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The escort of six wererats who have accompanied and guided The Lusty Fools to this secret door recede into the gloom of The Warrens, with warnings not to betray them....
Alphonse's overtures grant The Lusty Fools a grudging escort of six wererats who lead them back through the winding, labyrinthine ways of The Warrens to Grandmother's Parlor, where they are reunited with Kiyu.
What knowledge do your people have of this house? Any traps or such like? Hisao asks the rat girl as they prepare to infiltrate. Catrina frowns at her feet for a moment as she thinks.... Tlaps? What the bugger are tlaps?.... Oh! He's saying traps! Traps! Yes! He has a trapdoor guarding the foyer, which can be opened by throwing a lever on the balcony.... It opens into an acid bath! There's a secret door next to the fireplace in the kitchen, but I don't know what's behind it.... Um.... That's it, I think....
"You really do have entrance to everywhere, don't you?" Catrina smiles proudly at Alphonse and nods her head.
Catrina leads The Lusty Fools through The Warrens to a secret door.... Beyond this door is Mister Bolingbroke's wine cellar....
Good. It is a hard bit to swallow when you realize you've been used as a pawn in a ruse. Your helping us should ease the pain a bit. And it is good to know that Bolingbroke is a witch as well. We will do our best to rid the world of these two scourges. What say you, me boyos? Er...and you also Kiyu. If you could spare one of your....pack, is it? One to show us the way, would be great. Let's be off! Catrina hops up and down excitedly.... Oh, Grandmother! Please, allow me to guide them to Bolingbroke's house! May I, Grandmother? Please?
One of Grandmother's bodyguards speaks up: Bolingbroke be a witch as well, though not as great as The Witch of Eye.... Ye have been warned!
The six armed Wererats protecting Grandmother glower with beady, hate-filled eyes at The Lusty Fools, but there is a hint of another emotion.... probably fear....
Please, Grandmother, forgive our intrusion! I.... I had no choice.... These people would have killed me if I didn't agree to lead them to you for a peaceful meeting! They are deadly slayers, and have already killed at least a score of our kin in the warehouse on Fishmonger Street! They only wish to speak with you about The Witch of Eye.... She is their true enemy.... They wish to find a way for us to continue to live down here in The Warrens, so long as we promise not to prey on the humans of London-Town! Catrina wrings her paws nervously....
Catrina leads the company to another warehouse further west along the quay of the River Thames, the one indicated on her list of secret entrances to The Warrens. Here, another score or so of wererats were lounging about, tossing dice, gnawing on the bones of a pig, telling each other jokes or tales, and otherwise passing the time. Catrina assures them not to be concerned that she was herding five non-wererats into the lair of their beloved Grandmother, and quickly and tensely leads The Lusty Fools to a trap-door in the back of the warehouse, which opens onto a stairway descending into darkness.... Right this way, lads.... murmurs Catrina as scores of beady eyes watch the party pass through the narrow maze of aisles between stacks of crates and barrels.
With a plan more or less agreed upon, The Lusty Fools decide to use Catrina as an introduction to Grandmother. Catrina, for her part, seems both greatly relieved that the party didn't decide to just kill her like the others, and also very nervous about being responsible for bringing this band of ruthless slayers and vigilantes straight to Grandmother's snout.... I.... I can take you to Grandmother's parlor, sires.... Not a worry 'bout that!.... Just.... Just be peacable and....ah, courteous-like.... And we should find her straight away with no problems, sires.... promises Catrina....
She seems sincere, and too frightened (especially of Nacht) to attempt escape or deceit at the moment.... Even the admission that she's always dreamed of being a dancer seems sincere....
Catrina seems relieved and grateful to this foreign youth who urged the scary, yellow-eyed creature to put her down, and favors Hisao with a shy smile.... Grandmother lives in The Warrens below, sire.... The Witch, well.... I'm not sure where she lives.... I think she's somewhere here in London, though.... I believe Grandmother is not happy that we must do the Witch's bidding, but I think she fears the consequences of disobeying the Witch.... Catrina shrugs....
Nacht doesnt seem to understand much of this, the beings spoke in what he assumed was placation. He dangled the not-right-now-rat-being some more. The weeping and sobbing only made his urges twitch. The not-rat-being-now squeals in terror as The Beetle Man further menaces her....
"And while it may be a gift to you, one born to it...we've seen what happens to people who have it afflicted on them later in life. We fought a back of werewolves a few days back, maddened and crazed by the transformation, trying to waylay travelers. From what I've seen, many of your afflicted kin are none better." Catrina apparently has no argument against Alphonse's observation. She lowers her eyes and nods in agreement.
