Luskan - - -
--Knight Commander
I would have to try to be more careful. I was ashamed that I had hurt Casavir in my frenzy to attack the necromancer. Probably the only necromancer I'd met who had not tried to kill me. And I had triggered Bishop into attacking as well. Only when I finally really saw it was Casavir blocking me, and dimly heard Karnwyr howling to stop Bishop, did I notice we were the only ones fighting.
And when I found out that our host was our hostess, that showed how fast I had leapt over that cliff. Grobnar was probably right, that she was a Harper agent, or ally. Even though they had a bad odor these days, and seemed to have splintered into several subgroups, the Harper name still had resonance with most of us common people. Whether she was or not, it remained that she was not the one I sought, and had been only helpful, and tolerant of my error.
Waiting impatiently for a time, I barely refrained from pacing, and only kept twiddling and playing with my fingers as she arranged for a raiding marque. As annoying as Neverwinter politics was, it was far less lethal and strange than Luskan's seemed.
We would need to travel swiftly to his... estate. I could hope that he was there and I could finish with this, and be free. But the existence of a new 'lab' pointed to either new victims, or advancing plans of some kind. While his revenge on me was cruel enough, it had a level of pettiness that gave me hope that he wasn't going to be the same mass threat his master had been. But petty or not, his magic was at least comparable to Sand's, and I did not want to underestimate that.
But this time I would not be weakened and alone. And together we had defeated someone with nearly god-like power. I would take him down, or die trying.
I realized I was grinding mt teeth, and forced myself to loosen my jaw. When the Luskan writ arrived, I thanked our host, and we left.
Once away from the mansion, we embraced and I kept apologizing, until Cas just kissed me. We held onto each other, more and more tightly, until I heard some bones creak. They might have been mine, but I didn't care. We did pull apart, though after a moment, to get back... to something.
Looking around, I saw that we still had several hours left of light, now that the days were lengthening. "We should replenish our supplies, and leave again," I said carefully, into the smiles and smirks of the others.
It didn't take long to find some merchants to restock our rations, I stopped by a baker for some bread, iced fruit buns, and meatpies for tonight as a treat. We still had days of travel to get to our next destination.
We got stopped by some guards shortly out of Luskan, and Casavir blandly pulled out the writ as Bishop smirked. The guards were spoiling for a fight, but so were we. And we had the writ. The guards, even if they had won, would have lost. So they very grudgingly expressed regrets, and waved us on.
His mansion looked so... normal. It had a set of imposing walls and guard squads, that seemed to required here. We retreated a bit, to make our plan of attack. I was wishing we could have waited for Elanee or Khelgar. But the six of us should be enough.
Sand did some spell, and the great wall gate ceased to exist. And some guards began to boil out from further in the grounds, as well as some odd dog-like creatures. I gave myself to the intuition of combat, as I could see my friends and lovers doing the same...
x x x
--Casavir
I started my blessing, even as Sand chanted his spell on the door. Elondra had been fairly quiet since we met the necromancer, aside from her repeated apologies for hitting me. Bishop also muttered an apology, but also added later that Karnwyr had finally confused him into stopping by telling him to leave the death-bitch alone.
A pair of guards were attacking me, and putting other concerns aside seemed to be a good idea.
x x x
--Bishop
I took a breather after the first wave, and switched to bow. We had taken shelter in a small clump of trees partway to the main building. Bandages were being applied, though priority for healing was for Karnwyr as he was hardest to bandage.
Sand was scrying the estate grounds, giving us intelligence on enemy movement. He said the next patrol should arrive in about five minutes.
We were planning to clear the grounds before starting the mansion. Karnwyr was still sometimes laughing at me for my attacking the necro.
I had only taken a few minor hits, and everyone else seemed fine also. I know Casavir was worried about us, but I was feeling fine, just pleased to shed some blood. Elondra was also staying closer to the casters and Neeshka, protecting them, while we took point. The casters had been switching off magic with crossbows, to conserve for later.
I just realized again that Casavir was the only one of us without a bow of some kind. Maybe we should talk to him about that... later. He might be more amenable to my suggestion now, when he hadn't been to my snide comments before.
M'Lady was bringing her scrolls and charged magic out for quicker access. She tended to bring out those when magic was running low and wounds running high.
Sand murmured, "Any minute now..."
And the second wave was in range. I waited for the ones further away to also be in range for everyone. The better archers were to target the further targets, to reduce any alarm.
Elondra whispered, "Now!"
And the twang of bows floated towards the Luskans, following along with the arrows and bolts...
x x x
--Casavir
I felt a little useless as the rest of the party loosed their flurry of shots. This group was a bit smaller than the first, so they never managed to close to melee distance. We circled around the mansion, disposing of the last group patrolling the grounds, along with two more groups of the odd dogs. Karnwyr kept spitting out after biting them.
