Sapphire:Sessions:20190406
It is mid-afternoon. Chalker, Intrinsius, and Branamin bring their prisoners, A2 and A4, into the palace. They find Alastor and Portis in an antechamber. Chalker, indicating A2: "He tried to kill me, but didn't have his heart in it." Alastor, still holding A1's head: "Someone tried to kill me, and now something is in his heart." A2, claiming his name is Dan, speaks up. "You deserve to die... You're evil." Chalker: "You never met me. How do you know that?" Dan: "Uh... It was revealed! That's it! But... it doesn't seem so now." Chalker: "Did Asseraah send you?" Dan: "Oh, no, no!" Chalker: "Since my father didn't send you, why did you come after me?" Dan gapes in mute terror. Chalker, addressing Alastor: "Your Majesty, he wants to kill me because I'm revealed to be evil. It might have something to do with this..." Chalker holds up the fetish made of cloth, leaves, and twine. Dan: "I think it was Doug who gave that to me. He's a "problem solver" at the Shattered Pen tavern." Alastor: "That place is a sh*thole."
Chalker: "Dan, I will put you in a prison cell and not kill you." Dan (indicating A4): "What about Taines?" Chalker slaps the latter awake, and Taines tells a similar tale: "Doug" had given him a fetish and paid him 2sp. (However, neither Dan nor Taines has any silver coins on them.) "Doug" had also supplied the bone daggers. Intrinsius studies one of them, seeing etchings along the blade edge with "magical potential." He hands it to Branamin. Alastor: "What instructions were you given to use the bone knives?" Taines: "Use it if it started glowing or after first blood was drawn... I 'just knew' where to go... I don't remember how or why, but some of us ended up at the Shattered Pen. There was no one there, so we helped ourselves to some drink..."
Quin Hinks arrives and nods to Alastor and Chalker. Chalker: "The city is fallen. He (indicating Alastor) is in charge of the palace; I am in charge of the troops." Alastor, indicating A1's head: "Don't mind this. It was an assassination attempt gone astray... I am looking to stabilize the city and the country, so that there will be no more bloodshed." QH: "Did you 'get' all the heirs?" Chalker: "No, but we're gonna kill Mays." Alastor adds, "Mays will not be a factor for much longer."
Dan and Taines are taken away to be locked up, and Portis sends a runner to fetch good ale for thirsty Intrinsius.
Portis: "Lamont was sent away because he advocated the end of slavery, and his views had started to gain popularity." Alastor: "I am considering finding Lamont and reinstating him. Meanwhile, the city needs a ruler, which is why I wear the crown." Chalker: "We have reinforcement troops arriving daily. Our hold on the city grows stronger." Alastor: "We have dealt with four of the six generals."
QH: "How long will the city be on lockdown?" Chalker: "Three or four days. We need someone to talk to the merchants who wish to cooperate. To them you can be the face of the city until we get Lamont." QH: "I have no problem being the king's mouthpiece. Many merchants were 'tired' of the slave trade anyway. Having Portis and me as advisors will help calm the city. You should get Lamont in place quickly, by the end of the week. Till then, it's a fine line you walk." Portis: "About half of them, the realists, will cooperate. Others, the pragmatists, will fake sincerity. I recommend getting rid of Andronius and Zack. I will not work against you or double-cross you." QH: "I can start tonight, pulling in the 'true believers' first. By the end of tomorrow I should have a solid group." Portis: "It will be the end of the week before the opposing forces are organized enough to approach Colvin. They will find the city walls fully manned." QH: "Tell them we have a regent until the true heir returns."
Chalker asks Portis and QH to step away, and they withdraw into a small conference room. Branamin: "The runes on this knife link the victim to the wielder. It has way too many spells on it."
Chalker: "We will have Branamin pretend to be Alastor, and the rest of us will go after Lamont. Contact Molina, put some slaves in uniform, and send them to Quin and Portis." He writes two lines in his journey book: Rory, is there a portal on Myretrius? and Shawna, have you been to Merridel?
