Search Posts
Roan nods, "I don't suppose this woman appears to be anything like the image that Fhàrn had made for us?" The ever wary inquisitor asked as he begins to step cautiously into the building, hoping to once again pick up the trail while the scent of the murderer is still fresh.
Roan seeing Wyssal and the other woman take off running realizes that something must be amiss and starts running down the street. Going to the door, Roan realizes that he no longer sees the young woman with Wyssal, which either means that she left the area, or plowed through the blood and gore without even hesitating, neither being a good sign. Roan stands warily at the entrance and calls in, "Wyssal? What do you see, is that woman with you?"
Hear hear!
I think we're kind of waiting on the council meeting. Maybe? It seems our king has been quite busy with that real life thing as of late, and I'm under the impression given his character's importance that may have slowed things down a bit.
Roan's usage of Keep Watch tends to keep his nights somewhat busy. Typically he spends his nights working while he keeps his days free for more leisure activity and such. During the night he takes care of reading all the various reports/receiving them in person for anything communicated by word of mouth. Once that's taken care of, Roan usually chooses to meditate for a time in his sanctum and mull over the information he's been given. Once done, Roan returns to give new orders as needed, and takes to the streets to patrol and follow up on any leads he personally wants to take note of. Roan's house is arranged like a fairly simply in a single story square. The center of the building however is where his garden is, taking up the middle as a courtyard, and is where Roan spends much of his days leisure tending. Roan does have a bedroom for the time that his magic is spent, but has seen little to no use in its primary function. Ultimately, Roan's house isn't terribly decadent, but it's certainly beyond the means of the common rabble.
"We followed the trail both ways from the homestead as well." Roan adds on to Rowan's summary. "The perpetrator came from the city and returned to the city. So we can be fairly certain they intend to hide amongst the populace as opposed to in the wilderness. The guards spoke of seeing a wounded woman entering the city who was agitated and refused help around the time when we suspect the murderer would be entering the city. It's quite likely that this is our murderer. Currently, I'd like to see if we can't hire an artist of some kind from the populace to make an image of the suspected woman with the guards who saw her, and use that to begin a hunt through the city. It will either bring her forward where we can question her and ensure that the wound was or was not caused by Bej, or drive her into the wilderness where she'll be easier to track."
Roan returns to his home and begins playing his web of informants, writing several copies of his orders Roan sees them distributed. The murderers of Bej, former council member and farmer are shapeshifters who's attack came from the city, and returned to it afterwards. An attacker was wounded and left a blood trail, but may be hiding the wounds, whether by magical or traditional means. The attackers are extremely dangerous, proceed with caution and do not approach potential targets. Attempt to find information of inhabitants from the city who left early in the day but returned by midday, particular interest for any injured." The letters distributed, Roan personally continues his search as well.
Roan takes note of where the scent becomes unfollowable, and returns to the farm, and then tries to tracks one of the scents down towards their origin point.
Roan continues following the scent through the crowd, not hesitating now that the shoes blend in. "It seems our prey is indeed some kind of shapeshifter."
"Ms. Surtova," Roan nods curtly at the new face. "Inspect the site if you wish, for now, we begin our hunt of the perpetrators." Taking to the blood trail that leads away from the scene, Roan puts his nose to use and begins trying to track the scent.
Roan nods. "Assuming it cannot hide its trail magically, there's very little I cannot track, so long as the trail is still fresh, part of my reason for my haste out here. But whoever did this is something I'm not keen on encountering alone. Perhaps its time to see how well Dante's training has taken amongst his men..."
"He went down fighting, if that's any solace." Roan sighs.
Roan looks at the blood a bit closer than before. "Hard for me to say, I've been dedicated to fighting men most my life, not monsters." Despite the statement lacking confidence, Roan still looks at the evidence and tries to think back on it.
"Regardless of what it is, I have its scent, we should be able to track it out of here with any luck."
Roan shrugs. "I'm not saying that this is the only possibility. These are just the clues that I've found as to who did it, as you asked for. And while Bej may have followed Deadeye, that does not mean his aggressor chose his target wisely, he may well have attacked for deed they found offensive, not character. Regardless, this is just the first thought to cross my mind, not my conclusion."
