Rauno's crossbow bolt flies true, hitting the bandit's horse in the rear flank. The horse rears, throwing the bandit to the ground where he is roughly tackled by the ever-relentless Tao and brought back to the rest of the bandits. Jacovo whistles sharply, and the wounded animal limps in his direction.
The bandit captain sneers, his features clearly indicating his disdain for your authority over him.
So, what's next? Frontier justice?, he asks, voice dripping with sarcasm.
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Hardin walks up to the wounded, - all in a group - and channels energy.
With his back to the bandit leader, he says "No. We'll turn you over to the Knights of the Rack. Eventually." To Freya and Rauno, he merely winks. "Unless one of you can think of a better option?"
Intimidate vs leader.
Hardin looks at Tao, and says "Please remove their weapons and armor - leave them their smallclothes. Don't be afraid to injure them if they fail to cooperate - I can fix them up."
He'll then get Sarien and the injured horse together, and channel energy twice.
to get them back to fine fettle. "I think you're best set for securing these gentlemen so they don't escape."
With a simple nod, Tao follows Hardin's instructions. After the captured enemies are secured, he will go check on the children.
Freya moves up very close to Hardin and speaks appealingly in a low voice. "The two children want out. They only participated because they were forced to. We need to get them back to town and safety. They don't need to be here to see their father tied up and questioned."
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Hardin whispers to Freya, "I'd rather they not see that either. Do they need medical attention?" He slips her a wooden groat. "If the Liberators cannot take them in safely, the Precentor at the Temple can find a place for them. I suspect you, and they, will both be happier if that's the second option. I'll also send a letter home to see if Tristan or Cedric can take them in, so they're not an immediate and long term burden on us."
Sarien wakes up and groans. "Wha...where...am I?"
Bloody and terribly pale, he leans over and vomits before falling backwards and lying flat on the ground, his hand pressed against his side.
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Sarien wakes up and groans. "Wha...where...am I?"
Bloody and terribly pale, he leans over and vomits before falling backwards and lying flat on the ground, his hand pressed against his side.
"You're alive, and will feel better in a bit. I've extra healing resources if needed. For now, if you can move..." He kneels, to let Sarien lean in his shoulder and to help him stand, "We've need of your expertise."
Lower voiced, "Don't mention anyone's name, just to be safe."
Sarien wakes up and groans. "Wha...where...am I?"
Bloody and terribly pale, he leans over and vomits before falling backwards and lying flat on the ground, his hand pressed against his side.
"Pharasma threw you back. You were too small."
Sarien leans heavily on Hardin and allows the goblin lover to drag him over to where the prisoners are bound. On receiving his instructions, Sarien studies the bindings for a moment and finally looks up and says,
"Which rope is the right one? There seem to be two of them. And four hands on this guy."
He frowns and looks back at the group. "Which of these bastards almost killed me, anyway?"
Freya shrugs to Hardin, "They need a bath as much as anything. When we get them washed off, we'll see how much is bruise and how much is dirt. But they're not in any immediate danger." She shoots a glance at the others tying up the bandits. "You'd better get the information you need. Your goddess alone knows how you intend to turn them over the Hellknights without being arrested yourself. I'd go alone if I were you, in full clerical regalia, and hope they're feeling pious."
She will hustle the children away before the mist dissipates. "Hurry, now; we have to get back to town before dark. No looking back, remember?" She takes them out the opposite side of the cube o'mist and strives to put distance and trees between them and the rest of the group with the bandits.
Heck, two could probably do it. The four of 'em were for show, mostly - had these wagons really been weighed down by trade goods and the like, four'd have been required. But as it is, three will work.
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Hardin, after seeing that the raiders are secured, and their gear stored in a separate wagon from them, will do another Channel Energy to heal Sarien.
He'll then take Sarien aside, far enough back that they'll be difficult to overhear, and say "I think scaring people into their own best interests is your area of expertise." Gesturing to Tao, "He and I can probably intimidate. Can you do anything more effective than that, before we reach down? Like find the name(s) of who they're working for, when and how they get paid, and such."
He'll then set down next to Tao on the wagon with prisoners.
Yes, miss, my name is Avielle, and this is my brother, Jaesin. We're very grateful for the help you're giving us. What will happen to our da'? Will your friends kill him, do you think? Not that he deserves any less, but I'd hate for that to happen. He's been ever so angry since mum died. I think he's just hurt inside, really. And where will you take us?
