A World Torn [IC2]

[dark.sun.druid]

The market street was full to brimming with curious people, pressing in close to see what they could of the body on the bier. The usual crow was about, too: unscrupulous merchants doing their best to cash in on people's curiosity and grief (one was selling cheap pairs of binoculars that didn't really work, another was selling thin black veils to cover the faces of weeping women in the crowd); pickpockets making an absolute killing; beggar boys relegated to the sides of the street, clinging on to the pant legs of the wealthy to plead for some coin; the standard smell of baking bread filled the street as if was just another day. But today was different.

Today, the Lord was dead.

Lord Darius had been a good Lord, perhaps the best on the entire island. He was fair and just, and his people were free and prosperous. Nobody knew what had happened. He had enemies outside of his mountaintop hold, to be sure, but he was always well guarded. Some gossiped that it was poison, others said a knife in the dark. Only those closest to the Lord knew the truth. Not that it much mattered. The Lord was dead, and that meant war.

Lord Darius had three sons: Lord Resh, Lord Edding, and Lord Baurus. Each controlled a small hold at the feet of the mountains. The official word was that Lord Edding was to be named heir to Lord Darius's holdings, but the other two sons were not going to be pleased about that: Lord Edding was the youngest of Lord Darius's three sons.

Somewhere amid the thronging crowd of people who stood watching Darius's body being born to the funeral caverns, four adventurers stood. They had been given the dangerous task of traveling to Lord Resh's keep, to the West, and notifying him that his father was dead... and he was not the heir. They stood, pressed together by the people around them, and somewhere a baby began to cry...

[herrhauptmann]

Tar'gat

"Natasha," The tall minotaur rumbled as he bent down to her ear. "I should get out of here. Everyone is afraid, and they're giving me bad looks. It's only a matter of time until it turns bad. If you're going to stay, I'll be waiting at the fountain near the inn whenever you three are ready to go."
With that, the monstrous figure of Tar'gat turned to walk away, moving slowly enough that he was able to avoid knocking down even the smallest child in that press.
Spot: [roll0]

[Cranthis]

"I will go with you friend" said Kheldin, the golden scaled of the two twins. "We will inform you if anything should happen" the silver scaled Kheldar said, tapping his head. Kheldin followed closely behind Tar'gat, practically using him as a crowd shield.

[Fireheart]

Be Careful.

Natasha continued to watch the crowd as she waited for the body to finish the procession to the caverns. Once it had been interred, they could begin their own journey to Lord Resh.

She pulled out her lute and began to strum a soft dirge. Hoping the sounds would keep the crowd quiet and calm as the funeral continued its sad journey.

Perform (strings) [roll0] - She's not using magic just the music.

edit: really...the worst roll possible...:(

[herrhauptmann]

Tar'gat raised his hand in acknowledgement as he began to turn down some sidestreets away from the funeral procession.

"Yes, I have been meaning to talk to you about that." Tar'gat said as the press began to thin. "You and your brother, can speak without talking right?" He glanced down an alley, before bypassing it as too narrow to pass through. "How do you do that?"

[Cranthis]

He thought for a second. "No idea. We just... Do. Its like breathing" he said with a shrug. "We just know that it is very convenient"

[dark.sun.druid]

Natasha & Kheldar
Natasha plucked at her lute solemnly, watching the bier pass slowly by. Several people in the throng around her were pushed over the edge of tears by her playing, and one man with long robes and a thick, sad face even dropped a gold piece at her feet. As the bier moved past the two onlookers, the crowd began to follow, like water being pulled along in the wake of a sailing ship. They bumped and jostled elbows with the adventurers, who were standing still in the crowd.

The last of the procession of guards moved past, their armor covered in dust so as not to gleam to brightly in the sunlight on the somber occasion. As Natasha and Kheldar watched, a grief-stricken woman fell to her knees in the crowd and cried her sorrow to the heavens.

Natasha
As the crowd flowed past, a wiry man walked into Natasha, and she felt a hand fumbling about her coinpurse. The man froze, making eye contact for a moment, before turning and dashing off through the crowd as quickly as he could.

Tar'gat & Kheldin
As the two adventurers walked down the side streets on their way back to the inn, a breeze picked up. Light debris -- leaves, little bits of wax paper from the cheese stand, one discarded sock -- fluttered and blew in the wind as it was funneled down the narrow side streets. The sun shone as brightly as ever overhead, and the cobblestone road surface was warm from the day's heat. After a span, the two adventurers popped back out on a more major road. It was eerily quiet with all of the people missing. The front entrance to the inn was to the left, and a small fountain recycled its water over and over before the doorway. To the right, a butcher man with a thick black beard stood outside his shop in a bloodstained apron, sweeping the dust away from his storefront.

