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<blockquote data-quote="Silver Moon" data-source="post: 4805243" data-attributes="member: 8530"><p><strong>Chapter Twenty-seven, “In for a Penny, In for a Pound”, September 3rd, 1882, 4:20 P.M.</strong></p><p></p><p>Up on the balcony, George notes that once Benajamin found cover behind the tool shed the sniper continued to train his rifle on it for another minute, then shifted his focus back to the front porch. Fish is now inside the shed, and immediately looks for something -- anything! -- that he might slop together to create a distraction. His thoughts run through the options - Can he set a fire, the more smoke, the better? Can he roll something large and noisy out the door? Is there a cranky chicken he could set loose? </p><p></p><p>Ruby's spell ceases, the final detected thought being from the cowboy with the magical rope, who plans to lasso and hog tie Hardin as soon as he shows his face. Nanuet turns to the others standing nearby, he speaks quietly and calmly. "Has anyone seen Ruby? If anyone would start trouble right now it would be her." Ruby ran though all the enemies thoughts in her own mind quickly. Realizing that they were not going to end this peacefully... she reacted. She stayed in place crouched behind the porch swing, making sure her gun was in her hand and readied. Then some arcane words very lightly came from her mouth, barely heard by James and perhaps the others on the porch. Ruby begins to cast a Sleep on the group of people hoping to take some of them out before we start. </p><p></p><p>Solomon Star is standing just around the northeast corner of the house, having exited the building out a window of his Treasurer’s Office after gathering his firearms and props. He has a Colt Thunderer revolver on his belt and a Remington double-barrel shotgun is in his hands, although the real weapons that he plans to use are his brains and his ability to duplicate accents. With the deputy badge pinned to his chest and atop his head a Confederate military cap with the insignia of a Corporal he walks out into open. </p><p></p><p>As he walks he is carrying across one arm the shotgun with the stock opened up, with two shotgun shells in his opposite hand which he places into the shotgun as he walks. He exclaims in his best imitation of a Birmingham Alabama accent. “What in tarnation is all this commotion? Who in Hades are all you boys?” Apparently confused by this new arrival, the man in the suit asks “Who are you?”. Sol continues forward with a stride of confidence while finishing loading the shotgun as he speaks, but keeping the twin gun barrels still open. He states, “I’m Deputy Sheriff Solomon, senior lawman in these parts, an’ I asked y’all some questions that I want answered.”</p><p></p><p>The older man in the Confederate uniform says “We’re from Texas. We have unfinished business with John Wesley Hardin. He killed our kin.” James Parker looks towards Sol and says, “They want to take me too Sheriff. They’re trespassing and I gave them five minutes to leave the Timucuan Conservancy property. That five minutes is now up.” Sol’s face then turns beet red and he angrily yells at James and says, “Ain’t yer call, I’m in charge here. Damn it Parker, I told ya that boy’d bring nothin’ but trouble! It’s high time we got rid of him, he ain’t welcome here no more.” Sol turns back to the man in the suit and says, “Parker is my responsibility, he’s stayin’ put, but if y’all want Hardin you’re welcome to have’em.” </p><p></p><p>Sol closes up the shotgun but keeps it pointing down at the ground as he turns his head towards Thomas. He then gestures towards the corral and barn 250 feet away at the southeastern edge of the plateau and asks Thomas, “Toby, is Hardin still over in the barn reshooing that tan stallion of his?” Before 'Toby' can respond two of the mounted cowboys fall asleep and slump over on their saddles. "What in Hades?" the cowboy with the rope exclaims.</p><p></p><p>Inside, Nanuet says, "Yeah, I bet that was Ruby who put them to sleep. I guess we're in this now.” He starts a chant and points to the area at the horses feet, to turn the ground soft and muddy. He plans the mud to be a foot-and-and-half deep. Those outside are then interrupted by a crashing sound from the toolshed, following by a metal rolling sound from the same building which sounds somewhat like thunder. This is followed by the sound of breaking glass as a flaming bicycle tire goes crashing through and flying out of the shed window. </p><p></p><p>Spurred on by the two horsemen falling asleep, and the crashing of the flaming bicycle tire, and thinking to himself “In for a penny, in for a pound", Thomas now whirls into action, springing forward to engage the lasso-bearing cowboy with a full-fledged flurry of blows with his staff, intending to knocking him both senseless and off his horse. The man falls from the horse, stunned with such a force that he is barely conscious as he leaves the saddle, with the fall to the ground finishing the job. The horse begins to move to the side in reaction to the sudden movement of the large man beside it.