I don't like the sound of that!
Wolfgang reels and lashes out almost blindly with his rapier. He feels the blade bite into someone and hears an outraged yelp, and quickly tries to press a step closer to Nomed and the spot where he saw Sicaria last.
Eradessa grins at the big fellow, takes a quick step away from the crowd and the bartender, then unleashes another spell, screaming in his brain!
As her spell scrambles Bolgart's brain she points a finger at Sicaria, whose wounds sparkle and glow with a pleasant warm light.
Then she slips a potion out of her lacy belt pouch.
Sicaria sputters awake as she rubs a bump on her head.
Too many grimy hands…
”Nomed, I need a distraction!”
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Nomed obeys with hellish speed, moving further into the crowd with wild abandon. He doesn't even seem to neither register nor acknowledge the patrons as they hit him repeatedly with random objects as he moves about them. His third eye finally choosing its target Nomed focuses in on the poor soul and attempts to deliver his signature skull busting beak attack!
The spoon hangs limp in Bolgart's hand as Eradessa's scream echoes through his mind. Other screams join the gnome's as Wolfgang pierces someone's arm as Nomed deliberately provokes the crowd...
...and gets several feathers plucked by someone trying to grab at his eyes. Biting back, the tengu hears Sicaria make her escape even as the angry rabble shifts to follow Eradessa...
...and bring the mighty sorcerer to the ground, bottle tumbling from her hand!
Round 5! Bold may act!
Cimri (-3 Nonlethal)
Eradessa (Unconscious, -3, -9 Nonlethal)
Nomed (-11 Nonlethal)
Sicaria (-6 Nonlethal)
Wolfgang (-7 Nonlethal)
Bolgart (-11, Dazed)
Crowd (-24)
Sicaria stares at the falling gnome and quickly oscillates her gaze between Eradessa and the bruise on her arm.
”Damn it.”
The human vaults over the porch’s railing…
…and moves down next to Eradessa and places her hand on the gnome’s shoulder as she swats away lecherous drunkards.
”You owe me one, sunshine.” Sicaria growls.
Eradessa chuckles as she regains consciousness. "Nice try! You just made us even, honey." She picks up her potion bottle and drinks it.
Eradessa chuckles as she regains consciousness. "Nice try! You just made us even, honey." She picks up her potion bottle and drinks it.
[dice=Cure Light Wounds]1d8+1
Eradessa chuckles as she regains consciousness. "Nice try! You just made us even, honey." She pulls out her dagger and tries to stab a nearby patron with it.
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Even though the crowd relentlessly assaults him, and despite the fact hes almost fully succumbed to his infernal taint, the tengu's keen eyes and protective nature notice Eradessa fall to the mass of drunkards. He doesnt see Sicaria rushing over, potion in hand however...
Deciding he has had enough of the insufferbale mob and there antics, Nomed taps further into his infernal bloodline. Shaking with rage and nearly convulsing in the process, the tengu let's out another wild shriek! His third eye nearly bulges out of its socket from the resulting effort, causing flames to unexpectedly start burning from his talons and beak..
Wolfgang teeters from the latest blow to the back of his head, but somehow manages to keep his feet. Only half aware of what he's doing, the tiefling staggers through the riotous crowd away from the fighting, in the opposite direction from Sicaria and Eradessa. He shakes his head, trying to clear the ringing in his ears caused by a punch to the back of his neck.
A whistle pierces the roar of the crowd. a familiar voice bellows, accentuated by the tapping of a sap against a gloved hand. Sheriff Rhonda directs one of her deputies to break up the crowd as Cimri shrieks, ”There! Them’s the ones what hurt ‘em!” Racing into the crowd, she swipes with her leg at Nomed...
... and as the tengu falls, she lands on top of him. ”Snap out of it - can you pull the same ploy as last time?” Cimri quickly rips the Archbaron’s sash off Nomed as the drunken crowd stumbles away in various directions.
