** Maddock checks his belt pouch to see if he happens to have any lead pieces. Who knows? Maybe the coins he had on him morphed into the currency of this place. **
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After hearing that their quarry had finally been cornered and held, Maddock took a moment to give his head a firm shake. He hadn't been able to catch a moment to gather his wits since waking up in this strange place. Where exactly were they? He briefly looked up at the sky, attempting to count suns, moons, hells - anything that could provide a clue. Spoiler:
Pointing to the sign that says minimum of two drinks, I tell Kegi, "I'm broke. I'll stay outside. I need the fresh air anyway." But I keep close to the window so I can see what is happening inside. "Suit yerself, Rags. This Shrub needs watering." he growled, and entered the building, heading to the bar where the dandy was being held. He took a moment to pick up one of the proffered drinks that the barkeep had poured, and made a sour face while pushing it as far away from himself as possible. "How much for a jug of yer finest?" he asked, flashing a toothy grin that could make children cry.
Maddock heaves himself up onto the about-to-leave skycab, and pauses to take a breath.
He bows slightly to Lucienne, and mutters "thanks fer that", then squints and pokes his head out side of the cab, trying to catch sight of his owl.
Maddock spits an epithet in the guard's general direction, and gives a brief hoot of triumph at the apparent partial victory his companions have achieved.
"Bugger me if I know where they are." Maddock grumbles under his breath. Seizing on another idea, he whistles shrilly for his owl, points at the retreating hollow man, and shouts "follow that man, Grim! Don't let him out of yer sight!" Hearing the cries and moans of the innocents still trapped in the cages, Maddock turns his attention to them. He rips two long strips of fabric from his traveling cloak, and wraps one around each of his large hands for protection, then braces himself and grabs the bars of one of the cages, tying to bend it enough to let the trapped prisoner free.
"Aye, behind the shadowy bugger would be just fine." Maddock gestures toward the cube in his hand. "This odd thing suddenly got very heavy before it spoke. It's takin' most of me strength to hold on to the bloody thing. As long as it doesn't start givin' anyone hallucinations, it doesn't seem that dangerous, though. If need be, we can drop it on the ol' shadow's head from above. From the weight of this thing, it would probably hurt like a bugger." "If there are no more preparations to be made, shall we act all quiet, and hear what he has to say, before all the fun begins?"
Maddock's face suddenly looks surprised, and he quickly grabs at his belt pouch, where he is carrying the cube Loo gave them.
He takes a moment to look at Akallabeth, and Lucienne, and shakes his head a little. "Music? What music? Something strange is happening here, and we had better figure it out before this all goes bad. I don't hear any music, but did anyone else just hear this stone talk?"
"Yes, that order exactly sums up my sentiments. Let's not get close enough to give ourselves away, but be close enough to put a stop to anything bad that happens." Maddock takes a look at the large deadly machine, and estimates its weight. "I can help lug this thing about, but as for shooting it, Kegi would be a better choice. I'm also not the prettiest face so I'll do no talkin' to the crowd." "As for coming back from death to continue the fight...that's something I never thought I would be asked. I'm pledged to protect this land from unnatural creatures until my death...I can't see that becoming an unnatural creature myself will help with that pledge." Maddock stiffens, his frown deepening for a moment, then his face turns upward, and he actually smiles.
Maddock takes a brief moment to scout around the wreckage, looking for signs of the source of the explosion, and for any clues to the identity of the responsible party. Spoiler:
After that, he rushes to any people in the street who look like they can be saved, and tries to stabilize them.
Maddock stretches and yawns loudly, banishing the last remnants of grogginess. "Interesting theories, Lucienne. If I may spend a little time with that book as well, I'd be willing to try and examine it with fresh eyes." "The messenger sounds like a good fit for our friend. From our battle before, he also seems to be able to mimic our skills and abilities, though. 'haps he and we are 'twins'?" "I'd like to be there when this 'announcement' or whatever it is goes down. I agree, being hidden and well out of shooting range would be best".
