Brian S
The troopers--salaried fighting man and women employed directly or indirectly by 
the mercenary company known as the Order of the Dragonsaint--set out from the 
Order's base of operations in Stonebridge with a small mounted unit.  At the end of 
the first day they were out of the hills just west of Stonebridge, and by mid 
morning of the following day they passed the last Order watchtower and the state of 
the highway dropped off almost immediately.

Nevertheless, aside from four days of snow and a bandit ambush easily spotted and 
avoided the troopers were able to keep an excellent pace for the three weeks it 
took them to cross the Heartlands and reach the edge of the Kaddegh River Valley.  
The regulars of the unit set up camp there, where they would wait for two more 
weeks or until the special forces squad returned before making the trek back to 
Stonebridge.

In the morning the squad left camp on foot and followed the ruins of the imperial 
highway as it wound gently down the eastern side of the Kaddegh River Valley.

-----

Pale grayish sand spills over sunken paving stones and stretches interminably 
northward.  The troopers' breath clouds in front of them in the still-freezing 
shadow of the valley wall, but far to the west the sun already illuminates the 
ruined city of Kaddegh.  It lies across the milky waters of its huge river like a 
gray corpse; the water downstream of the ruined city even seems to be soiled just 
by passing through it.

But before the troopers approach that dangerous place they must get their bearings.  
Their ultimate orders are to locate the tomb of the Dragonsaint himself, a hero of 
the last great war and the founder of the Order.  The current head of the order 
believes that the Dragonsaint was buried with some secret to the Serpent's power 
and warns that students of that villain's foul methods have been searching for the 
tomb as well.

At the foot of the sloping valley wall is a small roadside town that has the look 
of small roadside towns everywhere.  A large open space to accommodate carts and 
stalls and storefronts dominates the center of the town and radiating from that 
space are buildings like an inn, maybe a separate tavern, some permanent shops that 
cater to the transient population, an official building for the mayor or guard 
captain or tax collector, and some housing and mundane shops.

Somewhere in that town is a friend of the Order, a human woman who goes by the name 
of Orianna.  She has been searching for information on the whereabouts of the tomb 
and will hopefully have uncovered something that she can share with the troopers.  
But first they have to find her.

((What do you do?  It's possible that some of you might already have some clues 
about how to find Orianna, what would those be?  Maybe you know something about the 
area that will help, maybe you know something about finding people in general.  
Then again, maybe you just have strong feelings about not standing around in the 
cold outside of some dumpy town.  Maybe you have questions for me!  Whatever the 
case, it's mid-morning just outside nameless roadside town and it's your turn 
now.))

Arwen M
((A few questions before I start really posting:

1. I assume we're the special forces squad here.  Who is our leader?  Klizurk and 
Flying Turtle are both senior members, so is it both or one or the other?  I kind 
of figure they would've named someone.

2. In what capacity was Nimble Fox hired onto this gig, as she isn't a member of 
the order?  Is she here to scout for and guide the squad, or-?))

Brian S
((1. Klizurk is in charge nit the special forces guys--that includes all your PCs--
are not strictly bound to the chain of command.
2. Nimble Fox has been contracted to assist with this whole mission and will be 
treated as an equal member for the duration.))?

Kevin T
Klizurk heads into town ready to do some people searching, although first thing to 
do is get the bearings in town, since their best hint is likely inside.  At the 
outskirts of the town, she glances over the rest of the group save Flying Turtle.

"I have unfortunately not worked with any of you before, but if our mission is to 
be a success we all must do our part.  Flying Turtle, why don't you take someone 
and try and find out where our contact is, or at least establish some new contacts 
in case we need some."  She looks around.  "Maybe Hank or Nimble Fox?  I'll 
establish lodging for the night and talk to the local craftswomen.  Maybe they have 
some information on local happenings."

She thinks about the lynx that has been following Nimble Fox for a while.  "As for 
the cat, do you have any way of not scaring the populace with it?"

Arwen M
Nimble Fox hops from one taloned foot to the other, surveying the nameless town 
from the edge.  She's around average size for a vriak, with amber eyes and a 
blunted beak (it seems to have been broken or bruised in an altercation in the 
past, and it didn't grow back quite right); her plumage is white with brown 
speckles on her crest, the back of her wings, and her neck.  Throughout the journey 
here she acted as a guide, scouting ahead and pointing out the way but not saying 
more than was strictly necessary.

At Klizurk's question, Nimble Fox turns and blinks at her: right eye first, then 
left.  Her feet still.  "Playful Shadow doesn't like towns," she informs Klizurk in 
a high voice.  That must be the lynx in question.  She then shifts her attention to 
Flying Turtle but doesn't say anything.

Chamelaeon W
Hank nods to Klizurk. a half-grin on his face. "Towns and cities are kind of my 
thing, so I can go with Flying Turtle if it's going to spook the cat."

When he rolled into town a few weeks ago, Hank was wearing what were once some 
remarkably fashionable clothes, ruined with mud and bog juices. Though he's now 
wearing something a lot more suited for village and outdoor work, he's still 
managed to find some decorative ribbons and what look like brass buttons for them, 
and they're tailored very well  to fit him. Hank is cut like a gymnast, and though 
his eyes are kind of a muddy brown it's tough to notice since his face sports a 
magnificent edifice of a beard.