”Now then - what the Hell happened here?” Rhonda asks, hands on her hips as she surveys the miscreants and Bolgart, who holds his hands in the air in surrender.
Sicaria glances at Cimri’s strange behavior with minor curiosity.
The human, her face still red from the burning hot chili, motions toward the bulletin board with the Archbaron’s new decrees.
”This guy dumped a pot of hot chili on me after he didn’t like that we were going our job!”
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Nomed's third eye notices Cimri at the last second just before her leg shoots out, sweeping him off his feet. It takes a huge effort on his part to not instinctively maul her, but luckily hes been harshly trained and conditioned to maintain his focus and self control even when corrupted.
The f~~# is happe...
Nomed barely has time to ponder as the floor races up to greet his face. Before he can react however, he feels the press of a body on top of his and a familiar voice whispering to him, the sound snapping Nomed out of his rage. The strain on his body from the change is evident however, as the tengu sinks lower into the ground under Cimri's weight. Tapping into his infernal blood may give him a surge in power but the toll it takes pushes the tengus body beyond its limit.
"...."
Nomed attempts to speak, or even stand to assist Cimri further, but instead melts into a large heap, too fatigued to even move.
”Just look - they’re attacking this poor tengu again - and in broad daylight this time!” Cimri tries to turn Nomed over, but the massive bird’s weight is too much for her. ”He never had the chance to defend himself - see, he doesn’t even have a weapon out!”
Sicaria glares at Cimri with a half-fake look of annoyance.
”Oh yes, they tragically attacked the poor guy,” She points at the red splotches on her face. ”But let’s not forget about the person who got the dish of the day dumped on her FACE!”
Wolfgang staggers over, battered and bruised and holding his limp tail in one hand.
"We tried to hold them off, to protect the lady here -" he gestures at Sicaria "- and the poor bird-man, but there were just too many of them."
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After a few seconds go by, Nomed finally gets his second wind and stands up slowly to address Rhonda..
"Just look at the state of this one!" He roars, pointing to the various bruises, broken glass, and missing feathers strewn about his frame. "Twice now to be attacked! Under your watch guard no less SHERIFF, I demand need this stop at once.. Do your damned job and restore some order!"
Nomed instinctively shelters Cimri as he rants, stepping up and in front of her to block her from Rhonda's gaze, knowing that "family drama" is too often a glaring weakness some have. He doesnt belittle those we adorn there lineage, just believes the concept to be encumbersome and unneccessary
Eradessa drinks her potion as soon as the melee comes to an end, the she pulls herself up to her feet, and dusts herself off.
"And you, Bolgart? What do you have to say about..." The sheriff gestures at the stain of red oil on the porch and the burns on Sicaria's face. "...this?"
"I... uh... lost m' temper." The barkeeper looks down at his feet. "I guess... I... well... she was ruining m' beautiful porch w'th 'er nail 'n hammer! You know 'ow much time I spent polishing 'n sanding it this summer, and now it's got this... uh... stupid iron spike smack dab in th' middle!"
"Bolgart, I can understand your frustration, but you really must respect the law." Rhona's voice is not amused as she hangs her sap back on her belt. "As for this..." She turns to study the notice affixed to the offending nail.
As the sheriff turns away from the miscreants, Cimri flashes a few quick gestures of her own.
Sash off now!
"...Well."
As Sheriff Rhona finishes reading the notice, she turns back to face the offending parties with a grim look on her face. "Bolgart, I will expect to see you in my office later today with both the fine for disturbing the peace and an estimate of damages caused to your property. If I have to come find you to collect them, you can expect to pay double the fine."
"As for you lot, come with me. I'll need to take your statements - and see what we can do about those burns and bruises."
Acting quickly while the sheriff’s back is turned, Sicaria slips her dagger around her back and slices her sash from the back. She grabs the front of the sash and stuffs her hand holding it between her back and her cloak and stuffs it into her backpack.
When Rhona turns back around, a smirk spreads across Sicaria’s scarred face.
