The monster grunts at Jorzan's suggestion, clears his throat, then lets a long, "HoooooOOOOOOOOOOooooOOOooOOoooOOOOOOOOOO! OOOOOooooOoOOOOO!"
While the howl varies in pitch considerably, and almost has something of a rhythm, he is not, to be generous, a good singer.
The boys laughs and punches the monster lightly on the arm, then he takes his club and taps out a rhythm on the floor, throwing in the occasional stomp and clap.
The monster cocks his head to the side, "Hmmm... *hrumph*", clears his throat again, and replicates the rhythm with a series of grunts and whoops, becoming a huge, furry beat box.
The boy nods approvingly, and, after Kelne suggests giving the Wolfguards what for, tilts his helmet back, puts on his war face, and taps his club slowly against his upturned left hand.
With a grimace, Sir Justahl shows the others the unwrapped object.
In the rag is a child's dismembered index finger. Rather than having been sliced cleanly with a sharp blade, the finger appears to have been pulled off.
"No way to be sure just who it's from of course, but still... The one who did this is richly deserving of the Inheritor's Smite."
As Kelne states his position, Jorzan breathes an inward sigh of relief, the Northern warrior's words echoing the true desire of his own heart. He had asked the question he did because someone had needed to ask it. The need to go rescue Cassandra's brother and put some serious hurt on any who can caused her brother, and therefore her, any pain was almost overwhelming. And if there was not so much at stake the shadowdancer would have already been on the way. To risk his own life was nothing, for he had no fear of death and supreme confidence in his skills and ability to take care of himself. But to risk Cassandra's life was another matter all together.
As the boy silently makes clear his own position, Jorzan's heart beats faster in anticipation. When the Paladin of Izmir shows the gruesome token left by the Wolfguard Jorzan knows the decision has been made and he smiles grimly, his fury at those who could so casually commit such atrocity almost choking him "That settles it then, we're going. Cassandra could likely identify whether that finger belonged to her brother or not but personally I'd much rather not subject her to that. Besides, it's not necessary. Kelne and Justhal are right. No matter who's finger that is, Omir's den of evil needs to be destroyed. If we don't they'll never let us be." he doesn't bother to add that fact that he knew he'd never be able to look Cassie in the eyes again if he just walked away and left her brother to die a horrible death. Glancing all around the now determined rogue looks for agreement in his comrades eyes before continuing
"All we need to do now if figure out how to do it. Kelne, your knowledge will be invaluable here. What can we expect to face? What do you know of the Baron's numbers? How many foes can we expect to face taking him on? And what manner of creatures does he have at his disposal. Obviously we have no chance of taking them all on, but if we hit them hard and fast, I believe we can rescue Cassie's brother and do enough damage to get away clean. But we need to be completely prepared and plan perfectly."
A moment later a thought suddenly occurs to him and he says quietly, almost to himself "And maybe, just maybe, I might be able to find a few others willing to help..."
"These Wolf-Guards have been dogging us this entire way; I'm afraid we must needs find some way of discouraging them from doing so in the future, even if it means some risk."
Despite the musical performance of the Boy and his Monster, Cassandra has fallen asleep. Her head is mashed up against one of the Monster's giant legs, and Snowy is folded up against her belly.
In the silence following Justahl's statement, Gray and Karthan return from their mission to purchase more supplies and weapons. After you all bring them up to speed they, too, get a determined look.
Once all have returned Jorzan announces, "I'm going to go see if I can find us some help of the Dwarven kind" he gently takes the wrapped up finger from Justahl and carefully puts it away explaining " And I'll need this."
He then moves over to Snowy and taps the owl softly so as to wake it but not the child it's sleeping on "And you, come with me. I need you to keep a lookout, if there's any trouble I'll need your speed to come back and warn the others. Coming?" it's clear from his look and his stance that he fully expects the owl to understand.
If the owl does seem to be willing to join him Jorzan sets it on his shoulder. He then wraps the shadows around himself, seeming to almost disappear from view, and heads out the window promptly walking straight up the wall to the roof. Once there, his senses fully primed, he makes his quick, silent and stealthy way towards Grippen and the other gate guards. Leaping down into the same alley as before he approaches them, seeking out his new friend.
