Session One Hundred and Four - August 10, 2013

Wherein the ongoing story of the FtF campaign may be found ...

Session One Hundred and Four - August 10, 2013

Postby Matt » Thu Oct 24, 2013 4:47 pm

Larane 12, 732

The party is given the grand tour after breakfast, starting in the great hall. It is an unusual shape, ovoid instead of the normal rectangle or square keep of most castle construction. They notice that the caer seems to be made up of three parts: the original keep and two later additions. The gatehouse on the right is part of the final addition. In the southwestern corner of the ovoid room is what they learn to be the Baron of Ternua’s mother’s room. She is at Erone for medical treatment. In the room next to that the pages and squires sleep. The section of the keep to the east of the great hall is the original keep. The room on the same level as the great hall serves as quarters for the chaplain with a small temple dedicated to Larani.

The party is led back to the gatehouse and then downstairs to the ground floor. They see the armory and bunks for the four men-at-arms present. The tour takes the party back up and down the stairs in the great hall. They see the kitchen, cellar, and crypt. Once again they are led back upstairs and then down the stairs near the chaplain’s quarters. They quickly figure out that all roads must lead them through the great hall if they wish to go from one keep section to another on the floors lower than the great hall. All the way down the stairs in the cellar they find an inquiry room, complete with dunking well and rack. There are also cells, and within one the Peonian priest who is quite mad at Ewen, and screams at him to be released.

“Patience is a virtue,” Ewen says with a stoic look on his face. This causes the priest to begin to swear rather creatively. Sir Baris doesn’t know whether to be shocked at this Peonian or to be impressed.

The party goes up one level to the ground floor and is shown another barracks. This one is empty. They go back upstairs to the level of the great hall and continue up in the original keep to the third floor. In an alcove they see a statue of the goddess Peoni. At the top of the stairs they are shown a large and surprisingly grand lavatory. Next to the lavatory are the council chambers, including a library of scrolls and tomes. In the gallery of the great hall they see chambers to the south. The largest is the chamberlain’s room. Their guide does not let them in there. The room to the southeast is a guest chamber. In the section to the right is the gatehouse winch and the mess hall of the garrison. Also in the gatehouse tower is the chamber of the captain of the guard, Sir Marten Arwat, who is not there, but in Tashal with the Baron.

Up one more level to the fourth floor, they come to Sir Anzarn Verdreth’s room, eldest son of the Baron and the commander of the Verdreth forces at Ovendel Field. It was his poltroonery that led to the Royal warrant and Sir Ewen’s mission. They see the roof of the gatehouse and are led back downstairs. In the original section of the keep they are led up the stairs. This is the room of the Baroness and her ladies. Up on the fifth floor they are shown the quarters of the Baron. They are led around the parapet and up to the crow’s nest on the gatehouse tower roof, which has a tocsin bell.

The tour of the caer complete, Ewen chooses to use the third floor council chambers as a base of operations but will hold interviews on the second floor. He decides to make an exception for the chamberlain as he is an old man and already seated in the third floor council chambers. Ewen enters with Sotor and Aeomund and greets the Parren, the chamberlain, who has been staring out the window.

“I trust you passed a pleasant evening,” Parren says.

“Yes, thank you. I know that this is short notice.” Ewen replies, trying through courtesy to make an ally of the chamberlain.

“Trying times for everyone,” is Parren’s reply.

“Especially those of Ternua. You are aware of the unfortunate news?”

“I am aware of the news you brought; that my lord and his family are incarcerated.”

“I do not deny that it looks bleak for the Baron. The King has taken it keenly that the men of Ternua did not acquit themselves well on the battlefield at Ovendel.”

“I have heard that, but I do not believe it. It is merely rumor spread by the Baron’s enemies.”

“I was at Ovendel, but am not an enemy of the Baron. If you know who is, pray tell.”

“The Baron is a man of the world and all men of the world have enemies. I do not know who they are. It is none of my affair. My job is to run the Baron’s household.”

“Well, it is now my job, as you saw in the warrant, to determine how well that job has been done.”

“No, I don’t think it is. How I run the Baron’s household has nothing to do with the barony itself which ultimately belongs to the King’s grace.”

“Nonetheless, I will need to turn my attention to the household accounts and that is part of how you run the household.”

“Ah, the accounts are within the scope of your warrant.” Parren turns and gestures do the scrolls behind him on the shelves.

