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<blockquote data-quote="Delemental" data-source="post: 2831870" data-attributes="member: 5203"><p>“So, any idea how we’re going to pull this off?”</p><p></p><p> Lanara propped herself up on one elbow, looking at Razael as she asked her question. It was early in the morning still, though the noise from the rooms across the hall told her that Kyle and his family had been up for quite some time. The cansin had commented about the relative sanity of the Goodson family when she’d first heard them stirring just before dawn.</p><p></p><p> Razael turned and looked at her. “I’d reckoned you had that part figured out already, seeing as you’re the expert in getting people to believe what you want them to believe.”</p><p></p><p> “True,” Lanara said, “but I’ve never done it on this scale before. And with only a week.”</p><p></p><p> “Well, if’n you need more time, we can always pay off this Barrai for a couple of weeks. I reckon we can get it back from him, one way or another. All else fails, we take it off the man’s body.”</p><p></p><p> “Raz, we’re not supposed to kill him, remember? Gil said all that stuff about a power vacuum in the city being worse that leaving him alone… or were you too busy ogling that whore at the Crocodile’s Eyeball?”</p><p></p><p> Razael cocked an eyebrow. “Jealous?”</p><p> “Just questioning your taste.”</p><p></p><p> “Well, what that Gil said was that carving through his men to get to Barrai would be bad. If we could get a shot at just him…”</p><p></p><p> Lanara shook her head. “I don’t think we’ll get that chance, but we’ll see. Kyle and I are going to talk to Gil again to get a little more information.”</p><p></p><p> “I thought Kyle would be going back to the temple of Ladta today with his family.”</p><p></p><p> “He will, but they aren’t starting the ceremony until midday.”</p><p></p><p> “Ah. Well then, let me know what you need from me. I have a couple things I need to look into this morning.”</p><p></p><p> Now it was Lanara’s turn to raise a brow. “What kind of things?”</p><p></p><p> He grinned. “Let’s just say I’m glad Kyle’s going with you and not me.”</p><p></p><p> Lanara nodded. “Poisons.”</p><p></p><p> “Drugs,” he corrected. “If’n we’re wanting folks to think Barrai’s off his rocker, slipping something in his ale would do the trick. Best be prepared if’n we get the chance.”</p><p></p><p> “Whatever,” Lanara said, pushing strands of pink hair out of her eyes. “Just try not to get arrested, okay?”</p><p></p><p> There was a loud knock at their door. “Hurry up, you two,” Kyle shouted from the other side of the door. “We haven’t got all day. You can finish whatever you’re doing later.”</p><p></p><p> Razael sat up in bed. “Ah, you’re just jealous because your woman’s off sleeping between silk sheets while you’re stuck here wondering if she’s found someone else to warm your side of the bed!”</p><p></p><p> There was silence, then the sounds of Kyle’s heavy boots walking off. Lanara slugged Razael in the arm.</p><p></p><p> “Ow, woman! Watch the rings!”</p><p></p><p> “You don’t have to say every little thing that comes into your head, you know,” Lanara scolded.</p><p></p><p> “Ah, he knows I’m kidding with him. Autumn would probably burst into flames or something if she even thought about being unfaithful.”</p><p></p><p> “I know that, and so does he, but for Feesha’s sake, Raz…”</p><p></p><p> “All right, all right,” he said, holding up his hands in a pacifying gesture. “I get the point. Best we move along, then.”</p><p></p><p> Lanara, Kyle, and Xu ended up going to meet Gil again, first stopping into his office to drop hints about a meeting, then rendezvousing with a newly disguised councilman in a small park.</p><p></p><p> “First of all,” Lanara said, “we need to know how Barrai knows about you.”</p><p></p><p> Gil sighed. “A few weeks back, I made a vote in council that Barrai apparently wasn’t crazy about. He sent a couple of assassins after me. They caught me alone, and unarmed, so…” He looked around at each of them. “How… familiar are you with my abilities?”</p><p></p><p> “We’ve had more than our fair share of encounters with people like yourself,” Lanara said. “We’re very familiar.”</p><p></p><p> Gil looked quite surprised. “Well, then, I summoned a mindblade to dispatch the assassins. Unfortunately, one of Barrai’s lieutenants was apparently watching, making sure the job went all right.”</p><p></p><p> “So, at least one of his lieutenants knows,” Kyle said.</p><p></p><p> “I’m not sure. That particular lieutenant seems to have vanished soon after he learned my secret. So he’s either dead or in hiding.”</p><p></p><p> Kyle frowned. “Gil, are you sure that these blackmail threats are coming directly from Barrai?”</p><p></p><p> “Yes, I’m sure,” Gil said. “Barrai came to my office in person two days after the assassination attempt.”</p><p></p><p> “Oh, okay,” said Kyle, “I just wondered if maybe this lieutenant was just using Barrai’s name to scare you into paying him directly.”</p><p></p><p> “But you have seen Barrai,” Lanara said, “can you describe him?”</p><p></p><p> “Of course,” Gil said, “it’s well known what he looks like. But he rarely leaves his stronghold because his face is so familiar. When he does go out in public, people tend to give him a wide berth. He’s a dwarf, looks like he’s in his late forties to human eyes. Short hair, short beard, blond. Has a scar that runs from his left ear to just short of his left eye.”</p><p></p><p> “Anything else you can tell us about his organization?” Kyle asked.</p><p></p><p> “Not a lot,” Gil said. “I do know that his lieutenants tend to divide responsibility more along type of activity rather than geographically. One’s in charge of narcotics, one runs the prostitution rings, and so on. Barrai controls a lot of territory in Delgan, and even outside the walls. He even owns an iron mine west of here. Could be just a side business for him, or used as a hideout.”</p><p></p><p> “We could have someone check that mine out, just to see,” Lanara said. “Tell us what you can about Barrai.”</p><p></p><p> After getting what they could from Gil, the party returned to the Stag and Boar. Kyle left with his family to go to the Halls of Fortune for the raising, while Lanara asked Razael to go check out the iron mine. Then Lanara and Xu decided to get started on their plan. They’d agreed on the walk back to the inn to make their effort two-pronged; half their time would be spent spreading rumors to the general populace that Barrai was no longer sane, the other half would be spent learning about Barrai’s criminal empire in an attempt to infiltrate it. The two women donned disguises – Xu went as Lanara’s elven bodyguard, while Lanara went for a more generic ‘trollopy dancing girl’ ensemble – and went back to the Crocodile’s Eyeball. It was still early in the afternoon when they arrived; most of the patrons were only moderately drunk, and no one had been stabbed yet. They wandered around the tavern for a while, and spotted two men with Barrai’s guild tattoo on their left hands; a human and an orc-touched.</p><p></p><p> Lanara approached the barkeep, a large, sweaty human with a bald head and an eye patch. “I see you don’t have any entertainment here,” she said to him.</p><p></p><p> The barkeep leered. “The girls don’t start until nine bells,” he said, clearly not looking her in the eyes.</p><p></p><p> “I meant music.” Lanara wasn’t bothered by the direction of his gaze, and even leaned forward a bit more. The more people looked at her breasts instead of her face, the easier it would be to remain anonymous.</p><p></p><p> He shrugged, and spit into a mug. “Only music we get here is the sound of bar fights.”</p><p></p><p> “Well, would you mind if I sing a few songs? Maybe some good ‘take a wench to bed’ songs so they’re ready for the girls at nine bells?”</p><p></p><p> “Long as I get half the take.”