One of you steps forward, hands open in a peaceful gesture. "We're not from Redingham's merchants," you explain. "We were sent to investigate why the trade stopped. But here's the thing - Redingham says they haven't received any goods from Thornhaven in weeks." The woman's expression shifts. Confusion replaces annoyance. "What?" She straightens, her arms uncrossing. "That's... that doesn't make sense. We sent wagons. Full loads. Our merchants saw them off personally." She looks between you, her brow furrowed. "Are you saying the goods never arrived?" Her voice carries a new edge now. Not anger at you, but realization. "Then where did they go?" She steps fully into the doorway now, no longer blocking entry but opening up. "Our people sent everything. Grain, salted fish, vegetables, wool. Three wagons, every week for a month. The last one left..." She thinks. "Three weeks ago. Right before we stopped." Her face darkens. "Someone's been stealing from both of us." 🎯 What's next? 1. Ask about the route the wagons took - Try to identify where they're being intercepted. 2. Ask who organized the wagons - Find out who knew the schedules. 3. Ask if anything else strange has happened lately - See if there are other clues. 4. Suggest speaking to the town's merchants or leaders - Get more official information. 5. Other → Your call.

"Where did your husband go?" Dog asks gently. The woman leans against the door frame, crossing her arms. "To the shore. He helps the other fishermen load their boats in the morning." She pauses, a hint of fondness creeping into her tired voice. "He's a deckhand by trade, but he doesn't sail out with them anymore." She gestures vaguely westward. "He works a lobster farm now. Little further down in the cliffs. It's not as dangerous as being out on the open water, and..." She smiles slightly. "I get to see him every day instead of every three weeks." Her expression suggests this is a recent change. One she's grateful for. "The boats go out. He stays. Tends the traps. Comes home for supper." She shrugs. "It's a good life. Quieter than it used to be." 🎯 What's next? 1. Ask about the trading with Redingham - Why did it stop? 2. Ask about the lobster farm - Can you visit it? 3. Thank her and move on - You have what you need for now. 4. Other → Your call.

You approach the nearest house, a modest two-story building with dark shutters and a well-maintained garden. Dog steps forward and knocks. Three times. Firm but not aggressive. Silence. Then, from inside, the sound of movement. Footsteps. Slow. Deliberate. The door opens a crack. A woman's face appears in the gap. Middle-aged, tired eyes, dark hair pulled back in a loose braid. She looks at each of you in turn, her expression more annoyed than afraid. "Who are you?" she asks, her voice rough with sleep. "And why are you waking me up this early?" She doesn't sound frightened. She sounds... inconvenienced. Behind her, the interior of the house is dim but normal. You can make out furniture, a table, shelves. No signs of struggle or corruption. She shifts her weight, one hand on the door frame, clearly waiting for an answer. "Well?" she says. "Speak up. It's barely past dawn." 🎯 What do you say? 1. Introduce yourselves honestly - Tell her you're here investigating why Thornhaven stopped trading. 2. Ask about the ocean - Directly question what you saw this morning. 3. Apologize and ask if everything is alright - Start gentle, gauge her reaction. 4. Show her your marks - See if she recognizes them. 5. Other → Your call.

You move quickly but carefully, keeping distance between yourselves and the last figure as it disappears into the mist. The western fields are wet with dew, the grass soaking your boots. The sound of waves grows louder with each step. The mist thickens as you approach, cold and damp against your skin. - The Shore You emerge from the fog onto a rocky beach. Gray sand stretches in both directions, dotted with stones and driftwood. The ocean spreads before you, dark and restless under the pale morning sky. Waves roll in steadily, their rhythm constant. But the figures are gone. You scan the beach. Left. Right. Nothing. Then you look down. Footprints. Multiple sets. Leading across the sand toward the water's edge. You follow them. The tracks are strange. Human-shaped, but stumbling, like backwards. They lead straight to the water. And into it. The waves wash over the final prints, erasing them as you watch. Beyond that point, there's nothing. Just water. Just waves. - he Search Dog kneels at the water's edge, his hand touching the wet sand where the tracks disappear. "They went in," he says quietly. "They just... walked into the ocean." You wade in a few steps. The water is cold, biting. The bottom slopes down gradually. You see nothing beneath the surface. No figures. No bodies. No movement except the natural shift of sand and water. One of you climbs onto a large rock jutting from the beach, scanning the waves for any sign of the figures. Nothing, just mist! The sound of the waves and something strange, like.. a clong, clong somewhere further away. They're simply gone. The ocean gives nothing back. - The Morning The sun rises higher now, burning away some of the mist. The beach becomes more visible. To the west, the coastline curves away toward rocky cliffs. To the east, it extends into more beach and scattered tide pools. Behind you, Thornhaven sits silent in the fields. Whatever you just witnessed, it happens regularly. The figures leave. They carry their burdens. They walk into the sea.

You settle in for the night, taking turns at the window while others rest in the cellar below. - Through the Night The hours pass slowly. Once, a faint flicker behind a shuttered window. Brief. Then gone. The town remains still. Dog takes the last watch before dawn, his eyes scanning the silent streets. But nothing moves. Just the silence. - Dawn The sky lightens slowly, gray before color returns to the world. And then you see it. A figure emerges from one of the buildings near the eastern edge of town. Moving slowly. Deliberately. Not quite walking. More like... gliding? Its movements are smooth but wrong, maybe like joints bending at angles they shouldn't. It's carrying something. Or dragging it. A large sack, perhaps. Or a body. The figure moves north, away from the town, toward the ocean. You can hear it now, faintly. The distant sound of waves. The figure doesn't look back. It simply moves, steady and purposeful, disappearing into the morning mist. Then another figure emerges. From a different building. Carrying something similar. Following the same path. Then a third. All moving east. All dragging something. All silent. 🎯 What's next? 1. Follow the figures toward the ocean - See where they're going, what they're doing. 2. Enter one of the now-empty buildings - Investigate. 3. Split the group - Some follow, some investigate the town. 4. Other → Your call.