Alastor knocks politely and persistently; three minutes go by before a timid butler answers the door. Alastor: "I bring important tidings from Portis. May I speak with Andronius?" The butler withdraws, and another five minutes pass before the master of the house and a personal guard appear. Andronius recognizes "Master Wyncent, newcomer merchant," and invites him into his study. The guard takes his post outside the study door. Alastor: "I have seen Quin Hinks and Portis. The new regent is imposing economic and political changes, in part to abolish slavery." Andronius, grim-faced: "That could be. Hinks has been somewhat outspoken against slavery." Alastor: "Portis sent me to find out what the consensus is if these changes are forced through." Andronius, through gritted teeth: "Tell Portis I'm all in, whatever the new regime wants me to do."
Catching Andronius by surprise, Alastor pricks him with a sleep needle, then doses him with "Otto's First Aid." Andronius goes into convulsions. Alastor knocks Andronius to the floor, then cries aloud, "Oh! What's going on? He started jerking and fell over!" To the responding guard he says, "Inform the Temple of Zeph that one of the slave trader merchants has fallen ill, and they might send an apprentice to attend to him." The guard -- a former slave -- nods, smiles slightly, and moves unhurriedly away.
Back on the streets, Alastor sees Kimtri emerge from an alley and he approaches her. Kimtri: "Ahn-Lee told me to get in touch with you. I have with me Wade, Roth, and two others, an assassin and a fighter." Alastor: "A trader named Zack needs to be dealt with. Make it look like a robbery."
At the docks, Chalker and Intrinsius meet with Bennet Molina. Chalker: "Quin Hinks is now the Regent's representative, and counsellor Portis is allied with us. They will be going around the city speaking with people and will need an official-looking escort. ... When reinforcements come, send half of them through the city to inform the people that they may come out during the day, but by sunset they must be in their homes. ... Alastor is in charge; I will give him further orders to give you. ... Quin Hinks calls me 'Rice Kellogg'; they cannot know my real identity because I'm wanted in Malprin. ... I have to find out why someone tried to kill us." Molina thinks it will be three or four days before Malprin forces can attack Colvin; Chalker says they're at least one-and-a-half days out.
Chalker, Intrinsius, and a couple of guards go to the tavern called Shattered Pen. Smoke rises from the chimney. Chalker tells the guards, "Stand out here and look mean." Inside the dim tavern it stinks "like a battlefield." Chalker calls out; no one answers. Laid out atop the bar is a gutted corpse, dead at least six hours. In the kitchen Intrinsius finds two more bodies, a teenager and an old man, also eviscerated. The back door, unlocked, opens into a filthy alley.
Chalker examines the first corpse. On the body are two fetish bags and a hidden dagger. Nearby are two heavy crossbows and two clubs (one of them with a single spike). Chalker: "I think I found Doug." All three corpses are missing the heart and kidneys. Intrinsius: "That's kinda weird." Chalker: "That's one way to say it." Chalker gives the clubs to his two guards, instructing them to put away their swords.
Back at the docks, Molina has created several "quick response teams." He reports that so far about forty slaves have refused freedom. Chalker: "They're still drugged. I'll check with the Regent to see how much antidote is available."
Rory writes in the journey book that there is a gate in a small farm village two miles outside of Merridel. It has been visited before, so there is a way to the surface. He diagrams the stone placements.
Alastor writes: Chalker, when will Diana arrive? Chalker: Either the 9th or 10th; today is the 1st.
Branamin: "These bone knives linked their essence to you." Chalker: "How would they even know?" Branamin: "It must have been the dark halflings. I pushed my memory -- they were moving about the city." Intrinsius obtains from Branamin a grimoire containing most of the spells from the Fire college.
Chalker writes: We're going to Merridel. Will you meet us there? Shawna: Yes, I will.
Alastor lists the "hit squad" that was sent after Lamont Kolton:
- Bernard Lacey, mage, 5'10", long brown hair
- Arthur Mayes, fighter, 6', short blond hair (no relation to Marcus Mays)
- Ivo Grifford, leader, 6'2", long jet-black hair
- Beatrix Allard, poisoner, 5', long red hair
- Min Sayers, crossbowman, 5'6", rusty brown hair
Alastor: "When Lamont was exiled, a woman named Sharon Neely went with him. She's possibly a minor royal and likely has relatives in the city. ... The crown is unique. Lamont and Sharon would recognize it."
Chalker sends out an offer to all former palace slaves to "come back and run the place."
