Grapple had been putting this off for too long now.
Before him stood the caravan that had set up shop in town. To the average observer it looked like a quite on the level. Just a few merchants peddling there wares and earning a living under the watchful gaze of there protectors. Grapple knew better though.
The signs are subtle, barely noticeable, and always impossible to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt. You would think to look for price gouging, but that's not the real problem. Take notice of the unicorn buying stone crafts from Dawnpricks masons. He gives a fair price and never pushes the seller hard, but he only buys the works with no writing on them. Chisel a couple of Dwarf runes on them and the price doubles in the next town. Same goes of anything made of wood. Some random swirly shapes and circles and bam, Elven artifact. Zigzags and paint, mystery of the zebra lands. Sticks and chicken feathers, buffalo totem. Calling anything human made, at least 70 more coins. Don't even get me started on gnome mechanisms and cave-pony gems. Most ponies never leave there home town let alone the kingdom, so no-pony is the wiser.
If only that were the worse thing. The guilds dirties little secret was the plain fact the line between caravan and bandits usually depends on how far the nearest settlement is. No-pony ever asks how the caravans can afford such heavily armed guards when the army can barely afford leather armor for there troops, or how there seemed to be an endless supply of veteran warriors they can draw on for guards. Hell, he can still see the zebra branding on that lime tree! Identical to the one they got from the last zebra caravan. The caravan that insisted they only sell one of the two trees they had with them. That jewelry there trying to sell looks familiar as well.
This wasn't the reason he was reluctant to approach the caravan however. He knew the rules to that game, and what happens when you break them. No, what he was worried about was the guard they brought with them. There second guard, the big earth pony lasher. The earth pony lasher that was not an earth pony, but a keshi. A keshi he once called his droog. He would recognize him and whatever happens after that...
He needed to find Stiletto, or one of her friends.
That caravan has what he needs for his church, and he can't get it on his own.
Author
Topic: Dawnpick (My Little Fortress) (Read 227111 times)