IC - [D&D 5E] Candlekeep Mysteries

[Ramsus]

Lady Runa of House Ouss’viir Half-Orc Bard AC: 15 HP: 10/10 PP: 11 PIv: 10 PIs: 13 Conditions: -- Concentration: -- Before going to sleep last night, Runa had opened her window and let her animal friends inside. Except for Melody who didn't feel like attempting to scale the building. They were in the middle of dressing her when Kynos knocked on the door to let her know they were leaving already. She gave a somewhat startled, "I'll just be a moment!" in reply, given she hadn't expected an interruption so early and was a bit flustered at it coming while she was in a state of undress. After she was dressed she told her friends, "Well, you best find this merchant and sneak your way aboard his cart before we head out I suppose." and opens the window again for them all to leave. The crows of course knew this didn't apply to them as they'd have no trouble keeping up with a mere horse. Then she went downstairs to meet the others.

[Archemist]

Patricia rises early, which is good because somehow she's still only just coming down the stairs at the last minute as folks are getting ready to go. She looks pretty flawless though. "Stars, I can't believe we're on the last leg of the journey already!" She seems to be in a good mood about it.

She introduces herself to the merchant without using any grand titles. She inspects the merchant's wagon with some squinting but hops on with her staff and bag nonetheless.

[Pyrophilios]

"It seems we are in luck to find transport so fast," Kynos announced when the companions had assembled and in reply to Patricia. "There's a nice assortment foods here to keep us fed and happy along the trail, but we'll likely want to also hunt a bit when we make camp. So if any one of you is a deft hand at hunting, I'll welcome you to join me then."

[munimortal]

As you assemble outside, you get a view of cart that will take you towards Candlekeep, and your new traveling companion. The cart is in an advanced state of decay being pulled by an equally distraught looking grey and brown plow horse. The cart has a single crate on the back, secured with an inordinate amount of straps. Cinching the last one, is perhaps the oldest dwarf you have ever seen. Frail and thin with a sea of wrinkles on the the half of his face not covered by a white beard over two feet long.

As the four of you approach, the dwarf give you a once over visually, grunts something under his breath, then with no further ceremony, hops onto the driving bench of the cart.

[Archemist]

The cart has a single crate on the back, secured with an inordinate amount of straps. Cinching the last one, is perhaps the oldest dwarf you have ever seen.

If there's room on the back, Patricia sits on the tailgate or thereabouts. Curious about the crate, Patricia gives it a once-over after the cart is in motion. She pulls out some chalk and doodles on the floor of the cart. She's making some odd symbol, maybe? She's got plenty of time, given the speed of the cart, and she mumbles to herself a bit while drawing.

After fifteen minutes or so she self-consciously rubs away most of the markings.

Spoiler: OOC

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Folks are welcome to just ask the merchant, "hey what's in the crate?" but Patricia is also sneakily casting Detect Magic as a ritual looking forwards on the crate and merchant.

[munimortal]

Spoiler: Patricia OOC

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Can I get a stealth roll?

[Pyrophilios]

Kynos didn't hesitate to sit next to the dwarf, greeting him friendly:
"Good of you to take us with you. If I may be so bold, what are you transporting? It seems valuable enough to be transported stand alone. Do we have to consider any special rules while we are near it?"

[munimortal]

The cart begins to move before you are all fully on board, and you have to scramble to hop on the moving vehicle. The quaint little town of Fenrir's Rest disappears into the fog behind you. The cart plods along at a slightly below average speed, which is still quite good considering its age and the age of the horse. Lady Runa's animals hide amongst the spare hay and blankets in the cart. Patricia begins scrawling some arcane symbols and chanting silently to herself, which with the noise of the cart goes unnoticed by the driver.

He does notice the large dragonborn attempting to get his attention. Kynos gives his introduction speech, but all he receives in return is a noncommittal shrug. After a few minutes of silence, the dwarf starts humming a song, he has a low baritone voice which makes the tune sound even more somber than it already did. The road stretches on, the fog giving way, and after an hour the road reconnects with the Coast Way, and the path heads South towards Candlekeep.

Spoiler: Detect magic

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Mara's detect magic spell reveals faint necromancy magic coming from inside the box.

