Subj : Re: Peace] Move 7b
To   : All
From : mbottorff@sprintmail.com
Date : Sat May 05 2001 05:20 am

From: mbottorff@sprintmail.com (Michelle & Boyd Bottorff)
Subject: Re: Peace] Move 7b
Organization: =?ISO-8859-1?Q?=CF?=



> Subject: Peace] Move 7
> 
> 
> > The remaining four of you (Edgar; John; Ger; and Jeffy, Earl of
> > Sniegrass) continue on to the west.  You make a hurried stop at the inn
> > Lyfun mentioned to you, getting food for a couple days, then continue
> > on.
> 
> Brother John is rather suprised to discover that he's very glad Earl of
> Sniegrass is still with the group.  He'd expected him to go off with
> Colonel Mik, and would have missed the lad's company.
> 
> OOC:  Did we reclaim the trumpet for Jeffy?  BJ would be a little sad if
> we lost that back at Liance's camp.

No, it was lost.  Your ears welcome the relief, though Jeffy does
grumble a bit more now, and is making grandiose plans to get another
trumpet as soon as possible.

> > And Edgar thinks he knows this place.  If he's not mistaken, it's leads
> > to the estate of Yeats "Bearclaw" Asher, Duke of Fennlinn.  He's a
> > retired general in the army, had been an advisor for the last king, and
> > is generally not the type of person Edgar could picture stealing the
> > Sword of the kingdom.
> 
> (snip)
> 
> > Slipping up to the front gatehouse, you can see that it looks a bit more
> > heavily guarded than would be normally expected.  Usually, there's a
> > couple guards by the gates, which are left open; right now there are
> > four guards you can see, and the gates are shut.  There is deep forest
> > all around on both sides of the gate.
> 
> BIC:  Brother John respectfully listens to Edgar describe the Duke of
> Fennlin and his estates.  After waiting for any suggestions from Edgar and
> Ger, Brother John makes bold to speak.
> 
> "If your lordships don't mind, I'd like to go back into the woods a bit
> and get down off this horse.  I'm not really accustomed to all this
> riding.  And perhaps the Earl would like to have a some bread and cheese
> before we go any further?"

"I WANNA COME WITH YOU!"  As the group turns in surprise to the Earl of
Sniegrass, he says in a more moderate tone, "Well, it's getting so
b-o-o-o-o-r-i-n-g riding through the woods.  We're finally doing
something!

"Well?  Why do you think I came with you?  Living at home is so boring.
Everywhere you go there are nurses and maids and valets and you can't
even dress yourself.  I needed to get out of there, do something for
myself!"

He looks fairly determined to travel with you.

> If the group agrees to this plan, Brother John will continue with his
> opinions for further action.
> 
> Speaking between bites of bread and cheese.
> 
> "The tracking rod led us to this estate.  But who's to say the trail
> doesn't continue on the other side?  It's true the Duke does appear to be
> ready for trouble, but mayhap his real concern is that Liance's brigands
> might show up."
> 
> After a pause to see how that line of reasoning goes down with the others.
> 
> "Forgive me for being so bold, but I must say that I'm much faster and
> quieter going through a forest on foot than any of you is on horseback.
> Why not let me take the rod and my staff and I'll just go around the
> entire estate to see if the trail comes out or stays within the Duke's
> estates.  If the trail comes out, we might be able to approach the Duke
> for supplies.  If the trail doesn't come out, then we'll know the Duke
> isn't to be trusted and we can make plans to enter unnoticed.  I'll also
> be scouting for an easier way to get into the estate without using one of
> these guarded gates.  While I'm gone you can stay here and refresh
> yourselves.  How does that sound?"
> 
> Brother John awaits their response, with a bit of a plea for acceptance on
> his face.  He never was one to play games of intrigue.  He's a simple man;
> what you see is what you get.

Edgar and Mik move off the road a ways, tether their horses in the
woods, and move back where they can watch the road to the estate.

Brother John heads off around the estate with the Earl.  As Edgar
indicated, the wall went around the estate.  The wall maintains an eight
to ten foot height all around.  Climbing a tree, the Earl of Sniegrass
notices that the tops have short spikes of various types (metal in a few
spots, wood or stone in others) along some stretches, but not all of the
wall.  Most of the spikes do not look new, and there are some stretches
without any.

From the sounds of it, there are a few work crews near the wall.  You
might be able to get a better look if you climb a tree, but you won't be
able to tell what they're doing from this side of the wall.

About 1/3 of the way around in a counter-clockwise fashion, there is a
small trail heading out through a gatehouse.  The trail is not new, and
is reasonably-well-kept-up, though not to the "fanatical cleaning"
state.  There are at least two guards at the gatehouse, alert. 

Continuing around, you come to and skirt a workgroup that is busy
clearing trees from about 15 feet around the wall.  This work continues
around the wall to a back gatehouse (again, with at least one guard in
it, and an aparently little-used trail), and around the back way for a
short distance.  After that, the forest goes up to the wall again.

Doing the back stretch of the wall,  you come to another patch where the
forest has been cleared away from the wall, and you hear a workgroup on
the other side at that point, and at two other points down this side.

At no point is there any indication that the sword left the compound.


Edgar and Mik greet you as you return.  After you tell what you've
found, Mik says "While you were out, there was a small group of horsemen
passing this way.  I think it was the Duke of Hurthon."

Edgar says "The duke's a flibbergibbit.  He's smart enough, but he just
doesn't think things through.  And he controls the lands just east of
here... a lot of lands.  He's probably the most powerful lord in these
areas."
   

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