Roan grimaces, figuring the picture he paints may not go over well with another druid, but sticks to his story. "Some of the wounds are clearly caused by an animal of some kind, others from a bow." Roan holds up one of the arrows. "I used magic to heighten my senses, and there's two distinct smells that do not belong to the victims. Based on these facts primarily, I believe this may be the work of a druid and its animal companion. I cannot imagine a domestic beast that does not heed to a druidic master being capable enough to give an accomplished mage and warrior like what I've heard of Bej being able to do anything against him."
True indeed! Psst! Hey Wilhelm! Deal with your grief by sending people to investigate! I don't know Anastacia has that IC!
*Pulls off Sherlock hat* ...That too.
Roan combs over the area with speed, yet a great deal of thoroughness. After searching the perimeter, Roan returns to the porch of the house and sits down with a sigh. Looking to Wyssal, the spymaster presents his thoughts. "Well, it's either a very good ruse, or a very poorly covered attack. Clearly, this is indeed a murder, not merely a tragic attack by animals. And clearly, it was premeditated, this was no sudden fit of passion..." The summary gives way to a cold analysis of the scene. "The first thing of notice is the contradictions in the wounds. Some of these appear to be from an animal or animals, clear signs of tooth and claw working. Yet there's the arrows, and the housemaid held open the door as though to invite someone inside. So in this, we can be certain at least that man and beast worked together on this." The inquisitor stands and begins pacing the yard. "There's also a scent on the air... gods help me that I have to be grateful that the corpses of the victims are still here rotting for me to smell. But there's two distinct scents, no more than that, we can be rather certain that this was a pair, one man, one beast." "I can't say I really knew him personally, but from what I was told about Bej, he was a very reputable arcanist, and a warrior too. He was not a combatant to be taken easily. One could argue that he was taken by surprise, and he likely was, but he had time to arm himself, and work his way through about half his quiver. He was not taken sleeping or completely unawares... whoever did this was a very skilled individual. The most damning thing is the lack of bodies of attackers, there'd at least be one or two amongst the fallen who were not civilians. Nor are their any war animals to be found. The attacker was a human, or similarly sized, you can tell by the arrows. And while horses are a common war animal of creatures of my height, rarely are animals that cause wounds such as these to be found. Halflings ride dogs and such into battle from what I know, but the arrows and their size indicate that the attacker was larger than that." Sighing, the man concludes. "All signs point to this being the work of a druid. A single person, a single beast. Not a common man or some mongrel beast either, otherwise they would have died in the fighting almost assuredly against a talented individual like Bej, or at the very least, not have been swift enough to kill everyone before at least one person could have escaped... And impersonating a druid is almost impossible, as very few have beasts as accomplished as theirs, a man could attack with a trained hound, but without the forces of magic to help aid the creature, the carnage is unlikely to be this complete. See this trail of blood? It leads to Bej's body, it looks like the man was dragged some distance before he was killed behind the yard, and whatever it was was big enough to rip his arm free... neither things that your average dog could accomplish to a man his size. Either this is an expert farce, or this is a druid who didn't care to cover their involvement, or couldn't before they needed to flee investigation." "The motive also fits for some of their kind. Few would hate a farmer enough to kill them in cold blood. They may deride and insult them for their common work, but few would take offense to a man's taming the land and sculpting it to his will... except for those who wish to see the wild places untouched by the chains man would put on them." While obviously not enjoying the scene, it's fairly clear that Roan is a man rather used to the sight and smell of butchery and decay by the rather passive and calm way he speaks of the situation.
I can understand that Leinathan. Glad to hear you've got the motivation together though! Just let me know if I can do anything to help!
Roan stares at the report in his hand overlong, then sighs. Folding the paper up, he stands up and marches out his door. Speaking to his wait staff as he exits, he notifies them. "Send any callers away, I'll be gone for the day, possibly longer." Pressing quickly towards Wilhelm's residence, Roan enters the steady jog that marks his passing, incanting the short passage from Unbinding the Fetters as he begins.
