Misthalin: leaving

Chris arrived at the building, assuming it to be some sort treasury or city hall. He walked in. The room was well lit. Chris hadn't realized how dark it was getting outside. Chris saw one man sitting at a desk, writing furiously. There were several papers surrounding him. "Can I help you?" he asked.
"As a matter of fact, you can. I'm here to claim a reward." Chris handed him the paper. The man seemed somewhat surprised, but got up and walked into the next room. He walked back out carrying a rather large sack. He sat it down, making a noise like a pocketful of pennies.
"Well, here ya go. Three hundred pieces of gold. Now if you'll excuse me..." He immediately sat back down and continued writing. Chris picked up the sack. It was much heavier than he expected it to be, but he carried it out the door and into a store.
Eric was already inside, holding several different items. The shopkeeper looked at Chris. "So you must be here to pay for all this. Comes to seventy-four pieces of gold." Chris quickly stacked some coins in columns of ten. He got out four more and handed them to the shopkeeper.
"Come on, let's go," Eric said. They walked over to another building, where Jen was waiting. She was standing next to a large cart and a pair of horses. A man walked out with some supplies and put it into the cart. "So how much is it?"
"A hundred and fifty-six gold." Chris got to work counting out the money while Eric began loading the cart. Chris handed the man the coins and got into the cart.
"So are we ready to go?" Eric asked.
Chris and Jen nodded. Chris looked back over the town. He began thinking through the events. "And I just left Arundel this morning..." he thought.
The horses began moving along, taking them through one of the gates of the town.

Misthalin: putting the plan into action

Chris waited until Eric had gotten the door unlocked before setting his plan into action.
"Everybody reaady?" Chris asked.
They both nodded. Chris went around to the other side of the prison. When the guard was in view, Chris broke into a run. "Guard! Guard! The Kandarin Bandits!"
"Not again! Which way where they heading?" he asked.
"No, I mean I've captured them!"
"You can't be serious."
After a few minutes of persuading and explaining, the guard followed Chris. After they were nearing the gate, Chris looked back and saw Eric and Jen walking out of the prison. Chris led the guard to the downed bridge.
"Incredible," the guard exclamed. Sure enough, the whole group was still trapped on the ledge. "The Bandits have robbed our town more than any other in the area. You have all our thanks."
"Right, but who do I see about the reward?" Chris asked.
"Yes, of course..." The guard pulled out some paper and began writing something. "When you go into town, go straight down the road. You'll find yourself at a very large building. Go inside and give them this." He handed Chris the paper. Chris headed back while the guard looked back down at the bandits.

Misthalin: solution

"ERIC?! I just talked to you last weekend!"
"Pretty weird huh? I'm still trying to figure this out myself. I've got a few theories, but I'm still working on 'em." Eric sat back down.
The woman moved back toward the window. "So you do know each other..."
"I guess so," Chris answered. "What about you?"
"Oh, right. I'm Jen. I've been here for about fifteen years, I think."
"So what are you doing here Chris?" Eric asked.
"On my way to Cortitia. Run into a budget problem though..."
"Better than a jail problem," Jen replied.
"Hey, that gives me an idea..." Chris reached into his pocket an pulled out the lock pick. "Either of you guys know how to pick a lock?"
Eric stood up. "Guess I can give it a try." He took the pick through the window and walked over to the door.
"Wait," Jen said. "What about the guard?"
"Not to mention none of us have any money..." Eric added, still fiddling with the lock.
Chris tried to think of a solution. Looking through the bars, he saw what looked like a wanted poster. It was too far to read, though. "Hey, Eric, what does that sign say?"
"Let's see, 'Wanted for extensive robbery: Kandarin Bandits. Reward: 300 gold pieces.' Why? You don't intend on catching these guys, do you?"
Chris smiled. "I already have."

