|
Post by Brandwyn on Mar 18, 2012 19:24:34 GMT -5
Brockton Foorde was a fairly good-sized village sprawled on the banks of a small river. It had no walls or gates and no centralized merchant square. The houses were interspersed with shops and ale houses. There were many taverns and Inns and as far as Heather could tell there didn’t even seem to be a ‘good’ side or a ‘sleazy’ side of town. The whole village looked rather rough and unkempt. The docks were spread out and along both sides of the shallow, slow moving river and there were many smaller boats, barges and rafts moored along side them. The buildings also were on both sides of the river and there was a floating ford at the south end of the town and a fairly high arched bridge crossing the river at the north end of town. There were even some canals that had been dug and filled with water that stuck out perpendicular to the river creating water ‘roads’ so that people could access their homes by boat on one side and carriage on the other side.
It was just an hour before dawn when Enya and Heather arrived at the town and things were probably as quiet as they ever were in Brockton Foorde, which is to say there were still people awake and carrying on in the taverns and down by the docks. Some farmers from outlying areas were already bringing their wagons laden with vegetables and other goods for sale into the town.
Heather stopped before they got to the town and concealed her, Enya and the two horses in a copse of trees and studied the place before proceeding. After a few minutes she noticed one particular drunk that seemed to be very interested in those entering the town and he didn’t appear to be quite as drunk as he wanted people to believe. She scanned farther up river and could make out another man lounging at the top of the bridge, fishing gear in hand. She watched him for several minutes and he didn’t cast his line into the water and reel it in. Instead he was watching those few people going across the bridge with a bored look on his face.
Heather then studied the Inns she could make out from their vantage point and picked out one that looked to be slightly better maintained on the outside, hoping that reflected the conditions inside as well. It was about halfway up the river on the outskirts of town and she saw one of the farmers pull a wagon containing a freshly butchered pig, several geese and a basketful of cabbages up behind the inn and start to unload it. From where she was she couldn’t make out the name of the Inn but it looked like there might be a gryphon or a large bird painted on the sign out front.
“Enya, see that Inn there where the farmer is unloading his vegetables and stuff? We are going to make for that Inn, but we aren’t going in together.” She dismounted and pulled out a silk blouse from her saddlebags. “Take off your ranger cloak and put this shirt on over yours, then put this cloak on.” The cloak was made of a very dark blue wool. It was heavy and very warm. Probably a bit too much for this weather, but it was of high quality and the dye job was superb. Heather figured Enya would look like a fairly wealthy merchant or minor noble lady. “But before you do, brush out Stormy and get him looking as nice as you can.”
Meanwhile she examined Shasta and decided she didn’t need to do anything to her. Shasta already looked the part with her belly and legs splattered with mud and twigs in her main and tail from their trek through the woods. She pulled out her brown riding tunic and mantled hood and rolled her ranger cloak up and stuffed it in her bags.
“Okay, you go down there first. Act snooty, you know, like a spoiled rich lady and make your way to that Inn.” Heather instructed. “I will be watching you from here and then will come on down in a little while after I make sure you get there ok. Don’t tell them you are a ranger’s apprentice. Here is a silver piece. That should get you a room with two beds. Ask for one on the second floor and in the interior with no windows.”
Heather figured they should not go in together or dressed as rangers and she wanted to see if the watcher below would follow Enya. The man didn’t look familiar and it was possible he had nothing to do with the men hunting her, but somehow she didn’t think that was the case. She would lay money they were on the lookout for a female ranger and her apprentice.
|
|
Enya
Apprentice Scribe
Posts: 109
|
Post by Enya on Mar 19, 2012 19:58:25 GMT -5
Enya jumped down off stormy ans pulled off her ranger cloak, Rolling it up she out it away. The pulled the shirt and the blue cloak on. After than the young girl ran her fingers threw her long black hair and smoothed it . Once that was done she finished with that she turn to stormy and brushed him down. Once done Enya climbed back on her horse, making shore she did not sit on the blue cloak.