“I trust that you will not object to Sotor beginning an inventory of them.” Ewen pauses, expecting to hear a pro forma and polite ‘of course not.’

“Yes, I do object. I can do nothing about it, but since you ask: I do object.”

Ewen smiles, “Yes, I think there is. It will behoove you that your master and members of his house are in awkward situation and you are not serving your master well by taking this tone.”

The chamberlain regards Ewen with sardonic amusement, and perhaps a little contempt. “I have seen your kind before. I am more than twice your age, young rising star. I will neither hinder nor help.”

“Perhaps,” Ewen glances down at his notes on the barony, “What can you tell me of the holder of Galven manor?”

“It is held by my great-nephew, Sir Ambric Pulgarty.”

“How many knights are in your family?”

“Two in the immediate family. Of course some of the cousins are knights.”

Ewen nods and asks other questions about Galven and the other holdings: how far away are they, does he know if the holders are in residence, etc. Parren seems to give the least amount of information he can.

Aeomund speaks up, “How long has Ternua been held by the Verdreth family?”

“I believe about five centuries. I would have to look up the exact date.” Surprise registers amongst the knights.

Ewen asks a few more questions about the Baron and the normal activities at Ternua. He gets a sense that the Baron handled his vassals personally, and that the chamberlain had little contact with them.

While Ewen is interviewing the chamberlain, Kaelyn goes to release the Peonian priest from his jail cell. Before she lets the priest out, she asked him why he reacted to Ewen and company so strongly.

“It is my duty to see the spiritual well-being of this town. I need to see that knight immediately.”

“I assure you, your townsmen are in no danger to their spiritual well-being.” Kaelyn says not letting him out yet. “What is your name?”

“I am Rhis of Hew.”

“Perhaps running straight up to Sir Ewen would not be the best idea, since it landed you here last time you tried that. I will see if an interview can be scheduled later.”

Reluctantly, Rhis agrees. Kaelyn offers to walk the priest back to his temple, with the one or two of the Thardan guards along, for her protection of course.

“Tell me father, how did the Baron ensure the spiritual well-being of the town?”

“He left it to me.”

“How do you see to the spiritual well-being of the town?”

The priest goes on a rambling discourse about Peoni and her care of the small folk. Kaelyn attempts to steer the conversation to something useful.

“I noticed a Laranian chapel inside. Is there a Laranian priest also in residence?”

“That is for the family, except for the Baron’s mother, may she recover.” He bows his head at that. “The priest was dismissed a year ago.”

“And the statue of Peoni …?”

“The Baron’s lady mother is a devout follower of Peoni.”

Kaelyn leaves the priest at the temple with promises of talking to Sir Ewen about an interview.

Cekiya, meanwhile, has visited the cemetery and found it too quiet. She also finds sheep and starts to count coup (and amusing herself) by sneaking up on a sheep and scaring it. She soon bored of that game, for sheep are silly, and wanders around town listening to conversations. The townspeople ignore her for the most part. After completing a circuit of the town she has learned that the peasants do not like the Reeve. He lives in the town proper and puts on airs, according to them.

Baris, after the tour of the keep has decided that while Ewen and Aeomund do household interviews he will do some interviewing of the local pub population. He walks to the gates and notices only two guards.

“Where are the other guards? Are you short-handed?”

“No, what do mean short-handed?”

“Normally there are more men at gates to guard a castle.”

“Are we expecting trouble?”

“Well, no.”

“Then we are enough.” The two guards stand a little straighter and smile knowingly.

“Ok, are there guards at the other gate?”

“Not normally. No one really goes in or out of that gate so we don’t have to guard it.”

Baris shakes his head and decides this is not his problem and asks the guards where to get a drink in town.

(The last portion of these notes are embargoed as they include material pending publication. I'll update once that happens. Sufficeth to say that Baris finds an inn, drinks copious amounts of ale, and meets up with a prostitute. Unable to perform, she commiserates telling him she once knew an earl in a similar state. From this, Baris learns that Maldan Harabor lost the head of Sedris Meleken, and the prostitute gave it to the Peonian priest Rhis of Hew.)
User avatar
Matt
The GM
 
Posts: 2556
Joined: Thu Sep 16, 2004 3:38 pm
Location: Weymouth, MA

Return to The Melderyn Chronicle

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 8 guests

cron