The adventurers come back to the capital city of Rivermarch covered in the muck of the swamps but with many important achievements. The boundaries of Rivermarch have been explored further, somewhat peaceful contact has been made with a local lizardfolk tribe and a missing child gets to return home.

Tig doesn't say much on the way home but his spirits seem to lift as they cross the threshold into the city. When the guards fetch his mother she screams in joy, rushing forward and sweeping the young boy off his horse and smothering him in a giant hug. She sings the praises for the king and his court for delivering her lost son home to her!

Normally the return of the King is one of a grand procession. The guards clear the way and the citizens line the street to witness the king and his court returning back from their grand adventures. This time it is a little different as about halfway to the castle when passing through one of the larger merchantile squares the procession comes to a halt.

"Sorry m'lord. Seems to be a bit of an obstacle up ahead. Some kind of street preacher gathered a crowd and they aren't moving too quickly. Wait here, m'lords and m'ladies and we'll get them cleared up soon enough."

The guard wasn't very high ranking, a sergeant at best, and seemed uncomfortable telling his king that he had to wait but if the crowd wasn't moving quickly there wasn't one could  do short of brandishing weapons and charging their mounts right through the throng. That would clear the path quickly however it seemed a bit brutal of a measure given the circumstances.

Borric was anxious to get home. His face showed some tension as he was stopped so close to the castle. A street preacher wasn't something that he wanted to become entangled at the moment. He regretted that he turned away from the higher path that Elena was following. He shared a few tidbits of his pursuit of paladinhood and how he turned away at the last hour as his focus shifted to matters that involved his family and estates.

He shifted on his mount and looked around. "Looks like there no other way, except forward. Let's dismount. We can guide our horses forward. I don't want to risk trampling on anyone."

"Hmm. Well, I'm no king, so I don't mind listening to a sermon a bit. Catch you later?" Kael dismounts and hands over his horse to one of the guards. Then he throws his shawl over his shoulder and heads for the crowd alone, trying to keep in the shadows of the buildings wherever possible. He's curious what it was that this preacher was preaching that has drawn such an audience... and what their loyal citizens were saying when there wasn't a guard around.

I figure this kind of skulking around is now in Kael's job description. Using Shawl of Shadowy Disguise and whatever shadows there are around to go incognito, though I imagine Kael is far less known than the rest of the party anyway.

Elena nodded in agreement with her party members.  She was a little uncomfortable with clearing out a peaceful religious gathering simply so they could continue the official procession.  It's not like their arrival was a big deal, they had only been gone for a week or so.

Then again, religious gatherings could be dangerous depending on exactly what the religion in question was.  Hanspur and most of the evil gods were under censure in Rivermarch, and if the preacher was spreading one of those dark faiths, it would be better to stamp out the sparks of heresy before they could spread.

Either way, Kael was better at investigating that stuff than she was.  The paladin would hang back with the others and try to find their way through town while Kael figured out whether there was anything to be worried about.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:48, Sun 11 Sept 2022.

Kael worms his way closer to the center of the crowd while the rest push their way through the back, breaking through throngs straining to  hear what the preacher had to say.


"AND I SAY THIS UPON YOU, WHERE ARE YOUR LEADERS NOW? WHERE IS YOUR KING? WHERE IS YOUR GENERAL? WHY DO YOU HAVE A CASTLE WHEN IT LIES EMPTY BECAUSE YOUR NOBLES OUT OUT! GALIVANTING AROUND AND LEAVING YOU AT THE MERCY OF WOLVES! BANDITS! Even....TROLLS!"

He had purposefully dropped his voice before launching into the troll shout at full volume. Even in the back of the crowd the word "trolls" reverberates and carries, echoing off the wall  and causing the crowd to shudder in fright and begin whispering it back and forth to one another.

It seemed this street preacher wasn't preaching any sort of religion at all, instead delivering a strong rebuke for the leaders of the country to go out and about.

Considering they've just literally returned from a hunt for said bandits and trolls, Kael finds this accusation a bit silly. He tries to get a better look at this preacher, as well as get a feeling on how the crowd is reacting to these words. Not that he expects their loyal citizens to be so easily swayed, but it is important to remember that an average person can be shockingly stupid... and that half of their citizens are going to be even stupider than that.

Still keeping in a convenient shadow to avoid being recognized, though I still think chances of that are far less than for the rest of the party. As a spymaster, he is far less likely to be a part of formal events in the court, at least openly. And that suits him just fine.

So, who is this guy? Not actually a religious preacher, but a political agitator? Or is he both? And is the crowd buying his words?
This message was last edited by the player at 16:02, Wed 14 Sept 2022.