Price makes a point of gathering all the interesting paperwork - the logs, maps, and any other hard data. She piles them neatly on the card table. She gratefully collects a chain shirt, decent clothes, a guard tabard, and 50' of rope. Heedless of the audience, she strips off what passes for clothes and tosses the foul rags in the corner. It offends her to put cleans clothes on her dirty body but she bears it. Then she throws on the chain shirt and tabard. She tosses the rope on her paper pile, feeling generally better about her circumstances. She runs her hands through her hair to make it look less like a rat's nest and more like what a guard might have.
Ineluki, who was wearing only filthy guard clothes and a tabard, takes the opportunity to change into cleaner clothes , putting on a chain shirt and the guard tabard over them. "I may not have the bearing or demeanor of a guard, but at least I'll look the part unless they spot my tats."
Price chuckles, "By that point, it will be too late." She eyes the skinwalker speculatively. "You know, there was a chimney in the other room. It occurs to me a bat could possibly fly out of it and check out the entire area... and most likely go unnoticed by the guards in the dark. Just something to consider."
"I can do that, I'm pretty sure.. they would have no reason to pay attention to a lone bat in the night... and then report back of course..." He contemplates just flying to freedom that way, but the thought is fleeting and is replaced with the unwavering need to help his new 'colony' escape as well. "Do you want to wait here while I go check out the guards, checkpoints and way out?"
She gives the man's shoulder a squeeze, a silent thanks for the offer. "Please hold off on that until we clear the rest of the building. We may need your skills here first. Once we've got a route into the courtyard, reconnaissance will be crucial... I'm curious, how much weight can you lift when you're a bat?"
"Okay, wait it is, and not much... I become a very small bat... I've never tried to carry much, but I'm sure it wouldn't amount to a very large weight. Do you need for me to move something about as a bat?" He looks bat at her curiously, wondering what she's getting at.
He can almost hear the wheels turning in her head. She leans on the table, almost as if they were meeting at a tavern. There is a slight smile on her lips and her focus is entirely on the skinshifter. "Not at the moment, really. It just helps to know what you can do. I tend to think in terms of contingencies, resources, capabilities, and tactics. I'm sorry if that comes across as cold. Your abilities are extraordinary. Had we met before this debacle, we could have teamed up in so many intriguing ways."
On that note, Grumblejack utters an enormous belch and tosses the femur he just picked clean across the room into a corner.
He collects the large club from the other room and waits, somewhat impatiently, for the next course...er, fight.
She eyes the femur. "I've always wondered, 'Jack, do elves taste like chicken?"
The ogre looks at Price, thoughtful for a moment as he tries to put it to words, then replies, "More like rabbit. All the..." His voices drifts into a rumble and he wiggles his fingers, trying to remember a word. "...veg-tables they eat."
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Ineluki looks over at Grumblejack, a little impressed and it even shows on his face... Three syllables... amazing!
Price looks both surprised and pleased, "Huh. That's interesting." She claps her hands together lightly and pushes off from the table, "OK, work before pleasure. Shall we check out that room across the hall?" She asks to no one in particular.
Ineluki looks a bit abashed, taking the mention of patience to be a comment on his rash attack against the guard when still in the cell, rather than a comment on Morthos' rash attack against the king that put them both in the cell in the first place... "I'll try to be more patient in the future... yes."
Ineluki grabs the shiv and tucks it into the belt he's added to his guard tunic...
Morthos looks to him curiously a moment before it dawns on him. "No, Inelukii, it is not you, it is I. My plan failed due to my lack of knowledge of the level of 'backbone' of the fools that betrayed us. I should've been far more thorough and more patient in my examination of them all. Even so, if they would've been seen the truth of the pathetic king we would've succeeded. No matter, next time, victory will be ours."
Affyria looks around the room, and grabs the heavy mace, testing it with a swing. "Now this is something I can actually half-use," she grins.
Turning to Morthos, she inquires, "So, you mentioned a benefactor, but you never did specify who this actually is? Who gave you that veil thing, and do we have any idea of who this person is?"
Morthos looks over to Affyria, "It matters little to me who this benefactor is, Affyria, what matters is they have provided a means for our escape. I shall lead you to said benefactor and then you shall receive the answers you seek."
