All The King's Men (PF/Spheres) IC

[Frog Dragon]

The Northern Road out of Altanova extends far into the horizon, cutting through farmland between Gardalay and the Altain river flowing north into the Palatin Sea. Looking right, the cropland and the occasional vineyard give way to impenetrable forest a scant kilometer away beyond the adobe farmhouses. To the left, the river.

The road begins increasinbly veering east, a telltale sign that you are leaving the territory under the relative control of Tassis&Company. According to your map, Altain ends and Caucin begins here. Looking around, there is very little to indicate that anything has changed. The plots of farmland meld seamlessly into eachother. The silence and morning calm of the country round belie the fact that this land is considered lawless.

A village lies a mere minutes' walk away, the cluster a a couple dozen modest white dwellings neatly bisected by the road. The tax collector must have come through here, and doubtlessly so did Otho Ferrant before him. It is still relatively early, but you can see people moving around the village. Some have left for the surrounding fields. Perhaps someone here knows of the tax collector, or Mr. Ferrant.

https://i.imgur.com/8q6Fi5L.png

[Greenflame133]

Ashie hand her morningstars to Lilly. Scream in a warcry, lightning diczarszes from the ground and hitting her. She takes a from of 6 armed construct, 2 of them thick and powers full with 1 additional arm below and above them. Then grabs she takes back her morningstars and adisonal 2 from Lillys weaponrack. Putting them back at her belt.


Lightings are part of magic singaling, everyone within 30ft is aware she used Alteration magic
fort save [roll0] VS DC 11, to avoid being sicken.

Then it comes to Prepared Caster all 4 spell points go to Alteration.

also pic dosn't work quite right you copping link (https://i.imgur.com/8q6Fi5L.png) works

[Gunhaven]

Dolgrin let someone else be the navigation during such a vague part of the trip. He would be better suited when there was an actual set of tracks to follow versus the general direction of where they were to start. He kept alert, though, with his shield out and his plethora of weapons within reach of his free hand in case he needed something else. For the most part he was quiet and any talk he had done was dedicated towards the mission and confirming what they were in the area for.
Thus he paused when he saw some of the locals starting to get to work. He held out his unburdened arm and said in a low enough voice ”Do one of ya want to talk to them? I think…” he paused and looked over the group again before he continued ”...we could exchange labor for information. Probably more helpful than some coin.” He waited long enough for an answer before he followed the group again.

[thegoldenfedora]

Pratt, follows along aimlessly, occasionally creating illusionary dragons to flit about to keep his boredom from becoming too pressing. His youth was abundantly clear and some might have mistaken him to be much younger than he actually was. A trait he would use to his advantage when it suited him.

As they neared the workers, Pratt got excited for something to finally happen. At Dolgrin's suggestion to offer assistance with their work he grimaces in dismay at the thought of doing menial labor. He hadnt done any as a noble, and he had done much to much as a grunt in the war.

As the lighting strikes Ashie, he jumps in surprise. Once he settles he turns to his six armed ally.

"Will you be doing that every time we happen upon a bunch of villagers?" he said rubbing his ears from the sound.

Shrugging he continues on to the villagers, "Hullo there, I'm Pratt, we are her to see Otho Ferrant, would you happen to know where we could find him?" He mentally apologies to Dolgrin, he would try to get info before actually offering their services.

[warper]

Maverick walks in front of the group, guiding them and looking for danger underneath his wide brimmed straw hat. As the others walk in silence, Maverick fells quite comfortable, silence was the normal while traveling as a scout. ”People up ahead.” Maverick says for anyone not paying attention.

In response to Dolgrin: ”I’m not sure they’ll even require payment for simple information. I think we should just ask first.” Maverick raises an eyebrow at Ashie after the transformation. He nods at Pratt’s words. ”Agreed, I doubt these folk will even speak to us with you looking like that.”

Maverick continues into the village, hoping they’ve already been seeing some really weird stuff.

Hey Greenflame, I’m having trouble interpreting your post. Could you help me understand it. Perhaps it’s the typos or something, sorry.

[Greenflame133]

"I would hate to show my true face with in the town. Mere thought of people pointing out my race, and in fact if at all possible I would stay in this form all the time." Ashie look at the gose pundering if how she would walk in.

