[Completed] Corvin/Mordred/Kasper Adventure 1: Battleaxe Gang

[shaidar]

Corvin

Recognising their old friend Corvin smiles back "I thought I recognised that odd smell as we returned..." he suddenly takes in the holy symbol on Kasper's chest and the conversations "...Your holiness. So, you made it into the priesthood then. It's good to see you, but you've stumbled into something potentially quite worrying, as have we."

[Edeldhur]

Mordred

Mordred greeted Kasper warmly, clasping his hand - "Kasper! It's good to see you again, and even better to see you wearing the Seer's symbol. Your timing is impeccable; we could use your skills and insight"

Turning to the girl and then to Kasper, he smiled, curious about his answer - "Answer the Miss" - he elbowed the holy man discreetly - "Because then we have other business to attend to" - his gaze shifted to the stirring thug.

[ybn1197]

Mordred

Mordred greeted Kasper warmly, clasping his hand - "Kasper! It's good to see you again, and even better to see you wearing the Seer's symbol. Your timing is impeccable; we could use your skills and insight"

Turning to the girl and then to Kasper, he smiled, curious about his answer - "Answer the Miss" - he elbowed the holy man discreetly - "Because then we have other business to attend to" - his gaze shifted to the stirring thug.

Kasper also recognizes the redheaded girl, whom Corvin spoke with and boy the one with the knife, who'd been awed by Mordred's status as a Magic-User. Their names are Elise and Charles, and it was they who had first come to the Church to pray to the Seer for help against the gang.

The girl claps her hands happily. "A cleric of the Seer! So you've come! You've come to save us! Did you send these men ahead, then?"

Kasper smiles at his friends before turning and stooping down to be more eye to eye with the girl. "No Elise, I did not send them." He looks to his friends, knowing there are there and by his side. "But far be it for me to question the will and the ways of the Seer. I am sure it was he who sent them here as much as I am certain the Seer was also the one who sent my feet down this path to be here when your grandfather needed me." He stands back up to his full height. "Now there are things we must attend to if we are to purge this neighborhood of the evil which has taken root." He turns to address his friends. "I am sure there was no plan to interrogate this ruffian here. You have a place we can take him to and discern some information from him?"

[archolewa]

Gonna elide the start of the interrogation a bit for pacing purposes.

At this point, the old woman sends Elise to lead the trio to an abandoned home a few doors down.

"Cathy's place," said the girl sadly. "Before they came and took her family, like I told you Mr. Corvin, sir."

The trio bring the thug, still groggy, but quickly coming to his senses into the small, one room home. Sebastian remains with the old man, saying he has no stomach for interrogations, and he'd rather continue to monitor the old man. He would be happy to help against the rest of the gang once the time comes, however.

The trio spend some time with some initial questions, mostly things they already learned from Elise to test how much and flagrantly the man is willing to lie. They find his information lining up with Elise's to a surprising degree, though he was watching them like a horse might a pack of circling wolves.

He verified that there are 11 members (and two dogs) of the gang: the two leaders (a couple with a rather stormy relationship by the names of Vane and Helda), Hrek, and eight others including the two recruits Hrek brought in that day and the three that Mordred, Corvin and Sebastian fought. Hrek is the second-in-command, and the most skilled warrior in the gang. So the gang is down to 11-3 = 8.

The gang had spent the past few years plying the roads between the Thornwall and the interior of the Refuge, making small raids on granaries and military shipments and the like. They were careful to never do enough to draw attention away from the Kinslayer's besieging army. Vane and Helda grew nervous with the death of the Kinslayer, afraid that now Princess Flora and her people would be able to turn their attention the Battleaxe Gang. About six months ago, Velda found them this tower, assuring them that nobody would find them here. Since then, they've been launching small raids in the countryside, and exploiting the slim-but-easy pickings of the surrounding blocks.

When Corvin and Mordred ask about the young woman they saw leaving the tower earlier that night, the man grows pale and clams right up.

Actions?

[shaidar]

Corvin

During the interrogation so far Corvin has let Mordred lead, throwing in the odd question himself. Those that know him can see the tension slowly building in his body during this time, which significantly increases when the man starts to talk about raiding outside the city.

When the man clams up he lets out a low growl and leans towards him, looking him right in the eyes, teeth bared. "You're scared of her? But you should be scared of us right now. One of those farms you attacked belonged to my family."

[Edeldhur]

Mordred

Mordred felt a surge of curiosity with each piece of information the thug revealed. Were these merely common bandits, or was there a deeper, darker secret behind their actions? His mind raced with questions - "Vane, Helda, and Hrek - what more do we know about them?" - he mused aloud, partially to himself and partially to his companions. He was particularly intrigued by Velda's ability to secure the tower while its enchantment still lingered. What kind of power did she possess?

