[Play-by-Post] Tales from Fourtower Bridge

[vazha]

Is the big ass bandit fella still zzzz-ing?

 

[Catacombs]

Is Black Fur still knocked out

Yes. He'll wake up in just over 10 minutes, unless someone stirs him awake.

+--------------------+

Brytter unfolded the note and read the contents:

Rayce,

The caravan should be arriving near the bend in two days time. I've got word that there might be some very, very valuable cargo involved. Once you've dispatched the travelers, take their goods and head to Fourtower. Use this note as proof of employment and get it to Y. She'll get you the money. Thank you for your years of patronage. God help you if anything goes wrong.

T

 

[vazha]

Mumbles does just that, bellowing some of his finest verses down his ear in the process:

"I got something for your monkey ass. So peep
And quit nappin or Imma put you to eternal sleep"

Spoiler

 

[Catacombs]

Mumbles' dope bars flowed into Black Fur's ears. A couple of his fingers twitched; his hand moved. Black Fur, his head buried in the dirt, let out a long groan -- uuuuhhhhhhhhhhh. He was in immense pain. He rolled over slowly, moaning in pain. His face was a bloody pulp. He coughed.

"Wha...." he gasped out. "You... fuckers."

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Mumbles' dope bars flowed into Black Fur's ears. A couple of his fingers twitched; his hand moved. Black Fur, his head buried in the dirt, let out a long groan -- uuuuhhhhhhhhhhh. He was in immense pain. He rolled over slowly, moaning in pain. His face was a bloody pulp. He coughed.

"Wha...." he gasped out. "You... fuckers."

Brytter shows the note to Rayce, as he presmues Black Fur is called.
"Who is this Y?"

 

[Nortar]

Brytter shows the note to Rayce, as he presmues Black Fur is called.
"Who is this Y?"

Before the bandit could do anything with the note, like spit on it or something, Kilur took the paper from Brytter's hand.

"Let me see it, lad" - During the interrogation the dorf read the note, hmming and scratching his beard. After reading it once, he studied it a second time with the help of his aiming thingamajig, looked through the paper, even smelled it. And finally said. - "Bah, I need a drink to make heads or tails of this! What I think is...."

Kilur's thoughts in non-formal manner:

Spoiler

1. For the "two days" forewarning to be of any use, the note had to be passed to Rayce within a day from being written.
That could mean that T and Rayce live in the same neighborhoods.
Unless there's a magical way of delivering notes, but the dwarf does not know anything about arcane mysteries.

2. The directions to head to Fourtower implies that the bandits did not come from there.
The nearest town is Brookhaven, could it mean that T is located there?

3. Rayce knows Y, but she does not know him despite his "years of patronage to T". Further proof that Rayce is not from Fourtower.
And, perhaps, that Y could be a particularly well-known public figure.

4. As the note serves as "proof of employment" perhaps it has some marks that would allow Y to identify the sender as T.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Brytter shows the note to Rayce, as he presmues Black Fur is called.
"Who is this Y?"

Before the bandit could do anything with the note, like spit on it or something, Kilur took the paper from Brytter's hand.

"Let me see it, lad" - During the interrogation the dorf read the note, hmming and scratching his beard. After reading it once, he studied it a second time with the help of his aiming thingamajig, looked through the paper, even smelled it. And finally said. - "Bah, I need a drink to make heads or tails of this! What I think is...."

Kilur's thoughts in non-formal manner:

Spoiler

1. For the "two days" forewarning to be of any use, the note had to be passed to Rayce within a day from being written.
That could mean that T and Rayce live in the same neighborhoods.
Unless there's a magical way of delivering notes, but the dwarf does not know anything about arcane mysteries.

2. The directions to head to Fourtower implies that the bandits did not come from there.
The nearest town is Brookhaven, could it mean that T is located there?

3. Rayce knows Y, but she does not know him despite his "years of patronage to T". Further proof that Rayce is not from Fourtower.
And, perhaps, that Y could be a particularly well-known public figure.

4. As the note serves as "proof of employment" perhaps it has some marks that would allow Y to identify the sender as T.

Spoiler

We could use this and meet Y ourselves once we deal with the ruin gig.

 

[vazha]

Right, time for some tastefur torture? Let us all choir-sing miley curys' best hits to him.

 

[Catacombs]

Black Fur, aka Rayce, chuckled and spit a wad of blood at Brytter's face. He smiled. Blood stained his already-yellow teeth.

"Like shit I'll tell you anything," he said, with a smug.

