Story : After the service
From Ars Magica
A Plan
Warren moved out of the small church with the mass of other villagers, glad that he decided to attend the service today. It was clear that their arrival had made an impact in the hamlet, and not the best kind of impact to have. He knew this this information would have to be passed on to Phaedrus, and soon, but he had no idea where to even begin looking for him. He knew, though, that as long as he could find one of the mages, like Marcus, he could find all of them. And Marcus had heard the same announcement that he had. He would have to track down the monk later today, or perhaps on the morrow, and discuss these developments.
Brother Marcus was doing something right though, for him to be so ingratiated to the community that he be permitted to assist in leading the service like that...of course, that could just be the cloth, but Warren suspected it was more personal than professional. He thought that perhaps it was time for him to do the same. The real action seemed to be in the either the archbishops castle or the manor castle. And the only way to find out what was really happening in a place like that was to get to know the staff. Over the next couple days, Warren decided, he'd start to snuggle up to a maid or two from the castellan's estate.
Today, though - was a day of rest, and he would make no progress on that front, so he decided to see if he could get Marcus away for an hour or so after he came out. So, as the majority of the crowd filed past him, he stood to the side and watched the town pass him by and rush off to their homes.
As the last of the congregation passed him by, he fell in behind them, matching pace and staying alert. It wasn't far from the church, down the path to the village proper, and Warren could tell by the way that families were moving in and out of their homes, or congregating around the doors, that something was amiss. Upon closer, but circumspect, examination, he could see that more than one of the homes have had varying levels of damage done to the doors and frames, and one house had smoke pouring out of the open door. The man of the house emerged carrying a large cauldron billowing smoke from some overdone meal.
The soldiers had been through here, that much was certain, and they were neither gentle nor subtle about their work. The thought occurred to Warren than perhaps the homes with the greater damage somehow correlate with how much of a troublemaker the occupants are. That is the kind of thing that he might overhear at the Inn, if he paid attention.
The messenger
Warren followed the thinning crowd as they went through the town, a few peeling off here and there as they arrived at their homes. With each reduction, Warren noted who lived where, and more importantly, who was continuing towards the castle.
After picking out the few faces and people that he would most benefit from associating with, he decided it would be best to let Brother Marcus know that he's like to meet. Setting down at one of the tables in the Inn, he took a piece of parchment and writing tools and scratched a quick note to Marcus:
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He knew that, because Marcus was in the company of mages last night, he might be under the eye of the bishop, so he had to be a bit surreptitious. He hoped that Phaedrus' name had not become well known amongst the searchers, but some things could not be helped. He took the quarter sheet and rolled it carefully, securing it with a small piece of twine. He stepped over to the door and called out to the first urchin he saw - apparently this child was still awaiting his meal - probably burned to a crisp. With a copper coin, and the promise of another from Brother Marcus, he sent the boy on his way to the church and to find the good Brother.
In the manor courtyard
assuming that Marcus leaves the Manor building at some point having done whatever else you add to the previous page. Alter the following to suit your needs. :)
He had learnt from the servants that the bishop and lord had requested food, and were thus likely to be occupied for some time. When Marcus left the hall, and began to make his way back across the courtyard, he was approached by a grubby looking lad, who shot the monk a big, happy, expectant grin, and produced the folded note from within the confines of his shirt.
He proferred the note eagerly, and then stood with a hand outstretched, still grinning enthusiastically, though wordlessly, at the monk.
