May 4^th dawns clear and warm, with no sign of the rain or overcast that has plagued the area for the past few days. At the ambush site, Kinnaka is pleased. Good weather will make things slightly easier. He’s not really expecting to see the silver transfer until 8 or 9 bells at the earliest, but he does want to have time to go over the plan again and be sure everyone is in position in plenty of time. He is pleasantly surprised to see Tenner and Lymon approach shortly after 6 bells, and Kentaro just half an hour or so later.

When Kinnaka is satisfied that he has covered everything, he calls a break, and the four do their best to relax, though in actual fact, nobody is relaxed. Finally, at between 9 and 10 bells, they hear the distant sound of hoof beats approaching from town, and scramble into position, crouching quietly in the bushes. Kentaro and Lymon are positioned to on one side of the path, Kinnaka and Tenner on the other. This early in the season, there are enough new shoots on the branches to provide cover, especially if you happen to have an elf helping to make sure you stay out of sight. Kinnaka has done his job well, and as he and his team lie quietly observing, they see the two Patrolmen ride slowly past, side by side.

From their hidden positions they can hear the two chatting as they ride. They seem to be discussing the finer points of a woman they met at some point in their travels. While interesting, there is nothing of real value in their conversation, so it doesn’t bear repeating here.

Shortly thereafter, they disappear around the corner, and a minute or so later, their voices also fade, along with the sound of their horses’ hoof beats. Once again, the ambush team is left with the sound of birds and the wind as their sole distraction.

It isn’t until about a minute later that Kentaro states the obvious – neither man had a chest on the back of his horse.

An hour later, the ambushers are once again in position, this time with their hearts working double time with the imminence of the attack. Even though this is supposed to be a bloodless event, there is a certain level of uncertainly about how the victims will react. The next few minutes will be critical. Kinnaka’s elven ears hear them on the path before the others. He makes the sign that tells the others to stay down and silent. When he is satisfied that the others are completely out of sight, he settles himself, takes a deep breath, and prepares to cast his spell.

The elf, positioned where he can see further down the trail than the others, is the first to spot the return of the riders. The two horsemen who lead the way wear no uniform, but the ring mail they wear and the broad swords at their waists leave no doubt that they are guards. Kentaro’s informant at the dairy was certainly correct about one fact – the mine hires their guards for size. For humans, these men are huge. Both are well over 6 feet tall and must go at least 250 pounds – and they’re not fat. Both wear bored expressions.

Behind and between the large men rides a third man, much smaller than the other two, but still larger than the average man. He wears chain mail and a sheathed long sword. A very sturdy-looking strongbox is tied to the man’s horse, just behind the saddle, which may help explain why he appears so alert. Finally, just visible behind the man with the box ride the two Patrolmen.

Kinnaka takes a quick visual estimate and decides that if good fortune is with them, all five men and their horses might just all fit within the bounds of the ambush zone, though it will be tight. Their timing will have to be good. Kinnaka catches Kentaro’s eye, raises his hand with five outstretched fingers. Kentaro looks a little dismayed but shrugs – it’s too late now. Kinnaka nods, and starts muttering a spell designed to increase the guards’ and patrolmen’s fear.

When the forward riders get within a few feet of the spikes, they rein in their horses and scan the forest. At the same time, they turn to say something to the men behind them, but the sound of the tree falling drowns out the sound of their voices and makes them all jump. The front riders merely look confused, but the others all react quickly, drawing their swords, although the proximity of the falling tree so startles one of the patrolman’s horses that it bolts, throwing the rider to the ground. He lands heavily, winded, but not apparently otherwise hurt. Such is the situation as Kinnaka’s spell goes off.

At roughly the same time, the “archers” and Kentaro leap out of hiding, with Kentaro bellowing:

YER ALL SUROUNDED. DISMOUNT AND DROP YER SWORDS! WE WANT THE BOX!

The sight of the half-giant screaming at them causes a burst of fear that Kinnaka’s spell is designed to nurture into full force. As the spell goes off, the sole cloud in the otherwise clear heavens passes in front of the sun. The air gets markedly cooler and the horses begin to stamp their feet awkwardly.

The results are impressive. The two mine guards at the front unbuckle their sword belts and let their swords drop. The man behind them shouts that they are cowards and he will disembowel them himself if they don’t pick up those swords now and fight. The second Patrolman looks confused and uncertain, but doesn’t actually do anything.

Kentaro bellow again:

I WON’T SAY IT AGAIN! DROP YER SWORDS! THE BOX AIN’T WORTH THE FIGHT!

Kinnaka stands up and knocks an arrow, taking aim at the one man who seems ready to fight. The two other “archers” also draw their bows, Tenner looking for all the world like a seasoned archer. Lymon looks very uncomfortable, but fortunately at the moment, the two remaining combatants are both looking at other people.

After Kentaro’s second shout, both of the men who are still mounted and armed look around and notice that one of their number is flat on his back and not doing much about getting back up, and two have already dropped their swords. Under the continued influence of Kinnaka’s spell, the man with the chest finally wavers, muttering, “Fuck this. Not worth dying for.” and drops his sword as well.

The last Patrolman (Kentaro remembers him as the dedicated one) looks at his fellow guards and realizes he’s the last one holding a weapon. He then looks significantly at the three archers who are now all aiming directly at him. Lastly, he looks at the HUGE man, looking for all the world as if he’s going to start shouting again. Finally he shakes his head and throws down his sword, “Orders er no orders, I ain’t dyin’ here fer nobody’s silver.”

Kentaro:

GOOD! NOW ALL O YA PAY ATTENTION CAUSE I AIN’T REPEATING MYSELF! WE’LL PAY YA FER THE TROUBLE. LEAVE THE CHEST! LEAVE THE SWORDS! LEAVE THE HORSES! AND DON’T COME BACK FOR FOUR HOURS! WE’LL KEEP YER SWORDS FER A WEEK AND YER NOT GONNA DESCRIBE US CORRECTLY! YOU’LL GET ALL BUT THE CHEST BACK AND BE THE RICHER FOR IT!

The guards offer no resistance, but the senior guy and the patrolmen grumble a bit and offer some verbal resistance, but now basically unarmed and facing four armed men, they really have no choice other than to do as they are told. They disappear on foot into the woods, the guards looking relieved, the other three defeated.

After they disappear, presumably for good, Kinnaka lets the spell go. He looks more tired than Kentaro has ever seen him, but he takes a moment to examine the chest. It is a fairly heavy iron chest with three locks. The front of the chest is decorated with an elaborate three-dimensional lion’s head, with the keyholes artistically worked into the pattern and appear to be the lion’s mouth and ears.

Satisfied, he leans against a tree, gives a half smile, and looks at Kentaro.

Kinnaka:

You wirr be taking zhe chest now, Hai!

Kentaro sheepishly holds up his hand to show Kinnaka 5 fingers. Kinnaka nods toward him, but otherwise says nothing. The half giant, shrugs again, smiles broadly, and rides off with the chest to the spot he identified earlier, where he spends half an hour burying it well.

With Kentaro gone, Kinnaka supervises the others as they tie up the horses, gather the swords, and make sure nothing is left behind that can identify them. Tenner and Lymon are in rare good moods, whooping and discussing how they are going to spend their money.

Kinnaka takes the swords from them and ties them to his horse. As he does so, he warns them not to spend too much too quickly. It will bring them unnecessary attention. They may want to head to Greysmere in a day or two after laying low and being seen in the Troll, to make sure everyone sees them behaving normally.

When Kentaro finally returns, Kinnaka pays the two men and thanks them for assisting, though he mentions that he may need them later if they are interested. They say they definitely are interested, and head off in high spirits.

After the men leave, Kinnaka spends a few minutes writing a note addressed to the patrolmen, describing what happens next:

1. If they return to this spot in a week, they will receive a letter describing where they can retrieve their swords.
2. If they provide false descriptions of the bandits, preventing their arrest for at least 30 days, they will receive 4 Gold Dubloons to divide up as they see fit.
3. They can collect the money from Alix, a money lender in Greysmere, in 30 days from an account in the name of “Art Fish”.
While Kinnaka writes, Kentaro looks through the saddlebags on the back of the remaining patrolman’s horse, but there’s nothing in it apart from personal items. He leaves it as it is, and suggests to Kinnaka that he leave the note in the saddlebag. Kinnaka declines – he needs to be sure the note will be found (and hopefully read) before the men return to give their report. Instead he attaches it to the patrolman’s saddle.

With that done, the two head out to where their horses are tied up. They mount up and put a little distance between themselves and the path before slowing down to look for a good place to bury the swords. When the swords are safely hidden in a place they can easily describe to the patrolmen, so they can get them back, they turn toward Brill’s dairy.

They actually don’t get very far when they decide on a change in plan. Instead, they turn their horses toward Greysmere with an eye toward being seen anywhere besides Karakas for a while.

They ride for the rest of the day, making their leisurely way toward the bigger city, then spend the night on the road. Their spirits are high and they truly enjoy their time on the road.

05 May

The next day they arrive in Greysmere a little after noon. They check in at the inn Kinnaka visited on his most recent visit, and studiously avoid the areas they visited during the ill-fated Dame Hakkima expedition. They wander the streets, eat at restaurants, and generally relax, enjoy themselves, and make sure they’re seen by as many people as possible.

At one point before business shuts down for the night, they stop by Alix the money lender, pull a 4 GD advance on their card, and open an account under the name “Art Fish”.

That evening, after Kentaro has gone to bed, Kinnaka spends an hour writing two letters – the first an after action report to put in the dead drop explaining exactly what happened at the ambush site, the second a letter to the patrolmen explaining where their swords are buried.

With that done, he heads to bed, and has a decent four hours of sleep.

06-07 May

Early the next morning, as the sun is just rising, the pair hit the road again, unfortunately once again in the rain, but at least on this day it’s more of an intermittent light rain rather than a full-blown thunderstorm.

Little happens on the return trip, although of note, as they approach Karakas they start hearing rumors of the theft of the silver and the Gypsy clan responsible. Satisfied that they are safe for the moment, they make a quick stop by the dead drop to deliver the after-action report, then Kinnaka heads very quickly into town to mark the table leg in the temple.

With that detail seen to, they return to Brill’s dairy, where they are welcomed back by both all of the overseers, and by the one familiar face amongst the workers. They quickly fall back into the rhythm of dairy life, and after a day of light work (it’s a slow day at the dairy), and an evening spent more or less by himself, Kinnaka gets back to his bunk to find a message telling him to come to the house at midnight. He’s to let himself in the door off the porch and wait in the sitting room he visited on his last visit to the farm.

Kinnaka tells Kentaro about the note, and mentions that he might need the giant to cover for him should his absence be noticed. In the event, however, he has no trouble slipping out unseen. In the first place, even those who do not know him are apparently familiar with his solitary sojourns around the property. In the second place, all the others, save his partner, are fast asleep well before 11 bells. When he judges just a few minutes remain before midnight, Kentaro bids him good fortune, and he heads to the back porch of the house. When the clock starts striking twelve, the elf opens the door and goes in.

Kinnaka stands near the door, prepared to wait patiently. However, Brill shows up almost as soon as he closes the door and tells Kinnaka to follow him. Kinnaka is intrigued, but says nothing. He simply nods and follows as Brill leads him a few steps down a corridor to a closed door, which he immediately opens and enters. Kinnaka follows him inside what turns out to be a small office, but doesn’t shut the door behind him.

Rather, he offers Kinnaka tea, which the elf accepts with a bow and thanks. Brill excuses himself, tells Kinnaka to make himself comfortable, and leaves to fetch the tea. When he returns, he notices that Kinnaka has remained standing. He smiles, sits, and tells Kinnaka to sit; they will not be disturbed here, and cannot be overheard.

Brill spends the next three quarters of an hour making and pouring the tea. Kinnaka is content to sit on the edge of his seat and watch silently. He notices that Brill does an excellent job of it. Finally, after the correct interval of drinking tea and talking about non-substantive subjects, he sits back and tells Kinnaka, “So. Tell me about your endeavor.”

Kinnaka:

Hai. We are in possession of zhe box or if I am to be more in precision, the box is safery buried in a specific rocation. We have been successfur 4 days ago. Zhe time we have been spending was out of town in zhe remote case we were forrowed.

Brill:

I see. Very wise. Excellent. Please describe the box to me.

Kinnaka does so, leaving nothing out.

Brill:

Excellent. I see you do have the box. Or more specifically, that you have been in its presence. Obviously, I know the box was stolen. There are none in Karakas that are not aware. Interestingly, word has reached me that it was stolen by Bakluni. I am going to make the assumption that you managed that bit of subterfuge?

Kinnaka:

Hai.

Brill:

I see you are resourceful. I already know you are adaptive. ... The patrolmen were … an unexpected complication. You handled the situation admirably. As a reward for your adroitness, you may keep the contents of the box as payment for your services.

Kinnaka raises an eyebrow:

My Rord is most beneficient. I pray to my erders zhat I am arways doing zhem honor.

Brill nods briefly:

I’m sure that you will. Now then, I understand that you were in need of a … permanent position. Is such still the case?

Kinnaka:

Hai.

Brill:

Excellent. As it happens, I have need of a good man in Greysmere. The work is intermittent, but the level of recompense should allow you to live well enough between paychecks. ... You won’t be rich, but you won’t starve either. And your time will be largely your own. Does that sound intriguing?

Kinnaka:

Hai. Shitsuri but I am wondering if the offer wirr arso be made to Kentaro?

Brill:

Hmm. I far prefer to work with one person at a time. Extra eyes and ears can be … troublesome. But I sense that you come as a team, no? I believe you work together better than either of you could function separately, is that correct?

Kinnaka:

Hai. We are a yin and yang, each bringing different aspects together. We are far better togezher zhan apart.

Brill:

Yes. It is as I suspected. This I will do; I will extend the offer to Kentaro, but in a more limited way. You still answer to me, and he to you. Your orders come from me, his from you. Your payment comes from me, his from you. Responsibility for success is always yours. Can you accept on these terms?

Kinnaka:

Zhese terms are anticipated and expected. It wirr be done Zhis way. Domo Arigato.

Brill:

Excellent. Then progress has been made. As to your living quarters, I own a small house on the outskirts of Greysmere under an assumed name. I offer it for your use. Or you can make other arrangements that may suit your needs better.

Kinnaka:

Zhe rast time we were in Greysemere for an extended time, we were emproyed by the Chancerry. I am zhinking zhat zhis is a usefur pretext to use here again.

Brill opens the central desk drawer and fishes out a large key, which he gives to Kinnaka, along with a brief description of how to find the place. He is then silent for a short time before speaking again.

Brill:

Yes. I think a Chancellery post would be a very good cover, if you can make it happen. However, you need to be able to get away once per month. You need to appear here, without fail, in the third week of every month. Come as a laborer, stay the night, depart the next day. You will receive your orders at that time.

Kinnaka:

Hai. As you say.

Brill smiles:

Then we are agreed. From this point, you are officially in my employ. Welcome aboard.

He reaches into his desk drawer and finds a bottle of Elvish wine. He puts two glasses on the desk, hands the bottle and an opener to Kinnaka, and asks him to open it. Kinnaka does so, then fills Brill’s glass and says, “Kanpai!”

