Rise of The Runelords - David Drake's Saga

by Raulfur

This is the Rise of the Runelords series as told by of David Drake, an American pagan who got tricked into the adventure. This series shows how he comes to understand the world and his journeys through it. The first three posts detail his companions, Faunra: a time displaced elven Magus, Dame Rebekah: a child of crusaders, and Jonathan: a skinwalker monk/kineticist. Still ongoing.

12. Day 8 The reports of the Goblin Menace

Day 8: Reports of the Goblin Menace. Wealday the 26th Rova, 4707

When we woke up, we didn't have time for a long drawn out breakfast. We all got ready and headed immediately to the Garrison. There was a light drizzle as we went. We are waiting there for a good period of time before one of the deputies tells us that the meeting is at the town hall across the street. Sheepishly, we all file out of the Garrison and into the town hall. We were directed to a room on the second floor.

Apparently, Shalelu was not supposed to be here for another month or so. She had sent an animal messenger to the Mayor to let her know that she would be coming with news. The time that it took to get us in the right place had given her time to give some crucial updates and information about the current goblin activities in the region. The Sheriff took the time to read us in on what the information is so far. Apparently there are five tribes of goblins in the nearby areas, and they were previously as much a thorn in each other's side as the town itself. Now the Goblins are starting to work together. Oh, another good thing, apparently we are known entities among the goblins, them have spoken about us to Shalelu. It's then that Sheriff Hemlock drops the ball on us. He tells us that he is heading out to Magnimar with a small detachment of guards to go try to get some reinforcements, and to see Brodert Quink is ready to come back to Sandpoint. He told us that since we are all (temporary) members of the Guard, that he'd like us to keep a presence in town for the week or so until he gets back, hopefully with more guardsmen in tow.

The Mayor backed him up and asked we could help ensure that the people feel safe, since they seem to have taken a liking to all of you. Of course Dame Rebekah agreed before anyone else could say anything. Honestly, if she had not, I probably would have. We all headed out after we agreed to stay in town for another week. Not too long after that, Shalelu caught up with us and asked if we could all get together at the Rusty Dragon for dinner tonight to compare notes about the goblins.

We all agreed and she went off to spend some of her earned lucre, while we went back to the Rusty Dragon to get some grub in us. Maybe some of those cheesy artichokes that Ameiko makes. When we got back to the Rusty Dragon, Bethana Corwin, the halfling maid that lives and works at the Rusty Dragon discovered that Ameiko wasn't there. She said that Ameiko wasn't up making breakfast when she got up. Even though Jonathan had been doing it the past couple of days, Bethana told us that Ameiko would get up to make sure that he didn't forget or just not do it. The fact that Jonathan didn't make breakfast, and Ameiko wasn't up worried Bethana.

She apparently knocked on Ameiko's door, and when Ameiko didn't answer, she opened it and went in. Ameiko's bed wasn't slept in and there was a crumpled up paper on the bed. Since we were members of the guard, as was revealed last night during the banquet, she wanted us to help find out if anything happened to Ameiko. She also wanted to make sure that she wasn't in trouble for breaking into Ameiko's room. I told her than on my home-world, if there was a question about whether a person might be in danger behind a closed door, that a guard member could break down that door to make sure that they were okay and that they couldn't hurt be hurt or hurt anyone. The rules seem even more lax here. That calmed her down, and Dame Rebekah smiled a bit at that. I hate to admit it, but I have seen a few procedural crime dramas on TV. At least they might be useful for something.

As we entered the room, there wasn't anything really out of place. We had Jonathan do a search of the room, with all of us assisting, because we all know that he is the best. What he noticed was that he didn't find anything. All of her equipment was removed from the room. Apparently she was an ex-adventurer, so she knew her way around a fight. The note that Bethany handed to us was translated on the back by Bethana herself. A more callous time would lead me to point the finger at her because of this, but there were the problems of body mass, disposal, and experience on Ameiko, with no real animus between the two of them. I figured that I should include a copy of the picture here, so that I can reference back to it if needed.

But speaking of animus, apparently Ameiko's half-elven half-brother Tsuto had a falling out with her about two years ago. After that, Ameiko went out adventuring and only came back a year ago when her mother died. Apparently there was another confrontation, this time between Tsuto and Lonjiku, with Lonjiku breaking Tsuto's jaw with his cane. Tsuto left after that and Ameiko had not been able to get back in contact since. A lot of information to digest, but at least we have the start of an investigation. We can immediately head over to the Glassworks. Since the whole town basically knows that we are special town guards, it might not even come to anything if we have to enter into the facility through a little bit dubious means. After all, we are checking in on a disappearance. Dame Rebekah recommends we get at least a verbal approval from the Mayor. I think about it for a second and agree. We thank Bethana for her telling us this, and that we hope to bring her friend and employer back safe and sound.