Maddock's head started hurting.
His heart felt near to bursting with regret for the little girl's family, and for Lucienne's revelation of her mother's state. Priorities had to be set, though. As a Gatekeeper, Maddock knew that the greatest threat came from outside; invasion of the world by Daelkyr and their minions. An undead problem is an internal one. Once the world is safe from incursion, then there will be time to deal with the undead problem. "Loo, Pennywise did you no favour, keeping you from death this way", Maddock says, his gentle tone incongruous with his hulking brutish form and his normal manner. "That said, it appears we need to help each other. The weakening of these seals troubles me greatly. I must devote myself to keeping them whole. If anything else tries to come out of them, I'll be there to force it back in."
"Aye, I'm ready to go in. Caution be damned." Maddock readies his club, and pushes his way to the front of the party.
"Goodman Maddock, how are you fixed for spells?"
"Aye. Ruddy soldiers woke me up, so I haven't had time to enchant these berries yet, but I can take a moment to prepare them now. Otherwise, I believe I'm ready. I got me trusty club, some stones fer slingin', an this time I brought ol' Grimmit here." He reaches up to ruffle the feathers on the Barred Owl perched on his shoulder. The owl endures the petting with dignity, and swivels her head to stare at each of the companions in turn."I still got a couple light healing potions stashed away, but let's try and not get too banged up in there." He takes a moment to shuffle up behind where Kegi is attempting to pry boards away, and tries to peer into the inn.
Maddock stops to take a breath, looking around at the devastation both he and the soldiers have caused, and makes the decision to flee. Pulling his cloak over his head, hunching down to try and appear smaller, he does his best to blend into the crowd, heading to the Oaks for refuge. Spoiler:
Maddock crashes down his shillelagh onto one of the soldiers, collapsing him in a squirming puddle. The Other Tries to grab Maddock but not before maddock can do the same to him.
Maddock swings and attacks, lashing out like a vicious beast at the soldiers, who seem surprised to have prey other than the feeble and unresisting wretches whose bodies litter the floors of the rooms and halls.
the last few straggling soldiers
Maddock growls an orcish obscenity, tightens his grip on his club, and charges the closest soldier. +1 for Shillelagh, +2 for charge (1d20+5+1+2=21)
Maddock's brain internally roars with anger, and becomes more infuriated since he can not move to vent that frustration.
Maddock lies on a filthy blanket stuffed with old straw, fitfully alternating between sleep and wakefulness. His owl, Grimmit, roosting nearby, and toying with a dead rat in the corner. The lousy flophouse he chose to collapse in stands out only because it offers free bowls of "mystery brown stew" with the price of the stay. After the unsavory dinner (best not to think too much about it) he was able to growl and bare his teeth enough to earn a small room by himself, though none of the upstairs rooms actually had doors, so despite the lack of crowding, he can still hear the snoring and whimpering of the other patrons. His armour, weapons, and pouches of equipment lie in a crumpled pile, which Maddock keeps one hand on at all times, even during sleep. He was able to find a handful of shriveled berries in one of Sharn's public parks before retiring for the night. In his drowsy thoughts, he wonders if sleeping under a tree in one of those parks would be nicer, or safer. "It would probably start to rain in the middle of the night." he decides, and turns over, trying to make himself somewhat comfortable on the lumpy straw mattress.
Maddock will likely lay low for a day after the events of that night, and emerge again once it is dark. His first priority is getting in touch with any gatekeepers in Sharn at the moment, to let them know about the hollow man's escape. It may have been a cage just for this one creature, or there may be an open gate to some Very Bad Place in Sharn. If Kegi wants to come, he'd gladly introduce him as a friend to the wild. A> Do you stay with the group? Yes, he'll make a point of staying in touch with the group, since we all have a vested interest in putting this guy back in his cage. B> What do you do? He also wants to ask the gatekeepers about the locations he remembers on the map, whether they correspond to known sealed gates, or manifest zones, or both, and will ask about any of the symbols he remembers, to see if he can gather some info about them. C> Where do you do it?
