Age of Ice and Blood: A Pathfinder System Heroic Fantasy Quest

Fourteenth Day of Olweje-hamba (Olweje Descending) 1348 A. L. (After Landfall)

It proves to be only too easy to distract the tavern keeper with more gold and inconsequential questions, the man having seemingly decided that you are some manner of fool who scatters silver like gran from a cut sack, allowing the seer to slip into the back of the dimly lit hall and do... whatever it is one might do to turn one's eyes not upon the present but the past. Thankfully he also had the wit to buy a drink, the strongest oldest mead that the place had t offer, so that when he practically collapsed onto the table afterwards, which you are beginning to think might be a commonplace happenstance for his craft, he has all the excuse to needs to lean on Mark for support. Thus, covered by the seeming mirth of your men, he whispers urgently: "They are not priests, not warriors alone, they are hunters of that which reaches, beyond the Pale of reality."

Once you are well away from the listening tavern keeper, sat down on a large stone that must have been moved here has part of a monumental construction that never was like the forgotten toy of a careless giant, you question the mage more closely and what you learn makes an uneasy hearing. "You know there are those who are beyond the bite of common bronze to harm, who turn it away in an instant, or else heal it between one breath and the next and there are sorcerers whose powers are to strike at the mind and the soul such that no armor or shield..." he glances at your own. "No common shield can turn, yes?"

"Yes," you reply curtly, not wishing to speak more of such battles. You had defeated the life drinker to be sure, but your mind is still fixed upon the man you had lost against the soul stealing spirits. How much easier that battle would have been now bearing the weapons you do, knowing what you know now?

"Well the thing is you can't really keep folk who can deal with that sort of thing in every vilage now can you, only so much learning, only so many things touched with magic." Eririan pauses and gives a small dry laugh. "Only so many folk with the guts for it eh I know I don't have 'em, magic or no. Now the high lords have their champions what are paid in treasure for blood and their tame wizards even some of 'em but they keep to what the lord says and what the lord values, the temples too, you touch their holy places they're gonna rip you up, but otherwise unless someone raised a hoard of dead men or loosed a plague of blood beasts they ain't going to do shit."

There is a part of you that wants to ask what the hell a blood beast, but then another larger part is more than content enough to let the matter drop, your nightmares are well populated enough already.

"So when there's stuff out in the vilages, for fishers and farmers to handle on their own, the village priest and the clan chief with maybe a single piece of bronze to his name they put out a call for Anointed Hunters, see they are called that because they used to just mean folk who had been trusted to the task by the temples of Elnu and Ikomi, at least around here, but with the priests of Elnu not being as liked as they used to be it got sort of shaky, you just need to look the part and act the part and that's a hunter for you."

"They figure if they can kill the monster and hand in the head that's good enough?" Mark asks. "Sort of like putting a bounty on wolves back home, a pelt's a pelt."

"Like that, sure," the seer nods easily. "See showing off a sign of Ikomi means that woman was a proper Anointed Hunter from the old days back before the Priest Kings fell, that or she stole a talisman somehow and that sort don't lose their trinkets easily."

"Wait," you interject. "You said temples of Elnu and Ikomi the first might have fallen out of favor, but the second are still part of the lifeblood of the city."

"Has to be both, if she had turned that talisman around would have been a sign of Elnu" he replies with a shake of the head that sends his ragged locks flying tither and yon. He knows more than magic this strange scarecrow of a man. Perhaps you had gotten your money's worth after all. "The thing is if a real anointed hunter's looking into your man well they might have the wits to tell what's what and..." he hesitates a long moment before adding. "I don't think they'll take to Marcella well."

"For your wisdom you have our thanks," you say honestly, but also speaking quickly so that he might not reveal too much about the ship to the others for they knew only that the matter of the ship had been 'seen to' and was no danger.

"Right then, if that's all I'll be on my way..." the mage gets off the sun-baked stone with a wince oft seen on the faces of the aged and makes for the main way.

"We could still make use of your wisdom..." you begin, but he cuts you off.

"Aye and the Huntress might think I am the sort of wizard that's her prey, no offense to you and yours, but you are walking under a cloud too dark and cold for my blood." For a fleeting moment you think you see something almost like shame on the man's face, but then he turns and soon enough the sound of his steps faces in to the voice of the city.

What do you do?

[] Seek out these hunters at the main temple of Ikomi
-[] With Inge's aid, she could help you gain entrance or obtain answers
-[] Without Inge, you do not wish to place her in at a painful crossroad

[] Return to the ship at once and convince Antonio to set sail, the danger here grows to deep and you do not wish to have to come to blood on the Marcella's decks

[] Write in

OOC: Another lore dump, hopefully it was interesting enough to keep your attention. Not yet edited.