Shoe Thief

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Battle Master, Level 03 HP: 31 / 31 Armor Class: 19 Conditions: N/A Location: Infamous Pear --> Road to Avonshire Township Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Kathryn listened closely as Marita spoke of her past, of her home. Though she tried to pick up some of Victoria's lessons on how to manage a wagon and those that pull one Marita's story was a lot more relatable. As the Clerical woman explained in detail about a home she would likely not see again for a long time Kathryn couldn't help but see some relations. Though their former lifestyles were drastically different, there was that want to go home. Kathryn listened closely as the woman spoke about her mountain home and how she and her people used to live. It sounded like a sight to be seen, something Kathryn couldn't even dream up of in her wildest dreams. She felt her own life was rather standard by comparison. Kathryn took note of Hugh deciding not to join them in the wagon. She couldn't blame him. It was getting crammed and there was a body of a dead pig in the back. Kathryn would see about making sure he got the chance to on their return trip. A ride back after some hard work is a nice comfort.

Kathryn shifted to sit next to Marita. She said nothing for a moment, just waiting in silence as she tried to process what the woman had explained. "It sounds like a beautiful place. Unlike anything I've ever seen!" She tried to picture more of what Marita's home looked like but in her mind it was something incomparable to anything she had seen. Her glee calmed a bit thinking what got them to this point in the conversation. "I miss mine too. Though I didn't live in a place quite as beautiful as yours." A fortress. Even the parts that were designed to be livable and comfortable it was easy to tell they were secondary purposes. Every doorway able to be bared and sealed, every window placed in a way for an archer to shoot safely from, and so many layers of defense that any battle against such a for would be a pyrrhic victory at best.

Kathryn figured since Marita was so forth coming Kathryn could share a bit too. "I never saw much of caves. I grew up in a Fortress with my family there until, well... I didn't." Kathryn was quickly realizing she wasn't a great story teller. "For a fortress though it was pretty. The inner wall was old and looked like it was ready to collapse, but the outer walls were apart of the newest additions to the fortress. The stone was much cleaner cut, they almost seemed polished when compared to the inner defensive wall. The view from my room was..." She trailed off reminiscing. "I think the view was the best part. You could see the whole world from up there. The passing carts much like the one we're in now, the entire fortress, I could see the soldiers and workers at their daily tasks below! I could see my brothers being trained by my uncle in the yards below with bows and swords. I could see the stables and their horses, I could even see the kennels and the dogs. Hmm... wasn't as big of a fan of them. You could see people approaching from every direction. When I was little whenever I spotted a band of noblemen or traders I would run off to find my father and tell him they were coming! It was exciting." She chuckled a bit. "Under one of the oldest buildings in the fortress there was this huge stone bath. No one used it for that anymore. It was mostly used as a store room once the fortress started seeing it's many reconstructions. But it was a fun place to sneak off to with some of the other kids just to have a spot to ourselves."

Kathryn seemed rather gleeful thinking through her old life. "There were these cute villages that were around too. The kids didn't really want to play with me too much then, looking back I see why. Made a few later on but it took a while. Unfortunately we were a rather young noble house, our lands were given to my family after helping put down a rebellion. The original owners didn't like that, and about a dozen years took matters into their own hands. Learned later that they weren't the only ones too, but in that moment I only cared about what they were doing to my home. The view from the window wasn't as pretty after that. Ser Lucas got me out and we've been on the road since. The hills and lands here remind me a bit of home. Though home had woods that were a bit more dense, less farms... And a bit more forts..." She sat their contemplating the differences. "Oh well, those days are gone. And now I am making my own adventures." She spoke rather proudly, excited to be taking on bigger roles on her own without someone overseeing her actions as directly.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Battle Master, Level 03 HP: 31 / 31 Armor Class: 19 Conditions: N/A Location: Infamous Pear Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Naivara made some good points on why she would be a good choice to investigate local farms and such. She had tracking skills, nature skills, unique skills that no one else in the party could match. It appeared other then managing horses this party could cover nearly all skill sets needed. "That's good to know! Glad you can cover that area for us!" Kathryn took a moment to listen to Kosara's explanation on her journal. It was a cool idea, taking notes of her life and adventures so that others that knew her could learn of them. It made Kathryn wonder if she should do something like it? She decided against it for now but it didn't change her overall interest. "I'd love a chance to read this when you decide to share it. Sounds like it will be really nice!" It made Kathryn happy to see Victoria and Kosara getting along. The small bard had given Kosara a nice set of warmth gear to help stave off the chilling air which the area seemed to be struggling more and more with. Should the party be forced to stay out during the night it would have been rough for the tiefling.

