|
"Between Quintessa, and you," Fenric says as he lays out one of the guards lest his efforts to give the dead some dignity be mistaken for common banditry, "this whole manor will know we escaped death."
He steps over and taps one of the potion vials with the tip of his sword and asks Graham, "May I have that?"
Then he moves on to listen at the double doors. "Selina, if you would double check me?" After the double doors, he continues to listen at the other doors while waiting for Quintessa to return.
Selina groans, "Let's stop with all the arguing. It was a risky move on Tessa's part, but it worked. So let's stop berating her and move on. By the way, Graham, can you spare a healing potion for me as well?"
Selina checks the double doors, following her normal routine: checkf or traps, locks, and listen for dangers on the other side.
"May I have that?"
"By the way, Graham, can you spare a healing potion for me as well?"
Of course, Graham says, splitting three of the four found, one each to Selina, Fenric, and himself.
He turns to Alvis. If we were simly taking possessions while these poor souls were away, that would be theft, and that would be wrong. We are in concord over this. I wholeheartedly believe that claiming what they have left behind upon their death, however, is not. Particularly by River Kingdom reckoning: You have what you hold, and this lot cannot hold anything now. He holds out the last remaining vial. As such, I would call this yours, if you will take it.
As Quintessa storms back towards the indoor garden, she opens the door to the magically lit area, and see the frost giant there, looking through the corpses of the dead Black Tears. He turns as the door opens, and looks grimly at her. "Leaf me be! I am no lonker disturbink you."
Graham parcels out the found minor healing potions - one for Fenric gave his away, one for Selina, one he keeps, and he offers another to Alvis, who just finished a speech on the Abadarian view of property rights.
"Hey, what about me?" asks Linzi to Graham, after watching the fireworks between the nobles
Fenric listens carefully at the double-doors in the center of the scullery, and asks Selina to do the same. Neither can hear much of anything through the heavy doors.
Teela turns to Linzi. "Are you injured? I can take a look at that while they are... doing that."
She pulls out her medicine kit to patch up the halfling.
As she does, she does a little small talk. "Did you enjoy the party last night? Any word on the gnome fellow?"
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
Pursing his lips Alvis mulls how to respond to Graham's challenge. He then says, "Presented that way, I do need to refuse, let Linzi have it, for now since it mostly likely belongs to the mistress of this manor." Drawing breath he continues, "People too often misunderstand Abadar our Great Lord. Yes his is the true god of law but not all law is equal because law is the foundation of justice. Law is emans, justice is the goal. The babblings of the Outlaw Council, made up of bandits, murders and worse do not need to be respected but most of what they said does not offend justice. What you want to use to your benefit is the one that is not. 'Have what you can hold' is just a thin excuse for armed robbery. If you care for anyone that is weak in arms, how would you feel about that stealing everything from them, even their lives? Or if you are a person that cares nought for but for yourself, say the lady of this manor live?. She decides to beat you down and takes all your stuff down to your undergarments. She is stronger than you, right? What right then would have to call for justice? You claim limits about it but such is not truly a part of 'Have what you can hold' because it has always been a way to say 'might makes right', in reality. A simple moral code but a very empty one, and most people and most likely you, would abandon it the moment it hurt you. You cannot select when and how to apply it to your advantage, or even if that were true so can another to theirs."
He sighs and say, "This is not the time for this, do as you wish and suffer the consequences thereby. At a more auspicious time I would be happy to perform a service for you and give a three hour sermon on justice, if you wish. Until then that will have to do, let us move on with less debate and more action."
Quintessa swiftly makes her way out of the garden, her heart still racing from the tense confrontation with the giant. Once she’s back with the rest of the group, she takes a deep breath to steady herself, regaining her composure.
When Fenric and Selina are ready to proceed, she in position at the rear of the group.
Graham stifles a hearty laugh. We can certainly discuss the particulars at a later date, if you wish, he says, making a mental note to never put himself in a position where Alvis will take him up on that prospect. Whereas, at some future time, should we use it to keep you alive, I'll be sure to provide an itemized manifest.
Graham in turn offers the vial to Linzi, at her and Alvis' request.
"I'm fine, I'm fine," protests Linzi as Teela salves and bandages her various injuries while the others sort out loot and other concerns. She does takes the offered vial from Graham. "Just in case," she whispers, giving the fighter a sly wink.
