Chapter Seven

To Lay to Rest

Armed with new information and a solid course of action, the stalwart band decided quickly on the next most logical step… The pub! Over a tasty meal at the Last Beer Inn, a man entered wearing a blue uniform, and nailed a parchment onto one of the wooden beams near the bar. Ivan was familiar with the uniform, and explained it was the Chirgun’s Guild. Primarily, they are a band of adventurers who educate hunters on creature’s habitual preferences, strengths and weaknesses. For them to advertise a bounty was a little unusual, as their main research was funded from Adventurers Tax in many of the major cities which went towards expedition costs, as well as the capture and study of rare creatures which guild members could learn from should they be hunting a particular foe.

The second half of the parchment was a Wanted poster. An outlaw by the name of Silk had obviously crossed the Lord Mayor of Waterdeep one too many times, and a respectable reward was offered for his capture. It was likely that Silk would be nowhere near Suenta unless he had fled Waterdeep, which is perhaps likely if the net was being cast quite wide. However, with the refuges that Silk would likely have available to him, he could be anywhere from the house next door to the Lord Mayor, or right up to Black Spire Tower in Athas.

After washing down the last mouthfuls of food, and getting a good mental picture of Silk, you decided to head to the Mayor’s house to attempt to glean more information and hopefully connect the dots into the bigger picture. Things were thankfully easy going.

Upon sharing the name of Jaana with Mayor Matthius, an all too visible show of recognition passed his face. His son Timothy courted her a little over a year ago, and had commissioned a ruby necklace to present to her as a gift for their engagement. However, the growing lad’s affections died out, and he became interested in another girl by the name of Elica. When Jaana found out, she threw herself off the cliff in despair and remorse. The town was rocked by the scandal and the townsfolk’s blame quickly turned to Elica, eager to point the finger at someone other than the Mayor’s son. Elica left soon after the inhabitants shunned her, and she hasn’t been seen since.

It was decided to kill some time at the Spread Eagled Bugbear. You met with patrons full of promise and suspicion, and Captain Barnabus Mallory turned out to be quite an entertainer with his sea shanty ballad of a pirate’s treasure. However, soon it was nighttime again and the ghost appeared. El-Shad boldly stepped forward and said Jaana’s name, and sure enough, she turned and pleaded with hollow eyes for the necklace she was promised. Only that would lay her to rest.

Ivan took up the reigns and confidently promised to acquire the necklace, much to the surprise of everyone else. He walked to the Mayor’s house and shared the request from Jaana with Matthius, who replied that he would release the necklace into Ivan’s custody on the condition he took full responsibility for it. As a man of honour, Ivan would have to repay the four thousand gold pieces should this act not be successful. With only a slight wavering, Ivan gave his word.

A few moments later, at the cliff edge, Jaana hovers off the edge and holds out her hands. With a look of hope to his comrades, Ivan threw the necklace to Jaana.

Jaana caught the necklace…

…And seconds later, slowly descended into the mists towards the water.

After scouting out for two consecutive nights and not seeing any hint of Jaana’s return, the Mayor was pleased to announce to the villagers that the heroic adventurers had successfully banished the spirit! In respect for their great deed, they were offered a tidy sum of money, a residential property towards the south side of town, as well as a statue commissioned in their honour.

All in all, a nice pay off for a few nights work! With hearty backslaps and congratulations all around, all was bright and clear until Jack rode into Suenta with grave news.

“It’s the Orcs,” he grimly stated, “They’ve overrun and enslaved the people of Westfall! We must ride east at once and do what we can. An army is about three weeks away and we must do what we can until they arrive!”

“Westfall?” asked El-Shad, unfamiliar with the town.

“It’s slightly smaller than Suenta in terms of buildings,” replied Jack, “but has a larger number of inhabitants who work. The only thing that comes to mind is that it has a deep silver mine.”

“And forty Orcs…” added Ivan.