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The Gate Pass Irregulars: A War of the Burning Sky Campaign
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<blockquote data-quote="Cafu" data-source="post: 6039079" data-attributes="member: 6692807"><p>The trip to Bresk was short and uneventful after that. As we approached the city, it quickly became apparent that Dessan architecture was very much like its people: functional, unpretentious and with little decoration or frippery with one exception. The houses were square and sensible, with sloping roofs, cunningly designed to flush the large amounts of water that fell on them. The slate was dark, grey and solid. In fact, that was a very good word to describe the city: solid; and above it all, everything was dominated by the castle: huge, solid, dark and powerful. </p><p></p><p>As we approached the Southern Gate, I was mindful of what Simeon had told us about large amounts of the city being underground. Interestingly, there were few signs of this subterranean part on the surface.</p><p></p><p>Guards wearing the King’s livery were searching everyone as they arrived but Balan presented our diplomatic papers and we were allowed into the city with little fuss. As we led the sleds and dogs through the icy streets, I could see that most of the houses were decorated with motifs of huge cats: lions, leopards, tigers and even sphinxes. The city or its decorators seemed to have an obsession with these beasts. </p><p></p><p>Balan had obviously been here before as he led us to the Golden Griffin Inn, a sensible, modestly-priced rooming house which allowed us to keep the dogs and sleds in their stables. We freshened up and then decided to go on a mixture of sightseeing, shopping and information gathering trip. It was at this point that Balan showed a little inexperience: </p><p></p><p>He summoned us to his room and said: “Right, gentlemen, if you go on your tour, I will go and see various people to confirm our audience tomorrow and also see about some business.”</p><p></p><p>John just looked at him and then said in an acid tone: “So, when the Ragesians kidnap you, what exactly do you want us to do? How much ransom money do you have available?”</p><p></p><p>“Pardon?”</p><p></p><p>John continued: “Look, we were made your bodyguards and told to look after your security; and as soon as we arrive here, what is the first thing you say? Stay here while I go off on my own? You’re not thinking this through; you are now a target. Start thinking like one!” </p><p></p><p>“Ah, good point; two of you should come with me while I go about my business.”</p><p></p><p>Victor got up: “We’ll all go with you while you go about your business.”</p><p></p><p>We all followed him and walked out together without giving him a chance to reply. As we did so, I sidled up to John and whispered: “You’ve given up on this diplomacy thing haven’t you?”</p><p></p><p>He shot me a dirty look.</p><p></p><p>The sight-seeing tour was very gratifying; Bresk was a very different city to Gate Pass. Whereas the latter was a city devoted to trade, defense and built in the mountains, this was a plains city which had obviously not seen hostility for at least a decade. People were generally happy and boisterous although at the moment there was a great deal of perturbation about which I will write later. </p><p></p><p>The shopping was satisfactory; John, Drudge, Felix and Longhelim wanted to acquire magical cloaks; Longhelim also wanted to obtain an enchanted sword. Victor managed to acquire one of those tiny shields, a buckler, and this one was also enchanted. Balan, who knew his way around the city, took us to the correct merchants, which saved a great deal of time and effort. </p><p></p><p>Finally, we were also able to find out a little more about the tragedy that had struck the Steppengaard’s family. From what we were able to gather, his five eldest children, ranging in ages from twelve to seventeen, were at a celebration which was assaulted by assassins; the assumption was that it had to be more than one to cause such havoc so quickly; to this time, no trace of the culprits could be found. Almost simultaneously, the Queen and the thirteen youngest children were poisoned during the evening meal; the King himself only survived because he was called away by one of his nobles, complaining about the Ragesian ambassador. Then, just to add more mystery to the whole event, when the bodies were being taken to the Temples to see if they could be revived or analysed, it was found that their hearts had been ripped out and burned. </p><p></p><p>I must confess I didn’t understand that last bit; how could the hearts be ripped out while the bodies were being taken to the Temple without anyone noticing? However, I had to bear in mind that I was hearing street gossip and it sounded like something, somewhere was misinterpreted or hidden or just missed out. </p><p></p><p>The King was enraged and in complete despair which explained why the Talons were turning Bresk and the Kingdom upside down looking for the culprits. Apparently, their leader Nina Glibglamer, a gnomish wizard, who was also the King’s main advisor, was under great pressure to produce results. Interestingly, by all accounts, she was very hostile to Seaquen although we couldn’t find out why; nor were we able to discover if this non-aggression pact with the Ragesian Empire was signed on her advice. </p><p></p><p>There was also some gossip about the alignment of the Great Lords to the Seaquen Question as it was known: Lords Gallo, Dashgoben and Lady Timor were less than fond of the Ragesians; Lords Regor, Megadon and Lady Namin were hostile to Seaquen while Lord Iz and Lady Dene were neutral; or so gossip said.