Catrina's wide eyes grow wider as she realizes that Paddy has a fiendish heritage....
A glimmer of hope appears in Catrina's eyes as she hears Tyr and Alphonse discuss the possibility of some fate for her other than death.... In English: I've always wanted to be a dancer.... I think I'd be a good one.... She begins to weep with fear when Nacht warns her not to flee and locks eyes with her.... (Those alien, insect-like, yellow eyes!) I promise! I won't try to run.... I know ye'd skin me alive.... I.... I'll be a good girl! I swear to God! To Tyr's inquiry about the origin of her lycanthropy, she replies with some obvious pride: I be a trueborn wererat, not some weakling given the gift! When asked to give up the goal of infecting the population of London-Town with lycanthropy: Whatever you ask of me sires, I shall do.... But why wouldn't you want the glorious gift of the bite? It makes you stronger, not weaker.... It gives power! 'Tis a gift, not a curse....
As the cold silvered steel touches her throat, all thoughts of a surprise escape flee the girl's mind, and she hangs her head in despair as Alphonse moves to loosen the rope around her arms and torso a bit. In answer to Tyr's questions: Aye, sire.... There be a leader.... Grandmother Willa is the head o' our clan, an' has been for as long as I've been alive.... But....there is a new leader, these last two years.... The Witch o' Eye, she's called.... Comes from Eye By Westminster, and is in league with the great fire dragon, Conflagratius, what lairs in a volcano in Italy, so it's been told me.... The Witch o' Eye has encouraged us to rise up from our warrens under London-Town to spread fear and wreak havoc among the townsfolk.... She wants to distract them from some evil she be working with her mates.... I know not who they be, but I've heard they be nobles of the Realm, an' even a prominent churchman, so I've heard.... If the townsfolk be worried by we wererats, they'll pay less attention to goings-on in the Tower and the courts, so says the Witch.... As for our tunnels--the Warrens, we call 'em--they stretch for many leagues beneath London-Town and beyond the city walls.... There are too many secret doors leading into warehouses, cellars, and shops to count 'em all.... I can list ye several, myself, sires.... But....what will become o' me? Show mercy, I pray thee!
Unable to answer Tyr's queries in dire rat form, the creature shifts to the form of a skinny, dirty, teenaged girl with matted hair like a rat's nest, clad in peasant garb.... In so doing, the rope binding her becomes tighter and evidently painful to the girl, for she gasps in pain and nods down at the rope binding her.... Please, sires.... I'll answer all o' yer questions if ye'll please loosen this rope! It be bitin' me fierce!
[dice=invisible aoo]1d20+7+2;1d6+2+3d6+1d6 The fleeing dire rat, seeming near to escaping out the door, suddenly and violently stops as the invisible Hisao impales it with his silvered VenomFang! It spasms and squeals in its death throes, then falls silent and still....
[dice=AoO]1d20+11 [dice=Damage]2d6+15 The other dire rat skitters nimbly past William's thrust with the lance of thunderbolts and between the invisible ninja and Paddy, before darting around Alphonse and past Iommi-Tyr, and out the open doorway into the foggy night, squealing in fear all the way....
Seeing a wounded dire rat (having just been pierced for 10 damage by Paddy's AoO) limping for the open door behind The Lusty Fools, Alphonse brings the butt of the gilded haft of Foereaper down on its furry little skull, knocking it senseless! The party has acquired its captive wererat for interrogation!
[dice=AoO] 1d20+8; 1d6+4 The dire rat squeaks in pain as Paddy pierces it with his silvered blade, but keeps scurrying away!
The swarm of rats scatters as the bomb comes down in their midst, avoiding a "direct hit", but the entire swarm is subject to splash damage....
As it shifts into dire rat form and tries to flee, Hisao pins it to the floor with his blade, ending its struggles!
The three remaining wererats shift into dire rat form and make a run for their lives, provoking no AoOs, as they were among the furthest from The Lusty Fools, having tipped over the large crate that the rat swarm spilled out of.... The rat swarm deals in bites to Nacht, Alphonse, William and Paddy; DC 12 Fortitude saves vs filth fever from those four PCs, please....
William impales another wererat on his lance, and kicks it's corpse off into a corner!
Paddy drops a burnt wererat with a stick of his silvered blade!
Another wererat fell under Nacht's relentless onslaught!
Tyr's second firebomb explodes on contact with another wererat, burning the little lycanthrope to a crisp! The splash burns three adjacent wererats....
Rd 1 A wererat struck full in its whiskered snout by Tyr's bomb bursts into flames and falls to the warehouse floor, squawking and flailing for a few seconds before falling still and silent.... The splash burns three adjacent wererats!
