Seeing the enemy retreating or dying, Gaxi does a little victory dance, flickering like the embers. He hops over to the frost giant and jumps on the torso, croaking, “Gaxi wish he spat fire on giant’s face.”
Elaina - who is normally an expert swordstress but has a severely sprained wrist right now, the wrapping on her sword-arm testament to this - spends the event stoking the ferocious fires of Sarenrae in the hearts of the noble defenders. Afterwards, she heals people. "Huh. I guess those guys were mad they weren't invited, huh?"
"Lady Aldori! Please, I know who arranged this attack. The vile king of Pitax, Irovetti! What's more, I know who among us works for him..." After a dramatic pause, Tartuccio points at Harter. "You! Show everyone the ring you are wearing! You think I wouldn't recognize the seal of Irovetti? That's why he wasn't killed -- the bandits recognized him as one of their own by his signet ring!"
You seem awfully certain. It seems to me there are many ways one might have such a ring. If he were working for Irovetti, why would he wear his ring openly? And anyway, a man of mister Harter's vocation seems quite an odd choice to get involved in betrayal and subterfuge."
”Aye, he speaks true.” Sven said. ”I just fought alongside this man, and look at his blade! It is covered in the blood of those that attacked us. We rallied around Harter to drive these foes back. If he was working with the enemy, then why would he fight so fiercely to defeat them?” After a moment he added ”As the swordlord says.” Motioning to Pyros. ”The Paladin is accused of both treachery…and incompetence!”
"These two speak wisely." Athrehon states with conviction. "I don't think that now is the time to cast such aspersions against a paladin with so little evidence to establish them, Master Tartuccio. There may yet be other assassins still roaming about."
The elf starts to turn back to the others, then says to the gnome, "How exactly is it that you know that this attack was the making of this king of Pitax?"
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"During the battle, unless every one of Tartuccio's spells seemed minimally effective if at all. For someone who speaks as highly of himself as he does, it would seem that he is either useless...or trying NOT to harm the attackers." Elenaril says, calmly but pitched for all to hear as she studies the gnome.
"Ikit not know Pitaxi place, no no. But Ikit watch fight, yes yes, he saw fight. Harter is good man beast. Yes yes. No plan this, this bad clan attack not his doing, so Ikit say not his clan or members of his clan, no no" even the ratfolk defends him, in his own way
Seeing the enemy retreating or dying, Gaxi does a little victory dance, flickering like the embers. He hops over to the frost giant and jumps on the torso, croaking, “Gaxi wish he spat fire on giant’s face.”
Daxiana eyes the items on the giant finds now clue on him or the other bodies who hired them or the like. There's no clue who was behind it all. She smiles at the Kobold, "I'd say you burned enough to earn a drink at a tavern, Gaxi."
Elaina - who is normally an expert swordstress but has a severely sprained wrist right now, the wrapping on her sword-arm testament to this - spends the event stoking the ferocious fires of Sarenrae in the hearts of the noble defenders. Afterwards, she heals people. "Huh. I guess those guys were mad they weren't invited, huh?"
"Thanks for tending to the wounded, Elaina," Grateful, "And no, seem to be really sore about it or something. Darn me if I can figure out who sent them."
If she hears of the accusation towards Harter she chimes in , "I confess I was on the opposite side of the chamber and with a different band so to speak, but I remember him saying how the Stolen Lands needed the rule of law about it. He strikes me as the LEAST likely to try such treachery."
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Harter is so stunned by the accusation that he cannot react immediately. However, seeing the others are stepping up to defend him warms his heart. He takes out the ring on his finger and says "Thank you for your kind words. I did not recognize it at first, but now I do, this Irovetti's seal. However, it's you who gave it to me during the battle, little one.", while looking at Tartuccio.
Adding to what Elenaril said, he suspects that Tartuccio is actually an ally of the attackers and planned to accuse him from the beginning. However, it's bad form to point the finger at one's accuser directly, so he says "This is a delicate situation, and I imagine Lady Jamandi will want to conduct her own investigation independently. I submit to it and wish to aid in it however I can, to clear my name."
