It was just another normal day in Uhm, when the news of an arriving merchant ship reached the ears of the common folk. The excitement rate suddently got a ninety degree spike up, since something out of ordinary made its way to the little village. The local children ran to the shore, screaming happily and waving their arms, waiting inpatiently for the new arrival. Even the calmest and laziest men and women made their way to the small dock, their gaze directed to the horizon. Certain shop keepers prepared for trade, inn keepers changed sheets to the beds.

Hours passed slowly, the time moved on heavily. Some of the locals left the shore, muttering about "wrong news" and "waste of time". The jolly atmosphere changed to disappointment and many sighs.

A group of children, however, insisted to wait, even it was getting late. If the ship would come, they wanted to be the first ones to see it. So they continued to wait... and wait. Some mothers dragged their little ones inside their house by force, almost tieing the children to their beds, so that they'd sleep. After all, only one lonely boy sat on the dock, half asleep.

Then he spotted some odd light in the dark horizon. It was dim, but he was certain it was light. Slowly, but surely, the source of light got bigger, and one could only imagine what caused it. The boy's eyes widened. He got up quickly, ran to the middle of the village and hollered: "The ship is coming! The ship is coming for real!"

The boy's shout worked like dynamite: every man and woman woke up and hurried out, some of them half-dressed, some of them pulling their boots on the way. The fishermen came with their lanterns and placed them around the shore. The surface of the water began to be more wavy. Moment by moment, the ship came closer.


* * *


The soft night breeze blowed into the sails and pushed the ship onwards on the water. The crew made preparations for landing, the captain shouting instructions to his men. First crates of goods got dragged up to the deck, most of them containing large amounts of booze and exotic foods from the mainland. Now and then, a crew member opened a crate lid and snatched a bottle for himself.


* * *


The common folk watched in awe, as the foreign merchant ship slid to the dock, Uhm's own dock-workers running to its side to catch the ropes thrown from the ship. Some local ship-builders made quick notes of the arriving boat's structure, appraising it critically, and perhaps stealing an idea or two.

The men from the ship lowered the anchor and rolled the sails up. The other dock-workers tied the ship close to the dock, then helped to settle a wide plank against the ship, so that people may come out of it. The crew members began to slide down first crates, the captain walking down from the ship soon after, going to greet the more important persons of the village.

The common folk brought onwards their own welcoming goods, mostly food and local spirits. A few men gathered a pile of wood onto the shore and put up a bonfire. A grand party had began, and it kept both the villagers and the arrivals awake until the first rays of sunlight.

Somewhere in the shadows, to which nobody paid any attention, was another kind of party going on...

_________________

The merchants from the mainland opened their selection of goods for travelling adventurers coming to the village. Gold changed its owner, and so did the exotic goods. The locals seemed happy for this sudden interest towards their village, though the doubters' group also increased in numbers.

The common folk's worst fears came to true: noisy chaos in their peaceful village. It was not sure, what were the reasons for this, but the merchants were heard mentioning someone threatning to rob and stab them. Soon after the threats the vendors of the ship crew packed up their goods and moved them to safe inside the ship.

The Town Militia was alerted to keep an eye open for certain troublemakers, but also the adventurers wanting to help.

In the middle of all the chaos, something made its way out of the crates left to the shore, and quickly moved out of sight. Only a few managed to get a glimpse of that 'something', but it was hardly enough to know what it was.

* * *

Late at the night, a crew member was sent into the village to seek out the local medical expert. Nobody outside the crew of the merchant ship seemed to know why, however.

_________________

Rumours about the merchant ship's captain spread around Uhm. One of the rumours says, that the captain has not left his ship for days and has decided to ignore the people of Uhm. Another one says that he sailed away on his own after having a bad fight with his second in command. The boldest locals gossip, that the captain would have died due to drinking too much of that whiskey brought from the mainland.

Every evening, the men of Uhm gather in the Bad Dragon Inn to discuss about this peculiar matter. Sadly, no-one seems to have any clue what is actually going on, but gladly there's always that friend of a good friend, who knows everything.

* * *

In the mean while, the other arrivals continue their duties...

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It was like a dark cloud would have fallen upon the village, shadowing the people and animals. A great wave of fatigue wiped over them, leaving no one out of it.

A few of the shipmakers worked on another kind of wooden object, one that looked like a long box. When it was finished, two men in rather clean outfits carried it to the merchant ship. Two crew members greeted those locals with a quiet nod, then took them to the ship. The rest of the crew stood in silence outside.

Some curious locals of Uhm gathered to the docks. Well, those who were capable and not too tired to do it. They saw, how four men carried a finely made wooden coffin out of the merchant ship, and a woman dressed in simple brown robe walking after them.

The men carried the coffin out of the village, and buried it somewhere close-by to the shore. During the burial, the crew members raised their bottles and spoke "To the great captain Jonathan Wellfrem. May he sail on good waters for the eternity."


* * *

Inside the walls of Uhm, the woman in brown robes, known as the village healer, continued her work the best she could, the locals keeping her busy. Through the night, she ran from house to house, but without answers.


* * *

In the sunrise of the next morning, the merchant ship left Uhm.

_________________

---

//copy+pasted from PC notice board.

_________________
Plays:

"I'll think of something once Amia:EE drops."

Water kept pouring down from the sky, and so did tears from many mothers' eyes as they tried to help their own and others' children. The young and the old, now in same states: some watching others in pain, some in pain themselves. Day and night they prayed their gods to take the heavy burden away, some desiring quick death, some just hint for possible cure.

However, now that the Salandrans had taken a somewhat permanent standing in Uhm, a few brave dared to speak of hope and deliverance from the dark curse, that had clutched around the village. Perhaps this wasn't the end after all, only a test to see what the village was made of.

* * *

The guards were commanded to double their patrols and keep a better eye those, who were not locals. Often the guards stopped a random passer-by, asked a few questions, then just let go. Rumours spread, that the guards were looking for something... or even somebody.

_________________

*on the outskirts, in the rain, a small figure, appearing to be a small girl perhaps, is seen standing at the outskirts of the city.

Whenever approached, even remotely, she ambles off and seems to disappear*

Regards,

_________________

"Come under the flag of truce, and brook no treason... for mineself is Death, and care not whom knows mine touch."
- Frey Asaid'De Majere

*Aniril seems to be walking around to investigate this matter, he doesn't do much and alot of the time he just standing in the city as a kid or a chicken to get information, time to time he closes the ship as a diffrent form.*

_________________
No more blood in my veins, cause im not a living conduct.

Aniril Latoneia -"The Green Dragon"
Izzton d'Tinnerai - "The Silent"
Pifral - No title.

Anyone interfering with Salandran business is given the same responce:

"Pike off, the situation's under control"

_________________
Plays:

"I'll think of something once Amia:EE drops."

*is not in he's normal form with would make him hard to detect... actually impossible*

_________________
No more blood in my veins, cause im not a living conduct.

Aniril Latoneia -"The Green Dragon"
Izzton d'Tinnerai - "The Silent"
Pifral - No title.

Anything interfering with Salandran business gets dragged away from the Quarantine zones with the same message:

"Pike off, the situation's under control."

_________________
Plays:

"I'll think of something once Amia:EE drops."