Upon reaching Wilhelm's, Roan sees himself pushed past as many servants and guards as quickly as possible. Upon finally meeting his brother, the Iroran thrusts the report to Wilhelm wordlessly. It almost seems that upon delivering the report, that Roan is going to leave immediately, but then, pausing at the door, Roan murmurs. "I suppose I got too careless, having other people to inform me of the goings on here. I won't make that mistake again. I may be gone for a few days. And... I'm sorry, Wilhelm. I'll let you decide how to disperse the information." With that, the spymaster leaves. After that, his first order of business is to set out towards Bej's farm at his faster than normal pace. There, he surveys the scene, looking for any and all traces of what could have happened.
Roan leans in and whispers to Wilhelm. "Good, but don't let her control the conversation's flow. Responding to her rhetoric gives her the initiative to dictate the course of the debate, and you know how deadly it can be when the enemy is the one choosing the course of events."
If you need the help leinathan, also feel free to tap me in for it too. I know Wilhelm already offered, and honestly is probably a better pick, but I like Dareon too much to just let him slip away if I can help it. :)
Yeah, that looks to be the idea. And I'll go ahead and keep with my spy-ring set up previously indicated so no need for state funding on that.
A flicker of a smirk dances across Roan's impassive face as Dareon jumps in, his lips moving in an utterance of some kind. Perception 15:
"Knew I liked him for a reason..." The face slips back towards its typical impassive persona. "A fair enough idea, Miss, though I was under the impression we were talking about the system of indenture, not the court system. And last I had checked, we had made no move for the judges to be pulled from any one particular class. Regardless, let's not tackle two topics at once, shall we?" The Iroran follower keeps his commentary short, in order to give the actual leader more chance to retort.
"The defense of the poor is always the most difficult of tasks, Wyssal. After all, if they face a disadvantage, then it's hardly a matter of playing a completely fair and even system, otherwise they will never be able to overcome their disadvantage." Roan interjects into the conversation as his brother comes under some measure of attack. However, his tone stays even, and non-aggressive. "But as I understand it, the indenture is also supposed to be a way to help those in trying times. If a child is stealing food to survive, yes we will still punish them. The law cannot afford to have exceptions based on the court's pity, that pity typically ends up being bought by the rich more than it helps the poor after all. But through his service to the state, the child will then be fed, and kept healthy so that both they're life improves and that they may serve the state more effectively. In addition, once their term is up, they'll have had a chance to learn more economical skills, and in many cases, may seek proper employment from their same workplace, with their supervisors aware of their work ethic, experience, and drive." As what mostly seems to be an aside, Roan also states. "Of course, the law is also more likely to be lenient to the young for their youth after all."
That looks like a good plan to me, Wilhelm, so I'd say we go for it! And I agree, Fharn, it's rough losing this many people, really saps the game, so a good ol' adventuring romp sounds like a good change of pace. On a different note, someone pointed something out to me that may be applicable to Dareon. I learned that apparently one can dispel their own Blindness spells with no added effort needed beyond a standard action. I initially thought it was like Bestow Curse in that nothing short of a Remove Curse could get rid of it, but apparently, Blindness is a touch kinder and the caster can remove it at will. So, since there's that Stag Lord's fort mook guy, and if I recall, at least at the time it sounded like everyone was under the impression that there was no way for Dareon to remove it, figured I'd point out that it seems it actually can be done, in case Dareon ever feels like that guy has paid his debt to society. :)
Sarenith, 6th, Sanita/Wilhelm: Roan stands there and gazes upon Sanita with confusion in his eyes, but also curiosity. But without formally accepting anything, Roan turns and looks towards his brother, and raises and eyebrow.