</p><p></p><p> “Fine with me.” Lanara moved away from the bar, and pulled out her fiddle. She began to wander around the tables, mostly playing songs about drinking and carousing and deftly avoiding the hands of others. When she came near the tables of Barrai’s men, she invoked her bardic magic to infiltrate their minds, holding their attention rapt. She focused most of her power on the human, lacing her songs with a magical compulsion for him to want to speak with her openly and honestly about his work.</p><p></p><p> When she was done playing, the human kicked his companions out of the table and beckoned for Lanara to sit. She and Xu approached and sat down.</p><p></p><p> The human, named Udan, turned out to be one of Barrai’s drug sellers. Lanara posed as someone interested in getting into the business, and started asking questions. Though he did not know how to find Barrai or any of his lieutenants, Udan did tell Lanara how to find his supplier, who was working his normal area a few blocks away. Udan was more than eager to explain that his supplier most likely reported to either one of Barrai’s lieutenants or a sub-lieutenant.</p><p></p><p> “Can you tell us where to find him?” Lanara asked.</p><p></p><p> “Sure,” Udan said, and he proceeded to give directions. Then he looked both Xu and Lanara up and down. “A lot can happen to a couple of lovely women in a couple of blocks,” he said. “Would you like an escort?”</p><p></p><p> In response, Xu held up both of her empty hands, and clenched her fists tightly, causing her knuckles to crack loudly.</p><p></p><p> “So, that’s a maybe?” Udan said, with a crooked smile.</p><p></p><p> Xu stood up. “I find I need what passes for fresh air in this city.”</p><p></p><p> The two women left the Crocodile’s Eyeball, and after taking a moment to disparage men in general, followed the thug’s directions to his supplier. He wasn’t hard to find; as Udan had said, he spent his days posing as a beggar, and there was only one beggar on the street. Lanara and Xu observed the man from a safe distance, trying to learn what they could. Xu observed that occasionally passers-by would drop entire sacks of coins into the beggar’s bowl, rather than just individual coins, and the ‘beggar’ would stop the person to return their ‘purse’. Xu saw that the pouch handed back to the person was not the same one they had dropped. After several hours, the man stood up and collected his things, then began walking away. Xu and Lanara tried to follow, but lost him in the crowds in the market.</p><p></p><p> The two women returned to the Stag and Boar to a small celebration. Bryant Goodson, weak and bedridden but very much alive, was surrounded by his jubilant family. The room was crowded; Bryant’s four children sat on the edge of his bed, while their mother Felia sat nearby, holding his hand, unable to stop tears from running down her cheeks. Pella and Vigo’s three children ran around the room noisily, bursting with energy; had the party not rented out the entire inn, surely other patrons would have complained. What drew Lanara’s attention, however, was that Kyle was standing on the other side of the room, seeming quite alone, even though he was obviously very happy. A quick observation of body language told Lanara that it was the rest of the Goodson clan that was avoiding him, not the other way around. Kyle saw her looking in at them, and gave her a knowing nod. <em>I see it too,</em> the nod said, <em>but now is not the time to worry about it.</em></p><p></p><p> Lanara came in to offer her congratulations to Bryant before retiring to her room. She found that Razael was there, and they enjoyed each other’s company for a while before Xu, Togusa and Kyle came by to discuss the day’s events. Lanara and Xu talked about their exploits at the Crocodile’s Eyeball.</p><p></p><p> “What’d you find, Raz?” Lanara asked.</p><p></p><p> “Not much,” he said. “The mine’s out there, like Gil said. Lots of guards, including some mages. There is mining going on, about half slave labor and half undead.”</p><p></p><p> “Slavery is illegal in Targeth,” Togusa said. “And undead labor must be licensed.”</p><p></p><p> “Well, I didn’t think to ask any of the zombies for their papers,” Razael said. “I couldn’t get very far in to see what else is going on, but something’s up down there. There’s way too many guards for just an iron mine. I stayed for a few hours to see if anything would happen, but it stayed quiet.”</p><p></p><p> “Maybe something we can check out later if we have time,” Kyle said. “In case we need some leverage.”</p><p></p><p> “What about this drug supplier fellow you watched this afternoon?” Razael asked. “You need him followed tomorrow?”</p><p></p><p> “Sure,” Lanara said, “it’d be good to know where he takes his profits.”</p><p></p><p> “If you get a location, I can try and scope it out magically,” Kyle said.</p><p></p><p> “I could also question him,” Togusa said.</p><p></p><p> “Thanks, Togusa, but remember we’re going for subtle,” Kyle said. “You’re… not.”</p><p></p><p> “I see. I am not accustomed to dealing with criminals in this fashion.”</p><p></p><p> “Patience,” Lanara said. “So, I think tomorrow I’ll hit the markets with Xu and start spreading rumors of insane dwarven crime lords.”</p><p></p><p> “I’ll check up on this fellow you saw today,” Razael said.</p><p></p><p> “I’ll wait here,” Kyle said. “I’ll load up on divinations, enchantments, and illusions. Let me know where you need me, and I can help, but probably better I don’t try to initiate anything on my own.”</p><p></p><p> “And you have a family to tend to,” Xu said.</p><p></p><p> “That’s true. One thing I’d suggest, Lanara, is make sure it’s known in vague terms that Barrai has some sort of grudge against Gil. That way, if we’re successful in the insanity campaign, people will ‘know’ why Barrai’s delusional rantings are directed at him.”</p><p></p><p> “Good plan,” Lanara said. “Well, that’s all for tomorrow. Let’s get some dinner and turn in. I have a feeling I have some late nights ahead.”</p><p></p><p> They ended up spending three weeks on the rumor spreading, paying Gil’s bribe to give themselves more time. Lanara went out every night, sometimes alone, sometimes with one of the others, working the crowds in markets, taverns, and festhalls. She was particularly busy during the New Year’s festival, working the crowds furiously. Razael focused most of his efforts on tracking people that Lanara identified as members of Barrai’s gang; they were able to scope out the outer layers of his guild, but the inner circle remained disturbingly out of their grasp. Kyle used magic where he could, scrying a particular thug or pimp here, creating an illusion to support one of Lanara’s rumors there. The efforts seemed to be paying off; Lanara reported she was hearing many of the tales she’d spread coming back to her. What really told them they were successful, however, was when they tried to kidnap Lanara.</p><p></p><p> Xu and Lanara came rushing back to the Stag and Boar one afternnon shortly before sunset, both flushed with exertion. Xu was carrying two unconscious forms. Kyle, Togusa, and Razael helped them back to their rooms. A quick examination of their left hands revealed a gray arrow-and-dot tattoo.</p><p></p><p> “There were six of them that jumped me,” Lanara said, sipping on a glass of wine as she tried to calm herself. The experience had been a little too reminiscent of her abduction by her sister Aranal and Hungai’s men. “Good thing Xu was there, watching my back. Four of them escaped, but not these two.”</p><p></p><p> “Wake them,” Togusa said. “I will find out what they know.”</p><p></p><p> Togusa was good to his word, getting the thugs to spill their guts without even threatening them. The men, named Grant and Turik, told the party that they had no idea why they’d been told to kidnap the woman; they got orders to kidnap someone when someone needed kidnapping. They revealed the source of their orders as someone named ‘Edwin’.</p><p></p><p> “How do you find Edwin?” Lanara asked.