</p><p></p><p>Ruby stays in her position then casts a second sleep spell, hoping to take out another couple of horsemen. Mina runs to where the pigeons are and sends a message that she had been writing out back to Alan MacKinnon for help, which reads "No, they are not expected and they are looking for trouble in regard to James and Mr. Hardin. Please send help as soon as you can." </p><p></p><p>Absent his 'accessories', Fish figures it's highly unlikely he'll inflict any incapacitating strikes himself, so he plans on pressing the distraction -- any of the mooks that target him is one less mook targeting his friends. His first inclination is to toss something that might startle the horses: a tin can full of nails, or a garbage can lid. If there's no obvious candidate, he grabs a handful of bolts or garden shears or whatever-is-on-hand in the shed, and begins chucking them out the broken window at the mooks. He's not particularly concerned with hitting anyone so much as creating a fuss, so he elects to fight defensively. He uses partial cover and concealment to whatever advantage available him.</p><p></p><p>As gardening tools go flying from the shed one of the cowboys draws his gun and takes two shots in that direction. The cowboy is then stopped by the older man in the Confederate uniform who yells, "Stop shooting you idiot! They're just trying to cover Hardin's escape from the barn! Foster, Danny, with me!" He then pulls his horse away turning to ride towards the distant barn. Two cowboys follow his lead, specifically the one who had identified himself as Charlie Webb's son another who pulls out a coiled rope. </p><p></p><p>On the balcony, George notices one of the two distant snipers redirects his aim back in the direction of the shed while the second continues to aim towards the front doorway of the porch. Nanuet’s Elvan chant catches the attention of the enemy group's leader in the suit. The man reacts by keeping his back towards his men as he begins a subtle movement of his own hands as he softly mutters an incantation. Ruby and Nanuet both manage to compete their spells by the time that the area around the front porch and lobby room suddenly reverting into a zone of complete silence. This temporarily prevents any further spells and/or all communication from and between Abigail, Alsoomse, James, John, Luiz, Mina, Nanuet and Ruby.</p><p></p><p>The cowboy who had taken the shots at the shed falls asleep and slumps over in his saddle, dropping his Colt Peacemaker in the process. As the gun hits the ground it goes off, the bullet striking the rear flank of the horse ridden by the man in the suit, which charges forward towards the porch and starts to rear up. The man grabs the reins and tries to steady his animal.</p><p></p><p>With the distraction going on Lawrence tries to sneak up on the closest gunman, drawing his derringer on the man and demanding that he surrender. The man is startled and since he still hasn't drawn his gun he raises his hands to surrender. The man's horse then begins to sink as the ground beneath turns to mud. Since Lawrence has moved up directly beside that he too begins to sink in the mud. Seeing Cantrell's predicament, Fish immediately secures some rope from the shed.</p><p></p><p>The three cowboys starting to ride southeast towards the barn manage to barely exit the area just as the dirt transforms to mud. The leader's forward movement also brings him outside of the zone. But the remaining five horses and riders are caught up, with the two who had been dismounted and lying on the ground sinking out of sight. The five horses caught in the mud begin to panic at attempt to escape, which just causes them to sink faster. Two of these horses are now rider-less, two others have riders that are still asleep, and the other is the man who had just surrendered to Lawrence. </p><p></p><p>George sighs at the resulting chaos that has erupted. He looks around gauging everyone's actions as the scene unfold under him. He gets a wry smile and casts a little spell, well above the silence under him. George sends another message, this time to the two snipers, the message being: "Hey cowboys, you two stick out like a sore thumb on