-----Keeping his voice low, Sol says his hunter friend, "Raven, would th' wolf be able t'track th' pirate down with scent. Ye've still got his rope tucked away somewhere, don't ye?"
-----Sol doesn't await an answer as he pushes Thunder forward a couple of steps and addresses the gate guard politely, "We're looking fer former companions, good man. Can ye tell me sir, does Sir Kelor Zantar still rule here?"
-----Rinda produces the Dread Pirate's rope and hands it to Raven. Raven takes the rope and then continues to listen to the guard.
-----"Aye, that he does," comes the answer from the guard before he commences another coughing fit.
-----"Well an' good, then." Sol dismounts and walks up to the guard. He reaches into his pocket and produces the writ and shows it to the man. Sol nods to the guard and adds, "We're looking fer a group o' about seven or so members. Among their number are a scruffy halfling, a half-orc, two half-elves...one female, the other a male bard. Besides that, there was a shifty looking elf an' a couple more men. They should have passed through here under two hours ago. Have ye seen them and did ye overhear anything they said?"
-----Once he finishes speaking to the guard, Sol takes off his backpack, removes a waterskin, and offers a drink to the coughing man.
-----"Aye, that I did!" answers the guard from the gate overhead. In his raspy voice, he continues, "One o' the men asked to speak wit' Sir Zantar. They rode through the gate and headed to the town keep."
-----"An' how long ago was that?" Sol asks intently as he moves back to remount Thunder.
-----Sarah begins to get paranoid thoughts and decides to keep her guard up in this town. She lets Sol talk to the guardsman, never having been really comfortable talking to military types. Well, except Sol that is. She begins to braid Marlexana's mane as she waits for Sol to finish talking.
-----The man shakes his head as if to clear his head and concentrate. "Hour o' two ago?" the man says in a questioning way. Suddenly something gets the man's attention from the other side of the wall inside the town. Turning his attention back to Sol, he says down to the young warrior, "Sir Zantar is riding up the street. If'n you enter the gate, you can speak wit' him, if'n you wish."
-----Sol's eyes narrow as he considers the possibilities of what the pirate could have told the local knight. "Yes, I think that's fer th' best. Thank you, friend." he answers the guard as he turns his gaze to the gate.
-----Raven waits to follow Sol's lead.
-----Sol leads the others through the gate with a final wave to the guard. Surprisingly no guard is present by the gate to take their money but what lies beyond causes them not to dwell on this fact.
-----The gray sky overhead seems to echo the dreariness of the streets of Redmarsh. Few people are out on the thoroughfares. Close by the gate is scattered ragged forms huddled here and there. The riders pass one man laid out on his stomach, which proves difficult to tell if he is living or passed on.
-----A group of haggard men wearing little more than rags limp and crawl toward the riders with their arms extended asking for aims. Many of these men reveal gaping and oozing open sores on their exposed skin.
-----"By Holy Joren!" Romney exclaims, "What has come to pass here?"
-----Rinda pauses and then begins to dismount to move among the hapless ones.
-----To everyone's left, a large market square is situated although many of the stalls and stands are empty. A few rats scurry from an overturned cart of rotting vegetables. The few merchants that do remain have their wares displayed away from the deserted infested stands. Just beyond the market square, the town keep rises over the other buildings.
-----The air seems to hang heavy in the air holding an assortment of foul and sometimes noxious odors. From some of the closed tents, moans are heard hinting of illness or near death. Raven's wolf sniffs the air and whines uneasily as its stands by its master's horse.
-----Suddenly a loud commanding voice cuts through the air. "HOLD YOUR POSITION!" Thereupon, up rides from the eastern side of the market a troop of twenty soldiers dressed in armor and bearing surcoats with what must be the emblem of Redmarsh. At their lead is a strong looking man with long brown hair and short beard. The man rides with a great degree of grace though an unmatched fury is shown on his face. This man, who must be Sir Zantar, wears plate mail and has a magnificent long sword sheathed at his side.
-----The troop approaches and the beggars begin backing off. "Back, back, I say!" the one who must be Sir Zantar growls at the haggard men. His green eyes blaze at the huntress and he snarls, saying, "Woman, you wish to contract the plague?"
-----The Knight of Redmarsh glares around staring at Garrison, Raven, Sol and Sarah. He then sees the four guards of Oakwood and notes the emblems on their own surcoats. With a disgusted expression, he angrily exclaims, "Are we now to be visited by a small contingency from the Fief of Oakwood?" With his jaw set, he continues glaring at the adventurers as if demanding an explanation.