Aporeu chronicles Issue 55: Easy prey

Easy prey by Q

Easy Prey story:   So, for my first ever Gold tier mission, I'm gonna go with Mr. Quen, Mr. Noaz, Mr. Surron, and Dr. V (Hi dad!). Mr. Lornan handles this quest, because the sudden influx of Gold tier Adventurers kinda took the Guild by surprise, apparently. Not sure why, we've been at it for a couple months, and they really should've seen this coming.   Anyway, Ms. Cathline Winkles made a mission request, and threw enough money at it to make it a Gold tier one. Or possibly to make sure she didn't have to deal with Adventurers directly, since she's a wealthy merchant or something. She's paying good money for us to even do this mission, with extra money in it if we can find her cousin Cornelius and a family ring. With the best payout being if we can bring Mr. Cornelius to Arnheim alive, of course.   Mr. Lornan tells us about trouble brewing in Taviacen, with crime being on the rise, and a lot of people trying to get out to have a better shot at life elsewhere. Mr. Cornelius was one of those people, but he never made it to Arnheim, and the caravan he was most likely traveling with had been found, abandoned. We get some info, which boils down to finding a Mr. Molbert, who's staying at the Chubby Cherub. He was the one that found the raided caravan, and should have some more info for us.   So, off to the Chubby Cherub we go. Mr. Quen and Dr. V don't really like each other a lot, but they have a bit of a ceasefire for the sake of the mission. Doc also doesn't do his 'friends speech' that he usually does before missions. Probably because we all know each other. There's some talking among the rest as I guide 'em to the Chubby Cherub nice and quicklike, but they don't even notice the shortcuts I use. Which is alright, I don't mind at all. Let's me get away from people more easily if I need to, right?   When we get to the Cherub, Doc starts talking to Mr. Alder. I remember him from the Internal Affairs mission, even though we never went to the Cherub then. Since then, the brothel next door has been a chapel, and it's now an art gallery or something posh like that. Pleasantries are exchanged, we ask about Mr. Molbert, and.. We learn that while he had a 'big haul', which is strange because he's not really a good merchant according to Mr. Alder.. He already lost most of it to a red-furred Tabaxi named Sky. So he's locked himself in his room, for some reason. Not sure what he wants to accomplish by it, but whatever. After that, Mr. Alder goes to take care of the sizable crowd that's in the tavern tonight, and the rest start coming up with a plan to talk to Mr. Molbert. I just wander over behind the counter and check the guestbook to see which room he's in, and put the book back afterwards. I'm not a crook.   The rest have come up with a sorta plan by the time I get back, which apparently involves barging in on naked ladies? I'm not entirely sure what they meant by that, but I stab that plan in the foot by letting them know I found Mr. Molbert's room. So we go upstairs to his room, and someone knocks. And they have a talk through the door. Which is kinda rude. So I start pulling out my trinkets to remove that particular barrier. But, Doc comes through with quick thinking and manages to make Mr. Molbert accept a bet. A single die roll, with a 5 in 6 chance for Mr. Molbert to win 100 gold. But, if it's a 6, he tells us what he knows about that abandoned caravan he found. So, the door opens, Doc rolls, and Mr. Molbert has to tell us what he knows. Doc's very lucky.   He says that he found the caravan, or what was left of it, about halfway between Arnheim and Teill. After a bit of prodding, he confesses that he found the family ring we're looking for. But, unlucky gambler that he is, lost that to Ms. Sky as well. Some people just don't know when to quit, I guess. Can't really feel too bad for him about that, though. It's his own damn fault, really.   