A message arrives to Laendra Sparrow. Its letters are neat but deteriorate nearing the midpoint until the end. Its formatting is sloppy and inconsiderate, with an unclear reading direction and additions in the margins.
“Lady Sparrow,
“All goes well at the Cot. I’ve been over-eager in my winter preparations, I know now, drowning in firewood and over-feeding poor Gerda with the stalest provisions. Spring seems to have come early in this Vale, with bulbous plants springing forth - even Lilly-of-the-valleys I believe. I hope this letter finds you well also.
“I write to you with news I think you would find valuable - and later I intend to touch on my own health and situation further.
“The ruins. Locals, I believe them, whom I housed for a short time, told me that (contrary to mine and yours beliefs) the ruins are still untouched. Which goes to mean; there is yet treasure there. The folk I housed said as much, but added that they are as such (un-robbed, if you deem that a word) because of significant and severe hauntings within and without the ruins by wraiths or revenant spirits. The tale goes of betrayal. You should speak with the man who told me the story (I didn’t catch his name). You must forgive me, I feel quite awful, but I did not get their names or true origins due to their sharing of brandy and another strong spirit with a strange name I likewise forgot.”
The text goes into details of the writer’s daily fare. He writes of isolation, finding it both freeing and terrifying. He recounts a tale of Gerda, the hound, barking at the door late at night for seemingly no reason, and his hiding wide awake under his bed until morning.
“Thank you for reading my letter to you (or skimming it at least - I know it goes on). I look forward to seeing you and your family again in summertime (?) and also hearing back how you are doing in Bree-town. I pray my information on the ruins and its treasure is useful to you. I admit I am excited at the prospect.
“Yours as always,
Lukas”
Attached to the letter are numerous, excellent drawings. One parchment depicts several angles of a hound’s portrait, made with wide marks of graphite. A few are painted with ocher and illustrate autumnal forest views. Most are studies of plants and herbs, with fine hatching that clearly communicate the forms of these.
A letter returns to The Cot:
- Lukas, my eyes in the woods. Thank you for your letter, and I am relieved to learn that you are in good spirits, for there are times I worry the solitude of The Cot during the dark of Winter can be poor on your wellbeing. The news you bring has filled me with an excitement I cannot express in writing, do not mistake my eagerness for an avaricious greed, for the safety of The Cot and its steward is of paramount importance to me. Be assured there is other reason than the prospect of riches that compels me to act.
- The Angle is an unfriendly land to us, and I have discovered that a company of Rangers intend to journey yonder. Initially they shall accompany my scouts as hired guides. This arrangement may seem a tenable one, but I know not their true intent. It is of interest to me to learn why they journey to their homeland and whether they may seek to interfere with our work. And conversely, it is imperative that these men do not learn our true purpose. You should know the conflict of interests at play already. I will not reiterate it here, for if this correspondence falls into the wrong hands it may compromise our prospects entirely.
- I remain healthily sceptical of these revenant rumours. To my understanding, the only encounter with spirits that indeed holds truth is that of the brandy you seem to be enjoying with guests. Understand this. In this business knowledge is power, a well of information that can be more valuable than gold. If we are to muddy this well based on rumours alone, the well becomes dry, and I cannot make my trade based on dreams and hearsay. But to ease your concerns I shall grant the following boon. I am sending a small team of my most capable scouts to The Cot to investigate these reports. Ensure the abode is fit to house them. And mind your manners in their company, give them safe lodgings whilst they carry out their work, and seek not to interfere.
- If you can do this, dear Lukas. Then you can rest assured, we shall learn the truth of whether these spirits do indeed haunt the ruins, and if they would impede our work, we will remove them. But perhaps such a worry can be used to our advantage. For the men that may seek to oppose us hold great superstition and will be loath to venture into ruins said to be protected by wights. We however are not so meek. Your ally and friend -Mrs Sparrow