</p><p></p><p>Unfortunately, it was unknown if Gallo, Dashgoben and Timor were supportive of Seaquen whilst being hostile to Ragesian intervention in Dassen; the two were not mutually inclusive. On the opposite side of the fence, it was known that Lord Regor and Lady Namin were specifically hostile to Seaquen. </p><p></p><p>Interestingly, people also made a reference to a magical tome, the Book of the Eight Lands, which recorded all births, deaths and marriages of the great Lords of the Land; it also protected the rulers of these against magical influence. Apparently, according to this book, which was universally accepted by Dassenians, the next in line to the throne, after Steppengaard, bearing in mind the most recent events, was Lord Megadon; it was also said that Lady Namin had designs on being Steppengaard’s new queen.</p><p></p><p>We spent the rest of the day like this and then we walked back to the Inn. Once there, we had a very nice dinner and then retired to discuss how Balan was going to tackle our audience with the King tomorrow. This took several hours and but finally, we had four major points which we felt would carry weight in Balan’s negotiations. They were as follows: </p><p></p><p>The depredations of a Ragesian army of forty thousand men marching through the countryside. No one could doubt that where that army would go, then some sort of grief would follow; would Steppengaard be willing to allow a trail of suffering from the North to the South of his country. </p><p></p><p>The danger of the Scourge; the Scourge absorbed spell casters; just what exactly it did with them was unknown but its appetite was voracious and indiscriminate. Dassen had several established churches and the Scourge would be a direct threat to them. No King likes to have the Church arrayed against him. </p><p></p><p>Seaquen would be willing to provide support and help to Dassen; we all felt that it was difficult to stress this point as technically, Seaquen sat on Dassenian territory but it was an autonomous region; unfortunately, I never did get to the point of discovering if the autonomy had been declared by Seaquen or Bresk and whether it was acknowledged by both of them. We just agreed to mention that the potential of magical support was there. </p><p></p><p>Finally, we wanted to know if Steppengaard knew what the endgame to this Ragesian march was; that is, once the army reached Seaquen and took it, what would this Ragesian army do?</p><p></p><p>We were all a little dissatisfied with our ideas; I couldn’t help but feel that none of these points and ideas were particularly original; Steppengaard had been on the throne for fifteen odd years and by all accounts was a canny ruler; personally I felt that he or his advisors would have already have discussed all of the points we had made tonight. </p><p></p><p>John summed it up best when he said: “I can’t help but feel that we’ve missed something here; something obvious that is staring us in the face but I cannot put my finger on it.”</p><p></p><p>Longhelim puffed his pipe: “That’s as maybe but if we cannot think of it then there is no point in worrying about it.”</p><p></p><p>Bearing in mind what had happened to the King’s family, we all slept in the same room and set watches. Assassins in Bresk seemed to be particularly efficient and there was no need to tempt fate as far as I was concerned. Thankfully nothing happened that night and the next morning, after a good breakfast, we set out to the palace. </p><p></p><p>We reached the entrance and once we presented our papers, were led to a grand hall, where we were told to wait. The usual solid looking architecture was again carved with a variety of large cat creatures and as we waited, I looked at the stone work. I lost track of the time, trying to identify all the various beasts carved on the wall; some of them I had read about but others were a total mystery and in some cases, I couldn’t help but take a small piece of paper and attempt to sketch some the unknown creatures for later reference. </p><p></p><p>Some time later, I finished, looked around and looked at the others; everyone was slumped, sitting or doing something. I walked up to John: </p><p></p><p>“Has anything happened? How long have we been here?”</p><p></p><p>“Too long”, he smiled. “Once you get lost in that world of yours, time becomes irrelevant. I wish I could do that; but I’m bored right now.”</p><p></p><p>Finally, as I was organizing my sketches, a functionary came up to us and told us to follow him. He led us into a grand throne room. It was in semi darkness, with only one source of light in the centre of the roof; there were dozens of people on the edges of the room. All the magnates were represented via their proxies with the exception of the Lady Namin, a handsome woman with white hair although she did not seem very old; she was wearing mourning garb and was surrounded by her staff. </p><p></p><p>Drudge hissed: “Look!” as he pointed to the other side of the room. We saw an Inquisitor in full regalia of bear mask and fur cloak. This one seemed to be wearing a particularly elaborate mask, carved with runes. Next to him was an older man, finely dressed, stiff and formal, with a short grey beard and moustache and a military bearing; Balan whispered that that was the Ragesian ambassador.</p><p></p><p>The room was dominated by a pair of thrones. One was empty and draped in black. The other was occupied by Steppengaard we presumed; the King was not looking well. His beard was straggly and unkempt, his hair looked unwashed and uncut and even in the gloom we could see that he had dark rings under his eyes. In short, he looked dreadful. </p><p></p><p>In front of him was another man, dressed in gray rags, with a pair of handcuffs and desperate eyes. Around this wretch another figure paced: small, with dark curly hair and a sharp pointy nose, a female gnome moved rapidly around, a bundle of nervous energy. </p><p></p><p>“Come Relder, you are in it right up to your neck! You and your master Jinis, so Gallo by default. All three of you were responsible for the assassinations; it’s obvious. Are you really trying to tell us that in spite of the overwhelming evidence, you are innocent?”