”Of course, sheriff.”
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Wolfgang is confused - Why are we kowtowing to Rhona when we're holding the Archbaron's writ taking away her authority? - but he isn't about to contradict Cimri openly. At least, not yet. While the sheriff - for the time-being - chastises the barkeep, Wolfgang rips off the sash of House Fex with his tail and shoves it into his pack.
"Anything you say. Ma'am."
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Nomed looks around lazily for his sash, exhausted and scatter brained the tengu is oblivious that Cimri already removed it when she jumped him. Falling into line behind Sicaria and Wolfgang, he nods to Rhonda and tries to keep pace with the group..
"Fine. But first this one is starving, I must eat or I'm going to go pass out again." he states rather bluntly
With no idea what Cimri's up to, Eradessa quickly slips off her sash and tucks it away. Then she scampers off after the sheriff.
Cimri wordlessly passes a roll to Nomed as the miscreants follow Sheriff Rhona to the Longacre jail. With its unevenly-mortared stones and barred windows, the squat structure looks like a miniature fortress. Despite the row of horseshoes hung beneath its sign, nothing can make the plain word "Jail" look welcoming. Rhona marches past the two wooden pillories that stand empty outside and opens the door, beckoning her charges inside to a large common room with three desks and a table with four chairs. Three deputies lounge about, their smiles quickly hidden behind masks of professionalism as they stand at attention.
"Leon, Colleen, grab the bandages and water. Brent, start the pot boiling and get some mugs out." Rhona's directions are quick and direct as she takes a seat at the table. "You lot, sit. Masha, you're scribing." She sighs and rubs her fingers against her temples as her deputies scramble. "Now then, tell me what happened."
Sicaria tries to follow Cimri’s lead, considering she seems to be the most in tune with the circumstances.
Eradessa smiles. "Doing our job, of course! Hanging official proclamations. It pays the bills, you know. Poor fellow didn't like that one, so he flipped out and attacked us! Who poors a pot of chili on a person hanging an official proclamation?! Honestly? So rude, and dangerous, and UNLAWFUL!" Eradessa nods her head. "Then all those folks got up and attacked the poor bird-fellow here." She shakes her head and makes a tsk-tsk-tsk sound.
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Wolfgang shakes his head, more in sorrow than in anger.
"It's a shame how poorly some people will react to the messenger when they don't like the message, isn't it? You'd think reasonable people would accept their bad news and move on with their lives."
The sweat on his brow is indistinguishable from his usual feverish perspiration.
"For example, Sheriff, you seem like a very reasonable person. Cimri, I think it's time to show the Sheriff the other proclamation we're supposed to deliver. You're carrying that one yourself, aren't you?"
The tiefling holds his hand out to the Miscreants' manager, indicating without subtlety that she should give him the proclamation terminating the Sheriff.
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Nomed is anxiously awaiting for Cimri to give Rhonda her "notice" of termination and cant focus on anything else at the moment..
"Yes Yes, scribble this quickly. We were attacked by a drunken mob. I probaly maimed some of them. Boring. Important is to read our other papers. Very important. " the tengu finishes his statement with a "wink" at Wolfgang. His exhaustion all but gone now, he chows down on the roll Cimri gave him and gets ready for the show
Eradessa smiles. "Doing our job, of course! Hanging official proclamations. It pays the bills, you know. Poor fellow didn't like that one, so he flipped out and attacked us! Who pours a pot of chili on a person hanging an official proclamation?! Honestly? So rude, and dangerous, and UNLAWFUL!" Eradessa nods her head. "Then all those folks got up and attacked the poor bird-fellow here." She shakes her head and makes a tsk-tsk-tsk sound.
"While I will note that it is polite to notify business owners before posting notices - official or otherwise - on their property, Bolgart certain did overreact." The sheriff's voice is calm and measured as she waits for her deputy to finish transcribing Eradessa's account.
