Herkenhearth IC

[GFawkes]

It's around mid-day in the spring, sparse clouds dotting the skies over Herkenhearth. The districts are abuzz with activity, from the markets to the temples. In the Trade District, crowds are as thick as ever, with patrons back to back as merchants sell their wares. A woman with red hair and a staff stands out, the crowd neatly parting before her as she moves through the crowd.

In the alleys of the district, it's a different story. Crowded more with trash than living things (though that's debatable, looking at some of the trash), the only constant movement is the rats, the only sound the gurgling of the sewage system. Occasionally, the shadows will flitter with movement, but it ends just as suddenly as it started.

All in all, a pretty average day. There's a few more priests than usual in the Trade District, but The Revelry is coming up next week, so they could just be checking the merchants for any questionably legal items that they'd plan to sell during the event.


DC 5 Knowledge (Local) or Diplomacy (Gathering Info) to ID her.
She's Amelia Gilder, a member of The Vigil. While no one has seen her in combat, the rumors go that she's break every spine in an army by herself just to get to the commander. The rumors also go that she's part dragon/demon/devil/celestial, so take them with a grain of salt. What is known though is that she is dismissive of just about everyone living in the High District, and she clearly is capable of some form of magic, though it's not known how.

No check, everyone is talking about it and will willingly give information.

One of the bigger holidays in Herkenhearth, a celebration of the vivaciousness of life. Originally, it was a day to let merchants take stock and take a break. However after one particularly large brawl one year, it gained notoriety as being more than just a day off. Now, in addition to markets closing, some will open side-stands, selling memorabilia, alcohol of varying quality, and food that could clog a dragon's arteries. There's an annual brawl, though more in the 'it's inevitably going to happen' sense than the 'this is how to celebrate' one. The priests, every year, try to keep it contained, patching up those who take more than a few on the chin.

Music to set the tone (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKohPVp0eqk)

[NeoSeraphi]

Red Haired Woman

I automatically pass the Know (Local) check, so I'm just rolling to see if Ali in particular knows anything else about her
[roll0]


Ali grins to himself as he stalks through the crowd, one hand on the brooch in his pocket. He whistles happily. "Money, money, gonna be rolling in the money! Oh, man, with a rock this big I can easily get a place large enough to start my orphanage. It won't be enough to hire any staff or get any furniture, but as long as I can buy the whole thing straight out, I won't need to pay rent, so it'll save cost in the long run!"

Ducking into an alley way and then slipping the brooch out to give it another look before quickly stashing it, Ali traces his fingers along the jewel with reverence. "So beautiful...so perfect! This is gonna make my dream come true!"

As he pockets it and starts moving away, Ali stops. His words echo in his mind, and he thinks back to when he was a younger boy....

(Flashback, Read if you want but I'm spoilering for those who don't care)

"I got it! I got it!" Ali cheers to himself, rushing back to his hide out with a sack of roast beef from the deli. It wasn't the freshest, but it wasn't ready to be thrown out either, a fine prize for a young thief of seven years. Suddenly, though, he heard a noise and stopped, glancing over in the direction.

There was a young girl sitting on the side of the street. She didn't look homeless. Her clothes weren't the nicest, but they were fresh and her hair looked like she had bathed recently. She was a dwarf, and her face was in her hands. Ali frowned and looked down at the sack in his hands, then sighed and stashed it in his cloak before walking awkwardly over to the girl.

"Hey, what's wrong miss? You lost or something? Tell me where your parents live, and I'll take you to them."

The girl explained that she was raised in an orphanage and the orphanage had kicked her out. Ali gritted his teeth. "The hell/ Those bastards? What, are you not good enough for them? I have people tell me that all the time! I...um..."

Ali groaned and sat down in defeat, reaching into his cloak and offering her the sack. "Here. It's not much, but eat what you want. A pretty thing like you doesn't deserve to die out here in the streets no matter what anyone says. And one day, I'm going to show those stuck up orphanage matrons. I'll make my own place, and I'll take any kid, no matter how poor or out of control, and I'll make em understand the value of life. Just you wait and see! Yeah, the best orphanage in the world, that's my dream!"

The girl looked over at Ali and smiled warmly. It caught Ali off-guard, that smile. That expression of joy, no matter how soft. What did she have to be happy about? She was sharing day old meat with a runt on a street corner, and would continue that for the next ten years of her life if she was lucky!

Ali smiled back, despite himself.


"...But that was then," Ali told himself sternly. "She's got a much better gig now, she doesn't need to keep associating with the likes of you." Ali looked down, gritting his teeth, and then felt the weight of the brooch in his pocket. "A priestess of beauty, like her...with how she grew up, she's probably beating off rich guys with a stick by now."

Ali had avoided Vara's church for the last week or so, no matter how much time they had spent together as kids, now he just couldn't shake the feeling that she was better than him and whenever he was near her, he just felt like a stray mutt she found on the street, petted and fed once that kept coming back for more. It was pathetic, and it wasn't him. But still...

That smile kept flashing into his mind. So innocent, so pure. Something the street had never fully managed to rub out of her, even thirteen years later. Yeah, she still had a little bit of decency left in her, more than Ali could claim.

"A priestess of beauty...and there's no way she couldn't call this rock beautiful. Yeah...yeah! Okay, it's decided! Maybe my dream will have to wait a little longer, but this is a one of a kind rock, and it belongs with a one of a kind girl who will appreciate it! Okay, I'm heading to see Vara!"

Ali started moving through the crowd again, a secret smile hidden at the sides of his lips.


Stealth: [roll1]
Sleight of Hand to conceal brooch: [roll2]
Perception to notice Vara in the crowd: [roll3]

[Vhaidara]

Red Haired Woman
Similar to Ali, Anna automatically makes the check. Rolling for further knowledge.
Knowledge(Local): [roll0]

Vanvaranna Nimblefinger, entertainer extraordinaire, knows a good opportunity to ply her trade. She prepares herself with the little magic she has before this performance. She decides to wait a bit for the comedy routine, at least until she has a better feel for the audience, and decides to start off with a song she learned from her husband.

