D&D II Act One Scene I - Heroes for hire

Necro

Vrakrash grabs the bags and begins placing them over the heads of the 'prisoners'. He winks at Retula before doing the same to her and Therai.

He grabs Therai, places him on the rear camel, furthest away from the slavers (but up the front this time, given the protests of smell).

'Right so lads - lead on.'

Banjo

Fourier wrote: »

"A few months in the pits will temper this one's mouth." He punches Retula in the face intending to knock out some teeth, but is frustrated when she only bleeds slightly.

Retula spits blood and smiles.
"You punch like my grandmother. And she lost both her arms in a tussle with a Nighthaunt."

Necrominus wrote: »

Vrakrash grabs the bags and begins placing them over the heads of the 'prisoners'. He winks at Retula before doing the same to her and Therai.

"A small mercy, crocatroll, but wouldn't it be kinder to the world if you like put the bag over your face? I totally promise the horsey-dudes I'll keep my eyes closed"

Necro

Banjo wrote: »

"A small mercy, crocatroll, but wouldn't it be kinder to the world if you like put the bag over your face? I totally promise the horsey-dudes I'll keep my eyes closed"

Vrakrash smiles smugly and jams the bag down over Retula's head roughly.

'Small mercies having that one shut up for a while, at least - am I right?'

He smirks at the nearest slaver.

OldGoat

Mags hand signals the guards, his 'Roarchs Reavers' to follow along with the partys carts & horses.
"How big is this fortress of yours? Do you have a playhouse? Do you understand the concept of 'The Green Room'? How many of your kind are there likely to be? Are we there yet?" he asks of the villainous types.

Evade

Therai tries to get some rest, to clear his hangover, before it all kicks off.

sKeith

Fourier wrote: »

"A few months in the pits will temper this one's mouth." He punches Retula in the face intending to knock out some teeth, but is frustrated when she only bleeds slightly.

"Come then let us be off to our fortress. Place bags over the dwarves' heads, can't have escapees knowing where we are. Elf and Tiefling the same. I want the Tiefling on a camel some distance from us.....they are an ill omen. The bard may walk freely. The drow with us, our master will want to speak to him first, a member of a race of slavers would have much to teach us."

Sarric addresses the head slaver, "Are you going to give me a few of your men then, so that I can round up the other dwarfs before they scatter. I'm sure your men know the way back to your fortress, if not, can you draw me a map. By the time we have captured the dwarves, we'll only be two or three days behind you. Four of your grunts, and one of your skilled warriors should suffice."

Fourier

Banjo wrote: »

Retula spits blood and smiles.
"You punch like my grandmother. And she lost both her arms in a tussle with a Nighthaunt."

The leader of the slaver's clenches his fists, but controls his rage, simply walking away.

Fourier

OldGoat wrote: »

"How big is this fortress of yours?

"The fortress is quite large, you will see."

OldGoat wrote:

Do you have a playhouse?

"Depending on what you mean by playhouse, yes"

OldGoat wrote:

Do you understand the concept of 'The Green Room'?

"No"

OldGoat wrote:

How many of your kind are there likely to be?

"Depends on how many are on long distance raids, thirty or so I would imagine."

OldGoat wrote:

Are we there yet?"

"No, there are many miles to go."

At no point do they seem irritated.

Fourier

Necrominus wrote: »

'Small mercies having that one shut up for a while, at least - am I right?'

"Not mercy enough" he replies before kicking Retula.

"Impudent elven witch"

Fourier

sKeith wrote: »

Sarric addresses the head slaver, "Are you going to give me a few of your men then, so that I can round up the other dwarfs before they scatter. I'm sure your men know the way back to your fortress, if not, can you draw me a map. By the time we have captured the dwarves, we'll only be two or three days behind you. Four of your grunts, and one of your skilled warriors should suffice."

The head slaver pauses and considers.

"They're yours....

Ghalik, Corin, Sander, Kasim go with the High Elf and ensure his passage back to our fortress once he has the dwarves."

sKeith

Sarric identifies the men, from his earlier percieving, "okay lads, its just south of here a little, i'll lead." Sarric heads of south with the men.

Fourier

The slaver leader lets a shout.

"It's time we move out, our master will be pleased with the bard and our possible new allies."

They head toward the fortress as the moon hangs over the desert.

OOC: New thread will be up soon. Sarric will stay in this one until he rejoins.

sKeith

Sarric leads the men southeast for many hours, glancing around every hour checking for anybody tracking this group, continuing until it is nearing dark. He will then suggest that they consider making camp for the night. He will eat and drink some water then rest for 4 hours. He will awaken quietly and meditate until the night is darkest and everybody is asleep. It is then that he will enact his plan.
Are all the men asleep? My vision is much sharper than humans in the dark of night.
If everybody is asleep, being as stealthy as he can, not to waken anybody, he will steal any weapons from the grunts.
He will then slit the throat of the skilled mercenary.
If any grunts awaken, he will dart them, most importantly, he will keep one grunt alive.