</p><p></p><p>Then her voice turned reasonable: “This is your chance. You have an audience in front of the King; His Majesty’s greatest desire is to get to the bottom of this. If you co-operate and confess, then he will be merciful. He knows you were not the one who made the decisions; you are far too low in the chain of command. We already know that Gallo gave the orders. You were just following your master’s orders weren’t you?”</p><p></p><p>The man looked confused but then straightened his back and his eyes focused on the figure in front of him: “You gnomish upstart! That is Duke Gallo to you! Show respect! The Duke’s family has been protecting this land for generations. Use his title when you say his name! How dare you impugn him and suggest he is involved in this.” Relder almost spat these words out. Then almost contemptuously, he continued:</p><p></p><p>“Surely, even you must be aware that Duke Gallo has nothing to gain from this. Lord Megadon inherits the Crown! As usual, you’re babbling, woman!”</p><p></p><p>The gnomish woman just stared at the man; and stared and stared. </p><p></p><p>Suddenly, his face became slack and his back curved again. He looked confused and a thin rope of drool appeared from the corner of his mouth. He began muttering…… </p><p></p><p>“……meeting with the assassins tonight…….” Then he became a little more audible, although he spoke in a strangled voice, completely different from his previous tone: “They will give me that poison and then…….” Then his head twitched strongly several times. </p><p></p><p>Nearby I heard someone mutter: “This is useless. It’s obvious that someone is controlling or at least tampering with him mentally; and in the King’s chamber too. This would never have happened a few years ago. This place has really become…..” I lost the rest of it.</p><p></p><p>The gnome then spoke again, slowly and deliberately: “Gallo, who has the most to gain. Gallo, who wants to usurp the throne. Gallo, who wants the blame to fall on our Ragesian friends; the same friends who have promised to protect us in these troubled times!” </p><p></p><p>The gnome’s voice turned shrill: “Damn you, why don’t you just admit that Gallo and Jinis arranged it all!”</p><p></p><p>Then she turned to the throne: “Your Majesty, this is intolerable! It is obvious someone has manipulated his mind; probably to alter his memories.”</p><p></p><p>At this point, Steppengaard raised his arm and said in a wary voice: “Nina, Nina, thank you for your efforts but you can see this isn’t working. I can’t try or punish him; he barely knows what day of the week it is. Take him back to his cells until we uncover new evidence. I do have a great concern that someone is using magic in the very heart of the palace and they cannot be tracked down. </p><p></p><p>Well, I weary of this. I think I will begin to take audiences now.”</p><p></p><p>With that, drapes were removed from various windows and suddenly the throne room was lit up. Relder was led away, staggering and feebly stuttering, wanting to know what was going on. The court seemed to wake up and everyone looked expectantly at the centre of the room; at this point, Balan stepped forward. </p><p></p><p>He looked splendid in his courtier’s garb and he began speaking: </p><p></p><p>“Your Majesty, my Lords, Ladies and Gentlemen, my name is Balan Bastom and I am here to speak to you; although it is the mages of the Lyceum who bid me speak, I do not do so only on behalf of Seaquen but also on behalf of the people of Dassen, the people that cannot come to Court, that cannot beg for an audience of the King; it is also on their behalf that I beg to ask…….”</p><p></p><p>Gods he was good; I had thought Longhelim was good but I could now see that difference between a gifted amateur such as the paladin and a true professional negotiator and diplomat. Carefully, reasonably and with great gentility, he made all the points that we had discussed the night before; but he did it in such a way that it was never confrontational, just reasonable questions for a subject to ask from his King. It was masterfully done and as I looked around surreptitiously, I could see that everyone’s attention was riveted on him.</p><p></p><p>“…..and so, I leave you with these questions and these thoughts, Your Majesty; please do not forget your people. No one doubts that you are making these decisions on behalf of all of us here in Dassen and you have been a very wise ruler for the last fifteen years, so ultimately, we will defer to your decisions as we have always done. Thank you for your attention and for listening.”</p><p></p><p>He bowed to the throne and applause erupted from the courtiers. Looking around, I could see several proxies looking either interested or indifferent; no one looked hostile except the Ragesian ambassador and his entourage. </p><p></p><p>Abruptly, the King raised his hand as we saw that Nina was whispering something in his ear. The applause and murmuring stopped. </p><p></p><p>The King stood up and spoke: “Fine words from a great diplomat. I know you; and I also know exactly what to expect from you. Instead, let’s ask some of your friends.”</p><p></p><p>He pointed at Longhelim: “You, what have you lost in this war? I have lost nineteen members of my family; every single one of them. I have suffered enough for the whole country! Can you say the same?”</p><p></p><p>Longhelim bowed and said in a soft voice: “I don’t know, Sire. As we speak, Gate Pass, my home city is locked in a desperate struggle for survival. I have not had news about my family. They may still all be alive or they may all be dead.”</p><p></p><p>Steppengaard then stood up and shouted hysterically: “Enough! If you were my subjects, I would have you executed for treason. None shall aid that nest of serpents that is Seaquen and her allies! I will not be party to another senseless slaughter in this war!”