On the road again

Consulting a map, it seems your journey will be leading you back into familiar territory; the most direct route is the road leading southwest out of Freybourne, which passes through Corcoran before terminating at Dale-Town, which itself is not far from the heart of Lakewood Forest. This seems to please Varel, whereas Nibben is not at all eager to go anywhere back near the lair of the snake people. For his part, Salbadore requests a coach rather than traveling on foot, and Orthos is able to negotiate a reasonable fare for a one-way trip.

*****

The group departs Freybourne on a bright, auspicious morning with clear skies and a pleasant breeze. The driver estimates six days to Corcoran, and then four more to Dale-Town. Three days of travel pass uneventfully for the most part, though there are a few moments of tension when a wasp flies in through one of the carriage windows.

*****

The fourth morning’s ride begins under the pall of a light drizzle that lingers throughout the remainder of the day. As twilight approaches, the driver begins talk of stopping for the night to make camp when there is a sound of thunder in the distance. Is it a mundane storm, or a harbinger of something dire? The group decides to press on for now, hoping to put more distance between themselves and the source of their unease.

Two hooded figures suddenly leap out from behind a stray boulder on the side of the road, their weapons drawn, and shout, “Stop!” The driver, seeing that an arrow is pointed directly at him, reins the horses to a halt.

A third fellow, his face hidden by a helmet, floats around the boulder on a white disc of light and settles between the other two. All three have conspicuously pointed ears.

He speaks. “Greetings, travelers! Lovely evening for a storm, is it not? Your poor horses seem awfully fatigued; surely you don’t mind if we Elves do them the favor of lightening their load a bit? And lest you get any big ideas, I should warn you that six more of my people are hidden in the grass around you. So exit the carriage, if you please, and place your valuables on the ground.”

Beginning of rounds:

End of Round 1:

This one went to market

As eager as he is to learn more about his inheritance, Orthos agrees to wait a day to give his companions sufficient time to prepare for the journey ahead. Mercurio spends most of it sleeping off the night before, whereas Salbadore continues to pore over Flavius' Kreisbuch in solitude while considering which operations he should commit to memory.

Laurie is in search of new clothes and, hoping to cheer Varel up, insists that the young druidess accompany her, if only to give her opinion. Orthos decides that his purse could endure some lightening as well and volunteers to escort them to the various markets and bazaars about the city. Nibben tags along as too, excited to see just how much his new bag will hold.

Breakfast of champions

After they have risen and bathed, the adventurers reconvene in a courtyard garden for a breakfast of succulent fruits, fresh flavorful breads, sweet butter, and tender honeyed ham sliced so thinly that it almost dissolves on the tongue.

The hour is early, so the midsummer sun has not yet warmed the air to an uncomfortable degree. Songbirds twitter their morning madrigals; bees and butterflies go about their business from flower to flower, while one of the college's cooks hums softly to herself as she harvests some herbs.

The quiet, pastoral ease of the moment is suddenly spoiled by the appearance of Qroc, a jarring reminder of yestereve's various dramas.

"Good morning, assholes," he chirps. "What a pretty day! Wow, you all look like stir-fried shit. Long night, I guess." He grabs a roll of bread and shoves it in his mouth whole, but this does not keep him from saying unpleasant things as he chews noisily.

"Nice tattoo!" He quips to Laurie. "I have one just like it on my ass," he brags, showing her a full moon.

To Varel he says, "Oh, one of the maids almost got her face eaten off by that fuckin' wolf of yours this morning. You just gonna leave it locked in your room the whole time? No wonder it's pissed."