Scene 1: The train from Korranberg

The air is crisp and cool as it blows in from the sea. The scent of brine is present, but not overwhelming. A young clerk makes a few final notes in a ledger then turns to the table behind him. A portfolio of ships schematics is open on the table, designs for a three new scout vessels. Light maneuverable elemental powered airships intended for service in the army of Breland. As the clerk checks one final time that all the drawings are there, Garthinok can see that the engineers have gone all out in their designs. Two elemental flight rings will make the ships turn on a crown. It really is a remarkable concept. Almost surprising that the shipwrights' guild would sell them rather than employ the designs for themselves.

The clerk shuts the portfolio after assuring himself of its contents and closes the flap. Reaching for a candle and his guild seal he drips the melted wax on closing flap and presses it closed. "The client has requested the utmost secrecy regarding these designs, though in truth, word of these designs will spread the moment they take to the air. But we must strive to adhere to the contract. Try not to mention that you saw this before we make delivery next year, aye? Not that I don't trust House Sivis to do its job."

He hands Garth the portfolio and leaves. Garth walks down the stairs to the first floor and across the boardwalk. The lightning rail gleams in the morning light. Below the carriage cars you can see the arcs of electricity that keep the train hovering a few feet off the ground. The smell of ozone competes with the brine of the sea for dominance in the Garth's nostrils. You see your fellow apprentice, Mintina Haskal d'Sivis, standing near a pile of luggage overseeing the half-elf porters loading it onto the train.



"About time you got here. You trying to leave me to do all the work Garthinok Tamlish? Maester Corfan will hear of this! Not that I expect him to actually do anything about it, of course. He does favor you over me, the old lecherous bastard..." That last bit is muttered in a lowear tone. It would seem Mint is in one of her typical foul moods this morning. She never has been good with mornings, and she especially hates traveling. Before her mark appeared she had been training to join the church of the Soverign Host, planning on finding a nice quiet temple to serve in peace somewhere far away from the stronghold of House Sivis. The gods seemed to have other plans for her though. When her mark appeared, she was 'persuaded' by her family to join one of the House guilds and uphold family tradition. Garth knows that once she settles in to her car and gets a cup of tea, she'll sort herself out.

And as if the words summoned him, a massive carriage rounds the corner and approaches the two apprentice scribes. The carriage belongs to your superior in the House, one Maester Corfan Severin d'Sivis. To your dismay, the elderly gnome is seated in the drivers seat of the vehicle, accompanied by two young gnomish women. The old man seems to be clinging to them both for dear life, and loving every minute of the careening ride. The young girls seem to be staying in the seat despite the old man leaning upon them, but they barley have control of the horses that pull the carriage toward you. It seems they are about to crash right through you when a thunderous voice rings out from the old man.

"Halt!" He bellows and the horses skid to a stop as the woman on the left leans hard on the brake bar. "Hee hee heeeee! Xala, you need some more practice before I let you drive the coach again! Hee hee! But thank you for the...hrmm...experience. It is one I will not soon forget." The old gnome pulls the driver, Xala in and kisses her neck, eliciting a squeal of child-like joy from the woman. Then he turns to the other woman, "And Spinove, you have mastered that brake. Thank you for keeping us in one piece." Corfan pulls her close too, the hand wrapped around her squeezing her hip in a slightly scandalous fashion as he kisses her on the cheek.



Corfan drops down from the carriage without so much as a glance back and walks toward Garth and Mint. "Ah, good. Glad to see you both here on time on this fine morning." He gives a little kick step as he approaches. Behind him, the two young women have climbed down from the driver's seat and opened the door to the carriage. Inside, you see three gnome men who are supposed to be Corfan's driver and footmen. They each look a little green from the ordeal. Purple haired Xala and dark haired Sinove make their way to the lightning rail without so much as a hello for the apprentices.



"I trust everything is in order? Garthinok, you collected the papers from the shipwright as I instructed?" It is hardly a question as he points to the portfolio under your arm.

From this distance, Garth can't make out anything more significant about the stranger. He seems to be just another traveler, other than he is capable of changing his face in the matter of a few moments without the telltale signs of casting a spell.

The car that Garith finds himself in currently is a private car, about 50 feet long, 20 feet wide. The front portion has been fashioned into a sitting room with very comfortably appointed cushioned benches that are somewhat larger than the ones in the standard car. For persons of gnomish stature they are practically couches. There is also an oak desk in the corner for Corfan, or his apprentices, to do some work. A stone hearth is built into one wall, a bound fire elemental can be summoned to warm the car if need be. The only thing that breaks the illusion of the comfortable living room is the fact that everything is bolted into place for safety.

The traveling party has gathered there to start the journey, but Corfan and his two companions, have the back half of this car which is walled off to create a private sleeping chamber. Garthinock and Mintina both have access to individual bunks in the sleeping car directly ahead of this one. Those chambers considerably smaller, a mere 6 feet wide and 10 feet long, including a pallet with a straw mattress.

Corfan's car is at near the rear of the train, just in front of the cargo cars. Ideally this should mean that no one will intrude on his privacy, as no one should have any reason to access the cargo cars while the train is moving. There is a notice on door to the last sleeping car, where Garth and Mint are staying that the next car is private and unauthorized passengers should not enter.

