The protection of the fair citizens is his duty, so Lummel helps Bricker with the heavy lifting.
Making sure only wounds are attended and general belongings don't change owner.
"How badly are ye hurt, lass?"
As she continues speaking, you can tell that her voice is noticeably raspy. Her answers Alviss's question is delivered only slightly louder than a whisper "I- it hurts a lot. That stuff was all over me, and I tried not to breath it in, but I couldn't stop laughing..." she trails off as a she is overcome by a fit of coughing. It is difficult to determine the extent of her injuries through the armor and heavy cloak she is wearing. Her face is splotchy and red with first degree burns, and the smell of burnt hair clings to her. Also, the hastily-tied ropes binding her are quite restrictive and may be causing her difficulty breathing.
"Lass, yer not goin' anywhere. The festival is a wreck and yer friends beat a guard senseless. Since yer the only one we caught, I think ye should make it easier on yourself. Who's this Squim and what was his idea?"
"Squim? Big, black fur, short muzzle... he's the one who 'ad all the arrows in him and-" she is interrupted by another bout of coughing, "-and why should I tell you anything? " She glares at Alviss with sullen defiance.
I watch the healing going on, assisting with any lifting (or flying) which might help.
When all of the magical healing is spent from those skilled in the arts, I offer up healing to any remaining injured, prioritising Lummel:
healing
Alviss looks at the kobold.
"Ye best stay here and keep an eye on the girl. Holler if she tries to get away."
Before he goes, he puts a hand on the bound girl and heals her
"There, lass."
Leveraging his sturdy frame and dwarven strength, he helps with the heavy lifting. Then he moves to a spot he estimates to be about 25' away from the edge of Bricker's last mass healing and calls upon Torag and channels his own positive energy, arms raised to Torag.
He looks around to see if there are any gravely injured folks left, glancing back to the prisoner when he can.
ziz crouches on his nearby perch (an overturned cart) to watch the interrogation of the rat-woman with great curiosity.
"yip! you can count on me, ill watch her"
as the others move away to help the injured, ziz slowly approaches the captive a few hops at a time. his head tilts quizzically and he circles her, inspecting her every feature.
"not so bad...not so bad...dirty...smell bad "
he stops facing her. with a few elegant motions and a whisper from the lips a sparkle of magical energy dances on his tiny finger tips. years of dirt and grime melt away in moments and the horrible stench of burning hair dissipates, and is replaced by the gentle wafting scent of perfume.
(cast prestidigitation 2x: clean, perfume)
Ziz's snout curls in to a smirk, then becomes serious. he glances a few times over each shoulder, as if to look for eavesdroppers before scooting a few hops closer and leaning in for a whisper:
"you know, Ziz could help you, ziz wants to help you. we both different, you and me. different from the rest. i break the rules too, i like mischief. if you help meee, i willssss help you...yip"
he begins circling again, slowly....
"the guards will be mean when they get here. they like me, so i get off easy, but you... your mischief....they will hurt you. if you tell me things, i can help you, i can convince the others, the dwarf, to help you more, to let me take you home. i can take you home. i know the sewers, ziz lives there too. tell me where you nest and i can help you get there, and no one else will have to know. they will find out anyhow, they will torture you, but i can sneak you there, but you have tell me where your nest is... and tell me about Squim. i'll need to talk with him - to bargain to keep your friends safe because the guards will come. tell me about him so i can help you; so i can help him. after that i can do more. we can workssss together, yes?"
bluff
@Ziz: After absorbing the healing energies that spilled from Bricker and being treated by Alviss's, she practically glows with health. Once you are done cleaning her up, she is actually quite attractive (for a mammal). As she listens to you her expression softens and a look of hope spreads over her face. "Yes! I've heard about you, they say that an awful lot of loot that those bandits stole vanished in that fire..."