</p><p></p><p>Then as he glared around the room and saw that no one opposed him, he sank down on his throne. Putting his hands on his forehead, he said quietly: “However, never let it be said that my realm does not respect the neutrality of other nations! No matter how vile they are! You have three days to conduct your business here; in that time I suggest you try to convince our friends the Ragesians of your good intentions and I advise you to beg for their mercy.”</p><p></p><p>Then he made waving motions with his hands at Balan: “You have said enough! This audience is over! Next!”</p><p></p><p>There was a stunned moment’s silence and then the murmuring started again, but much lower. </p><p></p><p>John hissed: “We have to get out of here now!”</p><p></p><p>Drudge frowned: “Why?”</p><p></p><p>“Look at their faces especially the Ragesians. Nina Glibglamer also looked as if she swallowed a lemon while Balan was talking. I think we threw several unpalatable truths into the open and there are several people who are very unhappy; and that is not counting the King, who was obviously livid. By all the gods, look at Regor’s proxy. If looks could kill…… Ooops, heads up! The Ragesians are coming!”</p><p></p><p>Indeed, the Ragesian ambassador, followed by the Inquisitor was making his way towards us.</p><p></p><p>“Greetings. I am Serimus of Ragesia, envoy from Her Imperial Majesty, Leska. That was quite a speech you gave there; wrong but pretty. Sorry, you were right in one thing; our army will come and take your little town of Seaquen; you allied yourselves with our enemies in the Lyceum; you made your choices so you have to live with them. </p><p></p><p>Despite your foolishness, the Empress is known for her generosity; therefore note that this is a one time offer. Reject Seaquen and the Lyceum and join us. The Ragesian Empire will finally reach its glorious destiny and you can be part of it. Reject it and face the consequences!”</p><p></p><p>Reactions to this offer were mixed. Mindful of my diplomacy lessons from Longhelim, I said politely: </p><p></p><p>“We shall take your offer under advisement.”</p><p></p><p>Longhelim, in the meantime, wordlessly turned away from the ambassador and walked out, quickly followed by everyone else.</p><p></p><p>“Right, back to the inn, now” said the paladin.</p><p></p><p>Felix whispered: “He gave us three days.”</p><p></p><p>John’s reply to that was a mutter: “Only in our dreams, my friend, only in our dreams.” </p><p></p><p>As we were walking out of the palace, a scraggly, tall individual suddenly kept pace with us. I vaguely recalled seeing him in the audience hall. His mouth seemed to be barely moving but we all heard his whisper: </p><p></p><p>“You are all in great danger. Go to the North Gate tonight. Someone will be waiting for you.”</p><p></p><p>After that, he slunk away. </p><p></p><p>We returned to the inn and rapidly collected our possessions. Then we went outside: </p><p></p><p>Felix asked: “Are we going to the North Gate tonight?”</p><p></p><p>I replied: “As much as I would like to believe in the goodness of people, I find a total stranger attaching himself to us and offering to help us out of the blue just because he liked our faces a little too convenient. Let’s go now and leave by the South Gate; we are more familiar with it.”</p><p></p><p>Everyone agreed and we sped through the streets as fast as we could. As we neared the Gate, we saw a great many soldiers; all of them carried the insignia of the King. These seemed to be patrolling the streets and stopping citizens; there were also several flying creatures; these had the bodies of lions, wings of eagles and heads of rams. They were truly fabulous and they resembled some of the beasts which I had seen carved on the walls of the city. Suddenly, we were stopped by a group of soldiers.</p><p></p><p>“Halt, your business?”</p><p></p><p>Balan stepped forward: “We are travelers wishing to leave the city. We have diplomatic papers.”</p><p></p><p>“Let me see them!”</p><p></p><p>I didn’t like the way this was shaping up. </p><p></p><p>The soldier went away for quite some time and then returned. He did not have our papers in his hands. </p><p></p><p>“You are wanted for questioning. Disarm now and come with us!”</p><p></p><p>“Wait. What is the problem? Where are our papers?”</p><p></p><p>“No questions. Do as you’re told!”</p><p></p><p>“We will go with you to answer your questions but we will not disarm!”</p><p></p><p>The soldier made a signal with his arm. </p><p></p><p>“Resisting arrest!”</p><p></p><p>Suddenly, things began to move incredibly fast. Rank upon rank of soldiers moved to surround us from all sides. Four of the flying creatures landed on roofs nearby; this only took a few moments and with a sinking heart, I realised what had taken the soldier so long with our papers. The ambush had to be set; I did not have any more time to think about it because the soldiers attacked with no warning. There was no attempt to talk, or to try to take us alive for questioning. The first man struck Longhelim with a full blooded slash, meant to kill. I looked around me in despair; there were too many of them; ranks upon ranks too many. </p><p></p><p>Then the whole battle took on a strange effect as suddenly magical silence was cast at our feet, preventing any sort of spell casting. At this point, I determined that I would just try to get out of everyone’s way; there was nothing I could except possibly strike my wooden stick against the heavy metal armour worn by the soldiers. That really wasn’t going to do anything to anyone. So, I watched with horror as I saw each of my friends brought low and burst into flames. Time after time, they were struck by the soldiers and the flying beasts flew over the battle and raked my companions with their claws. Victor was the first to fall and he was also the only one do any damage to any of the soldiers, felling at least one. </p><p></p><p>Drudge was the last and he even managed to break out of the ambush but he was stalked by the flying beasts before being finally felled.