that plateau. We have eight rifles pointed at your heads, so if you were smart you would skeedattle while your hide was still intact" </p><p></p><p>One man remains still, his rifle still centered on the porch. His companion sets down his rifle and lifts up a pair of binoculars, now scanning the upper floors of the house for these supposed riflemen. His face is now partially exposed but at this distance all George can make out is a thin mustache, short beard and receding hairline. When George gauges the man is looking at him he waves to the man and points to the roof. </p><p></p><p>With the new silence going on, Abby doesn't try to cast anymore spells. Instead she finds herself a spot by a window and pulls her Colt. No bullets have been fired yet at them, and she doesn't plan to fire the first, just to be ready if this gets that far. Nanuet's well crafted spell had left an island of solid dirt rather than mud remaining immediately beneath Thomas's feet, although the mud around on all sides now prevents him from being able to move away from that spot. Alsoomse realizes that magic has been used to silence them. She determines the location of the spell and then attempt to dispel the silence. Moving into James and Mina's office, she casts a Dispel that causes the Silence to cease. </p><p></p><p>Thomas manages to make an astounding fourteen foot leap which lands him clear of the mud. The five horses continue to struggle in the mud, one stepping on and breaking the arm of the sleeping man who had sunk into the muck. This is actually fortunate for the man, as the injury causes him to wake up and therefore not drown. Lawrence glances at his feet. He sighs, "If that doesn't beat all." </p><p></p><p>Lawrence tries to step out of the mud, ignoring his erstwhile prisoner. Fish loops an end of the rope through a heavy nut or iron washer, ties a knot, and tosses it toward Lawrence through the shed window, crying out, "Catch hold!" Lawrence reaches for the rope. "What's happening? A sinkhole?" Fish braces himself with a foot against the wall and haul him out.</p><p></p><p>The other three cowboys continue to ride onward in the direction of the barn. The enemy leader manages to jump from his unruly horse, landing with a degree of grace on the porch fifteen feet to the east of where James is standing. Grasping his staff, Thomas somersaults toward the porch. The man in the suit jumps back, the staff just brushing briefly against his chest. Nanuet casts hold person on the man who jumped onto the porch. The man continues to move rather than becoming held. </p><p></p><p>Once Roy sees the doin's a-happening in front of the porch, he beats feet downstairs and out onto the porch, gun in hand. When he sees the leader land on the porch, Roy puts himself between James and the enemy, gun outstretched. "I suggest you leave now, sir, before things get worse for you and your men." The man steps further back, nearing the northeast edge which is railed on both sides. He speaks to neither Thomas or Roy but instead turns his head towards Sol and says, "Sheriff Solomon, call your boys off, all I want is to accept your offer of Hardin and then go." Roy exclaims, "Over your dead body, do you get Hardin."</p><p></p><p>Fish is able to help pull Lawrence out. The horses cease sinking when they are around eighteen-inches deep. Feeling solid ground again they stop their panic. The muck covered man with the broken arm crawls to the edge of the mud and then collapses unconscious on the solid dirt. . The other three men continue to ride to the southeast, now closing in on the barn.</p><p></p><p>Alsoomse casts an entangle in the direction of the remaining horsemen in the mud, attempting to place the spell in a way to keep her allies out of the effect. With the plateau having been cleared of all vegetation, there is very little remaining to actually entangle, with only the only thing entangling the five horses being some remaining tree roots below the surface that make their way through the mud. These branches intertwine upward, further pinning the two sleeping men to their mounts. </p><p></p><p>Breathing heavily, Lawrence climbs out of the mud and says, "Much obliged, Fish." He sits on the ground and draws the derringer again. Fish pokes his head just above the windowsill. "Lawrence! These mooks have a coupla snipers 200 yards out. Any suggestions?" he asks, audibly distressed.