[Frog Dragon]

The first villager you run into is a man, perhaps forty years of age, walking out of the village. It is clear that he is somewhat wary of you, with the strange appearance of the party and inexplicable noises earlier. He seems almost relieved when all you do is ask him a question. You can see that further into the village, more people are beginning to congregate, looking out of the porches of their little abodes.

"Ferrant? He took over the Morillo manor due southeast. Hard to miss, with the empty vineyard and the fire damage. He might not be there now, but he should come back eventually."

[warper]

Maverick looks at the other two, hoping someone else would speak up. When no one does, Maverick nods to the man. ”Thank you kindly sir. Um, could you tell us how long he’s been gone? Where’d he go?”

Maverick peers past the man in the direction he’s pointed, ignoring the stares. ”What’s goin on with these fires?” Maverick almost tacked on another question: Anything we can do? But held his tongue. He used to be a farmer and damn well knew the answer.

[thegoldenfedora]

Pratt lets Maverick take care of the dialogue for a moment, focusing more on his the area that the villager had pointed out to, as well as the other townsfolk who were beginning to gather. Sensing their hesitation, he gives a small wave to them, "You don't get much visitors do you?" he queries after a moment.

[Greenflame133]

Ashie stays back, leaving talking up to others, she never was one to talk. Lilly would talk to in her place, but for now it seems villagers have a lot of questions to answer already

[Frog Dragon]

The man shrugs. "Mr. Ferrant goes as he wishes. Rightly it ain't my business where he goes. But for now, the manor is his. The fires were a year ago. Bandit raid. All the workers there left, and the steward left. Lord Morillo never came back to get the manor fixed. So that's how it is now."

Looking to where the villager pointed yields no additional clues. Clearly, the manor in question is too far to be seen from here. The brief commotion on the village road starts to dissipate as it becomes clear the travelers, as strange as they may seem, aren't doing more than talking.

[Gunhaven]

With a frown, Dolgrin mumbled "That's about all we'll get here, aye?" He gave a slight nod to the villager and began to walk towards the southeast, pausing when he was a couple dozen feet away and called back "We should go look at that manor. Maybe there's a different answer there."

[warper]

Maverick nods to the man. ”Thanks for yer time.” Maverick follows Dolgrin. When he catches up to the dwarf speaks while looking ahead. ”I’ll have a quick look around outside the manor while you investigate.”

[thegoldenfedora]

Not wanting to be left behind, Pratt rushes off to catch up as everyone heads to the manor. "For some reason, I was expecting that to be so much harder than it was."

[warper]

Maverick chuckles. He looks behind towards the six armed creature.”Perhaps our large companion has something to do with their compliance. Though I think it’s more about getting us moving.”

[Gunhaven]

Dolgrin hummed in thought and said ”Either works for me. I doubt there’ll be many, if any, tracks left.” He looked over at the shifter and added ”Didcha want to join me, lad? Orcs were good soldiers during the war and you look strong enough to sort through the rubble.”

[Greenflame133]

Ashie look other when mentioned. "I'm only slightly blucker average human and.. ".

Lilly interrupts her. Yeah, but getting hit with six morningstars is something they would avoid.

[Frog Dragon]

Bypassing the village entirely, you follow the man's directions and take the fork southeast. This area seems to be mainly used for grape cultivation. Passing by the plantations, you can see farm workers in the still sprouting rows of vines. It is planting season, and the vines are being tied to their supporting wires and poles.

These vineyards however, are clearly not abandoned. Forging onward, you eventually see someone quite distinct from the peasants of the area. Someone who seems to be armed and armored, coming from the opposite direction. Seeing you, the figure turns around and picks up the pace, suddenly in a hurry.

The next parcel of vineyards is empty, with weather-beaten and old poles, and no actual vines that you can see. Beyond that parcel is a house, much larger than any of the other farmhouses you've come across, with what appears to be a walled yard.

[thegoldenfedora]

"Well that's rude, he just met us." Pratt said with a false pout. "Give it up buddy, your already surrounded!" he calls ahead. Drawing his rapier with one hand, his other hand weaving arcane symbols until he points his weapon out and summons forth a construct. He made it match Ashie in appearance, already wielding six wicked looking morningstar's. It was all fake of course, not no one else has to know. "Now let's all relax a moment shall we?"