</p><p></p><p>At this stage, I was so demoralized, I did not say anything and did not resist as all my possessions were taken from me. Everyone else was stripped and carried by soldiers who were protected from flame by military priests. Yes, these soldiers had military priests attached to them. It was a very well organized ambush; we were doomed as soon as that speech in the palace finished. I saw that now.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Cafu, post: 6039079, member: 6692807"] The trip to Bresk was short and uneventful after that. As we approached the city, it quickly became apparent that Dessan architecture was very much like its people: functional, unpretentious and with little decoration or frippery with one exception. The houses were square and sensible, with sloping roofs, cunningly designed to flush the large amounts of water that fell on them. The slate was dark, grey and solid. In fact, that was a very good word to describe the city: solid; and above it all, everything was dominated by the castle: huge, solid, dark and powerful. As we approached the Southern Gate, I was mindful of what Simeon had told us about large amounts of the city being underground. Interestingly, there were few signs of this subterranean part on the surface. Guards wearing the King’s livery were searching everyone as they arrived but Balan presented our diplomatic papers and we were allowed into the city with little fuss. As we led the sleds and dogs through the icy streets, I could see that most of the houses were decorated with motifs of huge cats: lions, leopards, tigers and even sphinxes. The city or its decorators seemed to have an obsession with these beasts. Balan had obviously been here before as he led us to the Golden Griffin Inn, a sensible, modestly-priced rooming house which allowed us to keep the dogs and sleds in their stables. We freshened up and then decided to go on a mixture of sightseeing, shopping and information gathering trip. It was at this point that Balan showed a little inexperience: He summoned us to his room and said: “Right, gentlemen, if you go on your tour, I will go and see various people to confirm our audience tomorrow and also see about some business.” John just looked at him and then said in an acid tone: “So, when the Ragesians kidnap you, what exactly do you want us to do? How much ransom money do you have available?” “Pardon?” John continued: “Look, we were made your bodyguards and told to look after your security; and as soon as we arrive here, what is the first thing you say? Stay here while I go off on my own? You’re not thinking this through; you are now a target. Start thinking like one!” “Ah, good point; two of you should come with me while I go about my business.” Victor got up: “We’ll all go with you while you go about your business.” We all followed him and walked out together without giving him a chance to reply. As we did so, I sidled up to John and whispered: “You’ve given up on this diplomacy thing haven’t you?” He shot me a dirty look. The sight-seeing tour was very gratifying; Bresk was a very different city to Gate Pass. Whereas the latter was a city devoted to trade, defense and built in the mountains, this was a plains city which had obviously not seen hostility for at least a decade. People were generally happy and boisterous although at the moment there was a great deal of perturbation about which I will write later. The shopping was satisfactory; John, Drudge, Felix and Longhelim wanted to acquire magical cloaks; Longhelim also wanted to obtain an enchanted sword. Victor managed to acquire one of those tiny shields, a buckler, and this one was also enchanted. Balan, who knew his way around the city, took us to the correct merchants, which saved a great deal of time and effort. Finally, we were also able to find out a little more about the tragedy that had struck the Steppengaard’s family. From what we were able to gather, his five eldest children, ranging in ages from twelve to seventeen, were at a celebration which was assaulted by assassins; the assumption was that it had to be more than one to cause such havoc so quickly; to this time, no trace of the culprits could be found. Almost simultaneously, the Queen and the thirteen youngest children were poisoned during the evening meal; the King himself only survived because he was called away by one of his nobles, complaining about the Ragesian ambassador. Then, just to add more mystery to the whole event, when the bodies were being taken to the Temples to see if they could be revived or analysed, it was found that their hearts had been ripped out and burned. I must confess I didn’t understand that last bit; how could the hearts be ripped out while the bodies were being taken to the Temple without anyone noticing? However, I had to bear in mind that I was hearing street gossip and it sounded like something, somewhere was misinterpreted or hidden or just missed out. The King was enraged and in complete despair which explained why the Talons were turning Bresk and the Kingdom upside down looking for the culprits. Apparently, their leader Nina Glibglamer, a gnomish wizard, who was also the King’s main advisor, was under great pressure to produce results. Interestingly, by all accounts, she was very hostile to Seaquen although we couldn’t find out why; nor were we able to discover if this non-aggression pact with the Ragesian Empire was signed on her advice. There was also some gossip about the alignment of the Great Lords to the Seaquen Question as it was known: Lords Gallo, Dashgoben and Lady Timor were less than fond of the Ragesians; Lords Regor, Megadon and Lady Namin were hostile to