CH. 1: Haven and Hell

[mgbevan]

"Pleasure to meet you all" Gregeddin says as he sets of to follow Kendra.
"I'm Gregeddin, you might have to show me a few tricks of yours Haahqae"

[HorizonsDream]

Kendra wasn't all that sure she was pleased to meet any of these people. She wasn't expecting a small crowd to follow her back to headquarters. Of course, all these people weren't following her because of the so called prophet. One or two of them could be following her because of him, but she assumed the rest were following her because of the iron mine that was mentioned.

"This iron mine you mentioned," Kendra said over her shoulder to Haahqae as she walked. "I'm really not sure the captain is going to care too much about the situation unless you can prove it will better the city somehow. Otherwise, it is doubtful I'm going to be able to help much unless I just quit all together. Believe me when I say that is a very entertaining idea, but it isn't something I can do right now."

[NoTrammeling]

Coroccoco shakes her head at the gnome's antics, regaining her somber countenance and recalling to mind the true importance of her position. The hobgoblin priestess lengthens her strides so that she comes abreast of Kendra and within reasonable talking distance of the supposed prophet, if the cold mud of the street hinders or bothers her she does not show it in the slightest.

"Prophet," she near-growls, breath fogging in the cool air, "What miracles are these you supposedly perform, and by what power? There are whisperers in the dark these days, could it be these that you hear? And yet healing is not a vile art..."

It is clear that something about the man's self-assured belief in his own powers is agitating her by the heated tone of her voice. "I follow the true God Weerschaal, have heard her teach me the Way and seen her with my own eyes. Yet no miracles am I granted. Are you not a charlatan like all the others?"

[Just_Ice]

The would-be knight's eyebrow raised. Demons? I've heard that term thrown around a lot, but...

His jaw dropped at another realization. 'Guess I shouldn't complain'? I don't know much about economics but if Haven has to import iron along with these immigrants, it's not going to survive even a decade. No iron means no tools. No iron means useless weapons for the guard. No iron means no steel, and as my father said, 'Whenever steel is spilled, blood soon follows'.

Looking seriously into the smith's eyes, he announced, "That's the first I've heard of this. There's no way those Seekers, those useless lumps, are gonna fix that anytime soon! I'm going to the bar to rally a possé, I ain't gonna tolerate demons anywhere near my hometown."

With that, he left the shop, fired up with the heat of the forge. Once he was interested, there wasn't much stopping Kynaston.

[Haahque]

Hustling along to keep up with all the big folk, Haahqae replies "In all honesty I don't have a plan for convincing your boss to let you help us. I just hope that he feels sending 1 person on a mission and having random other people help out and see that it gets done, as a small price to pay for restoring a local iron mine to operation during wartime."

[JadedDM]

The blacksmith barely has time to spit out a reply, he's so surprised by Kynaston's passionate response, and simply watches blankly as the young man storms back out into the rain.

Kynaston marches up the street, turns west, and enters the marketsquare just in time to see a member of the Holy Guard lead off a man, surrounded by an odd menagerie of people including a hobgoblin and...some kind of dwarf, maybe? He only catches the tail end of what one of them is saying as they head south, toward the Holy Guard headquarters, "...price to pay for restoring a local iron mine to operation during wartime."

Meanwhile, as the group heads south, Kelryn looks over at Coroccoco with an expression of grim seriousness. "My power is real and comes from a superior being," he says. "The power to heal, the power of immortality. If your deity grants you no power, then I would question her, if I were you. Either she does not exist, or does not care enough to interfere in the mortal world."

[HorizonsDream]

"Honestly, he might not risk sending me to help," Kendra explained. "The Holy Guard are spread really thin right now. More often than not, he has us working even on our days off because there are just too few of us, but if you can be convince to wait until tomorrow, then I could go." After all, she had the day off. She was going to take the day off, as she honestly needed it.

She glances over her shoulder to the hobgoblin with a frown. "Another person that follows yet a different God?" she asks. "How many Gods are going to pop up out of nowhere?"