He then holds his glass up with both hands. Brill smiles, takes the bottle, fills Kinnaka’s glass, then raises his own and returns the salute, “Kanpai!” They both drink, then Brill formally welcomes Kinnaka to his new position.

Brill:

Welcome to my organization, Kinnaka-kun. But, that is the last time you will hear me use that name. Henceforth in our conversations, you will be known as Kashiwa, ‘Oak’, in deference to your height. You may refer to me as ‘Sponge’.

Kinnaka:

Hai, Sponge-sama.

Brill:

With that decided, you will leave tomorrow in your own time. There’s no rush, but there’s also no need to do more menial labor than you desire. Return in two weeks. I will have orders for you then.

He stands, making it clear the interview is over. Kinnaka stands, acknowledges the order, bows, and backs out of the room. Brill stands motionless until Kinnaka is gone, then closes the door quietly behind him.

Kinnaka leaves and goes back to the barn, where he finds Kentaro awake, but only barely. He spends a few minutes telling him about the interview. Highly satisfied, they prepare for bed.

About 15 seconds after they lie down, Kinnaka mentions that he plans to leave in the morning just after breakfast. Kentaro’s answer is his first rumbling snore. Kinnaka shakes his head. How does the half-giant manage to fall asleep so quickly?

For Kinnaka, April 30^th begins as a frustrating day. In his favor is the fact that Greysmere is a larger town, so he has no trouble staying away from people that might recognize him from his previous visit, but that’s about all that goes well.

Apparently, the business day in Greysmere begins much later than he is used to. He manages to overcome this early disappointment by spending the time outside the city itself. He decides against a walk to the lake, on the grounds that the lake reminds him unreasonably (but understandably) of Dame Hakkima’s unfortunate end. Instead, he wanders the fields and forests on the other end of town.

When business finally gets underway, Kinnaka makes a beeline for the first moneylender on his list. Unfortunately, after waiting for service (despite his best efforts, he’s not the first in line), the man can’t give him any money on his card because his mage hasn’t showed up for work, and can’t be tracked down in anything like a timely manner. After waiting what he considers to be an unreasonable amount of time, he goes to another moneylender.

The directions seem simple, but somehow Kinnaka manages to make a wrong turn and get into the wrong alleyway. Of course, he eventually figures out his mistake, but loses more time in getting turned back in the correct direction.

When he finally arrives, he finds that there is a fairly lengthy wait for service, and when he is finally seen, the magic required to verify the card and get his money takes still longer. It is lunchtime before he leaves the moneylender’s office. The good news is that from this point, the day gets much better.

After a rather nice lunch, he starts to do some shopping, picking up items such as short bows, arrows, and quivers that he thinks might help them get hold of a strongbox.

He does very well with his shopping, and after considering briefly, decides to get out of town today. He knows that he won’t get back to Karakas today. Yesterday’s ride was downhill all the way, which helped him make excellent time. Unfortunately, the ride back is, of course, just as much uphill, so he will travel more slowly. It’s a full 40 miles, so odds are that even making his best speed, he’ll be at least a day and a half on the road. Ordinarily he would put off getting started until tomorrow, but on this trip, time is of the essence.

He saddles up, and prepares to enjoy the natural beauty of the road through the hills.

Meanwhile, back in Karakas, Kentaro has a somewhat better day. He wakes up to the usual morning routine at the White Horse, doing chores until lunch. After he finishes eating, he sits for a short time, filling in Nigel on most of what’s been going on over the past few days. Nigel asks about Kinnaka’s whereabouts, a question that Kentaro answers by using the K-team’s standard of sticking close to the truth. As far as Nigel knows, Kinnaka, who doesn’t like cities, has gone on the road, both to get out of Karakas for a while and to look for guarding work in Greysmere.

When Nigel excuses himself to take delivery of a hogshead of local brew, Kentaro heads off to meet Lymon and Tenner at the ambush site, where he tells his new recruits to make sure that whatever relationship they had before this endeavor, they need to maintain that appearance while in town. If they typically enjoy lunch together, he urges them, do it. If they don’t, don’t. Get it? Both nod aimlessly until Kentaro “encourages” them to a greater sense of commitment to his command. When he is satisfied that they really do understand, he explains the plan to them, and gets them started sharpening the poles he collected yesterday. Satisfied that they are working well, he excuses himself, telling them to carry on while he takes care of something in town. He leaves them to it and heads into town to talk to the moneylenders.

The first one is run by someone named Gariff, according to the sign hanging out front. Kentaro enters and finds the place very clean and quiet. Think library, but with way fewer books. A young lady in her late teens or early 20’s sits behind the counter filling out a ledger. Kentaro assumes she’s not Gariff.

Kentaro:

‘Lo. I was wonderin if ya can help me get an idea on some jobs round ‘ere. I’m done with my time at the farm.

Young lady:

What sort of jobs? What do you do?

Kentaro:

Well, I’m best used fer guarding things. I ‘eard that there was a mine and two money lenders. Was hoping that yeh could use someone like me fer somethan like that.

She looks doubtful:

Well, I don’t think Gariff’s hiring. He’s had the same staff for years. You could try Mandy’s. That’s the other money lender in town. The mine’s always hiring, but I don’t think they treat their guards very well. If they did, they’d stay on longer, I’d think. Have you tried the bigger cities? Greysmere’s two days southwest. Ryell Pass is just a day to the north.

Kentaro:

Oh well. Thanks fer your time. I’ll check round elsewhere. Thanks again.

Kentaro leaves and heads to the other moneylender, which turns out to be similar to Gariff’s, but smaller and not so high class. To make rash assumptions, this is the poor man’s moneylender. The lady working behind this desk is older, maybe in her 30’s. She welcomes Kentaro without really looking up from her own ledger, but when he first speaks, she turns toward him, her gaze falling first on his belt buckle. Her eyes widen the further she has to tilt back her head to take in his full height.

Kentaro waves:

Lo.

She stammers out a phrase which probably means, “How can I help you.” although she stutters so badly, that’s only a guess.

Ketnaro:

No need ter worry. I get tha all the time. I was hoping ya could help me to find a job. I’m done with my time on the farm and was hoping ya had somethan available … ah … is tha the case?

She stammers a little more, then turns her head and shouts:

Mandy!

After a few seconds, a thin man with long dark curly hair comes out from a back room, wiping his hands on a rag that looks to be more ink than cloth. If anything, his hands get dirtier after the wiping. “Yes,” he says. The lady whispers something to him, and he looks up at Kentaro. “Ah, you want to be a guard, I’ll wager.”

Kentaro [joking]:

Wot gave it away?

Mandy responds with the same good humor:

The daintiness with which you wiped your boots before treading on my floor. ... As it happens, I do have an opening. Do you come with your own weapons and armor?

Kentaro:

More scouting right now. Jus wantin ter see my options. Wot would ya ‘ave me do?

Mandy:

Ah. A man your size could go far in this business. Naturally, you’d start in collections. Have you done that sort of thing before?

Kentaro:

Not really. No. Though I suspect it wouldn’t be hard fer me ter get yer stuff back eh?

Mandy:

You’d be a natural. I guarantee that! What would you say to … hmm … 25 pennies per week?

Kentaro:

Well like I said, just scouting right now. Want ter see all my options before I go inter anything. Ya know if the other moneylender or the mine ‘ave openings?

Mandy looks sour:

That fat bastard Gariff won’t be hiring. Even with his “lucrative new contract”, he won’t expand. He’s too much of a skinflint, believe me. ... The mine. Yes, they’re always hiring, but I do believe you’d be wasted on that endeavor, my large friend. No, trust me. Collections is simply calling out for you!

Kentaro:

Yer good ya are, but I can’t simply take the first place that says yes. Ya won’t be far from my mind tho. Good offer that.

Mandy:

Take my word for it. You’re not suited to the mine, but I can’t stop you. I hope I see you again. Good day to you.

Kentaro:

I’ll probaly see ya soon. Thanks fer the info.

He leaves, little wiser than when he arrived, and returns to the ambush spot, where he finds his hired partners still sharpening sticks, although truth be told, they are only sharpening very slowly, paying much more attention to their conversation. Kentaro once again encourages them to make greater efforts … if they want to get paid. They respond as expected, speeding up significantly under their funding source’s watchful eye. When they finish sharpening the poles, he considers explaining the next step, which will be to cut half-way through a couple of trees that they intend to use as a roadblock on the ambush day, but glancing at the sun, makes him realize that that is a job and a conversation for tomorrow. Now, it’s suppertime.

Kentaro dismisses Lymon and Tenner, repeating sternly that they are to go about business as usual, as much as they are able. He himself goes to the Duke’s Arms for a bite to eat. The Arms is the only other public eatery in Karakas, and is rather more upscale than the Troll. It’s not a rich man’s destination by any stretch of the imagination, but where the Troll is definitely a working man’s destination, the Arms is more for those aspiring to be middle class.

In truth, the change of venue doesn’t really help him. He doesn’t even really meet a higher class of people. Sure, there are a few new faces and names, and they are dressed marginally less shabbily than denizens of the Troll, but overall he sees many of the same folks he’s used to seeing at there. The biggest difference is that at the Arms, he pays slightly higher prices for everything. He tries to pay attention to the conversation around him, listening for anything interesting about the mine, especially as regards the transportation of silver, but comes up empty. He’s not upset about it. It’s early days yet—plenty of time to find out information. So, after a few hours of focused endeavor, even though it’s a bit late, he decides to return to the Troll.

When he arrives, Kentaro finds his usual seat by the fire occupied by a group of teenagers. Tenner is nowhere to be seen, though Lymon is present amongst a few long-term buddies over at the bar. After considering for a moment, he decides to call it a night and head back to the White Horse instead. It’s going to be another long day tomorrow. He has his ambush site to finish.

01 May

Several times they are forced to disappear off the path and lie quietly in the woods as miners (and once, a cart) pass on the path. They are lucky, however, and nobody seems to notice they are there.

Nevertheless, by the end of the day, their preparations are complete and Kentaro has a pretty good idea about how the ambush will happen. He also feels good about the set-up, although he is a touch concerned about his two hired hands, who seem to be treating this as half game and half spy novel. Translation – they’re almost always either joking and laughing or behaving so “innocent” that they look guilty as sin. He does his best to rein them in when he can. About the only thing they seem to do right is to stay away from each other in town. Kentaro sighs. It’s so hard to find good help these days.

As dusk approaches and Kentaro once again dismisses Lymon and Tenner, Kinnaka begins the ride up the final (and steepest) stretch of road between himself and Karakas, then 15 minutes later, reaches the top of the rise and sees the lights of Karakas just a mile or two off. With mixed emotions he urges his horse forward. He has enjoyed the past 18 hours between towns. Humans destroy nature. The two will never truly come to terms with each other.

More to put off his arrival in town for a short time than with any real expectation of finding anything, Kinnaka stops by the dead-drop spot. Sure enough, it’s empty. Oh well. He hops back on his horse, rides it to the White Horse, stables it, and goes to meet Kentaro at the Troll.

Approaching the Troll, Kinnaka hears Kentaro’s laugh before he enters and smiles a bit. His partner is nothing if not predictable. He walks in and finds Kentaro with a group of smaller people. He pauses for a second before heading in, but that’s enough time for Kentaro to notice the elf’s presence. He jumps up and heads over to him.

Kentaro:

Alright, Kinnaka!

Kinnaka stops and bows:

Konnichiwa.

Kentaro, however, is having none of it. He greets his friend warmly, throwing a hug around him and slapping him on the back and asking him how his trip was. Kinnaka disengages as soon as the thick paws let go of him, which is almost immediately. He pauses to straighten his coat before he replies.

Kinnaka:

I concruded my business.

Kentaro:

Nohtin’ less than I though. We’re workin pretty well ‘ere. They need a bit more motivation though.

Kinnaka:

Kiite Kuru. We tark when zhe sun sees zhe meadow. Now? We drink. [He hands Kentaro his travel cup.]

Kentaro takes a swig:

Ah! ‘ats why I hang wit ya!

Kinnaka sits down:

Hai.

Kentaro:

Ya got somethan ya want ter talk about? Anythin in the drop box?

Kinnaka raises his mug:

To another day!

Kentaro:

AYE! To another day! Order me yer largest and cheapest, barkeep!

Finally able to get a word in edgewise, one of the other men present asks whether Kinnaka found work in Greysmere, a question the elf responds to with “Rife arways show new directions. The wise man picks zhe course based on present circumstances. We wirr see.”

One of the other men laughs and asks how he liked Graysmere, a question he responds to with “Graysmere human town. It rike arr zhe rest. No eregance, no harmony, no qi. Dead. Zhey have no rife. Erven cities are built among nature. Zhey invite nature in and co-exist. Zhey bring power of sun and moon to zhe house. Zhe Spirits of Zhe Ancestor infuse our houses with wisdom and honor. How I rike Graysmere? Every day away from my ancestors is one step croser to grave. But I stirr take joy and preasure in ride. Spend night under stars admiring zhe Tsuzumi Boshi, Genji Boshi, and Heike Boshi.”

This statement is met with blank stares. All is silent for a few beats, then one by one those present shake their heads and one mutters that some things never change. The conversation is once again resumed between the men and Kentaro, while Kinnaka again fades into the background. For the second time he smiles to himself. Mission accomplished!

Little more happens before the reunited partners return to the White Horse, where they fill each other in on the events of the past few days and Kinnaka shows Kentaro his new bows before turning in.

02 May

K&K thank him for the information, but both say that they are happy in the rain. Kinnaka, being an elf of course, loves all things natural, and a spring thunderstorm is one of the most natural things he can think of. Kentaro just tells their host that he will keep his friend company. Besides, he’s not one for staying inside more than he can help.

They arrive at the ambush site with the weather slowly changing from bad to worse. Kentaro is surprised to see both Tenner nor Lymon in place. If he had placed a bet, he’d have given good odds that neither would show in this weather. Kinnaka surveys the ambush sight and walks it trying to imagine what it will be like. Kentaro, pleased that Kinaka at least appears to be taking the same approach he did, stand back silently (for once), but practically hopping on one leg, hoping for a compliment from his partner.

Kinnaka makes a supreme effort to check into the most minute of details. When he’s done he looks at the group and tells them it’s good … for human work. Kentaro stands tall and smiles broadly at the rare (half) compliment. The others don’t really seem to care much – they are apparently underwhelmed by Kinnaka’s “compliment”. Kentaro attempts to reassure them. From an elf, that’s a huge compliment! The others just shrug. Either they really don’t get it, or they’re just sulking at having to be out in the bad weather.

Kinnaka:

In one or two day, we sreep here. Have you good sreep spot picked out?

Kentaro:

I’ve been thinkin about it, but I’ve not looked yet. We’ll probably ‘ave ta look tomorrow eh?

Kinnaka:

Today. We start rooking and perhaps be building. By two days, it rook natural if we do it right. I need anozher errand in town to finish, I see what you find when I come back.

Kentaro agrees, and while Kinnaka returns to the White Horst to talk to Nigel, he explains to the others what sort of thing he’s looking for, and they dutifully go off (to at least pretend) to look for a campsite. Kentaro is unsurprised when he is the one to find a good site.

