"Zhi!"
As much as Maria wanted to help her, turning her back on the remaining halfing she was facing could just leave her in the same state. Instead, she focused on bringing this one down as quickly as she could, hoping that Zileska or one of the others could help Zhi.
As Zhi tumbles awway from the halflings, Maria turns toward the one near her and slashes his arm with her sword-cane.
Free of any direct threats, Zileska mumbles another spell, apparently asking for some tasty revenge.
Melodie screams again, sending Imistos reeling.
Imistos groans and waves his rapier in front of him in a daze, overwhlemed by Melodie's spell. Zileska calls on Calistria to ensure her upcoming vengeance.
Malphene steps up next to Sara to slash at the other halfling, wounding him quite badly.
The halfling snarls in pain but stabs Sara again, trying to bring the fighter down.
With a perfect flip of her uncoiled whip, Zileska yanks the rapier from Imistos' hand.
Imistos' rapier falls to the floor at his feet as he struggles to regain control of his senses.
Melodie keeps screaming, targeting the only halfling who has not yet suffered her auditory wrath!
"No one hurts my friends, shortstop." Sara takes aim and releases, swinging her club in a perfect arc that collides with Imistos just so.
She then finds and readies her last table leg.
"Surrender," she says to the enemy party. "There's very little keeping you alive here, and I know we would all like to leave that way."
Imistos groans as Sara's club cracks his skull. Blood pours from the grievous wound, but still the halfling remains on his feet! The other halfling grits his teeth in a fatalistic sneer. He seems to have no intention of surrendering.
"They're not going to surrender," Zhi says, swaying on her feet. "They're more afraid of whoever hired them."
She smiles an enigmatic smile.
"They're wrong. They should be more afraid of us. Make sure to take one alive."
She then collapses to the floor.
Melodie, having exhausted her magical options, tries to shoot down one of the remaining halflings, but misses... again.
Seeing Zhi collapse spurred Maria on to end this as quickly as possible, so she continued her assault on the wounded halfling before her.
The wounded halfling dodges Melodie's bolt and Maria's sword, but Malphene brings her sword down and stabs him through the chest. He groans and collapses a few moments after Zhi slumps to the floor. "Ha! Take that, cur!"
Imistos takes a step back as he draws a dagger from within his doublet. He hurls it at Sara! It whizzes past her, narrowly missing her stomach!
Sara walks over to Imistos and clocks him in the head, hoping to knock him down and out.
"I would say something witty but I doubt you're going to be able to reply to it, so-"
[dice=Nonlethal Damage]d10+3[/dice]
"What would the point be?"
Zileska crouches by Zhi, who has exhausted herself with her efforts, and taps her once with the tri-bladed symbol.
Imistos crumples under Sara's heavy blow, blood staining her wooden table leg.
"Are you alright?" Malphene says, coming to Sara's side. Zileska stabilizes Zhi with a bit of clerical magic.
When you get the chance to search the halflings, you find each one has a silver holy symbol of a black dagger with a circle set in the blade. You also find a set of orders:
Team Two,
Keep watch over Martella's stooges while we dispatch her Ladyship. They seem useless, but our contract specifies eliminating Lotheed AND anyone she is working with. If they're particularly noteworthy—say a senator or noble—keep them alive and we'll interrogate them along with Lotheed. Have Imistos bring any such targets to the Dignified Repository.
—The Fantabulous Killer of the Brotherhood of Silence
"Ladies, I am tapped out of my divine gifts. We need to rest up a bit - maybe in one of those rooms with the beds?"
Reading over the orders the halflings had been given, Maria remembered the last message received from Martella, the one that had been cut off. She scrambled to remember if she'd ever heard of the Dignified Repository before.
Maria remembers that the Dignified Repository is a large, glorified warehouse on a section of open grass in Oppara's Crownsgate district.
"From here we can get out completely." Melodie offers. "If we go back to my parents house I can offer you all hospitality tonight. You've all saved my life more than once, it's the least I can do. Besides..." She looks back the way they've come with a shudder. "I don't want to spend a moment longer down there than I have to!"
"Are you alright?" Malphene says, coming to Sara's side.
She offers her hand as the other tall lady approaches. "Yes, Malphene, thank you. I dearly appreciate your concern. Nearly got got, there."
—The Fantabulous Killer of the Brotherhood of Silence
Sara snorts once when the letter is read. "Fantabulous? Like the little harlequin halfling who taught me to pirrouette upstairs? What a world we live in," she sighs.
