"... Caladan? Do I even want to know, or is it better not to ask?"
"Haven't had any luck coaxing the domovoi out of hiding."
caladan coughs, and straightens his shirt, standing up.
You're resting about an hour later, when Gondork suddenly perks up from the cot he's on. The bandage wrapped around his eyes makes it almost comical, as his ears twitch and he hears something.
"Was that your dogs barking Nadya? It sounded different."
"My dogs don't bark much unless there's trouble... "
Its just in time, as they hide themselves in a little warm cubby under the cabin and Nadya throws the rug back over the trap door, a loud pounding comes from the door.
"Its the guards from the Pale Tower, they're here for us. "
"At least five", chimes in Gondork
Gondork softly mutters as if answering an unasked question:
Let them in. Even blinded I can hear I could take on these oafs with my bare hands.
He swings his legs out of bed while straightening his posture.
Another test, milady? Very well. I shan't dissappoint you.
Nadya nods, and calls out "Coming! One moment!"
she moves over to the door, getting ready to unlatch it.
the kennel is out back, and the dogs are indeed barking now.
Nadya opens the door, and three guards stand outside, armored in chain shirts and light steel shields, lined with warm bearskin leggings and thick wool cold weather gear. Longswords sheathed at their belts.
"Nadya, " one of the guards shoves past her, barging into the cabin, "What have you been doing here?" He looks around, scanning the room, looking over the half-orc in full plate on a cot, with bandaged eyes, the little halfling on a stool beside him
"Sergeant Volan wants to speak to you all, he's waiting at the Weasel." He spits on the rug, "Consorting with outsiders? What kind of fool are you? You want Nazhena to take the rest of your children? Stupid cow!"
"Come on. Lets move. All of you." He says, addressing Giacomo and Gondrok, and Ten-Penny, Caladan, and Arwyn
About to hide, Arwyn thought better of it. She didn't want Nadya to go alone.
"Well then. Let's go find out what the Sergeant wants.
"After you." Invited Arwyn to the hidden fourth guard, poking her head around the corner to speak to him.
"Yes, we have nothing to hide. I don't mind going along."
You wouldn't want to harm a wounded veteran, would you? Help me up, I'll go with you.
You're escorted roughly down the street to the White Weasel, asking your names as they surround you, three in front, three guards behind you, with the two more that come from around the house. You see they also carry light crossbows, unstrung, across their backs. the few minutes outside in the stark cold doing more to chill your bones than your trip here.
Shown through the door of the Weasel, there is a large bar, with an enormous mirror, limned with frost, along the entire length of the bar. Emil stands behind the counter. Verna, from the general supply store is there as well, though not her daughter Milivsa whom you saw at the store. Verna stands cowed, in a cleared out area, while a seated man of importance chews meat off ribs from his plate and sucks his fingers clean, four more guards at attention behind him.
The guard who escorted you here comes to an abrupt halt, clicking his heels, and in a clear voice, "Sersjant Sertane. Nadya Petska."and repeats the names you gave on the walk over
The well dressed man,rises to his feet, marching up to inspect you. He looks you over, obviously dismissive of who he sees before him as he confidently strides around you, poking Arwyn in the shoulder with a sharp jab from his fingers. Waving his hands in front of Gondork's bandaged eyes, exhaling on the verge of spitting upon Caladan."Is Good. You surrender willingly, and submit to the might of the Pale Tower. Far worse things could happen to a village. to a family, a daughter, or even twins."
Katrina Goldtiavea, Emil's much leaner, and beautiful stern blonde wife, comes through the bar, carrying a tray with some drinks, and sets them on Sergeant Sertane's table. Giving you the stink eye the whole time, as if she were saying with a look alone, "You deserve what you get. Scum!" and falling back to the end of the bar, absently wiping down the table as his men line you up along a table moved up against the wall, the bench stacked on top of the table. The fireplace roars, warming the tavern. Two more men stay seated in a far corner table. not touching the steins in front of them, both turning their heads just to watch whatever unfolds with a drunk side-eye glance.
The seargeant has a spiked light steel shield within reach, a chain shirt on though some air of refinement flows from him, an ornate and dark raven hilt adorning the haft in his scabbard, his bald head, and dark brown beard, streaked a bit with grey, he moves with power and strength.
Giacomo turns to Emil.
"Why are we treated so harshly? Though Caladan may look pretty intimidating, we haven't done anything illegal, as far as I know, and there's no reason for you to treat us with such disrespect. I've heard you are suspicious of strangers, but we have done nothing to warrant such behaviour. I mean, Gondork's blind over there, he's practically harmless! What could he do in such a state?"
