Babe in the Woods (IC)

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Garrick, BlackDog Tavern

The tender tells Ashina the same thing that Phaeder was told; Mr. Burrfoot will be here at noon, and you are welcome to wait until then. A meal and a drink is yours for the taking, if you are so inclined, and Mr. Burrfoot will pay for the cost.

He also mentions that the elven sitting at the table was also summoned by Mr. Burrfoot, and he's waiting as well.
 
Phaeder

He casually ate his meal, almost finished by the time the two women arrived. He had noticed their arrival but thought nothing of it as this was an establishment that was meant for traffic such as this. Sure there weren't that many people in the establishment itself but the possibility that anyone entered into here for something more than leisure was a bit slim. The fact that others might have been summoned, however, did warrant Serenity and Ashina a few cursory glances before he continued eating. Noon was approaching and he would like to have his stomach full to be completely attentive to this Burrfoot fellow.

The meal was inevitably consumed completely and he continued to sip on his water, not attempting to bring any attention to himself at all as he preferred to simply slide by without any sort of fame or notoriety. He continued to wait and wait and wait...wondering why time seemed to be going by so slow. Despite the fact noon was approaching soon, each minute seemed far longer than it should.
 
Ashina

She might have been cautious, but she most definately wasn't stupid. A free meal, at least offered willingly, rarely presented itself.

"Whatever the house is serving this morning is fine. Just be sure to include some ale."

Her order completed, Ashina turned her gaze to the elf. Now what would an elf and a halfling have in common that this mystery host would summon them together for a meeting? Once again her eyes narrowed in thought. A thief and an elf? Who would have need for such? In general, elves were worthy opponents on the battlefield and most posessed a keen intelligence, insofar as she was rarely able to slip more than a few coins from their purse before they detected her, but beyond a few thefts, she could think of no reason for a summoning that would bring her in direct contact with said race.

Hrm. Something to ponder. Ashina could approach the "companion" to this meeting, but she preferred to have the advantage. At this point, as far as she knew, he had no idea that she had been summoned by the same Burrfoot as he, and so for practical reasons, she would not approach him, instead keeping the knowledge behind his presence and her own to herself. Observation could sometimes mean the difference between life or death.
 
Serenity

Typically a bar would have clamoring, cussing and violence of some sort. She concluded that this was the most pathetic excuse for a bar that she'd ever seen. She didn't bother to move from the side of the exit, she hadn't found enough comfort for this. A meeting in an empty bar at noon in some distant village kept re-issuing the idea of 'trap' into her mind. It could be fun though. Yet, she wasn't here for fun. She was here for one purpose only. With arms crossing her chest she stood, firmly balanced, equal placement of her weight on both feet. The golden eyes shifted from one minuscule being to the next, like a God standing before her pathetic subjects and deciding which she would choose to crush beneath her fist. Heaven's knew that if it remained this quiet in her much longer, that she'd have to do such a thing to keep herself entertained.
 
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Garrick, BlackDog Tavern

The tender fixes a roast beef sandwich on rye bread, adds a hunk of cheese to the side, and some home-fries and sets it in front of Ashina. A moment later, a freshly poured ale is next to the plate. "Enjoy, Miss."
 
Ashina

She wasn't a picky eater. As the tender placed her food in front of her, she nodded in acknowledgement. The aroma of roast beef assaulted her senses and her belly rumbled in protest of a delay. But, right then, Ashina had noticed the arrival of the woman. With the occupants of the tavern dwindling down to a handful in numbers, this woman definately stuck out like a sore thumb.

Ashina popped one of the fries into her mouth, chewing thoughtfully as she studied the woman. Another of Burrfoot's summonings? The woman was definately not a villager. A passer-through? Maybe. But Ashina didn't believe in coincidence. Oh well.

She turned her back on the room now, eating her food and sipping the ale provided slow enough to savor the taste on her tounge. She gave an appearance of non-chalance, but Ashina always kept her guard up. Her eyes might not be in the game at the moment, but that didn't mean she wasn't listening for the slightest creak of a floorboard that would mean the approach of an enemy.
 
