K'z'k takes off with Xanyon, replying, "It is a pity, we make the kill but scavengers descend too rapidly and forcefully. Is that why there is less hunting in the city?"
"This city is full of scavengers, it is true. The hunting in the wild is better, though you can just as easily become the prey."
Xanyon looks back.
"Not that different after all I guess."
"Urik is Hamanu's hunting ground. That is why it is so filled with scavengers."
"We're not going to win a foot race. Do you know any good hiding places or crowded areas?"
*You had better stop Adder unless you want him "surprising" you again in your future...*
Knowing her psycrystal is right, Sinorei steps forward and unleashes her psychic energy at the toothless man.
Sinorei then holds up her hands as if she is innocent of any wrong-doing.
"The guards are big. We need someplace small."
K'z'k starts looking around for convenient crawlspaces that a half-giant would have difficulty passing through. The sewers? A high window? Slaves' quarters?
Perception:
The guards and Templar survey the scene, and waste no time in arresting all six of the fight's participants. The Templar even grants healing the dying so they do not need to be carried or left on the street.
The chase has gone from bad to worse, as you near the end of the street, a group of guards rushes in just as the ones behind reach you. The new group of guards to the front is led by a Templar, obvious signs of rank on his collar. He holds up a single hand, palm forward and speaks "Halt! You are under arrest for crimes within the city. Give yourself up, and punishment will be more lenient. Continue to run, and your death will be imminent." It is clear that he has stepped in to turn the chaos of the chase aside. Off to the side of the street K'z'k notices Hlanast nod to the Templar before he turns and walks away. He must have alerted someone once he saw the new Templar master try to handle the kreen alone.
Anton opens his eyes, wondering what's happened and happy to be alive... until he realizes that he's under arrest.
He stands, stretching out, and nodding at the Templar, and says, "Pardon, good Templar, but I do wonder what I'm being arrested for, unless it's against the law to bleed on the streets? As you may have noticed, I did not even draw a weapon in response to the vicious attacks upon my person."
Sinorei shoots a venomous look at Spider in response to his lie.
"Templar, thank you for arriving," Sinorei says with honesty. "Even these three men were scarcely enough to save me from.... him," she says with her outstretched finger pointing at the unconscious Adder.
She rushes over to kneel next to Anton to make sure that her initial protector is safe.
"I don't think we have any choice. I'm sorry to drag you into this, I'll do my best to make sure they know you didn't have anything to do with me."
Averel stays quiet as the Templar arrest the group. He thinks to himself "Great now I am stuck without even have found information on the mercenaries I was after. I have to hope they let us go if not I will have to get free." He than looks at the others seeing who the dwarf attacked before he got to him. He thinks to himself "So two humans and a dwarf."
"By the sun, what happened?" he looks around confused, as the templar arrests and catalogues us. If he has an opportunity, he will focus the sun's warmth to heal himself.
K'z'k stops and waits the inevitable, wondering why there is punishment. Scavengers have their prize, and it is a good, fat one, too.
The trial, if it could really be called as such, commenced after a day's time in custody. The prisoners, two muls, two dwarves, a kreen, and three humans, stand in a courtyard below a balcony. On the balcony stands a Templar, dressed in official robes, as the prisoners are shackled and surrounded by armed guards. The Templar goes through the charges leveled against each prisoner, allowing for any outside information in the case. He hears from the Templars that made the arrest, and during the trial recieves various messages from representatives of the criminals in question.
As Xanyon and K'z'k are brought forward for their crimes, Hlanast actually comes forward and speaks softly to the Justice. The Justice finishes the sentencing, "At the behest of Templar Xhalask, leniency will be shown to the the prisoners Xanyon and K'z'k for the crimes of attacking a Templar with intent to kill, during an escape attempt. You will be given over as city-owned slaves for a time until your debt has been repaid, instead of a death sentence."
