Chapter 2c - Winter 1228 - In Search of a Singer

Play by Post Campaigns Ars Magica 5th Edition: Base Camp
41

[Rolls a stress die for the journey...you're fine.]

The man's wife heads off after a short discussion with her husband, and a little while afterwards, a couple of youths turn up - from their appearence, you strongly suspect them to be their children. Whilst waiting, the man (whose name you discover to be Ozgur) divides the nets into a couple of piles, one of which goes into the boat, the other onto the quayside, from where he subsequently gives them to his wife.

The boat tacks along the coast, making slower progress than it would do if it were not also trying to fish. The sea is choppy but not dangerously so, although the wind seems to be getting ever colder. The fish are not particularly pleasant to share a boat with, and you strongly suspect you're going to stink of them by the time you arrive.

And arrive you do. The port is fairly quiet, with just one major ship standing a little way off shore, goods being ferried over to it in smaller ships. Noticing you looking, the man tells you that the sea is only a couple of metres deep near the shore - too shallow for the large ships to come in close. Your fishing boat has no such trouble, though, and you're able to tie up at the quayside.

42

As they had toiled their way down the coast against the wind, Theodoric had asked about the place they were heading to - if Ozgur had spent any time there, or how often he had visited, and what he thought of the people, and if any fishing boats could be hired there for the return trip (whenever that may be). Anything else of value, even if just a general impression, or a peasant's warning what to avoid.

The sun was hanging low and white in the winter sky as they offloaded their rucksacks. The journey had not been a noticeably wet one, but still, from the constant small splashes and spray, and simply handling the nets, they were all damp and colder than comfortable, and the wind was a constant reminder that it was the time of year to be inside and not out, more so as dusk was not too far off. With a hearty thanks, Theo waves a farewell to the fisherman and his sons, and turns and trudges down the quay with the brothers toward the town proper.

Once out of sight of the boat, he stops and sets down his pack, and asks for the two spare coin purses back, the ones he had given them in case the negotiations needed a different amount of pennies as a "starting" point. He gives them each a cursory inspection to make sure they seem about as heavy as they started, then gives each brother two silver pennies.*

(* about a day's wage for a laborer)
"This is for you lads to spend as you will while we're here - the covenant will cover breakfast and dinner, but that should last you a few days - spend it all tonight and you go thirsty tomorrow and the next. If days start to turn into a week, we'll have to decide if we can afford any more, or if we need to harbor all our coin for an inn and our task, a storyteller - a - what did you call them? A skomokoro?"

He buries the spare purses deep in his pack, and the last of the four securely but not so deep that he'd need to unpack much. Once those are safe and sound, he kneels to the cold waterside and tries to wash some of the fishiness off his hands, encouraging the brothers to do the same.

"The less we look and smell different the better. Not every inn welcomes fishermen, and I'd rather not stay at the worst of the lot. We don't know this town - keep your eyes open, your hands on your purses, and try not to start any trouble - or even help it along if it's already started by someone else. The sooner we find this story-singer and get back, the better - that's all we're here for - do it right and there'll be some more coin for you at journey's end."

He nods assuredly, and moves towards what looks like the "heart" of this burg, to find an inn.

43

As Theodoric nods to them and walks on the brothers look to each other, an old habit of traveling in dangerous places - to see if either of them has a concern. Bogdan raises an eyebrow slightly as they heft their packs, and his brother gestures with his chin toward Theodoric, and Bogdan nods.

(rus, quietly) "This isn't our first outing."
"...but it is our first with him in lead. And he's right," replies Godzimir. "you gamble too much, and even I'm better than you."
Bogdan smirks and nods as he agrees, the thought on Theodoric leaving him.
"I know what you're say'n brother; we're working here. No play."
"Well, no play till later." replies Bogdan.

Both the brothers walk in step with each other, moving through the street with purpose as Theodoric walks ahead. Each is watching the street for signs of mischief. As they walk through the streets they'll also keep an eye on what other types of business and houses they pass, trying to get a feel for the make-up and layout of the town, the style of the district they're in, and perhaps look at how hard or easy a quick exit might be.