</p><p></p><p>Solomon raises his Remington as he surveys the carnage around him, threading his finger ahead the trigger. He speaks in a tone that is half-drawl, half-growl, "I'm a man of my word, gov'nuh, but I'm a lawman too." He draws the shotgun to his own chest, audibly clinking its steel barrel against the badge. Through gritted teeth, he says, "You're welcome to Hardin, soon as you produce a warrant for his arrest or a legal order for his extradition. I'll be happy to be rid of that filthy Texan, either when you haul him away in leg irons or I chase his murderin' hide outta my county myself."</p><p></p><p>He looks across the yard, with the turf churned up and acrid smoke still curling from the tire that Ben tossed burning from the shed. Though no longer in a panic, the horses are still panting heavily and frothing at the mouth. "A man's house is his castle, guv'nuh, and your men just took a crap in the courtyard. I've been very patient. Be civilized, now, and leave."</p><p></p><p>The suited man's gun is still holstered and he makes no attempt to move his hand towards it. He says, "We're not going anywhere until after my boys see who is hiding in the barn." At the barn, the man with the rope stays mounted and ties one end of the rope to the front of his western saddle. He moves his horse to the front of the barn doors, holding his lasso in his hand. The other two dismount and draw their revolvers. The younger cowboy moves around to the door by the rear side of the building while the man in the Confederate uniform moves to open the front barn doors. </p><p></p><p>Roy cocks his gun and steadies it at the man. "Wrong. You will call your men, now, to ride their horses away from here and to never bother us again. Do. You. Understand?" "That's mighty un-neighborly of you, guv'nah," says Solomon. "I'll give you a count of ten to reconsider -- then you'll force me to take you into my custody." James warns Solomon, "Sheriff, you should know that this man has two snipers on yonder hill with rifles trained on us."</p><p>Solomon squints and his face sets like flint. He bellows, "Guv'nah, should your men fire on these citizens, I give everyone here release to put you down."</p><p></p><p>The man says, "Those guys are just hired help, they don't have a personal stake in this like the rest of us. You are in no danger from them, they have orders not to shoot any people. They're just here to take out Hardin's horse if he tries to make a break away." James barks, "I trust nothing you say! You've trespassed on AGELESS corporation property. You've been asked to leave, and you refuse. You've threatened both me and my guests. Why do your snipers train their rifles on the porch, if it's Hardin's escape by horseback that they aim to prevent? Extract your men and leave."</p><p></p><p>The conversation is then interrupted as the man on the horse who Lawrence had previously approached yells out "Horace!" He had been staring at his unconscious companion who Thomas had knocked from the horse and into the mud. The unconscious man landed on his back and partially sunk, but his face remained floating above the surface. A vine now entangles the man's neck and face and pulls him fully beneath the mud, the man's mouth filling with muck as he sinks from sight.</p><p></p><p>The man who yelled leaps from his horse in the direction of his friend, landing with a splash five feet away. He starts to move towards where the man sunk. The man in the suit replies, "Your ogre caused that Sheriff. You're so concerned about the law, if my man dies I want that buck charged with murder." James shouts, "Benjamin! Lawrence! Aid those men!" "What do you say we start earning our keep, Lawrence?" says Fish as he exits the shed, carrying his rope (and hoping that he doesn't get sniped!).</p><p></p><p>James then turns to the man in the suit and says loudly enough for all to hear, "I suspect that you'll join them, no? Help save your man -- or will you stand there and watch him drown?" </p><p></p><p>Ruby moved out from behind the chair she had been behind, now visible. She took a few steps toward James, her hands behind her back, concealing her gun. For now she said nothing; but was ready to act quickly if necessary. Mina returned from sending her message but before she stepped outside she cast True Strike upon herself and readied her gun. She wasn't going to let anyway waltz in and take her love from her. She found a spot where she could see the man on the steps and put him in her sight. </p><p></p><p>Hardin - Growing tired of waiting - steps out onto the porch and out of the zone of silence. His voice thunders...</p><p>"Henry Webb!" His hands seem to hang easily by his side, but he is drops into a slight crouch, his eyes narrowed dangerously. He slowly reaches a finger up to tap the piece of tin on his chest. "You heard Mr. Parker...you are trespassing and well past the generous deadline you were given. First, I hear the crack of one of those Winchesters and I am going for you. Second, I ain't going no where with you...not alive...anyway."