Chapter 3: A Stranger in Town
It all started in the city of Aquitaine, where an out-of-season heavy rainstorm settled in to stay for an unnaturally long time. Even at sea, hurricanes should never last sixteen days in their entire existence, much less in a single horizon-crushing location.
The storm collapsed in time for the arrival of a dying young lad. Dacio Bicchieri drove himself and his donkey past their own endurance as he searched for a sunrise, trying to reach rescuers in time to save his pa.
After seeing to the boy's immediate care and their own provisioning, Bruthazmus and the SNAFU Guild headed out to chase the sunset across the Longgrass Plains.
The rescuers' route took them across trackless grass hills for a week, heading west and northwest and west again. As the sun was setting on the 6th of Grolm, the mini caravan found the site where Dacio was sent away from the Bicchieri Caravan as the other caravan members tried to shore up their defenses. The campsite is largely rubble, caches of supplies still buried under a thin layer of soil, some of the wagons missing.
Once night fell ... the first hint of true evil made its presence heard on the night wind.
Rested and determined on the next morning, our heroes resume their travel west until they set foot on the main street of Purgatory Gulch itself. It is now Grolm 7th, which promises to be another scorching day of late summer in the northern Longgrass Plains. Jesse Devonshire sees to the care and housing of the beasts of burden. Then everyone splits off to investigate their environment.
When they reunite, resident cleric Padre Cirino De Mario leads them to places where local information might at least eliminate search areas. Their investigation leads only to more strangeness, more cause for concern, dead warriors, and the nearly-dead form of 'Ranger' Horn -- one of the missing blacksmiths.
Worse, they discover that at least one entire farm has been emptied of its people since Padre Cirino checked in on his parishioners -- less than a week ago!
But that is nothing in the wake of the hellish stampede now threatening the incoming mail coach!
Not to worry: the rescue posse takes smart action, turning the nature of the hellbeasts' mortal forms against the fiendish plot. The day is saved! -- and hot! -- and it is time for a little regrouping.
The Good:
Bruthazmus and the SNAFU Guild return to the main street of Purgatory Gulch in late afternoon of 09/07/578. The stagecoach crew are glad for the chance to thank them in person. By the time they are done caring for their lapir and sorting the mail, they say, Purgatory Saloon should be open for business -- first round is on us!
The Bad:
Mayor and Purgatory Gulch General Store proprietor Jaeke Blaze is not to be found anywhere.
The Ugly:
What's that unpleasant smell wafting from the store?
Relations
Allies
- Padre Cirino De Mario has not been informed about some of the creepier goings on. When he does hear, of course he will get involved -- but Padre Cirino is not a Pathfinder. Padre Cirino does not possess the power to defy any serious component of "the troubles" successfully. Those in the know have kept him out of it so far because his life expectancy will be about six minutes once the main actors know he has gotten involved.
- Frederico Bianchi has smuggled away what he can. His resources are scraping bottom at this point. He has been considering a secret alliance with a certain other townsperson, but this is a dangerous deed if the main actors realize that he is breaking the truce.
- At the Purgatory Schoolhouse, Miss Roselli keeps all of the children in the most defensible building with hope that "the troubles" will pass them by. Each evening at the Purgatory Saloon, Miss Amore tends bar and tries to encourage a more peaceful resolution to "the troubles" than where she sees it heading. So long as it never occurs to one side or the other that they have the physical power to run her out of her own place, she can at least keep applying liquid brakes....
- Jaeke Blaze is the proprietor of the Purgatory Gulch General Store and Mayor of this town. He knows something. He does not know what he can do with this information that will have any result other than to make everything so much worse.
He did not know that "the troubles" have spread to include the Bicchieri Caravan.
He feels awful about that.
His guilt may get him killed ... or worse!
Neutrals/Bystanders
- Freecities League Assessor Euphoma Hillbough goes by "Scorpion" in the Oatman Canyon region. She's not much of one for mixing company. She stings awfully hard on any attempt to wander too close to what she considers "her turf".
Backdrops
Past Events
Visiting outlying areas:
- The smithy at Ore Else has recently been working. Ranger Horn was there at dawn, firing up the forge and getting to work on things that might help him rescue Baldy Ironbender. Ranger underestimated his captors' determination to put him to work on their priorities.
- The folks at Ayrshire Farm are trying to decide where their duty lies. Haven't they paid the price already?
- Tarntaise Farm, home of Rutabaga Beer Cheese Soup, is passively involved in "the troubles" and will only open up to a visitor who positions themselves as Already Agreeing. Exception: Jackson Tarntaise has a twinge in his conscience.
- Braunvieh Farm maybe spent a little too much time trying to make a name for themselves in the Fancy Taro Recipes department.
- Grandmammy Clementine at Corriente Farm thinks maybe she will have to follow the example of Big Lui and Big Mauri over at Whippetal Ranch if she is going to bring "the troubles" to a solid conclusion.
- Speaking of Whippetal Ranch, there are at least as many disadvantages to being a big ranch that ranges so far from the rest of civilization as there are advantages to same. When those disadvantages crop up, they hit mighty hard!
Plot type
increasing stakes
Parent Plot
Related Characters
Related Organizations
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