At the mention of a "Detect Truth" spell, the bandit leader gulps audibly. He looks nervously at the assembled men around him. The other men also wilt, and one of them moans slightly.
He'll then take Sarien aside, far enough back that they'll be difficult to overhear, and say "I think scaring people into their own best interests is your area of expertise." Gesturing to Tao, "He and I can probably intimidate. Can you do anything more effective than that, before we reach down? Like find the name(s) of who they're working for, when and how they get paid, and such."
"I am less adept than others that share my heritage. It's something I have chosen not to develop. Although under the right circumstances I am somewhat capable. Perhaps if we took them to a secure location, I might be able to get some information?"
Sarien nods grimly and wipes some of the blood from his face with one dirty hand.
"Thanks for the healing. I owe you one." He whispers.
Then he turns back to the captives and moves forward, drawing his war razor and holding it in his left hand. He approaches the leader and activates his wrist sheath so that a dagger pops into his right hand.
Then he kneels down. "They tell me that you almost killed me." He speaks softly, almost nonchalant. "So naturally, I want to get vengeance for all the blood I lost." He smiles, showing his teeth.
Glancing back towards Tao, Rauno and Hardin, Sarien points at them with his war razor. "See, the thing is, I don't want to have to worry about not killing you. I don't enjoy causing pain like the big one does. A quick thrust--" he jabbed forward with his dagger and stopped it right in front of the man's eye before spinning it back again, "that's more my style. It'll hurt, but only for a minute."
He stood and looked toward the other prisoners. "Then, of course, there's the rest of you." He lightly tapped the blade of his war razor on his chin, careful not to cut.
He turned back to the leader. "But it's not up to me. You see, we need to know things. Things like who you work for, where you meet up with them, how you get paid...simple things like that. And whereas I'd love to get my revenge," he tapped the bandit leader's knee with the blunt side of his war razor, "this is business. My business is to hear what you have to say. Their business," he gestures back toward his companions, "is to 'encourage' you to talk. So I can't kill you. I'll just have to take satisfaction out of them hurting you." He spun his war razor in his fingers and then slipped it back into its hiding place at his belt with a speed that helped to conceal where it'd gone.
He stood and turned around as though to walk away and then stopped and glanced back, still smiling. "So please, don't tell me what I need to hear. Let me hear you scream. Better yet, lie. The healer will be able to tell that you're doing it, so the big fella will get to slice you even more. I'd like that, since I can't kill you."
He pauses, half turned toward the others and grins. "So let's get started, shall we? Who do you work for? No, don't answer! Let me call my friend over to encourage you." He glances toward Tao and begins to raise his hand.
@Hardin: Sorry, I missed your earlier question. If I correctly understood that your channeling included the wounded bandits, then they all lived - certainly, none of them reached negative Con. 4 of the 5 (other than the leader) are coherent after a few minutes and your channels, while one remains unconcious but resting peacefully.
The bandit leader listens intently to Sarien's monologue.
Well, this is unexpected. A man of reason. Alright then, let's play. You want to know who I work for? Here's what I know - an interested party in Westcrown. I was in town a few months ago at the Dog's Bowl. I was approached by a man - my reputation precedes me, you see. He scoffs. He said there was good money in disrupting trade coming into and out of Westcrown. Said something about "pulling the wool over their eyes", but I didn't understand that bit, so I haven't paid it any mind since. I was to be unpredictable - something I've clearly failed at - and indiscriminate, favoring no one family's goods over another's. Payment was delivered to me, at my residence, while I was asleep each time. I was to ask no questions, and I didn't. But I'll tell you something of interest if it keeps that ugly brute off me... that man? Didn't walk like a man. Didn't talk like a man. That's all I know.
You feel her shudder against your back.
...you know how men can be. What about you, miss? D'you have any children?
Sarien looks sharply at the leader. "And what did this man that didn't walk like a man walk and talk like? Did he look like a man, or was he disguised somehow?"
Walked like a woman. Thought that was implied.
Sarien rolls his eyes and walks back to the others, still twirling his dagger with his fingers.
"So did you catch all that?" he asked quietly, looking at Hardin.
Is the bandit believable?
I hope you've found your way free of that life. That doesn't sound like fun at all. I think you're nice, Miss... thank you for everything you're doing... my brother and I are...
With that, her head slumps against your back, and she really IS asleep, leaving you to ride in silence, with only your thoughts as company.