</p><p></p><p> “He finds us,” Turik squealed. “He tells us to meet him somewhere, then gives us our target and a rendezvous point. The others have probably gone back there already.”</p><p></p><p> “Where?” Togusa glowered.</p><p></p><p> “Corner of Back Street and Dwarftoss Alley,” Grant said.</p><p></p><p> The two thugs knew little more of value. After knocking them senseless again, Lanara and Kyle hit upon a plan to disguise themselves as the two men and meeting this Edwin, in the hopes of infiltrating the guild. Xu and Razael agreed to follow and watch them.</p><p></p><p> “I’ll leave it up to you two to decide what to do with those two scum,” Lanara said to Razael and Togusa.</p><p></p><p> “That’s easy,” Razael said, drawing his bow. As he reached for an arrow, though, Togusa’s sword was out of its scabbard in a flash, cutting the bowstring in two.</p><p></p><p> “Don’t,” Togusa said, leveling a stare at the tracker. “I will deal with them.”</p><p></p><p> “This is how we deal with thieves in the frontier,” Razael said, as he started to restring his bow.</p><p></p><p> “This is not the frontier, and you are not in Tlaxan, Huntsman,” Togusa said. “You have no authority to dispense justice here. I will deal with them.”</p><p></p><p> “My way’s better,” Razael argued.</p><p></p><p> “Try ‘your way’ again, and my sword will strike your bow, not the string.”</p><p></p><p> “Your loss,” Razael sighed. “Let’s go.”</p><p></p><p> Lanara and Kyle left in their disguises, followed in silence by Xu and Razael. They arrived at the street corner in question, and stood quietly in a shadowed area, assuming that real thugs would not stand in the open. Xu took up position above them on the rooftops, while Razael hid down an alley. As he got into position, Razael almost immediately noticed an unusual pile at the far end. Examining it, he blinked, then crept over and tugged on Lanara’s sleeve.</p><p></p><p> “Come here,” he whispered.</p><p></p><p> She followed him into the alley, where he showed her the bodies. “Any of them look familiar?”</p><p></p><p> “Yeah,” she said, “those are the other four who jumped me.”</p><p></p><p> “Thought so. They’ve been stabbed, I’ll bet by Edwin or people with him. Probably because they didn’t bring you back.”</p><p></p><p> “I’ll tell Kyle,” Lanara said quietly. “And we’ll be careful.”</p><p></p><p> As Lanara was returning, though, she saw Xu had come down from her position. “I saw someone signaling,” the monk said, “a few rooftops away. They stood against the setting sun to silhouette themselves, and made hand motions. At first I thought the person was casting a spell, but now it seems more likely to be some sort of silent code. The person ducked down after that.”</p><p></p><p> Lanara quickly relayed the news about the bodies, and asked Xu to tell Razael about the signals. Then she leaned in to talk to Kyle.</p><p></p><p> “You think this is still a good idea?”</p><p></p><p> “Not as much,” Kyle admitted, “but we need information, and we know to expect we might get attacked even if they think we’re these two thugs.”</p><p></p><p> Just then, a fairly large human with dirty blond hair and scars on his cheeks walked up to Lanara and Kyle. “Grant, Turik, you’re late,” he growled. “Let’s go.”</p><p></p><p> Kyle and Lanara looked at each other. “Right,” Lanara said, and they followed Edwin down the street.</p><p></p><p> Edwin led them to a decrepit warehouse on the far side of town. Opening up a surprisingly sturdy-looking door, Edwin motioned inside.</p><p></p><p> ‘Grant’ and ‘Turik’ looked at each other, then walked inside. As the door swung closed behind them, Razael cursed silently, and began looking for a way down from the rooftop he’d been watching them from. They’d had little choice, of course; it was either go inside or blow their cover. But the whole setup stank of ambush.</p><p></p><p> Climbing down the side of a building, Razael approached the warehouse. Gently testing the door, he found it locked, which hardly surprised him. He was about to circle around when Xu stepped around the corner.</p><p></p><p> “The other doors are also secure,” she said, “and there are no windows.”</p><p></p><p> “I’ll try the roof,” Razael said quietly. “You go around back and wait for the signal, then bust in. This door here looks like it’d stop a charging stonebreather.”</p><p></p><p> “What is the signal?” Xu asked.</p><p></p><p> Razael smirked. “When Kyle gets going, he tends to be pretty loud.”</p><p></p><p> The tracker sprinted around the building and found an iron ladder up to the roof. At the top, he looked for any sign of a skylight or a rooftop hatch, but found none. Then, on a hunch, he pressed his ear to the wooden slats of the rooftop. It was silent for a while, but then he heard people talking.</p><p></p><p> “Please, no sudden moves, whoever you are,” said an unfamiliar male voice, “it would be a shame to have to perforate you with crossbow bolts.” The voice had an echo to it, suggesting the warehouse was mostly empty… no easy cover for Lanara and Kyle.</p><p></p><p> “Now,” the voice continued, “we know who you aren’t… you aren’t the people whose faces you now wear. What we want to know is who you are, and who you work for.”</p><p></p><p> “We work for ourselves.” The voice was male, but Razael knew it as the disguised voice of Lanara.</p><p></p><p> “If that’s so, what particular vendetta do you have against us and ours?”</p><p></p><p> “That depends on who you and yours are,” Lanara answered.</p><p></p><p> “Oh, please,” the man snapped. “We’re not ignorant.”</p><p></p><p> “I see no bodies,” Lanara said, “no bodies generally means no brains.”</p><p></p><p> “Well, it’s dark in here, isn’t it?” the man said, the condescension obvious in his voice.</p><p></p><p> “Then lighten things up a bit,” Lanara suggested.</p><p></p><p> “I think not.”</p><p></p><p> At that, Razael stood up and began searching again for another way into the building. Inside, Kyle and Lanara stood in the center of the warehouse, next to a small table. The only light was coming from a pair of candelabras on the table. The echoes of the empty warehouse made it difficult to tell which direction the speaker was from them.</p><p></p><p> “Well,” Kyle said, “we just don’t take it too kindly when good folks get jumped in the street.”</p><p></p><p> “We don’t take it too kindly,” the man shot back, “when people start a campaign of lies and slander against our leader.”</p><p></p><p> “And who would…” Lanara began, feigning ignorance, but she was quickly cut off.</p><p></p><p> “Don’t even try it,” the man snapped.</p><p></p><p> “Well, your leader seems to be doing that to a perfectly innocent council member,” Lanara said in response.</p><p></p><p> “Ah. So, you work for Gil Mendes.”</p><p></p><p> “No, we work for ourselves,” Lanara stated. “Gil did not hire us. After your blackmail, he has nothing to pay us with anyway.”</p><p></p><p> “Oh, of course he does,” the man said, chuckling. “He may not have money, but he’s an influential man with access to many resources and many friends. He’s got many ways to pay.”</p><p></p><p> Lanara shrugged. “Not anything around here we particularly want. Your taverns certainly leave much to be desired.”</p><p></p><p> “If there’s nothing you want here, then leave.”</p><p></p><p> Lanara glanced at Kyle. “Well, we’ve certainly dealt with braver people. They wouldn’t be hiding in the shadows otherwise.”</p><p></p><p> “In our line of work, brave equals dead.”</p><p></p><p> “So, Barrai runs a company of chickens?” Lanara’s heart was pounding a bit as she spoke, but she pressed on. Whoever was speaking to them seemed easy to rile with a few verbal jabs, and as long as he was trading barbs with her, he wasn’t ordering his men to shoot. It was a delicate game, though.</p><p></p><p> “He runs a company of intelligent, profitable people,” came the reply.</p><p></p><p> “I suppose intellect is in the eye of the beholder,” Lanara sighed. “You haven’t even figured out who we are.”