Kathryn got some good news on her part though. Hugh had a map! Though Lynette isn't able to provide much in terms of spare maps Hugh came prepared meaning it would be a lot easier to get a visual reference of the area and see if there were noticeable patterns with those who have gone missing. "I do suppose the township proper is a good idea yeah..." She had less then a bare bones understanding of local towns, borders, and location of things. Another moment she was thankful to Hugh. Then, he pulled out the piece of parchment that Kathryn oh so desired. "Oh my... what a lovely map you go there." She leaned over the table as Hugh shared his view of the map. There was apart of her that wanted to reach out, stroke her hand across the nicely drawn description of their area. Kathryn nodded to what Hugh was saying, taking in the information he was explaining on the map. "Sounds like a fair plan to me. It will be easier to make a plan too once we see what things are like locally to the investigation." She thought so at least. Kathryn hoped her lack of skills and experience wouldn't hold her back too much. Maybe she'd get a chance to show some of her actual skills to show she was more then dead weight? T'was the hope at least.

Once Kathryn was done drooling over Hugh's map she took notice of Kosara's reaction to the coat and set that she got from Victoria and their pleasantly shared hug. Their interactions were pretty cute together, Kathryn wondered if there was more to that shy smile then met the eye? Or maybe she was just looking a little too much into it. It was cute none the less. When Victoria left to board the wagon inviting Kosara to ride with her up front. Kathryn climbed into the back of the wagon as she had no skills in controlling said wagon.

Once on the go Kathryn watched the country side is awe and amusement like a child entering a colorful meadow. "Reminds me of home. The fields, the wide open air, even the gentle chill in the air. It's nice." Though she knew it wasn't home, it was similar. If you were from Arcanaple it was easy to spot the differences. The roads were better quality, the people talked with an accent that would sound almost silly in her own home, there wasn't anywhere near the same amount of Halflings, though actual half giants were not unheard of at home either. Kathryn waved at what seemed like every person they passed as the party traveled. "Hello. Hi there! Hello!" Every passerby got a bit of her attention. Should home never be an option for her, maybe here would be a good place to settle down? The dread some of the people held under their brows was hard to miss though. It also reminded Kathryn of home in some of the worse ways. "I hope we can figure out what's going on soon. Before it takes to much of a toll on these people."

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Battle Master, Level 03 HP: 31 / 31 Armor Class: 19 Conditions: N/A Location: Infamous Pear Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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The planning as well as breakfast continued with Kathryn's lack of experience in matters such as these showing. It did seem the final consensus was that the party would split up into groups of 2 to investigate what they could and return with their collective information. Seemed simple enough. Though it appeared no one in the party knew how to handle an animal and wagon. Kathryn was feeling some regret towards never picking up the skills despite riding along with several caravans and wagons in her time. Hitching rides from one country to another, sometimes continent to continent. She decided when this was over she would learn how to ride and handle an animal. She listened to Kosara's justification to her lack of bread before speaking. "I don't think yer understandin' me though. Ya can't have a sandwich without bread. Though... I do think I would be interested in trying some of them southern breads. We'll get back to that when time isn't as pressing."

Kathryn listened intently as the party spoke and planned. Seemed mostly like a lot of back and forth between Hugh and Marita though. The Sheriff's aid Lynette offered some information but it did seem there was a lot to figure out still. "Yeah.... I guess we are the investigators." Kathryn spoke with an awkward laugh a little concerned she was way over her head. She wondered how Ser Lucas would handle the situation at hand. Was he a proper investigator? She knew he had a lot of fighting experience, but the more she thought about it the more she realized she had little understanding of what Ser Lucas did in her Father's castle before they fled. She never asked him, and had just assumed he was a guard of the fortress. Who never hung out with the other guards. And who a few of her relatives eyed disdain towards the man. But he was a solid fighter, and someone thought he needed the letter. It could have been the Sheriff, or someone else along the line. But now she was here to fill his shoes. Apart of her wished she stuck to pulling guard duty for cities, caravans, and shops.

Owen's sweetness pulled her out of her self loathing trance. She needed to be careful to not let herself fall down that rabbit whole. She had skills, and she was still learning. "Thank you Owen very much." Kathryn took the offer of free food to go with high enthusiasm. Putting bread and sausages into her bag for later. Then cramming as many of the breakfast foods onto a single piece of bread as she could before downing that finishing it off by cramming a couple sausages into her mouth. "Cool, let's get to it then!" She poke still chewing and swallowing her meal. Then turned to Kosara after finishing her own breakfast mash pile. "See? Bread holds the whole thing together. Experimenting is nice and all but if something isn't broke, don't fix it ya know?" Kathryn was mostly pulling at Kosara's strings at this point with a big grin on her face.