We head back to the Mayor's office and request a quick visit. Sheriff Hemlock has already left. I tell the mayor that we have been asked to look into a disappearance, and would like permission to investigate a place where our evidence leads us. She asks Dame Rebekah if the evidence would be sufficient to look into this normally. I don't even look at Dame Rebekah, because I don't want to be thought of as biasing her. Dame Rebekah agrees with me, and says that it was her who recommended that we get a verbal approval from the mayor to make sure that everything looks legit. The Mayor seemed concerned that we might not be able to be reached if something was to happen. I told her that I had just the thing. I fished around in my pack until I found what I was looking for.

I had been saving this trick until I needed it, but now was a good time. I pulled out a pair of two way radios. I told the mayor that these radios had a range of up to thirty-five miles. She was astounded by this I told her that if we keep them on and on the same channel I should be able to hear if she transmits, and she should be able to hear if I transmit. I showed her how to transmit and what to do when she transmits to make sure that she can hear me. I ran her through a few quick tests and I told her that I would be listening for any calls she might make. She seemed a bit more relaxed at that point. She even took out a sheet of official parchment and wrote down something to the effect that the bearers of this parchment are duly authorized by the Mayor to investigate all that is needed in the pursuit of our duties. We thanked the Mayor and headed down Main Street to the Glassworks. We took a left at Alma's bakery, and Alma came out and rushed forward to hug us. She told us it was a rare thing to try pull the town together. Dame Rebekah told her that she was sorry that this was the case. She thanked Alma greatly for her kind thoughts and bid her a good day.

When we got to Glassworks there were a couple of people around, so we asked them if any of the workers had come out for breakfast or any meals. The people put on an off foot for being asked a question immediately, were a bit confused. Dame Rebekah told them that we had been tasked by the Mayor to look into the disappearance of someone in town and that our first place to look was here. I went to the first outside door and knocked to no answer. I used the two way to inform the Mayor that there was no answer at the Glassworks and that we were going in. The Mayor responded to the affirmative and wished us luck as the onlookers listened. They shrugged and went on with their business.

With the front door locked, and me unable to open it, we went to the next door that I had noticed, all the way on the other end of the building. Lots of windows, not a lot of doors. The next door that I had seen walking up to the building was to a display room. I managed to get the lock open on this one, and we all filed in. Lots of display pieces, but no person here to answer any questions, Mysterious. As we entered, I transmitted to the Mayor that we had entered the building but there was no people present yet. We will be back in contact when we find something or someone to question. She responded that she understood. I swore to myself that I still had the volume up, and lowered it to a reasonable level that the group could hear but wouldn't travel too far. There were two doors out of this room, the first one probably went to the work floor, while the second probably went back to the reception area. We decided to take the second one, as if people were working and we distracted them at an inopportune time, they might ruin their work or get wounded.

As we entered the second door we were greeted with a hallway devoid of activity. We walked through without too much worry, lightly knocking on doors and opening them to investigate as we passed. A store room here, a cleaning closet there, another storeroom, then we came to the room that changed everything, a dining room. When we knocked there was no answer, just like the storage rooms and cleaning closets. We opened up the door to see a wreck. The dining room was destroyed and it didn't look like the people that normally lived here would have done that. There were several doors to this room, so we checked the door that was right next to the door that we came in.

It was the servant's quarters and it was a disaster area. The bedding was strewn about and the walls and bedsheets were covered in blood. It was obvious that we were looking at something much worse than just a missing person report. I motioned for us to all file in and Jonathan closed the door. I made the report to Mayor Deverin. I told her that it looked like several people were killed in the Glassworks servant quarters and we were going to investigate further. She acknowledged and that was that. I looked at the rest of the group and they nodded their heads.

We left the room and went back into the dining area. We quickly noticed that the door to the west was probably to the work area, and left that alone for a bit. We checked out some of the other rooms going off from the dining room and in a counter clockwise direction. The first room we checked was a pantry, and it was wrecked. Jonathan spotted a broken goblin blade in the corner, which along with the mayhem indicates that it is likely goblins that caused this disaster. The next room we looked at was apparently a kitchen and it was ruined likewise.

