"Power like that isn't worth a copper on the moon." Bronan smirks and shakes his head. "Equipment? Nah. I'll bet it's cowardice and lack of know-how. If you're so keen to take over for Landis, then I'm sure you'll have no trouble taking a bet in his stead."
He gestures to a nearby rock outcropping. "I'll wager I can beat any of your men in getting to the top of that. If I win, we pass through, no toll."
Odd'n scowls at Bronan, "And just what do you think YOU are wagering that will tempt this scoundrel into taking your bet? Besides, he seems to have none of the honor-- if you can call it that-- that Landis had. You foolish enough to think he will honour any dealings if he loses?"
Rocking back on his heels, Odd'n teeters before moving back from Bronan. Wish I got a bit more rest.. these wounds from those spiders still sting something awful...
Looking to Garret, who always seems keen on a fight, Odd'n hits the mans shoulder to get his attention and speaks in a hushed tone to prevent Beshoi (but perhaps not the twins) from overhearing. "I don't trust Beshoi.. he takes what he wants-- man said so himself when we first came through. He wins-- he takes; we win-- he takes. We need to.. remove him. I'd love to help." Odd'n hopes the malice in his eyes maches what he feels in his heart as he turns to address Beshoi again.
"Big Beshoi.. how are you at unarmed combat? The bare-knuckled type? Surely your lot has seen and enjoyed the pleasures of a pit fight. Perhaps you've shown your men YOUR worth? Or.. do you always hide behind steel and the flesh of your men; the threat of this Upright man keeping them in line??"
Mikaiela tried to motion to the others, signing very quickly and fluently.
{Come now, no need to fight or climb to prove points. What if I simply went in and dealt with the man and these bandits personally? He seems spirited, if nothing else.}
Her face narrowed into a cat's grin. {Plus, if I fail, no harm to you guys whom wanted me gone anyways, right? So it's a win-win if I say so myself.}
Lastly, she adjusted her glasses and got her serious face going. {Plus, I feel sorry for sticking up for my employer, even if it was the right thing to do at the time, since it caused you all hurt. A little sacrifice evens that all out in an orderly fashion, and is something I feel I could do.}
It was clear in her choice of words that she was going to do something that'd put her own personal being in danger if her suggestion was taken.
I respond to Odd'n in a hushed tone as well. "Tch' Beshoi holds no interest for me other then he is blocking my path to a fast pay check, if we double back now then we will loose time, and therefore money. If Landis were still here I would dally to discover how he came to become such a superb archer. Let us finish this quickly. Perhaps by removing Beshoi, Landis will return to this stretch of road."
Beshoi smirks and answers both Bronan and Odd'n, "Ha! That gambling and risk-taking nonsense is what got Landis demoted in the first place. You lot can pay the toll and pass, take the mountain road, or die. I'll not play your games, I rather enjoy my place here."
I raise my voice, as if acting on a stage, so as many of the men inside can hear me as possible. "You may be enjoying your place here, Beshoi, but it seems your men are not. I bet you probably don't pay them much do you? Anyone who wishes to join me, I will pay you double what Beshoi is, and with the haul I walked out of here with last time you know I can pay. I plan to walk through this camp without paying Beshoi or his men, you can either join me and get some pay or you can fall before me and my companions."
Mikaiela considered what she had asked, and what the others were suggesting, before making her decision. She'd do it for them, if only to get them to perhaps trust her. She made sure Tanwen translated this for her as she addressed Garret and the others.
{Don't aggravate them further. Let me handle this. I have a plan!}
She approached the twins, and motioned with her hands, trying to draw their eyes to herself, as if emphasizing her own personal appearance, attractive as it was. She'd also look carefully to see if the door behind the twins had a lock as she did so.
When she was close enough to them, she motioned to Tanwen to translate for her.
{How about, instead of listening to my compatriots here, whom are so unreasonable, you let me inside to meet with your "boss" and discuss a proposition. I'm willing to give your entire encampment good company for the night, and this night only. I won't even ask for any money. Consider it a free gift usable only until the night ends.}
She continued.
