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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Lazybones" data-source="post: 3270133" data-attributes="member: 143">It will be explained in more detail in the next post after this one, but the short answer: he drank a potion. * * * * * Chapter 79PREPARATIONFortune’s Folly sat low in the water just off a long, sagging quay on the far northern end of Camar’s docks.  The squall that had hovered over the city over the last two days had blown away with the coming of the morning, leaving the harbor becalmed, and the entire city unnaturally quiet.  It was Seventhday, which was typically a day of rest for most of the city’s residents, but it was also the day before a big holiday in the city, the annual commemoration of the city’s founding some thousand-odd years before.  In the hold of the merchant ship, some thirty men and women were crowded together.  All of the portholes and hatches had been sealed and covered, and the air was thick and warm.  The only light shone from the sword of Talen Karedes, who spoke from the center of a ring of attentive bodies.  “The day has come at last.  Tonight, we put into fruition the dream of Marshal Velan Tiros, and other greats like him, who dared to stand up to tyranny.  The marshal is with us no longer, but his spirit still guides us as we move forward to free Camar from the iron grasp of its corrupt masters.”“You have all sacrificed to make this day possible.  Unfortunately, we have had to keep most of you in the dark as to our plans; this was for your safety, but also for the absolute need to keep the security of the operation intact.  You all know how talented the Duke’s questioners are at their craft.”“Now, the time for obfuscation is at an end.  From this point out, we go forward together, as brothers and sisters, to live or die as we succeed or fail at our mission.”“About time,” Dar muttered. “The palace, as you know, is heavily guarded.  In addition to the Duke’s personal cadre of elite guardsmen, the entire place is warded against magic.  The Duke has an almost pathological fear of spellcasters, and has forbidden by degree any spellcasting in his presence.”“You’re saying there’s an anti-magic shell over the entire palace?” Allera asked. “No.  That would be beyond the power of even the Archmages of the Guild of Sorcery to construct.  But the wards have been constructed so that the Duke will instantly be alerted if any magic items or active spells are brought within the palace walls.  We have tested this, and have confirmed that it works.”“I bet it sucked to be the testers,” Dar commented to the man beside him.  “But the Duke’s paranoia may work to our advantage,” Talen said.  “It is extremely unlikely that he will have magi or clerics as part of his defenses.”“That just leaves five hundred elite troops,” Dar said.  “You are right, Dar,” Talen replied.  “But the majority of them are barracked in the outer wards.  There are less than a hundred men assigned to the inner palace itself.  But just to be safe, we’ve organized a little distraction.  Allera?”“We’ve organized a protest that will develop out of the festivities in the Great Square, in front of the cathedral,” Allera said.  “Jaros has gathered a small army of young people who will help spread the word; we have a thousand pamphlets prepared, and a banner.”“I have composed a chant that is both catchy and incredibly unflattering of our Exalted Leader,” the bard said.  “The crowd will eat it up, I assure you.”“You’re going to throw children up against the Duke’s soldiers?  I’m impressed, Talen, I didn’t know you had it in you.”“We are not sending these people in to fight,” Allera said, her voice tightly controlled. “No, you’re just going to stir up the crowd, and bolt when things get ugly,” Dar said.  “Either way, innocent people are going to die.”“Many innocent people have let out their last breath in that square, hanging on the Wall of Regret,” one of the warriors said, a grizzled mountain scout named Baraka Suhn. “We aren’t dicing for coppers here, mercenary.”  Talen lifted his open hands to calm them.  “We aren’t looking for a bloodbath, but we cannot have a chance of success unless the Duke’s soldiers have their attentions elsewhere.”“Now, once night falls, the strike team will make its way into the palace.  We’ve arranged for fourteen men to pose as teamsters, bringing in an extra-large load of foodstuffs for the Founder’s Day festivities.  Alucinor’s bombs of alchemical sleep gas should take care of the kitchen staff and the guards.”“You will have to be careful,” the alchemist said.  “The poison works quickly, but you have to get a good whiff of it for it to take effect.  If you hold your breath, you can run through a cloud of the stuff, although it will settle quickly once the bomb bursts... ten seconds at most.”“Alucinor has also prepared a coating for our blades and arrows that should incapacitate any foes that the bombs miss.  Be careful with it; one careless scratch, and you’ll end up knocking yourself out.  Once we’re in the palace, we’ll switch into guard uniforms,” Talen said.  “Then we’ll make our way directly to the Duke’s chambers.”“What if he’s not there?” Dar asked.  “Say he takes a walk, or decides to go grab a whore or something.  I mean, it’s Founder’s Eve and all.  That’s what I’d be doing, if I wasn’t overthrowing the government.”A few of the young men laughed.  “He is meeting with his inner circle of noble lords that night,” Talen said.  “He will be there.”“What about the magic ward, captain?” a tall woman archer named Pella Dorin asked.  “How do we get our weapons past it?”  She tapped a quiver dangling from her hip, which bristled with arrows with different colored fletching. “You don’t,” Talen said.  “We’ll be using mundane gear only for this mission.  You can store your magical weapons here until the mission is complete.  Don’t worry, Pella, I’ve asked Alucinor to prepare you some ‘special’ arrows that won’t radiate magic at all, but which will pack a little extra punch regardless.”“I call them ‘boomshots’,” the aged alchemist said, chortling.“Woah, woah, woah,” Dar said.  “I’m not leaving my sword here.  Don’t you think that our weapons might come in handy in there?”“There is nothing to be done for it.  If we try to smuggle in so much as a healing potion, then we’ll never get past the outer wall.”“Oh, this just gets better and better,” Dar said.  “Are there any more questions?  All right, people.  Check your gear, then check it again.  Talk to Anders what you’re bringing.  We’ve got hiding places built into the wagons we’ll be using, but we don’t have any space for extra stuff.  Alucinor will brief you on the gas bombs and his other surprises.  Other than that, grab a quiet spot and try to get some rest.  We set out at sunset.”     As the revolutionaries went about their preparations, Dar sought out Allera.  “So,” he said.  “This is it, I suppose.”“I have to get going,” Allera said.  “Jaros and I have a lot of preparation of our own to do before nightfall.”“Wait.  I wanted to give you this.  It’s magic, I guess, so I won’t get to bring it with me, and I’ll be damned if I’m going to leave it here for some sailor to steal.”  He took a large gemstone, several inches across, out of his pocket and handed it to her.  It was the glowing green stone he’d found in the temple of Orcus in Rappan Athuk, taken off a slain cult priest.  “What is it?” she said.  “I have no idea.  But it matches your eyes.”She looked up at him, uncertain for a moment.  “You are the most exasperating man I have ever met.  First you basically make me a whore, and now you’re offering me jewelry?”“You’re not a whore, Allera,” Dar said.  “Well, if this is your idea of ‘dating’, then you’ve got something fundamentally wrong inside your brain.”“I don’t suppose I can argue with that.”She shook her head.  “Try not to get killed,” she said finally. “Oh, I fully intend to collect my payment,” he said with a grin.  She flushed, and with an angry expression started to turn away.  “Be careful,” he said after her. She looked at him again, nodded, and joined the bard, darting up the forward hatch and out before he could say anything else.</blockquote>

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