Ach, sorry to see you go MDT, Lanya, everyone really... But, to the task at hand. Given how many people are diving right now, I think we should focus on just normalizing for the moment. Dareon's a great character though, so I'm going to be thinking about some way we can keep you adventuring too, part of why I supported the initial bid to make a co-GM system. :)
Desnus 2nd - Wilhelm/Sanita: Roan takes the criticism with now classic stoicism. Then, offers a shorter reply. "I sought to make the issue your spymaster's and leave it alone at that point. I couldn't in good conscious do nothing, but in respect to your wishes I sought to give the issue to someone else and be done with it. As to arranging dead drops and the like, that only works if we're certain that one of us isn't being watched, and that the location isn't compromised. It was my intention to get such information before it was known that I was involved in anything with Sanita to ensure that such measures are secure. Something that will be harder to ensure now, but we'll have to make due I suppose. And if prestige and influence was what I sought first and foremost, I assure you, it would not make much sense for me to pass by the high profile status of Councilor. Rather than pursue a title that I cannot wear openly and assume to work effectively? Nor one that would endear me to my neighbors?"
Roan sighs, and finishes. "But as you say, milord, it shall be done. Let me know if I'm needed for anything." Roan stands waiting to be officially dismissed before leaving.
Desnus 2nd - Sanita, Wilhelm: "I didn't wish for your job because I wished to trust my brother's judgement and to find my own place, not because I find it distastefully beneath me. And no, I am not certain, I am never certain. Sanita, I am sharp eyed as you've seen, and have a mind for picking out lies. But that is just a taste. I can read minds, I can know when someone is lying no matter how well trained, I can peer into a man's heart and find out what weakness he's most easily twisted by. Between my magic and my talent, there is little that can be hidden from me if I wish to find it. And yet I still do not trust my perceptions completely, because I can still be deceived. That is why I cannot trust you with this task. Your confidence that there is no 'assassin out the window' as it were can be taken advantage of. Traps and red herrings, if you answer these all with aggression and speed, you can be played, and easily. That is why I hold no confidence in you, because you hold too much in yourself."
Desnus 2nd - Sanita/Wilhelm:
Roan just shakes his head sadly. "But I don't want your job, I just feel forced to take it for the kingdoms safety. And I still have not lied to you. All you succeeded in was assuming I was a spellcaster. Don't bother crowing in triumph over a correct guess amongst the failures... it's unsightly." So taken by "the Demon" she can never see beyond... Sense Motive 15: Since Roan's a fairly stoic faced man, it's difficult to see for certain, but it's clear that his grab at Sanita's job is born of a true feeling of incompetence on her part. And he does believe he's telling the truth currently.
Desnus 2nd - Sanita, Wilhelm: Roan listens as Sanita finishes, her external rendition of her external monologue, and tacks on. "I don't believe I could have said it better myself. Wilhelm, do you understand why she is not fit for this duty now? She jumps at shadows and yet misses the things right in front of her.
In this... 'report' she believes me to be an assassin, then decides I'm trying to sabotage her position by digging up information on her, then decides I want to kill her for her position, then believes that I may strike at Dante, then believes I may strike at you. Then, she fails to understand her inability to rile me as her being predictable, and that since every word out of her mouth since I've met her has been pure vitriol, and reacting to her obvious jibes would be petty. She repeatedly calls me a liar, for daring to say that no one spoke in her defense save Rowan. Yet even if I wasn't given tacit approval, there was no lie in me saying that no one raised their voice in her defense. She thought I was making attempts to sunder her bonds of trust with her and the council. And she spies on you and your council for that matter as evident by her knowledge of my proposal. Yet only moments before she was wondering who in the council sent me to work against her. Amusing since she doesn't seem to realize that she apparently doesn't have the trust in you all that she thinks she has. She shows one gleaming moment of clarity in realizing that she knows little of me. But by the end she assumes nigh everything about me in her plans to kill me. She assumes I cannot heal without a spell for example, or that my focus is too weak to cast a spell while acid pours over me. For that matter, she assumed me to be a spellcaster multiple times, she assumed that I'd grapple with her in a fight, she assumed that I would not begin striking at her flasks and enjoy the safety of my polearm provides as she burns. She assumed my offer to keep an eye on her and her agents was to kill her, despite only suggesting that of her rogue agents, and suggesting that I'd be more than happy to simply turn the criminals over to the law rather than dispense judgement myself. And most of all, she assumed in the end that I wanted her job, the one thing I never even asked for up until this moment. Which I only ask as I've mentioned is now due to the fact that I cannot put faith in her methods. She assumed, I was an assassin. She assumed I wanted her job. She assumed I was a spellcaster. She assumed I was lying. She. Assumes. Too. Much. You gave her permission to kill for you with your blessing and not in defense of herself. How many bodies will it take? How many times will she stoop to that 'necessity' because she assumes that someone's a threat? That I'm a threat, that Anastacia is a threat, that any number of people who's names and faces you don't know are a threat, before you realize that many of them died because of assumptions? True or not, that is what you are sanctioning. From her own mouth, you've heard her contradict herself and not realize it, plan to kill based on nothing but assumptions, and has the arrogance to believe herself right in the end without questioning. I was not 'maybe' an assassin. I was an assassin. I was not 'maybe' seeking her position. I was seeking her position. As I've promised, I give you council, brother, and I cannot give trust to a mind that would attack itself first 'just to be safe' than have just the slightest hesitancy that it is her own tail. Even if it were not to be me, even if it were to leave the role vacant, we cannot allow a mind this confused a role that delicate."