Kathryn figuring the situation decided this was her last good chance to stock up on gear (Other then free food) before the adventure kicked off. "I'll be back in a jiffy. Then we can split up however we need to and start figuring this stuff out!" She spoke to the party in general with enthusiasm that resembled that of a young child excited to go to the local fair. Kathryn went off in a hurry to avoid holding up the party as best as she could. She had a fair collection of gear but as a whole had decided she seemed pretty well equipped to handle most situations. While browsing some of the shops near the fort she found a decent assortment of goods and wears for her selection. Her budget was limited at the moment but she had some wiggle room to work with. Though she found a few trinkets she eventually settled on some nets within the shop to help diversify her options in the heat of the moment. She may be good at hacking, slashing, and stomping, but her skills and abilities started getting limited after that. Going up to the shop keep she set down the nets and pulled her coin purse. "Will that be all for you young lady?" Kathryn pulled out the coins needed and gave them to the man. "Aye, I think so. Three gold yeah?" The man gave a polite nod before accepting the coinage. "Thank you very much uh..." SHe paused, realizing she hadn't gotten the man's name yet. "Jarvey's the name. Do you mind me asking what a woman of your stature would be doing with things like these?" Kathryn shrugged. "Seemed like it could be useful for some jobs. Worst case, a nice utility to keep on hand." She thanked the man again before realizing she had been away for quite some time. "Gotta go, thanks for the nets!" And she rushed off chain mail and heavy footing announcing every step she took along the way.

She returned to the Infamous Pear to greet those who had returned and stayed. She noted Kosara in her journal. "Looks like you're having fun." She noticed Marita had changed into her armor as well. Though both of them didn't expect a fight, in their line of work they needed to be prepared for one. Victoria had also returned by this point with some supplies and a new coat for Kosara. The poor small woman would need it in these temperatures. "So how are we splitting up? And who's covering what today? We have a few places to check out including maybe some of the farms people went missing from, or maybe those who returned? We should probably make sure each group has the right skills for whatever task is needed of them." She was mostly worried about herself in this case. Though a wall of muscle and mass with some social skills to her name she was still inexperienced.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Battle Master, Level 03 HP: 31 / 31 Armor Class: 19 Conditions: N/A Location: Infamous Pear Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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It was clear Kathryn lack of experience was extremely noticeable within the collection of her new party. Hugh and Marita explained rather well why Kathryn's many off handed suggestions were not practical and then started listing off much more practical options for them to try out. It was strange to see the two indirectly agreeing to anything after how the previous night went. She wondered if as a whole the two would make rather decent partners should they be able to work past their issues. They had a functional mindset of professionals, between the two they seemed to have a rather solid skill set to them, and they both had a rather aggressive ability to control a room. Kathryn listened intently as the two spoke enjoying her breakfast with every bite as they spoke. She wondered if school was like this? People with experience talking about their experiences over breakfast? That sounded like the life. Hugh did take the time to collect everyone's letters which Kathryn was not surprised she left her last night. She remembered a lot of beer the night before... "Thank you." She spoke with a tone that could be mistaken for a light musical hum. She took her letter before folding it back up and putting it into one of her belt pouches, deciding that it is not worth putting back into her marginally hidden pocket within her armor.

Victoria seemed overall much more relaxed this morning, but continued with the concern about the letters bringing up that if there was a trap it's already sprung. So it's either worked and they are already in rough shape or it failed and they could be safe to continue. "Not sure I would go as far to say exciting, but more of... confusing. But I don't know much about the assassining world." Kathryn shrugged to Victoria's response. Kathryn continued eating the rather amazing breakfast stopping after taking a bite of a sausage link when Victoria mentioned about "Necrotic Manipulation". "If we could not bring my food back from the dead I would greatly appreciate it..." She spoke a little uncertain if the small necromancer was serious about utilizing their meal for a great many purposes.

Naivara came down and seemed rather well rested herself. Kathryn did agree with her to about their rather generous meals so far. "I know right? I don't think I've had meals like this in years! Most Th'a meals I get nowadays tend to be grit or pahtatoes or some suspicious mystery meat...." she trailed off on the last one. She didn't like to think about what could be in that meat. And was even more thankful for the recent meals. "Suppose I should go a wee bit more easy on the meals huh. Or I'm gonnah really need that newer armor." She chuckled as she spoke. It wasn't a real concern of hers, she figured she'd either cut back or use the extra calories in combat or when she got a chance to exercise. It was the topic of food that finally drew Kathryn's late attention towards Kosara's sandwich. If one could call it that. "...Kosara.... Wha... Where's the bread... Ya can't have a sandwich without bread..." There was a genuian look of concern on Kathryn's face. As if Kathryn was a holy woman who followed a strict religion and Kosara has single-handedly attempted to disprove the whole thing and was making uncomfortable headway. "Don't get me wrong Kosara... it looks good but... The bread." The actions of their once lost Alastor pulled Kathryn out of her mortified state. She watched as the tiefling barged out of the restroom and then ran out of the tavern. "Hope he's doing alright..."

She took note of Kosara's comment about splitting up into pairs. "Uhuh?" Kathryn was beginning to suspect that Kosara had ulterior motives of some kind. But she couldn't be sure if they were in malice, perversion, or some other fashion. Kathryn is sure she'd figure it out one way or another. "Pairs seem a wee bit light if you ask me. But I am open to options."

