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<blockquote data-quote="jayoungr" data-source="post: 6903752" data-attributes="member: 6702445"><p><strong>The Search Continues</strong></p><p></p><p>After several more days of travel, the caravan stopped at a wayhouse. Everyone looked forward to the chance to bathe, get supplies, and sleep under a roof for the night--or, for those who wanted to pay for a private room, in a real bed. </p><p></p><p>The wagons were pulled into the walled compound and left relatively unattended. The PCs took advantage of this to have Ariana burrow into the haywagon and check out the hidden crates. With a little work, she was able to pry the top off of one of them and confirm that it was full of treasure.</p><p></p><p>They knew there was more, but where? Atex cast <em>detect magic</em> on the weapons and found that two of them radiated abjuration magic. After investigation, though, the group was satisfied that neither of those wagons was hauling stolen treasure.</p><p></p><p><strong>Contraband!</strong></p><p></p><p>A few days later, while fording the Winding Water in the Trollclaw Hills, the newlyweds' cart listed abruptly to one side. A crate slid off the back and broke open, revealing some objects that looked far too valuable to belong to them--random items like a folding spyglass covered in gold filigree and a beautifully worked copper neck-ring. Enom Tobin rushed forward and offered to help gather up the things that had spilled into the river, soon joined by Aric and Landin. Whelgar jumped down from the wagon and tried to shoo them away, barking, "We can handle it ourselves!"</p><p></p><p>"This is nice stuff," Aric commented as he continued to pick up fallen items. "You must be planning to set up a shop and secure your future."</p><p></p><p>Grisella stuck her head out the back of the wagon. "Oh, no, no, no," she said hastily. "We got this stuff from my mother. It looks nice, but it's not worth very much."</p><p></p><p>"Your mother must have been a highborn lady," suggested Landin.</p><p></p><p>"No, no, it's just cheap metal painted to look nice."</p><p></p><p>"One could say it looks <em>fit for a queen,"</em> said Aric with a significant look.</p><p></p><p>Grisella was getting flustered. "It's just paint, I tell you! Now, really, it's embarrassing. Say no more about it."</p><p></p><p>"Of course not," said Aric, grinning.</p><p></p><p>Landin continued putting things back in the crate. "So, where are you from?" he asked casually.</p><p></p><p>"Candlekeep," answered Grisella.</p><p></p><p>"Elturel," said Whelgar at the same time. Realizing his mistake, he added, "Well--she's from Candlekeep, and I'm from Elturel."</p><p></p><p>"How did you meet?" asked Landin.</p><p></p><p>"It was an arranged marriage," said Grisella hurriedly. "What about you? Where do you come from?"</p><p></p><p>"I lived in Elturel for a long time. Where in Elturel are you from?" asked Landin, turning to Whelgar.</p><p></p><p>"Er--well, not really <em>in</em> Elturel. From a small farm just outside of town."</p><p></p><p>Landin retrieved the last of the fallen items. "Well, it was nice meeting you both," he said cheerily.</p><p></p><p>Grisella and Whelgar smiled back through clenched teeth.</p><p></p><p><strong>Musical Chairs</strong></p><p></p><p>Later, Enom confided excitedly to the group that he had seen a notice in Baldur's Gate about the daughter of a wealthy merchant who had run away with some of her father's treasure. He thought Grisella must be the missing woman, and he wondered how he could collect the reward. Atex suggested that he take a pony and ride back to Baldur's Gate. Enom said he didn't want to ride back across the Fields of the Dead by himself, so Atex used his <em>eyes of charming</em> to convince Sulesdeg to go with him as a guard.</p><p></p><p>(And thus without knowing it, Atex probably saved Enom's life.)</p><p></p><p>Ariana was annoyed when she found out that Atex had persuaded Sulesdeg to leave the caravan. Atex acted innocent and downplayed his role in the incident, but later he told Landin, "Now it's wide open. You make good use of that, now."</p><p></p><p>Meanwhile, Enom's departure opened up a well-paying teamster job, so Aric offered to take it on. He wasn't an expert with the animals, but he did well enough. So he found himself working for Nyerhite Verther, the silk merchant. </p><p></p><p>There was also a passenger on his wagon: a gnome named Radecere who always looked depressed. When Aric tried to strike up a conversation with him, he quickly discovered that the only thing that would get his interest was gambling. </p><p></p><p>"You know," Aric said casually one day, "it's been such a quiet trip. I'd be willing to wager that we don't run into any more trouble for the next three days."