Headed toward the front of the train, Garth passes through three additional sleeper cars each containing five sleeping cells like his own. All the curtains are drawn and hide any occupants from view. Garth passes no one in the corridor. Next comes the first of the steerage cars, most of the car is filled with more cargo, about twenty people, poor families traveling for any number of reasons. They pay no attention to Garth. The next three cars are similarly appointed, but holding more people than cargo, but no one in them appears to be the changeling he thinks he saw earlier.

The standard class cars are next. Four of them hold 50 passengers each on this leg of the trip. There are a few cloaks that could have been the one from the station, but draped over benches or stowed under seats as they are, he can't be sure. There are two galley cars next. The first one he comes to is intended to serve the steerage and standard passengers, the second intended for first class. They are empty except for staff. (At least apparent staff) Garth is greeted by the waitstaff but told that meals are not available for another hour.

The last four cars before the engine are dedicated to the first class passengers. The suspected changeling was seen getting on the last of the first class (furthest from the engine). The first class cars look like well decorated sitting rooms, much like Corfan's private car, but with four distinct seating areas. A party of dwarves has taken over two adjoined seating area. The distance between the changeling and Garth make it hard to be sure which one it was, but there are three that have the right beard and hair color.

The dwarves look at each other, a couple wry smiles are exchanged and the youngest speaks up. "Aye, Yodrol, son of Yodrailen, son of Yodrak Coalmaker. It would be our pleasure to hear your song, young bard. We cherish our heritage and our drinking songs though, we'll not go easy on ye." The other dwarves nod in agreement and settle back to listen.

"Wait a moment, if we are going to listen to drinking songs, then we should be drinking, says I." Another dwarf says. and gets up and walks toward the first class galley.

"A House Sivis bard, never did I see such a thing, I've not."[/b] the second dwarf returns with steins of ale and beer passing them out to his fellows. Settling in they all look at Garth expectantly.

Garthinock notices no one and nothing, out of the ordinary as he plays. The piece isn't especially difficult...for a gnome of his prowess...and the dwarves all start to sing along. Clearly he has impressed them, but his target remains elusive.

The day grows long as Garthinock does his best to keep up with the dwarves and manages to hold his own for a time. While drinking he identifies two of them as potential suspects. The first, Grizelsack, loses his Mrorian accent the more he drinks. Then there's Brenttel. His beard is an odd style compared to the rest of the dwarves. Both have hair of the same color that the suspected changeling had and both wear a gray cloak that could be the one Garth saw before.

A gentle knock on Garth's door is followed by a porter opening it slightly, the man on the other side has his head turned so he cannot see in. "Pardon sir, ma'am, the inquisitive has requested your presence in Mister Severin's private car, to discuss if anything was stolen I'm told."

The changeling arches an eyebrow at the inquisitive. "That...was a lot of guessing, but yeah, you got all the high points."

The changeling looks at Garth. A look of pain crosses its face. "Not that I have a reason to tell you, but there are enchantments in place that prevent it. Even thinking about it causes me...significant discomfort." the same look of pain washes over the changeling. "They wanted me to find any documents he had that might link back to them. I didn't find any though. If you know something I don't you could probably figure it out for yourself."

Benedict takes the changeling and escorts them to one of the private cars. He explains that they don't usually have to hold prisoners, so the assassin will simply be chained to a railing in the car until you arrive at your next stop in Zolanberg later today.

Spinove and Mint get settled back in her room. The train has a medic on board and Mint reluctantly agrees to let him consult on Spinove's injuries. He is no House Jorasco healer, but she thinks him competent.

Back in Corfan's car, the bodies have been removed, taken to the rear of the train where a magic cold storage container is located. The sleeping chamber still needs to be cleaned though. As it is a private car, that responsibility would fall to Garthinock or Mintina, or perhaps they can hire one of the train's staff to help. Meanwhile, in the sitting room, Garth collects the various papers that had been strewn about. It takes some time.

When Garth is satisfied that he has made progress, he looks out the window of the train and sees that the sun is almost fully above the horizon. He leaves and locks the door to the car, returning to his own chamber. Sitting down to look over the coded book, Garth begins to work. The long stressful night starts to weigh on him though. He can feel his eyes starting to droop as he fights the urge to sleep.

Making his notes then setting to the actual work of deciphering the code. It is slow going, but Garth thinks he has about two pages worked out. He blinks through bleary eyes and contemplates doing some more work, but upon standing up he feels his muscles cry out from exhaustion. Rolling into his bunk he closes his eyes and quickly fades into dreaming.

---

Garth is awoken by a violent shake. Consciousness comes to late to identify exactly what caused it, but ten seconds later it happens again. The whole room drops violently and then jerks back up. A porter comes running down the corridor yelling, "Please move to the front of the train! We need to evacuate the back of the train. Please move forward! The train is under attack...please move forward!"

The crowd immediately around Garth seems to quiet down in response to his words. It takes constant work to keep the crowd under control and moving forward orderly. The term 'herding cats' might apply to this entire scenario, but the people start moving.

The train slows more and more. The next drop from the missing stone is more jarring than the last. The crowd screams, mostly from fear, as they fall toward each other. The jolt causes the people to move a little faster. As they press forward, Garth recalls his time drinking with the dwarves. In first class there are seating areas that gnomes could easily hide under. In the press of the crowd there is no way any bandits would think to look under a seat.

It's hard work pushing through the crowd. They don't want to relent to the small folk pushing through, but the gnomes are able to squeeze through when the bigger folk can't. You find your way to the car in question and the dwarves wave you over. "What's going on laddie? You look like you're on the run."