LCP
   The Bloody Crown - Continued    
  In that dread desert, beneath the moon’s pale gaze, dead men walk.

They haunt the shifting dunes of the breathless, windless night, brandishing weapons of bronze in mocking challenge and bitter resentment of the life they no longer possess.

And sometimes, in ghastly dry voices, like the rustling of sun-baked reeds, they whisper the one word they remember from life. The name of the one who cursed them to their existence of more than death but less than life.

They whisper the name, Nagash.   
 OOC 

 


With Bardhyl's plan seeming agreeable to all present, they got up to go about making their arrangements. Stepping back outside into the brisk Pflugzeit air, they could hear something else over the noise of busy carpentry they had heard on the way in - the sound of a disturbance, a little further up the riverbank. They didn’t have to go far following the general drift of gawkers to see it for themselves.

A thin young man was scrabbling in the dust of the street, trying frenetically to rise back to his feet as two others dragged him in the other direction. Blood was streaming from his clearly broken nose, but rather than showing shock or pain, he still wore an expression of furious anger. All of it was directed at the man standing in front of him - the silent, muscle-bound figure of Pietro. Filomena’s bouncer stood there with his arms folded, looking very unimpressed. Behind him, a couple of others with the look of hired goons were standing as back-up, however little he needed it.

“ Where is she? ” broken-nose was shouting, his face so red that the blood barely stood out. “You Tilean pigs! What have you  done  with her?”

“Madam Filomena don’t do nothing with nobody what they don’t sign up for,” said one of the thugs behind Pietro - a lean man with narrow eyes and a nasal voice. He squinted at the others holding the young man back. “Think you’d best be moving the lad on now, friends. Before he does himself any more mischief.”

Pietro cracked his knuckles, nonchalantly wiping some specks of blood off his right hand. The two restraining the young man definitely seemed to agree with the other bouncer’s advice, and redoubled their efforts to pull him away, though he still struggled against them. With a start, Ludo recognised one of them as Brina, from the party they had taken to Al-Makir for settlement in the Downs.

Sieghard’s attention was on something else altogether. The building Pietro was standing in front of was not the  Pink Peach , as the Greenapple house was now called. The sign hanging outside read  The Drowned Cat , and although its walls had been newly painted and the holes in its roof newly patched, Sieghard would have recognised it even if it had been turned inside-out. It was Dragos’ warehouse - Sieghard’s warehouse.

There was no sign of the people who had been sheltering there. By all appearances, this was the business that Pietro and his associates were guarding.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Stay here, " Sieghard said with a frigid edge to his tone, " All of you. " Without another word, he walked up and stood in the path of the two thugs trying to drag the youth away. " You, " he said, indicating the man who had done the talking. " The prince doesn't look kindly on disturbance in his city. Explain what's going on here. "
LCP
"And who are you?" said the man, swaggering forward towards Sieghard. Pietro calmly reached out to block his path with the back of his hand, and shook his head. The two of them exchanged significant glances, and the man deflated a little.

"This one 'ere was trying to push his way in to our 'stablishment," he said, indicating the youth with the bloody face. "Makin' trouble. We're just encouraging him to move along." He looked back to the lad. "Isn't that right?"

With more nasal cursing, the youth redoubled his struggles - but Brina and her friend held him tight. They clearly weren't about to let him take another run at the brick wall that was Pietro.
-Sentinel-
Disregarding Sieghard's request to stay behind, Elsa calmly but sternly addressed the young man with a broken nose:  "Hey, settle down, my lad. There's three of them and one of you, and whoever you're looking for in there won't be happy if you get your skull caved in on her account."  She paused to let him explain himself.
LeSwordfish
 "What's going on?"  Ludo asked Brina.
LCP
Brina looked as surprised to see Ludo as he was to see her. "Maybe - not here?" she said, still having to work to restrain the young man.

"My sister!" yelled the young man, writhing and kicking. "They've got my sister. Pigs! All of you, pigs!"

The man who'd spoken to Sieghard heaved a theatrical sigh. "We  told  you, son, there's no-one workin' here who don't want the work." His eyes flicked to Brina. "You want some help moving him on, sister?"

"Don't you touch him," Brina snapped in reply. "Come on, Jak. Listen to the lady." Between her and her companion, they managed to wrestle the young man back a few paces. "We're  leaving ."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
If you're happy to let the two groups separate, you can speak to either of them independently after they've got some distance from the confrontation.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

"  Your  'stablishment " Sieghard replied, feigning confusion. " I don't remember selling it. " He gave an exaggerated glance towards Ludo. " Deed to the building is still in the chest back in Painford, isn't it? "

" I want to speak with the girl, " he said, dropping the friendly tone entirely. " You can either bring her to me or we can talk about how you're squatting on my property instead. "
LCP
The man looked genuinely baffled. He looked to Pietro for some kind of clarity, but the big man just gave a tiny shrug.

"Look, mister, uh... sir," he said. "I don't know what it is you're talkin' about with deeds and this and that, but we're just guards. And all I know is the sign there says this is the  Drowned Cat , property of Madame Filomena. Now if you want to talk to her about it, you're more'n welcome, but in the meantime - " - he jerked his thumb in the direction of the young lad - " - we're just trying to do our jobs here."
LeSwordfish
Ludo went with Brina and her group.  "What's happening? Who's this?" 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Building you're guarding doesn't belong to Filomena no matter what sign she puts on it, " Sieghard replied. " That's not your problem though, so let's not make it your problem. " He let the words hang for a moment. " All that I can worry about later. Now though, I want to see the girl. "

He pulled a shilling out of his purse and tossed it at the man.

" Not your business what I want her for either, understand? "
LCP
 Ludo 

Once they’d got a decent distance from Pietro and his goons, the young man with the bloody face stopped struggling - at least enough that Brina could leave him in the hands of her companion and give Ludo her full attention.

“This is Jak,” she said. She motioned to the older man holding him. “And Bran. They’ve come with me from the farmstead. We’re supposed to be picking up the people we left behind.” She paused, looking Ludo up and down. “Weren’t expecting to see you here, Herr Stubbs.”

 Sieghard 

The man caught Sieghard’s coin by reflex, but hesitated in giving his answer. With the crowd of onlookers around them, he clearly felt he was in awkward spot.

“Begging your pardon sir, and… not that your money isn’t good,” he said, holding up an open hand, “but we don’t even know which girl ‘e’s lookin’ for. We get a few lads like that, y’know. People who feel they’ve got a connection, makin’ a scene.” He offered the coin back to Sieghard. “You want to buy what the  Cat’s  selling, sir, you’re very welcome, you can talk to the lady at the door. But if you want to take the lad’s part, then that’s something else to be takin’ up with Madame.”
rax
Bardhyl watched the altercation in the street with some amusement, but kept himself, Max and Ortwin out of it. Crossing Filomena was not in his interest, nor was getting caught up in a possible brawl and drawing the eye of the watch, no matter that he now had "friends" in the Prince's court.

When the group divided, he decided on a whim to follow Ludo to hear what Jak's friends had to say.

 "Don't mind us, we're friends of Herr Stubbs,"  he declared breezily.  "Anything you need to say to him goes no further,"  he added.
LeSwordfish
 "Just a coincidence,"  Ludo said.  "Who's this woman you were searching for?" 
LCP
 Ludo 

"Jak's sister," said Brina. "When we went west, she was living here - her and a bunch of others. Now the brothel-keepers have taken over the building. Jak was asking around the docks, said it sounded like they had her working for them." Brina set her jaw in a grim expression. "You saw they weren't keen on letting him in to check."
LeSwordfish
Ludo's jaw set.  "What's her name?" 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo's visited the warehouse a few times, right?Are there any back entrances he's aware of?
 
LCP
 Ludo 

"Stela," said Jak, wiping some of the blood from his face as Bran let him go. "Her name's Stela."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Yes - it was a big long warehouse originally, it would definitely have multiple entrances. Since it's been converted, the current front door will be the one facing the land, and the back door facing the river + piers.
 
LeSwordfish
 "Well. Lets go and see if we can get you in to see her without asking." 

He set off towards the dockside, hoping to find a door that would be locked rather than guarded.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
If there is such a door, Ludo will check he's not being watched and then pick the lock:  (1d100)[ 79 ] 
 
-Sentinel-
Elsa opted to stay out of Ludo's whole breaking-and-entering business. As far as she was concerned, this would likely make things worse for everyone.

She turned to Jak:  "If it turns out your sister's being held against her will, this'll be a serious matter indeed. Abduction and enslavement are hanging offenses. But..."  It was hard to put this diplomatically.  "...maybe, just maybe, Stela isn't telling you everything. If  you  had to accept a disreputable job to survive, like breaking arms for some loanshark, would you tell her?" 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard didn't take the shilling back.

" I'm sure you get your share of folks like that, " he said. " If it's like you say and she signed up for it, then there's no problem. Lad'll just have to live with it. And if it's not... Well, that doesn't have to be your problem. "

" Keep the coin. For the trouble, " he said. " Probably best to to not worry about it. " He pulled out a second shilling for Pietro as well.


 


" I'm not convinced, " he told Elsa once they were out of earshot. " One way or the other. We're not gonna learn anything from that one though. If it's as the lad says, I doubt Filomena would've told her doormen. "
-Sentinel-
" I'm not convinced. One way or the other. We're not gonna learn anything from that one though. If it's as the lad says, I doubt Filomena would've told her doormen. "

Elsa nodded in agreement.  "We need to clear this up, or Jak will keep getting in trouble. If Stela was desperate enough for money to work for Filomena, the last thing she needs is to lose her brother. I'm sure Filomena can be bargained with..." 

She kept her mouth shut about Ludo's current scheme.
LCP
 Out Front 

Pietro and his friend didn't need any more persuading to take Sieghard's schillings. The talkative one thanked him, and they retired back to their posts as the crowd began to disperse. Sieghard made his way back to the others.


 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
  "...maybe, just maybe, Stela isn't telling you everything. If  you  had to accept a disreputable job to survive, like breaking arms for some loanshark, would you tell her?"  
 

Jax looked up at Elsa, his face already puffing up into one great swollen bruise where Pietro had rearranged his features. "What do you know about it?" he said, clearly still in the mood for a confrontation. "Look at you! In your fancy clothes."

He sunk down, some of the anger starting to leave him. "She - we had a place we could stay. We  were  surviving. And now I come back, and they've  taken  it, and you want me to believe this is what she'd want?" His voice broke. "No! It's what they do! They take what's yours, and then they tell you they'll sell you it back..."

He trailed off. Bran patted him on the shoulder.

 Round the Back 

It was easy enough to slip through the side-alleys round to the back of the  Cat . The old warehouse backed onto the bare mud-flat the retreating Azril had left behind - a few birds perched on beached rowing boats were the only witnesses that seemed to be paying any attention. A bit of careful work with his lockpicks saw the back door swing quietly open.

The door opened into a short hallway, the inner wall nothing more than a thin wooden screen. The end was open, with no door - from around the corner, he could make out the flicker of a small fire, and the squeaking of a spinning wheel. Women's voices were talking.

"...I don't know, some poor boy having a turn for the worse."
"Chose the wrong day for it, with the big one outside. He gives me the creeps."
"I heard it was Madame F who cut his tongue out. For talking back."
"I'd believe it..."
LeSwordfish
Ludo crept to the corner and peered around, looking to see if any of the women within matched Stela's description, or if he could slip across to another hiding place or further into the building.
LCP
 Ludo 

Peering round the corner, Ludo could see the three women who were talking. One sat at a spinning wheel, next to a small pile of wound spindles. The second was tending to the paltry fire in the clay-brick hearth, and the small pot of stew that hung above it. The third just sat with her head in her hands, as if she were nursing the world's worst headache.

None of them matched the quick description Ludo had got of Jak's sister - only the woman by the fire was young enough, and her short, scruffy hair was straw-blonde, not black. All three of them looked tired and thin, their cheap clothes poorly mended. If these were Filomena's people, they clearly weren't being kept as well as her workers at the  Serpent .

The back-room they were sitting in seemed to be a combination kitchen and living area, with a single long table, and a few wooden chairs scattered over the bare boards of the floor. A small stack of barrels and sacks near the fireplace looked to be their larder. A small grey mouse was sitting at the top of it, watching them with its black button eyes as it furiously nibbled on a kernel of grain. It saw Ludo and darted away - thankfully, the women hadn't.

The back of the room was a new-built wall. It had two doors set into it, one at either end - but there was very little in the way of cover for Ludo to get to either without being seen.
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "She - we had a place we could stay. We  were  surviving. And now I come back, and they've  taken  it, and you want me to believe this is what she'd want?" His voice broke. "No! It's what they do! They take what's yours, and then they tell you they'll sell you it back..." 
 

 "If they have something that's yours, we'll see to it that you get it back,"  said Elsa gently.  "And if violence is needed, leave that to us. We happen to be pretty good at it." 

 

 "Sieghard, I think you should be the one seeing Filomena about this,"  said Elsa as they walked away from the 'wharehouse'.  "I'm sure this can be cleared up without further bloodshed." 

It seemed ill-advised for both her and Sieghard to be seen entering or leaving the  Pink Peach  together, regardless of their actual reason for being there, so she decided it was best if she did not come with him.
LeSwordfish
Ludo snuck back out of the building and rejoined the others.  "I'll come with you. We're the legal owners of this building, we have a lot of weight to throw round here." 

He looked to Brina and Jak.  "Maybe sit tight and get your nose seen to. We'll let you know as soon as we know anything." 
RossN
 Jarla 

As mystified by all this as Bardhyl Jarla also followed Ludo, feeling very out of place and conspicuous in her courtier's finery. When the opportunity presented itself she whispered to Ludo:  "Who are all these people?" 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

"No! It's what they do! They take what's yours, and then they tell you they'll sell you it back..."

" Wasn't hers to give or take, " Sieghard grumbled. " What exactly happened. When did they kick you out and how did they do it? And when was the last time you saw your sister? "
LCP
It was a lot of questions for Jak to answer when his nose was still streaming blood. Brina decided to answer for him.

"Jak said he last saw her here when we headed out west, to get the farmstead started. Now we've got some seeds in the ground and something like a roof over our heads, we came back for the ones we left behind. Jak thought we'd find her here, but... well, you can see what's happened to the place."

"Everyone's gone," Bran volunteered. "We asked around. Word is if you wouldn't work for this 'Filomena', she gave you over to the soldiers," - he pointed across the river, to where the sounds of hammers still rose from the camp around Sforza's new fort - "and if you couldn't work for the soldiers, you were out on the street."

"We found one of them with a begging bowl on Gods' Row," said Brina. "He said he'd seen Stela working here."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I'd suggest that if you have more questions for these guys, we can resolve them in bulk, and if you do want to set up any meeting with Filomena, we can cut ahead to that as soon as you're happy you've got whatever info you think is critical.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Do you know how many were still in the warehouse when they were forced out? Or whether it was the soldiers who forced them out or Filomena's hirelings? " Sieghard asked. " Is there space enough for all of them at the farmstead if they can be found? "
LCP
Brian looked slightly taken aback. "No," she said, "we were just looking for our families. I don't... we don't know most of those people."

"Jak said who was staying there changed week to week anyway," said Bran. He looked to Jak. "Right?"

Jak made a muffled noise of agreement and nodded.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" I see, " Sieghard grumbled. He looked to Ludo. " Anything else you think we need to know? " For his own part, he didn't feel like he knew nearly enough, but doubted he'd learn much more from those present.

 
 Spoiler 
Unless anyone else can think of anything, I'm out of questions.
 


 


" The  Drowned Cat ? " Sieghard asked once they were before Filomena, his annoyance clear in his tone. " The  Serpent  and  Peach  were more clever. When were you planning on telling me? "
LCP
Filomena was in a private office at the  Peach  - what had once been Greenapple's study. The building had changed a lot, but this room was still familiar enough to remind Sieghard how they'd stood here negotiating the price of a dragon's tooth for Klammenberg, what felt like a lifetime ago.

"Sieghard," said Filomena, looking up from her ledgers and folding away the little half-moon spectacles she'd been reading with. "Always a pleasure." Her deadpan delivery made it difficult to gauge whether she was being sarcastic.

"I wrote to you in the winter, saying if you wouldn't sell, I'd pursue other options," she said, not seeming at all flustered by Sieghard's obvious displeasure. "This was another option."
LeSwordfish
 "Wonderful!"  Ludo said, with no trace of a smile.  "We just came from completing a favour for Herr Al'Makir. Shall we tell him that we have the deeds and you have a riddle?" 
LCP
"He might find it embarrassing," said Filomena, "since he was the one who signed off on my taking possession."

Opening a ledger, she drew out a folded piece of parchment and opened it in front of Ludo. Immediately, his eye was drawn to Al-Makir's elegant signature at the bottom.

"I told him the truth," she said. "That the place had become occupied by drifters from the Downs; that it was a danger to public order, and likely to be the start of another fire. That if there was an owner, they weren't to be found within the city walls, and were making no efforts towards the building's maintenance or keeping it clear of vagrants." She paused. "I may have left out some other details."

She looked from Sieghard to Ludo, watching their faces closely. "I hope you don't take this personally," she said, "but this is business. You left a void when you killed the old thug who used to run these docks, and if I didn't move in at the  Cat , someone else would have. It was too good an opportunity to pass up." She crossed her hands flat on the table. "You can take this to Abdul if you want, or Sforza," - Ludo noticed how she didn't call him by his title - "and we can see who has more favours owed, but myself, I think they're going to look more favourably on the place as a tax-paying enterprise than as a den of beggars. Alternatively, we can agree that you  did  sell me the deeds," she said, "and I can still offer you a reasonable price for them. Out of respect for our past association."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

If Filomena had expected Sieghard to be surprised, she'd be disappointed. He had suspected something like this from the moment Brina mentioned the soldiers.

" And what would that offer be? " Sieghard asked, his expression unchanged.
LCP
"Five hundred and thirty crowns," said Filomena.
-Sentinel-
Elsa returned to the castle and looked for Tatiana, hoping the apprentice had not run off to gods knew where. She could not help the fact that Tshula-Uddiya had been banished without Tatiana's involvement, and she still was not sorry about seizing the moment when it presented itself, but she still felt like she owed the girl  something  to make up for it.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

It was much less than she had paid for the Greenapple house, but then again, a warehouse would be worth much less.

" I have a condition, " Sieghard said. " There's a girl I'm trying to find and I've heard she's here now. I want to speak with her. " He described Stela as Jak had.
LCP
 At the  Pink Peach  

"I have lots of girls on the books these days," said Filomena. "Have you got a name?"

When he told her, she nodded. "There's a Stela at the  Cat ," she said, putting her spectacles back on and opening a battered ledger. "You want to speak with her, be my guest. Just try not to bother her when she's working. The girls at the  Cat  need every pfennig they can earn."

 Elsa 

Tattie was up on the roof of the keep, watching the scruffy city pigeons that were roosting on the parapet. She looked up when she saw Elsa appear, but gave no other word of greeting.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" If she's the one I'm looking for, I can't imagine I'll need even an hour of her time, " Sieghard replied. " After that, she's free to do as she likes. "

" I have the deed in Painford. I could fetch it next time I pass through if you want it, or is the paper Abdul gave you enough? "
LCP
 At the  Pink Peach  

"Send me the deeds," said Filomena, "and I'll send you the funds." She compressed her lips in a humourless smile. "I'm glad to see you take the measured view."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
If you want to go see Stela now, you can assume you reach her + ask your first questions.
 
-Sentinel-
 Elsa 
 "Hey,"  said Elsa softly.

She kept her distances at first, not wanting to scare off the pigeons whose company Tatiana was clearly enjoying.

 "I should've had you with me, yesterday,"  she acknowledged.  "In fact, banishing the daemon should have been done much earlier. We waited too long, and that's why it ended up happening... not entirely on my terms. At the time I thought you'd be relieved, but I didn't realize you needed more than relief—you needed closure. I'm sorry I can't give you that." 

She dug into a pocket and found some road biscuits. She crushed one of them into crumbs, which she scattered on the ground for the pigeons. She then approached Tatiana to hand her the other biscuit to feed the birds. A paltry peace offering, but it would have to do for now.

 "If you want to talk about it, you should go to Father Hieronymus. He, too, has a... connection with that daemon. A connection I don't share." 
LeSwordfish
Ludo held up his hand.  "Now, hang on, you've moved everything in now. Built a wall and everything. I imagine it's worth a bit more to you not to have to undo all of that and cart it off to whatever other place you'd have to get if Al'Makir agrees to us." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Rolling Haggle vs 79 I think?  (1d100)[ 74 ] 
 
LCP
 At the  Pink Peach  

"You've been visiting the  Cat , then?" Filomena raised her eyebrows at Ludo. "I would have thought you could afford the  Peach ."

Cracking her knuckles, she sat back in her chair. "It's true, I've had to spend a fair amount already fixing up the place," she said. "But I don't see why I should be paying you for that when I was the one who did the work. You seriously expect me to believe Abdul would seize it back for you?" She shook her head. "I think you're living in the clouds, Herr Stubbs. Let's talk down on the ground."

Some strenuous haggling brought her price up to six hundred and thirty-six. Ludo sensed some grudging respect from Filomena that he had asked - or perhaps more that he had succeeded.

 Elsa 

Tattie took the biscuit, but didn’t seem to quite catch Elsa’s intention - she took a bite out of it instead, her eyes still on the birds.

“It’s alright,” she said, quietly. There was a long pause, broken only by the cooing of pigeons, and the occasional loud flutter of their wings. “At least she’s gone.”
-Sentinel-
 Elsa with Tatiana 


"At least she's gone," said Tatiana.

 Hopefully,  thought Elsa.

 "We're going on a trip soon,"  she said, walking over to the parapet to look down at the tiny people below.  "Me, Sieghard, Ludo, and a fellow by the name of Bardhyl. I'd like you to come too, but it's not an obligation. We'll be looking for a wanderer who knows more than most about the threat from the Pale Waste. But first, I need to return to Putbad to fetch our horses. I should be back shortly." 

She opened her purse and handed Tatiana a gold crown.  "Here. Spend it on whatever you want while I'm gone. Maybe a pair of new boots, with change to spare? It's worth twenty silver shillings,"  she added helpfully, aware that Tatiana was not too familiar with this coin and its value.


 

 Elsa in the dungeon 


After leaving Tatiana, Elsa made a quick stop by the kitchen to grab a bowl of Bretonnian onion soup, a pork sausage and a mug of light ale. She then headed down to the holding cells to talk to Sanne Raven-Cry about the rumors concerning her disappeared mentor.
LCP
 Elsa 

The one-legged gaoler was building a house of cards when Elsa entered. Rising to greet her, he knocked the table just enough to topple it, and she heard some colourful Tilean profanities she’d not heard before.

Rummaging on his ring of keys, he led Elsa back into the cells. Some of the cells she remembered seeing occupied in the aftermath of the bread riots were now empty again, and it smelt worse down here than she remembered - but Sanne was still there, chained up in the last cell at the back. She raised her head just a little, looking up at Elsa through a veil of matted hair - if she had the energy to do more, she was conserving it for now.

&lt; You want to talk in private, yes? &gt; said the gaoler, cheery as ever. &lt; If she tries anything, you just shout and I’ll come running. &gt;
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

A little more satisfied after Ludo's fast talking, Sieghard departed and made his way back to what used to be his warehouse. After a bit of talk and a shrug from Pietro, he was inside and soon found a girl that matched the description.

" You Stela? " Sieghard asked. He lowered his voice a bit to not be overheard. " There's a boy outside who was looking for you. Says he's your brother. He seemed worried about you. "
-Sentinel-
&lt; If she tries anything, you just shout and I'll come running. &gt;

  &lt;I'm confident I can handle her on my own, but thank you, kind sir,&gt;   said Elsa, deadpan.

She sat cross-legged on the filthy floor in front of Sanne and raised the bowl of onion soup.  "Here. I can feed it to you."  She dipped her wooden spoon in the soup, lightly blew on it to cool it down, and lifted it to the prisoner's dry lips.

 "There's a hill man in town,"  she said softly.  "A fellow by the name of Bardhyl, perhaps you know him? Stocky, black beard, tattoos, easy smile?" 
LCP
 Sieghard 

The inside of the  Drowned Cat  was a far cry from the  Peach . Yes, Filomena’s people had fixed the place up - but there were few rich colours or soft furnishings here. The yawning space of the warehouse had been boxed in with cheap wooden walls, set with rows of narrow doors.

The old woman at the door looked twice at Sieghard’s weapons, but Pietro waved him through. They took him to a room on the upper floor, where a tall, plain-featured girl was sitting on the edge of a narrow bed. She looked up in surprise when Sieghard opened the door, and there was no disguising her expression of alarm. Viggo had told Sieghard often enough that he had an intimidating face.


 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
 " You Stela? " Sieghard asked. He lowered his voice a bit to not be overheard. " There's a boy outside who was looking for you. Says he's your brother. He seemed worried about you. " 
 

“Jak?” she said, more startled than before. “Jak’s here?”

She looked Sieghard up and down, clearly still absorbing what he’d told her. “Sorry, I don’t… who are you, sir?” she asked, in a small voice. “Why wouldn’t he come himself?”

 Elsa 

Sanne was still proud - but from the way her ribs showed through her filthy rags, she was clearly on the edge of starvation. She could only hold out for a minute or two before she shuffled closer to the bars and allowed herself to be fed.


 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
  "There's a hill man in town,"  she said softly.  "A fellow by the name of Bardhyl, perhaps you know him? Stocky, black beard, tattoos, easy smile?"  
 

"Who?" she said. Her voice was little more than a cracked whisper. Lifting her head, she fixed her piercing blue eyes on Elsa - the only part of her that still showed some colour through the grime.

"There's a lot of hill men," she said. "But the only...  Bardil ... I heard of is a dead man."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard nodded. " He tried to. You hear the noise outside a bit ago? He was a bit more aggressive about it than was smart, " he answered honestly. " If you want to, I could take you to see him. "
-Sentinel-
"There's a lot of hill men. But the only...  Bardil ... I heard of is a dead man."

Elsa shrugged.  "Perhaps  Bardhyl  isn't his real name. But speaking of dead men, he believes Wadim has returned." 

She paused to give Sanne time to process this information, then went on:

 "He claims to be a... Crow Talker? Raven Speaker. Just like Wadim was. And that he has dreams that point to Wadim being alive. He found a pouch full of bird bones that he claims belonged to Wadim, and also tells rumors of a one-eyed wanderer, in the west of the Downlands. So I'll go try to find Wadim. I thought you deserved to know." 
LCP
 Sieghard 

Stela sat there for a moment with her mouth hanging open, torn between different answers. At last, she nodded. She got up, pulling on a threadbare shawl, and followed Sieghard out.

The three travellers were waiting up at the north end of the docks, sitting watching the carpenters on the piers while Brina tried her best to splint Jak's nose. Her requests for him to hold still quickly came to nothing as he caught sight of Sieghard and Stela - leaping to his feet, he rushed over to his sister and embraced her, probably getting some blood on her clothes in the process. She hugged him back.

"Jak!" she exclaimed. "What happened to your  face ?"

"Those thugs wouldn't let me in to see you!" he said. "The commander had to straighten them out - it's  their  faces you should have seen when he showed up!"

The two siblings fell to talking - Jak doing most of it, broken nose or no. Exchanging glances with Sieghard, Brina gave him an appreciative nod.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Do you want to hang about to hear Jak &amp; Stela's conversation, or do you want to leave them to it?
 

 Elsa 

It took a while before Sanne responded. When she did, she spoke slowly - though maybe just to spare her voice from too much exertion.

"That would be him," she said. "The dead man. He was a Raven Speaker... or he wanted to be." She coughed, and her chains clinked as she sat back against the wall. "I suppose the dead troubling the living is nothing new, hey?"

She waited a little while before she offered her explanation. "Not all the hill-folk loved the Jarl," she said. "When we first arrived in the hills, there was a... falling-out, between Wadim and his apprentice. Wadim thought Rorik was the future, and the other didn't. There was no love lost there. The old man told us he was dead." She paused again, longer this time. "You say he's  looking  for Wadim?"
-Sentinel-
"When we first arrived in the hills, there was a... falling-out, between Wadim and his apprentice. Wadim thought Rorik was the future, and the other didn't. There was no love lost there. The old man told us he was dead."

Now  that  was interesting. Had Bardhyl even mentioned that he was once Wadim's apprentice? That seemed like a rather important thing to omit.

"You say he's  looking  for Wadim?" asked Sanne.

 "Yes,"  said Elsa.  "Says he wants to return Wadim to his people. He's asked us to come with him." 
 But is this what he  really  wants?  she now wondered.
LCP
 Elsa 

Sanne tilted her head back against the wall and closed her eyes. "I'd say Wadim's dead too," she said, "but it seems my record there is... not so good." She swallowed to wet her cracked throat. "If you do find him, tell him I'm here."

The silence that followed was long enough that for a moment Elsa thought the Norscan might be drifting off to sleep - but then she cracked one eyelid to look at Elsa again. "There's something else, hey?" she said. "Something changed about you,  vitki.  I can smell it." She opened her other eye. "Something happened?"
-Sentinel-
"If you do find him, tell him I'm here."

 "I will,"  said Elsa. She gently brought the mug of ale to Sanne's lips and tilted it to let the Norscan wet her throat.

After a long silence, Sanne said abruptly: "Something changed about you,  vitki . I can smell it. Something happened?"

Elsa blinked in utter confusion—and alarm. She raked her brain to remember how she could possibly have changed since her last visit to the dungeon.

 "I... uh... Not a  literal  smell, I hope?"  No, come to think of it, it was hard to believe Sanne could smell much of anything apart from the stench of this place.  "Is there no way you can narrow it down for me?" 
LCP
 Elsa 

Sanne slowly but surely drained the mug. "If I knew," she said, quietly, "I wouldn't be asking, would I?"

"It's like... the roll of the waves, when the storm is about to break," she said. "Or the sway of the grass after the wind has passed. Nothing you can pin down, but when you feel it, you know. Or... perhaps you don't, if you grow up south of the shadow." She looked at Elsa again. "We have a saying among the Skael, that it's a fool who seeks the eye of the gods, but a coward who hides from it. I think the eye of the Eagle is on you,  vitki ." She gave the faintest hint of a smile. "Or maybe your new friend would say the eye of the Raven."
-Sentinel-
 "...I see,"  said Elsa, not sure if the attention of the gods was good or bad news. The eye of the Eagle? The eye of the Raven? The raven was a symbol of Morr... but there was another, more sinister god who was also associated with birds.

Reluctantly, as if uttering her dreadful suspicions would make them true, she said:  "I helped banish a daemon yesterday. One that served the Changer of Ways. Or at least I  think  it's banished..." 
LCP
 Elsa 

Sanne remained silent for a while, taking in what Elsa had said. "Well," she said at last. "Don't you lead an exciting life, fire woman."

She seemed content to leave it there. "If the Eagle has plans for you, you'll find out soon enough," she said, resting her head back against the wall. "...Did you bring any more soup?"
-Sentinel-
 Elsa 

"Well. Don't you lead an exciting life, fire woman."

Elsa barked out a mirthless laugh.  "That I do. I'd complain, but right now you're pretty much the last person in the Reaches who'd sympathize with my plight." 

"...Did you bring any more soup?"

 "There's some left, yes."  Elsa fed Sanne the rest of the soup and the sausage.  "I'll see you again when I return from our search. Try not to die... I still have hope that a good reason to have you freed will come up eventually, and there's a small chance Wadim will provide it for us. If we find him, that is." 

She got up to leave. This short visit had been... interesting.


 

 Elsa, Sieghard and Ludo 

Later that day, Elsa met up with Sieghard and Ludo for supper and shared with them what Sanne had told her about Bardhyl—that he had been Wadim's apprentice before Sanne, until Jarl Rorik's arrival caused a split between master and apprentice.

 "Seems strange that Bardhyl failed to mention that, doesn't it?"  she said.  "I don't know if I trust his motives." 
LCP
 Sieghard 

Jak and Stela's conversation took a while, proceeding by meandering paths rather than getting straight to any particular point. Jak was full of news of how things were out in the Downs - it sounded like Brina and the others were making a decent go of things with their farmstead. Stela was more reluctant to talk about how things had been for her in the city. She clearly wasn't proud of the point her life had come to, but Jak wasn't tactful enough not to ask.

"What are you doing staying on in that place, sis? Did they threaten you? Did they hurt you?"

"It's work," said Stela, looking down at the ground. "It keeps a roof over my head."

"We had work before!" said Jak. "Not great work, but - "

"Things are changing faster than you know round here, Jak," said Stela. "The work we used to get down at the south gate, that's barely enough to eat. And we had a free roof over our heads then." She looked back south, down the bank towards the  Cat . "It was this or end up slaving on the Tileans' fort over the bridge." She took a deep breath to calm herself. "They say they're working folks there straight into their graves. Mira told me, people like us can't afford to be proud. Better to be on your back than breaking it."

"You don't have to do either," said Jak, firmly. He took her hands in his. "Come with us. We're gathering up all the folks we left behind, here and in the forest. It's not much out west, but it's better than this."

Stela shook her head, still not meeting his gaze. "I can't, Jak. I owe... I owe people money, if I just up and go..."

"What people?"

"People who'll want it back. You growing gold crowns out there?" She looked at her brother with wide eyes, begging him to understand. "Madame F's a terror, but - she pays."

" What people? " Jak didn't seem like he was willing to let the matter go. Stela threw up her hands in frustration.

"Moneylenders, Jak! People who'll break more'n just noses if you go charging in at 'em." She put her hands over her face. "I want to come with you, Jak, I do - but I can't. I can't. Please, just - you've got to understand. You've got to go."
LeSwordfish
 "How much?"  Ludo asked, making both Jak and Stela jump. He was able to listen very quietly when he wanted.
LCP
Stela seemed a little reluctant to answer - but she had just said she couldn't afford to be proud. She looked to Jak and the others for some cue. Brina nodded at her.

"Three crowns, two schillings and fivepence," said Stela. "That's what it was the last time I paid."
LeSwordfish
 "A friend of Brina's is honorary Painford people,"  Ludo said.  "Were there other people in there with similar debts?" 
LCP
"Um... yeah, I think so," said Stela. "I mean, not that I know what everyone owes... but there's at least a few."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Ludo... " Sieghard interrupted. He glanced at Jak, Stela, and Brina, then lowered his voice. "  We  can't  do what you're thinking. Word gets out and there'll be no end of people expecting what they think is their share. And when the money's gone and the people are still coming, what then?  "
LeSwordfish
Ludo opened his mouth to object, and then closed it again, a little sourly. He drew four crowns from the payment Filomena had made and handed them over. " If anyone asks where you got the money... leave my name out of it, maybe." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

"  I ain't telling you not to help people,  " Sieghard muttered when he saw Ludo's expression. "  Just... Be smart about it is all. There's only so much we can do and we can't have people risking themselves coming to us and then having to turn them away.  "

" It was your money, understand? " he said, pointing at Jak. " Think up some way you earned it and then all of you stick to the story. "
LCP
The looks on Stela and Jak's faces were ones of surprise, gratitude - and a little confusion at the request for secrecy. It took them a little while to find the words to say thank you. Stela was clearly wondering why they were helping them at all.

"That's very kind of you, Herr Stubbs," said Brina. "Not a kindness that'll be soon forgotten, I'm sure."

She exchanged a glance with Bran. "...I suppose we'll be headed down to Painford next, to get our folk who are still left there. Were they doing alright, when you were last there yourself?"
LeSwordfish
 "I'm setting off for there soon,"  Ludo said.  "Would be happy to have some companionship on the road." 
 "Last time we saw Painford, Sforza himself had just left, going south, so if anyone had any problems they were keeping it to themselves. Branka's little one's doing well, got his first tooth in. Mirana's been looking after the goats while Ivan's been sick." 
LCP
Brina was pleased to hear Ludo's news - a much more evident and straightforward appreciation than the wary respect she'd shown for their intervention with Pietro. "Ranald must be with us today, then, that we crossed paths with you," she said. "We couldn't ask for better company to travel in."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I'm taking it that you guys will want to play out Elsa's discussion about Bardhyl first, but let me know when you're ready to move ahead to your respective journeys. I'm assuming you'll set out the following morning.

2 things I'm not clear on atm: will Elsa be taking Olga with her to Putbad? And will Sieghard be accompanying Ludo &amp; Jarla to Painford?
 
LCP
 Konigstag, 27th Pflugzeit 

On the morning of Konigstag, the party split up to go their separate ways: Jarla and Ludo south to Painford, and Elsa upriver to Putbad to fetch her horses. There was no need for goodbyes - they knew they’d be seeing each other again soon enough.

 Elsa 

The earliest riverboat that Elsa could find departing for Putbad was called the  Stirpike . Just like the boat that had taken her south, it was carrying a complement of guards - rough men and women who looked like they’d have been more at home in the company of No-Nose Dragos than the well-heeled merchants who made up Elsa’s fellow passengers.

“It’s ridiculous we have to travel like this,” said the best-dressed among them - a woman who claimed to be from the Jewellers’ Guild. She was travelling with a guard of her own, a hulking fellow with an iron-bound strongbox strapped across his back. “The Prince will have to do something about it. I mean, what are the Reaches coming to when even the Azril isn’t safe?”

"Always been bandits in the Karst,” said another. “The guilders could clear them out, if they stumped up the coin to get a few men together. They’ve done it before.”

“I heard they already tried,” said a third. “Whoever’s leading this bunch isn’t making it easy. Heard they’re calling them the Ghost.” There was a pause as the others looked at him, waiting for an explanation. “On account of disappearing.”

The passengers’ conversation was interrupted by the crew getting ready to cast off, a couple of boatmen chivvying them out of the way. Worming out past the other vessels that crowded the ends of the piers, the  Stirpike  dipped her oars and began pulling north.

 Bardhyl 

While the others were travelling, Bardhyl had some work to do in town. Sandu didn’t look happy to see him again - but then Sandu rarely looked happy to see anyone.

“You know the  Green Dragon’s  not a ferry,” he said, when Bardhyl had given him the outline of their plans for Gina. “There’s plenty of boats on these docks who’ll take anyone up that way if you put a few schillings in their hand.” He sighed. “But you’re asking a smuggler, so I’m guessing you want her smuggled, is that right?”

He paused for a while in thought, chewing on the inside of his cheek. “Just one question. Is this the paying kind of favour?” He raised his red eyebrows at Bardhyl. “Only the wife’s going to start asking me why she married me again if I do too many more of the other kind.”



 

 Angestag, 28th Pflugzeit - Elsa 

The  Stirpike  got past the Knives without the Ghost making an appearance. With the river so low, the current was weak, and the boatmen on the oars made good time against it. They arrived in Putbad early on Angestag afternoon.

The Pool of Putbad was crowded with boats, many of which Elsa thought hadn't moved since the last time she'd seen them. The mighty Silver Falls were now so reduced that by the time the water reached the bottom it was little more than mist; as a consequence, the hike up the winding cliffside path to the high town was unusually dry.

The horses were in good health, and Bastard even seemed pleased to see Elsa again - which was to say, he only tried to bite her a little bit.



 

 Festag, 29th Pflugzeit - Ludo &amp; Jarla 


It was late on Festag when Ludo and Jarla reached Painford. With Brina and the others on foot, it had been a leisurely journey even for Ludo's pony.

On the road, Brina and the others had shared a few stories of how things were getting on at their farmstead - as much for Stela's benefit as for Ludo's. It sounded like things were going alright, for all that the drought showed no sign of breaking. They were close enough to the Teeth that they'd had a brush or two with the goblins, but they didn't seem too concerned. "Too many of us for the little beasts to get hold," opined Bran. "You've just got to be careful when you're out by your lonesome."

On arriving in town, Ludo and Jarla had barely got down out of the saddle when Hanna came hurrying over to fill Ludo in on where things stood with Gina. “She’s in an old charcoal-burner’s hut, about five minutes out into the woods,” she said. “She’s bouncing off the walls a bit, but it’s keeping her out of the public view.”

Jarla, meanwhile, had noticed there was a horse tied up outside Gavril’s. She was pretty sure she recognised it as the lean old nag that Jacques had been riding when he left Savonne with the hunt.

Hanna saw where she was looking, and gave a small nod. “He turned up this morning,” he said. “Says he's headed for Savonne with messages from the Prince. Doesn’t seem in much of a hurry though.”
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" If you want to check on the girl and let her know what's going on, I can keep the singer busy, " Sieghard suggested. He turned to Hanna. " Where is he now? "


 


" I'm sorry that I wasn't here to greet you herr... " Sieghard realized he couldn't remember the singer's name. " But there was some business in the north I needed to see to and I didn't expect you to return north so soon. I'm surprised the princess let you leave her side. I've heard she's fond of you. "

 
 Spoiler 
Sieghard is also joining the Painford group. Apologies for not saying so sooner. Busy time of year.
 
LCP
 Painford, 29th Pflugzeit 

"He's still inside with Gavril," said Hanna. "Don't think he's much used to hard marching."

Jacques was indeed inside the hostel, nursing a cup of wine. He looked up at Sieghard entered.

"That is very good of you to say, my lord steward," he said, brushing back his black curls with a preening air. "Of course, I was reluctant to leave their highness' side - but the Prince required a  trustworthy  messenger to take the news of their return back to the city. They will be only a day or two behind me, I believe."
LeSwordfish
 Elsa, Sieghard, and Ludo - 26th 
 "I'm not sure I trust him at all,"  Ludo said.  "That said... if he wants to drag us into the karst for some reason, I at least want to know what that reason is. If he's an agent of the vampire, he might know where Mala is, and if he was loyal to Rorik... could do more effective things than lure out and kill us." 

Ludo on the Road - 28th
 "Knew a trader who went out wearing this massive tall steel helmet."  Ludo said.  "Had a spike on top like two feet tall. His theory was that the goblins would think he was bigger and stay away. It worked for a little while, they left him alone." 

"What happened to him in the end?" Ortwin asked.

 "Struck by lightning." 
 Painford - 29th 
 "The prince is coming back so soon?"  Ludo asked.  "I thought he was going all the way to Mirino?" 
LCP
 Painford, 29th Pflugzeit 

Jacques looked interested to see Ludo - and did a poor job of hiding it. "Oh no, no," he said. "No sense in travelling all that way when there is plenty of fresh air and game in the Vale. It's very green there now, after the rains they had in the hills. Although there are too many... how do you call them?  Les sauterelles ." He imitated the noise of a cricket. "Myself, I detest insects."
-Sentinel-
 Elsa, Ludo and Sieghard 

  "I'm not sure I trust him at all,"  Ludo said.  "That said... if he wants to drag us into the karst for some reason, I at least want to know what that reason is. If he's an agent of the vampire, he might know where Mala is, and if he was loyal to Rorik... could do more effective things than lure out and kill us."  

 "I do intend to follow him out there,"  said Elsa,  "but we need to keep a close eye on him. Maybe ask him how well he knows Wadim, and see if he tells us the truth. But that can wait." 

 

 Traveling upriver 

Though she considered bandit-hunting to be beneath her at this point, Elsa listened with some interest to the tales of the 'Ghost'. Arne Golden-Hair, former Prince Belehir and Gunda were all unaccounted for, and all had sufficient motive to turn to banditry. Then again, this could be someone new.

 "How long has there been talk of this 'Ghost'?"  she inquired, leaning towards the conversation.

 "Have they been hitting specific kinds of shipments? Do you know someone who's been hit and lived to tell about it?" 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Gossip 44:  (d100)[ 14 ] 
 Fortune:  (d100)[ 8 ]  
 


 

 In Putbad 

Elsa spent her late afternoon in Putbad running some housekeeping errands, including the literal 'house-keeping' of paying next month's rent. At dusk, she took both horses out into the fields of the Uplands to let them stretch their legs and eat some of the tender grass of spring before the return to Savonne.

After nightfall, she put on makeup to conceal her tattoos and visited an inn near the upper port to gamble for small stakes and listen to what the boatmen were saying about the low river, the state of commerce, and whatever was going on in the upstream princedoms.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Untrained Gamble 38. Elsa is not wagering more than 10 shillings total.  (d100)[ 30 ] 

Is it Gossip 44 or Perception 75 to just listen passively to rumors? Anyway here's a roll:  (d100)[ 41 ] 
 And here's a re-roll:  (d100)[ 83 ]  

I don't really have any other plans in Putbad, so if the others finish their stuff before I post again, feel free to have Elsa return to Savonne with the horses.

 Edit:  Some pretty solid rolls!
 
rax
 Konigstag, 27th Pflugzeit 
 "Nothing gets past you, Sandu my man. You'll be carrying paying passengers and I fully expect you can count on a decent gratuity to ease your good lady wife's worries as well. A couple of my men will be coming along to keep an eye on the girl and speed her on her way once you make Putbad,"  Bardhyl grinned.

 "By the way, I hear there's bandit troubles up the river these days. Some fellow the call 'The Ghost'? You know anything about that? " he asked the smuggler.
LeSwordfish
 Ludo, Sieghard, Elsa 
 "He'll find us pretty hard to ambush, I tell you that much." 
 Painford 
Ludo nodded thoughtfully.  "Well, I won't have it said that we're ungracious hosts in Painford - what are you drinking?" 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Jacques doesn't like Ludo much but I wonder if Irene might have let something slip near him, or some other reason for him to be giving Ludo the eye. I want to give him a few drinks, butter him up a bit, and see if I can get him to say what it was. Probably Charm vs 92  (1d100)[ 11 ]  or possibly Gossip vs 72, probably with some kind of ruined-his-life penalty.
 
RossN
 Festag, 29th Pflugzeit - Ludo &amp; Jarla 

Jarla who had entered just after Ludo smiled at Jacques:  "It's been too long Jacques. So what word from their Highnesses?"  She tried to look diffident as she added:  "How is my dear friend the princepessa?" 
LCP
 27th Pflugzeit 
 Elsa 

As was so often the case, Elsa sensed a little reluctance on the part of her fellow passengers to talk to the Prince's infamous fire wizard. On the deck of the  Stirpike , however, they had nowhere to go. Nervous though they might be in her presence, none of these worthy merchants wanted to give the appearance that they personally were ignoring her.

"There's been three boats taken since the coronation," said the man who had spoken most authoritatively. "That's what I heard - and it was the last one that got the guilders to go searching for the wreckers." He shook his head. "Don't know what they were carrying. If any of the crew got away, I haven't heard of them making it back to Putbad."

 Bardhyl 

  "Nothing gets past you, Sandu my man. You'll be carrying paying passengers and I fully expect you can count on a decent gratuity to ease your good lady wife's worries as well. A couple of my men will be coming along to keep an eye on the girl and speed her on her way once you make Putbad,"  Bardhyl grinned. 

"How much are we talking here?" said Sandu "I don't know what your interest is in this girl, but if she's anything to do with that lot you asked me to introduce you to, I'll bet she's trouble." He kept his eyebrows raised. "If this is a no-questions-asked sort of deal, then I've got to charge you top rate. Twelve crowns."


  "By the way, I hear there's bandit troubles up the river these days. Some fellow the call 'The Ghost'? You know anything about that? " he asked the smuggler. 

"Heard about that, did you?" said Sandu. "Hope you're not looking to move in on that business yourself. Moving goods up the river is difficult enough these days as it is."

He sighed. "The Knives've always been a good spot for wreckers. Now the river's so low, the big boats have got to go round 'em at a snail's pace. It's like a red rag to a bull. And you know as well as anyone, there's too many lads sloshing about after the wars who've been shown how to use a weapon, but don't have anyone paying 'em for it any more." He knocked back a swig from his drink. "Heard there was some muster of guild guards went out into the rocks to flush this lot out, but hunting bandits in the Karst is a fool's errand. Too many hiding places."

"Haven't had any trouble with them myself so far. The  Dragon  can still get through that stretch at a fair lick. River gets much lower, maybe I'll start worrying." He shrugged. "If we've got to start paying a toll to keep the wreckers sweet, I've done that before. Price of doing business."


 

 Elsa, 28th Pflugzeit 

Elsa found a card circle at the  Silver Lady , and to her pleasure found herself walking away with six schillings more than she'd staked. The talk at the inn was dominated by the still-falling level of the Azril - traders concerned about how much longer their boats would be able to traverse the Knives at all, and locals muttering about Azriller withdrawing her favour.

"You know they had a big ceremony at the temple down there in Savonne?" said one player, a white-bearded old riverman who seemed to know his way around a deck of cards. "Asking the gods for rain. Fat lot of good that did."
"It's the monks here we ought to be asking for answers," said another. "She's their river, ain't she?"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Rumour-gathering is pretty much the core use of Gossip.
 


 

 Painford, 29th Pflugzeit 

"My lady Schreiber!" said Jacques, leaping to his feet and bowing low to Jarla as he saw her enter. "Too long indeed! What a pleasure it is to see you here - I was expecting to find you in the city."

Jacques had seemed suspicious of Ludo's hospitality, but Jarla's appearance seemed to ameliorate any ill-will he felt towards the halfling at least enough for him not to turn down the offer of free drinks. As he chatted away to Jarla, Ludo kept him plied with flattery and alcohol, waiting for him to let something slip. For Jacques' part, some part of him clearly revelled in the attention.

"Oh, the  principessa  is doing well, tolerably well. I was coming to tell you, my lady, they are returning to Savonne - I thought you would want to have everything prepared. I think they will be leaving Manann's Keep tomorrow." He paused, and then with a nonchalant air that Ludo was  sure  was very bad acting, airily asked: "Have you heard any news of the runaway? The  principessa's  serving girl - you know she is still very concerned about the poor thing."
RossN
 Painford, 29th Pflugzeit 
 "That soon? Oh... wonderful,"  Jarla replied, frozen smile on her face.  "And yes I suppose I must return to Savonne to prepare." 

She didn't risk glancing at Ludo but instead paused a moment, before asking in excited tones that suggested she was hearing it for the first time:  "What is this about Irene's girl?" 
LCP
 Painford, 29th Pflugzeit 

Jacques clapped his hand to his forehead. " Sainte Dame!  Of course, you haven't heard. My apologies, my lady. It happened here, on the way down." He gestured expansively around, as if to take in all of Painford. "The  principessa  had an, ah, episode - she felt unwell. The fear was that she had been poisoned, but she recovered very shortly. Perhaps something she ate,  oui?  But this serving-girl, one of the  principessa's  maids, she disappeared. I don't believe she's been seen since." He looked to Ludo. "Unless you have any news to share, monsieur... Stoobs, was it?"
LeSwordfish
 "I've been out of town,"  Ludo said, butter not melting in his mouth, thinking a series of vicious curses that now they would need to wait for Jacques to leave before travelling with their guest.  "You probably know more than I do...?" 
LCP
 Painford, 29th Pflugzeit 

Jacques gave an expressive shrug. "Myself, also. Perhaps the lord steward knows," he said, looking to Sieghard. "In any case, I am only asking because the  principessa  looked so worried, you know. I must ride on for Savonne tomorrow." He glanced towards the door. "I would set out today, but that wretched horse has jarred my bones almost out of their sockets. I tell you, my lady, if I can find the man in the city who sold it to me, I will give him a piece of my mind."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" If there's any sign of the maid, we'll be sure to send word immediately, " Sieghard answered. " I know how much the principessa must care for the girl. And after all she's been through, I'm sure it weighs even more heavily. " He had been watching Jacques drink and couldn't imagine the scrawny minstrel was good at holding his liquor. " You say she's recovering well though? " he raised his own cup. " To her health! " then after draining it and giving the others a moment to do the same, he grabbed a second, " And to the prince as well! "
-Sentinel-
 Traveling upriver 

"If any of the crew got away, I haven't heard of them making it back to Putbad."

Elsa's eyebrows went up. Robbery was one thing, but wholesale slaughter was another.  "Well, they certainly won't take  this  boat." 

 

 28th Pflugzeit - At the  Silver Lady  

Elsa stayed out of the conversation, not wanting to draw attention to herself, but her concern about the drought grew. Clearly Nahorek still had the ability to kill hundreds, even without a physical body. But what could be done against a spirit? This was why they needed Wadim and his knowledge. Time was running short. A second lean year in a row would be a disaster, especially if Sforza still planned to launch another costly campaign.



 

 29th Pflugzeit 

Though she had originally planned to return to Savonne quickly, Elsa decided to remain in Putbad another day to ask the guilders what they knew about this 'Ghost'. She put on her fancy black-and-gold garb and paid an official visit to the various guildhalls. Finding them mostly empty since it was Festag, she instead knocked on Leona Groz' door, trusting that the guilders' daughter had an ear to the ground for this sort of thing.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Festag  is  the equivalent of Sunday, right?
 
LCP
 29th Pflugzeit 
 Painford 

Jacques echoed Sieghard's toast with gusto. "Not too bad, this Thornwood wine," he said, when he had finished his second cup. "Not too bad at all."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
If your aim is to get Jacques drunk with peer pressure, then if you specify how drunk + give me a Consume Alcohol test I can tell you how successful you are + how long that takes. Otherwise, ball's in your court - Jacques is just hanging out in the hostel while he recovers from the ride up from Manann's Keep.
 

 Putbad 

Elsa found Leona at home. "Magister," she said, welcoming Elsa inside. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"
-Sentinel-
 Elsa and Leona 
 "Lady Groz,"  said Elsa, returning the formal address.  "I won't take too much of your time on this fine Festag. I'm here on semi-official business... Can we sit? Eberhard can attend, it's really no trouble at all." 

Once she was seated and with a cup of wine, she dived right into the matter.  "I'm well aware, of course, that banditry on the Azril has increased of late. But on my way here, the boatmen were speaking of an elusive figure they call the 'Ghost', and that's news to me. I presume the guilders are talking about it too?" 
rax
 27th Pflugzeit 
 "Twelve crowns!? Sandu my friend, are you  trying  to make me look bad? If I go back to our mutual friends and tell them I agreed to a price like that, they'll think I've gone soft in the head! If I were you, I'd think of a new number and remember that if you do this right, some of the most powerful people in the Reaches will owe you a big favour. In fact, they'll owe us  both  a favour,"  Bardhyl countered with a wink.

 "Me, turn wrecker? No fear, much too stationary for my tastes. I prefer to keep on the move, do a little business here, a little business there, and ride on before anyone gets too upset,"  he explained grandly.  "So you've not heard anything about who 'the Ghost' might be? How about where they're moving the loot?" 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Help yourself to it, " Sieghard suggested, unusually affably. He passed Jacques another cup and grabbed one for himself. " And tell us, how have things been in Manaan's Keep. We haven't had any news from the south since... well, the trouble with the vampire. "

 
 Spoiler 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 If your aim is to get Jacques drunk with peer pressure, then if you specify how drunk + give me a Consume Alcohol test I can tell you how successful you are + how long that takes. Otherwise, ball's in your court - Jacques is just hanging out in the hostel while he recovers from the ride up from Manann's Keep. 
 

So drunk he can't walk without help. I don't think he's necessarily conscious of it, but whatever errand Irene has him on is no doubt something bad for us. I see a couple of ways getting him absolutely sloppy could be used, so we'll start with the drinks and go from there.

 (1d100)[ 88 ]  vs 51
 (1d100)[ 22 ]  reroll if needed.
 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 27th Pflugzeit 

  "Twelve crowns!? Sandu my friend, are you  trying  to make me look bad? If I go back to our mutual friends and tell them I agreed to a price like that, they'll think I've gone soft in the head! If I were you, I'd think of a new number and remember that if you do this right, some of the most powerful people in the Reaches will owe you a big favour. In fact, they'll owe us  both  a favour,"  Bardhyl countered with a wink. 

Sandu shrugged. “Tell ‘em what you want, Bardhyl. What would I want that lot owing me favours for?” He shook his head. “I’ve got my boat, I’ve got my crew - all I want’s to be left alone.”

“No questions asked, right? That’s what we’re talking about here. Which I assume means this girl’s got someone looking for her.” He held up his hands. “Not that I’m asking. No questions and all. But you want me to take that risk - stick my neck out not knowing how far - then twelve crowns is your price.”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
This is pretty much the core use of Haggle, and Charm already has a lot of strings to its bow, so I’ve got to say no to the substitution. It’s a Basic skill though so you can still give it a shot.
 


  "So you've not heard anything about who 'the Ghost' might be? How about where they're moving the loot?"  

“Oh yeah, that’s why they call them the Ghost,” said Sandu, with deadpan sarcasm. “Because they tell every Thom, Dierk and Heinrich their business.” He shook his head. "I don't know them and they don't know me, and long may that continue."


 

 29th Pflugzeit 
 Painford 

Jacques seemed happy to drink up, as long as the drinks were on his hosts. He held forth with great authority on the tedious details of the Sforzas’ stay in the Vale. For the most part, it sounded like he had been on the sidelines, finding locals to feel superior to while the Prince was out with the hunt - not that he put it that way.

As he drank more, his tales got more grandiose and self-regarding, until he seemed to be implying that the Sforzas were practically begging him on bended knee to educate them in their musical tastes. “You know, personally, I think Fieromonte’s greatest work was  after  he left the opera house,” he said, spilling a little from his cup as he gesticulated - it was probably his fourth or fifth. “ Originalité . That is what matters,  n...   hic!   ...non? ”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Jacques isn’t a competitive drinker, so it will take an hour or two to get him probably can’t-stand-up sloshed. With that roll, you can assume you succeed if you stick with it. I’d like to see Jarla check in to this scene though, since she’s on the friendliest terms with Jacques and might have her own thoughts on how to deal with him.
 

 Putbad 

“I’ve heard something about it, yes,” said Leona. “Obviously no-one’s happy if their cargo’s at risk. There was an attempt to flush them out with some of the guilds’ guards, but I don’t think it came to much.” She glanced back over her shoulder. “You can speak to Axel if you want - he went with them.”

Roth was more than happy to report on the guilders’ abortive bandit hunt. “Not much to say, really, Magister,” he said, in his usual brisk military style. “They probably got wind that we were coming, which wouldn’t have been difficult. And those rocks are so full of hidey-holes that the Huntsmarshal himself would have a damned hard time finding you there if you didn’t want to be found.” He chewed the end of his moustache. “That’s not to say the lads we had were all Wulfharts, either. It’s a cushy job, standing guard on guild houses and strongboxes. Most of ‘em were keen to head back.”
-Sentinel-
 Elsa in Putbad 

Elsa asked a question she had already asked the boatmen, hoping the guilders were better informed:  "The fellow on the  Stirpike  said he didn't know any survivors of the Ghost's strikes. Do  you  know of any? And those who didn't return—are they still missing, or were they found dead?" 

She listened to the answer, then asked:  "Do we know if the bandits are after a specific kind of cargo?" 
rax
 27th Pflugzeit 
 "Alright, alright, you curmudgeon!"  Bardhyl laughed, throwing his hands in the air.  "I admit, snooping about has killed more than one cat, but how you manage to prosper in your line of work without so much as a smidgen of curiosity, I'll never know. Twelve crowns it is then,"  he said, offering his hand to seal the deal.

 OOC: 
 
 Spoiler 
Eh, the odds of success seem extremely poor, and the money's coming out of the original party members' funds anyway...😉
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla nodded along to Jacques' bragging, though her smile started to slip once it became clear just how drunk he was getting and she looked doubtfully at Sieghard. Evebtually once he started getting on the intricacies of long dead composers she decided enough was enough and intervened, gently pulling the minstrel's cup away from him.

 "You seem tired Monsieur. Perhaps it is best you stay here for the night to sleep off your... Um... Tiredness."  
LCP
 Bardhyl, 27th Pflugzeit 

Sandu shook on it. “I just don’t like getting mixed up with the friends of princes, is all,” he said. “They come and go too fast.”

Knocking back the last of the drink, he stood and made ready to leave. “Let me know when you’ve got the girl,” he said. “I’ll have the boat ready.”


 

 29th Pflugzeit 
 Putbad 

“The Azril runs fast through the Knives,” said Roth. “You lose your boat there, you’ll have a hard time getting back upriver. Especially with this lot on the loose, no-one’s picking up a passenger waving from the bank.” He shrugged. “If I was looking for ‘em, I’d look downstream, in Selsan, or Savonne even - but that wasn’t what the guilders were paying us for.”

"The boats I heard were lost were the  Rockhopper  and the  Mere-Maid ," said Leona. "I don't know what the  Rockhopper  was carrying, but the  Maid  had goods from the north. Grain and oil.”

 Painford 

Jacques looked a little surprised when Jarla took his drink away from him. “If you insh- insist, my lady,” he said. “I shouldn’t… shouldn’t delay, really, but the journey has been very tiring so far.” He looked at Jarla. “You’re staying here too?” he asked, hopefully.
-Sentinel-
 Elsa in Putbad 
 "Thank you, Herr Roth,"  said Elsa.  "I'll take my investigation downstream, then, but I can't guarantee I'll have any more success than the guilds at tracking down any bandits. Subtlety isn't my strong suit."  She pursed her lips.  "I wish I could tell you that the Prince will look into it, but he seems to be devoting most of his resources these days to that new fortress of his." 

This was as much dissatisfaction with her employer as she was willing to share in the present company.

She swirled the wine at the bottom of her cup.  "So I assume the food we're getting isn't from the Azril basin? If we get so little water, things must be even more dire upstream. The Azril is mostly meltwater from the World's Edge Mountains, yes?" 
LeSwordfish
Leaving Jacques to the varyingly tender mercies of Sieghard and Jarla, Ludo buried his hands in his coat pocket against the spring chill and went out in search of Gina. The charcoal-burner's hut was at least warm, and he asked her kindly how she was doing before getting down to business.

 "We think we have a place for you to go,"  Ludo said.  "Out of the reaches. You needn't worry about the principessa finding you. I don't think we could find you a safe place in the reaches, but if you want to stay nearby, in danger..." 
LCP
 29th Pflugzeit 
 Putbad 

  "I'll take my investigation downstream, then, but I can't guarantee I'll have any more success than the guilds at tracking down any bandits. Subtlety isn't my strong suit."  

"Your investigation?" asked Leona. "I wouldn't have thought hunting wreckers was wizard business."


  "So I assume the food we're getting isn't from the Azril basin? If we get so little water, things must be even more dire upstream. The Azril is mostly meltwater from the World's Edge Mountains, yes?"  

"I've heard the Azril starts in the mountains, yes," said Leona, "though I've never been upriver that far. There are streams that run into it all the way down to the Mere, though. And under the Karst, people say. The rocks are riddled with caverns."

She shrugged. "Here we care more about our boats than watering crops… but these conditions are bad for everyone. There's no-one living in Putbad who remembers seeing it this low." She paused. "If you want people who really know the river, you should talk to the monks of Azriller. Though I don't know what advice they can offer, except to pray."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Just to set expectations, I don't think the state of hydrology in the Old World would be very advanced.
 

 Painford 

Gina clearly wasn't taking to rural isolation. She had dark circles under her eyes, and her hair stuck out in all directions, having parted company with combs some time ago. Ludo thought she was still wearing the same clothes as when he'd last seen her.

At the sight of Ludo, her eyes lit up. She listened carefully to what he had to say, hanging on every word.

"Out of the Reaches?" she asked. "Where?"
-Sentinel-
"Your investigation?" asked Leona. "I wouldn't have thought hunting wreckers was wizard business."

 "Wizard business,"  said Elsa wryly,  "is whatever a wizard chooses to make their business." 

"If you want people who really know the river, you should talk to the monks of Azriller. Though I don't know what advice they can offer, except to pray."

Elsa snorted.  "Sounds about right. I won't bother with them. One of my masters often said, pray in one hand and take a dump in the other and see which one fills up first."  She downed the rest of her wine and set the cup down.  "You were talking about wizard business... To tell the truth, there hasn't been much of it since we dusted that vampire in Nath. I think his influence is what's causing the drought, but I can't prove it to the Prince. In fact I'm still working on that. I suppose I'm keen to justify my continued employment, and that's why the wrecker business got my attention." 

She steered the conversation towards more casual topics, such as books, stage plays, horseback riding and other hobbies, just to make her visit worthwhile without overstaying her welcome.

After about twenty minutes, she got up.  "My magic can't help me locate the wreckers, Lady Groz, but I'll be sure to toss a couple of fireballs their way if they make the mistake of attacking my boat. Thank you for the wine and the company." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
I have no other plans in Putbad. If it's still possible to catch a boat to Savonne at midday, Elsa will do so. If not, she'll take the first boat tomorrow morning.
 
rax
 27th Pflugzeit 

Having sealed the deal with Sandu, Bardhyl rounded up Max and Ortwin and picked up some last minute supplies before heading out west to meet up with the rest of his band and inform them of the plan to smuggle Gina out of the Reaches.

 OOC:  I'll write up a short shopping list in the OOC thread, but I'm thinking mostly extra food and drink to cheer his outlaws up.
LeSwordfish
Ludo nodded.  "We've got some people who can escort you to putbad and put you in with a trustworthy caravan owner. We'll give you some money to get set up at the other end." 
LCP
 29th Pflugzeit 
 Putbad 

Leona, as always, showed no crack in her mask of politeness - but Elsa thought she caught Roth sneaking a nervous glance at the ceiling, as if a twin-tailed comet might come crashing through it. Possibly the old soldier wasn't comfortable with casual sacrilege. If anything, he seemed more comfortable with talk of the Jackal.

"Dryin' up the river from beyond the grave?" he said. "That's a powerful curse."

"The river's always been here," said Leona. "I've got to believe it always will be. If there's no river, there's no Putbad." She was distracted from saying any more by young Eberhard, who had levered himself up on the legs of her chair and was determinedly trying to walk a few steps.

"Thank you for your visit, Magister," she said, taking the child's hands to stop him from toppling. "You know you and your friends are always welcome."

 Painford 

Gina nodded, though she didn't look immediately overjoyed. "I... thank you," she said. "You are very kind."

She sat down on an old sheepskin. "I don't know what I will do," she said, gazing out of the window. "All my life, I am a servant. To serve the daughter of the de Velas... we had to be the best, in all Tobaro. And now I will have nothing. No letter, no introductions." She ran her fingers through her tangled hair. "If I am lucky, maybe I end up serving tables at some... border alehouse." She took a deep breath. "But the alehouse is better than dead."
RossN
 Jarla (&amp; Sieghard) 

Jarla hesitated at Jacques's question.  "Perhaps,"  she allowed,  "though I should be back in Savonne to prepare for their highnesses. Perhaps if you gave me your message I could carry it home for you?"  She smiled winningly at her musician.
LCP
 Painford, 29th Pflugzeit 

"That's... very kind," slurred Jacques. "But I couldn't... couldn't impose.  Sur l'honneur , I'll set off in the morning." He stopped, opening his eyes wider as if an idea had just occurred to him. "We could travel together!"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Jacques is making a polite show of not palming off the job he was given onto Jarla, but he'll agree to any plan of hers (and specifically hers - he's much less trusting of Sieghard &amp; Ludo) as long as she insists. Up to you what you prefer.
 
LeSwordfish
Ludo nodded sadly.  "I'm sorry. I would offer you a job for Commander Sieghard, but the chances you'd be recognised are too high." 

He thought for a moment.  "How would a prospective employer actually  check  a letter of recommendation?" 
LCP
 Ludo, 29th Pflugzeit 

"Well, usually nobles know each other. Or know of each other. They have... seals, and things." She hesitated, catching onto Ludo's implication a little slow. "Though in the borderlands, I don't know... I mean I don't know who would  know  the Sforza's or their seal. Everyone they had dealings with here is dead..."
LeSwordfish
 "And they're not going to send a messenger all the way back just to check, right?" 
LCP
  Ludo, 29th Pflugzeit  

"I wouldn't think so," said Gina, cottoning on more fully now. "I mean... it's not like the  principessa  would write back if they did. Unless they were the, the countess of Nuln or something."
LeSwordfish
 "If you used a different name they wouldn't know it was you,"  Ludo said, " as opposed to any chancer."

"So it would need the Sforza's seal, as well as their signature? Anything else?" 
LCP
 Ludo, 29th Pflugzeit 

"I... not that I can think of," said Gina. "I think for most people that would be enough."
LeSwordfish
Ludo nodded.  "You leave it with us, I'll see what we can do." 

---

Later that evening after Jacques had retired, Ludo drew Jarla aside.  "Could you perhaps get us a copy of Sforza's seal? I thought a letter of recommendation might help set Gina up in a new location better than a bag of money would." 
RossN
 Jarla 
 "Travelling together could work,"  Jarla allowed and smiled again, even as she took a slight sip from own still nearly full drink.  "What errand has you in such a rush anyway Jacques?" 
LCP
 Jarla &amp; Sieghard, 29th Pflugzeit 

“Just… just what I said,” said Jacques. “I need to tell the people… in the city, that they’re coming back. Receive them properly. It’s… it’s important.” His tone was faintly plaintive, as if he suspected they might think he had been sent on an  unimportant  errand. “Although I sh’pose - I suppose if I’ve told you, my lady, that’s half, half the job done already…”

With some assistance from Jarla, he weaved his way unsteadily up to bed.


 

 Wellentag, 30th Pflugzeit - Painford 

The next morning, Jarla took Jacques back by the river road. The minstrel was miserably hungover, and looked it. Riding on his skin-and-bones horse with his hat pulled down nearly over his eyes, he struck an amusing contrast with his travelling companion.

While Sieghard remained behind to await the Sforzas’ arrival, Ludo was only waiting until the coast was clear. Once Jacques was safely out of sight, he started north with Gina. They would take the eastern way round, by Arrow Heap. The roads there were less suitable for horses, but Gina was on foot anyway - and this way there was no chance of them overtaking Jacques, or being overtaken by the royal party…


 

 Aubentag, 31st Pflugzeit - Elsa 

The ride downriver from Putbad had been uneventful. Elsa had kept on deck as they passed through the Knives, and thought she had seen someone watching from the rocks - but whether it was one of the Ghost’s wreckers, she couldn’t say.

With the current behind them, they pulled into the docks of Savonne on Aubentag afternoon. Leading two horses back through the crowded streets of the city was quite a challenge, particularly when one of those horses was Bastard…

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Can I get a Charm Animal test at +10 for keeping the horses calm as you make your way back to the castle.
 


 

 Marktag, 32nd Pflugzeit 
 Jarla 

By the time they got back to Savonne, Jarla was sick to death of Jacques’ whining - about his aching head, about his aching bones, about the way his horse was jolting him to pieces. It looked like quite a placid animal to her, even if it couldn’t hope to keep up with Countess. If it was uncomfortable to ride, then that was probably for want of feeding.

At the castle, Al-Makir was grateful for the notice that the Sforzas were on their way back. “We'll clear the goats out of their highness' chambers, then,” he joked to Jarla. “They didn’t have any particular instructions for their return?”

“No,” said Jacques. “Only to tell you that they were coming.”

“Let’s not worry too much, then,” said Abdul, turning back to Jarla. “No need to, ah, what’s the phrase? Push out the boat.” He gave a small sigh. “Though I think what they might call a  moderate  welcome is more, now, than it was before they wore crowns. Lady Schreiber, if you need any more money for the reception you must let me know.”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I’m not going to ask for a detailed plan for how you want to organise this (unless you want to provide one) - if you can just tell me any personal touches Jarla wants to put onto proceedings, we can assume a baseline level of competence from Mouna &amp; co. in getting the castle ready for the Sforzas’ return.
 

 Ludo &amp; Gina 

Out in the east Downs, away from the meandering course of the Azril, it was easy to see how hard the drought was biting. Teams of oxen laboured to drag their ploughs through earth that was cracked and dry, and new-sown fields showed yet no sign of sprouting. At more than one farmstead they saw new wells being dug, burrowing ever deeper in search of water.

At the banks of the Azril, they passed Sforza's new fort. Gina pulled her hood down over her face as they passed the Iron Company men on guard, although the soldiers showed little interest. Their attention was turned inward, to the filthy, hungry-looking people who laboured to raise the earthworks and palisades. Their camp looked better-ordered than the one that had existed on the west bank, with tents laid out in neat military rows, and a cook ladling out bowls of grey porridge to a waiting line of workers - but the last camp had never needed this many guards. Off to the side, Ludo saw a body laid out on a handcart, covered up with a sheet to await the priests of Morr.

They passed over the bridge without anyone seeming to take undue notice, despite how furtively Gina was hiding her face. The bridge itself was busy with traders headed to the markets, the half-empty river beneath them crowded with boats that nestled cheek-by-jowl along the docks. Only the birds that circled and squabbled over the muddy banks seemed to pay them any heed.

 Elsa, Jarla, Ludo &amp; Bardhyl 

It was later in the day when Jarla could extract herself from the preparations at the castle, and meet the others down in the docks. There, Sandu and the  Green Dragon  were already standing by.

“Should be charging you extra for the wait," Sandu grumbled to Bardhyl, under his voice. "Time is money, you know."

Gina seemed apprehensive as she was introduced to Sandu and Bardhyl's men. Her agitation only grew when Sandu showed her the hidden compartment where she'd be making the voyage. It was probably excellent for smuggling contraband, but it was definitely lacking in the air and light departments.

For a moment, Ludo was worried Gina might back out - but seeing the anxiety written on her face, Sandu offered her some words of reassurance. "I know it's not as fine as some," he said, "but I'm guessing you're not choosing to travel this way for the comfort. Your friends are paying me good coin to get you safe to Putbad without another soul knowing about it, and if that's what you want, that's what I'll do." He took off his hat and held it across his chest. "Word of honour."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Points to decide before we see Gina off:
 
 Does Jarla provide the forged letter of recommendation? 
 Who’s Bardhyl picked out to accompany her to Putbad? Do they have any special instructions? 
 
 

 Sieghard 

It was late on Marktag when the royal party returned to Painford. By then, Brina and the others had departed, with thanks again to Sieghard for his and Ludo’s help. “If you’re ever coming out west, your lordship,” Brina had said, “just ask for directions to New Seeds. That’s what we’re calling the farmstead now.”

They had taken almost all the refugees still sheltering at Painford with them, so that when the Sforzas’ carriage pulled up outside Sieghard’s manor, the only traces left were the rectangles of dead grass where their tents had been. It was just as well, since the royal party seemed to have expanded a little since they’d last passed through. There were now two horse-drawn wagons following the coach, loaded with what looked like the Prince’s hunting trophies - and a few barrels and sacks of other goods besides.

Sforza’s white horse Vedenzo was being led by one of the Iron Company guards, unsaddled. One of them opened the carriage door, and the Prince stepped down, breathing in the Thornwood air. Inside, Sieghard could see Irene, still sitting in the shadows.

“Sieghard!” said Sforza. “Good to see you again. I trust all’s been well here while we’ve been in the south?” He cast a glance over his shoulder at the now-empty campsite. “It looks like you've cleared out the rabble.”

When the initial pleasantries had been exchanged, the inevitable question soon came. “That serving girl who went missing - did your men find her?” He turned back towards the carriage, where his wife was now getting down. “We’ve heard no news at Manann’s Keep.”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
As with Jarla above, I don’t think we need a detailed accounting of how Sieghard hosts the Sforzas a second time - just any points you particularly want to hit. Unless you want to try and stall them, they’ll be moving on tomorrow.
 
-Sentinel-
 Aubentag, 31st Pflugzeit - Elsa 
 "I'm here, Bastard, it's fine,"  said Elsa soothingly, patting her nervous horse on the shoulder and doing her best to conceal her irritation that an animal that did not fear fire would fear crowds. Although she supposed that, to a destrier that had seen battle, crowds must be reminiscent of the press of bodies in a bloody melee.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 

 Can I get a Charm Animal test at +10 for keeping the horses calm as you make your way back to the castle. 

Charm Animal 54 (sure glad I got this elite advance):  (d100)[ 35 ] 
 Fortune:  (d100)[ 69 ]  
 


Thankfully, neither of the horses got out of control. Elsa led them both back to the castle's stables—to the obvious chagrin of Markos the stableboy, who had perhaps dared to hope he had seen the last of Bastard.


 

 Marktag, 32nd Pflugzeit - Elsa 

After Ludo brought her up to speed about the Gina situation, Elsa went looking for her bodyguard in her usual drinking hole.

 "I've got a task for you, Olga,"  she said without preamble.  "Should be simple, and you'll get time off afterwards." 

She lowered her voice.  "There's a young woman who wants to start a new life outside the Reaches—away from people who wish her harm. She's getting on a boat today. She'll be surrounded by rough men the whole way, so I think it's best if there's another woman present. Your only job is to make her feel safe. Once she gets off the boat, your task is done, and you can stay in Putbad until my return. I hope to be back within a week." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
 @ everyone , tell me if there's any important need-to-know info I omitted from Elsa's instructions.
 
rax
 Marktag, 32nd Pflugzeit 
 "Ah, our maiden in distress! It's an honour to meet you at last,"  Bardhyl welcomed Gina to the docks with a sweeping bow and a mischievous grin.

Standing with him was Max, one of the two taciturn fellows who had been with him at the  Fat Fish , and a rough-looking blonde woman with a horribly scarred face.  "These are my associates, Max and Abbie. They will be your escort to Putbad and they'll help you find your way on from there. Max knows Putbad well and Abbie - believe it or not - is a people person. She may not have your experience of high society, but anything you need to know about living life among everyday folk, she can tell you." 
 "Speaking of coin,  he continued with a nod to Captain Sandu,  "I hope you've brought Captain Sandu's fee? And you'll surely not be turning this poor girl loose with nothing to her name but the clothes on her back?"  he winked at Ludo.

 OOC: 
 
 Spoiler: @LCP 
Instructions are to keep Gina safe and Sandu honest until Putbad, then help her find a way to move on out of the Reaches. After that, they're to head back and rendezvous with the rest of the crew at a predetermined spot in the West Downs. Bardhyl assumes the best idea is to find a caravan run by a reliable caravan master, but if Gina wants to buy a horse or something and strike out on her own, that's her business.

If there seems to be an imminent risk of Gina being discovered by Sforza's people, Max and Abbie are to try and get her away if possible and continue on to Putbad if that seems safe. If not, they are to bring her to the rendezvous point so that a new plan can be drawn up. If they end up being pursued and there's zero hope of evading the pursuers with her in tow, they should dispose of her quickly and quietly. There's too many people she could implicate if Sforza gets his hands on her.

All of this assumes Olga doesn't have different ideas. Bardhyl doesn't want trouble with Elsa, so if Olga wants to make a break for it by herself with Gina, Max and Abbie are to allow it and report back.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Make sure the men keep an eye on the princess, " Sieghard told Ingwald when the royal party was spotted coming north. " For her own safety. We don't need a repeat of what happened before. If anything seems funny, I want to be told right away. "


 


“That serving girl who went missing - did your men find her? We’ve heard no news at Manann’s Keep.”

" We found a few footprints two hours or so's walk past where the shoe was found, " Sieghard lied. " May have been her or it may have been left by a forester. They were faint when we found them, so it's hard to be sure. The trail went cold after that. "
RossN
 Jarla - Marktag, 32nd Pflugzeit 

As irritating as Jacques could be at times Jarla did feel a certain protectiveness towards him and tried to be patient. Still she had her limits and it was with deep relief that she finally entered Savonne and then the Keep.

 "You should rest Jacqes,"  she said.  "Travel obviously doesn't agree with you and I'm sure you'll want to be well for when the Prince and Princess return. Yes, go rest. Now." 

Having (hopefully) gotten the minstrel out of her hair she turned back to Al-Makir and smiled ruefully.  "Right, well besides getting rid of the goats we'll want to have a proper meal prepared by the time the royals return. Apart from the actual food and drink that will mean garlands of fresh flowers hung about the Keep and everyone dressed in their best, ourselves included." 

OOC:
 
 Spoiler 
Beyond the basics of nice food, well dressed staff and some prettifying the keep Jarla isn't really looking to go too big - she reckons the Sforzas will probably be travelworn and won't want to be thrown into a big party. She will have her girl at the ready to run them baths if needed.
 


 

 Elsa, Jarla, Ludo &amp; Bardhyl 

Jarla had managed to find time to write up a letter of recommendation for Gina. She'd never actually written one before - let alone forged one - but she doubted there was much of an established style to the thing and she felt reasonably pleased with the result. She slipped it to the girl when they met.

 "Well Ranald watch over you girl,"  Jarla said, giving her a smile.  "You've survived Irene Sforza. What trouble can the rest of the world give you?" 
LCP
 Ludo, 31st Pflugzeit 

On the road to Savonne, Ludo and Gina had plenty of time to talk. Considering all he and the others had done for her, Gina had no hesitation in trusting Ludo - and considering how completely she was cutting ties, she had no hesitation in spilling the beans on her mistress either. Perhaps it was some small way of getting back at the woman who had caused her so much fear - or perhaps it was just a decade of bottled-up gossip finally finding an outlet.

 
 Spoiler: Ludo's Questions 

 The Lady Irene and Filomena never seemed to get on. Why was that? 

“The brothel-keeper?” said Gina. “She hates her. She would come up with all sorts of reasons why they should send her away, but her husband would always refuse. He said that his soldiers would never forgive him.”

She nodded. “I think that was the real reason. She doesn’t like that the woman followed the Iron Company for so long… from before she and the Captain met. Once when they were fighting, I heard her ask him whether he had ****ed her.” She paused, gazing off into the middle distance. “That was a big fight.”


 Does she have any other particular enemies in Savonne? 

“There was the fire witch. She hates her too. But she  did  get her sent away.”


 What was your process for buying this drug for her? Who did you purchase it from? Did they know you were buying it for the principessa? 

“Doctor Bianco told us what to do. It was only after we came to the city… when he was too busy, he would send us to get it from an apothecary’s shop, in the old town.” She swallowed. “Then when Bianco… when he wasn’t around any more, we had to get it all the time. We never said who we were, but I think they knew where we were coming from all the same.”


 Does the Lady give advice to Sforza? Does he listen to her? 

Gina nodded vigorously. “She is always giving advice. Sometimes they fight, when he doesn’t like it, but she is smart. Most times she knows how to get her way in the end.”

She looked around at the open country surrounding them. “Allegra used to say they came here because of her. That before she would marry him, she made him promise he would make her a queen.”


 Who else gives him advice - who often disagrees with her? 

“Sometimes she is angry that he listens too much to his soldiers,” said Gina. “She says  the boys are playing with their toys again , or things like that. But I don’t think it’s so much that they disagree with her. More that she feels… shut out.”

“He listens to the Arabyan, too, about money. And the fire witch… but I don’t think he listens to the fire witch too much any more. She’s made sure of it.”


 How long has Sforza been expecting a child? How long has Irene been protecting against that? 

“I… don’t know for sure,” said Gina, reluctantly. “I don’t know if she’s ever  wanted  a child. But she only started using us when we came to the city. Before then, I think it was always Bianco. Her father sent him with us from Tobaro - he always answered to her first.”

“For Sforza's part, I never heard the two of them talking of it much when we were in Al-Haikk. It was only after we came here that they began to fight about it. Particularly since the coronation. Since then… all the time.” Gina shrugged. “He says he is a prince now, so he must have an heir.”


 How does Irene spend her time when Sforza is away? 

"Before we came to the city it was very bad," said Gina. "She was always bored, so she would choose people to torment. Now she is  la principessa , she can hold court in her grand castle, and the people come to her."


 How is Irene protected? What kind of personal guard does she have? 

“She is the more careful one,” said Gina, answering blithely without suspicion. “When we arrived in Al-Haikk, she was the one telling her husband their chambers must have guards. And the guards must not offend her, so they must be specially chosen.” She counted on her fingers. “I think there are… eight men in the Iron Company who have the duty, and they always have at least two of them at the door.” She looked a little wistful. “Enzo was my favourite.”
 


 

 32nd Pflugzeit 
 Savonne 

 
 Originally Posted by rax 
  "These are my associates, Max and Abbie. They will be your escort to Putbad and they'll help you find your way on from there. Max knows Putbad well and Abbie - believe it or not - is a people person. She may not have your experience of high society, but anything you need to know about living life among everyday folk, she can tell you."  
 

“Wotcha, Max,” said Olga, chirpily. “Abbie. My name’s Olga. Believe I’m tagging along too.”

Max and Abbie looked at each other. By a small inclination of her head, Abbie persuaded Max to shake Olga’s outstretched hand.

Surrounded by so many unfamiliar faces, Gina found it difficult to express her gratitude to Jarla for the letter, or to Ludo for the money he’d given her. Once she’d tried her stammering best, Sandu ushered her into the hidden compartment. “What are all these barrels?” they heard her ask.

“Oh, don't worry about those,” said Sandu, a little hastily. “Just get yourself settled - there should be an old blanket in there somewhere."

He quickly closed the hatch. Ludo thought he heard Gina's muffled voice saying:

 it's dark in here 

before Sandu turned back towards Bardhyl and the others. “So,” he said, “the money?”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
How much are you giving Gina in the end? And who’s paying Sandu’s fee?
 

 Painford 

“Hm,” said the Prince. “I would have thought your men could do better, Sieghard. Didn’t half of them grow up in these woods?”

For now, this mild rebuke seemed all he had to say on the matter. His questions quickly turned to seeing his royal entourage fed and watered before tomorrow’s journey. Irene let him do the talking - but in her watchful looks, Sieghard sensed that her curiosity about Gina was stronger than her husband’s.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Up to you whether you want to talk to the Sforzas about anything here or let them carry on their merry way - and whether Sieghard will travel with them when they leave or take a different route.
 
-Sentinel-
 Elsa, late 32nd Pflugzeit 


Elsa did not go down to the docks to see Gina and Olga off, as the presence of Sforza's court wizard may draw unneeded attention on what was supposed to be a routine shipping trip. Besides, she considered the whole Gina deal to be more Ludo's business than her own. She instead took Tattie on a horse ride in the still-brown fields outside the city, to ready themselves for their impending search for Wadim. Her backside already hurt from not having ridden in a couple of weeks, but it was the good pain of a body getting back into shape.

Sanne Raven-cry's words about "the eye of the Eagle" still weighed heavily on Elsa's mind. Just how much did Sanne see? If Wadim had chosen her to pass on his lore to, he must have known she was special in some way. Perhaps she even had the witch-sight.

Elsa reined in Bastard to let him graze on some of the hardy weeds that had managed to push their way through the dry earth.

 "Tattie,"  she said,  "I need you to do something for me." 

She dreaded this moment, but she needed to be sure, for the safety of her companions and her own.

 "I need you to look straight at me and open your witch-sight. Tell me if you see anything unusual about me." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" There was another issue, " Sieghard began. " You remember the daemon that attacked the castle? It seems it wasn't banished after all. It's been dealt with, but the daemon was plotting another attempt to steal the book. "

 
 Spoiler 
Sieghard probably isn't the best person to break the news, but I see the consequences of withholding the information until Ludo can tell him being worse than Sieghard not having hyno-hobbit social skills.
 
LCP
 32nd Pflugzeit 
 Sieghard 

Sforza stopped in his tracks. He looked at Sieghard to make sure he had heard him right.

"Let's talk of this inside," he said, in a low voice. Looking up to Barbaro, he called out: "Daniele! See the men fed and watered. The Lord Steward has some matters to discuss with us."

Barbaro gave a cheerful acknowledgement, and set about corralling the Prince's guards and hangers-on. Accompanied by Irene only, Sforza followed Sieghard into the manor for a more private conversation.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
We don't have to do all of this in direct speech - it's up to you how much of this you want to roleplay blow-for-blow. At a minimum I'd suggest you give me a bulletpoint list of all the information Sieghard wants to give to Sforza, and I can give you back a similar list of any follow-up questions he might have.
 

 Elsa 

Tattie looked puzzled. Still, she did as she was told.

"You look... the way you usually look, to me," she said. "What am I supposed to be looking for?"
-Sentinel-
 Elsa 


Elsa relaxed—slightly.  "I was afraid my confrontation with the daemon could've left a taint of Chaos on me. Seems I was wrong." 

She forced a smile, though she felt only half reassured. Perhaps all this meant was that Tzeentch's eye upon her was more the area of expertise of priests than wizards. Getting rid of a daemon only to draw the interest of its god was hardly an improvement.

She changed the subject.  "Ludo says the Sforzas are on their way back to Savonne, but don't worry, we'll be leaving about as soon as they arrive. If needed, I'll rent you a room at the inn so you don't have to be anywhere near that evil woman. Then we'll be off. I promise we'll be in better company than last time, and there won't be any wolves." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard nodded and headed for the manor.

 
 Spoiler 
To avoid the issue of "why didn't you tell me sooner" Sieghard's account will present it as Ludo having figured it out and Sieghard then trusting Ludo's judgement and deeming too important to ignore. He'll include the details about Hieronymus being possessed and the daemon being responsible for his lapses in memory and mention that he and Cezar will be able to confirm what Sieghard is saying. He'll point out that they, Elsa, Jarla, and Al-makir know about what happened, but won't mention Bardhyl. He'll also mention that aside from some burnt books, they were able to contain the damage and that they believe (based on Elsa's knowledge) that the daemon has actually been banished this time.
 
LeSwordfish
 Ludo, 31st Pflugzeit 
Ludo listened to Gina with a carefully calibrated amount of inattention - enough to encourage her to speak more, but not enough to make her suspect he hung on her every word.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 

 “There was the fire witch. She hates her too. But she did get her sent away.” 

Did she ever say why she hated the witch so much?


 “Doctor Bianco told us what to do. It was only after we came to the city… when he was too busy, he would send us to get it from an apothecary’s shop, in the old town.” She swallowed. “Then when Bianco… when he wasn’t around any more, we had to get it all the time. We never said who we were, but I think they knew where we were coming from all the same.” 

What happened to Bianco in the end? (Ludo feels safe asking this because Gina seems not to have connected him with Elsa - if he's not actually got that impression, he won't ask).


 “She is the more careful one,” said Gina, answering blithely without suspicion. “When we arrived in Al-Haikk, she was the one telling her husband their chambers must have guards. And the guards must not offend her, so they must be specially chosen.” She counted on her fingers. “I think there are… eight men in the Iron Company who have the duty, and they always have at least two of them at the door.” She looked a little wistful. “Enzo was my favourite.” 

How did she decide who? The handsome ones? (A joke to keep this feeling like gossip.) Where are the others when not at the door?
 

 32nd Pflugzeit 
Ludo handed over the crowns to Sandu. The captain never seemed entirely pleased to see him, but Ludo had a strange level of trust in the man, and was similarly willing to trust Olga if Elsa did. He had stayed basically honest to Sforza for almost a whole winter, and had rather missed a bit of conniving.

Continuing with that, he headed to the Pink Peach in search of Filomena, the deed in his hand, and greeted her politely. Once their immediate business had been concluded, he didn't leave, instead casting her with a shrewd eye that he knew she would interpret as meaning business.
 
"Perhaps i'm misremembering, but I'm given to understand there's no love lost between you and the principessa. Is that right?" 
LCP
 Ludo, 31st Pflugzeit 
 
 Spoiler: Gina Spills the Beans-a 


 Did she ever say why she hated the witch so much? 

“Many reasons,” said Gina. “When she first came it was that she was a  dilettante , that she did not wash, that she would embarrass them. Now it is more that she is… dangerous, that she gives herself airs, that she is using them for her own purposes.”

“Maybe she is right. She made us search the witch’s rooms. We found things… there was a book covered in  human skin .” She whispered it, as if they might somehow be overheard on this wide open road. “My grandfather always told me, if you break your toe and a witch offers you help, it’s better to lose the leg. But the Prince decided to keep her all the same.” She paused. “That was the most angry I remember seeing them with each other.”


 How did she decide who? The handsome ones? 

Gina laughed darkly. “She chooses the ones who are presentable, yes. And who know how to behave. One time in Al-Haikk she was very displeased - she was yelling at her husband about how she was supposed to receive guests with a ‘one-eyed ogre’ at the door.” She paused for a moment in recollection. “He was not so bad-looking, either. He should just have bought an eyepatch.”


 Where are the others when not at the door? 

She shrugged. “Back with the others?” she said. “The Prince - the Captain, he was then - he said he did not want his men forgetting how to be soldiers. That’s why there’s always a - how do you call it - a rotation.”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 

 What happened to Bianco in the end? (Ludo feels safe asking this because Gina seems not to have connected him with Elsa - if he's not actually got that impression, he won't ask). 

As she mentions above, she was involved in the events that precipitated the trial. Irene was physically present in Manann’s Keep so you can guess her handmaids were tagging along too - how much they knew about Bianco’s formal role in proceedings is more of a blind guess. If you’d still like to ask let me know.
 

 


 

 32nd Pflugzeit 
 Ludo 

Filomena had the money on hand - Ludo got the feeling she’d been prepared for some time. It was quite a lot to carry, even - or perhaps especially - in its iron-rimmed strongbox.

“You’re collecting by yourself?” she asked, with the faintest note of surprise. “I can send Pietro with you, if you need it. A little man, carrying all this through the streets… not everyone knows about your friends in high places.” She paused, scrutinising his face. “Some might even be desperate enough not to care.”


 "Perhaps I'm misremembering, but I'm given to understand there's no love lost between you and the principessa. Is that right?" 

Filomena’s expression stayed very deliberately impassive.

“Why should there be any to begin with?” she asked. “She’s a princess. I keep whorehouses. In her world, people like me don’t exist.” She paused. “Or else they charge a lot more.”

 Sieghard 

Sforza listened to Sieghard’s account with concern.

“Abdul should have sent word immediately,” he said. “But the book was not in danger? How close did the creature get this time?”

“And the old priest,” he asked, when Sieghard had given his answer, “he still lives? Do you think he can still be trusted?”

“What did Holt have to do with all this?” added Irene. “Isn’t she supposed to be in Putbad?”

 Elsa 

Tattie looked less than confident in her Chaos diagnosing abilities, but nodded in relief at Elsa’s plans to keep out of the way of the returning royals.

“Where are we going, then?” she asked. “You said we were looking for a… a wanderer?”
-Sentinel-
"Where are we going, then? You said we were looking for a… a wanderer?"

 "An old man by the name of Wadim,"  said Elsa.  "He's a keeper of ancient Vrani lore about how to keep the Jackal at bay. We thought him dead, but there are rumors that he's been seen in the western Downs. It'll be close to the area where you and I first met... so we'll need to be careful, in case the goblins haven't learned their lesson the last time." 
 No wandering off during the night this time,  she almost added, but refrained to. Tatiana was young but she was not stupid.
LeSwordfish
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo will go ahead and ask Gina what happened to Bianco, since she doesn't necessarily seem to have connected him as the prosecution and conversation seems to be going well so far. We can say he leaves this until last if you'd prefer.
 


Ludo considered it.  "Certainly, just to the castle - one of said friends can take care of it until the commander is here." 

Ludo set down the cashbox - it was too heavy to allow an expression of passivity.  "Well, I've spent enough time at court circles to know that your name still comes up there occasionally, mostly in a flaming row, or her trying to get you sent away. I was wondering if that was reciprocated?" 

He gestured at the cashbox.  "We're... associates after all. I'm sure we're both capable of discretion." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Charm test for this, trying to get her to open up a bit.  (1d100)[ 88 ]  vs 92
If she continues to be cryptic, then a Perception test - is she just remaining cryptic or does she actually not care much about Irene:  (1d100)[ 30 ]  vs 68

Plan with the cashbox: take it to Jarla's quarters until it can travel back to Painford with Sieghard, divvy it up between the others there. We all have some money in the bank of Al'Makir anyway.
 
LCP
 Ludo, 31st Pflugzeit 
 
 Spoiler: Gina 

 What happened to Bianco in the end? 

Gina shuddered. "I don't know for sure," she said. "I only know… after the trial in Mann's Keep, when the Prince decided to keep the witch, they had a screaming fight. I only heard parts of it… but I heard the doctor's name. And after that we didn't see him any more." She hesitated, as if the memory itself was fearful. "It sounded like… like someone in the Iron Company had done something to him. But I couldn't ask. She would have eaten me."
 


 

 32nd Pflugzeit  
 Ludo 

"Lady de Vela is someone with very strong ideas about people's stations in life," said Filomena, still choosing every syllable with care. "When she first met Muzio Sforza, I wasn't much better than the girls working downstairs. The Iron Company was all he had to his name - I don't think she cared for someone like me being so closely associated with them."

She looked back at Ludo just as shrewdly as he had looked at her. "What's your interest in this, Herr Stubbs?" she asked. "I didn't have you down for a trader in gossip."

Despite her reserved demeanour, Ludo thought he saw a certain glint in Filomena's eyes - the look of someone assessing an opportunity.

 Elsa 

" Vrani?  said Tattie. "That's what the hill folk call themselves. I think."

Her expression hardened at the mention of the goblins in the Teeth. "Are we bringing the Prince's soldiers?" she asked. "I wouldn't mind giving them better than we got."
LeSwordfish
 31st Pflugzeit 
Ludo nodded thoughtfully. It wasn't really any more information than he'd had before, but the possibility that Bianco was gone for good did seem a bit stronger. He wondered, idly, if he should feel guilty about that: without his words, the doctor would have been facing exile.

 32nd Pflugzeit 
 "How much do you know about the trial down south?"  Ludo asked.  "Of the fire wizard? Or the events around it."

"You might have heard that I was ambushed on the road. A friend of mine and some of my soldiers were killed. Doctor Bianco was found guilty of arranging it, but... well, he's not the name that was shouted at me as the guns fired." 
-Sentinel-
"Are we bringing the Prince's soldiers? I wouldn't mind giving the goblins better than we got."

Elsa grinned wryly at Tatiana's spirit.  "This trip isn't official business, so I'm afraid not. Sforza already gave me a stern talking-to about the soldier I lost in the Raven Hills... I'd get in a  lot  of trouble if I got any more of his men killed." 
 "If we hear that the goblins have been plaguing the area,"  she added,  "the Prince may change his tune. I suspect he's already starting to find peacetime very boring." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 “Abdul should have sent word immediately,” he said. “But the book was not in danger? How close did the creature get this time?” 
 

Sieghard shrugged at the first part. " He may have. It's possible that you returned before his messenger could find you. This was all very recent. "

" Not as close as it did the first time. We drove the daemon out before it could make another attempt. "


 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 “And the old priest,” he asked, when Sieghard had given his answer, “he still lives? Do you think he can still be trusted?” 
 

" He lives, " Sieghard confirmed with a nod. " He's shaken by what happened, but unharmed. " He paused. " I do not think Father Hieronymus knew what was happening or had any hand in it. Most likely the daemon took advantage of his injuries when he tried to banish it, waiting within him for another opportunity. He puts far more blame on himself than I believe he deserves. "


 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 “What did Holt have to do with all this?” added Irene. “Isn’t she supposed to be in Putbad?” 
 

Again, Sieghard shrugged. " What business she had in Savonne, I don't know. It was lucky that she was there, though. If not for her, the daemon may have caused far more damage than it did. "
LCP
 32nd Pflugzeit 
 Ludo 

  "How much do you know about the trial down south?"  Ludo asked.  "Of the fire wizard? Or the events around it."  

"I did hear that there was some... intrigue around that," she said. "And I know that Doctor Bianco didn't come back, which was a loss to my establishments. Although if I'm honest he'd already drawn back from the... professional relationship we had in Mirino. Too many  other demands on his time ." She sighed. "Still, it's hard to find a physician that good in a place like this, even if only for emergencies."


  "You might have heard that I was ambushed on the road. A friend of mine and some of my soldiers were killed. Doctor Bianco was found guilty of arranging it, but... well, he's not the name that was shouted at me as the guns fired."  

"That's very interesting," said Filomena. "Because you and the witch are associated, I suppose?"

She gave a quick glance towards the door, just making sure it was closed.

"I don't feel like you'd be telling me this to make conversation. You're looking to do something about it."


 Elsa 

"So it's just us?" said Tattie. "Or... us and your friends."


 Sieghard 

 " Not as close as it did the first time. We drove the daemon out before it could make another attempt. " 

"Hm," said Sforza. "Still."

He didn't elaborate on what that meant.


 " He lives, " Sieghard confirmed with a nod. " He's shaken by what happened, but unharmed. " He paused. " I do not think Father Hieronymus knew what was happening or had any hand in it. Most likely the daemon took advantage of his injuries when he tried to banish it, waiting within him for another opportunity. He puts far more blame on himself than I believe he deserves. " 

"Well, it's not a question of blame, is it?" said the Prince. "It's not a man's  fault  if he has a sickness - but he can still be a danger to his fellow men."


 Again, Sieghard shrugged. " What business she had in Savonne, I don't know. It was lucky that she was there, though. If not for her, the daemon may have caused far more damage than it did. " 

Irene looked sideways at her husband, as if to ask if he was hearing what she was hearing. "A little convenient, isn't it?" she asked. "I mean... the first time this creature appears, her apprentice lets it loose, and now it just...  happens  to reappear when she happens to be visiting?"

&lt; Not now, &gt; said Sforza, not meeting her gaze.

&lt; I always heard these things were conjured by sorcerers, &gt; she continued. &lt; How many sorcerers do we have in the Reaches, Muzio, now that the necromancer is dead? &gt;

&lt; I said not. Now. &gt;

Irene bit her lip and fell silent.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "Well, it's not a question of blame, is it?" said the Prince. "It's not a man's  fault  if he has a sickness - but he can still be a danger to his fellow men." 
 

Sieghard considered that. " The daemon is no longer within him, " he said. " He doubts himself, but I believe he can be trusted no less than he could before. "

He knew better than to respond to Irene's suggestion.
LeSwordfish
 "Elsa called for me to defend her and the lady Irene was willing to kill fifteen people, my friends and family included, to prevent me getting there to do it,"  Ludo said, trying to keep the bitterness out of his voice.  "Since then she's threatened my family directly. I don't know what I'm doing yet. But it's going to be something, and I'm looking for allies when I do it." 

He looked Filomena dead in the eye.  "I'm sure you'd benefit from having her... gone. If nothing else, I imagine you could probably find all sorts of ways to get influence over Sforza with his wife out of the picture. You know all the young women in the city, after all. I'm sure you could find one who wanted to be queen." 
 
"Here's some interesting information for free. The lady Irene was recieving the same services from Bianco that I imagine your employees were. She's been buying the Lady's Helper from the apothecary in the low town. She made herself ill on the journey south, trying to replace it with weeds from the forest. I think Sforza might suspect. But he's never getting an heir out of her if she has any say in it." 
-Sentinel-
"So it's just us?" said Tattie. "Or... us and your friends."

 "Should be at least five of us, I think,"  Elsa confirmed.  "Enough to handle most things that get in our way." 
LCP
 Ludo 

“ All the young women in the city? ” said Filomena. “You’ve got some uncharitable ideas about how the women of Savonne spend their time. You know the money in that box came out of men’s pockets.” She motioned to the strongbox. “They’re the ones I see coming through these doors most often.”

She sat for a little while in thought. Ludo could practically hear the clicking of the abacus in her head.

“In all honesty, Herr Stubbs, I don’t see much real benefit. Maybe two years ago, there would have been. Or ten years ago. But now I have this place,” she said, gesturing around her with an open hand, “and she has her fine castle, and for the first time she doesn’t have to remember that I exist. For me, that is absolutely fine.”

She took a deep breath, in and out.

“But still… Irene Sforza is a venomous bitch. I can’t say it wouldn’t please me if you succeeded. Which, I would say you have maybe one chance in ten of doing, and eight of ending up dead.” She paused, tapping her fingers on the table - a habit Ludo thought was quite like Sforza’s. “I would be less generous, but you say she’s already tried to kill you once, and here you still are.”

“I can’t let this get in the way of business, you understand. I’ve survived her for a decade, I’m not going to throw that away. Anything you want from me has to have total deniability.”


 Sieghard 

"I'll speak to him when we return to the city," said Sforza, still not sounding wholly convinced. "Perhaps the other priests will be able to pass judgement on the subject. I can speak to Daniele on the road."

He gritted his teeth in clear displeasure. "It's a shame," he said. "The old man seemed amiable enough. If he has to go, who's to say we won't get some troublemaker in his place?" He shook his head. "But we'll have to see."


 Elsa 

Tattie nodded. “Most things,” she echoed, and said no more about it. Elsa did notice that she subconsciously rubbed her eyepatch with her knuckle - as if her lost eye were giving her a phantom itch.
LeSwordfish
Ludo nodded.  "I'm not asking for anything right now, but it sounds like I can approach you in future if I have a more solid plan. And I'm sure we can make it beneficial for you when I do. I'm not roping you into anything without your say-so." 
LCP
 Ludo 

Filomena gave a small, tight-lipped nod.

"A pleasure doing business with you," she said. "I'll tell Pietro to accompany you back."

Rising from her chair, she went to the door. Before she opened it, she turned back to Ludo.

"I wish you every success, Herr Stubbs - but I hope you're not underestimating your enemy. She has every advantage on her side. It's what she was born with."
LeSwordfish
 "Well, let's see how well what she was born with works against what I've earned." 

Ludo nodded a polite goodbye to Filomena and headed out into the Savonne streets.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
I don't have anything else to say to Filomena. The next thing I have that Ludo would like to do is speak to Sforza once he returns to Savonne.
 
-Sentinel-
Elsa felt a pang of guilt when Tatiana rubbed her eyepatch. This was a failure of hers that could never be reversed. She would have to see it every day, and Tatiana would have to actually  live  with it.

 "We're not chasing after trouble this time,"  she assured her apprentice.  "Trouble may find us, but it always does sooner or later, no matter our choices. All we can do is prepare ourselves." 

She guided her horse at a slow pace towards another patch of weeds.  "I told you before that trained Amber wizards can turn into animals, like birds or wolves. Sounds handy for those situations where you're in over your head. Unfortunately, I can't teach you to do that, or even know if you're ready. It's a cliff you'll have to leap off blindly, and trust that the water at the bottom is deep enough. But once you've done it once, the second time is a lot easier." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Elsa earlier made  a cliff analogy  about spellcasting.
 
LCP
 Konigstag, 2nd Sigmarzeit 
 Savonne 

The royal party rode in by the south gate early on Konigstag. A decent-sized crowd had gathered in the south market square; Norten's guards had to herd them back to make a clear path for the Prince's retinue. They cried out as the royal carriage rumbled by, shouting their futile petitions through the wall of men and horses that stood between them and their rulers.

Behind the Sforzas' carriage came a pair of wagons, each with an Iron Company man sitting beside the driver, and another on the back. They were carrying the most recent trophies of the Prince's hunts, along with sacks and barrels of other goods. The crowd pressed closer at the sight of them, making Norten's men push back harder to keep them clear.

The first wagon - the one carrying the most impressive prizes - rattled on after the royal carriage, up the road and out of sight. The second stopped in the middle of the square, and one of the horsemen pulled up in front of it to address the crowd. Weaving through the legs of the onlookers, Ludo got a good enough view to recognise Barbaro.

"Friends!" he called out. " Il Principe Sforza  is glad to see so many of you gathered here to celebrate his return." A number of voices rose up from the crowd in reply, shouting about a dozen different things. Barbaro took it in stride.

"He is so pleased," he determinedly continued, "that he has brought you gifts!" He raised his hand theatrically towards the wagon, and the soldiers unhooked the sidings, letting them drop. The crowd pressed closer to get a better look at the contents - besides a doe taken by the hunt, there were sacks of beets and cabbages, loaves of rye bread - even a couple of casks of wine. The soldiers took up stations around them, anticipating the rush.

"Gifts from the south," said Barbaro, sweeping out his hand to encompass the wagon and its contents. "Know that as long as the house of Sforza rules here, Savonne will always enjoy the bounty of  all  the Reaches."

He motioned to Norten, and the guards let the first people come streaming through. There was no more shouting at Barbaro or the soldiers now - everyone was too concerned with getting their share.

 ~ 
When the royal carriage reached the castle, it was immediately attended by a cloud of servants, unloading their baggage and the Prince’s hunting trophies. Sforza seemed happy and in rude health, while Jarla thought Irene uncharacteristically quiet.

“Have those carcasses taken to the kitchens,” said Sforza, motioning to his prizes. “I want to eat well tonight.”

&lt; I'm glad to see you had good hunting, your Highness, &gt; said Al-Makir.

&lt; Excellent hunting, &gt; said the Prince. &lt; No drought in the Vale, that’s for certain - not after those rains we had in the hills. We’ll have to lean on the fat millers down there a little harder, eh Abdul? &gt;

Al-Makir gave a courteous nod.

&lt; I met with Sieghard on the way back, &gt; said the Prince. &lt; He had something to report about our high priest. &gt;

&lt; Ah, yes, &gt; said Al-Makir. &lt; I would have sent a messenger, your Highness, but it seemed you were already on your way back to the city. I can give you the full report, if you wish… although  signor  Stubbs would be the best witness. &gt;

&lt; The halfling? &gt; said Sforza. &lt; Send for him shortly. I have something better to tell you first. Come! &gt; he said, slapping Al-Makir on the back. &lt; Let’s go inside. &gt;

 ~ 
Gathered in the Prince’s solar, Al-Makir, Barbaro, Jarla and Jacques waited to hear what he had to say. A servant poured out goblets of wine - for everyone, Jarla noticed, except Irene. The  principessa’s  expression was remarkably difficult to read. While her husband seemed fairly bursting with energy, she sat there quietly, observing.

“Gentlemen,” said Sforza, “Lady Schreiber. I am pleased to tell you the happiest news.” He put a hand on Irene’s shoulder. “My wife is with child.”

The other three immediately broke out in expressions of admiration and congratulation. Sforza beamed; Irene gave a faint smile.

“For the moment,” said Sforza, “I would like this to stay among the members of the court. There’s no need to go shouting it in the market squares. But we are certain.” He held Irene’s shoulder a little tighter. “I am to have a son.”
RossN
 Jarla - Konigstag, 2nd Sigmarzeit 

Jarla had spent hours the evening before agonising over the right dress and eventually selected her  dark red velvet gown and matching gable hood with the lighter patterning on the bodice  and the Nuln style of shoes. Her most tasteful jewellery went with the outfit and while the outfit might not have impressed an Elector Countess it was surely stylish enough for a pocket borderlands principality.

 "Welcome your highness,"  she said, curtsying to the Prince.  "Your highness,"  she continued and curtsied again to Irene.  "It is good to have you back." 

After that it was a few more agonising moments of waiting before Sforza dropped his bombshell. A startled Jarla looked at Irene, unable to conceal her shock and it took her a few moments to gather her wits and try and sound delighted:  "This is wonderful news sire! Truly wonderful!" 

She smiled at Sforza, but it was impossible to keep her gaze from drawing back to Irene and Irene's expression. Suddenly feeling the strain she drank her wine, gripping the stem of the goblet just to give her something to hold onto in this topsy turvy world she had slipped into.  "When...?" 
LCP
"Well, I imagine it will take the usual time," said Irene, softly. She clearly didn't intend to be drawn any further.

"He will be with us early in the winter," said Sforza, with much greater confidence. "We must make sure everything is ready for him when he arrives. But there is plenty of time yet." He raised his cup. "To my son!"

The other men toasted him back. Irene met Jarla's eyes - though she didn't speak, Jarla thought she felt some meaning pass between them. It was clear she didn't fully share her husband's happiness.

 ~ 
 Jarla 

That evening, the kitchens of the castle were the busiest they had been in weeks. Fires blazed, pots bubbled, begging dogs were chased away with brooms. Midway through the preparations, Jarla was called down by Mouna to see something. She seemed a little agitated - coming from that stone-faced old matriarch, that seemed to Jarla as worrying as if she had been shouting "fire!".

"The Prince's boar," she said, motioning to a table where one of Sforza's hunting prizes was being butchered. "It's no good."

A closer examination showed Jarla what she meant. The animal had already been gutted and cleaned by the hunters - but where the cooks had cut into its flesh, the meat had a greenish, oily sheen. Fine veins of ashy blackness ran through it, converging in a knot of dark gristle close to its backbone.

At a nod from Mouna, the cook reluctantly took her knife and drew back the edges of the cut to show it better. It wasn't just gristle - there were  teeth  in there, and one blind, staring eye.

"Call me a fool," she said gruffly to Mouna, "but I don't think we should be serving their highnesses mutant meat."

 Ludo 

It was a little before dinner that Ludo was summoned to the castle by Al-Makir's page boy, Salih. There the Prince was waiting in the long room he had used to tell his courtiers his plans for the new year, alone except for Abdul.

" Signor  Stubbs," he said. He had changed out of his travelling clothes into finer attire, and as far as Ludo had learned to read these things, he seemed in a good mood. "The Lord Treasurer has been telling me about some unfortunate events concerning our high priest. He says you were at hand to witness them." He motioned for Ludo to take a seat. "I would like to hear your account."
LeSwordfish
Ludo nodded: he was getting unnervingly used to the halls of power.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo is going to essentially tell the truth about what happened.

 
 He had been a bit worried about Father Hieronymous' mental state for a while, and had mentioned it to Brother Cezar. 
 Very serious accusation to make without evidence, so didn't bring it up to Sforza. 
 When Sforza mentioned that the father had suggested they travel south, Ludo became suspicious of his motivations, and they went to Savonne. 
 In Savonne they laid a trap for Hieronymous, telling him that the book was being moved that night: he came to investigate. 
 That was enough to make us think he was involved, so we told Herr Al'Makir at this point. With his permission, we went to confront Hieronymous at his house. 
 He was posessed by the daemon and possibly performing some kind of ritual. With the help of the priest of Morr, we forced our way into his house. Brother Cezar began an exorcism, which forced the daemon out. It tried to set a fire, but we quenched the fire and Frau Holt and Commander Sieghard killed it with their swords. 
 I can't remember how Tshula died and GiantITP is running very slowly for me at the moment so I can't dig it up, but Ludo will be honest about that. 
 It behaved differently upon being killed to what we had seen before. Frau Holt believes it's really dead, or at least banished. 
 We then took Father Hieronymous to the castle. He's offered his resignation as head of the temple. 
 
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla felt her gorge rising. She had to turn away from the appalling sight.  "Moana I want that... Thing destroyed. Have some servants - the ones you trust not to blab - take it out of here, burn it, bury itand cover it with quicklime if you can find it. We'll serve the royals something else, meat if we can, fish if not. Now if you'll excuse me I need some fresh air." 

It was hard to run in her Nuln heels but she did it anyway in a race to get somewhere private where she could lose her breakfast.
LCP
 Ludo 

Sforza listened closely to Ludo's report. "Thank you, Signor Stubbs," he said, when it had come to an end. "A very thorough account. It matches what I have heard from our friend Sieghard in Painford."

He sat for a while in thought, drumming his fingers on the arms of his chair.

"...You say Father Hieronymus is giving up his post? Perhaps that is for the best… although I would like to know who his replacement will be."

He fell quiet again for a moment or two, still thinking.

"I was speaking of this with Father Barbaro on my journey home… I understand the taint of Chaos can be a subtle thing. Perhaps, when his immediate responsibilities are concluded, it would help the Revered Father's recovery to take a long rest in the country. Somewhere outside the city… and far away from the book." He looked Ludo squarely in the eye. "Perhaps you could suggest this to him,  signor  Stubbs. He may take it better if it comes from a friend."

 Jarla 

"The other game they brought back from the hunt looks clean enough," said the cook. "There's venison and fowl. They won't go hungry."

"I'll see the pig disposed of," said Mouna. "Thank you, Lady Schreiber."
LeSwordfish
Ludo considered this.  "It would be an honour for us to host him in Painford,  mio principé . I think the reverend father is such a... such a part of the heart of the temple that I'm sure he would want to return here once we're sure he can be trusted."

"To be frank, I'm not certain who could take over the leadership of the temple. Father Hechsler is..."  He rubbed the back of his head awkwardly, trying to at least appear to find the idea of offering advice to the prince difficult.  "I'm not sure he would be a, uh, moderating influence in the way that Father Hieronymous was."
 
 "If you'd allow me to offer my opinion,  mio principé ?"  With Sforza's assent, Ludo pressed on.  "Brother Cezar has little desire to lead, but would be rather better at it. Perhaps if he were to be reassured that Father Hieronymous was taking a temporary leave of absence, rather than a permanent resignation? And once we're confident that the father is, uh, fully recovered, he could take his position again." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Obviously cut this post off at the appropriate time if Sforza isn't taking advice from a random halfling.
 
LCP
 Ludo 

"Well, the priests look after their own affairs. You know it's not for me to choose the old man's replacement,  signor  Stubbs," said Sforza, with only the faintest hint of smugness that if he wanted to, he could. "Still, I thank you for your counsel."

"As for when he can return... I see no reason not to entertain the possibility. If we can keep a close eye on him, and assure ourselves that he is not a danger. But that's a question for the future."
LeSwordfish
 "Thank you, my prince,"  Ludo said.  "I'll give him that counsel and arrange the necessities."

"On a related note, after the trial, you asked me to come to you if I wanted any work other than for Commander Sieghard and the Thorns. I'm expecting to be away for a short while but I'd be very appreciative to take you up on that on my return." 
LCP
 Ludo 

Sforza and Al-Makir both looked a little surprised.

"Hm. I had thought you'd decided the offer didn't suit you," said the Prince. "Still... I'm certain we can find a use for someone of your skills,  signor  Stubbs." Al-Makir nodded assent. "Come to us when you return to the city, and we'll speak of it further."

 Jarla, that evening 

When supper-time came around, no trace of the disquiet that the mutant boar had caused in the kitchens made its way up to the Prince's dining hall. Sforza seemed well-pleased with Jarla's efforts, and all present seemed happy - perhaps a little relieved - at the Prince's return.

The only person who didn't seem entirely to be enjoying herself was Irene. Picking at some of the hunt's fine venison, her thoughts seemed to be elsewhere.

"This is very fine cooking," she said at last. "Is it still the little halfling who cooks for us?"

Her husband looked a little surprised that she should know or care. "There are... other cooks," he said, looking to Jarla for confirmation. "But I believe we gave him the run of the kitchens, yes."

"I think I would recognise his cooking anywhere," said Irene, graciously. She turned her eyes to Jarla. "Will you send him up to us, after dinner? I would like to give him my thanks."

Sforza furrowed his brow even further at the idea of his wife thanking a servant - but it didn't seem to trouble him for long. If Irene was happy, he was happy.
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla hadn't much of an appetite so had scarcely eaten during the meal and was as surprised as the prince at Irene's request. Confused, but beginning to suspect the worst Jarla forced a smile.  "Of course Your Highness." 

At the appropriate time she departed for the kitchens to locate the cook and bring him back upstairs.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard had departed for Savonne about an hour after the royal party. He rode hard, taking the northern road through Arrow Heap and taking the ferry across the river. After arriving in the city, he avoided the keep and kept a low profile. Though they weren't doing anything they strictly shouldn't, how doubted Sforza would consider it a worthwhile adventure. As far as Sieghard was concerned, the prince didn't need to know their business in the Teeth.
LCP
 Angestag, 3rd Sigmarzeit 

The next day, the party met Bardhyl outside the north gate of the city, arriving in ones and twos from their various lodgings. Bardhyl could see they had come prepared. Ludo’s doughty pony was so loaded down with supplies that there was scarcely space for the halfling to perch on its back, with Stoutheart trotting along behind.

Jarla was the last to arrive, having been detained at the castle. Dressed in her fine riding clothes, she turned almost as many heads from the people going to and fro through the gate as the wizard and her apprentice. With their company of six complete, they rode out, turning left at the first well-trodden crossroads to strike due west into the Downs.

Out in the open country, the new spring was starting to soften some of the scars left by last year's war. Homes that had been ruined shells were being rebuilt; fields that had been the haunt of only foxes and fieldmice were being re-planted. Only those that stuck close to the streams that ran down into the Azril were showing any signs of new growth. Further away from what muddy trickles still flowed, the plains were yellow and dry. Hardy weeds clung to the cracked soil, and buzzards drifted in the clear Sigmarzeit sky, watching for the scurry of rodents under the wilted grass.

Ahead of them, the dusty-coloured peaks of the Teeth loomed high on the horizon, growing steadily larger as they made their way west. They still seemed distant when the sun began to sink behind them, painting the tops of the peaks red and gold. The six of them would be camping under the open sky tonight.

 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl Only 
When Jarla had joined them at the gates, Bardhyl had thought there was something changed about her since the last time they had met. She seemed firmer of gaze, surer of purpose; no longer trying so hard to play a part. By the time midday had faded into afternoon, however, the impression had evaporated, leaving Bardhyl unsure it had ever been there at all.
 

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I’ll leave any description of how you guys make camp to you, if you want to.
 


 

 Festag, 4th Sigmarzeit 

It was about noon the next day when Bardhyl led them to their destination. It didn’t look like much - but that was probably the point.

They were coming into the foothills of the Teeth, in a place where the dried-out pastures of the Downs gave way to a sparse covering of stunted trees. The dirt they grew in was dust-dry and iron-hard, but still they were putting out small, yellow-green leaves, showing how deep their roots must run.

A sooty limestone crag rose above the branches, a dwarfish cousin of the ones up on the heights. As they came around to its south side, they could see the dark mouth of a small cave at its base, half-hidden by the trees.

   
A thin, twisting trail of smoke gave a clue that the cave might be inhabited. As they rode their horses up towards it, two wild-looking men appeared from behind the trees, each with an arrow nocked to a bow. They had the look of the warriors who had accompanied Rorik at Arrow Heap.

“Chief!” called out the older of the two. His tone was guarded. “Good to see you back. These your guests?”

&lt; I know who that is, &gt; said the younger, in thick Raven Hills dialect. He jerked his head towards Elsa. &lt; ...Are you  sure  this is a good idea? &gt;

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
For rax - this is Afrim and Damjan, out on routine watch duty. They’ll of course let you pass whatever you answer - if you want to describe the hideout and introduce the rest of your outlaws then feel free to go right ahead.

For everyone else, if you can pass SL(Reikspiel) at -30 you can get a rough understanding of what Bardhyl’s boys are saying in their hillfolk lingo.
 
-Sentinel-
 Angestag, 3rd Sigmarzeit 

At sunset, Elsa tied Bastard near a patch of yellow grass and set up her tent with Tatiana's help.  "There's room for one more in here, if one of you doesn't have a tent,"  she informed the others.  "But Khalida sleeps inside too. That's not negotiable. No worries, she's well-behaved." 

Using some dry branches and logs she had gathered along the way, she started a fire with a plain old match. No sense in using magic for something so trivial.

 
 Spoiler 
Each match has a 1/2 chance of lighting. Let's see how many it takes. (1 is a dud, 2 is a flame.)

 (1d2)[ 2 ]  -  Yay, first try! 
  (1d2)[ 1 ] 
 (1d2)[ 1 ] 
 (1d2)[ 1 ]  
 


While chewing on some almonds, dried fruit and cured sausage from her rations, she chatted with Bardhyl:  "How well do you know Wadim, anyway?" 

 

 Festag, 4th Sigmarzeit 

Elsa eyed the bowmen cautiously. The younger one's accent was damn near incomprehensible to her ears, but it was obvious from his body language and expression that he was talking about her and was not too thrilled to see her there.

 Isn't it great to have enemies you've never even met?  she thought bitterly.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Speak Language (Reikspiel) 45 to understand the words:  (d100)[ 85 ]  -  Hmm, better luck next time. 
 
RossN
 Jarla - Angestag, 3rd Sigmarzeit 

With the royals back Jarla made every effort to dress to the nines. It didn't hurt that as a courtier she had to ask permission before leaving. Waiting until the prince was without his wife she slipped in deftly after breakfast.

 "Sire,"  Jarla began,  "I wanted to request permission to leave Savonne for a couple of weeks" 

She smiled in rueful amusement.  "To be entirely frank I'm suffering from wanderlust. I think I made a mistake in staying here while you and the Princepessa were travelling. Savonne has it's charms but I need a little adventure. I mean look at how well you and her highness managed getting away from the city stews. Perhaps the old priest was right about that part." 

Jarla paused, hesitating.  "What will happen to Father Hieronymous? I know he has been through certain experiences but I am very fond of him, as was my brother." 

 


Riding Countess Jarla was a far more elegant figure than the landscape seemed to warrant. Still it was good to get out of Savonne and as the day wore on she hummed a popular Nuln ballad or two under her breath.

Having made sure Countess was in a suitably sheltered spot for the night she joined the campfire, idly listening in before retiring.


 

 Festag, 4th Sigmarzeit 

Her copper eyebrows raised Jarla fought the urge to reach for these pistols, instead glancing at her companions.  "Who are these... gentlemen?" 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard muttered something about drawing too many eyes as they left the city, though his mood seemed to improve after they were out of sight of the walls. Later that evening, sitting by Elsa's fire, he took the opportunity ask something he had been wondering. " So, Tatiana, " he began, " How is your training coming along? What has Elsa taught you to do? "


 


Sieghard made an effort to not look overly interested, but listened intently to the hill men, trying to make sense of what they were saying

 
 Spoiler 
 (1d100)[ 11 ]  vs 21
 
rax
 Angestag, 3rd Sigmarzeit 
 At the north gate 
 "Ah, I see you are a veteran campaigner, Herr Ludo!"  Bardhyl greeted the halfling with a chuckle.  "Great minds think alike, it seems,"  he gestured at a shaggy mule he was holding. The animal was loaded with outdoors gear and some fresh supplies, though hardly as much as Ludo had brought. He also held the reins to a decidedly average-looking brown mare.  "This is Rabbit, my loyal steed,"  he said of the horse.

He grinned appreciatively at Jarla as she arrived at the gate.  "Lady Schreiber, you're looking particularly resplendent today,"  he greeted her with an exaggerated bow.  "I fear for the future of your fine attire, however. Where we're going, you're likely to come back with more holes than clothes on your back!" 
 In the open country 
 "An encouraging sight, is it not? Farmers hard at work rebuilding their lives, ready to produce new taxes for the new prince!"  Bardhyl commented wryly.  "Doesn't look like there's going to be much of a harvest though. What will His Highness do, I wonder, when the take is less than expected and the farmers come knocking at his gates for handouts to feed their families?" 
 
 Spoiler: RossN and LCP only 
At some point in the afternoon, Bardhyl contrives to speak alone with Jarla.

 "Forgive me for imposing, Lady Schreiber, but is something amiss? I cannot help but notice that you seem... distracted . Are you having second thoughts about this venture of ours?"  he asked with no hint of his usual teasing.
 

 Camping for the night 
 "How well do I know Wadim? I can safely say that at this point we know each other better than either of us would like to!"  Bardhyl answered Elsa with a crooked grin.  "Why do you ask?" 
 Festag, 4th Sigmarzeit 
 "No, they're a merry band of entertainers I rustled up on the way back! I thought we could use some song and dance to while away the hours.  Of course  they're my guests, you lackwit!"  Bardhyl chided the older man loudly, at which the man rolled his eyes and shook his head in mock exasperation.

  &lt;You want us to go tangling with goblins and wyverns all by ourselves? You know what the fire witch can do - with her on our side we can take on ten times our number if we need to,&gt;   he answered the younger man in the same dialect.

Turning to the group, he introduced the two men.  "These two are Afrim and Damjan. Good men to have at your back, but they're a little leery of you especially, Madame...Elsa. They both ranged with Rorik before joining my crew and both of them were at Arrow Heap." 

( OOC:  Afrim is the older one, Damjan the younger)

 "Anyway, welcome to my home away from home,"  Bardhyl declared with a grand gesture at the cave.  "It's not much, but I'm rather fond of it and it'd be a bother finding another place like it, so I'm sure you'll all do me the courtesy of forgetting about it as soon as our mutual business is concluded, yes? Shall we go inside and meet the rest of my little family?" 

( OOC:  Stopping there in case anyone wants to respond before going inside)
-Sentinel-
 "How well do I know Wadim? I can safely say that at this point we know each other better than either of us would like to!"  Bardhyl answered Elsa with a crooked grin.  "Why do you ask?" 

Elsa shrugged.  "I'd like to know what kind of reunion we can expect, if and when we find him. What's your history with him?" 

She was curious whether Bardhyl would confirm, deny or sidestep what Sanne had told her.



 

 4th Sigmarzeit 
 "These two are Afrim and Damjan. Good men to have at your back, but they're a little leery of you especially, Madame...Elsa. They both ranged with Rorik before joining my crew and both of them were at Arrow Heap." 

Elsa gave a nod.  "Understandable. Good thing the war's over,"  she said, as if she thought this should put the matter to rest.

 "Anyway, welcome to my home away from home,"  Bardhyl declared with a grand gesture at the cave.  "It's not much, but I'm rather fond of it and it'd be a bother finding another place like it, so I'm sure you'll all do me the courtesy of forgetting about it as soon as our mutual business is concluded, yes? Shall we go inside and meet the rest of my little family?" 
 "You'll get no trouble from me,"  Elsa assured him, dismounting Bastard.
LeSwordfish
 With Sforza, 2nd Sigmarzeit 
 "A quiet winter,"  Ludo said, by means of explanation.

 3rd Sigmarzeit 
 Open Country 
Ludo made an inscrutable face at Bardhyl's comments about the harvest.  "I thought it would get better when we killed the vampire. They said he drank the water under the ground." 
 Camping 
 "Did Arne ever make it back to Morr's Seat?"  Ludo asked.

 4th Sigmarzeit 
Ludo made another face. Elsa hadn't been the only distinctive one at Arrow Heap. He shifted the load on his pony to cover up Arne's shield, but said nothing else.
rax
 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
  "How well do I know Wadim? I can safely say that at this point we know each other better than either of us would like to!"  Bardhyl answered Elsa with a crooked grin.  "Why do you ask?" 

Elsa shrugged.  "I'd like to know what kind of reunion we can expect, if and when we find him. What's your history with him?"  
 

 Bardhyl shrugged in reply.  "I honestly have no idea what Wadim will say or do when we meet, but when we last saw each other things were...difficult. I was his... apprentice ? That is the term you lowlanders use, yes? We had a disagreement and as a result my circumstances are as you see them now. He remained Raven Speaker and came to advise Rorik." 
 "For a long time, I blamed him for the way things worked out, but I do that less than I used to. In any case, what I want is less important than the fact my people need their Raven Speaker back. Of course, if we can accomplish his safe return, he will also be in a position to undo what he did, so I admit that I have a personal stake in finding him as well." 

 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  Open Country 
Ludo made an inscrutable face at Bardhyl's comments about the harvest.  "I thought it would get better when we killed the vampire. They said he drank the water under the ground." 
 Camping 
 "Did Arne ever make it back to Morr's Seat?"  Ludo asked. 
 

  Open Country 
 "The Jackal is a spirit, an ancient evil sometimes made flesh. He will drink the water until he is put back in his tomb, of that I am sure, Herr Ludo,"  Bardhyl said.  "Is your Prince prepared to continue the fight? Are you?" 
 Camping 
 "I do not know this person of whom you speak, but going by the name I assume he was one of Rorik's henchmen? When we get to where we're going, I can ask if some of my men have heard anything, but the odds are not in your favour, my friend. We all have our reasons for steering clear of Morr's Seat,"  Bardhyl chuckled grimly.
RossN
 Jarla - Angestag, 3rd Sigmarzeit 
 
 Spoiler: rax and LCP only 
Jarla gives Bardhyl a surprised look, then smiles ruefully.  "Second thoughts? No, if anything it is a real relief getting away from Savonne for a while, even if we are riding into danger." 
 

 Festag, 4th Sigmarzeit 


Jarla relaxes as Bardhyl introduces Afrim and Damjan.  "Charmed, I am Lady Schreiber,"  she replied and tipped her feathered riding cap before following Bardhyl to meet the rest of his 'family'.
rax
 
 Originally Posted by RossN 
  
 Spoiler: rax and LCP only 
Jarla gives Bardhyl a surprised look, then smiles ruefully.  "Second thoughts? No, if anything it is a real relief getting away from Savonne for a while, even if we are riding into danger." 
 
 
 

  
 Spoiler: RossN and LCP only 
 "Ah, then I apologize for misreading your mood, milady. But pray tell, are you not content with your position in Savonne?"  Bardhyl queried.
 
LeSwordfish
  "For a long time, I blamed him for the way things worked out, but I do that less than I used to. In any case, what I want is less important than the fact my people need their Raven Speaker back. Of course, if we can accomplish his safe return, he will also be in a position to undo what he did, so I admit that I have a personal stake in finding him as well."  

 "Sounds like... he exiled you? How long ago did you last see him?" 
 Open Country 

  "The Jackal is a spirit, an ancient evil sometimes made flesh. He will drink the water until he is put back in his tomb, of that I am sure, Herr Ludo,"  Bardhyl said.  "Is your Prince prepared to continue the fight? Are you?"  

 "Well,  I  am." 
 Camping 

  "I do not know this person of whom you speak, but going by the name I assume he was one of Rorik's henchmen? When we get to where we're going, I can ask if some of my men have heard anything, but the odds are not in your favour, my friend. We all have our reasons for steering clear of Morr's Seat,"  Bardhyl chuckled grimly. 

 "The young one, the boy. Sanne and him helped us defend the book, and then only she turned up later." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
I don't have anything else to add speaking to Afrim or Damjan
 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by rax 
 Bardhyl shrugged in reply.  "I honestly have no idea what Wadim will say or do when we meet, but when we last saw each other things were...difficult. I was his... apprentice ? That is the term you lowlanders use, yes? We had a disagreement and as a result my circumstances are as you see them now. He remained Raven Speaker and came to advise Rorik."  
 

Elsa's trust in Bardhyl went up a notch now that he had confirmed Sanne's claim.

 "Any idea why he might be wandering the wilderness when his people need him? Is he afraid that he might be a wanted man, now that Sforza rules the Reaches?" 
rax
 Angestag, 3rd Sigmarzeit 
 Ludo and Elsa - Camping 
 "Exiled? No, that's not quite right. The Bretonnians call it  l'ostracisme , or so Panteleon tells me. In Vranspel we say that a man is  nevid . Wadim has made me a ghost - I am forbidden to return to the Hills, yes, but also none may acknowledge my presence or offer me any aid. It has been this way since Rorik took Morr's Seat. So, I am dead to my people until Wadim lifts his judgement,"  Bardhyl answered, his expression flitting between thunderous anger and deep sadness as he spoke.

 "But on the bright side, no one interferes with my business and I've made many new friends, yes?"  he guffawed suddenly.

Bardhyl shrugged in response to Elsa's question and poked the campfire for a bit.  "I doubt it is something so simple. Wadim did not support Rorik so that he could make war on your Prince. He wished only to prevent the return of the Jackal. This is why he went to Savonne to speak with your lowlander priests, is it not? But...clearly he failed. The man from the north opened the Red Pyramid and the Jackal is returned to plague the Reaches once more. If Wadim has not returned to his people, it is because something is preventing him from doing so, but whatever the reason, it is not fear of your Prince." 
 Festag, 4th Sigmarzeit 

Bardhyl led the others up into the cave and dismounted outside.  "Leave your horses and pack animals here, my people will see them taken care of,"  he said.

Inside, the cave was fairly small and someone had set up a cooking fire. A large, stony faced man was tending the fire but got up to greet the new arrivals.  "This is Grim - he runs things when I'm away. Anything you need to say to me, you can say to him,"  Bardhyl said by way of introduction.  "Everyone else inside?"  he asked Grim. The big man nodded and moved to the back of the cave, where he pulled aside a dark blanket that was concealing another opening.

Bardhyl moved into the tunnel beyond, which sloped gently downwards and was only wide enough to allow the group to proceed in single file. It wasn't long before they entered another cave, this one much larger and clearly the main living and sleeping area. A pair of lanterns lit up the room, revealing five men and women slouching about the place, but they all got up when Bardhyl entered.

 "Friends, I want you all to meet our  new  friends! Mighty heroes and lordships, one and all!"  he declared with a laugh.  "New friends, these are the rest of my crew." 
 "This is Zana and her brother Kreshnik, good Vrani folk, both of them,"  he said, pointing out a pretty young woman and a slightly younger man. Both of them had the dark features typical of the Raven Hills.  "Zana is our healer and Kreshnik is our resident troublemaker, aren't you lad?"  Bardhyl grinned.

 "This is Ortwin. You met him at the  Fat Fish  earlier. He got himself outlawed by old Duke Alvarr for poaching. Ortwin's been with me almost as long as Grim,"  he introduced a man the others recognized from their first meeting in Savonne.

 "And finally, we have Panteleon and Waldon, our resident Bretonnians. Panteleon is our conscience, still looking out for the little folk even after Alvarr tried to hang him for it,"  Bardhyl chuckled, indicating a young man with blond hair and somewhat more colourful dress than the rough outdoors clothing everyone else wore.

 "Waldon is the newest member of our band. A man of faith, he was, until Arrow Heap. Now he's seen the light and prefers the company of wine and whores to the Lady of the Lake, isn't that right Waldon?"  Bardhyl teased. In reply, Waldon burped loudly and spat on the floor. He was a large man, though not as big as Grim, and smelled of old sweat and sour wine.

 "The Lady is a  putain , and all her knights  connards ,"  Waldon elaborated.  "This her? The fire witch?"  he asked, squinting at Elsa.  "You burned a lot of good men at Arrow Heap, lady. Took old Odo's legs and his mind with it, you did. Lots o' cripples sent back to their families as well.  Ugly  cripples, what with all the burns. Not pretty like you lady, not pretty at all..."  he sniggered nastily.

 "That's  enough , Waldon!"  Bardhyl snapped, his good mood suddenly gone.  "What's done is done. You keep a civil tongue in your head unless you want her to finish what she started, eh?" 

Waldon drew himself up as if he was about to say something, but then slowly deflated and mumbled a reply.  "Sure thing chief, sure thing..." 
 Edit 
 Later 
The outlaws had gathered in the cave for their evening meal. Ortwin tapped the cask of beer that Bardhyl had brought and slices of from the side of beef had been added to the stew Grim had been tending on the fire earlier, heightening the mood considerably. Bardhyl sat next to Grim and invited Sieghard and the others to join them.

 "While I was in Savonne, I had Grim and the others ride out and question the locals about any leads that could help us work out where to begin looking for Wadim. Any news there, Grim?"  he asked.
-Sentinel-
 Angestag, 3rd Sigmarzeit 

 
 Originally Posted by rax 
  "I doubt it is something so simple. Wadim did not support Rorik so that he could make war on your Prince. He wished only to prevent the return of the Jackal. This is why he went to Savonne to speak with your lowlander priests, is it not? But...clearly he failed. The man from the north opened the Red Pyramid and the Jackal is returned to plague the Reaches once more. If Wadim has not returned to his people, it is because something is preventing him from doing so, but whatever the reason, it is not fear of your Prince."  
 

 "Wadim and I share the same interests, then,"  said Elsa. She smiled bitterly.  "And the same relationship with our lords—nowadays I only remain in Sforza's employ because it puts me in a better position to thwart the Jackal. Maybe someday I'll do like Wadim and just go missing for a little while..." 

 

 Festag, 4th Sigmarzeit 

  "Leave your horses and pack animals here, my people will see them taken care of,"  he said. 

Elsa handed Bastard's reins to the nearest Vrani.  "Careful, this one bites,"  she warned.



  "The Lady is a  putain , and all her knights  connards ,"  Waldon elaborated.  "This her? The fire witch?"  he asked, squinting at Elsa.  "You burned a lot of good men at Arrow Heap, lady. Took old Odo's legs and his mind with it, you did. Lots o' cripples sent back to their families as well.  Ugly  cripples, what with all the burns. Not pretty like you lady, not pretty at all..."  he sniggered nastily. 

 "That's war for you. Blades and arrows have made far more corpses and cripples than my magic ever will,"  said Elsa defensively. Though she did her best to brush off the accusation, it was clear that she was now very uncomfortable.



 


During the evening meal, Elsa intently watched the journey of every bowl of stew or tankard of ale served, in case someone tried to put something in hers. She attempted polite conversation with the bandits, but mostly got monosyllabic responses. She perked up with interest when Bardhyl got down to business regarding the search for Wadim.
LCP
Bardhyl’s assembled ruffians regarded guests warily, their gaze lingering particularly on Sieghard and Elsa. None of them looked about to challenge their leader’s judgement, but the presence of Sforza’s enforcers clearly had them on edge.


  "While I was in Savonne, I had Grim and the others ride out and question the locals about any leads that could help us work out where to begin looking for Wadim. Any news there, Grim?"  he asked. 

“Not much that would surprise you,” said Grim, his deep voice sounding like it didn’t get much use. “Most of the farmsteaders who’ve made it this far west aren’t too keen on talking to strangers. Had to grease a few palms, convince them we weren’t there to rob them.”

He leant against the rough rock of the wall, still watching the newcomers closely. “Heard about two more sightings of the ‘wild man’ that folk’d vouch for. Both south of here. One lot said they’d got a glimpse of him up in the rocks… other lot said they’d seen him with a pack of goblins out of the high hills. Their description matched what you told us about the Raven Speaker… but from what they told us, any old man might fit the bill.” Ludo sensed that Grim was trying not to get his boss’ hopes up.

“They did say he had one eye,” Panteleon piped up.

“That they  thought  he had one eye,” Grim clarified. “And anyone who’s been hanging around with greenskins, it’d more of a miracle he’d still have the one.” This seemed more comfortable territory. “Plenty of news about them, mind. Sounds like they’ve been coming further down out of the Teeth, stealing livestock and such when folk aren’t watching. Must’ve been a bad winter up there.”
-Sentinel-
“Plenty of news about them, mind. Sounds like they’ve been coming further down out of the Teeth, stealing livestock and such when folk aren’t watching. Must’ve been a bad winter up there.”

 "Their tunnels lead into a wyvern lair,"  Elsa chimed in.  "When they captured Tatiana here, they wanted to feed her to the beast. 'The Big One', they call it. Maybe they think it won't eat them as long as they keep it well-fed." 

She blew on some scalding stew and tasted it tentatively.  "Now... if Wadim lives among them, this complicates things. We can't just kill our way to him. Do you think parlay can be attempted? Meet some goblins and ask them for the one-eyed man?" 
LCP
Waldon reflexively made the sign of Taal's horns at the word 'wyvern', and muttered what sounded like a Breton prayer.

"We've seen the beast," said Panteleon. "Not often this far east, thank the gods, but some of the farmsteaders are already blaming it for missing livestock."

"I never heard of greenskins that could be bargained with," said Grim, grimly. "What use is a goblin's word?"
-Sentinel-
"I never heard of greenskins that could be bargained with. What use is a goblin's word?"

 "Well,  I've  heard of bargains with greenskins,"  said Elsa.  "And it's true they don't tend to last very long. But there must be  some  reason why an old man chooses to live among them, and why they let him. If we start just killing any goblins we come across, I don't think he'll be inclined to show his face." 
LeSwordfish
 3rd Sigmarzeit 
 "If Wadim never comes back, does that mean you're... ostrasisme for good?" 
 4th Sigmarzeit 

 He leant against the rough rock of the wall, still watching the newcomers closely. “Heard about two more sightings of the ‘wild man’ that folk’d vouch for. Both south of here. One lot said they’d got a glimpse of him up in the rocks… other lot said they’d seen him with a pack of goblins out of the high hills. Their description matched what you told us about the Raven Speaker… but from what they told us, any old man might fit the bill.” Ludo sensed that Grim was trying not to get his boss’ hopes up. 

 "Definitely not an old woman?"  Ludo asked. He also seemed uncomfortable in these surroundings, though was pleased that Sieghard and Elsa seemed to be taking the brunt of the glares, and had introduced himself with a raised hat as politely as possible.


 "I never heard of greenskins that could be bargained with," said Grim, grimly. "What use is a goblin's word?" 

 "Goblins aren't smart enough to bargain with,"  Ludo said authoritatively.  "That makes them easy to trick, though.

"When we visited the goblins cave, they had a carving of a dog - or jackal - breaking it's teeth biting the moon. The moon is their symbol, right? Wadim might be studying that, if they beat the Jackal once." 
LCP
  "Definitely not an old woman?"  Ludo asked. 

Grim shrugged. "This wild man people have been seeing has a long beard," he said. "Or that's what they say."


  "Well,  I've  heard of bargains with greenskins,"  said Elsa.  "And it's true they don't tend to last very long. But there must be  some  reason why an old man chooses to live among them, and why they let him. If we start just killing any goblins we come across, I don't think he'll be inclined to show his face."  

Neither Grim not Panteleon said anything - they looked to Bardhyl instead. One of the others spoke up, however - the young woman Bardhyl had called Zana.

"Who said anything about  choose? " she said. She'd been as quiet as the others when the party arrived, but her tone made it clear Elsa's suggestion didn't sit right with her. "Wadim was the Raven Speaker. He wouldn't abandon his people to go and live with - with animals." Her brother nodded agreement, spitting onto the cavern floor at the mention of the goblins. "If they have him, he must be their prisoner."
-Sentinel-
Elsa was not so sure about Wadim being a prisoner, but nodded all the same.  "If they have their knives against his throat, all the more reason to tread lightly. Now the question is  why  they need him alive. If it were just for his visions or knowledge, I think they'd keep him inside their lair, not travel around with him." 
LeSwordfish
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 Grim shrugged. "This wild man people have been seeing has a long beard," he said. "Or that's what they say." 
 

 
"Well, necromancy can do strange things to a person,"  Ludo joked a bit feebly.
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  3rd Sigmarzeit 
 "If Wadim never comes back, does that mean you're... ostrasisme for good?"  
 

Bardhyl nodded.  "Only a Raven Speaker can undo Wadim's judgement, and since there is now no Raven Speaker..."  he replied, trailing off to let Ludo draw his own conclusions.

 4th Sigmarzeit 
Bardhyl sat quietly at first, eating his stew, while Elsa and Ludo debated with Grim and the others. Only after Zana's intervention and Elsa's reply did he speak.  "That's enough speculation for tonight, I think. We'll have our answers when we find Wadim, not before." 
 "You say that it's possible to bargain with greenskins, Madame Elsa? As you've heard, there are few here who agree with you. Do you have any personal experience of successfully striking such a bargain?"  he asked.
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by rax 
 Bardhyl nodded.  "Only a Raven Speaker can undo Wadim's judgement, and since there is now no Raven Speaker..."  he replied, trailing off to let Ludo draw his own conclusions. 
 

 "But who's left to enforce his judgement?"  asked Elsa in disbelief.  "You really think they'd still run you out of town, so long after the disappearance of the man who cast you out? I don't understand your people. The Border Princes are no place for grudges. Yesterday's enemies can be tomorrow's allies." 

 

 4th Sigmarzeit 

  "You say that it's possible to bargain with greenskins, Madame Elsa? As you've heard, there are few here who agree with you. Do you have any personal experience of successfully striking such a bargain?"  he asked. 

 "Of course not,"  said Elsa hurriedly. She also was not about to divulge to any Vrani the short-lived alliance that her employer had made with Magog, the Orc king.  "I'm just saying... any thinking being can be bargained with.  'You have something I want, I have something you want, and fighting each other would be costly for us both' —one of the simplest equations there are." 

She raised her palms.  "Now... it's a long shot, I'll admit. But if we greet the first goblins we meet with steel and fire, we might lose any chance to find Wadim, unless we turn their lair inside out. And it's a big lair. We've been there before and barely got out alive." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Mad, all of you, " Sieghard scoffed. " No greenskin would make a deal unless it thought it was a good way to stab you in the back. What do you have to tempt them with that the little beasts would like more than just killing you there and chewing your bones? "

 
 Spoiler 
Sieghard never got an answer from Tatiana about her training.
 
-Sentinel-
 "Right. Just how many goblins do you think we need to kill before Wadim falls in our lap?"  replied Elsa with dripping sarcasm.

More seriously, she said:  "We don't know  why  goblins even have Wadim with them. Until we do, no option for finding him should be off the table. Obviously I'm not proposing that we lay down our weapons at the feet of the first goblins we come across." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 

 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
 " Mad, all of you, " Sieghard scoffed. 
 

Leave the others out of this. 😛 This is Elsa's idea.
 
LeSwordfish
 "How long has he been seen with them for?"  Ludo asked.  "I didn't see anything that could be related to him before."

"Could we perhaps capture a goblin alive? I bet we could get one talking." 
rax
 3rd Sigmarzeit 

 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
  "But who's left to enforce his judgement?"  asked Elsa in disbelief.  "You really think they'd still run you out of town, so long after the disappearance of the man who cast you out? I don't understand your people..."  
 

  "Yes, that much is clear,"  Bardhyl chuckled wryly.  "Let me ask you - is a criminal in the Empire pardoned when the one who sentenced him dies? Or does the sentence remain until the conditions for its end are met?" 
 "I am no criminal, but Wadim's judgement is still valid to all those who hold to my people's traditions, which - to be frank - is most of them. And for what it's worth, I would not have it any other way. I am Vrani, as were my ancestors before me, and our traditions are what make us so. They bind us together as they bind us to this land. No man or woman who abides by Wadim's judgement is an enemy of mine,"  he stated proudly.


 4th Sigmarzeit 
 "I admit, a nonviolent solution would be preferable. My wish is that none here should need to spill their blood in this affair, but an even simpler question that needs to be answered before any negotiation can be attempted is whether we even have something that a greenskin would want. So, I think Herr Ludo has the right of it. Unless we manage to run into Wadim himself at an opportune moment, acquiring a greenskin to question would hopefully provide us with not just the answer to what they might bargain for, but also how and why Wadim seems to be with them in the first place,"  Bardhyl mused.

 "Even so, we are getting ahead of ourselves. We shall first need to scout the area where Grim's informants suggest Wadim was last seen. Once we're there, we'll see what we find and make our plans based on that,"  he said.
LeSwordfish
 "Makes sense to me,"  Ludo said.  "How far away is that?" 
-Sentinel-
 3rd Sigmarzeit 
 "Let me ask you - is a criminal in the Empire pardoned when the one who sentenced him dies? Or does the sentence remain until the conditions for its end are met?" 
 "Fair,"  said Elsa with a nod of acknowledgement.  "But I must admit, I didn't realize your people had this kind of formal justice. I thought they were ruled by the whims of whoever's in power at any given time. Clearly I've misjudged the Vrani. Were our circumstances different, I would have loved to stay among your people to learn more about them." 

 

 4th Sigmarzeit 
 "Even so, we are getting ahead of ourselves. We shall first need to scout the area where Grim's informants suggest Wadim was last seen. Once we're there, we'll see what we find and make our plans based on that." 
 "That seems to be our only option right now,"  Elsa agreed.  "Best not take the horses into the mountains. I'll pay your gang whatever it takes to keep my Bastard fed until my return." 

She got up to refill her tankard.  "There's another thing I can do to thank you for your hospitality, Bardhyl."  She jerked her chin at the campfire.  "This fire? With your permission, I can make it last a very long time. Not sure how long, but a few weeks at least. It'll save you some wood, which I imagine is hard to come by around here." 
 OOC: 
 
 Spoiler 
If Bardhyl allows it, Elsa will cast Inextinguishable Flame on the campfire. With Magic 4, the spell lasts a year, though I doubt Elsa herself would know that.

Channeling 93:  (d100)[ 8 ] 
Inextinguishable Flame 7+/11+:  (2d10)[ 1 ][ 1 ](2)  -  Ugh. Tzeentch's Curse plus a double 1. 

Another attempt just in case.  (d100)[ 94 ]  -  (2d10)[ 5 ][ 1 ](6)  -  And another failure. 
 Well crap. I'll wait for the results of Tzeentch's Curse before making a third attempt, because it's likely she won't be  allowed  to try again after that. 
 
rax
 4th Sigmarzeit 
 "A most generous offer, Elsa, but a fire that cannot be extinguished is also one that is always making smoke...and smoke makes it easier to find our cozy cave. We prefer to keep a low profile,"  Bardhyl declined the offer with a mischievous smile.

 "As for your horses, I'm sure we will be able to present you all with a fully itemized bill for care and feeding when we get back,"  he chuckled.
-Sentinel-
 "Hmm, good point,"  allowed Elsa, sitting back down.

She turned to Tatiana:  "Looks like there'll be no avoiding goblins, Tattie. This time at least, we'll be sticking together. Hopefully they've learned not to f*** with us." 
LCP
Tatiana gave Elsa a look that seemed to suggest she didn't share her mistress' bravado. Setting her jaw, she gazed off into the middle distance.

While the others settled down to enjoy the dubious comforts of Bardhyl's 'cosy' cave, Grim filled his chief in on the more exact details of when and where they had heard of the wild man. He kept his voice low, though there wasn't much cause to - Ludo got the feeling he still didn't trust them.


 

 Wellentag, 5th Sigmarzeit 

They set out from the cave early the next morning, accompanied by three of Bardhyl's men. Grim's directions had pointed them south, through the foothills, and so south they went. The stunted trees quickly died away, giving way to a mixture of bare rock and poor, stony pastures.

They found their first farmstead a little before noon - a place where Afrim said they'd heard the first report of the greenskins. A crude hovel thrown together out of earth and timber, it stood next to a stream that still ran with a trickle of muddy water. A low wall of haphazardly piled stones encircled a tiny field next to the stream, where a faint fuzz of green shoots was starting to show between the dusty furrows. Outside the wall, a number of goats ranged to and fro, nibbling the yellow grass.

A woman of perhaps forty was watching them approach. Her face had the deep tan of someone used to working out of doors, and her hair was bound up under a faded red cloth. She was carrying a bundle of firewood she had gathered from further up the hill - as they came closer, she set it down, watching them with the kind of wary regard that anyone living out here on their own would have for large groups of armed men.

She recognised Afrim, and returned his greeting - though not with much warmth. "You back looking for them goblins again?" she asked.

When they indicated that they were, she turned and pointed up towards the hills. "My daughter saw 'em not two days back. Tried to snatch one of our goats. Our Rolf ran 'em off squealing. Even caught one of them. Isn't that right, Rolf?"

A very large and shaggy dog that had been sleeping next to the wall raised its head, and gave a deep-chested  wuff 

"Nailed it up to the old tree up there on the ridge," she continued. "Hopefully it'll make 'em think twice about coming sniffin' around our beasts."
-Sentinel-
Elsa chuckled. She liked that woman and her dog already.

 "You're a good boy, Rolf."  She moved to pet him, but stopped herself. A dog trained to catch goblins could very well bite off her fingers.

 "They're those goblins with hoods, yes?"  she asked the woman.  "Do they always come after dark?" 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla had been quiet recently, wrapped up in her own thoughts and relishing the strange feeling of being away from Savonne. She did appear to come back to life again when she joined the others on their morning expedition.

Unlike Elsa she did reach out a hand to pet the dog.  "What a beauty! I pity the poor goblin who met him!"  
LeSwordfish
Ludo raised his hat politely to the woman.  "Did you happen to see which direction they came from or went to?" 
LCP
A deep rumble in Rolf's chest moved from a growl up to a bark and a snap of the teeth as Jarla reached out to pet him. It was difficult to make out much of the dog's face under his shaggy coat, but he didn't seem too happy. The woman didn't offer Jarla any further warning - she only watched to see what these strangers would do next.

"Don't recall you having so many friends last time you came this way," she said to Afrim. "Nor friends with such fine clothes." Her eyes roamed from Jarla's pistols to Sieghard's sword. "I told you before, we don't want trouble... but if it's trouble you're making, you'll find we're more than we're worth."


  "They're those goblins with hoods, yes?"  she asked the woman.  "Do they always come after dark?"  

"They're the only goblins I know of round these parts," she said. "One tribe's quite enough."

She leant on her stick, sizing Elsa up. "After dark's mostly when we've seen them, aye. I suppose it makes life easier when they're up to mischief."


 Ludo raised his hat politely to the woman.  "Did you happen to see which direction they came from or went to?"  

"South and west," she said, pointing again up to the hill where she'd pointed out the tree, "up over the ridge. That's what Magda says. Though it was dark, mind."
rax
 "You'll have no trouble from us, madame,"  Bardhyl reassures the woman.  "The only ones we're looking to make trouble for would be the goblins. Was Magda able to tell how many they were?" 
LCP
"Can't have been that many," said the woman. "Half a dozen, maybe. More'n that and I don't reckon Rolf would've scared 'em off."
LeSwordfish
 "Do you know if anyone else has been attacked recently round here?"  Ludo asked.  "In the past few days?" 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla hastily pulls back her hand from Rolf.  "And animals usually like me... I hope he doesn't mistake me for a goblin." 
LCP
"Rolf doesn't like strangers," the woman said.


  "Do you know if anyone else has been attacked recently round here?"  Ludo asked.  "In the past few days?"  

"Haven't seen more'n one or two folk out this way since then," she said. "We don't get many visitors this far west."

"There's another farm about four miles south of here," volunteered Afrim. "If the goblins went south, they may have seen them too."
LeSwordfish
Ludo nodded thoughtfully.  "The next place to check then, perhaps." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
No more questions here - could head to that farm or try and find Goblin tracks in the mountain.
 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "Can't have been that many," said the woman. "Half a dozen, maybe. More'n that and I don't reckon Rolf would've scared 'em off." 
 

  "You wouldn't happen to have seen - or heard of - an older man travelling with goblins hereabouts? Not the ones you ran off perhaps, but others of their kind?"  Bardhyl added.
LCP
The woman shook her head. "Doesn't sound like something any right-minded man would do."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" We're thinking he's probably not with them by choice, " Sieghard said.
rax
 "Or, as you said yourself, that he's not in his  right  mind,"  Bardhyl added.
LCP
Taking their leave of the farmer and her dog, the party followed her directions up to the ridge where her daughter's encounter with the greenskins had taken place. Sure enough, there was the stunted tree, its crabbed roots gripping on to the hard soil for dear life. The head of a goblin had been nailed to the trunk, its long tongue lolling out of its open, needle-toothed mouth.

Bardhyl's men made a quick survey of the ground, and soon made out something that looked like a trail. They followed it in the direction the woman had said, until they had left her farmstead behind. The goblins seemed to have been moving irregularly - sometimes the trail led due south, other times it veered west to higher ground, zig-zagging up through the rocky foothills of the Teeth.

By the time dusk began to draw in, they had followed it for some miles. Afrim pointed out a thin trail of smoke in the lowlands away to the east - that, he said, was the next farmstead that he had mentioned. Their high vantage point made it seem tantalisingly close, but reaching it before dark would be a tall order. Instead, Damjan pointed out a jagged spur of rock up on the nearest ridge. They had camped there before, he said, and it offered both shelter and a good lookout, should any greenskins come prowling in the dark.

They made camp in the lee of the rock, and settled in for a cold night on the hillside.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I'm going to assume you set watches. It's not important for now who or what order, but if you want to specify that for the future let me know.
 


 

 Aubentag, 6th Sigmarzeit 

Dawn from the foothills of the Teeth was a majestic sight. As the first rays of the morning crept over the vast expanse of the Downs below them, Ludo wished he was in a better state to appreciate it. Instead, like many of the others, he'd spent a good portion of the night awake and listening for creeping goblin feet, and so now only begrudged the sun its relentlessly punctual appearance.

No goblins had come near the camp during the night's watches, but some of those on watch had heard noises in the dark - whether of greenskins or lower animals, they weren't sure. As the daylight grew clearer, they made their preparations to move on.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
You're in easy striking distance of the next farmstead if you want to start there - or if you'd rather have Afrim and Damjan keep following the trail, you can keep right on.
 
rax
 "Well, we have the goblins' scent. I suggest we follow their trail as far as we can and see where it leads us. If we lose the trail we can head back this way and try our luck at yonder farmstead,"  Bardhyl suggested. Despite the chilly night and morning, he seemed in quite the chipper mood, energized by the hunt.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard raised an eyebrow. " Farm's right there, " he said, gesturing to the buildings in the distance. " Surely it wouldn't cost us much time to ask around while we're here. Much less than if we have to circle back this way. "
LeSwordfish
Ludo nodded agreement with Sieghard.  "If we lose the trail later, we'll be grateful for whatever they can tell us here." 
-Sentinel-
Elsa shivered in the cold.  "Maybe pile up some rocks to mark the trail before we leave it?" 
rax
 "The farm's no closer now than it was last night. Distances can be deceiving here in the mountains,"  Bardhyl answered Sieghard.

 "Lads - how long do you reckon it'll take to get to the farm and back?"  he asked his henchmen.
LCP
Damjan looked at Afrim, who paused a while in mental calculation. "Two hours, I'd reckon," he said. "Maybe a hair more."
rax
 "Two hours to hear much the same thing as before, I suspect. But if you still wish it, we'll do it your way, Commander,"  Bardhyl grouched.
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla looked cold and irritable. She wasn't a total stranger to roughing it - far from it - but the forests of the Empire seemed like a luxurious paradise compared with the bleakness of the Borderlands. The fact that she'd been after wealthy travellers rather than goblins didn't favour he comparasion.

 "I say we keep at it."  She forced a crooked smile.  "Seeing a farmhouse might be too tempting at this point for me not to call it a day." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" You're the one who knows the area, " Sieghard said to Bardhyl. He didn't seem too concerned one way or the other. " Whatever you think is best. "
LCP
It didn't take long for the party to gather their things and get underway. Staying on the goblins' trail was the more challenging question - on this higher ground, the stony soil told fewer tales of who had gone before. They proceeded slowly, searching for clues in every bush or patch of dirt.

It was around midday when they found something more interesting than the scant signs they had been following. At the mouth of a rocky gully, where a dry stream-bed ran down out of the high hills, a profusion of tracks had trampled the earth almost bare. Some led north, the way they had come; others led south or east. All funnelled together at this point, where the gully led west up into the heights.

Afrim and Damjan hadn't visited this spot before. They spent some time studying the tracks.

"Mostly goblins," said Damjan, pointing to the print of a bare foot in the dust. It was too small for grown man or woman, but the toes were too large and long for a child, and left the tell-tale scratches of long, pointed nails. "Both coming and going. But see there," he said, pointing to another print, "that's from a cow."

"Must be a lot of them to make a road like this," said Afrim, surveying the trampled earth. "Couple of dozen at least… or more, depending how much they come and go."

The two trackers looked up together towards the defile. Narrow and deep, it wound down over the hillside like a scar. Even in the noonday sun, much of its bottom was in shadow; the stunted plants that grew around it clung only to its edges, where the light still reached.

As places to meet twenty or more goblins went, Ludo had certainly seen better.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" A cow? " Sieghard repeated, sure he had misheard. He looked down at the print. Though he couldn't tell one animal's track from another, the mark had clearly been from some sort of hoof. " Must've been something they took recently. Can't imagine they'd wait long before eating it. "
rax
 "Good spot for an ambush, and deep shadows as well. The sort of place goblins might set a watch even in daylight,"  Bardhyl said.

 "On the other hand, it should be easier to spot tracks from a cow than goblins, eh?"  he chuckled knowingly at Afrim.
LeSwordfish
Ludo inspected the ravine with caution.  "Reckon we could get someone up along the top edge? That's where they'd be in ambush, right? Could try and capture a sentry from there." 
rax
 "An ambush could probably be set from above, but that would expose the goblins to the sun, which seems less likely,"  Bardhyl answered.
LeSwordfish
Ludo thought for a moment and then nodded.  "Makes sense. Maybe we could do some ambushing of our own, then." 
LCP
Following Ludo's lead, they cut around the side of the ravine and followed its edge up the hillside. It was hard going, clambering over rock and through spiny furze. Light-footed as always, Ludo found himself pulling ahead while the others laboured behind. Alert to the possibility of greenskin sentries lurking among the bushes, he checked his pace. They had climbed quite a way from the mouth of the gully, and with the warm spring sunshine beating down on his back, even he was sweating a little.

It was a smell other than sweat that first alerted him that they might have found their quarry - for those who had helped rescue Tatiana from the caves under the crags, a smell that was all too familiar. Ripe and musty, like mildew and manure, now it wafted on the open air. Following his nose, Ludo crept up to the edge and peeked over.

Below him, the ravine widened out into a bowl-shaped hollow, where it looked like in rainier times a waterfall had plunged from the higher ground above. Around its steep, rocky sides, ramshackle shelters had been rigged from scavenged timber and mouldy, patchwork canvas. There were goblins down there, lurking underneath their tatty awnings. Exactly how many was hard to say - fewer than Ludo remembered in the great cavern beneath the hills, but scores at least. Many of them seemed to be sleeping, but that still left plenty who were awake and watchful, chattering among themselves or sharpening crooked knives. All of them huddled close to the walls of the hollow, keeping out of the sunlight.

The greatest concentration of them was under a rocky overhang at the back, behind where the falls would once have run. The greenskins had screened it with a curtain of ragged black cloth, stitched with the image of a crescent moon grinning through a mouth full of jagged teeth. Two goblins stood guard outside this entrance with hoods pulled down over their faces, hunched behind wooden shields almost as big as they were.

In front of them, in the middle of the hollow, a dead tree stood in the centre of an island of loose rock. The goblins had been hard at work decorating it. Rags of leather hung from its two longest branches gave the impression of outstretched wings, while the wooden effigy of a snaggle-toothed wyvern’s head had been nailed to the end of its topmost branch. Tied to the base of its trunk were two human shapes, so wound round with rope that it was hard to make out any distinguishing features. A lean brown cow also stood there, its neck leashed to the tree and its rear legs hobbled together. A few gnawed bones lay scattered around it - Ludo thought he made out the skull of a goat.

There was no sign of any ‘wild man’, unless one of the figures lashed to the tree was him. Searching the scene for any other clue it might give, Ludo thought he saw one of the hooded guards before the crescent moon curtain raise its head, and quickly ducked back down out of sight.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Here’s a sketch to help make the scene clear:

 

You can assume everyone’s got up close enough to get a first look at what’s going on, but there’s a lot of goblins down there - if you want to try to gather more information, I’m going to assume that your heads are poking up above the edge, and there’s some chance of being seen.
 
-Sentinel-
Elsa glanced down the hollow, drew in a sharp breath, and lowered her damnably visible, red-haired head. Even with impeccable tactical use of her wall of flame in choke points, it was doubtful they could fight so many goblins, and that was assuming there weren't a lot more of them out of sight in the shelters or behind the black curtain. Any potential attempt at diplomacy had better succeed on the first try.

 They have human prisoners. 

Only two of them, but still. Were they offerings to the wyvern, along with the cow? Now Elsa wished they had the horses with them after all, to use as currency for the lives of the prisoners.

  "We've nothing to bargain with, do we?"   she whispered.   "Nothing they'd be interested in."  
rax
 "Hmm, no clear sign of Wadim, so no reason for us to stick our necks out at this particular time and place. A shame about the prisoners, but our little warband is not going to be able to defeat all those goblins. We should consider a retreat,"  Bardhyl whispered.
LeSwordfish
Ludo shook his head.  " Something  important's behind that curtain, and it has to come out at some point." 

He looked to Bardhyl.  "Does it seem likely there's a second camp round here?" 
rax
 "I'm not familiar with the housing arrangements of greenskins, but this looks like a place of worship to me, and likely they're waiting for their wyvern god to come and collect their sacrifices. Could be their chieftain or priest is staying put behind the curtain until it's time to put on a show. That  still  doesn't make this a fight we want to get into unless there's no other way of finding Wadim,"  Bardhyl whispered back.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" If Wadim is here, why would you assume he'd be out in the open? " Sieghard asked. " How do you know he's not one of the ones bundled up in rope? "
LeSwordfish
Ludo shook his head.  "I'm not suggesting a fight, I'm suggesting a stakeout. Stay here until dark, maybe we'll see whoever comes out. Mybe enough of them will go off hunting we can sneak in when the camp empties." 
RossN
 Jarla 
 "If we  are  proposing a stakeout we'll have to be hidden from the air too - as much as I'd like to see a real live wyvern I'm not anxious to be gobbled up by one,"  Jarla whispered.
-Sentinel-
 "I'm not suggesting a fight, I'm suggesting a stakeout. Stay here until dark, maybe we'll see whoever comes out. Maybe enough of them will go off hunting we can sneak in when the camp empties." 

Elsa shook her head.  "I suppose we can do a stakeout to see if Wadim is even here, but forget about sneaking in. No how, no way. Far too many eyes, and too much open space on the way down. Even when you wore a goblin hood, Ludo, you didn't manage to fool them very long. And you're by far the sneakiest of us." 

She mulled things over.  "I do still think we can bargain, if it comes to that. There's... precedent for bargaining with greenskins. But it'd be nice to know if they even  have  who we're looking for." 
LCP
Keeping low to the rocks, Ludo and Bardhyl settled in to watch. The others fell back to what they felt was a safe distance, Jarla keeping one eye on the sky.

The day was passing into the afternoon, and as the sun dipped towards the peaks, more and more of the hollow fell into shadow. The goblins seemed to grow more active as it did, creeping out from under their makeshift shelters to squint with beady eyes at where the sunlight still fell. The sound of their voices grew louder and more numerous, a current of excitement seeming to run through the camp as the shadows crept up to the base of the tree.

As its bare roots fell into shadow, their excitement bubbled over. Their human captives were awake, and struggled in vain against the ropes that bound them as the goblins crowded closer. Still keeping to the shade, the green mob formed a crescent around the tree, babbling and bickering. Some of the bolder ones threw pebbles or clods of dung to torment their prisoners, cackling with laughter when they flinched.

Ludo estimated there were around fifty goblins in the crowd. Making signs with his fingers, he communicated this to Bardhyl, who nodded agreement with his own count.

There was a sudden commotion as the big curtain rustled, and three goblins in long, dangly hoods appeared from behind it. They were carrying instruments - a tin cowbell, a pair of hand cymbals, and a set of bagpipes made from the skin of some strange red beast. The cymbal-player crashed his cymbals together, and the mob fell briefly quiet.

Strutting out from behind the musicians came a familiar figure - to Ludo at least. Festooned with knives, and wearing his crown made from an upside-down pot, it was the chief from the cave under the hills. Down there, with only the flickering light of the goblins’ fires to see him by, he had seemed fiendish and fierce. Up here in the light of day, he looked small and foolish. Ludo could see the patches in his ragged black robe, and the rust on his cooking-pot crown. He looked like a child playing dress-up - albeit a very green and vicious child.

He shouted something in the goblin tongue, and goblin musicians began to play. The piper set up a squealing drone, the cymbal-player clashed his cymbals, and the goblin with the cowbell started hitting it with what looked like a sheep’s thigh-bone, while screaming in what it probably thought was a tuneful way and hopping rhythmically from foot to foot. The result could hardly be called music, but it was certainly loud. Echoing off the rocky walls of the ravine and drifting up over the hillside, Bardhyl thought it would be a wonder if they couldn't hear it down on the plain.

The chief barked more orders, and other goblins ran forward, seizing on ropes that hung from the upper branches of the tree and swinging up and down on them in a way that made the ‘wings’ of their idol appear to flap - at least, sort of. The rest, without such important jobs to do, crowded closer to their captives, jeering and gurning. The two goblins who had been on guard outside the curtain shuffled forwards, jabbing out with their spears to discourage any goblin who got  too  close...
rax
 "I don't like the look of this. Either they're going to do those folk some harm themselves or they're letting the wyvern know it's feeding time. If we want to help those folk, then I think we're either going to have to bring the wyvern down right quick if it shows itself, or we stick their chieftain full of arrows. Take out the leadership, burn some more of them, and I reckon there's a chance they'll be too busy running for cover to mass against us if we decide to go get the sacrifices,"  Bardhyl whispered to Ludo.
LeSwordfish
 "I can do you one better than an arrow,"  Ludo said. He drew his rifle from across his back and began loading it as he continued speaking.  "but i'm not certain they'll run that easily." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard noticed Ludo loading the gun and crept closer, still keeping some distance between himself and the ledge. " What are you doing? " he whispered? " Has something happened down there? "

" If we do this, there'll be only one shot, " he said after they had explained. " If the chieftain survives, he'll get into cover before you can take another shot. And it'll only be so long before they're swarming out after us. "
-Sentinel-
Elsa shook her head and followed Sieghard as quietly as she could.

 "What the f*** are you doing?"  she hissed at Ludo.  "If you start shooting, we lose our chance to find Wadim." 

She could not understand why the sudden need to attack after they had been waiting here for hours. If anything, this was a worse time to attack than before, now that the sun was dipping and that the chatter of goblins was louder.


 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Remind me, where did Ludo get a rifle?
 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  "I can do you one better than an arrow,"  Ludo said. He drew his rifle from across his back and began loading it as he continued speaking.  "but i'm not certain they'll run that easily."  
 

  "For sure, one shot at their chief will not accomplish much. As I said - we will need a greater show of force to scare them. In any case, if we take our shot at the chief, it should be with every gun and bow available to make sure he goes down and stays down. Any less and all we'll manage is to stir up a hornet's nest,"  Bardhyl whispered back.


 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
   Sieghard  

Sieghard noticed Ludo loading the gun and crept closer, still keeping some distance between himself and the ledge. " What are you doing? " he whispered? " Has something happened down there? " 
 

  "From the looks of things, the goblins expect to sacrifice the captives soon. Either they are summoning the wyvern or they are using the effigy as a proxy, so we are preparing in case there is an opportunity to act,"  Bardhyl answered back, keeping his voice as low as he could while still being heard.


 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
 " If we do this, there'll be only one shot, " he said after they had explained. " If the chieftain survives, he'll get into cover before you can take another shot. And it'll only be so long before they're swarming out after us. " 
 

  "Of course. Which is why I was just pointing out to Herr Ludo that we should mass every gun and bow we have if we are to drop him in one go. Even then, we will still need Elsa's fire magic to turn confusion into terror." 

 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
 Elsa shook her head and followed Sieghard as quietly as she could.

 "What the f*** are you doing?"  she hissed at Ludo.  "If you start shooting, we lose our chance to find Wadim." 

She could not understand why the sudden need to attack after they had been waiting here for hours. If anything, this was a worse time to attack than before, now that the sun was dipping and that the chatter of goblins was louder. 
 

  " Calm yourself , Elsa!"  Bardhyl hissed back.  "Herr Ludo is merely  preparing  in case an opportunity to act presents itself. There is no sign of Wadim down there anyway, unless he's one of the prisoners - in which case he's a dead man  unless  we are willing to risk our lives to rescue him sooner rather than later." 
LeSwordfish
 "I don't want to just let those people die,"  Ludo said, but said it in a tone of worried acquiescence very different to the thrust-jawed challenge it would have been for him once.  "If we can't see Wadim from here, though, then I think our best bet is to try and take a prisoner in the confusion." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" We can't take them all on. Too many, " Sieghard said. "  Maybe  we could draw enough of them after us for someone to get the people down there free. It'd be a big risk though. " He turned his head from side to side, gazing into the sky. " And on top of that, we still don't know where the wyvern is. "

 
 Spoiler 
 (1d100)[ 88 ]  vs 51 Perception. Any sign of it?
 
LCP
The sky was a clear blue, broken by only thin streaks of cloud. A buzzard was circling somewhere up there, so high that it was barely more than a black dot. Sieghard could see no sign of anything bigger.

As they held their fiercely whispered debate, the goblins continued with their noise-making. Some were joining in the 'singing'; others banged sticks against the wooden supports of their lean-to shelters, or the rocks of the gully. The goblins swinging on the ropes were growing more and more enthusiastic. The others chanted in time to each wild bound up and down:  Grimsnag! Gargsnag! Gogsnag! 

With a wild whoop, one of the chanting crowd jumped up to join one of the others swinging on a rope. The dead bough to which the rope was tied didn't take kindly to this doubling of the weight, and cracked almost in two, giving their idol a broken wing. The rope-swingers fell to the ground in a pile, and vicious recriminations broke out among the crowd. The music stopped, the drone of the pipes dying away with a sad, deflating moan.

Yelling and barking, the chief came elbowing his way through the mob towards the two miscreants. There were quite a lot of goblins in his way.
rax
 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
   Sieghard  

" We can't take them all on. Too many, " Sieghard said. "  Maybe  we could draw enough of them after us for someone to get the people down there free. It'd be a big risk though. " He turned his head from side to side, gazing into the sky. " And on top of that, we still don't know where the wyvern is. " 
 

  "I would never suggest taking them  all  on - merely causing enough confusion and panic to allow a few of us to race down, free the prisoners and withdraw. I believe the best way to do that is to kill their chieftain and then rain fire and arrows on them from above to keep them running around - that should prevent more than a handful of them from deciding they want to fight us to keep hold of the prisoners. After all, these are goblins, not elite warriors - they ran away from a large dog,"  Bardhyl suggested quietly.  "But of course, if the same can be accomplished without violence, that would be even better." 

With that he backed off a bit from the hollow and discreetly waved his men forward to join them.


 OOC:  Consider the above response to have occurred before our GMs latest IC post. Since we have no agreed upon course of action, I'm interested in hearing everyone else's reactions to the latest events in the hollow before having Bardhyl speak or act again.
-Sentinel-
Elsa sighed. She would never have expected Bardhyl, of all people, to advocate for near-suicidal heroism on behalf of complete strangers.

  "Listen. I hate to be the one to say it, but there's too many goblins to fight and too few lives to save. Sometimes you've got to pick your battles... and this isn't a battle I'd pick."  

She shook her head.   "Maybe if we had horses we could offer in exchange for the prisoners... but we don't."  
RossN
 Jarla 
  "Elsa maybe you could creep off somewhere and light a few fires in the distance?"   Jarla suggests.   "If they think invaders with torches - or even a natural wildfire - is coming they'll defnitely want to investigate."  
-Sentinel-
  "Elsa maybe you could creep off somewhere and light a few fires in the distance?"   Jarla suggests.   "If they think invaders with torches - or even a natural wildfire - is coming they'll defnitely want to investigate."  

Elsa snorted—very softly.   "It flatters me that you think I can set fire to stones, Jarla. But even if I could, it has no chance of keeping so many of them distracted for more than a short moment. It certainly won't make them clear us a path."  
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
 RossN ,  as I told TheSummoner , this kind of distraction won't work, and will in fact have the opposite effect of the one we intend: it'll make the goblins  more  alert and prepared to defend themselves, not less. They certainly won't vacate their settlement en masse just to go gawk at distant lights, especially when they're all waiting for the wyvern to arrive like the audience of a rock show five minutes before the band is set to walk on stage. If we cause a distraction, a handful of them might hurry up the slope to see what's going on, but as soon as they reach the top, they'll realize it's some kind of trick.

Only a shadowmancer could create an illusion that would truly get the goblins' attention (the wyvern circling in the distance, for example).

Then again, Jarla doesn't know the extent of Elsa's powers, so it makes sense she'd vastly overestimate them.
 
LeSwordfish
 "We're not here to kill goblins or rescue prisoners,"  Ludo said firmly,  "we're here to find Wadim. Let's try to take a goblin alive and ask where he is. Do the same trick with the goat spell we did in the cave."

"Me and Bardhyl and his men can wait here. If Wadim is one of those prisoners and they look likely to kill him, we can start shooting as a last resort." 
-Sentinel-
Elsa sighed. Goat noises? Really?

  "If the mob down there can hear a goat, they can hear the sound of a goblin squealing to be let go."  
LeSwordfish
 "Well, tie it's mouth then." 
LCP
While they drew their plans on the edge of the rocks, down in the hollow the chief had managed to push and shove his way through the press to the two goblins who had broken the branch. One of them cringed and cowered, but the other didn't seem in the mood to back down. Instead, a hissing, shrieking argument seemed to be developing, slipping steadily from the goblin tongue into their own coarse Reikspiel.

