"You people are gross. I won't carry any head! Let's just not kill anyone unnecessary, OK?"
Valessa shrugs as the conversation about her question ensues. "Head might be as hard to get out of town as live captive. And one man's severed member is hard to tell from any other. Would not want to be accused of not filling contract if locals decide to pretend he is still alive for some reason." The woman pauses, as if thinking of how best to phrase her thoughts.
"Was thinking more ring or signet, perhaps with finger or hand attached if speed necessary. And is there any other proof they will want beyond our word of his guilt? Ledgers, journals, manifests? Or should we just leave such paperwork behind for the scholars?"
Daniel shakes his head, "This is a getting a bit macabre. While knowing what proof they will want if we have to kill him, it's ghastly to dwell on that. We may not have to, but should be prepared to. If he is a lost soul, we may be able to bring him back to the light and not condemn him to an eternity in hell."
Let's just do what they want us to do. So, what do they want us to do?
Yaz just stands back, not at all sure where this conversation is going, but enjoying the ride.
Pip:
in his french accent adds
"I have a feeling once the Baron is dead, that his followers will back down and open the gates for the General.
The Contract is more for the capture of Piren’s Bluff, but with as few civilian casualties as possible.
The smart way to do it is the remove the baron from power, but like those f***ing Cheliaxians, he don't want to give up his power easily.
As for his redemption, I would say he made his choice when he accepted the gifts from the Cheliaxians and turned to their infernal god."
Shelly:
Shelly adds
"You'll only have Ayla and Magnar Gunnarsson as back up,
supporting you as they can while being a contingency plan should you all be arrested and or killed.
They are already integrated into Pirens Bluff population and under cover like you'll be.
Now the General will fill you in on other details and answer any other questions."
The group head to the area Pip mentioned to meet up with General Dakovya.
The General upon seeing the group
"Excellent, your here. Knowing Mr Bernadotte and Ms Harrison
you have the basics of the contract and a number of other details, other then details of the ticket in."
"Infiltrate, gather recon, then capture or kill Baron. No proof of death required should kill option be selected. No real backup if caught. Wear hats to hide ties to Wolves, prevent blowback from Cheliax." Valessa, having set her pack down, ticks off the list of contract points one finger at a time.
"I miss anything?"
The General upon seeing the group
"Infiltrate, recon, then capture or kill Baron, are part of the contract,
Mr Bernadotte and Ms Harrison added the Hats for protection of the group and likely added a contingency plan.
I have to admire Mr Bernadotte for thinking about other details that a mercenary band might have to deal with along with his out of the box thinking.
Though I do wish he spoke without his sailor's tongue when at the negotiation table.
But then again given I don't live as a mercenary it might be a something that helps him cope with the stress of things."
Then let's get to it!
"Do you have a proposal for how we get into town, what we pretend to be? Or do you want us to make that up?
And what is the extraction plan? Again, we can make up our own if you have no preference"
The General upon seeing the group
"Now the part Mr Bernadotte and Ms Harrison have forgotten to mention was that the contract does include; sabotaging any defenses, and or counter measures of the Baron against out siege.
Now the plan for getting you is with the help of one of my civilian agents, Gaskar Drolp, acting as his guards, he'll do his trade at Forest Bounty,
and then he'll leave the place before we start looking like we the army plan to siege the place and you'll be free to move around.
Now I should mention there are supporters that have helped us out,
we don't know their names and the only hint we have is a secret sign: a sprig of mistletoe tied with a yellow ribbon."
Valessa's false face, still revealed by the illusion of the hat, visibly frowns at the addition of details.
"This is a rather large detail not covered in original orders. Plus it is very vague." Her tone is frosty, and it is clear that she is somewhat angry at the addition to their orders.
"Several questions. Please bear with me; precise execution of contracts require as much detail as possible."
Raising a fist, she ticks up one finger. "First, what defenses or 'counter measures' are known to exist?" A second finger raises. "Second, what is the threshold you are willing to accept for their removal? Would preventing balliste from firing by jamming them suffice, or would you prefer them to be burned... or would poisoning their crews be preferable, allowing your use of them upon taking the town?"
