Fidget turns to Eldrin, Could you see if they have a mage that can write scrolls or maybe a wand for the right price Some extra magic power sure would be nice.

"Aye, I wish for about 5-6 pounds of Darkwood if it be for sale. I can make myself a fine large shield to replace my steel one." Dorak puts in.

Nom yawned. He'd politely accompanied his new companions throughout the day, dropping subtle and not-so-subtle hints that the fish were probably biting down by the big willow. His attention was distracted from his passtime briefly by the jingle of coin and the clacking of gems. He marvelled at this, for it was the most wealth he'd ever had at one time! With a hoard like this, he could afford to fix up his cabin and spend more time fishing and less time peddling his stories and songs!

"We can fish at night too," he continued a one-sided conversation that had been going for hours, "if we've some lanterns, there are whisker-fish that like to eat bits of rotted meat and are drawn to the surface by the light..."

The little bard looked around the Duck out of boredom, mentally taking note of how many were in the crowd and what sort of crowd they might be. He ought to be preparing for a night of story-telling and singing, but he found that he quite enjoyed sitting here with these chaps... even if they weren't really that excited about catching fish...

Jarlene kept the drinks coming to their tale and listened to their stories when they cared to share. she an attentive waitress and kept their glasses filled.

It was turning into night quickly.

Nomerendal watched the crowd saw Rennick mingling with other of Kreeds Guards who were off duty and enjoying a night of revelry.

Several members of their group were talking about obtaining some darkwood for crafting or who might have access to darkwood bows.

Rennick was chatting with some guards and one of them said Kreeds all up in a lather this afternoon. One of the shipments of Timber didnt come down from one of the lumber camps as was scheduled today. He was shouting and demanding to know who was responsible. The Mill is silent tonight because of no work to do.

Rennick answered the guards: "A missing shipment? What is Kreed going to do about it? I think this may be connected to the poisoned well.
That was a deed of sabotage, probably meant to disrupt life in this town and kill some of its inhabitants. Instill fear, so that people quit their homes and their jobs.
Now, as that plan of sabotage has been thwarted by the herbalist and a courageous group of adventurers,
they target another aspect of the lumber consortium: the transport of the timber.
I think we need a thorough investigation into the criminals who're doing all this mischief."

Its them Faeries I tell you. They poisoned the well. We heard tell it was musrooms found only in the woods. and that it was natural things..and they did it without anyone could see them...faeries can do that. and now...and now they probably kilt all the folks transporting the lumber.

Dorak grumbles "Hogwash! The well was probably Kreed himself. Poison the town, force folks to pay HIM for clean water. I'm a dwarf, we know how greedy people act. We see it too many times Fer our liking...."

"And here we go..." the gnome muttered as he moved to the side of the common room, making as if to fetch some mugs or a plate. He made a quick glance about the place to see who might be paying attention to the conversation that would, no doubt, escalate from Dorak's comments. The little gnome hoped that Rennick's camaraderie with the guards could assuage any hot tempers... but brawls had started over lesser things here in Falcon's Hollow before.

He was intrigued by the news of the failed delivery however. They'd just traveled and hadn't been impeded by weather. A day late didn't seem like that big of a deal, but Kreed's purported outburst suggested trouble. Nom wondered and motioned for Fidget to assist him.

"Is there something you know about this? I'd hate to see a cousin become involved in a misunderstanding between the Consortium and the Forest Folk..." Nom asked quietly.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:32, Wed 14 Mar 2018.

Rennick realized that he had to do something or loose friendship with the other guards.
He stood up quickly and replied to Dorak:
"You've been here less than a day and you think you know how things are? That's not how it works, friend.
This well is owned by master Kreed and it would not benefit him at all to poison his own well. It's a ridiculous idea.
So please, let me talk to my fellow guards, while you talk with Arell and Nomerendal."

He sat down with the guards again and said to them:
"Sorry for the dwarf, he's a bit on edge from all our experiences in the forest.
But you said it could be fairies, and yes, it might be. But we don't have tangible evidence for that.
And you know what? I've seen a lot of interesting creatures and tracks in the woods the last 48 hours.
I now know that there are satyrs in the forest, yes those humanlike figures with goats' feet. And they're reportedly evil.
Moreover, we met a kind of zombie in the forest and a kind of wolfman in the dwarven ruins.
So there are a lot of monstrous creatures in the woods, all of which could be responsible for poisoning the well.
So let's not be judgmental before we have tangible evidence."
This message was last edited by the player at 21:01, Wed 14 Mar 2018.

"Not to mention the Drake..." Nomerendal reminded Rennick, betraying that he'd been eavesdropping on the conversation. "Heh. Ahem..."