</p><p></p><p> “We don’t know your names,” the man said, “but we know where you’re staying. We know you have ties with some of those lovely children I bet the orc tribes would love to get their hands on.”</p><p></p><p> Lanara glanced over at Kyle, unsure of how he would react. She saw his hands ball up into fists for a moment, then slowly relax. <em>Good,</em> Lanara thought, <em>he knows getting angry now won’t get us out of here.</em> Besides, they’d have to get through Togusa first.</p><p></p><p> “The orcs?” Kyle said, trying to keep the same casual tone in his voice. “We’ve been to the orcs. I’ll bet we could get those kids back without a problem. They’d probably give us parting gifts.”</p><p></p><p> When there was no reply, Kyle looked around in the darkness. “So, this is getting kind of boring.”</p><p></p><p> “Yeah,” Lanara interjected, “we have other things to do.”</p><p></p><p> “So, can we kind of get to the point?” Kyle concluded.</p><p></p><p> “Certainly. You have 24 hours to leave the city.”</p><p></p><p> “And if we don’t?” Lanara asked.</p><p></p><p> “The usual. Death, torture, slavery.”</p><p></p><p> “Assuming you could catch us, of course. Your first try didn’t work too well.”</p><p></p><p> Suddenly they heard someone pounding on the outside of the door through which they had entered. The noise continued on for several seconds.</p><p></p><p> “Someone’s at your door,” Lanara called out to the darkness, but there was no response. The knocking continued.</p><p></p><p> “Fine, I’ll get it.” Lanara walked to the door, followed by Kyle. She heard someone continue to knock on the outside. Examining the door, she saw it was solid, and secured with a double-locked bar – a key was required no matter which side you were on.</p><p></p><p> Lanara and Kyle looked at each other. If they hadn’t been shot at yet, they probably weren’t going to be. Kyle raised his arms, and tried to blast the door off its hinges, but it held fast. He sighed.</p><p></p><p> “I really wanted to break something before we left,” he said.</p><p></p><p> “We could carve our initials in the wood,” Lanara suggested.</p><p></p><p> “Nah, let’s just leave.” Kyle pulled out a scroll, and a second later he and Lanara appeared outside the door. They turned and saw Razael at the door, kicking at it with his boot while keeping an arrow notched.</p><p></p><p> “Hi!” Lanara said.</p><p></p><p> Razael whirled around, and almost put an arrow in Lanara’s eye. She pushed it away as soon as he relaxed his draw. “Nice reflexes.” She looked up at the warehouse. “Well, that was kind of fruitless.”</p><p></p><p> “It seems we’ve been discovered,” Kyle said.</p><p></p><p> “Yeah, I got that.”</p><p></p><p> Razael’s animal companion, the raven Kraw, circled down out of the night sky and landed on Razael’s shoulder.</p><p></p><p> “He was looking for signs of anyone leaving the building,” Razael explained, “since he’s not cawing his fool head off, he must not have seen anything.”</p><p></p><p> “Well, unfortunately,” Kyle said, “since they now know Gil’s involved,” Kyle glanced at Lanara, “we’ll need to go get him.”</p><p></p><p> “Is there a way to open the door?” Razael asked, pointing at the warehouse.</p><p></p><p> “Do we want to go in there and scare them, or try and save Gil’s butt?” Lanara asked.</p><p></p><p> “Go ahead and get Gil,” Razael said. “As far as I can tell, no one’s come out of here, which means the exit must be inside, unless they’re using magic. I want to look around.”</p><p></p><p> “Well, I’m not so good at kicking in walls,” Lanara sulked.</p><p></p><p> “Let’s find Xu,” Razael said.</p><p></p><p> They all moved around to the other side of the warehouse, looking for their monk companion. As they ran, Kyle looked at Razael.</p><p></p><p> “Well, Raz, I guess I owe you an apology. We should have just tried to kill them all from the start.”</p><p></p><p> Razael blinked, then nodded. “Accepted. You feeling all right?”</p><p></p><p> Kyle’s jaw clenched. “They know about the kids.”</p><p></p><p> They found Xu furiously punching a side door, splintering the wood. She looked up as the rest of the party rounded the corner. “I heard a commotion, and assumed it was ‘the signal’.”</p><p></p><p> “Keep going,” Razael said, as he pulled out his short sword to help.</p><p></p><p> They hacked at the door for a few moments, until they felt it giving way. Razael switched back to his bow and stood ready as Xu kicked the door into kindling. They went in quickly, ready for a fight, but no one opposed their entry. As Kyle summoned up light, they saw that the warehouse appeared empty.</p><p></p><p> “I’m going to see what I can find here,” Razael said. “Lanara, you run and fetch Gil, bring him back to the inn. Xu, head for the inn and let Togusa know what’s going on. Kyle, you stay here and watch in case any trouble comes.”</p><p></p><p> The party split up to their various tasks. About two minutes after Lanara and Xu had left, however, the heavily-armored figure of Togusa appeared in the smashed doorway.</p><p></p><p> “Kyle!”</p><p></p><p> “Togusa?” Kyle said, his heart skipping a beat. “What are you…”</p><p></p><p> The samurai ran forward, and bowed. “I bring unpleasant tidings,” he said. “I was searching for you when I encountered Xu Dhii Ngao, who told me where to find you. She has continued on to the Boar and Stag.”</p><p></p><p> “What is it?” Kyle asked, already fearing the answer.</p><p></p><p> “A large number of men assaulted the inn,” Togusa said. “Though many of them are now among the dead, there were far too many for me to protect your family.” He hung his head in shame. “I have failed you.”</p><p></p><p> “How many?” Razael asked.</p><p></p><p> “Many dozens,” Togusa said.</p><p></p><p> “Find Lanara,” Razael said to Kyle. “Get everyone back to the inn. I give it ten to one that they’re at the mine. If they are, I’ll send the raven.”</p><p></p><p> “Here, take Violet with you,” Kyle said. “She’ll be able to reach me faster than Kraw will.”</p><p></p><p> Razael nodded, and stepped outside. Pulling his magical cloak around himself, he transformed into a raven himself, and then he, Kraw, and Violet flew off into the night.</p><p></p><p>“Kyle,” Togusa said, “I apologize that I could not defend your family adequately.”</p><p></p><p>”It’s not your fault,” Kyle said. “We didn’t know that they knew what we were doing.”</p><p></p><p>“I did not expect that they would send so many,” Togusa said. “This Barrai appears to have a great many bodies to throw about. But the situation will be rectified.”</p><p> “Yes, it will,” Kyle said, his eyes flashing angrily. “But first I should find Lanara, and then Gil. And I’ll need time to prepare new spells – I’m now prepared for what I’ll need to do.”</p><p></p><p>“Will you allow me to make right my failure?” Togusa asked.</p><p></p><p>“Your help is definitely appreciated.” Kyle said. Looking over the samurai, Kyle saw a deep gash in his left arm. He pulled a potion out of his belt. “You’re wounded. Drink this, then return to the inn to help Xu and wait for us to get back.”</p><p></p><p>Togusa bowed, and then they split up. Kyle caught up to Lanara at Gil’s office at the town hall, where she was arguing with him over leaving with her.</p><p></p><p>“I’m a professional mistruster, you realize,” he was saying.</p><p></p><p>“I’m used to people not trusting me unless I’m making them,” Lanara said, “but this is not the time.” When she spotted Kyle, she pointed at him. “See? Would he have come to help me drag you off if it wasn’t serious?”</p><p></p><p>“They’ve hit the inn already,” Kyle said, “They took three of the kids.”</p><p></p><p>“Crap,” Lanara swore.</p><p></p><p>“Have you told him what happened?”</p><p></p><p>“Of course. I told him that Barrai knows about us, and threatened us and your family. I didn’t know they’d already attacked the inn.”</p><p></p><p>Kyle looked at Gil. “Does he know that Barrai knows about him, too?”