Brian F
Flying Turtle gives Hank a dubious look, then shrugs a little and says,  "Don't do 
anything I'll regret until we're pulling out for good.  We try to stay on good 
terms with towns, and we do a pretty good job of it."

He fluffs his coal-black feathers a bit, and settles his pack lower on his back, 
like he's getting ready to fly, but just sets off at a fair clip into the town.

Chamelaeon W
Hank starts after Turtle, holding up his hands apologetically. "Hey, okay. I know 
what side my bread's buttered on." As he follows, he mutters to himself. "Not like 
there's anything worth it in this podunk burg anyhow."

Kevin T
Klizurk smirks at Nimble Fox's comment, then nods in agreement to Hank.  She speaks 
back to Nimble Fox  "Can Playful Shadow fend for himself outside of town?"  She 
honestly seems at a loss with how to apply Nimble Fox or Bjorn in a useful capacity 
in town aside from tagging along with her.  "I guess you're with me, Bjorn.  If you 
wish, you can come with two, Nimble Fox, but the cat has to stay out of town.  If 
you're staying out with him, maybe you could check for any unusual tracks left 
behind by someone who doesn't want to be found?"

She's a large, strongly built Kin with blue scaling, silver-tipped horns, and 
yellow eyes.  Which means she really comes up to a little over four and a half 
feet.  She's dressed in scale armor over leather padding, and keeps two crests with 
her:  One is clearly an ornate symbol of Yxia, the other is a seal of Kith make, 
likely her clan symbol from home.  Her armament, having dealt with some bandits on 
the trip, consists of a runemetal long sword and a shield.  That said, she keeps her 
armor and weapons clean and polished, often humming or singing to herself while 
on watch and caring for her equipment. She holds herself proudly.

Brian F
Flying Turtle snorts loudly.  "Never underestimate places like this.  The oddest 
damn things crop up out here.  We once found a town just like this with an old 
graveyard on the outskirts, and past it, an old hedge mage's hut, with the ghost of 
the hedge mage still in it.  He'd built up a fair cache of treasure, and we got to 
keep most of it for the squad."

Chamelaeon W
Hank looks at Turtle skeptically. "You're just saying that to keep my interest." He 
glances over the town. "Small place. You want to just start asking around?"

Kevin T
((Also, I'm going to assume it's established (at least between FT and Kliz) that 
they have an established meeting place when investigating towns, in case something 
crops up.  Right now I think that's the inn.  ND?))

Arwen M
Nimble Fox nods twice to the kin.  "I'll look."  She turns and moves to what looks 
like the edges of town, circling around and inspecting the area carefully.  Maybe a 
minute after she leaves, there's a shift in the scenery and the reflective eyes of 
a cat are no longer there.

((Not sure if this is Discern Realities or Hunt and Track to start with; 
regardless, the modifier is the same, so I roll a 7: http://orokos.com/roll/110917.  
If Shadow's bonus to Hunt applies, it's a 9.))

Kevin T
Klizurk nods and heads into town, striking up an idle conversation with the hermit 
while heading to the inn to establish lodgings.  "So what brings you out here?  
Spiritual enlightenment or are you looking to stop a blight on the land?  Or maybe 
something I haven't guessed?"

Brian F
Flying Turtle shakes his head vigorously.  "Dead serious.  Or undead serious, in 
this case.  Right outside headquarters, actually.  We built that town up from a 
rotting podunk into a thriving military base.  We shouldn't need to do much asking 
around, Orianna likes fresh food, but doesn't like inns, so we'll hit the market 
first.  Chances are good we can track her down there, or from there."  He makes 
good on his words and heads for where the locals exchange produce.

Wes T
"My thoughts have always been that those seeking enlightenment from their God would 
do better to apply his teachings to the world than to just think about them.  
Mainly I seek to aid in any way possible to keep corruption from spreading to the 
wilderness.  Also I rather enjoy trips into the city, rare as they may be."

Bjørn certainly looks as though his last city trip was some time ago.  He is a tall 
bald man with a long stringy beard.  His clothes are dated and worn, he has a heavy 
oaken shield strapped to his back with a worn symbol of Verloren carved on it and 
an old oak cudgel hangs heavily from his belt.

Kevin T
Klizurk nods, looking over the hermit.  "I'm afraid they might not have quite what 
you're looking for if you're looking for city amenities.  This looks more of a 
trade post than an actual city center."  She shifts her weight, her pack shifting 
as well to a more comfortable position.  "But if it's corruption you seek to stop, 
you've joined the right group.  I was thinking we should see if the captain or 
governor of the town has any knowledge of our quarry as well, perhaps after 
visiting the smithy.  Do you have any other suggestions where we can look?"

Wes T
"Trade posts and farming towns are generally what constitute city life for me.  As 
for where to look, given the tales I've heard of Kaddegh, if this small trading 
post has enough of the ruined city in her, I'd say we check the local Constable's 
holding cells."

Brian S
Flying Turtle and Hank make their way through the center of the gray little town, 
past the mostly vacant merchant's exchange, to a short street that runs 
perpendicular to the central highway.  The street is nearly as wide as the highway 
and is lined with storefronts.  The town's residents bring life to what had been an 
otherwise dreary place.