“...Snagrit! I ain't tellin' you again!” barked the chief. "Get back on dat rope!"

“Wot for? It's busted!” The goblin tore off his hood, threw it on the ground and stamped on it. “Seven stinkin’ dayz we’ve bin doin’ dis! Da Big Wun ain’t comin’!” He pointed a crooked finger at the captives. “She don’t want ‘em!”

“‘Oo’z fault iz dat den?” demanded the chief. “It woz  your  raidin' crew who brought ‘em back. Two measly humies and dat bag of bones?”

“We wuz da only ones wot brought  anyfink  back!” shrieked Snagrit, kicking up a scattering of pebbles. “And wot woz yoo doin’, boss? Sittin’ on your bony arse up here, listenin’ to old Weirdie fill your ‘ed wiv ‘is rubbish.” There was a dangerous gleam in the goblin’s eyes - or more dangerous than usual, at least. “‘Ow many cows did  you  snag?”

A ripple of mutters ran through the goblin onlookers. Certainly something about Snagrit’s complaints seemed to resonate with them.

“Dis woz  your  plan. Takin’ us out ‘ere ta fry in da sun. And where’s it got us?” The muttering grew louder, interspersed with  yeehhhhh s. “She ain’t comin’. Not now, not nevah!”
LeSwordfish
Ludo turned to the others with a tone of hushed excitement  "Wierdie! That's him, right?" 
rax
 "Could well be,"  Bardhyl agreed.  "And there's a mutiny brewing as well from the sound of it. Now if we could just find a way of exploiting that..."  he mused.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Big one was what they called the wyvern, wasn't it? " Sieghard asked. " Sounds like it's abandoned them. "

 "And there's a mutiny brewing as well from the sound of it. Now if we could just find a way of exploiting that..." 

" You fooled them into thinking you were one of them last time, " he said to Ludo. " Do a goblin voice and yell something insulting, " he suggested.
-Sentinel-
 "I think we should wait and see, in case Wadim shows up,"  whispered Elsa.  "If the wyvern's not coming, I don't think the two prisoners are in immediate danger..." 
LCP
“Don’t like da plan, eh?” said the chief, raising his voice to address the mob. “Want to go back ter face da  gulnargrotz  yourselves, do ya?” The muttering died down a little. “Yehh. Didn’t fink so.”

“It’s not da off'rins she don’t want, boss,” sneered Snagrit. “It’s you. You're cracked. Back since before da red moon. It woz you wot turned your sniffer up at da big waaagh down souf. It woz you wot let da humies into da warrens!” He bared his sharp teeth in a mocking grin. "You’re  curseded.  She don’t want nuffink you’ve got!”

“You challengin’ me, Snagrit?” demanded the chief, pulling his longest knife from his belt. “You want da boss’s hat? Come an’ get it!”

Snagrit's sneering bravado seemed to wilt now that blades were drawn. Muttering and mumbling, he slumped his shoulders, backing away.

"You shoulda run off wiv Ratgash's lot, you snivellin' runt," snarled the chief. He looked round to survey the crowd, raising his voice to a shrill shout. " Anyone else got any  problems  wiv 'ow we're doin' fings round 'ere? "

It had been a mistake to turn his back on Snagrit, however briefly . Ludo caught the sudden glint of metal in the other goblin's hand, and then in an instant he sprang. The chief seemed to see it too, but couldn't react fast enough to avoid being knocked off his feet. The two greenskins went over together in an angry ball of knives, fists and teeth. It was difficult to tell which of them had the upper hand.
LeSwordfish
 "I don't like the look of this,"  Ludo said, rising slightly above the rock to line up his rifle on the squabbling goblins.  "If Wadim's alive because of Glimrut, and Glimrut dies, he'll end up in the cooking pot. I don't want to just wait and see how this plays out. Maybe we need a distraction or something to get them apart."

"And what on earth is a gulnargrot?" 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Maintaining an Aim action on Snagrit, or just the fight in general.

A specific condition: If the fight resolves in a way that allows me a clear shot on Snagrit AND Glimrut is in imminent danger, Ludo will take a shot at Snagrit. (For example, Glimrut is down and bleeding and Snagrit stands to put the boot in, or pulls back to draw a knife, etc.)
 
LCP
The two goblins tumbled head over foot across the rocky floor of the hollow, each struggling for the ascendancy. Tracking them with the barrel of his musket, Ludo quickly found his aim being fouled by the other greenskins crowding eagerly round, cheering and chanting the name of whichever goblin they supported - or perhaps whichever one they thought most likely to win. A few scuffles broke out in the crowd when goblins chanting different names found themselves standing too close to one another.

There was a sudden  glurk!  and a spray of dark blood. The chanting stopped, and the crowd pulled back as the chief sprang to his feet. Beneath him, Snagrit lay sprawled over the rocks, his throat slit from ear to ear.

“ ALRIGHT! ” screamed the chief. His face was spattered with Snagrit’s blood, and his eyes gleamed with a crazed light. “ ’OO ELSE WANTS SUM? ‘OO ELSE WANTS A PIECE OF BOSS GLIMRUT? ” He flailed his arms wildly, making the goblins around him jump back. “ ANYOFYOUGITSWANTSUMCOMEANDGETSUMCOSYOU’LLGETWOTSCO  MINTOYA! ”

There was a long silence, in which it became apparent that nobody, in fact, wanted some. At last, one goblin tentatively set up a cheer.

“ Glimrut! Glimrut! ”

The other goblins took up the chant with gusto. Still panting, Glimrut grinned, picked his cooking-pot crown up off the ground and jammed it back onto his head, before spreading his arms and letting the others lift him up onto their shoulders.

When the celebrations had died down, they set him down on the bole of the tree, next to the prisoners. He sheathed his knife and held up his hands for quiet.

“Right! Lissen up! ‘Ere’s wot we’re gonna do.” He started pointing out goblins in the crowd. “Gitter! Gobsnik! Get a fire goin’. We’re goin’ to have a tasty dinner of  roast rat. ” He pointed to Snagrit’s corpse, and the other goblins whooped and cheered. “The rest of yez! When da red eye goes behind dem hills” - he pointed up to the tops of the Teeth behind them - “we’re goin’ out raidin’! An’ dis time we’re gonna bring back sumfink  good !”

A resounding  YEHHHHH!  greeted his words. As the two goblins that Glimrut had identified started rushing around the hollow in search of firewood, the others capered and cheered, whatever grievances they had seemingly forgotten - as, for now, were their prisoners.
LeSwordfish
Ludo shuffled back from the edge a little and turned to the others.  "Alright. Back to plan A - let's find a good place to hide, wait for them to head out, and then perhaps we can rescue the prisoners while the camp is emptier, or take a prisoner who can tell us where Wadim is." 
rax
 "Agreed. Let's look for a spot that provides both good cover and a good view of the hollow if possible, so we can catch whatever's going on,"  Bardhyl replied.
-Sentinel-
 "Somewhere directly away from the lowlands,"  Elsa said.  "Because that's where they'll look for  sumfink good ." 

She moved away from the gully as quietly as she could. Thankfully the goblins were now feasting and making a lot of noise.

 "There was that farm back there, and it might end up right in their path... Should one of us go warn them?" 
LeSwordfish
Ludo nodded, unloading his rifle carefully as he walked.  "If they haven't already been hit. One of you or Sieghard could probably drive off a small raid by yourself, and, well, neither of you is especially stealthy." 
rax
 "They were fine when we broke camp this morning,"  Bardhyl reminded Ludo.  "It took us hours to get here and the goblins won't be going out to raid until sundown. I can send one of my lads back to warn the locals while there's still light, but I won't be asking them to try and find their way back here in the dark, especially not with night goblins on the prowl,"  he added.
-Sentinel-
 "If they haven't already been hit. One of you or Sieghard could probably drive off a small raid by yourself, and, well, neither of you is especially stealthy." 
 "Forget stealth,"  said Elsa.  "Even with most goblins gone, we'll need to hit that camp hard with everything we've got. Best to send someone with long strides and a good sense of direction." 

She inclined her head towards Bardhyl to signal that she trusted him to have someone handle the matter.
rax
 "Damjan, you're the youngest of us. Get yourself back the way we came and stop by the farmstead we passed to let them know what's coming. Then, get yourself to safety back at the cave and tell Grim what we're up to. I expect we'll join you there in a few days, but if we have to keep looking we'll find a way to send a message,"  Bardhyl instructed the younger of the two Vrani.
RossN
 Jarla 
 "So, will be taking prisoners with our own raid?"  Jarla asks.  "Not that I expect goblins to be especially trustworthy but it might be useful questiong one - especially as I'm sure he'd happily sell out the rest in exchange for his life." 
rax
 "If Wadim is there and we can bring him with us, what use is a goblin prisoner?"  Bardhyl answered.
LCP
 
 Originally Posted by rax 
  "Damjan, you're the youngest of us. Get yourself back the way we came and stop by the farmstead we passed to let them know what's coming. Then, get yourself to safety back at the cave and tell Grim what we're up to. I expect we'll join you there in a few days, but if we have to keep looking we'll find a way to send a message,"  
 

Nodding his acceptance of Bardhyl’s orders, Damjan took off quickly and sure-footedly down the hillside, hurrying away from the hollow. The rest of them fell back a few dozen yards, to a scattering of boulders that offered them some cover, while still keeping a view of the hollow and the tree.

Afternoon turned into evening, and as the sun dipped behind the crags, the goblin camp became a hive of activity. Breaking into groups that ranged in size from half a dozen to two or three times that number, the greenskins gathered up their weapons - knives, spears, clubs and nets, and a few crooked bows with black-feathered arrows. As well as these, they had a good number of coarse sacks and coils of rope, which each crew either heaped on the meekest and weediest-looking one of their number, or squabbled viciously about who had to carry them. Whenever any of the squabbles looked to be getting out of hand, Glimrut would wade in to set things straight.

As the last red sliver of the sun’s disc disappeared behind the hills, the first groups came boiling out of the hollow, singing boisterously as they went. They were horrendously out of tune, but it hardly mattered, as they were all singing different songs. The largest group headed straight down the ravine, while others climbed up the sides of the hollow, striking out both east and west across the slopes. Ludo did his best to keep count - by his estimate at least thirty-six goblins were on the move, leaving perhaps fewer than fourteen still in the hollow. He didn’t see any sign of the chief among the raiders.

One group that had come up the eastern side of the hollow was taking a path that looked set to pass within twelve yards of the party’s hiding place. There were only seven goblins in this band, but the others were mostly still within shrieking distance. If the alarm were raised now, it wouldn’t take long for the whole tribe to come swarming back.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
It’s up to you whether you want to try to ambush these gobbos before they can yell out, or stay low + stay hidden. In either case I’ll take a single Stealth test from whatever stealthy person wants to take the lead as representing the expertly-supervised efforts of the group. Success could mean getting a Surprise round if you want to ambush or remaining undetected if you want to lie low.

I’ll oppose the roll with the gobbos’ Perception but I’ll roll that after!
 
LeSwordfish
Ludo held up a hand to silence the group, and lowered it gently, indicating "stay down".
LCP
Keeping low to the rocks, they held their breath as the goblins went by. None of the greenskins seemed to spot them - they were too busy chattering to one another, or testing the weight of their oversized clubs by swinging them wildly in the air. In a minute or two they had passed them by far enough to be lost in the gathering dusk; in another minute the sound of their voices had faded away.

There was still the odd grunt or fragment of goblin chatter coming from the hollow - clearly it wasn’t yet abandoned. All the raiding parties, however, were out of sight and earshot.
rax
 "That went well,"  Bardhyl nodded appreciatively to Ludo.  "Does anyone disagree that our next move should be to cut our way through the remaining goblins and then search their warrens for Wadim?" 
-Sentinel-
Elsa gave a nod.  "Let's do it, I say. The odds are on our side now." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" We don't know how many of them are left " Sieghard pointed out. " Less, certainly, but we'd still be fools to just rush in. Scout it from the ridge first, then we go. "
rax
 "I believe Herr Ludo estimated the remaining goblins as being less than fourteen. Correct, Herr Ludo? But, naturally, we shouldn't go storming in just because of that,"  Bardhyl agreed.

 "Ortwin, Afrim - when we get to the hollow, let's see if there's enough light to pick off a few of the greenskins before we take them hand-to-hand. And when we enter the warrens, I want you both to remain outside and keep an ear out for any returning goblins,"  he added.
LeSwordfish
Ludo nodded.  "First priority is finding Wadim, or signs of him. Next is freeing the prisoners. After that... we take a prisoner of our own. The chief, maybe, he's still down there." 
LCP
Readying their weapons, Bardhyl's men crept slowly back to the edge of the hollow, allowing Sieghard and the other less stealthy members of the party to hang back. The light was fading fast, but there was still enough to make out what the goblins that remained down there were up to.

Bardhyl could make out around ten of the little creatures. Half of them were clustered around their now-extinguished cooking fire, where Snagrit's blackened bones were now skewered on a crude spit. One of them had taken down the unfortunate goblin's skull, and was intently working on prising out its teeth. Another pair were making fletchings for their crude arrows with feathers they were plucking from a dead crow, while a third group were playing some kind of game with painted pebbles. None of them seemed to be paying much attention to their surroundings outside the hollow.

There was no sign of the chief. Either he had departed with one of the raiding parties after all, or he had retreated back behind the black curtain. A flicker of firelight indicated that  someone  was back there, at least - either that or the goblins were very careless about their campfires. On reflection that didn't seem too unlikely.
LeSwordfish
Ludo pointed at the curtain.  "If Wadim's anywhere, he's back there. Do you have any kind of signal that he'd recognise?" 
-Sentinel-
Elsa grunted skeptically.  "The signal is the sound of goblins shrieking. Let's go, before we lose our advantage." 

She whispered words of power to surround herself with a shimmering bubble of magical protection.


 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
I really don't think Bardhyl and Wadim have a "hoot like an owl" signal after all this time with no contact, and even if they do, I'm not sure how it would help at all for Wadim to know we're here. Besides, our characters have been whispering to each other for about three weeks IRL by now.

Channeling:  (d100)[ 69 ] 

Aethyric Armour:
With 1 dice if Channeling is passed, 2+:  (1d10)[ 10 ] 
 With 2 dice if Channeling is failed, 5+:  (2d10)[ 5 ][ 8 ](13)  
 4 points of armor on all locations for 1 minute. 
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Nothing too flashy if we can help it, " Sieghard said when he saw Elsa casting her spell. " No guns either, " he told Ludo. He began loading his crossbow. " The rest of them aren't so far something too bright or too loud wouldn't draw them back. "
LeSwordfish
 "Let me at least check the chief's cave first,"  Ludo said. He passed his rifle off to Sieghard and slipped down into the valley, silent as a shadow.
rax
Bardhyl carefully unlimbered his bow and knocked an arrow.  "Pick your targets and get ready to feather the little buggers as soon as Herr Ludo is back with us,"  he whispered to Ortwin and Afrim. For his part, he eyed up the goblin pulling teeth from Sangrit's skull.
LCP
Working his way around to the western side of the hollow where the shadows were thickest, Ludo clambered down, treading as softly as a spider. There was enough room to keep eight or nine yards between him and the nearest goblin as he crept towards the curtain, his back to the rocky wall of the pit. With how preoccupied they seemed to be with their pastimes, that was enough.

Sidling up to the curtain, Ludo could hear a coarse voice grumbling on the other side. It sounded like Glimrut.

“ Snikskabz… snotskum… zog 'em. ” Peeking through a ragged hole in the cloth, Ludo tried to make out the scene inside. A flickering campfire was banked up against the wall of a shallow cave - Ludo couldn’t see any indication of tunnels leading further back. Close to the flames, the chieftain sat, gnawing on a bit of Snagrit’s leg. It still had the foot attached.

“Knew dat git wash gunna try shumfink,” he muttered, through a macerated mouthful. “Betta now than when the ladsh are proppa riled.” Sticking the leg back in his mouth, he worried another chunk of meat away from the bone. “Shtill. Not like he wash da only trubble-maker round ‘ere. Got to keep wotch. Boaf eyesh open.”  Chomp. Chew.  “Slugrunt, ‘e’sh got ‘ish eye on da boss’ hat. Nazrukk, too. An’ Grodwort.”

“ Um…  I’m  Grodwort, boss, ” said one of the two spear-guards that Ludo had seen earlier. They were sitting a respectful distance back from the fire, along with the floppy-hooded musicians, enjoying a much more meagre dinner of meat scraps and some kind of mushroom stew.

“Yeh, an’ don’t fink i ain’t got my eye on you,” said Glimrut, turning round to point Snagrit’s half-eaten foot at the browbeaten goblin. “You get any funny ideas, you’re gunna end up like Snagrit ‘ere. All of yez.” Something about that seemed to amuse him, and he turned back to the fire with a self-indulgent cackle.

In the shadows at the back of the cave, Ludo could make out a dark heap of the chief’s loot, or refuse, or both. With the firelight to spoil his night vision, the shapes were hard to distinguish - but he thought he could make out the dark outline of a tall cage, with a large figure - or larger than a goblin, anyway - slumped shapelessly at the bottom, as if asleep.
LeSwordfish
Ludo stepped back from the hanging cloth, and tried to get a complete count of the number of goblins in the hollow before returning to the group.

 "He's got a prisoner in a cage in there,"  Ludo said.  "We might be able to lure the rest of them away and get in to speak to him. But I think the chances they're working together are looking a bit thin." 
-Sentinel-
 "I'm no good at sneaking,"  said Elsa.  "I say we attack." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
I've already made my thoughts clear: I think the "toss a pebble in the bushes" trick is nonsense, as it only makes the enemy  more  alert, not less. Also, even with the goblins fewer in numbers, our chances of freeing prisoners unseen are very slight. Better to use the advantage of surprise to hit the goblins hard. If we just try to sneak behind them, and they see us, we lose the surprise round.

I'll hold off on the Aethyric Armour casting until we're all ready to spring the ambush.
 
RossN
 Jarla 
 "I agree we attack,"  Jarla said, as she carefully checked her pistols.  "Do you want me providing covering fire or in there with blade and pistol? I admit I don't have the range of a n archer with these things but I'm a reasonable shot." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard glared hard at Jarla. "  No guns , " he repeated.
rax
Bardhyl flashed everyone a white-toothed smile in the dark.  "Please, can we get on with the fighting?"  he whispered.  "Anyone that's better with a bow than a blade, pick a target and shoot. Keep doing that as long as there's goblins you can easily see and hit. The rest head down and start cutting the little buggers to bits. Elsa can burn whomever she wishes as long as it's not us or a prisoner, eh?" 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla glared back at Sieghard.  "Should I attack them with a critique on their fashion sense perhaps?" 

Nevertheless she reluctantly slipped her pistols back into her belt and instead  dropped a hand to the hilt of her sword.
LeSwordfish
" Ten in the hollow, five in the cave, including the chief,"  Ludo reported. " I'll come with you down into the hollow: if we can't find the keys to the cage, you'll need me to get it open, and we need to act fast in case they sound a horn or something."

"I think we might be able to get him out more quietly if we lure them away but maybe we can take them." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Give it a try, " Sieghard replied, deadpan. " It'd be as helpful as drawing the rest of the tribe back with the sound of gunfire. "

" It's a dozen or so goblins. We can handle that. " He moved up to the ridge and took aim.

 
 Spoiler 
Was just waiting on the answer to Ludo's headcount. Unless someone's got a reason to not launch the attack, aimed shot.

 (1d100)[ 63 ]  vs 51 Perception. Can Sieghard pick out any of them with a horn or anything of the sort? If so, that's his target and he'll point it out to the others.

 (1d100)[ 77 ]  vs 59 BS +20 Aim. Maybe elevation/surprise.
 (1d10+5)[ 12 ] 
 
LeSwordfish
Ludo had laid out four smooth stones on the rock next to him and sent each one flying into a goblin's head with a practiced crack of the sling, raising several nasty bruises and throwing one unfortunate greenskin head-first into a dung heap.
rax
Bardhyl took aim with his bow and loosed a single arrow at the goblin pulling teeth from Skarsnit's skull. As soon as he was done, he quickly switched to his axe and shield and prepared to rush into the hollow.

Meanwhile, Afrim and Ortwin also fired their arrows but continued shooting from the safety of the high ground.

 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl's actions 
 Surprise round 
 Half action:  Aim +10
 Half action:  Standard attack  (1d100)[ 42 ]  vs. 67 (BS 47, Standard attack +10, Aim +10)
Damage  (1d10+3)[ 7 ]  or DoS+3

Ulric's Fury if applicable
 (1d100)[ 15 ] 
 (1d10)[ 4 ] 
 Round 1 
 Half action:  Ready hand axe and stow bow
 Half action:  Ready buckler
 

 
 Spoiler: Afrim and Ortwin's actions 
 Surprise round 
 Half action:  Aim +20 from Sharpshooter
 Half action:  Standard attack  (1d100)[ 58 ] ,  (1d100)[ 79 ]  vs. 71 (BS 41, Standard attack +10, Aim +20)
Damage  (1d10+3)[ 10 ] ,  (1d10+3)[ 13 ]  or DoS+3

Ulric's Fury if applicable
 (1d100)[ 84 ] ,  (1d100)[ 59 ] 
 (1d10)[ 8 ] ,  (1d10)[ 9 ] 
 Round 1 
 Half action:  Reload
 Half action:  Standard attack  (1d100)[ 53 ] ,  (1d100)[ 81 ]  vs. 51 (BS 41, Standard attack +10)
Damage  (1d10+3)[ 5 ] ,  (1d10+3)[ 10 ]  or DoS+3

Ulric's Fury if applicable
 (1d100)[ 36 ] ,  (1d100)[ 58 ] 
 (1d10)[ 2 ] ,  (1d10)[ 4 ] 
 
-Sentinel-
 "Stay low,"  Elsa ordered Tatiana.

The air around her slightly distorted by her spell of protection, she stood up from her hiding spot and hurled a quartet of fireballs down the hollow at various goblins; her goal not so much to slay her foes as to make them feel overwhelmed by the attack.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Channeling 93:  (d100)[ 6 ] 
Fireball 8+/12+:  (3d10)[ 4 ][ 7 ][ 2 ](13)   Passed. 

All at different targets, left to the GM's discretion. The targets should be as far apart from one another as the spell's range allows, to give the enemy the impression that danger is everywhere. (Sorry for increasing your bookkeeping by making you keep track of more NPCs' wounds,  LCP .) 😳

Location:  (d100)[ 92 ] 
Damage:  (d10+4)[ 14 ]  -  +6 wounds. 

Location:  (d100)[ 83 ] 
Damage:  (d10+4)[ 11 ] 

Location:  (d100)[ 18 ] 
Damage:  (d10+4)[ 6 ] 

Location:  (d100)[ 91 ] 
Damage:  (d10+4)[ 10 ] 
 
LCP
Ludo's first sling-stone struck his goblin squarely in the back of the head. With a yelp, the greenskin jumped up, looking around for where it had come from. The second stone struck it squarely between the legs, and it collapsed to the ground in a whimpering ball.

Arrows and crossbow-bolts hissed through the darkness, each shot finding its mark. As the one goblin's whimpering turned into a chorus of screams and gurgles, one of the panicked creatures seemed to spot them up on the ridge. It had only just stretched out its crooked finger to point when Elsa's spell lit up the night, raining blazing fireballs down onto her hapless targets.

When the smoke had cleared, only one of the goblins still stood unscathed. Cupping its hands around its mouth, it turned to shriek a warning back towards the cave - but two more rapid slingstones from Ludo shattered its hand and sent it sprawling on the ground. Considering the screams and the smell of burning flesh, it hardly needed to have bothered.

The curtain was thrown back, and the chief stomped out into view. He had his tin-pot crown rammed onto his head, and his knife in his hand. " RIGHT! " he screamed. "OO'S PLAYIN' SILLY BUGGERS... out... 'ere..."

He trailed off, eyes widening, as he saw the scene of destruction in front of him. Wailing goblins were clutching arrows stuck in their bellies; another was running around with its filthy robes on fire, while another was now little more than a smouldering skeleton. Turning back to the cave, Glimrut yelled at the top of his voice: " WAZZA! CALL DA LADZ! SOUND DA ALARM! "
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Oh no you don't, " Sieghard muttered, sending a bolt towards the goblin boss.

 
 Spoiler 
Reload. Shot at Glimrut.

 (1d100)[ 32 ]  vs 69 (59 BS +10 standard attack)
 (1d10+5)[ 8 ] 
 
-Sentinel-
Elsa grinned somewhat maniacally.  "I'm afraid this time  I'll  be the one slaying the greenskin leader, Sieghard." 
 Feels a bit unfair, though... 
 
 Spoiler 
Channeling:  (d100)[ 63 ] 
Fireball 8+/12+:  (3d10)[ 2 ][ 9 ][ 1 ](12) 

Three fireballs on Glimrut just to make extra sure. Another on a fourth gobbo, preferably an already-injured one.

  GlimrutLocation  - (d100)[ 62 ] 
  GlimrutDamage  - (d10+4)[ 9 ] 
  GlimrutLocation  - (d100)[ 65 ] 
  GlimrutDamage  - (d10+4)[ 9 ] 
  GlimrutLocation  - (d100)[ 80 ] 
  GlimrutDamage  - (d10+4)[ 13 ]  -  Probably overkill, but hey, no complaints. 
  NamelessGoblinLocation  - (d100)[ 95 ] 
  NamelessGoblinDamage  - (d10+4)[ 6 ] 
 


Three fireballs sailed from her gloved hands and arced down towards the goblin chief, while a fourth curved towards the flaming goblin to hopefully put it out of its misery.
LCP
Sieghard's shot sent the goblin chief staggering back, before Elsa's spell bathed him in flames from head to toe. Screaming horribly, he fell writhing to the ground, his cooking-pot crown rolling away across the stony ground of the hollow.

None of the other goblins seemed of a mind to pick it up - with arrows and fireballs still raining down on them, they were in a state of blind panic. Those that could still move ran for the ravine, or for the slopes that led up out of the hollow. One of them chose the wrong slope, and met Bardhyl coming the other way - with a frightened squeal, it turned on its heel and ran back.

From behind the curtain, the ear-splitting wail of the goblins' pipes started up again. The curtain twitched back, and Glimrut's two spear-wielding guards stuck their heads out to see what was going on. Seeing the carnage in front of them, they quickly thought better of rushing out. One immediately turned and dashed back into the cave. The other had the presence of mind to grab the still-smoking body of its chief and drag him back behind the cover of the black cloth.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
The surviving gobbos in the hollow are in total disarray and don't pose an active threat. You can keep attacking them if you want but I won't track individual wounds - if picking them off matters to you, from here on you can consider any hit that beats their soak of 3 a kill.

The incapacitated Glimrut, his 2 guards and 3 minstrels are presumably now all behind the curtain, and not minded to come out unless you make them. Reaching the curtain from the position you started would take about 3 combat rounds' worth of movement, or 2 for Bardhyl who's got a head start. Since the remaining gobbos outside aren't a threat, you can resolve those all in one go if you choose.
 
LeSwordfish
 "Quickly,"  Ludo said, standing and slinging his rifle back on his back.  "The others won't be far behind."

"We should get the prisoners from the idol as well." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo is the one with the lockpicks so will go to the curtain, but someone should get the other prisoners, who may well need to be carried. I nominate the party's NPCs, but they're all other people's followers so I won't give any specific instructions.
 
-Sentinel-
Elsa cursed under her breath when a goblin dragged its leader's body behind the curtain. From up here, it was hard to tell if the still-thrashing chief could conceivably survive its burns, and she hated the uncertainty.

 No matter. They can't go that far dragging a body with them. 
 "Come on, let's all stick together,"  she said, following Ludo at a brisk pace down the slope.  "And stay vigilant, those little sh*ts still have tricks. Remember that maniac swinging a huge ball and chain?" 
rax
Already ahead of the others, Bardhyl continued his descent and dashed for the curtain.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" We'll deal with that as it comes, " Sieghard said. He wasn't convinced the goblins would have time to ready any of their tricks and they didn't have much time to spare even if they did.

 
 Spoiler 
Sieghard will quickdraw his sword and shield in the 3 rounds spent running
 
LCP
Reaching the curtain well before the others, Bardhyl threw it back. The light of the campfire behind it made him squint for a moment, adjusted as his eyes had become to the deepening night.

Five goblins were huddled behind an upturned bench, their leader's charred feet poking out from behind them. The two spear-goblins shuffled together to form a meagre fraction of a shield wall, while the three others just stared at the menacing figure that had appeared, axe in hand, at the entrance to their cave. The awful drone of the pipes died away.

In the shadows behind them, Bardhyl could see the back of the cavern was heaped with junk. Bones, bottles, bits of scrap metal that even the poorest might think not worth their time to salvage. The leaping shadows made it hard to make out, at least without taking his eye off the live greenskins in front of him - but there at the very back, as Ludo had said, was a tall cage. The pile of rags at the bottom of it might very well be a human figure.

"Stay back!" shrieked one of the spear-goblins, jabbing its spear bravely in Bardhyl's direction (despite - or perhaps because of - the fact he was still a good eight yards away). "We'z got stabbaz!"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
 
 
rax
 "An' I've got this axe,"  Bardhyl snarled at the spear-goblins as he launched himself straight at them.

 
 Spoiler: Actions 
 Full action:  Charge attack vs. nearest spear-goblin  (1d100)[ 58 ] ,  (1d100)[ 24 ] ,  (1d100)[ 96 ]  vs. 58 (if house rules replace +10 for charge attack) or 68 (if house rules still allow +10 on charge attack)
 (1d10+5)[ 11 ] ,  (1d10+5)[ 10 ] ,  (1d10+5)[ 15 ] 

Ulric's Fury if applicable
 (1d100)[ 18 ] ,  (1d100)[ 23 ] ,  (1d100)[ 99 ] 
 (1d10)[ 7 ] ,  (1d10)[ 5 ] ,  (1d10)[ 4 ] 

Pre-emptive parry  (1d100)[ 80 ]  vs. 63 (WS 53, Defensive +10)
Pre-emptive dodge  (1d100)[ 61 ]  vs. 55 (Ag 55, Dodge Blow +10, mail armour -10)

 Note:  If allowed, Bardhyl will switch any remaining attacks to the second spear-goblin if he manages to kill or incapacitate the first one.
 
LCP
Crashing into the huddled knot of goblins, Bardhyl scattered them like ninepins. His swinging axe cut the one who had threatened him nearly in two; as the other spear-goblin tried wildly and ineffectually to land a return hit, Glimrut's minstrels scrambled away from the fight, screaming in panic. From the way they ran for the front of the cave, Bardhyl guessed there was no way out at the back.
RossN
 Jarla  

Hearing Ludo's words Jarla peeled off from the attack and made for the dead tree and the two prisoners there. Her blade was firmly gripped in her hand and she was prepared to skewer any goblin foolish enough to come at her but she lacked either the bloodlust or the time to hunt down any of the diminutive greenskins who scattered away from her.

OOC:
 
 Spoiler 
Move &amp; Standard Attack (if needed)

 Standard Attack:   (1d100)[ 82 ]  vs 51
 Damage:   (1d10+4)[ 11 ] 
 
LeSwordfish
Sword in hand in case anyone took a swing at him, Ludo hurried to the cage to see if it was locked and how.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
If it's locked in a way that looks difficult to break, Ludo will try and Pick it -  (1d100)[ 87 ]  vs 74
 
-Sentinel-
Elsa entered the cave shortly after Bardhyl, to find the Vrani already cutting a swath of destruction through the last pocket of goblin resistance. Seeing two goblins run for the cave's only exit, she simply stepped out of their way—no point testing the Red Wind's unpredictable temper just to add to her tally of kills. She headed instead towards the cage to see if its occupant was indeed the old Wadim.

 
 Spoiler 
No specific actions this round, except some movement. Bardhyl's initiative comes before Elsa and it looks like he can handle himself.
 
rax
As the first goblin flopped to the floor, Bardhyl crowded the other spear-goblin with his shield, raining down blows with his axe.

 
 Spoiler: Actions 
 Full action:  Swift attack vs. spear-goblin  (1d100)[ 93 ] ,  (1d100)[ 57 ] ,  (1d100)[ 51 ]  vs. 58
 (1d10+5)[ 14 ] ,  (1d10+5)[ 11 ] ,  (1d10+5)[ 10 ] 

Ulric's Fury if applicable
 (1d100)[ 3 ] ,  (1d100)[ 14 ] ,  (1d100)[ 6 ] 
 (1d10)[ 2 ] ,  (1d10)[ 4 ] ,  (1d10)[ 8 ] 

Pre-emptive parry  (1d100)[ 48 ]  vs. 63 (WS 53, Defensive +10)
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard entered the cave not far behind Elsa. He hadn't noticed the fleeing goblins and one had nearly run into him before scrambling away.

" That him? " he asked, joining the others by the cage.

 
 Spoiler 
Bardhyl rolled the same damage this round as last and that killed the other goblin so it looks like he's got this under control. I don't think there's any need for combat actions from Sieghard..
 
LCP
Jarla had no difficulty forging a path through the panicked goblins left in the hollow, who ran this way and that in their efforts to get out of her way. Reaching the tree, she took her sword to the coarse ropes that bound the two captives. They were surprisingly thick.

As the ropes came loose, the first captive practically fell into her arms. A boy of about fifteen, he had curly black hair and long, thin limbs. His lips were cracked from lack of water, and he seemed semi-conscious at best. Jarla laid him down gently on the stones.

The second captive was more aware of her surroundings, though she looked as though she had suffered similar deprivation. A woman closer to Jarla’s age, she bore a close resemblance to the boy. She slid down into a sitting position as she was cut free, her legs too weak to support her.

“Shallya’s mercy,” she croaked, “you’ve come to rescue us.” She looked up at Jarla as if she was looking up at the goddess herself. “Did the Prince send you?”

The cow mooed loudly, as if jealous of all the rope-cutting going on behind it. With a few screaming goblins still trying to get clear of the hollow, Jarla wasn’t sure how clever it would be to set the big animal free.

 ~ 
Bardhyl dispatched the remaining spear-goblin with brutal efficiency, throwing its broken body against the wall of the cave. Behind him, the last of the minstrels fled through the curtain, one of them running headlong into Elsa’s knees as she entered. Bouncing back from the collision, it dropped its battered cymbals and scrambled back to its feet, darting around her and out into the night.

Abandoned by his hench-goblins, Glimrut still laid on the floor in the middle of the gave, his breath wheezing and rattling like a broken bellows. His gnarled green hide was horribly burned, but his red eyes still gleamed brightly in the deep shadows of their sockets. They fixed on Elsa and Tatiana as the two wizards approached.

“Yoo… hhhh… yoo…”

Tattie met the dying greenskin’s glare without flinching, holding his gaze. Twisting his mouth into a sharp-toothed grin, Glimrut laughed like a gurgling drainpipe, though even that seemed to cause him pain.

“ Gruntrunt, ” he said, managing with tremendous effort to point a trembling claw at Tattie. “I know ya. Big… Wun’s… gonna… get ya…”

He grimaced in pain, falling back against the hard ground. “  Gognazog…  ” he croaked, before with one last rattling breath, his red eyes glazed over, and he fell still.

At the back of the cave, Ludo had reached the cage first of all. As he came near, the bundle of rags at the bottom moved. Wizened hands gripped the rusted bars, and a man’s face showed itself in the flickering firelight. He was absolutely  caked  in dirt - not just unwashed, but the kind of dirty that usually only neglected animals could get. His long beard and hair had each become one matted mass, while what rotted rags remained of his clothes looked as if they would have to peeled off him with a knife. Every wrinkle and line in his skin was black with grime, the white of his one good eye standing out starkly in his filthy face.

“At last! Please, friends, let me out of here,” he said, reaching out through the bars towards Ludo. “I - “

He stopped dead when he saw Bardhyl approaching from behind them.

“Blessed Morr, have you taken me at last?” he asked, in a hushed whisper. “I think I see a dead man standing before me.”
LeSwordfish
Ludo decided to allow the reunion to go ahead without comment, and instead set to picking the lock. The haste slowed him down, and he had to try hard not to curse in front of a holy man.
-Sentinel-
 " Gruntrunt, " he said, managing with tremendous effort to point a trembling claw at Tattie. "I know ya. Big… Wun's… gonna… get ya…" 

Elsa smiled thinly at the dying goblin chief.  "Let it try. We've killed worse." 

She prodded Glimrut's body with the tip of her boot to make sure he was dead. Then, while Ludo struggled with the lock, she rummaged in what remained of the chief's robes in search of a key.
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla eyed the cow sympathetically but decided for the moment she better not risk cutting it free.

Instead she started sheparding the prisoners towards the others inside the cave, offering her left shoulder to support the young man (she needed at least her right free to wield her weapon.) To the woman she flashed a rakish grin.  "In a way I suppose so. I'm Lady Schreiber, now come on we better get to safety before the goblins start rallying." 
rax
 "Deader than ever, old man! And Morr still has work for both of us in this world, so no luck there,"  Bardhyl responded with a harsh laugh.

He knelt down while Ludo worked on the lock and stared Wadim in his good eye.  "He sent me, you know. Dream after dream of a one-eyed raven nagging me in my sleep,"  Bardhyl chuckled.  "So I went looking for you, even though word was you were dead or vanished into the Waste. I found this,"  - he withdrew Wadim's pouch from his tunic -  "but the dreams didn't stop. That's when I knew you were still out here, somewhere." 
 "You look terrible, by the way. What  have  these greenskin vermin been feeding you?"  he joked, but now with a hint of sympathy in his tone and expression.
LCP
"Oh," said the old man, vaguely, "you know… mushrooms and things." He licked his dry lips absent-mindedly at the thought. "I suppose... given the circumstances... the help of the dead is still very welcome."

The cage was secured with a human-made padlock, doubtless stolen from somewhere. A little rummaging in Glimrut's charred robes produced a rusty key on a string, as well as a dead frog, a bag of dried mushrooms, a necklace of stolen pieces of metal - coins, spoons, bits of wire - and about five or six more wicked-looking knives of various lengths.

The key  clicked  in the lock, and the cage swung open with a shriek of rusty hinges. Wadim clambered out, standing unsteadily on wasted legs.

"I lose track of time… how long has it been?" he asked. "Has the Jarl not been looking for me?"

At the back of the cave, Jarla entered, bringing the two freed captives with her. The woman's nose wrinkled as she smelt the stink of Glimrut's burnt body in the middle of the floor.
-Sentinel-
 Gods. Has he really been in a cage  that  long? 
 "Jarl Rorik is dead,"  Elsa informed Wadim.  "He was killed in battle... erm... almost  a year  ago. Most of his northmen are dead too. Prince Sforza now rules all of the Reaches. I'm Magister Elsabeth Holt, his court wizard." 

She knew it was a lot to take in, so she stopped there for now, even though there was so much more to say.
LeSwordfish
 "We should perhaps do the explanations later,"  Ludo said, agitated, helping the old man walk.  "Tatiana, do you reckon you could get that cow calm enough to move,  really quickly ?" 
rax
Bardhyl nodded approvingly as Ludo moved to help Wadim.  "More importantly, the Magister and her friends  destroyed  the Jackal's mortal form. Though some of them are having a hard time believing that it wasn't enough to  end  him,"  he added, wiping the gore from his axe.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

"  Later , " Sieghard insisted, echoing Ludo. " There's more goblins out there and they very well might be heading back. We can talk when we've reached safety. "
-Sentinel-
Elsa turned to the boy and the woman that Jarla had freed, and handed them her waterskin and some nuts and cured sausage from her backpack.

 "I'm afraid we didn't take mounts with us, so we'll have to walk,"  she told them, noticing their poor condition.  "But we're not leaving anyone behind." 
RossN
 Jarla  

Jarla nodeed feverently at Sieghard's suggestion they go before the goblins rallied.  "Yes, less talk and more walk."  

Adjusting her shoulder to better support the boy's weight she promptly turned and made for the cave exit.
LCP
Wadim looked shell-shocked by these back-to-back revelations, but still had the presence of mind to understand Sieghard and Ludo's concerns. Nodding, he cast a quick, searching glance around the cave.

"One moment," he said. "I just need to find some... things, before we go."

Beetling over to the piles of goblin rubbish heaped up near the campfire, he began digging through them with single-minded focus.
-Sentinel-
Elsa tried and failed to conceal her annoyance at Wadim's cryptic request.

 "Perhaps we'll find your  things  quicker if you tell us what they are, mister Wadim,"  she offered with as much politeness as she could muster, turning her attention to the heaps of odds and ends in case she spotted anything worth taking.  "Many eyes are better than one." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Search 75 for anything that seems useful or unusual.  (d100)[ 57 ] 
 
rax
 "And too many hands can get in the way. Perhaps everyone who's in a hurry to leave could go and inform Afrim and Ortwin about what's going on and keep an eye out for returning goblins?"  Bardhyl suggested pointedly.  "We'll join you shortly." 
 
 Spoiler: @LCP 
 "They're not wrong though. What are you looking for?"  he asked Wadim in Vranspel.
 
LCP
&lt; Oh, &gt; said Wadim, &lt; just this and that. You know, not everything these little daemons make is worthless. &gt; Something caught his gaze, and with a quick motion he bent down to seize it. “Ah! Here we are.”

Bardhyl and Elsa got only the briefest glimpse of what he’d picked up before he squirrelled it away beneath his filthy rags. It was a bulging bag made from the same maroon leather as the bellows of the goblin pipes, with a draw-string made from coarse twine. To Elsa’s eye it looked very like the smaller pouch she had taken from Glimrut’s body.

“Ready when you are,” said Wadim, cheerily. It was remarkable how quickly he seemed to be adjusting to his new circumstances. Filthy and wasted away as he might be, he still had the same wily gleam in his good eye that Bardhyl remembered, what felt like a lifetime ago.

Nodding to Ludo, Tatiana turned and headed out of the cave, sparing one last look at Glimrut’s charred remains as she did. The others weren’t far behind. When they passed back through the ragged curtain, they found the hollow empty of goblins, the panicked voices of the last stragglers receding down the ravine.

There was no sign as yet of the raiding parties’ imminent return, but Sieghard would have been surprised if they could make it back this fast. Time was still of the essence.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Where to now? Bear in mind that it’s night and you’ve been on the move all day.
 
-Sentinel-
Elsa exited the cave shortly after the others, carrying a goblin spear with its head wrapped in a flaming rag.

 "Let's make a statement before we go,"  she said.

She pressed the flaming spearhead against the wyvern effigy's remaining "wing" until it caught fire. She knew little of goblin psychology, but hopefully the destruction of their shrine—along with Glimrut's death—would hammer the final nail in the coffin of their obsession with feeding the Big One.

 "Alright, let's move. I have a spell that can throw them off our path for a little while." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Hey, I get to use Marsh Lights again!

 Channeling 93:  (d100)[ 98 ] 
Marsh Lights 2+/6+:  (d10)[ 2 ]    Failed, but re-rolled successfully in the OOC thread. 

Elsa will direct the lights in a direction roughly 45 degrees from the one we're taking, preferably towards some hilltops so that they're visible from afar.
 


She cast her spell as soon as the ragged party exited the hollow. From her hands emerged half a dozen balls of yellow light, flickering softly like fire. At her command, they hovered about five feet aboveground and began moving in a straight line away from the goblin camp at the pace of a brisk walker.

 "We should make the best of our head start,"  she advised the others.  "I doubt even goblins are dim enough to fall twice for the same trick." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Good thinking " Sieghard said. " At the very least, that should buy us some time. " He looked to Bardhyl " Know of anywhere we can hide until daylight, or are we going blind? "
LeSwordfish
 "We're certainly not going fast,"  Ludo said, leading one of their rescuees carefully up out of the hollow with the rest of the group.
rax
 "Blind as bats,"  Bardhyl answered Sieghard cheerfully.  "We don't really come here that much - it's goblin territory and the only people out here are hardscrabble farmers. Not much business to be done,"  he chuckled.

 "Still, there's stars up above and hill country always has some decent hiding spots. If we head straight out in the opposite direction from Elsa's magic lights, we'll hopefully find somewhere not too far off where we can get out of sight from the hollow and ravine at least. Those goblins aren't likely to be sending out search parties all over the place once they get back. At the very least, they'll spend some time beating each other up to decide who the new boss is first. And once they've done that, the important thing is that we can see them coming before they see us,"  he added.
LCP
The barren hillside didn't offer much in the way of cover - the only trees that they could see in the darkness were those stunted specimens that grew in the cracks and crevices of the ravine. Striking out instead across the open slope, they followed Bardhyl's lead until they came across a likely hiding-place. A tall clump of gorse growing over a scattering of wind-worn boulders was the first they found - and in this darkness, it didn't seem wise to go looking for another.

They settled down into the shelter of the bushes, Tattie doing an admirable job of keeping the leashed cow calm. The boy who had been freed from the tree was starting to come around, although both he and the woman seemed desperately fatigued. They went through a whole water-skin between the two of them, and between thanks to their rescuers, looked ready to fall down and sleep straight on the stony ground.

Wadim seemed more alert, though he scarcely looked in a better state - and smelt worse. He wrapped himself up tightly in his filthy rags, and asked if he could borrow a cloak. It wouldn't do to light a campfire when the goblin raiding parties might still be close by. By moonlight alone, he studied their faces.

"So," he said. "Rorik dead, and the Tilean on the lowlanders' throne. It sounds like I have some catching up to do." He shuffled his feet, rubbing his hands to keep warm. "I'm grateful for your help, all of you. I had hoped that bringing them out into the open like this might attract someone's attention... but I couldn't have anticipated who." He gave a subtle glance at Bardhyl.

"First things first... what's this about the Jackal?" he asked, when he had made sure the other two ex-captives were asleep. He looked at Elsa. "Bardhyl said you've faced him... and I see you're still here to tell the tale."
-Sentinel-
Elsa lent Wadim her heavy leather coat, and almost immediately regretted it as the chill began to seep into her flesh.

  "Sigmar, this is colder than the Ice Queen's c—"  

"First things first... what's this about the Jackal?" Wadim asked. "Bardhyl said you've faced him... and I see you're still here to tell the tale."

Elsa nodded.  "He and his followers settled Nath, a ruined city in the south,"  she explained in a low voice.  "Sforza laid siege to him. Luckily we had a useful asset—a dwarf-made spear, forged to slay Nahorek. Sieghard here wielded it in battle, and destroyed the Jackal's physical form." 

Her gaze strayed southwest, towards the Pale Waste.  "I know his spirit's still out there, though. Watching. Waiting. Gathering strength again. He came to me in dreams. And he's got at least one mortal minion still doing his bidding. Mother Mala, she's called. I tracked her down to Korvin's Gap, but she slipped right through my fingers." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

"  Should've kept the coat then  ," Sieghard said, making sure Elsa saw as he pulled his cloak more tightly around himself.

" There was nothing left after I drove the spear through him, " Sieghard emphasized. " No corpse, only dust. "
LCP
“A magic spear?” said Wadim. “Forged by the dwarfs to slay him. That is very interesting.” His one good eye gleamed in the dark. “Did the dwarfs tell you that?”

“It sounds like things have moved on further and faster than I imagined,” he said, pulling Elsa’s borrowed coat closer around his shoulders. “Open war between the Jackal and the lords of the Reaches. If I had heard that another way, I might have thought it was already too late. But you say it’s a defeat that sent him back to the Waste.” He fell quiet for a few moments, thinking. “Perhaps the world has moved on further than he expected, too.”

“And your Prince Sforza… you say he slew Rorik? And the Duke, and all the others?” He looked around the circle darkened faces. “Are  all  the Reaches really his? Who rules in Morr’s Seat?”
rax
 "Yes, Sforza has all the Reaches under his thumb right now,  Bardhyl confirmed.

 "He has a garrison in Morr's Seat, but that's the extent of it. There was some raiding even after Rorik was killed, but the Tilean sent some troops into the hills and made examples of those who persisted. Things quietened down after that - it's hard enough for people to survive the drought and diseases without being gutted by foreign steel,"  Bardhyl replied.

 "And the Tilean wasn't the one who struck down Rorik - that was Sieghard and his friends. The Duke, I'm told, was killed by treacherous allies. So the Prince is foremost a captain and a politician - he sets events in motion and takes credit for the work of others. Nice work if you can get it,"  he chuckles.
LCP
"Mm. That was certainly his reputation." Wadim's roving eye returned to Sieghard. "So... Rorik dead, and Morr's Seat under occupation. I suppose that means the Jarl was not the champion Morr promised us, after all."

He fell into another long silence. Bardhyl thought he could hear the gears turning inside his old mentor's head.

"I'm very grateful to you all, truly," he said. "Though there was a thing or two to learn from the greenskins, I'd long since tired of being their... hah,  guest . I think I have more to learn now, and it would be better to hear with my own ears, and see with my own eye. Unless any of you are going in the direction of the Raven Hills, I can go my own way in the morning." He yawned. "I think I know enough about the goblins by now to avoid falling into their clutches again."
-Sentinel-
Elsa was quite surprised that Wadim would part ways with them so soon. In his sorry condition, she would have expected him to take days to recover. She really wished to accompany him back to Morr's Seat, which would give them enough time to trade knowledge, but she had already been gone long enough for Olga to start worrying.

 "There's another thing you need to know,"  she said.  "Your pupil Sanne Raven-Cry is one of only two Norscans who we know to have survived the Jarl's downfall, but I'm afraid she's been arrested for banditry. She's now imprisoned in Savonne." 

She huddled closer to Sieghard to get some of his body heat. At this point, she cared little who in this group knew that they were more than comrades.

 "I wish I could get her freed, but I can make no promises. The Prince—that's Sforza's self-bestowed title—isn't the sort to grant amnesty to bandits just because you ask nicely. He'd want a damn good reason. But I'll try nevertheless." 
LeSwordfish
Ludo had been watching Wadim with a certain wary dismay. He had not been exactly what he had been expected, and was now suggesting that he just walk out of their lives.  "Perhaps some of us could escort you, uh,  Father? . I think perhaps we could share more information about the Jackal. We're all on the same side here."

"For example, what were you trying to learn from the goblins?" 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "So... Rorik dead, and Morr's Seat under occupation. I suppose that means the Jarl was not the champion Morr promised us, after all." 
 

  "He was  not ,"  Bardhyl responded emphatically.  "He was as much to blame for the Jackal's rise as any of the lowlander "princes". If not for their war, the man from the north might never have slipped through our fingers." 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 He fell into another long silence. Bardhyl thought he could hear the gears turning inside his old mentor's head.

"I'm very grateful to you all, truly," he said. "Though there was a thing or two to learn from the greenskins, I'd long since tired of being their... hah,  guest . I think I have more to learn now, and it would be better to hear with my own ears, and see with my own eye. Unless any of you are going in the direction of the Raven Hills, I can go my own way in the morning." He yawned. "I think I know enough about the goblins by now to avoid falling into their clutches again." 
 

  "You should not go by yourself in any case. The Jackal still leeches the life from the land - you'll need food and drink to make it there. I've a place a few hours from here - we'll all be going back there in the morning. Come with us, get cleaned up, and pick up some supplies before you do anything else,"  Bardhyl offered.
LCP
Wadim raised a wiry eyebrow at Elsa's news of Sanne. "Pupil?" he said. "Well, I suppose that's one description."


 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  "Perhaps some of us could escort you, uh,  Father? . I think perhaps we could share more information about the Jackal. We're all on the same side here."

"For example, what were you trying to learn from the goblins?"  
 

"Well, I wouldn't say  trying ," said Wadim. "More... making the best of difficult circumstances."

"I fell in with them after the new year. I had gone south, following the man from the north. We had been waiting for him, but he passed by our watches like a shadow." He swallowed to ease the hoarseness of his voice. "I caught up with him at Turnpike Hollow, returning from the desert. Him, his mute... and the one who walked with them."

The old man's manner changed with the recollection. No longer so cagey and observant, his gaze seemed to drift to some point in the middle distance.

"He seemed a wretched creature. Mad with loneliness and hunger, hiding from the sun. I thought, if I could challenge him then, before he had time to regain his full strength, there might be some slim chance."

"It was a desperate hope. When I saw how wrong I had been, it was all I could do to escape with my life. I fled until I fell upon the hillside, and my senses failed. When I woke, the goblins had taken me."

"I probably would have ended up in their cook-pots, if they had not felt the Jackal waking too. They hate him almost as much as we do - hate him and fear him. You should see what they have painted on the walls of their caves, Bardhyl.  Vorgul Gornaz,  that's what they call him. The Dead Wolf, the Moon-Biter."

"They questioned me, and I told them the truth. They have no priest of their own - the last one died in some kind of accident. Their chief decided to keep me alive as his soothsayer... or perhaps it would be more accurate to say his pet."

His tone hardened. "Mostly they kept me penned up, as you saw. Sometimes the others would torment me for their amusement. But when they grew fearful about their old enemy, they would drag me up through their tunnels to the high peaks, to look out over the Waste, and tell them what my visions showed me."

"Since the night of the blood moon, they've been practically in a state of panic. I may have helped... convince them to come east. I thought if they came out into more inhabited country, there might be some slight chance of rescue." He smiled, his attention now fully back on the here and now. "And here we are."


 
 Originally Posted by rax 
   "You should not go by yourself in any case. The Jackal still leeches the life from the land - you'll need food and drink to make it there. I've a place a few hours from here - we'll all be going back there in the morning. Come with us, get cleaned up, and pick up some supplies before you do anything else,"  Bardhyl offered. 
 

"He's doing more than that," said Wadim, darkly. "I've seen what is gathering, out in the desert. The shadow of the Red Pyramid grows longer every day. Still," he said, snapping back to an incongruous smile. "It would be a poor thing to refuse hospitality freely offered. Even from a dead man."
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 Wadim raised a wiry eyebrow at Elsa's news of Sanne. "Pupil?" he said. "Well, I suppose that's one description." 
 

 "I take it you have a more apt description, then?"  asked Elsa, who had not expected Wadim to show so little concern for Sanne.



 "I probably would have ended up in their cook-pots, if they had not felt the Jackal waking too. They hate him almost as much as we do - hate him and fear him. You should see what they have painted on the walls of their caves, Bardhyl.  Vorgul Gornaz,  that's what they call him. The Dead Wolf, the Moon-Biter." 

 "Some of us have seen their caves, when we went in to rescue one of our own,"  said Elsa with a minute nod at Tatiana.  "We caused a bit of a commotion, you must've been aware of it. Shame we didn't run across you." 

 "I may have helped... convince them to come east. I thought if they came out into more inhabited country, there might be some slight chance of rescue." He smiled, his attention now fully back on the here and now. "And here we are." 

 "Hmm. Lucky you. Unlucky  them ,"  said Elsa dryly, jerking her chin at the two sleepers.  "Now let's hope the goblins go back where they came from. We hear they've been causing a bit of trouble for the locals." 

She pried her waterskin from the fingers of the sleeping boy and brought it to her lips, but got only a few leftover drops from it.  "The Vrani will be glad to have you back. They've been... rudderless. Just be careful not to stir up trouble with the Tileans."  Putting her waterskin back in her backpack, she added:  "And keep an eye out for Mother Mala. I know she's been buying corpses and still-warm bodies with Nehekharan gold. If you need to know more, look for one Darja, she's had dealings with Mala. As did Georg, but he'll be harder to find, unless he's moved to Morr's Seat since I last saw him." 

 "He's doing more than that," said Wadim, darkly. "I've seen what is gathering, out in the desert. The shadow of the Red Pyramid grows longer every day." 

 "Let me guess, he's building an army of corpses?"  Elsa grunted.  "I'm afraid I've been having a hard time convincing my employer that the Jackal is still a threat." 
LCP
  "I take it you have a more apt description, then?"  asked Elsa, who had not expected Wadim to show so little concern for Sanne. 

"The Norscans are their own people," said Wadim. "Sanne was interested in our traditions, as I was interested in theirs."

Taking in a long breath, he looked Elsa up and down in the dim moonlight, as if taking the measure of her.

"I doubt the goblins will go back," he said, calmly. "They're terrified, and with good reason. The shadow reaching out of the Waste falls on them first."  He shuffled his bony legs, finding a more comfortable seat on the stony ground. "A good number had already fled before their chief agreed to lead them out into the sun. In fact, if you say that chaos in the caverns was  you ... I believe you may have helped convince them that they were cursed."

"As for me, I assure you it's not in my nature to make trouble," he said, with a gleam in his eye that Ludo suspected meant anything but. "Just ask Bardhyl here. But I have to ask... if you serve the Tilean, and he didn't send you against the Jackal, then why did he send you here?" He looked around the faces of the others with an enquiring air. "I don't think you came to hunt down the greenskins, either - at least, I don't see many soldiers with you. And if you're happy for me to depart for the hills, then it doesn't sound like he can want anything of me." He looked over at Bardhyl. "Have you joined forces with him, too? Are you whispering in the ears of lowlander lords?"
-Sentinel-
 "The Prince didn't send me here,"  answered Elsa, returning Wadim's intent gaze.  "Bardhyl is the one who came to us, with visions and rumors telling him you were still alive. And any enemy of the Jackal is... if not necessarily my friend, then at least a useful person to have around. I wish we could've joined forces much earlier, but I suppose late is better than never." 

She chuckled bitterly.  "If I can only protect the princedom by working behind the Prince's back, then so be it." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" If the prince knew we had planned to come into the hills, he probably would've forbade it, " Sieghard said bluntly. " He ignored the danger until an entire village was marched off to their deaths and now likes to pretend that he was the one who slew the Jackal. "

" Too many have died to not take the threat seriously, even if they meant nothing to Sforza. "
LCP
Wadim seemed to find what both Sieghard and Elsa had to say very interesting.

"And what is the princedom, that you care so deeply about protecting it?" he asked Elsa. "Forgive me for asking, but going behind your lord's back... it sounds like you're gambling with Morr's own dice."
-Sentinel-
 "I only used the turn of the phrase that emphasizes the irony,"  admitted Elsa with a shrug.  "Didn't mean to imply preference for princes or dukes or jarls... as long as they have a pulse. What I want to protect, in the end, is the mortal people who call this land home. They've clung to it for many generations, through war and famine and plague. I can admire that. I'd hate to see them driven out by some bitter ghost from a bygone era who just can't accept that his world has moved on." 

She paused.  "As for my employer, he seems to care little about my comings and goings these days." 
rax
 
 Spoiler: LCP 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "It would be a poor thing to refuse hospitality freely offered. Even from a dead man." 
 

 "Indeed it would. And before you go on your way, we should talk more about the past...and the future,"  he answered in Vranspel.
 


 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 He looked over at Bardhyl. "Have you joined forces with him, too? Are you whispering in the ears of lowlander lords?" 
 

  "Not me, old man. My only interest is in taking a cut of their trade. Even dead men must make a living, especially when others depend on their generosity. Of course, such things are much easier when there's competition between their lordships. One prince and one law is only to the benefit of those who enjoy the prince's favour,"  he declared with a nasty grin.
LeSwordfish
 "I don't see why he'd object to us being here,"  Ludo said, a little disgruntled by the idea that after their ordeal in the caves, the goblins had felt *they* were cursed.  "We killed the goblin leader, didn't we? That's a valuable thing to do."

"We're not here to take you prisoner. I wanted to talk to you about what you know about the jackal. And what the goblins believe, too. The mural in the cave makes it look like they think they beat the jackal, but they're terrified this time?" 
LCP
Wadim gave Bardhyl a slight nod when he spoke to him in the Raven Hills tongue. It wasn't an enthusiastic nod, but it was there.


 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
  "What I want to protect, in the end, is the mortal people who call this land home. They've clung to it for many generations, through war and famine and plague. I can admire that. I'd hate to see them driven out by some bitter ghost from a bygone era who just can't accept that his world has moved on."  
 

"You make war sound like the weather," said Wadim, with a wry sort of smile. "As if it comes and goes of its own accord."


 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  "We're not here to take you prisoner. I wanted to talk to you about what you know about the jackal. And what the goblins believe, too. The mural in the cave makes it look like they think they beat the jackal, but they're terrified this time?"  
 

"What I know about the Jackal? That will take a while. Perhaps a conversation for more comfortable surroundings," said Wadim. "As for the goblins, I don't know that you'd get the same answer from any two of them. I only know what their chief told me, and what I heard them telling each other." He glanced across at Bardhyl. "You know, they take quite a different meaning from  when all the Reaches were green. "

"My understanding is, they believe he was only stopped the first time with the aid of their god. So without divine intercession, they don't see much hope of stopping him this time. That's why they came out here - they think the beast living up in the crags is a messenger sent down from the dark moon. They wanted to get its attention."
-Sentinel-
"You make war sound like the weather," said Wadim, with a wry sort of smile. "As if it comes and goes of its own accord."

Elsa gave a small nod, as if half conceding the point, but replied:  "As far as I can tell from my short time in these parts, most war has been brought by outsiders looking to carve themselves a slice of the Reaches. So yes, to some extent, war does seem to be something that  happens  to the Reaches. Would the Reaches be a bit more peaceful if they were ruled by their own people? I don't know."

"But in any case, I'd sooner have war than the Jackal's peace. The living may be a lot harder to govern than the dead, but in the end, they're the only ones who matter." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
I think I'm done with my side of the convo unless someone says something that Elsa needs to respond to.
 
LCP
"An interesting perspective," was Wadim's gnomic response.

He yawned. "As close as Bardhyl says his place his, perhaps we should follow the example of our friends here," he said, motioning to the two sleepers. "I'm not as young as I once was. And those goblins have sharp ears. I imagine some of them may be coming back this way by now."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Last check for any further questions or discussion before moving on to the next IC day.
 
LeSwordfish
Ludo nodded, his face inscrutable.  "I'll take the first watch." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Whoever takes a future watch, Ludo will encourage them to also keep an eye on Wadim - I think he doesn't trust Wadim to vanish in the middle of the night.
 
LCP
Wrapping himself up tightly in his cloak, Ludo found a spot where he could peer out through the spiny gorse without making himself too visible. As the others took their hard-earned rest, he kept his eyes trained on the darkened hillside, with the occasional check back to ensure that Wadim was really asleep. The old man certainly looked it - but Ludo couldn't shake the feeling that when he wasn't looking, that one eye was open, and looking at him.

Mysterious as the old man was, there were more dangerous things to keep watch for. The goblins moved without the aid of torches, but Ludo’s eyes were keen enough to make out their dark, creeping shapes by the light of the moons alone. He spotted the first movement less than an hour after the others had settled down to sleep - a small party of greenskins clambering like spiders over the rocks on the other side of the ravine. He could just about make out snatches of their voices as they found the scene of devastation that had been left in the hollow, though the distance was too great to make out the words.

A second group returned shortly after, and then a third, making Ludo’s best guess of the numbers in the hollow up to thirty or more. Some of them looked to be loaded down - whether those amorphous shapes were sacks of loot or fresh captives, it was too dark to tell. Their voices grew louder, the sound of furious bickering - perhaps even fighting - drifting on the night air.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Pausing here to see if Ludo wants to wake any others or take any action regarding the gobbos.
 
LeSwordfish
 "I think most of them are back by now,"  Ludo said, stifling a yawn.  "Some of them had bags with them that could have been supplies... or maybe prisoners. Then it sounded like they were having an unholy fight, which is about what you'd expect." 

He looked at Elsa.  "Not sure there's anything we should do about it, though, I think we're lucky to get away with what we got." 
-Sentinel-
Elsa nodded grimly. If the goblins indeed had new prisoners, the middle of the night was certainly not the time to do anything about it.

 "We'll have to hope they're too busy figuring out who's the new boss to look for us." 
LeSwordfish
Ludo nodded. "Can maybe sneak up to the crater rim again in the morning, try my luck just in case" - he was interrupted by a yawn, and decided it was time to retire.

 "He's not exactly as I expected,"  he added sotto voice, looking to Wadim.  "I think maybe he's worth keeping an eye on. I don't think he wants to help us at all." 
-Sentinel-
Elsa shrugged.  "I'm just pleasantly surprised he's as sane as he is, considering what he's been through." 
LeSwordfish
 "I suppose so,"  Ludo said.  "I'm going back to the raven hills with him, whether he wants it or not. From the sound of things Carrociolo or his man would have his head off for any reason, and I want to know what he knows. What he means by the shadow of the pyramid. And I want him to take us seriously. We'll need to work together if the jackal is back, and he talks like he doesn't believe us."  He took another look to check that the man seemed asleep.  "Like he'll talk about us the way he talks about the Goblins, as soon as we're gone." 
-Sentinel-
 "I think he  has  to work with us,"  whispered Elsa.  "If he couldn't stop the Jackal then, he can't stop him now. Not on his own. Surely he knows it. Or he'll realize it soon enough. For now I'm glad we're at least on speaking terms with two of the hill people. I get the feeling the Vrani will have a big part to play in whatever comes next." 
LeSwordfish
Ludo nodded.  "It'll fall on them first, for one thing." 

He yawned again, and decided it was time to bid goodnight.

 
 Spoiler 
When Ludo wakes in the morning, he's going to creep to the lip of the crater again and have a quick look down, specifically planning on identifying if the goblins have prisoners.  (1d100)[ 15 ]  vs 94
 
LCP
The remaining watches of the night passed without any greenskin forays in the direction of their hiding place - though occasional bouts of raucous noise still drifted across from the hollow. Those sleeping slept lightly, with their weapons close to hand.


 

 Marktag, 7th Sigmarzeit 

The first light of dawn creeping over the crags was a welcome sight, even if sleep had been scarce. The noise from the hollow had died away as the sky lightened, and the hillside was now peaceful enough that one might not have suspected the goblins’ presence.

Yawning and stretching, the two captives Jarla had rescued from the idol tree roused themselves. Still not seeming entirely sure of their surroundings, they looked around at their rescuers with a mixture of gratitude and uncertainty. They looked even more unsure about the filthy figure of Wadim - but the old man seemed unconcerned.

Their names, they said, were Matthias and Meg. They came from a settlement down in the valley - possibly the same one the party had passed by the day before. The goblins had snatched them in the dark when they had been following their lost cow.

“We have people back at the farmstead who’ll be wondering what happened,” said Meg, rubbing some feeling back into her arms. “Please, you should come with us! It’s not far - and we can feed you, and give you a roof over your heads to spend the night. It’s the least we can do.”

Jarla sensed an edge of anxiety behind the offer of hospitality - no doubt Meg was wondering whether the goblins had found her ‘people’ too. She looked at Wadim, remembering the old man’s eagerness to be going - but if the idea of the diversion troubled him, he showed no sign of it on his face. If anything, he seemed to be watching with great interest to see what their answer would be.

 ~ 
Ludo, meanwhile, had gathered up his gear and slithered back to the edge of the hollow, as silently as he could. In the early dawn light, the high walls of the depression still left its bottom in deep shadow, but the goblins had retreated to their shelters all the same. No sentries squawked at him as he approached the edge.

The scene at the bottom was, if anything, in greater disarray than they had left it. The black crescent-moon curtain was torn and hanging askew, while the bodies of five or six more goblins who Ludo didn’t remember from the attack now lay on the stones around the charred remains of the tree. The fresh carcasses of four goats had been stacked untidily by the west wall of the hollow, while a large pig, still alive, rooted about in the dirt with singular disregard for its surroundings. A hairy rope around its left hindleg had been tied to a small boulder to keep it from wandering off.

He couldn’t see any signs of human prisoners. Close to the dead goats, a few large sacks lay heaped together, looking much fuller than they’d been when the raiding parties set off. What they were full of was anyone’s guess, but they didn’t appear to be moving.
-Sentinel-
"We have people back at the farmstead who'll be wondering what happened. Please, you should come with us! It's not far - and we can feed you, and give you a roof over your heads to spend the night. It's the least we can do."

 "I'd love to meet your people,"  said Elsa, throwing a glance at the others to see if they had any objections.  "They'll be overjoyed to see you back... all three of you, even the cow. We'll try not to impose on them... We know the living is hard in these parts." 
 And about to get even harder, if the Broken Moon goblins are here to stay. 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla had been quiet all night and looked like she hadn't slept terribly well but a faint smile appeared on her face when Meg suggested they head to her homestead.  "An excellent idea,"  she said,  already smoothing down her fancy clothes. Strange how the wilderness that had seemed such an escape from the dullness of Nuln life now seemed cold when it wasn't hot, uncomfortable, dirty and full of goblins. A meal in a peasant's home sounded downright luxurious.
LeSwordfish
Ludo returned to their makeshift hiding spot.  "They don't have any prisoners I think, just loot. Another half- dozen or so are dead." 

He pulled a hardtack biscuit out of his bag and started gnawing it.  "By my reckoning there could be as few as two dozen left, maybe thirty. Maybe we should come back after we've got these people back home." 
rax
 "Dealing with the goblins would be your prince's responsibility, I think,"  Bardhyl retorted.  "I have what I came for and you managed to save these fine people in the process. A job well done, I'd say,"  he added with a nod to Matthias and Meg.
-Sentinel-
 "Our own numbers aren't that favorable, Ludo,"  said Elsa dubiously,  "especially if we're planning to wipe out the clan and not just scatter them. I'm with Bardhyl here... I think we should get the Prince involved. Surely he or Carraciolo can spare a dozen good soldiers to help us finish the job." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

The skeptical look Sieghard gave Elsa showed just how likely he thought  that  was.

" Clearing the goblins from the teeth would take longer than any of us will be alive, " Sieghard said. " If they don't have any captives, then best to just hope they learn that sticking around so close to human settlements ends with their chieftain burning to death and the new one leads them back into the hills. "
-Sentinel-
 "Obviously I'm not talking about clearing the entire Teeth of greenskins. But if they aren't  staying  in the Teeth, that's a problem." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
I think we have a consensus to go to the farm.
 
LCP
Leaving the goblins to whatever they had in store, the party headed off eastward, as quietly as they could. Matthias insisted on taking custody of the cow back from Tattie - her name was Thistle, he said - and while Tattie made no protest, she followed close by. She had more in common with Meg and Matthias than the rest of their rescuers, and once they were sure they had passed out of earshot of the goblin camp, the three of them began to talk more freely as they walked.

Wadim stayed apart, watching his new companions with a keen eye. Though his legs were thin and wasted from his months in Glimrut's cage, he broke himself off the branch of a dead tree as a walking stick, which allowed him to keep pace remarkably well.

After a while, when the walkers had separated enough to have some semblance of a private conversation, he fell in beside Bardhyl.

 
 Spoiler: HillfolkGossip 
"Curious girl, don't you think?" said Wadim, nodding his head just a fraction towards Tatiana. "Wouldn't be surprised if she had some  Vrani  blood in her."

He took in a long breath, looking around at their travelling companions with an air of idle curiosity. "Yes, this is an interesting bunch you've fallen in with, that's for certain. How on earth did you convince them to go chasing goblins in the arse-end of the Teeth?" That one bright eye gave Bardhyl a penetrating look from under its bushy brow. "Surely as far as they knew, I was likely as dead as you."
 

 ~ 
They reached Meg's farmstead in the early afternoon. It looked much like the one they had seen before - only here, the drystone wall had been topped with a rampart of dead thorn bushes, and the wooden gate was shut tight.

As the party drew near, an old man's voice called out from behind the wall. "We don't want any trouble!" he shouted. "The greenskins already took everything worth taking, so if you want to rob us, all you'll get is holes where you don't want 'em!" A very old and battered-looking crossbow wobbled out from behind the hedge of thorns. "Don't think I won't shoot!"

"Marten?" Meg called back. The sound of her voice stopped the warnings dead.

"Meg?" A grey-haired head appeared above the hedge. "Meg! Matthias! Is it really you?"

"What does it look like?" was Meg's laughing reply. "Come on, let us in!"

There was a great clattering and rattling from behind the gate, before it was at last flung open, and the old man rushed out to embrace Meg and Matthias with tears in his eyes.

“Shallya’s mercy,” he said, “even the cow! I thought the goblins had taken you for sure.”

“They had,” said Meg. “Lady Schreiber and her friends rescued us. They’ve come from the prince in Savonne!”

Marten looked around at the heterogeneous faces surrounding him. Dusty and sooty as she was, there was no mistaking from Jarla’s clothes and bearing that she was a woman of quality. The same couldn’t necessarily be said for Bardhyl and his men - and even less so for Wadim, who met Marten’s uncertain gaze with a friendly grin. His teeth stood out starkly against his grimy face and matted beard.

“Well…” said Marten, still hesitating. “I suppose you’d better come in, then.”

 ~ 
Inside the gate, the farmhouse yard was a scene of recent chaos. A few goblin arrows were stuck in the beams of the house, and a couple of freshly-dug graves - one seven feet long, the other only four - lay piled up with stones against the inside of the outer wall.

“They came again last night,” said Marten. “Killed Gismar and his dog, and ran off with all the goats. If it wasn’t for Dierk they would have got over the wall.” Opening the door, he ushered them inside. The house was long and low, with bunks and benches along the walls, and a smoky cooking fire in the middle of the floor. A tall, broad-shouldered man was lying on one of the pallet beds with his head wrapped in bloody bandages.

“ How are you doing, Dierk? ” asked Marten, slowly and loudly. The big man gave a shaky thumbs-up.

“One of the little beasts clubbed him over the head,” Marten said in a whisper. “He didn’t seem to notice it at the time. Keeled over after they were gone.” He patted Dierk on the arm. “ That’s the spirit, Dierk! ”

A few other battered-looking farm hands were gathered around the fire, and rose to their feet when they saw the visitors. Any hesitation they felt at the sight of their weapons was overcome when they saw Matthias and Meg, and they rushed up to meet them.

“Please,” said Marten, turning his attention to his guests, “have a seat, have some stew. It’s not much, but it’s what we’ve got.” He looked around from face to face. “I must say, it’s about time that Prince Sforza sent someone out this way. Are there… more soldiers, coming with you?”
-Sentinel-
Entering the longhouse, Elsa introduced herself as the court wizard and set Queen Khalida Neferher down on the floor to let her hunt for rodents—assuring everyone that the snake was quite friendly as long as no one stepped on her. She gave Dierk a sympathetic look; she knew that blunt injuries to the head were nasty and that even the Shallyans could hardly do anything about them but pray.

"I must say, it's about time that Prince Sforza sent someone out this way. Are there… more soldiers, coming with you?"

Elsa accepted the bowl of stew and took a first spoonful to give herself the time to think of a diplomatic answer. Ultimately she decided to be frank with Marten.  "I'm afraid we didn't bring more soldiers, no,"  she admitted.  "We were looking for a missing person, not a fight. We killed the goblin chief while the bulk of the clan were gone, but at last count, there's still two or three dozens of the vermin. When I return to Savonne, I'll try to prevail upon the Prince to lend me some men to finish the job." 

By then, Khalida had returned to her mistress, holding a freshly-killed dormouse in her fangs.

 "Has the wyvern been causing trouble in these parts, too?"  Elsa asked Marten.
LCP
The mention of the wyvern set Marten's people muttering among themselves. "The beast in the crags," said the old man. "It's been taking livestock, here and there. We have to keep ours under cover."

"Taking more'n that," said another - a man in his late thirties perhaps, with a thin, drawn face, and the leathery tan of someone used to working outdoors in all weather. "What else happened to the Krebs girl?"

"That was bandits," said one of the others. The lean man shook his head.

"Bandits what leave no tracks?" he said. "You know they say anyone a wyrm's shadow falls across is cursed. I heard the beast flew over the Krebs house while they was all inside, not a week before she up and disappeared." He took a long slurp of his stew. "It'll be the rest of 'em next. One way or t'other."

"Thanks, Stevan," said another - a woman about the same age. "Always the ray of sunshine."

There was some muted laughter, but Bardhyl noticed Ortwin shifting uncomfortably at the mention of the wyvern's curse. He knew it was something the lowlanders in his crew gave credence - the Bretons more than most.
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  
 Spoiler: HillfolkGossip 
"Curious girl, don't you think?" said Wadim, nodding his head just a fraction towards Tatiana. "Wouldn't be surprised if she had some  Vrani  blood in her."
 
 
 

 
 Spoiler: Hillfolk gossip 
 "Could well be. I understand she's Elsa's apprentice, but I don't know if she can actually do any magic,"  Bardhyl replied with a slight shrug.  "She seems a nice enough girl, though, and she's not lacking for courage." 
 


 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  
 Spoiler: HillfolkGossip 
He took in a long breath, looking around at their travelling companions with an air of idle curiosity. "Yes, this is an interesting bunch you've fallen in with, that's for certain. How on earth did you convince them to go chasing goblins in the arse-end of the Teeth?" That one bright eye gave Bardhyl a penetrating look from under its bushy brow. "Surely as far as they knew, I was likely as dead as you."
 
 
 

 
 Spoiler: More Hillfolk gossip 
 "It was easier than I thought,"  he chuckled.  "I heard that Elsa had been up in the Hills, trying to get people to talk about the Jackal, so I made my way to Savonne and put the word out that I'd like to meet her and her friends. Sieghard didn't want to believe that the Jackal is still about, but I made my case and pointed out that if they really wanted to know what the  Vrani  know about him, then they needed to speak to you." 
 "In return for their help in finding you, I offered to help them with a problem of their own. Morr had been sending me dreams of a spirit hiding in the city, a spirit that was looking for something. Turns out it was a  djall , and it had possessed Hieronymous, the high priest of the Temple in Savonne, but Elsa and her friends only suspected that. I was able to prove to them that it was so." 
 "Anyway, to keep a long story short, we drove the  djall  from the priest and vanquished it, but - and this is the worrisome thing - the reason it was in Savonne was that it was trying to find the Book of Nagash! It lies hidden in the city itself!"  he whispered fiercely.
 
rax
 At the farmstead - before stew 
 "You look like a man suffering from an almighty headache,"  Bardhyl knelt down next to Dierk and addressed the big man.  "If you don't mind me asking, has it been getting better or worse? Have you been feeling sick or throwing up? Have you been feeling dizzy since getting hit?" 
 At the farmstead - afternoon tea 
 "Relax, Ortwin, the girl probably just ran away,"  Bardhyl muttered.  "And if we ever run into the wyvern itself, I'll let you take the first shot at it so you can see that it's a living, breathing thing, just like the rest of us. Plenty dangerous even without curses, but if it can bleed, it can be killed, and then...no more curses, aye?" 
 
 Spoiler: LCP 
At some point during the meal, Bardhyl will check out Jarla with his Magical Sense. Let's say that talking about the fight with Tshula has got him thinking again about Jarla's demeanour on leaving Savonne.
 (1d100)[ 11 ]  vs. WP 58
 
RossN
 Jarla - Farmstead 

Jarla was delighted to be introduced first and graciously nodded at Marten.  "Thank you my fine sir. What a welcoming homestead!"  

Her smile faded a little at the sight and sound of the goblin casualties.  "My sympathies,"   she murmured awkwardly. It was hard to escape the dire conditions of these poor people and she tried to seem humble as she accepted a bowl of stew.
LCP
 
 Spoiler: HillfolkGossip 
"The book of  what? " said Wadim. From the urgency of his voice, Bardhyl guessed that ancient name meant something to him too. "Bardhyl, you'll have to forgive an old man who's been out of the sun too long... but what are you talking about?"
 


  "You look like a man suffering from an almighty headache,"  Bardhyl knelt down next to Dierk and addressed the big man.  "If you don't mind me asking, has it been getting better or worse? Have you been feeling sick or throwing up? Have you been feeling dizzy since getting hit?"  

Dierk mumbled something unintelligible that he seemed to think was words.

"He can't stand up," said Stevan, in the same morose monotone with which he'd given his opinion on the wyvern. "Seems pretty dizzy to me."

The woman who had spoken before gave him a jab with her elbow. "It's scarcely been twelve hours since the greenskins ran off," she said. "Hard to say if he's getting better."


  "Relax, Ortwin, the girl probably just ran away,"  Bardhyl muttered.  "And if we ever run into the wyvern itself, I'll let you take the first shot at it so you can see that it's a living, breathing thing, just like the rest of us. Plenty dangerous even without curses, but if it can bleed, it can be killed, and then...no more curses, aye?"  

Ortwin didn't seem too reassured by that. He bobbed his head in a quick nod, and looked away towards the door.

 
 Spoiler: BardhylOnly 
Offering a silent prayer to Morr over his bowl of stew, Bardhyl kept one eye surreptitiously on Jarla as they ate. The smoke from Marten's cookfire rose up between them. In its thin billows, Bardhyl thought the noblewoman's face looked different - as if, just for a moment, it was another woman entirely sitting on the other side of the fire. Then the image dissolved, and Jarla was Jarla again.
 
rax
 
 Spoiler: Hillfolk Gossip 
 "The Book of  Nagash  - that's what they called it. A tool of the Jackal form their own accounts and one he wants back. They have it buried somewhere in the castle in Savonne, locked in a dwarf-made chest and guarded by the Prince's men. The  djall  tried very hard to bargain for it when she was discovered,"  Bardhyl explained.
 

 "I see,"  Bardhyl replied.  "I have some experience patching up war wounds. If you like, I could take a closer look at your man here,"  he offered the woman.

 
 Spoiler: LCP 
 OOC:  Is it safe to assume that Wadim has Magical Sense as well? If so, Bardhyl will ask him to take a look at Jarla as well.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard thanked their hosts and sat down with his bowl. " Have the hill goblins always been so aggressive? " he asked. " I'm sure there's always some danger from them, but does it seem like it's gotten worse lately? "
LCP
 
 Spoiler: HillfolkGossip 
"A tool of the Jackal," said Wadim. He fell silent for a little while. "A lot to catch up with. This book... where was he keeping it hidden away before your friends here found it?"
 


  "I have some experience patching up war wounds. If you like, I could take a closer look at your man here,"  he offered the woman. 

Marten's people looked at one another.

"Don't know what there is you can do," said Marten, "but if you're willing to try, we'll be much obliged for it."


 " Have the hill goblins always been so aggressive? " he asked. " I'm sure there's always some danger from them, but does it seem like it's gotten worse lately? " 

Marten nodded. "They never used to come this far down off the hills," he said. "Not in these numbers, anyway. People said it was worse in the south, nearer the marshes, but even then..." He trailed off. "Scavengers, not raiders."

Sieghard noticed that Bardhyl and Wadim were whispering something to each other in the hillfolk language. Already they seemed thick as thieves - at least, Bardhyl didn't seem disconcerted by how much the old man reeked.

"Your, um, friends," said Marten, who'd noticed it too. "They... work for the prince, as well?" He coughed. "There's an old tub in the back, if any of you want a wash after... after the road."

 
 Spoiler: BardhylOnly 
When Bardhyl drew Wadim's attention to Jarla, the old man didn't look at her straight away. When he did, the glance was sideways and fleeting, calculated not to draw attention.

"I see a woman there who casts more than one shadow," said Wadim. "What do you know about her?"
 
-Sentinel-
"Your, um, friends," said Marten. "They... work for the prince, as well?"

 "They don't,"  said Elsa.  "The older gentleman, we just rescued from the goblins. He'd been their prisoner much longer than Meg and Matthias, which explains... er...  it ." 

"There's an old tub in the back, if any of you want a wash after... after the road."

Elsa smirked at Marten's cautious request to bathe Wadim.  "I can think of some among us who'll appreciate it. Got a few clothes to spare too? Maybe something that belonged to poor Gismar? Some shears as well..." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
We're not that late in the day. Are we planning to stay the night, or continue while there's daylight? I don't mind either way, but maybe Wadim could use a bit of rest.
 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  
 Spoiler: HillfolkGossip 
"A tool of the Jackal," said Wadim. He fell silent for a little while. "A lot to catch up with. This book... where was he keeping it hidden away before your friends here found it?"
 
 
 

 
 Spoiler: Hillfolk Gossip 
 "I don't know, exactly. The  djall  said that the book had been in a library, where it was hidden from its master's eyes. From the context, I believe that was a reference to this Nagash - the  djall  spoke of the Jackal as his hound. How it came to be in Savonne isn't something I've wanted to dig into too deeply just yet, but I don't doubt that Elsa and the others had a hand in it. They complain a lot about getting into trouble all the time for trying to do the right thing,"  he chuckled.
 


 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 Marten's people looked at one another.

"Don't know what there is you can do," said Marten, "but if you're willing to try, we'll be much obliged for it." 
 

 Bardhyl nodded in reply.  "Wadim - a little help?"  he said to the old man in  Vranspel  before inspecting Dierk's head wound to see if he could determine how bad it was and whether there was anything he could do to help.

 OOC:  Heal check  (1d100)[ 57 ]  vs. Int 44 (plus any bonus from Wadim)


 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  
 Spoiler: BardhylOnly 
When Bardhyl drew Wadim's attention to Jarla, the old man didn't look at her straight away. When he did, the glance was sideways and fleeting, calculated not to draw attention.

"I see a woman there who casts more than one shadow," said Wadim. "What do you know about her?"
 
 
 

 
 Spoiler: LCP 
 "She's lady-in-waiting to Sforza's wife and the sister of a Verenan priest who used to travel with this lot. Adelbert, I think his name was? "

 "At Hieronymus' house, where we confronted the  djall , she passed out suddenly when it abandoned the priest, but when she awoke she was the first to strike the body snatcher's  flame form with her sword. The  djall  presented itself as woman, but when it was inside Hieronymus I could not see it directly - only fiery sparks from where it held a door showed that there was more going on than met the eye. This feels different,"  Bardhyl reasoned.

 "But...there was one other in the house. Hieronymus kept a skull in a box and its spirit had not passed on to Morr's realm. The others called it Meshkenet - they claimed she was once a librarian among the lowlander invaders who summoned the Jackal to the Reaches. She had attempted to use the Book of Nagash to save her people from greenskins, but the book turned all her people into the living dead instead. I confronted them for harbouring a creature of the Jackal in their midst, but they were adamant that this woman had told them how they could kill the Jackal, so I let it drop. She seemed to be sleeping - dreaming - when we left the building." 
 
LCP
 
 Spoiler: HillfolkGossip 
"Mm," said Wadim, his gaze straying back to the others. "But the right thing  by whom , that's the question."

He trailed off, seeming lost in his own thoughts. "Much to think about," he muttered to himself after a lengthy pause. "Much to see."
 


Unwrapping Dierk's crude bandages, Bardhyl could see the left side of his forehead was one enormous bruise. Wadim stooped down next to him to examine it.

&lt; Looks like he took quite a whack, &gt; said the Raven Speaker. &lt; You've seen those clubs the goblins use? Almost as big as themselves. &gt;

Very gingerly, he reached out and touched the bruised flesh. Dierk gave a low groan, like someone being woken from the world's worst hangover.

&lt; Don't think there's much we can do for this fellow, unless you want to cut a hole in his head, &gt; said Wadim. &lt; You see right there? &gt; He pointed to where the bruising was darkest. &lt; That feels like a fracture to me. Either he's strong enough for the skull to heal, or it kills him. &gt; He glanced back towards the anxious faces of the farmers. &lt; Of course, we could still offer them some medicine. To set their minds at ease. &gt;

Bardhyl's own assessment agreed with Wadim's - he knew of nothing that would help Dierk's recovery except rest and the grace of the gods.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Bardhyl knows that Wadim's suggestion of offering a placebo isn't out of character - it's the kind of trick he would have taught him before his exile.
 


 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
 Elsa smirked at Marten's cautious request to bathe Wadim.  "I can think of some among us who'll appreciate it. Got a few clothes to spare too? Maybe something that belonged to poor Gismar? Some shears as well..."  
 

"Well, you're welcome to the tub," said Marten. "The well's in the yard."

Wadim didn't seem to have heard, or if he had, he didn't acknowledge Elsa's not-so-subtle comments. He was engaged in another muttered conversation with Bardhyl. The two  vrani  certainly seemed to have a lot to discuss. Jarla thought for a moment she saw the old man looking at her - and had they said the name  Adelbert ?

 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl&amp;Wadim 
"You  have  been busy, haven't you?" was Wadim's response to Bardhyl's tale. "Talking skulls, women made of fire... if I didn't know you better, I'd think you were spinning me a yarn."

His eye darted back to Jarla. "Let's keep an eye on her for now, eh? Whatever spirit haunts her, I'm sure we can persuade it to show itself soon enough."
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Frankly Jarla would have welcomed a bath of her own but she caught Elsa's expression and bit her tongue, amused at the thought of Wadim turning the water brackish if anyone thought to give him a bath.

Glancing his way she was surprised to see him conspiring with Bardhyl - and gasped when she heard the slip of a very familiar name. Standing up from her seat she moved over and gave the duo a ferocious look Irene herself might have envied.  "What is this about my brother?" 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 Unwrapping Dierk's crude bandages, Bardhyl could see the left side of his forehead was one enormous bruise. Wadim stooped down next to him to examine it.

&lt; Looks like he took quite a whack, &gt; said the Raven Speaker. &lt; You've seen those clubs the goblins use? Almost as big as themselves. &gt;

Very gingerly, he reached out and touched the bruised flesh. Dierk gave a low groan, like someone being woken from the world's worst hangover.

&lt; Don't think there's much we can do for this fellow, unless you want to cut a hole in his head, &gt; said Wadim. &lt; You see right there? &gt; He pointed to where the bruising was darkest. &lt; That feels like a fracture to me. Either he's strong enough for the skull to heal, or it kills him. &gt; He glanced back towards the anxious faces of the farmers. &lt; Of course, we could still offer them some medicine. To set their minds at ease. &gt;

Bardhyl's own assessment agreed with Wadim's - he knew of nothing that would help Dierk's recovery except rest and the grace of the gods. 
 

 &lt; "Unless you're hiding something in those rags of yours, I've got nothing on me in the way of medicine," &gt;  Bardhyl replied with a shake of his head.

 "I'm sorry, but there's nothing we can do for Dierk with what we have on hand. The blow fractured his skull, which I'm sure you already know is a serious injury. Your man seems a sturdy fellow, though, so there's hope that the fracture will heal by itself, but he needs plenty of rest to do that. If you know of any herbs growing nearby which can dull pain, that will help him rest. Other than that he needs food and drink to let his body do the work - a prayer or two wouldn't hurt either, " he reported to the farmers in Reikspiel.


 
 Originally Posted by RossN 
 Glancing his way she was surprised to see him conspiring with Bardhyl - and gasped when she heard the slip of a very familiar name. Standing up from her seat she moved over and gave the duo a ferocious look Irene herself might have envied.  "What is this about my brother?"  
 

 "Ah, I am sorry, Lady Schreiber, it was rude of me to speak in an unfamiliar tongue. Force of habit when speaking with a fellow  Vrani , I'm afraid. I was merely filling in Wadim on who you are. I was saying that I'd heard that your brother once travelled with the others here and that his name was Adelbert,"  Bardhyl apologised.  "I shall endeavour to mind my manners better in the future!" 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "Well, you're welcome to the tub," said Marten. "The well's in the yard."

Wadim didn't seem to have heard, or if he had, he didn't acknowledge Elsa's not-so-subtle comments. He was engaged in another muttered conversation with Bardhyl. The two  vrani  certainly seemed to have a lot to discuss. 
 

  "Did you hear that, old man? There's a tub out back with your name on it. For all our sakes, get out there and get cleaned up. You stink like a goblin's armpit!"  Bardhyl broke off the discussion and loudly proclaimed his opinion for all to hear.
RossN
 Jarla 

 
 Originally Posted by rax 
  "Ah, I am sorry, Lady Schreiber, it was rude of me to speak in an unfamiliar tongue. Force of habit when speaking with a fellow  Vrani , I'm afraid. I was merely filling in Wadim on who you are. I was saying that I'd heard that your brother once travelled with the others here and that his name was Adelbert,"  Bardhyl apologised.  "I shall endeavour to mind my manners better in the future!"  
 

Jarla raised an elegant copper brow at that but after a moment smiled and nodded.  "I see well thank you."  Her blue eyes flicked over to Wadim.  "As it happens Adelbert did mention a Norscan barbarian he had known who you may have known. Kelda. I believe she is dead now, but when I heard you mention Adelbert's name, I wondered whether she and he had... well you know and that she had....?" 

She trailed off, obviously not sure how exactly to phrase it.
-Sentinel-
Elsa guffawed.  "Oh, gods, no. We only met Kelda a few times. She made quite an impression, though." 
 "Adelbert did have a lover, once. I'll tell you about it later."  This did not seem like a conversation for this time, place and company.

She picked up Khalida from the floor. The snake's body was now slightly deformed from the mouse making its way through her digestive tract.

 "So what do we do now?"  she asked, addressing the rest of her group but especially Wadim, whose legs looked so wasted that it was a wonder he could stand at all, let alone travel.  "Should we stay the night, or make the best of daylight to push on?" 
LCP
  "Did you hear that, old man? There's a tub out back with your name on it. For all our sakes, get out there and get cleaned up. You stink like a goblin's armpit!"  

“I do?” said Wadim, sounding genuinely surprised. He looked down at his matted beard. “I suppose I must. You get used to it, you know.”

Getting shakily to his feet, he clapped Bardhyl on the shoulder with one grimy hand. “Very kind of you, to volunteer to help an old man.” He stretched, pushing his knuckles into the small of his bent back. “I’m sure it won’t take more than a few buckets’ worth from the well.”

Bardhyl’s men watched with some interest to see what their chief would say. It wasn’t every day that they heard someone speak to him that way.


  "As it happens Adelbert did mention a Norscan barbarian he had known who you may have known. Kelda. I believe she is dead now, but when I heard you mention Adelbert's name, I wondered whether she and he had... well you know and that she had....?"  

Wadim didn’t seem to share Elsa’s amusement at the question. His answer was serious and sincere.

“I knew Kelda Wave-Born,” he said. “I don’t believe I ever heard her mention your brother… but you know, that wasn’t the kind of thing she often discussed with me.”

“I’m sorry to hear she is dead.” He dropped his gaze, looking down into the fire. “How did she die? Fighting, alongside the Jarl?”


  "Should we stay the night, or make the best of daylight to push on?"  

“Personally, I’d appreciate the rest,” said Wadim. “That is, if it’s not abusing Herr Marten’s hospitality.”

“Well… we don’t have beds for all of you,” said Marten, “but we can find you some space that’s under a roof.”

“And who said the lowlanders were not generous?” said Wadim. “I’m sure if the goblins return, my friends here will be able to repay your kindness.”

“No need to talk of that,” said Marten. He didn’t seem to know what to make of Wadim’s comment about ‘lowlanders’, but kept his good humour all the same. “Not when you brought two of our own back to us.”

“As you say,” said the Raven Speaker. He waved a gnarled hand towards the low beams of the roof. “Morr’s blessings upon this house.”

With those parting words, he shuffled off in search of the well and the tub. Stevan leaned over and whispered to Meg:

“  He some kind of priest?  ”

Meg just spread her hands and shrugged.


 

 Backertag, 8th Sigmarzeit 

Their night under Marten’s roof was much more restful than the one they’d spent on the hillside. Though they kept their weapons close to hand, the goblins kept clear of the farmstead. The first sound to wake them was the crow of a rooster announcing the dawn.

“You will tell his Highness about what’s going on out here, won’t you?” Marten anxiously asked, as they were packing their things to leave. “It was on his word we came back this way. The edict - they said it was safe.” He hesitated, seeming to think for a moment he had said the wrong thing. “N-not that I’m making accusations, mind. Just thinking he, uh, he needs to know.”

Wadim, meanwhile, had emerged from his bath looking like a new man. Gone were the layers of grime, the natural colour of his skin shining through like old teak. Even his filthy rags were gone, replaced with some plain woollen clothes that had belonged to the late Gismar. They were far too large for him, hanging very loose around his wasted limbs - but it was still a huge step up.

He had kept hold of his walking-stick from yesterday, and seemed alert and ready to go. Bardhyl knew the old man had been awake before the sunrise - Wadim had already been out in the yard when he’d first stepped outside, fully dressed and watching the last stars fade from view in the west.

 ~ 
It was a long day’s march back to the northern foothills where Bardhyl’s band kept their hideout. A rustling in the undergrowth betrayed the presence of the sentries, who made themselves known quickly enough. Back at the cave, Grim and the others were waiting, sharing bits of roast rock dove around a low fire.

The other two  vrani  in the outlaw band gawped openly when they saw Wadim’s face among the returning troop. He didn’t seem to mind the attention - instead, he just smiled at the new faces and took a seat on a handy rock, stretching out his tired legs as if he were already at home.
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 “I’m sorry to hear she is dead.” He dropped his gaze, looking down into the fire. “How did she die? Fighting, alongside the Jarl?” 
 

Noticing Wadim's somber gaze, Elsa stopped smiling.  "She did. She fought her last battle in her wolf form. I'm afraid I was on the opposite side of that battle. But I made sure she had a proper burial."  Wadim did not strictly need to know that Kelda had died at Elsa's hands.  "I regret it had to be this way. I met her only a couple of times beforehand, but I felt a kinship with her. I'd like to think the feeling was mutual. War makes enemies out of people who'd be friends under other circumstances." 

She did not avail herself of the bathtub, having a phobia of water like most pyromancers, but she wiped herself with a wet rag, commandeering Sieghard's help for the spots that were harder to reach. She spent most of the evening playing dice with their hosts and encouraged Tatiana to befriend Matthias.



 

 Backertag, 8th Sigmarzeit 

 “You will tell his Highness about what’s going on out here, won’t you?” Marten anxiously asked, as they were packing their things to leave. “It was on his word we came back this way. The edict - they said it was safe.” He hesitated, seeming to think for a moment he had said the wrong thing. “N-not that I’m making accusations, mind. Just thinking he, uh, he needs to know.” 

 "I'll pester him about it,"  swore Elsa with utmost sincerity.  "I know he's been down south lately, and his man in Savonne only cares about the columns of numbers in his ledgers, but he returned recently, and he'll  have  to listen to me." 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 Getting shakily to his feet, he clapped Bardhyl on the shoulder with one grimy hand. “Very kind of you, to volunteer to help an old man.” He stretched, pushing his knuckles into the small of his bent back. “I’m sure it won’t take more than a few buckets’ worth from the well.”

Bardhyl’s men watched with some interest to see what their chief would say. It wasn’t every day that they heard someone speak to him that way. 
 

  "Oh, did your arms wither as well as your mind while you were relaxing with the greenskins?"  Bardhyl shot back, then threw his hands in the air in mock despair.  "Fine, but once you're in the tub, I'm staying at least three feet clear. There's probably funguses growing all over you..."  he grimaced.

 
 Spoiler: Speaking privately to Wadim while he's bathing 
 "So you said you met the Jackal himself? Want to give me the details on what happened?"  asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.
 


 

 Backertag, 8th Sigmarzeit 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 It was a long day’s march back to the northern foothills where Bardhyl’s band kept their hideout. A rustling in the undergrowth betrayed the presence of the sentries, who made themselves known quickly enough. Back at the cave, Grim and the others were waiting, sharing bits of roast rock dove around a low fire.

The other two  vrani  in the outlaw band gawped openly when they saw Wadim’s face among the returning troop. He didn’t seem to mind the attention - instead, he just smiled at the new faces and took a seat on a handy rock, stretching out his tired legs as if he were already at home. 
 

  "Make yourself at home, why don't you,"  Bardhyl grumbled as Wadim strode into the cave like he owned the place.  "Everyone, our search is over. This is Wadim, Raven Speaker of the  vrani ,"  he introduced the old man unceremoniously.

 "Did Damjan make it back safely?"  he asked Grim.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard held his tongue during the talk about Kelda. He didn't share Elsa's fondness for the Norscan woman. She knew that and so did Ludo. To the others, it would've meant nothing or been against their interests to dig up old enmities. Even so, he didn't hide the look of distaste he had while the others talked.


 


" If he's making himself comfortable, " Sieghard said. " Then maybe it's a good time to start telling us what he knows about the Jackal. " He took a seat near the fire and began undoing the straps on his armor. " We were told the Jackal was slain by a dwarfen spear... The first time, " he clarified. " But from your reaction when Elsa told you we had it in Nath, I'm wondering if the story you know is different. "
LCP
 7th Sigmarzeit 
 
 Spoiler: Bathtime 
Wadim didn't seem the least bit self-conscious about peeling off his filthy rags while Bardhyl filled the tub. Perhaps his year with the goblins had cured him of any sense of indignity.


  "So you said you met the Jackal himself? Want to give me the details on what happened?"  asked, his curiosity getting the better of him. 

Wadim looked at his old pupil, and for the first time since they had found him, Bardhyl saw in the old man's eyes a glimpse of the scars his experiences had left him with.

"It happened as I said," he said. "What more is there you want to know?"
 


 

 8th Sigmarzeit 

  "Did Damjan make it back safely?"  he asked Grim. 

Grim nodded, and by a small motion of his head indicated that Damjan was in the back.


 " We were told the Jackal was slain by a dwarfen spear... The first time, " he clarified. " But from your reaction when Elsa told you we had it in Nath, I'm wondering if the story you know is different. " 

"Well," said Wadim, "the story I know is the same one Bardhyl does. I take it he hasn’t given you his version? All you’re getting with me is a better storyteller,” he added, with a dry chuckle.

He took a long pause, judging his next words carefully. “I’m older than I’d care to say,” he began at last, “and for most of my life I’ve been walking these lands listening to stories about the Jackal. But I’d never heard about your magic spear before you told me. I don’t know who told you its story, or where they heard it from, but whoever told it first… well, I’d say that claiming the Jackal was dead and gone probably seemed like a good excuse for forgetting him. And the lowlanders have always been keen to forget.”

He leaned in closer to the fire, rubbing his hands together in front of him. “We  vrani  have never forgotten. We know Nahorek has been with us every day since they brought him here." The hillfolk among Bardhyl’s men flinched a little when he said the name, and Kreshnik spat into the fire. “It was Morr who chained him, and the day was always going to come when that chain broke. It was our duty to be ready.” Another long pause. “What you say gives me some small hope, that we have not  quite  failed. Not yet, anyway.”
-Sentinel-
 8th Sigmarzeit 

 “I’m older than I’d care to say,” he began at last, “and for most of my life I’ve been walking these lands listening to stories about the Jackal. But I’d never heard about your magic spear before you told me. I don’t know who told you its story, or where they heard it from, but whoever told it first… well, I’d say that claiming the Jackal was dead and gone probably seemed like a good excuse for forgetting him. And the lowlanders have always been keen to forget.” 

 "Perhaps you should meet old Skorgrund of the Dwimmulson clan,"  Elsa suggested, sitting cross-legged by the fire.  "Lowlanders may be keen to forget, but the dwarfs don't forget anything,  ever . They're the ones who forged the spear long ago and imbued it with vengeful rune magic. They've hated the Jackal for just as long as the Vrani have. They call him Varag Kol." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard nodded. " We heard it from someone far older than you, " he said, knowing the implication would be one of the dwarfs. " And after wielding the thing, I'm convinced it's true. I fought the Jackal with the dwarf spear and... it's hard to describe, but it's like the spear  wanted  to kill him. Like every time the Jackal tried to sidestep my attack, it moved on its own, faster than I could react myself. It never did that against any other foe. "
rax
 7th Sigmarzeit 
 
 Spoiler: Bathtime 
 "You said you went out there  by yourself  to challenge  the Jackal ,"  Bardhyl retorted hotly, his tone wavering somewhere between anger and concern.  "What were you  thinking ? Surely you had some sort of plan? How did you plan to defeat him?" 
 
LCP
 7th Sigmarzeit 
 
 Spoiler: Bathtime 
"I didn't," said Wadim. He had a knack for being infuriating, with that blank tone of his. Bardhyl remembered it all too well. "I went to stop the man from the north. I arrived too late."
 


 

 8th Sigmarzeit 

  "They've hated the Jackal for just as long as the Vrani have. They call him Varag Kol."  

"Just as long?" said Wadim. The corner of his mouth curled in something that could have been a smile. "Not quite as long, I think. And you know, sometimes a small difference can be all the difference in the world."

Adjusting his borrowed cloak, he looked across to Sieghard. "I don't doubt what you say. I'd like to see this weapon for myself, if I can." He cleared his throat. "But you were asking me what I know. I know two things. The first is, never trust a dwarf with the glint of gold in his eye. The second is, the Jackal lives."

A breath of wind gusted through the mouth of the cave, stirring the fire to crackle a little louder.

"We can talk about... myths, and legends, until the moons come up again tomorrow night," said Wadim, "but you say I have the man in front of me who held this spear in his own hand, and used it to strike him down. Forget the stories." He fixed Sieghard with a long look. "What do your own eyes say?"
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard gave Wadim a look, unsure what the old man was getting at.

" I'm no priest or wizard and I've not been to the Raven Hills nor seen the Pale Waste since then, " he said. " I saw his body turned to ash and dust. Any man would call that dead, but dead didn't stop his man Klammenberg from bringing him back the first time and Mala is still out there as well. "
LCP
"Klammenberg?" said Wadim. He looked to Bardhyl. "The man from the north? I met him, on the desert road. A pawn in the Jackal's game... though I don't think he believed it. Nothing more dangerous for a clever man than thinking himself  too  clever, hm?" He paused for a moment, the recollection seeming to draw his attention away. "...This Mala I don't know. But I suppose it should be no surprise that he would find others willing to serve him."

The old man shuffled a little closer to the fire. "Either way," he said, "it sounds to me like you know better than anyone living what this spear of yours can do. You've seen it." He fixed his beady eye on Sieghard. "So what's the question, here?"
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" The question, " Sieghard said, starting to grow a bit irritated, " Is how to make sure the Jackal stays dead and can't trouble the living. If running him through isn't enough, then what did they do different last time? "
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  7th Sigmarzeit 
 
 Spoiler: Bathtime 
"I didn't," said Wadim. He had a knack for being infuriating, with that blank tone of his. Bardhyl remembered it all too well. "I went to stop the man from the north. I arrived too late."
 
 
 

  
 Spoiler: Bathtime 
 "Fine, so it was an accident,"  Bardhyl muttered through gritted teeth.  "Did you turn tail and run straight away or did you speak to any of them?" 
 "And you said before that you've seen what's gathering out in the desert. What is it? When did you see it?" 
 
LCP
 7th Sigmarzeit 
 
 Spoiler: Bathtime 

  "Fine, so it was an accident,"  Bardhyl muttered through gritted teeth.  "Did you turn tail and run straight away or did you speak to any of them?"  

"I tried to stop them," said Wadim. "They had just stumbled out of the desert. The thing they'd brought back with them was starving, half-mad. Newly let back into the world, still hiding from the sun." He sounded defeated. "I thought... I thought there might have been an outside chance that it would work."


  "And you said before that you've seen what's gathering out in the desert. What is it? When did you see it?"  

"The night of the blood moon," said Wadim. "The goblins took me up to the peaks. As for what I saw... I could tell you. Or you could come up there with me yourself, and I can show you. Perhaps Morr will show you something he did not reveal to me."

Wadim's manner became very grave. "The Jackal's tomb is open, Bardhyl," he said. "His prison has become his throne... and I fear that is only the start."
 


 

 8th Sigmarzeit 

Wadim leaned forward, so close to the fire it seemed he would singe his beard. The reflection of the flames danced in his good eye.

"What makes you so certain that what  they  did before worked any better?" he asked, quietly. "You want him quiet in the grave? Not to trouble the living? He's been troubling the living for thousands of years."

He leaned back again, taking a good look around. "You said you were wondering about the story we know," he said at last. "We  vrani  don't have much left but our stories. We don't share them lightly. But I'll give you the short version, all the same." He took a deep inward breath, and closed his eye. "Nahorek the Jackal did not come to these lands by chance. He came because he was called."

"When the first of the lowlander princes came here from the south, they found our lands ripe for the taking. They had sharper swords, and faster horses, and they bought the loyalty of the dwarfs with gold. They took our herds and our green fields, and they drove us up into the hills. But when they found that there was nothing more they could take - when they found that the sons and daughters of the raven would fight twice as hard for every yard they drove us back - they began to fear the day that their strength would fail, and we would take back what they had stolen. They knew our god was on our side, so in their fear, and their greed, they called up his shadow. Not Morr the patient, the welcome, the inevitable, but Nahorek, the hungry, the thirsting, and the insatiable. And only when he had slaughtered all their enemies, and forced our ancestors deep into hiding, did they stop to think that his thirst for death would not end with us."

"So, they betrayed their own god. Turned on him before he could turn on them. And the Jackal, in his rage, cursed them for the traitors they were. He would have drunk the life from every soul in the Reaches, had Morr himself not intervened to cast him down, and bind him in a prison beneath the earth."

"Of course, the Jackal is Morr's shadow, and you cannot kill your shadow. For as long as the lowlanders ruled, the Jackal's curse would endure, even chained and wounded as he was. He would drink the life from out of the land, and every drop of blood they spilt on Morr's soil would go to restore his strength, until the day he was strong enough to snap his chains, and take his revenge. Until in time, the very stones of his prison would turn the colour of blood."

Wadim exhaled and fell quiet, seeming to listen for a while only to the crackling of the fire. "Our stories don't speak of exactly how it was the lowlanders stabbed their god in the back," he said at last, "but I'd wager your spear has something to do with it. And no weapon made by mortals can kill a god. Suppose you did send him back, though - back to the underworld. Come with me up to the top of those peaks, and I'll show you why that won't stick." He waited a beat, as if watching to see if any of them would get there ahead of him. "The grave you want him to stay quiet in. The Red Pyramid. Morr's prison is broken open."
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "The grave you want him to stay quiet in. The Red Pyramid. Morr's prison is broken open." 
 

 "So we've heard from the dwarfs,"  said Elsa.  "They sent an expedition there. Only two returned. I really don't know what can be  done  about the pyramid now. Are there even enough stoneworkers in the Reaches? Can they work in the conditions of the Pale Waste?" 

She brought her waterskin to her lips to get a gulp, as if merely mentioning the Waste had made her mouth dry.

 "What I do know,"  she added,  "is that Nahorek isn't the counterpart of Morr. Morr would find that insulting. The Jackal is a child of W'soran... in other words, an underling's underling. Not Nagash's apprentice, or advisor, or lover... his  hound . I doubt anyone outside the Reaches know of him. He may seem a god, but in the grand scheme of things, he's just a big fish in a small pond." 

She supposed this was the way of the Reaches. A mercenary officer could capture a few hamlets and call himself a lord, just as a vampire could claim dominion over an area smaller than the Moot and call himself a god.

 "What matters now, beyond the Jackal's nature and motives, is what's to be done next. You say his curse would endure for as long as the lowlanders ruled the Reaches. But even if we were to believe you... because the gods know  many  peoples all over the world have their own self-serving myths about how this land or that land belongs to them... I fear that breaking the lowlanders' power is well beyond our capabilities." 
LCP
Elsa found herself the centre of a circle of unfriendly stares. Most of Bardhyl's band weren't  vrani , but there were enough of them for her words to make the atmosphere around the fire feel quite awkward indeed.

Wadim seemed unperturbed. "You seem very certain about what Morr thinks," he said. "Perhaps you should have been the Raven Speaker, and I should have been the wizard." A crooked smile crossed his face. "Mm. Or maybe it's for the best that I'm not."

"You don't believe my story. That's your choice. For me, as I said, I've heard many stories in my time. One of the things I've learned is that there can be more than one truth. Suppose everything you say is true... about Nagash, and Uzoran, and the rest. Nahorek can be all that, and be Morr's shadow all the same."  He squinted at Elsa. "You're from the Empire, yes? What was your Sigmar, if not both man  and  god?"

"That's what this all comes down to in the end. You're asking me a question, but there's only one kind of answer you want to hear. Forge a sharper spear, build a higher wall... things that your prince's power can achieve. And for that, he has to be mortal, doesn't he?" He let the question hang in the air. "Because if he  does  represent divine judgement - a test from Morr - then all the blood and gold in the Reaches won't be enough to turn him away. Because then, those who rule might have to reckon with  themselves , rather than looking for someone else to bear the burden."

"I don't expect you to believe me. Who'd take the word of a broken old man, eh?" he said. "But my offer stands. Come with me up to the crags, and I'll show you what I've seen. Or at the very least, I'll try."
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla was feeling very lost in all this conversation, lacking either the sheer experience with Nahorek her friends had or the spiritual knowledge Wadim had. Still she felt she had to say something and grasped for something she felt she did know.

 "Sigmar isn't the only man who became a god,"  she said, glancing at Elsa and Wadim.  "Ranald did it too or so they say by tricking Shallya - and a Marienburger once told me Handrich bought his godhood." 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  7th Sigmarzeit 
 
 Spoiler: Bathtime 


"I tried to stop them," said Wadim. "They had just stumbled out of the desert. The thing they'd brought back with them was starving, half-mad. Newly let back into the world, still hiding from the sun." He sounded defeated. "I thought... I thought there might have been an outside chance that it would work."

"The night of the blood moon," said Wadim. "The goblins took me up to the peaks. As for what I saw... I could tell you. Or you could come up there with me yourself, and I can show you. Perhaps Morr will show you something he did not reveal to me."

Wadim's manner became very grave. "The Jackal's tomb is open, Bardhyl," he said. "His prison has become his throne... and I fear that is only the start."
 
 
 

  
 Spoiler: Bathtime 
Bardhyl nodded slowly.  "I suspected as much. The sickness, the drought - it's been clear for some time that the Jackal is still abroad in some manner." 
 "I'll go with you, though Morr hasn't seen fit to show me anything about the Jackal for some time now. Perhaps he was waiting for us to bring you back, eh?"  he chuckled, but his expression was grave.
 


 

 8th Sigmarzeit 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 Wadim exhaled and fell quiet, seeming to listen for a while only to the crackling of the fire. "Our stories don't speak of exactly how it was the lowlanders stabbed their god in the back," he said at last, "but I'd wager your spear has something to do with it. And no weapon made by mortals can kill a god. Suppose you did send him back, though - back to the underworld. Come with me up to the top of those peaks, and I'll show you why that won't stick." He waited a beat, as if watching to see if any of them would get there ahead of him. "The grave you want him to stay quiet in. The Red Pyramid. Morr's prison is broken open." 
 


 
 Originally Posted by Sentinel 
  "So we've heard from the dwarfs,"  said Elsa.  "They sent an expedition there. Only two returned. I really don't know what can be done about the pyramid now. Are there even enough stoneworkers in the Reaches? Can they work in the conditions of the Pale Waste?" 
...
 "What matters now, beyond the Jackal's nature and motives, is what's to be done next. You say his curse would endure for as long as the lowlanders ruled the Reaches. But even if we were to believe you... because the gods know many peoples all over the world have their own self-serving myths about how this land or that land belongs to them... I fear that breaking the lowlanders' power is well beyond our capabilities."  
 

 "The dwarfs are great builders, no doubt about it, but did they build the Red Pyramid? Would they  know  how to seal it back up, even if they had the strength to do so?"  Bardhyl queried, his thoughts too intent on the problem before them to protest Elsa's off-hand dismissal of thousands of years of  vrani  lore.

 "It seems to me that you are quick to jump to conclusions, Magister,"  Bardhyl interjected.  "There have been many lowlander invaders over the years, but it who is to say that they are all the same when it comes to jackals and curses, hmm? Perhaps it isn't your precious Prince's power that must be broken, but that of the original invaders - those who summoned the Jackal in the first place?"  he mused.
-Sentinel-
"You're from the Empire, yes? What was your Sigmar, if not both man  and  god?"

 "He was,"  said Elsa.  "And while still a mortal man, he battled the Great Necromancer and turned him to dust. It didn't destroy Nagash forever, but it did buy the northern realms some precious time. I'd never claim to be the equal of Sigmar, but neither do I believe that Nahorek is the equal of Nagash, let alone that he's a god."

"I've pitted my magic against the Jackal's. He unraveled some of my spells, and I, some of his. He's a lot stronger than I am, but only in the way that an adult is stronger than a child." 


"I don't expect you to believe me. Who'd take the word of a broken old man, eh?" he said. "But my offer stands. Come with me up to the crags, and I'll show you what I've seen. Or at the very least, I'll try."

Elsa seemed to seriously consider it.  "I'm tempted. I really am. But I did promise those kindly farmers that I'd see to their safety. Perhaps I'll take you up on your offer someday, but not right now." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" A god shouldn't have trouble killing a few meddlesome mortals. Four times we faced the Jackal and yet we're still here. I won't deny that he's dangerous and incredibly powerful, but he's no god. "

 "I'm tempted. I really am. But I did promise those kindly farmers that I'd see to their safety. Perhaps I'll take you up on your offer someday, but not right now." 

" Go, " he suggested. " I'll tell the prince. "  I wouldn't expect much from him though. 
LeSwordfish
 "I'll come with you,"  Ludo said, staring into the fire, a thousand miles away.  "I want to see."

"What opened it? Was it the comet?" 
LCP
  "I'd never claim to be the equal of Sigmar, but neither do I believe that Nahorek is the equal of Nagash, let alone that he's a god."

"I've pitted my magic against the Jackal's. He unraveled some of my spells, and I, some of his. He's a lot stronger than I am, but only in the way that an adult is stronger than a child."  

"On the Silver Falls, they worship a goddess of the river," said Wadim. "And in the Elmwood, they worship a god of the trees. I don't think either of them have done any mighty feats for your histories, but without the river, the Reaches would wither, and without the trees, the shepherds of the valley would still be living in holes dug out of the mud. There's more to being a god than who can beat who in a fight. Otherwise, there'd only be one god left."

"I've met the husk in which the Jackal walks, just as you have - though I wasn't so successful in my attempt to challenge him. A hungry shadow wrapped around a dead man's bones. Call him what you want - god, spirit, sorcerer - you've fought the bones, but you don't know how to fight the shadow.” His gaze drifted back to the fire. “The shadow of death. All the arms and armies in the Reaches can only make it stronger.”


  "The dwarfs are great builders, no doubt about it, but did they build the Red Pyramid? Would they  know  how to seal it back up, even if they had the strength to do so?"  

“It was Morr who sealed him beneath the pyramid, not the dwarfs,” said Wadim. “Only Morr can put him back.”


  "There have been many lowlander invaders over the years, but it who is to say that they are all the same when it comes to jackals and curses, hmm? Perhaps it isn't your precious Prince's power that must be broken, but that of the original invaders - those who summoned the Jackal in the first place?"  

“Their power was broken long ago,” said Wadim. “Answer me this - who was the last lord of the lowlands to die peacefully in their bed? Every father leaves poorer lands to his sons, and every year a little more of our green hills disappears into the Waste." He shook his head. "The curse is still with us. Of that, I'm certain."


  "I'll come with you,"  Ludo said, staring into the fire, a thousand miles away.  "I want to see."

"What opened it? Was it the comet?"  

Wadim nodded. “Depending on your point of view,” he said. “What fells the tree, the axe, or the woodcutter?”

“In any case,” he said, straightening his bent back with a grunt and a grimace, “you’ll be very welcome, master halfling. My straightest path home is over those peaks. Those who want to see can see. And those who don’t - well, that’s up to them.”
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 “It was Morr who sealed him beneath the pyramid, not the dwarfs,” said Wadim. “Only Morr can put him back.” 
 

 "Of course. But if breaking the tomb released the Jackal's corpse to walk the world, then perhaps the tomb must be remade for Morr to have somewhere to seal the spirit away? And if not literally rebuilt, then perhaps consecrated to be a prison and not a throne, I believe you called it?"  Bardhyl mused.


 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 “Their power was broken long ago,” said Wadim. “Answer me this - who was the last lord of the lowlands to die peacefully in their bed? Every father leaves poorer lands to his sons, and every year a little more of our green hills disappears into the Waste." He shook his head. "The curse is still with us. Of that, I'm certain." 
 

 "Well yes, there's little doubt that the curse is still with us, but are the first invaders really gone? Even now there exist some remnants of their people as the walking dead. What if their presence - or the magic that sustains their presence - also sustains the Jackal's curse?"  he continued.

 
 Spoiler: Switching to Vrani 
 "Back in Savonne, my new friends admitted that the  djall  knew where the cursed book was buried, but it could not safely dig it up because it was under constant guard. Despite this, when we came to the priest's home, the  djall  was busy with some sort of research. It hardly needed information written in old books to find the book, nor do I think that they contained any particularaly useful information on opening Dwarf-made chests. So it must have been trying to learn something else - something about the Jackal, or the book itself, or the book's master? In any case, it seems too great a coincidence that the Jackal continues to haunt our lands while the book is buried in the castle courtyard,"  Bardhyl insisted.
 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "On the Silver Falls, they worship a goddess of the river," said Wadim. "And in the Elmwood, they worship a god of the trees. I don't think either of them have done any mighty feats for your histories, but without the river, the Reaches would wither, and without the trees, the shepherds of the valley would still be living in holes dug out of the mud. There's more to being a god than who can beat who in a fight. Otherwise, there'd only be one god left." 
 

For her part, Elsa thought rivers and trees could handle themselves just fine without any gods, but she chose not to argue further with Wadim on theological matters.

Annoyance flickered across her face when Bardhyl switched yet again to the Vrani language when addressing Wadim. What could they possibly have to say that needed to be kept secret even from those who had helped them so much?



 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
 " Go, " he suggested. " I'll tell the prince. "  I wouldn't expect much from him though.  
 

Elsa turned to Tatiana.  "What about you, Tattie? Would you follow me if I decided to go with Wadim, or would you rather return to our house in Putbad?" 

She tried to make it clear that the choice was entirely Tatiana's.
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla shared a glance with Elsa, nodding in sympathy with her annoyance. She too was beginning to get tired of their companion constantly switching to a language none of the rest of them could speak.

 "I'd like to go see the pyramid,"  she spoke up.
LCP
  "What about you, Tattie? Would you follow me if I decided to go with Wadim, or would you rather return to our house in Putbad?"  

Tattie nodded. "I'll go," she said. Following her eyeline, Elsa wondered if that didn't have something to do with the fact that Jarla was going.


  "But if breaking the tomb released the Jackal's corpse to walk the world, then perhaps the tomb must be remade for Morr to have somewhere to seal the spirit away? And if not literally rebuilt, then perhaps consecrated to be a prison and not a throne, I believe you called it?"  

"Perhaps," said Wadim. "If, as the good Magister pointed out, you could reach it. And if you could deal with the fact that that throne is currently occupied." He sucked his teeth. "Not a job for your average mason, hm?"


  "Well yes, there's little doubt that the curse is still with us, but are the first invaders really gone? Even now there exist some remnants of their people as the walking dead. What if their presence - or the magic that sustains their presence - also sustains the Jackal's curse?"  

"You think the dead care who rules in Savonne, Bardhyl?" said Wadim. "Or how often the rains fall?" He shook his head. "This is a curse upon the living, and Morr knows there are enough of  them . In three thousand years, how far do you think the invaders' blood has spread?" He looked at Bardhyl with a glint of mischief in his eye. "You might even have a drop of it yourself."

When Bardhyl switched to the hill dialect, Wadim listened attentively, but his eye stayed fixed on the others. Where Bardhyl's question was long, his answer was short.

 
 Spoiler: Vranspel 

  "In any case, it seems too great a coincidence that the Jackal continues to haunt our lands while the book is buried in the castle courtyard,"  Bardhyl insisted. 

"Mm. You could say that about many things," said Wadim. "Still, I'd like to know more about this book."
 


"I've told you our story," he said, switching back to Reikspiel, "but I'm not sure I've heard all of yours. You seem to have learned many things I haven't heard before - and you know I made it my business to hear them." He looked around the group with a keen curiosity. "Is there anything more you want to tell me?"
LeSwordfish
 "Perhaps I can tell you our whole story?"  Ludo offered.
 
"Myself, Elsa, Sieghard, and Jarla's brother Adelbert came together in Alvarran about two years ago, and joined the services of Il Principe, back when he was just the capitano. I'm local - of the Sermena Stubbs. We were asked to look for Myrmidian artefacts in a complex of tombs north of Mirino. We found that there were undead there - a group of humans, protecting the ruins, and greenskins attacking it. We found some wall murals there that showed their people and the dwarves teaming up to kill the Jackal and trap him, sleeping, under the Red Pyramid. We escaped them, and met a priestess of the humans, who told us that her people had been keeping a book of necromantic magic, that they had taken off the jackal when they'd defeated him before. Hundreds of years later, she had tried to use that book to destroy the greenskins, but it cursed both them and the humans."

"We found a spearhead in the ruins that matched the spear they had used to kill the Jackal before, so took that and left. Sforza tasked us with finding the book, to see if we could break the spell on the undead." He didn't have the courage to say why that was here, and just pushed past. "We tracked it's history, from Nath, to Savonne, to a group of wizards called the Illuminated Order, who were keeping it in a library that was..."  Ludo waved his hands vaguely, a little unclear on the metaphysics.  "...outside the world. In a magical realm. We brought the book back here and found that it was difficult to destroy, so we hid it."

"You met the jackal's servant, a man named Klammenberg. We met him too, as a fine imperial gentleman in Savonne. He was gathering the requirements for a ritual, and he escaped us on the road south. We also met his new servant - the only one surviving as far as we can tell - a woman named Mala. Her village had a group of flesh-eaters underground, and we barely escaped with our lives. Several of our men were killed. She fled into the swamp and we didn't manage to find her."

"Klammenberg performed a ritual of some kind to free the Jackal from the pyramid and left with him. We discovered this thanks to a group of rangers from the Dwimmulhold - one of those, Urgrim Jotunsson, travelled with us for some time. The Jackal laid low until Geheimisnacht last year, when he killed several priests in Savonne and tried to steal the book from the temple, where it was being kept. We fought him twice, and drove him off unsuccessfully."

"Klammenberg and the Jackal went to live in the swamp with Mala, and stayed there for some time before travelling south to Nath, wiping out Caerfort on the way and reanimating it's citizens. We had called for help, and a group of Knights of Morr from the north arrived. We travelled with them into Nath and were ambushed, both by the jackal and his men, and the spirits that lived there. We - "  he paused, and looked nervously sideways at Sieghard and Elsa -  "we escaped, and sent word to Savonne. Sforza rode south with his army and prepared for a siege."

"I had heard rumors of Klammenberg in Sermena, so myself and Adelbert went to investigate. We found Klammenberg, spoke to him, and brought him back in chains, but we were ambushed on the road."  His jaw set.  "Klammenberg and Adelbert were both killed."

"While Sforza was besieging Nath, myself and the Dwimmulson rangers went back to the ruins we had been to that started all this. We stole the priestess and brought her to Sforza's camp, where she told us her people's legends of how the jackal had been defeated. We decided to try and trap him the same way, with a false surrender. When he came out, we filled him with crossbow quarrels, and Sieghard stabbed him with the spear. He turned to dust."

 
-Sentinel-
Elsa acknowledged Tatiana's decision to follow her with a wordless nod.

She then addressed Sieghard:  "I have two favors to ask of you. I want you to send a message to Olga in Putbad, before she starts thinking I'm dead. Let her know it'll be a bit longer before I return. She lives at 6, Spicers' Alley. Have your courier deliver the message verbally... I don't think she's literate."   Also, your spelling is horrendous. 
 "Secondly, I'd like you to go down to the holding cells and tell Sanne Raven-Cry that we found Wadim alive. Bring her some food while you're at it... They're barely feeding her." 

When Ludo had finished recounting the tale of their struggle against Nahorek to Wadim, she added:  "There's a third party in all this. Tzeentch... Tchar... the Changer of Ways... the Architect of Fate... the Eagle... not sure what your people call him. One of the great dark gods from the North. Two of his minions have tried to get their hands on the Book of Nagash so far. I know there will be more attempts. So here we are, stuck between the Eagle and the Jackal." 
LCP
Wadim listened closely to Ludo's account, his good eye shining with curiosity.

"That's quite the story," he said. He took a deep breath, taking his time to take it in. "So the man from the north is dead. And this book, taken from the dead, who took it from the Jackal..."

He trailed off. "You say you found these ruins near Last Water? But the book had found its way to Nath, and beyond. How did they lose it, your restless dead?" He paused for a moment in thought, running his fingers through his tangled beard. "And have you read it?"


  "There's a third party in all this. Tzeentch... Tchar... the Changer of Ways... the Architect of Fate... the Eagle... not sure what your people call him. One of the great dark gods from the North. Two of his minions have tried to get their hands on the Book of Nagash so far. I know there will be more attempts. So here we are, stuck between the Eagle and the Jackal."  

"Anything the Jackal wants is sure to attract others' attention," said Wadim. "But that's just it, eh?  You have something the Jackal wants . Something other than death and vengeance." He rubbed his hands together, cracking his swollen knuckles. "Yes, that's very interesting indeed."
-Sentinel-
"And have you read it?"

 "It's written in Nehekharan,"  answered Elsa,  "a language I've only recently learned to read. I suppose I could read it now, if I were so inclined. But I once saw this book turn a soldier into an old man in mere moments. It has a mind of its own, and I don't think it likes me. I did try to burn it once..." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
I don't actually remember the full timeline of the Book's whereabouts. Someone else can answer that question.
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla leaned in, looking at Ludo with fascination. While she knew most of the story from Adelbert's letters and what she'd learned since it was enormously helpful to have it laid out like that.
LeSwordfish
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 Wadim listened closely to Ludo's account, his good eye shining with curiosity.

"That's quite the story," he said. He took a deep breath, taking his time to take it in. "So the man from the north is dead. And this book, taken from the dead, who took it from the Jackal..."

He trailed off. "You say you found these ruins near Last Water? But the book had found its way to Nath, and beyond. How did they lose it, your restless dead?" He paused for a moment in thought, running his fingers through his tangled beard. "And have you read it?" 
 

 "It was stolen, either by or on behalf of a hedge wizard called Gilbertus. He was the next person to have it, and was a local sorceror. A group of hedge wizards called the Illuminated Order gathered together to defeat him, and took it, and created a library to keep it in."

"He's tried to steal it twice, both with the help of Klammenberg. The first time was after Rorik's defeat. He had some of Rorik's retinue try to steal it, but Adelbert fooled them. Sanne and Arne helped us stop them. He then tried again, attacking the temple directly, killing several priests. He couldn't get it out of the chest it was stored in, and when Sieghard killed Klammenberg's coach, he fled."

"As well as the book, he has three artefacts. His "crown"... more like a mask. It was... it made you remember people who had died. It was broken by the spear. Sforza has the two halves of it now. He also had a staff, which Mala escaped with: he probably has that now."

"We had, uh, a theory as to who he was."  Ludo was cautious to present this, given how different it was to Wadim's theory.  "We believed he was a vampire. An extremely old and powerful one." 
LCP
 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  "It was stolen, either by or on behalf of a hedge wizard called Gilbertus. He was the next person to have it, and was a local sorceror. A group of hedge wizards called the Illuminated Order gathered together to defeat him, and took it, and created a library to keep it in."  
 

Wadim shook his head. "Gilbertus the Black. His story I know, or at least part of it. But he came after Nath rose and fell."

As Ludo's story went on, his good eye grew wider and wider - but at the last claim, he frowned. "A  strigoi? " he said. "Blood drinker? The Jackal is more than some... skulking beast. Why do you think this?"

"In any case... you say you have  two  of his treasures? And this spear. And this... priestess, you called her, that you brought out of the ruins." He paused, striking his beard. "My business is in Morr's Seat, but after that... I would dearly like to see these things."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Not trying to trip you up IC on your recollection of 10 years of campaign backstory - I just thought that this was a pretty plausible thing for Ludo to have muddled, so having Wadim react IC was the most straightforward response. If you want me to clarify anything OOC though just ask!
 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "Perhaps," said Wadim. "If, as the good Magister pointed out, you could reach it. And if you could deal with the fact that that throne is currently occupied." He sucked his teeth. "Not a job for your average mason, hm?"

"You think the dead care who rules in Savonne, Bardhyl?" said Wadim. "Or how often the rains fall?" He shook his head. "This is a curse upon the living, and Morr knows there are enough of  them . In three thousand years, how far do you think the invaders' blood has spread?" He looked at Bardhyl with a glint of mischief in his eye. "You might even have a drop of it yourself." 
 

 Bardhyl pinched the bridge of his nose and shot Wadim an annoyed glance.  "I think we're well past the point where a common mason would be the solution to our problems, don't you? And when did you become a literalist anyway? Have you heard of many curses where the means of breaking them was straightforward?"  he said, throwing his hands up in disgust.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 As Ludo's story went on, his good eye grew wider and wider - but at the last claim, he frowned. "A  strigoi? " he said. "Blood drinker? The Jackal is more than some... skulking beast. Why do you think this?" 
 

" Because we heard it from the mouth of the man who brought the Jackal back from the grave. ' Nack Horeb, high priest of Jaff in Lamina '  " He said, doing a mocking imitation of Klammenberg. "  ' Child of Wu-soren, master of the dead and stealer of souls. Scourge of the plains and Nagash's hound '  " As always, his pronunciation of the Nehekharan words was every bit as bad as his spelling. " Klammenberg was mad, but he was as close to the Jackal as any man could be and probably knew more about him than anyone else alive. And the priestess told us much the same about who he was when he was a man. "

" And besides what we've heard, we've  seen  enough to know him for what he is. He drinks the blood of the living. He commands mens' corpses like puppets. He hides from the light of the sun. He can't go inside a building unless you tell he can come in. Silver hurts him more than steel. He's a vampire. An ancient and powerful one, but a vampire all the same. "

 
 Spoiler 
Sieghard's really just repeating things he's heard without really understanding it all that well. Ludo has AK: Necromancy and Elsa a generally good education, so either of them are probably far better suited to explain the relevance of W'soran and Lahmia in this. The exact Klammenberg quote Sieghard butchered is

"You have the honour to stand before the great Nakht-Horeb, who was high priest of Djaf in the glory that was Lahmia. Child-in-Darkness of W'soran, Master of Death. Thief of Souls, Scourge of the Northern Plain, he who was called the Hound of Nagash. But you may know him simply as Nahorek the Jackal."

Of course, he would've gotten that secondhand from Adelbert anyways, so maybe he's lucky to get it as close as he did. Also maybe useful for proving it is that Meskhenet said "The blood of Neferata... cannot stand... the light of the sun..." when explaining why the spear would work on Nahorek.
 
LCP
Wadim's brow knitted. "...Well," he said. "That is... interesting."

He said nothing more. Sieghard's words had evidently given him a lot to think about.
rax
 Later that evening 
 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl and Wadim 
 "So, you said you'd go back to Morr's Seat. What are you planning to do there?"  Bardhyl asked his mentor when the two of them were alone.
 
LCP
 8th Sigmarzeit 
 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl 
"Oh, you know," said Wadim. "Get the lie of the land. Let people know I'm not dead."

He cast a careful look around to make sure they weren't being overheard.

"I want to see what kind of state the old place is in. You heard what your wizard friend said about the Tilean's soldiers being there. I've got no intention of trying to save our people from the Jackal only to see them thrown to Tilean wolves."

He looked at Bardhyl with an appraising eye. "I don't suppose you've been back there in quite a while, hm?"
 


 

 Bezahltag, 9th Sigmarzeit 
 All Bar Sieghard 

The next morning, they set out. Sieghard back to the city, alone; the rest of them, up into the hills. The journey ahead of them looked daunting. Ludo had always heard there were no paths through the Teeth, and looking up at the forbidding crags that dominated the skyline ahead of them, it was easy to believe.

“We should head up to the top of the Crone,” said Wadim, who was hobbling along passably well with the aid of his improvised walking-stick. He wasn’t fast, but the rough ground didn’t seem to slow him down. “That’s where the goblins took me. From the summit, you can see clear across the Waste. Well - almost.” He spared a glance up towards the sky. “Let’s just pray it remains clear.”

Following the old man's gestures, Ludo saw the peak he meant - a broad, hump-backed ridge of rock and scree, whose southern face fell away in cliffs vaguely evocative of a gnarled old face. Beyond the cliffs, a slender pillar of weathered stone stood in defiance - that, Wadim said, was called the Spindle.

Most of Bardhyl's band had come with them. Grim looked up at the rocky peaks with a certain reluctance, but joined the planning all the same. There was a pass they could take, the  vrani  said, under a ridge called Whistling Edge. That would get them most of the way, on ground that was firm enough for the horses.

The early parts of the ascent were gentle enough, and they took them at an easy pace. Wadim occasionally stopped to pick up dry pieces of brushwood, which he either tucked under his elbow, or prevailed on Bardhyl to let him stuff them into his pack when they got too heavy. "Not much in the way of firewood up top," he explained. "Best to gather it while we can."

Bardhyl noticed that Grim was watching the old man more closely than usual. Taciturn as the man was, he'd learned to read his lieutenant's expressions, and he saw trepidation written clearly in Grim's eyes. For his part, Wadim didn't seem to notice - but then, the Wadim he knew wouldn't show it if he had.

When they had climbed above the treeline and rounded the opening of the pass, the wind became fierce, whipping in their faces and plucking at their clothes. Wadim was obliged to shout to be heard:

" The wind's in the west, still! " He paused for a moment, taking a handhold on the rocks to steady himself in the teeth of the buffering wind. " It's been there too long, I think! 

The pass was a wide, V-shaped gouge cut out of the crags. Though grass still grew here and there, much of its floor was bare rock or loose stone, and the horses had to watch where they stepped. They advanced slowly against the wind until they reached the throat of the pass, where the sides of the crags came down to meet them. On the right was the rocky base of the Spindle, with the summit of the Crone visible just behind. On their left, the jagged rocks of Whistling Edge gradually gave way to a flat, notched peak of windswept rock. The  vrani  said they called that one the Hog's Back.

Even on this high and desolate ground, there were some signs of life. Hardy weeds grew up between the stones, nibbled short by mountain goats - though of the goats themselves, there was no sign bar a few cracked and scattered bones. A rough cairn of stones bore some faded daubings of a grinning moon, which Bardhyl's men took for a goblin territory marker. Wadim seemed unconcerned.

"Even if their tribe weren't scattered to the seven winds," he said, "they wouldn't try anything in the daylight. Not on a party like ours, anyway."

 
 Spoiler: Jarla Only 
As they passed the goblins' marker, Jarla felt the fiery heat of the daemon stirring within her. Her eyes moved of their own accord, taking in the scattered goat bones, then sliding up to the towering side of the Spindle. For a moment, she wasn't sure what they were looking at - but then she saw it. On a narrow ledge a little way below the top, those weren't rocks, but the long sweep of a scaly tail…

 Run,  whispered Tshula.  Now. 

The command seemed to go straight to her legs by way of her spine, propelling her forward - but she arrested herself, turning Tshula's sprint into a stumble. She was still here. She could still fight it!

 DO IT!  hissed the voice in her head. Again her muscles spasmed, but again she stopped herself. Had she grown stronger, or had the daemon grown weaker?
 

Suddenly, Jarla stumbled - not a clumsy trip over a stone, but a swaying, staggering half-fall, as if something was wrong with her legs. Countess whinnied and pulled away, nervously tossing her head.

 OOC:  
 Spoiler 
Can I get Perception tests from everyone who's not Jarla, please?
 

 Sieghard 

It was a clear ride back through open country for Sieghard to get back to the city. Still, by the time he reached the walls of Savonne, the day had turned to dusk.

He rode up through the crowded streets from the North Gate, and the guards at the castle gatehouse let him pass. Inside, the place was back to it's bustling former self, now that the two centres of its little universe had returned.

He found Abdul first, who told him that the Prince was resting in the solar. "I don't think he was expecting you, my friend," said Al-Makir, "but if it's urgent... well, I don't think you'll be interrupting him, at least."
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  8th Sigmarzeit 
 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl 
"Oh, you know," said Wadim. "Get the lie of the land. Let people know I'm not dead."

He cast a careful look around to make sure they weren't being overheard.

"I want to see what kind of state the old place is in. You heard what your wizard friend said about the Tilean's soldiers being there. I've got no intention of trying to save our people from the Jackal only to see them thrown to Tilean wolves."

He looked at Bardhyl with an appraising eye. "I don't suppose you've been back there in quite a while, hm?"
 
 
 

 
 Spoiler: LCP 
 "Not much to do there when you're a dead man, but I've learned to keep my eyes and ears open, and sometimes people with interesting news to sell seek me out,"  Bardhyl replied with a shrug.  "I'll admit, though, things would be much easier if I were returned to the land of the living." 
 


 


 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bezahltag, 9th Sigmarzeit 

Bardhyl noticed that Grim was watching the old man more closely than usual. Taciturn as the man was, he'd learned to read his lieutenant's expressions, and he saw trepidation written clearly in Grim's eyes. For his part, Wadim didn't seem to notice - but then, the Wadim he knew wouldn't show it if he had. 
 

 Bardhyl dropped back to speak to Grim privately.  "You're giving Wadim the look. What's eating you, old friend?"  he asked.
-Sentinel-
Elsa looked back at Jarla with some concern. The copper-haired woman had always struck Elsa as less used to the outdoors than the rest of them; perhaps dehydration, exhaustion, or the thinner air at this altitude were getting to her.

 "What's wrong?"  she asked.  "Need a rest?" 

Then, to her apprentice:  "Tattie, try to calm down Duchess, will you?" 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
And yes, I know the horse is called Countess.

Perception 75:  (d100)[ 50 ] 
 Fortune:  (d100)[ 76 ]  
 
RossN
 Bezahltag, 9th Sigmarzeit

All Bar Sieghard 

Shaking her head and anxiously patting her startled horse Jarla tried to regain control over the nervous beast.   'Be quiet,'   she whispered to the others, a catch in her voice and a spark of fear in her blue eyes as she spoke.   'I think the wyvern is up there. Look you can make out it's tail!'  
LeSwordfish
Ludo looked between Jarla and where she was pointing. If the Wyvern was here, the horses would have smelled it.  "Jarla, are you-" 
LCP
 8th Sigmarzeit 
 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl/Wadim 

 
 Originally Posted by rax 
  "I'll admit, though, things would be much easier if I were returned to the land of the living."  
 

"Mm. That's why you came looking for me, is it?" said Wadim. "Feel you've done your time?"

"You know our laws, Bardhyl. This isn't something to be traded for personal favours." Bardhyl was fairly sure that Wadim's attitude to the laws of the Raven Hills was much more flexible than he was currently implying. "What have you done to deserve redemption in the eyes of Morr? Or perhaps, what  will  you do if you get it?"
 


 

 9th Sigmarzeit 

  "You're giving Wadim the look. What's eating you, old friend?"  he asked. 

Grim grunted. Perhaps he hadn't been expecting to be have to express his feelings.

"Just wondering how far we're going to follow the old... man," he said, checking himself before a less respectful word could slip out. "All this stuff about gods and spirits... I know you and him go back, but for the rest of us, it's not really our line." He looked around at the barren crags. "Don't imagine there's much work for us on the other side of these hills either "

 ~ 
Countess reared and shied away from her mistress' touch. The horse seemed quite wild until Tattie rushed over - then, at last, she seemed to grow calm.

At Jarla's choked words, all eyes turned upwards. High up on the side of the Spindle - was that a patch of grey-green rock, or a sinuous, scaly tail?

It shifted, and a drizzle of small stones came bouncing down the rock-face. Ortwin backed away, and Waldon gave a foul-mouthed Breton curse as the outline of a long, crocodile-like head peeked slowly over the ledge. Two hundred feet above them if it was an inch, from this distance it looked almost small.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard entered the solar and bowed. He was already regretting having offered to do this.

" Sorry to disturb you prince, " he said. " But there's some news from the west that you should hear. It seems the goblins in the teeth are growing bolder. I first got word of it a bit over a week ago... One of the newer recruits has family trying to start a farm out that way. The lad's sister had come south with stories of raids on farms, stealing livestock and even taking people. I sent a few scouts into the hills to see for themselves and it's every bit as bad as the girl had said. What they saw... well, my best scouts are the ones who had survived the orcs nearly taking the south. The way they tell it, that started much the same way. "

 
 Spoiler 
I'll throw in a charm test here to try to convince him this has the potential to be the same sort of threat if not nipped in the bud.

 (1d100)[ 94 ] 
 (1d100)[ 62 ]  reroll if needed

Failure even if Sieghard actually had the skill.
 
LCP
 Sieghard 

"And you came here to tell me yourself?" said Sforza. He gave Sieghard a quizzical look. "You could have written."

Taking a moment to digest the report, he got up and walked over to the window. From there, the tops of the Teeth were visible on the western horizon.

"You know the west isn't your responsibility, Sieghard. Your men should be keeping order in the Thornwood, not scouting those gods-forsaken mountains."  He drew in a deep breath. "Give me the name and location of this farm, and the Iron Company will take it from here. In writing, if you please."

Sieghard wondered if his mention of Magog hadn't softened Sforza's impulse to chastise him just a little. The Prince knew full well how that had  really  started - but did he know that Sieghard knew?
-Sentinel-
Elsa licked her lips nervously.   "So far it's only attacked unattended livestock, I think. Not people, or at least not parties like ours."  

She sounded like she was trying to reassure herself.

 Wish our best fighter were here... 
LeSwordfish
Very slowly, Ludo unshipped and loaded his rifle.  "Want to bet your life on that?" 

He looked at Jarla again.  "Are you alright?" 
LCP
 No Sieghards 

The long head pulled back out of sight. For a moment, they all held their breath - but then they saw the beast's spiny back rise up again. Slithering over the lip of the ledge, the beast clung there for a moment, regarding them with reptilian patience. Then, like a falcon, it dived.

Grabbing their bows, Bardhyl's people scrambled back, shouting in fear and alarm. It was speeding so fast towards them that it seemed like it would splatter itself against the rocks. At the last moment, those great leathery wings snapped open to their fullest extent, their downdraft battering down as hard as the wind off the Waste as the great beast banked up. It passed scarcely forty feet above their heads, the horses rearing and screaming as its shadow passed over them…

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
 
 The wyvern drops from a height of about sixty yards (flying high) to fifteen (flying low). 
 It passes directly overhead, veering east along the line of the pass. If you want to take combat actions, you can treat it as being about 10 yards horizontally from the nearest party member (and 15 vertically). It's got a lot of momentum (travelling at its 'Run' speed) and will overshoot your position further before it can turn. 
 I'd like a few rolls from each PC:
 
  Terror  
 A WP test for your horse (I think everyone but Wadim has one?). 
 
Horses that fail WP try to bolt. If your PC passed their Terror test (or at least didn't fail it too badly) you can roll Animal Care, Charm Animal or raw Strength to try to stop them ( choose one ). If your horse didn't bolt you can assist someone else's efforts.

I'm not yet rolling initiative as the wyvern can pass in and out of effective combat range in pretty much a single turn, as long as it stays airborne. If we need it I'll roll it, but since there's only one of it you'll all end up acting in a block anyway. 
 
 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  8th Sigmarzeit 
 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl/Wadim 


"Mm. That's why you came looking for me, is it?" said Wadim. "Feel you've done your time?"

"You know our laws, Bardhyl. This isn't something to be traded for personal favours." Bardhyl was fairly sure that Wadim's attitude to the laws of the Raven Hills was much more flexible than he was currently implying. "What have you done to deserve redemption in the eyes of Morr? Or perhaps, what  will  you do if you get it?"
 
 
 

  
 Spoiler: Bardhyl/Wadim 
 "Haven't I? Rorik is dead. He wasn't the champion you were looking for and he wasn't the man from the north who would release the Jackal, so we were both wrong. What purpose does my continued banishment serve?" 
 "Yes, I came to find you because I'm sick of skulking about the Reaches like a common criminal, but also because the people of the Reaches -  vrani  and lowlander both - need you. Every day the Jackal's curse lies heavier upon the land, but the Tilean will do nothing because he thinks the threat has passed. The halfling and his friends are our best chance of putting the Jackal back where he belongs  and  our best chance of getting rid of the Tilean. In time, perhaps I can persuade them to see that it would be in their own interests to get rid of their Prince, but only you can bring the  vrani  together, whether to fight the Prince or the Jackal,"  Bardhyl answered his mentor.
 


 

 9th Sigmarzeit 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 Grim grunted. Perhaps he hadn't been expecting to be have to express his feelings.

"Just wondering how far we're going to follow the old... man," he said, checking himself before a less respectful word could slip out. "All this stuff about gods and spirits... I know you and him go back, but for the rest of us, it's not really our line." He looked around at the barren crags. "Don't imagine there's much work for us on the other side of these hills either " 
 

 Bardhyl nodded.  "You're not wrong, Grim. What we're doing now isn't likely to be very profitable, but it's a path we must travel all the same. You saw the desert at Turnpike Hollow. You've heard about the sickness that makes men thirst to death. And you've heard what our new friends have said about their battles with the Jackal. If we don't put him back in his prison,  then there won't be anyone left  to relieve of their excess wealth." 
 "I promised you all a fresh start and a fair payoff if you signed on with me, and Wadim is key to me making good on that promise. So even without all the gods and spirits, getting him safely to Morr's Seat is paramount. If you decide fighting the Jackal isn't your business once we get there, then that's fine. You do what you need to do and I won't hold it against you - but I'll certainly miss your charming company,"  he joked.


 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  No Sieghards 

The long head pulled back out of sight. For a moment, they all held their breath - but then they saw the beast's spiny back rise up again. Slithering over the lip of the ledge, the beast clung there for a moment, regarding them with reptilian patience. Then, like a falcon, it dived.

Grabbing their bows, Bardhyl's people scrambled back, shouting in fear and alarm. It was speeding so fast towards them that it seemed like it would splatter itself against the rocks. At the last moment, those great leathery wings snapped open to their fullest extent, their downdraft battering down as hard as the wind off the Waste as the great beast banked up. It passed scarcely forty feet above their heads, the horses rearing and screaming as its shadow passed over them… 
 

 
 Spoiler: Terror tests et al 
Copied from OOC thread:
Terror test (1d100)[ 48 ] vs. 39 (WP 59, Terror -20)

WP test for riding horse (1d100)[ 65 ] vs. WP 10

Strength test to controll horse (1d100)[ 3 ] vs. S 41

So Bardhyl fails his Terror test with 0-2 DoF. He can act normally but with -20 on all attacks vs. the wyvern?

The horse is terrified and tries to bolt, but Bardhyl controls it with his manly muscles.
 

Bardhyl cursed loudly as his horse tried to bolt, but with superhuman effort he was able to bring it under control, only to find himself shaking in fear at the sight of the huge reptile gliding away from the group.

 "Find cover if you can and get ready to shoot that thing if it comes back!"  he calls out to his men. Not trusting his shaking hands to aim a bow properly, he holds on to the horse's reins with one hand and unhooks his axe from his belt with the other.


 @LCP 
As I understand the Mounted Combat house rules, Bardhyl should be able to fight from horseback even though his horse isn't trained for combat, but basically the only effect he'll get is to be able to move at the horse's movement rate?

Or will he need to make new tests to control the horse since it failed its WP test?
TheSummoner
  No Not-Sieghards  

Sieghard nodded. " I'll have it for you by the morning. "

Taking his leave of the prince, he headed down to the kitchens. There was some stew left from earlier that was still warm and he grabbed a bowl for himself as well as a small loaf of bread and a wedge of cheese. After he had finished his stew, he headed down into the dungeons.

" Norscan woman, " he said, tossing the cheese and bread wrapped in cloth at her feet. " Elsa wanted me to tell you that we found Wadim. He's alive and unharmed. "
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla had been about to reply to Ludo when the wyvern made it's entrace.

The imperial woman turned albino with fear, her blue grey eyes wide as she could not stop staring at the reptile. Behind her she could hear Countess whinnied in terror but she hardly dared look at the beast as it bolted.  "We have to go now!"  Jarla gasped, turning and trying to move as far from those jaws and claws as much as possible, only just keeping enough of her wits to look where she was going.
-Sentinel-
Elsa flinched at the wyvern's close approach, but held her ground. Her horse Bastard, to his credit, did the same; he may be hard to deal with on a daily basis, but he was still a warhorse, and not easily spooked. Noticing that Tatiana was having trouble controlling her own mount, Elsa headed over to her apprentice to help her soothe the whinnying mare, without success; the horse bolted along with the others.

  "Assh0le,"   she muttered at the wyvern as it flew away.
LeSwordfish
Ludo ducked reflexively, and scrambled to his feet as the Wyvern flapped away, adjusting his hat on his head. Reacting with a characteristic lack of urgency, Lumpin turned and started to trot back down the hill - Ludo grabbed his rein and the pony came to a placid halt. Stoutheart stood up in the saddlebag, and yapped furiously at the Wyvern, challenging it to return for single combat.
LCP
 8th Sigmarzeit 
 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl 
”You think that’s all it was about?” said Wadim. “To get you out of the way? If that was the case, you had  me  out of the way pretty well before you pulled me out of that cage. I don’t believe you couldn’t have engineered your own resurrection, if you’d left me there to rot.”

He shook his head. “You can think what you want of me, Bardhyl, but I had my reasons for what I did. You say you need me for this fight - what happens the next time we have a disagreement on how it should be fought, hm?” He snuck a quick glance towards the others. “Like on how far we can trust your new friends, perhaps.”

“Our people look to us for guidance. That’s what it means to be a Raven Speaker. If we are divided, they are divided, and we  vrani  are too few now for that to be something we can survive. The Bardhyl I cast out would have divided us, if he didn’t get himself killed at Rorik’s hands first. The man I’m walking beside now… well, I’m not yet certain.” He looked back to the path. “Perhaps by the time we reach Morr’s Seat, I’ll have made up my mind.”
 


 

 9th Sigmarzeit 
 Not Sieghard 

Panic gripped the horses as the wyvern swooped over them, and few among the party were strong enough to restrain them. As the beast soared back up into the air, banking back around, they stampeded in the other direction. Their hooves sent dust and pebbles flying as they galloped up the pass.

They weren’t the only ones panicking. Half of Bardhyl’s outlaws had scattered under the downdraft of those massive wings, running for whatever cover they could find - and old Wadim was among them, his scrawny legs putting on an impressive burst of speed as he legged it up the slope. The hairy Bretonnian, Waldon, was screaming something in Breton as he ran, but none of them could understand him.

Ludo stood as an island of calm in the midst of this chaos. Raising his musket to his shoulder, he tracked the monster as it wheeled round through the sky, bearing down on the fleeing horses. One horse skidded and fell against the loose stones, and the wyvern’s wings flared out, its huge talons swinging forward as it descended on its prey…

The  crack  of the gunshot echoed off the crags, a cloud of gunsmoke enveloping Ludo as the butt thumped back into his shoulder. With a pained roar, the beast swerved, missing the horse and ploughing into the mountainside instead. The impact juddered through the earth, a small avalanche of loose stones sliding down the pass from where it had struck.

Picking itself up slowly off the ground, the wyvern’s long neck snaked out, jaws still snapping at its prey. Scrabbling madly against the stones, the horse managed to lurch up and out of the way just in time, galloping away up the pass with a whinnying scream.

The wyvern made a bass rumbling noise from somewhere in its barrel chest, so loud and deep that it made the pebbles dance. The long neck curved round, and its yellow eyes fixed on Ludo, still holding his smoking gun. He could see the bloody hole his bullet had punched in the scales of the creature’s belly - it looked very small compared to the size of the beast itself. Behind it, the horses were fast disappearing up the pass.

The monster’s jaws hinged open, and it let out a hiss like steam escaping from a giant’s kettle. It sounded angry.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
The wyvern is 20 yards away from the nearest member of the party, uphill along the direction of the pass. We’re now in proper combat time and it’s the turn of people who aren’t wyverns.
 

 Sieghard 

Mauro the gaoler seemed mildly surprised at Sieghard’s request to see Sanne. “The north-woman, popular,  si? ” he joked as he stumped over to the door to the cells, his peg-leg  clack -ing on the stone floor. “Perhaps I start to charge for the visits, I buy myself a new boot. This one, it wears out soon.”

Sanne herself was a wretched sight. To Sieghard, whose memory of her was on the battlefield, she was almost unrecognisable. As soon as he tossed the food through the bars, she sprang on it like a starving animal.


 " Elsa wanted me to tell you that we found Wadim. He's alive and unharmed. " 

She stopped mid-way through wolfing down her first bite, her fierce blue eyes suddenly fixed on him. Those, at least, were still the same.

“Alive?” she choked out, through a mouth half-full of tough bread. “For true? No trick?”

She moved closer to the bars, as close as her chains would allow her. “Where is he?” she demanded. “Does he know I’m here?”
-Sentinel-
 "Nice shot, Lu—"  Elsa began, the compliment dying in her throat as the wyvern turned to face the party. She remembered Glimrut's dying curse, that the Big One would get Tatiana. She had dismissed it only as spiteful last words, but now the possibility did not seem so remote.

 "Get behind my horse, Tattie,"  she advised.  "I'm about to make myself a big fat target. You don't want to be close to me." 

She summoned the wind of  Aqshy  to wreathe her in flames.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Crown of Fire (full action) using a gold crown as a +2 spell ingredient.

Target 6+:  (2d10)[ 2 ][ 5 ](7) 
 Narrow success. Now that was a gc well spent! 
 
LeSwordfish
The shot echoed around the narrow valley like a barrage of gunfire from the side of a road, like a firing line of veterans destroying straw targets. Ludo coughed on the gunsmoke and darted sideways. The rifle would take far too long to reload, so he drew his crossbow from the saddlebag, and slung his quiver over his back again, darting sideways behind a rock to gain some measure of cover from the creature.

 
 Spoiler 
 Quick Draw Crossbow, HA load crossbow, HA fire:  (1d100)[ 14 ]  to hit vs 86 (46 base, +10 single shot, +30 size),  (1d10+4)[ 12 ]  damage 
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Trembling Jarla continued her flight down the slope and as far from the threat as she could. As she looked back she felt a mix of disbelief, envy and shame at her cowardice and uselessness. There was Ludo - Ludo who was half her size! - effortlessly keeping a cool head and firing shot after shot with almost Elven accuracy at the wyvern.

Taking a deep breath that was half sob she turned back to path wondering how she'd face the others after this.
TheSummoner
  No Not-Sieghards  

" No trick, " he confirmed. " You can thank a man named Bardhyl that we were able to track him down. The old man was being held in a cage in the Teeth by a goblin tribe. Somehow he had convinced them not to just kill him. Right now they're still in the Teeth I imagine - Wadim, Bardhyl, Elsa, and the rest. There was something he wanted to show them. Only reason I'm not with them still is because someone had to convince Sforza to do something about the greenskins raiding the farms out that way. " He paused, then added. " Wadim would've heard you were here when Elsa asked me to tell you all this. How much more she's told him since then, I don't know. "

Curiosity struck him and he sat on the ground near the cell. " I've told my story, tell me yours. You're not one of the hillfolk. You came here with Rorik. " He knew little about Norsca other than it was far away. " What is Wadim to you? Why care so much that you'd get yourself locked up down here just to deliver a warning? "
rax
 "Grim! Get the lads organized and shoot the bloody thing!"  Bardhyl called out without taking his eyes off the wyvern. Dropping the reins of his horse, he quickly grabbed his shield and strapped it on.  "You'd best be out of here, friend. Just don't run too far,"  he then spoke reassuringly to his horse before giving it a good slap on the rump to get it going.

Hefting his axe and shield, he moved to stand between the wyvern and Ludo, hoping to buy the Halfling time for another shot.

 
 Spoiler: Actions 
Assuming he can still take a full round of actions despite all the talking...

 Half action:  Ready shield
 Half action:  Move to put himself between Ludo and the wyvern. He doesn't want to be right on top of Ludo, but I assume that with a single move he's probably no more than two or three yards in front.
 
LCP
 Sieghard 

 " What is Wadim to you? Why care so much that you'd get yourself locked up down here just to deliver a warning? " 

"I didn't," said Sanne, with a certain air of blunt contempt. "Your soldiers captured me and dragged me back here to your king." She went back to gnawing on the heel of bread Sieghard had tossed her. "I only spoke my mind."

It was a little while before she said anything more. "Wadim follows the Raven," she said. "He was interested when he heard that our people knew him too. We told him our stories, and he told us his. Including the Jackal." She paused. "When I heard his story, I thought maybe that was the fate the gods had brought us here to find."


 Not Sieghard 

“You heard the chief!” shouted Grim, trying to bellow loud enough for even the babbling Waldon to hear him. “Bring it down!”

Drawing back his own bowstring, he loosed an arrow straight at the beast - but it only glanced off the wyvern’s scales. The other outlaws’ efforts didn’t amount to much more, their arrows seeming to trouble the creature no more than if they were drops of rain.

Behind Elsa, Tattie was mumbling rapidly - despite herself, Elsa was a little surprised to realise it was the  lingua praestantia  she was speaking, albeit badly. The girl had learned something from her after all. Skeins of  Ghur  gathered around her outstretched fingertips, shot through with fiery threads of  Aqshy  - but when she tried to complete the incantation, the pattern faltered and dissolved.

The wyvern was undistracted by the wizards’ antics. It had seen the one who had hurt it, and now it saw Bardhyl standing between them, the pale sun gleaming on the edge of his axe. Rearing up to its full, terrifying height, it charged straight at him.

Bardhyl knew there was no point trying to meet a foe like this head-on. He threw himself out of its path, letting it spend its unstoppable momentum on empty air. The long neck whipped round after him, as quick as a striking snake - as the great jaws tried to close around him, he jammed his shield between them, hearing the  crunch  of splintering wood. For a moment, the two of them struggled - then Bardhyl felt a sudden, searing pain as the monster’s tail came lashing round. Tipped with a sharp spike of bone, it tore through the links of his mail shirt and speared into his abdomen – when it drew back, he could see his blood was mixed with thick, dark venom.

Immediately, he could feel it taking effect. The wound the beast had dealt him felt like it was on fire. His stomach churned, his senses swam, and sweat beaded on his forehead. With a hiss, the wyvern let go its grip on his shield and reared up, ready to finish this new and troublesome prey…
-Sentinel-
 "Oh, you  almost  got it, Tattie,"  said Elsa encouragingly over her shoulder, unsure what  it  was since the spell had fizzled out before it even left Tatiana's fingers. Now was not the time to criticize details like the presence of strands of  Aqshy  in her apprentice's spellcasting.

Hoping the hard-pressed Bardhyl could keep the wyvern busy for just a little longer, Elsa called upon the Red Wind to smite the beast—well aware that this may make her its next target.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Channeling 93:  (d100)[ 24 ] 
Fireball with +2 spell ingredient, target 10+/6+:  (3d10)[ 6 ][ 6 ][ 8 ](20)  -  Tzeentch's Curse, but given my damage rolls, I'm not gonna complain! 

Location:  (d100)[ 33 ] 
Damage:  (d10+4)[ 14 ]  -  Fury confirmed,  11 damage after soak  

Location:  (d100)[ 35 ] 
Damage:  (d10+4)[ 11 ]  -   2 damage after soak  

Location:  (d100)[ 87 ] 
Damage:  (d10+4)[ 5 ] 

Location:  (d100)[ 63 ] 
Damage:  (d10+4)[ 14 ]  -  Fury confirmed,  13 damage after soak  
 Edit:  Whoa. Elsa is on fire, and soon, so will be the wyvern!
 

 Aqshy  answered as if Elsa had tapped into the sun itself. The pyromancer was almost thrown to the ground by the unexpected power of her own fireball spell as it left her outstretched hands and hurtled towards the wyvern.
TheSummoner
 It says no Sieghard s . We're allowed to have  one . 

" Sforza's men, " Sieghard replied, correcting Sanne's correction. " Truth be told, I'm surprised they were even able to find you. " It wasn't clear if that was a comment on her skills or a jab at theirs.

He sat next to the cell, making himself as comfortable as the cold, hard ground would allow. " Is that what brought you south then? Chasing after fate? " he asked, curiosity slowly being replaced by genuine interest. " What made you think you'd find it here of all places? "
RossN
 Jarla 

Seeing the ongoing battle with the wyvern snaps Jarla out of the panic she has been in. Reaching for her belt she draws a pistol and begins the laborious procedure of loading it with shot and blackpowder.

OOC:
 
 Spoiler 
Quick Draw pistol and begin loading - I have Master Gunner so it will 'only' take one round!
 
rax
Bardhyl stumbled back as the wyvern released its grip on his shield. The venom coursed through him, darkening his vision as he tried to keep on his feet and fend off the monster.   Lord of Ravens, if this is how I die, then let it be a good death!   he prayed silently.

Knowing he could never outrun the creature, he summoned his last reserves of strength and flung himself forward, axe swinging...

 
 Spoiler: Actions 
 Full action:  Swift attack with hand axe vs. 88 (WS 53, BC axe +5, size bonus +30)
 (1d100)[ 65 ] 
 (1d100)[ 39 ] 
 (1d100)[ 95 ] 

Damage
 (1d10)[ 8 ]  or DoS +5
 (1d10)[ 10 ]  or DoS +5
 (1d10)[ 2 ]  or DoS +5

Ulric's Fury if applicable
 (1d100)[ 45 ] ,  (1d100)[ 21 ] ,  (1d100)[ 48 ] 
 (1d10)[ 4 ] ,  (1d10)[ 10 ] ,  (1d10)[ 3 ] 

Pre-emptive Parry  (1d100)[ 16 ]  vs. 33 (WS 53, Defensive +10, Unstoppable Blows -30)
Pre-emptive Dodge  (1d100)[ 28 ]  vs. 55 (Ag 55, Dodge Blow +10, mail armour -10)

 Wound remaining:  5/16
 FP remaining:  2/3
 
LeSwordfish
Seeing Bardhyl swaying even as he drove his Axe home, Ludo dived forwards, shouting to get the creature's attention. His sword did strike one scaled flank, but he mught as well have been swinging it at the rock of the valley.
LCP
 Sieghard 

“I don’t chase after fate, southerner. Fate finds us all in its own time.” Sanne’s tone was steady and phlegmatic. “I came here because I followed the Jarl.”


 Not Sieghard 

Elsa’s spell lit the mountainside like a second sunrise, the wyvern’s pained roar reverberating off the peaks. Flames dripping from its scales, it turned on her, its neck arching back like a striking snake.

Before it could strike, Bardhyl came crashing into it from below. Swinging with all his strength, he drove his axe into the monster’s leg, hamstringing it. Blood fountained from the wound, and beast collapsed as it found itself no longer able to bear its own weight. It turned back to the prey it had thought as good as dead, jaws yawning wide - and met Bardhyl’s axe coming the other way. The sharp Raven Hills iron split the roof of that monstrous mouth, and the wyvern fell dead as a pole-axed ox against the stones.

Total silence reigned over the pass for a good few seconds after the beast fell. Grim and the others stared at the creature’s body as if waiting for it to move. At last, it did - but only the limp movements of a corpse, as Bardhyl pushed his way out from under its great horned head. He was covered in blood - his own and the wyvern’s in almost equal measure.

Wadim was the first to move. He came nonchalantly back from the spot he’d been hiding up on the hillside, as if he’d just been looking for a good seat up there to watch the action. “Very impressive!” he said. “Not bad, Bardhyl, not bad at all.” He paused as he saw how Bardhyl was swaying. “You’re hurt. Let me see.”

Peeling back his bloody mail shirt, Bardhyl could see for himself the deep wound the wyvern’s sting had left. Wadim wiped away the blood with his sleeve, showing black, branching veins already radiating from the wound's edge.

“ Os de Gilles,  muttered the white-faced Waldon, who had come creeping back with the others. “ Il es mort! 
-Sentinel-
Elsa whistled.  "Well, the local farmers owe us one." 

She gave Tatiana a pat on the back.  "You were incredibly brave, my girl,"  she told her quietly.  "Hardened men panicked and fled, but not you. Now, can you be a dear and see if you can get the other horses back? Take Jarla with you, if she'll come... You have experience bringing back lost horses together." 

Letting others more competent than her care for the wounded Bardhyl, she walked over to the wyvern and circled its corpse, wondering if a good cloak or cape could be made out of its thick scales.  That  would certainly put Sieghard's wolf pelt to shame.

 Can't wait to tell him all about this. He'll be heartbroken to have missed it. 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 Wadim was the first to move. He came nonchalantly back from the spot he’d been hiding up on the hillside, as if he’d just been looking for a good seat up there to watch the action. “Very impressive!” he said. “Not bad, Bardhyl, not bad at all.” He paused as he saw how Bardhyl was swaying. “You’re hurt. Let me see.”

Peeling back his bloody mail shirt, Bardhyl could see for himself the deep wound the wyvern’s sting had left. Wadim wiped away the blood with his sleeve, showing black, branching veins already radiating from the wound's edge. 
 

 "Nonsense, 'tis but a flesh wound!"  Bardhyl declared grandly before collapsing precipitously to his knees.  "Bastard flying snake poisoned me!"  he cursed.

 "In my pack. There's a healing draught and a bottle of good liquor. I could use that draught about now and if you're going to cut me I'll have a swig o' the good stuff as well,"  he instructed Wadim.
TheSummoner
  No Not-Sieghards  

" What brought Rorik south then? " Sieghard asked. "  Surely it was more than just plunder to journey so far. "
LeSwordfish
Ludo laughed with relief and sat down heavily. Stoutheart barked one more time before stopping abruptly.

 "Which bit shall we take back to the prince to prove we did it?" 
LCP
 Sieghard 

"He was a reaver," said Sanne, as if that were explanation enough. "We all were. He heard this was a place where warriors could go far, and where the sea didn't freeze in winter."

She looked up at Sieghard. "Why are you asking me these questions?" she asked. "Is there one where if I answer you will let me go?"


 Not Sieghard 

Wadim drew his breath in between his teeth. "If we try to cut that away there won't be any of you left to cut," he said. "Here, sit down on this stone. Back straight. Keep your heart higher than the wound."

Kreshnik rummaged in Bardhyl's pack and produced the draught. Wadim inspected it with a critical eye before handing it over.

"The top of the Crone is just up there," he said. "But you're in no state to climb. You're in Morr's hands now, my friend - if you can last 'til morning then perhaps he still has use for you here."

Straightening up, he looked around. "There should be a cave somewhere around here. Enough shelter to make camp, if we block up the tunnels at the back." He gave Grim a fatherly pat on the arm. "See if you can find it. And do you have any  rengjar ? Goose-foot, I think you'd call it." He saw the blank look on the outlaw's face. "I'll find it myself. Don't let him fall asleep."

The old man turned and walked away along the side of the pass, closely examining the weeds that grew between the stones in search of the one he wanted. He was muttering to himself as he walked - Ludo was pretty sure it was in the goblin tongue.


 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
  "You were incredibly brave, my girl,"  she told her quietly.  "Hardened men panicked and fled, but not you. Now, can you be a dear and see if you can get the other horses back? Take Jarla with you, if she'll come... You have experience bringing back lost horses together."  
 

Jarla saw the scowl that darkened Tatiana's face when Elsa spoke. She clearly didn't appreciate being patronised so heavily. All the same, she made her way over to where Jarla was standing.

"Are you alright?" she asked, quietly. "It seemed like… something was wrong."
-Sentinel-
 "Which bit shall we take back to the prince to prove we did it?" 
 "The stinger tail, obviously,"  said Elsa, as if Ludo had asked which bit of a unicorn to keep.  "I'd also like to have it looked at by an apothecary or the Shallyans. Some venoms have medicinal properties." 

She was still thinking about a wyvern cloak. She drew her dagger and tested its edge against the scales of the wyvern's back.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Is any kind of test necessary to pry off a large patch of scaled hide, given that this thing has armor 4?
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla looked at Tattie and shook her head. She didn't smile. The older woman looked very subdued.  "It's nothing child. Let's go find the horses."  

Getting up she walked along the slope trying to see if she could spot Countess.
TheSummoner
  No Not-Sieghards  

" I don't have the power to decide that, " Sieghard said. " The only way I could get you out is if I convinced the prince there was some way you'd be more useful to him out of there than in. You've seen for yourself how much he thinks of the Jackal "
rax
 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
  "The stinger tail, obviously,"  said Elsa, as if Ludo had asked which bit of a unicorn to keep.  "I'd also like to have it looked at by an apothecary or the Shallyans. Some venoms have medicinal properties."  
 

  "You'll do no such thing. I'm the one that got stuck with it - the tail is mine,"  Bardhyl rasped.

 "Your prince couldn't care less about the wyvern being dead anyway. If he did, he'd have already used some of his precious soldiers to root it out and protect  his  settlers. As for you, the only reason you're out here in the first place is because I brought you here. You want a trophy to curry favour with your master? Pick another piece. The tail and stinger are  mine ,"  he insisted harshly.

 OOC:  That's "you" as in Elsa, Ludo and Jarla collectively, not Elsa personally.
-Sentinel-
Elsa raised her palms placatingly. Bardhyl's vehemence surprised her, but she was not about to get into an argument over a wyvern tail. Perhaps Bardhyl  did  have more of a right to it than anyone else, given that he had been injured by it and had also been the one to strike the death-blow. His point that Prince Sforza had sat on his thumbs while a beast harassed his tax-paying farmers was also inarguable.

 "I suppose a chunk of hide will do,"  she said with a shrug, finally managing to drive her knife through the scales. She saw at once that this was going to be a messy task, so she peeled off her gloves to avoid getting them dirty. Hands were easier to wash than leather.

 "Wadim, can we get to your mountaintop today, or are you suggesting we do it tomorrow morning?" 
LCP
 Sieghard 

 " I don't have the power to decide that, " Sieghard said. " The only way I could get you out is if I convinced the prince there was some way you'd be more useful to him out of there than in. You've seen for yourself how much he thinks of the Jackal " 

Sanne gave a joyless, lopsided smile.

"Listen to yourself, southerner. The warrior who faced down Rorik Wolf-Risen  doesn't have the power  to open a door." Her chains clinked as she sat back against the wall, the last fragments of the food Sieghard had given her gone. "Whipped dogs, all of you. The fire witch was the same."


 Not Sieghard 

Even under the thick scales, the wyvern's hide was as tough as old leather. Elsa managed to drive her knife through it, but even then, it wouldn't peel away like she had imagined - the thick skin was anchored to the muscle with a web of connective tissue. Sawing away away until she was sure she had blunted the blade, Elsa at last managed to tear away a ragged strip of skin big enough for her purposes. Only when she stepped back to admire her handiwork did she appreciate how completely she had ruined her travelling clothes. The wyvern's blood had spread much further than just her hands.


  "Wadim, can we get to your mountaintop today, or are you suggesting we do it tomorrow morning?"  

Coming back from his herb hunt with a bundle of something green in his hand, Wadim seemed a little surprised at the question.

"...You may not have noticed it, Magister," he said, his tone very mild, "but our friend Bardhyl is quite badly hurt." Stepping up to stand beside her, he pointed at where Bardhyl was sitting. "The clues are subtle. There's the ashen face, the copious amounts of blood, the fact that the poison sting you were just discussing does seem to be full of  poison ... but I don't think he appears to be in mountain-climbing form, do you?"

Without waiting for an answer, he headed over to Bardhyl and handed him a bundle of what looked like grass. "Here," he said. "Chew it."
-Sentinel-
Elsa did not care for Wadim's sarcastic tone, but tried not to look too peevish.  "I just thought we could send a smaller party up there, or something. Have it your way..." 

She looked down in disgust at the mess on her clothes.

 Ah, well. I was due for a new set of travel clothes anyway,  she thought, rolling up the bloody strip of wyvern hide.

 "Ludo, that gun was a good investment. That shot looked like it did some real damage." 
TheSummoner
  The No Not-Sieghards, featuring Sieghard  

Sieghard gave Sanne a funny look. " And if it were me locked in a cage, would you defy Rorik's will to let me free? " he asked. He let the question hang and then asked " Suppose I did find a way to get you out of there, what would you do then? "
LCP
 Sieghard 

 " And if it were me locked in a cage, would you defy Rorik's will to let me free? " 

"I'm not the one asking all these questions," said Sanne. "You want my answers, southerner, and I want to know what's in it for me."


 " Suppose I did find a way to get you out of there, what would you do then? " 

"There's an answer you'd get for sure," she said, "if you let me go."

She fixed Sieghard with a steady stare. "There something you  want  the answer to be?"


 Not Sieghard 

It didn't take Grim long to locate the cave Wadim had mentioned. It wasn't much - barely ten yards deep - but it offered some shelter from the biting wind. A small fissure at the back was quickly blocked up with stones, leaving no space wide enough for even the smallest goblin to creep through.

It took a little longer for Tattie and Jarla to return with the horses. Rounding them all up had been a painstaking process. Jarla thanked Taal that Countess hadn't come to any harm in her wild flight up the pass - in fact, none of them had. She only wished she had a better place to keep them, as packing them all into the cave was going to make the place very warm, and very smelly. The warmth perhaps was not so bad, given that Wadim refused to allow his hoarded firewood to be used for an actual fire (he said he was 'saving it'), but the stable-stall stink made her long for the comforts of the Sforza's court. Tattie didn't seem bothered by it at all. Jarla got the sense that the girl was still keeping half an eye on her, perhaps not satisfied that her stumble earlier was 'nothing' after all - or perhaps she just preferred Jarla's company to her mistress'.

Dusk was creeping in. As the wind died down, bats began to flit in front of the setting sun, going to and from other caverns somewhere on the hillside. At the back of the cave, Bardhyl sat surrounded by his followers. His face had gone grey, and he seemed to swim in and out of consciousness. Zana and Wadim were locked in a hushed conversation in  vranspel , while Grim simply sat there, watching his chief for any sign there was something he could do.

 
 Spoiler: BardhylOnly 
As his body fought the venom coursing through his veins, Bardhyl found his mind wandering into fever dreams. The memory of the wyvern's jaws coming towards him kept flashing before his eyes - a sight that could so easily have been his last. In the wind of its wingbeats, he thought he tasted the dry grit of the desert. In the pain from his wound, he felt the cold of the Waste creeping into his bones. Grim was talking to him, but he couldn't make out the words - he was somewhere else.

He was standing on an endless plain of white sand, its rolling dunes stretching out under a cloudless midnight sky. There were no moons - only the cold light of countless stars, shining down from the fathomless darkness overhead. Ahead of him, a great stone gate stood empty and alone, with one white pillar and one black. It seemed to open to nothing but more desert beyond it. In front of it, tiny by comparison, a stone altar lay half-sunken in the shifting sand. On its surface lay a tarnished and broken set of scales.

Something moved behind him, in the darkness beyond the dunes. Looking round, he caught a glimpse of a sleek, black shape, prowling back out of sight. Dreams were the realms of Morr - but this close to the Waste, another spirit was stalking the Raven God's realm...
 

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Can I get another Toughness test from Bardhyl to fight the lingering effects of the venom?

N.B. I've moved ahead here, but feel free to timesplit any further stuff you want to resolve immediately after the encounter with the wyvern.
 
LeSwordfish
Ludo had not realised the extent of Bardhyl's injuries and was suitably cowed. He had been hoping to claim a tooth, perhaps, but decided it would be gauche at that time. He leaned against Lumpin's flank to sleep, wishing that Adelbert had been there with his medical abilities.
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 Without waiting for an answer, he headed over to Bardhyl and handed him a bundle of what looked like grass. "Here," he said. "Chew it." 
 