Spending one spell point to summon an illusionary copy of Ashie's construct form

[Gunhaven]

Dolgrin sighed and drew one of his plethora of hammers as he turned towards the man. He kept his eyes focused on the ground just before him, making a note of the tracks he leaves, and adjusting his stance somewhat. He grumbled loud enough for the other person to hear ”It’s better to talk now versus after we get done with the light jog it’ll take for us to catch you.”

[Greenflame133]

Lilly walks closer and rides her bow. "Halt of I will shoot". Ashie gets ready to shoot her slink at man if he keeps running.

[warper]

Maverick slings his crossbow from his back to his chest and holds it casually. ”Uh, guys, do we need violence?”

Maverick wasn’t sure who the man was and wasn’t sure shooting him was the right thing to do.

Edit: Ah, OOC thread basically confirmed my suspicions.

[Gunhaven]

Dolgrin is already accepting the detour as he says "Yer not wrong but someone armed like us probably is prepared for trouble, aye?" His eyes briefly leave the point they were looking at as he looked back and added "Maybe it's one of those bandits. Or maybe it's just another mercenary like us. Point is the manor won't be leaving like that lad has." He then continued the brisk jog to catch up with where the person was heading.

[Frog Dragon]

You're fairly sure the figure didn't hear you, because he doesn't turn around at all. Instead he keeps pace, turning northeast. Best you can tell from your map, this road leads directly to another one of the small villages in Caucin.

The armored figure is singleminded in his movement, and the farmers sowing in the adjacent fields do not seem to pay him any mind. However, when you pass by, some of them stop and stare for a moment before returning their work.

[Gunhaven]

Dolgrin will continue tracking the man down unless someone specifically tells him to stop. He wanted to find out why there was another armored figure from another town out here and made no real pain to try and hide that fact. The only time he adjusted his course was if he'd run into a farmer trying to do their job before he returned to the north eastern direction.

[Greenflame133]

Lexara and Ashie won't stop Dolgrin they want to find out themselves.

[warper]

Maverick will follow Dolgrin, having no pressing matters. "I suppose the manor can wait."

[Frog Dragon]

Looking back, the armored figure can clearly see your pursuit. He appears undeterred however, and marches along regardless. His path leads him into a nearby village, where you can see the streets are less busy than they might normally be. You can still see the occasional villager tending to a garden or the like,

The armored figure reaches the temple of Nuwa in the village, and walks through the opened gate to the courtyard. There appears to be some kind of gathering in progress, and you can hear discussion from the courtyard.

The temple is largely made from the same materials as the adobes, being a white earthwork building. However, it is larger, and has a shadowed entrance supported by columns, as well as a bell tower with the Martyr's Flame symbol of Nuwa on top of it, and an attached fenced courtyard to the side.

[Gunhaven]

Dolgrin wasn't a religious type, just like he wasn't a stealthy type. He did pause at the entrance to the temple and double checked his equipment, as well as finally attaching his throwing hammer once more to it's loop. Once he was less of an immediate threat he entered the temple courtyard proper and looked around to see if there was any other armored and/or armed individuals that stood out or, assuming that failed, attempted to bypass the congregation as best as he could in search of the man.

[thegoldenfedora]

Letting Dolgrin take the lead, Pratt followed, his hand resting easily on the pommel of his rapier. He took in the sight unconcernedly as he scanned for the fleeing man.

"What do we do when we find him?" he whispered to Dolgrin.

[Gunhaven]

In a similarly low voice Dolgrin replied "We ask what he was doing there and why he returned here. Make it sound like we're more adventurers and less former soldiers."

[Greenflame133]

"why? It seems like pretending we are on a side of law would put us in direct opposition to guy we want to find and dispache. Would be best if people know we are here to bring things back to normal" Ashie comments.

[Frog Dragon]

Making your way into the courtyard, you pass by some villagers leaving the courtyard. They give you plenty of space as you come in. The crowd appears to be thinning. Whatever was happening here is ending.

