In which the group leaves the mighty city of Altdorf aboard the river barge Berebeli up the Weissbruck Canal after awakening in Altdorf and finding themselves wanted for murder. Click Read More to read the rest of the journal entry. RUDE AWAKENING The party awoke aboard the Berebeli, with Josef already making breakfast - toasted bread - on the built-in stove. A man ran up to Josef and whispered something, at which Josef's eyes grew wide. He quickly barked orders at the party and they began to cast off the mooring lines of the great Altdorf docks and set out for Bogenhafen via the Weissbruck Canal. It was only after paying the Lock-Keeper Toll, and entering the canal proper that Josef told them what he had heard. Two young noblemen, out carousing the night before, had been found dead, and the Watch was looking to speak with one Templar of the White Wolf, a Templar of the Order of the Firey Heart, a richly dressed man, an unsavoury looking dwarf and a Initiate of Sigmar. The descriptions of the motley crew were only too accurate. The revelation drew some consternation from the party, with some wanting to go back to Altdorf to clear their names. Josef counselled caution, for although he did not know the names of the noblemen, he knew well the system of 'justice' in Altdorf. It would be an uphill battle to clear themselves of suspicion, given that none of them were men (or dwarves) of means who could adequately employ a team of legal professors (along with the mandatory bribes) needed to prevent hanging or, at the minimum, a lengthy stay in the slave quarries. As they moved down the canal that first day, Hugo, being taught the basics of navigation and helming a riverbarge from the skipper, noticed a contingent of Roadwardens setting forth from Altdorf and heading along the road running parallel to the canal. As they approached, Josef barked at them to get below decks 'Or at least, by the nine hells, make yourself look to be boathands instead of a group of squint-eyed highwaymen!' The party complied, with Dronk, Drake and Baroon staying belowdecks while Hugo quickly dropped his wolf cloak and heavier arms. Cornelius used his disguise kit to make himself look like a real boatman. When the Roadwardens reached the Berebeli, they hailed Josef, and began inquiring on their business as they trotted alongside the barge on their horses. They questioned Josef, Hugo and Cornelius, but seemed oblivious to their nervous glances and Cornelius's mumbling. Josef's brash and boisterous nature may have helped, or it could be they were in a hurry to reach the next inn. In any event, the Roadwardens parted ways with the Berebeli following the road which veered away from the canal. IM ON A BOAT The next three days were spent in relative peace and tranquility, as the party made their way, with the light breeze requiring occasional oar-work, down the canal towards Weissbruck, where the canal would meet the mighty river Reik. On the way, they stopped at canal-side inns, where plenty of other, identical looking riverbarges could be found moored. Most boatmen refused to sleep on the water, due to old superstitions about the river. During those three days, Hugo learned how to captain a riverbarge, while the rest of the party learned basic boatman skills, tying knots, working oars (properly, mind) and all the other tasks associated with keeping a working barge afloat and pointed in the right direction. Cornelius used the downtime to study the arcane incantations previously taught to him at the Celestial College and finally mastered some of the more difficult ones. Hugo and Drake used their spare time for frequent sparring, where they found themselves closely matched, helping them to hone their skills with blade, hammer and sinew. Dronk questioned Josef about the provenance of the Bretonnian brandy he had found back at the Boatman, to which Josef was noncommittal but indicated 'I know a guy who knows a guy..' Baroon spent much of the time in deep meditation. All five were visited by strange dreams on the third night, though none of them spoke of them to the others, dark dreams of the forests of the Reik, blood and death, with twisted warriors in blackened armor hacking down soldiers of the Empire like so much firewood. WELCOME TO WEISSBRUCK On the evening of the third day, they finally reached Weissbruck, the end of the canal. Weissbruck is a bustling stopping point for cargo between the town of Bogenhafen and Altdorf. Warehouses line the canal and river banks, storing coal and iron ore from the near by mines, wool and foodstuffs from Bogenhafen and all manner of goods from Altdorf. As they were pulling up to the docks to tie down the barge, the group noticed a man they had seen before, wearing partial armor and talking to several rough-looking men next to the Happy Man, a bar right by the quayside. He seemed to watch the Berebeli as it approached, then went inside the tavern. At this point, the group split up. Cornelius, eager to sample the town's bustling taverns he had heard so much about from Josef, went into the Happy Man, while the rest of the group went looking for the Temple of Sigmar, wanting to report the murder in Altdorf and their lack of involvement in the murderous end of the two drunken princelings. NO DICE They wandered for some time before finding the Temple, securely locked. Questioning some locals, they found that that the local Priest of Sigmar, one Father Hildrich was a known drunkard who could often be found at the bottom of a wine-cask. Hearing this disquieting news, the group set out to look for him. Meanwhile, in the Happy Man, Cornelius began gambling with a group of merchants and local toffs. The bone dice spun, and despite his powers of prognostication, Cornelius found himself on the losing end of the rolls. Somewhat depressed, having lost a tidy sum of coin, he turned to drinking as the gamblers attempted to taunt him into risking