Spells being cast are Tap Inner Beauty (+2 on all Cha checks and Cha-based skills for 1 min/level) and Eagle's Splendor (+4 to Cha for 1 min/level), total +4 to Perform checks. Sadly, I do not have a song written.
Perform (Sing): [roll1]

While singing, Anna casts her eye around, seeing if she recognizes anyone in the crowd.
I'll give you a Perception and a Knowledge(Local), you can decide how they interact.
Perception: [roll2]
Knowledge(Local): [roll3]

[LordHavelock]

[roll0]


Zechs meanders through the crowd, at loose ends for a change in anticipation of the revelry to come, though not so much as an eager participant. Having finished up a few jobs in preparation of the event itself, he considers it a handy holiday in that invariably their are more than a few merchants and their patrons looking to fix whatever problems have sprung up in the wake of the festival, given all the politicking and intrigue that goes into it's execution. Though a vague smile is written across his features, it does nothing to convey the cheer of the many other passersby, despite his usual flare for keeping up appearances. Normally, he would take this opportunity of respite to ready his next return trip to his home, but given this is the first festival day since his exile . . . The circumstances of which have been weighing down his thoughts more than enough as it is, he shunts them aside and does his best to observe the crowds for whatever that is worth. Though, in the spirit of the coming holiday, he is dressed in some of his favorite finery, a jaunty affair of a well tailored suit of slightly offset tones of dark blue, adorned with many artfully arranged swashes of patterned cloth, embroidering, and a sash, complete with a tri-cornered hat which sat upon his head. The whole of his appearance was well meant to complement his fair hair, skin and the bright blue of his eyes; altogether it was a little too showy to mark him as just another commoner, but was hardly the sort of fashion you'd catch a proper noble wearing. Only the truly clued in would recognize it as something of the odd fashion one would attribute to the gnomes and their kindred, suitably re-sized for this human's apparently very particular tastes.

Not exactly looking for business or pleasure, Zechs does have his eye peeled for trouble, in the form of pick-pockets or grifters or the like, his bright eyes sharply surveying the crowds and anyone who thinks the gaily dressed human to be a personage easily swindled. Upon recognizing the person of Miss Glider however, he is sure to give her a wide berth, not wanting to stir up trouble from the Vigil should they care to inquire as to why he should go about even legitimate business the particular way that he does.


[roll1]

[Mechanix]

Celebration! Party! Truly this was where city life shined at its best: in the drunken revelry of another day spent surviving the constant harrowing and business of the human hive. Janis was smiling brightly in anticipation of the upcoming Revelry, and it was enough to color this otherwise ordinary day in a different tone - it was dull! She couldn't wait to finish her shift for the city guard and find somewhere to have fun. Possibly start an early brawl, as an appetizer for what would be coming up next week? She would have to set down her scythe somewhere for that - the magical weapon, with its twisted edge and faint red lines permeating the blade, was setting people on edge and keeping them out of her way, stiffling the natural instincts that would have led them to answer her taunting with violence; this, in Janis's opinion, was terrible and sad.

Nonetheless, she was striding around the district, throwing glances all around, and repeatedly elbowing her weary shift companion who would have rather liked a quiet guard today. And when they recognized Amelia Glider, he would have liked to step quickly out of the way of his superior, but Janis had other ideas - namely waving her hand excitedly as if she were saluting a friend, which prompted some fearful stepping away from the bystandars as her scythe started hobbling from side to side with her movements. She did not go so far as to walk up to her and ask about her day, but that was only because it hadn't even been a week since she'd last been scolded for going off-track while assigned to some (boring) guard duty. No, instead she straightened her spine and started looking around intimidatingly at everyone. Beware, evildoers! The two mightiest women in town were in this very district, punishing your crimes! Probably. As soon as any actual crime would occur. Hopefully before Janis got bored again.

Knowledge (Local): [roll0]

[Elapid66]

Vara automatically makes it, but will roll to see if there is anything else. Diplomacy:[roll0]

Vara is walking through the trade district with Isabel, her mentor, talking about how the upcoming festival. While she would often rob the food stalls in previous years, this would be her first time observing the brawl. in previous years she was terrified of the brawl as there were always guards around ready to arrest anyone that got too out of control. This year though, it seems she will have be in attendance with the rest of the temple staff. Vara runs her fingers over her holy symbol to comfort herself. "Everything will be okay, Shelyn's love will see us through the revelry" she thinks to herself.

This will also be her first revelry without seeing Ali. She fondly remembers feasting on stolen pastries with him while the rest of the town was fighting in the streets. Now that she thinks about it, she hasn't seen Ali in some time. He used to visit her in the temple but the visits have become more and more sporadic. "I hope the guards haven't arrested him". As she thinks this, she looks at everyone around her for any signs of danger, just like Ali taught her to do many years ago.

[roll1]

[Ilorin Lorati]

Asuhara kept a smile on as she stepped through the marketplace. She always loved the festivals in this city, and the Revelry - a festival that as she understood it was simply about being alive and enjoying life - was one of her favorites simply from being able to sit back and take a walk... and, of course, to watch the brawls from a safe distance. Oh, she was sure she could hold her own in the middle of it, but was more worried about letting out her more destructive tendencies.

Being able to take down walls had its problems.

There wasn't really any reason for her to keep a disguise up at the moment, so while she certainly didn't put the magical hat that usually did just that for her away, she just made it look like something to give her a little bit of cover in the spring sun: a brown, rimmed hat that shaded her purple skin and kept the crystalline glisten of her skin out of passerby's eyes. No one likes a sparkler and she even put away her staff (into her haversack) and crystal (into one of her shirt pockets) in order to keep them from getting in other people's way.

A pocket that was twitching impatiently as her crystal begged her for a little bit of sunshine. Master, let me ooooout! I wanna see! You never let me talk to anyone! Or see the sun! Reflexively, the Maenad cupped her hand over her pocket to shut the crystal up - a meaningless gesture since it wasn't actually making any noise.

"That's because you scare people, little one. I'll let you out soon, just be patient." She spoke this aloud, ducking under some absent minded guard's scythe and continuing through the crowd. Her voice was low enough that she was pretty confident no one would hear her talking to air.