"It's a shame how poorly some people will react to the messenger when they don't like the message, isn't it? You'd think reasonable people would accept their bad news and move on with their lives."
"That is certainly something to try to live by, though many are likely to fear for their ability to continue living their lives in peace in light of these decrees. And why didn't the Archbaron send us the decrees for posting? My deputies have been trained in deescalation procedures - if one of them had been there, perhaps this whole mess could have been avoided." She rubs her temples again and glances over to where Colleen sits next to Sicaria, wiping the assassin's face with a damp towel.
The tiefling holds his hand out to the Miscreants' manager, indicating without subtlety that she should give him the proclamation terminating the Sheriff.
Cimri passes Wolfgang the other missive, not looking at her aunt. "Oh, would you look at the time - I gotta run. Um, nothing else to add. See you around later!" She bolts out the door and is gone before Rhona can rise from her chair to stop her niece.
"Cimri! Get back- and she's gone." The sheriff sighs heavily and sits back down. "Brent, collect your gear when you finish with the water. Check her usual hiding places and bring her back here. So help me, she will learn to respect the law someday. Now, what's this other proclamation?"
Sheriff Rhona Staelish unfolds the letter and reads, her brow furrowing deeper and deeper the further she gets. One of the deputies (Brent) walks behind her and reads a few words over her shoulder before continuing onward to the gear lockers - then suddenly stops and backtracks, mouth agape as he continues reading. Leon "casually" makes his way over as well, his expression shifting from curiosity to horror to anger as he also reads. The sheriff doesn't stop them, reading the letter another time before setting it down carefully on the table.
"Well." Rhona removes her black vest, embroidered with the symbol of Cheliax, and slaps her ebon-handled longsword on the table. She walks wordlessly to her desk in the adjoining room, retrieving a picture frame, a handful of arrows, a few medals, a crossbow, and three bottles before returning.
The deputies stand crowded around the letter, their various duties forgotten. "Sheriff..." Masha asks tentatively, "...will... will you be alright?"
"I'm not worried about me," Rhona responds with a voice like ice. "I'm worried about what the townspeople are in store for with thugs like these running amok." She looks each of her deputies in the eye, then nods and walks out the jail.
As the heavy wooden door slams shut, something seems to snap in the deputies. "This ain't right!" Brent yells, face turning red.
"You can't just throw out the town's only justice!" Masha agrees, her hands balled into fists. "It ain't right, no way no how!" The clamor in the jail rises as the four deputies let their shock and anger show, talking over each other and hurling accusations at the miscreants.
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"Well, good thing you're all trained in deescalation procedures. I recommend employing them on each other right about now."
Eradessa gives the deputies a smile. "I don't control the Archbaron. No one does, but himself. I'm not saying I like the proclamations. And even if I did it's not my place to say. Nor is it yours. You're the LAW. What the Archbaron says, goes. End of discussion. If you don't like it, sorry, but there's nothing I can do. I'm just a messenger doing my duty." She taps her lip in thought. "Seems to me you've got two choices. One: Make Miss Staelish proud. Show that her fellows are law-abiding, hard-working, trustworthy law enforcement officers. Enforce the proclamations. And soon enough you'll have chances to make things better -- within the confines of the law. Maybe even one of you could take Miss Staelish's place. That's certainly preferable to the alternatives, isn't it?" She looks at the officers, giving them a curious look. "Or, there's option two: Whine, complain, and attack the Archbaron's trusted messengers in anger, thereby proving you're unfit for duty, and that the removal of Miss Staelish was justified. What a shame that would be... Can't do anything to help when you're out of work and out of power... Plus, think how poorly it reflect on Miss Staelish and your fellows! Why, the Archbaron is BOUND to can more of you then, and that would be a shame." Eradessa nods solemnly.
"Well, I know which option I'd take. The first. I reflects well on all of you, Miss Staelish, and allows you an opportunity to continue to do what you can for this town. But, as I said, I'm just a messenger. What you do now... That's on you."