If necessary, he'll even try to get access to Morgrave University's library to crack open books about gate seals, demons, manifest zones, and planes.
He'll spend as little gold as possible on food and lodgings. Shady flophouses are alright for now.
Maddock takes a perfunctory glance around the room, then begins scrambling up the rope ladder toward the roof, to escape. He's not convinced that he can effectively explain what was going on to the authorities, and he knows he doesn't look innocent. He sticks two fingers into his mouth, and lets out a shrill whistle, which is answered several seconds later by a far off twittering sound.
Maddock interposes himself between the lanky zombie and the unconscious gnome. "I'll keep this critter away from the gnome." he snarls, "Someone try and wake him up!" He widens his stance, growls and thumps his broad chest with his club, taunting and daring the zombie to attack, but Maddock does not strike first.
Maddock snarls, baring his teeth at the encroaching zombies. Hopefully whatever needs to be done to escape this place will be done soon. Attack (1d20+4=11), Damage (1d6+4=6). He ventures a powerful but utterly graceless swing of his club at a zombie that shambles too close.
Maddock swears softly, under his breath. The gate was breached on his watch. How did we not know this was here, and so weak? He picks up the gnome gently, and brings him closer to the group, then fetches the lens from his pocket, and hands it to Akallabeth. "I'd suggest putting the glasses back together. They may be the key to getting out of here. Perhaps our scholarly friend can figure out how." , and gestures toward Lucienne. He gently sets the gnome down, and places his bag of enchanted berries beside him. "If he needs more of these, go ahead." Then he readies his club, prepared to strike down any zombies that stray too close.
As vines trap and ensnare Maddock, he roars and struggles, trying to use brute force to break free, but fails, and the vines only hamper him more.
He takes a deep breath, realizing that fury may not be the answer in this case, and begins to call upon nature to use this creature's tactic against it.
Staring back up at the dangling corpses, "Has any of ye some good stout ..." Maddock grumbles, more to himself than to anyone, "Aye, I could use a pint or six of good stout...but I'm not sure what you're up to in that tree." "From what I see through this lens, this place is either another dimension, or a dream, or all in our heads, or maybe all three. Somebody find that other lens, and we can start making some sense of this. In some reality we can affect, I think that monster's seal may be still holding." He gently lowers the gnome to the ground. With the lens still over one eye, he reaches into his belt pouch to retrieve his symbol of nature, a sprig of mistletoe, then taking Lucienne's lead, he concentrates his will upon strengthening the seal on the hollow man's circle.
The warmth of the object in his hand gives Maddock pause. He holds the lens up to his eye and looks through it at the hollow creature, at the gnome, and at his companions.
Everyone watches with horror as Lucienne, who was before going to help the gnome stops. Then turning to the hollow man, she accepts his outstretched hand. the Hollow Man steps out of the circle, Maddock utters a loud, short, Orcish profanity, and continues toward the gnome, not hearing what the hollow man whispered. After reaching the gnome, he'll take a goodberry from his belt pouch, squash it between thumb and forefinger, and put it in the gnome's mouth, then rip off a strip of cloth from clothing for a makeshift bandage.
Colour: Forest Green The Ground Shakes, and the circle surrounding the hollow man becomes a little simpler, the man inside a little easier to understand. Suddenly a Burning Pain Bursts out of Everyone but the Druid, causing them to clutch a sudden point of their body. The Pain is superfluous (-4 to everything you do) as if someone is dragoning a mark on you with a super hot magical poker in arcane signs. Maddock's eyes widen at the sight of dragonmarks spontaneously erupting on the skin of his comrades, and the phrase "That's not right" runs through his mind again. Everything in this place seems to evoke that same feeling of wrongness, though, and he's getting mighty tired of that.