Kinnaka finds Nigel cleaning out the chimney flue, covered head to beltline with soot:

I am understanding zhat Garrif, zhe moneylender has a new contract. I am wondering if you are knowing what zhat contract is. I am wondering to see if I find job zhere. However, I rike to be informed about such matters before I go, you understand, yes?

Nigel:

Ah, I’m surprised ye have t’ ask! It’s all Garrif talks ‘bout these days. Right ticked off Mandy, I can tell ye! Hah! ‘Bout went int’ apoplexy when ‘e ‘eard. ... Never did figger out how ‘e pulled it off, tho…

Kinnaka:

I am sure I am not understanding. How he purred off what exactry?

Nigel:

Well, ‘is contract, o’ course! Some kind o’ exclusive deal wi’ th’ Ministry o’ th’ ... what’s it called? Them what mint’s th’ Count’s money? Ah, dang it. Ye know ‘oo I mean. Them lot. Right lucrative, so Garrif says.

Kinnaka:

He is stamping money, zhen? Maybe he wirr be needing more guards zhen? Maybe he hired arr he needs.

Nigel:

What, ‘oo? Garrif? Nah. Th’ tight-fisted ole coot’s not one t’ spend more’n ‘e ‘as to. Ye can try. Ye’ll have better luck wi’ Mandy, ‘less I’m mis-readin’ things.

Kinnaka:

But, if he is stampin’ the County’s coins …

Nigel thinks about it:

Hmm. ... Nah. Garrif ain’t got th’ ‘quipment t’ be doin’ no money makin’. Must be shippin’ it out somewhere’s. Greysmere prob’ly. Maybe Hardby.

Kinnaka looks crestfallen, then confused:

I am confused. Where I come from we use sirver for money. But here in Greyhawk, I have not been seeing any. I am wondering how he is getting a contract when there is no copper or gord near here. Does he know someone in Greyhawk? Does he have good rerations wizz a copper or gord miner?

Nigel looks thoughtful again:

Ya know, that’s a right good coupla questions there. Mebbe they’re usin’ th’ silver fer somethin’ else? Mebbe ‘e’s lyin’? Dunno. Bet Garrif’d tell ye if’n ye asked. ‘E’s ne’er been th’ sort t’ let good news stay quiet, if ye follow me.

Kinnaka:

If I see him at Zhe Trorr, I wirr have to do just zhat. I am not sure that I am knowing what he rook rike though.

Nigel:

Hah! Ye won’ see ‘im at th’ Troll, I’ll tell ye that. Nah, ‘e’ll be wi’ th’ rich crowd. Don’ mingle wi’ th’ commoners if’n ‘e can ‘elp it.

Kinnaka:

Zhat wourd be at the Duke’s Alms, zhen. I am not abre to afford zhe food zhere I do not zhink. Oh werr. I wark to his prace and ask if he’s hiring I guess.

Nigel:

Can’t ‘urt t’ ask, I reckon. But b’lieve me, ye’ll ‘ave better luck wi’ Mandy. ‘S yer time, though.

Kinnaka:

Arigato.

Kentaro bows to the man and leaves, heading up to his room briefly to pick up his Junanagen, packing it carefully in its waterproof travel case. He exitis the inn just as the first lightning bolt streaks across the sky, a portent of violence followed soon by the first clap of thunder. The sky is very dark and ominous. By the time the elf arrives at Mandy’s, the rain has just started, the first fat drops falling slowly, but with rapidly increasing frequency. He closes the door behind him as the proverbial heavens open.

A few words soon has Mandy out at the counter looking carefully and with great interest at the Elvish instrument. He tells Kinnaka that he can’t see much of a market for such a fine instrument in Karakas. He offers a price that Kinnaka feels is little better than insulting, though to his credit, Mandy knows it, and is very apologetic, adding that Kinnaka could get a much better price in a larger town, but for anything approaching real value, he’d have to go to one of the biggest cities – Greyhawk obviously, Hardby probably.

Kinnaka mentions off-handedly that perhaps Gariff would be able to do better; he’s heard about Mandy’s rival’s new contract and wonders if he has more handy cash. Mandy gets instantly and obviously perturbed. He doesn’t know who Gariff knows. How he managed to pull it off, but he’s sure there was something underhanded in that. Anyway, if Kinnaka feels he can get a better deal from Gariff, he should head over there, but he’s sure Gariff won’t offer a better deal. Not only won’t he recognize the value of the elvish harp, and he’d never offer anything similar to the real value, even if he knew it. He wants nothing to do with it.

Kinnaka mentions that he wouldn’t trust someone who felt it was fine to sign a huge contract to produce copper ingots when everyone knows there’s not even a copper mine in the area! Mandy shakes his head. No, not copper. Silver. The Count has some kind of crazy scheme to mint coins out ot silver. It’s ridiculous, but at least there’s plenty of that here. Plenty to go around! Couldn’t have given the contract to several people – especially as there are only two moneylenders in town! Besides, the contract’s worth a bunch, if Gariff is to be believed, and he usually doesn’t lie about money.

Kinnaka mutters that it sounds like Greyhawk screwed them both, and Mandy couldn’t agree more. Kinnaka thanks Mandy, who apologizes again that he can’t give Kinnaka a decent market price for so beautiful an instrument, and leaves, heading back out into the pouring rain to inspect what Kentaro’s done with the camp site.

When he gets there, he finds that Kentaro has done some good things, but has left some others undone. He makes corrections where necessary, filling the time before the sun starts to go down. The rain continues, though much lessened. The thunder and lightning have tapered off, promising a drier night. The four split up. Lymon and Tenner leave, complaining to each other about the weather. Kinnaka doesn’t seem to mind it at all. Kentaro simply ignores it. The former two disappear into the darkening distance, while K&K remain behind for a bit, discussing the finer points of their plan, then return to town, to take to the Troll once again, though nothing comes of this evening’s socializing.

03 May

In the morning Kentaro tells Nigel that once again he will be leaving for Greysmere, so he won’t be needing his room for a few days. Nigel wishes him well, and offers to send the chore boy to help him prepare for departure, an offer Kentaro politely declines.

So it is that as Kentaro gets started moving empty barrels out of the basement, his partner leaps on his horse and wheels away from the White Horse. He heads through town, and when far enough down the road to avoid any prying eyes, doubles back and soon finds himself back at the ambush site, where he begins unpacking. He’ll be staying on site from now until the ambush is accomplished. He isn’t far into unpacking before Lymon and Tenner, warned last night to show up early, arrive, disturbing his task. He turns his attention from unpacking his gear to teaching the two minor partners to hold a bow well enough to at least appear as competent archers.

It’s a task that takes the better part of the day, but Kinnaka is patient. Besides, from where he has set the practice area, he has a good view of the path for several hundred yards in either direction, while remaining very difficult to see themselves. In short, he is in the perfect spot from which to watch for a good time to launch an ambush.

When Kentaro arrives some time after lunch, he suggests that he find a place to keep the prisoners, should any be taken, and a location (safe from Lymon and Tenner’s prying eyes) where they can bury the strongbox, yet easily find it again. Kinnaka approves the plan, and soon Kentaro is tromping through the muddy hillside. Several hours later, maybe an hour before sunset, he returns to the camp, exhausted, muddy, and half successful. He has a good spot in mind for the strongbox, but has completely struck out on a cave, abandoned building or other location suitable for prisoners.

That evening, while Kinnaka remains at the campste, Kentaro, sitting in the Troll enjoying his usual evening libation, is told of two men who rode into town—soldiers by the look of them, wearing County livery. They arrived mid-afternoon and went to Gariff’s office. There is some disagreement about where they are now, but more people who say they know believe they went to Gariff’s house for supper, and haven’t returned yet.

The topic is discussed at great length, though nobody seems to know why they are here. There is simply no precedent for two County soldiers arriving in town. From the locals’ description—shiny longswords, black leather armor, and yellow surcoats bearing the Greyhawk coat of arms—Kentaro presumes them to be patrolmen. It would be unusual to see patrolmen operating independently, apart from their Patrol and the Defender who leads it, but like much else about the County, the rules that are established are malleable and prone to sudden changes.

Kentaro tries hard to act no more interested than anyone else, and after finishing his meal goes immediately to see Kinnaka and tell him of the news. Kinnaka response is to send Kentaro back to the Duke’s Arms to see if he can track down the new soldiers, while he himself spends the evening penning a letter to Tovish to explain their plan for stealing the strongbox, if for not other reason than to let the authorities know that the strongbox isn’t lost and to report their progress. When finished, he delivers it to the dead drop location and is pleased to find that the temple of Hestia doesn’t close. He is able to mark the table leg on his way back to the campsite.

Kentaro sets up shop in the Duke’s Arms and is rewarded less than an hour later with the appearance of the soldiers. They are easily spotted, and are clearly patrolmen. He pauses to wonder why they might be here alone, but then shrugs internally. It’s not important. He has information to find out.

To begin his conversation, he splurges on a round of drinks for them, a gesture practically guaranteed to provide a conversational opening. It’s very successful, and before long, pretending to be interested in becoming a soldier himself, he finds out that they are here from the Pargenter’s Mine detachment, and serve under a Defender named Ilian and a Defender Lieutenant named Huggins. The more talkative of the two apparently considers the life of a soldier to be full of fool’s errands conducted at the behest of whimsical leaders (“Go to Karakas, private. Guard the silver, private. Slay the *&$%-ing dragon, private.”). His buddy tells him to shut up before he can further develop the thought, though before entirely changing the subject, Kentaro’s loquacious buddy does manage to confirm that they are indeed heading to the mine early tomorrow, after they make another stop. Once again his partner stops him before he can say any more.

After a short silence, the chatty patrolman invites Kentaro, if he’s really interested in joining up, to accompany them back to Pargenter’s Mine the day after tomorrow, to talk to Ilian about joining up. Kentaro promises to think about it, and heads back to the campsite to let Kinnaka know what he’s found out. Kinnaka advises Kentaro to let Nigel know tonight that he has to leave early in the morning, and won’t be needing this room for a few nights. Kentaro agrees and heads off to make it happen.

At the White Horse, Nigel tells Kentaro that he’ll be sorry to see him go and that he’s welcome back any time. Kentaro responds (honestly) that he feels the same way. Nigel truly is a very likable sort.

The next three days are routine. K&K wake early with the others, spend the day performing menial tasks, and sleep in the bunkhouse. Kinnaka has started taking long walks every day after supper. To queries about the elf’s unusual behavior, Kentaro offers the opinion, “Hey, ‘e’s an elf. They do that.” After a day or two, nobody seems to notice any more, or at least, if they do notice, nobody seems to mind his being gone. It’s not as if he’s exactly popular amongst the workers anyway.
Kentaro on the other hand enjoys himself tremendously. He finds the others very easy to talk to. Very little of import is discussed, but they do exchange plenty of jokes, tall tales, and good-natured insults. Kentaro easily gives as good as he gets, which seems to be a more respected talent than good work habits.

The other workers, of course, come and go routinely. By the time the crew are bedding down on the evening of the 28^th, only three men remain of the 12 who were present when K&K arrived. Kinnaka decides that tomorrow he will find an opportunity to pick a fight with one of his co-workers, his goal being to bring himself more to Brill’s attention. He has even decided who his mark will be.

Yahir is a man in his mid-20’s. He arrived a couple days ago, and has not fit in well. He is curt and dismissive, and makes no attempt to get along with anyone. Rather, he seems to delight in baiting the others with caustic comments about their parentage and family members. He has made several comments to and about Kinnaka already – the man obviously doesn’t like elves much. The only thing that makes the man palatable at all is the fact that he sleeps in town. They only have to put up with him during working hours.

29 Apr

The morning starts routinely enough. After about an hour, however, Yahir, carrying an armload of tools, attempts to exit the main doorway at the same time as Kinnaka tries to enter. The two collide, causing Yahir to drop the tools. He makes a comment that roughly translates to, “Stupid elf,” only in a much ruder way. Kinnaka doesn’t hesitate before slapping Yahir’s arm, sending the surprised man into a half-spin. The elf immediately grabs his arm, putting a shoulder lock on him that ends the fight before it even begins.

Yahir is in a great deal of pain, and shouts out. As it happens, the other overseer, Harry, happens to be passing, and demands that Kinnaka release Yahir. Kinnaka does so, none to gently, and Yahir winds up on his back with a look on his face that promises swift and sure retribution. He is doubly incensed by Kinnaka’s relaxed, casual stance and carefully neutral expression. Harry tells them both to knock it off. They are to follow him.

Kinnaka nods again, says, “Hai,” and turns his back on Yahir, seemingly completely unconcerned about the other man. Yahir looks briefly rebellious, almost as if he’s considering an attack on the elf while his back is turned, but one look from Kentaro is enough to stay him. He glares darkly at all the men who have by this time gathered around, and follows silently behind Harry and Kinnaka.

To Kinnaka’s surprise, Harry leads them to the rear door of the main house as Charlie begins to shoo the rest back to work. He steps up three steps onto a patio area attached to the rear of the house and tells Kinnaka and Yahir to wait right here.

As they wait, Kinnaka looks casually around as Yahir stares darkly at him. Kinnaka’s refusal to make eye contact with him seems to darken his mood even more than usual, which makes Kinnaka smile internally (though none of that emotion touches his features, of course).

After a few minutes, Kinnaka hears the sound of a horse riding away from the house, and looks up to see a large man in a blue cloak riding away fast on a black horse. He thinks back to last night when the man arrived. Apparently he must have spent the night at the farm, and since he didn’t stay in the bunkhouse, the obvious assumption is that he stayed in the main house.

He doesn’t have time to think about it for long though, as the rear door to the house flies open and Mario emerges.

He looks at the other two:

Okay, then. Explain yerselves.

Yahir jumps in immediately:

It’s th’ bloody elf. ‘E’s been baitin’ me since I got ‘ere. ‘E needs t’ go.

Mario looks at Yahir with narrowed eyes, but says nothing, then looks at Kinnaka expectantly.

Kinnaka:

Sumimasen. I bring discord to your house and am not meaning to. Zhis man’s rudeness and rack of manners have become too much. Today, he try to push me down and insurt my mozher. [Kinnaka shrugs.] Zhat is not good manners. I teach him to not tark so. It isnot herping he’s not much of a man and can’t back up his words wizh actions.

Yahir tenses:

Why you …

At this point, he obviously loses his ability to speak coherently. His mouth continues to move for a second, then, with a noise not unlike a growl, he tenses and moves to launch himself at Kinnaka, but he doesn’t get the chance as a sudden uppercut from Mario catches him under the chin, makes his knees wobble briefly before he sinks to the floor, his eyes unfocues.

Mario:

‘At’s enough outta you, Yahir. I tole ye las’ time ‘at if ye started any more trouble ye were out. So yer done. Grab yer stuff an’ go. An’ don’ come back. Yer not welcome ‘ere any more.

Yahir tries to protest, but he’s still not truly capable of controlling his legs very well. Harry hoists him up and frog-marches him off the porch and in the direction of the bunkhouse. Mario turns back to Kinnaka.

Mario:

Now you? Yer different. Boss’s noticed, too. Wants t’ speak t’ye.