[Ramsus]

Lady Runa of House Ouss’viir Half-Orc Bard AC: 15 HP: 10/10 PP: 11 PIv: 10 PIs: 13 Conditions: -- Concentration: -- Runa was just about to ask if the dwarf minded if she played something when he began humming himself, so instead she just matched his tune on her lute. ((If she knows the song, she actually sings along and of course probably plays it better than trying to match it off listening to him.)) Spoiler Show History for knowing the song: (1d20+2)[20] Performance just cuz: (1d20+6)[19]

[Archemist]

Runa was just about to ask if the dwarf minded if she played something when he began humming himself, so instead she just matched his tune on her lute.

Patricia appreciates the song and swings her legs as they dangle off the tailgate, in time to the music. She seems lost in thought for the moment, gazing off into the stony fields as they pass by.

[Dimers]

The driver seeming taciturn even for a dwarf catches Eleazar by surprise at a few different moments. When he all but ignores Kynos and goes to humming a dirge instead of answering, Eleazar stares for a moment, then starts shaking his head and chuckling. I haven't been the most verbose traveler myself, he thinks, but this fellow is in another class entirely. Are there competitions for reticence?

[munimortal]

Spoiler: Runa Knowledge Check

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You recognize the song, its is a fairly well known dwarven funeral song, normally performed without lyrics, but you know the lyrics tell the story of a love that lasted three hundred years.

As Lady Runa begins to play and sing, all of you can see the driver startle suddenly. He never turns, but as Runa continues to play this heartbreakingly sad song you can see the small dwarf begin to sob silently. The hours pass by on the road, occasional travelers pass by you, going in the opposite direction, and a few horseback riders ride past you on their way to destinations further south. Evening time closes in, your driver finds a suitable place to pull off the road and set up camp. After the the animal is fed and watered, and dinner is prepared for the night. The old dwarf goes to retire in the back of the cart, but turns back and says in faltering common, "I can take you directly to Candlekeep if you want, It will save you a few hours. Let me know in the morning" And then he goes to bed.

[Pyrophilios]

A bit taken aback by being so blatantly ignored, Kynos stopped his attempts at an conversation. The moving song had him frown before averting his eyes, a bit ashamed for being afronted earlier. 'You never know what other people have gone through. Judge not, lest you be judged.' He thought to himself.

When camp had been made, he got up: "I'll try my hand a bit at hunting - anyone wants to join me?" He raised the hand holding one of his throwing spears.

[Ramsus]

Lady Runa of House Ouss’viir Half-Orc Bard AC: 15 HP: 10/10 PP: 11 PIv: 10 PIs: 13 Conditions: -- Concentration: -- The mood of the song fit Runa's feelings quite well, so she'd had no trouble performing. She was glad it was what someone else had wanted to hear as well. When the dwarf goes to sleep she wishes him goodnight. To Kynos she says, "I will probably just retire for the evening after I eat, but I'm sure Melody would love to accompany you." At her name being mentioned, Melody (a coyote) walks out of the shadows somewhere and comes over to get some pets. "He wants to hunt with you." Runa tells Melody, and gets a little yip of agreement/understanding in reply and then the coyote turns to look at Kynos, waiting for him to do something.

[Archemist]

Similarly, Patricia speaks the name of her familiar and with a Bamph! it appears. The hawk takes off and begins a quick climb, while Patricia says to Kynos, "Toothless will also assist you. He's used to bringing me food."

Later, it turns out campfire cooking isn't really her thing, but she waves her hands over the pot of stew and it tastes like a nice spicy jambalaya.

Spoiler: OOC

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Once the hawk is airborne, Mara will also ask it telepathically to do a quick reconnoiter for other creatures or people in the area, while it's out and about.

[munimortal]

Before night falls, Melody and Kynos enter the nearby thicket of trees to do some hunting as Toothless flys into the sky.

Spoiler: Kynos OOC

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Roll Survival to find some game, with advantage from Melody's help. Go ahead and just roll play your results. I am sure even with a relatively low score you could find a rabbit, but a big one could land a prize winning buck.

