An overheard Debrief, Forge Town Options

[Will]

The group of mercenaries wearily entered the Cart & Hammer, battled and bloodied it seemed but in relatively good spirits. A strange collection of people to be sure, but when are mercenaries ever not?

They sat late into the night drinking and eating their fill without ever seemingly buying anything. As the night wore on more and more snippets were overheard by the locals, regulars and even irregulars that came into Forge Town’s premier Tavern for business, company or just to stay out of the city on what used to be quite a fatal night. It might have been less deadly in recent years but fear still sat heavy in the hearts and minds of many of the citizens.

Come the morning when the mercenaries roused themselves and were shown into the private room of the Tavern the locals were busy relating the story they had pieced together.

The Barony of Silverthorn was the talk, apparently a descendant of the late Baron had come to the fore, with papers issued by one the Grand Mennihaft’s no less so the claim must be truer than a Flashblade’s disappearing promissory note. The would be Baron was intent on reclaiming the land and making it safe for people to dwell upon once more.

Gossip said they had retrieved unimaginable wealth in the form of cast silver ingots from the Barony’s old mine although talk mentioned a faction called The Wild Dawn seeking to cast it away from Primus it sounded not completely resolved and there was some tale or prophecy of a Mist Serpent that might eat the world.

Beyond the mine it sounded like two tribes got their heads smashed in a smaller group of Hobgoblins of the Crackling Maw and some flame obsessed Orcs known as the Raze Boar, the latter being put to the sword both by the mercenary group and the would be Baron and his men combining to catch them from two sides at once.

The locals where happy to hear stories of Orc smashing, time and time again as many remembered when you could always find a little work scalping or de-earing a few Orcs for a few centuries from the City’s coffers.

Indeed one of the locals said to be among those mercenaries the smith Emrie of Soot & Steel was seen polishing a rather wicked looking Axe said to be named Cinder Reaver claimed from the dead chieftains hands no less and being offered for sale to anyone calling at her forge.

It seemed the old keep, ruins though it was, was back in the hands of the Baron to be, the hamlet on the opposite bank of the Gremlin also free of Tribal invaders.

On top of that apparently the old town of Silverthorn itself had become home to a colony of Ratfolk, although the mercenaries hadn’t seen it themselves but hope was they could be convinced to become Parvus to the future Baron and enjoy the protection of the Great Freedom.

Later that day word was out that there was silver to be earned for able bodied men and women willing to haul and work stone, cut, shape and craft wood and that orders were being placed with smith’s for nails, hinges and bolts by the bundle to be delivered into the wilds.

Elsewhere a veteran mine sire with a gleam in his eye was seen talking and buying drinks for those willing to listen to his offer of work.

What also became clear is the mostly unifying force that tied the disparate band together was the Order of Mercenaries, although the golden armoured figure from Amlas was plain to make it clear he was a member of the Clan Pamama, he did keep asking questions about a hat that was similar to his own and asking for rice wine, again and again and again. By the end of the evening he was staggering like he was on the rolling deck of a ship in a storm, but that was probably the drink or did they all walk that way?

The biggest surprise was that Zardos, THE ZARDOS, former high priest of the Dark Deliverers not only was present but seemed to have gained a potentially unwanted spiritual henchman, a thin, narrow faced fellow with a fine coat who followed him around offering him numerous chances to visit the fair city of Gothiel, to help him turn away from the Dominion spirits he clung too, to be bathed in the beauty of his Lady and undoubtedly meet some of the faithful who would be overjoyed to meet such a famous necromancer.

Chatter was flowing freely through the streets of Forge Town and what everyone was agreed upon was something was beginning, old tally sticks were consulted and traders began to speculate on the chances of the old copper route re-opening and looking hopefully at the silver that could soon be flowing along the Gremlin to Deci through the hands of various workers and traders.