We checked the last two doors and found one of them was a washroom (with a toilet of sorts) and a meeting room that had a second door leading out from it. Dame Rebekah translated from Faunra to ask if we should go back to the work area door or this door. I voted tis door, as did Jonathan. Dame Rebekah wavered for a bit, but I told her that the blood was old in that room. If anyone was alive, they were likely hiding in these front rooms, rather than being in the work area. At this point I was certain that the things working I the work area were not the regular workers. I told her that we also didn't know how many goblins there were in there, so we should make sure that there was not any hiding anywhere that could flank us from behind.

We left the meeting room and we in another hallway. The double doors to our left led back to the hallway that linked both the dining room and the display room together and bent around the corner. There were bloodstains on the floor from where the bodies were dragged. I hate goblins. We turned right to go to a very short antechamber before entering what looked like a contract negotiation office. Nothing much had happened here so we went thru to the next room.

This was the reception area that we tried to get into before, but was locked. I unlocked it from the inside, telling the others that if we have to run, it would be good to not have to fiddle with a lock. Dame Rebekah just shook her head, probably thinking me a coward. The other room that was connected to the reception area was just an area for all of the files for the business. I'm sure that there might be something interesting in the details, but we were not here to investigate the owner yet. That might come later. We went through the last door of the reception area and were back in the oddly designed hallway we were in minutes ago. There wasn't a lot of signs of damage through here. We went through the last door and found a room with the various ingredients for making colored glass. There was a safe here, and it is hanging open. It doesn't have any damage, so I am doubting that the goblins had gotten to it. We went to the door to the right and it was a preparation area apparently.

There were three doors left. One to what should have been a small area, one which was a set of double doors likely leading outside, and the last likely leading to the work area, at least that was what it sounded like. Now we could hear that the goblins were in there giggling with glass smashing. We looked at each other and decided that we should deal look in that other room quick before going to confront the goblins. What should have been a small storeroom was actually a set of stairs, heading down. Dame Rebekah suggested that we go and deal with the goblins before heading downstairs. Jonathan agreed. I think that Faunra was with her as well. Oh well, guess I'll end this here before we fight.

We ended up defeating the goblins fairly handily. Getting a round of shots in on them before they could react really helped. I took one out with two shots to the eyes, while Rebekah took one out with two arrow shots. Jonathan did his launching thing, launching some piece of broken glass back at them and Faunra shot a few with her bow. We weren't totally unscathed, as both me and Dame Rebekah got hit with thrown glass, and I got melted glass spilled on my arm by one of those goblins. That Fucking hurt! Dame Rebekah promised that she would use some of her divine magic to heal us if we ran into anything else, and we both held on to a potion of healing, in case we were away from the rest of the group and about to fall out.

We took some time to look over the bodies of the poor workers, and saw that Lonjiku was one of the victims. That instantly made me think that Tsuto was the perpetrator of all of this. Maybe that's the twist and not that Ameiko is the mastermind of all of it. I really hope that isn't the case. I was beginning to think she could be a good thing for this town in the long run. I just hope that she isn't hurt somewhere and dying.

We gathered as much of the remains as we could, noted where the burnt body parts were, gave some prayers for the dead and gathered up out strength to as we quietly headed downstairs to check out the rest of this facility. Ameiko was still missing and this was the last place that she was supposed to be. When we first got downstairs, there was an obviously bricked up area that was recently unbricked up. I worried that this might be a problem later on, but first we needed to check the other rooms. The first one we looked into was a storage room, with windows and such. The second room was locked, and we decided to check the last room before coming back to try to unlock this room.

We busted into that last room with Jonathan and Faunra in the lead. Tsuto leap up from bed, slightly swaying from apparently having drunk himself to sleep. Jonathan struck him with a launched brick to the head, which made him stumble a little. Because of this, Faunra's telekinetically charged arrow struck true, and instantly killed him. Shit, I would have wanted to interrogate him, but who knows if we even would have gotten anything out of him. I went over to check him, and saw that he was dead. The arrow had lanced both of his jugular veins and both of his carotid arteries. He was dead before he hit the ground. He bled out quicker than the poor victims of the goblins assaults.

When I checked him over, I saw a familiar vial on him. I pocketed it, since I knew that he would not need it anymore. He also had a key, that we used to open up the other locked door. Ameiko was unconscious and tied up in the corner. Jonathan and I tended to her wounds as best we could and Dame Rebekah used her magic to heal her. She asked where she was, clearly showing post-concussion syndrome. It's never a good thing to have that happen to someone. I tried to break it as gently as I could, but failed miserably. I told her that she was in her glassworks – I forgot to say father – and that her deceased brother was next door – way to break the news dippy.