She then makes her way to the town, her head held up slightly with no emotion on her face. The young girl made her way into the town, the guy looked at her for a moment. long enough for Enya to give him a look saying, mess with me and you will wake up in the river. She then Continued on her way, making it to the Inn. Leaving stormy outside for a moment she walked inside. " Hello, I need a room for the night. with two beds. And defiantly on the second floor i hate being on the ground. And please! I don't want any windows. I do not want the sun to wake me in the morning" She said in a very snotty tone of voice.
Once she payed for the room she was told she could house her horse in the barn behind the inn, Once she got Stormy settled Enya walked back inside the inn.
|
|
|
Post by Brandwyn on Apr 16, 2012 22:53:37 GMT -5
Heather watched Enya's progress past the man. He watched her for several minutes and then turned his attention back to the road, scanning the trees. Heather resisted the urge to move. If she held still it was highly unlikely she could be spotted, even though she no longer wore her ranger cloak.
After several minutes, during which Enya must have gotten a room for she put Stormy up in the barn, the man seemed to grow bored and his attnetion wandered.
Heather had been waiting for that. She rubbed some dirt on her face, making it appear as if she had been on the road for hours and approached the town at a gallop.
She kept her eyes on the road in front of her, as if intent on delivering a message or something. The supposed drunk lurched to his feet, as if to stagger into her path and she waved him off, "Git outta tha way! Yer gonna git runned over!" She yelled at him as she cantered on past.
"Hey! Slow down!" Heather heard someone shout, but she ignored it and kept going. After she turned the corner, she slowed to a trot as she got into thicker traffic of the newly awakened town folk. She rode up to the Inn, noting the name of the "Drunken Gryphon Tavern and Rooms " elegantly painted on the sign swinging above the street in front of the well-kept building.
Inside the tavern, she approached the bar and said, "I have a message for a young noble girl that should have just come in and rented a room. It is imperative that I give her this mssage."
The barkeep looked Heather up and down dubiously. "We don't share our guests room numbers, but if you leave the envelope, I will make sure she gets it."
Heather shook her head. "Nope. I got orders to give it to her directly and no one else. Perhaps you could go fetch her?"
The barkeep studied her for a moment and then motioned to one of the girls. "Go get that lady that just rented room 15." the girl nodded and then ran off. "Can I get something to wet your whistle while you wait?"
Heather nodded, "I could use a plate of food- roasted pork would be nice- and a large mug of warmed butter ale" She looked around the room and saw an unoccupied table near the base of the stairs. "I'll take it over there and you better make it two plates if the Lady has not eaten yet. "She motioned to the table. "And I mean two clean plates," she gave the barkeep a warning look and with a superior, no-nonsense attitude she went and sat down, adjusting her strung bow so she could draw it in a moment's notice. She waited for Enya to appear with the barmaid and studied the other inhabitants of the tavern. None of them seemed the least bit interested in her, however.
|
|
Enya
Apprentice Scribe
Posts: 109
|
Post by Enya on Apr 17, 2012 16:17:00 GMT -5
there was a knock on the door, and Enya looked up.. getting up from the chair she walked over. Opening the door " What? " She asked seeing the girl outside the door. " There's someone in the lobby who needs to speak with you." the girl said. " Thanks " Enya replyed then steped back in and grabbed the room key
She came down the stares a few moment later.. And seeing Heather, Enya walked over and sat down with her. " the rooms nice, its small but it works." She said in a low tone of voice.
|
|
|
Post by Brandwyn on Apr 18, 2012 21:50:00 GMT -5
Heather nodded a greeting, standing up as Enya approached the table and gave her a slight bow as a peasant would to a nobleman. “Greetings, My Lady. Have you eaten yet? I took the liberty of ordering some roasted pork for you.” She held out a chair and helped Enya sit.