44

Ozgur has been to Tana on occasion - this won't be the first time he's sold fish there - but he tends to only stay briefly. The people there are a mix - the port is run by the Venetians, and they operate most of the ships, with Kipchak and Rus traders bringing goods to sell. The port does have some of its own fishing boats, but a smaller proportion than in his village - most of the town's inhabitants are involved in other businesses, and some of the locals who are sailors instead make their living ferrying goods to and from the big ships. Some areas of the town can definitely be rough, and it's not unknown for there to be problems, especially from people expecting to be leaving the town imminently anyway. The town's authorities will usually crack down on anything they think is likely to be injurous to trade, but law tends to be loosely enforced beyond that.

Once arrived, you manage to do a rough job of getting rid of some of the fish, but it's far from perfect. Walking into the town, you see that next to the docks are a group of warehouses, followed by a market area. To one side of the market, you can see what is clearly a slave market, although the entire market has largely shut down for the day. On a side street leading away from the market, you can see a painted sign of a man's head.

[Editted: removed repeated sentence.]

45

Theo glances at the sign, looks to the brothers, and if it means nothing to any of them, they'll continue on their way.

46

The brothers shrug. [ooc: not that I know of]

47

You continue on down what is obviously the main street of the town. The houses that line it have had their ground floors converted into shop fronts, but the shutters are closing or closed as people pack up for the day. Continuing on down the street, it doesn't take very much longer before you come to the outskirts of the town. Here there's a wooden wall, with a gatehouse manned by a couple of bored looking guards.

48

Theo is in good spirits - the boat was not too costly, the owner was friendly enough and the passage went smoothly (fish aside), they were arriving well before sundown, Tanas seemed a nice enough place on its face... a hot meal, a bed with a roof...

"So far, so good, eh lads? What d'ye say to a nice stew and loaf of bread to mop it up for dinner, if we can find it? And a pint t'wash it down, and a fire to smoke the smell of fish off us... smile and make nice t' the guards, now - maybe they'll know something that can get us started in the right direction..."

As he approaches, he absently strokes his chin whiskers, and nods and waves an empty hand, stopping short of them once they seem to come alert.

"Good day to ye both - we're looking for a good inn - can ye' recommend one? And we heard there was a good singer-storyteller here abouts that we were told we couldn't miss - any chance that rings a bell?"

(Etiquette (Kipchak) 1(+1) +0 Pre/Com = 5
Folk Ken (Kipchak) 2(+1) +0 Pre/Com = 4 (or = 19 if stress)
invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4472921/)

49

The guards don't look Kipchak to Theodoric - from the context, he'd guess they're Venetians.

One of the guards looks amused, before speaking in slightly broken Kipchak.

"Word travel fast, yes? You want Doge's Head. By market. Is best Inn. Is Inn. New singer very good."

50

Theodoric makes sure he has the general direction to the market correct, and with many thanks and smiles moves off in that direction with a fresh sense of purpose in his step, hearing both the short- and long-term goals may be close.

"Might be a shorter trip than expected, lads! If so, so much the better!"

51

@ Salutor:

Clarification of spelling in your post vs. how Theo is "hearing" the word - are they saying (trying to spell phonetically here...) "doag" (or "dogge") or "doaj"?

I ask because a word spelled "d-o-g-e" (and capitalized) in the context of "Venetians" in the 1200's makes me immediately think of the Doge of Venice - but if that's not how they pronounced it (or if T just isn't aware of that office, and it's not clear he should be), that would be different.

So is this "The Duke's Head" or "The Dog's Head" - or would you prefer to keep these subtleties as an IC mystery for the time being? :wink:

52

"Perfect, Theo onward to dinner and ale!" says Bogdan.