He gestures for Kinnaka to follow, opening a door and leading him into a sitting room. He tell Kinnaka to sit, and offers him something to drink. The boss will be in in a minute.

Kinnaka:

Arigato. Tea prease.

Mario nods and leaves. He returns a few minutes later with tea and biscuits, then departs. While he’s gone, Kinnaka has a chance to look around. Through a doorway in the wall opposite to the one he entered by he can see another sitting room, and through the windows in that room, the road toward town. There’s little else to look at.

A few minutes later, a large man in his late 30’s or early 40’s walks into the room. He moves like a man in excellent physical shape, and a presence that makes it clear he is used to giving orders. He has a stern face with penetrating blue eyes. Kinnaka stands immediately and bows to the man. To Kinnaka’s surprise, Brill bows back in the correct manner for a superior talking to an underling. He then sits and indicates to Kinnaka that he is to sit also.

Kinnaka takes his seat and keeps his eyes lowered. Brill asks if he can have Mario get anything for Kinnaka; he doesn’t keep servants, he explains. Kinnaka thanks him, but since Mario has already been so accommodating, he is in need of nothing. They exchange meaningless pleasantries for a short time, then Brill looks directly at Kinnaka.

Brill:

Now then, I’ve heard some interesting things about you. But I hate to rely on gossip and hearsay. It can be a most unreliable source of information. Why don’t you tell me about yourself?

Kinnaka briefly tells him his story. He starts with breaking the other elf’s arm and being asked to leave because he was too hard to control. He then segues into his and Kentaro’s excellent service under Dainel that led to the job with Dame Permas. He tells him about their successes and then, ultimately, their firing by Permas. Since Greyhawk treated them so poorly they ended up back here. They figured they’d try work for the sheriff since that went so well before. When that didn’t work out, they came here looking for semi-regular work until they could come up with something better. Kinnaka was thinking about going to the new Count and seeing if he would hire them, but hasn’t quite figured out a good way to approach him.

Brill:

Oh, but you left out the most interesting piece. Why Karakas? Why, of all the places in Greyhawk and beyond, when there are thousands of places that one of the fairer race might be comfortable should you end up at this remote location, which of course led you to my farm, doing work for which you are clearly … overqualified?

Kinnaka:

We know zhis area and have had success finding jobs. It’s arso far from Greyhawk. Besides, where erse I go? I know zhis country very poory. At reast, we know zhis area.

Brill:

I think you are understating things a little. You say Greyhawk has treated you poorly, but the way I hear it, you have a rather large complement of vitriol and bile built up and directed at your former bosses—at the Chancellery specifically. Tell me about that. Oh, and please, don’t feel you have to spare my feelings. I far prefer honesty and openness than repressed emotion.

Kinnaka:

Arigato. I am not preferring to go into detair. We did two jobs most werr. One finding a kirrer. We found zhe kirrer, bud zhe person in charge ran. We bring kirrer back and go to next job. Zhat derivering message to Lady Hakkima. She dead before we find her. Zhey fire us! Why? Your country make no sense. No order. No one forrow raws. And you fire peopre for doing job werr. It make no sense. I not meet zhis Count, but he not know how to run country, zhat for sure!

Brill:

And you believe that our new Baronet will fare better in this respect?

Kinnaka shrugs:

I know not. I care not. I just need job. I trained to fight; to guard. Not too farm. [He shrugs again]. Zhis not happen in Vayethia. But we’re not zhere, are we?

Brill:

We are not. As it happens, however, I have a position open that may interest you, for which you may be better suited than painting fences. But it’s not a job that would suit just anyone. I need a man of action, someone who is not afraid to do what needs to be done. My question is, can you be that person?

Kinnaka:

Hai. It is what I train for. Kentaro and I make good brute squad. Most not … um … do not quibbre wizh us. They just risten.

Brill:

I expect not. My question is, what exactly are you prepared to do? Or maybe an easier question might be, what will you refuse to do? Answer whichever you will. The choice is yours.

Kinnaka:

I know not. I never zhink about it. [He pauses and pretends to think.] I suppose I not stear or kirr someone for personar gain.

Brill:

If those are truly the only limits you set yourself, perhaps you are someone I can work with, but I need to know for sure. [He pauses for a moment.] Here’s a thought. I’ll set you a challenge. There’s a mine not too far from here. They mine silver of rare quality. In about a week, a rider protected by several swordsmen will come by to take away some of the silver in a strongbox. Secure that strongbox and I’ll assume you are who you say you are. At that point we can talk again. Is that fair?

Kinnaka:

Hai. Who am I to take wizh me?

Brill:

I neither care nor want to know. That is up to you. I will pay you a single wage for each job you perform. If you want to keep the entire sum for yourself, it’s up to you. If you want to bring in associates and split the fee that also is up to you. But keep this in mind – I do not care what your associates do or do not do. It is you and only you who are answerable to me.

Kinnaka:

Hai. I am wondering when how rong untir man arrives and how many riders come wizh him.

Brill:

I only know what I have told you. I am not in the habit of repeating myself, so I’ll take it for granted that you were paying attention the first time. ... Or have I put my trust in the wrong person?

Kinnaka half-stands, bows, and holds the bow:

You have not. Domo Arigato.

Brill:

Oh, two things before you go. First, make no attempt to open the box yourself. Second, do not bring the box here. Understood?

Kinnaka:

I wirr have a room at zhe White Horse. Kentaro wirr deriver message to Mario.

Brill:

No. Mario is to know nothing of our arrangement. [He pauses significantly.] By the way, if you fail, do not bother to return. However, if you succeed, you are to return as a day worker. Sleep in the bunkhouse. You will be contacted.

Kinnaka:

Hai.

Brill returns Kinnaka’s bow in the appropriate manner:

Then go. [He smiles.] I believe I’ll be seeing you soon.

Kinnaka:

Hai.

At this point, Kinnaka backs out of the room. When he gets back out on the back porch, he closes the door behind him. Not until the door is closed does he finally stand upright. He smiles, turns, and walks back to the Heifer Cubicles to find Kentaro. He has barely opened the door when his partner rushes up.

Kentaro:

All right Kinnaka? ‘Ow’d it go in der?

Kinnaka is beaming:

Glab gear. We have wagon to catch.

Kentaro, having rarely seen Kinnaka in a mood this good, whoops, and dashes off to get his gear. He’s back in record time—he does not want to miss a second of his partner’s good feelings! However, when he gets back, Kinnaka tells him to go find whoever he has the best relationship with, someone who likes to talk. They need some information about the way the mine handles security. He’ll fill Kentaro in when they leave. In the meantime, he’ll get his own gear ready to go. Kentaro smiles lopsidedly and shows Kinnaka that he already has the elf’s gear. Kinnaka smiles again, and says that in that case, he’ll meet Kentaro a little ways up the road. He’ll be the one watching the birds fly. Kentaro smiles and wanders off to find Carson.

He decides he’ll tell Carson they’ve got a lead on a job as mine guards, and wants to know as much as possible about the way they do business, so he can impress his potential new boss. He needn’t have bothered with the subterfuge. Carson’s tough to shut up once he gets started, and 20 minutes later, Kentaro has the following tidbits of information to inform Kinnaka of:

• The mine security chief is a man named Allen, one of the mine’s three underbosses
  • The underbosses and the mine boss are armed
• Guards:
  • The mine hires a lot of guards, probably due to high turnover
  • There are about 12 guards on staff
  • Kenaro and Kinnaka would be good candidates, since Allen hires big, scary guys (Carson doesn’t know how skilled they are though)
• They don’t live in a barracks
• Typical guard shifts:
  • 4 guards patrol the mine during business hours
  • At least some are mounted
• Transfer days:
  • An extra two guards on duty
  • They happen about every other week, but the schedule varies to discourage highwaymen

As they head back to town, they fill each other in on their news, then start discussing plans for getting their hands on the silver strongbox. Their first order of business is to identify possible henchmen. They compare notes about their former co-workers, and decide that of those who left Brill’s farm to go to the mine, only Cameron really seems to have the personality for this sort of work. Of course, whether they actually try to recruit him remains to be seen. In the meantime, both are very happy. For a change, things seem to be going very well for them.

After a quick stop by town for an early lunch (it’s about 10 bells), they pick up their horses at the White Horse. While they’re there, they let Nigel know that they’ll be needing their old rooms back—Kentaro’s immediately, and Kinnaka’s in a few days—if they are still available (they are). The partners then split up and head in opposite directions.

Kinnaka’s first job is to go to the dead drop spot to deliver his report. That only takes a few minutes, after which he briefly heads back into town to mark the table leg that will let their contact know that something is awaiting pickup. Finally, he rides off with all speed toward Greysmere. He arrives after business hours, so for now he has to settle for checking into an inn for the night.

In the meantime, Kentaro finds the path that leads to the mine. It’s not hard; after spending three days talking with men who work there off and on, he knows exactly where to look. His first task is to scope out the path looking for good ambush spots. Fortunately for his purposes, the path winding through the wooded hills provides no end to possible ambush spots, though it does take some time to identify just the right spot. He smiles to himself and starts collecting wood.

By the time it’s too dark to continue, the half-giant has managed to find a score of poles around 4 inches in diameter and 10 feet long. Satisfied, he puts everything well off the path, marks the spot so he can find it again, and returns to town. He has some business at the Troll, starting with supper and a very large mug of Ulrich’s special home brew.

When Kentaro finishes eating, he glances around and smiles broadly. One of the troublesome, yet important aspects of the plan he and Kinnaka have devised to divest the guards from the strongbox, is the need to hire a few people to help them. Their pool of potential henchmen is fairly limited, but they do have some options:

• A ne’er-do-well Troll regular named Lymon, a real nasty piece without, as far as Kentaro can figure out, an ounce of restraint. He should be an easy pull.
• Another likely suspect is a tall, rangy bully named Tenner. He’s unpopular, and obnoxious, but may be willing to help – for a fee. Kentaro considers him to be a 50/50 prospect at best.
• A chronically unemployed, and typically drunk citizen of Karakas named Hofman. He doesn’t go to the Troll often, so he might be harder to find. Kentaro definitely considers him the weakest prospect of the three.

Kentaro, however, is having a very good day. As it turns out, the means to solve this troublesome problem is immediately to hand. Lymon and Tenner are both at the Troll. Hofman’s absence isn’t a problem. The odds of his joining them are pretty low. Kentaro hoists his tankard and heads off to talk to Tenner first. He might take some convincing.

He does, but on this night, Kentaro is equal to the task. It takes all his ability, but in the end, with the promise of a hefty paycheck, Tenner is on board. Predictably, he demands half the money up front.

Kentaro tosses him a couple coppers:

‘Ere. That’s all yer gettin fer now. I don’t deal wit the money. You’ll have ta ask Kinnaka bout tha when he gets back. Keep yer mouth shut and you’ll get more. Work and you’ll get more. Understand?

Tenner:

Where’s Kinnaka gone?

Kentaro:

You don’t get paid to ask questions. ‘E’s out right now. Leave it at tha.

Tenner:

Awright, awright. Don’t getcher knickers inna twist. Jess makin’ conversation.

After this exchange, Kentaro reverts back to his normal self, Tenner settles back into “fun mode”, and they both have a good time for a while. After a suitable interval, Kentaro turns to what he believes will be the easier task. Lymon.

In the event, getting Lymon on board is easier than Kentaro had hoped. He practically jumps at the opportunity. He fills Lymon in on the identy of his new partner, Tenner, and tells him that both of them are to meet him at the beginning of the trail 1 bell after noon.

With that dealt with, Kentaro decides it’s time to go bed. He has a long day ahead of himself tomorrow. The only thing that keeps him from feeling that his day was perfect is the fact that with Kinnaka out of town, he can’t brag about his achievements. Oh well, he’ll be back the day after tomorrow, and in the meantime, there’s lots to keep a half-giant busy.

The next morning, the same young lad wakes K&K up again. As happened yesterday, Nigel gives them breakfast, after which they head out to do the morning’s labor. When the morning work is done, they get lunch, and then the day is theirs.

During their morning labors, Kentaro reports his efforts, and the resulting four opportunities for gainful employment. Kinnaka suggests they try the dairy today, then later they can return to the Troll to complain about the lack of opportunities for hired swords in this area. This will provide cover so they can “leave” for Greysmere to “get hired by the Baronet”. Kentaro agrees to that plan and while they eat lunch, asks Nigel for directions to the dairy.

Nigel:

Dairy, eh? … Ah, you’re talkin’ ‘bout Brill’s Farm. Well, jess ‘ead north ‘bout ‘alf a mile. Ye cain’t miss it. Hah! Ye’ll smell it afore ye get there. Ask fer Mario. ‘E’s th’ senior caretaker. ‘E’ll see ye right.

As soon as lunch is nothing but a memory, the pair follows Nigel’s directions, and in about 15 minutes, they top a small rise and look down at a place that must be Brill’s Farm. Kentaro, with Kinnaka in tow, walks around to the back of the main house and looks for someone who looks to be in charge. It doesn’t take him long to see a man in his 30’s giving orders to a cluster of three laborers. The wander off in the general direction the man indicated as K&K approach and ask the man where they can find Mario.

The man looks the pair up and down, then turns his head toward a long brick building and bellows:

‘Ey, Mario!

A responding bellow returns:

‘Ang on!

The man says:

‘E’ll be roight ‘ere.

He then walks off in the opposite direction, headed for a large white building. A few seconds later, a short man with dark hair and a green hat emerges from the brick building mentioned earlier. He approaches, smiles, and begins talking without preamble – not in an unfriendly way, but with the definite air of a man who has a lot to do.

Mario:

Mario. Senior overseer. What kin I do fer you gents?

Kentaro:

Hey. I’m Kentaro an’ this ‘ere is Kinnaka. We’re lookin fer work we are. Ya got any fer us? Ya probably want me ter work with Kinnaka tho. I’ve got experience animal handling if ya need one. Pretty good wit’ ‘em if I do say so myself.

Kinnaka:

We’re arso good at guarding and stopping ozhers If you have need of guards.

Mario:

Hmm. Not much need o’ guards, but we always got summat goin’ on. Ye know ‘ow t’ milk?

Kinnaka:

Arigato. I do not.

Mario shrugs, says it’s of no importance, and informs the two that he he’ll hire them for a day or a few days, as they need. He doesn’t need guards, but he does have plenty of need for people to repair fences, clean, move hay from one place to another, etc. They also have the option to sleep on the premises or leave each evening and return the following day. K&K inform Mario that they will sleep at the farm, but that they’ll have to go get their gear from their current residence. Mario clucks his tongue and tells them that they have 45 minutes until lunch is over. They have that long to fetch their gear, stow it at their bunk, and get the tour of the place. Kentaro also asks if anything more “interesting” comes along he should let the two of them know. Mario looks confused by the comment, but responds that he has plenty to keep them interested as soon as they get back. As they look like they are about to ask more questions, he shoos them away, telling them that he has plenty to do, even if they don’t. When they return, they should find Harry. He’ll get them settled.

K&K head back to the White Horse, where they give the good news to Nigel, gather their gear, give back their keys, and get ready to head out. Nigel tells them that they have a credit on their account since they did their work this morning, and they decide to even the score by leaving their horses in Nigel’s care for the time being, since the dairy doesn’t have a lot of extra space for horses.