"The room’s nice, it’s small but it works." Enya said softly and Heather nodded, "good." Heather took a small roll of parchment from her belt pouch and handed it to Enya.
“Pretend that is a message I am delivering to you.” She said softly. “After we eat I am going to slip out and see if I can find out anything about those men tracking us. You can stay in the room or stay down here and listen in on a few conversations. It is early, but there will likely be a breakfast crowd coming in soon. You might learn more here doing that than I will. I will meet you back in your room in an hour.”
Their conversation was interrupted by the arrival of a barmaid with two plates of food and mugs of warmed butter ale. Heather laid out a few copper coins on the table and then took a long swig of the ale. “Bring another,” she said abruptly to the barmaid who curtseyed and scurried back to the kitchen. Then Heather started shoveling in food like she hadn’t eaten in a couple of days. As she ate she scanned the few inhabitants of the tavern. There was a pile of clothes in the corner emitting snoring noises and Heather wondered if the person was really out from a heavy night of drinking or if they were faking it. The snoring sounded real enough.
The door across the room swung open letting in the early morning sunlight and three burly men. Heather continued to shovel food into her mouth and quaffed down the second mug of ale, appearing to give them nothing more than a cursory glance. They stood for a moment and then moved toward a table near the snoring pile of rags. The two farmers at that table got up, paid the bartender and then hurriedly left as the burly men took over their seats. Eying Enya and Heather curiously, they ordered coffee and breakfast and began to mutter softly among themselves.
Finishing her food, Heather said softly, “play along.” She stood up and wiped her mouth on the back of her gloved hand and then bowed to Enya. “I shall go fetch your husband, My Lady. I am sure you will want him here when the King’s men arrive, won’t you?”
|
|
Enya
Apprentice Scribe
Posts: 109
|
Post by Enya on Apr 21, 2012 23:03:18 GMT -5
Enya blinked smiling then nodded " Of course i would like that." She said with a smile. Picking up her drink Enya drank some and then sat the cup down before looking around the room. trying to keep her ears open to the difrant conversations that where going on around the room
|
|
|
Post by Brandwyn on Apr 24, 2012 14:55:27 GMT -5
Heather nodded to Enya and then strode back out the front door. She went around to the stable to check on the horses and seeing they were fine, and leaving their stalls unlatched so they could get out if she or Enya called for them, she strode off down the side alley between the tavern and the back side of some merchant buildings.
Eventually she came to the river and stood leaning on the corner of a delapitated building to check out the river boats in port. There were only three. One was a gambling paddle boat that regularly travelled up and down the river and the other two were really not much more than barges loaded down with cargo. They appeared to be leaving soon by the activity she saw around them. There was no sign of the pirate ship she had seen in Heatherwood Downs, but then she really didn't expect it to be this far inland. She doubted its draft was shallow enough to negotiate the river.
She turned around and made her way back to the merchant quarter of the town and noticed she was being watched. At first she wasn't alarmed and made note of the man casually following her as she peeked in shop windows and stopped to examine merchandice she wasn't the least bit interested in. She did stop at the fletcher's stall and purchased a dozen arrows of mediocre quality and 24 steel arrow points so she could make some more arrows later.
When she left that shop, she noticed there were now two men keeping tabs on her and she grew a bit more nervous. She decided it was time to return to the Inn and collect Enya. It looked like they were not safe at Brockton Foorde any more than they were at the little village they had taken flight from.
Cautiously she made her way up the street and around the corner of a fancy 2-story business building, looking behind her at the two men trailing her, one on one side of the street and one on the other.
She turned back to look down the street at the Inn and saw a fist right in front of her nose. There was a sharp pain in her forehead and then everything went black.
...
|
|
|
Post by Brandwyn on May 5, 2012 7:13:36 GMT -5
Three men dressed in woodsmen clothing and carrying bows with axes strapped to their belts sauntered into the Inn and stood for a moment looking at the rather sparse occupants of the common room.