[herrhauptmann]

Switch mask to listen.
[roll0]
"Hmm, that is a shame it is not a spell you can share with people." With a grunt, Tar'gat sat on the edge of the fountain, relieved to get his weight off his feet for a time.
Switch mask back to spot/search.
Spot check. [roll1]
"I do have an idea about our task though. You know what our message is, right? And that he could be unhappy about the contents? And is in a position to do something about his displeasure? Not just to us, the messengers, but to everyone in his way? Since the funeral is being held now, why not just take our time delivering the message? The longer we take, the more time young Edding has to get ready."

[Cranthis]

He stood there and thought for a minute. "Thats a tough one. We could let the legitimate lord gather his power for a week or so, but Lord Resh does deserve to know that his father has died. Quite the moral conunundrum." He looked around the area, just checking things out as he silently debated with his brother

Search roll won't work for me for some reason, will roll in ooc

[Fireheart]

As the funeral ends, Natasha puts away her lute and picks up the golden coin.

She sighs. I suppose we should get a start. Let's find your other half and Tar'gat, shall we?

[Cranthis]

"Lets" he agreed, and lead the way to their friends. "Do you need to stop for anything? I can always find them as long as Kheldin is around."

[herrhauptmann]

"I do not think there is much of a quandry at all, honestly." Tar'gat turned to let his hand trail through the water. "It is terrible that he has missed the funeral, because it is important to be able to say goodbye. But as important as that one man is, he is still less important than all the people he will lead."
Tar'gat paused for a moment, then let out a sigh. "I do not think we should wait a month. But we should take our time. Perhaps maintain a pace that would not tire a child for a few days."

[dark.sun.druid]

Tar'gat & Kheldin
Down the street, the butcher man was finishing up his work and heading back into the shop. For a moment, the fountain gurgled quietly in the summer wind, and everything was serene. A pigeon pecked at the cobblestones, searching for lost scraps of bread, and the sun shone on, oblivious as always to the goings on on the ground. A smallish figure with a dark hooded cloak popped out of a side street and entered the butcher's shop.
The pigeon chirped quietly, and took off over the rooftops.
A woman appeared on the balcony of the hotel, stringing wear-worn garments up on a drying line.
Suddenly, a yell was heard from inside the butcher's shop, "Hey, stop you! Come back here with that!"
The hooded figure leaped from the doorway, clutching a large paper-wrapped bundle under one arm, "Come back here and pay for that!" The butcher man called after the figure, giving chase with his cleaver raised. He was clearly slower than the little cloaked person though, and he was quickly losing ground...

Natasha & Kheldar
As the two adventurers stood, contemplating their course of action, the sounds of yelling echoed through the side streets, coming from the general direction of the inn where the party had been staying for the past few nights. It was far off, but clearly audible in the silence that had followed the departure of the funeral crowd.
OOC:
Listen checks if you want to discern more information about the yelling; it will take you one round. DC 10 gives a more reliable direction, DC 15 will let you identify the voice, DC 20 you will be able to make out some words, and DC 25 will mean you clearly make out the words.

[herrhauptmann]

Hearing the commotion Tar'gat snaps his head up to the irate butcher with his cleaver.
"Kheldin?" His ears snap back along his head with sudden anger. "I will get the thief, can you get the butcher and stop a murder?"
With that he stood and began to chant.

Listen, bones of the earth.
For so speaks Grumbars hand.
Tremble and shake,
crack and break.
As he finishes the incantation, much of the street suddenly fills with rubble as the cobblestones begin to grow and twist out of alignment.


Standard action: Casting Mire. The affected area will be the street in front of the thief. The area behind him, going back as far as the chasing butcher (including him), and into any nearby alleys. Area is sixteen 10ft squares of now difficult terrain (half movement I think). Has no save. Range of spell is 180 feet.
Move action: Stand up from the fountain, and begin going after the thief. My movement is 30/round, and I ignore penalties from difficult terrain due to boots


edit: Grammar

[Fireheart]

OhUh, Natasha's head whips around, sounds like trouble over by the inn. Come on.

OOC: Moving toward sounds.

[Cranthis]

"Stop a wha-" Kheldin said, trying to keep up, as everything that needed doing was in the same direction. He informed Kheldar of what was happening, so they could catch up when ever.