When they get back to the dairy, they ask for Harry, who turns out to be a man older than Mario by a good 10-15 years, though he is tall and wiry, with a twinkle in this eye and a bounce in his step. He has the leathered look of a man who has spent the majority of his life outdoors. His snow-white hair only makes his skin look all the darker. He welcomes them, gives them a quick five-minute tour of the dairy, pointing out the various buildings and mentioning what they are used for, then takes them to a long narrow building in the center of the compound. They go up a steep, narrow flight of stairs attached to the outside wall to the first floor, and enter a room that is set up with about a score of beds, each with its own chest. He points out their bunks, hands them each a key, and tells them to lock their stuff up. They don’t have long before the afternoon work shift starts.

He briefly explains the farm schedule. The morning milking takes place at 5:00. Everyone takes part – anyone not actually milking is involved in seeing to the cows’ needs, carrying pails full of milk to the filling station, and manning the filling station (where the buckets are poured into barrels, which are loaded onto a wagon for delivery to town. After the milking, breakfast is served in two shifts to allow everyone to eat and otherwise prepare for the day’s work. The cows are fed after that, and then everyone splits off to their assigned tasks for the day. They gather together again at noon for lunch, then return to work until the afternoon milking, which fills the remaining time before suppertime around 6 bells.

Not everyone stays for supper. Some of the locals have homes and families to go to. Even some of those who are staying at the dairy may decide to head into town for the evening. Lights out is at 9 bells, though that is more a convention for those who want to go to sleep. There is no actual curfew.

K&K thank Harry for the information, and follow him back to the dairy yard. He tells them that their task for the afternoon will be to paint the cubicle shed, a large building in the corner of the property. Given their size, they probably won’t even need the ladders, he adds with a twinkle in his blue eyes. They will be working with Colton and Deacon, two locals who have been here before, so they’ll be able to help K&K get acquainted with the place.

The work is not arduous. It’s mostly mindless sorts of easy to mid-level labor, and it’s clear that the employees are not that motivated. Certainly, nobody seems to do much of anything unless they’re told to do it, and even then, nobody’s breaking any speed records getting their tasks done. Still, everybody seems to be working steadily and willingly. The slow pace leaves plenty of time for conversation, which Kentaro takes advantage of by getting to know his fellow workers and getting the low-down on how things work around here. Kinnaka’s main contribution to the conversation is to ensure that both Colton and Deacon know that he’s a swordsman who is unhappy to be doing farm work. He feels he’s being under-utilized and isn’t happy about it.

Colton is a bit sullen, but Deacon is a likeable sort who talks non-stop, which makes Kentaro’s task easier. From him he confirms what they heard in town – those who come here are usually unskilled laborers, people with no marketable skills, though the occasional professional farmhand (think migrant worker, though not of the picking crops variety) or tradesman (carpenter, and the like) will show up. Most of them have been coming here off and on for some time – some for years. At this time of year, the longest someone might stay is about a week or ten days, though most do 2-5 day stints. In the summer, folks tend to stay longer, some up to 2-3 weeks at a stretch. Of course, there are also a few transitory workers. They tend to come for a few days and move on. Most are never seen again, although some have come back more than once.

Kentaro asks why they come and go so often, to which Deacon laughs and answers that it’s a combination of economics and health. The dairy has two main competitors for labor – the sawmill and the mines. Both involve backbreaking work and ridiculously long hours. Not only that, but they are both exceedingly dangerous places to work. The upside to working there is that the pay is very good. In cold months, workers tend to go to the mines, to get out of the cold. In warm months, the sawmill is the workhouse of preference. The usual pattern is for someone to work for as long as they can take it at the higher-paid places, and head back to the dairy, where the work is easier, to rest and recuperate. How long they spend at each location is entirely up to them. Most of the workers think Brill has some sort of deal with the mill and mine owners that encourages this movement, perhaps as a way to avoid burning out the workers. It’s some sort of modern thinking that he can’t quite get a handle on, but certainly Brill mandates the moves after a certain time. Kentaro and his buddy will find out if they stay long enough. They’ll be moved on in due course, but it’s not like being fired. They’re very nice about it, and are always welcomed back when they return.

In the mid-afternoon, there is a small disturbance in the yard. A wagon has arrived loaded with stuff. One of the men on the wagon shouts at a few of the workers, who gather to help unload the stuff and put in a nearby shed. Deacon informs K&K that the man shouting orders is Charles, the other overseer. In answer to a question from Kentaro, he tells them that there are two milking sessions each day (a fact that they already knew, thanks to Harry’s briefing earlier). Each is followed by a meal, breakfast or supper, which is followed by one of the overseers and a randomly chosen worker going to town in the wagon. On the morning run, after delivering the deliver milk, their job is to buy food and such. On the evening run, they deliver milk and then go shopping for whatever dry goods the dairy requires – wood, paint, hardware, blankets, whatever. Each round trip takes about 90 minutes, depending on how much shopping there is to do.

Such is the intelligence that Deacon provides. Of course, all this is filtered and distilled down from several hours of near-constant conversation! Throughout the day, the overseers assign people to tasks and check their progress. Occasionally Mario comes out of the big house and talks to one of the other overseers, obviously giving orders, judging by the way the other overseers react to his conversation.

The four-man team gets three-quarters of the cubicle shed painted before Mario emerges from the main house to ring a large triangle. “Evening milking,” Deacon informs them, and the four saunter over to the milking parlour to do their bit to ensure that Karakas is kept well-supplied with milk. Ninety minutes later, they are eating supper with their new friends at a few tables put up in the yard especially for the purpose. Some of the men decline supper, leaving, presumably to see their friends and family, but at last 8 or 9 remain to share the supper.

When supper is complete, a few more who live in town, including Colton, leave the dairy. They’ll be sleeping at home tonight, and may or may not return tomorrow. In all, apart from K&K only half a dozen, including Deacon, remain to sleep in the bunkhouse over the veterinary stalls. The others are:

• Devin: A great guy – the “life of the party”. He’s been here for about 5 days.
• Steve: A close friend of Devin’s. Known him since childhood apparently. They always move from job to job together.
• Adriel: Kind of a bastard. Nasty person who got here 4 days ago. Nobody really likes him.
• Jamison: Arrived at the same time as Adriel, but not a friend. He’s a miller’s helper by trade, but the miller’s sick, and he’s left to avoid catching what he has. He’ll go back as soon as the miller’s healthy again.
• Brady: A very young man from a town in the far south of the County, near Freyl Keep. He is going to live with relatives in Ryell Pass, and wants to arrive with some cash in hand.

Kinnaka spends some time that evening trying to find out about Brill. What he finds out is that the workers know Brill as basically a good guy to work for. He does his best for them, always speaks kindly to them, provides good, hot food, and a dry place to sleep. He doesn’t skimp on things like tools and equipment for the workers. That being said, they don’t really know much about him personally. He’s the boss in the house who doesn’t mingle much. On special occasions he might come out and eat with them, and has been known to occasionally give a motivational speech when labor is short and work is backing up. On the less positive side, Mario is generally left to do the hiring and sending away of workers, but Brill is the one who deals with problems. Several workers tell a story about a worker who killed another over some dispute (their stories vary on this point), and it was Brill who came to collect the killer and take him to the Constable. The story goes that he was none too gentle about it. One version says the killer didn’t survive the trip to the Constable. Others say he survived, but took some time to heal. Either way, the worker was never seen again. On being pressed for particulars, however, all admit that they didn’t see the events in question; it’s a story passed from worker to worker.

This story leads to others of similar nature. One worker offers the story of some visitors that were sent away just ahead of crossbow bolts, but several others shout this guy down and say that that’s rubbish. There were no crossbow bolts. Just some people who showed up at the door, arguments ensued, and the men left. Nobody knows what the arguments were about though. A few other similar anecdotes are shared, but they all amount to the same thing – stories with no witnesses and no usable details.

23 Apr (evening)

Kinnaka bristles internally, but is intelligent enough to see the wisdom of it, and for a change heads off to look after the horses. The mindless task is therapeutic, and actually finds himself feeling somewhat better as he works.

Back inside the White Horse, Kentaro finds the owner, an overweight man in his 50’s with a fringe of white hair surrounding an otherwise bald scalp. His name, he says, is Nigel. Kentaro introduces himself, and asks the price of a long-term room rental, hoping to get lower rate than the daily price by doing so. The price Nigel quotes is still higher than he wishes to pay, so he haggles for a bit. This carries on for a little time until Nigel begins to realize that the half-giant is really not in a position to offer more. An innkeeper of long standing, Nigel knows that renting rooms for less than the customary price is better than having empty rooms, so he makes a deal whereby Kentaro and Kinnaka can stay at a sharply reduced rate in exchange for some work – chopping wood and that sort of thing.

Kentaro accepts the offer, an exchange of money and keys takes place, and he and Kinnaka are soon depositing their gear and freshening up in two small, gabled rooms in the attic. Nigel tells them they are free until morning, so they grab a bite to eat then head out to get the lay of the land.

Karakas is a small town, so it doesn’t take more than half an hour to complete the tour. They spot just two taverns, and select the cheaper, dirtier one of the two in which to start their “new life”. The name of the tavern is “The Troll in the Dark”, and a more appropriate name would have been tough to find, given the general appearance of the owner/bartender (a man named Ulrich) and the lack of decent light.

Kinnaka secures them a seat not too far from the low fire while Kentaro orders them some ale—a pint for Kentaro and a fill of his own mug for himself. They settle in to play the part of moody ne’er do wells out of a job, down on their luck, and willing to drink the night away.

It isn’t long before their presence and conversation draws a small crowd. There aren’t many who frequent “The Troll”, but soon all who do are gathered around the two “larger than life” characters fresh from the capital. Karakas is a small, provincial town at one of the distance fringes of the County. Its inhabitants are clearly keen to hear about their new capital. K&K soon find themselves besieged with questions from their new admirers.

Kinnaka provides answers filled with the utmost contempt and disdain for the City in general, the Chancellery in particular, and the denizens that call Greyhawk home. Kentaro voices the same opinion loudly, though with slightly less hate than Kinnaka. The locals agree wholeheartedly. Big city people! Pah! K&K are instantly very popular, and are besieged with requests to tell the stories of their travels.

Kinnaka is about to respond, when Kentaro starts to speak, in full story-telling mode, including lavish (and exaggerated) details about his recent history, with a special emphasis on the robbery on the road and the trip to find Dame Hakkima – the real reason they were fired. He spits into the fire when he gets to that part, emphasizing that there was nothing they could have done to prevent that unfortunate event. Why, they never even saw her!

For additional emphasis, Kinnaka shows them the rejection letter, now well thumbed and dogeared, obviously unfolded and re-folded frequently. Those gathered ‘round shake their heads in sympathy, but none of them can read, so they mutely accept his word that it represents what he says it does.

All in all, their plans go amazingly well. The locals buy them several rounds, which Kinnaka nurses and Kentaro ploughs through with reckless abandon, getting even chattier as the night wears on. Eventually, one of the locals asks K&K their intentions in town.

Kentaro answers with a slurred voice that they want to get a job as far from the influence of Greyhawk and the Chancellery as they can. He points out that they’ve had some luck being deputized in the past, a route he’s considering following now. The opinion of the gathered (and increasingly tipsy crowd) is that the Constable (Kevin) is short-handed, and they’re sure he’d welcome some help – if they can stand to work for a man with the personality of a gout-ridden octogenarian with two bad knees and a toothache, they humorously, if unhelpfully add.

Kentaro seems unsure about the advice but states that he is willing to look into it, so he’d like to know where he can find Kevin. Their new friends laugh as if Kentaro’s just made a great joke. The Guardhouse, of course! Where else would you find the Constable, ye great berk?

The half-giant lurches to his feet, and the men instantly fall silent. Sitting, it was obvious that Kentaro was a very large man. As he stands to his full height, the men feel suddenly intimidated, and look fearful. Have they gone too far? Is he angry enough to start trouble? Will he lash out at them? They won’t stand a chance!

“Gotta take a leak,” announces Kentaro, who starts to take a step and promptly falls flat on his face, fortunately missing the furniture as he does so. Kinnaka looks aghast, and several men rush to help him back to his feet. The elf takes it from there and herds his partner out the door, guiding their steps back toward the White Horse.

He is about to berate Kentaro for failing to control himself, when the half-giant meets his eye, smiles, winks, and stands on his own, walking steadily, with little hint that he has been drinking at all. Kinnaka stands for a moment flabbergasted. It was an act! And if he was completely fooled, he’s sure the men at the Troll will have been, too. He immediately gains a measure respect for his partner, and suggests that they get to bed. They have some chores to do and a job interview to fail in the morning. Kentaro agrees readily, pleased with his partner’s unspoken, but obvious approval of his work.

24 Apr

When they get downstairs, Nigel greets them in a friendly way, deposits a hearty breakfast on the table, and presents them with a series of tasks that will take most of the morning to accomplish. The two set to with a will.

Once outside, they get their first good look at Karakas in the daylight. It is a very clean, very well kept, very pretty little town built on the upper slopes of the foothills of the Abbor Alz, the small mountains (or large hills, depending on your point of view) that straddle the new County/Duchy border. Although neither is exactly sure where the border is, they know Karakas is not far from it.

Upon completion of their “to do” list, they return inside and receive lunch. It’s a slow day, and Nigel sits with them, trying to get a feeling for who they are and what their plans might be. They give him essentially the same story as they told in the Troll last night, with the same vehemence, but less volume, and Nigel wishes them well with the Constable. Both get the idea that he genuinely does wish them well; he’s not merely hoping they get an income so they can pay him more for their rooms. Kinnaka gets the distinct impression that Nigel is a sincerely good man.

Kentaro:

Ya know how ya usually are when you have authority and no one esle knows about it? Act like that durin the interview ok? Might ‘elp our cause.

Kinnaka, who is feeling better this morning than he has felt in a week or more, nods, but says nothing. The front door is closed, so Kentaro knocks. Instantly, he hears a loud bellow.

Kevin:

Open the damn thing, ye hairy bastard!

He opens the door and they get their first look at the constable (there’s no Chief Constable in this town). He is in his early twenties, is built like a bear, and has a full beard like a Cossack and a face as red as an apple.

Before Kentaro or Kinnaka can say anything, Kevin bellows again:

Yer strangers ‘ere, so I’ll give ye the benefit o’ the doubt once. Once, got it? Ye don’t bang on that door ever again, right? I’m fuckin’ hung over this mornin’. Hand me that bottle.

When he speaks, spittle flies like dandelion fluff in a high wind, and the strong smell of garlic, old fish, and stale sweat becomes much more pronounced. With his index finger, the nail of which is blackened, he indicates a large green bottle on the counter next to the door.

Kinnaka makes no effort to hide his disgust at the flying spittle, the smell, or the fact that the Constable is clearly not hung over – he is drunk.

Kentaro adopts a tone calculated to let Kevin know that he is mad at the insult but is willing to laugh it off):

Wot? Ya got bad knees or somethan? Couldn’t care ter show us in?

Kinnaka just looks at Kevin with contempt, glances back to Kenatro, and says, not quite under his breath:

You want to work for that?