 Bardhyl sniffed suspiciously at the grass.  "It's going to taste foul, isn't it? Your remedies always do,"  he grouched.  "And how will we know if it works? I don't die? I keep my arm?"  he questioned his mentor.

 "Grim! I want that tail! Don't forget!"  he called out to his second-in-command.  "And give everyone a swig o' the good stuff. They've earned it!"  he reminded him of the bottle of spirits in his pack.

 
 Spoiler: LCP 
  Lord of Ravens, Protector of the Dead, is this then the end of my life's journey?   he thought to himself. There seemed little point in speaking in a place such as this. If Morr was here, he would hardly need Bardhyl to speak out loud to hear him.

He waited a moment to see if any response was forthcoming, then shrugged and began walking towards the gate. From the corner of his eye, he kept watch for the prowling presence. As he walked, he decided to address the spirit.

 "Is this how Morr's realm appears to you, spirit? Endless desert and night? There is a beauty here, I admit, but it's not much of a garden, is it?"  he called out.
 

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Toughness test  (1d100)[ 87 ]  vs. T 42
 
TheSummoner
  Not Everyone Except Sieghard  

Sieghard was silent for a moment, part of him wondering why he was even asking. If Ludo was here, he might be able to pick the locks or steal the key, but he had doubts Sanne would survive long enough for him to return. And even if Sieghard somehow could get the cell open and chains off without being caught, it wasn't likely she'd make it out of the castle unnoticed.

" We have a common enemy, " he said, finally " You, me, and the hill folk. The prince doesn't believe the Jackal is still alive... I  want  to believe he's not still alive, but I'll not risk being wrong about that. I don't know what sway you have in the Raven Hills, but anything you could do to convince the people there to cooperate and share what they know at least as far as the Jackal is concerned... "
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla saw to Countess's security and then settled down to sleep, preferably away from Tattie who she had no wish to talk to. She lay awake for a time, lost in thoughts of her own.
LCP
 Sieghard 

"Cooperate with who?" said Sanne. "You - or your prince?"


 Not Sieghard 

  "It's going to taste foul, isn't it? Your remedies always do,"  he grouched.  "And how will we know if it works? I don't die? I keep my arm?"  

"You know it works because I'm telling you it does," said Wadim, irritably. "Chew!"

The old man muttered something under his breath - again not in  vranspel , but something that sounded suspiciously like the goblin tongue. Bardhyl thought he caught the word 'git'.


  "Grim! I want that tail! Don't forget!"  he called out to his second-in-command.  "And give everyone a swig o' the good stuff. They've earned it!"  he reminded him of the bottle of spirits in his pack. 

Grim cast a sidelong glance at the great body of the beast. His reservations were written plainly on his face, but he nodded obedience all the same. Calling a few of the others, he set to work. Ludo noticed how Waldon and Ortwin hung back, afraid to go near the thing even in death.

With swords and axes, they hacked the sting from the end of the beast's tail. A great blade of bone, it was still spattered with Bardhyl's blood. When they lifted it up, it dripped black venom onto the stones. Bardhyl almost thought he heard the drops sizzle where they touched the earth. Wrapping the gory trophy in his cloak, Kreshnik carried it up to the cave.

 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl's Fever Dream 
No answer came back to Bardhyl out of the dark. He could feel that presence out there still, a shadow among shadows - but whatever its reasons, it didn't choose to face him.

As he looked around, his eyes were drawn back to the great stone pillars of the gate. The longer he looked at it, the more it drew him in, the whisper of the wind over the dunes seeming to take on voices of its own. They were calling out to him, inviting him to pass through - even though all he could see on the other side was the desert, stretching on forever into the endless night...

Something about the prospect of crossing that empty threshold turned his blood to ice. Tearing his eyes away, he turned around, and saw two blood-red stars, hanging just above the crest of the dune behind him. They were the eyes of the Jackal - hidden in plain sight, it stood black on black against the night sky, looking straight at him. He felt transfixed, like a mouse standing frozen in front of a cat.

The croak of a raven broke the silence. Flapping down out of the night, one alighted on his shoulder - then another, and another, perching on any part of him they could find. Faster and faster they came, covering him in a cloak of living feathers, until his face was the last part of him not covered by their dark feathers. As their wings closed over his eyes, those two red points of light were the last thing he saw, still fixing him with their patient stare...

He awoke in the cave, parched with thirst and drenched with sweat. It took a moment for him to get his bearings, to recognise that what surrounded him were not the rolling dunes of the desert, but the backs of sleeping horses. He looked around - the others were still with him. He was alive.

 OOC:  Bardhyl takes 4 further wounds as the venom works its way out of his system, and must pass a WP test or gain his first Insanity Point!
 


 

 Konigstag, 10th Sigmarzeit 
 Not Sieghard 

The next day, Bardhyl seemed less feverish, though still pale and weak. Examining the wound, Wadim stroked his beard and nodded to himself.

"It looks like Morr still needs you here," he said. "He does have a sense of humour, after all."

Outside, the sunlight was sharp and fierce compared to the shadows of the cave. Wadim shot a glance towards the entrance.

"How are you feeling?" he asked. "Up for a climb?"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Another Heal test for the new IC day:  (1d100)[ 87 ] ,  (1d10)[ 8 ]  - nope
 
rax
 "I feel like death warmed over,"  Bardhyl rasped.

 
 Spoiler: Speaking in vranspel 
 "I saw him,"  he continued.  "I saw the gate too. There were voices calling to me, willing me to pass through, but I knew that I feared doing so...so I didn't. It was the ravens that saved me - they covered me until I could no longer see his blood-red eyes...and then I woke up. Close call, eh?" 
 

 "I'll climb if that's what it takes to put this cursed mountain behind me. I'll need a moment to puke my guts out first though..."  Bardhyl said as his face took on a green tinge. Staggering to his feet, he just made it out of the cave before noisily throwing up.

 "Grim! For Morr's sake, bring me some water! It tastes like something died in me mouth!"  he called back inside.

 
 Spoiler: WP test 
 (1d100)[ 6 ]  vs. WP 59
 
LCP
 Not Sieghard 
 
 Spoiler: Vranspel 
"It's as I said," said Wadim, as he tore another improvised bandage from his borrowed cloak. "Morr still wants you with us."

He looked up, meeting Bardhyl's gaze from under his bushy brows. "Let's just pray the Jackal isn't taking  too  much notice of you, hrm?"
 

Wadim watched Bardhyl stagger to the cave entrance with an appraising eye. "I think we should rest a little while longer,” he said. “We’ll see clearest when the moons are up.”

Grim looked up from passing Bardhyl his water-skin. “You want to go up there in the dark?” he asked, just a little incredulous.

“Oh no,” said Wadim, “we’ll go  up  in the light. We can wait at the top for the sun to go down.”

“...And how are you planning to get down?”

“It was clear last night. With a clear sky, and Mannslieb on the wax, I’d think it was a poor excuse for a  vrani  who couldn’t find their way down off a hilltop in the dark. But… if you’re concerned, of course, we can always wait up there until morning. With the Prince’s wizard with us, I’m sure we don’t need to worry about wrapping up warm.”

Wadim gave the big man a friendly smile, exposing his yellowed, wolfish teeth. Considering how long he’d been with the goblins, Ludo supposed they were in surprisingly good condition - relatively speaking. Grim frowned, but held his tongue.

Outside, the dawn light was creeping up the pass, illuminating the sinuous body of the wyvern where it lay sprawled over the stones. Ravens were already circling, gathered for the once-in-a-lifetime feast the carcass represented. Bardhyl heard them croaking, and thought it sounded like home.

 ~ 
The sun had passed its zenith and was sinking towards the west by the time Wadim decided they'd rested long enough. "It's a steep climb," he said, pointing to the winding goat track that led up between the rocks. "Only those that want to see should come. The rest stay here with the horses."

Steep it looked, and steep it was. They climbed at a snail's pace, the pain of Bardhyl's wyvern-wound making him take frequent stops. Each time they came around the southern side of the slope, the wind would catch them and almost throw them back. “It should settle a little by moonrise,” said Wadim, clutching his cloak tight as the wind made it whip out behind him. “Let’s just hope it stays clear!”

By the time they reached the top of the Crone, the sun was setting, sinking into a blood-red haze of wind-blown sand that masked the western horizon. They could see the Waste stretching away below them for miles, its rocks and dunes casting long, black shadows in the crimson light.

There, to the north-west, was the long ridgeline of the Raven Hills, rising above the sands. To the south, the jagged peaks of the Teeth, burning red and gold as they caught the last light of the dying day. And to the south-west, thirty miles away or more, something dark and solid could be seen through the haze. At this distance it was barely more than a speck, but Ludo knew what it was the moment his eyes fixed on it - the Red Pyramid, rising up like a bloody knife-tip driven through the skin of the earth.

 
 Spoiler: Elsa Only 
From up here, Elsa could see the Reaches on a different scale. She could see the cerulean currents of  Azyr  that blew on those cold, high winds, streaming out from the setting sun.  Chamon  and  Ghur  clung to the crags, wreathing them in amber and gold - but down in the desert, only the wind of death reigned supreme.

Through dry gullies and over bone-white dunes, trickles of amethyst light flowed together, joining into streams that joined into rivers. This was not the natural flow of Shyish, out of the future and into the past. Every stream was flowing in the same direction - towards that red knife-point on the horizon…
 

 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl Only 
Bardhyl felt a chill run down his spine when he saw that red point on the horizon. It was as if he was standing before the empty gates again - as if he could feel the eyes of the Jackal gazing back at him. Perhaps the wyvern’s venom hadn’t quite worn off yet.
 


“Quite a sight, isn’t it?” said Wadim. Keeping careful handholds on the scattered rocks of the summit, he clambered over to a spot that offered some shelter from the wind. Bringing out the brushwood he’d gathered on the way up, he at last saw fit to assemble it into a fire. The kindling took quickly, but the wind snatched the flames away almost as quickly as they could take hold. “Magister Holt,” he said, “a little help?”

Tearing herself away from where she had been staring out over the desert, Elsa came over and mumbled a few words over the fire.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Auto-Elsa casts  Everlasting Flame :
  Channelling  - (1d100)[ 19 ] 
 (3d10)[ 7 ][ 6 ][ 5 ](18) 
 


The fire sprang up stronger than before, suddenly impervious to the insults of the wind.

As the light of dusk died away, Wadim motioned the others to join him, huddled close to the fire. He kept his eyes on the east, watching for the rise of the moons. Morrslieb was first to appear, its green light giving their faces a sickly tinge as it rose above the crags. Mannslieb wasn’t far behind.

“Alright,” said the Raven Speaker, once both moons were riding high in the eastern sky. “I think we’re ready. Gather round, all of you.” Rummaging under his borrowed tunic, he produced the leather pouch he had taken from Glimrut’s things. It was full of what looked like dried mushrooms. “Close to the fire. You need to be close enough to breathe the smoke.”
rax
 "So that's it, eh? The Jackal's prison and where he takes the souls that belong to Morr?"  Bardhyl said off-handedly to Wadim as he looked at the Red Pyramid.  "It doesn't seem so hard to get to from up here." 

Heeding Wadim's orders, he settled down near the fire...
LeSwordfish
While climbing, Ludo caught up with Wadim and asked him a question between breaths.

 "You speak the goblin language? Glimrut used a word... Gulnargrots. What does that mean?" 

 


Ludo had barely been able to tear his eyes away from the Red Pyramid since he'd spotted it. The scar on his back was itching again.  "I used to tell people I would go there. That I would steal it's treasures myself." 

He shivered.  "Hope I don't have to, really." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" With me, " Sieghard replied " And anyone with me. " Asking for more would be pointless. If the threat ever grew dire enough for Sforza to take seriously, there wouldn't be anyone left in the Raven Hills to cooperate. " Though it'd be better for both of us if you kept out of his mens' way enough to not end up right back in here. "
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla had not looked at the wyvern's corpse. Even in death, perhaps especially in death, it made her feel horribly small and insignificant. She only seemed to gain a little strength once they were away from the lifeless reptile for all they had to climb.

When Wadim pulled out his mushrooms she gave the mad old man an alarmed look.  "Uh, is that really neccessary?"  Jarla asked, though she could already guess the answer as she reluctantly took a seat at the fire.
LCP
 Sieghard, 9th Sigmarzeit 

“And where is that, that’s ‘out of their way’?” asked Sanne. “I was twenty leagues from here when they took me. There’s no corner of this land that your Prince doesn’t claim he owns.”

For a little while, she fell silent, weighing what to say. Her voice already sounded hoarse from all this unaccustomed talking.

“Here’s what  I  know. If the hill-folk knew how to destroy the Jackal for good, they would have done it while he was still sleeping.” She trailed off again. “Secrets, swords… fighting him isn’t a battle you can win with anything your master’s gold can buy. It’s a test from the gods. I’m right with my gods, southlander - it’s up to you whether you think you’re right with yours.”

Leaning her head back against the cold stone wall, she shut her eyes. “I’m tired. Free me, kill me, or let me have some rest.”


 

 Not Sieghard, 10th Sigmarzeit 

  "You speak the goblin language? Glimrut used a word... Gulnargrots. What does that mean?"  

“Mmh… I don’t know that I’d call it a  language , really,” said Wadim. “Plenty of words, but not much to string them together with. That’s why they’re so fond of using ours.” He cleared his throat. “But yes, I’ve… picked up a thing or two.”

“ Gulnargrot…  I think it means ‘dead kin’. Dead goblins.” He paused for a moment to catch his breath, leaning on his improvised staff. “I told you it was fear that brought them out into the open. Goblins had been disappearing on the western slopes. Some of those that  didn’t  came back with stories of their dead comrades, waiting there to snatch them up. Even coming into the tunnels.” He shook his head. "I'm sure for some of them it was an excuse to abandon their tasks, or to slink off away from the chief... but by the end, even Glimrut was convinced the  gulnargrots  were real."


 🍄🍄🍄 

  "Uh, is that really neccessary?"  

Wadim looked at Jarla with a curious gleam in his good eye. “That depends entirely,” he said, “on what you want to see.”

Stretching out his arm, he let a handful of mushrooms fall into the fire. Immediately, they began to give off a great volume of pungent, oily smoke. The wind caught it as it rose, making it billow back over them. As the choking cloud enveloped her, Jarla wondered how she would ever get the smell out of her clothes…

When the smoke cleared, and her eyes had stopped stinging, Jarla blinked in astonishment to see three others seated around the fire who had not been there before. They were goblins, but so old and wizened that they looked almost like corpses, left out to mummify in the wind and the sun. Fungal growths sprouted from their shrivelled skin, so strongly developed that they seemed rooted to the ground where they sat.

Opening its hooded red eyes, one of them looked at her. As it did, she noticed it seemed faintly transparent - through its head, she could just make out the gleam of a star in the night sky behind it.

“ Umiz? ” it croaked. “ Nurdug. Wurrbad! ”

Slowly and stiffly, another raised its head and opened its eyes. “ Ogrod nargrot naa, ” it grumbled, in a voice as dry as dead leaves.

“ Zoggob! ” said the third, without opening its eyes. Though it looked as ancient and decrepit as the others, this one wore the most elaborate clothes. Its black robes spread out in a ragged puddle around its crossed legs, and a tall, pointed hood teetered on top of its ugly head, threaded with bone fetishes and scraps of shiny metal. " Nazgog wazz! "

The three goblins turned together, to where Morrslieb was just rising above the top of the Spindle. Their eyes grew wide, and their heads tilted back on their thin necks until you could almost hear their dry bones crack. Opening their mouths as wide as they would go, they droned together:

 OOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA… 

The wind gusted, and for a brief moment changed direction, as if it was blowing down from the Chaos Moon itself. Following the dust and smoke that it picked up on its path, the watchers around the fire found their eyes drawn round to the west, where the Waste stretched out below them. The haze of the day had begun to settle - and there, shining cold and clear in the green moonlight, was the point of the pyramid. It caught their gaze and would not let go.

The muttering of the ancient goblins rustled in their ears.

 Morgit... 
  ...Vorgul...     ...Gornaz...   
Bardhyl felt his stomach churn as the vista before him seemed to twist and run together. The stars span, the earth churned and changed, and clouds raced across the darkened sky. Only the pyramid remained a fixed point, growing larger at the centre of the twisting tunnel until it appeared as if they were standing on the sands before it.

It loomed up blood-red in the moonlight, larger than any building he had ever seen. He looked for the breach in its sloping walls, but there was none - and no sand beneath his feet, either, but solid earth and growing grass. The stars had changed, and what surrounded him was not an empty desert but a green plain, stretching out as far as the hills.

The plain was far from empty. Long lines of chained greenskins stretched back from an open gate at the foot of the pyramid, shuffling with slow steps into the darkness beyond. Copper-skinned men and women with cold eyes and hard faces stalked up and down the lines, the coiled whips at their belts a silent threat to any who would struggle against their chains.

There were men and women among the prisoners too, as cowed and beaten as the orcs and goblins. They looked like hill-folk, and Bardhyl felt the heat rise in his blood as he saw their frightened faces. They outnumbered the overseers many times over, and he wanted to shout for them to rush their tormentors, to throttle them with their own chains - but even if they could have heard him, it would have been no use. Far more numerous, behind the overseers stood the silent ranks of the dead.

If both sides at Arrow Heap had joined forces against the army arrayed here, Ludo estimated they would still have been outnumbered more than three to one. They stood in ordered battalions around the foot of the pyramid, witch-lights burning in thousands of empty eyes, the archaic weapons of Meskhenet's people clutched in their fleshless hands. Each of them stared straight ahead, as motionless as a statue - but in their ghastly stillness was the promise of terrible motion when given the command. And so the prisoners filed meekly onwards, into that yawning gate, and whatever fate awaited them in the bowels of the edifice ahead.

The faint echoes of dreadful sounds were rising from beyond the gate - wails, squeals and screams, most cut terribly short. Elsa thought she could smell blood on the wind.  He would drink the life from out of the land,  Wadim’s words came back to her,  and every drop of blood they spilt on Morr's soil would go to restore his strength… 

Just looking at the pyramid, they could feel the way it thrummed with power, growing in time to the shuffling steps of the sacrifices being fed into it. Flickers of violet magic arced up its smooth sides, converging towards its capstone - above which, both moons hung in the sky, as full and shining as they only looked on one night of the year. Morrslieb's face looked for all the world like the face of a grinning goblin - and slowly, like Mannslieb, it was turning the colour of blood.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
This is just part 1 of Wadim’s magic mushroom trip - to see how part 2 pans out,  can you each please make a WP test. 

In terms of still being able to communicate with each other, this is an out-of-body experience - you can’t see them there with you, but you’re aware at a conscious level that your body is still back beside the campfire, and that if you speak, maybe the others will hear you.
 
LeSwordfish
 Earlier 
 "That's what I thought,"  Ludo said, not at all pleased to be correct.  "It doesn't seem far-fetched. We saw a troll skeleton walking in the marshes." 
 During 
 "This was... the first time they were attacked,"  Ludo said quietly.  "When Nagash sent Nahorek out and Meskhenet's people were his subjects." 

He turned to face the pyramid.  "He'll be in there." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
For reference I think it's  the right wall here .
 
LCP
 Not Sieghard, 10th Sigmarzeit 
 
 Spoiler: Ludo 
Ludo felt a sudden force on his wrists, dragging him forwards. Looking down, he saw his hands were in chains too - and that they were the green, gnarled hands of a goblin.

A whip cracked, and the line shuffled forward. As it did, the scene around him changed. He was still a goblin, chained before and behind to other greenskins - but now the line of captives was thousands instead of hundreds strong, snaking up the side of a blackened, broken mountain.

The same moons hung above its shattered peak, huge and shining - but now, Morrslieb was beginning to inch in front of Mannslieb's face. In the growing shadow of the eclipse, Ludo could make out a black tower rising from the mountainside, at the top of which burned nine tiny points of light. Nine books. One master.

The image dissolved, and he found himself standing before the pyramid again, shuffling on towards the yawning gate. Still the vision of the mountain stayed with him. He felt as if he could still feel the presence of the figure on the tower, the shadow of their hand reaching out across the centuries.

 Wurrgulgitz skrit olluz gul,  croaked the voice of one of the ancient goblins in his ear. He had no idea what it meant, but is sounded defiant.  Gobgul, grotdreg… mornagul waaagh! 
 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Ludo can test AK:Necromancy to recognise what’s happening on the mountain.
 

 

 
 Spoiler: Jarla 
A sudden jerk on her wrists pulled her forward, and Jarla realised she was no longer a passive observer. She was one of the shackled goblins, being marched steadily into the open gate of the pyramid.

 Is this all the old man wanted you to see?  whispered the familiar voice in her head.  The fate of these green beasts? 

Down they went, step by shuffling step, into the stygian darkness beneath the heart of the edifice. The air here was thick with cloying smoke, rising from braziers that burned with unnatural green-edged flames. The shrieks and squeals of dying greenskins were growing louder. This was the end of the line.

The smoke parted, enough for Jarla to see the chamber that lay ahead. A deep, black pit yawned in the centre of the stone floor. Undead guards stood ready beside it, seizing each prisoner as they came to the edge. Acolytes in jackal masks weaved their way between them, the arms that held their broad-bladed daggers red to the elbows with blood. One by one, they were opening the pinioned prisoners’ throats, letting the blood drain out - then, when the last spasms of their death throes had run their course, their bodies were unchained and cast unceremoniously over the edge.

None of this held Jarla’s attention. It was the figure  behind  the pit from whom she could not look away. The Jackal stood behind a tall lectern, and on it, its pages open, was the Book of Nagash.

She could  feel  the power that surrounded it, drawing in the souls of the sacrifices that flowed through the bloodstained stone beneath. The ancient words that issued from behind Nahorek’s onyx mask seemed to hang in the air, and in their relentless rhythm, she got the sense that he was not so much reading as allowing the book to speak through him. In the ghostly light that shone from its pages, the shadow he cast was not his own, but that of a greater, more terrible figure…

 The Hound of Nagash,  whispered Tshula in her ear - so quietly it seemed as if she was afraid she might be heard.  Even in death, the dog cannot slip its master’s leash. 

From outside, the faint sound of horns reached the chamber. The acolytes looked round towards their master, their bloody daggers still in hand. At first, he kept chanting - but then, with what seemed like a tremendous effort of will, he stopped. With a trembling hand, he shut the book, and his shadow became his own again. The power he had been calling remained, soaking into the stones of the pyramid around them.

“ Akhash-kheb-nezzar ,” he said, as the trumpets came again, more clearly this time. He looked to his acolytes. “ Ikhet. ”

As their master strode past them, the masked men turned back to their work. Jarla felt cold hands seize her, and a bronze knife flashed towards her throat…
 

 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl 
Feeling the chains drag him forward, Bardhyl realised he was no longer playing the role of a passive observer. He was one of the unfortunates in the line - not  vrani , but greenskin, a hulking brute of an orc.

He stumbled, and felt the sting of the whip on his shoulders. Anger welled up inside him. He wanted to lash out, to fight, to smash it all and stand laughing in the rubble. He tried to restrain it, to remember that he was Bardhyl of the Raven Hills, but the thought was lost in the rush. He was strong. He was fierce.  He was green.

When the next stroke of the whip came, he was ready. He caught it in his shackled hand, ignoring the pain where it bit into the meat of his palm. With a sharp yank, he pulled the overseer towards him, and in the next moment his hands were around the lowlander’s throat. The man’s neck was probably already broken before he headbutted him in the face, but he did it anyway, relishing the  crack  of a fracturing skull. Stupid ‘umie. That’d teach ‘im.

He dropped the body and raised his chained arms, bellowing a call to da boyz. The frightened faces of the humans chained to him meant nothing.  Dis was it! Time ta fight. Da uvvaz would know it woz time.

 OR MAYBE NOT. DEAD ‘UNZ CLOSIN’ IN BEFORE DA LADZ CAN YELL BACK. TAKE A SWING TA KRUMP DA NEAREST. CAN’T REACH. STILL CHAINED TO SOME PINKSKIN RUNT. BONE BOYZ GOT LONG STIKKAZ. STUKK IN DA LEG. STUKK IN DA GUT. STILL SWINGIN’. SMASH ‘EM ALL. SMASH ‘EM TA BITZ!

STUKK IN DA FROAT. STUKK LIKE A PIG. CAN’T REACH. CAN’T STAND. GLOWIN’ EYES, LOOKIN’ DOWN. SMASH 'EM.  SMASH ‘EM ALL…  

As his thick blood soaked into the dirt, he felt his spirit leave his body behind.  Some force was drawing him in towards the pyramid. He tried to fight it, but he couldn’t - he was being borne towards it like a twig in a stream. Seeing the pyramid grow closer, he felt the same terror he’d felt before the empty gates of his dream. His dream… not the dream of an orc,  but the dream of a man.

In desperation, he clung to that rekindling spark of memory, fanning it to a flame as the pyramid loomed to swallow the world. He wasn’t an orc. He was Bardhyl. He was Bardhyl of the Raven Hills. He wasn’t an orc, he wasn’t here,  this wasn’t his end… 
 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Bardhyl gains 1 insanity point. Beer then wine, feeling fine; wyvern venom then mushrooms, feeling… fushrooms.
 

 

 
 Spoiler: Elsa 
Elsa felt the current of whatever ancient greenskin memory was pulling her along, but resisted. Looking around, she found herself staring at the faces of the men and women holding the whips. They weren’t dead, and they didn’t have the look of fanatics like Armin either. She’d seen the look on their faces many times - indifference, disdain, confidence in their own strength. On the faces of the Iron Company, she saw it every day.

She looked back to the pyramid. However the enemy was channelling such monstrous quantities of  Shyish , it had to be for a purpose. She tried to open her second sight as wide as she could - but as she did, the croaking voices of the goblins came flooding in.

 Wozzat? 
  Wurrgit ogrub dekko!     Nargrod zaga. Zaga waaagh!   
Her vision became filled with a riot of green. Across the plains and the hills, through the jagged rocks of the Karst, she saw orcs and goblins fighting. They fought with the Nehekharans, with the hill-men, with each other, and didn’t seem to care where or who or why. All that mattered was the exuberant thrill of the fight.

One by one, though, the shadow of the pyramid fell over their battlefields, and one by one they fell silent. No army of the dead came marching to meet them - the greenskins and their rivals both seemed to wither away and vanish. The wind blew through their leaning idols, and sand covered their fallen weapons, until nothing remained but silent, choking peace.

 Nargog duruk,  croaked one of the goblin voices.  Vorgul Gornaz, mornadreg. 
 Mornadreg!  chorused the others - and Elsa found herself looking at the moons again. Though Morrslieb had turned blood-red, its face was still the face of a grinning goblin - and it seemed to be laughing at the power gathering in the pyramid below.
 

War trumpets blew, the moonlight shining on the spears of an army advancing from the south. As the legion of the dead formed up to face them, the vision dissolved. The stars span, the sun rose and fell, and the trees and grasses of the plain withered and died away. Still the pyramid remained, unchanging. Windblown sand covered its base, submerging the statues and obelisks that lined the approach.

Rising above the pyramid, the black shadow of a skeletal hound reached up into the sky, taller than the Teeth themselves. Heavy chains held it down, but as the moons passed it by, it strained against them, as if trying to catch Morrslieb in its jaws. Each time the Chaos Moon came close, it would leap up to bite it. Each time it fell back, the moon’s goblin-like face cackling at its cracked and broken teeth. Sometimes, however, shards of the moon broke free, slashing across the sky in streaks of brilliant green. At last, one struck the pyramid, and in the smoke that rose from the impact, the shadow rose up, its chains broken…

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
For anyone who feels so inclined, with a Navigation test at -20 you can have a guess at triangulating where the  other  meteors fell.
 

Now the stars stood still at last, and the pyramid stood silent, still bearing the hole the falling star had punched in its side. Or almost silent, anyway. Down on the white sands beneath it, two ant-like figures were dragging a third towards that same gate that had stood open to receive the prisoners, all those millennia ago.

They were goblins - but while the one being dragged wriggled and writhed, the others moved with slow, un-goblin-like purpose. They were dead. Their green skin was torn and parchment-dry, and witchlights shone in the empty hollows of their eyes. Behind them, a long trail of footsteps marked how far they had been dragging their captive. It drew a perfect straight line towards the pyramid.

 Skabskum! 
  Uzgitz!     Gulnargrotz!   
There had been a seal on the gate, but it was broken. Inside, an eerie light shimmered and shifted, like the reflection of torchlight on water. It wasn’t the crackling storm about to break that they had witnessed before - but power was building there again.

 🍄🍄🍄 
One by one, they began to come around, blinking as the after-effects of the smoke left their system. Elsa had a splitting headache, and Bardhyl had to fight the sudden urge to thump someone.

Tattie looked like she might still be under the influence. Sitting cross-legged by the fire, she was swaying a little, her pupils hugely dilated. Strangely though, she was staring straight at Jarla.

“Get out,” she said. The smoke had made her hoarse - but though her voice was quiet, it carried tremendous force. “Leave her alone.”
rax
 "Yer, yu 'eard 'er! Get out o' da humie,  djall !"  Bardhyl roared at Jarla, rising to his feet with fists clenched.

 
 Spoiler: @LCP 
I thought it would be funny to have Bardhyl still be influenced by his experience of true orcishness, so this is him acting instinctively on his suspicion that Tshula is still in Jarla.
 
RossN
 Jarla 
 
 Spoiler: Jarla's vision 
Even as she was being dragged towards her death Jarla felt a molten streak of contempt for the daemon and her cowardice. Had there ever really been a time when she believed something so weak and false could have given her any real power?

  "And  this  is the book you want?"   she cried out in her mind. Then she simply cried out as the knife flashed.
 


Jarla sat up in the real world, stomach heaving and sweat plastering her copper hair to her forehead, hands instinctively flashing protectively for her throat. Her blue grey eyes widened as Tattie stared at her, seemingly lost in the middle of a trance. Jarla panted, clawing for breath:  "help me get rid of her!" 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard bit back a sarcastic reply. " I'll do what I can, " he said instead, and returned to the gaoler.

" Half wild and half dead, that one. I had thought all of Rorik's lot were dead. " He had the beginnings of an idea that might work. And importantly, it was one that would give him a plausible excuse if it failed. " Do you know what the prince is keeping her for? "
LCP
 Sieghard, 9th Sigmarzeit 

Mauro gave an expressive shrug. "I don't ask-a di questions," he said. "She is a bandit,  si?  She should be grateful he keeps her alive."


 

 Not Sieghard, 10th Sigmarzeit 

Wadim put a steadying hand on Bardhyl's arm to recall him to himself. "I was wondering when our... other guest would make an appearance," he said. He nodded approvingly to Tattie. "You've got a good eye, girl."

Tattie scowled at him, but kept her attention firmly on Jarla. The noblewoman was evidently in some distress. When Elsa looked at her, she saw for a moment a flash of fiery colour in Jarla's eyes - not their usual greyish tone, but luminous blue and pink.

Wadim rose to his feet, leaning on his makeshift staff. "What business do you have with this woman, spirit?" he asked. His tone was far more conversational than confrontational. "I don't think you're one of the Jackal's creatures. What brings you out here with us?"

Jarla twitched. Strange sounds escaped her throat, the left side of her face trying to form different words to the right. With a subtle nod of his head, Wadim motioned for Bardhyl to hold her still. He crouched stiffly down in front of her.

"You're being very brave, Frau Schreiber," he said. "But if you want us to help you, I need to talk to the other one. Will you let her speak?"
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla shook her head, trying to shove Tshula's words back down her throat.  "No, I'm not letting her control me for a moment longer. No negotiations. The daemon has said enough.  Get her out of my body and kill her! " 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Barely alive, " Sieghard commented. " Has he shown any interest in her since she was captured? Had her questioned or anything of the sort? "
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by RossN 
 Jarla shook her head, trying to shove Tshula's words back down her throat.  "No, I'm not letting her control me for a moment longer. No negotiations. The daemon has said enough.  Get her out of my body and kill her! "  
 

Her gaze still unfocused from the mushrooms' effect, Elsa nevertheless tried to focus on Jarla. She looked deeply apologetic as she said:

 "Jarla... we don't  know  how to banish her. We thought we had, yet she remains." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Back on autopilot I go. I'll let you know when I've returned for good.
 
LCP
 Sieghard, 9th Sigmarzeit 

"Not that I know," said Mauro. "He comes down... once or twice, only. I don't know what he says to them. If he says anything at-a all."


 

 Not Sieghard, 10th Sigmarzeit 

Wadim raised a bushy eyebrow at Elsa's statement. "Is that how it is?" He looked to Bardhyl. "You were there, yes? What did you see?"

The fire was still crackling behind them, though the firewood that fed it was now no more than ashes. The night wind whistled in the gap between the Crone and the Spindle, the occasional gust still plucking at their hair. Rolling up his baggy sleeves, Wadim turned back to Jarla.

"This will be dangerous, you understand, Frau Schreiber?" he said. "The  djall  has a hold on your soul. If we try to force it out, it may do some damage along the way." He fixed her with a steady look. "Are you  sure  this is what you want?"
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla nodded or at least tried to.  "Not as much damage as I'll do to  her . Do it!" 
LeSwordfish
 "Good esmerelda, it's never just one thing at a time,"  Ludo muttered, blinking away his vision of the Pyramid.  "We're here for you, Jarla." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Hmmm... " Sieghard muttered. Already, this wasn't going how he had hoped. " Only once or twice? Has it been a while then? "

He let Mauro answer and then continued. " It doesn't seem like the Prince has much interest in them, but me? I have... There's a Tilean word for it, isn't there? Ah,  vendetta . A  vendetta  with the Norscans. If she's the last of them, I'd like to see her pay for what the lot of them have done. "
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Not Sieghard, 10th Sigmarzeit 

Wadim raised a bushy eyebrow at Elsa's statement. "Is that how it is?" He looked to Bardhyl. "You were there, yes? What did you see?" 
 

 "We went to the high priest's house - Brother Cezar of the Morrites hoped to perform an exorcism to drive out the body snatcher. When we got there, Hieronymus tried stalling us, so I pushed my way inside. There was a bit of tumult and then - with Morr's help - I noticed that the  djall  had left Hieronymus and was approaching Lady Schreiber, invisible to our normal senses." 
 "Lady Schreiber collapsed and a circle of unnatural flames sprang up around her. The  djall  appeared as a figure within the flames and tried to strike at us, but could not touch myself or Brother Cezar, protected as we were by Morr's holy symbols. Then it tried to bargain with us for free passage and the book. While that was happening, Lady Schreiber came to. When Sieghard struck it with his sword, the  djall  attacked again. Its form seemed to have finally been destroyed when Magister Elsa summoned a magical sword and struck it a mighty blow. I could not sense its presence again until the other night at the farm,"  Bardhyl duly reported all he could remember.
LCP
 Sieghard, 9th Sigmarzeit 

Mauro shook his head. "No, I no see him here for long time." Taking a hold on the edge of his little table, he levered himself carefully down onto his wooden chair. "Is-a nice."

Sieghard's talk of  vendetta  seemed to elicit no strong response from the gaoler. "The others are dead,  si? " he said. "And this one, she rots in the cells. You are thinking, more?"


 

 Not Sieghard, 10th Sigmarzeit 

“Made you think it was gone, hm?” said Wadim. “Well, I suppose that tells us something. More than something, even.”

He looked round at Bardhyl and Ludo. “One of you will have to tie her down,” he said, with something of a sigh. “I’m afraid this will take a while.”

When Jarla had been suitably restrained, Wadim used his stick to draw a circle in the loose stones around her, and took a seat on a rock just outside it. He reached under the collar of his tunic for something, and seemed momentarily surprised when it wasn’t there.

“Ah,” he said. “Bardhyl, my lad… I don’t suppose you kept your old raven pendant, did you? I’m not sure what the goblins did with mine.”

The old man nodded his thanks when Bardhyl produced the iron raven. “I don’t suppose this is something I ever had the chance to teach you,” he said. “Pay close attention, if you can. And all of you, be ready. I don’t expect this  djall  of yours to leave without a fight.”

Closing his gnarled fingers around the symbol of Morr, Wadim reached forward and placed his other hand on Jarla’s forehead. He closed his eyes and began to murmur in  vranspel , speaking so softly that he could scarcely be heard over the crackle of the fire. It sounded peaceful, but Ludo could see beads of sweat forming on the old man’s face.

Straining his ears to listen, Bardhyl could tell the incantation was not addressing the daemon. It was addressing Jarla Schreiber.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I'm assuming that folks won't have an issue doing what Wadim asks, but please do break in on my flow here to detail how you do it - I'm not trying to cut the PCs out of the loop, just trying to keep things going at a fair pace.
 

 Jarla 
 Jarla was bone tired. Ranald only knew what hour it was, and as if sleeping in caves, climbing mountains, and burning the night away in mushroom-addled visions wasn’t enough, the struggle to keep the daemon at bay had drained her last reserves. This close to the warmth of the fire, and with Wadim’s soporific chanting filling her ears, she felt herself drifting away. As her mind wandered, she found herself back in a familiar place… 
 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Jarla is dreaming of a moment in her life when she felt  powerless and dependent on the mercy of others . RossN, I’ll leave you to narrate what that is - it could be from any time, before or after she came to the Reaches. I haven't put this in a spoiler because I figure it'd be more fun for you to be able to write for more readers than just me, but if you'd rather use spoilers feel free and I'll adjust.

I’d also like a WP test from Jarla, opposed against:  (1d100)[ 63 ] 
 
RossN
 Jarla 
 A familiar place…

She'd been so confident and so careless. The western road from Bruckensberg through the forest was not well travelled these days and Jarla Schreiber had grown so used to passing the decayed and ancient Roadwarden station it had simply never occurred to the highwaywoman it had occupied. Yet some busybody official in Averheim had apparently seen fit to assign a man to this lonely trail through the oaks and elms.

It had started raining, a gentle but insistent pitter patter on the leaves and deciding she had no desire to drown herself when she could enter shelter Jarla had entered the small timber cabin.

There was a roadwarden sitting down to his lunch of breath and greasy broth. For ten full seconds they stared at each other spellbound by the sheer shocking of seeing an unfamiliar face in this familiar space.

Jarla did something incredibly stupid. She did  not  reach for her sword. She did  not  turn and run. She opened her mouth to talk her way of this. Perhaps even charm her way out (he wasn't bad looking...)

The roadwarden took one look at the dripping wet red haired woman in riding gear, armed with a pistol on her belt and a sword on her side and still wearing a black silk mask around her eyes and successfully calculated the result of two plus two. He grabbed for his pistol and fired.

The shot missed but it set Jarla off running back out the door and into the rain and into the forest. She'd made it maybe ten yards when there was a second crack of of a pistol and she felt a impact of heat and pain at the left side of her head just above and behind her ear. In a way she was very lucky; the bullet had grazed her but a combination of thick Averland hair and thick Schreiber skull had saved her. Not that she realised it at the time. Jarla was too blinded by pain and fear and she stumbled through the mud and trees with no idea of where she was going. At some point her own sword was snagged on a tree and lost to the woods. She could feel the blood running down the left side of her head and into her fancy collar.

It was a charcoal burner's cottage but to Jarla's disoriented gaze it might as well have been Sigmar's cathedral. She half hammered half just fell against the door.  'Help me please....' 

She heard a voice coming from inside and after a moment a peasant woman poked her head out and looked at Jarla, her eyes full of fear. She was maybe a couple of years younger than Jarla, blonde and plain.

 'Help me,'  Jarla asked again weakly.  'There's someone after me.'  
 
 Spoiler 
WP = 42  (1d100)[ 24 ] 
 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 He looked round at Bardhyl and Ludo. “One of you will have to tie her down,” he said, with something of a sigh. “I’m afraid this will take a while.” 
 

 "It's a cunning beast, to be sure, and fond of striking bargains,"  Bardhyl replied.  "I'm thinking that perhaps it had a little help in staying hidden,"  he added with a glance at Jarla.

Rummaging through his pack he produced a length of rope.  "Haven't got anything with me to stake her out, but I can truss her up and sit on her if that's good enough?"  he asked Wadim.
LCP
 Not Sieghard, 10th Sigmarzeit 

  "Haven't got anything with me to stake her out, but I can truss her up and sit on her if that's good enough?"  

Wadim shook his head. “Keep your distance if you can,” he said. He gestured to a small outcropping of rock near the fire. “Tie her to that… and watch her close.”

 Jarla 
 The peasant girl looked at Jarla as if she’d fallen from the sky. She squinted through the falling rain, looking for any pursuer. Seeing none, she pulled her quickly inside.

It all came back so strongly. The pot of brown stew bubbling over the fire; the smell of smoke, and straw, and animals kept indoors. The slow drip of rainwater from the hole in the thatched roof, far too long in need of patching.

 Clump. Clump. Clump.  The sound of heavy footsteps outside. The door opened, and Jarla’s heart skipped a beat - but it wasn’t the roadwarden. It was the girl’s husband, water dripping from his battered coat and hat. He looked at least ten years older than her, with a hard, tired face behind his black beard.

Taking his hat off, he froze when he saw Jarla lying sprawled on their one straw-mattress bed. His wife hurried over to them, and Jarla strained to hear their tense, whispered conversation. She couldn’t hear much, but she made out the word ‘reward’.

Still, when the roadwarden did come knocking, they turned him away. As the girl sat there, washing her face with a rag and a bucket, Jarla tried to thank her.

 You don’t need to thank me, Jarla,  she said. That wasn’t right - not her words, not her voice.  It’s just who you are. It’s who you’ve always been. Running to someone else to save you. 

Looking up, Jarla saw the peasant girl’s eyes shining in the gloom - eyes of pure fire, blue and pink. Behind her, spreading circles of embers began to eat the walls of the hovel away, revealing only a churning void behind.

 You ran to the roads to escape from Heinrich,  spoke the daemon, still wearing the peasant girl’s face.  When that didn’t work, you ran to your brother. And when you found he was dead, you ran to the woman who killed him, because you thought  she  had the power to protect you. 

Even as she spoke, the girl’s face seemed to blacken and char, cracking to reveal lines of fire - or something worse - underneath.

 I wanted to offer you something more, Jarla Schreiber. To let you  be  someone. But you’ll never be that woman.  Contempt dripped from every fiery syllable.  Too much of a coward to shape your own fate. You’d rather leave it to the people who watched your brother die.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Jarla wins the opposed WP test, so gains no IP from this and can tell Tshula to get bent in whatever way she pleases!
 
RossN
 Jarla 
 As the daemon spoke on Jarla's expressions changed. Fear into revulsion into anger... into contempt. Far mor contempt than a mere daemon could manage.

She stood to her full height and slapped Tshula across the cheeks hard.

 "My inferiors address me as  Lady  Schreiber, and in every sense you are my inferior Tshula." 

Had there ever been a moment she had truly feared this sham of a being? How had she been so blind!

 "You speak of cowardice, but I've been there when you were too afraid to speak in front of a mere vision of the vampire. I felt your terror as the wyvern attack. The same wyvern my friends slew."  Jarla stopped and laughed in the daemon's face.  "If I need saving how could it possibly come with the aid of someone as weak as you?" 

She paused, the laughter fading away as her blue-grey eyes grew cold.  "But you are right on one thing. I have run, and I will run no longer. Irene's Sforza's throne will be mine one day - and no thanks to you." 

As she said this Jarla summoned her willpower and made a few changes. This was her mind was it not? The mud stained clothes she was wearing fell away replaced by a midnight blue gown Irene would have envied. A silver and gold coronet crowned her head and sapphire earrings hung from her ears. Her eyes were blue too, cold and cruel as icebergs as she looked at the daemon.  "Scurry away Tsuhla.  You run now. "   
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard nodded. " How much have you heard about what that lot did in Ravenskird and Painford? " he asked. " The folk there and the men who lost friends fighting the Jarl would probably have some good thoughts about how much more. I'd like to see what they can come up with. "
LCP
 Sieghard, 9th Sigmarzeit 

Mauro shook his head at Sieghard’s question. He didn’t seem too interested in other peoples’ grievances.

“Well,” he said, “they are there, and she is here,  si? ” He leaned back against the wall, half closing his eyes. “Maybe lucky for her.”


 

 Not Sieghard, 10th Sigmarzeit 
 Jarla 
 The side of the girl’s face burst into ash and cinders where Jarla slapped her. She stumbled back, slumping in on herself under the force of Jarla’s words as if she could no longer hold herself together. Skin and peasant clothing charred and crumbled away, revealing the horror beneath.

This was what the daemon had always been. No human face, no graceful dancer in the flames, but a headless, twisting column of luridly-coloured flesh, sprouting maws and eyes and boneless arms. Flames dripped from between the lamprey teeth of those countless mouths, billowing up from beneath the daemon like a witch’s pyre.

 The Changer is not done with you, girl,  sang the mouths of the daemon together.  If it takes nine hundred years, if we must take it from your children’s children children… we will have what we are owed.

 The flames roared higher, consuming the nightmare body of the creature before her. When they cleared, Jarla was drifting alone in the dark. 
 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Another WP test for Jarla at seeing Tshula’s true form - not opposed this time, and at +20 for already having won the first.
 

 Ludo, Bardhyl &amp; Elsa 

The night wore on, and Wadim kept up his chanting, a familiar circle of words repeated again and again. Jarla looked asleep, though her sleep was troubled - sometimes she twitched and kicked under the ropes.

After what seemed an hour or more, Wadim's chanting suddenly stopped. Ludo thought for a moment the old man might have nodded off too - but quickly enough, he spotted it. Where Jarla had cast one shadow in the light of the campfire, now she was casting two.

"We see you,  djall ," announced Wadim. "To whom am I speaking?"

Silence. Holding Bardhyl's talisman up, Wadim said: "In the name of Morr, speak."

 I am a servant of the Changer. A keeper of the true flame.  Ludo knew that warm, crackling voice instantly.  An enemy of your enemy. An ally, if you wish it. 

"Is that so?" said Wadim. "And what does the Eagle have to offer the Raven?"

 A chance at victory. Perhaps your only chance.  The shadow flickered in the firelight.  These others with you know. Ask them. Ask of the Brethren of the Silver Tower. 

"It's you I'm speaking to,  djall ," said Wadim, firmly. “You want our help, and yet you hid from us. Why?”

 The others with you have refused my help,  said the shadow.  They are too stubborn and stupid to see. Fortunately, that makes them easy to deceive.  The campfire crackled and spat, and tiny figures danced in the flames, gibbering in falsetto voices as they each pantomimed a ridiculously exaggerated death.  You, on the other hand… 

“This woman does not want you,” said Wadim, again refusing to be diverted. “You wish to talk? Leave her, and we can talk.”

 These fools have hounded me for too long,  said the shadow.  I have been a horse, and then a boy, and then a goat… hello, Tatiana.  Tattie bristled like an angry dog.  And then a priest, and now - this. My strength in this world is spent.  The unearthly voice sounded faint and strained.  I cannot remain here without a host. 

Points of unnatural light gleamed where the shadow’s eyes should be.  She welcomed me in, you know,  it said, and its attention turned to the others.  Poor lost creature, trailing after her dead brother’s friends. And what does she find? A woman who will never understand her, and a halfling who she finds knew a different man to any brother she ever had. Are you surprised she turned to me? 
RossN
 Jarla 
 Contempt gave way to a tiny tremor of pity at the misbegotten creature.

 'Oh Tshula. Always hiding behind masques always wanting to be someone else. I don't blame you for that.'  She leaned in low and whispered to the daemon.  'But know this: I've seen the weakness and hollowness of daemons and I'll remember. And know this too: my brother saved you once, a mistake perhaps but I honour his memory. You leave because I  let  you leave. If I chose I could imprison you away in the shadow of old memory, forgotten, lost and unheeded and alone forever.' 

Jarla stood back and watched as the daemon faded away, her multicoloured flames reflected in the tears running down Jarla's cheeks only allowing her bravado to crack once she was alone... 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  
 Do I press further?  Sieghard wondered. He had said nothing that would come back to bite him if he couldn't convince Mauro to look the other way, but the gaoler had shown no sign of being willing to. A more direct approach might work, but was the chance good enough to be worth the risk?

" Fortunes change fast in the Border Princes, I've found " he replied. " Thanks for what you've told me. "

No, it wasn't, he decided. He had another option... One that if nothing involved a bit less risk.

 
 Spoiler 
Weighing the options and having gotten nothing promising from the probing statements and questions, probably better to just go to Sforza if Sieghard has to just directly ask (and given his skillset, he that's probably the only option). If he fails to charm Mauro, then Mauro tells Sforza that Sieghard was trying to go behind his back. If he fails to charm Sforza, then Sforza just says no and Sieghard has a reasonable enough cover story for asking. Also eliminates the complications of getting Sanne out of the castle/city if he does succeed.

Not something that needs to be played out, but Sieghard wants to go to Al-Makir and ask him to write out the directions Sforza requested. Especially after the pig painting, better to keep up the appearance of illiteracy. Pausing here because Sieghard will save the business about Sanne until last and I'm not sure if there's anything else Sforza wants in regards to the goblin raiders before trhen.
 
LeSwordfish
 "She never did,"  Ludo said. The scar on his back was crackling with electricity, his hand went to his sword.  "You're lying again." 
LCP
 Not Sieghard, 10th Sigmarzeit 

The campfire flared again, spitting a cloud of lurid pink embers into the air. As the wind carried them away, they took on the shape of Ludo’s face, his stern expression exaggerated to grotesque proportions.

 Lying again,  they shrilled, their tiny voices fading as the wind carried them away.  Lying again.  Lying again...  

“We’re not here to play your games,  djall ,” said Wadim. His voice was still quiet and calm. “If you will not release this woman of your own accord, then we will have to force you from her.”

Levering himself to his feet, he raised Bardhyl’s amulet, closed his eyes, and began to chant in the Raven Hills tongue.

&lt; Morr, Lord of Ravens, Keeper of the Gate. Cast your eyes upon this spirit. &gt; The shadow on the rocks seemed to shiver and blur. &lt; It trespasses here from the realms beyond your sight. It steals the gift of life that is yours alone to take. Look upon this mortal woman, lord, and banish from her the deathless, the bodiless, the never-born… &gt;

Jarla’s eyes snapped suddenly open, and in them, all Ludo could see was fire. She began to thrash and babble, a rapid stream of guttural sound drowning out the Raven Speaker’s words. Only Elsa could understand the language she was speaking - the language of the skin-bound book from the Lost Library, the language she wished she’d never learned…

With a sudden roar, the ropes binding Jarla burst into brilliant blue flames. Wadim kept chanting - Bardhyl suspected at this stage he couldn’t stop - but they could hear the tension in his voice. Already the ropes were charring through...

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
One chance to act before Jarla is free!
 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 Points of unnatural light gleamed where the shadow’s eyes should be.  She welcomed me in, you know,  it said, and its attention turned to the others.  Poor lost creature, trailing after her dead brother’s friends. And what does she find? A woman who will never understand her, and a halfling who she finds knew a different man to any brother she ever had. Are you surprised she turned to me?  
 

 "That may well be, but it seems your guest rights have been revoked,"  Bardhyl said coolly.

As the ropes burst into flame, he took a firm hold of Jarla's wrist with one hand and pushed her back against the rock with the other.  "Just so you know, I'll be sorry if I have to break your arm to keep you from doing something stupid,"  he said conversationally to Jarla as he squinted to keep from being blinded by the bright flames.
LeSwordfish
Ludo threw all of his bodyweight onto Jarla's other arm, grabbing her wrist with one hand while fumbling at his neck with the other. He drew out Adelbert's owl pendant and clutched it in his hand.  "Verena if you can hear me please protect the sister of your servant and drive out the demon of lies from her and help us destroy the thing that hurt your priest..."  He had never prayed before, aside from the odd candle for Esmerelda, and he wasn't sure if he was doing it right.  "...i'm keeping your shrine and using it to teach people and I can keep offerings for you and..." 
LCP
 Not Sieghard, 10th Sigmarzeit 
 Bardhyl, Ludo &amp; Elsa 

Catching hold of Jarla, Bardhyl felt the heat of the flames sear his skin. There was no question, this was real fire - but to his astonishment, the second Ludo joined in, the fires winked out. Was Verena really listening?

Jarla kicked and writhed as Wadim kept on chanting, but the two of them had her held tight. Around the campfire, the shadows boiled…

 Jarla 
 Jarla was still drifting in the void. She felt sure the daemon was still with her, swimming somewhere out there in the formless dark - but for whatever reason, it no longer showed its face. Was it afraid? Or was its attention occupied somewhere else?

Slowly, she became aware that she and Tshula were not the only things in this abyss. Points of light, impossibly faint and distant, but glittering in more colours than she had ever known existed. They drew her in, growing brighter as they multiplied before her eyes - and she saw they were part of something greater.

The Changer’s great design spanned past, present and future, and in it everything she had ever done, and everything she would ever do, had its part to play. Tshula-Udiyya was only a link in that cosmic web - those points of light, the pieces with which the game was played, were mortal souls. The plan unfolded before her in its infinite, fractal beauty, and she knew it had a mind, and a will, and a name.

All she had to do was let go, and she would sink into it. It didn’t matter to what end the plan unfolded, because the plan  itself  was beautiful, and she would be a part of that beauty - a dancer on the delicate strands of fate. What good did it do to struggle against the web when you were already caught?  What good was a soul for anything but this?

In the hypnotic light, she scarcely heard the rustle of feathers, or felt the weight of the raven landing on her shoulder. Only when it pecked her on the ear could she tear her eyes away. Looking round, she saw a stone archway floating in the void behind her. A door back to the life she’d known before, where men and women were born and died with no grand purpose but to  live .

Something about the sight of that plain, age-beaten door had broken the spell. Looking back, she saw now where every glittering strand of fate in Tzeentch’s grand design led. Like a spider squatting at the centre of its web, like a maelstrom dragging ships down into the sea, the Weaver of All Fates waited hungry and open-mouthed, drawing all things to him until the world itself burned in the fires of change. She stared into that abyss, and a thousand blazing eyes stared back.

She turned in horror and kicked out towards the open door. The raven took flight from her shoulder, winging ahead as if to guide the way. She found she could move through this nothingness, as if she were swimming through thick treacle - but as she swam, she felt a sudden weight on her feet, pulling her back. Looking down, she saw Tshula in her human form, her hands locked around her ankles.

 No!  The churning vortex beneath was drawing them both down. The daemon sounded almost desperate.  Don’t leave me! Take me with you!

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Final tests! Can I get:

 
 1 last WP test against Insanity Points from witnessing the cosmic horror of Tzeentch. 
 1 Toughness test against mutation. Let how much you pass or fail by inform how painful and difficult it feels to get Tshula to let go. 
 
 
RossN
 Jarla 
 It was all so beautiful and magnificent that for a moment there Jarla wavered. How much of a relief would it be to just give in? To surrender it all and drift like a fallen leaf in a mountain stream carried through the fast flowing a crystal waters far away to some undreamt of point.

A trap of course. With raven's help she shook it off. Not without pain and not without regret and Jarla knew even then that part of her would always dream of this and wonder... but she had her own path, her own destiny to make.  'I am free Weaver. I am Jarla Schreiber and I am no being's slave and no being's puppet. Not even yours.' 

She turned for the door. But then there was Tshula. Jarla looked down into that beautiful, so very human face and heard the desperation in that voice, felt the tug of the horrible thing at the centre of the webs. She reached down and lay a comforting hand on Tshula's hair, stroking it as if she was calming a crying child.

 'I cannot take you with me Tshula. If you want to be free you must swim for yourself,'  Jarla said. She gave the daemon a smile with some real sympathy in it.  'I hope you do learn to be free one day Tshula. Truly free, not a puppet.'  

And then she reached down and with her strong human fingers plucked the daemon's fingers open from her ankles. She did it with sorrow but with ease too for she was real in a way the daemon was not  and Jarla was not going to let a whisper of a dream drag her down.

She swam for the door.
 
LCP
 Not Sieghard, 10th Sigmarzeit 
 Jarla 
 Tshula's hand unravelled under Jarla's touch, becoming a mass of toothy tendrils that bit and clung to her skin. Snatching her hand back, Jarla watched the daemon fall, spiralling down to rejoin the seething sea of Chaos from which she came.

Swimming for the door with all her might, she thought she could hear the faint voices of the others, reaching her from the other side. Taking a firm hold of the stone archway, with one last effort she pulled herself through... 
 Jarla, Elsa, Ludo &amp; Bardhyl 

A keening scream echoed from the rocks around them, and the fire leapt up to two or three times its ordinary height, burning blue and pink and every colour a fire should not be. A flaw in the wind caught it, stretching the twisting cyclone of lurid light out to the north - and in the next moment, it went out, casting their mountaintop camp into darkness and silence.

Jarla's struggles had stopped. Slowly, she seemed to be coming round. She blinked blearily, and her eyes showed no colours but their own. Her fine clothes were tattered and singed where the burning rope had scorched them through, and the skin of her right forearm was marred with a snaking burn, wrapping round her wrist to the palm of the hand that had prised the daemon's grip free. She could see what the shape of the mark would be, if she unrolled it flat - the beaked, snake-like symbol of the Changer of Ways.

Still, despite her ruined clothes and the pain in her hand, she rejoiced. For the first time in weeks, she felt alone in her own head.

Trembling a little, Wadim sat back down on his stone. "Thank you, friends," he said, nodding his head to Ludo and Bardhyl. "For a moment there, I thought we might have been in trouble." He turned to Jarla, the moonlight gleaming in his good eye. "How are you feeling, Frau Schreiber?"
-Sentinel-
Elsa exhaled. Through the whole exorcism, she felt powerless. She now looked at the elderly Vrani with newfound respect.

 "I'm glad we found you, Wadim,"  she said in an awed tone.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
I wasn't really planning to go to Morr's Seat. Elsa has been gone long enough.
 
RossN
 Jarla 


Jarla smiled wearily at Wadim's question.  "How am I feeling? So tired I want to sleep for a century but more alive than I've been. I  won ." 

She looked around at the group.  "But more that I feel grateful. Thank you Wadim, and thank you Bardhyl and even more thank you to my friends."  Jarla stood up, looking like she'd immediately regretted it but still managed to fight the nausea and totter over to hug first Tatie and then Ludo.  "I'd have been so lost without you." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard , 10th Sigmarzeit 

A night spent in the castle was welcome after the days spent on the road and searching among the Teeth. Even so, he woke early and when the prince was ready, delivered the directions to the farm that he had asked Abdul write down for him the night before.

" If everything involving the hill goblins is done, " he began, " I have a request. I've heard you have a prisoner who was captured in the west. One of Rorik's turn bandit. The south was spared the worst of the war, but the people of Ravenskird and Painford haven't forgotten how they suffered at the hands of that lot when they first moved against Savonne. And my men haven't forgotten those who died fighting them. If you have no other use for her, I'd like your permission to take her south to face justice for what she's done. "

 
 Spoiler 
Untrained charm at 27 base value. I'll use FP for +10 AND a reroll if I have to to make this pass.

 (1d100)[ 77 ] 
 (1d100)[ 31 ] 
 
rax
 "Well, Herr Ludo, it seems there was more than one god listening in today,"  Bardhyl nodded at the remains of his rope.

As the adrenaline drained away, he felt a wave of tiredness sweep over him and slumped down on the ground. The wound in his abdomen ached abominably...

 "If you're quite done, I'll have that back now,"  he croaked at Wadim and pointed at his raven amulet.  "You can get your own made when we get to Morr's Seat." 
LeSwordfish
 "Yes... Right..."  Ludo looked at the little owl icon again, before slipping it back into his shirt. He had been gripping it so tight the outline of two owlish eyes and a beak were marked into his palm: he rubbed his hand unthinkingly and it vanished.

 "Good catch,"  he nodded to Tatiana.

He sighed and took a breath.  "So... did everyone see the same thing as I did? The comet breaking the pyramid, a line of goblins being sacrificed to it... and it looked like they're doing it again." 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
 He sighed and took a breath.  "So... did everyone see the same thing as I did? The comet breaking the pyramid, a line of goblins being sacrificed to it... and it looked like they're doing it again."  
 

 "Sounds about right,"  Bardhyl replied.  "Though not so many this time, eh? The Jackal is being fed in dribs and drabs, it's not a river of sacrifices...yet." 
LCP
 Sieghard 

Sforza listened carefully to Sieghard's request. "Vengeance, hm? Is that what this is about?" He watched Sieghard's face, drumming his fingers on the table. "You know, when Giovanni's men brought that woman here, she was raving about the hill-people's prophecies. About the Jackal. You hadn't heard of that, had you?" He spread his hands and smiled. "I mean, you should know better than anyone - the Jackal is dead."


 

 Not Sieghard 

Wadim handed the raven amulet back to Bardhyl. He looked as exhausted as any of them. Still, he nodded at Ludo's question.

"Always hungry," he croaked, "never sated. Death is his power, and he draws it to him."

He looked across to Jarla. "What about you, Frau Schreiber? What did you and your  djall  see?"
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla felt her confidence and elation melting away as she registered that none of the others - Elsa, Ludo, Bardhyl even Tattie seemed to want to talk to her or even look at her or be interested in how she was coping. Except for Wadim.

Swallowing she turned back to to old man.  "I was a goblin slave bound to be sacrificed inside the pit. The Jackal was there reciting from the book... or the book was reciting through him if that makes sense. He cast a different shadow. Tshula thought it was Nagash,"  Jarla shivered at even the flicker of that memory.  "Then the pyramid was under attack and Jackal broke off whatever ritual he was doing, though it seem to take a lot of effort as if the shadow of Nagash was forcing him to continue. When he stopped he only had his own shadow again. The Jackal strode out saying something to his acolytes:  “Akhash-kheb-nezzar,”  and then “Ikhet.” Whatever that means it didn't involve setting me free as the last thing I remember was a bronze knife coming towards my throat."  
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  
 Am I really so obvious?  Sieghard wondered. He tried to not let the frustration show on his face.

" Reduced to dust, " he said.
-Sentinel-
 "I saw a great mass of greenskins, held in check by Nehekharans with whips at the foot of the pyramid,"  recounted Elsa.  "Large amounts of  Shyish , the Wind of Death, were being gathered. Then some madness took hold of the greenskins... All hell broke loose and they began fighting the Nehekharans and one another. The shadow of the pyramid fell over them, and all under the shadow withered to nothing. Morrslieb was blood-red, and it had the face of a goblin. The face was  laughing ." 

She turned to Wadim.  "Do you know what  mornadreg  means?" 
LCP
 Not Sieghard 

"The  djall  had quite an interest in this book, yes?" said Wadim. "Bardhyl told me about how it was using your lowland priest. That would be one thing, when the thing you want is close at hand... but to seek it even from here, even in dreams and visions..." He made a noise at the back of his throat. "That seems like obsession."

He looked back to the cooling ashes of the fire, and drew his cloak close around his shoulders. Without its warmth, the mountaintop was bitterly cold.

"You must have been living with your unwanted guest some time, Frau Schreiber. How long were you aware of its presence?" Jarla sensed the old man's questions were purposeful. "Did it ever tell you what it planned to do with this book, if it got its hands on it?"


 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
  "Do you know what  mornadreg  means?"  
 

"It would depend on the context," said Wadim. "I think it would be something like... never broken, or never divided."


 

 Sieghard  

"I'm glad we are in agreement," said the Prince.

He thought for a moment, saying nothing. Then:

"She is not of much use to me here. I had thought some time rotting in those old cells might make her more cooperative. But so far, nothing." He gave a careless shrug. "If this is personal for your people as you say, then take her... but why alive? A head should be enough, if what you want is to show justice has been done."
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla had clearly not been looking forward to this but also expecting it. In fact she gave Elsa a baffled look, obviously puzzled why the wizard seemed so disinterested in her possession by the same daemon that had possessed Tattie.

Turning back to Wadim she sighed.  "Since the exorcism of Father Hireonymous. I'd tried to send a note to Elsa, but Tshula seized control of my hand while I was writing it and I lost my nerve. She's blocked me trying to talk about her ever since. I think Tshula wanted to steal the book and deliver it to her master or at least read it." 

Jarla recalled her vision that had ended with a bronze knife to the throat and grimaced.  "I think if she  had  actually gotten within a few feet of the book it would have devoured her, and me too. That thing seems far more powerful than a mere daemon and Tshula was very afraid even of the shadow of the Jackal's master when we had our vision."" 
LeSwordfish
Ludo returned Jarla's hug a little awkwardly.  "I had no idea, really, until just before the wyvern attacked. Tatiana's the one who spotted it... and you and Wadim are the ones that threw her out."


 


"I heard some goblin words too,"  Ludo said.  "Wurrgulgitz skrit olluz gul... Gobgul, grotdreg… mornagul waaagh. I only know the last word, which means "waaagh" I think."

"What did you see, Tats?" 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

This, at least, was a question Sieghard was ready for.

" Easier to keep peace if you let the villagers amuse themselves once in a while, " he replied. " I imagine they'd be less entertained throwing rotten vegetables at just a head. "

" Cooperative how? " he asked, not wanting the conversation to linger too long on Sanne's head. " Was there something you hoped to get from her? "
LCP
 Not Sieghard 

  "I think if she  had  actually gotten within a few feet of the book it would have devoured her, and me too. That thing seems far more powerful than a mere daemon and Tshula was very afraid even of the shadow of the Jackal's master when we had our vision."  

“And yet…  she … wanted it all the same,” said Wadim. “That’s interesting, don’t you think? If she could see what you saw, but thought it worth the risk.” He ran his fingers through his tangled beard. “Clearly the Jackal isn’t the only one to whom this book of yours has meaning.”


  "I heard some goblin words too,"  Ludo said.  "Wurrgulgitz skrit olluz gul... Gobgul, grotdreg… mornagul waaagh. I only know the last word, which means "waaagh" I think."  

“You know, I think that might be more words in their own tongue than I ever heard them string together,” said Wadim, with a dry chuckle. “‘ Gul ’, I’ve heard that often enough. It means death, or dead things. I suppose you could take that last phrase to mean that the greenskins’... spirit, if you like… never dies?” He shook his head. “The rest, I’m not so sure.”


  "What did you see, Tats?"  

Tatiana hesitated for a moment, trying on Ludo’s new nickname for size.

“I saw what you saw,” she said. “The… the pyramid, and all those goblins in chains. I didn’t want to look, so I looked away… and I saw that  thing  inside of Lady Schreiber.” The mere mention of Tshula-Udiyya seemed to a light a spark of anger in her. “Is it  really  gone this time?”

“As gone as Morr’s grace can grant us,” said Wadim. “It knew you, hm? Something about a goat… is that how you lost that eye, girl?”

Tatiana frowned. “No,” she said. “That was different.” That was all she said. She clearly didn’t take kindly the old man’s questions. For his part, Wadim didn't press the question.


 

 Sieghard 

"Rotten vegetables?" said Sforza, raising an eyebrow at Sieghard. "That's what you had in mind?"

"She was one of Rorik's inner circle. I wanted to know what she knew. You know these northmen like to bury hoards of silver?" The other eyebrow went up. "Rorik was a raider, he must have done something with his loot. And she must have had a reason to stay. All these tall stories about the Jackal - she has to be covering for  something ." He sighed and sat back in his chair, folding his right hand over the fist of his left. "But the bitch is stubborn."

"You understand, Sieghard, that her stories are dangerous?" Sforza met Sieghard's eyes again, and his voice took on a more serious tone. "She calls me a liar. She calls you a liar. And if some... Norscan wild woman can call us liars, then anyone can." He shrugged his shoulders. "You want her alive for your  Pulcinella  show, fine - but you don't need her to speak, yes? One of Bianco's boys should know how to cut out a tongue. I think I'd like her better as a mute."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "Rotten vegetables?" said Sforza, raising an eyebrow at Sieghard. "That's what you had in mind?" 
 

" To start, " Sieghard said. " These are foresters and fishermen we're talking about. It doesn't need to be much to amuse them, it just needs to be different than how they normally spend their days. "

He stood silently for a moment, considering what Sforza had said. " If there  is  silver, I could try to find out where they've hidden it, " he offered. " I'd want a share of it, of course. Throwing her in a cell may not have worked, but there are other ways that might. "
-Sentinel-
 "It would depend on the context," said Wadim. "I think it would be something like... never broken, or never divided." 

That seemed to make perfect sense to Elsa.  "I see. That's what the goblins in my vision were shouting in triumph." 

She smirked.  "Must've stuck in the Jackal's craw. Kingdoms rise and fall... old gods are forgotten, new ones emerge... and through it all, goblins remain. Like a weed you just can't get rid of."  She found this constant almost reassuring—though she did not voice it in Tatiana's presence, given the girl's history with goblins.



  "Since the exorcism of Father Hieronymous. I'd tried to send a note to Elsa, but Tshula seized control of my hand while I was writing it and I lost my nerve. She's blocked me trying to talk about her ever since. I think Tshula wanted to steal the book and deliver it to her master or at least read it."  

Elsa felt a pang of guilt.  "Oh my. I wish I'd only thought to use my witch-sight on you... I might've seen something. At the time, I was concerned  I  was the one touched by the daemon, because Sanne Raven-Cry told me 'the eye of the Eagle' was on me... whatever that means." 
rax
Listening to the others elaborate on their visions, Barhyl added some more detail to his earlier telling.

 "I was a great orc, chained to greenskins and  vrani  both as we were driven towards the pyramid. I could not abide such a thing, so I fought and called on the boyz to rise up and fight back. Didn't get very far, though - the dead ones speared me like a wild boar and that was it. My spirit left my body and was being drawn into the pyramid when I remembered who really I was, and holding on to that thought was enough to bring me out of the dream - to know that this was not my end." 
LeSwordfish
 "So... we saw Nahorek's first rise to power, his army of the dead sacrificing the greenskins to empower him. And then at the end we saw the living - Meskhenet's people, with the spear - lining up to destroy him. And then we saw undead goblins sacrificing living ones, which I think is what's happening now." 

It was giving Ludo a headache.  "I think I also saw Nagash. He did a great ritual to turn the whole of Nehekhara undead, and I think I saw that." 
RossN
 Jarla 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 “And yet…  she … wanted it all the same,” said Wadim. “That’s interesting, don’t you think? If she could see what you saw, but thought it worth the risk.” He ran his fingers through his tangled beard. “Clearly the Jackal isn’t the only one to whom this book of yours has meaning.” 
 

 "I think she believed she could control it,"  Jarla said, and chuckled without mirth.  "Most of us tend to be poor judges of our capabilities." 

She walked over to Tattie and took the other woman's hand in her own, giving them a reassuring squeeze and a grateful smile.  "She's gone Tatiana. Gone for good and I owe you everything. Thank you my dear friend. You had more insight than the rest of us put together." 

To Elsa she gave a sympathetic look:  "It's okay. You were dealing with a lot. I'm sure Tshula would have gone for you if she could but I think your mind is probably just too strong." 

To Wadim she said again:  "Would the goblins be willing to join on our side now? The... uh living ones I mean. Killing their wyvern might leave quite the impression." 
-Sentinel-
  "I think I also saw Nagash. He did a great ritual to turn the whole of Nehekhara undead, and I think I saw that."  

Elsa perked up with interest.  "I, too, once saw Nagash. A vision I had when I destroyed Samira, the ghost queen of Nath." 

  "It's okay. You were dealing with a lot. I'm sure Tshula would have gone for you if she could but I think your mind is probably just too strong."  

 "Flattered you'd think that, Jarla,"  said Elsa with a dry chuckle,  "but daemons  love  to whisper promises in the ears of wizards." 

  "Would the goblins be willing to join on our side now? The... uh living ones I mean. Killing their wyvern might leave quite the impression."  

Elsa shook her head vehemently.  "If you ally with the goblins,"  she warned,  "then good luck getting the dwarfs to cooperate with you ever again. Remember they're the ones who hold the spear, now." 
 "The dwarfs are already our friends. The goblins can only ever be,  at best,  the enemy of our enemy." 
LCP
 Not Sieghard 

"And not an enemy I imagine anyone would lose too much sleep over," said Wadim. "The tribe's been fragmenting for... months, I suppose. Glimrut's band that you broke down in the hollow was probably the largest concentration of them left."

He rubbed his hands together, wrapping his arms around himself. "They believe the wyvern was sent down from the moon to protect them. I'm sure you could play on that, if you were canny enough, but what would you gain? More soldiers? There's no army standing in your way. Just the Waste."

His voice was becoming dry, and he held out a hand to ask Bardhyl for a swig of water.

"Nagash... I've travelled enough outside our hills to hear that name before." He squinted at Jarla. "You said in your dream, the book was reciting  through him ? That's very interesting." His voice grew far away, his gaze drifting off into the middle distance. "Very interesting."


 

 Sieghard 

"And you're an expert in...  other ways,  are you, Sieghard?" said the Prince. Sieghard got a strong feeling that he was being tested. "I thought you were asking for justice for your villagers. I suppose now that we mention Rorik's silver, that doesn't matter any more?"

He leaned forward and rapped his knuckles sharply on the table. "Tell me truthfully, Sieghard. Did Holt put you up to this?"
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Holt? ...Is after ...Rorik's silver as well? " Sieghard asked, feigning confusion.
rax
Bardhyl handed Wadim his water skin with a questioning look.  "Interesting  how , old man?" 
LCP
 Sieghard 

Sforza slammed his hand down flat. "Holt is after any excuse to go chasing shadows!" he snapped. "And you, apparently, don't know better than to humour her."

He stood up, pushing his chair back with a loud scrape. "Telling that woman she is walking a fine line is like telling an ogre to tread softly," he said. "That's why I sent her away. But if you care about her, Sieghard, then you  make  her understand - there are far worse places I could send her than Putbad."

He exhaled, collecting himself. "The wild woman will remain here, under guard," he said. "Now - was there anything else you wished to discuss?"


 

 Not Sieghard 

"You don't think it's interesting?" said Wadim. "If there was a will other than the Jackal's in what he did? If had already happened before, before it ever happened here?"

"Suppose you're right about where he came from," he said, looking back to Elsa. "The lowlanders called him up - but why did he answer? To finish the job Nagash started?"
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "Suppose you're right about where he came from," he said, looking back to Elsa. "The lowlanders called him up - but why did he answer? To finish the job Nagash started?" 
 

 "I find it hard to speculate on what motivates someone like the Jackal,"  admitted Elsa.  "Does he wish to rule over a wasteland of sand and bones? To hold court over a mass of shambling corpses, like a lonely child playing with dolls and puppets? Sounds like a sad, boring way to while away the centuries." 

She shrugged.  "But what do I know? I'm only mortal." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" No, " Sieghard replied, trying to keep the same blank, confused look on his face. " I'll... be sure to tell Holt to forget about the silver... next time I see her. "

He left, keenly aware that he could've had Sforza's head off faster than the guards could've arrived to stop him. The elf did it to Duke Wulf, it could happen again to Prince Pig.
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "You don't think it's interesting?" said Wadim. "If there was a will other than the Jackal's in what he did? If had already happened before, before it ever happened here?" 
 

 "If the Jackal is directed by another's will, that makes him like the  djall  - a puppet of a greater power. But he is still the enemy before us - the one we must defeat to prevent the terrors of the past from returning,"  Bardhyl answered with a shrug.  "Perhaps that will be easier if we can find a way to cut the puppet master's strings, or it means that the true power we face is beyond any of us and our battle is doomed. The  djall  certainly liked to say so,"  he added.

 "What is  your  conclusion? Is this new knowledge an opportunity or the end of hope?"  he challenged his mentor.
LeSwordfish
 "I mean, it worked out for him,"  Ludo said.  "Perhaps he knew the Nehekarans would be easy to corrupt and would think they were in control. They made the same mistake several generations later when fighting the greenskins."

"How long ago was this, in your histories?" 
rax
 "I couldn't say - it was a very long time ago. We call that time the Years of the Jackal for...well, obvious reasons I suppose,"  Bardhyl laughed harshly.  "It was before any invading lowlanders had come from the north, though." 
LCP
 Not Sieghard 

Wadim nodded. "Thousands of years," he said. He waved a hand out towards the darkness of the desert. "When all the west was green."

"The lowlanders called him, and he came - alone. Nagash had killed their homeland, and they had killed Nagash. Still, the Jackal brought this book with him. A gift from his master, or treasure stolen from a dead man? All the stories say the Jackal is a trickster. When they turn against him, he tries to use it... or, as Frau Schreiber says,  it tries to use him . To destroy the same people whose call he came from the ends of the earth to answer."

"The Jackal is defeated, and locked in his tomb, but the  book  remains free. The lowlanders take it to the Mere, and the Mere drowns. The Arabyans take it to Nath, and Nath burns." Wadim's good eye gleamed brightly in the moonlight. "How much of what we call the Jackal is Nahorek, and how much is Nagash? How long have we  vrani  been watching the Waste, while this poison was already among us?"

"Now the story is repeating itself again. You brought the book back into the world - the same book that the  djall  wanted so desperately - and within a year, Nahorek was free. Now you have wounded him, and in his pain he turns back to the same thing he tried to do all those centuries ago. But this time, the book is not in his hands."

"Can he work the same magic without it? I don't know... but I suspect sooner or later, for his plan to work, he will try to reclaim it. Or perhaps, it's a question of it reclaiming  him . Thievery and threats did not work, so he will try other ways. In the meantime, you have what he desires most in the palm of your hand. It could be your greatest weapon - or it could be as deadly to you as it was to those who held it before."

He looked across to Bardhyl. "Hope and fear in equal measure. I think that's the answer to your question, Bardhyl. To see what the west wind is bringing, we have to look back to the east."
LeSwordfish
 "Can't believe those bloody knights didnt even touch the book,"  Ludo muttered.  "Just rode off into the dust cloud with their banners waving." 
-Sentinel-
 "The Jackal is defeated, and locked in his tomb, but the  book  remains free. The lowlanders take it to the Mere, and the Mere drowns. The Arabyans take it to Nath, and Nath burns." 

 "It's not because of some kind of curse,"  Elsa argued.  "Fools  chose  to use the Book." 

 "Hope and fear in equal measure. I think that's the answer to your question, Bardhyl. To see what the west wind is bringing, we have to look back to the east." 

Elsa rubbed her forehead wearily.  "Care to explain what you mean by that? There's still too much mushroom fog lingering in my head." 
LeSwordfish
 "He's saying it's the book, right? That the Jackal is Nahorek... but the book is a piece of Nagash." 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  "Can't believe those bloody knights didnt even touch the book,"  Ludo muttered.  "Just rode off into the dust cloud with their banners waving."  
 

 "What knights?"  Bardhyl asked.  "And when was this?" 

 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  "He's saying it's the book, right? That the Jackal is Nahorek... but the book is a piece of Nagash."  
 

 "At the very least, the book seems to be conduit for Nagash's power, and it would also seem that it serves his purposes, not the Jackal's or anyone else's. The ritual we saw in our visions - from Lady Schreiber's telling it sounded an awful lot like the sacrifcies were empowering Nagash as much as they were aiding the Jackal. Perhaps the Jackal is as bound to the book as the book is to Nagash? Perhaps the Jackal cannot be destroyed while the book persists?"  Bardhyl theorized.
LCP
 Not Sieghard 

  "It's not because of some kind of curse,"  Elsa argued.  "Fools  chose  to use the Book."  

"All fools, were they?" said Wadim, mild but mischievous. "How unfortunate there was no-one wise enough to stop them. How wise would you say its current keepers are?"


  "At the very least, the book seems to be conduit for Nagash's power, and it would also seem that it serves his purposes, not the Jackal's or anyone else's. The ritual we saw in our visions - from Lady Schreiber's telling it sounded an awful lot like the sacrifcies were empowering Nagash as much as they were aiding the Jackal. Perhaps the Jackal is as bound to the book as the book is to Nagash? Perhaps the Jackal cannot be destroyed while the book persists?"  Bardhyl theorized. 

"Perhaps so," said Wadim. "Of course, dreams and visions can mean many things... but this is an enemy we don't have to cross a desert to reach. I'd dearly like to see it for myself. After my business in Morr's seat is done, that is."
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by rax 
  "What knights?"  Bardhyl asked.  "And when was this?"  
 

 "Vampire hunters came hunting for Nahorek,"  explained Elsa.  "They ended up as his slaves. That was last year." 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "All fools, were they?" said Wadim, mild but mischievous. "How unfortunate there was no-one wise enough to stop them. How wise would you say its current keepers are?" 
 

Elsa snorted.  "Wise enough to remember the mistakes of their predecessors, I would hope. As for the Prince, he doesn't have an ounce of magic in him." 

 "Perhaps so," said Wadim. "Of course, dreams and visions can mean many things... but this is an enemy we don't have to cross a desert to reach. I'd dearly like to see it for myself. After my business in Morr's seat is done, that is." 

 "I can help you arrange that,"  Elsa offered. She was now thinking about following Wadim to Morr's Seat, after all.
LeSwordfish
Ludo gave Elsa a slightly skeptical look. Sforza was extremely unlikely to allow them to dig up the book to show it to this, frankly, extremely unkempt man.
-Sentinel-
Catching Ludo's look, Elsa amended:  "At least I'll  try  to prevail upon the Prince. Hopefully he doesn't want to lock you up... I believe he still has the Duke's advisor in his dungeons, so I can promise nothing." 
LCP
 Not Sieghard 

  "Wise enough to remember the mistakes of their predecessors, I would hope. As for the Prince, he doesn't have an ounce of magic in him."  

"It's him I'm speaking of," said Wadim, fixing Elsa with his good eye. "If he commanded you to use it, you could tell him no, could you?"


  Hopefully he doesn't want to lock you up... I believe he still has the Duke's advisor in his dungeons, so I can promise nothing."  

"I'd like to say I'm a hard man to lock away," said Wadim, with a smile and an air of chagrin, "but I'm afraid the goblins proved me wrong."

He looked to the east, where the sky was showing just the first suggestion of beginning to lighten. "We should be thinking about getting back down, hm?" he said, looking to Bardhyl. "Your friend the big man will be wondering where we've got to."
-Sentinel-
"It's him I'm speaking of. If he commanded you to use it, you could tell him no, could you?"

 "Of course, I would!"  said Elsa.  "If he so much as suggests we use the Book, he'll find himself wizardless." 

She welcomed the suggestion to start the climb down, as she was starting to shiver in the wind.
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "Perhaps so," said Wadim. "Of course, dreams and visions can mean many things... but this is an enemy we don't have to cross a desert to reach. I'd dearly like to see it for myself. After my business in Morr's seat is done, that is." 
 

 "This book seems a dangerous thing. What do you hope to learn by looking at it?"  Bardhyl questioned Wadim.

 "Also, you said that the Jackal had failed to get the book through thievery and threats. What is there left for him to try? Bribery? He would need some means of contacting the Tilean or his henchmen for that, and as far as we know he has no agents left that could easily do so." 
RossN
 Jarla 
 "I'd give  anything  to have magic,"  Jarla admitted seemingly as much to herself as to anyone else,  "but I don't understand how anyone remotely sane would willingly even get near the book. Even just seeing it in a vision was enough to turn my blood ice cold. It seeps evil into the world like blood from an open wound." 
-Sentinel-
 "Magic power can be exhilarating,"  Elsa explained to Jarla, as they began to carefully pick their way down the mountain.  "Besides, many of those who used the Book were desperate. One was facing an orc invasion, another a daemonic invasion." 

She uncorked her waterskin with her teeth to take a gulp.

 "As for wanting magic for yourself? You don't know anything about what it's like. One of my masters compared it to a sword without a scabbard. Imagine having to carry a sword in your hand, right now, as you're climbing down a mountain. You cannot sheathe it or set it down whenever it's of no use to you, but you can  always  trip and impale yourself with it." 
rax
 "Wise words Elsa, and yet - would  you  surrender your magic if you were able?"  Bardhyl interjected.

 "But yes, magic is a powerful weapon. Is that what the  djall  offered you?"  he asked Jarla.  "A chance to have power that no one can take away from you?" 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla's sour expression (and sympathetic glance she shot Tattie) suggested she wasn't thrilled at Elsa's patronising tones but she didn't reply to them directly.

Bardhyl's question however had to be addressed even if she grimaced at doing so:  "Yes, but it wasn't something she could give and what she could give - or at least what she said she could give - I didn't want."
 
-Sentinel-
 "Wise words Elsa, and yet - would  you  surrender your magic if you were able?"  Bardhyl interjected.

 "Magic is what I do best,"  replied Elsa.  "Not so long ago, it was the  only  thing I was  any  good at. So, no, I wouldn't surrender it." 
LCP
  "This book seems a dangerous thing. What do you hope to learn by looking at it?"  

“What, you’re not at all curious, Bardhyl?” said Wadim. “I don’t know what there might be to learn… but that’s the point of looking, isn’t it?”


  "Also, you said that the Jackal had failed to get the book through thievery and threats. What is there left for him to try? Bribery? He would need some means of contacting the Tilean or his henchmen for that, and as far as we know he has no agents left that could easily do so."  

Wadim held up his hands. “All I know is what you and your friends have told me,” he said. “You say he has no other roads left - maybe that’s true. I didn’t learn anything different down in that cage.” With a rasping sigh, he looked out over the darkness of the desert. “But this is the Jackal we’re speaking of. Would you really believe he’s out of tricks?”


 

 Angestag, 11th Sigmarzeit - Not Sieghard 

An hour or two more saw the first light of dawn break in the east. As the shadows shortened, the group picked their way back down from the summit, bone-weary from their sleepless night.

Grim and the others were waiting in the pass. Their faces showed relief, concern and bafflement in turn - there was Bardhyl, alive, but there too was Jarla, with her fine travelling clothes burnt through. None of them could quite find the words to ask what had happened, and so Wadim greeted them cheerfully and acted as if nothing had happened at all.

It was slow going as they descended the western slope of the Crone, passing down into the western foothills. There were no trees on this side of the Teeth, and the taste of dust was on the wind. At last, when the travellers could no longer put one foot in front of the other, they made camp in the shelter of a tall rock, its upper half sculpted into strange shapes by centuries exposed to the wind coming off the Waste.

Only as they were setting their camp did Zana finally summon up the courage to approach Bardhyl. “What did you see from up there?” she asked, keeping her voice low so Wadim would not overhear.


 

 Festag, 12th Sigmarzeit - Not Sieghard 

The next day, they came down out of the wild country onto what had, not so long ago, been the northern reaches of the desert road. No wagons went this way now, and tough, spiny weeds were beginning to grow up in the middle of the track.

They followed the road north, until they came to the empty shell of Greasy Drop. It was less deserted than Elsa remembered from her last journey this way - a few herders from the western hills had come down to take advantage of its shelter, and their sheep were clustered around to drink from the shrunken pool at the village’s north end. One of the houses had been completely broken down for nails and firewood, and it looked like a second was in the process of meeting the same fate.

There were three herders - two men and a woman - and they treated the newcomers with wary respect. They had the look of being  vrani , but whether they considered themselves to be part of the tribes was anyone’s guess, here at the edge of the hills. Bardhyl certainly felt their eyes were lingering on him and Wadim.

They took the opportunity to refill their waterskins, and Grim traded with the herders for some strips of dried mutton to replenish their provisions. Wadim seemed uneasy at the idea of staying the night in the deserted hovels, but Bardhyl could see by the looks on the faces of his followers that they wouldn’t take kindly to another night in the open hills.

Thankfully, the old man didn’t press the issue. He stayed up until the sun had gone down, sat up by the old stone burial mound above the pond. No-one saw him return - the rest of the camp must have been fast asleep by the time he came back down.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Anyone who wants to buy rations from the herdsmen can do so at rulebook prices (and of course can haggle if they want).
 


 

 Aubentag, 14th Sigmarzeit 
 Not Sieghard 

It was two days’ march to Morr’s Seat, following the tracks made by herdsmen and traders across the Raven Hills. For Bardhyl, it was a strange experience. Though as a younger man he’d known these paths like the back of his hand, the land around them was clearly changing. Familiar pastures in the hollows between the ridges had given way to untended heathland, and the pale dust of the Waste collected in every crack and crevice of the rocks on the heights. Few people were to be seen, and several of the lone cottages they passed looked abandoned. Only the hills’ eponymous ravens seemed to be doing well for themselves: they flew boldly overhead, croaking raucously on their way to pick the bones of another lost sheep left scattered on the hillside.

Morr’s Seat, however, was busier than Bardhyl ever remembered seeing it. Straggling herds of sheep and goats were penned around the foot of the crag on which the town was built, their herders’ huts clustered close to the road. Inside the gates, the dirt streets were thick with  vrani  - and all their eyes turned to Bardhyl and Wadim as they entered.

To Elsa and the others, it was remarkable - a bubble of shocked silence that seemed to follow the two hillmen as they went. No-one got too close, but no-one seemed to want to walk away either, the circle that followed them seeming to grow larger as word spread. Wadim paid it no heed, heading straight for the longhouse at the centre of the town where Rorik had held his court.

Of course, there were other eyes than those of the  vrani  on the streets. Carraciolo’s soldiers were still here, in greater numbers than Elsa remembered. Emerging from the hall, a squad of eight Iron Company men barred their way. Elsa recognised the face of the young soldier Bartolomeo, standing behind a grizzled-looking sergeant with a red beard and an Arabyan dagger strapped across his breastplate. He was not Giuliano, but he had the air of someone in command.

“Newcomers in Morr’s Seat?” This Tilean’s Reikspiel was good, if gruff. He gestured at the weapons carried by Bardhyl and his men. “You are armed. Tell us your business.”

“An honour to see you again, Magister Holt,” said Bartolomeo. “Are you travelling with these men?”

 Sieghard 

It was Aubentag when Sieghard rode back into Painford, alone. The Thorns were glad to see him back, and while his nobleman’s manor still felt large and strange, being back in the village felt something like home.

In Gavril’s common room, there were two travellers passing through. A halfling woman with a human guard, who was unloading a frankly ridiculous quantity of luggage from a pair of long-suffering donkeys outside. Sieghard thought the halfling bore a striking resemblance to Ludo - how many sisters did he have again?

“Well, I don’t know much about farming,” she was telling Karolina, “but the bugs seem to think it’s a good harvest down there. They were buzzing so loud in the fields, I couldn’t hear Luca speak.” She spared a glance towards her guard as he brought in another box. “I can’t stand insects. Glad to be headed north!”
-Sentinel-
"An honour to see you again, Magister Holt," said Bartolomeo. "Are you travelling with these men?"

Elsa was not too pleased to see that the teenage-girl-beating soldier was still there, but she smiled and gave a curt military salute all the same.  "They're with me, yes."  She added, trying to sound matter-of-fact about it:  "We've dealt with the wyvern. The shepherds can rest easy." 

She jerked her thumb at the now-malodorous slab of wyvern hide carried by Bastard.

 "Did Giuliano pull through?" 

She cared little about Giuliano's fate, but it still seemed proper to feign concern.
LCP
 Not Sieghard, 14th Sigmarzeit 

"Giuliano's dead," said the red-bearded man. "My name is Orso. Lord Carraciolo has given me the command here."
-Sentinel-
 "Ah. Sorry to hear that,"  said Elsa, perfunctorily.  "Well, Orso, I can assure you these people are just returning home after a long absence. They may  look  ready for trouble, because that's how one survives in the Raven Hills, but they're not here to  cause  it." 
 Please don't make me into a liar,  she thought at Wadim, Bardhyl and the others.

 "Anything to drink that's  not  fermented milk? I'm mighty thirsty." 
LCP
 Not Sieghard, 14th Sigmarzeit 

Elsa's words didn't do much to change Orso's stony expression. He looked back to Bardhyl's band and their many weapons.

"If they're not here to cause trouble," he said, "then they won't object to surrendering their weapons." His eyes lingered on Bardhyl. "And their names."
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 “What, you’re not at all curious, Bardhyl?” said Wadim. “I don’t know what there might be to learn… but that’s the point of looking, isn’t it?”

Wadim held up his hands. “All I know is what you and your friends have told me,” he said. “You say he has no other roads left - maybe that’s true. I didn’t learn anything different down in that cage.” With a rasping sigh, he looked out over the darkness of the desert. “But this is the Jackal we’re speaking of. Would you really believe he’s out of tricks?” 
 

 "Out of tricks? No, it's what those tricks may be that I'm worried about,"  Bardhyl answered.  "And there's a lowlander saying that seems apt here - curiosity killed the cat. If the book is all that's been said - all that was revealed in the visions - then looking at it is probably the last thing I want to do unless it's to find a means of disposing of it for good." 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Angestag, 11th Sigmarzeit - Not Sieghard 
Grim and the others were waiting in the pass. Their faces showed relief, concern and bafflement in turn - there was Bardhyl, alive, but there too was Jarla, with her fine travelling clothes burnt through. None of them could quite find the words to ask what had happened, and so Wadim greeted them cheerfully and acted as if nothing had happened at all. 
 

On the way down, Bardhyl offered Jarla his cloak.  "It's not that I'm too concerned with modesty, but your mistress might not take it kindly if we let her lady in waiting catch her death of a cold,"  he joked.


 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 Only as they were setting their camp did Zana finally summon up the courage to approach Bardhyl. “What did you see from up there?” she asked, keeping her voice low so Wadim would not overhear. 
 

 "We saw...we saw the Red Pyramid, far out in the Waste. We saw the past, and perhaps the future too,"  he replied with a sad smile.  "If I ever doubted it, I know now that the Pyramid is not just the Jackal's prison, but the pit into which he draws all the souls he steals from Morr,"  he continued.

 "Wadim brought us into the dreamlands and there Morr showed us the time when the land was still green and the lowlander invaders had summoned the Jackal. We saw how the Jackal had raised the dead to do his bidding and how all who were defeated in battle -  vrani  and greenskins both - were taken to the Pyramid for sacrifice. The Jackal drank their souls to empower himself...or something even worse. It seems even the Jackal has a master..."  he trailed off.

 "And then we saw the same thing happening again, with dead goblins stealing away their living kin to the Pyramid. Wadim said that's what had made the greenskins come west - they're being picked off by the Jackal. Just a few at a time, so far, but every soul is one more stepping stone for his return to power. It's bad, Zana. Not hopeless, but...bad,"  he finished with a sigh.


 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Aubentag, 14th Sigmarzeit 
Emerging from the hall, a squad of eight Iron Company men barred their way. Elsa recognised the face of the young soldier Bartolomeo, standing behind a grizzled-looking sergeant with a red beard and an Arabyan dagger strapped across his breastplate. He was not Giuliano, but he had the air of someone in command.

“Newcomers in Morr’s Seat?” This Tilean’s Reikspiel was good, if gruff. He gestured at the weapons carried by Bardhyl and his men. “You are armed. Tell us your business.”

“An honour to see you again, Magister Holt,” said Bartolomeo. “Are you travelling with these men?”

Elsa was not too pleased to see that the teenage-girl-beating soldier was still there, but she smiled and gave a curt military salute all the same.  "They're with me, yes."  She added, trying to sound matter-of-fact about it:  "We've dealt with the wyvern. The shepherds can rest easy."  
 

 "It is even as her ladyship says,"  Bardhyl answered Orso with an ingratiating grin.  "We are hunters, and at her ladyship's command we tracked and slew the great beast of the Giant's Teeth! Behold the monster's venomous sting!"  he declared grandly, waving to Grim to show the assembled onlookers the severed bone spike.
LCP
 11th Sigmarzeit - Bardhyl 

Zana listened in wide-eyed astonishment to Bardhyl's account of what he'd seen from the top of the Crone.

"He... Morr's favour is still with him, then?" she asked. "To walk in the dreaming."

 14th Sigmarzeit - Not Sieghard 

The display of the tail-spike won a few moments' silence from the Tileans. The rank-and-file behind Orso looked impressed; the sergeant looked as if he still suspected this was some kind of trick. He stepped up to examine the sting, coming eye-to-eye with Grim.

" Bel trofeo, " he said. "But there are no monsters to hunt here. Leave your swords and axes with us. You can claim them back when you leave."

He looked back to Bardhyl. "The magister says this is home for you? I haven't seen you here before." He switched to Tilean with a gruff bark: &lt; Bartolomeo! You know this man? &gt;

&lt; No, sergeant, &gt; said Bartolomeo. &lt; Never seen any of these people before. &gt;

"Your name,  signore, " said Orso. "If you please."
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  11th Sigmarzeit - Bardhyl 

Zana listened in wide-eyed astonishment to Bardhyl's account of what he'd seen from the top of the Crone.

"He... Morr's favour is still with him, then?" she asked. "To walk in the dreaming." 
 

 Bardhyl met Zana's question with an encouraging grin.  "Sharp, Zana. Always asking the right questions you are." 
 "On balance, I'd say yes, but...only the Lord of Ravens can say for sure. Whatever else happened to him among the greenskins, Wadim picked up some new tricks there. He used some sort of greenskin magic to ease us all into the dreaming, but he also called on Morr's power to drive a  djall  from Lady Schreiber and the creature was cast back into the hell it came from." 
 "So, until Morr tells me otherwise, I will continue to believe that Wadim is among his chosen, but that doesn't mean it's not worth keeping our eyes and ears open, eh? Watch and listen for me, and if anything he says or does disturbs you - report it to me, will you?" 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  14th Sigmarzeit - Not Sieghard 

The display of the tail-spike won a few moments' silence from the Tileans. The rank-and-file behind Orso looked impressed; the sergeant looked as if he still suspected this was some kind of trick. He stepped up to examine the sting, coming eye-to-eye with Grim.

" Bel trofeo, " he said. "But there are no monsters to hunt here. Leave your swords and axes with us. You can claim them back when you leave."

He looked back to Bardhyl. "The magister says this is home for you? I haven't seen you here before." He switched to Tilean with a gruff bark: &lt; Bartolomeo! You know this man? &gt;

&lt; No, sergeant, &gt; said Bartolomeo. &lt; Never seen any of these people before. &gt;

"Your name,  signore, " said Orso. "If you please." 
 

  "Ah, I'm afraid the magister has misunderstood,  signore . My name is Bardhyl and Morr's Seat  was  my home, but I haven't visited since Rorik Wolf-Risen took the throne here. You might say the climate disagreed with me,"  Bardhyl chuckled.  "The town seems much more crowded than I remember, though. Are you  certain  it's safe to walk the streets unarmed?"  he added, drawing his axe and while staring ostentatiously at the onlookers.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  
 Petra, is it? Or Leni?  Sieghard had heard Ludo mention their names, but couldn't put a face to either.

" You're from Sermena, aren't you? " Sieghard asked. It was a safe assumption. " If you're looking for Ludo, I'm afraid he's out on some business. "
LCP
 11th Sigmarzeit - Bardhyl 

Zana nodded, her gaze drifting over to where Wadim was sitting. "I still can't quite believe he's alive," she said, as much to herself as to Bardhyl. "We'll keep a close watch. All of us."


 

 14th Sigmarzeit 
 Not Sieghard 

"Lord Carraciolo has given me thirty men to keep the peace," said Orso. "You're as safe here as you can be."

He extended his hand, waiting for Bardhyl to give him the axe. "Please don't make me ask again,  signore. "

 Sieghard 

"Oh, he is?" said the halfling. She looked a little crestfallen, but recovered quickly. "Well, I wasn't  looking  for him - I mean, I didn't come here looking. I'm just passing through." She puffed up a little with pride. "I'm on my way to the city. My Rudi's been made  personal  cook to their highnesses in Savonne!" She seemed very pleased with this news. "No more following the army around, pitching tents in the mud. As soon as he sent me the letter I packed up everything from our house in Mirino. We're going to live in a castle!"
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  14th Sigmarzeit 
 Not Sieghard 

"Lord Carraciolo has given me thirty men to keep the peace," said Orso. "You're as safe here as you can be."

He extended his hand, waiting for Bardhyl to give him the axe. "Please don't make me ask again,  signore. " 
 

  "That many?!"  Bardhyl exclaimed.  "Well, I'm sure no harm can come to any law-abiding citizen then. You heard the man, lads and lasses! Turn over your swords and axes - we'll be safe as houses with the Prince's men to watch out for us!"  Flipping his axe around he extended it haft first to Orso.  "I do hope you'll look after it,  signore . This weapon has great sentimental value to me." 
 "I am still curious though,  signore . I cannot believe the Hills have become so crowded in the years since I've been gone that everyone now has moved to Morr's Seat. Why all the people?" 
 OOC:  Is it obvious whether Orso's instruction is to be taken literally? I.e. hand weapons only, but Bardhyl's gang can keep their bows?
LCP
 14th Sigmarzeit - Morr's Seat 

Reluctantly, Bardhyl's men began unshipping their weapons. Orso's soldiers moved forward to receive them.

"The town is crowded," said Orso, "the hills are empty. All the goatherds and hunters are coming here." He hefted Bardhyl's axe in his hand, appreciating its balance. "Maybe they want Prince Sforza's protection too. Or maybe the living out there is not so good, now that Lord Carraciolo has shown them what happens to raiders."

Bardhyl felt that last sentence was probing him - the burly Tilean certainly seemed to be watching him closely.

"We will hold these at the hall," said Orso, turning and handing Bardhyl's axe to the man behind him. "Come claim them when you want to leave."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Orso wants everything that serves as a weapon of war. Swords, axes, bows, shields etc. Not fussed about daggers/knives, or armour.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Leni, then. She was the one who was married.

" From army cook all the way to the personal cook for the prince? That's quite a climb. " Sieghard said. " Did he say how he managed that? "
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "The town is crowded," said Orso, "the hills are empty. All the goatherds and hunters are coming here." He hefted Bardhyl's axe in his hand, appreciating its balance. "Maybe they want Prince Sforza's protection too. Or maybe the living out there is not so good, now that Lord Carraciolo has shown them what happens to raiders." 
 

Elsa's eyebrows went up. Her expectations of the Tilean garrison were low already, and Orso somehow managed to fail to meet them.

 "And you haven't tried.........  asking  them why?" 
 I guess I'll have to do it myself, then. Or let Wadim and Bardhyl do it. This is their people. 

She thought the forced disarming of all Vrani was excessive, and would likely cause resentment, but she did not voice her objections, not wanting to strain her relationship with the Tileans more than necessary. She did commit to memory the appearance of Bardhyl's very fine axe, so that she could lend Bardhyl her support if the soldiers tried to keep the axe for themselves.

 "How's the food situation? In the rest of the town, that is, not just the great hall." 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "The town is crowded," said Orso, "the hills are empty. All the goatherds and hunters are coming here." He hefted Bardhyl's axe in his hand, appreciating its balance. "Maybe they want Prince Sforza's protection too. Or maybe the living out there is not so good, now that Lord Carraciolo has shown them what happens to raiders." 
 

  "Ah yes, that must be it. All those goats must be hard to feed when there's no silver coming in from raiding,"  Bardhyl answered, nodding sagely as if Orso's explanation were the most natural thing in the world.

 "Magister Holt, will you be requiring our continued services while you're here? No doubt  signore  Orso could offer you an escort, but if the Prince requires thirty good men to keep the peace, it would seem unwise to distract them from their appointed duties,"  he asked Elsa innocently.
LCP
 14th Sigmarzeit 
 Sieghard 

"Her highness asked for him  personally, " said Leni, glowing with pride. "Said she remembered his food all the way back from when they were still in Mirino, and that the kitchen staff they had in Savonne just weren't up to his level. That's what comes from hard work!"

 Morr's Seat 

"It's an honour to have you with us, Magister," said Orso, tacitly ignoring Elsa's first question. Bardhyl's remark about goats drew a sidelong look, but nothing more. "The people here are managing. But if you're worried about imposing, we can make accommodation for you at the hall. How long will you be staying?"
-Sentinel-
 "Magister Holt, will you be requiring our continued services while you're here? No doubt  signore  Orso could offer you an escort, but if the Prince requires thirty good men to keep the peace, it would seem unwise to distract them from their appointed duties." 

Elsa gave him a searching look, trying to figure out what exactly he was getting at.  "Should be fine, Bardhyl. I don't mind being seen around you... It all depends on whether  you  want to be seen around me." 

"It's an honour to have you with us, Magister," said Orso, tacitly ignoring Elsa's first question. "The people here are managing. But if you're worried about imposing, we can make accommodation for you at the hall. How long will you be staying?"

 Oh yeah, I'm sure the people staying at the hall aren't imposing at all. 
 "Kind of you to offer, Orso. I don't expect to stay more than a few days."  The duration of her stay was really up to Wadim, but that was not for Orso to know.

In Tilean she added, keeping her tone mild:  &lt;The lass with the eyepatch is my apprentice. I trust your men can avoid mistaking her for one of the local girls, despite her attire.&gt; 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla had gratefully accepted Bardhyl's cloak and on a moment of impulse rewarded him with a kiss on the cheek like a princess in a particularly insipid Nuln play.  "My hero!"  Though she was joking there was genuine gratitude in her large blue eyes and relief in the cadence of her voice.

It was a strange experience not being recognised as a member of the court by the soldiers in Morr's Seat. On the one hand it was possibly for the best to remain anonymous for the moment, dressed as she was in rags especially as she was Carraciolo's lover. On the other hand it hurt too.

After a long moment of hesitation she decided that she'd be damned if she'd spend the rest of her stay scurrying like a mouse. Let the soldiers gossip if needed. Pulling back her cloak she looked at Orso.  "You mentioned accommodation. I am Lady Schreiber,  prima cameriera  to Her Highness. As you can see the journey has been a difficult one and I am in need of some suitable attire as well as food and water and stabling for my horse. I must also insist I retain my weapons sir." 
LeSwordfish
Ludo slung his rifle off his shoulder but didn't hand it over just yet.  "We're all the prince's men here, Senor. I'm sorry to hear about Giuliano. Sounds like a rough way to go, for a veteran like him." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Charm test on Bartolomeo for Ludo and Jarla's weapons specifically.  (1d100)[ 47 ] 
 
LCP
 Morr's Seat, 14th Sigmarzeit 

The men behind Orso looked surprised when Jarla identified herself - even if they didn't know the face, they clearly knew the name. There were some whispers, and even what sounded like the odd snigger too, before a glance back from their sergeant quelled their talk.

"Of course,  signora, " said Orso. "As you wish." He didn't seem at all concerned with the obvious double standard he was showing to Bardhyl and his men.


  "We're all the prince's men here, Senor. I'm sorry to hear about Giuliano. Sounds like a rough way to go, for a veteran like him."  

Orso grunted acknowledgement. "No-one wants to get sick," he said. "It hasn't spread."

He turned and began giving brusque Tilean instructions to his men. Elsa, Jarla and Ludo were shepherded away towards the hall, with Tatiana and their horses in tow. Bardhyl, Wadim and the others were left standing in the street.

 Team Sforza 

The great hall of Morr's Seat was a new sight to Jarla and Ludo both. It was built entirely from wood, with a steeply-pitched roof whose central beam ended in the carved effigy of a raven's head. Close-packed rows of real raven skulls had been stuck onto the eaves to either side of the wooden totem - Ludo estimated at least a hundred, some clearly much older than others. Five or six live ravens sat on the ridge of the roof, watching the people down below with keen black eyes. Another bird flew down to join them, and was greeted by raucous croaks.

Inside, the main chamber of the hall was broad and open, with long tables running either side of a central firepit. It seemed like Orso had been telling the truth about his thirty men - there were a lot of soldiers in here, and a lot of equipment stacked up against the walls. Not all of them had the look of the Tilean veterans, though - there were some fresher faces among the men around the tables, and as well as the pikes that were the Iron Company's stock in trade, there were tall shields that looked as if they'd been repurposed from Alvarr's stores, with the Sforza arms painted over them in black and gold.

There were no locals in sight. Many of the Iron Company men in the hall seemed to be engaged in some kind of work - cleaning armour, or counting stores - but when Orso entered, they all rose to their feet.

&lt; Men, we have guests! &gt; barked the sergeant. &lt; From the court of the Prince. Lady Schreiber, Magister Holt, her apprentice, and... friend, &gt; he said, not sure how to describe Ludo. &lt; They are here for only a few days. You will offer them courtesy and accommodation. &gt; There was a pause while they waited for his next words. &lt; At ease. &gt;

The air in the hall relaxed, some of the soldiers returning to their tasks. The men carrying Bardhyl's weapons headed over to put them away.

"There are some private chambers at the back of the hall," said Orso, turning back to his 'guests' and pointing to where Elsa remembered Giuliano had kept his quarters. With her attention drawn in that direction, she noticed that Rorik's throne was gone. "Your ladyships can choose whichever you want. If there is anything more you are needing, you ask for me."

 Team No-rza 

Wadim watched the soldiers march off with a close regard. They hadn't been bothered at all about the unkempt old man with the stick.

"So that's how things are," he said, half to himself. He looked up at Bardhyl. "Not the warm welcome you'd have liked, hm?"

Around them, there was still a circle of onlookers, unwilling either to get too close or to stray too far. Wadim spared them a glance, and patted Bardhyl on the arm. "I think there are a few people I should talk to," he said. "A bit of work to do, explaining how two dead men came to walk back in the gate. We can meet up later. Outside the forge, at sundown."
-Sentinel-
 Outside the hall 

Before following the soldiers, Elsa discreetly approached Wadim and Bardhyl and said:  "If you figure out why everyone's still fleeing the hills, let me know. You should also ask about the one they call 'Old Mother Hunger'." 

 

 Inside the hall 

Elsa was relieved to find that the hall, though crowded, was no longer a glorified brothel for indolent soldiers. It seemed a safer place in which to take Tatiana.

 &lt;You seem to run a tighter ship than your predecessor,&gt;  she told Orso diplomatically.  &lt;Last time I was here, uh...&gt;  Her voice trailed off. Bartolomeo was within earshot.

Switching to Reikspiel for the benefit of her traveling companions, she added:  "I believe I can share a room with Tatiana and Lady Schreiber. We're not so fancy that we each need a private room."  She also wanted to stay close to Jarla, in case her daemon manifested itself again, or her exorcism turned out to have some unforeseen consequences.

Once she had been supplied with a mug of ale and a bowl of lukewarm goat stew, Elsa asked Orso:  &lt;Have any strange gold coins found their way into your coffers since you've been assigned here?&gt; 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 &lt; From the court of the Prince. Lady Schreiber, Magister Holt, her apprentice, and... friend, &gt; he said, not sure how to describe Ludo. 
 

 &lt;He's my attorney. Ludovic Stubbs, Esq.&gt; 
 
LeSwordfish
Ludo raised his hat politely, uncertain what an attorney was.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Nothing immediate to say but Ludo will be in the Elsa/Orso conversation.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" The princess herself asked for him? " Sieghard replied, wishing he was surprised. " He must've made quite an impression "

" I'm Sieghard. And you're Ludo's sister, right? You're welcome to stay in the manor while you're here if you'd like. I could tell you some of the stories from his travels... Like the time he rescued a girl from a den of goblins. "
LCP
 Morr's Seat 

"A handful," said Orso. He seemed to know exactly what Elsa was talking about. "The men we caught with them have been properly questioned, and punished. We have patrols posted in the hills, and a bounty posted on the witch woman."

One of the other soldiers handed Elsa a roll of paper. On it was a wanted notice for Mala, with a crude woodcut print portraying her as some kind of snaggle-toothed hag. At least the hair was about the right length.

"If you'll excuse me,  signoras ," said Orso, bowing his head. "I have some business to attend to in the town. Anything you need to help you get settled, my men are at your disposal."

Calling a few of his soldiers to him, Orso headed back out the way they had entered. Ludo thought he had a purposeful look.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Just an OOC note on something I'm mildly uncomfortable with - Elsa's memory of sexual violence in Morr's Seat seems stronger than what I remember depicting.
 


 

 Painford 

"That's, um, that's very kind of you," said Leni. "I mean, Luca's just about finished unpacking the luggage, but you wouldn't mind shifting it, would you Luca?"

Her guard shook his head in a long-suffering kind of way.

"We always thought Ludo's plans to run off and have adventures were a bit, you know... well, mad," said Leni. "But he's made it work. Even if it's a bit more, um, risky than Rudi's way." She seemed nervous just thinking about it. "I suppose it involves cooking for fewer ogres too!"
-Sentinel-
 "The men we caught with them have been properly questioned, and punished. We have patrols posted in the hills, and a bounty posted on the witch woman." 

 "Hmm, good,"  said Elsa, preferring not to inquire about the nature of the punishments. There was almost no chance of Mother Mala getting caught by this lot, but at least the bounty would make it harder for her to come and go as she pleased in the Raven Hills.

After her meal, she headed out with Tatiana in tow and her large rolled-up chunk of wyvern hide under her arm, searching for a tannery. She found one easily enough simply by following the smell.

 "I'd like to keep this from rotting,"  she told the tanner, throwing the heavy hide on the ground.  "Do make sure to preserve the scales... If it ends up looking like cow leather, it rather defeats the point of having killed a wyvern for it." 

Seeing the look of surprise and uncertainty in the tanner's eyes, she said:  "I know you don't usually treat reptile hides, but please do your best. How's two gold crowns and a half?" 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Ludo and/or Jarla are welcome to come with, if they like.

Elsa is not asking for the wyvern hide to be made into anything in particular for now. She just wants it preserved.

Also, since Elsa's travel clothes got bloodied, she'll order a new coat, pants and gloves from the tanner (just conventional leather), if this can reasonably be crafted during the length of our stay in Morr's Seat. If not, then she'll look for second-hand clothes.
 


 


Elsa then headed with her apprentice to Marjan's drinking den. She cautiously chose a seat with its back to a wall, so that no vengeful Burning Hill survivor might sneak up behind her.

 "A mug of  skol , please,"  she told Marjan, hoping the stuff was not as foul as she remembered it.

Keeping a matter-of-fact tone, as if commenting on the weather, she noted:  "There's even more people in town than last time I was here. You must be doing good business." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Trying to probe why Morr's Seat remains overcrowded even though the wolves are dealt with.

Gossip 49:  (d100)[ 12 ] 
 Fortune:  (d100)[ 96 ]  
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Relax a moment, " Sieghard told Luca, " I'll have my men help move all that. "

He found Ingwald and explained, then added. " See if you can keep the bodyguard busy. These are friends, but there's something I have to say to Ludo's sister that's for her ears only. "


 


Inside and away from any chance of being overheard, he made himself comfortable and started recounting their adventures.

" We had headed into the hills following rumors of a girl with a gift for magic. Elsa... The prince's wizard... wanted to find her and take her on as an apprentice... "

 " ... Your brother crept forward into the mob of goblins. There were dozens of them, but dark as it was and wearing the cloak, they couldn't tell him from one of them right away... " 
 " ... And at the top of the tunnel was the wyvern. We were trapped, stuck between the green horde and their monster... " 
He wrapped up that tale, hoping he had gotten Leni invested before beginning the story he had was actually concerned with.

" The prince's wizard has a bit of a habit of finding herself in trouble, " he said, " As bad as the wyvern was, it wasn't the worst of it. There was trouble in the south - more than we could deal with. We had sent to the prince for help and waited in Manaan's Keep, fearing every day that an attack might come. After many restless nights, he did with his army at his back and when he arrived... He ordered his men to have Elsa imprisoned. "

" While we were away, her apprentice had gotten into some trouble in the city in the sort of way a girl with magic and not a lot of idea how use it would. The prince blamed her for what had happened... Elsa wanted Ludo to speak for her, but he was off in the west at the time and... Actually, if I'm remembering it right, your sister and father were with him. Have they told you this one? "
LeSwordfish
 "What's the plan here?"  Ludo asked Elsa quietly.  "I'm hoping to see if we can get any more information out of Wadim, but want to head back to Savonne and Painford soon. Sieghard needs to know about this, and we're trying to get Hieronymous out of town after what happened to him."

"You've had... not much luck telling Sforza about any of this, have you?" 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  "You've had... not much luck telling Sforza about any of this, have you?"  
 

Elsa grunted.  "Haven't spoken with the Prince in a while. And then there's the matter of convincing him to let Wadim look at the Book. How much should we even tell Sforza about who Wadim is?" 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
I somehow missed the part about getting Hieronymus out of Savonne. The best place for a scholarly type like him would likely be Putbad. Perhaps he can room at Elsa's rental house? That would make up for Elsa crashing on his couch during her work to decipher Nehekharan hieroglyphs.

 @ LeSwordfish:  Are we still in the hall, or at Marjan's? Just trying to picture the scene.
 
LeSwordfish
 "You should have just told Wadim "no",  I think," Ludo said.  "It's never going to get anywhere, and I don't know if we want to spend goodwill on trying." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
"Hieronymous steps down as high priest temporarily and gets out of the city" was Sforza's response to his posession. Ludo's plan is to invite him to Painford.

I'm assuming this is Marjans.
 
-Sentinel-
 "I feel we'll need the Vrani before all is said and done,"  said Elsa, her eyes flitting across the crowded room.  "And even if we can't get Wadim a look at the Book, we can at least have him meet Skorgrund. The keeper of the Vrani's oral histories, and the keeper of the dwarfs' written records. Could be enlightening." 
 As long as the dwarfs don't have the Vrani in their big book. 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
We need a Council of Elrond involving the party, Wadim, Skorgrund, Hieronymus, and the church of Morr. 😁

 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
 "Hieronymous steps down as high priest temporarily and gets out of the city" was Sforza's response to his posession. Ludo's plan is to invite him to Painford. 
 

Ah, okay. It'll be up to Hieronymus to decide where he wants to go.
 
LeSwordfish
 "That would be useful,"  Ludo admitted.  "As for needing the Vrani... look, out of Wadim and Sforza, Wadim is the one who isn't the prince, which means he'll need to be the adult in the room." 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 [Wadim watched the soldiers march off with a close regard. They hadn't been bothered at all about the unkempt old man with the stick.

"So that's how things are," he said, half to himself. He looked up at Bardhyl. "Not the warm welcome you'd have liked, hm?"

Around them, there was still a circle of onlookers, unwilling either to get too close or to stray too far. Wadim spared them a glance, and patted Bardhyl on the arm. "I think there are a few people I should talk to," he said. "A bit of work to do, explaining how two dead men came to walk back in the gate. We can meet up later. Outside the forge, at sundown." 
 

 Bardhyl shrugged and flashed the old man a white-toothed grin.  "It's almost exactly as I expected, actually, though I admit having to hand off all our weapons is...inconvenient. People got no trust these days,"  he chuckled.

 "Don't get into any trouble while you're about town. We're all out of rescues for the week,"  he joked as Wadim set off.

 "Looks like we've got some time on our hands, so how about a drink?"  he suggested to his crew.  "There's used to be watering hole run by a fellow by the name of Marjan not far from here. There might even be some stew on the fire." 
 At Marjan's 
 "When we go inside, I'm going to need you to do all the talking, Grim. Anyone in there who knows me or knows of me is going to go out of their way not to talk to me or even acknowledge that I'm in the room. Doesn't mean they won't accept my coin as long as it's coming from you, though,"  he instructed his second-in-command.

 "Now there's a chance that some who consider themselves righteous  vrani  may pick a fight with Zana, Kreshnik or Afrim for being seen with me, but let's try and stay civil if that happens, eh? Fists only and no drawing blood unless they come at us with intent to cause serious harm, understand?" 
 "That goes doubly for you Waldon - you stop drinking when I tell you to, and you keep your tongue in check and hands to yourself. I don't need a riot on my hands because you decide to grope the wrong lass or spit in some hard man's face,"  he warned the Bretonnian.

 "Right then, let's get inside and see what the welcome's like..." 
 
 Spoiler: @LCP 
Timing wise it seems likely that Bardhyl and crew would have made it to Marjan's before Elsa and Ludo, but if you find it easier to have them there already I'm fine with that.
 
LCP
 Morr's Seat 

Stepping out into the winding streets that crowded the crag, Elsa had to go almost to the outer fall to find what she was looking for. Sitting at a stall stacked with sheep-skins, the tanner was haggling with a trio of dusty-looking herdsmen over acquiring a few more. It sounded like he was driving a hard bargain.

Elsa dumping the wyvern skin at his feet certainly got his attention, as well as that of several passers-by. Nobody asked where it had come from - clearly word was already getting around.

Unfolding the ragged, sticky bundle and holding it up to the sunlight, the tanner clicked his tongue against his teeth, and mumbled something in  vranspel . "I can give it a try," he said, seeming a little doubtful of his own abilities. His manner changed when he heard how much Elsa was offering, an avaricious gleam coming into his eye. "Yes, I can do this for you. Will just need three, maybe four days to soak " He folded the hide over his arm. "It's a big piece."

When Elsa inquired about clothes, he said he didn't make them - but his wife did. She could have the items Elsa wanted ready in about the same time it would take to cure the wyvern leather, he said, and since Elsa was already bringing them custom, she'd only charge another crown.

Inside Marjan's, it was much as Bardhyl had predicted. An air of deathly silence descended as he stepped over the threshold, the people inside looking in any other direction rather than meet his gaze. He was pretty sure they were staring pretty hard when he  wasn't  looking.

Grim and the others went up, and came back with horn mugs of kefir and a few bowls of something closer to bone broth than stew. Waldon took one swig from his mug and spat.

"What is this stuff?" he said. "It tastes like Taal's armpit."
"It's goat's milk," said Zana, mildly amused. "It's good for you."
"Do I look like a goat?" said Waldon. "Where's the wine?"
"No vineyards around here,  mon amee, " said Kreshnik, deliberately mispronouncing the Breton words. He lifted his mug. "Drink up."

They sat together for a while, filling their bellies, resting their legs, and listening to the hushed whispers around them. The little drinking hall seemed to be filling up rather than emptying out - so much so that by the time Elsa and the others arrived it was a challenge to find seats. Marjan himself seemed distracted, unable to stop himself glancing in Bardhyl's direction.


  "There's even more people in town than last time I was here. You must be doing good business."  

Marjan mumbled something under his breath, still looking over at Bardhyl's band. Ludo thought he could just make it out:  "Your tax men are, at least." 

At last he tore his eyes away and looked at Elsa. "Didn't expect to see you back, your wizardship," he said. "I think most folk you saw here last time haven't left. Conditions out in the hills just keep getting worse."

Without being asked, he lined up four mugs, and reached for a skin of kefir. "People come to the Seat looking for work, or help, or answers. Work's the best they get, mostly."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Let me know when you're ready to advance to Bardhyl's rendezvous with Wadim.
 


 

 Painford 

Leni listened politely to Sieghard's tale-telling, though she didn't seem to find it gripping - if anything, she winced when Sieghard described situations where her brother had been in danger.


 " ... Actually, if I'm remembering it right, your sister and father were with him. Have they told you this one? " 

"They told me they were waylaid on the road," said Leni. "Father didn't want to talk about it much. I think he was quite shaken up by the whole thing."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard nodded. " Well, it's no surprise he'd be shaken up over it. " He had dropped the storyteller tone he had been using and was now deadly serious. " Especially since it was the princess who had ordered the attack. "
LCP
 Painford 

Leni looked so startled that if she had a drink, she'd have spat it out.

"What?" she squeaked. "W - why?"
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Because Elsa had asked to have your brother speak for her at her trial, " Sieghard replied. " Irene Sforza is an orc in a fancy dress with pretty face painted on. She hates Elsa and for no reason better than that, she ordered your brother killed. And if the rest of your family was close enough to see it, she was fine with them being killed as well. "

" They escaped with their lives. Not everyone was so lucky. And all of that caused some trouble for the princess when Ludo turned up in Manaan's Keep, quite alive. I'll spare you the details, but the trial ended up with Irene's doctor and half the company of mercenaries she used for the attack losing their heads instead of Elsa. "

He gave Leni a moment to take all that in before asking. " You said the princess  personally  asked to have your husband as royal cook. Do you think there might be something other than food that she's after? "
-Sentinel-
"Didn't expect to see you back, your wizardship. I think most folk you saw here last time haven't left. Conditions out in the hills just keep getting worse."

 "Drought and dust storms?"  asked Elsa, trying to probe if there was more.  "Not much I can do about that, I'm afraid." 

She took a sip from her mug and tried not to make a face.  "I took care of the goblin chief a few days back, but they must have a new one already. Hopefully an even stupider one." 
LCP
 Morr's Seat 

Elsa got the distinct impression that she could say she'd been crowned Emperor and still got the same distracted nod from Marjan. His attention was far too taken up with the party in the corner.

"Goblins is goblins," was all he said. "Is there anything else you were wanting?"

 ~ 
It wasn't too long before the sun began to sink in the west. Heading up to where the forge stood, on the highest point of the crag, Bardhyl waited for Wadim to appear. The old man took his time - by the time Bardhyl spotted him coming up the street, the stars were already out.

 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl and Wadim 
"There you are," said Wadim, as if Bardhyl was the one who was late. "How are you finding it? Being home."

He took a seat on a stone, and motioned for Bardhyl to do the same. "I've been speaking to a few people. A lot of people, actually. Still need to speak to a few more. But the good news is, there's a… general feeling, if you like… that what's done can be undone." He paused, and gave a crooked smile. "The wyrm-slaying helps there. Very neatly timed."

"So!" he said, leaning forward and rubbing his gnarled hands together. "Now, the only question is - whether I want to." He fixed Bardhyl with a shrewd eye. "Believe it or not, it's not just you I've been talking about. I've been hearing a lot about how things are here now… and believe me, nobody's holding back."

"You've still got two eyes in your head, Bardhyl," he said. "What do you make of it? First impressions."
 


 

 Painford 

Leni hesitated, open-mouthed. "Well," she said, "I don't - I mean if Ludo…" She trailed off. "Rudi  is  good," she added, defensively.

She looked around, suddenly concerned about being overheard. "I mean, if that were true - if she really wanted Ludo dead - why wouldn't she just order it? She's the Princess, isn't she?" Her voice had the tone of someone looking for order in a newly-upturned world. "Why get Rudi involved? And what - what am  I  supposed to do?"
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" I can't answer that for you, " Sieghard said, " I'm telling you all of this because you'd be walking blind into whatever trap Irene has for you if I didn't. "

" She doesn't order him killed because her husband would be furious if he found out - the first time caused enough problems. Whatever she's scheming, she has to be subtle about it. And don't get any ideas about going to  him . The prince is blind to anything he doesn't want to see and would never take your word or mine over hers. "

" It's Ludo she's after in the end. Whether she still wants him dead, wants to send a message, or wants some sort of leverage over him, I can only guess. What I do know is that if she has to hurt you to get to him or Rudi to get to you, she'll do it without a second thought. "
-Sentinel-
"Is there anything else you were wanting?"

 "Carry on,"  said Elsa, a tad disappointed that her inquiries had turned up nothing new.

She knew that her status as Sforza's wizard made it difficult to chat with locals. Not for the first time, she wished she could blend into crowds and pretend to be a stranger in town, but her face tattoos made that difficult. Seventeen-year-old Elsa and her willingness to accept any stupid dare after four drinks had a lot to answer for.
rax
 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl and Wadim 
"There you are," said Wadim, as if Bardhyl was the one who was late. "How are you finding it? Being home."

 "Quiet.  Deathly  quiet, even,"  Bardhyl chuckled.

He took a seat on a stone, and motioned for Bardhyl to do the same. "I've been speaking to a few people. A lot of people, actually. Still need to speak to a few more. But the good news is, there's a… general feeling, if you like… that what's done can be undone." He paused, and gave a crooked smile. "The wyrm-slaying helps there. Very neatly timed."

 "It seemed appropriate to make a proper entrance and remind people that even the most fearsome monsters can be struck down,"  Bardhyl waved away the compliment.

"So!" he said, leaning forward and rubbing his gnarled hands together. "Now, the only question is - whether I want to." He fixed Bardhyl with a shrewd eye. "Believe it or not, it's not just you I've been talking about. I've been hearing a lot about how things are here now… and believe me, nobody's holding back."

"You've still got two eyes in your head, Bardhyl," he said. "What do you make of it? First impressions."

 "You're doing it again, old man. Testing me like I was still your apprentice. It's getting tiresome,"  Bardhyl snorted.  "You want my impressions? Fine. The Tilean's man - Carraciolo? - knew what he was doing when he made an example of the raiders and the people are wary of giving him cause to come back for another go. But, conditions are bad out in the hills, driving the herders to seek shelter in Morr's Seat, and the Tilean understands that desperate people will do desperate things. That's why he's put a full thirty men here as a garrison and why they disarmed us. I assume they've also disarmed - or at least tried to - as many people in Morr's Seat as possible?" 
 
"Morr's Seat is a powder keg, but it's not ready to blow yet. Nor should it - there's no hope of success while the Jackal is abroad and the Tilean has the rest of the Reaches to call upon if the clans were to try anything.  That's  my impression,"  he finished.
 
LCP
 Morr's Seat 
 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl &amp; Wadim 

  "I assume they've also disarmed - or at least tried to - as many people in Morr's Seat as possible?"  

"Just you and your friends, actually," said Wadim. He grinned. "Their sergeant must have an eye for trouble."


  "Morr's Seat is a powder keg, but it's not ready to blow yet. Nor should it - there's no hope of success while the Jackal is abroad and the Tilean has the rest of the Reaches to call upon if the clans were to try anything.  That's  my impression,"  

"Mm," said Wadim. "And suppose the Jackal is defeated, and the Tilean keeps his crown. What hope will there be then?" He looked around, scanning the darkened streets of the town. They were empty, apart from a couple of scrounging dogs. "Precious little leverage, at least. Your friend, the wizard - she came out here because we have something she wants. How long do you think she'll remember us, once she's got it?"

With a stiff-kneed grunt, he rose back to his feet. "Come," he said. "Let's talk somewhere more private."

Where most of Morr's Seat had at least a thin layer of earth, the forge was built on bare rock. Wadim paced around the foot of the limestone outcropping, running his hands over the rocks until he found what he was looking for - a loose slab of stone, its face marked with carvings so old they had been worn practically to nothing.

Using his stick as a lever, he moved it aside. On the other side was a passage, barely wide enough to squeeze down in single file, leading down into darkness. Producing a small clay lamp, Wadim lit it and led the way.

The passage was a natural fissure in the rock, worked by tools only where it would otherwise have been too narrow to pass. It led down twenty or thirty feet before other crevices crossed its path, forming a kind of crossroads where the two men had space to turn and face each other.

Hollows had been chipped out of the rock walls here - rough alcoves whose stone shelves held relics. Yellowed skulls, rust-eaten swords, helmets of the old  vrani  style. Most looked like they would crumble to pieces if anyone picked them up.

"You know where this is, don't you, Bardhyl," said Wadim, setting down his lamp. He spoke softly, but still his voice echoed from the rock that pressed in around them. "These are the bones of the chiefs."

Bardhyl understood immediately. These rusting old blades were not just iron - they were ancestor weapons. The memory of the chiefs of Morr's Seat, left here until the slow drip of water made them part of the rock itself.

"They say Korvin himself is down here somewhere," said Wadim. "I was a young man when I took Barbas' spear down here, that had been forged for his father Edon. I think that was the last time this place was opened." He looked around, taking a deep breath of the cool, stale air. "Whoever claimed they were king of the valleys,  our  kings remained here."

"Of course, you'd hardly remember the last time we had a chief like that. Harman was a thief, and Rorik… well, you and I had our differences there, but he wasn't  vrani . But even then, even on their worst days, this was where the Raven Hills were ruled. Morr's Seat. Our home."

"Now, I hear, we're ruled from Savonne. Two fifths of our livestock; three fifths of our iron. That's what those soldiers are taking to send back to the lowlands, so I'm told. They tell me they've even taken the old throne back to Alvarran as a trophy - the seat Barbas died on." He paused. "How's that for a message?"

"Morr's Seat has always been our home. If we lose this, we'll have nothing left. We'll be like the goblins." Wadim's probing air was gone - for once, he seemed deadly serious. "Of course you're right, that this isn't the time to be picking new fights. But when that time comes, we have to be ready. And we can't wield a sword when we're on our knees."

"You said when you found me that our people needed me. But I'm an old man, Bardhyl, and I already led them astray once before. What these people need is a leader they can believe in, to remind them that the  vrani  should rule themselves. You want me to bring you back into the land of the living?" The lamplight gleamed bright in his good eye, and for a moment, in that rocky crypt, Bardhyl caught himself wondering whether the question was purely metaphorical. "I want you to be that man."
 


 

 Painford 

Leni was getting paler and paler as Sieghard went on. When she spoke, it was in a very small voice.

"I… I can't just go back. I mean, I could… but Rudi can't. What would he say? Where could we go?" She swallowed "Ludo - you said Ludo, Ludo's away? He must have a plan, a, a way to fix this…"

Sieghard realised that the flow of words wasn't stopping any time soon. With tears in her eyes, Leni seemed to be having quiet but nonetheless total nervous breakdown.

"I… I don't know what to do…"
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Ludo shouldn't be away for too long, " Sieghard said, " You're welcome to stay here until he returns If you want to speak with him about all of this. I know it's a lot to take in. "

" There was one more thing, " he added after Leni had a moment to compose herself. " That bodyguard of yours. Was he someone your family hired or was he sent from Savonne to fetch you? "
RossN
 Jarla - Morr's Seat 

Jarla finally arrived to join Elsa and Tattie. She looked strangely drab and uncomfortable in the nondescript yet masculine clothing that had been all Orso could provide. Her copper hair hung loose and unadorned (foolishly she'd left Ida at home.) Still it had been better than the alternative. Maybe she could buy some clothes somewhere here.

 "Any news?"  she asked the wizardess, trying to find a seat for herself and thinking she'd like something alcoholic right about now.
-Sentinel-
 "Any news?" 

Elsa shook her head.  "Nothing important. Just the Raven Hills being the Raven Hills." 

She gave Jarla a long look.  "You been alright? Since, um, kicking out your roommate?" 
rax
 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl &amp; Wadim 

 "Morr's Seat has always been our home. If we lose this, we'll have nothing left. We'll be like the goblins." Wadim's probing air was gone - for once, he seemed deadly serious. "Of course you're right, that this isn't the time to be picking new fights. But when that time comes, we have to be ready. And we can't wield a sword when we're on our knees."

"You said when you found me that our people needed me. But I'm an old man, Bardhyl, and I already led them astray once before. What these people need is a leader they can believe in, to remind them that the  vrani  should rule themselves. You want me to bring you back into the land of the living?" The lamplight gleamed bright in his good eye, and for a moment, in that rocky crypt, Bardhyl caught himself wondering whether the question was purely metaphorical. "I want you to be that man." 

  "You WHAT?"  Bardhyl exclaimed in shock.  "How...how can you believe that the  vrani  would ever follow me? It's true I had ambitions when I was your apprentice, but I only ever wanted to  guide  our people, not to rule them. And I have no claim to kingship anyway - no ancestor of mine ever sat on the throne of Morr's Seat. The people I  do  lead are outcasts and bandits, bound to me through promises of wealth or redemption. What can I possibly offer the  vrani  that they would agree to follow me?" 
 
LCP
 Painford 

"I hired him in Mirino," said Leni, glancing over her shoulder. She was quick enough on the uptake to get the implication, and the thought seemed to worry her. "I didn't want to make the journey alone along the hill road... we all heard what happened in Caerfort."  Her voice became very quiet. "He is Iron Company though. Retired..."


 

 Morr's Seat 
 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl &amp; Wadim 
"You want to wait for somebody with a birthmark and a magic sword, hm?" said Wadim, gently. "If you know someone like that, I'm all ears."

"I've been asking around, seeing who's left here that people still listen to. Seems like young Alin's made himself a go-between with the soldiers, trying to smooth things over." Bardhyl vaguely remembered Alin - he wouldn't have called him 'young', but from Wadim's perspective probably everyone was. "But there's only so far you can bend before you break your back. People are calling him lickspittle. Danut, people respect him, but he was never much for talking." The smith of Morr's Seat had always held a special position in the community. "You said it yourself, Bardhyl, you're a leader. A rogue too, maybe, but maybe that's what we need. Tell me you haven't dealt with men like this Sergeant Orso before."

He took a deep breath, and looked up at one of the skulls in the alcoves. It looked like one of the more recent ones.

"I'm not asking to put a crown on your head tomorrow. The people will make up their own minds, in time. But they need help  now , if they're going to survive. I'm asking you to help them."
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" If you hired him yourself, then you should be safe... Until you reach the city, that is. After that I'd find an excuse to let him go. He was loyal to the princess first, and she can pay better than you can. "
RossN
 Jarla 
 "You been alright? Since, um, kicking out your roommate?" 
 "Well it is pretty roomy up there if you are thinking I should invite someone else,"  Jarla joked, her smile not quite reaching her eyes and not lasting long in any case. As it faded entirely she looked tired and old.  "I think I'm alright. I guess I won't know for sure until I'm near the book again, and that isn't the most comforting thought." 

She sighed and looked around to see if she could spot anyone she could order a drink from. " What's the plan now?" 
rax
 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl &amp; Wadim 

 "You want to wait for somebody with a birthmark and a magic sword, hm?" said Wadim, gently. "If you know someone like that, I'm all ears." 

 "Under the circumstances, a magic sword  would  be nice,"  Bardhyl grunted in response.


 He took a deep breath, and looked up at one of the skulls in the alcoves. It looked like one of the more recent ones.

"I'm not asking to put a crown on your head tomorrow. The people will make up their own minds, in time. But they need help  now , if they're going to survive. I'm asking you to help them." 

For a moment, Bardhyl looked like he was about to fire off another protestation, but instead he began to chuckle and then laughed out loud.  "Alright, alright! I'll do it! But Morr save us, things must really be desperate if I'm the best chance our people have!" 
 "So, what's our next move?" 
 
LeSwordfish
 "I want to talk to Wadim,"  Ludo said.  "Get his story and his people's stories in better detail. Then I'm going back to Painford through Savonne: Hieronymous will be leaving Savonne and I wanted to offer him a room in Painford. Sieghard needs to know what happened, too. Not just the important things but I want to see his face when I tell him we killed the Wyvern without him." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
This is indeed Ludo's IC plan for "tomorrow" - find Wadim, and get as much information from him as possible, in as much detail as possible, ideally written down. I'll have an OOC think about the questions for that.
 
LCP
 Painford 

"You think I  should  go to the city then?" said Leni. She chewed her thumbnail nervously. "I suppose if I just wrote to Rudi, someone might read it..."


 

 Morr's Seat 
 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl &amp; Wadim 
"Give me one more day," said Wadim. "I'll let people know what's happening. Get things ready. The next sunrise, we'll bring you back into the fold."
 


 

 Marktag, 15th Sigmarzeit - Morr's Seat 

The next morning, Ludo had his work cut out finding Wadim. Morr's Seat felt like a small place, but it packed a lot of people inside its old wooden walls - and Wadim seemed to have been seen everywhere, but nowhere for long.

"Aye, we saw him here here yesterday."
 "Saw him up at the forge this morning, talking to Danut."   "He was round here just now, looking for Ljena. Not sure where he's gone to next."  
At last, Ludo found him back by the gate, talking to a couple of old women in the Raven Hills tongue. He greeted Ludo with a smile and a nod.

"Ludo, isn't it?" he said. "I hear you're looking for me."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" I think there's danger whether you go or don't, " Sieghard said. " I don't imagine the princess would give up just because one scheme failed. "

" Let's say you did send him a letter and it got to him without someone loyal to Irene reading it first. You know your husband better than I do. Would he believe the princess has some reason to harm you or him? And if he did believe it would he leave the city or would he try to do something else about it? Even if he did leave, would he get away unnoticed? "

" There's no need to decide right away. I think it best to wait for your brother to return and come up with a plan. Either to protect you or to get Rudi safely out of the city. "
LeSwordfish
Ludo nodded.  "I can't stay much longer, but wanted to get as much information as I could about the jackal before I left, and you know better than anyone else. Perhaps over a drink?" 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo's first question for Wadim is that he wants to hear as much as he can about the hillfolk's stories of the jackal. His second question is for more detail on Wadim's personal story, particularly of his encounter with Klammenberg.

 (1d100)[ 93 ]  as a Charm test - Ludo is aware Wadim can be a bit tricky or evasive so won't have much tolerance for prevarication and wants to get the information he can.
 
LCP
 14th Sigmarzeit – Painford 

“That – that does sound best,” said Leni, in her small, frightened voice. “If you don’t mind me staying – if the offer still stands, I mean. A very kind offer.”

She looked back towards her guard. “What about Luca? Will he – I mean, should I send him home? How soon will Ludo be back?”


 

 15th Sigmarzeit – Morr’s Seat 

“Kind of you to offer, said Wadim. “I’m a little busy at the moment, though. Maybe later? I can find you at Marjan’s.” He looked up at the roof of the longhouse, where six or seven ravens were roosting. “In the old days I would have said the hall, but as it is, I don’t think it’s quite the place.”

Ludo got the definite sense that the old man was up to something – and that if he pushed him on what it was, he would only get more smoke and riddles. Turning back to the two women he’d been talking to, Wadim shook each of them by the hand, and seemed to thank them in  vranspel  before heading off to a different part of town.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
If you want to try to get the gist of what he’s saying, as before you can try SL)(Reikspiel) at -20.

If you want to follow him and see what he’s up to then a Stealth check + some broad directions (e.g. if he goes into a building will you try to follow) will do for that.
 

It was much later in the day when Wadim came back to Marjan’s. It seemed like he knew everyone in Morr’s Seat, and unlike Bardhyl and his crew, everyone seemed happy to talk to him. He got sidetracked into a couple of chats just by walking in the door – and Ludo got the feeling that even the conversations he  wasn’t  part of were connected somehow.

“So!” said Wadim, making his way over to Ludo at last. As he sat down, Marjan brought them over a couple of drinks without having to be asked. “You wanted to talk?”

He listened to Ludo’s questions attentively enough. “If you want to talk old stories,” he said, “we could be here until the sun comes up. The battles of the Raven King; how Cunning Mavros tried to cheat the Jackal, and how the Jackal cheated Black Gilbert.” He raised his wiry eyebrows at Ludo. “Is it stories about something in particular you’re interested in?”

When Ludo’s questions moved on to Wadim himself, his lined face twisted into a wry smile. “There’s another long story,” he said. “I’m guessing you don’t want to hear all of that one, either.”

Ludo narrowed the question down to Klammenberg, and Wadim’s face grew more serious.

“The man from the north,” he said. “That was how Morr warned me of him, in dreams. A man from the north, and his silent companion. I persuaded Jarl Rorik to set watches for him, but it was no good in the end. He slipped through our fingers like a fish. By the time I tracked him down, the damage was already done.”

He sighed. “If you want to tell me how foolish it was to try to face him and Nahorek down alone, our friend Bardhyl told me already, and I can’t disagree. I thought there might be… just a chance to stop him there, before he regained any more strength. And if there was any kind of chance, it was worth taking, before there were no more chances left to take.” He shook his head. “I was wrong. I’m not your wizard friend – fire doesn’t shoot from my fingertips. I might as well have tried to shout down the wind.”
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" That would probably be wise, " Sieghard replied. " Let him know in the morning you decided to stay a bit longer to see Ludo. So long as he gets all of his pay, I don't imagine he'll mind having finished the job a bit early. "

" It should be a week or so until Ludo returns. Best to send a letter to Rudi as well with an excuse for the delay... Just nothing that would tip Irene off if someone else reads it. "
LeSwordfish
 Earlier 
Ludo still couldn't bring himself to trust the old man. Unobtrusively, he tried to follow Wadim.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo won't follow Wadim into any place he (Ludo) shouldn't be, such as a private house, but will for the bar etc, somewhere he can pretend to be legitimately.

SL:Reikspiel vs 28 [roll]1d100/roll], Stealth vs 92 [roll]1d100/roll]
 

 Later 
 "The jackal's here and it's going to be our job to put him back in the ground for another thousand years,"  Ludo said plainly.  "Anything that will help with that. Anyone who fought him and won. How about Cunning Mavros? Or Black Gilbert, I think I know of him." 
 
"I'm not going to call you foolish,"  Ludo added, almost a little puzzled by the suggestion.  "The first time we faced him in person, we burned down half the city, and that was all of us. But if I know exactly what happened, maybe it will let me know more about him."
 
He smiled wanly.  "I'll tell you what we did wrong if you like. Only fair." 
-Sentinel-
Elsa was not well liked among the Vrani, and did not especially enjoy the company of the Tilean soldiers, so she spent most of her time in Morr's Seat with Jarla and Tatiana. She took Tatiana to the craggy areas just outside of town to help her return to the basics of channeling the Winds.

 "When you attempted that spell against the wyvern,"  she said, patiently and without judgment (or so she hoped she sounded),  "I could sense you channeling the Red Wind as well as the Amber. Maybe it's partly my influence... you're just doing it the way I showed you how  I  do it. But you have to learn to do it your way, not mine. If a Wind struggles against you, let it escape your grasp, or it'll claw at you like a cat that doesn't want to be held." 

Perhaps not the best metaphor, as it was doubtful Tatiana had ever met a cat that did not want to be held by her.

 "I'll make it easier for you by keeping a tight grip on the Red Wind. Go ahead, try to channel only the Amber." 

The channeling lessons were always tedious and frustrating, involving lots of rote, failure and repetition, but it was always easier to get rid of a bad habit early. One of Elsa's greatest fears was to get herself killed while her apprentice was only half trained. Few wizards were more dangerous to themselves and others than  half -trained ones.

 I would know,  she thought. Frankly it was a miracle she had survived that long after fleeing Altdorf.


 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Not really expecting a response, unless LCP wishes to provide one. I just felt like I needed to do  something  while Ludo and Bardhyl are doing their thing.

Elsa remains available if someone else needs her.
 
rax
 Marktag, 15th Sigmarzeit - Morr's Seat 

In the morning, Bardhyl gathered his crew and left the town for a walk outside the walls. Wandering between the pens full of sheep and goats, he waited until they were clear of any people working there before he spoke to them.

 "Friends, I had a most  interesting  chat with Wadim last night. I won't bore you with the details, but come tomorrow, I expect to be much closer to being able to make good on the promises I've made to each of you. I will also be in much greater danger than I've ever been since we began riding together, and I'm going to need people by my side who I can trust." 
 "I'd like to think that you and our absent friends are those people, but I want each of you to make that decision for yourselves. All I can tell you right now is that the stakes will be higher than ever, but if things go as planned, it'll be worth it for anyone who stays in the game until the end."  
 "There's not much for any of us to do today but wait, so take the rest of the day off and think about what I've just said. Tomorrow, when matters are settled, I'll ask each of you again and I'll want a straight answer - will you keep riding with me or will you make your own way from here?" 
LCP
 Painford, 14th Sigmarzeit 

"A week?!" exclaimed Leni. She took a moment to collect herself. "Well, I mean... I suppose what's another week, when you get down to it." She nodded. "I'll write to Rudi."


 

 Morr's Seat, 15th Sigmarzeit 
 Ludo 

The Raven Hills dialect was peculiar, but it had borrowed enough from Reikspiel that Ludo could make out the odd glimmer of meaning. He definitely made out Bardhyl's name, along with some others he didn't know - and aside from that, something that sounded like "daybreak", and something about the Tileans. Were they planning some kind of meeting?

Ludo had no difficulty in tailing Wadim through the close-packed, dusty streets of the town. He seemed to have a lot of people to talk to. Some he stopped to chat with in the street or in their doorways; others he went inside to talk in private. From what Ludo could overhear, they were all variations of the same conversation - something was happening tomorrow, and all these people were invited. Back at Marjan's, he did his best not to give away what he'd overheard.


  "How about Cunning Mavros? Or Black Gilbert, I think I know of him."  

"Black Gilbert, aye, that's a lowland story too," said Wadim. "As for fighting the Jackal and winning - well, where's old Gilbert now?"

He leaned back in his chair until it creaked alarmingly. "Mavros and the Jackal, now, that's an old story. From the reaving years, before the crusaders came. There are plenty of tales about Cunning Mavros, but that's the last." He took a drink to wet his throat. "Mavros was a chief of the  vrani  who stole away the daughter of a lowland king to be his wife. But she died young, and since she was a lowlander, the Raven Speakers told Mavros she would not be waiting for him in Morr’s hall beyond the sky, but that the Jackal would take her spirit beneath the earth.”

“Mavros wouldn’t accept this, or so the story goes. He ventured out alone and found a way down into the underworld, wearing a cloak woven from his dead love’s hair to allow him to walk unseen among the dead. He found the spot where the Jackal lay chained, and challenged him to a game of riddles. If he won, the Jackal would grant him the secret knowledge Morr had forbidden his people, to bring his love back among the living - but if he lost, the Jackal would have not only her soul, but his too.”

“The contest went on for days, and Mavros found that for every riddle he knew, the Jackal knew the answer. So when he had almost nothing left, and he saw his adversary’s jaws opening to swallow him up, he asked a riddle where he felt sure the Jackal could not understand the answer -  what is it that death does not destroy? ”

“And the Jackal said - that is easy, the answer is nothing. But Mavros’ answer was  love  - and he could prove it was so, he said, for though his love was dead, still he was standing there, looking for her.”

“The Jackal was not satisfied with his answer. He said, all you have shown is that your love survives  for now . But Mavros, being clever, said if it is true  for now , then  for now  you must accept that I have won. And though he snarled and strained against his chains, the Jackal had to agree - on condition that, on the day Mavros proved him right, he would take what he was owed.”

“So Mavros learned the Jackal’s secret knowledge, and returned to the land of the living. All he had to do was return to Morr’s Seat, where his love’s body was lying, and he could return her from the dead. But it was a long journey from the gates of the underworld back to the Raven Hills, and on his way back a storm blew up. He took shelter in a shepherd woman’s hut, and after so long down in the cold world of the dead, her warmth and kindness drew him to share her bed. And when the Jackal saw what he had done, he rose up in his chains, ravenous and rejoicing, and swallowed the hut whole while Mavros still slept inside. So Cunning Mavros and the knowledge he had stolen were lost to the  vrani  forever.”

His story finished, Wadim took a deep draught from his drink. “The way I first heard it, there’s still a cave in the Teeth you can see where the Jackal swallowed them up,” he said, “though I believe there’s at least three different caves that have the name. As for the moral of the story, the popular one is that Mavros should have listened to the Raven Speakers - that to defy death is to defy the will of Morr.” Marjan brought them over a leather bottle of  kefir , and Wadim poured himself a little more. “But there are other interpretations. ‘Don’t sleep with strange shepherdesses’ - I think I may have put that one to our friend Bardhyl, when he was younger. Or, maybe more relevant to where we find ourselves now - the Jackal can be a patient enemy. He knows in the end, he will have what he is owed.”


  "I'm not going to call you foolish,"  Ludo added, almost a little puzzled by the suggestion.  "The first time we faced him in person, we burned down half the city, and that was all of us. But if I know exactly what happened, maybe it will let me know more about him." 

He smiled wanly.  "I'll tell you what we did wrong if you like. Only fair."  

“I can’t say I’m not interested,” said Wadim. “There’s a lot I’ve missed. I’d like to hear as much of it as I can.”


 Bardhyl &amp; His Band 

Bardhyl’s followers listened closely to his words. He could already see on some of their faces - Kreshnik and Zana particularly - that they wouldn’t be going anywhere. Others looked less certain, but the mention of promises made seemed to grab everyone’s attention.

“Sounds about as clear as mist and mud,” grumbled Waldon. “What’s to think about, when you don’t tell us what the ****’s going on?”

Grim shot the bearded Breton a dark look, and he held his tongue.


 Elsa &amp; Tattie 

Out in the hills, a cold wind was blowing, for all that the sun shone brightly. Tattie kept looking around at the open landscape as if she wished she were somewhere else.

“I thought this was what you wanted me to do?” she said, defensively. “You keep pushing me to try - but I’m trying wrong?”
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 “I thought this was what you wanted me to do?” she said, defensively. “You keep pushing me to try - but I’m trying wrong?” 
 

Elsa now understood why the Colleges were keen to instill discipline and hard work, often via tediously mundane tasks that she used to loathe, before they taught their students any magic. Tatiana had natural talent, but a singular aversion to work and study. Elsa had been the same, once, and it had led her to take some dangerous shortcuts once she was no longer under her masters' scrutiny. It had made her powerful, but it had scarred her, too. Tainted her. She wished she could go back and do it all over again the  right  way.

Failing that, she would at least make sure Tatiana did not go down the same path.

 "It's not just a matter of pushing, Tattie,"  she explained patiently.  "It's a matter of pushing in the right direction. We have different directions, you and I, and you're trying too hard to follow  me . Ideally you'd be taught by an Amber magister, but we don't have one."

"The Amber and Red Winds do have similarities. They're among the wilder, more fickle Winds. They both draw from strong, impulsive emotions, rather than quiet and harmony. But they're not the same. The Red Wind comes from anger. If you feel you're using anger to fuel your magic, as I do, you're probably doing it wrong."

"I can't truly teach you how to use the Amber Wind. It's  your  Wind to use, not mine. You'll have to trust your instinct on this one. But at the very least, I can help you learn how  not  to use the Red Wind. Things will get easier once your wheels have started digging a rut in your road, as one of my masters put it." 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl &amp; His Band 

Bardhyl’s followers listened closely to his words. He could already see on some of their faces - Kreshnik and Zana particularly - that they wouldn’t be going anywhere. Others looked less certain, but the mention of promises made seemed to grab everyone’s attention.

“Sounds about as clear as mist and mud,” grumbled Waldon. “What’s to think about, when you don’t tell us what the ****’s going on?”

Grim shot the bearded Breton a dark look, and he held his tongue. 
 

  "Ah, Waldon! Ever the impatient type,  n'est-ce pas ? But now is not the time for you to know all the details - there are still too many pieces moving on the board,"  Bardhyl explained.  "Tomorrow morning, my friend. That's when you'll know  what the ****'s going on . Think you can keep your curiosity on the leash till then?" 
LeSwordfish
Ludo committed as much of Wadim's story to memory as he could.  "Are there any other stories where the Jackal has agreed to riddles? I'd be interested in hearing your version of Gilbert's story too." 

 “I can’t say I’m not interested,” said Wadim. “There’s a lot I’ve missed. I’d like to hear as much of it as I can.” 

 
"While we were garrisoning Savonne, after the battle at Arrow Heap, priests were being killed. We investigated and found that it was Klammenberg, the empire man. He had a spell that could make people forget him, and he was pretending to be a doctor... there was a sickness there, a sort of plague of thirst... he was using that to allow the Jackal to feed on people, encouraging them to sleep alone with the windows open. We found Klammenberg's house and went in with a few soldiers, but the Jackal was there. They drove us back, and the building caught fire. Half the city burned down. A few days later, on Geheimisnacht, they attacked the temple, stealing his mask, and the book which had been stored there. Myself, the commander, and Jarla's brother managed to drive them back and they fled over the city walls. Ended up living in the ruins of Gilbertus' manse with the ghouls." 
LCP
 Morr's Seat, 15th Sigmarzeit 
 Ludo 

  "Are there any other stories where the Jackal has agreed to riddles? I'd be interested in hearing your version of Gilbert's story too."  

"There are as many stories as there have been people to tell them," said Wadim. "The Jackal in our tales is a trickster because he has no choice. He's trapped, and needs others to give him what he wants." He took another swig of his drink. "The Jackal we face now is free. Wounded, perhaps - but still the same monster that slaughtered our ancestors. I don't think he has much need of riddles now."

"As for Black Gilbert - a lowlander who made a deal with the Jackal for the same knowledge Mavros was seeking, and who found only ruin in it, just as Mavros did. He tried to send servants to reach the Red Pyramid, but the  vrani  of his time were still strong enough to turn them back." Wadim closed his eyes for a moment. "The Jackal showed him how to rob others of their deaths, but not how to prevent his own. When the other lowlanders turned on him, he found his master was just as hungry for his spirit as he had been for all those he'd sent before him."


  "...there was a sickness there, a sort of plague of thirst..."  

Wadim's eye gleamed with a keen interest. "A plague of thirst?" he echoed. "You know, there was something like that in the hills... a fair few years ago now. The abandoned village we passed through, Greasy Drop - it killed nearly half the people there." He paused, ruminating. "But that was well before this Klammenberg ever arrived."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Ludo's book learning doesn't throw up any points of similarity with Wadim's stories about cloaks of hair etc. - clearly the  vrani  traditions are quite different.
 

 Bardhyl 

Waldon looked around at the faces of the others. Some still looked uncertain, but none of them looked sympathetic to the way he'd expressed his own uncertainty.

"Fine," he grumbled. "Piss all else to do in these parts, anyway."
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Morr's Seat, 15th Sigmarzeit 

Waldon looked around at the faces of the others. Some still looked uncertain, but none of them looked sympathetic to the way he'd expressed his own uncertainty.

"Fine," he grumbled. "Piss all else to do in these parts, anyway." 
 

  "Good man, Waldon! That wasn't so hard was it?"  Bardhyl laughed and clapped the Bretonnian on the shoulder.  "Now, let's finish our morning constitutional and then get back into town. Wouldn't want the Tileans to start worrying about where we've gotten to!" 
LeSwordfish
Ludo wondered how bad robbing someone of their death could be, and whether you could do it retroactively.

 "The leader of Greasy Drop, Armin, lead the people first to the river and then south. He was feeding them... he was feeding them human meat, we think. Probably meant to take them to the Jackal as Cannibals. Sforza killed him. Anyone left from Greasy Drop is a refugee now."

"Look, I'll level with you - I think getting to see the book in person is a non-starter. Sforza's not going to dig it up for just anyone - and that's good, because otherwise some charlatan would talk him out of it before the end of the year. If you come to Savonne while I'm there, I'll help you as much as I can, but don't expect too much. I'm going to report to him that there are rumors that goblins are making sacrifices at the pyramid. Maybe that will let us talk him into setting a watch around it or something. Is there anything else you think I should be doing?" 
RossN
 Marktag, 15th Sigmarzeit - Morr's Seat 

As Bardhyl and his band returned to the settlement they ran into Jarla. The red haired noblewoman looked a forlorn and uncomfortable figure in her second hand male clothing but she brightened when she saw Bardhyl and waved him over.  "My hero,"  she teased.  "I'll return your cloak. As it happens I wanted to speak to you, or Wadim for that matter. You are a devotee of the gods right?" 
LCP
 Ludo, 15th Sigmarzeit 

  "The leader of Greasy Drop, Armin, lead the people first to the river and then south. He was feeding them... he was feeding them human meat, we think. Probably meant to take them to the Jackal as Cannibals. Sforza killed him. Anyone left from Greasy Drop is a refugee now."  

Wadim looked saddened. "I'm sorry to hear that. The people of that village never had it easy, even without outsiders leading them astray." He looked down. "Maybe if I'd still been here, I could have done something."


  ""Look, I'll level with you - I think getting to see the book in person is a non-starter. Sforza's not going to dig it up for just anyone - and that's good, because otherwise some charlatan would talk him out of it before the end of the year. If you come to Savonne while I'm there, I'll help you as much as I can, but don't expect too much. I'm going to report to him that there are rumors that goblins are making sacrifices at the pyramid. Maybe that will let us talk him into setting a watch around it or something. Is there anything else you think I should be doing?"  

"Well, I thank you for your honesty," said Wadim, with a smile that made Ludo think the old man had already suspected as much. "As far as setting watches goes, that was always a responsibility we  vrani  took very seriously. Perhaps you could convince him to let us take it up again? I'm not sure how many more soldiers this old place can bear."

He fell silent for a moment, thinking. Ludo felt he was being weighed up.

"You know, I met your Prince, when I was Rorik's man. Just once or twice. Of course, back then he was just the Captain." He raised his eyebrows at Ludo. "Has he changed much?"
LeSwordfish
Ludo thought for a moment.  "As a person, no, but being the prince... empowers and constrains him in different ways. I think i'm learning how to talk to him again. He doesn't take the jackal business seriously since we "killed" it, but perhaps if I can find the right lever... Offering to let - or make the Vrani do it would be helpful. He probably doesn't care enough about your people, to be honest." 

He sighed.  "There was one other thing I wanted to bring up. I don't know if we've properly discussed it but all three of us - Myself, Jarla, and Frau Holt - work for the prince in some or other capacity. The women, in particular, are members of his court. He knows we're all capable people, and if anything were to threaten his control of his princedom - or a part of it - while we were there... he would want to know why we hadn't interceded." 

He tried to give Wadim the same gimlet eye the old man had given him.  "With that in mind... would it be in our best interests to have left town before daybreak tomorrow?  Obviously  there's nothing we can do about  anything  that happens to occur after we leave." 
LCP
 Ludo, 15th Sigmarzeit 

Wadim's smile widened. "Sharp," he said, "very sharp. You keep your ear to the ground, eh?" He shook his head. "You can rest easy. I'm not planning on stirring up any trouble tomorrow. Just a little gathering, to see our friend Bardhyl brought back into the fold."
rax
 
 Originally Posted by RossN 
  Marktag, 15th Sigmarzeit - Morr's Seat 

As Bardhyl and his band returned to the settlement they ran into Jarla. The red haired noblewoman looked a forlorn and uncomfortable figure in her second hand male clothing but she brightened when she saw Bardhyl and waved him over.  "My hero,"  she teased.  "I'll return your cloak. As it happens I wanted to speak to you, or Wadim for that matter. You are a devotee of the gods right?"  
 

 A look of honest surprise crossed Bardhyl's face when saw Jarla waiting for him, but he recovered quickly.

 "Lady Schreiber, what a pleasant surprise! And how kind of you to remember my humble garment. I feared for a while that it too had been seized by Sergeant Orso,"  he received the cloak with a wry grin.

 "A devotee of the gods? Well, I suppose I am, though not in the manner of your lowlander priests,"  he answered her question.  "Do you wish to discuss a  private  matter?"  he added with a glance at his men.
LCP
 Backertag, 16th Sigmarzeit 
 Bardhyl 

Well before sunrise, Bardhyl woke to a hand on his shoulder. Looking up, he saw the dim outline of a face looking down at him. Maybe it was someone he would have known, if he could have remembered - in the darkness it was impossible to tell.

“Come,  nevid ,” said the shadow. “The Speaker is waiting for you at the forge.”

Following Wadim’s messenger through the empty streets, Wadim came to the door of the forge. Through the window, he could see the glimmer of a rush-light burning.

Inside, Wadim was sitting with Danut the smith. Both were fully dressed despite the hour, and each had a cup of something hot and steaming. Wadim nodded acknowledgement to his messenger, and the nameless man stepped out, closing the door behind him.

“Good to see you, Bardhyl,” said Wadim. His voice sounded a little hoarse. “We’ve just been talking things over - Danut’s kindly allowing us to use the forge as a space to get things ready.”

The big blacksmith nodded. He’d never been a man of many words.

“Sun’ll be up soon, and by now most folk know where to be when it is,” Wadim continued. “Any preparations you want to make yourself, I’d suggest you make them. I’ll call you out when it’s time.” He looked around at a little door in the wall behind them. “One other thing - you won’t be needing your clothes. Danut says you can stash them in there.”

There was no mischief in the old man’s voice, but Bardhyl knew it had been generations since the last time the rites of exile had been undone - more than enough time for Wadim to add any embellishments he chose. Was this really part of the ceremony, or was the old man just messing with him?

 Not Bardhyl 

At the crack of dawn, the sleepers in the great hall found themselves woken by a great din coming from outside. Poking her head out of the room they’d been given, Jarla saw the irritated-looking Orso, already donning his armour and snapping orders at his equally rudely-woken men.

&lt; Flavio! Durante! With me! Bartolomeo! Get the rest of these slobs roused out of their bunks. &gt; He strapped on his sword with more force than the belt needed or deserved, and turned towards the door. &lt; Let’s see what the **** all this noise is about. &gt;

Outside, a large crowd had gathered on the stony ground in front of the forge, milling about in the pre-dawn twilight. A number of them were playing instruments - bone pipes and goatskin tabors, the keening, melancholy tune carrying on the wind.

In the centre of the crowd stood Wadim. He no longer wore his shabby, borrowed clothes - someone had found him a fine black cloak, which he wore with a collar of silver beads and a brooch made from a raven’s skull. He had combed his wild hair, and his one eye was rimmed with kohl. The only thing he had in common with the wild man they had brought down off the mountain was the dead branch he was still using as a stick - although now he brandished it more like a staff. Next to him, others were heaping up fuel for a fire. It wasn’t how Ludo would have built one, if he was setting camp - rather than being one heap, the dead wood was stretched out in a line.

&lt; I knew that old man was trouble, &gt; muttered the sergeant to his men. &lt; What in the name of Ranald’s sweaty balls are they up to? &gt;

From his language, Jarla didn’t think he’d noticed they’d followed him out. Over his shoulder, Ludo could see a few of Bardhyl's followers arriving at the scene - blinking and bleary-eyed, they looked just as baffled as the Tileans.
rax
 Backertag, 16th Sigmarzeit 

Bardhyl grunted his acquiescence to the messenger and followed him to the smithy after throwing on his breeches, tunic and boots.

He raised and eyebrow at Wadim's instruction to disrobe.  "Really, Wadim? I don't recall this part from your lessons. But no matter, if being displayed like a prize stallion is the price I must pay to once again walking among the living, so be it. Let no one say that Bardhyl is insecure in his manhood,"  he chuckled.

 "If it's all the same to you, though, I'll wait to disrobe until you've got things going outside. It's a mite chilly to be waiting around with nought but the fur on my back to keep me warm." 
LeSwordfish
Ludo leaned sideways to Jarla. " I spoke to Wadim last night - this isn't anything we need to worry ourselves about,"  he said quietly.
LCP
 16th Sigmarzeit 
 Inside the forge 

Wadim shrugged. “As you please,” he said. “We’ll call you when it’s time.”

 Outside 

More soldiers were starting to emerge from the hall. Wadim ignored them, and began addressing the crowd in the Raven Hills tongue. Jarla wasn’t sure what he was saying, but the rhythm and cadence of his speech sounded compelling - not like some of the soporific sermons she remembered listening to back in Nuln.

&lt; What are they doing? &gt; asked Bartolomeo, who had just reached Orso with six or seven Iron Company reinforcements.

&lt; Damned if I know, &gt; said the sergeant. &lt; Some heathen ceremony, from the looks of it. &gt;

&lt; Should we break it up? &gt;

Orso hesitated for a long moment. &lt; No, &gt; he said. &lt; But stand ready. &gt;

Someone came forward with a burning brand to light the fire. As the smoke curled up, Wadim stepped aside, and a new figure emerged from the doorway of the forge behind him. It was Bardhyl, without a single scrap of clothing.

The sun was coming up now, making Bardhyl squint against its light. It seemed like all of Morr’s Seat was gathered here, but with the smoke from the fire stinging his eyes, he found it hard to make out the individuals in the crowd. Two young  vrani  came forward to daub his face with ash from small clay pots, making him as pale as a ghost. He couldn’t place either of their faces - they had probably been children when he’d first left home.

&lt; You knew him as Bardhyl, the son of Mergim, &gt; spoke Wadim, raising his voice over the music. &lt; That Bardhyl died! But his spirit has walked the desert beyond the sight of Morr, and the Jackal has not found him. The west wind has not chilled him, and his blood is still the hot blood of the Vrani. &gt; The drumming grew quicker, and Wadim strode around the outside of the fire as its flames leapt higher. &lt; The man who comes back to us is djall-hunter! Wyrm-slayer! A man who has proven his right to walk again under the shadow of Morr’s wings. &gt;

Wadim had by now completed half a circuit of the fire, and stood on the other side from Bardhyl. Turning his back on the crowd, he began thumping his stick against the ground.

&lt; Pass through the flames, and be born again as one of the Vrani, &gt; he called out. &lt; Pass through, in the sight of Morr. Jump! &gt;

The crowd began to clap and stamp their feet in time to the pounding of the stick. They chanted together: &lt; Jump! Jump! Jump! &gt;

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Assuming he doesn’t want to chicken out of Wadim’s  hazing  traditional ritual tradition, it’ll be an Ag test at +10 for Bardhyl to jump through the fire.
 
rax
Bardhyl took a deep breath to steady his nerves before stepping outside. It wasn't that he was ashamed to stand naked before the crowd - everyone was same under their garments, after all - but the thought of his exile finally coming to an end stirred his feelings more than he had thought it would.

Outside, with the smoke in his eyes and the music filling his ears, Bardhyl stood alone with his thoughts, barely registering Wadim's words until the command came to jump.

  So it has come to this? All the years in the wilderness and I am to be reborn by jumping through a fire? No, that's not it, is it? Not a jump - a leap of faith! That's what this is, isn't it you cunning old rascal? A leap of faith for myself and everyone watching...  

As the crowd began to chant, Bardhyl raised his hands in acknowledgement, but stayed put and looked out over the assembled  vrani , slowly letting his gaze wander from one side of the crowd to the other. Finally, his eyes met Wadim's and he gave his old master a respectful nod. Then, without a word, he suddenly burst forward and leapt into the flames...

 OOC: 
 
 Spoiler: @LCP 
Got a pretty good roll in the OOC thread, so I imagine Bardhyl sticks the landing with some aplomb, but I think it would be best if you narrate the results. 🙂
 
LCP
 Morr's Seat, 16th Sigmarzeit 

The wound left by the wyvern's sting was still hurting him when he ran, but Bardhyl ignored the pain. Leaping through the flames, he landed cat-like on the balls of his feet, barely singed.

Wadim raised his arms high in the air, and a great cheer went up from the assembled crowd. Stepping up to Bardhyl, he poured a waterskin over his head and wiped the ash from his face, heedless of whether he got any in his eyes.

&lt; Be  nevid  no more, &gt; Wadim proclaimed. &lt; Bardhyl, son of Mergim, walk again as a brother of the clans! &gt;

The music quickened, and the circle of onlookers surged inward. No longer did they keep their distance or turn their eyes away - suddenly, Bardhyl found himself surrounded by the faces of half-forgotten friends, smiling and laughing as they crowded forwards to welcome him back.

A heavy hand thumped down on his shoulder, and a familiar voice boomed in his ear. &lt; Bardhyl! Mavros' bones, man, where have you been hiding? &gt; Looking round, he saw the face of his old friend Valmir - or half the face he remembered. The other half had been disfigured by a nasty-looking burn, but he was grinning all the same. Shrugging off his woollen cloak, he threw it over Bardhyl's shoulders.

&lt; There you go, mate. No-one wants to see any more of that than they have to. &gt; He punched Bardhyl playfully in the arm. &lt; Ten years! Don't think I've forgotten those drinks you owed me, either. How many was it, seven? &gt;
RossN
 Jarla,  15th Sigmarzeit - Morr's Seat 

 
 Originally Posted by rax 
 A look of honest surprise crossed Bardhyl's face when saw Jarla waiting for him, but he recovered quickly.

 "Lady Schreiber, what a pleasant surprise! And how kind of you to remember my humble garment. I feared for a while that it too had been seized by Sergeant Orso,"  he received the cloak with a wry grin.

 "A devotee of the gods? Well, I suppose I am, though not in the manner of your lowlander priests,"  he answered her question.  "Do you wish to discuss a  private  matter?"  he added with a glance at his men. 
 

Jarla looked uncomfortable, and self consciously hid her marked hand inside her illfitting sleeve.  "Not particularly private I supposed but I thought I should at least look for advice from a holy man and there are none of my own divine patron around - or at least they have not themselves known. I do think I should spend some time and effort thanking the gods for their aid in, um, that recent business and was hoping you had some advice." 
 16th Sigmarzeit 

Jarla smiled in thanks to Ludo but even if it wasn't something he should be concerned with the Imperial woman still found her eyes turning to the strange ceremony, albeit as an observer rather than a participant.
-Sentinel-
Standing close to Orso, Elsa watched Bardhyl's ceremony with rapt attention. And to think the lowlanders thought of the Vrani as nothing more than bandits, when they had a culture and traditions that were likely older than the Empire... She was tempted to go congratulate Bardhyl right away, but the sight of the man with the burnt face made her decide against it. It was best if Bardhyl's people did not see him making friends with the hated fire wizard.

She smiled at Orso and patted him on the shoulder.  &lt;See, nothing to worry about, sarge. They're just welcoming back an old friend. I've spent some time with them, and it turns out they're not that different from us.&gt; 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by RossN 
  Jarla,  15th Sigmarzeit - Morr's Seat 

Jarla looked uncomfortable, and self consciously hid her marked hand inside her illfitting sleeve.  "Not particularly private I supposed but I thought I should at least look for advice from a holy man and there are none of my own divine patron around - or at least they have not themselves known. I do think I should spend some time and effort thanking the gods for their aid in, um, that recent business and was hoping you had some advice."  
 

  "Well, whatever advice I have to give, I don't think this lot will want to hear it,"  he joked.  "Friends, make yourselves scarce. Lady Schreiber and I are going for a walk!"  Bardhyl instructed his people.

 "Shall we?"  he suggested once they were alone, waving his hand towards the street leading to the main market.

 "Now then, as I said before, I am not a priest as you would know them from Savonne, and we  vrani  do not often seek the blessings of any god but the Lord of Ravens, but in my experience of lowlander worship, it seems there is no great mystery to it - offer whatever spirit you fancy a heartfelt prayer of thanks and perhaps leave an offering at an appropriate shrine. Is that the sort of advice you were looking for, or is there perhaps something more... profound  on your mind?" 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Morr's Seat, 16th Sigmarzeit 

The music quickened, and the circle of onlookers surged inward. No longer did they keep their distance or turn their eyes away - suddenly, Bardhyl found himself surrounded by the faces of half-forgotten friends, smiling and laughing as they crowded forwards to welcome him back.

A heavy hand thumped down on his shoulder, and a familiar voice boomed in his ear. &lt; Bardhyl! Mavros' bones, man, where have you been hiding? &gt; Looking round, he saw the face of his old friend Valmir - or half the face he remembered. The other half had been disfigured by a nasty-looking burn, but he was grinning all the same. Shrugging off his woollen cloak, he threw it over Bardhyl's shoulders.

&lt; There you go, mate. No-one wants to see any more of that than they have to. &gt; He punched Bardhyl playfully in the arm. &lt; Ten years! Don't think I've forgotten those drinks you owed me, either. How many was it, seven? &gt; 
 

 With the crowd pressing in to welcome him back into the fold, Bardhyl at first found he could do nothing but stand there and grin right back - there were no words he could muster to express the storm of emotions sweeping through him.

  Say something, you dolt, before they think your mind's as gone as your clothes!   he chided himself just as a someone laid a hand on his shoulder.

 "...Valmir?"  he stuttered when he saw who the hand belonged to.  "Valmir! By the Raven, you're even uglier than when I left!"  he laughed out loud at the sight of his old friend. Overcome with joy, he threw his arms around the bigger man and hugged him close.  "Six. It was six drinks. The last one doesn't count - it was so bad I had to spit it out,"  he said when he let Valmir go.

 "How are you, man? And what of Neza and Mihail - are they well?"  
LeSwordfish
 "Killed a wyvern. Came back from the dead. Didn't catch his balls on fire."  Ludo commented.  "Good man to have on our side." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo is talking to Elsa here but with the goal of giving Orso the idea to try and get Bardhyl as an ally: let me throw a charm test to sneak that in:  (1d100)[ 46 ] 
 

 "I'm ready to return to Savonne when you are," he added. "We should tell Sieghard what we know. And find a way of telling Sforza, too." 
RossN
 
 Originally Posted by rax 
  "Well, whatever advice I have to give, I don't think this lot will want to hear it,"  he joked.  "Friends, make yourselves scarce. Lady Schreiber and I are going for a walk!"  Bardhyl instructed his people.

 "Shall we?"  he suggested once they were alone, waving his hand towards the street leading to the main market.

 "Now then, as I said before, I am not a priest as you would know them from Savonne, and we  vrani  do not often seek the blessings of any god but the Lord of Ravens, but in my experience of lowlander worship, it seems there is no great mystery to it - offer whatever spirit you fancy a heartfelt prayer of thanks and perhaps leave an offering at an appropriate shrine. Is that the sort of advice you were looking for, or is there perhaps something more... profound  on your mind?"  
 

Jarla looked pain, obviously uncertain what her reply should be, mostly because she was having difficulty expressing it herself. They walked in silence for a while.

 "I don't really know  what  exactly I'm looking for,"  she admitted eventually.  "Especially since I follow Ranald and he has no shrines or priests in this land - or if he does I haven't found them. I suppose I can make my own prayers in my own way but I wanted to hear the views of a professional on the life of the divine, and somehow I doubt Hieronymous would approve of my choice of patron."  She grinned at the mental image of donating a statue of the Gamester in the temple.
LCP
 Morr’s Seat, 16th Sigmarzeit 
 Elsa, Ludo &amp; Jarla 

Orso looked unimpressed with Elsa’s opinions on the  vrani  - but while his thoughts were clearly written on his face, he didn’t speak them, perhaps in deference to her rank. Ludo’s words made more of an impact, and brought his eyes back to Bardhyl.

&lt; A strange kind of welcome, &gt; he muttered. He jerked his head towards Bartolomeo. &lt; We keep an eye on that one, yes? &gt;

Bartolomeo gave an obedient nod.

 Bardhyl 

  "...Valmir?"  he stuttered when he saw who the hand belonged to.  "Valmir! By the Raven, you're even uglier than when I left!"  he laughed out loud at the sight of his old friend. Overcome with joy, he threw his arms around the bigger man and hugged him close.  "Six. It was six drinks. The last one doesn't count - it was so bad I had to spit it out,"  he said when he let Valmir go.

 "How are you, man? And what of Neza and Mihail - are they well?"   

“What, you don’t like my looks?” said Valmir, with a certain amount of chagrin. “You can thank the Tilean’s witch for that.” He looked up to where Elsa was standing with the soldiers, overlooking the crowd. Bardhyl could see there was no love lost there.

Tearing his eyes away, Valmir thumped Bardhyl on the back. “Neza’s doing fine. But Mihail’s dead. Don’t think she’s too torn up about it, but maybe don’t bring it up straight away when you see her, yah?” He thumped him again - Bardhyl had forgotten how much Valmir communicated through thumps. “Ten years! Come on, let’s get those drinks in. Six should be enough to get us through to midday.”

Shepherded by Wadim, the crowd was drifting east towards the gate. Someone had set up a cooking fire in the shadow of the old palisade, and Marjan had brought out some skins of kefir to share around. Bardhyl wondered how many arms Wadim had had to twist to bring on this display of hospitality.

There were lots of faces pressing in around him, each with their own questions. As the sun rose higher and food and drink were thrust upon him, he tried to answer them as best he could.

“Where have you been all these years? Living among the lowlanders?”
“Is it true you rescued the Speaker from goblins? How did they catch him?”
“Do you know what’s been happening here? How the soldiers have been treating us?”
“Does the Speaker have a plan?”
“Do  you  have a plan?”
rax
 
 Originally Posted by RossN 
 Jarla looked pain, obviously uncertain what her reply should be, mostly because she was having difficulty expressing it herself. They walked in silence for a while.

 "I don't really know  what  exactly I'm looking for,"  she admitted eventually.  "Especially since I follow Ranald and he has no shrines or priests in this land - or if he does I haven't found them. I suppose I can make my own prayers in my own way but I wanted to hear the views of a professional on the life of the divine, and somehow I doubt Hieronymous would approve of my choice of patron."  She grinned at the mental image of donating a statue of the Gamester in the temple. 
 