He started moving immediately in the general direction of the sound"Yes, we probably should." He was unsure of whether the sounds had anything to do with Kheldin and Tar'gat's problem, but better to check it out anyways.

[dark.sun.druid]

Tar'gat and Kheldin

The cloaked thief stumbled as the ground beneath him splintered and heaved, and he stopped in his tracks, plunging a hand into his cloak, while keeping the bundle of meat secured firmly under the crook of his left arm...

OOC:
I'll roll initiative for you two and for the thief. That last round was a surprise round, meaning just one standard action (no move action) for Tar'gat and Kheldin. That means Tar'gat cannot go after the thief yet, but he can stand up as a free action (since he was sitting, not prone). The spell is fine, but let's see about range's here... The butcher is 30ft away from the casting, so he's well within range. The street you're on is 10ft wide, and most of the alley's are 5ft. The thief is 60ft from the butcher at the time of the casting, meaning you use up 6 squares to cover the ground between the butcher and the thief. You can cover the next 90ft ahead of the thief before the area is out of the range of your spell, using up a total of 15 of your 16 squares. The only side alley between the thief and the end of your spell range is the one he came out of in the first place, and you can cover 20ft down that direction (four 5ft squares is equal to one 10ft square) and that whole alley is within your spell range (it is 30ft from the thief on the right, looking down the main street).

So that's a total of 1,600 square feet of destroyed road surface... You're going to get in trouble for that. :smalltongue: The result looks like this, with one X being a 10ft square and one + being a 5ft square:
X <-- Spell ends here
X
X
X
X
X++++
X
X
X
X <-- Thief is here
X
X
X
X
X
X <-- Butcher is here
I hope I did that right.

[dark.sun.druid]

Initiative Rolls:
[roll0] <-- Thief
[roll1] <-- Tar'gat
[roll2] <-- Kheldin

EDIT: Kheldin goes first, followed by the thief, and then Tar'gat.

[Cranthis]

I hope I'm doing this right.
Kheldin will move as far as he can, movement speed 30, so 15 feet in the area of Tar'gats spell I believe, and cast Armor Lock on the thief, in the hopes he has at least leather on. Range is 70 feet, so unless I am even more confused than I thought, I should be able to reach him with it.

[dark.sun.druid]

As the spell is cast, the thief's armor swells visibly beneath his dark robes, and his arms and legs straighten stiffly. The lack of control over his limbs causes him to drop the bundle of meat. The hand with which he had been reaching into his cloak is now holding a whip, but he neglects to use it. Frightened by the barrage of spells raining upon him, he lurches forward, unable to move his knees. He stumbles for about five feet before the hem of his robe catches on a loose piece of rubble, and he falls forward, prone on the ground.

[herrhauptmann]

Taking off at a run, Tar'gat breezes past the panting butcher, "Wait here," he commands the fat man, while unslinging Grumbars Gift.
Tar'gat races across the rubble, entirely unhindered, and standing over the thief he raises his weapon. "Drop your weapons."


Run action, moving about 80 feet (if I'm reading the setup correctly). I'm not adjacent to the thief, or in his square, but standing one square back with my hammer raised.
OOC
I feel bad for this guy if he does anything stupid. :smallbiggrin:
I also hope he's not like a first level thief or something. One hit from Tar'gat will kill most characters under 3 HD.

[dark.sun.druid]

The thief, who wasn't holding any weapons and could possibly reach for any with his limbs restricted the way they were, just rocked back and forth on the ground, unable to stand up in the rubble. His hood obscured his face.

[Cranthis]

I dunno if it is still combat or not. So. Kheldin runs 60 feet closer (Assuming half movement restriction). "Check why he is theiving." Kheldin calls to Tar'gat.

[Fireheart]

Natasha continue to run toward the inn, searching the crowd for Tar'gat.

[herrhauptmann]

"I will Kheld. Can you stop the shopkeeper from trying to kill this person, and flag down the constables or town watch?" Tar'gat called back.
Stepping over the thief, Tar'gat kicks the dropped whip out of reach with a snort. "As for you, is there a reason I should not hand you over to the watch? Why is a sack of meat worth the risk of getting your hand amputated?"

[Cranthis]

"Let us find out what his motives were before I find a guard or such" Kheldin says as he looks at the butcher, very clearly willing to stop him should he try anything.


Kheldar continued to lead the way towards the inn.

[herrhauptmann]

Tar'gat

He nodded his head in acknowledgement of Kheldins suggestion without taking his gaze off the thief.
"Well?" He demanded as he nudged the thief with his foot, his eyes narrowed in equal parts irritation and anger.

