Difference between revisions of "The Doomed Caravan - RPLOG"

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27/2/479
 
27/2/479
 
=Log=
 
=Log=
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<div></div><br> <br>From the look on the gopher-being&#39;s eyes it was clear the mission was urgent. He did not bother to produce a proper job posting, but rather burst into the Freeswords&#39; with an offer of coin for those willing to head to Salttide Swamp as quickly as possible. The details were explained in a hurry, the merchant pushing the mercenaries who accepted his job into a wagon to carry them there with the wind&#39;s haste.
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The story was a familiar one. A caravan on it&#39;s way back from the far western reaches of Sweetwater had run afoul of bandits lurking in the swamp looking for easy prey. As luck would have it one of the caravaneers managed to escape in the chaos of the panicked defense and made the days-long trek to Firmament on foot with report of what he had seen.
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Unusual was the revelation that came after. The merchant&#39;s own son was in the doomed caravan, and the panicked rodent pleaded with the Freeswords to find the caravan and rescue him at any cost. &quot;He&#39;s a brave boy. He will have fought them back.&quot; He says. It seems the caravan was escorted and armed, and it is likely a conflict took place, but if the caravan has not made it back yet, then it is but a guarantee that things did not go the young gopher&#39;s way.
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As the Freeswords&#39; ox-drawn wagon rolls up the boardwalk and turns into Salttide to follow the overgrown path which the doomed caravan had taken, the oppressive and thick scents of the deep swamp begin to assault the beings&#39; senses. The ambush place is not too far ahead, and they will arrive there soon.<br> <br>Aloysius was passing through the Freeswords&#39; inn when he saw this panicked gopher. The young squirrel had nothing to lose and was not busy so he decided to tag along with the gopher.
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The youngling decided to sit next to the driver and spent the long journey reading from a book he had with him, nothing else to do. When the wagon finally enters the swamp, the squirrel stands up and takes a deep breath, &quot;So this is the Saltide swamp? Fascinating.&quot; the squirrel says in a distinctive trill that any well-travelled being can trace back to the Andrussian territories. &quot;So, do you remember how many bandits attacked you? And is it normal to be ambushed around here? This place does not strike me as well-travelled by caravans.&quot;<br> <br>Molly had only come in for a drink, but stopped to chat with her otter companions before the gopher made his rush into the inn, and she eagerly followed the opportunity. Over the course of their journey, however, she&#39;s become less enthusiastic about the adventure - now sitting in the wagon and fiddling with her bonnet, occasionally glancing up to look out. &quot;We&#39;re close,&quot; she whispers aside to the others in the wagon, following it with a sigh of relief.<br> <br>Lucas was enjoying himelf a nice glass of watermelon juice and a bowl of seeds when the gopher came in. He was clearly reluctant at first when the gopher made his request, but after a moment&#39;s deliberation he joined, desiring to help a man, sympathetic to his lost son. He sat in the back of the wagon, idly checking his weapons as they rolled along. &quot;I hope things don&#39;t get too violent this time. Things were absolutely savage the last time I had to deal with bandits.&quot;<br> <br>&quot;Eh, wha?&quot; murmurs the other otter, Levin, as he raises his head up from his knees with a tired grunt. For the last few nights, Levin had been prowling the city&#39;s streets on a quest for information - Information on a series of murders which seemed to be far more complicated then they first appear. All he wanted was a quick drink with his friend and new apprentice, Molly, before turning in for the day when the gopher came rushing into the bar. &quot;Oh, yeah, yeah - It&#39;ll be fine, don&#39;t worry. Bandits scamper off when ever they see freeswords a comin&#39;, trust me.&quot; he says as he puts on his best grin for Lucas.<br> <br>Gideon sits quietly in the back of the wagon, his hands resting on his knees and his eyes half closed in the easy doze of an experienced campaigner as the wagon jerks and bounces along. He had been supervising a supply delivery for the Cinderglow estate when the poor gopher had burst in and had offered his services on behalf of the ladies Solacious. He finally stirs as they enter the swamp. He takes a deep breath of the damp, rotting swamp air. &quot;Ah, homey,&quot; he says in a deep, smooth voice.<br> <br>The driver looks to the squirrel sitting next to him. &quot;I was not in the caravan, myself. But the boy that escaped said there were a dozen of them.&quot; He shakes his head. &quot;Ambushes are uncommon here, and caravans.. are more so. It&#39;s a convenient shortcut when making the trek from Cliffside, but what you gain in days you lose in having to deal with the local wildlife.&quot; He shakes his head. &quot;Anything to shave a few precious days off the trek....&quot;
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The wagon comes to a stop with a cry from the driver as he spots ahead the ambush site. A few meters ahead from where the wagon stopped is a body, face-down in the dirt, a pair of arrows sticking out of his back. Further on is the caravan, a pair of wagons that were riding single file across the narrow path. The beasts of burden that were pulling the wagons did not fare well. Two are missing, and the other two lay slain on the ground, their bodies mangled. &quot;I think I&#39;ll stay here...&quot; calls out the driver on a low voice, looking around nervously. &quot;You do what you need to do.&quot;
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The soil here is not as unsteady as the rest of the swamp, this being one of the few paths that a caravan could take without getting bogged down. All around can be heard the buzzing sounds of insects and the eerie echoes of distant sounds warped as they travel through the crooked landscape. Odd flickers of light can be seen sometimes, distant and obfuscated by the light fog that permeates the area.<br> <br>The squirrel nodded his head at the gopher and shrugged, &quot;very well, it appears that we have to search this area.&quot; the rodent adds as he takes off his hat and sets it where he was seated. Aloysius then jumps off the wagon and begin walking towards the under brush, &quot;Anyone is familiar with this area then?&quot; he asks before disappearing into the under brush. Out of view, the squirrel lowers himself and begins sneaking around the area looking for evidence of bandits or even if they are still here.<br> <br>Molly glances back and forth between Lucas and Levin, letting out a quiet whimper at their conversation as she slouches down. She jolts up straight again at the stop of the wagon, craning her neck to get a look outside after she&#39;s stood up. &quot;I sure hope you&#39;re right, Levin..&quot; she mumbles, tapping the toe of her boot against the floor and stuffing her nice bonnet away into her bag. She climbs out of the wagon after the squirrel, glancing around with a frown. She just steps aside and awaits one of her companions.<br> <br>&quot;It probably will be,&quot; Lucas said to the rabbit, brow raising as the cart slowed to a stop. He sheathed his dagger and pulled out a pistol, drawing himself towards the front of the cart, looking out from behind the curtain between the pair riding in the front. He grimaced and sighed, pulling his head back to walk out of the back of the wagon, patting the others on the shoulder as he passed. &quot;Come on, we got something out there. Be on your guard.&quot;