For the next group, those of you that were arrested fighting in the street, as you are brought forward as a group, a man dressed in traveling gear, marked by a bloody claw, is allowed to approach and speak to the the Justice. The Justice proceeds to sentencing, "In the case of civil disturbance by attempted murder of citizens in a public thoroughfare, two of the prisoners, those employed by the Black Sand mercenary charter, are released on their own recognizance and are under probationary watch." As Adder and Spider are led out of the trial he nods to the man in the mercenary uniform before continuing, "The rest of you are remanded to city ownership as slaves until such a time as your debt is repaid." he looks to the back of the courtyard, nods twice before announcing, "In the case of the slave owned debt, their debt has been purchased by a retainer of House Stel. They are now, as such, the property of the trading house and will be taken into custody by House Stel itself. The House informs me that they will be removing the threat of the prisoners actions by taking them to sell in the Nibenese markets. If you have interest in the ownership of these slaves you must either purchase them after these preceedings, or at the market in Nibenay."
At this last, he retreats into the building on which the balcony is perched, as guards in the livery of the new owners, House Stel, come forward to lead you to the slave pens. They lead you out of the courtyard to a crodlu drawn wagon, the whole thing one big cage, as they walk you up the ramp and lock you inside. The wagon then leaves towards the Obsidian Quarter. The guards walk a step away from the wagon, their obsidian longspears pointed at the prisoners.
Averel keeps his face blank as he is moved into the wagon. The whole time though he is thinking of a way to escape so he could finish his mission. While thinking he knows that he will need the help of the others to escape. He than sighs thinking "So to finish my mission I need help of others."
Morthak fumes with anger, marking the faces of Adder and Spider for future remuneration. I will not let this setback keep my from my family. Perhaps these slavers can even help me find my mother and sister... what were thier names again?"
Morthak's anger passes suddenly as he looks around the cage. His smile is uncomfortably at odds with the mood of the place. He looks at Sinorei and Anton. "No good deed goes unpunished in Urik, they say. Whatever happened to tangle you with those Black Sand Raiders?"
Anton stuggles to keep his face controlled, the rage at what happened to his master now turning into total fury. I was attacked in the street and did not even draw a weapon, and yet, now, I am the guilty party? This is 'civilized' living and the 'protection' that Hamanu gives. There are too many of them to fight now -- but I will tear this whole city down around their ears...
These ruminations keep the fire of his burning within him, even as they're taken back to the cell.
Anton answers with a completely flat voice, trying to force himself to sound calm, "I do not know. I was literally walking in the marketplace, and then under arrest -" He stops suddenly as he notes that his control is slipping. He grits his teeth and says, "Though I should thank you for coming to our aid before that little scorpion killed us."
Xanyon prowls the confines of his cage, staring at the guards and beginning to view the area for weaknesses.
"Don't worry K'z'k, I'll get you out of here."
The wagon ride is fairly short, and in no time you arrive at Stel House. Those of you with skill in arms can easily tell that many of the House guards are comfortable with the weapons in their hands. They ease the cage back up to a pen attached to the main house, where a few other slaves are milling about. The whole operation look like a prison camp, armed guards patrol the upper walks, gates are always in doubles wherein you pass through one and it closes before they open the next. As you leave the confines of the caged wagon, a man with an air of authority, most likely the slave master of House Stel, walks up and down the line of you looking you all up and down with approving nods. He withdraws a bag of coin and hands it to the man that looks to have made the deal at the trial. He turns and addresses the rest you, "You are now the property of House Stel. Be proud, we are a great and powerful House. Tomorrow, all of you will board a wagon headed toward Nibenay. Do not try anything or you will find that our House has no qualms about losing the investment we made in error by purchasing an irredeemable slave. You have tonight's meal, and a night's sleep before we move out. Make the best of it." He finishes, cracking his whip to punctuate his point before coiling it as he leaves the slave yard.
Sinorei kept her head down during the trial, whether from embarrassment, shame, or something else unclear.
As Anton comments on the injustice, she can only smile meekly and softly says, "I'm so sorry, it's all my fault..."
*No, it's Adder's fault. Looks like we should've joined their little band, like I had suggested, all you needed to was...*
Sinorei forced the psycrystal's thoughts from her head.
To Sinorei, "What happened between you and those thugs?"
As we talk, Morthank looks around the slave yard, trying to notice anything unusual, weaknesses in the defenses or perhaps patterns with the guards.
