(Casual D&D) A Game of Trust

[Uriel]

[Just sent it, Uriel. I got laid off two Fridays ago, so between looking for a job, and other stuff, it's been more difficult. Sorry for the delay.]

Fendric mounts up, and stays toward the middle of the procession, eager but not practiced to note any disturbances in town, which strikes him as eerie.

[Spot: 11 +2 +1 = 14]

Hey, it's not like I'm going anywhere I was just worried that yahoo ate the email. Going to look at him now.

 

[Guilt Puppy]

You mount your horses and begin through the town, quiet and watchful. Nurthk and Niccolo see soon enough what Hasdural was talking about: There are indeed odd flickerings of light in the window. Fendric thinks he sees one or two himself, but can't be sure.

Niccolo notices something more, though: A few windows and hide shutters, ones which have remained completely dark, have been opened just a crack, and in one he swears he can see the point of something -- an arrow, a crossbow bolt? -- glinting in the moonlight. In the shadows of a balcony of a large house (perhaps the mayor's, at one point?) it seems there are two crouched figures -- but it's hard to see well enough to know you aren't just imagining this. And then against the silhouette of what seems to be some sort of chimney pipe, you think you see some folds of cloth and the stab of a hanging belt.

Looking back among the group (your band has assumed point by default, the Heironians following your lead), you see Laam nod slightly, then nod back to the balcony. The others seem at the moment oblivious, too preoccupied with searching for glints of light to pay attention to other possible threats.

A few more perhaps relevant details: The windows in which you have seen flashes (which have been small, but bright, like a candle being lit and extinguished after it has just flared brightest) have almost all been facing more-or-less parallel to the road -- the open windows Niccolo has noticed, however, have all been facing the road you travel, as has the balcony with the figures.

Laam has currently said nothing. As far as location goes, if you ran your horses, you could probably make it to the edge of the "bowl" in under two minutes... and it's under five hundred yards to mostly open farmland, where there is next to no cover (aside from the occasional shed or home) to worry about.

The road itself is about 20 feet across -- the farthest potential threat Niccolo has spotted has been about fifteen feet off the road. They have been dispersed pretty evenly over the first forty yards you've travelled, but given that you make a fairly long train (about sixty feet, exactly), many of them are still close to you.

A rough map of this:

[color=white]
   A B C D E F G H I J K L
a    ---\ |       |    ___
b        ||       |   /
c    c   ||       |  w big
d        ||       |  | home
e  -----/ |       | _|--|
f    =    |       || | b|
g         |       || |  |
h  ______ |H F N K| \| b|
i |    | ||' ' ' '|  |--|
j |    w ||       |     \_*
k |home| ||LuHaLnM|
l |    | ||' ' ' '|  ____*__
m  -*---- |       | |
n         |SvSmLmB| |
o    \    |' ' ' '| | shop?
p     \   |       | w
q      \  |E K   V| |
r       * |' '   '| |_______
s        ||       |   ______
t        ||       |  /      \
u        ||       | /        \
v        ||       ||
w        w|       ||  temple 
x        ||       ||
y  ------ |       ||
z         |       | \        /



H = Hiritus
F = Fendric
N = Niccolo
K = Nurthk

Lu = Lucian
Ha = Hasdural
Ln = Lanatus
M  = Marten

Sv = Shavah
Sm = Shamil
Lm = Laam
B  = Balger

E, K, V = Elo, Kim, and Vitz Gammon

' = The back ends of your horses

c = chimney
b = figure on balcony
w = open window
* = light spotted here

= = a ladder.
[/color]

 

[dpdx]

Fendric tries to keep his eyes front, but with each sign of "life", they dart toward the source. He keeps Sunray moving down the road at a normal pace, but he grips his holy symbol and casts a spell, just in case: Detect Undead.

 

[Uriel]

(Riding behind Fendric) Niccolo quietly whispers of the watchers, making sure that the Cleric knew of them as well. Keeping calm, the Gnome keeps his ears open and his eyes sharp.

 

[dpdx]

Fendric nods, careful not to break his concentration on the Detect Undead spell. When he completes it, he'll continue to concentrate on it if it detects anything.

 

[Guilt Puppy]

Fendric: You sense no undead.

As time passes, there is still no action from whomever is waiting in the shadows.

Any further action? Or just try to continue out of town unabated?

 

[dpdx]

"Hold."

Fendric stops Sunray, and climbs off. He then jogs over to the big house immediately to his right, and knocks on the door. His holy symbol is plainly visible.

 

[Uriel]

Niccolo dismounts and follows Fendric.

 

[Guilt Puppy]

The door opens while you are still knocking, leaving your hand hanging in the air. The man who greets you is tall; he wears a very fine-looking black leather coat over far less fine-looking hide tunic and trousers. His hair might be brown, but it is so heavily beaded that you can't tell for sure.

On each side of a wide leather belt dangle swords of a make you haven't seen before -- shaped like a scimitar or falchion, but smaller. He has a hand on one, and the other is held near.

Staring hard, he asks politely: "Hello. How may I help you?"

 

[Festy_Dog]

Nurthk raises un eyebrow, uncertain of what to make of what is happening. He takes another look around him, and places his longbow across his lap for easy access.