She gives you a wink then rolls over to relieve some of the weight on her bindings and get a look around to see if anyone's paying attention, "The sewers? We have a few hidey-holes down there, but we meet in the bell tower. That's probably where Squim went, Please! Don't turn me over to the guard, don't let them t-torture me! Just help me get these ropes off- I can get away on my own after that. There's a knife in my left boot, just cut the ropes and tell them I got away. We can sort out what I owe you later, but I owe you *big* and I won't forget this!
Lummel begins blowing his whistle in a particular pattern, and answering whistles sound out from various patrols in the ward. The guard is only minutes away.
Alviss finishes tending to the wounded, helping folks head away from the area.
Cleaning blood off of his axe, he walks back towards the captive, whom he sees talking with the kobold.
ziz stands bolt upright with a furrowed brow and crinkled snout. he steeples his fingers and hops about in a in a tight circle.
internal monolog: it worked! i cant believe it worked and the furry skin told me where to go! i cant let the lawmen take her after she did good...but she might be bad and lying to ziz. if i free her bonds go she could hurt me - she is big and scary, and has hurt others. yip! i must move fast! what to do what to do.....i need the others to help. /internal monolog
ziz calms himself, then touches his throat with one hand and whistles loudly using the other
continuing to hold his throat for the megaphone effect he yells out to the other heros who charged to the scene that he can see: bricks! dwarfy! elesa! foot down! stop what your doing and come quick! emergency!
he turns to the furry humanoid woman and says simply "they will help me"
A few minutes labor is all it takes to free those who were trapped under various bits of rubble and, aside from the two dead guards and the corpse of the man chopped in half by Alviss's axe, there are no injuries more severe than bumps and bruises amongst the fairgoers.
The whistles of the various guard patrols slowly make their way closer. Like a ripple, the panic of the crowd spread outward from where it began. While things are calm and orderly where you are, it will probably take the guardsmen a few minutes to work their way through the panicked, tightly-packed crowd.
When all the wounded have been attended, at least for the immediate times, Lummel founds himself relieved. He jumped in the fight blindly because protecting civilians was his duty, but, as always, there was more to that. Every time a disorder hit town in the deep of his mind started to ask questions:
"Where is Ulila?", "Where is Tolaria?", "Gods, are they in this mess?"
And only when things cleared up he was able to relax, recognizing in the moment his unconscious worries.
The cobold called for all of them, and Lummel walked towards the tied girl, ready to find out what all that was about. On the way he reached Alvis, and put an hand on the shoulder of the paladin.
"I must thank you friend, I wish in the watch were more people as prompts as you."
Alviss turns to Lummel. Torag guides me where I'm needed, lad.
His face takes on a serious mein. I'll not lecture ye; ye know yer duty. But ye can't protect and serve when yer knocked out or dead. Be a little less rash next time and make sure ye stay upright. That long sticker ye carry doesn't do much good if ye can't swing it!
He smiles and cuffs him on the shoulder. But those vermin won't be botherin' this town anytime soon, I reckon.
He points ahead. Do ye know the kobold? He was the only one left to guard the girl. She's trussed up tight, but this has already been a day of strange happenins.
He walks up to the bound girl.
Ye look more fit, lass. Anythin' ye'd like to tell us?
Then he remembers Lummel is now in charge and takes a step backwards.
I join the throng around the wererat.
ziz will relay all the information he learned from the female wererat to all present.
" we should take her from here now. to somewhere safe, yip. if we turn her over and we need more information we will never get it once the guard gets their hands on her....and the knights. we need to move fast to the bell tower if we are to intercept this pack."
Alviss frowns at the kobold, puzzled. Doesn't he see that the guard is standin' right here?
He looks to Lummel. Yer in charge, lad.
He takes a piece of cloth out and begins wiping the blood off his axe.
Ziz, what do you mean? Are the creatures lairing at the belltower?
I look around at the others:
What about getting some silversheen? These beasts have tough hides.
