[Lakelands] Six For Adventure

[Raven Crowking]

Although the days are growing longer, the first few stars are showing dimly in the sky as you reach the mill, showing through clouds that are massing from the east. A storm is blowing in from over Lake Elidyr. No doubt there will be rain before morning. The heavy clouds make you think about dark wings, and what could be hiding against them. They hurry your steps.

There is little to grind in the springtime, and the miller seems to have closed the mill by the time you arrive. Although the millwheel continues to turn lazily in the runoff from the millpond, there is no corresponding sound of grinding stones from within.

The miller lives with his wife, his daughter, and three stout sons in a stone cottage not far from the mill. You can smell the aroma of bread and sausages coming from the building, and realize that they must be sitting down to their evening meal.

 

[wolfheart]

Dain heads for the cottage. As he nears the door he says to Kregor, "I do not wish to punish this man in front of his children, we might think about removing him to the mill. If he doesn't come voluntarily, I would like you to help me drag his accursed arse up there. I somewhat hope it goes in that fashion as we might be able to get in a few blows on the way."

Dain reaches the door and motions for Horsom and Selanil to watch the sides of the cottage, he then gives the door a few solid raps with Tor-Angol. "Miller, by the Seven Good Gods, I order you to come out and answer for your actions of this past winter," Dain booms in his stoutest dwarf voice. "And don't think a running, we have the cottage surrounded."

 

[Krug]

Glom responds to the question about combat. "I will .. have my ways," he says cryptically.

--

When they arrive at the cottage, the smell makes Glom's stomach growl. He is hungry. "Could we take their meal as well? Glom needs a good square meal."

 

[Samuel Leming]

Maldordo see's no point in crawling inside the mill again, since nobody's there. He follows along at the outside of the mob as it approachs the miller's cottage.

Smelling the miller's evening meal, Maldordo thinks to himself, "Ah Ha! It's just like a debauched arch-priest of the squamous old gods to be sitting down to a dinner with his family at a time like this. He must be an evil cleric of the highest order to not only end winter and summon a demanticore, but also fold up his mill, cottage & family and sneak off in the middle of the night to evade justice! Given that this whole village burned three children to end winter, he must have burned at least two of those sausages to summon this storm to cover his escape. The fiend!" Maldordo rolls his eyes and sighs as he clears the snarkiness out of his mind in preparation for reacting to the disaster he fears is about to occur.

You can smell the aroma of bread and sausages coming from the building

OOC: Bratwursts?

 

[maddmic]

Kregor looks puzzled at Horsom, but then nods. 'Exactly what sort of trouble does he think there's going to be?'

He quietly walks along thinking to himself how this situation would be played out. When Dain addresses him, he pauses. "Yes, it would be best if the family does not see the result of this.

 

[Raven Crowking]

Dain reaches the door and motions for Horsom and Selanil to watch the sides of the cottage, he then gives the door a few solid raps with Tor-Angol. "Miller, by the Seven Good Gods, I order you to come out and answer for your actions of this past winter," Dain booms in his stoutest dwarf voice. "And don't think a running, we have the cottage surrounded."

There are a few moments of stunned silence from within the cottage. Then you hear the scrape of a chair against the floor, and voices raised within. After another few moments, the miller throws open the door. He is a well-built man in his forties, growing somewhat paunchy now with his years. You see one of his sons standing behind him -- a big, strapping lad -- but the miller sends him back: "Go and watch over your mother, Bertolf. I will return, if I can."

Turning toward Dain, the miller gave a shook his head. "So, that old fool Amalric told all, did he? Spineless, that one. I told him it would be better if he kept silent. So what now? Did you expect me to run? I must say, you are in better shape than I expected after fighting a demon, if demon it is. Or was it merely easier to drag an old man from his table than to do what the whole village knows you came to do?"

A wicked glint comes into his eye. "Sometimes you must do difficult things to save the ones you love, lad. I did what needed doing. All of what needed doing. Me, and no other. And I did it knowing I might well be sacrificing myself at the same time, as we now see has come to pass. Answer for my actions? Winter is ended. The village lives. That is my answer."

You can smell the aroma of bread and sausages coming from the building

OOC: Bratwursts?

OUT OF GAME: How could I resist?

 

[Ulorian - Agent of Chaos]

Watching Dain tear into Amalric, Horsom feels a pang of pity for the dishevelled priest. He doesn't interrupt, though, thinking it best if the church deals with its own.

________________________________________

Horsom nods knowingly at Glom's response, recalling the crispy conies from their journey to Selby.

________________________________________

As the group approaches the cottage, the smell of sausages reminds Horsom that he hasn't eaten supper. He sadly pats his satchel where his dried travel rations are kept. At Dain's direction, he moves towards the side of the cottage, but cringes at the dwarven priest's pounding on the door. So much for quietly arresting the miller to protect his children. He takes a quick peek into a side window (if any, if open) to gauge the family's reaction.

Edit: RC posted while I was writing mine.

Horsom remains at the side of the cottage to make sure no one leaves. He keeps an eye on the back as well. His anger flares at the miller's words. "That's the most ridiculous logic I've ever heard" , he mutters. "What gall! He thinks that the natural cycle of the seasons has been influenced by his actions. Nature, bow before the mighty miller! Cringe, as he bends you to his will!"

 

[Raven Crowking]

He takes a quick peek into a side window (if any, if open) to gauge the family's reaction.[/COLOR]

The family huddles in terror near the hearth, for the most part. The boy who followed last, Bertolf, stands aside a little bit, watching what is happening by the door. He looks, by turns, angry and scared. You can see that one of the miller's other sons has suffered in the tallowbone epidemic -- the boy's left arm is no longer straight. You cannot see his youngest son. The mother is rocking her teenaged daughter, and either speaking to her softly to calm her, or perhaps praying.

 

[Ulorian - Agent of Chaos]

Horsom remains silent and hidden, awaiting the reactions of those at the miller's door.

 

[Toric_Arthendain]

Selanil stood at the opposite side of the cottage from where Horsom stood, wondering what he had gotten himself into. What he had learned over the last few hours was quite horrifying, tales of secrets and sacrifices. He looked at the miller as he spoke to Dain with a combination of pity and loathing. He would have preferred to simply dispense with the manticore without having to have heard the whole sordid tale he had heard since joining these others.

While Dain did the talking, Selanil kept his bow trained on the miller, an arrow nocked and ready.