Kimtri reports to Chalker, saying simply, "Done." Chalker: "Since Ahn-Lee trusted you, I will show you a secret, but I need one favor. Intrinsius' goodness rubs me the wrong way, so if he learns the secret and shouldn't have it anymore..." Kimtri: "I will not lie to my guildmaster." She insists on being blindfolded or knocked unconscious rather than learn the secret transportation method (gates).
Kimtri assures Chalker that she can 'get' Marcus Mays "even in the middle of an army" if she has Wade and Branamin with her.
Intrinsius suddenly feels like he's "in the right place at the right time."
In Merridel, Shawna first checks with at the harbormaster's office. No ships of Malprin registry have arrived in port (and would be turned away anyway), but there are two unregistered ships docked, Golden Tack and Soft Pain. Shawna contacts an elf named Dal Tray at the Golden Spigot Tavern. She confides that she is searching for a high-ranking human refugee and enlists Dal's assistance. She says she will begin searching at upper-mid-level inns where a foreign nobleman in disguise would not stand out. Dal suggests she start with the Wayfarer's Inn.
A few hours later, another elven contact gives Shawna the names and descriptions of the "hit squad", which had arrived on the Golden Tack. Bernard is "the strongest" mage. Arthur (fighter) and Beatrix (poisoner) have also been "making the rounds" of upper-mid-level inns. "Interesting," murmurs Shawna, "Their mage doesn't have a way to locate him."
Chalker learns the Colvin address for the Neely family and proposes to go there to obtain some item of hers that could be used in a Seeker spell. (Since Lamont was exiled four months ago and his remaining belongings given away or trashed, there is no quick way to find anything of his.) He and Intrinsius find the Neely estate lit up despite the hour, and the grizzled servant that "greets" them bears a fighting knife. Chalker barely gets out the words, "I am Commander Rice Kellogg--" when the "servant" exclaims, "It's about time! I am Neely! What took you so long?" Neely expected the new regime to contact him right away (and is very vocal about it), but doesn't explain why he didn't send word or go to the palace himself. Yes, Sharon is his daughter and had voluntarily gone into exile with Lamont. Chalker asks for anything belonging to Lamont or Sharon; "I gotta get to them before they're killed." Neely: "So the king did send a hit squad." He fetches a lock of Sharon's hair and a palm-sized stone with a rune carved on it. He rubs the stone with his thumb and it lights up. "She has a ward on her, but this will mostly nullify it." Intrinsius asks for a portrait of Sharon. Neely shows them a painting of an attractive young woman. He doesn't have any miniature-sized paintings that they could carry with them, but he does give Chalker a signet ring and Intrinsius a canteen (marked with the Neely crest) filled with excellent ale.
Back at the palace, Branamin takes on King Alastor's appearance. Chalker gets out Tiny Wagon and two horses are hitched to it. Intrinsius and Kimtri are blindfolded. While still a block away from the gate, Chalker unhitches the wagon, turns the horses loose, and shrinks the wagon back to pocket-size. Chalker then spins Intrinsius around "until he says 'stop' or falls down." He hooks Kimtri's belt and lifts her off the ground, spinning her slowly. (This defeats Kimtri's ability to retrace her steps, since she is not 'treading the ground'.) With Chalker leading Intrinsius by the arm, the group descends to the gate, then Chalker writes to Trace to open it. Stepping through, they are at the edge of a hamlet a mile from the gates of Merridel.
Still searching from inn to inn, Shawna has observed a pattern of Sharons with last names starting with A, B, C, D then starting over with A. One particularly garrulous desk clerk even claims to have seen Sharon periodically over the past four months. As Shawna nears the next inn, she smells smoke and finds city guards all over holding back the gawkers that have gathered. The rear of the inn is aflame and a water mage is dousing the fire. Shawna obtains some details -- a fight had broken out in the inn's tavern and moved to the back of the inn; there were at least two mages involved, and fire and lightning featured heavily. Two men were burned to death; six others were injured and had already been transported to the Temple of Zeph.
About this time Chalker writes to Shawna and she tells him she is headed for the temple.
Chalker, Alastor, Intrinsius, and Kimtri arrive first. The head priestess is rather abrupt with them since she is trying to keep order, but the group learns that all the victims are local mercenaries.
Outside the temple, Shawna is just arriving. She is given the lock of Sharon's hair and the rune-carved stone. Shawna casts Seeker and announces that Sharon is less than a mile away in a livery stable ("with a bunch of horses' asses"). Kimtri takes off in that direction.