Revision as of 00:19, 28 February 2016

Participants

Date

27/2/479

Log



From the look on the gopher-being's eyes it was clear the mission was urgent. He did not bother to produce a proper job posting, but rather burst into the Freeswords' with an offer of coin for those willing to head to Salttide Swamp as quickly as possible. The details were explained in a hurry, the merchant pushing the mercenaries who accepted his job into a wagon to carry them there with the wind's haste.

The story was a familiar one. A caravan on it's way back from the far western reaches of Sweetwater had run afoul of bandits lurking in the swamp looking for easy prey. As luck would have it one of the caravaneers managed to escape in the chaos of the panicked defense and made the days-long trek to Firmament on foot with report of what he had seen.

Unusual was the revelation that came after. The merchant's own son was in the doomed caravan, and the panicked rodent pleaded with the Freeswords to find the caravan and rescue him at any cost. "He's a brave boy. He will have fought them back." He says. It seems the caravan was escorted and armed, and it is likely a conflict took place, but if the caravan has not made it back yet, then it is but a guarantee that things did not go the young gopher's way.

As the Freeswords' ox-drawn wagon rolls up the boardwalk and turns into Salttide to follow the overgrown path which the doomed caravan had taken, the oppressive and thick scents of the deep swamp begin to assault the beings' senses. The ambush place is not too far ahead, and they will arrive there soon.

Aloysius was passing through the Freeswords' inn when he saw this panicked gopher. The young squirrel had nothing to lose and was not busy so he decided to tag along with the gopher.

The youngling decided to sit next to the driver and spent the long journey reading from a book he had with him, nothing else to do. When the wagon finally enters the swamp, the squirrel stands up and takes a deep breath, "So this is the Saltide swamp? Fascinating." the squirrel says in a distinctive trill that any well-travelled being can trace back to the Andrussian territories. "So, do you remember how many bandits attacked you? And is it normal to be ambushed around here? This place does not strike me as well-travelled by caravans."

