On the day that they met, not one of them could have guessed the journey that was about to embark them. Idelisa Farstone sat in the corner of the small bar completely alone aside from her pet ram, Moridan, watching and waiting. She wanted nothing to do with anyone in this town, no connection to come back, but she felt herself drawn to the spot, almost as if the promise of something interesting hung in the air. She easily escaped the notice of most of the bar's patrons as she was a dwarf and people were drinking like crazy. Her instinct told her to be alert so she didn't allow herself to partake in the festivities.
She was very glad she did so; at that particular moment a woman burst through the door, arrow in her leg, screaming about a stolen child.
"My child! They stole my son! Please someone! Anyone help!"
Idelisa held back. This woman was someone else's problem, not her's. Luckily, someone else did. A young human man walked up to the woman, who had made her way over to the bartender. He had a certain air about him that drew her curiosity. His flamboyance was outrageously explosive and obvious as he spoke, consoling the woman. A second young man stepped up, this one clearly different than the first but with seemingly similar intentions. A dark elf. She snorted to herself. This woman was doomed for if this was the pair that had set out to save her son. The elf was looking around for any other willing patrons who had a sudden urge for adventure. She slid down further into her seat and pulled Moridan closer to her. A gnome girl slid forward. She was decorated with a grand bow that seemed not to befit her person.
"I wanna go. I'm valuable. I'm a good shot. You need me."
"Great!" the human exclaimed with a smile, "one more person oughta do the trick. If the situation is really as bad as you say it is."
The dark elf's eyes found her and ran over her. "You. Come with us. We can use your help."
"You don't know me," she replied. "You don't know what I can do. You DO realize that I'm a dwarf right?"
The elf shook his head. "I've got a feeling. This is fate."
"I'll pay," the woman cried.
Idelisa found herself reluctantly agreeing. This was not in any way a part of her plan. She left her people in the promise that she would find more of their tribe and reunite them. The mountains were very far away now; she'd be straying from all of her ideals. But she would be payed and she wouldn't be stuck in the city any longer.
"Let's go," she said quietly as she grabbed one of the bounty posters on the wall. The others stared at her in slight disbelief. "What? If we can make a bit of extra money on the side, why wouldn't we?"
The new group took off walking in the direction that the woman pointed out to them in nearly complete silence. After a few awkward moments, the human man took out his harp and began to play a small ditty. A bard. The gnome whipped her head around and sent him a glare. "If we're trying to track this thing, your music isn't going to help any."
He shrugged sheepishly. "I had to break the silence somehow. I'm not used to noiselessness. I'm Isaac, by the way. Isaac Venestis."
"Jade."
"Igen," the dark elf put in.
"Idelisa. Now I suggest you hush. I hear something."
She checked the tracks carefully. "Owlbear. Somewhere around here. We can take the paws and sell them. Bounty sheet."
Isaac kind of looked weary. "Us? I'm not really a fighter."
"Neither am I, but money is money."
She turned back around to look at the other two, but Jade had completely disappeared. Igen shrugged. "She's in the tree. I'm a healer. Why not? We can eat the meat."
Idelisa shook her head. "I'm a vegetarian. I can help with the skinning though. I'm very good at it."
"So we're fighting it then?" Isaac asked. The others nodded. Jade shot at the owlbear, striking the creature square in the back. It was a considerable bit larger than any one of them and stronger by a mile. All four of them would have to work together. Using a combination of various distraction techniques and spells, the three magic wielders fought the owlbear, Jade striking from below. Idelisa turned towards Igen and looked at him, questioningly.
"Cleric," he said by means of response. She nodded. The way Jade was shooting, she must be a rogue. This had shaped up to be a very interesting group indeed. She turned her head back towards the fight and observed for a moment. She had never grown up a hunter; her people had always been herders, nomads. Isaac finished the creature off as she was lost in her thoughts and was greeted with a hearty argument when she finally returned to the present predicament.
"Well Igen, you're a prick. There's only three salvageable paws and I'm giving one to Jade and one to Lisa and keeping the other to myself," Isaac said angrily. Igen huffed and turned back around.
"We have a job to do. Let's just save the kid."