[dice=Invisible AOO]1d20+7+2;1d6+2+3d6+1d6 SQUEEEE!!! The invisible ninja plunges his silvered blade into the nearest wererat.... It squeaks in agony but stays on its feet, desperately looking around in vain to spot the source of the painful stab!
Of the eleven wererats still standing, the four furthest from the melee work together, grunting and squeaking with effort, to overturn a large crate, from which spills a swarm of common rats! The squeaking, squealing swarm scrambles over a hedge of crates toward Nacht, Paddy, Alphonse, and William!
The other seven wererats throw themselves at The Lusty Fools with feral fury! A wererat dashes toward Alphonse and aims a sword thrust at the young paladin , but his armor turns the blade aside! Another rushes at William and thrusts , but stumbles over the corpse of a fallen wererat, and misses! Another is close enough to full attack Nacht, it's sword thrust missing, and it's bite also missing! Another plunges its blade at Paddy clumsily missing, it's jaws snap on empty air! A fifth swings desperately at where it hopes the invisible ninja stands but connects with nothing, so it bites into the wrong space altogether! SNAP!! A sixth clambers over the nearest crates to attack Kiyu, provoking an AoO from Paddy and Hisao in the process.... If it makes it through that gauntlet, it thrusts at the witch and strikes her, dealing piercing damage! The seventh shifts closer to William and thrusts , but the young knight's armor deflects the blow! It bites , but misses!
Hisao's first strike drops a fresh wererat.... He wheels and shifts closer to strike at the wounded one flanking Nacht, and it collapses with a squeal!
A pair of wererats (including the one he stabbed with a silver dagger) move to flank Nacht, but one of them must clamber awkwardly over crates to do so, and provokes an AoO from the Beetle Man.... But suddenly, it collapses with a squeal, felled by the invisible ninja! The wounded wererat's short sword thrust at Nacht misses.... Bite at Nacht misses....
Nacht's blades shear the top of the wererat's skull completely off, spilling its brains onto the warehouse floor as it collapses! He whirls closer to a second wererat and punctures its chest cavity with his silver dagger! It squeals but still stands....
Paddy dispatches another wererat with silvered steel.... SQUAAAAAAAHHHHK!!!
William impales a wererat and then kicks its corpse off of his lance of thunderbolts.... SQUEEEEE--urk!!!!
Foereaper reaps a wererat!
The wererats squeak and squeal in a cacophony of terror and outrage as The Lusty Fools descend upon them, wading into the bloody fray.... The fifteen wererats further in the back of the warehouse scurry and clamber over crates to see who or what assaults them in their lair....
The three still standing in the near aisle after Nacht's murderous assault scrabble after him! Short sword thrust misses the Beetle Man! Short sword thrust also misses.... Short sword thrust also misses, but this one was close enough to also bite at Nacht , but it's jaws snap on empty air....
Nacht slays two wererats in a blur of silvered steel....
A cluster of five wererats sitting on lower stacks of crates in the first aisle turn to behold the dark, ominous Nacht as he crawls over the first hedge of crates.... Eh!? Wazzat!? Eeeeek!!! We got a strange visitor, mates!.... What is it!? An intruder! To arms! The twenty wererats within this warehouse are all alerted by the squeaky cries of their fellows who are now spotting Nacht....
Thrusting his lance of thunderbolts, William slays one of the two remaining wererats as it tries to scurry past him! SQUEEEEEE!!!
As its path of escape leads it right past Paddy, he strikes down the wererat wounded an instant ago by the invisible Hisao! SQUEEEEEE!!!!
[dice=AOO Invisible slash] 1d20+7+2;1d6+2+2d6+1d6 The wererat squeals in agony and terror! EEEEEEKKK!!! An invisible assassin be murderin' me, mates! AAAAAGGHHH!!!
In a matter of seconds and a flurry of lethal movements, The Lusty Fools have reduced the wererat pack by half! The other half squeals and gawks in dismay at the swift and brutal slaughter deployed against them by The Lusty Fools! The remaining four revert to dire rat form, soiling the alley with their fear-induced pellets.... They scurry off in different directions, provoking AoOs from everyone....
Alphonse swings Foereaper in a wide arc that slashes the wounded wererat in the second rank down.... SQUEEEEE!!!! Mother.... It falls and curls up and dies, reverting to human teenaged boy form....
In a red, misty, blur of death-dealing silvered steel, Nacht mows down the first rank of two wererats, shifts 5 feet into the pack and nearly eviscerates a third, which squeals pitifully but still stands with its guts spilling out....
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