Glancing around the inside of the White Weasel, Arwyn glanced at the mirror behind the bar.
Leaning towards the others, she whispered "the mirror. we're being tested."
When jostled by the Sergeant, she staggered a little before recovering. She glared at the man while fingering a handaxe, but held her temper. This time.
Gondork stays in place, smiling a dumb grin.
Well that was easy.
...Can we go now?
Why are we treated so harshly?
"Harsh?" Says Sergeant Sertane, "We've not even begun yet. You're in Irrisen fools. You're guilty until I say otherwise. You claim to have done nothing illegal, but we shall be the judges of that. All of you, lay your weapons on the table behind you and step forward one at a time to have your hands bound. I think we'll start with you first little one."
"Bring the little one over and we'll start with him. You two drunks, clear out. This business is closed while we interrogate prisoners of the Pale Tower. " Sertane barks at the drunks in the bar, who readily down their drinks and clear out, ducking their heads respectfully to the sergeant.
Sergeant Sertane is very dismissive of your concerns about him stepping on your liberty.
Gondork stays in place, smiling a dumb grin.
Well that was easy.
...Can we go now?
"Go? Fool. You're prisoners of the Pale Tower. You're not going anywhere until we're through with you." his silent sneer is all that meets your joke.
Giacomo shoots a nervous glance at the rest of the party, then puts his weapons on the table as instructed.
the guard captain from the cabin binds your hands, looping the thin rope between and around some of your fingers in a weird knot. you realize it'll make spellcasting very difficult. He sits you down on a bench so Sergant Sertane can interrogate you.
"Who are you. Where are you from. What are you doing in Irrisen" his questions are pretty basic at first, and then...
"Where is the Black Rider."
Ten-Penny looks around the bar, assessing the situation. 10 guards and the big guy, those are some unfortunate odds… She then hears Arwyn whisper that they are being tested, which then made her conclude that starting a ruckus now might not be the best of ideas.
With a slight grumble, Ten-Penny places her weaponry on the table behind her. First she places her short swords loudly on the table, followed by her new msw short bow and her hand crossbow. She then tosses her sap, quiver of cold iron arrows, and her quiver with 12 bolts on top of the other weapons. To make sure to not be unarmed when the situation turns ugly, she fumbles her two daggers away in her clothing during this, hoping that it would be covered by the loud and showy way she disarmed herself.
Ten-Penny then tries to figure out what this sergeant is planning. Is he going to punish them no matter what, or is there a chance this is just a show of dominance?
Stone-faced, Giacomo answers the questions thrown at him."
"I am Giacomo Rumble, from Heldren, in the south. We have business with Queen Elvanna."
"We've seen a rider in black armour die back in the south, near the portal we came through. He seemed pretty scared."
he nearly blanches white, having expected you to deny, deny, deny. He cuts himself off shouting another order, then stops. looking at you, very quietly. "Where. How did you get here? Did the rider have anything with him, or say anything before he died?"
He ponders for a moment. then pulls out a locket from his pocket, and leaves it open, face out, around his neck. You can see, within the locket is another frosted over mirror.
"Gather their weapons, load the sleigh. We must get them to the tower as quickly as possible. "
"Emil. Katrina. Your eternal vigilance is appreciated as always. Verana," his voice drips distain, "I trust you'll exercise better caution whom you sell to. As for the stupid fox, bring her, let her pups starve wherever she's hidden them."He bursts into a mirthless chuckle, as Nadyas eyes widen a bit, then squint as she digs in, spitting into the Sergeant's face, before one of the other guards grabs her, and finishes binding her. Its quick as they outnumber you so, to suddenly find two guards on each of you, as they separate you from your weapons and bind you after giacomo talks
two large sleighs drawn by horses swings around out front, immense black drought horses, they seem huge. You're loaded standing into the sleigh, your equipment loaded into compartments in the sleigh first. Two guards go back off to Nadya's house, presumably to search for anything left behind, or the kids possibly, but they come back alone in a minute.
With the two sleighs loaded, five guards squeeze in three with Ten-Penny, Caladan, and Giacomo, and three with Gondork, Nadya, and Arwyn. The other five of the guards ski in the wake of the two sleighs. prisoners to the pale tower.
its ten minutes later as you're loaded up and ready to depart outside, that Ten-Penny, Giacomo, and Caladan notice a flash from the Sergeant's locket, shedding some light. He looks down, grabs it, and holds it up, surveying the scene with it, before looking into it intently, facing away from you. You can't hear him say anything. Eventually he closes the locket, and resumes being stone cold.
you make out, over the wind as you take off, some villagers watching from windows, crossing themselves as you're carted off.
