I rub my sore elbows as I stand up. Pulling away the tarp by one of its edges, I uncover a wooden hatch. It looks remarkably clean, as if newly installed, locked from the outside by a series of latches. I undo them, revealing a ladder descending into darkness. The inside of the hatch is covered with claw marks and traces of dark blood. I consider going back to town to get some reinforcements, but I don’t want whoever is responsible for this to come back and see my interference. With some trepidation I begin climbing.

[Ability increased: Curiosity]

As I reach the bottom of the pit, I shoot an annoyed glance at the games algorithms. This is in no way curiosity, just expedience. There’s more blood here at the bottom of the ladder, and I can see a spot where a torch should have been placed on the wall. The room is about ten meters by 5 meters, with a ceiling just barely higher than myself. There’s a spot in one corner where it looks like someone has slept, and an old wooden bucket in another corner with sludge in it. Nightsoil. Someone kept a prisoner in here. I’m suddenly acutely aware of the hatch cover, and how easily I could get locked in here if the wrong person came around. As a player, I could always get out of this kind of situation by calling the admins, but that did little to mitigate the feelings of claustrophobia. I notice a glow coming from the sleeping spot, and move closer to investigate. Under some straws and dirt is a message, written in the same dark blood as I saw on the hatch.

‘S. I’m sorry, they caught me. You were right. F.’

There’s even a broken fingernail here, and a surprising amount of hair. I make a record of it all before I leave, heading back to the light. The world seems much darker now, with another conspiracy in this quaint little village. At least I can put a stop to this, whatever it is.

[Quest Updated: Strange Sounds! - You have discovered a mysterious hole in the ground which has been used as a prison recently.]

I decide to report this to Mr. Houg. It has to be either him or the mayor. I don’t know where to find the mayor, so I hurry back to the town hall. The town clerc is behind his desk, updating his ledgers. As I crash through the doors, he barely flinches, simply lifting an eyebrown and glancing at me before returning to his work.

“How can I help you today?”

His voice is dry, slightly annoyed.

“I’ve found something strange in the nearby woods, and I’d like to report it to someone. Who’s in charge of keeping the law around here.”

He arches an eyebrow at me.

“Something strange, you say. I suppose you should have a chat with the sheriff then. I think he’s in the church preparing for a sermon at the moment. If you hurry, you can catch him before he starts.”

Of course the sheriff is the clergyman as well.

I thank him and head out to the local temple up the road. The building itself is clean and well built, with a large lit brazier in front. The worship of Thenida seems to be based on a mix of personal rituals and public sermons. There’s room for less than a dozen people inside, with a small podium for the priest to preach. I stand in the middle of the room for a minute before I hear someone entering behind me.

“How can I help you my son?”

I turn around at the familiar voice. Mr. Houg is standing there, with a heavy chain around his neck. A silver symbol of Thenida is prominently displayed hanging at chest height, Sunrise over a field. My surprise must have been visible as a smirk spreads across his face.

“Uh, yeah, I kinda have a thing to talk to the sheriff about… so…”

He waves me towards a bench in the corner, inviting me to sit.

“I gathered as much already. In here, you can call me sheriff, or Father Houg. So what exactly did you find in the woods?”

I tell him about the note from the bulletin board, and the hatch in the woods. I skip the part about the mayor, the stooges and the hidden message. He listens intently until I finish, then looks into the distance as if to consider the next part.

“You seem to have stumbled into a local legend, young man.”

I try hard not to scoff at this, I’m older than he is.

“There have been stories for years about a group of people in the area here. They would capture people from the neighbouring regions to ransom back to their families. If the ransom wasn’t paid, they would vanish completely, without a trace. The only reason our town has been associated with this kind of thing is the occasional discovery of cells like the one you describe. Nobody has ever been able to prove anything, or link anyone to these activities though. We even had a contingent of huntsmen here one season, but they left without any evidence.”

He sits up straight.

“Now that you’ve discovered the holding cell, I’m sure it’ll be abandoned. I’ll send a couple of workers there to burn it out and fill it in so nobody gets trapped there, and mention the the sweet old ladies that you’ve stopped the noises.”

Standing up, he motions for me to follow him. We go outside, and he takes a small pouch from his belt, handing it to me.

“Here’s the reward you were promised. On behalf of the town, I thank you for your service.”

He shakes my hand and goes back to the town hall, leaving me with more questions than answers.

[Quest Updated: Strange Sounds! - You have reported a success to the town authorities, gaining the reward.]

[You have discovered a quest: Strange Conspiracy. - Having discovered a source of the strange sounds in the woods near Hogsmudd, you were told about a mysterious group of kidnappers. Keep investigating to get to the bottom of the unusual goings on near this otherwise tranquil small village. Rewards: Success: Unknown. Failure: Unknown. Reject: Nothing.]

I accept the new quest as it perfectly reflects my feelings on the matter. At least I’m 25 shiny coins closer to my goal. Of course, I have to buy a mail account immediately. I follow the clerk, or whatever, into the town hall, finding him behind his desk as usual. I line up in front of him, and he begins giving me the usual spiel. When he finishes, I clear my throat.