Desnus 2nd - Sanita/Wilhelm: Roan reaches across and winds the music box for Sanita. "Please, continue," a rather incredulous smile plays across his face as he places the music box back in it's place. "This is amusing."
Desnus 2nd - Sanita, Wilhelm: With a clipped, curt tone, Roan replies. "Three nights ago, I approached the spymaster discretely, so that I may report to her things that I have learned, and bring my concerns to her discretely so that she may better fulfill her role, and that my observations do not merely collect dust. When I entered, she had rigged the door to pull the sheets off of her, and was naked beneath. Ms. Sanita made no attempt to cover herself, request I turn away, or even request that I leave. As such, I take no responsibility for this, and at the time, I requested her assistance."
First point, done... "At this point, Ms. Sanita instead, mostly ignored my requests for assistance, and decided to threaten to kill me and cover it up by obfuscating her motives, claiming self defense. I decided to ignore this threat, and attempted to continue on my agenda. Sanita instead decided to turn the conversation towards our meeting a week ago, in which I offered to keep an eye on her in place of others. I attempted to explain that this offer, was to keep her work secure, that while the argument with Ms. Anastacia was concluded, the grievances were not. And that I had hoped that if I could vouch for her good conduct, that I could help heal this rift between her and some of your council, so that no one would find it necessary to meddle in her affairs." Roan stops speaking, as the music box begins to wind down, and rewinds it. "Sanita did not listen, or question me at all as to the details, she just continued to threaten my life, saying things like she would 'burn Oleg's to the ground' to see me dead, or 'that she would kill me if it was the last thing she'd ever do' and that she 'killed a good man who was not fit to rule.' Eventually, she demanded that I leave and I did, having never even fulfilled my original purpose." Roan let's his detailing of events settle, before continuing, into an aside. "Once, I participated in a war of succession between two sons in the River Kingdoms. The army I was hired to was poorly manned, and outnumbered, our commander avoided combat. Eventually, he took camp on the western ridge of a canyon, and our enemies gathered at the base, trapping up between the ravine and themselves. In the morning, we drew up to give battle, and as our lines began to approach, the sun crested over the canyon, shining on our backs. The sun, suddenly glaring into our enemies eyes, and gleaming off our weapons and armor blinded them. Their army was in route before the hour was over. The light, blinds as well as the dark, and carelessness blinds as well as excess of fear. I have no spy network Wilhelm, and I've not spied on her. Fharn can attest that I've made no requests of the treasury to fund such things. The plans I put forward into the council I said multiple times were plans for the distant future, once other things have been taken care of. Yet this 'Spymaster' of yours has already given multiple threats to my life, and given this 'good man unfit to rule' she's seen dead, I cannot in good conscious suggest that anything of this woman will give your requests for some modicum of decency any thought. Further, she is gripped by a fear that is only matched by her hubris and her recklessness. These are not the qualities that make a good spymaster, she'd rather assassinate allies just to be safe, than take a moment and contemplate the far reaching consequences of her actions! Caution is what makes a good Spymaster, Wilhelm, not fear. Those who fail to recognize the difference like Sanita can never offer the delicate touch that the post demands." Roan's voice, despite maintaining a quiet tone shows his disdain and anger. "As such, brother, I must give word to my distrust and lack of confidence in your choice as spymaster, and ask her to step down that I may take her place. Unlike her, I've already given you information as to our enemy's plans; not fears, rumors, or speculation, knowledge of exactly what they plan, and it didn't even take a day for me to get it, nor even a network."
