IC III

[shaidar]

Newton

"Food it is then" placing days rations with the others.

[Atlictoatl]

Whifflespice Tangleblossom

Tangleblossom gifts a day of his own rations, though they will certainly lack the allure of mortal victuals.

[The_Wanderer]

Feargus

"With that done and the storm mostly passed, I'd prefer to be away. If this fey prefers to stay away from us, I see no need to force myself upon it."

[VonAlric]

Gardo

Gardo and his retainers also leave some rations before returning to the trek to the north.

[thirdkingdom]

Sixthmonth, Twentysecondday?
Second Day in Faery
Late afternoon

The adventurers take their leave from their mysterious benefactor, most of them leaving gifts of food behind. They travel for another hour before weariness overtakes them, even though the sun is still relatively high in the heavens.

Once again, the mortal adventurers experience the curious passing of a brief night-time in the middle of their rest. Some of them may have heard tales of explorers who have traveled to the extreme north -- days further north than even the elders of Notai's herd ever traveled -- to a land of brief summers where the sun hardly leaves the sky at all.

: 1d6 2
: 1d4 3

It is during the third watch* that those still awake hear the strangest sound; an off-tune whistling, accompanied by the occasional *clatter-bang*, as if a toddler had just discovered all the pots and lids in their parents' kitchen and decided to make music. It seems to be coming from the north, from the direction the adventurers are heading and grows louder by the minute.

*I realized I never asked for a new watch order based on the current party composition. Let me know who you would like to be on watch for this encounter, and we can hash out the exact composition in the meanwhile.

[thirdkingdom]

Sixthmonth, Twentythirdday?
Third (barely) Day in Faery
Early morning

Svenn and Wulfka are on watch duty when the strange noise arises; within the span of five minutes the source of the noise is identified. A humanoid creature -- appearing as a man, but with the lower legs and feet of a goat -- appears around a bend in the road, half walking, half-skipping. With each skip he jumps into the air a little and clicks his hoof-like feet together, causing the enormous pack he is carrying on his back to clatter like an alarm bell. The pack is easily as tall as he is, towering above his head, and festooned with all manner of pots, pans, shovels, tongs, and pretty much any other metal instrument or tool one could imagine. He seems not to notice the adventurers camped on the side of the road, absorbed as he is in the tune he is whistling.

[Rex]

Shmara

Sleeping.

[kalstone]

Svenn

Svenn turns to Wulfka and says quietly so as not to be heard over the clanging, "Tell me you're seeing this too."

Unless Wulfka objects, he will allow the creature to pass by without disturbing it.

[VonAlric]

Wulfka

She nods her head at Svenn's inquiry. She keeps an eye about as the noisy creature passes by, making sure nothing can approach unnoticed.

[thirdkingdom]

Unfortunately, their desire to be passed unseen does not prevent the creature from seeing them. He gives an exagerated jump of surprise, setting off another round of clamor, and blinks his large, doe-like eyes. "Pon my word!" he exclaims, looking the party over, "mortals! Imagine that, little old me, just minding my business, and I stumble onto a group of mortals just camped by the side of the road!" He speaks Common with a thick accent, made all the more difficult to understand due to an ineffible, goat-y bark. "Pardon my rudeness!" he exclaims, bowing low, causing even more noise. By now the other adventurers are no doubt starting to wake. "My name is Finreal, and I am a purveyor of the wonderous, the magical, the esoteric, and the excellent! Tell me what your heart desires and there is every likelihood I have it here, within my pack!" If Fineal's speech was to be transcribed somehow into written form it occurs to Svenn and Wulfka that each sentence would end in an exclamation.

[kalstone]

Svenn

Svenn is glad to see a fellow trader. "Well, hello Finreal. I am Svenn, and these are my colleagues." He introduces everyone in turn. "I am somewhat of a purveyor of goods myself, and I would be interested in seeing your wares."

[thirdkingdom]

Svenn swears he does not do so much as blink, and in the span of that time Finreal has spread out a blanket on the ground and arrayed a variety of goods out for display. They are . . . somewhat less magical than he had been led to believe: several copper saucepans, dented (likely from being banged around on the outside of Finreal's pack), an assortement of small gardening tools, a hammer and a dozen iron spikes, pieces of armor, scraps of metal, bent forks and spoons. All of the items are metal, with the exception of one: a tatty, leather scabbard, such that one might sheath a short sword in.

[kalstone]

Svenn

Svenn tries to use his knowledge of magical items to see if anything stands out amidst the junk.

I'm not sure if I should be rolling for Magical Engineering or if you roll it. Hopefully, you want to roll it yourself because I got

1d20+1: 4 [1d20=3]
https://orokos.com/roll/909493#

[thirdkingdom]

Svenn

Svenn tries to use his knowledge of magical items to see if anything stands out amidst the junk.

I'm not sure if I should be rolling for Magical Engineering or if you roll it. Hopefully, you want to roll it yourself because I got

1d20+1: 4 [1d20=3]
https://orokos.com/roll/909493#

Honestly, it all kinda looks like junk to Svenn. Junk that the little goat-man seems inordinately proud of, but junk nonetheless. That scabbard does stand out, though. It's the only non-metal object on the blanket. The leather looks almost like tanned snake-skin.

[kalstone]

Svenn

"Tell me about that scabbard there, Finreal. What wonderous and amazing things does it do?"

[Rex]

Shmara

Shmara wakes up to the strange sight. "What do we have here?" Looking everything over to see what he has. "Looks like a lot of junk, whats your best item?"

[thirdkingdom]

Svenn

"Tell me about that scabbard there, Finreal. What wonderous and amazing things does it do?"

Finreal

The faun waves his hand dismissively in the direction of the scabbard. "Oh, that old thing? I don't know, actually. Won it in a game of cards a few days back." His eyes narrow. "Why, are you interested in it?"

[thirdkingdom]

Shmara

Shmara wakes up to the strange sight. "What do we have here?" Looking everything over to see what he has. "Looks like a lot of junk, whats your best item?"

Finreal

The faun whistles. "Everything you see before you is of the highest quality mortal-made! I'm especially fond of this," he says, pointing to a flat bottom, rust-streaked, cast-iron dutch oven with a cracked lid. "They say it once belonged to the famed King of Kings, the Emperor of all Mankind. Anything you bake in it -- cobblers, pies, stew, perhaps -- is guaranteed to be fit for royalty." He licks his lips. "I do enjoy a good cobbler."

[kalstone]

Finreal

The faun waves his hand dismissively in the direction of the scabbard. "Oh, that old thing? I don't know, actually. Won it in a game of cards a few days back." His eyes narrow. "Why, are you interested in it?"

Svenn

"Oh, it just reminds me of one I had when I was a child. What would you want in exchange for it?"

[Atlictoatl]

Whifflespice Tangleblossom

Whifflespice arises, and watches the interaction with some interest.

<<Well met and pleasant crossings, baryga,>> he says in Faery. <<What news of the road to Mereldan, and the Verdant Field itself?>>