Trouble Comes to Koln

The Blue Nixie quietly docked at the small town of Koln shortly after nightfall. Her captain, a stout looking gnome with obvious dwarven features, secured the moorings and cautiously turned his attention towards his passenger. The massive orc leapt from the flat-bottomed skiff, landing firmly on the dock. It gave Fenster a glance that he optimistically took at gratitude, yet could have just as easily been a warning. With that, the orc vanished into the fog of the night. After double-checking that the tarp was secure, Fenster and his deckhand headed into town for a meal and some much needed rest.

From a safe vantage point, Aldwyn surveyed the town of Koln. He had recently tracked the orcs that were responsible for the death of his elven mentor to this settlement. It was destiny that brought him here. The orcs rendezvoused outside Koln three days ago, joining up with their legate master. Whatever their business here was, Aldwyn was confident it would be their last. Secreting away his weapons, he pulled up the hood of his cloak and slipped into town.

Rorimac Tosscobble was doing his best to blend in with the inhabitants of Koln. Having recently lost all semblance of normalcy to the cruelties of the Shadow, Rori not only looked like a lost child…he was one. The arrival of a legate and an orc patrol in Koln stoked Rori’s greatest fears, yet it also ignited a strength deep within. Working his way to the docks, Rori found a small boat covered by a tarp. He slipped inside and was soon fast asleep.

“Oi! You there! What are you doing sleepin’ in my Nixie!” shouted Fenster. Rori, who had found peaceful dreams in the gentle lapping waters of the Eren River, jumped quickly to his feet and scrambled his way up onto the dock. Fenster, brandishing a length of rope, was every bit as furious as he was shocked to find a halfling taking up residence in his skiff. Before Fenster could utter a word, Rori had vanished into the night.

The following morning, the entire town was awoken by the resounding call of an orcish battle-horn. Two orcs had been found slain on the outskirts of town shortly after dawn, and the legate was calling the townsfolk to the square to answer for this crime. The legate had already rounded up over twenty men that he suspected of collaborating with the resistance and was questioning the accused in-between making proclamations of the Shadow’s ultimate authority over the town.

The townsfolk looked on in terror as the legate was struck mid-sentence in the shoulder with what appeared to be a clump of cow manure. A gasp of shock arose from the crowd. The legate contorted his face in an expression of pure hatred as he attempted to brush off the mess. After taking what appeared to be a moment of quiet reflection, the legate gave his orcs a sign, and within seconds, ten of the men lay dead on the ground. Fearful of the retaliation to come, the crowd quickly began dispersing from the town square.

A diminutive child quietly slipped back into the crowd, but not before Aldwyn had spotted the perpetrator of this deed. Keeping an eye on the child, Aldwyn followed him as he quickly fled the scene, yet eventually lost him amongst the unfamiliar streets of Koln. With the streets about to become an incredibly dangerous place to be, Aldwyn decided to visit an acquaintance of his old mentor, the town tanner.

The morning air was chill and a light drizzle had started to fall by the time Aldwyn reached his destination. Attempting to take shelter under the building’s overhang, he knocked firmly on the door. It was answered by an elderly man with long gray hair. Behind him stood Fenster. Aldwyn quickly announced himself invoking the name of his former mentor, which brought a quick smile to the tanner’s face. The tanner introduced himself as Hurley and invited the wildlander in.

Fenster had arrived a mere moment earlier and had just begun discussing the transportation of supplies back to Swift Water aboard the Blue Nixie. Both Hurley and Fenster agreed that it was simply too dangerous to move the supplies at this point with the orc presence on alert. To make matters worse, Fenster’s skiff was prohibited from leaving Koln at this time, so even if they could get the supplies onboard, they would simply have to wait…

After giving Aldwyn the slip, Rori doubled back in hopes of finding out why this human had taken such an interest in him. He trailed Aldwyn to the tanner and watched him enter. Ever curious, Rori surveyed the building, found the root cellar doors open and slipped inside.

It was pitch black in the cellar and Rori’s eyes took a moment to adjust. He began quietly working his away across the room towards the stairs, when he suddenly caught the glimpse of someone or something in the far corner. A large orc hastily rose to his feet and began moving towards Rori. Rori quickly turned tail and attempted to exit the way he entered. Just as he pushed open the doors, the orc managed to grab his ankle and pull him back inside.

Hurley had just finished making introductions when the commotion in the root cellar caught his attention. Hurley, Aldwyn and Fenster all hurried to the cellar door and rushed downstairs. The orc, barely able to stand upright, was holding the halfling at arm’s length. Rori had produced a blade from a hidden drop sheath and attempted to cut the orc in vain.

Aldwyn, letting his hatred of orcs get the better of him, drew his blade and started to charge. Hurley quickly put himself in-between the Erenlander and the orc. Over the next several minutes, Hurley did his best to broker and uneasy truce between all the parties. Eventually, the halfling was released and Aldwyn’s cedeku was lowered. With a hint of uncertainty in his voice, Hurley vouched for the orc.

A frantic knocking was suddenly heard above. Hurley scrambled up the stairs to answer the door and found a rather distraught looking Morwyn Landring standing on the other side. Morwyn was the wife of Loren Landring, the town’s wainwright. Loren was one of the men rounded up that morning by the legate’s orcs and had recently been led out of town. Her eyes welled up as she pleaded with Hurley to help her husband. Hurley assured her he would do all he can, and Morwyn was on her way.

More soon…

Characters Present

Rorimac Tosscobble, Lorgun Nine Fingers, Fenster Filchus and Aldwyn Rolffson

Items/Objects of Interest

• Masterwork Short Sword (Rori Shadowfoot)
  A finely-crafted, short sword once belonging to Loren Landring. Given to the group by his wife Morwyn.

Experience Awards

• Dispatching of the human corpses in town before they could turn: 300 XP
• Defeating Ungral Fell on road north of Koln: 600 XP
• Major Combat Achievements vs. Ungral Fell: Rori Shadowfoot (+1 Hero Point)

Experience Earned (per character): 225 XP