Chapter 3: the road to ostlen

The road frequently traveled...

With the newly established empire keeping order over Stormholde, the roads should be safe. Should be. Our heroes are destined to learn at some point when you choose to become an adventurer, nowhere is truly safe.

Part I - Good Morning, Goblin Slayer Keep

Our heroes begin the day waking up to an unpleasant cold rain dripping on their faces from the roof above. The room that they awake in is not where they remember falling asleep, however. In the aftermath of the battle with Slaark the Goblin King, the party took to resting in one of the bedchambers within the lower levels of the keep. As opposed to the stone walls and floors, they now find themselves in a room with rotting wood walls, no doorway, a leaky roof, and animal refuse that hasn't been fully cleaned among a floor covered in hay. The air outside is heavy, and a gentle rain can be heard pattering against the rooftop.

Before they can fully take in their surroundings, Barris Godfried walks into the enclosure, "hey you, you're finally awake! Good! I have some news for y'all, but first, welcome to Goblin Slayer Keep! Came up with the name myself!"

Twitch, a goblin himself, grimaces at the thought, and begins to get riled up feeling as though he has not received the recognition he deserves for dispatching Slaark. "We can change the name, right?" he asks.

"Well, I sorta already carved it into the stonework that's here...and even made a sign outside....so...yeah, its Goblin Slayer Keep now"

"WH-" a chord snaps within Twitch, but Cyrell is able to calm him down, telling him they can deal with it later, but remarking that Barris' racism against goblins is noted.

Ignoring this, Barris carries on, his southern accent lacking the comforting reminder of traditional southern hospitality,

"I was goin to let ya know about some possible…issues…we might be havin here. But honestly I got it all under control. There were some noises, ya see, comin' from 'hind the walls and under the floor in the underground rooms below. Made us all a bit jumpy so we packed up some of the stuff we found down there and moved it all up here. Honestly surprised we were able to carry y'all up here without waking ya. Well, most of ya's at least."

Cyrell begins questioning where his other companions are. As he looks across the room, he sees Twitch but no sign of Davina, Seven, or Namira whom he had last traveled with.

"Yeah, about that..." Barris continues, "that robot feller, and the elf lady too. And Dariana? Damica? Whatever her name was…her also. We kinda forgot to bring them up with ya. Honestly they's was so sound asleep, didn't even remember they came in with ya. Thems was always quiet ones the minute we met..."

He trails off and looks at the ground quizzically.

"But I'm sure their all fine! We already got Sister Cousin Ruth and Brother Uncle Marcus workin on getting em out. So don't worry yer noggins about none o' that. And those sounds too...Honestly probably just nerves. Never had anything like yesterday happen to any of us. Folks might be sufferin from some kinda, post-traumatic stress of some kind. Really should make a name for that...Anyways, the folks are likely just still in shock and were likely just hearin things."

Cyrell rubs his eyes in disbelief but accepts Barris' word.

"Also, it might be worth mentionin, we found some kinda Halfling wanderin around outside the keep, said he's been lookin for ya fer days. Didn't know if we could trust em or not but he said something about proving himself by cooking us some good grub, so we chained him up in the kitchen just over yonder."

The party again begins to question Barris' racist inclinations, but Barris tries to argue that it would be unwise to trust anyone who just wanders up to your home and asks to be let inside. Especially from a race that has a history of being tied to criminal organizations. They agree to disagree on the matter.

Barris also bestows to the party a pair of gauntlets they found on Slaark the Slow. He says that even he is able to tell there's some kind of magic going on with them but isn't sure what. Cyrell investigates and is able to determine there is some kind of potential abjuration magic, but inherently something mildly darker as well within. He gives them to Twitch, but neither are willing to wear the gloves proving that they care more about safety then cool magic items.

"Alrighty," Barris chimes up, "well somebody's gotta clean up them goblin corpses! Also, ya hear any strange noises, y'all be sure to let me know - but again, probably nothin! Bye now!" He leaves and begins tearing away at one of the rotted wooden walls. breaking it down to replace it.