</p><p></p><p>Gil’s eyes widened. “I see. That makes more sense. Wait one minute.” Gil went inside his office, and was heard blowing out candles and putting away papers.</p><p></p><p>“You didn’t tell him that you told Barrai’s men about him?” Kyle asked.</p><p></p><p>“I implied it. I thought he’d get the hint.”</p><p></p><p>Gil emerged a moment later wearing a long cloak. “Lead the way.”</p><p></p><p>The three returned to the inn several minutes later, and found a grisly sight. Blood stained the floor and walls in the inn, and broken furniture was everywhere. Going back to the rooms, they found Xu tending to the remainder of Kyle’s family, who were all unconscious. Togusa remained on guard just outside the door.</p><p></p><p>“The innkeeper fled when the attack started,” Togusa said. “I tried to get your family to leave with me, but I could not wake them.”</p><p></p><p>“Poison,” Xu said, pointing at the remains of the family’s dinner dishes. “They will sleep for several more hours, but will be fine. The children will sleep longer. I assume that Togusa was able to resist the poison’s effects.”</p><p></p><p>“Who’s missing, Kyle?” Lanara asked.</p><p></p><p>Kyle scanned the room. “Connor, Anjele, and Sariah,” he said, grimacing. “The three youngest.” He looked at everyone. “Everyone should get some rest. I’m going to use a scrying to make sure the kids are all right, then I’ll need to sleep so we can get the kids back.” Kyle looked at Xu. “When they wake up, come get me. I’ll need to tell them what happened.”</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Delemental, post: 2831870, member: 5203"] “So, any idea how we’re going to pull this off?” Lanara propped herself up on one elbow, looking at Razael as she asked her question. It was early in the morning still, though the noise from the rooms across the hall told her that Kyle and his family had been up for quite some time. The cansin had commented about the relative sanity of the Goodson family when she’d first heard them stirring just before dawn. Razael turned and looked at her. “I’d reckoned you had that part figured out already, seeing as you’re the expert in getting people to believe what you want them to believe.” “True,” Lanara said, “but I’ve never done it on this scale before. And with only a week.” “Well, if’n you need more time, we can always pay off this Barrai for a couple of weeks. I reckon we can get it back from him, one way or another. All else fails, we take it off the man’s body.” “Raz, we’re not supposed to kill him, remember? Gil said all that stuff about a power vacuum in the city being worse that leaving him alone… or were you too busy ogling that whore at the Crocodile’s Eyeball?” Razael cocked an eyebrow. “Jealous?” “Just questioning your taste.” “Well, what that Gil said was that carving through his men to get to Barrai would be bad. If we could get a shot at just him…” Lanara shook her head. “I don’t think we’ll get that chance, but we’ll see. Kyle and I are going to talk to Gil again to get a little more information.” “I thought Kyle would be going back to the temple of Ladta today with his family.” “He will, but they aren’t starting the ceremony until midday.” “Ah. Well then, let me know what you need from me. I have a couple things I need to look into this morning.” Now it was Lanara’s turn to raise a brow. “What kind of things?” He grinned. “Let’s just say I’m glad Kyle’s going with you and not me.” Lanara nodded. “Poisons.” “Drugs,” he corrected. “If’n we’re wanting folks to think Barrai’s off his rocker, slipping something in his ale would do the trick. Best be prepared if’n we get the chance.” “Whatever,” Lanara said, pushing strands of pink hair out of her eyes. “Just try not to get arrested, okay?” There was a loud knock at their door. “Hurry up, you two,” Kyle shouted from the other side of the door. “We haven’t got all day. You can finish whatever you’re doing later.” Razael sat up in bed. “Ah, you’re just jealous because your woman’s off sleeping between silk sheets while you’re stuck here wondering if she’s found someone else to warm your side of the bed!” There was silence, then the sounds of Kyle’s heavy boots walking off. Lanara slugged Razael in the arm. “Ow, woman! Watch the rings!” “You don’t have to say every little thing that comes into your head, you know,” Lanara scolded. “Ah, he knows I’m kidding with him. Autumn would probably burst into flames or something if she even thought about being unfaithful.” “I know that, and so does he, but for Feesha’s sake, Raz…” “All right, all right,” he said, holding up his hands in a pacifying gesture. “I get the point. Best we move along, then.” Lanara, Kyle, and Xu ended up going to meet Gil again, first stopping into his office to drop hints about a meeting, then rendezvousing with a newly disguised councilman in a small park. “First of all,” Lanara said, “we need to know how Barrai knows about you.” Gil sighed. “A few weeks back, I made a vote in council that Barrai apparently wasn’t crazy about. He sent a couple of assassins after me. They caught me alone, and unarmed, so…” He looked around at each of them. “How… familiar are you with my abilities?” “We’ve had more than our fair share of encounters with people like yourself,” Lanara said. “We’re very familiar.” Gil looked quite surprised. “Well, then, I summoned a mindblade to dispatch the assassins. Unfortunately, one of Barrai’s lieutenants was apparently watching, making sure the job went all right.” “So, at least one of his lieutenants knows,” Kyle said. “I’m not sure. That particular lieutenant seems to have vanished soon after he learned my secret. So he’s either dead or in hiding.” Kyle frowned. “Gil, are you sure that these blackmail threats are coming directly from Barrai?” “Yes, I’m sure,” Gil said. “Barrai came to my office in person two days after the assassination attempt.” “Oh, okay,” said Kyle, “I just wondered if maybe this lieutenant was just using Barrai’s name to scare you into paying him directly.” “But you have seen Barrai,” Lanara said, “can you describe him?” “Of course,” Gil said, “it’s well known what he looks like. But he rarely leaves his stronghold because his face is so familiar. When he does go out in public, people tend to give him a wide berth. He’s a dwarf, looks like he’s in his late forties to human eyes. Short hair, short beard, blond. Has a scar that runs from his left ear to just short of his left eye.” “Anything else you can tell us about his organization?” Kyle asked. “Not a lot,” Gil said. “I do know that his lieutenants tend to divide responsibility more along type of activity rather than geographically. One’s in charge of narcotics, one runs the prostitution rings, and so on. Barrai controls a lot of territory in Delgan, and even outside the walls. He even owns an iron mine west of here. Could be just a side business for him, or used as a hideout.” “We could have someone check that mine out, just to see,” Lanara said. “Tell us what you can about Barrai.” After getting what they could from Gil, the party returned to the Stag and Boar. Kyle left with his family to go to the Halls of Fortune for the raising, while Lanara asked Razael to go check out the iron mine. Then Lanara and Xu decided to get started on their plan. They’d agreed on the walk back to the inn to make their effort two-pronged; half their time would be spent spreading rumors to the general populace that Barrai was no longer sane, the other half would be spent learning about Barrai’s criminal empire in an attempt to infiltrate it. The two women donned disguises – Xu went as Lanara’s elven bodyguard, while Lanara went for a more generic ‘trollopy dancing girl’ ensemble – and went back to the Crocodile’s Eyeball. It was still early in the afternoon when they arrived; most of the patrons were only moderately drunk, and no one had been stabbed yet. They wandered around the tavern for a while, and spotted two men with Barrai’s guild tattoo on their left hands; a human and an orc-touched. Lanara approached the barkeep, a large, sweaty human