drnuncheon's Freeport Story Hour - Book II: Inheritance

[Thorntangle]

Return of the Serpentmen - excellent! Your updates have been coming fast and furious, Doc. Much thanks from your fans.

The question now is: How did they find out about the guns? Who's the rat?

 

[drnuncheon]

The question now is: How did they find out about the guns?

How indeed? There's a very short list of people who know about the guns - Dru, her father and a few selected Naïlos; Di'Fier, the SCU, Jaffar, and Captain Donnach; and of course the Dragon's Claw knows of their existence in a general sense but not their specific disposition.

J

 

[Zarthon]

Re: Session Ten, Part Two: Di'Fier's Very Bad Day

The next morning, an astonished member of the Sea Lord's Guard stared open-mouthed at the empty cell.

Empty?

Not quite.

Written in the thick dust coating the floor were five words:

"You should have fed me."

I love it, I just love it

 

[drnuncheon]

Session Ten, Part Three: The Succession Law

Four heads broke the surface of the water that poured through the storm sewers of the city.

"It's a good thing we had that day without rain," Dru said, pushing her hair back from her forehead. "Otherwise these tunnels would be completely flooded and we'd never have gotten you out."

Di'Fier released his grip on the serpentman, grabbing hold of the ladder that led up to the surface, staring at his bizarre saviors. "But...where did you get them?"

Dru shrugged, grabbing onto the ladder herself. "When I went back to get the Jade Serpent, there they were. They don't speak Common, so I'm not exactly sure what they want, but they do what I tell them to. Their leader - he's a priest, or something like that - cast a spell so he could understand me." She looked away, down the darkness of the tunnel, and then back at her ex-partner. "For what it's worth, we didn't use those guns."

Di'Fier nodded. "It was too pat. Although...I am guilty of two of the charges, I suppose."

"Where do you want to go?"

"Do you think you can find me a safe place? I need to talk to Jemis. He's got my spellbooks - Katya's got the rest of my stuff." Di'Fier looked around him in disgust. "After that, I'm about ready to let this city rot."

Jemis set the sack of books down. "I wasn't sure which ones were the spellbooks," he panted. "So I just grabbed all of them. Except the adventure novels."

Dru nodded. "I'll take these to Di'Fier. What does the rest of the SCU think about this?"

Jemis shook his head. "I'm not sure. Katya's been upset over something for a while - I guess she knew about the guns?" At Dru's nod, he continued. "Quooral is...Quooral. I think he'd go along with whatever Katya said, since she's in charge now. Ashrem is hard to read, and Glunnyn...I'm not sure he's even noticed. He's wrapped up in figuring out how those weapons work."

"Thanks for bringing the books, Jemis. They'll help him out a lot." Dru grabbed the top of the bag, but the little smuggler made no move to leave.

Instead, he looked at Dru sadly. "You know, I was real p-ssed at you for leaving. I thought you were giving up. But now, after this...maybe you're the only one who did the right thing."

"Good luck."

"You too. Take care of yourself, Dru."

Di'Fier couldn't help but grin. It had only been a few days since they had last met for breakfast, but it seemed like half a lifetime. Across from him, Dru was setting about the business of shoveling as much food into her mouth as she could.

A young boy entered the tavern, carrying a stack of broadhseets. Di'Fier waved him over and dropped a couple of coppers into his palm, then took one and flipped it open. He let his breath out slowly as his spirits sank.

"They repealed the succession law," he told Dru.

"What?" She snatched the paper from him, her sausage forgotten. "Who did they turn?"

"Looks like Arnig and Wallace changed their votes."

Dru scanned the article. "'A tearful Soderheim brought the news of Lady Elise's death to the Council in the process of arresting one Watch-Lieutenant Di'Fier, suspected of complicity in the murder.' Yeah, I'll bet he'll be crying all the way to the Sea Lord's palace."

"At least they got my name right," Di'Fier pointed out. "It says the election is tomorrow. So we've got some time to plan."

 

[ShawnLStroud]

And a Bad Situation Gets Worse

Doc;

Wonderful twist of fate for Di'Fier! Massive kudos for having intelligent, crafty opponents that (seem to) have outwitted your PCs. Now I'm wondering, what can our two heros do? Can they clear DiFier's name? Will they want to? And, more importantly, who's going to die in a bloody mess next?