more of his hard-won gold. As the group wandered the muddy streets of Weissbruck, they entered both the Smoking Leaf and the Golden Bull, searching for the elusive Father Hildrich, but they could not find him. Drake purchased a quantity of pipe-weed and the entire party also began what was, in essence, a pub crawl, while they shared the fine smoke - though most of what Drake purchased was stanky enough to turn the stomach of a goat. Eventually, the dusk having changed to the black of night, the group reached the Happy Man where they rejoined the sad-looking Cornelius. There, they continued their revelry before heading back to the Berebeli, heeding Josef's advice to sleep in the boat, given the high rates charged by the local taverns for hostelage. A guard was not set, and the group settled comfortably into their hammocks. Josef could already be heard snoring soundly in the skipper's cabin in the back of the barge, and a small fire burned in the stove, keeping the chill away.. SMOKE ON THE WATER The group was awakened hours later by the sounds of coughing and yelling from Josef; the entire hold of the Berebeli was filled with thick, acrid smoke. The party struggled to rouse themselves as they could hear men abovedecks. Josef ran to the ladder, only to be greeted by a pot of burning pitch thrown from above, striking him in the chest and setting fire to his impressive beard. Dronk grabbed his crossbow and threw his cloak over the screaming Josef in an attempt to put out the flames. Baroon quickly chanted a prayer to Sigmar and called forth a cloud of thick water vapour, which forced the smoke back, out of the immediate area the party was in, allowing them to catch their breath. Drake grabbed his greatsword, and Hugo his war-maul. Drake and Dronk headed towards the prow of the Berebeli, where two additional hatches to the deck were located, while Josef, having recovered somewhat, started trying to put out the fire belowdecks. Cornelius tried to find the source of the smoke and headed to the stove, where he found oily rags smouldering in the embers. He tried to use his quarterstaff to snuff the flames but found he only stirred them. With a flash of inspiration, he used a quick incantation to throw the smouldering rags overboard, through the small slits in the side of the hull used for oars. Cornelius, seeing Hugo leaping onto the ladder closest to the cabin under which flames burned, saw a vision, with Hugo falling into the flames and catching fire. His eyes rolled back into his head as he altered the flow of consequence as taught in the academy, and to his amazement, it worked - Hugo, the ponderous wall of sinew and steel, lept onto the ladder as though he were a cat, and began scambling up the ladder. Dronk and Drake had reached the far ladders, and while Dronk readied his crossbow pointing at the hatch, Drake unlocked it and pushed it open with his greatsword. A laughing man was waiting for them, and as the hatch opened a pot of flaming oil was thrown down, directly at Dronk's head - but the man died with the laughter still in his throat as Dronk's crossbow bolt caught him directly in the eye. He tumbled to the side like a pile of rocks. Hugo reached the top of the ladder, where a brutish man still clutching a pot of burning oil stood next to the hatch. He managed to lightly bruise Hugo with his club - while Hugo's counterstrike with the war-maul collapsed his opponent's ribcage and sent him tumbling over the side in a spray of blood. Drake then rushed up the ladder, where, free of the smoke he could see two men remaining - another thug, waiting over the third hatch, and an armored man with a heavvy crossbow he recognized - the man from outside the Happy Man, who they had first seen in Altdorf! A metal bucket had been placed overtop of the chimney for the stove; probably before putting in there, their attackers had dropped the oily rags down the chimney Cornelius had found earlier. Without skipping a beat, Drake nearly severed the man's entire torso with a strike from his greatsword, causing blood and entrails to spill onto the deck as he died, screaming. The remaining man fired a crossbow bolt at Hugo but missed, then drew a curved sword and a strange, three bladed dagger of a design Hugo was unfamiliar with. Hugo dealt the man a mighty blow with his warmaul, causing blood to pour from his nose. BLOOD AND DEATH Baroon emerged from belowdecks and used the power of Sigmar to compel the man to surrender. Slowly, relucantly he dropped to one knee. Drake came up from behind and placed his blade against the man's neck, while Hugo stood threateningly and Dronk checked to ensure no more attackers were around. Cornelius pulled the pistol he had taken from Descartes back in the Coach and Horses Inn and pointed it directly at thier attacker. The man narrowed his eyes on seeing Cornelius and said 'You, I will take you to hell if it means I will join you!" and, despite the overwhelming force arrayed against him, he sprung to his feet as Baroon's enchantment faded. The blade held by Drake caused a terrible wound across his neck as he lunged for Cornelius, but not enough to stop him... There was a crack and a puff of smoke as the pistol rang out, and the man collapsed with a hole in his chest, a look of surprise and hatred on his face. Then all was silent, but for Josef's cursing downstairs and the soft crackle of the remaining flames.. Searching the dead man, they found a letter in the pocket of his cloak.
2 Comments
Morbid
5/22/2016 08:08:11 pm
I love that you do these!! So detailed!
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David
5/23/2016 08:23:55 am
Those scoundrels set fire to the barge. They were justly executed on the spot.
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The WizardIn time, you will come to know the tragic extent of my failings... Past Journals
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