Akiki very quietly circles around the front of the building, steps onto the deck, and moves up to the service door.
Looking at it, she can tell that it's locked, and the keyholes in the doorknob tell her that with the proper application of tools, she can spring the door open.
Akiki glances around at the others to make sure that they're going to be quiet - and then produces from inside her cloak somewhere some little tools for just such a purpose. Hers are worn and old, no longer shiny or pretty to look at, but still quiet functional.
She makes a little 'tsk' at the door, or maybe the tools, or maybe her fingers, and shakes her head, making another gesture towards the path around to the back.
Back doors are the best. All rogues know this!
"Any entrance is going to be locked," murmurs Fredo, shaking his head. "And we're already here. Can you try again?" he says encouragingly.
Akiki scowls and pokes at the lock a bit to see if she can try again. ;)
The lock on the backdoor clicks open, but the door remains closed. Akiki notes an extremely strong fishy smell, as well as a bevy of other smells.
Akiki looks back expectantly at Fredo, and further back at the other three men she's waiting for.
Akiki skitters backwards from the door, tucking her tools away again. She shakes her head at the others congregated there. She holds up her hands, points at the door, and shakes her head fervently. She mimes sleeping, then counts on her fingers - 1...2...3...4....? And she shrugs. Its clear that she's trying to convey something to people, and she's skilled enough at this kind of thing, though the rest of them may have a hard time figuring her out.
Akiki might mean something, but its hard to tell what exactly.
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After seeing Akiki step back from the lock, Nostrum starts sneaking foward. Unfortunately, his heavy frame makes him much less stealth than his companions and a few wooden planks underfoot groan underfoot.
Noticing her erratic gestures, Nostrum tries to get a grip on what Akiki is signalling. Raising her clasped hands to her face, Nostrum is sure she is requesting prayer. Always willing to help, he sends a silent petition to his God.
After seeing Akiki step back from the lock, Nostrum starts sneaking foward. [dice=sneak]1d20+1 Unfortunately, his heavy frame makes him much less stealth than his companions and a few wooden planks underfoot groan underfoot.
Noticing her erratic gestures, Nostrum tries to get a grip on what Akiki is signalling. [dice=perception]1d20+5 Raising her clasped hands to her face, Nostrum is sure she is requesting prayer. Always willing to help, he sends a silent petition to his God.
** spoiler omitted **
Raijinn nods to Nostrum, thinking that perhaps we all aren't so different after all. He reflexively tries to adjust his wings, but they barely twitch as he nods and replies, "No one else need suffer what we have"
: Like Akiki, Raijinn's finely tuned senses pick up the smell of people on the other side of the door. He tenses up as Nostrum's weight causes the boards to creak. Raijinn quickly puts a hand on Nostrum's shoulder to keep him from moving forward any further, and holds a finger up to his lips.
Raijinn quietly unshealths his sword in preparation.
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Feeling Raijinn's hand on his shoulder, Nostrum quickly stops. He sees his new found friend drawing his weapon and realization dawns on him. He feels an idiot that he didn't understand Akiki's message earlier.
He silently unlatches his greataxe, but doesn't move forwards just yet lest a particularly loud board awakens the sleepers.
Thaven, who swears he just checked this thread yesterday, unslings his long bow and nocks an arrow. He creeps behind the sneaky elf, his feet moving on autopilot.
Creeping along the deck towards his compatriots, Nostrum slows creaks his way across the deck, when he steps on a particularly loud board. For a very long moment, the quintet look at one another in quiet anticipation. Then, angry barking issues from inside the house, muffled somewhat by the walls, and after a moment, scratching on the screen door. It appears their approach won't be so secret at all.
Akiki appears aghast. Surely they don't expect her to go first, do they? She backs away from the door with another emphatic shake of her head. No sir. Rogues do not go in front!
Thaven hears the barking, shakes his head sadly, and kicks in the nearest door!
Akiki facepalms. Yes, she facepalms, and scoots around to maneuver herself to follow Jack. She makes as much of an effort to be stealthy as she can while moving - (Surprisingly, this works pretty well.)
She's hoping to use the darkness and confusion of Jack's sudden entrance to slip in, slide along a wall, and find a dark corner to spring out at someone and get sneak attack damage - either from surprise or from flanking someone.