As he moves towards them, Jorzan almost appears to be a different man entirely. Gone is the guise of a young, innocent boy. In it's place is a dangerous predator. He allows the confidence of his step, the glint of his powerful weapons and items and the intensity of his dark gaze and nature to come fully to the fore. "Hail to you Grippen. Once again we meet this day, for it seems the fates may have foreordained it. My friend, while I have not truly lied to you, I also have not told you the complete truth about myself. I am no starry eyed youth, here to gawp at your fine city. Zanjor is my brother, in a sense, that is true, but in way that is far too complicated to explain right now. He is fine and no harm shall come to him from me or those companions I travel with. But he is not important right now. What is important is this" and making sure none but Grippen can see, he shows the Dwarf the mutilated finger.
Keeping the wrapper open he continues "I am part of a small, elite force, chosen by one of the Gods themselves to guard a very special little girl and guide her too a place she needs to be. I am sorry, believe me or not at your whim, but for now I can divulge no more than this. This finger belongs to her brother. It was given to us just now by the Wolfguard along with an ultimatum. They have demanded that we hand over the girl and one other, a Northman who was once one of their own but who denounced them when he learned of the Baron's true, abominable nature. If we do not hand over the pair to them within the hour they will most horribly kill and torture this innocent lad. Of this you can be sure, just look at how they removed his finger." he spits furiously, holding up the finger a little closer to the dwarf.
Finally putting it away he concludes earnestly "Grippen, though we have known each other but a short time, I feel we are kindred spirits. I know that your heart burns just as fierce as does mine to see those foul creatures walk your streets with impunity. They must be destroyed. We go to do so now, and between us, my companions and I are are not foes to be taken lightly. Yet I tell you true, I do not know if this is a task we can return from alive. So I ask for your help my friend. I ask you to help us do what you know is right, help us rid the world of those undead creatures of foulest intent. And before you ask, we cannot take this before any council, there is no time. This is a matter to be decided now, by men, by sharp steel and bold blood. So what say my friend, are you with me?"
"Make sure you're not seen, Jorzan," Kelne said sternly before he left, "It's a good bet they've got people watching the place."
"Alright," he went on, "We're resolved on our course of action. Now, we have very little time to come up with a plan and execute it. As I see it, we have two options. First, we run down some teleport scrolls or the like and teleport into the castle courtyard before the deadline expires. The problem there is I'm the only one who knows it well enough to put us on target, and I'm not familiar enough with the rest of the complex to get us any deeper. It would be a frontal assault, with no way of knowing where to find Kevin."
"The second option is that we go along with their 'deal'. Cassandra and I get teleported and the rest of you scry on us to see where we're taken before teleporting in yourselves. That gets us closer to Ormir, but at some risk to Cassandra. We can also scry on Kevin, since we have a piece of his finger, and find him directly. That scrying also means we can have more than one person casting the teleport spells, so we can bring in these friends Jorzan is rounding up, as well as dividing our forces if it seems necessary."
"Now, we could disguise somebody else as Cassandra, but I don't think that would work. Illusions aren't foolproof, and frankly I think they'd see through it in seconds. People can apparently trace her across the continent, after all. It's a risk, but remember they don't want her dead right away, and we can hardly leave her here alone while we go off on this mission. That said, I think this should be Cassandra's call. If she says no, we go with the disguise, no questions asked."
@Jorzan: Snowy blinks sleepily at you when you request his aid, then fluffs his feathers and snuggles up more closely to Cassandra's belly and closes his eyes again. There is no aid to be had there, apparently.
At the gates, Grippen listens thoughtfully to your tale. His expression is still open, but you can tell there are heavy issues he is weighing as he mulls over your story.
At the Inn: Karthan reports that he saw at least two different magic shops that sold scrolls and rod within a ten-minute walk. The prices were a little high, but they were open.
Regarding the owl's response Jorzan whispers only loud enough for the bird to hear "You don't fool me for a second bird. You and I? We're gonna sit down and have us a long chat some day soon."
Stealth:
Perception:
Diplomacy:
Gray sits quietly in the corner while people form plans for the group and continue on shopping ideas. While everyone talks. Gray is content to do whatever the majority decides. He reaches into his bag, and removes his ledger and ink pen. He opens the book to what seems half way through as begins writing notes.
Karthan will, when the consensus is reached, head out and buy three scrolls of greater teleportation, and three of divination, plus the requisite mirror for the spell.
"Best to have a spare." is his only answer.
He won't bargain at all on the costs; he'll just pay the asking price.
"I mislike this, a great deal."
He'll also pick up two scrolls of searing ray, in case there's a need to turn a vampire into charred crisps on short notice.
Pausing for a minute Gray looks up from his book and asks the group. "I figure we will be fighting but does anyone know for sure what we will be fighting? I want to prepare best for our encounters correctly. Is there any divine spells you guys wish for me to use in the up coming fights?
