Mystery of Mythwater (IC)

[Kidzait]

Day four of Expedition
Time: mid afternoon
Weather: cloudy


As the bumping carriage tops the last hill of the four day journey, the sparkling waters of Lance Lake come into view. As it begins down the trail to the bottom of the hill it passes some small stretches of farmland. A lone field hand is seen pushing a plow with the help of a grumpy donkey. They pay the party no mind as they pass, both are focused on the labor at hand. Not long after, the rusty red stone buildings that make up the majority of the town come into view.

Entering the town, the party does not pass through a gate of any kind nor are there any posted guards. Seems the town's issues are internal instead of external. The town seems to be a mismatch of architecture styles. Citizens of Mythwater often built more modern wooden structures atop the crumbling stone foundation of ruins of the civilization before. The resulting buildings do not appear very sound. A few of you swear you see bowed wooden beams holding up a sagging wall of a house as you pass. The expedition docket mentioned Mythwater had basic amenities any small town would have. A general store, a tavern and a small inn are all available while you investigate, a fact you all are having a hard time believing at this moment. The farmer and his donkey were the only signs of life any of you had seen so far. A town this size should have people going about their daily chores but instead, not a soul could be seen on the street. According to the crude map the college supplied, to reach the ruins you just have to follow the main road through the town until you get to the coast. The site you are looking for is located just west of the end of the road. It is suspected it will take a week to complete your research on the site so your carriage is loaded with three weeks worth of supplies.

Keeping to the main road, you continue towards the coast. As you reach the center of town you begin to hear raised voices of multiple people echoing off the close stone walls. As you round the bend and the street begins to widen, you can all see the source of the shouting. Two men and a woman are loudly arguing with a well dressed man, who has his hands up defensively. While it is unclear what they are arguing about, the three angry common-folk are red in the face about something the man had done.

EbonChevalier Psychie Sherwood DragonSlayer57 Vox Angelis Idea

 

[Psychie]

Cayde-6 is currently in the lead of the party, keeping a close watch on the surrounding area as the group travels. After all, he takes his role as the bodyguard of the party quite seriously, all thanks to his programming. Speaking more to himself than to anyone in particular, he says, "Strange to find the town so . . . silent. One would expect to find signs of life in the form of people going about their business, children playing in the street, hawkers trying to sell their wares. In my eyes, this is a poor sign."

Once the raised voices can be heard, he cocks his head to one side and listens. "There. That way. Perhaps we will be able to get some information about the conditions here." As they round the last turn and see the trio of irate people berating the well-dressed man, Cayde would have a frown come to his face if it were possible. He spurs his horse forward, using the bulk of the animal as a wedge to shove the three commoners away from the single man by himself. In a loud voice, he calls down, "ENOUGH! What is the meaning of this? Explain yourselves! What has this man allegedly done to draw such ire from the three of you?"

 

[Sherwood]

Athaclenna is riding on the carriage, since her experience with riding horses is somewhat limited. She looks around at the silent and seemingly abandoned streets with a growing feeling of dread. Something here is very wrong, and it is giving her the willies.

She then hears the angry shouting, and her unease continues to grow. Even though Cayde-6 is wearing armor and carrying a sword and shield, it is entirely possible that the anger will blind the three townspeople and they will attack Cayde-6 anyways. She slips down from her seat on the carriage and does her best to vanish on the street, moving as silently as possible to get closer to where the drama is taking place.

OOC And I rolled a 1 on my stealth roll. Even with my Dex Bonus, I must have stumbled into a bunch of garbage cans or something.

 

[DragonSlayer57]

Jankurr had walked at the side of the carriage. Seemed like good expertise, and if anything happened he would b at the ready immediately. He didn’t really care about the townspeople and stuff. I mean, he hoped they were safe and stuff but he certainly wasn’t going to waste his time thinking about them. He had other things to attend to, like the people in the carriage and the people fighting. Wait.. People fighting? He turned and saw a man being clearly mugged by some commoners. “He’s getting mugged.” A large brutish voice said calmly behind him. He walked up with his hand in his pockets and his boots clinking on the ground. He didn’t really care for the man, but if it meant getting to what he needed to do done faster and moving on to the fighting quicker, he would get this done fast. “You should Scram.” He said matter-of-factly and put emphasis on the last word with a frown and intimidating look. He looked over them and let himself shadow over them. He may have been short for a half orc, but his build along with his look would certainly hope to make him look bigger.





