Gah!, Axel exclaimed as he reeled away from the table and oncoming dwarf.
** spoiler omitted **
The dwarf lurches out of his chair unsteadily, knocking over the chair to a table nearby as he rises to his feet. Now that you are facing him, the dwarf is obviously very drunk. "Whas...dis...Get out here!" the dwarf bellows as he staggers in your direction, waving his arms about wildly.
Ludger yells "BAR FIGHT" at the top of his lung as he stands and faces the staggering dwarf. He takes his best brawling stance assuming that there's no point in trying to calm the dwarf. Ludger does his best to look intimidating though...
"No fighting!" shouts the wench as Ludger jumps eagerly to the dwarf's ale-sodden challenge.
Undeterred by either the wench or Ludger's heroic stance, the dwarf approaches, looking for a fight.
Magda tries to defuse the situation before it escalate, keeping her distance from the two would-be brawlers
There is no reason to fight! except for your male vanity and too much alcohol!
Which are two usual reasons to fight, come to think about it..
Ludger is joyful as the dwarf keeps coming. Nothing better than a bar brawl to make life interesting. ”Careful Doc, don’t get squished!”
SL +3
SL +4
Axel seizes up the stool he is sitting on as a shield, and possibly an improvised weapon, his face a rictus of panic.
The ale-sodden dwarf staggers forward, lending even more power to Ludger's punch as it lands in the dwarf's thick side. The dwarf swings back at Ludger, but the blow is robbed of any real force and the able dock worker is easily able to avoid it.
The force of the dwarf's swing throws him to one knee, and he seems to come out of his drunken fury.
This doesn't seem much like the bar fight Ludger was hoping for.
The tavern wench runs to the dwarf's side. "Khedrun!" she calls out as she checks him over briefly before turning on Ludger. "You! Get out! And take your filthy friends with you! We don't have fighting here..."
Her anger seems to slough away as she falls to her knees and begins wailing profusely.
The older man at the corner of the room is gathering his books off the table.
”Hey Doc, see if you can help the dwarf...I’ve got something to do,” Ludger says as he moves towards the older man as he motions Axel to block the door.
”Hey Timon, wait a moment!” Ludger calls to the older man, making sure to get between the man and the door. Ludger is hoping that calling out the name that way will trigger a reaction in the man. He figures if it’s not the right guy, no harm done.
Axel, forgetting he is still holding the barstool, hustles to the door.
Intiuition 30
+ 40 = SL +3
+ 20 = SL +4
He's distracted by the events as well as the bar maids show of tears.
The dwarf's pride is probably more wounded than his skin, and for what it's worth, Magda thinks he got what he deserved.
Her motherly compassion draws her to the sobbing wench, and she tries to soothe her, stroking her hair and hushing her
SL +2
The older man cringes as Ludger calls out to him, dropping two of his books.
"Timon?" he says in confusion. "I'm not...wait, do you know him? Please, tell me what has happened! Where is he?"
Axel puts the stool down awkwardly.
Wait? You're not Timon?
"No, I'm not," the older man says. He seems to relax a bit since it seems like he won't be immediately set upon. "I'm his reading partner, Achill Kayserling. Who are you people?"
Axel puts the stool down awkwardly.
Wait? You're not Timon?
In a loud stage whisper Ludger says to Axel, ”I still say we should beat him until he admits he knows where Timon is hiding.” Ludger then glares at Achill.
No no... I'd love a reading partner. I'd love to read in fact. Well sir, we are hear to help Timon out with a trade, but no Timon, no trade and everyone is poorer... what can you tell us? Maybe he's at home?
SL - 5
Instead of conciliatory he comes off... creepy.
I'm Fraulein Kupferaugen, a student in the medical arts. And what are you reading?
Achill is confronted with an assortment of intimidation, inquisitiveness and … probable deviancy but somehow he holds his ground.
”I'm afraid I couldn't say where Timon has gone. I left town for a month to meet with some old colleagues and when I came back everyone was like...this,” he says as he gestures to the rest of the tavern. ”It wasn't like this before. I haven't seen the proprietor since I got back, and this is the second time I've come to meet with Timon. The first time I assumed it was just a slow night here.”
After hearing Aschill's story, the ale-sodden dwarf on the other corner of the room begins grumbling. ”Can't leave well enough...alone...aye.” He struggles to take an unsteady stance before staggering back to his table. ”If'n ye keep asking questions...just hurt the lass more. Bring me water. Still enough of a dwarf that I can't see that.”
Timon grabs a pitcher and fills it with water in the kitchen before returning. Khedrun doesn't get far through the drink before vomiting into it, but seems slightly recovered after the exchange.
He points over to Nicola before starting. ”First, get her out of here. Her 'da is dead over this and I wouldn't tell you this myself just to hurt her more.”
Finally after Nicola is escorted away, he begins. ”Weren't a fortnight ago. Big fella came into the Porter asking for Timon, just like you lot. Wore a hood, couldn't see much of him. Stank like the sewers or worse. Whole room seemed chilly, just with him standing there. Herr Haeussuer told him to jump in the Teufel. Stood right up to him, he did.”
The dwarf trembles in his chair as he struggles to continue, obviously reliving a memory he'd been trying to drown. ”Got a stick through his throat for the trouble. Then he grabs the next person that came to reach and asked him the same. Didn't take long before the whole tavern was in a rout. We had a few big guys in that night...some of them Altdorfers even. No one wanted a piece of 'im.”