One of the men went to the bar and ordered a wineskin and paid for it while the other two casually moved among the tables, clearly examining each patron. Two farmers looked at them nervously and as soon as the woodsmen passed them, they got up and left out the front door, leaving some money on the table for their breakfast. The wiry, shorter woodsman eyed the copper coins and then scooped them up.
The innkeeper saw it and opened his mouth to protest, but then shut it again and continued wiping off the mug with a bar towel, watching the men nervously. He appeared to know who they were and it also appeared as if he were afraid of them.
They stopped at the table Enya was stationed at, one on each side of her chair. “This has got to be the one.” The wiry fellow said to the big burley one that was in charge. The first one with the wineskin moved back toward the front door.
“I believe you are right, My Friend,” The burley man agreed. “Well, Little Miss, you can come with us quietly, or we can carry you out of here, but either way you are leaving with us. The Boss has been looking for you and your Ranger Girlfriend for a while now. Ya gave him quite a merry chase and we all enjoyed it immensely.” He didn’t wait for an answer before reaching out his very large hand to grip Enya’s shoulder.
|
|
Enya
Apprentice Scribe
Posts: 109
|
Post by Enya on May 7, 2012 11:46:17 GMT -5
Enya's hand shot up and grabbed his hand in a death grip " Touch me and i swear you will end up threw that window" She hissed.. looking at him with pearching Sapphire eyes.. She quickly shot up out of her chair kicking it back out of the way and clutched her other fist " now eater you tell me where my friend is or i swear by my own fists you wont leave this place unscathed"
|
|
|
Post by Brandwyn on May 11, 2012 17:22:58 GMT -5
The burley man laughed in her face, “Look here boys, we got a little scrapper here.” Without answering her question or backing off, he twisted his hand into her grip forcing her to let go or break her thumb. At the same time he swung a sucker punch into her stomach with his other hand, attempting to knock the wind out of her.
The guy who was now blocking the front door hooted like a screech owl, “Looks like this ‘un is going ta be a lot o’fun!” He had a big grin on his face and he was fingering a long, wicked looking knife in his hands.
The other guy stepped back just a bit, getting ready to catch Enya if she tried to make a run for it, particularly up the stairs. He wasn’t grinning, however, he was watching Enya intently, marking every move, trying to anticipate what she would try next.
______
Heather’s head felt like it had exploded and she couldn’t remember what had happened when she first regained consciousness. She felt a rocking sensation under her, but knew she was lying on a wooden floor. The air smelled of dead fish and mud. She waited before opening her eyes, feigning unconsciousness until she could remember what happened. There was some sixth sense telling her to remain still.
“Jee whiz, Bart, did ya have to hit her so hard? She’s already got a shiner marring that pretty face and I think ya broke her nose.”
“Awww, her nose ain’t broke, see? I just dislocated it. Watch.”
Heather felt someone grip her nose and give a yank. Pain lanced up into her forehead and she shrieked and tried to writhe away from him. Her hands were tied behind her back and the shriek came out as nothing more than a muffled, garbled squeak due to the dirty rag stuffed into her mouth. Blood began flowing out of her nose and she tried to open her eyes to see her tormenters, remembering now that she had been slugged square in the nose as she was heading back to the Inn.
One eye wouldn’t open and everything was bleary from the tears in the other eye, but she recognized one of the two men that had been following her. Another standing next to her was one she had encountered back in the woods, at least she thought so. It had been difficult to make out facial features in the dim campfire light that night.
“See, told ya she was waking up.” Bart said, grinning at her. The other man reached down with another dirty rag and held it on Heather’s nose, squeezing so hard that she nearly passed out again.
“Now why’d ya do that? Ya started it bleeding again and now we are gonna have to re-mop the deck!” He said crossly to Bart. Bart shrugged as if he didn’t care. “It had to be done. Couldn’t let it heal back up all sitting crooked ya know. Besides, that’s yer job to mop the deck, not mine.” He laughed and folded his arms on his chest. “How much ya think the Big Boss is gonna give us for catching her finally?”
