– Why did you come into our town? We were told to do so.

– Who told you to? Why listen to them? One of you longshanks; our leader told us to follow that guy into town, to help him, and to do whatever he asked of us.

– Why are you working together? The other tribes helped us kick the lizards out so that we own the marsh now; all of us have been served better together

– Where did you meet? North of the city, in the woods; the gate was open, and we just went in

– Did he meet with your leaders? I don’t know; I never saw him before

– What did he look like? Hard to say; all longshanks look alike. Dressed darkly, no piercings or tattoos/markings, wore the mark (Sihedron rune) on his armor

– Why wear the star? It unifies us; shows that we are one and we are strong

– How many tribes are working together? Only three groups were here (Licktoads, Mosswood, and Thistletop); the Bridcrunchers helped to take the Marsh, but were not here.

– Why were the Birdcrunchers not here? Perhaps they were not called; the Seven Tooths were not here either, but they helped with the Marsh as well

– How long have you been working together? Within the last moon; that’s when we cleared the Marsh

– How long have you been wearing the star? Since the Spring

– Why weren’t you trying to kill more? We were to follow instructions; we were given a lot to be part of this, and it was an honor to be chosen to burn the town

– What were your orders? Burn and destroy, hold the gate open

– What did the longshanks do? Gave instructions, stayed in the woods while we went through the gate

– How were you paid? How is this an honor? It is an honor to be chosen to conquer this last spot of the map; paid in coin and valuables

– What was your exit strategy? We were to burn our way to the south end of town and leave along the road, return home

Sheriff Hemlock paused behind his desk a moment before sitting down, motioning for the others to sit. “Things seem to have calmed down enough that I can give you the time to convince me that you can be useful in this endeavor. For the time being, we will stick with conventional methods of interrogation; I will even allow you to enter the cell undercover. While we cannot plan to allow an escape, I will not make it an impossible option. Now, Tansy, give me the battle report.”

Drux listened as Tansy recounted the group's battles, culminating in the defense of the North Gate. Sabacen and Zevran added in extra things as she went along, explaining that the raid was definitely an organized attack and the goblins thought it was an easy mark. Hemlock waits until they finish speaking to add his report: the thunderstone was probably the signal to start the raid, some of the goblins had to have been smuggled into the city, and fires were started at every goblin location.

“We estimate 20-25 goblins entered the town, 40 civilians injured, and four possible fatalities. Interrogation has given us little additional knowledge: a "longshanks” organized the raid and was on some kind of secret mission.“ Hemlock was cut short at this point when his assistant entered the room, escorting Mayor Deverin into the small office.

"Please excuse us for a moment while we talk,” she stated firmly, barely glancing towards the group as she made her way to Hemlock’s desk. He gave the group a short nod; they reluctantly obeyed and waited in the hallway, Snub’s ear pressed against the wall to listen. After only a minute, the door opened, revealing the Mayor and her entourage again; this time, she looked over the group, addressing them, “I have been told of your great service to our town. Please stop by my office Moonday morning so that you can be thanked properly.” With that, she started down the stairs and out of the Garrison.

“I apologize for the interruption; as I was saying, it seems that all five goblin tribes are working together. Every goblin we found was wearing armor imprinted with this mark.” Drux watches as Hemlock hands the paper to Tansy, who holds it up for the group to see; it is a crudely drawn seven-pointed star, a Sihedron rune. “Shaelu will be our best source concerning this new alliance; she should be in town within the next few days, Tansy, if you can speak with her. Further interrogation seems to be our only other option.”

Approaching the Garrison, the group sees a crowd gathered outside, seemingly waiting for something or someone. Makeshift armor and simple weapons; looks like the town militia to me, Tansy notes. She recognizes some of the local business owners as she moves towards the Garrison Gate, finding guards Holex and Willes guarding it. “You all can head straight in; Hemlock will be looking for you,” the guards explain, opening the gate enough for the group to slid in, then closing it behind them.

The lobby of the Garrison was not large or grand, only 40-50 feet across; the right half of the simple, stone room had a wooden staircase leading to the second floor offices, while an open doorway to the left which lead to the mess hall and living quarters. In back, a large metal door separated the small room of holding cells; any serious offenders would be transported to the prison in Magnimar, the Hells.

Mysem, an elven guard, greets them as they enter, leading them across the lobby to the metal door, then down a small flight of stairs to the underground jail chamber. Tansy listened as her companions asked Mysem about the attack: “I was on patrol in town when I heard screaming near Cathedral Square. I began making my way north, but then there was an explosion near the General Store – barrels or something, maybe a cart – so I went there to help put out the fire. Then, we saw some goblins on the beach lighting the bonfire. A group of us took care of those before heading back through town. Things seemed to have died down, so we came back to the Garrison for further instructions.”