As events started to take off more a human woman dressed as a local guard approached the table. Marita specifically it seemed.
Their help had arrived and she included a mule drawn carriage. Kathryn almost considered it romantic. Kathryn wanted a chance to prove she could be more then inexperienced muscle for the party and tried to think of something useful to ask their new helper. "Well I'm Kathryn. Do you mind if I ask your name?" She asked their new guide. "As well, do you think we could get the rough locations of where these missing person's cases happened? Or un-happened? See if maybe we could pick up a pattern or two?" She wasn't sure if that would be helpful or not thinking about it. "Maybe a map would be better? A visual reference that we could work with in hopes of uncovering something?" Victoria had asked about those who could manage a wagon. "'Fraid I don't got much experience myself. I ride a lot though? And I could probably pull a wagon if needed? But that may prove redundant in our case." She thought about it some more. If they did split up she hoped she got set up with someone who had a bit more experience in matters such as these. Kathryn was good at lifting heavy objects, crushing other objects, and fighting. Outside of that she could hold her own if paired with someone who knew what they were doing, but she lacked the skills and experience to do much on her own.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Battle Master, Level 03 HP: 31 / 31 Armor Class: 19 Conditions: N/A Location: Infamous Pear Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Normally Kathryn could sleep like a freshly laid stone on a newly mortared foundation. She had some issues this night though. Mostly the comings and going of traffic, and sharing a room with people who were unfortunately still strangers to her. It was also not helped by the fact that she was not only the first to bed, but the last to wake up. Donning her armor and weapons she prepared for the day. Though she didn't expect to get into combat today she figured it was better safe then sorry. As she finished getting ready she hoped that the groups internal problems had burned out, if things picked up again they would need to be put towards a stop before they were allowed to rekindle again.

The morning was calm compared to the night before. What did catch Kathryn's attention was the amazing smell of Breakfast. Kathryn picked up her pace and made her way towards the table each step in her full gear sounding like a fast paced march. At the table already was Marita, Victoria, and Kosara. "Mornin' Ladies." She spoke with a tone of someone who had already downed there morning coffee and was ready to enthusiastically take on the day. She then took notice of Guido who explained another letter and their current situation.

While he spoke Kathryn proceeded to start loading up her plate with the various breakfast foods. Bacon, fancy breads, eggs, sausages, jams and butter, and most important, Bacon. She listened in as he spoke going through her breakfast as he did. They would be receiving locals support but not from the local Sheriff directly. Seemed pretty strait forward, though that does remove the man for potential questioning about the letter situation. Maybe his support man will know something about it? "Thank you very much." She said towards May as she brought over morning tea. She turned to face Guido as well. "And thank you too for your assistance." With tea and breakfast in hand there was nothing that could stop the Half Giant from ruling her day now.

Kathryn took a few more bites of her food before speaking. "SO where are we startin' today? Askin' locals about the missing people? Retracing the letters to find the hiccups? Splitting up? Grouping up? Following up with those who have returned? Exploring the town outskirts? I'm open to options. Still pretty new to a lot of this stuff." Though the letter situation gave some concern towards internal trust she figured at this point she couldn't focus on that too much. Plus, if things went south she was still prepared for a fight if need be. Though she had no solid experience against spell casters should it come to that. Nor against stealth fighters or monks. She was a total expert at taking problems head on with brute force, but outside of that her experience was lacking. "Or we could just stay here and corner every single person who walks through those doors until we get some answers? I am game for a lot of options really." Then she continued with her breakfast.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Battle Master, Level 03 HP: 31 / 31 Armor Class: 19 Conditions: N/A Location: Infamous Pear Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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It seemed things at the table were getting tense. Marita's actions have caused retaliation actions from Hugh who seemed to be quickly losing his chill. Kathryn did take note of Hugh's comment about her drinking, even after she requested more. "It's gonna take more t'en a couple fist fulls of beer to bring me down." He did have legit concerns though. They were on a job, and if Kathryn kept drinking like this then she had little confidence in being able to hold her own in a fight. At this moment? Sure. In the morning? She held little concerns for hangovers and had needed considerably more alcohol for it to be a real concern. But there was no reason to test her luck now. Kathryn did tense up when Hugh called Kosara a pest. Was the timing of her comment great? No. But there was a more appropriate response then his follow up rant. Kathryn about stood up to call Hugh out, only being stopped by Kosara herself explaining the issues at hand. Kathryn wanted to step in and stop things from getting worse, but this area was not her strong suit. She had one real skill to her name outside of how much alcohol she could take. And it was being a mass of steel and muscle that was extremely difficult to bring down. It was moments like this where she wished she payed better attention to how Ser Lucas handled situations outside of the job proper.

