The Caravan

We started off at dawn, the caravan moving through the narrow alley lanes of Dijkstra. Ankie joined us, he had brought his pet wolf along and said that Miku was sick and hence had retired back to Aaron. We had to wait for half an hour for one of the traders to join us. We needed the traders and merchants to journey with us since they could help us with the financing. As soon as we left the walls of the village there were farms on all sides, cattle herders carrying their folk on the pastures, hens being chased around by dogs.

After a five hours of journey we got some rest near the ruins of an old castle. This was the last place with mud roads, after this we had to climb a mountain through the greens layer with stones on the way. We met a magic elf near the pool where we drank. For the people in the party it was amusement.

Two other people had joined us, they were bandits who left the gang for changing their lives. I could see many of the people in household dresses, only few had proper uniforms. Danny had the best armor from what I could see. The merchants had exquisite dresses and swords with them, Ankie had light armor and with plenty of swords and weapons. I myself was wearing a armor made from the scales of a giant armadillo. The two people, Josjep von Aketach and Dschej Schyik, whom I had brought to look after my belongings were neighborhood boys who were working in the Fechriwick Medicine college as fern herbalists. For them it was a chance to learn the rare plants in the valley. The two mercenaries that had come all the way from Malden were friends and former dragoons. They had long hats with plumes, tight clothes and cavalry chest armor. The rest four in the party were freeloaders, hired by along the way by the traders, they looked like thieves and robbers in rags carrying blunt daggers with them. Chagatai pointed out to me that we should not let the merchants go out of hand.  

Seven hour journey through the journey after the stop and treading on the moist grass tracks, we reached the small village of Lockview, which was in dept of the traders. It was a very small village with some twenty to twentyfive people. The traders asked few people around, apparently they had  they hardy seen travelling parties such big as ours, they were a little scared. Mothers escorted their children away from us and into their houses.

We went straight to the inn and caught the defaulter by his collar, the defaulter happened to be the mayor’s brother. The traders thrashed afraid him and he looked afraid. I thought it was the right time to intervene. Me, Josep and Anky went and asked what the matter was. The merchants explained that the guy had taken 20 thousand gold coins from them but still not returned them. The guy interrupted and pleaded that the money was to be sent to his cousin in the town of Marion Fort to rent a building for him, however, he exclaimed that the money was stolen on the way. The merchant said, it was a whole chest of coined how could someone steal it. The poor guy said, they were attacked by bandits along the way. His wife was killed and his only daughter taken.

The merchants said, it was rubbish and called on their henchmen to set fire on whole of the village. But we stopped them again to told all of them to negotiate. I said I myself would seize all the assets of the man if he were wrong. The guy then thanked me and invited everyone to his house. It was a modest home, the roof was of thatched hay and the walls of brick with white plaster. He invited us to the study room where he was reading a religious book under the light of candles.

He said his name was Shylock Morrowind and told us to sit down. There were the three of us and the two merchants sitting next to his table. A girl came in with water and food for us, she addressed Shylock as father. Immediate one of the merchants screamed “Look she called him, father, you lied!” Shylock said politely “She is my brother’s daughter and I have raised her as my own, she has lost both of her parents.” The merchants were unimpressed, the stood up and left the room. We too thought it would be best to leave. So, we bade Shylock farewell and thanked him for his kind hospitality.