{The only thing I'd ask for in return, is that you guys let my compatriots stay and rest all the night through without hassle. If they decide to attack you guys, then I'll sweeten the deal and add another night free of charge as compensation.}
She finished up.
{Of course I'd need to see your boss to discuss this plan. So, what do you think? I think it's pretty good if I say so myself, a once in a blue moon deal!}
Though vague in tone, Garret seems to stir the interest of several of the men. Beshoi doesn't appear rattled by it, however. "Tall words," he says, "but my men know you can't protect them from the Upright Man. His reach his far, and his arm is strong."
Mikaiela sees nothing but a rope, tied in an intricate knot, fastening the door shut. Though the twins seem quite interested at her offer, Beshoi speaks out, "More tricks? More lies? Who is your new friend? And where has your old one gone?" He addresses Umaveti for the first time, "Well librarian, it seems you have a knack for picking up those who fit in better with me and mine than with your mayor..." he then laughs. The down-trodden look on the twins' faces let Mikaiela know that, round-about though it was, that was a no from Beshoi to letting her in to the camp.
Umaveti looks at the sun uneasily, and starts scooting back and away from the camp.
"And what, exactly has this 'Upright Man' done for any of you?" Bronan chimes in. "Belshoi likes to talk him up, but have any of you ever met him? And if you have, was he some kind of eldritch horror, a king? No, he's just a man. A desperate man like yourselves. I can tell you with certainty that on the continent, no one has even heard of him. Belshoi here hides behind this empty specter's coattails like a frightened child. Take our offer here. It is genuine. More than you'd make from some piddly toll, and all you have to do is ignore this blowhard." Any attempt at a rejoinder by Belshoi is interrupted by Caltrop growling at him.
The men don't budge. It's clear they fear the Upright Man far too much to be fully swayed to attack Beshoi. You'll have to either at least pretend to take one of the options presented, or attack Beshoi & company out right and see what happens.
As an aside to Odd'n. "You want to take Beshoi out yes? Apparently we will have to storm the gate, are you ready?"
Rubbing the bites still visible on his arm, Odd'n responds with a resigned sigh before turning his back to the blockade and quietly answering. "Aye.. I do want him.. removed.. from this stretch. But I am not so sure I'm in any shape to face down his thugs. I was hoping he'd take up my challenge; he is a man I would most certainly enjoy digging my fists into." Odd'ns eyes fall to his sharpened, hardened nails then back to Garret.
"You spoke of a sneak attack before.. at night, when we first passed. Perhaps we could try that?" Odd'n offers with a shrug. Looking up to the ledges he scaled a short bit ago he tsks at Garret before flicking his brow back to the ledges. "You got a bow and seem well versed in its use. If I can secure a rope to the ledges, or climb and haul you up myself, perhaps you can perch atop it and draw them out with your arrows while we await their approach just 'round the ledge back there. At least remove a few of these vermin before storming this fort."
Once again Odd'n shrugs before turning to Umaveti. "Or.. take the pass..".
Odd'n saunters back a bit from his group while they decide, hoping to give the impression to the bandits that it is his desire to head back.
Garret can't make heads or tails of the men's allegiance to Beshoi whether through fear of the Upright Man or otherwise. Umaveti's facial expression makes it clear that he's still in favor of the mountain pass.
"Well, fine!"I snarl at Odd'n and Umaveti. "If you want to try the mountain pass I guess I am being over ruled here. Lets leave then."
With that I storm away from the newly erected wall.
Once we are a ways down the road I begin scheming with Odd'n on how exactly we will enter the 'fort' and take out the bandits. Stopping no more then an hours travel away and suggesting that we set up camp for the night and get an early rest.
"Uh, ok." Bronan doesn't know what to make of Garret's sudden change of heart, but follows him away from the barricade. Caltrop takes a queue to mark a little territory before following as well.