Outside, the sun and sky are completely covered by dark cumulonimbus clouds. A light rain falling and a distant fog obscuring the horizon. The once golden and beautiful plains and meadows that surrounded the keep are now dark and gray. They see some of the farmhands as they drag goblin corpses across the ground leaving a trail of blood. As one pulls a particularly large goblin towards a burning pyre, its body splits in half from its torso. The man puts his hands to his mouth and keels over, throwing up across the ground. Bloodstains run across the dirt paths inside the camp blending with the rainwater and rolling off down the hill from which the keep is perched upon leaving a viscous crimson solution of mud, rainwater, and the excrement of entrails. One peasant looks on as his partner, with a broken shovel, scoops up a goblins dismembered hand and a small intestine that has been spilt across the ground. The one doing the shoveling gives Cyrell and Twitch a disheartened look, lamenting over his duty to clean up the aftermath the parties assault while the other whispers to his companion questioning if this place is really where they want to make a new home after all.

Inside a small shack, they find Zeetus! He is chained by the ankle and cooking up some delicious soup that he's been working on all morning. They unlock his ankle shackle and try to catch him up on the past adventures that have taken place in his absence over a nice warm bowl of soup. All caught up, Twitch and Zeetus step outside the fort. Twitch scratches out a wooden sign that says "Goblin Slayer Keep" while Zeetus throws a bowl of soup at the engraving in the stone featuring the same title.

Cyrell lags behind a bit to tell Barris that he should consider how he treats other races seeing as how one just helped him secure a home. Barris ponders it, but this is a goblin they are talking about. One who literally just killed his own kind without remorse proving his disposition to be reasonable. At least in his eyes.

Eventually, Cyrell meets up with his companions and they start on the road to resume their journey. This time clearly with no distractions. Only pleasant singing, warm food, and cheerful tales as they hike the road to Ostlen. Or so a fool would think.

Part II - Old friends, new careers

About 2.5 hours into their journey, a massive beast shakes the ground as it approaches. A glint of light can be seen reflecting off a metal surface of the beast. As it approaches, the party realizes that it is actually a gigantic mechanical tortoise featuring two mounted swivel cannons and two Imperial border patrol guards riding on its back. Zeetus is able to recognize one of the guards as Augustus Maypole a former student of Trent Trufflesons School of Chefferey which they both attended. Augustus is a small, framed human with dirty blonde hair wearing armor that seems two sizes two big for him. Augustus explains that the Imperials from the west have different palates than they do in the east and so he wasn't able to quite make it as a chef but found a new home amongst the border patrol. He even has a sick new mechanical mount!

After a brief exchange, Augustus' superior with little patience tells Augustus to do his job. The party is asked if they have imperial citizenship papers (of which none do). Thankfully, the Imperial guard offers temporary papers at the cost of 50 gold pieces. Zeetus tries to convince Augustus to get them out of this, trying to remind Augustus of the time he helped him out on his cooking exams. Augustus does remember, but he also remembers he failed that test thanks to Zeetus and refuses to risk his neck in front of his boss. Twitch tries to argue that goblins aren't technically able to be deemed citizens, to which the border patrol captain responds, "you're right, we should just kill you now!" As he pulls out his sword. He turns to Cyrell, "this must be your slave then?

"Yes." Cyrell responds.

"Then he should be on a leash!"

Twitch, once again, loses his temper and begins to argue back but Cyrell a master of diplomacy calms the situation. The border patrol captain gets off of the mechanized tortoise, digs around in his pack, and pulls out a spare leash handing it to Cyrell.

Unfortunately, the party is unable to pay. So, he explains that a tax collector will find them to collect when the time comes. Augustus gives each of them a temporary pass, takes down their information, and then moves along riding in the direction of Goblin Slayer Keep.

Zeetus swears that he will kill Augustus for not helping him out.

Part III - Come what sorrow can

The party continues on for another two hours of walking. As they continue on West the rain begins to get a little more intense and the fog just a bit thicker. Their clothes have now become damp and heavy, weighing down each steps. Their boots are flooded with water sloshing with each step and their ankles caked in mud. Nonetheless, the party continues forward! Ostlen awaits after all.