After a near-run in with the frost giant again, Quintessa joins the others, without a word about what happened previously.
Selina notices the open passageway to the north, where no door seems to be. She quickly moves there to investigate that room to make sure they are not leaving any enemies behind the party.
She will next investigate the door to the south, by Alvis.
The doorway to north appears to be a well-stocked pantry with floor-to-ceiling shelves covering the walls. The shelves contain various salted meats, loaves of bread, sacks of grain and flour, an assortment of potatoes and vegetables. A dozen or so large barrels also rest in this larder.
Lying in a tangled heap in the middle of the pantry floor are the large barbarian woman Amiri, the dwarf cleric of Groteus Harrim, and a tall athletic woman Valerie. A giant-sized greatsword lies next to the bodies, as does a flail and longsword and shield. The barbarian woman is dressed in hides, but the two others seem to be in night-clothes as opposed to full battle gear. The three are trussed up, bound hand and foot, and all are unconscious, looking quite bruised and battered.
Alvis looks over the scene saying, "They live, if badly hurt. Odd given the other murders. Never mind. I'll start treating the priest of despair. Lady Quintessa, would your ladyship like to treat the one that is, I believe is a retainer of our hostess, and Teela the outlander?" Alvis points to Valerie, then roots around in his pack for a healing kit. Unless interrupted he starts treat wounds on Harrim.
Treat Wounds, 10 min. Success 2d8, critical 4d8; either existing wound conditions lost.
Quintessa comes forward when called by Alvis, the message relayed by the others until he reaches her in the hall.
"Odd indeed." she says, commenting on that this group was left alive and not brutally slain like the others.
Quintessa moves to kneel beside Valerie, her hands trembling slightly as she retrieves her healing supplies. She takes a deep breath, attempting to steady herself. Despite her best efforts, she fumbles with the bandages, struggling to focus. The frustration is evident on her face as she realizes her hands aren’t steady enough to provide the necessary care.
She calls out, "Teela, I need you.", hoping for her assistance.
Waiting in the main hall next to a yet-to-be-opened door, Teela sighs audibly when she hears people call out for her. A few seconds later, she emerges through the door to the pantry. "Yes? There are other doors you may want to- Oh..." she looks at the incapacitated bodies and her face changes from curious to curious AND worried. "Are they breathing?" she kneels down to check vitals on Amiri.
Assuming she is not actually dead, Teela will start preparing some breathing salts. She crushes the mix, puts it in a bowl, turns the kellid woman's head so that the nose is above the container, takes a step back and pours in some vinegar. The contents hiss and release a vapour directly underneath the muscle mommy's Amiri's face.
"Girl, you can't handle your liquor or something?" she chuckles as the kellid woman starts coughing and wakes up.
"Right. Who's next? she looks around.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Graham gently reminds Tessa, A thousand pardons, my lady, but we do have a healing potion to use. May stanch those wounds faster than those bandages. He doesn't remark on her shaking hands, merely holding out a vial to the noble.
"Thank you, Teela." she says, watching the seamstress help save the fallen warrior.
She turns and looks up at Graham, her frustration softening as she takes a steadying breath. She nods, grateful for the reminder and his approach. "You’re right, Graham. Thank you for your wisdom." she replies in a soft voice. She reaches for the healing potion he offers and carefully administers it to Valerie, her hands still trembling slightly but more controlled now.
As she watches the potion take effect, she glances back at Graham with a small, appreciative nod and half-smile (it's the best she can muster at this time).
"Don't mention it." the seamstress nods as she looks at Quintessa's shaky hands. "And don't worry about that. Happens to the best of us. The physician's art is precisely that. Art. The human body is a -very- complicated machine with no spare parts. We'll all do better in the future."
She turns towards the door frame. "There are two more rooms we did not see, so let's get these people on their feet as fast as we can and take a look?" This time she turns to Fenric for his reaction. "Like I said: I'd prefer to be done with this sooner than later and check on our host."
The healing potion and medicinal attention get all three of the fallen adventurers back on their feet. "Seems that the end of days is delayed a little longer for us, at least," says Harrim. "One moment we are asleep in our beds, and the next we are left for dead by a frost giant. Such are doom is inevitable, praise Groteus."