Marita and Hugh went at it for a long while before things seemed to settle. Hugh made a comment about a leadership role and it made Kathryn think. Most jobs she has worked it had been with people who normally assigned ranks near the beginning of the quests or mission. Even then, she rarely found herself ranking higher then new recruits. "Let's see how tomorrow pans out before we decide who's leadin' who." Marita then took some time to further explain their situation at hand. The concern then being why the extra letters? And why them? "Experience yes, but how many of us are properly qualified for the job? I've pulled a fair share of guard duty, but I am still pretty new to a lot of this stuff. And Ser Lucas..." She hesitated before continuing. "He had a lot of his own issues for a while now. Or it could be..." She debated the words in her head. Maybe the alcohol was getting to her. "What if someone along the line of messaged letters wanted to get a bunch of specific people here who were not on the original roster?" She shrugged and did a little drunken chuckle. "But them's just be the thoughts of some drunken girl." Her chuckles continued a bit as she drank some more of her beer.

Kathryn gave a thanks to Mr. Hardy as he to them more drinks, and listened closely as Mr. Laurel spoke. At the tall comment Kathryn just grinned and spoke softly. "Aye." Room and board was explained, seemed strait forward overall. The only thing that made Kathryn uncomfortable was the fact that they would be sharing rooms. She supposed that should be expected considering the size of the party, and these were free rooms. The look of concern on her face at the comment was visible none the less. He explained some more details which gave Kathryn time to process her current situation. "I think I got my own thangs but thank ya very much for tha offer." She in this case was more worried for the poor halfing attempting to carry her pack of heavy junk and tools.

Victoria and Marita stepped off away from the table for a bit. Kathryn wondered what that was about, but as she wasn't the sneakiest of their party by any definition (Unless stepping on someone and putting them into a coma counted as stealth) she figured listening in wasn't going to do much for her either. They returned soon enough, and when they did Victoria and Kosara planned out a plan to perform for the tavern which Kathryn did admit sounded interesting but after continuing to down the new beers she wasn't sure how much she could stick around for. Kathryn found herself enjoying the music, as Victoria played and Kosara danced. She had to admit, it was not a common show for her to see but it did remind herself of a few of the places Ser Lucas would visit when Kathryn was growing up. Now that she thought about it, Kosara reminded Kathryn of some of the woman Ser Lucas would leave her with when he took jobs she was too young to join him on. The small tiefling seemed to struggle at times with her performance, but in the end pulled it off. With it coming to an end, she figured this was probably the best time to finish her food and beer off and crash in the comfy inn's beds.

The half giant of a woman downed her remaining beer and crammed what food was left on her plate before leaving for bed. Kathryn stood up and waited a moment to see if she would get dizzy. To her relief she was still steady and felt she still had most of her ability to function as a sober-ish person. Kathryn walked over to Kosara and Victoria. "Good Job ya two. T'was a good show." She went to scruff up Kosara's hair before going to bed, stopping again noticing the horns and stopped. Then decided petting the horns worked fine. She then turned to Victoria who stood almost two feet below her and scruffed her hair too. "Goooood night." She paused a moment realizing she may be slurring a bit. Maybe Hugh was right and she did have a few too many drinks. Oops.

She grabbed her bag and gear and walked her way towards the bedroom. In her tired drunken state each step sounded closer to a really slow paced march with the chain mail making it's own sets of noise with every step then a tired young girl making her way to a comfortable bed. Marita had already claimed the cot, so when Kathryn got to the top of the stairs and checked the two rooms she figured it didn't matter too much which one she took. She took a left and entered the two bedded bedroom and dropped her gear next to the bed. Then a dilemma came. She was comfortable with these new people, but was she comfortable enough to share an unprotected room with them? She wondered if sleeping in her armor was an acceptable option in this case either? She decided against it as she had been on the road a while, and not getting a good night's rest would likely only make things worse. She did however take her bedroll out of her bag to add more layers onto her bed. After doffing her armor she crawled into the bed furthest from the door with her long sword in it's sheath under the covers with her, and her two hand axes resting on the bedside by the bed. Once settled she wrapped herself and her sword up tightly, stretched, and found the next problem of her night. She grunted in frustration as her feet poked several inches out from the base of the bed. "Foeken' 'Ell." She knew this was a possibility, but it didn't make it much better. Rolled up into a newer fetal position which despite being less comfortable she was still covered in her many layers of blankets and bedding. Now with her shield resting comfortably-ish at her feet.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Battle Master, Level 03 HP: 31 / 31 Armor Class: 19 Conditions: N/A Location: Infamous Pear Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Everyone took to the zone of truth differently. Some were visibly stressed or upset, some decided to just roll with it and see where it went. Despite how many beers Kathryn has had through the night she was still very functional. She was still able to take note of Victoria's string of comments where she seemed to try and avoid answering the question as long as possible before giving a rather short but sweet answer. Some list of grievances, then an offering of butter. In that moment Kathryn had remembered the dinner she had ordered and was feeling peckish again. Kathryn took her rye slices and dipped them into the communal butter before taking her bread back and trying it. "Aye, it is pretty good." She dipped her bread into it again before adding some of her beans and cheese to the bread again. If there was anything to distract her from her worries it was food and beer.