 "My dear lady, I don't know that I'd call myself a  professional  when it comes to the divine! I was in training to be a Raven Speaker, not an academic!"  Bardhyl laughed.

 "Listen, we  vrani  are in many ways a practical people. All men must die, and it is Morr who watches over us in the afterlife, so we give our worship to him. He does not ask much of us - only that we stand against the Jackal, that we heed the dreams he sends us, and that we do no harm to his messengers the ravens. When we die, we leave our bodies on the hillsides so that the ravens may bring our souls to Morr's hall beyond the sky. What we do otherwise is of no concern to him." 
 "So you see, we have no great need of temples or offerings to supplicate the Lord of Ravens. When he wishes something of us, he sends us dreams and we may make of them what we will, but for the most part, he leaves us to carry on our lives and we do not trouble him with prayers about matters that do not concern him." 
 "Of course, if he  were  to intervene directly - say, in helping to cast a troublesome  djall  back where she belongs - then thanks would be in order, but I would not make a great display of it. I would speak to him in my thoughts and let him know that I am grateful. Perhaps he will send a dream or some other sign to show that he has heard, or perhaps he will be silent. In the end, it matters little whether he acknowledges my prayers - what matters is that I keep faith with his teachings, whether or not he pats me on the head for doing so,"  Bardhyl said with a wink.

 "You said you revere Ranald. He is a bringer of luck and protector of... umm ...thieves, yes? Do you have reason to believe that he would demand more of you than Morr does of the  vrani ?" 
-Sentinel-
Elsa would have loved to join the festivities, but knew she would be about as welcome among the Vrani as Belehir at Skorgrund's birthday party. She certainly had not survived Nahorek and his undead minions, Duke Alvarr's soldiers, witch hunters, daemons, orcs, goblins and a wyvern only to die from a knife in the back while having a drink.

And besides, if the Vrani had any booze aside from spoiled milk, they were hiding it from her.

 "You can go join them, if you like,"  she offered Tatiana.  "I think it'd do you good to spend time with boys and girls your age, and I see several of them." 
 
 Spoiler 
  Charm attempt (vs. 59) that doesn't really lead anywhere:  (d100)[ 85 ] 
Re-roll, just for pride's sake:  (d100)[ 8 ]  -  Oh, looks like some poor fellow is going to bed bitterly disappointed.  😛

Gambling (vs. 33) for pennies and shillings:  (d100)[ 2 ]   

(never mind the above, I thought it was evening)

No big plans in Morr's Seat, aside from waiting for the wyvern hide to finish soaking at the tannery.
 
rax
 “Where have you been all these years? Living among the lowlanders?” 
 "More like making a living  off  the lowlanders,"  Bardhyl answered with a wink.  "But yes, I've travelled the length and breadth of the Reaches while I was away - I couldn't very well hole up here." 
 “Is it true you rescued the Speaker from goblins? How did they catch him?” 
 "Indeed I did! It was Morr's grace that showed me the way, but our new friends among the Tilean's people made a big difference. As for how Wadim got himself in that particular bind...that's a story he should tell himself,"  he replied.

 “Do you know what’s been happening here? How the soldiers have been treating us?” 
 "Only second hand tellings, I'm afraid, but I can see with my own eyes that they're not here to win hearts and minds. Come see me when I've sobered up and I'll be happy to hear all the details,"  he encouraged his questioner.

 “Does the Speaker have a plan?” 
 "Do Morr's messengers feed on carrion? Of course he has a plan, and in due time I'm sure he'll share it with us,"  Bardhyl laughed.
 
“Do  you  have a plan?” 
 "Well, right now my plan is to get very drunk and celebrate my return to life,"  he confessed.  "As for what comes next...I'm working on it." 
RossN
 Jarla  

 
 Originally Posted by rax 
  "My dear lady, I don't know that I'd call myself a  professional  when it comes to the divine! I was in training to be a Raven Speaker, not an academic!"  Bardhyl laughed.

 "Listen, we  vrani  are in many ways a practical people. All men must die, and it is Morr who watches over us in the afterlife, so we give our worship to him. He does not ask much of us - only that we stand against the Jackal, that we heed the dreams he sends us, and that we do no harm to his messengers the ravens. When we die, we leave our bodies on the hillsides so that the ravens may bring our souls to Morr's hall beyond the sky. What we do otherwise is of no concern to him." 
 "So you see, we have no great need of temples or offerings to supplicate the Lord of Ravens. When he wishes something of us, he sends us dreams and we may make of them what we will, but for the most part, he leaves us to carry on our lives and we do not trouble him with prayers about matters that do not concern him." 
 "Of course, if he  were  to intervene directly - say, in helping to cast a troublesome  djall  back where she belongs - then thanks would be in order, but I would not make a great display of it. I would speak to him in my thoughts and let him know that I am grateful. Perhaps he will send a dream or some other sign to show that he has heard, or perhaps he will be silent. In the end, it matters little whether he acknowledges my prayers - what matters is that I keep faith with his teachings, whether or not he pats me on the head for doing so,"  Bardhyl said with a wink.

 "You said you revere Ranald. He is a bringer of luck and protector of... umm ...thieves, yes? Do you have reason to believe that he would demand more of you than Morr does of the  vrani ?"  
 

Jarla nodded along thoughtfully as Bardhyl spoke. The copper haired Empire woman considered her words carefully before speaking them.

 "Thank you Bardhyly. I see I will have much to think on."  She offered him a rare smile.  "I still don't have any idea what I'm going to do but you have still been helpful." 

With that she took her leave.
LCP
 Morr’s Seat, 16th Sigmarzeit 

  "It was Morr's grace that showed me the way, but our new friends among the Tilean's people made a big difference."  

"Friends?" Valmir butted in, casting a glance up to where Elsa and the soldiers had been standing. "There's something new. Which one of those jackals are you calling friends?"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
An unmodified Charm test from Bardhyl can deflect Valmir's Sforza-suspicion.
 


The celebrations went on for several hours more, until the sun was high in the sky and their limited store of food and drink had been exhausted. As the residents of Morr's Seat reluctantly went back to their work, Bardhyl noticed there were still a couple of Iron Company men up by the hall, watching them go. Clearly Sergeant Orso was determined not to let anything escape his notice.

The last man left was Wadim, sitting cross-legged on a stone and looking rather pleased with himself. "So," he said when Bardhyl approached him. "How does it feel, being alive?"

When Bardhyl mentioned his men, the old man nodded. "I suppose they're owed an explanation, eh?" he said. "Followed you here through wyrms and goblins. Why don't we talk to them together, this evening?" He looked up at where the sun was in the sky. "Somewhere outside the wall. Better Tilean ears don't hear."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Anyone from the non-Bardhyls can roll Perception to notice these guys sneaking off in the evening, and opposed Stealth vs. Bardhyl's Perception if they want to follow them and eavesdrop.
 
 Bardhyl gets +10 to his Perception roll from his local knowledge. 
 A successful Stealth check means you stay hidden to the other NPCs even if Bardhyl beats your roll: you can then feel free to read the spoiler below. 
 If you want to make yourself conspicuous instead then consider the spoilered conversation not to have happened. 
 
 

 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl 
The sun was setting by the time Bardhyl had gathered his band together to meet Wadim outside the wall. Waldon, of course, was grumbling about what business they had with the 'cracked old coot' when it was Bardhyl who had promised them answers - but no-one paid him much heed.

They hadn't been waiting long when the old coot himself arrived, appearing out of the twilight as if he'd just sprung up out of the ground. Waldon did his best to keep his cool, but couldn't help but look a little unnerved when one of the town's resident ravens winged down out of the darkening sky to perch beside him. Wadim absent-mindedly petted it, and fed it a scrap of meat from his pocket.

"So," he said. "I suppose you're wondering why we brought you here?"

No-one gave him the satisfaction of saying 'yes'.

"Of course, as far as I'm concerned, you've all already done me a great service. Bringing me out of that goblin hole, and back home - that's a debt I don't know if I can repay. But there's more to this than one old man." He looked around the circle of wary faces. "I'm gathering that none of you are… particular admirers of His Royal Highness in Savonne."

Bardhyl's men looked at one another. Grim grunted acknowledgement. Waldon spat and said something obscene in Breton about the Prince. Wadim grinned.

"That's good," he said. "For me, I don't much care who sets down their throne in Savonne… or Putbad, or Alvarran, or anywhere else for that matter. But I do care what happens  here. " Bardhyl saw Zana nodding quiet agreement. "Morr's Seat is sacred ground. The only home our people have ever had. If we  vrani  are to prove worthy of the trust Morr puts in us, if Nahorek the Jackal is ever to be defeated, then that fight starts here. And the  vrani  can't fight with a Tilean boot on their neck."

He looked across to Bardhyl. "The people here need someone to look up to. Someone who can remind them they're more than just beaten dogs. I think your chief here might have a chance… at least, a better chance than an old man like me. I certainly believe you all know how to run rings around some prince's puffed-up soldiers." Kreshnik chuckled, and Bardhyl thought he saw Grim give a tiny, tiny nod. "If you'll help us, it'll be another debt we owe you - one I'll make sure the  vrani  won't forget."

That seemed to be all he had to say. The others looked expectantly to Bardhyl, waiting to see what he had to add.
 


 

 Bezahltag, 17th Sigmarzeit - Morr's Seat 

The next morning, Bardhyl gathered himself and went to the door of his sister's house. He hadn't seen her in the gathering the day before - but in a town the size of Morr's Seat, she had to have heard.

Neza's house was one of the more comfortable homes in Morr's Seat, although by lowland standards that wasn't saying much. Knocking on the door, Bardhyl waited in uncomfortable silence for it to open. At last, he heard footsteps approaching from within.

The door opened, and Neza stood before him. She looked older than he remembered, with more more grey in her hair and more flint in her eyes. The two of them stood face to face, each waiting for the other to speak first.

"Bardhyl," she said at last, her voice betraying no emotion. Another uncomfortable pause. "You're back."

Then, without warning, she threw her arms around him, hugging him close. When she pulled away, she had tears of happiness in her eyes.

"We thought you were dead," she said. "I mean,  really  dead. Come on! Come inside."

There was a lot to catch up on. Mihail was dead, as Valmir had said: apparently one of Rorik's retinue had taken a liking to something of his, and challenged him under some Norscan law. Mihail had never been a warrior.

He had, however, been quite a successful trader, and now that Neza had inherited his business, she seemed to be doing quite well for herself, with a house full of copper pots, pewter tankards, and kinds of other goods that could only be got outside the hills. Dardan, she said, was keeping well too - she saw him when he brought his fleeces into town, for her to sell to the lowlanders from the valley.

It was when their conversation came around to Bardhyl's adventures - and in particular Wadim - that her face darkened again. "That old crow," she said. "Why do you trust him? He was the one who cast you out, so he could welcome the Norscans in. Now they're dead, he wants you back… as what?" She gave Bardhyl a searching look. "His second choice?"


 

 Konigstag, 18th Sigmarzeit - Morr's Seat 

Time not spent with Neza or Wadim was time best spent at Marjan's, where there were plenty of people wanting Bardhyl's time. Valmir in particular seemed determined to stick to him like glue, adding his own commentary to the others' accounts of all that had happened while he had been in exile.

"These Tileans are worse than a west wind," said the man who had approached him at the ceremony - now perhaps a few cups of kefir the worse for wear. "At first it was just a handful of them - but now their chief down in the valley has sent this whole. this whole damn army. Anything they can sell, they're taking for their so-called 'taxes', and we have to feed them too." He looked mournfully into his cup. "The Jarl, he took what he wanted, but he  lead , you know? These ones, they're just leeches. They're bleeding us dry."

"It was the fire witch who brought them up here," added Valmir. "She was up here a few months back, poking around where no-one wanted her. Hired Senka to take her out into the hills, nearly got her et by wolves.  Did  get her dog et by wolves. Senka loved that dog." He took a deep draught of his drink. "Goes back to her masters in the valley, and  bam ." He slammed his hand down on the table hard enough to make it shake. "Up comes the lord high Carrackie-yolo himself, with all his men. Tells us we're not to be  harbouring enemies of the crown , and leaves big Orso and his lads to keep watch."

Valmir shot a dark glance toward the door, and lowered his voice from its usual boom to a murmur. "I'll tell you now," he said, "someone should have given her a shove off the edge of the rocks, before she could go stirring up trouble. There's plenty here who'd have had reason enough to do it." He touched the burn on his cheek. "If we'd known how it'd turn out…"


 

 Angestag, 19th Sigmarzeit 
 Morr's Seat 

Come Angestag morning, Elsa's wyvern-skin cloak was at last ready. It was very striking, even if it did make her look a bit like the villainous sorcerer in a Dietlef Sierck melodrama.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I'd be willing to let the cloak act like a Sea Dragon cloak from the OWB, but as a caster maybe Elsa doesn't want the armour points? I'm away from books atm and can't remember exactly how that restriction works.
 


As Ludo and the others were packing their things to get ready for the road, Wadim came sidling up to Bardhyl. Two of the town ravens were following him now, angling for any treats he had in his pockets.

 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl &amp; Wadim, in Vranspel 

"You're going back with them?" asked the old man. "I suppose I can handle the soldiers here while you're away. But don't stay away too long, hm? A chief needs to be seen to be believed." He reached up to pay Bardhyl on the shoulder. "Maybe bring backa bit of some other monster. That'll impress them."

He looked over to where the others were making their preparations. "The halfling has his eyes open, and his feet on the ground. I think he's someone we can work with. The noblewoman… I'm not sure what to think of her." Bardhyl noticed he didn't say anything about Elsa. "But don't trust them, Bardhyl. Remember, they're the prince's people."
 

 Painford 

In Painford, Sieghard was having to deal with having an increasingly anxious house guest under his roof. Having sent Luca back to Mirino with his pay, Leni was growing increasingly nervous with every day that Ludo failed to appear. Her nerves mainly manifested through over-thanking Sieghard for letting her stay, saying she 'didn't want to be any bother', and asking several times a day whether he'd heard any news of when Ludo would arrive.

On Angestag, Sieghard was sitting in Gavril's with Gustaf and Hanna, leaving Leni her space in which to fret. There were a couple of strangers in Gavril's taproom: one a traveller from the south, the other from the north.

The man from the south seemed to be someone Gavril knew: the two of them were haggling strenuously over the price of some barrels of beer he had brought in his cart.

"I'm telling you, you're not getting a better deal, old man," he was saying. "Price of grain like it is."

"Don't you go complaining to me about the crops, Dietrich," said Gavril. "You lot down in the Vale, you're the only ones who've had any bloody rain."

"Aye, and it's brought out every pest under Rhya's blue sky," said the trader. "They're saying it'll have to be an early harvest south of the brook, if they want to get to it before the insects. My brother's neighbour lost half his crop already."

"Well," said Gavril, "when he loses the other half, maybe then I'll hear you out about these prices." He turned his nose up. "Not like we can't brew our own booze here, you know."

Dietrich cackled. "Oh aye, with sour apples and marsh water! Come on, Gavril - tell you what, I'll knock a schilling off. But only because we're friends!"

The other visitor was somewhat quieter. He sat alone in the corner, nursing a small drink. From his hat and his leather jerkin, he looked more as if he had come from the city than the country - but what Sieghard noticed most of all was the short sword at his belt, and the large pack at his feet. He was pretty sure he could see the butt of a crossbow sticking up from under the flap.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  
 Can't imagine he came all this way to enlist... 

" Karolina! " Sieghard called out. " Could we get another round of drinks? "

" The man over in the corner, " He said quietly once she approached their table. " How long has he been sitting there? And have you noticed him talking to anyone? "
LCP
 Painford 

"Him? He just got in," said Karolina, thumping a wooden jug down on the table. "Ha'n't seen him talking to anybody but us. Says he's looking for his cousin or such like."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Hmm... He say what she looks like? " he asked.
LCP
 Painford 

"Not to me," said Karolina. "Think he's just wanting to rest his feet after the road. He's one of them Tileans, though." She tapped the side of her nose. "I recognise the accent."

Sieghard took another look at the stranger in the corner. With sandy hair and fair skin, he didn't look Tilean. But appearances could be deceiving.
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Morr’s Seat, 16th Sigmarzeit 

"Friends?" Valmir butted in, casting a glance up to where Elsa and the soldiers had been standing. "There's something new. Which one of those jackals are you calling friends?"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
An unmodified Charm test from Bardhyl can deflect Valmir's Sforza-suspicion.
 
 
 

 "The ones that can help us get rid of the Tilean and hopefully put the Jackal back in his cage. There's more of them than you might think, and some closer to Sforza than he likely suspects. Beggars can't be choosers, Valmir, and while the wind is in the west, that's what we are,"  Bardhyl answered his old friend in a firm voice.

 
 Spoiler: Charm test 
 (1d100)[ 39 ]  vs. 68 (Fel 58, Charm +10)
FP re-roll if needed:  (1d100)[ 75 ] 
 


 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  
 Spoiler: Bardhyl 
The sun was setting by the time Bardhyl had gathered his band together to meet Wadim outside the wall. Waldon, of course, was grumbling about what business they had with the 'cracked old coot' when it was Bardhyl who had promised them answers - but no-one paid him much heed.

They hadn't been waiting long when the old coot himself arrived, appearing out of the twilight as if he'd just sprung up out of the ground. Waldon did his best to keep his cool, but couldn't help but look a little unnerved when one of the town's resident ravens winged down out of the darkening sky to perch beside him. Wadim absent-mindedly petted it, and fed it a scrap of meat from his pocket.

"So," he said. "I suppose you're wondering why we brought you here?"

No-one gave him the satisfaction of saying 'yes'.

"Of course, as far as I'm concerned, you've all already done me a great service. Bringing me out of that goblin hole, and back home - that's a debt I don't know if I can repay. But there's more to this than one old man." He looked around the circle of wary faces. "I'm gathering that none of you are… particular admirers of His Royal Highness in Savonne."

Bardhyl's men looked at one another. Grim grunted acknowledgement. Waldon spat and said something obscene in Breton about the Prince. Wadim grinned.

"That's good," he said. "For me, I don't much care who sets down their throne in Savonne… or Putbad, or Alvarran, or anywhere else for that matter. But I do care what happens  here. " Bardhyl saw Zana nodding quiet agreement. "Morr's Seat is sacred ground. The only home our people have ever had. If we  vrani  are to prove worthy of the trust Morr puts in us, if Nahorek the Jackal is ever to be defeated, then that fight starts here. And the  vrani  can't fight with a Tilean boot on their neck."

He looked across to Bardhyl. "The people here need someone to look up to. Someone who can remind them they're more than just beaten dogs. I think your chief here might have a chance… at least, a better chance than an old man like me. I certainly believe you all know how to run rings around some prince's puffed-up soldiers." Kreshnik chuckled, and Bardhyl thought he saw Grim give a tiny, tiny nod. "If you'll help us, it'll be another debt we owe you - one I'll make sure the  vrani  won't forget."

That seemed to be all he had to say. The others looked expectantly to Bardhyl, waiting to see what he had to add.
 
 
 

 
 Spoiler: @LCP 
 "Well, friends, there you have it. Wadim tells me I should lead my people, and after due consideration, I've decided to roll the dice and see where my fate takes me. The Tilean won't give up what he's won easily, but I intend to make him regret his ambition, and as I said yesterday - to do that, I'm going to need people by my side who I can trust. Make no mistake - if you ride with me when I leave Morr's Seat, both the stakes and the payoff will be higher than any job we've ever pulled." 
 "So, this is where I ask you - who's with me?"  he addressed his band with a level look.
 

 
 Spoiler: Perception test 
...if needed.
 (1d100)[ 31 ]  vs. 74 (Int 44, Perception +20, Local Knowledge +10)
 


 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bezahltag, 17th Sigmarzeit - Morr's Seat 

The next morning, Bardhyl gathered himself and went to the door of his sister's house. He hadn't seen her in the gathering the day before - but in a town the size of Morr's Seat, she had to have heard.

Neza's house was one of the more comfortable homes in Morr's Seat, although by lowland standards that wasn't saying much. Knocking on the door, Bardhyl waited in uncomfortable silence for it to open. At last, he heard footsteps approaching from within.

The door opened, and Neza stood before him. She looked older than he remembered, with more more grey in her hair and more flint in her eyes. The two of them stood face to face, each waiting for the other to speak first.

"Bardhyl," she said at last, her voice betraying no emotion. Another uncomfortable pause. "You're back."

Then, without warning, she threw her arms around him, hugging him close. When she pulled away, she had tears of happiness in her eyes.

"We thought you were dead," she said. "I mean,  really  dead. Come on! Come inside."

There was a lot to catch up on. Mihail was dead, as Valmir had said: apparently one of Rorik's retinue had taken a liking to something of his, and challenged him under some Norscan law. Mihail had never been a warrior.

He had, however, been quite a successful trader, and now that Neza had inherited his business, she seemed to be doing quite well for herself, with a house full of copper pots, pewter tankards, and kinds of other goods that could only be got outside the hills. Dardan, she said, was keeping well too - she saw him when he brought his fleeces into town, for her to sell to the lowlanders from the valley.

It was when their conversation came around to Bardhyl's adventures - and in particular Wadim - that her face darkened again. "That old crow," she said. "Why do you trust him? He was the one who cast you out, so he could welcome the Norscans in. Now they're dead, he wants you back… as what?" She gave Bardhyl a searching look. "His second choice?" 
 

 "Sister..."  Bardhyl hugged Neza back, his voice thick with with emotion.

He shrugged at Neza's accusatory tone when they spoke of Wadim.  "It's been ten years, sister, and I'm not the man I used to be. Neither is Wadim, I think, though I'm not yet sure whether that's entirely a good thing. It's clear we both made mistakes when it came to Rorik, though, and if nothing else, I've learned a little humility while I was away,"  he chuckled darkly.

 "As for what the old man wants from me...I fear I'm all the hope he has left now. Sforza is an enemy of the  vrani  and he will need to be dealt with, but the Jackal is still out there as well, no matter what Sforza would have everyone believe. The fight against the Jackal is our sacred charge, Neza - you know I can never turn my back on that, no matter how I may feel about Wadim." 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Konigstag, 18th Sigmarzeit - Morr's Seat 

Time not spent with Neza or Wadim was time best spent at Marjan's, where there were plenty of people wanting Bardhyl's time. Valmir in particular seemed determined to stick to him like glue, adding his own commentary to the others' accounts of all that had happened while he had been in exile.

"These Tileans are worse than a west wind," said the man who had approached him at the ceremony - now perhaps a few cups of kefir the worse for wear. "At first it was just a handful of them - but now their chief down in the valley has sent this whole. this whole damn army. Anything they can sell, they're taking for their so-called 'taxes', and we have to feed them too." He looked mournfully into his cup. "The Jarl, he took what he wanted, but he  lead , you know? These ones, they're just leeches. They're bleeding us dry."

"It was the fire witch who brought them up here," added Valmir. "She was up here a few months back, poking around where no-one wanted her. Hired Senka to take her out into the hills, nearly got her et by wolves.  Did  get her dog et by wolves. Senka loved that dog." He took a deep draught of his drink. "Goes back to her masters in the valley, and  bam ." He slammed his hand down on the table hard enough to make it shake. "Up comes the lord high Carrackie-yolo himself, with all his men. Tells us we're not to be  harbouring enemies of the crown , and leaves big Orso and his lads to keep watch."

Valmir shot a dark glance toward the door, and lowered his voice from its usual boom to a murmur. "I'll tell you now," he said, "someone should have given her a shove off the edge of the rocks, before she could go stirring up trouble. There's plenty here who'd have had reason enough to do it." He touched the burn on his cheek. "If we'd known how it'd turn out…" 
 

Bardhyl listened with interest to the man's account.  "Yes, I'd heard the Tilean is squeezing every copper he can out of us. It's a bad business to be sure,"  he agreed.  "I do wonder what it's all about, though. It can't  all  be punishment for not bending the knee quickly enough. The Tilean is no fool - I think he knows that if takes us for all we've got, he'll have proper rising on his hands sooner or later. He's planning something, for sure..."  Bardhyl mused.

 "I hear you, Valmir, but whatever she's done, Morr guided me to that woman and her friends so that we could bring the Raven Speaker back. She is dangerous, yes, but my dreams also tell me she still has a part to play in putting the Jackal back where he belongs. So I'm asking you as a friend - steer clear of her, alright?" 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Angestag, 19th Sigmarzeit 
 Morr's Seat 
 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl &amp; Wadim, in Vranspel 

"You're going back with them?" asked the old man. "I suppose I can handle the soldiers here while you're away. But don't stay away too long, hm? A chief needs to be seen to be believed." He reached up to pay Bardhyl on the shoulder. "Maybe bring backa bit of some other monster. That'll impress them."

He looked over to where the others were making their preparations. "The halfling has his eyes open, and his feet on the ground. I think he's someone we can work with. The noblewoman… I'm not sure what to think of her." Bardhyl noticed he didn't say anything about Elsa. "But don't trust them, Bardhyl. Remember, they're the prince's people."
 
 
 

 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl &amp; Wadim 
 "Aye, they are, and I'll be careful, but the more I travel with them, the more I think they're their  own  people first and foremost." 
 "Lady Schreiber...she's lady-in-waiting to the Prince's wife. If we can work out what she wants, she could be a great asset, but I think perhaps she doesn't really know that herself. Ludo might be able to help us with that, though. I think he has everyone's ear. As for the sorceress - as long as we keep her pointed at the Jackal, she will be a powerful ally. I know there's many a man here who's felt her power and wouldn't mind sticking a blade in her, but for the sake of our struggle, I'm asking you - can you  try  to cool their tempers while I'm away?" 
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Probably on his way to Mirino then, " Sieghard replied, then took sip from his drink. " Thank you, Karolina. "

He waited until she had gone before he spoke again. " Might be nothing, but I want him watched. By men in common clothes. And find the three best fighters among the women in the company and tell them to make sure they're rested. I'll need them for guard duty tonight. "

 
 Spoiler 
Sieghard will sit back and see what he does. For now, the only action he'll take is make sure Leni stays in the manor today.
 
LCP
 16th Sigmarzeit - Morr's Seat 

Bardhyl's people looked at one another. Grim was the first to speak.

"We've never shied away from crossing lords and ladies before," he said. "Don't see why we'd stop now."

"It can't be a coincidence that  we  were the ones who found the Raven Speaker," said Zana. Kreshnik and Afrim nodded. "This is what Morr wants."

"You're all cracked if you think this is the gods' will," said Waldon. "The gods don't give two ****s about us." He fell silent for a little while. "But neither does the Tilean. If you're saying you want to stick it to him and his soldier boys… I'm in. Just so long as I don't have to go jumping through no fires."

 

 17th Sigmarzeit - Morr's Seat 

"The fight against the Jackal," echoed Neza. "You really think that's a fight we can win?"

A pot hanging over the fire began to whistle as it boiled. Neza took it off its hook and set it aside, before returning to her brother.

"We heard the stories from the south. When the Tileans' commander came up from the valley, he told us the Jackal was dead, that the Prince was the one who had killed him, and anyone saying otherwise was a traitor. But the wind stays in the west, and the rains don't fall, and more and more of the hills are empty." She gave Bardhyl a searching look. "The Jackal in the old stories was a monster the people in those stories could fight. How are you going to fight the wind?"

 

 18th Sigmarzeit - Morr's Seat 

"Maybe he wants us gone for good," said one of the men drinking with Valmir - a morose-looking man with a missing hand and a tangled grey beard. "Grind us out, clear out the land. Find some poor lowlanders who'll keep digging the iron for him, let the rest go to seed."

Valmir made a doubtful noise in the back of his throat. "You're giving them too much credit, both of you," he said. "Sure, maybe the Prince is a sly old fox, but it's his man in the valley we're dealing with. We all saw him when he came up here. He's a soldier, and all he sees when he looks at us is men who chose the wrong side."

He downed the rest of his drink and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "He's not wrong, either. Plenty of us left who followed Rorik into the lowlands. Plenty of us not too broken to hold a spear… but the fight's gone out of this place." He gave Bardhyl a significant look. "Stop beating a whipped dog, it might remember it can bite."


  "I hear you, Valmir, but whatever she's done, Morr guided me to that woman and her friends so that we could bring the Raven Speaker back. She is dangerous, yes, but my dreams also tell me she still has a part to play in putting the Jackal back where he belongs. So I'm asking you as a friend - steer clear of her, alright?"  

Valmir held up his hands, palms out, in an exaggerated show of peace. "Alright, alright!" he said. "I don't want to get my handsome side burned up anyway. The girls would never forgive me."

 

 19th Sigmarzeit 
 Morr's Seat 
 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl and Wadim 
"Valmir and his lads have been grumbling in your ear, then?" said Wadim. "That's good. Means they trust you." He gave Bardhyl a thin smile. "I'll see what I can do. But don't stay away too long, eh?" He looked back towards the hall. "There's more than enough work here for the both of us."
 

 Painford 

Hanna raised her eyebrows, but neither her nor Gustaf said anything that might give the game away. Accepting Sieghard's orders with a nod, Gustaf got up to leave.

The stranger stayed in Gavril's taproom for a while more, finishing his drink and eating a modest meal. By the time he had finished, a few more of the villagers had drifted in. Rising from his seat, he approached one of them seemingly at random.

"Excuse-a me,  signor. " The stranger might have been able to fool Karolina, but Sieghard could recognise a fake Tilean accent when he heard one. "My name is-a Mario, and I am wondering if you have seen my cousin. She goes missing on the road near here." Pulling a crumpled piece of paper from under his jerkin, he showed it to the villager. "Her name is Gina. Have-a you seen her? Her father, he is-a verra worried, offers the big reward."

Looking at the paper for a little while, the local man mumbled something and shook his head. The stranger pressed the piece of paper into his hand.

"I leave it with you, to show your friends,  si?  Any of them have-a seen her, you tell them to talk to Mario." He patted him on the shoulder. "Thank you, my friend."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  
 Gina? He's after the maid?  He'd not have much luck looking for her in Painford... the girl was long gone.

Still better to keep Leni hidden. She might not be the one the bounty hunter was looking for, but he could still know that Irene was after her as well. Taking note of the man "Mario" talked to, Sieghard made himself a bit more comfortable and went back to his drink.

 
 Spoiler 
Sieghard will give it another half hour or so and see if the bounty hunter talks to anyone else. Unless he leaves first, Sieghard will then get up and go find the (first) man he talked to. He wants to make sure the drawing on the paper matches Gina and that it's not some weird coincidence that he used the same name.
 
LCP
 Painford, 19th Sigmarzeit 

‘Mario’ hung around a while more in the hostel, drawing a few more passing villagers into his conversation and showing them the piece of paper. No-one seemed to have answers that interested him, but he made sure to tell each of them about the reward all the same.

At last, he picked up his pack and headed out, leaving Gavril a handful of copper for a space to sleep later that night. Heading over to the men the stranger had been talking to, Sieghard asked to see the paper he had been showing them.

It was a cheap woodcut print, of the kind that an artisan in Rockshadow could probably knock out two or three of in a day. It matched the broad strokes of Gina’s appearance on the day she’d ‘disappeared’ - dark hair, fine clothes - but wasn’t nearly so good a likeness that you might recognise her immediately from the picture. Sieghard suspected that neither the artist nor the person who had commissioned the piece had met Gina in person.
rax
 16th Sigmarzeit - Morr's Seat 

Bardhyl acknowledged his people's response with an approving nod.  "Then it's decided - thank you all." 
 "One thing before we go back - we'll fill in Abbie, Max, and the others when we meet up, but no one else hears about this until I say otherwise, clear?" 
 17th Sigmarzeit - Morr's Seat 
 "With great difficulty, I imagine,"  Bardhyl answered with a harsh laugh,  "but I  have  to believe we can do it, Neza. If not, we should all just pack up and leave the Reaches and never look back." 
 "In any case, the Tilean's a liar. The Jackal may not be dead for real, but the halfling and the fire witch I came here with?  They're  the ones that struck down the Jackal in Nath. So you see, he  can  be hurt, and if the people of the past could bind the Jackal into his tomb with Morr's help, then I don't doubt there's a way to do it again. I've learned things in the past few weeks that shed new light on our old stories - light that makes me both more fearful and more hopeful than ever before." 
 18th Sigmarzeit - Morr's Seat 
 "I could never have that on my conscience, old friend,"  Bardhyl laughed.

 "As for this fellow Carraciolo, I hear he's a fine soldier - the kind that's good at obeying orders. I'll be leaving Morr's Seat tomorrow to meet up with some of my people. If I happen to pass through Savonne, I'll make sure to ask His Princeliness what he needs all our iron for!"  he joked.

 19th Sigmarzeit 
 Morr's Seat 
 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl and Wadim 
 "Can't very well start a war without scouting out the enemy first,"  Bardhyl answered with a grim smile.  "I won't be long, but I have some more members of my crew to pick up before I come back. Might as well take the time to sound out Ludo and his friends while I'm at it, so I imagine I'll be detouring through wherever they're headed, at least." 
 OOC:  I don't recall right now if I had Bardhyl send instructions for Max and Abbie to meet up with the gang at their hideout or not - I might have intended for them to meet up in Savonne, in which case Bardhyl will need to go there as well.
 
LCP
 16th Sigmarzeit - Morr's Seat 

  "One thing before we go back - we'll fill in Abbie, Max, and the others when we meet up, but no one else hears about this until I say otherwise, clear?"  

The outlaws nodded their agreement. Bardhyl knew from experience that they would have no trouble keeping their mouths shut when it mattered.

 

 17th Sigmarzeit - Morr's Seat 

  "With great difficulty, I imagine,"  Bardhyl answered with a harsh laugh,  "but I have to believe we can do it, Neza. If not, we should all just pack up and leave the Reaches and never look back."  

"I mean… is that such a mad idea?" said Neza. "To pack up and leave all the war and hardship behind. I know we've been through hardship before, but… it feels different, now. Like a fraying rope with just one cord left to snap."


  "So you see, he can be hurt, and if the people of the past could bind the Jackal into his tomb with Morr's help, then I don't doubt there's a way to do it again. I've learned things in the past few weeks that shed new light on our old stories - light that makes me both more fearful and more hopeful than ever before."  

Bardhyl could see from Neza's face that she was far from convinced.

"You did always think you were Clever Mavros come again," she said, only half joking. "I know I can't change your mind, but just… look after yourself, will you? It'd be a shame for Dardan to hear he had his brother back, only to lose you again before he could see you."

 

 18th Sigmarzeit - Morr's Seat 

  "If I happen to pass through Savonne, I'll make sure to ask His Princeliness what he needs all our iron for!"  

"Friends with princes, now," chuckled Valmir, darkly. "See, I always said our boy would go far."

It was all in jest, but Bardhyl could sense the edge of resentment behind Valmir's words. The  vrani  could hold grudges almost as well as dwarfs; no amount of pragmatic calculus could salve these men's wounded pride, or bring back the friends they'd lost. Where it came to the Sforzas, Bardhyl could tell he was going to have to walk a very careful line.

 

 19th Sigmarzeit 
 
 Spoiler: Bardhyl and Wadim 
Wadim patted Bardhyl on the arm. "Good luck to you then, lad," he said. "Let me know what you learn."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
IIRC I think you told those guys to meet you back in Savonne.
 

 


 

 Backertag, 24th Sigmarzeit 
 Elsa, Jarla, Ludo &amp; Bardhyl 

They returned by Hartmut's Fall, then east through the Shepherd's Valley to Pieter's Pass. The land in the valley was noticeably greener than the wilted fields of the Downs, with flocks of woolly sheep being watched by almost equally woolly dogs. The scars of war, visible almost everywhere else in the Reaches, had not reached this far.

Castel d’Irena, or Alvarran, as most of its inhabitants were still calling it, was not enjoying this peace quite so much. The town looked much as Elsa remembered from her last visit - overrun with Carraciolo’s Iron Company, with most of the late Duke’s projects dismantled or abandoned. The chapel to the Lady where Ludo had first made the acquaintance of Brother Odo was boarded up and empty, and the tavern that had been the  Boar and Crown  was now just the  Crown , with a new sign showing the Sforzas on their thrones. Jarla couldn’t decide what was less accurate in their depiction of the  principessa:  her golden blonde hair, or her benevolent smile.

Around the keep, there was very much the air of a garrison town. Camp followers crowded the streets, untroubled by the soldiers passing to and fro. In the old yard where Alvarr had assembled his siege engines, troops of new recruits were being drilled, the unforgiving shouts of the sergeants ringing out over the clatter of wooden spears. Ludo wondered how many of the hungry faces he saw around him - the whores, the hawkers, the raw recruits - were people driven north out of the Downs. For them, Sforza’s army was probably the one place where their new lord’s promises of peace and protection actually meant something.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Breaking here for Jarla to conduct her hunt for appropriate attire, and the other PCs to do whatever they fancy in Castel d'Irena. For Bardhyl and his gang, there's a choice of two inns to stay in: the  Crown , which is the nicer establishment near the market square, or the Gilded Beetle, which is the seedier establishment in the slums. I'll add their prices to the directory in page 1 of the OOC.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

It wasn't the bounty hunter himself that worried Sieghard, it was unlikely the man would find his quarry. The thought he couldn't shake was who had sent him. Was the prince still hunting the missing maid or was this one of Irene's games? Surely either one of them could've afforded a better picture... Or had the hunter had them made himself from the description he was given? He doubted he could find out without tipping him off that there was more to Gina's disappearance than it seemed. The best option would be to send him somewhere he wasn't likely to cause trouble.

He headed out into town, sparing a glance to where Kaspar, no longer in his uniform, was watching "Mario" and then headed to the barracks to find Andre. The lad had fooled Sforza, surely he could handle a bounty hunter.

" Seems there's a stranger in town. Says his sister is that maid the prince was looking for when he came to visit, " he said. " Probably would've been more believable if he said she was his lover. The man is about as Tilean as you are. " He described "Mario" " You know, I think I saw a girl who looked like the one on his paper just last week, " he continued, a mischievous smirk beginning to appear in the corner of his mouth. " If I remember it correctly, she said something about Handrich's Cross. You saw her too, didn't you? "
RossN
 Backertag, 24th Sigmarzeit - Jarla 

Alvarran - as Adelbert had called it in his letters and as Jarla was happy to continue using - was a strange experience. Not all that much smaller than Savonne but with a very different air; no court here at least yet. A lot of doxies however. Plainly business was good and Jarla hoped that Giovanni at least restricted himself to the high quality and healthy ladies of the evening (she had no illusions that her gentleman admirer was celibate when not near her.)

There was a sadness to the place too, or perhaps that was Jarla's imagination. Her brother she knew had been partisan of the late Duke and while Jarla hardly shared those sentiments she found it upsetting to linger to long on the traces of the fallen Alvarr.

Bidding a temporary farewell to her companions she made off for the markets and business of the city in search of something nice to wear. A true noble gown and shoes should she had back in Savonne was beyond her purse but surely there was something tasteful. Or at least wearable. Or at an absolute minimum without lice.

 
 Spoiler: OOC: 
 Gossip:   (1d100)[ 77 ]  vs 64

Jarla will be looking for Best quality clothing (she only has 22 GC so Noble garb is  far  too expensive.)
 
LCP
 Castel d'Irena, 24th Sigmarzeit 
 Jarla, Elsa and Ludo 

An hour or two of searching in the market turned up a gown that Jarla thought might just be acceptable. Dark brown and faded powder blue, it made her look more like some well-to-do farmer's wife than the Sforzas'  prima cameriera  - but she doubted Carraciolo would notice the difference.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
The gown is 3gc, reducible by Haggle.
 


Fully dressed, she headed to the keep, followed by Elsa and Ludo. The Iron Company banner was flying proudly above the gates, and a large detachment of sentries were on guard. Some of the new recruits made to challenge them, but the veterans stepped in and let them pass. Word was sent up, and it wasn't long until the Lord-Lieutenant made his appearance.

"Jarla!" he said, greeting her with outstretched arms. " Mia cara , I didn't know you were coming! I have never been more pleased to be surprised." He checked himself as he saw Elsa and Ludo. "And, uh, Magister Holt, you are here too. What brings you back to Castel d'Irena?"

He turned his attention back to Jarla. "You will dine with me tonight, yes? No excuses."
-Sentinel-
"And, uh, Magister Holt, you are here too. What brings you back to Castel d'Irena?"

 "We had business in the Raven Hills,"  answered Elsa.  "Long story short, the wyvern's dead." 

She tried to sound casual about it, but could not keep a hint of smugness from creeping into her voice. She now wished she had elected to wear the wyvern cloak, but that would have drawn a lot of attention in the city.
rax
 Backertag, 24th Sigmarzeit 

Bardhyl and his gang took their leave of Jarla, Elsa, and Ludo and made their way to the  Gilded Beetle . After paying the innkeep, Bardhyl commandeered a corner of the common room to use as sleeping quarters and ordered a meal and ale for everyone. Other than ordering that at least two of his band must remain (sober!) at the Beetle to watch over their possessions, he then let them have the run of the town.

For his part, Bardhyl made his way into the streets, accompanied by Ortwin, to gather information on the current state of affairs in Alvarran and the Valley. He made a particular point to mix with the Iron Company's camp followers, joining a game of dice here, buying a round of drinks there, and trading gossip from Savonne (now at least a couple of weeks out of date) elsewhere...

 
 Spoiler: @LCP 
Building on what I wrote in the OOC thread, Bardhyl wants to get as much of a handle as he can about the following without pushing his luck:
- What's the current size of Carraciolo's forces in Alvarran?
- Is the Prince currently recruiting? If he is, does anyone know (facts or rumours) why he's expanding his military when the war is over?
- What's the supply situation like? Food clearly isn't as scarce as in the Downs, but are soldiers and people who are part of Sforza's administration getting most of what's available?
- Sforza's men have been claiming two-fifths of the  vrani  livestock and three-fifths of their iron (N.B. Bardhyl isn't going to be that specific when asking questions. I'm thinking more like "I hear the Raven Hills is being taxed to the hilt..."). Is any of that passing through Alvarran? How much is being passed on to Savonne?
- What sort of taxes are being levied in Alvarran and Shepherd's Valley?
- What's the mood in town and in the countryside like?
- Who's benefiting and who's down because of the new regime?
 
LeSwordfish
Ludo raised his hat politely at Carrociolo, and held up one of the massive teeth as demonstration.
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla decided the dress would have to do, though she deigned not to haggle like a pedlar. She was after all a noblewoman, even with her maid and her finery back in Savonne.

When Carraciolo emerged she smiled and kissed him on the cheek.  "My lord Carraciolo,"  she said formally, even if there was a mischevious glint to her eye and a playful smirk on her lips.  "I should be enchanted to dine with you." 

She glanced at Elsa as she revealed the death of the wyvern and at Ludo bearing the tooth and turned back to the lord lieutenant.  "It is true, I was present at the battle and saw the serpent die."  She felt a twinge of shame remembering her utter uselessness at the battle but kept that feeling off her expression.
LCP
 Painford, 19th Sigmarzeit 

 " You know, I think I saw a girl who looked like the one on his paper just last week, " he continued, a mischievous smirk beginning to appear in the corner of his mouth. " If I remember it correctly, she said something about Handrich's Cross. You saw her too, didn't you? " 

Quick on the uptake, Kaspar nodded. Later that evening, Sieghard watched from the window of the manor as the young man intercepted ‘Mario’ on his way back to the hostel. Sieghard couldn’t hear the words that were being exchanged, but Kaspar definitely looked to be playing the part well.

The two men shook hands, and ‘Mario’ headed back inside. Waiting until he had disappeared from sight, Kaspar looked up to the window where Sieghard was watching and gave two thumbs up.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Sorry I didn’t put this up sooner - pure forgetfulness.
 


 

 Painford, 20th Sigmarzeit 

‘Mario’ hung around for one more day, asking his questions, before heading off on the south road. From everyone Sieghard spoke to, it sounded like he intended to head on to Handrich’s Cross.

Discreetly watching him go from the parapet over the south gate, Sieghard noticed that he stopped and waited for a minute or two at the bend where the road disappeared into the woods. Shortly, another man joined him out of the trees - a much bigger man, but dressed in similar fashion, with an empty sack slung over his back. Sieghard was confident he hadn’t seen this man anywhere in the village.

The two of them exchanged a few words - inaudible at this distance - before heading on their way and out of sight.


 

 Castel d’Irena, 24th Sigmarzeit 
 Bardhyl 

 What's the current size of Carraciolo's forces in Alvarran? Is the Prince currently recruiting? 

A tired-looking man in a dirty cook’s apron was happy to give his estimate for the price of a pint of beer.

“The Tileans, there’s about six score of them,” he said. “They’re the ones what got left behind to keep order, after they finished the Duke. But the new lads… by now there’s probably just as many. They don’t stop beating the drum, and there’s plenty of men left from old Alvarr’s army who know how to say yes sir, no sir, and march in line.”


 Does anyone know why he's expanding his military when the war is over? 

The cook shrugged. “Buggered if I know,” he said. “I mean, they’re putting the hours in. Chasing the bandits out of the Karst, keeping those thieves up in the Raven Hills out of the valley. But those Tileans could have done that by themselves. The new boys mostly spend their time learning the lingo, and getting beat black and blue at training.” He sighed. ”But it’s decent money, a bed to sleep in and three square meals a day, so they’re not short on takers. If I was younger I might think about it myself.”


 What's the supply situation like? Are soldiers and people who are part of Sforza's administration getting most of what's available? 

Black markets followed garrisons like fleas followed dogs, and Castel d'Irena's black market wasn't hard to find. A thin man with a thinner moustache was selling salted meat and bottles of wine out of the back of a two-wheeled cart, and was happy to chat for as long as Bardhyl gave the appearance of being interested in his wares.

"Oh, it's busy, sir, very busy," he said. "Lot of goods coming through, but not much stopping. Anything you can eat, chances are it's bound south for Savonne. The Tileans take 'alf of it in taxes and buy up 'alf the rest." He chuckled. "Farmers aren't 'appy about it, I can tell you that. But good business for traders on the north road, and folks like me. Well… mostly."

He glanced up and down the street, alert to any eavesdroppers - or other potential customers. "Couple months back, they nailed up some letter from 'is 'ighness about the price of grain. Said it's the law now, that you can't sell it for more than what the crown wants to pay. First couple of poor sods who got caught, straight in the stocks, with a sign round their necks saying 'profiteer'. Only in Tilean, so more like 'profiterole' or something." He shook his head sadly. "It's hard treatment for someone just trying to turn an honest deal. One of them, I heard his jaw got broke."


 I hear the Raven Hills are being taxed to the hilt… is any of that passing through Alvarran? How much is being passed on to Savonne? 

"Serves 'em right, if you ask me," said the black marketeer. "What've they got to tax that they didn't rob off honest people in the first place?"

He turned back to his cart, rummaging for something else to show his potential customers. “Far as I’m aware, everything the tax collectors take is coming back through ‘ere. Some of it goes on south, some of it don’t go further than the gate.” With a clinking of glass, he produced a bottle of something a bit stronger than wine. “‘Ere we go. What do you think of that?”

When Bardhyl brought the subject back to the Raven Hills tithe, he seemed disappointed, and shrugged. “All I know is, his Lord-Lieutenancy ain’t happy with Alvarr’s hand-me-downs. Lot of this stuff coming in is supposed to be to kit the new recruits out proper, Tilean style. You get a bag of spearheads out of the hills and some good straight timber out of the Elmwood, you can make a bunch of whacking great pikes.” He sniffed. “Now look, are you wanting to buy something or not?”


 What sort of taxes are being levied in Alvarran and Shepherd's Valley? What's the mood in town and in the countryside like? 

A grizzled old shepherdess in the market gave Bardhyl the view from the country. “It’s very hard, sir, very hard. Meat, milk and cheese, they takes such a share that you can’t believe. It’s only wool what makes it worth still comin’ into town.” She thumped a stack of fleeces that had been laid over the back of a very long-suffering mule. “The wheat and barley farmers, they’ve got it even worse. We makes our own food in the valley, more’n enough, but can we keep it? No.”

A seamstress with a strong Breton accent gave the view from the town. “This place, it is the shadow of what it was,” she said. “Duke Alvarr, he was a hard man, but he had  l’honneur ,  tu sais ? These Tileans, they stabbed old Dolokhov and his men in the back, right in front of the chapel. They still can’t wash the blood out of the flagstones.” Needle in hand, she attacked the pair of breeches she was mending with more vigour than was necessary. “Now the streets are crawling with their soldiers, but do they care what happens here? They don’t build, they just take.”


 Who's benefiting and who's down because of the new regime? 

Drinking on a corner near the Duke’s Yard, a band of off-duty Iron Company recruits had a more positive view of Carraciolo’s rulership.

“It’s a better gig than Alvarr’s army, this,” said one of them. Bardhyl could tell by the look of him that he was not some fresh-faced lad off a farm, but a veteran of the wrong side of the war. “Better pay, better gear, and they train you to actually fight, not just hold the other feller down while they fill you both full of arrows.” Bardhyl could hear the bitterness in his voice. “Sure, they don’t go on about honour and duty and all that, but that’s just being honest, ain’t it?  Sangey ey orrow , that’s the motto. Blood for gold.”

In the common hall of the  Crown , the opposing view was strongly represented. A trio of respectable-looking merchants were happy to complain.

“They’re driving us out of business,” said the most talkative of the three. “Between his Highness’ taxes, and his Highness’ soldiers telling us how much we can sell our goods for, it’d be bad enough. But then you have these outsiders coming in on the north road, and do the rules apply to them? Of course they don’t.” He shook his head. “Of course, we’ve written to the Lord-Lieutenant, but does he understand? The man’s a brute.”

“Much more lieutenant than lord, if you ask me,” said one of the others, to worthy chuckles from his friends. “The Prince gives him his marching orders, and he marches merrily along without a stray thought in his head.”


 Elsa, Ludo &amp; Jarla 

Elsa saw Carraciolo’s expression darken immediately when she mentioned the Raven Hills. “‘Business’?” he asked. “I hope,  signora,  you have not forgotten our last conversation…”

He trailed off as he saw the teeth Ludo was holding up. Taking one, he held it up to his face - it was almost the length of his hand.

“ Sacra Myrmidia, ” he said, “you are quite the monster hunters, eh? A shame you didn’t bring back its head. I’m sure the Prince would have liked the trophy.”

Handing the tooth back to Ludo, he offered his arm to Jarla. “Anyway, the dinner!  Signor  Stubbs,  signora  Holt, if you wish to stay here also, we can make arrangements - but I’m afraid this is a private engagement between  signora  Schreiber and myself.”


 Jarla 

Dinner with Giovanni Carraciolo was quite different from dinner with the Sforzas. There was still the same needless excess - if anything, the lord-lieutenant seemed  more  eager to demonstrate he could lay out a sumptuous spread - but he only had the taste of a common soldier. With no-one to tell him not to, he didn't hesitate to serve peasant dishes that would have drawn laughing sneers among the gentry of Nuln. The wine was good, but that appeared to be because he was running down what remained of Alvarr's cellar - when Jarla asked him what they were drinking, he shrugged and said "red".

Though he gave every appearance of enjoying his food, the whole time her host was consuming Jarla with his eyes. His conversation was similarly direct.

"How long are you visiting for, this time?" he asked. "You know you would be very welcome to stay. Irene - her Highness doesn't need more lackeys fawning over her. And this place, it needs refinement, you know? A woman's touch." He took a hefty bite of roast lamb, still speaking while he chewed. "We could make it happen. Just write to Savonne and tell them you're staying."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I’m going to timesplit to make sure the others have stuff to engage with too, but please do continue this conversation. As well as answering his questions, this is a great opportunity to press him for anything  you  want.
 

  Later that night  
 Elsa 

Elsa couldn’t sleep. She tossed and turned until the sheets were damp with sweat, slipping in and out of dreams dominated by the image of the Red Pyramid. The cold touch of  Shyish  shivered down her spine, and the dry whispers of the dead rustled in her ears.

At last, forced back into wakefulness, she rose and went to the window. A horribly familiar light was falling through the glass - out beyond the rooftops of the town, Morrslieb was rising over the jagged rocks of the Karst, its leering face stained the colour of blood.

Drawn by the unnatural light, a moth flew into a strand of spider’s web in the corner of the window, its sudden struggles only serving to trap it further. Darting out from the other corner, the spider raced across the latticed window-panes to sink its fangs into its prey.

 Ludo 

Ludo wasn't sleeping well either. When he'd first set out on his adventures, Alvarran had seemed exciting and far away. It felt strange being back here now, with the town being in so many ways the ghost of the place he'd first come to. As he dozed on the edge of sleep, other ghosts kept him company.

 These folks don't have it so bad, I reckon,  said Ortwin.  Painford'd probably be looking similar if the Duke's lads had won. It's just the way of the world, ain't it? 
 Princes come and princes go,  said Viktor, his face half hidden in shadow.  Makes you wonder why they're worth killing for. 

Adelbert said nothing, but his accusatory silence spoke volumes.

A narrow shaft of blood-tinged moonlight stole across his face, and Ludo opened his eyes. The ghosts were gone - except for one.

 The Reaches are cursed, Herr Stubbs.  Klammenberg’s voice whispered in Ludo’s ear as he got up and went over to the window. Opening the shutters, he saw Morrslieb’s bloodstained face shining down.  Cursed ever since they imprisoned the Hound of Nagash, and stole what was rightfully his. If he has to kill every last soul from here to Putbad to get his hands on that book, what's a year, or ten, or twenty? He's got time… 
 Jarla 

Jarla didn’t need bad dreams to keep her awake - she had enough thoughts going round in her head to do that. For the first time in weeks, she was sleeping in a bed, a feather bed - and although Giovanni was snoring beside her,  she was alone in her own head.  Life without the daemon lurking in the back of her mind was better than she had imagined.

Of course, Tshula had left her a memento. Giovanni had swallowed her explanation for the scar on her hand without the least doubt, but now it was pulsing with a dull ache, as if to remind her of its presence. As the first shafts of crimson moonlight crept through the window, it grew stronger, more insistent.

Gently untangling herself from Giovanni’s arms, she got out of bed and walked quietly over to the window, to see the bloody face of Morrslieb grinning back. With the memory of what she had seen during Wadim’s exorcism still fresh, the dark moon held no horror for her - but where its unnatural light fell on the scar, it soothed it like balm. Holding her arm out into the moonlight, she marvelled at how quickly and completely the pain disappeared.

From the bed behind her, she heard some muffled mutters and grunts. Carraciolo was twitching in his sleep, as if in the grip of a bad dream. For a man of his profession, Jarla had no doubt what his nightmares were about. Even his slurred mumbling sounded like orders barked across a battlefield.

 Bardhyl 

Bardhyl woke from nightmares of the day Wadim cast him out, to the sound of a disturbance in the hall of the  Gilded Beetle  where he was sleeping.

It took him a moment to take in what was going on. A newly-woken Grim was struggling with a thin, bearded man in the middle of the floor. It looked like the innkeeper had already tried to intervene, and was now lying on the rush-strewn floor, clutching an injured head. Strange, red light was streaming through the cracks in the shutters.

“Let me go!” squawked the stranger, struggling in vain against Grim’s thick arms. He was trying to reach the bar - or specifically, the strange old trophy of the golden beetle that hung behind it. “Let me GO! I have to! I have to do it!” He was clearly not in his right mind - his eyes flashed wide, and spittle was gathering in the corners of his mouth. “He sends his scourge upon us! We have to smash it, smash it and be spared!”

“Chief!” grunted Grim, struggling to keep his hold despite the fact that the man looked about half his weight. “Help!”

 Sieghard 

The red moon shone down on Painford too. Thinking quickly on their last experience, the villagers made sure to restrain Kirsten indoors, where the fearful light couldn’t reach her.

“It’s horrible, isn’t it?” said Leni, her face pressed to the glass of one of Sieghard’s windows. “We saw the same moon in Mirino, about a month ago. What do you think it means?”

Drawing back, she absent-mindedly chewed her thumbnail. “I do hope Ludo gets back soon,” she muttered to herself. “I do hope he’s safe…”
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 “‘Business’?” he asked. “I hope,  signora,  you have not forgotten our last conversation…” 
 

Elsa tried to recall it, but came up empty. All she could remember was her stern talking-to from Prince Sforza after she got one of his Iron Company soldiers killed in the wolf hunt—but this time, none of Sforza's precious veterans had even risked his life dealing with the wyvern.

So she just shrugged.  "I don't always have time to go ask permission." 

Realizing that came across as a bit brusque, she added in a lighter tone:  "I would've sure liked to bring back the wyvern's head, but it was quite large and we didn't have a cart. I can tell you where it is, if you want to send for it." 

 “Anyway, the dinner!  Signor  Stubbs,  signora  Holt, if you wish to stay here also, we can make arrangements - but I’m afraid this is a private engagement between  signora  Schreiber and myself.” 

Elsa chuckled.  "I wouldn't dream to intrude, Giovanni." 

She switched to Tilean, a cheeky gleam in her eyes.  &lt;I think your lady will be wanting to wash off all that dust from the hills. You do have a bathtub, yes?&gt; 
 
 Spoiler 
Looking at Jarla's character sheet, I'm surprised to see she doesn't speak Tilean yet. As  prima cameriera , she really should learn her employer's language.
 


 

 At night 

Elsa tore her gaze away from the struggling moth and cast it towards the Pale Waste, the location of whatever dark sorcery was turning Morrslieb red. She felt so very tired... an exhaustion of the soul rather than the body. What power did she have against a disembodied force of evil that could turn fertile land to desert? How could she and her friends succeed where ancient nations had failed? Swords and spells could only kill Nahorek's foot-soldiers, and he could always make more.

 Maybe I should try to rescue that poor moth. Do whatever good deeds are  actually  within my power. 

She ultimately decided against it. Spiders needed to eat. They were not unnatural constructs of dark magic, like Nahorek. Their hearts bore no evil or cruelty. Their hunger was a mundane one, unlike a vampire's monstrous bloodthirst or a conqueror's ambitions. Elsa had no right to stand between a spider and its meal.

She padded to Tatiana's bedroom and very gently knocked on the door. She doubted her apprentice could sleep either, so at least they could keep each other company.
LeSwordfish
The next window across from Elsa, Ludo shivered under the moonlight. The reaches never looked so cursed, so utterly and completely cursed, cursed to the bedrock and the bones, as when the moon was red like this. He wondered what kind of sickly cast it was giving to the skin of a dead goblin, dragging a prisoner across the desert.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard had kept Leni under guard until he was sure the bounty hunter has gone. He had chosen women from the company specifically because he thought it might make her more comfortable. Even so, he could tell that her guard had made her more nervous.

" He's safe, " Sieghard reassured. " Your brother is resourceful and he's smart enough to know when he can can handle a problem and when to avoid it. "

He looked up at the sky. " It's an omen when the sky's like this, " he continued. " Trouble coming... But what sort or for who, there's no way to say for certain. " He could guess though.
rax
 Casel d’Irena, 24th Sigmarzeit 
 The Black Marketeer 
Bardhyl chuckled along when the black marketeer aired his opinion on the vrani.

 "You seem to have gotten your hands on some good stuff, even with the Prince's new regulations in place,"  he noted with a nod to the meat and wine the man was selling.  "I could see my way clear to taking a few bottles of wine off your hands if the price is right. I've got to ask though - aren't you worried about ending up in the stocks yourself?" 
 The Shepherdess 
Bardhyl made sympathetics noises in response to the shepherdess' story.  "I hear it's much the same everywhere. I just came through the Raven Hills and the Tileans are cleaning the place out and sending everything south. And here I find that the best way to get three square meals a day is to join his army. It's almost like all this new Prince cares about is feeding and equipping his soldiers!" 
 The Merchants 
 "You mean there are merchants who  don't  have to pay the same taxes as you?"  Bardhyl asked, his tone wholly sympathetic.  "Where are  they  from and what are they selling?" 
 Night at the Gilded Beetle 
Bardhyl staggered to his feet and went to help Grim hold the man down.

 "Easy there, friend!  Who  says you've got to smash the beetle? Tell me and maybe I'll let you do it,"  he tried cajoling some information out of the man.


 OOC:  I should probably know this, but what significance would Bardhyl attribute to Morrslieb being red instead of green? Has it happened often enough before that there would be a body of  vrani  lore about it?
RossN
 Jarla, Alvarran , 24th Sigmarzeit 

For Jarla it was a tremendous relief simply to be off the road and to momentarily forget everything she had been through. Oh Giovanni might have his coarse side but truthfully she'd maybe rather that than Irene's mood swings and chilliness.

Dinner was very pleasant and as she sat back in her chair and ate her lamb and drank her red Jarla seriously considered staying. Gods it was tempting - no more Irene, no more book beneath her feet. Maybe she should. After all what was there back in Savonne beyond misery and grinding frustration? She was fairly certain her career at court was going nowhere given Irene wasn't even on speaking terms with her. Here with Giovanni she could make a fresh start, build a court of followers of her own. Hell she could send Ida and maybe even Jacques.

The more she thought on it the harder it became to think of any reason to go back to Savonne - well at least beyond the very real possibility that Irene would forbid it out of spite of course. She took a long draught of 'red' at the thought, trying to build up her courage.

 "You do make a very tempting offer Giovanni,"  she replied and smiled playfully across the table.  "But I'll have to have a day or two to think about it." 

 


Over the course of the evening she'd overindulged on Alvarr's cellar (Irene's influence no doubt) but it was her hand that kept her up - and that hideous moon.

If anything the way the moonlight took away the pain was far more frightening that the pain itself. Hurriedly she donned a glove and returned to bed. That was another reason to steer clear of Savonne; while she might be able to come up with an excuse for the royals if any of the  clergy  saw her hand she'd been on the stake sooner than you could say 'well done'. Once in Nuln she'd seen a witch go to the pyre and the screams had been hideous - but the smell had been worse and lasted far longer.

She thought about the witch as she lay awake in bed long into the night.
LCP
 Castel d'Irena, 24th Sigmarzeit 
 Jarla 

"Of course!" said Carraciolo,  with the grin of a man who thought he heard a 'yes'. "Take as long as you need."

 Bardhyl 
 The Black Marketeer 

  "I've got to ask though - aren't you worried about ending up in the stocks yourself?"  

"Oh, don't worry about me, mate," said the man. "I'm square with them as I need to be square with." He thumped the side of his cart. "Besides, not selling bread, am I? No laws about this stuff. Not yet, anyway."

 The Merchants 

  "You mean there are merchants who  don't  have to pay the same taxes as you?"  Bardhyl asked, his tone wholly sympathetic.  "Where are  they  from and what are they selling?"  

"Grain," said one of the merchants. "Traders from up north wouldn't come here to sell their goods at the crown's prices, so the crown goes to them to buy it at theirs." He leaned over the table, conspiratorially lowering his voice. "Sforza's Arabyan sends his men through here with letters of credit, they make the 'sale' over the border, and then the wagons roll up here to change their paper for gold."

"Normal times, the grain trade'd be running the other way," said one of his friends. "That's what you get with these warrior kings. Burn the fields and then wonder where all the crops have gone!"

A sagacious murmur of agreement ran around the table, as if these worthy men of business could obviously run the Reaches much better if given the reins. Bardhyl's own recollection was that the last time the northern merchant guilds had tried their hands at politics, they'd brought in such responsible rulers as Duke Wulf and old mad Evatt - but that didn't seem polite to mention.

 Night at the Gilded Beetle 

  "Easy there, friend!  Who  says you've got to smash the beetle? Tell me and maybe I'll let you do it,"  he tried cajoling some information out of the man. 

"The King in the West!" raved the man, still struggling violently against their grip. "The king who was, and again shall be!"

With a groan, the innkeeper started to pick himself up off the floor. The wild-eyed man redoubled his struggles.

"The liars' idols must be cast down!" he yelled, his hoarse voice breaking with the effort. "Before his curse falls upon us! Can't you hear them?   Can't you hear them coming? 

Bardhyl listened, but all he could hear were the bleary grumbles of the last disgruntled sleepers being woken from their sleep.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
This guy has no chance of overpowering Bardhyl or Grim, but could do himself an injury - if you want to subdue him without rendering him unconscious, you'll need to pass a Strength test.

As far as the red moon goes, as far as Bardhyl knows it's a new phenomenon in the Reaches - the only precedent is the time it happened about a month ago IC.
 
-Sentinel-
As Elsa had expected, Tatiana could not sleep either.

 "Mind if I come in?" 

She let herself in without waiting for an answer and walked over to the window to gaze at Morrslieb.

 "I'll be honest with you, Tattie... I'm in over my head. What we're facing here? An evil so great it turns the moon red? I don't know how we deal with this. But it feels like we're the  only  people trying to do a damn thing about it." 
rax
 Castel d'Irena, 24th Sigmarzeit 
 The Merchants 
 "I admit that I'm not well versed in the intricacies of trade, but that sounds like a losing proposition to me. The Prince has fixed a price for grain within the Reaches, so no one here is making a  healthy  profit when they sell, but he  also  buys grain from abroad for a much higher price? Surely he must run out of gold to pay that price sooner or later? Is that not so, good sirs?" 
 Night at the Gilded Beetle 
 "Hear who, friend? All I hear is snores.  Who's  coming?"  Bardhyl tried again.
LCP
 Bardhyl, 24th Sigmarzeit 
 The Merchants 

"Where old Sforza gets his money," rasped the third merchant. "Isn't that what we'd all like to know."

There was some laughter, and more murmurs of agreement. "Deal with a daemon?" suggested one. "If that's what you call the wife," said another.

 The Gilded Beetle 

"His judgement!" cried the man. His voice became strangled as Grim finally managed to wrestle him into a chokehold. "He… sends… his… scourge… he… sends… his…"

Trailing off, he went limp. Muttering darkly, the innkeeper pulled himself to his feet, wiping the blood from his forehead.

"Bloody lunatic," he said. He pointed his finger at the unconscious man. "That's what I get for serving the likes of you, is it? Well, you're barred, d'you hear? Barred!"

Still muttering and cursing, he went looking for a damp cloth to sponge his head. "Chuck him out in the alley," he said, "and bolt the door!"


 

 Bezahltag, 25th Sigmarzeit 
 Castel d’Irena - Jarla 

When morning came, Jarla and Carraciolo were woken by a loud knocking on the door. Muttering a bleary Tilean curse, Carraciolo draped himself in a sheet and got up to answer it.

One of the Iron Company men was standing outside. The two of them had a short, business-like conversation in Tilean, after which the soldier turned sharply and headed off. Turning back, Carraciolo began to quickly get dressed.

"Duty calls," he explained to Jarla. "Seems we had some troublemakers last night. Vandals in the old chapel." He sighed as he buckled on his sword belt. "I don't mind all this," he said, gesturing to their comfortable surroundings, "but playing the night watchman for these people… sometimes I miss being on the campaign."

He stopped in the doorway to look back at Jarla. "Anything you need, you can tell the people here I ordered," he said. "I will be back soon."

With that, he was gone.

 Painford 

Bezahltag broke to a fresh breeze from the south, and the sound of something softly bumping against Sieghard's window. Waking, Sieghard walked over and drew back the curtains.

Silhouetted against the panes were the dark outlines of three or four large insects, crawling aimlessly over the glass. Opening the window, Sieghard stuck his head out to get a better look. They were grasshoppers, mottled tan and black, with thick bodies and long, thorny legs.

One unfurled diaphanous wings and suddenly buzzed inside through the open window, alighting on one of the posts of Sieghard's bed and taking an exploratory nibble of the varnished wood. It took two more leaps before Sieghard could catch it. To his eyes, the mottled patterning on its thorax looked uncomfortably like a skull.

Outside, Painford was practically crawling with them. Karolina was out beating at her vegetable garden with a broom, cursing the winged shapes as they hopped this way and that. "You little beasts!" she yelled. "Get off my beans!"
rax
 24th Sigmarzeit 
 The Merchants 
 "Now, now, gentlemen, I hear Her Highness is the light of the Reaches!"  Bardhyl chuckled along with a sly smile.

 "If you'll allow me to take up more of your valuable time, I do have a few more questions. You said that normally the grain trade would be going in the other direction - is there anything else from Shepherd's Valley being exported that's still profitable, and does the Prince tax that also? And just out of curiosity, you said that the Prince's taxes could drive you out of business. What will you do if he continues on his current path?" 
 The Gilded Beetle 
 "Will do, friend!"  Bardhyl answered the innkeeper.  "I'm just wondering though, what do you mean by 'the likes of him'? Something special about this fellow?" 

While waiting for the innkeeper to reply, Bardhyl glanced surreptitiously at the golden beetle hanging behind the bar, using his witch sight to try and discern if there was anything unusual about it.

 
 Spoiler: Magical Sense 
 (1d100)[ 94 ]  vs. WP 59
 

 Edit:  Added an extra question based on my latest thinking in the OOC thread.
RossN
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bezahltag, 25th Sigmarzeit 
  Castel d’Irena  Alvarran - Jarla 

When morning came, Jarla and Carraciolo were woken by a loud knocking on the door. Muttering a bleary Tilean curse, Carraciolo draped himself in a sheet and got up to answer it.

One of the Iron Company men was standing outside. The two of them had a short, business-like conversation in Tilean, after which the soldier turned sharply and headed off. Turning back, Carraciolo began to quickly get dressed.

"Duty calls," he explained to Jarla. "Seems we had some troublemakers last night. Vandals in the old chapel." He sighed as he buckled on his sword belt. "I don't mind all this," he said, gesturing to their comfortable surroundings, "but playing the night watchman for these people… sometimes I miss being on the campaign."

He stopped in the doorway to look back at Jarla. "Anything you need, you can tell the people here I ordered," he said. "I will be back soon."

With that, he was gone. 
 

  "Wait!"   Jarla called.   "I'm coming with you!"  

She rolled out of bed and donned her dress and shoes at speed - sometimes being a former actress helped a lot - and was racing after Carraciolo.

The 'old chapel' had definitely piqued her interest, especially as she had been thinking a lot about the gods lately. Frankly she also wanted to see Carraciolo in action, especially if she did end up re-locating here. Also however welcome a day in bed might have to recover from her recent traumas that had never been Jarla's style.
-Sentinel-
Jarla almost slammed into Elsa as the wizard walked out of her room.

 "Whoa, slow down. What's the hurry?"  said Elsa grumpily. It was obvious she had not slept much.
LeSwordfish
Ludo was in the next doorway down. He looked similarly sleep-deprived, but was already dressed for travel, and had in fact been waiting for a chance to head down and find a caravan that would be taking him to Savonne.

 "Something wrong?" 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard cursed, then crushed the thing. He then shut the window to keep more of the pests from getting inside. Dressing quickly, he headed out into town to get a better idea of how bad things were.
LCP
 Bardhyl, 24th Sigmarzeit 
 The Merchants 

"Ah," said the first merchant. "Well, of course, um, well, I suppose that's the question, isn't it?"

What followed was a kind of word salad about market prices, portage costs, excise rates and the rest that left Bardhyl fairly convinced that either these men had already found ways around Sforza's restrictions that they preferred not to discuss, or that the grain edict wasn't quite as ruinous to their trade as they were making out. Only one of them came out with a straight answer - the third merchant with the raspy voice.

"I'm heading north," he said, plainly. "Once this season's done. Reckon I'll head up to Morrschatten. Or Pfederkrieg, maybe. Heard there's good business to be done that way."

Some of his friends protested, but he steadfastly shook his head. "I've seen enough," he said. "There's hard times and then there's  hard  times, you know? I've got no family to keep me here." With a shrug, he leaned back in his seat. "Maybe in a year or two I'll be back, if the rains come again."

 The Gilded Beetle 

The innkeeper looked at Bardhyl as if he was mad. "The type what smashes me over the head, that's what I mean!" he said, taking his hand away from his temple to hold up his bloody fingers. "Go on, out with him! And turn out his pockets, too. He might have a few coppers on him to pay for the damages."

Bardhyl couldn't see any damage except to the innkeeper's face, but the unconscious man did indeed have a few pfennigs in his pocket.

 Witchsight:   
 Spoiler 
The beetle over the bar didn't look particularly special to Bardhyl. It looked old, and in a peculiar style - not like the kinds of art and statuary he knew. No air of enchantment hung over it, though, and it was so chipped and tarnished that he doubted it would fetch much even from a collector.
 


 

 25th Sigmarzeit 
 Castel d'Irena - Not Bardhyl 

Carraciolo hesitated at Jarla's request. "Are you sure?" he asked. "It doesn't seem - I mean, it might not be pleasant. For a lady." Unlike the Sforzas, he seemed to take her aristocratic bona fides for granted.

The chapel square was mostly deserted. An Iron Company man stood guard at the doorway of the chapel itself: he and Carraciolo exchanged a few quiet words before heading inside.

The interior of the Chapel of Our Lady Victorious was dark and dusty from disuse. Footprints in the dust showed the signs of recent trespass. The lower parts of the stained-glass windows had been smashed, and their shards arranged into a pattern on the floor. The lighter colours were arranged into a disk, like the leering face of last night's moon. Silhouetted against it, the darker shards had been arranged into the shape of a jackal's head. Ludo noticed some spots of blood on the dusty floor, and on the edges of some of the shards of broken glass- the vandal (or vandals) responsible had clearly cut their hands in the process of making this artwork of their own.

&lt; What are we looking after this old place for, anyway? &gt; said one of the soldiers who had come down from the keep with Carraciolo. &lt;  Nobody's using it. &gt;

&lt; It doesn't matter who's using it, &gt; said Carraciolo. &lt; This is Jackal-worship and sedition. Where are the men responsible? &gt;

&lt; We're still looking, &gt; said the soldier who had been on the door. &lt; From the sound of things, they broke in in the dead of night. No-one saw them clearly. &gt;

&lt; The dark moon brings all the lunatics out to play, &gt; muttered Carraciolo. &lt; Keep searching! &gt;

 Painford 

Outside, Sieghard almost ran smack into one of the Thorns - Keterlyn, a young woman currently on watch duty. She was out of breath, having run from her post in Fassbender’s tower. “Sir! Commander Sieghard, sir, you should - you should see…”

Following her back up the winding steps of the tower, Sieghard saw what had taken her words away. A dark cloud was spreading across the southern sky, tendrils of it reaching north like outstretched fingers. For a moment, Sieghard thought it might be smoke from a forest fire - but there was no crackle of flames, no sharp scent of woodsmoke on the air. Instead, he could hear an altogether less familiar sound: the rustling drone of thousands upon thousands of beating wings, growing louder by the minute.

 He will cast the shadow of his hand over the lands you have stolen.  Mala’s words came back to him unbidden.  He will send a blight upon your cattle, and locusts upon the wind… 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 &lt; The dark moon brings all the lunatics out to play, &gt; muttered Carraciolo. &lt; Keep searching! &gt; 
 

Elsa, who had tagged along to the chapel, chimed in:   &lt;They'll have bandaged hands, I bet. Recent bandages. With their cuts still not scabbed over.&gt;  

She circled the Nahorek cultists' handiwork. Were they driven to do this by the red moon, or had this homage to the Jackal somehow caused whatever dark spell turned the moon red? She opened her third eye to see if there was any residual magic lingering around the shards of glass.


 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Magical Sense 93:  (d100)[ 60 ] 
 Fortune:  (d100)[ 28 ]  
 
rax
 Bardhyl, 24th Sigmarzeit 
 The Merchants 
 "You think the drought's going to be a long one, then?"  Bardhyl asked the merchant with the raspy voice.

 The Gilded Beetle 

Bardhyl did as he and Grim were bid, tossing the man into the alley and barring the door behind him. Back in the common room, he tossed the few pfennigs he had found to the innkeeper.

 "That fellow sure didn't like your beetle. Called it a 'liar's idol'? Don't recognize the workmanship myself - do you know who made it and where it came from?"  he asked.
LCP
 24th Sigmarzeit - Bardhyl 
 The Merchants 

The man shrugged. "That's for the gods to decide," he said. "But I haven't seen any sign of the rains yet."

 The Gilded Beetle 

"It was my grandfather's," said the innkeeper, catching the coppers and deftly squirreling them away under his apron. "Don't know where he found it, but he said it was his lucky charm."


 

 25th Sigmarzeit - Elsa, Ludo &amp; Jarla 

Elsa could sense no trace of any spellcraft lingering over the mosaic of broken glass. Within the stone walls of the chapel, the Winds were quiet - the strongest she could sense were  Ulgu , coiling in the shadowy corners, and  Shyish , clinging to the tomb of Sir Leodoric. That, at least, didn't seem to have been disturbed.

"We should invite old Barbaro up here," said Carraciolo to Jarla, looking around at the empty space. "Get this place to be a working temple. Then maybe people would be less tempted to smash it up."

He turned back to his men. &lt; Marzio, get this mess cleared away. I want the broken windows boarded up, and a guard on the door. Ignazio, take seven men and go door to door to find the vandals. Don't mention the picture, &gt; - he gestured to the floor - &lt; only that they broke the windows. Look for anyone with bandaged hands. &gt;

The Iron Company men acknowledged their tasks and set to.
rax
 24th Sigmarzeit 
 The Merchants 
 "I see - wise words, my friend, wise words. Well, thank you for your time, gentlemen. Good day and may the gods smile on your endeavours,"  Bardhyl thanked the merchants and left them to their drinks.

 The Gilded Beetle 
 "Lucky enough that someone wants it smashed!"  Bardhyl chuckled.  "Good night, friend. Let's hope there are no more disturbances!" 
 25th Sigmarzeit 

The next morning, Bardhyl ordered breakfast for his gang. As they ate their fill, he instructed them to gather up their gear and mounts and make ready to leave for Savonne.


 OOC:  Keeping the detail sparse here in case Ludo, Elsa or Jarla want to take the opportunity to continue travelling with Bardhyl. I don't think he'd go knocking on the castle gate to see if they're in and ready to move on, but anyone wants to run into Bardhyl by coincidence so they can talk, feel free to make a post about it.
RossN
 Jarla 

Not being able to speak Tilean the yelling and orders and questions in the shrine proved a frustrating experience for Jarla at least until Carraciolo spoke in Reikspiel. At his suggestion she hesitated:  "Wasn't it dedicated to the Bretonnian goddess? By all means get rid of the Jackal scum but I'm not sure it is wise to offend a goddess." 

She knew very little of the Lady but Jarla had a sudden feeling Carraciolo might have suggested the same had this been a shrine of Sigmar. It was not a comfortable thought.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard stared, mouth agape in disbelief at the swarm. How did one even deal with something like...  that . Dead things and daemons he could at least stab, but with this he was entirely out of his element.

With tremendous effort of will, he tore his eyes away from the swarm and shouted down from the tower. " Get a bonfire going!  Now!  And pray to the gods that smoke is enough to keep those things away! "

He couldn't save the outlying farmland. Those things could fly and there wasn't enough time. Maybe he could spare Painford itself the worst of it... Maybe.

 
 Spoiler 
Goal is to fill the air with smoke and hoke these bugs are mundane enough for it to act as a repellent. The actual flames will be kept away from anything likely to catch.

Command roll to coordinate this.
 (1d100)[ 62 ] 
 (1d100)[ 2 ]  reroll

Secondary goal is to get any children and animals inside shelter. If they're more supernatural than mundane, there's no telling how aggressive they could be.
 
LCP
 25th Sigmarzeit 
 Castel d'Irena - Elsa, Ludo &amp; Jarla 

Carraciolo shrugged. "Do you see any Bretonnians using it?" he asked. "An empty temple's just a ruin, no? Might as well put it to some use before it crumbles."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Unless you guys have more big questions at the chapel, I'm ready to move things along for those leaving the city. The only thing I need to know is whether anyone's staying behind, i.e. Jarla.
 

 Painford 

Down below, the Thorns leapt into action at Sieghard's command. Running this way and that, they gathered anything that would burn, heaping it in the village square beside the lead statue of Mayor Drago. The locusts were coming thick and fast now, landing on rooftops and gardens, on peoples' clothes and in their hair. A small child ran wailing from the brook, flailing her arms at the insects crawling over her.

Turning back, Sieghard ran back down the winding tower stair, taking the steps two at a time. By the time he reached the bottom, Hanna had taken charge of the Thorns heaping fuel on the bonfire pile: it was already four feet high, and growing quickly. Some of the villagers had been spurred into action too, running outdoors to cover their garden crops with whatever sheets and blankets they had to hand. Others swatted vainly at the air, or offered loud prayers to Taal and Rhya to spare them from their fury. The rustling roar of insect wings only grew ever louder in reply.

There was a shout from the Thorns as the bonfire took light. At first, the locusts paid it no heed, settling on the larger pieces of firewood even as the kindling crackled. As it heated up, they quickly took wing, acrid woodsmoke billowing up in the southerly breeze. The people standing around it coughed and wiped their eyes, taking a few steps back from the flames - but a lungful of smoke was much better than a face full of bugs, and the locusts did indeed seem to be keeping clear. Huddling close, the Thorns raised their eyes to watch the swarm stream past.

The blue sky had darkened to a strange ochre, the first finger of the dark cloud Sieghard had seen boiling overhead. The smoke was keeping them at a distance of ten or twenty yards to the growing crowd gathered around the fire, but they seemed to have no taste for anything but vegetation anyway. Over the palisade, Sieghard could see the tops of the trees were swaying as if in a strong wind, their branches bent down under the sheer weight of locusts landing on them. The green leaves were disappearing as he watched, thousands of busy jaws gnawing them away.

Seeing the success of the bonfire, some of the villagers were now lighting smaller fires outside their own houses, to much weaker effect. Many others came towards the big fire, bringing with them whatever they thought would burn to add to the heap.

"Gods forgive us," murmured Gavril, "there's  millions  of them!"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
With the fire working well, Sieghard's got an opportunity to take stock and make a longer-term plan. It's clear from what he saw from the tower that the swarm will not pass over quickly - its sheer size means things will probably be like this for hours.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard breathed a sigh of relief - then started coughing from a change in the wind blowing the smoke back towards him.

" Has anything like this happened before? " he asked Gavril

 
 Spoiler 
Plan depends on a few factors... how long can the fire be kept going with whats on hand and how much space is available in buildings the locusts cant easily get inside. The manor and maybe maybe hostel should be suitable... maybe the barracks as well.

Theres really nothing that can be done to actually stop the swarm. Any crops are as good as lost, so all he really can do is secure any existing food stores where the swarm cant reach and keep them away from the people and animals as best he can.
 
LCP
 Painford, 25th Sigmarzeit 

"Not in my lifetime," said Gavril, his voice quiet as he looked up at the buzzing clouds surrounding them. "Or my father's, or... anyone's, that I ever heard of."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
From what you have immediately at hand in the village, the bonfire has enough fuel to burn for about an hour. If you're happy to let people leave the village to go gathering fuel from the forest, then you can keep it burning indefinitely - but that will be something that requires plenty of people an effort, a reverse bucket chain if you like.

No building in Painford is completely locust-proof, but almost any building that isn't an open shed or stable is better than being out in the open. Sieghard's manor has glass windows that can open and shut so is probably the most locust-proof available. The barracks are built crudely out of logs so are a lot more permeable.
 
LeSwordfish
 "Don't think the Lady would want to see this either,"  Ludo said, prodding one of the shards with the toe of his shoe.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Nothing more specific here in Alvarran, ready to move on.
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla looked doubtful but nodded at Ludo's words.

Finding a quiet moment she drew Carraciolo aside for a quiet word:  "I've been thinking and I better return to Savonne to at least check in with Irene. I don't want the princepessa marching with an army to take back her right hand woman. I shall be back soon though Giovanni."  

OOC:
 
 Spoiler 
Also happy to move on. Jarla will return with the others.
 
-Sentinel-
 "I sense no dark magic here,"  said Elsa. She cast her gaze at the broken stained glass windows.  "Real shame about the windows. Say what you will about Bretonnians, but they do build beautiful chapels." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Ready to move on to Savonne as well.
 
LeSwordfish
 "Is this where that sword was?"  Ludo asked, remembering something.  "We should check that again, we've certainly seen enough Nekeharan since then."
 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
If Leodoric's sword is still here, Ludo wants to have a proper look at it. Elsa should do that as well, she can read the language and use her wizard eyes.

Most relevant tests I can think of for "what's up with this sword?":
Perception:  (1d100)[ 51 ]  vs 48 int +20 mastery = 68
AK: Necromancy:  (1d100)[ 32 ]  vs 48 int
 
LCP
 Castel d'Irena, 25th Sigmarzeit 

  "I've been thinking and I better return to Savonne to at least check in with Irene. I don't want the princepessa marching with an army to take back her right hand woman. I shall be back soon though Giovanni."  

Carraciolo looked disappointed, but didn't object. "The sooner the better," was all he said - and from his tone, Jarla got the creeping feeling that his invitation might be developing an expiry date.

An idea seemed to strike him; he clicked his fingers and pointed at Jarla. "If you  are  going back," he said, "perhaps you can carry my message to Father Barbaro? I'll meet you with it at the gate."


  "Is this where that sword was?"  Ludo asked, remembering something.  "We should check that again, we've certainly seen enough Nekeharan since then."  

The sword was still there, clutched in the stone hands of the knight carved on the coffin-lid. Though Odo and his pilgrims had fitted it with a distinctly Bretonnian crossguard and grip, the blade and pommel were unmistakeably Nehekharan work - very like the weapons held by the undead guards of Kheneb-Ptra-Urush. There were no hieroglyphs on the blade, but the sunburst design on the pommel looked to Ludo like the symbols of Ptra they had seen in that marshy tomb.

Elsa could sense no trace of enchantment lingering around the ancient weapon. Carraciolo and his men looked at it with mild curiosity.

"You say it's Necce... it belongs to the Jackal's people?" said Carraciolo. "And Alvarr's madmen thought it belonged to this knight?"

"Could be a trophy weapon," suggested one of his soldiers. Carraciolo shook his head, running his thumb along the dull edge.

"Who are you going to hurt with that?" he asked. "It'd be more likely to break in half than draw blood."

 ~ 
Within a few hours, they had gathered their possessions and re-united with Bardhyl's band, ready to head south through Pieter's Pass. As he had promised, Carraciolo was waiting at the gates with his letter for Barbaro. He bade Jarla farewell with a kiss, and said he hoped to see her again 'very soon'.


 

 Konigstag, 26th Savonne 
 Elsa, Ludo, Jarla &amp; Bardhyl 

The road south was busy and well-trodden, and they made good time towards the city, the southerly breeze fresh on their faces. They were about a half-day’s ride from their destinations when the first locusts crossed their path. Arriving in ones and twos, the insects showed no fear, alighting on their clothes and on their horses’ bridles. One finger-sized hopper landed on Tatiana’s outstretched hand, and she held it up to her face to take a closer look.

“I haven’t seen them this colour before,” she said, as another landed on Countess’ halter, making the mare snort and toss her head. “Black and yellow… I thought they were all green.”

“ The one-eyed girl’s talking about the colour of bugs, ” muttered Waldon, riding behind Bardhyl and Grim. “ Some great minds we’ve fallen in with here, oh yes. ”

“That was old Gudryn’s farmstead we passed back there, wasn’t it?” was Afrim’s more pressing concern. “We should be able to see the city by now.”

He was right. The Rock of Savonne was usually visible for miles across the plain, but right now there was no sign of it - just an ochre haze, hanging over the southern horizon like a bank of fog. Carried on the breeze, they could hear something too - a dry, rustling buzz, growing steadily louder.

“Taal’s teeth,” swore Grim, swatting away a locust that tried to land on his face. “They’re everywhere!”

He was right. The locusts weren’t coming in twos and threes now, but tens, hundreds, filling the air with the sound of their wings. In the fields, stalks of growing wheat swayed erratically under the weight of landing insects, thousands of gnawing mandibles setting busily to work.

The horses whinnied and shied, trying to turn back. Only a firm hand on the reins kept them from bolting, and seeing how they longed to run, Jarla took it upon herself to make sure it was in the right direction. Putting her head down, she kicked Countess into a gallop, taking off along the road in a plume of sun-baked dust. The other horses followed without instruction, the daylight dimming around them as they went charging through the heart of the swarm.

 ~ 
They reached the gates of Savonne in a matter of hours, their horses sweating and foaming from the exertion. Through they had covered fifteen or sixteen miles, there was no sign of their having reached the other side of the swarm.

The locusts blanketed the city, the sheer noise of them filling the streets as they crawled over walls and rooftops. People were shooing them out of their houses with brooms, while children ran this way and that, trying to catch them in their hands. A wild-eyed man was ranting on a street corner that they were a sign of the End Times, ignoring the ones that settled in his hair. Smoke rose from bonfires in the North Market square, trying to keep them off the goods. Maybe it was even working - everyone caught in it was too busy coughing and wiping their stinging eyes to tell.

A scrawny ginger cat trotted past, a fat locust held daintily in its mouth. At least someone was enjoying themselves…

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Going to stop here for a beat to allow you guys to respond properly to the bugs before throwing any NPCs into the mix. My default assumption is that Ludo, Elsa and Jarla will want to go straight to Sforza, and that Bardhyl will want to go and find Abbie and the others of his band that he left behind. Is that correct?
 
-Sentinel-
 Road 
 "So  that's  the spell the Jackal was casting, the night the moon turned red,"  said Elsa as they rode past locust-infested fields.  "Gods, that looks like a curse from ancient tales. It won't improve the food situation, that's for sure..." 

She paused.

 "Unless they're edible. I hear they eat locusts in some countries." 

 

 Savonne 

Elsa entered the castle grounds with her cape of wyvern scales on her shoulders. She had been hoping for her arrival to be somewhat triumphal, but the plague of locusts had stolen that from her. Whatever good news she brought Sforza would be overshadowed by this disaster.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Those things'll eat anything they can get at,  " he said, raising his voice so all who had gathered around the fire could hear. " If you want anything left to eat tomorrow, then we've got to keep all the food where they can't reach it. That means doors and windows kept shut tight until the swarm passes. Anyone worried about them getting in through the cracks can start moving things into the manor - theyll have a much harder time getting through stone than wood. Just make sure its done while we've got a big enough fire to keep them back. "
LCP
 Painford, 25th Sigmarzeit 

While the Thorns received Sieghard’s orders with their customary discipline, the villagers were less composed.

“They can  eat through wood?! ”
 “Where did they come from?”   “How long are we supposed to hide indoors?”  
Panicky babbling ran a circle around the bonfire, other ideas bubbling to the surface.

“We should get out of here! Who knows how many more of them are coming?”
 “And go where? It’s Taal’s judgement! We’ll only be saved if we repent!” 
 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
As usual, the best results come with successful skill tests!
 


 

 Savonne, 24th Sigmarzeit 
 Elsa &amp; co. 

The locusts were in the castle too. Outside, they crawled over the statue of Sforza defeating the Jackal, giving the bronze prince a seething coat of insects. Inside, their rasping chirps echoed through the empty hallways - a strange accompaniment to the sound of angry voices drifting from the audience chamber.

"Nothing you can do?" the Prince was demanding. "What do you mean, nothing you can do? If there's nothing you can do, what are you  for ?"

The guards on the door didn’t stop Elsa and her coterie from slipping inside. On the steps in front of Sforza’s throne, they saw a gaggle of priests, headed by Abbot Tomas. The head of the Azrillite order must have made his journey down from Putbad abbey. Behind him were Father Hieronymus, Sister Ioana, and Brother Cezar, attended by one of the younger Morrites - Ludo remembered her name was Nastassa.

"My lord, we are all praying for a swift end to this… plague," said the Abbot. He sounded shaken - whether by Sforza's anger or the scene outside, it was difficult to tell. “If the gods are merciful, they will answer.”

“These days, our numbers are sadly reduced,” said Cezar. “If Mother Raqiyah, or Mother Constanza were still with us…”

Sforza gave a contemptuous flick of his hand. “I don’t need prayers, or excuses. I need action.” He raised his eyes as he saw the newcomers by the door. “See? My wizard doesn’t need to be summoned. She knows she is needed, and she comes.”

The priests’ eyes turned to Elsa, as the Prince rose to his feet. “Holt!” he called out. “Tell me you have some spell to deal with these vermin.”

 Bardhyl 

Battling their way through the chaos that was gripping the streets, Bardhyl and his band made their way down to the docks. The sunken river was still crowded with boats, huddled awkwardly out beyond the mud of the bank. Great numbers of birds wheeled above the water, diving down again and again into the thick of the swarm to pluck their prey out of the air. For all the impact it was having, they might have been drinking individual drops out of the ocean.

Abbie and the others were waiting in the  Fat Fish , which was rammed with people taking shelter from the madness outside. Pushing their way through, Bardhyl, Grim and the others managed to secure a corner to themselves.

“Good to see you’re still with us, chief,” said Abbie. “Been a while. If you hadn’t sent Panteleon back, we might’ve thought something’d happened.”

Straight to business as usual, she reported that they’d seen Gina safely off on a boat going north out of Putbad. “Didn’t clock anyone trying to follow. If anyone was trying, we must’ve shaken ‘em off.”

“What’s  happening , chief?” asked Panteleon, no longer able to keep the question from bursting out. “These bugs! There’s so  many  of them!”
-Sentinel-
"Holt! Tell me you have some spell to deal with these vermin."

Elsa inwardly cringed. Sforza was finally glad to see her, and she had to tell him that no, she did not have a spell.

 "I'm afraid I'm a bit of a one-trick pony, sire,"  she admitted.  "Enemies, I can deal with, but bugs are another matter. This plague, I suspect, comes from a powerful ritual spell. The red moon was the omen. It was likely  months  in the planning." 

She did not mention Nahorek directly, since Sforza was still denying his return.

 "What eats locusts? Can we get more of that, maybe?" 

She gave Tatiana a sidelong glance, though she doubted the girl had the power to bring enough locust-eaters to match this kind of invasion. And besides, animals had a way of swarming to food sources without needing magic to direct them.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
According to a quick Google search, ducks can eat lots of locusts (and  are sometimes used for pest control ), but if I had to google it, I doubt Elsa would know it.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" They're just  bugs ! " Sieghard snapped. " They arent gonna eat wood, just squeeze through the gaps. Taal's teeth, they don't even sting, " he said.

" They'll pass as quick as they came. Quit losing your wits over something too tiny to hurt you and start securing the food! "

 
 Spoiler 
Assumed the first one covered everything. Here's another command roll.

 (1d100)[ 12 ] 
 (1d100)[ 83 ] 

 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
 She gave Tatiana a sidelong glance, though she doubted the girl had the power to bring enough locust-eaters to match this kind of invasion. And besides, animals had a way of swarming to food sources without needing magic to direct them. 
 

Flock of Doom would do wonders. Too bad that's out of Tatiana's pay grade.


 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
 According to a quick Google search, ducks can eat lots of locusts (and  are sometimes used for pest control ), but if I had to google it, I doubt Elsa would know it. 
 

 It would take a number beyond reckoning. Thousands. 
 
rax
 25th Sigmarzeit - On the road to Savonne 

As the day wore on, Bardhyl waited for an opportune moment and rode up next to Ludo when he was a slight distance from Elsa and Jarla.

 "That was quite a ruckus last night, wasn't it Herr Ludo? I heard The Lady's chapel got smashed up and at  The Gilded Beetle  a madman tried to smash the innkeeper's lucky beetle. We had to subdue him and throw him out to keep from causing any more mischief!"  he started off conversationally.

 "Speaking of mischief, you are close to the Prince, are you not? I happened to find myself in conversation with some merchants the night before, and they had terrible tales of doom to report concerning the Prince's policies on grain. They swore that they were all close to going out of business because of His Highness' price cap on grain!"  he chuckled.

 "What I found really interesting, though, is that they also said that the Prince is buying foreign grain in bulk and  paying for it in gold . Now there are certainly resources in the Reaches which can be sold at a profit up north, but it seems to me that it must be a  terrible  drain on His Highness' treasury to be buying all that foreign grain at market prices. So I am curious...where is all the gold coming from? You wouldn't happen to have any insight to offer about that?" 
 Savonne, 26th Sigmarzeit 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 “Good to see you’re still with us, chief,” said Abbie. “Been a while. If you hadn’t sent Panteleon back, we might’ve thought something’d happened.”

Straight to business as usual, she reported that they’d seen Gina safely off on a boat going north out of Putbad. “Didn’t clock anyone trying to follow. If anyone was trying, we must’ve shaken ‘em off.”

“What’s  happening , chief?” asked Panteleon, no longer able to keep the question from bursting out. “These bugs! There’s so  many  of them!” 
 

  "Good to see you as well, my friends, and well done on getting the girl to safety. Your gods will surely reward you for such righteous actions!"  Bardhyl answered Abbie with a grin.

 "I wish I knew for sure, Panteleon, but I think it's got something to do with the red moon two nights ago and... the Jackal ..."  he finished with a whisper so as not to draw unneccessary attention from any bystanders in the crowded inn. He kept his voice low as he continued to fill in some of the details of the weeks since they'd last spoken.

 "You see, we've had quite the journey while you were away. We got the Raven Speaker back, and he showed me some things that confirmed what my dreams have been telling me for some time. The Jackal isn't dead, not really. He's still out there, working his mischief from the Waste." 
 "Two nights ago, we were in Alvarran at  The Gilded Beetle . In the middle of the night, a lunatic tried to destroy the innkeeper's lucky beetle - the one above the bar, if you'll recall. He was shouting that it was a liar's idol, and that it had to be cast down before the curse of the "King in the West" falls upon us.  "Can't you hear them? Can't you hear them coming?"  he said. Next morning, I heard that someone had smashed up the chapel of the Lady as well..and now there's locusts raining from the sky. That's too much of a coincidence for me not to believe that the Jackal is behind this somehow." 
LeSwordfish
 25th Sigmarzeit - On the road to Savonne 
Ludo shook his head.  "Bad omens. Something's happening, faster than we knew before. We need to start preparing as soon as we get to Savonne." 

He shook his head.  "It's on the moon! The moon in the ******* sky! How do we deal with that?" 

Bardhyl's question brought him down to earth and gave him something else to focus on. He thought for a moment. He still didn't entirely know Bardhyl, but he and the other Raven Hills men had been willing to sacrifice for them, and the information from Wadim was all they had to go on for now. He was certainly a more faithful person to know than Sforza.

 "Obviously you didn't hear this from me... but I have a suspicion. I think Sforza's been farming Crimson Shade. There's a village in Last Water, Isolici, where it grows. I think one of the reasons Sforza has so much money coming in is because he was sneaking it to Savonne across the marsh and selling it there, or getting someone else to ship it upriver. I don't know if that still adds up, though, now No-Nose Dragos is dead."

"Sforza buying grain, though... having to pay him for bread isn't good, but nobody's going to ship it into the reaches for fun, right? Without that, people would be starving." 
 26th Sigmarzeit - Outside Savonne 
 "Bad omens,"  Ludo muttered again, looking at the cloud sitting over the city. He shook his head in horrified disbelief, and pulled his scarf up over his face, as if preparing for a sandstorm.

 26th Sigmarzeit - Savonne 
 "The bonfires, for the smoke, in the square,"  Ludo offered.  "Could you help keep those burning? Would need all the fuel in the city otherwise." 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  "The bonfires, for the smoke, in the square,"  Ludo offered.  "Could you help keep those burning? Would need all the fuel in the city otherwise."  
 

 "That, I can do,"  said Elsa.  "I can keep fires burning for months with no new fuel. But that won't save the crops in the fields." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 

 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  "The moon in the ******* sky!"  
 

That was an unexpected reference. 😁
 
LCP
 Painford, 25th Sigmarzeit 

Sieghard’s sharp words were enough to startle the villagers into action, some of them looking rather shamefaced as they scurried off about their tasks. With a will, they set to gathering up every morsel of food that wasn’t already securely stored, batting away buzzing locusts as they did. Those Thorns who weren’t tending the fire pitched in, until within a few minutes there was an orderly chain of people ferrying food inside the manor.

By noon, everything that could be moved had been moved, and still the swarm had not passed on. Leni watched with her face pressed to the glass of one of Sieghard’s expensive windows - she was now just one of many guests seeking temporary shelter.

“I heard them in the fields, down in the Vale,” she murmured, half in shock. “I never thought they were this many. I never thought they would  fly .”

“Old Dietrich was telling the truth,” said Gavril. “Gods, if they’ve already eaten their way through the Vale, it’s going to be a hard winter and no mistake. Enough to make last year seem like a feast.”

A large locust landed on the window-pane, and Leni tumbled back with a shriek. Gavril caught her before she could hit her head on the floor.

 ~ 
By sundown, the sky had cleared, and the air was no longer thick with flying insects. There were still plenty of stragglers, their loud chirping audible from every point of the compass - but the swarm had passed. Venturing outside, Sieghard looked at the scene it had left behind.

The cinders of the bonfire still smouldered in the middle of the square, the lead statue of Drago now looking slightly melted by its proximity to the blaze. Away from the fire, it was a changed landscape. Nothing green and growing had escaped the swarm’s attention - the grass was gone, the trees were stripped bare. In places, even their bark was torn and peeling. In the red light of the sunset, it looked like some mad prophet’s vision of the end of days…


 

 Savonne, 26th Sigmarzeit 
 The Castle 

Sforza’s expression darkened, as much at Elsa’s refusal to play the part in front of the priests as at her lack of magical solutions.

“Are you telling me these insects won’t burn?” he demanded. “That  is  your one trick, isn’t it?”

Father Hieronymus cleared his throat. “Magister Holt makes a salient observation. This is the second time the red moon has risen, and both times it has brought with it portents and afflictions. If we don’t believe that we have angered the gods… then we might ask who we  have  angered.”

“Please, father, speak clearly,” said the Prince, in icy tones. “The Jackal is dust. I saw him die. I made it so. Are you telling there is now another sorcerer I have to destroy?”

“None at the Temple would question your victory at Nath, your Highness,” Cezar intervened. “But… some people will not believe what they have not seen with their own eyes. I have seen it myself, on the streets of the city - there are still many who follow the old traditions, who honour Nahorek as a spirit, or, or a god. To them, he is very much alive.”

Sforza fell silent for a while, his anger seeming to subside. At last, his attention returned to Hieronymus.

“And you say you  don’t  believe we have angered the gods?” he said. He looked now from priest to priest, raising his voice - but Ludo thought it more of a performance this time than before. “This… idolatry, this worship of a dead man’s dust that flourishes under your noses, is that not offence enough? That is if Holt is not correct, and one of these lunatics is not directly responsible for this plague, through witchcraft or worse!”

“Your Highness,” said the Abbot, softly, “we cannot force people to change their ways…”

Sforza held up a finger. “No! No, you can! I will give you the men. I want…  everyone ... to know who is responsible for bringing this evil upon us. I want them held accountable.”

Tomas hesitated. “...Your Highness,” he ventured, “the Temple of Savonne has always maintained independence from the lords of the Reaches.”

“Of course,” said Sforza. “That is admirable, and I support it. And that is why I strongly suggest that you accept my assistance in this matter,” he went on, “so that I will continue to support it.” He let that hang for a moment or two. “A temple that will not face down the darkness… that is no use to gods or men. Don’t you agree?”

Silence was all that answered him. For all the power and wealth that was on his side, Ludo still got the sense that he might have pushed the priests too far - but if Sforza had any feeling for that, he didn’t let it curb his masterful manner.

“You may go,” he said. “Offer your prayers, do what you can. We will speak of this again very soon.”

Mumbling their ever-so-respectful goodbyes, the priests shuffled out. When the doors had closed behind them, Sforza’s gaze swung like a hawk’s back to Elsa.

“Holt,” he said, beckoning her impatiently forward. “You are not my cannon, you are my wizard. This is what I keep you for. There must be  something  you can do, something more than keeping a bonfire burning! These things are flying with the wind - who knows how far they have spread already. I need action, now.” He stared at her, not blinking. “ Think! ”

 The  Fat Fish  

Panteleon shuddered at Bardhyl’s story of the madman’s prophecy. Abbie looked a touch more skeptical, but even she couldn’t deny the locusts currently streaming past the windows.

“So,” she asked. “What now, then?”
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  25th Sigmarzeit - On the road to Savonne 
Bardhyl's question brought him down to earth and gave him something else to focus on. He thought for a moment. He still didn't entirely know Bardhyl, but he and the other Raven Hills men had been willing to sacrifice for them, and the information from Wadim was all they had to go on for now. He was certainly a more faithful person to know than Sforza.

 "Obviously you didn't hear this from me... but I have a suspicion. I think Sforza's been farming Crimson Shade. There's a village in Last Water, Isolici, where it grows. I think one of the reasons Sforza has so much money coming in is because he was sneaking it to Savonne across the marsh and selling it there, or getting someone else to ship it upriver. I don't know if that still adds up, though, now No-Nose Dragos is dead."

"Sforza buying grain, though... having to pay him for bread isn't good, but nobody's going to ship it into the reaches for fun, right? Without that, people would be starving."  
 

 "Oh-ho! That  is  interesting news,"  Bardhyl grinned.  "If there's money to be made tax free, I'm sure His Highness would have no trouble finding plenty of unscrupulous sorts to take Dragos' place." 
 "And of course, we wouldn't want anyone to starve, but I cannot help but observe that both in the Hills and Shepherd's Valley, His Highness is levying ruinous taxes on the same people he's supposedly bringing peace and prosperity to - and all the while he's building himself a bigger army. If peace has returned to the Reaches, what would he need such an army for, Herr Ludo? Surely all the taxes he's raising could be spent on something more useful than keeping men under arms?" 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Savonne, 26th Sigmarzeit 
 The Fat Fish 

Panteleon shuddered at Bardhyl’s story of the madman’s prophecy. Abbie looked a touch more skeptical, but even she couldn’t deny the locusts currently streaming past the windows.

“So,” she asked. “What now, then?” 
 

  "We wait and see how quickly this plague passes, then I need to speak with Maglyn about some business matters. After that...it depends on your reaction to what I'm going to tell you next. Gather round, children - I have more to tell from our journey with Wadim,"  Bardhyl whispered conspiratorially, then proceeded to fill them in on the rest of what had happened - the slaying of the great wyvern, Wadim's lifting of his ostracism, the state of affairs in the Raven Hills, and finally Wadim's intent to make him chief of the  vrani .

 "...and there you have it! Quite an eventful trip, eh? Now I must ask the three of you the same question I've already asked everyone else here - the business I'm in is no longer waylaying merchants, it's  war , and likely an ugly one. So I need to know - are you still with me?" 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla's morale had crumbled to dust when she saw the scale of the locust plague. Almost it was worse than the daemon... no it was worse than the daemon. Tshula could be fought with willpower and faith. What could they possibly do against countless insects devouring the few remaining crops in this wretched country?

Though she had slunk in with Elsa she did not immediately speak up. What could she possibly say?
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard just shook his head and turned back inside. Nothing he could've done would've stopped this. All he could do was find a way to get everyone through the aftermath.

" Hanna, I want you to find out how much food is in the village. We'll have to make it last. " Sieghard said. " Gustaf, Steffan, and Gunther, as soon as the sun rises, the three of you are going out to survey the area. I want to know how wide an area the locusts swept through and what's left. Petar and Marius, you're going south. One to Manaan's Keep and one to Mirino. I'll have messages for Sussman and Valdes for you to deliver. Kaspar, I'm sending you to Savonne with a one for the prince. "

 
 Spoiler 
Sieghard will dictate three letters and have Ingwald write them. No need to get into the exact wording, but all three messages about the locusts and destroyed crops. The two going south will ask if they've experienced the same and if so, ask about the scale of the devastation. The one going to Sforza will also mention that he's still assessing the damage caused and that he fears there might not be much of a harvest, if any due to the swarm. He'll instruct his men to bring back any reply to the letters and for the one going north, he'll privately suggest delivering it waiting in another part of the castle by the time Sforza has a chance to read it.
 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 “Are you telling me these insects won’t burn?” he demanded. “That  is  your one trick, isn’t it?” 
 

Elsa just stared at him, agape.  "Oh, they most certainly  can  burn, sire,"  she said.  "Along with whatever they're sitting on. Fire is an indiscriminate weapon. Especially on a dry year." 

 “Holt,” he said, beckoning her impatiently forward. “You are not my cannon, you are my wizard. This is what I keep you for. There must be  something  you can do, something more than keeping a bonfire burning! These things are flying with the wind - who knows how far they have spread already. I need action, now.” He stared at her, not blinking. “ Think! ” 

 "To match something of that scale, I'd need weeks, if not months of preparations... by which time it'll be far too late,"  Elsa said frankly, because anything else would have been a bald-faced lie.  "The enemy's been a lot busier than we have." 
 "But I know where the enemy is,"  she added.  "They're drawing power from the Red Pyramid. That's where we'll find them. We can't go into the Pale Waste with an army, though. Too slow, too visible, needs a baggage train that'll get sand in the wheels, and if things go wrong, the enemy gains a legion of walking corpses. I'd go with ten to twenty hand-picked people." 

She had known for a while that all paths ultimately led to the Red Pyramid, but now it seemed things were getting dire enough that even Sforza might agree with the need for such desperate action.
LCP
 Painford, 25th Sigmarzeit 

The Thorns nodded assent at Sieghard’s orders. Gathering up a few helpers, Hanna set out to start her count. Sieghard prayed she wouldn’t be back too soon.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 

 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
 Sieghard will dictate three letters and have Ingwald write them. 
 

I thought Ingwald was stationed at Ravenskird - am I misremembering?
 


 

 26th Sigmarzeit 
 Elsa, Jarla &amp; Ludo 

“Months?” said Sforza, as if he hadn’t heard correctly. “You’d need  months . So what is it you’ve been doing, exactly, since the last time the red moon rose? Was that not a month ago?”

Descending the steps from the throne, he stood right in front of her. “I know what you’ve been doing, Holt. Chasing your gods-damned shadows. Did you think I wouldn’t see through you sending your friend Sieghard to plead for the wild woman’s release?” His anger was real, and building. “And now, now when there is a crisis where I might  actually need a wizard , you want to go running off to the other side of the mountains! You tell me all your magic can do is set my own land on fire!”

With a snap of his fingers, he pointed to Tatiana. “You, girl. Is your mistress speaking the truth? Can I replace her with a barrel of pitch?” Tatiana stood open-mouthed, trying to find the words to answer. “ Speak! ”

“Um, ah, I…” Tatiana’s voice was a strangled croak - she was clearly terrified. She looked to Elsa and the others as if hoping they might somehow give her the words to say - but Sforza’s attention was only on her. She swallowed and met his eyes.

“I… mistress Holt says it’s… it’s very dangerous to mix different kinds of magic, your… your highness, sir,” she said. “And since, since fire is her kind…”

“And your kind?”

“I’m still… still learning, my lord,” said Tatiana. She couldn’t hold his gaze any more, instead looking down at her toes. “I wouldn’t be strong enough…”

She trailed off. A long silence reigned while Sforza composed his thoughts. When he spoke again, it was in a calmer tone - but you could still hear the fury seething beneath the surface.

“Hang your rules, Holt. Didn’t you break them already, coming here? And who protected you, when Sigmar’s dogs came sniffing after your trail?” He lowered his voice until it was almost a whisper. “I don’t care what sacrifices you have to make. I don’t care whose souls you have to sell. You will find a way to fix this, or you will find out what life is like without my protection.”

Stepping back, he clapped his hands, summoning the guards by the door. &lt; Rigo! Mazzetti! Escort Magister Holt and her apprentice to her old quarters in the tower. Make sure she has all she needs in the way of books, parchment and ink. &gt; The soldiers approached, standing one to either side of Elsa and Tatiana. &lt; Then lock the door and bring me back the key. &gt;

 Bardhyl 

“War with who?” asked Max. “The Prince, or this ghost?”

Abbie nodded. “The Tileans are tough, but it’s not like they wouldn’t already hang us if we gave them half a chance. Ranald knows they’ve got money for the taking too. But this… mystical stuff,” she said, struggling to find the words, “...I’m not questioning it, chief, but I’m not seeing how it’s our fight. If this Jackal’s really out there, why not let him and Sforza bleed each other?”

“My mother used to leave a bowl of milk out for Nahorek when a new child was born in the house,” said Ortwin. He held his hands up as Zana and Kreshnik stared at him. “I know you hill-folk see it different… but that's the way I always heard it. We're not wizards, or priests. How d'you mean to fight a thing like that?”

 Sieghard 

Hanna’s inventory made for a sobering report. Situated as they were on the main highway between the Downlands and the Vale, the villagers of Painford had never made it their business to keep deep stores. If they were to pool their resources - something which some of them would surely require some forceful encouragement to do - then Hanna estimated the village had enough grain and vegetables laid by to last a month, or perhaps two with severe rationing. Where it came to livestock, they were on significantly better ground - but those animals would need feeding too.

“It won’t be so bad,” said Karolina, trying her best to put a sunny face on the catastrophe. “The forest’ll look after us. That’s what my mother said, in the hard years when I was a girl. Showed me how to make soup out of nettles and flour out of chestnuts.”

Hanna looked doubtful, but didn’t say anything to pour water on the older woman’s cheer. “We’re close to the Mere, at least.” she said. “It’s not likely to run out of fish.”

Karolina nodded vigorously. “And frogs!” she added. “And rushes. The roots can be good eating.”

The sun was going down again by the time Sieghard’s three scouts returned. Gustaf gave the report.

“Seems we were right in their path,” he said. “Two, two and a half miles each side of the village, it's almost like a fire's been through. Even the weeds are eaten down to the stems.” He shook his head. “I ain’t never seen anything like it.”

“Past that, it gets better,” said Gunther, “but gradual, like. The woods are still crawling with the stragglers. I must have gone eight miles before I turned back, and I could still hear ‘em.”

Steffan nodded. “I reckon you could walk ten miles across their track without finding anything left worth the harvest,” he added. “It’s all gone.”
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl 

“War with who?” asked Max. “The Prince, or this ghost?”

Abbie nodded. “The Tileans are tough, but it’s not like they wouldn’t already hang us if we gave them half a chance. Ranald knows they’ve got money for the taking too. But this… mystical stuff,” she said, struggling to find the words, “...I’m not questioning it, chief, but I’m not seeing how it’s our fight. If this Jackal’s really out there, why not let him and Sforza bleed each other?”

“My mother used to leave a bowl of milk out for Nahorek when a new child was born in the house,” said Ortwin. He held his hands up as Zana and Kreshnik stared at him. “I know you hill-folk see it different… but that's the way I always heard it. We're not wizards, or priests. How d'you mean to fight a thing like that?” 
 

  "Both,"  Bardhyl answered Max.  "Beating the Prince will mean nothing if the Jackal is still around to plague the Reaches. Beating the Jackal will save the Reaches but leave the Prince in place to grind us all down under his thumb." 
 "Ordinarily, I'd say that was a good plan, Abbie, but I don't see it working here. The Prince doesn't want to believe that the Jackal is still out there. Meanwhile, the Waste is expanding, there's a drought on, and now the locusts. The Jackal will have killed the Reaches long before Sforza is done twiddling his thumbs." 
 "As for how to defeat the Jackal... Our stories say that he was bound into the Red Pyramid by Morr himself, but whether or not it was Morr's will, I'm certain now that the people of that time had a hand in it too. So the trick will be working out how they did it and maybe Morr will see fit to guide us in that endeavour,"  he said to Ortwin.

 "But in any case, we won't be doing any of this alone. We'll need alliances and specialist help, and Sforza's people who came with us to find Wadim are going to help us with both, even if they don't necessarily know it yet,"  he grinned.

 "Speaking of alliances, what was the mood like in Putbad?"  he asked Abbie and Max.
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 “Months?” said Sforza, as if he hadn’t heard correctly. “You’d need  months . So what is it you’ve been doing, exactly, since the last time the red moon rose? Was that not a month ago?” 
 

 "Sire, I couldn't possibly have a counterspell prepared for a plague of locusts!"  Elsa protested.  "I'm not a diviner, for Sigmar's sake!" 

But Sforza was not listening. He seemed under the impression that whatever a wizard willed, a wizard could do, given enough determination. He was now talking of 'selling souls'. Elsa suspected the Tilean's current tantrum was not dissimilar from whatever had taken hold of the Mad Duke, in the final years leading up to Belehir's coup.



 Stepping back, he clapped his hands, summoning the guards by the door. &lt; Rigo! Mazzetti! Escort Magister Holt and her apprentice to her old quarters in the tower. Make sure she has all she needs in the way of books, parchment and ink. &gt; The soldiers approached, standing one to either side of Elsa and Tatiana. &lt; Then lock the door and bring me back the key. &gt; 

 &lt;So I'm under arrest, then?&gt;  said Elsa, quietly seething.

In truth, her anger was more on Tatiana's behalf than her own, though she did not let it show; Sforza was just the kind of man to use a person's loved ones for leverage. She also wondered if her chambers were the only ones in the castle that locked from the outside like a jail cell. Regardless, a locked door would do little to stop a determined wizard—let alone two.

 Probably best not to become fugitives unless we absolutely have to... 
LCP
 Elsa, Jarla &amp; Ludo 

Elsa's audience was over. Putting a gentle but insistent hand on her arm, Mazzetti guided her towards the door. Rigo did the same with Tatiana.

Once the two wizards were out if his sight, Sforza returned to his throne. Sitting down with a heavy sigh, he massaged his temples.

&lt; That woman will be the death of me, &gt; he muttered to himself. Looking up, he saw Ludo and Jarla still standing at the back of the audience chamber. "Yes?" he snapped. "You want something?"

 Elsa 

The old tower was much as Elsa had left it - the castle of Savonne was too cavernous and sprawling for even Sforza's household to fill every room. The two soldiers left her with the run of the spiral stair, locking the door where it joined the rest of the keep. As well as her own quarters, that left Elsa with access to a couple of pokey little rooms that looked like they had once seen use as watch stations or ammunition stores, and the open air at the top of the tower.

Tatiana seemed to be taking this new restriction to her liberty fairly well, all things considered. Climbing the steps, she went out to the top of the turret. Locusts still buzzed around them, but the swarm was a little thinner here in its upper reaches. Down below, they could see the haze of insect bodies that enveloped the lower town, as thick as smoke.

"This isn't as bad as the cellar, at least," said Tattie. Screwing up her eyes, she tried to shake off the memory of Manann's Keep. "I hope  she  doesn't get involved this time."

The breeze plucking at her tangled hair, she held out a hand over the parapet. A locust landed on it - then two, then three, covering her fingers in a crawling insect glove. Tattie didn't seem to mind.

 Bardhyl 

Abbie looked at Max, who shrugged.

“Didn’t seem too bad,” she said. “Some uplander farmers grumbling about taxes, but as long as it’s being shipped to Savonne, it’s all gravy for the river guilds, isn’t it?” She shrugged itself. “But we didn’t hang around to hob-nob with the locals too long.”
LeSwordfish
 25th Sigmarzeit - On the road to Savonne 
Ludo raised his arms defensively (causing Lumpin to steer slightly to the right as his reins were pulled).  "Look, I don't know anything about that. In Painford, the "army" is up to the commander, he's spending his portion of the taxes on it." 
 26th Sigmarzeit 
 "Firstly, we had good news, but it's not very relevant now,"  Ludo said with an attempt at a smile.  "The wyvern is dead." 

He held up the tooth as demonstration.  "The magister and some of the Raven Hills folk killed it." 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla paled and shook her head when Sforza demanded if she had anything to add.  "No your highness."  

It seemed unlikely Sforza would be pleased with her personal story of battling a daemon and it hardly seemed like the right time to mention going back to Giovanni. She waited while Ludo explained how the wyvern had been killed - another story that did her scant credit.

As soon as soon as this excruciating audience was over Jarla intended to retire to her chambers and get very, very drunk. At this rate a hangover might improve matters - it was at least a problem she could deal with.
LCP
 26th Sigmarzeit - Ludo &amp; Jarla 

At the mention of the wyvern, Sforza looked for a moment like he was having trouble recalling what Ludo was talking about. When he saw the tooth, however, he beckoned Ludo forward, until he was close enough to take the trophy in his hand.

"So," he said, turning it over in his palm. "She can kill a monster, but she draws the line at killing insects." He handed it back to Ludo. "I suppose that  is  good news. But 'firstly', you said - you have something more?"
LeSwordfish
 "Still fairly minor,"  Ludo said.  "We went searching for this ally of the Jackal, and found that the goblins in the hills have been disturbed. We killed their leader and scattered them, but we saw evidence that there are undead goblins around the Red Pyramid, dragging live ones into it from the desert. It seems possible Mother Mala is sacrificing them for some kind of... some kind of ritual, maybe?" 

He glanced at a fat locust on the windowsill.  "Perhaps this is her doing?" 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl 

Abbie looked at Max, who shrugged.

“Didn’t seem too bad,” she said. “Some uplander farmers grumbling about taxes, but as long as it’s being shipped to Savonne, it’s all gravy for the river guilds, isn’t it?” She shrugged itself. “But we didn’t hang around to hob-nob with the locals too long.” 
 

  "Fair - I didn't send you to gather intelligence,"  Bardhyl replied with a grin.

 "But if these locusts are also flying beyond the Karst, then there won't be much grain left to ship from  anywhere . Bad news for everyone,"  he mused while watching the swarm through a window.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
I'm ready to move on to meeting Mad Maglyn as soon as it's reasonable to move about on the streets.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" No sign of game, I imagine, " Sieghard said. " It's probably all scattered for where there's still things growing. "

" We'll have to start rationing, " he muttered, " And doing what we can to supplement the stores we still have. Fishing. Sending men out to hunt where there's still game to be found. Maybe see if we can trade timber upriver for food... "
LCP
 26th Sigmarzeit 
 Ludo &amp; Jarla 

Sforza examined Ludo's face. He'd accused Sieghard of being Elsa's catspaw - was he suspecting Ludo of the same? If he was, he still seemed to be weighing it up.

"Mala," he said. "The peasant woman who spoke to us in the hills? Giovanni wrote he would have her caught and hanged." He drummed his fingers once on the arm of his throne. "Still at large, then?"

"I didn't think she had any magic in her," he added. "Holt's girl said she was too weak to stop this. How strong would you need to be to start it?"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Can I get a Charm test from Ludo, opposed against Sforza's perception: [roll0]
 

 Sieghard 

 " No sign of game, I imagine, " Sieghard said. " It's probably all scattered for where there's still things growing. " 

"Good number of birds about," volunteered Gustaf. "It's a feast day for them."


 " We'll have to start rationing, " he muttered, " And doing what we can to supplement the stores we still have. Fishing. Sending men out to hunt where there's still game to be found. Maybe see if we can trade timber upriver for food... " 

"That's assuming there's anything left upriver," said Hanna, darkly. "The bugs went north, didn't they?"

"If this year's harvest is gone," said Gavril, in a slow, hollow voice, "we don't just have to last the next few months. We've got to last through to next spring."


 

 Angestag, 27th Sigmarzeit 
 Savonne - Bardhyl 

By daybreak on Angestag, the swarm had moved on from Savonne. The streets still rang with the rasping calls of locusts, but the sky was no longer dark with their flying bodies. When the cats, rats and birds picked them off, they were no longer replaced.

Down in the streets, some people were making the most of the conditions. On his way to pay a visit to Maglyn, Bardhyl passed a street-trader hawking locust skewers. “Roast locust!” the man barked. “Locust onna stick! Get ‘em while they’re crunchy!” From the looks of things, he had no shortage of customers.

Others were still in a more apocalyptic frame of mind. The man they had seen on their entrance to the city yesterday was now standing at the corner of the North Market, with a wooden board around his neck that read:
   
 REPPENT YE SINNERS!
DEATHE SHALL REYN
FROMME FORREVVER
TO FORREVVER    
Down in the Warren, the signs of desperation were even more apparent. Dirty children picked locust carcasses out of the gutters, while some enterprising souls had set out sticks smeared with lime to catch the birds descending for the same prize. Windows had been stuffed with rags to keep the insects out, and on a wall near Maglyn's establishment, some faded graffiti portrayed a fat pig wearing a crown. A much more recent message had been scrawled over the top:   
For all that, Maglyn's business didn't seem to be suffering. Her hulking bodyguard Clora was at the door: the one-eyed woman let Bardhyl pass without comment.

"Bardhyl!" said Maglyn, as he stepped into her office. It looked much as he remembered it - every corner stacked full of the odds and ends she had 'reclaimed' from clients unable to pay their debts. She gestured for him to take a seat. "Old crow-feathers, as I live and breathe. To what do I owe the pleasure? Didn't think you were in the market for a loan."
LeSwordfish
 26th Sigmarzeit 
 "If she's got any access to the jackal's power, it might not need to be just her,"  Ludo suggested.  "Especially if she can perform sacrifices, and if she's in the Red Pyramid. And... perhaps it's a coincidence, but she did threaten a curse of locusts." 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "This isn't as bad as the cellar, at least," said Tattie. Screwing up her eyes, she tried to shake off the memory of Manann's Keep. "I hope  she  doesn't get involved this time." 
 

Elsa snorted.  "Ah, but when she came to gloat at us, we were gagged and bound. Now we're not. She'll stay away." 

She cast a long look at the landscape from the top of the tower. The fields were brown with locusts, and she had a feeling they would stay much the same color once the locusts were gone.

 "This is a disaster. Dozens will die of starvation in Savonne alone. We should've taken the fight to the enemy sooner—and now we can't anymore. The Jackal would be laughing, if he knew." 
LCP
 26th Sigmarzeit 
 Ludo &amp; Jarla 

Ludo's final point seemed to check Sforza's skepticism. The Prince's lips moved silently, as if trying to remember Mala's words.

"She threatened other things too," he said. He sounded doubtful, but his heart wasn't in it. "Things that have not come to pass."

"I can order Giovanni to prepare an expedition to search this ruin. But the desert is dangerous. I won't send men into it lightly."  His fingertips rapped on the throne again. "Can you promise me that's where she's hiding?"

 Elsa 

Tattie looked round, and the locusts took flight from her hand. "Are you sure he doesn't?" she asked. "What if the old man was right? What if...  they're ... part of his curse, just as much as the bugs?" She flicked her eyes towards the floor, to indicate their royal hosts. "They've done about as much damage."
LeSwordfish
 "She threatened other things too," he said. He sounded doubtful, but his heart wasn't in it. "Things that have not come to pass." 

 "...yet,"  Ludo said, as if to himself.


 "I can order Giovanni to prepare an expedition to search this ruin. But the desert is dangerous. I won't send men into it lightly." His fingertips rapped on the throne again. "Can you promise me that's where she's hiding?" 

 "I can't,"  Ludo said frankly.  "And I won't, for sure. The dwarves sent an expedition in last year, with only a couple of survivors. If I may, mio principe, can I suggest patrolling or piqueting it instead? If they're dragging goblins in from the Giant's Teeth, we might be able to make a difference just by cutting those off. The goblins are vulnerable right now - we killed their boss." 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "Are you sure he doesn't?" she asked. "What if the old man was right? What if...  they're ... part of his curse, just as much as the bugs?" She flicked her eyes towards the floor, to indicate their royal hosts. "They've done about as much damage." 
 

Elsa took a moment to consider that.  "Bad rulers are nothing new around here, but I used to think that was just the nature of the Border Princes, where the only way to power is bloodshed. But perhaps there  is  a curse. They say the Mad Duke wasn't always mad. I'll have to ask Olga about that, next time I see her. The dwarfs would know, too." 

Even if true, this knowledge was of no help to them. Sforza would not hear it—he likely was not even realizing how unhinged he was becoming.

 "In the meantime, we're both stuck here, unless we learn to fly. I know this is asking for a lot, Tatiana, but I think you should focus on animal transformation. I can't teach you that, but I've seen fairly young wizards do it, so it's not one of those spells only masters can perform." 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Angestag, 27th Sigmarzeit 

Down in the Warren, the signs of desperation were even more apparent. Dirty children picked locust carcasses out of the gutters, while some enterprising souls had set out sticks smeared with lime to catch the birds descending for the same prize. Windows had been stuffed with rags to keep the insects out, and on a wall near Maglyn's establishment, some faded graffiti portrayed a fat pig wearing a crown. A much more recent message had been scrawled over the top:    
 

 Bardhyl stopped briefly to admire the graffiti and chuckled to himself.  "Aye, one sits on his arse here in Savonne and the other bides his time. Jackals aplenty, these days." 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 For all that, Maglyn's business didn't seem to be suffering. Her hulking bodyguard Clora was at the door: the one-eyed woman let Bardhyl pass without comment.

"Bardhyl!" said Maglyn, as he stepped into her office. It looked much as he remembered it - every corner stacked full of the odds and ends she had 'reclaimed' from clients unable to pay their debts. She gestured for him to take a seat. "Old crow-feathers, as I live and breathe. To what do I owe the pleasure? Didn't think you were in the market for a loan." 
 

 " Ah, the pleasure is all mine, fair lady!"  Bardhyl returned Maglyn's greeting with beaming smile before sitting down.

 "And as always, you're right on the money. I'm  not  in the market for a loan - not yet, at least - but there's no denying business is getting harder now that there's  one  law in all the Reaches. Used to be that the Duke didn't care what we got up to in the Downlands, and the Elf didn't care what we got up to in the Uplands, but now it's all Tileans, all the time,"  he chuckled mirthlessly.

 "So, I've been thinking about the future, you might say, and as it happens, I came across an interesting bit of news just the other day that I thought I'd run by you. After all, you're not just a woman of considerable means, but also considerable insight, so I said to myself - If anyone knows the truth of the matter, it's got to be Maglyn!" 
 "The thing is, I heard from a reliable source that the Prince has been importing grain to the Reaches and paying for it  in gold . A noble endeavour, to be sure, working so hard to keep his people from starving, but I couldn't help but wonder where he's getting all that gold from. And then, out of the blue,  another  reliable source whispered to me that there's a little place down in Last Water where they grow a nice crop o' Crimson Shade - the same Crimson Shade that No-Nose used to handle here in Savonne. So that got me thinking -  if  Crimson Shade is still coming up on the sly from His Highness' old stomping grounds, who might be handling the business end of things here nowadays?" 
RossN
 Jarla and Ludo 

Jarla cleared her throat:  "I don't suppose we could talk to the goblins? I can't imagine they'd be happy to be dragged off and ritually murdered by lunatics and rotting corpses... they might be willing to work with us against the enemy." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Birds, right. Ought to shoot as many down as we can before they move on. Might be the best we've got to eat for a while. " Sieghard said. " It's probably all scattered for where there's still things growing. "

" Not like we have much choice about it, " he told Gavril bluntly, " We tighten our belts and add to our stores in any way we can, and make what we have last. "

 
 Spoiler 
Sieghard is probably going to remain in Painford at least until Ludo returns, so here's some medium-term plans for what he'll be up to.
 
 The most immediately pressing issue is probably the livestock. They won't survive in Painford if they can't graze. We're not at the point of slaughtering them, so best to try to keep them alive until it comes to that. Assuming Ravenskird wasn't hit, moving the animals there is probably the best option. Unless the locusts ate the grass all the way down to the roots, google says new grass can grow long enough to mow (so probably enough for animals to eat) within about a month and a half to two months, so maybe they can be moved back in around that time. 
 Sieghard's two best contacts for trying to source food from elsewhere are probably Burhan and Leona Groz. He'll write (actually write) to them to inquire about getting that arranged. 
 He's sending out hunting parties while that's still an option. Birds are fine, but if they have to range far outside of Painford to find something to bring back, so be it. 
 Likewise, villagers who aren't adapt hunters and suddenly find themselves without crops to tend are going to take up fishing. 
 And of course, rationing. The proper food we have has to last. Anyone whose still hungry is welcome to some of Karolina's nettle soup. 
 
 
LCP
 26th Sigmarzeit 
 Ludo &amp; Jarla 

  "If I may, mio principe, can I suggest patrolling or piqueting it instead? If they're dragging goblins in from the Giant's Teeth, we might be able to make a difference just by cutting those off. The goblins are vulnerable right now - we killed their boss."  

“The Teeth are seventy miles of mountains,” said Sforza. “Is there some particular rat-hole to watch?”


  "I don't suppose we could talk to the goblins? I can't imagine they'd be happy to be dragged off and ritually murdered by lunatics and rotting corpses... they might be willing to work with us against the enemy."  

Sforza didn’t seem to dismiss the idea out of hand, though he seemed a fraction surprised that it was Jarla who had suggested it.

“Possible,” he said. “But it depends on finding one who’s willing to talk.”

He sighed, and rested his head against his hand.

“Patrols, goblin hunts… slow, slow, slow.” he said. “This needed an answer yesterday. But failing that, it would be better to have her hanging in the public square tomorrow.” He closed his hand into a fist. “What do I say, when the people ask why they have no food? This peasant woman is to blame? Why has she not been punished?  We’re working on it? ”

He looked up at Ludo. “You know, the old priest had another idea. He said the book we buried here is cursed, that it…” - he waved his hand vaguely, as if he had no patience for the details - “draws death to it.” The locust in the window chirruped loudly. “I know he has… not been himself, lately. But that doesn’t mean he was wrong.”

 Elsa 

“What, and just… fly out of here?” said Tattie. “What are  you  going to do? We have to give him something, right?”


 

 Bardhyl, 27th Sigmarzeit 

“Not me, if that’s what you’re driving at,” said Maglyn. She gestured at the dingy room around them. “Very complimentary, of course, but if I was handling his highness’ cash I think I’d get some nicer digs.”

She gave Bardhyl an appraising look. “What’s your angle here, Bardhyl? Looking for a cut of the Shade trade for yourself?” She raised her eyebrows. “That’s not going to make your life any easier when it comes to the Tileans. What are you planning?”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Bardhyl knows that Maglyn is a very transactional person - she’s probably not going to tell all she knows for free. A successful social skill test can help grease the wheels, but to get her to tell all she knows you’re going to need to convince her that there’s something in it for her.
 
LeSwordfish
 "The Teeth are seventy miles of mountains,” said Sforza. “Is there some particular rat-hole to watch?” 

 "None except the one we burned them out of,"  Ludo said.  "Though the Vrani might help. Their wise man takes the Jackal very seriously. If they didn't feel like they were being ordered they would probably do most of the work."

"If I might ask, what were you thinking to do with the book? If not keeping it here?"  He tried to ask the question lightly.
-Sentinel-
"What are  you  going to do? We have to give him something, right?"

Elsa sighed.  "Yeah. Or at least, we have to  pretend  we're working on giving him something." 

Could she stall Sforza until the next coup or revolution, or at least until he became reasonable again? She doubted it, but if nothing else, this presented an opportunity to obtain resources that might otherwise be denied to her. She sat down with a pen and parchment to write a message to her jailer.

 
 Spoiler: Letter 
 Sire,

I fear that my current knowledge of magic is rather limited in breadth—the Colleges favor specialists over generalists, and I am very much a product of this teaching philosophy. However, I do have a desire to expand that knowledge.

During my diplomatic visit of the Savonne castle under the northern coalition's occupation, it came to light that their second-to-last predecessor had a secret library of proscribed knowledge. It would seem that the owner of that library dabbled (or at least had an interest) in some of the more hazardous areas of magic. Aside from one of those tomes, which Janos Forkbeard assured me would be destroyed, I do not know what became of the other books, but I imagine most of them have not left the castle. They might open some avenues I have not considered yet. 
 


Elsa was not yet desperate enough to request the Book of Nagash for study, though that option was not entirely off the table.

She knocked on her door until a guard cracked it open, and slid the rolled-up parchment through the opening.  &lt;Get this to His Grace, if you please. Oh, and on your way back, can you grab a bottle of red for me? Much obliged.&gt; 
LCP
 26th Sigmarzeit 
 Ludo &amp; Jarla 

"Send it away from the city," said Sforza. "I could send it to one of the northern forts - Bunthafen, or Hartmut's Fall." He paused. "Or even to Magritta, by way of Barak Varr."

 Elsa 

There was no-one standing watch on the other side of the locked door. Elsa had to bang on it for quite a while before she drew anyone's attention. The guard took her letter with some reluctance, as if thinking it might turn into a frog.

Most of the day had passed by the time she received a response. The first she knew of it was the sound of the door being unlocked at the bottom of the stairwell. Three Iron Company men came in - two of them carried books stacked in wooden boxes from the kitchens, while the third just seemed to be there for moral support.

The soldiers carried the heavy boxes up the stairs, and set them down on the floor. There was no wine.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
If you can tell me what you're looking for in the books + give me an appropriate skill test, e.g. Academic Knowledge, that'll be better than me trying to come up with an exhaustive list of titles.
 
-Sentinel-
Elsa thanked the soldiers for the books, but was annoyed by the lack of wine. She began skimming Duke Wulf's dusty books for anything related to practical magic. She kept her expectations low; most laymen interested in magic tended to accumulate lots of worthless books written by charlatans, and her first task would be to separate the wheat from the chaff—if there  was  any wheat left.

Deep down, she knew she would most likely need to crack open the Book of Nagash before all was said and done.


 
 Spoiler 
From skimming the old threads, it appears that Wulf's interest was mostly in cheating death. Elsa doesn't have Academic Knowledge (Necromancy), so let's try  Academic Knowledge (Magic) . Elsa has little interest in any books of theory or philosophy; if a book doesn't contain instructions for a spell/ritual or a firsthand account of someone's experiences regarding magic, she's tossing it aside.

 Target 75:   (d100)[ 50 ] 
  Fortune:   (d100)[ 52 ]  

As I said above, my expectations are low. This library belonged to someone who, as far as we know, was not formally trained in magic.
 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 She gave Bardhyl an appraising look. “What’s your angle here, Bardhyl? Looking for a cut of the Shade trade for yourself?” She raised her eyebrows. “That’s not going to make your life any easier when it comes to the Tileans. What are you planning?”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Bardhyl knows that Maglyn is a very transactional person - she’s probably not going to tell all she knows for free. A successful social skill test can help grease the wheels, but to get her to tell all she knows you’re going to need to convince her that there’s something in it for her.
 
 
 

 Bardhyl returned Maglyn's appraising look with an impish grin.  "No plan as yet, dear lady, it's more a matter of thinking about the future,"  he chuckled.  "But let's suppose the Shade trade  were  up for grabs, or if some series of unfortunate events made it so, then  someone  would have to take matters in hand, wouldn't they? And maybe that someone could be a devilishly handsome hillman...and whatever reliable partners could be found to make things run smoothly here in Savonne?" 
 "Of course, maybe I'm barking up the wrong tree. It strikes me now that His Highness seems to be a  controlling  sort, and if there is indeed someone growing blood oak in Last Water, I find it difficult to countenance that he wouldn't know about it...which makes for  more  interesting questions. When No-Nose was running things here, Sforza wasn't, but now he sits on the throne with all the Reaches under his thumb - perhaps there is no intermediary anymore, eh? Or perhaps His Highness, mindful of the welfare of his people, has successfully suppressed the whole filthy business?"  he grinned at Maglyn.

 "Ah well, as you can plainly hear, I have more questions than plans at the moment, but I need answers before I can make any  real  plans,"  he finished.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Since Bardhyl's plans are both preliminary and dependent on finding out more about the current state of the Shade trade, it's difficult to make a concrete offer, so the best he can do for the moment is dangle some sort of partnership in front of Maglyn.

In the end, it doesn't have to be about controlling the drug trade, if Maglyn has ambitions of her own, Bardhyl might offer his support for that instead, but it's a bit early in the conversation to be talking about that in this post.

And of course, the entire conversation is ultimately about trying to find a financial weak spot in Sforza's regime that he can hit.

Charm test to soften up Maglyn  (1d100)[ 27 ]  vs. 78 (Fel 58, Charm +10, Streetwise +10)
FP re-roll if needed  (1d100)[ 37 ] 
 
LCP
 Elsa, 26th Sigmarzeit 

Sifting through the musty, dusty books took Elsa well into the hours of darkness, squinting by candlelight while Tattie roamed around the room like a caged animal. Giving her apprentice books to read wasn't the most productive use of time - her summaries of what they were about amounted to 'boring stuff', and 'I don't know, a bunch of words'. Eventually, she went back up to the roof. Locusts or no locusts, she seemed more at ease up there.

Among the books the soldiers had brought, books of magic were in the minority - outnumbered by a patchwork assortment of local chronicles, and other volumes that Elsa suspected had accumulated more by chance than any particular design. There was no sign of the copy of Gilbertus' book that Forkbeard had claimed destroyed - perhaps the old man had been telling the truth after all. There were still a few, though, which touched on the subjects Elsa was looking for. Even these few were far more than she would have expected to find in a nobleman's library in the Reikland... or at least, any nobleman not very certain of their friends in Sigmar's church.

 
 Spoiler: Books 
 Res Universi  was a slim, printed volume, purporting to be the translation into Classical of the works of ‘the learned Al-Khadir’. Its primary subject was alchemy, including a lengthy chapter on the various methods by which a learned alchemist could prolong the life of their mortal body. Some glancing reference was made to concepts of the body and soul in ‘that great kingdom that was lost’ - the learned Al-Khadir seemed quite intrigued in what the ancient priests of Nehekhara had believed regarding the paths to eternal life. Before he could delve into the subject of necromancy and Nagash, however, he turned aside –  for as Qassar teaches,  read the text,  there is no life to be found in dust. 
 Lux Tenebris  was quite a different affair - the hand-scribed account of a wandering Solkanite inquisitor, although Elsa suspected it was a copy rather than an original. The austere fanaticism of the author radiated from every word, but in between the denunciations of mutants and mages, she had found time to catalogue the various protective measures she had taken to ward herself from the sorcerers she claimed to have hunted. Elsa remembered the bundle of charms and amulets that Johannes Klammenberg had taken to wearing before his death. Could you hang a charm around a country?

The last book that caught her eye was untitled, and buried right at the bottom of the stack. Opening it, at first it seemed like little more than the discarded diary of a herbalist - but flicking through its brittle old pages, Elsa began to suspect this was the journal of a hedge wizard. Detailed anatomical sketches of birds and animals were ringed with phonetic scribblings that bore a tantalising similarity to Elsa’s own  lingua praestantia , accompanied by observations in a mixture of old-fashioned, eccentrically-spelt Reikspiel and some kind of shorthand or code. It had not been written for anyone but its author, and piecing out its purpose would be the work of more than one night’s reading, but one sentence in particular caught Elsa’s attention:  since only beestes draweth nere him, so the beestes must worke our wyll. 
 

 Bardhyl, 27th Sigmarzeit 

Maglyn cracked a crooked smile. "You're not afraid to dream big, eh?" she said. "You think His Nibs is running the trade, and you still want to cut yourself a slice?" She raised an eyebrow at him. "That'd be dangerous work, if you were right. Dangerous even if you were wrong."

She paused, mulling her options. "I'll tell you what anyone could," she said. "The Shade trade goes in and out by the docks. Whatever guild or gang rules the river, they get to be the big pig." She was watching Bardhyl carefully, taking note of his reactions. "Before the wars, that was the halfling, Greenapple. After that, was No-Nose… but he was a mad dog that ran off with the bone. Bad for business. You want to see who runs the docks  now , just look who's sitting in the old Greenapple house. 'Course, they've given it a new coat of paint. Calling it the  Peach ."

"You want my advice, Bardhyl - go careful. Madam Filomena, she's a hard case. Got a head on her shoulders, not like that brute Dragos. And, if you listen to gossip… they say her and His Highness are like that." She held up two crossed fingers. "If you listen to gossip."
LeSwordfish
Ludo nodded.  "The further away we send it, the less it's our problem. A shame that the knights of Morr didn't take it." 
-Sentinel-
 26th Sigmarzeit 


Elsa was quick to dismiss  Rex Universi  as pointless for her purposes.  Lux Tenebris  earned a couple of hours of her attention; it was doubtful that a non-wizard like that Solkanite inquisitor would know anything about anti-magic wards that the Colleges did not already know, but Elsa still took some notes, in case the author had indeed chanced upon some method of personal protection that was not reliant solely on luck or faith. It would be easy enough to test once she got enough time and resources.

The hedge wizard's journal seemed the most intriguing book, which made the opacity of its writing all the more frustrating. Elsa slowly spoke aloud some of the words that accompanied the animal sketches, trying to see if the Winds—especially  Ghur —thrummed at their sound. She also attempted to create a lexicon for some of the author's shorthand, drawing upon her experience translating Nehekharan with Father Hieronymus. In the end, however, she realized she was too tired to make more headway tonight.

She went to bed intensely frustrated—at the books, her imprisonment, Sforza's ridiculous expectations, everything.



 

 27th Sigmarzeit 


Elsa's next letter to Sforza, penned by the light of dawn, was shorter and less formal than the first.

 
 Spoiler: Letter 
 Sire,

Not much useful to be found in the Mad Duke's books.

However, I can read Nehekharan, the language of the Book of Nagash. 
 

 What am I doing?  she thought with dread, looking at the ink drying on the page.  Do I really want to read this abomination of a book? 

She told herself that no harm came from knowledge; only actions. After all, she had read up a lot on Chaos, even how to perform a daemon-summoning ritual, and yet had never thrown in her lot with the Dark Gods nor attempted a summon. Necromancy was much the same. One became a necromancer by raising the dead, not by reading about how to raise the dead.

 But why read about it, unless one intends to do it?

Ah well, Sforza will probably refuse anyway. No harm in asking. At least it'll show him how serious I am. 

She gave the parchment to the guard who came carrying breakfast. She refused her own half of the breakfast and asked the guard to take it back, telling him she was not hungry today. She then went back to trying to decipher the hedge wizard's journal. There was precious little else to do while awaiting Sforza's answer.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Would Read/Write help here? The skill description says a test can be made to "decipher obscure phraseology, archaic usage or unusual idioms".

Target 75:  (d100)[ 87 ] 
 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 Maglyn cracked a crooked smile. "You're not afraid to dream big, eh?" she said. "You think His Nibs is running the trade, and you still want to cut yourself a slice?" She raised an eyebrow at him. "That'd be dangerous work, if you were right. Dangerous even if you were wrong."

She paused, mulling her options. "I'll tell you what anyone could," she said. "The Shade trade goes in and out by the docks. Whatever guild or gang rules the river, they get to be the big pig." She was watching Bardhyl carefully, taking note of his reactions. "Before the wars, that was the halfling, Greenapple. After that, was No-Nose… but he was a mad dog that ran off with the bone. Bad for business. You want to see who runs the docks  now , just look who's sitting in the old Greenapple house. 'Course, they've given it a new coat of paint. Calling it the  Peach ."

"You want my advice, Bardhyl - go careful. Madam Filomena, she's a hard case. Got a head on her shoulders, not like that brute Dragos. And, if you listen to gossip… they say her and His Highness are like that." She held up two crossed fingers. "If you listen to gossip." 
 

  "If a man doesn't dream, he's got no future,"  Bardhyl responded with a chuckle.

 "If she came in with the Prince and she's in tight with him, then I'm thinking I may be right after all. His Nibs is running the show himself, albeit at arm's length. Cutting Madam Filomena out could work, but not if His Nibs were to take it...personally. A tricky business, to be sure..."  he mused, scratching his beard.

 "Well! You are a font of information as always, dear lady!"  he laughed suddenly and clapped his hands.  "Are you up for another trade? I hear there's a new crew in the Karst, making river travel most risky! A fellow they've dubbed 'The Ghost' is supposed to be leading them? I don't suppose you have any juicy gossip concerning this person?" 
LeSwordfish
 The Following Morning, 27th Sigmarzeit 
Ludo chose to keep to himself for an evening, watching the people of Savonne in horrified fascination as they dealt with the plague, and what it meant for the harvest to come. In the morning, he chose to find Hieronymous, and spoke to him both about how he personally was dealing with the locusts, and about the suggestion Sforza had made, what seemed like a long time ago, that Hieronymous leave the city.
 
"I was hoping to offer you a place in Painford,"  he said,  "but given the direction these creatures came from, things could be very rough there. You'd still be welcome but might not find much of a quality of life. Frankly, I suspect Sforza will forget about it, given everything that's happened."

"I also wanted to speak to you about a... Father, does Verena offer her miracles to priests like yourself and Adelbert, or might she offer them to anyone who asked?" 
RossN
 Jarla

26th Sigmarzeit 

When she could Jarla slipped away to deliver the letter to Barbaro. Then she retired to her own chambers, deeply looking forward to spending some alone time with herself.

 27th Sigmarzeit  

The following morning Jarla took a long time picking out her clothes and having Ida work her hair into something more befitting a noblewoman. Then she had a basket packed with some bread and wine departed to pay a visit to Elsa. Though visit was perhaps an overgenerous word as she discovered coming face to face with the locked door. At least there weren't any guards present. With a rueful look at Ida, still carrying the basket, Jarla knocked on the door.

 "Elsa, can you hear me? I've brought some food but the doors locked. I'll find a guard, but do you need anything? Or Tattie?" 
-Sentinel-
 Elsa and Jarla 
 "Oh... That's very kind of you, Jarla,"  said Elsa's muffled voice through the door.  "Just leave it here and let's hope no one steals it. As for what I need... could you get a message to Olga in Putbad? Spoken, not written, I don't think she can read. I want her back here as soon as possible. I could use someone to stand by my door and carry my messages. Someone under my employ, not Sforza's." 

Assuming Sforza would actually allow it, of course. That was a big  if .

 "Let her know I'm sorry this isn't the most exciting bodyguard assignment, but there are only a few people I trust, and most of them are busy." 
LCP
 26th Sigmarzeit 
 Ludo &amp; Jarla 

  "The further away we send it, the less it's our problem. A shame that the knights of Morr didn't take it."  

Sforza muttered something about the knights of Morr under his breath. Ludo’s grasp of Tilean didn’t quite extend to some of the terms he used, but he suspected they weren’t complimentary.

“I’ll think on what we’ve discussed,” he said, after a short pause. He gave Ludo and Jarla a curt nod of his head. “You may go.”

 Jarla 

Barbaro received Jarla much more politely than the Prince. She’d never had that much cause to seek him out, but the old priest was probably the friendliest Tilean in Sforza’s court, even if his eyes did seem to wander sometimes.

“Very interesting,” he said, when he had read Carraciolo’s letter. “You know, I was thinking it might be pleasant to get out of the city for a while. Things are getting a bit… tense, aren’t they?” He gave a nervous smile. “You’ve just come from Al... from Castel d’Irena, then? How was it there?”


 

 27th Sigmarzeit 
 Bardhyl 

“Another trade?” said Maglyn. “And what are you trading this time? You know there’s only so many stakes in your big dreams you can sell.”

She shrugged. “Only one thing I really know about that anyway, and it’s what I already told you. The Shade trade goes in  and out  by the docks. Fetches a lot more up north, from what I heard.” Opening a drawer in her desk, she pulled out a walnut and cracked it. “Who this Ghost is, I don’t know any better than you - but the question  I’d  be asking is, what was on those boats that got hit?”

 Ludo 

Hieronymus was at home, and received Ludo as hospitably as he could, though the place still looked a bit scorched. Euthymius was flitting about the bookshelves, picking off stray locusts that had found their way inside.

“That’s a very kind offer,” he said, when Ludo raised the subject of coming to Painford. “Truth be told, I’m not sure things will be much better here. Savonne has a lot of mouths to feed.”

He sighed. “It’s strange. This city, the Temple… they’ve been my life, really. But after everything that’s happened, it does feel like I can’t go back. Or that if I do, it won’t be to the same place. You can’t step in the same river twice, isn’t that the phrase?” Euthymius flew down to perch on the back of his chair, showing off the still-kicking locust caught in his beak. Hieronymus absent-mindedly reached up to scratch him behind the head. “I’m sure the Abbot will do a fine job managing things. Probably better than I did, to tell the truth. But leaving this place…” He looked around the room, so full of everything he’d accumulated over his long career. “I mean, what would happen to my books?”


  "I also wanted to speak to you about a... Father, does Verena offer her miracles to priests like yourself and Adelbert, or might she offer them to anyone who asked?"  

“Ah! A question of theology,” said Hieronymus. He seemed much happier on this more abstract subject. “I think most people would say a god is a god. If our lady of wisdom wishes to intercede in mortal affairs, she can do so as she wishes. We priests just spend more time than most learning how to ask - and how to hear the answers.”

 Elsa &amp; Jarla 

Elsa could make neither head nor tail of whatever shorthand the author of the journal had invented for themself. She’d filled a sheet of parchment with failed hypotheses by the time she heard Jarla knocking at the bottom of the stairs. When Tattie heard her voice, she was up and down the stairs to answer without being asked.

“What did you bring?” she called back, bending down to squint through the keyhole. “Is there any cake?”

In the time it took Jarla to find someone who could let her in, two more Iron Company men appeared, with the look of men on a mission. They unlocked the door, and Elsa found herself looking at the same man she’d given her note to earlier that morning.

“The Prince is holding council in the council chamber,” he said. “He asks that you come.”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Up to Jarla whether she wants to tag along or not.
 
-Sentinel-
"The Prince is holding council in the council chamber. He asks that you come."

 So... am I a prisoner, or am I an advisor?  almost asked Elsa, her face clouding with annoyance. But the soldier was not who she should take her anger out on. As long as she was locked in this tower, it was important to remain on cordial terms with the men of the Iron Company, as they could easily 'forget' to deliver food or messages if she got peevish with them.

She gave a nod.  "I'll be there in a moment. Thank you, Giacobbe." 

Elsa quickly grabbed Jarla's gift basket and put it out of sight before the soldiers could closely examine its contents. She then put on her fancy black-and-gold robes—the court wizard attire, the one that said that she was Magister Elsabeth Holt, not just Elsa.
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  27th Sigmarzeit 

“Another trade?” said Maglyn. “And what are you trading this time? You know there’s only so many stakes in your big dreams you can sell.”

She shrugged. “Only one thing I really know about that anyway, and it’s what I already told you. The Shade trade goes in  and out  by the docks. Fetches a lot more up north, from what I heard.” Opening a drawer in her desk, she pulled out a walnut and cracked it. “Who this Ghost is, I don’t know any better than you - but the question  I’d  be asking is, what was on those boats that got hit?” 
 

  "I had a feeling you'd say that,"  Bardhyl replied with a smile to Maglyn's point that Crimson Shade fetched a higher price up north.

 "As for what's on the boats that the Ghost is taking, if it were His Highness' Shade, I'd expect to have seen more action from him than anything I've heard of,"  he reasoned out loud.  "Sandu said that three boats had been taken since the coronation, and the last one had the Guilders in Putbad muster some men to try and run the wreckers down. I suppose I could ask around down at the docks, or head up to Putbad myself...unless, of course, you happen to be sitting on that particular information? And what will it cost me if you do?" 
LeSwordfish
Ludo shook his head.  "I'm sorry, I don't know. Perhaps you could loan them to the temple?" 

 “Ah! A question of theology,” said Hieronymus. He seemed much happier on this more abstract subject. “I think most people would say a god is a god. If our lady of wisdom wishes to intercede in mortal affairs, she can do so as she wishes. We priests just spend more time than most learning how to ask - and how to hear the answers.” 

Ludo nodded thoughtfully.  "I think... I think I asked correctly." 

Ludo gave Hieronymous a brief summary of the events on the Giant's teeth, including their mission, the rescue of Wadim, and what they'd seen in the smoke of the mushrooms. He told the latter with a certain difficulty meeting Hieronymous' eye - he couldn't help suspect the old priest wouldn't approve, though felt he should know. He then described Tatiana's identification of Tshula, and the Exorcism that Wadim had performed.

 "I asked Verena for help, and held Adelbert's pendant,"  he said.  "She was burning, but... when I asked Verena for help, the flames went out. Verena protected me, she answered my prayer."

"Halflings... we don't observe, really, aside from Esmerelda and the Ranaldites. So I don't know... how should I thank her?"  This was uncomfortable to ask, somehow.
RossN
 Jarla 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  26th Sigmarzeit 


Barbaro received Jarla much more politely than the Prince. She’d never had that much cause to seek him out, but the old priest was probably the friendliest Tilean in Sforza’s court, even if his eyes did seem to wander sometimes.

“Very interesting,” he said, when he had read Carraciolo’s letter. “You know, I was thinking it might be pleasant to get out of the city for a while. Things are getting a bit… tense, aren’t they?” He gave a nervous smile. “You’ve just come from Al... from Castel d’Irena, then? How was it there?” 
 

 "Other than the vandalism not bad,"  Jarla admitted, then gave a rueful laugh.  "Assuming the locusts haven't been there too. I agree things are less than ideal here though. As you say... tense." 

She looked at the priest curiously. Truthfully she'd never had much time for Myrmidia but she didn't mind the goddesses representative in the Reaches.  "I'd consider moving to Alvarran too if I could find a way to make a career out of it. Unfortunately the only things I can do are handle a sword, ride a horse and act." 

With a sigh she tipped her hat and departed.


 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Elsa &amp; Jarla 

Elsa could make neither head nor tail of whatever shorthand the author of the journal had invented for themself. She’d filled a sheet of parchment with failed hypotheses by the time she heard Jarla knocking at the bottom of the stairs. When Tattie heard her voice, she was up and down the stairs to answer without being asked.

“What did you bring?” she called back, bending down to squint through the keyhole. “Is there any cake?”

In the time it took Jarla to find someone who could let her in, two more Iron Company men appeared, with the look of men on a mission. They unlocked the door, and Elsa found herself looking at the same man she’d given her note to earlier that morning.

“The Prince is holding council in the council chamber,” he said. “He asks that you come.” 
 

Jarla had been considering how she might get word to Olga when the Prince's men arrived and summoned the wizardess to council. Jarla thankfully was already in suitable attire so she simply nodded to Ida to fall in with her as they joined Elsa on the walk to see Sforza.
LCP
 Elsa &amp; Jarla 

The corridors outside the council chamber were busy with servants and soldiers passing to and fro - but inside, it was very quiet. There were four figures seated around the table - Sforza, Irene, Barbaro &amp; Al-Makir.

“Holt,” said the Prince, as Elsa and Jarla entered. “Take a seat.”

Irene turned her head as Jarla sat down also. “Nice to see you, Jarla,” she said, quietly. There was an edge to her tone that Jarla didn’t like at all. “Where is it you’ve been? Somewhere fun, I hope.”

Thankfully, there was no time for her questions, as her husband began to speak. "Before we begin," said Sforza, "all of you must know that what we say here is in the strictest confidence. Not one word is to leave this room." He looked around, his gaze lingering particularly on Elsa. "Is that understood?"

" Assolutamente, " said Barbaro. Al-Makir just nodded. Jarla thought he looked exhausted.

"Good," said the Prince. "Then we begin. Abdul - can you tell us where we stand, with respect to the harvest?"

"That is… a difficult question to answer, your Highness," said Al-Makir. "The locusts may have left Savonne behind, but we must assume the swarm is still moving north. How much more damage it will do will depend on how far it can travel." His voice was a little hoarse; he coughed to clear his throat. "I sent my boy Salih up the path to the Rock to try to estimate its size. He said it appeared to stretch ten miles from side to side. If it follows the path of the river, that would cover almost all the best farmland we have left in the Downs. And if it crosses the Karst, we could expect significant damage to the yields we had hoped for from the Uplands."

He had a stack of ledgers and letters with him, which he now sifted through to find the appropriate piece of paper. "I have some early reports from the Vale, which may be where the damage will be worst. Apparently the things could be seen and heard in the fields near Manann's Keep for some days before they took flight. The farmers there had already complained to your steward Herr Sussmann of vermin emerging from the Dead Hills. The Vale has had the most rain of anywhere in the Reaches. If we've lost that harvest, it will be very serious indeed."

"It's still spring," said Irene. "Can't they just plant more?"

"In good times… perhaps," said Al-Makir, very diplomatically. "But with how poor the last harvest was, most of the seed grain is used up. I'm afraid that even if they had the time and water to grow, there is simply nothing to plant."

"Well then they should buy more," said Irene, still not responding to Abdul's grave tone. "How much can  seed  cost?"

"Too much," said Al-Makir. "The trade from the north is strong, but their grain merchants know how weak our position is. The more we ask for, the higher their price. The crown  could  purchase more. Perhaps enough to make some difference, if we gave it away as alms. But the treasury is already under some strain.” He looked to Sforza. “And these merchants have lords of their own. At some point, we would simply be selling the Reaches to new ownership.”

A heavy silence greeted those words.

“If… that is not an option we want to consider,” said Al-Makir at last, “there is not much else we can do.” He clasped his hands on the table in front of him. “I think we are not just speaking of another hard year… we are speaking of famine. People will starve. Not just the beggars, the poor and the sick - people with homes, money, land.” He paused again. “With the records we have available, it's impossible to be precise… but south of the pass, I believe there may be enough food for only three in five.”

" Sancta Myrmidia ," muttered Barbaro. "How - how many dead is that?"

With a curt motion of his hand, Sforza dismissed the question. Al-Makir nodded to Barbaro.

" Sancta Myrmidia  indeed, my friend. Any miracles she can provide would be most appreciated." He wearily sat back in his chair. "Myself, I think I have run out "

"We prayed to the gods for rain, and we received locusts instead," said Sforza. "I think we can take it that no miracles are coming. At least, none we don't make ourselves."

His attention turned back to Elsa. Elsa now saw that her note was lying folded up on the table in front of him.

"Holt," he said. "I tasked you with finding a magical solution to our problems. Now, I'm told, you want to open the Book." All eyes turned to her. "You've always told us before that this thing was too dangerous to even touch. What has changed?" Sforza scrutinised her with a careful eye. "And what are you hoping to find?"

 Ludo 

"That is fascinating," said Hieronymus, who had listened to the story with rapt attention. "I'm very sorry for your friend - I had hoped we'd seen the back of that creature. Your ah, friends the hillfolk, though, they sound very interesting indeed. It's a shame the Temple has been on such… unfriendly terms with them, historically."

"As for thanks… well, I could suggest a number of prayers to say, a number of offerings to give. But I think the more meaningful thanks would be to honour Verena in the way you live. Seek out wisdom. Protect learning. Uphold justice." He gave Ludo a faint smile. "You know. That sort of thing."

 Bardhyl 

"I'm afraid I'm not," said Maglyn. "But if I do come by it, I can let you know." She cracked another smile. "For a reasonable price."
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 “If… that is not an option we want to consider,” said Al-Makir at last, “there is not much else we can do.” He clasped his hands on the table in front of him. “I think we are not just speaking of another hard year… we are speaking of famine. People will starve. Not just the beggars, the poor and the sick - people with homes, money, land.” He paused again. “With the records we have available, it's impossible to be precise… but south of the pass, I believe there may be enough food for only three in five.” 
 

 Three in five. 

Elsa's mouth was dry. Could civilization even sustain itself in the face of so much death? Sforza's rule hung in the balance, yet she was not sure if the Prince and his wife realized it; they probably thought that famine only meant fewer taxpayers and prospective soldiers, which would thwart their plans for more military campaigns or fashionable dresses. Lady Irene's comments, in particular, spoke of such phenomenal ignorance that Elsa wondered why in Sigmar's name she had even been invited to this council, instead of (say) 'Prince' Reinholt.

 "Not my area of expertise,"  she said slowly,  "but livestock will die too. We'll need to cure the meat before it rots. That means we must import a lot of salt."  She wished she had a way to send this insight to Suzana, but knowing the merchant, she had probably come to that conclusion on her own.  "Before all is said and done, we'll be eating many of the horses, too." 

 "Holt," he said. "I tasked you with finding a magical solution to our problems. Now, I'm told, you want to open the Book." All eyes turned to her. "You've always told us before that this thing was too dangerous to even touch. What has changed?" 

 Seriously?  thought Elsa in disbelief.  Well, until yesterday, I wasn't a prisoner. That's one thing that has changed. 

She inhaled.  "Fire magic doesn't provide food and water. In fact, it does the opposite. So I must look to other kinds of magic. To be quite honest, I don't have very high hopes that the Book can save us, either—it was written by the sworn enemy of all that draws breath. But perhaps it  can  help us understand what we're dealing with." 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla's thoughts had been on Irene's comments but the sheer starkness of the situation drove them from her head.

She looked across at Al-Makir, feeling as desperate as he looked. She listened to Sforza make what she suspected was an impossible demand of his court wizardess.

 "Your highness if the situation is so desperate we'll need to introduce strict rationing, ourselves included. The people will be unhappy but if they see the court is suffering hardship too they'll be more inclined to bare it."  

She didn't dare look at Irene's expression as she spoke.

 "I am no soldier but it seems to me we are essentially in a siege and will have to act like it."  
LCP
 Elsa &amp; Jarla 

  "Not my area of expertise,"  she said slowly,  "but livestock will die too. We'll need to cure the meat before it rots. That means we must import a lot of salt."  She wished she had a way to send this insight to Suzana, but knowing the merchant, she had probably come to that conclusion on her own.  "Before all is said and done, we'll be eating many of the horses, too."  

"Salt is expensive this far from the sea," said Al-Makir. "But there should still be plenty of fuel for the smokehouses. And I'm sure the slaughterhouses will be busy too. The herdsmen know how many mouths they can afford to feed."


  "Your highness if the situation is so desperate we'll need to introduce strict rationing, ourselves included. The people will be unhappy but if they see the court is suffering hardship too they'll be more inclined to bare it."  

She didn't dare look at Irene's expression as she spoke.

 "I am no soldier but it seems to me we are essentially in a siege and will have to act like it."   

Barbaro furrowed his brow. "You mean... for the city? But that's... well, thousands of people."

"The thing about a siege is that you can see your enemy," said Sforza. He shook his head. "We're about to have a lot of hungry, desperate people on our hands. I won't stretch our soldiers thin robbing Filipo to feed Francesco."

"Nevertheless," said Al-Makir, "the lady Schreiber has a point. We have a fortress  here  that we can control. The castle has dozens of servants, hundreds of soldiers. We need to lay in stores and make them last." The subtext was clear -  no more balls .


  "Fire magic doesn't provide food and water. In fact, it does the opposite. So I must look to other kinds of magic. To be quite honest, I don't have very high hopes that the Book can save us, either—it was written by the sworn enemy of all that draws breath. But perhaps it  can  help us understand what we're dealing with."  

Silence reigned over the table. Each of Sforza's councillors was waiting to see what the others would say. At last, Barbaro cleared his throat to speak.

"One might think... that is to say, ah... if pyromancy is not suitable to our problem, then surely necromancy is even less so?

Sforza's eyes hadn't left Elsa's. "You think there is a spell in that book that called the locusts?" he said. "Is that what you're saying?"

"I've heard a different suggestion about this book," he said. "From Father Hieronymus, some time ago. He said it was poisoning the very ground it was buried in. That it... drew death to it." He gave a vague wave of his hand, as if having to talk in such mystical terms irritated him. "Is that possible? That the book itself has cursed us?"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I'm assuming that the logistics talk is happening in the back-and-forth of the conversation before they get to the subject of whether it's time to bust out the book.

You can tackle the conversation in whatever way you want, and don't need to rush right to this point, but I'll tell you now - you can tell from Sforza's tone and expression that he's going to need serious convincing to let Elsa read the book. Right now I'd say a Charm test at -30, unless you can find an argument that appeals to him more.
 
-Sentinel-
 "You think there is a spell in that book that called the locusts? Is that what you're saying?" 

 "I'm saying it's the same kind of magic,"  said Elsa,  "not necessarily that this specific curse can be found in the Book. Obviously, the scourge of locusts can't be undone, but if we know our enemy and their tools, we can be better prepared." 

Now that she was saying it aloud, she was keenly aware of how weak that sounded. Here they were, discussing the  current  crisis, and all she could offer was a vague suggestion that she might help anticipate hypothetical ones.

 "About the crops, I'm afraid pyromancy can do nothing, sire. I didn't go to the College of Life. My magic is limited to what I've studied, and that's why I must study more before I can say for sure what can or cannot be done. I don't think any great harm will come from merely trying to see what options are on the table." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Yeah, I freely admit Elsa's arguments aren't that great, so -30 is reasonable. Elsa's base Charm is 59. I presume Etiquette doesn't apply in very serious matters such as this one.

Target 29:  (d100)[ 75 ] 
Fortune:  (d100)[ 8 ] 
 Edit:  Heh. Part of me was almost hoping I'd fail. 😛 😦
 


 "I've heard a different suggestion about this book," he said. "From Father Hieronymus, some time ago. He said it was poisoning the very ground it was buried in. That it... drew death to it." He gave a vague wave of his hand, as if having to talk in such mystical terms irritated him. "Is that possible? That the book itself has cursed us?" 

Elsa considered the question for a moment. The truth was more complex than the Book 'drawing' death to it (whatever that meant), but it  was  undeniably true that wherever the Book had gone in its long history, death had followed.

 "Some of the places that once held the Book do have a history of... not existing anymore,"  she allowed.  "It's likely that the Book was first kept at Nahorek's former seat of power, Nirmesh-Khul, which now lies in the Pale Waste. Then it went to Kheneb-Ptra-Urush; now the place is a fetid swamp. Then someone took it to Nath; and you've seen Nath and its surroundings. I used to think Savonne was the best place to protect the Book, with its walls and temple, but perhaps it  would  be wiser to keep it someplace that's already desolate." 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "I'm afraid I'm not," said Maglyn. "But if I do come by it, I can let you know." She cracked another smile. "For a reasonable price." 
 

  "I can feel the silver slipping through my fingers already,"  Bardhyl chuckled.

 "Thank you, dear lady, this visit has been illuminating. Until next time,"  he bade Maglyn farewell with a sweeping bow.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
I'm considering having Bardhyl shop around for information concerning the pirated ships and their cargo next - see my question about how to do it in the OOC thread.

If Savonne isn't the place to ask these questions, Bardhyl's next move will be to go and see Hieronymous - assuming it's not too late in the day already.
 
LCP
 Elsa &amp; Jarla 

Barbaro nodded. "Mm, not to mention the place you found it, no?" He looked around to see if Sforza remembered. "The library? Things didn't work out too well for them."

Sforza was quiet. Elsa could tell he was considering what she had said with care.

"Your Highness," said Al-Makir, leaning forward to intervene, "you cannot be considering this." His tone, usually so soft and patient, was unusually sharp. "We all know the first place that was blighted by these books. The Land of the Dead is one thousand miles of desert, from Bel Aliad to the mountains. Nothing that walks its sands breathes. Its great river is blood. I will not speak the name of the one who made it so, but his name is cursed wherever men remember him." There was real anger - or fear, perhaps - in his words. In the Empire, the fashionable view had always been to see the southern nations as soft and decadent, removed as they were from the hordes of the north - but in Araby, of course, there were other evils closer to home. "Nothing good can come from reading the words he wrote."

"'Nothing good' is where we already stand, Abdul," said Sforza, in a measured tone. "This book may be bringing its evil on us whether we read it or not. Surely the best we can do is understand." Al-Makir looked far from happy with that answer. "But not here," the Prince continued. "If this is to be done, it should be done far away from people."

Jarla thought she saw him glance at Irene, and Irene glance back. For just a moment, something seemed to make Irene uncomfortable.

"If we believe the book is behind this, then we should destroy it!" Al-Makir persisted. "Your Highness, you - we held onto this thing because we thought it had value, to the Cult of Morr, to the Cult of Myrmidia. How would they look upon us, knowing we had used it?"

Barbaro mumbled something that gave the impression of offering an opinion without really forming any words...

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I'm not sure whether Elsa has heard the name Nirmesh-Khul IC? Might be forgetting.
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla nodded at Al-Makir's words and looked over at Elsa:  " Could  your fire magic  destroy  the book Elsa? I know you are powerful." 
-Sentinel-
 "I tried to destroy it with magical fire once,"  answered Elsa.  "The Book was unharmed and it lashed back at me. Could've killed me." 

She paused for a moment, thoughtful.  "The spell I used was a weak one, though. Perhaps ritual magic  could  destroy the Book, or at least keep its power confined. Yes, that's something I could work on." 

She was relieved that Sforza and Al-Makir actually took the Book seriously, even though they did not believe her when it came to Nahorek.


 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Elsa did mention that her hopes in the Book were low, so she won't argue too much if there's a lot of opposition to reading it. Her request to read the Book was largely motivated by Sforza imprisoning her until she came up with  something, anything . If that  something, anything  can be instead the creation of a Book-destroying ritual, she'll take it.



 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 I'm not sure whether Elsa has heard the name Nirmesh-Khul IC? Might be forgetting. 
 

Meskhenet mentioned it when Sforza spoke with her during the siege of Nath.
 
rax
His business with Maglyn concluded, Bardhyl headed for the docks to see what information he could pick up about the three boats taken by 'the Ghost' and what cargo they had been carrying.

A long afternoon of chitchat, drinking and outright bribery lay ahead of him...
LCP
 Elsa &amp; Jarla 

Al-Makir looked relieved too. Barbaro stroked his beard and nodded.

"So you tried fire, and nothing else?" Irene asked, with languid disdain. "Your imagination knows no bounds, does it Holt?"

"I am no wizard," said Barbaro, "but I can certainly imagine that trying to undo the work of the Great Necromancer could be, ah, very dangerous." He paused. "If it were possible, though... we have been asking what the gods want of us. Destroying it ourselves might not have the, um,  earthly  rewards of giving it to the keeping of the Archecclesiastum, but, as an offering to please Myrmidia herself..." He trailed off, and put his hand to the eagle pendant he wore around his neck. "Does the  Bellona Myrmidia  not tell us, the goddess helps those who help themselves?"

Sforza arched a skeptical eyebrow at him. "Does it?"

"It's in there somewhere," Barbaro promised.

Sforza's attention returned to Elsa. "If this is to be attempted, it needs to be done somewhere far from here. Far from anywhere of value. Then, at least, we will have taken the cursed thing away from where it can do the most damage." He looked around the table. "Suggestions?"

"There are the fortresses in the north," said Barbaro. "Bunthafen and, er, Hartimut's Fall. Thick walls, strong doors - not near towns of any size."

"But much nearer where we may still have any crops," said Al-Makir. "If the gods are merciful."

"Well, what about the land that is already wasted? If this swarm began in Manann's Keep."

Al-Makir still looked unconvinced. "We must think of next year's harvest as well," he said.

"What about that village where everyone died?" asked Irene, staring Elsa down from across the table. "Caerfort. They're not growing anything  there ."

 Bardhyl 

The docks of Savonne were busy and loud, but Bardhyl knew his way around. Skirting his way around the guards and the patrons going to and from Filomena's new establishments, he spoke to the stevedores and the boatmen, and the beggars on the street corners. It took a while to turn anyone's topic of conversation away from the locusts, but when he did, he found what he was looking for.

The three boats that had been lost were called the  Rockhopper , the  Mere-Maid  and the  Clarabell . A fourth could now be added to that number - the  Gudgeon , a small vessel that had failed to make its rendezvous in the pool of Putbad around a week ago.

The  Mere-Maid  was the largest of the vessels that had been lost - it had been bound south for Savonne with a cargo of grain and oil. The  Clarabell  had been lost going in the same direction, laden down with beer from Putbad. Some of the dockworkers suggested that the 'Ghost' might be a convenient excuse for a riverboat captain who wrecked his ship on the Knives, now that the river was so low - and that his knack for vanishing when the guilders went looking for him might be down to his non-existence.

The  Rockhopper  and the  Gudgeon  were lighter vessels, closer to old Sandu's  Green Dragon . Their captains' custom was to keep their cargo private, but 'everyone knew' apparently that the captain of the  Rockhopper  - a woman by the name of Agi - had regular business with the Dwimmulsons. The  Rockhopper  had been lost going upriver; the  Gudgeon  coming back down. One man said that he'd heard the  Gudgeon 's crew had washed up in Selsan, but nothing had been seen of Agi or her people since the  Rockhopper  was lost.
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "What about that village where everyone died?" asked Irene, staring Elsa down from across the table. "Caerfort. They're not growing anything  there ." 
 

Elsa was loath to agree with Irene, but nevertheless she granted:  "Caerfort is worth consideration. Suitably isolated from the green lands. But it sits right on our only link between Last Water and the Vale. That means a lot of travelers who'll be wondering what we're guarding in that place." 

Also, it was likely that new people had settled Caerfort by now, and Elsa hated to be a party to a mass eviction if she could avoid it.

 "Another possibility would be the ruins of Harmugstahl. They go deep underground. They're closer to our military resources. They're on a road that hardly anyone uses anymore, so people with bad intentions can't easily pretend to just be travelers. And since it was built by wizards, it may well have some kind of magically warded room or sanctum... I've been there once, but I didn't explore the whole place." 

Another thought occurred to her:  "We could also ask the Dwimmulsons if the dwarfs have some abandoned fortress or mine that isn't on any of our maps." 
LCP
 Elsa &amp; Jarla 

Al-Makir and Barbaro looked blank at the mention of Harmugstahl. Sforza at least remembered; unrolling his map of the Reaches, he showed them where it was.

"Still rather close to the fields around Jaardorf," said Al-Makir, dubiously. "But very off the beaten trail, I'll give you that."


  "We could also ask the Dwimmulsons if the dwarfs have some abandoned fortress or mine that isn't on any of our maps."  

"The dwarfs may have... strong opinions about what should or shouldn't be done here," said Barbaro. "As may the priests of the Temple, for that matter. I think we should be careful in how we broach this to them."

"We don't  have  to tell them anything," said Irene. "We found this thing, didn't we? It's ours, not theirs."
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "Still rather close to the fields around Jaardorf," said Al-Makir, dubiously. "But very off the beaten trail, I'll give you that." 
 

 "We wouldn't need to keep it there more than a few months,"  Elsa assured him.  "Only until I can create a ritual to rid us of it." 

 "We don't  have  to tell them anything," said Irene. "We found this thing, didn't we? It's ours, not theirs." 

 Oh,  we  found this thing? I'm the only person in this room who had a part in finding this thing,  Elsa bit back.

 "This isn't just about the Book,"  she said, addressing not just Irene but everyone else.  "It's about the future of the Reaches. Going back millennia, this Book has changed hands many times, but it's always been  here , in this tiny land just forty leagues across. Father Hieronymus speculates that the Book is somehow bound to this land, and I think he may be right."

"To destroy the Book is to change the destiny of the Reaches forever. And the dwarfs have been here far longer than we have; they deserve to know what we're doing." 
LCP
 Elsa &amp; Jarla 

Elsa could see from Sforza's face that this line of argument didn't move him.

"I am the Prince of the Reaches," he said. "I decide their destiny. Whether the dwarfs like it or not, the sooner they understand that, the better."

"But... perhaps it would still be best not to offend them," said Al-Makir. "Given the loans the crown has taken out."

Sforza batted that detail aside with an irritated flick of his hand. "I'm not saying we can't tell them what we're doing," he said. "I'm saying,  we  decide. They can help, or they can get out of the way. The same goes for the priests."

He sat up straighter in his chair. "In any case, these are details. It seems to be we're in agreement what's to be done with this book, yes?" He looked around, but none of his councillors contradicted him. "We will make the arrangements, and pray to the gods that Holt and the old priest are right. Abdul, I trust you can assess the best place to keep it safe."

Al-Makir nodded obediently.

