Rd 3
.
.
.One step ahead of you, Hisao -- just not quite as fast.
The swarm of rats scatters as the bomb comes down in their midst, avoiding a "direct hit", but the entire swarm is subject to splash damage....
no damage
10
[dice=AoO] 1d20+8; 1d6+4
The dire rat squeaks in pain as Paddy pierces it with his silvered blade, but keeps scurrying away!
[dice=Slash]1d20+4
[dice=Damage]1d8+12
Seeing a wounded dire rat (having just been pierced for 10 damage by Paddy's AoO) limping for the open door behind The Lusty Fools, Alphonse brings the butt of the gilded haft of Foereaper down on its furry little skull, knocking it senseless! The party has acquired its captive wererat for interrogation!
[dice=AoO]1d20+11 [dice=Damage]2d6+15
The other dire rat skitters nimbly past William's thrust with the lance of thunderbolts and between the invisible ninja and Paddy, before darting around Alphonse and past Iommi-Tyr, and out the open doorway into the foggy night, squealing in fear all the way....
[dice=invisible aoo]1d20+7+2;1d6+2+3d6+1d6
The fleeing dire rat, seeming near to escaping out the door, suddenly and violently stops as the invisible Hisao impales it with his silvered VenomFang! It spasms and squeals in its death throes, then falls silent and still....
"Does anyone have rope?"
Paddy tosses Alphonse his rope.
I never leave home without it....never know when you'll need it....
Alphonse ties up the rat as securely as he can to a nearby post.
Then he lays hands on the creature to awaken it so it can be interrogated.
Is there a leader -- especially a new leader -- for the wererats?
Why all the recent over-activity; your clans were relatively safe under the streets if you didn't terrorize London? What changed the status quo?
The tunnels wherein you live -- how extensive under London are they and how many secret entrances into manors and such do you know of?
Is there a leader -- especially a new leader -- for the wererats?
Why all the recent over-activity; your clans were relatively safe under the streets if you didn't terrorize London? What changed the status quo?
The tunnels wherein you live -- how extensive under London are they and how many secret entrances into manors and such do you know of?
Unable to answer Tyr's queries in dire rat form, the creature shifts to the form of a skinny, dirty, teenaged girl with matted hair like a rat's nest, clad in peasant garb.... In so doing, the rope binding her becomes tighter and evidently painful to the girl, for she gasps in pain and nods down at the rope binding her....
Please, sires.... I'll answer all o' yer questions if ye'll please loosen this rope! It be bitin' me fierce!
Paddy moves forward, he places his silvered sword against the girl's neck.
No tricks, understand? Alphonse, adjust these ropes a bit please.
Paddy moves forward, he places his silvered sword against the girl's neck.
[dice=intimidate]1d20+11
No tricks, understand? Alphonse, adjust these ropes a bit please.
As the cold silvered steel touches her throat, all thoughts of a surprise escape flee the girl's mind, and she hangs her head in despair as Alphonse moves to loosen the rope around her arms and torso a bit.
In answer to Tyr's questions:
Aye, sire.... There be a leader.... Grandmother Willa is the head o' our clan, an' has been for as long as I've been alive.... But....there is a new leader, these last two years.... The Witch o' Eye, she's called.... Comes from Eye By Westminster, and is in league with the great fire dragon, Conflagratius, what lairs in a volcano in Italy, so it's been told me.... The Witch o' Eye has encouraged us to rise up from our warrens under London-Town to spread fear and wreak havoc among the townsfolk.... She wants to distract them from some evil she be working with her mates.... I know not who they be, but I've heard they be nobles of the Realm, an' even a prominent churchman, so I've heard.... If the townsfolk be worried by we wererats, they'll pay less attention to goings-on in the Tower and the courts, so says the Witch.... As for our tunnels--the Warrens, we call 'em--they stretch for many leagues beneath London-Town and beyond the city walls.... There are too many secret doors leading into warehouses, cellars, and shops to count 'em all.... I can list ye several, myself, sires.... But....what will become o' me? Show mercy, I pray thee!
The decision for mercy is best left to those who are more capable of granting it. We will put in a kind word for you for your help. After that, lass...I cannot guarantee anything. Now, about those secret entrances.... Paddy pulls out his paper and ink for the girl to show where the entrances are.