ENOS

Enos entered town and moved towards the blackdog, his eyes looking about the megar hamlet. His eyes seeing the sign and his nose smelling the village made him long to be back in Namwick. He knew some paladins prefered to visit smelly small hovels of towns like this but the reason why never seemed to be self evident. Causiously stepping he moved up towards the door of the black dog.

Entering the tavern he glanced around and noticed the people with in but his attention was not focused. Wandering in he moved to the bar counter with a confident air about him.Before glancing up at the bar keep and speaking in a normal tone " I am Enos Empra, a Paladin of Tyr, and I have been have been called by a Mr. Burrfoot, can you tell me where I may find him ? "

Enos Empra Character Sheet
 
Garrick, BlackDog Tavern

Once again, the bartender repeats the information that Mr. Burrfoot will be here at noon, and that Enos is welcome to a free meal and drink while he waits.
 
Eildrien

Eildrien entered the hamlet of Garrick and before long made his way to the Blackdog tavern. The overall look of the town made the young sorcerer question his reasons for leaving Namwick, but the small change in his robes reminded him that he was in need of funds. Entering the tavern Eildrien made his way to the bar and plopped down on a stool. Eildrien was a sorcerer but he was far from proper and was generally more laid back than most men would be in his line of work.

Eildrien took a moment to glance at the people around him paying little attention to patrons, hoping to find a game of cards or dice. Raising his voice enough that the tender m ight here him Eildrien continued to look about as spoke.

"I'm Eildrien," there was little reason to give a last name, his master had informed him that there was no reason for him to pick one until he had proven himself worhty of earning one. "I was told to meet a Mr. Burrfoot here?" The yong sorcerer said looking questioningly at the man behind the counter.
 
Again, same story is repeated to Eildriend.

When he finishes, the Bartender says "Well, all 4 of you are here for the same guy. You may as well get to know eachother before Mr. Burrfoot shows up. That should be in about 10 minutes, by my reckoning." He says this loud enough so that Phaeder can hear him, and probably Serenity as well, although he doesn't include her in his count of 4, since she hasn't spoken.
 
Phaeder

He continued to take gulps of the water that had been provided, having heard the bartender, easily placing pieces of this ephemeral puzzle together. The shady Ashina, the paladin, and that wizard that came in had all been summoned, but for what? Why would someone add this many different agents into the mix? What was so important that he needed all of their services to accomplish? The elf continued to contemplate all of this, his bow at his side while he took note of the tender and also glanced at Enos and Eildrien who received a much longer one due to his appearance.

He didn't take heed of the tender's words, however, choosing to remain in his seat since it seemed like everyone was not up for some conversation...especially not the woman near the door. Perhaps they should try to figure out why they were all called here but who would make the first move? Certainly not him. He was fine with going unnoticed or being discarded by others while not on duty. No attention was perfectly fine with him.
 
Ashina

Ashina stopped chewing long enough to offer a glare to the tender who had so obviously given away her advantage and then drained the rest of the ale in one long gulp, ignoring the tiny droplets that ran from the side of her mouth for the moment, and opening her throat to give the liquid the attention it was due, letting it slide through her throat in long, loud gulps. Finishing this, she placed the glass back on the bar and then, not having a napkin present, merely wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. She let out a slight belch, covering her mouth with the tips of her fingers, before finally turning to regard the others.

In a nonchalant manner, she rested her elbows against the bar, leaning back against it for support and rested her heels once again on the top rung of the stool. Her appearance was, for lack of a better word, deceitful. Her dagger was still within reach. Rather than allowing her hands to go lax and dangle as would any other being, she simply rested them against her belly, her gaze focusing on the Paladin. "For a stranger who was as mysteriously summoned as the rest of us, you're awfully free with your name, eh?"

She didn't value honesty. In the cutthroat world of thieves, it was more take than give and she immediately trusted no one willing to give more than what was asked of them.

A paladin, an elf, a halfling, and a human. She could find no relevant connection, even as her mind worked furiously. Beyond stealing from these varied races, she had never really interacted with such a group. Was it possible that one of these present was Mr. Burrfoot himself? Ah, well, noon was fast approaching and whatever questions she had surely wouldn't be answered until then.