As they approach the livery, Kimtri warns them that the hit squad is approaching from another direction. Shawna sends Chalker to the livery and Kimtri to circle around behind the hit squad. Shawna, Alastor, and Intrinsius move to confront them.
Chalker quietly enters the livery. He hears soft voices, a man's and a woman's. He gets close enough to hear the man say, "If he takes another step, throw." Chalker announces, "I'm not gonna take another step, Lamont. I know you and Sharon are there. Sharon, your father gave me this ring." Chalker uses his power to float the ring toward them.
Shawna, Alastor, and Intrinsius confront Bernard, Arthur, Ivo, and Beatrix. Shawna throws back her hood, draws her sword, utters a battle cry, and charges. Alastor realizes that Min the crossbowman is not accounted for.
The ring floats into Sharon's hand. The hood of a lantern is raised slightly, and Chalker can see that the two are near the rear exit. Sharon exclaims as she recognizes the ring's crest. Chalker: "We're here to make you King of Malprin."
Shawna casts Flash. The bright light doesn't affect Bernard, who acrobatically dodges her sword slash (though it does barely scratch his throat).
Intrinsius gets a sudden burst of energy and his move increases to 9. Alastor's amulet heats up. Bernard steps back and starts a Fireball. Arthur, Ivo, and Beatrix are all blinded and step back in unison. Lamont: "There's assassins --" Chalker: "I know, they're outside." A crossbow bolt strikes Ivo. Shawna strikes Bernard's left knee; he goes down and rolls. Alastor throws a sleep bomb which catches Beatrix and Ivo; Ivo sways and Beatrix falls down. Alastor pulls out a jar of kerosene. Sharon takes hold of her magic wand and sparks run up and down along it.
Shawna strikes Bernard twice, all but killing him, but he somehow clings to life. Arthur swings wildly at Intrinsius and misses. Bernard tries to throw his Fireball, but instead it falls to the ground and he glares at Shawna. Intrinsius draws his katana and slashes Arthur. Ivo succumbs to the sleep bomb. As Alastor closes, he sees someone come up behind the crossbowman, and then the latter falls down (Alastor figures Kimtri cut Min's throat). Chalker: "Come on out here and we'll watch the fight! And don't point that lightning rod at me."
Shawna strikes Bernard again, killing him. Arthur swings and Intrinsius parries. Intrinsius swings and strikes Arthur.
Intrinsius again strikes Arthur, who staggers. Intrinsius finishes him off, stabbing him in the heart. Shawna kills Beatrix.
Alastor searches Beatrix, removing her coin purse, several pouches, and a pair of grooved daggers. Shawna wipes her sword on Bernard's cloak and walks toward Chalker. Alastor takes a pouch and some documents from Ivo which prove they were a 'hit squad'. He also removes an extra coin pouch, a fine sword, and a crossbow and bolts. Intrinsius keeps Arthur's sword, removes rings (all of them magic) from six of Bernard's fingers, and finds a small wand in a holster.
Chalker: "Sharon, Lamont -- Lady Shawna." Lamont: "What's this about... I'm King of Malprin now?" Chalker; "Yeah." Lamont: "We'd better get back there. It's gonna take a while." Sharon, looking at Shawna: "I don't think it's going to take that long." Chalker: "This is Alastor. He's the current King of Malprin." Alastor: "Think of me as your regent." Lamont: "I can live with that, since you probably just saved our lives. We barely got away from them at the inn." Alastor: "Yes, they were a kill squad sent out by the former king, who was deposed earlier today." Shawna: "And two men died in that fracas." Lamont: "Really, well, some fighters, they were having a late supper, eight men came to our defense when the attack happened in the bar." Shawna: "Six were injured and two died." Chalker: "So you owe eight people, but we'll talk about that later."
Intrinsius asks Chalker for his canteen of ale back. Chalker teases, "I drank it all," but relents and hands over the flask.
The group makes it out of town. Nobody tried to stop or pursue them. Alastor uses a watered-down version of the Sleep needles on Lamont, Sharon, Kimtri, and Intrinsius before they all pass through the gate back to Colvin.
As he succumbs to the sleep drug Intrinsius hears a small voice in his head, "Justice has been done, well done."
