KINGMAKER:
The Wardens of the Greenbelt
Entry 21.
Wardenholme – Duties & Troubles.
The Wardens made their way back to Wardenholme along the banks of the Tuskwater. The weather was terrible for travelling in the swampy land but some dry tracks could be found beside the lake itself. Thunderstorms seemed to sweep over them every few hours; each one worse than the last. But they eventually reached their capital. Tig was returned to his family with strict orders not to stray from the town boundaries. News of the boy's safe return soon circulated and the whole town seemed to celebrate the youngster's return. Stas, the lumberjack, was presented with the hodag's head and his spear. This he immediately donated to the Wardens as the promised reward. Then he showed his colleagues and friends the head. They all celebrated the proof of his story; even those that had doubted him. Ione sought out Lily Teskertin at The Black Compass, one of the town's taverns, and gave her Jubilost's present of the elven statue. She seemed very excited to receive it and wondered if Jubilost would be back soon. To save any more embarrassing questions Ione quickly made her excuses and left the girl to admire her trophy.
However the days of rest the Wardens had been looking forward to had to wait. A Council was due and the various officers were soon thrust into a day of business. The finances of the land were beginning to settle down which allowed more land to be taken under the Wardens' control. They invited Hillhome into the kingdom and the hill country to the north of there. As the area had been cleared of any problems it was decided to allow farmers to settle the land. They also decided to expand the commerce of Wardenholme by developing an area of shops and stores.
The next day required audiences with the town captain and others requiring a meeting. The town militia had been hearing rumours of a cult growing within certain areas of the town. The Captain was asked to liaise with T'lef and to investigate further. He also reminded the Wardens about the trolls and how some had been brewing dissent as the problem had not been dealt with yet. It was decided that Wino and some of the mercenaries should head out to the area that Jubilost had identified and reconnoitre the trolls positions.
Finally a couple of travellers from Brevoy had been requesting a meeting. They seemed a little suspicious and “rough sorts” according to the Captain but they presented a letter of introduction from Sir Semiyon Kyllov, the Steward of Restov. The female introduced herself as Jamandi Aldori, one of the Swordlords and a renowned duellist as Ione recalled. The other was one of Sir Semiyon's officers, Legard, who a number of the Wardens had met in Leveton. They had been travelling in disguise which explained the Captain's previous description. Jamandi explained that the political situation in Brevoy had changed for the worse. Nobles from House Orlovski and the northern parts of Brevoy had accused Rostland of attempting to increase its power and of settling the Stolen Lands with puppet kingdoms in order to do this. The king was not impressed with the Swordlords in Restov and was beginning to investigate the allegations. To avoid a civil war it had been decided that contact with the Warden's new kingdom should be ended; at least for the time being. Trade could continue through Leveton and contact maintained via Ione's pigeon post. However for most practical purposes the kingdom was now on its own. It was also important that none of the Wardens and the kingdom's officers should travel to Restov until informed otherwise as the king and House Orlovski might be watching for such contacts. The Wardens were alarmed at the news but understood the gravity of the problems Restov was suffering and agreed to Jamandi's requests.
She then went on to discuss a more personal problem. As the Wardens were aware, other groups had been sent into the Stolen Lands like they had been. Jamandi had been tasked with supporting the group that had been sent to Varnhold. At first things had gone as planned and the town of Varnhold itself had been occupied. Unfortunately contact was then lost. No news had been heard from the group sent into those lands for several months. Jamandi had sent one of her most trusted agents to Varnhold but he had also not been heard from. With the situation as it stoods in Brevoy she could not be seen to take any more direct interest in Varnhold. However she hoped that the Wardens could travel there and discover what might have occurred. If it transpired that the Wardens wished to expand their kingdom into the Varnhold lands then Restov would tacitly support such a development. She hoped that any news could be relayed back to her. She was particularly concerned with what might have befallen her agent. She apologised for the short length of their stay but it was important that they returned quickly to Restov before their absence became suspicious.
Then the Wardens finally managed a few days of rest. T'lef sent out more agents to try to find more information about the cult. Within the week they had more information. It appeared to be the Cult Of Gyronna that was taking root among some women in the town. In order to find out more a number of women likely to be attracted to such a group were rounded up and brought before T'lef for interrogation. As it happened the three women were all members of the cult. The destain they showed towards the men interrogating them helped to loosen their tongues and further information was acquired without the usual need for torture or similar persuasive methods. T'lef tried hard not to be too disappointed at this. The Cult was led by one Malgorzata Niska who seemed to be a very capable priestess and able to cast a number of spells. The group met in a barn at the outskirts of town which had been built over the foundations of a temple from the original settlement.
T'lef had the barn watched and, when the cult began to meet one night, word was relayed back to the Wardens. T'lef, Clint and Havrik set out for the barn. The main door had a simple lock which Havrik managed to open easily. He then found a trip wire which had been set to raise an alarm if anyone entered. The barn itself was an open area but there was no sign of the cultists. After a search a single trapdoor was found in a corner of the barn. This was not locked or alarmed and the Wardens followed the steep staircase that was revealed, down into a stone-built cellar below. A short corridor brought them to a wooden door. This was unlocked and opened silently. From here Havrik could see that some kind of ritual was taking place. The angle of the entrance and a number of pillars restricted the view so that they could see the backs of only three cultists. As surprise was on their side the Wardens rushed in, Havrik charging at the nearest one, T'lef at another and Clint went in with his bow drawn and shot a third before the women could react. There were six cultists in total along with the priestess stood behind an altar. Light played around the priestess as she reacted to the attack. The Wardens were reeking havoc amongst the congregation. Clint dropped his bow and drew his bastard sword before wading into the melee. The women by now were fighting back but were no match for the warriors. A magic weapon sent by Malgorzata hit T'lef but he leapt onto the altar and engaged the priestess, wounding her. The cultists were all out of the fight by now and the priestess ran to escape but a final flurry of blows from T'lef finished her off.
The Wardens took some of the more exotic and unusual weapons, the accoutrements from the cultists and a large jewelled object from the altar. The next day Ione was shown the haul and she identified the rags worn by the priestess as a Hag's Shabble, the symbols of Gyronna which each cultist carried as being just badges of membership but the cat's eye jewel from the altar as a Chrysoberyl which the goddess was thought to use to watch the world. Anyone who had stolen one would be cursed by the goddess. Ione thought it might be a good idea to have the curse removed from the three Wardens as soon as possible and that the Chrysoberyl of Gyronna should be disposed of securely.
In the process of looking into the cults activities, the town militia discovered a spy operating around Wardenholme. It was suspected that he was working for one of the northern houses of Brevoy. It was decided to give him a trial to show the population that justice was public and fair in the kingdom. The trial was held, he was found guilty and was then executed in the town square.
A week later Wino and the mercenaries set out to find the trolls. Meanwhile the Wardens relaxed and recuperated from their travels and exertions. They decided that after the next Council they would either strike at the trolls or head over to Varnhold via Varn Hall.
At the next Council it was decided to add the areas adjacent to Wardenholme that sat beside the Tuskwater Lake. By controlling any development on the lakeside it would provide a supply of fresh water for the town. Finally a pier was to be constructed in Wardenholme to assist the trade that was starting to flow to Mivon in the south.
The Wardens had begun to acquire a fine selection of magical items that had passed through the kingdom in trade or had been found on their travels. Before they set out on their next quest they realised that some of them might wish to improve their weapons, armour and equipment. The commencement of the pier's construction started them thinking about acquiring a ship.