No, I don't believe they reside together, but she saysss they will fall back to that meeting point. She has provided you with information foot-down, you would do wellssss not to sacrifice a useful informant - this may only be the start of things if these attackers are looking to play rough. as for bein' in charge, NO ONE is in charge of 'Zizzafalithax the Blithe' I amssss a free dragon!"
Ziz puffs his small chest out.
Looks at Ziz. "Yer not much of one for authority, are ye?"
He turns his attention to the girl, face serious but not threatening. "Ye wouldn't be lurin' us to a trap, would ye lass?"
Back to Ziz. "So, Ziz-a-fal-ithax. What would ye have us do with her if we go to the tower? Bring along a rat-girl who just tried to kill us? While we're there to get her allies?"
Having finished talking to Ziz, he answers Eles.
"I can't call on Torag for every one of these foul creatures we have to fight. And I don't believe there's a merchant here who can sell me a silvered axe."
Do ye know who could sell us some silversheen?"
Lummel was going to ask to Elesandira why she had tied up what seemed to be a girl, only after Ziz spoke he understood the situation a little more.
"So you were with the lot" he swings Sweed Edge bringing the blade under the chin of the girl. "I want to now why you did this, who are you and your friends, and where I can find them. And you better speak quickly, I'm not renown for my talking habits"
If looks could kill... the world would be poorer for the loss of Zizzafalithax 'the Blithe'. The girl glares at him murderously as he calls the others over. As Alviss addresses her she turns her attention to him. "A trap?! No! I-I don't want anything to do with you people, just let me go please! You'll never see me again, I promise!"
Her attitude changes abruptly as the bloodied and battered guardsman looms over her; face goes pale and she tries to squirm away from the blade but her bindings give her very little wiggle room. She begins to babble, "I don't know nothing! it was all Squim's idea! He said we had to distract the guards, and 'e's prob'ly run back to the bell tower and pleasedon'tkillme!" She seems on the verge of tears.
"has your heart grown so cold from chasing me in the night, Mr. lummie? is fear now your greatest weapon?"
ziz snickers to himself
"we have no reason to disssssbelieve her - how could they have anticipated the need for a trap? no, no.... you did gain one valuable piece of information with your dark will - their purpose was to distract us..."
ziz giggles
" and distract YOU they have, yesssss. every moment we waste is time lost. we must go now, and act on the information we have. there is no time for silver magics or letters to loved ones, soft-skins, all that matters is that we disrupt them, keep them on their furry heelsssss. victory is not important - the people are. we waste time with this girl, she is unimportant. cut her loose or leave as she is to her own fate, we mussst move, yesss yip yip yip!"
without a second look Ziz bolts in the direction of the bell tower.
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Bricker stays silent and watches as Ziz bolts off to the bell tower he ponders to himself and gives a stern look to Lummel. "Cut the lass loose she has done what we asked." After a moment of silence Bricker nods to the gal and bolts off after Ziz to try to catch up with the quick kobold. "Would waiting for an old friend do ye any harm." He yells out quite sarcastically.
Ziz!
I call after the kobold.
What was that about a distraction? What's really going on here?
Alviss looks at Lummell. "Sounds like there's somethin' goin' on. Ye should turn the lass over to yer men and we can head to the tower. Maybe the winged one could scout from the skies."
Watches Ziz scamper away. Torag grant me patience.
"One thing is sure, this one is not walking anywhere. If something is going on we must alert the guard. Regarding that, where are those lads, snails crawl faster."
Right.
Fed up with dithering and concerned for Ziz, I take to the air and try to get a sense of what is happening across the town below.
perception
Alviss watches Eles fly off. A scatterbrained kobold, a reckless halfling and an impatient angel. I need to find those Pathfinders and get back to the real world.
He looks at Lummel. "Those three aren't gonna clean up this mess by themselves. I don't ken settin' her free, though. She should stand fer her actions. Give her to yer men when they get here and join us at the tower.
He heads off to the tower at a trot, axe slung at his side.