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the luxury of the sleigh, absorbing the brunt of the wind, and the blankets and tarps, make you almost grateful for the your current predicament, easing your travel with the blind half-orc directly to the pale tower!
About an hour in, a curious thing happens. A rather large black crow flies up, and lands on the back of the sleigh. This thing is quite big for a crow.
"Well well. If it isn't Sergeant Certan. How goes your day." You do a double take at the quite sultry womans voice that coos from the raven's beak."[/b][i] Sergant and his men, and the captain in the next sleigh as it rides abreast with the other sleigh over the open ground narrow their eyes at the bird.
What do I hear? Is that one of the crows that stole my eyes, coming to take more? My cloak, the only thing that protects me from this hard environment, perhaps? I wish I was back home, sitting on my momma's lap...
Right. Like that's believable. Shite.
"Get out of here wretched beast, before I take your life." He swats at the bird with his spiked shield in a backhand swing, but the small beast avoids him.
"A lovely day to you too captain. What brings you out of the white walls today?"
What do I hear? Is that one of the crows that stole my eyes, coming to take more? My cloak, the only thing that protects me from this hard environment, perhaps? I wish I was back home, sitting on my momma's lap...
"T'was not I kind sir, I've no taste for eyes. Your cloak is certainly a lovely thing, though huge. I imagine it does keep you warm at least." You're unable to see the witchcrow turn its head, checking you out from both sides with its eyes. If you couldn't hear the occasional flap of wings, or how others were talking about it, you'd never know it was some bird-creature
The bird hops around the lip of the sleigh, taunting the Sergeant as she banters with him, even hopping down into the sleigh, perching on your bags as she scolds him. Suddenly the lock of white hair the Black Rider gave you suddenly flies across the floor, the bird having plucked it from the satchel. The captain bends down and picks it up. The bird flies at him, intending to steal it out of his grip.
"Pesky creatures! What's this? Something magical? You want it, I bet. Well then, I want it too. You can't have it. Scram. "
In the blink of an eye, the bird veers off, seemingly before she even connects, but suddenly the sergeant isn't holding the lock of hair.
"Thank You." the sultry voice reaches your ears on the wind.
"What was that?" He shouts at you, "What the freck was that?! Did.. did she just take something?" the witchcrow flies off a little towards the woods. The guards draw and load their crossbows, by the time they fire off a volley the bird is 120ft. away and the bolts miss. Sergeant Sertane leans down, gripping you by the collar, "Well. I hope you weren't attached to that, whatever it was. "
almost an hour later, though you can see it clearly a full six miles out, you see something upon a flat snow-covered plain northwest of Waldsby. The clear weather doesn't last long though, and goes as quickly as it arrived, obscuring the terrain. The guards from the sleighs seem to shine what light they can from the sun to signal the towers. And on the ride in, a swarm of ravens briefly circles overhead before the guards wave them off.
Sharp winds whistle across the stark white plain, stinging the eyes along with the near-blinding rays of the reflected sun. A great eruption of frozen ice rises in the distance - an imposing pale tower crowned with icicles spearing into the sky. Seemingly born of the land itself, an unbroken circular wall of ice guards the tower's base, with no visible entrance. High above, a large gash opens in the tower's bowl-like crown, ringed in icy spikes and split by a massive plane of ice resembling and inverted crescent moon.
The guards seem to know where they're going though, and a trampled path of snow, heavily tracked by footprints and sled trails, ends abruptly at an opaque wall of ice. Carvings and ancient glyphs depict only the semblance of a gateway on its surface. The outer wall climbs 25 ft. high, and looks impossibly smooth. Three guards visible atop the gate are vigilant, confirming with Sergeant that they have prisoners for Radosek, and to open up.
Suddenly the thick ice wall lowers, sinking into the ground, clearing to an ice tunnel, with an ice portcullis behind the wall. The portcullis raises too, and the sleds pull through to the tower's outer courtyard.
In the coutyard, a massive ice sculpture of a dragon dominates this open courtyard, standing with raised wings upon a dais of solid ice. Seven squat shacks sit along the inner wall, with several dogsleds stored outside. Between them, four ice chutes descend from the battlements of the outer wall. To the west, large double doors studded with icicles lead inside the Pale Tower itself, just beneath an overhang of sharp icicles dangling from above.