Alastor suggests transporting Lamont and Sharon to the palace in Tiny Wagon so they won't be seen.
At the palace, Chalker says to Sharon, "Your father's kind of gruff. He asked 'what took us so long' to do what we were doing. I'm thinking, 'What? I've barely taken over the city!'" Intrinsius: "I really liked him!" Chalker: "I know, 'cause he kept plying you with liquor!" Sharon: "My father's very proud of his ale." Chalker: "Yes, it must be pretty good."
Alastor: "Let me brief you on what's happened in the last twenty-four or so hours." Shawna: "I'd like to hear it, too." Intrinsius: "Did you get rid of that severed head yet?" Alastor: "It's still in the antechamber."
Chalker to Shawna: "Are you retaking command of the armed forces?" Shawna: "What did you do with them?" Chalker: "I gave them orders to keep the city under wraps. But tomorrow, when the other troops come in..." Shawna: "What did you do with the black ships?" Chalker: "I let them go." Shawna, after a pause: "Why?" Chalker: "Because they asked to leave." Shawna: "Why did you let them leave?" Chalker: "Because we couldn't sink them. I made the dwarves leave. I think the Lady Blue is following them." Shawna: "As much respect as I have for the merfolk, they are no match for those creatures." Chalker: "Oh, but I do have a way to track them. They gave me coins from their realm." Shawna: "All right, what is their realm and what are they?" Chalker: "I don't know. They have extra organs in them, I know that." Shawna: "You got close enough to one to look inside?" Chalker: "He was dead, so yeah." Shawna: "Where is the corpse?" Chalker: "I gave 'em to Alastor." (They have been placed in a 'preservation area' in the palace.) Shawna gives him a "we'll talk about this later" look and follows Alastor and Lamont to a side room for the debriefing. Chalker: "Okay, I'm still in charge. I just wanted to know."
Lamont seats himself, takes a deep breath, and says, "Okay, I'm ready." Alastor: "Here are the highlights, since you've been gone for four months. This is Lady Shawna; she is the leader of the expedition force. I am a part of her close group of associates who has happened to take the regency for the past twenty-four hours or so. This started when we first came to the city a week, two weeks ago. Started laying groundwork, gathering intelligence, figuring out the local economy, that type of thing. About twenty-four hours ago, just before midnight, a large fire was started in the middle of the city, as a distraction for two hit squads that moved in to depose the king and the primary heir." Lamont cocks his head, "Don't you mean 'kill'?" Alastor: "Yes." Lamont, with a grin: "Go ahead." Alastor: "At that point, Lady Shawna and one of our other associates went out into the city and released the protector dragon." Lamont: "So that's what it was that's been protecting this place for all these years." Alastor: "In doing so, it allowed our primary invasion forces to come in to port, and we then took over the city. General Atlex and some of his forces were captured, some were routed. General Satterwaite was killed in battle. General Bellington was later captured and is still in captivity. General Atlex has been persuaded to our position, which is primarily one of replacing the former king with you, due to your anti-slavery stance. The sticking point in this line of succession is the bastard, Mays, who is some day-and-a-half north of the city. He will be 'deposed' within the next day, two days, likely before the invasion forces threaten the city. At that point I would recommend that you take full command of the city."
Alastor continues: "In addition to Atlex, we spoke with Portis, one of the primary counsellors. He is on our side, and as a result we've been able to make inroads with Quin Hinks, a major anti-slavery merchant." Lamont: "I know. Quin is... yes, yes, that's excellent. He will have a high place in the new cabinet. Quin is a good choice." Alastor: "We sent him out to start establishing an anti-slavery merchant political coalition, which he expects to be embodied before the end of the day tomorrow."
Lamont: "So basically Sharon and I need to keep our heads low and not be seen for twenty-four to forty-eight hours." Alastor: "Yes. Realistically, whenever Mays is gone. If for whatever reason they dally, that timeline would be extended." Lamont: "Do you already have the people in place to depose Mays?" Alastor: "We know who's going to do it, and generally how they're going to do it. It's just that some of that team was required to rescue you tonight." Lamont: "Very good. Thank you. Not only for what you've done in my country, but personally, for saving my life. Is there anything you need from me in the next forty-eight hours, other than to keep my head down?" Alastor: "You should meet with Quin Hinks and Portis when you can, out of public sight." Lamont: "Okay. I'm ready."