Free action: Talking
Standard Action: Activate helmet to start the detect magic effect. If nothing detected, he will not continue to concentrate on it.
Also, having some monster staring you down for half a minute can be pretty unnerving to normal people. And Tar'gat doesn't want to be seen as a big scary monster, even if he is one.

[dark.sun.druid]

At the nudge of Tar'gat's foot, the thief ceased to rock back and forth. His useless limbs slumped visibly in the armor that had become his prison, and he let out a terrible moan,
"I'm just so hungry..." The thief said, and his voice sounded thin and shaky. He was still face down, and the only skin showing was the back of one of his hands...

Tar'gat
You notice a pale-blue tinge on the back of the man's hand, and detect no magic.
As that exchange occurred, Natasha dashed out into the destroyed road, and saw the scene. She arrived through the alley the thief had been heading for, and so was close enough to hear the most recent exchange between Tar'gat and the thief.

OOC:
Combat is over.

[Cranthis]

"Hmm. Butcher, how much would that bundle of meat cost?" he questioned the man.

Assuming Kheldar is still with Natasha:
Kheldar rejoins his twin "You destroyed the street, Tar'gat. How are we going to take care of this with the guards?"

Assuming that they don't know much about Tar'gats... whatever magicy thing he does :smallbiggrin:

[herrhauptmann]

Tar'gat

"Kheldar, I did not destroy the street. Grumbar did, I am merely his hand in this manner." He paused for a minute, staring at the thief, before taking a quick step back. "Nobody touch him! Not yet anyway." He barked.
"As for you," he continued more gently. "What is happening to your hand? I need to see your face and arms immediately."

Knowledge: Nature(once I see more). [roll0]

[dark.sun.druid]

The thief lies still in the road until the armor lock spell wear off, and then slowly raises himself up onto his knees. Back still to Tar'gat, the thief begins to disrobe. The skin that is revealed has the same disturbing blue tinge to it, and after the thief has stripped down to his undergarments -- effectively nothing more than tan cloth wrappings -- it becomes apparent that he is thin to the point of emaciation. When he turns to face Tar'gat, it reveals his belly region, which is swollen and a much more shocking blue color than the rest of his skin. There are several cuts from where he fell onto the rubble, the red from his blood is in shocking contrast with the blue skin.
Tar'gat
He very clearly has an advanced case of Blue Guts, a terrible disease that comes from eating unsavory or aberrant things. Clearly the man has a history of not getting the proper food, and now it seems he was trying to find something to eat that could restore his strength. The fact that the man has an appetite at all is frankly amazing to you.
At this point, two guards in steel armor emblazoned with the same seal as the one on your scroll appear at the end of the alley, shouting and running toward the scene of destruction.

[Fireheart]

Natasha walks to stand beside Tar'gat. Her face blanches at the sight of the thief. She turns to face the guards, smiling and holding up her hands.

"Good morning!" She smiles at them.


"Tar'gat? What's going on?" she whispers quietly.

[herrhauptmann]

Tar'gat

Seeing the oncoming guards, he set his hammer down on the ground at his side and removed his hands from the hilt.
"Natasha," he moved aside so she could stand next to him. "He stole food, we stopped him. This man is suffering from Blue Guts, think of it as a form of food poisoning, very bad food poisoning." He mumbled to the small woman at his side.
"Please, put your clothes back on, I will find you the help you need to get better."

[Cranthis]

Both twins kept their weapons sheathed, and their mouths shut, standing abit behind Tar'gat, using him as a sight shield.

[dark.sun.druid]

As the thief was sliding his loose robe back on -- he left the thin hide armor on the ground, presumably not trusting it anymore -- the guards hurried up to the scene. One of them spoke,
"What in the hell is going on here?" He asked. His voice was raised, and he gestured wildly around at the destroyed roadbed and the half-naked thief.

Toward the back of the scene, the butcher (who had been watching in angry, shocked silence), turned to Kheldin,
"That 'bundle of meat' was pork tenderloin, and it was worth two gold pieces!"

[Cranthis]

Kheldin hands the man 3 gold pieces. "There, that should more than cover it." He picked up the bundle of meat from the ground and considers his moral options.

[dark.sun.druid]

The wrapping on the meat is torn, and small pebbles and bits of roadbed are embedded into the foodstuff. Edible, if cleaned first, but unsalable.

[Fireheart]

Natasha smiles quickly at the guards.

