"Yes. That is a logical plan. South Shore it is."
Alistair follows the direction of the strange beggar, keeping an eye out for any danger along the way.
The apparent lack of interest in Rica's words causes her eye to twitch somewhat. 'I should summon the thing right here, right now. If they're caught off guard, well, they should have paid closer attention!' She somehow manages to avoid losing her temper though, and instead clears her throat rather loudly before speaking.
"That -is- a nice plan, but once we get near the Gray District, I'll need a minute to cast before we reach South Shore. We don't know what kind of state it's going to be in, and I'd rather have some backup. I'm sure you all are pleasant, honorable folk, but I don't yet trust you to jump in front of an arrow for me." If the others decide to start the trek, Rica will follow, making sure she's neither in the back nor the front.
Senjin thinks he will be pretty low on the 'jumping in front of arrows for nobles list'. He keeps his head down and the mask covers any smirk that might be there. "If you need just a minute to summon an arrow-catcher, I will welcome the moment to rest...Let's go"
'Off we go so!' Luca trundles out onto the streets and leads the party out to the edges of the Gray District, he moves in sharp jagged steps, going as fast as he can, but still slower than most men, his bad leg clearly more than an affectation, he even begins to lean on the cane form time to time as he goes, taking the worst of the weight of his bad leg, his eyes are sharp, searching from side to side always on the lookout for danger and escape routes, his head low but swivelling rapidly and birdlike from side to side, he is truly a creature of the streets, and his nickname seems well suit as he stalks through a city at war with itself.
The group uses the alley behind the shops of Eodred's square to slip into the less well-traveled side streets. Fewer of the roving mobs travel in these streets, preferring the wide avenues filled with shops to plunder and people to attack. Even in the alleys and side streets, a number of injured people stumble to and fro. Some appear to be looking for safety or shelter, while others appear to be looking to resume their destructive ways. They pass an alley that gives a clear view of the Gold Market west of Eodred's Square. Most of the tents and wagons are torn down and in tatters, some even aflame. Hundreds of people, appearing to be mostly the poor, sort through the wreckage. Several people are involved in a mass melee, fighting over the unprotected loot.
As they cross West High Street on their way to the wall that separates the living from the dead of the Gray District, the group hears a loud explosion coming from the north. Half a dozen Sable Company marines streak from south to north, heading towards the source of the explosion. A beggar looks to the north with eyes whited out by age and shouts to the city. "It is the darkest hour! The Queen's bargain comes with a price! Prepare for the feast of Dagon, who will emerge from the sea to consume Korvsoa!" The madman continues to rant and rave at no one and everyone as they pass.
They reach the wall of Gray District and prepare to head west through the tenements south of Last Way. However, as they look down the wide avenue of Last Way to the gate south of Eodred's Walk, they see a sight that sends chills to the core of anyone who is not a true believer in the vision of Cheliax.
Hellknights.
The Hellknights of the Order of the Nail march in an extremely orderly fashion in rows of five through the southern gate of Citadel Road from Citadel Vraid, which sits 15 miles to the south of Korvosa. As they enter, the crowds who had previously been throwing things at the Guardsmen manning the towers and keeping the doors shut disperse quickly. They continue to march in, row after row, until at least two hundred have entered the city. At the head of the column marches Severs DiVri, the Lictor of the Order the Nail. His presence in Korvosa is a fearsome sight, as he is known to all Korvosans as a man utterly devoid of compassion in his adherence to the law: he is not cruel or sadistic, but simply unrelenting and unyielding. Many Korvosans speak in hushed whispers that he executed his own son for taking a life without adequate cause during a trip into the city. His armor, a black hulking figure akin to a pit fiend, is a terror to behold in its fearsome silhouette.
One of the crowd rushes forward as the Hellknights enter the gate. A young man dressed in modest craftsman clothing, he shouts at them as he charges DiVri with a short short raised. "Return to Hell, for you are not welcome in our city!" The Lictor calmly sidesteps the young man's errant swing and brings his own sword across with unusual skill and grace. The man's head falls to the floor, severed without effort by DiVri.
