Quintus arrives well before midnight and just keeps an eye out for anybody out of the ordinary.
Krupt returns an hour later with a happy buzz, swinging his guisarme about with reckless abandon. "Well, well, well, my variegated companions? Anyone show yet?"
Mach cringes as he spies Petronicus returning, swinging his guisarme around, heedless of anyone who might be in his way.
"Aside from you, no. We're still waiting--and, Calistria's t*ts, will you stop swinging that around?!" He says, panic beginning to rise in him.
Petronicus suddenly stops swinging the polearm and looks like he's about to yell at the tiefling. Instead, he slumps into a squat, using the haft of the guisarme to steady himself. He then lets out a beer-filled burp. "Oops, excuse me," he mumbles tipsily.
You wait around for some time, no one coming or going from the house itself and nothing of real interest happening on the streets. Some of you likely bored with the wait aren't paying nearly as close attention as others.
Mach smirks. "Alright. Looks like we got something here." He whispers, pointing out the lantern's light to the rest of the party.
|
Um'bala squints to make out what Mach is pointing at, and his eyes widen in understanding. "Light...someone is at home. Either they've been hiding there for the entire day, or they slipped past us somehow. What do you say, should we go in?" He's shifting from foot to foot with nervous energy, ready to finally do something.
Krupt turns to Um'bala and whispers, "Can't you just magic us in there?" In the dark it is hard to tell if the Chelaxian is being sarcastic or not.
"If not, what's our plan?"
"Let's go in and make sure a message is sent to slavers everywhere that Magnimar is not the place to do business. Mach can check to see if the door is locked, and if it has any traps. Then Krupt and Mach can go in ready for a fight . The rest of us will follow closely behind, and we will support with our magics."
Mach winces. "I probably could've done that before they showed up... well, no matter. Sounds like a plan."
Krupt turns toward Valdemar, "I thought we just wanted to ask them about the Vancaskerkin girl? Why do we have to take down the whole operation? Seems a bit out of our bailiwick. We could just catch one and press him a bit. Why commit wholesale murder?"
Going up to the what you thought to be abandoned tavern you check the door and it is unlocked.
Mach quietly opens the door and slips inside, sticking to the shadows and taking care not to make any noise.
Krupt waits outside the door, his guisarme held high, and waits for the "all clear" from the tiefling; he is, after all, not the stealthiest of gents.
Krupt smirks as he replies to Um'bala: "I just hope the rungs hold as we're working our way up it."
Krupt perks up when he hears the lame druid making such a forceful comment. "Such strong language coming from such a gentle creature!" he notes, a s**t-eating grin plastered all over his face. "Why such hate for these Nidalese? Isn't slavery found in nature as well, priestess? After all, ants take other insects and breed and domesticate them like livestock."
|
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
"Perhaps you should ask the insects how they feel about that particular arrangement, Petronicus," Um'bala says, a smirk upon his face. "And I'd be careful, nature plays by her own rules, and any parallel you draw to it to some human construction can be countered elsewhere. Bees might have a queen, but the actual work gets done without her consultation. The workers and drones have a hand in determining where the hive gets nectar. In any case, if they don't know anything, we can turn them over to the guards. They've got authority here anyway."
Krupt continues his smile. "Well, as long as we've got authority."
Mach opens the door slowly and heads into the tavern.
It was dark. Not that darkness was a problem for Mach, but aside from the lights in the back, he couldn't see a damn thing.
He creeps closer to the lights, hoping to get a better look at who's making them.
Mach moves into the room and out of sight from the rest of the group.
Mach growls under his breath and hurries back to the entrance.
"Nobody's home that I can see. Come on." He says to the others.
"Either option sounds good." Mach says, moving back to the shadows.
Quintus moves into the room keeping his guard up.
Petronicus moves up past Valdemar, standing next to Mach. "[b]Can someone throw up some magical light? I can't see a thing." he whispers behind him.
As you all enter the room it still appears very empty until you suddenly hear some chanting from the front corner of the room and a man appears as a spray of colors wash over you.
The spray of color from the corner catches everyone but Mach. He looks over and sees the robed one who did it.
How in the Abyss did we miss him?!
Mach leaps to the attack, hoping to at least interrupt his casting if he tries it again. The man was smart enough to put his back to a wall, at least.
"Great scouting, fiendling!" Petronicus bellows sarcastically as the spray of color slams into his face. His eyes cross momentarily before the Chelaxian man shudders and falls face-forward onto the floor with a huge crash.
Quintus stands there and gets ready to stop the spellcaster in case he tries that again.
As almost half the group passes out from the magic Mach and Nimit spring to attack but neither manage to connect. Cornered he attempts another spell.
He manages to not leave himself open for any attacks as he begins casting.