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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Plane Sailing" data-source="post: 167518" data-attributes="member: 114">InterludeCamping the night at the monolith, those on guard wonder whether there is the sound of a pursuer in the night around them, but the ancient magic of the monolith holds true, and they are not disturbed.The next morning they press on and down towards Knightsbridge. It has been over a month since they were last here and the shanty town of tents on the nearside of the stone bridge seems to have grown a little. As they get nearer many beggars wrapped in threadbare blankets shuffle out asking for help, for money, for clothes. Lysander is deeply cut to see his countrymen in this state, and resolves to do something about it. He and Trajan wander into the encampment and see people huddling around fires, living in wagons and tents which are inadequate against the cold. Many people are frostbitten or ill. Seeking out a spokesperson amongst the refugees, Lysander learns disturbing news. Apparently people are leaving Singh in droves because of fear of the priesthood. Fear of the priesthood? Unthinkable! Yet village after village in the Sung district have been purged – populations carried off to who knows where at the orders of the high priest lords. Many well-to-do merchants have been leaving the country for the last six months. Fear and desperation started driving out farmers in the face of winter.Back in the town, Lysander confronts Alkanar the high priest, and wants to know what is being done about the refugees. Pretty little, as it turns out. The Baron has decreed that while they can camp outside, they cannot come into the town walls. There is tremendous distrust amongst the refugees of priests, so Alkanar and his acolytes cannot work directly. Worse still, the unusually heavy winter is eating into everyones stores – there is little to go around.The cost to obtain blankets and materials for the refugees is immense – some 4000 marks. Lysander decides to go on a charm offensive, making his way around to the guild leaders and shopkeepers, bringing the full force of his diplomacy and charm to bear. He gets the cost down to 3000 marks and the company start donating their money to purchase the goods (some more willingly than others!).Meanwhile, Darra spends time in the Mithril Manor laboratory, developing alchemistical poison antidotes, M’ir gathers information around the town – and discovers rumours of war being threatened by the neighbouring Morannon (who claim that Lythau is sponsoring hobgoblin terrorists in their territory). Trajan travels up into the foothills to see his old mentor, and do some more training with him. He finds it an uncomfortable experience (“*slap* You are too slow! You move like a cow! *slap* Have you forgotten all *slap* that I taught you? And you use a longsword! *slap*. where is your spirit? I don’t care if it is magical *slap*”)Meanwhile, Syl decides to try to hook up with the local thieves guild, picks up some information in the taverns and decides to make her way down to the Chatterstreet warehouses – and finds an awful lot more trouble than she bargained for.</blockquote>

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