OOC: i can step by step this if necessary.

OldGoat

Fourier wrote: »

"The fortress is quite large, you will see."
"Depends on how many are on long distance raids, thirty or so I would imagine."

"No, there are many miles to go."

At no point do they seem irritated.

Mags quietly informs the gang, before Sarrics depature, of the gathered information hoping that any scraps might be useful in future plans.
Two minutes later he goes back to the same slaver and asks
"Are we there yet?"

Fourier

OOC: I'll use this to introduce your abilities

sKeith wrote: »

If everybody is asleep, being as stealthy as he can, not to waken anybody, he will steal any weapons from the grunts.
He will then slit the throat of the skilled mercenary.
If any grunts awaken, he will dart them, most importantly, he will keep one grunt alive.

OOC: i can step by step this if necessary.

Sarric slits the throats of the skilled member of the slaving troupe, as he begins to remove the weapons from the others, he senses a strange tension behind him and instinctively rolls to the right as a sword slices into the sand where he was. He tosses a dart at the slaver, striking the neck, killing him.

The other four remain asleep and he manages to remove their weapons.

Something about the danger in the lake temple and the others things they had encountered had changed him, heightened his senses, he now understood the latent awareness the old monks spoke of. Even more, he can feel the power behind it, what they had called Ki.

sKeith

Sarric burys their weapons under the sand 20 meters north of camp then returns, recovers his dart, then sits and meditates until sunrise.

Fourier

sKeith wrote: »

Sarric burys their weapons under the sand 20 meters north of camp then returns, recovers his dart, then sits and meditates until sunrise.

The warriors rise from their makeshift tents under the powerful desert sun. They begin to notice their missing weapons.

"Elf?" one of them shouts, storming out of the tent and looking Sarric in the eye.

"You take our weapons?"

sKeith

Sarric replies, "I did. I was not confortable with you armed for our next discussion."

Fourier

He eyes the monk, but he can read the monk outclasses him in a fight, in fact there'd be a chance all of them together couldn't take him.

"Right then....your point of discussion?"

sKeith

"Do you know of a vampire rogue, somewhere to the north of here, his home will be distictive, due to it being icy and cold, in a place where it is desert everywhere else? I am going to slay that vampire, and you may come with me and help, or die out here in the desert. When he is dead, you can have all his slaves, and bring them back to your overlords and gain respect and position for getting such a haul, or if you have grown to like me by then, you may even continue on with me and leave the slaving game behind, I pay well."

Fourier

sKeith wrote: »

"Do you know of a vampire rogue, somewhere to the north of here, his home will be distictive, due to it being icy and cold, in a place where it is desert everywhere else? I am going to slay that vampire, and you may come with me and help, or die out here in the desert. When he is dead, you can have all his slaves, and bring them back to your overlords and gain respect and position for getting such a haul, or if you have grown to like me by then, you may even continue on with me and leave the slaving game behind, I pay well."

"We know the place, we've done a bit of trade with the guy. Know a safe route in fact. One he carved out for us....but I don't know, what makes you think you can take him, I mean just you and us that is?"

Fourier

OOC: Stopping there

sKeith

"I don't know if I can take him alone, to be honest.

I was given a mission and I didn't enquire too much into it, from what you describe, he even sounds reasonable.

Well, I am not a slaver, like I told your boss I was, and their is no pack of dwarves waiting for us to round up, so going to talk to this vampire and getting the measure of him for myself, is fine with me, but if i don't slay him, you don't get your slaves.
Would that worry too you much?

I'd like you to come along with me anyway, I just don't want you returning to your fortress just yet."

sKeith

Sarric checks the dead slaves clothes and body for processions and weapons.

Fourier

The slavers look at each other.

"Fair enough, we'll tag along, not much else we can do. A High Elf and some kind of warrior, you're probably aware even when you're sleep. Lead the way."

On the trained fighter Sarric finds 80GP.

sKeith

"I thought you knew the way, we'll head northbound until you recognise the terrain." Sarric unbinds the trained samurais horse, so it is free to do as it wishes, the heads off northward bound.

Fourier

They continue North for half an hour until the see a road in the distance. An area of desert with more foliage than the one Sarric has been through lies beyond.

"If we take that road for a day and a half, we should make it."

sKeith

Sarric leads them down the road.

Fourier

The day and a half passes peacefully on the road. Come the night, the men make Sarric food and no attempt is made to attack him.

The following day, around the late afternoon one of the soldiers gets Sarric's attention and points to the East off the road.

A set of rocks in the desert frame a valley, within which snow blankets the ground in impossible defiance of the beating sun.

sKeith

"It was a safe road, does this road lead all the way to your bosses fortress? We should journey onwards to the valley now." Sarric begns walking that direction and gauging the mens willingness.