Out of character, that sounds pretty much exactly like what I've been attempting to do from the word go, so I'm game. :) Roan's mostly under the impression that if Sanita's keeping her nose clean, she'll go unnoticed. And that he'd only really have to take notice of her and her's actions if the death count, missing people, screams of the damned got noticeable enough that anyone with an ear to the ground would start to hear about it. Otherwise he was mostly content to leave her be to her own devices. We'll have to let Wilhelm really get his diplomat hat on first though, as Roan's more or less lost any confidence in Sanita's ability with the previous confrontation. And I'm perfectly okay with duking it out pretty viciously IC, I just may have to OOC check in to make sure that we're cool every now and again and ensure that the conflict is staying IC. :) And really, even if it came to blows, Roan would still fight for the disable (don't think I can say the same for Sanita, but oh well), and as such, I doubt the conflict would delve into a positively deadly combat.
Yep, that is accurate. Obviously can't speak to the actual intentions of the other players, but as to directly what the posts say, we're on the same page.
Well before Roan mentioned no one speaking in Sanita's defense, I actually went back and read that section just to make sure, as I remembered it as no one speaking on Sanita's behalf period. I uncovered Rowan's interjection, but that was all I've managed to see. Wilhelm's two cents is post 2,248 if you want to go take a look. He expresses concerns of Roan having military power not directly under his control, but I didn't see any mention of any concerns of Roan acting as a nominal secondary spymaster. But as it stands, it's probably going to take some doing to get Roan to lay off at this point, Roan's got eyes on Sanita's post at this point (and as I mentioned while making him, I did build him in part to cover the role of Spymaster if needed). We'll just have to keep up the RP and see how things go.
Desnus 2: Roan enters the room and stands at attention, let's Sanita air her grievances, and silently waits for Wilhelm's initial reply.
Roan turns and leaves without another word.
"As you prepare to fling fire and acid, and burn us to death, you still to the last, fail to understand. If you were trusted enough to run without a leash, then I'd have never any reason to step forward, and they would have raised their voice against it. You, aren't, trusted. If I die, do you believe that will change? How many people who try to hold your leash do you think you'll have to kill before they trust you? Ah, but yes, if everyone who attempts to keep tabs on you dies, they'll only have more reason to wonder what secrets you're so desperate to hide. If you were trusted to police your own, there would have been at least one who argued against this part of my plan. Did your agent tell you this? That as the council debated my plans, not a single person suggested that I should not keep an eye on you? Not one. Not Wilhelm, not Dareon, not even your little friend Fharn. Only Rowan spoke on your behalf, and even he merely implied that someone trusted you, and that it would be too expensive to watch you. That's the only defense you got, it was too costly to bother, but no one suggested it wasn't needed. You insist this is for my petty ambition, and time and again, I tell you that you do not understand. You do not have the trust to perform this job as you should, you cannot escape the attempts to be leashed. I simply offer you the least of evils. So choose with your conviction, do you accept that I will be here, the only one who will watch you with concern of making sure that you are unhindered? Or do you attempt to slay me, engendering further distrust, and ensure that your collar only tightens further? Trust me, and you'll gain the ally who will consistently speak on your behalf, who will say he's found nothing to report, who will finally give them a better reason to trust you. Unless of course, you're a fool who needs to be put down, I will not lie on your behalf, merely give you more allowances as to what is 'acceptable behavior' than anyone else who will watch you. You spit at me as your enemy, but I'm the only ally you've got in this."