The storefronts are not particularly unusual for a small town on an underused trade 
route.  Besides a dry goods store, a couple of clothiers, and several shuttered 
buildings there is a row of semi-permanent stalls that all back up to the same 
stone warehouse with its wide doors propped open.

Most of the townsfolk--humans and the occasional kith alike--are clad in gray or 
red tunics and long trousers, over which they wear dyed woolen cloaks called sagums 
that completely cover one arm and most of the body, but leave one arm free.  A knot 
of activity surrounds the stalls in front of the warehouse, with residents moving 
from stall to stall and merchants occasionally ducking back into the warehouse to 
re-stock a particular item or similar.

Two human guards with bell-shaped copper helmets and lacquered, twisty-looking 
cudgels stand near the doors of the warehouse looking bored.

Brian S
+Arwen M
((Given that you're basically doing a sweep of the town's perimeter looking for 
clues as opposed to following or even searching for somebody specific, I will go 
with Discern Realities.  With a 7 you can ask one question off the Discern 
Realities list. You chose "What here is not what it appears to be?"))

Nimble Fox and her feline companion trace a careful circuit all the way around town 
while the other troopers investigate the town proper.  The little village appears 
to be a stopover for merchants that is just hanging on out of inertia.  While the 
vriak does not make any discoveries that suggest otherwise, she does find an area 
north of town where the sand has been heavily disturbed.  It appears that several 
people and animals--probably horses--milled around for quite some time.  There is 
either some hidden traffic into and out of the town that occurs off the highway, or 
the settlement is being watched.

Arwen M
Nimble Fox clucks her tongue as she crouches, examining the disturbed sand.  Her 
head tilts to one side, then the other.  Why would this be... Playful Shadow growls 
lowly from where he circles and then sits, refusing to enter the disturbed area 
itself, and she nods to him.  Nimble Fox stands abruptly and heads in the direction 
the tracks had come, the bobcat taking a moment to scratch at his ear before 
stalking after her.  ((Hunt and Track: 10 http://orokos.com/roll/111266.  I assume 
Shadow's bonus applies to this one.  "Gain a useful bit of information about your 
quarry."))

Brian S
Klizurk and Bjørn make their way first to the smithy.  The building is a quaint 
little storefront with a lot of windows attached to a tall windowless building with 
a solid, sloping roof and a wide sandy yard on three sides.  The inside of the 
storefront is bathed in golden sunlight that brightens up its gray brick shelves 
and similarly-colored iron goods.

The storefront is unoccupied when the troopers arrive, save for those goods and a 
young human girl sitting on a bench beside what appears to be a large crossbow 
mounted on a tripod.  The muffled sounds of metal being rhythmically hammered into 
shape on the other side of the storefront's back wall.

"May I help you?" the girl asks cheerfully when the troopers enter.  She seems to 
be dividing her attention between minding the store and calibrating the crossbow's 
bore sight with a tiny ball-peen hammer and a thin bar of metal that looks a bit 
like a chisel.

Brian F
Flying Turtle scans the podunk market for Orianna, doesn't find her, and heads in 
closer to pick up a bit in the way of supplies, and maybe a bit of information with 
it.  He grabs some decent looking potatoes, flips a somewhat overlarge coin to the 
merchant, and asks, "Looking for someone new who probably comes in every few days 
lately for more supplies, a woman called Orianna."

Chamelaeon W
Hank tails after Turtle, hands in his pockets and his eyes on the crowd as he tries 
to get a bead on the situation in this one-horse town. ((Discern Realities: 10 
http://orokos.com/roll/111290 -- What should I be on the lookout for? What here is 
useful or valuable to me? Who's really in control here?))

Brian S
+Arwen M
After some study, Nimble Fox is able to follow a set of horse tracks northward into 
the desert.  Although the trail does not appear to change direction for as long as 
she is able to follow it, the vriak is able to determine that whatever their point 
of origin the group of tracks consists entirely of horses--three with riders, one 
without--and they were headed south toward town.

Wes T
"Yes you can young lady. Do you happen to know a woman by the name Orianna. I hear 
she may be in town, or at least she has been recently". Bjorn asks the girl while 
also glancing about at the quality of the wares.

Brian S
The merchant catches the coin, though not deftly.  "Orianna?  Yeah, I've seen her.  
She came through here just two days back."  The merchant looks at the coin a second 
time, then glances furtively toward the warehouse guards.  "You're not the first 
person to ask about her, though.  Last night Cirrus got himself thrown in jail 
arguing with some thug from the city about where she lives in town."  The merchant 
dips his head in a sort of quick bow.  "Enjoy the potatoes," he says more loudly.

Behind them, Hank can see that the warehouse guards may not be trained soldiers but 
they are probably seasoned fighters.  They have proper uniforms, with green-dyed 
sagums and identical cudgels.  The man who employs men of this sort is either a 
gang leader or is not afraid of fighting them, although how he pays for them in a 
place like this--and where he keeps the money to do so--is a mystery.

In any case whatever gang is active here almost certainly has a lookout keeping 
watch on this marketplace.  The warehouse certainly stores the food these merchants 
are selling, and the fact that guards are posted here suggests that perhaps food--
and maybe beer--are extremely valuable here.

