10/07/2023
The Orders of the Multiverse
Session #9: The Shadow Assassin
Part 1: Expensive Soup and a Merchant Ignored
As Tim walks to whatever's waiting on the other side of the portal, he finds himself standing before a grand cathedral, its towering spires reaching towards the heavens. But beneath the facade of sanctity, secrets and darkness lie hidden.
Inside the church, shadows dance upon the ancient stone walls, casting an ethereal glow that shrouds the mischievous activities taking place. The air is heavy with anticipation, as if every nook and cranny holds whispers of clandestine meetings and hidden treasures.
Tim, his features fluid and ever-changing, moves with agility and grace through the hallowed halls. He navigates the maze-like corridors, avoiding the watchful eyes of both clergy and unsuspecting worshippers. Their steps are soundless, a silent predator in pursuit of their quarry.
He turns a corner, only to reach a corridor where familiar figures stand on the other side across him. He sees the people of his guild, and they smile upon seeing him. Before he can attempt smiling back, he sees their figures droop down into a pool of dazzling light. In an instant, the pool multiplied into a huge tsunami wave of blinding light that comes rushing at Tim, drowning the whole corridor of its warmth. Tim closes his eyes and he feels his body lighten and change back to the form he had when he first stepped into the portal earlier.
His souls and consciousness leap back into his mind as he starts opening his eyes. The first thing he comes in senses to is how the air is filled with the aroma of hearty food and the sounds of laughter and conversation. The walls surrounding the building he is currently in are adorned with faded tapestries and mounted animal heads, giving it a rustic and adventurous atmosphere.
Tim looks around the tavern and he immediately sees a huge crowd of people surrounding one of the tables. He also sees a group of dwarves on another table, whom all look injured and are in a bad mood, despite the tankards of beverages they're holding. Ahead of him by the counter, he spots the bar owner, a dwarf, who's currently engaged in a conversation with Tim's friends, Scarlett, Arco, and Emrys. The happy dwarf seems to be holding a bunch of candies on his hand.
Tim decides to approach his friends while passively trying to eavesdrop on all the talks and mumbles of the people around him. Upon reaching the counter, he overhears Scarlett offering the dwarf of selling a single piece of her candy in exchange for 10 gold. Surprisingly, the bar owner accepted it and cheerfully handed her a pouch of money.
Once the dwarf notices him, he greets Tim and asks if does he want to buy some of his newly acquired candies for 15 gold a piece. Tim, in response, waves his hand and says, "I don't usually partake in candies. I'm looking for something a little different than that."
"Right!" The dwarf agrees. "Apologies for not introducing myself. I'm Gundrick, welcoming you to The Rusty Goblet! Aside from the usual stuff, we also sell a diverse menu of mouthwatering dishes here. Our menu includes the Dragon's Roast; for 5 gold, it is a hearty plate of roasted venison served with root vegetables. We have the Bard's Delight, a creamy mushroom soup served with freshly baked bread for 2 gold a bowl. Or you can have our Goblet's Grilled Fish, which is a savory grilled salmon fillet accompanied by a zesty citrus sauce that you can enjoy for only an affordable price of 4 gold.. Our specialty drink is the Firebreather. For only 2 gold a mug, this flaming concoction combines spiced rum, dragonberry liqueur, and a touch of cinnamon. Which one do ye fancy?"
"They all sound delicious," Tim comments. But putting the absurd prices in consideration, he then proceeds to ask, "Do you mind if I ask what are the usual jobs or activities that your regulars partake in to afford such prices? For example those dwarves over there who seem angry of something."
"Ah, you see, my patrons are people such as them," Gundrick answers and points at Scarlett's trio before continuing, "who are multiverse adventurers. With huge amounts of money they haul in every adventure, I receive little to no complaints about our handsome prices. In fact, my place is always packed of different groups that I just entrust them of keeping peace and order around here, hence the absence of security."
"Ah, adventurers, you say. Well, I happen to be one, and in fact I know these three," Tim proudly replies, nudging at Scarlett, who then confirms this to the dwarf. "And we're kinda new here, you see."
"Right! Right, you are! Your group clearly don't know much about the latest buzz around 'ere. To the extent of claiming yourselves to be the infamous Order of the Oxen? That's something serious and not to be taken lightly! You're attracting death, my friends."
"Oh, infamous? You can't spell infamous without 'famous'," Tim remarks with a laugh.
"Yeah, yeah, sure. But your friends can never undo what they've just said or done. These people," Gundrick warns while referring to his patrons, "will forever remember that moment and see you as that infamous group. And that brews bad luck, my friend."
By the end of their conversation, Tim asks to help himself with the Bard's Delight soup, which Gundrick joyfully serves along with a comment, "Ah, yes, this flavorful soup inspires confidence and eloquence in social interactions."
Meanwhile as Elzon and Hazey descend down the steps into the basement of the tavern, they get greeted by a grinning and smiling merchant, whom they completely ignore. They proceed to go to their horses' direction and prepare an area near their animals to sleep.
In the merchant's anger, he storms at the duo and yells, "Hey, hey, hey! What are you doing? This area is for horses! Are you considering yourselves as horses? Like, what's the deal here? Are you trying to ruin my business' reputation? My customers won't like me seeing you like that! Stop this, at once!"
Despite the nagging, Elzon and Hazey continue what they're doing without any care for the world. "Why are you doing this to me? That doesn't look comfortable! If you wanted to sleep in this basement in the first place, you should've rented my self-driving carriage instead! You're adventurers. Renting that work of art is as cheap as a penny to you, guys!"
As both Elzon and Hazey completely rejects the merchant's existence, the merchant exclaims to himself, "What in the hell are wrong with these people? I do— I don't understand!"
~DM Rowel
The Oxen Weekly Order is a weekly news article of the Oxen’s orders of events!
