Episode 1 Scene 2 : The Next Day

Quincy's knowledgeable side considers asking about these so-called "proclivities" that this farmer supposedly has, but he decides against it. He figures they would find out soon enough what he meant, hopefully it wasn't anything too strange.

"We appreciate the offer, sir, we really do. But we have not traveled too far today and our quest is time-sensitive. We thank you for the advice, we will make Bin-ghen our next stop. May you find peace." he says with a slight bow as a goodbye. If no one else asks anything further, Quincy will make his way back to the rest of the group and follow along to Bin-ghen's farm.

Corwyn waves to the farmer and turns to follow Quincy.

"I think that in view of what we've heard, we should go on to Bin-ghen's farm," suggests Corwyn (referring to the 9th). "We can always double back to the other farms if we don't learn anything."

Hath nods his head slowly. "Makes sense, furthest farms are most like ta have seen trouble if any 'ave. Best ta keep movin' though, it'll take a while ta reach 'em."

The group heads on down the rutted trail with the other end of it being their final destination which takes nearly the rest of the day to accomplish. As the sun is dipping low in the sky the group is finally approaching the last farm as they approach a odd looking whitish Dragonborn approaches them. Odd in that he is significantly shorter and smaller than most and its features a bit blunted. He calls out, "Well met, is there something I can do for you?"

Remembering the advice of the last farmer, Corwyn places his fist over his chest and concentrating on their mission says, "For the village!" "Greetings and well met. We are from the garrison. There have been reports of farmers experiencing losses of animals and equipment, as well as damage to crops. We have been told that this is happening more often than usual. Have you experienced anything like this recently, or heard about any such occurrences?"

Bin-ghen responds with a, "For the village." his hand glowing a significantly brighter and bolder blue than that which was mustered by Corwyn. "Well I have experienced the loss of animals but none of that other stuff you mentioned, however I have yet to establish the source as most wolves leave blood behind and these animals have just disappeared without a trace. I also have no skills in tracking or the like so would not know what to look for in that way. So are any of you trackers?" Up close it apparent that Bin-ghen seems to be a mix of dragonborn and some other humanoid.

"I have some experience in tracking. Perhaps if you could show us to where these animals disappeared I might be able to find some signs. What kind of animals went missing and when was this?"

"Well the sheep..." he looks at Corwyn questioningly, "I take it you were not briefed on what we farmers tend to out here I take it." He shakes his head dismissively, "Well, that figures, follow me." He then turns and starts walking towards the east side of the farm house as he talks, "Okay, well most if not all the farmers out here raise a more domesticated version of the sheep that roam this area wildly and besides the sheep we grow various crops based on each farmers preferences as well as what we think will sell the best. Over night I keep my sheep in this large pen." He shows you a large primitively fenced in area with a thatch and waddle lean-to shed at the far east end. "Every other day or so we take them out to roam the nearby hills. My wife and I take turns taking them out for the day, she's out with them right now but should be returning soon. The losses usually occur when they are in the pen but occasionally one or more will disappear while we have them out. So far we have not figured out what is doing it. Now grant you it does not happen every night nor every day just every once in a while but enough to be more than just normal attrition." He leans against one of the fence posts, "So got any ideas?"

Quincy takes mental notes diligently as the man speaks, listening to every word he speaks (updated Players' Notes). When Bin-ghen finishes explaining things, Quincy runs through a mental list once again before saying, "First, I would like to express sympathy for your losses. But something that steals both during the day and at night is certainly strange. But given that it does not leave any blood behind like wolves might, it's possible that the threat could come from the skies. Perhaps giant eagles or giant owls? I am not sure how prevalent those species are around here. Also, it could be caused by something more sophisticated than beasts. Perhaps some kind of bandits or magic users are involved, I cannot say, just speaking aloud."

Bin-ghen shakes his head no, "Nah, we do not have those in this area, the biggest raptors we have are normal sized hawks and falcons. As for whatever it is that prevents dragons from just dropping in to pay us a visit also appears to keep the the larger and higher flying predators at bay. Further if it were a flyer big enough to carry off a full grown sheep it have to be pretty darn big which should make it pretty easy to spot. So that is kind of what makes it the conundrum it is, but your thinking and that is good."

Hath shakes his head "Sounds ta me like someone's rustlin' yer sheep. Just a few at a time to avoid bein' caught. They probably been hittin' different farms at different times ta try an' hide any pattern and are hopin' the farmers put it down ta usual losses. Can't stand folk who steal, if we catch these buggers I'm gonna make it my business ta see they don't steal again." A slight savage glint appears in his eye as he finishes and he grins at Mukitz.

"Well if you can actually do that, then my wife and I will provide what aid we can in that endeavor. The losses are not significant as of yet but if this keeps up they will be. So you have talked to some of the other farmers and they have been experiencing losses as well?"

"So far we've only spoken to two farmers nearer the village and they hadn't had any such losses," replies Corwyn looking around the sheep pen area for any signs. "How long has this been going on?"

"Hard to say, we occasionally lose a sheep or two every now and again and never in the pen without signs of blood so did not really take much notice until it started happening a bit more often than usual so maybe a month ago but could have been longer."

Corwyn sees nothing unusual within the area, but then there are signs that it had rained fairly recently.