Looking at Kesten Garress, he says "I imagine you captured some of the attackers alive. I don't want to tell you how to do your job, but it might be wise to ask them if they had instructions to look for a ring with a particular insignia on people before they assassinate them. Or perhaps if they had instructions to avoid harming a particular purple gnome?"
Following Elaina's lead Raok follows and learns what he can of human injuries
Raok does not speak other than to whisper to the hurt "Let me heal you please, the divine blessings of the Rillsong" he then uses his store of healing
He does however listen intently trying to gauge the words and actions of those around after the fight.
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Stanislaw considered Tartuccio's accusation and Harter's defense. He didn't know the Lebedan very well, although he knew their house sent traders far and wide. It was conceivable they'd conducted trade with Pitax. On the other hand, few Lebedans became followers of Erastil. For Harter to have done so, he must have either defied his house or else was from a minor enough branch that he had more freedom than most.
Most of the testimony in Harter's defense was of the character sort, but he strongly considered Elenaril's testimony about Tartuccio's magic, even as he thought back to the battle. Tartuccio could have been pulling his punches during the battle - or he could just be less skilled than he claimed to be. It was a point in Harter's favor, but not strong proof of Tartuccio setting the paladin up.
He didn't recall having seen the ring on Harter's finger during the initial gathering, either. Of course, he hadn't seen Tartuccio give Harter the ring. Ultimately, there was no evidence to support Tartuccio's accusation that Harter was Irovetti's spy, apart from the ring, which Harter claimed Tartuccio had given him. There was also no evidence to show Tartuccio was Irovetti's spy, apart from the fact that he may have been intentionally holding back during the fight.
If Lady Jamandi was serious about having them set out now, there would be no time to conduct an investigation. It would have to occur with both the accused and his accuser on their respective expeditions - and the difficulty with bringing them to justice from there.
Idly wondering if Kesten would be offended by Harter's suggestion - although a noble of House Garess in Lady Jamandi's guard was somewhat strange - Stanislaw spoke up, "Lady Jamandi, as a fellow servant of Erastil, I do not believe Harter would have committed such betrayal, but there might be a way to put your mind at ease. If there is a high-ranking, spellcasting capable priest here in Restov, it should be a simple matter to clear up. There is a spell that can be used to compel the subjects to speak only the truth within its area. While it would cause a small delay, having the priest come here to cast the spell, and then having both Tartuccio and Harter give their testimony from within it, should serve to clear up this accusation."
As people start yelling back and forth, Jamandi raises a hand for silence.
Jamandi looks back and forth between Tartuccio and Harter.
"Yes, such a gambit would be typical of Irovetti and his henchmen... And yet, it still seems suspicious."
She sighs in exasperation. "There's definitely a spy among us, but who? Tartuccio or Halden? All I have is one word against another. I'm afraid you're both under suspicion."
"This is a delicate situation, and I imagine Lady Jamandi will want to conduct her own investigation independently. I submit to it and wish to aid in it however I can, to clear my name."
"Yes, I will have such an investigation. And we will find out eventually, but I cannot stall the expeditions for that."
Looking at Kesten Garress, he says "I imagine you captured some of the attackers alive. I don't want to tell you how to do your job, but it might be wise to ask them if they had instructions to look for a ring with a particular insignia on people before they assassinate them. Or perhaps if they had instructions to avoid harming a particular purple gnome?"
"No, we captured none alive. Any that didn't escape, died."
Idly wondering if Kesten would be offended by Harter's suggestion - although a noble of House Garess in Lady Jamandi's guard was somewhat strange - Stanislaw spoke up, "Lady Jamandi, as a fellow servant of Erastil, I do not believe Harter would have committed such betrayal, but there might be a way to put your mind at ease. If there is...
Jamandi winces slightly.