Kn. Local: [roll0]

[GFawkes]

You know that Amelia is the last in a long line of magical talent. While not native to Herkenhearth, she has the attitude that she is better than the majority of the High District. You also know that, while she is a strong fighter, she compliments it with plenty of magic, mainly enchanting nearby objects to join her, though she has a few directly offensive spells. She's also known for being tough on those she sees as below her, but not needlessly so. Mostly the 'toughen them up' sort of tough.


First off, you're lucky it's daytime, or I'd be singing. Second, you successfully notice each other.

You recognize Andryn and Eilia Estralia, two half-elves you introduced to each other a few days ago. They seem to be doing alright, but still unsure of exactly how to go about things. Judging by the glances they take at each other, they enjoyed the date night.

As the crowd keeps moving, more keeps happening. Amelia makes her way to a jewelry shop, glancing back at Janis, rolling her eyes at the overeager scythe-mistress before entering. As the door closes behind her, a scream comes from near the entrance to one of the alleys, a red glow emerging from it.

[Vhaidara]

Anna is about to make her way over to the greet her friends when the scream pierces her focus. Noticing the red light, she quickly makes for the alley, her hand flying to her belt, ready to act.

Her belt isn't mentioned in her physical description since I added it after writing it, but it is a steel band with a simple buckle. Also magic, if anyone can tell.

[NeoSeraphi]

Ali spots Vara from the crowd, walking with a priestess friend of hers. "Yo, Vara! Hey, I got something for-" he yells, only to be cut off by a scream.

Glancing up in the direction of the outburst, Ali frowns. "What, are they starting a brawl already? Geez, can't wait a full week to...wait, no, that doesn't sound like someone who volunteered for a fight. Someone's being attacked. Right next to Gilder though? Do they have a death wish or something?"

Ali started to move towards Vara, but then he spotted a gnome rushing from the crowd to the alleyway. "Ah damnit...Oy!"

Ali moves quickly, his feet pacing that of a stout human rather than a creature of his size, before he catches up with the gnome and glares at her. "What are you doing, trying to play hero? You could get hurt here! There's guards everywhere, why don't you let one of them handle it!"


Perception to notice what's in the alley [roll0]

[Elapid66]

Seeing Gilder walk through the crowd like this made Vara uneasy, but Isabel's presence makes her at least a little more comfortable. She soon spotted Ali and started to wave towards him, clearly happy to see his face. Before anything else could be done however, she heard the scream and in the commotion almost lost sight of Ali. She turns to Isabel, and points in the direction of an alley she though she saw Ali dart towards. "I saw Ali", she quickly said to her mentor while trying to push through the crowd towards the alley and away from were she thought the scream was.

Isabella never really had a chance to properly meet Ali, but she was curious about him based on the many stories Vara had told her.

[Mechanix]

Now we're talking! thought Janis, her hand instinctively grasping her scythe. "Make way for the guard!" she yelled at the passerbies, a grin dawning on her lips as she leaped and hopped to reach the alleyway, carrying her weapon high so as to avoid giving a close shave to anyone slow enough to get in her way.

[LordHavelock]

Not generally one to run towards sound of trouble, even while 'on-the-clock', Zechs hangs back within the crowd gathering in a perimeter around the alley wherein there seems to be a commotion, but rather than be left unawares, shrugs his cloak off from behind his back, over his shoulders to conceal his handiwork, priming both his weapons and all the better to catch any potential threats unawares. Briefly, he considers a change of appearance, but instead he decides he's getting ahead of himself, though he does go so far as to load one of his pistols with a flare charge, just in case.


To covertly arm myself and load one of my pistols with a flare cartridge-
[roll0]

[Ilorin Lorati]

Asuhara really, really wanted to leave. This was the kind of situation that just begged for people to start pointing random fingers, and getting fingers pointed at her usually meant that she would have to act like a perfect angel for a month or more.

That scream though... she knew that she'd be beating herself up if she didn't help some way that she could. Taking a short moment to center herself (Focusing - Electricity), she started moving towards the alleyway that the glow, only to have the scythe that she ducked under moments before pass straight by her. For some reason, the guard screaming and carrying their scythe like that was more than a little bit amusing. Smirking, she followed in the berth being given to the guard.

[GFawkes]

As you approach the alley, you see several...things inside. They look vaguely humanoid, though much fatter, and roughly 4' tall, give or take. The glow fades as you approach, though it seems to have come from behind the...things. The source of the scream is evidently a halfling, cowering between you and the blubbery creatures.

"H-help! They're trying to eat me!" the halfling calls to Janis, the first one of you he sees.

Alright, firstly, roll initiative.

Second, here's the map (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AoFZjHSHDVSydFlQd1psQWpZQXQxckloMXE2MXA4Y 0E&usp=sharing). MapTool didn't want to work today, so I'll see what I can do about fixing that. In the meantime, we'll stick to Google Docs.

Third, Zechs, you're 4 rounds away from when you start approaching, but you can cut that down to 1 if you make a DC 20 Persuasion check to navigate the crowd

[NeoSeraphi]

Rolls:

Initiative: [roll0]
Knowledge Local to identify humanoids: [roll1]
Knowledge Religion to identify undead: [roll2]


Ali recoils in revulsion at the sight of the creatures.

"Ugh! What the hell are these things? Aw man, where's a city guard when you need one...hey you!"

Ali sighs with relief and glances at the scythe-wielding woman. "You're going to take care of these things, aye? Well, it's not normally my style, but let me back you up!"


On Ali's initiative, he will move to G8 and help the halfling to his feet, then tell him to get out as quickly as possible. Assuming he does so, Ali will raise his dagger defensively, though he has no standard action left to do so, so it's just a pose, no combat benefit.

[Mechanix]

"Thank you, citizen," Janis answered with a wide grin, "it's always good to be appreciated for one's job. Just try not to stay in the way!"

As she said so, she leaped into action, a bright glimmer in her eyes, her scythe raking the walls of the alley and throwing off a shower of sparks before bringing it down on one of the apparent monsters.

