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Message: <blockquote data-quote="spyscribe" data-source="post: 953110" data-attributes="member: 5808">Part the Very EighthIn which: wagons careen, pedestrians scatter, Anvil demands, and someone gets their legs broken. All this, plus a new PC!(as recorded by Fajitas)    The man on the horse is named Cyrus Pentaskae.  Cyrus is a holy warrior of Kettenek, one of the Guardians of the Barrier, a sect that reveres Kettenek as the Lord of the Dead.  The Guardians are fierce hunters of the undead who seek to ensure that those who pass into the earth stay there.  Cyrus is always quite zealous in ensuring this.    Cyrus has worked with Anvil in the past, prosecuting those who practice Necromancy within Dar Pykos.  So when a sticky legal question arose for Cyrus (a technical distinction between “Breaking and Entering” and “Reasonable Suspicion of Unholy Activities”), he decided to ask Anvil about it.  But when he asked at the Temple of Justice, he discovered that Anvil was off somewhere working.  Cyrus was unwilling to wait.    So now Cyrus is on his horse, searching for Anvil and look!  There he is, at the end of the block, with a tall man and an elf.  Except Anvil is, for some reason, looking down a side street.  And now he is staring in utter disbelief.  And now he shouts something that sounds like, “Hey!”  And now he takes off down the side street, running full tilt, waving and pointing and shouting, the elf and the tall man right along side him.    “Hmmm,” says the man on the horse, and he trots to catch up.*************    Hemlek’s wagon hurtles down the street.  Hemlek drives, while in the back are two guards flanking Kashan, along with several trunks and a large barrel.  Anvil, Thatch, and Reyu stare in stunned silence for a moment.  Finally, with uncharacteristic brevity, Anvil shouts “Hey!” and he takes off after the wagon.  Thatch and Reyu are right with him.The wagon is much faster than they are, and careens around a corner before they can overtake it.  With little choice, they pound down the street in pursuit.    Suddenly, there is the sound of hoofbeats behind them.  “Anvil!  Need a hand?” a voice asks.  Anvil risks a quick glance over his shoulder.  He is surprised to see Cyrus, but not about to complain.  “Yes!” Anvil pants.  “Stop that wagon!  Kettenek’s Justice deman--"    “Right,” Cyrus responds, and gallops past them and around the corner.    Anvil, Thatch, and Reyu reach the corner and turn.  They find themselves in a wide avenue, one that leads directly to the East Marketplace.  And the avenue is full of wagons laden with goods, moving at a leisurely pace in both directions.    “Um,” Thatch says.  “Which one is—"    “That one!” Reyu says, and points.  Sure enough, one wagon is racing down the road, weaving in and out of the other wagons.  They take off in pursuit.    Fortunately, traffic on the avenue slows the wagon down.  Running for all they’re worth, our heroes are able to gain on the wagon.  Cyrus is already galloping next to it.  “Stop this wagon!  Pull over!” he shouts, but Hemlek, at the reins, shows no sign of slowing.  Instead, he jerks the wagon to the side, trying to force Cyrus into oncoming traffic.  Cyrus manages to avoid the wagons coming at him, but loses ground in his pursuit.  Thatch, racing along behind, reaches out to try to grab the back of the wagon and jump on, but Hemlek’s weaving makes it difficult to get a grip and dangerous to get too close.  Thatch grits his teeth and runs harder.    “Hurry!” Anvil pants.  “He’s almost reached the Marketplace…”**********    It is a glorious day in the East Marketplace, thinks Neville the Watchman.  The sun is shining, the produce smells fresh.  Yep.  This is the assignment.  He takes a bite of his fresh sausage in a bun, and chews happily as he takes in the sights around him.  Funny, that wagon there, he thinks, as he glances down the street.  Seems to be going awfully fast.  Maybe I should have a word with the driver.  Might not be safe, driving like… good gods, he’s going quite fast, isn’t he?  And weaving a lot.  Could he be drunk?  Well, as long as he slows down before he hits the Marketpl… hang on.  He’s not slowing down at all.  In fact, he—    Neville drops his sausage in a bun and dives out of the way as the wagon comes hurtling at him.  Somewhere in the Marketplace, someone screams.  Heads turn, and people dive left and right, trying to get out of the way as the chase barrels its way into the Marketplace.    Neville looks up from the ground, just in time to see a Justicar running past him, in pursuit of the wagon.  He hears “…stop, I say!  Kettenek’s Just…” as the Justicar charges by.      