 

[Drusilia Nailo]

Ha! They're running scared, they just don't know it yet.

 

[Vurt]

Nice election-timing irony going. Now update already! I've been sitting on the edge of my seat so long I think by backside's bonded with the upholstery...

Please???

-- Vurt

 

[drnuncheon]

Session Eleven, Part One: Together Again

Dru drummed her fingers on the table, looking across at her former partner. The spell he'd used to alter his appearance so that he could go buy components hadn't worn off yet, and it was a bit disconcerting to be sitting across what seemed to be a scarred blonde man from the mainland - a man who now was gaping at her in amazement.

"But...I can't," he protested. "I'm a Wat-" Then he cut himself off. "I guess I'm not anymore," he admitted. "At least for now."

Dru nodded. "And you and I have more experience dealing with the Dragon's Claw than anybody else in the organization - which is why he wants us there."

"I can't believe he wants us to go to the meeting with Finn and Gallowglass."

Dru smirked. "Well? Will you come work with us?"

The ex-Watchman grinned. "Why not? We're just destined to be together, I guess."

"...so I'm fairly certain they used magic to locate where we had taken the weapons," Di'Fier was explaining as they entered the safehouse. "Which explains how they knew you had half of them. And if they've got a store of their own - which they must, since none are missing from what we took - that means that we can find them in the same way."

Kennic looked over at the pair, and his eyes flicked upward to something over the door. Apparently satisfied, he rose to his feet to greet them. "Drusilia. We've got some interesting news from a friend of ours," he said, drawing her aside. "The Sea Lord's Guard is going to be taking custody of the weapons that your companion gave to the Watch," he murmured. "They'll be moved tonight."

Dru nodded. "Thank you, Kennic. It doesn't surprise me much, considering the influence Soderheim seems to have with them." Raising her voice and turning to include Di'Fier, she said, "I'd like to find out what made Wallace and Arnig change their votes."

Di'Fier frowned in thought for a moment. "Captain Roberts was very well informed during the Lighthouse affair," he said slowly. "In fact, Lady Elise implied that he had quite a network of, well, spies. Maybe we should pay him a visit."

Ampiel had set up the meeting for them. It had taken the raven almost twenty minutes of pecking at Roberts' window to get the man to notice him, and even more to get him to open the window to try to scare the bird away, all so he could croak out a few words. But in the end, the message was relayed, and Dru and Di'Fier slipped along the streets, trying not to look like wanted fugitives.

They reached the back door of Robert's estate, where they were admitted by a liveried doorman and shown to a sitting room.

"Captain Roberts," Di'Fier greeted.

"Dru, Di'Fier," said the Captain, as another servant brought drinks. "I understand you once again wish to pool our information regarding the current events on the Captain's Council?"

Dru nodded. "Now that we know Soderheim is working for the Dragon's Claw, we need to figure out just why Arnig and Wallace changed their votes."

Roberts sighed. "Soderheim. It seems his desire for power has overwhelmed his good sense."

"We're collecting the evidence now," Di'Fier offered. "With any luck, we'll be able to present it to the Council before the election. But if we know what made those two change their votes..."

"Hmm, yes," said Roberts, considering it for a moment. "I had expected both of them to try to keep the status quo. Arnig is a traditionalist. On the other hand...he and Elise were very close. It may have been because of her wishes - or simply because he believed that there were no heirs of Drac left."

"What about Wallace?"

"That's even more of a surprise. Wallace has his hands full with taking over the family business, and he's often said that he wants to concentrate on that rather than the politics of the city."

"What exactly is the Wallace family business?" Dru asked.

"He's in shipping. They do a lot of trade with the mainland."

Di'Fier's full attention turned to the Captain. "Highgate?"

Roberts nodded slowly.

The evening found them back at the safehouse - Di'Fier standing uncomfortably under the wary eyes of passing elves as his partner spoke with Kennic.

"You trust him enough to bring him here," Kennic said to her. "But the safehouse can be easily abandoned. How far do you trust him?"

"More than I trust anybody else, Kennic," Dru said. "What is this all about?"

Her old protector did not respond, instead guiding the two of them into a room - probably the one Tensin used as an office, judging from the apearance. Closing the door, he turned to the pair. "We are in a position of no small difficulty," he said. "In an hour, the heads of the city's underworld will meet for a war council to determine how best to fight the Dragon's Claw..." He hesitated, then turned to look at Dru. "And your father and Galanodel have vanished."