The thri-kreen seemingly makes no notice of the others in the cage, and sets about chewing a bit of straw she had managed to gather in the pens. She then regurgitates the chewed straw and dips her claw into the chew and starts spreading it around in some abstract pattern. Individuals, drawn with long, distorted limbs and evident, each reaching out to each other in some way. It is then encased in a cage.
The rough looking mul stands tall in the line of new slaves. His face and posture do not convey his recent defeats, but the line of old whip scars on his back clearly show he is no stranger to this life. His eyes are restless, scanning the walls, guards, and whip wielding slave master with equal malice.
I have escaped before, I will again. I need only create the opportunity.
Anton says quietly in Druidic, "No man may own me.".
In his head, however, he hears the voice of his mentor, Remember, boy, that the young animal must sometimes act submissive for a time to establish his dominance later.
He closes his eyes at the pang from the memory, I miss you, Old Elf...., and then opens them, the rage still clear, but the fires having died down to embers.
"While I would like to hear the story of what brought us here, Sinorei, I think to some extent the more pressing question is what we mean to do about it now that we are here."
Morthak sees no signs of weakness from his vantage, it may take longer study to truly find any patterns worth exploiting.
Averel listens as the others speak with each other or how a few looked around the area. He decides that it would be best to rest up for the morning so he could come up with a plan.
"What can we do? We didn't start the fight, yet here we are, now sold into slavery."
Sinorei sits in the cage, too mentally exhausted to even pace about.
"Save your water. Do not talk where the guards can overhear you. These drayspawn want nothing more than an excuse to break you."
Xanyon looks at the four talkative ones.
I can use these to my advantage.
Nothing to add, I guess.
"Save your water. Do not talk where the guards can overhear you. These drayspawn want nothing more than an excuse to break you."
Anton nods, "Indeed, they have that look."
He finds a pallet to sit down on and eats some of the offered food, then closes his eyes, I guess there's nothing to do but behave... for now.. Maybe the Old Elf will be wherever they're taking us?
The night is mostly quiet, not much to be heard beyond the movements of those on guard and the unmistakable sob of first time slaves, finally understanding the situation in which they now find themselves. The air grows cold at night, but the amount of bodies in the small space and the straw strewn about was just enough to maintain body heat in the city.
In the morning you are woken early, at first light, and they seperate you out into those that will be in the shipment and those staying. The wagon stopped in front of the gate, and armed guards closely monitor the loading. Years of owning slaves shows in the careful way they manage the proceedings. You are led up the ramp into the wagon, where you face a large set of double doors, open so that you are able to see them loading supplies from the other side. You are led to the right, past an archer's platform on your right about five feet up, to a door with a barred window to the left. Inside the room beyond the door is a straw covered darkened room, with shackles hanging from the walls. You are each secured to the shackles, which consist of a leather strap at the end of a giant hair rope. The rope, in turn, goes through a hole in the wall where it has a bone on the other end to secure it in place. The bone doesn't look strong enough to hold anyone without breaking, and can easily be deduced as a warning feature, as any significant pressure will break it and likely alert the guard. K'z'k is given extra security, her secondary arms are bound around her waist so they have no movement, and her mandibles are muzzled with a basket type device that will allow her to put small pieces of food in but neither the rope nor shackles can fit.
Once you are all locked in place, the six of you from the trial as well as three others from the slave pen, the crew finishes loading the wagon, and then you hear it creak to life. The crack of the whip and the commands given to the dangerous mekillots pulling the large wagon ring out now and again as the big thing makes its way out of the city, and into the open wilds. At noon, not long after the wagon leaves the city-state proper, you are each given a bowl of gruel and the meager water serving for the day. Just enough to keep away the pains of hunger and dehydration.
Xanyon begins stretching in the morning and performing a basic workout.
"You'll want to stay limber while you're in here. Don't sit too long, and try to keep yourself free of bugs."
He eyes the cage over K'z'k's mouth and the bindings around her arms.
I'll need a way to get those off quickly. Did they leave any bone or wood loose in here?