Molly had only come in for a drink, but stopped to chat with her otter companions before the gopher made his rush into the inn, and she eagerly followed the opportunity. Over the course of their journey, however, she's become less enthusiastic about the adventure - now sitting in the wagon and fiddling with her bonnet, occasionally glancing up to look out. "We're close," she whispers aside to the others in the wagon, following it with a sigh of relief.

Lucas was enjoying himelf a nice glass of watermelon juice and a bowl of seeds when the gopher came in. He was clearly reluctant at first when the gopher made his request, but after a moment's deliberation he joined, desiring to help a man, sympathetic to his lost son. He sat in the back of the wagon, idly checking his weapons as they rolled along. "I hope things don't get too violent this time. Things were absolutely savage the last time I had to deal with bandits."

"Eh, wha?" murmurs the other otter, Levin, as he raises his head up from his knees with a tired grunt. For the last few nights, Levin had been prowling the city's streets on a quest for information - Information on a series of murders which seemed to be far more complicated then they first appear. All he wanted was a quick drink with his friend and new apprentice, Molly, before turning in for the day when the gopher came rushing into the bar. "Oh, yeah, yeah - It'll be fine, don't worry. Bandits scamper off when ever they see freeswords a comin', trust me." he says as he puts on his best grin for Lucas.

Gideon sits quietly in the back of the wagon, his hands resting on his knees and his eyes half closed in the easy doze of an experienced campaigner as the wagon jerks and bounces along. He had been supervising a supply delivery for the Cinderglow estate when the poor gopher had burst in and had offered his services on behalf of the ladies Solacious. He finally stirs as they enter the swamp. He takes a deep breath of the damp, rotting swamp air. "Ah, homey," he says in a deep, smooth voice.

The driver looks to the squirrel sitting next to him. "I was not in the caravan, myself. But the boy that escaped said there were a dozen of them." He shakes his head. "Ambushes are uncommon here, and caravans.. are more so. It's a convenient shortcut when making the trek from Cliffside, but what you gain in days you lose in having to deal with the local wildlife." He shakes his head. "Anything to shave a few precious days off the trek...."

The wagon comes to a stop with a cry from the driver as he spots ahead the ambush site. A few meters ahead from where the wagon stopped is a body, face-down in the dirt, a pair of arrows sticking out of his back. Further on is the caravan, a pair of wagons that were riding single file across the narrow path. The beasts of burden that were pulling the wagons did not fare well. Two are missing, and the other two lay slain on the ground, their bodies mangled. "I think I'll stay here..." calls out the driver on a low voice, looking around nervously. "You do what you need to do."

The soil here is not as unsteady as the rest of the swamp, this being one of the few paths that a caravan could take without getting bogged down. All around can be heard the buzzing sounds of insects and the eerie echoes of distant sounds warped as they travel through the crooked landscape. Odd flickers of light can be seen sometimes, distant and obfuscated by the light fog that permeates the area.

The squirrel nodded his head at the gopher and shrugged, "very well, it appears that we have to search this area." the rodent adds as he takes off his hat and sets it where he was seated. Aloysius then jumps off the wagon and begin walking towards the under brush, "Anyone is familiar with this area then?" he asks before disappearing into the under brush. Out of view, the squirrel lowers himself and begins sneaking around the area looking for evidence of bandits or even if they are still here.

Molly glances back and forth between Lucas and Levin, letting out a quiet whimper at their conversation as she slouches down. She jolts up straight again at the stop of the wagon, craning her neck to get a look outside after she's stood up. "I sure hope you're right, Levin.." she mumbles, tapping the toe of her boot against the floor and stuffing her nice bonnet away into her bag. She climbs out of the wagon after the squirrel, glancing around with a frown. She just steps aside and awaits one of her companions.

"It probably will be," Lucas said to the rabbit, brow raising as the cart slowed to a stop. He sheathed his dagger and pulled out a pistol, drawing himself towards the front of the cart, looking out from behind the curtain between the pair riding in the front. He grimaced and sighed, pulling his head back to walk out of the back of the wagon, patting the others on the shoulder as he passed. "Come on, we got something out there. Be on your guard."