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[howandwhy99]

Ormand went back to the stables for another long night alone. Living in the stables had grown on him ever since he learned of the adjoining inn, however. Near the rear door he discovered some of the stablehands. Talking to them, he learned they had overseen Pax’s death. “Yeah,” said one, “me and my friends watched as the straw haired woman and her sons entered. Then reeeal slowly the blue man came afterwards. You could tell he was up to no good. They went over to their horse and the big man came down the ladder. Then he made his move, ran over to the door, and outside. A bunch of the woman’s sons chased after.”
“Did you hear anything? Any names?” asked Ormand.
“Well, the two chaps the big man was with? They scuffled up top. One yelled out ‘YOU TRAITOR!’ and the other fell to the floor dead.”
“Wait. You’re saying the traitor was slain?” asked
”Oh yeah! Stabbed him deep too. There was lots and lots of blood. Then the sons came back in and beat up the other one. It was rough stuff, but no weapons. I think they did it for fun and just left him for dead. As soon as they took off we ran and told the guards. You should know I was the one who reported ‘em.” The boy held out his hand awaiting his reward. Ormand ran back to The Wyvern to tell Dram.

When he heard the news Dram was furious. Father Ben watched as he and Dalin stormed out to the street. Ben chased after them to find out what happened. Dram and Dalin went to the small inn where the mercenaries stayed. Inside they questioned the three remaining mercenaries. Ben quietly observed to make sure they did not hurt any of the hirelings. Mishek and Gwenna knew nothing of the rumor or the events of the night in question. When Hanz was brought forward, however, Dram could barely contain his anger. Dalin began relating the story of Ormand had heard from the stableboys. “What we want to know,” he finished, “is did you kill Ensler?”
”DID YOU MURDER HIM IN COLD BLOOD!” shouted Dram. “WAS IT ALL A SETUP? YOU’RE WORKING WITH HER, AREN’T YOU!?”
Hanz crumpled in on himself and started bawling. Ben studied his reaction. Hanz looked honestly ashamed to him. “Maybe I did?” said Hanz. “Maybe I did it all?” He howled and sobbed uncontrollably. It was difficult to learn anything else him, but the mercenary did claim not to know of working for Lavinia. In the end Hanz was left under Gwenna’s supervision. The questioning had led to fewer answers than hoped.

During her time in Kera Rose explored the city looking at the strange creatures within. The variety of humans and other mixed races behaved quite differently than they did in Margrave. Feeling sorry for the short-lived folk, she decided to use her bits of metal to help them. Entering the slavepits alone, Rose felt strangely at home among the bound slaves. As she looked them over she recognized a commonality within herself. It was still difficult for her to relate to a world where beating was wrong. Then she remembered Tankurd and Rose called over a slave driver. “Do you have any smiths available?” she asked.
“No, but lemme know if ya find one. They’re gettin’ more popular.”
“Trained guards perhaps?” There were three on hand. “What about exotics?”
The grubby man looked Rose over. “Ya like Elf?”
“That will do,” said Rose. “But what about children?”
”Oh plenty. And cheap.” Rose politely thanked the man and walked over to watch the auction.

A short time later a male Elf was brought out and strapped to the auction board. He looked different than the ones Rose had trained with in the forest. He had blue tinted skin just like Rose’s, but with green hair. She bid on him and the price went up and up, from five gold to fifty. “One hundred gold pieces!” she shouted. Rose won. The Elf was released and brought to her side in chains. Using the Elven tongue Rose learned he was something called a ‘River Elf’ and had amphibious gills for breathing underwater. She wanted to ask more questions, but the auction had begun again. Over the next few hours, Rose purchased the three trained guards and then six human children between the ages of ten and twelve. When she took them up above to the streets, Rose questioned each of the adults in turn. All the slaves were silent and very compliant to her commands, all but one that is. One adult male was particularly rude. Rose thought she recognized goblin features in his face and manner. Splitting up her remaining coin, only about fifty gold pieces, Rose let the half-goblin go free with a quarter portion. When he had left, she divided up the six children: two to each of the remaining adults. “In return for your freedom and this metal, this gold, you are each ordered to watch over your new children. You will raise them into adults as if they were your own. Do you understand?” The slaves could not quite believe her at first. But then they gladly agreed. When she left the new families in the street Rose wondered how the river Elf might raise his two new human children. “What a fun and interesting childhood that will be!”

The day before the team was to leave Kera, Rose went back to the Earl’s castle. Inside she found him sitting alone on his throne. Pleased to see the Fey again, the Earl asked Rose several questions who in return answered each fully and without discretion. She reported on the Keep, the spiralstone, the weapon crates, the glove, how the glove was found, and who and where the new wearer was. When she was done four sinister looking men moved out from behind the room’s pillars. All were short and had similar pointy features like the Earl’s. Rose was congratulated and sent to see the quartermaster again. There she was given fifty gold. Instead of spending it on more slaves she decided to purchase nonmetal weapons for herself instead: a long whip, three nets, and some unusual balls that had struck her fancy called bolas.

The next morning Ben realized Jakob was still unfit for travel. Deciding to stay one more day in Kera, the whole heard gossip spreading like wildfire though the streets. “Rumor ‘as it, the Earl ‘as left for the Keep with ‘is esteemed army.” Some in the crowd laughed. “While the mouse is away the cats will play!” Ben had been preaching in the streets every day and had seen no army leave or even gather. In fact, the streets still looked full of able-bodied people to him. In the evening Dalin came back to The Wyvern with a stranger in tow. “I’ve been doing pretty well in the gambling arena, so I thought I’d hire a specialist to help us break into the Keep.” Dalin pointed down at a chubby little man with hairy feet and big grin. He was even shorter than Rose, barely three feet tall. “Say hello to my little friend!” said Dalin. Later they learned his name was Farnid and came from a community of littlefolk just outside the city.