Castleford – (27th November 2013)
The Adventurers
Bow – Ranger
Hallan – Fighter (RIP)
Johan - Cleric
Paulix – Thief
Vox – Magic User
Spugnoir – Magic User (NPC)
Leaving Staneford - Sunday 14th Quattrober
(Day 19)
Grey clouds scudded across the leaden skies whilst the heavens
let loose a torrent of liquid torment upon all who travailed beneath. The
companions collected the body of their friend from the druid Jaroo from beneath
the trees that stood like sentinels within his grove. The rain quickly soaked
through the linen covering the corpse as the party loaded Hallan’s body onto
the warhorse. The herbs and liniments that Jaroo had pasted upon the fighter
kept most of the stench of decay at bay, but the horse still shied a little
when the load was settled upon his broad back.
The adventurers trudged for hours along the rutted road that
was rapidly turning into a quagmire beneath their feet. The incessant rain bore
down on their shoulders and sunk their spirits as each drop weighed ever more
heavily upon their consciences.
As the skies darkened further into evening the lights of an
inn shone through the gloom. A warm fire, a wholesome meal, and a dry mead
bench welcomed them to a restful night’s stay. The inn was as full as the
weather was dreadful, but no trouble brewed within the ale house that night as
all the patrons kept to their own.
Fleeced in Nulb - Moonday 15th Quattrober (Day
20)
The following morning dawned dark and dreary again. The
fellowship gathered their belongings and loaded the now very pungent body of
their companion onto the warhorse.
The short journey to the village of Nulb took only a few
hours so the party decided that they would pass straight through and try to
gain Castleford that same day. The sight of greasy smoke rising from the
chimneys of dilapidated ramshackle buildings reinforced their view that they
should hurry on through this veritable den of ne’er-do-wells.
As they approached the river crossing, the small hovel at
the side of the bridge showed signs of life. Two guardsmen sauntered out of the
hut and asked their business in Nulb. The party replied that they were just
passing through to deliver their companion into the care of the gods. The
guards sneered and said that they would need to pay the toll on any goods they
were to carry through the village. The party looked confused until the warhorse
was pointed out to them by the men-at-arms with avaricious eyes. As the party
started to argue that the horse belonged to their dead companion the guards
summoned the rest of their band from within the hovel.
The argument carried on with the guardsmen demanding twenty
gold pieces for the party to pass or they could try their luck with the bandits
in the wilderness; bridges cost a lot to maintain you know?
Bow was just beginning to get angry and itching for a fight
when the guards rang the warning bell to summon their commander from within the
village. A few moments later, a battle-scarred veteran and twenty ill-visaged companions
approached the party from a large building within the village. The captain
demanded to know what was happening and he was told that the party did not want
to pay the toll until they were told the proper cost. The captain weighed up
the party and said that the toll would be ten gold pieces. The party were about
to argue that the original guards wanted twenty gold coins when Johan handed
over a pouch of coins and said to his companions to just leave the trouble
behind. The captain let them pass across the bridge but followed the party at a
short distance until they had left the confines of the village to the east. Then
he laughed at his good fortune in being able to fleece rich travellers so
easily.
Wolf Attack – late
afternoon
As the party approached to within an hour’s journey of
Castleford, Bow’s ranger senses warned him of danger. He had picked up the
sounds of pursuit from a mile or so back and warned the party to be ready for
an attack. The wolves, driven by hunger and attracted by the smell of Hallan’s
corpse, burst from the undergrowth and made straight for the warhorse.
The companions readied their weapons and chose their
targets, but other than Bow, the wolves were faster. The alpha male and two
others made for the warhorse and its burden whilst the rest leapt upon the
other members of the party.
One of the wolves and the alpha male were injured in the
first few moments of the foray, but several other members of the pack managed
to pull Hallan’s corpse from the back of the horse. They pulled the linen
covered cadaver a few yards away from the warhorse as it shied away in fear,
but they were stopped in their tracks by the Sleep spells cast by Spugnoir. The
rest of the adventurers managed to kill one of the remaining un-Slept wolves
and the final one ran away.
The party quickly dispatched the sleeping wolves and Bow
skinned them for later use. They recovered Hallan’s corpse and re-wrapped it in
the linen shroud before they continued on their journey.
Arrival in Castleford – early evening
Castleford - First Draft
As the party broke through the final confines of The Gnarley
they espied a great wonder; great grey stone walls surrounded the largest
inhabitation they had ever seen (with the exception of Spugnoir who came from
this town). Blue-grey smoke rose from scores of stone chimneys and the rain-soaked
slate and wood roof tiles glistened in the early evening light. Several stone towers
stood sentinel over great iron-bound wooden gates, and siege engines manned by dozens
of well-armed warriors bristled above the crenellations. In the distance they
also espied a huge stone fortress that brooded over the whole town.
As the party passed through the town gates, they were halted
and briefly questioned as to their business in Castleford. After they had told
the guards the nature of their visit and showed them the letters of
commendation from Lord Burne the guards quickly waved them through, only for
Bow to briefly stop and ask for the best place to get wolf-pelts cured and the
best inn in town.
The party took the advice of the guards and booked
themselves into some very fine rooms in the largest building they had ever visited;
The Tale Hanger’s Inn.