"If there's one thing vampires are vulnerable to it's sunlight," Kelne told Gray, "Magical sunlight probably won't kill them, but it will certainly hurt them. There are two vampires that I know of, not sure how many will be on site when we arrive. Difficult to say what else we might run up against, aside from the wolfguard, who are all human."
"Now, Justahl, is your elven friend any good in a fight?"
@Jorzan (at the gates): Grippen seems to weigh carefully every single thing you say, his thick brows furrowed the whole time you're talking. When you finish, he maintains eye contact as he strokes his beard thoughtfully and occasionally taps the haft of his axe on the hard cobbles. "I don't know, Jorzan. Though I don't doubt your heart, and don't doubt the strength or sureness of your convictions, I could get in a whooole heap of trouble for assisting. I'm a guard of the city, and unless I'm fighting to defend the city from an attack, or to stop some internal hassle, I'm not supposed to fight. Basically, unless the Baron makes a move on Forgelander soil, he's an ally as far as the council's concerned. Makes me sick, personally, but that's the way of it." It's clear he's conflicted as he says this. A couple other guards overheard your impassioned speech and are standing behind Grippen as he talks, listening to the exchange between you.
"Me losing my job is the least of my worries; the treaty would be broken, and that could mean open war between Ormir and the Council and that w--" Grippen is cut off by a throaty feminine chuckle in the shadows. Trista steps out from behind one of the guardhouses, a bemused look on her face.
"Grip, luv, I can say with a high degree of certainty that part of why you're under attack right now is because of Ormir. Seriously. The council knows this, but can't strike back in the open, or maybe won't. I'm not sure which it is. Regardless, if you want a shot at Ormir that'll hurt him, if you want to help end the undead menace in the north, this is the best chance you'll get." She gives you a smile that settles on you like a ton of bricks. "Didn't see you in the room earlier, but I saw you come in and go. Couple times. You're a busy li'l fella. Pretty sneaky, too. Not as sneaky as me, obviously, but you'll do. You guys have a plan for this? If you're going to get a dozen or so dwarves into Ormir's place, you better have some serious magic on hand. I can help a little bit, but the Baroness is mostly good for running interference, not getting high-powered baubles and scrolls and the like."
Grippen turns red and starts to berate the elf, but quickly changes his mind. "DAMMIT LARIELORANNA YOU...you...ahhh, by the Lady you always get me when I'm not expecting it. The council won't act, you say? You know this for certain? Ah, of course you do. You always do." He seems to decide something. He turns back to you. "Alright Jorzan, look. Your words, your words cut straight to my heart, though I didn't want to admit it at first. But you only live once, and these are the times for heroes. So I'm in. Some of the boys, here, they'll go with, too, but I can get some more. Give me an hour and I can meet you here at the gate house with a decent force of seasoned warriors. What do you say?" He seems suddenly focused. There is obviously some background here not being entirely revealed; some past between he and this elf, and some bad blood between he and Ormir.
Jorzan starts to grimace as Grippen sounds as if he is going to refuse. But then suddenly their private little gathering is interrupted by a stunningly beautiful elf. Regardless of her beauty, and it's not insignificant affect on him, Jorzan's hand slides to his weapon as he does some quick thinking. He did not know this woman, but it appeared she was somehow at least somewhat familiar with his companions. If she was telling the truth, and had been in their room and was still walking around alive, it was likely she was not an enemy. Plus she seemed to have the full trust of Grippen, whom Jorzan already trusted considerably. Finally, there was the very significant fact that her words had made the difference in bringing Grippen and his dwarven allies on board.
Making a decision, he speaks "It appears you have the advantage of me, in more ways than one. You seem to know my friends but we have not yet met, I am Jorzan. And if you were able to follow me, than you must be very good at what you do, for I am one of the best." he does not say this arrogantly, from his manner it is clear he is merely speaking a fact, as he sees it at least. The look he gives her is one of mutual respect for one talented in their common craft. "I thank you for your aid in convincing our mutual Dwarven friend here to let himself do what in his heart he knew all along to be right."
Switching his attention to Grippen, and clapping the dwarf on the shoulder he continues, in Dwarvish "Thank you my friend, I knew you would not fail to do the right thing. With a force of stout Dwarven warriors by our side, there is no doubt we shall emerge victorious. We shall meet you here in an hour, though time is of the essence and if your forces can be readied sooner, please let me know."