While she was reeling from that, I almost started to talk again but Dame Rebekah stopped me. She channeled her divine energy into Ameiko again and told her that a lot had happened since she went missing last night. She must have felt a lot better after that second healing, because she stood up and asked where her brother was. We told her that his body was in the next room over and I added that it was a quick death. We walked her to the room next to where she was being kept, and showed her the body of her half-brother. She looked him in the face and spit in it. She gave him a kick for good measure. I apologized again for her loss, and told her that her father was also deceased. She asked if we had needed to kill him too. I told her it looked like either the goblins or her brother had done the deed. I could tell that she was hurting, I didn't need to be defensive at this point, I just wanted her to know that it wasn't us. If she wanted to she could lash out at us for not getting here quick enough or something like that. She asked if everything was in the room the way it was when we got here. I told her that I had grabbed this, handing her the potion, in case we needed it for some other use. She looked at me, and then at Tsuto's corpse. The rest of the group agreed that the room was indeed how it was when we got here. She was silent after that, and we escorted her upstairs. She asked to see her father when we got at the top of the landing.

I motioned to Dame Rebekah to take her, as I had done enough damage this day. They both walked into the workshop from the loading room and there was an audible gasp and I instantly felt even sorrier for her. I knew that we would have to lock this place up and get her out of here. I was worried that there was still more goblins or other villains in the Glassworks. Jonathan, Faunra, and I went back down and gathered up the body in a sheet that we quickly got from the servant's storeroom. I noticed a book on the nightstand and grabbed it to give it to Ameiko when we got her back to the Rusty Dragon. Maybe it would shed some light on why Tsuto did what he did.

When Ameiko came out, she asked if it was us who gathered the bodies of the servants from the ovens. I told her it was Jonathan who did it. Apparently, he doesn't have to just throw stuff, he can also lift things slowly from a distance and move them telekinetically. She thanked us again, and asked us if the Sheriff knew about us breaking into here. Dame Rebekah told her that the Sheriff had left to go get help from Magnimar, and that the Mayor had given us permission to investigate her disappearance. I remembered the radio, and brought it back out. I made a call to the Mayor and reported in that we had found Ameiko, she was alive and conscious, and that we had a situation here at the Glassworks. If she was available, it would be best if she was available, as we had a lot to discuss.

She responded back and said that she was outside the Glassworks. Apparently some people had come to her to confirm that we were authorized to go in the Glassworks. She had agreed to come talk to us, even though she had given us permission. We went out the reception door and she was there. We told her that there were a lot of passed individuals and another eight goblins in there. We had not cleared the building for general access, but we gladly escort a group to get the bodies out to be buried in the Boneyard. We told her that we needed to look for more information, but that it looked like Tsuto had killed his father and attacked his sister.

Ameiko nodded that this was likely true. We told the Mayor that we had recovered Tsuto's body, but Lonjiku was encased in glass that would have to be shattered to recover his remains. We asked Ameiko what she would like done with the body, and she said that she didn't care, toss if off of Junker's Edge. Just then I remembered a phrase from an old card game and muttered, "Grieve for the soul in death dishonored." I recommended that at least in my home-word there were legends of evil people who had not been buried properly and came back as undead. Ameiko accommodated my seemingly bizarre request, and approved his burial in the family crypt. I told her that we would take care to bring his belongings to her after he was processed for burial.

She shrugged and asked us to escort her back to her Inn. We walked back in mostly silence, until we got back to the inn. Bethana was there waiting in the common room and walked up to hug Ameiko. Ameiko told us thank you again, and that she needed some time to process this. I told her that I had recovered a book, likely Tsuto's journal, and that it was hers, if she wanted she could go through it to see why he did what he did. She refused, saying that she just wanted to be left alone right now. Then she went back to her chambers and locked the door. I made a not to tell Jonathan that it might be wise to ensure that we were taking care of dinner until she recovers.

We turned around to head out, but were face to face with Shalelu. Apparently she stays in the hotel every time she is in town, and was checking in. Jonathan told her that we had just recovered Ameiko from where she was being held captive, and she was taking some time to recover. If she wanted, she could travel with us to hear what we felt comfortable telling her, or we could talk about it during dinner. She chose to just add it on to the dinner conversation, and we went to The Goblin Squash Stables to get the donkey and the cart. We took it back to the Glassworks and used some sheets to cover the cart and prevent the blood from staining the wood. We started to carry out the bodies to the cart, wrapped in sheets. We accounted for all of the bodies and their body parts. As I was helping move the bodies, the burn wound started to sting a bit more. I guess the adrenaline has worn off by now. Dame Rebekah noticed this and asked her god to help us since she had spent all of her magic healing Ameiko. To her surprise, her god answered her prayers and we were both healed of all our wounds, with no scarring!