Marita took a moment to also explain more about how the zone of truth works. The woman though a little blunt with her actions and reasoning seemed at the very least fair about it. She took a moment to apologize which Kathryn greatly appreciated. It gave Kathryn the impression the woman was reasonable. Even offered her own bit of private information in a retribution of sorts. Devil worshipers, followed up by a language she had no understanding of. But listening to it sent chills down her spine as she listened t the woman before her speak it. A voice that though commanding at times wasn't unpleasant to listen too now chilled her. Kosara was another story entirely.

The little tiefling had a lot to say about Hugh's choice words which did pull a chuckle out of Kathryn. Soon after Kathryn had complained about her lack of beer the woman had called out to order some more. "What a great idea!" thought Kathryn. "Aye, same here please. More beer 'ould be great!" She thought about her pronunciation with these words. Maybe she had more to drink then she thought. She'd be crawling off to bed soon enough, more beer wouldn't cause her too much here. What surprised Kathryn was that Kosara spoke that strange chilling language as Marita. What also surprised Kathryn was how Kosara got her letter. She had just... found it? Kathryn thought that was rather amusing. "You are one strange little horned lady." She said with an amused tone that totally wasn't influenced by the beer. She reached out to pat her head and stopped trying to figure out where on her head she could pat without getting her hand caught on the horns before deciding to hold off for now.

Naivara had a story much like Kathryn's. With the key difference being the letter was for Naivara from a good friend, where Kathryn got here's instead of her old friend. The woman also got a chance to explain a bit about her lifestyle which Kathryn found amusing. She did explain the how odd it was for her to receive the letter as she didn't make much of a name for herself and she wasn't the easiest person to find. Though the woman tended to lean more towards living with nature Kathryn couldn't help but making comparisons. The closest she had to a permanent home at the moment was an Inn she had stayed in more then others. It was a popular spot for Ser Nathan in his down time. He knew people there, it was a good place to pick up work, and it was about as far from her old home as she could be. "Welcome back to the lands then Naivara." Kathryn spoke in a welcoming manner.

Though there was some tension within the newly formed party it seemed it was reaching a settling point. The party was well rounded, and seemed like it could handle a great many challenges should the need arise.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Battle Master, Level 03 HP: 31 / 31 Armor Class: 19 Conditions: N/A Location: Infamous Pear Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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It seems everyone who wanted to make an additional request had. Things ranged from modest things like Naivara's request for things that belonged to the woods, and towards magical items as requested by Hugh. Kathryn couldn't claim to be an expert of either, having minimal understanding of things magical, and herself not being sure what objects that would be that belonged to the forest. But she was excited to see where this mixed party from countless backgrounds would go. Kathryn herself hadn't had much in terms of a group of people to spend her days with. It was almost entirely Ser Lucas, his drinking buddies, and the women that he would drop her off with from time to time when he took jobs that taking herself along weren't too practical. She did take note of Victoria's comment about random acts of kindness. "I know how shocking? It'd be insane should something like that happen." Kathryn piped back in a joking tone.

It seemed her request would be granted though. A chance to update and properly replace a lot of her gear. No more cleaning rust off her person, no more chain links locking together until they snap, a chance to properly retire her family sword before it's wear and tear finally broke it. Though she did lack any formal location to keep it. No family mantel, no graves she could rest it on safely, but she could wrap it up until some time she could. She was tempted to rest it on Ser Lucas's grave, but she didn't trust a few of the locals enough to leave a sword of castle forged steel alone on a grave. And she'd rather not get into conflict with the local law of the inn she was calling home. The sheriff continued with everyone else's requests, only stopped by a sound that could only be described as Blunt Force Trauma. Kathryn's first instinct when hearing this was to stand up both of her hands reaching towards the handles of her axes, but stopping once she realized it wasn't things turning for the worst. She sat down slowly hoping that the others were too distracted by the commotion to notice her. On the plus side, food was on it's way out. Pork Pie, Potatoes, Rye slices with beans and cheese, and beer. She tore into her food at a pace that implied if she stopped for whatever reason she wouldn't be allowed to finish her food. Stopping only to sip her own beer.

She got the attention of warm tea but cold everything else tonight. That was fine for her but it was a good thing to note. Kosara attempted to keep the conversation going and help form some personal bonds within the party. Kathryn spoke while finishing up her current bites of food. "I can understand liking music. Can't say there is too much to say about me. Left home at a young age, traveled a lot, I enjoy beer and parties and fighting. Can't say there's much more interesting outside of that." What did catch Kathryn's attention through her annihilation of dinner was a comment made about the letters. There were only three letters sent out. Seeing as double that were turned in, Kathryn's mind turned towards suspicion. And u[on hearing this she stopped attacking her food and froze. She wondered about her own letter, and wondered about the others at the table. She sat back, her hands casually going down below the table, resting again on the hilts of her axes. Was this another trap? And if so who was in on it? She debated who she could take at the table. All in all she stood no chance against the whole table, but she believed if she could force any one member of the party into a one on one melee she'd have the advantage. In Martial prowess Marita looked like she could have put up a decent fight. Hugh too maybe. But if kept to a strait on Melee Kathryn hoped she held the advantage.