</p><p></p><p>Hardin freezes and his eyes glitter darkly. "Make your move..."</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Silver Moon, post: 4805243, member: 8530"] [B]Chapter Twenty-seven, “In for a Penny, In for a Pound”, September 3rd, 1882, 4:20 P.M.[/B] Up on the balcony, George notes that once Benajamin found cover behind the tool shed the sniper continued to train his rifle on it for another minute, then shifted his focus back to the front porch. Fish is now inside the shed, and immediately looks for something -- anything! -- that he might slop together to create a distraction. His thoughts run through the options - Can he set a fire, the more smoke, the better? Can he roll something large and noisy out the door? Is there a cranky chicken he could set loose? Ruby's spell ceases, the final detected thought being from the cowboy with the magical rope, who plans to lasso and hog tie Hardin as soon as he shows his face. Nanuet turns to the others standing nearby, he speaks quietly and calmly. "Has anyone seen Ruby? If anyone would start trouble right now it would be her." Ruby ran though all the enemies thoughts in her own mind quickly. Realizing that they were not going to end this peacefully... she reacted. She stayed in place crouched behind the porch swing, making sure her gun was in her hand and readied. Then some arcane words very lightly came from her mouth, barely heard by James and perhaps the others on the porch. Ruby begins to cast a Sleep on the group of people hoping to take some of them out before we start. Solomon Star is standing just around the northeast corner of the house, having exited the building out a window of his Treasurer’s Office after gathering his firearms and props. He has a Colt Thunderer revolver on his belt and a Remington double-barrel shotgun is in his hands, although the real weapons that he plans to use are his brains and his ability to duplicate accents. With the deputy badge pinned to his chest and atop his head a Confederate military cap with the insignia of a Corporal he walks out into open. As he walks he is carrying across one arm the shotgun with the stock opened up, with two shotgun shells in his opposite hand which he places into the shotgun as he walks. He exclaims in his best imitation of a Birmingham Alabama accent. “What in tarnation is all this commotion? Who in Hades are all you boys?” Apparently confused by this new arrival, the man in the suit asks “Who are you?”. Sol continues forward with a stride of confidence while finishing loading the shotgun as he speaks, but keeping the twin gun barrels still open. He states, “I’m Deputy Sheriff Solomon, senior lawman in these parts, an’ I asked y’all some questions that I want answered.” The older man in the Confederate uniform says “We’re from Texas. We have unfinished business with John Wesley Hardin. He killed our kin.” James Parker looks towards Sol and says, “They want to take me too Sheriff. They’re trespassing and I gave them five minutes to leave the Timucuan Conservancy property. That five minutes is now up.” Sol’s face then turns beet red and he angrily yells at James and says, “Ain’t yer call, I’m in charge here. Damn it Parker, I told ya that boy’d bring nothin’ but trouble! It’s high time we got rid of him, he ain’t welcome here no more.” Sol turns back to the man in the suit and says, “Parker is my responsibility, he’s stayin’ put, but if y’all want Hardin you’re welcome to have’em.” Sol closes up the shotgun but keeps it pointing down at the ground as he turns his head towards Thomas. He then gestures towards the corral and barn 250 feet away at the southeastern edge of the plateau and asks Thomas, “Toby, is Hardin still over in the barn reshooing that tan stallion of his?” Before 'Toby' can respond two of the mounted cowboys fall asleep and slump over on their saddles. "What in Hades?" the cowboy with the rope exclaims. Inside, Nanuet says, "Yeah, I bet that was Ruby who put them to sleep. I guess we're in this now.” He starts a chant and points to the area at the horses feet, to turn the ground soft and muddy. He plans the mud to be a foot-and-and-half deep. Those outside are then interrupted by a crashing sound from the toolshed, following by a metal rolling sound from the same building which sounds somewhat like thunder. This is followed by the sound of breaking glass as a flaming bicycle tire goes crashing through and flying out of the shed window. Spurred on by the two horsemen falling asleep, and the crashing of the flaming bicycle tire, and thinking to