Rude Awakening
K’rek awakened from his nightmare to find that reality was worse. Stormhaven was plummeted into chaos. Unrest among the leaderless peasantry was high. To address the power vacuum, Cerulean was named King of Stormhaven. K’rek remained as general. Grigori, the ombudsman, was promoted to Grand Diplomat. However, the power vacuum did attract a stream of traders, resulting in increased economic activity in the kingdom.
The Rise and Fall of the Kingdom of Okarthel
In the following month, Cerulean claimed the mine previously claimed by Stormbolt as his lair and engaged the Scrubscar kobolds to protect it. Also, the High Priest of Erastil recruited a small treant he called Trent to advise on natural resources. He was installed as Spymaster. These measures, however, did not quiet the peasants, and Okarthel was on the verge of anarchy. The territory under their control was rapidly shrinking. King Cerulean eliminated all the established holidays and replaced them with a single day honoring the passing of Stormbolt and his retinue.
The Mage’s Arrival
Having heard that all the adventurers he sent to established the kingdom in the Greenbelt were dead, the King of Brevoy dispatched the mage Hemlock with a charter and some settlers to establish order in Okarthel. The new kingdom was apparently being run by a kobold and some random dragon and he charged the mage with restoring order and bringing the kingdom back into a position to support Brevoy against other incursions into that region.
Upon arrival in Stormhaven, Hemlock sent a minion to announce his arrival. He found the dragon, the treant, the kobold, and his pig in the tavern, which still served as the town hall in the absence of a proper keep. Cerulean welcomed the envoy but informed him that the people had not accepted the new regime yet. K’rek recounted the events of the encounters at the fey stronghold.
Trent’s spies reported that the unrest was being stoked by the increasing presence of trolls around the outlying farms, as well as complaints about the mismanagement of the kingdom in the absence of Stormbolt. As a consequence, conditions did not improve over the last month, and the region around the Old Beldane’s cottage was lost. Okarthel was reduced to a city-state.
In the absence of the Old Beldane, who would not serve as Magister anymore, Hemlock was installed in her place. However, the addition of Hemlock’s retinue served to revive the economy a little.
Regaining the Support of the People
Trent established free healing clinic in an effort to create good will. In an attempt to calm the peasantry, Cerulean and his retinue sought out the reported trolls to the south. They were accompanied by two of Hemlock’s guards and four kobolds.
On the first day, they took a boat across the Candlemere and down the Shrike River. At nightfall, they went ashore and made camp on the north bank. The night passed uneventfully.
They explored the northbank and part of the south bank. As the sun was setting, they heard loud, slurred and off-key singing. Hemlock cast Comprehend Languages and heard some kind of drinking song. The crested a hill and saw a giant trying to lick the last drops of moonshine out of a jug.