Kathryn was thinking up a strategy of how she would handle the situation at hand when Marita spoke. Zone of truth. And back to the letters we go. Marita explained her side first, then Hugh. Though Hugh's was more of him passing his own breaking point. Kathryn couldn't blame him, she wasn't far off herself. He was pissed, very pissed. Reasonably so. He did attempt to add to the mystery and to try and clear it up. What did surprise Kathryn was how he didn't immediately put any mistrust on the group itself. Was that an issue she had? That when things started to turn south she mistrusted those closest? She calmed herself slowly letting go of her axes again. That was twice in a short period of time she was ready to fight her way out. She took another sip of her beer to try and calm her nerves. She wondered for a moment how many she was on at the moment but in the chaos of things she couldn't be sure. Three? Four? She figured between that and a good meal she was still well within her own tolerance. Hugh did make use of his rant though, he formed a good starting point. The letters were a great thing to look at, something was clearly up with them.

Though Hugh had a point about Marita's sudden display of magic on her allies, Kathryn felt Marita was still in the right trying to clear things up as soon as possible. Kathryn stood up holding her beer as if it was the most important object in the room. "The letter I got isn't mine. It was never met for me. And if things had been just slightly different I likely would have never known about it's existence." She took a sip of her beer to help calm herself down. "It was originally meant for my mentor Ser Lucas, who had passed a couple months before it's arrival. Likely the sender not knowing he had already been buried in the ground. Having never taken a real quest of my own outside some simple guard duties I wanted a chance to prove myself, and as Ser Lucas's ward I convinced the messenger to give me the letter and decided to follow it." She chuckled a bit struggling talking about the past few months. "If I am being completely honest I was expecting to be kicked out the moment the sheriff showed up. My guess is he's desperate enough to just go with what he has. Or as Hugh suspects, he's not in his own best mind at the moment. Either way, here I am!" She spoke the last sentence with a bit of musical tone to it. "Stolen letter from the dead man that raised me!" She downed the rest of her beer in several long gulps and looked into it once it was gone. "foehckin 'ell, de beer is gahne" She spoke with her accent heavy before sitting back down in her chair. "Marita." She spoke with her eyes still locked on the empty cup of beer. "Your intentions were good, but trust is a two way street. Can I trust you to not do that again?" She looked up from her empty cup to lock eyes with Marita.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Battle Master, Level 03 HP: 31 / 31 Armor Class: 19 Conditions: N/A Location: Infamous Pear Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Kosara seemed to take a lot of interest in Kathryn's explanation of family politics from back home. Apart of her wished she knew more off of the top of her head, or that she had time to share more. Her knowledge was limited to what she had learned by age 9, and what Ser Lucas had attempted to remember. Most of her own culture she learned in bars from drunken soldiers and workers late in the evening. Kathryn did take note to Victoria's behavior when talking about Music from Kosara's homeland. She thought it was odd at first, but the more she thought about it the more she realized that there was a conflict sometime back. Kathryn attempted to recall some of it, but most of what she did know came from stories of old veterans that Ser Lucas hung out with from time to time. In the moment of first hearing those stories she figured they were fictitious, but when recalling Victoria's mentioning of schooling she wondered if their bard was related to it. She seemed way too young for that though, and if rumors of the conflict were to be believed it had happened long before either of them were born. Unless Victoria was older then she looked?

It seemed Kathryn wasn't the only one worried about their copy of the letter, more of the party stepped off stage to continue their own adventures for now. Kathryn worried about her own copy of the letter. Though it was authentic, it wasn't her letter. It had belonged to her now late mentor Ser Lucas. But as the Sheriff continued his inspection, she wasn't called out. Yet. Either the letters were not as specific as was implied by the messenger, or the Sheriff may not have wanted to cause a scene here over it. Either way, it was a win for Kathryn. The tall warrior hadn't noticed how quiet things have gotten until she heard the commotion within the kitchen. Once it had settled a bit things continued with nothing else to distract from it.

Kathryn listened intently as the situation was explained to them. Missing people. A fair number of them, and those returning acting a lot more strange then expected. Kathryn wasn't sure what she expected when she accepted the invitation. Maybe something closer to a "Go here and stab these people" kind of mission, or another protection job. She leaned in while listening, her elbows resting on the table, and her head on her closed hands as she tried to pick up as much as she could. Despite the concerns of the situation, she was thrilled, excited even for a chance of a real adventure. But this? It was something that would test all of her skills to accomplish. There were internal conflicts holding the good Sheriff back that contractors such as herself and the party would not face, conflicts that Kathryn wanted some clarification on but Marita had cleared up the bulk of them before Kathryn got the chance to ask them. She had to admire the headlong actions of the woman. This almost seemed like something she had experience in the way she was asking questions. Hugh had brought up additional question on both pay and the quest at hand. Many of which were questions Kathryn found useful but were ones she wouldn't even consider asking mostly as they would have never occurred to her to ask. She held an expression of both wonder and concern as this party took control of the situation around her. But she was starting to worry she was way out of her league, and thought back to Marita's comment of being dead weight to the party.