"Oh Gods below and above, they didn't burn it!" The wreck of a man suddenly bursts into action when he sees his formula book, grasping and then holding it like a kid would with a toy. He then groans as a sharp pain shoots through his side. He was still anything but ok.
When an investigator mixes an extract, he infuses the chemicals and reagents in the extract with magic siphoned from his own magical aura. An extract immediately become inert if it leaves the investigator’s possession, reactivating as soon as it returns to his keeping—an investigator cannot normally pass out his extracts for allies to use. An extract, once created, remains potent for 1 day before losing its magic, so an investigator must reprepare his extracts every day. Mixing an extract takes 1 minute of work.
Creating extracts consumes raw material, but the cost of those materials is insignificant—comparable to the valueless material components of most spells. If a spell normally has a costly material component, that component is expended during the consumption of that particular extract. Extracts cannot be made from spells that have focus requirements; extracts that duplicate divine spells never have a divine focus requirement.
Do I have the materials at hand to make them? If not, I understand.
Price creeps across the hall - far too 'jingly' for her tastes - and listens at the door. Then she carefully test to see if the door is locked.
In response to Price, Daidalos draws breath, as though to defend himself, then shakes his head, "No. not going into that. Apologies, mistress* Price. You're right, of course. Re next guard is all yours, with no interference from me."
Price nods, civility returned. "Actually, I play a more adjunct role in the church hierarchy. As a priestess, Affyria is definitely Mistress Strex. I'm just Miss Price or Price - your choice." It seems that settles the matter for the inquisitor. All the lingering anger and menace vanishes as if it never existed.
Asturu starts prepping some extracts, keeping the two that were given to him before for any future emergencies, and chucks both extracts. The first one barely made a difference, but the second one forced a horrible sounding cough out of the man as flesh knit back together and ribs were returned to their proper place.
Seeing Inelukii and Price don the guards gear, Timo does the same. "We won't pass close inspection, but at least we'll be able to close in undetected." he thinks to himself. At the ogre's comments on the taste of Man, Timo can't help but laughing to himself. "What I wouldn't give for a rabbit stew myself right now," he says to no one in particular as he heads to the other door to back up Price, attempting to be quiet even though his armor rattles and he has the grace of an ox.
Price listens at the door, briefly scraping her newly found weapon against the stone frame, but is relieved to hear nothing on the other side. A glimpse through the keyhole reveals an empty and dimly lit mess hall. On the far side of the room is a banner emblazoned with the coat of arms for Branderscar Prison.
Price glares at her treasonously noisy spear then whispers to Timo, "Empty mess hall, wanna go in? If so, I'll go right if you go left."
Timo whispers back, "Sounds like a solid plan." He then heads to the left door, still attempting to be as nimble and silent as possible though failing miserably as his chainmail rattles.
Price opens the door and goes right, as quietly as possible. *clink*
F#c<ing armor!
Neither Price or Timo are particularly stealthy, their newly acquired armor and weapons taking some adjustment, or perhaps it was the hours of being strung up from a wall like a piece of meat, but their passage seems to go unnoticed.
Timo is lucky to discover that, indeed, there is still a door on the north wall. It's a sturdy door, made of wood, with hinges and a latch to hold it shut, or open it, however a person may prefer. As to what lays on the other side is the deepest of mysteries.
On the south side of the room, Price hears the sound of metal clanking and banging, the slosh of water and the grumblings of a pair of voices. It sounds like the work of a kitchen.
As the pair splits to opposite ends of the room, Grumblejack enters, taking care to move quietly as the little 'uns seem to be valuing silence. Oddly... he is significantly more successful. He even holds up a finger to his lips when Timo's armor clanks against a table. "Shhhh."
"Great ... an ogre is actually quieter than me..." Timo mutters to himself. He then turns to Price and whispers, "I got nothing over here. You?
Affyria enters the mess hall and looks around, her face a mask of boredom. "Kitchen huh? Maybe they have something decent to eat other than that slop they tried to feed us."
"Gotta say I'm hungry... " Ineluki says very softly as he enters... then he goes for complete silence.