The courtyard opens into a largish square fenced area, largely occupied by lawn with tiled walkways at the edges, as well as another walkway bisecting the lawn with an altar in the middle. A few peasants still linger, and you can see maybe a dozen people around the courtyard. Two men in chainmail leaning into the fence eye you as you come in. By the altar, you can see three people. A priestess clad in all black robes, holding a small book and with the Martyr's Flame hanging from her neck. Then, the armored figure you were following, whose equipment looks just like the men leaning into the fence.

The third is taller by a head than both of them, clad in a beige greatcoat reaching almost to his ankles and a worn tricorne. All three turn to look at you as you pass through the gate. The priestess is the first to open her mouth. "Did you come to pay your respects? The procession is over, but I can show you there."

[Gunhaven]

Dolgrin motioned with his unencumbered hand towards the third, tallest, armored figure and said in his typical gruff voice "We actually came to see him, lass. Us armored lads stick out in these fields and I wanted to know why he was there and then returned here." He then seemed to acknowledge the fact that they weren't just armored but one member was obviously magical in nature, adding as an afterthought "Probably best if we talk out here though. I don't know how well the lad'll fit inside."

[Greenflame133]

Ashie looks over a lilly looking at her for more some soft of guidance but lilly just shrugs as she is a creature of the forest, not knowing much about social intrigue

[thegoldenfedora]

Pratt skips around his larger companions to meet the three representatives. "Of course when you're traveling it is always good to meet your host town and introduce yourselves. While we did come purely out of curiosity about this fellow, it was fortunate since he led us here to meet the church of the Martyrd Flame and be able to give a warm hullo." Pratt waves to everyone before introducing himself, "Hullo, I am Pratt!"

[Frog Dragon]

"We prefer 'Temple of Nuwa'" The priestess says. "The Martyr's Flame is just a symbol."

The armed men seem disinterested in theology, and the tall man in the greatcoat rolls his eyes. Then his features sharpen. "Uh-huh. I'm sure your armed band came here just to take in the scenery." Then he turns to the priestess and speaks in not quite a whisper. "I would speak with these people privately."

She looks your group up and down and announces "Do so outside our temple." The last few peasants have left the courtyard, leaving only the ten of you. The man in the greatcoat waves the armored men to follow him back out the courtyard gate, waving your party to follow as well as he passes by.

As he passes by you can clearly see he has at least a sword under the greatcoat, the scabbard poking out through the fabric at the back.

[thegoldenfedora]

"Yeah I'm not too fond of sightseeing, we simply were on our way to the manor when we saw this guy, and we didn't want anyone to be alarmed by our sudden appearance." Pratt speaks easily and without reservation, he had little interest in the situation, but erred on the side of avoiding extra confrontation.

[Greenflame133]

She waits for man to get away fat enought not to hear her. "Yes, let's see if we can get any info and leave asap"

[Gunhaven]

Dolgrin gave a shrug and followed the probable leader of the group wordlessly.

[warper]

”I enjoy seeing sights myself. But yes, Pratt is right. We have other motives..”

Maverick will also follow the man, curious what he’d have to say.

[Frog Dragon]

The tall man walks out the gate onto the street, takes a few steps, and then stops. His entourage stays slightly spread out around you.

"So you're mercs from Altanova. "We have everything under control. The bandits are gone, and me and my men will keep order until the king sends officials here. So if you're looking to enforce the king's peace, I recommend you be on your way."

[Gunhaven]

Dolgrin said flatly ”So what happened with the manor then?” He glanced at the three of them, trying to size up how likely he’d break their ribs if they weren’t in fact maintaining the peace. Then, as if he recalled what led the group to the village in the first place, he nodded towards the armored figure and added in that same monotonous tone ”Lad also seemed to be in quite a rush to get back here. Why’s that?”

[thegoldenfedora]

"You know it comes off as a bit rude to not give your name when someone offers you theirs, you say 'we have it under control' but we have no idea who you are." Pratt tries not to come off as rude himself, but struggled at the prospect of not getting paid.

[warper]

”We won’t leave so easily. I’ve got a job to do and it will be done before I’m gone.” Maverick says with a shrug. In truth, he didn’t care if these people got in the way or not, Maverick’s honor was involved and he certainly wouldn’t back down from a couple of thugs. And that’s what they looked like to him.

Maverick nods pointedly when Dolgrin mentions the manor but says no more.