Mysem opened the final door to the cells as he finished his narrative, revealing a small grouping of cells: three single cells down each side of the room and a larger cell covering the back wall. The warchanter they had captured earlier was gagged in the single cell to the right of the door, but five other goblins sat chained and tied in the large holding cell. Three were familiar: the ones from the North Gate, but the other two must have come from the battle in town, one of which was gagged but still had blood dripping from its mouth.

Tansy had learned some of the basic differences in the local Goblin tribes – the green-grey skin of the marsh tribe, the green from the Mosswood, the deep green and painted Thistletop goblins – but the contrasts were sharper as she saw these different goblins all siting together in the cell, seemingly working together in this raid.

She almost missed Snubs backing out of the cell, motioning for the group to follow. As the moved back to the lobby, he shared his plan: “I don’t think any of them saw me, so we can use that to our advantage. We can dress me up as a goblin and throw me into the cell to speak with them. I can get information while you all prepare to follow us. I will break us out while you and the Sheriff follow us all back to their leader. Then we’ll know who they are and where they are.”

Tansy bristled, “No, we are not letting any of them go. We might be able to get you in to talk to them, but there is no way Hemlock will agree to let any of them go.”

The first goblin swings its blade at Aldern, but the noble manages to duck out of the way. Another slashes at him, but he manages to disarm the goblin with his rapier. The third goblin does not miss, slicing the noble’s back.

Snubs sneaks around one side while Sabacen races to the other; Zevran charges towards the cluster, releasing his Color Spray and knocking out three of the four goblins. Tansy follows behind him, leaping over the unconscious form of one goblin to charge the commander and his dog, damaging both with her swinging swords.

Drux moves into position, allowing Aldern to rush behind him for cover. Aldern sheathes his rapier, pulling out a short bow and readying an arrow.

Snubs takes his first shot, but it flies behind the goblin commando as his dog lunges forward to bite Tansy. Snubs is able to stay hidden out of view while Tansy deflects the dog’s bite with her sword. The commando swings his long blade towards her, but she is able to duck under the attack. As he rides out of range, Tansy and Sabacen try to stop the dog, but it is too nimble for their advances.

Drux holds his staff overhead, the polished wood swirling with green magical energy; in an instant the energy bolts out, summoning an eagle to fight. It swoops at the goblins while Zevran pulls a blade to fight. Both attacks miss as the goblins begin heading towards the open gate.

Sabacen blocks the path, knocking the remaining goblin warrior back. Zevran hools his dagger around its neck, but Tansy slices across its stomach, nearly splitting the goblin in two. She looks up and charges the goblin commando, embedding her longsword into his head. As she frees her sword, Snubs gets a clean shot at the goblin dog, sending a bolt through its flank. The dog collapses and dies.

Aldern moves forward, profusely thanking the group. “I was just trying to get to safety, maybe get out of the town. Thank you for saving me; you have such incredible power.” He turns his gaze to Zevran, eyes wide with awe. He continues to answer their questions about what he saw: the dog-rider came from the east side of the gate, inside the town. He tried to fight his way free; that’s when the heroes came to save him.

Meanwhile, Snubs and Drux work to tie up the unconscious goblins. Sabacen inspects the North Gate, finding it unlocked. He closes and locks the gate, looking for any sign of foul play, but finding none. Eddigar return, and two guards approach as the reinforcements sent by Fingali. They help finish tying up the goblins as the three remaining begin stirring to consciousness.

“Please, I must be able to repay you all for saving me! I am staying at the Rusty Dragon currently; I would love to buy you drinks or a meal, maybe take you all on a Boar Hunt so you can see I’m not such a terrible fighter,” Aldern shrugs sheepishly. “Find me later,” he smiles at Zevran before heading south, back into the city.

The doors to the Cathedral fly open as a flood of clerics come running out clutching potions and scrolls. Father Zantus approaches the group, “Are you okay? Is anyone hurt?” His insightful gaze lands on Tansy’s long gash, and he reaches his hands out carefully over her wound. As yellow energy moves through his arms and hands, the wound begins to close and seal with barely a trace left behind.

“Gather ‘round, friends. Let me help,” he explains, moving himself towards the center of the group. He mumbles under his breath, clutching a statuette, and releases a warm, bright burst of energy that radiates out from his person, energizing and healing any lingering wounds.