Her attention moved from the four who were unmasked as being part of this plot to the lone woman standing off to herself. Now here was something of interest. Why would this woman be here, obviously waiting, if not having been summoned by Burrfoot as well. "Hey, you!" She called out to the woman in an attempt to get her attention. If this woman was nothing more than a casual visitor, why then was she not ordering a drink at the very least? Interesting, indeed. "Are you Burrfoot's messenger or what?" She didn't ask more. Simply regarded the woman, her gaze wavering every now and again to watch the others, expecting an attack at any moment.
 
Serenity

Her time was of value. Every second she spent of each day was used to research, hunt, and track down that which has evaded her for such a long period of time. She had lost the trail and this seemed to be the only sudden opening for a chance that she'd seen in months. Silently she notated that this man better not be wasting her time.

"Hey, you!"
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A shill voice ripped into the silence of her thoughts. It's magnitude of volume escalated over the mere murmur of conversation that was currently present. In the fuzz of grey outline and black figures that held no color in her mind, a small hint of red filtered through and outlined this woman making her stand out beyond anyone else. The only reason what that this woman, Ashina, had directly addressed her.

"Are you Burrfoot's messenger or what?"
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Small throbs of rage filled her body in pulsating waves, but she gave no outward impression that anything had changed. Remaining where she was, nothing but her lips moved as she spoke with cold, dark tones.

"I am no ones servant. Perhaps you'd do well to remember that before you continue to insinuate meaningless accusations."
 
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Phaeder

The response of Serenity was well noted and this man secretly began to hope that she would not be coming along with him. He hated those who were uncooperative, especially while he was on duty and seeing as they had all been summoned here, he could only assume that he would be needed for something that had to do with the outdoors. Eildrien was looked at yet again, but for what reason? A half-elf in the same area as a full-blooded elf would seem like fodder for conflict now wouldn't it? This man could care less as it did not matter who or what was within this room, especially not now that he'd probably have to endure the company of most of the people within this room for a short while.

The reason why they would all have to convene here together still eluded him but it would only take now less than ten minutes to figure it all out right? He simply listened in on the eventual conversation or lack thereof between Ashina and Serenity, minding his own business...for now.
 
Ashina

Ashina straightened at the woman's harsh tones and words, her eyes narrowing in anger at such an onslaught. In her own mind, she thought over what it was she had asked, came to the same conclusion as previously, and grew more angry at the thought of an innocent question turned awry by this human.

Without thought, her fingers wrapped loosely around the handle of her dagger once more, her fingertips caressing the smooth hilt. "Considering all you lack...." a brief pause with emphasis on the word and then she continued, "....in this particular place, I simply assumed you had an ulterior motive for being here." A sly smile graced her lips at this remark. Ashina didn't fear. Fear was equal to death. Let the woman read what she would into the words.

Her back ramrod straight, she once more turned her attention to the paladin, offering yet another insult to the woman who had annoyed her by simply moving her importance down the list. No response from him yet? Ah, well, perhaps he needed more prodding. Her ears alert for any movement from the woman she had just insulted, Ashina ignored diplomacy in this matter and once again blithely insulted the paladin, "So, magic user, why are we here? I'm don't care for the whims of YOUR kind." Her face twisted into a sneer as she addressed him. She didn't really expect a response from him. The man seemed to be more or less a feeble dullard. At least in Ashina's mind.

Before the day was through, she had a feeling she would have to insult all of these fools just to get an interesting reaction from one of them. Spending your life in the shadows was not a good way to gain social skills. Now her quick tounge turned to the elf, "And you? Your purpose here? Just out for a stroll on a nice day and happened to wander in to this cesspool? Or are your elvish ears and eyes too noble to behold a sight such as we are? Too good to speak? I'm done with this!"