(Rus) "Hounds Head eh. Sounds like your last conquest" slapping his brother's shoulder and breaking a big smile.
"Or your next one brother", snarks Godzimir while failing to hide his amusement.

As they walk toward the inn the brothers push each other with exuberance, and even playfully nudge Theodoric, "at last some uncivilized people".

53

You turn around and head back up the road you've just come down towards the market. After a bit of further wandering around and confusion, you work out that the painted sign you spotted earlier marks the Inn you're looking for (and that apparently a Doge is something separate from a Dog, even if none of you have enough knowledge of Italien society to know what exactly).

The Inn itself is a timber building of reasonable size, with one entrance facing the street and an archway leading through to a courtyard. Entering through the street door, you enter into a corridor with a door leading onto a common room on your left, and another door leading to the right at the far end (which you suspect is probably to the courtyard).

[Ironboundtome, I've realised that neither of Bogdon and Godzimir have any personality traits - could you come up with some appropriate ones? Include scores in Brave and Loyal (even if they're +0).]

54

Yes, this is in the context of the Doge of Venice. Whom it is entirely plausible for none of the party to have ever heard of. The word was the Italien one, rather than a Kipchak translation.

55

You carry on into the common room. The room is fairly large, with a number of tables set into alcoves and other tables in the centre of the room. Towards the back of the room there's a bar to the left, a staircase going up on the right and another door to a back room. The room is fairly sparsely populated at the moment, but there's a man behind the bar who looks up and greets you as you come in.

[OOC: All characters gain a +3 personality trait "treacherous" whilst in the common room, or reduce an existing Loyal trait by +3 if applicable. The impact will increase to +4 once the sun goes down. It is not immediately obvious to your characters that this has happened.]

56

Theo steps in, and immediately sizes the bartender up, considering whether he seems sharp or dull, and in turn wondering how hard it would be to skip out on some of their bill if the price is too steep, or the skipping part just prove too convenient. But he puts on a smile (if smiling at the thought, rather than in friendship), shifts his pack on one shoulder, and steps up to make open-ended arrangements for the night (and possibly more), and to ask about the song-maker in question.

He also orders 3 ales, for himself and the other two (but will expect them pay for their own out of their allotment, naturally!).

57

What is the paradigm we're using for "inns" in our part of Mythic Europe?

Are private rooms commonly available, or absurdly rare/expensive, or what? Are we expecting to be sleeping behind our own door, or on the floor next to strangers? Is there a strongroom for "valuables" (like our packs/etc.)?

(As I understand it, the latter was far more often the rule, if available at all, but for RPG's that's often awkward on several practical levels.)

Indeed?... :open_mouth:

58

It will be possible to store things with the Innkeeper, who will have a strongbox somewhere.

There's likely to be several rooms upstairs, but yes, getting one for just the three of you (let alone one each) would be expensive. You can expect individual beds, even if that probably is anachronistic.

And things were going so well.

59

The Innkeeper is a skinny Italien looking man, with a wily look to him. The way the room and stairs are designed, it would be very difficult to leave without being seen, although you might be able to gain a small headstart.

Accommodation will be four pence per night per person, for which you get a space in a shared dormitary. Pints of beer are half a penny each.

The Innkeeper smiles when you mention the song-maker.

"Ah, you have heard of Antonio! Beautiful singer he is. Makes me feel right here." He gestures at his heart. "Taking him on was the best decision I've made all year. He will be here later this evening - you can listen to him then. Can I get you any food whilst you're waiting?"

[OOC: Are you giving up any of your weaponry to be stored with him?

Both Theodoric and Bogdan notice a girl clearing tables giving the Innkeeper a filthy look when he mentioned taking on the singer.]

60

OOC - Not sure, thinking on it - having a hard time suddenly shifting gears to "treacherous", especially without being able to also immediately jump to and rely on other, related traits like "untrusting" or "suspicious" or "paranoid", etc. To be distinctly "treacherous" but also apparently utterly oblivious to the same possibility in return is... odd... and I'm trying to balance that.