“There are many others that need our help,” he says, looking around the square at the dead and injured. “Please, take this. Stay safe,” he hands an orange healing potion to Sabacen, clasping his shoulder before moving out of the square and towards the lower city.

Snubs and Zevran stand guard over the warchanter, waiting as she comes to consciousness and breaks free of the blindness from Color Spray. Squirming in her restrains, she glares at the group in hatred and terror. Zevran begins questioning her, relaying his findings to the group.

She doesn’t know the name of their leader, just that it was a “longshanks” that looks like Zevran. She knows nothing of the Sihedron Rune, nor much about the attack other than they were told to burn the town down.

In the midst of this, two half-elven guards approach the square, talking to Tansy about what had happened. They introduce themselves as Alrith and Fingali and ask to take any survivors back to the Garrison for questioning. The group takes the warchanter’s items and weapons, gagging her and warning the guards that she is a caster.

Alrith carries her back to the Garrison, while Fingali stay to answer the groups questions about the attack. The first thing he noticed was the lit bonfire at the beach, which they managed to put out easily. Another fire was lit near the Mill, but townsfolk managed to gather water buckets from the nearby pond to quell it. By his estimations, 1-2 dozen goblins had attacked.

As Sabacen questioned Fingali about the state of the town, the others hear barking at the North Gate. Fingali turns to leave, Zevran asks him to send reinforcements to the North Gate. Eddigar follows the twin guards, ensuring the goblin is taken to the Garrison; the group begins moving north, follow the sound of clanging and barking.

As the goblin continues chanting, she points her tiny finger towards Drux, her hand sheathed in a pinkish glow. The energy shoots towards him, but nothing seems to happen. One of the goblins atop the burning wagon jumps down, running towards Snubs. Drux swings out his quarterstaff, tripping the goblin and bashing its head in with the butt of the staff. Brains and gore splatter across the ground and nearby Snubs.

As Tansy moves the action, the other goblin atop the wagon runs through the fire to attack Tansy. He swings at her half-heartedly, laughing as he does. His companion swings at her with his dogslicer, gashing her arm. Zevran and Sabacen both begin moving towards this new threat, while Eddigar is released to the sky, his keen eyes looking to see what is happening throughout the town.

Meanwhile, Snubs takes one shot at a goblin attacking Tansy, shooting it in the head. After watching its body fall limp, Snubs whirls around to find the warchanter, shooting just over her crouched body. She ducks again as Drux’s javelin flies past her.

The warchanter continues her song, while reaching for a whip at her side; staying low to the ground, she aims for Drux’s leg. The whip wraps around his ankle, but is pulled from her grasp as she continues to hide and cower, looking for her allies. Only one remains, taunting Tansy with his torch. Tansy lunges with her longsword, which the goblin side-steps; unfortunately, he did not realize her short sword was swinging from the other direction, slashing across his head and neck. As he turns to flee, Tansy stabs forward with her longsword through his small chest, killing him in an instant.

Snubs glanced through the crowds, looking for any sign of trouble. As the crowd began their moment of silence, a woman’s scream pealed against the dark sky. Snubs could hear drums beating in the distance growing closer. More people began screaming and running away from the Square. As the group stood, he saw Zevran pulling a wand from his belt while Sabacen unsheathed his greatsword. Three green streaks ran through the tables towards the North end of the Square, one leaving a sticky, red trail in his wake.

Snubs watched the group as a whole follow the line of blood to a nearby cart; crouched beneath it was a goblin, licking the blood off his make-shift sword. Giggling to himself as he readied for action.

The goblin leaps from his low position, clamoring onto a nearby table, shoveling food into his mouth. To his right, a fire blazes forth; a second goblin drops a torch into the large brazier at the foot of the new obelisk, a memorial to those slain five years ago. A third goblin appears, running up the steps onto the now empty stage, looking around the receding Square.

Zevran moves towards the first goblin, wand outstretched; a purple flicker of energy sparks down his arm and into the wand, sending forth three beams of shadowy grey light that coalesce into a snarling wolf. It snaps at the legs of the first goblin, missing and biting the wooden table instead. The wood creaks and breaks in the jaw of the beast; it chucks the piece aside, turning again to its foe.

Sabacen reaches one hand towards his chest, grasping a chain and muttering under his breath. His hand glows for an instant, and Snubs feels a pulse of warmth in his chest. He moves and turns his crossbow towards the stage, loosing his first bolt. As he shoots, a javelin whizzes past him towards the stage. Drux runs beside him, readying another javelin.

