Maplebrook’s Population: 998
Town Defenses: Makeshift Palisades, Wooden Stake Perimeter, Archer Perch, Barricade, Wheelbarrows Filled With Pine Tar
===
Ronald patrolled Maplebrook’s defenses. Palisades of scrap wood erected to block off all but the main road to the West and East, sharpened stakes spread around the main road’s mouth, a mobile wall of wheelbarrows covered in pine tar waiting behind the spikes, and an archer perch built in the town hall’s bell tower. In as little as two days, the town had banded together in greater force than he could have hoped. After years of trying to get the people of Maplebrook to actually care about protecting themselves, the wake up call had come in the form of their dead mayor and a couple slain paladins, er, one dead paladin. Hmm. . . Whether or not Atan was truly himself remained to be seen, doubtful even. Either way, when the wizard finally returned, the town would be ready to defend itself.
The town hall’s bell clattered.
Ronald looked up, breath stopped in his chest—had the villain already returned?
“Riders from the West!” a lookout shouted. “Paladins from Knightshelm!”
Thank Zyon, Ronald thought. The necromancer stands little chance now.
***
===
Jevrick’s Main Quest: Become Mayor of Maplebrook
Side Quest:
- Deal with the Greenfolk and kobolds.
- Find and kill Green Thumb.
- Discover the secret of the mysterious green blood-powder.
- Replenish spell components.
Undead Servants: 0
===
Inventory:
- Gold: 0
- Items: Robe, Flint and Tinder, Vials, Glass Mirror, Sack of Diamond Fragments.
- Magic Items: Soul Gem, Protection Charm, Spellbook, Gold Triangle Binding Cap
- Base materials: Vials of Blood, Pouches of Bonemeal, *Various Aether-Infused Plants, Sack of Soil.
- Special Items: Vial of green dust and blood
- Main Components:
- Assorted Kobold Components
- Cat Eyes
- Flattened Tin Top
- Jar of Fireflies
- Miscellaneous Faces
- Miscellaneous Hearts
- Moonlit Chains
- Obsidian Glass
- Polished Iron Ingot
- Spider Silk
- Sprite Dust
- *King’s Blood
- *Toadstool
- *Morning Glories
===
Spells:
Cantrips:
- True Sight (Blood + Arcane)
- Create Fire (Arcane)
- Siphon Soul (Blood)
- Spectral Hand (Blood+Arcane)
- Decaying Tendrils (Blood)
Prepared:
- Animate Object (Arcane)
- Chains of Erabos (Arcane and Blood)
- Visage (Blood)
- Force Darts (Arcane)
- Levitate Object (Arcane)
- Portal (Arcane)
- Aether Harvest (Arcane)
- Raise Thrall (Blood)
- Sense Mind (Arcane)
- Sleep (Blood)
===
The dirt crunched beneath my shoes, and a pebble found its way in and lodged itself between a gap in my big toe joint, seizing up the flexibility I had. “One moment.” I sat on a mid-sized rock and popped off my shoe. An old masterful wizard, who’s conquered the base nature of mortality, brought down by a little grey spec of earth.
“What’s going on?” Atan asked.
“It’s nothing, just a nuisance.” I plucked the grain out and flexed the ivory bones of my foot. “Done!” I grimaced at a large hole in the bottom of my shoe. In fact, sitting there I realized there were holes in the chest of my coat as well. Last night’s excitement had taken its toll. I’d need to seek a tailor as soon as I was able.
Kipsic hopped up and down and pointed ahead of us. “Wagon! Horse!”
I looked down that way, and sure enough, a horse drawn wagon was making its way toward us. Fortunately I was already wearing my visage.
Atan dropped his adventuring bag and took his hammer in both hands, while Kipsic squatted in the brush and camouflaged out of sight.
So skittish my party was! I stood up and brushed the dust from my clothes and popped my tophat back on.
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The wagon was rather large, with a big rounded top. A rotund man in a fine coat, and tophat of his own, drove it. He waved—though I still wasn’t able to make out his features in order for my True Sight to take effect.
Atan whispered, “some bandits use wagons as a lure for unsuspecting travelers.”
“Paranoid one, aren’t we?”
The knight grunted.
“Salutations!” I sang, waving back with my flesh disguised palm.
The driver shouted back in a somewhat theatrical voice, “Ah-hah! Good morn!” His wagon was now close enough that I could see who he was. He had a wide nose, and a mustache that curled around his cheeks.
===
Name: Marvin Mullsburry
Anima Level: 3
Age: 41
Lineage: Human
Class: Travelling Merchant (Wit)
Status: Healthy
Conditions: None
Stats:
Might: 10
Agility: 10
Intellect: 14
Wit: 16
===
I smiled. “He’s a mere merchant,” I told Atan.
“Hmph.”
We awaited as the wagon pulled to a stop in front of us.
It was a grand thing, with flourishes carved in its edges, blue and red paint streaking across its wooden frame. Big, bold, curling letters that said, "Marvin, the Magnificent Merchant,” were painted on the side. Its big round wheels halted in the dirt, and Marvin hopped down from his perch.