himself “In for a penny, in for a pound", Thomas now whirls into action, springing forward to engage the lasso-bearing cowboy with a full-fledged flurry of blows with his staff, intending to knocking him both senseless and off his horse. The man falls from the horse, stunned with such a force that he is barely conscious as he leaves the saddle, with the fall to the ground finishing the job. The horse begins to move to the side in reaction to the sudden movement of the large man beside it. Ruby stays in her position then casts a second sleep spell, hoping to take out another couple of horsemen. Mina runs to where the pigeons are and sends a message that she had been writing out back to Alan MacKinnon for help, which reads "No, they are not expected and they are looking for trouble in regard to James and Mr. Hardin. Please send help as soon as you can." Absent his 'accessories', Fish figures it's highly unlikely he'll inflict any incapacitating strikes himself, so he plans on pressing the distraction -- any of the mooks that target him is one less mook targeting his friends. His first inclination is to toss something that might startle the horses: a tin can full of nails, or a garbage can lid. If there's no obvious candidate, he grabs a handful of bolts or garden shears or whatever-is-on-hand in the shed, and begins chucking them out the broken window at the mooks. He's not particularly concerned with hitting anyone so much as creating a fuss, so he elects to fight defensively. He uses partial cover and concealment to whatever advantage available him. As gardening tools go flying from the shed one of the cowboys draws his gun and takes two shots in that direction. The cowboy is then stopped by the older man in the Confederate uniform who yells, "Stop shooting you idiot! They're just trying to cover Hardin's escape from the barn! Foster, Danny, with me!" He then pulls his horse away turning to ride towards the distant barn. Two cowboys follow his lead, specifically the one who had identified himself as Charlie Webb's son another who pulls out a coiled rope. On the balcony, George notices one of the two distant snipers redirects his aim back in the direction of the shed while the second continues to aim towards the front doorway of the porch. Nanuet’s Elvan chant catches the attention of the enemy group's leader in the suit. The man reacts by keeping his back towards his men as he begins a subtle movement of his own hands as he softly mutters an incantation. Ruby and Nanuet both manage to compete their spells by the time that the area around the front porch and lobby room suddenly reverting into a zone of complete silence. This temporarily prevents any further spells and/or all communication from and between Abigail, Alsoomse, James, John, Luiz, Mina, Nanuet and Ruby. The cowboy who had taken the shots at the shed falls asleep and slumps over in his saddle, dropping his Colt Peacemaker in the process. As the gun hits the ground it goes off, the bullet striking the rear flank of the horse ridden by the man in the suit, which charges forward towards the porch and starts to rear up. The man grabs the reins and tries to steady his animal. With the distraction going on Lawrence tries to sneak up on the closest gunman, drawing his derringer on the man and demanding that he surrender. The man is startled and since he still hasn't drawn his gun he raises his hands to surrender. The man's horse then begins to sink as the ground beneath turns to mud. Since Lawrence has moved up directly beside that he too begins to sink in the mud. Seeing Cantrell's predicament, Fish immediately secures some rope from the shed. The three cowboys starting to ride southeast towards the barn manage to barely exit the area just as the dirt transforms to mud. The leader's forward movement also brings him outside of the zone. But the remaining five horses and riders are caught up, with the two who had been dismounted and lying on the ground sinking out of sight. The five horses caught in the mud begin to panic at attempt to escape, which just causes them to sink faster. Two of these horses are now rider-less, two others have riders that are still asleep, and the other is the man who had just surrendered to Lawrence. George sighs at the resulting chaos that has erupted. He looks around gauging everyone's actions as the scene unfold under him. He gets a wry smile and casts a little spell, well above the silence under him. George sends another message, this time to the two snipers, the message being: "Hey cowboys, you two stick out like a sore thumb on that plateau. We have eight rifles pointed at your heads, so if you were smart you would