The Half Ork looks up at everyone and say "well I kinda want to do something to keep my mind off the situation if you know what I mean, anything like that here"

A flash of recognition crosses Clash's face and he says, "ah, now I understand.  You have the need to mate for pleasure.  Yes, you can find a suitable mate over at Sustare's House of Cards.  It's a couple of blocks down the street on the left.  Seek an older Tiefling female named Madam Jassila."

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OCC:  Clash's Streetwise check = 19 to know of a place for prostitution.  I assumed he succeeded; if not that's cool and I'll edit post.

Hamrick can't help but laugh to himself. The dry logic of the warforged never ceased to amuse him.

The Half Orc joins the dry laughter.

I don't know if he's joking or not

Hastur makes no move towards the whore house, but does stay drinking with you three until you go to bed.

Chapter 2, Connections

Its not what you know, its who you know. The sooner someone tells you that, the quicker you'll be doing better for yourself ~ Aldebaran, Hastur's Father

Everyone bunks early and starts earlier. Hastur has made provisions however, and a team of magebreed horses and carriage quickly wisks you halfway to Starilaskur, the closest city to the north of new cyre.  in the predawn where you can catch the Lightning Rail at a wooden 'halfway' station that is nearly abandoned in the white early morning mist.

This may be the first time some of you were on the Lightning Rail. Your ridding in the First Class Area, although quite a ways away from the sole other passenger, an old gypsy looking lady that you believe is an eladrin. You notice that all the staff, while polite and cordial, keep their distance from her. She seems to be fidgeting with cards.

As you leave Starilaskur and start heading west towards Wroat (the capital of breland) the train starts to speed up. Hastur smiles at any worry you have and says "experimental express lightning rail, don't worry its very safe, the experimental bit just means that it hasn't been expanded past this one lightning line yet.

For those who approach her

QuoteThe Old Eladrin Lady, Wrapped in Shawls, greets you warmly, seemingly to have no problem seeing you dispite her solidly milky white eyes. If you join her you see she is constantly fidgiting with a set of Tarot type cards. Her name is Linu and she is going .... somewhere... she never quites mentions where, but she does talk alot. About the weather and the rain and how its affecting her bones ...

the sky is clear and will be quite sunny once the sun gets higher in the sky.

If you call her on it, she just smiles, and says its raining sometime, somewhere If you join her for tea and put up with her stories and fussing, she will offer to tell the future for you. Do you accept?

For those who ask the staff about her

QuoteApparently she's been riding various lightning rails for over a year now, just being shuttled from one place to another, Most of the staff verge on either that she's a delightful old dear to something of a sweet nutter. If you press on however some staff has some dark ruminations about her. That shes a witch, an evil person, that she curses people or things or trains. Some will even go so far to say that she's blackmailed someone high up in House Orien (the dragonmarked house of travel that run the lightning rail) and that's why she travels for free, constantly.

The Terrain moves quickly by and by the end of the 2nd day you find yourself stopping in Wroat, the Capital of Breland.  A soggy little  city by the river with an 'inspired' canal system that you recognise as a rip off of Cyrian civil design from 10 years ago. You guess even cyran civil engineers need to find new cities to ply their trade in. Its still wont ever be home...

The train ride ends here, with everyone, even Linu bidding you a warm and safe journey. Another team of horses, simple draft animals this time await you, and everyone takes turns running the horses, and sleeping in the warm hay provided at the back of the wagon. Comfortable and clean, in its own way.

You know when you enter Droam, the monster nation, because the giants are still creating a series of watch towers along the border. Huge stacks of stone, that only the runty goblins that caper around the giants feet seem to be able to climb up on. At this point Hastur pulls out a banner, neatly tied up to this point, and hoists it on the wagon. It has Goblin and Giant Written on it, in black splotchy ink. The Giants half make a move towards your wagon, until one squints and reads the tiny (to them ) sign and motions the others back.  

