"Sadly, this isn't the kind of problem where more people will help." he says. "Believe me, if it were something a sword could chop or fire could burn, I'd be asking you along."
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As they drink, another ratfolk enters the bar. Knaxshi goes off for a moment to talk with them and then comes back. [b]"I have a little family business to attend to. It will probably take a couple of weeks, so I'll head back on my own."
Knaxshi relaxes, releasing the tension he has held since learning that Russ had been cursed. "Oh, the drinks are on us tonight! Thank you."
Knax looks around to see who saw this, clearly unhappy with drawing so much attention. But it's a habit everybody is used to from when Blaze is being her exuberant self.
As the group resumes their travels, they start hearing things from the woods. Sometimes music, sometimes laughter, sometimes animalistic growls. But only one person hears the sounds at a time. It seems that someone, or something wanted their attention.
"Oh, everybody's got talent, do they?" says Knaxshi as he finally gets fed up with the continual nattering of the ringmaster. "Everybody out by the barn. Bring as many old bottles as you can." Normally, he would have just slipped into the shadows and ignored this, but with the worry about Russ, he's hitting the limits of his patience. Next to the barn, there are hay bales, he stacks the bottles on them and pushing some into the hay. "I need a volunt..., you Marvolo the Mouthy. Tie him up there in the center. Make sure he can't wriggle or this may go badly." When he's tied up, he adds, "oh, and gag him." This would definitely be more jolly if it weren't so wet and muddy. But the roupe has lights from their show and they put up enough magic flames to burn down ten barns. Knaxshi doesn't go in for patter. He just paces off and starts plinking the bottles one by one. A couple are close enough that Marvolo gets scratched by the shattering glass. Only flesh wounds. The tension grows in the crowd. The last shots bring up tufts of hay right next to Marvolo. The sheer terror in his eyes betrays that he's starting to realize that Knaxshi might not be the best showman. For the last shot, he puts in just a fraction of the powder and he palms the bullet. He also adds a tiny fraction of the electric alchemical powder to this shot. He lines up and fires, directly to Marvolo's crotch. there is a horrified gasp. But as people realize that this isn't a lethal shot it changes to peals of laughter, hoots and howls. Marvolo doesn't seem nearly as amused. "Looks like I'm a showman after all." he says. "But I insist that you be my volunteer every night. Twice on Sundays."
Knax is distracted. "I don't care how far it is. If it'll help Russ, then we should go." This is definitely weighting on him. So much so that he forgets who he's with later. "Being a werehuman would be awful. All that naked skin..."
Knaxshi is visibly upset as he stands guard over the room with the cage. As he looks in on Russ changing, he cries out, "You were the chosen one! It was said that you would destroy the werewolves, not join them! Bring balance to the Stolen Lands, not leave them in darkness!..... You were my brother, Russ'Ruk. I loved you."
"We can chain you up." offers Knax. "that way you can be sure of not hurting anybody else."
Knaxshi looks at Blaze. "Better make the pronouncement to the assembled group. One way or another." He reloads, taking the time to do this precisely. "If you need it, I'll act as the executioner."
"Eh, we put on a big trial and it will spread word more than just killing him." he says laconically. "It'll look all official and such."
Knax is on the move, reloading with a greenish alchemical round without missing a step.
"Damn it, just die already." he says, "But not you Russ, I owe you a drink!"
As he reloads, he calls out, "All it takes is one good shot and you go down forever."
Then he takes his shot
Knaxshi sights in on Kundal, but holds to see if he's willing to surrender peacefully.
Knaxshi wasn't expecting this to go well and his gun slides into his hands in a well-practiced move.
Cursing, he moves back and reloads.
"Oh great. That's just what we need. Somebody collecting creatures and teaching them to fight? Thylacines, tigers and boars, oh my!"
Knaxshi knows that there are always going to be bandits and thieves around. Trying to go eliminate them sometimes hits the common folk worse. but unchecked, they are going to be a problem. So Knaxshi visits a few places and lets them know that the Stag Lord was taken down because he became a problem. Should they keep control of the situation and prevent it from getting out of hand, there shouldn't be the need for big crackdowns like that like that.
With the resources he's liberated in setting up the thieves' guild, he'll funnel though some of the artisans we have to give them more resources to trade.
Knaxshi spends some time reassuring Bevin that things can go well if he's given a chance. "I actually knew another Bevin once. A really tall man with a bald head and a bright bushy beard. He's the one that taught me how to make smokepowder. A truly great man." He will emerge from the shadows for the coronation, before slinking away again. When Russ is trying to ply blaze with bread, He'll come up with a big slice of cake.