Seaquen while Lord Iz and Lady Dene were neutral; or so gossip said. Unfortunately, it was unknown if Gallo, Dashgoben and Timor were supportive of Seaquen whilst being hostile to Ragesian intervention in Dassen; the two were not mutually inclusive. On the opposite side of the fence, it was known that Lord Regor and Lady Namin were specifically hostile to Seaquen. Interestingly, people also made a reference to a magical tome, the Book of the Eight Lands, which recorded all births, deaths and marriages of the great Lords of the Land; it also protected the rulers of these against magical influence. Apparently, according to this book, which was universally accepted by Dassenians, the next in line to the throne, after Steppengaard, bearing in mind the most recent events, was Lord Megadon; it was also said that Lady Namin had designs on being Steppengaard’s new queen. We spent the rest of the day like this and then we walked back to the Inn. Once there, we had a very nice dinner and then retired to discuss how Balan was going to tackle our audience with the King tomorrow. This took several hours and but finally, we had four major points which we felt would carry weight in Balan’s negotiations. They were as follows: The depredations of a Ragesian army of forty thousand men marching through the countryside. No one could doubt that where that army would go, then some sort of grief would follow; would Steppengaard be willing to allow a trail of suffering from the North to the South of his country. The danger of the Scourge; the Scourge absorbed spell casters; just what exactly it did with them was unknown but its appetite was voracious and indiscriminate. Dassen had several established churches and the Scourge would be a direct threat to them. No King likes to have the Church arrayed against him. Seaquen would be willing to provide support and help to Dassen; we all felt that it was difficult to stress this point as technically, Seaquen sat on Dassenian territory but it was an autonomous region; unfortunately, I never did get to the point of discovering if the autonomy had been declared by Seaquen or Bresk and whether it was acknowledged by both of them. We just agreed to mention that the potential of magical support was there. Finally, we wanted to know if Steppengaard knew what the endgame to this Ragesian march was; that is, once the army reached Seaquen and took it, what would this Ragesian army do? We were all a little dissatisfied with our ideas; I couldn’t help but feel that none of these points and ideas were particularly original; Steppengaard had been on the throne for fifteen odd years and by all accounts was a canny ruler; personally I felt that he or his advisors would have already have discussed all of the points we had made tonight. John summed it up best when he said: “I can’t help but feel that we’ve missed something here; something obvious that is staring us in the face but I cannot put my finger on it.” Longhelim puffed his pipe: “That’s as maybe but if we cannot think of it then there is no point in worrying about it.” Bearing in mind what had happened to the King’s family, we all slept in the same room and set watches. Assassins in Bresk seemed to be particularly efficient and there was no need to tempt fate as far as I was concerned. Thankfully nothing happened that night and the next morning, after a good breakfast, we set out to the palace. We reached the entrance and once we presented our papers, were led to a grand hall, where we were told to wait. The usual solid looking architecture was again carved with a variety of large cat creatures and as we waited, I looked at the stone work. I lost track of the time, trying to identify all the various beasts carved on the wall; some of them I had read about but others were a total mystery and in some cases, I couldn’t help but take a small piece of paper and attempt to sketch some the unknown creatures for later reference. Some time later, I finished, looked around and looked at the others; everyone was slumped, sitting or doing something. I walked up to John: “Has anything happened? How long have we been here?” “Too long”, he smiled. “Once you get lost in that world of yours, time becomes irrelevant. I wish I could do that; but I’m bored right now.” Finally, as I was organizing my sketches, a functionary came up to us and told us to follow him. He led us into a grand throne room. It was in semi darkness, with only one source of light in the centre of the roof; there were dozens of people on the edges of the room. All the magnates were represented via their proxies with the exception of the Lady Namin, a handsome woman with white hair although she did not seem very old; she was wearing mourning garb and was surrounded by her staff. Drudge hissed: “Look!” as he pointed to the other side of the room. We saw an Inquisitor in full regalia of bear mask and fur cloak. This one seemed to be wearing a particularly elaborate mask, carved with runes. Next to him was an older man, finely dressed, stiff and formal, with a short grey beard and moustache and a military bearing; Balan whispered that that was the Ragesian ambassador. The room was dominated by a pair of thrones. One was empty and draped in black. The other was occupied by Steppengaard we presumed; the King was not looking well. His beard was straggly and unkempt, his hair looked unwashed and uncut and even in the gloom we could see that he had dark rings under his eyes. In short, he looked dreadful. In front of him was another man, dressed in gray rags, with a pair of handcuffs and desperate eyes. Around this wretch another figure paced: small, with dark curly hair and a sharp pointy nose, a female gnome moved rapidly around, a bundle of nervous energy. “Come Relder, you are in it right up to your neck! You and your master Jinis, so Gallo by default. All three of you were responsible for the assassinations; it’s