Ziz waits crouching on his haunches behind a basket around the nearest bend, peeking at the party still surrounding the captive. As bricker approaches he whispers to him.
"pssst, bricks, do you think it worked? Will they let her go? Nah, pbfffft, looks like they'll turn her over to the guard."
he shrugs
" ah well, it was worth a shot. Sometimes that works on lummie; he talks a mean game and sticks to the rules, but he's not as hard as he'd like everyone to think. The guy's got a good heart. I actually like the oaf - tough as nails, power, respect, confidence, good at hide n' seek - the dragons would like him.... If only he weren't so serious"
He casts a sharp look at bricker
"don't you dare tell him that!"
he turns and continues on to the tower, happy to have a trusted comrade alongside
"Foot down is really angry about his people dyin', more than I've ever seen before, but she'll be OK. Maybe we can arrange her "early release" after this business is done."
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Bricker grins at Ziz's comment on Foot down completely agreeing with him but keeping that at heart. "Foot down would never forget his duty as a guard he is probably the most loyal member they got. If the wererats are meeting in the bell tower than perhaps we can catch them by surprise if we are quick and stealthy about it." Bricker trys to make small talk and pick up the speed as he and Ziz run for the bell tower with great haste.
Lummel will wait for some backup to whom leave the girl.
He glances frowning at the girl: "Any last minute recalling is coming up in your head, little one?"
Alviss tries to keep an eye on Eles as he trots towards the tower.
@Elesandira: As you soar above the rooftops you can hear the piercing shrieks of the guard's whistles from several places, the sounds fade quickly as you gain altitude. Your sharp eyes are drawn to the flecks of red amongst the crowd; the guardsmen's tabards are relatively easy to pick out and by watching them for a minute you can get an idea of what is happening. There are several other fallen guards in various streets around the city- the open courtyards behind the walls of the keep are the only place that seems completely undisturbed. Ripples of panic spread through the crowd, in an odd way mirroring the turbulence of the Keld as it flows past the city.
@Lummel: The others dart away, and for a minute Lummel is alone with the girl. She doesn't look like the a monster, just a pale waifish girl scared out of her mind. Several locks of long black hair have fallen in front of her face, she tosses her head to clear them aside and looks up at you when you speak then quickly returns to looking at the ground without saying anything in reply. The slashes and burns in the heavy woolen cloak she wears and the armor showing beneath it are enough to dispel most of your doubts about what she must be, but it's all very disconcerting. You detect a faint smell of flowery perfume wafting up from the bound woman as you watch her warily.
The patrol finally fights its way through the press of the crowd to answer your call. The almost 20 minutes since you regained consciousness have felt like a small eternity. The young man leading the patrol, a corporal named Tharron, is visibly shocked by your condition and the two deceased guards. "Cadur and Vurge, are they..." he trails off as their condition becomes obvious, then regains his bearing. "Sergeant, I left half my patrol on Southspur to help move the wounded. There were a bunch of rats, and two rat-like humanoids with 'em. They attacked the patrol there- we drove them off but too many men were hurt to risk chasing them through the alleys. I heard your whistle and came as fast as I could... He finishes his report and awaits your orders. He and his men look curiously at the woman you have tied up, but wait for you to speak before asking any questions of their own.
@Ziz/Bricker/Alviss: The familiar bulk of the belltower looms above you after short while spent pushing your way past the confused crowds that line Eastgate Way, most of them unaware of exactly what has the caused such a furor. Rumor traveled faster than you and as you proceeded you heard mutterings about goblins, grimlocks, gnolls, and other even less-likely sources of the carnage. There is no sign of the wererats here. The tower's door is closed, though there are windows large enough to climb through set at approximately 30', 60', and 90' up the tower.
Alviss catches up to Ziz and Bricker, huffing a bit. They stop around the corner from the tower so they aren't immediately visible.
Eyeing the tower. "The only way I'm goin' in there is through the door. Can either a ye get a look through one of the windows?"
ziz smiles up at alviss with a gleam in his eye after his comment.
