• Graded • [Hopetoun] An-ot'er Dread Otter Thread

[Darius Baer]

Arc 721, 22nd of Zi'da

The overnight Zi'da snow had barely had time to settle when they arrived. In time, the cold white powder would begin to melt on the warm Faldrass soil, but there were already footprints leading up to the settlement gate before that could happen.

Darius had been called to the palisade by the gate guards, and there he stood in his thick, fur-lined coat, looking down at the group. Five pairs of eyes looked back up at him. Their cowls and capes, all in muted colours, flitted about in the icy wind, Each individual carried a stiff bow case in one hand, and a capped quiver over one shoulder.

One of the group stepped forward, creating another pair of footprints in the snow.

"We have come from the main island to join your service, my lord," the woman called out in a bold voice as the wind caught her long, brunette curls. "We want to help with the ship."

'The ship' was a pirate vessel called the Dread Otter. Its crew had been causing trouble for Faldrassians in some of the coastal villages. A few of them had been marooned on the volcanic island, where they had made the fatal mistake of ambushing Darius and two others.

It did not end well for the pirates.

But the rest of the crew continued to cause problems, at one point threatening Hopetoun's fishing boats. Darius had then taken it upon himself to intercept, and the Dread Otter and the Libertalia had ended up in something of a stalemate.

But the Hopetounians had succeeded in protecting their vessels, and the pirates hadn't been seen for quite some time...

...until recently.

Missives had been received from nearby coastal villages, requesting help. And just as Darius had been wondering how to respond, the visitors had arrived.

"From the main island?" Darius called back, not bothering to hide his surprise.

"Your name is more widely known than you might realise, my lord," the woman replied with a chuckle, though she followed it with a deferential nod.

Darius paused briefly as he looked over the group. He had been unable to combat the pirates because his crew were sailors, rather than fighters. Having a group of willing archers could swing the balance in Hopetoun's favour.

With that brief realisation, his decision was made, and he turned to the guards and instructed them to open the gates.

[Darius Baer]

The group sat around a table in the Hopeful Rest Inn. Darius had ordered a Baron's Brew for each of them, the heat of the beverage helping to warm bellies and hands alike. And then he listened to what the visitors had to say.

They had come from different parts of Scalvoris. One was from Almund, another from Egilrun, and yet another came from Darbyton. The other two, like Darius, were originally from Scalvoris Town.

They had varied backgrounds, too. Three, including the curly-haired woman who had called out at the gate, were former Elements. One was a mercenary who had fought at Storm's Edge, and the other was an experienced hunter. All had been trained in archery, and had eventually crossed paths with one another. And now they were all at Darius' table, eager to have their skills be put to good use.

"We heard about the boat when we were on the main island," one of them said.

"And about how you fended them off without weapons," another offered.

"And we figured weapons was one of the things we could bring to the table," added the first.

Darius nodded. In truth, they hadn't seen the Dread Otter since its encounter with the Libertalia, but they had heard that it might be nearby.

"Sailing in Zi'da can be treacherous, because of the cold weather," Darius told the group. "Most sailors prefer to avoid the harsh temperatures. But because of Faldrass' warmth, the coastal waters stay comparatively warm, even during such a cold season. I'm not surprised to hear that they have not disappeared over the horizon. But we need to locate them. Perhaps an opportunity will present itself."

[Darius Baer]

The group had continued their conversation for another break or so, before Darius became convinced of their intentions and they came to terms. As dawn arrived the next trial, he and the archers set out to locate the Dread Otter. They went in pairs, with Lars joining one and Kirt joining another. Darius partnered himself with the fifth archer, a redheaded man with a beard who was one of the less talkative of the group. That didn't bother the settlement leader in the slightest. As long as one of the pairs located the pirate ship, there would be plenty to talk about later.

The three pairs went in slightly different directions, with all of them headed to different parts of the coast. The western edge of Faldrass was lined with a mountain range that offered several potential hiding places for a smaller ship; coves and bays with steep headlands that could keep a sloop hidden until someone was almost right upon it. To aid them, Darius sent Katara up and into the sky, though the Diri was not made visible, lest she herself was spotted by their intended quarry.