obvious. Are you really trying to tell us that in spite of the overwhelming evidence, you are innocent?” Then her voice turned reasonable: “This is your chance. You have an audience in front of the King; His Majesty’s greatest desire is to get to the bottom of this. If you co-operate and confess, then he will be merciful. He knows you were not the one who made the decisions; you are far too low in the chain of command. We already know that Gallo gave the orders. You were just following your master’s orders weren’t you?” The man looked confused but then straightened his back and his eyes focused on the figure in front of him: “You gnomish upstart! That is Duke Gallo to you! Show respect! The Duke’s family has been protecting this land for generations. Use his title when you say his name! How dare you impugn him and suggest he is involved in this.” Relder almost spat these words out. Then almost contemptuously, he continued: “Surely, even you must be aware that Duke Gallo has nothing to gain from this. Lord Megadon inherits the Crown! As usual, you’re babbling, woman!” The gnomish woman just stared at the man; and stared and stared. Suddenly, his face became slack and his back curved again. He looked confused and a thin rope of drool appeared from the corner of his mouth. He began muttering…… “……meeting with the assassins tonight…….” Then he became a little more audible, although he spoke in a strangled voice, completely different from his previous tone: “They will give me that poison and then…….” Then his head twitched strongly several times. Nearby I heard someone mutter: “This is useless. It’s obvious that someone is controlling or at least tampering with him mentally; and in the King’s chamber too. This would never have happened a few years ago. This place has really become…..” I lost the rest of it. The gnome then spoke again, slowly and deliberately: “Gallo, who has the most to gain. Gallo, who wants to usurp the throne. Gallo, who wants the blame to fall on our Ragesian friends; the same friends who have promised to protect us in these troubled times!” The gnome’s voice turned shrill: “Damn you, why don’t you just admit that Gallo and Jinis arranged it all!” Then she turned to the throne: “Your Majesty, this is intolerable! It is obvious someone has manipulated his mind; probably to alter his memories.” At this point, Steppengaard raised his arm and said in a wary voice: “Nina, Nina, thank you for your efforts but you can see this isn’t working. I can’t try or punish him; he barely knows what day of the week it is. Take him back to his cells until we uncover new evidence. I do have a great concern that someone is using magic in the very heart of the palace and they cannot be tracked down. Well, I weary of this. I think I will begin to take audiences now.” With that, drapes were removed from various windows and suddenly the throne room was lit up. Relder was led away, staggering and feebly stuttering, wanting to know what was going on. The court seemed to wake up and everyone looked expectantly at the centre of the room; at this point, Balan stepped forward. He looked splendid in his courtier’s garb and he began speaking: “Your Majesty, my Lords, Ladies and Gentlemen, my name is Balan Bastom and I am here to speak to you; although it is the mages of the Lyceum who bid me speak, I do not do so only on behalf of Seaquen but also on behalf of the people of Dassen, the people that cannot come to Court, that cannot beg for an audience of the King; it is also on their behalf that I beg to ask…….” Gods he was good; I had thought Longhelim was good but I could now see that difference between a gifted amateur such as the paladin and a true professional negotiator and diplomat. Carefully, reasonably and with great gentility, he made all the points that we had discussed the night before; but he did it in such a way that it was never confrontational, just reasonable questions for a subject to ask from his King. It was masterfully done and as I looked around surreptitiously, I could see that everyone’s attention was riveted on him. “…..and so, I leave you with these questions and these thoughts, Your Majesty; please do not forget your people. No one doubts that you are making these decisions on behalf of all of us here in Dassen and you have been a very wise ruler for the last fifteen years, so ultimately, we will defer to your decisions as we have always done. Thank you for your attention and for listening.” He bowed to the throne and applause erupted from the courtiers. Looking around, I could see several proxies looking either interested or indifferent; no one looked hostile except the Ragesian ambassador and his entourage. Abruptly, the King raised his hand as we saw that Nina was whispering something in his ear. The applause and murmuring stopped. The King stood up and spoke: “Fine words from a great diplomat. I know you; and I also know exactly what to expect from you. Instead, let’s ask some of your friends.” He pointed at Longhelim: “You, what have you lost in this war? I have lost nineteen members of my family; every single one of them. I have suffered enough for the whole country! Can you say the same?” Longhelim bowed and said in a soft voice: “I don’t know, Sire. As we speak, Gate Pass, my home city is locked in a desperate struggle for survival. I have not had news about my family. They may still all be alive or they may all be dead.” Steppengaard then stood up and shouted hysterically: “Enough! If you were my subjects, I would have you executed for treason. None shall aid that nest of serpents that is Seaquen and her allies! I will not be party to another senseless slaughter in this war!” Then as he glared around the room and saw that no one opposed him, he sank down on his throne. Putting his hands on his forehead, he said quietly: “However, never let it be said that my realm does not respect the neutrality of other nations! No