As the body falls to the ground, he turns to address the crowd. "Untrue. Your Queen has given us full authority to stamp out this insurrection and unrest. You will return to order or you will face a swift death without mercy."
'Well s@##,' Luca halts abruptly. 'This is not good. Alejandro, have you got any form of identification. We need a different tact to get out of here now. And I'm not dressed to do any hob-nobbing with Hellknights.' Any guard insignia, or noble mark. Gods a signet ring even. Anything, all we need is legitimacy, we need to seperate ourselves from the mobs.
Luca looks around rapidly, and flattens his hair a bit, but nothing will make him immediately look less a malcontent and beggar. Which is not something he wants to appear as in front of two hundred Hellknights.
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Stepping forward, Alejandro tosses off the blanket, throwing it to the Eel. "Hold this till I can return it yes?" Straightening his clothes, he sheaths his sword. Looking around, he frowns softly. 'Let us see... Ah yes. Here!' Holding his arms up over his head, he calls the attention of one of the Guards near by.
"Sergeant I need your assistance!" Making sure the man can see him clearly, and recognises him for who he is, Alejandro prays silently that this will be enough.
Turning back to the group, he frowns softly for a second, before speaking in a hushed whisper. "Remove any masks and sheath any weapons. Trust me here. Eel, you will be Rica's Bodyguard. Don't speak, just stay near her and act like you will put her life before yours. Alistair you are my man servant. Sorry for that old chap. Master Gull, you are my honored guest!" Grinning, Alejandro pats the Gull on the back. "I am just that eccentric after all. Mistress Arrow you will be Rica's honored guest. Yet again, please dont speak, just look haughty and like you think you are better than us. That is perfect, just like that!"
Nodding softly, Alejandro grins, before offering Rica his arm. "M'Lady Hismar, care to take a turn around the city?"
I think I prefer the Grey District at this point. Senjin will pull his face covering down to hang loosely around his neck. The hatchet he tucks back into his belt, not that it would much use against those metal monsters.
Alistair quickly removes his cloak and wraps his weapons in it, holding it in both of his arms. Hopefully this will look like I am carrying Endrin's things... Alistair's Varisian features should be more than enough to look like a manservant, Varisians being of a lower class than the nobles of the city. He is still wearing his leather armor, but a noble would allow his favorite manservant some protection in a riot such as this, especially if that noble is an Endrin.
Alistair then moves behind Alejandro slightly to his right, lowering his head to look at the street. I hope this is enough...
Rica's eyes go wide and she curses under her breath when she sees the Hellknights enter. When Alejandro begins trying to get the attention of the guard, she stares at him as if he's gone insane. "The last thing we want to do is draw attention to ourselves. What is that idiot doing?!"
When he addresses her, she stares at him for a good, long moment before realizing that she's stuck playing along, lest she bring even more attention to the group. She glances from the Hellknight, to Alejandro, and then back to the Hellknights before quickly grasping Alejandro's arm. "A turn would be nice, I think. Maybe things will get -calmer- with the new arrivals," Rica replies in her best 'imitation' of a haughty noble, taking the hint of self importance she normally has in her voice and magnifying it until she sounds positively disgusting in her nobility.
Elrith, not the world's best actress, decides to adopt the guise of...an archer protecting the nobles. She lowers her bow, though looks vigilant.
Bluff (if needed):
The Guardsman rushes over to Alejandro. He is a young recruit, one who Alejandro recognizes but can't recall his name. "Endrin, right? Man, you've got to get inside. The Queen paid the Hellknights to come restore order. Considering that they're here so soon after the announcement means that she knew what was coming. They're..." He stops speaking as the Hellknight column comes near. They march north up Citadel Road, apparently using Eodred's Walk to assemble and organize. This will have the effect of a quarantine of East Shore, as the High Bridge is the only way into the main part of the city other than swimming across the fast-moving Jeggare River. A large contingent will likely seize control by force until the unrest is subjugated under their metal boots.
The Hellknights give barely a glance towards them. As they are speaking to the Guardsman and appear to not be involved in looting or unrest, they are complying with the demand for order.
Luca seeing his companions fall in under Alejandro's suprisingly clever plan himself re-adopts his beggar's guise, his face a measure of wonder at being accompanied by a kindly noble and respectful fear of his societal betters.