OOC: Rolled a 14+1 (charisma)+3(proficiency) = Total of 18. Yaey i can do math!

Rolled for, intimidation

 

[EbonChevalier]

For the majority of the trip Eredartis had sat by the coachman, enjoying the scenery and occasionally making conversation. Dressed in rough woolen shirt, strudy breathable trousers and a pair of tough black boots he was ready for whatever these ruins would throw at him. But the abject silence and barrenness of the town was shocking to say the least. In t wasn’t the picture of rustic bliss he’d built up in his mind. “Corellon’s blood! You’d think we’d walked into some sacked town!”

It was so quiet that the loud shouts breaking the silence made him jump. “Blood and thunder what?!” His hand went for his sword but when he saw it was a mere squabble he calmed down. But seeing Cayde-6 intervene he hoped off himself to say his piece.

“Now, now no need for all that….” Eredartis said waving his hands in placating manner. “A little spats nothing to get worked up about my friend, we’re here for research not peace keeping.” He turned to the arguing party. “But sirs and madam this town is in quite the strange, might its problems be related to your squabble?”
(Rolling for persuasion)

 

[Vox Angelis]

The journey so far had been a pleasant one, at least in Sylvestra's mind. She had tried to appraise her duty-bound comrades through various attempts at discussion when the moments were opportune, with also various degrees of success. And if she wasn't talking to her partners, she would be taking in the sights that he world offered her. New perspectives, sceneries, everything really, she quite liked the change from being stuck in classrooms and studies with the musty smell of old scrolls and tomes and closed space. Out there, she felt kind of free once more, every breath of fresh air a blessing for her. There were even the occasional stray animals that sometimes came by to see and talk to the druid for a few moments before scampering back in the wilderness.

Right now, the fae-touched elf was snoring, tucked in a corner of the carriage, a unique sight for most. It happened during the travels sometimes, as the dreamy druid would doze off after looking peacefully at the scenery for too long. She really looked like she appreciated those little moments of unusual sleep. She woke up when the voice of Eredartis exclaimed words of surprise she did not quite catch as she came back to her senses.

Looking around, it indeed was quite an unusual sight, and like the others, the sound of shouting voices piqued her interest. However, seeing as almost everyone from her band of merry adventurers went to quell the dispute, Sylvestra thought she would be one too many to intervene. She wasn't much interested anyway, there was stuff that needed to be doing.

They arrived at their destination, right? While she still kept her ears to the potential problem - thank you Jankurr -, she began wandering about to start her investigation.


-----------------------

Investigation roll: 19 - 1 = 18

 

[Kidzait]

As your carriage approaches, more than snippets of the argument can be heard;

"-Don’t blow us off again, Bragrol” the man wearing tan pants and a floppy gardener's hat poked a bony finger into the well dressed man’s chest, “You’ve been hold up in your house fur a week. When’re you going to stop being a coward and call someone to help!”
The last words were said through gritted teeth as the other two commoners nod in agreement. The woman to his right furrowed her brow,
“You promised during last week’s town hall that you were handling it! And now with people not wak-!” The woman is cut off with surprise as Cayde-6 forces his way into the conversation with his horse. With the large animal and armed android interrupted the conversation, attention began to shift away from the outnumbered man and onto the approaching party.

"ENOUGH! What is the meaning of this? Explain yourselves! What has this man allegedly done to draw such ire from the three of you?"

The common folk glanced between each other when Cayde-6 spoke up. The one in the floppy hat Glared up at the shining man, unsure of the automaton’s appearance and motives.
“Well Mister. Don’t take kindly to you sticking yer nose where if don’t belong” the man sneered.
The larger of the two men took a step back to avoid being knocked over by the horse shifting…bumping right into Junkurr.