“Well met, friends, how do you do?” The merchant stretched a hand out to me, which I shook, and so did Atan with a little stubborn timing. “Ah, I can see you two are seasoned adventurers on your way home to Maplebrook after a daring escape, no doubt!” He was quite charming, with his bombastic expression and waving of arms.
“We certainly are,” I agreed.
His eyes brightened. “Splendid! Well, you’re in luck that I was just passing through from Stone Summit on my way to New Aplista. Fully stocked up with rarities and exotic goods beyond your comprehension!” He rounded to the back of his wagon and entered it.
I looked to Atan for his reaction, which had settled into impatience. “No longer skeptical?”
“I know this man. . . He passes through Maplebrook often. He’s overpriced.”
A section of the Wagon wall dropped open with chains holding it out like a table. The wagon itself was filled with shelves and racks of bottles of liquid, weapons, furs, books, scrolls, and much, much more.
Marvin popped up. “What can I get for your daring heroes?”
“I never said we were interested,” I mused.
He feigned being wounded. “Ah! But I’ve already gone through the trouble of setting up for you. Please, it won’t take you long—scan what I have, perhaps there’s something you didn’ t know you couldn’t live without.”
Atan muttered, “If I didn't know about it, then I was probably doing fine living without it.”
I stepped forward and looked at what the merchant had. Many objects appeared magical—staves with glowing bulbs, and the scaled armor glittered. The bottles of liquid shimmered with genuine gleam. Even the books and scrolls were bound in silk twine or looked substantially worn. Had I perhaps run into a genuine salesman?
“You strike me as a mage of some sort,” Marvin said.
Intriguing. “How can you tell? I’m not wearing my robes.”
“Your eyes guide you to staves, potions, and my bookshelves first—clearly a man of intellect and class,” he said.
I grinned. An observational fellow. Well, there was little time to waste, and we’d wasted the lot. I also remember that we had no gold.
“Being that you are a mage,” Martin pressed, “you would be remiss to pass up a chance at this.” The merchant pulled out a tome and a scroll.
The leather tome was coarse, and clasped by gold. The scroll bore a wax star seal.
“Thank you, unfortunately, I have no—”
“Oh, allow me.” Martin popped open the tome. The pages had a collection of diagrams and text, which clearly referred to spells. Upon further inspection, it seemed to be a sort of encyclopedia of sorts that defined spells, their components, effects, and other details about how to utilize them.
“This is fascinating,” I said, “but I—”
“Right,” Martin interrupted again, and took the scroll and set it upon some empty pages at the back of the tome.
Now I was getting impatient. “That is fine, but we must continue, you see.”
He held out a finger.
The insult! I had two minds to incinerate him right there, when the scroll glowed and dissolved into the book. The empty pages filled with script of a spell titled, Lesser Plant Growth. The tome appeared to be a spellbook.
Marvin flared his hands out like he’d performed a great trick.
I nodded approvingly. I had to appreciate the man’s tenacity. “A very fine spellbook. Unfortunately, not only do I already possess such an item, good sir, but I have no coin to spend.”
The salesman frowned. “I see. Well, I accept trades!”
Atan slammed the butt of his hammer into the dirt.
Marvin gulped. “Pleasure meeting you!” He closed up his wagon. “If you ever are in need of my services, be sure to look out for me the first week of the month. Safe travels!”
I waved him off as he clambered back into his perch and strolled forward. I turned to continue on our journey, when I saw a floating farming implement—a scythe.
“Kipsic?” I asked.
The little kobold broke from his stealth. The scythe was a good four sizes taller than him. “For you!” He said, nearly skewering me with the thing as he tried to hand it to me.
“Oh.” I grabbed the wooden shaft. It was warm in my grasp. I furled my brow. This was indeed not a normal farming tool. There was a vibration of sorts coming off of it, bleeding from the tempered blade. It was aether infused, and therefore magical. Its properties however, I could not deduce.
I shook my head and looked back down the road, but the wagon was quite far from us now. I turned to Kipsic. “You shouldn’t have stolen this. He’ll think us common thieves.”
Atan grunted. “It’s in their nature.”
Kipsic wrung his hands. “Do you not like it?”
I sighed. I really did, it was quite fine, and I was curious about what factors it might possess. Don’t think that the implication of a scythe being wielded by a skeletal man was lost on me, it did fit. Still, a mayor did not go around shoplifting a hard working mortal’s belongings. “This will need to be returned when Marvin passes through next month. Let us keep our sticky hands to ourselves in the future, shall we?”
Kipsic nodded.
I slid the scythe into my sack, head first, the extension charm pushed to its limit as the butt of the item stuck a few inches up. Easy for grabbing, I supposed.
“As an aside,” I said, “how is it that the scythe was not camouflaged, but your belt was?”
“Kobolds shed-shed,” Kipsic answered, “belt and pouches made of old skin. Can still hide-hide if on me.”
“A mighty curious fact.” After that, we continued forth.
It took us little time until we saw Maplebrook at the far side of the road.
A bell clanged in the air.
Atan furled his brow. “The town hall. Something is wrong.”
I squinted. Something did in fact seem off about the town. It was far more spikey that I had left it, and there was a glint of metal out front. . . five knights. Infernos. More cursed paladins.
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