Turning back to woman he smirks slightly as he says "Larielloranna, is it? I return to my companions. Would you travel with me this time, or do you prefer to watch me from behind?" his last quip he makes in Elvish "Either way, make sure you keep up."
And with a final nod at Grippen and the other dwarves he slips into the shadows, runs up a wall, and makes his way up a wall and as quickly as possible along the rooftops and back to the inn. He smiles at his little game with the elfess, recalling lighter days and his games of stealth in Stormfare with Karthan . The smiles quickly fades though as he recalls all that has befallen since then and that those days are long gone. He keeps his senses sharp as he makes his way back and looks around carefully once again before entering the room the same way he came in.
Stealth:
Perception:
Perception:
Jorzan, Karthan, and perhaps surprisingly Trista all return to the room. Trista fills Jorzan, Gray, and Karthan in on her past with Justahl and the fact she's already met everyone else in the room. "I'm in to assist, as well. The Baroness knows Justahl and would see his work done. She has always supported the men of Izmir. Now what's the plan?"
Quote:"Now, Justahl, is your elven friend any good in a fight?"
Sir Justahl nods.
"Very good indeed. Just... Overconfident. I worry for her taking on more than she should."
He smiles sadly.
"She reminds me so much of my sister, before she disappeared..."
Jorzan thanks his half-orc friend, praising him on his excellent selections. Placing his new items about his person, he turns to the elfess. "Trista, about this Baroness of yours. You mentioned that she might be able to help us? How exactly would that be. You said something about interference? What would that entail? And as well, what skills do you bring to the table?"
Kelne began with a bit of background, "We've been given an ultimatum. Either myself and Cassandra turn ourselves over to be teleported to Ormir's palace within the hour or they start torturing her brother to death." His voice was decidedly grim but determined, "That severely restricts both our preparation time and our options. The plan is, provided Cassandra agrees, to go along with the ultimatum. We present ourselves and are teleported into the heart of the palace, probably being conveyed to Ormir or some prominent underling in short order."
"Meanwhile, the rest of you will be scrying on Cassandra and Kevin. Once you've gotten a decent view of their surroundings, you can teleport directly to their location at whatever moment seems best. After that, the mayhem begins."
"I don't know precisely what we'll face. With luck, Ormir's scattered his Wolfguards far and wide in an effort to bring in Cassandra, but there's bound to be someone minding the fort. There are two full vampires that I know of, and I'd be surprised if there weren't a few spawn. Once they've been ensconced for a while, they tend to multiply. Quite aside from drinking your blood, full vampires can dominate the weak of will and drain away your life with a touch, so be caeful."
"For killing vampires, you'll ideally want magic weapons, forged of either silver or mithral, or whatever nasty spells you can bring to bear. Even then, they need to be tracked back to their coffins to finish them off permanently. A stake through the heart will immobilise them, but you need to take the head off and douse it in holy water to kill it for good."
"Now, it is possible that, for whatever reason, you won't be able to scry on us. I'll be leaving you with descriptions of the castle courtyard and a couple of locations outside just in case. Just how you'll get however many people you've rounded up teleported into position I don't know. Karthan may need to come back for a few trips."
"I think that covers everything. It's a rough and ready sort of a plan, but I don't see a great many alternatives, given the timeframe. Questions?"
"Yes, just one." Jorzan speaks, his face grim "Are you mad? Once Ormir has Cassandra in his clutches all is lost. All he need do to stop us is threaten her life as well. She is not going anywhere near there. One of us will travel with you, using magic to alter their form to Cassandra's. I volunteer myself. We shall have magics cast on us to enhance our abilities and all of us, the Dwarves as well, shall have our minds protected with the aid of Gray's new wand. I have noticed that the Boy seems to have an afinity for the arcane arts so hopefully he and Karthan can both manage to bring all our troops to bear. Perhaps they can even start putting themselves in place before we surrender ourselves. Cassandra shall stay here, hidden away safe from scrying in Karthan'as magic rope space, a contingent of the Guard can be sent to protect her, perhaps Trista's people can help with this as well. I understand scrying takes some time, so we should begin looking for Kevin now, before we hand ourselves in, otherwise any help will be far too late to do us any good. Both you and Cassandra are far too vauable to us Kelne to allow yourselves to be sacrificed so carelessly as you suggest. So unless I hear a better plan, this is the one we shall go with"
He did not wish to be in a contest of wills with his ally, but the man simply had to see that allowing Cassandra into Ormir's grasp was a sure course to disasater.
