The group was in high spirits as they approached the walls of Martel. The day was bright and warm, and the salty fresh scent of the sea was energizing to the group. They all talked excitedly, and Koma bounced around in his smaller form, having caught the energy of the group.
“That's odd.” one of the followers commented. He pointed toward the gate that had just come into view. There was a line leading a good quarter mile away from the gate where people were backed up trying to get into the city. As they got closer, they realized the holdup was a contingent of guards searching every person and wagon coming into town. The group joined the queue and waited their turn.
The guards were quick. They had three or four people check over any incoming vehicles, which made the job take only a few seconds each. People on foot were drawn into a different line where a few words with the guards saw them through even quicker. As they approached, Will coaxed Koma to become even smaller, sending images of Koma as a puppy through their mental link. Koma liked the idea, but the transformation skill was still low level. He was able to get small enough that Will could pick him up under one arm however, and that was good enough.
“Stop right here please, god and goddess.” a guard said. Four guards approached and looked over the cart before giving a nod to the one in charge.
“May I ask what the inspection is about?” Amalise asked. Something in her voice must have changed the guards mind slightly, because the perpetually annoyed tone dropped from his voice and he took on a more respectful tone.
“Of course, goddess. We received a report about a group causing trouble inland a ways. All they told us however was that there would be a giant dire wolf accompanying them. Yer little lap dog has been the closest thing we’ve seen.” The guard sighed. “We have to check every person anyway. I hope that is of no inconvenience to you.”
“Not at all, I am simply curious.” Amalise replied. “Did they tell you what happened?”
“Sure they did. Apparently this group killed half of a town called Bramble, and injured the lord in the process. Baron Agenhal is furious, and wants them all in chains.” Will had to struggle to keep his face calm, but his hands tightened around Koma, who whined at him softly.
“Thanks for the help, guardsman. Good luck on finding the perpetrators.” Amalise said, and they rolled through the gate and into the city. They made their way down the streets, every one of which were packed with pedestrians, slowing everything to a crawl. They did eventually make their way to the Martel Adventurers Guild Hall where they found space to stable their horses and store their cart. The Martel Guild Hall was much larger than the one in the last town. Hell, the last town had been so small Will had never learned the name of it. The guild there had to service a large number of small towns to have the population of adventurers high enough to warrant a branch there.
This place was different. The decor was far more expensive while somehow still being durable to the likes of adventurers. While the place still had the iconic front desk and common room, large sections of the building were devoted to crafts and training in various skills, as well as businesses that catered to adventurers. Will realized that the place felt halfway between the guild hall he imagined and a modern indoor mall. The group checked in with a receptionist as they had been asked to do when getting here, and sat down to order a meal. The place was big and wealthy enough that they had an actual menu, which no inn or tavern he had been to since coming here had. In those places you had what they made or went hungry. Instead of eating together however, the entire group scattered to the four corners of the common room, leaving Will alone with Koma. Of course that didn't mean he was alone for long. Koma had a whole host of admirers coming over to pet him and give him treats. Will had a conversation with a few people where he heard the latest gossip.
The gossip was about an individual of varying description who cursed a town so bad they all killed themselves. Or it was a prophet from Divinity’s Peak who showed them all their wickedness, causing them to kill themselves. Every story had that part the same. In the end, the villagers all killed themselves with the grief stricken lord only able to watch. That was the part Will clung to to prove the stories wrong. Lord Aalto was not the good guy. Will was left with Koma slurping up the last of the stew Will hadn’t been able to eat as his stomach turned sour.
The group slowly reconvened and Will was told the official story that had been handed out by Baron Agenhal. Baron Agenhal was a good friend of Lord Aalto, and when Lady Aalto came crying about the horrible thing that had happened to her husband, he trumpeted it from the rooftops. The story she told was of a cloaked figure with a dire wolf who came to town offering rewards if they bowed down to worship it. When Lord Aalto refused the cloaked figure cast a curse of insanity over the whole village. Since then Lord Aalto had been working tirelessly to try to help his people, but having been affected by the curse himself, his efforts were not enough to stop the slow attrition of people to the curse.
Will stared at Emerys and Amalise as they related the final parts of the story. He had to give it to Lady Aalto. The story was so far-fetched that the rumors had made it more reasonable in the retelling. Still, had the guards been more attentive to their duties, they likely would have been caught already.
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It was around that time they were called to a meeting room in the back of the guild hall where they found a man waiting for them.
“I am Guild Master Thorian Windrider.” The man was old and weatherbeaten, but strong, giving off the impression of an old sea dog. “And you must be the group that has been giving me so much trouble.”
“That would be us.” Will said, preempting Emerys and Amalise. “Actually, I am the one who has been giving the trouble. If there are any problems, I am the one you need to talk to.”