After about an hour of working out, Xanyon will brace himself against the wall and look at the others.
"Now watch this."
He flexs and snaps the bone holding up the rope, then stands there waiting for the guards.
Averel grins as the other mul breaks the bone holding up the ropes. He than says low "Say the word and I will break out of these as well to help you. I have much more important business than getting sold off by people that are not my masters."
Xanyon shakes his head and quickly whispers to the other mul.
"Allow them to beat me. We are testing them, it's too soon for escape, they're still on alert."
Averel nods to the other mul.
Morthak watches quietly.
Anton watches the Mul, nodding at his advice, He seems to know exactly how to handle the situation.... and... what's this, now?
He stands and stretches out as much as the bonds allow (without pushing them to their breaking point), looking for possibilities of escape, I wonder if I could convince the wagon-beasts to attack their 'masters'? Possibly, though not without being noticed, I imagine.
When he hears the bone break, he turns his attention back to the Mul, "What do you hope to learn from how well they beat you?", he asks, although his eyes narrow as a thought occurs to him, If that one is branded the trouble-maker, it may be that he attracts the eyes of the guards, allowing more freedom to those of us who are more meek and accepting.
Xanyon flexes and you see his muscles strain as he pulls against his bonds, leaning forward and extending his arms. It is not long before the snap of bone is heard from the other side of the wall, as the ropes pull through the eyelets in the wall. The ensuing bustle is almost immediate. The doors on both side of the cell fly open, two crossbowmen on each side scan the cell, and step aside to allow armed guards to enter. Four guardsmen rush in, their only visible weapons being leather gauntlets bearing obsidian shards along the forearm and knuckles. Two each grab Xanyon's arms as they slam him against the wall, three hands on each side hold him flat, as the two free fists strike him repeatedly about the chest, stomach and thighs. The strikes each leaving bleeding cuts and healthy bruises, it is evident that these gloves are not made for killing as much as for inflicting pain. With his arms against the wall, they feed the giant hair back through the eyelets, and this time the ropes are pulled tight, giving him no reach, as opposed to the one to two feet of slack that the rest of you have.
After they finish, they eye each one of you, one of them speaking to you, "Any more escape attempts, and you all go down to half rations, that should keep you too weak to try anything stupid."
They leave the cell, passing between the crossbowmen, who in turn close and bar the door once again. Before they walk away, one of them spits through the bars, hitting the closest, which just happens to be Averel, almost as if challenging him to also try something.
hp = 6/14, 8 nonlethal
Xanyon slumps unconscious, the blunt trauma of the gloves combining with the shards of obsidian to knock him out.
I figure with Xanyon having been a slave once he'll know more about how to act as a slave than most. He is also counting on his worth as a mul to keep him alive, thus his willingness to take a beating to find out how the guards respond. And of course this is also a gambit on his part to find out how his fellow prisoners will react, and if any of them have healing.
Anton stretches forward to when he first feels resistance from the bone-plate, trying to look at the status of his fellow slave. I hope they haven't beaten him too badly...
Averel turns to look at the man that spat at him he than says "I am going to kill that one." He than looks at the other mul on the ground than at the others "Any idea if he will be alright? He should of let me break free while the guards were upon him."
Without Quib's emotional support, Sinorei feels hopeless.
"Please, don't try that again..." she pleads, genuinely fearful that any single person's attempt would mean retribution and beating for all of them.
We are valuable property now, they will treat us as such... right?
Nothing replies to her mental query.
Despite being surrounded by several others sharing her fate, Sinorei feels alone for the first time in weeks.
After the long pause, Sin hears...
More valuable to them than you are to me right now. I'm sure you have it better than clinging to the underside of this wagon. You weren't about to start getting mopey now, were you?
Averel looks at the female who spoke "I am going to get out. Seems he has the same idea." Averel points at the unconscious mul before going on "I have to fulfill Aleron's wish. Being locked up like this does not help me to do that."
Sinorei composes herself, gaining confidence at hearing the voice inside her head.
"Aleron? Who's Aleron?"
Averel looks hard at the female for a long time before answering "He would say he is my friend. I would call him my master's son."