Lars' group went to the north while Darius headed south. Kirt, being the least gifted with navigation of the three Hopetounians, went directly west to the coast, so that he was close to the dock and his group would be unlikely to lose their way.



Darius and his stoic companion had spent three breaks trekking through the melting snow and chilly winds, and had visited half a dozen bays when Katara let out a shrill cry. Only Darius heard it, but it was enough to make him stop and look up into the sky. The hawk Diri was circling overhead, tendrils of smoke trailing her wings.

Darius had assumed she had seen something in the next bay; that she had sighted the mast of a ship up ahead. But it was not what was up ahead that had caused Katara to cry out. It was what was behind.

Darius turned and looked back at the trail of footprints in the snow that betrayed the path he and his companion had taken. Until the snow melted, it would be easy for the Hopetoun hunters to become the hunted. He turned to the redheaded archer with a grim expression.

"I think we're being followed."

[Darius Baer]

Darius held his breath as he and his companion hid in a small copse of trees near the top of a small hill. They were halfway up the headland that led to the next bay, and had had few options for hiding places, but they had spent a couple of panicked bits scuffing their feet in the snow in an attempt to make a mess of their tracks and hopefully confuse - or, at least, delay - any potential pursuers. For several moments, Darius could only hear his thumping heartbeat.

But then he heard something else: footsteps. They were hurried as they crunched through the thinning snow, but there didn't seem to be a lot of them. In fact, Darius estimated that they belonged to a single traveller.

All the same, he was hesitant. If it was one of the pirate crew, they might signal to the Dread Otter that they had located the leader of the settlement that had thwarted them earlier. Or if they were killed, the rest of the crew might come looking for them.

Darius was leaning against the rock, trying to catch a glimpse of the rushing individual, whose breaths were now audible along with their footsteps. Beside him, the redheaded man had strung his longbow and was quietly drawing an arrow from his quiver. It was just as the archer nocked the missile and pulled the drawstring that their pursuer became visible.

The figure reached the part of the tracks where the the snow had been kicked about, and they stopped. Confusion etched its way across their face, but as they turned, Darius recognised the individual.

"Kirt!" he called out, signalling to the archer to not fire his arrow.

Darius stepped out from the copse and watched the confusion on the farmer's face turn to relief. The archer joined him as the Hopetounian explained what he was doing their.

"Lars has found the Dread Otter," the farmer said, "and he sent me to find you. He figured I wouldn't get lost if I followed your tracks in the snow."

Darius nodded, sensing a curious lack of urgency. As if reading his mind, Kirt was quick to address that very aspect of the situation.

"Lars said there shouldn't be any rush because they're careening."

"Aye," Darius nodded again, and immediately began to form a plan. "Let's head back. We'll hunt them down on the morrow."

[Doran]

Darius:

Knowledge:
Field Craft: The tracks you leave can enable others to find you.
Investigation: Trying to track down a familiar foe.
Leadership: When you're a strong leader, people will want to be led by you.
Leadership: Trusted deputies can prove to be extremely useful.
Navigation: Knowing potential hiding places can help you to find what you're looking for.
Tactics: Splitting up your manpower can help you to cover more ground.

Loot: Five new NPC followers.
Lost: -
Wealth: -
Injuries: -
Renown: 5, for acquiring new followers.
Magic XP: -
Skill Review: Appropriate to level.
Points: 10

- - -

Comments: I really like the titles of the threads in this series. They are creative in my opinion!

This was a great way to acquire those new followers. I really liked the opening scene where Darius stood at the palisade in the Zi’da cold and watched the newcomers arrive.

Some of the pictures you “painted” were great.

After the last thread, I hoped that the pirates wouldn’t return anytime soon, but that would have been too good to be true. At least the people of Faldrass had a season of peace!

I like that you gave Darius’ new followers a bit of background. It sounds as if they have interesting stories to tell. I can’t help but wonder how exactly they crossed paths with one another.

The last post provided a bit of excitement. At first, I was worried that Darius and his companion were being followed by one of the pirates and that there might be a fight; I was relieved to find out that it was just Kirt who informed Darius that Lars had found the Dread Otter.

With that being said, I wish Darius and his people good luck with the hunt!

Enjoy your rewards!