4 - 029: The Fourth Piece

[K Man]

Romar -

The cheers and cries of the public are drowned out quickly as the guards march you down the dank stone tunnel. The tons of rock between you and the fickle mob does much for your aching heart, keeping their angry curses and shouts from striking your ears...but it weighs heavily on you with each step.

Fallen from grace so suickly...

Would it have been different if you had simply acknowledged that Sir Mordrid was the 'Faceless Knight' and left it at that? Given the King ample time to respect his fallen nephew? Does this punishment really fit the crime?

You have no time to think about it as you're thrown into a lightless cell, roughly ten feet to a side. The stone walls, floor, and ceiling are cold, covered in mold and dark - a lifeless cell reserved for the enemies of the state. Surely Romar Belamor, once favored child of Ravenshead, deserves more than this! You turn in protest, only to find that you won't have the option.

The guards say nothing, only casting scowling glances as the heavy iron door is slammed shut, leaving you in the cold dank room alone. The echo from the door rings loud, forcing you to bring manacled hands to your ears. The footsteps of the guards are barely audible as they return to the world of light above, to the world that so quickly turned on you and sent you down here.

Somewhere a drip of water strikes stone...a rat squeaks in a hidden hole...

These are going to be your only comforts for a while, you had better get used to them...

------------------------------------------------------------------------

All But Romar -

Sturmguard walks confidently, an army of advisors in tow. He takes this time to introduce himself more formally to the Kuo-Toan Chieftain, pushing his feelings of sorrow deep down. He becomes the charismatic ruling leader you all know and have come to respect, quickly forging a lasting alliance with this sea-Chief.

He continues to speak in commanding tones as he ascends the central tower to Ravenshead Castle, coming to a stop before the doors to the audience chamber. He opens them and ushers you all into the room, pointing to a table in the center of the room.

The room is opulent, but not overly so. Large tapestries of simple patterns hang from the walls, flanking the large throne that Strumguard should rule from...but you've only ever seen him outside of the Castle, among his people. Even now, when formulating the defense of the city, he sits among you, as one of you.

When Sturmguard speaks now, his eyes drift to the open window overlooking to approaching dust cloud of the 'Master's' army...



"Today's events are tragic, but we cannot falter on them now - there is too much at stake."

His eyes focus on the objects obscured by the dust, flying about through the clouds of the army's wake.

"Krysta is right. If we are to survive this, we will need all the help we can get."

"King Grandil's constructs will keep the walls safe from direct assault and I will order every capable man to the walls for added defense. If Krysta's words our true, then the very forest will lend its defenses as well."

"The Roc Riders will take to the skies and ensure we are not subject to the horrors I'm sure 'The Master' has brought with him. They are well-trained and fluent in the airs...surely they will give the enemy pause."

"The Kuo-Toans have offered to both help in the defense of the walls and the use of their seige-crabs as a strike on the first troops of 'The Master' to show their undying faces..."

Sturmguard nods to the Kuo-Toan Chief in respect of what the sea creatures have offered.

"And I will ensure that morale of those inside will not falter. I will have every available armorer and metal crafter building weapons. Every woman and child will gather supplies and stockade them withint our walls, enough to outlast any siege."

Sturmguard looks out the window again. You notice the fire in his speech is almost angry, as though he is planning on exacting his revenge on 'The Master' for the death of his nephew and only heir, instead of Romar who now lies hundreds of feet below the room in this tower.

He sighs heavily, the gem about his neck jingling lightly on the chain.



"But it won't be enough..."

"Without removing the keystone, a bridge is most difficult to collapse and so we know 'The Master' himself must be removed from this battle."

He turns to meet all of your gazes, as do King Grandil and the Kuo-Toan.

"It is in this we turn to you. Between our leadership, the three of us can keep this city fueled and ready for battle...but we cannot strike at the heart of this engine of war."

"Tell us what we must do to aid you, to be the hand that drives your dagger into his vile heart..."

You pause, realizing three Kings are looking to you for advice.