That said, she slid down from the stool, her feet thumping against the floor, knees bent slightly to take the impact of the landing. She didn't even spare a glance for the apprentice. For all intents and purposes, he seemed to be more subservient than anything, his inquiry phrased in such a way that made Ashina believe that he would always do as he was told. Now she recklessly addressed the room, "Sheep. You're all sheep. Bleating after your master. Not me. I'm no one's servant. When the sheperd arrives, tell him one has strayed from his little flock. I'm tired of waiting." Perhaps diplomacy would have been a better choice, a smart choice, but Ashina had anger issues.

She stood now in the center of the room, her backpack still in place, it's straps over her shoulders. The fingers of her right hand had stayed curled around the hilt of the dagger, her left hand moving to rest atop the smooth hilt of her shortsword. Let Burrfoot come. She'd had enough of this whole waiting business. No scroll or coin was worth the trouble of dealing with rude women, magic users and elves who put on princely airs as if they were too good for a mere halfling.
 
Serenity

Serenity internally had a furnace of rage always boiling. It was part of being what she was, but luckily she'd been able to contain most of it. The primary insult that had been offered to her had been done in such a way as to insinuate that she had worked for another, served another...and she did no such thing. She worked of her own accord. She had her own agenda. After her statement was presented towards Ashina she was then offered a backlash of words both in her direction and towards the direction of others. If Serenity smiled, she would have at that moment.

Ashina had presented one open weakness to Serenity that she hadn't even realized: anger. She seemed to have a suddenly lit spark that out-lashed without warning which left Serenity with the notion that this was at least one weakness that this woman had. Not many people knew how to contain rage and still be able to think at the same time. It made no matter. Serenity had offered one statement of truth in response to a simple insult, and now a raging torrent of verbal fire was spat throughout the room.

During the moment that Ashina took the time to address every person individually as if they had wronged her in some past life, she also openly presented her hand curled around the hilt of the dagger. Serenity took note of this for future reference should she need this. This woman carried at least one dagger on her, and felt that she needed to always hold fast to it when things suddenly went awry, as most did. It seemed to be used as a crutch of caution. Serenity saw differently when it came to weapons. Aside from the massive ones attached to her, the small ones were always hidden, for it was more deadly not to know of a weapon, then to know of a hundred available ones. What was more lethal than something emerging from an unseen place headed directly for you? Now Serenity knew where that one weapon was and that proved highly beneficial. Enough, that she didn't react to Ashina. The woman went from someone that Serenity had paid attention to, to someone that she saw suddenly as an annoyance that wasn't even worth addressing. Since she was a few feet from the side of the door, she wouldn't need to move when Ashina made her 'grand explosive' exit.

In addition, Serenity had also learned (due to Ashina's openly verbal attacks) just what each person was and who was supposed to be involved in the same issue that she was. Things were growing more interesting by the minute.
 
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Garrick, BlackDog Tavern

At this point, a short gnome comes walking into the tavern. He is dressed in fine clothing, and has a cheerful expression on his face. He nods to everyone, as he passes them, looking around as if he's trying to find someone.

Eventually he gets to the bar and pulls himself up into a chair that is a little too tall for him. "Good afternoon, Yosef. Has my company arrived yet?"

The bartender blinks a few times and says "Uh, yes, they have, Mr. Burrfoot."
 
Phaeder

Whatever princely air he supposedly exuded was merely a fabrication of the anger of the rogue woman within the room. It was not that he loathed or attempted to act condescendingly to anyone within this room. Neutrality implied an open nature of acceptance to either side of the spectrum or at least a tolerance of them all. He was quiet simply because he had not been spoken to. He was silent simply because his words would have been useless at the moment given the anti-social behavior of all the rest aside from the paladin who seemed to be the most jovial out of the entire bunch. Eildrien seemed very affable as well but Ashina seemed to want to ruin whatever tranquility there may have been along with Serenity.

He was not extending any hate toward anyone here as there was no reason to spend such emotion when nothing warranted it. He was as caught aback as anyone could be by Ashina's sudden spurt and then luckily Mr. Burrfoot came in to finally solidify the reasoning behind this volatile summoning. His eyes fell upon the man and he simply waited for him to start, looking at Ashina and unfortunately unable to answer anything she had said for now. He was sure they all wanted to hear what the man had to say.
 