As Corvin's growl filled the room, Mordred's gaze sharpened on the thug. The mention of the young woman leaving the tower earlier that night had struck a nerve - "You went silent at the mention of the young woman" - Mordred said, his tone low and controlled - "Who is she, and why does she scare you? Speak now, or you’ll find we can be far more terrifying than any woman from that tower" - he added, reinforcing Corvin's words.

He stepped closer, his eyes locking onto the thug's - "And tell us more about Velda. How did she secure the tower? Do you know what enchantments are in place? Your cooperation could very well determine your fate"

[archolewa]

Corvin
When the man clams up he lets out a low growl and leans towards him, looking him right in the eyes, teeth bared. "You're scared of her? But you should be scared of us right now. One of those farms you attacked belonged to my family."

Charisma (intimidation) check: 1d20+12+2 (being helpless) = 16 < 20

A glint came into the thug's eye. "*Your* family? Might want to just leave them be then, unless you want the Inquisition coming down on you. *Your* family's as good as dead. You'd be best off leaving them that way."

The Inquisition is a very militant and fanatical branch of the Seer's Church that focuses on rooting out Kinslayer cultists. It has some very powerful friends in the Refuge, but Princess Flora *detests* them. To date she has managed to keep them from gaining any sort of open foothold in her lands, which are all the lands along the Thornwall, but it's an open secret that they still have covert agents and like sticking their noses into other people's business, merited or otherwise.

Mordred
"You went silent at the mention of the young woman" - Mordred said, his tone low and controlled - "Who is she, and why does she scare you? Speak now, or you’ll find we can be far more terrifying than any woman from that tower" - he added, reinforcing Corvin's words.

He stepped closer, his eyes locking onto the thug's - "And tell us more about Velda. How did she secure the tower? Do you know what enchantments are in place? Your cooperation could very well determine your fate"

Charisma (Intimidation): 1d20+9+2 (being helpless) = 14 < 20

The thug turns his attention to Mordred at Mordred's question. He snorts. "Velda's just a golddigger with connections. As for the girl, worst you can do is kill me. I talk about her, I'm getting something far, far worse."

He smirks at Corvin. "But then, Fido here surely knows all about that."

[shaidar]

Corvin

*snick* Corvin's arm raises and what little light there is glints of his claws and fly towards the man's face.

At the last minute he retracts his claws and clenches his hand into a fist

Not sure if you want me to roll something to hit. The intention is an Unarmed strike rather than a clawed strike.

"They are good people, don't you dare say your filthy lies about them. You burnt their home to the ground. Where are they!??!"

[archolewa]

Corvin

*snick* Corvin's arm raises and what little light there is glints of his claws and fly towards the man's face.

At the last minute he retracts his claws and clenches his hand into a fist

Not sure if you want me to roll something to hit. The intention is an Unarmed strike rather than a clawed strike.

Dude's tied up and lying on the ground. There's no way you're not hitting him. I'm also going to assume you're not trying to kill him, and since Unarmed Strikes deal damage, there is an assumption of lethal intent there, even if it's unlikely to actually kill someone So I'll treat is as just a mean right (or left!) hook.

"They are good people, don't you dare say your filthy lies about them. You burnt their home to the ground. Where are they!??!"

The man's head lurches back, and he coughs, spitting out a bit of blood from a split lip. A strange expression spasms across the man's face, as if something in Corvin's voice triggered something. "Yeah? I woulda said the same thing about Hrek, back when we served on the Wall together. Look, I don't want to die alright? If I did, I would have stayed on the Wall and at least died with some honor. But I don't want to end up in the tower basement, or under the Inquisition's knives. Maybe we can help each other."

[shaidar]

Corvin

The smell of fresh blood filled Corvin's nostrils, the metallic tang cutting through his anger. He shook his head to try and help clear his mind, taking a deep breath that he let it out slowly.

"That depends on you, how helpful you are. Where would they take them? A human family, mother, father, two sons and a daughter. You mentioned the basement of the tower, what happens there?"

[archolewa]

The man shakes his head. "Sorry pal, I need something more concrete than that."

He nods at Kaspar, the cleric. "I want to go free, I don't want you or any of your friends chasing me, and I want a writ from the cleric attesting that I don't, and have never served the Kinslayer. Which is true by the way. Refusing to die in the cold dark under a Chimera's claws is one thing, serving that monster is something else. You give me that, and I'll tell you what you want to know."

[shaidar]

Corvin snorts as the man finishes his list.

He settles down on his haunches and looks straight at him, cocking his head.

"That's a lot of wants you've got there. How do we know you won't just go back to the tower and warn them?"