with a bald head and an eye patch. “I see you don’t have any entertainment here,” she said to him. The barkeep leered. “The girls don’t start until nine bells,” he said, clearly not looking her in the eyes. “I meant music.” Lanara wasn’t bothered by the direction of his gaze, and even leaned forward a bit more. The more people looked at her breasts instead of her face, the easier it would be to remain anonymous. He shrugged, and spit into a mug. “Only music we get here is the sound of bar fights.” “Well, would you mind if I sing a few songs? Maybe some good ‘take a wench to bed’ songs so they’re ready for the girls at nine bells?” “Long as I get half the take.” “Fine with me.” Lanara moved away from the bar, and pulled out her fiddle. She began to wander around the tables, mostly playing songs about drinking and carousing and deftly avoiding the hands of others. When she came near the tables of Barrai’s men, she invoked her bardic magic to infiltrate their minds, holding their attention rapt. She focused most of her power on the human, lacing her songs with a magical compulsion for him to want to speak with her openly and honestly about his work. When she was done playing, the human kicked his companions out of the table and beckoned for Lanara to sit. She and Xu approached and sat down. The human, named Udan, turned out to be one of Barrai’s drug sellers. Lanara posed as someone interested in getting into the business, and started asking questions. Though he did not know how to find Barrai or any of his lieutenants, Udan did tell Lanara how to find his supplier, who was working his normal area a few blocks away. Udan was more than eager to explain that his supplier most likely reported to either one of Barrai’s lieutenants or a sub-lieutenant. “Can you tell us where to find him?” Lanara asked. “Sure,” Udan said, and he proceeded to give directions. Then he looked both Xu and Lanara up and down. “A lot can happen to a couple of lovely women in a couple of blocks,” he said. “Would you like an escort?” In response, Xu held up both of her empty hands, and clenched her fists tightly, causing her knuckles to crack loudly. “So, that’s a maybe?” Udan said, with a crooked smile. Xu stood up. “I find I need what passes for fresh air in this city.” The two women left the Crocodile’s Eyeball, and after taking a moment to disparage men in general, followed the thug’s directions to his supplier. He wasn’t hard to find; as Udan had said, he spent his days posing as a beggar, and there was only one beggar on the street. Lanara and Xu observed the man from a safe distance, trying to learn what they could. Xu observed that occasionally passers-by would drop entire sacks of coins into the beggar’s bowl, rather than just individual coins, and the ‘beggar’ would stop the person to return their ‘purse’. Xu saw that the pouch handed back to the person was not the same one they had dropped. After several hours, the man stood up and collected his things, then began walking away. Xu and Lanara tried to follow, but lost him in the crowds in the market. The two women returned to the Stag and Boar to a small celebration. Bryant Goodson, weak and bedridden but very much alive, was surrounded by his jubilant family. The room was crowded; Bryant’s four children sat on the edge of his bed, while their mother Felia sat nearby, holding his hand, unable to stop tears from running down her cheeks. Pella and Vigo’s three children ran around the room noisily, bursting with energy; had the party not rented out the entire inn, surely other patrons would have complained. What drew Lanara’s attention, however, was that Kyle was standing on the other side of the room, seeming quite alone, even though he was obviously very happy. A quick observation of body language told Lanara that it was the rest of the Goodson clan that was avoiding him, not the other way around. Kyle saw her looking in at them, and gave her a knowing nod. [I]I see it too,[/I] the nod said, [I]but now is not the time to worry about it.[/I] Lanara came in to offer her congratulations to Bryant before retiring to her room. She found that Razael was there, and they enjoyed each other’s company for a while before Xu, Togusa and Kyle came by to discuss the day’s events. Lanara and Xu talked about their exploits at the Crocodile’s Eyeball. “What’d you find, Raz?” Lanara asked. “Not much,” he said. “The mine’s out there, like Gil said. Lots of guards, including some mages. There is mining going on, about half slave labor and half undead.” “Slavery is illegal in Targeth,” Togusa said. “And undead labor must be licensed.” “Well, I didn’t think to ask any of the zombies for their papers,” Razael said. “I couldn’t get very far in to see what else is going on, but something’s up down there. There’s way too many guards for just an iron mine. I stayed for a few hours to see if anything would happen, but it stayed quiet.” “Maybe something we can check out later if we have time,” Kyle said. “In case we need some leverage.” “What about this drug supplier fellow you watched this afternoon?” Razael asked. “You need him followed tomorrow?” “Sure,” Lanara said, “it’d be good to know where he takes his profits.” “If you get a location, I can try and scope it out magically,” Kyle said. “I could also question him,” Togusa said. “Thanks, Togusa, but remember we’re going for subtle,” Kyle said. “You’re… not.” “I see. I am not accustomed to dealing with criminals in this fashion.” “Patience,” Lanara said. “So, I think tomorrow I’ll hit the markets with Xu and start spreading rumors of insane dwarven crime lords.” “I’ll check up on this fellow you saw today,” Razael said. “I’ll wait here,” Kyle said. “I’ll load up on divinations, enchantments, and illusions. Let me know where you need me, and I can help, but probably better I don’t try to initiate anything on my own.” “And you have a family to tend to,” Xu said. “That’s true. One thing I’d suggest, Lanara, is make sure it’s known in vague terms that Barrai has some sort of grudge against Gil. That way, if we’re successful in the insanity campaign, people will ‘know’ why Barrai’s delusional rantings are directed at him.” “Good plan,” Lanara said. “Well, that’s all for tomorrow. Let’s get some dinner and turn in. I have a feeling I have some late nights ahead.” They ended up spending three weeks on the rumor spreading, paying Gil’s bribe to give themselves more time. Lanara went out every night, sometimes alone, sometimes with one of the others, working the crowds in markets, taverns, and festhalls. She was particularly busy during the New Year’s festival, working the crowds furiously. Razael focused most of his efforts on tracking people that Lanara identified as members of Barrai’s gang; they were able to scope out the outer layers of his guild, but the inner circle remained disturbingly out of their grasp. Kyle used magic where he could, scrying a particular thug or pimp here, creating an illusion to support one of Lanara’s rumors there. The efforts seemed to be paying off; Lanara reported she was hearing many of the tales she’d spread coming back to her. What really told them they were successful, however, was when they tried to kidnap Lanara. Xu and Lanara came rushing back to the Stag and Boar one afternnon shortly before sunset, both flushed with exertion. Xu was carrying two unconscious forms. Kyle, Togusa, and Razael helped them back to their rooms. A quick examination of their left hands revealed a gray arrow-and-dot tattoo. “There were six of them that jumped me,” Lanara said, sipping on a glass of wine as she tried to calm herself. The experience had been a little too reminiscent of her abduction by her sister Aranal and Hungai’s men. “Good thing Xu was there, watching my back. Four of them escaped, but not these two.” “Wake them,” Togusa said. “I will find out what they know.” Togusa was good to his word, getting the thugs to spill their guts without even threatening them. The men, named Grant