Let's hope DiVries isn't interested in vagrancy today, that hardnosed sun of a b!%#&.
'Thank ye so kindly for keepin' me with ye Master Endrin, yer a kind man, too kind for the likes o' me.'
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"We are going to get inside Recruit and you are going to help us!" Alejandro grins and pats Rica's hand gently and begins to steer her towards their destination. "We are taking the main streets now. All of you stay close. We are safe now, the HellKnights have come to save us. Do not worry, we will all get there safe!" He speaks loud enough to be heard, towards the end, before nodding towards the Guard Recruit.
"Lead on Sir. Best we not keep Lady Hismar out here in this!" Nodding softly, Alejandro moves with command, leading the group, with the Recruit at his side.
"We need to appear to be in command. We act like the Nobles we are Rica. I am sorry we spoke over you earlier, these are hard times!" He whispers, for Rica's ears alone.
"My pleasure dear boy. Always willing to spend time with the lesser man!" Alejandro grins at Luca.
Senjin spits on the ground at his feet. "These Chellaxian tin cans got here quicker than we could cross town while running... I agree, the Queen sold the entire city out. Let's move. We talk if they catch us, but better to keep moving..or else we will be jailed 'for our own safety'."
"Like I already said...if we are to stand for racial and societal equality as you folks seem gung-ho do to, it has to apply to everybody, including Chelaxians. Saying that all Chelaxians are evil and spit-worthy is the same as saying that all Chelaxians think all Shoanti are smelly, illiterate barbarians."
She says all this still maintaining her guise as a hired guard, never taking her eyes off the surrounding roads and alleyways.
"That has been my experience as a Shoanti...from most, but not all. But as I am willing to fight for a new free Korvosa, I just fear a troop of Hellknights won't be contributing to that dream. If the Queen has chosen their support, there will be a cost, plus its a spit in the face, pardon the phrase, for the Sable Marines and the Guard."
"Agreed. Not looking for a fight here. Not with this team, nor a troop of Hellknights."
Looking askance at Senjin Luca keeps his eyes mainly on the Hellknights. 'Come on, lets get up to them and try and get through. Any more street walking and we'll be caught by a mob or a patrol, this is our best bet. Just let our noble friend do the talking,' Luca whispers quietly, his head still down, and his mind racing with possiblities, scenarios in which they will get asked awkward questions, and not be able to answer them. Its not like I can run away with this godsdamned leg. Have I every met DiVries? I don't think so, he's not one for attending social functions, and he'd be hard-pressed to recognise me now.
DiVri stares at them from under his terrifying helmet, eyes boring into them. "Yes, this is why we are here. Return to your homes and maintain order. Leave this to us." He barely regards them as he continues to lead the Hellknight contingent into the city. They assemble in the square, hundreds in total. It is clear that their goal is to restore order with an iron, armored fist. They are simply not interested in the group of nascent rebels.
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"Thank you kindly Sir. We shall indeed be going now!" Turning away, Alejandro glares at the others before growling. "You heard him, lets get off these blasted streets and leave these fine gentelmen to their work. Lead on. Let us get home so I can have my supper!" He winks at the Gull, surpressing a smile, before stalking towards the Gate.
"JENKINS BRING MY THINGS!" He screams back over his shoulder towards Alastair.
'Well that was... almsot dissappointly simple. We perhaps overthought that my friends. Now... Shall we git o' the streets and inta yer house Ms. Arrow?' Luca's beggar accent reasserts itself, unsettlingly rapidly, in the middle of his speech, and his hunch remains pronounced as he leans on his cane in a way that any who ran with him the alleys would know was not neccesary. Shuffling onwards, he says to Elrith. 'Its yer show now Miss. Where's yer house?'
Hellknights. Single-minded, blunt nosed, and not without their uses. but their will be atrocities this night. They are above all merciless. Poor rioting fools don't even know whats coming from them on Hell's borrowed wings.
Alistair, who had been quiet, trying not to draw notice to himself from the Hellknights, rushes forward at Alejandro's call. He keeps up the guise until they are well away from the armored knights, and then relaxes a little. "It amazes me how quickly we all fell in line and took up the role given to us. If we work this well together now, imagine how effective we'll be when we get to know each other better."