The fact that the guards appear to be bored either suggests immense experience or a 
slow posting.  The food may be valuable but it's not likely that anybody has tried 
to steal it recently.  In any event the man that pays these guards almost certainly 
runs the town, regardless of titles.

Brian S
The girl in the blacksmith shop shrugs her thin shoulders without looking up from 
the crossbow.  "Nobody came in here giving that name.  A few... huh." She trails 
off as she taps out a fine adjustment in the bore sight.

The goods here seem to be made well enough, although on closer inspection there are 
absolutely no weapons of any kind available, short of the tripod-mounted crossbow 
the girl is working on.

Brian F
Flying Turtle nods in thanks to the merchant, then heads away from the little 
market.  "Let's hit the jail.  Whoever this guy is, he's probably bad news of one 
sort or other."

Arwen M
Nimble Fox follows the trail until she's reasonably certain it will continue near-
indefinitely northward.  She stares at it for a while longer, then looks at Playful 
Shadow, who just blinks at her.  She whistles for him to follow before spreading 
her wings, taking to the air and flying back to town.  ((Vriak Flight: 5 
http://orokos.com/roll/111302 - Uh oh.))

Kevin T
Klizurk glances around, taking a look for anything that's out of place or unusual.  
"Huh, I was hoping to find something...  Say, I don't see any arms for sale."  She 
inspects the goods for anything of kith-make.?

Brian S
The girl with the crossbow makes a distracted noise.  "A few guys came through here 
two days ago and bought every weapon we had.  Even the crossbow."  She glances up 
at Klizurk for a moment.  "This one's not finished yet, so you can't have it."

As far as Klizurk can tell, there isn't any kith work here.  Somewhat odd for a 
town this close to the Earthspine Mountains.  The girl goes back to her work.  
"Interested in anything else?"?

Kevin T
Klizurk smiles, the grin only appearing near her cheeks.  "I wouldn't think of 
taking one's work before it was finished.  Still... something's odd.  Are there any 
kith that work here, or even in this town?  It's puzzling to walk into a smithy."  
She chuckles.  "And on that note, who came through and cleaned you out?  Seems 
kinda bizarre for someone to clean out an entire store's worth of weapons if 
they're not up to something."

While she's talking to the human girl, Klizurk inspects the goods that are 
displayed for anything else that was all bought out.

Brian S
The girl sets her tools aside, loads a bolt into the crossbow, and cranks the winch 
with surprising speed.  "Well," she says, a little bit out of breath, "We had a 
kith working here but she only made weapons.  Anyway she went back to her clan or 
something last year."

The girl swivels the crossbow on it tripod and aims it at a large target leaning 
against a stack of sand-filled bags on the side wall behind the counter.  She drags 
her stool around behind the weapon and climbs up before settling into a position 
that allows her to look down the bore sight and control the crossbow more 
delicately.

"They were just guys.  Two men and a woman, dressed up to fight like you two are.  
They didn't say much, just that they wanted the weapons to protect themselves and 
their friends from bandits in the desert."  Finally she squeezes the trigger and 
the crossbow clacks loudly.  In an instant the iron bolt is buried in the second 
ring of the target, above and to the right of the bullseye.  A second bolt already 
sticks out of the third ring, above and to the right of the one she just fired.

"Tch."  The girl climbs down from her stool and scoots it back over to its initial 
position.  She grabs her tools and climbs back up to resume her work.  "Want to buy 
anything?"

Chamelaeon W
Hank follows Flying Turtle, hands still in his pockets. "Bad news all over," he 
says, nonchalantly. "Didn't figure someplace this size would be this corrupt. Maybe 
I'll be useful after all."

Wes T
"Thank you, but I fear I am a bit short on coin and I daresay both myself and my 
companion are an bit short on time.". Bjorn takes Klizurk aside. "Something is not 
right about this place. I fear we should find our quarry quickly and be on our 
way."

Brian S
The village's jailhouse also appears to serve as a general purpose administrative 
building, although the wisdom of housing criminals, guards, and tax collectors in 
the same place is perhaps debatable.  It is the tallest building in the village, 
with two full floors above ground and plain columns of gray brick not only 
encircling the entire building but also supporting part of the larger top floor all 
the way around.

There is a single obvious entrance, heavy double doors guarded by a single guard in 
the same green and copper uniform as those who were at the warehouse.  The few 
townsfolk who are passing this building on the street seem to have no business with 
the government building, and there appears to be no traffic going in or out of it.

If the guard at the door has seen Flying Turtle or Hank yet, he has made no sign of 
it.

Chamelaeon W
Hank glances at Turtle, trying to figure out how he's going to play this.

Brian S
+Arwen M 
Nimble Fox makes it back to the edge of town--roughly where she found the disturbed 
area half a mile past the buildings--but in her haste and excitement she manages to 
get an awful cramp in her wing and has to land before she can get any closer.

((Gain 1 XP.  Take -1 ongoing to all flight rolls until you can rest, and maybe 
you're not as close as you wanted to be.))

Brian F
Flying Turtle walks fearlessly up to the building to enter, as if he definitely has 
important business and expects the guard to stay the hell out of his way.