"This is your one chance to surrender!"

Initiative:[roll0]
On her initiative, Janis moves to E9 and delivers one attack against the creature in front of her.
Attack roll: [roll1]
Damage roll: [roll2]

[Vhaidara]

Rolls
Initiative: [roll0]
Knowledge(Local) to identify Humanoids: [roll1]
Knowledge(Religion) to identify Undead: [roll2]

I'm not defenseless boy, and I'm not going to stand by while someone innocent could be hurt!

Moving towards the alley, Anna looses one of the battle songs of her people as she draws her belt forth. As it comes free from her waist, it stiffens into a longsword.

On her initiative, Anna will move to F9, drawing her Bladed Belt and activating Inspire Courage, giving all allies +2 to hit (competence), damage (competence), and saves against charm and fear effects (morale)

[LordHavelock]

With the crowd milling about, Zechs is nearly swept away, but in an effort to at least remain clued in if nothing else, he does his best to press a path through to the main event as it were. 'You could almost surprise yourself with some civic duty,' The voice in the back of his head chides, 'Or, are you telling yourself it's just to keep a leg up on any one who might want some more information about whatever is happening here? After all, not everyday something tries to eat someone inside the city walls.' Reaching down to his wrists, he subtly makes to roll up a pair of sleeves from around his other garments, counting on the chaos of the crowd for no one to notice any distinct change in his appearance.


[roll0]

[Ilorin Lorati]

Asuhara laughed grimly at the guard trying to get whatever it was to surrender. "She just said someone was trying to eat her, what makes you -- y'know what, nevermind." The woman moved through the streets to get a good look at the alleyway. Whatever it was, it looked just as hungry as the little thing made it sound. "Hold on, we'll clean them out!" Harnessing her frustration with the guard, she'd wrench her hand and With that, she'd chant something suitably electrifying as she extend a hand at one of the enemies: "Por Ort Grav!" The lightning would arc out of her hands and in the direction of the... lard... monsters. Suddenly Lightning didn't seem like quite as good an idea. Oh well; if this gambit paid off, she'd have plenty of time to relax.




On her initiative, she'll move 15' to I8, at which point she'll do the following:
Wild Surge Inevitable Strike to ML3 for a +9 bonus to her attack roll.
She'll then Wild Surge again and expend her psionic focus to manifest Explosive Power Energy Ray (with Wild Surge +2) at ML7 and attack one of the monsters in the back to avoid hitting any allies.
Damage type is Electricity; the penalty for psychic enervation will be her ML in power points and a -1 penalty to the attack roll per enervation.

Init: [roll0]
Psychic Enervation (15%): [roll1]
Psychic Enervation (15%): [roll2]
RTA Roll (Energy Ray): [roll3]
Damage: [roll4]
Explosive DC: 17
Current Power Points: 52/58

And just for fun, to see if she can convince any onlooker that she's really casting a spell (if needed)
Bluff: [roll5]

[Elapid66]

"Stop this violence in the name of Shelyn!" Vara exclaims as soon as she sees what's going on. She quickly walks up to the entrance of the alley and says a short prayer to detect magic.

On her initiative she will move up to H10 and cast detect magic.
Initiative: [roll0]
Attempt to identify the creatures:
Knowledge (Local): [roll1]
Knowledge (Religion): [roll2]
Attempt to identify the magical aura, assuming if one is detected:
Spellcraft: [roll3]

[GFawkes]

You can tell that they aren't humanoids in any way but shape. They also aren't undead.

You can tell the things are magic, but you can't quite identify what school of magic. You're pretty sure they're not divinations though

The creatures are confused, one of them tilting its head before it explodes from electric force, a glimpse of further confusion on its face. One of the creatures manages to avoid the majority of Asuhara's "spell", but it jumps out of the explosion and into the scythe, nearly chopping its own head off before Janis shows the proper way to do so.

The civilian quakes to his feet, eyes glued to Asuhara. "By the gods...such technique...." he manages to stammer out.


Well, you got them. That was a CR 6 encounter, and you ended it in the first round before any of the living ones could act. You blew up the ones that got the better initiatives. I think I can go a little rough on you. Or maybe use more open areas.

400 XP to everyone. Janis might want to get her shoes cleaned.

And Iloren, the civilian is thoroughly convinced you're a wizard, if ever a wiz there was.

[NeoSeraphi]

Ali sighs in relief and quickly stashes his blade. "Looks like you get to live to get eaten another day, aye? But where did those creatures even come from?"

Curious, Ali walks over to the creatures. After quickly peeking behind him to confirm that Amelia has not entered the scene, he will inspect one of the bodies.


Appraise to determine highest value of any items present: [roll0]
Perception to search the bodies: [roll1]

[Vhaidara]

Knowledge (Local) to identify Asuhara as a Maenad (if needed): [roll0]
Sense Motive to tell if Asuhara was misleading with the addition of verbal and somatic components: [roll1]

Anna slaps the flat of her sword to her side, and it wraps around her waist, returning to its belt state. She turns to Asuhara, a grin on her face
Well, assistance of that caliber was quite a shock! Well cast, good mage.
She looks back to the civilian
Are you hurt?

[Mechanix]

Janis frowns, stepping out of the gore of the beheaded enemy, and taps her boots on the wall. "Why'd the mage get all the respect? I cut down one of these pretty good, too!" She pulls out a piece of cloth, wiping the blood off it. "But well done, well done. So, any of you civilians feel like telling me what's going on here? Maybe the impending victim, freshly saved from his doom?" She leans over the still-shaken halfling, grinning widely.

[LordHavelock]

Zechs sidles up to the side of the alley surreptitiously, keen to observe the remnants of the conflict and having magically shifted his appearance to something a bit less flamboyant. A scarf covers his features like a mask and a broad brimmed hat casts a shadow over his eyes, but nonetheless he peers into the alley and strains his ears to listen at what might have occurred, taking stock of all those and all that which he can see. His weapons he returns to their holsters, concealed behind him by his cloak.


