The Rumor Mill - Week 45

Sometimes themes happen organically, like the one that emerged from week 45's Rumor Mill stories involving various disappearances. Most of these take the form of evading pursuit, though a few touch on smuggling, kidnapping, assassination, and college pranks. And then there's the story of a fear symbol forcing a robber to flee town a decade ago and never come back. Talk about a disappearing act.

So let's get into these stories of the vanished and vanishing, and we'll see if any of them hold even a kernel of truth.

1d8	Rumor	True?
1	Duncan McKinsey excels at evasion, both physically and conversationally.	Yes1
2	Urchins have an annoying talent for disappearing from enclosed alleys.	Maybe2
3	Birdie Salt's crew made a pact with a devil for teleportation powers.	No3
4	I heard that Krannock Steelshanks got kidnapped and went missing for a few years.	Maybe4
5	Groups at the College steal and resteal the Potter's Head as a sort of prestige game.	Yes5
6	Alton Stonehollow once made a fear rune that made a would-be thief flee the city.	Maybe6
7	Karanog Dawngold will make you disappear for the right price.	No7
8	Remaining undetected helps Fredonia Hyttle solve stubborn mysteries.	Yes8

1 - He's dabbled in enough magic to teleport short distances to get out of sticky situations. And he has a silver tongue.
2 - Many Urchins know at least one secret entrance to the maintenance tunnels under Fellport, but some fight rather than run.
3 - They use a pocket mansion as a base of operations, typically moved around the city every couple of days. No devils needed.
4 - He often disappears to investigate powerful artifacts. He had his soul stolen, but he recently came home without fanfare.
5 - Everyone calls the bust of Magnus Figulius, aka The Great Potter, "the Potter's Head", on display at the College's heart.
6 - Casting symbol for hire gave Alton a solid income a decade ago, but he's never heard that it drove someone out of town.
7 - He knows secret exits from the Steinkellar, and he knows powerful people, but he doesn't kill nor help people escape town.
8 - Bonus trivia: she's one of the most accomplished infiltrators in Fellport. She's been invited to the Lakeside Six and Newfair.

Part of T.W.Wombat's Lore 24 project, detailing the world around Fellport.
For all city posts, see the Fellport Index. For posts about the wider world, see the Beneterra Index.