Right, thinks Neville, and joins in the pursuit.***********    The wagon skids as Hemlek turns into the market. Thatch and Reyu take advantage of the skid to close in on it.  Thatch leaps for the side, getting a grip on it, but one of the guards in the wagon knocks him off before he can get over the edge.  Thatch rolls out of the way of the wheels as the wagon thunders past.    Reyu aims for the horses instead.  She grabs for the reins just as Hemlek gets the wagon back under control.  He jerks the wagon to the side, slamming it into Reyu.  She falls to the ground hard, and there is a sickening crack as the wagon crushes both her legs.  Reyu screams.    Hemlek spurs the horses on, heading for the East Gate.  But suddenly, Cyrus gallops in from out of nowhere.  He grabs at the harness on Hemlek’s horses and jerks it back as hard as he can.  With a whinny, the horses rear up and come to a dead stop.  But the wagon, already moving fast, jackknifes completely out of control. WHAM!  It slams into a vendor’s cart, spilling fruit everywhere. Cyrus is thrown from his horse, but safely rolls with the fall.  People scatter in a frenzy as the wagon and the wreckage slam into another cart!  Someone on the wagon screams, and it might just be Captain Hemlek himself.    Finally, the wreckage comes to a halt.  There is a moment of complete silence, during which everyone breathes loudly, just to make sure they’re still alive.  And then the silence is broken by a loud voice.  “In Kettenek’s name, I demand that you surrender yourself!”  It is Anvil, now flanked by six Watchmen from the Marketplace.  None of them look happy.    Hemlek, panicked, motions to his guards, who jump down off the wagon to defend them. But the guards are easily subdued by the Watchmen.  Anvil and the Watchmen surround the wagon.  “You will now surrender yourself to the proper authority of Dar Pykos,” Anvil informs Hemlek.      Hemlek glances around like a caged animal.  “My family name will not be dishonored in this manner,” he practically shrieks, and lightning fast, he whips a knife to his own throat.  “Permit us to leave, or I will end my family line with honor.”    Anvil’s brow furrows.  He is about to shrug and say, “Sure, go ahead” when Thatch taps him on the shoulder and points to Kashan.  The six-month pregnant woman also holds a knife to her throat.    Anvil studies her closely.  There is resolve on her face, clearly, but also… fear?  She looks like this is something she’s willing to do, but really really doesn’t want to.    “Um. Um. Um. Okay.  Look.  We can work this out or something, right?  Um. You don’t have to…” Thatch is saying, trying to calm the situation down.    But Anvil merely looks Hemlek right in the eyes and speaks a single word.  “Surrender,” he says, and his eyes flash.    And Hemlek drops his knife and puts his hands up in the air.     No one seems more surprised than Hemlek at his actions, and as he looks at his raised hands in shock and horror, the Watchmen leap forward and grab him.      “Um.” Thatch says.  “How did you…?”    “Kettenek sees fit to bless me with a spell of Command that I might better see his Justice done,” Anvil replies, and turns his attention to Kashan.  There are tears in her eyes, but she still holds the knife to her throat.      “I… I will do it,” she says, but not very convincingly.  “I will defend my family honor.”    “Come,” Anvil says.  “You do not wish to do this.”    “I do not,” Kashan says, “but I will.  Do not dishonor my father, and I will surrender to you.”    Anvil sighs.  “Kettenek’s Justice demands consequences for your father’s actions.  However, assuming that no further wrongdoings by him are uncovered, your father need not be imprisoned.  Justice will be satisfied if your father forfeits all his property remaining in Dar Pykos and vows never to enter our city again.  Is that acceptable?”    With a look at her father, Kashan nods and drops her knife.    Order is slowly restored to the Marketplace.  Reyu seems to be injured worse than anyone, but with a mystical chant (through her gritted teeth) she heals herself.  No one else is hurt, though many people are frightened and angry.  Anvil and the Watchmen help restore calm.    Thus, it is Thatch who notices the bumping sound coming from the barrel in the back of the wagon.  *bump, bump*  He listens more carefully.  *bump*  Slowly, he draws his greatsword and, using the tip as a lever, he pries the lid off the barrel.  He looks into it.    A very frightened young man looks up at him from inside, tightly bound and gagged.    “Um,” Thatch says.  “I guess you must be Amos.”To be continued…</blockquote>

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