Amiri picks up her over-sized blade, nodding her thanks to Teela for the healing. "What happened to the big bastard anyway? Surely, you lot didn't take him down?" she asks, raising a questioning eye at your group.
Valerie also bows and gives appropriate thanks. "We are in no state to continue the fight. We may have to retreat for our gear and to recuperate before we will be much good. The bloom of the Eternal Rose be upon you as you drive those black-cloaked fiends from this place."
The three all gather up any dropped gear, and aim to leave back they way you came.
"You're welcome." She moves to the southern door by Alvis and after her normal routine, opens and checks out that room.
Quintessa steps forward, raising a hand to halt the trio before they turn back the way they came. Her voice is firm but laced with urgency. "Wait. You can’t go that way-it’s ... blocked off. If you’re looking to escape or regroup, you’ll have to go west with us."
She gestures toward the doors that have yet to be opened. "We need all the help we can get, and you three, even injured, are better at our side than wandering alone. At the very least, it’s safer together."
Amiri, Valerie, and Harrim basically shrug at Quintessa's pleas to stay with them. "Not our dog, not our fight," says Amiri under her breath.
"All things devolve toward chaos," intones Harrim in a priestly voice. "As it shall ever be. We are powerless to stop it, and its sacrilege to try. Good luck to you lot but the ultimate end comes for us all."
Those two shoulder past the sorceress, but Valerie pauses for a moment, clearly torn. "I need my gear, and well...those are my group, however they may be. My first loyalty is there. If you need us, then send someone back for us." And she also moves past, though at least she seems to feel bad about it.
Selina moves to the southern door, and after listening and examining, she opens it with a flourish. This room holds a few large washtubs, along ith some folding screens that provided a modicum of privacy for the few chamber pots found here. A small brass oil lamp on the ceiling shines plenty of light and fills this room with the pleasant, if somewhat thick, scent of cinnamon.
There seems to be nothing noteworthy about this room except the basic necessities of indoor manor life.
"Uh..." Teela stands up with a face of urgency as she looks at everyone in the room. "You do realise we can't let them just walk over and see that thing in the garden, yes? Either we stop them or we go stomp blueboy with them. I don't think there's a way if they are that stubborn about it."
To Amiri, Alvis replies, "No, we bargained but you knocked the fight out of him."
Alvis looks thoughtfully at the departing warriors, commenting to Teela, "I'm not so sure, the giant beat them but didn't kill them. He may be a brute but doesn't seem to be a killer." He calls to them saying, "He's in the garden, if you leave him alone I think he will leave you as well. We're saving ourselves for later battles towards the main hall."
Selina steps into the room to make sure no one is hiding in the western end of the southern room (A13).
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Quintessa watches Amiri and Harrim shrug her off, feeling the frustration building in her chest. She had risked too much to get through this peacefully and wasn't going to throw it all away to have someone get injured or kill by the giant now. Valerie’s hesitation gives her a small glimmer of hope.
She quickly steps forward to make one last attempt to change their minds. "Wait—think back to why we’re here. Lady Jamandi herself handpicked us to be here tonight, not just to feast, but because she saw potential in us. She spoke of charters, of forging kingdoms-our kingdoms. And now, when everything is at stake, when the very lives of the people she trusted to help her build that future are on the line, are you really going to walk away?"
"Amiri, you told us stories of wrestling bears and defeating enemies with your bare hands, did you not? You’re clearly of the strongest warrior here. Are you really going to leave your fight unfinished? Lady Jamandi needs you now."
"Valerie, you’ve spoken of honor and discipline, of living your life by a set of rules. You hold yourself to a higher standard, and I respect that. But what could be more honorable than standing with us now, fighting for the lives of our fellow adventurers? You’re a champion. You know what it means to defend others, even when the odds seem impossible."
"And Harrim... you had talked with Thark about chaos, that doom is inevitable. But I don’t believe that. And neither do you, or you wouldn’t still be standing here, fighting. You know as well as I do that we have the power to shape our fate. Groteus may herald the end, but that doesn’t mean we give up. Not yet."
"I understand you want to retreat. I understand you’re hurt and exhausted, but if we don’t stay united now, if we don’t fight together, we’ll never get the chance to rebuild anything. This isn’t just about surviving the night. This is about proving we’re worthy of those charters-worthy of leading, and worthy of the trust Lady Jamandi placed in us."