Arwen M
Nimble Fox lets out a started squawk as her wing starts to give out, and she 
quickly brings herself down to the sand below - only a few yards away from where 
she first found the tracks.  It's not the most graceful landing, but it's a safe 
one, and she's still massaging about where her wing meets her back when a bobcat 
ghosts silently to her side.

"What?" she asks him, her crest fluffing up.  Playful Shadow yawns in return, and 
Nimble Fox snorts.  She brushes sand off of her clothes before walking the rest of 
the way back to town.  ((Schnee: I'm going to assume that you want to post my 
arriving in town whenever is appropriate, and then I decide where to go?))

Kevin T
Klizurk nods to Bjorn.  "I'm afraid there's nothing we need at the moment, although 
if I require anything I know where to look."  She heads out of the shop and asides 
to him.  "Where did you want to look next?  The holding cells?"

Wes T
"I think that would be best. . Something seems to be wrong."

Brian S
Amazingly, Flying Turtle's gambit pays off.  The guard looks him over just once but 
makes no move to stop the vriak or the human behind him.  One heave of a door later 
and the two are inside.

The interior of the building is surprisingly well lit.  Narrow windows high in the 
walls let in sunlight that hits an expensive-looking device hanging from the 
ceiling.  The device appears to be made of thin sheets of polished nickel cut and 
hammered into strange shapes, and much of the sunlight is reflected by those sheets 
all around the fairly open space inside.

There are no interior walls inside the government building, only columns.  At a 
glance the troopers can see several men, women, and kith in green sagums walking 
with quiet determination.  Only a handful of them wear the bell-shaped copper 
helmets and twisted wooden cudgels of the guard.  The rest appear to be 
bookkeepers, if the papers and ledgers and boxes they carry are any judge.

Near the far end of the building is a landing with stairs leading up the the upper 
floor--which is really more like an eight foot wide railed catwalk around the outer 
wall--and down to the basement, which is probably where the jail is.

((Klizurk and Bjørn will arrive outside the building moments after Flying Turtle 
and Hank go inside.))

Brian F
Flying Turtle mutters to Hank, "You might want to stay up here, if something goes 
wrong, I know I can escape."  That said, he heads purposefully for the stairs down 
to the dungeon, practically daring any of these idiots to stop him.

Kevin T
Klizurk looks up, noting the time of day.  "One of us should go back to the Inn and 
let Nimble Fox know what's going on.  If things go south here, we want all hands 
ready for action."

Brian S
((Flying Turtle, let's make a Defy Danger move to represent your ballsy attempt at 
acting like you own the place.  Nimble Fox, whenever anybody actually arrives at 
the inn to meet you, that's exactly when you'll get there as well.))

Arwen M
((Understood, thanks!))

Wes T
"Agreed. I'll make my way to the inn and meet up with her. We will meet up with you 
at the jail as soon as possible. If I find Flying Turtle or Hank along the way I 
will bring them as well.". Bjorn heads off towards the inn in search of Nimble Fox.

Kevin T
Klizurk pats Bjorn on the back and then starts walking into the holding areas.  She 
doesn't look like she wants any trouble, and if confronted will say about as much.

Brian F
(( http://orokos.com/roll/111660 Defy Danger (Charisma) 2d6 = 7 ))

Brian S
The village inn is an odd sight: a collection of windowed gray brick boxes with 
rooftops of various types.  Three different homes appear to have been connected by 
newer construction, and a fourth gutted to make a stables.  This shoddy excuse for 
an inn was certainly not sufficient to support a stopover town during the height of 
the old empire, but it is the only visitor housing available now.

Several lights are on inside and an elderly human shoulders the door open and goes 
inside when Bjørn arrives, but the stable appears to be completely free of horses.  
The inn likely has a common room with a tap that serves as the village tavern.  
Before the old cleric has a chance to go inside, Nimble Fox arrives from a side 
street to his left.

Brian S
The guard outside the government building gives Klizurk a look that can only be 
described as a "hairy eyeball" but says nothing as the kin goes inside.  She and 
Hank are able to find one another quickly enough, but by that time Flying Turtle 
has already stalked directly to the landing and down the stairs.

Two different guards seem to have noticed the vriak and start across the main floor 
toward the stairwell.  Klizurk and Hank are close enough to intercept them, 
especially given that nobody else seems to be paying any of the troopers much 
attention.

Arwen M
Nimble Fox spots Bjørn and changes trajectory slightly to meet him.  The small lynx 
that had been following her around is nowhere to be seen (but is possibly present 
nonetheless).

"Disturbed ground half a mile north of town," she tells him quietly upon meeting up 
outside of the inn.  "Tracks came from farther north.  Four horses, one without a 
rider."  She shifts a bit, stretching one wing as she does so, before looking past 
the cleric to the inn.  "Klizurk inside?"

Brian S
Flying Turtle makes it down the stairs without drawing any undue attention, as far 
as he is aware.  The area below is much darker, lit as it is mostly by torches 
cradled in sconces in the eight columns that run the length of the room in pairs.  
The outer walls are lined with shallow shelves built into the sand on the other 
side.  While they look as though they may have once held human remains, these 
shelves are now filled with boxes and casks of varying size and description.