</p><p></p><p>Radecere perked up immediately. "Wager, huh? How much would you wager?"</p><p></p><p>"Oh, I don't know, maybe ten or fifteen gold? Keep it modest."</p><p></p><p>Radecere thought for a moment. "How about eight?" When Aric agreed, Radecere talked him into three-to-one odds, and they shook on the deal.</p><p></p><p>Atex overheard the conversation and later told Aric he could arrange to make some trouble in the next three days. "If you do this, I'll kill you!" Aric growled. "You're interfering with my pillow!"</p><p></p><p><strong>Poisoned!</strong></p><p></p><p>On the second day after the crossing of the ford, Landin, Aric, and Atex all came down with what seemed to be food poisoning, forcing the caravan to stop temporarily. Atex was particularly stricken, so Aric dragged himself out of bed to doctor him. Radecere showed up and demanded payment for their bet, on the grounds that this incident was "trouble."</p><p></p><p>"That doesn't count! It's not monsters!" cried Aric indignantly.</p><p></p><p>"We didn't say monsters; we said trouble."</p><p></p><p>"That's too broad!"</p><p></p><p>"Pay up! You owe me twenty-four gold. Oh, and I'm sorry you're not feeling well," Radecere added belatedly.</p><p></p><p>"It doesn't count!" Aric insisted. "We haven't been attacked!"</p><p></p><p>"Of course it counts!"</p><p></p><p>"No it doesn't!"</p><p></p><p>"It counts," groaned Atex. "Pay up."</p><p></p><p>Aric and Radecere continued to argue until Landin, who was trying to get some sleep nearby, ended it by giving Radecere twenty-four gold out of his own pocket. The gnome scampered off happily while Aric scolded Landin for paying.</p><p></p><p>"Did you lose any money in this deal?" Landin asked.</p><p></p><p>"What?"</p><p></p><p>"Did. You. Lose. Any. Money?"</p><p></p><p>"No, because I'm not paying him for that!"</p><p></p><p>"Then <em>shut up."</em></p><p></p><p>Orvustia stopped by several times to inquire anxiously about Landin's condition, but she always seemed to find Ariana hovering over him. Orvustia asked if there was anything she could do, but Ariana told her everything was fine and shooed her away.</p><p></p><p>Aric turned his attention to trying to figure out what they were suffering from. He eventually concluded that they must have been poisoned at dinner, and he remembered that Grisella had done the cooking the previous night. He spent much of his day's reserve of magic counteracting the poison, with the result that the caravan was able to set out again with only a half-day's loss of time.</p><p></p><p>Very early the next morning, once he had regained his spells, Aric walked among the wagons casting <em>detect poison and disease.</em> He examined the traces of poison in the party's mess kits and searched for more of the same kind. He expected to find a store of it in the newlyweds' wagon, but to his surprise, there was none. However, there <em>was</em> a large quantity in Nyerhite Verther's wagon! Aric searched the back and found several wooden crates hidden underneath the bolts of silk. One of them contained several vials of a dark liquid. Swearing angrily, he grabbed the vials and told the rest of the group what he'd found.</p><p></p><p><strong>Let's Make a Deal</strong></p><p></p><p>Knowing they had only a little time before the rest of the caravan awakened, the PCs woke up Nyerhite Verther and hustled him off out of earshot before confronting him about the poison. While he admitted that it had come from his wagon, Nyerhite insisted that someone else must have found it and used it, pointing out that since <em>they</em> had found it with relative ease, someone else could have done so as well. They knew he was lying, and he knew they knew it, but he stuck to that story, even in the face of threats (Ariana), intimidation (Landin), and another spectacularly vulgar tirade against Tiamat (Aric).</p><p></p><p>Finally, Nyerhite made them an offer: though he still admitted no guilt, he would guarantee no further attacks until they reached Waterdeep, if they would guarantee not to attack him. On reaching Waterdeep safely, he would pay each of them four hundred gold pieces. The PCs asked for the location of the cultists' meeting place as well; Nyerhite said he would give it to them when he reached Waterdeep. Realizing that they would have a lot of explaining to do if he just disappeared, the party agreed.</p><p></p><p>On the way back to the wagons, Landin pulled Aric aside. "I don't like this--working with those guys."