By the end of the third day you are approaching the City of Stone, when Hastur tells you "I wish we had made better time, but we're going to have to stay here tonight" Its okay for you on the streets as long as you stay with me or the banner, but don't enter any shops or houses. The medusi are not required to stay veiled in their own homes...

Everyone looks at Hastur uneasily and mouths medusi, as you pass the first statue a brash ork looking fellow with what appears to be an engraved dragonmark upon his face. Hastur smiles, and stops the wagon for a moment, doing an odd bit of ritual where be rubs the Half Ork Statue's shoe "for good luck, this is the fellow who established tharashk-medusi relations" before continueing.

Soon more statues, dozens, hundreds of them litter the country side before you enter the city ruins. The City is old and mostly in ruin and rubble but the main road has been cleared and what remains of the ancient city is awe inspiring in Marble and Platinum. The Medusi can be seen crawling the streets but veiled, beautiful but dangerous, in thin veils. The thousandfold hiss of snakes can always be heard.

The wagon continues until eventually blindfolded male medusa come and lead the team. You dont know how they see but male medusa look like snake skinned, bald, flat nosed individuals. You are soon taken to where the Main Boulevard leads The Central Palace. You soon find yourself indoor and in opulent quarters. Good Food is laid out, and wine and a barrel of ale at the end of the room is already tapped , apparently just for you. Hastur leads the way carrying the banner at all times before saying one last time "stay in the room with the banner and you'll be fine, eat up the food is good here, its the company that will kill you... Hastur then leaves the room, and you can hear him outside...politely... asking to be taken to the queen, to 'thank her for her humble hospitality'. You have the feeling he's going to be gone all night long...

The Food is good and the beer and wine are both spicy and strange and strong.

Around midnight you start hearing the whimpering of a child, and then the lash cracking, and then quite quite sobbing. What do you do?

After hearing conflicting stories about Linu, Clash decides to sit with her several times during the two day rail ride.  He talks with her casually, engaging her in conversation and listening to her stories.  He doesn't ask her for a tarot card reading, but if she offers him a reading then he'll quietly listen to her talk about it.

=====================================================

Sitting quietly in resting mode, Clash will wake up Fargrim and Hamrick if they weren't up already.

Hamrick wakes up. He pays attention to the crying and lashing. As he recognizes what these sounds are, his traits become hard. He stands up, walks towards the noise. He intends to break down any door that separates him from the child in pain.

((Fargrim will also speak with the old woman, just once out of politeness, and just in case...))

Waking grogilly in the night, Fargrim becomes alert once he hears the crying child.

Right, then - I've heard too many children cryin' in my day. At least I ken do somethin' about this one, perhaps.

With that, he follows Hamrick.

Without a word Clash stays with his comrades, knowing that tone and look in their eyes.

Clash's Reading

QuoteLinu lays down the last card and stares somewhat uncomfortibly at the layout, muttering something about too many watcher cards, before smiling and laying an arm on the kind warforged who would listen to an old lady pratle on and such.

The eyes, you will know him by his works and his eyes you will find, everywhere. You will journey to the underworld itself marked by a burning eye and there you will find his mark, his coat, and his sacrifice all covered by his eyes...

She then seems to snap herself out of a trance and hurridly puts away the cards, pratling on about the set she lost at sea or the way the rough weather bothers her rheumatism.

Fargrim's reading

QuoteYou walk in on Linu seemingly mid reading, but she ushers you in. I had a feeling you would come by, so I laid everything out as you wearily seat yourself she absentmindedly cautions you not to worry about the tiny glass figure your about to smash underfoot. You foot sits down with the heavy crunch of broken glass, you start to do ... something ... and Linu stops you "I told you, dont worry about it, in a way my readings and prophecy are just like that warning, what will really cook your noodle is what would have happened if I hadn't said anything.

