A little birdie told me...

The battle was done and it was time to divvy up some of the spoils. Furion seemed to be the most willing to claim items and took possession of the Flind Bar and the Wand of Magic Missiles. Rennala was the lucky winner for the Ring of Protection. The spear went in the wagon with the battle axe no one had yet claimed. That business concluded the group bade farewell to the Xvarts and headed out.

They began their trip out of the forest and then headed due west, all intentions of hitting Intertown next. Two days in to the run Tyrade spotted some signs of a trail and called for some help. Furion confirmed the suspicion. There was definitely remains of a trampled area by a significant number of creatures. He could not be sure what made it but it originated from the forest, emerged and turned west. They suspected it was the remnants of the Gnolls. On they continued along the outskirts of the woods. On the third day the trail turned north in the direction of the McMurtry farm. Concerned for the potential trouble this would cause they chose to turn north and follow. They picked up speed to close ground.

The next night Jack spotted a flickering fire in the distance that he deemed to be a camp fire. They followed at a distance, keeping the moving mass just at the edge of their sight. They could see it was a large number of creatures and wanted to avoid direct confrontation unless it was necessary. The next two days passed quietly aside from Gwyn having spotted some beings walking from west to east between them and those they were following. They were now past the farm to the east and curiosity got the better of them. Gwyn spotted a small robin and cast Speak with Animals. His aim to ask the bird to fly ahead, scope out these wandering beings and report back what he had seen. What he got was ... "ED!"

Well... that was obviously the bird's name and he took every opportunity to say it. But Ed was cooperative and followed instructions to the best of his abilities. He flew ahead and returned a few minutes later reporting he had seen large 2 legged, armed, fur covered things. About as close to identifying them as Gnolls as probably could be expected. The conclusion being these were camp scouts walking their extended perimeter. Ed, having been so helpful, Morgana cast Animal Friendship to keep the bird as a companion. Ed was willing and perched on her shoulder.

The group turned towards the farm to share news of the future arrival of friendly Xvarts, spend the night in a bed and then move on. Tyrade decided to leave 5 Mithril as a credit for the Xvarts for when they came to trade for farm goods and a sign of good will and faith. Macguyver was more than alittle taken back by this news but accepted it as it was. After picking up some supplies and extra feed for Ed they were once again off.

The trip south and west towards Intertown was quiet except for what appeared to be a lone rider shadowing the group as they traveled. The second day they spotted this shadow Morgana used a Speak with Animals to ask Ed to do a little recon for her to hopefully get a better idea of what was following them. Ed did his job again but the information was not as definitive. A white / grey hooded and cloaked person. It could be trouble, it might not. A few days later they reached Intertown, a sprawling city of more than 15,000, and found rooms for the night. That night they discovered who it was that had been following them. The ladies room at the inn received a knock on the door in the late evening which turned out to be their shadow. He introduced himself as Humphries, a member of the local guard. He had been attempting to confirm what they knew of the group and the conflict with the White Ninja.

Jade, Tyrade, Furion and Gwyn accompanied him to a secluded spot in town where there was an odd standing door and a small outhouse sized structure. The door opened to a staircase leading down. Humphries led them down in to a secure prison location. Several heavily armed and armored guards tended the place. They were led to a conference room and a prisoner brought in. His name was Daiju. He was essentially a bagman for the White Ninja. Tyrade cast an ESP to support the questioning process of the prisoner. But Daiju was apparently not the White Ninja they expected. He answered almost all of their questions without obfuscation and conscientiously. He was only reluctant to reveal where they were intended to go after Intertown. He revealed they had come from the east through Carthy and over the river. The leader of his group of 4 was named Hansou. He did not know the names of the other two but one was a lawyer and the other most likely a yakuza. Daiju had been caught by a sting conducted by the Intertown guard. There were 6 businesses that reported the suspicious behavior. One had shared the business card left by the lawyer. Tyrade used a Capture Image to have a copy of what was left. The business owner shared the initial shakedown fee was 100 gold with a monthly fee of 500 after that.

With this research completed they spent the night and then did a little shopping the next day. The following day they were off to Middletown. A 2 day stay there revealed there had been no suspicious activity there yet and they were off again. A three day trip and crossing of the river found them in Carthy, a large city of some 10,000. They were immediately struck by the level of law enforcement present. Every street had some form of guard. They checked in to a hotel and made plans to stay for 2 days. But they detected something was ... off. The level of security put them on their guard. And rightly so. Out and about for a little shopping they were drawn by a large number of people filtering to the town square for what one town person informed them was a public execution. Curious, they followed the crowd to the central square where they saw a raised platform and a gallows.

The crowd filled the square. People of all sorts were there including families with their children. The hubbub of the crowd quieted as two large doors at one end of the square opened allowing three small carts to be pulled out. They each held one prisoner in chains. The carts were paraded through the square where locals tormented the prisoners and threw all sorts of refuse at them. The group could see these were most likely the other White Ninja they had been hoping to find. After a circle of the square the prisoners were tied and led up to the gallows, the noose placed around their necks. Then the gallows master raised an arm and the crowd hushed. The charges were read and he reached in to a pot pulling a slip of paper from it. He read aloud a number and from back in the mob a woman began shouting and jumping for joy. The crowd cleared a path for her as she ran up to the gallows claiming she had won! The gallows master led her to the trap door release lever and the mob began a countdown in unison. When the count hit zero she pulled the lever, the crowd roared and the prisoners dropped. Having seen this, the group decided it was best to get out of Carthy as soon as possible.

They left the next morning and made for Zaxons, a small fishing town. It was a two day trip to the town, situated on a lake at the end of a river. They found their way to what was an oversized building at the center of town. Gina's Inn was a structure much larger than anything else in the area but it was an Inn, a restaurant, a stable, and several businesses all under one roof. They spoke with the owner and asked about the local law enforcement. She explained the sheriff would be in soon and she would send him over. They shared the information they had regarding the White Ninja and he was able to share no such activity had yet been discovered in Zaxons. It made sense given there were not many businesses in town beyond Gina's.

After two days in Zaxons they set out again and made for Midway. A week later they were home. The other magic weapons were offered to other members of the extended group. Yosh was awarded the spear and Crush the battle axe. The most important news was sharing information about the Xvarts with SD. This was done and his reaction was one of stunned disbelief but a curious interest.

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