Building Trust

Life, Achievement/ Win

20CA
2/1 8:00

20CA
3/1 10:00

After a rought day, Aurum and Adeline wake up to the sound of a roc cawing outside of their windows, followed by a middle aged man chasing two dragon born down the street. Their first priority was to bring Josh Beck to Carlisle Crest to atone for his transgressions. Both Carlisle and Josh accepted the agreement and he began working for the Crest family.

Reminiscent of the Past

As they woke from a night of drinking and fire, Ryz and Hana were groggy but ok. Willa Warms beckonned Ryz over to have a chat, giving them space to wake up and take care what they needed. Hana and Ryz made their way to the water to do their daily ritual. The two had little to say, and just tried to enjoy the beautiful weather and each other's company. After saying goodbye to Hana and wishing her well, Ryz went to Willa. There, Willa told them, clumsily at times, that she sees greatness in them. Ryz broke the tension with some light humor as Willa's baby roc returned to her. Willa told Ryz where to find their new friends and off they went. Aurum handed Carlisle the report he wrote up, not trusting the guard to handle it. Carlisle accepted it and went in to study his notes and the report. As Aurum and Adeline exited the inn, they ran into Ryz. Meeting out front of the inn, Ryz noticed two dragonborn huddled, counting coins. As they pointed them out, Aurum and Adeline recognized them as the ones running from the irate man earlier. The trio approached, with Ryz and Adeline attempting to get around them sneakily. While they were noticed, they did manage to get a decent vantage point as Aurum approached.

A Chance Encounter

Aurum greeted them as he usually does - boisterously. The duo gathered their coins and greeted him with a smile. Aurum entertained them with a game of chance. Aurum produced a Feather of Saemus and introduced a game of skill: Best of three, on the count of three reach for the feather, first to grab it wins the round. Both wagered 180 gold pieces. Gruv sat down opposite Aurum and Geralt agreed to count. 1, 2, 3! Both reached for the feather. Gruv managed to grab it, but just barely. They reset. 1, 2, 3! Aurum won this time, quite handily. As the game was played, Ryz and Adeline watched nearby. They didn't interfere, getting to know one another a little better, but making sure they were still attentive. Prepping for round three, the feather was set as Gruv and Aurum readied themselves. 1, 2, 3! And with great dexterity, Gruv snatched the feather. Trying to recover, Aurum readied another round, as Geralt chimed in stating "You said best of three." Aurum thought quickly, trying to distract them as they began collecting their winnings. Aurum was disappointed that the feather did not work exactly as expected. Gruv produced a Feather of Saemus as well, with a wry smile. Aurum used divine favor to attempt to blind them, but this wasn't the pairs first game. They deftly shielded their eyes with one hand and continued scooping coins with the other. At this point, Aurum's feather popped back into his gear. Moving quickly, the duo bid their adieu. As Gruv cast dimension door, Aurum took a swipe at the coin purse. The gold scattered to the ground as Gruv stepped through. Geralt kicked as many coins as he could into the dimension door as he followed. As the dimension door closed, Aurum regaining his gold and then some. As the dust settled, the three companions looked at each other wondering why they just did that. What information was meant to be gathered never happened.

Looking for Answers

After pondering for a moment what their next move should be, Ryz thinks that the nearby Lunatic temple will be the best place to get answers this early in the morning. They were met by the kind bishop Batya Gadi. She was well aware of the tricks and grifts of the Shadowscale brothers and admitted that noone had come to her yet about money lost to them. Not wanting to get involved with a major investigation or chasing cold leads, Aurum asked Batya about where to find aid for Amana and the plague befalling his people. Batya mentioned that she could send a team of acolytes to render aid. She also mentioned that the local Oddbasilians could provide a different perspective. Ryz led the trio to the section of the city housing the diasporic Oddbasillians. There, they met with Liana Pinea. Considering the slow progress still being made, Pinea offered support. They contacted Oddbasil in an effort to find more answers. While the Liana performed the meditation ritual, the party got to know each other a little better and get a little food. Unfortunately, the Oddbasillians were still in a weakened state. They offered to lead a delegation of 10 Oddbasilians to Amana, and mentioned that there seemed to be some sort of aid to be gained in The Wyldlands as well. With that, they agreed to meet at the docks the following morning and set sail.

Preparations

Ryz wanted to leave their things at home. The trio followed them to their home in Citrine. While shocked, and terrified for their child, Robi and Lia supported their decision. Lia let them know that they might get seasick, Ryz left their things in their room, and they exchanged loving embraces. Back in Emerald, they bought a few supplies. Adeline traded Josh's short bow for a daggar and getting her other one sharpened. Ryz bought some seasickness remedies from their favorite apothecary - Jimbob's Jingle Jangle Apothecary (now under new management). Aurum purchased a broken ring of spell storing that was prepped with counterspell. The trio then enjoyed a nice evening drinking, eating a delicious meal, and chatting. Far from being intimately acquainted, the events of the day gave them a lot of time to get to know about larger aspects of their pasts. These were most important for Adeline as she was still experiencing the incredible culture shock of being in a world so diverse.

Omens

As they woke, Ryz and Adeline found a message meant for them: Adeline's daggar that was left in the Candela Headquarters imbedded in the candel in their room. This confused them greatly. After some brief worry and light argument, the trio made their way to the docks. The Liana had already managed to make a deal to gain safe passage to Amana. They were to be passengers aboard an embassy ship. The journey was free of charge on the condition that they all chip in along the voyage. All agreed. Then, a carriage pulled up driven by Barnaby Imigin. As it parked, Josh Beck burst from the back, panicking and looking for the party. As he spotted them, he dashed up, asking he be able to come with them. He woke up to an arrow embedded in the headboard where he slept. Barnaby explained that Carlisle thought it best that he and Josh leave, with the carriage, so that the last of his property isn't burned down. The captain said that there was space to take the carriage and extended the same deal. Barnaby presented a copy of the report for Aurum in private. Aurum then requested an additional copy, which Barnaby created. The party then realized that these arrangements were made without letting the acolytes know about the updated timetable. A short jog to the temple and Batya was able to gather four acolytes who were already prepared to make a journey. Unsure of who to trust, Aurum asked Batya who she thinks could be trusted with a report regarding the Candelas. She said that there were parishioners in the town guard who she thought could be trusted to look into it in an effort to aid the community. Ryz also relayed that maybe the Longcoats could be trusted with it. Aurum didn't feel it was a good idea to leave the report with Batya, and decided to keep it with them. The party, along with acolytes, ran back to the ship. The captain was waiting since preparations were done early. They boarded, and the ship began its week-long voyage. Everyone was tense - worried about Candela retribution. The hope was that leaving Espiria would give them time and distance to let this dissipate and go away. Equal measures of hope and fear fill the party as they set sail.