Stealth Check to remain unnoticed at the entry to the alley:
[roll0]
Perception Check to observe the goings on:
[roll1]
Sleight of Hand to conceal my pistols:
[roll2]

[Ilorin Lorati]

"Hmf. Metinks that may have been a bit overkill." Asuhara's arm crackles a little bit with leftover electrical energy after the rather explosive display she put forth, prompting the woman to shake it for a few moments and moving to rest against the wall to collect herself (Focusing herself and her Psicrystal - Fire this time). Calling into the alleyway, she replies to Janis: "Yes, ma'am. You did well once you got your scythe out of the crowd. Praise isn't what's important, though - what were those things?"

[Elapid66]

"Are you Okay?" Vara asks the civilian as soon as it is clear that he is safe. She wonders what those things were, they seemed to be involved with some kind of magic and clearly were not undead or any sort of humanoid. "What were those?" Vara asks Ali and the others, curious if anyone else had seen something like them.

[GFawkes]

You don't find anything of value, though the one that Janis sliced has what looks like chunks of rat in its stomach.

You can tell that Asuhara was faking it. You can also tell that she's not human, but part of a highly emotional race called maenads. You've seen them once or twice in the Foreign District.

You can see and hear everything that goes on, but just about any amount of trying to hide it works on you.


"F-Fine. Thank you for saving me." the halfling stammers. "I-I'm not sure what those things were. I was just taking a shortcut through here when the ground opened up and those things crawled out. I-I wasn't sure what to do, so I screamed.

"Sounds like you got a little in over your head." Amelia Gilder states before entering the alley, lifting a chunk of creature up with her staff before letting her magic take over in manipulating it. "This just shows why I'm going to beat that thief senseless before handing him over to the authorities." she mutters under her breath.

[Vhaidara]

Anna stores the information about Asuhara for later. She continues comforting the halfling
Don't worry, you're safe now. Go enjoy the festival, and stay out of the back alleys.
Anna then looks at Amelia, perplexed
Thief? This seems like a significantly bigger problem than a thief.

[NeoSeraphi]

"Obviously she means that someone stole something valuable, something magic by the looks of it. Poor schmuck probably didn't even realize what he took, he just grabbed it because it was shiny and looked expensive. Now there's crazy monsters running around because whatever that guy took he wasn't supposed to take. Maybe sold it to the wrong buyer," Ali theorizes, shrugging his shoulders. "Only amateurs steal things they know nothing about."

[Mechanix]

"Chief! So glad to see you hear! Sorry you missed the action. We got them easy, whatever those things were. What thief? This guy here? Looks more like a victim. Is someone summoning nasties inside the city? I can deal with that. Just point me at them and I'll wack them good!" Janis illustrates her statement by dramatically waving her scythe in the air, scraping paint off the walls.

[Ilorin Lorati]

Asuhara stays silent, stepping into the alleyway to take a look at the carnage. She actually looks legitimately surprised that the creatures exploded like that, almost like she didn't know it was something she was capable of. After a few moments she looks up and continues Ali's thought. "Only fools or the desperate would deal with something they're not sure of, I would say." The irony is quite obviously not lost on her.

[GFawkes]

Amelia raises an eyebrow at Ali. "That's.... a surprisingly accurate assessment. I wasn't aware that we were releasing details of this to the public." she says. She looks ready to ask a few questions when Janis speaks up.

Turning to the eager guard, Amelia winces at the minor vandalism. "Since you've seen why it's an issue, I can tell you the rest. Some thief stole a relic from the temple of Arqueros, and apparently didn't realize it was powering a spell that prevented evil creatures from being summoned or created within the city. In an attempt to prevent everyone from panicking, we're keeping this low-key. As to your question about what these things are, they used to be a low form of demon. I believe they were called dretches. Now, they're a pile of body parts. From this I can gather that someone is, as you put it, 'summoning nasties'." She says flatly, a little hesitant to use Janis's wording.

She turns to the rest of the group. "If any of you know anything at all about this, we're looking for help solving this quickly and quietly."

[Vhaidara]

Anna ***** her head.
Hm, let me think...

Knowledge (Local) to see if Anna is aware of any recent cult or cult-like activities in the area: [roll0]
I'm using Know(Local) because I'm thinking of things like spouses or older children being out with no good explanation (would have heard from the spouse/parent who suspects an affair/some random teenager shenanigans). Maybe people who have gone missing after acting strangely?

[NeoSeraphi]

"It's nothing major, just common sense. If you don't want people picking up on the details, perhaps you shouldn't disclose them out loud to yourself?" Ali counters, matching Amelia's gaze. "The temple of Arqueros, huh? I have some contacts in the Thieves' Guild. Perhaps I can be of service in tracking the stolen item down for you, provided there's a reward involved and the thief is granted amnesty in exchange for his cooperation, of course. I understand if you don't want to make deals with criminals but if your alternative is planar demons running around, I'm sure you'd rather cave?"


Knowledge (Religion): [roll0]

[Mechanix]

"So wait. A single relic in some random temple is the only thing preventing this city from being overrun by demons? Damn." Janis seemed to calm down slightly, bringing her scythe to rest on her shoulders, and smiled. "The guard's work is never done. I'll help! It's my job. I'll follow around whoever can track that thief and keep the dretches - or whatever else crops up - in check. By which I mean in bloody bits."

Knowledge (local) Check: [roll0] to have any idea as to who could know the whereabout of a relic thief.

[LordHavelock]

Listening in on the conversation does little to assuage Zech's otherwise healthy sense of paranoia, not to mention concerns for more legitimate business interests (his own and his client's). Demons and cults and corruption are not the usual fare for him to deal with, but it's certainly not the sort of problems he'd pin his hopes on the city watch dealing with, let alone this band of freelancers now bandying about bold claims at dealing with this thief. Deciding it's well past time he made this mess a priority, Zechs casually sidles up next to the lead guard, Amelia, and clears his throat to make his presence known.