Alistair still doesn't trust everyone yet, especially not the nobles in the group, but he is rather optimistic that the group's talents can finally bring out some change. He looks forward to conversing while in the comfort of safety.
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"We must be thankful that this group seems to be gifted with an abundance of one thing, sense. That, in itself, will make what we plan a lot easier!" Nodding softly, Alejandro steps away from the Group, taking the Recruit by the arm and leading him away.
"Run back to the Citadel Recruit, and tell the Field Marshall that you spoke with me, and I am heading underground for the time being. When I have news, I will seek out Guard Ellerin!" Shoving his hand in to his pocket, Alejandro pulls out ten gold pieces, before stuffing them in to the Recruits hand. "You are a good man, take this for your troubles, and remind me to buy you a drink next time we meet!" Saluting the man, Alejandro pushes him back towards the gate, before returning to the group.
"Let's get off the street. I could do with a drink and we need to talk this out!"
Elrith nods at Luca and gestures, "This way." She heads down the street.
After a bit of walking, and still directing their path, she sidles up to Alejandro. "You seem well-known to the Guard, my Lord," she says, no mocking tone to the honourific. "Have no fear, I'm certain a Guardsman sent to infiltrate an organization such as this would not blow his cover within the first half hour of his assignment, I was just wondering. Were you an officer? You have too much of a lordly way about you - you played that part too well just now - to be an enlisted soldier."
She glances at the Hellknights now in their wake. "A lot of scared and frightened people are going to die tonight. I don't think those soldiers will be doing much in the way of making arrests. Not that I think we can do much about it, other than get ourselves killed."
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Alejandro laughs softly, shaking his head as he turns to address Elrith. "An Officer? By the Gods no. Well... I was in the process of probably becoming one. You haven't been in the City long have you?" He asks, a small smile playing across his lips.
"House Endrin has produced more Field Marshals of the Guard than any Noble House to date. I was set to follow in this tradition, to some extent, till my Father passed away awhile back. I left the Guard and haven't been back since. I keep friendly with them, it is a useful thing!" He nods softly, frowning.
"I suppose though, were you to ask the Gull, the thing my Grandfather and Father were most well known for, were their interest in the Common man. My grandfather was a kind man, he gave much to charity, set up Soup Kitchens and Orphanages and tried to help as much as possible. For that alone... House Endrin has become somewhat of a... laughing stock, in the last couple of years. Rica can attest to that I am sure!" Nodding softly, Alejandro looks at Rica with a small frown.
'Have I met the young Hismar before? I can not seem to remember... I suppose I have, at some point!'
"Anyway... What about you my dear? What is it that has lead you to this cause?" He smiles, shrugging his shoulders a little, shaking some of the tension from his shoulders.
"Yes... This is true. Their will be deaths tonight. The smart ones will avoid the streets, the looters will meet their end and the Queen will do what she thinks is best. It won't be though, not in the way she thinks. The HellKnights rule this place now. That is all there is to it!"
Elrith thinks awhile before responding, clearly considering her answer. "I miss having a purpose in my life," she responds simply.
When Alejandro first whispers to Rica, she raises a brow but says naught a word, still in shock at what just occurred. Once Alistair brings up the idea of their effectiveness though, a small smile appears on the frightened girl's face.
"House Endrin...I recall hearing the noble house being mentioned by my mother fairly recently, but truthfully I try to stay above the petty squabbling," Rica answers Alejandro, a slight smirk on her face. "If there is any question as to my loyalty, one learned in such matters only needs to recall the gossip of Sadie Hismar's marriage to a lowly artisan, said artisan's subsequent rise to popularity, and the couple's only female child who, throughout her early life, stubbornly refused to fall in line with the games of popularity. I'm known more to those from the Academae than I am to most nobles, save my own parents." She recounts her own story with pride, despite not being asked.