matter how vile they are! You have three days to conduct your business here; in that time I suggest you try to convince our friends the Ragesians of your good intentions and I advise you to beg for their mercy.” Then he made waving motions with his hands at Balan: “You have said enough! This audience is over! Next!” There was a stunned moment’s silence and then the murmuring started again, but much lower. John hissed: “We have to get out of here now!” Drudge frowned: “Why?” “Look at their faces especially the Ragesians. Nina Glibglamer also looked as if she swallowed a lemon while Balan was talking. I think we threw several unpalatable truths into the open and there are several people who are very unhappy; and that is not counting the King, who was obviously livid. By all the gods, look at Regor’s proxy. If looks could kill…… Ooops, heads up! The Ragesians are coming!” Indeed, the Ragesian ambassador, followed by the Inquisitor was making his way towards us. “Greetings. I am Serimus of Ragesia, envoy from Her Imperial Majesty, Leska. That was quite a speech you gave there; wrong but pretty. Sorry, you were right in one thing; our army will come and take your little town of Seaquen; you allied yourselves with our enemies in the Lyceum; you made your choices so you have to live with them. Despite your foolishness, the Empress is known for her generosity; therefore note that this is a one time offer. Reject Seaquen and the Lyceum and join us. The Ragesian Empire will finally reach its glorious destiny and you can be part of it. Reject it and face the consequences!” Reactions to this offer were mixed. Mindful of my diplomacy lessons from Longhelim, I said politely: “We shall take your offer under advisement.” Longhelim, in the meantime, wordlessly turned away from the ambassador and walked out, quickly followed by everyone else. “Right, back to the inn, now” said the paladin. Felix whispered: “He gave us three days.” John’s reply to that was a mutter: “Only in our dreams, my friend, only in our dreams.” As we were walking out of the palace, a scraggly, tall individual suddenly kept pace with us. I vaguely recalled seeing him in the audience hall. His mouth seemed to be barely moving but we all heard his whisper: “You are all in great danger. Go to the North Gate tonight. Someone will be waiting for you.” After that, he slunk away. We returned to the inn and rapidly collected our possessions. Then we went outside: Felix asked: “Are we going to the North Gate tonight?” I replied: “As much as I would like to believe in the goodness of people, I find a total stranger attaching himself to us and offering to help us out of the blue just because he liked our faces a little too convenient. Let’s go now and leave by the South Gate; we are more familiar with it.” Everyone agreed and we sped through the streets as fast as we could. As we neared the Gate, we saw a great many soldiers; all of them carried the insignia of the King. These seemed to be patrolling the streets and stopping citizens; there were also several flying creatures; these had the bodies of lions, wings of eagles and heads of rams. They were truly fabulous and they resembled some of the beasts which I had seen carved on the walls of the city. Suddenly, we were stopped by a group of soldiers. “Halt, your business?” Balan stepped forward: “We are travelers wishing to leave the city. We have diplomatic papers.” “Let me see them!” I didn’t like the way this was shaping up. The soldier went away for quite some time and then returned. He did not have our papers in his hands. “You are wanted for questioning. Disarm now and come with us!” “Wait. What is the problem? Where are our papers?” “No questions. Do as you’re told!” “We will go with you to answer your questions but we will not disarm!” The soldier made a signal with his arm. “Resisting arrest!” Suddenly, things began to move incredibly fast. Rank upon rank of soldiers moved to surround us from all sides. Four of the flying creatures landed on roofs nearby; this only took a few moments and with a sinking heart, I realised what had taken the soldier so long with our papers. The ambush had to be set; I did not have any more time to think about it because the soldiers attacked with no warning. There was no attempt to talk, or to try to take us alive for questioning. The first man struck Longhelim with a full blooded slash, meant to kill. I looked around me in despair; there were too many of them; ranks upon ranks too many. Then the whole battle took on a strange effect as suddenly magical silence was cast at our feet, preventing any sort of spell casting. At this point, I determined that I would just try to get out of everyone’s way; there was nothing I could except possibly strike my wooden stick against the heavy metal armour worn by the soldiers. That really wasn’t going to do anything to anyone. So, I watched with horror as I saw each of my friends brought low and burst into flames. Time after time, they were struck by the soldiers and the flying beasts flew over the battle and raked my companions with their claws. Victor was the first to fall and he was also the only one do any damage to any of the soldiers, felling at least one. Drudge was the last and he even managed to break out of the ambush but he was stalked by the flying beasts before being finally felled. At this stage, I was so demoralized, I did not say anything and did not resist as all my possessions were taken from me. Everyone else was stripped and carried by soldiers who were protected from flame by military priests. Yes, these soldiers had military priests attached to them. It was a very well organized ambush; we were doomed as soon as that speech in the palace finished. I saw that now. [/QUOTE]
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The Gate Pass Irregulars: A War of the Burning Sky Campaign
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