"You'll pardon my intrusion, I'm sure." He says, inclining his head and tipping his hat in a gesture of the barest courtesy to those assembled, before turning to give Ms. Gilder a more pointedly deferential gesture by bowing, "But it happens I would be inclined to assist in whatever endeavors should be required to retrieve this artifact, and am in fact, under contract to do just that." Sweeping his broad brimmed hat off by way of introduction, he pulls down his scarf to reveal a cool and wary smile, "My name is Allister, professional thief-taker and agent of the collective merchant's society of Hearkenhearth."


[roll0]

[NeoSeraphi]

Ali raises an eyebrow. "An agent of the merchant's society? A thief-taker, huh? Hah. I'd like to see you even try to catch a thief in this city. We are a slippery bunch, after all." He smirks and strolls right up to Allister, casually slipping his knife out of his sleeve and raising it to the stranger's neck. "One wrong move and you might find yourself dead, after all." He pulls the blade back into his sleeve and then gives a swift bow of his head. "Of course, as long as I can expect you to not exercise any unnecessary force upon myself or my comrades, I'd be more than happy to work with you without things getting too...messy.

"The only way to catch a thief," he continues, turning back to Amelia, "is with a thief. And though I'm not normally interested in assisting this fine city with its theft problem, of which I admit, I am a part of, this type of public endangerment is just plain unacceptable. Thieves steal because they need to, not because they're criminals. Just enough to eat, plus 10 gold for savings, that's my motto. This artifact must be returned, and I'm the one to do it."

[Ilorin Lorati]

Asu held back a morbid laugh at the conversation unfolding in front of her. She loved this city, yes... but her thought process was similar to Zech's: if the guard was all that stood between the city and utter destruction, maybe she'd be better off going somewhere far away. Maybe she'd go visit the sea...

Of course, then the thief decided to pitch the fact that he was a thief as a selling point to working with the guard, and her calm broke out into laughter. "You're crazy. You just openly admitted to being a thief in front of two members of the guard, and you're expecting them to want to work with you on something that supposedly has the fate of this city in the balance?"

"Everyone just saw what it is that I do best, but even I'm less of a crapshoot than mister 'Trust me, I'm a criminal' over there." To show her point, she motions over to the sizzling mess that she made of three of the four things that had attacked earlier.

[Elapid66]

Vara remains quiet. Numerous thoughts go through her head. "Oh my, I hope the thieves don't go after the temple of Shelyn next" and "Wow, Ali sure knows a lot about this, I hope he isn't going to get himself in trouble" she is slightly comforted when she hears him speak about only taking enough to eat and a little for savings. "Of course he wouldn't knowingly take an artifact like that, he doesn't want to destroy the city".

Eventually, she gathers the courage to speak to Amelia. "If I see anything, I'll inform the temple of Arqueros"

[LordHavelock]

When the rather boisterous, self-proclaimed thief proceeds to march up to Zechs and put a blade to his throat, he immediately reaches for his weapons, eyes narrowing as much in disbelief as surprise. To admit to thievery as a 'profession' in front of two guards and a thief-catcher hardly seems like the thinking of a master criminal, but for the moment, this 'Ali' has the advantage, and Zechs is none the more relieved even after he has put his blade away. At this range, it would be child's play to put two rounds through him, and a less tempered mind would likely have done so, but Zechs takes a long moment taking his measure before pulling up his mask and donning his hat once more.

"Mad men do not make good thieves." He said in response to Asu's commentary, "Fools on the other hand, are often the quickest to believe themselves above the law, and just as likely to make claims and threats they're not prepared to make good on." The words are uttered with a biting chill, but no specific animosity directed towards Ali.

"As I said though, I'm under contract with the merchant's guild for a specific task." Not technically a lie, given that Zechs was in fact on retainer with the merchant's guild, in one or more of his various alias's, "Not out to sweep trash like you off the street. Inevitably, there's ten more just like you to take the last batch's place come the next festival." Again, Zech's tone conveys a dispassionate, casual detachment, as if he were rattling off a business ledger.

[NeoSeraphi]

"Then we have an accord. And if you are a proper gent like you claim to be, then I expect you to hold up your end of the bargain," Ali replies, his eyes narrowing. "Just remember where you are. This is the Trade District. The merchants have a stake in this place, but the Guild runs it, and if a man wanders alone in this place after claiming to be a thief-taker, he's going to end up stripped naked in an alleyway and left for dead faster than he can draw a weapon. You may think of us as 'trash', but you have no idea who you're dealing with. I do."

Turning to the sorceress, Ali smiles and nods politely. "And why should I admit to anything else, my lady? I may be a thief, but I'm no liar. If the city took care of its poor and its homeless, there would be much fewer of us. But they don't, and if Miss Gilder is too proud to enlist the help of someone who is both offering it and has the skills necessary to catch someone that she has so far failed to capture, then so be it. However, if you think that you have some method of capturing this thief that the guards haven't tried yet, Mister Thief-Taker...then please, enlighten us. Because my idea is 'go speak to the thieves themselves', but you can't exactly pull that one out of your hat now can you?"

[Vhaidara]

Anna knows immediately that Zech's is lying, but doesn't question it. She sees how hostile the situation has become and decides to intervene.
Everyone, please. Whatever we all do for a living, I doubt that we will be able to continue doing it if the city is overrun by demons. I'm sure that this young man is quite capable of helping us track down the thief we need to find, and I'm sure that the guard could find an appropriate reward for his services. Amnesty for past crimes, perhaps?


Diplomacy: [roll0]
Directed at Amelia, but also as a general mediation

[Mechanix]

Janis scratches her head, a bemused smile on her lips, as the interaction unfolds before her. "You all are a curious bunch," she muses, before clearing her throat audibly, and smiling more widely - in an obviously forced manner - at everyone around her.

"Oy, halfling! You're cute. I like you. You're like a grumpy cat defending his territory. But a cat's claws don't cut deep. The Guild may 'run' the Trade District, but I am the Guard; I am the law. Cease your prattling, now, if you please; lest I smack you over the head with the blunt end of my scythe, and there is nothing your Guild will do about it. As for the others, don't tease the halfling. They're small in a world of big people, it makes them defensive," she says, nodding sagely to herself.