Maybe by doing good deeds, her god is rewarding her. I just hope that we can stay just alive until the end of this mess. We got all of the bodies taken into the cart, covered them to ensure the decency of the victims, but not in the case of the goblins, and starting taking them up Glass Street cut across Rat Alley. We were trying to take the back roads and alleys as much as possible, but we were going to have to take Main Street at some time. We took Main Street until we saw Tanglefoot Alley. It was a short cut to where Tower Street met up with Church Street. As we went down the path, I noticed that there was a business that I had never noticed before. The sign hanging over the door was of a Pillbug on a Mushroom. I noted this for later. We took the victim's remains to the Sandpoint Cathedral, to be interred by Naffer Vosk. Naffer was sympathetic towards us and took the remains in the sheets that they were in and set about to get the graves dug. I told him that we had another two people and that we would be getting them after dropping off these vile things, pointing to the goblins. He nodded and went to work.

We next went to the mayor, who had gone back up to city hall. We asked what she wanted to do with the dead goblins. She told us that she would be grateful if we could dump them off of Junker's Edge, and come back. We did so, and made sure to damage all of the equipment so that the rumored goblins at the base of Junker's edge can't reuse anything. Jonathan swears that he saw one on one of his midnight constitutionals, but I never have. I guess it is just luck of the draw. I was about useless when trying to destroy the items, so I was sent to not get in the way. I quickly started reading Tsuto's Journal. I took a picture and decided to add it here.

There was some pretty disturbing shit going on in that book. Boy was whipped, that's for sure. He was absolutely obsessed with Nualia. Apparently, she is alive. That sucks. And she had ordered have goblins attack the town as a diversion so that him and his team of goblins could get her father's skeleton. Real daddy issues this bunch. Oh yeah, it also explained that there was a larger force building up for another attack, and that he had blackmailed his father to do certain things that made it easier for his group to get in. I don't know if Ameiko would like to know this, but I think that she deserves to know before we tell the mayor. I can leave at least that much out. She should also know what her new property is involved in before she has to take it over properly.

As we made our way back, I tried to discuss the matters with the group as best as possible, considering the language gap. Some of the terms are difficult to translate, even with both Jonathan and Dame Rebekah trying to translate. I don't know what a Quasit is, or what Tsuto is referring to when he means freaks. Neither Dame Rebekah nor Jonathan knew what it was. As we started back to the Glassworks, I called over the radio to the mayor that we should make sure that the place is secure before we sum up what we found. She agreed. I am really getting to my last nerve on this communication problem. I asked if we can stop by the Pillbug and Mushroom place first. Maybe they were a magic store or something. It might have a solution of some sort.

We got back to the Glassworks and saw that there were people mulling around. I looked to the others and they just waved me on. I tried my best to disperse the crowd, to not much avail. Finally, I had decided that enough was enough. I produced the warrant that was signed by the Mayor and asked the people to disperse. It was by now that the smoke had died down from the chimneys. I indicated that all of the people should go and ask the Mayor if they had any questions. I used the key to unlock the Loading Doors and we pushed the cart back to it. Jonathan and I went to the work area, scouring the place for any other bodies or parts that might have been left behind the first time. We found nothing besides Lonjiku.

Now comes the difficulty in removing him from the glass. Jonathan told me that maybe a spell-caster could do it, but I had other ideas. I knew that it might take some time, but that my science could do it. He had a better idea. He launched a small chunk of glass at the obscene mockery of art. The glass that was launched powdered, but so did some of the glass surrounding Lonjiku. It was slow going, but we managed to get him clear of all of the glass. We removed some imbedded glass shards that he had been stabbed with and wrapped him up in a sheet. We gently placed him in the cart along with Tsuto. We double checked that every door that could be was locked up, and noted the removed bricks again. I didn't know what a "Quasit" was, or those "freaks", so I thought that it might be good to be prepared before heading somewhere that I couldn't see without help.