“You should Scram.”

the half-orc growled, causing the man to whirl around. He looked Junkurr up and down in surprise before glaring. He glanced from him to the woman peering down from the carriage and squared his jaw, “Well who’s askin? I gots legitimate qualms with this here fella and I don’t like you and your clunker friend butt’n in where you ain’t wanted.” he pointed towards the well dressed man on the other side of Cayde-6’s horse. This close Junkerr could see the dark bags under his bloodshot eyes.

Silent tension fell over the group for a moment, the eerie silence of the town pressed in around them. The smaller man nodded at the woman and the larger man carefully took a step away from Junkerr.

“Now, now no need for all that….” another man said, hopping down from the passenger seat and walking towards them. Shifting attention of the group.

“A little spats nothing to get worked up about my friend, we’re here for research not peace keeping.”

He said to the threatening man, coming across friendlier that he intended.

He turned to the arguing party. “But sirs and madam this town is in quite the strange, might its problems be related to your squabble?”

Silence. As if they did not expect such a direct confrontation about the town around them. After a few moments, the well dressed man was the first to recover.

“Ah….Wellll, Yes!” he piped up, pulling a handkerchief from his jacket pocket and dabbing the sweat from his forehead, “We have been having some…unusual going’s ons. Are…you from the college?” He looked expectantly at each member of the party.

Well, all but Athaclenna. The human had vanished from sight shortly after her feet touched the ground.

Investigation roll: 19 - 1 = 18

From where you are sitting, the first unusual thing you noticed was about the townsfolk arguing in the middle of the road. Every on of them looked disheveled with dull skin and dark circles under their eyes.
The windows in the immediate area are dark with their curtains drawn. AS you scan the houses and storefronts, you see a curtain swing back into place. Every window had a layer of grime that had not been disturbed in a while. Further down the road you spot a faded hanging sign. You can just make out "Swift's General"

 

[DragonSlayer57]

Jankurr calmed down a bit as he saw the mans face and eyes. Clearly something was going on here, Drug dealers? Well maybe it could be that whole thing about a hole. Nightmares could be annoying, he knew this from personal experience. It seemed this was one of those ‘Bouts of rage’ huh? Well, either way this man must have been walking around and targeted, maybe because of a comment or accident. Either way, these people seemed tired to him, but unluckily for them so was he. “Yes, Yes we are, and we have heard about it. Apparently so have these fine young men.” He grumbled, keeping his eyes trained on the 3 suspicious figures. They seemed to be intimidated, he thought. And, wait what. People not what? Waking? What the fiddlesticks. It wasn’t his problem, but it certainly gave him food for thought. “And i don’t particularly take kindly to you speaking to my friend like that.” He said this neutrally, though with an edge and a bit of venom to it. His hands were out of his pocket by now and crossed along his chest. He slowly approached the larger man that had taken a step back.


OOC: I shall get these mfs out of here this time, or fists are coming out. Anyways total is 16

 

[Vox Angelis]

Sylvestra shuddered at what lies ahead of her, the eerie sight of this desolate town. She could not help but feel an ill omen, brought forth by the nightmare just before she woke up earlier. A curse of some kind, maybe, brought forth by something from beyond the veil? The poor townsfolk, the grimy establishments, they all presented signs of some quiet doom that had befallen them.

Eternal slumber. A growing hunger feasting on dreams, thoughts and life itself to leave only despair and nightmares to the poor souls that had fallen prey to this malevolent presence. The druid felt like there might be more to this academic expedition than what she initially thought, or whatever the higher-ups in the college presumed.

Overhearing the situation, Sylvestra decided she'll have to put a early halt to her investigation and walked on over to the gathering.

"Sir Jankurr..." she called out calmly, her brows slightly furrowed in a faint frown. "These people are but victims of a curse of some kind. They do not deserve to be treated this way."

The copper-skinned Elf turned to the townsfolk, greeting them with a weak smile. "Greetings, I'm Sylph... no wait... that feels wrong. Sylv...estra, yes ! Druid from the Circle of Dreams. The college sent me and my colleagues to investigate about the happenings in your town, and how to help resolve it."