Spoiler: Patricia OOC

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Toothless surveys the surrounding area. There are a few other encampments close to the road and numerous small animals in the forest and hills nearby. Nothing particularly noteworthy.

[Dimers]

Eleazar takes up Kynos's offer. "Yes, I'll go with. Mostly in case of trouble -- I'm no master hunter But who knows, I might have a lucky throw. Lead the way."

When Melody appears, the young half-elf is surprised, saying nothing and seeming a little out of his element. He gives Runa a look of respect before the trio slide into the night.

[Archemist]

Spoiler: OOC - Survival

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(1d20+2)[11] because Mara's hawk is way better at this than she is, at least.

Patricia tells Toothless, "A rabbit or something would be perfect for the stew," and sets him loose for a while. It takes him a while, but the dusk light has brought a couple rabbits out to graze and Toothless does bring a small one back.

Gingerly holding the rabbit by a paw, Patricia hands it over to Eleazar and Kynos when they return, saying, "Usually I just give the hawk a couple coins and a note to have him carry me back a sandwich or something from town. Hopefully you can help with the preparation for... this."

[Pyrophilios]

Eleazar takes up Kynos's offer. "Yes, I'll go with. Mostly in case of trouble -- I'm no master hunter But who knows, I might have a lucky throw. Lead the way."

"Neither am I", Kynos smiled back, "But there is usually something to be gained - even if it's just a bit of exercise."

Spoiler

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Survival
(1d20)[7]/(1d20)[12]+1

As expected, the two half elves did not come across any particularly large or impressive trophies, but with the help of the coyote and a well placed throwing spear, they managed to catch a hare and a particularly inattentive partridge.
When Patricia presented them the falcon-caught rabbit he laughed: "Ah yes, a sandwich would be welcome as well - unfortunately the common sandwich is still in hibernation out here. I'll take care of dressing - maybe you can get a pot of water going in the meantime for a rabbit stew. The partridge will be an excellent roast."

Without delay, Kynos began stringing the rabbits up, so he could remove their fur and skin as well as their innards. A bloody job, but a necessary one. Plucking the partridge was a much more time consuming task - hindered by the fact, that Kynos wasn't particularly dexterous, but more likely to rip out more than feathers through brute strength.

When they finally got to enjoy the meal - the taste enhanced by magic - he felt bone tired: "That was really good - the bread from the inn and the fresh meat. I'll retire now - wake me when it's time for my part of the watch."

[Ramsus]

Lady Runa of House Ouss’viir Half-Orc Bard AC: 15 HP: 10/10 PP: 11 PIv: 10 PIs: 13 Conditions: -- Concentration: -- Runa chuckled at Kynos' joke, her own animal companions being closer to civilized life than most making the joke hit home a bit more with her. While the others were gone hunting Runa beckoned her other companions over, the raccoons, the crows, the moths, and the fireflies. Mainly just to catch up with them and make their presence known to her new companions. Not everyone was a fan of these particular animals or insects afterall. When the hunting party returned she let them know it was probably a good time to go get food for themselves and they all flew and scurried off. "If Patricia is handling the stew, then I will take care of the roast pheasant." she offered, in a way that was rather more like a statement of fact. In truth she wanted to take the opportunity to continue improving her skill. She'd had food preparation handled for her most of her life and only after being married had felt reason to begin learning. Continuing to do so was a small way of holding onto her time with him, and it was a good skill to have if she was going to be traveling anyway. "I won't object to any guidance if you have it though." she added to Patricia (though basically to anyone else as well).

[munimortal]

The night provides numerous small sounds. The crackling of the fire as it dies, the sounds of animals in the nearby woods and the occasional sounds of wagon wheels on the road lull you to sleep. The temperature falls significantly overnight, and dew forms over your tents and several brief sprinkles threaten to turn your campsite into a mud pit, but the downpour never comes. The night passes with no surprises, and the morning greets you as clear but cool.

Your traveling companion rises early, and begins taking down his encampment. Before the sun has fully risen he is wordlessly rekindling the fire and preparing a breakfast from the previous nights leftovers.