The other guy grinned, “I heard tell it was 5 silvers to each directly involved in her capture. Man, what I could do with five silvers!”
Heather glared at the two of them and tested her bonds. If she could only get her hands free, she’d teach these two a lesson about messing with a ranger. That was when she realized that all of her weapons were on a pile about 15 feet away and that she was on the deck of a barge or ship or something. Her head and nose was killing her and her hands were tied to her feet. The gag in her mouth was tied in with a rope that went around the back of her head and then down to her hands, forcing her head back. She was lying on her side next to a folded fishnet, thus explaining the smell of dead fish. Upon further inspection, she realized the ship was still moored at the pier of what she assumed was Brockton Foorde. There was no sign of Enya and no sign of her horse either. She struggled to get untied and looked for something to use to cut her ropes.
“Stop squirming, Girlie!” Bart kicked her lightly in the small of her back and Heather yelped in pain. She redoubled her efforts and he kicked her hard then in the stomach, having moved around to get a better look at her. The wind gushed out of her lungs and it was several seconds before Heather could breathe again. She moaned and closed her eyes, going limp. Maybe it would be better to appear defeated for now, wait until they let their guard down.
She pretended to go to sleep, thinking about Ben and wondered if she was ever going to see him again.
|
|
Enya
Apprentice Scribe
Posts: 109
|
Post by Enya on May 14, 2012 19:59:38 GMT -5
Enya let out a slight yelp ad let him go.. But she was still caught her inn the stomach by his fist knocked the air knocked from her, Enya dropped to her knees trying to regain her breath. " you think.... i little punch will.... " She coughed " stop me.... from defending myself" She said struggling, to try and get back to her feet.
|
|
|
Post by Brandwyn on May 14, 2012 23:00:09 GMT -5
"No, Little Ranger Girl, I am hoping it won't." The big man leered at her. "am having too much fun with you so come along now and fight back." He grinned and made a lunge for her.
As he did so, he leaned very far forward and stretched out his arms leaving his sides exposed to attack, had there been anyone else around to defend Enya. He seemed confident that he could handle her and wavied the other two off when they started to approach.
|
|
Enya
Apprentice Scribe
Posts: 109
|
Post by Enya on May 15, 2012 9:53:36 GMT -5
Alrady she had gained her breath, when he came at her Enya moved forward and quickly rolled between his legs then rolling over she sent a kick to the guys but, hoping to knock him over. Spinning slightly on her hands Enya was soon on her feet.
|
|
|
Post by Brandwyn on May 15, 2012 18:39:32 GMT -5
The man toppled head first into the other bandit who was blocking the stairs and they both went sprawling leaving the way clear to the back door of the inn and the stable beyond where the two ranger horses were snoozing in their stalls having eaten a hearty meal of grain, gotten a good rub-down by the stablehand and were hoping for a long day’s rest in the snug little stable.
The pirate guarding the front door brandished his knife at the girl, but was laughing so hard that his companion had gotten booted in the bum by a girl, that he appeared to be very little threat.
The Inn keeper caught Enya’s eye and tossed her a white sack that was full of food and discretely pointed to the back door as he mopped his sweating forehead with his sleeve.
|
|
Enya
Apprentice Scribe
Posts: 109
|
Post by Enya on May 18, 2012 23:28:50 GMT -5
Enya cought the bag an nodded slightly before she darted out the back door, and out to the stables. ~ now what do i do? wheres Heather?~ Enya thought sighing going to where Stormy was. Enya was unsure what to do now, though she knew she needed to get somewhere safe first.
______
Corrected by Moderator: {Enya caught the bag and nodded slightly before she darted out the back door and out to the stables. ‘Now what do I do? Where’s Heather?’ Enya thought. She went to Stormy’s stall. Enya was unsure what to do now, though she did know the first thing she should do is to get somewhere safe.}
|
|