"That many people on the other side, sleeping in hammocks?" says Fredo, unslinging his crossbow and fitting a bolt in the slot. "Sounds like the Lambs to me. C'mon, let's get between them and that dog."
He follows Jack and Akiki inside, fumbling with the weapon a bit. It's the first time he's ever used it off the range.
Raijinn mutters a curse in Infernal and, clenching his jaw, he moves quickly and quietly after the others, sword raised, wings flailing in the wind.
- whatever penalty for trying to move quickly while doing it.
He notices Goffred fumbling and worry sweeps through his mind. 'No time for that now,' he insists.
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Nostrom surges forward to follow Thaven into the building, certain that the raucous barking of the dog(s) - and the sound of a door being kicked in - will masking any other floorboards.
"Be watchful for the day a son of Rovagug arrives" he mutters under his breath, finding a sense of irony that it should apply as equally to animals as to himself.
The room inside at the end of the deck is about 45 feet deep and 35 feet wide. and several feet below the door at which you enter. A staircase descends to the farthest northeast corner of the house, which is piled high with refuse. Adjacent to the highest point of the stairs is a 10-by-10, foully smelling vat of water, chum, and acid. Tubing leads from just above this vat into the ceiling, and apparently the floor above. The floor here is slick with seawater, bits of seaweed, and fish blood—the air is thick with the accompanying scent. There is an open bay in the center of the room that hangs directly over the muddy water. Catwalks on the south end of the room offer a vantage point from which to oversee the room, as well as entrance into the rest of the fishery. A staircase on the eastern face of the room leads up to the catwalks. Nearly two dozen hammocks are strung about this room, each accompanied by a matching set of ragged blanket, pillow, and child. These, apparently, are Gaedren's "Lamms". They are clearly terrified of the loud, large, mangy mastiff that quickly crosses the room towards the staircase, barking loudly.
Raijinn mutters a curse in Infernal and, clenching his jaw, he moves quickly and quietly after the others, sword raised, wings flailing in the wind.
[dice=Stealth]1d20 + 4 - whatever penalty for trying to move quickly while doing it.
He notices Goffred fumbling and worry sweeps through his mind. 'No time for that now,' he insists.
[dice=Perception]1d20 + 4
Akiki is startled and horrified by the number of children in here, and resists the urge to yell out for Semelle somewhere among them. Instead she draws her bow.
Akiki fires an arrow at the dog, more to shut it up than to hurt it.
Thaven follows the elf's arrow with one of his own.
Fredo's Initiative:
Fredo's action: Casts acid splash at the large dog.
Ranged touch:
Damage:
"Please stay calm," says Fredo, his eyes darting between his target and the children he's addressing. Unsurprisingly, his glob of acid lands far off the mark. Still, the situation's salvageable. "My name is Goffred. My friends and I will make sure the dog can't hurt you. And we'll rid you of Lamm by morning."
Current initiative roster:
Thaven=24
Little Lamms=17
Thugs=16
Akiki=14
Goffred=5
Nostrum=5
: Raijinn sees the children but knows better than to try to interact with them. There's nothing that he can say that will comfort them, and his mere presence is sure to agitate them. He tries not to think about it, and moves to slash at the dog with his sword, silencing it once and for all.
ROUND ONE
Crashing through the door and crowding onto the narrow staircase, the party quickly surveys the large smelly room. Amazed and horrified by what they find, they are only snapped out of their momentary trance by a loud dog's bark. Quick to react, Thaven pulls the drawstring on his bow and lets loose an arrow, striking the dog strongly in the shoulder. The Lamms tense, the last few reclining ones groggily rubbing their eyes, while a few of the older kids wide-eyed and watching the drama unfold. They are clearly too terrified of the dog to move, however. Raijinn dashes onto the wet floor of the room and delivers a quick slice to the dog's head, vertically along its forehead with his obsidian blade, felling the foul-tempered huge dog. An arrow from the twitchy Akiki, lands in the wood where the dog's torso was a moment later. Nostrum and Goffred duck into the room inquisitively, looking around for what their companions jumped so much at.
As one, the mass of raggedy children look to the party (although a few cast slantways glances at Raijinn-clearly unnerved) and burst into a hushed cheer.