From the corner of his eye, he sees Tansy racing through the square, dual blades swinging and shining in the fiery glow as she nears the table. She feigns with her longsword, manipulating the goblin to the right where she stabs forward with her short sword. The goblin falls onto the table, shrieking and screaming as it kicks towards her and the wolf, trying to back away.

As it slides on its back, the goblin wildly swings off the edge of the table, trying to return to its hiding spot. He manages to disengage with both Tansy and the wolf, cowering behind the nearby cart. After lighting the brazier, the second goblin turned in time to see Tansy’s charge. He runs towards her, climbing the table and slicing across her arm while she was distracted with her retreating quarry. He laughed and smiled at her, as if this was all a game, grasping a hunk of meat to eat from the blood-splattered table.

A blast of arcane energy shot out from Zevran’s hand, coating the nearby ground with a thin layer of grease. The hiding goblin jumped to avoid it, but slipped, falling on his back into the slimy mess. The wolf growled as he dominated his prone prey, gnawing and biting his legs. Meanwhile, Tansy turned to face her new opponent, swinging with both the left and right, catching the goblin in the middle to tear across his hide armor.

Sabacen dashed through the Square, looking and listening for new foes. Shouts and clanging echoed through the streets in the town below; however, this did not seem like an organized attack. He watched the goblin on the stage leap off to loot a nearby tavern booth, pulling cutlery off the table and into his knapsack. His mind clarified; this was most likely an initial attack, a lesser force to prepare the way for larger numbers or a scouting party probing the city’s defenses.

Snubs and Drux turned, watching the goblin bound across the stage, soaring towards a nearby stand. Snubs lined up his first shot, firing just as Drux’s javelin pierced the goblin’s shoulder, pushing it just out of Snub’s attack. He was prepared; as the goblin turned to face his attackers, Snubs shot hit true, the bolt entering its bulbous eye, snapping its head back.

Zevran moved towards the wolf and captive goblin, hearing it cry, “This wasn’t supposed to happen! This was supposed to be easy!” Zevran responded in Goblin: “What are you doing here? Talk or die?” He snarled a response: “Ask your own, longshanks!” Before he could continue, the wolf clawed his way up the body, ripping its throat out. As the blood pooled around the lifeless body, the wolf turned to Zevran, nodded, an faded out of sight.

As Sabacen finally reached Tansy’s side, the goblin lashed out at him, slicing across the dwarf’s shoulder. Sabacen grinned at the pain, leveling his greatsword to rend the final goblin through the waist. Snubs and Drux turned in time to see the final foe cleaved in two; Drux returned to collect his javelin, while Snubs climbed onto the stage and yelled, “Put the fire out!” Sabacen lifts a hand, pooling water into the air and releasing it over the brazier as steam and smoke billowed forth.

As they turned to the South, Snubs saw flashes of light like torches in the city below. He could hear Hemlock shouting to his troops, organizing the defenses in the lower city. Tansy began running to the causeway; but Zevran remained fixed over the goblin remains, studying the bodies. “They have the mark! The Sihedron Rune!” he shouted through the Square.

Drux reached out towards Zevran, offering the painted Swallowtail bag full of gifts. Zevran seemed to notice the gleam in Drux’s eye, but Cindy’s sweet smile ad curiosity forced his hand. Sabacen could barely contain his laughter as the pink box emerged. As the tips of his ears reddened, Zevran attempted to gather his confidence and remain poised; a touch of hope filled his heart that he may have found real friends.

Tansy wasn’t quite sure what Zevran said to Cindy, but the redhead looked half relieved to be headed back down the thoroughfare, away from the group. Though his face remained calm, she could still see his hands shaking just bit. She chuckled to herself and led the group towards Cathedral Square for their evening watch.

Drux had never been offered so much free food in his life. Despite starting to feel uncomfortably stuffed he mad his way through every open cart looking for what was still available. This was his way of life -- eat when you can, survive when you can’t. It had only been two days, but Sandpoint was not half bad.

Sabacen rarely let down his guard, rarely worked with anyone. His job at the Guild kept him behind a desk for the most part, and most of the people he knew were business associates or contacts. Maybe it was the ale, maybe the adrenaline of chasing people through the streets, maybe just the chance to actually do something again; whatever the reason, as he sat with between Drux and Snubs, he felt happiness.

Snubs felt like he had a sixth sense for things, always had. It wasn’t as if his hair would stand on end or his “regular” senses would clue him in; it was more like a premonition, and it always signaled a coming doom. He glanced around at his companions, laughing and drinking, watching Father Zantus climb onto the stage and twist the blue thundering stone. If was as if everything slowed, the sounds around him muffled and low as he focused in on the sensation, the feeling that something was terribly amiss.