Wanderer (forum adventure)

Remove all ads!

"Two oars in boat - you can see," Old Scaletooth points out. He grins a toothless grin, and takes a glance at Sheth's pouch that holds a few dozens coins.

He returns into his hut, and comes back with a knapsack.Sheth opens it and wrinkles his nose at four or five dried fish, as well as a full waterskin.

"Enough?"

"Enough. Thank you."

"Leave. Now. For both our sakes."

As Sheth climbs into the boat and begins rowing toward what seems to be the mainland, he wonders what the kobold meant by both their sakes.

Equipment
-Bag holding a few dozen coins.
-Staff with strange runes on it.
-Knapsack containing fish and water.

 

Sheth puts his back into the oars, pausing occassionally to make sure he's staying on course.

 

Sheth begins rowing toward the mainland. He eyes a small beach, and a dirt road beyond that. Sheth rows his way toward there, but his arms nearly drop the oars as he hears a loud and awful scream from the beach. Sheth bites his lip as the screaming escalates and escalates.

His heart skips a beat as the screaming suddenly stops. All he can hear now are the waves and the sound of his rowing.

 

Sheth starts to row faster and faster towards the beach, desperate to aid the owner of that ear-piercing scream.

 

When Sheth reaches the shore, his arms feel as if they were numb. Putting his mind off the pain, Sheth sprints on the beach, toward the direction of the scream. He eyes a small hut in the distance. As he runs closer and closer to the hut, his eyes spot crimson-colored sand in front of the hut.

Red sand? That's odd.

That's just sand, Sheth realizes. Someone's blood - and lots of it - has spilt onto the beach.

 

Sheth pauses to look for tracks in the sand, or disruptions in the brush around the edge of the beach.

 

Sheth spends some time looking for tracks or disruptions. He finds nothing, save his own footprints in the sand.

 

But as he stares at his footprints, something seems to move amongst the sand where he had trodden, Sheth steps closer...

(EDIT: Oops, sorry Jakob, didn't realize.)

[ December 13, 2002, 18:11: Message edited by: Z-Layrex ]

 

Sheth gives the movement a good look. His eyes widen as he realizes there is movement in the sand - some of the sand is shuffling - as if someone is walking there. Sheth takes his eyes off the sand and looks up. There is no one in his sight.

(Z-Layrex: As I understand it, you've posted something that happens other than Sheth's actions. Please don't do so again; I've went along with you this time.)

[ December 12, 2002, 22:50: Message edited by: C'Jakob ]

 

Sheth shrugged and turned towards the hut. "I'm beset by one phantom already," he thought, "why seek out another?"

 

As he turns toward the hut, Sheth flinches. A horribly mutilated corpse lies before him. Claws and teeth seem to have rent this poor man. Sheth realizes it was no wild beast who did this - no part of the man has been eaten; this man had been murdered.

Three eyes. They held anguish.

Two eyes. They held fear.

Some flesh black. Some flesh torn.

Hate and panic and rage an-

Sheth shakes himself out of whatever voices were calling in his head. He bites his lip and stares at the corpse again. His eyes catch some sort of rod lying on the bloodied body - he must have been too distracted with the gore to notice this rod.

He picks it up. It is about the length of the tip of his finger to his elbow. It looks as if it were crafted out of some strange, dull-gray metal. At both ends, the rod is topped with rubies the size of a child's fist.

Inventory
-Traveler's staff
-Assortment of gold and silver coins
-Knapsack with provisions (fish and water)
-Strange rod found in the hut
-Boat with oars (on the shore, of course)

[ December 13, 2002, 23:48: Message edited by: C'Jakob ]

 

Sheth searchs the rest of the hut, in a vain attempt to find something... anything to help explain the origins of this strange metal rod.

 

Sheth searches the hut. There are several large, wicker baskets with lids on them. Off to the side, there is a mat and a cloth blanket - no doubt where the murdered man slept. Sheth also eyes a crate containing a few sundries, a few copper coins, a pair of fishing rods, and human's bare skull. Nothing, except perhaps for the skull, seems out of the ordinary. This indeed was a poor fisherman who probably would not even see such a strange artifact.

(In case you care about the appearance of the rod, let me clarify - one child's fist-sized ruby on each end. The metal is dull-gray, but is smooth and stainles - certainly not iron.)

[ December 14, 2002, 20:25: Message edited by: C'Jakob ]

 

Sheth goes basck outside and looks for a place where he could bury the body quickly

 

Sheth leaves the hut, carrying the body in his hands. He looks around; sand is everywhere - not a good choice for a burial spot. He walks away from the beach until he finds a good patch of dirt. He begins to dig - but realizes he has no shovel, and the ground is cold and hard.

He decides that he might head back to the hut to look for an implement that could be used for digging. He also considers the idea of finding something around here he is (a flat stone, a sturdy branch, etc.) to dig in the ground.

[ December 17, 2002, 03:37: Message edited by: C'Jakob ]

 

Sheth looks around to see if he can find anything useable in gravedigging

 

Sheth looks around the area. With some luck, he finds a small wooden shield, about half a meter in diameter. The shield is concave, and would serve well than anything else he could find in the area.

 

Sheth begins digging a hole to bury the slain fisherman.

 

It is hard work burying the slain man, but Sheth completes the task in a hour or so - much quicker than he had expected, especially with the cold ground and the ersatz shovel. When finishes, he has dug a grave about two feet wide, six feet long, and three feet deep. He lifts up the body and puts it in the hole.

Sheth looks at the corpse and heavs a sigh half-pity and half-relief that the task is finished. He reburies the grave, taking about half an hour. When the body is buried, Sheth looks at the ground. He knows no prayers, and doesn't know what would be appropriate to place on the grave.

He looks at his hands. They are caked with blood and dirt. Off in the distance, he can hear people talking - two men and a woman.

Inventory
-Pouch of coins
-Knapsack with fish and water
-Staff
-Ruby-capped rod
-Wooden shield
-Boat (on the shore)

 

Sheth tries to get closer to the talking men and woman to overhear their conversation without being noticed.