The four most central columns form corner points for a large holding cell.  The 
iron bars between each column seem to be made of mismatched and re-purposed metal, 
but they are still sufficient to hold a prisoner or two for a time.

That cell is currently occupied by a middle-aged human in a plain sagum that looks 
to have been smudged recently.  The man is sitting on the brick floor with his feet 
in front of him and his forearms laid across his knees.  He looks up when Flying 
Turtle descends into the gloom, and watches the vriak suspiciously but does not 
speak.  Nobody else occupies the lower floor at the moment.

Wes T
"Fortuitous timing Nimble Fox. She's actually enroute to the local jail. 
Something's not right here. We felt it best to group up there before continuing.". 
Bjorn motions towards the jail with a hurried look ?

Kevin T
Klizurk slides alongside Hank and notices the guards.  "He just waltzed right in 
like he owns the place, didn't he?"

Arwen M
Nimble Fox blinks up at Bjørn, but if she has any questions, she doesn't ask them.  
Instead, she walks quickly in the direction he indicated, hopping every once in a 
while to gain speed.

Brian F
Flying Turtle walks up to the door of the jail cell and looks down at the lock.  
"Hmph.  Rumor says you know where Orianna is staying."  He stares at the prisoner, 
waiting for an answer to the implicit question.

Brian S
The prisoner--Cirrus, the potato merchant called him--scowls.  "Some shifty friends 
of the captain were sniffing around for her but I wouldn't tell them anything.  The 
captain's what locked me up in here, so if you're offering to let me go if I tell 
you then you must be one of his men.  Brought the keys to jangle in my face?"

Brian F
Flying Turtle draws his sword and smashes the lock open.  (Defy Danger Str: 8 
http://orokos.com/roll/111730 ) "Nope.  See if you can find a weapon of some sort, 
we might have to fight our way out.  Or you can tell me now and we just run for 
it."

Wes T
Doing his best to keep up with Nimble Fox's pace Bjorn hurries along towards the 
jail. Expecting trouble he does his best to ready his shield and cudgel while 
maintaining his hurried trip through town.

Brian S
Nimble Fox and Bjørn arrive in sight of the government building in short order, but 
by this time the guard at the door seems to have had enough of the strange traffic 
going past his post.  He has unlimbered his cudgel and is scanning the street in 
front of the building warily.

By now the early afternoon traffic between the market and the center of town has 
increased to the point where several villagers and a shaggy donkey or two.  The 
door guard does not appear to have spotted the two troopers on the street yet, but 
only because he hasn't looked their way.  They are the only two pedestrians without 
sagums, and probably easy to identify.

Chamelaeon W
Hank walks up behind the two guards as they get close to each other, about twenty 
feet from the stairs. He raises both his arms.... and throws them over the guards' 
shoulders, like he's known them all his life. 

"Afternoon, gentlemen. I hope you don't mind, but I couldn't help but notice that 
you - yes, both of you - have a pretty sweet deal going on in this town." He lifts 
his arms off and gestures to himself. "But when I see an organization like yours - 
local power, some oomph, and dreadfully lacking in style..." He gestures to the 
helmets. "... I think to myself, 'Self? What could these staid fellows use more 
than anything else right now?' and then I tell myself, 'Self, these fine gentlemen 
and their erstwhile mob boss leader need help making it .... to the next level.'" 
He gestures outward with his hand as though revealing a majestic vista. 

"This town's too small for you. For your gang, and for both of you, personally. 
Think about it. If you take me on, we could have a town... each!"

Chamelaeon W
((Defying Danger: 7 http://orokos.com/roll/111971 What the hell. I get no love from 
dicebots ever.))

Kevin T
Klizurk uses the momentary distraction to walk around the guards after noticing 
Hank seems to have them well and all distracted via bothering and 
botherbotherbother.

Wes T
Bjørn whispers to Nimble Fox.  "The guard seems to be in no mood to let anyone else 
inside.  I can make you invisible, and you are no doubt much quieter than I, but I 
shall have to somehow convince the guard to get the door open for you, otherwise 
you could look for another way in while I distract him."

Brian S
The two guards extricate themselves from Hank firmly but not unkindly.  Klizurk 
manages to walk around them just when they are most focused on her teammate.  
"That's pretty big talk," says the one on Hank's right.  "You're gonna want to talk 
to the boss about that sort of thing," says the one on his left.

"Are you kidding?"  The first guard eyes his companion incredulously.  "This guy is 
clearly from out of town, you think the boss is gonna waste time on his nonsense?  
It's time to throw this guy and his friend out."  He grabs his cudgel and moves to 
shove Hank toward the door.

The second guard makes no such move.  "Seems to me like the perfect thing to wa--"

A loud metallic clang echoes up the stairwell.  Bookkeepers and guards alike stop 
what they are doing and look at each other, at the stairwell, and at the curious 
scene unfolding near the landing.

"What the hell is go--" the second guard draws his cudgel as he turns around.  "Who 
the hell are you?" He cries when he sees Klizurk standing between him and the 
stairwell.

Two other guards--the only ones left in the building--have stopped whatever they 
were doing before and have started to make their way around the desks toward the 
stairwell.