Kevin:

Look, just ‘cause yer huge an’ all don’t mean ye get no leeway. I’ll kick yer hairy arses from here back t’ Greyhawk, bad knees an’ all, so don’t try me right?

Kentaro rolls his eyes and hands him the bottle:

Appreciate the warnin’. I’ll be sure ter keep that in mind.

Kinnaka:

Uh… right….. We are having no reason to be goin’ back zhere. We are wondering, however, if you are to be hafing a deputy job zhat iss open?

Kevin:

Thanks. ... And no.

Kinnaka:

No?

Kevin:

Yeah. No.

Kinnaka:

Why nod?

Kevin:

‘Cause I don’t fuckin’ like ye, that’s why.

Kinnaka:

I am fairing to see why zhat shourd matter?

Kevin:

‘Cause I fuckin’ said so, at’s why. ... ‘Ang on, ‘ang on. [He appears to be thinking hard.] ... No, yer right. ... Fine. Yer deputies. Congratulations. Don’t fuck nothin’ up.

Kinnaka:

Now, zhat is better. What are we being paid?

Kevin gets up suddenly and reaches unsteadily for something under the counter. He pulls up two plain tin badges and throws them on the counter. One lands on the counter and the other bounces onto the floor, where it lands with a metallic ring.

Kevin:

Now that depends on how well ye do, don’t it? Coupla likely sorts like ye, ye should do well. Go. Get patrolin’ the town.

Kinnaka takes the badge off the counter, leaving Kentaro to pick up the other one. Kentaro does so. Kevin doesn’t say anything else as he plunks himself back down in his chair. K&K shrug, and head out the door. As they leave, Kevin calls after them.

Kevin:

Remember, don’t fuck nothin’ up!

Rather than answering, Kinnaka suggests to Kentaro that they head back to the Troll. Kentaro agrees, and despite the fact that it is barely an hour past lunchtime, they soon find themselves back at the Troll, where they exhort Ulrich to set ‘em up – they have new jobs to celebrate. Ulrich warns them that he doesn’t run tabs; they’ll have to pay as they go. So they put some of their money on the bar, and start downing drinks at a steady pace.

In actuality, they dump away more than they swallow, and resume the drunken act they began so effectively last night. As the hours pass, some people come and go, though only a few stay to listen to their stories, and none do so for very long. It seems that K&K are rapidly losing their “unique” quality!

About 6:00, there are few other patrons in the pub to converse with, so they order some supper. Just after Ulrich delivers the meat and potatoes platter, Kevin shows up. The Constable is very angry, a bit less drunk than when they last saw him, and just as nasty.

Kevin:

What th’ blue blazes d’ ye think yer doin’ ‘ere? ... Nah. Don’t e’en bother answerin’ ‘at. Hand over ‘em badges. Yer done!

Kentaro:

Yeh’ve got ter be kiddin me! It’s our employeer Kinnaka! … [to Kevin:] ‘Ave a seat?

Kinnaka:

Why? What’d we do?

Kevin:

Shut up. ‘And ‘em over.

Kentaro:

What ya so mad about? There’s no trouble…

Kevin:

‘Ere fuckin’ well will be ‘less ye give ‘em up. Now, like.

Kinnaka looks for his badge, finds it, and tosses it on the table.

Kentaro burps, then passes his over as well:

Ah, ya’ve got a stick up yer ass ya do. ‘Ere.

Kevin gathers up the badges, then holds them up:

Yeh? Ye wanna coupla badges up yers?

Kentaro:

Not really my idea of a good time.

Kevin:

Not what I ‘eard. ... Now ‘en, ye lads keep outa trouble.

With that caution, he turns and leaves. The few people in the pub briefly fall silent, but shortly resume their normal conversations. The distraction, while entertaining enough, wasn’t sufficiently interesting to occupy the patrons’ thoughts for long.

Kentaro:

Well ‘at was short lived eh?

Kinnaka:

Werr, zhat’s anover fine mess you got we into, Kentaro!

Kentaro:

I’ve gotten ya into? This wos yer idea ya aggitated elf!

Kinnaka:

Wot? Drinkin’. You’re arways drinking. Not what we do.

Kentaro:

I’m on da job. And ‘ats why I’m drinking. It’s why yer drinking too, I might add!

Ulrich shows up to deliver a tureen of buttered vegetables:

Ar, mark me words, yez better off. ‘E’s a right bastard, ‘at one is. Anyway, folks ‘uz startin’ t’ call ye ‘ippocrites, ‘ey wuz.

Kinnaka:

They was? I mean they were? And why word zhat be?

Ulrich:

Hah! Ye shows up, all down on ‘at ‘ere Chancelry, an’ ‘en ye go an’ git a Chancelry job right off. It ain’t right, ye know.

Kinnaka:

Werr we have no ozher options, we don’t. Unress you know of some.

Kentaro interrupts their conversation with a comment directed at Kinnaka:

Ya know he probably didn’t like you the most. Wot with dat mouth o yers!

Kinnaka:

My …. Your …. Oh … never mind.

Kentaro winks at Kinnaka in that “just kidding” kind of way. Ulrich shakes his head, turns back to Kinnaka, and continues as if the interruption had never happened:

Now ‘at I don’t. Not really. Few folks’ve got gold t’ spare t’ ‘ire ‘elp. I’ll ask about, but don’t ‘spect much.

Kinnaka:

Kentaro’s the Giant. Me? I pray songs, write songs, and fight. All I do.

Ulrich:

Entertainer, eh? Let’s ‘ear what ye got.

Kinnaka nods and although he doesn’t have his portable Junanagen (a 17-stringed instrument that somewhat resembles a harp or zither built on a tabletop) with him, closes his eyes briefly and concentrates to settle his mind. While he does so, Kentaro addresses Ulrich.

Kentaro:

Ya don’t want dat! B’lieve me, if yer having a good day ya don’t want ter ‘ear ‘im sing!

Before Ulrich can respond, Kinnaka begins to sing a very sad song about two working-class men dying of starvation. Even without musical accompaniment, the effect is nearly immediate. Emotionally, the air is sucked from the room, laughter stops, conversation flags, and one man gets up to leave.

Kinnaka sings for about 10 seconds before Ulrich jumps in:

‘Ey! Knock ‘at shit off! Ye wanna drive me customers away fer good? ... Don’t e’er do ‘at agin, ye hear?

Kinnaka sighs again and drains his drink:

I wirr reave zhen. Shitsurie and otsukare.

Kentaro:

Ya know I told ya ‘hat would happen.

Ulrich:

Ye ne’er said ‘e’d do ‘at.

With that, Ulrich leaves, shaking his head and muttering to himself.

Kentaro:

So … wot we gonna do next?

Kinnaka:

I am to my room going. You, I zhink wirr be here staying and drinking!

Kentaro:

Ah … We have work ter do in da monring. I won’t be out ‘at late.

Kinnaka leaves, but doesn’t actually head straight back to the White Horse. Instead, he first spends several hours walking around town and its outskirts, enjoying what Nature’s paintbrush has to offer. He also uses this time to familiarize himself with two of the more important structures in Karakas, at least to hm and Kentaro — the broken down shack with the blue roof that will serve as the dead drop site and the Temple of Hestia where they will find and make chalk marks to identify that something is to be picked up. While Kinnaka is so engaged, Kentaro resumes his act at the Troll.

With Kinnaka out of the picture, Kentaro finds it easier to gather a crowd, and soon finds himself with plenty of people to complain about Kevin with. He finds this an easy target, with lots of people willing to offer opinions. To the inevitable comments of “sorry ye got fired, mate”, he simply comments that Kinnaka’s taking it pretty hard. It’s not his fault, he was brought up to believe you’ve got to have a job to have respect. Let’s face it; elf culture just sucks.

After a while, the conversation about jobs and employment possibilities starts going in circles. After the third lap, it has become clear to Kentaro that there are really only four options in and near town:

1. A riding stable that is always looking for people to muck stalls, and do odd jobs.
2. A dairy farm that frequently hires day workers.
3. A sawmill that is constantly on the lookout for new talent.

1. A silver mine that is permanently in need of heavy laborers.

With little else of interest happening, Kentaro excuses himself around 10 bells, and returns to the White Horse. He listens briefly at Kinnaka’s door, and is surprised to hear nothing. The elf must have finally gone to bed early!

He briefly congratulates himself on outlasting his partner for what is probably the first time in their relationship, then goes to bed. When Kinnaka returns from his walk half an hour later, he is unsurprised to hear the sound of tortured snoring coming through the door. He reminds himself to one day find some potion or talisman that will cure him of that incredibly rude and annoying anti-social habit.

Kinnaka shows up early at Kentaro’s room. If anything, the half-giant looks worse than he did yesterday. He smiles sheepishly and informs his disapproving partner that Crym’s flagon works very well indeed. He notes that Kinnaka is wearing his new cloak pin, but chooses not to comment on it. Kinnaka’s apparently not having one of his better days, and Kentaro doesn’t want to rock the boat too early. It’s already going to be a long day.

Ten minutes later, they are eating a large, decent breakfast. Fifteen minutes after that, they are standing in the Port, looking at the Gale Force, a bfrand new, sleek, fast-looking vessel (a sloop, its Captain informs them) that casts off in about two hours, bound for Peculiar Manor. They quickly arrange passage for themselves and their horses. They are due to drop anchor in the mid-afternoon.

Right on schedule, the Gale Force nestles quietly alongside the small boat dock in Peculiar Harbor. K&K lead their horses down the gangplank, following a crewmember’s directions to a decent overnight lodging house. Peculiar Manor is fairly small for a city, and both are surprised to find the place very well appointed and comfortable. The food is excellent as well.

They spend some time wandering the town, but don’t really find much to entertain themselves, and both are in bed early.

17 Apr

Even with an early bedtime, dawn comes far too quickly for Kentaro, although Kinnaka has long been awake in his room, sitting cross-legged on the bed, staring out the window at the view down a major thoroughfare through town. This early, there are few people up and about, so he has few distractions as he watches the dawn break. The night has been worse to him than usual, dropping his mood a few notches lower.

A very short time later, K&K indulge in a vast breakfast spread that is no less tasty for its remarkable size, and having finished that to the last morsel, they saddle up and begin the eastward trek. They ride mostly in silence; Kinnaka brooding, Kentaro afraid to say anything for fear of driving the elf into deeper despair than he is already in.

It’s around 45 miles to the next major town – Marsh Keep, so they fully expect to be on the road for two full days. During their ride, both are surprised at the heavy and increasing presence of Patrols on the roads, at least until Kinnaka recalls that Marsh Keep has been selected as the site of the new Defender Headquarters. Neither know whether the new Defender Colonel has fully set up shop there yet, but the significant number of Defenders on the roads bears witness to the proximity of their headquarters.

The weather is good to them today, being unseasonably warm. Typically one wouldn’t expect to find a day in the upper 60’s for another month or so, but neither complains. It’s a completely pleasant day to ride. Kentaro wishes he could enjoy it more, but his partner’s dour mood puts a damper on even such a fine day.

18 Apr

Kinnaka’s is up early and grumbling loud enough to awaken Kentaro from a deep sleep. The half-giant gets up reluctantly to find that yesterday’s pleasant weather is old news. Last night the temperature took a nosedive, dropping nearly 30 degrees between sundown and sunrise. The morning arrives with a light frost, overcast skies, and a freshening breeze. They’ll be on the road for the better part of the day. They’ll be lucky to arrive at Marsh Keep ahead of the rain. Or snow – at this point, the jury’s still out on which way the precipitation might go.

They’re lucky as far as the weather goes, but Kentaro doesn’t feel lucky. Although he doesn’t hear the first rumble of thunder until he is putting the horses up for the night in the inn stable, Kinnaka’s mood has weighed on them both like an anchor for the entire day. He refuses to speak unless it’s to find fault with something, and any small disagreement is likely to cause an outburst of emotion vehement enough to put Crym herself in a bad mood.

The only good news is that whatever the weather has in store tonight will be kept at bay by a heavy roof and a roaring fire. He and Kinnaka are still sulking through a dinner of a hearty stew, bread, and ale when the first thunderclaps make the windows rattle. It’s early in the season for a thundershower, but nobody told Zeus, and he has unleashed his fury in ways unseen in several seasons.

The storm is violent, deafening, and very brief. Half an hour later it has settled into a steady rain that would likely leave them stranded in a muddy quagmire if they weren’t traveling by one of the County’s primary roads. “Storm like this,” thinks Kentaro, sitting in the comfort of an overstuffed chair by the fire in the inn’s common room, “makes Kinnaka seem almost pleasant.” He smiles to himself, enjoying the witticism at his morose partner’s expense, when suddenly, the front door flies open with a crash, the wet handle torn from the hand of the young Patrolman by a strong gust of wind. The lad smiles sheepishly and apologizes to the barman, then scans the room and spots K&K by the fire. He moves toward them with a purposeful stride, shedding water in sheets as he does so.

He asks them their names, a question that is met by a barked answer from Kinnaka, but it doesn’t phase the Patrolman, for whom the question was a mere formality anyway. He was given descriptions, and no others he has seen tonight measure up by a long chalk. Having assured himself that they are the people he is looking for, he hands a sealed envelope to Kentaro (even though the elf is actually nearer to him), bids them a pleasant evening, and departs, taking more care with the door this time.

Kentaro offers the envelope to Kinnaka, but Kinnaka waves him off. Kentaro opens it, finding inside a few extra identification documents (including a very terse letter of dismissal from the Chancellery addressed to Kinnaka), and a note from Tovish that lets them know that Sir Charles’ seneschal and castellan are both on board with the ruse. If anyone needs confirmation of their employ in the household of the Baronet of Kilma, they will have such from the Baronet’s two most senior servants.

Pleased despite himself, Kinnaka takes the papers from Kentaro, intending to add them to those he brought with him from Greyhawk. He will put them to good use in this forthcoming mission.

19 Apr

Kentaro wakes up to the sound of continued steady rain and is surprised. Generally Kinnaka wakes him up around dawn, but although that time passed an hour or more ago, there is no sign of him. Kentaro crosses the hall and bangs on Kinnaka’s door, and is greeted with a gutteral sound. He opens the door to find the elf lying on his back on the bad, hands behind his head, staring at the ceiling.

It takes him at least 10 minutes to talk Kinnaka out of the bed, and practically has to force him to mount his horse. He has never seen Kinnaka so low. To Kentaro’s credit, he does try everything he can think of to cheer his friend up, but Kinnaka is in such a bad mood that the exact opposite happens, and before long, both are riding through a storm of increasing intensity thinking terrible thoughts about the other.

By the time bedtime rolls around, the rain has tapered off to a steady downpour, and Kentaro is relieved to roll himself into his sodden bedroll and put the sight of Kinnaka’s clouded face behind him for the night.

20 Apr

The next day fares no better, either for the weather or for Kinnaka’s mood. Kentaro is starting to wonder if his partner’s mood is tied to the weather. Bad weather equals bad mood, but he knows that is not the case; just an unhappy coincidence on this occasion.

They spend the day as they did yesterday; in heavy rain, prone to arguments and recriminations, happy for a sullen silence because at least that means there will be no more harsh words.