With the girl's aid (her name is Catrina), The Lusty Fools learn and map the locations of six different secret entrances into The Warrens beneath London:
1. In the cellar of The Boar's Head Inn
2. In the dungeons beneath The Tower of London
3. In the dungeons beneath the north most gatehouse of London Bridge
4. In the cellar of a nearby warehouse
5. In the cellar of the manor house of Roger Bolingbroke, an ally of the Witch of Eye
6. In the cellar of a warehouse a few blocks to the west along the Thames River
Hisao pops back into view as the map is worked on. Maybe send message to honored grandmother through girl. Rats not safe above ground. Maybe can aid against witch. the Ninja says as he carefully cleans quite a lot of blood off his blade.
"Repent your wickedness and give up this goal of infecting people with your curse and we'll set you free. You don't seem a bad sort, all things considered." Alphonse says.
"What's your name?"
I suggest a slightly different course of action, Alphonse. Let's try to get her to give testimony against The Witch of Eye. It won't be any time soon, most likely, but if we can find a safe place for her to stay and make it nice enough that she won't want to leave,... well, I think it may be worth a try.
Corina, if I may ask, were you born a wererat or did you become one after a bite?
Also, you're just a kid -- what do you want to do with your life? Can you see a future for yourself outside of stealing and living on the streets? Maybe if we helped you...?
Nacht felt the strange feeling leave him after a few jabs into the unmoving bodies of the rat-beings. It seemed to entertain him a bit longer than what was normal for him.
As the group of beings crowed around on rat-being.. a smaller one, actually it shifted into a being. A dirty small being. The small being spoke in hurried and panicked tones, though the insectile man could not understand. Likely it was pleading for its life. The reactions of the other beings told him.. they accepted.
For a long time Nacht watched.. and waited, analyzing the small being over and over. It's hurried breathes, soft skin, short answers, mangy hair; several thoughts appeared before Nacht's eyes... they were different.. ones of.. handing something to the being.. and it running away. These had less killing, strange. Eventually the Long-Winded Being spoke.
He moved over to the little being a grasped her by the scruff peering into its eyes with an emotionless yellow eyed stare. Searching the fear and panic in the not-right-now-rat-being. " Ratte Befinden Lauf nicht. Ich mag meine Beute zu jagen und werden Sie jagen, wenn Sie versuchen, zu entkommen. Ich werde mit der Haut zurück. "
Nacht's eyes look to the group of beings, " Ich bin mir nicht, dieses zu töten? "
" I am not to kill this one? "
"Well what are we waiting for, let's go find this Witch o' Eye and take her head off."
A glimmer of hope appears in Catrina's eyes as she hears Tyr and Alphonse discuss the possibility of some fate for her other than death....
In English: I've always wanted to be a dancer.... I think I'd be a good one....
She begins to weep with fear when Nacht warns her not to flee and locks eyes with her.... (Those alien, insect-like, yellow eyes!) I promise! I won't try to run.... I know ye'd skin me alive.... I.... I'll be a good girl! I swear to God!
To Tyr's inquiry about the origin of her lycanthropy, she replies with some obvious pride: I be a trueborn wererat, not some weakling given the gift!
When asked to give up the goal of infecting the population of London-Town with lycanthropy: Whatever you ask of me sires, I shall do.... But why wouldn't you want the glorious gift of the bite? It makes you stronger, not weaker.... It gives power! 'Tis a gift, not a curse....
As nice as it sounds, lass, I think we will all pass on the gift you offer us. Some of us are actually immune to your gift, and some of us have gifts of our own.
With that, Paddy snakes his tail out and after drawing a dagger with it and sheathing it again, he puts his tail back under hit tunic.
"And while it may be a gift to you, one born to it...we've seen what happens to people who have it afflicted on them later in life. We fought a back of werewolves a few days back, maddened and crazed by the transformation, trying to waylay travelers. From what I've seen, many of your afflicted kin are none better."
Nacht doesnt seem to understand much of this, the beings spoke in what he assumed was placation. He dangled the not-right-now-rat-being some more. The weeping and sobbing only made his urges twitch.
Hisao pats Nacht on the back.
Hisao then sheaths his own weapon and speaks in English.
Testimony of honoured grandmother would be of more value than girl. Why not meet with her? Also find out of this witch. He addresses the girl with more questions Is Grandmother in same place as Witch or separate? Does she agree with Witch or not happy with new leader?
Not trusting Corina fully, and being quite suspicious of how she responds, Iommi-Tyr Magnusson looks for any tells that indicate she's lying, keeping anything from us, or looking for a chance to escape -- and tries to see if she really does sound sincere about not wanting to go back to crime but actually become a dancer.