They pass by the remains of a dismantled goblin toll booth which they had a previous encounter at before making it to Goldmaw Farms once again. Some of the party members look through the ruins but find not much of value. They are able to find an unburnt child's drawing. Zeetus tries to investigate where the turtle came from. He stares incredibly hard at the muddy road, gets down on all fours, tastes the dirt and smells the air, but can't find anything. Then, Twitch looks over his shoulder, and provides some help. With Twitch's help, Zeetus is able to activate his eagle vision. Zeetus is not only able to spot the gargantuan and readily apparent (and entirely fresh) tracks left in the mud from the beast leading towards Ostlen but is also able to see them even beyond what the foggy visibility conditions would normally allow. His critical perception allows him to track the smell of muddy oil that the beast left behind for miles.

At the farm ruins, the party hears muffled sound of an off tune rhythmic tone coming from the southwest. Zeetus, Cyrell, and Twitch debate whether or not to investigate but Twitch's curiosity gets the better of him. Cyrell explains that he should go out for no more than a few minutes and come right back. Twitch agrees before going out way longer than the agreed upon time where the sound starts to get louder. Zeetus and Cyrell agree that he must have died, but are kind enough to go scout out for his body. Zeetus heads off first before Cyrell follows.

Twitch is first to notice a large troll that is...singing?

"Hair is sweet,

Trolololo smell er..lady good

Face like mud

Yes, Trololo love mud! Singie ladie love mud too.

Torololo see

Ugly knows you…err….lady lovely "

Twitch determines that the troll must be harmless and tries striking up a conversation. Turns out that this troll calls himself ugly and is in love with a human woman who freed him from a cage! He doesn't know her name, but remembers she has red hair and was roughly in the direction of Ostlen when he last saw her.

Perhaps it was because Ugly, like Twitch, was an outcast, but Twitch had a softspot for the troll. In an attempt to make him feel better, he pointed out a rock and told Ugly it was all his. Ugly stores the rock in his hidden pockets he has alongside his beefy thighs.

It is unknown to the party, but Ugly would later use this rock to throw at a bee that was buzzing in his ears. He didn't hit the bee, but did get stung by it, and immediately after forgot he had a rock to begin with.

At this point, Cyrell and Zeetus had long since caught up. They debate for a while how to proceed. Ugly tells the party that "baddie mans" were in the direct route to Ostlen, but there was a longer yet safer way by going around. Our heroes debated which route to take, and whether or not to bring Ugly along. Ultimately they decide to go the quicker way and leave Ugly where he is. Cyrell argues that clearly Ugly is trying to avoid people and it would be foolish to bring him towards the people he wants to stay away from even if he could potentially provide some extra muscle.

Twitch promises to bring the "pretty lady" to Ugly, and the party continues on their way.

Part IV - The last army of stormholde

The road to Ostlen is peril with danger and surprises, but none-so more than Titan Canyon. Massive rock walls reaching over 30 feet high on now covered in mud running off from the clifftops. a few dozen feet in, a tipped over wagon just before the canyon begins to turn to the left. Twitch attempts to climb the walls, gets a few feet high, before sliding back down. Cyrell casts an eldritch blast at the side of the cliff exploding mud everywhere landing all across the front of Cyrell's robes and face. A few stray worms wiggle in his black matted down hair.

A blind man would be able to see the ambush lying in wait. Yet our party, equal measures foolhardy and brave, trudged along. Perhaps the issue is none of the party members are blind. Perhaps the ever-increasing intensity of rainfall was finally getting to them. Whatever their reasons, they didn't spend any time looking at the ground, or investigating along the cliffsides. Twitch in particular walks right up behind the overturned wagon. He peers over, and before he has any time to react, notices barrels flooding with oil. At a moment's notice, several voices can be heard screaming as one by one ambushers emerge from on top of the cliffs. One takes a rapid shot with a flaming arrow at the wagon. Twitch is immediately blown back by a fiery explosion as his body becomes impaled by wooden shrapnel from the exploding wagon. His body severely singed, Twitch's unconscious body flies through the air and lands at Zeetus' feet much to his horror bleeding out profusely. Zeetus moves underneath cover of the cliffside and attempts to shoot a crossbow upwards towards the ambushers but in his panic he snaps his bowstring.

