Basic Background

Over a year ago, a small group of Jotunn ship-builders traveled to Torei, hired by General Arkus to design and oversee the construction of that country’s first fleet. The public justification for the project is Arkus’s desire to open full trade relations with the Halveetian League – though rumors fly that the Jotunn also have been asked to design and build a small fleet of warships to guard Torei’s eastern coast.

The Freeman is the first merchant ship completed by the project. It was due to arrive three days ago in Tarrish, after sailing around the Cape of Helve and then past the peninsula south of Visaiyain. It was scheduled to make only one stop, at the small port of Seawell on the western side of the Visaiyain cape. Among its passenger was Archmater Retta Pierce of the Temple of Hamal, the Second Dram-master for the Order’s kirk in Hatham. The Freeman also was carrying a set of very expensive gold and ruby jewelry purchased by a Tarrish merchant, Caric Sey, as a gift for his wife on their upcoming 25th wedding anniversary.

The Characters

Boeden Narwin: Boeden (3L Giant) has ‘til now been assigned to perform guard duty with the Jotunn contingent in Halveet, under the command of Yardmaster Berrin. Berrin, Boeden, and two other Jotunn guards have come to Tarrish to await the arrival of the Freeman. Berrin mentions that the Archmater is traveling on the ship, and Boeden responds that he hopes Hamal will guide it safely to Tarrish. Berrin seems surprised to hear the young Jotunn invoke the southern god, and asks what Content Not Found: Einmar, the Lady of the Northern Foam, would think of that. Boeden says he still believes in the Lady.

Two days later, when the ship has not arrived, Berrin goes to speak with the Tarrish harbormaster. He comes out of the office, his face grim, and says that the Freeman and two other ships traveling a similar route are overdue without explanation – sailors coming from Yarrick have reported that the seas are calm, and there are no known weather-related reasons for the delays. Berrin tells Boeden that he needs to go to the Vind Hall.

Duran: Duran is from the tribal horse nomads of the Middle Redding. He has fled to the south after killing the chief’s son in a duel over a woman. When he arrives at Tarrish, he is asked to give his name. When he balks, the scribe looks up and asks whether he has ever been to Tarrish before. When Duran says “No,” the scribe sighs and explains that the city policy is to take the name of everyone who enters each morning, and the scrolls will be placed in the vaults with the records from each day’s entrants. Duran then says that his name is Dod.

Once past the gates, Duran goes to the harbor to look out over the ocean, which he has never seen. While there, he sees four Jotunn, towering over everyone else, pushing through the crowd.

Athron Dolmen: Half-Shal, half-human Athron was found as a baby near a set of standing stones. Now a cleric of Hamal, he has taken his horse and wagon west from Torei to the city of Tarrish. He falls in with the farmers and other tradesmen filing into the city in the morning and meets a farmer, John, who recognizes the sigil of Hamal on Athron’s cloak. John tells him that a few followers of Hamal have passed through the area before, and done good deeds – as a result, Athron can expect to be well-received in Tarrish.

At the gates, Athron learns that everyone who passed into the city must give their name, to be inscribed on the morning rolls. He asks John why the “regulars,” such as John himself, aren’t simply given a badge or token of some sort that would allow them to pass without inquiry. “But what would the scribes then do?” John replies with amusement, “and their sons and daughters after them, and their sons and daughters?” He tells Athron that he imagines his own name must appear in the lists of Otori’s supplicants thousands of times by now, “or perhaps they burn the rolls in her honor.”

Athron takes a room at the Laborin’ Goose, next door to the Vind Hall. The next morning, the goes to the [[:The Vind | Vind Hall]], with a letter of marque, to draw upon his reserves, and takes out fifty gold. While there, he sees four Jotunn enter, their faces grim.

Broc: Broc has traveled from the North Redding – when young warriors reach a certain age, they are sent out to learn of the southern lands, and then return to speak of the adventures they have seen. Broc enters Tarrish, astounded at its size and the number of people, and goes to the Laborin’ Goose. He is loud and a little overbearing, but when he shows the barmaid his gold, she willingly serves him. An older, burly fighter stops next to him and advises him not to flash his coin so easily, because it might attract the wrong sort. Broc says he’s ready to take on anyone stupid enough to try to lift his purse.

The fighter introduces himself as Jarlath, and they spend most of the evening drinking and trading stories of enemies slain and pretty women wooed. Jarlath says that if Broc decides to hire at the Vind Hall, to say that Jarlath sent him.

Broc goes to the Vind Hall the next morning. Just as he arrives, four Jotunn push through the door past him.

Bryan Montpelier (a/k/a Vermillion): Bryan is summoned to the Nightsong offices to learn of a new job. He meets with Heroz, a tall dark-haired Middle Redding woman who is testing a lock trap in the Nightsong laboratories. Heroz tells him of the Freeman, that it is overdue, and that Jotunn Yardmaster Berrin has already gone to the Vind Hall to hire people to try to find out what happened to it. A customer of the Nightsong agency would like for one of the Nightsongs to go along and try to make sure that a jewelry set he purchased for his wife on their anniversary does not become part of someone else’s salvage rights.

Bryan spends time gathering information, stopping at (among other places) the Brass Talon, a favored tavern of Vind Hall regulars.

Cassick Arnaud: Cassick comes from the East Redding/Tarrish region, from a family with a long history of smuggling and skirting the law. He has been known, at times, to sell out his acquaintances to the Vind.