I fear that the Witch of Eye is too powerful to brazenly confront; more importantly, she has incredibly powerful allies right now -- she was hired by Duchess Eleanor, the most powerful woman in England, and her husband Duke Humphrey -- the most powerful man in England and one of four or five most powerful people in all of Europe.
We want to find evidence of her and Duchess Eleanor's evil to present, sorrowfully, to Duke Humphrey so that he will have them arrested and executed. I fear that if we try, The Witch would turn us into something, ...unnatural.
And even if we are able to defeat her, if we did without getting Duke Humphrey on our side, he would just have us executed.
My vote is that we continue to look for more evidence against the Witch; I think Corina here could be a valuable piece of evidence, though by herself would not be enough.
And I also think that, having rid London of the Wererat epidemic, we can gain audience with Duke Humphrey and ask permission to quietly track down "a Witch we heard about that's trying to hurt little King Henry VI.
This way, when we come back to him with evidence, it was on his appointment that we even started looking for the witch.
I just think we needs must be very secretive about it all, and very careful -- it is a delicate matter and our lives may hang on a precarious knife edge.
As nice as it sounds, lass, I think we will all pass on the gift you offer us. Some of us are actually immune to your gift, and some of us have gifts of our own.
With that, Paddy snakes his tail out and after drawing a dagger with it and sheathing it again, he puts his tail back under hit tunic.
Catrina's wide eyes grow wider as she realizes that Paddy has a fiendish heritage....
"And while it may be a gift to you, one born to it...we've seen what happens to people who have it afflicted on them later in life. We fought a back of werewolves a few days back, maddened and crazed by the transformation, trying to waylay travelers. From what I've seen, many of your afflicted kin are none better."
Catrina apparently has no argument against Alphonse's observation. She lowers her eyes and nods in agreement.
Nacht doesnt seem to understand much of this, the beings spoke in what he assumed was placation. He dangled the not-right-now-rat-being some more. The weeping and sobbing only made his urges twitch.
The not-rat-being-now squeals in terror as The Beetle Man further menaces her....
Hisao pats Nacht on the back.
** spoiler omitted **
Hisao then sheaths his own weapon and speaks in English.
Testimony of honoured grandmother would be of more value than girl. Why not meet with her? Also find out of this witch. He addresses the girl with more questions Is Grandmother in same place as Witch or separate? Does she agree with Witch or not happy with new leader?
Catrina seems relieved and grateful to this foreign youth who urged the scary, yellow-eyed creature to put her down, and favors Hisao with a shy smile....
Grandmother lives in The Warrens below, sire.... The Witch, well.... I'm not sure where she lives.... I think she's somewhere here in London, though.... I believe Grandmother is not happy that we must do the Witch's bidding, but I think she fears the consequences of disobeying the Witch.... Catrina shrugs....
Not trusting Corina fully, and being quite suspicious of how she responds, Iommi-Tyr Magnusson looks for any tells that indicate she's lying, keeping anything from us, or looking for a chance to escape -- and tries to see if she really does sound sincere about not wanting to go back to crime but actually become a dancer.
[dice=Inspired Sense Motive]1d20 +12 +1d6
She seems sincere, and too frightened (especially of Nacht) to attempt escape or deceit at the moment.... Even the admission that she's always dreamed of being a dancer seems sincere....
So you say the Grandmother doesn't like the Witch, eh? I wonder if we can parlay that into something good for us, lads. Any ideas?
Paddy looks like he is thinking hard on the subject.
My first idea, Paddy, is that we get Catrina (not "Corina") to introduce us to Grandmother. Then we try to convince her to stay in hiding until we can call on Grandmother's testimony.
How many of your clan does Grandmother have to care for and lead?
The tricky part of that plan is that we would have to get Grandmother to trust us and go into hiding away from her wererats to whom she has responsibility over.
The terrifying part of that plan is that Grandmother could decide we are a bigger threat and inform The Witch of Eye of who we are!
But I guess risk is part of the job.
.... Any other ideas -- or other concerns about my idea?
Why not ask Grandmother to request meeting with Witch and then ambush Witch? Hisao says. Ancient Ninja tradition
Good idea.
What would be a convincing pretext under which we could have the Witch meet us?
And what if, in our ambush, we are outmatched and have to flee -- then the Witch will know we're on to her and could convince Duke Humphrey WE are the bad guys?
I'd at least like to talk to Duke Humphrey before encountering the Witch. What do you all think?
.
....If we meet with Grandmother we can ask her what powers she has seen the Witch do, maybe get a feel of how powerful Margiery Jourdemayne is.