"All y'all's help is appreciated, but don't threaten the others who are offering to help as well, heh? If anybody ends up naked in an alleyway, it'll be my job to beat up soundly whoever did it. And I do so love beating up people. And if other people start trying to arrest people helping save the city on account of them being thieves the rest of the time, then it's just more headache for me, right? Let us all be friends and work together.

Now that we've all bragged our share, I suggest those of you civilians who'd rather go back to their safe daily routine to do so; and those of you who would wish to help save, well, everyone, we will devise a plan, right? I like the halfling's idea. It's elegant in its simplicity. Anyone got a better suggestion?"

[GFawkes]

Nothing really cult-y happened recently. There was a guy yelling about the end of the world a few days ago, but he also seemed to think that housecats were the deadliest of all the creatures in the multiverse and that pants were an abomination to the gods. No one really took him seriously, and no one is quite sure, or caring, about what happened after that.

Arqueros is the god of Protection and Watchfulness. Makes sense that something protecting the city would be in his temple.

You can't recall any exact names, but your best bet would be someone in the Trade District, possibly the Foreign District.

"There's more to it than that, but the artifact was providing the majority of our protection." Amelia speaks to Janis.

She turns to the newcomer when he bows. "Officially speaking, we can't accept help from un-deputized civilians, and I don't have the necessary items on me to deputize you right now. Unofficially, we need to solve this as quick as we can, and I don't much care how."

When Ali mentions he's a thief, Amelia's grip tightens on her staff. "I'll forget about that comment if you forget what you shouldn't have heard from me." She sighs with a tired 'the things I put up with' look towards Janis. Amelia gives a polite nod of affirmation to Vara. "There would be a possibility, based on the nature of this matter. Though it would need communication with Corporal Spynson... She drifts off, then snaps her head to look at a blank wall momentarily before talking again. "I'm needed elsewhere. Private Janis, make sure these civilians don't do anything too stupid." she says before walking out of the alley. A turn of the corner and a tap of her staff, and she vanishes.

[Vhaidara]

Well, she's abrupt
Anna looks around at the rest of the various companions, and notices Vara.
Oh, Vara, I didn't realize it was you. How have you been?

[NeoSeraphi]

"Wait, Vara, you know this woman?" Ali comments, raising his eyebrows. "Ah well, not much else we can expect from her, I guess. She's desperate to find that artifact though. Wish she would have mentioned a description in her little slip of the tongue. That would help a lot. But she didn't, so I guess I'll just have to do more ground work looking for it."

[LordHavelock]

"A full description of the artifact can no doubt be obtained from it's previous owners, and it is with them I suggest we should next inquire. That is, after we have made a more formal introduction of all those who will be participating in this investigation. Private Janis, Anna, Vara, and . . ." He turns towards the thief who had threatened him earlier, "Mister Ali, should we not adjourn to a more private location to discuss our next step in full, or is it agreed we should make our way to the Temple of Arqueros? I assume everyone is as tired of spending time in this alley as I am."


To find out anything more about the temple of Arqueros:
[roll0]

[Elapid66]

Vara turns to Anna and says: "Oh, I didn't see you there. It has been a while since you came into the temple. Things have been fairly busy due to the upcoming revelry and there will likely be even more to do with this artifact missing now that we know about it." she then looks over to Ali: "Yes Ali, we met when she came into the temple a while back. I'm worried about that missing artifact, things get crazy enough at the revelry without demons getting loose in the street. We need to find that thing as soon as possible. Anyway, I'm glad Amelia left, I thought for sure she was going to try to arrest you."


Knowledge(religion) about Arqueros [roll0]
Knowledge(local) about Herkenhearth's temple to Arqueros [roll1]

[NeoSeraphi]

"Well, I'm still convinced the best way to deal with this is to talk to my contacts, but it won't do me much good if I can't confirm the artifact on sight. Alright. I'm in. The Temple of Arqueros it is, then."

[Vhaidara]

Sorry, I've had to work a bit more since Ranborg left.
She turns to the rest of the group.
Well then, to the temple, I guess.

Knowledge (Local): [roll0]
Knowledge (Religion): [roll1]

[Mechanix]

"Temple sounds good." Janis thought briefly that perhaps sending Ali on his own to interrogate his contacts would be much more time-economical - but then, she didn't trust a halfling thief as far as she could throw him, so she'd rather keep him in sight for now. "I'll lead the way. Be the official-looky person when they ask us questions." With these words, she departed the alley, humming an old marching song.

[Ilorin Lorati]

Asuhara sighed softly and followed the rest of the group to, she assumed, the temple.

[NeoSeraphi]

"Oh right. Vara I have something to talk to you about later. Want to get some dinner? My treat," Ali offers, fingering the jewel in his pocket.

[Vhaidara]

Anna follows the guard and the phony spellcaster, pondering the events of today. Certainly more excitement than she had been expecting.

[GFawkes]

Arqueros, also known as the Golden Bulwark, was an archon before his ascendancy to godhood. He is the front line of defense against diabolic and demonic large scale invasions. His clerics wear heavy armor, and tend to focus more on solid defense than offense, fitting with his portfolio of protection. He's one of the few Empyreal Lords, powerful angels that have unique abilities beyond the standard.


The Temple of Arqueros is more of a fortress than a classic temple, built as a testament to their god.

The Temple of Arqueros is built to be defended, complete with full ramparts and an armory. The clergy double as soldiers, and have a history of being the best in Herkenhearth. As a result of recent events, they've doubled up on guard duty.

As you arrive at the temple, you can see that the priests are busy, patrolling the exterior, and surely the inside as well. As you approach, a tall humanoid, most likely a human, though his thick armor and helmet makes it impossible to tell, steps up to you.

"Greetings, fellow citizens. What brings you to the Golden Bulwark's Temple on this day?" His voice rings through his armor, making it deep and echoing.

[NeoSeraphi]

Ali walks into the temple and nods politely to the guard, but he doesn't speak. He listens attentively, eager to draw out every last detail from the guard's words, but is not the person to do it. Instead, his eyes stretch across the vast expanse of the church's interior, looking at every last nook, cranny, door and window for all possible entries and exits. If I were the thief, Ali thought to himself, where would I have come in from and how would I have stolen from this place without getting caught?