 

[vazha]

"Challenge axe-pted!" - cheerfully announced Mumbles, as he casually chopped three fingers from the mans right hand with one deft swing of his handaxe.

"I ain't playin'' dis games of yours, Mister and I aint got no pro-position. So please let us know if you change your dis-position." - he informed the bandit as he raised the handax for a second blow at the freshly mutilated palm.

P.s. It's either this or I start singing "Wrecking Ball" to him. Your choice Catacombs

 

[Catacombs]

Rayce screamed.

The guttural sound echoed into the valley, scaring some birds from their perch and forcing everyone around to look at him. He raised his hand and saw his pinky, ring and middle fingers severed at the bone, all spewing blood. The tips lay scattered on the ground.

"FUCK! FUCK! FUCK!" he yelled. "You filthy, goat-fucking orc."

Mumbles stomped on Rayce's other hand and raised the handaxe.

"Wait!" Rayce bellow.

The handaxe came down quickly but stopped mere inches from Rayce's other fingers.

"OK. OK," Rayce said, gasping for breath. "'Y' is Yacinda. She is a fence at Fourtower with very, very deep connections. She and Thalen work together. This was supposed to be a simple score, something about a caravan going to the monastery. That's all I know. I swear."

 

[vazha]

Spoiler

See? I didn't even have to roll for intimidashun - show, not tell

 

[Nortar]

Witnessing the bardic express-questioning method, Kulir's nearly dropped both his jaw and the note he's been reading.
But he tried to look like it was nothing for a "seasoned adventurer" like him.

"And who's that Thalen guy? And what else do ye know about that caravan, what were ye after?"

 

[Scroo]

Mardrey couldn't believe her eyes when the half-orc started chopping off black fur's fingers. She stared at the stump of the thug's wounds, unable to say anything.

 

[Catacombs]

Amid the disbelief running through the group, Kilur kept his composure.

"And who's that Thalen guy," he asked. "And what else do ye know about that caravan, what were ye after?"

"I work for Thalen," Rayce said, fighting back tears from excruciating pain coursing through his body. "He runs things in the mountains. Don't look for him. You'll fail. He'll find you."

Rayce gripped his fingers, attempting to stem the bleeding.

"As for the caravan," he muttered. "All we were told was there would be a group on their way to Brookhaven from Fourtower, carrying valuable goods. Looking at you all, seems like you're not who we were looking for."

He spat blood onto the ground.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Spoiler

We don't have to kill him but no need to help him either. I say we move on. Let him survive of his own accord. If he makes it out alive in his state I'm more than willing to have another go at him.

 

[vazha]

Spoiler

He racist! He call me goat-fuckin' orc!

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Spoiler

He racist! He call me goat-fuckin' orc!

Spoiler

Not his fault he can't tell the difference between goat and sheep, blame his int score for that.

 

[Nortar]

Kilur tossed the bleeding bandit a handkerchief, the one that was large enough to cover a picnic table.
"How can we recognize that ruler-of-mountains of yers?"

We don't have to kill him but no need to help him either. I say we move on. Let him survive of his own accord. If he makes it out alive in his state I'm more than willing to have another go at him.

Spoiler

Or we can tie both survivors and deliver them to Brookhaven.
If there is some kind of town-guard, we can drop the bandits there, with an off-chance for a reward for their heads.
Who knows, maybe they are wanted men with their "years of patronage".

And if there are no guards or no one wants them, we just cut them loose (closer to Thalen) and ask one of Mardrey's birdies to track were they would go.

 

[vazha]

Spoiler

we needs them monies so yeah, lets turn him in. And then lets rob that caravan they mistook us for

 

[Scroo]

Spoiler

Mardrey also pledges for turning them in if we have time.

 

[Catacombs]

On tying up the bandits

We have 3 for tying up the bandits and taking them to Brookhaven. That's a majority, and I'll assume that's the plane.

Mumbles wants to wait for another caravan and rob them. Is that what the rest of you would like to do, too?

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Spoiler

No to robbing. Wanna close the ruins first

 

[GrafvonMoltke]

Spoiler

 

[Nortar]

Spoiler

Kilur does not want to rob caravans, because he's LG.

But can we even be sure we are not the caravan they were waiting for?

If I was an evil schemer and had a disposable gang of cutthroats, a story about rich traders is exactly what I would tell to make them attack whoever I need.
Either they kill us or we kill them - both outcomes could be ok for Thalen.

But maybe mentioned intrigues and Illuminati kind of secret society made me paranoid.