and Turik, told the party that they had no idea why they’d been told to kidnap the woman; they got orders to kidnap someone when someone needed kidnapping. They revealed the source of their orders as someone named ‘Edwin’. “How do you find Edwin?” Lanara asked. “He finds us,” Turik squealed. “He tells us to meet him somewhere, then gives us our target and a rendezvous point. The others have probably gone back there already.” “Where?” Togusa glowered. “Corner of Back Street and Dwarftoss Alley,” Grant said. The two thugs knew little more of value. After knocking them senseless again, Lanara and Kyle hit upon a plan to disguise themselves as the two men and meeting this Edwin, in the hopes of infiltrating the guild. Xu and Razael agreed to follow and watch them. “I’ll leave it up to you two to decide what to do with those two scum,” Lanara said to Razael and Togusa. “That’s easy,” Razael said, drawing his bow. As he reached for an arrow, though, Togusa’s sword was out of its scabbard in a flash, cutting the bowstring in two. “Don’t,” Togusa said, leveling a stare at the tracker. “I will deal with them.” “This is how we deal with thieves in the frontier,” Razael said, as he started to restring his bow. “This is not the frontier, and you are not in Tlaxan, Huntsman,” Togusa said. “You have no authority to dispense justice here. I will deal with them.” “My way’s better,” Razael argued. “Try ‘your way’ again, and my sword will strike your bow, not the string.” “Your loss,” Razael sighed. “Let’s go.” Lanara and Kyle left in their disguises, followed in silence by Xu and Razael. They arrived at the street corner in question, and stood quietly in a shadowed area, assuming that real thugs would not stand in the open. Xu took up position above them on the rooftops, while Razael hid down an alley. As he got into position, Razael almost immediately noticed an unusual pile at the far end. Examining it, he blinked, then crept over and tugged on Lanara’s sleeve. “Come here,” he whispered. She followed him into the alley, where he showed her the bodies. “Any of them look familiar?” “Yeah,” she said, “those are the other four who jumped me.” “Thought so. They’ve been stabbed, I’ll bet by Edwin or people with him. Probably because they didn’t bring you back.” “I’ll tell Kyle,” Lanara said quietly. “And we’ll be careful.” As Lanara was returning, though, she saw Xu had come down from her position. “I saw someone signaling,” the monk said, “a few rooftops away. They stood against the setting sun to silhouette themselves, and made hand motions. At first I thought the person was casting a spell, but now it seems more likely to be some sort of silent code. The person ducked down after that.” Lanara quickly relayed the news about the bodies, and asked Xu to tell Razael about the signals. Then she leaned in to talk to Kyle. “You think this is still a good idea?” “Not as much,” Kyle admitted, “but we need information, and we know to expect we might get attacked even if they think we’re these two thugs.” Just then, a fairly large human with dirty blond hair and scars on his cheeks walked up to Lanara and Kyle. “Grant, Turik, you’re late,” he growled. “Let’s go.” Kyle and Lanara looked at each other. “Right,” Lanara said, and they followed Edwin down the street. Edwin led them to a decrepit warehouse on the far side of town. Opening up a surprisingly sturdy-looking door, Edwin motioned inside. ‘Grant’ and ‘Turik’ looked at each other, then walked inside. As the door swung closed behind them, Razael cursed silently, and began looking for a way down from the rooftop he’d been watching them from. They’d had little choice, of course; it was either go inside or blow their cover. But the whole setup stank of ambush. Climbing down the side of a building, Razael approached the warehouse. Gently testing the door, he found it locked, which hardly surprised him. He was about to circle around when Xu stepped around the corner. “The other doors are also secure,” she said, “and there are no windows.” “I’ll try the roof,” Razael said quietly. “You go around back and wait for the signal, then bust in. This door here looks like it’d stop a charging stonebreather.” “What is the signal?” Xu asked. Razael smirked. “When Kyle gets going, he tends to be pretty loud.” The tracker sprinted around the building and found an iron ladder up to the roof. At the top, he looked for any sign of a skylight or a rooftop hatch, but found none. Then, on a hunch, he pressed his ear to the wooden slats of the rooftop. It was silent for a while, but then he heard people talking. “Please, no sudden moves, whoever you are,” said an unfamiliar male voice, “it would be a shame to have to perforate you with crossbow bolts.” The voice had an echo to it, suggesting the warehouse was mostly empty… no easy cover for Lanara and Kyle. “Now,” the voice continued, “we know who you aren’t… you aren’t the people whose faces you now wear. What we want to know is who you are, and who you work for.” “We work for ourselves.” The voice was male, but Razael knew it as the disguised voice of Lanara. “If that’s so, what particular vendetta do you have against us and ours?” “That depends on who you and yours are,” Lanara answered. “Oh, please,” the man snapped. “We’re not ignorant.” “I see no bodies,” Lanara said, “no bodies generally means no brains.” “Well, it’s dark in here, isn’t it?” the man said, the condescension obvious in his voice. “Then lighten things up a bit,” Lanara suggested. “I think not.” At that, Razael stood up and began searching again for another way into the building. Inside, Kyle and Lanara stood in the center of the warehouse, next to a small table. The only light was coming from a pair of candelabras on the table. The echoes of the empty warehouse made it difficult to tell which direction the speaker was from them. “Well,” Kyle said, “we just don’t take it too kindly when good folks get jumped in the street.” “We don’t take it too kindly,” the man shot back, “when people start a campaign of lies and slander against our leader.” “And who would…” Lanara began, feigning ignorance, but she was quickly cut off. “Don’t even try it,” the man snapped. “Well, your leader seems to be doing that to a perfectly innocent council member,” Lanara said in response. “Ah. So, you work for Gil Mendes.” “No, we work for ourselves,” Lanara stated. “Gil did not hire us. After your blackmail, he has nothing to pay us with anyway.” “Oh, of course he does,” the man said, chuckling. “He may not have money, but he’s an influential man with access to many resources and many friends. He’s got many ways to pay.” Lanara shrugged. “Not anything around here we particularly want. Your taverns certainly leave much to be desired.” “If there’s nothing you want here, then leave.” Lanara glanced at Kyle. “Well, we’ve certainly dealt with braver people. They wouldn’t be hiding in the shadows otherwise.” “In our line of work, brave equals dead.” “So, Barrai runs a company of chickens?” Lanara’s heart was pounding a bit as she spoke, but she pressed on. Whoever was speaking to them seemed easy to rile with a few verbal jabs, and as long as he was trading barbs with her, he wasn’t ordering his men to shoot. It was a delicate game, though. “He runs a company of intelligent, profitable people,” came the reply. “I suppose intellect is in the eye of the beholder,” Lanara sighed. “You haven’t even figured out who we are.” “We don’t know your names,” the man said, “but we know where you’re staying. We know you have ties with some of those lovely children I bet the orc tribes would love to get their hands on.” Lanara glanced over at Kyle, unsure of how he would react. She saw his hands ball up into fists for a moment, then slowly relax. [I]Good,[/I] Lanara thought, [I]he knows getting angry now won’t get us out of here.