Team Baldy's Tales From The OBO-ESRD Tavern! (Calling Hypersmurf)

[Lazlow]

Hamm chuckles.

"Lizard's Pit," he repeats. "How marvellous."

"Aye, that's the 'official' name o' the town. It grew up after the mine was started a few decades ago. The mine's been abandoned and re-opened many times since then, but the town's remained, mainly due to the business the harbor brings in. One thing's remained true, however: Lizard Spit is more fitting than Lizard's Pit." As if on cue, the seemingly ever-present light drizzle turns into a heavier and altogether more depressing downpour.

 

[Lazlow]

"I'm having a bit of trouble with the 'not why asking' bit. I mean, the whole set-up is a bit ridiculous. You ask a bunch of complete strangers to go find an artifact. All you have seen us do is slaughter a few goblins. And that makes us trustworthy?

And what does this artifact do, exactly? And what would a double-bladed axe-wielding innkeeper want with it?

How deep did they exactly dig, and no nudge-nudge winkle-winkle tapping your nose stuff, please." The half-orc growls, clearly annoyed at all the secrecy involved.

Sunderkeg, despite being a good 18 inches shorter, manages to look down his nose at the annoyed half-orc and replies with a growl, "I see someone here obviously doesn't understand the phrase, 'NO QUESTIONS ASKED'." He relaxes a bit and continues, "This town is completely devoid of able-bodied sell-swords. To be sure, the only person remotely capable of taking on this task - er, besides meself, o' coorse - is Sir Dudley, and he's been missing a few weeks now. But even then, there's no way that goody-two-shoes Paladin would take on such a quest under such, shall we say, questionable circumstances.

"Now you lot, you're the first group o' adventurers - and isn't that what ye are? - to show up here in many, many moons. You obviously know how to use the steel each o' you are carryin'. Or harmonica, as the case may be," he acknowledges, nodding to Hamm. "As for being trustworthy - what makes you think I trust any o' you? All I did was mention a nice sum o' gold and here the lot of ye are, meetin' with a complete stranger after midnight behind a tavern." He pauses, letting that sink in a bit.

"And if ye think I won't be monitorin' your progress, well -" He stops short, peers at you all, then continues: "What the artifact does and what I want with it are MY business. I'm willin' to pay ye to fetch it, and that's all. If ye're not interested, then so be it.

"As far as the mine, well, everyone here knows the story. The mining coster comes in, they find a decent vein o' ore, they get greedy, they dig and dig and dig, then BAM! Dragon outta nowhere. It terrorizes the town for a bit, then along comes the valiant Sir Dudley, who vanquishes the evil foe. Big huzzah, townspeople are safe and happy, mining coster is rich, blah blah blah, everyone lives happily ever after." He chuckles to himself a bit. "Exceptin', o' coorse, Sir Dudley himself, I suppose," he says ironically. "Didn't even show up for the unveilin' of his own statue. Heh. Course, I don't know if I would either, given that kind o' pose..."

"So there you have the long and the short of it. Take it as you will. I've got your advances in me office, for those o' you still interested." He makes his way back into the tavern, and you see a lamp being lit through a window in a small room at the back.

 

[DrZombie]

"It might be my socks, but something stinks about all of this." The half-orc says when the dwarf has left. "Does anyone here has the same idea, or do you just don't care?"

He turns to the bard. "And you, mr Harmonica, any idea what his orb is all about?"

 

[Jarlaxale]

"It is kinda suspicious but I'm always down for anything! And did any one notice my new shirt, my old stunk." I look at the Dwarven druid with a mean stare.

 

[Lazlow]

You hear the faint jingle of coins being counted out on a desk inside the tavern...

 

[Lazlow]

...the faint jingle of coins continues to drift out of the office at the back of the tavern...

 

[Isida Kep'Tukari]

Karjanga ignores the skepticism of the others and swaggers to the back room to collect her cash. Fun on a scale like this didn't come around every day...

 

[Agrajag]

"Well now, we ought to have plenty of merriment up ahead in this perilous escapade of ours. Besides, whats a few nicks in my posterior compared several goblin heads on a splintered pike, not much if you ask me, 'tis worth the anguish yet to come. Just be ready from any surprise attacks from those accursed animals of the forest, you know, them rabbit's that got a vicious streak a mile wide! It's a killer!" I Advance on toward the office of which the sound echoes from and watch my back ever so carefully.

 

[Lazlow]

Sunderkeg happily doles out the promised gold to Karjanga and Tim. "Where's the rest o' ye?"

 

[DrZombie]

The half-orc walks up to the inn, and collects his cash, scowling at the rest while stashing it away.