After the brief exchange of coin for the rooms and stabling
for the war horse, the party split up to carry out their tasks. Bow headed into
the Artisans’ Quarter to see if he could get the wolf-pelts made into warm
cloaks to keep the incessant rain out, whilst Spugnoir relaxed in his newly
booked room. Vox, Paulix and Johan led the war horse and its burden up the
steep incline towards the great golden-domed tower of the largest temple
devoted to Sol Invictus they had seen on their travels. They passed by The
Wynde when they travelled along the Market Place, and were followed by a small
gang of young scallywags until they came within sight of the tower guards who
scowled at the youths. Johan threw them a handful of coins and the children
fought amongst themselves for the treasure.
The evening prayer session was in full flow at the temple of
Sol Invictus when they arrived, but not wanting to enter a church whilst a
service was being performed, the party decided to wait until it had ended
before they approached the High Priest Ralph. They presented him with the
letter of commendation from Lord Burne and he read it with interest. He then
said that he could perform the service they required but it would cost them
just a little less than 6,000 silver pieces. The party said that they just
needed to exchange some goods and would pay him when the service had been
conducted. The High Priest scratched his chin and said that it would take a lot
of preparation to conduct the ceremony so he would like some kind of surety as
to their trustworthiness. Paulix offered up the jewel hilted dagger found in
the snake room of the moat house and the High Priests eyes shone with avarice.
Yes, that would do nicely as surety. He suggested that they were to return at
noon the day after tomorrow when he would carry out the incantations, but they
would need to leave the body so that it could be prepared. He mentioned that
the spell was not always successful; the longer the body has been left, then
the further on its journey to the afterlife it will have travelled. They
returned to the inn where they stabled the horse and cleaned themselves up for
the evening’s entertainment.
Bow meanwhile had found a trustworthy tanner and furrier who
would help him carry out the work on the pelts the next day for a reasonable
fee. The ranger knew that he would have an hour or so left before his
companions finished their business at the Temple, so he drank his way through
several small taverns on his way back to the Tale Hanger’s Inn. On his journey
he discovered that there were five or six temples dedicated to Sol Invictus
(including the great one on the hill in the Upper Quarter which his companions
had gone to), a couple dedicated to the Old Faith (one each to Thunor and
Woden), and one to a foreign deity called Ishtar. He also found out where the
Merchant’s Quarter was as well as a little on how the town worked.
Bert and Ernie - Tirsday 16th Quattrober (Day 21)
After a night of unabashed luxury, intoxication and
entertainment the party rose to a fine and hearty breakfast. Bow made his way
to the Artisan’s Quarter to begin working on the pelts whilst the rest of the
party headed out to sell the war horse in order to raise the money for Hallan
to be brought back from the land of the dead.
A few copper coins placed in the palms of a couple of small
scallies from The Wynde that dogged their every step got them delivered to the
door of one of the merchants that they had rescued from the Moat House. Robert
welcomed them into his elegant home and bade them be seated whilst he plied the
party with fine wines and dainties. He also handed over a pouch containing one
hundred silver coins and again offered his heartfelt thanks for his rescue. The
party asked what type of business he was in and he mentioned that he dealt in
fine linens and cloths. They then asked if he knew of anyone who dealt in fine
horses, and they were pleased to hear that the other merchant that they had
rescued, Ernest, was a dealer in fine horse flesh. Robert asked whether they
would like to join him tomorrow evening for a proper feast in their honour and
they accepted with glee.
They were ushered out of Robert’s mansion at just the right
point of politeness and given directions to Ernest’s abode. The party knocked
on the gates of an even more opulent house than Robert’s. The companions were
again greeted very warmly and offered all the dainties and fine wines they
cared to sample. They were given a second pouch containing one hundred silver
coins as reward and asked if they would join him for a proper meal to celebrate.
They mentioned Robert’s invite and they all agreed to meet at his mansion for
the celebratory meal.
The conversation then turned to business and Paulix asked if
he could take a look at their war horse and whether he would consider
purchasing it. He said that he would send a few of his men down to the inn
around lunch time to check the horse over.
At lunchtime, three men approached the party in the main
common room of the Tale Hanger’s Inn. They asked to see the war horse for sale,
so the companions showed Ernest’s men the beast and allowed them to take it for
a run outside the East Gate. The three horsemen came back and said that they
would give their honest opinions to their master.
An hour later, a page approached the party in their snug at
the inn. They were invited up to Ernest’s mansion to hear what kind of deal he could
offer them. They were again welcomed into the opulent reception room and Ernest
came straight to the point. He said the fine war horse was worth 7,000 silver
coins but he would offer them 6,000 as he would need to make a little profit on
the destrier as well as pay for it to be ‘finished’ in readiness for sale. The
party agreed to the price but said they would prefer not to have to carry it
all in coin. They settled on a note of credit made payable to the Temple to the
value of the incantation and the rest in gold coins. Ernest agreed to this and
got the document drafted.
The party bade their host farewell
and promised to see him the following night at Robert’s manse. They then made
their way towards the Tale Hanger’s to meet with Bow and Spugnoir.
There were still a couple of hours
to kill before they decided to turn in for the night, so Vox and Spugnoir
decided to head out to the Artisan’s Quarter to see if they could pay for some
magical tuition. They made a few enquiries and eventually found a willing
Thaumaturge who would teach them a new spell for a small fee. They asked what
spells were available and they both settled upon an incantation that would
protect them from evil beings. Happy with their evening’s tuition they reported
back to the inn just as Bow finished his long day’s toil in the tanner’s yard.
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