Garrick, BlackDog Tavern

"Well, where are they? There should be 5 of them." asks the gnome. The bartender, looking more confused says "They are right here. The elf, halfling, half-elf, and 2 humans. Careful about the halfling though. She seems to have a temper." Yosef, the barkeep points each of you out individually.

The gnome looks around. "What are you talking about? These aren't the people I asked for. I wanted a Dwarf Fighter, a Gnome Wizard, an Elf Cleric, a Human Rogue, and the a Half-Elf Bard. These people are none of those. That halfling looks like she's as likely to steal something before finding any traps. And theres a Paladin! He's probably got a stick shoved so far-"

"Sir, they can hear you. I don't know what happened with your spell, but you may need to make due with what you've got."

"By Fharlanghn's boots! Alright. Well, we don't have any time to delay. Come along, Come along. I suppose I've got no choice now. We'll just have to see if you are all up to the task. Hurry, hurry, don't dawdle now." The gnome's speech is fast-paced and so are his actions. Despite his initial misgivings, he seems to be enthusiastic about getting you all started on whatever quest he has planned out for you. He heads to a private dining room on the side of the tavern and waits for you all to join him.

Once everyone is in the room, he climbs up on top if a little stool so that he can see most of you at almost eye level. "Alright then! My name is Schaeffer Hacklefin Brandburt Nobwin Burrfoot. You can call me Schaeffer, or Mr. Burrfoot, as you please. I am a philanthropist of sorts. That is, I have spend my life adventuring and seeing whatever sights this old world has to see. I've retired from active adventuring, and now I spend my time organize new groups of adventurers to do good deeds in the world. It just so happens that this particular part of the world has some deeds that need doing! I pay very handsomely for a job well done, but I won't lie and tell you that the job will be easy. There is plenty of danger, but if you survive, I'll make sure it is worth your while.

So, who's up for a little adventure?" The Gnome doesn't wait for any sort of response before he continues. "Excellent! Glad you are all still here and looking forward to this. Now, I can't just send you off into the woods without knowing what you are going up against. None of you would survive! No, no, first you must know whats going on. So pull up a chair and let me tell you a story."

The Gnome pulls out a scroll and starts to speak strange words from the parchement. "Egami Ronim!" he says and before you all, an illusion springs into existance. You can see images that match and reflect the gnome's words.

"The forest nearby is Hrothgar's Forest. Hrothgar was a half-orc druid many many years ago. He protected the woods from all manner of evil." The picture shows a humanoid with grisly features, and a bear following him around. The gnome explains that the bear was kind of like a pet for Hrothgar.

Anyways, he continues to explain that because of Hrothgar's work, the forest and the people who lived in or near it prospered greatly. However, that was many years ago. And druids are a fickle lot, you know. They have very firm beliefs in the natural order of things, and in the balance of nature. The order of druids which Hrothgar belonged to sent another druid to this forest after Hrothgar's death to maintain it. But the druid they sent was an evil sort, named Darcon, and for many years the land around here was a very dangerous place. The image shifts to show Darcon directing raids by goblinoids on the towns, and disrupting the trade of the loggers. The druids believed that this helped maintain the balance of nature, to cycle between times of peace and times of danger. Finally, the image shifts again to show a beautiful young elf, with a ring of leaves on her head, and an eagle on her arm.

"This is all well and good so long as that cycle isn't broken. But that is exactly what is in danger of happening now! The evil druid passed away a few years ago, and a replacement druid, named Pacoth was sent as a replacement. Pacoth was supposed to user out the dangers of the woods and return this place to a time of peace. However, no one knows what happened to her since entering the woods! I fear that our new druid has fallen prematurely to the evils harbored by Darcon.

So, your mission is to find out what exactly happened to Pacoth, and if possible, to help restore the forest.

Bring me news of what happened, and I'll pay you 500 Gold Coins. I'll double it if you can bring the remains back, or if Pacoth is alive, bring her to me.

Do you accept?"

{OOC: Just for comparison's sake, the average typical indentured servant makes 1 gold per month roughly.}
 
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