Woke up this morning and found out that Rip got into my journal. I write about this stuff so I don't forget it, and he went through and changed everything to say that he did it. He wasn't even subtle; he just crossed out "Fuzz" and wrote "Rip" over top. Unbelievable. What a strange guy.
Looking around camp, I realize most of these people weren't ready for a journey like this. A lot of them are trying to sleep in or under their wagons, but it looks like they don't even have a sleeping bag. Their wagons are packed to the brim with junk. It can't be comfortable.
While we're having breakfast, the caravan's quartermaster—that Pharasman priestess—starts having a fit because something's missing. Turns out, one of the four donkeys is gone. I managed to follow the tracks to the edge of the woods, but I couldn't track it into the trees. Rip, though, somehow followed them all the way. We found the donkey wandering around in a clearing. I tried to get close to it, but it just kept wandering off. I dove and grabbed its lead, but it managed to shake me off. It's slippery.
I told Rip we needed to get Bob. He's good with animals from his time in the wilderness. As we were walking back to camp, Rip just kept talking about all the animals you shouldn't grab or bite by the testicles. I don't even know where he comes up with this stuff.
We got back, grabbed Bob, and headed out. We got back to the clearing, and we see John standing there with two small branches, covered in leaves, held out like some kind of offering. We decided to give him a moment to see how he'd handle it. He got a bit closer and then gave a loud shout and started running at the donkey.
Bob, in his usual violence-first approach, immediately shoots John in the leg with his stone-thrower. Thankfully, it was a minor hit and just left a bruise. While I was checking on John, who was being dramatic about a very minor wound, Bob just went and rounded up the donkey.
As a side note, Rip apparently thinks you have to take an egg and shove it in a rooster to make a baby chicken. His thought processes make no sense.
As everyone's finishing up, some kid carrying a bag of flour to the kitchen wagon trips, and a cloud of flour covers the surrounding wagons. One guy starts screaming at the kid like he's done something truly horrific, and the man's son starts assaulting the kid. Luis tries to calm them down, while Bob starts shooting at the birds swarming for the spilled seeds. I went over to check on the kid and see if there was any flour left.
John, of course, is still milking his wound. He's made a makeshift splint and is talking about his leg not looking crooked anymore. He's being so dramatic.
Finally, we head out.
While we're traveling, there's a huge commotion from a wagon behind us. Some kids are fighting, and then the wife gets mad at the husband. Rip, being Rip, starts yelling at the wife not to get out of her cart. Bob convinces Luis to go back and smooth things over.
Shortly after, the scout comes back and tells the caravan master something. The master points back to us. The scout tells us there's a lone figure ahead on the road, wearing armor and holding a sword.
The three of us move up, and it's a knight wearing old, rusted, and shabby armor, and giving off some kind of glow. He says he's looking for a "true shard." Apparently, the bag Redrick gave us has some sort of enchantment that's acting as a beacon to those looking for the shard, which is how members of the Blackwater Syndicate are following us. He says if we can sleep easily, we don't have the real shard. I thought someone had been having nightmares, but I can't remember who.
The scout goes up and talks to the knight, and they come to some sort of agreement. The people in the caravan get concerned. Some think we should leave, others want us to stay for protection. Hargrove tells everyone we're all in this together and that we're staying with the caravan.
In a last-ditch effort, the knight tries to tempt us with 1000 gold for the name of the person who gave us the decoy bag. Bob almost takes him up on the offer, and of course, Rip wants to. I told Bob he's not doing it and promised him that if he gives any name to this man, I'll lay him out and leave him there for dead. I'm not going to sell anyone out, especially without knowing who was involved.
Once we got back to the cart, I pulled out the bag to see what was in there. It looks like a dark void. Bob cast a spell on a sling bullet and threw it in. The bullet didn't light up, and I was able to pull it out like normal. I tried to think of the crown piece I saw in the water that one time, but nothing was there.
I suggested we need to go back to Gralton and find the Captain of the Guard since he was the one who gave us the bag. I now wonder if he gave us a decoy to screw over Rip since he doesn't like or trust him.