"No, I cannot ask that without further proof. Aside from such means being far from certain, we take our freedoms seriously here. Perhaps if all else fails, but not yet."
"During the battle, unless every one of Tartuccio's spells seemed minimally effective if at all. For someone who speaks as highly of himself as he does, it would seem that he is either useless...or trying NOT to harm the attackers." Elenaril says, calmly but pitched for all to hear as she studies the gnome.
[dice=Sense Motive]1d20+4
"Yet in battle many things can be mispercieved. I appreciate your observation though, it means I will have to get proof before assigning any blame."
Kesten steps up to Jamandi.
"Lady Jamandi, the fires are under control, but there is extensive damage. The guards at the river gate were found murdered and the gate was opened from the inside. It means that most likely there was more than one inside the mansion to let the rest in."
"I'm still not sure which of you I can trust. The risk of entrusting the whole affair to a spy is too great. Here's what we'll do -- two teams will head out. One will be with Tartuccio, the other with Harter. That way I'll know at least one group can be counted on to serve my interests in the Stolen Lands."
"I will also send some of you with my chosen ambassador to the Dunsward to deal with the Centaurs. And a fourth group will go to the Glenebon Highlands as well, Baron Dreslov will need help."
”As Grundinnar as my witness, I stand with Harter Lebeda.” Sven said, crossing his arms. His mind was made up, and when that happened he could be as stubborn as any dwarf.
Meredith raises a gauntleted hand to her breast and lowers her head, "I believe I have already made my choice clear, Lady Jamandi, but I will state it again. I will travel to the Stolen Lands with Harter."
"I'll go help with the centaurs." Cassia volunteers. "Good luck dealing with the Stag Lord." She says, bringing her fore and middle fingers together and giving a salute to Harter and his group.
"Well, I'm certainly not going with the gnome..." Athrehon mutters, moving toward Sven and Meredith.
Then he states, "My original inclination was to venture off to see about these rampaging centaurs, but after all that's transpired here...I believe I shall offer my services to the Company led by Harter."
"Oh what the hell, the nice thing about the open plains is enemies won't have much cover against an arrow shot. If Stanislaw will be heading after the Bandit Lord as I suspect, I'll keep to our agreement to go to the Dunsward area while he takes that. I hope Cassia and I won't be alone." Daxiana declares.
Elenaril watches closely as Lady Aldori and Kesten confer, nodding at the fairness of her decision-making despite her own confidence that Tartuccio was in fact the traitor.
"Harter has my trust, and the Stolen Lands call to me." she says, quietly as she steps over to join the assembling group.
"It seems I must prove my mettle in unfamiliar terrain first, not much water on the plains." Raok says in a normal voice as he moves to where Daxiana and Cassia stand.
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When noises awaken Piret, she doesn't immediately comprehend what they are. It's only as they grow closer and intensify that she realizes what she's hearing are the sounds of combat.
She dresses quickly and grabs her spear for protection, but it doesn't seem like a good idea to rush out into the hallway. She can't understand why there would be fighting, or figure out who might be engaged in it. She spends a few minutes by the door of her room, cracking it open occasionally to try seeing something that offer some hints about what is happening.
Eventually Piret is rewarded, seeing several people she recognizes from the earlier parts of the evening moving down the hall together. Piret joins them, deciding safety in numbers is the best move. As she hears about masked assassins everywhere, then sees the messy reality of the attack, Piret can't figure out what the purpose of it could possibly be. But there is very little time to think it over. Soon enough her little group has made it to the to the main hall and the core of the fighting.
Piret quickly finds herself grateful to have Harter and Sven present. She has no experience with human versus human (and much less giant) combat. The worst Piret has ever had to deal with was stubborn wolves after sheep, and she had dogs with her the couple of times teh wolves wouldn't give way when faced with fire, dogs, and her spear. While Piret is saucer-eyed, pale, and sweaty, she forms up as ordered and charges in with the rest.