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Alejandro frowns softly, before barking a short sharp laugh. "Indeed? I assume your mother would be speaking about how "That foolish Endrin boy nearly ran their House in to the dust. Building a silly Temple, what good is that?", or maybe about how I have moved out of my ancestral home and in to a small apartment in the Millitary District? Regardless... It is just one of those things. You know that as well as I Rica!" Smiling, Alejandro, nods softly.
"The Academae hmm? Interesting choice. You must be quite gifted to be accepted in to that esteemed society. I applaud you!" Alejandro says, his voice full of sincerity.
"Rica I must ask... Have we ever been introduced before? I have a feeling we have met, if only in passing!"
Rica's smirk slowly widens into a grin in response to Alejandro's complements. Even so, she stares straight ahead, eyes not moving from the Arrow as she follows behind her.
"Accepted and...dismissed once they realized my talents were a bit...more than they could handle," Rica adds, her voice dripping with even more pride. "I was a bit of a special case, to put it lightly." She then glances to Alejandro for just a second, bloodshot eyes squinting as if trying to remember where they've seen him before.
"I have no doubt that we have, though I'd since forgotten. If you'd remember me or my family for anything, it would probably be the elf...ah, 'helper'," she chooses her words carefully, as if loathed to use the word 'servant'. "During most events I attended with my parents, he rarely left my side. Astin is his name. He's...actually the one who suggested I come," she mutters the last part so that hopefully only Alejandro can hear, though she probably underestimates the rest of the groups hearing ability.
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Alejandro smiles and nods softly. "A Special Case? Even more impressive. Getting expelled for stupidity is not impressive, being expelled for being too much to handle, now THAT is something else entirely!" Smiling, a little, he nods.
"I do seem to remember a kindly Elven Attendant, with a young Noble Charge, at a party I attended some years ago. I believe it was a Garden Party at the Jeggare estate, or perhaps not. Regardless, I am pleased to have made your acquaintance once more, especially on such an exciting evening!"
"He had right to send you I suppose, this is a worthy cause. Best you are not seen with me though, lest everyone think you have gone quite as mad as "that Endrin boy"!" Alejandro whispers, for Ricas ears alone.
'Yeggar party huh? I hear they're some shindigs,' Luca mutters to himself as he hustles along, wincing with pain as he shuffles forward quickly, not in any great pain, but his leg causing him great discomfort. I'm going to be exhausted when we get there. What kind of clandestine agent is this slow?
Sidling up beside Senjin he asks 'And whats your story my friend, you seem a passionate man, and none to fond of Chelaxians. Rich or poor.'
"I am a Korvosan. That is all I can claim. Born a Shoanti, I sat at the feet of my father and learned of the wars that came with the Chellaxians. As I grew up alone n the streets, I found that the attitudes spawned by the wars have not gone away for those who still call themselves Chellaxian. Only among those who also see themselves as Korvosans have I ever not experienced hatred or fear as the first reaction."
"People looked at me, a lone dirty child sleeping in a gutter, and yet failed to find it in themselves to even allow me in an orphanage. Not that that would have been pleasant. But it would have been a choice to see the worth of a Shoanti child. Instead, it was upon me as an eight-year old to make my way on the streets. To find similar children and hide ourselves from the predators of the streets until we became strong enough to carve out our home."
"There were no parties. A good day was not going to sleep hungry. The Chellaxians saw me as an animal and under their careful neglect and contempt, I became one of the most dangerous. Yet still, I am Korvosan. I cannot go live on the plains with a people I was not raised by and can no longer speak their tongue. Korvosa is all I have and I will fight for those I helped save from the streets and to keep the next generation off the streets."
The group makes their way through the relatively lower-class houses that form the neighborhood between Pillar Hill Boulevard and the Pillar Wall that separates the Gray District and South Shore from the northern part of the city proper. While the people living in these homes are certainly not well-off, they are industrious and moral people who simply wish to live their lives. Few rioters roams the alleyways between the houses, which are mostly shut with no light coming from inside. One house burns towards the south, watched impassively by a few dozen onlookers. A family huddles close as they watch everything they own burn in the fire of anarchy.