“Come on, we just talked. I’d like to open a mail account please.”

He looks annoyed, but accedes, handing me a small metal card. My name is printed on one side with a small passport photo in one corner. I’m obviously drunk, or possibly in mid sneeze. I look at him questioningly, and he shrugs, the mean little smirk back on his face.

“So how do I use this?”

He leads me to a box in one of the corners.

“Just slide the card into one of these boxes, and the magics will take care of the rest. If you want to send a letter, put the coins in this slot here, and it should all just work. Have fun!”

He returns to his ledger, and I initialize my new account.

‘Welcome to InterDaemail. You have three IDmails waiting.’

I select the first one. A welcome email, letting me know how valuable my patronage is to the company. The second one is from Stompsmash, Mikas character.

‘Dude, how awesome is this game? Me and Rain started in the same location, and we’re already initiates in our respective guilds. I’m being vetted as a freelance mercenary, and she was abducted within hours of arriving. She was put through an initiation ceremony for a secret society, and is going to be some sort of high class burglar. Let us know when you’ve acquired an account, we’re waiting for you.

Ps: I kinda told her about your decision. She tricked it out of me, and I don’t know how she’s taking it. She’s smiling too much, so it’s not good.’

My heart pounds as I look at the last email. Rainbringer. Rishi.

‘I am going to beat you into the ground, dig you out and beat you back down again. What the hell do you mean by wanting something different? We need our healer, we need our adventuring partner! If I go offline, it’s because I’m in the real world strangling you. Fucker.’

Yeah, that fits. I’m disappointed by Stomp, but keeping secrets was never his strong suit. At least they’re together. I start a new letter, addressing it to Stomp.

‘Hiya, Yeah, that sounds awesome. I bet you’re finally getting a hold of a great maul. Sorry about Rain, I know how it is. You guys have come a lot further than I have. I was bamboozled the first day I was here, tricked into getting drunk and am now in debt to a local tavern for six more days. On top of that, I owe a woman fifty silver pieces for dry cleaning. If you have any money to send, please do, otherwise I’m going to end up with a bounty on my head tomorrow midday. I’m in a town called Hogsmudd by the way. Lots of mud, lots of rain, and a really strange conspiracy. Tell Rain I’ll message her as soon as I get some more money. Don’t forget to post your exploits on the portal. I’ll write something up as soon as I have a moment to myself. Talk soon, TC.’

I check the cost, and my jaw nearly hits the floor. 5 silver will get the letter there in about a week. To get it there immediately, it’s 14, nearly everything I have left. I groan inwardly as I pay for the top tier, hoping beyond hope that they’re watching their mail.

I run back to the tavern to get ready for the dinner service. Inside, the place is starting to fill up. A man is tuning a lute on an improvised stage, and the mood is already pretty upbeat. I nod at Yadra, who flips me off, before heading into the kitchen to clean myself up a bit. Roast beef dominated the kitchen landscape, drawing a hungry groan from my stomach. Hopefully there’ll be leftovers today.

The evening goes by quickly as I wander the tables, serving, chatting and generally making myself useful. The entertainer is good, singing and playing for hours. He gets quite a bit of coin for it as well, as the farmers get drunker. Maybe I should take up an instrument? Too bad I’m horrible at all kinds of performance. During a quiet moment, I approach the landlady.

“Excuse me, miss? I wondered if I could ask some questions about your tavern?”

Her eyes tell me I’m on thin ice before I’ve even asked anything.

“I’ve noticed that the amount of customers in here vary a lot from day to day. Is that because of work schedule, or is it something else?”

She scoffs, then takes a sip from her mug.

“Young man, any time I believe there’s hope for you, you open your mouth. People won’t go to the tavern every day, the costs would be too high. And considering how little money is in circulation in a small village like this, we have to rely on barter a lot. See the fellow over there? His family gave us the side of beef we’re all enjoying right now. It cleared his debts for the winter, and now he can eat here once a week until the next round of slaughter. In a month his youngest will celebrate her name day, and then he’ll come here with a basket of produce to negotiate a good meal and a good time. Everyone here has a similar deal, and everyone knows when to come and when to stay away.”

I think about this for a moment.

“So what you’re saying is, you’re not actually making a profit of this place? How do you get oil for the lamps, and how do you pay your employees? I know what my situation is, but I don’t think Yadra and Betha have the same deal.”

Her eyes narrow as she answers.

“Don’t you worry about my profits, greenbean. And never you mind about the girls arrangements. They’re old enough to handle themselves. Go make yourself useful. The outhouse needs a good scrubbing.”

She turns away from me, letting me know the conversation was over. I shrug and head outside, noticing Yadras grin as I leave the room. I really need to deal with this enmity soon.

The outhouse is pretty well constructed, sitting on top of an artificial hill. A small room is dug underneath to have easier access to the droppings. I lock the entryway and begin cleaning it out from underneath. It’s far from full, but I guess staying out of sight has its merits. A loud crack shocks me out of the zen of physical labour as the door behind me slams shut. I turn towards it, but I can’t see anything. The world has gone completely black, and a chill is spreading in the small room. I take a step forwards, and something grabs my shirt, pulling me around and slamming me against the door.