“Uuh . . . How we answer? . . . Kim not here to tell.” Jorund gets a look on his face like a 5 year old attempting to be sneaky “Maybe Kim at tavern . . . We look there untill sleep come”
What is this “tavern” of which you speak? We’re not in a town here but a private holding - an assembly of farm buildings, some storehouses and boat-sheds, where Bjarni lives with his sword-companions and those who work for him.
That’s why the guests are pitching camp just off the beach - there isn’t anywhere they can check into for the night.
If he’s working with the Gods… Then this is Divine intervention, and we can’t really find out those answers unless we figure out how to get to Valhalla.
: pulls outs Shades: The Gods work in mysterious ways. So let’s get the Thralls back together, fix up the boat with cop rudders, cop oars, cop cabins, cop sails…
And say we’re on a mission from the Gods: 
/Blues Brothers
edited to fix punctuation and smiles
Sorry meant mead-hall
We certainly should interrogate the men in the shed, then- they might serve us, and we definitely want to know who sent them, or if Gautrek was working alone. Gautrek knew what the ransom was, so he must be important in some way.
Ulf: I think it is worthwhile asking the prisoners if they are interested in joining us, and also the Herald when exactly he was told to bring the news.
Ivar, can you ESP both these conversations?
Ulf adds that he was only guessing about the Gods. (Does Ivar recognise anything about Kim’s behaviour or appearence that would suggest any God was involved?)
I can and will use ESP to help here.
I don’t, unless further research or the DM tells me that I do.
As Jorund said, Kim’s disappeared.
We could look for him (hard to see how, though!); ask the prisoners questions under ESP to see if they want to join us; ask the Herald questions under ESP to see how fast Kim had to act.
Shall we do all three, Bjarni?
I’m not saying we need to answer these questions directly, but we need to infer what is going on.
Gods: Makes no sense to send a messenger to convey the exact same details that a mortal herald will announce. Seriously, Gods should have better things to do.
Kim: His motive is unclear. Just as with the Gods part, why would Kim bother to announce information that was going to be announced by someone else? What would drive someone to take such a posture?
With Kim absent, our only recourse is to determine the Herald’s knowledge (or lack of knowledge) of Kim. We should determine whether Kim really is part of the Jarl’s court. I’m pretty sure he is not.
That makes sence might as well cast ESP and ask the questions of course If we’re leaving either way does it matter unless Kim shows up again and then we can just ask him
Okay. Ivar will need to cast ESP separately for each interrogation, but he can drop 2nd-level spells to cast any extra. He can scan only one person with each casting. The prisoners are surprised and pleased to be offered places in your organisation and will gladly join your voyage if that’s the offer. Of course this means throwing their lot in with an outlaw but they were expecting thralldom anyway so they’re not really any worse off.
The herald was given the proclamation to deliver a day and a half ago. It was announced publicly. Some men left very quickly on hearing it, on fast horses. He paid no real attention to who they were. He expected to arrive hours earlier, but when within sight of Bjarni’s Fjord he was held up by strong winds and an unexpected current, and was despairing of making landfall today until both faded away around sunset.
ESP confirms both these stories. Note that if someone had means of blocking ESP, you would get a “nothing” reading, not a false one.
“I know no-one called Kim,” says the herald, visibly growing tired of answering questions. “It’s an outlander name.”
Is there a custom of asking prisoners to swear loyalty before they join us?
What sort of Fighting experience do these Vikings have?
Presumably they would be prepared to work with our thralls most of the time, or act as bodyguards to our casters?
Ulf is very interested to hear about the unexpected winds and currents that delayed the Herald. How ‘fortunate’ for Kim! (This may of course be a false trail, but are there stories of Gods influencing the weather?)
Did anyone in our settlement see which direction Kim’s ship came from?
Ivar, your ESP is going to be very useful. 
How often can you cast it?
Yes - it’s the Viking equivalent of a standard contract of employment. As long as they’re fed, get a share of the treasure, aren’t taken prisoner, and you’re alive, they undertake to fight whom you bid and not to fight against you.
They have been on a few raids and survived them. They were good enough that it took more than one paw-swipe from you to knock one of their fellows down, but three (or two good hammer-blows from Jorund) was enough to shred them, and they were stricken unconscious by a fourth-level [color=blue]Color Spray. That will give you an under/over of 1st to 4th level, probably more like 2nd or 3rd.
They have no objection to bossing up some thralls for you or engaging in other warrior-like duties. One of them is known as Rolf Red-Beard (and it is easy to see why, though he is too young to be really splendidly barbed as yet), the other is Henrik Larsen. They expect to have their weapons and gear returned to them to use, and if you’re able to provide more, so much the better. Both are able to ride, as you know.[/color]
Ulf says: Bjarni, this looks like a useful way to pick up a couple of bodyguards for the Casters, when we are in combat.
When we five have a mission, they can either come with us, or look after the boat and protect / organise the thralls etc.
“Me agree more people make small work . . . Also small goodies . . . Maybe they get goodies after we have Ottar size” Jorund goes over and slaps Rolf on the shoulder.
As often as five times per day, depending on how many times I load it.
You have plenty of provisions to load on the ship, some spare weapons in the armoury, and some trade goods beside (smoked salmon, salt herring, and whale oil - it can all be shipped quite far afield, especially before the year grows too hot). It’s dark at the moment though. Anything else you want to do tonight?
Don’t forget Jorund has loaded the Mead too!
Osvald (accompanied by Ulf) is going to serve tea. 
Firstly he offers the ex-prisoners a nice cuppa. After all, they are probably coming with us…
He tells them how excited he is and how he’s looking forward to travelling and making new friends. Just like how they used to be enemies, but now they’re allies and would they like another cup?
Next comes the Herald. He is an emissary from the Jarl, after all.
For once Osvald is (mercifully 
) terse. It’s obvious the Herald and his crew are bone-tired.
Finally Osvald hosts a tea ceremony for the party.
He makes some slightly tearful remarks about how they may never see the old place again and how much he’ll miss it (well apart from the times the wind howled through the buildings…
Oh, and just on the off-chance, Osvald calls out “Kim, Would you like a cup of tea?”
Excellent (I assume that spells like Detect Magic are choices amongst those five).
Did you get the message about Cure Minor Wounds being an Orison?
ESP is second level, the same as for wizards. IIRC I’ve made Detect Magic an orison