"you're funnys. i had always heard that dwarfs didn't have a sense of humor. what do you call yourself? Torraag? glad you are here with that axe of yours.
i've sstill got the "cling of the dragons foot", sso i'll check out the window, but i think it would be best if Bricks went in. anyone have a rope? yip?"
Growls at the kobold.
"Torag is my GOD, ye daft bugger. And he helped keep yer skin on yer back there. Me name is Alviss Haftbreaker"
Frowns for a second.
"And I don't know what dwarves ye've been around, but we love to laugh....When the occasion calls fer it."
He rummages in his pack for a moment. Ah. Here we go.
He pulls out a coil of 50' silk rope and offers it to Bricker.
I swoop down next to Lummel: Your men have taken hits across the city but the keep is undisturbed and I can't see any other epicentre to the violence.
I purse my lips in concern: I wish I could hit these things... I'll look in on a friend in a moment, then perhaps we should join our little friends.
Speaking with Elesandira
"It seems they stroke in different parts of the city at the same time. I can't see a reason to that but some kind of diversion."
Then to Tharron:"Take this" pointing at the girl "Into custody, watch her closely, but no harm should occur to her. Report to Lt. Alaton, the situation seems under control now, but wounded needs attendance. I have a lead it might cast some light on this matter, I'm going to follow it when is still fresh. I'm going to need your short sword though, corporal."
Lummel will also drink all his cure wounds potions
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"I somehow doubt that these rats are dwelling on the higher floors if I can get up there we could take them by surprise and easily surround them...providing my prediction be true that is." He ponders on for a moment then looks to Ziz and extend the rope to him. "Oh Ziz that magic a yours still active, ye could tie this up there and I can climb up and get in through one dem window." Bricker then turns his attention to the dwarf. "You...um Alvis Foot down and Eles are they safe, they plan on helping or are they just sitin' back?" Bricker toys with one of the potion bottles at his belt impatiently not wanting the rats to get away or learn of his the fail attack in the market. "I doubt that these rats crawled through the front door unnoticed so I'm guessing that there is a sewer entrance on the bottom floor or basement of this here tower which furthers my idea and there probable local if so we should be quick afore they make a retreat and gather allies."
"Yes sir!" Corporal Tharron gives you his sword and takes the young woman into custody, then departs.
As Lummel digs through his backpack to recover the healing potions he notices that it has been rifled through- presumably while he was unconscious.
12 Potion: Bull's Strength
13 Potion: Bull's Strength
14 Potion Cat's Grace
15 Potion Bear's Endurance
[
I consider my options and decide to leave the car behind:
If you have anything silver, even a candlestick, bring it with you. I'll see you at the belltower.
I take wing and head after the crazy gang.
You arrive at the belltower momentarily. From above the tower's roof is a shining landmark showing the contrast of the gleaming bronze bells, brilliant white marble, and sturdy granite statues. You can make out Bricker, Ziz, and Alviss lurking on the moderately busy street below- they are on the side of the building tower that holds the structure's only door.
Since all the civilians are acting recklessly Lummel feels he has no time to take a detour and runs after the party, to make sure no one gets hurt.
OK, Lummel will arrive about 5 minutes after Ziz/Bricker/Alviss and just a minute or two behind Elesandira.
Alviss looks at his companions. "Well. Are either of ye goin' up, or should I just march in the front door?"
Looks back up the street for signs of Lummel.
"ok, ills go. after we can split an ale and cheers to our gods."
he looks apprehensively at the window
"something tells me will need their luck, wit, and power before the day is done, yip"
he snatches up the rope and stuffs in in his handyhaversack before scampering around the corner and up the wall. he peers in over the sill of the lowest window to see what he can see.
stealth
to hide from anyone that might be inside
perception -1=13
spell notes:
spider climb and prestidigitation (megaphone) = 35 mins
mage armor = 4hrs 40 mins
prestidigitation (perfume, clean) = 40 mins