It also doesn’t help that once again they are sleeping rough. Kentaro sighs as he falls asleep, promising himself that tomorrow will be better.

21 Apr

Tomorrow isn’t better, at least as far as Kinnaka’s mood goes. The rain has stopped, but the extra moisture in the ground, combined with the quickly warming air combine to make for a thick fog. Not exactly pea soup, but visibility is severely limited. Fortunately, they are riding on one of the County’s major thoroughfares, so the can’t get lost. At least not immediately. Maybe it’s the slow pace demanded by the fog, or perhaps it’s just a continuation of whatever has been eating him lately, but Kinnaka’s depressed and depressing attitude is really starting to get to Kentaro, who begins to wonder for the first time if it wouldn’t be better just to knock Kinnaka out. These days the elf is only really tolerable to be around when he’s asleep. Maybe an unconscious Kinnaka would be equally unobjectionable?

They are able to pick the pace up gradually through the morning as the sun burns off the morning fog, and just sort of lunchtime, they reach a large river that runs north to south. The road turns south to parallel the river, but their path is straight east. A ferry site is set up at the turning point, and Kentaro negotiates their fare across. He has to. Kinnaka is wrapped in ennui so deep that he is incapable of communicating civilly with anyone.

The passage goes well, but leaving behind the road means K&K are now faced with a muddy, sodden plain to cross. They put the effort off a little by stopping for lunch, hopefully to give the sun a little more time to dry the field. Whether the pause makes any difference at all is impossible to tell. They are forced to travel in a terribly meandering path to avoid the muddiest areas and find the driest ground to travel on. Footing is poor. Movement is at less than a snail’s pace. They horses tire quickly and have to be rested often. They make little progress before nightfall, and go to bed hoping for a warmer, dryer day tomorrow.

22 Apr

The following morning begins the same way the previous day did, with a fog to rival yesterday’s. Kinnaka seems to think that the gods are punishing them, either for reasons of their own, or due to Kentaro conspiring with them to hinder their mission. Just to be on the safe side, he berates both Kentaro and the gods for a thousand real and imagined slights. Under ordinary circumstances, Kentaro would quickly tire of such unfair treatment and take action to put a stop to it, but faced with a partner who has uttered about two dozen words combined over the past three days, he actually considers it to be a serious improvement, and let’s Kinnaka get on with it.

The fog actually doesn’t do much to impede their forward movement, as the muddy, unforgiving ground ensures that they can’t move any faster than they could yesterday afternoon. Fortunately, the day warms up more quickly than it did yesterday, and by mid-morning, it is gone, though it quickly becomes apparent that they have wandered too far south. They immediately correct course hoping they haven’t gone too far afield.

The second consecutive day of warm, dry air helps the plain dry out somewhat. Forward progress is still slow, with the upshot being that they don’t reach the road until almost nightfall, which means they have managed to travel just 15 miles in a day and a half of slogging through the tough, muddy conditions. Worse, the mile markers tell them that their unintended southward journey will take hours to correct. They probably won’t reach Karakas before sundown.

Despite the setback, Kentaro goes to bed happy, knowing that this long, tedious journey is nearly over. Kinnaka lies awake, wondering why so many sleep in warm houses with servants to wait on them, while he lies in a field, unable to feel his fingers, while a great lump of a partner lies comatose next to him, snoring at a volume that he would be hard pressed to make himself heard over were there anyone else around to talk to.

23 Apr

Kentaro wakes up in the morning understandably happy. They are once again traveling on a road, on a fine, sunny, warm, cloud-free, rain-free, fog-free, mud-free day with only a slight breeze to ruffle the tall grass beside the road. True, Kinnaka continues to prattle on about the general unfairness of life, but at least he hasn’t slipped back into his impenetrable silence. Unless something untoward happens on the road, they should reach their goal, Karakas, by nightfall. Yes, in all ways, it looks like it’s going to be a good day.

And for once, the promise of a good day ahead is fulfilled, as K&K arrive at the outskirts of the small town of Karakas just a few minutes after sundown.

Kinnaka sits very still on his new land. “His” land! As if you can own land! Humans have such odd ideas. But the human concept of land ownership means that they mostly stay away, leaving him, even this close to the city, in more or less undisturbed peace, a situation he greatly treasures. He rarely spends any time in the city unless he absolutely can’t help it, which is blessedly seldom. He far prefers to observe the million tiny miracles that nature shares each spring: new growth, new life, cleansing rains, brisk winds, and earthy smells. For this reason he recently borrowed against his future salary to purchase 10 acres of woodland in an unpopulated strip of forest east of Greyhawk, and for this reason he is presently sitting very still on that land, watching a pair of blue jays doing their best to ensure the propagation of their beautiful species.

The morning is incredibly peaceful. Currently, his closest neighbors are extremely old, so they don’t get out much. They are apparently friendly, but their displays of friendliness are limited to casual waves as he walks past their house on the way to his. Their lack of mobility has thus far prevented any unwanted visits to his house.

Not that would be much for them to visit at the moment. He has grand plans for the place, but thus far, only two rooms are under construction – a common purpose room to the front and a kitchen to the rear. The walls and fireplace are nearly complete, and the roof will be going up over the next few days. Soon enough the doors and windows will be installed, at which time he will truly be able to call the place “home”.

In true elven fashion, he will continue expanding his abode, a long-term project scheduled to take years to complete. The original two-room structure will eventually be subsumed into a huge dwelling that incorporates as many natural and artistic elements as he can imagine and afford. Although he is pleased with his plan, it is far from his mind at the moment. How can one think of buildings with all there is to observe just steps beyond the construction zone?

The transitional seasons are easily his favorite times of year, and spring is, albeit barely, underway! The annual winter frosts and snows are gradually fading, beginning the transition to what will eventually be summer heat and storms. Winter will retreat gradually, giving ground in the daytime first, but staging counterattacks each night to reclaim lost ground, though its victories will be progressively shorter lived. This early in the struggle, the nighttime temperatures still belong more to winter than summer, but it’s been a long campaign. Winter has been at the front for a long time, and is growing tired while summer has been resting quietly, conserving its strength so it can sneak forth to pry control from winter’s weakening grip. Soon enough, winter will give up entirely, rest for a few months while summer enjoys its victory, then re-take the field with renewed vigor. And so it goes.

The eternal ebb and flow of the seasons never fails to fascinate Kinnaka. He has spent many long hours enjoying his solitude, sitting quietly and watching nature’s ceaseless battle. In fact, he is enjoying it quite well this morning, when a messenger wearing a Chancellery uniform and bearing a summons from Dame Permas rides up to interrupt his solitude. He is to report to the Lord Mayor’s gate at 9 bells.

Kinnaka ignores the messenger for what seems like 5 minutes before he lazily looking at him:

Hai, Prease be terring Dame Permas zhat I wirr be arriving by 9 berrs.

The messenger nods and rides off.

Kinnaka reluctantly abandons the blue jays and returns to his soon-to-be house to prepare for the day. He makes the assumption that if received a summons, then Kentaro probably did, too. With that thought in mind, he leaves home with enough time to spare that he will have time to stop by that pathetic inn that Kentaro calls home these days, make sure his partner is awake, and still get to the appointment ten minutes early.

Kentaro is sleeping late when a loud banging on the door interrupts the peaceful slumber he is enjoying. He opens his eyes and tries to focus on the ceiling. It’s not a familiar ceiling. Where is it? He considers and discards several options before keying on the correct answer, but when it occurs to him, he knows it is right. The ceiling belongs to a room at the Dog and Whistle, a small pub in the northeast part of the Hub, his new favorite after-hours hangout.

He moves to get up and realizes that his legs hurt. They are cramped from being tucked up all night in an attempt to prevent them from hanging over the end of the bed. That’s odd. He usually sleeps on the floor. He’ll be glad when his own house has reached that stage in its construction that will allow him to stay overnight there, which should be in a couple of weeks. He’s looking forward to being a homeowner. Especially if that means he can have a house built to his scale. High ceilings. Tall doors. Oversized furniture. In the woods, to allow him to enjoy nature and the animals that he loves so much. Oh, and having Kinnaka as a neighbor! It will truly be wonderful. To say that he is looking forward to his move-in day would be an understatement of epic proportions.

Glancing at the angle of the sunlight streaming through the window, he can tell than not many hours have passed since he left the pub’s common room. He makes a mental note to himself—make sure the builders install proper shutters to cover his own windows.

The light makes his head hurt. Yeah, he overdid it a bit last night, something he rarely does. But that nice newly married couple were celebrating with great vigor, and the man whose rich uncle had recently left him a small windfall bought a few rounds. Oh yeah, he enjoyed it, but he’ll continue pay the penalty this morning until he can find a healer to make the pounding in his head stop. Thinking of the pounding in his head makes him remember the pounding on the door, so he heaves his huge bulk out of bed and begins to shamble toward the source of his annoyance.

On the way to the door Kentaro pauses, thinking back to last night. Memories come in flashes. He sang a bit too loudly; that’s no problem. He smiles. He laughed a bit too readily. That’s not bad. He shakes his head and smiles a little more. No, he has nothing embarrassing or awkward to live down this morning.

Suddenly he loses his smile as his recollections focus on the moment he propositioned the sweet, pretty young lass who seemed to be interested until she stopped to consider the possible ramifications of accepting the advances of a man of Kentaro’s size. He remembers all too well, the look on her face when she came to the realization that physically, the odds of her and the huge man before her actually getting together in a physical way were pretty slim.

Kentaro shakes his head and sighs. Such moments fill his waking moments with pain and give him far too much to think about in those times between going to bed and actually falling asleep. Yes, great size does come at a cost…

He sighs, thrusts the memory aside, and completes the trip to the door. The banging is relentless, but it stops suddenly when he throws open the door, mouth open. He is fully prepared to let the perpetrator of the disturbance know exactly what he thinks of being awoken at this ungodly hour, and in such a bestial way, but the words die on his lips when he sees the uniform the man wears. He barely manages a nod when he hears the courier’s message. Dame Permas requests his presence at the Lord Mayor’s Gate at 9 bells.

Kentaro:

Ah…ya have ter knock so loud? I’ll be der. Thanks fer givin’ me a long time to think about it.

The man nods and leaves.

Kentaro assumes that Kinnaka has gotten the message as well, which probably means the elf will be stopping by to make sure he is ready. To that end, he vows to make sure he is ready. He quickly prepares for the day and gets downstairs with plenty of time for breakfast. That’s very good. Breakfast will be very welcome.

After breakfast, the half-giant steps outside into the cool, but warming, early morning air. He glances down the road and sees Kinnaka just now coming up the road, headed in the direction of the tavern. He smiles internally. Made it!

Kentaro:

Alright Kinnaka?

Kinnaka:

Ohayou. I am grad to be seeing you up and out. I was not expecting such good ruck on such an irr-farring morning.

Kentaro:

Well, we’re not exactly workin fer em yet are we? Gotta look good fer em. Plus I didn’t want ya ter be lookin’ helpless wiatin fer me. How’s the house going?

Kinnaka:

Wizhout a cran around, it wirr be slow going. It is to be going fine, zhough. I have occasions of brightness when I zhink of the final phase. Zhen I see … zhis ….zhis … bright.

Kentaro isn’t sure how to answer that, so he doesn’t. Instead, the two turn toward the Lord Mayor’s Promenade. They have plenty of time to make it to the Compound in time for their meeting.

It’s now 9:10 a.m. Kentaro and Kinnaka have been standing at the gate for 15 minutes or so. Kinnaka is in a foul mood. His credentials should have given him free access to the Lord Mayor’s Compound, but the gate guard is as adamant as he is uncommunicative. They will have to wait here. It’s insulting! Kentaro has ceased trying to calm down his friend. Some things just aren’t meant to be…

Finally, there is movement, but it’s not the kind of success they expect. A Knight of the Ram they have never seen before arrives. He stops at the gate and all fall silent as he slowly looks at everyone, a very serious, stern look on his face.

Knight:

You are Kinnaka and Kentaro. [It is a statement, not a question.] … No, no need to answer that. You could be none other. Guardsmen, these are your men.

The taller of the two Guards hands each of them a note bearing Dame Permas’ seal. Each opens the scroll and reads:

I regret to inform you that your evaluation period has ended unsuccessfully. Your employment with this office has officially been terminated. You are hereby ordered to surrender your identification medals and voucher plaques to the guard.

The signature displays Dame Permas complete title and terminates with a very large flourish. Having seen her signature before, neither doubts its authenticity.

Guard:

Gentlemen, your ID please.

Kinnaka’s eyes flare and he tries, unsuccessfuly to bite his tongue:

Unsucc … We were …

At this point, he gives up trying to speak and settles instead for throwing his credentials and medal to the floor before them and storming out. He heads back down the Lord Mayor’s Promenade at a rapid pace, muttering things to himself in Elvish that would make his mother blush and his sister faint.

Kentaro:

And ter think I got here on timer fer this. Is there anything we can do?

Guard:

Yes. You can surrender your identification, as your friend did.

Kentaro:

Can we at least have an explanation? We didn’t fail at a single thing that we did!

Guard:

Not fer me t’ say, mate. Th’ boss ‘as spoken, an’ she didn’t see fit t’ fill me in.

Kentaro:

Can I see yer boss? We think we did alright.

Guard:

Sorry, mate. Orders is orders, an’ my orders is that ye don’t get in.

Kentaro heaves a heavy sigh and hands in his credentials:

’Ere.

Guard:

Sorry ‘bout this, mate.

He really does appear to feel badly about it as he pocket’s Kentaro’s ID and medal, picks up Kinnaka’s, and returns with the Knight and the other guard to wherever they came from, though by this time Kentaro is already hurrying after his partner. He has to hurry very quickly indeed, as Kinnaka hasn’t slowed his pace. Thus they are nearly across the High Market, aiming for the east gate nearest their new properties, before he catches up, though he doesn’t have time to say anything before they both hear a high-pitched voice hailing them. They turn to see Crym approaching, a huge smile on her face.

Crym:

Good morning, boys! Very good morning!

Kentaro:

Well it’s good ter see ya Crym. We jus got fired.

Crym:

Oh, I heard. Sad, that. Very sad.

Kentaro stops for several seconds, wondering how Crym could possibly have already heard of their firing, which after all, happened only about a minute ago. While Kentaro process that information, Kinnaka makes a supreme effort to calm himself, and succeeds. He manages several longs, slow, loud breaths, then looks at the halfling and manages a smile.

Kinnaka:

Ohayou gozaimasu, Crym. However, I must find faurt wizh your morning reading skirrs.

Crym smiles and looks at Kinnaka:

And well you may, Master Kinnaka! And well you may. But that might change. Yes, it might. It just might. [She smiles again.]

Kinnaka:

I am not understanding how you so happy with zhese humans. Zhey have no … um ….. face ….. no … honor.

Crym:

Oh, some do. [She looks around and drops her voice.] Lord Tar does. Oh, he does. [Her voice regains its normal volume.] Come with me. Come on! [With which, she starts walking back toward the direction they just came from.]

Kinnaka:

Where to?

Crym stops and looks back:

Why, to meet your new boss, of course. The new boss! C’mon. Can’t be late. Nope, that would never do.