</p><p></p><p>"Our only alternative was to just kill him and leave him on the side of the road."</p><p></p><p>"Well..."</p><p></p><p>"I agree; I'm fine with that. But this way we can get information on Rezmir. Besides--" Aric pulled Landin closer and whispered in his ear. "We only promised not to kill him before we get to Waterdeep. I can wait. I'm patient. Sort of."</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="jayoungr, post: 6903752, member: 6702445"] [b]The Search Continues[/b] After several more days of travel, the caravan stopped at a wayhouse. Everyone looked forward to the chance to bathe, get supplies, and sleep under a roof for the night--or, for those who wanted to pay for a private room, in a real bed. The wagons were pulled into the walled compound and left relatively unattended. The PCs took advantage of this to have Ariana burrow into the haywagon and check out the hidden crates. With a little work, she was able to pry the top off of one of them and confirm that it was full of treasure. They knew there was more, but where? Atex cast [i]detect magic[/i] on the weapons and found that two of them radiated abjuration magic. After investigation, though, the group was satisfied that neither of those wagons was hauling stolen treasure. [b]Contraband![/b] A few days later, while fording the Winding Water in the Trollclaw Hills, the newlyweds' cart listed abruptly to one side. A crate slid off the back and broke open, revealing some objects that looked far too valuable to belong to them--random items like a folding spyglass covered in gold filigree and a beautifully worked copper neck-ring. Enom Tobin rushed forward and offered to help gather up the things that had spilled into the river, soon joined by Aric and Landin. Whelgar jumped down from the wagon and tried to shoo them away, barking, "We can handle it ourselves!" "This is nice stuff," Aric commented as he continued to pick up fallen items. "You must be planning to set up a shop and secure your future." Grisella stuck her head out the back of the wagon. "Oh, no, no, no," she said hastily. "We got this stuff from my mother. It looks nice, but it's not worth very much." "Your mother must have been a highborn lady," suggested Landin. "No, no, it's just cheap metal painted to look nice." "One could say it looks [i]fit for a queen,"[/i] said Aric with a significant look. Grisella was getting flustered. "It's just paint, I tell you! Now, really, it's embarrassing. Say no more about it." "Of course not," said Aric, grinning. Landin continued putting things back in the crate. "So, where are you from?" he asked casually. "Candlekeep," answered Grisella. "Elturel," said Whelgar at the same time. Realizing his mistake, he added, "Well--she's from Candlekeep, and I'm from Elturel." "How did you meet?" asked Landin. "It was an arranged marriage," said Grisella hurriedly. "What about you? Where do you come from?" "I lived in Elturel for a long time. Where in Elturel are you from?" asked Landin, turning to Whelgar. "Er--well, not really [i]in[/i] Elturel. From a small farm just outside of town." Landin retrieved the last of the fallen items. "Well, it was nice meeting you both," he said cheerily. Grisella and Whelgar smiled back through clenched teeth. [b]Musical Chairs[/b] Later, Enom confided excitedly to the group that he had seen a notice in Baldur's Gate about the daughter of a wealthy merchant who had run away with some of her father's treasure. He thought Grisella must be the missing woman, and he wondered how he could collect the reward. Atex suggested that he take a pony and ride back to Baldur's Gate. Enom said he didn't want to ride back across the Fields of the Dead by himself, so Atex used his [i]eyes of charming[/i] to convince Sulesdeg to go with him as a guard. (And thus without knowing it, Atex probably saved Enom's life.) Ariana was annoyed when she found out that Atex had persuaded Sulesdeg to leave the caravan. Atex acted innocent and downplayed his role in the incident, but later he told Landin, "Now it's wide open. You make good use of that, now." Meanwhile, Enom's departure opened up a well-paying teamster job, so Aric offered to take it on. He wasn't an expert with the animals, but he did well enough. So he found himself working for Nyerhite Verther, the silk merchant. There was also a passenger on his wagon: a gnome named Radecere who always looked depressed. When Aric tried to strike up a conversation with him, he quickly discovered that the only thing that would get his interest was gambling. "You know," Aric said casually one