Trista raises one elegantly arched eyebrow at Jorzan and shakes her hair. "Don't you worry about me in a fight, lad." She says.
Gray Nods to Jorzan "I agree with you, Cassandra should go nowhere near the Baron at all. I am willing to do what it takes to protect the girl. As much as I feel I need to stay with her I will have to trust her protection to others. I would like to be on the front lines while fighting the soulless undead. Gray stops and thinks for a second. "However it might be wise to use the lack of the Wolfguards knowledge of who I am against them, somehow. To them I am just a roaming priest."
"I concur - we should not turn Cassandra over to Ormir, even as bait." He looks at the Feral Boy thoughtfully. "Can you summon the beast quickly if needed?"
He shrugs out of his vest, and puts it on the lad, comparing, until he's matching Cassandra's appearance.
"If I knew of a way to make you invisible, Jorzan, I'd do it - and try to have you stay close to these two."
He reaches up with a knife and snips a bit of Kelne's hair. "With this, it'll be easier to scry upon you."
Sir Justahl nods while listening.
Taking the fight to the enemy instead of being ambushed along their way made his blood sing with righeousness!
"Fair enough," Kelne said. He thought their odds of rescuing Kevin had gone down substantially, but the others had a valid point and the plan hadn't exactly filled him with confidence either. Of course, looking out for a different kid who Ormir would feel no compunctions about killing immediately wasn't a huge step up from his perspective, but the feral boy would have the monster on hand to look out for him when the time came.
"I'll leave Cassandra's safety in your hands, but I wouldn't count on the rope trick as foolproof. If there is somebody still watching the place, we're not going to get a squad of dwarves in to guard Cassandra without them noticing and wondering what's going on. One of those vampires was in town the last I saw of her. Risky as it might be, she might be safer accompanying you. I'll leave that to you to decide, but give Cassandra some choice in the matter before you lock her up in the rope trick, alright?" Being constantly hidden away from danger and otherwise sheltered was no way for anyone to live their lives. He doubted it would always work either. When this was done, they were going to have to teach the girl some rudiments of self-defense.
"I wouldn't say no to an escort, provided they're confident they can remain unnoticed," Kelne went on, "And bearing in mind Karthan and Jorzan are meant to be scrying." That really only left Trista and Gray as possibilities, given he knew Justahl wasn't in the least bit sneaky.
"Oh, incidentally, Jorzan, I've got some of those Enhathladi arrows left. I doubt I'll be in a position to use them, so they're yours. Under the circumstances, I'd rather see them put to use than returned, especially the flamestrike arrows." A few fireballs in the midst of the wolfguard certainly wouldn't go amiss, he reflected before turning his attention to the feral boy.
"Kid, if you're sure you're up to this, you should be ready for a fight," he said, "There's a reasonable chance they'll spot that you're under an illusion. Otherwise, you're sticking close to me, too terrified to speak but determined to do whatever it takes to rescue your brother. Clear?"
(in point form for simplicity, but feel free to RP it)
-SCRYING GREATER: Works the same but only takes A Standard Action!
So, since we have lots of time left till our deadline, we can go NOW and totally take them by surprise! (or, well, as soon as the Dwarves are ready. Maybe Trista can go hurry them up?)
SO, then First:
-Cassandra gets left behind, up the rope (where she can't be scryed on), but with the Dwarves, in their Barracks! (Or somewhere similar where she'll be surrounded by hordes of undead hating dwarves). We get her out of the inn using Karthan's hat. Gray and Trista can take her there as the wolfguard doesn't know them. Some of us can even skulk along behind invisibly to provide further back up. Maybe Kelne, Justhal and the Boy can go speak to the wolfguard some more, distracting them while Cassie gets away and possibly getting more info out of them?
-We all meet up again and hopefully get the jump on them by twenty minutes or so.
THEN just before we go:
-Everyone gets buffs (Prot from Evil, Message, Bless etc.)
-Scry on Kevin,
-Team 1 (probably us)Gets Hide from Undead cast on the them, maybe even invisibility then teleports directly to Kevin to make the rescue.
-Team 2 (and/or 3, probably the Dwarves?), Teleports into castle area to take down Ormir and/or cause distraction for the rescue team.
-We all meet up and fight our way out or make sure Ormir is dead.
It's a much simpler plan, much more direct, we all get to fight and stick together and most importantly we don't separate two of our party and have them be fed to the wolves.
So whatcha all think? I Like this plan : D
(Also, just as a note, The Boy can cast Teleport even easier than Karthan can, and Kelne has an even better UMD than Jorzan)
"Can you summon the beast quickly if needed?"