__________________________________________________________________________________________

{As for the Vein-Riding sidekicks, no problem. Let's just assume a Roc-Rider took them by air to the city where Theld's machine is and taught them the ways. They can be back by nightfall. Sound good?}

[VemuKhaham]

Indeed Romar frowns upon the way he is treated, and upon seeing the dungeon he is thrown in he realizes after all he has done for this city, he is now considered to be no more than the rat squeaking in a shadowy corner. In a last fit of anger he bounces with his fist at the iron door as soon as it is shut tight.

Did they really forget all about Mordrid? Romar sits down to try and remember that day on the fields before the Freehold, when he was to ride out with him, even after he begged to be forgiven yet for the first time - it was there that Mordrid proved to all that he did not possess the quality of atonement. If he had lived up to that course of action, forgiveness was the least Romar could give him. But no, vanished he did into the very air; foul sorcery! And onward he spurred his steed, leaving Romar to break through the lines of the enemy on his own. It was not he that deserved the sour fate of meeting Hirsuthe, nor did his poor Húna; it should've been the fate of Mordrid!

In all his anger he stands up and shouts, though he did not even know whether anybody could hear it.

"Damn it! I had wished this fool of a Mordrid had suffered the same fate as I did when he betrayed us: may Hirsuthe feast on his remainder once this city turns to dust, instead of the vultures I promised him that day!!"

Yet Mordrid got away, receiving forgiveness from Sturmguard while he was still rotting in dirt along with his companions and while his horse was used for dinner by monsters too foul to describe.

For all that, Mordrid could not be forgiven. Not all corpses are to be honored: he honored Ludhèr's body, bringing it to Ravenshead for peace; he honored the mutilated body of Húna, burying its only remains, the heart, as good as he could; he would've honored Hero while she fell valiantly, if he had been there; and only a day ago he honored Veya, and how she gave her life, the only possession she had that could suffice to pay for her deeds; and lastly, he even honored the baby she carried to death, for it was yet too innocent to bear any evil in it. But to him this traitor, Mordrid, bore none of these qualities - innocence, redemption, valor, suffering, self-sacrifice - and he was no more than others of his kind, like Daniel whom he and Yuri easily disposed off, offering him alive to a demon to be tortured forever, without a second thought. The spit on Mordrid's face was, correcting Yuri's sentiment, a spit on all traitors that he had had to endure until now.

Romar would not ask forgiveness for his deed, for he could not see the error in it. Not even if the king locked him up until he was dead; not even if he tortured him for an eternity.

If only he could tell his tale, if only there were ears willing to listen in this dank cell beneath the surface, he would spill it all and demand respect for his deeds.

---

Thanks, Japic and Yuri. And yes, I can understand where you're coming from Japic, a spit on somebody's corpse isn't just something to let happen disregarded. I can fully understand Sturmguard's fury.

Also, just to understand my capabilities at the moment: could I cast a somatic spell with these manacles?

[K Man]

could I cast a somatic spell with these manacles?

- Yes, it would just require a Concentration Check (DC 15) to succeed.

[GeneralMHB]

Yuri listens intently to the King's words. He gives out his possible suggestion to what they can do to aid the group in their mission.

We must have a weapon of some kind that can deal a fatal blow to 'The Master' if such a thing is available. This 'Vein-riding' will be useful to aproach his mobile fortress, however, we will be sent into the middle of an army of the dead. What we will need is a diversion to drive away the bodyguards while we go in and face 'The Master'.

I will go and learn how to "Vein-Ride" immediately. Just show me where I may learn.

Sindri stands by and waits for his master's word to take him where he needs to go to learn. But, not before a conversation is sparked.

[glow=green,2,300]What of Romar?[/glow]

He will most likely rot in the cell for quite some time.

[glow=green,2,300]Why does he show no respect towards Mordrid? This is most unnecessary.[/glow]

I will find answers later my friend, from Veya herself if necessary. I believe Romar has lost all sanity in this dark hour. But first, we must stop this army that approaches Ravenshead.