She holds their gaze, hoping her words hit home.
Selina steps into the room to make sure no one is hiding in the western end of the southern room (A13).
There is no one in this room. Putting the chamber pots in the room next to the scullery is a choice I suppose.
Valerie listens to Quintessa and Teela's protestations. "Fine." she says, color rising in her cheeks a bit. "We will come along, but none of us are in shape to fight, and before we go anywhere else, we are going back to our chamber to gather our armor and gear.
"I'll go with you," Fenric says, apparently a bit smitten by the lovely fighter lass. "That giant's still lurking back there somewhere." He escorts the others to the hallway door, and leads them off back towards the sleeping quarters.
Selina will check the door and then, if safe, enter room to the NE in A5.
Selina backtracks a bit, still interested in clearing the flanks. She goes back out into the hall looking at unopened door. It is not trapped or locked, and nothing is heard from within. Feeling confident it's safe, she opens the door to find another bedroom. This small chamber is furnished with a bed, rocking chair, and small side table. An overturned wooden chest lies in the middle of the room amid a tangle of discarded clothing and personal items.
There are no signs of any friend or foe in the room, but unlike many of the other rooms, there is no dead body, blood trail, or other sign of violent struggle, besides the overturned and scattered chest.
If so, Selina heads back to the double doors and when the party is ready, we head west.
Selina and Fenric already listened and examined the doors before being sidetracked by the flanking rooms. Selina listens again, and hearing nothing, she pushes the doors...But NO! The doors, while not locked, buckle a bit but do not budge. Almost as if they are blocked on the other side.
"A little help, please.." Selina moves aside to let someone strong try, if they wish.
"Gentlemen, if you'd please be so kind." Teela steps aside as Selina asks for help. "I'm holding a harp, but it's not exactly a dumbell, so... Yeah."
Oh, of course, Graham says. Though, we beat the dumbbell a couple of rooms back, didn't we?
Graham gets a bit of a running start and puts his shoulder into the crack between the doors.
Quintessa winces as Graham's shoulder slams into the door, and she murmurs "That has to hurt more than it helps."
She steps closer, assessing the situation. "Graham, if that didn’t loosen things enough, maybe we can use some leverage? I think we’ve seen a few pieces of wood lying around from...well, everything. Let’s give your shoulder a rest while we try something less ... punishing?"
"Maybe we can look at that western door in the pantry as well?"
Graham gets a bit of a running start and slams his shoulder into the double doors as hard as he can, and it seems they give a tiny bit under the momentum generated, but they don't break open. As soon as the slam happens, you hear commotion from the other side of the doors.
"Up and at them men! He's at it again. Don't let that brute break through, to the doors and hold them for the Lady's sake. Hold them fast!" is shouted loudly enough for you to hear on the other side. and you hear multiple bodies hit the door from the other side, barricading the portal even further.
Teela audibly facepalms as she hears the shouting from the other end of the door. "Blades in the dark, an ogre, a giant, and now even Jamandi's people barring our way." she complains to nobody in particular as she moves to the door. She knocks on it rhythmically before shouting "Open up, you idiots. There are survivors in here!"
"Hold," cries the voice from the other side. "This is Lieutenant Ivenzi of the house guard. Who speaks from the beyond the door? Is the frost giant dead?" His voice sounds a bit more hopefully at that last possiblity.
Teela makes a curious grimace, and shrugs while she looks back at the people in the room. "We are guests from the party last night. I am here with at least four others. The giant is not a problem for now."
She pauses. "We had to kill to get to this door. In self-defense. Can you let us pass?"
"One moment, lady." returns Ivenzi from the far side. You hear him barking more unintelligible orders and the sounds of furniture sliding across the stone floors follows.
Eventually the doors open, allowing you admittance back into the Great Hall which looks much different than it did a few hours ago during the feast. Three of the long tables have been turned on their sides and pushed against the exterior doors to the south to form a makeshift barricade. Dishes, broken goblets, and bloodstains mar the once pristine floor, while at least a dozen bodies lie against the eastern wall. Lady Jamandi's guards gather at the barricades and in front of the double doors leading to the west wing. These doors are sealed and several tapestries have been torn from the walls and wedged into the gap between the floor and door in a feeble attempt to keep smoke from flowing into the hall from an apparent fire in the manor's west wing.