Misthalin: the prisoners

Chris walked around to the back of the building. There were a few windows. Chris looked through one. Inside was a cell. Empty, though. The second however, had the two he had seen. "Hey!" Chris quietly shouted. The woman looked up through her brown hair. She seemed to be in her mid-20's.
"Umm... yeah?"
"Er... where you talking about... a giant wave?" Chris asked in a hushed voice.
The woman stood up and walked to the window. "Yes! Did you see it?!"
Chris waved his hand to keep her quiet. "Well, yeah. A few days back," he whispered. Chris looked over and saw the man on the other side of the cell. He had a hat covering most of his face, but he seemed to be listening to the conversation.
"Then what's going on?" she asked.
"I'm not reall sure." Chris stopped whispering, assured that the guard hadn't heard anything yet. At that, the man's head snapped up.
"Chris?"
The woman looked back and forth between them. "You two know each other?"
Chris stared at the man. "I'm not sure..." The man stood up and took his hat off. He was about Chris's height and had thick black hair. He was probably in his mid-20's as well. However, Chris didn't recognize him. "I... don't... who are you?"
The man gave a quick laugh. "I can see why you don't remember, though. You say you saw the wave a few days ago?" Chris nodded. "So within the past week you were still on campus..."
"Yeah..." Chris was then hit with another thought: "wait... How do you know that..."
"...you're in college? We were in the same dorm."
Chris ran through the information. His hall was only freshmen, and if this guy's in his 20's, then... "...you appeared a few years back, then?"
"Six years ago."
"But who are you?!" Chris was still frustrated that he hadn't revealed his identity.
"Eric."

Misthalin: dinner

Chris walked into a dark building. He had been told that he could buy some dinner here, so he walked up to the counter. Chris pulled out the coins he had gotten. "How much will this get me?" he asked. The man at the counter turned around. "Not much, but I'll go ahead and make it."
The other people there were all talking with each other. Chris thought he might be able to pick up some information from the surrounding conversations, but everything was pretty trivial: weather, livestock, nothing of use. Chris got his food and sat down at an empty table. It didn't look to appetizing, but he was hungry. All he had was an undercooked chicken leg, some beans, and a glass of water.
Chris decided he had better get an idea pretty soon on where to sleep and get money. He walked outside. It was twilight. Chris guessed he had about an hour of daylight left. He looked around, thinking something might strike him. And it did.
To his right, a few guards were trying to restrain one guy and a woman. The woman was screaming frantically: "... there was a giant wave!!!" Chris knew what she was talking about. He couldn't see the guy; guards were swarming them now. Chris decided he should before getting involved.
Eventually, the two people were taken away. Chris followed a good distance behind. They were led to a building far from where the fight started. Chris peered from behind a building and watched the guards. At the door, most of the guards headed back to the main parts of town. Two went inside with their prisoners. A minute later, they came back outside. One guard left, while the other stood by the door. "Guess this is as good as it'll get," Chris thought.

Misthalin

Chris looked up to the top of the wall. There was a pair of a guards looking down at him.
"Hello up there!" Chris shouted. "You don't suppose you could let me, do you?"
"What's your business here?" asked one.
Chris wasn't actually sure. "I was on my way to Cortitia when I was attacked by theives. I was hoping to get some supplies here and be back on my way."
The guard nodded to the other who walked out of Chris's view. He heard some noises behind the door, followed by a loud creak. The door slowly opened. The guard waved him in. Chris walked through, and the guard closed the door behind him. The town wasn't nearly as crowded as Arundel. There was plenty of room between buildings. Chris asked the guard for directions to where he could buy a cart and horse. The guard pointed toward a long building not too far away. Chris thanked him and started toward the building. It then struck him that he had no money. Soon after, another thought struck him: "I don't even know what the currency is!" Chris reached in his pocket, hoping for something. Nothing except what Milo gave him. It wouldn't be long until night. He realized he'd need something to eat. "I guess I'll have to sell something..."
Chris found a small marketplace not far off. On man, selling silverware, agreed to buy his knife. The man handed him a few coins. Chris quickly inspected them. They were all the same. A little bigger than a quarter. On one side was an engraving of an eagle. On the other, large bold letters spelled KANDARIN. Chris remebered the name from the atlas. He put the coins in his pocket. "Let's just hope ths is enough to eat off of."

