The Wayfinders - The Wreck of the Archon

jkason · Feb 22, 2012

Midian Rightson, human druid

Midian frowns.

"The Arcanix again," he says, biting his lip. "It's sounding more and more like all our trouble circles back there, and our invites may not be the gifts we thought they were.

"On the other hand, if we can start a 'body flung from the lightning rail' rumor aboard and find a handy extra finger to put Dante's ring on, we might have a means of tracking the employer."

Deuce Traveler · Feb 26, 2012

Seeing as the party seems to be unsure on how to proceed, and knowing how dangerous and unrelenting the assassin appears to be, Doral slowly makes a semi-circle to the rear of the man, snaps out his dagger, and slits the man's throat from ear to ear while clapping his hand over the man's mouth and whispering, "Sorry. It will all be over in a minute. I am sure, in retrospect, you understand."

Sorry the lot of you had to see that, but I did not see what else could be done with him. No guilt on your part as you had no say in my actions. On a lighter note, I should soon have a finger if our new friend could part with the ring."

Dr Simon · Feb 27, 2012

Kraken merely raises an eyebrow.

"I would've thrown him off the train," he says wryly. "Less mess. But haven't we just lost a useful source of information, eh? You read the mind of that mongrel spy back on Tempest Isle, thought you might've done the same here, eh?"

Shayuri · Feb 27, 2012

"I tried," Whisper says with a sigh. "He was able to keep me out. And he was...resistant to the charm spell. It worked, but I think his life is so steeped in lies and paranoia that he does not truly trust anyone...even those he feels are friends. Anyway, I think I heard enough to work him out...at least as far as we're concerned."

She glances for a moment at the newcomer, weighing whether or not he was equally worked out, then nods at the body.

"And throwing him off the train, while less messy, is also less certain. Now we'll leave him for the authorities to discover and, with the ringed finger, it will seem to his employer the deed is done. With luck, we can beat them to the drop site and catch whoever they send to leave the money."

The changeling scowls. "It may come up with nothing. They seem good at avoiding direct connections. But any clue will be useful."

Dr Simon · Feb 27, 2012

"Gotta say I'm kind of lost here, Whisper," says Kraken. "So you and Middo have had a run-in with these toy-crossbow people before?"

Deuce Traveler · Feb 27, 2012

"I would have preferred keeping him alive also, but he seemed determined to kill our new friend and was beyond reasoning. Do we want to leave the body with the ring? I think it might be better to leave the corpse here, but keep a finger, place a ring on it and leave it at the drop site as he had said was his normal modus operandi." Doral states as he cleans his dagger off the corpse's collar. "There will probably be some questions with those who can identify us in the chase. Should we find a way off this train to avoid questions? It looks like we may be late to our appointment if we pursue this."

Shayuri · Feb 27, 2012

Whisper nods. "We'll leave him behind. I'd have preferred to keep him quiet and alive until the trip was almost over, but we'll try to make this work."

She looks at Kraken apologetically and nods.

"We were attacked shortly before setting out to the island," she explains. "While we investigated the shipwreck that led us to it in the first place. At the time we didn't know who the masterminds of that attack were. Now it seems we do."

"By his testimony, I think he was hired on 'retainer' as it were, by the cult, to see to it that no one would find the isle by backtracking a lost ship. Of course, when we decimated the cult any survivors most likely went to ground, so they couldn't pay him. He clearly had a spy of some kind among the crew though...they might not have known who he was, or what he did, but he was too well apprised of our actions there not to have an account. Even if that account seems exagerrated."

jkason · Feb 27, 2012

Midian Rightson, human druid

Midian is speechless for a long while after Doral casually slits the assassin's throat. While his bile for the man behind the murder of his friend was real, it's clear there had been a level of bravado in all the threats he made in the man's direction.

The druid finds himself assessing many things silently as his companions discuss the situation, and Whisper gives a fuller accounting of their previous run-in with the assassin. Finally, he comes to terms with both the necessity and the justice of Doral's swift decision, and joins into the discussion.

"If we use Doral's skills again, we may be able to return to our cabin without anyone having seen us this far down the train," Midian says. Whisper and I can disguise ourselves such that fewer of you will need to try negotiating crowds, and if I make an obnoxious-enough 'pet' of myself, they may all steer clear enough to make our trip back to our rooms much quicker.

"If we're going to leave this one here, though, I think we may want to at least stuff his corpse somewhere that may take a while to find him." He looks around the abandoned car they've entered. "Having him found when we're occupied elsewhere aboard might be to our advantage."