"In the meantime," said Sforza, "we have to deal with the matter at hand. The crops these things have eaten are not coming back." He had a look in his eye that Jarla hadn't seen before, but that Elsa thought she recognised from the days of the campaign trail - the look of a man sizing up a bill that could only be paid in bodies. "We keep the army fed at all costs. I want orders sent to each of my stewards and lords-lieutenant, to secure stocks of provisions for their troops fit to last until next spring, and keep them under a strong guard. Their purchases are to be paid for, but if the locals will not sell, they have my authority to use force."

He paused, still thinking as he went. His words, when they came, were slow and considered. "The people will be angry, of course. Let's give them someone to be angry at. Start with the thieves - any man who steals from his neighbour to be hanged in the public square. And call back the priests - I want a tribunal established to root out these idiots who still honour the Jackal's ghost. Let the people hear it loud and clear that there are those among them who have brought down the anger of the gods with their blasphemy, and let them see that the crown stands on the side of order and righteousness."

"And the question of rationing, here in the castle?" asked Al-Makir.

"You know the situation best, Abdul. If that's what we need, then that's what we do." Al-Makir nodded. "But squeeze the servants' shares before the Iron Company. If there's one rock we hold onto in this river, it's to keep our soldiers on our side."

Sforza looked around the table. "Any questions? Or are your duties clear?"

Barbaro nodded. "Entirely,  mio principe ."

Al-Makir shuffled his papers. "I think I have everything I need."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
If Elsa has a strong preference for the location of the book's new research station, I suggest she expresses it either here or to Al-Makir shortly afterwards. Otherwise he'll go off and decide for himself.
 
RossN
 Jarla 
 "Perhaps in addition to the thieves we could send a diplomatic mission Highness?"  Jarla speaks up as the conversation returns to non-magical matters.  "We could send a large delegation to Barak Varr or the Empire or to another principality or to Lustria for all I care. The destination doesn't matter. The point is it would save us a few mouths to feed here while also temporarily removing any local notables who might cause trouble when their larders run bare." 
-Sentinel-
 So this is where we've come to,  thought Elsa.  Hanging people for stealing bread for their families. 

She could not imagine how Sforza thought such draconian measures would steer people's wrath away from him. More likely, it would make the families and friends of the hanged people even more resentful of his rule. But she knew that nothing she said would make a difference. Sforza was a man who equated mercy with weakness, and there was no changing this kind of mindset.

On the matter of the cult of the Jackal, however, she interjected:  "I don't think religious types are deterred by persecution, sire. Some of them even see it as vindication. Shouldn't we at least get some eyes and ears in their midst before we drive them underground? Get an idea of their mentality, and if they have any kind of leadership?" 
 OOC: 
 
 Spoiler 
Yes, Elsa will definitely want to talk to Al-Makir re: book.
 
LCP
 Elsa &amp; Jarla 

  "Perhaps in addition to the thieves we could send a diplomatic mission Highness?"  Jarla speaks up as the conversation returns to non-magical matters.  "We could send a large delegation to Barak Varr or the Empire or to another principality or to Lustria for all I care. The destination doesn't matter. The point is it would save us a few mouths to feed here while also temporarily removing any local notables who might cause trouble when their larders run bare."  

Al-Makir looked dubious. "A trade delegation would be a drop in the ocean," he said. "It's thousands of mouths that need feeding, not tens."

Sforza, however, was looking at Jarla with a keen eye. "Someone in particular you are thinking of?" he asked. "Someone who might cause trouble?"


  "I don't think religious types are deterred by persecution, sire. Some of them even see it as vindication. Shouldn't we at least get some eyes and ears in their midst before we drive them underground? Get an idea of their mentality, and if they have any kind of leadership?"  

An edge of frustration crept into Sforza's voice. "Do you think we should be treating these people as a  threat , Holt? Paupers hanging dogs' bones in their doorways and scratching jackals on walls? They're an opportunity. The opportunity to let the people blame someone they can see punished, and believe justice is being done."

"We  could  just tell them it's because of your book," Irene chimed in, her voice laden with false sympathy. "But then they might start asking difficult questions... like who brought it here."

"If Abdul's numbers are correct," said the Prince, "we're about to have a lot of desperate people on our hands. Desperate enough to do stupid things. We need that desperation directed at someone else."
-Sentinel-
 "Right. Of course,"  said Elsa, aghast at Sforza's shameless cynicism.

 Hey, why don't we roast undesirables and feed them to the people? Kill two birds with one stone,  she almost added.
rax
Information in hand, Bardhyl returned to  The Fat Fish  to confer with Grim and the rest of the crew.

 "I said before that my business is now war, but as you all know, the first thing when preparing for a job is to find out what targets are worth hitting and who we might upset when doing so. I've been wondering where Sforza is getting the cash too buy imported grain from, and according to Maglyn there's a good chance he's making at least some of it by controlling the Shade trade. They make it down in Last Water, ship it up to Savonne, and then the new dock boss - Filomena by name - makes sure it gets where it needs to go, which is north of the Reaches, where it gets sold. Maglyn says she and His Highness go way back, so he's as good as running the trade himself. Isn't that something!"  he chuckled.

 "Now, I was thinking that if we want to hurt the Prince, hitting him in his coin purse is a good place to start, not least because he's using a lot of the taxes he raises to build his new army. The less money he has to buy grain, the more he'll have to use taxes to do the same, which means less money for his army...or he raises taxes again, which will make a lot of people angry, which is a win for us. Of course, he could let people starve as well, but if he goes down that road, he's going to have even more angry people on his hands, including soldiers who have family here." 
 "The big problem, as I see it, is the damned locusts! Anywhere they've been, there won't be a crop left to harvest, which means the Reaches will  really  need whatever grain Sforza can afford to buy. So messing with his cash flow now might make things even worse than they are, and I'm not much in the mood for burning the Reaches down to save them from His Nibs..."  Bardhyl admitted.  "...Unless of course any of you clever clogs have any bright ideas?" 
 "There's also the issue that just our little group might not be able to make a big enough dent fast enough to make a difference, but if others in our noble profession were to help out, then maybe we can speed things up. I've been making inquiries about this new river pirate, 'the Ghost'. It seems he's hit four boats so far, but from what I've learned he hasn't exactly been taking boats with high value cargoes - grain, oil, and beer, that's what the two biggest boats were carrying. I don't know about you, but to me that sounds either like an amateur or someone who's more concerned with supplying his crew than making a big score." 
 "Of course, I could be wrong. No one admitted to knowing what the two smaller boats was carrying, but rumour has it that the crew of the  Gudgeon  washed up in Selsan afterwards. I'd sorely like to know if there's a true pattern to what 'the Ghost' has been taking, as well as getting a first hand account of his tactics and the size of his crew. Now, I have to see a priest about a book in the morning, but I'm thinking a couple of you could ride out to Selsan tomorrow and see if any of the  Gudgeon's  crew are still there. How about it, any volunteers?"  he asked his crew with a grin.
RossN
 Elsa &amp; Jarla 

As much as Jarla wanted to point at Irene and suggest the princepessa be the someone the Reaches could do without she could hardly do that and was forced to answer:  "No one at the moment highness but it is something we could keep in mind." 

Truthfully the current conversation about finding scapegoats was making her feel queasy. She had no doubts that if Sforza had been less successful at killing his mortal enemies he'd be clamouring for a proper war right now.
LCP
 Elsa &amp; Jarla 

  "No one at the moment highness but it is something we could keep in mind."  

The Prince held Jarla’s gaze for a moment or two longer, waiting to see if there was a name she was hesitating to speak. When none was forthcoming, he tapped his hand on the table and looked away.

“Very well then. This council is over, and you have your instructions.” Rising from his seat, he paused for a moment, his eyes lingering on Elsa. “I will remind you all again - speak of nothing we have spoken of here to anyone outside this room.”

Al-Makir and Barbaro gathered up their things and went. As she was making to do the same, Jarla became aware of Irene’s presence bearing down on her. Without making an overt show of shunning her, it was impossible to escape the pull of her gravity.

“ Jarla, ” she said, taking her arm with an ever-so-friendly hand. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you’d been ignoring me. When did you get back?” Those deep brown eyes looked into hers. “And where have you been?”

 Bardhyl 

  "It seems he's hit four boats so far, but from what I've learned he hasn't exactly been taking boats with high value cargoes - grain, oil, and beer, that's what the two biggest boats were carrying. I don't know about you, but to me that sounds either like an amateur or someone who's more concerned with supplying his crew than making a big score."  

“If there was Shade on those boats,” said Max, “it’d be easy to hide among other cargo. That stuff’s worth its weight in gold - it doesn’t take much space.”


  "Now, I have to see a priest about a book in the morning, but I'm thinking a couple of you could ride out to Selsan tomorrow and see if any of the  Gudgeon's  crew are still there. How about it, any volunteers?"  he asked his crew with a grin. 

There were no shortage of Bardhyl’s people eager to get out of locust-stricken Savonne. Damjan and Panteleon were the first two to get their hands up.

“What do you want us to do with them, if we find them?” asked Panteleon. “Bring them back here?”
-Sentinel-
Seeing that no Iron Company men were converging towards her to escort her back to her chambers, Elsa got up to follow Al-Makir, who for some reason had been put in charge of deciding where the Book would be safest.

 "So, uh,"  she said, making an awkward attempt at small talk once they had left the council room,  "looks like we've both got our work cut out for us, Abdul. I guess the Prince's northern ambitions will have to wait." 
 OOC: 
 
 Spoiler 
I'll make more detailed medium-term plans later, but for now, Elsa will want Olga back by her side. She won't renew her lease for 6, Spicers' Alley, Putbad.
 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 “If there was Shade on those boats,” said Max, “it’d be easy to hide among other cargo. That stuff’s worth its weight in gold - it doesn’t take much space.”

There were no shortage of Bardhyl’s people eager to get out of locust-stricken Savonne. Damjan and Panteleon were the first two to get their hands up.

“What do you want us to do with them, if we find them?” asked Panteleon. “Bring them back here?” 
 

  "That was my first thought as well, but if someone's hijacking the Prince's drugs, I'd have expected him to put in some visible effort in running down whoever's doing it. The only organized effort I've heard of so far was put together by the guilders in Putbad and apparently that went nowhere. Doesn't mean you're wrong, though - Sforza might be trying to handle this quietly,"  Bardhyl answered Max.

 "Only if you can't get anything out of them without bringing them to me. If they're there and they need encouragement, offer them coin, but try to avoid leaning too hard on them - I'd rather have them think kindly of us than be working out how and when they can knife us in the back. But be careful no matter what you do - I want you both back in one piece,"  he replied to Panteleon.
LCP
 Bardhyl 

"So we're just to find out what they know?" asked Panteleon. He looked at Damjan, who shrugged. "We can do that."

"I've got one question," said Abbie. "It's all well and good, playing the long game like this... but is any of this leading to a score?" The others' ears pricked up. "We've still got to eat. If you're thinking of staying in the city a while, I've got a feeling life here's about to get very expensive."

 Elsa 

"Magister Holt," said Abdul, not slowing down on his way back through the corridors of the castle. "It would seem that way, yes."

Reaching his office, he opened the door and set down the armful of ledgers and papers he had brought with him to the council meeting. "I'm assuming you want to talk about where we're sending this book? That is, unless you've come to purchase a horse." He sat down in his chair with a grunt. "Or sell me a bridge, perhaps."

Taking a moment to organise the papers he had just set down, he looked up at her with tired eyes. "I should tell you, I think the suggestion of Caerfort is much more practical. Being on the main road means being easy to supply. And it was inhabited until relatively recently. Is there anything in this Harzmugzahl place but ruins?"
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "I'm assuming you want to talk about where we're sending this book? That is, unless you've come to purchase a horse." He sat down in his chair with a grunt. "Or sell me a bridge, perhaps." 
 

 We're off to a great start,  thought Elsa. She had been hoping for a reasoned discussion, but Al-Makir's condescension had nipped that in the bud.

 "Do I bore you with my frivolous matters, Abdul?"  she asked coolly.  "Do you think anything that can't be quantified into neat columns of numbers in a ledger must belong in the realm of legend and superstition? You haven't seen what I've seen."

"I know how I must look... Always off someplace else, sometimes returning with a cursed book or a new apprentice or a cape of wyvern hide with little or no explanation of how I came across them. Like a child who's been gone half a day and returns covered in mud and scrapes, holding a frog in one hand and a funny-shaped rock in the other. Is that how I look to you?" 
LCP
 Elsa 

Al-Makir gave Elsa a long-suffering stare. "Right now, Magister," he said, "you look like someone very much concerned with how others see them."

He cleared his throat. "If you are concerned, however, that I am not taking the book of the  al'akthar shraan  seriously, then I will assure you that nothing could be further from the truth. So," he said, placing both hands flat on his desk, "what is it you want?"
-Sentinel-
Elsa inhaled. Being locked in her own room had put her in a very foul mood which she believed was justified, but it was ill-advised to antagonize the man who might decide where she would be spending the next few months.

 "Harmugstahl isn't in the best condition,"  she granted.  "But was purpose-built for magic, down to its architecture. We haven't searched every nook and cranny of the place, but we did find very interesting things in the parts we did search. If any place in the Reaches has what I need to research rituals and perform experiments, that would be it. And if I need anything else, Harmugstahl happens to be about halfway between the two richest cities of the Reaches. Caefort is almost two  days  away from anything larger than a shepherd's hut." 

She paused. It was probably best to mention the bad news right away, rather than later.  "There's just, um... an occupant we'd need to get rid of. A beast. Rather scary-looking, but I'm sure it won't pose much of a challenge to half a dozen brave men with pikes. Plus me, of course." 
LCP
 Elsa 

"A beast," said Abdul, flatly. He hesitated for a long while, trying to decide what to ask. "Well," he said at last, giving up. "Maybe it's edible."

Opening a drawer, he took out his own map of the Reaches - much-creased and ink-speckled from use - and spread it out between them.

"It's close to Putbad, yes," he said, "but on what road? No traders go this way - not that I'm aware of. Can we get carts up there?" His question sounded sincere. "In the middle of the Karst, too - anything we send would need a heavy guard not to be a sitting duck for bandits."
-Sentinel-
 "Well," he said at last, giving up. "Maybe it's edible." 

 "It's heavily mutated,"  said Elsa.  "I wouldn't advise eating it." 

 "In the middle of the Karst, too - anything we send would need a heavy guard not to be a sitting duck for bandits." 

 "That's a fair point,"  admitted Elsa,  "but if we avoid excessive back-and-forth, I think bandits would have little reason to lie in ambush near a road that no one travels. They mostly target boats on the Azril, yes? That's several miles south of Harmugstahl, across rough terrain." 

To compromise, she offered:  "It'd take less time to send a reconnaissance party to Harmugstahl than Caerfort. If they think the road looks too rugged or dangerous, I'll defer to their expertise and settle for Caerfort." 

In any case, she needed some time to brush up on her magical theory before getting serious about making a ritual. She also wanted Olga back by her side, and it would take a few days to get her to Savonne.

 Caerfort maybe wouldn't be so bad. I'd have to deal with Valdes instead of Sforza. 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "So we're just to find out what they know?" asked Panteleon. He looked at Damjan, who shrugged. "We can do that." 
 

  "That's all I  know  I want for now, but I'm trusting you to keep your eyes and ears open and to use your initiative depending on what you find when you get there,"  Bardhyl clarified.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
 Re "using your initiative" 
Looking at the hex map, Selsan doesn't appear to be on the actual river, so I'm working off the hypothesis that if the  Gudgeon's  crew did turn up there, they may have been dropped off there by the Ghost after being captured. Following from that, it's  possible  that the Ghost has sympathizers in Selsan, but of course that's a complete unknown. Similarly, it's  possible  that Filomena has people there or that she's sent someone there to debrief/deal with the crew if the  Gudgeon  was indeed carrying Shade.

That's why Bardhyl wants his men to be careful, but also to exercise their initiative depending on what they find. So if the crew aren't there, then finding out if they ever were and where they went is the next step. Similarly, if something seems fishy about the place or the people, Bardhyl would want them to dig into that a little, but always with an eye to getting out ASAP if there's any hint of trouble.

I just didn't want to write out a long list of scenarios IC since Bardhyl and his gang have been working together for quite some time - his men ought to know what he means by "use your initiative".
 


 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "I've got one question," said Abbie. "It's all well and good, playing the long game like this... but is any of this leading to a score?" The others' ears pricked up. "We've still got to eat. If you're thinking of staying in the city a while, I've got a feeling life here's about to get very expensive." 
 

  "Oh, there'll be a score, alright, but right now I can't say when - we need to identify the right target first. As for how long we'll be in Savonne, we should be gone in a few more days, but you've got a point about the cost of living. First thing tomorrow, head out to the market and start buying up supplies - I have a feeling we may be doing lots of camping in the near future,"  he chuckled.
RossN
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Elsa &amp; Jarla 

Al-Makir and Barbaro gathered up their things and went. As she was making to do the same, Jarla became aware of Irene’s presence bearing down on her. Without making an overt show of shunning her, it was impossible to escape the pull of her gravity.

“ Jarla, ” she said, taking her arm with an ever-so-friendly hand. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you’d been ignoring me. When did you get back?” Those deep brown eyes looked into hers. “And where have you been?” 
 

 "I was a member of the expedition west my lady, and stopped briefly to visit Giovanni. I mean Lord Carraciolo,"  Jarla replied as politely as she could and trying to disguise her visceral distaste at Irene's touch.  "I returned only yesterday. I trust you are... ah, well highness?" 

OOC:
 
 Spoiler 
Is Irene visibly pregnant yet?
 
LCP
 Elsa 

"You've already been there, haven't you?" asked Al-Makir. "What's your memory of it?"

He looked down at his map. "This is how it is," he said. "I'm assuming that you'll want the comforts you're used to - food, a bed, a roof over your head. And if we're sending the book there, it needs to be guarded, which means the same for the men we send to guard it. That requires regular deliveries of supplies. If this trail you followed is like the rest of the Karst, then I'd be very surprised if you could drive a wagon up it. We'd have to use mules. In ordinary times, I'd call that a minor expense... but you've heard that these are not ordinary times."

He motioned for Elsa to take a seat. "If you've seen this place before, then tell me what you think you'd need to get it working."

 Jarla 

"'Expedition'?" said Irene. "I don't think Muzio told me about this expedition. What expedition?" Her face kept its smiling expression. "I'm glad you saw Giovanni, though. How is he keeping?"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Irene's not yet showing, no.
 

 Bardhyl 

Abbie nodded. "Can do," she said. "Can do."
LeSwordfish
 "That is fascinating," said Hieronymus, who had listened to the story with rapt attention. "I'm very sorry for your friend - I had hoped we'd seen the back of that creature. Your ah, friends the hillfolk, though, they sound very interesting indeed. It's a shame the Temple has been on such… unfriendly terms with them, historically."

"As for thanks… well, I could suggest a number of prayers to say, a number of offerings to give. But I think the more meaningful thanks would be to honour Verena in the way you live. Seek out wisdom. Protect learning. Uphold justice." He gave Ludo a faint smile. "You know. That sort of thing." 

 "They are,"  Ludo said.  "I think it would be politically challenging to visit them, but Wadim is... he would be a good ally." 

Ludo thought about justice for a bit.  "I think I try to, but I suppose I can try more. I've told you about the schoolhouse in Painford?"

"I would like to make the prayers and offerings, though. While I'm here."  It would feel more official that way.
-Sentinel-
Elsa gave the question some thought. With a sinking feeling, she came to the inescapable conclusion that a  lot  of work was needed to house herself and the soldiers in relative comfort. There was little or no wood around Harmugstahl; the place and its area were mostly stone, and building in stone took time and expertise that they lacked.

After a moment, she grudgingly acknowledged:  "You know what, Abdul? Maybe you're right. Caerfort's not that bad. If I need something from Harmugstahl, I can lead another expedition, or perhaps just fund it." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Apologies for the 180, but I just re-read the sections about Harmugstahl, and I'd partly forgotten just how  evil  that place was (even setting aside the Chaos spawn). 😛
 
rax
With the discussion dying down, Bardhyl sat down to compose a letter to Hieronymous, reminding him of their earlier interaction and informing him that he would be calling on the old priest on the 28th.

 Reverend Sir,

I hope this missive finds you well and fully recovered from your ordeal.

We met briefly some weeks ago when I accompanied Brother Cezar to the intervention at your home. I asked you then what your uninvited guest had been reading and what she might have been trying to learn. I am in town for a brief stay and would be very interested in hearing if you've been able to look into the matter. To that end, I will be calling on you before midday tomorrow.

I hope the suddenness of my visit will not inconvenience you too much, but given today's events, I am sure you appreciate the urgency of this whole affair.

Sincerely,
B. 

Once he was satisfied that he had been clear enough, Bardhyl carefully folded the parchment and wrote 'Hieronymous' on the outside. He then handed it to Grim and gave him directions to Hieronymous' house.

 "Deliver it directly to the old man if you can. If he's not in, slide it under his door - hopefully he'll find it and read it before I come calling..." 
RossN
 Jarla 
 "Oh, the captain is well enough highness and he even invited me to stay with him in his city. Though of course I saw him before the locust swarm. I fear like everyone else in the Reaches he'll be going hungry soon enough,"  Jarla told Irene.

 "As for the expedition it was organised by that clever Halfling soldier who was a friend of my brother. He was investigating the trail of the enemy."  It felt wisest to minimise the importance of the despised Elsa.

She looked around as if to make sure no one was listening in and lowered her voice when she spoke:  "But enough about all that how are  you  highness?"  Jarla said, gesturing meaningfully to Irene's belly.
LCP
 27th Sigmarzeit 
 Ludo 

  "I think I try to, but I suppose I can try more. I've told you about the schoolhouse in Painford?"  

"...Possibly?" said Hieronymus. He looked sheepish. "You'll have to forgive me. Still some holes in the old, um, memory."


  "I would like to make the prayers and offerings, though. While I'm here."  

"Well you know, this isn't a temple," said the old priest. "But you'd be very welcome to. I've always been of the belief that the gods can hear us wherever we are."

Rising stiffly, he went over to his bookshelves and took down a relatively slim volume. "Here," he said, "please take this as a gift from me." Opening it to the frontispiece, Ludo saw the title:  Eulogium Verena.  "It's a book of prayers," Hieronymus explained, before hesitating, checking himself. "You, um, you do read Classical?"


 Elsa 

Abdul raised his eyebrows at Elsa's change of heart, but refrained from comment.

"Alright then," he said, turning back to his books. "I'll see about making the arrangements. When do you think you will be ready to leave?"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 

 I'd partly forgotten just how  evil  that place was (even setting aside the Chaos spawn). 

*chicken noises*
 

 Jarla 

  "As for the expedition it was organised by that clever Halfling soldier who was a friend of my brother. He was investigating the trail of the enemy."  

"The  enemy? " The word hadn't passed Irene by. "...What enemy?"


  "But enough about all that how are  you  highness?"  Jarla said, gesturing meaningfully to Irene's belly. 

"Fine," said Irene, a little too quickly. Her pleasant expression soured a little. "Why wouldn't I be fine? It's all fine." She shot a sideways look towards where her husband was now leaving the council chamber, deep in conversation with Barbaro. "Except that Muzio's convinced I shouldn't drink wine, which frankly means I may die of boredom."

She heaved an over-dramatic sigh. "Of course, things are going to get much more tedious with these insects. Doom and gloom, the order of the day." She lowered her voice a little. "I think these farmers are probably taking Abdul for a ride. I mean, of course they're going to tell you they have nothing left, aren't they? So they can keep what they  do  have for themselves."


 

 Festag, 28th Sigmarzeit 
 Bardhyl 

Bardhyl kept his appointment, and found Hieronymus at home, expecting him. The priest's pet owl hissed at the newcomer from the rafters, but in a half-hearted sort of way. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance in calmer circumstances," said the old man. "Don't mind Euthymius, he's just not keen on strangers."

"Herr Stubbs has been telling me about you and your, er, associate, is it? Herr Wadim," said Hieronymus. "It all sounds very interesting. Of course, the Temple has had its ah, disagreements with your people... but you know as far as I'm concerned, that's really the Morrites' lookout. And I think poor Brother Cezar has far more pressing matters to worry about these days. Anyway, what was it you wanted? Ah, wait, you already told me - the letter. Yes!"

Going over to a corner of the cluttered living-room, he put his hand on a small stack of books. "I set them aside - everything  she  seemed to have shown an interest in. Of course I can't be sure... there might be some she put back in their places, that I don't remember. But considering the mess she left, I don't think that's likely." The disapproval in Hieronymus' tone could have sunk a boat. Of all the crimes a daemon of Chaos could be guilty of, clearly  disorganising his books  ranked highly to him.

"As far as there's a theme," he said, sitting down and picking up the first book, "it seems to be local history. In particular, the history around the time of the Great War in the north, two hundred-odd years back. Notable  here  for other events... the most relevant being the disappearance of the Illuminated Order." He waved a vague hand over the pile. "There's some other stuff in there, but that seems to be the thrust. Was there anything in  particular  you were looking for?"
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "I'll see about making the arrangements. When do you think you will be ready to leave?" 
 

 "I have to send for an associate of mine in Putbad,"  answered Elsa, not saying  bodyguard  because it would prompt questions about why she still needed one if she no longer lived in the city,  "but if you're expecting me to leave sooner, I suppose Olga can find her own way to Caerfort. She's resourceful. And trustworthy." 

She peered at the map.  "I suppose we'll be relying mostly on Mirino for supplies and other support? I fully trust Esteban to understand the importance of what we do. He's faced the living dead at least twice." 
rax
 "And I am honoured that you could find the time to meet, reverend sir,"  Bardhyl answered Hieronymous' greeting with a sincere smile.

 "To be frank, sir, I am looking for anything that could help defeat the Jackal once and for all, and doing  something  about his accursed book seems to me a good first step. Hence my interest in what the  djall  was reading about,"  he admitted.

 "You may not recall it, but on the night the  djall  left your body, she tried to bargain with us to hand over the book, saying that she would take it to her master for safekeeping. She also said something about the book having been hidden from its owner while it was in 'the Library'. Do you know anything about this library she spoke of? Is it connected to the Illuminated Order?"  he asked.
LCP
 Elsa, 27th Sigmarzeit 

Al-Makir waved his hand, as if to indicate there was no rush. "I will write to Lord Esteban," he said, "asking him to prepare the site, and provide a guard. In the meantime, we will have to make arrangements for transporting the book. I assume you don't want to carry it on your person, or without guards." He paused for a moment, doing some silent calculation. "Will four days be enough for you to fetch your associate back to Savonne?"

 Bardhyl, 28th Sigmarzeit 

"Ah! There you should speak to Herr Stubbs and his friends," said Hieronymus. "First-hand experience, you know."

"The Illuminated Order were a society of… wizards and soothsayers, that sort of thing," he said. "They first came together to help fight Gilbertus the Black, and that earned them enough good grace with the princes of the time for them to continue working together in the open. But, eventually, they decided they'd be safer away from the caprices of whoever ruled their patch of the Reaches that particular Wellentag, so they left the towns and built themselves a refuge, tucked away out in the Karst. The Library - or the Lost Library, as it came to be known. A little over two hundred years ago, it vanished into thin air, and took the Order with it."

"Herr Stubbs and his friends managed to find it again. I'm sure they can tell that story much better than me. But that's where they found it - the Book of Nagash."
-Sentinel-
"In the meantime, we will have to make arrangements for transporting the book. I assume you don't want to carry it on your person, or without guards."

 "Correct. I suppose we can change the guard detail in Painford... Commander Sieghard is familiar with the Book and its dangers." 

"Will four days be enough for you to fetch your associate back to Savonne?"

 "Should be, yes,"  said Elsa.  "I'll go find a messenger right away." 

 



Elsa filled a large bowl with a generous heaping of beef-and-cabbage stew to go feed Sanne one last time in the dungeon. She had no idea if famine affected the amount of food set aside for prisoners, but it seemed a good idea to help Sanne regain some strength regardless.


 



With the fields around Savonne now brown and lifeless, Elsa felt worse than usual visiting Suzana to renew her stake in the food import business, to the tune of 150 gold crowns. There was sure a lot of profit to be made from misery. But who else but the merchants would keep the grain flowing into the Reaches? No one else had the money or connections.
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "Ah! There you should speak to Herr Stubbs and his friends," said Hieronymus. "First-hand experience, you know."

"The Illuminated Order were a society of… wizards and soothsayers, that sort of thing," he said. "They first came together to help fight Gilbertus the Black, and that earned them enough good grace with the princes of the time for them to continue working together in the open. But, eventually, they decided they'd be safer away from the caprices of whoever ruled their patch of the Reaches that particular Wellentag, so they left the towns and built themselves a refuge, tucked away out in the Karst. The Library - or the Lost Library, as it came to be known. A little over two hundred years ago, it vanished into thin air, and took the Order with it."

"Herr Stubbs and his friends managed to find it again. I'm sure they can tell that story much better than me. But that's where they found it - the Book of Nagash." 
 

  "Well, that is most interesting news, reverend sir. I do not recall Herr Ludo or any of his friends volunteering that they were the ones who unleashed the Book into the world. I shall  certainly  speak to them about it,"  Bardhyl replied with a dark look.

 "The Illuminated Order is known to us in the Hills, reverend sir. In our tales, Morr guided the  vrani  of old to fight alongside the Order and the lowlander princes against the Black Priest. Years later, our Raven Speakers worked with the Order to turn back agents of a northern prince who sought to breach the Red Pyramid. Then, as you say, they disappeared without a trace, though in our stories there are also suggestions that there was some sort of internal conflict going on at the time." 
 "Could it be that the  djall  was seeking clues as to where the Library vanished to? That she was seeking the means to disappear in the same manner, along with the book? Is there anything to indicate that?"  he asked.
LeSwordfish
 "Myself and Rhadegund - Adelbert's other apprentice - have been running a schoolhouse in Painford. Teaching the local children their letters and numbers, you know. In the old shrine of Verena, I thought that would be a good way to use it. The sort of thing halflings have back in the Moot." 

Ludo took the book with reverence.  "Thank you, that's very kind of you."  He stood.  "I'll go to the temple now, and will probably be going to painford tomorrow. Let me know what you think about moving: I think we in the Thorns can offer to help in whatever way's needed." 
RossN
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  27th Sigmarzeit 
 Jarla 



"The  enemy? " The word hadn't passed Irene by. "...What enemy?" 
 

 "This whole Jackal business,"  Jarla replied airily, though she was beginning to wish she had come up with some excuse.  "Mostly though we ended up in a fight with a wyvern and various goblins." 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "Fine," said Irene, a little too quickly. Her pleasant expression soured a little. "Why wouldn't I be fine? It's all fine." She shot a sideways look towards where her husband was now leaving the council chamber, deep in conversation with Barbaro. "Except that Muzio's convinced I shouldn't drink wine, which frankly means I may die of boredom."

She heaved an over-dramatic sigh. "Of course, things are going to get much more tedious with these insects. Doom and gloom, the order of the day." She lowered her voice a little. "I think these farmers are probably taking Abdul for a ride. I mean, of course they're going to tell you they have nothing left, aren't they? So they can keep what they  do  have for themselves." 
 

 "I wish you were right my lady but I've seen how poor and wretched the Reaches are even before the locusts. I fear we'll be in for lean times, all of us,"  she added.  Which of course makes my job pointless since there will certainly be no more balls or feasts. 

She looked at her boss/best friend/hated enemy and said, very quietly:  "Do you ever just want to... run away from it all highness? I did once. That's how I ended up here." 
LCP
 27th Sigmarzeit 
 Elsa 

At the door to the cells, Elsa was surprised to find that Mauro wouldn't let her in. &lt; Sorry, Magister, &gt; the gaoler said, &lt; but it's new standing orders. No visitors. &gt; He looked at the bowl of stew she was holding. &lt; If that's for the Norscan she-daemon, you can leave it with me. I'll make sure she gets it. &gt;

Elsa felt pretty sure that if she left the stew with Mauro it would become his lunch.

 ~ 
Heading out into the city, Elsa could see first-hand how Savonne was faring in the wake of the locust plague. From the windows still stuffed with rags to the street-corner prophets proclaiming the end of days, it certainly felt changed. There was a tension in the air - raised voices could be heard more often, and things one ordinarily took for granted were left unattended. Hiding her face as best she could, Elsa wished she had Olga with her to watch her back.

Reaching Suzana’s trading house, she found it extremely busy. About a dozen merchants and traders were there already, waiting to be seen - and some of them had brought servants or guards with them too. Outside the storehouse, three very intimidating men were very obviously standing watch.

It was a wait of a couple of hours to be seen - no-one there was in the mood to let anyone else jump the queue. When she finally did get in past the office door, she found Suzana with another guard standing behind her shoulder.

“Magister Holt,” she said. “I was wondering whether you’d be coming down. Wanting to renew your stake?” She gave a tiny inclination of her head towards the antechamber where Elsa had been waiting. “You can see things have been getting a bit… frantic.”

Seeing the money Elsa had brought, and hearing Elsa’s account of how much she wanted to invest, Suzana sucked her teeth and thought for a while. “That’s a weighty purse,” she said. “I don’t suppose I can tempt you to make it a little weightier? With all this happening, there’s opportunities here that might not come again.” She looked to the door to make sure it was closed. “If the river keeps falling, those of us running the land routes will be the only lifeline the city has left. Whoever can scale their operation up biggest and fastest - well, there’s a  lot  of money to be made.”

 Jarla 

  "This whole Jackal business,"  Jarla replied airily, though she was beginning to wish she had come up with some excuse.  "Mostly though we ended up in a fight with a wyvern and various goblins."  

“You’re lucky Muzio doesn’t hear you,” said Irene. “The Jackal’s dead, Jarla. You were there, weren’t you?” She raised her eyebrows at Jarla. “Why you’d want to go traipsing off into the wilds to relive that is beyond me.”

“Don’t think I don’t know who you were with, either,” she added. “Holt and her little halfling friend. Whenever anyone starts carping on about ghosts and goblins, it always comes back to them. As if we don’t have enough  real  problems to be dealing with. I don’t know what pack of lies she’s told you, but believe me, Jarla, that woman is not your friend.”


 She looked at her boss/best friend/hated enemy and said, very quietly:  "Do you ever just want to... run away from it all highness? I did once. That's how I ended up here."  

The question seemed to take Irene by surprise. When she answered, it was with a flash of steel in her eyes.

“Run away from this?” she said. “This is what  I  left home for, Jarla. Not to be some… some comfortable ornament on some councilman’s arm. To be a  queen .” She looked up at the ceiling. “The gods can send as many locusts as they want. We took this crown, and I mean for us to keep it.”

 Ludo 

“Tomorrow?” said Hieronymus, sounding a touch surprised. “Ah, I see. Of course - you’re a busy fellow.”

He hesitated for a long while, still unable to make up his mind. “It’s very good of you, to keep up Brother Schreiber’s shrine. I had been thinking… I mean, with Schreiber gone, it would be a selfish act if I allowed Verena’s ministry here to die with me.” He paused again. “Of course, there’s the boy… but he’s young. Cezar looks after him at the Temple, with the other initiates. I try to give him some instruction, but he’s probably more Morrite than Verenan by now.”

Getting up creakily from his chair, he looked over his room - the dusty bookshelves, the faded furniture. “If I did come,” he said, “do you think you could send some people to help me carry some of these things?” he said. “Not all of it, obviously - just the ones I really need.” Ludo suspected that might be quite a lot of books. “I could hire a cart. I think I have a little money stashed away somewhere.”



 

 Bardhyl, 28th Sigmarzeit 

“Mm… who can guess the mind of a daemon?” said Hieronymus. “Perhaps she had some plan to, ah, repeat the past… or perhaps she had some new scheme in mind. I wouldn’t rule anything out.” He waved a hand over the stack of books. “My books aren’t manuals of magic,” he said. “There’s no recipe for a spell here, or anything like that. Just history. A lot of people and places that aren’t around any more.”

He picked up one of the books, opening it to a particular page. “There’s some indication that there was conflict before they vanished, either within the order or with some other gang of wizards. A lot of people coming south from the Empire at that time weren’t keen on witchcraft, and expended some considerable effort and words trying to track them down. Everyone knew about the Library, but they thought they might have other hideouts in the Karst. I don’t know why she’d have been interested in that… maybe hoping they left something behind?” He shrugged. “The names  Guldun  and  Harmugstahl  come up a few times.”
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 He shrugged. “The names  Guldun  and  Harmugstahl  come up a few times.” 
 

  "I've heard of those - old ruins out in the Karst. Never been there myself, though. Do the names mean anything to you?"  Bardhyl asked the priest.
RossN
 Jarla 
 "Yes highness,"  Jarla asked, biting back hard on the temptation to call Irene an idiot.  "Still it will be a hard year so we'll have to prepare for the worst. I imagine I'll have shot someone who gets near my horse with a hungry expression before this is over." 

She said it as a dark joke but Jarla privately felt that would happen and probably sooner or later. As it was it might be wise to keep Countess in fine fettle in case the mob ended up storming the keep and Irene ended with a noose around her pretty neck.

 "If you'll excuse me highness I best be off. I had promised to speak further with Father Barbaro about the situation in Castel d'Irena."  She had done nothing of the sort but she was desperate to escape this excruciating conversation.
-Sentinel-
Elsa raised her eyebrows skeptically at the new 'no visitors' policy, and suspected it was targeted at her specifically. She did not insist, as she knew that Mauro would fear Sforza more than he feared her.



 


 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 Seeing the money Elsa had brought, and hearing Elsa’s account of how much she wanted to invest, Suzana sucked her teeth and thought for a while. “That’s a weighty purse,” she said. “I don’t suppose I can tempt you to make it a little weightier? With all this happening, there’s opportunities here that might not come again.” She looked to the door to make sure it was closed. “If the river keeps falling, those of us running the land routes will be the only lifeline the city has left. Whoever can scale their operation up biggest and fastest - well, there’s a  lot  of money to be made.” 
 

 "I'm sure there is,"  granted Elsa, dipping her quill in the inkpot,  "but I like to keep some gold in my purse, not just on paper. What's the saying? 'A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush'... That holds especially true when things can turn chaotic very fast." 
 "Hmm, let's add a clause—if something happens to me, my apprentice Tatiana stands to inherit my stake. I'll make sure she knows." 

Once everything was in order, she signed her name at the bottom of the new contract.

 "You won't be seeing me for a while... They're sending me down south for, oh, the next few months at least. 
LCP
 27th Sigmarzeit 
 Jarla 

Irene seemed a little taken aback at Jarla’s eagerness to be off. She hesitated, studying Jarla’s face.

“ Bene allora, ” she said, almost under her breath. “I’ll… catch you later.”

 Elsa 

Suzana shrugged. “Well, I won’t pretend that one-fifty is small change. If that’s what you want to invest, I can use it. I can’t offer you the same rate as before, though.” She waved her hand at the office - or perhaps the city - around her. “An eighth of the profit is about to be a  lot  more.”

She paused for a while in calculation, her hands deftly flicking beads on the small abacus she kept on her desk. “I can do a tenth share for the next year,” was her conclusion, “with whatever clause you want about who inherits. That’s your business, not mine.”


 

 28th Sigmarzeit 
 Bardhyl 

“Not much,” said Hieronymus. “Just names in old books. I don’t get out of Savonne enough to see these places for myself.” He paused, his mind seeming momentarily elsewhere. “I’m sure if one were to dig about in the histories, there might be some record of who built them and why… but  somewhere  can be hard to find.”
LeSwordfish
 "I can see that we send some people to collect you and your things,"  Ludo said, uncomfortably aware that he had not checked this with Sieghard at all.  "But I do have to leave soon... things are going to be difficult everywhere, and I need to be with my people, I think."  This made him think of Leni and her stuffed pantry.
 
"I'll send word as soon as I can. Always a pleasure, father." 

And with that, Ludo took his leave.
RossN
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  27th Sigmarzeit 
 Jarla 

Irene seemed a little taken aback at Jarla’s eagerness to be off. She hesitated, studying Jarla’s face.

“ Bene allora, ” she said, almost under her breath. “I’ll… catch you later.” 
 


 "Highness,"  Jarla curtsied and withdrew to her quarters. Much to her own surprise she felt a flicker of guilt as she did so. Still she had to get away. If nothing else what could she possibly say when Irene so refused to see the disasters swirling all around them?

The following day she had decided she'd go out with Ida into Savonne and start looking for opportunities to make money on her own. Jarla knew her timing was probably dreadful but given the state of the Reaches it seemed unlikely the situation would improve in the near future.
LCP
 28th Sigmarzeit 
 Ludo 

Ludo was in luck. The  Green Dragon  was at the docks, and although Sandu made his usual comments about Ludo being a bad omen, asking what trouble he wanted to get them into this time, and so on, for three schillings he was happy to carry him downriver.

“You’re wanting to get out of the city too, huh?” he asked. A locust hopped over the deck, chirping loudly; he crushed it under his heel. “Can’t blame you. Not sure the south’ll be any better, but it can’t hurt to find out.”

The  Dragon  wasn’t waiting around, and so Ludo set off without much in the way of the goodbyes. He hadn’t seen much of the others the past couple of days anyway - they all seemed taken up with their own concerns.

Sailing south along the river, the wasteland the locusts had left behind became all the more apparent. Nothing green remained in the fields along the banks. Wheat and barley had been chewed down to the stalks, trees and bushes stripped down to the last leaf. Men and women toiled in the sun digging channels to the river, holding out some desperate hope that the swarm had left anything worth watering behind. All that filled their ditches was mud - the thirsty ground was drinking the water almost as fast as it could flow.

At Arrow Heap, Sandu and his crew had to stop, unloading their cargo and dragging the  Dragon  through the shallows. Even the deepest channel was no longer deep enough for the shallow-drafted  Dragon  to pass. In the silt of one of the other channels, now left high and dry by the receding waters, the abandoned hulk of another riverboat lay stranded, crows roosting on its leaning mast.

“That’s Johann’s boat,” said one of Sandu’s crew, as they got the  Dragon  underway again. “Stupid bugger. Must’ve been drunk to get her stuck like that.”

The others agreed, but Ludo thought there was a certain bravado in their words. None of them wanted to talk about the obvious: if the river fell much further, then sooner or later the  Dragon  would be stranded too, whether on a sand-bank or in the docks.

 Jarla 

The next day, Jarla went out into the city. All around her were the signs of catastrophe - the street-corner doomsayers, the daubings on the walls, the roast locust sellers now mercifully beginning to run down their stock - but her eye was more on opportunity. In the  Duke of Aquitaine , she found a couple of men more than happy to pay for her drinks, as long as she gave the appearance of listening to their opinions with interest.

“These aren’t boom times for anyone,” said the first, when she managed to steer the conversation in the direction of business. “Except hired muscle maybe. A few more weeks like this, every warehouse and wagon’s going to need an armed guard.”

His companion nodded. “It’s getting almost as bad as the old days,” he said. “You know they used to call this city the Wolf Pit? I heard the old fighting rings have started again, in the Warren.”

“I don’t think things will get  that  bad,” said his companion, though he sounded uncertain. “Duke Wulf was mad. Prince Sforza might be… tough, but his men won’t stand for that kind of lawlessness in the open.” He took a sip from his drink. “You remember how they dealt with those rioters?”

The other man nodded approvingly. Both of them were dressed in the manner of well-to-do burghers - Jarla guessed that neither of them had ever been in the position of the men and women the Iron Company had ‘dealt with’.

“The problem now,” the first man held forth, “is that everything’s so far away. Savonne’s supposed to be the centre of it all, right? But  now , all our supplies are coming from Jaardorf and Last Water - bloody miles away. Do you know how long it takes to get a message to Last Water? And to get an answer back?” He shook his head. “What I wouldn’t give for some proper couriers.”

“Or a road across the Mere,” volunteered his friend.

“Or a road across the Mere, yes,” he said, with a snigger. “Maybe we can ask the Prince’s wizard to magic that up for us.”

“You know who  does  still have it alright?” said his friend, whose mind seemed to be drifting off on another track. “The dwarfs. I heard it from a friend of mine, down Rockshadow way - she says for food, what they buy in doesn’t nearly match what they ought to need.” He finished his drink and called for another. “They must have some other line of supply down there in their mine.”

“Dwarfs eat rats,” said the other confidently. “Everyone knows it. Rat-on-a-stick, it’s a delicacy.”

 ~ 
That evening, she called on Abdul to see if she could get his perspective. The Arabyan was looking just as tired as she remembered from the council meeting.

“A curious time to be asking, don’t you think?” he asked, when he heard what her question was. “People looking to turn an extra profit off times like these… some might call them their own kind of jackal.” He raised a forestalling hand. “Not that I am the kind to pass judgement, of course.”

Sitting down, he closed his eyes briefly as he focused on answering the question. “My sincere advice to you, Lady Schreiber,” he said, “is that, through your own merit or her Highness’ caprice, you’ve secured quite an influential position at court. Maybe you don’t see your influence, but I assure you, the people supplying the royal household do.” He put a hand to his chest. “And personally, I myself appreciate having someone who can… put things to her Highness in a way that she is more likely to listen to. I would not recommend you compromise that position.”


 

 Aubentag, 29th Sigmarzeit 
 Ludo 

The  Dragon  reached Ravenskird by noon on Aubentag, and found the town at the edge of the marsh unusually crowded. Ravenskird hadn’t escaped the path of the swarm, even the rushes that grew under Sieghard’s bridge looking chewed to pieces - but looking out over the Mere, Ludo could see a welcome glimmer of green. Flocks of martins wheeled and danced out there, their twittering voices carrying over the water.

Ingwald wasn’t in town - according to the handful of Thorns still left behind, Sieghard had called him back to Painford. They were eager to hear what the Commander’s plan was, and disappointed to find that Ludo didn’t know it. They urged him to send back word as soon as he reached Painford. Ludo could see the trust in their eyes - deep down, they believed that either he or Sieghard would think of  something . They just didn’t know what it was.

“There’s more people arriving here by the day,” said one of them. “Coming south off the Downs. They’ve got nothing left out there, and they know there’s water here, at least.” He pointed out west, towards the edge of town. “One of ‘em’s brought his whole herd of cows. Forty of ‘em! I counted.”


 

 Marktag, 30th Sigmarzeit 
 Sieghard &amp; Ludo 

It was around noon on Marktag when Ludo walked into Painford. Summer was now in full swing, and the sun was hot enough to make dogs lie panting in the shade - but the Thornwood on the road south from Ravenskird looked more like it did in the dead of winter. The trees were bare and leafless. Here and there, their naked branches were scabbed with sap where the locusts had stripped them even down to the bark.

Approaching the town, he could see smoke rising from behind the palisade. Its appetising smell made his stomach rumble - as he passed through the gate, he could see it was coming from a large firepit that had been set up beside the creek, where racks of small fish were being smoked. Ingwald was there with a couple of Thorns, making marks on a slate as he talked to one of the fishermen. Ludo was about to go over and greet him when he heard someone yell his name at about the same volume as a cannon-shot.

“ LUDO! ”

Turning towards the manor, Ludo was surprised to see Leni running towards him. Reaching him, she threw her arms around him in a hug, which if anything surprised him more - Leni was usually more private and reserved.

“Where have you  been? ” she asked, releasing him. “I’ve been waiting so  long! ”

It took some time to get some sense out of her, in which Sieghard caught up with them - but eventually, all the details of Irene’s invitation came spilling out. “I should have been in the city ages ago,” said Leni, practically fizzing with nerves. “Poor Rudi must be worried sick.”
RossN
 Jarla, 28th Sigmarzeit 

Jarla's expeditionary jaunt proved depressing if not surprising. Obviously times were very hard and if it hadn't been for her desperation she'd simply have given up altogether.

She quickly discounted the gossip about the dwarfs. There were always rumours in times of famine that some such group had hidden stores of food and it nearly always turned out to be just malicious gossip. Even in the highly unlikely event the dwarfs did have additional stores it was probably inedible for humans (rats were likely the worst of it.)