After that, we come up with a plan that uses everybody in a way that they're useful to the goal. And there's even a backup plan! Mr. Noaz and Mr. Quen are gonna perform for the crowd to make a distraction, Doc and Mr. Surron are gonna try to win the ring from Ms. Sky. And I'm gonna disappear into the crowd to get the ring in case Doc and Mr. Surron can't win it from her. But that isn't needed.   Doc has some serious luck, even with Ms. Sky cheating somehow, and wins the ring from her fairly. After that, I go outside to wait for the rest, and Mr. Quen gives me the ring to keep it safe. His reasoning: They can't take it from someone they don't know is there. Which is a pretty good point. It's REALLY hard to steal from someone you can't find. Like, impossibly hard. Then Doc has the idea to hire some horses to get to the caravan more quickly, so we have better odds of finding any leads. Everybody gets their own horse, but I ride with Dr. V. Because I'm small, it works. Mr. Surron talks to the horse to calm it down. Apparently, it was scared of me. Don't know why, I don't hurt animals unless they try to hurt me.   We set off at a nice, quick pace, and when we get close to where the caravan was, according to Mr. Molbert, we see some refugees coming from the direction of Taviacen. We stop nearby to have a chat, since these people might've seen the caravan or know a bit more. One of them is apparently addicted to 'mushrooms', and Doc tells them they can find help at the Chapel of Forgotten Passions. He talked about that place quite a lot, actually.   While we're talking though, we hear something coming from the South, and it's an ambush by some freakishly big dog-people or something! I later found out they're called 'Gnolls'. Weird name for weird creatures, I suppose. We fight 'em off as best we can, with Mr. Surron doing his spirit-bear thing, and Mr. Quen shrouding the refugee's cart and the surrounding area in darkness. It was a bit disorienting. I took out some of the Gnolls, and during all of this, we only lost 1 person during the ambush. Doc does his rite thing and tells the kids that their mom isn't gone, as long as they remember her. They seem to calm down a bit. I have to admit, Doc's pretty good with kids, as well as words. Just not Mr. Ulfgar's Words.   The Gnolls weren't expecting any resistance, I think, because the tracks they left behind were stupid easy to follow back to their camp, about 2 hours South from where the ambush happened. They've made a camp in some old, weird rock-like structure that can't be anything they built. It's nearing dusk when we get close, and Mr. Quen does his scouting thing. He tells us about what it looks like, the wide stone bridge, a weird pit, about someone being tossed into the pit, and a hyena being let into the pit to maul the person that got tossed in. Which gets Doc and Mr. Noaz all fired up and charging ahead. I guess we're NOT doing the sneaking in to try and ambushing them plan, then.   So.. Up on the bridge, all hell breaks loose, as the one that chucked the person into the pit has a HUGE, black axe that's definitely magical. I get UNDER the bridge, because.. Duh. While the rest does their thing up top, with Mr. Noaz charging ahead to make a hole in the barricade they've made on the bridge, I set up a quickly made swooshline with my Unbreakable Arrow, and my spear wedged under the bridge for support. I get across to the other side nice and quick, not to mention unseen, but can't get a good shot at the big one. That wouldn't have been so bad, if I hadn't used my only vial of Alchemist's Fire and missed. That's the second one I've missed, and those things are really expensive. Maybe I should just forget about using them at all.   The big one gets up onto the bridge, Mr. Quen makes her freeze in place, Doc gets some snakes out with a staff and gets some creepy magic claws.. It's a massive mess. Mr. Surron summons a big bear, Mr. Noaz was.. swimming, I think, and Mr. Quen stayed out of the way as much as he could, as usual. I got up on the big one's chest, and slit her throat pretty good. Not quite good enough to kill her, but Doc takes care of that real quick after that.