[sblock=mini-stats]

Code:

[b]HP:[/b] 60/66       
[b]AC:[/b] 21        [b]AC(T):[/b] 14    [b]AC(FF):[/b] 18 
Wildshape base AC: 15
Medium Animal AC: 17

Conditions: -2 Str (poison), Delay Poison (8 hours)

[b]Init:[/b] +02
[b]BAB:[/b] +6/+1     [b]CMB/CMD:[/b] +8/22     [b]ACP:[/b] -3     
[b]Perception:[/b] +17

Saving Throw    Base   Mod   Misc*  Total
Fort:            06     1     +2    +9      
Ref:             02     2     +2    +6       
Will:            06     6     +2    +14

* Cloak +2
Conditional: +4 vs. spell-like fey & plant effects (Resist Nature's Lure)
Resist Cold 10
 
[b]Weapon                  Attack   Damage     Critical[/b]
Shortspear................+8.....1d6+2.........x2
Shortspear, full attack...+8/+3..1d6+2/1d6+2...x2
Shortspear, thrown........+8.....1d6+1.........x2, range 20'
Sling.....................+8.....1d4+2.........x2, range 50'
Sling, full attack........+8/+3..1d4+2/1d4+2...x2, range 50'

[b]Surge:[/b] 9/9 remaining (CMB +14)

Magical Feats: Spell Focus (Conj), Augment Summoning, Natural Spell

[b]Spells:[/b]
0st Level / DC16/17 6 Day : Create Water, Detect Magic, Detect Poison, Mending, Stabilize, Spark
1st Level / DC17/18 4+2+D Day : Longstrider, Entangle, Feather Step, Liberating Command, Ray of Sickening, Faerie Fire, Obscuring mist(D)
2nd Level / DC18/19 3+2+D Day : [s]Delay Poison[/s], Frigid Touch, Lesser Restoration, Resist Energy, Soften Earth and Stone, Slipstream(D)
3rd Level / DC19/20 3+1+D Day : Call Lightning*, Mad Monkeys, Sleet Storm, Stone Shape, Water Walk(D) 
4th Level / DC20/21 2+1+D Day : Ice Storm, Freedom of Movement, Geyser, Control Water(D)

* attuned to empowered spell shard
** Eberron shard can recall evocation spells up to 4th level: 2/2 remaining

[b]Wand charges:[/b] 27/28 remaining.
[b]Wild Shape:[/b] 2/3 remaining

[/sblock]

SelcSilverhand · Feb 28, 2012

The assassin gurgles and tries to speak as the blood sprays from his throat. His hands come forward trailing the ropes that were supposed to have him securely bound. He pitches to the floor and goes still after a few moments. Doral and Kraken get to work stashing the body behind a stack of crates. Doral takes a moment to sever a finger, choosing one with a ring on it already and wraps it carefully in cloth.

The return trip to your cabin is largely uneventful. The crew are still on the lookout for the two combatants but with Dante under the effects of the invisibility spell no one notes your passage.

After a few hours, your train comes to its final destination. The city of Passage is a large, busy city. Numerous lightning rail tracks intersect with major roads that span all of Aundair. Overhead you can hear the roars and whooshing winds from elemental ringed airships. Tall buildings, warehouses, and docking towers mark the skyline. At the terminal, Dante takes his leave of you, determined to make his own way to his destination. Knowing that the body could be discovered at any moment, your group makes haste to collect your belongings and get as far away from the terminal as possible. It is late in the day to continue your journey. The city offers numerous places to rest for the evening as well as an active night life and shops offering all kinds of products.

OOC
[SBLOCK]
During the invisible trip between the roof and the back rail car, the assassin made his escape artist check. Once Midian started watching him I gave him two separate opposed sleight of hand vs perception checks to see that he was only holding his ropes and no longer tied. If talk had turned to what to do with him he would have attempted his escape but Doral surprised him with a coup de grace first.

I don't think Damage Inc is coming back, so I'm writing him off for now. I had a PM from someone else interested but so far they haven't responded with character ideas. If we don't get anything shortly I'll put up another recruiting request. Or if you are in a game with someone you would like to see here, let me know and I'll send them an invite.
[/SBLOCK]

jkason · Feb 28, 2012

Midian Rightson, human druid

Once the party has safely put the lightning rail behind them, Midian turns to the others, though he keeps his voice pitched low.

"So, do we want to drop off our 'prize' this soon off the train, or would it be better to play tourist a bit to cover ourselves?" he asks, his gaze resting longest on Whisper and Doral, as both seem naturally more inclined to subterfuge.