[Frog Dragon]

The tall man chuckles dismissively. "I am Otho Ferrant, and the fire was a year ago. And it was we who tracked down the bandits who did it and put them to the sword. My man came here to report on suspicious travelers." He steps closer, looming over you. "And if you cause trouble, remember, I am the law here."

Then, he turns around, waves his men to follow, and starts walking away.

[Greenflame133]

Lily not content with this answer whatsoever "hold on Mr.Law, what with taxes?".

[Gunhaven]

Dolgrin nodded at the answer given and question asked. He silently judged his chances again and called out "What brought you out here, lad? And what's the rush?" He figured the man would probably be a better source of news concerning the area if he really was the law.

[Frog Dragon]

"Same thing that brought you." Otho turns halfway to respond. "But I'm not here to answer anymore questions. We have work to do." He turns back around, and keeps walking away, this time not stopping.

Only moments after Otho Ferrant and his entourage leave earshot, you see an old man stand up on the temple entrance. Apparently he had been sitting there the entire time. As he walks past you, he says "Reverend Maria wants to speak to you, inside the temple." He walks on his way, not even looking at you, seemingly not acknowledging you beyond his one sentence.

[Gunhaven]

With a shrug Dolgrin accepts the invitation and starts to head back to the temple. He mumbled so that his comrades could hear him "Best case scenario we can help them. Worst case they're just new bandits."

[thegoldenfedora]

"Yeah, we need to get more info on the area before making any moves, hopefully the church could she'd some enlightenment." Pratt chuckles at his own joke, as he follows along after the old man. He was glad that something as mundane as taxes had become so interesting.

[warper]

Maverick nods in agreement and follows behind. Maverick didn’t like Ferrant and judged him to be a thug within their minute long conversation. Prove me wrong. He thought to himself, though he didn’t really care either way as long as the people were ok.

[Frog Dragon]

The double doors open into a shadowed hall, with a walkway down the middle flanked by currently empty seats. Looking around, you can see narrow windows on both sides of the hall adorned by religious icons. Behind the altar and the pulpit is a large icon of a man on a pyre, looking skyward.

As you step into the hall, the priestess emerges from a side room to the right of the chancel. "You're here. Good." She waves you to join her in the side room, still clad in the black robes. "Sorry about that outside. I wasn't sure how Ferrant was going to react." She says, opening the door for you. "And I needed to be sure you didn't know him already."

The side room is much smaller, and has a desk, a few chairs, shelving, and it seems various ceremonial outfits and items. She sits behind the desk. "Take a seat please." She says. "So," she takes a breath. "How do I start. I'm reverend Maria Anabel, and if you're here because of Ferrant, then there's a lot you should know."

[warper]

Maverick walks in and pays his respects quickly under his breath before moving into the side room. He sees the chairs but instead moves to the side of the door, folding his arms and making sure to close it after everyone walks in. ”I prefer to stand.” After a brief pause Maverick adds: ”No offense.” with a slight nod.

Upon the priestess’ mention of Ferrant Maverick’s interest peaks. ”Anything you can tell us about him will be helpful.”

[thegoldenfedora]

Pratt leans forward in his chair, eager to listen and learn just what was going on in this town. Tax collecting was pretty boring, but now it was getting exciting. "Well I can assure you that we don't know him at all, the man seemed like a not of a jerk."

[Gunhaven]

Dolgrin for his part nodded along as he shuffled his way to one of the seats and hoisted himself up into it. A moment of readjusting and he was ready to contribute once more to the conversation, saying ”Why’d you want to avoid that lot, lass?”

[Greenflame133]

Ashie is quite moving slightly behind Lilly and it seems she would want to say something, but as it is always with her she let's the Lilly talk. "not nessesrly a jerk but not a guy I nessesry like. Definitely wouldn't mind hearing some dirt on him."

[Frog Dragon]

"Right, 'jerk' may be an understatement." She says, launching into an explanation.

"Ferrant came here a couple of weeks ago, from Altanova. And at first, he was very helpful. He took his band of fighters, went into the hills and hunted down the bandits that had been plaguing us." She pauses for a moment.