 

[drnuncheon]

Session Eleven, Part Two: A Meeting of the Minds (I)

"Vanished?" said Dru. "What do you mean, vanished?"

Di'Fier recognized the edge in her voice. It meant that someone was going to get hurt. Probably very soon. If they were lucky, it might even be whoever was responsible for the disappearance.

Her eyes narrowed. "What do you mean, vanished?"

"Drusilia." Kennic's voice snapped Dru back to reality. "We cannot afford for this to become public, not now. Whatever's happened, this meeting cannot be disrupted."

"The hell with the meeting. If Papa's missing, I want to know what happened."

Kennic sighed. "After speaking with you last night...he vanished. Your betrothed as well. No messages, no signs of a struggle..."

Vanished...Papa and Galanodel both...they must have done it deliberately - what could have taken both of them without a struggle? Dru's mind raced through the possibilities. And then she remembered the first time she'd met Galanodel, in the restaurant. How he had vanished from the chair, and somehow appeared on the balcony above. Papa trusts him...he could get close....

"It must have been an inside job," she said. "If it wasn't deliberate. Kennic, I know you feel like it's not your place, but I need you to tell me about Galanodel. And Amalyth."

The older elf seemed to crumple back into his chair. "Yes. I suppose you do have that right." He seemed to be as willing to forget Di'Fier's presence as Dru was, and for the first time, she understood how worried he was. Surely if it was deliberate, Papa would have told him...

"Galanodel is a member of a...family, called the Feris. They are not in our line of work, but in one with whome cooperation would be mutually benefical to both the Feris and your father. That was the capacity in which he met your father, in fact, during the war with Kaden and his men."

An assassin, Dru realized. And elven assassins were well known for their patience. She shook her head, not wanting to believe the possibility. "And what about Amalyth?"

Kennic refused to met her eyes. "She is your half-sister, as you no doubt have guessed," he confirmed. "Even I do not know Tensin's reason for fathering her."

"She hates me." Dru thought back to the only time they'd met face to face - when she had been trying to find someone to translate for her newfound followers, she had looked up Garto's friend, Gothos. Amalyth had draped herself over the half-clad elf, much to his embarassment, and the look she had given Dru was one of pure malice. She's probably behind this. "Is she ruthless?"

"Ruthless enough to survive as a half-human in your father's organization."

That b-tch! When I get my hands on her... Dru was jerked back to the matter at hand by Kennic's voice.

"We must not let this get out," he was saying. "The talks with the other leaders cannot be jeopardized."

"We'll need to come up with a convincing reason why Tensin isn't there," said Di'Fier finally.

"Where's Tensin?" Finn demanded, voicing the question that was on all of their minds. The halfling had been the last of them to show up - his lieutenant, Dunbar, trailing behind like a giant loyal watchdog.

Dru let her gaze pass over each of the assembled crimelords. Patch Carty and Bloody Jack were scowling at each other across the table. The longstanding feud between the Cutthroats and the Buccaneers was legendary in the Docks, and she'd busted members of both gangs more times than she cared to count.

The muscular, mustachioed Gallowglass was a different story. The Blue Lanterns started as simple smugglers, but they'd grown from those humble beginnings into something to be reckoned with. Rumor had it that Gallowglass had been some kind of mercenary before heading to Freeport and taking over the Lanterns from their previous leader - who had hired him for security. He was a man that bore careful scrutiny.

"Tensin is being watched," she said carefully. "Apparently rumor of this meeting got out. He sent me instead. After all, it's my organization."

"And I assume you have a good reason for bringing the ex-Watchman?"

"He's working for us, now."

Finn looked the tall wizard over speculatively. "I should have made you a better offer."

"This doesn't sound like the Claw," Finn objected. "I dealt with them in Highgate. They are subtle - they take over their competition through trickery and enchantment, not fireballs and murder."

"About as subtle as a brick through the window," Galloglass concurred.

"This isn't the Highgate claw." Di'Fier stood, starting to pace back and forth, as he often did when he was deep in thought. "The son is in charge, and he's brought the ones that don't fit in. Maybe he has something to prove?"

Gallowglass' voice cut through the room. "Are they here to prove themselves? Or to break away?"

 

[DiFier]

I might be misremembering things cause it has been a bit since we played this but aren't there some important pieces missing?