Wolfgang pushes his chair back from the table and stands, casually checking his bow, sword belt, and assorted sheathed knives stashed about his person. He stretches, then points at the deputies.
"Like the lady says, your choices are pretty simple: stay and do your damn jobs, or get the Hell out. I'm sure the Archbaron will appoint a new sheriff soon enough; until then, if I were you I wouldn't do anything I might regret later, if you know what I mean. Anyway, it's probably time for us to get on our way. We've still got a couple more proclamations to hang."
Wolfgang waits for the other Miscreants to stand, then heads for the door.
This is what I was afraid of. Well, we’re in this deep already…
Sicaria shoos away the deputy cleaning her face with a wet rag and stands to join Wolfgang at the door, her hands resting unconsciously at the hilts of her sabres.
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Bad acting must run in the family... he muses to himself, watching Rhonda and Cimri's theatrics.
After she exits, Nomed stares at the remaining deputies as Eradessa and Wolfgang read them the riot act. After they finish, Nomed leans in close and whispers to the nearest of the four..
"This one has it on good authority that the tiefling.. the one with the tail... is your soon to be NEW sheriff sheriff. So show some respect, not ones place to challenge the law" Nomed states with a hiss.
Eager to leave, he joins the group as they head for the door..
The Archbarons people are useless! No respect for there lord at all! Razalego will be most displeased...I wonder if Cimri is still running away? he caws softly to himself
Eradessa’s words strike a nerve. Masha raises her fist as if to strike the gnome, but Colleen is faster and grabs her fellow deputy’s arm, holding it in place. ”She’s right,” Colleen says, her face a mask of stone. ”Brent, Leon, put those down.”
The deputies stand uneasily around the doorway, the men putting their saps back on their belts, until Masha finally releases the tension in her arm. Colleen lets it fall, then takes off her own vest and drops it to the floor next to Rhona’s before pushing past Wolfgang and Sicaria outside. Holding back tears of frustration, Brent follows suit - as do Leon and finally Masha. As the heavy wooden door slams shut one final time, the miscreants are left alone in the Longacre jail.
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"Well then..This one votes we loot and plunder the place!" Nomed shouts. The now empty rooms are beckoning to him to rifle through and investigate, and he cant seem to contain his excitement...
Wouldnt hurt to ensure Rhona didnt have time to dig up any information on us, and Wolfgang will soon be sheriff. So its not stealing..
Without waiting for a response, the tengu begins searching through the desks and drawers for whatever he can find of any interest or value..
He does so cautiously, even though they maybe alone, he takes no chances..
"Hmm. That's an interesting result."
Wolfgang pulls his sash out of pocket and smooths in out on the table before putting it back on.
"Careful, Nomed. We don't know what the boss is going to want done here - you don't want to break something we're going to need to use later." He scratches behind an ear with his tail. "I wonder if there are any prisoners in the cells?"
He wanders back to see if anyone is in the holding cells.
"I agree with Wolfgang; let's just go on and complete our assignment. Let's hope we can find Cimri along the way."
Eradessa smiles after the officers all leave. "Wow, what a bunch of whiners, huh?" She shrugs, then picks up their vests, folds them, and lays them out in a pile on the desk.
Seeing Nomed snooping around, she scampers over to him and gently swats his feathered hand away from the drawers. "Why are you robbing the place? Didn't you want to try to get Wolfgang appointed sheriff? No one's going to hire him if we loot the place." She giggles, then wanders off, leaving Nomed to decide if he's going to follow through on his pilfering or not.
Turning to Wolfgang she grins. "Look at you, clever fellow! Prisoners... Yeah, we should see if there's anyone in here who'll need tending to."
She pulls out her sash and pins it on, then skips off after Wolfgang.