Roan listens to the speech with passive stoicism, then replies. "Oh, an ultimatum? Truly an example of truth and reality not meshing if I ever saw one. But before I give my answer, a rebuttal. I'm still fascinated by how you act so thoroughly on impulse and whim, and yet call it cunning, as you fail to understand my intent yet again. I've little interest in your little spy ring, I offered to be the one to hold your leash so that it wasn't held by a paladin or a priestess who despises you. But that doesn't mean I'll ignore holding it entirely either. When your rogue elements get out of your hands, I'll be there to clean house for you. As such, there's quite simply no way that I can simply work for you and allow myself to merely have what information I'm given. How can I hold your leash, if you hold mine, after all? Oh, and since you truly a vision of perfection rivaling Irori himself, perhaps you should go ahead and get a hundred thousand gold coins and the throne of Brevoy arranged for my dear brother, I'm sure he'll enjoy having those since you could get those for him tomorrow after all. Ah, but now I'm just being snide, pardon me if you will. So now to answer this truth you have constructed for ourselves to reside in; acid." It's obvious to an experienced combatant, that despite his relaxed stance, Roan's ready to move on a moment's notice, watching for the slightest twitch of Sanita's hands to spring into action. "Or if you'd like, I'll construct us a different truth, and we'll go from there. After all, ultimatums are such a bore, wouldn't you agree Ouroboros?"
An arrogant sneer crosses the man's face, "And what of it? Have your 'switchbacks and sharp thorns' given you the room to operate freely? No, say what you will of how you do not lie, but the distrust and anger held against you is still clear. Perhaps your thorns will give you a clear understanding and observational skills? Clearly not, otherwise you'd realize I never threatened your life, and even if I did, I've certainly not had the time to ensure you stepped out of line." Raising a finger as though a thought occurred to him, the sarcasm continues. "Oh, but perhaps you simply have gained the cunning to see my meaning through lies and deceit! But alas, you've also failed there, otherwise you'd perhaps have considered that my actions were to give confidence to Wilhelm and Anastacia that you would be held in check and not hound you relentlessly, and get in your way? Perhaps my mind is not as twisted as yours, but I'd rather be the blade than your self-defeating ouroboros, doomed to consume yourself."
Roan, initially ignores the further threats once more, "So she is noble not of birth, but of some sort of climb. Why can't anything not look suspicious about her? In this case, do you know much of her past? Where she came from? If she's to be Wilhelm's bride, we must make sure she is of an unassailable character, too much of what she is on the surface could be used against us with but the slightest evidence of ill intent from her." Then, speaking off handedly, Roan comments in a somewhat cocky voice. "But do you honestly believe that you have the trust of your peers so assuredly that they won't even seek to question you if a body appears in your room? Surely in a company rife with magic like this, I am not the only one who has ways to force the truth from you?" A small smirk playing on his lips, the mercenary adds, "Come now, you're smarter than that, surely, if you had such trust I wouldn't have to be intervening for you."
Sense Motive 24:
Roan is rather blatantly caught off guard by the nude Sanita, though he does a fair job of hiding it. Ignoring Sanita's comments, Roan looks about at all the wires and bulbs with a dry look, Roan comments, "Must be a pain to set all this up every night." Then, fixing Sanita with a stare, Roan repeats, "I've come to ask your assistance, Spymaster, but I'm afraid I don't have any way to contact you discretely beyond this arranged currently. Firstly a question, why is it that Lanya Medvyed sometimes go by the name Beladon? And secondly, what are your thoughts on her?"
Gozran 29th Roan's kept a quiet vigil for the most part, stalking about the parapets of Oleg's little walls, giving occasional advice to Dante on matters military if asked, but otherwise he simply waits, and observes. During this, he can't help but keep noticing a name. Beladon The discrepancy gnaws at him, having been given the name Medvyed, eventually, he decides to act. Waiting until the dog-watches of the night, and ensuring that he isn't followed, Roan quietly creeps up to, and into Sanita's room.
Roan approaches the room and enters with hardly the faintest whisper of a sound, and shuts the door behind him. Despite his rather impressive feat of stealth, Roan simply greets Sanita in a low tone, sounding as though he almost expects an immediate response. "Sanita, I have need of your assistance."
Indeed, I hope for raised hackles initially, but I definitely want to avoid a full blown PvP war. :)
|