Thugs Perception:
Bloo's attack roll:
Bloo's damage:
Bloo's trip:
Akiki forgets about the dog as soon as her arrow hits the floor. She slings her bow over her shoulder rather haphazardly, and goes running into the hammocks, hissing in a whisper-shout, "Semelle ... Semelle"
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The sight of the cowering children pulls at Nostrom's heart strings. He walks over to the nearest group of them, and in a soothing whisper tries to comfort them.
"It's ok little ones. We're here to rescue from this hell hole. My friends got rid of the bad dog, and we will protect you from anything else that is bad. Is the man who took you here?"
Whilst soothing the Lamms Nostrum strains his ears for the dog's owner, certain they're not alone.
Raijinn does his best to continue staying away from the children, but not before tossing them a quick - and he hopes not terrifying - grin in response to their cheers. He moves up the stairs to the catwalks slowly, keeping his ears open to see if anyone might have heard the dog's barking and be on the way.
Cat gives Fredo a long-suffering look as one of the children scoops her up off the floor. "Careful," he chides, smiling indulgently. "You can hold her, but make sure you support her whole body. She doesn't like being stretched out." He stays calm, projecting those feelings through his link to Cat so she doesn't lash out, bite, or scratch. The kids don't need any more of that in their lives.
Nostrum and Goffred mingle with the kids, surrounded by a very small crowd. Their soothing words seem to assuage the fears of the children, although nervous eyes flit towards the doors, as if waiting for something.
A boy, emboldened by the new presences, gets up from his cot before yelling and running across the room to deliver a strong kick to the downed dog. "Let's see who eats who NOW, Bloo!"
Raijinn slowly pads up the staircase, watchful for danger, but for the moment at least, you are alone with the children. Your sword very slowly drips blood on the damp wood underfoot, leaving a scant trail behind you as you walk.
One boy, one of the oldest in the group, stands up from his hammock and moves forward to timidly stand before the group.
He says "Er. Um. Hi. My name's Kester. How're you gonn' get us outta here without Hookshanks finding out and coming to kill you? He's here all right, and he isn't gonn' be happy to find you in here."
Akiki, you find no physical trace of your sister in this room, but one girl, Alanna, swears she knew a pointy-eared little girl bunked near her for a little while.
Thaven peers around the room. "Kids, where's Lamm?" He keeps his bow up and an arrow nocked, ready to fire if an enemy should present itself.
Akiki resists the urge to punch a wall, and thanks Alanna seriously anyway. "I'll get where he took her out of him...don't worry. We'll take care of him. And anyone who's helping him." she nods.
Fredo's mouth hardens at the question. He knows an answer, but Kester had asked it so blithely, so disturbingly comfortable with the prospect of imminent death, that he feels uncomfortable giving it. "He may try getting in our way, Kester," he says slowly. "He will not succeed.
"But my friend raises a good point," says Fredo, gesturing at Jack. "We can keep you safer if we know where to find Lamm, and goons like Hookshanks, before they find us."
The girl addressing Akiki continues at this, saying, "Oh, I knows where she got took to, and I knows where he is. He's below. You gotta go around, 'cuz there's no door that gets there, but whenever a kid gets too rowdy, Giggles comes down here and drops 'em in the hole there onto a boat. None of 'em ever come back, neither."
Thaven scowls. "Where's this Hookshanks and Giggles now? Let's feed them to something fishy, eh?"
"They dumped my sister down a hole!?" Akiki almost shouts before moderating herself to a furious hiss of a whisper. She curls her fingers into fists.
"I'm going to gut him!" She snarls between her teeth, and goes running out and around to the walkway around the back.
"Go around," says Fredo, looking down at the girl Akiki had found. "You mean that walkway that wraps around the building, don't you?" As he thinks, he spots Akiki trying to leave, and grabs her by the wrist.
"We've got to think of them too," he says insistently, almost spitting the words. His eyes flick at Kester, and at the girl, then focus back on Akiki. "First we clear this floor of Hookshanks, Giggles, and any other goons. Make sure no one will hurt any more kids. Then we go after Lamm. After that..." Fredo looks around the room, trying to make eye contact with as many people as possible. "After that we try and give the kids a decent life." Fredo's plans are far from definite on that front, but it's early yet, and there are more pressing concerns.
"Come on," he says, hefting his weapon, still clumsy but much more confident. "Let's try one of these doors."