Taking her 'friend' in-hand, Nuandis guides him to one of the standing tables and sits him down. She places her arm flat against the wood, sweeping everything from the top before finding anything he can draw or make shapes with on the adjacent table (even food).
"Could you at least draw a map of the place we're inside now? You don't want me to get lost, do you?"
Bognus, quickly growing irritated with the lack of action, drew his axe from its makeshift sling at his side, examining the wide blade closely and scowling at each little nick in the blade. When he was done a few moments later, he looked up, his gaze moving back and forth between the others as they went about their various preparations.
He shrugged, then set about looking for something to serve as a whetstone. "I'm all fer a battle plan, but we're gonna want tae get a move on sooner rather'n later. These," he gestured to the corpses all around, "Mighta been easy pickin's, but if'n we give their elites too much time tae organize, they might be able tae put up a real fight."
He paused suddenly, as if realizing something, then grinned. "Right then. Never mind ol' Bognus. Take all tha time ye want." He ran a thumb carelessly down the edge of his weapon, the magically sharp blade never penetrating his hide. "A real fight'd suit me jest fine."
As best as he can, the enthralled guard scribbles a rough map on the table, noting the use of each room.
Karactus eyed the kitchen door. "Soon, Bognus." he said quietly.
Karactus can easily hear chatter as he gets closer to the door. Judging by the conversation, its probably the kitchen staff. Nothing more interesting to hear than, "Did you finish chopping the carrots?"
With time, Karactus can determine there are four people in the room; three humans, two male and one female; and possibly a male gnome.
From the door, Karactus was still for a time. He looked at the floor tilted his ear.
"Four. Three men. One woman. Humans, save for one gnome."
He motioned the others over. "Bognus, the closer two are thine. Sethirom and I will handle the further pair. Quiet is key. Nuandis, thou art responsible for any who manage to run. Ulmah, thy minions block this door. If there is another door, thyself shalt block that one."
He waited until the others were in position, then yanked the door open to let them rush in.
Caught completely by surprise, the kitchen staff attempts to quickly huddle in the corner, screaming in terror as they move. Karactus will undoubtedly exhaust a silence to drown the noise. Following through with intent, Bognus and Karactus make quick work of the helpless chefs.
All that is left now is a bubbling pot of fresh stew, chopped vegetables on the counter, and barrels of salted meats.
"But maybe first they can make me some...
Raising her finger to protest, Nuandis stares blankly as the kitchen staff are slaughtered.
...dinner"
"Looks like stew it is!" she says carelessly, as she skips into the room to look into the pot.
Bognus held the distended necks of the two corpses in his fists for a moment, their necks instantly snapped before he even began to fight in earnest. He scowled, disappointed and annoyed. "Bah. Tweren't even fighters. Not even worth tha trouble."
He lashed out suddenly, smashing in one of the barrels with a vicious blow. He examined the ruined container for a moment, then frowned again as he realized it hadn't vented his frustrations at all, as it would have in the old days. Instead, it just sat there. A little ball of irritation, waiting in his chest. He growled and stalked out of the little kitchen. "Let's go find somethin' useful tae do."
"Useful? Quiet has been maintained. More corpses have been gained. We are one step closer to our goal and our enemies still none the wiser. Thou art an immortal now, dwarf. If thy existence is defined only by the gratification of moments, it will be a bleak eternity."
Karactus looked around the kitchen for oil and meat.
Not having an eternity to live, Nuandis made it a principle to indulge in the 'gratification of the moment.' Looking over the corpses and the bite marks so lovingly left by Bognus, she mutters "If he gets to eat so do I!"
Using a cantrip to cool the pot of stew, she finds the nearest utensil and plunges in while Karactus is busy looting.
Ulmah will take a few bites of the stew as well, having not had a good meal in weeks.
The kitchen is very well stocked: Karactus quickly locates a barrel of oil, and there are more dried, jerked, smoked, and salted meats than he would want to bother with carrying. Clearly the soldiers were given a higher caliber of food than the prisoners gruel.
Karactus finally gets a small peek through one of the windows on the southwest wall. A decent Barracks with bunkbeds, he only spots a few guards sleeping before the bird flies away.
Karactus shouldered a heavy barrel of oil like it was nothing and walked back out of the kitchens, his feet not quite touching the ground.
He set it down next to the other door and took a moment to listen.
"Quiet and keep out of sight. I will signal when to move forward."
The shadows contracted, sucking back into Karactus until he appeared to be nothing more than a guard. He opened the door and stepped out into the hall.
Beyond the doorway, Karactus hears the same deathly silence left to be observed in the dining room he stands in, save for the occasional clattering of bones from restless undead.
He moved through the hall, his eyes glancing at the floors and walls, constantly assessing signs of the passage of his prey. It was like book to him.
He walked right past the room the entranced guard had said was a supply room. Instead he moved up to the corner, listening before he rounded to the next hall.