With the fort (presumably) out of site, Odd'n snarls over his shoulder at having to leave Belshoi for the time being. "That brute! We can't let them continue on like this, praying on travellers. I don't care who this Upright Man is! THESE BANDITS MUST GO! We can scale the cliffs that the fort is built into, come in from the side.. come in on top of that Belshoi. Just get me near him.. let me fall upon that fool with teeth and nail."
Umaveti follows them back and listens to the conversation. "If you lot want to get yourselves killed, be my guest. I'll wait back here with the boy." The librarian and their charge set about building a fire...a much easier feat with an ifrit. Umaveti gathers wood and the boy lets fly fire from his hands to light them. The two of them, quite bereft of the rest of the party, dig in to their rations for the night, while Umaveti takes to educating the boy on matters of state.
To Odd'n "We will take them in the night, by stealth if we can. That will even the odds a bit if we take out as many of them quietly as possible. Who all will assist with removing this blight?"
I then explain my plan.
"We should sleep now and wake early, before the sun rises, if all who are planning to fight sleep now and the others who will not fight stand the watches we can be back at the camp around 3am. Right when they will be at their most tired. How we enter the camp we can decide once there."
Odd'n nods to Garret. "Say.. you seem to have a way with that one." he says as he gestures to the priestess. "Uhm.. could you.. maybe.. ask is she can heal me a bit more? I'm still.. beat up.."
"If you think that's best. Me and Caltrop usually prefer a bit more of a stand up fight."
Mikaiela made absolutely sure that she stopped Umaveti and (any of the others who try to eat rations), making a point that they should wait.
{How about you fighting types stop your complaining for just a moment and let me make some food for you? It'll be really quick, and surely useful before you guys rush to get into trouble!}
It was quite clear her comment on "complaints" was directed at Odd'n, however, she set to work using the fire before any retaliation could be spoken, using her ability to preserve her ingredients, and her ability to spontaneously create water, to prepare a meal large enough for eight people to eat rather well. The end result of her work was a large pot of thick and hearty beef and vegetable stew.
{There we go! This should blow Trail Rations out of the water! I can make a kitchen to work in out of any location!}
She also provided a pot of warm tea to go with the stew as an option.
"You may prefer a stand up fight, but I prefer to live another day while still triumphing over my enemies, and to do that against such a large group we need stealth. Or we really can turn tail and run for the mountains."
I enjoy the hearty stew and listen to anyone else's input, then I wrap my cloak and blanket about myself and fall asleep near the fire.
"As long as we take care of Beshoi.. I don't care the route we take after. We can't let a man like that continue to prey on travellers." Looking to the sky, Odd'n sniffs the air before addressing anyone still listening. "Sorry all, but I'm beat.." And with that Odd'n passes out alongside the embers.
At Odd'n's behest, Tanwen channels positive energy to completely heal him.
I quickly fall asleep next to the warmth of the fire, assuming Umaveti is not foolish enough to not make sure at least one person is watching his charge through out the night incase of animal attack or ambush.
The night goes by rather peacefully, the stars bright as suns in the clear desert sky. Umaveti, Mikaiela, and Minah stay up until about an hour shy of midnight, the cook helping the young boy practice his sign language, and Umaveti learning a bit for himself. Once the boy nodded off, Mikaiela makes tea for them both to help them stay awake, but Mikaiela falls asleep soon after making it. The nagaji holds out until three past when the others would awaken to carry out their plan.
A tired and annoyed Umaveti nudges Mikaiela, {Woman, time is you. Me sleep.} Umaveti uses what little sign language he picked up the night before to let her know it's her turn to keep watch, and that she needs to wake up the others.
Mikaiela wanted to reply grumpily, but decided against it as a smile crossed her face. She then adjusted her glasses and moved to grab her Scythe, lightly trudging around the campsite.