Through a door on the other side of the jail lies a hallway connecting the common room with a pair of cells. If there was anyone inside them, they'd have to be hiding under the dusty straw heaped on the floor as low-cost beds. The only other decoration are a pair of well-soiled pots. The faint whiff of their contents is enough to turn the stomachs of Nomed, Sicaria, and Wolfgang as it brings back unfortunate memories of the tannery. With little else of interest inside the jail, the miscreants head outside to their final destination of the day.
The bright morning light on the other side of the heavy door is momentarily blinding - but it does little to hide a dull thump and a startled yelp. As their eyes quickly adjust, the miscreants see Cimri standing over the fallen body of Brent, one of the former deputies. A few feet behind him, Masha cradles an arm bent at an unnatural angle. "Give it up, ya flea-bitten arse-scratchers," Cimri says, twirling her sap and kicking Brent's unconscious form towards Colleen and Leon. "Call that mess an ambush? Just get out of here before you embarrass yourselves more."
The two deputies drop their saps and raise their hands into the air as they step towards their fallen companion. Cimri steps back, allowing Leon to drape Brent over Colleen's shoulders. Masha snarls angrily, but the effect is mostly lost through the tears pouring down her face as Leon puts a hand on her shoulder and steers her away.
"And I'd keep running if I were you lot - wouldn't want to find you in any of the 'usual hiding places', now would we?" Cimri laughs mockingly at their backsides before turning to the miscreants and winking. "Sorry for leaving without saying anything. I didn't think Rhona would cause any trouble, but these ones are still young and hot-tempered. Didn't want them getting the jump on you after that brawl at the bar." She grins wickedly. "So, what did you find in there? They didn't take much out with 'em, so there's got to be something left inside we could use."
”Oh no! Oooh no no no no no! You are not getting off that easily!”
Sicaria stands at attention over Cimri, her eyes and body language not inviting in the slightest.
”What. The hell. Was that? You threw us under the wagon wheel! Or did you forget that Razelago gave you the missive to give to the now-ex-sheriff? We’re expected to work as a team here, Cimri, and I don’t think the boss would take too kindly to how you treated your teammates. Now spill!”
Cimri shrugs. "Wolfgang asked for the letter, so thought I'd let him do the honors. Besides, I'm all out of potions to bring your sorry ass back to consciousness. This approach was... much more proactive, shall we say. Or did you really think they'd just take it lying down in the mud, like someone else I know?" Even without looking the assassin in the eye, Cimri's words bite to Sicaria's core.
"Now then, anyone have something useful to add to the conversation? Or our pockets, for that matter?"
Shaking slightly in her boots, Sicaria places her hands on the hilts of her swords and glares at Cimri, trying not to show her fear.
”Excuse me?”
Wolfgang stares at Cimri for a long moment, then shrugs.
"Nomed started to toss the place after the deputies quit. He hasn't mentioned seeing anything of interest, but we figured if we're supposed to meet the Archbaron tonight, he might not like it if we trashed his sheriff's office. I thought it would be better to finish the job we're being paid for, then come back when we can look around more methodically."
The tiefling's eyes flick to Sicaria, then back to Cimri. He licks his dry, cracked lips with a too-long tongue. "We had to make a decision about priorities in your absence, given your... strategic departure. If you disagree, we can certainly go back inside and make a more thorough search before hanging the rest of the posters."
"I'm just saying that nobody else is going to know that the sheriff didn't take everything that wasn't nailed down from the jail when she left," Cimri replies with a wicked gleam in her eye. "Maybe she felt vindictive, or maybe she couldn't control her deputies. After all, who would be more trustworthy: the messengers just trying to do the archbaron's work, or someone let go from their job - who conveniently also can't present their case?"
She frowns as she processes another part of Wolfgang's words, then squints up at the sun. "We've just got one thing left to hang, right? And that's at the church square. Probably got, hmm, at least an hour or two?"
"That should be plenty of time to find the most interesting things from the place. And we don't have to trash it, Wolfgang - you're more subtle than that, I hope."
"So are we here to wring our hands and play messenger, or are we here to make some coin?" Hands on her hips, Cimri looks around at her fellow miscreants.