Chapter 2: Hope

Hilmar joins the others at Greyhorn Outfitters. Like Alfrey he buys a length of rope - he used most of his for tying up the bandits. He also buys two throwing knives, a steel mirror, a signal whistle, a scroll case, ten sheets of paper, charcoal, two sacks and a thin scabbard for his wand.On the way from the outfitters to the inn, looking round at the village, he says, "I assumed the town of Hope would be bigger than this."

At Amanda's question, he notices Alfrey's sidelong glance. "We managed to sneak up on them and we had them outnumbered. Knowing what we know now, they weren't the hardest of adversaries. I think they were rather out of their depth to be honest. We came to Hope when we heard reports of messengers from your town seeking warriors and mages."

He is delighted when the lunch of baked hare with garlic and crowberry tart with a glass of apple cider arrives and tucks in with gusto. He has a surpisingly large appetite for someone on the thin side. He nods in agreement at Alfrey's comments as to the advantages. "It also seems - on the face of it - more attractive than just 60gp between us. But I'd like to see if first. Hopefully it's not in such a bad state of repair making it uninhabitable. I'd also like to make sure it doesn't come with strings attached, like having to pay high taxes and so on, which might make it not so viable. We also need to check if it's close to the town. Whether or not we agree to help the sheriff and her people against the bandits, we have made an enemy today. Word will get back to Ralavaz about what we've done. If we were all in a house in the middle of nowhere we could be easy targets for the Night Blades." He takes another mouthful of his baked hare with garlic. "Which leads on to whether we decide to help the sheriff. As far as I can see, 'the die is cast'. We've already crossed the Night Blades and we may as well follow through now. The sheriff also told us that they could reward us with some of their magic treasures from Imperial days."

Hearing Amanda's comments, he looks up, "Thank you for your generous offer." Then he asks, "You say you've been here over twenty years and this is the worst it's been. When did things go wrong? What happened?"

UPD: The pink woman picked up two apples from the barrel, and, biting one crunchy fruit fed another one to the horse. Here you are, Butterscotch! End of the timey-wimey stuff

I'll be back for you later, boy,- Euphoria says to the stallion, petting his mane.


She then leaves the stable, enters the shop, picks up the ink pen, gives it to Gavun, and says: Sell me this ink pen.
As Gavun agrees and names the price, she looks disappointed, and replies: No, it's not how it's done. Come on, didn't you hear the tale of The Wolf of Fence Boulevard? Arianne, sell me this ink pen, show him how it's done!

When the tiefling is done fooling around she buys a whip, a set of manacles, a tent, a grappling hook, to a total of 8 gp.

Is it apple cider I smell?,- smiled the infernal, entering the Summerspring Inn.
Did I miss something?

Thank you! The tiefling takes the mug into both hands and takes a sip. Is Evershaddy a tavern?

If this Ralavaz guy turns out to be at least half as dangerous as people say he is,- Euphoria spoke with a full mouth, munching on a baked hare leg,- I'm gonna be really surprised.

Maybe you're right but didn't those bandits say that the Night Blades were burned alive when they caught them last time? I hope that's not normal. Maybe it's just a wild tale but maybe it was the only way to deal with Ralavaz's magic?

He appreciates the play-along and he pats his instrument a bit as he is nodding to himself. "Aaand I can play too!"

He makes space for Euphoria as she joins them.

"I will try that bath right as we finish, does it fit everyone?"

"But on the serious topics, I don't know much about what the house is worth, let's look but I leave the decision to you" he waves at all of them. "As for the drama-bandit, you think that mask magic works on us too? Do we have to face him blindfolded or earfolded or something?"

Hilmar takes another sip of his cider, feeling pleased about how things have turned out so far. He looks forward to the hot spring.He smiles at the term 'drama-bandit' Kaa uses to describe Ralavaz. "Hmm, that's a good point. Hopefully not. The sheriff described the prisoners as 'not the smartest' of people, so maybe they were easier to beguile. But it wouldn't do to make assumptions," he responds, making a mental note to make enquiries about this.

Dropping her belongings and most of her clothes onto a wooden floor, Euphoria jumps right into the water, making a big splash. She dives deep down, touches the very bottom with her hand and goes back up. Didn't expect to find a hot spring this cool in here!

Naeris is at the back of the group heading to the spring and she stops before they reach the steps down to this pool. She says to Amanda ‘Is it okay if I have a look around?’

(Assuming Amanda says this is okay) Naeris studies the cavern. She wasn't expecting this space hiding in the middle of town and she wants to make sure she understands it. She walks around the cavern to check that there are no passages or rooms that weren’t immediately visible. She takes a quick look at the vent (but from a distance - not actually entering the empty pool because she's suspicious of it). She looks at the forms of the rocks and observes the colour and smell of the water.After this, since she's not keen on caves or this water, which she sees as impure, she's thinking of leaving. She asks Amanda ‘Does anyone live at the keep over yonder?’

Hilmar removes his outer clothing, placing it in his pack, away from any edge. He descends the stairs, entering the water gradually, getting used to the temperature and testing out the depth. Then he will swim around the rim of the pool and float on his back. After about 15 mins he will get out, find a secluded area to change into his spare clothes and wait for the others where they had their meal.
While waiting, he will ask Amanda, "When did things start to go wrong in Hope, causing people to leave and so on? What happened?"

After taking a moment to remove and store his armor in a safe place, well away from the moisture of the spring, Alfrey descends into the cave. He admires the otherworldly beauty of the place before following his companions’ lead and spending some time in the pool. He does not linger in the water, preferring to focus on getting himself clean, having grown sick of all the dust and grime accumulated over the long journey.

After completing a satisfactory bath, he continues to take in the cave, walking from end to end, not looking for anything in particular but enjoying the sights and sounds of such a unique place.

It is beautiful but I don't like this place. I don't enjoy being confined underground. I like the open forest.