Elsbeth sitting alone calling to her gods and Madelyn somewhere in the same vicinity ....

Peter off talking to the farmers ....

Mandrake and Rolf standing talking outside the Cup ....

Kerim striding away to check his trade goods .....

A slightly puzzled Smilo being lead away by Candy ...

Herloch heading out of the village alone ....

Callum standing inside the cup watching the door in amazement as everyone else leaves ...

NPC Action

The contingent from the ship and the elders watched the arguements silently and clearly showing some concern and shock, but as every one leaves good manners reassert themselves and they resume their conversation at the table.

The navigator from the ship the Elders stay talking at the table, but as soon as Kerim mutters ".... Trade Goods..." Flower and Zona glance at each other and quickly offer to accompany him.

Asking for guidance

By Joe
who plays Herloch

Herloch stops just out of sight of The Cup. Sitting down with his back to a large tree rubs his temples to try to relieve his growing headache. He looks out and sees the farmers hard at work. Closing his eyes, he prays to Thor for guidance. After a moment, his mind focuses on a tale about Thor, one where he lost his mighty hammer, Mjollnir. As the story goes, the thief (a Frost Giant) wanted Thor's wife (Sif) and stole the hammer for ransoming. Then, Thor pretends to agree to give his wife away, but disguises himself as his wife instead to fool the Giant. At the ceremony, Thor finds out that the gift to the "bride" was Mjollnir itself. As the mighty hammer was laid on the lap of Thor (dressed in his wife's clothes), he reveals himself and uses the powerful weapon to kill the thief and all of his kin.

Why did his mind focus on that tale? Herloch doesn't understand, and must ponder it more. He returns to The Cup, his headache subsiding.

Weapon Practice - maybe

By Brad
who plays Rolf

Rolf takes his leave of Mandrake and heads off in the direction taken by the ladies. He spies Madelyn and moves to her side. Catching a glimpse of the troubled Elsbeth, he says, "Perhaps we should give her some privacy. Come."

[Assuming Madelyn cooperates....]

Rolf finds a reasonably secluded spot and draws his sword. "I've been watching Callum's fighting style. It's rather different from ours, but there's some moves." He pulls his sword and mimics a few of the moves he has in mind. It's a very aggressive, direct style, mostly full arm slashes with little in the way of feints or subtlety.

After demonstrating what he has in mind, he welcomes Madelyn to draw steel and try some sparring, looking to incorporate the moves into his (and her?) style of swordsmanship.

Prayers... and worries

By lechrist
who plays Elsbeth

As Elsbeth's soft sobs diminish, she rubs her eyes and looks out at the scrub on the edge of the village. In her memories she sees her home, the home before the awful wars... her beloved brothers, her mother. She sees her favorite meadow, the wildflowers blooming in their many soft colors.

She sees then the battle with the dogheads, the flash of sword and the spilling of blood. She sees the sorrow on Madelyn's face as she releases the rope holding the dead doghead and the suspicion on Rolf's face as she blurted forth her lie.

Those two especially. She wishes not to hurt either, even as she realizes she is still but a lass of the forest and glade. A woman who had never had friends but her family, never had a love of her own.

With a sigh, Elspeth watches the two walk away. Wiping her eyes, she looks at the sky above and softly sings...

And I'd flutter my wings o'er his broad golden chest."

The woman sighs again. "You're a daft one, Elsbeth," she tells herself. Rising, she makes her way back to the Inn to see what chaos her leaving has caused...

Trading

By David
who plays Kerim

Unsure what to do, Kerim busies himself inspecting his trade goods. He decides to see what he can trade in this poor village. He looks out some of the Doghead weapons and other goods for the village elders to see (Iron Pots, smaller weapons, Grappling Hooks, Pitons, Knives, Sickles, Shields, Hand Axes & others).

Expecting better trade prospects, he calls Flower & Zona over to inspect his wares to see if they have anything to trade.

After haggling with the village elders and Flower he will re-pack his trade goods & return to the Cup (hopefully with spending some of his profits).

His mind keeps coming back to the subject of Dragons and what Rolf intends doing about it.