[/I] Besides, they’d have to get through Togusa first. “The orcs?” Kyle said, trying to keep the same casual tone in his voice. “We’ve been to the orcs. I’ll bet we could get those kids back without a problem. They’d probably give us parting gifts.” When there was no reply, Kyle looked around in the darkness. “So, this is getting kind of boring.” “Yeah,” Lanara interjected, “we have other things to do.” “So, can we kind of get to the point?” Kyle concluded. “Certainly. You have 24 hours to leave the city.” “And if we don’t?” Lanara asked. “The usual. Death, torture, slavery.” “Assuming you could catch us, of course. Your first try didn’t work too well.” Suddenly they heard someone pounding on the outside of the door through which they had entered. The noise continued on for several seconds. “Someone’s at your door,” Lanara called out to the darkness, but there was no response. The knocking continued. “Fine, I’ll get it.” Lanara walked to the door, followed by Kyle. She heard someone continue to knock on the outside. Examining the door, she saw it was solid, and secured with a double-locked bar – a key was required no matter which side you were on. Lanara and Kyle looked at each other. If they hadn’t been shot at yet, they probably weren’t going to be. Kyle raised his arms, and tried to blast the door off its hinges, but it held fast. He sighed. “I really wanted to break something before we left,” he said. “We could carve our initials in the wood,” Lanara suggested. “Nah, let’s just leave.” Kyle pulled out a scroll, and a second later he and Lanara appeared outside the door. They turned and saw Razael at the door, kicking at it with his boot while keeping an arrow notched. “Hi!” Lanara said. Razael whirled around, and almost put an arrow in Lanara’s eye. She pushed it away as soon as he relaxed his draw. “Nice reflexes.” She looked up at the warehouse. “Well, that was kind of fruitless.” “It seems we’ve been discovered,” Kyle said. “Yeah, I got that.” Razael’s animal companion, the raven Kraw, circled down out of the night sky and landed on Razael’s shoulder. “He was looking for signs of anyone leaving the building,” Razael explained, “since he’s not cawing his fool head off, he must not have seen anything.” “Well, unfortunately,” Kyle said, “since they now know Gil’s involved,” Kyle glanced at Lanara, “we’ll need to go get him.” “Is there a way to open the door?” Razael asked, pointing at the warehouse. “Do we want to go in there and scare them, or try and save Gil’s butt?” Lanara asked. “Go ahead and get Gil,” Razael said. “As far as I can tell, no one’s come out of here, which means the exit must be inside, unless they’re using magic. I want to look around.” “Well, I’m not so good at kicking in walls,” Lanara sulked. “Let’s find Xu,” Razael said. They all moved around to the other side of the warehouse, looking for their monk companion. As they ran, Kyle looked at Razael. “Well, Raz, I guess I owe you an apology. We should have just tried to kill them all from the start.” Razael blinked, then nodded. “Accepted. You feeling all right?” Kyle’s jaw clenched. “They know about the kids.” They found Xu furiously punching a side door, splintering the wood. She looked up as the rest of the party rounded the corner. “I heard a commotion, and assumed it was ‘the signal’.” “Keep going,” Razael said, as he pulled out his short sword to help. They hacked at the door for a few moments, until they felt it giving way. Razael switched back to his bow and stood ready as Xu kicked the door into kindling. They went in quickly, ready for a fight, but no one opposed their entry. As Kyle summoned up light, they saw that the warehouse appeared empty. “I’m going to see what I can find here,” Razael said. “Lanara, you run and fetch Gil, bring him back to the inn. Xu, head for the inn and let Togusa know what’s going on. Kyle, you stay here and watch in case any trouble comes.” The party split up to their various tasks. About two minutes after Lanara and Xu had left, however, the heavily-armored figure of Togusa appeared in the smashed doorway. “Kyle!” “Togusa?” Kyle said, his heart skipping a beat. “What are you…” The samurai ran forward, and bowed. “I bring unpleasant tidings,” he said. “I was searching for you when I encountered Xu Dhii Ngao, who told me where to find you. She has continued on to the Boar and Stag.” “What is it?” Kyle asked, already fearing the answer. “A large number of men assaulted the inn,” Togusa said. “Though many of them are now among the dead, there were far too many for me to protect your family.” He hung his head in shame. “I have failed you.” “How many?” Razael asked. “Many dozens,” Togusa said. “Find Lanara,” Razael said to Kyle. “Get everyone back to the inn. I give it ten to one that they’re at the mine. If they are, I’ll send the raven.” “Here, take Violet with you,” Kyle said. “She’ll be able to reach me faster than Kraw will.” Razael nodded, and stepped outside. Pulling his magical cloak around himself, he transformed into a raven himself, and then he, Kraw, and Violet flew off into the night. “Kyle,” Togusa said, “I apologize that I could not defend your family adequately.” ”It’s not your fault,” Kyle said. “We didn’t know that they knew what we were doing.” “I did not expect that they would send so many,” Togusa said. “This Barrai appears to have a great many bodies to throw about. But the situation will be rectified.” “Yes, it will,” Kyle said, his eyes flashing angrily. “But first I should find Lanara, and then Gil. And I’ll need time to prepare new spells – I’m now prepared for what I’ll need to do.” “Will you allow me to make right my failure?” Togusa asked. “Your help is definitely appreciated.” Kyle said. Looking over the samurai, Kyle saw a deep gash in his left arm. He pulled a potion out of his belt. “You’re wounded. Drink this, then return to the inn to help Xu and wait for us to get back.” Togusa bowed, and then they split up. Kyle caught up to Lanara at Gil’s office at the town hall, where she was arguing with him over leaving with her. “I’m a professional mistruster, you realize,” he was saying. “I’m used to people not trusting me unless I’m making them,” Lanara said, “but this is not the time.” When she spotted Kyle, she pointed at him. “See? Would he have come to help me drag you off if it wasn’t serious?” “They’ve hit the inn already,” Kyle said, “They took three of the kids.” “Crap,” Lanara swore. “Have you told him what happened?” “Of course. I told him that Barrai knows about us, and threatened us and your family. I didn’t know they’d already attacked the inn.” Kyle looked at Gil. “Does he know that Barrai knows about him, too?” Gil’s eyes widened. “I see. That makes more sense. Wait one minute.” Gil went inside his office, and was heard blowing out candles and putting away papers. “You didn’t tell him that you told Barrai’s men about him?” Kyle asked. “I implied it. I thought he’d get the hint.” Gil emerged a moment later wearing a long cloak. “Lead the way.” The three returned to the inn several minutes later, and found a grisly sight. Blood stained the floor and walls in the inn, and broken furniture was everywhere. Going back to the rooms, they found Xu tending to the remainder of Kyle’s family, who were all unconscious. Togusa remained on guard just outside the door. “The innkeeper fled when the attack started,” Togusa said. “I tried to get your family to leave with me, but I could not wake them.” “Poison,” Xu said, pointing at the remains of the family’s dinner dishes. “They will sleep for several more hours, but will be fine. The children will sleep longer. I assume that Togusa was able to resist the poison’s effects.” “Who’s missing, Kyle?” Lanara asked. Kyle scanned the room. “Connor, Anjele, and Sariah,” he said, grimacing. “The three youngest.” He looked at everyone. “Everyone should get some rest. I’m going to use a scrying to make sure the kids are all right, then I’ll need to sleep so we can get the kids back.” Kyle looked at Xu. “When they wake up, come get me. I’ll need to tell them what happened.” [/QUOTE]
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