Glad to be back.
Since the last update was so short, here's another one.
Chapter 34
The next morning, Terenon cast a spell of scrying to gaze upon the area outside the town of Latona, a few miles out. He didn't know much of the town's inhabitants, but it was likely they would be surprised to see a band of heavily armed adventurers suddenly appear in the town's square. After studying a suitable spot for several minutes, he gathered everybody together and uttered a teleport spell, transporting them back to the frozen plains north of the Spine of the World.
Stretching out before the group, a small caravan was working its way slowly north. Forty or so men and women were clumped around a pair of wagons. The groups' progress was impeded by the snow, the stiff wind, and the caravan's size. The group appeared to be led by an elderly missionary dressed in heavy furs. He looked up in surprise as the adventurers appeared nearby.
Gathering his robes to extracate them from the snow, Terenon approached the old man. "Salutations. We are travelers. What news have you of this area?"
The missionary smiled from the depths of his hood. "Greetings, my young friends. I am Oftir. I am afraid that I know little of import about the area. We are but travelers making our way to Latona. We are almost there, as you can see," he says, gesturing broadly at the city in the distance. Oftir gazed upon each of the adventurers, his eyes lingering briefly on Taigiel. The half-dragon shifted uncomfortably under the man's scrutiny, but the magical helm was doing its work, and all Oftir saw was the illusion of a muscular, blonde-haired man with a close-cropped beard.
"I'm Terenon, Oftir," the mage replied. "Do you mind if we travel with you to the city? Latona seems like the place to be."
"Of course, my young friend! I would enjoy the company."
The adventurers fell into step alongside Oftir as he and his pilgrims resumed their trek. Terenon looked at the others in the caravan; most turned away to avoid his gaze. They looked tired. "It looks like you've travelled a long way. If you don't mind me asking, what leads you and your people to take such a pilgrimage?"
"Well, to put it simply, to start new lives. Those who follow me are the poor and disaffected from the small assortment of villages just south of the great mountains. To us, Latona is a land of opportunity, despite its desolate location. Since the city sees little in the way of new residents, we figure there may be plenty of jobs waiting for us once we get there.
"Now, if you don't mind me asking, I am curious why you fellows are heading there?"
Rhys listened to the conversation, a frown darkening his features. Despite the old fellow's good nature and cheer, there was something off about him and his story, something he couldn't quite place. "Did you send word ahead to the mayor of the city that you would be coming?" the priest asked.
Oftir chuckled. "No, they don't know that we're coming. We had not the means to send a message hundreds of miles north of our homes, across the very Spine of the World. We can only hope the mayor will find it in his heart to let us stay in town and work for him. He can't very well let us freeze or starve to death in the tundra, can he?"
"And why not? You're bringing almost half a hundred people to his town, with little in the way of support; after all you were the dregs of society. If it's a choice between letting his people, people with whom he's lived, worked, laughed and loved, people who he's shared the birth and death of friends and relatives with, or you and your people, who do yopu think he'll chose? I would do all in my power to help fair, honest and sensible people survive. It's my nature, my belief, the way I was taught as well as the correct way to treat people in need. The mayor has no compulsion to do that. As a matter of fact his compulsion would be to do whatever was is his power to help his people survive.
"What have you with you to trade with or to purchase items with? The mayor will probably ask some very hard questions before he decides what to do. I hope that you'll be able to give him the answers he needs."
Oftir frowned, his patience with Rhys clearly beginning to wear thin. "Look, we have everything under control. If the mayor turns us away, then we will resupply and head back. We have lost nothing but time in our journey north, and if we are accepted in Latona, then we will have gained so much more than that. Your concern is appreciated, but unnecessary. We are survivors if nothing else, and we will survive whether Tymora decides to smile upon us or not."
Jelani had been listening to the conversation developed, and felt it was time to interrupt. "Excuse me, but I need a word with my friend for a moment." He laid a hand on Terenon's shoulder and led him aside. “We should help them," he said quietly once they were a fair distance away. "A couple thousand gold coins would be a fortune to them, and go a long way toward establishing a home for them. We, in turn, would gain quite a number of eyes and ears, and having a network of informants seems like a very good idea. After all, our enemies seem to be doing just that so it must be a valuable tactic.“
Terenon smiled at Jelani. "Great minds think alike. That is what I was planning. It can't hurt to have friendly eyes and ears here. Plus I like the old man. A few thousand to set these people up here, might balance the books with whatever gods watch us."
"Perhaps I should explain to our more…intense…friends that the work is so the villagers pride won’t be wounded? Most people prefer a job to a handout. They might even give some of their own, though I don’t expect approval from some, just on principle."