The suggestion about couriers might have some legs to it however. A small dedicated group of messengers could work and as a experienced horsewoman herself Jarla liked to think she'd have an insight or two there. Yes she was warming to the idea as she considered it.

 ~~~ 
Her visit to Abdul was hardly cheery either, though Jarla tried to remain patient.

 "Perhaps others mistake proximity for influence,"  she said after the treasurer had spoken. She sat back in her chair and smiled ruefully.  "If I ever had influence it is dwindling - given half the population is going to be starving we can't exactly look forward to many festivities in future can we Abdul? And without  those  I'm effectively her highnesses... what? Maid? Pet? I'm certainly not her friend." 

Jarla shook her head irritably.  "You know when I was Alvarran Giovanni invited me to his court and I was tempted I can tell you Abdul. Away from this terrible place... but that was before the locusts. What future would there be there except for the same misery we have here? Famine and death. Gods, Abdul how secure do you think any of our positions are here? I know that if there comes a time - and I know there will come a time - when the Prince  needs  a scapegoat from inside the court to satisfy the mob it will be my pretty neck in the noose. The extravagant foreigner with her expensive tastes." 

Reflexively she shuddered and flexed her injured hand, grateful at least that the gloves she wore hid the mark.  "Maybe you think I'm paranoid or pessimistic Abdul I can feel it in my marrow. I need something of my own Abdul. Even if I'm wrong and the worst never comes I need that sliver of independence." 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 “I can do a tenth share for the next year,” was her conclusion, “with whatever clause you want about who inherits. That’s your business, not mine.” 
 

 "Sounds good,"  said Elsa.

After signing, she returned the quill to its inkwell.  "Pleasure doing business with you, Suzana. And for the love of the gods, do keep your finger on the pulse of the city and cut your losses if things get... out of hand. You don't want to end up like that fool Greenapple, who thought his wealth made him untouchable right up until it no longer did. Anyone know what happened to him?" 

 



To wash away the guilt of all this famine profiteering, Elsa headed to the Shallyan hospital to make a donation of ten—no, make it twenty—gold crowns. They would certainly need the money to feed their patients, whereas  she  would soon be rid of the hefty expenses of renting a place in Putbad or paying for her own food.

While she was there, she asked the sister on duty:  "How was the night of the red moon? Anyone behave more strangely than usual?" 

She remembered how Nahorek's attack on the Temple had triggered a crisis in poor Herr Reinholt.
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  28th Sigmarzeit 

“Not much,” said Hieronymus. “Just names in old books. I don’t get out of Savonne enough to see these places for myself.” He paused, his mind seeming momentarily elsewhere. “I’m sure if one were to dig about in the histories, there might be some record of who built them and why… but  somewhere  can be hard to find.” 
 

  "Well, I find that the more you know, the easier it is to make the right decision. I shall certainly speak to Herr Ludo and his friends, but could I prevail on you to continue looking into these locations in the meantime? As a research project, if you will?"  Bardhyl answered with an ingratiating smile.

 After the visit 
Having gotten as much information as he could from the old priest, Bardhyl returned to  the Fat Fish  and waited to see how Abbie had managed on the supply front. Damjan and Panteleon had already ridden out for Selsan, so there wasn't much to do on that front but wait...and wait...and wait.
LCP
 28th Sigmarzeit 
 Jarla 

The look in Abdul’s eyes was not without sympathy.

“I can understand your concerns, Lady Schreiber,” he said. “Your strategy, though… well, I’m not sure it will help with what you want it to.” He shrugged, and smiled. “But maybe I am wrong. It does happen, sometimes.”

“Here is what I would say, as one loyal subject to another. If you want independence, make them think it’s their idea. That may be difficult if the Lady Irene wishes to keep you as her… companion, as you say, but she is not the only one who makes the decisions. You made yourself useful to Prince Sforza before, did you not?” He spread his hands. “You heard in the Prince’s council how thinly we are spread. Any endeavour of yours that would help keep control, either here or in the outer regions - well, I’m sure it wouldn’t go amiss.”

 Elsa 

The Great Hospital of Armengild appeared overrun with both patients and visitors. The locusts had left many people looking for answers from the gods, and the Maiden of Mercy seemed the most likely to answer their prayers. Elsa had to practically elbow her way through the crowd to find one of the sisters to speak to. This was not Stefania or Ioana, but one of the initiates.

“The red moon disturbed everyone,” she said. “Just like the last time. None of our patients slept easy. Poor Herr Reinholt was weeping at the sight of it.”

The sounds of someone crying out in pain drifted through an open door behind her. “If you’ll excuse me,” she said. Rolling up her sleeves, she went to attend whichever patient was suffering.

 Bardhyl 

“Of course,” said Hieronymus, “of course. I’ll see what I can find.”
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Took you long enough, " Sieghard said, seeming exhausted. " Trouble on the road? Your sister's been worried sick. "
-Sentinel-
 “The red moon disturbed everyone. Just like the last time. None of our patients slept easy. Poor Herr Reinholt was weeping at the sight of it.” 

 "Very sorry to hear that,"  said Elsa. She jingled a bag of coins.  "This should help you keep them fed, if nothing else. I'll go leave it in the donation box." 

 

 Elsa, Ludo and Bardhyl - 27th 

In the late afternoon, Elsa met up with Ludo and Bardhyl at the  Fat Fish . Choosing a seat with its back to a corner so that no one could get behind her, she wore heavy makeup and a wide-brimmed hat to conceal her recognizable tattoos.

 
 Spoiler 
Untrained Disguise test vs. 25:  (d100)[ 18 ] 
 Fortune:  (d100)[ 53 ]  
 

 "I really shouldn't be telling you this,"  she confided,  "but the Book's about to be moved out of Savonne under heavy guard. The Prince is concerned that it brings woe to the city, and given what happened to other places where the Book has been, I'm inclined to agree. I'll be working on ways to destroy it for good." 
LeSwordfish
 27th Sigmarzeit 
Ludo took this in carefully.  "Where to? Will it be safer there?" 
 
"And... do you think you can destroy it?"   You couldn't before , he didn't add.
 
30th Sigmarzeit 
It was completely blindsiding Ludo to see Leni here, and Ludo felt a growing horror as he realised the reason for it. He bit back some vicious invective aimed at Irene.  "You... i'm glad you stayed here. I hope they looked after you."  He gave Sieghard a look of utter gratitude, and carefully detached himself.
 
"We've got a lot to talk about. We made it right to the Raven Hills."  He had been looking forward to telling Sieghard about the Wyvern fight but was so flustered all he could do was pull out his trophy tooth and hold it up mutely.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Something you bought in Morr's Seat? " Sieghard asked, failing to piece together the significance of what he was looking at. He glanced around. " Maybe we should talk inside. "

" I didn't think it was my place to tell Leni what she should do without talking to you, " he said. " If Irene would go this far, though... Even if we kept Leni away, she'd just cook up some other scheme. "
-Sentinel-
 "Where to? Will it be safer there?" 
 "Caerfort,"  said Elsa.  "For protection, we'll be relying on secrecy rather than high walls." 
 "And... do you think you can destroy it?" 
 "I don't know yet,"  Elsa admitted.  "Destroying the Great Necromancer's work will no doubt require a ritual... which is like a spell, except much more involved. If it can't be destroyed, then there are other ways to make it inaccessible or unusable. It's just that destruction is what I'm best at." 
LeSwordfish
 27th Sigmarzeit 
Ludo thought about that.  "I suppose that makes sense. So you'll be going with it?" 

The idea of ritual magic didn't mean much to him.  "If you think you can hide or destroy it, then that's good, but I bet the jackal has some way of finding out anout it. I don't think hiding it will work by itself. It wants to be found."

"I think the damage is done, though. What is Sforza going to do anout the food?" 
 30th Sigmarzeit
 Ludo carefully peeled Leni off himself.  "I need to talk to the commander but we can talk soon, I promise... look how excited Stoutheart is to see you!"
 
He gathered himself together better as they went inside, well enough.  "Of course. Rudi works in the kitchens so that ***** uses him to get my sister to come there. Gods know what would have happened if Leni had reached the city. Although perhaps she has more to think about? I can only hope."
 
He sighed.  "You haven't avoided things here, then? How was it?" 
rax
 27th Sigmarzeit 
 "And how you do you intend to maintain secrecy once you've gotten to Caerfort? There's no one alive there now - you don't think the Prince's magician setting up shop there will draw some attention?"  Bardhyl queried Elsa.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Rudi is likely in danger too, " Sieghard pointed out. " If Irene would use Leni to hurt you, why wouldn't she use him to hurt her? "

" We were able to keep the stores we had safe, " he said. " All we can do now is try to make it last. "
-Sentinel-
 "I don't think hiding it will work by itself. It wants to be found." 
 "So far, the box seems to be effective at containing its power,"  said Elsa.

 "What is Sforza going to do about the food?" 

Elsa looked grim.  "Keep his soldiers fed, is what he's going to do. He's more concerned about civil unrest than mass starvation. Abdul says there'll only be food for about three people in five." 
 "And how you do you intend to maintain secrecy once you've gotten to Caerfort? There's no one alive there now - you don't think the Prince's magician setting up shop there will draw some attention?" 
 "A fair question. That place wasn't my first choice, for that very reason. If it draws too much attention, we'll have to relocate." 
rax
 "So, after his mighty works in uniting the Reaches, so far His Highness has singularly failed to manage the ongoing drought, poured all of his excessive taxes into building up his army - which he now intends to keep fed and watered so that they can prevent anyone from rising up against him - and he's failed to accept the threat of the Jackal so that the beast had the time to cause mass famine. Remind me again why you felt it was so important to support one man's drive to rule uncontested?"  Bardhyl said acidly once the Sforza's plan for outlasting the famine was laid out.
-Sentinel-
 "Look...  someone  would've won that war regardless,"  replied Elsa defensively.  "I offered my services to Alvarr first, but he wouldn't hire me." 

She sipped from her mug.  "At the time I entered Sforza's service, it wasn't obvious he'd turn out to be... like that. But I don't think he'd accept my resignation. Leaving his service means becoming an outlaw." 
RossN
 Jarla

27th Sigmarzeit 

Jarla arrived at the inn a little later than the others, slipping into her seat as her companions were speaking.

When talk turned to the book she was firm:  "I think we have to destroy it or at least try. It is linked with the Jackal and at least in my vision it even seemed to have some degree of sway over him. If we can destroy it not only will we have to worry about him laying his claws on it the destruction might weaken him." 
 28th Sigmarzeit 
 "Thank you Abdul,"  you've given me much to think about Jarla said, smiling at the treasurer as she left for her chambers.

She was genuinely grateful for his kindness but Jarla hadn't felt able to properly confide her other concerns, like the fact she believed the principality would completely collapse within months even if they destroyed the Jackal. The drought and famine were just too much to overcome. On that depressing thought she retired to bed.
rax
 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
  "Look...  someone  would've won that war regardless,"  replied Elsa defensively.  "I offered my services to Alvarr first, but he wouldn't hire me." 

She sipped from her mug.  "At the time I entered Sforza's service, it wasn't obvious he'd turn out to be... like that. But I don't think he'd accept my resignation. Leaving his service means becoming an outlaw."  
 

 Bardhyl burst out laughing when Elsa mentioned becoming an outlaw.  "Oh no, an outlaw you say?!! How awful! I can't imagine how anyone could manage such a life of danger and deprivation!" 
 "The important question now, though, is how long do you -  any of you  - intend to continue propping up the Tilean's rule?"  he continued in a much quieter voice.
RossN
 Jarla 

 
 Originally Posted by rax 
 Bardhyl burst out laughing when Elsa mentioned becoming an outlaw.  "Oh no, an outlaw you say?!! How awful! I can't imagine how anyone could manage such a life of danger and deprivation!" 
 "The important question now, though, is how long do you -  any of you  - intend to continue propping up the Tilean's rule?"  he continued in a much quieter voice. 
 

Jarla looked very tired as she spoke quietly in return.  "A year ago and my brother would have strangled Sforza himself had he the opportunity - he said as much in his letters. A few weeks ago even I might have moved against. Now though I'm not sure there is much point. The famine and the drought are just too much for anyone to handle and Magnus the Pious would be defeated at the scale of things. Even if we beat the Jackal tomorrow it will take centuries to recover - if it ever does. " 

She shook her head.  "If you have some magic way of preventing mass starvation Bardhyl I'm all ears. As is I don't think moving against the Tilean would bring much improvement and it might well make things far worse with a succession war."  
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by rax 
 Bardhyl burst out laughing when Elsa mentioned becoming an outlaw.  "Oh no, an outlaw you say?!! How awful! I can't imagine how anyone could manage such a life of danger and deprivation!"  
 

 "Easy for you to be dismissive,"  said Elsa acerbically.  "If I told Sforza about 'the notorious outlaw Bardhyl', he'd give me a blank stare. You can even live openly in your own village. Invite everyone to a little party in your honor." 

  "The important question now, though, is how long do you -  any of you  - intend to continue propping up the Tilean's rule?"  he continued in a much quieter voice. 

Elsa's answer was blunt:  "As long as he gives me access to the resources I need to thwart the Jackal. What, pray tell, can the Vrani offer me?" 
LeSwordfish
 28th Sigmarzeit 

 "So far, the box seems to be effective at containing its power," said Elsa. 

 "The daemon found it."  Ludo pointed out.  "The Jackal knew where it was when it was in the box. Klammenberg knew it was in Manaan's Keep." 
 "I don't think Sforza is very good,"  Ludo admitted quietly.  "But I can't imagine that what we need right now is to go back to lots of lords again. I think maybe hanging together is our only chance. If armies start marching again then even more people will die." 
 30th Sigmarzeit 
Ludo nodded.  "I'm going back to Savonne soon and might try to get Rudi out as well. He might be a useful person to have here, I suppose, even if we're going to be trying to use as few resources as possible. You know halflings, we think a parsimony is a bit like a carrot." 

He steeled himself.  "How long do we have food for?" 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" If we tighten our belts, two months, " Sieghard said.
LeSwordfish
Ludo sat down heavily. It was much worse than he'd thought. 

"So we get our hands on more - much more - or we're all dead by Mittherbst." 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by RossN 
  Jarla 

Jarla looked very tired as she spoke quietly in return.  "A year ago and my brother would have strangled Sforza himself had he the opportunity - he said as much in his letters. A few weeks ago even I might have moved against. Now though I'm not sure there is much point. The famine and the drought are just too much for anyone to handle and Magnus the Pious would be defeated at the scale of things. Even if we beat the Jackal tomorrow it will take centuries to recover - if it ever does. " 

She shook her head.  "If you have some magic way of preventing mass starvation Bardhyl I'm all ear-s. As is I don't think moving against the Tilean would bring much improvement and it might well make things far worse with a succession war."   
 

 Bardhyl shook his head disapprovingly.  "You speak the counsel of despair, Lady Jarla. No one can prevent the famine that is coming, but to believe that the Tilean's rule could not survive that? You give the man too little credit. He will keep his soldiers fed. If he's any kind of clever, he'll see to it that their families are also taken care of. In his mind, as long as he keeps a large enough army well provisioned, all he needs to do is hold out until people are truly starving and too weak to contemplate any form of organised uprising. Then he waits out the famine and sweeps up the leftovers once it peters out." 
 "As for making things worse? Elsa said it herself -  two out of every five  people in the Reaches will starve, but I doubt very much that there will be an equal distribution of misery. To secure the provisions he needs, the Tilean will squeeze anyone and everyone whom he deems surplus to his requirements, and that means  my family  and  my friends  - the 'barbarians' - will be the first to go. And if all of us die? Then he has one less problem to deal with when the famine is over,"  Bardhyl emphasized.


 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
  "Easy for you to be dismissive,"  said Elsa acerbically.  "If I told Sforza about 'the notorious outlaw Bardhyl', he'd give me a blank stare. You can even live openly in your own village. Invite everyone to a little party in your honor." 

Elsa's answer was blunt:  "As long as he gives me access to the resources I need to thwart the Jackal. What, pray tell, can the Vrani offer me?"  
 

  "You will forgive me for being blunt in return, but you do not strike me as a woman who would be content to live anonymously in a village even if you were given the opportunity,"  Bardhyl answered with a shrug.

 "You say that you will stand with Sforza for as long as he provides you with resources to thwart the Jackal, but he doesn't seem to be doing much more than sending you far away to hide in a dead village, where you'll conveniently be at his mercy for all your needs. I may be an outlaw, Elsa, but from where I'm sitting you look like a prisoner,"  he said.


 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  28th Sigmarzeit 
 "I don't think Sforza is very good,"  Ludo admitted quietly.  "But I can't imagine that what we need right now is to go back to lots of lords again. I think maybe hanging together is our only chance. If armies start marching again then even more people will die."  
 

  "And you would have a point, if I believed for a second that Sforza would strive to rule justly for all the Reaches, but you heard Elsa - he will keep his soldiers fed and he will put down any civil unrest. The only thing your Prince cares for is his rule over these lands, and if that means sacrificing the rest of us so he can remain on his throne, then so be it,"  Bardhyl argued.  "To put it plainly - there is a small window in which to strike before the famine really begins to bite. After that, we will all be trapped between the Jackal and the Tilean until Morr leads us to his garden." 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by rax 
   "You will forgive me for being blunt in return, but you do not strike me as a woman who would be content to live anonymously in a village even if you were given the opportunity,"  Bardhyl answered with a shrug. 
 

Elsa glared at Bardhyl.  "You don't know me. I went to Sforza not because I was ambitious, but because I needed his protection. And he's provided it. If I lose it? Half the Reaches want me dead. And they'll kill Tattie too, for good measure." 

  "You say that you will stand with Sforza for as long as he provides you with resources to thwart the Jackal, but he doesn't seem to be doing much more than sending you far away to hide in a dead village, where you'll conveniently be at his mercy for all your needs. I may be an outlaw, Elsa, but from where I'm sitting you look like a prisoner,"  he said. 

 "Where the Book goes, I go,"  said Elsa flatly.  "Remember that, if you get it into your head to make a play for it." 

She now regretted having revealed the Book's destination to Bardhyl.

 Please don't force me to kill any more of your people. They've lost so many already. 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
 Elsa glared at Bardhyl.  "You don't know me. I went to Sforza not because I was ambitious, but because I needed his protection. And he's provided it. If I lose it? Half the Reaches want me dead. And they'll kill Tattie too, for good measure."  
 

  "It's true, I don't know you, but I know what I see before me, and that is the court wizard of the Prince of the Reaches,"  Bardhyl answered, leaving the rest of his meaning unspoken.

  Terrified and stubborn in equal measure. Perhaps I was wrong. Perhaps there is no price she won't pay to shelter under his wing and no argument to be made that could convince her that she has any other choice than the one she's made,   he thought to himself.


 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
  "Where the Book goes, I go,"  said Elsa flatly.  "Remember that, if you get it into your head to make a play for it."  
 

  "Make a play for the book? Why would I do that?"  Bardhyl replied, clearly surprised at Elsa's paranoid turn.  "The book must be destroyed, and as far as I am aware you are the only wizard left in the Reaches with an outside chance of accomplishing the task." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard nodded. " I've got the villagers hunting and fishing for what they can. And I've sent letters north to see about having food brought downriver. Whether that'll be enough though... We may have to make some tough choices before year's end. "
-Sentinel-
 "It's true, I don't know you, but I know what I see before me, and that is the court wizard of the Prince of the Reaches." 

Elsa shrugged.  "Do you think I should be  your  court wizard instead?" 
 "The book must be destroyed, and as far as I am aware you are the only wizard left in the Reaches with an outside chance of accomplishing the task." 
 "You're likely right,"  granted Elsa. It was not a humble thing to say, but it was true.  "With so much depending on me, surely you understand why I'm reluctant to make any more enemies. But if you're worried about me propping up the Prince's rule... the good news is that I won't be doing any of that. All my efforts will be devoted to a goal we both share." 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
 Elsa shrugged.  "Do you think I should be  your  court wizard instead?"  
 

  "Do I  look  like a man with a court to you? And in the unlikely event that I should acquire one, I'm not sure you would find it to your liking,"  Bardhyl chuckled.

 "But if being someone's pet wizard is the only way for you to be safe, have you considered setting up shop with your man Sieghard? He runs Painford nowadays, right? It may not be Savonne, but it was a nice enough place last time I passed through there. And of course, if the Tilean  were  to vacate his seat,  someone  will take his place. Knowing what you've done for Sforza, I'm sure they'd understand the value in having you at their side. Even more so if you happened to be helpful in paving their way to the top,"  he noted with a grin.
LeSwordfish
 28th Sigmarzeit 
 "So what should Sforza be doing instead?"  Ludo asked, trying to sound genuine.  "What would you do if you were prince?" 
 30th Sogmarzeit 
Ludo rubbed his temples thoughtfully.  "Might be worth moving more people to Ravenskird. Keep an eye on the boats, try and tax or control food coming out of the marsh. Go out and build relationships with the swamp folks, get them to sell their stuff to us, not the city." 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  28th Sigmarzeit 
 "So what should Sforza be doing instead?"  Ludo asked, trying to sound genuine.  "What would you do if you were prince?"  
 

 Bardhyl gave Ludo a quizzical look.  "But I have no interest in being a prince, friend Ludo. I wish to live among my people and guide them in our ways and traditions, nothing more. What Sforza  should  have been doing is bending every resource at his disposal to finish off the Jackal once and for all. Since he failed in that, we are where we are,"  he said.

 "Famine is now unavoidable. Perhaps its effects can be mitigated if the Tilean uses his power to distribute the food he intends to hoard for his soldiers to those in greatest need, no matter where in the Reaches they may be found, but such does not appear to be his plan. And if Sforza has no solution to keeping people fed beyond the walls of Savonne, then it seems to me that it's every man for himself. If he sends his soldiers into the Hills to seize more of my people's livestock, then we must fight or die. That's all there is to it, as far as I can see." 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by rax 
  "But if being someone's pet wizard is the only way for you to be safe, have you considered setting up shop with your man Sieghard? He runs Painford nowadays, right? It may not be Savonne, but it was a nice enough place last time I passed through there. And of course, if the Tilean  were  to vacate his seat,  someone  will take his place. Knowing what you've done for Sforza, I'm sure they'd understand the value in having you at their side. Even more so if you happened to be helpful in paving their way to the top,"  he noted with a grin. 
 

 "I'd rather not leave the Book unattended,"  said Elsa.  "In the south, I'll be far removed from whatever political games are going on in Savonne. And I'll be under the rule of Lord-Lieutenant Esteban Valdes, who isn't an enemy of the Vrani." 

 
 Originally Posted by rax 
  "If he sends his soldiers into the Hills to seize more of my people's livestock, then we must fight or die. That's all there is to it, as far as I can see."  
 

Elsa gave a sober nod.  "I understand. If I were in your position, that's what I'd do too." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Probably a good idea, " Sieghard said. " How long will you be around before heading back to Savonne? I coulld certainly use the help "
LeSwordfish
 28th Sigmarzeit 
 "Would that help?"  Ludo asked.  "If there's just not enough food... does it matter who it goes to? Does it matter which three in five? Whoever took over would need to focus on getting more food, not just giving it out."

"I suppose if you fired the army you could use that money to ship food in..." 
 30th Sigmarzeit 
 "Soon,"  Ludo said.  "Within a week or so. But i'll be back as soon as I can." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
I'm going a little slow on Sieghard's side of the conversation because presumably how the bardhyl conversation ends will determine what Ludo is saying to Sieghard.
 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  28th Sigmarzeit 
 "Would that help?"  Ludo asked.  "If there's just not enough food... does it matter who it goes to? Does it matter which three in five? Whoever took over would need to focus on getting more food, not just giving it out."

"I suppose if you fired the army you could use that money to ship food in..."  
 

  "I imagine it would matter very much to the those who are forced to watch their loved ones die. Do you have family, Ludo? Will you be as sanguine about it all when it's your kin who are starving?"  Bardhyl retorted.

 "If the Prince is indeed a Prince for all the Reaches, and not just those closest or most useful to him, then he should both - see that as many of the people are fed and use whatever money or influence he has to secure more food. If that means fewer toy soldiers to play with, so be it." 
LeSwordfish
Ludo stared at the floor for the moment and then nodded once.
 
"And there's no chance in hell he'd ever choose anyone over his own soldiers, and his own position." 
-Sentinel-
 "Perhaps the less I know about your plans, the better, Bardhyl,"  said Elsa cautiously.

She began to rise.
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla shook her head.  "I admire your determination Bardhyl but quite frankly in your shoes I'd leave and seek my fortunes elsewhere. The Reaches are dying and I don't think we can save them, so what does it matter who is Prince if there isn't even a Savonne by this time next year? At this point the best we can hope to achieve is stopping the Jackal from menacing elsewhere." 
-Sentinel-
Elsa looked at Jarla, startled at her defeatism.

 "You've been here for... what... a year?"  she said, with an edge of contempt.  "And you're going to tell a native of the Reaches that his land is doomed? You don't know the people here. Surviving is what they do best." 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by RossN 
 Jarla shook her head.  "I admire your determination Bardhyl but quite frankly in your shoes I'd leave and seek my fortunes elsewhere. The Reaches are dying and I don't think we can save them, so what does it matter who is Prince if there isn't even a Savonne by this time next year? At this point the best we can hope to achieve is stopping the Jackal from menacing elsewhere."  
 

  "The Reaches aren't  dying , Lady Jarla, they are being  killed . It is the Jackal who is behind the expanding Waste, the drought, and the locusts. Perhaps his curse is also the reason why we've had Sforza and all the other failures before him to contend with, though I am less certain of that. So to me it seems clear - remove the Jackal, and the Reaches can recover,"  Bardhyl answered Jarla.

 "Of course, if you do not believe that the Jackal can be beaten - and you are not alone in that - then you should follow your own advice and leave before things get worse. Because if it turns out you're right, then a great many people will be fleeing these lands at once, and I suspect our neighbours will not look kindly on having so many new mouths to feed. Best then to get out while you're ahead, eh?" 
LeSwordfish
 "My family lives here,"  Ludo said, disgruntled.  "I'm not going anywhere. You go back to the empire if you want." 

He sighed.  "There is... I don't believe this myself but there is one more option. When I spoke to Klammenberg, he said that the Jackal wanted to take the book... and leave. Go to Nagash, or back into the desert. Whatever he wants to do... it isn't here, and isn't now. So maybe if... maybe if we give him the book, this all ends." 
RossN
 Jarla 
 "Or that he'll have no reason to stay if we destroy the book,"  Jarla insited stubbornly.
-Sentinel-
 "There is... I don't believe this myself but there is one more option. When I spoke to Klammenberg, he said that the Jackal wanted to take the book... and leave. Go to Nagash, or back into the desert. Whatever he wants to do... it isn't here, and isn't now. So maybe if... maybe if we give him the book, this all ends." 
 "I don't believe that for a second,"  said Elsa flatly, sitting back down.  "The Jackal spoke to me in a dream, a few months ago, when I was hunting for Mala in the Raven Hills. He wants to restore the kingdom that's been taken from him. He wants to  rule ." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
 
 
LeSwordfish
Ludo was glad that the idea of returning the book was a non-starter, he had been worried that hiding Klammenberg's suggestion would have been keeping an option they wanted off the table.

 "I want to go and talk to Sieghard. Make sure he's doing everything he can to feed painford. And Herr Valdez... if Last Water is untouched, Sforza will bleed it dry to feed the Iron Company. I wonder if Valdez could be convinced to keep the food there, or to sell it to Painford instead." 
rax
 "It would be better if the book is destroyed, but if it were easy someone would likely have done so already. In the event that your research on the matter leads nowhere, then perhaps our only choice is to send the book to a place the Jackal cannot reach it. Like the Illuminated Order did, perhaps? And by all means make it somewhere far from the Reaches, if such a thing is possible,"  Bardhyl said to Elsa.
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla shook her head stubbornly.  "Trying to hide the book is a distraction. Destroying should be our aim until such time as it proves impossible. As I've said before I think the Jackal and the book are tied together. Destroy it and we might weaken or perhaps even destroy him."  
rax
 "Yes, Lady Jarla, that is exactly what I was suggesting. Destroy the book if possible, send it away as a last resort,"  Bardhyl replied.
-Sentinel-
 "Glad we're in agreement,"  said Elsa.  "I'll be studying what is possible, and then I'll do it." 

Her tone suggested she had little else to add in this conversation.
LeSwordfish
 So you destroy the book, and the rest of us try to stop everyone starving?"  Ludo asked.
-Sentinel-
 "I'm not the boss of you,"  said Elsa, shrugging.  "But at some point I'll likely need some help gathering the materials for the ritual." 
LeSwordfish
 "Want to switch jobs?"  Ludo muttered darkly.

 30th Sigmarzeit 
 "I spoke to the others just before leaving,"  Ludo said.  "Jarla's been hit pretty hard by it. She might be leaving the reaches, I can't say I blame her. Elsa's planning to destroy the book. She'll be moving it to Caerfort and doing... some kind of ritual there. Some bigger magic than before."

"Bardhyl... look, Sforza's plan is to feed the Iron Company first, and you know they'll eat far more than their fair share. He wants to avoid riots... no, he doesn't want to avoid riots. He wants to be able to kill everyone at the riots. So Bardhyl's planning to resist. He's saying he's going to resist Sforza taking any food from the Raven Hills."

"I think we should think about doing the same. Sooner or later someone's going to come and demand everything we can spare." 
rax
 28th Sigmarzeit 
 "This fellow Valdez, is he an Iron Company man or does he command his own troop?"  Bardhyl asked Ludo once the discussion about the book was done.
LeSwordfish
 "He commands his own men, the Brotherhood of Magritte. There's not too many of them left. He's a decent man, I think, but has been one of Sforza's men for a long time. If we want him to turn away from Sforza I think it would take some fairly careful handling." 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  "Want to switch jobs?"  Ludo muttered darkly. 
 

Elsa snorted.  "If I could, believe me, I would." 

She was still seething over her recent arrest and imprisonment. Were she not sorely needed in the Reaches for reasons Sforza could not fathom, that would have been the last straw.



 
 Originally Posted by rax 
  "This fellow Valdez, is he an Iron Company man or does he command his own troop?"  Bardhyl asked Ludo once the discussion about the book was done. 
 

 "He has his own company of Estalian swordsmen,"  answered Elsa.  "They took heavy losses at Arrow Heap, so he's likely formed a militia on top of that." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
 LCP , how much would Elsa know about Esteban Valdes' troops? This is actually important, since she's relying on them to protect the Book until it can be destroyed or banished.
 
rax
 "I don't doubt it,"  Bardhyl replied to Ludo's estimation of Valdes' loyalty.  "Fortunately, I've found that while many men will baulk at raising their hand against their liege or employer, convincing them to look the other way at an opportune moment is often a far easier proposition,"  he said with a grim smile.
LeSwordfish
Ludo nodded.  "I think Sforza will try to bleed Last Water dry... and I think Valdez could be persuaded to resist that. The same for the militia commander there... he's an old friend of mine." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  "I spoke to the others just before leaving,"  Ludo said.  "Jarla's been hit pretty hard by it. She might be leaving the reaches, I can't say I blame her. Elsa's planning to destroy the book. She'll be moving it to Caerfort and doing... some kind of ritual there. Some bigger magic than before."

"Bardhyl... look, Sforza's plan is to feed the Iron Company first, and you know they'll eat far more than their fair share. He wants to avoid riots... no, he doesn't want to avoid riots. He wants to be able to kill everyone at the riots. So Bardhyl's planning to resist. He's saying he's going to resist Sforza taking any food from the Raven Hills."

"I think we should think about doing the same. Sooner or later someone's going to come and demand everything we can spare."  
 

" You're suggesting I defy a direct order from the prince, " Sieghard said, keeping his tone level. " You realize what it would mean if I did that, don't you? "
LeSwordfish
 30th Sigmarzeit 
 "It would mean we wouldn't have to watch a week of those two months of supplies get loaded onto a cart and vanish over the river."  Ludo looked very tired.  "I'm not saying we tell Al'Makir to go hang when he asks what we've got, but we should look into figuring out how we can keep as much back as possible." 
LCP
 Backertag, 31st Sigmarzeit 
 Ludo &amp; Sieghard 

Backertag brought two letters for Sieghard. The first was a reply from Steffan Sussman, delivered by the returning Petar. His message was more concise  than Sieghard might have expected from the talkative steward of Manann’s Keep.

 
 Spoiler: Sussman’s Letter 
 Warden Sieghard,

The locusts have passed here too. They emerged from the hills and ate everything within ten miles of the town. There is some hope that things may look better north of Handrich’s Cross, but in the southern Vale we have lost almost all the crops planted this year.

The people here are understandably unhappy. If you have any spare men to help keep the peace, assistance would be much appreciated.

Yours,
 - S. S. 
 


The second was delivered by a mounted messenger from Savonne, and bore Prince Sforza’s seal. Opening it, Sieghard saw it was not a reply to his own letter, but orders. He suspected similar orders were being dispatched to every corner of the Reaches - talking with the messenger was enough to confirm that the man was carrying copies for Sussman and Valdes. The orders were written out twice - once in Tilean, and again in Reikspiel.

 
 Spoiler: Sforza’s Orders 
 In the name of Prince Muzio Sforza, Lord of the Reaches, to his loyal lords and stewards:

You are commanded at all costs to secure provisions of  food  and  drink  for your soldiers, their horses and beasts of burden, sufficient to last until the next spring. Secure these stores in a safe location and keep them under guard.

All taxes of food, ale and wine are now to be collected monthly. Having secured sufficient provisions for yourself, you are to secure also stores equivalent to  one hundred and twenty bushels of wheat , to be transported monthly to the Iron Company stores in Savonne, under as strong a guard as you can provide.

Should any subject of his Highness refuse to pay his Highness’ taxes, or refuse to sell their goods when offered a fair price, you are granted royal authority to force the purchase, or to confiscate their goods in the name of the crown. Do not tolerate trouble-making or dissent.

Verena guide you, and Myrmidia guard you. 

The missive ended with Sforza’s flamboyant signature. Sieghard was by now fairly confident with his reading and writing, but he didn’t think a Z was supposed to have that many curly bits.
 


 

 Bezahltag, 32nd Sigmarzeit 
 Elsa 

It was Bezahltag when Olga arrived back in Savonne. She found Elsa at the castle, having apparently had a difficult time talking her way past the Iron Company guards. She didn’t seem to let it bother her.

“Wotcha chief,” she said, nodding her head to Elsa and Tattie in turn. “We packing it in in Putbad, then? I had been wondering.” Taking a seat, she pulled off her boots to rest her feet. “Things don’t half look grim down this way, though. You seen what them locusts have done? It’s like the end of days out there on the Downs.”

 ~ 
Meanwhile, Al-Makir had been making his arrangements for the transportation of the book -  but some people were not taking it well. Echoing through the halls of the castle, Elsa could hear Skorgrund’s stentorian voice.

“What do you mean, his mind’s already made up?” the old dwarf was demanding. “If this cursed thing’s being sent anywhere for safe keeping, it should be to the Dwimmulhold, like we told you from the start! Not some  umgak  tower in the middle of  grobi  territory!”

“The Prince of course appreciates your position, revered elder,” was the harassed-sounding reply from Barbaro. “But removing it to the Dwimmulhold would not remove it from the city. It is the considered opinion of the Temple, not to mention Magister Holt…”

“Magister Holt? And what does the  goraki  know that we don’t? She’s practically a babe in arms! Gazul take us, there are casks of ale older than your ‘magister’ - aye, and probably wiser, too.” The old dwarf really didn’t have an ‘inside’ voice.

“Even so,” Barbaro tried to say, but Skorgrund wasn’t finished.

“This is bad business,  umgromthgnol, ” he said. “How long have you been planning this, eh? And you tell us now? Varag Kol was our enemy long before he was yours.” Some Khazalid muttering broke in on his flow. “You can tell your prince, Clan Dwimmulson will remember this.”

The slam of a door echoed down the passageway, and Elsa caught a glimpse of Skorgrund shuffling out.

 Bardhyl 

Damjan and Panteleon arrived back in Savonne late on Bezahltag. They met Bardhyl and the others back at the  Fat Fish .

“Looked for the crew of the  Gudgeon, ” said Panteleon, “but most of them had run off other places by the time we got there. Only one of them stayed behind, and she was drinking her sorrows away.”

“She said it happened as they were going round the Knives,” said Damjan. “Didn’t like it when we asked if the captain could have sunk them on his own - said he was an expert, he knew the channels. She thought maybe they slung a chain under the water. As soon as they hit the rocks, the wreckers were on them.”

“About a dozen of them, by her count,” said Panteleon. “Covered their faces, but by their gear she took them for deserters from Alvarr’s army.”

“Or they just took their weapons from the dead,” said Grim, skeptically. Panteleon shrugged.

“Maybe,” he said. “Either way, they took what they could from the hold, then cut the wreck loose to break up in the stream. According to our witness, what they got would have been some casks of Azrillite spirits, some bolts of velvet traded from upriver, and an iron box they were supposed to deliver to the city.” He raised his eyebrows at the last item. “She didn’t know what was in it. Said it was the captain who brought it on board.”

“The wreckers turned the rest of them loose, but kept him back,” said Damjan. “Wherever their hideout is, she reckons they must’ve taken him there.”

“Sort of got the impression that was why she was still hanging around, in Selsan” said Panteleon, nodding. “Hoping he might still show up. But she’s been waiting a long while.”
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 “Wotcha chief,” she said, nodding her head to Elsa and Tattie in turn. “We packing it in in Putbad, then? I had been wondering.” Taking a seat, she pulled off her boots to rest her feet. “Things don’t half look grim down this way, though. You seen what them locusts have done? It’s like the end of days out there on the Downs.” 
 

 "The  really  bad times are back in Savonne,"  agreed Elsa, glad to hear Olga's street accent again.  "Rumors say the fighting pits have reopened in the Warren." 

She studied Olga's face to see if that got any reaction from her. Elsa knew remarkably little about her bodyguard's past, and how she had become who she was.

She steepled her gloved fingers.  "Prince Sforza is sending me south. I've got a task over there that should keep me busy a few months. Now, if you've got any friends or relatives to look after in Savonne during these... troubled times, we can bring our contract to a close. If not, well, I'll be glad to have you with me. I'll have other guards too, but I like having someone around who's not taking money from the Prince." 

 


Elsa hurried to catch up with Skorgrund. Him being a dwarf, it was not too hard.

 "Oh, Revered Elder. I couldn't help but overhear."   I'd need to be deaf not to.   "I had no say in this decision. The Prince can be p—"  She caught herself.  "...bull-headed. Rest assured that no greenkins or restless dead will take that thing from me as long as I draw breath. In fact, I'll be working on ways to rid the Reaches of it permanently." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  - 30th Sigmarzeit 

" Ludo, I know you're not that naive. We may be able to stall, but only for so long. In time, Sforza will either realize what we're up to or get impatient and not care that there isn't enough left to meet his demand. " Sieghard said, his tone growing more dire.

" If we don't give him what he wants, sooner or later, he'll send his Iron Company south to take it and they'll butcher anyone in their path just to have fewer mouths to feed when it's over.  That  is the situation we're facing. Is that something we have any hope of winning against? "

 31st Sigmarzeit 

Once the messengers were gone, Sieghard wordlessly passed the letters to Ludo.
LeSwordfish
 30th Sigmarzeit 
 "Well what do we  do  then,"  Ludo almost wailed.  "He's going to bleed us dry to keep his army fighting. You killed the jackal and you're going to let the man who took the credit take our food?" 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Holding off on replying to the letters until this conversationhas resolved.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  - 30th Sigmarzeit 

" That's  not  what I said, " Sieghard replied sharply. " I asked if we had any hope of winning if it came to open rebellion. The Iron Company outnumbers us six for every one of ours even if the Brotherhood of Magritta or any of the local companies won't raise arms against us. More would die if he marched south than if he bled us over the coming months. "

" We have a few things in our favor. The river makes a strong choke point and we have good walls we can fall back to. More importantly, we have [i]time[/[i]. If the only choice he'll give us is how to die, then it's time that we can use to make ourselves stronger and him weaker. "
LeSwordfish
 "I think we have some options if we want to.. keep back what we can,"  Ludo said.  "The river is a choke point for goods as well as men. We can check carts and boats. We can make sure nothing comes out of the marshes that doesn't come through us. There are places we can hide extra stores... some of the charcoal burner's huts, perhaps..." 

He gave a bark of hollow laughter.  "I bet Sforza's not going to go and check the old Manse. We should start gathering supplies there." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  - 30th Sigmarzeit 

" The manse? " he paused, considering it. " Nahorek and his pack of ghouls spent  months  there. I hate to imagine the state the place is in now. "

" If our choice is defy Sforza or let the Thornwood die... Rudi has access to the kitchens, " he said, letting the implication hang in the air. " We don't have to get him involved in anything we do, but there's surely a lot he could tell us that we could use. "
LeSwordfish
Ludo nodded quietly.  "I think... right now, if anything happens to Sforza, someone needs to take over right away. More people will just die if there's chaos. So... before something happens, we need to find someone who could take over and get ready to put them in charge." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard drummed his fingers on the table, thinking. " It would have to be Carraciolo, wouldn't it? Anything less and he would fight us. "

" Of course, if he tries to bleed us the way Sforza plans to, we're right back where we began. " If nothing else, Carraciolo had never struck Sieghard as having the same sort of underhanded cunning that Sforza did.
LeSwordfish
 "It would, but Sforza's not named an official heir. He might fall in line behind somebody else without enough support, if there was a consensus choice." 
rax
 27th Sigmarzeit 

 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
 Ludo nodded.  "I think Sforza will try to bleed Last Water dry... and I think Valdez could be persuaded to resist that. The same for the militia commander there... he's an old friend of mine."  
 

  "If that's so, then the people of Last Water should count themselves lucky to have such upstanding men ruling over them,"  Bardhyl acknowledged.  "Of course, if such a suggestion were to be made to Herr Valdes, I'm sure it would be better received if it came from someone he knows and trusts, yes?"  he continued with a meaningful glance at Ludo.

 28th Sigmarzeit 

Once Abbie returned from the market, Bardhyl gathered his crew about him to fill them in on his conversation with Ludo, Elsa and Jarla, and to deliver new orders.

 "If I've got the measure of the Tilean, any plan which involves keeping the soldiery fed and watered when there's a famine on is bad news for ordinary folk, and rebellious barbarians most of all,"  he said grimly.

 "Abbie, I want you and Max to take the supplies to our place in the Karst and then get back here as quick as you can. Afrim, I want you and Zana to go with them, but once the supplies are safely stowed, keep going to Morr's Seat. Go quickly, but don't kill your horses, eh,"  he said with a wink.

 "Find out if Shepherd's Valley and the Hills were as badly hit by the locusts as the Downlands. Once you get to Morr's Seat, play nice with the Tileans and find Wadim. Tell him that the Prince is planning to ride out the famine by gathering stores from all across the Reaches to keep all of his soldiers fed and watered. Tell him I'll be back as soon as I can and encourage him to organize the clans to keep as much of our food as possible from the Tileans in the meantime. And one more thing - ask him how many of our people would be ready to  fight  to keep the Tileans from carting off our animals and other food. Meet me back here at the  Fat Fish  with his reply and any other news from the Hills. If we need to move out before then, I'll leave a message  so you know where to find me,"  he finished.


 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bezahltag, 32nd Sigmarzeit 
 Bardhyl 

Damjan and Panteleon arrived back in Savonne late on Bezahltag. They met Bardhyl and the others back at the  Fat Fish .

“Looked for the crew of the  Gudgeon, ” said Panteleon, “but most of them had run off other places by the time we got there. Only one of them stayed behind, and she was drinking her sorrows away.”

“She said it happened as they were going round the Knives,” said Damjan. “Didn’t like it when we asked if the captain could have sunk them on his own - said he was an expert, he knew the channels. She thought maybe they slung a chain under the water. As soon as they hit the rocks, the wreckers were on them.”

“About a dozen of them, by her count,” said Panteleon. “Covered their faces, but by their gear she took them for deserters from Alvarr’s army.”

“Or they just took their weapons from the dead,” said Grim, skeptically. Panteleon shrugged.

“Maybe,” he said. “Either way, they took what they could from the hold, then cut the wreck loose to break up in the stream. According to our witness, what they got would have been some casks of Azrillite spirits, some bolts of velvet traded from upriver, and an iron box they were supposed to deliver to the city.” He raised his eyebrows at the last item. “She didn’t know what was in it. Said it was the captain who brought it on board.”

“The wreckers turned the rest of them loose, but kept him back,” said Damjan. “Wherever their hideout is, she reckons they must’ve taken him there.”

“Sort of got the impression that was why she was still hanging around, in Selsan” said Panteleon, nodding. “Hoping he might still show up. But she’s been waiting a long while.” 
 

  "Hmm, that doesn't get us much closer to finding this 'Ghost', but that box sure sounds interesting. Could well have been full of Shade,"  Bardhyl mused.

 "...Of course! I'm a dolt!"  he suddenly exclaimed, slapping his forehead.  "What if the Prince doesn't  know  that his Shade is going missing? Filomena could well be keeping the Tilean in the dark while she's trying to work out how to recover the goods. Or - though it seems less likely - she's working  with  the 'Ghost' and is using his attacks to siphon off Shade which they then sell for their own profit. Either way, she would be making damn sure that Sforza doesn't have a clue that some of his precious Shade isn't reaching the market as intended!" 
 "I think maybe a little visit to Madame Filomena is in order. I just need to work out a way to get in and out without becoming a target for her wrath,"  he grinned.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Does Carraciolo seem like the sort of man to fall in line behind someone other than the prince? " Sieghard asked skeptically. " One thing at a time. We can worry about that when we come to it. "
LeSwordfish
 "True,"  Ludo said,  "but that applies to some extent or other to all of them. Susssman's only loyalty is to the winning side. Al'Makir and Valdez... neither of them seems likely to think they should be in charge themselves,  but I bet they'd go for one of the old guard over an outsider." 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 28th Sigmarzeit 

Zana looked pleased to be given the duty. Afrim just grumbled.

"No rest for the wicked, eh?" he said. Seeing Bardhyl looking at him, he nodded. "Aye, chief, we'll see it done."

Abbie raised her eyebrows at Bardhyl's mention of Filomena.

"Everyone I've spoken to says that one's a viper," she said. "You want to tangle with her, boss, I think it's going to take some very careful handling."


 

 Elsa, 32nd Sigmarzeit 

"The pits?" said Olga, with what might have been genuine surprise. She drew in her breath between her teeth. "That's a mug's game, that is. 'Specially if any of the old crowd are still running it. Still, I suppose there's no shortage of desperate folk about."

"I've got nothing tying me down," she said, when Elsa asked her if she was happy to come to Caerfort. "Long as I'm getting paid, I'm your woman."

 ~ 
"As long as you draw breath?" snapped Skorgrund, in barbed tones. "What's that,  umgi ? Forty years, if the  grobi  or the  uzkular  don't get to you first? Do you want me to mark it in my diary?"

He wagged a crabbed finger at her. "I thought you knew better than to humour your princeling's vanity,  goraki . You know as well as I do what he  ought  to be doing." He glanced back towards Barbaro's door, and for once, actually lowered his voice. "You asked us not to speak of it, and we keep our word. But the real enemy is out there across the Teeth, not down... wherever you're going." He sniffed, and furrowed his craggy brow. "Where is that, exactly?"
LeSwordfish
 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
  31st Sigmarzeit 

Once the messengers were gone, Sieghard wordlessly passed the letters to Ludo. 
 

Ludo read the messages over thoughtfully.  "That's nearly a week of stores every month! We could barely manage that before. I wonder if Valdez and Sussman are paying the same amount? But Valdez's crops were untouched."
 
 "Maybe I can make that argument to Al'makir, try to talk him down? As for Sussman, I say we send him his soldiers. Hanna's got a good enough head on her soldiers not to shoot at rioters throwing stones, send her and twenty men. That's a whole lot of mouths that it'll be his problem to feed." 
-Sentinel-
"The pits? That's a mug's game, that is. 'Specially if any of the old crowd are still running it. Still, I suppose there's no shortage of desperate folk about."

Elsa perked up.  "The 'old crowd'? I take it you have inside knowledge of this milieu? I could arrange for some of the ringleaders to go missing. They're small fry, compared to who my friends and I have dealt with this past couple of years." 

"I've got nothing tying me down. Long as I'm getting paid, I'm your woman."

 "Very good to hear,"  grinned Elsa.  "I'm afraid the place we're going is a bit out of the way, so it should be a boring few months... if we're lucky." 

 


"Where is that, exactly?"

 "Some dead village called Caerfort,"  answered Elsa, lowering her voice to match Skorgrund's conspiratorial tone.  "And I know full well who the enemy is... but as far as I'm aware, he no longer has a physical form we can kill. Even if he did, my warnings to the Prince are falling on deaf ears. He won't be sending an expedition into the Pale Waste any time soon, especially given current circumstances."  She made no effort to conceal her bitterness.

 "Now... the Book? That's something solid. Something that can't be dismissed or ignored. It's been plaguing the Reaches for millennia, even while Nahorek slept. Can it be destroyed? I don't know... but I'm not aware anyone's made a serious attempt yet. That's what I'll be working on." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" If Abdul was the one making the decision, it might even work, " Sieghard replied. " We can send men south though. Probably a drop in the Mere so far as food's concerned, but every bit helps. "

 
 Spoiler 
Ok, per Ludo's suggestion, 20 men led by Hanna to Manaan's keep with instructions to keep Sieghard updated on the situation there. He'll have Rike come with to Ravenskird instead of Hanna and leave it under her supervision when he comes back to Painford with Elsa's party.
 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl, 28th and 32nd Sigmarzeit 

Zana looked pleased to be given the duty. Afrim just grumbled.

"No rest for the wicked, eh?" he said. Seeing Bardhyl looking at him, he nodded. "Aye, chief, we'll see it done."

Abbie raised her eyebrows at Bardhyl's mention of Filomena.

"Everyone I've spoken to says that one's a viper," she said. "You want to tangle with her, boss, I think it's going to take some very careful handling." 
 

  "Good man,"  Bardhyl answered Afrim with a nod.

 "Aye, there's no doubt about that,"  he agreed with Abbie.  "Don't worry, I won't go barging in there just yet, and when I do I'll make sure to bring plenty of backup,"  he chuckled.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Just a reminder that Bardhyl's ruminations on Filomena would be taking place when his men get back from Selsan, i.e. the 32nd. So, technically, Abbie should already be en route to the hideout in the Karst. 🙂
 
LCP
 Elsa, 32nd Sigmarzeit 

 Elsa perked up.  "The 'old crowd'? I take it you have inside knowledge of this milieu? I could arrange for some of the ringleaders to go missing. They're small fry, compared to who my friends and I have dealt with this past couple of years."  

Olga gave Elsa a funny look. "I thought we were going south?" she said. "Why would you want to get mixed up in that?"

 ~ 

  "Now... the Book? That's something solid. Something that can't be dismissed or ignored. It's been plaguing the Reaches for millennia, even while Nahorek slept. Can it be destroyed? I don't know... but I'm not aware anyone's made a serious attempt yet. That's what I'll be working on."  

“And you think unmaking Varag Kol’s book will be easier than changing your master’s mind,” said Skorgrund. “That you’ll succeed where no-one before you has, since before even the tongue you’re speaking in was born.” He shook his head and muttered something in Khazalid. With a deep intake of breath, he mustered enough diplomacy to continue.

“The Rinn won't like it. I don't like it. But if Caerfort's where you're taking it, then the clan ought to keep some eyes on it. I take it you won't object to a few more guards?”


 

 Konigstag, 33rd Sigmarzeit - Elsa &amp; Jarla 

The next morning, everything was in place. Al-Makir had brought out one of the reinforced wagons used to transport the Iron Company paychests, and a guard detail of twenty Tileans was formed up around it. Overseen by their sergeant, four of them were working with shovels to dig up the patch of the stable-yard where the book had been buried.

There was a  thunk  as the first spade struck the lid of the chest. As it was brought into the light, some of the watchers drew back. The ancient mountain oak timbers of the Dwimmulsons’ chest - the same chest that had been too tough for the Jackal himself to force open - now looked bleached and cracked with age, their metal fittings covered with a patina of corrosion. Looking on from the edge of the dig, Father Barbaro bit his lip.

“The dwarfs aren’t going to be pleased,” he said. “Maybe we should have wrapped it up in something before we put it in the ground…”

Abdul murmured something in Arabyan that might have been a prayer. “I don’t think it’s the earth that did that, my friend,” he said. “We should be thankful it is only a box that has suffered.”

 Elsa Only 
 
 Spoiler 
Even from a distance, even locked in the chest, Elsa could feel the book’s presence. It felt like a cold breeze on the back of her neck, a dust-dry whisper at the edge of hearing. Like standing on a cliff-edge in darkness, and feeling the abyss yawn in front of her without ever being able to see it.
 


&lt; Come on lads, get it loaded! &gt; the sergeant barked at his men. &lt; Are you afraid of a ****ing box? &gt;

The soldiers heaved the chest up onto the back of the wagon, where they set about securing it firmly in place. Their preparations were interrupted by the arrival of the Sforzas on the scene, at which the sergeant snapped to attention.

&lt; At ease, &gt; said the Prince. Running a careful eye over the scene, he seemed to find it to his satisfaction. “So, Holt,” he said. “All ready to go?”

He motioned to the sergeant. “Gaspare here and his squad will be your guards as far as Caerfort, where they will hand over to Esteban’s men. Once you are settled there, I will be expecting regular reports on your progress.”

Irene waited until her husband had turned away to talk to Al-Makir before saying her own goodbye.

“I do hope there won’t be too many distractions for you out there,” she said to Elsa, her words full of false compassion. “I mean, so many gruff, unwashed soldiers… they are rather your type, aren’t they?” She lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “I hear some of them even have all their original teeth.”


 

 Angestag, 1st Sommerzeit - Sieghard, Ludo &amp; Elsa 

Sieghard and Ludo had arrived in Ravenskird late the previous night, and now awoke to the sun rising over a village looking even more crowded than it had when Ludo had last left it. More herders had arrived off the Downs, and the edges of the marsh were thick with scrawny-looking cattle. The beasts were wading through the shallows, munching on reeds and anything else the locusts had left. Some of the local fishermen weren’t happy - as they passed by the water’s edge, Ludo could hear a loud argument going on about ‘nets full of cow ****’.

It was clear that rationing in Ravenskird was going to be more challenging than in Painford. This was a community less used to Sieghard’s soldiers, and more used to managing its own affairs - and more than that, good, dry spaces to store provisions were in short supply. The only space that seemed to be going spare was the run-down shell of Costin’s alehouse, which was currently being shared between the fishermen as a space to store their nets and lines. It would be easy enough to find somewhere dry further back from the water, but there any shed or storehouse would have to be built new.

Up at the shrine to Morr, Brother Cezar’s replacement, Brother Petre, greeted them with a certain amount of nervous deference. To Sieghard, the young man looked more like a child than a priest - but then, with the casualties they'd sustained among the clergy, the average age was bound to fall.

“I’ve had word from the city,” he said, “that we’re, um, that they’re trying to root out the last of the old jackal customs. Is that… that is to say, am I supposed to be doing the same here? Only, some people are quite attached to them.”

 ~ 
It was late in the evening when the sound of rattling wheels and marching boots heralded the arrival of Elsa and her troop. Ludo had known since he’d left Savonne that they and their cargo were coming, but still the sight of the wagon gave him an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach, as if it was carrying barrels of blackpowder. Blackpowder would probably have been safer.
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 Olga gave Elsa a funny look. "I thought we were going south?" she said. "Why would you want to get mixed up in that?" 
 

Elsa nodded.  "We are, but I got friends who are sticking around these parts." 
 
 Spoiler: rax 
Is this the kind of thing Bardhyl could look into? That is, if he has spare time between his plots against Sforza.
 


 “The Rinn won't like it. I don't like it. But if Caerfort's where you're taking it, then the clan ought to keep some eyes on it. I take it you won't object to a few more guards?” 

 "I was just about to suggest it, in fact,"  said Elsa, truthfully.  "Any good warriors you can spare are more than welcome." 

 

 Konigstag, 33rd Sigmarzeit - Elsa &amp; Jarla 

Elsa was troubled by the damages the Book had managed to cause to the chest, even through the lead it was encased in. She had better find a way to destroy or banish it without needing to take it out in the open, or it would easily turn her to dust. In her coat pocket, she could feel Khalida's agitation at the Book's evil.



 “Gaspare here and his squad will be your guards as far as Caerfort, where they will hand over to Esteban’s men. Once you are settled there, I will be expecting regular reports on your progress.” 

 "It'll be done, sire,"  said Elsa, though any progress report she could write would be in terms utterly incomprehensible to the Prince.



 “I do hope there won’t be too many distractions for you out there,” she said to Elsa, her words full of false compassion. “I mean, so many gruff, unwashed soldiers… they are rather your type, aren’t they?” She lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “I hear some of them even have all their original teeth.” 

Elsa smiled pleasantly. Irene still thought herself a queen bee, when she was a wasp. Her insults of late sounded desperate and spiteful. Elsa suspected that part of Irene bitterly envied her for not being stuck with a brooding, short-tempered husband in her bed and a bun in her oven.

 "I've spent a lot of time with soldiers lately,  principessa ... Rest assured that I know how to handle them."  How Irene interpreted that statement was none of her concern. It was better to be held in contempt by Irene than to be viewed as a genuine threat to her.  "I've become rather gruff and unwashed, myself, as you've no doubt noticed. So I am in good company." 

She chuckled, then grew more serious. Her gaze went meaningfully from Irene's belly to the dwarven chest.  "I'd  strongly  advise you keep your distances from that thing, my lady. There's a good reason why we're taking it someplace far away from babies." 

 

 Angestag, 1st Sommerzeit - Sieghard, Ludo &amp; Elsa 


Elsa had been hoping the plague of locusts had not hit the Thornwood as hard as the Downlands, but riding under leafless trees crushed that hope. Was there any coming back from this, or would the landscape be just as brown next year?

 We knew the Jackal was planning something, what with all of Mala's corpse-collecting. We knew, and we decided to just wait and see.

Like we did when Klammenberg was preparing his ritual to break Nahorek free. 

At the sight of Sieghard, Elsa gave him a terse, formal nod.  "Well met, Commander Sieghard,"  she said, all too aware of the many eyes and ears around them.  "How fares Painford?" 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" I'd like it discouraged, " Sieghard told Brother Petre. " But I don't expect things to change overnight. Perhaps a light touch would be best in getting people to change their habits. "


 


" It fares... About the same there as it is here, really, " Sieghard said. " What brings you south? " he asked, eyeing the wagon. " If I had known you were coming, I could've had the place a bit more in order. "
LeSwordfish
 "I don't think we could have,"  Ludo said, carefully avoiding a cowpat that would have consumed him to his knees,  "but it's good to see you anyway." 

He lowered his voice.  "Supplies are holding out for now but it's going to be an extremely lean winter. Sforza's taking about a quarter of what the village consumes." 
LCP
 Elsa, 32nd Sigmarzeit 

 Elsa nodded.  "We are, but I got friends who are sticking around these parts."  

“You think  your  friends are going to end up in the pits?” said Olga. She paused for a beat or two. “Have you considered lending them some money? ‘S a lot easier than killing people.”


  "I was just about to suggest it, in fact,"  said Elsa, truthfully.  "Any good warriors you can spare are more than welcome."  

“Hrm,” said Skorgrund. He seemed to approve of that, at least. “I’ll speak with the Rinn. Grungni willing, they’ll find you.”

Turning, he stumped away down the hall, still muttering occasionally under his breath.


 

 Elsa &amp; Jarla, 33rd Sigmarzeit 

  "I'd  strongly  advise you keep your distances from that thing, my lady. There's a good reason why we're taking it someplace far away from babies."  

That seemed to get Irene’s attention. She looked at the chest with a new regard, but didn’t draw back.

“Don’t tell me what to do, Holt,” she said, but not too loudly. “This is my castle. I’ll stand where I please.”
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 “You think  your  friends are going to end up in the pits?” said Olga. She paused for a beat or two. “Have you considered lending them some money? ‘S a lot easier than killing people.” 
 

 "Sorry - I meant, I've got friends who can take care of the ringleaders when we're gone." 

Elsa did not think Sforza could be relied upon to crack down on any crime that did not directly threaten his rule.


 


 That seemed to get Irene’s attention. She looked at the chest with a new regard, but didn’t draw back.

“Don’t tell me what to do, Holt,” she said, but not too loudly. “This is my castle. I’ll stand where I please.” 

Elsa raised her eyebrows, then gave a nod of understanding.   "I get it. There are safer ways to get rid of  it , but... I guess you're not spoiled for choice."  

Though she despised Irene with every fiber of her being, she found no pleasure in her nemesis being forced to carry a child she did not want. It just did not feel like justice.


 


 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
 " It fares... About the same there as it is here, really, " Sieghard said. " What brings you south? " he asked, eyeing the wagon. " If I had known you were coming, I could've had the place a bit more in order. " 
 

 "Just... court wizard responsibilities, you know,"  said Elsa evasively. Ludo had no doubt told him everything already, so this was just theater.  "I'll be staying down south for the next few months. As for yourself... Business in Savonne?" 

 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
 He lowered his voice.  "Supplies are holding out for now but it's going to be an extremely lean winter. Sforza's taking about a quarter of what the village consumes."  
 

Elsa winced.  "I see." 

As far as she was aware, the Thornwood did not produce much food in the first place, even in the best of times.
LCP
 Elsa, 32nd Sigmarzeit 

  "Sorry - I meant, I've got friends who can take care of the ringleaders when we're gone."  

Olga just looked more confused. "But... why..." she started out, before changing tack. "Sorry, boss. Not my place to ask questions, I know. I'll stick to the job."


 

 Elsa &amp; Jarla, 33rd Sigmarzeit 
Elsa raised her eyebrows, then gave a nod of understanding.   "I get it. There are safer ways to get rid of  it , but... I guess you're not spoiled for choice."  [/quote]

"Don't talk about something you know nothing about," snapped Irene, very sharply. She heaved a performative sigh. "Though of course, you've never let that stop you before. Why would I think you'd start now?"

Casting a last glance over to the wagon, she turned to join her husband. " Buon viaggio, , Holt. Enjoy Caerfort." A smile crossed her face. "Who knows? Perhaps you'll like it so much, you'll never want to come back."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" No, just trying to prepare for the coming months, " Sieghard said bluntly. " Setting aside what we can and trying to make it last. "

" We'll find space for you and the soldiers. Will you be staying for a while or continuing on in the morning? "
rax
 32nd Sigmarzeit 

Bardhyl sat silently for some time, mulling over the implications of the report from Selsan. Suddenly, he stood up and drained the last of his beer.

 "My mind's made up, lads! I need a change of scenery, so we're heading south for a few days. Get your gear and horses ready, I want to make Painford by tomorrow,"  he declared.


 
 Spoiler: OOC 
As stated earlier, Bardhyl will leave word with the inkeep that he's headed for Painford but that he expects to be back in a few days. I figure these sort of situations have been par for the course over the years of the gang operating together, so in the unlikely event that his people get back while he's away, they can decide if they want to ride out after him or wait and see if he turns up in a day or two.

From the looks of the map it should take two days on average to make Painford. Of course, Bardhyl doesn't know that he might run into Ludo and Sieghard in Ravenskird, so obviously he'll stop there if he spots them.

Leaving on the 32nd should also make sure he arrives before the book.
 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "Who knows? Perhaps you'll like it so much, you'll never want to come back." 
 

 "...I... find that doubtful,"  said Elsa, unsure how to take that remark.  "But I do believe the south looks better than the north these days." 

She mounted her horse to join Tatiana at the front of the convoy.


 


 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
 " We'll find space for you and the soldiers. Will you be staying for a while or continuing on in the morning? " 
 

 "We're on a schedule,"  said Elsa.  "But we can catch up over drinks at... hmm... whatever's the drinking hole in this place." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
The OOC thread doesn't list any inn for Ravenskird.
 
RossN
 Konigstag, 33rd Sigmarzeit - Elsa &amp; Jarla 

Jarla had gathered with the rest of the court to observe the the departure of the book. Ada had worked miracles with the hairbrush and Jarla's copper curls had been mercilessly styled into a fetching Bretonnian look while she wore a cream and crimson gown. Not one of her favourites but Jarla needed something she could wear with matching gloves. As she watched and waited she had to force herself to stop flexing her tattooed hand. The daemon might be gone but the mark lingered.


She was close enough to overhear the war of words between Irene and Elsa and ground her teeth. This was not the sort of thing they needed, not.

 "Your highness perhaps we could go for a ride?"  she suggested to Irene, adding in her mind  and if you see in that an opportunity to 'accidently' fall off your horse I'll kill you myself then and there since your husband would definitely cut my head off.  
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" That'd be it over there, " Sieghard replied, pointing to the ruins of Costin's old place. " No one ever rebuilt after Rorik had it burned. "

" There'll be time for catching up tomorrow in Painford, " he said. " Drinks might be a bit harder to come by. Most of what can be brewed is being eaten instead. " But more importantly, there'd be thick stone walls to keep anyone from overhearing what would be said.
LeSwordfish
 "Jager burned it, I think,"  Ludo corrected him.  "Can't imagine Rorik's lot denying themselves a place to drink." 

He looked around at the chaos.  "We need another barracks here, I think - or just a longhouse for the goods. With the trees stripped this bare we can afford to cut more down, odds are that they won't make it to spring anyway." 
LCP
 Jarla, 33rd Sigmarzeit  

Irene looked quite surprised at Jarla's offer. It took her a moment or two to consider her reply.

"Alright," she said, at last. "Why not?"

 ~ 
Going riding with the  principessa  meant a few things. For one, a wait of about an hour while Irene changed into her riding clothes. For another, an escort of ten mounted Iron Company men. They passed out through the north gate of the city, the soldiers keeping the public at a respectable distance. Many of the city's poor still seemed to see Irene as the gentler face of the crown, and there was no shortage of brave souls trying to approach to beg for alms. Irene composed her face in a picture of noble sympathy, and gave them nothing but kind, empty words as she passed them by.

Out past the gates, they found themselves in the centre of the scar the locusts had torn across the open country of the Downs. Whichever way you looked, the land looked brown and dead. Crows squabbled noisily in the wreckage of the ravaged fields.

" Gods, " said Irene, drawing in a shocked breath. "It's horrible. How can  bugs  do this much damage?" She looked around, taking in the full scale of the devastation. "We never had anything like this in Tobaro."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  and Elsa - 2nd Sommerzeit 

The next morning, Sieghard gave Rike a list of instructions and left Ravenskird under her watch as he accompanied Elsa and her guard on the road back to Painford. On the road, he kept conversation light and mostly related to conditions left by the locusts, well aware of the Iron Company men watching them. They arrived in town in the late afternoon, and he allowed himself a satisfied look when Elsa first laid eyes on the manor. " It was an even nicer sight before the bugs stripped all the grass and leaves away, " he commented.

He gave the use of one of the barracks to the the Iron Company. With men sent to Manaan's Keep and Ravenskird, there was no shortage of space. Leaving them to themselves, he led Elsa into his home and finally free of unwanted eyes, he embraced her. " Gods, it took you long enough to visit, " he said, half joking. " Do you have any idea how long I've wanted to show you this? I just wish it could've been in happier times. Tell me honestly, just how bad is it in the city? "
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla tried to hide her astonishment that Irene could be shaken out of her complancey.

 "Millions of bugs highness, millions."   she said looking out at the landscape with chill. She had been better prepared for the sight than Irene but even so...

Shuddering she turned away.  "My lady I'm sorry, I had not known it was so bad. It will recover in time, Taal and Rhya willing."  
LCP
 Jarla, 33rd Sigmarzeit 

"Yes," said Irene. She sounded like she was allowing herself to be convinced. "Yes, I mean... it's basically grass, isn't it? Grass grows back."

Countess snorted, eager to be out on the open road. It snaked away through the barren fields, curving towards the horizon.

"So," said Irene, "how far do we go?"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Over to you - if you've got things you want to discuss with Irene on the ride, it's your conversation to lead.
 
-Sentinel-
Elsa felt a moment of bliss in Sieghard's embrace; she had not realized how much she had missed this. Then his question dragged her back to the grim reality of the Reaches.

 "It's bad, Sieghard. Real bad. There's nothing green left in the Downlands. They say the fighting pits have started up again, like in the time of the Mad Duke. Prince Sforza is more concerned with finding people to scapegoat than feeding everyone." 

She looked weary. A weariness of the soul rather than the body.

 "We should've done something when we learned Mala was collecting corpses. We should've struck back. We  might  have stopped that ritual." 
rax
 Angesttag, 1st Sommerzeit 

It was late afternoon when Bardhyl and his somewhat reduced crew rode into Ravenskird. They decided to pitch camp just south of the village. While his men set to fixing a light meal, Bardhyl wandered around the village and listened in on the local gossip. While wandering about, he noticed Ludo and Sieghard speaking to the young Morrite priest.

 "Commander Sieghard! What a pleasant surprise to find you here! And you as well, Herr Ludo!"  he called out.  "I thought Painford was your domain, Commander. What brings you to Ravenskird? No goblins to slay hereabouts, are there?"  he laughed.


 OOC:  My intent is for this just to be some quick small talk/catching up so that Bardhyl can let Sieghard know that he'll be riding on to Painford in the morning.
Thragka
 Urgrim – the River Road, Festag 2nd Sommerzeit 

The first thickets of the Thornwood were a welcome sight to Urgrim after a day making slow pace through the desolation of the Downlands with the mule which the Dwimmulsons had given him. The new pair of companions were still taking the measure of each other. There had been some debate over whose travelling songs were preferred.

 "As I was crossing under the Vaults to the Grey Mountains
I met with Kaptin Frongol, and his oathgold he was counting ..." 
"  Hwaaaaooooorrrrghkhkhkh.  "
 "Oh, have it your way." 

Urgrim was taking the criticism equanimitably, a deference helped in no small part by the fact that he wasn't quite confident that the mule wouldn't just toss him off and leave him in the dust, bereft of saddlebags, to nurse his pride and his tailbone. He hadn't yet shaken the habit of dismounting when he spotted other figures on the road. A dwarf on an equine was not typically a situation where a dawi felt it easy to save face.

It was, therefore, with some shock and embarrassment that the pair rounded a copse and Urgrim realised they were in plain view of a diminutive traveller headed the opposite direction. He froze in the saddle, then hastily drew himself straight and upright as his cheeks flushed, before he recognised the halfling.

 "Ahhh – oh! Ludo!"  Gently pulling the reins to stop his mount, Urgrim was struck motionless for another heartbeat. Then he swung himself off the mule as smoothly as he could and threw his arms around Ludo in a strong embrace.  "It's good to see you! How are you? How are the others? I'm going to Caerfort – Skorgrund nearly threw a fit when he learned Elsa and the book were being moved there, so the Dwimmulsons want someone there with her. As a sort of honour guard, of course,"  he finished with a grin.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  and Bardhyl - 1st Sommerzeit 

" I live in Painford. Ravenskird and the rest of the Thornwood are mine to oversee, " Sieghard replied. His tone wasn't unfriendly, but it was clear that Sieghard had other things on his mind. " I'm trying make sure stores last long enough to get people through the famine. "


 

  Sieghard  and Elsa - 2nd Sommerzeit 

" You tried, Elsa, " Sieghard said, " You tried harder than anyone else. It can't be helped that Mala managed to slip away. " he felt a pang of guilt that he hadn't been there to help and that he had wanted to believe the enemy's strength had been spent after Nath.

He had hoped, perhaps naively, that there was something she could've told him that Ludo hadn't known. Her confirmation that things were every bit as bad as he feared hit him like an ogre's fist. " You should sit, " he suggested, gently pulling himself free from his lover's arms. " I'll see if I can find something to drink. "

He disappeared into the other room and returned a few minutes later with a pair of cups. " Things aren't any better here, " he said. " Unless I can find a way to bring more food in, it'll only be a few months before we have to start digging graves. I've been speaking with Ludo. He's convinced that Sforza will bleed us dry to feed his soldiers. Not even the city, just his Iron Company. And looking at how things are, it's hard to say that he's wrong. " an edge of anger was creeping into his voice " You've seen the state the Thornwood is in. They have almost nothing left and Sforza wants to take  more . " He grabbed Sforza's letter off the table and gave her a moment to read it. " He'll starve them to feed his army and  he wants me to do it . "

" I won't, " he said. " I won't do it and when he realizes I won't give him what he wants, it's just a mater of time until he sends his pikemen to take it and my head along with it. " He looked her in the eyes, sharing the same weary expression she had. " If there's another way, I haven't been able to find it. The only choices I can see are either sit back while he turns the Reaches to ruins or try to stop him. "

" I'm sorry, Elsa. You know how I feel about Sforza, but I never wanted this. "
LeSwordfish
 Ludo and Urgi, 2nd Sommerzeit 
Ludo had been riding with a worried frown on his face the whole journey that broke into a broad smile as he recognised Urgrim.  "Urgi! How have you been? It's been months!" 

Behind him, the Thorns' cart and mule rounded the corner. Andrei, holding the reins, was singing every bit as cheerfully as Urgrim, Karla's face was providing the mule's criticism. It wasn't hard to see why Ludo was riding ahead.
 
"I'm... as well as can be. As is everyone. Which is not great, but, you know."  He trailed off, uncertain as to how much to tell the dwarf.  "We killed some goblins and the Wyvern, I'm sorry you weren't there for that." 
 Ludo and Al'Makir, 3rd Sommerzeit 
Ludo, Karla, and Andrei had arrived in Savonne late the previous evening, and had started the day early by riding their cart over to Hieronymous house. While the two thorns helped him load his posessions, Ludo headed to the castle. He was reasonably familiar with the paymaster's schedule by now, and was able to catch him in his office as he finished his morning Kofi.

 "It's about the taxes,"  Ludo explained after the greetings were complete.  "I don't imagine you've been able to see the Thornwood but... it was right on the path of the locusts. We'll be down to boot leather in two months. I'm not going to beg for relief but there's not very much we can give." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo wants to do two things here:
 
 Reduce the tax rate of the new famine tax as much as possible. 
 As much as is possible, shift the existing tax from food to non-consumables, which for the Thornwood means Timber, i would imagine, but possibly other goods such as leather? I don't know. He's willing to even increase the amount of such goods in exchange for less food. 
 

For this, Ludo is going to cite that the Thornwood is uniquely devastated - even the Downs will have food coming in through the passes - exaggerating a bit but within the bounds of plausibility.

Haggle vs effective 102 (72 Fel + 20 Skill Mastery + Dealmaker): [roll0]. If that passes by, say, less than 3 DOS, i'll re-roll it, otherwise a +10 from Fortune. Re-roll [roll1]

Charm for the accompanying exaggeration [roll2] vs 92. If this fails, I'll use my Lucky re-roll: [roll3]
 
LeSwordfish
 Ludo and Rudi, 3rd Sommerzeit 
Sieghard's comments about the kitchen had left Ludo at least curious enough to want to check them out, and so he blagged his way past the Iron Company guard on the door - by now most of them recognised Ludo to some extent or other - and caught Rudi in the process of seasoning a side of beef that - perhaps it was Ludo's imagination, but it looked a little smaller than one would have expected for the royal household.
 
"Leni's fine!"  was the first thing he said - he had seen Rudi's face fall as soon as he came into view, and realised what a long time it must have been since his sister had been due.  "She's alright, she's safe in Painford and has been since before all this." 

He looked around at the palace kitchens, bustling but still oddly bare, and drew his brother-in-law aside into a quieter corner.  "I have some news, though. Given everything that's happening... I spoke to her, and to the Steward of Painford, Commander Sieghard. We think she should stay in Painford, where it's safer. Not thay anywhere's truly safe right now, but... look. Look at the city right now. It's going to be a very dangerous place to be, soon. I know it's a step down for you but we wanted to offer you a job in Painford. Help us get through the winter. And... look, when things get really bad, I think you and Leni will be glad you're out of the city." 
Thragka
 Urgrim and Ludo – the River Road, Festag 2nd Sommerzeit 

Urgi had barely pulled back from Ludo when he clapped him hard on the shoulder again.  "Ohoh! The wyvern? You  didn't ! Ah, that must have been a fine fight. And a fine thing for all the Reaches to rid'em of beasts and  grobi . " He caught his breath in a sigh of satisfaction.

 "Months, aye. Well, after that business with the Lady Sforza's maid, I got back up the Dwimmulhold to find Elsa had convinced the Rinn and Skorgrund that either Varag Kol or his witch woman were still a threat. Which, mind, I absolutely agreed with, and thought it was a good thing for the clan elders to know about – but I kind of walked right into accidentally volunteering myself to go keep lookout on the Waste from some outposts in the Teeth."  He shrugged non-judgementally.  "Somebody needed to do it, and the Dwimmulsons aren't long on rangers at the moment. Still, I used to go ranging for months like that without a bother. But these days ... well, I find I miss people."  Urgi's gaze dropped from Ludo's for a split second.

The dwarf greeted the Thorns with polite comfort as they caught up, but kept his conversation with Ludo.  "Bit of a shock to see the Downlands looking so bad after getting back from watching the Waste. Would you believe, I've been looking forward to seeing some old haunts in the Thornwood. Who ever heard of a dawi longing for trees?" 
LCP
 Ludo, 3rd Sommerzeit 
 With Al-Makir 

"There is not very much anyone can give, Here Stubbs," said Al-Makir, with a sigh. "I assure you, we are asking more from those who have it. But these are his Highness' orders. Everyone is going to have to make some hard choices." Habitually smooth as he was, he still balked a little at the euphemism.

Ludo persisted. Al-Makir seemed tired, but was genuinely interested in Ludo's assessment of the situation on the ground in the Thornwood. He took notes to complement those he already had.

"What you ask is very reasonable," he said. "I wish I could simply agree to it, Herr Stubbs, I do. But you understand, the Iron Company cannot eat timber. The best I can do is a small adjustment, to match this… more accurate information."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Al-Makir will knock the frequency of shipments from the Thornwood down to every 5 weeks instead of every month.
 

 With Rudi 

Rudi looked more than a little surprised at Ludo's news.

"What?!" he said. "I can't just walk out on this job, Ludo. I've been working on this for years!" He gestured around him at the castle kitchen. "Look at this! Chief cook to the royal household!" He furrowed his brow. "What do you mean, anyway, that she'll be safer?"

A servant distracted him with a question, which he broke off briefly to answer. When he returned to the conversation, his usually sunny expression had clouded over.

"You think  I  can't look after her, is that it? Old Rudi, head in the clouds, just thinking about the crust on his next pie. Esmeralda's melons, Ludo, I thought you were better than the old man. I mean, look around! We're in a  castle. "

Ludo's revelation that he and Leni were in danger changed his manner entirely. Ludo could tell Rudi believed him. "A - a threat?" he said. "From who? We haven't done anything to hurt anyone… have we?"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Up to you if this is ‘really pushing it’ or if you have a way for Ludo to deflect.
 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
   Sieghard  and Bardhyl - 1st Sommerzeit 

" I live in Painford. Ravenskird and the rest of the Thornwood are mine to oversee, " Sieghard replied. His tone wasn't unfriendly, but it was clear that Sieghard had other things on his mind. " I'm trying make sure stores last long enough to get people through the famine. " 
 

  "Ah, I hadn't realized that I was speaking to a man of such high station! My apologies, Commander!"  Bardhyl laughed.

 "As for the famine...I wish you the best of luck with that, truly. It's devastation everywhere, as near as I could tell on the ride from Savonne. In fact, I was thinking of doing a bit of hunting to stretch out our supplies,"  he continued with a gesture at his men.  "Perhaps you could see your way clear to allowing us to rustle up some game in the Thornwood?" 
-Sentinel-
 Elsa and Sieghard - 2nd Sommerzeit 

Elsa read Sforza's letter and nodded in sympathy.  "Hard to fulfill these demands without becoming a tyrant. And the Thorns' loyalty will be tested when their own families begin to starve. The Prince doesn't have that problem with his Iron Company—they're all foreigners. They're not being ordered to stand by while their elderly parents starve. He wouldn't understand." 

She was privately glad she did not have too many people relying on her. She would make a mediocre ruler.

She sighed and set down the letter.  "I can't tell you what to do, but I trust you to do right by your people. Whatever that entails. For my part, I'm afraid I can't help you, at least anytime soon. I have my own mission, and I do it because it  needs  to be done, not because Sforza wants it done." 
RossN
 Jarla, 33rd Sigmarzeit 
 "A little further,"  Jarla suggested.  "Maybe it won't be quite so bad."  Her voice did not sound optimistic.

As they rode Jarla waited for a natural break in the conversation before deciding she better actually ask her questions.  "Highness I have been speaking with merchants recently. It seems with the recent... troubles trade is hit badly. I confess I know nothing about the mechant life but I do know horses like countess here. I wanted to ask the Prince for permission to set up a messenger service between the main towns so that word can reliably get through. I think I can run such an operation - I am a good judge of riders - but I know it will take money and effort. I felt I had to ask you first because I am your servant first... and your friend... and I was hoping you could help." 

She hwsitated a moment, visibly embarassed by what she was about to say.  "Um... there is one more thing. Do you know anyone who could teach me to speak Tilean? I am very grateful you speak your tongue but I really should learn yours no? " 
LeSwordfish
 Ludo and Urgrim, 2nd Sommerzeit 
 "I wish I'd known,"  Ludo said regretfully,  "We can't have been that far from you. We crossed right through with some of the Vrani looking for their wise man, and then up to the Raven Hills. Did you see anything up there?" 
 Ludo and Al'Makir, 3rd Sommerzeit 
 "And what do you think of his highness' orders?"  Ludo asked, letting frustration colour his voice so it sounded less like a probe.  "We can set aside stores for the Thorns but they're local people - how am I meant to tell Andrei that he should eat while his daughter goes hungry?"
 

Ludo and Rudi
 "How safe do you think the castle will be when nobody outside the walls has any food?"  Ludo asked.  "You heard the stories about how bad it was here before, do you really want to still be around when that happens again? When it gets worse than that?"

"Listen... did you hear what happened to me on the road? I was travelling with my friend and family and we were ambushed by mercenaries. Our bodyguard was shot dead, my friend was stabbed, Petra and my Father barely escaped... It's dangerous to be related to me, now, Rudi."  He sounded very tired in that moment.  "I'm sorry but someone is threatening my family to get to me. I can protect you but not if you still live in the city with them." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  and Bardhyl - 1st Sommerzeit 

" You're free to eat what you can catch, " Sieghard said. " If you manage to shoot a bit more and bring some back for the village, you'd have my thanks. " He thought a moment. " If you find anything other than birds out there, bring the pelts back too. I can either show you where to have them tanned or see that you're paid for them. " He didn't think it was likely... Most grazing animals would've left for somewhere they could actually graze.


 

  Sieghard  and Elsa - 2nd Sommerzeit 

" I think you might have the greater challenge, " Sieghard replied. " You know I'd help if there was anything I could do. "

" As for my troubles, I'm still not sure what I'm going to do, " he admitted. " I just don't think the Reaches have a future while Sforza calls himself king. If I can change that without starting another war, I will. I just ask that you not think too poorly of me if I can't. "

" I know all this talk is depressing, but could I ask your opinion on something? You've dealt with him far more than me... If Sforza was gone, do you think Carraciolo would be better for the Reaches? "

 
 Spoiler 
Mainly asking as a means to bring up what LeSwordfish wanted asked me to have Sieghard mention. Still, Elsa's probably got the best perspective. She answers to him where Sieghard answered to Makeda during the war.
 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
   Sieghard  and Bardhyl - 1st Sommerzeit 

" You're free to eat what you can catch, " Sieghard said. " If you manage to shoot a bit more and bring some back for the village, you'd have my thanks. " He thought a moment. " If you find anything other than birds out there, bring the pelts back too. I can either show you where to have them tanned or see that you're paid for them. " He didn't think it was likely... Most grazing animals would've left for somewhere they could actually graze. 
 

  "Splendid, Commander! We'll ride for Painford in the morning. Has Herr Ludo told you of our wyvern hunt? There's a tale worth telling for sure!"  Bardhyl grinned.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  and Bardhyl - 1st Sommerzeit 

" The  what ? " Sieghard asked sharply. " We helped you find your wise man and you dragged the others out looking for the bloody  wyvern ? "
Thragka
 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  Ludo and Urgrim, 2nd Sommerzeit 
 "I wish I'd known,"  Ludo said regretfully,  "We can't have been that far from you. We crossed right through with some of the Vrani looking for their wise man, and then up to the Raven Hills. Did you see anything up there?"  
 

 "Some of the who?"  asked Urgrim. He shrugged in response to Ludo's question.  "Didn't see much beyond wildlife and signs of  grobi . Stayed out of their way while it was only one of me, sadly." 

Urgrim nodded at the cart.  "You're moving goods?" 
LeSwordfish
 "The Vrani - the tribesmen of the Raven Hills. We met up with some of theirs to travel into the Karst, after..."
 
Ludo allowed Andrei and Karla a break, and they stretched their legs down to the river while he joined Urgi by the side of the road, sharing a drink. He gave the dawi a brief summary of their past months, watching a thrush pull a worm from the ground and wondering how long before they would be eating both. He explained about Hieronymous' posession and exorcism, the journey into the hills to find Wadim and their brawls with the goblins and wyvern there, followed by the second and final exorcism of the daemon from Jarla. His explanation of their mushroom-induced visions was only a little less confusing than the visions had been firsthand.

 "And then, as we came back... " he waved a hand.  "All of this. After what happened, Sforza suggested Hieronymous should take some time out of town, so I'm going to collect him and bring him to Painford. Same with my half-brother. I think Irene mught be a threat to him." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
I believe Thragka was gone but Urgi was around for the end of the royal visit, and as such would probably already be aware of Irene's threats against Ludo's family.
 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
 " I know all this talk is depressing, but could I ask your opinion on something? You've dealt with him far more than me... If Sforza was gone, do you think Carraciolo would be better for the Reaches? " 
 

 "I don't think he would be,"  admitted Elsa.  "At least, judging from how he treats the Vrani. But he seems to care little about ruling. I once asked him a question about Greasy Drop, a village in his  own  territory, and he'd  never  heard of that place." 
LCP
 Jarla, 33rd Sigmarzeit  

Their Iron Company escort kept a respectful distance as they rode out, their horses' hooves kicking up puffs of dust from the hard-baked ground.

"Are you seriously asking about taking up a  trade? " said Irene, with palpable distaste. "Jarla, I thought you wanted to be a lady, not to slum it with the carters and the fishmongers."

She looked west, to where the peaks of the Teeth rose above the plain. "I know you're not happy, Jarla. If you wanted to be here, you wouldn't be disappearing into the hills to chase goblins. And now, another project to take you away from the city." She fixed Jarla with a penetrating look. "What is it we haven't given you? What do you  really  want?"


 

 Ludo, 3rd Sommerzeit 
 With Al-Makir 

"That," said Al-Makir, "would be a question for Andrei, don't you think?" He had a certain distance in his voice that made Ludo think he had put the Arabian on his guard. "If a man chooses to share the provisions he is given, then that is between him and his commanding officers. Our orders are only to see that he does get his share."

"If you want to question his Highness' orders, though, Herr Stubbs, I'm afraid you've come to the wrong place." He spoke slowly and softly, choosing his words with care. "I am only a humble servant. I offer my counsel when it is asked, on the subjects on which his Highness asks for it. I do not overstep my bounds."

 With Rudi 

Ludo could see in Rudi's eyes that he was convinced. His brother-in-law wasn't the kind to put his own prestige or profit above the safety of his family.

"Well… I'm sorry, then, Ludo. I don't think you've ever given me reason not to trust you… it'd be a poor show to stop now." Still, somehow he sounded reluctant, uneasy. "How long do you think it will be, before this all blows over? I mean… before you can put a stop to whoever's doing this?" His eyes flicked up towards the ceiling. "Just, you know - it'd be a lot easier to tell them I was going away for a while than that I was hanging up my apron for good."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  and Elsa - 2nd Sommerzeit 

" But he is the most likely to come into power after Sforza, " Sieghard said. " He commands the most soldiers at least. "

He sighed. " If he'd be more of the same, then we'd be right back where we began. Ludo thinks we should take steps to prevent that. Maybe he's right, but... His idea was to spread rumors that Carraciolo was drunkenly boasting about the orcs. Seems like the sort of thing that would cause a lot more problems than it needs to. "

" I think Ludo's just been stressed worrying about his family, " Sieghard added. " Irene's been playing her games again. "
rax
 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
   Sieghard  and Bardhyl - 1st Sommerzeit 

" The  what ? " Sieghard asked sharply. " We helped you find your wise man and you dragged the others out looking for the bloody  wyvern ? " 
 

  "I assure you, Commander, everyone came of their own volition!"  Bardhyl laughed.  "Running into the wyvern was actually an accident, but it worked out in the end, and I've a fine trophy to show for it, see?"  he said, untying the great wyvern sting from his saddle. " Let me buy you a drink in Painford, and I'll fill you in on everything that happened after we parted ways. You may find we've much to talk about!"  Bardhyl chuckled again.
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
 " If he'd be more of the same, then we'd be right back where we began. Ludo thinks we should take steps to prevent that. Maybe he's right, but... His idea was to spread rumors that Carraciolo was drunkenly boasting about the orcs. Seems like the sort of thing that would cause a lot more problems than it needs to. " 
 

Elsa nodded glumly.  "It would. We need the dwarfs' friendship. If they learn of the business with the orcs, they'll consider all of Sforza's followers guilty by association. They're not the most reasonable folk. We're talking about people who were quite happy with the Mad Duke, but thought being ruled by an elf was a bridge too far." 

 " I think Ludo's just been stressed worrying about his family, " Sieghard added. " Irene's been playing her games again. " 

 "Ugh. That woman,"  Elsa spat.  "Think she's keeping a grudge just because of the trial thing?" 
LeSwordfish
 Ludo and Al'Makir, 3rd Sommerzeit  
Ludo smiled ruefully, one loyal but embattled servant to another.  "Well, thank you for what you've been able to do."
 
He stood and extended his hand to shake.  "I'm not certain when I'll be back in Savonne, I imagine I'll be kept quite busy in the Thornwood, or what's left of it. Take care of yourself, Abdul. Let me know if you discover any good recipes for boot leather." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
I think this might be an appropriate time for a charm test, to maintain and strengthen Ludo's relatively strong relationship with Al'Makir:  (1d100)[ 53 ] 
 

 Ludo and Rudi, 3rd Sommerzeit 
Ludo internally breathed a sigh of relief.  "I reckon in three months either you'll be able to return or things will be so bad nobody will notice if you don't."   And if you still want to leave then I can lock you in a cellar if I have to. 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  and Bardhyl - 1st Sommerzeit 

Sieghard tried to spit out a response, but the sight of the wyvern sting had robbed him of words.

" Go hunt your birds, " he eventually muttered in frustration before walking off to check the count of grain. As he left, Bardhyl thought he heard some grumbling about madmen and people being eaten by giant lizards.


 

  Sieghard  and Elsa - 2nd Sommerzeit 

 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
  "It would. We need the dwarfs' friendship. If they learn of the business with the orcs, they'll consider all of Sforza's followers guilty by association. They're not the most reasonable folk. We're talking about people who were quite happy with the Mad Duke, but thought being ruled by an elf was a bridge too far."  
 

" We killed the orcs' boss, " Sieghard said. " You didn't know and I didn't enter Sforza's service until the orcs were already defeated. It's not the dwarves that worry me, it's what happens if word spreads. There'd be rioting in the south and even if it undermined Sforza's grasp on power, it'd force me into a place where I either openly oppose him or lose half my men to desertion. Even if I could win that war, it wouldn't leave us in a strong position for picking up the pieces and dealing with Nahorek. "


 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
  "Ugh. That woman. Think she's keeping a grudge just because of the trial thing?"  
 

" That or what happened with her maid. She's tried luring Ludo's sister to the city, but I noticed her in the hostel and she's been staying here since. "
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
 " Even if I could win that war, it wouldn't leave us in a strong position for picking up the pieces and dealing with Nahorek. " 
 

 "We don't even know  what  we need to deal with Nahorek,"  grunted Elsa.  "Armies are of little use against famine... In fact, they make it worse. Nahorek no longer has a physical form to destroy, and even if he did, we've done it before and it wasn't enough. For my part, I'm trying to deny him the Book. It won't end him, but it's one thing I know will frustrate him." 

 " That or what happened with her maid. She's tried luring Ludo's sister to the city, but I noticed her in the hostel and she's been staying here since. " 

 "...Oh." 

That was very low. Why did the worst people in the world never have anyone  they  cared about that you could threaten or take hostage? There was no way to fight them on their own terms.

 "Well, I'm of little help here. But when it comes to the food situation in the Thornwood, there might be an idea to consider..."  She hesitated, suspecting that Sieghard might balk at the notion.  "You're a minor lord now. That makes you an attractive marriage prospect for many of the rich guilders' daughters in Putbad." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  and Elsa - 2nd Sommerzeit 

" That'd be cruel, don't you think? " Sieghard asked, " Pulling some poor girl into a loveless marriage just to solve my problems. "
RossN
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Jarla, 33rd Sigmarzeit  

Their Iron Company escort kept a respectful distance as they rode out, their horses' hooves kicking up puffs of dust from the hard-baked ground.

"Are you seriously asking about taking up a  trade? " said Irene, with palpable distaste. "Jarla, I thought you wanted to be a lady, not to slum it with the carters and the fishmongers."

She looked west, to where the peaks of the Teeth rose above the plain. "I know you're not happy, Jarla. If you wanted to be here, you wouldn't be disappearing into the hills to chase goblins. And now, another project to take you away from the city." She fixed Jarla with a penetrating look. "What is it we haven't given you? What do you  really  want?" 
 

Wishing she'd kept her mouth shut in the first place Jarla wondered what on earth she could say that wouldn't invite beheading.

Eventually she looked at Irene, matching the Princepessa's gaze.  "With respect I think you are wrong about the Jackal and about Holt my lady. I think the vampire will destroy us all unless we take extraordinary measures and I think they only one who can achieve that is Frau Holt."  She paused, looking pale and unhappy before continuing:  "I would not care about your feud with her if it was simply politics and liking - the gods know I would be in your corner every moment there - but I cannot look on without doing anything. In Ranald's name why do you hate her so Irene? You are the far greater beauty, you have power that she does not, admiration that she does not. Why?" 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
 " That'd be cruel, don't you think? " Sieghard asked, " Pulling some poor girl into a loveless marriage just to solve my problems. " 
 

Elsa paused, recalling how her own family tried to marry her off at a very young age.

 "...yeah. Fair." 

She smiled.  "You're a good man, you know." 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
   Sieghard  and Bardhyl - 1st Sommerzeit 

Sieghard tried to spit out a response, but the sight of the wyvern sting had robbed him of words.

" Go hunt your birds, " he eventually muttered in frustration before walking off to check the count of grain. As he left, Bardhyl thought he heard some grumbling about madmen and people being eaten by giant lizards. 
 

  "We thank you for your hospitality, gracious sir!"  Bardhyl laughed and called out as Sieghard strode (rode?) away.

 "A very serious fellow there! I think he might need more than a drink to unwind, eh?"  he chuckled to his men when Sieghard was out of earshot.


 Bardhyl - 2nd Sommerzeit 

In the morning, Bardhyl and his gang set off for Painford, arriving in the afternoon. They had all been to the village before, though not since the start of the war in the Downlands.

 "Looks like the hostel is still standing,"  Bardhyl remarked as they came to the town square.  "Let's see if we can get a meal and a roof over our heads there. Hopefully Commander Sieghard won't be tarrying too long in Ravenskird, but in the meantime, we may as well do what I said we were here for, so in the morning I want four of you out there in the woods, shooting and trapping as much game as you can. Ortwin - you're in charge of that, so you pick who's going with you." 
 @TheSummoner &amp; Sentinel 

That's about it for me as far as setting up a meet goes. Feel free to have Sieghard approach Bardhyl any time you're ready once he's back in Painford. I've no plans for Bardhyl to get in the way of Elsa and the Iron Company unless either of you want Elsa to be involved in the Bardhyl/Sieghard conversation.


 
 Spoiler: @LCP 
While he's waiting for Sieghard to show up, Bardhyl will try and chat up any locals who seem willing to find out what the villagers think of Sieghard and Sforza.

 (1d100)[ 8 ]  vs. 78 (Gossip +20)
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  and Elsa 

Sieghard smiled back and shrugged. " I'm a better man than I used to be, " he said. " Or I try to be at least. "

He was silent for a moment, then said. " It's really not something I've ever thought much about. Marriage, I mean. Always kinda figured I'd just keep going as I had until a stray arrow or something takes me to see Morr. It still feels weird being, what did you call it?  An attractive prospect . Do you ever think about that sort of thing? "

  Sieghard  and Bardhyl 

It wasn't until later that evening that Sieghard made his way to the hostel. With Painford's food stores being rationed, it was fairly empty.

" So, " he said, sitting down. " Is this is about the wyvern then? " His frustration from the day before was gone, but the impression that other issues were distracting him remained.
LCP
 Jarla, 33rd Sigmarzeit  

Irene reined her horse in hard, making it whinny in alarm. Their guards closed in to see if she was alright, but with a sharp word in Tilean she banished them to a greater distance. Only she and Jarla remained in earshot of each other.

“I  knew  it,” said Irene, her eyes blazing with a sudden fire. “I  knew  you’d gone soft on her. What did she do to impress you? Find a coin behind your ear? Burn a rabbit out of a hat?” She raised her hand in a rapid gesture, interrupting any answer. “ Oh, you say  I  have all the power, but only  she  can save us. Isn’t that convenient?”

“Do you know how much work it is, Jarla, to be… to be this?” She gestured to herself, sweeping her hand from her head down towards her feet. “Do you know how long I struggled to get here? You of all people should know, Jarla, men don’t give you anything for free. But Holt? She came to us and straight away, they listened to her. She didn’t have to flatter them, or **** them, or even  bathe , and they listened.”

“She can run off on her little adventures, she can sleep with the footsoldiers, she can burn down half the city! And they don’t care. Because she was born with fire coming out of her fingertips, because she’s a, a human bomb! And then this runaway, this  parvenu , this  bitch , she has the audacity to talk to  me  as if  I’m  the one who hasn’t earned my place?”

With a deep breath, she composed herself. She drew herself up in the saddle and cast a cool eye over Jarla.

“You know what?” she said. “It doesn’t matter to me at all, whether your monster is alive or not. Muzio crushed it before, and if it comes back, he will crush it again. Because Muzio is a great man, and behind every great man is a great woman, and that great woman is  me , not some sooty whore from the Reikland.” She rode up next to Jarla, so close that their horses' flanks were practically touching. "I am the queen of the Reaches. A queen shouldn’t have to suffer people who displease her. Don’t you agree?"


 

 Bardhyl, 2nd Sommerzeit 

Painford was an interesting place. As a community, it felt small - but its wooden walls and barrack halls seemed like features that belonged to a larger settlement. The strangest thing of all was the lifelike statue that stood in the village square, of a large man with his face twisted in anger, with his arm upraised as if to strike someone. It seemed to be made of solid lead.

The villagers were wary of outsiders, but Bardhyl had a winning way about him. Their opinion of Sieghard was cautiously but consistently positive - most of them seemed to think he was a dour sort, but someone who had worked hard for the betterment of their town.

On Sforza, they were more ambivalent - they seemed to see the Prince as inhabiting a level far above their little town, and happy for him to stay there. There was little of the sense of oppression or hatred that he might have found back in the Hills, but still a healthy degree of fear. Painford had been a staging post for Sforza's army during the war, and the villagers were well aware of the forces he could bring to bear. Bardhyl heard more than one account of the Prince's ogres - he couldn't tell if the tellers were awestruck or disgusted.


 

 Ludo, 3rd Sommerzeit 
 With Al-Makir 

Al-Makir gave a wry smile. "You too, Herr Stubbs. I hope it does not come down to the boots." He tapped his feet against the floor. "I am quite fond of this pair."

 With Rudi 

"Three  months? " said Rudi. He drew in a whistling breath between his teeth. "Well… I suppose if I tell them it's a family emergency… I might still have a job to come back to. I'll tell Frau Mouna, see what she says." He hesitated, a thought striking him. "How long are you in town?"
LeSwordfish
 Ludo and Rudi, 3rd Sommerzeit 
Ludo resisted the urge to grit his teeth. He had tried so hard not to hate or to pity the people he had left behind, he was trying so hard and his brother-in-law was a scared civilian and it was  Ludo  who had put him in this position but...

 " The cart  is leaving tomorrow. I can travel with you for a few days after that but anything you want to bring will have to fit on a pony." 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla felt hot and cold all at once, her whole complex feelings about Irene surging through her as the woman came so close, her eyes flashing. The princepessa's perfume exploded in Jarla's brain, her words besieged Jarla's ears.

Gods Irene had a magnificene to her.

 "My queen.... Irene,"  Jarla tried to speak, to sort through the endless contradictions she felt towards this woman she hated and adored.

 "Irene,"  she tried again, her large grey-blue eyes looking into Irene's own.  "You are everything I wish I could be. I am your servant and your friend and... and something more..."  Jarla floundered flushing. Probably best not to go into that territory. She tried to get herself back on track.

 "I would do anything for you Irene but I know in the marrow of my bones we  need  Elsa for this. You saw yourself how terrible the blight was on the land. If her magic can save your crown and your husband's is it so terrible?" 
LCP
 Jarla, 33rd Sigmarzeit 

Irene rolled her eyes. “Save us?” she said. “The only thing her magic is good for is setting fires. You can ask her yourself, she’ll tell you.”

“Holt’s not some wise wizard out of a children’s story. She’s a runaway apprentice. We used to have a real wizard, and Holt got her killed. Now she’s the only one we’ve got, and she’s  endlessly  telling us how we need her to save us all. Don’t you think that’s a little convenient?” Irene raised her eyebrows. “Currently she’s saving us from the book she brought here herself. If  only  there was some way that could have been avoided.”

She reached out a hand to touch Jarla’s cheek, physically holding her gaze. Her voice grew softer. “Listen to me, Jarla. I can understand you’re afraid. Fear makes people… do and say stupid things. But you have to understand,  we don’t need saving . That’s what real power is, not Holt’s magic tricks. We’ve taken the crown, and there is no-one out there who can take it from us.”

Her eyes drew Jarla in, dark and unblinking. She had no doubt Irene meant every word of what she said.

“Let the peasants starve. Let the bodies pile up in the streets. The crown will survive. The only question that matters is - do you want to be on the outside, with them? Or on the inside, with me?”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Going to throw out a Charm roll for Irene for making her monstrous world-view sound appealing:  (1d100)[ 77 ]  vs. 80-something (I’m away from my notes).
 


 

 Ludo, 3rd Sommerzeit 

“Oh, I don’t have so many things,” said Rudi. “Just that it might take a little while to square things away, smooth things over, you know?” He sounded a little nervous. “I mean, the princess asked for me personally, you know? She might be a bit upset at me going. But I’ll sort it out, somehow.” He looked glum. “Where can I find you, when it’s all sorted?”

 OOC:  
 Spoiler 

 half-brother 

i did hear them halflings like to keep to their own kind…
 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
 " It's really not something I've ever thought much about. Marriage, I mean. Always kinda figured I'd just keep going as I had until a stray arrow or something takes me to see Morr. It still feels weird being, what did you call it?  An attractive prospect . Do you ever think about that sort of thing? " 
 

 "Marriage? Not really,"  admitted Elsa, her tone deliberately dismissive, as if trying to shoo away the very idea of it.  "At the Colleges, they teach the apprentices it's best to forget about the whole family thing. Our lives are too hectic, especially in the Bright Order. That, and non-wizards try to keep a healthy distance from us. Some of the masters had a mistress or lover, and some patronized brothels. But only one was married, and it was to a Celestial magister. After I fled... well, long-term plans were no longer on the table. Still aren't." 
RossN
 Jarla, 33rd Sigmarzeit 

For one fevered moment as Irene touched her cheek and gazed into her eyes Jarla wondered if things were about to go in a direction she'd never expected. Her heart beat a pace faster and she felt her cheeks flushing.

Of course it didn't and Jarla chided herself for thinking this was leading to a seduction (and she had no idea how she might have responded if it it had!) No clearly the princepessa was just trying to win her over to her ruthless way of thinking. It should have been easy to just refuse or even just feign agreement, except...

 "My princepessa,"  Jarla said, looking back at Irene, trying to hold her gaze.  "I... cannot deny the truth of what you have said and I... I want to be with you."  Jarla paused, shocked at how true that last statement felt.  "But the peasants they suffer so much! We must help them." 

Even to her own ears it sounded feeble and mawkish.
LCP
 Jarla, 33rd Sigmarzeit 

Irene looked mildly bemused, like a cat receiving a lecture on the rights of mice.

"Of course they suffer, Jarla," she said. "They're peasants. It's what they do."

"If you want to help them, help me. They need strong leaders. People they can look up to, to keep them from falling into chaos. And I need my friends, if I'm to be that for them. You do  want  to be my friend, don't you?"
LeSwordfish
 Ludo and Rudi, 3rd Sommerzeit 
 "The barracks in the castle, " Ludo said.  "But I can't leave any later than Marktag." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Ah sorry - not half-brother but ling-in-law.
 

 Ludo and Jan Norten, 3rd Sommerzeit  
Ludo had caught Norten at the end of what looked quite a stressful day of bellowing at underlings, and invited him out for a drink, one old soldier to another. They'd discussed the recent news, the situation in Painford and Savonne, and Ludo had told an only-mildly-embellished story of the death of the Wyvern before, and were a few drinks deep before coming around to the fact that Hanna had been sent south to Sussman. This was the meat of what Ludo had been hoping to discuss.

 "Listen, for her this could have been an order but I'm not the boss of you so for you it's advice... if you don't mind. Even if it hasn't happened yet, sooner or later there's going to be more trouble on the streets, more throwing stones and such, and... look. The Iron Company aren't from round here, are they? They came in and took over, and that's how things work here! But you and I, we're local boys. They don't have roots, but we've got family here - I have my sisters, you have your old mum. When the food goes to keep Sforza's soldiers ready to fight, it's them it's coming out of the mouths of. So... when people start throwing stones, if you get the order to go out there with steel... just bear that in mind, right? No matter how this shakes out, we're a lot closer to the people who'll be going without than the ones in the castles giving the orders, right?

"Just... remember that. When push comes to shove." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
With Hanna this was a Command test, I think for Norten this qualifies as a Charm test - I think Ludo's trying to get these ideas into his head, rather than to give specific instructions. That's vs 92 iirc: [ (1d100)[ 46 ] 
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  and Elsa 

The hint of a smirk started to appear in the corner of Sieghard's lips. There was something about Elsa's response that he couldn't help but find amusing.  Never change, Elsa 

" True enough, " he agreed. " Things change quickly around here. Makes more sense to just worry about things one day at a time. "
rax
 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
   Sieghard  and Bardhyl 

It wasn't until later that evening that Sieghard made his way to the hostel. With Painford's food stores being rationed, it was fairly empty.

" So, " he said, sitting down. " Is this is about the wyvern then? " His frustration from the day before was gone, but the impression that other issues were distracting him remained. 
 

  "The wyvern? Well, if you want it to be, it could be. It certainly sounds like Herr Ludo hasn't told you of all that came to pass after you left our company. Would you like to hear about that, or are there perhaps more pressing matters weighing on your mind?"  Bardhyl answered with a wink.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  and Bardhyl 

" Did you somehow not see all the trees stripped bare and fields made barren on your way through? " Sieghard asked, glaring at Bardhyl. " Oh, what could it possibly be that's weighing on my mind? "
RossN
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Jarla, 33rd Sigmarzeit 

Irene looked mildly bemused, like a cat receiving a lecture on the rights of mice.

"Of course they suffer, Jarla," she said. "They're peasants. It's what they do."

"If you want to help them, help me. They need strong leaders. People they can look up to, to keep them from falling into chaos. And I need my friends, if I'm to be that for them. You do  want  to be my friend, don't you?" 
 

And  that  was like an ice cold drink thrown right in her face and a reminder to Jarla just who she was dealing with. Still she found herself nodding.  "Of course Irene. Should we head back now? I admit the view is not what I was hoping."
 
Thragka
 Urgrim 
 The River Road, 2nd Sommerzeit 

Urgrim listened to Ludo's summary as hungrily as if it were a tavern tale.  "You've had no shortage of trials! And not just a wyvern defeated but a daemon too, eh? I'm glad that foul thing has been banished. It blighted us for long enough."  He shook his head.  "Poor Jarla. And Heironymous, of course. Losing him'd be a setback. But Jarla ..."  Even though he struggled to put his thoughts into words, Ludo could hear the contrast to Urgrim's dispassionate mention of the High Priest in the tone he used for their companion's name.  "This land has held so much misfortune for the Schreibers." 

Urgrim's expression soured at the news of Irene's latest machinations.  "She's nearly as bad as the daemon,"  he opined.  "An enemy of the Schreiber clan, and an enemy of yours. Have faith, though,  grombolg. "  Urgrim put one hand on Ludo's shoulder and the other on the hilt of his axe. He lowered his voice so that the Thorns could not overhear them.  "We'll bring her to justice yet. You will have my  az  when you need it, my friend." 
 ~ 
 Painford, 4th Sommerzeit 

It was late afternoon on Aubentag that a dour Urgrim arrived to Painford. The sight of dawi in the Thornwood was not as strange to the villagers as it had been even a year ago, but a dwarf astride a mule was new even in these cosmopolitan times. Perhaps he would have repaid those snatched glances with bitter scowls on any other day; having seen for the first time in the past two days the unseasonal poverty of the bare trees, Urgrim was far too shocked to care.

Urgrim dismounted and tied the mule up in silence outside Gavril's hostel. He stopped inside the doorway, soaking in the depressed atmosphere of the empty common room for a few moments, before advancing to the bar.

 "Herr Gavril, Frau Karolina. It's been too long. How fares the village?"  he asked. His tone was serious. The question was not a pleasantry.

Urgrim bought a cup of wine, and paid for each of his hosts to take one each for themselves.  "I have a mule that needs sheltering for the night, and I'd take some feed for it too, if you have any these days. I doubt I'll be staying much longer than that, though. I must see the Steward while I'm here, but after that I've a long way to go yet." 

After finishing his drink, Urgrim made good on his words and called on his erstwhile commander.  "Sieghard. I would say 'well met', but this isn't the state I'd hoped or expected to find the Thornwood in,"  he said with sympathy.  "I met Ludo on the road, and he told me about the swarm, and I saw the Downlands, but I still didn't expect things to be so bad here. How are you managing?" 
 "You know the Book is being moved, I presume. Skorgrund wasn't overjoyed at the news. I'm going to join Elsa in Caerfort, keep an extra pair of eyes on it. I don't know if that will be more use than watching the desert. But I've tired of doing that these past months, so I welcome the change." 
 "Ludo tells me we've thrown our lot in with some hill people? From that I take it that the Prince's campaign against the enemy has concluded?" 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
   Sieghard  and Bardhyl 

" Did you somehow not see all the trees stripped bare and fields made barren on your way through? " Sieghard asked, glaring at Bardhyl. " Oh, what could it possibly be that's weighing on my mind? " 
 

  "I did indeed. The Jackal is tightening his noose,"  Bardhyl replied, unfazed by Sieghard's glare.  "But I hear your Prince plans to keep his soldiers well fed, so good for those who march under his banner, I suppose. A shame about everyone else, though." 
 "The people here speak well of you. They seem to feel that you work hard to improve their lot, so I'm curious - will you be on their side or the Prince's when the food begins to run out for real?"  he asked, watching Sieghard intently to gauge his response.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  and Bardhyl 

" Things won't get that dire, " Sieghard replied. " People may have to tighten their belts, but there will be enough to last through the winter. " It was rather clear that he was only saying what he was "supposed to" and not what he actually believed.

 
 Spoiler 
 (1d100)[ 69 ]  vs 27 untrained charm for Sieghard's poker face. Based on what Bardhyl has seen, it's pretty obvious that there's not going to be much food coming out of the Thornwood, so this isn't to convince him that there somehow is. Rather, it's to see if Sieghard can make it convincing that  he  believes what he's saying. Either due to Sieghard's stubborn denial of reality or perhaps due to something Bardhyl isn't aware of.
 


 

  Sieghard  and Urgrim - 4th Sommerzeit 

" Managing as well as can be expected, " Sieghard replied. He was happy to see Urgrim despite deflated tone. " We've set aside anything that will keep and I've got folks hunting and foraging, but that will only get us so far. "

" Elsa and the book passed through two days ago. Truth be told, I don't know how much you or I or anyone else without magic could do to help with what she's trying. Even so, I trust your axe far more than any Iron Company pike so I'm sure she'll be safer with you to watch her back. "

" The prince... Refuses to believe the Jackal is still able to harm us. As far as he sees, when I drove the spear through him, his body turned to ash and dust and that's the end of it. He refused to see the danger until the Jackal attacked the temple and then thought it was over when we stopped him stealing the book. He refused to see it until the people of Caerfort were marched off to their deaths and then thought it was over after Nath. Now he refuses to see it until he loses a year's harvest and he'll soon find another reason to think the danger has passed. He'll fill his stores as full as he needs while his kingdom starves and wait until the Jackal sends his next calamity... Poisoned rivers or raining blood or something like that, probably. " Sieghard sighed. " If he won't take the threat seriously, what choice is there but to find other allies who will? "
rax
 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
   Sieghard  and Bardhyl 

" Things won't get that dire, " Sieghard replied. " People may have to tighten their belts, but there will be enough to last through the winter. " It was rather clear that he was only saying what he was "supposed to" and not what he actually believed. 
 

  "Really!? Elsa and Ludo seemed to believe that mass starvation is at hand! They'll no doubt be delighted to hear that their fears were unfounded!"  Bardhyl played along, with an ironic smile.  "Of course, if His Highness' other lieutenants are less successful in managing their supplies, are you certain that you won't receive orders to share your good fortune with them?" 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  and Bardhyl 

Sieghard's scowl deepened. He was quickly running short on patience with Bardhyl's attitude towards the famine.

" If the prince wants to share in our bounty of tree bark and swamp water, that's his right, " Sieghard replied bluntly. " Though if he finds meat and vegetables more to his taste, he may have to look somewhere that actually has those things. Is there a point to all of this? "
rax
 "Indeed there is, Commander. I  was  trying to divine whether your loyalties lie foremost with your Prince or the good people of Painford. I'm fairly sure Ludo has already told you that I've asked the same of him, Elsa and Jarla." 
 "Now I'm also wondering what subterfuge you're up to concerning your supplies. First you claim that the people here will make it through the winter by tightening their belts, implying that things are not so bad. Next you say that the only supplies you have to share with the Prince are tree bark and swamp water. I've had to do my share of belt-tightening in the past, and I assure you that no one makes it through the winter subsisting on tree bark and brackish water. So, who are you lying to - the folk of the Thornwood or His Highness in Savonne?"  Bardhyl answered, suddenly very serious.


 @TheSummoner 
I don't know if you want Bardhyl to roll a Charm test to make Sieghard less stubborn/hostile/more likely to see his questioning in a positive light. In most games I've played, Charm skills and the like are reserved for influencing NPCs rather than other PCs. So, let me know if a Charm test would help.
LCP
 Jarla, 33rd Sigmarzeit 

"No, let's stay out for a while," said Irene, airily. "I like talking to you, Jarla. We can speak freely out here."

Reaching out, she put her hand over Jarla's.  "So," she said, with a decisive air, "we agree then, yes? No more foolish talk about Holt. You'll help me get rid of her. And her halfling friend - that little pervert has been harassing me. We'll deal with them both. Then you can have whatever you want. You want to learn Tilean? I'll teach you. You want to work with horses? I'll make you…" - she waved her hand vaguely in the air - "I don't know, head of the royal stables. That's better than being a courier for some grubby merchant, isn't it?" She fixed Jarla with a penetrating look. "Say yes, and it's yours."


 

 Ludo, 3rd Sommerzeit 

Norten looked bone-tired. He sank his drink with gusto, and called for another.

"You're too right," he said. ,"It wasn't all sunshine and roses, working for old Slayer, but I'd let one of Rorik's boys take another crack at me if it meant we could go back." Reaching up, he put his hand to the scar that snaked over his scalp. "City guard, hah. Thought it'd be a proper feather in our cap, maybe a chance for some extra coin. But this place ain't like Manann's Keep."

His second drink arrived, and he downed most of that too. Setting it down, he wiped his mouth.

"Thieves and cutthroats on every corner. Red moon, making people act like wild bloody animals. They'll be killing each other for scraps, soon enough. And when they do, it'll be us who get the blame, and the Tilean's glory boys who get sent to clean up the mess with the pointy end of a pike. Just like before."

Shaking his head, he looked down at the table.

"I'm not planning on picking any fights I don't have to. But if the orders come down from on high… well, you've seen how things are. Most of my lads, if they didn't have this job, they wouldn't eat."


 

 Urgrim, 4th Sommerzeit 

"Oh, you know, can't complain," said Gavril, in a way that made Urgrim think he probably could complain, quite a lot actually. "Making do. Good to see you again, master dwarf. Will you be staying here long?"
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  and Bardhyl 

Sieghard let out a long, frustrated sigh. He took a moment to gather his thoughts before speaking again.

" Bardhyl, " Sieghard said calmly, " You realize that this is the sort of question Prince Sforza would want me to have you hanged for asking, don't you? You're not stupid. Clearly you don't think I'd do it otherwise you wouldn't be asking. " He pushed his chair back and stood up. " Follow me. "

Leaving the hostel, Sieghard made his way to the northern part of the village. When he reached the wall, he climbed to the top peering into the evening gloom. He had always had an easy time picking out shapes in the darkness and even with the light of the day gone he could still make out the individual trees. " The only thing Ludo told me is that you were planning on hoarding your food so that the Iron Company couldn't find it, " he said " He didn't mention anything more about what you said to them, but if you tried questioning them like you did me, I can guess how well that went. "

The wind began to pick up, rustling the barren branches of the trees in the distance. To Sieghard the dark shapes looked like skeletal claws grasping towards the sky. " You came all this way because you want something. Quit playing games and tell me what it is. "
rax
 Bardhyl and Sieghard 
 "Well Commander, as you said - you could have me hanged for asking the wrong questions, so if you think on it, I'm sure you can understand why I choose to be more...circumspect. As for my conversations with Ludo and the others, they offered clarity, which is all I hoped for under the circumstances. I shall be happy if this conversation does the same,"  Bardhyl answered.

 "Here is the situation as I see it. The Jackal threatens the Reaches with extinction. Your Prince can barely admit that the Jackal is still about and so he busies himself with sheltering his army from the impact of the famine - the cost to the common folk will be terrible and for my people, perhaps ruinous. Either way, they are both clear and present dangers to the future of these lands,"  he continued.

 "So you see, I want them  both  gone, and it must happen soon or it will be too late. The longer the Jackal is left to recover his power, the smaller our chances of doing anything about him, and the famine that's coming means that playing the long game with Sforza is also impossible. Desperation may drive folk to rise against him, but starving people make poor warriors, especially when faced with an army that still has enough supplies to be effective. So, time is of the essence, and  that  is why I'm asking you where your loyalties lie,"  Bardhyl explained.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  and Bardhyl 

" And you think I would help you get rid of him, " Sieghard said. " I owe a lot to the Prince. Two years ago I had nothing but my sword. Now, everything you see here. " Though he had already began considering what might be necessary if Sforza insisted on taking the last shreds of food to survive the locusts, Sieghard still found it hard to take the first steps into outright treason. " I have no personal love for the man and he's far from perfect, but were any of the others any better? Alvarr was no less a tyrant. Evatt too mad to protect his own lands. Rorik... Well, you've met him. "

" What the Reaches need is stability and for all his flaws, Sforza provides it, " he continued, sounding more tired now than anything. " Would the pack of petty warlords who reigned not long ago be able to stand against Nahorek or would he pick them apart one by one? If Sforza were to disappear tomorrow, swallowed by the earth itself, how would that improve the situation? And even if being rid of him would, how do you expect to pull it off? You have what? A dozen men in that band of yours? "
LeSwordfish
 
 Originally Posted by Thragka 
  Urgrim 
 The River Road, 2nd Sommerzeit 

Urgrim listened to Ludo's summary as hungrily as if it were a tavern tale.  "You've had no shortage of trials! And not just a wyvern defeated but a daemon too, eh? I'm glad that foul thing has been banished. It blighted us for long enough."  He shook his head.  "Poor Jarla. And Heironymous, of course. Losing him'd be a setback. But Jarla ..."  Even though he struggled to put his thoughts into words, Ludo could hear the contrast to Urgrim's dispassionate mention of the High Priest in the tone he used for their companion's name.  "This land has held so much misfortune for the Schreibers." 

Urgrim's expression soured at the news of Irene's latest machinations.  "She's nearly as bad as the daemon,"  he opined.  "An enemy of the Schreiber clan, and an enemy of yours. Have faith, though,  grombolg. "  Urgrim put one hand on Ludo's shoulder and the other on the hilt of his axe. He lowered his voice so that the Thorns could not overhear them.  "We'll bring her to justice yet. You will have my  az  when you need it, my friend."  
 

 "We'll need every one we can get,"  Ludo said.  "Maybe sooner than you'd think."  There was a strange expression on his face at the mention of "An enemy of the Schreiber clan", but he let it go.

 "For now, I'm glad to know there'll be someone with their head screwed on right at Caerfort." 

 Ludo, 3rd Sommerzeit

Norten looked bone-tired. He sank his drink with gusto, and called for another.

"You're too right," he said. ,"It wasn't all sunshine and roses, working for old Slayer, but I'd let one of Rorik's boys take another crack at me if it meant we could go back." Reaching up, he put his hand to the scar that snaked over his scalp. "City guard, hah. Thought it'd be a proper feather in our cap, maybe a chance for some extra coin. But this place ain't like Manann's Keep."

His second drink arrived, and he downed most of that too. Setting it down, he wiped his mouth.

"Thieves and cutthroats on every corner. Red moon, making people act like wild bloody animals. They'll be killing each other for scraps, soon enough. And when they do, it'll be us who get the blame, and the Tilean's glory boys who get sent to clean up the mess with the pointy end of a pike. Just like before."

Shaking his head, he looked down at the table.

"I'm not planning on picking any fights I don't have to. But if the orders come down from on high… well, you've seen how things are. Most of my lads, if they didn't have this job, they wouldn't eat." 

Ludo nodded along sympathetically.  "There's going to be a lot of that going around. Not eating, I mean." 
 "So, what, you have to do all the dog work but Sforza doesn't trust you with anything harder? You get the blame for things you can't control, and the Iron Company get the glory for things they couldn't fail at?" He shook his head. "That's a really raw deal."  No comment on the chance for extra coin, he decided.  "Sforza's putting aside about a year and a half's worth of supplies for the Iron Company - has he done that for you too?" 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
To save time, a quick conditional: if the answer to this question is Yes, Ludo will follow up by saying that they should keep an eye on it, it'll be worth more than gold soon. If not, he'll express the appropriate level of shock and sympathy. "Half the food in the reaches is going into their pockets!"
 

 "Listen to me, Jan."  The drink was perhaps affecting Ludo a little at this point, too. Or, at least it appeared to be.  "You're twice the man Fred Fischwillen was, you're a professional soldier. You're no man's thug, you hear me? You weren't the commander's, and you're not Sforza's, no matter how he treats you." 
rax
 Bardhyl and Sieghard 
 "You sound just like Elsa!"  Bardhyl laughed bitterly.  "Sforza this and Sforza that, whatever would we do without him? He raises us up! He protects us! We owe everything to Sforza!" 
 "You know what that sounds like to me? Utter nonsense. You are where you are today through your own actions, not the grace of this Tilean pretender! If anything,  he  owes his throne to  you  - not the other way around. I wasn't at Arrow Heap, but Afrim and Damjan were, and you know what they tell me? That Alvarr would have  won  if you hadn't held back Rorik and Elsa hadn't burned his levies!" 
 "Your Prince is a clever man, a fine general, but he wouldn't be within a hundred miles of Savonnne if he didn't have people under his command willing to sacrifice themselves to put him there. That is his power - the ability to make others believe that what benefits him, benefits them, and that they  owe  him for being allowed to lay down their lives for him." 
 "But you know what? That makes him no different than any of the other pretenders, and you could just as easily be where you are now if you'd hitched your wagon to Alvarr, or Rorik, or that Imperial fellow - Groz, was it? And they would only have been able to grant you this fief because you made them a Prince in the first place!" 
 "As for the Reaches needing stability? Please! That's been the argument of every ha'penny conqueror who's plagued these lands since the Jackal's people first came here to take my people's homes and pastures for themselves. Ask yourself - what good will Sforza's rule do your people, or my people, or the hardscrabble farmers who gave us shelter in the Teeth, when he's willing to let them starve to coddle his soldiers and preserve his power? Is that the stability they need? To die for Sforza and his wife so they can play at being prince and princess?"  Bardhyl spat.

 "Now, as you so sagely noted, I'm  not  a stupid man. I understand the risks and you're right - I can't get rid of Sforza by myself, not even with the  Vrani  united behind me. So, I need allies. I need information. I need money and manpower, and I need a candidate to take Sforza's place who I can trust to do a better job. And the way to get that is to have conversations like this - to find enough people who are willing to commit to make this change happen,"  he declared forcefully.
Thragka
 Urgrim 
 With Ludo, the River Road, 2nd Sommerzeit 

 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  "For now, I'm glad to know there'll be someone with their head screwed on right at Caerfort."  
 

Some air escaped through Urgrim's nose.  "Elsa hasn't changed too much since I last saw her, then? Now, I'm sure that, when it comes to matters of witchcraft, she knows her lore,"  he added, bobbing his head sideways with a latitudinous deference.  "But I'll be keeping an eye on her all the same. If it's just to be days of her and the Book spending long hours together, all the more reason to check her judgement." 
 ~ 
 With Sieghard, Painford, 4th Sommerzeit 

 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
 " Managing as well as can be expected, " Sieghard replied. He was happy to see Urgrim despite deflated tone. " We've set aside anything that will keep and I've got folks hunting and foraging, but that will only get us so far. "

" Elsa and the book passed through two days ago. Truth be told, I don't know how much you or I or anyone else without magic could do to help with what she's trying. Even so, I trust your axe far more than any Iron Company pike so I'm sure she'll be safer with you to watch her back. "

" The prince... Refuses to believe the Jackal is still able to harm us. As far as he sees, when I drove the spear through him, his body turned to ash and dust and that's the end of it. He refused to see the danger until the Jackal attacked the temple and then thought it was over when we stopped him stealing the book. He refused to see it until the people of Caerfort were marched off to their deaths and then thought it was over after Nath. Now he refuses to see it until he loses a year's harvest and he'll soon find another reason to think the danger has passed. He'll fill his stores as full as he needs while his kingdom starves and wait until the Jackal sends his next calamity... Poisoned rivers or raining blood or something like that, probably. " Sieghard sighed. " If he won't take the threat seriously, what choice is there but to find other allies who will? " 
 

Urgrim nodded, running his hand through his beard.  "If I weren't heading on so soon, I'd help you build up your supplies. It was hunger that killed those refugees when the caravan passed through,"  he reminded Sieghard just as he recalled the memory himself.  "Gods willing, you won't have to make the awful choices for your people as to who gets what. But even while you have game to hunt, be careful. Starving sickness will come all the same if you try to live off conies alone." 

The dwarf sighed and nodded as they discussed the Book.  "You're right enough, aye, she's the only one who can likely design its destruction. Just have to hope it won't be doing the same to her. And watch out in case it does." 
 "You're convinced then that you've not yet slain Varag Kol for good? Hrrghm. Can't say I thought the war was over, m'self. Last time, at least the priests and runelords were able to seal him in the Red Pyramid. And now we have to find something more reliable than that, as it turns out."  Urgrim shook his head.  "'Tis as I expected, then, with the Prince. As far as the hill people go, I'm not grumbling if they're aware of what needs to be done. It's been an uphill struggle long enough." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  and Bardhyl 

" All those would-be conquerors were right, even if they didn't truly believe what they said or do sh*t to make it happen, " Sieghard replied bluntly. He didn't contest the part about how Sforza had won the war with Alvarr. He had voiced similar opinions about that himself in the past. " The Reaches  do  need stability. When was the last time they went more than a few years without a war to gobble up a rival's land or shift the borders of some princeling's territory a few miles? I doubt there's anyone alive who remembers it, even among the dwarfs of the Rock. "

" We have a chance at that now, " Sieghard said. " I won't ruin it by starting another war. The reaches wouldn't survive it. And as terrible as you may think Sforza is - As awful as he  may actually be  - all you'd be doing if you started one is delivering the reaches right into Nahorek's hands. Every man killed on either side is one less who can pick up a sword when the true foe decides to march again. "

  Sieghard  and Urgrim 

Sieghard shrugged. " Most foes have the decency to stay down when you run a spear through them, but it he already came back from the grave once. Who am I to say he can't do it again? Elsa's the one who understands this sort of thing and she thinks he's still a threat. That's reason enough to take the danger seriously. "
RossN
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Jarla, 33rd Sigmarzeit 

"No, let's stay out for a while," said Irene, airily. "I like talking to you, Jarla. We can speak freely out here."

Reaching out, she put her hand over Jarla's.  "So," she said, with a decisive air, "we agree then, yes? No more foolish talk about Holt. You'll help me get rid of her. And her halfling friend - that little pervert has been harassing me. We'll deal with them both. Then you can have whatever you want. You want to learn Tilean? I'll teach you. You want to work with horses? I'll make you…" - she waved her hand vaguely in the air - "I don't know, head of the royal stables. That's better than being a courier for some grubby merchant, isn't it?" She fixed Jarla with a penetrating look. "Say yes, and it's yours." 
 

Jarla felt her cheeks flush again at Irene's touch on her hand and the very confused feelings it gave her. There was something about the princepessa that when she turned on the charm made it almost impossible to disobey her.

 "I... uh am happy where I am now milady,"  Jarla lied (or was it  entirely  a lie?). As soon as it felt safe to do so she pulled back her hand, ostensibly to fix part of Countess's bridle. Another furious blush as she forced herself to meet Irene's eyes.  "I am your faithful servant and your friend Irene - milady. What do you want me to do?" 
rax
 Bardhyl and Sieghard 

Bardhyl let out another harsh laugh.  "You think putting Sforza on the throne is going to gift the Reaches  stability , Commander Sieghard? You think  stability  comes from crushing one's enemies and enforcing order at the point of a sword? Come now, Commander - you credit me with not being stupid, and I don't take you for a fool either, so how do you imagine that Sforza is any different from those who've come before? Why should he succeed where hundreds before him have failed?" 
 "You know where true stability comes from in the Reaches? From the people. Not the warlords who try to control them, tax them, and waste their lives in wars not of their making. The people of Painford, of Ravenskird, of the Thornwood - there's your stability. Leave them alone to hunt, to fish, and to farm, and they'll manage just fine on their own. But that wasn't your Prince's plan even before the locusts. All the taxes he's taken and the drugs he's smuggling, you know what he's been using them for, right? For sure, he bought grain to make up the shortfall here, but the rest has been going to build up his army. I saw and heard as much in Alvarran and Morr's Seat. There's not the ghost of a chance that Sforza wouldn't have been off to war again within a year or two. Is that the stability you were hoping for? A new cycle of violence on a larger scale?"  Bardhyl questioned Sieghard.

 "And Nahorek...well you weren't there to see it, but when we were bringing Wadim to Morr's Seat, he showed us what Nahorek is doing, and it's not building an army, unless you think dragging goblins across the Waste one by one for sacrifice is going to enable the Jackal to march any time soon. No, Sieghard, the Jackal is back in the Red Pyramid, working to regain his strength and to conjure curses like the locusts to bring us to our knees. He doesn't need to conquer the Reaches by force, he can just keep sending his plagues against us until we're all dead. No army of Sforza's is going to help us defeat that,"  he declared.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  and Bardhyl 

" What I think is that stability comes from not having half a dozen warlords squabbling over farmland, " Sieghard said. " Or at least that's a good place to start. Your people just lost a war. Don't be so eager to start another. The best you could hope for is to sell their lives just to go back to how things were a year ago. " He held up a hand to stall the angry reply that was certainly coming. " I'm not telling you to bow down and kiss his boots. Hide your crops and livestock. Waste his men's time chasing ghosts if you want. If you absolutely must strike out at him, then at least do it in a way that isn't just going to get a bunch of people killed. "
rax
 Bardhyl and Sieghard 

Bardhyl pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed.  "Commander, what you suggest isn't possible for any extended period of time - and the famine that's coming won't be over quickly. Our herdsmen had already brought their goats to Morr's Seat because the Hills are  parched  and it's getting worse all the time. For sure, there are a few hidden pastures we can move some of the herds to, but there simply isn't enough water and fodder to keep them alive for very long." 
 "Even if we did that and Sforza  does nothing , where would that leave us? You say you're not asking us to kiss Sforza's boots, but unless he's removed from power, whose boots do you expect us to be kissing if we survive the famine? I'm sorry, Commander, but if you truly believe all you've said to me today, then I see no point in wasting more of your time. The  Vrani  will make their own way, as we always have. I bid you good night,"  Bardhyl excused himself with a brief bow.
LCP
 Jarla, 33rd Sigmarzeit 

  "I am your faithful servant and your friend Irene - milady. What do you want me to do?"  

Irene looked a little confused, but only for a moment. “Well - what I told you, dear. Help me get rid of those two pests.” She looked down at her nails, then glanced back over her shoulder towards the city. “If it was only Holt, it would be easy,” she sighed. “I think the halfling does the thinking for both of them. But I have a plan for him… so that just leaves her.” She beamed a smile. “And she’s off on a trip to the far end of nowhere, with her book that she’s warned us so very many times is so very, very dangerous. I think we can work with that, don’t you?”

 Ludo, 3rd Sommerzeit 

  "Sforza's putting aside about a year and a half's worth of supplies for the Iron Company - has he done that for you too?"  

Norten looked flustered and confused. “Well, I - I don’t rightly know. I suppose that’s Lord Al-Makir’s job, keeping track of that.” His face darkened a little. “He’d bloody better have.”


  "Listen to me, Jan."  The drink was perhaps affecting Ludo a little at this point, too. Or, at least it appeared to be.  "You're twice the man Fred Fischwillen was, you're a professional soldier. You're no man's thug, you hear me? You weren't the commander's, and you're not Sforza's, no matter how he treats you."  

Norten nodded, and Ludo didn’t doubt it was from the heart. “Too bloody right,” he growled. He paused, checking himself for a moment - but didn’t seem to find anything not to his liking. “It’s good to see you again, Herr Stubbs. You always talk good sense.”
RossN
 Jarla, 33rd Sigmarzeit 

Jarla gave Irene a look of awe that was in no way feigned even it wasn't exactly admiration. She'd always known the woman had a dark charisma and that her grudges were engraved in granite but this was something else.

Lowering her voice (not that anyone was close enough to hear) she said:  "You are wise my lady."  Jarla's expression turned dark.  "You know I don't think the witch has ever liked me? She knew I was interested in magic but she never looked to train me - no she took a peasant girl who can't even read over me. Oh Irene I'll be happy to wipe that smirk off her face!" 
LCP
 Jarla, 33rd Sigmarzeit 

Irene gave a thin smile, pressing her lips close together. "I knew you'd see sense, Jarla," she said. "Come, let's go back. I can't bear much longer out in this sun."

A motion of her hand summoned their guards back to their side. Turning their horses, they rode back towards the city.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Just going to throw a Perception test out there for Irene, to gauge how sincere Jarla's sudden volte-face on Elsa seems. Jarla can oppose with Charm.

 (1d100)[ 30 ] 
 


 

 Aubentag, 4th Sommerzeit - Jarla 

The next few days passed in a whirl. Jarla felt she was back in the  principessa's  good graces, but so far, her patron had pressed her with no orders to act on what they had discussed out on their ride. However strong her feelings, it seemed Irene was more than to content to wait for whatever she considered to be the opportune time.

Early on Aubentag morning, Jarla was accosted by Mouna, coming up from the servants' quarters. She could read in her face that the old steward had some definite purpose in finding her.

"Your ladyship," said Mouna, with the unerring deference she showed to all the members of Sforza's court. "I just wanted to ask you about something, now that you're back." Was that the hint of a dig at her extended absence? Mouna's expression was too bland to be certain. "Our head cook in the kitchens - Herr Figgins, the halfling - he's asked for a very long leave of absence. Something about a family emergency. He was with the Iron Company before, and her Highness had asked for him  personally  to lead the kitchens here. I was wondering if you wanted to tell her."

Again, the old woman seemed inscrutable. Was that 'I was wondering  if  you wanted to tell her,' or 'I was wondering if  you  wanted to tell her'?
LeSwordfish
 Ludo and Urgrim, 2nd Sommerzeit 

 Some air escaped through Urgrim's nose. "Elsa hasn't changed too much since I last saw her, then? Now, I'm sure that, when it comes to matters of witchcraft, she knows her lore," he added, bobbing his head sideways with a latitudinous deference. "But I'll be keeping an eye on her all the same. If it's just to be days of her and the Book spending long hours together, all the more reason to check her judgement." 

 "She's much the same, yes... but everyone's a bit more on edge. A bit panicked." 

He indicated the denuded landscape.  "Not a great place to make good decisions, even without the book." 
 Ludo and Jan Norten, 3rd Sommerzeit 
 "Well, you should check that,"  Ludo said.  "Half the food in the reaches will be coming here soon, you want to make sure your fair share's set aside." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
I don't have any specific other things to say to Urgi or Norten.
 
RossN
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Aubentag, 4th Sommerzeit - Jarla 

The next few days passed in a whirl. Jarla felt she was back in the  principessa's  good graces, but so far, her patron had pressed her with no orders to act on what they had discussed out on their ride. However strong her feelings, it seemed Irene was more than to content to wait for whatever she considered to be the opportune time.

Early on Aubentag morning, Jarla was accosted by Mouna, coming up from the servants' quarters. She could read in her face that the old steward had some definite purpose in finding her.

"Your ladyship," said Mouna, with the unerring deference she showed to all the members of Sforza's court. "I just wanted to ask you about something, now that you're back." Was that the hint of a dig at her extended absence? Mouna's expression was too bland to be certain. "Our head cook in the kitchens - Herr Figgins, the halfling - he's asked for a very long leave of absence. Something about a family emergency. He was with the Iron Company before, and her Highness had asked for him  personally  to lead the kitchens here. I was wondering if you wanted to tell her."

Again, the old woman seemed inscrutable. Was that 'I was wondering  if  you wanted to tell her,' or 'I was wondering if  you  wanted to tell her'? 
 

Jarla was at first mystified at being cornered by Mouna. Given the famine her (Jarla's) job was surely over except on the most nominal level since there were going to be no banquets, balls, feasts or state visits for the foreseeable future. Still form evidently mattered so she hastily assumed a look of aloof interest. When the woman got around to her business the aloofness cleared.

 "Ah, thank you for bringing this news to me. I shall inform Her Highness. Thank you Mouna." 

Well that put a cat among the pigeons. Crossing swiftly to Irene's chambers and ascertaining the princepessa was alone she knocked and entered.  "Milady, Mouna just informed me that our head chef whose food you so enjoy is departing on a family emergency."  She looked around (a needlessly dramatic touch but still), before adding in an excited stage whisper:  "Part of your plan?" 
LCP
 Jarla, 4th Sommerzeit  

Jarla's news grabbed Irene's attention at once. "The halfling?" she demanded. "No. No, it's not."

She hesitated for just a moment before appearing to make up her mind. "Have him brought up here to me. Tell him I want to speak with him personally."
Thragka
 Urgrim and Sieghard, 4th Sommerzeit 

 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
 Sieghard sighed. " If he won't take the threat seriously, what choice is there but to find other allies who will? " 
 

Urgrim nodded, and waved a hand in the air in front of him. He intended the gesture to be dismissive of any assumed disagreement. Under the circumstance, though, if it warded off evil, the blessing wouldn’t be snubbed.

 ”Oh, aye – there’s no complaint from me about finding an unexpected friend. I’ve made plenty of strange allies already.”  A wry twitch lived for an instant on his lips.

 “Will you introduce me to these people? Before I press on, it ‘d be good to get their measure.” 
 Later, with Bardhyl 

When Sieghard pointed Urgrim in the direction of the Vrani, the ranger offered a meaty hand to their spokesman.  “Ho, hill-man. I am Urgrim Jotunnsson. Your people are knowledgeable of our enemy, the Black Hound, and prepared for war?” 
RossN
 Jarla 

Not for the first time since coming to the Reaches Jarla wondered whether the universe was deliberately trying to get her. She'd been  certain  the halfling cook must have been Irene's assassin and had already been given orders to go after Ludo. Apparently not.

She'd kill Mouna for this.

She walked back to the kitchens praying to Ranald the halfling had already gone by now.
LCP
 Jarla, 4th Sommerzeit  

Jarla found Rudi in the kitchens. He seemed a little nervous at seeing her.

"Ah! Lady Schreiber," he said, hastily closing up the bag of cooking implements he'd been gathering together. "What can I, uh, what can I do for you?"
rax
 
 Originally Posted by Thragka 
  Later, with Bardhyl 

When Sieghard pointed Urgrim in the direction of the Vrani, the ranger offered a meaty hand to their spokesman.  “Ho, hill-man. I am Urgrim Jotunnsson. Your people are knowledgeable of our enemy, the Black Hound, and prepared for war?”  
 

 Bardhyl and his men were busy saddling their horses when Urgrim suddenly announced himself. Somewhat nonplussed, Bardhyl took his hand and shook it.  "Bardhyl,"  he introduced himself in return. Releasing Urgrim's hand, he took a step back and stared appraisingly at the dwarf.

 "Jotunsson...Jotunsson...your name sounds familiar, friend dwarf. Are you perhaps the brave soul who led a band to investigate the Red Pyramid and later travelled for a while with Herr Stubbs?"  
Thragka
 Urgrim and Bardhyl, 4th Sommerzeit 
 ”Aye,”  Urgrim replied. He took another look over Bardhyl and the other Vrani, appraising them.  ”Ludo and Sieghard tell me that your folk also know the Pyramid is the enemy’s fortress. It’s well to meet more humans in this country who call a stone a stone. I think we’ll have need of each other, before the foe is undone.”  He nodded to the other members of the group.  “So let’s not be strangers when that time comes. If your hearts are true and your arms are strong, I’ll gladly fight beside you.” 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Belatedly realising that I replied to a point of the conversation with Sieghard which had already passed, and that my slow posting has held up Bardhyl’s next moves – whoops. I won’t hold anyone back in these scenes any further!

No time for a longer post at the moment, but I will happily move Urgrim on to Caerfort next time I do.
 
rax
 Urgrim and Bardhyl, 4th Sommerzeit 
 "It is known to us, yes, though none have visited it in living memory. I would be most interested in hearing what you found there some day,"  Bardhyl admitted when Urgrim spoke of the Red Pyramid.

 "As for our hearts, you'll find none truer, isn't that right lads?"  he laughed. His men chuckled in return, obviously sharing some secret joke.

 Later... 

After taking their leave of Urgrim, Bardhyl and his men set out for Savonne with fresh game hanging from their saddles. They made Arrow Heap by the evening, spending the night there before continuing to Savonne the next morning.

 
 Spoiler: @LCP 
Since Thargka wrote that he wouldn't be pursuing the scene any further, I added a little extra to get Bardhyl and co on the road. I've assumed nothing much of interest happens on the way. I also assume that the crew will eat some of the game they caught in the Thornwood on the way to Savonne.
 
RossN
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Jarla, 4th Sommerzeit  

Jarla found Rudi in the kitchens. He seemed a little nervous at seeing her.

"Ah! Lady Schreiber," he said, hastily closing up the bag of cooking implements he'd been gathering together. "What can I, uh, what can I do for you?" 
 


Jarla looked the halfling up and down. Mostly down admittedly.  "You and I need to talk... in private. Come to my chambers now." 
LCP
 Jarla 

Looking more than a little nervous, Rudi nodded and followed Jarla upstairs.
RossN
 Jarla 
 "So first things first,"  Jarla said,  "I hear you are leaving our service. May I ask why and for how long?" 

After hearing his reply she continued.  "The princepessa has heard of your sudden departure and wishes to see you. It may be better if I arrived too late and alas found out you had left already."   she fixed him with a steely look.  "What exactly is your history with her highness?"  
LCP
 
 Originally Posted by RossN 
  "So first things first,"  Jarla said,  "I hear you are leaving our service. May I ask why and for how long?"  
 

"Well, it's - it's a family matter. You see, my wife, Leni, she was coming here, but she's been - she's held up. Her brother, Ludo, he's come and told me there's been threats against the family - the Stubbses, I mean - that it wasn't safe. I was - I want to go look after her 'til it's all blown over." He swallowed nervously, afraid of what he had to say next. “Ludo… Ludo says it won’t be more than three months.”


  "The princepessa has heard of your sudden departure and wishes to see you. It may be better if I arrived too late and alas found out you had left already."   she fixed him with a steely look.  "What exactly is your history with her highness?"   

"I, um, I've been cooking for their Highness' men since they first pitched up in Last Water, your ladyship," Rudi stammered. "For the company, mostly - but then lately her Highness said she missed my cooking so much she wanted me to take over here." There was a hint of pride in his voice, despite his nerves. "That's about the whole of it."

He furrowed his brow as all of Jarla's words filtered through. "What do you mean... found out I had left already?"
RossN
 Jarla 

At this point it seemed like there was little point hiding the truth, especially given they were alone.

 "Mouna told me you were leaving and I told Her Highness. She demanded to see you."  Jarla paused and took a deep breath, realising just what she was about to say.  "What I about to tell you does not leave this room you understand? The princepessa aims to kill your brother-in-law who incidentally is also my friend, though I had not known you are family. Quite frankly I wouldn't be surprised if she'll have your sister killed to - and you as well." 

She paused allowing this to sink in, needing to see his reaction before he continued.
LCP
 Jarla 

Rudi's nerves and confusion gave way to panic and disbelief.

"Y- wh- the  princess ?" he gaped. "But - I don't understand. Why?" He swallowed. "Why would she even care about people like us?"

"You're - there has to be some mistake. I haven't done anything. They've never been anything but good to me." He ran both hands through his hair, staring at the floor. "This doesn't make sense!"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 

 
 Originally Posted by RossN 
  "Quite frankly I wouldn't be surprised if she'll have  your sister  killed to - and you as well."  
 

I don't know what it is about these two that causes these mixups, but I've got to stress again they're not related by blood!
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla's expression softened, feeling a twinge of sympathy for the halfing. It probably would seem paranoid to anyone who didn't spend much time around Irene.

 "Listen, the  princepessa  can be capricious and cruel. Maybe she won't go after your wife's brother,"  she lied,  "but I really don't think you should take the chance. Ludo is right. You leave quickly and I'll tell Irene, um, the  princepessa  that you departed before I could find you. Three months sounds about right before all this blows over." 

For a mad moment she'd considered trying to enlist Rudi in an attempt to poison Irene but a glance at the poor man told her even he agreed - and he wouldn't - his nerves wouldn't hold.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Sorry! I've been under the weather recently, I'll try and concentrate more! 😳
 
LCP
 Jarla 

Rudi looked long and hard at Jarla, perhaps hoping if he stared hard enough she would crack and say it was all a joke. The look of dawning horror on his face when she didn't was one she thought she would remember.

"Right, um... right," he said, just about keeping it together. "I'll... I'll do that. Thank you, milady."

With quite a turn of speed, he turned and took off at some speed, grabbing a few things from the kitchen on the way.

 Ludo 

"Ludo! There you are. Ludo!"

Looking round, Ludo saw Rudi coming towards him at some speed. His brother-in-law had a hastily-stuffed satchel over his shoulder and nothing else. A ladle fell out of it as he came to a halt in front of Ludo, and with some panicky, muttered swearing he bent down to pick it up.

"All ready to go!" he said, with an attempt at a cheery air that just sounded desperate. "Sooner the better, you said, right?"

Seeing that Ludo had clocked his nervous manner, he gulped. "Look, I, uh... I put in my notice about taking some time away, and... it seems her Highness isn't happy about it." He looked from side to side, as if checking for guards bearing down on them, then lowered his voice to something between a whisper and a squeak. "You didn't tell me she was the one who's after us!"
LeSwordfish
Ludo opened his mouth to say something like "Because you're taking it so well," and closed it again.  "How did you find out?" 

Rudi's haste was infectious and he turned and began leading them towards muddyside, where Lumpin was stabled: they could talk on the way.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
I've nothing specific to get out of this conversation with Rudi, ready to move on if you are. Ludo sent the Thorns and the cart ahead with Hieronymous a few days ago: he and Rudi will take the Arrow Heap route back, like they did with Gina: this might put Ludo and Rudi in Arrow Heap at the same time as Bardhyl and gang.
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla waited five minutes, composing herself and preparing for what would be an unpleasant meeting. Then, expression like a thunderstorm she returned to see Irene.

 "The little runt has run off,"  she said, voice full of feigned anger as she entered the room.  "Turns out he was selling off wine on the sly to people in the city and someone in the kitchen caught wind of it and threatened to blackmail him. Evidently he thought he better leave before the story broke and you hung him Your Highness - or I did. That is meant to be my domain." 
LCP
 Jarla 

“He  what? ”

Doubt and disbelief were written plainly on Irene’s face, but however hard she looked at Jarla, Jarla’s facade didn’t crack. Inside, some small part of her felt pleased. She was good at this.

“The thieving little rat!” said Irene, at last. “Well… find him. I want him back. Tell him - tell him nobody’s getting hanged over a few bottles of wine.” She exhaled, calming herself. “You can’t hang halflings anyway. They don’t have enough weight below the neck. The hangman would have to swing on his feet.”

Sitting down, she leant back in her chair and looked up at the ceiling, as if it were all too much for her. “I  need  him back, Jarla. He may be a thief, but he’s Stubbs’ brother-in-law. You understand? He has value.” She lifted her head again, fixing Jarla with a look. “You can drag him back in irons if you have to - just  bring him back. ”
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla allowed herself to looked shocked at the "revelation" Rudi was married into Ludo's family but decided it would be too much to vocally express anger or disbelief. Instead she just nodded wearily.  "Of course your Highness. I'll see about it at once." 

She took her leave praying Rudi had enough sense to be well on his way by now.
LCP
 Aubentag*, 5th Sommerzeit 
 Sieghard 

Back in Painford, a tinker bound for Manann’s Keep had brought two more letters for Sieghard. Though they were still sealed, their crumpled and dog-eared appearance made him suspect both had changed hands a few times on their way to him.

 
 Spoiler: First Letter 
 Lord Sieghard,

I am saddened to hear of your troubles in the south. The insects have not reached us here in any great numbers, and there are a good deal of supplies passing through Putbad, particularly since his Highness’ improvements to transport over the falls. However, I believe most of it is bought and paid for before it leaves the Pool. Prices are high and rising quickly.

If you wish to send an agent to negotiate with the merchants here, I would be happy to make introductions. I wish there was more I could offer.

Yours,
Leona Groz. 
 

 
 Spoiler: Second Letter 
 Dear Commander,

The situation here in the Savonne is much as you describe in the south. The cost of food rises by the day; the Prince’s edict on the price of grain is no longer worth the paper on which it is written. If you have friends in Last Water or the Uplands, I would advise you to speak to them to see if you can purchase supplies before they have reached the city - fewer hands will have taken their share.

I have not forgotten the debt I owe to you and your friends. While I cannot offer you more than my business can spare in these circumstances - I hope you will understand there are people who depend on me too - I do know that there are currently a great number of animals going to the South Market slaughterhouses, in anticipation of the times to come. If you can arrange for transport, I can acquire for you a good quantity of cured beef, pork and horse meat at a preferential price.

Your loyal friend, now and always,
Burhan. 
 

 Elsa 

It was late in the day by the time that Elsa’s wagon rattled into Manann’s Keep. Here was where the devastation wrought by the swarm was starkest. Even the bark of the trees was chewed and torn, and the green fields surrounding the town had been stripped down to the dirt. The wreck of Evatt’s landship stood like an island amidst the desolation, the weeds and vines that had grown over it now eaten away to leafless stems.

In the town, a very tired-looking Steffan Sussman made them as welcome as he could. While he was still keeping up his mask of obsequious cheer, Elsa could tell the man was a seething ball of stress. Once he had seen them settled with food and shelter, he quickly made his excuses to absent himself from their company.

“I wish I could join you for dinner, I really do,” he said, “but there’s just so much to do. Letters to write, people to…” - he shook his hands in a throttling gesture, then brushed it off with a nervous laugh. His voice was hoarse, as if he’d been using it too much. “Well, you’ve seen how things are out there. Some folks aren’t talking it too well.” A thought seemed to strike him, and he smiled, gesturing around at the wooden walls of the castle. “You’d think in a place like this, they’d understand that we’re all in the same boat!”


 *Just checked against my reference calendar and somewhere the day had picked up an off-by-one error. The days in this post are correct. 

 

 Bezahltag, 8th Sommerzeit 
 Ludo &amp; Sieghard - Painford 

Three fraught days of travel had brought Ludo and Rudi back to Painford. The last stretch of the road had been the hardest - once they had entered the forest, Ludo had suspected a gunman in the shadows behind every tree.  Lady Sforza says, fire! 

Rudi hadn’t made it any easier. Though he clearly trusted Ludo, the panic that had gripped him had faded, and his natural blithe cheer kept trying to reassert itself. Each, evening Ludo found himself retreading the same conversations: yes, the  principessa  really did want him dead. Yes, she wouldn’t hesitate to hurt his family. No, it wasn’t a misunderstanding.

Arriving in the village, then, was a relief - not just for him, but for Leni, who came running out of Sieghard’s manor to throw her arms around Rudi the moment they came through the gate. For Ludo, who was used to Leni being the more reserved of his siblings, it came as something of a surprise, especially when she hugged him too. Before he could say much to intervene, she was leading her shell-shocked husband away, weeks and weeks of pent-up words spilling out so quickly that they ran into one another.

Ludo was relieved, too, to see that Hieronymus had made it in one piece. The ‘small selection’ of books he had taken with him from his house in the Old Town had filled up half the Thorns’ wagon, and the bookcase that came with them had taken the other half. It was now set up inside Adelbert’s chapel, and the old priest looked positively at home.

“A nice little place, this,” said Hieronymus, approvingly. “And good to see how you’ve been continuing Brother Schreiber’s work. If you were looking to thank the goddess for her grace, I can’t think of a better offering.”

Sieghard, meanwhile, had been holding down the fort as best he could. So far, the people of Painford seemed to be following the rules he had put in place, and so far, no-one was going hungry. It was too early to know whether the same was true in Ravenskird or further afield - but it was a start. One more letter had come, this time delivered by a rider from the south:

 
 Spoiler: Letter 
 To Sieghard, Lord Steward of the Thornwood,

News has reached me of the plague of which you write. Thankfully, Last Water has been spared. Our crops still grow, though I expect that come the harvest, we will be sending many of them to Savonne.

Lord Sussman has written to me of unrest among the people of the Vale, their farms having been particularly afflicted. I have sent him what men I can spare, but after Arrow Heap, that is still precious few. If you can render him any assistance, I will count myself in your debt.

May Myrmidia watch over you.

Esteban Valdes. 
 

 Elsa &amp; Urgrim - Caerfort 

The road over the Iron Claw Hills had been long, hot and dusty, but Elsa arrived in Caerfort to see it looking better than she had expected. Valdes’ men were already there, and had been hard at work making the shell of the abandoned village habitable again.

Some of the empty huts had been dismantled, their timbers used to repair the others or to patch up the holes in the ancient stonework of the tower. Six men were at work with spades to dig a defensive ditch around the base of that old ruin, stripped down to their breeches and sweating in the Sommerzeit sun. They looked up as the wagon approached, relieved to have a distraction from their work.

Their leader was an old soldier of the Brotherhood by the name of Jorge. He was a lean, wiry man in his forties, with duellists’ scars on his knuckles and his moustache waxed to fine, needle-like points.

He bowed to Elsa, and exchanged respectful greetings with Gaspare, one old soldier to another. Elsa sensed that Gaspare was relieved to make the handover - once she and the book had been unloaded, she was sure the Tileans would be out of here as soon as they were able.

“We are at your disposal, Magister,” said Jorge. He spared a glance to the wagon, its contents still sealed up tight. “Where would you like the cargo secured?”

 ~ 
By sundown, the wagon had been unloaded, and Elsa had had time to take a tour of the little encampment that Jorge and his men had made of Caerfort. He had seventeen soldiers with him - five Magrittan veterans, and twelve recruits from the Reaches. A gaggle of camp followers accompanied them - a carpenter, a cook, and a couple of fisherwomen, plus assorted others, including some soldiers’ wives. All in all, she estimated there were fewer than thirty people in the village, not counting her own Iron Company guards.

That number was about to increase by one. Squinting against the setting sun, a lonely figure was coming along the road on mule-back. Two of Jorge’s men met him at the base of the tower, asking his business. When he said Elsa would know him, she was called - she recognised Urgrim at once.

 Jarla - Savonne 

Three days of ‘searching’ had been and gone, and Irene was still fuming about Rudi’s escape. She wasn’t blaming Jarla, at least - but her new maidservants were running around like frightened mice, and Mouna had been invited for a ‘chat’ that the old steward had left looking uncharacteristically chastened.

At last, Irene seemed to give up the chase. “Fine,” she said, when the subject arose, “if he’s run, he’s run. Gods know, it wasn’t that great a plan anyway.” She closed her eyes and sighed. “I’ll think of something else. Something better.”

Her manner changed. “You were travelling with him, weren’t you? Stubbs, I mean, not the cook.” She raised an eyebrow at Jarla. “What did you make of him?”


 

 Konigstag, 9th Sommerzeit 
 Bardhyl - Savonne 

On his return to Savonne, Bardhyl had found the place no better than he’d left it. Famine was tightening its noose around the city, and the streets had an abattoir reek to them from the slaughter of livestock that would not last the winter. At the butchers’ stalls, pork and mutton had been joined by horse and dog meat, and the ratcatchers were clearly making money at both ends of their trade too. Only the city’s cats seemed to be escaping the cleaver, and Bardhyl suspected that was just because they were too hard to catch.

Even this poor fare was out of reach for those who could not pay - and for those who tried to take it without paying, a harder fate was in store. A scaffold with six nooses had been erected in the North Market square. The first time Bardhyl saw it in use, all six were occupied. Norten’s guards held a hungry, jeering crowd at bay, while the hangman announced the crimes of the condemned. Each of them, theft. Each of them was to receive Prince Sforza’s justice - a short drop, and a sudden stop.

Making his way back to the riverside, Bardhyl headed to the  Fat Fish  for his rendezvous with Zana and Afrim. Outside the wall, there was little sign that these punitive displays were working - down a street barely forty yards from the gate, he saw another piece of daubed jackal-sign. They were growing increasingly common.

At the  Fish , his two scouts were waiting. Tired and dusty from the road, Zana’s eyes were nevertheless alight with the news she’d come to bring.

“We delivered the message,” she said. “The old crow’s doing what he can. Playing his tricks on the soldiers, keeping them distracted. He said whatever you’re planning, though, you ought to hurry it up - they can’t keep fooling them forever.”

The two  vrani  exchanged glances, then Zana leaned forward across the table, lowering her voice. “When we asked about - about how many are ready to fight - he said  all of them ,” she whispered. “We believe him too. Spoke to enough people on the way. The hills know - it’s fight or die.”

“Maybe fight  and  die,” added Afrim. He raised his hands as Zana shot him a reproachful look. “Hey now, I’m not holding that against it. Better a quick death than to starve slow.”
-Sentinel-
 Elsa - Manann's Keep 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 “I wish I could join you for dinner, I really do,” he said, “but there’s just so much to do. Letters to write, people to…” - he shook his hands in a throttling gesture, then brushed it off with a nervous laugh. His voice was hoarse, as if he’d been using it too much. “Well, you’ve seen how things are out there. Some folks aren’t talking it too well.” A thought seemed to strike him, and he smiled, gesturing around at the wooden walls of the castle. “You’d think in a place like this, they’d understand that we’re all in the same boat!” 
 

 "...Uh-huh,"  said Elsa tiredly. Her mind spun in the mud for a moment in search of an adequate reply to Sussman's attempt at a quip, but she ultimately gave up trying to sound clever.

Though she had little respect for Sussman, part of her felt sorry for him. He was obviously in over his head; an administrator, not a leader. Certainly not the kind of man who was used to dealing with crisis. She suspected he would mysteriously go missing if the situation became too dire for him to handle.


 

 Elsa and Urgrim - Caerfort 

 “We are at your disposal, Magister,” said Jorge. He spared a glance to the wagon, its contents still sealed up tight. “Where would you like the cargo secured?” 

 "Away from our food stores, if we want them to last,"  Elsa advised.  "Someplace easy to protect. I'll trust you with all day-to-day matters, Jorge." 

She hadn't expected to find quite so many people in Caerfort, including civilians. Hopefully everyone here was trustworthy, but her main concern was travelers starting to wonder what was going on in this supposedly abandoned village.

After her tour of the encampment, Elsa headed to the rundown hut of a certain widow whose name now escaped her—a widow who had once accepted a very fat purse of gold from Elsa, and was highly unlikely to have spent it all. Could some of the gold still be in or near her hut? Elsa felt as if she were about to rob a grave... but the woman was unlikely to have any surviving heirs, and in any case, gold was no good to anyone if it lay hidden.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
As a reminder: when word came to us that Klammenberg was heading west (to perform a ritual at the Red Pyramid, unbeknownst to us at the time), Elsa sent a message via Morrslieb to tell the people of Caerfort to detain him if able. A man was killed by Udolf as a result. Feeling guilty,  Elsa gave his widow 50 gc  as reparations.

I realize there's a significant chance that some scavenger found the widow's stash since then. Nevertheless, here's a Search test just in case:

Search 75:  (d100)[ 70 ] 
Fortune:  (d100)[ 70 ] 
 


Elsa was just exiting the hut when Jorge called her over. Urgrim had arrived.

 "Oh! Long time no see, Urgi!"  she grinned.  "You're sent by your elder, I presume?" 
rax
 Konigstag, 9th Sommerzeit 
 
"That is good news...good news indeed,"  Bardhyl answered Zana and Afrim with a thoughtful look.  "What about Shepherd's Valley? Did the locusts come through there as well?" 
LCP
 Elsa, 8th Sommerzeit 

Searching through the partially-dismantled hovel, Elsa could find no sign of the dead woman's gold. Aware that she was drawing some curious looks from Jorge's men, she eventually broke off.


 

 Bardhyl, 9th Sommerzeit 

"Not like they did here," said Afrim. "Not in a swarm, I mean. Just a few that made it over the Karst."

"Maybe the swarm headed further east," said Zana, shrugging. "We didn't see any more signs of it once we left the river."
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl, 9th Sommerzeit 

"Not like they did here," said Afrim. "Not in a swarm, I mean. Just a few that made it over the Karst."

"Maybe the swarm headed further east," said Zana, shrugging. "We didn't see any more signs of it once we left the river." 
 

  "Good, very good. We may need the Valley and its food before this is all over,"  he muses.

 "Very well, let's rest up here for the night and ride for the Hills in the morning. Much as I'd like to get to the bottom of the matter of the 'Ghost', it seems time is of the essence, so that'll have to keep,"  he instructs his people.

 "Abbie, have the supplies been dropped off at the hideout?" 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 9th Sommerzeit 

Abbie nodded. "Taal grant us no scavengers find them," she said. "We covered our tracks as best we could."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  and Ludo 

" Welcome back, " Sieghard said, joining Ludo and his family at the gate. " Everything went well, I take it. " Leaving Leni and Rudi to their reunion, he led Ludo back towards the manor and began filling him in on what had happened since he had left.

" Bardhyl was here for a bit. Mad fool seems determined to start another war. Couldn't talk him out of it, but if he keeps Sforza's attention focused on the Raven Hills, maybe he'll have fewer thoughts to spare for us. " Sieghard handed Ludo the letters and continued to speak while he read. " If we act quickly, there's meat we can purchase in the city. I don't expect it'll be there for long. We'll have to scrounge up what coin we can and set out right away. Hope you're not weary of the road yet. "
Thragka
 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
  Elsa and Urgrim - Caerfort 

Elsa was just exiting the hut when Jorge called her over. Urgrim had arrived.

 "Oh! Long time no see, Urgi!"  she grinned.  "You're sent by your elder, I presume?"  
 

 "Oh, aye – when amn't I?"  Urgrim muttered sardonically.  "Though, yes, the Rinn and elders want to keep abreast of happenings with the Book. Besides, I reckoned you'll have need of an extra pair of arms at some point. Or an axe." 

The dwarf shivered despite the heat as he looked around Caerfort, remembering the last time he'd been in the village.  "I suppose it's good to see some life brought back to this place, even if it is a bit artificial, as a community. Though you couldn't have the Book in a real village, of course ..."  Urgrim lapsed off, far away for a moment in Nath, vividly recalling the evils that had been inflicted on the previous innocent population of Caerfort, unable to stop thinking about them for several long silent heartbeats.

 "Hrmph,"  he intoned guturally, breaking his sad reverie.  "So. You must have plans for it, while you're here? What d'you intend to do?" 
-Sentinel-
 "So. You must have plans for it, while you're here? What d'you intend to do?" 
 "Destroy it, if I can,"  Elsa answered grimly, her voice low, as if the Book could overhear her.  "Put it out of reach if I can't. Won't be easy, but few things worth doing are. Come, I'll show you around the camp..." 

During the tour of the camp, she said:  "This is an opportunity no one's had in a long time. All those who've previously held the Book wanted to use it, not destroy it. Those who came closest to ridding the Reaches of it permanently were the Silver Tower, and I don't think they even meant to do that. We can't let this chance slip away. Until such time as we can destroy it, the Book must be protected at all costs. I'm glad to have you with us, Urgrim. I know you dwarfs are good at not giving an inch of ground." 
LeSwordfish
Ludo read over the letters.  "If I take a few carts we can buy Burhan's meat, and I can go on ahead and try to cut some deals with Lady Groz. We've not got that much money, but we've got the cash from the sale of the warehouse. Food's only going to get more expensive, the bigger a stockpile we can build up now, the better."

"I shared our situation with Al'Makir. He's only going to be taking the taxes from us every five weeks now, which should help. He seemed sympathetic, at least." 

He reread Valdez' letter.  "We should let him know we've sent Hanna's team there. Don't need to actually tell him we'd already done it. And... I think maybe if he knew that my family was in danger he'd be willing to keep an eye on them. We don't need to tell him it's Irene, but..." 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla considered her reply carefully.  "To be honest he struck me as a pretty typical Halfling Irene. Too fond of food, jovial. It's certainly possible he was putting on a mask, knowing that I was your woman. If that's true he might be the one manipulating Elsa... er Holt." 

She shot Irene an alarmed look, pretending a realisation had just struck her.  "Do you think he has agents here? I mean a fellow halfling would be too obvious so there might still be someone here, spying on us. " 
LCP
 Jarla, 8th Sommerzeit 

Irene gave a dismissive shake of her head. "He's a commoner, Jarla, not a Belladonna," she said, walking over to the window. "No, I'm just thinking how best to keep track of the little rat. I don't want him... I want to know what he's up to."

"He likes tall women, did you know that?" she said, with an air of idle musing. "Back before the conquest, there was some beggar woman that Muzio had hanged as a spy. Stubbs wanted her saved for  love ." She spoke the word as if she couldn't think of anything more ridiculous. "I wonder if that's something we could use."
Thragka
 Urgrim and Elsa – Caerfort, Bezahltag 8th Sommerzeit 

Urgrim nodded as Elsa outlined her intentions.  "Well and good. But tell me, what is it you'll need to do your work? Knowledge? Tools? Other wi— others learned in witchcraft?"  He glanced about.  "Is Tattie here?" 

At a pause, Urgrim gazed out to the south, where the rolling landscape became the Iron Claw hills. No dwarf of Barak Varr would fail to recognise the history of their infamous inhabitants.  "I take it you agree, then, that the war isn't won yet. What you try to do is bound to draw the Hound's attention, in whatever form he remains. And he's not the only enemy in these wild lands. My gut tells me we'll need to defend this place, and protect the Book, be that from Varag Kol or from nozy  urki ."  He reached a hand up and, after half a second's hesitation, gently put it to Elsa's shoulder.  "So, aye, I'm not intending to give an inch. And if we need to brawl, I'm sure you'll heat things up too,"  he added with a lopsided smile.

 "Well, I should stable Gil here, and find a place to berth. If you need me in your work, let me know. Otherwise, I'll try to keep useful." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
During the next week Urgrim will offer to help the soldiers with the rebuilding and fortification efforts, probably in a rather awkward manner whereby it won't be clear whether he's volunteering or asking for a job. If the Brotherhood are trying to restore or repurpose stone materials, that's probably within his wheelhouse.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  and Ludo 

" A fair chunk of the coin from the warehouse went towards the shield, " Sieghard admitted. He had commissioned it well before the locusts had destroyed the crop, but even so he was was beginning to regret the purchase. " It's been a while since I last collected my share of the profits from Burhan's river trade though. We'll take what we can with, add it to that, and buy what we're able. "

" As for Esteban, I'll write something tonight and see if I can find a runner before we set out. You know best how much to say regarding your family though. "
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by Thragka 
 Urgrim nodded as Elsa outlined her intentions.  "Well and good. But tell me, what is it you'll need to do your work? Knowledge? Tools? Other wi— others learned in witchcraft?"  He glanced about.  "Is Tattie here?"  
 

Elsa nodded.  "She's here. She's not the scholarly sort, though, so I likely won't involve her in my research. I have books, and I can perform experiments." 

  "I take it you agree, then, that the war isn't won yet. What you try to do is bound to draw the Hound's attention, in whatever form he remains. And he's not the only enemy in these wild lands. My gut tells me we'll need to defend this place, and protect the Book, be that from Varag Kol or from nozy  urki ."  

 "I'm sure you've noticed the guards,"  said Elsa dryly.  "I'm well aware trouble may come for us." 
RossN
 Jarla, 8th Sommerzeit 

Trying to conceal her disappointment that she hadn't spooked Irene into jumping at fictional halfling spies and assasains Jarla instead raised her copper eyebrows at Irene's next comments:  "By 'tall women' do you one of Philomena's girls? It is an interesting idea milady but I doubt you could trust any of them." 

She had a feeling she knew who Irene was thinking of but best not to suggest it.
LCP
 Jarla, 8th Sommerzeit 

“What? No,” said Irene, sharply. “Don't be disgusting, Jarla. I don't want that whore’s name bandied about here.” She took a deep breath. “I was just… making an observation, that's all.”


 

 Festag, 11th Sommerzeit 
 Elsa - Mirino 

Having drawn up her plans for the book, Elsa’s first step was to head to Mirino in search of supplies. Accompanied by Olga and a small contingent of Jorge’s men, she set out under a blazing Sommerzeit sun, Bastard’s hooves kicking up puffs of dust from the hard-baked ground.

They spent a night camped out on the road, listening to the west wind whistling over the darkened hills. Elsa knew what was over those hills just to the north, and slept uneasy for the thought of dead eyes gleaming in the waters of the Mere.

Morning came all the same. A sweaty climb up the Winding Pass saw them to the gates of Mirino, where the whitewashed walls of Sforza’s old palace shone brightly in the sun. The place seemed a shadow of its old self - where once its walled courtyard had teemed with all the soldiers of Sforza’s army, now a handful of Brotherhood men had it all to themselves. The Estalians were putting a group of new recruits through their paces, the  click clack  of practice swords punctuated by the barks of the instructor finding fault.

Valdes greeted them at the door of the villa. “Magister Holt,” he said. “I wasn’t expecting you. If I’d known you were coming, I’d have laid on something more for dinner - but you’re very welcome to join me for what there is.” He looked around at her escort. “No trouble in Caerfort, I trust? Jorge’s work is to your liking?”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
How many guards has Elsa brought with her?
 

 

 Wellentag, 12th Sommerzeit 
 Elsa - Mirino 

Heading out into the town the next morning, Elsa found the streets of Mirino much closer to how she remembered them. Stopping by the  Chalice , she almost felt like she was back in the old days before the war. Compared to the ravaged Reaches she had ridden through to get here, Last Water felt like a small taste of paradise.

Going from trader to trader, she managed to source most of what she was looking for, with the exception of the scented candles - that, the candle-maker explained anxiously, was a commission he would need until the following day to fulfil. Against her better judgement, she stopped in at Krucke’s to see if the old man had anything in the way of charms or talismans somewhere in his second-hand hoard.

Money didn’t seem to have changed the way the old man chose to live. Entering the dusty shop, Elsa heard a clattering upstairs, and Krucke’s rough voice shouted down:

“Who’s there? Don’t think I don’t hear you, pokin’ around!” There was a sound of shuffling footsteps and the  creak  of an opening door, and his voice got a little clearer. “Clara, if you’re bringing things you can leave ‘em at the door. I tole you once, I tole you a hundred times - it don’t matter how you try to butter me up, I ain’t putting any of you vultures in my will!”

Descending the stairs, he stopped and squinted as he saw Elsa. “You’re not Clara,” he said. “What do you want?”

He seemed somewhat surprised that anyone would be stopping by his shop to actually buy something, but grudgingly allowed Elsa to have a look around, while he settled himself in his fraying armchair. Mannfred hopped up onto his lap, the cat’s good eye gleaming a baleful yellow as it followed Elsa around the room.

Among the dusty heaps of frayed tunics and mended breeches, she did find a few trinkets that caught her eye. There was a brass ring, with an inscription on the inside that long use had worn down to a few indecipherable marks. A cherry-wood amulet on a leather cord, with a simple spiral carved into the polished wood. A broken pewter earring, moulded in the shape of a dancer. And a bead necklace with a bird’s skull at its centre, the eye-sockets set with two disks of polished black stone. None of the objects appeared to Elsa to draw the Winds any more than might be expected from a lifetime of use - but maybe that was something she could change.

Krucke, of course, insisted none of them were for sale. The sight of coins glinting in Elsa’s purse soon changed his tune, and after a brief show of resistance, he admitted he might part with one or two…

 Bardhyl - the Karst 

It was Wellentag when Bardhyl and his band reached their hideout, having concluded the last of their business in Savonne. Abbie’s supplies were still there - the woman knew how to hide a stash.

The journey up had taken them at a right angle to the locusts’ trail of destruction, and as they’d travelled, Bardhyl had been able to see the impact on the landscape gradually diminish. Here in the rocky wilderness of the Karst, there was barely any trace at all - just the occasional black-and-yellow husk of an insect that had got split off from the swarm. The sun was beating down, and Bardhyl’s men stuck close to the shade.

“Shallya’s teats,” grumbled Waldon, mopping the sweat from his brow. “Did it used to get this bloody hot?”

“It’s called summer,” said Panteleon, wrily. “It comes after spring.”

Waldon said nothing, just aiming a kick at his younger comrade in crime instead. Panteleon dodged aside, and Waldon’s boot kicked up nothing but dust from the hard-baked earth. Disturbed by the motion, a couple of crows took off from the top of the rocks, cawing loudly.

“You see that?” said Zana, with a smile. “They’re welcoming us home.”

 Ludo &amp; Sieghard - Savonne 

Ludo and Sieghard met Burhan for lunch in the  Duke of Aquitaine . The city’s merchant class were well-represented there that afternoon; Ludo guessed that theirs might not be the only table where money was changing hands.

The first thing they asked about was Sieghard’s share in the business. “I was wondering about that,” said Burhan. “Been a while since you were last by to collect.”

Producing a folded sheet of parchment from his pocket, he passed it to Ludo. It looked like a page from a ledger, with incomings and outgoings marked back to the start of the year.

“It’s been ups and downs since we last spoke,” said Burhan, although Ludo could see that from the numbers. “Start of the year, things were going very well indeed. But now…” He sighed. “Prince Sforza’s edicts have made things difficult for us. You can’t make an honest profit on Reaches-grown grain here any more, not if you sell it at the decreed price. Now a  dishonest  profit, there’s people making a killing there, but that’s the word, isn’t it?” He shook his head. “I’ve already had enough tangles with this city’s underworld element not to want any more, so we’ve left the grain wars for those who’ve the stomach for them. Plenty of other goods to move. Even there, though, we’re feeling the squeeze now.”

“Still, I’ve kept your share aside. Sixteen hundred and eight, plus some schillings and pence. It’s all written down.” He motioned to the paper he’d given Ludo, the total of which indeed read:  1,608/17/4 .

“If you want to take it all at once, I might need a day or two to get it together,” said Burhan. “But it’s there. As for the other thing - I know someone down at Wighard’s warehouse who might be our best bet for doing a deal. We can meet her there this evening.”

 ~ 
Wighard’s was one of the larger warehouses along the docks, close to what was now the  Drowned Cat . It stank strongly enough to be smelt over the stagnant mud of the riverbank - smoke, salt, and the charnel stink of the slaughterhouse.

Burhan’s contact was a woman in her middle years, with eyes that looked like they had seen a lot, and stopped caring about most of it. Her face was deeply lined, and she projected an air of weariness that she even had to talk to them. Burhan countered it with an effusion of good cheer.

“Linde! You’re looking radiant as ever,” he said. “These are the guests I told you about. Lord Sieghard, and his friend, Master Stubbs.”

Linde slowly bobbed her head to Sieghard. “Official business, your lordship?” she asked.

It didn’t take long to get down to brass tacks. Burhan had steered them well - Wighard’s was well-stocked, and while Linde was an expert at suppressing any show of enthusiasm, it sounded like she wanted to move her goods sooner rather than later…

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Linde can sell you up to 6 wagonfuls of cured meat (pork, mutton and beef) at 130gc a wagon (modifiable by Haggle). Each 2 wagons will buy you another week of stores for the stores count on the famine tracker.

How much of a retinue have you guys taken with you to Savonne? And, related - TheSummoner, can I remind you that the Thorns roster needs updating to reflect their current numbers.
 


 

 Backertag, 15th Sommerzeit 
 Ludo - Putbad 

Ludo arrived into Putbad late on Backertag, riding on the first riverboat that would find space for Lumpin. The Pool was crowded with boats, but the water coming over the Silver Falls had dwindled to a misty drizzle - a far cry from the roaring cataract it had been.

The rope lifts up the side of the cliff were working overtime, lowering sacks and barrels for the crowd of stevedores huddled below. A new one had been installed alongside the old, and fresh ropes and timbers showed where even the oldest pieces of equipment had been reinforced. Clearly, at least some of Sforza’s gold had been put to its intended use.

In the town above, Ludo made his way through streets thick with traders, ignoring the jostling of the richer merchants’ guards. He was headed for the Groz house, where Axel Roth greeted him warmly at the door. “Good to see you, Herr Stubbs,” he said, with a smile. “I did hear the Commander had been writing.”

Inside, Leona Groz received him with courtesy, and offered him a room at the house if there was nowhere else in town he’d rather stay. Her promise of introductions with the guilders would have to wait until the following day - they were busy people, she said. Still, she thought by tomorrow she could secure the company of at least a few of them for dinner.

 Elsa &amp; Urgrim - Caerfort 

From his lookout post in the tower, Urgrim was the first to see Elsa’s party returning from the west. He had made himself pretty comfortable here - he’d fixed up the crumbling stonework as best he could, and dug out an old wooden chair from which he could keep watch over the wide sweep of the hills below. The only problem he hadn’t been able to solve was the pigeons, but it had been their home first, after all. Plus, it meant there’d be roast pigeon whenever they wanted it.

Riding back up to the tower, Elsa saw that Jorge’s men had completed their embankment around its base. Unloading her bags, she felt a strange unease playing on her nerves as she looked at the darkened door. She was back; she couldn’t put off the difficult part any longer.


 

 Bezahltag, 16th Sommerzeit 
 Ludo - Putbad 

That evening, Ludo sat down to dinner with Leona Groz and the guildmasters. The main course was a baked river fish about the size of Ludo’s leg, its toothy mouth stopped up with a lemon. Whatever the conditions, it seemed the guilders were still eating well.

Besides Ludo, there were four guests at Leona’s table. Three of them were guild officials: Herr Maximilian, head of the Guild of Boatmen and Boatwrights; Herr Uto, head of the Coopers’ Guild, and Herr Barnabas, chief foreman of the Company of Porters and Dockmasters. The fourth was  merchant from upriver by the name of Neumauer. By his clothes, he was clearly a man of some means; he was also so fat that his chair groaned when he sat down.

Conversation began with the locusts, with Maximilian eager to hear Ludo’s first-hand account of the swarm. “Azriller’s blessings, they didn’t reach us here,” he said. “At least, not in such numbers.”

“From what I’ve heard,” said Barnabas, pouring himself a large drink, “the swarm must’ve split somewhere in the Karst.” He was a thick-set man, with a dark, curly beard and the tail of a faded fish tattoo protruding out from under his sleeve. “There’s farms south of Jaardorf been hit, and over in the Valley, west of Bunthafen.”

“Perhaps Azriller truly does watch over us,” said Uto, raising his glass. He was a young man compared to the others, and seemed to spend a lot of his time looking at Leona. He raised his cup. “To the Lady of the Silver River!”

The others echoed his toast, gulping down their wine with gusto. Pouring himself another, Uto turned back to Ludo.

“But… forgive us, Herr Stubbs, that’s not what you came to talk about, no?” All eyes turned back to Ludo. “Lady Groz gave me to understand there was some question of business to be done.”

The four men’s faces grew more serious as Ludo laid out their situation in the Thornwood.

“I wish we could help, Herr Stubbs, I really do,” said Maximilian. “But you’ve seen how things are here. We have goods coming in from all the way back to Mad Dog Pass, but they’re sold the morning after they arrive.” He gave a sympathetic shrug of his shoulders. “If you wanted to secure yourself a share of the market here, you’d have to beat the highest bidder - and for a lot of it, that’s the crown.”

“Not to mention the question of transport,” said Neumauer. The northern merchant didn’t bother affecting sympathy - his tone was one of cold calculation. “Only the lightest boats can still pass the shallows south of Savonne. Our barges certainly can’t reach you in - Ravenskirk, was it?”

“Ravenskird,” offered Leona.

“Just so,” said Neumauer, helping himself to another slice of fish. “Ravenskird. You could, I suppose, arrange overland transport from Savonne - but you understand, for the amounts we’re speaking of, that’s easier said than done. And if the river continues to fall, if our boats end up going no further than Putbad…” His chins wobbled slightly as he shook his head. “Utterly impractical.”

“I don’t believe it will come to that,” said Maximilian, a little too firmly. “Not while Azriller still watches over the Falls.”

“Well, good for you,” said Neumauer, primly. “But we in the Silver Chain like to plan for every contingency.” He shifted his gaze to Barnabas. “Herr Barnabas - how long would you say, if the water level keeps falling, before every vessel in the Pool is grounded?”

Barnabas hemmed and hawed, searching for a tangent along which to deflect the question. It clearly wasn’t a subject any of the three guildmasters were keen on…

 Jarla - Savonne 

In the city, things continued much as they’d begun. By the north gate, some enterprising wagon-drivers were selling places on a caravan heading north, to the Shepherd's Valley or beyond. At least fifty people were crammed into the rickety carts, clutching what worldly belongings they hadn't sold to afford the fare. They were heading where the grass still grew, while they could.

There was still the steady drumbeat of executions in the square, although now the weekly lineup of thieves began to be joined by others accused of ‘the blasphemy of jackal-worship’. One made a tearful confession, and saw her sentence commuted to a public whipping; another stayed stonily silent until the noose was around his neck, at which point he began shouting something about ‘the Pig Prince’. The hangman's lever cut him short.

Behind the shelter of the castle gate, a steady stream of deliveries brought supplies for the military stores. Somehow, Abdul had wrangled the Maneaters into helping unload the carts, which did wonders for the speed at which they could be turned around - but did leave a few of the servants in fits of terror after close encounters with ogres in the corridors and cellars of the keep. One of them - he said his name was ‘Kulug’ - even tried to ask Jarla a question, about where the ‘little man’ had gone. She gathered he meant Rudi.

On Bezahltag, Irene called Jarla to her chambers. She’d been sitting in front of her mirror while her one of her new handmaids brushed her hair. When Jarla appeared, she banished the servant from view.

“I’ve decided,” she said, “I need to know what that imp Stubbs is doing. Your idea, your… horse thing,” she said, waving a hand vaguely in the air. “That could take you to the Thornwood, couldn't it? It seems like a decent excuse to me.”

She turned to Jarla. “Go there, find him, and find out what he's up to. Then report back to me with what you find.” A half-smile crossed her face. “If you wanted to, you could even carry on to Caerfort, and call in on your dear friend Holt. I’m sure Muzio would be very interested to hear a report on her progress. What do you say?”

 Bardhyl - Morr’s Seat 

Bardhyl’s journey back to Morr’s Seat had been a hard one. The wind stayed stubbornly in the west, and the sun beat down on the exposed slopes of the Raven Hills like a hammer on an anvil, burning the backs of their necks bright red. Here and there, they saw hilltop pastures that had been abandoned, the scrawny, feral goats that remained to graze them fleeing at their approach.

When they reached the town, one of Orso’s men was on watch above the gate. He clearly saw them coming - by the time they passed through, a welcome committee of Tileans was waiting within.

“You again,” said Orso. It might have been Bardhyl's imagination, but he thought the big Tilean looked a touch more tired and haggard than he remembered. His manner was certainly sharper. “Still armed, I see. State your business.”

 Elsa &amp; Urgrim - Caerfort 

Candles flickered in the darkness under the tower, filling the confined space of the cellar with their sweet-smelling smoke. It was hot down here, but heat had never bothered Elsa. Sweat glistened on her brow as she marked out the final line of her octagram.

She took a moment to compose herself, before turning to the heavy chest that stood in the centre of the design. The key  clicked  in the lock, and the lid swung open.

The book was much as she remembered it. Its physical appearance was one thing - cracked leather and verdigrised copper, the likeness of a skull leering from among the Nehekharan hieroglyphs etched into the ancient metal - but to her second sight, the power that surrounded it was overwhelming. It poured from the open chest like black oil, pooling between the flagstones. It smelt like the cold breath of an open tomb.

Steeling herself, Elsa reached out and opened the cover. Spidery columns of Nehekharan hieroglyphs marched before her eyes, interweaved with strange geometrical figures. Traces of warpstone dust glittered in the crevices of the binding. She tried not to breathe too deeply, focusing not on what was written on the page, but on the magic that surrounded it.

There were layers to these enchantments, Elsa could tell. The outermost seemed to draw aside of their own accord where she touched the ancient parchment, the magic in her own blood beating to the pulse of those ancient spells. Was this the first ward? What would it do to someone with no magic of their own?

She concentrated, trying to bring this spider’s web of sorcery into focus. She could tell at a glance that this was like nothing the Colleges had taught her. Her tutors had always told her that  Dhar  was a crude form of magic, a club wielded by those who hadn’t learned to purify the Winds - but here,  Dhar  and  Shyish  were bound together in a weave more complex than she would have thought possible. She remembered a monograph of Volans’ that she’d been made to read, years ago, about what he had witnessed of the magic of the elves. It had seemed dry, abstract stuff at the time, just what you’d expect from the College of Light - but something about the enchantments surrounding the book seemed a fractured mirror of what that old hierophant had written about. This magic was more than the sum of its parts. She looked into it - and it looked back.

It began as a whisper in her ears. Dead, dry voices, like the rustling of sun-baked reeds. Elsa had heard the whispers before, speaking the tongue of lost Nehekhara - but now she could understand them, at least a little. They called out in the names of their long-forgotten gods, weeping, pleading, cursing the man who had condemned them to their unquiet graves. One man. Over and over, they whispered the name  Nagash .

She had to shut them out, she realised, as the voices grew more numerous, more urgent. It was the grief of an entire people, an echo of mass murder on a scale she could hardly conceive. It was more than any one mind could bear...

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
WP test for Elsa to resist the whispers of the dead!
 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bezahltag, 16th Sommerzeit 
 Bardhyl - Morr’s Seat 

Bardhyl’s journey back to Morr’s Seat had been a hard one. The wind stayed stubbornly in the west, and the sun beat down on the exposed slopes of the Raven Hills like a hammer on an anvil, burning the backs of their necks bright red. Here and there, they saw hilltop pastures that had been abandoned, the scrawny, feral goats that remained to graze them fleeing at their approach.

When they reached the town, one of Orso’s men was on watch above the gate. He clearly saw them coming - by the time they passed through, a welcome committee of Tileans was waiting within.

“You again,” said Orso. It might have been Bardhyl's imagination, but he thought the big Tilean looked a touch more tired and haggard than he remembered. His manner was certainly sharper. “Still armed, I see. State your business.” 
 

  "Why I've come to see friends and family, Sergeant!"  Bardhyl declared innocently.  "And yes, we're still armed. I know news sometimes travels slowly out here to the back of beyond, but in case you hadn't heard, the Downlands were afflicted by a great swarm of locusts not long ago. Left not a stalk standing anywhere in sight! It's desperate times out there, I'm afraid, and desperate people do desperate things. A man would be foolish not to keep a good blade close at hand under such circumstances! And of course, we can't very well hunt without our bows!" 
 "How are things here in Morr's Seat?"  he inquired, seemingly unconcerned by Orso's manner.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Would a Charm test help soften Orso's attitude, or is he far too dutiful a soldier for that?
 
-Sentinel-
 Festag, 11th Sommerzeit 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 

 How many guards has Elsa brought with her? 

Two should be enough (in addition to Olga).
 


 Valdes greeted them at the door of the villa. “Magister Holt,” he said. “I wasn’t expecting you. If I’d known you were coming, I’d have laid on something more for dinner - but you’re very welcome to join me for what there is.” He looked around at her escort. “No trouble in Caerfort, I trust? Jorge’s work is to your liking?” 

Elsa was very glad to see Valdes again. It had been a while. The Estalian was a lot more personable than either Sforza or Carraciolo.

 "Please, Esteban, we're well past the 'Magister Holt' thing,"  she grinned, dismounting.  "Things are well at the camp, thank you for asking. But the  real  work's not started yet. I'm here to procure a few things for my research." 

Over dinner, once the pleasantries and reminiscences were out of the way, she explained what she was looking for. Among other things such as fertile black earth from Last Water, she also needed a rather unreasonable amount of beeswax candles that smelled of life—fruits, flowers, pine resin—to counter the overwhelming aura of death that surrounded the Book.

 "Now, I know this may all seem... extravagant, but you no doubt remember the vampire's sanctum, back in Nath. The magic circle on the floor managed to keep a powerful ghost captive. I need to build something like that for the Book. It'll be a lesser version, but I still can't cheap out on materials." 

She refilled her cup of wine. It was an excellent vintage, and she intended to take some back with her to Caerfort.

 "I know you've already contributed your fair share to the effort, Esteban, but do you think you could possibly be of help here? I fear the Prince is still seeing the undead matter as a mere distraction from his northern ambitions, rather than the existential threat to the Reaches that it is. That, and... I gather he's already gotten himself neck-deep in debt." 

 

 Wellentag, 12th Sommerzeit 


At Krucke's, Elsa selected the bird's-skull necklace, and winced when the old man told him his price—over two weeks of her wages.  That  was an expenditure she would not be trying to pass on to Valdes or Sforza, as she could not for the life of her justify it. But the cost gave the item some abstract value, whether or not it used to have any, and that could mean something when it came to turning it into a protective charm.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Untrained Haggle 25:  (d100)[ 23 ] 
 Fortune:  (d100)[ 75 ]  
 


 

 Bezahltag, 16th Sommerzeit - With the Book 

 It began as a whisper in her ears. Dead, dry voices, like the rustling of sun-baked reeds. Elsa had heard the whispers before, speaking the tongue of lost Nehekhara - but now she could understand them, at least a little. They called out in the names of their long-forgotten gods, weeping, pleading, cursing the man who had condemned them to their unquiet graves. One man. Over and over, they whispered the name Nagash.

She had to shut them out, she realised, as the voices grew more numerous, more urgent. It was the grief of an entire people, an echo of mass murder on a scale she could hardly conceive. It was more than any one mind could bear... 

Elsa almost stepped back in fright as the otherworldly whispers wormed their way into her mind. The thought that these spirits were still not at rest—even thousands of years after Nagash had robbed them of their lives—sent a chill down her spine. This was the dark fate that the Great Necromancer had in mind for her and everyone else who dared to draw breath: a state of unending torment and servitude, lacking both the color and joy of life and the peace of death.

Wrapping her gloved fingers around her new pendant, she tried to steel her mind against this mental assault. The spirits were not her enemies, she reminded herself; they were the enemies of her enemy. Or at least, the victims of her enemy. But this knowledge brought her little comfort. There were just  so many . Thousands and thousands and thousands. How could she hope to strike a meaningful blow against a foe who had destroyed entire nations?

 
 Spoiler: OOC 

 WP test for Elsa to resist the whispers of the dead! 

WP 83:  (d100)[ 40 ] 
 Fortune:  (d100)[ 21 ]  
 
LCP
 Elsa, 11th Sommerzeit 

Valdes looked a little skeptical while Elsa explained the necessity of scented candles. Like the Prince himself, he was a man of action - he understood swords better than symbolism.

"Of course," he said, "my men and I are at your disposal. But I'm not sure I know how we can help you in this matter. We don't keep a candle-maker in the company." He raised his eyebrows at Elsa. "What is it you need from me?"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Seems like a pretty obvious place for a Charm test, if what you're going for is to get him to pay your expenses. -10 modifier, since I don't see any strong reason why this should be his expense to pay.
 


 

 16th Sommerzeit 
 Bardhyl 

Orso didn't answer immediately, chewing the inside of his cheek as he ran a careful eye over Bardhyl's followers. "No locusts here," he said at last. "So we'll be taking those weapons again. You can hand them over to Gianluca here."

He paused a while longer, his eyes returning to Bardhyl. "Who are these friends and family, then? You staying with them?" He hooked his thumb into his belt, idly tapping a finger on his scabbard. "Staying for long?"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
That's a question about an NPC's inner thoughts - the way to get an answer is to try it and find out!
 

 Elsa 

Screwing her eyes shut, Elsa willed herself to shut out the voices in both directions - that flood-tide of grief from without, and from within, the lonely voice of her own, human compassion, reaching back across the gulf of time. Empathy was a weakness she couldn't afford - a crack in the dam that would drown her when it burst. Her mind had to be as impenetrable as a steel sphere - nothing in, and nothing out.

Slowly, the voices receded - and before her eyes, another of the wards melted away, as smoothly as if she had turned a key in a lock. That was who she had to be to read this, whispered the voice she had pushed to the back of her mind. Someone who heard the suffering of others as nothing more than background noise.

Brushing these distractions aside, she focused on the columns of hieroglyphs that marched down the pages. To her second sight, the spidery figures seemed to move of their own accord, burning black and violet with the power locked within. This was power beyond anything that Sforza could ever grant her, power that no plague could diminish. It was right here, beneath her fingers. Would destroying it really save her, when she had the chance to reach out and take it?

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Another WP test - this time at -20 - for Elsa to resist the lure of power (assuming that she is resisting!).
 
LeSwordfish
 Ludo, Sieghard, and Burhan, 12th Sommerzeit 
 "I could give you the hard sell about me having a starving mother and eight kids each more starving than the last,"  Ludo observed to Linde.  "But that would hit a little close to home these days. Let's talk numbers..." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Haggle  (1d100)[ 35 ]  vs 72+10 Dealmaker, vs a roll for Linde:  (1d100)[ 72 ]  - assuming Linde fails, that looks like 3DOS for a 30% discount, bringing us down to 91GC per wagon or 546 for the lot?

And a Fortune re-roll:  (1d100)[ 48 ] 

Unless TheSummoner objects, Ludo's plan is to buy all six wagons - he won't actually mention this except as part of getting a good deal.
 

 Ludo, Leona, and Axel, 15th Sommerzeit 
 "Good to see you again, my lady,"  Ludo said, trying to keep his continued shame in front of Leona battered down.  "And yourself, Axel - I hope that the nasty business with Falkenwald didn't have too many repercussions here?" 
 Ludo and the Guilders, 16th Sommerzeit 
Ludo hoped his stomach didn't audibly rumble as the fish arrived - the rations he had taken for the journey had been enough to keep him moving but hardly the sort of meal a growing halfling would need. He tried to keep his conversation light and charismatic - building a good rapport with the Guildmasters was probably the best tool he had. He tried to naturally slip a few war stories into the conversation (the battle for Manaan's Keep, their expeditions into the goblin caves) - and allowed himself to admit that he was friends with the court wizard, and the lady Jarla Schreiber.

He carefully overlaid the locations of the Swarms onto his mental map of the reaches with a sinking heart - he had rather hoped they would continue north clear out of Sforza's territory.

 "I'm never going to be able to beat the crown in a bidding war,"  Ludo said plainly,  "but i'm representing the Lord Steward of the Thornwood, and we've got other things to offer. For example, we have carts and soldiers to guard them - we could bring goods from Savonne without an issue. Or perhaps try and deal with these "wreckers" i've been hearing about? We've got more good-quality timber than we know what to do with."

"I also like to think that I could get a few words into the ear of the crown. Or, you know, the ear the crown sits on... basically, what can the Thornwood do for Putbad?" 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
I'm going to throw a general charm roll at the guilders to try and improve their opinion of Ludo before we get to brass tacks:  (1d100)[ 76 ]  vs 92
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  and Ludo with Burhan in the Duke of Aquitaine 

" If you can get together enough for us to purchase the meat, there's time later for the rest, " Sieghard replied. I know it's in trustworthy hands. " If we could ask you to transport it across the river for us, that'd be a great help as well. I imagine it'll be much easier to get it through Arrow Heap than out of the city without trouble. "

" Is it just the edicts making things difficult? " he asked. " On our way here, we heard some mutterings about traders having trouble on the river itself. "

 
 Spoiler 
Apologies on the delay in posting. I was hoping to get all the numbers up to date first. I've gone over everything and have my notes, but I want to double check a few things before actually updating the OOC listings. I hope to have that done by the end of the day, if not, tomorrow at the latest. I'll answer the retinue question in the OOC thread then since recruitment numbers are one of the things I'm double checking.

With that last bit, I'm mainly fishing for Sieghard to gain IC knowledge of the wreckers.
 

 At Wighard's Warehouse 

" We'll take the lot, " Sieghard said after they had hammered out the price. " Do you imagine you'll be keeping steady business for much longer. I'm sure we'll be passing through the city again before this is all over. "
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  16th Sommerzeit 
 Bardhyl 

He paused a while longer, his eyes returning to Bardhyl. "Who are these friends and family, then? You staying with them?" He hooked his thumb into his belt, idly tapping a finger on his scabbard. "Staying for long?" 
 

  "If they'll have me!"  Bardhyl laughed heartily.  "But as you no doubt noticed last time I was around, I have many friends here in town, so I'll make the rounds and see who still thinks fondly of me,"  he chuckled.  "Worst case, we'll pay Marjan for a spot on his floor, eh?" 
 "As for our weapons - have we offended you somehow, Sergeant? We are trusted by His Highness' court wizard, we comported ourselves peaceably on our last visit, and yet you would take our arms from us whenever we show ourselves. I am genuinely curious - what is all this in aid of?"  he asked, sounding mildly hurt at Orso's suspicions.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Not sure if this little exchange really qualifies as a charm offensive, but what the heck...

Charm test  (1d100)[ 27 ]  vs. 68 (Fel 58, Charm +10)
 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "Of course," he said, "my men and I are at your disposal. But I'm not sure I know how we can help you in this matter. We don't keep a candle-maker in the company." He raised his eyebrows at Elsa. "What is it you need from me?" 
 

 "It's more about... covering expenses than finding the materials,"  said Elsa gingerly, aware that money matters were usually a bit delicate even when dealing with lords.  "You can charge it to Sforza if you like, the next time you send him a grain shipment. But this Book has changed the history of the Reaches many times before... and so will getting rid of it. The people's taxes have already paid for the Prince's statue, and gods know how many dresses for his wife; what I ask for is but a fraction of that, for something that future generations will benefit from, whether or not they realize it."

"Too long have the people of the Reaches been failed by leaders who cared nothing about them. It's time to usher in a new era." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 

 Seems like a pretty obvious place for a Charm test, if what you're going for is to get him to pay your expenses. -10 modifier, since I don't see any strong reason why this should be his expense to pay. 

Charm 59 -10 = 49. I don't recall if Valdes is highborn; if so, Elsa gets +10 from Etiquette.

Target 49/59:  (d100)[ 60 ] 
Fortune:  (d100)[ 4 ] 
 Edit:  Well, guess I don't need Etiquette after all.
 


 

 16th Sommerzeit 


Elsa gasped in awe at the boundless power thrumming under her fingers. A dark, vindictive part of her recalled all of the dismissive comments of the lords of the Reaches towards her craft, and how Sforza felt he could send her to her room like a child any time he pleased. Had Nicodemus or Meskhenet ever been locked in their own bedroom by their lord? Would a quill-pusher like Al-Makir ever have dared to make snide remarks at someone like Samira or Gilbertus? Elsa doubted it. The Book had given all of its previous owners the strength to take what was rightfully theirs; to elevate themselves above the glorified bandits who called themselves rulers of this land.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 

 Another WP test - this time at -20 - for Elsa to resist the lure of power (assuming that she is resisting!). 

Ooooh fun! 😁 (But I'll try to resist anyway.)

Target 63:  (d100)[ 32 ] 
 Fortune:  (d100)[ 29 ]  
 


The temptation passed quickly. Meskhenet, Samira, Gilbertus, Nicodemus—all of them were dead.  Twice  dead, in a couple of cases. In the end, the Book had not saved them, because it knew only one true master.
LCP
 11th Sommerzeit - Elsa 

“I see,” said Valdes, though his face suggested he didn’t  entirely  see. “Well… if you don’t have these funds with you, I can see how we can support you from the tax chest. Though I would prefer it if you wrote the letter to Lord Abdul explaining what these expenses are… I’m not sure I could explain it so well myself.” He raised his eyebrows at Elsa. “You don’t think it would be better for him to repay you directly?”


 

 12th Sommerzeit - Ludo &amp; Sieghard 
 With Burhan 

 " Is it just the edicts making things difficult? " he asked. " On our way here, we heard some mutterings about traders having trouble on the river itself. " 

Burhan nodded. “There’s certainly that, too,” he said. “But I don’t think they’ve been hitting the grain boats. Bandits generally are on the lookout for something more portable.”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 

 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
 " It's been a while since I last collected my share of the profits from Burhan's river trade though. " 
 

I’m confused - aren’t you speaking to Burhan here?
 

 At Wighard's Warehouse 

Linde was a stubborn negotiator, but Ludo managed to wear her down, in the end arriving at a very reasonable price for all six wagonfuls.


 " We'll take the lot, " Sieghard said after they had hammered out the price. " Do you imagine you'll be keeping steady business for much longer? I'm sure we'll be passing through the city again before this is all over. " 

Linde shook her head. “Temporary surplus,” she said. “Can’t slaughter the same ox twice. People are getting rid of what they can’t afford to keep.”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I won’t give Linde an opposed roll - 546gc is good.
 


 

 Ludo, 15th Sommerzeit 

“All good, Herr Stubbs, all good,” said Roth, with a smile. “Not too bad, being back in this place. Practically got the run of the place to ourselves.”


 

 16th Sommerzeit 
 Ludo &amp; the Guilders 

Ludo’s suggestions certainly caught the attention of some of Leona’s guests. Uto and Maximilian in particular looked interested when he mentioned timber, and Neumauer’s ears pricked up at the mention of the wreckers.

“You’ve got to understand the amounts we’re talking about here, Herr Stubbs,” said Barnabas - perhaps the only man around the table who didn’t seem intrigued by Ludo’s offers. “One barge carries enough goods to fill twenty, thirty good wagons.”

Uto waved Barnabas’ caution aside. “Hold a minute, Barnabas. No-one said anything about having to do this in whole holds-full.” He leaned forward a little. “I think I can say that we in the Coopers would certainly have an… interest in any preferential terms we can secure for timber.”

“As would the Boatwrights,” said Maximilian, although he didn’t seem quite as keen.

“The Silver Chain would be willing to pay handsomely for the elimination of the Azril wreckers,” said Neumauer. “But this Lord Steward of yours is vassal to Prince Sforza, is he not? Can he send his men here so freely? I’d rather deal with the organ-grinder than the monkey.”

 Bardhyl 

Orso tensed, as did his men - but Bardhyl’s words seemed to get through to him. After a moment, he sighed and lowered his gaze, putting the heel of his hand against his forehead.

“Look,” he said, “this isn’t personal. I was sent here to keep order, and that’s what I’m doing.” He put a meaty hand on Bardhyl’s shoulder, holding eye contact. “You seem like a nice enough boy. But there’s been disturbances since you brought the old man back, and I don’t want them getting out of hand. Because if they do, maybe some of those friends and family of yours might get hurt, you understand?” The grip on Bardhyl’s shoulder tightened, just a little. “ Sangue e oro . We’re the Iron Company, son. We don’t **** about.”

Lifting his gaze, he looked over to Grim and the others, and clicked his fingers. “Hand over your weapons!” he said, in a fine stentorian bark. “We don’t ask again!”

As the man he had identified as Gianluca stepped forward, Orso turned back to Bardhyl. “Who is the old man, anyway?” he asked. “Your grandpa?”

 Elsa 

It took a wrenching effort of will to turn away from the dark possibilities beneath her fingertips - and as she did so, Elsa’s sixth sense screamed in alarm. This choice had unlocked no ward - instead, she felt as if she had plucked a strand of the spider’s web of spells surrounding the book, and the eyes of whatever lurked at the centre of the web had turned her way.

Her eyes were still glued to the ancient hieroglyphs, watching the traceries of  Dhar  and  Shyish  that crawled over the faded ink. Her ears heard something else - words in a voice as soft as wind-blown sand, speaking an incantation…

 S HAPESH SAKHEM UKHTUB, TSU-EY IBET KHAYYAS.  S AKHMET KHESHTEM KHENAUR…  
 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I’m going to offer you three choices of what Elsa can do in this moment, although that’s not meant to limit you if you want to do something else:

 
 Close the book and break away - free. 
 Try to read the hieroglyphs - test SL(Nehekharan) at -20. 
 Try to focus on how the Winds are responding to the incantation - test Magical Sense at -30. 
 
 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 “I see,” said Valdes, though his face suggested he didn’t  entirely  see. “Well… if you don’t have these funds with you, I can see how we can support you from the tax chest. Though I would prefer it if you wrote the letter to Lord Abdul explaining what these expenses are… I’m not sure I could explain it so well myself.” He raised his eyebrows at Elsa. “You don’t think it would be better for him to repay you directly?” 
 

 "I  should  have asked ahead of time,"  admitted Elsa.  "I suppose it's not too late to send a letter to Abdul and see if he'll cover it. But for now at least, the resources I need are right here in Last Water, and you're the man who can help me get them." 

She smiled thinly.  "I'll owe you one, Esteban. If you ever need anything in return, just ask." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Elsa is not trying to be seductive, but Valdes may well remember her unsuccessful attempt to drunkenly hit on him, a long time ago. It's up to you to decide whether that colors his interpretation of her last statement.
 


 



Though Elsa knew that leaving the Book open was foolhardy now that its attention was fully on her, she also knew she had come here with a very specific purpose. She needed to figure out how the Book's enchantments were woven, so that she could undo them with a single snip of scissors when the time came. The time for caution was well behind her.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
(Deep breath) All right, let's do this.

Magical Sense vs. 63:  (d100)[ 37 ] 
 Fortune:  (d100)[ 36 ]  
 
LeSwordfish
 12th, Ludo, Sieghard, Burhan 
 "Like what?"  Ludo asked idly.  "Shipping luxuries down from Bunthafen?" 
 
15th, Ludo, Leona, Roth 
 "That's good to hear,"  Ludo said, genuinely relieved.  "Do you think you have the men you need here? I spoke to Jan, he told me that it's getting pretty tough in the city. I sent Hanna and some men down to Manaan's Keep, too." 
 16th, Ludo and the Guilders 
 "We don't have the ready cash for whole barge-loads but the occasional wagon should be well within our means,"  Ludo said.  "Especially if we can send that wagon back to you full of Thornwood timber."

"And no, I don't yet have an agreement from Sforza to go bandit hunting, but if we can make something of an agreement in principle now I'm sure me and the commander can come up with something that the prince will be very happy to lay his seal to. I don't know if you've met the commander yet but he's as good a soldier as anyone Sforza has - let us know what you know about these wreckers and we can get them out of your hair. Will be good to have something to do other than sit at home, count barrels of grain, and fret."
 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  16th Sommerzeit 
 Bardhyl 

Orso tensed, as did his men - but Bardhyl’s words seemed to get through to him. After a moment, he sighed and lowered his gaze, putting the heel of his hand against his forehead.

“Look,” he said, “this isn’t personal. I was sent here to keep order, and that’s what I’m doing.” He put a meaty hand on Bardhyl’s shoulder, holding eye contact. “You seem like a nice enough boy. But there’s been disturbances since you brought the old man back, and I don’t want them getting out of hand. Because if they do, maybe some of those friends and family of yours might get hurt, you understand?” The grip on Bardhyl’s shoulder tightened, just a little. “ Sangue e oro . We’re the Iron Company, son. We don’t **** about.” 
 

 Bardhyl tensed just a little when Orso laid his hand upon him, but kept his calm.  "So I hear,"  he responded coolly to Orso's declaration.


 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 Lifting his gaze, he looked over to Grim and the others, and clicked his fingers. “Hand over your weapons!” he said, in a fine stentorian bark. “We don’t ask again!”

As the man he had identified as Gianluca stepped forward, Orso turned back to Bardhyl. “Who is the old man, anyway?” he asked. “Your grandpa?” 
 

 Bardhyl gave Grim a slight nod, signalling him and the others to turn over their weapons.

 "More like an old pain in the arse!"  he laughed at Orso's question, suddenly all smiles again.

 "So, are we free to go?"  he asked once he'd turned over his weapons to Gianluca.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
How many Tileans are at the gate?

 Edit:  And what sort of weapons and armour are they wearing?
 
LCP
 Ludo, 12th Sommerzeit 

Burhan shrugged his shoulders. “It’s not my shipments that have been hit,” he said. “I’d thank Ranald for the good fortune, if I was sure whose side he was on.”


 

 Ludo, 15th Sommerzeit 

Roth nodded. “Heard it’s looking tough, south of the falls,” he said. “We’re not stretched too thin, though. All we’ve got to do is keep guard over Lady Groz and the little one. The other guilders have got their own men - they can handle their own troubles.”


 

 16th Sommerzeit 
 Ludo 

Neumauer gave Ludo a calculating look - though to be honest, ‘calculating’ described the expression he’d worn pretty much since he sat down.

“A bold claim,” he said, rubbing his thumb over the back of his knuckles. “But one we would be willing to test… as long you don’t expect payment before delivery.” He cast a glance at Barnabas and the others. “You understand, you wouldn’t be the first to promise you can flush these robbers out.”

Nobody wanted to get down to the nitty-gritty of negotiations in front of potential rivals, but Ludo sensed he had their interest. Uto, Maximilian and Neumauer each gave him an address where he could find them to discuss matters further, and the rest of the evening passed in pleasant conversation. Neumauer was the last to leave, having needed some effort to lever himself out of his chair.

“A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Herr Stubbs,” he said. “I hope we’ll speak again soon.”

 Bardhyl 

Orso nodded. The other Tileans stood aside.

“Watch yourself, now,” he said. “Keep yourself away from trouble, and we’ll keep trouble away from you.”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
There are six Iron Company men at ground level (including Orso), and one on the gate above. Orso + three others (including Gianluca) are Tilean veterans, and the others are Shepherd’s Valley recruits. The Tileans wear  half plate  and mail. The new recruits wear just mail + a helmet. All of them are equipped with short swords; they don’t carry shields.
 

 Elsa 

Everything that followed happened in the space of heartbeats. Elsa felt the enchantments surrounding the book shift again, the air itself seeming to thicken and thrum. The musty scent of the tomb grew stronger, and the darkness that poured from the pages grew deeper - but she kept her focus unwavering on what the ancient magic was  doing . This wasn’t just some magical tripwire left for the unwary. There was something lurking beneath the wards, some  will  her probing had awoken.

 …A NAKH-SHEPESH, HORAZZASH KHEMET-NEB NEHEK…  

There was a blast of cold air, and every candle in Elsa’s protective octagram went out, casting the cellar into pitch darkness. The burning after-images of those cursed hieroglyphs still swam in Elsa’s vision - but she didn’t need to see to sense the roiling wave of  Shyish  that slammed into her.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
One more WP test! This time to resist the book casting  Youth’s Bane  on Elsa.
 
-Sentinel-
 Oh, not again... 

Elsa hurriedly put up her mental defenses against the magical assault. She decided that her candles going out were as good a cue as any to call it a day; clearly, the Book did not need to be directly attacked to figure out that Elsa's intentions towards it were hostile.


 
 Spoiler: OOC 
WP 83:  (d100)[ 30 ] 
 Fortune:  (d100)[ 12 ]  
 
RossN
 Jarla, Bezahltag, 16th Sommerzeit 

Jarla felt her hands itch as her instincts screamed at her to slap Irene hard just to wipe that smirk off her face. Fortunately reason and self preservation kicked in and she found herself nodding.  "Yes mi'lady, a clever plan."  She forced herself to smirk in turn.  "Spying! I feel like a character in Detlef Sierck stage play!" 

Bowing she took her leave from the  princepessa , allowing her smile to vanish before her face ached or her gorge rose or both. She would leave at once with Ida (a noble had to travel with at least one retainer.) Before departing Jarla would stop in the kitchens for some rations for the road, then get Countess and whatever mount could be scrounged up for her maid.

It would be good to get out of the city for a while. Even besides Irene things were getting less pleasant by the day.

OOC:
 
 Spoiler 
Happy to move on unless Jarla runs into anyone on the road.
 
LCP
 Elsa, 16th Sommerzeit 

The darkness of the cellar was broken briefly by flares of orange and violet,  Shyish  breaking against  Aqshy  like a wave against the shore. A pale glow was rising from the open chest, the pages of the book rustling as they turned of their own volition. Elsa lunged forwards and forced the cover shut, before slamming the lid of the chest down. The key  clicked  in the lock, and the room fell quiet. No more burning hieroglyphs, no more ancient whispers. She felt cold, chilled to the bone - but her skin still felt smooth, her limbs still strong. It hadn't got her.

There was a knock from above, and a chink of light lanced into the darkness as one of Jorge's men lifted the hatch. " Señora ?" called the Estalian. " Estás bien ?"
-Sentinel-
As soon as the key was out of the keyhole, Elsa slowly stepped away from the chest with heaving breaths. Her skin was covered in sweat despite the bone-chilling cold enveloping her. She tripped on a loose object in the darkness and fell on her behind with a muttered curse.

" Señora ?" called the Estalian. " Estás bien ?"

 &lt;Nothing I couldn't handle,&gt;  Elsa called back.  &lt;Can you get some light in here?&gt;  Realizing she'd just spoken Tilean to an Estalian, she repeated her answer in Reikspiel, hoping the soldier understood at least one of the two languages.

  "So that's how it's going to be, eh?"   she whispered at the Book, shakily rising to her feet.

She exited the cellar. Despite her best efforts to look confident—as a magister should be—she was quite sure she looked as shaken as she felt.

 Tonight, I'm making an offering to Morr,  she decided.
rax
Bardhyl answered Orso with a jaunty salute. As he and his men rode deeper into town, he muttered to Grim:  "Six men and the sergeant at the gate. That's a fifth of his manpower in one place. If he has men patrolling the streets at the same time, we can take them down quickly and quietly without the ones in the hall being any the wiser. Take out their leadership and a good chunk of the soldiery, and we might even be able to intimidate the rest into giving up." 
 "Let's make for Marjan's and I'll find out where Wadim is holed up.The we can start making proper plans." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Once the money had finished trading hands, he left the business of getting everything loaded to his men and took the chance to speak with some of the other traders and sailors on the docks. While Burhan didn't seem overly concerned about river bandits, it was still something worth keeping an eye on.

 
 Spoiler 
Sieghard won't be going far. He'll stay within sight and close enough to return quickly if any trouble seems like to start. He wants to learn as much as he can about the wreckers themselves and what sort of ships/cargo they've been going after.

 (1d100)[ 19 ]  vs 64 Gossip
 (1d100)[ 80 ]  Reroll
 
LCP
 Sieghard, 12th Sommerzeit 

The wreckers didn't feature strongly in the chatter among the docks today - it seemed they hadn't hit a boat in a while. More pressing among the dockworkers’ concerns was the ever-falling level of the river. Biting insects swarmed over the wide mud-flats left by the receding waters, and some of the deeper-drafted riverboats were now having to anchor midstream, the water too shallow for them even at the very ends of the piers. Small boats went back and forth from the big barges, ferrying their cargo to the mud-covered stevedores waiting on the bank.

“This goes on much longer,” said one of the men Sieghard asked about the wreckers, “there won't be any boats left for those bastards to rob.”

Pressing the subject, he managed to extract a few more details, like the name of the last vessel to be hit. “It was the  Gudgeon , three, four weeks back. Bound for Putbad, carrying I don’t know what.” Sucking his teeth, he looked Sieghard up and down. “Don’t know why you’re so interested, but I’ll tell you for free, you’re not the first I’ve seen sniffin’ around. There was a hill-man asking the same questions. ‘Bout a week after it happened, if I recall.”


 

 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

There was no need to find Wadim: Wadim found them. Joining them at Marjan’s, he made it seem like a chance meeting - but looking around, Bardhyl noticed how many of the other  vrani  in the alehouse seemed to act in concert with the old man. There was someone on the door, watching out in case the soldiers should come by. There was Marjan, already prepared with a jug of  kefir  and a wooden tray of clean cups. And there was that moon-faced girl Miruna, the smith’s daughter - Bardhyl wasn’t sure what she was doing here, but she seemed to be hanging on Wadim’s every word.

“Bardhyl!” said Wadim, making a show of embracing him. “How are you doing? No more run-ins with monsters in the hills?” He laughed and patted Bardhyl on the side, where the wyvern had stung him. “It’s good to see you back.”

Taking a seat, he poured himself a cup of  kefir . “I got your message,” he said, nodding to Zana as he lowered his voice to a tone not easily overheard. “We’ve been doing what we can here. Talking to the Karvan chiefs, stashing supplies where the Prince’s soldiers won’t find them. Plus, making sure our big Tilean bear and his friends don’t start feeling too comfortable.” A half-smile creased his wrinkled face. “Not pushing them  too  far, of course. Just keeping them on their toes.”

Pouring another cup, he passed it to Bardhyl. “How have your travels in the lowlands been going, then, eh? Learn anything useful?”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
 Remember Morr's Seat is a small hilltop settlement. 6 Iron Company being at the gate when you got there doesn't necessarily mean there are always 6 Iron Company at the gate - 1 sentry on the wall could see you coming a long way away, and would be able to fetch the others very quickly.
 
-Sentinel-
 16th Sommerzeit - Elsa and Urgrim 


At dusk, shortly after dinner around the campfire, Elsa rose to address the gathered soldiers and civilians.

 "Good evening, ladies and gents. I know I haven't spoken to you much, and I'll likely spend most of my time here absorbed in my studies. But I'd like to hold, um, a little ceremony." 

The gazes on her were quizzical. Elsa was all too familiar with people not knowing how to deal with her, but it never made her any less nervous. She felt as if anything she ever said or did was viewed through the lens of her being a "witch". She was not  allowed  to be strange or awkward for any other reason than that.

 "I'm not sure how much you've been told about what we're doing here,"  she said, boldly forging ahead.  "I'm not at liberty to give you all the details, but what you need to know is that our foe doesn't only want us dead... Our foe would deny us our eternal rest in Morr's realm. That is why... I want Morr on our side. I've never been the most pious person, but a man from the Raven Hills has shown me firsthand the power wielded by the Guardian of Souls. I want that power with us today, and all days until our task is done." 

She removed the lid of a small clay pot and grabbed a stick of incense, which she threw into the campfire. A sweet smell filled the nostrils of all present.

 "I'm no priestess. I don't know Morr's holy texts well, so I won't try to quote them. But we can still honor the dead. That should please Him, hopefully." 

She took a deep breath.  "Let me tell you about a friend of mine, Adelbert." 

She launched into a little speech about the late priest of Verena. His prideful and stubborn spirit, his courage in the face of danger, his insatiable intellectual curiosity, his sense of justice, his belief that even the worst people could see the light of truth and be redeemed—though she did not specifically mention his foolish attempt to convert a daemon to Verena. She spoke of the little school founded by Adelbert in Painford, how this school lived on to this day thanks to the efforts of his friends, and how, with this school, his legacy in the Reaches might last for decades or even generations despite the short time he spent in this part of the world. As long as there still lived someone who learned to read by attending Adelbert's school, Adelbert lived on through them.

 "And that,"  she concluded,  "is how I believe we overcome our fear of death. By doing good deeds that will outlast us. By leaving a blessed legacy. Tonight I honor Adelbert, and all of the dead—those at rest, and also those who haven't found their rest yet." 


She turned to  Urgrim  and handed him another stick of incense.  "What about you, Urgi? Can you tell us about a deceased person you know who's left their mark on the world?" 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Let's see if Elsa's speech can get the ball rolling.

Charm 59 (no Public Speaking though):  (d100)[ 25 ] 
 Fortune:  (d100)[ 98 ]  
 


 

 17th Sommerzeit - Elsa 


Elsa was up early the next morning in the house she had chosen as her workshop and laboratory. Poring through her grimoire of pyromancy and performing small-scale spellcasting experiments, she tried to figure out if  Aqshy 's destructive power extended beyond the physical world, and could potentially burn straight through an enchantment if properly wielded. Raw violence was what her magic was best suited for, and so it seemed the most logical avenue for her research.


 
 Spoiler: OOC 

 What's Elsa's initial research plan now she's had a preliminary poke at the book? 

To be clear, we're not yet at the ritual design phase?

Just let me know if any tests are needed at the current step.
 
Thragka
 16th Sommerzeit - Elsa and Urgrim 

Urgrim accepted the incense with austerity, and stood in silence for perhaps a moment longer than the ceremony demanded.  "Thrunrik,"  he offered.  "A Dwimmulson ranger, and one of the finest I've ever known. He led us – myself, and other rangers – to the Red Pyramid, where we learned that an ancient deed had been undone, and an ancient enemy had returned. We owe a lot of our victories so far to him, and the others who died in the sands. I wrote some words to remember him by: 
 "'It is always better
to avenge dear ones than to indulge in mourning.
For every one of us, living in this world
Means waiting for our end. Let whoever can
Win glory before death. When a warrior is gone,
That will be his best and only bulwark.'" 

It didn't flow as well in Reikspiel as it did in Khazalid.
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

There was no need to find Wadim: Wadim found them. Joining them at Marjan’s, he made it seem like a chance meeting - but looking around, Bardhyl noticed how many of the other  vrani  in the alehouse seemed to act in concert with the old man. There was someone on the door, watching out in case the soldiers should come by. There was Marjan, already prepared with a jug of  kefir  and a wooden tray of clean cups. And there was that moon-faced girl Miruna, the smith’s daughter - Bardhyl wasn’t sure what she was doing here, but she seemed to be hanging on Wadim’s every word.

“Bardhyl!” said Wadim, making a show of embracing him. “How are you doing? No more run-ins with monsters in the hills?” He laughed and patted Bardhyl on the side, where the wyvern had stung him. “It’s good to see you back.”

Taking a seat, he poured himself a cup of  kefir . “I got your message,” he said, nodding to Zana as he lowered his voice to a tone not easily overheard. “We’ve been doing what we can here. Talking to the Karvan chiefs, stashing supplies where the Prince’s soldiers won’t find them. Plus, making sure our big Tilean bear and his friends don’t start feeling too comfortable.” A half-smile creased his wrinkled face. “Not pushing them  too  far, of course. Just keeping them on their toes.”

Pouring another cup, he passed it to Bardhyl. “How have your travels in the lowlands been going, then, eh? Learn anything useful?”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