That last part was not entirely true. While the college did not petition the druid to help the townsfolk, she felt much obliged to aid the people. If she could find out what was happening here and help at the same time, she will.

 

[DragonSlayer57]

He turned around to see another elf and saw her mouth telling him something, but for some reason he felt a thought, a singular idea form in his brain, perfectly conveying every emotion his body was feeling at the moment ‘i don’t care’ that singular thought seemed to echo throughout his whole body. He really didn’t want to start anything with this woman so he shifted back to where he was standing before. His job was to make sure everyone was protected, he had done his part and would be glad to watch everyone else

 

[EbonChevalier]

Eredartis rolled his eyes at Jankurr's blatant disrespect. "Eredartis Callorlaran." He gives a short bow. "We'
d be much obliged if you could show up to any officials within your village. Along with anything you might know about these phenomena. Be they things or locations. "

 

[Psychie]

Cayde-6 looks down at the squabbling men and women as he sits on the back of his horse with a feeling of disgust. He says in his most calming tone, "We are here to help, not to engage in, nor referee your personal disputes. Any information you can give us as to what has happened here would be greatly appreciated."

 

[Sherwood]

When it becomes clear that there is not going to be a fight, Athaclenna makes her way back to the carriage, not trying to be sneakier than she usually is, but not tromping along like a bull in a China shop. She continues to look around, taking in the sights and sounds of the town, trying to get a feel for what they are here to deal with. As everyone talks, the young rogue pulls out one of her many daggers and idly uses it to clean under her fingernails,

 

[Kidzait]

Day four of Expedition

Time: mid afternoon

Weather: cloudy

The larger man narrowed his eyes and Jankurr, his fists clenched by his sides and the man's anger began to visibly rise. Before he could let his rage fly in the half-orc's face. The woman in a plain sundress stepped up and touched his arm.

"That's enough Pa." She says gently, tugging the man away from the group, "We should go check on Cal" The man turned to face the woman as if he was going to strike her. His eyes softened and he nodded, allowing his daughter to lead him away. The other man gave a glare to the group before slinking after the other two people.

As the members of the party made their intentions known, the well dressed man seemed to relax. He nervously wrung the handkerchief in his hands and he cleared his throat,

"Yes! The town...sorry about the townspeople. Everyone has been a little on edge ever since....ah, the site. The reason you are here..." the man seemed distracted, his cadence uneven and stuttered, "We were collecting stones to make repairs to some of the most dilapidated of our public structures. You know, the town hall, the general store, a few residence the....well, that's not important." The man was beginning to sweat despite the overcast conditions. He took a deep breath and continued, "While we were gathering stone blocks, there was a cave in. Part of the floor gave way to some sort of pit. Blasted thing took Gwendolyn's boy on the way down...Well, that was a tragedy, it isn't why I contacted the College. Ever since the cave in, we have all been experiencing dreadful nightmares every night. Unfortunately, after I sent my request, people of the town stopped waking up. A little over a dozen now..." He hung his head for several seconds. He took a deep breath and look to you, Eredartis.

"The ruins in question are up the road" He pointed in the direction of the lake, "turn left at the coast and you'll see it on the hill".

He looked to each one of you with pleading eyes, "Please, I don't know how long we can hold out. I hope you can cure the curse that has befallen us."

 

[DragonSlayer57]

Jankurrs heart broke a little at the man's desperate tone. He felt bad for whoever Gwendolyn was, he couldn't imagine not having his mother in his life. He looked at the man as he talked, the pleading in his eyes seemed to call out to him and the others for help "Sure, thats what we came for right?" He looked at the others with eyes expecting comforting tones. He wasn't the best at social stuff like this, at most he could help with small tasks around town or make them something to eat.

 

[Psychie]

Cayde nods as he listens to the man talk. He then says, "This mystery is why we are here. We will need our horses attended to while we go into the pit, and we might need more rope depending on how far down we have to go. Other than that, I see no reason why we should delay our investigation. My friends, shall we be on our way?"