Knaxshi cringes as he hears the instruction to talk to somebody you don't know. Oh, they made it look so easy. He slinks through the crowd to the quiet, dark corner in the back. To find it occupied by a young human. He was tall and thin, and looked as uncomfortable as Knaxshi. He slid against the same wall, ostensibly to face the music, but more so that they could talk without making eye contact. "I don't think I've ever heard of a monarch who performs for her subjects. I'm Knaxshi, by the way."
Knaxshi has been quiet about this. When he got back there was a letter that seems to have put him in a mood. But he seems to be trying to pull himself out of it. "Why focus on the past?" he says. "Why not show our strengths? The Ember Empress? Her Incandescent Majesty? The Solar Sovereign? Monarch of the Hearth? The Inferno Queen? "
As they search, Knax will play around with the (recently cleaned) Stag Helm. He'll take it off with a puzzled look and put it back on again. "Surprisingly comfortable for being made for a round head. Doesn't pinch the ears at all."
Knaxshi reloads his weapon. He's assuming that Vesi can calm it, but preparing just in case she can't.
Knaxshi cocks his head, "Let's hope we never have to ambush somebody like that." People who read between the lines will note that the practical rat isn't ruling it out. "I suspect that the head will be sufficient proof, but I'm not an expert on ghosts."
Knaxshi simply works his gun, loading, firing, loading.
Taking Vesi's blessing he reloads and shoots. He can barley tell if that one hit or just grazed him. But he slams in another round and puts it straight through the Stag Lord's liver.
Knaxshi fires, reloads and fires again. If he wasn't awake before, the booms will definitely wake him. Hopefully the shock discombobulates him for a while.
How far away is Jex from my tower? I forget, was it me and Blaze up top?
As Blaze and Vesi relax, Knaxshi relaxes his grip on his gun. To use the old Ysoki phrase, it would have been a fustercluck if they'd have had to start things now.
Knaxshi waits until Ayles is away and then sneaks the toys into his area. He's trying to fins places Ayles wouldn't notice, but Auchs' would look first.
Knaxshi nods at Russ. "The towers are good. Nice open field in the center and plenty of cover."
Waiting until everybody is busy elsewhere, Kax slips into Auch's rack. Looking for something distinctive.
Knax will follow Vesi to see the owlbear cage and how it's secured.
Knaxshi stays on the far side of the cart, keeping his gun under the oversized cloak. He's trying to keep his face as neutral as possible by focusing on his breathing.
"Absolutely." Knax agrees. "Otherwise we'd likely be heading into a trap. As opposed to merely being surrounded by enemies." he says with his usual dry delivery.
Knaxshi shakes his head. "I know some people who practiced at shooting locks off. It'll probably take a couple shots, but at range it'll be hard to hit."
"But know that our mercy is limited. Should we find you causing more problems, we will stop you from harming innocents with full force."he pats his gun.
Knaxshi reloads, staying behind his cover and shoots. Starting to get quite frustrated, he reloads again, shooting as soon as it's ready.
Knaxshi shoots, then takes cover as he reloads and shoots again.
"If we accept surrenders from a raiding party, what do we do with them? We can't just let them go, because not all will be honest about turning over a new leaf. If we bring them back to the stockade, it will take time and the Stag Lord will use that. If you have a plan for this, we can talk."
"I gotta agree with Blaze on this one. They have been terrorizing people and haven't been shy of killing. If we take prisoners, then we have to keep them under control for days to get them back to civilization. By that time the Stag Lord will likely notice. I expect he'll take out his anger on innocent folk." he does look honestly conflicted about this. "I was involved with the wrong sort of people, but I got out before it got bad. I knew continuing would have meant death in combat or a hangman's noose."
Knaxshi has a bad feeling as she hears Blaze bring up fire magic.
Knaxshi nods along with the conversation, but he doesn't want to jinx it by saying the wrong thing. He seems to be accepting Russ' lead.
"Oh, I've been in love, but never have I ever had something last more than a season." he says, "The perils of nomadic life.
Knax pauses, wondering how personal to go. But a smirk appears as he comes up with an interesting one, "Never have I ever... kissed a goblin!"
Knaxshi is busy taking his gun apart and rebuilding it, trying to find what had happened to set his aim off so badly. He does pause to watch the squirrel dragging the bread away. He sees a jay eyeing the bread and tosses a pebble at it to keep it away and give his fellow rodent a chance.
Maybe he wasn't so useless after all.
I do think we need a second frontliner. We do have to worry about story stuff interfering if it's an NPC. Maybe recruit another player?
I could bring in a tanky kineticist. I'm thinking a dwarf that uses the stone and ice of the mountains.
Knaxshi slumps for a moment, overcome with the nearness of death and the shame of not being able to hit the damn thing half the time.
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