[Pyrophilios]

Kynos, having taken the middle watch, was far from rested completely, but the smell of breakfast got him awake soon enough. After performing his ablutions, putting on his armor again was a noisy enough affair to make sure everyone was awake, including the countryside. Having resigned to not getting any conversation from the dwarf, he greeted his travelling companions with a smile:
"Good morning to you all. I hope you rested well?
Time we get going - living rough is still something I haven't gotten used to." He moved his head left and right to get a twinging muscle going again.
"Does anyone of you know how much of the way we have still ahead of us?"

[Dimers]

Eleazar shakes his head. "No, I haven't seen a decent map since the day before leaving Silverymoon. As the bards say, you don't know what you have until it's gone ..." He smiles ruefully.

[Archemist]

Patricia says, "Well, Toothless can keep an eye out from above. I've heard Candlekeep looks like a big birthday cake so hopefully it'll be hard to miss. But," she adds, giving the horse a pat on the side, "I think we will get there when we get there, eh?"

[Ramsus]

Lady Runa of House Ouss’viir Half-Orc Bard AC: 15 HP: 10/10 PP: 11 PIv: 10 PIs: 13 Conditions: -- Concentration: -- "If I remember my maps correctly, we should arrive.... some time tomorrow at the pace we're going I believe." Runa answers, not entirely sure about that, which is why she didn't try to estimate in hours. "I could tell you how long it is as the crow flies, but I don't think that would be very helpful." Runa jests, giving a pointed look at her crows.

[munimortal]

Once everyone has packed up the cart, the elderly dwarf waits for everyone to hop aboard and then sets off to rejoin the road heading south. The weather looks threatening, but no more than brief sprinkles ever fall. The road is just as busy as the day before, and the miles fall by the wayside as the day progresses.

[Pyrophilios]

"Thanks, seems like we'll spend another night outside. Can't be helped. Alright then lets get going."
Kynos gave himself more cheerful than he felt. The distraction of his new companions had helped turn his mind off the loss of his horse for a while, but the morose dwarf and the monotonous ride gave him far to much time to think about what the abbot would have to say about that. His first real, independent mission - and he had managed to nearly botch it on the first day. "No good. I've got to step up." he murmured to himself, motivating himself to keep extra attention on his surroundings, so they wouldn't fall prey to another attack.

[Ramsus]

Lady Runa of House Ouss’viir Half-Orc Bard AC: 15 HP: 10/10 PP: 11 PIv: 10 PIs: 13 Conditions: -- Concentration: -- Rona, noticing that Kynos was a bit upset about something but not picking up that he didn't want distractions, at some point asks him, "So Kynos. It has been a while since we've seen each other and it seems quite a lot has transpired in that time. If I understand you've joined a knightly order? If you don't mind sharing, I'd enjoy you catching me up on events so I could know you better." As she speaks she gives him a gentle smile, knowing that his life was likely no less hard than hers.

[Pyrophilios]

Kynos laughed ruefully. "How long has it been? Three years? Well, you know how I took part in that tournament, but there was that... disagreement? As it turned out, there was a member of the Order of the Watchers in the ranks. When the dust had settled, he came to me and set my fingers right. Asked me what I thought about my future. Wasn't the best moment all in all, but we got talking about duty and expectations. Considering my status it seemed like a pretty good idea to join as a novice. The order isn't particularly strict and there is a lot of chance for promotion, what with the high rate of casualties for anyone fighting the forces of hell and beyond. Sounded quite good to me at that moment. My father was reluctant, but his wife supported me for once.
So long story short, I was admited to the order. Lot's of book learning, lectures and weapons training. I had had my training as a squire already, so I was able to skip most of the noviciat. Now I'm an aspirant and allowed to go on solo ventures - mostly messaging duties. But it beats being stuck indoors all day. Candlekeep is my first solo assignment. So I really have to get this right."

[Ramsus]

Lady Runa of House Ouss’viir Half-Orc Bard AC: 15 HP: 10/10 PP: 11 PIv: 10 PIs: 13 Conditions: -- Concentration: -- Rona gives Kynos a more warm smile at this, clearly pleased for him, "Well I'm glad to hear something good came out of that. And that your situation has improved. I'll do whatever I can to help you... whatever help I can be I suppose." and then just shrugs at that as she's not entirely sure if she can help in any way.