Arwen M
((My, things have gotten interesting.))

Nimble Fox gives the building and guard up front a cursory once over before 
murmuring, "Invisibility."

Brian S
Down in the freshly opened cell, Cirrus leaps to his feet with a wicked grin.  As 
soon as Flying Turtle suggests a weapon he very nearly runs toward one of the 
columns and yanks a torch from its sconce.  "I'm ready."

Wes T
((Indeed))
Bjørn reaches over and touches Nimble Fox on the shoulder, murmuring a prayer to 
Verloren to hide her from sight.  (cast invisibility : 12 
http://orokos.com/roll/111981 ) As she fades from sight he links his cudgel back to 
his belt and walks up to the guard.  "A fine day we are having, if a bit chilly." 
He calls out addressing the guard with a warm grin.  "I am new to town and seeking 
employment, I think I am well cut out for guard duty.  Perhaps if you don't mind 
you could fill me in on what I need to do to.  It's a bit cold though if we could 
step inside out of the wind I'd appreciate it."

Kevin T
Klizurk cracks her knuckles and rolls her shoulder.  "I would dignify that with a 
response, but I believe my friend and I were getting ready to leave, just after we 
picked something up."  She motions for one of the guards to come at her with one of 
her outstretched hands, ready to sucker-punch him once he gets into range. 
(Hack'n'slash: 7 http://orokos.com/roll/111983  Damage: 5  
http://orokos.com/roll/111984)

Brian F
Flying Turtle lets out a short, barking laugh and marches back up the stairs. At 
the top, he nods to Klizurk and then the door, saying only, "Lets get out of here." 

Arwen M
Once invisible, Nimble Fox moves swiftly and silently around the guard and to the 
side the front door opens, confident Playful Shadow trails not far behind.  She 
waits for an opportune moment to slip in.

Brian S
Half a dozen things happen all at once.  The first and most obvious is that Klizurk 
invites the more gullible guard to take a swing at her.  He obliges, and although 
she is not able to completely avoid his attack and takes a cudgel to the bicep, she 
also punches him hard enough to knock his helmet off and leave him out cold on the 
floor.

((Damage: 5 less whatever your armor is...(which is 2, so 3 damage, and in the 
future I will include it in the roll) http://orokos.com/roll/111986))

With that attack and the clattering of the copper helmet on the floor, the 
bookkeepers drop what they are doing or hide behind desks.  One woman even screams 
briefly.  The two guards on their way now pick up their speed; one of them even 
vaults a desk.  They will engage Klizurk in mere moments.

The guard in front of Hank has not actually used force on the trooper yet, and now 
turns his head at the sound and the activity just behind and mostly beside him.

Flying Turtle and the former prisoner Cirrus emerge from the lower floor and are 
already moving toward the front door when...

Outside, the lone guard says "Shove off, old ma--" before he is interrupted by the 
clattering of a bell-shaped helmet and a frightened scream.  He turns and yanks the 
doors open to see what's going on, and lets in a sudden burst of cool air in the 
process.

Chamelaeon W
Hank uses the guard's distraction to good effect, as he first shoves him in the 
direction of the two charging guards and then shoves his foot in front of the 
guard's calf with the aim of tripping him so he spills into the other two guards. 
((Defy Danger: 8 http://orokos.com/roll/111989))

He shouts over to Klizurk. "You guys don't do things in half measures, do you?!"

Brian S
Rather than crash to the floor, one of the guards catches the tripped one and they 
stabilize each other while the other continues toward Klizurk.  While he did buy a 
little bit of time, Hank now has the attention of two club-wielding guards instead 
of just one.

Brian F
Flying Turtle responds to the opening of the door by kicking the other half open, 
hopefully sending the guard flying. (DD: 9)

Kevin T
Klizurk barely notices the swing that impacts her, but pulls her shield down into a 
ready position and looks ready to draw her sword.  She laughs at Hank's comment.  
"Half measures don't result in complete success."  She moves to engage the 
remaining guard with a well-placed shield bash to knock him out.  (H&S: 9 
http://orokos.com/roll/111991, Dmg: 7 http://orokos.com/roll/111992)

Chamelaeon W
Now that he has a few free moments, Hank takes a few running steps to a nearby desk 
covered with papers, then looks to the guards with a grin. "It's been fun, but it's 
time to leaflet." He sweeps his arm along the desk, pushing the entire contents up 
into the air and hopefully into the path of the breeze from the door.

Then he grimaces. "No, no. That was terrible. I'll do better next time," he says to 
the guards, with an apologetic smile.

Arwen M
Nimble Fox was about to enter at the opening the guard provided, but upon poking 
her head through the entrance decides that staying outside is the better option.  
She unslings her bow and nocks an arrow as she scoots back and to one side.

Wes T
Bjørn catches a boot on the outside of the door that the guard just clung open to 
make sure it stays open long enough for Nimble Fox and Playful Shadow to make it 
inside.  Also with the ruckus from inside, he readies his cudgel again for good 
measure.

Brian S
Hank's maneuver cleared the path for Flying Turtle and the prisoner, and drew the 
attention of the guards so completely that they ignore the escapee in their midst.  
Instead they rush him and the cloud of swirling papers he's created.  He'll have 
another opportunity to escape now, but he'll have to think and act quickly.