Hearing talk of goblins had gotten Kathryn's attention rather well. Though her experience was limited, her castle forged steel blade had come across plenty of Goblins on her adventures. Given the chance, she could cleave her sword into a goblin the way a child would swing a large stick through some drapes. This was where Kathryn excelled rather well. With how things were looking her best bet was to not drag the party down too much outside of combat, and once in a battle situation unleash a hell upon her enemies in a way that proved her usefulness. Kosara did bring up the concern of those who were still missing, dragging Kathryn's thoughts back to the mission. Figuring out what happened to these people, and solving the problem.

Kathryn took a moment to think of things she needed before accepting the sheriff's offer. She looked down at her chainmailed body, taking note of the rust she had attempted to sand out several times. The armor was nearing the end of it's life when Kathryn first got it some time ago. Made of several pieces of armor, nicely patched together all things considering to form one set that fit her rather well. But there was only so much repairing and replacing of parts she could do to this old set before it wasn't able to keep up anymore. In that moment she took note of spots with visibly newer links then the rest of the armor, but of worse quality overall. Places she had patched herself after Ser Lucas had passed. "If this turned out to be something pretty major..." She broke contact from her chain mail and made eye contact with Sheriff Arbalest. "A good chance to rearm and re-equip myself would be much appreciated. If things turn out to be a rather normal situation then it wont be needed. But it would be rather helpful and if you're open to it we can work out specifics later based on how things go?" If nothing came of this, she gets some housing and food for a while. But much of her gear was at the end of it's life. Her family sword though it was well made wasn't made for nearly 15 years of constant use on top of whatever use her father put on it, and his father before him, and whoever had used it before them. Apart of her wondered if her father knew it was old enough to only serve limited use, and such why he normally left it hung up instead of wearing it on his side?

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Battle Master, Level 03 HP: 31 / 31 Armor Class: 19 Conditions: N/A Location: Infamous Pear Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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The party had a new arrival that joined before the sheriff arrived. Jorlton Forpara, a magical gnome who claimed some wizarding magic. Kathryn with an understanding of magic that generally boiled down to "Magic is magic, some people just do it differently" So she had little reason to doubt the claims. Gnomes were also shorter then Kathryn had expected, though she wondered if that was a bias on her part as most people were shorter then her.

Kosara was still all over Kathryn as if the tall woman was the most interesting thing to ever happen in her life. Though it appeared her Grandfather figure in her life was also pretty important to her, saved her life, and raised her from time to time. "Bigger then I? That is a sight to see. When this is all over I'd love to meet him!" Kosara seemed to have a strong interest in Kathryn's noble heritage too. That was a bit more of a touchy subject to Kathryn, but she doubted that Kosara had any malice to worry about. "To keep it short, I don't know how it works here but back home most of those titles are inherited. They can be awarded or granted, but most are inherited. To get them awarded if you are not nobility, or if you are lesser nobility looking to rise up, you need to preform feats that can not be repaid in thanks in any other known or possible way." She tried to think of an example she could use, but after a moment of thinking she held off. "I can tell you about some of it later if you'd like." The only one she could think of would be her mentor Ser Lucas, but it was a bit more emotionally stressful then she wanted to deal with at the moment.

A small woman came out soon enough and what Kathryn quickly noticed was how fast people got out of her way the same way many people stepped out of Kathryn's way to avoid being stepped on. Kathryn figured it must be a local reputation that others knew to be careful of. She came up to ask about orders and Kathryn had to think for a moment almost missing her chance to ask the woman for her order. "The pork pie sounds lovely. And some of those potatoes please! And if I could get some of those rye slices with beans and cheese that would be even better! Would it be possible to get some more beer?" It was a free meal, and Kathryn had missed a few recently on her travels due to timing issues and stock with a poor shelf life being the only things available on much of her travels. Kathryn took note of the other martial of the group leaving to find a privy, Leaving Kathryn as the main Martial and a few who could hold their own as a martial fighter such as Marita.

It wasn't long after that when the organizer of this party arrived. An old man who reminded Kathryn of Ser Lucas very much so. The way he acted around the off duty guards, held a calm but demanding presence of the room as he walked though it, the fact that one could see his experience in scars and expression. The man was physically different in a lot of ways, but he seemed like he lived a very identical lifestyle as her former mentor. Kathryn did get her beer refilled by the man that followed up being the Sheriff so that was already a win. He asked about the letters they had received, and Kathryn hesitated. For all intents and purposes, the letter she had wasn't meant for her. It was meant for a man who had been buried in the ground for some time now.

With much visible hesitation Kathryn reached towards her armpit and pulled out a long, thin leather pouch that had been hidden under the chain mail. Opening it up she pulled out the letter out of the pouch neatly folded. Though it had suffered some wear it was still in good condition. She placed the small pouch on her belt before handing the letter over to the man.