A bit of a misunderstanding, she says. "But I believe the butcher has been compensated. This one is sick and needs healing, is there a temple where he can get rest and some help? She points toward the thief.

Rolling Diplomacy for any advantage.

[roll0] oops - rerolling in the OOC

[dark.sun.druid]

The guard's face darkened, and he asked angrily,
"And what about the road? This is going to be expensive to fix, and the road will be shut down for days!" A small vein on the guard's forehead pulsed visibly, indicating that his blood pressure was, indeed, as high as one would guess by the sound of his voice.

Your diplomacy roll did help. Originally, the guard was going to try to arrest the man as soon as he learned what happened, but you've spared the poor soul. Now he's just mad about the road. Herrhauptmann, it's probably time to do some explaining. :smalltongue:

[herrhauptmann]

Tar'gat

"Not to worry." Tar'gat raised his hands slowly and let his posture slump a little, doing his best not to loom over the guards. "The hand of Grumbar does not always leave indelible marks. The road will return to its normal state in less than two hours. Even sooner than that, if you can call up a wizard skilled with abjurations."

He smiled, trying not to show any teeth. "And I do regret the necessity of obstructing the street, but I wanted to stop the theft and avoid any bloodshed. And with how sick he is, it would have been no more than murder had he been struck in anger, even with the intention of subduing him."

I believe the spell Mire (I need to rename that), can be dispelled, since it's not an instantaneous duration like Wall of Stone.

[dark.sun.druid]

As you converse with the guards, some few people are beginning to fill the street, obviously drawn by all of the ruckus. The guard who you've been talking to speaks again,
"Well then, you can be in charge of making sure nobody gets hurt out here for the next couple of hours." The other guard stepped forward,
"Hey Michael, he said that this man is a thief. He was stealing something. We oughta take him in."
"Is that right... Well then, let's get him up." The first guard reached down and hooked an arm under the thief's shoulder, hauling him to his feet. The thief let out an audible moan of pain as he did.

[herrhauptmann]

Tar'gat

"I will gladly comply with your order to help the people out here." Tar'gat stated. "But is the man really still a thief if the butcher has been compensated, and compensated well, for his merchandise? And even if he were, would it be possible to wait to arrest him, until he were brought to a cleric? Even if we ignore the issue of kindness, wouldn't it be better to not drag a sick man across town and into the cells?" He asked.
"If you are lucky, he will only vomit, and his vomit will only hit the street. But if the Blue Guts disease also loosened his bowels, well, I would not want to be next to him at that point."

[Fireheart]

Natasha shudders as Tar'gat speaks.

"Yes, please. Perhaps, you could take him to a healer? I don't know if what he has could be contagious and certainly we wouldn't want to spread in a confined space?

We would be happy to remain here to until the road returns to normal."

[dark.sun.druid]

The two guards exchange a look. The first one sighs, and speaks up,
"Fine. I'll stay here until the road is back to normal with the large fellow, and Geoff and the lute-woman here will bring the thief to a cleric. We'll decide what should become of him later." The second guard grunted in a short-end-of-the-stick sort of way, and nodded to Natasha. The first guard looked over his shoulder and spoke again, "And you should probably get going; these people were just out watching the funeral march, and I'm sure they'd be more than happy to get an up close look at this scene." He turned around and yelled, "Keep off the road!" and then, turning back, he mumbled, "Damn voyeurs."

[herrhauptmann]

Tar'gat,

Tar'gat intercepts the sick man before he's taken off with Natasha by the guard. "Don't forget your pork. Or would you prefer we deliver it to your home once the street is normal?" He asked gently.

[dark.sun.druid]

TIMESKIP

Tar'gat
After two-ish hours of assisting people with the street, the land seems to shift beneath you, as if picking itself back up and settling into its natural place. The shattered bits of road make crushing noises as they fit themselves back together. One pedestrian stumbles, and nearly gets his foot caught under a slab of stone. Several seconds later, the road is back to its original condition, if a bit dustier,
"Well I'll be, it really did set itself right, didn't it," the guard turned to Tar'gat and extended a hand, "I don't know what sort of magic you use, fellow, but it's a good one. My name is Michael, and I'm captain of the guard for this area of the city. I can't say I really owe you, but I'm impressed. If you need assistance while you're in the city, come find me and I'll see what I can do."
Hearing the street right itself, the butcher pokes his head out of his shop door and, seeing the dust, he sighs, retrieves a broom, and sets to work sweeping the area in front of his shop.