“Well how about that?” Master Windrider said. He turned to the rest of the group. “All of you could walk out that door without a problem. You should walk out that door. With the stink Baron Agenhal is making, you won’t be able to come back here for years, decades even. No? Very well. A man’s got to stick with his crew. They are all you have when the seas get rough.”
“Is there something we can help you with Master Windrider?” Amalise asked. “If it is all the same to you, we should arrange our ship to Brythorne soon.”
“It isn't me that needs the help girl. It's you. You see, all the ships have been ordered docked without a pass from the baron, and you don’t get one of those unless your ship has been carefully searched. The baron’s men are far more careful than the gate guard, and you won’t be able to get past them without help from some professionals.” Master Windrider pulled out a pipe and started to pack it with some herb from a belt pouch. “Lord Atherton seems to want you lot in Brythorne pretty badly, so I am calling in some real favors to make sure you get there.”
“So you are a smuggler?” Will asked.
“Not anymore boy, and watch what kind of accusations you throw around. My associates don’t care for that kind of talk.” Master Windrider held a finger in the air, and made a small flame appear on the tip. He stuck his finger into the bowl of his pipe and puffed several times before taking a long pull.
“If you will follow me, it is best if we went out the back way. The front of the guild is being watched. They will report you soon enough even if you didn’t set off any immediate alarm bells.” And with that he led them through a wall that swung away with the flip of a hidden switch. Apparently their choice of meeting place hadn’t been an accident. They were quickly brought to a room filled with various supplies. They were given more common looking clothing as well as small packs. The packs weren’t there to carry anything and were packed with loose grass rather than anything useful, except in Will’s case. The bag turned out to be a great place for Koma to hide after he shrunk just a little bit more.
A muffled commotion suddenly burst out from the direction of the guild’s entrance, and Master Windrider cursed.
“They’re movin a hell of a lot faster than I expected. Come, we need to get you to my associates as soon as possible.” Master Windrider opened another door and led them down a back hallway. They came to yet another room where a secret door was opened and they were led into a cramped tunnel. The tunnel went for about a hundred feet before coming up in the back of a carpenter's shop. A man planing a piece of wood at a woodworking bench glanced over at the group as they piled out. But when he saw Master Windrider, he simply tipped his hat and went back to work. Master Windrider led them into the back lot behind the shop. They could hear shouting coming from the direction of the guild where a line of adventurers were holding the door against members of the guard.
“Damn, this is getting out of hand.” Master Windrider said. “Go out here and take a left. Go for three blocks until you find a tavern called a Cup of Brine. Go into the alley between it and the general store next to it, and speak to the beggar you find there. His name is Tally, and he will help you out, just tell him I sent you.”
“You aren’t coming?” Will asked.
“No. If I don’t sort this out it could turn into a battle. That is the last thing the guild needs right now.” and without answering any more questions he stomped back inside the carpenters shop. Will, Emerys and Amalise all shared glances.
“Do either of you know how to sneak through a populated town?” Will asked. Emerys and Amalise shook their heads.
“We have worked in cities on a handful of occasions, but we usually stay in the more rural areas.” Emerys said. Will turned to the followers who all shook their heads in shame.
“Ok then, we will have to hope we don’t get caught.” Will said. The group moved out onto the packed street, where they immediately had to push against the throngs of passersby who were flocking to get a look at the developing fight. They pushed through insistently, lining up behind Emerys who used his bulk and prowess with dimensional locking to forge a path through the crowd. They made it a single block before a magically amplified voice rang out over the crowd.
“Over there!” A man with what looked like a megaphone was standing on the roof of a building opposite the street from the guild, and was pointing directly at them. It was only then that the crowd saw fit to shy away from them. The group took advantage of the space and made a run for it. The people screamed in fear as armored men chased after Will and his party, trampling them in the process. The armored men were relatively slow, and Will’s party easily outpaced them. They made it to the alley in record time, to find no-one there. There was a pile of trash that looked suspiciously like someone had been sitting in it, but the spot was empty now. The group stared at the spot, wasting precious moments. By the time they got their wits together they were being surrounded. They were about to fight back when several divine auras blasted over them.
The enemy soldiers had four gods of rather high level acting as support. The four were heavily armored like the rest of the men, and they came toward the group in a precise formation. The man in the lead walked straight up to them, took off his helmet, and glared at them severely.
“Which one of you is the one with the wolf?” He asked, glaring at the group. When no-one spoke, he shook his head. “You are all under arrest for attacking the town of Bramble, killing several prominent members, and assaulting Lord Aalto.”
With that, the soldiers surrounding the group moved in and affixed manacles to each of their wrists. Will wondered why they would do such a thing. Will could break iron manacles easily, and almost did when they took Koma and shoved him in a cage. He refrained however. This was not the kind of situation to lose control.
The fighting between his two mental concepts seemed worse than normal.