The thought of an early morning raid at first fills Bronan with too much excitement for sleep, but it does fade soon enough for him to get a few solid hours rest. When he wakes, he turns to the part time mage.
"This is your plan, Garret, what is the first step?"
Odd'n rolls around in the dirt beside the low-burning fire, stretching out his arms and legs like a little kid waking up from a nap.
"Get in. Get Beshoi. This rabble will fall apart without leadership. I'd then like to raze their 'fort' to the ground to prevent them from returning.. but maybe some manner of official guard could man it; protect the roads and prevent this mess from arising in the future.."
Standing up, Odd'n doesn't bother to dust off the twigs, dirt and other detritus clinging to him as he goes about himself checking that his armor and gauntlets are fastened and ready for the coming melee.
"I'm at a loss for getting into the fort however. I'd say come down from the back, scale the rock outcroppings and come in from there, but they'd probably hear me coming." Odd'n scratches his chin with dirt stained nails while surveying the sky. "Perhaps nature can offer us some assistance in sneaking in.."
"Lets get the quietest people to sneak in and scout it out first. The ones who are not as stealthy can hang back 30 or so feet from the entrance and see if there is a way to easily take out the gate guards. For the most part, we will be playing it by ear."
All that Odd'n can tell is that it's windy, and there's sand in it. Also his feather turns what would be dim light into normal light for a 15' radius.
"Might want to stow that until we spring on them." Bronan gestures to Oddn's feather. He gets into a position where he can see the gate and nods to Garret. "Do what you can with the bow, when they rush out to find you, they'll run into us instead."
Odd'n slips the feather between some straps on his forearm and covers it with a bit of tattered rag torn from his pant leg.
"Aye, aye-- let me know and I'll remove the cover from over the 'gift' for us to see. Milani will see to it that we remove this taint from her land.. I trust in that." Odd'n looks to Bronan warily- "If not you.."
"Well noble? We wait on you drawing them out.."
I begin carefully climbing the rock face beside the encampment.
Once I get to the top of the rocks I look around the inside to see if there are any easy targets near fires or anything like that.
If I see any that look particularly easy to hit I will fire on them.
Odd'n stands by the face of the wall and interlaces his fingers together before signalling to Garret. "I'll boost yea onto ma' shoulders.. should make scaling this thing with your bow and gear a little easier.."
When Garret reaches the top, he can't see anyone. He's both relieved that no one heard his scramblings, and perplexed that no one seems to be there, at least in his line of sight.
Odd'n smiles up to Garret as he scales the wall, before turning warily to the others as they ready themselves for whatever comes next.
I carefully scramble back down. lowering my self down each 5ft cliff, back to the group. Speaking quietly I say "There doesn't appear to be anyone at the gate. We can open it, and get all of them to rush the gate, that way they will get bottled up and we can deal with them a few at a time. Probably wont have to worry about archers much since Landis isn't around anymore."
Bronan nods. Caltrop starts to get restless, but the Aasimar cuffs him on the head to settle him down.
Odd'n simply smiles at the mans plan, images of his fists smashing Beshois teeth in dancing in his head. "I like it.. they probably won't expect much from me.. unarmed and all. Hopefully Beshoi thinks me an easy target.. I want him myself.."
I roll my eyes a little at Odd'ns comment. "Well I'm not going to open the gate. I'm not a front line fighter, I will be shooting with my bow."
A glint of awareness flashes across Odd'ns eyes at Garrets comment. "Gotcha." he says with a wink before sprinting towards the gate.
Seeing odd'n spring into action I scramble back to the 10ft high cliff and set up to fire on enemies
Odd'n looks at the knot holding the swing-gate together, the feather bright on his forearm as the fabric fell off during his sprint. I really shoulda brought a knife to get this thing off a little quicker..
Bronan and Caltrop hurry to follow Odd'n to the gate. Seeing the strange man's vexation with the knot. He pulls a dagger out of his boot and hands it to Odd'n, handle first.
Odd'n makes quick work of the knot.