If joining the fight counts for a great deal, Piret acquits herself well. She isn't in the vanguard, but her spear is long enough to be in the mix anyway. The spear she uses is an odd one. Behind its leaf-shaped head, several other steel "branches" are attached in various places all around the ford third or so of the shaft. These extra extensions also have triangular blades along them, giving the weapon an appearance similar to an untrimmed pole.
Piret only manages to lightly wound a couple of foes, but the bushy spear proves it's value by taking up extra space at the front. By moving it around she gives extra cover for Harter, Sven, and Meridith. At least Piret keeps her wits about her in the fire, noise, and confusion until the end.
Afterward, when Tartuccio levels his accusation against Harter, Piret adds her voice to the others vouching for Harter. She doesn't know what the gnome is up to, but she has a bad feeling about him.
"I said earlier I preferred proof over promises in a leader. Harter has proven himself. I'm with him."
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Harter finds Jamandi's position fair. He speaks no more of the issue, certain that the investigation will prove his innocence. He feels honored and humbled to hear others say they'll follow him. Suddenly he doubts himself, wondering if he's up to the task. He holds his holy symbol and thinks "Old Deadeye, guide me".
Suddenly realizing how he looks like, he cleans his sword of all the blood then re-sheathes it. He doesn't say anything, not wanting to inadvertently ruin the moment. However, he does note those who are going with Tartuccio, and those who are going to deal with the centaurs, as well as Glenebon. It could be important in the future to keep good relations, even though it seems that any relations with Tartuccio are already mostly broken. He wishes he has some time to speak with those who will go to other places now, but it seems that things are moving faster than that.
Stanislaw nods in acceptance of Jamandi's decision. Her house, her rules, after all. It was obvious that she wanted no delay in the expedition. "Yes, Dax, I think I'll venture into the Stolen Lands with Harter. Until we meet again, cousin." Bidding her farewell, he went to stand over with Harter's group. He'd seen Sven and Meredith acquit themselves well in combat, and Piret, with her odd spear, seemed quite competent as well. Athrehon seemed a competent spellcaster, as well, which would be helpful.
Gaxi is confused by the bantering-they won, right? Shouldn’t that matter?
When Daxiana compliments him, he follows her, croaking, “Gaxi go with Dax. To get drinks and find centaurs. Whatever centaur is.”
"Centaurs would be an interesting challenge, I suppose. I have never dueled a quadruped."
The next morning she meets with Harter's group at her warehouse. Tartuccio's group has already departed.
To avoid any unnecessary conflict on the road, you'll each take different routes to the Stolen Lands. Tartuccio will go through Nivakta's Crossing -- the garrison commander will provide him all the help he needs. You will travel to Oleg Leveton's trading post -- he's been complaining about the Stag Lord's bandits for a while now. There, you'll be able to get all the travel supplies you need."
Jamandi turns to Harter. "I'd like to believe you, but I know all to well how convincing traitors and spies can be. If you're truly innocent, I'll hope you'll forgive me this precaution."
She then addresses everyone. "While you're away, Kesten will investigate tonight's events. As soon as I know who was responsible, so will you. I warn you, there are several entities that would like to thwart this endeavor. Not only Pitax, but the Royal House of Surtova may interfere. I have tried to keep this a secret, but we see that has not been entirely successful. In my estimation you have no more than three months to complete your task. Any feats you accomplish beyond that time will be pointless. Good luck and goos fortune, do you have any more questions?"
Meredith finishes strapping down the last of the buckling on the red on gold background padded armor barding of a large dark brown horse. She gives the stallion a quick scratch behind its ears before mounting.
"Oleg Leveton's trading post. Understood. I pray he has leads we can use. We'll aim to finish this trial as quickly as possible, but I promise you, no corners will be cut."
"I have no doubt that you will find Harter to be innocent, but thank you for keeping us in the know regarding the investigation. I've no questions and am ready to depart."