Fidget grabs Nom by the back of his coat, and pulls him towards corner table away from every one else. As she passes Eldrin she uses her free hand to tug on his shirt sleeve and point to
the table she's dragging Nomerendal to.

once the three of them are all at the table she leans over and whispers.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:19, Thu 15 Mar 2018.

Nom whistled lowly...

Over in the corner Fidget and Nomerendal looked at Eldrin expectantly.

Meanwhile the guards looked at Rennick and nodded while scowling at Dorak.

Nomerendal noticed Jarlene watching all of them with interest...was it more than just being an attentive waitress?

Eldrin nodded, and spoke in a whisper.

Rennick retires to his own room after his conversation with the guards.
He wants to get a few hours of sleep before he has to do his guard duty this night.

Hiding behind ever increasing piles of books (8 and counting), the lack of background noise finally made Francis look up and realize, "Oh, it's night time already? ^{Where does the time go?}_{...I should probably write a thesis on it. I could call it "The Theory of Cognitive Strain Temporal Energy Eschewal"}"

It was nether the first time nor probably the last that he'd become some preoccupied with his research/study (especially after so much new data after having conducted so many practical on-the-field experiments) that all else simply simply blends into inconsequentialness.

Having realized however just how long he had been at it, fatigue caught up to him all at once, like a blindside sucker punch. He was suddenly very aware of just how tired he was and, more importantly, how badly he needed to use the bathroom. After conducting the unsightly deed he resigned himself to grabbing some more food before bed and recharging his reserves for the next day.

And with that he retired in his room, practically passing out the second his head hit the pillow.

Nom wiped a bit at the table as he nodded to Eldrin. "We're being watched," he muttered at the stain. Using the edge of his tunic, the little gnome made a scrubbing motion. "I think you're probably right Eldrin. Cousin, I hope you're not adding us to the soup! Let's see what we can find out..."

The gnome looked up at Jarlene and motioned her over. The motion disguised an arcane gesture as he breathed a word of magic^*.

"Would you mind taking a swipe at this spot for me with your cloth? Thank you my dear, it's right where I've been putting my elbow..." When she'd wiped the table, Nom invited her to sit a moment.

"I know you're busy, but I wanted to ask you about these Consortium fellows... We're concerned about this missing delivery you've no doubt overheard as you've been working so hard tonight. Tell me, who do we need to talk to in order to make some progress with this outfit? You're in a unique position to see and hear stuff. Do you have anything that could help us out?"

He kept direct eye contact with the waitress and his voice had that rhythmic tone which his two companions might recognize as fey-like in nature...



* Cast Charm Person on Jarlene

Intent is to get her "on our side"... I don't want to bog the game down, so feel free to handwave as needed. I don't know Jarlene's Will to save against the Charm, but Nom's got a few rounds of <i>Fascinate left before he's tapped out for the day.</i>

As Rennick and Francis excused themselves and headed upstairs to catch some sleep.

Dorak and Arell continued to share a beer at the main table.

Fidget, Eldrin, and Nomerendal were in a corner table sharing something less publicly known.

Nomerendal caught the waitress watching a little more intently and muttered an arcane phrase as he asked her to come over and clean a small mess on the table up.

She walked over with a grin and wiped it clean then paused to listen to the gnomes question and added. yanno your kinda cute. ....Im sure Mr Kreed is going to be sending someone out in the morning. you could go up to Hightown and ask to speak to Payday. He could get you to see Me. Kreed.

Waiting until after the waitress leaves, Fidget continues her discussion.
This message was last edited by the player at 17:10, Sun 18 Mar 2018.

Nom smiled. "Thank you Jarlene, let me know if you hear anything... interesting, won't you?"

Arell sips his beer with the quiet determination of man choosing not to have an argument.

"So...Dorak, maybe you can answer this question." he begins, "We ran by a dwarven monastery on our little trip the other day.  Found a bunch of stuff about a Dwarven god of toil...some kind of mystery-cult type thing.  You know anything about that?"

Dorak shows the emblem of the hammer and anvil of Torag painted on the surface of his shield. "The only God of toil I know is Torag, the Builder...except for his failed student, Droskar. What do ye want to know?
This message was last edited by the player at 16:51, Tue 20 Mar 2018.

"Basically...more of that." Arell admits, "Torag is the only Dwarf god I can name, so learning there's more than him is a bit of a surprise.  Is Drosker his only student or were there more?"

In reply to Nomerendal Tunespinner (msg # 682):

Eldrin said a bit more loudly, "Consider me sold. I will aid you both, as well as the rest of our allies in this endeavor. Now, I think it is time for my reverie. I have much to consider as I meditate."

He rose and bid the others good night and went to his room for his meditations.

Fidget to rises, See you in the morning cuz. with that she goes up stairs to get some sleep.