"From here we can get out completely." Melodie offers. "If we go back to my parents house I can offer you all hospitality tonight. You've all saved my life more than once, it's the least I can do. Besides..." She looks back the way they've come with a shudder. "I don't want to spend a moment longer down there than I have to!"
Sara shakes her head in reply. "I have a room at an inn," she starts before flushing and shaking her head once more. "But I won't be going back to it. Slumber party, anyone?"
Regardless of the reply, she comes to Zhi's side as the woman wakes. "You doing alright? You're a tough b$**@, Zhi. Appreciate the help. Now," she fishes out the bottle of brandy, "this is not me going back on our bet; as even tho we both got 'stuck' 'tweren't who you said. Whom? No matter. Point is, you owe me two bottles of something nice, so," she pulls open the stuck cork with one of the small rapiers, "come stay at Melodie's tonight and help us liberate the wine cellar." She thrusts the bottle forward and offers Zhi the first swig. "To friends."
She goes around the room and offers each and everyone present a pull from the bottle of brandy. "To friends and to getting outta here alive and together," she calls out, grinning.
Regardless of the reply, she comes to Zhi's side as the woman wakes. "You doing alright? You're a tough b~%~+, Zhi. Appreciate the help. Now," she fishes out the bottle of brandy, "this is not me going back on our bet; as even tho we both got 'stuck' 'tweren't who you said. Whom? No matter. Point is, you owe me two bottles of something nice, so," she pulls open the stuck cork with one of the small rapiers, "come stay at Melodie's tonight and help us liberate the wine cellar." She thrusts the bottle forward and offers Zhi the first swig. "To friends."
"To friends?," the semi-conscious woman repeats as she takes a drink of the offered brandy.
"Watashi wa anata ga hoshī to s~$%te imasu.," she mumbles after swallowing a large mouthful. She then closes her eyes.
Malphene takes a swig of the drink, but the other nobles refuse. "Let's get out of here before we fall prey to another attack by statues, giant rats, or treacherous halflings," Sir Plastion says.
The door opens onto stairs leading up. The door at the top of the stairs was one plastered over, but it has been recently chipped away. It connects to the basement of the senate building.
As you return to the senate, you discover the grounds of a charnel house: the bodies of civilians, Lion Blades, military personnel, and even the Ulfen Guard still lie where they fell. A few combat-fatigued soldiers wander the halls taking records of the dead. When they notice you, they calmly direct you towards the exit, saying that the building is currently on lockdown due to the recent "political turmoil." Official reports remain unclear; some insist foreign assassins struck out at Taldor, while others claim the infamous Pathfinder Society attempted a coup, and still others claim the grand prince himself attempted to execute the entire senate.
You encounter no opposition as you leave the building and emerge onto the streets of Oppara. It is several hours past midnight, and the city seems eerily quiet.
"Thank you for escorting us to safety!" Lord Botoles says. "Please tell us at what address we can contact you, and we will send you a reward as soon as possible."
Once the trio of nobles depart, Malphene and Jowuan turn towards you. "I'll take Banker Zubari back to my family's estate. I'll need to... see to my father's affairs. But I'll come find you in a few days time." She smiles slightly as her eyes find Sara. "You can count on it."
Sara hugs Malphene for a long time. "If there's any thing you need, tell me."
Malphene returns the embrace. "I will. Thank you."
"Let's get to a safe spot," says Zileska, "so that I can see about those injuries, Zhi."
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Oppara seems to be in a state of shock. Where only hours before the city was jubilantly celebrating the Grand Day of Exaltation, the streets now stand empty. Instead of riots and chaos, an uncertain silence fills the air—citizens of Taldor are accustomed to pushing forward in times of crisis. Only the occasional pedestrian meanders about, many of them servants or attendants to nobles slain in the short-lived violence and unsure of where to go or what to do.
Melodie leads the five of you to the d'Valois estate in the Westpark district. Oppara's wealthiest district, Westpark is home to much of Oppara’s upper class. The constabulary maintains several stations here and patrols day and night, while the enormous villas that grace the area are walled in to keep out any undesirables, though such barriers are more often a way for nobles to push the boundaries of their ever-increasing property lines and compete in ostentatious displays than they are a necessary security measure.
After knocking on the door, a middle-aged woman dressed in a night robe answers. Her eyes widen when she sees your motley crew. "Melodie! Do you have any idea what time it is?" Lady d'Valois says. "What happened to you? Who are your... friends?"