 Remember Morr's Seat is a small hilltop settlement. 6 Iron Company being at the gate when you got there doesn't necessarily mean there are always 6 Iron Company at the gate - 1 sentry on the wall could see you coming a long way away, and would be able to fetch the others very quickly.
 
 
 

  "He did seem a mite more  drained  this time round,"  Bardhyl chuckled at Wadim's mention of keeping the Tileans on their toes.

 "I've learned a great deal, but the news is less good than I'd hoped,"  he admitted.  "The Downlands appear to have been hit the hardest by the locusts. It's not a full on famine yet, but the gallows in Savonne are full of desperate folk that can't pay for what food there is. And the lowlanders are turning to the Jackal again, even though the Tilean has forbidden his worship." 
 "I spoke to Herr Stubbs and his friends, but I'm afraid only the Halfling sees that Sforza is as dangerous to the Reaches as the Jackal. So, they'll happily strike against the Jackal if they can, but they're too beholden to Sforza to contemplate raising arms against him. If we had more time, perhaps Herr Stubbs could convince them or help us find allies outside of the Tilean's court, but with the drought and the famine...I think time is a luxury we no longer have if we are to rid ourselves of Sforza,"  Bardhyl said.

 "Of course, while we busy ourselves with our mortal plots, who knows what the Jackal will come up with next?" 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Ah, then Morr's Seat is smaller than I envisioned it. I saw it as cramped, but also took that to mean that there's precious few broad/straight streets inside the walls, so it would take a while for the garrison to move from the hall to the gate. Is there a map of Morr's Seat somewhere? I checked the wiki, but couldn't find anything there.
 
LCP
 16th Sommerzeit 
 Elsa &amp; Urgrim 

Jorge had formed his troop up as Elsa had requested. His Estalian veterans looked polite but puzzled - Elsa wasn’t sure their Reikspiel was good enough to understand everything she said. The Last Water recruits seemed to understand better, but stood ramrod-straight and silent all the same. On the edges of the firelight, the camp followers they’d brought along looked on with curious expressions.

Elsa’s tribute to Adelbert, and Urgrim’s to Thrunrik, didn’t bring forth any volunteers from among the soldiers to share their own stories. Jorge just looked back at her - and, as the uncomfortable silence stretched longer, uttered a benediction to Morr. The other soldiers echoed it back, their murmuring voices blending together in the dusk.

 Bardhyl 

“Yes, I heard about the swarm,” said Wadim. “If I were a less charitable man, I’d say the lowlanders were getting a taste of what we’ve been suffering here. I only thank Morr it didn't turn this way.”

He listened to the rest of Bardhyl's news in silence, stroking his beard. “That’s too bad,” he said. “Even if we were stronger than we were, we couldn't afford to fight these Tileans alone. We  need  something to divide their attention.” He shrugged. “But your friends in the south aren't the only distraction we can use. Like you say, it's our enemy in the west who’ll force the question - sooner or later.”

He leaned forward over the table, lowering his voice. “I’ve been watching Sergeant Orso and his men. He’s a tough old brute, but he's cut off and outnumbered, and he knows it. It's only fear that lets him keep the people here in line.” He raised his bushy eyebrows at Bardhyl. “The question isn’t whether we can take him. It’s if we do, what comes next?”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
No map thus far, no. It’s definitely not laid out on a nice grid, but it’s not a deliberate labyrinth either - this is a place people live, you can expect that there are going to be reasonably efficient paths from point A to point B, even if they’re not straight lines. Particularly when point A is the main gate and point B is the chief’s hall.
 
rax
 16th Sommerzeit 
 Bardhyl 
 "That  is  the question, isn't it?"  Bardhyl answered.  "I think the only thing we can be sure of is that the Tilean will retaliate. Perhaps not immediately, perhaps not even while the famine is ongoing, but eventually he will come. The cost of letting us go our own way is simply too great for him to consider - if we can reject his rule, so can others. So, with that in mind, I would prefer to be in control of the timing,"  he said.

 "What is our food situation like? If we take the garrison, how long can we last if Sforza or his lieutenant respond by blockading the Hills?" 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

Wadim’s expression grew grim. “Not long, I think,” he said. “This would be a hard year, even without the Tileans squeezing us.”

“You think a blockade’s what it’d come to?” he asked. “That takes a lot of men. Men who’d need feeding themselves… men he might need for taking the food from other people's mouths.” He looked hard at Bardhyl. “He’s got enough men to crush us, doesn't he? Why wouldn't he try to do it in one stroke, if he could?”


 

 Bezahltag, 17th Sommerzeit 
 Sieghard 

Sieghard had returned to Painford with three wagonloads of cured meat, the other three having been left in Ingwald’s care in Ravenskird. The barrack block he had appropriated as a storehouse was fast filling up; when Hanna’s troop returned, living quarters for the Thorns were likely to get pretty crowded.

One of them, in fact, was already here. A number of travellers had arrived from the south, among them Whispering Thom, still in his Thorns uniform. Hanna had sent him with a message.

“Things are starting to kick off in the Vale,” he said. “We’ve been trying to collect the Prince’s grain, but the farmers up the valley won't give it up. There's about a hundred of them keeping a picket around the mill.”

“Herr Sussman’s been up there for three days trying to talk them round, but he’s getting nowhere and he knows it. And more of them keep showing up.” Thom looked over his shoulder. “We’ve been keeping clear of trouble, like Herr Stubbs said - but Hanna heard Sussman sent a message to Savonne asking for reinforcements. The Iron Company won't be so gentle.”

 Elsa 

The singed old grimoire she had taken from Fassbender’s library didn’t offer much in the way of what Elsa was seeking. Whatever cracked hedge wizard had written it, they had been far more interested in their own creations than in unmaking those of others. Setting it aside, Elsa turned back to her own experiments, dredging up what memories she could from her long-lost Altdorf days.

 ...”What we are going to study here today,” Magister von Lodern was saying, “is magic that most of you will never master.” He liked to start most of his lectures like that - no-one ever challenged him on where he got his statistics.

Elsa hadn’t been paying particular attention that day - had she ever? Lodern had been rabbiting on for the best part of an hour without actually  showing  them anything, holding forth about ‘arcane instruments’. Stones of power, dwarf runecraft, something about an elector count’s sword… if she wanted a dry lesson in history, she’d read a book. Eventually. When she got around to it.

“...and  there  is the heart of it,” he was saying. “You are learning to bind the Wind of Fire with words. To command it, you must  express  your command. But the spoken word is fleeting. A man desires to make an agreement binding; he commits the words to paper. A man desires his name to be remembered, he inscribes it in stone. Magic, too, obeys these laws.”

Reaching under his lectern, he produced a scabbarded sword. That certainly got the room’s attention.

“Words scribed in steel last longer than those spoken aloud,” he continued. “Just so, a spell worked in steel can hold its power for many lifetimes, where a spoken spell is cast but once. But to work that spell requires the same  precision  and  will  as it does to speak it.” With raised eyebrows, he looked around the room, his hands still resting on the sword. “We have taught you the  lingua praestantia . How many of you speak the language of the forge?”

At last, he drew the sword, holding it up to his audience. Warm light filled the hall as flames leapt up along the blade.

“ Words have power, ” he continued, “whether they are carved in stone, cast in iron, or ciphered in the colours of a crystal. Study the art of how the world speaks,” he said, sheathing the sword again, “and in another eight or ten years, one of you may be able to create an object like this.” 

Elsa woke from the daydream with a start. She’d dozed off midway through making notes - but as she wiped the ink off her face, she saw that her handwriting hadn’t trailed off where she remembered. Instead it continued, her scribbled Reikspiel morphing into scratched Nehekharan hieroglyphs that ran on well past the point where the quill had run dry. With a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach, she recognised them - they were the same glyphs that had burned themselves into her vision from the pages of the book.

 Words have power . Her old tutor’s words echoed around her head. Were the spells that protected Nagash’s great work written onto its pages themselves?

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
To provide a bit of additional info here in answering the question you asked:

 
 Elsa doesn’t have a wealth of good test materials here - i.e. other magical objects to try to dispel/disenchant. Unless she can rustle something like that up she’s going to have to proceed off theory alone. 
 What Elsa can remember from her College education/what her books indicate is that magic items retain magic either because their creators bind magic into them through their design (what von Lodern talks about), or through steeping in ambient magic so long that they absorb it. If the book is in the former category then ‘can you burn the magic away’ would be essentially the same question as ‘can you burn the pages away’ - just a contest of which magic is stronger. 
 

I don’t think we need any tests for this background knowledge. Finding out new stuff, that’ll be the subject of the research rolls - but we should resolve those over longer timescales than single days.
 


 

 Angestag, 19th Sommerzeit 
 Ludo 

Hitching a ride downriver, Ludo landed back in the docks of Savonne late on Angestag afternoon. He’d continue south in the morning; for now, his first concern was a decent supper.

In the taproom of the  Fat Fish,  he overheard some gossip. Everyone was talking about the same thing - apparently, a large column of Iron Company men had marched out over the bridge. Where they had been going was the subject of fevered speculation.

“I heard there was some trouble brewing out in Arrow Heap,” said the first man Ludo asked. “Folks not happy with the new laws. That's where the wheat country is, you know.” He wet his whistle with a gulp of ale. “Or was.”

“Not ‘appy?” cackled his drinking companion. “They're about to be a lot less ‘appy! I saw those soldier boys marching out. They ‘ad them ogres with ‘em.” Leaning over the bar, he tried to flag down the barman for another drink. “That’s the problem with those lads from the Heap. Ever since they bloodied King Pieter’s nose they think there’s no lord nor lady can tell ‘em what to do.”

“Mm-hm,” said his friend, nodding. “Wouldn’t like to be in their shoes now, that's for sure.”
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

Wadim’s expression grew grim. “Not long, I think,” he said. “This would be a hard year, even without the Tileans squeezing us.”

“You think a blockade’s what it’d come to?” he asked. “That takes a lot of men. Men who’d need feeding themselves… men he might need for taking the food from other people's mouths.” He looked hard at Bardhyl. “He’s got enough men to crush us, doesn't he? Why wouldn't he try to do it in one stroke, if he could?” 
 

  "I think he would, if he believes he can do it quickly and there are no other troubles to distract him,"  Bardhyl admitted.  "But if he's fully aware of our supply situation, there's always the chance he'll choose to preserve his forces if he thinks he can force us to give up by blockading the Hills rather than coming straight for us. I suppose it depends on just how little he thinks of the  Vrani  as warriors,"  he chuckled grimly.

 "Zana reported back that you'd said  all  the  Vrani  would fight if we call on them. Was she being optimistic? How many men under arms do you think we can realistically count on?"  he quizzed Wadim.  "I have a rough idea of how many men Sforza has on hand in Alvarran and Savonne. I need to know what I can put up against that before putting together a more detailed plan." 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

"She told you nothing I didn't tell her," said Wadim, giving Zana another nod. "Outlanders have ruled in Morr's Seat before this, but always  from  Morr's Seat. The hills never swore allegiance to this lowland prince - and they know when they're being squeezed dry." His voice remained calm and level, but his left hand, resting in a closed fist on the table, tightened until the knuckles whitened. "They know it's fight or die."

"As for how many that makes... it depends who you're counting." He gave a sideways half-smile. "A lot of our best fighters marched to Arrow Heap, and many didn't march back. Counting the boys, the old men, the wounded who can still hold a spear... I'd say two, three hundred might answer the call. Weapons, maybe enough for one hundred." He shot another glance over his shoulder, but the watcher at the door still seemed at ease. "Making more could be tricky. Orso's boys here are practically sitting on top of the forge."
rax
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 
 "Well, we'll have weapons for thirty more once we deal with Orso,"  Bardhyl replied with a grim smile. He said nothing of the number of warriors they might count on.  "That is our first step in any case. Kill or capture the garrison quickly and quietly. Doing it quietly is key - the longer it takes for the news to get out, the better. Ideally, neither Sforza nor Carraciolo will even know they've lost control until we're ready to show our hand. By then, maybe we'll even have been able to make ourselves some new weapons..." 
 "Yes, that's how it's going to have to be. The next step will depend on what we can find out from Orso, so he needs to be taken alive and mostly unharmed. The same goes for at least a few of his new recruits. The veterans, they'll be loyal to Orso and their company - it'll be too much trouble to get them to talk. But the recruits, they're in this for the money and three square meals a day. I think they can be persuaded to spill their guts and corroborate or refute whatever information we can wring out of Orso." 

Bardhyl was silent for a while, thinking hard. When he spoke again, he kept his voice low enough that only Wadim could hear.  "This isn't something I ask lightly, but who's working with the Tileans? Who's helping them keep tabs on troublemakers in town?" 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
I completely forgot Zana is here with us. 😳
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  in Savonne, 12th Sommerzeit 

" A hill man? " Sieghard asked. " Dark hair? Tattoos on his arms? Laughs even when there's nothing funny? "

Once the dockworker had confirmed his suspicion, he returned to the carts. What Bardhyl's interest in the wreckers was, he could only wonder.

 
 Spoiler 
Seems like the trail is cold enough that Sieghard isn't likely to find much more. He'll ask Burhan to write to him if another boat is attacked.
 


 

 Painford, 17th Sommerzeit 

" She was right to send word, " Sieghard said. " How long ago did Sussman send for the Iron Company? "
LCP
 Sieghard, 12th Sommerzeit 

“That's the feller,” said the man. “Friend o’ yours, is he?”


 

 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

“You remember Alin?” said Wadim. “He’s made himself their go-between.  Not that I hold it against him, ” he said, raising his voice as he heard a few foul-mouthed grumbles cut the air. “Man’s only doing what he thinks is right. Probably saved a few hotheads from an early grave.” He poured himself another drink. “More gave him a talent for kissing boots, and he’s used it. But, if you're planning to make a move on Orso, best keep him out of it.”

“They're no joke, these Tileans, you know that Bardhyl? They're killers, well armed and well trained. And from what I hear, they took your weapons too.” He gave Bardhyl a searching look. “There are people here ready to fight, but not to walk into a slaughter. What's your plan?”


 

 Sieghard, 17th Sommerzeit 

“Two, three days ago I think,” said Thom. “Hanna sent me back as soon as she heard.”

There were a steady trickle of people passing through Painford these days. Had Sieghard seen Sussman's messenger go by already? For all he knew, they could be here in the village now.
rax
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 
 "Oh, I remember him alright,"  Bardhyl answered with a nasty grin.  "Good to know he hasn't changed. We'll leave him well out of this unless I can find a use for his... talent ." 
 "They did indeed. Seems the good sergeant considers us  troublemakers ,"  he laughed at the mention of Orso seizing his gang's weapons.  "No matter, though. Whack a man over the head with a stout cudgel, and he goes down as easily as when you stick him with a blade." 
 "The plan is simple enough. I assume Orso has at least a couple of men out patrolling the town? We need to isolate them and take them down quietly. At the same time, we deal with the watchman at the gate. Next, we create a ruckus to bring out Orso and a goodly number of the rest of his men to restore order. We trap them and ambush them, then we deal with whoever's still in the hall. Lots of ways to do that - send one of the captured men back and tell them that Orso needs them, or beg to be let in because the barbarians are after him, or we put the place under siege and convince them to surrender. That'll be easier to do if we show them we won't hurt them beyond holding them prisoner,"  Bardhyl quickly sketched the outline of a plan.

 "So, what's the garrison's routine like? Does Orso do any patrolling himself, or is he always in the hall unless there's trouble brewing? Do we have any of our people working inside the hall? If so, that gives us more options. This would also be an opportune time for you to reveal that there's a secret entrance into the hall that no one else knows of,"  he winked at Wadim. The prospect of planning the capture of the garrison seemed to energize Bardhyl.
LCP
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

“Afraid not,” said Wadim, with a grin. “It's not hard to get in, though. Plenty of folk who come and go besides the soldiers. They’ve got six serving girls cooking and cleaning for them, all  vrani  - and more than that, it's where they're keeping their stores. You can imagine, they take a lot of deliveries.”

“For the patrols… as far as I’ve been able to tell, there are always ten men on watch. One up on the wall, nine down in the streets. The sergeant stays up at the hall, and I’ve never seen less than ten men on duty there with him too. So twenty armed men ready to come running… if we move in daylight.” That was clearly supposed to be a significant ‘if’. “After the sun goes down, it's just two men on the gate, and two outside the hall.”
LeSwordfish
Ludo chewed his pie thoughtfully.

 "I can take whatever route home I want, can't I?"  he said to himself.  "Nothing wrong with that." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Looks like going by Arrow Heap is two days, presumably only a day longer than a boat on the river would be? Assuming that's the case, Ludo will head via Arrow Heap. I've nothing specific to do in Savonne.
 
rax
 16th Sommerzeit 
 "Normally, I'd agree that acting at night has many advantages, but Orso doesn't seem the trusting type to me, so I assume he'll have made sure the hall is locked up tight before he tucks his men in for the night. Unless we can get inside while retaining the element of surprise, he'll wake up in the morning with most of his men safely ensconced in the hall and ready to withstand a siege. Unless...do the guards outside the hall work in shifts? If there's a changing of the guard during the night, we might be able to get inside when that happens, especially if we've captured the guards before their shift ends. Hard to do without attracting attention from inside, though..." 
 "How about the serving girls? Do any of them stay the night? Do you think we could trust them to tell us the truth about the Tileans' routines inside the hall, and to keep quiet about it afterwards? Would they be prepared to  act  against Orso and his boys?"  Bardhyl asked his mentor.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  - Painford, 17th Sommerzeit 

Sieghard considered that.  There's time. Not much, but still... 

Making the most of what was left of the daylight, he went around the village, speaking with as many of the travelers from the south as he could to get a fuller picture of the situation in Manaan's Keep. Once the sun began to set, he returned to the manor and gathered what he would need for the trip south. He planned to set out at dawn.

 
 Spoiler 
 (1d100)[ 21 ]  vs 64 Gossip
 (1d100)[ 49 ]  Reroll if needed.

Notably, Sieghard will bring his nicer clothes to change into after he arrives in Manaan's Keep.
 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

“Now you’re asking more than I know,” said Wadim. “I’ve watched them, but not from dusk ‘til dawn.”

“I’d be surprised if the guards don’t take shifts. As for the servants… they haven’t come to me, so I’m not going to claim to know their minds.” He cracked a smile. “Maybe they’d be more likely to speak to a young man like you. But remember, it’s no small thing you’re asking here. Even if they want for all the world to help, can they do it right? If the Tileans pressed them, would they crack?”

He gripped his cup in both hands, interlacing his gnarled old fingers.

“It’s no small question, is it? Who you can trust. A question of judgement.”  His good eye fixed Bardhyl, gleaming under its bushy brow. “If you want to talk to them, I’m sure that’s easy enough. But the judgement, that’s for you to make. After all,” he added with a grin, “if this goes belly-up, I’ll be telling them it was all your idea.”


 

 Sieghard, 17th Sommerzeit 

Asking around the village produced no sign of Sussman’s messenger. There were two other travellers from the south today, besides Thom, and the picture they painted was consistent - the farmlands around Manann’s Keep had been hit very badly by the locusts, very badly indeed.

“Hadn’t heard there was trouble up the valley, but I wouldn’t be surprised,” said one of them. An aged pedlar with a heavily-loaded mule, Thom had probably overtaken her on the road. “It’s frightenin’ times. Folk have been asking questions for a while. And you know, hunger’ll make folk act all sorts of ways.”


 

 Sieghard, 19th Sommerzeit 

Sieghard arrived in Manann’s Keep late on Angestag afternoon. The place seemed peaceful enough. Riding past the wreckage of Evatt’s landship, he could see none of the trouble that Thom had warned him about - just the devastation of fields and livelihoods gnawed bare by the swarm.

The fort seemed depopulated, only a skeleton crew of Valdes’ men - mostly drawn from the Volunteers - guarding the gate. Inside, he found Sussman, who looked like he’d just got back from elsewhere himself. The steward was in the courtyard with a couple more guards, feeding his raw-boned yellow horse a bag of oats.

“Ah! Lord Sieghard! That was quick,” he said. “How many did you bring? Soldiers, I mean.”

It took them a moment to straighten out that Sieghard was not there on Sforza’s orders. “So you just… decided to stop by,” he said, clearly harbouring questions he’d decided not to ask. “Well, that’s very neighbourly of you. I suppose you might have heard, we’re having a bit of trouble up in the Vale. Your men have been great… you  didn’t  bring any more, did you? Even just a few? They could be really useful around now.”

When asked to explain, he obliged. “They’re all up at Ardelean’s mill. The troublemakers, I mean. They don’t want to pay the Prince’s tax. I’ve been riding out there every day to talk with them, but… they won’t hear it. Say it’s grain they grew, so it’s grain they’ll keep.” He gave a hoarse laugh. “I mean, it’s hard to argue with, isn’t it? But they’re not the ones having to tell it to his Highness. Not yet, anyway.”


 

 Festag, 20th Sommerzeit 
 Ludo 

The sun was low and red when Ludo arrived in Arrow Heap. The journey hadn’t been a cheerful one. The locusts had cut through the heart of the wheat country like the stroke of a giant’s scythe. What was left was dead stubble and bare earth, which the sun was baking hard as rock. Men, women, even children were out in the fields, hacking at the hard ground with hoes. Ludo couldn’t see what they hoped to achieve.

The gates of the palisade around the village were open, but Arrow Heap itself seemed unnaturally quiet. The only people on the streets were the Iron Company, many of whom were busy loading up sacks of grain into wagons outside the storehouse - and, just as the man in the  Fat Fish  had said, the Maneaters. They were standing in a trio near the gate, conversing in their own rumbling tongue. One of them noticed Ludo approaching, and greeted him with a friendly wave.

“Hey!” called out one of the Tileans, spotting Ludo himself. “Hey-hey-hey! What are you doing there?”

He came beetling over at surprising speed. At first, Ludo thought the soldier was just being officious - but he seemed more concerned about how close Ludo was standing to the Maneaters than anything else. Once the ogres had turned back to their own conversation, he relaxed a little.

“This is, ah, not the good time,  si, signore? ” he said, looking away from the ogres and back to Ludo. He still seemed on edge. “You have business in the village, you come back tomorrow.”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
The emptiness of the village is strange, but the Iron Company man is demanding your attention; you can roll Perception to look around for more clues in the environment while he’s talking.
 
LeSwordfish
Ludo took a moment to remember, and then grinned cheerfully.  "Alonso, isn't it? How's your girl back in Manaan's Keep? She found out about your girl in Savonne yet?" 

He looked around at the silent town.  "Look, we're all the prince's men here, remember? Between you and me, what the hell is going on here?" 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Time for me to use my new Talent, please! Spending a Fortune point to activate Friendly Acquaintance: Ludo knew Alonso to chat to back in Manaan's Keep, back when the Thorns were being founded: they played a few hands of cards.
 
LCP
 Ludo, 20th Sommerzeit 

Alonso looked taken aback. “Signor Stubbs?” The colour rose to his face, and he lowered his voice to a mutter. “No… no she hasn’t. Unless you told her.”

One of the other soldiers yelled out to him in Tilean, asking why he wasn’t helping load the wagons. Alonso shouted back, with some energetic and creative gestures towards Ludo.

&lt; I’m  busy  here Giorgio! Do you want us to let just anyone wander through, eh? How many more people do you want to get eaten? &gt;

He turned back to Ludo, clearly assuming he hadn’t understood a word. “The people here didn’t want to pay their taxes,” he said. “Prince Sforza sent us out here to set them straight. There was a - how do you say - a scuffle. But things are alright now. The people, they have gone inside.” He motioned to the inn, with its sun-bleached ox skull hanging over the door. “They are safe there.”

He glanced back towards the ogres. “Just… give the big ones some space. They are…” he span his hands around each other, searching for the word. “... irrequieto . Agitated.  Si? 
LeSwordfish
Ludo kept a studiously straight face, and resisted the urge to show his horror, or turn around and look at the Ogres more closely.  "I hope nobody was too badly hurt." 

He looked around at the dead ground.  "I have to say, no wonder they weren't paying their taxes. Must be barely a stick to eat round here." 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

“It’s no small question, is it? Who you can trust. A question of judgement.”  His good eye fixed Bardhyl, gleaming under its bushy brow. “If you want to talk to them, I’m sure that’s easy enough. But the judgement, that’s for you to make. After all,” he added with a grin, “if this goes belly-up, I’ll be telling them it was all your idea.” 
 

 " I'd expect nothing less,"  Bardhyl shot back with a sour look.

 "One last thing. I don't suppose you know of any interesting brews that could knock out or confuse Orso's lot and make it easier for us to deal with them? Maybe some more goblin mushrooms?"  he asked.
LCP
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

"Hey, those mushrooms are precious!" said Wadim. "Unless you know where to find any more, let's not go wasting what's left on these Tileans."

He paused for a moment, thinking. "There's a number of things you could try," he said at last. "Not many that don't taste of anything, though. And if you're trying to feed it to all of them, that's a lot of people who could cry foul " He scratched his beard. "Simplest thing would be just a bit of spoiled meat. Doesn't look like poisoning if they catch on - just a careless mistake - but a soldier with the runs is out of the fight just as much as a soldier who's seeing little green imps."


 

 Ludo, 20th Sommerzeit 

Alonso grunted. "There's still some in the storehouse," he said, motioning to where the other Iron Company were loading the wagons. "But old. Maybe not good to eat for too much longer. Still. People got to follow the law, yes? And the Prince is the law."

He glanced quickly back at the man who had yelled at him, clearly preoccupied with what he ought to be doing. "Why are you in town, anyway?" he asked. "Something we can help you with?"
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" I'm afraid I've already sent all the men I can spare, " Sieghard replied. " I'm happy to lend what help I can, but order needs to be kept in the Thornwood as well. "

" How  is  the food situation in Manaan's Keep? " he asked once they had gotten to the actual issue. " I imagine the problem is less that it's the grain they grew and more that they fear it's the only grain they'll have to eat. "


 


Once he had finished speaking with Sussman, he left the fort to find Hanna.
LCP
 Sieghard, 19th Sommerzeit 

"Yes, well," said Sussman. "That's the grim reality of it, isn't it? We can wail and moan, or we can try to find a way of actually making it  work ."

Handing his horse over to the stable-hand, he turned to go inside. "The top of the Vale is the only place the locusts missed,'' he said. "Might still be something to harvest there, come Erntzeit. These farmers think they're being wronged, but in reality, they're keeping food out of the mouths of people who have even less. I've tried to explain it to them." He sighed. "And I'll keep trying. But until Prince Sforza or Lord Valdes send me reinforcements, I don't know that there's more I can do."

"You're welcome to stay here, of course. Lots of space these days, make yourself at home. Are you planning to stay long?"

 ~ 
When they had parted ways with Sussman, Sieghard set out in search of Hanna. Thom ran to catch up with him, asking where he was going.

"Oh, she's out in the country, sir," he said. "We're all camped out near Ardelean's mill. Keeping an eye, Herr Sussman said." He looked up at the sky. "I can take you out there, if you want, but it'll be a bit of a walk. Probably getting dark by the time we get there."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Having seen the state of Savonne, Sieghard had his doubts about how much of Sforza's tax would be going to those with even less.

" I'm sure the people here haven't forgotten my role in the battle with the orcs. Maybe I could ease their fears and convince them to cooperate, " Sieghard suggested. " I'll speak with them in the morning. It'd certainly be better than... Whatever you plan on doing if the prince sends you more men. "


 


" Very well, " he said. " Lead the way. "
LCP
 Sieghard, 19th Sommerzeit 

"I'm still planning on talking," said Sussman. "Just talking with more men standing behind me."

He paused, looking back at Sieghard. He looked - sad? Tired? It was an expression that was hard to read.

"This isn't the first succession I've lived through, you know. The people who were here before Evatt, they were... well, let's just say they weren't a barrel of laughs either." He cleared his throat. "What the people out there need to understand - what I've been trying to tell them - is that those soldiers will come whether we ask them to or not. At least if we invite them, we've got a chance of... steering the conversation."

He trailed off, as if unsure while he was still talking. "Well. Anyway. Good to see you."

With a thin smile, he nodded to Sieghard and headed inside.

 ~ 
Ardelean's mill was about a mile north of the town. Hanna's troop had set up camp a little way south of the mill itself, joined by a few of Sussman's men. Beyond it, a much larger and more haphazard camp was visible sprawled around the base of the mill. From the campfires alone, Sieghard estimated there were at least a hundred people there.

Hanna was seated on a stone, speaking to two of the other Thorns. When she saw Sieghard, she rose to her feet immediately and stood to attention.

"Weren't expecting to see you, sir" she said. "Something we should know?"
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

"Hey, those mushrooms are precious!" said Wadim. "Unless you know where to find any more, let's not go wasting what's left on these Tileans."

He paused for a moment, thinking. "There's a number of things you could try," he said at last. "Not many that don't taste of anything, though. And if you're trying to feed it to all of them, that's a lot of people who could cry foul " He scratched his beard. "Simplest thing would be just a bit of spoiled meat. Doesn't look like poisoning if they catch on - just a careless mistake - but a soldier with the runs is out of the fight just as much as a soldier who's seeing little green imps." 
 

  "Not all of them, necessarily, just enough of them to keep the numbers capable of fighting back down. For sure, spoiled meat could do the trick, but it's not very  stylish . Still, needs must and all that, I suppose,"  Bardhyl replied.

 "Well! Looks like we have work to do!"  Bardhyl suddenly declared and clapped his hands.  "Now, where would I go about finding one of the Tilean's serving ladies?" 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Nothing pressing, " Sieghard told Hanna. " We've managed to secure enough salted meat to keep people fed for a few weeks, and Ludo is in the north trying to barter with the guilds of Putbad. "

" I'm here because I got your message and thought it better to solve the trouble at the mill before the Iron Company arrives and handles it their way. I know what Thom told me and I've heard bits and pieces from others, but I want a full report. "

 
 Spoiler 
Edited that last bit out of the previous post and put it here since Hanna took a bit longer to reach than I thought. Would a perception test be appropriate to try to figure out Sussman's expression? Or maybe straight fellowship would be more appropriate since it's a social thing? If so, here's a roll

 (1d100)[ 75 ]  vs 61 perception or 54 fel

Also, Common Knowledge (The Border Princes) vs 51.
 (1d100)[ 53 ] 

What, if anything, does Sieghard know about Manaan's Keep (presumably called something else) and its ruler before Evatt arrived?
 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

"Hang around outside the hall at sundown, and you ought to catch some of them heading home," said Wadim. He looked up at the evening light coming in through one of the narrow windows. "That should be pretty soon, I'd imagine."

Rising from his seat, he patted Bardhyl on the shoulder. "Good to see you back," he said. "If you need me, I'll be - well, I'll be around," he said. The old man pulled his cloak close around himself and headed back into the open air, dismissing the watcher at the door with a nod of his hooded head.

When Bardhyl and his band rose to follow, Wadim had already disappeared into the winding streets of the town. A loud  quark  from behind them caught Bardhyl's attention - looking round, he saw three of the resident ravens perched on the ridge of Marjan's roof. They stared straight back at him, their glossy feathers catching the last rays of the sun.

"Creepy bloody things," said Waldon. "What are you feedin' em, to get crows that big?"

 ~ 
Just as Wadim had said, when the sun went down, three of the Tileans' servants could be seen leaving the hall. Waiting around a corner, out of sight of the guards, Bardhyl accosted one of them as she came his way.

"Oh!" she said, startled. She was clearly ill at ease with being stopped by watchers lying in wait on this narrow street, but she seemed to recognise Bardhyl - from the ceremony, he supposed. "Who - w-what do you want?"


 

 Sieghard, 19th Sommerzeit 

Hanna exchanged a quick glance with Thom. "Things haven't changed much since I sent Thom north," she said. "Sussman's got us camped out here to keep eyes on the camp. He comes out here most days to try to talk them down, but the numbers keep on growing. Seems like word's spreading up the Vale, and everyone who doesn't want to pay the Prince's tax is hearing this is the place to take a stand. Which is pretty much everyone, the way it looks."

She hesitated, weighing what to say next. "Honestly, sir, I'm not sure what there is you can do. These people are determined. I've seen them talk with Sussman - the most he's been able to get out of them was to release Herr Ardelean. That's the miller here - they were holding him prisoner on account of him being the one holding the grain for the taxmen."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I'm going to say a narrow fail is still a fail on the CK test there, since Sieghard is from outside the Reaches (and on the north side). Maybe Sussman (or someone else) will tell you if you ask!
 
LeSwordfish
 Ludo, 20th Sommerzeit 
 "I'm just passing through,"  Ludo said.  "Headed back to Painford. Was hoping to spend the night here but that might not be such a good idea... how long will you be staying, or are you heading out tonight?" 
LCP
 Ludo, 20th Sommerzeit 

Alonso shook his head. "Got to get these wagons loaded and back to the city," he said. "I think we go tomorrow."

A loud Tilean shout made him look away. There was a man that Ludo felt sure was the leader of this troop, gesticulating furiously at Alonso to get back to work. Looking far more deferential than before, Alonso obeyed. This was Ludo's opportunity - either to take things further up the chain, or to slip away unnoticed.
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

"Hang around outside the hall at sundown, and you ought to catch some of them heading home," said Wadim. He looked up at the evening light coming in through one of the narrow windows. "That should be pretty soon, I'd imagine."

Rising from his seat, he patted Bardhyl on the shoulder. "Good to see you back," he said. "If you need me, I'll be - well, I'll be around," he said. The old man pulled his cloak close around himself and headed back into the open air, dismissing the watcher at the door with a nod of his hooded head.

When Bardhyl and his band rose to follow, Wadim had already disappeared into the winding streets of the town. A loud  quark  from behind them caught Bardhyl's attention - looking round, he saw three of the resident ravens perched on the ridge of Marjan's roof. They stared straight back at him, their glossy feathers catching the last rays of the sun.

"Creepy bloody things," said Waldon. "What are you feedin' em, to get crows that big?" 
 

 Before leaving, Bardhyl spoke to Marjan.  "Marjan, would you object to my friends and I camping on your floor while we're in town? And we'll need four flasks of kefir to go,"  he added.

 Outside 
 "They're ravens, Waldon, not crows, and they're Morr's messengers. We don't need to feed them anything - they find their food where they will,"  Bardhyl answered with a grin.

 "Now listen, all of you. We're going to go about this just like any other job. I'm not yet convinced that we'll be able to break in to the hall, but it's worth finding out everything we can about what the Tileans are doing in there and what their schedule's like. So tonight, I want volunteers to keep watch on those guards Wadim mentioned. I want to know how alert they are, how often they change, and if there's a way to sneak up on them or to rush them and get inside - you know the drill. If any patrolling Tileans start pestering you, you're out enjoying the cool night air and trying the local beverage - that's what the  kefir  is for. And remember, we're  not  troublemakers. Kiss their arses as much as you need to placate them,"  he smirked.


 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 Just as Wadim had said, when the sun went down, three of the Tileans' servants could be seen leaving the hall. Waiting around a corner, out of sight of the guards, Bardhyl accosted one of them as she came his way.

"Oh!" she said, startled. She was clearly ill at ease with being stopped by watchers lying in wait on this narrow street, but she seemed to recognise Bardhyl - from the ceremony, he supposed. "Who - w-what do you want?" 
 

  "Just to walk with you and make sure you make it home safely,"  Bardhyl replied with a friendly smile.  "The name's Bardhyl. You may remember me from the last time I was in town - there was quite a feast,"  he chuckled.  "What may I call you?" 
 
 Spoiler 
Seems like an opportune time for a Charm test to convince the lady that Bardhyl's intentions are nothing but honourable...

 (1d100)[ 14 ]  vs. 68 (Fel 58, Charm +10)

FP re-roll if necessary  (1d100)[ 19 ] 
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" You might be right, " Sieghard admitted. " But you and I can both guess how things are likely to end if they're still gathered here by the time Sussman's message reaches the prince and he sends his Iron Company. Maybe I fail, but at least I can try. " He glanced towards the farmers' camp and then back. " If there's nothing new to report, then I'll return in the morning. "

Sieghard returned to the fort for the night. When he woke, he changed into his fine clothes and had a quick breakfast before walking back towards the camp. He had intentionally left his sword behind, though he kept his dagger tucked in his boot. When he came into sight, he waved to the first man to notice him and called out. " Good morning! I heard you lot were having a bit of trouble! "
LCP
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

"Your coin's as good as anyone's," said Marjan.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Have added a price list for Marjan's to the front page of the OOC.
 

Outside, Damjan and Zana were the first to raise their hands and volunteer. Bardhyl sensed a little more reluctance from the members of his band who weren't  vrani  themselves. Even he had to admit, if he was hoping to convince them there were riches in the offing, Morr's Seat wasn't the best place to start.

When the others had made themselves scarce, he found a place near the hall himself to lie in wait alone.


  "The name's Bardhyl. You may remember me from the last time I was in town - there was quite a feast,"  he chuckled.  "What may I call you?"  

"Yes - yes, I remember. You're the one who brought back the Raven Speaker." The girl's face coloured a little. She was young - she would have been a child at the time of Bardhyl's exile. "I didn't know you were back."

"My name's Roza," she said. "And I don't need guarding. I walk this way every night." It wasn't a rebuke, just a statement of fact. Her confidence had returned very quickly. "Do you often wait in dark alleys to see strangers home?"


 

 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit 

The next morning, he found Sussman in the yard again, this time talking to one of the local traders at the gate. Seeing Sieghard saddling his horse, he asked where he was going.

"Ah. I wasn't planning on going to the mill today, but if you're heading out there, maybe I'll tag along," he said. "Just to observe, you know? I'd be interested if they take any of it differently coming from you. Meaning no offence - just, you know, you've got the better face for being an enforcer." He made his hands into fists, gave a mock scowl, and laughed.

Saddling his own horse, he accompanied Sieghard as far as Hanna's camp. Pausing briefly to chat with the soldiers there, he took two of them and followed Sieghard just a little way towards the mill, hanging back at the edge of earshot. "Good luck," he said, as he drew his horse to a halt. "Ranald knows we need some."

Now in broad daylight, Sieghard could see the full extent of the numbers gathered around the foot of the mill. A hundred had been conservative - this looked closer to two hundred. Men and women, young and old, the once-green field was as busy as a town on market day. Among the motley collection of tents, the picketers were cooking, working, talking - and, when they saw Sussman, singing.

 They hang the man and flog the woman
Who steals the goose from off the common
But leave the greater villain loose
Who steals the common from the goose 

A big man with bushy sideburns saw Sieghard approaching, and came to meet him.


 " Good morning! I heard you lot were having a bit of trouble! " 

"Bit of trouble," he said, slowly. "That's one way of putting it, I suppose."

He looked Sieghard up and down. In his fine clothes, Sieghard was not the image of the armoured warrior that most people might have of the Warden of the Thornwood.

"Who're you, then? Friend of Steffan's?"

Behind him, the singers were still going.

 The law demands that we atone
When we take things we do not own
But leaves the lords and ladies fine
Who take things that are yours and mine... 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Tag along if you liked, " Sieghard replied. " Just keep your distance. Can't imagine they have the fondest opinion of you right now given the situation. "

When the singing began, he started to regret allowing Sussman to come with. " I know him, " Sieghard answered, wary of linking himself too closely to Sussman. " My name's Sieghard, " he said, offering his hand. " I was hoping we could find a way to solve your problem. "

 
 Spoiler 
May as well throw in an initial charm roll, not as any sort of make or break thing, but just for first impressions.

 (1d100)[ 69 ]  vs 54
 
LCP
 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit 

"That so?" said the man. "Well, ain't that what we're all hopin'."

He sounded skeptical. Not budging from where he stood, he looked Sieghard up and down. "You aren't here sellin' magic beans, are you? Only I oughter warn you - last feller who tried somethin' like that, he got himself tied up to the old signpost at Handrich's Cross. Three days afore anybody cut 'im down."
LeSwordfish
 Ludo, 20th Sommerzeit 
 "I'll take a spare bed and keep moving when you go, then."  Ludo said.  "Best wishes to your girl in Alvarran." 

He spent a night on stable straw - not the worst he'd experienced, a real 8/10 stable - with the plan of proceeding back to Painford the next day. Being back with his people for the full moon was too important - but he did vow internally to be back soon.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo's keeping his nose out of this for a week or so, heading back to Painford at least until the full moon and whatever disaster it brings.

The only thing I specifically want to do in Painford - probably the day after returning back - is to make a bit of a speech to the locals, including his plans for entering the timber industry and a general encouragement to keep their chins up. If you don't have any surprises for the 21st or 22nd, i'm happy to write all the way to that (or to go on pause until everyone else is caught up).
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard smirked " No, nothing like that. If I had those I'd be keeping them for myself. " he said. " I just wanted to talk. Hear your grievances and try to work from there. "
LCP
 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit 

"Hear our grievances," the man deadpanned back at Sieghard. "Look around you, mate. You can see our grievances." He motioned around them, at the devastation left by the locusts.

"You want to talk, you can talk," he said, "but Herr Sussman over yonder's been talking his jaw off, and it makes no difference. Talk can't bring the harvest back, and according to him, it's the  Prince's law  that we've got to give up what stores we've got left." He raised his dark eyebrows at Sieghard. "You reckon he's wrong?"
-Sentinel-
 Elsa, 17th Sommerzeit 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 Elsa woke from the daydream with a start. She’d dozed off midway through making notes - but as she wiped the ink off her face, she saw that her handwriting hadn’t trailed off where she remembered. Instead it continued, her scribbled Reikspiel morphing into scratched Nehekharan hieroglyphs that ran on well past the point where the quill had run dry. With a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach, she recognised them - they were the same glyphs that had burned themselves into her vision from the pages of the book. 
 

Elsa stared at the hieroglyphs with a bone-deep dread. Did the Book hook a claw into her mind somehow, despite all the measures she had taken to protect herself? It was a disquieting thought.

 And all the more reason to see it destroyed. 

She refilled her cup of wine, and resumed her studies with renewed determination. She was largely stumbling in the dark, but in her experience, there was nothing that could not be destroyed. It was just a matter of employing enough violence; something at which  Aqshy  excelled.


 

 Elsa and Urgrim, 18th Sommerzeit 


The next morning, Elsa fetched Urgrim from the house he had claimed for himself, and pulled Tatiana away from her horse-riding lessons to Olga.

 "Listen to me carefully,"  she said, once they were gathered in her study.  "I think I'm on to something. But it'll be complex, and it'll be expensive. All rituals are. I'm going to need both of you to help me do the most important thing I've ever done, and likely ever will." 

She took a deep breath.  "There's a certain number of things we need to gather. Things that may be... hard to find." 

She handed them her list of required materials, neatly written on a sheet of parchment. They included such eclectic things as four tall bronze braziers, an exquisitely-crafted pair of scissors with obsidian blades, two pounds of sun-bleached bones, over a score of books, plus some odds and ends. There were also some helpful or explanatory notes accompanying each entry, such as the volcanic cracks of the Dead Hills being a good place to fetch the earth's fire or look for obsidian; the presence of many raven skulls in Morr's Seat; and how the subject matter and value of the books mattered less than their number.

 "I'd love to be able to entrust this task to Esteban's men,"  Elsa went on, once Urgrim and Tatiana had had a bit of time to go over the list,  "but I'm not sure I can. When I ask for volcano fire, some of them seem the kind to bring me fire from the kitchen of the nearest inn, thinking the Aethyr can be fooled. I know you two won't settle for anything less than the real deal—Urgrim, you're a  dawi , and your spoken vows might as well be carved in stone; Tatiana, you know how finicky magic can be." 

She rolled up the parchment and handed it to Urgrim.

 "I suppose I don't need to tell you that secrecy is paramount. We don't know where the Jackal has eyes and ears. Tell only the people who can get you closer to the items on this list, and even then, tell them only what they need to know—unless they're fully involved in our war, like Sieghard, Ludo, the more senior Thorns, Wadim, Bardhyl, Clan Dwimmulson, Frau Schreiber, and Father Hieronymus. Them, you should enlist, if you can; they'll help us get things done quicker, ideally a month. Urgrim, I'm giving you a hundred and fifty crowns for expenses, but it won't be enough. Ask Sieghard for more... or if you  really  have to, borrow from the Dwimmulsons in my name. I don't care how deep in debt this gets me. If I have to spend the rest of my life paying back what I owe, it'll still be worth it. Assuming my ritual succeeds, that is." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" I reckon that's what the prince wants. I also reckon he doesn't know your situation and I've got a better chance of having him listen than Sussman does or any of you do. I  am  the man who killed the orc king for him after all. " It wasn't much of a chance, but Sieghard didn't need to admit that.

 
 Spoiler 
Assuming Herr Eyebrows is still fine with it, Sieghard will try to spend some time speaking with the farmers trying to get them to open up about their situation and their problems. This is a show of good faith rather than out of any need to gather information. Sussman's been talking his jaw off, Sieghard is willing to listen. I imagine this might take a while. Throughout this, Sieghard is also going to try to find out if the farmers have any sort of leader among them and try to get an introduction.

 (1d100)[ 80 ]  vs 54 Charm
 (1d100)[ 12 ]  reroll if needed
 
LCP
 Elsa, 17th Sommerzeit 

Tatiana listened attentively to Elsa's instructions. She'd been doing better since arriving in Caerfort, Elsa thought - something about the open terrain of the Iron Claw Hills seemed to make her feel more at home. She read the list closely, squinting a little - reading still wasn't second nature to her.

"Where do you want us to look first?" she asked.


 

 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit 

The man’s eyebrows stayed raised.  “Well la-di-da,”  Sieghard thought he heard him murmur under his breath. “Heard about the orcslayer. You don't look like I thought you would.”

Despite his antagonistic manner, he let Sieghard pass when he asked. “You go where you please, sir,” he said. “We ain't got nothing to hide.”

Roaming around the camp, Sieghard was struck by the sense of community around him. These people could only have been here a week at most, but they seemed to be pulling together as hard as his people in Painford. Food, drink, work - all of it was being shared.

The stories they told when he stopped to speak to them were broadly the same. Ardelean’s mill was the biggest in the Vale; every month, he would buy some of their grain in exchange for a share of the flour. This year, however, he had told them he could only give back what was left after the Prince’s tax had been deducted. For many of them, it was the first they had heard of the new law.

“This is the last of last year's stores we’re running down now,” said one farmer. “If we give ‘em away we’ll be down to eating grass. That's where there's grass left to eat.”

“We ain’t never had to pay a tax like this before,” said another. “Why should our grain go to feed folk in the Downs? Can’t they grow their own?”

They didn’t appear to have a singular leader, but through a series of roundabout conversations, Sieghard identified three people among them who seemed to command the most attention. The first was a stern woman by the name of Marien, who had apparently been the first voice to set up the picketing of the mill. The second was an older man called Gerhardt. With a slight frame and a long white beard, he looked more like a wizard than a farmer - but he was apparently a much-respected elder among the communities who had come down from the north-east end of the Vale.

The third was someone he recognised. Lottie Cinderhill, the halfling, seemed to be leading the itinerant workers and farmhands who had joined the settled farmers in the camp. An uncharitable person might have said she had trouble staying out of trouble.
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

"Yes - yes, I remember. You're the one who brought back the Raven Speaker." The girl's face coloured a little. She was young - she would have been a child at the time of Bardhyl's exile. "I didn't know you were back."

"My name's Roza," she said. "And I don't need guarding. I walk this way every night." It wasn't a rebuke, just a statement of fact. Her confidence had returned very quickly. "Do you often wait in dark alleys to see strangers home?" 
 

  "Not so much as I used to, and then my intentions were often a little less charitable. It's a hard life, you see, making your way in the world as one of the  nevid ,"  Bardhyl answered with a mischievous smile.

 "Now, thanks to the Raven Speaker, my circumstances have changed for the better, but I find myself wondering if the same can be said for our people,"  he continued in an altogether more serious tone.  "I find myself with time on my hands, you see, so I've been watching and listening to get the lay of the land. Shall we walk?"  he asked, gesturing down the street.

 "When I returned with the Raven Speaker it seemed to me that all was not well in the hills. The goats should've been put out to pasture this time of year - instead they were all clustered around Morr's Seat. Now the Downlands have been stripped bare by locusts, and I hear that the Prince has commanded that all the people of his realm must give more to keep his soldiers fed. That seems to me like a recipe for even greater hardship for the  vrani . But perhaps I'm wrong to be worried. You work for the Tileans - have you overheard anything that could put my mind at ease?" 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

"All I do in there is cook, clean and carry," said Roza, getting a little defensive. "What are you hoping I could tell you? That they're only collecting it all to throw the town a surprise party?"
rax
 16th Sommerzeit 
 "And there's nothing wrong with that. I'm not one to begrudge anyone paying work,"  Bardhyl assured Roza when she defended her work.  "I suppose a surprise party would be too much to hope for though,"  he grinned.

 "Does it seem fair to you, though? That we should have to give up what little we have for the benefit of the Prince's army?" 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

"What kind of a question is that?" asked Roza. "Of course it's not  fair . Fair doesn't come into it."

"I'm not a child," she said. "I'm doing what I have to to survive, same as everyone else here. I don't have to like it, and neither do you. So what are you bothering me for?" She clearly wasn't short on confidence. "You got something better?"
rax
 16th Sommerzeit 
 "As a matter of fact, I believe I do, but I need your help to make it happen,"  Bardhyl answered honestly.  "Suppose there was a way to do  more  than survive. Would you be up for that?" 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

"Well, isn't that as clear as fog," she said. "If you want something you should ask it, sir. Otherwise, I am going home, and I'll bid you goodnight."
rax
 16th Sommerzeit 

Bardhyl's teeth gleamed white in the dark as Roza challenged him.   The girl's got nerve. Be a shame to have to kill her,   he thought.

 "Fair enough. I'm going to get rid of the Tileans and make sure we  vrani  rule ourselves again. You can help by telling me everything I want to know about what they get up to inside that hall,"  he said.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard shrugged. " I'd look more like what you imagined in full armor, " he replied. " But that wouldn't be much help here. "

As Sieghard went about the camp, he let those who were willing speak and shared that things were just as hard in the north and that he was doing what he could to help as many make it through the famine as possible. When he had finished, he made his way to where Lottie was working. He knew that the halfling wasn't fond of him, but a familiar face might still be better than one of the strangers. And if nothing else, he knew she could be trusted where the wellbeing of the farmers was concerned.

" Frau Cinderhill, I hope you're doing well, " he said. " Is there somewhere we could talk? Somewhere a bit quieter, I mean. There's news that I think you should hear. "
LCP
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

Roza stopped in her tracks, staring at Bardhyl through the evening gloom. "You mean it, don't you?" she said. "Morr above."

She glanced over her shoulder, as if she thought one of the Tileans might be following them.

"What is it you want to know?"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
If you can give me a list of questions, I'll give you what Roza knows. Bear in mind though that she's not going to be super keen on hanging around outdoors in the dark for too long, so better to keep the total amount of questioning short + to the point, unless you want to move the conversation elsewhere.
 


 

 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit  

Lottie jumped when she saw Sieghard. "Argh! It's  you ," she said. She looked around, searching for any sign of a troop of soldiers about to descend. Seeing none, she looked back to Sieghard, narrowing her eyes in suspicion.

"And where's 'somewhere quieter'?" she demanded. "Somewhere your heavies can stuff me into a sack? There's nothing you can say to me that you can't say in front of these people." She put her hands on her hips, looking up at Sieghard with a pugnacious air. "What are you doing here, anyway?"
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  
 This is off to a good start 

" I'm trying to help, believe it or not, " Sieghard said. " And it's not them hearing I'm worried about. Just hear what I have to say and then you can decide who needs to know and the best way to tell them. Somewhere quieter can be anywhere you like, just so long as it's that. "

 
 Spoiler 
Throwing in another charm to convince her of that much. Sieghard will say what he's gonna say regardless, but I'm going forward under the assumption that success = she agrees to talk somewhere relatively private and faulire = Sieghard has to say it right here. I'll edit things slightly if that's not the case.

 (1d100)[ 61 ]  vs 56
 


Sieghard sighed in frustration. " Fine, have it your way. " He kept his voice low and began.

" I know Sussman's been up here a lot lately trying to talk all of you into giving up the grain. " He noticed Lottie getting ready to say something quickly held up a hand to cut her off. " That ain't why  I'm  here - he didn't send me and taxing Manaan's Keep's not my problem. Anyways, I'm sure Sussman's been giving all sorts of warnings about why you have to and what the Prince'll do and how bad it'll be if you don't. What I'm guessing he hasn't told you is by now, word will have already reached Savonne. If I had to guess, I'd say you've got a week at most before his Iron Company marches down here to take the grain by force. I'm not telling you to give up what stores you have left, but I am telling you you've got to do  something . A bunch of farmers aren't going to stop them and if you're all still gathered here refusing them when they get here, things will get ugly fast. "
LCP
 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit 

“You think these people don't know that?” said Lottie. “Look around you. These people have spent their whole lives knuckling under for one bunch of men with swords or another. They know what happens when you stand up to them, but they're still here.”

“What's your grand plan, take the taxes and run? Your Prince’s men will just come for the villages next. At least here we’re together.”
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" And what good will that do when the Iron Company shows up? " Sieghard asked. " Stick together in a big group like this and all you do is tell them where the people refusing to give them what they want are. "

" The Prince can't take your grain if he doesn't know where it is, " he said. " He doesn't know how much you have. Hide your stores and say the locusts ate all of it. If you don't want to get a bunch of people killed, that'll work far better than singing songs at them. "
LCP
  Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit  

"Right," said Lottie. "And they won't then come into people's houses and take the stuff anyway, because... why, exactly?"

She looked over towards where the woman Marien had her tent. "Even if we could hide it," she said, "your mate Stefan Sussman knows exactly how much there is. That was his bright idea that kicked off the whole thing - only telling people about the grain tax when they'd already brought it to the mill."
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

Roza stopped in her tracks, staring at Bardhyl through the evening gloom. "You mean it, don't you?" she said. "Morr above."

She glanced over her shoulder, as if she thought one of the Tileans might be following them.

"What is it you want to know?"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
If you can give me a list of questions, I'll give you what Roza knows. Bear in mind though that she's not going to be super keen on hanging around outdoors in the dark for too long, so better to keep the total amount of questioning short + to the point, unless you want to move the conversation elsewhere.
 
 
 

 Bardhyl grinned savagely in reply.  "Every word of it,"  he confirmed.

 "We should get off the street though. It wouldn't do for the Tileans to see me speaking to you at length. Their sergeant seems to think I'm some sort of troublemaker - wouldn't want that impression to rub off on you,"  he chuckled.  "How about your place? Is it safe to talk there?" 
 OOC: 
 
 Spoiler 
Since it seems that the women leave the hall when their working day is done, Roza probably doesn't know the answers to all the questions below, but Bardhyl's hoping she might know some of them through second-hand information, e.g. by listening to the soldiers talk.

1. Do any of the women working for the Tileans stay the night? Bardhyl's heard there are six of them, but only three left the building at sundown.
2. Are the doors to the hall barred and/or locked at night?
3. Are there any entrances which aren't barred or could at least be more easily be opened from the inside?
4. Do the Tileans keep watch at night or does everyone not on duty outside the hall go to sleep?
5. Do the Tieans keep a fire going during the night?
6. If Bardhyl gets her some drawing materials, can Roza draw a map of the inside of the hall, showing where the Tileans eat, sleep and keep their arms and armour?
7. How are things during daytime? What do the Tileans who aren't patrolling the town do? Are they alert or relaxed? Are the entrances to the hall open or are they locked/barred?
8. Where do the Tileans keep their own food and water supplies? Is everything kept inside the hall or is some of it kept in a separate building outside?
9. In her estimation, how difficult would it be to bring in and conceal some extra supplies?
10. How long would the Tileans' food and water supplies last if they were locked in the hall and unable to leave?
11. How did the Tileans recruit the serving women?
12. Roza seems like a tough cookie. What would it take for her to take practical action against the Tileans?
13. Does she believe any of the other women would be prepared to do so? If so, who?
14. Has she observed any friction between the Tileans? Do any of them seem dissatisfied with their posting, comrades or leadership?
15. Have any of the Tileans displayed any particular weaknesses, e.g. drinking, gambling, drugs, women?
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard shrugged. " Let them come in, " he replied " If the food's hidden where they can't find it and no one gives them reason to get violent, what's the worst they're gonna do? "

Sussman posed a greater problem. " I suppose it would be his word against what the soldiers can actually see. Did he actually take stock of everything? Who has how much? "
LCP
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

Roza's home was a long, low hut near the wall, much like all the others. Inside it smelt of smoke and wool grease. An old woman sat close to the fire, her knees drawn up in front of her chest.

"Who's that?" she called out. "Roza? Who's that with you?"

"His name's Bardhyl, grandmother. He's - he's a friend."

The old woman squinted at him in silence for four, maybe five seconds. Then she chuckled to herself.

"Bardhyl! I've seen yer. I've seen  all  of yer." She turned back to the fire, ladling some thin porridge out of the pot that was bubbling there, and offered it to him. "Nice that our Roza's making friends."

Roza gave the old woman a look, and she said no more. Looking around, Bardhyl could see from the sleeping arrangements that at least six people lived in this little house. Two children were sleeping in the corner. The other adults - if adults they were - must have been out.

Finding the quietest spot they could, he and Roza sat down to talk.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 

 1. Do any of the women working for the Tileans stay the night? Bardhyl's heard there are six of them, but only three left the building at sundown. 

They don't all work there every day. Roza doesn't know of anyone working a night shift. She won't say if anyone stays the night for other reasons - she's being protective, because people get abuse for sleeping with the occupiers. You can test Charm at -20 if you want to try to get past that.


 2. Are the doors to the hall barred and/or locked at night?
[...]
4. Do the Tileans keep watch at night or does everyone not on duty outside the hall go to sleep?
5. Do the Tieans keep a fire going during the night? 

Roza's not there at night, she doesn't know.


 3. Are there any entrances which aren't barred or could at least be more easily be opened from the inside?
[...]
6. If Bardhyl gets her some drawing materials, can Roza draw a map of the inside of the hall, showing where the Tileans eat, sleep and keep their arms and armour?
[...]
8. Where do the Tileans keep their own food and water supplies? Is everything kept inside the hall or is some of it kept in a separate building outside? 

Bardhyl's almost certainly been inside the hall himself (albeit a long time ago). Roza can help refresh his memory, but the layout is not complicated. There's one massive room up front, and a single corridor with a few private rooms at the back. The Tileans sleep in the main hall, where they also keep their kit. Their stores + the goods they're collecting as tax they keep in one of the back rooms.


 7. How are things during daytime? What do the Tileans who aren't patrolling the town do? Are they alert or relaxed? Are the entrances to the hall open or are they locked/barred? 

Orso has his 30 men split into 3 squads, with 2 on-duty at any time. The on-duty squad that is not on patrol handles incoming stores and any other manual labour Orso needs, and spends the rest of their time in drills and training. The off-duty squad is off-duty; they come and go as they please, doing personal errands or finding ways to entertain themselves. Often they hang around the hall, but they also go out into the town.


 9. In her estimation, how difficult would it be to bring in and conceal some extra supplies? 

Something small (like a knapsack) would be easy. A large amount of stuff might catch the Tileans' attention, but if you were happy with them looking at it you could say you were bringing taxes for collection.


 10. How long would the Tileans' food and water supplies last if they were locked in the hall and unable to leave? 

Their tax collection activities mean they have a lot of stored food, waiting for transport. Nobody pays their taxes in water, though. There might be some beer or  kefir  in the stores they've collected. Roza doesn't know for sure.


 11. How did the Tileans recruit the serving women? 

The normal way, with money.


 12. Roza seems like a tough cookie. What would it take for her to take practical action against the Tileans?
13. Does she believe any of the other women would be prepared to do so? If so, who? 

Roza won't endanger herself unnecessarily. She'll help you if what you're asking doesn't put her in danger of being caught and punished. If you want her to do something more, you can give it another Charm test. Even with an 01 on Charm, though, she won't do anything suicidal - her upper limit is doing something risky if she believes that it will bring about the downfall of the Tileans  before  they can punish her.

She hasn't sounded out the other servants; planning an uprising isn't something they've talked about.


 14. Has she observed any friction between the Tileans? Do any of them seem dissatisfied with their posting, comrades or leadership?
15. Have any of the Tileans displayed any particular weaknesses, e.g. drinking, gambling, drugs, women? 

Orso and his troop arrived as reinforcements for the first group of Tileans who came here. That squad was smaller (~10 men), and lost their sergeant to a coughing sickness. They behaved with less discipline and were living it up at the locals' expense. Orso's arrival has clipped their wings a bit - he's not a bleeding heart, but he understands that giving his men free rein to take advantage of the locals makes it harder to do his job. The member of the old squad who assumed informal leadership after their sergeant's death is a younger Tilean called Bartolomeo. He appears to have knuckled under for now, but he and his cronies would presumably still be drinking and womanising if they thought they could get away with it.

Orso also brought a number of non-Tileans with him - recruits from the Shepherd's Valley. They are worse equipped, made to train longer and harder, and generally treated as junior to the Tilean veterans. They have much more local antipathy to the  vrani  than the Tileans do, and so tend to vent their frustrations by throwing their weight around when the Tileans aren't present.
 


 

 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit 

"It's  food  we're talking about, not..." she trailed off in search of a comparison, shaking her hands expressively "...not...  jewels  or something. Everyone needs it! Every day! You think everyone here's got a, a secret pantry under the floor? Or that your soldier friends aren't going to notice that people with no food are still eating somehow?"

"I don't know what Sussman knows, I just know that he knows. I don't know 'who has how much' either. Go ask, if you want. You'll be here 'til Sonnstille - it's practically the whole Vale that's turned out." She sounded proud of that. "And I think we're stronger together than we are apart."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Are you stronger than the Iron Company though? " Sieghard asked " Because if you want to talk about it in terms of strength, that's what it comes down to. "

" Look, Lottie, I know you don't like me, but I'm trying to help. I don't want people starving and I don't want people getting killed for their food either. If what I'm saying wont work, then work with me and try to come up with something that will. "

 
 Spoiler 
Charm roll to try to get Lottie to see reason on this and be less confrontational about the whole thing.

 (1d100)[ 23 ]  vs 54
 (1d100)[ 15 ]  reroll
 
LCP
 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit  

Lottie tensed, setting her jaw - then seemed to deflate. Something in Sieghard's words had got through to her.

"Look," she said, lowering her voice. "I remember what you did with Armin, in the hills. I believe you, that you're trying to stop people getting hurt. But you're living in a dream world - your dream is that there's some way out of this that doesn't involve telling your Prince 'no'."

She turned to gesture to the camp at large. "Suppose you did have some trick. Some way to stop them taking what they came for, that you could get...  hundreds  of people who don't know you from Ranald to do right. Suppose it works perfectly. Is the Prince just going to get bored and give up? Or is he going to keep squeezing until he gets what he wants?" She shrugged. "You know him better than me, but is he really the kind of man to give up that easily?"

"The only way this stops - the only way most of these people live through the winter - is if he understands it has to. And if that means facing down his soldiers, that's what people here are prepared to do. There's more people turning up here every day. What are they going to do, kill half the Vale?"
rax
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 
 "You and half of Morr's Seat, grandmother! Hope you enjoyed the show!"  Bardhyl laughed.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
 They don't all work there every day. Roza doesn't know of anyone working a night shift. She won't say if anyone stays the night for other reasons - she's being protective, because people get abuse for sleeping with the occupiers. You can test Charm at -20 if you want to try to get past that. 

I'll give that a pass for now. Bardhyl already suspects some of the women may be sleeping with the soldiers and he doesn't hold that against them. He thinks that trying to involve any women who've gotten that close to the soldiers would be too risky.

 Orso has his 30 men split into 3 squads, with 2 on-duty at any time. The on-duty squad that is not on patrol handles incoming stores and any other manual labour Orso needs, and spends the rest of their time in drills and training. The off-duty squad is off-duty; they come and go as they please, doing personal errands or finding ways to entertain themselves. Often they hang around the hall, but they also go out into the town. 

Okay, then it might be worthwhile to track the off-duty soldiers for a day or two to see who tends to leave the hall and where they go. If the vrani attack during the day, it will be important to take them out in order to prevent them from reinforcing the on duty soldiers or escaping from town.

 Something small (like a knapsack) would be easy. A large amount of stuff might catch the Tileans' attention, but if you were happy with them looking at it you could say you were bringing taxes for collection. 

I'm coming round to the idea of causing food poisoning. Bringing some rancid meat to put in a stew should be doable then. Are the Tileans taking any meat as taxes or only live animals?

 Roza won't endanger herself unnecessarily. She'll help you if what you're asking doesn't put her in danger of being caught and punished. If you want her to do something more, you can give it another Charm test. Even with an 01 on Charm, though, she won't do anything suicidal - her upper limit is doing something risky if she believes that it will bring about the downfall of the Tileans  before  they can punish her. 

If Bardhyl goes ahead with the food poisoning gambit, then he'd want her cooking or at least supervising the meal in question. Actually bringing in the meat could be handled by whoever's usually responsible for that, assuming they're vrani who'd be willing the help out.

 She hasn't sounded out the other servants; planning an uprising isn't something they've talked about. 

Fair. I was thinking she might have overheard someone's honest opinions about the Tileans, but I could understand if they're not that open with each other.

 Orso and his troop arrived as reinforcements for the first group of Tileans who came here. That squad was smaller (~10 men), and lost their sergeant to a coughing sickness. They behaved with less discipline and were living it up at the locals' expense. Orso's arrival has clipped their wings a bit - he's not a bleeding heart, but he understands that giving his men free rein to take advantage of the locals makes it harder to do his job. The member of the old squad who assumed informal leadership after their sergeant's death is a younger Tilean called Bartolomeo. He appears to have knuckled under for now, but he and his cronies would presumably still be drinking and womanising if they thought they could get away with it.

Orso also brought a number of non-Tileans with him - recruits from the Shepherd's Valley. They are worse equipped, made to train longer and harder, and generally treated as junior to the Tilean veterans. They have much more local antipathy to the  vrani  than the Tileans do, and so tend to vent their frustrations by throwing their weight around when the Tileans aren't present. 

Hmm, not much there that could provide Bardhyl with leverage in the short term. Probably best not to waste time trying to cultivate one or more soldiers as a source or double agent.
 
LeSwordfish
 Ludo, 21st Sommerzeit 
Ludo fretted most of the way back to Painford. At about four o'clock in the morning he had woken in a panic and scurried outside to stare up at the moon - but there was no sign of Morrslieb in the sky. He had slept fitfully from then on, and although leaving Arrow Heap to Sforza's mercy - without even looking any of the people in the face - felt bad, he couldn't have forgiven himself for not being there if something else had happened in Painford. He rode as hard as Lumpin could manage back to town, even though he knew it wouldn't be a full moon until it was the night, and ended up there early in the afternoon, confused to find Jarla present and not Sieghard.

 "You tipped Rudi off, right?"  he asked her that evening, quietly.  "Thank you. It's maybe made things a bit more complicated but... I thought he'd never come." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard thought back to the last conversation he had with Elsa.   There's nothing green left in the Downlands... Prince Sforza is more concerned with finding people to scapegoat than feeding everyone...   That was what she had said.

"  Yes , " came the blunt answer Sieghard gave to Lottie's rhetorical question. " Either with swords or starvation, they'll do what Sforza orders and in the end, that'll be what happens. The man is blind to anything outside of his own goals and if he has to starve the entire Reaches just to stay Prince over a wasteland, he'll do it without a second thought. "

" You say it like it's so simple, " he said. " Just tell him 'no'. If you tell him no, he has you beaten or killed and he takes what he wants. If  I  tell him no, it starts another war. One that I'm not likely to win and even if I somehow did, one that'll end in a lot more dead and no end to the famine. "

" Strength is his strength, not yours. Oppose him by being 'stronger together', and he'll crush however many people he has to until the rest submit. " Sieghard eased his tone a bit. " To get these people through this, you need to play to  your  strengths, not against his. "
LCP
 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit 

“ He’s just a man! ”

So far, no-one had been paying the two of them much attention - but as Lottie raised her voice in frustration, several people turned their heads to see who she was talking to.

“You talk about him as if he’s a giant! The only  strength  he’s got comes from people like you! And if you won't say no when he orders you to, to rob people and beat people and kill people, then what's the point of acting like you care?” She held Sieghard with an accusatory stare. “If no-one ever stands up to him, then what are we supposed to do? Pray for Shallya to give him a change of heart? Or wait for him to die of old age?”

She paused for a while, catching her breath. When she spoke again, it was at a more normal volume.

“I don't know why you're bothering, anyway,” she said. “I’m not in charge. No-one is, really.” Finally breaking eye contact, she looked around. “But people here will starve if he gets what he wants. If it's death either way, we might as well die standing up for something.”
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Because I talked to them and they trust you, " Sieghard replied, wincing at the unwanted attention Lottie's outburst had drawn. " That's  your  strength and it's not one you should sell short. Maybe no one made you their leader, but I'd wager a good number of them would follow you anyways. There's other options than fight or starve and a lot of lives could be saved if they could be convinced of it. "

" And for what it's worth, I don't want you to give him what he wants, " he continued. " If he ordered me to take it, I wouldn't do it. I'd find another way that leaves people with enough to eat... Lie about how much there is... Fob him off and waste his time to keep as much as I could out of his hands... Mix sawdust into what flour I had to give him... If I ran out of options, then yes, I'd refuse him to his face, but only when I was out of options. And if it did come to that, I'd make sure I could deal with what comes after on my terms and not his. "

 
 Spoiler 
Would another charm test matter here? If so, let me know and I'll roll it OOC. She's been stubborn to the point where I'm not sure there's much more I can say to actually convince her. I've not given up, but if she's a dead end, I might have to see if Marien or Gerhardt are more open to taking a third option.
 
LCP
 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit 

Lottie gave Sieghard a certain look when he told her she was 'selling herself short'.

"You think he's so hard to fight, but so easy to fool?" she said. She shook her head. "Like people wouldn't be punished for lying just the same."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Sieghard's Charm test has succeeded in convincing her that he is on her side. To convince her that his plan is better... yes, you've chosen someone with strong convictions, but also Sieghard's plan is hella vague.

You have two fundamental problems here:

1. Sforza's tax is an absolute quantity. He did not say 'give me x% of your grain', he said 'give me x tons of grain'. That's very difficult to defraud. The only way 'we don't have enough to pay you' works is by depending on the humanity and discretion of the tax collector. That is pretty much the same calculation that the picketers are making (that the soldiers won't resort to murder when confronted with peaceful demands).
2. This is not a regiment of soldiers, this is a bunch of loosely-connected farming communities. Coming together like this is pretty much the only way for them to act in a coordinated fashion. Asking them to all go back to their respective homes and then execute some kind of collective fraud is asking a  lot .

The person who  could  execute this kind of fraud and have a decent chance is not the peasants paying the tax, but the guy doing the counting.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Certainly easier to fool than fight, " Sieghard said, " And any punishment for it would certainly be less than for open defiance. "

" There's still plenty of ruined farmsteads in the south from when the orcs marched on Manaan's Keep. They'd be little interest to soldiers trying to collect the Prince's tax and I'm sure some of them have cellars. Suppose the food stores were hidden among them and a small group of trustworthy men could distribute it as needed... Just a week or so's worth at a time so even if the food  was  seized, they wouldn't be able to take all that much. The only ones at real risk would be the ones distributing the food and I'm sure the farmers taking it would do everything they could to keep them hidden and safe. "

He let her consider that and then added " I could also try to sway Sussman. He might take the prince's orders, but if I'm right about him, he's more interested in protecting his own skin than anything else. He won't be able to get away with giving Sforza nothing, but he might be convinced to lie about the amount if he thought things would be worse for him otherwise... "
LCP
 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit  

 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
 " There's still plenty of ruined farmsteads in the south from when the orcs marched on Manaan's Keep. They'd be little interest to soldiers trying to collect the Prince's tax and I'm sure some of them have cellars. Suppose the food stores were hidden among them and a small group of trustworthy men could distribute it as needed... Just a week or so's worth at a time so even if the food  was  seized, they wouldn't be able to take all that much. The only ones at real risk would be the ones distributing the food and I'm sure the farmers taking it would do everything they could to keep them hidden and safe. " 
 

Lottie squinted at him.

"It's thirty miles from here to the north end of the valley," she said. "Your  trustworthy men , they're going to do that twice a week? Visit every house? And the Prince's men won't see them? Or say" - she put on an outrageous Tilean accent, shrugging and gesticulating wildly - " eyy, dese-a people say-a they 'ave no food, but some'ow dey are-a still eating! " She grimaced and raised her eyebrows at Sieghard. "Come on, big man. We've been here for days. Do you think we haven't talked about what we're doing? That if we thought something like your silver bullet existed, we'd be trying it? Most of the people here have lived in the Vale their whole life. They know where those ruins are."


 " I could also try to sway Sussman. He might take the prince's orders, but if I'm right about him, he's more interested in protecting his own skin than anything else. He won't be able to get away with giving Sforza nothing, but he might be convinced to lie about the amount if he thought things would be worse for him otherwise... " 

Lottie seemed less immediately sure about that.

"He just seems like a slippery sort of weasel to me," she said. "But I'm not who he's been talking to. Maybe he'd listen better to someone like you." She shrugged. "I don't know."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "It's thirty miles from here to the north end of the valley," she said. "Your  trustworthy men , they're going to do that twice a week? Visit every house? And the Prince's men won't see them? Or say" - she put on an outrageous Tilean accent, shrugging and gesticulating wildly - " eyy, dese-a people say-a they 'ave no food, but some'ow dey are-a still eating! " She grimaced and raised her eyebrows at Sieghard. "Come on, big man. We've been here for days. Do you think we haven't talked about what we're doing? That if we thought something like your silver bullet existed, we'd be trying it? Most of the people here have lived in the Vale their whole life. They know where those ruins are." 
 

"  You're-a right, Luca,  " Sieghard said in the same sort of ridiculous fake Tilean accent. "  We should search-a the houses. What do you mean there's-a only a loaf of bread and two sausages?  "

" What are they going to do? They don't know where the food is coming from and if it's only a small group delivering it, no one can tell them if they don't get caught. It's a big forest and the Iron Company only has so many men it can spare... They have Alvarran and the Shepherd's Valley to worry about, and because I couldn't talk one fool out of it, there's likely to be much bigger problems in the north than some farmers in Vale for them soon. Just so long as those farmers don't do anything to draw the Prince's ire, that is. "

" Maybe you'll need safe hiding places further north as well, but you know the land better than the Iron Company does. And the few men Sforza can send are a lot less likely to draw their swords if no one gets in their way. "


 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "He just seems like a slippery sort of weasel to me," she said. "But I'm not who he's been talking to. Maybe he'd listen better to someone like you." She shrugged. "I don't know." 
 

" Weasel sounds about right. But that might not be a bad thing, " he said. " I'm willing to try. "
LCP
 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit 

 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
 " What are they going to do? They don't know where the food is coming from and if it's only a small group delivering it, no one can tell them if they don't get caught. " 
 

" They can hurt people! " Lottie burst out so loudly that again heads turned their way. "Or, or bribe people! Ranald's fingers, how hard do you think it would be to make someone talk, if  everyone's  in on it? This isn't a heist! You can't feed a whole valley in secret!"

Catching her breath, she took a moment or two to calm down. She looked distracted, like she was still processing something Sieghard had said.

"What do you mean," she asked, slowly, "bigger problems in the north?"
rax
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 
 "Listen Roza, you said you're a survivor, right? Well, that makes two of us. I've been surviving among the lowlanders for the last ten years, taking them for whatever they're worth whenever and wherever I can. One thing I've learned is that fewer people get hurt when the people who should be fighting you are too busy doing something else. Sometimes you can do that by scaring them, and sometimes by buying them off, but I don't think either of those options is going to work on Sergeant Orso." 
 "But Orso and his boys won't be putting up  any  kind of fight if they're too busy rushing to the latrine. Stick something nasty in their stew, wait for it to start working, and then we bring the whole town down on them. They won't know what hit them and they certainly won't have time to sit around working out what happened. All I need is someone brave and smart enough to cook them this special meal, and savvy enough not to get caught doing it. A survivor - like you,"  Bardhyl pitched his case to the young woman.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Would you  keep your damn voice down ? " Sieghard hissed. He glanced around to make sure Sussman was still out of view. " The weasel's up here today too, you know. He hears you shouting like that and it makes things all the harder. " He took a moment to calm himself. " If you keep the food hidden, they  might  hurt people. If you keep doing what you're doing now, they  will  hurt people. And there's not much they could bribe them with that's worth more than the food right now. Maybe it's not perfect but it's better than hanging around here and having them come in to butcher you. "

" I mean this isn't the only place where folk aren't happy about the Prince's tax. There's a man I know of whose set on causing trouble. He's got more than a bunch of farmers with him, but still not enough for it to end any different than him getting a bunch of people killed. I tried talking sense into him too, but he wouldn't have it. "
LCP
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

Roza listened to Bardhyl's proposal with careful consideration. She didn't seem frightened by the idea - that was a good start.

"You're going to bring the whole town down on them," she repeated. "Does the whole town know?"


 

 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit 

Sieghard couldn't catch sight of Sussman through the others surrounding them in the camp. Lottie, however, didn't seem to be listening to his rebuke about keeping her voice down. She'd latched onto something in what he'd told her, and her eyes shone brightly as she spoke.

"So what you're saying is," she said, "this is the  best  time for us to make a stand. When they're distracted, when they've only got so many men they can spare." She raised a pointing finger towards him. "That's what you said! And you tried to talk them out of it too?" Her voice curdled with an edge of contempt. "How many people have to stand up before you stop telling them to sit down?"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
The camp around the mill is pretty large - &gt;100 people as has been mentioned. The risk of being overheard is more from people inside the camp than from Sussman who was lingering some distance away from the edge.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Enough that it would do more than get people killed picking fight they can't win, " he replied. " Have you listened to anything I've been saying? I've seen the Iron Company fight and I know what they can do. They're veterans. Well trained and well armed. Give them a reason and it wouldn't take any more than fifteen of them to deal with this whole camp. You don't beat that by trying to match it in strength, you beat it by being smarter than them. "
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

Roza listened to Bardhyl's proposal with careful consideration. She didn't seem frightened by the idea - that was a good start.

"You're going to bring the whole town down on them," she repeated. "Does the whole town know?" 
 

  "Not yet, but a certain one-eyed man has been gathering support for the idea since I last left town. When the time comes, they'll be ready, but for what exactly? That depends on whether you're willing to risk this or not,"  Bardhyl answered earnestly.
LCP
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit  

"I want to see who you have," said Roza, doggedly. "Hear it from their own mouths. Those lowlanders are tough. Even if you give them the squits... I don't want to stick my neck out just to see your head mounted over the gate in the morning."

 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit 

"They're always going to have the sharper swords,* said Lottie, shaking her head. "That's not a reason not to try."

Backing away from Sieghard, she spread her arms wide to encompass the camp around them. "Talk to anyone you want, your lordship. They'll tell you the same thing - we're not scared of your soldiers. We don't have enough left to lose!"

She turned and darted off into the crowd. Sieghard found himself the centre of a circle of unsympathetic faces - she'd made sure that  your lordship  was loud enough for all around them to hear.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  
 Rotten little runt 

Sieghard might've gone after her if not for the crowd now staring at him. " She's a stubborn woman, " he remarked loud enough for them to hear. " I came south to try to help you. To try to find a way to keep you fed without putting you against the Prince. She won't hear it though. " he shrugged. " To her, any soldier is the enemy, even the man who stopped the orcs overrunning your land. "

 
 Spoiler 
Public speaking go! Let's see if Sieghard can convince them primarily that his intentions are good and maybe secondarily that Lottie's judgement might not be the best.

 (1d100)[ 64 ]  vs 54 Charm
 (1d100)[ 36 ]  reroll
 
RossN
 Ludo &amp; Jarla, 21st Sommerzeit 

 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  Ludo, 21st Sommerzeit 
Ludo fretted most of the way back to Painford. At about four o'clock in the morning he had woken in a panic and scurried outside to stare up at the moon - but there was no sign of Morrslieb in the sky. He had slept fitfully from then on, and although leaving Arrow Heap to Sforza's mercy - without even looking any of the people in the face - felt bad, he couldn't have forgiven himself for not being there if something else had happened in Painford. He rode as hard as Lumpin could manage back to town, even though he knew it wouldn't be a full moon until it was the night, and ended up there early in the afternoon, confused to find Jarla present and not Sieghard.

 "You tipped Rudi off, right?"  he asked her that evening, quietly.  "Thank you. It's maybe made things a bit more complicated but... I thought he'd never come."  
 

Jarla had been waiting anxiously for Ludo to reappear and smiled with relief when he finally did so. The noblewoman was evidently not finding her stay in Painford too comfortable.

 "Yes, well I admit part of the problem was my fault. I hadn't known your connection and once I did I had to get him out."  She explained, then let out a sigh.  "Irene has stepped off the deep end and she's determined to kill you and Elsa. I don't think we can afford to wait, we'll have to deal with her very soon... which means we'll have to deal with her husband too." 

Jarla felt her stomach turn even just saying it in this private room. Irene was plainly mad and dangerous and responsible for murder and Sforza was turning tyrant far too readily but she'd never been one for actual murder.
LCP
 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit 

Sieghard's unsolicited defence drew nothing but silence from the circle of people around him. If they recognised his face, they didn't show it.
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit  

"I want to see who you have," said Roza, doggedly. "Hear it from their own mouths. Those lowlanders are tough. Even if you give them the squits... I don't want to stick my neck out just to see your head mounted over the gate in the morning." 
 

  " My  head? How very solicitous of you!"  Bardhyl grinned.

 "You want to see who's with me? Shall I put on a parade? Have everyone come to pay their respects at your house? Listen, you're right not to rush into a matter like this on my say-so, but think for a moment what you're asking of me. You want the names and faces of those who would stand against the Iron Company. If you decide that survival is the better part of valour, what's to stop you from marching off to the Sergeant and letting him know all about our conversation and who besides me is thinking seditious thoughts? No Roza, if I let you in on that already, I'd be gambling not just my pretty head, but everyone else's as well. What sort of a leader would that make me, hmm?" 
 "So, I'm asking you to take a leap of faith and make your decision based on what I've told you - I already took mine in coming to you. Take a few days to think about it if you like, but trust me that I don't want to die, nor do I want any of our people to die, including you. Even if you know nothing else, you can be sure of that,"  he finished.
LCP
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

Roza looked unimpressed.

“The people you’re asking to fight, they’ll know who’s going to be fighting beside them, won't they?” she asked. “You want my help, then I’m just asking to be treated the same.”

Her words were firm and determined. “That's my answer. You don't like it, you can find someone else. Though I don't see what the point is, when you told me  your  name. If I wanted to sell you out, you’d already be screwed.”


 

 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit 

With the eyes of the camp on him, Sieghard could no longer pass unnoticed as he had before - but at least no-one blocked his way. Running the gauntlet of their unfriendly stares, he went in search of the others whose names he had heard bandied about as leaders.

 ~ 
Marien was a woman in her middle years, with the look of someone used to long hours working out in the sun. Two shaggy herding dogs lay sprawled in the shade behind her, their long tongues lolling out over their teeth.

“Who are you?” she asked. “I don’t know your face. Did Sussman send you?”

When Sieghard had introduced himself, she listened to what he had to say - but he could tell that she wasn’t convinced.

“Why are you telling me this?” she asked. “You think it’s news to us that the Prince has soldiers? You ought to get a new line. Herr Sussman’s been trying to scare us off just the same since the first day he came out here.”

Cracking her knuckles, she looked Sieghard square in the eye. “You care so much about keeping the peace, then here’s what you do. Go back to the Prince and tell him what’s happening here. Tell him we’re not just the waifs and strays you herded onto our land. We  are  the Vale, and without us there’s no harvest, this year or the next. Tell him he can send as many soldiers as he wants, but swords and spears won’t plough the fields, and no man or woman worth the name is going to give up the food they need to keep their  own kids  from starving because some lord or lady tells them they must.” Her voice had become hard and grim. “So he can keep trying to squeeze blood from a stone, or he can see reason. We’ll be here until he does.”

 ~ 
Gerhardt was a different kettle of fish. Old and wiry, with a white beard down to his belt, he looked like a strong breeze might blow him away. Two younger men with the look of blood relatives stuck close to him while Sieghard spoke, eyeing the outsider with suspicion.

“You’ve got us all wrong, sir,” said Gerhardt, gently. “We’re not here to fight. We’re just here to make our voices heard.” Raising his stick, he waved it at the camp around them. “You look around, you’ll see - we haven’t come here armed. And if the soldiers come, that’s what they’ll see too.”

“I walked sixteen miles to be here, you know that? And that’s not the furthest folks here have come, not by a fair way. If I told ‘em, enough’s enough, it’s time we all went home - how many do you think would be ready to come back?”

He let the question hang in the air for a moment or two.

“This is the one chance we’ve got to stand together,” he said. “We go our separate ways, and we’re all standing alone.”
rax
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 
 "Morr save me! They know because they're  already  committed to the cause!"  Bardhyl retorted, throwing up his hands in despair.  "Grandmother! Are you sure your girl's not half goat?!" 
 "Alright, let's try this one last time. I realize it's no small thing I'm asking of you, and I don't expect you to make your decision here and now. But just speaking to you about this is a risk - like you said, you could sell me out any time you want, so I'm not going to sit here and give you even more people you  could  sell out." 
 "What I  can  do is walk out this door, and in a few days time, someone will knock on your door and offer to take you for a walk. If you go with them, you'll meet the others, but you'll also have to decide  then and there  whether you're in or you're out. If you're in, you get to stay and hear the plan. If not...well, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Deal?"  he said, extending his hand to Roza.


 
 Spoiler: @LCP 
Tough call here, but I can't really see Bardhyl just handing over a list of names of his co-conspirators to get Roza on side. If she's not just an extremely stubborn and/or scared young woman, he'd be signing death sentences for everyone by naming names. Roza's point that he's screwed if she wants to sell him out just reinforces his opinion that she doesn't need to know anything more.

FYI, I originally had a far more threatening ending written up for this post. Basically, Bardhyl was going to make it clear to Roza that she can try and sell him out, but that will lead to things ending very badly for her and/or her family. I decided against it, but after leaving her house, he's definitely going to have her closely watched and set things up so her family can be used as leverage if there's any indication that she's not going to keep quiet.

...and aside form the IC motivations for not telling Roza who else is in on the coming revolt, I realized I don't actually have any names to share other than Wadim! 😁
 

 
 Spoiler: Edit 
Re-wrote Bardhyl's response based on our OOC conversation. I still don't feel Roza has actually been very clear about what she wants. Reading through the conversation it still reads to me like she's demanding to know "everything" before she'll say if she'll even  consider  joining the revolt. There's nothing along the lines of "I'll do it, but I need assurances first" or "I'm not saying no, but I want to meet the others first". Therefore, Bardhyl is still responding as if that's what she's saying, but now at least he's directly offering her a meeting if that's what it takes.
 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit  

Roza thought for a moment, before firmly clasping Bardhyl's hand.

"Deal," she said.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  with Marien 

" I'm teling you because here's a rather big difference between saying at some point soldiers will show up and saying they're likely to be here within the week, " Sieghard said. " And because I'd hoped we could use that time to find a better way than tell the soldiers to not do as they've been ordered and hope they don't draw their swords. I might not agree with Sussman about what he wants you to do, but the man is right about what the soldiers'll do if things stay how they are now. "


 “You care so much about keeping the peace, then here’s what you do. Go back to the Prince and tell him what’s happening here. Tell him we’re not just the waifs and strays you herded onto our land. We are the Vale, and without us there’s no harvest, this year or the next. Tell him he can send as many soldiers as he wants, but swords and spears won’t plough the fields, and no man or woman worth the name is going to give up the food they need to keep their own kids from starving because some lord or lady tells them they must.” 

" It's clear you don't know the prince, " Sieghard said, now sounding more tired than before. " For as much as he cares, the fields grow because he orders them to. I could tell him he's wrong and if he has his soldiers take the grain by force, it'll mean there'll be none in years to come but all it would mean is he'd have me replaced with someone willing to tell him he's right. I can do better for the people in my care where I am. Work with me to find a better way out of this and I can do better for you as well. "

  Sieghard  with Gerhardt 

" That's well and good, " Sieghard replied, " But I fear that the prince will see things differently than you or I. I'm happy to let you be heard, but he's the sort more likely to see it as his authority being challenged. It's just not likely to end well for anyone involved. "


 “I walked sixteen miles to be here, you know that? And that’s not the furthest folks here have come, not by a fair way. If I told ‘em, enough’s enough, it’s time we all went home - how many do you think would be ready to come back?”

He let the question hang in the air for a moment or two.

“This is the one chance we’ve got to stand together,” he said. “We go our separate ways, and we’re all standing alone.” 

" I do agree that you need to work together, " he said. " People are more likely to get through the winter supporting each other. It's just that getting in the soldier's way that's a poor idea. The people here look to you for guidance. You can protect them from that. "

 
 Spoiler 
I'll throw a charm test (still 54 at each of them to try to convince them that Sieghard is on their side and they should look for better options than outright defiance. If they seem responsive, Sieghard will elaborate on the idea that Sforza can't sieze what he can't find.

 (1d100)[ 50 ]  Marien
 (1d100)[ 70 ]  Gerhardt
 
LCP
 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit 
 With Marien 

Marien looked extremely unimpressed. “You're telling us your lord is a robber and a fool,” she said, “and then asking us to follow you? What makes you so different from these others he's sending?”

She shook her head. “We’re not going to be bought off,” she said. “You can plead and threaten all you like, we’re taking a stand  now , while we’ve still got something worth keeping.”

 With Gerhardt 

“Hrm… in normal times, sir, I’d agree with you. There's little in this life worth losing it for, when men with swords come knocking.” The old man’s voice sounded faraway, as if dwelling on some painful memory. “But these times  aren't  normal, are they? The choice we’re offered isn't living or dying, it's dying fast or slow.”

“Force alone can't rule the Reaches. Never has, never could. Old King Pieter learned that too late, and the Mad Duke after him died a’cause of it. The longer this goes on, the more folk’ll die, until someone makes a stand. If no-one else’ll do it, it might as well be us.”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I don't think it's worth your time to repeat Sieghard's secret food smuggling suggestion - unless he has something concrete to add to it that wasn't available to these people before he turned up, they’ll find it as unconvincing as Lottie did.
 
Thragka
 Elsa and Urgrim, 18th Sommerzeit 

Urgrim listened to Elsa's explanation thoughtfully, carefully following along her written instructions with his finger on the parchment as she ran through them. Concentration was clear on his face as he put his limited literacy to the test. It was interrupted by a flash of annoyance at Elsa's mention of a loan for the Dwimmulsons.

 "Look here,"  he said, holding his hands up  "I'm not going to try broker a loan from the Dwimmulsons for you. They'd laugh me all the way down the Rock. Alright?"  He took a breath, and composed himself.  "But everything else ... well, if you say you need it, I'm sure they'll want to assist. I only hope Sieghard and Ludo's finances can support it, what with the season the Reaches are having." 
 "I can set out to do this, aye, and I see the clear sense in bringing Tatiana, since I can't make head nor tail of witchcraft. But that leaves you here with just the Prince's men, and no other expert in your craft to assist you. You're sure that that's something you can take on? Safeguarding, let alone investigating, the Book, without us?" 

But it was clear that Elsa had thought hard about the next steps, and Urgrim was keen to do his part to assist.  "We can go east, to begin with,"  he suggested to Tatiana as the conversation continued.  "See if we can touch base with friends in Manann's Keep first of all. And that puts us on the skirts of the Dead Hills. If we need  karag  glass, 'obsidition', it may be nearer than we think. Might as well try to knock that one off the stele straight away." 
rax
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit  
 "Well then, all's well that ends well,"  Bardhyl replied with a smile.  "Just remember to stay out of trouble until we call on you, eh?" 

Rising to his feet, he took his leave and left Roza's home, then made his way back to Marjan's to see if any of his people were still awake.
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by Thragka 
  "Look here,"  he said, holding his hands up  "I'm not going to try broker a loan from the Dwimmulsons for you. They'd laugh me all the way down the Rock. Alright?"  He took a breath, and composed himself.  "But everything else ... well, if you say you need it, I'm sure they'll want to assist. I only hope Sieghard and Ludo's finances can support it, what with the season the Reaches are having."  
 

 "I understand,"  said Elsa, nodding.  "I can respect you not wanting to put your honor at stake on my behalf. All I'm saying is, draw upon whatever resources you need to get me everything on that list. Start with whatever takes longest to acquire. And if there's something that seems just too hard to obtain, I want to know about it as early as possible. I can pull some strings... I'm sure Sforza will let me have the contents of Duke Wulf's library, if we need books to burn." 

  "But that leaves you here with just the Prince's men, and no other expert in your craft to assist you. You're sure that that's something you can take on? Safeguarding, let alone investigating, the Book, without us?"  

 "What lies ahead for me is mostly research,"  answered Elsa,  "and neither of you is especially bookish. All Tatiana knows about magical theory is what I've taught her. As for safeguarding the Book, that's what the soldiers are for." 

She raised a finger.  "Another thing, Urgi. Do you think you can commit that list to memory? I'd like you to be able to destroy it quickly, if there's any chance of it falling into the wrong hands. The enemy can't know what we're looking for." 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

By the time he got back to Marjan's, most of the band were fast asleep. Only Grim was still up - perhaps it was paranoid, perhaps it was justified, but it looked like he was keeping watch.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Unless you're averse to waking your follower NPCs up, you don't need to break for questions like this - you can go straight to whatever you want to talk to them about.
 
rax
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 
 "Well, we may have our inside woman,"  Bardhyl said to Grim as he sat down.  "Either that, or I'm about to hand Sforza his easiest win since he arrived in the Reaches. I must admit, it feels odd trying to get strangers to do things without paying or threatening them,"  he chuckled.

 "Come morning, I want you to set a watch on her when she's not working in the hall. I'll talk to Wadim about getting some locals to help out with that, so that it's not too obvious that we're doing the watching." 
 "She also told me something useful that I want us to follow up on. Orso has his men split into three squads, with two on duty at any time. One on-duty squad patrols the town, the other handles incoming stores or does drills and training at the hall. The off-duty squad, though, they come and go as they please, and sometimes they out into the town. I'd like to know if there's any pattern to what they do and who they see in town, because if we end up moving during the day, we're going to need to run them down and take them out before they can reinforce their friends or make a break for it if they notice things going badly for them." 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 16th Sommerzeit 

Grim gave a curt nod. "We can watch them," he said. "They shouldn't be too hard to spot."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Since Bardhyl's been on the 16th for a while, and this observation might need to span a few days, maybe now is a good time for a plan to cover the next few days of Bardhyl's activities?
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard lingered in the camp for about another unproductive hour, talking to who he could. On the ride back to town, he spoke with Sussman about how things had went. " They're still every bit as stubborn as you said. It's a bad situation all around... Even if you can convince them to give up the grain, things will just grow harder as the months pass and there's less and less of it to take. "
Thragka
 Urgrim and Elsa 

Urgrim scratched his beard as he considered Elda’s recommendations.  ”Seek the stranger things first. That makes sense, I suppose. Still, reckon we still ought to head east first. From the Thornwood it’ll be easier to organise messages to allies – even to the opposite end of the Reaches, if we are to collect a bundle of bird bones from Morr’s Seat.” 
 “Won’t be a problem committing it to memory,”  he continued.  “It’s no bardic lay. And if I have need to rewrite it, I won’t use mannish letters.” 
 “I’ll make up my pack, and ready Gil. We can leave by midday, if you’ll be ready by then,”  he said to Tatiana. He cleared his throat awkwardly.  “Long as – long as you’re happy taking this up with me.” 
LeSwordfish
It was heartening for Ludo to hear Jarla on his side: he had been seriously doubting which side she would be on.  "I don't mind if she comes for me... I can take care of myself, but who knows what she was planning with Rudi? Sooner or later she'll get fed up with clever things and just send some mercenary after my family, and I can't protect them then."

"I was just in Arrow Heap. They weren't paying their taxes and Sforza sent in... the iron company and the ogres. It sounded like somebody got  eaten . I want to go back to them soon, after the next full moon, and see what we can do to help. Get them on our side." 
LCP
 Urgrim &amp; Elsa, 18th Sommerzeit  

Tatiana nodded. “More than happy,” she said. “I don't have much to take with me. I can be ready when you are.”


 

 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit 

With the eyes that had been following him since his altercation with Lottie, Sieghard could not leave the camp as inconspicuously as he had entered. As he headed back to rejoin Sussman, the singers struck up again.

 The gentry have come down, stand up now, stand up now!
The gentry have come down, stand up now.
The gentry have come down, to fright poor men in town,
Their wisdoms so profound, for to cheat us of the ground.
Stand up now, one and all! 

Sussman greeted Sieghard again with a chagrined smile.


 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
 " They're still every bit as stubborn as you said. It's a bad situation all around... Even if you can convince them to give up the grain, things will just grow harder as the months pass and there's less and less of it to take. " 
 

“Don't I know it,” he said. He sighed, and turned to walk back towards the soldiers’ camp with Sieghard. “I keep looking for the angle, you know, a way out. People I can deal with… usually, anyway. But  locusts… ” He sighed again. “You can't negotiate when you're taking the food out of people's mouths. I don't know what his Highness expects me to do.”
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" He expects you to take it, " Sieghard replied, keeping his tone neutral. " And I imagine when people start starving, he'll expect the same. Then when those peoples families are mad over the dead, he'll likely expect you to deal with that as well. " He gave Sussman some time to ponder that before continuing. " I'd help more if I could, but he expects the same from me. I'm trying to stockpile what stores the Thornwood has and make it last, but as times grow more and more lean, supplies and men will be stretched thinner and thinner. It may not be enough but I've done all I can. What about you? What do you plan to do? "
LCP
 Bardhyl, 19th Sommerzeit 

Over the next few days, Bardhyl and his band did their best to blend in to the day-to-day activities of the town, always keeping a sharp eye on the comings and goings of Orso’s men. Afrim and Kreshnik shadowed the Tileans’ street patrols, while Bardhyl loitered in the shadows close to the gate, watching the sentries about their work.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Observation &amp; information gathering results:

1. The street patrols form 3 groups of 3, each covering a small beat:
 
 The streets nearest the gate, where people bring goods to market. 
 The streets around the great hall. 
 The streets behind the hall, which lead up to the forge (the highest point of the town). 
 
This doesn’t cover every street - the fringes of the town close to the wall are left pretty much un-patrolled - but covers most of the important locations and businesses in Morr’s Seat.

The patrols eat on the hoof (cold rations, supplemented by the occasional free lunch extracted form the locals), and rotate beats once or twice a day. They seem fairly confident of their own safety; unless there’s an incident for them to deal with, they spend most of their day idly standing or walking around, occasionally checking in on local businesses or randomly stopping and questioning people they think look suspicious (or perhaps just for fun).

2. The gate sentry spends most of their time in one of the small wooden watchtowers that flank the gate. These are little more than rain-shelters and don’t offer any protection against an arrow in the back from the inside of the wall (except elevation). They do wear their armour on duty however, and it would be difficult to approach close to them without being noticed (since you’d have to come up onto the parapet of the wall). They do also have a good view over the inside of the town. They change shifts around noon; Bardhyl notices they have a small brass clarion that changes hands when they change shifts, presumably to signal back to the hall if they want to raise the alarm.

3. Roza informs you that the Iron Company have their local ‘help’ serve two square meals in the hall per day - usually something like bread and stew. Every soldier not on patrol duty can eat, but sometimes the off-duty soldiers choose to eat elsewhere.

4. The movements of the off-duty soldiers aren’t particularly predictable. Some of them like to stick to their own and spend most of their free time up at the hall; others go down into the town, although usually in groups of two or more, and usually still armed with a shortsword or dagger. Since Orso’s taking charge they rarely get very drunk, but they still throw their weight around in imposing on the locals’ hospitality. They never leave the town itself.
 


Their attempts to observe the night watch arrangements outside the hall were less successful. With almost no people on the streets, Bardhyl’s men couldn’t help but look conspicuous. Catching sight of their skulking watchers in the moonlight, the soldiers called out and tried to accost them. The outlaws had beat a quick retreat into the shadows of the night.

On the evening of Festag, Wadim spread the call to meet. Marjan’s was too public - instead, they gathered in the cave-crypt under the forge, where the old man had first taken Bardhyl to broach the subject of rebellion. So as not to arouse suspicion, the conspirators were brought there one by one, so as not to arouse suspicion. Bardhyl arrived last.

There were nine faces waiting for him down there in the dark, crammed into the narrow crevices in the rocks. A couple of dark lanterns gave just enough light to see by, without giving away their presence to watchers above ground. Their light glimmered off the bones and blades of the chiefs, resting in the alcoves above their heads.

Bardhyl counted off the faces that he knew. There was Wadim, of course, and Danut the smith. Valmir was there, with two other men who from their scars looked like veterans of Rorik’s battles. There was a grizzled man in shepherd’s clothes, with sideburns bushier than most men’s beards, and a younger woman beside him - Bardhyl blinked as he recognised Senka, her hunting bow strung over her back. Finally, an old woman with snow-white hair and a deeply-lined face sat in the corner, regarding Bardhyl with keen, dark eyes. Roza wasn’t among them - Wadim said that she could be sent for once Bardhyl gave the word.

“I think we all know why we’re here,” said the Raven Speaker, in his usual manner. “Why don’t we begin by introducing ourselves?” He grinned, his teeth gleaming through the gloom. “I’d start, but I think you all know me already.”


The others gave their names, quickly and quietly. The men with Valmir were called Jakov and Zef. The old shepherd was Shkodran, of the Ostok clan. The old woman was called Vjolka.

“Each of us gathered here speaks for more than just themselves,” said Wadim. “Between us all, we can muster fifty fighting men and women within these walls - that's if we count young Bardhyl’s friends from out of town.” He nodded to Vjolka. “And, if we're willing to risk those not of fighting age… twenty or thirty more. We have weapons to hand for twenty-five or thirty of our fifty, and more stashed outside the walls - given time, we could bring in enough for all.” He looked to Bardhyl. “The burning question is, what do we mean to do with them?”


 

 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit 

Sussman gave Sieghard a guarded look. “Well, of course, what his Highness wants. I’m just a humble, loyal steward.”

He cast a glance back at the camp. “I’ve sent word to the city for reinforcements. Most people down here don't have too many dealings with the Prince’s law. I think when they see his soldiers, some of them might sing a different tune.”
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

 “Well, of course, what his Highness wants. I’m just a humble, loyal steward.” 

" Oh, I wasn't doubting that, " Sieghard said, trying to sound sympathetic " I was asking more about how you'll manage it. Saying you'll do as he wants is easy. It's actually doing it that's the hard part. And I've found even after you manage that, there's usually more to come after. "


 “I’ve sent word to the city for reinforcements. Most people down here don't have too many dealings with the Prince’s law. I think when they see his soldiers, some of them might sing a different tune.” 

" Just some? " he asked. He paused, pretending it was the first time he had considered that. " I suppose men will do reckless things if they think the only other choice is starving. That lot is certainly stubborn enough to try it. " He paused. " Better to find an answer before it comes to that if you ask me. Leave it to the soldiers and maybe you'll get the grain, but things'll just be harder next month when there's less to eat and more anger. I wonder... If you can't convince people when you're taking food out of their mouths, would it be easier with the man you're giving the food to? "
LCP
 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit  

Sussman raised his eyebrows at Sieghard. "Are you volunteering?" he asked.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" He wouldn't listen to me even if I was, " Sieghard replied. "   'What do you know about Manaan's Keep? Worry about your own lands, Sieghard.'   "

" It's the reality of the situation we're in, though... Both of us. Even if we do everything we can to follow the Prince's order, in time there'll be nothing left to send. You know the situation here better than I do. Am I wrong? "

" Better to deal with that now while there's still something to give him than let the problem fester, " he continued after Sussman had answered. " I'm sure he'll be angry either way, but you know what Manaan's Keep can spare. His anger will be less if each month you can say you're doing all that's possible than if one month you're suddenly able to do nothing at all to meet his demand. Gods willing, it may even help to avoid rioting. "

 
 Spoiler 
I feel like there's probably a bit more to hammer out in this conversation, but I'll throw in Sieghard's charm roll now to try to get Sussman on board.

 (1d100)[ 27 ]  vs 54 Charm +10? (would Schemer apply?)
 (1d100)[ 18 ]  Sieghard still has one unused FP reroll.
 
LCP
 Sieghard, 20th Sigmarzeit 

Sussman slowed his pace, and looked hard at Sieghard.

"Didn't you just tell me we were up the same creek?" he said. He'd lowered his voice, as if wary of being overheard. "That you'd help if you could, but things in the Thornwood were the same as they are here? I mean, if I misunderstood, and you can help us out here, then obviously I'd be delighted. Over the moon. Jumping for joy." He leaned in closer, lowering his voice still further. "But it does sound to me like you're asking me to stick my neck out for something  you  want. Am  I  wrong?"
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by Thragka 
  “Won’t be a problem committing it to memory,”  he continued.  “It’s no bardic lay. And if I have need to rewrite it, I won’t use mannish letters.”  
 

 "Good idea. I doubt anyone working against us knows Dwarven runes." 

Elsa unrolled a fresh piece of parchment and began writing a letter.  "You'll deliver this to Savonne whenever you get there. To the Prince if he's there and will receive you; to Al-Makir if not. I think Sforza is in the best position to help me with this part of the ritual." 

In her letter to her employer, Elsa requested a small cartload of books to burn as part of her ritual—around thirty ought to do it. She stressed that quantity mattered more than quality, and therefore that poorly-preserved and moldy volumes, printed novels, and outdated tax records were perfectly acceptable for her purposes, and even preferable to more valuable tomes of knowledge.  I trust there are enough such books in the castle,  she wrote,  but if you need to look elsewhere, it may be best to let the owners decide which books they are most willing to part from. I do not wish to be the bane of Savonne's booksellers. 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Something I'd think we  both  would want, " Sieghard said. " This is one way that we  could  help each other - It wouldn't be only your neck. "
LCP
 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit 

Sussman paused for a while in reflection. "Well," he said, "if it's not just me we're talking about... it's something I'd consider."

"Of course, his Highness is a smart man. He's not going to let himself be cheated out of his taxes unless he believes there's a good reason." He looked back at the camp again. "It would help if it didn't look like we were folding to the demands of a revolt. And if we had Lord Valdes on our side. If I put my name to this without him, it would look like I was going over his head."
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl, 19th Sommerzeit 

On the evening of Festag, Wadim spread the call to meet. Marjan’s was too public - instead, they gathered in the cave-crypt under the forge, where the old man had first taken Bardhyl to broach the subject of rebellion. So as not to arouse suspicion, the conspirators were brought there one by one, so as not to arouse suspicion. Bardhyl arrived last.

There were nine faces waiting for him down there in the dark, crammed into the narrow crevices in the rocks. A couple of dark lanterns gave just enough light to see by, without giving away their presence to watchers above ground. Their light glimmered off the bones and blades of the chiefs, resting in the alcoves above their heads.

Bardhyl counted off the faces that he knew. There was Wadim, of course, and Danut the smith. Valmir was there, with two other men who from their scars looked like veterans of Rorik’s battles. There was a grizzled man in shepherd’s clothes, with sideburns bushier than most men’s beards, and a younger woman beside him - Bardhyl blinked as he recognised Senka, her hunting bow strung over her back. Finally, an old woman with snow-white hair and a deeply-lined face sat in the corner, regarding Bardhyl with keen, dark eyes. Roza wasn’t among them - Wadim said that she could be sent for once Bardhyl gave the word.

“I think we all know why we’re here,” said the Raven Speaker, in his usual manner. “Why don’t we begin by introducing ourselves?” He grinned, his teeth gleaming through the gloom. “I’d start, but I think you all know me already.”

The others gave their names, quickly and quietly. The men with Valmir were called Jakov and Zef. The old shepherd was Shkodran, of the Ostok clan. The old woman was called Vjolka.

“Each of us gathered here speaks for more than just themselves,” said Wadim. “Between us all, we can muster fifty fighting men and women within these walls - that's if we count young Bardhyl’s friends from out of town.” He nodded to Vjolka. “And, if we're willing to risk those not of fighting age… twenty or thirty more. We have weapons to hand for twenty-five or thirty of our fifty, and more stashed outside the walls - given time, we could bring in enough for all.” He looked to Bardhyl. “The burning question is, what do we mean to do with them?” 
 

 Bardhyl rose to his feet and nodded in acknowledgement to the others.  "The answer to that, I think, is straightforward enough - we take back our town, then the Hills, and we do it the  vrani  way, like Mavros once did. No shield walls or push of pike - we do it from ambush, striking when the men in the hall are most vulnerable,"  he began.

 "We know the garrison's movements, we know when they change shifts, and we know when they eat, drink, and sleep. I have the makings of a plan that builds on all those advantages, but it requires the we use every resource we have available, including the young and the old. There's nothing like being trapped and outnumbered to make a soldier think carefully about how willing he is to lay down his life for some coin and two square meals a day. That's even more true if he's sick with the runs when he's surrounded and staring at the sharp end of a spear,"  he said with a wicked grin.

 "I have someone on the inside who's willing to do her part to make the last bit happen, but she wants to be here to hear the plan and see who else is willing to risk themselves to get rid of the Tileans. What say you? I know you're all taking a risk just by being here - shall I send word to bring her to hear the plan in detail?"  
 OOC:  I've assumed from Wadim's speech that Bardhyl didn't need to introduce himself or make the case for why they should listen to him.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Not cheated, " Sieghard corrected, " I wouldn't suggest anything like that. But if there's no food, it can hardly be called cheating if we can't collect it for him. Just look at the fields, " he said, doing exactly that. " Maybe a few more scraps could be collected with more men to strong arm them away from the farmers, but would it even be enough? And would those men still be around when the farmers grow truly desperate? "

" Would bargaining be better than folding? " he asked. " You certainly have to send the Prince something. Maybe they could be convinced to go back to their farms if they were given assurance that they won't be made to starve. You said there's still going to be a harvest in the top part of the Vale, didn't you? "
LCP
 Bardhyl, 19th Sommerzeit 

The conspirators looked around at one another, waiting for anybody to speak up. No-one seemed to object. Wadim nodded to Jakov, who got up and went out in search of Roza. It took him about ten minutes to return.

Roza looked nervous but in control of herself. Holding her woollen shawl tight against the night's chill, she looked around from face to face, taking in each of them in turn. Wadim gave her his most reassuring smile.

"Welcome to our little gathering," he said. "Young Bardhyl said you wanted proof of our strength. Well - here we are."

Roza took a long moment before responding. "Nine?" she said. "There's  nine  of you?"

Wadim laughed. "No, miss Roza," he said. "Each of us here speaks for more than just ourselves. Isn't that right?"

At his cue, each of the assembled conspirators piped up with how many they could speak for. Bardhyl could see Roza doing the sums in her head, and was relieved to see she looked impressed.

"So," said Wadim, "now that we're  all  here - Bardhyl, perhaps you'd favour us with your plan?"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Correct - they wouldn't be here if Wadim hadn't already recruited them to the cause. Bardhyl might still want to make a good impression though - the fact that they're willing to rebel against the occupation doesn't necessarily mean they trust him as a leader yet, or don't have ambitions of their own.
 


 

 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit 

Sussman sounded a little exasperated now. "I've  been  bargaining, Lord Sieghard. For days! You think some vague promises to ask a question to which I don't know the answer is going to budge them? If you were them, how much trust would you put in Prince Sforza's future mercy?"

He took a deep breath. "Look, if you want to ask for relief, I'm on board. I'll write to Lord Valdes, and together maybe the three of us can petition Savonne. But that'll take time - more than we have until this tax is due. And the Prince knows about this uprising. If I don't deliver, you know how he'll see it. He's not going to listen to me if he thinks I'm being pushed around by peasants."

"If you have a weak hand, you play it when you're strongest. The Iron Company should be here in a few days. Then I can give that lot over there the choice - pay what they owe now, and we work to make it less in future. Or else..." he shrugged "...have it taken. They're  trying  to call our bluff. We can't be afraid to call theirs."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Maybe you're right, " Sieghard said, not liking it, " But better that it not come to that. The Iron Company might have no problem taking what they want and cutting down whoever thinks to stop them, but the prince won't keep them long. The other soldiers in town are mostly from here and those farmers are their friends and neighbors... maybe even kin for some. If there's anything more solid you can offer the farmers, that's better than forcing those men to think about their loyalties. "
LCP
 Sieghard, 20th Sommerzeit 

Sussman clapped his hand to his forehead. "Of course!" he said. "Something  solid . Well, now you say it like that, let me just have a good old rummage in my big bag of treats and see what I've got!"

Dropping the act, he gave Sieghard a long stare.

"I've got nothing they want. They want food, and if I had food, I wouldn't be having to take their food. You understand?" He set his jaw, compressing his lips into a thin line. "You and me, Lord Sieghard, we've both got pretty far riding Sforza's wagon. Sometimes, he's going to ask us to take things from people who don't want to give them over. But unless we want to get off that wagon,  which I don't think we do , we've got to take them all the same. That's all there is to it."

Turning back to his horse, he heaved himself awkwardly back up into the saddle. He clearly wasn't a natural horseman.

"Trust me, my lord - I'm not a man of violence. It won't come to that on my watch. But sometimes, you've got to show people you're serious." Getting his feet in the stirrups, he looked back south towards Manann's Keep. "I'll see you back in the town, yes?"
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard had meant something solid in terms of concessions rather than something physical, but kept quiet. Quibbling over things like that wouldn't get him anywhere... Nor would voicing just how much he had been considering that he might need to 'get off that wagon'

" Yeah, " he said, " I won't be long behind you. "

 
 Spoiler 
I imagine it wouldn't really be possible for the Iron Company to reach Manaan's Keep without crossing Sieghard's path. Let's say he stays here until morning before heading back north. I feel like someone's going to need to be present to avoid bloodshed, but I've also held up the others long enough. He'll let Hanna know that he intends to return before anything can happen involving the Iron Company, but if he's unable to and it does come down to violence against civilians, the Thorns aren't to be any part of it.
 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl, 20th Sommerzeit 

The conspirators looked around at one another, waiting for anybody to speak up. No-one seemed to object. Wadim nodded to Jakov, who got up and went out in search of Roza. It took him about ten minutes to return.

Roza looked nervous but in control of herself. Holding her woollen shawl tight against the night's chill, she looked around from face to face, taking in each of them in turn. Wadim gave her his most reassuring smile.

"Welcome to our little gathering," he said. "Young Bardhyl said you wanted proof of our strength. Well - here we are."

Roza took a long moment before responding. "Nine?" she said. "There's  nine  of you?"

Wadim laughed. "No, miss Roza," he said. "Each of us here speaks for more than just ourselves. Isn't that right?"

At his cue, each of the assembled conspirators piped up with how many they could speak for. Bardhyl could see Roza doing the sums in her head, and was relieved to see she looked impressed.

"So," said Wadim, "now that we're  all  here - Bardhyl, perhaps you'd favour us with your plan?"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Correct - they wouldn't be here if Wadim hadn't already recruited them to the cause. Bardhyl might still want to make a good impression though - the fact that they're willing to rebel against the occupation doesn't necessarily mean they trust him as a leader yet, or don't have ambitions of their own.
 
 
 

  "Thank you Raven Speaker. A few nights ago, I spoke to Roza here to learn all I could of the Tileans' routines inside the hall, and over the past few days, my men and I have been watching their patrols and the gate sentry to learn their routines outside the hall,"  he began.

 "We now know the following: Orso has his men divided into three squads of ten. At any given time during the day, two are on duty and the soldiers in the third are free to go where they please. Some stay up at the hall, some go down into town. The squad which is tasked with patrolling does so in three squads of three, and the tenth man stands guard at the gate. The second squad on duty stays up at the hall, training and or doing whatever work Orso requires of them." 
 "We know that the Tileans confine themselves to patrolling the streets nearest the gate, around the great hall, and the streets behind the hall leading up to the forge. We know which routes they typically take and when they switch beats. We know that the gate guard changes at noon and the guard always has a brass clarion on hand which they can use to raise the alarm." 
 "With our superior numbers, we would have little difficulty ambushing the patrols in the streets and bringing down the gate sentry, but that would still leave Orso in control of the hall with the balance of his forces on hand to hold it and all the food and other "taxes" he has stored there. So, I had to devise a means to knock him and as many of his men out of the game at the same time." 
 "Roza has helpfully informed me that the Tileans' local helpers prepare and serve two square meals a day in the hall - usually something like bread and stew. Every soldier not on patrol duty can eat, though sometimes off-duty soldiers choose to eat elsewhere. Even so,  at least ten men  will be eating that stew." 
 "I propose that we make the Tileans a meal they'll never forget - one with enough spoiled meat in it that anyone who eats it will be ****ting themselves within the hour. While the meal is being prepared, we use part of our forces to set up ambushes for the three patrols and make ready to take out the gate sentry. The rest of our fighters will wait near the hall, ready to rush it once the sign is given." 
 "This is where you come in Roza. Besides making sure the meat goes in the pot, I need you to come out and signal our forces at the hall once the Tileans have started getting sick. As soon as we get the signal, we send runners to the groups waiting to ambush the patrols and the gate guard, then we storm the hall, quickly and quietly, and catch Orso with his breeches down." 
 "Meanwhile, our fighters in town do their part. It's important that the sentry is the first to fall. He's got a good view of the town and can alert the patrols and the off-duty soldiers with that clarion of his, and we need to secure the gate so that none of the Tileans can escape. Since the sentry is going to be in the same place the whole time, taking him out first should not be difficult." 
 "Once our ambushers have surrounded the patrols, we offer them surrender, but if they won't take it, they die. Any survivors will be placed under guard while runners go to the hall and report. If all has gone well at the hall, we will have plenty of men to scour the town for any off-duty soldiers who weren't there. If things aren't settled yet, the ambushers will start the search themselves - once they see which way the wind is blowing, I suspect many of the townsfolk will be glad to help, so the numbers will still be on our side, " Bardhyl finished.

 "And in case you're wondering, my men and I have pulled off similar tricks many times before, though admittedly on a smaller scale,"  he said with grin.  "There are still some issues that need to be resolved if the plan is going to work, though. First, we will need to move our people into position well ahead of time, probably the night before. Hiding this many men  will  require the cooperation of the townspeople. Is that likely to be a problem?"  he asked the assembled leaders.

 "Second, to take the hall, I think we will need about thirty fighters. The remainder, including those not of fighting age, will be split into roughly equally sized squads to ambush the patrols and the sentry, though the gate squad will probably benefit from being smaller but with more experienced men. But even with our people in place, there's the matter of arming them all. You spoke of weapons stashed outside the town. Is there any way we can bring them in ahead of time without them being detected?" 
 "Third - and most important - there's you, Roza. Now you've heard what I'm thinking - are you up for it?"  he asked the young woman.

 OOC:  
 Spoiler 
Does making a good impression require a Charm test?
 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 19th Sommerzeit 

Roza took a deep breath, and nodded. "Sounds like a plan to me," she said. "I'm in." Wadim smiled; Valmir and his two companions grinned like wolves.

"A plan and a half," said Valmir. "Lowlanders won't know what hit them."

"You won't have any trouble finding your hiding-places," said Vjolka. "Most of them who's fighting for you live inside the wall. And them inside that aren't, they want revenge just the same."

"We may need those hiding-places earlier than the day of the attack," said Wadim. "It'll take a few days to bring in all the weapons, if we don't want to give the game away. Probably best to stash them where each group is going to gather."

Danut, meanwhile, had raised his hand. "I've got a question," said the smith. "Suppose this all goes to plan. What happens next?" He looked around at the others. "I don't doubt we can take Orso and his men, with a good plan - and it is good. But there's a lot more where they came from. What happens when the Prince marches up here with the rest of them? Or his deputy in Alvarran?""

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
It can't hurt!
 


 

 Sieghard &amp; Urgrim, 21st Sommerzeit 

Sieghard was leaving the fort on the morning of Aubentag when he saw a pair of familiar figures in the square, outside the  Star of Marienburg . Urgrim and Tatiana looked to have just arrived, and were bargaining with the stable-keeper of the inn when they caught sight of Sieghard. Sieghard rode over to them, his own massive horse rather dwarfing Urgrim's mule and Tattie's pony.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I'm going to assume Urgrim's arrival doesn't change Sieghard's plans to head back to Painford.

Assuming Urgrim doesn't drop everything to follow him, Thragka if you can give me your Gossip roll + any other investigation rolls you want to make in Manann's Keep, I can give you the results for the following day.
 


 

 Marktag, 22nd Sommerzeit 
 Sieghard, Ludo &amp; Jarla 

Two full days on the road brought Sieghard back to Painford late on the evening of Marktag. There he found Ludo and Jarla waiting for him in his manor. He'd spotted no Iron Company men on the road, and there were none in the village; if a response to Sussman's request was coming, it must still have been on the road from Savonne.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  &amp; Urgrim, 21st Sommerzeit 

Sieghard watched the pair for a moment to make sure it really was them (which didn't take long - there weren't many dwarves in the Reaches outside of Savonne) and then made his way directly over.

" Is everything all right? " he asked, " I wasn't expecting to see the two of you again so soon. Is Elsa with you? "

  Sieghard , Ludo &amp; Jarla, 22nd Sommerzeit 

" Glad to see you're back, Ludo. Everything went well, I hope. " Jarla's presence was a surprise, though not an unwelcome one. He let the two of them recount events in Savonne before explaining what had happened in Manaan's Keep. " I've tried all I can think of, but they won't budge. You know as well as I do how things'll end if it cant be sorted before the Iron Company arrives. "
LeSwordfish
Ludo, Sieghard, Jarla, 22nd
Ludo told Sieghard about the events in Savonne and the north plainly.  "My plan is to try and start selling timber as soon as I can. Gather everyone in town tomorrow, get volunteers to start chopping and transporting wood."

"After the next full moon, I'm going to Arrow Heap again. Find out more about what's happening there, and cut a deal with them - they give us people to cut and send the wood, we cut them in on the food." 

He sighed.  "It might not be the Iron Company heading south. In Arrow Heap... I think the Ogres ate someone. That was what one of the Tileans implied."
 
RossN
 Ludo, Sieghard, Jarla, 22nd 

Jarla shuddered at the news the Ogres were beginning to eat people, but felt she had to stay on track.  "What about Irene? I think we'll have to get rid of her  very  soon or she'll get rid of you too Ludo and of Elsa. I don't think I can string her along for much longer and if she starts distrusting me we won't have much early warning." 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl, 19th Sommerzeit 

Danut, meanwhile, had raised his hand. "I've got a question," said the smith. "Suppose this all goes to plan. What happens next?" He looked around at the others. "I don't doubt we can take Orso and his men, with a good plan - and it is good. But there's a lot more where they came from. What happens when the Prince marches up here with the rest of them? Or his deputy in Alvarran?" 
 

 Bardhyl nodded approvingly at Danut's question.  "That's a fair question, and it's true - dealing with the garrison is the easy part. As it happens, I have some ideas for what comes next. A lot will depend on how our coup here goes, but as far as the Prince and his deputy are concerned, we  must  maintain the initiative. We need to bring the fight to them, on our terms. I'm confident we can work something out on that front once we're done with our current business." 
 "I'm sure of one thing, though - we won't be able to win this by ourselves. Our supply situation isn't the best and we don't have enough trained fighters, so we need allies who'll stand with us against the Prince. Fortunately, he's squeezing the common folk all over the Reaches, and it's only a matter of time before others start getting the same ideas as we have. That's why I believe our next target must be Shepherd's Valley - only this time, we come as friends. We need the people to fight  with  us and we'll all do better if we share supplies."  
 "If we can take the Valley and Alvarran from the Prince, we'll have cut off a large part of his food supply and we'll have control over one of the main trade routes in the Reaches. We'll also be holding one of the strongest fortresses in the land  and  we'll have shown people everywhere that the Tilean can be beaten. He'll fight, of course, but if we've taken Alvarran, he'll be doing it without Carraciolo and his troops, and we'll have the Karst, the Giant's Teeth and all of the Valley between him and the Hills,"  Bardhyl concluded with a wicked grin.

 OOC: 
 
 Spoiler 
Ze Charm test  (1d100)[ 79 ]  vs. 68 (Fel 58, Charm +10)

And a re-roll if needed:  (1d100)[ 61 ] 
 Edit:  Yup, definitely needed that re-roll...
 
Thragka
 Urgrim and Sieghard, 21st Sommerzeit 

Urgrim beckoned Sieghard the rest of the way over.  "Ours put together aren't even as big as  his  horse, look,"  he could be heard complaining to the stable-keeper, with the sulky air of one who already knew he'd lost an argument.  "Fine, though, aye. Fine!  Umgi skratbezeki, "  he finished mumbling to himself darkly as the local man led the animals away.

 "Ho, Sieghard. No, Elsa's not with us, but everything's as right as it can be, these days. Are you leaving? Glad we caught you before you did, then. Maybe you can help us, and Elsa, with some tasks. She's got a plan, or something like a plan, anyway, for finding the right witchcraft to lay on the Book. But she needs things to do it. So she's sent us hunting for – well, 'treasures' isn't exactly the right word ... " 

Urgrim summarised the list of oddities that Elsa had relayed to Tatiana and him.  "Big bronze braziers. Scissars made of volcano glass. And large quantities of books and sunburnt bones. She had some ideas about where to get the right sorts of these things, too. She wants to send us all over the Reaches to find them. Now, I've no doubt she knows exactly the specificity of what she needs with good reason. And she knew it wouldn't be easy. But I'm still not sure that our purses will be deep enough for it all. On the one hand we need to keep this quiet, but on the other, she expects we'll have to call in a lot of favours. She suggested I could broker her a loan from the Dwimmulhold."  Urgrim shared a knowing glower with Sieghard, making it clear exactly how reasonable of an idea the dwarf thought that was.  "And when I said that that wasn't too likely, well, she thought perhaps you and Ludo can cover the costs instead. But I only know what the both of you told me when I last passed this way, so I reckon that might not be as easy as she thinks." 
 "Now, I reckon the first useful thing I can do is try to find the volcano glass. There might be some in these parts anyway,"  he continued, with a gesture east towards the rising hills.  "If I can source it, I'll likely need to bring it to the Dwimmulsons anyway to find an  artigian . So I'll be heading up to Zhufund sooner or later, one way or the other. But I was hoping I would run into a friendly face who'd go that way a little quicker, to try to safely tell this to you and Ludo too, and the gods are good to us today. If you've any way of getting word to the man Bardhyl – Elsa thought his people could supply the sun-drenched bones." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Elsa's original outline was  here , so please do assume Urgrim includes as much detail as necessary.

With regards to Urgrim's next steps, I'm not sure whether a CK (Border Princes) [or CK (Dwarves)?] would be appropriate to see whether Urgrim himself knows the right kind of places to go looking for obsidian, but here's a try:   Common Knowledge 64  - (1d100)[ 70 ] ,   Fortune  - (1d100)[ 28 ] 

Regardless, Urgrim does still want to try to chat to local traders to ask both whether they have any knowledge of obsidian coming from the Dead Hills, and whether he can hire a local guide to the hills for an excursion (say up to a week in length) to try to find some. This roll's always fun with Urgrim:   Gossip 16  - (1d100)[ 2 ] ,   Fortune  - (1d100)[ 82 ] 
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  &amp; Urgrim, 21st Sommerzeit 

Sieghard's relief that nothing was wrong began to fade when Urgrim brought up the need for funding.

" How much? " was all he asked.

  Sieghard , Ludo &amp; Jarla, 22nd Sommerzeit 

" He sent the ogres... " Sieghard repeated back in pure disbelief. " The ogres... " He said again as though that would change what Ludo had told him or make it that he had heard wrong. Ludo's own expression confirmed that it wouldn't. " Of course he did! " he said, anger overtaking his initial surprise. " The pig-bastard fed people to orcs too, why wouldn't he feed them to ogres? "
Thragka
 Urgrim and Sieghard – Manann’s Keep, 21st Sommerzeit 
 ”Hard to say,”  Urgrim replied.  “Elsa gave me some gold to begin with. We’ll make do for now. It’ll be easier to find the rest of the list from Zhufund, I reckon, once we’ve got our hands on the  karag  glass. So we’ll be close to your business up north, if and when we do need some help. For now, I’ll just be grateful if you can pass the word on when you next see the others.” 
LeSwordfish
 "I don't think we can wait much longer,"  Ludo said.  "If people in the south are revolting, and Arrow Heap, and whatever Bardhyl's doing... if the Iron Company can fight them one at a time, they'll all be wiped out. And then sooner or later, It'll be our turn." 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 19th Sommerzeit 

Bardhyl’s words about the Shepherd’s Valley were received less enthusiastically. Valmir and his companions murmured to one another, while the old man Shkodran frowned, his eyebrows looking like two hairy caterpillars mating. Danut just listened.

“Bardhyl, brother,” said Valmir, “if we need more warriors, why would we look in the valley? The Shepherd’s Valley grows sheep, not wolves.” Jakov and Zef muttered their agreement.

“We don’t have enough food for our own people,” said Vjolka, chiming in. “How will sharing with the lowlanders help us, unless we take more than we give?”


 

 Urgrim, 21st Sommerzeit 

After Sieghard had set out north again, Urgrim busied himself around the town. There was a strange atmosphere in Manann’s Keep, and it didn’t take him long to hear all the details of what was going on up at the mill. It was all most people seemed to want to talk about.

Still, Urgrim was here on a mission, and the mission came first. The proprietor of the  Star of Marienburg  was happy to point him towards a man by the name of Markus, who he said was the best guide there was when it came to the Dead Hills. “Don’t imagine he’s got much business that way at the moment. What with the storms up there in the winter, when the Prince took his soldiers up to Nath, and now these Taal-cursed locusts… well, there’s a few more folk talking about how those hills are cursed than usual. You might say they had good reason, too.”

Markus himself was a lean, rangy sort of man, with a shaggy mop of brown hair and a stitched sheep-skin jerkin that looked like it hadn't been washed in a while. “You want to go to the Firescar?” he said. “Don’t know if I’ve ever seen much of this… rock-glass there, but I can take you all the same. My fee’s a crown.”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Urgrim knows there are two areas of volcanic rock in the Reaches - the Dead Hills and Last Water. He knows that obsidian is pretty rare, and finding a piece the right size and shape to make into a blade would require either persistence or luck.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard , Ludo &amp; Jarla, 22nd Sommerzeit 

" It'll only be our turn if we give him reason for it to be, " Sieghard said. " One problem at a time. That timber deal with the guilders... Will enough food be coming in to send some to Manaan's Keep as well? "
rax
 Bardhyl, 19th Sommerzeit 
 "Sheep they may be, but any man will fight when his family or livelihood is on the line,"  Bardhyl answered Valmir.  "And from what I hear, the old Duke had Sforza in a bind at Arrow Heap until the fire witch burned enough of his levies. Even then, if  our  people hadn't been tied down at the mill, things could still have gone the Duke's way. I'll wager there's plenty of Valley folk that still have a spear or bow stashed away. If we can get them on our side, then with the right plan and our help, I'm sure they can still give Carraciolo and his men a run for their money." 
 "And that's the rub of it, really. Unless any of you here can magic up an army to fight beside us, the Valley folk are the only ones close enough to give us the numbers we need to have a fighting chance. If we go it alone, many more of our people will die, even if we manage to come up with a scheme worthy of Mavros himself to take on the Tileans,"  he said.

 "As for food, we won't be giving away our supplies without getting a fair trade in return,"  he assured Vjolka.  "The plain truth is that the Valley isn't as dry as the Hills and they didn't get hit hard by the locusts. Compared to the Downlands, the Valley probably has the best supply situation in the Reaches right now. For sure, no one's going to be fat and happy, but if we combine our resources while not giving them away to Sforza, we can make them last longer for both  vrani  and Valley folk than either of us can manage on our own. "

 "In the meantime, without our goats - and sheep and grain from the Valley - the Downlanders are going to get increasingly desperate. More and more of them will be doing everything they can to keep the rest of their food from falling into Sforza's hands, and once that happens, he'll be facing rebellion all through the Reaches. Then it won't be  just us  he's fighting any more,"  he explained his thinking to the assembled leaders.
LeSwordfish
 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
   Sieghard , Ludo &amp; Jarla, 22nd Sommerzeit 

" It'll only be our turn if we give him reason for it to be, " Sieghard said. " One problem at a time. That timber deal with the guilders... Will enough food be coming in to send some to Manaan's Keep as well? " 
 

Ludo laughed hollowly.  "I was trying to work out the same thing for Arrow Heap. If they send us workers to cut and haul the timber then maybe. But I can't imagine the guilders will just buy as much as we ask for forever. Or that Sforza will just let us drive the price up. And Manaan's keep is huge, even a few wagons won't make much of a difference." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard , Ludo &amp; Jarla, 22nd Sommerzeit 

" I'd settle for enough of a difference to keep more people from ending up in an ogre's cookpot, " Sieghard replied humorlessly. " Unless you can think of another way to solve that without people dying. "
LeSwordfish
 "I'm not saying we can't offer,"  Ludo said.  "But this was a plan to keep the ogres away from  us  and  our  people, and I don't want to risk that by getting everyone involved." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard , Ludo &amp; Jarla, 22nd Sommerzeit 

" Our stores are good enough to not need to worry about that for now. If Sforza was gone, it wouldn't be a problem in the future either, " Sieghard said. " It's that or let them do in Manaan's Keep what they did in Arrow Heap. "
LeSwordfish
 "Our stores are good now but it could be a year until we can next replenish them!"  Ludo urged.  "We need to be filling them now! Before Sforza raises taxes here because the Sheperd's Valley has revolted, before the dead rise, or the locusts come back, or whatever horrible thing happens next. Before, frankly, everyone is too hungry to chop trees!" 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  &amp; Urgrim, 21st Sommerzeit 

Sieghard nodded. " Times are tight. See how far you can go with what she already gave you, but if that's not enough, I'll do what I can. I'm afraid I don't have any better way than you do to get in contact with Bardhyl, but I can let Ludo and Jarla know what you said when I see them. "

 
 Spoiler 
Realized I forgot to reply to this before. Sorry.
 

  Sieghard , Ludo &amp; Jarla, 22nd Sommerzeit 

" I didn't throw myself an orc warlord just to let prince pig do what he would've if he won on the bridge, " Sieghard replied, more sharply than before. " Half our people are from there, and it's the half who have been with us the longest and through the worst. It's be a poor way to repay them, letting Sforza starve their friends and neighbors. And there's not going to be any ****ing raised taxes. He wants too much as it is - I'll stick the knife in him myself before giving him a grain more than we're giving him now. "

" Gods willing, he'll be dead before he thinks to ask... And if not, better to have Manaan's Keep on our side. "
LCP
 Bardhyl, 19th Sommerzeit 

Shkodran chose this moment to speak up.

“Plenty of Duke Alvarr’s soldiers left, aye,” he said, “and plenty of them taking Prince Sforza’s gold. That’s where these lowlanders with Orso come from.”

“Coin in your pocket is one thing,” said Wadim, “and food in your belly’s another. Food for your children, that’s another thing still.” He looked around at the gathering. “There are five times as many mouths to feed south of the pass than north of it. The shepherds will see it’s not us who’s robbing them.”

“And who speaks for the shepherds?” asked Valmir. “The Duke’s dead. What leaders do they have, except for the Tileans?”

“Maybe we'll have to give them one,” said Wadim. “We’ll see.”

Bardhyl could tell that the others in the cave with him were still far from convinced it was worth extending a hand to the people of the valley. Convincing them would be work still to do, or else trouble yet to come - but nobody seemed about to die on this hill just now. Danut held his tongue, and Valmir seemed to have no more to say - their hatred of Orso and his occupiers came first.
RossN
 Jarla, Sieghard and Ludo 

Jarla had been listening to this talk and fidgeting nervously.  "I think we'll have to move immediately against Irene and Muzio and when I say immediately I mean just that. Not in months or weeks. We can't wait to see how things turn out; Sforza is killing people every moment we wait and Irene is still foaming at the mouth to murder Ludo and Elsa."  She took a deep breath and tried to remain calm.  "Could we frame the vampire and his pawns if we did, well...?" 
LeSwordfish
Ludo held up his hands for calm.  "If we panic and move too fast, we'll all end up with our heads on pikes. I know we need to act soon but we need to make sure we stop and think."

"Right now, I need to get this deal with the guilders set up. I'm going to speak to people tomorrow, get volunteers to cut wood. And I'm going back to Arrow Heap as soon as the full moon passes, to get them in on the deal as well. And then we can send a message to Manaan's Keep. That's one problem off our backs, at least for a little while."  
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl, 19th Sommerzeit 

Shkodran chose this moment to speak up.

“Plenty of Duke Alvarr’s soldiers left, aye,” he said, “and plenty of them taking Prince Sforza’s gold. That’s where these lowlanders with Orso come from.”

“Coin in your pocket is one thing,” said Wadim, “and food in your belly’s another. Food for your children, that’s another thing still.” He looked around at the gathering. “There are five times as many mouths to feed south of the pass than north of it. The shepherds will see it’s not us who’s robbing them.”

“And who speaks for the shepherds?” asked Valmir. “The Duke’s dead. What leaders do they have, except for the Tileans?”

“Maybe we'll have to give them one,” said Wadim. “We’ll see.”

Bardhyl could tell that the others in the cave with him were still far from convinced it was worth extending a hand to the people of the valley. Convincing them would be work still to do, or else trouble yet to come - but nobody seemed about to die on this hill just now. Danut held his tongue, and Valmir seemed to have no more to say - their hatred of Orso and his occupiers came first. 
 

 Bardhyl threw up his hands in mock surrender and grinned at the assembled  vrani  leaders.  "You know what? You've all made good points, but we're getting ahead of ourselves. Let's take back Morr's Seat first, then we can nitpick what to do next, aye?" 
 "I'm thinking we don't want to drag this out unnecessarily. I want Morr's Seat back in our hands before anyone comes to collect the goods stored in the hall. I don't know about the rest of you, but the idea of letting Sforza's tax collectors walk into a trap appeals to me,"  he smirked.  "Can we be ready to move as soon as all the weapons have been brought into town? How soon would that be?"  he asked.

 "By the way, Roza, have you ever overheard Orso say anything about the arrangements for delivering the taxes he's collected to Alvarran? Anything about how many wagons and men Carraciolo might be sending? And another thing - have you ever seen Orso receive and read any written orders, or write any missives of his own?" 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 19th Sommerzeit 

  "Can we be ready to move as soon as all the weapons have been brought into town? How soon would that be?"  he asked. 

Wadim made a show of counting on his fingers. "Four or five days," he said. He looked around. "Is that enough for all of you to be ready?"

Grim-faced nods answered the question. Nobody seemed to be having second thoughts.


  "By the way, Roza, have you ever overheard Orso say anything about the arrangements for delivering the taxes he's collected to Alvarran? Anything about how many wagons and men Carraciolo might be sending? And another thing - have you ever seen Orso receive and read any written orders, or write any missives of his own?"  

"The sergeant doesn't share that kind of thing with the help," said Roza, a touch bitterly. "Don't know if I've seen him send any letters. But I saw the Prince's taxmen come before, when we had Giul- when we had the old sergeant. Three big wagons, with two guards to each of them. I don't know if they filled them all."
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl, 19th Sommerzeit 

"The sergeant doesn't share that kind of thing with the help," said Roza, a touch bitterly. "Don't know if I've seen him send any letters. But I saw the Prince's taxmen come before, when we had Giul- when we had the old sergeant. Three big wagons, with two guards to each of them. I don't know if they filled them all." 
 

  "Well alright, I suppose I'll just have to ask the good sergeant myself the next time I see him,"  Bardhyl chuckled.

 "One last thing - our little surprise for the soldiers' stew. Can you find and bring that in yourself, Roza, or will one of us have to procure it and get it inside the hall for you?" 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 19th Sommerzeit 

"I'll bring it myself," said Roza. "It won't be hard."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard , Ludo &amp; Jarla, 22nd Sommerzeit 

" We're too late to stop the worst in Arrow Heap, " Sieghard said. " We can help them with the food, but that's not gonna get the ogres to un-eat whatever poor fool that was in their way. We  can  stop the same happening in Manaan's Keep if we hurry, though. It needs to be the priority. "

" As for Irene, we just need a way to get her away from her guards. Easy enough to deal with her after that... Just need to make it look like bandits or something. It's the prince that's the tricky one. "
LeSwordfish
 "How many guards does she take when she goes out riding or similar?"  Ludo asked.  "Into the countryside." 

He looked sideways at Sieghard.  "The guilders also suggested they might be willing to pay a food bounty to whoever could rid them of the wreckers." 
Thragka
 Urgrim, 21st Sommerzeit 
 With Sieghard 
Urgrim gave an equanimous shrug.  "Fair enough. Can't ask you for more than that, I suppose. Take care 'til we next meet." 
 Later 
 "How far is it?"  Urgrim asked Markus.  "This Firescar. And what direction? But aye, we'll go with you. I'll give you half a crown now and the other half when we're done. I want you to teach us the route as we go. We'll just need a few hours to get ready, but we can leave today." 

The 'few hours' was mostly an excuse to get some privacy from Markus to talk to Tatiana.  "Way I see it,"  Urgrim told her,  "it doesn't sound too likely we're going to find any volcano glass tottering around on our lonesome in the Dead Hills. But Elsa suggested it, and I'd feel foolish if we passed without at least trying. So I reckon we should go to this place, camp out for a few days, and simply have a look around for any veins or ores. It'll be boring work, mind you. Two or three days just wandering the hill, looking at the ground for a certain type of rock all the hours of daylight. Just warning you that you might quickly tire of it. But as I said, it'd be foolish not to take a chance on it. How does that suit you?" 
 "After that we'll head on up to the city. Assuming we can't stumble across some volcano glass, I'll have to see whether anyone in the Dwimmulhold already has some that we could just buy from them." 
 "So, make sure you've packed for a week or so in the hills. And if you want to delay here for a while now before we go, take a few hours to yourself, I'm fine with that." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Assuming Tattie has no major objections, I'm happy to go ahead with Markus leading U+T into the hills. I will assume Urgrim can stock up on is usual supplies while in Manaan's Keep.

I have a couple of thoughts on how Urgrim can try to teach Tattie some geology, and systematically explore the site that Markus leads them to, so I can lay those out when we're under way.
 
rax
 Bardhyl, 19th Sommerzeit 
 "Very well, then everyone knows what they need to be doing, eh? Unless anyone has any further thoughts, let's call it a night and go about our business,"  Bardhyl said, looking to end the meeting.

 OOC  
 Spoiler 
So Roza was on a first name basis with the dead sergeant? Nothing suspicious about that at all. 😉

When the others start to leave, Bardhyl will ask Wadim to stay for a moment to discuss a personal matter.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard , Ludo &amp; Jarla, 22nd Sommerzeit 

" That'd make them awfully bold wreckers, " Sieghard said, catching onto Ludo's implication. " Desperate times will do that, I suppose. "
LCP
 Bardhyl, 19th Sommerzeit 

Valmir laughed. “Morr’s wings, Bardhyl, is that how you talk about rebelling against our lords and masters?” he said, with a toothy grin. Puffing himself up, he assumed a stilted, stuffy voice. “ ’Unless anyone has anything to add, let’s all go about our business, gentlemen.’  Great Korvin’s ghost, if that’s all the fire you’ve got for the Tileans, what are you like with the girls?”

With a cackle, he clapped Bardhyl on the arm. It all seemed in good humour, but Bardhyl felt there was a seed there of something that could become a challenge to his authority, if he let it sprout.

“We’re really doing this, right?” Valmir said. “Taking back Morr’s Seat? Docking those Tilean piglets’ tails and sending them squealing back to their Prince?”

“We’re really doing it, Valmir,” said Wadim, quietly. “That is, if no-one gives us away. So be quiet on your way out, eh?”

One by one, the plotters slipped out, until at last Bardhyl and Wadim were left alone in the gloom. The Raven Speaker picked up the dark lantern that was sitting on the floor and looked inside to check its oil.

“Well,” he said, breaking the temporary silence. “That seemed to go alright.”


 

 Urgrim, 21st Sommerzeit 

“It’s a full day’s hike,” said Markus. “If we wanted to get there today, we’d have needed to set off with the dawn. But if you’re happy camping out, we can be there tomorrow morning.” He seemed to have no problem with taking off at such short notice. “I’ll gather up my things.”

For her part, Tatiana wasn’t too bothered by the idea of camping out in the hills - if anything she seemed to welcome it. “I like exploring,” was all she said. “It’ll be interesting.”

She knuckled her eyepatch, a stray thought seeming to cross her mind. “It’s not dangerous out there, right?”

 ~ 
Markus got his gear together with a pleasing efficiency, and met them at the edge of town. As they walked out through the farmland surrounding Manann’s Keep, they could see the damage left by the locusts all around them. Even Urgrim, in all his travels, hadn’t seen its like before.

“This is where it started,” said Markus. “Or a bit north of here, depending who you listen to. Everyone agrees, though, the swarm came down out of the hills.” He looked up at the rounded tops of the Dead Hills ahead, rising against the sky like a row of weathered tombstones. “You know, after all that rain in winter, people were saying it’d be the greenest spring in forty years. Now look at it.” He kicked up a patch of dirt from the path, uprooting the dry husk of a weed, stripped down to just a ragged stem. “Not fit for goats.”

They found a suitable campsite in a sheltered spot on the north slope of the hills, with plenty of dead brush to get a fire going. Markus was soon asleep and snoring, his hat pulled down over his eyes. Urgrim stayed awake to see the stars come out. He could see Grungni’s Baldric glittering in the east, and beyond it, the horns of the Two Bullocks rising above the horizon. Morrslieb looked faint and far away - and, thankfully, still its usual sickly green.


 

 Urgrim, 22nd Sommerzeit 

Just like Urgrim, Markus was up at the crack of dawn, and soon ready to go. The two of them had to wait around a little while for Tatiana to reach the same state of readiness, but when she did, they continued their trek up out of the denuded fields of the valley, and into the desolate landscape of the Dead Hills. They could smell the Firescar long before they reached it - the rotten-egg stench of sulphur, wafting on the breeze.

The source of the stink was a shallow gouge in the side of the next hell, like the ravine left by a landslip. Hissing clouds of white vapour rose from its lowest points, where Urgrim could see occasional tongues of blue flame licking up between the broken rocks.

“Well,” said Markus, his voice muffled by the scarf he had wrapped over his nose and mouth, “this is it.”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
If you’re planning to camp out here for more than 1 night, Markus will be heading back on his own, unless you want to up his fee.

I’m interested to hear what the plans you mentioned for Urgrim and Tatiana are, but as a baseline, if you just throw an Outdoor Survival test (for camping out) and a Search test (for obsidian hunting), that’ll have some non-zero chance of success.
 
LeSwordfish
 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
   Sieghard , Ludo &amp; Jarla, 22nd Sommerzeit 

" That'd make them awfully bold wreckers, " Sieghard said, catching onto Ludo's implication. " Desperate times will do that, I suppose. " 
 

 "If they knew where the principessa was going to be, they might do something desperate and very dangerous." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard , Ludo &amp; Jarla, 22nd Sommerzeit 

Sieghard nodded. " Even if not, they'd make a convenient scapegoat. One no one would miss if we had to deal with them afterwards. It's something we could look into at least. "
Thragka
 ”Hoo,”  Urgrim exclaimed at the sight of the fissure, blowing the smell out of his nose. His reckoning of their chances had been decreasing as the stink of sulphur grew. The sight of the fissure, though, made his heart pound with a juvenile, almost nostalgic excitement. It was a reminder of the tenet learned and taken for granted by every beardling: that the earth around them was alive, and powerful. Now, watching the mephitic flickering, Urgrim suddenly realised that it had been years since he’d last confronted evidence of this power.

He had a list of questions for Markus.  ”Is it dangerous? Does it ever blow out, throw rocks? Has there ever been any mining around here?”  And then, an afterthought –  “Are there any springs or pools?” 
LCP
 Urgrim, 22nd Sommerzeit 

Markus shook his head. "Sometimes it sends out more or less smoke," he said, "but I never heard of any big blow-out. No pools, neither - bone-dry up here, most times. As for mining... you get some folk coming out this way to scrape up that brimstone stuff off the rocks. Other'n that, the nearest mine's in Handrich's Cross."
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl, 19th Sommerzeit 

“We’re really doing it, Valmir,” said Wadim, quietly. “That is, if no-one gives us away. So be quiet on your way out, eh?”

One by one, the plotters slipped out, until at last Bardhyl and Wadim were left alone in the gloom. The Raven Speaker picked up the dark lantern that was sitting on the floor and looked inside to check its oil.

“Well,” he said, breaking the temporary silence. “That seemed to go alright.” 
 

  "As well as I'd dared to hope,"  Bardhyl agreed.  "Though I suppose I'd better start polishing my oratory some if we make it to the next stage. I may have gotten too used to working with a tight crew that trusts my judgement. I'd hate to have to face down Valmir or one of the other glory hounds because they don't appreciate my manners,"  he chuckled grimly.

 "By the way, you heard it too, right? What Roza was about to say? Did you know she was on a first name basis with the dead Tilean?" 
RossN
 Jarla, Sieghard and Ludo 

Jarla looked from Sieghard to Ludo in confusion, obviously feeling she'd missed a conversation somewhere.  "Who are these wreckers?" 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard , Ludo &amp; Jarla, 22nd Sommerzeit 

" There's not much we know about them either, " Sieghard said. " Just that they're a group on the river bold enough to go after trade boats who clearly don't care much for the prince's law. A lot of desperate men out there right now, and probably more than a few who fought on the other side during the war. "

" At the very least, they're a group who could take the blame if Irene were to disappear unexpectedly. If they're mostly men who fought for Alvarr or Rorik, we might even be able to make it so that's not just a story. "
LCP
 Bardhyl, 19th Sommerzeit 

 
 Originally Posted by rax 
  "As well as I'd dared to hope,"  Bardhyl agreed.  "Though I suppose I'd better start polishing my oratory some if we make it to the next stage. I may have gotten too used to working with a tight crew that trusts my judgement. I'd hate to have to face down Valmir or one of the other glory hounds because they don't appreciate my manners,"  he chuckled grimly. 
 

“Your tight crew work for gold, no?” said Wadim. “They don’t have to believe in anything more than the payout. You want people to fight for a cause, you need their hearts in it as much as their heads.” He gave one of his crooked smiles. “Maybe more, if we want anyone but fools to join us.”


  "By the way, you heard it too, right? What Roza was about to say? Did you know she was on a first name basis with the dead Tilean?"  

“I heard.” Wadim gave Bardhyl a look that was hard to read. “You think that’s strange, do you? Tell me, then, the good sergeant we have now - what’s  his  family name?”

He took a moment, as if to let Bardhyl think. “Just because we have a common enemy doesn’t mean our people have forgotten how to be cruel to each other. Calling them together is one thing, but  keeping  them together, that’ll be another altogether. If I were you, I wouldn’t go digging for things that might split them apart.” He sat back against the rock wall, rummaging under his cloak for something in one of the pouches at his belt. “That girl’s taking a risk for us, a big one, and hasn’t asked anything in return. I don’t think her loyalty’s in question.”
LeSwordfish
 "Once the next full moon has come and gone, perhaps it's worth getting in contact with them,"  Ludo said.  "If they've been robbing boats they must be near the river. Whether we want to talk to them or take care of them, we need to find them first." 
Thragka
 Urgrim, 22nd Sommerzeit 

Urgrim nodded along to Markus's answers.  "Well then,"  he responded.  "Not what I was expecting,"  he said to Tatiana,  "and not quite what would be best for finding  karag  glass. The vapours means there's hot rock far underground. It's where that hot rock cools down that  karag  glass is formed. We're just seeing the sweat and the breath of all that living earth beneath us. But if there were ever blow-outs in the past, they could have thrown some of it to the surface. So it's well worth a look, while we're here. In the ravine, and maybe roundabouts." 
 It looks dark and glassy - sometimes a kind of oily colour. Shear surfaces where it breaks off from itself or other rock. If you don't want to search down in the ravine, go for a wander - looks for craters, or mounds, that seem out of place. We're not likely to find any big sheets of it, but maybe a stray clump or two. And if you see any sort of puffy rock, full of holes, that looks like it might almost float on water, that's a good sign too." 
 "I'll start searching across this end of the ravine,"  he said, waving a hand to indicate.  "If you do come down,"  he added to Tattie,  "take care near the vents. If the vapours start to make you feel ill, or light-headed, go back for fresh air." 

Urgrim turned to Markus.  "You've earned your crown as far as I'm concerned. If you phant'sy the job, there's two more shillings in it to search the ravine with me for the rest of the day, and half a crown if you do find good volcano glass. You may take it or leave it." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Apologies for the delay. My thoughts for Tatiana's geology lessons (wow Urgrim who knew you knew so much about rocks) changed from my original plans given the surprising location. I think one night of camping will be enough - Urgrim doesn't really expect to find much here. Before heading for Savonne, though, Urgrim now wants to head to Handrich's Cross to talk to miners there.

Rolls:
  Outdoor Survival 54  - (1d100)[ 39 ] ,    Fortune  - (1d100)[ 23 ]  
   Search 27  - (1d100)[ 42 ]  ,   Fortune  - (1d100)[ 78 ] 
 
rax
 Bardhyl, 19th Sommerzeit 
 "They used to, but now we're in uncharted territory. Some of them are with me because I've promised them a new start if we win this, some of them are in it for a big pay day, and some of them are with me because they want to see our people stand proud and free again, but for now all of them trust me to deliver because of our history together. If we can pull off this caper, hopefully more  vrani  will be ready to try things my way,"  Bardhyl answered.

 "Why would I care what Orso's family name is? Has he got relatives in the Hills I need to worry about?"  Bardhyl snorted.

 "And I don't care who Roza's been bedding  unless  it makes her loyalties suspect. She called herself a survivor when I contacted her. If she had feelings for the dead man, then all we can do is hope they don't make her more loyal to the Tileans than to us. Because if she decides it's to her advantage to sell us out, then it's not just me, but all the people who trusted me who're for the chopping block, " he retorted.

 "I didn't survive ten years as an outlaw by trusting the wrong people, but I'll make you a deal. I won't go digging into her past if you can arrange something for me. I want the street patrols watched every day until we're ready to strike. It should be different people every day so as to not arouse suspicion. Their job is to note any changes to the patrols and their routines, for instance if they start patrolling closer to the hall, or if they're suddenly all new recruits. Any of that could be a sign that Orso's on to us, but he's trying not to show his hand while preparing for the worst. Of course, he could also come straight for us, but at least then we'll know for sure we've been betrayed." 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 19th Sommerzeit 

“A prudent measure,” said Wadim. “I can arrange it. But if you suspect the girl, don’t let me stop you. You’re the one who recruited her, after all.”

He sounded genuinely unconcerned. At last seeming to find what he’d been looking for, he pulled out a strip of dried meat and started to chew.

“Everyone here’sh a shurvivor,” he said. “The onesh who weren’t, they’re rotting where Rorik left them.” He swallowed. “But if surviving were all that girl cared about, I don’t think she’d be getting tangled up with us. You want people to believe in you, Bardhyl, you have to be willing to believe in them.”

Picking up the lantern, he turned towards the narrow passage that led out. “Was there anything else?”


 

 Urgrim, 22nd Sommerzeit 

Markus took his gold happily enough - the offer of a few extra schillings didn’t seem to tempt him to descend into the Scar. Left to their own devices, Urgrim and Tatiana clambered down into the ravine, keeping a respectful distance from the scalding vapours rising from the bottom.

For hours, they searched among the broken rocks, hunting for anything that gleamed. They searched until their hands were raw and the stink of the sulphur made them sick, but Urgrim came up empty-handed. Tatiana raised her hands to show she had found nothing either.

Disappointed, the pair clambered back up the slope to fresher air. The sun was going down - they would have to make camp here for tonight.


 

 Marktag, 23rd Sommerzeit - Urgrim 

The next morning, Urgrim and Tattie descended back into the valley, heading north to Handrich’s Cross. The village nestled at the very edge of the Karst, under a split spindle of rock in the cleft of which was built a little wooden shrine. Houses in the Imperial style surrounded a small market square, with a good-sized inn to serve it. Behind, on the higher ground close to the rocks, Urgrim could clearly see the mine-workings Markus had spoken of.

The inn’s name was the  Tilted Scales , and from how well-appointed it looked inside the place seemed prosperous enough. The village seemed strangely quiet, however - when Urgrim asked where everybody was, the innkeeper told him that many of the people had gone south, to join the protests at Ardelean’s mill. “Enough’s enough, that’s what people are saying,” he said. “Can’t say I don’t agree with them, neither.”
rax
 Bardhyl, 19th Sommerzeit 
 "Trust is a two-way street. I trusted Roza enough to put everyone's lives at risk. I'll  believe  in her when she's done her part,"  Bardhyl countered.

 "No, we're done here for now. Let me know when the weapons start arriving,"  he added as he prepared to follow Wadim out of the cave.
LeSwordfish
 Painford, 22nd Sommerzeit 
Before Sieghard had arrived, Ludo had been trying to gather the people of Painford together and now, as the sun started to set, he clambered onto a stump to address them all. This didn't let those at the back see him any better, but gave him a little more authority than the children in the front row.

 "I'm not going to lie,"  he said, lying,  "things are becoming quite difficult. And they're only going to get worse. We've got a very tough year ahead, maybe the worst any of us has lived through. I know - I know we're not Painford locals, that we've come in and it's all been bad news since then. But Painford has welcomed us, ever since that first night in Gavril's. I hope we've given back that kindness, somehow. My friend called it his home, and I'm proud to call it my own now."

"We want to protect you, to use what we have to defend you and your homes and families. My family are back in Last Water, and it makes me sleep more comfortably in my bed knowing that the lord Valdez is protecting them. I hope we can give some of that security to you."

"In the times that are coming, you can look to us for protection - but you can also look to your neighbours and friends. The only way we'll get through this is to trust each other. For each of us to give what we can, and take what we need. To stand together against anyone, within or without, who wants to divide us. And anyone, above or below you, who says you shouldn't have what you need. As long as I live, nobody in Painford will go hungry when there is food to spare. I'm a soldier of the prince - and I'm a citizen of Painford. My loyalty is to you all."

"I have some small piece of good news. I've met with the guilders of Putbad and brokered a deal to buy food with Thornwood lumber. If we can ship it up to Savonne, we can ride back into town with fresh grain for our stores. I'm looking for a dozen volunteers to chop and transport that wood. It's hard work, and I can't promise much pay, but you'll be putting food on your own and your neighbour's plate."

"Father Hieronymous, from the temple of Savonne, has kindly agreed to lead us in a prayer. The eyes of the gods are on us - and as times get harder, as well as the blessings of Taal and Rhya, let us hope Verena brings us Truth, and Justice, to see us through." 

He stepped back and listened to Hieronymous' sermon with more intensity than he would have done before, trying not to let his mind wander, or his eyes watch the moonrise for the colour of blood.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Charm test:  (1d100)[ 42 ]  vs 92
 
LCP
 Painford, 22nd Sommerzeit 

Hieronymus’ sermons weren't what Ludo would have called rousing oratory. The old Verenan’s faith tended much more towards the contemplative and the considered. Still, watching the faces of the villagers, Ludo didn't feel that he was losing them. Most of them had lived here long enough to understand the arithmetic of famine.

When the sermon was over, Ludo found he had eleven volunteers for his woodcutting work - although a few of them were a touch on the old side, or the young. Still, it was a good sized group.


 

 Bezahltag, 24th Sommerzeit 
 Painford 

Two more nights had passed, and still the Chaos Moon kept its usual colour. In the village, Sieghard’s rationing scheme seemed to be holding together - although one of the Thorns had something she wanted to show him and Ludo regarding the stores. Taking them to the barrack-house where the food was being kept, she showed them bags of flour that had been torn open at the corners, and little floury paw-prints leading away. It looked like they had rats.

“This place was never built to be a granary,” she said. “It's easy for the vermin to get in. We don't do something about it, they’ll spoil what they don't eat.”

That wasn't their only concern, either. It was coming up to noon when the sound of marching feet was heard on the north road. A column of Iron Company men was approaching the town, thirty or forty strong. The sun gleamed on the points of their shouldered pikes.

Their leader met Sieghard at the gate. Ludo recognised him immediately as the leader of Alonso’s troop; thankfully, there was no sign of the ogres having travelled with him. Rather than wasting time with pleasantries, he immediately handed over a folded piece of parchment, marked with the Prince’s seal. On opening it, it read:

 To my Warden Sieghard,

I have received word of unrest in the Vale. The man who bears these orders is my sergeant Corrado, a good soldier and a loyal officer. Offer to him all the assistance he requires in suppressing revolt, and securing for our treasury that which is owed.

Your Prince,
Muzio Sforza. 

Sforza’s flourishing signature took up half the space on the paper.

 Morr's Seat 

Over the last couple of days, the weapons Wadim had promised had been trickling into Morr’s Seat, hidden in turnip-carts and the panniers of mules. Hunting bows and spears, hatchets and battleaxes - even a few old swords, although those were in shorter supply. Few of them were the kind of weapons he’d want to face an Iron Company man with in a fair fight - but then, this fight wasn’t meant to be fair.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
For re-equipping Bardhyl and his crew, you can choose between one hand weapon, spear or short bow per person.
 


The bundles of weapons were stashed away in the houses they had identified as the hiding-places for each of the groups Bardhyl had assembled. Wadim assured him that the Tileans had shown no interest in these bundles, nor any changes in the usual patterns of their patrols.

“We’re ready,” said the old man, his good eye twinkling. “Are you?”
rax
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 
 "Champing at the bit,"  Bardhyl assured Wadim with a grim smile.  "Listen, I'm sending two of my lads - Ortwin and Panteleon - down with the gate crew. They're handy with a bow and they've done this sort of thing before. The rest of my crew will be with me up at the hall." 
 "The groups we're setting up to ambush the patrols - most of the fighters there should have spears. If the Company men have got any sense, they'll give up when they see that not only will they need to get past a wall of spear points to break out, but they're going to be pelted with rocks and anything else our people in the second rank can throw while they're at it,"  he added.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Did Bardhyl and his crew get to keep their shields? If so, then it's hand weapons for everyone except Ortwin and Panteleon, who get bows.

If not, Ortwin and Panteleon will still take bows, the rest will be 50/50 split between hand weapons and spears. Bardhyl will also take a spear.
 
Thragka
 Urgrim -- Handrich's Cross, Marktag 23rd Sommerzeit 

Urgrim drummed his fingers on the surface in front of him, just once,  brdrdrdrm . He gave Tattie a sidelong, calculating look.

 Hrmmmm. To take food from the hungry ... is to be without honour,"  he said darkly.  "But to know one's death is coming, and choose to stand facing it, with an axe in hand -- that's the noble way. Let's hope the Prince is equal to that nobility." 

Abruptly, the dwarf changed both tone and topic.  "Did all the miners go too? I'd not mind talking to somebody who knows the earth here." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
I'll throw a Gossip roll at Handrich's Cross to try to talk to anyone familiar with the mine to see if any obsidian has ever been found in it. While up the Vale, Urgrim would also like to ask around and try to assess how the harvest has been in the Vale, and if it's true that the locals are much better prepared for the coming year than the rest of the Reaches. I'm thinking that's maybe appropriate as an extra degree of difficulty to the test, or only likely to succeed with extra degrees of success, perhaps. Here's Urgi at his charmingest!

  Gossip 16  - (1d100)[ 56 ] ,   Fortune  - (1d100)[ 21 ] 

“How do you do, fellow hungry insurrectionists?”
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" We'll have to get to work on a proper storehouse, " Sieghard said. " Keeping it in the barracks was always meant to be temporary. Moving it's just more urgent now. "

When the soldiers arrived, Sieghard took the letter and didn't bother pretending he couldn't read it. " What is your plan? " he asked.
LCP
 Urgrim, 23rd Sommerzeit 

“No, they’re most of the ones who stayed,” said the innkeeper. He looked up at the angle of the sunlight coming in through the window. “First shift will be knocking off soon. You hang around here, you might catch ‘em.”

Sure enough, after a couple of hours, a group of around half a dozen miners came into the tavern, their faces still grimy with rock dust. Their chief was a lean woman with close-cropped hair and an authoritative air. Introducing himself, Urgrim discovered her name was Faber.

“We’re not interested in selling,” was the first thing she said when she heard he had questions about the mine. “Or taking on outside help, or any… historical disputes. We know what’s ours, and we’ve got the deeds to prove it.”

She looked a little surprised when she found that wasn’t what Urgrim was there for. Her tone softened accordingly. “Rock glass? I’ve seen it, from time to time. Not much of it, but it’s there. I think the old Hahnemann shaft ran across a deposit - remember he used to have a charm made of the stuff. Gave it to his daughter. No-one’s worked that shaft for a while, though.”

His questions about the harvest drew a snort of derision. “Have you  seen  the crops around here?” she asked. “No, neither have I. Locusts ate ‘em all.” Taking a deep draught of her drink, she thumped it down on the table. “Any northerner spreading that story is talking out of their arse. This is where the swarm started. All we’ve got left is what stores the bugs couldn’t get at, or what was growing up the very north end of the valley. That’s why half the people here have marched off to the Keep, to stop them taking what grain we’ve got left!”


 

 24th Sommerzeit 
 Painford 

Corrado stood straight-backed and proud, looking Sieghard straight in the eye as he answered.

“My orders are to proceed directly to Manann’s Seat,” he said. “Disperse the troublemakers, and return his Highness’ taxes to Savonne. That is what I plan to do.”

He looked around the village. “My men will need to make camp here tonight,” he said. “We will march on tomorrow morning. Will you be marching with us?”

 Morr’s Seat 

“As you say,” said Wadim, nodding.  “The others will be ready when you are. Or perhaps I should say, when Roza is?” He put a gnarled hand on Bardhyl’s shoulder. “I’ll leave it to you to tell her. Then... just give the word.”
LeSwordfish
 Their leader met Sieghard at the gate. Ludo recognised him immediately as the leader of Alonso’s troop; thankfully, there was no sign of the ogres having travelled with him. 

 "That's the one from Arrow Heap,"  Ludo said  sotto voce  to Sieghard as the troop rolled in.  "Sforza's found a new favourite thug." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Do you know how things happened with the ogres? " Sieghard asked, keeping his voice low. " Did he order people eaten or did he order something else and they did that on their own? "


 “My men will need to make camp here tonight. We will march on tomorrow morning. Will you be marching with us?” 

" I will, " he replied. " The sooner it this can be solved, the better. I trust your men can handle a few farmers without the need for bloodshed. "
LeSwordfish
Ludo shrugged. " Sounded like an accident to me, but it was just implied." 
LCP
 Painford, 24th Sommerzeit 

Corrado scoffed. "We can handle farmers,  si ," he said. He paused, his thoughts needing time to catch up with his words. "Have you seen them? How many of them are there?"
LeSwordfish
 "You must be thirsty after the journey,"  Ludo said.  "Why don't we talk tactics over a drink?"
 
He thought for a moment and then pointed at Corrado.  " Vecchio Abbraccio Dell'orso,  right? You might remember me from the bar in Mirino, way back when, I never forget a favourite drink. I know Gavril has a cask of that somewhere." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Spending a fortune point to trigger my Friendly Acquaintance on Corrado.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

"  Without bloodshed,  " Sieghard repeated. " And yes, I've seen them. There's maybe two hundred in all, though a good number are children and the old. "
LCP
 Painford, 24th Sommerzeit 

 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
 "  Without bloodshed,  " Sieghard repeated. " And yes, I've seen them. There's maybe two hundred in all, though a good number are children and the old. " 
 

Corrado just shrugged - but when he heard Sieghard's appraisal of their numbers, he whistled through his teeth. "Good that we go soon, then, eh?" he said. "Before things get more out of 'and."


 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  "You must be thirsty after the journey,"  Ludo said.  "Why don't we talk tactics over a drink?"
 
He thought for a moment and then pointed at Corrado.  " Vecchio Abbraccio Dell'orso,  right? You might remember me from the bar in Mirino, way back when, I never forget a favourite drink. I know Gavril has a cask of that somewhere."  
 

Corrado smiled for the first time since entering the town. "Heyyy!" he said, "the little man knows his drink! Where do they get that in a place like this?"

Turning back to his men, he barked some curt orders for the column to break ranks and start setting up their camp. Satisfied that they were getting to work, he returned to Ludo, giving him a hearty clap between the shoulder-blades.

"Lead on,  signor ... what was it?" he said. "Stubbi?"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
If there's any particular information you want to pump Corrado for or ideas you want to plant in his head, don't feel obliged to play the whole evening out blow by blow - as always, just tell me what you want to achieve and chuck the appropriate dice roll at it.
 
rax
 24th Sommerzeit 

As evening fell, Bardhyl made his way to Roza's house, making sure to steer clear of the streets where he was most likely to bump into any Iron Company men. He knocked on the door and we let inside by Roza's grandmother. They kept each other company, sharing a flask of  kefir  he'd brought with him and trading bawdy stories until Roza returned from work.

From Roza's look when she saw him, it was clear he hardly needed to explain his presence, so he got straight to the point.  "Tomorrow's the day. Ready to do your part?" 
LeSwordfish
Ludo was happy to let Corrado do the drinking for both of them, nursing an ale and watching the sky outside cautiously for a tinge of red, something he had now been doing earlier and earlier in the day, even as the sun shone. He had been keeping those of the Thorns that were still in town on high alert too, and this week at least was not popular amongst them.

Corrado was a type that Ludo had been able to identify even when carrying drinks at the bar in Mirino: a braggart and a glory hound, who's main complaint about the money and prestige the Iron Company and their leader had earned was that not enough of it had reached him, personally. Ludo had the distinct impression he had considered himself a prime candidate for ruling Morr's Seat, if not the entire reaches. Ludo nudged him until he was venting about this, and about how everyone shy of the prince had let him down, before letting the idea lie that Sforza was known for his strength, but also his wisdom and generosity - saving the people of Manaan's Keep, returning the spear to the Dwimmulsons, the way he had rewarded his loyal lieutenants.

 "All i'm saying- all i'm saying,"  he said, laughing uproariously at Corrado's best idea of a drunken joke  "-look, I've met Orso. He sits on his arse and bullies his serving-girls all day. He's - he's just some thug! He's not glorious! You think that's what the Principe does? You think all those fine people would queue up to kiss his arse if he'd slaughtered his way through the city like Rorik did?" 

He pointed at Corrado  "All I'm saying - you do a good job there without killing all those people's kids and old dads and they'll be begging you to come back. Much cushier gig than the Raven Hills if you ask me. Weather's a lot better, and you're not stuck with that Norscan milk to drink." 
Thragka
 Urgrim, 23rd Sommerzeit 
 "These Hahnemanns, are they still living here?"  Urgrim asked Faber.  "I'd visit this shaft of theirs, with their permission."  Some implications of the miner's previous words occurred to him.  "Have you had ... historical disputes with dawi before?" 
LCP
 Urgrim, 23rd Sommerzeit 

"Hahnemann's been dead ten years now," said Faber. "But the shaft's still there. If you want to see it, you can come down with us tomorrow. As for disputes, no we haven't - and we're not looking to have any. Are you?"


 

 24th Sommerzeit 
 Bardhyl 
Roza gulped, but nodded. "Ready," she said. "I just need to let you know when they're starting to feel it, right?"

 Ludo 

"Hmh, you I want to be stuck with garrison duty?" said Corrado. "Babysitting a bunch of farmers... that's no life for the Iron Company. We ought to be where the fighting is." Knocking back the drink Gavril had brought him, Corrado gestured expressively towards the door. "You'll see. Il Capitano -  scusi , Il Principe, he won't sit on his laurels for long. There'll be new victories to be won, and we'll be there." He spread his hands. "Just have to convince these peasants to give unto Sforza that which is Sforza's. I don't mean to make it a fight if they don't. And if they do, they'd be fools. But... there are a lot of fools in this place."
Thragka
 Urgrim, 23rd Sommerzeit 
 “No,”  Urgrim said. For a moment, he’d thought Faber’s choice of words might mean that there was some bad blood between the people of Handrich’s Cross and the Dwimmulsons.

 “I’ll join you tomorrow, then.” 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Urgrim won’t insist on Tattie joining – she might not like the idea of going underground, and in any case he’s better suited to it.
 
rax
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 
 "Yes, that's all. Make your excuses, come out and give us a wave, and then leave,"  Bardhyl confirmed.
RossN
 Jarla, 24th Sommerzeit 

Jarla had spent two awkward and dispiriting days in Painford wondering what to do now. She wanted to continue conspiring with Ludo and try and swing him towards acting immediately but what could she do if word got back to Irene that she had been chummy with the enemy? Maybe it was paranoid but anyone sensible hanging out with Irene Sforza would become paranoid.

Eventually sheer boredom conquered paranoia. Donning a suitable dress she approached Ludo and his new companion at Gavril's.  "Greetings gentlemen, may I take a seat?"  She didn't wait for the answer instead sitting down and smiling at the Tilean.  "Ah, I don't believe we've been introduced Signore...?" 
LeSwordfish
Ludo was glad to have Jarla there with him - she would presumably be quite helpful in persuading Corrado. She certainly seemed more likely to be his type than Ludo was.  "I was just talking to Signore Corrado about his work down south. Clearing up the matter of the taxes,"   without anyone getting eaten , he hoped went without saying.

 "There's fools and there's fools, you know? Barely counts as fighting if the other guy's only got a pitchfork." 
LCP
 24th Sommerzeit 
 Urgrim 

Urgrim and Tatiana rose at the crack of dawn the next morning, ready to enter the mine with Faber’s crew. Tattie had insisted on coming along - she hadn’t seen the inside of a mine before, she said, and she was curious.

Urgrim could immediately see that this mine was human work, not dwarfish - the height of the ceiling was the first giveaway. Descending through a warren of haphazard pit props, they clambered down into the lantern-lit darkness, the regular shouts of the miners making sure that the front of their winding procession stayed in touch with the back.

Squeezing through a narrow gap in the rock, they reached a point where the tunnels began to branch. A loud knocking sound echoed up from the shaft on their left, drawing Tattie’s attention - that was, until Faber took her arm and firmly steered her away. “Not there,” she said, without a word of further explanation. “This way.”

It was another half hour or so’s clambering through the tunnels before they reached their destination. “This is it,” said Faber, “the Hahnemann shaft. Hasn’t been worked in a good few years.” She gave one of the props a good kick, to check it was still sound. It shed dust, but that was all. Lifting her lantern, she scanned the dark rock face.

“Here it is,” she said. “This what you’re looking for, master dwarf?”

Squeezed between the layers of rough-faced rock, a thin layer of glassy black twisted between the strata. By the gleam of the lantern, Urgrim could see a few fragments of it on the floor of the tunnel, too - by now trodden almost into sand by the passage of miners’ feet.

“Watch you don’t cut yourself,” said Faber, as Tattie stooped to pick up one of the tiny shards. “Nasty stuff, when it splinters.”


 Painford 

Corrado didn’t seem to be listening that closely to Ludo any more. He doffed his cap to Jarla.

“ Sergente  Ciro Corrado, at your service,  signora ,” he said. “Forgive me, but, ah, I do know you, Lady Schreiber. I did not know this village was host to such fine ladies.” His courteous manner was both exaggerated and clumsy - while he was aping courtly etiquette, he was clearly a commoner born and bred.


 Morr’s Seat 

Roza nodded. “Come out and wave,” she said. “Sounds simple enough.” She sounded a little as if she was trying to convince herself.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I would have liked to move you on to the next day here but I’m shattered and that needs a proper writeup! I’ll be back with Part 2 ASAP.
 
Thragka
 Urgrim, 24th Sommerzeit 

Urgrim realised he'd been looking forward to a moment of nostalgia only when it was thwarted by the umgacity of the mine. Satisfaction dispelled that disappointment in turn when Faber lifted her light in the Hahnemann shaft.

 "That's it,"  Urgrim confirmed. He ran his fingers over the visible seam, calling up old memories to reckon how easy it would be to relieve a sizeable piece.

 "How much for mining rights?" 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
I was about to roll Trade (Miner) but then I remembered I picked the masonry option at character creation, oh well. Let's try CK(Dwarves) instead.

  Common Knowledge Dwarves 64  - (1d100)[ 7 ] 
 
LeSwordfish
Ludo allowed himself to relax a little as Corrado's attention turned to Jarla, and went back to fretfully looking at the sliver of afternoon sky visible through the window.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
This is me happily taking a backseat for the rest of this scene. If Corrado's no longer paying attention to what Ludo's said, and isn't sitting there like "what i want most from this weekend is a slaughter", then I've achieved what I want for this scene and won't distract GM attention from Bardhyl's revolution by making small talk. Unless something comes up, I don't have any specific Ludo plans until the full moon has passed.
 
LCP
 Urgrim, 24th Sommerzeit 

“Rights?” asked Faber. She squinted at Urgrim, unsure what the dwarf’s game might be. “You want to mine this stuff? How much of it?”


 

 Konigstag, 25th Sommerzeit - Morr’s Seat 

Dawn broke to the croaks of ravens, and a dry, whispering wind blowing in from the west. Huddled in one of the houses where Wadim had stashed their weapons, Bardhyl watched the first light touch the roof of the chief’s hall. It would be a while before the soldiers are, and still longer before they started feeling the effects - that was, if Roza followed through on her promise. In the meantime, they waited.

Watching through the window, he saw the morning patrols head out to go about their work. The Prince’s soldiers looked hale and hearty enough. Bardhyl watched them pass, and waited.

After a while, Orso emerged from the hall, standing with his hands on his hips as a trio of veteran Tileans put some of the newer recruits through their paces. Four ravens watched them from the roof, perched with their talons hooked through the ancient, pitch-blackened eye sockets of their ancestors who lined the eaves. Bardhyl listened to the clack and clatter of practice spears, the barked orders and the grunts and shouts of the recruits, and waited.

The training session was over, and the soldiers had gone back inside. In the darkness of the houses Waldon began to complain, and was roundly  sssh ed by a chorus of voices. Still, they waited.

At last, the door opened again, and Roza emerged. She wasn't alone, though - one of the soldiers had accompanied her, and was insistently trying to engage her in conversation. His manner didn't appear hostile - by the looks of him, Bardhyl took him for one of the lowlanders from the valley. Still, he wasn't leaving her alone, however hard she looked to be trying to extricate herself from the conversation. Was this the signal? How could he be sure?
Thragka
 Urgrim, 24th Sommerzeit 

Urgrim returned Faber's bewildered gaze. What had she thought he'd wanted with it? Maybe she was a little slow. Even with these wastefully tall ceilings, humans must hit their heads a lot underground.  "Yes, Frau Faber. Or buy some ores you've already extracted. It makes durable tools." 
rax
 Konigstag, 25th Sommerzeit - Morr’s Seat 
 "Kreshnik, if Roza hasn't managed to send her admirer packing by the count of ten, your new assignment is to go out there and rescue her. Leave your weapon here, sneak over into the next street, then run towards the hall and call out for her. Say she must come home  now  - her grandmother's really sick and needs her. If that doesn't help, go up to her and tell her again until her admirer let's her go. Once you're both out of sight of the hall, bring her here, alright?"  Bardhyl ordered Zana's brother.  "Whatever you do, don't get into a fight, just keep insisting that Roza's needed back home. If she tries to send you away, do as she says." 
 "One...two...three..."  Bardhyl started his countdown.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Hopefully Kreshnik doesn't need to be spoon fed an entire scenario / set of lines here. The idea is to make it plausible that Roza needs to leave the hall  now , and if for some reason she can't or won't, he'll have to beat a retreat while still feigning worry over her poor grandma.
 
LCP
 Urgrim, 24th Sommerzeit 

Faber raised a grimy eyebrow at Urgrim's mention of tool-making. "Sound like some bloody strange tools to me," she said. "But that's your business. We've got no use for this stuff... if you want it, you can take it. But I'm not signing over any rights. This is our mine, entire, and we want to keep it that way." Raising her lantern, she looked again at the glossy streak of obsidian that sliced through the wall of the tunnel. "If it's serious digging you want done, then my people will do it, and they'll want paying for their time."

"We don't need that much," said Tattie, running a hand over the smooth, shiny rock. "Just enough for a pair of scissors."

"A pair of..." Faber's eyebrows inched higher, but then she held up her hand as if to say she wasn't going to ask. "Well, here you are then. Knock yourself out. Not literally."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I think your OOC post is correct - you want a piece that's a fair bit bigger than the actual blade you want to make, since you'll have to knap it down into shape, but that's still not a large amount. A couple of good size chunks and you should be set. If you want Faber's help to chip them out she'll oblige.

I have no secret challenges waiting for you around the next corner of the mine - wherever you want to bring things up to next, that's where we'll go. If Urgrim's hanging around Manann's Keep, then he'll cross paths with Team Painford and Sergeant Corrado there on the 26th.
 


 

 Bardhyl, 25th Sommerzeit 

Kreshnik looked a bit panicked at being given this unplanned duty, but nodded. As soon as the countdown finished, he was out the back door and away.

It took him about a minute to get into position, in which time the chatty soldier still hadn't let Roza go. The ploy seemed to work perfectly - Roza made her excuses and dashed away, leaving Orso's man standing by the doors of the hall with a disappointed air. After a moment or two, he kicked the dust with his boot, and turned to go back inside.

Another couple of minutes, and Kreshnik and Roza appeared through the same back door. Roza was flustered and out of breath - but as her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she saw Bardhyl and nodded.

"It's done," she said. "That pig Bartolomeo has the squits, and there are a few more already looking green around the gills." Her words came out so quickly they almost ran into each other. She gulped, steadying her breathing. "Don't think the sergeant's feeling it, though. That man's built like an ox... you could feed him a bowl of nails and he'd probably still ask for seconds."
RossN
 Painford 
 "A pleasure  Sergente  Ciro Corrado,"  Jarla drawled, managing to hide the twitch of her lips in amusement at the man's style. She casually glanced over him.  "Tell me my good  Sergente  shall we be entertaining you long or is this simply a brief visit?" 

She glanced at Ludo, nothing his preoccupation before turning back to Corrado and favouring him with a smile.
rax
 Bardhyl, 25th Sommerzeit 
 "Well done - both of you,"  Bardhyl commended Roza and Kreshnik.  "And we'll handle Orso one way or another, never fear." 
 "Now, let's not waste any more time,"  he said to the  vrani  assembled in the house.  "Send out the runners to let our friends know it's time to deal with the gate guard and the patrols. Everyone else get ready to move as well. We'll give the runner making for the gate just enough time to get there, then we make our play for the hall. Any questions?" 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
I'm assuming that Bardhyl would know how long it would normally take for someone moving quickly to get down to the gate. The attack on the hall would thus take place when he feels enough time has passed for that to happen.
 
LCP
 Jarla &amp; Ludo, 24th Sommerzeit 

Corrado glanced back to Ludo, not sure what Jarla did or didn’t know. “We are here on his ‘ighness’ orders,  signora ,” he said. “There are some peasants in the Vale who don’t want to pay their taxes.”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
This is advice I give all the time, and I feel a bit stupid repeating it, but it’s particularly relevant now that every other time I try to log on I get a 504… don’t spend whole posts on small talk with NPCs. Figure out where you want this conversation to go, and if necessary roll some dice at it, and we can resolve it in a couple of posts.
 


 

 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 

Listening to his own heartbeat, Bardhyl counted down how long he thought it would take the runner to reach the gate. When he was done, a gesture was enough to give the order - gripping his weapons, his group piled out into the street. From two other neighbouring houses, more  vrani  were emerging, their eyes set on the hall. Nobody was barring their way.

There were shouts from the gate, and the stuttering blast of a bugle, cut off too quickly. It didn’t matter - Bardhyl’s mob were already surging forward, practically at the doors of the chieftain’s hall. With a hefty kick, Grim threw them open.

The inside of the hall was dark, and Bardhyl’s eyes took a moment to adjust to the gloom. He could make out the figures of about a dozen Iron Company men, hurriedly snatching whatever weapons they had to hand. In their centre, Orso rose up out of the smoky gloom like a bear emerging from its cave.

“ Che cazzo? ” he growled. His eyes fixed on Bardhyl. “I warned you, boy. You’re doing something very stupid.”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
If you want to try to talk with Orso or his men, this is your one and only chance - otherwise it’s time to roll initiative!
 
rax
 Bardhyl, 24th Sigmarzeit 
 "The story of my life, Sergeant,"  Bardhyl answered with a grim smile. Brandishing his borrowed spear, he addressed Orso's men.  "Listen to me! You're outnumbered three to one and all your friends outside are dead or captured! Drop your weapons and you'll be held as our prisoners! Fight, and you all die right here, right now!" 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
I imagine this is Intimidate, but can I roll vs. Fel? It's not quite a blackmail situation, but he is offering a deal and he's not directly threatening them with his awesome muscles...😁
 (1d100)[ 63 ]  vs. 41 (Strength) or 58 (Fellowship)

Rolling an initiative check as well, in case the speech does nothing:  (1d10+4)[ 14 ] 

Also, repeating my question from earlier - did Bardhyl and his men get to keep their shields when they were disarmed?
 
-Sentinel-
 Elsa - 24th Sigmarzeit or whatever  (doesn't really matter)


Days blurred together at the Caerfort camp. Hardly ever leaving the house she had claimed for herself, Elsa could be found working on her ritual at just about any time of the day or night. She ate when she remembered to (or when someone, usually Olga, practically forced her to), and slept only when she was too tired to make any headway. She lived among scrolls and papers filled with scrawled notes. Without any magical items at hand to test her enchantment-burning spell on—she now bitterly regretted destroying the Harmugstahl mirror—she had to work on theory alone; and magic, by its nature, seldom seemed to fit neat little theories or universal rules. It occupied a place that was neither quite science, nor philosophy, nor theology, but had a few elements of all three.

Elsa was not especially scholarly for a wizard. Magic had always been intuitive to her, making book-smarts seem redundant. One became a skilled archer by performing target practice, not by reading books about physics and ballistics; similarly, one became a mighty wizard by casting spells, not by studying how the Winds interacted with the world. Or at least, that had been her view. Her exasperated masters had warned her that she could not just skip theory, useless as it might seem. Someday she would reach the limits of her natural ability, and when that day came, she would need to know theory if she was to keep progressing.

That day had come.

On the 24th, Elsa began to crave some human company and joined the rest of the camp for dinner. She looked a bit bedraggled by then, with messy hair, dark circles under her eyes, a distinct smell of sulphur from her practical experiments, and ink smeared all over her left cheek from having fallen asleep on her own notes. As she had done last week, she tried to lead a Morrite service of sorts, though she probably ended up sounding more like a ranting hermit than a priestess. At least, the smell of burning incense was pleasant.

Elsa lingered by the campfire for some time after most of the others had walked away. Olga was still there. Perhaps she felt as lonely as Elsa did.

 "What's it like to have lived in the Broken Reaches all your life?"  Elsa asked curiously.  "To see your land carved up by a new set of foreigners every decade or so? To never be ruled by someone who's from around here?" 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 

"Three to one, is it?" growled Orso. He spat on the floor at his feet. "If each of you had brought a friend, you might have stood a chance." He drew his sword. " Oro e sangue! "

The veteran Iron Company men echoed his war-cry with gusto - but that was only half the Iron Company men in the hall. The others looked decidedly less confident.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Sorry, thought I'd answered that one - shields are weapons of war, they'd have taken them off you.

I don't want to run a big complex combat here, because (A) it would be a lot of work and (B) Bardhyl has done a lot of prep so this isn't really something that's balancing on a knife-edge. I'd rather just track Bardhyl in close-up through the action. If that's OK with you, then what I'll do is roll initiative for Bardhyl + all the  hostile  NPCs, and then ask you what Bardhyl wants to do. You can assume that hostile NPCs he doesn't choose to engage will have their hands very full with the mob of  vrani  rushing in through the door.

  Bardhyl  - (1d10+45)[ 48 ] 
  Orso  - (1d10+36)[ 37 ] 
  TileanVets  - (1d10+31)[ 39 ] 
  LowlandRecruits  - (1d10+26)[ 28 ] 
 


 

 Elsa, 24th Sommerzeit 

Olga shrugged her shoulders. "Bad King Pieter was a Reaches boy," she said. "'Least that's what I heard. 'Bout the same as the rest of them." She raised an eyebrow at Elsa. "Is it different up north?"
-Sentinel-
"Is it different up north?"

Elsa nodded.  "Most lords up north are the heirs of the previous lord. They're not always good, but at least there isn't bloodshed every time the mantle passes on to someone else. And they  do  have checks on their power. Either a higher lord like an elector count or the Emperor, or some relatives who don't want their good name sullied by someone excessively cruel or hopelessly incompetent. A tyrant like the Mad Duke wouldn't last. Except in Sylvania, but they're... special over there." 

She tilted her head.  "Just how bad was he? The Mad Duke?" 
rax
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 

Bardhyl laughed harshly at Orso's response.  "You've got balls of steel, I'll give you that, Sergeant." 
 "Take them! But remember, anyone who surrenders gets to live!"  he shouted to his warriors as he rushed the Sergeant.

 
 Spoiler: Actions 
Enough talk, now we fight! 😉

As previously noted, if Bardhyl didn't get to keep his shield, I picked a spear to re-arm him with.

 Full action:  Charge attack w/ spear vs. 63 (WS 53, Charge +10); 3 attacks per Combat House Rules and a spear is Fast, so all attempts to Parry or Dodge are at -10
 (1d100)[ 98 ] 
 (1d100)[ 37 ] 
 (1d100)[ 100 ] 

Damage
 (1d10)[ 10 ]  or DoS +5
 (1d10)[ 8 ]  or DoS +5
 (1d10)[ 9 ]  or DoS +5

Ulric's Fury if applicable
 (1d100)[ 62 ] ,  (1d100)[ 50 ] ,  (1d100)[ 89 ] 
 (1d10)[ 7 ] ,  (1d10)[ 2 ] ,  (1d10)[ 4 ] 
 Wounds remaining:  16/16
 FP remaining:  2/3
 

 Edit:  Re-rolling the first attack in the OOC thread. Also wrongly noted that Bardhyl's used an FP, but looking back that seems to have been several days ago during the meeting with the leaders.
Thragka
 Urgrim, 24th Sommerzeit 

Grateful that he hadn't awkwardly snatched defeat from the jaws of victory, Urgrim nodded his approval at Faber's generosity, and set to retrieving a few handfuls of unfractured obsidian.

 "My thanks again, Frau Faber,"  he said when they had their prize and the woman was escorting them out. At the mine's entrance he stopped before parting.  "You should know that your rock glass could be valuable, to the right buyer. You mightn't find much of a market for it among  umgi , true, and it's difficult to work with. But I'm hoping to find a  dawi  in the Rock of Savonne who has the skill to craft it. Just a thought, if you want to make use of that shaft." 
 "That was easier than I thought,"  he said later, to Tatiana.  "We'll stay here again tonight. Tomorrow we can head back down to Manann's Keep, and turn north the morning after." 
LCP
 24th Sommerzeit 
 Elsa 

“And what happens if the higher lord is the one who’s the problem?” said Olga. “Your elector or your emp’rer or whoever. Who’s checking him?”

“That’s what happened with the Mad Duke. Same as’s happening now with the Tileans. When there’s a Prince of the Valley and a Prince of the Downs and a Prince of the Vale, they all check each other. But for your Wulfs and your Sforzas, when they’ve eaten all their neighbours… who’s left to check?” She shrugged again. “When you’re the biggest dog in the kennel, you can be as mad as you please.

 Bardhyl 

With a deafening roar, Bardhyl’s rebels surged forwards. Orso’s men rushed to upturn the tables and benches of the hall, throwing them in the path of the mob as makeshift barricades - but there was no obstacle between Bardhyl and the sergeant himself. Gripping his spear in both hands, Bardhyl flew at his opponent.

Orso didn’t hesitate either. Barrelling forward, the sergeant knocked Bardhyl’s spear aside with the edge of his sword. He was an older man than Bardhyl, slower - but skilled, and as Roza had warned him, strong as an ox. The blade flashed in the light for the doorway as it sliced towards Bardhyl’s throat.

 OOC:  
 Spoiler 
Attack rolls for Orso:

 (1d100)[ 76 ] ,  (1d10+5)[ 9 ] 
 (1d100)[ 49 ] ,  (1d10+5)[ 15 ] 
  Bardhyl_Dodge  - (1d100)[ 19 ] 

Would have been a nasty hit, but Bardhyl dodges!
 


Darting out of the way, Bardhyl found his footing again, feeling the weight of the spear in his hand.

"You're a fool, boy," Orso growled. "Kill us, and Lord Carraciolo will be up here in a week." He paced, weighing his Arabyan trophy dagger in his off-hand as he watched for an opening. "He'll crush you like mice."


 

 Angestag, 26th Sommerzeit 
 Ludo, Sieghard, Jarla &amp; Urgrim 

It was late on Angestag afternoon when Corrado’s column arrived at Ardelean’s mill. Sussman had met them outside the town, and thanked the soldiers for their long march. Polite and charming to Jarla, but slightly wary of seeing Sieghard back again, the steward of Manann’s Keep looked as tired and harassed as Sieghard remembered him. He tried his best to outline to the Tileans what he wanted from them.

“I’ll do the talking,” he said. “All you have to do is… stand there and look imposing.” He gave Corrado a nervous smile, which the sergeant didn’t return. Behind him, the armoured ranks of mercenaries stood gleaming in the hot summer sun. “As you do so well.”

Outside the mill itself, Hanna and her troop were still encamped. Urgrim and Tattie had found their way there as well, drawn by the steady stream of locals and lookers-on that had found their way out from the town to witness the confrontation. The numbers of the picketers at the mill had swelled still further; Ludo might have guessed they were now pushing three hundred.

Corrado’s men continued undaunted. Marching up to a stone’s throw from the edge of the camp, they redressed their ranks with clockwork precision, forming up in a block ten men wide by five deep. As one, they unshouldered their pikes and planted them on the ground - though as yet, their steel tips stayed pointing towards the sky. Silence hung heavy over the scene.

Riding slowly forwards, Sussman held up his hands to gain the attention of the gathered crowd. “Friends!” he said. “Gentle men and women of the Vale. You see here that His Highness Prince Sforza has sent his own emissaries to collect the tax he is rightfully due.” A jeering voice shouted something indistinct from among the tents. “ That he is rightfully due, ” Sussman repeated, raising his voice so he would still be heard. “Now, I have heard your troubles and your… objections, and I will continue to hear them. I will make sure that the Prince continues to hear them! But this… rebellion, this wanton disregard for law and property, this has to end now. In Prince Sforza’s name, I command you to bring out the goods that Herr Ardelean has collected for His Highness, and disperse!”

A long silence followed his command, broken only by the rasping of a lonely locust somewhere in the devastated fields. Then, somewhere hidden among the tents, a man’s voice began to sing.

 Who’ll be the lady, who will be the lord,
When we are ruled by the love of one another? 

Other voices joined in, until the sound rose from the camp in one great swell.

 Who’ll be the lady, who will be the lord,
In the light that is coming in the morning? 

Corrado looked at Sussman, and Sussman looked at Corrado, as the singing continued (though some of the singers seemed to have different ideas of what the lyrics were). Neither sergeant nor steward semed sure what to do next.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Up to you whether you want to intervene or let Sussman and Corrado continue handling the situation. Either way though, please do let me know how you are disposing Hanna and the Thorns who are present - are they going to be making a show alongside the Iron Company?
 
rax
 Bardhyl, 25th(?) Sommerzeit 
 "Will he now? And how will he even know you're dead once we've left your bodies in the hills for Morr's messengers to feast on?"  Bardhyl taunted Orso in return. Now wary of his opponent's prowess, he kept the tip of his spear pointed firmly at Orso's face, weaving and jabbing until he saw an opening for a solid thrust.

 OOC:  This is a long fight! We started on the 24th, and now it's already the 25th! Was the starting date wrong or did we mistakenly time skip a day? 😁
 
 Spoiler: Actions 
 Full action:  Swift attack vs. WS 53 using Lightning Parry to gain a free parry if needed
 (1d100)[ 100 ] 
 (1d100)[ 76 ] 

Damage
 (1d10)[ 2 ]  or DoS +5
 (1d10)[ 1 ]  or DoS +5

Ulric's Fury if applicable
 (1d100)[ 26 ] ,  (1d100)[ 24 ] 
 (1d10)[ 3 ] ,  (1d10)[ 10 ] 
 Wounds remaining:  16/16
 FP remaining:  2/3
 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 

"You're the only ones who'll be feeding the crows!" snarled Orso. Smashing the spear down once again, he lunged at Bardhyl - but once again, Bardhyl dodged nimbly out of the way.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Orso's probably feeling the pressure a bit with his men so badly outnumbered - All-Out Attack.

 (1d100)[ 35 ] ,  (1d10+5)[ 15 ] 
 (1d100)[ 98 ] ,  (1d10+5)[ 8 ] 
  BardhylDodge  - (1d100)[ 14 ] 

And whoops, yes, wrong date! Fixed now.
 
Thragka
 Ardelean's Mill, Angestag 26th Sommerzeit 

Urgrim scowled when Sussman said the word 'rebellion'. Spotting Sieghard and Jarla alongside the arriving troops, Urgrim fell back and made his way around the outskirts of the crowd to them.

 "We've just come from the Vale,"  he said after the most perfunctory of greetings.  "Had some luck with Holt's shopping list, at least. But it's no better there than it is anywhere else east of Savonne. He should choose his words more carefully."  Urgrim jabbed a stubby digit towards Sussman.  "This isn't a  rebellion . These people aren't  rebels . They're just hungry, and don't know what else to do. Those  lies  might cost lives today." 
rax
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 
  Overextended!   Bardhyl exulted silently as Orso's heavy swings left him wide open to a powerful counter attack.

 
 Spoiler: Actions 
Ooh, I know I'm going to regret this, but he can't defend and given my luck so far, I really need to maximize my chances of landing a couple of hits...so, All Out Attack it is.

 Full action:  All Out Attack vs. WS 73 (WS 53, All Out Attack +20)
 (1d100)[ 62 ] 
 (1d100)[ 28 ] 
 (1d100)[ 83 ] 

Damage
 (1d10)[ 5 ]  or DoS +5
 (1d10)[ 4 ]  or DoS +5
 (1d10)[ 2 ]  or DoS +5

Ulric's Fury if applicable
 (1d100)[ 56 ] ,  (1d100)[ 5 ] ,  (1d100)[ 46 ] 
 (1d10)[ 2 ] ,  (1d10)[ 8 ] ,  (1d10)[ 2 ] 
 Wounds remaining:  16/16
 FP remaining:  2/3
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard stood by uncomfortably. The only thing he had to offer that he hadn't the last time he had been in town was what Ludo had arranged with the guilders, but that wasn't something it would be wise to discuss openly.

 
 Spoiler 
We'll see how things go for a bit longer. The Thorns won't be a part of this.
 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 

Orso couldn't react in time to evade Bardhyl's spear. Though his armour robbed the thrusts of most of their force, they still hit home, tearing chain links and drawing blood. Snarling in pain and frustration, he fell back onto the back foot.

Somewhere on Bardhyl's left, there was a loud wooden clatter as one of the makeshift barricades was forced down, the mob of angry  vrani  pushing forward with renewed vigour. There were bodies on the floor - it was hard to tell whose without looking away from the sergeant for too long. With an angry roar, the big Tilean launched himself forward again.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Orso takes 3 wounds!

Normal swift attack in return:
[roll0], [roll1]
[roll2], [roll3]
[roll4]
 


 

 Manann's Keep, 26th Sommerzeit 

Seeing that his reinforcements from Savonne hadn't brought any bright ideas with them, Sussman turned back to the crowd. He raised his hands for quiet, and tried to speak, but the singing just grew louder.

"Please, friends - "

Still louder.

"In the name of his Highness, I  command you  - "

A clod of dusty earth came flying out from among the tents and hit Sussman square in the face, nearly knocking him out of his saddle in shock. Corrado's reaction was instant: a barked order, and as one, the pikes of the Iron Company came down, presenting a hedge of gleaming spearheads towards the camp. That silenced the singing quickly enough.

Corrado looked up at Sussman, who was still trying to wipe the dirt out of his eyes. Blinking hard, he finally noticed the sergeant waiting for orders.

"Bugger this," he muttered, and pointed at the mill. "Sergeant, the Prince's taxes are in that mill. Go up there and take it." He heaved a deep sigh. " Try  not to hurt anyone."

Corrado snapped off a smart salute. " Compagnia di ferro! " he shouted. " Avanti! "

With steady tread, the Iron Company began to march into the camp.
rax
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 

Bardhyl gritted his teeth as Orso drew blood from his calf.  "Touché, Sergeant, as the Bretonnians say! You're only drawing out the inevitable, though. Morr's not done with me yet - I've a long way to go before he calls me home!"  he laughed grimly.  "And the longer this fight goes on, the more of your men are going to die, just so you can feel good about yourself when your choking on your own blood!" 

Stepping back to keep some distance between them, he feinted and jabbed, seeking an opening in the Tilean's defences...

 
 Spoiler: Actions 
 Full action:  Swift attack vs. WS 53
 (1d100)[ 5 ] 
 (1d100)[ 65 ] 
 (1d100)[ 6 ] 

Damage
 (1d10)[ 1 ]  or DoS +5
 (1d10)[ 8 ]  or DoS +5
 (1d10)[ 4 ]  or DoS +5

Ulric's Fury if applicable
 (1d100)[ 64 ] ,  (1d100)[ 16 ] ,  (1d100)[ 67 ] 
 (1d10)[ 4 ] ,  (1d10)[ 9 ] ,  (1d10)[ 2 ] 
 Wounds remaining:  12/16
 FP remaining:  2/3
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

"  Hold!  " Sieghard shouted. " All of you just hold on a moment! "

" This isn't getting anyone anywhere and it's not worth blood being spilled, " he said, addressing the crowd. " I will  find you more food . Just clear a path and let them do what they were ordered to do before things go too far. "

 
 Spoiler 
 (1d100)[ 88 ]  vs 74 Command to buy time/try to get the Iron Company to stop for a moment.
 (1d100)[ 84 ]  reroll

 (1d100)[ 22 ]  vs 54 Charm to try to convince the crowd they've got a better chance trusting him than trying their luck with the Iron Company.
 (1d100)[ 65 ]  reroll
 
Thragka
 Ardelean’s Mill, 26th Sommerzeit 
 “ Sieghard! ”  Urgrim nearly hissed. He tried to keep his voice low, but his irritation was growing.  “There is no food! They are ready to die because they know that. Umgi!”  He pronounced the last word like an oath.  “Why can’t you see things for how they actually are, instead of all trying to deceive yourselves like it’ll deceive the world around you?” 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
No worries on missing my previous post, TheSummoner, we’ve all done it from time to time.
 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 

The loud scraping of the overturned table being pushed back across the floor underlined Bardhyl’s words. Somewhere in the melee, someone screamed like they’d taken a sword in the gut. Orso turned to look, and took a spear-thrust straight to the head for his trouble. It did no more than knock him back, the spearhead glancing from his helmet. The Iron Company’s armour was living up to their name.

“It’s you who’ll be bleeding, crow boy,” he said. “You and all your mob! You’ll be trapped like rats when the patrol gets here!” He raised his voice to a commanding bellow as he swung back at Bardhyl. “ Andiamo, ragazzi! Dare loro l'acciaio! ”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Unfortunately both of those hits are to Orso’s head, which together with the body is where he has the most armour - no wounds!

Orso makes a half-action Inspire test (Command at -20) for his men:  (1d100)[ 2 ]  -  oh yeah they love being yelled at in Tilean 

And throws a Standard Attack at Bardhyl:
 (1d100)[ 73 ] ,  (1d10+5)[ 7 ]  - nope
  BardhylDodge  - (1d100)[ 88 ] 
 


 

 Manann’s Keep, 26th Sommerzeit 

Sieghard’s voice was just one more adding to the noise as the Iron Company marched into the camp. Louder were the stamping of their boots, the crash of toppled tables, the wild squawking of chickens running from upturned coops. Only those who had gathered closest to the edge of the camp could hear him. They, at least, turned their heads to listen, rather than following the pikemen’s trail. Sieghard could see the distrust written on their faces. With Sussman right there, saying nothing to support Sieghard’s promises, it was easy to see how they sounded hollow.

Up at the mill itself, a cordon of people were coming together in front of the door. Many of them were carrying improvised weapons, if sticks, pots and rolling pins could be called weapons. Sieghard caught a glimpse of Marien among them, wearing a determined expression. As the Iron Company came to a halt in front of them, she stepped forward, face-to-face with Corrado. What they might be saying to each other, it was impossible to hear.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
A choice for you - do something with the sizeable group you have listening to you where you are (thanks to Sieghard’s Charm test), or run up to the mill to be able to intervene with Marien and Corrado.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  
 “There is no food! They are ready to die because they know that. Umgi! Why can’t you see things for how they actually are, instead of all trying to deceive yourselves like it’ll deceive the world around you?” 

" I have a way to  get  food, " Sieghard replied. Anything more he may have added was cut off when he noticed the crowd gathering at the mill. " Taal's teeth... " he muttered. " Jarla, come with me. From what Ludo said, seems like he's more willing to listen to you than anyone else. "

He looked over at the farmers who were still staring at him. " Just keep back for now, " he told them. " For everyone's safety. " Hoping they would and that it wasn't too late to deescalate things, he ran for the mill.
Thragka
 Urgrim, Sieghard, Jarla 

Urgrim shot Sieghard a curious look.  "Hrmm,"  he muttered, mostly to himself, as he followed.  "Could have led with that." 

He had to consciously stop his hand from straying to his axes as the furore grew.
LCP
 Manann's Keep, 26th Sommerzeit 

Weaving through the debris of the camp that the Iron Company had left scattered behind them, Sieghard ran for the mill. The shouting was getting louder - as he closed the last few yards, there was a  crack , and Marien fell sprawled upon the ground. Corrado had struck her with the pommel of his sword, a hard blow to the side of the head. She looked to be out cold. Sieghard could see blood trickling from behind her ear.

The others in front of the mill erupted in anger, trying to press forward - but the Iron Company's hedge of pikes forced them back. With the naked blade still shining in his hand, Corrado lifted his voice.

“In the name of ‘is Highness the Prince Sforza,” he shouted, giving it his best parade-ground bellow, “I give you the count of five to clear the way!” He held his free hand in the air, fingers outstretched. The line of people in front of the doors gave no sign of budging.

“One!” shouted Corrado. The first finger went down.
Thragka
 Manann's Keep, 26th Sommerzeit 
 "Stupid ogre,"  Urgrim said of Corrado.  "We'd better get that woman out of there before she gets trampled." 

Lifting his shield to deflect any wayward missiles or blows, Urgrim pushed into the crowd, trying to reach Marien so he could drag her away from the front.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
I'm not expecting this to necessarily go smoothly or unimpeded (by either side). The fact that he's using his shield might well make him a primary target of the Iron Company, even if just trying to get to Corrado doesn't, but Urgrim's trying not to do anything actively aggressive. He's willing to push a bit against the soldiers' resistance to try to reach Marien. If he gets to her, he just wants to drag her away - ideally away from the mill, but if the protesters are resistant to that, he will just pull her back into their ranks.

Let me know if you want tests or rolls!
 
rax
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 
 "Stubborn  and  deaf! Weren't you listening before, old man? You've got the whole town against you. Your patrols were the first of your men to go down!"  Bardhyl retorted, trying not to betray his annoyance at failing to get past the Tilean's armour. Taking advantage of having pushed Orso back, he pressed forward, jabbing at him with a succession of lightning quick thrusts.

 
 Spoiler: Actions 
 Full action:  Swift attack vs. WS 53 (any hits are -10 to parry or dodge)
 (1d100)[ 27 ] 
 (1d100)[ 50 ] 
 (1d100)[ 12 ] 

Damage
 (1d10)[ 7 ]  or DoS +5
 (1d10)[ 4 ]  or DoS +5
 (1d10)[ 7 ]  or DoS +5

Ulric's Fury if applicable
 (1d100)[ 71 ] ,  (1d100)[ 42 ] ,  (1d100)[ 22 ] 
 (1d10)[ 1 ] , (1d10)[ 5 ] ,  (1d10)[ 7 ] 
 Wounds remaining:  12/16
 FP remaining:  2/3
 
TheSummoner
 "Hrmm, could have led with that." 

" Could've, " Sieghard said. " But if word got back to Sforza that I had a source of food, he'd just snatch it up and even fewer people would be eating. "

 "We'd better get that woman out of there before she gets trampled." 

Sieghard nodded. " You move her to safety. I'll see if I can keep anyone else from getting hurt. Or at least buy you some time. "

" Corrado, that's enough, " he said as he made his way to the front. " Were the prince's orders to collect his tax or to butcher his farmers? "

 
 Spoiler 
Likewise, if there are any obstacles that would keep Sieghard from getting to the front of this or being heard that would necessitate some sort of test, please let me know. The above assumed there's not.
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla had followed Sieghard and Urgrim, her eyes wide as she witnessed things escalate. A moment of hesitation and she stepped forward to offer a hand and a smile to Marien, trying not to let the anxiety - or the sense of thrill - in her eyes show.

Part of her  wanted  things to beak out here and now so she'd have an excuse not to go back to Irene. It would be so much simpler...

 "Let me look at that bruise my dear, come on, this way,"  she said, deliberately not looking at the thug who had caused said injury. She had no wish to undermine Sieghard's negotiation here!
LCP
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 

"That's what you wanted, huh?" roared Orso, coming at Bardhyl with great hewing swings of his sword. Bardhyl's spear slipped through the openings he left, piercing him in the side, then again in the arm. The big Tilean staggered but kept his feet. "But you're finding out, the Iron Company don't go down so easy!"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
One more All-Out Attack for the road:

 (1d100)[ 43 ] ,  (1d10+5)[ 14 ] 
 (1d100)[ 85 ] ,  (1d10+5)[ 14 ] 
  BardhylDodge  - (1d100)[ 90 ] 

Looks like one hit, but it's a biggie! You may want to Fortune that Dodge so I'll leave it to you to narrate the outcome.
 


 

 Mannan's Keep, 26th Sommerzeit 

Corrado's countdown paused, as the sergeant gave Sieghard a look that could have boiled an egg while it was still inside the chicken.

"I am  following  my orders,  signor  Sieghard," he hissed,  sotto voce . "Whose side are you on? Your Prince, or these rabble?" He jerked his head angrily towards the men and women still blocking the doors of the mill. "You care about them so much,  get them out of our way! "

Urgrim and Jarla, meanwhile, had very effectively got the stunned Marien out of the way, benefiting greatly from Urgrim's ability to walk under the height of the pikes. She groaned, but didn't show any further signs of consciousness.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
No tests needed for rescuing Marien!

For Sieghard's intervention, this is a very explosive situation, so you get  1 roll  - whatever the outcome there won't be further back-and-forth. Choose wisely what skill to use and who to direct it at!
 
TheSummoner
" I  will , " Sieghard replied, meeting Corrado's gaze. " The prince will have his tax, don't you worry. "

He turned towards the mill and approached as close as he could without the farmers brandishing their makeshift weapons in his face. " I have an offer for you. I know that you're angry... That you fear what will happen if you give up what grain has been collected... But please at least here what I have to say. "

" I will find more food for you, " he continued. " The Iron Company's orders come directly from the Prince. One way or another, they'll have his tax collected. There's nothing I could say and nothing you could do that will change that, but what I can do is promise that I won't let you starve. I won't let  your families  starve. When the orcs threatened to overrun the south, I fought and bled to stop that from happening. I won't sit by and watch while famine takes the people I fought for. Nor do I want to see any of you throw your lives away for fear that there's no better option. No matter what happens here today, you have my word that I'll find more food for you. Let me help you before this goes any further than it already has. Please just put your weapons down and step aside so no one else is hurt. "

 
 Spoiler 
Oh boy, here goes something. Charm seemed to work on the people who were actually able to hear Sieghard before, so we'll try that with this group. All in on this one. I'll FP a reroll AND a +10 if they're necessary

 (1d100)[ 85 ]  vs 54 Charm (Base)
 (1d100)[ 82 ]  reroll
 
LCP
 Manann's Keep, 26th Sommerzeit 

A broad-shouldered man in a butcher's apron answered Sieghard. “You don't fight for us!” he said. “You fight for the Prince’s gold! You stand by and watch while they take the food out of our mouths, and then you say you're going to find more?” A ripple of agreement ran through the people beside him. “Who are you going to steal that from?”

From all around the mill, voices rose in noisy support. Now that the initial shock of the Iron Company's advance had died away, the camp had had time to recover its collective wits. Around fifty people were pressing in on the side where Urgrim and Jarla had dragged Marien, and on the other were sixty or seventy more.

&lt; Myrmidia save us from bleeding hearts, &gt; Sieghard heard Corrado mutter. Drawing in a deep breath, the sergeant raised his voice to his best stentorian road. &lt; COMPANY! FORM SQUARE! &gt;

The air filled with the clatter of pike-shafts and the stamping of boots as the soldiers reformed with clockwork precision. They were now arrayed in a hollow square, each face presenting a wall of points to the angry crowd surrounding them.

&lt; Front face! &gt; bellowed Corrado. &lt; Down pikes! &gt;

Twelve pikes thudded to the dirt on the side of the square facing the mill. Twelve swords flashed in the sun as they left their sheaths.

&lt; With me! &gt;

With a purposeful stride, he advanced on the doors. His eyes were fixed on the man in the butcher’s apron who had spoken back.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
The time for words is over. Up to you now whether to stand aside or physically intervene.
 
rax
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 

For a moment it looked like one of Orso's wild swings was going to take Bardhyl's arm off, but at the last moment he sidestepped with almost contemptuous ease.

 "You're right - this is taking an annoyingly long time. I don't suppose you'd just leave if we ask nicely?"  he taunted the sergeant while keeping up his driving spear attacks.

 
 Spoiler: Actions 
 Full action:  Swift attack vs. WS 53 (any hits are -10 to parry or dodge)
 (1d100)[ 17 ] 
 (1d100)[ 3 ] 
 (1d100)[ 48 ] 

Damage
 (1d10)[ 10 ]  or DoS +5
 (1d10)[ 10 ]  or DoS +5
 (1d10)[ 8 ]  or DoS +5

 Wounds remaining:  12/16
 FP remaining:  1/3
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Sheath your damn swords! " Sieghard spat, putting himself between Corrado's men and the butcher. " I told you I'd handle this! "

 
 Spoiler 
Since this isn't going to work and I expect Sieghard is about to be attacked, his first round actions if he wins initiative are Defensive Stance as they get close, and at the last moment for dramatic purposes, quickdraw his shield.
 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 

As Orso bulled towards him, Bardhyl’s spear caught the Tilean in the side, piercing between the breastplate and the fauld. The point drove in deep, Orso’s momentum carrying onto it. A pained grunt was all that escaped his lips, as if all the breath had left his lungs. Wrenching the spear free, Bardhyl struck again, and again. His enemy managed to stagger out of the way of the first blow, but the second speared him through the leg, pinning him to the packed earth floor.

At the sight of the sergeant falling, Bardhyl’s men sent up a ferocious cheer. The second barricade fell with an almighty clatter, and the mob surged forwards, driving the surviving Iron Company back towards the corner of the hall. Bardhyl heard the shouts of surrender, and the sounds of weapons being thrown down.

“You’ll hang for this,” rasped Orso, through gritted teeth. Under his impaled leg, a great pool of blood was spreading with alarming speed. “You and all your mob. Food for your bloody crows.”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
If Bardhyl wants his followers to immediately  accept  the Iron Company’s surrender, he may need to roll Command!
 


 

 Manann’s Keep, 26th Sommerzeit 

Corrado stopped just short of Sieghard. His jaw was clenched, and his knuckles were white around the grip of his sword. For a moment, Sieghard thought the Tilean was going to hit him - but he evidently thought better of it.

“It’s a strange world we’re in, now,” he said, “when a man like you is made a lord, and a man like me is still just a soldier.” Taking a deep breath, he looked Sieghard straight in the eye. “My orders, from Prince Sforza himself, are to seize this grain. Yours are to assist me. Are you refusing that order,  your lordship ?”

The swords had stayed drawn.
Thragka
 Manann's Keep, 26th Sommerzeit 

Stubby and rough as they were, Urgrim's hands were, sometimes, healer's hands. They gently moved across Marien's brow, assessing the severity of her wound.

The dwarf's ears, though, were pricked for back-and-forth between Sieghard and Corrado.  "This is going to get worse before it gets better,"  he muttered, matter-of-factly, to Jarla. He was tensed, on his haunches, and while his left hand still cupped Marien's bloody head, the right was hovering by his waist near his own tools of bloodletting.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
I'll throw a Heal test at Marien to provide first aid.   Heal 54  - (1d100)[ 51 ] 
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" This will be done without you slaughtering a pack of farmers to satisfy your own itch for action, " Sieghard replied. " Until every other option is exhausted, you will sheath your swords, stand back, and let me handle this. "
LCP
 Manann's Keep, 26th Sommerzeit 

Corrado gave a short, dark chuckle. "Let you handle it? We just saw you try. They call you a liar." He raised his eyebrows at Sieghard. "What are you going to do, ask nicely again?"

He shook his head. "You saw how I handled the old woman." That was an uncharitable description - Marien looked no older than he was. "My boys won't hurt them - more than they need to."

Turning, he made a sharp gesture to the twelve men he had called forward. " Avanti, avanti! " The soldiers started forward again - there was no way Sieghard could block  all  of them.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Stopping here to see if you want to escalate or not. Unless Sieghard &amp; co. want to take a swing at somebody I won't bother with initiative.
 
rax
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 
 "Better men than your Captain have tried, and it looks like you won't be around to see it, you stubborn fool,"  Bardhyl shot back before pulling his spear free.

Glancing up he looked about quickly to see how the fight was going.  "Your sergeant is dying! Lay down your arms!"  he shouted to any of the Iron Company still undecided about surrendering.

 "Everyone! Remember - if they surrender, they live!"  he shouted in  vrani  to his fighters.  "We need them alive for now!" 
 
 Spoiler: Actions 
Command test  (1d100)[ 59 ]  vs. 58
 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "When you're the biggest dog in the kennel, you can be as mad as you please. 
 

 "Suppose so,"  Elsa allowed. She smirked.  "Until an elf takes your head off." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard tensed when the Iron Company started forward again, but kept his hand away from his sword. He knew that giving in to that reflex that would only make the situation worse.

" Are you so afraid that I might succeed,  soldier ? " Sieghard asked, emphasizing the last word. " Give it until dawn, " he suggested. " And if I fail, I'll stand aside and you can tell the Prince what a fool I was wasting my time and how strange it is that a man like me is a lord while a man like you is still just a soldier. "
LCP
 Bardhyl 

The surviving Iron Company needed no persuading now to surrender, but it took too long for the fierce joy of the attackers to give way to Bardhyl’s command. It wasn’t until Grim and the others took up the order, bellowing at their fellows to stop, that the last sounds of fighting died away.

Six of Orso’s men were still standing - three Tilean veterans and two Shepherd’s Valley recruits. They had given a good account of themselves. The floor of the hall was strewn with bodies, most of them  vrani . Scanning the faces of those still standing, Bardhyl’s pulse quickened again as he realised he couldn’t see Kreshnik among them.

“Chief!” called out Afrim. “Over here!”

Kreshnik was lying where the second table had been overturned, with a deep wound between his ribs. With a cry, Zana ran over to his side. He was still breathing, but only shallowly - blood bubbled at the corner of his mouth with each breath.

Raising her head to look at the survivors, Zana fixed her tear-streaked eyes on the nearest of the Tileans. The bloody sword at his feet looked a decent match for the wound. He raised his hands as the  vrani  closed in around him.

“ Arrendiamo! ” he said, “ arrendiamo! ”


 

 Manann’s Keep 

Sieghard’s words didn’t stop the Iron Company men marching past him - Corrado was the only one whose attention he held.

“But why should I wait, your lordship?” said the Tilean, with a crooked smile. “I can already tell him that.”