 

[Sherwood]

Athaclenna looks up at the construct on his horse and nods. "Sounds like a plan. I am looking forward to finding out what is troubling this town and putting a stop to it." She climbs up into the carriage again and takes the reins, planning on moving out once everyone is ready.

 

[Vox Angelis]

Sylvestra listened with keen interest what the gentleman had to say. She assumed, by his looks, that he could be the mayor of this little town? It pained her heart to know that lives were lost in this tragic incident, and people were suffering only for the crimes of trying to salvage the ruins of an old home to repair the others.

She nodded to the others, agreeing to help in the earnest, it's not like she was very tired, she just rested on the way here. But speaking of resting...

"Before we go, I must ask. Do you remember anything of what you or your folks have been dreaming recently?"

The sleepy-looking elf druid paused, giving the man a time to think.

"Nightmares of teeth, darkness, fading colors, perhaps?"

 

[Kidzait]

Day four of Expedition

Time: mid afternoon

Weather: cloudy

"This mystery is why we are here. We will need our horses attended to while we go into the pit, and we might need more rope depending on how far down we have to go. Other than that, I see no reason why we should delay our investigation. My friends, shall we be on our way?"

The man seemed to relax, "Thank you... all of you." He looked up at Cayde as he made his request. The man panicked for a moment, pulling out a pad of paper to jot some things down, Yes yes. I will let our farrier, Sam, know about your horses and send him up to collect your carriage and drop off some supplies...free of charge, of course." He snapped the flip top notebook closed.

The man paled when Sylvestra asked what the nightmares contained. Seems like she struck a nerve when she mentioned a nightmare about fading colors and teeth. He glanced to each member of the party and shifted his weight from foot to foot, "Uh Well...yes. Fading colors, Teeth. Twisted bodies and clawed hands. Why do you ask?"

Before Athaclenna could drive the cart much further, a cloaked figure about the size of a child scampered up to the side of the carriage,

"Wait!" the person called, "Misters! Misses! Are you going to the pit? If you're going to the pit, please take me with you! I want to help!"

 

[EbonChevalier]

“Hmmmmm?” Eredartis turned to the voice approaching them. “We were sent by the college to help. Who are you and why should we take you along?”

 

[DragonSlayer57]

“Let the them come. If they wants to prove their worth, I dont see the problem.” Jankurr could and would readily accept anyone who was ever ready to prove their name and worth. Might is Might, and if this person was willing to prove theirs he’d be more than happy to let them help, and to help them himself. “Although, By saying this your willingly putting your life on the line?” The more hands the merrier, but this person looked like a child. The voice was hard to determine, but for all he knew they could be a dwarf. He was conflicted, but he had made his point and got back to his stance

 

[Psychie]

Cayde looks over at the short person that had run up, and calmly says, "Perhaps of you would introduce and tell us a bit about yourself, we would be inclined to accept your request. We have no idea what we're walking into, and if you cannot carry your own weight, it could jeopardize others that have to protect you. I mean no offense, but I am thinking of your own safety along with our own. So, who are you and why do you so fervently wish to join us?"

 

[Sherwood]

Athaclenna looks on at the conversation, but stays quiet. She has learned through many lessons that there are times to talk, and other times to just keep your mouth shut and listen to what is being said.

 

[Kidzait]

Day four of Expedition

Time: mid afternoon

Weather: cloudy

Despite the cloak obscuring the little thing, you could hear the unsteadiness of their voice, "I-I'm Grayvee. I want to help, I can... I can..." the little creature trailed off, seeming to gather it's thoughts for a few moments, ""I can carry things, and uhm, I, I can can find things, and I can get into small places..."

The little creature fell silent, their head hanging for a few moments, "I just want to help." Grayvee insisted, though with a somewhat defeated tone.

 

[Sherwood]

Athaclenna looks at the little figure with a feeling of sympathy. She knows what it feels like to be left behind, and it is not much fun. She then says, "Grayvee, I would feel horrible if anything were to happen to you. We don't know what kind of threats we might be walking into." She offers up a slight smile, then asks, "If we did take you, would you be able to protect yourself if we come across trouble?"