The boy nods emphatically.
@Jorzan
"Can you summon the beast quickly if needed?"The boy nods emphatically.
@Jorzan
If the user meets all the requirements noted above, and her caster level is at least equal to the spell's caster level, she can automatically activate the spell without a check. If she meets all three requirements but her own caster level is lower than the scroll spell's caster level, then she has to make a caster level check (DC = scroll's caster level + 1) to cast the spell successfully. If she fails, she must make a DC 5 Wisdom check to avoid a mishap (see Scroll Mishaps). A natural roll of 1 always fails, whatever the modifiers. Activating a scroll is a standard action (or the spell's casting time, whichever is longer) and it provokes attacks of opportunity exactly as casting a spell does. If the caster level check fails but no mishap occurs, the scroll is not expended.
Gravely, Sir Justahl approaches Cassandra.
"Cassie, we have determined to attack and try to get your brother back. We have planned to keep you well hidden and guarded while we do, but we think you should have a say in what we do. If you want, you can ride with me as you have in the past, and then we won't be split up. Either way has it's dangers. What would you like to do? Either way I will do as you say."
As planned before,
Try to scry to find Kevin
Team 1-Kelne, Justhal and Feral Boy distract and probe, the Team 2-the rest of us, sneak her our of the inn.
Team 1 heads back to the room, then also sneaks out.
We all rendezvous by the guard outpost at the gate.
Smasharoo time!
Try to Scry Kevin.
Then we all just sneak out and head straight to the Guard post. Soon as the Dwarves are ready we blip to Castle Ormir,
Find a brain for Feral Boy to scan if necessary.
Rescue the brother
Stomp some undead!
You realize that Karthan has Detect Thoughts as one of his actual known spells, yes? :)
Cassandra rubs her eyes sleepily and looks troubled, not really answering Justahl's question. "I don't...I don't understand! How can my brother be alive and dead at the same time! I...I saw him...d...d...but now he is alive, too! I can See both things! I See him alive and dead! How can that happen?"
"I don't know Cassandra. Perhaps it is a future you see, and we may be able to stop it from happening."
You realize that Karthan has Detect Thoughts as one of his actual known spells, yes? :)
While the others focus on using their magics to locate Cassandra's brother, Jorzan whispers a thanks to the caster who had used the wand on him and a now invisible Jorzan wraps the shadows around himself and quietly heads out the window. Taking ultimate precaution, he uses his magical slippers to full advantage and carefully skulks all around the neighboring area, making sure their the exit portal is not being spied upon. Through Karthan's magic communication, he keeps in whispered communication with the stealthy elf (if she has agreed to it) enhancing both their efforts.
Stealth:
Perception:
Perception:
Perception:
Perception:
Cassandra looks up at Justahl, and her little face is a tortured mask of sadness and confusion as the one thing in her young life she has always been able to count on -- her Sight -- malfunctions. More tears form in her milky, veiled eyes. "Shining man, I don't...I don't think so. This feels different, somehow. Not like I'm Seeing maybes, like normal, not maybe-shadows, these are like two definitely's! I don't know. I just...I want my brother back. I don't care if I go with or stay with you, I just want him safe." She hugs the monster's leg again as Snowy sits on her head.
@Jorzan: Trista ducks out into the hall, sticking to shadows and doorways, and makes her way downstairs. After a short interval, all of you hear her all-clear; "Nobody's out here, boys, and I don't see your "friend" from earlier, either. The whole lobby's clear of Wolfguards as far as I can tell."
You, too, do not see any sign of Ormir's henchmen.
After Gray hears the all clear message.He silently stands up and straps his bag to his back and picks up his shield. He checks the readiness of his morning star on his belt.
"I'm ready when everyone else is."
Sir Justahl hesitates long, then sighs.
"Alright then Cassandra. I... feel somehow that you should come along with us. Let's get ready then, and don't forget your helm!"
When she's ready, he'll escort her out to the others.
Kelne made his own investigations, looking not only for the Wolfguard, but for anyone who seemed to be displaying a bit too much interest in him, whether in the common room or the street outside. Rather than try to sneak about unnoticed, he stormed his way out of the inn, draped in his own personal cloud of gloom, as if needing to walk for a while in order to clear his head.
"We can be fairly sure that big guy knows where Kevin is," he murmured after hearing others' negative reports, letting the message spell pick up his words, "I could always turn up at the rendezvous and ask, while Karthan listens in on his thoughts."