Sieghard heard scuffling and shouts behind him as the soldiers reached the door. Two of them seized the man in the butcher’s apron, heaving him out of the line of his fellows. Others tried to help him, but the other Iron Company men drove them back with fists, boots and sword-pommels. A grey-haired man fell to the dirt, clutching at a dislocated knee. A woman staggered back, clutching at a broken nose that was streaming bright red blood.

&lt; Secure the mill! &gt; shouted Corrado, raising his voice to shout over Sieghard’s shoulder. &lt; Let’s be done here! &gt;

Outside the perimeter of the pike square, the voice of the crowd swelled with anger. Urgrim and Jarla had to fight to keep their feet as the people around them pressed forwards - only the panicked shouts of those in front stopped them from being pushed onto the waiting pikes. Unable to reach the men behind them, they showered them instead with abuse and clods of earth. There was a tinny  clang , and one of the men in the second rank stumbled back. Something hard had struck him on the helmet.

&lt; They’re throwing stones! &gt; came a shout in Tilean from somewhere in the ranks behind Corrado. The Iron Company didn’t need further instruction - even as Corrado turned away from Sieghard to see what was happening, the pikes of the front rank thrust forward together, and the angry cries of the crowd turned to screams. The mob drew back like a wave, leaving six or seven of their number on the ground behind them, pierced through by the pikes. The Tileans held their ground, daring anyone to come in thrusting distance again.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Can I have Strength tests from Urgrim and Jarla to keep their footing as the crowd pulls back, please. Failure means you’re Prone and separated from Marien (though I’m not tracking combat time yet unless a PC gets involved in fighting, so feel free to get up again).
 
.
rax
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 

Bardhyl gritted his teeth in frustration and anger as he looked around the hall.    Too many down, far too many  , he chided himself. Just then, Afrim called out to him.

 " Oh no, "  he mouthed as he caught sight of Kreshnik and then the Tilean who may well have been his doom. Without thinking, he strode over to soldier, pulled back his fist, and laid him out cold.

Turning to Kreshnik and Zana, he knelt beside the young fighter and took his hand in his own.  "Kreshnik lad, can you hear me? We've won - the hall is ours, Morr's Seat is ours. Today you struck a blow for freedom, for the future of all our people. You're a hero, lad!"  he said softly, hoping that Kreshnik could still hear him.
LCP
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 

Kreshnik was still conscious, but couldn't form words to answer - by the sound of his breathing, Bardhyl guessed the Tilean's sword had pierced a lung.

"Stay with us, brother," said Zana, holding him close. "Kreshnik! Stay with us!"

"I don't hear fighting outside," said Grim, stepping up beside the three of them. "We need healers in here. Not just for him, either."

Grim was right - the fight had taken its toll on both sides, and besides the walking wounded, it was difficult to tell which of the casualties were living or dead. Orso was still clinging on, though Bardhyl's spear had nailed him to the floor.

"What about this lot?" demanded one of the  vrani , brandishing a blood-speckled club at the surrendered Tileans. They had all seen Bardhyl's punch, and the cries of  arrendiamo  redoubled. "What are we going to do with them?"
rax
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 
 "Aye, you're right,"  Bardhyl looked up from where he knelt and said to Grim.  "Send for Wadim - tell him we need him here as quickly as possible. Then send runners to find out how things are going in town and to round up the rest of the healers." 
 "Valmir - take care of the prisoners. Make sure we've got everyone in the hall corralled, then strip them to their breeches and tie 'em up. If anyone makes a run for it, kill them. We'll decide where to hold them once we've got the full picture from the town." 
 "Jakov, Senka. Take care of the dead and wounded, please. We need to know our casualties and we need to clear a spot where the healers can get a look at the injured." 

Rising to his feet, he turned to address the prisoners.  "Men of the Iron Company, listen to me! You have surrendered, and so you shall live. But understand this - because of the deaths you have caused here today, your lease on life depends on you making yourselves useful to me. The same goes for your access to food and water - the very things your Prince was happy to rob from us to keep you fat and happy. Over the coming days, I will be asking many questions. If I am dissatisfied with the quality of your answers or your willingness to provide them, I will turn you over to the friends and relatives of those who died today, and you will pay the blood price for what you have done. Am I making myself clear?!"  he barked.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Is there anything Bardhyl can do with a Heal test to prevent or at least delay Kreshnik from dying? And will he make things worse if he fails?
 
RossN
 Manann’s Keep 

It was like being caught up in a fast flowing river for all the good struggling helped. Jarla found herself torn away from Marien and Urgrim and surrounded by a crowd of frightened, angry civilians. They were not angry at her specifically but that hardly mattered when elbows thumped into the back of her head, knocking her hat askew and rough feet trod on her expensive shoes. She might as well have been a chicken in an coop with a fox on the prowl.

 Act you idiot,  she thought, at Sieghard.  Can't you get it through your thick skull you'll either have to back down or fight?
 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 

"Deaths  we  caused?" piped up one of the survivors - a lowland man, not a Tilean. "You were trying to kill us!"

Valmir stepped forwards and shoved the man in the chest. "Shut your mouth," he snarled. "All of you! I don't want to hear a word." Looking around, he set his eyes on the nearest of the real Tileans. "What are you waiting for?" he snapped. "Down to your breeches, like he said. Quickly now!"

One of the other survivors opened his mouth to complain, but was elbowed in the gut by one of his comrades before he could speak. Silently, they allowed themselves to be herded into the corner of the hall, where they began to strip off their armour.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
No reason you can't roll a Heal test for first aid. I doubt Bardhyl can make it much worse than it already is.
 


 

 Manann's Keep, 26th Sommerzeit 

The rush back from the pikes was too strong for Urgrim and Jarla to resist - like boats in a rip tide, they were borne back with it, losing sight of Marien in the crush. All around them was a din of voices, growing even louder as the crowd saw the bleeding bodies they had left on the ground behind them. They screamed their names, calling out to them to crawl to safety. Few of them could answer.

A woman darted forward, bending low beneath the level of the pikes to try to help an old man who was still feebly trying to crawl away. A roar of anger swelled from the crowd as the pikes jabbed at her too, driving her back. Stones began to fly again, those that struck home clattering loudly from the Tileans' armour.

" Figli di puttana, " muttered Corrado, his eyes flitting across the faces of the angry mob. "See, your lordship? This is what happens when the rabble see us fighting. They think we are weak." A flying clod of earth broke in pieces against his pauldron. "We have to put an end to this now."

He turned away from Sieghard, back to the massed ranks of the pikes behind him. He lifted his sword up high over his head, so that it flashed like a mirror in the sun, and raised his voice to a bellow:

&lt; IRON COMPANY! CHARGE PIKES! &gt;

As one, the Tileans lifted their pikes to shoulder-height, so that the points were towards their opponents' throats.

&lt; ON MY MARK, ADVANCE! QUICK STEP! &gt;

His sword swung down, and somewhere in the formation, a bugler sounded the signal, one long blast followed by four short ones. Marching in time, the three sides of the Iron Company square that faced away from the mill began to push out, moving with surprising speed. The crowd could not retreat as fast, those at the front being blocked in by those behind - and in any case, many of them seemed more in the mood to rush forward. With the Iron Company not slowing down, this second clash would be bloodier than the first.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

"   They think you're no better than a damn  orc!    "

 
 Spoiler 
Quick draw. Swift attack.

 (1d100)[ 37 ]  vs 66
 (1d10+7)[ 15 ] 
 (1d100)[ 18 ]  vs 66
 (1d10+7)[ 12 ] 
 (1d100)[ 41 ]  vs 66
 (1d10+7)[ 10 ] 
 
LCP
 Manann's Keep, 26th Sommerzeit 

Corrado barely had time to turn around before Sieghard's blow smashed him in the head, so hard it dented his helmet. The man was sent reeling, speechless - from the drunken way he staggered, he looked concussed.

Dropping one of the peasants he had been pummelling, one of the soldiers in front of the mill doors looked round at the sound of the  clang . " Ehi! " he shouted, pointing at Sieghard. " Sergente! "

Two or three other Iron Company heads turned, allowing their erstwhile victims to crawl away. All their eyes were fixed on Sieghard.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Initiative:

  Jarla  - (1d10+62)[ 63 ] 
  Sieghard  - (1d10+47)[ 53 ] 
  Urgrim  - (1d10+36)[ 41 ] 
  COMPANIA_DI_FERRO  - (1d10+36)[ 42 ] 
 
rax
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 

Satisfied that Valmir had matters in hand, Bardhyl turned his attention back to Kreshnik.

 "I don't know if we can save him, but at least we can make him more comfortable. It looks like that bastard stuck him in the lung. Let's try and seal the wound first, eh?"  he suggested gently to Zana.

Nodding in understanding, Zana cut a large piece of cloth from her shift and wadded it up. Bardhyl pressed it hard against Kreshnik's wound.  "Now we need bandages to keep it in place. Senka! Find us some bandages, quick as you can!"  he called to his friend.

 
 Spoiler: Heal test 
Heal test  (1d100)[ 81 ]  vs. Int 44
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard stared directly at the Iron Company man who was pointing. " I didn't hurt him, " he said, a deadpan mockery of Corrado's own words. " More than I needed to. Sheath your damn swords and end this madness. "

 
 Spoiler 
Under the assumption that the chance of hitting Corrado will be no different now than it will be when engaged with the other soldiers (can't find anything in the rules implying it would be). Defensive stance. Quickdraw shield. No expecting the Iron Company to listen, but I don't think Sieghard can break the pike line on his own and if takes the offensive and charges one of the soldiers by the mill, Corrado is free to recover. I  could  just try to finish him off now, but that seems overly bloodthirsty from Sieghard and part of me hopes that  not  doing so might affect the number of men who charge him. Best to minimize the chance of being hit until he can actually hit back.
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla hesitated. She could just about see and hear Sieghard was - idiotically - still trying to talk to the Iron Company who would no doubt slaughter him within moments if help didn't arrive. His only hope was to sow some confusion in the pike line... or have someone else do it for him.

 "Sigmar save me,"  Jarla muttered, and with a smooth motion drew both her pistols, held one straight up and fired into the air:

  "The next pikeman who takes a pace forward will get a bullet through their brainpan!"   she shouted at the top of her lugs as the bang of the pistol echoed away.
Thragka
Urgrim rolled back, and propped himself back up onto his feet with his shield, after the surge of bodies threw him and Jarla away from the crowd's epicentre. His heartbeat roared in his ears.

He drew his axe, and smashed it against his shield to punctuate Jarla's warning.

 "We should get closer to Sieghard,"  he muttered to Jarla, not taking his eyes away from the Iron Company formation.  "Can you see a way through or around, Schreiber?" 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Mechanically, Urgrim will follow Jarla's lead here, so if she's posturing for a round, he'll adopt a defensive stance. His comment on reaching Sieghard is only his off-the-cuff suggestion; if Jarla tries to do some crowd work on the 'east' flank, Urgrim will stay with her. (I am not going to have Urgrim try to do any crowd work, though.)
 
LCP
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 

The chief’s hall contained many things, but not a ready supply of bandages. After a short search, they resorted to tearing long strips out of the tunics the Iron Company prisoners had been forced to take off. Their owners looked on from the corner where Valmir had herded them, shivering and miserable.

Bardhyl himself bandaged Kreshnik’s wound up as best as he could, but it didn’t seem to make much difference. The young man’s breathing was a reedy rattle, and his face had turned leaden grey - almost blue. Bardhyl was wracking his brains for what else he could do when he heard the doors swing open behind him. There was Grim, with Wadim following behind him.

The Raven Speaker stopped just inside the doorway, taking a deep breath of the air inside the hall. To Bardhyl all it smelt of was spilt blood, but the old man seemed to relish the scent.

“Well, well,” he said, his staff tapping on the floor as he walked over to where Orso lay sprawled. The Tilean wasn’t moving any more - either dead or unconscious from the amount of blood he had lost. “We did it. It’s done.”

He turned his good eye to Bardhyl, and only then saw Zana’s wordless, imploring look. Walking over, he crouched down next to Kreshnik and held out a hand over the young man’s mouth, feeling his breath. Setting down his staff, he used his other hand to move Bardhyl’s bandages, and put his ear to the wound. After a few seconds he straightened up, looked at Bardhyl and shook his head.

“Nothing we can do,” he said. “Morr has chosen him today.” A wracking sob escaped Zana’s lips, and she wrapped her brother in her arms, even as his eyes flickered shut. Rising stiffly back upright, Wadim turned Bardhyl aside.

“Your plan worked,” he said, quiet enough not to disturb her grief. “A few losses, but none of the soldiers got away. Half of them went down fighting, the other half are prisoners.” He looked around the hall again, his eye roaming over the bodies that lay scattered across the floor. They didn’t seem to trouble him. “Morr’s Seat is ours again. What do you want to do with it?”


 

 Manann’s Keep, 26th Sommerzeit 
 Outside the square 

The roar of Jarla’s shot made the crowd draw back around her, but didn’t slow the advance of the Iron Company. They were hardened soldiers, used to the thunder of cannon or a cavalry charge. A single pistol wasn’t going to stop them.

Screams split the air again as the front rank of the pikes made contact, spearing those too slow to stand aside. A big man in the crowd tried to rush forward, grabbing the head of the nearest pike and forcing it out of the way. Two pikes from the rear rank pierced him before he’d made it a yard, dropping him to the ground. Those who for a moment had looked like they might follow him fell back in fear.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
If Jarla and Urgrim hold their current position, next turn the pike line will reach them.
 

 Inside the square 

 Sieghard stared directly at the Iron Company man who was pointing. " I didn't hurt him, " he said, a deadpan mockery of Corrado's own words. " More than I needed to. Sheath your damn swords and end this madness. " 

The Iron Company men hesitated for a moment, looking to each other for some indication of what to do next. They seemed to reach the same conclusion together - with fierce yells, two of them launched themselves at Sieghard, swords drawn.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
2 Charge Attacks.

 (1d100)[ 99 ] ,  (1d10+4)[ 14 ] 
 (1d100)[ 88 ] ,  (1d10+4)[ 7 ] 
 (1d100)[ 70 ] ,  (1d10+4)[ 7 ] 
 (1d100)[ 78 ] ,  (1d10+4)[ 6 ] 
  Sieghard_Parry  - (1d100)[ 91 ] 
  Sieghard_Dodge  - (1d100)[ 38 ] 

Don't look like hits to me.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  
 Fine,  Sieghard thought, resigning himself to what was to come. Everything he had tried to prevent the slaughter had failed, there was nothing left he could do but accept it and make sure it wasn't just innocent blood spilled. He was so utterly tired of Sforza that he had little concern outside of what was around him here and now.

The Iron Company soldiers charged and he caught the first man's blade on his shield. He turned the second's attack aside with his sword and lunged at him before he could recover.

 
 Spoiler 
Swift attack with some conditions for who Sieghard targets.

1) I'm not sure of Corrado recovers next turn, but if he does, Sieghard prioritizes him until he's dead/incapacitated/stunned for longer/otherwise kept from getting back in the fight. Otherwise, he focuses on the Iron Company first.
2) If, after Sieghard's first two attacks, he's done enough damage to have a decent chance of dealing a critical hit to the Iron Company soldier, the third attack will be against the same man. We'll call the threshold 10 or more wounds dealt without incapacitating him for Sieghard to use attack 3 to go for the kill.
3) If the conditions for neither 1 nor 2 are met, attack 3 will be against Corrado. Doesn't come up often, so reminder that attacks against Corrado are at +20 since he's stunned.

 (1d100)[ 85 ]  vs 66
 (1d10+7)[ 15 ] 
 (1d100)[ 18 ]  vs 66
 (1d10+7)[ 12 ] 
 (1d100)[ 24 ]  vs 66
 (1d10+7)[ 9 ]  (DoS houserule boosts this to  11 )
 
RossN
 Jarla 
 In the unlikely event we both survive this I'll have to talk to you about tactics Sieghard,  Jarla thought.

With a sigh she lifted her second pistol and shot at the pikemen, then drew her blade.   "Civilians! If you want to fight grab anything that works as a shield! These Tilean scum will die hard!  
 
 Spoiler: OOC: 
Aim (Half-Action)
Missile Weapon Attack (Pistol):  (1d100)[ 77 ]  vs 77
Damage (if it hits):  (1d10+5)[ 7 ]   or   (1d10+5)[ 9 ] 
Holster pistol/Unsheathe Sword
 
Thragka
 Urgrim 

Urgrim put his right foot back and shifted his weight as the pikemen bore down on them.  "Well, Jarla Schreiber,"  he said,  "it's an honour to fight with your clan again." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Urgrim is in Defensive Stance while the Iron Company act (from the bottom of the previous round). On his own turn, he'll act conditionally. If either he or Jarla have been attacked by the pikemen, Urgrim will make a Guarded Attack against the nearest attacker. If neither of them have been actively targetted, but on the assumption that the Iron Company do close the gap in their NPC turn, Urgrim will Manoeuvre in an attempt to step past the nearest oncoming pikeman and inwards relative to their square, and then adopt a Parrying Stance with his remaining half action.

Some rolls which may or may not apply:
A Weapon Skill test:   Base WS 65  - (1d100)[ 61 ] 
A Damage roll, including Urgi's Strength Bonus:   Damage  - (1d10+4)[ 6 ] 
 
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit 

“Your plan worked,” he said, quiet enough not to disturb her grief. “A few losses, but none of the soldiers got away. Half of them went down fighting, the other half are prisoners.” He looked around the hall again, his eye roaming over the bodies that lay scattered across the floor. They didn’t seem to trouble him. “Morr’s Seat is ours again. What do you want to do with it?” 
 

  "Right now? See that the dead and wounded are taken care of. Find some place to hold the prisoners until I can interrogate them. Recover all the taxes these bastards have taken and return them to the people, or at least distribute enough so that no one needs to go hungry for a while. Get everyone roaring drunk, celebrate today's heroes, and remind our people what we can do when we stand together!"  Bardhyl shot back, keeping his voice as low as Wadim's, but speaking with far greater intensity.

 "After that, the  really  hard work begins. For that, we'll need all the  vrani , not just Morr's Seat, so you might as well send word to the Karvan chiefs right away that I need to speak with them. The next thing we need to do is deal with Sforza's tax caravan. I reckon we have a couple of days at most before they're knocking at our gates and I want to be ready for them when they get here. The chiefs can help by setting scouts to watch for them,"  he added.  "But we can talk more about this once  we've dealt with the more immediate matters,"  he said, glancing back at the dead and wounded, and the prisoners.
LCP
 Morr’s Seat, 24th Sommerzeit 

Wadim grinned his crooked grin. “Sounds good to me,” he said. “Very good indeed.”

There was a sound of splintering wood from the back of the hall, as someone lost patience with a locked door to which they couldn’t find the key. It was the door to the store-room, and behind it, all the food, gold and iron Orso and his men had hoarded for the tax collectors was stacked in orderly piles. Cheers went up, and the  vrani  began rushing through the open door, emerging with sacks of barley and wheels of goat’s cheese held like trophies over their heads…

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I think we can break out of doing everything blow by blow here. I’d like to see how Bardhyl handles the immediate aftermath that he describes in the first para of your post, particularly speeches and celebrations, and any interrogation of the prisoners. You are in charge here now, so feel free to move things on and set the scene yourself!

Beyond that, if you want to work up your longer-term plan and either put it up here in the OOC, or send it to me by PM/discord, we can try and catch this timeline up to the Manann’s Keep one (probably overtake it actually, with the size of the Raven Hills it’s gonna take more than 2 days for the outside world to start reacting!).
 


 

 Manann’s Keep, 26th Sommerzeit 
 Outside the square 

Jarla’s shot slammed into the breastplate of one of the pikemen in the front rank, denting it but failing to pierce the hardened steel. In another moment, the line of pikes was on them.

Raising his shield over his head, Urgrim tried to force his way forward under the thrusting points, but was driven back, his boots skidding in the dust. Jarla twisted nimbly out of the way of a thrust that would have speared her through the neck, and nearly ran into another at the height of her heart. Only her dancer’s agility kept her from being skewered.

The farmers around them had neither Urgrim’s shield nor Jarla’s skill, and their shouts were turning rapidly from anger to terror as more of them fell. Not one of them had successfully reached the soldiers behind the wall of spear-tips, and the bodies of those who had tried were being trodden under the Iron Company’s boots as they advanced. The Tileans’ line was bending around Urgrim, the sole point of resistance that wouldn’t give - but smelling panic on the air, they pressed the attack all the same. The mob was ready to break.

 Inside the square 

Weathering his attackers’ blows, Sieghard lashed out with furious strength, striking one of the Tileans a bruising blow in the arm. The man staggered back, but his comrade stepped up, driving Sieghard back with a vicious stab at his throat.

Fighting Sforza’s veterans was very different to Rorik’s wild men, or the shambling army of the dead. Sieghard was sure he could take either of these men, given time - but time was what he didn’t have. Over the heads of the soldiers surrounding him, he could hear the cries of fear and pain as they did their bloody work - and just behind him, Corrado was still stumbling with one hand to his dented helmet, slurring incomprehensibly as he tried to form a command. It couldn’t be too long until the sergeant regained his senses.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Corrado has 1 full round of being stunned remaining.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  
 Bastards,  Sieghard thought.  Bandits. Butchers.  Despite his efforts to ignore it, the screams from the crowd were starting to get to him. For the first time in years, he thought of his youth and the village brought to ruin by men no better than these. He remembered Caerfort and the people he failed to save. He couldn't afford to let it distract him.

He could feel the panic in the air - the farmers wouldn't hold long. Maybe this truly was inevitable and nothing he could've done would've stopped it, but there was one thing he could do. He sidestepped the swordthrust and forced the man back with the edge of his shield, then used the opening he had created to turn on Corrado.

 You ordered all this death. Only fitting that you die with them. 
 
 Spoiler 
Swift attack, prioritizing Corrado first, then Mr. 8 wounds second.

 (1d100)[ 70 ]  vs 86 (61 WS + 5 Best Quality Sword + 20 Corrado Stunned)
 (1d10+7)[ 15 ]  Damage

 (1d100)[ 44 ]  vs Probably 66
 (1d10+7)[ 11 ]  Damage

 (1d100)[ 59 ]  vs Probably 66
 (1d10+7)[ 12 ]  Damage
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla felt her heart sink as the shot - admittedly not her best - didn't even make one of the pikemen blink. Still she was commited now.

  "Someone run and get and get the archers at the camp. Tell them these Tilean dogs are going to kill their commander - if they don't hurry!"  

She probably could have raced there fastest herself but Jarla doubted the civilians would last if she left. They might not even last if she stayed. Gritting her teeth she thrust with her sword, trying to duck under and around the pikes where hopefully the Iron Company men could not easily attack her - though of course they still had armour. She tried to hold next to Ungrim or as near as she could so at least they could fight together.

OOC:
 
 Spoiler 

Jeepers. 😦
 Swift Attack: 
 #1  (1d100)[ 96 ]  vs 51   - Spent Fortune Point to re-roll (41) 
Damage:  (1d10+4)[ 14 ] 

#2  (1d100)[ 10 ]  vs 51
Damage:  (1d10+4)[ 10 ] 
 Parrying Stance 
 
Thragka
Urgrim’s shield bashed a pike-head away from a trajectory towards the dwarf’s throat, while the side of his axe deflected the shaft of another.

 ”We’re enemies, umgi?”  he bellowed.  ”You’re making a lot. The Rock and the Vale!”  Once again, he smashed axe on shield, then quickly resumed his low, defensive stance.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Alright, Urgrim’s not Manoeuvring anywhere fast with these layers of pikes, but if he’s providing a point of resistance, even temporarily, let’s try to make the most of that. With the crowd already nearly buckling, I don’t expect this to work, but  it just might work . A Public Speaking Charm roll to make it seem like heroes do exist and maybe this ragtag band of do-gooders will win the day if they all pull together.

   Fellowship 32  - (1d100)[ 97 ]  ,   Fortune  - (1d100)[ 63 ]  hahahahaha nope

After that, I’ll use the other half action for Defensive Stance.
 
LCP
 Manann's Keep, 26th Sommerzeit 
 Outside the square 

No-one was listening to Jarla. No-one was listening to Urgrim, either. As the march of the pikes pressed mercilessly forward, all they could hear was the screams of those trapped in front of them. The rout came like a river breaching its banks - first as rivulets, then a flood. All along the face where Urgrim and Jarla were fighting, the crowd broke and fled back into the camp, some of them knocking each other in the rush to escape.

The Iron Company held their line, letting the peasants run. They had blood on their boots, and on the tips of their pikes, but nowhere else. More of those bloody pike-tips now swung round to bear on Urgrim and Jarla, holding them in a semicircle of sharp steel points.

" Getta le armi! " barked one of the men in the front rank, jerking his pike down to indicate that the defiant pair should drop their weapons. " Ora! "

Before he could act on his threat, a scream rang out from somewhere behind the line. The Tileans' pikes wavered as those in the back rank turned their heads to look - for a moment, their attention was not on their opponents.

 Inside 

Sieghard's sword struck like a viper, downing first the stumbling Corrado and then his latest attacker in bright sprays of blood. His remaining attacker shifted to the back foot, clearly re-assessing how dangerous Sieghard was.

&lt; The sergeant's down! &gt; he yelled, taking a probing thrust at Sieghard. &lt; The lordling's killed Corrado! &gt;

All around the inside of their formation, the heads of the Iron Company began to turn. On the face of the square to Sieghard's left, and behind him, in front of the mill, all resistance seemed to have folded. Ahead of him and to his right, the square still seemed to be under pressure, and the thin-stretched lines of pikemen could not look away for long. Still, for better or worse, he had their attention now.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Standard Attack + Parrying Stance from the Iron Company man.

 (1d100)[ 77 ] ,  (1d10+4)[ 7 ] 
  Sieghard_Parry  - (1d100)[ 63 ] 

Nope.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard's eyes darted from one group to the next. It was far too many for him to handle all at once. He spotted a place where the Iron Company ranks were thinnest and darted towards the mill. Even if it wouldn't give him a route to freedom, at the very least it would provide a choke point and a narrow enough space that their pikes would be worthless.

 
 Spoiler 
Mill it is. If a double move will make it, do that. Run if necessary. Slam the door to preventa follow-up charge.
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Sieghard moving to the mill door decided things for Jarla. She hated to cut and run but beyond surrender - and she was not willing to that - it seemed the only option was to withdraw and regroup so they could perform a rescue.

Holding her blade before her she began an elegant dance of footwork that she hoped the lumbering pikemen could not keep up with. Once out of range of those pikes it would be time to sprint for the camp and the Thorns.

  "Farewell gentlemen."  

OOC:
 
 Spoiler 
Jarla Disengages and begins moving towards the camp and the Thorns.
 
LCP
 Manann's Keep, 26th Sommerzeit 
 Outside the Square 

Defended by Urgrim's raised shield and Jarla's dancing blade, the two holdouts managed to put some much-needed breathing space between themselves and the pikes of the Iron Company. The Tileans didn't follow them. Already stretched thin, they held their formation, redressing their ranks. Only their eyes followed the pair as they made their escape into the panicked crowd. Her parting glimpse of the soldiers' scarred faces made Jarla wonder what Giovanni Carraciolo would make of the news that she had crossed blades with his men...

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
The Iron Company aren't giving chase - you're free from combat time.
 

 Inside 

Raising his shield, Sieghard charged like a bull for the doors of the mill. Swords swung at him as he passed, making him duck and weave. One jarring blow struck chips of wood from his shield's face, but failed to break the seasoned timbers. In another moment, he was at the doors. He crashed through, slamming them shut behind him.

The uproar from the soldiers he had left behind him was instant. With a  bang , the doors swung back open, armoured figures pouring through. The doors were only wide enough for two Iron Company men to fight abreast, and so it was two Tileans who came at him, swords flashing.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Two Iron Company men make half action moves, open the doors, and make Standard Attacks. There are more directly behind them, but for now Sieghard has them in a choke point.

 (1d100)[ 65 ] 
 (1d10+4)[ 11 ] 
 (1d100)[ 33 ] 
 (1d10+4)[ 8 ] 

With +20 from Standard Attacks and 2:1 that's 2 hits, but Sieghard's Dodge (rolled in the OOC) will block the first and his soak will stop the second.

The inside of the mill is dark: Sieghard only gets the broad details as he rushes in from the broad daylight outside, before the Iron Company force him to turn back to face them. What he can immediately see is:

 
 The central windshaft descending to the millstone, which stands in the middle of the floor. 
 A steep, ladder-like staircase going up to a higher level. 
 A lot of clutter on the ground in the shape of sacks and barrels - the stores the farmers have been protecting? 
 

He cannot see any bright source of light that would indicate an open back door or window. He can make a Perception test to try to get a better read on his surroundings, and he can get a +20 if he spends a half action on it.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard only had a moment to look around before the soldiers were upon him again. Sword still at the ready, he hacked at the first man through the door.

 
 Spoiler 
Half action single move probably isn't worth it, so remaining half action for a standard attack. If the surviving soldier Sieghard was already fighting is one of the two through he's engaged with now, that's Sieghard's target.

 (1d100)[ 11 ]  vs 61 WS +10 Standard attack +5 Best craftsmanship sword =  76 
 (1d10+7)[ 8 ]  Damage (Boosted to 13 by DoS)
 
Thragka
Urgrim pulled back with his shield raised until he was sure he was out of range of the pikes, and then turned and ran after Jarla. The individual voices of soldiers and protesters dulled into a background hubbub as they pulled away from the mill. Urgrim kept a steady pace until he was close enough to the small detachment of the Thorns to identify Hanna.

 "Sieghard's done a stone-headed thing,"  he said, the connotation ambiguous.  "He's fought the Iron Company's commander, and holed down in the mill."  A pause.  "It's not a good situation." 
 "Not tellin' you what to do, but I think you folks need to decide quickly what your next move is. Either try and get him out of there, or pull back to Painford and regroup."  Information delivered, Urgrim pulled himself straight and sucked in a few deep breaths to quell his panting.
LCP
 26th Sommerzeit 
 Sieghard 

Sieghard's first opponent in the doorway evaded his swing, nimble on his feet despite the cramped conditions. More were pressing in behind, and Sieghard knew he couldn't hold them back for long. Booting the second soldier back with a well-placed kick to the breastplate, he grabbed hold of one of the barrels of grain - it was lighter than he expected - and hurled it at the pair of them, knocking them back into their brothers behind in a tangle of limbs and clattering armour. Angry Tilean shouts pursued him as he turned and ran for the ladder. That was a lot better than angry Tilean men.

Heaving himself up onto the floor above, Sieghard took in what he could see. A large wooden gear-wheel was mounted here to the shaft of the mill, coupled by another wheel to a loop of thick iron chain that passed through the ceiling above. Right now it wasn't moving - but against the far wall, beside a chute that descended from the upper levels into some grain bins, he could see a large wooden lever that looked like it might change that. To its right was another window, larger, and with the shutters open. From what he could see through it, Sieghard guessed it was five or six yards off the ground. Finally, another steep ladder led up to the third level above.

He heard steps thudding on the ladder below him, and the voices of the Iron Company growing louder. Whatever his next move was, he had to make it quickly.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Sieghard's Successes: 1/3
Iron Company Hot On His Tail: 2/4

Choices here:
 Cogs in the Machine:  Activating the windmill's machinery would make this into a hazardous environment, which Sieghard could use to thin the ranks of his pursuers and buy himself more breathing room. This would be an Intelligence test at -10. I'll lift the penalty if Sieghard can think of any particularly smart way to use it - maybe even a bonus if it's super smart.
 The High Ground:  Sieghard can keep trying to win the foot race up the ladders to gain more ground, though of course the higher he gets the more dangerous any jump from a window will be. A straight Ag test will do for this.
 All I Gotta Do Is Jump:  Sieghard can just take a running leap for the window. He can't see what's under the window, and stopping to check will cost you this round and allow 1 Iron Company man to gain on you. If you're happy to make a leap of faith, however, give me the Ag rolls for a fall high enough to be worth 2 checks.
 

 Jarla &amp; Urgrim 

Hanna and her Thorns were waiting on the edge of the camp, keeping out of the way of the now-terrified peasants running from the scene of the massacre. Nobody wanted to see another uniform, and for those in uniform without the benefit of armour or a hedge of pikes to hide behind, they didn't particularly want to  be  seen either.

"Ranald's bloody balls," said Hanna, when she heard Urgrim's report. "Shallya save us... Sigmar's sausage on a ****ing spit." For all that, she didn't seem to lose her head. Turning, she motioned quickly to two of the Thorns. "Tomas, Ehrl -  run  back to Painford and tell Herr Stubbs and the others what's happening. Stick together, and don't let any of the Tileans see you. You understand?" The two soldiers nodded and took off at a sprint. "The rest of you, come with me."

She paused for a moment, looking back at Urgrim and Jarla. "You can go with them, or come with us - but we're not leaving the commander behind."
Thragka
 Urgrim and Jarla 

Urgrim indicated after the departing Tomas and Ehrl to Jarla.  “You’ve a horse, Schreiber? You could speed things up by giving one of them a ride. I’ve a mule, but I doubt it can carry both me and another.” 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard didn't have time to look around. With the sounds from below getting closer, he'd have to improvise. He made a dash for the lever and tried to make sense of which parts would start moving in which way.

 
 Spoiler 
 (1d100)[ 38 ]  vs 51 Base int =/- modifiers

Safe to say that chain will start moving pretty soon. The first thing to come to mind is would it be possible for Sieghard be able to use what's around to either
a) Attach something to it that would create tension in such a way that when the force becomes to much, it goes flying in the direction of the staircase/Tileans
b) Get whoever is unfortunate enough to be the first up the staircase caught on the chain and let physics do the rest.

I'd probably need more specifics about what's on the second floor if you want details on how he'd accomplish either.
 
LCP
 Sieghard, 26th Sommerzeit 

The wooden lever thudded down. A deep, slow groan of timber breathed through the mill, as somewhere out of sight above him, some great tension was released. Nothing moved at first, though - nothing until, with a loud  clack , the iron chain shifted by a single link.

The first Iron Company man mounted the top of the steps, his sword quickly in his hand as he laid eyes on Sieghard again.  Clack.  &lt; There he is! &gt; he shouted to the others close behind.  Clack. Clack.  &lt; He's trapped! Don't let him get away! &gt;  Clack. Clack. Clack. 

Still, he waited for his fellows to join him before rushing at Sieghard. Watching the accelerating linkage, Sieghard seized up a loose board and jammed it between the great gears of the shaft. The mechanism growled and seized, the tension building again as it fought against the blockage. Another Tilean reached the top of the ladder, and then another.

&lt; Together, now! &gt; said the first. &lt; At him! &gt;

With a united yell, the soldiers rushed forward - and with a  crack , the board broke, sending its pieces flying across the room like splinters from a cannon-shot. The Tileans fell back, yelling in surprise and dismay - Sieghard had bought himself a moment more.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I think you've already got a plan, so I won't bother presenting you with more alternate options, particularly since Sieghard hasn't changed his position.

To do what you were discussing OOC, I think it'll be an Ag test to leap out of the window, and a S test to hold onto the turning sails. Fail the Ag test and you're into a 6-yard fall; fail the S test and it's a 3-yard fall. In the event of a fall, Sieghard can test Ag to control his descent in the normal rulebook way.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

As the soldiers picked themselves up, Sieghard glanced out the window. With no chance of getting back to the ground floor, it was likely the best option he had to escape. He took a step back and before the Iron Company could reach him, threw himself outside.

 
 Spoiler 
 (1d100)[ 49 ]  vs
 (1d100)[ 24 ]  vs 57 Ag for the initial jump
 (1d100)[ 88 ]  vs 61 Strength to grab the sail

 (1d100)[ 61 ]  vs 57 Ag rolled preemptively to control the fall incase of a fail.
 
LCP
 Sieghard, 26th Sommerzeit 

Outside the window, Sieghard could see the sails of the mill turning, tantalisingly slow. He could hear the Iron Company regaining their feet, closing in behind him. Clambering up onto the windowsill, he waited for the last possible moment to jump.

He hit the turning sail square on, taut canvas tearing under his hands as he tried to catch hold. His fingers caught at one of the beams beneath, but the grip was poor, and his armoured weight was too much. As the sail continued to turn, the beam slipped out of his grasp, and he fell the last few yards to the ground.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Sieghard takes a hit for  (1d10+3)[ 11 ]  damage, ignoring armour but not TB.
 


Up above him, the angry faces of the Tileans appeared in the window. They weren't about to try the jump themselves, but yelled out for their brother's on the ground to give chase. The crowd of peasants had long since fallen back from the foot of the mill - if Sieghard wanted to outpace his pursuers he needed to run.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
The camp surrounds the mill on all sides, and gives way to farmland beyond. Sieghard can try to simply outrun the Iron Company (there's probably a limit to how far any pursuers will want to follow him from the main company), he could try to lose them amidst the tents and other concealing obstacles, or he could try to blend into the mass of peasants fleeing the massacre. The trsts for each of those would be Ag, Stealth or Fellowship, respectively. The Ag test for a straight foot race will be opposed.
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla hesitated a long moment, obviously reluctant to loan Countess to another, but she could see an actual Thorn delivering the message would have more authority. Calling after Thomas and Ehrl she yelled:  "If one of you can ride take my horse - but I'll want her back in one piece!" 

Turning back to Hanna and Urgrim she started reloading her pistols.  "I'm with you helping Sieghard. I've burned my bridges already." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard picked himself up. He was sore and probably a bit bruised, but nothing seemed to be broken. Not wasting any time, he sprinted away from the mill.

 
 Spoiler 
Run it is. As he goes through he camp, could Sieghard knock things over to make things more difficult for his pursuers?

 (1d100)[ 39 ]  vs 57 Ag
 
Thragka
 Urgrim and Jarla 

Urgrim nodded.  "We're with you,"  he confirmed to Hanna.  " Kazakit-ha! " 
LCP
 Manann's Keep, 26th Sommerzeit 

Keeping to the cover of the tents, the Thorns cut back towards the mill along an oblique line, trying to avoid the notice of both the Tileans and the fleeing peasants. It wasn't long before they heard the sounds of a commotion coming their way. Peering round the corner of an upturned handcart, Jarla saw the cause - there was Sieghard, running as fast as he could away from the mill, and about twenty yards behind him, perhaps a dozen Iron Company men, sprinting after him...

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Over to you guys - to end the chase here you'll need to think of a way to stop the Tileans' pursuit long enough for Sieghard to get out of their sight. Whatever you decide to do, try to think of what stat or skill test could represent that, and roll it - if you don't, I'm probably just going to ask you to make one anyway, unless the idea is so brilliant it'd obviously succeed on its own (and in that case, no harm in a wasted dice roll).

The campsite is busy and cluttered, so I'm not going to try to give you an exhaustive description of your surroundings, but instead invite you to imagine it - tents, livestock, pots and pans, everything a rag-tag bunch of peasant farmers would have brought along to camp out at this place knowing they'd be there for a fair while. There are clear avenues like the one Sieghard's running down, but not because anyone planned it that way - it's grown up incrementally. If you can imagine something in this kind of scene that you think might be useful and that would reasonably be there - a smoking firepit, a hutch of chickens, a big coil of rope - then as long as you give me the test to use it, you can assume there's something like that in the zone Urgrim and Jarla can reach before the Iron Company reach the Thorns. There's certainly plenty of cover if you want to set up any kind of ambush.

Sieghard is a bit more constrained in that he's running and can't stop, but if he wants to try to topple obstacles in the path of his pursuers, he can make a Strength check as I mentioned in the OOC.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Persistent bastards... " Sieghard muttered. He weaved between an abandoned cart and a row of animal cages, then paused to try to overturn the nearest cage.

 
 Spoiler 
 (1d100)[ 86 ]  vs 61 strength

If this fails, I do have an alternate idea. Presumably, Sieghard's pursuers had to leave their pikes behind to chase after him. Can't imagine it's easy to sprint carrying something so long. How many from the crowd are nearby? Maybe they would like to have it pointed out that this group of Tileans have split off from the rest.
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla looked in astonishment at the fleeing Sieghard, then turned to the Thorns.  "They are after your commander, only a dozen of them. They are out of formation and don't have those pikes - this might be our best chance to beat them. Let's attack!" 
LCP
 Manann's Keep 

Some of the Thorns looked unsure at Jarla's words.

"Fight the Tileans?" whispered one of them, looking to Hanna. "Ain't that... treason, or something?"

"They're chasing the commander!" Hanna hissed back. "Why do you think that's for? To give him a kiss?"

Rising from cover, she levelled her crossbow at the closest of the Iron Company and let fly.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Alright, I think this puts us back into a bit of combat -  Surprise Round  for Jarla (and Urgrim if Thragka can rejoin us, if not we'll carry on on autopilot).
 
LCP
 Manann's Keep, 26th Sommerzeit 

The hail of crossbow bolts that flew from the Thorns' hiding place stopped Sieghard's pursuers in their tracks, dropping one of them with a bolt in his neck. One of them gestured at where he'd spotted Hanna reloading - Jarla stepped out from cover and gave him a pistol-shot for his trouble. As the gunsmoke cleared, now two Tileans were lying in the dirt. Sieghard had turned at bay, and Urgrim and the Thorns were running up to join him.

&lt; Traitor dogs! &gt; yelled the nearest of the Iron Company men. &lt; Prince Sforza will have your heads! &gt;

A crossbow shot zipped past his ear, and a general cry went up from the men behind him to fall back. Lifting up the one casualty who was still breathing, they beat a hasty retreat back towards the mill.

"Good to see you still alive, sir," said Hanna, looking Sieghard up and down. He looked quite the sight, covered in the blood and dust of his escape - she wasn't to know it wasn't his own. "Time to get out of this Shallya-forsaken place?"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
It'll take a little while (in combat time terms anyway) for Sieghard's pursuers to join back up with the bulk of their company, which gives ample opportunity for Sieghard + co. to slip away through the tents without it being obvious which way they've gone. If that's what you want to do, the next question is which direction you want to go in after you get beyond the edge of the camp.

 
 The mill is surrounded by open farmland. That doesn't mean it's a featureless desert where you can't hide - there are trees, lanes, fences, buildings, plenty of cover for a small group like this to use. It does however mean that staying concealed will slow you down, as you can't always take the most direct route. 
 The edge of the Thornwood is less than a day's march north-west, and the edge of the Karst is less than a day's march east - both great places to hide. Manann's Keep is also very very close to the south (as you know). 
 The immediate countryside surrounding the mill is full of survivors fleeing the massacre, who have fragmented into groups of variable size. They may be able to help hide or transport you, but will probably need persuading - remember, most of your party are soldiers in uniform, and you're conspicuously armed.  If you want to start an interaction with them, feel free to assume you find them , and if you want to look for a group with a particular feature (e.g. a wagon your more recognisable fugitives could hide in), they're probably around here too. 
 What the Iron Company will do next is unpredictable - Corrado is dead, and they have many more potentially hostile people to worry about than just Sieghard. The only thing you can be sure of is that staying this close to them (i.e. inside the camp) is a bad idea! 
 
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard nodded. " The sooner the better. " He turned to Urgrim. " Could I ask you to bring word to Elsa about all of this? I don't know when word will get to Sforza, but she needs to be warned.... Tell her... Tell her that I don't regret my choices, but I'm sorry if what comes disrupts her work. "

 
 Spoiler 
Don't forget Tatiana either.

I'll give the others a chance to chime in, but my thoughts are head for Painford, get the full group assembled, and take back the grain that the Iron Company is gathering up.  My immediate concern is that they might send a messenger towards Mirino. I'd rather try to speak with Valdes on my own terms than have the Iron Company reach him first.
 
Thragka
 Urgrim 

Urgrim’s nostrils flared, but he nodded.  “I’ll do that.”  He adopted a thoughtful expression.  “We can’t pause her work with the Book. So I’ll be coming back north for the Dwimmulhold to find a master craftsman. If I have news, or a message, on the way back – I’lll try to find you.”  Urgrim looked to Hanna, giving her a nod of respect.  “Have somebody leave ranger sign for me in one of the villages. I know the Thornwood and the Mere fairly well by now. Better than the Iron Company.” 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Happy to head back towards Caerfort, with Tatiana in tow, once we finish debriefing here.
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla was silent for long moments, obviously lost in thought.  "I think I better go and talk to the villagers to help us out of here. No offence Sieghard but I think they might be more willing to talk to me than a soldier after that bloody business."  She gave a rueful smile. So much for an easy life as a courtier.  "I suppose I'm a bandit now too so I'm with you Sieghard." 
Thragka
 Urgrim 

Urgrim scowled.  “Don’t be hasty, Schreiber.”  The words practically fell out of his mouth.  “We’re not going oathless just yet.” 
LCP
 Manann’s Keep, 26th Sommerzeit 

“We’re all with you,” said Hanna, firmly. She looked back at the Thorns around her. “Don’t know about you, but me - if I’m not helping steal people’s food, I feel less of a bandit than before, not more.”

The other Thorns nodded their agreement. They didn’t have long to talk, however. Quickly, Urgrim and Tatiana slipped away towards the southern edge of the encampment, while Jarla headed north, leaving Sieghard and the Thorns to stay out of sight. She soon fell in with others who were hastily trying to save what they could from the camp.

At the first they looked at her suspiciously. From her clothes to her speech, it was clear she wasn’t one of them - but with open hands and an open smile, she soon convinced them she wasn’t one of Sforza’s lackeys. As she spun the story of Sieghard and the Thorns’ defiance, she even thought she saw a glimmer of hope in the younger ones’ eyes.

They had a mule-cart that they had been loading with their meagre possessions, in which they agreed to make space to conceal Sieghard as they left the camp. He had to ride with Jost, a man in his sixties who had taken a pike-thrust to the leg - but while Jost sat as best he could in the open air, Sieghard lay covered up with the other cargo in the back of the cart. It would take far too long to remove his armour, and he was far too conspicuous not to conceal.

The Thorns stripped off their green jackets, and hid their crossbows with Sieghard under a heap of sacks. By now, Tilean voices could be heard approaching from the mill - willing to wait no longer, the frightened peasants whipped their mule into motion, heading north through the locust-ravaged fields of the Vale.

It was around an hour later that they dared to stop, satisfied that they were not pursued. Excavating Sieghard from the back of the cart, and returning the Thorns their weapons, they pointed the way towards the ragged fringe of the Thornwood to the west.

“Is it true, what she said?” asked Jost, hoarsely, as Sieghard stood up straight. “You cut one of them butchers down?”

“Never trusted them Tileans,” said another. “Swooping in to save us when old Evatt was already dead. He might’ve been mad as a fish, but the old Commander would never’ve done this.”

“Well, this is what it’s come to,” said a third, handing Hanna back the last crossbow. She looked Jarla squarely in the eye, and her voice cracked a little as she spoke. Jarla noticed her sleeve was stained with someone's dried blood - not, from the look of it, her own. “I don’t know who you are, or what chance you’ve got - but give those bastards hell.”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Please feel free to continue this interaction timesplit if you want.
 

 

 Wellentag, 28th Sommerzeit - Painford 
 Ludo 

Late on Wellentag morning, a stranger from the south came through Painford. A lad of no more than twenty, his horse was in a lather from hard riding, and he had a leather satchel over his back that he guarded like it was full of gold, though he didn’t appear to be armed. He looked around him fearfully, as if he’d heard Painford was overrun with wolves.

Still, his horse looked spent, and he had to give it water, and rest. Seeing Ludo approaching, he composed his face into a thin smile.

“Hello there!” he said. “Do - do you have post horses here? I can pay.” He fished in his pouch for the coins, as if to prove it. “I’m - I need to get to the city. Fast as I can.”

 Sieghard &amp; Jarla 

Hanna had led them the long way back to Painford, staying off the road among the cover of the trees. The Thornwood was not as shady or concealing as it had once been, its greenery chewed to the bark by the passing of the locusts - but still, it seemed wise not to risk word spreading of their whereabouts until they were safely home.

It was late afternoon when they first caught sight of the top of the old tower, rising above the denuded treetops. Sieghard was all ready to head straight for the village, but Hanna stopped to draw his attention to something. One of the Thorns had spotted fresh hoofprints in the dirt - a rider on horseback had been this way, mere hours ahead of them.

“Don’t often see riders off the road,” said Hanna, furrowing his brow. “Doesn’t look like they’re headed for the village, either. On this bearing, they’d be headed straight past it.”


 

 Aubentag, 29th Sommerzeit 
 Elsa, Caerfort 

Not much had happened in the time since Elsa had sent Urgrim and Tattie out on their mission, but her time in Caerfort had still been far from peaceful. Her dreams were troubled by the pages she had read of the Book of Nagash - every strange hieroglyph and diagram burned into her memory like a permanent scar. Though in her dreams the book was always the same, she couldn’t shake the feeling that  she  was not, waking each morning with swiftly-dissolving memories of being somewhere, or some one , else.

So it was a welcome distraction when, this Aubentag afternoon, a messenger passed through on the road. She was a young woman, and both she and her horse were covered in dust as if they had been riding for days. The Estalians made her welcome, giving her food and water and feed for her horse, and asking what her business was. She said she was carrying a message from the Steward of Manann’s Keep - one she’d been told to put directly into the hands of Lord Valdes himself. She’d rest here as briefly as she could, she said, and be off for Mirino the next morning…
LeSwordfish
 Wellentag, 28th Sommerzeit - Painford 
Ludo had spent the preceding few days trying to distract himself from waiting for the red moon by applying personal dedication and skill to the problem of the rats, and had washed more than a few off the bottom of his battered frying pan. Stoutheart tended to solve all his problems by yapping, but the rats hadn't figured that out yet and so he had been good for at least driving them away.

At about second breakfast-time, or what should have been, he was chasing one particular specimen out from under Gavril's, and hastily tried to make himself presentable.  "I'm afraid not, but we might have someone who can lend you one. We can probably stable your horse if you can wait overnight." 

He looked down the road towards Manaan's Keep.  "Any news from the south? Something wrong?" 
LCP
 Ludo, 28th Sommerzeit 

"No!" said the lad, very quickly. "I mean, uh, no, I really can't say - stay! Herr Sussman, he... he said there was a whole crown in it for me if I could shave a day off the journey." He looked back at his horse, which had almost drained the water-butt outside Gavril's door dry. Not that it had held that much water to begin with.

"If you do know anyone who could - lend me a horse that is - you'd be doing me such a favour," he said. "I'd bring it back!"
LeSwordfish
The situation in Manaan's Keep was volatile, and any number of things could have happened, but Ludo's first thought was still   What's Sieghard done now?  
 "Look, come inside and get some food and drink in you, you can spend an hour here while we find you a horse. An extra crown's no good if you fall off your horse halfway down the river road."  He started to guide the young man towards Gavril's, thinking hard.  "Is it something we could get someone else to carry the rest of the way?" 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  - 26th Sommerzeit 

" Two, " Sieghard said. " After the bastards turned their pikes on the crowd. And a couple more were felled by crossbows. "

" I'll get your grain back if I can, but don't think it ends with that. Prince pig'll keep trying to bleed you to feed himself until either you're dead or he is. If you want to stop that, then my advice is to start talking to people and find whose willing to fight. "

 
 Spoiler 
Would it be possible to intercept the messenger headed through Caerfort? I mentioned being concerned they'd send one in my last post and was planning sending a small group to have that road watched, but we jumped a bit further ahead than I was expecting. I'd still like to have the road watched even if catching the messenger is impossible. The north road I though we'd be able to handle ourselves and if that messenger bypassed us, I don't see anything else that could've been done there.
 

 28th Sommerzeit 

"  I was hoping we'd reach home before they could send a messenger...  " Sieghard muttered. " Can you tell how fresh the track is? "
LCP
 Sieghard &amp; Jarla, 26th Sommerzeit 

The group looked around at each other, digesting Sieghard's words. None of them spoke against.

"And if we find them," said one of them - a young woman - "what then? Come looking for you?"


 

 28th Sommerzeit 
 Ludo 

"An hour. Yeah." The young man's nerves seemed so frayed that every word came out like an arrow from a bow. "And food... food would be good. Thank you." His hand strayed to the strap of his satchel. "I can't hand it over though. Herr Sussman's instructions. Said I had to put in - I had to deliver it myself."

 Sieghard &amp; Jarla 

"Couple of hours," said Mort, the Thorn who'd found the tracks. "No more'n that. But looks like just one horse. Don't imagine they're travellin' too slow."
-Sentinel-
 Elsabeth Holt 


Elsa made herself as presentable as she could, given the short notice, and went out with Olga in tow to meet the messenger for a fireside chat. She felt it was important to show their guest that she was not the only woman around.

 "Well met. I'm Magister Elsabeth Holt. Are you a courier by trade?" 
LeSwordfish
Ludo gestured for an ale from Gavril and steered the young man to a seat.  "Did you ride through the night? You must be exhausted!"  He was talking on autopilot, thinking hard.   Put in... Sforza's hand. Whatever's going on, Sussman has demanded the news gets to Sforza as soon as possible. And he's not this nervous because of a one crown bonus... was he told to be careful here specifically? Is he scared of us?  Is  this about Sieghard?  

He put the ale firmly in the young man's hand.  "Take a few deep breaths. We don't have much here, but I won't have it said we let a guest go hungry. What's your name, lad?" 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
This is an attempt to charm the man into calming down:  (1d100)[ 62 ]  vs idk, 92? something like that. Been a while.

Please let me know if you feel like I'm metagaming here: I'm trying to follow logic that will allow Ludo to take this as seriously as I know it is without him actually having my OOC knowledge, but if you think I'm taking liberties I'm happy to tone it back.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  - 26th Sommerzeit 

" No, I'll return here, " Sieghard replied. " I wouldn't expect anyone you did find to take me seriously until after I've dealt with the rest of the butchers from the mill. "

 28th Sommerzeit 

" He'll have to stop for rest at some point, " Sieghard said. " And we've got fresh men and fresh horses of our own back in the village. Let's not let him gain any more of a lead than he already has. "
LCP
 Sieghard, 26th Sommerzeit 

"Well," said the young woman. "Taal and Rhya watch over you, then."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Will have to wait a little for Ludo before I can catch you up to him in Painford.
 


 

 Ludo, 28th Sommerzeit 

Ludo's manner seemed to put the young man at ease. Ludo could smell the sweat on him once they were inside Gavril's - he certainly  smelt  like he'd been riding through the night.

"Jander," he said, "Jander Lankdorf. You're very kind, Herr, uh..." - he trailed off, embarassed. "I'm sorry, I didn't ask your name."

He did seem calmer now, taking a sip of his ale. "I'll have one drink, a crust of bread if that's alright, and then I should see about being on my way. Do you know who we should ask about the horses?" he asked. "I mean, if there's none, I'm sure Lilli just needs a little bit of a rest. She's a good beast."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I appreciate you being careful, but I think this is fine.
 


 

 Elsa, 29th Sommerzeit 

The woman seemed a little startled by Elsa. Perhaps she'd heard about the Prince's wizard - or perhaps she hadn't.

"Uhh, hello! My name's Molli." She swallowed. "Not by trade, no - just from time to time. Sometimes, you know, if you can ride a horse that's enough."
LeSwordfish
 "Stubbs."  Ludo said. It was hardly like there were any other halflings around for him to pretend to be, and Lankdorf's face might be revealing.  "Ludovic Stubbs, of the Sermena Stubbs. I handle things while the Commander isn't here. Commander Sieghard? You might have seen him, he was in Manaan's Keep too."  He dropped the idea as casually as possible, trying not to too openly study Lankdorf's face.  "Let me get you that food. We'll also look after your horse for you - though I'm no ostler, I don't think she's going any further this afternoon." 

Leaving Lankdorf he headed outside and flagged down Karla, the first Thorn he saw.  "Get this horse into the Commander's stable, will you? And lock the door." 

He looked around, doing a mental calculation of all the horses in the area.  "Torsten's taken his old nag to Ravenskird... he's not going to try and ride Lumpin or Eloise's foal... if Arnold comes back with his, we might have a problem... and then some of the foresters." 

A plan was coming to him, though he didn't like it.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
The first step of Ludo's plan is to hold Lankdorf up for as long as possible, making vague promises and spinning wheels in the hope of thinking of something else, or getting an opportunity to look at the message that's being sent.
 
-Sentinel-
 Elsabeth Holt 

"Not by trade, no - just from time to time. Sometimes, you know, if you can ride a horse that's enough."

 "A useful skill to have,"  Elsa opined.  "We'll be sure the horse is well fed and well rested so you can have an early start in the morning. I see from the dust on you that you've been riding hard, so it looks like a pretty urgent matter." 
LCP
 Painford, 28th Sommerzeit 

Lankdorf didn't react when Ludo introduced himself, but his reaction when Ludo mentioned Sieghard was unmistakeable. He nearly dropped his mug of ale down his front.

"Clumsy," he said, with a loud, nervous laugh. "I must be more tired than I thought." He cleared his throat, taking a long sip from the mug and setting it carefully down. "No, I... don't think I did see him. He's not back yet, then?"

He made no fuss when Ludo left him to his own devices. Outside, Karla knew better than to question why Ludo wanted a horse locked up. Ludo had time to make a quick circuit within the wall, making sure no very borrowable-looking horses were on display, and to poke his head back into Gavril's to 'check on' Jander again - still doing fine, blissfully unware he was being stalled - before he heard cheery voices shouting out from the south gate. Hanna's troop were returning, with Sieghard right among them. While the Thorns on duty were pleased to see them, they looked as if they'd been dragged backwards through a bush - and Sieghard's face looked anything but cheerful.


 

 Elsa, 29th Sommerzeit 

"Messages for his lordship in Mirino," said Molli. "Herr Sussman was very particular about getting there on time."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
For OOC context - I'm playing this interaction out so that we know its outcome before Urgrim and Tattie arrive in Caerfort. If Elsa's planning anything, then we should proceed straight to that (and any rolls); if not, I can move things on.
 
LeSwordfish
Ludo hustled out to meet Sieghard and the Thorns, looking around for Jarla and Urgi. His heart was glad to see them, but what he said was still  "What have you  done ?" 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard's glare was like ice.  " If you know that much, I'm sure you could guess the rest. I cracked Corrado's skull and slit his ****ing throat. " He was in little mood to explain and Ludo practically had to run to keep up with his pace as he made his way into Painford. Eventually after some more pressing he stopped and elaborated. " The bastard had his mind set on butchering people. Wasn't willing to try anything else. Refused to stand down. Someone threw a rock and he decided to slaughter the crowd as well. If that's how Sforza plans to rule, then **** him as well. I won't be part of it. "

He glanced about the village for a bit. " That weasel Sussman sent a rider. We found his tracks just south of the village. He's got a lead on us, but not much of one. If we hurry, we can still catch him before he reaches the city. "
LeSwordfish
 "Stupid bastard,"  Ludo said, but muttered so Sieghard couldn't hear before jogging to catch up.  "He's in Gavril's now, nearly rode his horse down getting here. I didn't want to let him leave." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard turned to Hanna and Mort. " You're sure it was just one horse? And that it looked like it would be heading [i]past[i] Painford and not  through  it? "

" That was smart, " he told Ludo. " Maybe I should have a talk with our guest. " and then to the other Thorns, " Watch the door. No one unfamiliar leaves the hostel. "

 
 Spoiler 
Sieghard is going to quickly change clothes (during which I assume Ludo will give him the rest of the details) before heading inside. He won't be hiding that he's a soldier, but he won't be making it obvious who he is.
 

 Inside the Hostel 

It was still a bit early in the day for many people to be in Gavril's hostel and Sieghard quickly spotted the stranger resting at the table by the far wall. " Herr Lankendorf, is it? " he asked, walking over and taking a seat opposite the man. " Ludo asked me to check in on you. Said you seemed exhausted and wanted to make sure you were ok. "
RossN
 Jarla (Painford) 

Jarla smiled at Ludo, feeling someone should show more grace to their friends than Sieghard even his ill-humour was understandable. As Sieghard disappeared to meet with the mystery rider she looked the halfling up and down and gave a rueful shrug.

 "Well I guess given I'm a rebel now at least I won't have to keep pretending to spy on you for Irene."  Her mouth twitched in wry amusement.  "I wonder what reward they'll put on my head. How are you anyway?" 
-Sentinel-
 Elsabeth Holt 
 "Hmm. Do you know if there's trouble over there?"  asked Elsa gravely.  "Because if there's a chance someone might commandeer my men to go deal with some matter, I  need  to know ahead of time, Molli." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Using Command to pry information, but I'm not 100% sure if it applies here. If not, use Charm (+10%) or straight Fel.

Target 49:  (d100)[ 6 ] 
 Fortune:  (d100)[ 41 ]  
 
LCP
 Painford, 28th Sommerzeit 

It had taken long enough for Sieghard to change out of his travelling gear that Lankdorf was now fed and watered, and looked like he was itching to get going once again. He didn't appear to recognise Sieghard, but still looked at him uncertainly - Sieghard's was a less naturally friendly face than Ludo's after all.

"H - hello," he said. "Yes, I'm doing fine - much better, thank you. Did Herr Ludo mention anything about a horse?"


 

 Caerfort, 29th Sommerzeit 

"I don't know anything about that," said Molli, defensively. She clearly didn't want to get drawn into the affairs of lords and ladies. "Herr Sussman only paid me to carry the letter, he didn't tell me what was in it."

She paused, aware that she hadn't really answered Elsa's question. "There was some kind of a bust-up out in the Vale. A bunch of farmers who didn't want to pay the Prince's tax. There was soldiers sent down from the city. I think some folks got hurt."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Not about a horse, no. He did mention you were in a hurry, I remember. Something you needed to get to the city? "

He took a crown from his purse and placed it on the table. Keeping his finger on it, he slid it towards Lankdorf. " There's no need. That's what you were promised for delivering it, wasn't it? " He grabbed a second crown and placed it next to the first. " I'd like to see what's so urgent. "
LCP
 Painford, 28th Sommerzeit 

Lankdorf hesitated for a long moment, then gave a very nervous laugh. "Wouldn't... wouldn't be a very good messenger if I just went selling my letters, friend," he said. "The people who sent them would be very angry with me."

He swallowed hard and looked at Sieghard harder. "Don't think... don't think I caught your name."
LeSwordfish
Outside the bar, Ludo peeked through the front window and saw Lenkdorf getting uneasy.  "Hanna and you two, go and wait outside the back door, you two stay here by the front with me. We're just good friends reunited having a chat. By all the exits." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Oh, how rude of me, " he said, a grin creeping onto his face. " I'm Sieghard -  don't bother getting up , " he quickly added, " The door's already being watched, but I'd much rather talk this out between just us. "

" I'm not sure what they told you or how much you've heard, but there was... a disagreement... between me and the people who sent you, " Sieghard continued. " Are you from Manaan's Keep? I do hope none of your friends or family were among the people they killed. " He paused. " What  did  they tell you anyways? "

 
 Spoiler 
Seems appropriate to throw in a charm test for "I'm not (currently) a threat to you" and "maybe the people paying you aren't the best people to be working for"

 (1d100)[ 7 ]  vs 54
 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 "There was some kind of a bust-up out in the Vale. A bunch of farmers who didn't want to pay the Prince's tax. There was soldiers sent down from the city. I think some folks got hurt." 
 

Elsa winced.  "...I see." 

This was not going to improve Prince Sforza's popularity. And like it or not, her own status was tied to his. Luckily, her current task kept her out of these matters. She honestly did not know what she would do if Sforza ordered her to burn down a village in retaliation for a revolt.

 "Well, I wish you a safe travel, Molli. And please remain tight-lipped about us being in Caerfort... Our business is sensitive, just like yours." 
 OOC: 
 
 Spoiler 
Since Elsa doesn't know about Sieghard's involvement, I can think of no reason for her to deliberately try to hinder Molli.
 
LCP
 Painford, 28th Sommerzeit 

Lankdorf had already sprung to his feet when Sieghard mentioned his name, knocking over his chair with a clatter. He'd taken half a step towards the door before Sieghard said it was watched - at that, he froze like a frightened rabbit. Perhaps some part of him was still considering making a dash for it, but Sieghard's calm, quiet tone was very convincing.

"I - I - I don't know anything about anything," he managed to splutter out, after a long pause. "Or anybody being k-killed. I'm just the messenger." He swallowed hard. "I have to give this letter to the Prince in Savonne. If you don't let me go then you're - you're Obstructing the Prince's Business."

He said that like he thought it meant something.


 

 Marktag, 30th Sommerzeit - Caerfort 

Molli had departed in the morning, and Elsa had spent the best part of the day with her studies and sketches, when news of two more visitors reached her in the tower. This time, they were familiar faces - Urgrim and Tatiana, returned much sooner than expected. From the look on Urgrim's face, she could tell they had some grim news.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" I'm obstructing the Prince's business, then " Sieghard replied, unfazed. " Sit back down. "

" They very clearly told you  something , otherwise you wouldn't be acting this way, " he said. " Whatever lie they've fed you, we wouldn't be talking right now if I had any interest in hurting you. And as long as you don't cause me any trouble, I can make sure  they  don't hurt you either. I do need that letter though. " He held his open hand out " I'd prefer you hand it over willingly, "
Thragka
 Urgrim and Elsa – Caerfort, Marktag 30th Sommerzeit 

Urgrim swung himself off Gil as Elsa approached, gently clapping the mule on the shoulder.  "Let's go somewhere we won't be overheard,"  he muttered to her by way of greeting.

 "Some success with your list. Got some obsidian from a mine in the Vale. I reckon I can find a master stoneworker in the Rock to shape it for you. But we were only rejoining the Forest Road when we got a bit distracted. 

Urgrim recounted his own experience and perspective at Ardelean's mill.  "It was nearly a massacre. Sussmann's a fool and the Tileans were brutes. We couldn't have stood by and let them kill the hungry poor – well, kill more of them than they did."  He gave a throaty, angry sigh.  "There are a lot of things Sieghard should have done differently. He's as stubborn as a troll and nearly as stupid! Well –"  For a moment, as Urgrim locked eyes with Elsa, he looked a little ashamed.  "Maybe that's a bit harsh on him. But what I'm saying is – he made mistakes in how he went about it, but it wasn't a mistake to put himself between the people and the Tileans' blades. And he wanted me to tell you that he doesn't regret his choices, but he's sorry if what comes disrupts your work." 

Urgrim held out his dirty, empty hands, as if presenting the state of the world to Elsa.  "So. 'Disrupt' is one word for it. I don't know that your position here can survive his fall from grace. But you can't stop your work. Varag Kol is bigger than all of this. I can keep working on getting you the tools you need. Even war in the Thornwood won't stop me getting to the Rock. I know the woods – and I've crossed the Mere. I'll do it again if I have to. But none of that will help us if we can't keep you, and the Book, safe, and uphold your access to it." 
-Sentinel-
A great pit opened in Elsa's stomach as Urgrim recounted the latest events. She could not blame Sieghard for acting like he did—perhaps she would have done the same in those circumstances—but this made the future far more uncertain. She mostly regretted not getting started much sooner on this project of hers. Had she begun right after the plague of crickets, she would either be done by now, or she would know for sure that her ritual was doomed to failure. In either case, she would be free to join Sieghard in outlawry.

 "Thank you for bringing me these news, Urgrim. This might... complicate a lot of things." 

She took a glove off to run her bare hand through her short, soot-stained red hair.

 "But you're right, I can't stop what I'm doing. Lords come and go, but the vampire and this Book have been plaguing the Reaches for thousands of years. Dealing with them takes precedence. I trust Sieghard is resourceful enough to stay ahead of the law. And there's no regiment in the Reaches better suited for this than the Thorns." 
Thragka
  Urgrim and Elsa – Caerfort, Marktag 30th Sommerzeit 

Urgrim nodded, and let silence linger a few moments, as if for a few breaths and a few heartbeats all was right in the world. When he spoke again, his words came forth in slow, considered choreography.

 “Do you think the Prince will see things that way? Do you think the Princess will? If Sforza decides Sieghard’s an enemy, will your work here be allowed to continue? 
 “Here and now, the book is guarded. I don’t know what happens if Sforza decides your work here is no longer meet. And I don’t know that the few of us thrown together in this can keep it safe while avoiding Sforza’s wrath.”  He shrugged sadly. This quiet moment was perhaps the first time in the past days that his body had not been tensed for action, and weariness was setting in.  “If there’s anything you can do to bulwark your place here – I don’t know. But maybe you should think on it.” 
LCP
 Painford, 28th Sommerzeit 

Lankdorf's face was pale, and a sheen of sweat glimmered on his brow. "W-w-ell I - I can't do that, can I? Hand it over w-willingly. If I do that they'll say I was obstructing the Prince's business too." His tone belief his words - the young man sounded to Sieghard like he understood his situation clearly. "For me to go home without that letter... I'd need proof that I handed it over  unwillingly ."

He cringed and turned his head away as he spoke - as if he was expecting Sieghard to hit him.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" You're going to insist on this? " Sieghard asked, finding the whole thing odd. " If you're sure... It might be easier if you close your eyes. "

 
 Spoiler 
Third option. Sieghard is going to just grab the letter out of the pouch.
 
LCP
 Painford, 28th Sommerzeit 

Lankdorf shrank away from Sieghard with his eyes screwed shut, anticipating a blow - then yelped in surprise as Sieghard just snatched the satchel from him instead. For a moment he stood, there paralysed with confusion - then he slumped in on himself, dejected and defeated. He clearly saw there was nothing he could do.

Inside the satchel was a single roll of parchment, sealed with a smudged imprint of Sforza's pike-and-portcullis banner. Breaking it open, Sieghard read the message in Sussman's hurried handwriting:

 Your Highness,

It pains me to report that the trouble here continues. Reclaiming your highness' grain has led to bloodshed, and while we have taken it back, we find it is considerably short of the amount we expected. The rabble-rousers who made their camp around the mill must have been eating it: almost half of what we collected is gone.

The camp is now dispersed, and your soldiers are preparing to return with what has been retrieved. I regret to inform you that Sergeant Corrado is dead, killed in the affray. I regret still more to inform you that it was your steward Sieghard who killed him, having interposed himself as a negotiator, and apparently taken the side of the peasants. He escaped the pursuit of the Iron Company and has fled the scene; we have found no sign of him in Manann's Keep or the Vale.

I have sent word to Lord Valdes of this, and will continue to do my utmost to preserve peace and order in Manann's Keep, awaiting your further instructions.

Your servant,
S.S. 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

The letter was much of what Sieghard expected. The one point of concern was that word had likely already reached Valdes, but he was already well aware that he would have to deal with that in time. He shouted for Ludo and after handing off Sussmman's letter, turned his attention back to Lankdorf.

" If anyone gives you trouble, you need only say that I had you captive and stole the letter from you, " he suggested. " Gods willing, anyone who  would  give you trouble will be taken care of before they can. Do you know whether Sussman sent any other messengers north? "
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by Thragka 
  “Do you think the Prince will see things that way? Do you think the Princess will? If Sforza decides Sieghard’s an enemy, will your work here be allowed to continue?  
 

 "Hmm. The Prince  might  take me away from my work and order me to draw Sieghard out of hiding,"  Elsa conceded.  "He probably knows Sieghard and I have some history." 

For now, though, what was she to do? She might as well continue her work.



  “Here and now, the book is guarded. I don’t know what happens if Sforza decides your work here is no longer meet. And I don’t know that the few of us thrown together in this can keep it safe while avoiding Sforza’s wrath.”  He shrugged sadly. This quiet moment was perhaps the first time in the past days that his body had not been tensed for action, and weariness was setting in.  “If there’s anything you can do to bulwark your place here – I don’t know. But maybe you should think on it.”  

 "You're right. Thanks for the forewarning,"  said Elsa.

She added:  "I think you should know a horseback messenger bound for Mirino has been through here last night. Molli, her name was. She mentioned the bloodshed in the Vale. If I'd known Sieghard was involved, I would've tried to intercept the message." 
LCP
 Painford, 28th Sommerzeit 

Lankdorf didn't look like he understood Sieghard's comments about people being 'taken care of', but they certainly didn't seem to reassure him. He held his hands up in a placating manner.

"I-I don't know anything, I swear," he said. "I'm - I'm just the messenger boy. He s-said to ride this way as fast as I could,,, and p-put it in the p-prince's hands myself."
LeSwordfish
Ludo read the letter twice, seeing the human misery in between Sussman's nervous prose.

 You stupid bastard,  he thought again. He sat down heavily on one of Gavril's stools, his mind full of numb blank terror again.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Sieghard should ask if the hoofprints he saw was Lankdorf, was Lankdorf trying to go past the town?
 
rax
 Bardhyl, 24th Sommerzeit  (OOC: Or is it the 25th after all?)

Bardhyl allowed the looters to indulge in their triumph for a while before telling the  vrani  leaders to step in and restore order.  “Everyone here deserves a share of the loot, but those taxes back there – they belong to all  vrani , and we're going to need to husband our resources for what's to come. So, no more looting for today, aye?” 
 “Abbie, I'm making you town quartermaster. I want a full inventory of what's left in the store-room by the end of the day, along with a suggestion for how much we can spare for a proper celebration tomorrow. I also want all the Iron Company's weapons and armour collected and stored for later distribution. You up for that?” 
 “Valmir – I want the prisoners split into groups and held in separate locations. No mixing the veterans and the recruits. I don't care if they end up chained in a pig sty, but try to keep it to no more than three men in a group. I don't want them to be able work together to plan an escape or get their stories lined up ahead of the interrogations.” 
 “Grim, I need you in charge of burying the Iron Company's dead. I'm sure Wadim can suggest a suitable spot outside the town. I'll let their compatriots know that they'll be buried according to lowlander custom, with proper Morrite rites.” 
 “Wadim, you are the Raven Speaker. Will you see to our dead? I'd like to give them all a hero's send-off in the morning, but we should respect the wishes of their families if they prefer to take their leave in private.” 

Once his instructions were being carried out, and some of his gang were available to take care of Zana and Kreshnik, Bardhyl went looking for his and his men's weapons, but more importantly, looking for any records concerning Orso's administration of Morr's Seat and communication with Carraciolo.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
I'm pausing here because I want to get some feedback on whether Bardhyl's instructions go off without a hitch and whether or not he finds any interesting paperwork.

I'm looking for any instructions Orso may have received from Carraciolo or the Prince, anything concerning informants in Morr's Seat or beyond, any form of tax records, and any information pertaining to the impending arrival of the next tax caravan. I.e. when they're expected, how many people and/or soldiers, who's in charge, and so on. Any and all details, basically.

The answers to the paperwork questions will be important in determining what Bardhyl will focus on when interrogating the prisoners.

Timewise, I imagine that searching the hall and looking through anything Bardhyl finds would take most of the afternoon. The next step would be to organize a gathering in the evening to deliver a rousing speech and announce that today's fallen will be buried as heroes in the morning (if Wadim signs off on that suggestion), followed by a feast for all of Morr's Seat to celebrate taking our town back. Bardhyl will probably give another speech urging perseverance and unity then.

This puts us at the 26th (or 27th, if the battle was actually on the 25th) for when Bardhyl would actively begin interrogating prisoners, barring any sudden emergency.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Fine, fine, " Sieghard said, " Just one more thing then. Before coming here, were you thinking of going around the village? My men found horse tracks on our way into the village. It looked like the rider was trying to avoid the village. Were those from you or would they have been left by someone else? "

Once Lankdorf had answered, he called Hanna to join them continued. " I think it would be wise for you to stay here for a few days. You'll be treated as a guest in Painford and made comfortable... So long as you don't try anything foolish like making a run for the city. " Leaving him in her care, he turned his attention to Ludo.

" I don't want to hear it, " he said. It had been impossible to miss Ludo's expression since returning. " You didn't see what those bastards did. We both knew it might come to this - Better it happen while there's still men with the strength to fight. " he took Sussman's letter back, laid it flat on the table, and pointed towards the last bit. " So long as we hurry, there's still time before Sforza can snap his jaws shut around us. I have a few of his letters still laying around at the manor. Jarla has his seal. If you could trick Sussman by copying Sforza's signature, we may be able to set a trap of our own. "
Thragka
 
 Originally Posted by -Sentinel- 
  "Hmm. The Prince  might  take me away from my work and order me to draw Sieghard out of hiding,"  Elsa conceded.  "He probably knows Sieghard and I have some history."  
 

 "Aye, and if he gleans that, he may not trust you to continue here,"  Urgrim said.  "I reckon his wife's no gladder of your lot in his court then she ever was." 

  "You're right. Thanks for the forewarning,"  said Elsa.

She added:  "I think you should know a horseback messenger bound for Mirino has been through here last night. Molli, her name was. She mentioned the bloodshed in the Vale. If I'd known Sieghard was involved, I would've tried to intercept the message."  

A weight of melancholy sagged at Urgrim's face as he turned Elsa's words over.

 "Better for many of us it'll be if that letter never makes it to Mirino,"  he pronounced sombrely.  "I'll give chase. Gods willing, I can catch her – and do what needs doing." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Urgrim's previous lines were more or less meant to raise the same points that LCP and TheSummoner have done OOC, and he's certainly interested in knowing Elsa's responses, so I'm happy to chat longer if she has anything specific to discuss about this right away.

Otherwise, his next step will be following Molli, and trying to catch her before she reaches Mirino. I feel he's probably at a disadvantage here, but if he can set a steady pace that his mule could maintain through the night, he's willing to forgo some sleep. He's not willing to kill his mule though!
 
LCP
 Morr’s Seat, *25th* Sommerzeit 

Abbie and Grim agreed to their roles, while Valmir embraced handling the prisoners with, if anything, too much enthusiasm. Wadim watched the three of them go before he gave his reply.

“In the morning,” he said, quietly. “Aye. We’ll hold the ceremony at daybreak. No sense in letting these things linger.”

Once he was left alone, Bardhyl had time to search through the back rooms of the chief’s hall. Orso didn’t appear to have been much of a man of letters. Among his effects, he found what looked like the orders that had first taken him to Morr’s Seat - by now rather crumpled and dogeared - and a slate tallying up their takings in taxes.

Carraciolo’s orders were in Tilean, but Bardhyl could see nothing in the Lord-Lieutenant’s scrawl that looked like a number or a date. The tally was simply quantities - wool, iron, cheese and salted meats - no record of when they were expected to be shipped out. Perhaps that was information that had never been written down. Surely, though, the Tileans themselves would know.

 ~ 
That evening, when the bodies had been carried out and the blood had been sponged from the floor, the people of Morr’s Seat gathered in the chieftain’s hall. It was so packed that there was barely space to move - by Bardhyl’s reckoning, the whole town was here, more or less. Looking out across the hall, dimly lit by a few flickering torches, he saw a sea of hungry, dirty faces looking back. The reflection of the firelight glimmered in their eyes - or perhaps, Bardhyl fancied, it was the spark of hope.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Feel free to timesplit ahead to the other dates you mentioned for e.g. interrogating prisoners.
 


 

 Painford, 28th Sommerzeit 

 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
  Just one more thing then. Before coming here, were you thinking of going around the village? My men found horse tracks on our way into the village. It looked like the rider was trying to avoid the village. Were those from you or would they have been left by someone else? " 
 


Lankdorf shook his head. “I came straight here,” he said. “Herr Sussman told me twice, he said, stick to the road.”


  " I think it would be wise for you to stay here for a few days. You'll be treated as a guest in Painford and made comfortable... So long as you don't try anything foolish like making a run for the city. " 

“I’m your prisoner, you mean,” he said, dejected. He didn’t resist as Hanna approached, but allowed her to shepherd him away…
RossN
 Painford 

Jarla also read the letter and grimaced.  "Bad news but I expected as much."  She paused then shot Ludo a mirthless smile, quietly adding:  "Should I feel insulted my name did not directly feature in the letter? Am I that forgettable?" 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by Thragka 
  "Aye, and if he gleans that, he may not trust you to continue here,"  Urgrim said.  "I reckon his wife's no gladder of your lot in his court then she ever was."  
 

 "The Prince  might  question my loyalty to him,"  said Elsa,  "but I don't think I've given him cause to question my enmity towards the restless dead. Hopefully he decides it's safer to keep me busy in Caerfort than to involve me in the hunt for Sieghard." 

  "Better for many of us it'll be if that letter never makes it to Mirino,"  he pronounced sombrely.  "I'll give chase. Gods willing, I can catch her – and do what needs doing."  

Elsa was not sure she liked the sound of that, but in any case, she thought it unlikely that Urgrim would catch up with Molli.

 "Best of lucks, Urgi. You too, Tattie."  She sighed.  "Guess my ritual might have to wait a bit longer, but I  am  determined to see it through." 
 Gods damn it,  she thought bitterly,  Nahorek must be laughing at how good we are at undermining our own efforts against him. First, Lady Sforza all but delivers his staff to him... and now, this new development. 
LeSwordfish
 "I don't want to hear it," he said. It had been impossible to miss Ludo's expression since returning. "You didn't see what those bastards did. We both knew it might come to this - Better it happen while there's still men with the strength to fight." he took Sussman's letter back, laid it flat on the table, and pointed towards the last bit. "So long as we hurry, there's still time before Sforza can snap his jaws shut around us. I have a few of his letters still laying around at the manor. Jarla has his seal. If you could trick Sussman by copying Sforza's signature, we may be able to set a trap of our own." 

 "Oh leave it out,"  Ludo snapped. A small fist thumped the table between them.  "You and the wizard are as bad as each other." 

 "You didn't see what those bastards did. We both knew it might come to this - Better it happen while there's still men with the strength to fight." 

 

"We were going to do this carefully and thoughtfully. And you thought with your sword and now come to me to clean up your mess. Did you stop people being killed there? Because it doesn't sound like it! You didn't stop the food being taken, either. You know what you did achieve? You ensured that whatever happens  there  will happen here  too , to the people we promised to protect." 

Ludo leaned back and folded his arms, as angry and scornful as Sieghard had ever seen him.

 "If you thought it was bad there, how do you think Sforza will deal with a sworn lord who turns traitor? Remember what happened to Falkenwald, exactly? It's going to make the raven hills look like a Mittherbst feast. He's going to burn this place to the ground. If I had any sense I'd hand you over. Seems like the only way I avoid ending up with my head on a pike next to yours."

"Don't give me your idiot calm. Your  "there's still time"  and  "trap of our own."  Anything we do now is scrambling to avoid all being killed and you know it." 

He turned to Jarla, blanking Sieghard entirely.  "If we can get you a fresh horse, could you get to Ravenskird today? If we're lucky, you might catch the other horseman. If not, Ingwald needs to know what happened before the Iron Company marches in. We might need to recall his men here. Since apparently we'll be at war by the end of the week." 
LCP
 Backertag, 31st Sommerzeit - Urgrim 

Urgrim wasted no time lingering in Caerfort. He rode all day and all night, leading his mule when it would no longer carry him. He knew persistence was the only advantage he had in this race.

It was into the early hours of the following morning when he spied what he assumed was the messenger’s camp, nestled under one of the rocky tors that overlooked the Mere. The remnants of their campfire was just embers, but it's dying light caught his keen eye all the same. Approaching as quietly as he could, he got close enough to see his quarry - a young woman, sleeping bundled up under her rough woollen cloak, and her horse, sleeping tethered to the dry stump of a dead tree. There were no others that he could see.
rax
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 That evening, when the bodies had been carried out and the blood had been sponged from the floor, the people of Morr’s Seat gathered in the chieftain’s hall. It was so packed that there was barely space to move - by Bardhyl’s reckoning, the whole town was here, more or less. Looking out across the hall, dimly lit by a few flickering torches, he saw a sea of hungry, dirty faces looking back. The reflection of the firelight glimmered in their eyes - or perhaps, Bardhyl fancied, it was the spark of hope.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Feel free to timesplit ahead to the other dates you mentioned for e.g. interrogating prisoners.
 
 
 

  Morr’s Seat, 25th Sommerzeit 

Bardhyl looked out over the crowd, his expression deeply serious, and nodded slowly in acknowledgement as he began to speak.

 "Friends! Family!  Vrani!  Thank you for coming. Today...today was a  hard  day, so I will be brief. We lost many good men and women - fathers, brothers, mothers, sisters, cousins, dear friends - and we mourn them all. But today was also a  great  day! Today was the day that we  rose as one , and cast off the yoke of the Tilean pretender! By the sacrifice of today's heroes, Morr's Seat is once again a free  vrani  town, and now it is up to the rest of us to keep it that way!" 
 "In the morning, we will send our fallen to Morr, and in the evening  we will feast!  We will eat our fill and toast the fallen and the living. We will sing the songs of old and remember that  we are Morr's chosen people!  Our memories are long, our blades sharp, our hearts fierce and free. We were here before any lowlander set foot in the Reaches, and we will be here long after they are gone. And I promise you this - while I draw breath, no foreign pretender will  ever  rule the Raven Hills again!" 
 "Go now, my friends. Return to your homes and sleep well. There is much to do in the days ahead, but tomorrow will be a day of celebration, and tomorrow night, at least, no one will be going to bed hungry!" 
 @LCP 
Starting off with a little light speechifying...and now I've run out of time to finish the post. 😳 I'll keep adding to the post during the week and let you know in the OC thread when I think I'm done.
RossN
 
 Originally Posted by LeSwordfish 
  "If we can get you a fresh horse, could you get to Ravenskird today? If we're lucky, you might catch the other horseman. If not, Ingwald needs to know what happened before the Iron Company marches in. We might need to recall his men here. Since apparently we'll be at war by the end of the week."  
 

Jarla thought about it and nodded.  "I can certainly try so long as you take care of Countess when the Thorns bring her back. I suppose question is whether I'm just going to be speaking to Ingwald or whether I should bring written orders to make it clear how serious this is. Is that worth the risk?" 

She glanced in the direction of Sieghard, though did not directly address him. Jarla could practically feel the heat of Ludo's anger and she wasn't about to kick this particular hornet's nest.
Thragka
 Urgrim – Backertag, 31st Sommerzeit 

Urgrim approached the human woman calmly, but without attempting to be fully silent. He stopped at an appropriate distance for a respectful conversation, not seeking to alarm her immediately. He bent down and sat on a gnarled root.  "Hello,"  he called out to her.

The woman's gentle snoring faltered. Raising her head, she stared blearily at Urgrim. A second or two passed in silence - still in the same sitting position, she put her left hand behind her pillow, as if reaching for something there. "Hello. Who are you?"

Urgrim took a deep breath, in and out, through his nose. As much as he'd been thinking about how to do this in the past hours, and imagining how the conversation might go, he still seemed a little unsure of himself.  "I'm someone who wants to talk to the woman who stayed in Caerfort two nights ago." 

"In the middle of the night?"

Urgrim shrugged.  "If you are her, then I'm here now." 

"And you're not going away, is that it?" Keeping a careful eye on Urgrim, she started to get slowly to her feet. "What is it you want?"

Urgrim stayed sitting.  "The letter you're carrying." 

"It's not for sale."

 "Mmmm. The most important things aren't, usually. Although I would have made you an offer, if it were."  Urgrim sighed.  "You're Molli, then?" 

Screwing up her eyes in a grimace, the woman stood up completely straight. "See, it's things like that that don't put me completely at my ease here. Sneaking up while I'm asleep in the middle of Taal's own nowhere and giving me my name when I sure as Shallya don't know yours." She took a cautious step towards her horse; her left hand was behind her back. "Are we going to have problems if I don't want to answer any more of your questions?"

 "Urgrim Jotunnsson,"  Urgrim offered.  "I'm sorry to shock you, but I rode from Caerfort overnight to find you. I didn't want to wait. I want to talk to you." 

"Go on then - talk." She kept walking slowly towards her horse, which was still sound asleep.

 "Well, will you stay and listen?" 

"Are you giving me a choice?"

Urgrim was silent a moment. Then he nodded.  "I'll talk, then. Your choice to stay or leave. 
 "The Tileans went to that mill to take the last scraps of food away from the wretched and the starving. The Reaches are already hurting. The harvests are bad, and people die. That's what those people were there to say. And because they dared raise their voice, the Tileans took their lives too. Those people made a choice. Whether it was a good one or a bad one, they thought it was the right one. That's all we get, any of us. Our choices. 
 "I had no reason to come to you and lie. As I said, I came because I want that letter. You want the choice to listen to me, or to go. But going is a choice too. It might be ink on a page, but it's as much one of the Tileans' weapons as the iron on their spears. And if it goes to Mirino, it'll spill so much more blood across these lands. And I think  that  is your choice." 

Molli's face changed as Urgrim spoke. If she was still wary of him, she was at least listening. "I don't know much about... what you said," she said. "But Herr Sussmann gave me this letter to carry. He's the Prince's man. If I go back home and I tell him I felt like giving it to someone else... I can't just do that, you know? I mean, what'd happen to me?"

Urgrim looked up at Molli, and nodded with an odd sad, thoughtful smile on his lips. Perhaps, for a moment, with his bushy beard and craggy brow, he looked to a young human like a strangely sprightly old man.  "It's a good question,"  he agreed.  "None of this is easy. None of this is fair. Perhaps you see why I wanted to talk to you. Mind you – while I'm not saying you should just go back home and do that, or that I mean to tell you to – but if you need to know what choice you have about that, there are people and places you could go to." 

"And if I give it to you?" she asked. "What will you do with it?" She hesitated. "I mean, I haven't read it, but if the message isn't delivered... won't they just send another, eventually? You going to wait out here for that messenger too?" She cocked her head at Urgrim. "What's your skin in this, anyway? I didn't hear there were any dwarfs up at that mill."

Urgrim held up a finger.  "Well, there was one dwarf there. Though I allow you, I didn't see any others. You're right, of course, I'm not a farmer or a miner. I didn't grow up in the Wood, or the Vale. It was chance that I was at the mill, more or less. But it wasn't chance that a good man was there, my companion. The man who tried to stop the Tileans from killing the smallfolk."  Urgrim, now, hesitated. To say more was to tip his hand, to go all-in, and hope that this young woman would do the right thing.  "The Steward of Painford. He was there because he knew what sort of men the Tileans were, and he meant not to let them go butchering, unchallenged. When they turned on the crowd, Sieghard of Painford cut down the Tileans' commander. That's what your letter tells. That's why it's soaked so heavy with blood. And aye, when this one doesn't get through, they'll send another. But if we stop this one from going any further, now, that buys him some time to gather his men in Painford. So that whenever the Tileans  do  march east on the Vale, those of us strong of heart will be ready. 
 "I don't know if you have people in Manann's Keep, or in the Reaches. I do know you didn't ask for this to come to you now, and be on your head. But it's here, just like it's on my head. So I had to find you, to ask you to think carefully about what happens next. One way or another, your choice will change the Reaches." 

Molli hesitated for a long time, the toe of her boot working absent-mindedly in the dust. "I heard some things about what happened up there," she said. "Not many things... just a few. I know my cousin was there, though. And his wife, and their kids. And maybe I'm stupid, but I think if you just wanted to rob me you wouldn't have woken me with a 'hello'."

She looked over her shoulder, back east - as if somehow she thought Sussman might overhear them all the way from Manann's Keep. "I'm not a rebel. I've got folks, a roof, a bed to go back to... but I'm not a messenger either, not really. Herr Sussman just needed someone who knew how to ride a horse, and I wanted the money." Opening her horse's saddle-bag, she pulled out a leather satchel and tossed it over to Urgrim. "So if I  say  you robbed me, I don't think he's got much grounds to complain."

Like the inexorable return of lichen to rock, a smile grew creepingly across Urgrim's face.  "I'm sorry I upset you. But being as I'm robbing you, I'd be thankful if you didn't remember my face or my name. There aren't a lot of dwarfs around these parts at the best of times." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
This is the transcript of a scene LCP and I played out on Discord. I have made minor edits to spelling and grammar, as well as making small alterations to some of Urgrim's word choices to better reflect his usual speaking patterns.

Urgrim will politely take his leave of Molli, looking to find somewhere sheltered to make a camp of his own. He'll check the contents of the satchel – and then sleep deeply after having travelled through the night. In the fullness of day, he'll turn around and head back to Caerfort.
 
LeSwordfish
 
 Originally Posted by RossN 
 Jarla thought about it and nodded.  "I can certainly try so long as you take care of Countess when the Thorns bring her back. I suppose question is whether I'm just going to be speaking to Ingwald or whether I should bring written orders to make it clear how serious this is. Is that worth the risk?" 

She glanced in the direction of Sieghard, though did not directly address him. Jarla could practically feel the heat of Ludo's anger and she wasn't about to kick this particular hornet's nest. 
 

Ludo thought for a moment.  "Just verbal orders. But I'll give you something so he knows it's from me. Remind him about him and Dorothye, i'm pretty sure nobody outside the militia knows about that." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
I think the big decision is: are we telling Ingwald to hold firm where he is and be aware that the Thorns may be in trouble, or telling him to leave Ravenskird and regroup in Painford?
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" We're not even certain there  is  another rider, " Sieghard said, " I won't ignore the chance, but we can't devote everything to something that  might  be a threat when the most present threat is the one to our south. "

 
 Spoiler 
As I see it, we need to act quickly and decisively while we still have the element of surprise. Danger to the north and danger to the south - If we sit still, then we get encircled. We can't take Savonne, but we can neutralize Manaan's Keep before Sforza knows what's happening. Do that and we've only got the one front to worry about.
 
LeSwordfish
 "I'm sending one rider, not everything."  Ludo snapped.  "Either she can catch another messenger or not, but wherever the  real threat  is, we'll need to recall Ingwald and his team here to deal with it." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard's patience with Ludo was running short and he had to fight the urge to shove the halfling into a potato sack.

" There's still thirty-some Iron Company in Manaan's Keep, " Sieghard said, " They've sent word to Valdes, but if we move before he can respond, it's few enough men that that we can take the town. We  have to  strike first and deal with that or else we'll be fighting on two fronts once word does reach Sforza. "
LCP
 Urgrim, 31st Sommerzeit 

Molli nodded. “That’s right,” she said. “Haven’t seen any, myself. Whoever stole the satchel must’ve sneaked up while I was asleep.”

She paused, unsure what to say. “I’d wish you luck, but I’m not sure if I should,” she said. “I guess… I hope this works out like you say.”


 

 Bezahltag, 32nd Sommerzeit - Caerfort 

It was late in the day when Urgrim made his return to Caerfort, and the sun beat down on the dusty hills like a hammer on an anvil. Valdes’ soldiers greeted him warmly as he passed their picket, one of them offering a drink from the water-butt they had set up outside the base of the tower. Perhaps if they’d known what he was carrying, they wouldn’t have been so friendly.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
I don’t know if Urgrim is going to open the letter, or share its contents with Elsa, but if he does, here is what it says.

 
 Spoiler: Sussmans_Letter 
 My Lord Valdes,

It is with the greatest regret that I write to inform you that the disorder in Manann’s Keep has not been resolved peacefully. There was an altercation between some men of the Iron Company sent to retrieve Prince Sforza’s grain and the farmers of the Vale unwilling to give it up, and a number of the latter were hurt or killed. As I write this, I am making arrangements for the burials.

More concerning to your lordship is the behaviour of Lord Sieghard, who appeared on the scene to argue for the farmers, lost his temper, and then his mind. He has killed several of Prince Sforza’s soldiers, including their commander, Sergeant Corrado. He then fled, escaping the Iron Company’s pursuit. I am currently unaware of his whereabouts, but I must assume by the time he reaches you he will have been able to rejoin his own soldiers in the Thornwood. If they should fall into rebellion with him, I am deeply concerned with what he will do next.

I currently have in Manann’s Keep the Iron Company men sent for the grain, and fewer than fifteen men of my own. I have sent messengers to Savonne to inform his Highness of these events, but do not know if they will be allowed to pass through the Thornwood. I urge your lordship to reinforce us in Manann’s Keep as swiftly and strongly as is possible, to protect both Prince Sforza’s holdings and his subjects here in the Vale.

Your faithful servant,
- S. Sussman 
 

 
Thragka
 Urgrim and Elsa -- Caerfort, Bezahltag 32nd Sommerzeit 

When they were alone, Urgrim showed the letter to Elsa.  "I convinced the young woman that the right thing to do was to let me have this,"  he explained, starkly unaware of the connotation that might carry.  "So don't mistreat her when she passes back this way." 
 "Sussman might have grog for brains, but he's not wrong that things're going to move fast. Sieghard'll know he can't hang about sitting on his arse. But unless he moves very quick, Sussman's bound to send another errand west once he realises this one didn't make it. 
 "I still mean to get that obsidian crafted in Zhufund. I told Sieghard I'd look for him on the way, if you have any message for him. And I should show him this, I suppose,"  he added, folding the letter back up.  "D'you still want Tattie to travel with me? I might move less freely with her in tow, is all." 
LeSwordfish
Ludo deliberately tried to calm himself a little.  "We need Ingwald's men anyway, and if another messenger gets through, we'll need them out of Ravenskird before Sforza rides through and puts them all in chains. If we have any luck - and good Esmerelda knows we're due some - they'll have stopped in Ravenskird overnight and Jarla can deal with them. If not - well, we get everyone together and go from there. Maybe I can speak to Sussman, persuade him that he can trust me and trick him into doing something foolish."
 
He had plenty of other things he had wanted to shout at Sieghard but none were going to help at this stage would they? And he had been hoping Sieghard would shout back; that idiot calm...
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by Thragka 
 When they were alone, Urgrim showed the letter to Elsa.  "I convinced the young woman that the right thing to do was to let me have this,"  he explained, starkly unaware of the connotation that might carry.  "So don't mistreat her when she passes back this way."  
 

Elsa looked considerably relieved that the whole messenger situation had been resolved without violence.

She read the letter twice. She was not too worried about Sieghard, but she  was  concerned about the Thorns. They had family in the Thornwood, which gave Sforza considerable leverage if they decided to follow their commander in outlawry.



  "I still mean to get that obsidian crafted in Zhufund. I told Sieghard I'd look for him on the way, if you have any message for him. And I should show him this, I suppose,"  he added, folding the letter back up.  "D'you still want Tattie to travel with me? I might move less freely with her in tow, is all."  

 "I don't really have a message for Sieghard that's worth the trouble and risk of tracking him down,"  said Elsa.  "If you do happen upon him on your way back north, tell him I understand why he did what he did, but that I can't join him just yet." 

She gave some thought on the matter of Tatiana.  "If you think you'd work better without her, I suppose you can leave her with me." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" That'd be a big risk, " Sieghard pointed out, " He knows we've worked closely together. If he doesn't believe you, he'll know we're up to something and have you thrown in chains. Are you sure you could fool him? "
LeSwordfish
Ludo shrugged helplessly, black tiredness sitting on him. "No. I don't know. But there seem to be a lot of courses of action that will end up with us in chains."
RossN
 Jarla 
 "I'll ride to Ravenskird then,"  Jarla said decisively. She paused and added:  "Sieghard, if you are going to be in open rebellion is it worth me telling Sforza I was captured by you and managed to escape? It might work better if I have an excuse to give about the treason apparently happening under everyone's nose."  She gave a rueful smile and added:  "A freshly healed wound might look convincing for that!" 
LeSwordfish
 "We don't know what the other letter says,"  Ludo cautioned.  "And sooner or later news will get through, we can't stop every gossipy trader on the road. If you were involved at all, they'll figure it out and it'll be your head." 
Thragka
 Urgrim and Elsa – Caerfort, Bezahltag 32nd Sommerzeit 

Urgrim nodded.  “I’ll tell him that, aye,”  Urgrim said with a nod.  “I’ll find him – or Ludo, or Hanna or someone – to show this to,”  he said, patting his pocket.  “Forewarned is forearmed.” 
 “Perhaps you ought to send Tatiana north for some of the other tools on your list – books, and candlesticks, and such. She’s likely to get to Zhufund before me. You could tell her to leave a message for me at the  Duke of Aquitaine  – I’ll check when I get to the low town, and maybe can meet her again there.” 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" It's too soon to let Sforza learn what's happened, besides " Sieghard said, " He  will  find out in time and if you're willing to risk feeding him false information, that might prove useful, but there's no need for you to "escape" until we're sure no one who could identify you still lives. "
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by Thragka 
  “I’ll tell him that, aye,”  Urgrim said with a nod.  “I’ll find him – or Ludo, or Hanna or someone – to show this to,”  he said, patting his pocket.  “Forewarned is forearmed.”  
 

Elsa looked dubious.  "Sieghard is well aware he's an outlaw now, Urgi. You'd go look for him just to tell him the obvious? I think any unnecessary contact is risky. There aren't that many dwarfs in the Reaches, and if one of his men gets captured and questioned—or turns his cloak—you'll be on a very short list of suspected accomplices." 

  “Perhaps you ought to send Tatiana north for some of the other tools on your list – books, and candlesticks, and such. She’s likely to get to Zhufund before me. You could tell her to leave a message for me at the  Duke of Aquitaine  – I’ll check when I get to the low town, and maybe can meet her again there.”  

 "I am  not  sending a sixteen-year-old girl down the Forest Road alone,"  said Elsa firmly.  "Perhaps dwarf maidens are safe among dwarf men, but the same isn't true among humans. Tattie either goes with you or stays with me." 
Thragka
 Urgrim and Elsa – Caerfort, Bezahltag 32nd Sommerzeit 

Urgrim looked at Elsa thoughtfully for a few heartbeats.  "Yet you'd be on that very same list, I think we both know. There are even fewer witches in the Reaches than dawi, but I don't think you'd baulk from helping him, in my place. I don't think my ... loyalty is so misplaced. So aye, it'd be safer to do nothing, and destroy this letter. But if there's a chance that reading Sussman's words in his own hand, and knowing what the man thinks, will help Sieghard, I'll risk the danger." 

To Elsa's defence of Tattie's innocence, Urgrim only shrugged.  "So be it. I'll still see if I can get you what you need for your work. I've no doubt of its weight, or that you know best how we should pursue it. Please, Elsa, trust that I do the same for my own undertakings." 
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Urgrim is perhaps misunderstanding Elsa's point a little bit (which, if I read correctly, is that witnesses might be able to actually place Urgrim at Ardelean's mill!), but nonetheless, she won't convince him not to take the letter to Sieghard.
 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by Thragka 
 Urgrim looked at Elsa thoughtfully for a few heartbeats.  "Yet you'd be on that very same list, I think we both know. There are even fewer witches in the Reaches than dawi, but I don't think you'd baulk from helping him, in my place. I don't think my ... loyalty is so misplaced. So aye, it'd be safer to do nothing, and destroy this letter. But if there's a chance that reading Sussman's words in his own hand, and knowing what the man thinks, will help Sieghard, I'll risk the danger."  
 

 "Wizard,"  Elsa corrected him, with the irritation of someone who had explained this distinction many times already.  "Witches and warlocks are spellcasters who haven't been formally trained. I've studied at one of the Colleges, so I'm a wizard. And if you do need to find Sieghard, suit yourself... but do be careful. If you become an outlaw too, I'll have hardly anyone left to rely on." 

She raised her eyebrows.  "So are you taking Tattie or not? I really think you should. It provides a bit of insurance if something happens to you on the road. She does have a few useful skills. And my uses for her right now are... limited. She's not the scholarly sort." 
Thragka
 Urgrim and Elsa – Caerfort, Bezahltag 32nd Sommerzeit 

Urgrim furrowed his brow with something that looked very much like frustration, but he managed to bounce his head in a conciliatory nod to Elsa's exacting terminology. Still, he waved a hand impatiently in the air.  "Elsa, she's been held in chains by the Prince's word once already. You're so sure you can just order her to follow me now, in defiance of his law? Is it  you  she's supposed to be devoted to? Are you her mother? If she's a child, then let's leave her out of this slag. If she's a grown woman, and a wizard apprentice, then you'd better make sure you and her agree on some fairly important things." 

The dwarf made to depart. Before he was out of the room, he turned back to Elsa for a moment.  "Hear this, now. I thank the ancestors I didn't have to raise a hand to that young woman, Molli, to get Sussman's letter. But I spent the entire hunt for her steeling myself to do what was needed. To do what  Sieghard  needed me to do. And I also thank the ancestors that you're out here, in this place, removed from what's about to happen, so that you have a  chance  to figure out how to destroy the Book, before the Reaches drown in more blood. So don't think I'm not grateful for your work here, nor for the chance to aid it. But don't let your isolation from the rest of us make you forget our struggles, and what's at stake. Sussman will send another letter west. You're the only one who can do something about that when it passes here. I have to believe ... I have to believe that you and I are in this together." 

Urgrim concluded with some respiratory punctuation, and took his leave.
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by Thragka 
  "Sussman will send another letter west. You're the only one who can do something about that when it passes here. I have to believe ... I have to believe that you and I are in this together."  
 

 "Just  how long  do you think I can intercept messages before someone figures out—"  Elsa began. But Urgrim was already gone.

She growled in frustration. Her work trying to create a ritual from scratch was complicated enough without having to delay any westbound messengers... all without her men noticing.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

That evening, Sieghard gathered the Thorns together inside the barracks. All were present aside from those in Ravenskird and two he had assigned to keep watch over Lankdorf.

" There's way I can soften this news, so I'll be direct, " Sieghard began. " The Prince has gone mad. When the locusts first swept over the Thornwood, I wrote to Savonne for relief. His answer was to place an even higher burden on us. Now he's had his Iron Company slaughter farmers in the south who weren't able to meet his demand. He would have us do the same here - rob the people we've sworn to protect and watch them to starve or else put any to the sword who tried to resist. Your neighbors, your friends, and for some of you, your kin. Their lives mean nothing to him. If Sforza has his way, he'll leech our stores until there's nothing left and still demand more. Then, when there's nothing left for him to take, he'll order here what he ordered in Manaan's Keep. "

" I won't allow it, " he said. " The Thornwood is ours to protect. If it must be protected from a mad tyrant, so be it. "
LCP
 Painford, 28th Sommerzeit 

The mood in the barracks was tense. Perhaps some of them already knew what Sieghard was going to tell them - Hanna and her squad certainly did. Still, there was a shock to hearing him say the words aloud. Silence reigned for a good ten seconds after Sieghard had finished talking.

"What does that mean?" asked Whispering Thom, as loud as ever. "Are they coming here? The Iron Company?"

A steady murmur of voices began to rise from behind him.

  It's true, just like they said!
 The Commander's turning rebel.  We're dead men, all of us...   
"I don't remember swearing to protect nobody," said Hagen, furrowing his black brows at Sieghard. "All respect, sir, but it was the Prince's schilling what I took from your hand. Ain't it the Prince we're supposed to serve?"

Hanna gave him a black look. He held up his hands as if to assuage, but didn't back down.

"Look, I ain't sayin' - I don't like them Tileans any more'n the next man. But turning against 'em? How're we supposed to fare any better'n the Duke?"

The murmurs grew louder, into a babble that filled the room. In some places, arguments were breaking out...
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

"  Enough!  " Sieghard barked, cutting through the murmuring. He turned his attention to Hagen.

" Do you think your life means any more to Sforza than theirs did? If it had been up to him, ours who fell at Nath would've been left to rot in the sun and be picked apart by buzzards! " He said, slamming his fist against a table. " After he's done starving the farmers and the choice is whether he feeds you or his Iron Company, who do you imagine he's going to choose? How much do you think  the Prince's schilling  will be worth after he's taken all of the bread? "

 
 Spoiler 
 (1d100)[ 79 ]  vs 74 Command to maintain order
 (1d100)[ 36 ]  vs 54 Charm to try to make the point convincing.

 (1d100)[ 37 ]  Rerolls as needed
 (1d100)[ 86 ] 

If Ludo wants to jump in and help with the persuasion, that'd be appreciated.
 
LeSwordfish
Ludo stood in his accustomed position behind and to the side of Sieghard, silent and stony faced. Inside, he was running through all the things that would need to be done before they left town, all the projects the Thorns were working on that the townspeople would now need to do for themselves. How much food would they need to take with them? How long would they be on the move? At least he had been able to send off for Arnold's horse for Jarla.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
No Assist from Ludo, sorry, he's still grumpy.
 
LCP
 Painford, 28th Sommerzeit 

Silence fell like a hammer at Sieghard's angry words. Hagen had the decency to look embarassed.

"I didn't mean... it's not the money, your lordship," he said. "It's just... how are we supposed to fight 'em?"

He looked around the barrack hall, trying to see if anyone could express his thoughts better than he could himself. No-one stepped forward.

"I mean," he said, "we've all seen what those Iron Company boys can do, right? What's even left here that's worth fighting that lot for? There's no rain, nothing's growing. Them hoppers ate everything there was left to eat. We all signed to the company, not the kingdom - can't we just  leave ?" Ludo could hear the frayed edge of despair in his voice. "Are we really going to get ourselves killed over a patch of dust?"

"The Thornwood's  home ," said Gustaf, quietly. "I was born here. My dad was born here."

"And me!" said Thom. "And me!" came another voice, and then another.

" No-one's getting themselves killed, " said Hanna, her voice cutting through sharp and clear. "The commander's got a plan." She looked to Sieghard. "Right, sir?"


 

 Jarla, 29th Sommerzeit 

Riding into Ravenskird, Jarla found Ingwald by the bridge. His face grew greyer as she told what she had to tell - when she had finished, he drew in a long breath between his teeth. "Ranald's bloody fingerbones," he said. "You'd think we could catch a bloody break."

Shouting for the other members of his troop, he began to give orders to pack up the supplies they'd gathered so far, and make them ready for the march south to Painford. One of the soldiers looked at him with an expression of dumb puzzlement.

"Painford?" he said. "...I thought we was sending this up the river."

"Yeah, well, less thinking, more packing!" said Ingwald, nervously. "Hop to it!" He looked back to Jarla. "Don't know if you want to ride with us footsloggers, but if you'd rather ride ahead, you can tell the Commander we're on our way."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Of course I do, " Sieghard assured them. He had the start of one at least.

" Most pressing issue is the pack of murderers still in the south, so we'll deal with them first. I've already sent for the Ravenskird garrison. Once they've joined us, we march for Manaan's Keep. There and in Arrow Heap, Sforza's brutality hasn't made him popular. We show them that we can win and give them a chance for revenge and they'll rally to our banner. "

" Word'll spread north in time, but every day we can delay that happening is another we have to make ready. So no more talk of this until we march, understood? "
LCP
 Painford, 28th Sommerzeit 

A new undercurrent stirred among the murmurs at the back of the hall - one of excitement rather than fear. The Thorns seemed to like the idea of marching out to face their enemy. Better attacker than defender, or besieger than besieged. As many of them were from the Vale as were Thornwood born, and taking the Vale would mean their friends and families made safe.

"Understood, sir!" said Thom, standing up ramrod straight as his voice cracked across the hall like a cannon shot. Hagen looked more cautious, but still nodded and added his own: "Understood." Gustaf just nodded. Looking across the sea of faces before him, Sieghard saw none that looked sour or afraid.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Good, " Sieghard said, nodding approvingly. " We've got about two days. Make sure you're ready. " then he added. " Gustaf. Mort. With me. "

" Mort found tracks on our way back to the village, " he told Gustaf. " I've already found and stopped one runner sent from Manaan's Keep. I want to be sure there aren't any others. Mort'll show you where he found them - pick the men you need and set out at first light to scour the area. "

After leaving them, he returned to Ludo. " We'll need to send word to Bardhyl. Whatever scheme he has planned, we've got a mutual enemy now. Do you know if the man can read or would it be better to have someone relay the message by mouth? "
LeSwordfish
 "Not that I want to send someone off by themselves,"  Ludo admitted,  "but I don't want to trust this to a written message. Best pick a messenger, I think." 

He shrugged.  "Maybe we'll get lucky and he's leading a glorious revolution in the Raven Hills. But most likely our messenger will get there and find the whole place has been eaten by skeletons." 

That reminded him.  "What about the things Elsa needed for her Ritual? Anything we can do about that before we go?" 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
I can't remember if Ludo knows about the ritual or not. I'm assuming he does for speed.
 
RossN
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
  Jarla, 29th Sommerzeit 

Riding into Ravenskird, Jarla found Ingwald by the bridge. His face grew greyer as she told what she had to tell - when she had finished, he drew in a long breath between his teeth. "Ranald's bloody fingerbones," he said. "You'd think we could catch a bloody break."

Shouting for the other members of his troop, he began to give orders to pack up the supplies they'd gathered so far, and make them ready for the march south to Painford. One of the soldiers looked at him with an expression of dumb puzzlement.

"Painford?" he said. "...I thought we was sending this up the river."

"Yeah, well, less thinking, more packing!" said Ingwald, nervously. "Hop to it!" He looked back to Jarla. "Don't know if you want to ride with us footsloggers, but if you'd rather ride ahead, you can tell the Commander we're on our way." 
 

  So much for a rest,   thought a rather saddle-sore Jarla. Nevertheless she smiled and nodded.  "I best be back on my horse."  She paused, waiting until the soldier was out of earshot before speaking again to Ingwald, her voice low  "I'm sure they are excellent men but do you think you'll see any desertions when they hear more of the story?" 

It was beginning to occur to Jarla that cocooned away at court as she had been she could only guess at how the soldiers regarded the Prince.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" She needs charcoal, " Sieghard said, " Easy enough for us to supply, but I'd think we've got more immediate worries at the moment. "

" Have you put any more thought into the false orders idea? "
LCP
 Jarla, 29th Sommerzeit 

"All respect, m'lady, but I'm not sure  I  know the whole story yet," said Ingwald. "I'll leave the future to the fortune-tellers."

Casting a nervous glance back at the bridge, he hesitated. "How about yourself? What do you think comes next?"
LeSwordfish
 "How much charcoal?"  Ludo asked. " We can collect some from the burners before we leave."

"Who could carry the message for us? Needs to be someone who can pretend the message has come from Savonne, and that they've never seen you. "
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Enough to keep a fire going for hours, " Sieghard replied, " We can start stockpiling it, but I wouldn't risk moving it until the south is secure. "

He considered Ludo's question a moment before answering. " If Lankdorf could be turned to our side - If we could trust him - he'd be most convincing. I'm sure he chafes at being kept under watch, but we've not done anything to hurt him. If that's not possible, it'd have to be a villager, wouldn't it? "
LeSwordfish
Ludo shook his head.  "Lenkdorf's an idiot, if you ask me. Even if we can turn him he's nobody's idea of an effective agent. Sussman's going to ask him how the journey was and he's going to spill his guts. It could be a villager, or a Thorn. Or we could try and meet a traveller on the road, someone who doesn't know what's happened here, then they just have to say they were given the message by someone." 

He sighed.  "Or me. I'd be a harder sell but I think I could sell it. Claim I was in Savonne." 

He thought for a moment.  "I bet I could persuade him that a real messenger was a trick too." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo's reluctant here but I'm happy for him to go. I think Ludo's got a pretty good chance of confusing things if a real messenger shows up.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard was silent for a long while.

" It's a gamble, " he eventually said. " But if you're confident, then I trust you. "
LeSwordfish
Ludo smiled sadly. "Since when did we ever get to do anything we knew would work?"

"I'm still angry at you, you know, for whatever that matters. But I know you well enough to know you never do anything you don't think is for the best. You're still the same Rock Face you always were but there's a sort of... grim love underneath there. For the Thorns, and for this place, and for ordinary people. Becoming Steward hasn't changed that, which I admire."

"I don't know if this is how I would want this to go down, but, well, here we are. And we make the best of it like we always do."

He sighed and stood. "I'll go and... sort things out."


 

 Manaan's Keep, 31st Sommerzeit 
When Ludo rode into Manaan's Keep a few days later, he was visibly stressed and exhausted, and his pony was trudging as if it had been ridden hard. There was a long streak of dust up his side as well, as if he'd fallen off at least once, but he rode into the centre of town as fast as he could, and demanded to speak to Sussman.

When Sussman had been found, Ludo dismounted, staggered a little as if exhausted, and settled heavily into a chair opposite him, gratefully accepting an ale.

 "I've ridden all the way from Savonne,"  he explained.  "Barely stopped in Painford, just enough to check nobody had seen him there." 

He held out the letter to Sussman.  "Sforza's spitting mad, of course. Almost too angry to write." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Blowing the dust off a skill I haven't used in a long time: Performer (Actor) vs 72: [roll]1d100/roll]
 
LCP
 Painford, 30th Sommerzeit - Ludo, Sieghard &amp; Jarla 

An atmosphere of uneasy expectation had hung over Painford since Sieghard had made his speech in the barrack hall. In the village, the work of survival went on, but it would take a village of the blind and deaf not to notice the new tension among the Thorns. Lenkdorf, too, remained in captivity, and the fact that his horse hadn't left the village was drawing attention.

“That beast must be eating its weight in oats,” said Karolina to Ludo, as he was checking the stores. “Where's the young lad got to?”

That evening, the tension broke, as the boots of the Ravenskird Thorns were heard on the north road. Jarla road at their head, while Ingwald brought up the rear, keeping a close eye on two loaded carts of supplies. The Thorns in the village flocked to meet them, and the villagers looked on with obvious curiosity.

“What's happening, sir?” said Ingwald when he saw Sieghard. “I mean, Lady Schreiber said what happened… but what's happening now?”


 

 Bezahltag, 32nd Sommerzeit

Ludo 

Manann's Keep felt different to how Ludo had seen it last. Besides the wasteland the locusts had made of the surrounding farms, there were guards on the bridge, inspecting the wagons and handcarts of those who passed over. On the streets of the town, people hurried about their business without stopping to talk. Up at the fort, the air rang with the rattle of steel - the Iron Company on drill, heedless of the baking summer heat. Ludo practically had to weave between their feet to get to the door - thankfully, none of them challenged him.

He found Sussman in the shadiest corner of the great hall, going through a pile of papers with a couple of sweaty, scruffy assistants. When he saw Ludo he swept them hurriedly off the table, jumping to his feet as if ready to call for the guards.

“Wh - how’d you get in here?” he demanded. “Is nobody… Karl, what did I say just this morning?”

The scruffier and sweatier of his two helpers cringed and mumbled something about the standard of his Tilean. Before Sussman could answer, however, Ludo was in full flow. His portrayal of an exhausted messenger was clearly convincing - he could practically see the suspicion lift from Sussman’s eyes.

Sussman took the letter without another word, opened it, and read. Just for a moment, Ludo thought he saw a cloud pass across the man’s face - then he snapped back to the Sussman Ludo knew, all smiles and pleasantries.

“Well! I’m sorry for the rude reception, Herr Stubbs - I didn’t know you’d come from Savonne. You must be, uh, thirsty, tired… Karl, why don’t you take our guest and find him some refreshment? I just need a minute or two to, uh, digest this. Properly.”
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" The prince has decided that for him to keep his crown, the south must starve. If it won't do so willingly, then he'll make it bleed instead, " he said, speaking low to not be overheard. " What happens now is we stop that from happening. " He glanced about the carts and returning soldiers. " Let's see to all of this first and then speak more in private. "

After the food had been seen to and the men Ingwald had brought had been given the same explanation that the Painford garrison had, he gathered Ludo, Ingwald, and Hanna in the manor to discuss their plans. " As of yet, Sforza hasn't learned of the slaughter in Manaan's Keep. Before he does, we have to secure the south so we aren't pressed on two fronts. " He ran his finger along the table as though he was using it to draw a map as he spoke. " Our immediate threat is the thirty or fourty men responsible for the death at the mill. Taking the town with them holding it would be difficult and cost us precious time. "

" Instead, we draw them into the field. Ludo has offered to carry false orders. He knows the risk but believes he can fool Sussman. Should all go well, the Iron Company will march north intent on garrisoning Painford and stopping anyone from raising arms against Savonne. We travel quickly and we travel light and we find a suitable place on the road to lie in wait. Then, in the last hours of the day when they're tired from the long march, we launch our attack. "

Their sergeant died at the mill, so they're already without proper leadership. We take advantage of that and cause as much confusion as we can. Three groups, one led by each of us with, firing from different positions with a mix of crossbows and guns. We stagger the volleys. The first shoots and then, after they realize they're under attack but before they can react, the second and a few moments later, the third. If they manage to rally enough to come after any one group in force, that group withdraws while the other two continue shooting. If they march in their armor, they'll be too slowed to keep pace and all the more tired for it. If not, they suffer all the worse from the attack.[/COLOR]"
LeSwordfish
 Painford, 30th Sommerzeit - Ludo, Sieghard &amp; Jarla 
 "As well as the Iron Company,"  Ludo said,  "Some of Viktor's Volunteers are in Manaan's Keep. Once I've delivered the orders, I'm going to speak to them. Ideally, I can keep them out of the fight. Maybe even persuade them onto our side, though we shouldn't bet on that."

"There's a dead tree to the north of Manaan's Keep, a little west of the road. Looks like an old hunchback man with a walking stick. It's a good hiding place. Send a scout to wait there, the morning of Sonstill, two days after I arrive, and at dawn and sunset every day until you attack. If I can get away to meet them, I will, and we can talk. If not, look for me on the outskirts of the town. If I take my hat off, something's wrong and you should wait. If I keep it on, Sussman's still unaware, and you're free to attack. If I'm not there... well, then they've probably caught me." 

He turned to Ingwald and Jarla.  "Did you find Sussman's other messenger?" 
 Manaan's Keep, 32nd Sommerzeit 
Ludo was loath to be sent away from Sussman, but didn't feel that he could push too hard to stay. He tried to wave Sussman's assistant away.  "I'm at your disposal. If I had any idea he was going to... I told him to stay in Painford, but I should have done more..." 
LCP
 Painford, 30th Sommerzeit 

"Other messenger?" said Ingwald. He looked to Jarla, then back, then shook his head. "We didn't see any messenger."

"I should tell you now, sir, the men with me, they don't know what's happened. I mean, I haven't told them what Lady Schreiber's told me. Thought it'd be better if they heard it from you." He took a long pause, thinking what to say next - or perhaps just finding the courage to say it. "I'm sure the plan's a good one... I mean, the Iron Company are tough bastards for sure, but we've been through enough battles, I don't doubt you can beat them. But what comes after that, sir? I mean, all respect, but this isn't just us against thirty men, is it?"


 

 Ludo, 32nd Sommerzeit 

"Don't beat yourself up," said Sussman, his eyes scanning the letter for a second time. "Nothing we can do now but play the hand we're dealt." After a moment or two, he raised his head and looked at his assistant. "Karl?" he said.

"Yes, Herr Sussman," said the young man, ushering Ludo firmly towards the kitchens. He didn't seem to know what to do with him once they got there, other than find him a seat and a mug of small beer. After some inneffectual rummaging, he found some cold chicken to offer to his guest.

It had been ten, maybe fifteen minutes of waiting and awkward small talk, when Sussman's other assistant appeared on the scene. "The Steward is ready for you," he said - rather coldly, Ludo thought. "Will you come this way?"
LeSwordfish
 Ludo, Manaan's Keep, 32nd Sommerzeit 
 "Certainly,"  Ludo said, wiping his hands and standing.  "Lead the way." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo is well aware he's in hostile territory here and so is going to be doing things like "keeping track of his escape route" and "trying not to get trapped", as much as he can without arousing suspicions.

...Want to ratchet up the tension for the others by going into spoilers?
 
LCP
 Ludo, 32nd Sommerzeit 
 
 Spoiler 
The second man - Ludo hadn't caught his name - lead Ludo upstairs, to a room that looked more like a store cupboard than an office. Inside were a couple of chairs, a table, and a lit candle in a little tin saucer. There were no windows.

The moment Ludo stepped over the threshold, the door closed swiftly behind him, and he heard a key turn in the lock. The footsteps of Sussman's lackey hurried away back down the stairs - call as he might, Ludo got no reply. He rattled the handle of the door, pushing and pulling, but it wouldn't budge.

He had just started a thorough examination of the floorboards, looking for any that might be loose, when he heard heavier footsteps approaching. This was the sound of multiple men - and over the sounds of their feet, he thought he heard the jangle of armour. The lock  clicked , and Sussman stepped inside. Ludo caught a glimpse of what looked like two Iron Company men standing outside the door behind him, before Sussman closed it again.

"This is pretty good," he said, putting Ludo's letter down on the table. It now looked a little creased. "I'll admit it, you had me going for a minute there. Just got to work on the signature. I'm guessing there's not much call for what you'd call a  professional  forger, up your neck of the woods."

Pulling back a chair, he sat down, and held up a hand to forestall Ludo's protests. "I wrote two letters, Herr Stubbs. The one this letter is replying to - that's the one I sent through Painford to see if it would get stopped. I wanted to see if the rest of you were as mad as your lord." He sighed. "I hope Jander's alright, by the way. That boy doesn't deserve to get hurt just for carrying the post."

Turning the letter around, he pushed it over to Ludo. "The other letter - the one I sent a different way - that wasn't the same letter, Herr Stubbs. And whoever wrote this hasn't read it."
 
LeSwordfish
 Ludo, 32nd Sommerzeit 
 
 Spoiler 
 "What  other letter ?"  Ludo protested, pitching himself as indignant at this grossly unfair treatment.  "There was only one letter at Savonne. I was there, I watched Sforza sign it. Practically punched a hole through the paper he was so angry." 

He looked around.  "You can't treat me like this!" 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
I'm working on the assumption you want a bit of back-and-forth before a charm test but if not feel free to roll one for me: Ludo's default test is vs 92 and he will use a fate point to re-roll any fail.
 

 
LCP
 Ludo, 32nd Sommerzeit 
 
 Spoiler 
"What," said Sussman, "you didn't like the chicken?"

Taking the letter back, he folded it in half and tucked it inside his jacket. "I always thought you were one of the smart ones, Herr Stubbs," he said. "So you tell me, because I must be missing something... how does shielding him, or joining him, or whatever you're trying to do here - how does that make any sense?" He looked Ludo dead in the eye. "You know you're just going to get a whole lot more people killed."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Very happy to play this out - I think it's an interesting interaction between two characters in similar positions. If you do want to cut to the chase on achieving a certain goal with a skill test tho, don't let me stop you.
 

 
LeSwordfish
 Ludo, 32nd Sommerzeit 
 
 Spoiler 
 "As soon as the news arrived, Sforza dragged me out of the bar and in front of him to prove I knew nothing about it,"  Ludo said, not willing to be deflected. It didn't seem likely that Sussman's gentler words would lead anywhere good.  "And  he  believed me." 

He sat back and scowled.  "You had some kind of clever plan that relied on sending two letters, one of them through the Thornwood away from the roads? And through the bandits in the downlands and the rebels at Arrow Heap? And past a madman who's one of the greatest fighters in the reaches, and travelling with experienced woodsmen and hates the Iron Company? And you didn't think... it didn't occur to you that the letter  might not make it? " 

He let that sit for a second before cutting in again.  "Or even be delayed by half a day?" 

He thrust out his hands together for cuffs.  "Take me away and hang me! Your beautiful elaborate web of intrigue has snared me! Nothing could possibly have gone wrong with it - the perfect scheme!" 
 
LCP
 Ludo, 32nd Sommerzeit 
 
 Spoiler 
Sussman pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Alright," he said. "Alright. Let's suppose you're right. Let's suppose my second messenger got delayed. Then Prince Sforza's second messenger won't be far behind you. When they get here, I'll let you out, with a full apology. Until then, I think I'm going to play it safe." He raised his palms to Ludo. "If that's alright with you."

He paused, taking a deep breath. "I'm trying to help you here. Believe it or not, I - I really am." He lowered his voice. "Those men outside the door - you know what they'd want me to do, if they knew who you'd come from? You know how they feel about the man who killed their sergeant?" He raised his eyebrows at Ludo. "I've got forty bloodthirsty Tileans to manage here, and just my way with words and a few lads fresh off the farm to manage them with. So why don't you help me too, and skip the games."
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" There may have been one, " Sieghard replied. " We aren't certain. "

He considered a Ingwald's question for a moment, trying to deciding the best way to explain. " We have just shy of 40 men. These are the men at Sforza's call, as I understand their numbers. " He reached a hand into his purse and placed a number of coins onto the corner of the table.

" Maybe 150 in the Iron Company after Arrow Heap, " he sorted 15 crowns and placed them in a pile at the center of the table and "south" of them, 4 shillings. " Only 3 ogres. " Another three crowns stacked next to the pile. " About 20 halberdiers. " Two pence. " In Mirino, 20 or so militia swordsmen and 20 from the Brotherhood. Maybe 30 halfling archers. " Seven pence more away off to the side and away from the larger group of mostly gold. " And his wizard, in Caerfort. " One final crown on its own.

" About half of his Iron Company went with Carraciolo to Alvarran. There's unrest in the Raven Hills and they'll soon find themselves occupied with that. How many of the hill men there are, I can't say, but we share a common enemy. Of what's he had left, half are in Manaan's Keep. " He swept 7 coins from the Iron Company pile into one of their own and a further 4 into a third. " We deal with them before Sforza is able to react, " he said, plucking those coins from the table. " Lord Valdes, I believe, can be convinced to keep his men out of this. He won't turn against his prince, but I consider him a friend and saved his life once. Elsa will not fight us. " Another 3 coins removed. " There's no love for Sforza among the local companies. The Volunteers fought for me once and can be persuaded to do so again. " He swept those 2 coins into the pile of silver. " Perhaps the halflings as well, though I'm less sure. Arrow Heap will join us willingly - Sforza had his ogres eat some poor bastard there. "

" We can draw new men there and from Manaan's Keep with the promise of vengeance. It'll be some time before they're ready, but the south will be secure. From there, it's a question of how Sforza responds. He cannot recall the men from the north or else he risks losing it. He cannot leave Savonne ungarrisoned or else his city falls into chaos. None of the men he could send carry shields or have a way to respond to missile fire. The Halberdiers would join us as easily as the Volunteers. " Two more coins removed from Sforza's pile and added to his own. " The Iron Company cannot keep pace with us in their heavy armor. His ogres are few in number and he wouldn't send them without an Iron Company handler. "

The coins were now stacked much more even than they had began, with 8 in front of Sieghard and 7 for Sforza. " We strengthen our position and train the men who flock to our banner. Perhaps horses too if we can keep them fed. Any men Sforza sends men south, we bleed on the march and stop at the river. "
LeSwordfish
 Ludo, 32nd Sommerzeit 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo allowed his panic, and his feigned indignation to ebb away a bit. This might need a more delicate touch than he had been thinking.

He sighed again.

 "I think in a lot of ways you and I are quite alike, Stefan. We both have an appreciation of the finer things in life, and a keen eye for a corner or an edge or a deal. You'd make a good halfling, and when one of us says that to the tallfolk its a very generous compliment."

"But I don't think I know that much about you. So, between you and me... lots of water under the bridge, lots of red in both our ledgers... the last time the regime changed here, what was your role in all of that? You turned with the wind very smoothly when Sforza arrived. Did you know what was going to happen? Have an eye on or a hand in what happened to Evatt?"

Whatever we say can stay in this room. You've been kind enough to offer that to me." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Here's my first charm test, to try and get him to open up about this, and talking more loosely and freely in general:  (1d100)[ 11 ]  vs 92
 

 
LCP
 Painford, 30th Sommerzeit 

Ingwald followed Sieghard's reasoning with a grave expression. His worries were still written plainly on his face.

"Asking your permission to speak freely, sir... who put those coins in your purse?" he asked. "Herr Stubbs will correct me if I don't have the understanding, but if I do... all our silver comes from Savonne. All those people you want to turn, he pays them too. Maybe they don't like him - gods know, sir, who does - but what are we offering? We've barely enough food, even, let alone gold."

He cleared his throat, staring down at the neat little piles of coins. "It's just... it's a lot going right, isn't it, sir? Considering - I mean, considering our numbers haven't stood still since Arrow Heap, and all we've got to recruit from is these woods, when they've got the city and the towns. And I don't doubt Ranald's with the righteous, but we've fought alongside Sforza long enough. We know the old man's as slippery as a snake."


 

 Ludo, 32nd Sommerzeit 
 
 Spoiler 
Sussman gave Ludo a long look. He seemed to be weighing his words.

"Well," he said, "why stop at last time? I didn't come here with Evatt, you know, I was born here. I was here when the Bandit King's bully boys came down from the north. And before that, what did he call himself, the Margrave. Every one of them you could see the change coming, and the longer it took, the more people were going to get hurt. So what's wrong with greasing the wheels a little? Speaking purely in the abstract, you understand."
 
LeSwordfish
 Ludo, 32nd Sommerzeit 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo nodded, keeping his face neutral, a man talking about hypotheticals.  "The smoother these things go, the fewer people get hurt. It's an act of loyalty, of service to the people around you, to work to avert these disasters. The people of Painford, the people of Last Water... they're my people, and it's my job to protect them using the skills I have. For you, it's the people of Manaan's Keep and the skills you have. And I bet they're not grateful at all. In fact I bet they'd string you up for some of those things. Gut you like ...an Orc?" 

Ludo weighted the last noun with significance, and made no secret of passively studying Sussman's face for a response.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
I think Perception vs 68 is appropriate here:  (1d100)[ 75 ] 

Ouch, but I won't spend a reroll on that.
 

 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Less of my coin comes through Sforza these days than you might think, but it is true that I can't outspend him. I suppose what I offer depends on who we're talking about, " Sieghard said. " For the farmers of the Thornwood, I offer the only chance at survival they have. They'll support us because they'll die if nothing changes. Two revolts even before this because they know what Sforza's rule means for them and their families. It's not them you're worried about though, is it? It's the other soldiers. "

" Like us, the core of the militia swordsmen and halberdiers was drawn from Manaan's Keep and the surrounding forest. They will need to be shown how disastrous Sforza has been for their loved ones. Esteban and Elsa you will have to just trust that I know better than you. The Gamecocks, as I said, I am less sure of. Sforza has treated them as cannon fodder in the past. Perhaps that's enough to sway them, but even if not, Esteban staying neutral should keep them neutral. "

 
 Spoiler 
We'll try a charm roll here. I could always go into specifics about just what Sforza's done, but I'd rather not have to explain how Sieghard knows that if I can convince him without doing so.

 (1d100)[ 79 ]  vs 54 Charm
 (1d100)[ 75 ]  and the reroll
 
LCP
 Painford, 30th Sommerzeit 

Sieghard could see from Ingwald's face that he was still less than fully convinced - but if he had further worries, he kept them to himself.

"Well, I guess we're in it now, come what may," he said, as much to himself as to those present. "The lads'll need telling. Ranald bless us..."


 

 Ludo, 32nd Sommerzeit 
 
 Spoiler 
Sussman's face remained suspiciously impassive.

 
 Spoiler 
"I'll take you at your word, Herr Stubbs, that you think you're helping them - but you're not," he said. "All those men who came before, you could always tell who was going to win before the fighting started. This time's no different. Mice trying to fight the cat." He screwed up his eyes, rubbing the side of his head. "Sieghard isn't up to this, you know he isn't. And say what you like about the Prince, he knows how to fight a war. If you follow through with this, you're just going to get those people killed."

He paused, giving Ludo time to think. "There's still time to stop it all," he said. "Without blood. Even Sieghard's. We can say it was... a moment of madness. That he's run off into the hills. Who knows, maybe play your cards right, it could even be you who ends up filling his boots. I can help with that." He raised his eyebrows. "Just tell me what he's doing."
 

 
LeSwordfish
 Ludo, 32nd Sommerzeit 
 
 Spoiler 
 "I don't want Sieghard's job, I want to do what he was doing!"

"You said it yourself - the Iron Company right now are bloodthirsty idiots killing starving people over bread. People are already dying, and will go on dying until the next harvest,  a year  from now. Esmerelda knows I didn't want it to start like this, but I'm proud to work for the man who stood between them and the people they would kill."

"Sforza can fight a war, but can he fight a revolution? How long do you think people will watch their children starve while the army eats well?"

"You want to grease the wheels? Get them the food they need before the only thing they can do to survive is to charge a pike line." 
 
LCP
 Ludo, 32nd Sommerzeit 
 
 Spoiler 
Sussman laughed - a nervous laugh he didn't seem easily able to stop.

"Alright - alright. Suppose - suppose  somehow  he wins. You think things will be any different?" There was an sting to his words now that hadn't been there before - some of the weariness worn away to reveal a sharp edge underneath. "Sieghard's another man with a sword, same as all the ones who came before. He won't make the rains fall, or the crops grow, any more than Sforza can. You think when it comes to it that he's going to let himself starve so others can eat?"

Pushing back his chair, he stood up. "We're survivors, Stubbs. There's nothing else we can be. We can fool ourselves that we can fight with lions, and get ourselves killed for our trouble - or we can be honest with ourselves, that we're jackals. We take the scraps we can get, and stay alive."

He turned back towards the door. "You've had a long journey... I'll give you some time to think things over. I'm afraid you'll have to stay here, though. If you want me, just tell the men at the door."
 
LeSwordfish
 Ludo, 32nd Sommerzeit 
 
 Spoiler 

 "You think when it comes to it that he's going to let himself starve so others can eat?" 

Ludo let his chin jut out.  "Yes." 

 We can fool ourselves that we can fight with lions, and get ourselves killed for our trouble - or we can be honest with ourselves, that we're jackals. We take the scraps we can get, and stay alive." 

 "You know who thought he was a lion?"  Ludo said.  "The vampire." 

He settled back in the chair.  "I hope you're very sure who you think will win, and what you think they'll win,"  he said.  "But I'm not going to sit back and let Sforza become king of another dead kingdom. Not many people will." 

The door clicked behind Sussman, and Ludo sighed to himself.

 "Well. Alright. That could have gone better." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
I have some questions about Ludo's situation.
 
 Where in the castle is Ludo? Is he on the outside, or the top layer? If he gets a look out of the door as Sussman goes past, can he guess? Ludo is at least passingly familiar with the castle from his time there back when he was helping Elsa with Beatrix. 
 Are the walls, floor, and ceiling all wood? 
 Does he have his pack with him, including his weapons? 
 It's late in the day right - how late? 
 

Ludo's willing to sit and wait and  sulk  think for another couple of hours. If nothing else happens in that time I can double-post/edit with his actions.
 

 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Round them up, " Sieghard said, " The entire company. I'll tell them now. "

He gathered up the loose coins from the table while he waited. Then, when everyone was assembled, he began.

" Men, tomorrow we march to war. Not for gold or for glory, but the survival of the Thornwood and of the Reaches in whole. Many of you have already been told, the prince has become a mad tyrant. His miserable rule has caused his power to slip through his fingers and now he tries to tighten his grip over what's left. And now, when more than anything the Thornwood needs relief, it's us who he tries to choke. "

" Four days ago, Sforza had his Tilean bandits murder farmers in the south to rob them of what little stores they had left. Not long before that, he ordered the same in Arrow Heap. While his city starves, he ignores the suffering around him and plots some new conquest. There will be no end of it while he rules in Savonne. He'll strangle the life from the Reaches one town at a time until there's nothing left just so long as he can call himself prince of the ruins. This isn't a decision made lightly, but if we are to have a future, then it must be one free of Sforza's misrule. We march to bring justice to the murderers still lurking in the south and to make sure the Thornwood survives to see another summer! "

 
 Spoiler 
Let's hope this one goes better than it did with Ingwald. And that having the ones who are already on board will help sway those who are just learning about it.

 (1d100)[ 19 ]  vs 54 Charm
 (1d100)[ 91 ]  reroll.
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla listened to Sieghard's speech, a range of emotions flicking across her face. After all her mixed feelings about moving against Irene and Muzio this was the breaking point. No going back now.

  I better say something.  

As Sieghard finished speaking she stepped forward clearing her throat.

  "I am Jarla, Lady Schreiber and I have left the comforts of the court to join this cause. I saved the prince's life once and I was Irene Sforza's closest friend... but I found I could not stay with them any longer as they behaved like tyrants and lunatics. I had the great displeasure of hearing the princepessa asking me to spy on Ludovic Stubbs as Irene planned to murder him,"   Jarla said, momentarily wondering if she should add Elsa's name but deciding against it. A lot of people were suspicious of mages.

  "I have also learned that in a previous attempt by her goons to kill Stubbs she caused the death of my own Brother Schreiber, the priest of Verena and my own brother. This is the same woman who has total ascendancy over her husband. Herr Stubbs can and will confirm the truth of this."  

She turned and gestured at Sieghard.   "I am not the soldier this man is, or the soldiers i know you are but I know if anyone can stop the mad prince and his elf-hearted wife it is Sieghard. Heed him and follow him my friends."  
LeSwordfish
 Ludo, 32nd Sommerzeit 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo stewed in the room, looking around at his meagre surroundings and cursing Sussman for being too clever by half. He had very often before had the growing, sinking feeling of being in over his head, of having messed up, of being, this time, too deep in to get out - but usually that was when somebody was directly swinging a sword at him, and not leaving him to moulder in a cell for hours.

He had failed. If he said nothing, Sussman would easily figure out what the plan was, and the Thorns would walk right into an ambush. If he told the truth, the same thing would happen. He had only two choices: escape, and warn the Thorns himself, or spin a lie that would completely distract Sussman and, well, win the battle single-handedly.

It wasn't much of a choice. Forcing himself to wait until his best guess for sundown, he then went and rapped on the door, and demanded the guards outside brought Sussman up.

When Sussman arrived, Ludo had stashed his pack in the corner of the room behind the door, and was sat at the table, slumped down as if in a deep funk. It didn't take much acting.

 "Handrich's Cross,"  he said eventually.  "Sieghard, the squad that was with him, the dwarf, and Frau Schreiber are travelling to Handrich's Cross."

"They met me outside town and persuaded me to forge the letter. The rest of the Thorns don't know, Sieghard only has the men he thought he did. Sieghard knows Handrich's Cross is barely defended: his plan was to plunder it tomorrow night, maybe the night after. Get the gold, get the food, leave you looking like you can't keep control here. With only ten soldiers in Manaan's Keep, I was going to try and persuade the citizens to rise up again, maybe with the food and gold from Handrich's Cross to help grease the wheels. You'd lose control, and Sforza would be spread even thinner looking after the Vale as well. The rest of the thorns are safe under lock and key until he wants to break them out, when they'll be far more loyal to him than if he comes now and just explains what he did." 

He sat back heavily.  "Now you know. I think if you offer him clemency for his friends, he'd be willing to give himself up." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo is trying to persuade Sussman to send troops to Handrich's Cross for a few days.

Charm test for this big lie:  (1d100)[ 6 ]  vs 92

You don't have to be very lucky when testing vs 92 but boy I have been.
 
If Ludo gets less than 2 degrees of success on that (72 or lower) he'll reroll:  (1d100)[ 54 ]  vs 92 

I'd also like to request a secret Perception test for Sussman's reaction, which is vs 68 and Ludo will reroll if failed.

It occurs to me that I haven't waited for Sussman's response to what Ludo said as he left. But I typed up this whole post so oh well here we are. We can timesplit if we gotta.
 

 
LCP
 Painford, 30th Sommerzeit 

The reaction from the assembled Thorns was mixed. More than half of them had already heard of Sieghard’s decision to turn rebel - they greeted the announcement that they were to go on the attack with something like enthusiasm. The remainder who had arrived with Ingwald boggled in open-mouthed shock, and their friends already in the know took the opportunity to jostle and josh them for it. Some took it well - others looked terrified.

Jarla’s words were less expected, but no less impactful. Her accusations against the Sforzas brought murmuring swells of horror and anger from the gathered crowd of soldiers - strong among the old veterans for Adelbert, but stronger still among everyone for Ludo. There wasn’t a soul among the Thorns who didn’t know and like their halfling quartermaster. Sieghard noted with satisfaction that some of those who had turned pale during his speech now seemed to have regained their courage.

“We’re with you, sir,” said Hanna, speaking for the crowd. “Every one of us.”

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Reading back the OOC, am I correct you want to march so as to reach Manann’s Keep on the 33rd? If so I’d like to let Ludo catch up to that date so you’re both in sync. Let me know anything you want to specify about the march and the preparations for the attack - feel free to narrate the departure from Painford yourself if you want.
 


 

 Ludo, 32nd Sommerzeit 
 
 Spoiler 
Sussman had a decent poker face, for one of the tall folk - but Ludo still saw through it. Triumph, relief, a degree of surprise - the man evidently found Ludo’s story convincing.

“You’re doing the right thing, Stubbs,” he said. “I know it might not feel that way right now, but trust me. You’ve saved a lot of people who didn’t need to die.”  Including, quite possibly, me,  Ludo thought he read in the man’s tired eyes.

Taking a seat, Sussman examined Ludo’s face, as if still searching for any hint that he might be mistaken in his reading of the situation. Ludo gave him none.

“I can’t let you go,” he said, “not until we’ve brought Sieghard in, at least. If nothing else, you might be the only person who can help me talk  him  round. But I’ll see you moved somewhere comfortable for your stay, and we’ll keep this whole business between us. I’ll burn the letter. No-one needs to know you were even tempted to act against the Prince. Especially the Iron Company here. I want to be very clear, it’ll be for the best for both of us if they don’t understand you have any connection with our… wanted man.”

“When we’ve got him in hand, then we can talk rewards, if you want.” He held up his hands to forestall Ludo’s answer. “I’m not asking now - I know it probably sounds like, hah, blood money, but it’s not, I promise you. One good turn deserves another, that's all. You’re a smart halfling - I think you could do a lot of good around here.” He rose from his seat. “Take your time, think it over. In the meantime, I’ll send Karl to take you to your new quarters. I’m guessing you could use some rest.”
 
LeSwordfish
 Ludo, 32nd Sommerzeit 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo tried his best to keep the relief off his face, sensing the executioner's axe removed from his neck.  "I think once he's driven out of Handrich's Cross, I'll be better able to speak to him. Or he'll flee, and I can pick up the pieces."
 
He tried to look as if the prospect of a reward was intriguing, rather than disgusting, and tried to look as if he was hiding that intrigue.  "I imagine that the Thornwood would come under your jurisdiction, as Warden here, but you'd need someone who knew the local people to keep things running..." 
 
You and me are quite alike, Stefan. But I hate that and try to be better, and you don't let it challenge you at all. 
 
"I could,"  he added at the prospect of rest.  "I've ridden as hard as it appears, let me tell you." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo's main goals for the 33rd are:
 
 Establish if the Iron Company are marching for Handrich's Cross, and if so, how many. 
 Based on that, be visible to the tree at sunset for his checkin with Sieghard. If the Iron Company is moving out en masse (say, more than about half), he'll give the Go signal. If not, the Wait signal. 
 Meet the local leader of the Volunteers and persuade them to stand aside if the Thorns attack. 
 

I'm not certain how much trust he'll be given - is he free to wander by himself and meet with people? Is he being escorted and watched? Or is he being confined to his quarters? If he's being watched or escorted then task number three is probably not possible, but here's a Charm test to achieve tasks 1 and 2 without arousing suspicion:  (1d100)[ 15 ]  vs 92

If he's not being watched or escorted, then here's a Perception test to be sure of that:  (1d100)[ 65 ]  vs 68, re-roll  (1d100)[ 19 ] , and if you let me know then I'm happy to add a post with his chat with the local Volunteer Sargeant too. I'll make up a name for them.
 

 
LCP
 Ludo, 32nd Sommerzeit 
 
 Spoiler 
Soon, a slightly apologetic Karl reappeared, and brought him to a room with a bed, a window and a chamber-pot - an improvement over his previous position at least. Karl waited outside while Ludo washed, rested, and changed his clothes - but when he stepped back out of the door, he found the young man stuck to him like his own shadow. Sussman had evidently given him very firm instructions not to let Ludo out of his sight.

Still, he had the free run of the fort, and determined to use it to the utmost. From the sounds he could hear from the courtyard, he could tell the story he had spun for Sussman was already having some effect - soldiers were hurrying to and fro, a large detachment of Iron Company forming up ready for departure. Ludo found Sussman again and pressed him as to what was going on, feigning fear for his friends.

“Half of the Tileans are going north,” said Sussman, “while the other half stay here. Massimo - that’s the fellow who wants to fill Corrado’s boots - wants to take the whole lot of them, but I managed to smooth things over there. Don’t want a repeat of what happened at the mill.” He stifled an involuntary grimace. “And thanks to you, we won’t get one. Hopefully. I told them, if twenty men can’t take him in, with surprise on their side, then what good would forty do?”

Some more ‘concerned’ questions extracted the detail that the soldiers were to remain in Handrich’s Cross until Sussman recalled them - in return for some details about Sieghard’s plans for the attack that Ludo was obliged to invent on the spot. Seeing as Sussman still seemed well-disposed towards him, he also asked and got permission for an evening walk in the town - provided, of course, that Karl went with him.

Strolling through the streets with his new companion, Ludo paused for a while by the bridge to watch the Iron Company trooping out of town. Despite Karl’s close observation, he was pretty sure he could give the boy the slip, if he really wanted to. Ludo reckoned that Sussman knew this too - the very fact that he’d agreed to let him out past the gates displayed a certain degree of trust.
 


 

 Konigstag, 33rd Sommerzeit 
 Sieghard &amp; Jarla 

The Thorns left Painford early in the morning, brushing off worried enquiries from the villagers as they headed out. They marched all day under the sweltering summer heat, the bare branches of the locust-stripped trees offering little shade along the way.

The road was rutted, cracked, and dry as dust, but they still passed one or two travellers upon it. Ingwald fobbed them off with some initiative, demanding they clear a way for the soldiers who were on the Prince’s Business. Sforza might not be loved, but after the slaughter at the mill, he was certainly feared - no-one asked any further questions after that.

It was late in the day when they reached a suitable spot to set their ambush, a little over two leagues from Manann’s Keep itself. Splitting into groups at Sieghard’s direction, they concealed themselves to either side of the road, with the sentries ranging further ahead to where they could give good warning of the Iron Company’s approach.  Settling into their positions, they readied their weapons, and waited.

And waited.

And waited.

The sun had set, and nightjars were churring loudly in the depths of the woods. The moons had risen above the trees - was Morrslieb looking a little bloodshot tonight?

Signalling quietly to the men around him, Sieghard sent a runner ahead to the scouts. They returned shortly, with no news - the scouts had seen no sign of the Iron Company, coming or going. Surely if Ludo’s message had been delivered, they would be on the march by now?
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  
 Something's gone wrong,  Sieghard realized with a growing sense of dread. He should've refused Ludo's suggestion to go in person.

He sent men to recall Hanna and Ingwald. Whatever had happened, it was too late to turn back. " It seems they haven't fallen for our trap, " he said. " Find a place away from the road to make camp and set a watch. At first light, we continue south. I'll act as bait myself when we reach the town. "

 
 Spoiler 
Scouts ahead as before, the main force is to stay out of sight of Manaan's Keep until they report back. Sieghard wants to know how the town is guarded. How many men and whether they're Volunteers or Iron Company.
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla paled at the word 'bait' but did not voice her concerns until she could get Sieghard alone.

 "I'm not just saying this because we're friends but also because you are approximately the least expendable person here Sieghard,"  Jarla pointed out quietly after she could have a private word.  "I know you are a great fighter but do you want to risk yourself like that?" 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" I'm the one who killed their sergeant, " Sieghard replied. " It's my head they'd want more than anyone else's. No one else would work. "

" I don't plan to rush in with my sword drawn and fight the lot of them if that's what worries you. "
LCP
 Sonnstill 
 Elsa 

The day of the solstice was the hottest anyone could remember. The wind had been weakening for days, and by now it had died away to nothing, leaving the still air to shimmer above the baking ground. On the Caerfort road, travellers could be seen miles away by the plumes of dust that rose behind their plodding ponies. One that reached the outpost that day fainted when he reached the shade of the tower, coming round only when Valdes’ men forced a skin of water to his lips.

Even Elsa was sweating. She had kept a careful eye on those who’d come and gone since Urgrim’s departure, and so far none of them had seemed to her likely messengers from Manann’s Keep. This man was no different - a trader on his way to Sermena, or so he said. She worried that her Estalian guards were starting to notice her newfound interests in passers-by.

Her dreams had been getting worse over the last few days. Still the symbols she’d seen on the pages of the book tormented her, burned into her memory - but it was the flashes of other things that were starting to trouble her more. They were memories of places she’d never been, glimpses of people she’d never met. She’d wake with the smoke of a burning city still stinging in her throat, with the scent of mortuary incense still lingering in her nostrils, and try in vain to piece together the fragments of what she had seen. A scrap of parchment beside her bedside bore the charcoal scrawl of words she had managed to remember - words in the long-dead language of Nehekhara. Her efforts at translation had not left her much the wiser.

 shepherd 
 cattle 
 reigns 
 kneel 

As the afternoon was fading into evening, she found Jorge, the head of her Estalian guards, looking out over the marshes. He had a thoughtful look on his face.

“Good evening, señora,” he said, as he saw her approach. “There is a foul smell off the water today, don't you think?”

Turning her face towards the Mere, she tried to catch a whiff of what he meant. It was faint, but it was there - a coppery reek, putrid and brackish.

“When I was a boy, my uncle kept a slaughterhouse in the city. Right beside the Santiago Segura - eh.  disculpe , the circus. He would get the bulls, when they were too injured to fight again. I remember, in summer - “ - he wrinkled his nose - “it smelt like this.”

 Sieghard &amp; Jarla 

At first light, the Thorns broke camp. Their advance south was slow and cautious, their scouts ranging ahead to make sure the road ahead was clear. When they reached the edge of the woods, they halted, drawing the main body of the company back into the cover of the trees. Two men went ahead to scout Manann's Keep itself. By the time they returned, the sun was well up, and the heat was already stifling.

“There's guards on the bridge still,” said Gustaf. “Tileans, by their armour, two of ‘em. Couldn't lay eyes on the rest of 'em - if they're up in the fort, we'd have to stroll in under their noses to see.”
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  
 Only two,  Sieghard thought. That was a good sign. Whatever trouble had foiled their forest ambush, it seemed unlikely the Iron Company was aware that they were coming with only two men watching the bridge.

" Was there any sign of Ludo? " he asked.
LCP
 Sieghard &amp; Jarla, Sonnstill 

Gustaf shook his head. "Not anywhere we could see," he said.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Hmm, " was all Sieghard said to that. It was something better to worry about after they had taken the town. He looked across the distance between the treeline the bridge, his eyes settling on the the remains of the landship.

" When mad old Evatt had that thing built, I doubt he only ever planned on using that thing to protect Manaan's Keep safe from the green sort of bandit, " he remarked. " Ingwald, Hanna, take the men who were with you last night and wait until you hear the sound of gunfire. Give it until the count of ten, then run for the landship. Keep yourselves hidden and watch the bridge. My group will draw the Tileans out. When they come within range, make every shot count. "

To his own group, he said " No way to sneak up on them on the bridge. We spread out a bit and trickle in twos and threes. With luck, we may get close enough to fire off a volley before they realize what's happening. Even if not, we only need to provoke them into attacking. Once they've taken the bait, we fall back for Evatt's ship and make our stand there. "

 
 Spoiler 
Probably best for Jarla to come with Sieghard. She's a good shot and can borrow one of the company handguns since her pistols really don't have the range for the initial engagement. Once the melee begins, probably also need her to help keep the Iron Company out of the ship. As long as we can hold, the fact that we'll have missiles supporting our line should win out.

LCP, do you want any sort of roll to see if we can casually stroll close enough to fire off a shot or does it just come down to what the sentries do? (Sieghard will at least attempt one if noticed early even if it is at extreme range. It'll take them long enough to organize that reloading won't be an issue). As with the failed forest ambush, Sieghard will be favoring mobility and not be wearing his plate. He can have Hanna can take his helmet to the landship though - it's probably too conspicuous to wear from the start if I'm hoping to get close enough to take a shot, but he could just quickly put it on after we fall back.
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla hesitantly accepted the handgun. In theory she knew how to use it - perhaps better than anyone else here - but she'd never actually fired one in anger before. Still she'd stand no chance with a pistol and followed Sieghard into the fray.

 "Assuming this doesn't explode in my face,"  she drolly told Sieghard as they aimed their weapons.  "What sort of kick should I experience?" 
LCP
 Sieghard &amp; Jarla, Sonnstill 

As Sieghard's ten Thorns spread out through the fields to the west of the town, the sentries on the southern bridge already seemed to be taking note. Sieghard saw one of the Tileans point in his direction, and quickened his pace as subtly as he could. By the time he'd crossed half the distance from the forest to the stream, the two guards were already in frantic conversation. One of them turned as if to head back into the town.

Seeing that time was not on his side, Sieghard dropped to one knee, raised his crossbow and let fly. The quarrel struck the man who had turned in the back of his leg, making him stagger - a moment later, after Jarla's desultory question, a pinpoint shot from her went squarely through the middle of the man's back, piercing his cuirass and dropping him like a sack of flour.

His comrade turned and ran back towards the fort, shouting as he went. A rolling crackle of gunshots chased him, puffs of white gunsmoke springing up from where the other Thorns were spread across the locust-ravaged fields. They were too late - at this range, and with the cover of the buildings to protect him, the fleeing Tilean was soon out of their reach.

The man hardly needed to run back with his warning - the roar of the guns had echoed over the town for all to hear, and shouts and screams of alarm were rising from over the bridge. Windows were opened to look out across the western fields, then hastily slammed shut; the people in the streets began to dash about like panicked chickens. For now at least, the Thorns certainly had the element of surprise.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Reload! " Sieghard shouted. " Form up! We advance! "

Crossbow held ready, he started towards Manaan's Keep.

 
 Spoiler 
Cautions advance to/across the bridge. Sieghard doesn't want to push too far and certainly doesn't want to risk being cut off from the rest of the company while inside the town, but there may be a chance to take advantage of the confusion.
 
LCP
 Sieghard &amp; Jarla, Sonnstill 

The other Thorns broke from the treeline as Sieghard led the charge towards the bridge, his twenty-odd reserves running for the wreck of the  Blessing . He could only spare them a glance as he ran across the open space, his own group closing up behind him.

Soon his boots were thudding on the timbers of the bridge - not the first time he’d fought for this crossing. He could almost hear the sounds of the battle coming back to him - the hoots and bellows of the orcs, the squealing of their blood-hungry boars. Their chanting -  Magog, Magog, Magog .

The Iron Company had been there that day too - but this was a very different kind of fight. Sieghard saw no resistance waiting in the streets. Panicked civilians scattered before the Thorns’ approach, leaving behind overturned handcarts and a few abandoned animals. From the looming bulk of Evatt’s fort, close at hand on the left, came the brassy blast of a bugle. A handful of steel helmets began to appear above the parapet, the bright sun making them gleam like mirrors.

The gates of the fort did not open. Perhaps the Iron Company were more cautious than he gave them credit for - or perhaps the sleeping bear was taking time to wake.

 Ludo 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo was out with Karl, and had been standing by the north bridge for a few minutes, self-consciously adjusting his hat, when he heard the sound of gunshots from the west. Karl looked up like a startled sheep, completely at a loss to understand what was happening.

Ludo ran back towards the town square, and Karl ran with him, closely followed by the two Iron Company guards on the north bridge. People were streaming back from the direction of the south bridge, the early morning traders abandoning their stalls. There were shouts of panic, people screaming that they were under attack - but so far Ludo could not catch sight of the attackers.

From the walls of the fort, he heard the sound of a bugle - the Iron Company sounding the alarm. Karl was still gaping, open-mouthed, but Ludo was fairly confident that Sussman would be quicker on the uptake.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Not writing this with the expectation of a reply, but mostly to help me keep track of Ludo.
 

 
RossN
 Jarla &amp; Sieghard 

Still scarcely believing she was doing this Jarla followed Sieghard's lead. By the gods this was  exhilarating  if nothing else - out here in the open air with gun and sword against the Tileans... maybe she'd commission a play once this was all over and she was ruling in Savonne.

Her impulse was to stick like glue to Sieghard unless directly ordered away. She had a nasty suspicion the big lummox would try and do something especially brave/stupid if left alone.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard called for his men to halt some distance away from the fort. He hadn't been expecting to make it this far without meeting resistance and was, at this point, improvising his next moves. " Whatever happens, do not harm Sussman. When this is over, I want the man alive if at all possible, " he told them. " Keep watchful for sudden movements - not just from the fort, but the streets as well. "

He strode forward half the distance and bellowed to the men above. " Where is Sussman hiding? Have him show himself! "
LCP
 Sieghard &amp; Jarla, Sonnstill 

" Vaffanculo! " was the reply shouted back from the battlements. " Traditore! "

There was some movement up there, though Sieghard couldn't make out much except the tops of their heads. There were at least half a dozen of them behind the parapet - whether they were all Iron Company, he couldn't say.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 

 some distance away from the fort. 

Just to be clear - by coming over the south bridge, the fort is already pretty much the closest building (as you can see on the old map). You are already pretty close - certainly within bowshot.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

The words stung, if only because they rang true. No matter what his reasons may have been, he wouldn't be able to escape that.

"  Bandits! Bastards!  " he spat back with unusual venom. "  Tilean whore-sons! Either Send Sussman or come out yourselves, ******* cowards!  "

Aware of how exposed he must be, he took a few steps back towards the others.

 
 Spoiler 
They won't be as good with them, but I'm not discounting the possibility that they may have a few ranged weapons laying around. Sieghard will keep himself the closest target, but be at long range if at all possible.
 
LCP
 Sieghard &amp; Jarla, Sonnstill 

The only answer to Sieghard's shouts was the distant  thunk  of two crossbows being rested on the parapet. Two bolts slashed the air - they were definitely aiming at him.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
 (1d100)[ 74 ] ,  (1d10+4)[ 11 ] 
 (1d100)[ 99 ] ,  (1d10+4)[ 11 ] 

Two misses.
 


A shout went up from under the gatehouse, and a large group of soldiers emerged - a dozen or more Iron Company, swords drawn. Sticking together in a close group, they broke into a run, charging down the mound towards the bridge.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
You have 2 rounds' worth of actions before these guys will reach your position - 1 at long range, 1 at short. They are Running.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

That was about the response Sieghard had expected. Luckily, the Tileans' aim was worse than their Reikspiel.

" Take aim! " he shouted. By his judgement, there was enough time for one volley before they'd be forced to run for the ruins of the landship. " Fire! "

 
 Spoiler 
 (1d100)[ 51 ]  vs 59. Aimed shot at long range.
 (1d10+4)[ 7 ]  Damage

Edit: Unsure if it makes a difference with that roll, but Sieghard has Mighty Shot and I forgot to account for it. It should be 8 damage before soak.
 


He didn't wait to see if his shot connected. Instead, he turned and grabbed his shield to hold behind him as he shouted the order to withdraw.

 
 Spoiler 
Sieghard will be running, but he'll be trying to match the Tileans' pace rather than going at full speed so they're more likely to think they can catch him. When he reaches firing range of the landship, he'll start going as fast as he can.
 
-Sentinel-
 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 As the afternoon was fading into evening, she found Jorge, the head of her Estalian guards, looking out over the marshes. He had a thoughtful look on his face.

“Good evening, señora,” he said, as he saw her approach. “There is a foul smell off the water today, don't you think?”

Turning her face towards the Mere, she tried to catch a whiff of what he meant. It was faint, but it was there - a coppery reek, putrid and brackish.

“When I was a boy, my uncle kept a slaughterhouse in the city. Right beside the Santiago Segura - eh.  disculpe , the circus. He would get the bulls, when they were too injured to fight again. I remember, in summer - “ - he wrinkled his nose - “it smelt like this.” 
 

Elsa frowned and gave the air a sniff.

 "Hmm. It does remind me of the slaughtered knights of Manann, when we found them baking in the sun. Not a smell you soon forget." 

She fished in her pocket for a quill, raised it high above her head, and let go of it to see what direction the wind was blowing from. She really wished she still had her old familiar Morrslieb around to go scout for the source of this stench. If there was one thing ravens were good at, it was finding carrion.


 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Sorry for the late response, I don't visit the forum often lately. If need be, you can ping me on Discord... That's where I spend about half my online time these days.
 
LeSwordfish
 Ludo 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo turned to his companion, relief flooding him that the thorns had indeed made it and wouldn't be waiting in ambush until the Iron Company marched south to deal with them. He couldn't show that though and instead went for a sharp tone.  "What's going on? They shouldn't be here, we should be safe here!"
 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo is specifically trying to panic Karl and make him pliable to suggestions. Charm  (1d100)[ 57 ]  vs 92.

What does Ludo know right now about the troop disposition - specifically where are the volunteers, and how many people are in the fort? I'm a little confused about what I'm reading in Sieghard's posts - Sieghard saw half a dozen helmets over the fort walls, and then about a dozen men charged out - is the fort gate open or not, and can Ludo tell from here?
 

 
LCP
 Sieghard &amp; Jarla 

With a crackle of blackpowder and a wash of gunsmoke, Sieghard’s troop on the bridge opened fire. Two of the Iron Company at the head of the group stumbled and fell, but the rest didn’t slow their rush. Following Sieghard’s lead, the Thorns shouldered their weapons and ran.

The wreck of the  Blessing  was waiting for them, a fortress of their own amid the dead, yellow fields. Sieghard could see the heads of Hanna and the others rising up from behind its shattered timbers - as they drew closer, guns and crossbows opened up, their shots cutting through the air over Sieghard’s head.

The Iron Company men came to a halt forty to fifty yards away as the volley hit home, nailing another of their number to the ground. Though they kept their feet, others were clearly hit, clutching wounded arms and legs. Sieghard heard them shouting to one another in surprise and dismay:

&lt; There’s dozens of them! &gt;
&lt; It’s a trap! &gt;
&lt; Fall back! Back to the town! &gt;

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Autopiloting Jarla - will not roll dice for her while she’s on autopilot but lump her in with the NPCs.
 


 

 Ludo 
 
 Spoiler 
”What?” said Karl. The lad was pale and sweating, his eyes wide with adrenaline. “What, it’s - oh gods, what do we do?”

His roving eye landed on the fort. “The walls. We have to get back to the walls!”

A hearty Tilean shout from the gates signalled that the Iron Company were doing the exact opposite. A rolling crackle of blackpowder greeted the sound of their charge.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Poor Karl is definitely in a panic!
 

 


 

 Elsa 

What feeble breeze there was barely moved Elsa’s feather as it wafted to the ground. When she picked it up, the dry ground had caked it in dust.

“How much longer do you think we will be here, Magister?” said Jorge, as respectfully as he could. “Your work… it is progressing well?”
-Sentinel-
 “How much longer do you think we will be here, Magister?” said Jorge, as respectfully as he could. “Your work… it is progressing well?” 

 "I had a minor breakthrough a couple of days ago,"  said Elsa noncommittally, toying with her quill.  "But even if I finished my work tomorrow, I still need Herr Urgrim to return with the supplies I requested... some of which are difficult to procure. I'm truly sorry if this isn't what you wanted to hear. Was there no rotation of the guards planned when you were assigned to me?" 

She dropped the quill again, and was once more frustrated by the lack of wind that might tell her where that vile smell was coming from.

 "If it'd help with morale, we could rotate half the guards. Two weeks here, two weeks in Mirino? Something like that. Tonight, though, I want everyone sober, and a doubling of the sentries until dawn. That smell could just be carrion... or it could be the enemy making a move across the Mere. The summer solstice is a choice night for the casting of spells." 

Indeed, her magical senses had felt especially strong all day; the power of  Aqshy  was at its zenith on this very day. She peered at the expanse of the Mere with her witch-sight, trying to discern anything ominous or unusual.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Magical Sense 93:  (d100)[ 33 ] 
 Fortune:  (d100)[ 16 ]  
 
LeSwordfish
 Ludo 
 
 Spoiler 
 "Yes! Into the fort, we'll be safe in there."
 
He didn't want to leave the Volunteers high and dry, but if Sieghard was locked outside the fort without an ally inside, it would be impossible to break in. He took off towards the shouting and the fortress gates, forging against the flow of panicked traffic.
 
RossN
 Sieghard &amp; Jarla 

Jarla turned to Sieghard:  "Do you think they'll be willing to negotiate surrender? I can at least approach under a sign of truce to get their terms." 

She pointed at dead mercenary on the bridge.  "We could offer to return their comrade to them - minus his weapons of course - as a sign of good faith." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" I don't, " Sieghard said. " And we can't allow them that sort of time. " Trickery wouldn't work twice and any who made it back to the fort would be all the harder to dislodge.

" Draw swords! " he shouted " Kill any who won't throw down their weapons! "

 
 Spoiler 
Quickdraw sword. Shield already out from quickdrawing it before. Charging.

 (1d100)[ 76 ]  vs 61 WS +5 Best Quality Sword +10 Charging = 76
 (1d10+7)[ 16 ]  Damage

 (1d100)[ 85 ]  vs 76
 (1d10+7)[ 10 ]  Damage

 (1d100)[ 63 ]  vs 76
 (1d10+7)[ 14 ]  Damage
 
LCP
 Elsa 

Jorge allowed himself a chuckle at the mention of rotating the guards. "There are not so many of us left in the Brotherhood,  señora ," he said. "If you ask Lord Valdes to send men to take our place, more than half will be green recruits. But I do not complain. I only wanted to ask."

His eyes swept the marshes, searching for anything that might reinforce Elsa's suspicions. The sun shone fiercely on the stagnant waters, throwing back dazzling reflections from every pool and channel - but the only things that seemed to be moving down there were birds, and the ripples made by a lone fisherman on the bank.

"Perhaps it is just a stink," he said, with a shrug. "But I will set the watch as you request."

 Elsa Only 
 
 Spoiler 
There  was  something more than a stink in the air. As she attuned herself to the unreal, Elsa could see  Shyish  rising from the dry, cracked earth like a heat haze. Where the dry land met the Mere, it twined with the  Aqshy  sizzling in the air and curdled into something darker and heavier, sinking into the water like drops of ink - or blood.

The longer she stared, the more the scene seemed to shimmer and distort. For a moment, she thought the glittering waters seemed to form the face of a weeping woman, with long plaits of silvery hair. Then she blinked, and the vision broke apart.
 

" Señora  Holt?" she heard Jorge's voice break in upon her reverie. She realised she didn't know how long she'd been looking out across the marsh. " Señora  Holt, are you alright?" He smiled as she turned her head towards him. "Staring too long at the sun, I think."


 

 Ludo 
 
 Spoiler 
Karl didn't need telling twice. As they ran up the mound towards the gates of the fort, Ludo could look out over the fields to the west. He could see the Iron Company charging out over the bridge - and from the wreck of the  Manann's Blessing , white puffs of gunsmoke erupting as the Thorns opened fire. It looked like Sieghard had drawn the better part of the Tileans in the town out into the open - Ludo thought he counted around fifteen.

Inside the courtyard, everything was chaos. There was an Iron Company man on the wall shouting something about a crossbow, and Sussman's militiamen rushing to and fro like headless chickens - or perhaps more accurately, chickens with their heads very firmly attached, but who didn't feel like fighting the fox. Sussman himself could be seen emerging from the keep, wearing an expression of startled frustration.

"What in the name of Rhya's own tits is happening?" he shouted, trying to bring some order to the confusion. "Where's Massimo?"

One of the militia pointed towards the sound of guns, while the Tilean on the wall continued to shout. Scanning his surroundings, Sussman's eyes landed on Ludo. Immediately, Ludo saw suspicion on the steward's face.
 


 

 Sieghard &amp; Jarla 

With a combined yell, the Thorns came pouring out of the wreck, following Sieghard and his squad as they led the charge. Abandoning their fallen brother, the Iron Company fell back before the attack. Sieghard could see this was a retreat, not a rout - while the heavily-armoured Tileans couldn't hope to get back to the fort before the Thorns caught up to them, they could easily reach the bridge.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Are you still willing to fight on the bridge?
 
-Sentinel-
 "Señora Holt, are you alright?" He smiled as she turned her head towards him. "Staring too long at the sun, I think." 

 "Hmm. Just a... bad feeling."  Elsa's brow creased.  "And when you have my gift and curse, a bad feeling is often more than just a feeling." 

She bit at the tip of her gloved thumb for a moment.

 "I'll go take a nap. Please wake me when those not standing watch are starting to hit the sack... I'll be joining the sentries." 
LeSwordfish
 Ludo 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo's face was already arranged into worry and panic - he rushed towards Sussman frantically.  "I don't know what's happening! I swear to the gods, he told me he wasn't going here!" 
 Nobody needs to take control of this, Stefan, keep focussed on me. 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Charm test:  (1d100)[ 58 ]  vs 92.

If someone tries to grab Ludo he'll dodge and effectively start taking a Defensive Stance.
 

 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla didn't look thrilled when her suggestion of negotiation was shot down but she didn't start an argument. Instead she quickly checked her pistols and sword and - vastly more important - her hat before joining Sieghard for the charge.
LCP
 Ludo 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo’s dismay was obviously convincing - or at least, Sussman was convinced he had bigger problems than whether Ludo had lied to him. Outside the walls, the sporadic crackle of blackpowder wasn’t letting up.

“Who?” he said. “Sieghard?  Sieghard’s here? ”

Pinching his nose, he screwed up his eyes, trying to fit an hour’s thinking into a minute. “Alright - Karl, take Herr Stubbs back to his quarters. Wait - wait, no. Both of you, come with me up to the wall. Willem, Hans, you too.”

The two militiamen nodded, falling in close to the steward. It looked like they were going to get a look at the fighting for themselves - from behind the safety of the parapet, of course.
 


 
 Sieghard &amp; Jarla 

The double  crack  of Jarla’s pistols opened the charge, sending an Iron Company man stumbling back with a fist-sized dent in his armour. To their credit, the other Tileans didn’t flinch, meeting Sieghard and his charging Thorns head-on.

The first soldier to cross Sieghard’s path was a man with a short salt-and-pepper beard, and a nose that had been broken at least once before. Crashing through the Tilean’s guard, Sieghard threw him back with a ringing blow to his breastplate, before bringing his sword around to pierce the mail rings on his arm. Blood ran down over his elbow, but the wound didn’t appear to be deep.

The man could clearly see he was overmatched - falling back to give himself space, he raised his guard again, daring Sieghard to come at him. To their left and right, the Thorns who had charged with Sieghard were finding the odds much less in their favour. The Tileans’ armour let them shrug off the worst of what the Thorns could offer, and pay them back with interest - Sieghard heard one of the greener Thornwood lads scream as he ran onto a foot of Tobaran steel.

Other Thorns were arriving on the bank, training their crossbows on the Tileans behind the bridge. Firing into the melee itself was too risky, but a good half of the Iron Company men were stuck behind the action. As the bolts began to fly, they scattered for cover, leaving another of their number pincushioned on the ground behind them. A single crossbow shot answered from the parapet of the fort above, sticking in the river-bank about a foot away from Hanna.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Jarla hits an Iron Company man in the chest for 5 damage. Sieghard does 14 wounds for a +1 crit to his opponent’s left arm - if he were holding anything there he would drop it. Sieghard's opponent takes a Defensive Stance.

For those outside the melee on the bridge (i.e. Jarla), there are still Iron Company targets not in combat, but they are in cover (-20 to hit). You can still of course shoot into the melee, just following the usual rule (-20 to hit, if that makes the difference you hit a friendly instead). Jarla can also force her way into the melee with a charge move - the Thorns will gladly make room for her on the front line.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  
 We have to break them quickly  Sieghard thought. Things had gone well enough so far - not perfectly, but well enough. Now, on the bridge where his numbers meant less, the fighting would be costlier.

He pressed the foe harder, fighting like a man possessed. He had to break them before the cost became too high.

 
 Spoiler 
This is risky, but I'm going for an all out attack. One good hit will kill the man in front of Sieghard and some of the others are already wounded. Let's see what Sieghard can do.

 (1d100)[ 58 ]  vs 61 WS +5 Best Quality Sword +20 All out attack - 20 Target Defensive stance =  66 
 (1d10+7)[ 10 ] 
 (1d100)[ 26 ]  vs 66/86 if the first target is incapacitated
 (1d10+7)[ 8 ]  (DoS boosts this to 11 or 13)

 (1d100)[ 38 ]  vs 66/86
 (1d10+7)[ 11 ] 
 
LeSwordfish
 Ludo 
 
 Spoiler 
 "Yes, of course",  Ludo said, maintaining his fluster.  "Do you have a box or a - never mind, I'm sure I can see anyway." 
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Levelling her sword Jarla charged into the melee, darting like an eel through the ranks of the Thorns. After the experience at the mill she had few illusions she could penetrate the ridiculously thick armour of the Iron Company but hopefully she could keep them from concentrating too much on Sieghard.

 
 Spoiler: OOC: 
Charge attack on the Iron Company, preferably one wounded!

Attack:  (1d100)[ 89 ]  vs 61
Damage: [roll]1d10+4[roll]
 
LCP
 Ludo 
 
 Spoiler 
The five of them rushed up the wooden stairs to the top of the wall. Raising himself on tiptoe to see over the parapet, Ludo could see the swirl of the ferocious melee on the bridge. Thorns were swarming on the far bank like ants, sending crossbow bolts zipping across the water - but on the bridge itself, a thin line of determined Iron Company were holding firm. Sieghard and Jarla were down there, in the thick of it. Ludo could see bodies from both sides among the fallen.

Sussman stared down at the fighting for a good ten seconds without saying anything. He had a look of intense concentration on his face, that of a man thinking as fast as he possibly could. Whether it was a battle plan or an escape plan he was thinking of, it was hard to say.

"Right," he said at last. He took a deep breath to still the panic in his voice. "Right. I am sorry about this, Herr Stubbs, but it's the only way. Willem, Hans - grab him. Hold him up over the wall."

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Ludo can take a Perception check as he's watching Sussman's gears turn to avoid being Surprised.

If he passes, he will automatically win the initiative (his Ag is too high for any roll from Willem and Hans to beat him) and can make a dash for it (or take any other action you see fit). He is adjacent to them right now so they will get some free attacks to try to grab him if he runs.

If he fails, they'll get a surprise round to try to grab him, before we fall back to the same initiative situation as above.
 

 


 
 Sieghard &amp; Jarla 

Throwing herself into the melee, Jarla found that the Tileans were no slouches at swordplay themselves. Her flashing blade met only air as her opponent stepped aside, replying with a brutally efficient thrust. Fortunately she was too fast for him.

To her left, Sieghard cut his opponent down, hacking out the top of the man's thigh in a welter of blood. Another Tilean closed in, hammering at Sieghard so hard that the commander was forced to shelter behind his shield. The embattled line of Iron Company still were not budging.
LeSwordfish
 Ludo 
 
 Spoiler 
 "Woah, woah, woah,"  Ludo said as he scrambled backwards, his dagger appearing in his hands.  "Gents, it's me, you know me." 

He held up his empty hand for calm.  "You remember me, don't you? I know both of you lads were at Arrow Heap. This doesn't need to be a problem here." 

He hadn't hoped to do this with Sussman present but well, things happened. Cards on the table time. He kept his dagger down low - ready to defend if he needed it, but not threatening anyone.
 
"You were at Arrow Heap. You see Rock Face down there? If you ask me, he's coming through the iron company, and then he's coming through this gate. You want to be the one dangling his friend off the roof when that happens?"

"You're good men. How do you really feel about what you've been doing recently? Beating up your old gran because she's hungry? Standing between this food and these people's kids? You both have families around here - how are they eating? How have the Iron Company been eating? How well do you think Sforza's eating?  Which side are you on?  The man taking this food away?"  He pointed over the parapet at Sieghard.  "Or the man who stands with those who are hungry?"

"If you ask me, now would be a  great  time to mishear some orders. Maybe he told you to get back into the fort, right?" 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
The scrambling backwards is just for flavour - Ludo is staying in his square. I assume this speech is at least one full action. I think this is probably Charm more than Command?  (1d100)[ 16 ]  vs 92, in that case.

Ludo is quick drawing his dagger in his off hand, allowing him a Parry as well as his Dodge. Like I said, my goal is for it to be ready to parry, but playing full defensive - not threatening anyone.
 

 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard was forced to take a step back from the ferocity of the attack. Seeing an opening, he forced his way back forward tried to drive the point of his blade under his attacker's arm where his armor was thinner.

 
 Spoiler 
Swift attack.

 (1d100)[ 95 ]  vs 66
 (1d10+7)[ 8 ] 
 (1d100)[ 44 ]  vs 66
 (1d10+7)[ 11 ] 
 (1d100)[ 92 ]  vs 66
 (1d10+7)[ 14 ] 

Yeeesh, those are some bad rolls.
 
LCP
 Ludo 
 
 Spoiler 
Willem and Hans stopped where they were. Ludo could tell his words had hit home.

"Are you insane?" Sussman's voice cracked a little under the strain as he spoken. It wasn't clear if he was talking to Ludo or the two men he had given the command, but it was clear he was quickly reaching the limits of his calm. "Are you  actually  insane? Go on, look down there, look. That's how many of them there are! You think they can fight the Prince's army?" He widened his eyes, staring intensely. "Sforza is going to come down on them like a cannonball, and we can either hand them in or die with them.  That's  the choice here. So for the love of Shallya, grab him!"

Willem and Hans still didn't make a move, but rather remained frozen in indecision. "It don't... it don't seem right," mumbled Hans, apologetically.

"We -  we're not going to drop him! " said Sussman, practically exploding from exasperation. "It's just - argh!" He clapped both hands to his head, then held one up for silence, as if for silence - though no-one was talking. "Alright. Alright. Just - just keep him here. Don't let him run off. I'll find a - I'll be back. Very soon.  Stay here. "

He turned and shot down the stairs so fast he almost fell. Watching him run across the courtyard to the keep, Ludo wasn't sure he would be back after all.
 


 
 Sieghard &amp; Jarla 

On the bridge, Sieghard and Jarla's opponents had them locked in stalemate. Sieghard managed to strike his enemy a bruising blow to the arm, but beyond that, neither side could get the better of the other. Around them, the other Iron Company were plying their deadly trade, and the bodies of the Thorns on the crossing were mounting.

" SIR! " Hanna's voice screamed across the din of the melee, calling from the bank of the stream. " SIR, PULL BACK! "

Risking a glance over his shoulder, Sieghard could see the last Thorns had made it up from Evatt's wreck - there was now a veritable firing squad lining the banks of the stream. Those Iron Company not on the bridge had been forced into cover, but if the melee on the bridge were to clear, those blocking the way would be exposed.
LeSwordfish
 Ludo 
 
 Spoiler 
Ludo tried not to too visibly breathe a sight of relief.

 "If I were you,"  he said.  "I'd gather the rest of the Volunteers together and get inside the keep. Someone has to take charge while Herr Sussman is gone. Someone's got to protect the people in there. Let the Iron Company do the work on the bridge and at the gate. And then once you're inside the keep, nobody but you gets to decide who you let in." 

He let that last sentence sit - no point in pushing too hard.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard turned his attention back towards the melee just in time to catch another blow on his shield. " Fall back! " he shouted as he pushed his opponent away, " Off the bridge! "

He held his position only long enough to cover the others withdrawl, then darted out of the line of fire.

 
 Spoiler 
Sieghard disengages.
 
LCP
 Ludo 
 
 Spoiler 
Willem and Hans exchanged uneasy glances. They didn't seem keen on being the ones making the decisions.

"I... I think I should go after him?" said Karl, looking after the departing Sussman. "He might... he might need help."

From down below, the sound of the melee was changing. Sieghard and the others were falling back from the bridge, the bloodied Tileans jeering their retreat. The jeers didn't last for long - on the bank of the stream, Hanna and the other Thorns were preparing a point-blank volley into the exposed defenders.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Just to be 100% clear - you're synced with Sieghard &amp; Jarla, treat what happens in their section as being visible to Ludo and having happened!
 

 


 

 Sieghard &amp; Jarla 

The Thorns fell back with Sieghard, leaving too many of their own behind at the feet of the Tileans. Bloodied but unbroken, the Iron Company jeered their retreating foes, waving fists and swords and shouting some creative Tilean insults - until they saw the waiting line of Hanna's crossbows on the bank. Too late they tried to scatter for cover - three of them fell as the volley scythed through them, while others staggered, their armour sprouting quarrels like a hedgehog's spines.

&lt; Back to the keep! &gt; shouted a hoarse voice, and those who could turned to run. This time, it was no coordinated retreat - this time, it was every man for himself.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
It's a very short distance from the bridge to the gates of the fort. If given the time and space to do it, the surviving Iron Company could get the gates closed and hole up in there. Against your numbers it would be reasonably practical for them to attempt a defence even with only a handful of soldiers. However, they'll be contained inside, and it's clear they don't have more than 1 or 2 crossbows in there to take pot shots at you with.

Sieghard, Jarla, and the other Thorns who fell back from the melee are still very close, and  will  overtake the Iron Company if they give chase (thanks to their armour). The question is, do you want to risk the lives of more Thorns by rushing them right now before they can reach the gate (since there's still enough of them to go down fighting, and it'll take time for the superior numbers on the other side of the stream to cross the bridge), or are you happy to let them get inside the fort and keep them bottled up in there?
 
LeSwordfish
 Ludo 
 
 Spoiler 
 "Actually,"  Ludo said, with a glance at the Iron Company breaking and retreating.  "Instead - with me!" 

He tried to shout over the chaos in the courtyard.  "Volunteers! To me! Close the gate! Defend the Fortress!" 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Worth a try with a long shot, though I bet this is where the dice abandon me: Ludo's trying to gather the Volunteers together to shut the gate, trying to enforce his will on the crowd milling about before they can get together to actually think about what he's saying. Hopefully most of them that are in the courtyard can't actually see what the Iron Company are doing.

Command test vs only ("only") 82:  (1d100)[ 95 ] 

Re-roll if needed:  (1d100)[ 31 ]  - comfortable pass on the re-roll.

I don't remember what rules there are for either commanding people not under your direct instructions, or for commanding groups. Ludo is familiar with the Volunteers and has Public Speaker.
 

 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Another volley! Reload! " Sieghard shouted, " Loose! "

" I want a dozen crossbows watching the wall. If they try firing on us again, I won't have it go unanswered, " he ordered after the Tileans had retreated. " Start checking the fallen. I want to know how many dead and how many wounded - ours and theirs. Have the Tileans stripped of their armor. Any piece that's not full of holes will serve us well if the rest of them are still too stubborn to surrender. "

 
 Spoiler 
Full action Inspire to boost that volley.

 (1d100)[ 55 ]  vs 74 Command
 (1d100)[ 23 ]  I'll reroll this if I need to
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla wiped a bead of sweat from her brow and glanced at Sieghard.  "If they left any wounded we better patch them up as best we can - even aside from it being the right thing to do we have to show that lot in there they have  some  chance if they surrender."  
LCP
 Ludo 
 
 Spoiler 
Hans and Willem didn't leap to follow Ludo's orders, perhaps too aware already of which side he was on. They didn't move to stop him, however - and to those milling about in the courtyard below, Ludo's commanding call to action was the kind of leadership they had been waiting for. With no Sussman to countermand him, they sprang into action, pushing the great gates shut.

" HEY! " A lonely Iron Company man appeared at the top of the gate, looking down at the men shoving the bar into place. " Minchiones!  What you doing? They still out there!"

Outside, hands and sword-pommels began to beat against the closed gates, joined by the angry, desperate yells of the men knocking. The men with their hands on the bar looked back to Ludo, waiting on his word.
 


 

 Sieghard &amp; Jarla 

More bolts dogged the heels of the Iron Company as they fled, bringing another two men down before they reached the gate. Something was wrong, though - even as the first of the Tileans still on their feet reached the fort, its gates swung shut. Sforza's soldiers piled up against the gates, beating on them with hands and swords as they shouted frantically to be let in...
LeSwordfish
 Ludo 
 
 Spoiler 

Ludo pushed his way through the crowd of volunteers to the gate itself, and lay a hand on the bar. Nobody would be opening the gates again without moving him aside. Not that that would be particularly hard, mind.
 
“Listen to me,”  he said, shouting to the crowd over the thumping on the gate. “ How did you feel, when the commander stood in front of the Iron Company, and stopped them committing a massacre at the mill? How did you feel, when he stood in front of Rorik at Arrow Heap, standing between you and the army of the Raven Hills. Some of you were there with me and him! The rest of you will have heard the stories!”

And how do you feel about the Iron Company? How do you feel about how they’ve been eating when the people out there haven’t been fed? You’ve watched them knock your old mum around, watched them starve your children, watched them bully your wives and murder your sons - all in the orders of a king a hundred miles away.”

Someone is standing up to that! Someone is fighting back! A man you know and trust, the finest fighter in the reaches, is here, right now, to change that, and to save your families and your people from starvation and oppression - and all you need to do to help him, right now - is to walk away from this gate, and let events take their course.” 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Another Charm roll vs 92 but up to you if you think the wording I’m using is closer to Command vs 82:  (1d100)[ 62 ] 
 

 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" You should ask the survivors of the mill about the right- " Sieghard began before he noticed the confusion at the gate, " Thorns! Advance! "

" &lt;Throw down your weapons and surrender!&gt; " he shouted in Tilean as his men closed the distance to the fort. " &lt;You won't be given another chance!&gt; "

 
 Spoiler 
Intimidate feels appropriate.

 (1d100)[ 53 ]  vs 61 +10 (Menacing) =  71 
 (1d100)[ 88 ]  I am also willing to reroll this one.
 
LCP
 Ludo 
 
 Spoiler 
Everyone around the gate had stopped to listen. It wasn't just Sussman's put-upon militiamen, but many of the civilian occupants of the fort too. They already looked rather relieved that the gates had been closed - now they listened with close attention. Ludo thought if anything that they seemed to react more strongly to his words than the soldiers.

Taking the wooden steps two at a time, the Iron Company man who had called out came rushing down from the parapet. " Vigliacci! Idioti!  What are you doing?" Putting his hand to his sword, he strode decisively towards Ludo. "Hey!  Corto!  Out of the way, before I make you half a halfling."

Immediately, the crowd of onlookers closed around him, checking his progress. "Get your hands  off  me!" he shouted, trying violently to shake them off - but seeing the unsympathetic eyes of Sussman's guards looking back, and their own hands on their weapons, he quickly realised how things stood. "Traitors!" he shouted, as they pulled him away from Ludo. "The Prince will have your heads!"

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Ludo's firmly in control of the situation now. Any time you want to drop the spoilers and reestablish communication with Sieghard and Jarla, feel free.
 

 


 
 Sieghard &amp; Jarla 

The Thorns acted quickly at Sieghard's command, fanning out in a broad crescent around the bottom of the earthworks on which the fort stood. Looking back down from where they were pounding on the gate, the Iron Company found themselves facing down a semicircular firing squad, just waiting for the order to shoot. No return fire spat from above the gatehouse - even that one crossbow they'd manage to dig out seemed to have fallen silent.

It still took a moment or two for the Iron Company to respond - there was no-one among them with the look of an officer. Sieghard was unable to hear what was being said in their muttered conversation, Soon enough, though, they seemed to come to a decision. A huge cheer went up from the Thorns as, with the greatest reluctance, the Tileans began to throw down their swords.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Sieze them. " Sieghard ordered. He let his men move the captives along, then called to those behind the walls " Your men are all captured or slain! Open the gate and surrender the fort now and no one else will be harmed! "
LeSwordfish
With a clunk, the bar for the gate was removed and it swung open. Inside were several of the Volunteers, surrounding one member of the Iron Company who looked spitting mad, and Ludo, who raised his hat politely.

 “I think I can accept that surrender on Herr Sussman’s behalf. The town is yours.” 

It wouldn’t do to be smug, or triumphant, but Ludo could have danced a jig in that moment.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" So that's where you'd gotten yourself to, " Sieghard said, clearly pleased with how things had gone. " I had begun to worry when no one fell into the ambush. " He thought for a moment. " Where  is  Sussman, anyways? "
LeSwordfish
 "In the fort,"  Ludo said, gesturing. " You probably want to get someone in there before he manages to seal it off. He's not a diehard loyalist but not on our side either."

"The rest of the Iron Company are in Handrich's Cross right now. Sussman figured out our ruse straight away - his second letter, the one that went straight to Sforza, had a code or something - so I had to fast talk him with another plan." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Right then, come with me. " Sieghard picked half a dozen of his men to escort them - men who hadn't been in the melee - and went in search of Sussman while Hanna and Ingwald saw to the dead, wounded, and captured.
LCP
While Sieghard strode off towards the fort, Jarla and Ludo were left with the gaggle of disarmed but furious Iron Company who were being herded into the courtyard by the Thorns. They allowed themselves to be moved, but shoved back at anyone who tried to manhandle them. They spat Tilean curses at their captors, calling them traitors, rats and dogs.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Do Ludo and Jarla stay to help manage the prisoners, or do they go inside with Sieghard?
 


No-one obstructed Sieghard and his men as they entered the keep. Inside, a few servants were still dashing about in fear and confusion - but compared to the staff that served at the castle of Sabonne, Manann's Keep was clearly operating on a skeleton crew. Sussman was nowhere to be seen, either in the great hall or the adjoining rooms.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
You can either roll Search to start hunting through the fort for Steffan, or use social skills to start questioning the staff. Either way, speed is relevant so I'd like to see a skill test.
 
LeSwordfish
Much as Ludo wanted to celebrate his victory with a quiet sit down and some of Sussman's pipeweed, he instead followed Sieghard and the Thorns inside. He tried to reassure the servants - to give them the impression of a smooth handover of power instead of a conquering army - and find out not only where Sussman might be, but where any sally ports or forgotten basements might allow him to hide or to have left the fort. The man had had a horse ready to leave town before.

 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Charm vs 92:  (1d100)[ 91 ] 

The dice have been kind recently, but the roller's telling me to not get cocky.
 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Inside, Sieghard did his best to calm those he came across. The fighting was done, he promised them, and he had no interest in any further bloodshed. He just needed to know where Sussman was.

 
 Spoiler 
Sieghard also tries to help

 (1d100)[ 72 ]  vs 54 charm
 (1d100)[ 34 ]  Even with Ludo already getting a narrow success, I'll reroll if needed
 
LCP
Ludo convinced the servants quickly enough that they were not in danger, but it longer to cut through their confusion and their questions to the point of where Sussman had got to. After a few minutes' chaotic back-and-forth, one of the scullery boys pointed towards the kitchens.

As they approached the kitchens, they could hear the sound of someone struggling with some inanimate object. It was Sussman - he had swept the cooking pots and the burnt fuel out of the hearth, the one part of Evatt's fortress that was made of stone. His smart clothes were badly soot-stained, and he was struggling with the ring of an iron hatch, set into the floor of the fireplace. It was stubbornly refusing to budge.

Seeing Sieghard and Ludo enter, he stopped. Shaping his hands in the air, he opened his mouth to say something, but stopped. Whatever phrase he was looking for seem to go through several mental drafts before he discarded it.

"This... has all been a big misunderstanding," he attempted, cracking a desperate smile. "Right?"
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Something like that, " Sieghard replied. " You should know, I don't blame you for what that bloodthirsty jackass Corrado did at the mill, nor do I plan to have you punished for his choices. I'd suggest not doing anything to make me rethink that. Perhaps there's somewhere more comfortable we can discuss things. " And more importantly, somewhere it would be even harder to plot an escape.

Once they had found a room he believed was secure enough, he left the soldiers outside the door so that himself, Ludo, and Sussman could speak privately. " I'll be direct about this. Sforza's rule began to crumble long before the Iron Company marched into Manaan's Keep. There was a rebellion in Arrow Heap, another one brewing in the Raven Hills, and more certainly soon to come. Had the pig-headed fool tried to provide relief rather than crush anyone desperate to hold onto their last scraps of food, he may have been able to salvage his hold on power. If things continue as he wants, then in a year the reaches will be dead, either starved or bled. If you thought that by doing as he says you could outlast all of that, then you're a fool as well. You'd either starve shortly after the rest have or the few farmers left would drag you out of your bed for bringing them ruin. "

" I know about the orcs and Sforza's role in unleashing them, " he continued. " Before sunset, the people of Manaan's Keep will know. As will the  soldiers . I give you the choice of how they find out. " He studied Sussman's reaction carefully. While he had found it suspicious how easily Sussman had slipped into power after Evatt's downfall, he didn't actually have proof of the man's involvement. " I could denounce Sforza myself, but some find it convenient that I expose him only after raising arms against him. They might be more ready to accept the truth if it came from your mouth. "
LeSwordfish
Ludo sat himself on a stool behind Sieghard. He was not at all comfortable with what Sieghard was proposing, but they needed to present a united front.
LCP
Sussman took a moment or two before he replied, dragging his sooty fingers through his hair.

“You’re not serious, are you?” he said, at last. “You want me to go out there and say… well, what is it you want me to say, exactly? That the Sforzas are cutting deals with goblins?”

He looked from Sieghard to Ludo and back again. Perhaps he sensed that the two of them weren’t entirely on the same page.

“Look, I understand you must be feeling pretty clever right now. Justifiably. You and Herr Stubbs, you foxed me, fair and square. But I’m - I’m not a general! I was left to look after this place with a handful of yokels. You raided the henhouse while the farmer was away, but he will come down this way, and  then  the fat’s going to be in the fire. Don’t think he doesn’t already know. Herr Stubbs can tell you, he knows.”

He took a deep breath. “Don’t think I don’t know about Arrow Heap, either. You know what happened to them there?” He let the question hang for a moment or two. “If I go out there and say what I think you’re asking me to say, it’s my head on a pike, next to yours.”
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" I understand, " Sieghard said, seemingly not bothered. " And while I may not hold you responsible for Corrado's actions, I hope that  you  understand I can't simply leave you be. If you're so firm in your loyalty to Sforza, all I can offer is to make your death quick and clean. That way you won't have to worry about anyone trying to brutalize you after I've told them how you helped Sforza bargain with greenskins and undermine Evatt from within. "

 
 Spoiler 
 (1d100)[ 66 ]  vs 61 +10 (Menacing) =  71  Intimidate
 (1d100)[ 82 ]  reroll if needed.
 
LeSwordfish
 "Now hold on Sieghard,"  Ludo said.  "Herr Sussman isn't loyal to Sforza. He's an honest man of the reaches, and mostly loyal to himself. I'm sure he'll listen to what we say without any more violence. He knows that being left here on his own after we've revealed this is just as likely to end badly." 
 OOC 
 
 Spoiler 
Good Cop assist to Sieghard's Bad Cop roll.
 
RossN
 Jarla 

Jarla had come with the others but stood back a moment watching Sussman sweat it. Finally she spoke up, adding her voice to the group.

 "I am no native to the Border Princes Herr Sussman but I do know enough that princes rise and fall with the sun in this land and no one is invicible. Sforza has an army true but you and I know it is no longer what it was. Where are his Amaxons and Ogres now? His court wizardess? For that matter how many soldiers can he actually  spare  to march here without Savonne erupting into riots?" 

She looked at the man and gave him a sympathetic smile.  "Herr Sussman you know I'm no fool and no coward. I saved the prince's life and was his wife's senior courtier. If I have deserted them how comfortable can they truly be?" 
LCP
Sussman raised his hands, clearly rattled by Sieghard's threats.

"Hey, hey, how about... something else?" he said. "Look, it's not  loyalty  - I mean, I'm not saying - I can just get out of here. You folks want to fight the Sforzas - be my guests. Literally, you want me to show you around the place, show you which keys open which doors - more than happy. Just let me go. I'll leave town, I'll leave the Reaches. It'll be like I was never here."
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" Or maybe you go running right to Sforza's side, " Sieghard replied calmly. " Come now Sussman, I know you think me reckless for challenging Sforza, but don't think me so foolish that I'd risk something like that. "

" To be clear, the choice I offered you was that you could either take your own share of the blame for what happened with the orcs or place all of the blame on Sforza. Until you've decided that, I'm not offering anything else. "
LCP
An involuntary chuckle of nervous laughter broke into Sussman's voice.

"Run to Sforza? Seriously? And tell him what, that I - that I failed him? That I got... bamboozled by Herr Stubbs here into giving away his town? Do you see that ending well for me? No no, you let me go, I'm out of here. Fast horse to Ravenskird, first boat to Putbad, then north, that's me. I've got a cousin in Akendorf... or I had one, anyway, last time he wrote. I give you my word, that's where I'll go."

"I don't know why you keep talking about orcs. You think people out there are thinking about orcs? The first thing they're thinking is, what in Shallya's good grace is going on, and after that,  maybe , they're thinking about the food on their plates, about the Prince's taxes and what happened at the mill. You want to go out there and start talking to them about orcs? They'll think you're crazy. I mean, even me, I've got to confess... I don't entirely understand you. What am I supposed to be  taking blame  for here?" He looked to Ludo and Jarla again. "I mean, orcs are orcs. Do you think they need any encouragement to do what they do?"
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" You really have no clue... " Sieghard muttered as the realization hit him.

" Did you never think strange how Sforza arrived in Manaan's Keep just in time to make it his? We were in Mirino at early that year, Ludo and I. We saw the forges working and the carts full of weapons being taken east. At the time I just thought Sforza and Evatt had some sort of trade agreement. You'd know, so you tell me, was Evatt buying weapons from Mirino? "

" The southern road was even more dangerous then, I didn't think much of it when those blades ended up in greenskin hands. Or when they turned those blades on Manaan's Keep, " he continued. " Didn't really think much of it at all until I was on the bridge. Did you know that orcs can talk? Not just grunts and snarls, but actual words like a man. I never knew it myself, but their warlord said something interesting right before I took off his head. He called us "double-crossing humies." It took me a while to figure out what he meant, but maybe you can figure it out quicker. What do you think he was talking about? "
LCP
Sussman trailed off while Sieghard laid out the facts of his story. His mouth stayed half-open, his brain seemingly running just a few steps ahead of his tongue.

"Look, I don't know about...  any  of that," he said, crossing his hands in a dismissive gesture. "But is  that  what this is about? Some old grudge about greenskins? Because I thought, you know, there was enough going on right now." His eyes darted from face to face again, watching his captors for any hint of sympathy. "I mean, we're speaking in private, so I can give you some advice - how's this going to play out? You go out there, and you tell them, you're here because of the orcs. And you tell them the story that you just told me - a story none of them have heard before, a story you must have been sitting on for... two years, now, is it? But you kept shtum. Kept on taking Sforza's coin, same as the rest of us. Do you think that's the story they'll want to hear?"

"Nobody here loved Evatt. Nobody thought he could protect them. And no-one here ever thought Sforza was some Shallyan sister either, protecting them out of the goodness of his own heart. But those orcs would have come sooner or later, and if Sforza hadn't been here - whether he was... plotting or not about how to profit from it - they'd have rolled over this place, and left nothing but bones. Do you really want to remind these people that they're alive because of him?"

 Ludo Only 
 
 Spoiler 
Scrutinising Sussman as he spoke, Ludo thought he detected something else beneath Sussman's desperate persuasion. There was a spark of stubborn pride in there. Was this justification for his own actions?
 
LeSwordfish
 "You sold your people out,"  Ludo said with rising contempt.  "Don't tell me it was all for the best! We saw how Sforza waited for the orcs to butcher Evatt's knights, with weapons that  he  sold them. And we saw how Evatt's landship exploded. Did you have a hand in that too? Evatt was mad, but he was sabotaged, too. And had Sforza's army been two hours later to Manaan's Keep you'd have had a hand in every person in the town being killed. So you could be the  warden ." 
LCP
Ludo’s words seemed to kindle a spark of anger in Sussman. “Hey, like you’re so much better,” he snapped. “What did you do for your titles, huh? Do you think Alvarr’s, and Rorik’s, and Groz’s men wanted to die any more than Evatt’s did? Or is that different because you ‘butchered’ them yourselves?”

He dragged his fingers through his hair again, beside himself with frustration.

“Evatt was going to get them killed one way or the other. I mean, do you know how much that stupid ship cost? How many soldiers, actual soldiers it could have paid for? I do! Because I had to find him the money for it! Do you know how many  pointless hours  I spent trying to reason with that man? If he was here right now, I guarantee you, he’d be throwing the grain in the river. So no. I didn’t do it for me. I did what I had to do.”

Hoarse and a little out of breath, he paused, perhaps realising he was admitting to more than he’d been letting on. Quite suddenly, the anger went out of him - now he just looked tired and defeated.

“Look… this is the Reaches,” he said, quietly. “I wish there was a way where people didn’t get hurt, but sometimes - most of the time - there isn’t. Sometimes, all you can choose is who it’s got to be, and I’d choose him again over the people here. They didn’t ask for him. They didn’t deserve to go down with the ship.”

He looked to Sieghard and Jarla. “Maybe you’re right, maybe you can beat the Sforzas. Maybe you can even do it without getting too many people killed in the process. I don’t see it, but…” he gestured to Ludo “...I’ve been wrong about a lot of things. Me, I’ve played my game, and I’ve lost, that’s the facts. I’m no use to you. You let me go, you’ll never see me again. I swear.”
LeSwordfish
 “We were at war! We fought soldiers! They were trying to kill us back!”  Ludo’s sympathy for Sussman was waning sharply: he bit his tongue bad-temperedly before making the negotiation any more tricky.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" None of the men  we  killed were farmers in their homes, " Sieghard said sharply. " None of  them  were tormented for amusement or put into a cook pot. If Evatt was so bad, you could've slit his throat in his sleep. Poisoned him. A dozen other things that  didn't  let orcs overrun the south. "

" You want run to away from what you've done? Fine. Do what I say and I won't stop you. Refuse, make excuses, or try lying again. I'll just tell them I tortured a confession out of you and then give you to the soldiers. "
LCP
Sussman looked dejectedly down at his hands, considering his options - or lack of them.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said, his voice a quiet rasp. “I did what the Sforzas wanted, same as you. And same as you, if I hadn’t done it, it wouldn’t have stopped them. You think when you were burning the wheatlands with your soldier friends last year, you weren’t hurting anyone who couldn’t fight back? Take a look around, see how that’s worked out.”

He breathed a deep sigh, before raising his head to look Sieghard in the eye. “What is it you want me to say?”
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard was quickly losing patience with Sussman's attempts to liken what he had done to what Sforza had, but he held his tongue. Arguing over that would just waste more time.

" First, you'll tell me all that you know, " He said. " How did he make his pact with the orcs? Who else knows and who did what? Ludo says you sent a second message north after the mill. What did you tell Sforza? "
LeSwordfish
 “I did what the Sforzas wanted, same as you. And same as you, if I hadn’t done it, it wouldn’t have stopped them. You think when you were burning the wheatlands with your soldier friends last year, you weren’t hurting anyone who couldn’t fight back? Take a look around, see how that’s worked out.” 

Ludo broke eye contact with Sussman, and stared at the corner of the room for a moment.
LCP
"I don't know how he got in contact with the orcs. You understand that wasn't my idea, right?" He spread his hands. "It was his. Or maybe Doctor Bianco's - he was the one who handled the correspondence. And he's dead, so as far as who else knows, your guess is as good as mine. My job was just to watch Evatt, make sure he didn't do anything too stupidly unpredictable... and make sure he didn't survive the battle." He looked uncomfortable as he went on, but Sieghard's calmly murderous stare kept him talking. "I got chatting to Werner. There was a piece of his engine, he called it a, a three-eighths... something or other. It was just a pin, small enough to fit in your pocket, but it kept the, uh, the elliptical something from slipping up the shaft. The night before... I took it out."

"As for the messengers, Herr Stubbs already knows the story there. I didn't know if you were on the run or... well, doing what you're doing... so I sent one letter by Painford, and a second letter through the forest, keeping clear of the road. The second letter says that if the first letter doesn't arrive, they can assume Painford is in rebellion." He raised his eyebrows. "I'd say it'll have already reached him by now."
LeSwordfish
 "That's how he figured out I was lying,"  Ludo said with extremely begrudging admiration.  "Because our fake letter didn't mention that."
 
He looked back at Sussman.  "Your other letter didn't mention Jarla or the dwarf. Did this one?" 
LCP
Sussman shook his head. "I wrote about the big picture. Massimo, though - that's the man who took over from the one you killed," he added in an aside to Sieghard, "he was talking about your friends there, after the mill. I assume this dwarf is your friend."
LeSwordfish
 "Massimo and the rest of the Iron Company who were here are in Handrich's Cross now, right?"  Ludo asked.  "How long will they be staying there?" 
LCP
"They were expecting you to turn up there," said Sussman. "So I would say, until they get suspicious that you're not coming."
LeSwordfish
Ludo looked sideways at Sieghard.  "If I'm honest, I think we shouldn't let the sun go down on us here. Maybe one more night. They left on the 32nd and were expecting you yesterday." 
LeSwordfish
 "Look, you finish off here,"  Ludo said, standing.  "I'll prepare for us to get moving."  He didn't really want to see Sussman any more, and would appreciate some nice relaxing logistics.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

Sieghard finished his business with Sussman, then rounded up what men could be spare to gather as much of the town together as possible. Once the crowd was large enough for his liking, he began.

" People of Manaan's Keep, let me put your fears to rest. I did not come here to pillage your homes or subject you to more cruelties than you've already suffered. I'm here to return to you what the prince and his Iron Company have taken, " he said. " The men who have abused you have been dealt with and the crops that were stolen will not be going north to Savonne. They must be protected, rationed, and made to last, but they are yours again. "

" I am no stranger to Manaan's Keep. Many of you will know me from two years past when I slew the orcish warlord who wanted to raze your homes. Some of you will have seen or at least heard that when Sforza's Tilean bandits turned their swords on your kin and neighbors, I put myself in their path and turned mine on them. When I first entered the prince's service, it was because I saw that the Reaches needed stability and peace and fool that I was, I believed he might be the one who could bring it. For a time we had that, but now Prince Sforza has made it clear how he plans to rule the Reaches. Left alone, he'll act as a mad tyrant who would allow any amount of death suffering so long as it let him keep his grasp power. In response to the famine that's struck the south, he ordered that what little food remained in your stores be siezed and that his soldiers slaughter any who would refuse. In the north, he's unleashed his ogres on men who dared do the same. And while his people starve around him, he feasts in his castle and plots another bloody war. He is a man who would gladly burn the Reaches to ash just so he could call himself king of the ruins. I stand against him now because I refuse to allow that. "

" Sforza will not give up, but let today be proof that however strong he may be, he can be beaten and his grip on the Thornwood can be broken. It must be if any are to survive until the next harvest, for his cruelty is without limit and there are no depths of treachery that he will not sink to. Even the orcs, I've learned, were his pawns in his power-mad schemes. This I first heard from one of his wife's handmaidens, who had fled the princess's wrath, and she had heard it from the mouth of the princess herself. She  gloated  how her husband had tricked the orcs into spending both their own strength and the strength of the men of Manaan's Keep and left the south ripe for him to claim as his own. I did not want believe that any man could sink so low as to bargain with orcs, but see now that her words have proven true. Orcs make nothing, they only pillage and destroy. Yet any man who fought that say or walked the battlefield afterwards could see the weapons they carried were newly made and of good steel. Weapons that I had once been told were stolen from a caravan that the late Commander Evatt had purchased to arm his knights and militiamen. Weapons I am now told that Commander Evatt had never requested. "

 
 Spoiler 
Cutting it off here let Sussman get a word in and to see how the crowd reacts. The rest of what I have sorta depends on that and won't really work if my assumptions prove wrong.

Sieghard's instructions to Sussman are to either confirm (if this is true) that there was never any trade between Evatt and Sforza or (if there was) that Evatt had never been trading for weapons. He then wants him to support Sieghard's accusation and denounce Sfroza as a friend to orcs and otherwise keep his mouth shut. Sieghard will agree that Sussman does not himself have to be implicated so long as he cooperates.

Sieghard also wants the militia who were in town to hear this and, if he's not too busy, would prefer Ludo be present. Sieghard's gonna try to handle this himself, but would welcome the support if things go pear shaped.

 (1d100)[ 86 ]  vs 54 Charm
 (1d100)[ 85 ]  FP as needed.
 
LCP
Leaving Sieghard to ponder his next moves, Ludo went in search of a surgeon. Outside the fort, the town was in a strange state. Some people were gathered outside the gates, eager to know what was going on (and rapidly drawing their own, increasingly fanciful conclusions). Some houses were shuttered and barred, and at the edge of the square, Ludo could see a family loading a donkey cart with all the possessions they could carry.

Cutting through the crowd of the curious, he demanded to be taken to the best healer in town. He was directed to Doktor Bohn, a barber surgeon on the north side of town.

Bohn was quick to answer the knock at his slightly shabby door, though he peered through a window first to be sure of who was knocking. A middle-aged man with an accent reminiscent of Elsa's, he had magnificently groomed moustaches, and clothes that aspired to be more expensive than they actually were. He'd anticipated his services might be needed - his bag was packed and waiting by the door.

“I will be expecting payment,” he said, as they hurried back towards the fort. “A man has to eat, you know.”

The question of food was not far from Ludo's mind either, as on returning to the fort he found Hannah and her team taking stock of what they'd found. The food Sussman had stockpiled was disappointingly little - enough perhaps to keep the Thorns fed for a month, if they kept it all for themselves. Two ox-carts were stashed in the courtyard to transport it, though Ludo couldn't see any oxen.

For gold they seem better off – a large, heavy chest with an equally heavy lock looked very promising. Sussman probably had the key.

The day was wearing on, and the atmosphere in the square was reaching fever pitch. At last, Sieghard emerged from his deliberations with Sussman, and gave orders to the Thorns to gather together everyone in the town who wanted to listen. Ludo figured that had better include him.

 ~ 
The centre of Manann's Keep was a sea of anxious faces. The Thorns had wheeled one of the ox carts down from the fort to serve as a stage, and formed a tight knot around it , their dark uniforms setting them apart. Towards the front of the crowd were a small number of burghers and merchants; those who considered themselves the town's more prominenct citizens. Towards the back were the rest.

Sieghard climbed up on the cart, accompanied by a very reluctant looking Sussman. The babble died down as the crowd waited for this grim-faced man to speak.


 
 Originally Posted by TheSummoner 
 ” People of Manaan's Keep, let me put your fears to rest. I did not come here to pillage your homes or subject you to more cruelties than you've already suffered. I'm here to return to you what the prince and his Iron Company have taken, " he said. " The men who have abused you have been dealt with and the crops that were stolen will not be going north to Savonne. They must be protected, rationed, and made to last, but they are yours again. " 
 

The crowd seemed to take that well. Sieghard had cleared the first hurdle of not sounding insane - the only thing that seemed to cast a shadow over their sense of relief was the mention of rationing. They knew who would be deciding who got what, and a few distrustful glances were directed at the Thorns.


 " I am no stranger to Manaan's Keep. Many of you will know me from two years past when I slew the orcish warlord who wanted to raze your homes. Some of you will have seen or at least heard that when Sforza's Tilean bandits turned their swords on your kin and neighbors, I put myself in their path and turned mine on them. When I first entered the prince's service, it was because I saw that the Reaches needed stability and peace and fool that I was, I believed he might be the one who could bring it. For a time we had that, but now Prince Sforza has made it clear how he plans to rule the Reaches. Left alone, he'll act as a mad tyrant who would allow any amount of death suffering so long as it let him keep his grasp power. In response to the famine that's struck the south, he ordered that what little food remained in your stores be siezed and that his soldiers slaughter any who would refuse. In the north, he's unleashed his ogres on men who dared do the same. And while his people starve around him, he feasts in his castle and plots another bloody war. He is a man who would gladly burn the Reaches to ash just so he could call himself king of the ruins. I stand against him now because I refuse to allow that. " 

Sieghard’s claims to fame seemed to leave most of them cold. Perhaps he had done all these things, but no-one had been singing his praises since then - no-one since Viggo at least. A few murmurs ran through the crowd as people asked each other the truth of the stories.

The reaction to Sforza's crimes was quicker and more visceral. There was a swell of anger from the back of the crowd, accompanied by shouts of “shame!” and “murderers!”. The better-dressed citizens at the front were left looking rather nervous.


 " Sforza will not give up, but let today be proof that however strong he may be, he can be beaten and his grip on the Thornwood can be broken. It must be if any are to survive until the next harvest, for his cruelty is without limit and there are no depths of treachery that he will not sink to. Even the orcs, I've learned, were his pawns in his power-mad schemes. This I first heard from one of his wife's handmaidens, who had fled the princess's wrath, and she had heard it from the mouth of the princess herself. She  gloated  how her husband had tricked the orcs into spending both their own strength and the strength of the men of Manaan's Keep and left the south ripe for him to claim as his own. I did not want believe that any man could sink so low as to bargain with orcs, but see now that her words have proven true. Orcs make nothing, they only pillage and destroy. Yet any man who fought that say or walked the battlefield afterwards could see the weapons they carried were newly made and of good steel. Weapons that I had once been told were stolen from a caravan that the late Commander Evatt had purchased to arm his knights and militiamen. Weapons I am now told that Commander Evatt had never requested. " 

At first, Sieghard felt that he was losing them with this diversion onto the orcs. These weren't dwarfs he was dealing with - as Sussman had predicted, the sting of more recent horrors was sharper. As he went on, however, the murmurs in the crowd grew louder. He had scarcely thrust Sussman forward to make his statement than the steward began to be bombarded with questions by the well-dressed people at the front.

“Is this true? Did you know about this?”
“How long have you known?”
“Does the Prince know what's happening here?”

Sussman held up his hands for peace. “Folks, let's just… settle down, alright. You've all heard of Commander Sieghard here. He's a lot of things, but he's not a liar. It's all true - the orcs - all of it.”

Before he could continue, he was cut off by a rising swell of voices from the back of the crowd. There were whoops and shouts, and a straw-haired lad of sixteen or seventeen jumped up on a barrel and yelled:

“ DOWN WITH THE ORC-LOVERS! GIVE US BACK OUR GRAIN ”

Winding back his arm, he chucked a stone straight through the window of one of the larger houses looking onto the square. One of the burghers at the front cried out in outrage, but his voice was swallowed up in the enthusiastic roar that rose from the rest of the crowd. They surged in every direction, breaking windows and toppling empty market stalls. Sieghard had stirred up a full-blown riot.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
 Down with Sforza! 
 
LeSwordfish
 Bohn was quick to answer the knock at his slightly shabby door, though he peered through a window first to be sure of who was knocking. A middle-aged man with an accent reminiscent of Elsa's, he had magnificently groomed moustaches, and clothes that aspired to be more expensive than they actually were. He'd anticipated his services might be needed - his bag was packed and waiting by the door.

“I will be expecting payment,” he said, as they hurried back towards the fort. “A man has to eat, you know.” 

 "We can definitely pay,"  Ludo said, though he was thinking about how much of his money was still owed by Al'Makir.


 The question of food was not far from Ludo's mind either, as on returning to the fort he found Hannah and her team taking stock of what they'd found. The food Sussman had stockpiled was disappointingly little - enough perhaps to keep the Thorns fed for a month, if they kept it all for themselves. Two ox-carts were stashed in the courtyard to transport it, though Ludo couldn't see any oxen. 

Ludo hissed through his teeth. This wasn't nearly as much as he'd been hoping for.

 "Get one cart's worth ready to travel with,"  he said.  "Leave the other for the town. If they think we're robbing them like Sforza was, we're just leaving enemies behind." 

 For gold they seem better off – a large, heavy chest with an equally heavy lock looked very promising. Sussman probably had the key. 

 "I don't think Stefan needs to know about this,"  Ludo said, drawing his lockpicks and bending down to get a proper look at the lock.
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

"  ENOUGH!  " Sieghard shouted. Anger was good, but it needed to be directed to be useful. " There's only one  orc lover  in the reaches and he sits in Savonne calling himself prince! Would you do his work by turning on your neighbors or would you sooner cast down the man who has caused all of your suffering? "

 
 Spoiler 

 
 Originally Posted by LCP 
 If Sieghard is setting himself up in a position of authority over these people then command would be appropriate. If he's trying to appeal to them as an outsider then intimidate or charm would be more appropriate. 
 

He did just march in and take over the place. If that and yelling at them to cut it with the smashy smashy is sufficient for Command, roll vs 74. Otherwise, call it another 54 charm to try to redirect the anger solely towards Sforza.

 (1d100)[ 74 ] 
 (1d100)[ 54 ]  Sieghard has one fortune point left and he'll use it for a +10 or a reroll if needed.
 
LCP
 Ludo 

The chest opened with a soft  click . Inside, it was stacked with small, brown bags. Each bore a curled parchment tag, scribbled with dates and initials. Ludo opened one and watched gold and silver coins spill out.

A quick count made the value of the bag's contents up to almost six crowns. At a glance, it looked like there might be as many as forty such bags in the chest.

 ~ 
 Ludo, Sieghard &amp; Jarla 

Sieghard's voice cut through the chaos, checking the rioters for a moment in their rioting. The Thorns moved firmly forward to back him up, making their uniforms and weapons visible.

"Only one?" shouted back the straw-haired lad, in a voice full of defiance. "Ask Herr Lickspittle there next to you, who's been sucking at the Tileans' tits since they marched in here! Who's been lining their pockets selling them our harvest while we starve!"

"Get down from there, Arnolf!" shouted a man from the front - one of the better-dressed burghers, with a round belly and thick black sideburns. "You're making a fool of yourself!"

"Aye? Where were you, then, when they were butchering our women and children? Where was your mate Herr Ardelean? It's his mill, ain't it?" He pointed an accusatory finger at Sussman. "You should all be up there with him!"

A babble of angry voices arose on both sides, as the crowd turned in on itself, rich against poor, hungry against well-fed. The numbers were far from even, and those well-dressed citizens who had forged a path to the front now found themselves being pushed back towards Sieghard's makeshift stage. Sussman ducked as someone at the back threw a clod of dirt as his head.

 OOC:   
 Spoiler 
Sieghard and the Thorns have contained the outbreak of violence, but further checks to say "calm down" again won't calm the situation further. Up to you how you want to try to resolve this conflict.
 
LeSwordfish
 "Well, we don't need to worry about paying for the doctor,"  Ludo said.  "Split half of this amongst a trustworthy group, load the other half on the cart. And find us an Ox to pull it. Buy one if you have to." 

 


Ludo watched the unrest uneasily. He hadn't expected Sussman to be so unpopular.

 "We've got a cart's worth of food ready round the corner if you want a distraction,"  he said quietly to Sieghard.  "Just say the word." 
TheSummoner
  Sieghard  

" You want justice for the wrong that's been done to you? You want to see the bandits and murderers punished? " Sieghard asked " I can give you your fill of it! I've already broken the Iron Company here and I'll see the rest of them and their prince broken and driven from the reaches before I'm done! "

" But any punishment will be for the men who are actually responsible for the Thornwood's suffering - I won't tolerate anyone taking their anger out on men whose only "crime" was being tricked by the same bastard who fooled everyone else! Any man who wants to start acting like one of Sforza's Tilean thugs and abusing the innocent will be treated like one of them! "

 
 Spoiler 
Intimidate vs vs 71 (61 Str + 10 Menacing). I'm offering the carrot, don't make me beat you with the stick.
 (1d100)[ 84 ] 
 
LCP
The story continues in  Thread XV !