Alastor: "Are there any other documents we need in order to get up to speed, beyond the evolving economic and political situation?" Lamont: "Obviously they evacuated the palace. You must have brought a quite imposing force in order for that to happen. I'm impressed. Even with the dragon spirit gone, that's impressive."
Shawna: "What, if anything, did you know about the black ships and the dark halflings?" Lamont: "Well, they weren't in harbor when I left four months ago. However, they were here in the past. And I guess my king was not as desperate then, so they were politely asked to leave after some incidents occurred in the city. Some violent and unusual things occurred, they were found in places they shouldn't ought to be, and the king finally... and they very politely left. We did end up missing some people, slaves and minor nobility. I dealt with a couple of them... I don't use this word lightly, considering who I grew up around... evil, they were evil. There was only one ship the previous time, and this time you say there were two. And with that one ship, it was never clear exactly how many of them there were." Alastor: "It was pretty much the same thing this time. They also attempted to assassinate most of the members of our party, after they had supposedly left."
Shawna: "If you have no more questions for Alastor, who has told you the history of this campaign..." Lamont: "That's more than enough for me to operate on." Shawna: "Then I suggest you get some rest, then in the morning apply yourself to future plans for operation of the free kingdom of Malprin." Lamont: "Absolutely. And I will declare my intent right now. Malprin has been the leader of the states that do this despicable practice. I intend to apply pressure and... cause it to go away in all of the remaining states that are allied with Malprin. I'll do it as fast as I can. But it all depends on how well this goes, and what happens... If you scare 'em enough, it might go really easy. We'll see. A lot of diplomacy, a lot of... pressure." Shawna: "First, you have a kingdom and an economy to put back together." Lamont: "We can talk more about this tomorrow, but that's a good point. The royal treasury and the money squirreled about in different parts of the kingdom... It was implied to me that was going on, they wouldn't tell me about it, obviously. But we'll talk about that tomorrow." Lamont rises, bows to Shawna, and leaves the room. Alastor and Shawna converse for a while, mainly about the dark halflings and why Alastor ended up wearing the crown.
Meanwhile, Intrinsius has evaluated Sharon as having "mage potential." Chalker asks her, "Are you going to be Queen?" Sharon: "Probably. He hasn't asked yet. But when you're on the run... he just didn't want to do that." Intrinsius: "So you didn't go along as his bodyguard?" Sharon: "Yes, I'm his bodyguard, also. I'm fairly good at fighting. Plus I have a few artifacts," she adds, tapping her wand. "I had occasion to meet with a mage from the Isle a year or more ago and he gave me a couple of items." Intrinsius: "Do you have a sister?" Sharon laughs, "Yes, I do." Intrinsius: "Because I like your dad's ale." Sharon: "Well, she just turned twenty-one, and she's not betrothed yet, if you're looking." Intrinsius: "I'm twenty-five; that works."
Chalker: "So, how are you with tactics?" Sharon: "I haven't been involved. I've got some book knowledge, but nothing practical yet." Chalker: "Oh, don't worry. I've already made the military plans." Intrinsius: "What about the new king-to-be? Does he have solid knowledge of strategy, or economics?" Sharon: "He does know some about economics. He's got some training in that. And he's not as good at tactics as I am. But we did get off-the-books training by the same person." Chalker: "How is he at diplomacy?" Sharon: "Pretty good, that's why he was only exiled four months ago. In this situation, this environment, that was pretty good. I think he's above average. But then you gotta remember, my father's as diplomatic as a bull in a glasswares shop... I'm amazed he wasn't disposed of." Chalker: "I think what happened was that we took over so fast, and then martial law was declared, so he was low on the list."
Lamont returns. Chalker: "When you officially take over, I have a request for you. I want you to pardon Chalker Jackson and rescind the kill order on him, okay?" Lamont: "I've never heard of the man, but I'll be more than glad to do that." Shawna, laughing: "But they were crimes against a state that doesn't exist anymore." Alastor: "I'm sure some people wouldn't be too picky." Shawna: "They wouldn't be picky about whether we're actually charged with crimes."
Kimtri, Branamin, Rolf, and Wade are sent to kill Marcus Mays. They are encouraged to bring the intact corpse back to the palace.