We took them both solemnly to the Boneyard and then to Naffer to be buried in their family vault. We had cleaned them as best we could, thanks to Faunra's mystical abilities. I'm certain that her power would be infinitely useful in my home-world, but hopefully she never has to go there. That realm of filth and villainy would just try to take advantage of her abilities. After we dropped them off, I asked if we could drop by that Pillbug place before we got to the Mayor. The group acquiesced to my request, since it was along a way to get to the Town Hall.

When we got there, I found out that this wasn't a Magic Store at all. Apparently it was an apothecary run by Aliver "Pillbug" Podiker. He seemed an unsavory sort. He recommended us to go to a different place that I had not seen yet, a place called Bottled Solutions. A nice play on words if I ever heard of one. I can't say that I hated the notion of going someplace else, Aliver seemed to be someone that I would not want to have dealings with in the future. Bottled Solutions, a place by the Sandpoint Theater on Raven Street, was a completely different kind of place.

I swear, Bottled Solutions would give a run for the money of any hoarder, flea market, or consignment place. It was supposed to be an alchemist's store, and was piled high with bottles and brews. The proprietor, Nisk Tander, claimed that he had just the thing, that it had been sold to him by some enterprising adventurer just a week before the festival, and he had not even put it up on the shelf yet. It was a bit pricy, but I was willing, as long as Faunra was. The issue was translated back and forth and we made the deal. One Hundred Gold Coins. Two pounds of gold. That was a fortune, but now I could communicate with Faunra in her home tongue, and she could understand and speak Common. This would make things so much easier. We exited fairly quickly, mostly because we had to get back to the Mayor. We were also officially out of money at this point. I'll write more after we get inside. Before we go in there's something I have to discuss with the rest of the group.

Wow, this hero business takes a lot of money to keep up. The Mayor had asked for a full update, and I provided one. I had talked it over with the group before we were let in, about how much we should keep from the Mayor regarding the Kaijitsu clan involvement. Dame Rebekah wanted full disclosure, Jonathan thought that we should minimize the effects, and Faunra, now able to give her thoughts without an interpreter, suggested that we reveal everything that we have learned to the Mayor, but to stress that Ameiko wasn't involved in any way with it. In the end, we went with what the group decided, and gave the Mayor a thorough update, after demanding that there was a degree of confidentiality about some details.

Faunra picked up on some things too, that had not been translated perfectly, mainly due Elvish lacking the right words for such things, which I now knew because I had instantly learned Elvish. I swear it was a bit pricy to learn a new language, but the triad of time, money, and quality reigns supreme everywhere. The Mayor listened to everything that I had to say and asked if we were certain that there could be another raid. Dame Rebekah replied that it would only be prudent to ensure that the town of Sandpoint could not be entered into secretly in any event, and that we should head back down into the Glassworks to check if the ledger was true. The Mayor agreed with that assessment and asked what we might need before heading down.

A list was generated, especially with Faunra's Help. Now that she knew what we were talking about when Quasit came up, she happened to know a lot about a creature. There was an elven word for quasit, but neither Jonathan nor Dame Rebekah had known what it was. Apparently tidbits of information are not a thing that people collect around here. Between Faunra, Dame Rebekah, Jonathan, and myself we cobbled together a fine list, which immediately got the red pen treatment. I thought that we were being kind of subdued in what we were asking for, but apparently we had never dealt with the penny pinching ways of a town like Sandpoint. In the end, instead of magical weaponry, I got my handgun enspelled to be of higher quality, Faunra had her gladius done up the same. Dame Rebekah ended up being handed a Composite Longbow that matched her prodigious strength. It was apparently of dubious providence which had been taken in lieu of paying a fine. The adventurer had moved on years ago. The Leather armor that I had been gifted by those Gnomes when I first arrived in this realm was replaced with finely crafted Studded Leather. I retained the Metal Arm Guards that I had purchase in the Market that first day that I was here, and a set of Faulds and Cutlet were added to the armor to enhance my survivability.

The chemistry kit I has asked for was scrounged up with donations from Nisk, yet another reason for me to like him. I might work with him later to get this place advanced. A set of backpacks that were designed similar to mine were made for both Jonathan and Faunra, and Jonathan's and my hydration packs (mine the Peva one I came here with and his a similar one but made from a bladder) were enchanted to provide up to two gallons of water every day on command. I had gotten worried about drinking bad water here, and didn't want to be a drunk my whole life here. He was just following my lead, I guess. He also got a platter that looked like it belonged on a wedding registry, something about making sure that food stayed good. At least he was thinking ahead. I appreciated that. He talked for a minute about something with the Mayor, and they shook hands on it. I don't know what it is about, but he seemed satisfied with it. We all got loaded up with silver and cold iron tipped arrows. I passed mine off to Faunra and Jonathan gave his to Dame Rebekah. Faunra apparently got 2 special arrows, but I didn't inquire in to them. She'd tell us if we needed to know. We told the Mayor that we would get ready and head down tomorrow. I thanked her for the help that she had provided and asked her again to keep the Kaijitsu connection quiet until we can resolve everything. And to keep Ameiko out of it, as she wasn't involved and should not suffer for it. The Mayor agreed and we headed back to the Rusty Dragon.