Road to Cortitia: more trouble

"Face it, kid: you're no match for the Kandarin Bandits!"
Chris decided he wouldn't be able to outrun these guys to town. He'd have to slow them down somehow. When he reached the end of the bridge, his instincts took over. "Don't come any closer!"
The men seemed amused. "And if we do?" asked the one in the front. Chris assumed this was their leader. Without thinking, Chris pulled out the knife he had. The bandits laughed heartily. "So yer going to butter my bread 'til I beg fer mercy?" Chris realized how stupid he must look; a kid with a knife against half a dozen men with swords. They continued across the bridge. Then inspiration struck. Chris grabbed one of the ropes and began cutting. The bandits didn't seem to notice anything until their left handrail became limp.
"He's cutting the bridge!" on of them yelled. Chris felt a surge of power. It seemed they got the point on the first rope. All of them were heading back. Chris continued to cut the rest of the ropes. By the time he had gotten to the last rope, they were very close to the other side. Chris cut through the final rope. The bandits grabbed hold of the ropes as they swung into the cliff face. They made contact with a unison groan. As soon as they hit, their grip loosened. They dropped to a small ledge just below. Still a good distance from the river below, but still low enough to keep them from grabbing the ropes dangling above. He felt a sense of accomplishment. He turned his back to them and continued down the path. Behind him he heard shouts and arguing.
Before he had walked even one minute, Chris arrived at a large wooden door in a stone wall.

Road to Cortitia: trouble continues

Chris rode back through the forest fairly quickly. He couldn't remember the last time he rode a horse, but it wasn't difficult. He eventually found the path that Milo was talking about. He started up the hill. Behind him, he heard shouts and the sounds of steel on steel.
"Where's the boy?!"
"I saw him heading back up this way!"
Chris's heart lept. He tried to hurry the horse up the hill as much as he could. Eventually, he saw the trees thinning and caught sight of the rope bridge. He got off the horse and slowly walked toward the bridge. Chris looked down to see what he would be crossing over. It was an incredible distance down. A river was at the bottom. He took a deep breath and stepped out onto the bridge. It creaked and swayed, and Chris had thoughts of getting back off. Then he heard several footsteps approaching. Chris began carefully hurrying himself across. Looking back, he saw at least six men, each with swords, joining him on the bridge. Chris was more than nervous. He neared the end of the bridge and realized he didn't know how far Misthalin was. Would he be able to outrun these guys? He just wasn't sure.

Road to Cortitia: trouble

Chris hadn't thought that Dr. Robinson had known Milo previously. Chris was curious, however, about the travels that were mentioned in the journal. He looked up to ask Milo about it. Suddenly, the cart halted. Chris looked ahead. They had just come out of the forest. Ahead of them were hilly plains stretching out. To the right was a broken cliff, with a river coming out between the two halves. To the left, the forest continued. Milo seemed to be staring at something in the distance. Whatever it was, Chris couldn't make it out. Milo finally spoke: "bandits..."
Chris looked again into the distance. He could barely make it out, but there were several men on horses speeding across the plains. Milo turned and looked at him. "You ever used a sword?"
Chris was taken aback at the question. Did Milo intend for them to stay and try to fight these guys? "No," Chris answered bluntly.
"Then listen close," he said while taking the harness of the horse. "A while back there was a path that went up a hill to our right. Go back until you find it, and head up the hill. You'll find a small rope bridge. Leave the horse and go across. That'll take you to Misthalin. And take these with you, in case you run into trouble."
Milo handed him a knife. It wasn't even big enough to be considered a dagger. But Chris hoped he wouldn't have to use it anyway. He then handed Chris what looked like a lock pick. Milo helped him onto the horse and sent him on his way. A sudden thought struck Chris. "What about you?!" he yelled back.
"I can take care of myself; don't worry about me."

Journal of Lawrence Robinson: page 3

A very unusual thing happened today. Strange as it may seem, my wife has appeared in the house. For whatever reason, when I woke up, there she was. She got up, and began fixing breakfast. I tried to ask her what was going on, but every hint I dropped indicated that she doesn't find anything out of the ordinary. This could bring me closer to an answer. I'll need to think on it further.

Journal of Lawrence Robinson: page 2

I met a man today. A merchant, he calls himself. I think he may be more. The items he sells are quite unusual. I'd say he's some sort of grave robber, maybe a treasure hunter. His name is Milo. He told me of some of his travels, which seem to be no more than tall tales. We got into a discussion, and my instincts took over. I attacked every corner of his story with science. He told me that "not everything can be explained with science." He added that I should think of getting a new profession. I can see where he's coming from. No universities, public schools; he suggested hunting. He may have a point. I enjoy archery. I'm sure there's plenty more to enjoy about it.