day, "it's been such a quiet trip. I'd be willing to wager that we don't run into any more trouble for the next three days." Radecere perked up immediately. "Wager, huh? How much would you wager?" "Oh, I don't know, maybe ten or fifteen gold? Keep it modest." Radecere thought for a moment. "How about eight?" When Aric agreed, Radecere talked him into three-to-one odds, and they shook on the deal. Atex overheard the conversation and later told Aric he could arrange to make some trouble in the next three days. "If you do this, I'll kill you!" Aric growled. "You're interfering with my pillow!" [b]Poisoned![/b] On the second day after the crossing of the ford, Landin, Aric, and Atex all came down with what seemed to be food poisoning, forcing the caravan to stop temporarily. Atex was particularly stricken, so Aric dragged himself out of bed to doctor him. Radecere showed up and demanded payment for their bet, on the grounds that this incident was "trouble." "That doesn't count! It's not monsters!" cried Aric indignantly. "We didn't say monsters; we said trouble." "That's too broad!" "Pay up! You owe me twenty-four gold. Oh, and I'm sorry you're not feeling well," Radecere added belatedly. "It doesn't count!" Aric insisted. "We haven't been attacked!" "Of course it counts!" "No it doesn't!" "It counts," groaned Atex. "Pay up." Aric and Radecere continued to argue until Landin, who was trying to get some sleep nearby, ended it by giving Radecere twenty-four gold out of his own pocket. The gnome scampered off happily while Aric scolded Landin for paying. "Did you lose any money in this deal?" Landin asked. "What?" "Did. You. Lose. Any. Money?" "No, because I'm not paying him for that!" "Then [i]shut up."[/i] Orvustia stopped by several times to inquire anxiously about Landin's condition, but she always seemed to find Ariana hovering over him. Orvustia asked if there was anything she could do, but Ariana told her everything was fine and shooed her away. Aric turned his attention to trying to figure out what they were suffering from. He eventually concluded that they must have been poisoned at dinner, and he remembered that Grisella had done the cooking the previous night. He spent much of his day's reserve of magic counteracting the poison, with the result that the caravan was able to set out again with only a half-day's loss of time. Very early the next morning, once he had regained his spells, Aric walked among the wagons casting [i]detect poison and disease.[/i] He examined the traces of poison in the party's mess kits and searched for more of the same kind. He expected to find a store of it in the newlyweds' wagon, but to his surprise, there was none. However, there [i]was[/i] a large quantity in Nyerhite Verther's wagon! Aric searched the back and found several wooden crates hidden underneath the bolts of silk. One of them contained several vials of a dark liquid. Swearing angrily, he grabbed the vials and told the rest of the group what he'd found. [b]Let's Make a Deal[/b] Knowing they had only a little time before the rest of the caravan awakened, the PCs woke up Nyerhite Verther and hustled him off out of earshot before confronting him about the poison. While he admitted that it had come from his wagon, Nyerhite insisted that someone else must have found it and used it, pointing out that since [i]they[/i] had found it with relative ease, someone else could have done so as well. They knew he was lying, and he knew they knew it, but he stuck to that story, even in the face of threats (Ariana), intimidation (Landin), and another spectacularly vulgar tirade against Tiamat (Aric). Finally, Nyerhite made them an offer: though he still admitted no guilt, he would guarantee no further attacks until they reached Waterdeep, if they would guarantee not to attack him. On reaching Waterdeep safely, he would pay each of them four hundred gold pieces. The PCs asked for the location of the cultists' meeting place as well; Nyerhite said he would give it to them when he reached Waterdeep. Realizing that they would have a lot of explaining to do if he just disappeared, the party agreed. On the way back to the wagons, Landin pulled Aric aside. "I don't like this--working with those guys." "Our only alternative was to just kill him and leave him on the side of the road." "Well..." "I agree; I'm fine with that. But this way we can get information on Rezmir. Besides--" Aric pulled Landin closer and whispered in his ear. "We only promised not to kill him before we get to Waterdeep. I can wait. I'm patient. Sort of." [/QUOTE]
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