Through the holes in the barricade, I see some naked Gnolls climbing out of the hole after they toss people in.. They were making more Gnolls! That's just not right at all. Then, we spot someone that simply has to be Mr. Cornelius being dragged out. Who is saved from being tossed into the pit by Mr. Noaz rushing ahead to stop more people from being turned into Gnolls. I make grateful use of him distracting the armored one that was gonna chuck Mr. Cornelius, to shoot that furry bastard in the throat. They never saw it coming. It got a lot easier after the big one with the axe got taken care of, and we mop up the rest pretty quickly. Helped a great deal by Mr. Quen making a few of them go to sleep. Sleeping enemies don't try to hurt you, after all!   After we take care of all the things that were trying to kill us, we rob the place blind of everything that isn't nailed down. That includes all the people they took. And we bring everybody back to Arnheim safely, and report our findings to Mr. Lornan. Who I won't be seeing in a professional capacity anymore, I guess. Thanks for all the help you give the Bronze Adventurers, Mr. Lornan! And I hope your cough gets better soon, because the tea with honey doesn't really seem to be working all that well anymore.   -Q-

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Easy prey by Vasilievski

Doctor’s log, Entry 13   Easy prey   What a wicked way to die. Before I go any further, please note this is the recollection of Viktor Vasilievski. If you remember it differently, then I do not mind that you are wrong.   So I’m a Gold adventurer now. Surely Lornan is mistaken, I am but the Doctor, but he seemed adamant. We are a group of 5 friends. The eye of Twilight, Nightstalker, The sword of the people, The Ravencaller of the west, and The Doctor. My first quest as a gold adventurer is to rescue someone. Ironic that my first Bronze and my first gold mission both involve rescuing people. In any case, this time it concerns a man called Cornelius Winkels (but I shall refer to him as Winkle from now on, because I consider it a funnier name). Strangely enough, Lornan provides the quest, which is a surprise to me. I was fully expecting a new face, but I don’t mind Lornan, especially now that I know what ails him. Miracle for later I guess.   Lornan, coughing worse than before I will save you, I promise! tells us a lady, Cathline, wishes to send us after him. He is her cousin, and apparently, things are happening in Taviacen. Bad things, Which led to a mass emigration, and then apparently to weird disappearances. It appears, haste is in order. We are told of a merchant, and that mister Winkle had a signet ring. We are to receive more gold if Winkle is alive, and if we retrieve the ring. My very astute observations, lead me to believe The Eye of Twilight may still be a tiny bit upset about our last mission together. It’s unfortunate, but I’m sure we’ll work out a suitable resolution soon enough.   The merchant’s name is Molbert. We find him at Alder’s Chubby Cherub. The Fat Angel Inn. Alder, the owner, whom I met before saving Chloë the kobold (did you know she can bend both ways?). I also attempted to save Lillandra that day, but alas, I could not. Should you however feel lost, or in need of guidance, our Chapel of Forgotten Passions has a statue of her, and guidance for all who need it! In any case, Alder seems better off than before. We have some talks, and he informs me Molbert does not desire visitors. Even my intense charm does not persuade him, so we end up having no information….   Were it not for Nightstalker being the best Kobold sneaker ever. Best of the best. You can never find him, but know that he’s around…stalking. He finds the location, and we talk to Molbert. He’s not very talkative, but a little wager helps. We bet that I can roll a 6 for the information. Any other roll and he receives some money. Thankfully, lady luck is on my side, and a 6 is shown. Molbert informs us where the caravan is located, that there were a few… parts… of dead bodies, and that he took some gold and jewelry, as well as the signet ring we were looking for. Then he lost it all to a red Tabaxi named Sky.   The Eye of Twilight, still a little upset, and I have a tête-à-tête. It is decided the crowds will be distracted by The Sword and The Eye’s excellent performance, please note you can see them at the Drunken Sailor Inn, it's amazing, and very cheap with adequate ales and decent food. Please go to the docks and come see them! Whilst they perform in the Cherub, I will hustle Sky out of her ring.   The sword of the people, musically aided by The Eye of Twilight, recants an epic tale of undead, an attack on the villagers, and a valiant hero, who saves them. It is awe inspiring, and intense. I cannot emphasize enough that The Sword and the Eye should be worshiped as heroes and epic performers.   As for me? Turns out, dumb luck beats even cheating. The Ravencaller of the west, a wondrous man with a wonderful antler helmet, you should definitely see him sometimes when you need help or advice concerning animals, was to help me, but I simply outright rolled the best result possible. Of course she cheats, but that's the beauty of hustling. I make sure we depart on good terms after I pocket the signet ring, and tell her we shall be talking again soon. Certainly a character to remember.   Because speed is of the essence, we arrange for horses, and travel quick. My horse's name is Penotti. I don't know, nor care why. My dislike for animals is thankfully not too apparent to the horse, and I manage to at least commandeer the beast sufficiently to not fall behind. The Eye of Twilight talks to his horse, The Ravencaller as well, and The Sword of the people...looks heroic again. His episode with hallucinogens finally over, I rejoice as the hero emerges once more.   We arrive at a caravan of people who inform us of the exact location of the caravan. We talk about some doctor related issues, when we get attacked by walking dogs. Fresh ingredients... Yesssss Turns out, villagers are shit at listening. Panic everywhere, but thanks to the expert reactions of The Eye of Twilight and the Ravencaller, as well as the combat adequacies of the Sword of the people and Nightstalker, the people are easily saved. Truly the acts of heroism this town...nay world needs.   After saving all people, except for one unfortunate lady, whom I give her death rites, as well as a short rest (in which I collect lovely ingredients), we track the dog creatures, apparently called Gnolls, to an ancient fortress. There, the Eye of Twilight peers into the mists of time, and figures out we must go now to save Winkle. So we go now, as he planned. Yes, the Eye of Twilight is as handsome as he is smart.   The fight is gruesome, and somehow, I manage to end up being the main focus after the Sword of the people, who is as sturdy and manly as any woman could ever want, just know that he's the stuff of legends! It takes a little bit of effort, but thanks to the heroes, we manage to defeat the Gnolls. Certainly, the astuteness of the Ravencaller of the west and the Eye of Twilight, The Raw force of the Sword of the people, and the stealthy deadliness of Nightstalker proved too much for simple dog creatures. Even if they wield giant axes. And me? I suppose I helped a little here and there. In the end, we only just manage to save Winkle, and a lot of other scared people. Life is good when you win.   Gold Tier. Where legends are made.

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On the next issue:

Deal with a sheep