Episode 5 – Arrival
| The Assassins |
Argos - Rogue 1st level LE (NPC) Craven - Fighter/Rogue 1st/1st LE (PC) Keldirk - Rogue 1st level NE (PC) |
| Locale | The three assassins left Chathold a week ago and have been travelling North en route to Ring Roads where they are supposed to meet their next Family contact - Saradock (aka Vesper). They are riding with a merchant caravan as guards. |
| Date | 7th Fireseek 582 CY (Common Year) |
| Time | Mid-morning |
The land either side of the road was blanketed with snow, the recent sunny weather had done little to melt it save turn the road to slush. The wagon on which they rode was pulled by two large horses that sometimes struggled to haul the cart through the large mud patches. So far they had not been required to get off the cart and push, but if the road got much worse, that may become neccessary.
| Argos | I sure am glad we don’t have to sit up there in the wind (motioning towards the wagon driver) |
| Keldirk | Why? Are you afraid of the cold. |
| Argos | No, its just that I’m not used to it... after spending most of my life living on a tropical island, this weather takes a bit of getting used to. |
| Craven | I’ll say, my hands are so cold I doubt I could write... let alone do anything else. |
| Keldirk | I know what you mean... This journey seems to be lasting forever. I can’t wait to get into some action. The fight on the boat seems like ages ago and that was the last time we got to do anything but wait around. |
| Craven | (still angry at losing his fathers sword) I will never forget that trip. God I hate boats, they’re like floating prisons. |
| Argos | Poor Craven, scared of a little water. |
| Craven | It's not that I was scared... it's... it's just I didn’t feel in control. |
| Keldirk | My goodness, have we actually found a blemish in the perfect Craven. Could it be that he is afraid of water. |
| Argos | (smiles at his friend's expense) |
| Craven | (looking uneasy) Shut up! Both of you. Can we talk about something else? |
| Argos | Sure. Like what? |
| Keldirk | Like what we’re going to do when we get to Del Mord. |
| Craven | What do you mean "going to do"? |
| Keldirk | We have to do something... I sure as hell know I’m not going to spend any more time sitting around doing nothing. I need... constant stimulation. (smiles) |
| Craven | Maybe we could get work as bodyguards. |
| Argos | The way you can fight, maybe... but they’ll take one look at me and that will be the end of that. |
| Keldirk | I am planning on joining a thieves guild... I don’t really care what you two end up doing. But it seems to make the most sense to me. |
| Argos | (musing over Keldirk’s suggestion) Sounds like a plan, we’ll need to establish some contacts but I’m sure that won’t be hard. |
| Craven | Great... not only will we have to do work for the guild, but we risk getting in trouble with the law. |
| Keldirk | What?!? Do you think what we do is legal? |
| Craven | That’s not what I meant... If we are known by the authorities then that makes it that much more difficult to become a face in the crowd. And what if guild business gets in the way of Family business? |
| Keldirk | So do you plan on setting up a florist? (laughs) That sounds more your style... well it aint for me. As I said, I don’t care what you two do. |
| Driver | Hey, you three... time to earn your keep. Get out here and help get this wagon through this shit pile! |
The three jumped out of the wagon and assisted the horses in pulling the wagon through a particularly thick section of mud. After almost a quarter hour the wagon was finally clear and they were covered in mud and were even colder when their sweat cooled. They climbed back aboard the wagon and continued the week-long trip to Ring Roads.
The remainder of the journey passed without incident, several times they had to get the wagon out of a mud patch but on the whole they did little other than stay warm by the fire and wait. When they finally came upon Ring Roads, on the eve of the eighth day, they were relieved that another portion of their trip was behind them.
Ring Roads was less than spectacular. Looking around the area, the assassins saw more tent poles than tents giving the whole encampment a skeletal look. Keldirk figured there would be no more than four caravans here (including their own) and perhaps no more than thirty tents.
| Craven | Where is everybody? This was supposed to be a trading town? |
| Keldirk | It's winter, only fools and their horses travel the roads in winter. |
| Argos | And us. |
They asked their caravan master for directions to the tent of the spice merchant Saradock and proceeded directly there after collecting their pay.
As the trio arrived a man was just leaving, he looked up at the three strangers.
| Man | (tying his tent flap shut) Can I help you? |
| Craven | We were told that this is the merchant Saradock’s tent. |
| Man | Yes, that is correct. |
| Craven | We have come to speak with him, regarding a business matter. |
| Man | Well, business is normally conducted during daylight hours. (eyes narrowing) Who sent you? |
| Argos | A man in Chathold called Don Lombard. |
| Man | I see... I am on my way to the common tent. You are most welcome to join me. I am Saradock, you must be Craven (looking at Craven), you're Argos (looking at Argos) and you are Keldirk (looking at Keldirk), is that right? |
| Keldirk | (nods) I prefer to be called Val Rorn. |
| Saradock | Very well, now lets get some warm food and a few ales. |
| Craven | Excuse me, Saradock. Are there any women here? |
| Saradock | If you mean whores then the answer is yes. Let’s get some food first, I’ll give you directions to the women later. |
| Craven | Sounds good to me. |
Saradock finished closing his tent, turned and began to walk down one of the many paths between the tents which made up Ring Roads. As he headed off he raised his hand and waved back to his tent and two figures stepped out from behind, armed with loaded crossbows.
| Saradock | These two have been hired to protect me should there be any trouble. One can never be too careful, a successful merchant like me has many envious rivals. You never know when an assassin might sneak up on you in the dead of night... |
They proceeded on to the common tent where Saradock ordered them a fine meal. It was a pleasant change from the trail rations they had been eating almost exclusively since leaving the island. They talked over dinner about various topics, relating the story of the pirate attack and how they had lost most of their belongings. Argos mentioned that he had lost his crossbow and Saradock assured him that he would be given one in due course.