skeedattle while your hide was still intact" One man remains still, his rifle still centered on the porch. His companion sets down his rifle and lifts up a pair of binoculars, now scanning the upper floors of the house for these supposed riflemen. His face is now partially exposed but at this distance all George can make out is a thin mustache, short beard and receding hairline. When George gauges the man is looking at him he waves to the man and points to the roof. With the new silence going on, Abby doesn't try to cast anymore spells. Instead she finds herself a spot by a window and pulls her Colt. No bullets have been fired yet at them, and she doesn't plan to fire the first, just to be ready if this gets that far. Nanuet's well crafted spell had left an island of solid dirt rather than mud remaining immediately beneath Thomas's feet, although the mud around on all sides now prevents him from being able to move away from that spot. Alsoomse realizes that magic has been used to silence them. She determines the location of the spell and then attempt to dispel the silence. Moving into James and Mina's office, she casts a Dispel that causes the Silence to cease. Thomas manages to make an astounding fourteen foot leap which lands him clear of the mud. The five horses continue to struggle in the mud, one stepping on and breaking the arm of the sleeping man who had sunk into the muck. This is actually fortunate for the man, as the injury causes him to wake up and therefore not drown. Lawrence glances at his feet. He sighs, "If that doesn't beat all." Lawrence tries to step out of the mud, ignoring his erstwhile prisoner. Fish loops an end of the rope through a heavy nut or iron washer, ties a knot, and tosses it toward Lawrence through the shed window, crying out, "Catch hold!" Lawrence reaches for the rope. "What's happening? A sinkhole?" Fish braces himself with a foot against the wall and haul him out. The other three cowboys continue to ride onward in the direction of the barn. The enemy leader manages to jump from his unruly horse, landing with a degree of grace on the porch fifteen feet to the east of where James is standing. Grasping his staff, Thomas somersaults toward the porch. The man in the suit jumps back, the staff just brushing briefly against his chest. Nanuet casts hold person on the man who jumped onto the porch. The man continues to move rather than becoming held. Once Roy sees the doin's a-happening in front of the porch, he beats feet downstairs and out onto the porch, gun in hand. When he sees the leader land on the porch, Roy puts himself between James and the enemy, gun outstretched. "I suggest you leave now, sir, before things get worse for you and your men." The man steps further back, nearing the northeast edge which is railed on both sides. He speaks to neither Thomas or Roy but instead turns his head towards Sol and says, "Sheriff Solomon, call your boys off, all I want is to accept your offer of Hardin and then go." Roy exclaims, "Over your dead body, do you get Hardin." Fish is able to help pull Lawrence out. The horses cease sinking when they are around eighteen-inches deep. Feeling solid ground again they stop their panic. The muck covered man with the broken arm crawls to the edge of the mud and then collapses unconscious on the solid dirt. . The other three men continue to ride to the southeast, now closing in on the barn. Alsoomse casts an entangle in the direction of the remaining horsemen in the mud, attempting to place the spell in a way to keep her allies out of the effect. With the plateau having been cleared of all vegetation, there is very little remaining to actually entangle, with only the only thing entangling the five horses being some remaining tree roots below the surface that make their way through the mud. These branches intertwine upward, further pinning the two sleeping men to their mounts. Breathing heavily, Lawrence climbs out of the mud and says, "Much obliged, Fish." He sits on the ground and draws the derringer again. Fish pokes his head just above the windowsill. "Lawrence! These mooks have a coupla snipers 200 yards out. Any suggestions?" he asks, audibly distressed. Solomon raises his Remington as he surveys the carnage around him, threading his finger ahead the trigger. He speaks in a tone that is half-drawl, half-growl, "I'm a man of my word, gov'nuh, but I'm a lawman too." He draws the shotgun to his own chest, audibly clinking its steel barrel against the badge. Through gritted teeth, he says, "You're welcome to Hardin, soon as you produce a warrant for his arrest or a legal order for his extradition. I'll be happy to be rid of that