantus what happened though, right?  I don't think that I would be able to keep this away from him."  Liseth looked at Sheriff Hemlock, then Kerr, then towards the vault with the broken skeletons laying in front of it, "He's bound to find the skeletons anyway, and if anybody should know what happened to Father Tobayn, it's Father Zantus."

"I wake up just before the sun comes up every day."  She answered to Pisca, "That way I can watch the sunrise while I pray and meditate.  After praying I usually have breakfast."  Liseth thought for a moment, staring off into open space before returning her eyes to Pisca, "I would like to see what the goblins did on the other side of the wall too.  It could be our first official part of investigation.  If you want to meet me in front of the Cathedral about an hour after sunrise, I should be all ready to go."

OOC: Advancing sounds good to me.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:32, Mon 07 Oct 2013.

Cato nodded to Sheriff Hemlock.  "I'll keep this between us, and I'll gladly take part in the investigation.  I don't think this is over.  Someone has something planned for this town, and it can't just be about stealing one body from a tomb and disrupting the Swallowtail Festival."

Cato laughed at Pisca's question.  "I actually do have a crossbow, I just didn't think I needed to bring it to the Festival, or to dinner tonight, either.  Rest assured, I'll be carrying it from now on."

OOC:
Ready to move on here as well.

FADE TO BLACK - Continued in Chapter #4:  A Massive Boar.