Game 3 • Sunday, 07.15.22 • Unto Orlane

Oerthday, Coldeven 6, 575 cy

The 7th Lance questioned their detained prisoner, who gave his name as Vyrus, and revealed to Enid that his group of bandits control the area, preying on travelers in and around the road to Orlane, there in the south of Heth (the Barony of Hethiye). Later, after the group had settled in for the evening, everyone was awoken by the screaming Vyrus, who scrambled to escape the camp, but was shot dead by Meti, who had been on first watch. The Ranger then informed the group of a horse and rider that he spied in the shadows of a stand of trees and further investigation discovered multiple sets of hoof prints in the oerth there. Rain came overnight, but tapered to a drizzle by morning.

Less than an hour after breaking camp the next day, the 7th Lance parted company with Grisholme's convoy, at the crossroads to the Gran March. Continuing down the caravan road, the group made it's way toward the troubled village of Orlane. Over the next several hours, the drizzle alternated from light to heavy, as they passed into the village's outlying pasture and farm lands. The chimney smoke of distant houses could be seen, but there was no signs of activity out of doors on that miserable day. Stone walls divided the plots of land, which grow smaller as they traveled east. The road continued to stay south of the creek, which had grown larger and was then swollen with rainwater. As the Lance approached Orlane proper, the path veered south of the stream, which disappeared into a copse of woods. The village streets were similarly deserted, though the glow of hearths and candles could be seen through the windows of many of the huddled buildings there. A large, stone temple could be seen, peering through the ground fog, from the other side of the village.

En route to the temple, the group were stopped in the street by the local bailiff. After questioning, the group was directed towards the Lord Mayor's manor, set at the edge of the central pond of the village, where they were warmly received. In his sitting room, the Lord laid bare his suspicions about the village storekeep, baker, smith and village hermit; and also shared stories of the recent disappearances of individuals or even entire families of Orlane, sometimes returning weeks or months later, and sometime not. All those who returned seemed to have legitimate reasons for their sudden departures, however, so the Lord Mayor is frustrated by any lack of evidence.

The group circled back to the west side of the village, to a grove of stately elms, to visit the hermit who the Lord Mayor is convinced is involved in the strange goings on of late. First encountering his pet weasel, the group found the man at his small cottage behind a copse of shrubberies and trees. The hermit eventually shared with Frate his own experiences, echoing the stories of villagers going missing and how many of those who return seem sullen or distant. His suspicions included the storekeep, the Golden Gran Inn and, perhaps, the temple to Merikka, but he seemed quite sure that the Inn of the Slumbering Serpent, where he gets some of his supplies, has been unaffected so far.

The 7th Lance was greeted at the Slumbering Serpent by the loud and friendly proprietor of the Inn, Belba, who ushered the group into the warmth of the hearths in the common room. While there, the group made conversation with the locals, including the nephew of the owners of the Golden Grain Inn, who detailed to Enid the changes that have overcome his family at the inn, as well as the strange, late-night activity there. After a stop at the local jewelers, where Meti made some inquiries of and a purchase from the aging couple who run the shop, the group moved on to the Golden Grain Inn.

The large, wooden inn, decorated with carvings of sheaves of wheat, proved to be less-inviting than the Serpent, with no fires in the hearth and a subdued atmosphere in the place. Frate made conversation with Snigrot, the inn's cook, at the bar, while Jacobiz attempted to entertain the guests with song, and Enid plied one of the patrons for more information. After these attempts with the muted crowd proved ineffective, the Lance agreed amongst themselves to stay at the Golden Grain, to learn more about the odd goings on there.

Not long after the group settled into their beds in a large, private room, Meti's wolfherder, Kana, began sensing something, eventually focusing on one of the walls of the room, which then pivoted inward, revealing a secret entrance! Three scaled, humanoid creatures rushed into the room as Meti, who was on watch, shouted the group awake and staggered one of the attackers with an arrow to the chest. Enid's sorcery then sent all three assailants into slumber and Frate finished them off, shortly before the innkeep arrived to see what the ruckus was all about. As he rushed back down the hall to gather his guards, the other patrons of the inn are starting to emerge from their rooms, to investigate...