[Just_Ice]

Kyne rushes back out into the muck, eager to get started. As he moves through the center of the town, he spots a rather diverse group- and hears an interesting tidbit as he passes by them. At first he's not sure what he's heard, but when he pieces it together again, he realizes it can be nothing else. He whirls around.

"Hold, you lot," he calls, pointing a sizable finger at the tiny juggler, "What did you just say?"

[Haahque]

Haahqae jumps a third of his height in the air, clearly not expecting the big man who seemed to be rushing past minding his own business suddenly yells out at him. It doesn't take Haahqae long to put together who this man was talking to, given the direction and pointedness of his index finger.

"I um, I was... I was just saying how we had to go to the seekers before the blacksmith's to find heroes willing to help a mine owner clear demons out of his mine. Yes yes, that is exactly what I just said, in as many words, and please stop pointing your finger at me, mister giant battleaxe."

[NoTrammeling]

Coroccoco halts abruptly as the man finishes speaking, and Kendra's comments fall on deaf ears. Her hands raise, arms trembling, clawed fingers flexing toward the miracle worker's throat. Her lower jaw juts forward in a rictus snarl, eyes red with rage.

With great effort she lets out her breath and takes another one, mastering herself part by part. Her arms lower, her face smooths over, and her eyes close. Still, it is a moment before she picks up her pace again to keep up with the party. She stares death at the man choking out a few words, "Immortality? It is unnatural. You are no true priest."

[Just_Ice]

Shocked that his outburst has triggered such a startled reaction, Kynaston flinches a bit himself. On closer inspection, the one he's pointing at seems too shrill to be a dwarf, and too nervous to be a kender. His pointing finger moves instead to his chin, which it strokes.

So, they're gonna see if the guard cares a whit. Doesn't seem likely. Still, to have such luck in finding them...

"What a coincidence," he remarks, not bothering to avoid clichés as he bites his lip in anticipation, "As I have just met with the town smith, and learned of the mine from him. I'll follow ya to the guard, bu-"

Noticing the lady guard at the front of the pack, he reconsiders what is about to escape his mouth.

"Anyways, there's no time to lose. Lead on, miss," he finishes.

[JadedDM]

Kelryn merely smiles at Coroccoco's response, then looks to Kendra. "Will you be arresting her, as well, I wonder?" he asks, referring to Coroccoco's open statement, right in front of a Holy Guard, that she worships a non-Seeker goddess.

[mgbevan]

"Excuse my pedantry, however last I recalled, you were here of your own agreement. Or is there some fact or knowledge I have missed?"

[HorizonsDream]

Kendra was dumbfound as she watched, yet another person, join her little entourage to the headquarters of the Holy Guard. "No, please, finish what you were going to say, sir," Kendra said to the newcomer. "Because I'm sure it is not any different than what I have been saying to this group now." She has an honest doubt that the Holy Guard would agree to help this one man with his mine.

Though, she turns her attention back to Kelryn. "I'm not arresting you for worshiping another God," she explains gently. "I'm arresting you for what you were doing in the square. You know that things are bad in Haven, so is it really the best idea to turn the people against the very people TRYING to protect them and keep them safe?" she asks curiously. "You could have easily started a riot, and the Holy Guard would be forced to use the very little people we have to try and contain it," she explains with a sigh. "So, no, I'm not arresting her. She isn't preaching in the middle of a square trying to turn an all ready hateful crowd against the Seekers, at least not that I have seen so far."

[NoTrammeling]

Coroccoco wisely keeps her mouth shut on the subject of preaching, falling back from her antagonist and his Guard to join the group discussing iron. "You were not spinning tales, little one?" She states, trying to keep the edge of her still-bubbling anger from her voice.The hobgoblin agitatedly shakes rain-water from the sleeves of her robes. "And what reward is on offer for the vanquishing of demons?"

Reaching back to her braid, Coco gives it a firm tug to assure it's sound before coiling it under her hat with short, vicious, little flicks of her wrist. The smell of wet hobgoblin is beginning to come off of her, something close to a dog having rolled in a stagnant pond. "And I do not know your strengths, but I have no holy sword with which to smite hellspawn."