Farther back, toward the stairwell, Klizurk barrels over the guard in front of her 
and leaves him dazed and groaning on the floor behind her.  The fresh bruise on her 
arm is aggravated by the activity, but otherwise the kin has cleared her own path 
to the door or to help Hank.

((Damage 3 - 2 armor = 1 http://orokos.com/roll/111993; nevermind that's 3 armor so 
0 damage!))

Flying Turtle meanwhile kicks out the other front door.  The guard outside steps 
back but the door clips his foot and puts him off balance but not on the ground or 
out of his way.

As the activity spills out into the street, those few pedestrians nearby lower 
their heads and hurry--or haul their donkeys--out of sight as quickly as they can 
manage.  Bjørn and Nimble Fox are free to move in or out of the building, as 
neither one is being paid any heed at the moment.

Kevin T
Klizurk motions forward after catching sight of Flying Turtle and starts clearing a 
path through any straggling guards that'd be a problem for her or her company.  She 
keeps an eye out for Hank's antics as well, just in case he needs some last minute 
rescuing.

Chamelaeon W
Hank hops up onto the desk he just cleared. He's muttering to himself. "Account? 
Take into account?" He starts running from desk to desk in long loping jumps, 
kicking yet more papers into the air and giving accountants nightmares for months. 
"Pamphlet? No, no. Cut? Papercut? Weave? Press?" ((Defy Danger: 11 
http://orokos.com/roll/111995 ))

Wes T
Unsure if Hank's actions are getting him out of danger or just getting him into 
more, Bjørn moves into the building confident that the invisible Nimble Fox has 
made her move.  He gets himself between the leaping Hank and the oncoming guards 
and holds up his heavy oak shield.  (Defend Hank: 8 http://orokos.com/roll/112004)

Arwen M
A shrill whistle can be heard outside, and a bobcat leaps onto the door guard, 
clawing and biting down on his right shoulder even as an arrow lodges itself in his 
left knee.  ((Called Shot, Leg: 13 http://orokos.com/roll/111998; Damage: 3 
http://orokos.com/roll/112003))

Nimble Fox, now visible, is already on the run, moving quickly down the street as 
she pulls another arrow from her quiver.

Brian F
Flying Turtle swaggers past the downed guard as he calls out, "mission 
accomplished. " 

Kevin T
Klizurk chuckles as she walks out of the building with Flying Turtle and his buddy, 
watching the back until nobody wants to mess with them.  "That was a nice warm-up.  
Feels like forever since we've gotten into a mess of things."

Brian S
Hank easily outpaces the guards, who in their pursuit of the thief find themselves 
nearly sandwiched between a charging kin and a wild-looking old man with a heavy 
shield.  Both guards dive amongst the desks for cover, giving all of the troopers a 
clear path out onto the street.

Meanwhile the guard outside goes down with an anguished cry.  He is not dead but 
between the arrow sticking out of his leg and the lynx latched onto his shoulder he 
is completely helpless.

Cirrus blinks at the troopers' handiwork, though he is careful to keep pace with 
Flying Turtle.  "You people are serious," he says in awed tones.

((I'll give you guys a moment to regroup and figure out where you're going next, 
but as an OOC warning you cannot expect the area around this building to stay 
peaceful for long.))

Brian F
Flying Turtle chuckles a little. "We'd have been a bit less spectacular normally, 
but we found out they're looking actively for Orianna. Speaking of, where are we 
going?"

Brian S
Cirrus grunts.  "I'd rather tell you when we're well away from unwelcome ears.  We 
should leave town, unless you folks have something to collect before we do?"

Wes T
"I must say this was more exciting than my last trip into a town, but I think given 
the circumstances, heading out of town to speak privately seems appropriate"

Kevin T
Klizurk sighs. "A shame too, I was looking forward to sleeping in a normal bed." 
She glances around for the easiest route out of town.

Chamelaeon W
As he nears the door, Hank suddenly gets a grin on his face. He leaps off the last 
desk, skids to a halt in front of the door, and spins back to the guards. "BOOK! 
It's time for me to book." Then he strolls out the door toward the rest of his 
party.

Arwen M
Once everyone is clear of the building, another whistle can be heard from a good 
distance away.  One of Playful Shadow's ears swivels towards the sound before he 
jumps off the hapless guard and scampers in that direction.  Nimble Fox can be seen 
at the end of the street, raising her hand to the other troopers before darting 
around a corner and out of town, Playful Shadow following.

Wes T
((Woohoo at successful cast of Invisibility and not losing it from my prepared 
spells.  Figured that was a good choice for my 1 Wizard spell))

Kevin T
Klizurk packs her shield back on her back and heads in the direction of Nimble Fox. 
"Congratulations Hank. You finally came up with a good pun involving accounting and 
escaping."

Wes T
((Is Hank an OOTS style dashing swordsman?))

Chamelaeon W
"Thank you. An escape just doesn't feel the same if you can't deliver the right 
line." He follows after.

((No, he's just The Greatest Thief in the North.))

Brian S
((Alright, I think this is a great time for a scene change.  I will write us a new 
prompt as soon as I can, although I may not be able to post it for a couple of 
hours.))