Maddock recognizes the Deneith training in this strange man's orders, from the various times he has come in contact with them while working for his own house. He grits his teeth with initial resistance to the idea of falling in step with human military; this was not the sort of thing he was intending to get involved with when inquiring about this job!
He gives Akallabeth a quick nod, and starts running toward the gnome, hoping to shove him off the throne. Following Akallabeth's lead seems to be the best idea anyone has for the moment. The sound of a bowstring releasing and the sight of the arrow planting itself in the gnome's chest change his motivation somewhat from intending to use force on the gnome to possibly attempting to save his life. Their only possible source of answers in this place can't be allowed to die. "There may be some life left in 'im, though. Be any of ye a healer?" "Aye, shifter." Maddock grumbles, and starts fumbling in one of the pouches at his belt. While hurrying past the circle where the 'hollow man' rapidly seems to be gaining strength, and the wards slowly dissolve, Maddock spares a helpless glance. "This gate is unraveling. Be ready to fight whatever crawls out of it! Even if the seal falls, the gate must hold!".
Maddock grumbles a vulgar Orcish word, and casts off his traveling cloak, dropping it onto the nearby table. He gives the cloak several thumps for good measure with his club, punctuated by a few other choice Orc obscenities, then flashes Lucienne a quick toothy grin. He delivers a friendly wave at Akallabeth, and prepares to either step forward into danger if the door opens, or to shield some of the smaller of his new comrades from harm, if a threat appears between the group and the door.
Maddock stumbles to his feet, and quietly mumbles "...madness..." looking around the room at the strange apparitions. "Lucienne, Kegi, and anyone else here with a sane head on their shoulders, we should probably stand close together to meet this thing." He then plants his feet, taking a more stable stance, and readies his club, narrowing his eyes and gritting his teeth at the strange scene, taking in a deep breath to try and quell the uneasy feeling rising in his gut.
Maddock looks the shifter up and down, appraisingly. After a slight pause, he pockets his fruit and his dagger, and offers his big meaty hand in greeting. "Call me Maddock" he says, in a deep gravelly voice, "and yes, I am one of the Gatekeepers. I'm here because of a tip about a job for a whole heap of coin. Far as I can tell, the dreggy beer is intended to kill off the weaker hopefuls." "Now that you mention it, the entertainment's not that satisfying either. Who is the boss who's doing the hiring here? "
The inn's front door creaks open, admitting a chill breeze, and the sound of light drizzling rain, as well as allowing in a tall, thickly muscled half-orc wearing heavy leather armour, dyed black. He closes the door, and taps his boots against it to dislodge any wet clods of dirt, and then shakes his head gently, sprinkling some of the cold water out of his long, black, beaded and braided hair, producing a soft rattling sound as the wooden beads around his neck, and at the end of his braids clack together. His dark eyes take in the room briefly, and he accepts the drink chit from the little barmaid, then lumbers over to the bar, and exchanges it for a dark frothing mug. He spies an empty table, and plods over to it, and adjusts his belt, which is loaded with several leather pouches and a large thick club, allowing him to sit comfortably. He takes a sip from his mug, and his already grim orcish features twist into a foul expression. For a brief moment, he appears to consider spitting it back into the cup, but instead swallows the brew, and sets the mug far away from him on the table. He works his mouth for a moment, then reaches into two pouches at his belt, and produces a small dagger and a small shriveled fruit of some kind. He carves small pieces of the fruit off, and pops them into his mouth, while in between morsels, he spits the seeds into the corner behind him, and absently twirls the dagger in his large hand, and lazily assesses his surroundings.
Finally posted a novel of a backstory in Maddock's Profile. I'll post in the IC thread as soon as I get some time. Logos, please let me know if anything I wrote doesn't mesh with your world. I'll make up a couple of NPC Gatekeeper contacts too. |