The ambusher that Zeetus shot at climbs down the cliffside elegantly leaping at the end to strike Zeetus from above, but stumbles on the landing and misses. Another ambusher tries to yeet a flaming oil barrel over to Zeetus, but can't throw it quite far enough. It lands on the ground and explodes but doesn't injure anyone. From the back of the canyon, a female voice can be heard shouting, "GUT THE IMPERIAL BASTARDS!"

Cyrell steps out and yields. He calls into the thunderous rain that they are not part of the Empire. He holds up a piece of parchment, a pedigree showcasing his family's lineage. The parchment gets soaked by the second. The females kicks up and she tells her companions to investigate. Zeetus takes another swing at the ambusher next to him but misses as he is covered in rain and mud and can't properly see. Twitch grips desperately onto his life.

The ambusher who had thrown the barrel slides down the cliffside but fails miserably. He trips and stumbles and crashes down the side of the mountain breaking a leg in the process. He is not quite on deaths door - but is nearly there. The guard limps in anguish over to the yielding Cyrell and rips the document out of his hand. The female voice shows leniency, and the party allows themselves to be bound and carried away to talk further.

Under the fleeting warmth of a campfire, a woman with red hair wearing patchy and ragged leather armor approaches and begins questioning them about their allegiances. She throws down the now drenched and ruined parchment to the ground.

"RED HAIR!?!?" Says Zeetus. A thought cloud of Ugly rises above his head.

"And what exactly is this supposed to prove to me?" the woman asks. "THE Cyrell Starwell, the one whose guild pledged loyalty to the Empire and handed over the last chance of keeping them out?"

"That wasn't me!"

Over heated discussions, and some good arguments made, the woman is convinced that they might just be telling the truth. Twitch after waking up uses the argument that goblins are usually killed on sight by the Empire, which holds some truth. Cyrell expresses with fierce determination that all he wants is to free his homeland.

"Do you have any idea what it is like to see this Empire trampling through your lands?"

"Yes," the woman replies, "we know exactly what it's like. We lived through it."

She pulls down a piece of her armor and reveals the banner of the Stormholde army patched onto her outfit. Cyrell's eyes light up.

"Exactly! We know what it's like." Cyrell exclaims.

The woman goes on to introduce herself as Rayla Featherdreamer. She tells the party that perhaps there is an opportunity for them to prove if there is truth behind their claims. Rayla and her crew are looking for a criminal named Groglick. She explains that they believe he is working under order of the Empire.

At the mention of Groglick, Twitch, not known for being bereft of speech, begins opening up about his knowledge of Groglick. To Rayla's disappointment the burning glare of Cyrell staring down Twitch cuts him a bit short, and he only reveals general information but enough to confirm in Rayla's mind they know him on some personal level.

She also mentions that they are looking for someone in the town of Ostlen. A druid who was spying on conditions there but hasn't reported back for some time. Rayla tells the party that he should be easy enough to find. He is a Firbolg named Joplin. She makes them aware that he can on occasion put nature above all else, letting them know he has been furious with the deforestation and industrialization that has been taking place within Ostlen. As she mentions Joplin, a heavy wave of fear and dismay appear in her eyes. Speaking his name was the only time that she betrayed her stature of confidence. Cyrell tries to question further, but she only explains that he has been working with her for a long time. Cyrell doesn't push further.

As a symbol of trust, Rayla attempts to give the party a rope of climbing, but they refuse. She hands them 3 gold pieces each which should get them a room and some food in the Black Dove Inn, the place she suggests the party begin their search.

The bard recounting this epic is not entirely sure when it occurred, but at some point the conversation derailed itself into discussing the importance of Rayla meeting the troll in the woods. Rayla remembered freeing a troll, of course. She freed him from a cage that was being led by a group of Imperials, not something you do every day. Some of the party put more importance on the meeting of Rayla and this troll than perhaps anything else before. It got so extreme that the only reason the party agreed to look for Joplin was if she went to go speak with Ugly the troll. Against the parties wishes Rayla is able to emphasize the importance of Joplin over meeting the troll but she promises she will as soon as she knows the fate of Joplin which Cyrell explains they will discover "dead or alive."

Rayla's eyes water at the thought.

With all that done, Rayla points the party in the direction of Ostlen imploring that they make haste and ensuring they will not have any more delays getting to the town. Through the downpour, the party begins their final trek to the town.

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