Echoing from down the hall, Karactus picks up the sound of a few voices in a heated discussion, though he can not make out the words. The walls, floors, and ceilings are all fashioned from similar stone.
Karactus' form shifted to better match the guards they'd just left behind. The uniform became more exact, and his features close enough to one of their victims that under the helmet it would be hard to notice the differences. Then his demeanor changed. Something more human. Something worried and desperate. He rounded the corner and moved quickly down the hall.
Ulmah waits patiently as the creepy shapechanger does his thing, staying back with her small horde of undead.
The first corner reveals a long, empty hallway: moving to the next corner, Karactus see five men, one clearly more decorated than the others. Close enough to hear the conversation now, the higher ranking soldier berates the other four for playing cards while they were on duty. One of the four being courageous enough to argue with his superior that the it was harmless.
Karactus had been trapped in the mind of a Mitran soldier for a lifetime. In many ways, he still was. He might not know the names of the current nobles or celebrities, but their military structures and traditions, he knew intimately.
The insignia on his armor signifies the lead as a Sargent, but his golden pauldrons and embroidered blue cloak suggest one with great merit.
"Sergeant. I'm glad you are here. The prisoners were discussing an escape plan of some kind. I thought you might want to know." Karactus said crisply.
Turning his attention away from the other men, the Sergeant looks at Karactus with scrutiny, perhaps making sure his uniform was in proper order.
"Escape!?," the sergeant laughs, "Unlikely. No one has, nor ever will escape from Branderscar. What did you overhear?"
Bognus poked his head around the corner, glaring down the hallway where Karactus had gone. He looked back at the others, all patiently waiting. He drummed his thick fingers on the wall, clearly growing impatient.
"Always with the waitin'," he grumbled under his breath. Turning to look down the hallway again, he scowled. "I'll show ye bleak eternity, ye puffed-up spook."
"I was not the one who overheard it, Sergeant. Would you like to accompany me back to the cells? I would prefer you get the information directly than risk getting details wrong myself."
The Sergeants response is more irate than helpful.
"Son, I got better things to do with my time than listen to the prattle of some miscreants who think they're actually capable of breakin out under my watch. Get back to your post, if there's anything worth tellin, come to me then."
With that, he turns to the other four guards and commands them back to the gatehouse, then turns to head towards his quarters.
Karactus nodded and went back the way he came, but once he was out of sight he waited until he heard the Sergeant's door shut and the others leave the area.
Then he waved his allies forward.
"The Sergeant's quarters is our next target. He is alone."
"Good. Perhaps his quarters will contain some useful items."
"Like soap...." Nuandis sighed longing; even her cleaning spells couldn't pull the stench off her.
"Is there a plan, or shall we just kick in the door and end him?"
"I will open the door and ensure silence. Nuandis will attempt her beguilement. Should it fail, Bognus will engage. I believe that is plan enough." Karactus said starting down the hallway again.
"Would be an easier task making our way around with some authority backing us! I like it."
"Bah," Bognus said simply, ambling forward. "If et's all the same to ye, I'll jest grab 'im once ye make et all quiet-like. No sense in lettin' 'im get a chance tae move around." He shakes his head irritatedly. "I'll leave 'im in one piece 'til the lass gets 'er shot in."
Karactus nodded, holding up a hand for the others to hold while he approached the Sergeant's door.
Ulmah trails behind, eyeing Bognus with an almost hungry look. She would love to take control of all that anger and rage, but restrains herself for the moment...
Karactus' Silence dropped over the hall, then he nodded to Bognus and opened the door.
Bognus strolled casually through the door, cracking his knuckles without a sound. He cast about for the sergeant, reaching out to grab ahold of the unfortunate.
Stepping in through the door, Nuandis quickly rushes to a far corner of the room to be as removed from the violence as possible. Catching sight of Bognus, his muscle laden figure, and the experienced Sergeant wrestling about almost caught her attention enough that she forgot what her intent was in the first place....
....almost.
It only takes Bognus a brief moment to realize his new friend is offering little resistance to the grapple.
"..."
The vampire's mouth moved with a single syllable, something like "bah". He released the officer with a silent grunt, stomping back toward the door to stand lookout.
Nuandis pouts apologetically at Bognus, feeling slightly guilty for spoiling his fun. Turning her attention to the Sargeant, she coldly commands..
"My friends have questions for you, answer them accordingly"
"Inside." Karactus said, ushering everyone into the Sergeant's room and shutting the door.
He scanned the room carefully.
"Sergeant, speak of thy Warden. We would hear of him."
The Sergeant speaks monotonous, almost as if he were reciting accolades from a book.
[b]"The Warden of Branderscar is the most honorable Mathias Richter of the Noble Richter family. He is an alchemical wizard of the highest caliber, and an ingenious engineer and tactician. He spends much of the day within the hind tower, researching new magics for his Royal Highness King Markadian. He delegates upkeep and operations of the keep to myself, and the perimeter wall and gatehouse to Sir Thomas Balin, Paladin of the Knights of Alerion."[b]