Meanwhile, Rhys fell back a few paces to stand beside Rumar. The paladin was pointedly ignoring most of the things happening around him, concentrating on the town in the distance. The priest frowned as he leaned close to Rumar. "Rumar, I've a gut feeling that Oftir is either hiding something or twisting what he's told us. Have you noticed that the people are paying us no attention, even when I mentioned that they may not get a warm welcome at Latona. Also, for such a dangerous trip and eben assuming that they're dirt poor, do you see any guards? No, there's more to Oftir than what he's said so far."
The paladin shrugged. "Could be. I detect no evil from anybody here though. It might be a case of over-active imagination, or simple paranoia."
"I just don't trust him," Rhys sighed.
"Mmph," Rumar offered, apparently disinterested again.
Having finished their conversation, Terenon moved back up to join Oftir. "Oftir, I was speaking wiht Jelani, and he and I think we may be able to assist each other. We have been looking for a venture to invest in, and you are looking for work. With all the laborers you have at hand, I was thinking of maybe a brewery or establishing a merchant caravan route. My father always said, 'Make your money work for you.' I'd like to invest in your people's tenacity and courage. Let us see this meeting as a blessing of Tymora."
Rumar's face scrunched up with disgust at what he saw as another example of Terenon's uncontrolled greed and desire to manipulate situations to his advantage. He spared a glance at Jelani, who gestured to stay calm and quiet. The aasimar merely grunted. "My sister is a damned fool."
"It is possible that she is; it does seem to run in the family,” Jelani said in a dry tone.
Rumar tossed an angry glare at Jelani. "Best watch out - might end up cutting yourself on that razor sharp wit of yours one of these days." Pergium buzzed faintly in its sword sheath.
“That’s quite the comment coming from someone who plays with sharp things professionally," the theurge retorted.
Unaware of the jibes being traded behind him, Oftir smiled at Terenon's offer. "An investment, you say? You are truly kind and generous, friend. Perhaps once we get settled around Latona, we will see about starting up this business. It may be a few days before we finish negotiations with the authority figures of the city, so you may want to finish your business first before we start making business plans. Come to think of it, what is your business in Latona? I don't think you've mentioned why you're going there."
Terenon smiled back. "Well, we are adventurers and entrepreneurs. There have been rumors about dangerous creatures organizing up in the wastes. What money we earn, we invest. You can't live the life of an adventurer forever. We need something to retire on. This place looks as good as any," said the mage with a wink.
"Dangerous creatures? What sort? I hope it's nothing too dangerous; I'd hate to see our new home destroyed before we get a chance to settle in. Is it the usual evil humanoids and giants, or something greater?"
"I said there were rumors, but still worth looking into. I'm not sure what we'll find, but I doubt the town is in any real danger. That's the reason I asked you of the news you've heard around these parts. Please don't concern yourself; until we investigate, nothing is certain, and I don't want to unduly alarm people."
"The greatest concern would be a dragon, though other things seem to patrol these lands," Rumar said loudly, moving to block Terenon, "And yes, they are dangerous. If they wanted the town destroyed though, I imagine they would have done so long before now. Now, if we are quite done with interrogations and blatant avarice, could we move along?"
Terenon rolled his eyes, but Oftir turned to Rumar. His eyes were wide with a mixture of fear and excitement. "A dragon? You don't actually mean to go after such a creature? Good luck with that, friends; I want nothing to do with such reckless notions. I guess that's why you are the adventurers; I could never have the stomach for that sort of thing."
After a few more minutes, the party reached Latona. High stone walls surrounded the city. Guards could be seen on all of the city's six stone towers, and outside the walls, mounted scouts patrolled the surrounding land. The city gates were open, but a squad of mounted guards approached the caravan to inspect it and question Oftir. The elderly man turned to Terenon and shrugged.
"It may be some time before they let us through. You should go ahead and take care of your business; I'm sure I'll be find. Come back and find me when you finish this hunting trip of yours and we'll discuss business."
Terenon gave a slight bow to Oftir, then led the others into the city.
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Oftir could barely contain his glee as the adventurers left. They were hunting a dragon, and the only dragon around here worth a damn was the white wyrm Acessiwal. Acessiwal, whom he had been courting favor with for months! Acessiwal, whom he had convinced the forty men and women in his caravan to willingly sacrifice themselves to! This would be the final proof of his loyalty, a report of the movements of a group of the dragon's enemies.
As the guards searched through the wagons of the caravan, Oftir slid his hand inside his robe, where his holy symbol lay. The symbol was a white skull upon a black starburst--the symbol of Cyric. Quietly, he whispered the words of a
sending spell and felt it make contact with Acessiwal's mind.