As we got back to the Inn, Dame Rebekah and Jonathan took the donkey and the cart to the Goblin Squash Stables next door. I asked Faunra for her help in backing me up with talking to Ameiko. She accepted until we got inside. Shalelu was talking with Ameiko and Bethana when we came in. The subject seemed to be the banquet that we had sponsored the night before. As we approached, Faunra asked to talk to both Bethana and Shalelu about something and I inwardly cursed. I didn't want to break the bad news to Ameiko alone, that was what I had asked Faunra to help me with. I sighed and went up to Ameiko. I opened my mouth to tell her everything, but she shushed me and told me that she wanted to thank us for saving her. She offered us room and board for life at her Inn. Should we ever need it, we only need tell her.

I sighed and thanked her gratefully, and she sensed that I had more to tell her. I told her that I had read her brother's journal. I pulled it out of my pack to give to her. I continued that I felt it necessary because of the situation that we found both him and her in, especially with the goblins. She cut me off again to tell me that after a few minutes on her own, she remembered that her brother had ordered his goblins to attack her, and that he was in league with them. I nodded and waited for her to finish before dropping the last bomb on her, that Tsuto had blackmailed her father into unlocking the northern gate and leaving a ladder propped up against the wall of the Boneyard. That was the extent of what her half-brother had blackmailed her father into doing. She asked what he blackmailed her father with and I told her about her father's ties to the Sczarni. I don't know what it is, but she does. She asked if anyone else knew, and I told her that we had told the Mayor, as she needed to know what was going on. She sighed, and I added that the Mayor promised that no action would be taken against her for any of this. She nodded, and I apologized. I told her that we had taken care of delivering her brother and father to Naffer Vosk for burial in their family vault. I handed her the effects of her brother and apologized for her loss again. I asked her if there was anything that she needed from us, and she declined. I added that should she ever need us, to just let us know.

I went over to Shalelu, Bethana, and Faunra, who were talking about the banquet the night before. Apparently, Shalelu was more impressed about the actual hunting that we had done, and had asked where I had learned to process game like that. I told her that I had went hunting once in my youth, and that I also had a video that showed a processing of another mammal. I continued that most of it conveyed the same way. They were all confused by the word video, so I pulled out my tablet and showed them the video that I had saved on it years ago, when I was thinking about getting into hunting again. The person went through the motions, explaining everything fairly thoroughly. Shalelu was listening intently, and when it was over made notes about what he said that was erroneous, but that it was a good guide for a beginner. I agreed and told her that I was just a beginner anyway. There were some laughs and Bethana asked if this box was magic. Faunra responded for me to tell her that no, this was something called "science", and that it was the abilities of the people that I was from. I asked if everyone wanted to watch something else, they all agreed, and I found a different video that I had downloaded to my tablet. It was on my Netflix account and I had downloaded it in case I had to be somewhere for a few hours and not be bored. I was never really sufficiently bored to actually watch it, but it might turn out handy now. Batman Begins. Don't judge me. Don't you dare judge me. I hate DC normally, but at least they got the tone right.

They watched the whole thing and Bethana asked if this was how it was on my home-world. I told her that this was the work of dozens of actors who got a script for another person and acted it out. People would go to places like the Sandpoint Theater to pay money to watch these events on a larger screen, and the place would provide snacks and drinks upon payment. From one performance strung pieced together and recorded, the actors could make money for years. This was amazing for everyone, including Ameiko, who had snuck over and started watching after the movie had started. Ameiko said that the actor performing Bruce Wayne seemed kind of limited, and that the actor playing Ra's al Ghul wasn't showing his full range. I could only agree and try to hold back my laughter. I told them that I had a lot more movies on the storage devices that I had for this, if they wanted to see more, but it took a lot of battery life. I also wondered if there was a way to make what was being shown appear on a larger surface. Ameiko and Faunra thought about it, and Faunra asked how large of a surface. I told her that ideally, it would need to be around thirty feet long by fifteen feet tall. Sound enhancement would help as well, so that others could hear it easily. Both of them thought for a minute and let it pass.