Kentaro:

Eh? Quit jokin’!

Kinnaka:

What?

Crym laughs, and as they walk speaks as quietly as possible, which is fairly quietly. The High Market is not a terribly busy place:

You did well. Both did well. Lord Tar knows it. He wants you. Wants you to work for him. Privately. Not public. Needed you publicly fired. No connections. No connections with Chancellery. Now shush. Not for all ears. Not for everyone. Come. This way.

Kinnaka smiles for the first time since early morning, his internal estimation of this Lord Tar moving up several notches:

This is rike Jiriki giving up zhe Song of Ten Suns to acquire zhe Island of Wishing in shent. Yes, very good.

Crym tips her head to the side and looks momentarily confused, but shrugs it off and continues heading south along the Lord Mayor’s Promenade to the Low Market, walking fairly quickly, with Kinnaka and Kentaro in tow. She turns right in the Low Market, following a large road that leads out of the Market to the southwest. About half a block later, she enters a small tavern known as the Split Cape Tavern, located on the west side of the street. K&K follow her inside. Crym has a quick word with the bartender, who responds with a nod and shouts something into the back room. She then heads to a back table and grabs a seat.

Crym:

Time for a snack. A little snack. After that, you meet your new boss.

Two serving girls bustle out from the back room. One bears a tray of bread and cold meats. The other has a cup of coffee, an oversized mug of coffee, a cup of tea, and pair of hot towels. Kinnaka sits and very nearly smiles as he picks up one of the towels and uses it to clean his hands and face. Kentaro stands in disbelief, the message finally coming home that he just might be able to pay for his house after all! He smiles a little with the realization, then sits and smiles more broadly when he sees the huge mug of steaming coffee.

Kentaro:

Is the big one fer me?

Crym smiles:

Help yourself. All yours. Yes, all …

She stops suddenly as Kinnka starts to sing a discordant harmony that stumbles and crawls into a smoothing harmonic sound. It is very disconcerting, and even Crym seems to lose her positive attitude, settling instead for simply sitting silently and staring at the elf wonderingly.

Kentaro:

He does that alot. Don ‘t let it get ya down. Ya can almost block it out, but it’s real hard.

Crym actually has tears in her eyes:

It’s so … sad.

KInnaka:

Somezhing Master Iwakuro tought me. It’s a slow process, but works werr.

Crym looks doubtful, but settles in to drink her coffee. The three chat and eat time, but after about 15 mintues, Crym shoos them out.

Crym:

Off you go then. Off you go. Across the street. The Golden Wheel. Ignore the man in the lobby. Ignore him. Go to room 412. Got it? Golden Wheel, 4 – 1 – 2. You’ll see a man named Tovish. Tovish. He works for Lord Tar.

Kinnaka wipes his hands and stands:

Hai.

The Golden Wheel stands across the street, though K&K may well have walked right past it without even noticing it, so well does it blend in with the buildings that abut it to either side. Externally, it appears to be a very average establishment, an appearance that the interior does absolutely nothing to dispel. Unusually for a hotel, there is no common room, restaurant, bar, or any other amenities, just a small entry area with a worn wooden floor. The furnishings in the entry are limited to two rather large but dusty plants in huge pots, a worn pine desk, and an armless chair on which sits an ancient man in a dirty tunic. As they enter, he is writing something in a large book with a hand that shakes like a flag in a gale. He has a nasty cough, and his eyesight is apparently poor.

Following Crym’s directions, they ignore the man at the desk and instead climb the stairs until they reach the third floor. At the third floor landing, they turn left and head down the hallway. As they approach room 412, a friendly-looking youth emerges from within. He looks at the two large men, smiles, and tips his hat, “Best o’ luck t’ ye, gents. Th’ Weasel’s in a right foul mood this mornin’.” And with that cryptic utterance, he squeezes past them in the narrow hallway, and begins whistling quietly to himself as he turns right at the stairway and dashes downstairs at a very rapid pace, the sound of his boots on the wooden steps fading quickly.

Kinnaka shakes his head and knocks on the door. A sharp voice calls out for him to “C’min.”

Kentaro whispers:

‘Ere we go…don’t piss em off ok?

Kinnaka raises an eyebrow:

ZHose wizhout….. never mind. We go in.

Suiting actions to words, he pushes the door open and the pair step inside and steal a quick glance around. Seeing as they know they are clearly in a hotel, K&K could easily be forgiven for expecting to see a hotel room behind door 412. The reality is that the room bears no resemblance whatsoever to a hotel room. It is an office. An office sparsely furnished with the cheapest available desk and chair, and two extra chairs for visitors. Neither looks as if it will support much weight. It doesn’t really matter because the tall, skinny, blond young man sitting behind the desk doesn’t ask them to sit. It occurs to both that the man in the hallway provided a very good description of him. He does indeed resemble a weasel—a weasel in dire need of a haircut, or at least a decent hairstyle. “The Weasel” gets down to business immediately:

Tovish:

Ah, Kentaro an’ Kinnaka, me new drones. Ye can call me “Tovish” er “sir”, as ye prefer. I’m sure ye know by now that ye officially work fer me, meanin’ ye unofficially work fer Lord Tar Larson o’ Maven. I assume ye know who ‘e is?

Kinnaka:

Hai.

Kentaro:

I ‘eard of ‘im.

Tovish:

‘At’s great. Now fergit ye ever ‘eard it, ‘cause ye’ll not ‘ave need of it any more after today. Got i?

Kinnaka:

Hai.

Kentaro:

‘Eard of who?

Tovish grins, but the smile doesn’t reach his eyes:

‘At’s real good. I can work with ye. Now ‘en, let’s set some ground rules, shall we? …

Tovish spends the next 10 minutes explaining their new situation. There’s no need to repeat his speech verbatim, but his primary points are as follows:

1. They have no official title or position.
2. They have no actual job description. Their duties will vary widely.
3. They will generally come here to receive their task, but may occasionally be re-directed while in the field
4. They will be given a generic voucher that contains traveling money; it will be refilled as needed, provided they don’t abuse the privilege
5. They are free to use whatever cover story they feel will best satisfy their mission needs. Tovish’s office will provide whatever cover story they need.
6. Officially Tovish’s office has no connection with the Chancellery. It has no official standing at all. It doesn’t exist.

1. Therefore, and most importantly, K&Kwill never use Lord Tar’s name while in the field.

After he wraps up his soliloquy, Tovish says he needs to know whether K&K are capable of playing rough when necessary. He’s not talking about them being assassins—that’s not something they will be asked to do, but the mission may dictate that occasional rough stuff is required.

Kentaro:

Playin rough? Will that be neccessary all the time or just most of it?

Tovish:

What, ye ain’t got th’ stomach fer it?

There ain’t much that can upset my stomach. I’m up fer it … plus I got a house ter pay fer.

Kinnaka:

I have been trained in the Elvish arts of war. Zhough, I am not throughry famiriar wizh arr aspects we accounted for ourserves quite werr in the forest of zhe Janquir Varrey.

Tovish:

Yeah, I ‘eard that. Well, t’ answer yer question, it’ll ‘appen. Not all th’ time, I ‘ope. Yer job’ll decide. I jess need t’ know if yer capable, an’ ye answered ‘at.

Tovish goes on to outline their first mission:

The recently executed leader of Dame Hakkima’s killers was named Kithmar, aka “Spider”. He claimed the murder was a killing for profit, nothing more. Truth mages found no deception in the statement. It may have been a simple contract killing as Spider was concerned, but Lord Tar has doubts. In interrogation before he died, Spider provided a name and basic description of the guy who hired him. He’s called Brill, aka “Sponge”. There is no information available about Brill in the Greyhawk archives, so they sought out information from other locations. His name only came up once in official records, when he paid bail for a man named Anaxagoras, aka “Ax” when he was arrested in Karakas a few years back.

Given Ax’s recent activities, Lord Tar believes it likely that there may be more to Brill and his organization than the Chancellery knows about. He wants K&K to find Brill and get as much information out of him as they can about his organization. This is not an official investigation. This is information gathering any way K&K see fit to get that information. Bottom line is, Lord Tar wants information.

The only description they have of Brill is that he is a large, powerfully built, blond man of middle age. He used to meet Spider in the Ruffled Feathers tavern in Greysmere. Investigations in Greysmere have several people who have identified Sponge as a man who shows up very irregularly, though nobody knows from where. Opinions vary as to whether he’s a trader, tinker, or itinerant hired sword. One of Lord Tar’s operatives recently identified a man of that name and matching that description as living in Karakas, K&K’s next stop.

Kinnaka:

Hai.

Tovish:

Ye keep sayin’ ‘at. What is ‘at?

Kinnaka:

Shitsurei shimasu. It is meaning in Ervish, “Yes, I am understanding what you are terring me.”

Tovish looks doubtful, and sounds more so:

Great.

Kentaro:

What organization are you talking about? Is it a well known mob with many connections?

Kinnaka purses his lips, but remains silent.

Tovish looks from one to the other:

Now ‘at’s yer job t’ find out, now ain’t it?

Kentaro:

Alright … how do ya want us ter tell ya wot we’ve found out?

Tovish:

‘Ere’s th’ best way. Y’ knock on ‘at door. I’ll tell ye t’ come in, an’ ye do. We’ll ‘andle th’ rest t’gether.

Kentaro:

Figured with this kind o work. You have anyone in Karakas already?

Tovish:

No. Got two blokes on th’ way though. Or will do, soon ‘nuff, anyway. Catch me drift?

Kentaro:

I think I follow yer thinkin’. Ya got a time limit on this buisness?

Tovish:

Look, whatever ‘is Brill is up to, at least parta th’ job included Dame Hakkima gettin’ tossed in a lake. I think “quicker th’ better” works well ‘ere. What d’ye think?

Kentaro:

Ya … just like ter know specifics. Guess Tar doesn’t tell ya much does he?

Tovish:

‘Oo?

Kentaro:

Ah … right … um … well sun’s getting’ low and all. Must be hittin’ the road dontcha think Kinnaka? Sorry ter run out on ya like this boss, but wanna get back as soon as possible …

Kentaro continues rambling as he backs out the door. Kinnaka remains seated watching Tovish.

Tovish:

Y’ better keep a close eye on yer partner. Loose lips, looks like. [He hands Kinnaka two plaques, similar to the ones they had before, but without any logo.] ‘Ere’s yer vouchers. ... An’ one more thing—ye’ll mostly be a long way from support. We’re a small group. Not a lotta manpower. Don’t get yerself in trouble ye can’t get outta by yerself. Ye got major trouble an’ time on yer hands, send a message t’ the Golden Wheel, t’ Danny. ‘At’s a fictitious name, but it means yer in deep an need ‘elp. I can’t promise nothin’, got it?

Kinnaka [stands up to leave]:

Hai.

Tovish smiles lopsidedly:

Welcome aboard.

Somewhat later, Kinnaka approaches Tovish with his needs for this mission, which are “official” documents that place him in the employ of Sir Charles, a letter proving he was fired from the Chancellery, and a means of communication with the Defender Captain stationed in Greysmere (along with his cooperation in providing whatever information Kinnaka requests).

Tovish grumpily responds that he’ll do what he can do. Kinnaka will be contacted either before they leave town or as they pass through Marsh Keep. Kinnaka isn’t exactly happy with the answer, but as it’s the best he’s going to get, he basically has no choice but to put up with it.

That evening, as Kentaro and Kinnaka are sitting in the latter’s small front room, with a small fire burning in the newly completed fireplace to keep off the evening chill, a chill that feels more intense due to the lack of a roof. The partners have finished supper are making last minute plans for their forthcoming journey, when they are interrupted by a knock on the door.

There is a moment of stunned silence. Nobody has ever knocked on the door before. Until a few hours ago, there was no door in the frame! Kinnaka goes to the door and opens it. At first he doesn’t see anyone, then his gaze travels downward and falls upon the smiling countenance of Crym. The Halfling is carrying one very large box, one very small box, and a small parcel sealed with wax. Kinnaka invites her in, offers her a cup of tea, and asks her to sit. She does, sitting much more comfortably on the floor than Kentaro has ever been able to manage, and accepts the tea willingly.

She hands Kinnaka the parcel, saying that it’s boring old business, then hands each of them a box – the large one to Kentaro, the small one to Kinnaka. Both thank her warmly, but obviously are a bit taken aback at what it might be. She giggles and tells them they’re presents; you’re supposed to open them. Kentaro smiles broadly and rips into his. Kinnaka bows to her and thanks her, then opens the paper gently, almost lovingly.

Mere seconds later Kentaro holds up a half-giant-sized copper flagon. He smiles broadly, at which point she tells him that he now need never put up with cups so small they cramp his hands. Kentaro is overwhelmed, and impulsively grabs her up in a huge hug. He puts her down again quickly, worried that he may have overstepped his bounds, but she laughs all the harder.

By this time, Kinnaka has unwrapped his own parcel to find a beautiful brass cloak pin decorated with an owl. Crym tells him that it’s from the Celadon Forest. The Halflings who live there love to work in brass. It is a remarkably beautiful piece, and Kinnaka thanks her appropriately.

Kinnaka sets the wax-sealed parcel aside for later, at which Crym then tells him that she has a small piece of business to handle, and proceeds to tell him how they give information to and get information from the Defender Captain. Basically, it works like this:

1. There is an abandoned dwelling with a blue roof a quarter mile west of town, just off the main road. The doors and windows are boarded over, but the back door is accessible. A chest is in the back bedroom. Items for transfer will be place in the chest.
2. In town, there is a temple to Hestia, goddess of the hearth and home. Inside the temple is a long table on which people light candles. A chalk mark on the side of the front left leg of the table means there is something in the chest. They are to place a mark there if they have something to deliver, and rub the mark out before they leave the temple if they have something to pick up.
3. K&K need to provide frequent updates—minimum one per week—regarding their status so Tovish is aware of their progress or lack of it. Obviously, if they have significant progress to report, they can give updates more frequently. Tovish doesn’t want to run into a situation where K&K have been gone for three months, and he has no idea what they’re working on or what they’re up to or whether they’re alive or dead, etc. etc.

With that dealt with, the three of them turn to lighter topics, and have a good time for the better part of two hours, with Crym regaling them with tale after tale of Greyhawk and those who currently roam its halls of power. K&K are particularly interested in her stories of the election that put Lord Aphic on the Lord Mayor’s throne, and Lord Tar’s part in that endeavor. All too soon, however, it is time to leave. Crym and Kentaro bid farewell to Kinnaka, who, after closing the door behind his departing guests, reluctantly admits to himself that he had a good time.

Alone in his house, Kinnaka opens the wax-sealed package. Inside are two heavy iron keys and a packet of papers that Kinnaka knows will come in useful in Karakas…

Crym and Kentaro enter Greyhawk through what Kentaro has been calling the Ivory Tower Gate, but that Crym informs him is actually called the Sunrise Tower. The Halfling greets both guards by name, and even though she shows no identification, the two are admitted without question. It’s good to know people, Kentaro muses, as the gate closes behind them.

Crym leaves Kentaro at the High Market, turning north while he heads southward. He had planned to call it an early night, but he has a brand new flagon to break in, and he can still get to bed early afterward…