Episode L003: A Bloody Reckoning.

General Summary

As the two blood hunters climb out of the Lorella Canyon, Hasdraek is pensive. He is recalling the encounter, less than an hour earlier, with the Spirit of the Land, the Archfey of the Lorella. It had spoken to him telepathically, calling on him to be a defender of the land, and in a moment of juvenile recklessness, he had agreed to become magically bound to the creature. The power of its voice was intoxicating, and the new magical power coursing through his own blood now, was doubly so. Knowing that Grigg was expecting him to join the Lycan blood order, Hasdraek saw his new status as another way to exert his independence from the older man. Grigg would be furious, he knew, but Grigg would simply have to accept it.
The pair emerge from the forest onto a road just as a family of sheep farmers is walking past with a horse-drawn cart carrying bundles of wool to market. They are frightened by the sudden appearance of these two menacing - and bloodied - warriors from the direction of the Lorella. Hasdraek hurriedly assures them they have nothing to fear, but senses Grigg has other plans. As the family continues on its way, Grigg transforms into his Lycan form and slaughters the entire family before Hasdraek has a chance to stop him.
Hasdreak confronts Grigg and they square off. In the ensuing battle, Hasdraek reveals his newfound powers, angering the older man, and throwing him off guard. Hasdraek gets the upper hand and knocks Grigg unconscious, tying him to the overturned cart as he searches for the horse that had fled the scene in panic.
When Grigg comes to, hard words are exchanged. Grigg accuses Hasdraek of failing to see the bigger picture while Hasdraek contends that it is Grigg who has lost perspective. Hasdraek is beginning to believe that Grigg is not the person he once was. His moral compass has gone awry. He lashes Grigg to the horse, slaps its rump, and watches his former mentor disappear down the road. He will bring this up with Famath upon his return. Grigg was never a particularly loving - or even a remotely warm - figure in Hasdraek’s life, but at least he was a reliable member of Hasdraek's surroundings, and a father figure of sorts. Until now. These recent changes - his indecisiveness and loss of composure in the Lorella, and his brutal display of violence - have shocked and horrified Hasdraek.
Having stripped Grigg of both his coin and the secret package given to him by Bart Flandral at Claystead, Hasdraek sets out along the road, toward Beargrove. The package contains a necklace and a note. The note contains instructions for Hasdraek’s errand - this was, after all, meant to be Hasdraek’s first solo assignment: The Observation of Ridger Haverstraw
The note reads,

The boy is 6, he resides in the mountains north of Rhyme Tree. Observe his doings for up to two weeks. What are his habits, who are his friends, What do his parents do, when do they do it?
Do not let yourself be seen.

— FB

Putting on the necklace, Hasdraek discovers that it can change his appearance if he focuses on an image that he has seen before. He starts with the image of Rapunzel, the buxom young maid who cooks and cleans for the interns at Ram Rock, and suddenly his appearance changes to the that of the young maid. Then he invokes the image of a paunchy merchant he saw in Claystead, two days before, and sets off down the road.
Disguised as the fat merchant, Hasdraek stops at a small hamlet on the East Acastra River called Braehill and spends the night at old widow Chalton’s home. She speaks fondly of the Tilthenpenny family - Theodolph, Robinia, Pip, and Bremma - whom she is expecting to arrive this evening. Hasdraek knows wild animals are probably devouring their corpses several miles up the road but says nothing. In the quiet hours, in his room, Hasdraek meditates on the sword he acquired in the Lorella, gaining an intuitive connection with the weapon, but no actual understanding of its effects.
Hasdraek has had the dream again. The cowled figure only looks at him with that inscrutable countenance. As usual, he learns nothing new about the figure.
To bolster his disguise as a merchant, Hasdraek purchases 10 bushels of wool from the locals, rents a horse and cart and sets off in the morning for the wool market at Beargrove.

Report Date

11 Jun 2019

Campaign Date
13th and 14th days, Left Leg of Autumn, 4078
Timeline
The Lorella Campaign
Locales
Veldarfoil
Braehill
Actors
Hasdraek Deepbrand
Grigg
Theodolph Tilthenpenny
Robinia Tilthenpenny
Pip Tilthenpenny
Bremma Tilthenpenny
Old Widow Chalton
The Spirit of the Land
Items
An enchanting and possibly enchanted shortsword
Necklace of Disguise
The Observation of Ridger Haverstraw