It was then that I realized that Jonathan and Dame Rebekah were not back yet. I wondered this aloud, and Faunra told me that they were going to deal with Ven Vinder and Shayliss. I panicked for a minute before she stopped me and told me that Jonathan had gotten a marriage contract and was going with Dame Rebekah to have Shayliss and her family sign to it. There were special stipulations about fidelity and bonds for a dower. Apparently, it was agreed upon back at the meeting with the Mayor while the rest of us were getting stocked up. Must have been what Jonathan was talking to Mayor Deverin about. Apparently he really does feel something for Shayliss. That's good. I'm hopeful that they are a good match. I could see him having a good life as a chef for a decent restaurant here. Especially if Shayliss has anywhere near her father's capabilities with business.

I told Ameiko that we were going to be heading back out into the Glassworks tomorrow morning, to look into some issues that came up when we were there before, but that after it was done we would be handing the key over to her. She nodded and told us that she wished us luck. Shortly thereafter, Jonathan and Dame Rebekah came back with Shayliss in tow. Dame Rebekah had promised Ven that she would ensure that Jonathan was on his best behavior, and he had conceded asking for her to provide a message to me that he still expected me to stand up to my side of the agreement. I smacked myself in the forehead immediately and remembered that I had promised him something nebulous. I had some ideas, but needed some further thoughts on it. I promised Shayliss that I would have talk to him about the first of many plans after our mission tomorrow. She agreed to relay the message.

Ameiko set us up with a good dinner, including Shalelu and Shayliss, where we talked about all of the details about goblin encounters that we had been afflicted with. I had been asked to portrait the events in the best manner possible. I think it was a bit humorous because the story devices that I used would likely be noticed if I ended up opening a movie theater in this town. Maybe I can split nights with Cyrdak, and we can have a true theater experience here. I was then asked to tell a story for the people of the tavern. Lots of people loved it, and I actually earned five gold coins' worth in silver and copper ones. I passed this off to Ameiko, who tried to refuse it. I told her that we needed to start paying off on the lavish wedding dinner that we would have to plan for Jonathan. She winked at that and accepted the funds.

At the end of the night, Ameiko wished us all luck again, and I broached the question with Shalelu if she would accept my invitation to the performance at The Sandpoint Theater this Fireday. She thanked me for the offer, but that she had already been asked and accepted by Faunra. I was glad that Faunra had asked, and told her so and that I hoped that she enjoyed it. Now I'm the only person left out. I wonder who I will invite. I'm not looking for a romantic date, just someone who I can talk to. Maybe Rynshinn from Vernah's Fine Clothing or Nisk from Bottled Solutions? I could talk shop with Nisk, I'm certain that Rynshinn has suitors aplenty, and I'm not looking for someone for that reason anyway. But I probably have a bit to discuss with Rynshinn. Or maybe Savah. I still have a lot to discuss with her. Honestly, I might try and get the advice of either Ameiko or Ven's wife. I don't want it to look like I am courting someone, but I don't want to look unnatural either. Maybe there's someone else that isn't looking for a romantic partner that would be willing to be seen with someone from another world.

Shayliss went to leave and I thanked her for delivering her father's message and asked her to also have her father make a decision between three different fields, food, goods, or services. I have some thoughts on each, but each one is different. Each has different costs and different payouts. She accepted that and was escorted back home by Dame Rebekah. As they left, I realized that I may also have to talk to Ameiko, as her family's glassworks could be just the thing for something that could add some other benefits to this town. Maybe I can get her to change her family business from glass making to adventurer equipping. She might be the type to want to help out with that.

I got my phone ready for the knock at the door, but it was Faunra tonight. Since there were some problems communicating before, she asked her question again about weapons from my home-world being able to disintegrate people but leave the surrounding area untouched. I told her that there was a rumored weapon, a variant of the Atomic bomb called a Neutron Bomb. It did indeed kill people without doing as much damage to the environment, but the damage was still there, and it killed all of the animals in the same area as the people it killed. It also didn't disintegrate the bodies of the victims. It was truly beyond my people at the moment.

She was puzzled by that, and I told her that there were people who imagined the possibilities of being able to disintegrate others, but that it was basically limited to that or by extreme applications of electricity, and even then there was collateral damage to the surrounding areas. She accepted that and thanked me for my honesty. She left just as Jonathan was showing up. I asked him what kind of music he wanted to listen to, and he told me he would appreciate love songs. I loaded some up and sent him on his way.