filthy Texan, either when you haul him away in leg irons or I chase his murderin' hide outta my county myself." He looks across the yard, with the turf churned up and acrid smoke still curling from the tire that Ben tossed burning from the shed. Though no longer in a panic, the horses are still panting heavily and frothing at the mouth. "A man's house is his castle, guv'nuh, and your men just took a crap in the courtyard. I've been very patient. Be civilized, now, and leave." The suited man's gun is still holstered and he makes no attempt to move his hand towards it. He says, "We're not going anywhere until after my boys see who is hiding in the barn." At the barn, the man with the rope stays mounted and ties one end of the rope to the front of his western saddle. He moves his horse to the front of the barn doors, holding his lasso in his hand. The other two dismount and draw their revolvers. The younger cowboy moves around to the door by the rear side of the building while the man in the Confederate uniform moves to open the front barn doors. Roy cocks his gun and steadies it at the man. "Wrong. You will call your men, now, to ride their horses away from here and to never bother us again. Do. You. Understand?" "That's mighty un-neighborly of you, guv'nah," says Solomon. "I'll give you a count of ten to reconsider -- then you'll force me to take you into my custody." James warns Solomon, "Sheriff, you should know that this man has two snipers on yonder hill with rifles trained on us." Solomon squints and his face sets like flint. He bellows, "Guv'nah, should your men fire on these citizens, I give everyone here release to put you down." The man says, "Those guys are just hired help, they don't have a personal stake in this like the rest of us. You are in no danger from them, they have orders not to shoot any people. They're just here to take out Hardin's horse if he tries to make a break away." James barks, "I trust nothing you say! You've trespassed on AGELESS corporation property. You've been asked to leave, and you refuse. You've threatened both me and my guests. Why do your snipers train their rifles on the porch, if it's Hardin's escape by horseback that they aim to prevent? Extract your men and leave." The conversation is then interrupted as the man on the horse who Lawrence had previously approached yells out "Horace!" He had been staring at his unconscious companion who Thomas had knocked from the horse and into the mud. The unconscious man landed on his back and partially sunk, but his face remained floating above the surface. A vine now entangles the man's neck and face and pulls him fully beneath the mud, the man's mouth filling with muck as he sinks from sight. The man who yelled leaps from his horse in the direction of his friend, landing with a splash five feet away. He starts to move towards where the man sunk. The man in the suit replies, "Your ogre caused that Sheriff. You're so concerned about the law, if my man dies I want that buck charged with murder." James shouts, "Benjamin! Lawrence! Aid those men!" "What do you say we start earning our keep, Lawrence?" says Fish as he exits the shed, carrying his rope (and hoping that he doesn't get sniped!). James then turns to the man in the suit and says loudly enough for all to hear, "I suspect that you'll join them, no? Help save your man -- or will you stand there and watch him drown?" Ruby moved out from behind the chair she had been behind, now visible. She took a few steps toward James, her hands behind her back, concealing her gun. For now she said nothing; but was ready to act quickly if necessary. Mina returned from sending her message but before she stepped outside she cast True Strike upon herself and readied her gun. She wasn't going to let anyway waltz in and take her love from her. She found a spot where she could see the man on the steps and put him in her sight. Hardin - Growing tired of waiting - steps out onto the porch and out of the zone of silence. His voice thunders... "Henry Webb!" His hands seem to hang easily by his side, but he is drops into a slight crouch, his eyes narrowed dangerously. He slowly reaches a finger up to tap the piece of tin on his chest. "You heard Mr. Parker...you are trespassing and well past the generous deadline you were given. First, I hear the crack of one of those Winchesters and I am going for you. Second, I ain't going no where with you...not alive...anyway." Hardin freezes and his eyes glitter darkly. "Make your move..." [/QUOTE]
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AGELESS Campaign Episode 2 - Temple of the Cat-Goddess
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