Ivenzi turns out to be a large man with grey eyes, closely cropped black hair, bushy eyebrows, and a thin mustache.
"Well met indeed," he says enthusiastically, moving to shake hands of any who will meet him. "You bested the frost giant, and, so far, are the only survivors from those invited to stay the night to make it here. I feared you were all slain. What is happening in the east wing? How many survive? How did you overcome that giant, who slew several of my men as we tried to enter the scullery? We have been fearful he would smash his way in here at any moment ever since."
"Good morning, everyone. Had a good night's sleep?" Teela jests when the doors open. After moving past the barricades, Teela starts talking. "There are at least four more people behind us. They were unconscious and decided to go pick up their valuables back to their bunks. We were attacked by assessing while we were sleeping. It seems they took out a majority of the guests in that wing. We had to fight through multiple groups of said assassins."
Meanwhile, she offers a helping hand to others on the barricade.
"The giant, yes. Well, Lady Orlovsky managed to talk him down," she gestures towards Quintessa "meaning we did not kill him. He did not fight and was already beaten up pretty bad."
Chapter 1: A Call for Heroes
Part 3: Into the Fire
Ivenzi looks aghast when he hears the giant is not slain. "We must get these doors barred again at once then. I feel for those who still live in the east wing, but we cannot have the giant burst in on our rear. They will have to make due or hail us from the door, like you did."
Once orders are made and the remaining guards start pushing tables and chairs against the east doors once again, Ivenzi says, "Yes, your story matches what we know so far. Armed mercenaries, along with several giants, attacked the manor. Lady Jamandi rallied the guard int his room, and after some tough fighting, we drove them off though it was a near run thing. Some of the attackers fled ot the east wing, but most fled to the west wing." He points at the several doors on the west wall of the Great Hall that mirror those on the east wall.
"While we hold the eastern doors against the giant, and the outside doors against more attackers, I would ask that you enter the west wing and find Lady Jamandi and offer her any aid you can. If you are hurt, we can tend to those wounds before you go, but the fire makes time of the essence."
So Lady Jamandi lives! Excellent, this will please our Teela and our own Lady Orlovsky greatly.
Graham raises his blade and nods to Ivenzi. We are at your disposal, sir. I believe we are well enough to continue. And I would be very surprised if we were to see this giant's face around here again. Still, I do understand your reluctance to believe the same.
When the group agrees, he will fall into place behind Alvis toward the west wing.
Selina scowls, "It pleases me more." Selina softens her stance, speaking to Ivenzi. "The Lady's safety is paramount. My dueling sword is at your service. You mentioned a fire? Could you be more specific?"
"She lives last per last report," the guard officer says grimly. "There are more than a few foes in the West Wing, which is why time is pressing."
You notice for the first time the air in the Great Hall is slowly filling with dark acrid smoke. Ivenzi points out the tapestries stuffed under the western doors. "Aye, the hallway leading from the Great Hall and several of the chambers next to it are ablaze, but we also heard clashing blades coming from the west wing as recently as a few minutes before you arrived. So, I think the rooms farther west are still safe. Getting to them is risky, but certainly possible."
Alvis' distracted thoughts on the difficult situation regarding leadership rivalry ends as he suggests, "Perhaps we could go fetch the other survivors and bring them through and leave them in your care? Then we move to assist others distressed. Being slower I can remain here, while our more long legged companions deal with it swiftly. Then we can leave things in this end of the manor for now."
Selina speaks with conviction to Ivenzi, "We just came from the east wing, so looking for survivors there appears to be a waste of time. The only ones we found were Amiri and the others and by the time, they find their armor and gear and don it, the western wing may be reduced to ash. I say, we head to the west wing with due haste. Perhaps, if your men could provide us with some wet rags to cover our faces to combat the smoke from the fire, then we should be good to go."
"Aye, we can help with that. One moment."
Ivenzi orders his one of his men to enter the east wing to the sundry closet and bring back a bucket of water and some bedsheets. Once these arrive, the men tear off strips big enough to act as face masks and leave the bucket for you to moisten when you are ready.
Removing her own scarf, Teela walks over to the bucket. She dips the cloth into the bucket, wrings it out slightly and wraps it around her mouth and nose.
"Alright. I have faith in them to not get killed and regroup here. Shall we move on?"