Smiling she sits down and looks at you and your cards , laid out long before you entered, and says Your going to find a surprise on the way, a diamond in the rough per say, but once you are there you are not going to find much at all, but that , that is the rubbish. Look hard and you will find it, the point of all of it, sharp as obsidian and laying where she used to rest. You might think it is nothing but it is the key to understanding and finding your friend." With that Linu seems to come to, and you enjoy the view from her seat for a while before leaving, silently.

Following the sounds of pain.

QuoteYou follow the sound of pain , presumably opening the unlocked doors rather than smashing them and alerting people. You eventually find yourself drawn towards the smells of gravies and relishes and meat on the spit. In the Cavernous Kitchen you find the child...

The Kitchen is poorly lighted by the coals of a slow roast and nothing else. BUT even in that dim light and damp heat you can see the scurry of activity. Dozens of Goblins running back and forth doing whatever the Head Chef orders. In amongst all the goblins is a small human or halfling child, its hard to tell, working shoulder to shoulder to the goblins.

The Child is trying to quiet her sobs as Goblins tease her with Whispers "The Maman , She's Gonna Turn you to Stone, if you dont stop cryyyyyyiiiiiing" "the Maman , She's Gonna Spit you and turn you just like that Hog little Girl" "The Maman, If She Hears you, your going to end up like all of them" the foul creatures point up before silently cackling with glee.

You Mistook them for Grotesque little statues, sat on top of the cupboards like vile little nick nacks of Cherubim or Children. But you realise that the small statues are all alike in the terror they express, the attempt to avert or cover their eyes, the marble stone finish to them...

everyone make Stealth Checks DC 15 if you want.

The Door to the Kitchen Larder is Cracked Open and inside you can hear a soft ripping sound, like snores, where presumably Maman is sleeping.

yeah some of that is a little stolen...

Clash follows his friends, trying to be quiet as he knows that they are in a unfamiliar territory with unknown hostiles.  However, upon seeing the kitchen scene unfold before him, he knows that Hamrick and Fargrim will be getting down to business.  There will be no way to get that child out without the goblins raising the alarm, and the 'Madam' will certainly be alerted.  

Clash draws his sword and attaches it to his arm, locking it in place.

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OOC:  Clash's Stealth Check = 9.

Hamrick's Stealth roll = 21.

Hamrick gets close to Clash: "We just might solve this without blunt force. If we convince them the plans for the child have changed, and we are here to take her away on orders of some authority around here. Let me do the talking, alright?"

The Halfling's fingers play nervously with the massive ruby perched on top of his short sword's handle as he awaits his friend's answer. A sure sign his brains were at work.

Clash silently nods his head in acknowledgment, although he makes no move to unattach his sword from his arm.

((Stealth? (clank, clatter), What stealth? 6))

Fargrim tries desperately not to cause too much noise, merely hanging back and seeing what develops.

Hamrick steps inside the room, seizes two pots somewhere and bangs them together.

"Alright, alright. Shut the Hells up now, Little Buggers!"

Ignoring his factually small size, Hamrick points a finger to the goblin who was singing: "That'll be enough with the singing. I don't want my ears to rot and fall off because some cook didn't get his tune right. Got it?"

Assuming the goblin are startled for a moment, Hamrick goes on: "We've got our orders. Got to take the kid right away and feed him to some guests that just arrived. Hand it over now."

Bluff check: 17.

The Biggest of the Goblins, one with a sly smile and beady eyes, grabs the kid, almost hiding behind her before he says " But to serve children, that would be cruel, we have no time for a slow roast, who are you again, I don't recognize you, Perhaps I should wake Maman and she can handle this, Don't you think so. "

As your Compatriots stumble into sight and sound, the rest of the goblin kitchen stops completely. The silence is unnerving, as the Big Goblin , starts mouthing "Ohhhhhhhh MAAAAAAmmmmmaaaaaannnnn" quitely but getting louder. The Big goblin seems to be waiting for something, and the rest of the goblins are obviously waiting on him...