Daidalos follows behind, dagger drawn and his other hand on his spell pouch.
Price holds up two fingers, not in a vulgar gesture, but rather to indicate she hears a pair of people. She waits for assistance to arrive before opening the door and moving through it fast and hard.
Ineluki hangs back and lets the martial types take the lead.
Noticing that Price has possible threats on her side of the room, Timo once again attempts silence as he makes his way over to the other door to assist Price, yet somehow he is the loudest he has been yet as he bangs his toe on the corner of a bench and curses under his breath.
Price readies herself to skewer anyone that opens the door after the bench scrapes loudly across the floor.
From the other side of the north door, "Oh thank Mitra, the game is finally done... Get your stuff, lads, time for the shift change."
Grumblejack looks at Timo, grinning, then faces the north door and swings the club around to loosen himself up.
"Well shit..." Timo sighs. "Looks like we got them on both sides, though it sounds like they aren't ready for us," he states quietly to the group while drawing his great sword. "Shall we rush the north, or ready ourselves here and take on whoever enters on either side?"
While the decision is being made, Timo readies his blade and stands ready to charge at either door.
Morthos heads toward the kitchen with the others.
"Shall we rush the north, or ready ourselves here and take on whoever enters on either side?"
While the decision is being made, Timo readies his blade and stands ready to charge at either door.
Morthos nods. "Yes. Once they walk through we will take them on either side. That will at least give us the element of surprise." Morthos then readies himself on one side of the door.
Price waits at the south door, deciding to handle the (likely) less armed kitchen crew. She hopes this is truly a blockhouse and doesn't possess multiple exits.
Ineluki will stand with Price, figuring the kitchen staff won't be as martially trained. He gives her a little smile and a nod to say he's ready when she is. While he has a dagger in hand to provide flank if necessary, he's ready to deliver a sonic attack when a target is viable.
Not wanting to be a bother, Asturu falls in behind his fellow jailbreakers while keeping quiet. The occassional groan, caused by trauma's of the flesh, might hinder said stealth effort.
Daidalos thinks for a second, "Perhaps if we have Luke in the middle- as a ranged attacker, he can cover both doors at once. Then, split our forces. Perhaps Grumblejack and Timo can cover the north door, while Morthos, Affyria, and Price cover the south? Asturu and I, perhaps, wait in the middle to reinforce wherever is needed?" he suggests in a low voice, staff held loosely in his left hand, "Then, we engage one at a time, the north door first, and have everyone on hand for storming the kitchen. That's my suggestion, at least."
"Get your stuff, lads"
Ineluki moves to the middle of the room as suggested.
Before either door is opened, Ineluki will turn into a tiny bat and flit around the middle of the room, dividing his attention between north and south...
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Just before he moves to the other side of the door opposite Timo, he gives instruction to Grumblejack. "Okay, my large friend, I am going to move over to that door and will ask you to follow right behind me. When I give the word you can move through that door and kill any and all the guards you wish. But wait until I give the word, do you understand?" Studying the brainless beast a moment, a thought occurs to him. "The word will be 'go', okay?" Hoping he's was able to get through to him, he moves opposite Timo and nods to the others before turning to the ogre and simply saying, "Go," and inviting him to wreak havoc.
Nervously the aristocrat observes the verbal exchange between Morthos and Grumblejack. Plans tend to be the first casualty of any engagement. Would this one fair any better? He tightens his grip on the hilt of the rapier, aching for the action to take place. Sometimes it is just best to get it over with.
The ogre grins at Morthos and pats him on the shoulder, apparently taking the human's elaborate patience and explanations as a sign of nervousness. "You no worry. Grumblejack will smash the little 'uns good."
When the anti-paladin gives the word, Grumblejack shoulders the door open, charges in, and swings his club with both hands at the first living creature he sees... a half-naked man in the process of putting on his gear.
For the ogre, it's a glancing blow but there is still enough force behind it to gravely wound the man.
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Order after surprise round will be:
1. Guards
2. Villains
3. Commoners (in kitchen)
Currently still in surprise round.
Guard 1: -12 hp
Grumblejack: 17/30 hp