”A fair response.” Sven said, as he prepared his belongings. Given that his life savings had been spent to even get this far, it felt good to have this leg of the journey being provisioned. And the fact that their first stop was a trading post warmed his heart. He nodded at Meredith’s words, agreeing with all she said.
”This trading post. Is it fortified in any way?” In his experience, trading posts at the edge of civilization rarely survived if they could not fend for themselves.
Stanislaw offered a short bow to Lady Jamandi. "I am sure that Kesten will determine who the true culprit was, as I am confident that Harter will be determined innocent."
Hitching up his backpack and situating his quiver and arrows, Stanislaw said, "How well-manned is Master Leveton's trading post? Does he have any guard contingent, or is it just him out there?"
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Harter simply nods as Jamandi speaks. He is sure she will find him innocent, so he doesn't feel the need to speak more. At the end, the ones traveling with him make very good questions about defending this outpost from bandits. While thankful for their concern, he trusts the group to be able to help the trading post, so his mind is somewhere else.
He asks "Do you have an updated map of the region?" Being also worried about interference from other kingdoms, who have much more resources than the little band of adventurers who just met. He asks "May we have a letter of introduction to present to Oleg Leveton?"
Enalaril this is closely to the others, questions does she checks on the readiness of her gear, considering the direction that they were to take and what terrain they might be passing through.
In a quiet voice, Athrehon lifts a finger and asks, "Er, will we have mounts on this expedition or might we be walking? I ask mostly because I've never actually ridden a horse before...if we are to ride, then perchance might we also have a wagon?"
Sven smiled at the suggestion. ”Now that is a good idea.” He said. ”A wagon would be perfect. For carrying our goods. For sleeping. For not having those of us without our heads in the cloud falling off of horses.”
While preparations for departure are still underway Piret hurries back to her place to quickly grab a few things. When she's back and squared away to travel, Piret seeks out Pyros. She tries to catch him alone since she's a little nervous, or perhaps embarrassed about what she is going to do.
When the her chance comes, Piret approaches Pyros and thrusts forward a book held in both her hands. She does her best, which isn't great, at keeping eye contact with him as she explains.
"Since we won't be traveling together, I have something for you that couldn't wait. It's a history of the Taldan Fifth Army of Exploration. The author is Vetricus Licia, a Captain in the army who served as an aid-de-camp to General Sarius Daemorix."
"Captain Licia wasn't a professional historian, but he was there when it all happened. He kept journals and later, after his retirement, edited them into book form. I won't claim his accounts are even-handed, he does have his agendas in writing the book. But if you keep that in mind, it's very readable."
"Anyway, it's something to have with you if you happen to have spare time to fill."
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After outfitting, you leave with little fanfare. In fact, it feels more like you are sneaking off in the predawn darkness. The first day, you make good time with no incidents as the road to Oleg's is still well patrolled by soldiers from Restov. By the end of the day you enter the actual Stolen Lands for the first time.
You camp for the night, and again, it passes peacefully. The next morning you set off for the final leg of the trip to Oleg's. After a few hours, you see the trading post. It is set on a small rise of land with a commanding view of the area. From the distance all you can see is a wooden palisade with open top guard towers at each of the four corners and the roof of a large two story building peeking out from inside the palisade.
As you approach, you notice that the palisade is relatively new and sturdy. The front gate stands open, but as you near it, you see an old man in robes running out from inside.
The old man spies you as he runs.
"Turn around and hide if you know what's best for you!"
With that he disappears in some bushes across the road from the gate.
Piret watches the old man run off with a puzzled frown. When he's gone, she turns to the others.
"We're fairly sure that wasn't Oleg, right?"
"We will find out." Sven said, as he pulled his hammer off of his belt. "Hear that? It sounds like the Stag Lord's men have come to collect taxes. We should make ourselves known."
"I believe we may indeed have found some of the bandits, trying to take advantage of those within." Elenaril says, dismounting from her horse, Junuper, and taking her staff from the saddle. She had no experience fighting while mounted.