[archolewa]

The man gave Corvin a look that made his opinion of the Lupine's intelligence abundantly clear. "Did you miss the part where I said I don't want to end up in the tower's basement?"

Rolled a secret Wisdom insight check, since it's not going to be obvious whether you successfully read his body language or not.

The man is clearly annoyed,but mostly seems nervous, licking his lips and squirming in his bindings. His voice quavered more than a little when he mentioned the basement. You get the sense that he's feeling desperate and scared, above all else, of the basement in the tower.

[shaidar]

Corvin grins back

"And did you miss the part where I don't trust you, that I think you'd say anything to save your own skin." he pauses for a second before continuing "OK, OK, this obviously requires a certain level of trust on both sides to move foreward."

He looks over to Mordred and Kasper

"What do you think? Do we trust him enough?"

[archolewa]

Corvin grins back

"And did you miss the part where I don't trust you, that I think you'd say anything to save your own skin." he pauses for a second before continuing "OK, OK, this obviously requires a certain level of trust on both sides to move foreward."

"You're damn right I will. But between you three, the Inquisitors and Hrek, you seem the most likely to listen."

[Edeldhur]

Mordred

Mordred nodded thoughtfully at Corvin's words, then turned his gaze to the thug - "My friend here is right. Trust is a rare commodity in these times. You've given us reasons to doubt you, but you also hold information we need"

He took a step closer, his voice steady and commanding - "You understand the gravity of your situation. You have valuable information, and we may have the means to protect you from the tower and the Inquisition. But this only works if we can trust each other"

Mordred glanced at Corvin and Kasper before continuing - "You mentioned Velda's connections. What are those connections, and how did she secure the tower? And this girl - why is she more terrifying than anything we can do? Start talking, and we can consider your terms. But be warned, if you deceive us or try to run, there will be nowhere to hide"

[archolewa]

Mordred glanced at Corvin and Kasper before continuing - "You mentioned Velda's connections. What are those connections, and how did she secure the tower? And this girl - why is she more terrifying than anything we can do? Start talking, and we can consider your terms. But be warned, if you deceive us or try to run, there will be nowhere to hide"

A glimmer of hope enters the man's eye for a moment. "I'll answer those questions, I suppose. I don't know Velda's connections. We came to Thorncity now and then to fence our goods, or spend our earnings on a bit of luxury. A bed under a roof, some ale, that sort of thing. I never paid attention to what the higher ups were doing, I was living while I had the chance, you know? After one such trip, Velda told us about the tower. That's all I know. For the girl. Well..."

He throws a nervous look at Kasper. "Well, she, she's, now look, she just lives in the basement alright? I got nothing to do with her. I mean, she makes us do stuff for her sometimes, but umm, look. Guy's gotta survive right? So, yeah. She's, well I'm pretty sure she's you know. A cultist. For Him."

He shivers, still nervously watching Kasper. "I think maybe you get now why I don't want to draw the Inquisition's attention. You dig?"

[shaidar]

Corvin

Corvin stands and paces for a few seconds before turning back to the thug.

"That's not a huge amount of useful information. What about the family I told you about? Are you willing to tell me something about them? Were you one of those that did it? Burn their house down and leave the battleaxe mark on the only wall left?"

[archolewa]

Corvin

Corvin stands and paces for a few seconds before turning back to the thug.

"That's not a huge amount of useful information. What about the family I told you about? Are you willing to tell me something about them? Were you one of those that did it? Burn their house down and leave the battleaxe mark on the only wall left?"

The man licked his lips nervously. "Yeah, yeah I was there. We all were, except Velda. I stayed in the back. You don't go attacking farmsteads man. You don't mess with veterans. Those folks've stared bugbears in the eye. They really gonna be scared by a couple of mangy bandits? We smoked them out, drove them right into our arms. But the mother killed Fran and Wesley, before getting cut down by Vane. Fought like a demon, she did. Fight went out of the others when she went down though. The... the cultist took them to the basement, the dad and two kids and mom's body. Grown kids. That's good. I got limits, man. Don't know why she wanted the body, but that's what she told us when she made us attack them. Bring them back alive, or their corpses if you can't. And that's all I'm saying. The cleric gives me that writ, and you all agree to let me go, I'll tell you what I know about the layout of the tower and the basement. Don't know much about the basement, but I know somethin'."

[shaidar]

Corvin

On hearing of the death of the mother, Corvin's hands tighten into fists, but he takes a deep breath and relaxes. He looks at the thug with disdain.

"Wendy was worth more than two of you, more than ten of you cowards. You said only two children? Then I can only hope Benjy was away. Was there a reason they chose this particular family? You said Vane was the leader. I assume he'll be easy to spot?"