Her disapproving gaze shifts from Zhi's state of undress to Zileska's holy symbol to Sara's brand to Maria's obvious fiendish features, her frown deepening as she goes.
Sara hangs back and turns her head, trying desperately to look cold and unfamiliar and not at all like the strong girl who worked a number of times under and beside Madame d'Valois, lent out at the behest and pay of one "Mr. Hare".
"Mother!" Melodie throws herself into her mother's arms. "I'm so glad you're alright! I was so worried that you and father had been caught up in the violence... Is Max safe?" With the safety of her family established Melodie takes a deep breath. "Mother, these women saved my life. We were trapped beneath the Senate and I would have been killed three or four times over without each of these women. They've got nowhere to go with the city in this state and offering them hospitality was the least I could do."
Melodie offers her mother her best 'puppy-dog eyes' in an attempt to be extra persuasive.
Melodie's mother returns her hug. "Yes, everybody is fine. None of us were at the gala tonight. I'm not entirely certain what went down there."
Lady Jeanne looks at the lot of you again and then sighs. "Very well. You can stay here, at least for the time being until everything gets sorted out. But I expect all of you to be on your best behavior. Especially you, Miss Burke." She gives Sara a knowing look. "Leave the drama at the door."
She looks back to Melodie. "You look a fright, dear. Go get cleaned up and get some rest. We can talk more in the morning."
"I apologise for imposing, Lady d'Valois, I assure you; we'll be courteous guests." She left out mention that they would be keeping an eye on Sara to keep her from acting up. The branded lady still had the bottle of whiskey, after all.
She also didn't mention her own home. It was getting too late to walk back there and she'd asked a friend to check in on the place that night as a safety measure, in case the evening's festivities went on for longer than intended - her cat could get cranky if he missed a meal.
While their boarding is negotiated, Zhi remains quiet, simply leaning against Sara for support.
--
The next morning ...
"So the halflings' instructions were to bring any nobles to the Dignified Repository. So does anyone know where that is? I think it would be considered bad form to allow our employer to come to harm, so a rescue operation should be arranged."
She looks down at her borrowed sleeping garments.
"Although I'm going to need to make a side trip to my flat to get some clothes and other gear."
She looks around at the others.
"What happened to Imistos anyway?" she asks. "Everything after his sword in my back is kind of fuzzy. The little bastard had something on his blade. Did we pick up any of the halflings' gear?"
Sara was too tall and too broad for any of the nightclothes offered her, but she had brought an extra set of underwear just in case she were to spend the night at a rich girl's house- which was, luck would have it, what she was doing.
It was odd being a guest in the house she was once a serving girl. Not all the time, but when Hare didn't need her and she needed money, this was where he would send her. There was more to it than that, of course, but she didn't quite like thinking about it.
Still it rattled her mind. She remembered a then 16 year old Melodie practicing singing, and admired what a long way she had come, both with her voice and as a woman.
And, as always when remembering Hare, she remembered collecting the dead. She shivered in her bedchamber, surrounded by the oppressive dark.
Often, she had nightmares of the people she'd killed, the sick and the elderly, the lost travelers, finding her while she slept. They would stand around her, decomposing and tell her about their lives.
Angel Marie had been a dancer when she was young. Her daughter had followed into her footsteps, as had her daughter. She would have lived to see the end of her granddaughter's career, to watch her gain all the accolades that the rest of her family once did.
Gil Chalmers was about to propose to a girl back home when Sara had strangled him; his girl thought that he had abandoned her in Oppara, never to return because of the life he had built there. Without her.
Alexandria's mother had just hired a cleric to cure her of her illness when it mysteriously took a turn for the worse. Her mother would never know the truth, that no one could ever save her, because it was not the disease that killed her and sold her body.
Usually these dreams were easy to ignore. But here, faced with the possibility that Melodie, her friend, had likely believed her entirely innocent? It was too much. She awoke in the middle of the night and finished the bottle of brandy alone, crying. The brandy that Zhi asked she share with friends.
Well at least she had already offered everybody shots.
She remained in her makeshift nightclothes the following morning.
Sara cringes when Zhi mentions the halfling. "I tried to keep him alive, but I clobbered him in the head a little too hard, and he died. I'm pretty sure, at least. And yes, I took everything shiny off them I thought you would want, Zhi." She pulls three sheathed masterwork rapiers, two mithral shirts and all their myriad potions and lightweight accoutrements out from her bag.