Perception: [roll0]
Knowledge (Local): [roll1] - does Ali know of any connection this place has to the Thieves' Guild?
Knowledge (Engineering): [roll2] - Untrained, maximum of 10, but I want to know if Ali's grasp of thievery allows him to spot any structural weaknesses that can be exploited

[LordHavelock]

Zechs steps up and ahead of Janis, having hung back until now and with a gracious bow presents himself to the guard. "Greetings in return. We are on official business investigating the disappearance of relic from this temple, on behalf of the city watch and certain other benefactors." Since he is not himself beholden to the watch, he includes the latter as something of a vague reference to his presence. "We would speak with whomever is handling the internal investigation as to how the holy relic was purloined, and in addition, would care to consult any archives or records you have to the nature of the object itself. You may consult with Madame Amelia Gilder via Corporal Spynson if further credentials are required, but I'm sure you can agree that time is of the essence in discerning and remanding the relic to it's resting place here.


Diplomacy: [roll0]

[Vhaidara]

Anna also steps forward, presenting herself with a bow.
Miss Gilder has already informed us as to the relic's general purpose. Any aid you can give us is greatly appreciated. In particular, a description. Our young friend here- She gestures to Ali -believes he may have friends who may have seen it.

Diplomacy: [roll0]

[Mechanix]

Well, the little ones seemed to have things rather in hand as far as all this talky stuff was concerned. "Hi! I'm Janis of the Guard," she adds cheerfully after her companions' introduction. "'case it needs to be said, I confirm everything they say. They're consultants, I guess you could say. No efforts are spared to make sure this city is not-" she leans over, whispering with wide eyes and dramatically emphasizing her words: "-overrun by demons! So yeah, anything you can tell us."

Aid Another to the Diplomacy rolls being done, if at all possible: [roll0]

[Elapid66]

"I'm Vara, a simple cleric of Shelyn. As the other have said, we are interested in the missing artifact. If there is anything that I can do to help out, just say the word."

[GFawkes]

You can see that there was no forced entry, at least from the inside. The temple's only connection to the Thieve's Guild is that one thief, Andyl, pointed out that their god and the guild had the same sales pitch of 'That's a nice thing you've got there. Be a shame if something happened to it.' He now has the nickname 'Gummy'.

As for the structure, it looks pretty solid, though the walls aren't perfectly smooth, and could probably be climbed with proper equipment.

The guard ponders your questions, then responds to Janis "You're in charge of these consultants? It is good to know that we are going full ahead. The Amulet of Samonthasse isn't something we want out of our sight for longer than needed. Your partner has the right idea though. Get a description and get searching. Come inside, mayhaps you can find something at the scene that we missed." he says, seeming to indicate Anna as Janis's partner.

He leads the group to a large room with a depression at the center. Several people in robes mutter chants at various points, then move on and repeat their chanting. A beam of light falls from the center of the room, highlighting the patterning on the floor.

[Vhaidara]

Anna looks around, absorbing the artwork of the building.
Maybe someday I'll go and visit the temple of Seyanna sometime when Ranborg gets home.

[NeoSeraphi]

"The Amulet of Samonthasee, huh? Alright then. What does it look like? When was the last time anyone in the church saw it? Is there any danger in someone touching it directly?" Ali inquired, his mind racing.

[Ilorin Lorati]

Asuhara thought for a moment as the thief asked his questions. "You missed an important one: who all had access to this place the night it was stolen? I'm afraid I'm not much of a churchgoer so I don't know what hours you keep, but I assume you close at some point?"

[GFawkes]

"Well, let's see...The Golden Bulwark never rests, nor do we, meaning we keep open doors and active vigil. It reacts...violently against evil hands touching it, a defensive measure we put in to keep it safe. It's a roughly shield-shaped amulet, you know, like this." he draws in the air with his finger, making a flat horizontal line, then going straight down, then inwards and down at an angle, upwards at the same angle, then closing it off with a straight line up.

"Last person to see it was Initiate Evans. He's on duty right now, should finish up in an hour or so if you want to question him."

[Vhaidara]

Anna decides to leave the searching for clues to the more competent, like the young thief and the professional investigator.
Initiate Evans? How long has he been an initiate here at the temple?

[NeoSeraphi]

"An hour huh? Well, that sounds good. That should give you guys plenty of time to search the place. In the mean time, I'm going to go have a word with my contacts. I'll come back to the temple after I finish up, hopefully it won't take too long. If you guys need a professional's opinion, stick around and I'd be glad to advise you. Until we meet again." He waves and ducks out of the temple.

Ali fades into the crowd outside and starts to make his way to the Thieves' Guild. He would start with Blake, Blake would be able to tell him who was active in the last few days. Ali just hoped that Blake would be willing to talk, a thief has his right to privacy after all, but this was important. If Blake wouldn't talk, he'd have to track down Veronica, and in order to do that he'd have to hit up Jack's place. A lot of legwork, to be sure. Ali's stomach starts to grumble in protest. He hasn't eaten yet today, the last thing he had was a few pieces of bread about 27 hours ago. His knees weak, Ali shakes his head and keeps moving, eventually sneaking off the street into a back alley. He gently lifts a piece of discarded cardboard off some leaves on the ground and then slips into them, grabbing the ladder beneath so he can rearrange the hiding place from inside the tunnel before he moves on. Secrecy breeds security after all.

Ali continues down the ladder until he reaches the sewer floor. This particular pathway used to lead to a maintenance hallway but it was shut down years ago after an accident caused a worker's death. The Guild took it as their own, and the city was none the wiser. Ali nods to himself as he walks, thinking about exactly what he's going to say. He reaches the maintenance hallway's steel door and knocks three times, whispering, "The orc dodges the steel sword, the elf draws his wooden bow, and I walk away with a heavy coin purse,". After a beat, the door opens and Ali smiles and steps inside. The bar is livelier than usual, and Ali can spot a few new faces among the crowd, though most of the thieves recognize him and give him a polite nod.

Ali moves to the back of the bar and looks at the bartender. "Is the guild master available?" he asks.