A third finger raises. "We were led to believe in initial contract details that defeat of the baron would remove resistance. If we can sabotage the defenses or kill-capture the baron, but not both, which is priority?" Her final finger raises. "Will you need us to still be on the inside to assist with capture of town upon mission completion or is there plan for ex-filtration prior to the siege?"
Her hand lowers as the questions finish, a cold look settling on the General as she awaits answers. "I don't expect much from the army, but being able to provide all details of a contract prior to asking for help should be a minimum." The thought passes, betrayed more than normal by her revealed face.
The General upon seeing the group
"We don't know what the Baron has as planned for defenses or counter measures at the moment,
but the little intel we have says he is preparing for the siege.
So sabotage targets can be anything that hinders the Baron.
The Baron's removal is top priority.
Given what we know of the guards and those under the Baron's command,
it is likely they will stand down after the Baron is removed.
If we need help you'll know it, and Mr Bernadotte already added that encase I'm wrong."
"Alright" says Yaz, trying to be practical "where can we get some mistletoe and ribbon so they know we are on the same side as them?"
"Shoddy intel... I expect no less, I suppose..." Smiling sweetly, Valessa just nods.
"Final question: any targets or locations prohibited for striking?"
Lothorian speaks, pensively, as if he were realizing something out loud.
Guys... We've all fought and we've all killed our share of people. I'm not talking about monsters. People.
Personally, I'd rather kill one person than many. If, as the General says, cutting off the head is the best way to avoid a battle, that must be the objective. It will take time and planning.
If we can't find an opportunity to kill him, we need to get out alive with good intelligence, and go from there.
"So, we kill him and hopefully that ends things. But, just in case, we sabotage the place as much as possible."
"If they were smart, they'd order us to kill as many of the leadership as possible. Hopefully, they're not smart"
Yaz would have preferred a more straight up assignment, but you don't get to pick the jobs that come in. Having been a slave he has no love of Cheliax or the institution, so nothing he has heard so far much troubles him. The only question he has left is "When do we start?"
Valessa looks at the Lothorian as he talks about killing people with a look that can only be described as saying, "Yes, and?" before shaking her head.
"No retreat, no surrender. We fulfill our contract. We escape with him in shackles or with his blood.... or not at all. If we run into anything that can be suitably prevented from working in the town's defense while we operate, fine. If we can somehow make this 'mistletoe brotherhood' more useful in the coming siege, fine. But we do not come back without the baron being removed, one way or another."
Looking at all of her companions in turn, she says, "We are Wild Wolves. We get called in to do the impossible. Or so I was led to believe. I won't have our team be the ones to tarnish our reputation." Shouldering her pack, she does one last check of her gear while listening to the rest of the conversation.
No. We'll get the job done.
"Valessa really needs to get that stick taken out of her ass. Do the "impossible" indeed. Doesn't she know what the word "impossible" means?"
Tobar puts on her best poker face as Valessa talks utter and complete nonsense.
Hihi. She's a funny one. Ohoh, my, honor, my duty. The impossible! You see Zero smiling as if she was thinking something funny.
"I think you guys covered all the bases. I'm the rookie, I'll just follow you."
Seeing the looks in Tobar and Zero's faces, Valessa rolls her eyes. You are lucky this isn't Korvosa under the queen. You would both have extra "sessions" for letting me see any dissent. Ignoring the incredulousness and the humor, she instead turns to Lothorian and smiles.
"Damn straight we will. I assume we are all in agreement that posing as the Drolp merchant's guards is probably the safest route of entry? Or does someone else have a better suggestion?"
Yaz, more in agreement with Tobar and Zero, shrugs and says "Ya, o' course we will. The plan seems fine. We'll see how long we can keep up the ruse."
The General adds
"I would prefer it if you didn't harm the civilians not aiding the Baron."
"Now I'll let Mr Drolp help you in getting inside the place."
Gaskar Drolp:
Gaskar Drolp adds after the General
"I hope your ready for getting inside, as you'll not be getting help from the outsider once we start.