"I also have a vested interest in collecting some things to try and stay more alive with," she nods. "Maybe some armor even. Nothing gaudy, probably just some padding under my dress, like Dame Trant had."
Looking at all the displayed gear from the halflings, Zhi lets out a small whistle. She fingers the mithril shirts.
"These are nice, too bad they're so small. But they'll be worth quite a bit," she says.
Her eyes finally light on Imistos' theives' tools.
"Now these look like just the thing," she adds with a smile.
"We should probably dispose of the rest of the 'lost artifacts' as well. I can do that on my way back to my flat."
As preparations are being made ...
As people are leaving the manor, Zhi is dressed again in the elegant green dress she wore to the gala the night before.
"Sara? Could I walk with you for a bit?"
Zhi remains silent for a bit as if gathering her courage before she speaks.
"Umm ... about last night. Like I said before, after Imistos' blade I don't remember things really well. I remember the taste of brandy. I sort of remember leaving the senate building and I vaguely recall arriving at Melodie's home, but ... the details are all muddled up and fuzzy."
She looks around at the few people out and about.
"What I'm trying to ask is did I ... I mean ... did you ... ?"
Her face begins a shift towards a more crimson tone.
"Did we ... ?"
Appearing to reach the limit of her frustration, Zhi pushes the larger woman towards an alley opening. Once there she pulls out a white garment from her bag and thrusts it towards her.
"This was on my pillow this morning when I woke up," she says in an intense whisper and it's not clear whether she's angry or frightened.
The garment is Sara's petticoat.
"I distinctly remember giving it back to you. Did we ... ?"
Still unable to voice the possibility, she sputters out and waits for the warrior to confirm or deny her imaginings.
"Oh my god, that's where it's been." She hurriedly pulls the petticoat on, affording Zhi and any onlookers a healthy view of her thick legs and glimpses and flashes of her satin panties.
Sara grows uncomfortable at the implications. "I offered everyone brandy when we escaped because that's what you said: share it with friends. You leaned on me for support the whole way back but everything you said after that point was in Minkian or Tienese; I don't know which."
She swallows and places a hand on Zhi's shoulder, bending down to look her more directly in the eye.
"You are my friend, and I would never take advantage of someone in a vulnerable position like that. Do you want to know I spent the night? I curled up naked in the bathroom, crying into that same bottle of brandy to ward away my nightmares. I guess you just-" she mimes pulling a sheet, "took my undergarment in your delirium. You are very sweet, and I'm sorry that I alarmed you."
Sara spreads her arms and offers the woman a hug.
"We've been through quite enough recently, as evidenced by our wounds," says Zileska, still helping to prop up Zhi. "Certainly I have no desire to bring trouble upon the roof that shelters me."
Once the group is settled into a room she takes the opportunity to remove the Kalbio's letter and place it in her pack, re-organizes her gear, and sees to Zhi's wounds with the best of her mundane abilities. The process takes a good hour as she cleans the injuries, bandages them, and massages torn muscles and strained tendons, all with a soft touch and careful eye.
(Beat DC 25, so Wis bonus added)
"Ugh. We'll definitely need cleaning for our clothes and armor," says Zileska as she's going through her garments, looking at sweat- and blood-stains. She spends a good half-hour just using mending magic on her own garments and on anything that anyone else brings to her.
"Zhi, you seem to be feeling a bit better. Let's gather everyone around during breakfast and see if we can't get back into fine form."
Despite being properly dressed as she came down for breakfast (sans coat, at least), Maria was clearly not a morning person, shuffling her way to the table with a mumble that might have been a "good morning". She'd managed to regain some of her wits a bit by the time Zhi mentioned the Repository.
"It's a building - glorified warehouse, really - over in Crownsgate."
"Oh my god, that's where it's been." She hurriedly pulls the petticoat on, affording Zhi and any onlookers a healthy view of her thick legs and glimpses and flashes of her satin panties.
Zhi looks away quickly.
Sara grows uncomfortable at the implications. "I offered everyone brandy when we escaped because that's what you said: share it with friends. You leaned on me for support the whole way back but everything you said after that point was in Minkian or Tienese; I don't know which."
She swallows and places a hand on Zhi's shoulder, bending down to look her more directly in the eye.