Craven was directed to the local prostitutes and the others went back to Saradock's private quarters. Once there Argos went to sleep while Keldirk and Saradock stayed up drinking and talking.
The following morning Craven arrived at Saradock's tent before the others had woken. As he approached the tent he was confronted by Saradock's two guards.
| Man #1 | What's your business? |
| Craven | I am here to see Saradock... I was with him last evening. |
| Man #2 | We weren't told to let anyone in so I guess you are going to have to wait. |
| Craven | What are your names? |
| Man #2 | What's it to you? |
| Craven | I like to know the names of those I... talk to |
| Man #1 | I'm Gratten and he's Harf (pointing to the other man) |
| Craven | Well met Gratten, Harf. |
| Saradock | (opening the door to his tent) I thought I heard talking out here. Good Morning Craven. I trust you had a pleasant night? |
| Craven | Yes, although the women here didn't seem quite as enthusiatic as some of those I met in Chathold. |
| Saradock | (chuckles) Fear not... you will be in better hands once we reach Del Mord. Wake your companions, we will be leaving in a short while. |
Saradock picked up some of his gear and went outside, calling for Harf and Gratten to follow. Craven went first to his provisions pulling out a loaf of stale bread before waking Argos and Keldirk.
| Keldirk | (yawns - rubbing his head) What day is it? |
| Craven | Had a little too much to drink last night, eh? |
| Keldirk | (scowls) You could say that... |
| Argos | Are we leaving today? |
| Craven | Yes, Saradock has gone to organise his crew and he told me to wake you guys. We will be leaving shortly. So I guess we wait here until it's time to leave. |
| Keldirk | (stretching and collecting his things) Saradock said that we could replace any of our lost equipment from his supply stores. I don't really have anything I need to replace except to maybe pick up a few more throwing knives. |
| Craven | I can never replace what I lost... but I could do with another rapier. |
| Keldirk | They're not likely to have one of your knitting needles among his equipment. Real fighters prefer weapons with a bit of meat behind them. |
| Craven | (ignoring Keldirk and turning to Argos) Are you getting another crossbow? |
| Argos | If they have any... I feel naked without one. |
After a several minutes they were ready and Saradock returned.
| Saradock | The caravan is almost ready. Follow me to the supply wagon and after my tent is taken down we will leave. |
Outside, several men with tools and bags were waiting to dismantle Saradock's tent. They walked down three rows of tents before coming to several wagons. Saradock pointed one out to them telling them they could take whatever they required.
Two days from Ring Roads the caravan was stopped as several bolts thudded into the ground around the wagons. A lone figure stepped out onto the road and addressed the caravan.
| Bandit | You have been stopped by the Ring Road Raiders. Lay down your arms, leave your wagons and you will be permitted to live. If you choose to resist you will surely - |
His words were dramatically stopped as a crossbow bolt entered his mouth and emerged out the back of his head. He remained standing for several moments before he collapsed to the ground, blood pouring from the horrific wound.
| Argos | (lowering his crossbow) Just like shooting Wamp-Rats back home... |
| Keldirk | (draws his throwing knives and scans the surrounding trees for potential targets) |
| Craven | (draws his sabre and waits by the wagon for return fire) |
| Gratten | (loads his crossbow and waits for a bandit to come into view) |
| Harf | (draws his sword and waits) |
After several tense minutes of waiting, no retaliation was forthcoming. Harf, Craven and two other guards went into the forest to see what was going on. After a brief search they discovered five crossbows with string tied to their triggers allowing them to be fired simultaneously. There were no other bandits and it seemed as though the Ring Road Raiders consisted of just one man.
| Keldirk | That was one hell of a shot. |
| Argos | (smiles) I hate losing my weapons... |
| Keldirk | (obviously impressed) I hope I never end up in your sights. |
| Argos | I don't think there's much chance of that. |
| Craven | (to himself) Unfortunately. |
It was at that time that Saradock approached them his face was red and his mood was not good.
| Saradock | Who the hell gave you permission to decide the fate of MY caravan! |
| Argos | I evaluated the situation and made a decision; it was a judgement call. |
| Keldirk | It worked out fine in the end.. so what's the big deal? |
| Saradock | (glaring at Keldirk before returning his gaze to Argos) In many things you will be left alone to decide your actions. But when it comes to my caravan the only person with authority in that area is me. Is that clear!? |
| Argos | Perfectly. |
| Saradock | Good. I hope you show as much initiative when you are working. |
The remainder of the journey to Del Mord was uneventful. Gratten and Harf spent some time playing dice with Keldirk and talking with the others. When the caravan arrived at Del Mord the two mercenaries announced that they were continuing on to Tusk.
On the morning of the twenty first Day of Fireseek, almost three months since they had left the Olman Islands, the trio arrived in the city which they would call home for the next several months. Here they would be required to forge lives for themselves and here they would begin doing the work for which they had been trained. At last the travelling was over and their new lives could begin...
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| Italic Text | Character's thoughts or actions if surrounded by parenthesis |
| Bold Text | Character is shouting. |