And We likely don't have much time left."
How much time? Hours? Days? I can do some recon and locate him, but that takes time. I don't think I can assassinate him on my own. That will take all of us.
Valessa nods to the general's addendum about civilians. "Noted."
Turning to Drolp, she gives the man an appraising look. "You have been inside. Anything you recommend we bring?" So saying she pulls out her quiver, checking inside its magical pouch to ensure that her bow, arrows, and javelins are still inside ready for use. Satisfied, she pulls her sword halfway out of its scabbard, checking the edge and condition of the fire-forged steel blade. Sheathing it again, she picks up her pack and shoulders it.
"Unless you have recommendations for gear, I should be ready. I do have some coin on me if you do have such recommendations."
Daniel looks horrified for a moment as the general mentions harming those not involved. I don't think any of these others would harm innocents, they'll have to deal with me if they do. He then says, "I would hope none of use would even consider harming civilians not involved in this. We will do what has to be done."
"I'm not going to harm ANYBODY I don't absolutely have to. That would be wrong!"
Not to mention, use up valuable resources...
Valessa can't help but roll her eyes at Tobar's outburst. "'That would be wrong'... hah... like anyone should care about right or wrong. All that matters is what is order. Order in law. Order in contracts. Devil is the the details, after all."
Saying none of this, she merely nods at Lothorian's addition. "And against our explicit orders." The tone in which she says that says exactly her thoughts on that matter. It would not take much supposition to reveal what her thoughts on the matter would be if the order was the opposite.
Yaz, who already has a reputation for collateral damage, just smiles and nods. Nobody wanted bystanders to get hurt, him included, but when combat breaks out, everyone's plans will go to the wind.
Well, I'd like to scope the place out a bit, then come up with a plan. We need to see how well-defended he is, look for vulnerabilities.
The General adds
"Had a feeling I'd need to define that part, as I could tell one of you follows things to the letter and vague parts can cause issues in judgement."
Gaskar Drolp:
Gaskar Drolp replies to Lothorian's question
"I figure we have about 30 minutes to get everything ready before we go."
Okay. I'll be ready.
Everyone gets their stuff ready before the 30 minutes.
And start their mission in Piren's Bluff.
As they approach the town, Valessa nods to herself as she observes the town's defenses. Looks like one way in or out. Second wall further inside guarding the keep, again one way in visible. Doubtful second main entrance, but would not be surprised to learn of a secret way out to the lake... some hidden cove with a boat or whatnot. Otherwise no way of escaping should the place become besieged.
As they make their way playing escort to Drolp, she makes it a point to observe the guards: how many there are, what they are doing, how alert they seem to be, and how well equipped and trained they are.
"Where are you going to set up your stall, boss?" she attempts to ask as casually as possible.
Gaskar Drolp:
Gaskar Drolp replies back
"Once I finish at the transaction at the Forest Bounty, I'll be heading out of town."
Valessa nods to her "employer," smiling. "Gotcha. Me and the others are planning on staying here a bit longer. You can make the trip back safely enough now, right?"
"Sooo? What's the procedure to enter as a group of merchants? We gotta pay some fee or something? And what's our merchandise anyway, if someone asks?"
Zero seemed eager and ready.
Yaz looks to the others and says "I be hopin' some o' the more social gifted of the team might go get the lay o' the land?" The northerner might not have much in the way of social grace, but he appreciates the intel it can give.
Well, we didn't bring anything, so I guess we're buying. We can wander around a bit and get the feel of things. Getting to the boss man might not be easy.
Daniel looks to the group and says, "It sounds like the Forest Bounty may be the place for us to start. We can listen for information there and then maybe head to other stores and taverns for more and see where that takes us. We should probably all stick together in case there is trouble." Turning to Drolp "Do you know how many inns and taverns are in town and what shops there might be?"
Gaskar Drolp:
Gaskar Drolp replies to Zero
"Your just hired guards protecting a Merchant as he travels"
"Going to the inn definitely sounds good to me."
With that, Tobar transforms into a gorgeous red haired woman with "assets" that are barely contained by her armor