"You are my friend, and I would never take advantage of someone in a vulnerable position like that. Do you want to know I spent the night? I curled up naked in the bathroom, crying into that same bottle of brandy to ward away my nightmares. I guess you just-" she mimes pulling a sheet, "took my undergarment in your delirium. You are very sweet, and I'm sorry that I alarmed you."
Sara spreads her arms and offers the woman a hug.
The young woman's face is a mix of emotions.
"But I wouldn't ... I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say that you would ... I mean I know you don't think about me like you do about Malphene. Because she's ... and I'm ... "
She frowns and shakes her head and then steps forward to accept the embrace.
"Friends, yes."
If the hug goes on just a little longer then would be expected, it could be attributed to exhaustion carrying over from the day before.
As they embrace, Sara runs her hand through Zhi's hair, reassuringly. She leans over and kisses the top of her head, barely reaching. "God you're short," she mutters.
Pulling away, Sara smiles. "Don't forget I won that bet. You owe me two bottles of something nice."
Once the group is settled into a room she takes the opportunity to remove the Kalbio's letter and place it in her pack, re-organizes her gear, and sees to Zhi's wounds with the best of her mundane abilities. The process takes a good hour as she cleans the injuries, bandages them, and massages torn muscles and strained tendons, all with a soft touch and careful eye.
The scent of brandy comes off of the small woman's skin, evidence that she perhaps had a few more swallows after leaving the Senate building.
"Anata wa hitobanjū watashi ni sore o suru koto ga dekimasu," she mumbles with closed eyes and a smile.
"Zhi, you seem to be feeling a bit better. Let's gather everyone around during breakfast and see if we can't get back into fine form."
"Please thank your goddess for me," Zhi says with a reserved bow after the positive energy washes over her.
"Please thank your goddess for me," Zhi says with a reserved bow after the positive energy washes over her.
As they embrace, Sara runs her hand through Zhi's hair, reassuringly. She leans over and kisses the top of her head, barely reaching. "God you're short," she mutters.
Pulling away, Sara smiles. "Don't forget I won that bet. You owe me two bottles of something nice."
Zhi nods wordlessly and then turns and moves off down the street.
Melodie, being the only one sleeping under her own roof, sleeps soundly and has a full range of clothes to choose from the next day - although admittedly not as fancy as the gown she wore last night for the Gala.
She collects up the various stained and dirty clothes, averting her eyes at every stage and blushing furiously more than once and delivers them to the servants quarters downstairs where she adds a little magic to the cleaning process.
Her main contribution to the morning is to make sure that very strong coffee is provided at the breakfast table, and it seems that Maria (at least) needs it!
"So we need to go to Crowngate?" She asks, as conversation returns to their employer. "Should we try and sell off some of the items we found first? We'd look a bit silly dragging them across the city and I don't think they should be stored here. Mother and Father don't approve of that sort of thing."
The morning finds Zileska much better composed, with her hair re-coiffed, her corset clean and repaired, and her stockings fresh.
"Capital idea," she says as she sips at the coffee. "Besides, if this revolution spreads, we could use the funds to escape the city, or perhaps trade for some useful weapons or supplies. And if not it will be nice to have some capital anyway. Has anyone heard from our erstwhile employer? Did she survive? Will we be meeting her again?"
"All very good questions. I should very much like to know the answer to them," says a voice in response to Zileska's questions. Turning, you can see Lady Gloriana Morilla enter the room accompanied by Melodie's mother.
"Melodie, you and your friends have a visitor," says Lady d'Valois. "And several gifts arrived for you as well. It seems you made quite an impression last night." She hands her daughter a purse with 90 platinum pieces and signed letters of thanks from Lord Botoles, Sir Plastion, and Lady Urbaen.
Lady Morilla sits at the breakfast table and pours herself a cup of coffee. "Good morning, ladies. As soon as I found out that you had survived last night's debacle, I came to talk to you. I've not heard from Martella Lotheed since we escaped the senate building together. I am quite worried about her."
"If you're going to head there and look for Martella, I would like to offer my support. Many of my agents in the Pathfinder Society have already been smuggled out of the country in the wake of the chaos, but I have a few remaining. If enemies are holding the Dignified Repository, I can send my agents to perform a hit-and-run strike against them. They can weaken your opponents so that you can move in and finish the job."
"We'd best explore the area first?" Melodie says, looking to Zhi for support. "If the Pathfinders are going to help us perhaps we should go in at the same time? If your people go in first Lady Morilla, then surely we'd face enemies on high alert rather than distracted the way they would be if we try and sneak in at the same time as an attack..."