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Hardin nods to Sarien. Then looks to the bandit leader.
"Now comes the hard question. What do we do with you and your men?"
"If I have to, we'll turn you over to the authorities. Banditry usually results in a gallows dance from the civil authorities. Worse than that if it involves the Knights of the Rack."
He gestures to Rauno, with the Detect "truth" spell running. "He lying?"
Sarien bites back a retort to Hardin's question about whether the bandit is lying, and tries to catch Rauno's eyes. Keeping his back to the bandits, he mouths, "Not lying," and hopes Rauno sees.
Tao gestures to Sarien and Hardin and moves as far away from the bandits as possible. After they are close, he'll attempt to talk to them without letting the bandits hear what he's saying.
In a whisper, "Do you think we might be able to use them? Perhaps lay a trap for whoever is leaving these late night payments?
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Tao gestures to Sarien and Hardin and moves as far away from the bandits as possible. After they are close, he'll attempt to talk to them without letting the bandits hear what he's saying.
In a whisper, "Do you think we might be able to use them? Perhaps lay a trap for whoever is leaving these late night payments?
Hardin nods, and keeps his voice low. "That's where I'm heading. I'm reasonably certain they aren't lying. But I want to keep the fear of consequences upon them, while I present them with a better offer than being handed over to the Order of the Rack."
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Hardin, after consulting with the tall half-Orc for a moment, turns back to the bound and tied bandit leader. "The spells say you're not lying."
"So, I've got those kids you were using as bait. They're probably important to you, or someone in your band."
Sense Motive to watch whichever one of them jumps at that news.
Hardin taps the metal embossing of his shield, worked out in the symbol of Iomedae. "If I were a proper Asmodean, or, hell, even one of my relatives, your banditry would make things very simple. Very black and white. You attempt murder in the course of banditry, you get hung."
"It's not in the best interests of the people I work for to let you keep hitting Westcrown's food supplies."
"There's more to law than obedience. Justice also means weighing the potential benefits of mercy. Convince me that there's an upside to not letting the Knights of the Rack learn all you know with hot pokers." He pauses. "Or simply walking away and letting that man..." he gestures towards Sarien, "dispose of the problem."
Diplomacy (Good Cop)
At the mention of the children, the man's eyes remain cold and expressionless, although two of the concious lackeys shift their gaze to him momentarily.
When the bandit captain speaks, his voice is terse and strained.
Listen here. I don't care about law or order. I care about myself. You don't know me, priest, but if you did you'd know that I've lost everything that ever mattered to me in life already. I honestly don't care if you do kill me; although if you do, I'd prefer it be quick, in return for what I've told you. As for those kids, they'd be better off without me, and don't think I don't know it.
If you want me to work for you, then you'll pay me just like everybody else. If you don't want me to work for you, you'll either kill me or let me go - or, I suppose, imprison me. I propose this - let me go, and I'll leave, on my word. I'll go somewhere else, never to be seen again by you or yours. I can't promise you I'll find "honest" work, but I can promise you that whatever work I find will be none of your concern. You can tell my kids I'm dead or fled, I don't care which. Decision's yours, not mine.
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"If your word is good enough to trust you to leave, it may be good enough to trust you with other things." He notes the turn of phrase used by the bandit leader. His next phrase is gentler, less the harsh nobleman, more the shepherd of souls. "I'd like to avoid making more orphans."
"Hiring you looks like the best way to resolve this. I'll make what case for you that I can. On that, you have my word - if you can give me a name to call you."
With that, he gestures to Tao. "Tie them up, blindfold them, gag them, and put them in the cart." He nods to Sarien, "If you're up to it, please make sure they don't come untied."
Hardin will make sure that they have no weapons, and make sure that their weapons are in the other wagon. (An inventory of them would be good as well.)
Sarien looks at Hardin with astonishment and takes him aside, out of hearing of the prisoners. "You want to hire them? What is it with you? Did someone drop you on the head when you were a child? This band of cut throats has been robbing and likely killing innocent people for weeks. Just because they might be convenient to you does not mean that their atrocities should be allowed to go unpunished!"
Stifling the urge to allow his voice to rise into a shout, he speaks more quietly. "Hiring a bunch of sewer dwelling goblin scum is one thing, but this... If you think that I'm going to let you sweet talk them out of justice, you've got less sense than I suspected."