Natasha
In the lay brothers' dormitories of a nearby monastery, set up on an unspoiled plot of land within city limits, the thief lay on a thin cot, shirtless and silent, next to a bundle of meat wrapped in brown paper. A cleric bent over him, one hand holding a burning censer and the other held over the thief's body, a slight glow playing around the fingers. The thief's blue complexion had faded greatly, but he was still emaciated and weak. The cleric stood, hanging the censer from a nearby stand and busying himself about a set of portable academical equipment. For the first time in the entire hour Natasha and the guard had been there, he spoke,
"The poor fellow has it badly. I'm doing the best I can, but his disease has begun to rot his body from within. I've stopped its progress, but I do not know how much of the damage I will be able to reverse," The draping arms of the cleric's long robe swayed as he moved, grinding herbs and measuring powders, "My magic can do much, but he needs long-term care, and I cannot join you once you leave here. You need to find someone to take care of the man, and give them these potions I am making for him. Then, all we can do is pray for the best."

[herrhauptmann]

Tar'gat

"Captain Michael, it has been my honor to meet you today. Your fairness and honor are without question." Tar'gat said with a bow of his head. "As to my brand of magic, think of it as analogous to a priest's. The gifts my God grants run in a different vein from the priests that Natasha and your man Geoff sought out, but the end result is the same: the saving of lives, souls, and even countries at times, with my choice as to how I employ my gifts."
"With that said, please feel free to call upon me if you are ever in need of my aid." Tar'gat concludes by removing his gauntlet and extending a monstrous hand to the captain.

[Fireheart]

Natasha

Natasha nods as she listens to the cleric.

"Do you have a name?" she asks the thief "I can't keep calling you 'this guy.' What about family, friends? Is there anyone who would be willing to care for you while you recover? We must leave soon but I would like to find you someone first, if possible."

[dark.sun.druid]

Tar'gat
The captain takes the hand without hesitation and shakes it firmly, saying,
"I will not forget your offer." Before he turns to leave, he takes Tar'gat's hand again and presses a small seal into it. The seal is emblazoned with a symbol of a winged sword,
"A token of mine. If you show it to a member of the guard, they will find me for you. Thank you again."

Natasha
The cleric spoke,
"I'm sorry ma'am, he isn't conscious. He'll awake in probably two hours. In the mean time, if you would like to wait somewhere with benches, feel free to." The cleric turned back to his work, busying himself with some sort of scroll.

[Fireheart]

Natasha nods, she had hoped that thief was just closing his eyes. She should have realized as sick as he was that he would crash as soon as he got somewhere safe.

"I'll wait a bit." She strolls a bit and finds a comfortable spot. Pulling out her violin, she begins to softly play.

[herrhauptmann]

"Thank you Captain." Tar'gat says with a nod of his head.
He turns toward the temple district, intending to follow after Natasha and the sick man. "Please take care of yourself."

[dark.sun.druid]

Tar'gat crosses the city...

Arriving in the monastery, Tar'gat makes his way to Natasha, the cleric, and the sick man by following the sound of her violin. The notes echo through the stones halls, creating an eerie ambiance in the old, drafty church. The air was warm where the sunlight shafted through the stained windows, but in the shadows the stone seemed to hold on to the cold air of the mountain night. There was a faint smell of crushed herbs hanging in the air, combined with the sort of dampness that seems to come part and parcel with any large stone buildings.

When Tar'gat finally arrives in the dormitory, he finds the cleric dripping a thin liquid into the man's mouth by the end of a wooden stick. It looked like watered down honey. Natasha is sitting on a low be with coarse sheets in the corner of the room.

[herrhauptmann]

Moving quietly as he could to not disturb the priest, Tar'gat entered the sickroom to sit on the floor beside Natasha.
"The street is repaired, Kheldar and Kheldin said they'll catch up with us eventually. How fares the patient?"
He sits quietly for a few minutes before holding up a rolled scroll. "Would you object to carrying the letter? I don't have a way of carrying it safely, and people would think it a forgery in my hands."

[Fireheart]

Natasha nods. She finishes the song and sets her instrument aside.

"Of course." She pulls out her journal, takes the letter and carefully places it inside.

"I do not know if we should wait...or leave the thief to his own. He is unconscious now so I don't know if he has any family or friends who can care for him."

[herrhauptmann]

"I don't mind waiting a little a few hours to get him home. I'd rather we left the prying eyes of town soon, but a few extra days to deliver the letter won't be a bad thing. In fact, it could be better for the entire city if we take a little time."