A troll crawls out of one of the vacant kennels , "Back Bordegga. Just escorting prisoners inside. Stay your hand and your wretched stench."
Giacomo becomes more and more restless after half an hour into the sleigh ride, and starts humming a folk tune for the rest of the ride, hoping to get a rise out of the guards purely out of spite.
the green guard kicks you once or twice to shut you up when you irritate him
>> my humble sketch of the Pale Tower <<
The Sergeant orders his men around, having them unload you to tie you together by the empty kennels in the courtyard, opposite where the troll is nesting for now, and then bring your equipment up to him. The kennels are mangy, flea infested squat wooden shacks, with cold dirt floors. You could probably crawl in one for some shelter. They seem to lack any dogs, but there's a pile of bones by one of the kennels, where the Troll seems to be nesting.
"Leave them be Bordegga. They're not food. Touch them and you'll regret it. If they try to get away stop them, but try not to kill them. Radosek will need to question them. You four, stay and keep an eye on things until I return. Once they're tied up, you two bring their equipment up to me. The rest of you can take a break once the horses are tended."
Having given his orders, he opens the door into the tower proper and disappears, leaving his men to unload you and your belongings from the sleds and tie you up in the courtyard. Your equipment is still in the sleds. There doesn't seem to be any stables in here, so you're sure they'll take the sleighs back out somewhere.
Ropes: The DC of your Escape Artist check is equal to the binder's Combat Maneuver Bonus +20
Burst DC 23
No idea what kind of creature that is, but she sure is ugly.
"Be glad you're already blind, Gondork. There are some things here you do not want to see..."
"But it seems that the weather is nice outside today, it would have been perfect for that picknick that we were planning..."
"yes. at least the weather is nice."
I s'pose I am. Giacomo, be a good priest and don't leave me behind...
Ten-Penny gets a little closer to the rest of the group (places herself next to Caladan).
She waits until Bordegga retreats back into her lair, and until those other four have tended to the horses and have left. She does want to come into action before the other two leave with the equipment (so six guards total), but if the entire room is still full of guards, she just hopes we will find the gear back later.
Ten-Penny sneakily gets out her dagger and starts to cut her ropes.
Before cutting completely through the rope, she looks around to see if someone has noted her attempt.
With nobody the wiser, she starts cutting Caladan's ropes.
And then reaches out behind Caladan towards Giacomo and cuts him free as well.
Gondork, Arwyn and Nadya are further away, so she tries to stealth her way over there without alerting any guards (squeezing through Caladan's and Giacomo's square).
She then starts to cut Arwyn free, then Gondork and Nadya.
And then sneakily draws her other Dagger (msw) and hands it to Arwyn.
Yeah, you're wrists are tied together tightly, but you're nit tied together.
When the sleds are through into the courtyard, guards above the gate, there seem to be three, rause the ice porticullis up again, and a wall of ice grows back into place sealing the 15ft x10ft section that melted/lowered to let you in. Another section lowers, leading into the inner circle, but out of the courtyard, that seems to be where they will stable the horses and all, and part of where the troll resides.
I'll check perceptions in a bit to see when/if you're discovered.
Arwyn tries to slip free from her bonds quietly.
She'll accept the dagger when it's handed to her.
Still uncertain as to the right timing of her escape, she tries to see everything about the fortress, the guards and the bonds to calculate the balance of forces arrayed against the party as well as the proper moment to act. She especially doesn't want to tangle with that troll without any equipment.
you go unnoticed.
Caladan and Giacomo get freed, while Arwyn slips out of her bindings.
Gondork tries to burst his bonds, not having many other options. Nadya's bindings come undone
As the bonds come off, the guards don't immediately realize it.
initiative checks
[surprise]
[18: giacomo], [17: ten-penny], [14: caladan], [14: gondork (still bound)], [9: nadya], [6: arwyn]
Giacomo starts casting Enlarge Person.
Giacomo whispers, "Guys, keep these people off me if you can, I'll need a moment to cast this spell, and I don't want to be interrupted."
Ten-Penny moves towards Arwyn and holds out the masterwork dagger for her to take.
Gondork grits his teeth, and blue magic envelops his fist. His leg muscles bulge and harden, giving him the appearance of a predator in chains.
I can smell troll...
Arwyn, pretending to be bound, sees that it's now or never. She leapt up, grabbed the dagger Ten-Penny held out and lunged to attack G-Blue.
for a possible piercing damage.