He turned to Tao and Rauno. "And what of you two? Using them is one thing, but you can't tell me that you think these bastards should be allowed to work for us as though they're simply misguided children!"
He turned to Tao and Rauno. "And what of you two? Using them is one thing, but you can't tell me that you think these bastards should be allowed to work for us as though they're simply misguided children!"
Tao begins to respond to Sarien, but the mention of "children" echos in his head. He looks to the bandit leader, "Where is the children's mother?"
After the bandit responds, Tao will look to Sarien. In a whispered tone, "I would rather this man spend the rest of his life suffering for the pains he has caused. We must consider there is a greater evil at work here. While I am greatly bothered by the feeling of being forced to deal with him, I do not see many options."
Tao begins to respond to Sarien, but the mention of "children" echos in his head. He looks to the bandit leader, "Where is the children's mother?"
At this, the bandit barks a harsh laugh.
Clearly, you're either not too bright, or you don't draw inferences well. As I've said, I've lost everything that mattered to me in this life already. Mira is buried just North of my cabin, in a forest glade that she loved to visit. I used to love to visit it too... she died of the Wasting just after my youngest was born.
As for my name, it's Elgar. Elgar Trask.
He falls silent as Jacovo draws a blindfold over his eyes and ties it tight.
After a several more moments spent rigging to account for two horses instead of three, Hardin is able to gallop off in search of Freya. He catches up to her just on the outskirts of the city, she having had a prodigious head start.
Hearing the sound of hooves galloping up behind her, Freya turns in the saddle awkwardly, trying not to knock the sleeping children off the horse. When she sees who it is, she relaxes once again and waits for him to ride up beside her. "Where are your prisoners? You didn't let them go, did you?" She shoots him a hard glance.
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Hardin keeps his voice low, ostensibly for the children's sake. "No - they offered to never return if we did that. They're trussed up in the second wagon, their gear separated from them."
"Before I left, I think the leader of the bandits said the kids were his - it explains his actions, somewhat."
"I've told him that we're keeping the kids away from him, as a way to ensure his cooperation. For that to happen, we'll have to actually *do* that, which means we need to make sure that he and they are stashed in different places. So I think we should drop them off at the Temple, while Sarien and Tao get the rest of them to Arael. Since it makes you nervous, I'd like to do that together - and do it quickly, so we can get back to the others before dusk."
He smiles faintly. "If our schedule frees up, feel like visiting my sister with some children in tow?" He looks at them both, considering. "At least she won't assume they're mine. Or yours."
"From what I've gathered, the father's name is Elgar Trask. His wife died a few years back. He took it hard, and he's been taking it out on anyone who got in his way...or underfoot. He seems to expect the worst out of every action he takes; he's got the resolve of a desperate man trying to put off a bad end, one day at a time."
"He says he was hired by someone who was in a disguise. Said the man 'walked like a woman', and they pay him when he's asleep. When I left, Tao and Rauno were trying to come up with a plan to bait a trap for them. I suspect it's the woman that Sarien heard about and that I set the Goblins to spy on, but cannot confirm it."
Freya shakes her head, her lips pressed together tightly. "'The father' is a selfish bastard," she retorts. "His wife died, which he could only imagine as a personal affront to him, and rather than treasure all of her he has left, in her children, he sits around drinking, feeling sorry for himself, and beating his offspring just to pass the time. He's the center of his own besotted universe, an affronted god, and nothing matters to him but his own sense of ill usage. He's a spoiled man-child, pulling the wings off butterflies and the legs off beetles, because his toy was broken." In her anger, she inadvertantly presses her heels into the horse's side, and it speeds up its trot in response to the stimulus. "This was a wasted day. We know no more than the street rat already discovered, with the detriment of two extra mouths to keep fed and silenced."
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"Far be it from me to dispute the education of one who's been taught arithmetic by nuns - but the Temple will feed these two for a while, then my sister will likely take them in."
"Their father and his band, on the other hand, will take some managing."
"As to what we've done - we've removed one raiding party. We've a confirmation of the lead we had earlier. And we've managed to do it without anyone getting killed."
"I realize I seem to be in the minority in thinking that last is a good thing...but I do thank you for humoring me in it."
And with that, Hardin seems less inclined to chatter. He lets his horse walk a pace or two slower than Freya's. He's close enough that he can come in to support her if needed, but letting it be clear that if the conversation is going to continue, it's up to her to make the effort.