As they round the corner of Breach Avenue and look south down into Southshore, a shocking sight awaits them. The Jade Circle, one of the most happening sites for young people to gather and socialize, is besieged by a huge mob of torch-carrying peasants. They are shouting and spitting towards the group of affluent young adults inside the green-painted building with its distinctive dome. The lacquered latticework doors, normally only difficult to get through because of their exacting standards, are apparently barricaded from the inside. Half a dozen members of the mob push and pull on the doors, trying to get them open. From the open-air balcony on the second floor, perhaps a dozen young men look down with rapiers and daggers drawn. Further inside, several young women quake in fear behind them. One of the peasants throws a torch up onto the balcony, spiraling as it sails through the air, and shouts to the others. "Burn them out!" The torch lands at the feet of the noblemen, who quickly stamp it out, but its trajectory brought it past the banners of the city's noble houses that hang from the balcony. The Jeggare banner catches fire, threatening to spread to the rest of it. The lacquered surfaces will burn quickly, dooming the gathered nobles inside in mere minutes.
Past the Jade Circle, the Pantheon of Many is filled by what looks like hundreds of people. They shout and wail, each shouting to their own gods, as a massive brawl breaks out between the worshipers of rival gods. The followers of Sarenrae and Pharasma seem to have taken the opportunity to finally forcibly remove the shrine to Urgathoa from the Pantheon. Clerics from all the faiths begin casting spells, beseeching their gods for assistance, and pushing their own adherents to defend their ideals. It will soon be a bloodbath as the grip of the mad melee takes hold.
'Tis a tragic tale, Senjin to be sure. But if ye want to save Korvosa, it won' be without everyone who had a different childhood than yer own. To help the children of the street ye need to make all of Korvosa happy. And rich. you need to spread the wealth, pay your way through racism. It'll work better than swords, or even strong words. People are practical, give them incentive to be better,' Luca says it queitly, as much as if he's convincing himself of things, making suggestions, and palying plans he's thought about many times. This is clearly a subject he feels strongly about.
As they enter Southshore however he looks up and straightens. 'By the gods...' And I hoped Southshore would be spared the worst of it. Has this madness no end? How did the Hellknights not see this as they entered the city!?
'We can't let this happen,' Luca's voice returns to its loud, well-spoken incarnation immediately, as he turns to his companions, all joviality fled, all the show of weakness dissapated. 'If we want to save the city, this is it. We can't turn a blind eye and hope to be save any longer. You can all go on to Elrith's house, but I cannot stand by or walk past. If you want to help, lets divide into two groups. I'm going to try and stop the fire happy crowd... Somehow. I wouldn't mind help. Another bunch of you need to get to the Pantheon and try and defuse the situation. Get the Shelynites on side maybe, they are a peaceful bunch and hated by none. Well, whats it to be? Whos with me, and whos for the Pantheon? If neither get out of here and to somewhere safe? Go!' Luca turns on his heel and begins to hobble towards the yelling crowd with a look of determination. Time to tell some lies. Great ones. How proud father would be. Whats that gents, I hear Hellknights coming? Luca stares ahead, as te Jeggare flag burns through and falls to the ground, the other flags now catching flame.
The man who threw the torch seems like he is the likely leader of the group. They are almost all young males, probably unemployed, with the torch-thrower as the biggest of them. He looks to be Shoanti, at least in his heritage. He looks up at the nobles with an undiluted hate, wild eyes drinking in the fire's effects. He is shouting and getting the crowd even more frenzied, though there is no subtlety or cause to his destruction. "Bet it's hot for those dandies! Maybe if they'd felt the sun beatin' on they back for a day, they be handlin' it bettah!"
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Growling angrily, Alejandro makes to step forward, his hand on the hilt of his blade. "I... I can't. No. DAMN IT!" Growling sharply, he slams his blade back in to its sheath, before turning on the group. "We have to help them! How dare they? They are little more than Children! The...!" He growls again, louder. "Gull, save these younglings, please, I have some business to attend to!"
Storming off towards the Pantheon of Many, making sure to keep away from the crowd, Alejandro keeps his eyes peeled for a certain young Priestess of Iomedae.
'By the Gods... I will kill those wretches if but one of those young men or women is hurt. They have no right... They are innocents!'