"Now, if you read the king's edict, you'd expect him to leave. He'd hunted down the outlaws, taken what they had. All who remained were loyal subjects of the king. But instead, he declared that he was going to take back taxes owed to the king for safekeeping. That's something he didn't have the right to do, but most people don't know that, and even if they did, weren't going to argue. Our lords had abandoned us and we had no protection."

"You came here right after the funeral. We were burying the king's envoy and tax collector who died mysteriously five days ago. Ferrant has promised to find the murderer." She leans back in her chair. "I have my doubts."

[thegoldenfedora]

"Well that sounds pretty suspicious. he leans back in his chair, a rougish grin on his face, "It looks like we have a real murder mystery on our hands.

"Well let's start with the obvious. We are here to help to the full extent of our abilities. But I would like to know first, what makes you suspicious?

[Gunhaven]

Dolgrin nodded along and mumbled ”I won’t pretend to understand human politics. What I do understand is what you mean, though. We’ll of course help you as best as we can.” He looked to his comrades for any obvious objections before he turned back and added ”I’ll be the first to admit I don’t know what you need us to do. A duel seems like it’d be the most direct solution but, once more, I don’t know how your politics work.”

[Frog Dragon]

"Not a lot of people have a motive to kill the king's tax collector," she says. "He already broke the law and an agent of the king could've brought the hammer down on him. I don't think King Alonzo would see this as a simple misunderstanding."

"As for you, someone could use the king's edict against him now. Ferrant knows this, and furthermore he knows that if you find out about this situation, you could do so. I'm not sure what he'll do now, but he might try to take you out preemptively. Or he could decide he's satisfied with the scale of his theft and run. And then you would leave empty-handed."

[Gunhaven]

Dolgrin squinted his eyes at the priest and, assuming his hunch was satisfied, he said ”Where can we find Ferrant normally? If our concern is him running then we might as well visit his home or work. Otherwise I can try to track him down if he runs.”

Just to get it out of the way: [roll0]

[thegoldenfedora]

"Yes, I suppose haste would be prudent." Pratt rubs his forehead as he tries to figure out a working plan to expose and take Ferrant down, but nothing particularly genius comes to mind.

[Frog Dragon]

You feel no indication that she is lying. Her explanation appears earnest, if slightly based on conjecture.

"He took over the Morillo manor due south of here. Lord Morillo's steward left for Hajon a year ago and didn't return. You can recognize it by the empty vineyard surrounding it, and the burned facade," she says.

[Greenflame133]

"Burrned facad? Is that something new ot was it destroyed before? Lilly seems intrigued.

[thegoldenfedora]

After Lilly's question had been answered, Pratt chimed in again. "Is there any story behind Morillo? Or did he just peace out for better vineyards?" Pratt figured he should at least try and concert all of their base.

[Gunhaven]

Dolgrin frowned a bit and added "How many others work with Ferrant? I'd rather save the fighting for when we're close." He then got out of the chair and prepared himself for the coming battle.

[Frog Dragon]

"The estate was partially burned a year ago by bandits. Angel Morillo was always an absentee lord, but he had a steward manage affairs here in his stead. Then the bandits set fire to a year's vine crop, and the steward left. That was the situation until Ferrant arrived. He lost some men fighting the bandits, and now I believe they number around 50. But I cannot be sure."

"The estate still belongs to Morillo in deed, but he hasn't been in the region for five years."

[Gunhaven]

Dolgrin frowned at the mention of the number of allies, saying "One of you more social lads can talk to them, then. Do we have anything else we should discuss before we head out? He got down and adjusted his gear, making it as clear as possible that he was ready to go.

[thegoldenfedora]

Pratt stood with Dolgrin to set out, ready for some action. "Thank you for your time." Once they were outside, he began to discuss their plan.

"So we can't very well just storm them with those kinds of numbers. I imagine he probably feels pretty safe behind those numbers as well, so I'm less worried about him running." he begins to think of ways to bypass fifty bandits to get to Ferrant "It seems like we will have to get a bit underhanded."

[Gunhaven]

Dolgrin stroked his beard with his right hand as he thought for a moment once they were free to plot. At mention of fighting dirty he said nonchalantly "As long as it's not elven tactics everything's fair in my opinion. Do you think we could get some to turn or run if we bring up laws being broken? My only other thought right now is to try and challenge Ferrant."