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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Kalendraf" data-source="post: 1375185" data-attributes="member: 3433">Dovena's Tale, Part 1As she left the town hall, she slightly straightened her armor.  At the moment it looked just like a suit of full plate with the emblem of Suldane, but that appearance wouldn't last for long.  A small group of guards bowed at her passing, giving all the respect rightly due to a ranking priestess of Suldane.  Of course, everyone saw her as Katra at this moment, so she kept up the ruse and responded, "May Suldane Be With You."She rounded the corner and quickly pulled herself into a small recess, then waited just a moment to make sure she was out of sight, and more importantly that she had not been followed.  In a matter of seconds, she shed the disguise and adopted a new one, that of an elderly woman in tattered rags.  It was a disguise she used often to walk thru the town unnoticed.  Distinguished people stood out, while the downtrodden were commonly overlooked.  She headed back around the corner from where she had come.  This time the guards weren't so cordial.  Those that even bothered to notice her more or less sneered at her wretched appearance.  "Take a bath, old woman!  It's hard to keep the streets clean with your lot stinking them up."It brought back memories of her childhood...a life she hated, but thoughts that still burned to give her motivation.  She'd been an orphan struggling on the street to survive.  At an early age, she fought the rats for scraps in the garbage, otherwise stealing what she couldn't find.  For many years, rags and rusty dagger were her only possessions.  Over the years, a few wealthy people and even one priest had taken her in promising to help her.  But instead, each of them had abused her in a variety of ways trying to turn her into their personal slave.  She'd grown to deeply hate all of them.  In her later years, she'd extracted escalating levels of revenge from burglary to murder.As her hand moved instinctively toward the dagger under her outfit, she considered several methods she could use to swiftly kill that guard.  Though it would be an easy kill, this wasn't her mark.  She kept hunched over and walked very slowly past the town hall, pausing briefly to pull her tattered scarf and re-tie it around her head.  Soon another guard rushed out of the building and began speaking to the guards on the street.  "Guilty!  They're going to hang at noon."  The other guards started talking about it completely oblivious to the fact their conversation was being overheard by the old woman.  After she'd heard the details, she resumed her slow rickety walk.  After a few more blocks, she arrived at her destination, Tavik's Tavern.  She looked around, and found the place nearly deserted, and headed toward the back rooms."I trust it went well, Dovena.", Tavik whispered just as she'd reached the door.  Despite being a bard, his tone and timing always had a way of infuriating her.  "Of course.  It was easy.  The problem will be handled for us just as we planned."Just then another figure emerged from the shadows.  "I still say we should have done it ourselves.  Lure 'em off into a nice little trap, and let me torch 'em.  Or let my cousin get another shot at 'em."  Jador was always impatient, which was somewhat of an unusual characteristic for a gnome.  He'd been Tavik's "advisor" for years, but that term was a fairly loose one.  He had useful abilities, especially when he could torch something with his burning hands, flaming ray or that big ball of fire he always suggested using.  The problem was, his methods were just too likely to attract attention, so they only used them when there wouldn't be any witnesses."Easy, Jador.  We all are going to miss your uncle Zirel, and I'm sure the town is going to miss his fine ale as well",  Tavik said with a slight curl on his lip, as if he'd told a sly joke.  Jador looked at him and frowned, but then eased up.  "Let the town hang 'em, and that should end this for once and for all.""There is one small problem, or rather two."  Dovena began to tell the parties story, including the fact that the half-orc and their rogue had not been captured.  After she was done, Jador immediately volunteered to hunt them down.  "Zyten said it was that half-orc that killed Zirel.  Let me have him.  I'll roast him alive!""Wait for the hanging.  They might well try to rescue their comrades.  We can keep a watch on the proceedings and...assist the guards in stopping them.  Nothing too overt, just a helpful tripping here and there to slow them up and let the guards take all the credit."  Jador protested, but the plan seemed workable to Dovena and so she threw her support behind Tavic.  Elrina walked past carrying some food and then caught Dovena's attention.  "Your messenger boy is here."Dovena immediately switched disguises again, this time appearing in her Matron of Suldane outfit.  She'd concocted this character long ago to earn the trust of Padris, the mayor's primary messenger.  After some research, she'd learned that Padris' beloved grandmother had been a Matron, and the boy ate up every word she'd told him.  She'd convinced him that she was helping the church secretly investigate some urgent matters of state, and any information from the mayor's office may be important.  It took several visits, but eventually she had earned his trust.  Over the last year, he'd been delivering nearly every important message to her before its intended destination.  She walked back into the common room and saw Padris nervously looking about.  He seemed to calm down the instant he saw her coming toward him.Padris set down his case and slid the newest letter toward her under the table.  He'd learned that all by himself.  Dovena opened it quickly and read what it said.  After she had finished, she slid the note back.  "Thank you for bringing this to my attention.  May Suldane be with you."  She waited for Padris to leave and then headed back to the others.  They weren't going to like this."The execution is halted.  The mayor suspects something."  Her own mind was racing thru the trial events.  Had she been spotted?Another voice from the shadows spoke up, "I'll handle it.  I deserve a shot anyways."  It was Zyten, who'd survived the attack on the brewery and had come to warn them about this group of bountyhunters.  Zyten and Jador were cousins, both of them nephews of Zirel.  Besides their hair color and eyes, and the fact they were gnomes, you'd have a hard time picking out family resemblence.  Zyten had a humanchild-like appearance, and often disguised himself that way.  He was strong and dextrous and was very patient: qualities that he had perfected in his monk's training.  Jador was impatient and weak, though he had a certain flare for sorcery.After a short awkward silence, Tavic was the first to speak.  "We need to be cautious..  Zyten may be able to do this, but I think it would be best to wait and see what they know before acting to swiftly."  The look on both Zyten's and Jador's faces showed their opinion.  Dovena thought about her answer.  Tavic was right and she knew it, but Zyten deserved a shot at revenge.  Finally she threw her support behind the gnome's plan.  Finally Tavic relented.  "If you go, then you go alone.  Kill the four in their cells.  That should be easy.  If you're caught, drink this."It could well be a suicide mission, and Dovena knew it.  Zyten was still wounded from his last battle, and this time he wouldn't have as many potions to rely on either.  Still, she would have gladly done the same thing had their roles been reversed.  As Zyten left the Tavern, she watched Jador give him a pat on the shoulder and overheard something about "for Uncle Z".  She looked back at Tavic, encountering his dull stare.  "We'd best begin making contigency plans" were his only words.  After a brief pause, she slowly nodded.</blockquote>

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