"This is a bad place to be right now. We shouldn't have come this way," Rica thinks to herself, her mind going straight to thoughts of self-preservation. However, just as every muscle in her body begins to command her to run, she hears Luca's words. She looks to him with wide eyes, clutching her cane tightly.
"He's right. I have to do this. I'm not a coward." She stands still for a moment, looking back and forth between the building with the trapped nobles, and the Pantheon. She makes her decision just after Alejandro breaks away from the group to head to the Pantheon.
"Those rioters won't like the sight of me, so..." Rica mutters before running off after Alejandro.
Senjin sets off after Luca. "Let me deal with the Shoanti. Might go easier that way."
He stows the hatchet again in his belt, but the metal studs on his glove are if things get out of hand.
He tries to quickly make his way through the crush to get near the Shoanti. In a low, nonchalant voice . "Not really sporting, is it? I figured, like me, you would be looking for a fight. 'Cept, there's no fight here, just frightened kids. Come with me, to the south of here. There is a house on fire, help me fight that. It is braver to fight a fire than start one. You say you have a strong back. Show it! Shoulder this pettiness, and put it toward something bigger than yourself. Save this neighborhood and save your honor. You are Shoanti! You are not This!" He gesture to the mob and the torches.
Oh, this is going nowhere. He steps in closer poking the man in the gut, with the haft of his hatchet he slips from his belt. When they both look down to see what was poking him, Senjin deftly flips the weapon, catching the haft, the blade now pressed against the Shoanti, whispering, "Either that, or I slit your gut like a pig."
In a louder voice to the crowd.
Elrith slips a bit to the side, finding the best location for a clear shot at the peasant leader.
Stealth:
She mutters a short curse as Senjin steps into her target line, then quickly adjusts her sights on the nearest peasant she judges to be most likely to come to their leader's aid.
Sense Motive:
Elrith
Leader
Lucadeno
Rioters
Senjin
As words of the Hellknights spreads, the crowd quickly disperses. The leader of the mob and about half a dozen others stay. The Shoanti looks at Senjin and snarls. "You are going to pay for that! They gon' burn up there!" Despite his bravado, he appears somewhat worried by Senjin's hatchet. This doesn't stop him from pushing back at him, followed by the others who spring to action behind him.
Up from the balcony, the fire has spread quickly and engulfed a large portion. Smoke and flame rise out of the balcony as the roof catches fire, accelerated by the lacquered wood. The nobles have stepped back deeper into the structure, presumably looking for a way out amid the thick black smoke.
Elrith takes a calming breath then looses at the leader.
Attack:
Damage: (just in case)
She curses as her aim is, again, thrown off by haste and nearby distractions.
Intro Narrative (if necessary)
Action Narrative
"You made this choice brother." Senjin brings the hatchet up with force under the Shoanti's chin.
The axehead crashes into the leader's jaw in a crash of steel, bone, teeth, and blood.
The leader of the mob spits out quite a bit of blood, staggered by the force of the hatchet blow. His jaw is nearly severed, but the rage of Senjin's attack grips him. He slips a rusty old sword, hardly more than a short piece of sharpened metal, off his own twine belt. With a vicious upward thrust, he plunges it upward into Senjin's stomach. He rams it nearly up to the hilt, Senjin's blood pouring out onto his hands. The Shoanti youth falls to his knees on the sidewalk, badly wounded.
Emboldened by Senjin's wounding and with a shout of "Get them!", the thugs rush towards Elrith and Lucadeno. Unlike their violent leader, they simply rush at them without weapons. The mindless rage of the anarchistic crowd rushes towards the pair as Senjin lays bleeding on the floor.
The first rushes past the pair of fighting Shoanti to lunge at Elrith. His dirty, outstretched hands miss her throat by less than an inch. With only her bow out, she has no weapons in hand to fight up close. A second thug steps around Senjin, rushing to try to get behind the elf and grab her from behind. He lets out a low growling chuckle, a sound of pure human malice.
Three others rush at Luca, quickly surrounding him. His bad leg slows his reaction, but he is able to dodge the grasping hands of the first two. The third gets behind him and hits him hard in the back of the head with a closed fist. As Lucadeno reels from the blow, he turns around to see just what dire circumstances they are in.