12/11/2010

Players: Kathi, JC, Chris
Characters: DM & Salaisee, Elendil & Jolley, Billi

[21st Mirtul, 1373 D.R. before noon on the outskirts of Auvandell (Silver Marches Weather Bureau reports the day will be cloudy, cool, with an 80% chance of rain by noon.)]

We come down out of the hills to see the valley and Auvandell spread out below us. We ride up to the farm house the dwarf, Rumple Barley, told us about to ask if indeed this is Auvandell.

We get a crude brush off from the woman who answers the door. We head on into town and first past the shrine and tomb of the paladin, Shaunnra Stillhand. We want to go inside to show our respect but the outdoor is locked. Continuing on, we walk around the large temple that sits in the center of the village and see the inn on the other side. The townspeople seem skittish and some hurry into the temple.

Soon a young woman dressed in dark robes comes out of the temple and approaches us asking us for an audience with her high priestess, Andress. She leads us to the stables at the inn and calls inside for the proprietor, Okrosh, who helps us get the horses stabled and our rooms booked. When we follow her to the temple, we discover that the rain has started and that the way into the temple is lined with villagers waiting patiently in the rain.

The priestess asks us to participate in the funeral rites for Shaunnra and we accept this request. Elendil, then Salaisee, then the priestess say a benediction after which the townspeople pay their final respects to the paladin. Afterward, the townspeople gather to shake our hands and say their quiet thanks for our rescue of her spirit.

We then head back to the inn and have a hearty lunch of roast beef, spring greens, red potatoes and fresh bread. Afterward, Billi goes out to see the sites of the town and winds up at the farmhouse where he discovers not only the hostile farm owners but a barn full of orcs.

Elendil, Jolley and Salaisee finish their lunch and are disheartened to discover the only inn has bitter beer. They head out to investigate the town with the hope that someone somewhere has better. They are fortunate to find the greengrocer has two table casks of beer from Sundabar and Jolley buys them both.

Meanwhile back at the farm, Billi is attacked by the farmers and the orcs. He turns invisible and escapes, running all the way back to the inn. He bursts into the inn only to find Okrosh and his nephew, Mikiti, discussing what they should do to inform Glaster about the presence of the adventurers who defeated the devourer. Billi had forgotten he was invisible when he burst in but realizes this quickly and lets them believe the wind had somehow blown the door open.

He listens for a while and them follows Mikiti into the kitchen and down through a secret trapdoor in the floor. The ladder ends in a dark hallway with a woman on guard. She lets Mikiti past and Billi, now visible again, manages to slip past her to the second ladder that leads further down into a rough cavern. He continues to follow the lad into a man-made hallway but stops when the lad encounters two more guards further past an underground stream.

He turns back, narrowly avoids being discovered coming up out of the secret door by Okrosh. After the man goes into another room between the kitchen and the stables, Billi climbs out of the tunnel and almost runs into Elendil, Salaisee and Jolley who are just entering the inn with Jolley’s beer.

Billi drags his friends back outside in the rain and explains everything that has happened. The group returns to our rooms to check the equipment after checking on the horses. Our belongings have been investigated though nothing appears to have been taken. As we are searching, Elendil notices a peep hole in the back wall of his and Salaisee’s room. Billi also notices a peep hole in his and Jolley’s room and their peep hole has an eye watching their movements.

Billi warns us about the watcher and we decide to go to the High Priestess. She seems to disbelieve us but gives us permission to find out what is going on with the stipulation that we attempt to bring in any townsfolk involved so they may receive a fair trial. She also gives us three potions of Cure Moderate Wounds and an acolyte to accompany us.

When we return to the inn, the owner and his nephew are nowhere to be found, so we head down the ladders. The corridor between the first ladder and the second is now empty and we realize that this corridor has the peep holes into our rooms. We find no one on our way through the rough cavern or in the worked hallway until we cross the plank bridge across the underground stream. Arrows come whizzing out at us from the opening beyond.

Salaisee tumbles into the stream in her attempt to cross but the acolyte and Elendil help her out and back across. Once we enter the wider corridor beyond we find a large group of humans ready for us. Some fire arrows and cross bows while others attack with melee weapons or spells.

The underground stream crosses through this wider corridor as well and one of the brigands is on the far side. By the time we have defeated all those on this side of the stream, he has disappeared into one of the doorways on the far side.

End of session.

Next sessions: 1/1/2011