Chapter Two: The Hippocampus on the Cracked Lintel

Their body language is more "normal person" than "hired killer." You're pretty sure they're a woman, too.

"He called himself Jek," she says.

In the interests of moving things along: Mordred, if you want to be sleeping lightly and poke your head out to see who's murmuring in the hallway outside your room, feel free.

The shawled figure looks up as Mordred opens his door, and even in the near-darkness Mordred can see the outline of the thick plaque of scar tissue covering half her face.

She draws a sharp breath at the sight of Mordred's face, but exhales slowly as if steeling herself. She takes a step forward.

"I am Patlen Stone, daughter of Jeb Tuell. I will tell you everything. About my cousin. The crown. Everything."

Leth is pretty soundly asleep, but will quickly get up and join the others if woken...

I'm excited to start getting some answers!!!

Patlen follows Mordred and the others into their room. "No-one saw me come in," she assures you. "Let me start from the beginning. I will tell you all that I know. I have kept these secrets so long...they poison me from inside. I no longer care what he does to punish me, what he takes from me. I want to be free of him.

"Adan came to live with us when he was very small, after the wet fever took his parents. He was very intelligent. He knew letters and maths and all of that. The Vicar of Aitas in Bearshir took a notice of him and paid for him to enroll at the College of Scribes in Hazard. He did well there, for a time. But he fell in with people who studied and taught...unnatural things. Sorcery, like they teach in Banwod, but...darker. He neglected his studies and eventually he quit the College."

She looks down at the floor.

"My brother was the first to speak out against this. When he learned what Adan was doing he traveled all the way to Hazard to confront him. They had a terrible argument. Adan wouldn't listen. A month later, my brother was at work on the watchtower in Headlee, and the scaffolding collapsed. He fell to his death. And then...when Adan returned to Beerpool...my husband, he...he didn't want him to stay here...that he no longer trusted him, and...that night...our home..."

She starts to reach up to touch her face, but stops herself, curls her fingers into a fist. She shakes her head.

"Before he left again, he put that mark on my father's door. He said it was the sign of his masters, and that it represented a crown with six prongs, and that it was the crown of the one who would rule all of Bload one day, and after Bload, the very whole of the Werld. He told us he would conduct his business in my father's home at times, and we were to keep his secrets, and do whatever he asked of us, from now until the end of our days, and he showed us...evidence of his power. But I don't care anymore! I don't care what he does to me. I won't live in fear like my father." She looks up, her eyes cold and bright. "You oppose him, don't you? He didn't trust you. You're enemies of his? He said he knew you were deceiving him. I hope you find him. I hope you find him and I hope you kill him. He was never here, you know. What you saw in my father's house was an apparition. Still dangerous, but...only an image. The stronghold of his masters is somewhere to the north, I believe. The last time he passed through here in the flesh, it was about a year ago. He was headed north in the company of someone in a black pointed hood who he called his teacher, and a boisterous mercenary man."

Patlen is nearly breathless at the end of her speech, full of excitement and hope for vengeance. She looks at each of you in turn.

Patlen smiles. "I know where the girl is! I've known for two days, and I didn't tell him. He never asked me, so I didn't have to tell him! A man came to our door in the late morning, saying he knew the whereabouts of the girl we were looking for, and had come for his reward. I had no idea what he meant. I only suspected it was my cousin's business. I was alone -- my father had gone to the mill. I told him to come back at dusk, and he said he couldn't wait that long, he had to get back on the road. He said to me, 'this girl, is she very dear to your family?' and I, I didn't know what to say, I said 'yes she is, sir,' and he said 'very well. You seem to have suffered enough in this life already. I was at Grine's Knot two nights ago, and I heard there a strange story. They said a girl had been there the day before, a youth of about seventeen, and that she had tried to hire a ranger at the tavern to guide her into the Badgerways. She was overheard, and for her own safety the men of the town tried to detain her, but she slipped loose of them and disappeared into the night. They were still debating whether it was worth the risk to send a search party after her when I left.' And then he put his hand on my shoulder and said 'I fear it may be too late for her, but now you know.' And I said 'thank you sir, you've done us a kindness,' and he departed. I didn't tell my father. I knew he would only tell Adan straight away. And when I heard how Adan mistrusted you, and when you came back to our house to ask after him, I felt certain that my best chance to strike back at my cousin would be to tell you all that I knew."

She scans your faces again, as if searching for confirmation that she has made the right decision. When she look upon Mordred again, she starts. "Oh, the sphere? I don't know anything about that. He said nothing of it after you left."

Patlen recoils from the gold Mordred hands her. "Oh! No, I don't want it! You'll throw that gold in the pond if you're wise, and burn the bag it came in."

Grine's Knot is a town about 30 miles down the road from here. All party members, give me some History checks to see if any of you know WTF the Badgerways are.

Leth doesn't know what the Badgerways are.