[glow=green,2,300]You must be referring to using the clerics of the Hidden City to allow Veya to speek.[/glow]

The same. It pains me to disturb her rest, but it is necessary to find answers.

[Japic]

{KMan, we could have them ride in the Bag of Holding and be back in a few minutes rather than all day, it would make yuri available for planning and the Roc riders available for the city's use. We can take care of our own.}

From Yuri's wise words Girud stares at the floor while he thinks. He hadn't considered that... he sort of figured they could walk right up, kill anything in their path, and then beat the Master down. He hadn't considered that their own weapons wouldn't hurt the Master, but he was still willing to try.

Although he wasn't worried about weapons, he was concerned about how to get to the Master. Looking around the room of maps he tries to spot one of the Master's mobile fortress. {I presume he hasn't got one} Well of course he wouldn't... no mortal has been in there much less come back out to tell the tale. Gazing out a window towards the fortress Girud speaks.

"I don't supose it's possible to get a map of where to find the Master in there, eh? Or about what sort of forces we'll be arrayed against once we head in? Hell, even how to GET in would be good to know."

[K Man]

{Only three replies? I'll give it a bit longer before posting.}

{To address the vein-riding learing thing, yes they can do the bag of holding trick. How it get done is really irrelevant.}

[Jevva]

"Well, all we would have to do is vein-ride towards the large moving fortress that the Master is most likely hiding in, right? We could just go all the way up to it, appear out of nowhere, slaughter what guards are there, rush in, and go from there."

[Fangor the Fierce]

Krysta turns to her king, questioningly. "What have you found out about these shards, in the five years that we have been gone?"

Turning to the chief, she asks, "And what power does your shard hold?"

Not quite sure as to how they would bring down the Master himself, Krysta turns to the group.

"The fortress would most likely be less guarded than we might think. The Master has grasped all the lands, save for a few. He would think his plan is succeeding, and might be a bit too confident. Perhaps we can use that against him. If he does think this way, then his fortress would be less guarded than we would think."

As Girud jokingly thinks of a map of the fortress, bells go if within Krysta's head.

"There is a way we can get a glimpse of that fortress, with the cleric's help of course! A spell that can be monitored. Adelia, what was that spell you used earlier?"

Adelia seems a bit on the spot, but doesn't shy away. After all, if they failed, then this meeting would be their last. And she would not want that. "Chain of Eyes. It allowed me to see through the eyes of an animal of my choosing. That ability can then be transfered, if I choose to, to anything touching that creature. As you can see, it chians out, until I see what I need to. If we can get an animal, perhaps one that is insignificant to the troops outside, then it may work. It would infiltrate the troops, and spy on the Master's fortress. If it was as small as a flea, or a fly even, then it could enter with ease, and survey the inside as well. It would grant us all the information that we would need. But alas, it is a spell that I did not prepare for this day. Perhaps one of the other clerics has it prepared. If not, then I could do the preperation in the early morning, and do it prior to heading out to fight."

Krysta then turns to the little goblin, who seems to be in the back of the room, picking at his filthy fingers with a dagger. "Mordrock, is there anything you know about this army and that fortress that may help?"

Mordrock, Knowledge Master's Troops +13 for anything he might know.

"We should have a plan of attack on this Master. He is a powerful one indeed, and no doubt, able to use magic as well. Garor, what can you think of that would help us battle magic? It is foreign to me, but with your powers, you might know of something to aid us in this battle."

[BluSpecs]

"Most of my magics deal with hand to hand combat, I could Hallow the area around us and weaken the undead or create a giant stone wall to block his fortress from moving momentarily"

"I to can scry but I'd need to see the fortress first before I could get a detailed look upon it. I can also see true if that would be usefull...."

What did you have in mind?

[Japic]

Turning to the chief, she asks, "And what power does your shard hold?"

{Should be healing. This was the shard that you guys found battling the Bulette. It was then transported to cannons foot, buried under the ground and then blasted out to sea where it killed their chief.}