”More or less, that's the story. Five folk later, the big guy got what he was asking for & left. High time you lot did the same.” Khedrun glares at you with ale-rimmed eyes but makes no move to follow up on his words.
Best we leave... we can find his home, though I shudder to think what we'll find. Best come along Achill, he's your friend.
Achill looks decidedly nervous about the prospect of following after known killers, even to see after his friend.
"A...Alright then. It's for Timon. Lead the way," Achill says, while looking very worried about all of this.
Evening sits heavily over the city by the time you reach the Swordfish House, and shadows glare at you menacingly. Is it just a trick of the light and your unsettled mood?
"I've never actually been to his home before," Achill says. "Timon was always very private. That's why we met at the Porter for our readings." He continues to prattle on every few seconds as he tries to clear his nerves, but he isn't saying much of consequence.
There's a sign on Timon's door.
Axel frowns at the notice, illiterate AF.
Can you read this Achill?
Timidly, Magda says
I can read, if you need. As far as I can tell, the inhabitant has a few rents too late
Ludger pokes around the door for a moment. "Looks like someone tried to force their way inside. I guess it be considered bad manners to try to bash the door open ourselves?"
Ludger's qyestion hangs in the air, unanswered for the moment. This lower level of the Swordfish House is recessed into the ground partway, and you don't see any windows on this side of the building. The 'road' leading to where you are standing is still busy with passersby, but will likely settle down for the night in a few hours.
A separate set of stairs leads to a larger set of tenements. Some of windows above are lit.
As no one dares to act, the little woman sighs
Maybe it's open?
She tries to push or pull the door
The farmer looks around, anxious about the local law pinning him with a robbery charge. If lucky? That was a flogging charge, a possibly crushing the hands or fingers... if lucky.
Still... maybe he could think through it,
Achill... I think I can hear some one inside... maybe it's your friend! He may be hurt!
He's so convincing he's sure he heard it himself!
Lets get that door open to help him!
Magda pushes on the door and it opens after some brief resistance. The scent of decay washes out into the street, overpowering the normal unpleasantness of the city streets. Just beyond, you can make out a short entryway with an open passage to the right. Further ahead is darkness.
Achill starts to dash forward to help his friend, but is stymied by the darkness & stench of the room.
"Please, help him!" he urges you.
Alex lies is shaken but tries lighting a candle...
Magda sees better than the human despite the lack of light, and tries ot navigate in the room, seeking for some lamp, or even some windows to open
She sniffs around, as her medical training helped her to recognize the scent of death and decaying flesh
With the darkness dispelled by a dimly glowing candle, the group enters the Swordfish House. Magda is able to find and light a lamp fairly quickly, and the right-side chamber confirms her worst suspicions. Dead bodies lie strewn about the room in pools of blood not yet completely dry.
Stacks of papers, bookshelves filled with codices & desks piled haphazardly fill the remainder of the cramped space. The room was obviously ransacked.
*gulp*
I feared this... how about I stay outside with the lady till you tell me it's safe?
Sandra Abicht moves past Axel into the dimly-lit room. "The ladies are in here, Axel. Get it together. We need to find what we came for."
Keeping her boat hook ready, she pauses to look at the closest corpse.
He gulps and moves in, trying to find windows to open and lamps to light.
As Sandra kneels beside the nearest corpse, all of the bodies begin to jerk into motion together. In horror you watch as they stand. The dead rise!
Shocked by the corpse's sudden movements, Sandra finds herself unable to confront the undead monster. She waves her boat hook at it ineffectually while falling back. "They are zombies!" she wails, loud enough to possibly be heard on the second floor of the Swordfish House. "The dead are upon us!"
"Ranald, I've never needed you like I do now. Please help us in our time of need!" she implores the fickle god.
It shouldn't come as any great surprise that Ranald fails to answer her plea.
Axel breaks and runs out of the room...
Magda keeps her calm, but choose to retreat, via a reasonable and quick path
Ludger falls back to form a haphazard line of battle with Sandra.
Shambling forward, the zombies press on them.
Sandra attempts to defend herself.
"That's Timon!" Achill wails as the zombies attack. "He's dead!" The old man loses his composure completely as the Zombies come closer and runs back out into the street, screaming.
Sandra barely manages to fend off the attack of Zombie #3, regaining her footing in the fight.
Despite the onslaught, Ludger & Sandra manage to hold the line. The zombies are very scary but Sandra manages to keep her wits about her.
Using all of willpower Ludger ignores the fear that the undead ones are causing him. As the zombies attack Ludger shouts, ”Don’t run from these things, they’ve been killed once so how hard can it be to kill them again.”
One of the shambling undead slashes Ludger in his left arm leaving a bloody gash causing Ludger to involuntarily blurt out some ungentleman like words that he learned growing up on the docks.
Another zombie lashes out at him and even being hurt by the other zombie, Ludger manages to use his axe to turn that attack aside.
Ignoring the pain in his arm, Ludger blasts through the laughable defense of his foe that had hurt him and essentially destroys its leg and its undead life with one swing of the axe.
”Fight them! Fight them!They fall!!” Ludger shouts at his friends.
Ludger tries to conquer his fear instead of temporarily ignoring it.
Ludger cuts down one of the zombies attacking him as he struggles against the dread running through his veins.