Elondra was still doing well, neither she nor Bishop had lost their balance in combat. Though Bishop and Karnwyr were now sometimes snarling in unison now. I caught M'Lady's eye when it happened once, and her grey eyes were glinting in merriment. We shared a smile, before returning to our respective opponents.
We took another breather to bandage and heal, when Sand said, "Another group leaving the house, and showing signs of alarm. We should hurry."
x x x
--Knight Commander
It had been a while since we had fought this long. But it felt good to be finally taking action against my foes. I noticed both of the guys keeping a closer eye on me at first. Casavir actually twitched when I first was in close melee, but his own opponent put an end to that distraction. Next time he looked, I had dead bodies by me and was obviously fine. He relaxed after that and was more focused on his own combat. Bishop was a bit more sneaky about watching, and after a salute in my direction after I took my first opponent down, left it alone.
Grobnar was humming a funny counterpoint to a spell Sand was casting when one of our foes appeared beside Neeshka, and struck a nasty blow. She fell immediately with a sigh, and Grobnar screamed a spell.
I invoked the Illefarn healing blessing, which would help everyone, as I moved over to occupy her attacker. I had to keep him busy, so Grobnar could do some healing. Sand invoked a summoning scroll to add to our forces.
This guy was nimble enough, but was also stupid enough to stay close to me in melee. He didn't last long.
By the time I was done, the guys were just finishing up with their playmates, though I doubted they'd appreciate that phrasing. Neeshka was sitting up, testing her healing, and Sand had an abstracted look. He was probably checking on the overhead view again.
Casavir helped her to Neeshka feet, while Bishop was watching for more trouble.
I hissed, "We should move closer to the house, where there is more cover, for a few..."
x x x
--Casavir
We made it under some decorative shrubbery close to the mansion itself, and I thought we should take a longer break this time.
When I heard Neeshka's cry, I panicked, and caught Bishop's eye for an instant even as I spun around. We saw Elondra moving in to defend, so she was fine. I know I was hit a couple times in my distraction, but didn't care. This was harder than before when it was just a torch I was carrying.
When we were done, I noticed that Bishop had also gotten an injury, so he must have been watching her too.
"Time to break out the healing potions," I suggested. "Everyone should be in good shape before we go in."
Sand reminded us, yet again, "Be careful of any records or paper. We must find information on his lab or labs..."
"Yes, yes..." chanted Neeshka and Elondra in synch, with their eyes rolling.
"We know how important it is, Sand. Don't fret," M'Lady finished.
x x x
--Bishop
The fighting when we got inside increased its pace, but the groups were smaller. At least, Karnwyr had stopped complaining about the bad taste of the not-dogs. We had cleared the ground floor, and were trying to decide if we could afford to rest and let the others regain spells.
I still had many of mine. I still wasn't used to having them at all, and had most of mine reserved for healing. Not counting the one I now always kept for poisons. I could feel myself smirking at that.
We holed up in some dusty servants' quarters to rest and regain some spells. Neeshka set some snares close to the entrance, and she shared the very short watches with Elondra and I, as Casavir had drained almost all his spells. He was reluctant, but it was fun watching Sand and M'Lady double teaming him.
After a brief debate as to if we were going to go up or down next, we left the room we had rested in. Immediately, we found another set of guards. But we were freshly rested, and they didn't last long.
I was hoping they would continue to fail to surrender. I saw some major head-butting in our future if... no, when, that happens.
We did a quick tour of the areas we had already cleared, and they were still clear, so we proceeded up the rear servant's stairs. This floor seemed to be mostly bedrooms, and more of those dog-things. Karnwyr was already complaining about the taste, and I heard both M'Lady and Casavir laugh...
These critters, though, melted away after we killed them. Sand announced, "These are extra-planar. Not a surprise."
"He doesn't seem to have been big on real servants. So, he's a cheap bastard too..." Neeshka commented as she wiped some dust off the furniture.
"Or, he has too many secrets, even for here," Elondra added.
x x x
--Knight Commander
It was an odd pleasure to be invading and looting his home, even if he wasn't here. So far we hadn't found any rooms that had been used recently, many even had sheets over the furniture.
At the center of the floor above ground level, we found a lab with more sheets over the tables and benches. For an instant I thought we had found our goal, but then I noticed the demons fading out of the corners.
Casavir cast something to protect us, and the battle was on.
As their corpses faded away, back to wherever they came from, we took stock. Grobnar locked the door, as Sand and Neeshka started splitting up the room for searching. I volunteered to help, but she gestured to the lab bench where items were starting to accumulate.
Grobnar was drinking from one of his vocal tonics, before spitting it down a sink with an usual, for him, grimace.
I asked him if there was something wrong with it.
"No, Lady Commander. I made a bad batch. I must have been distracted when I made this, and added olive oil instead of honey as a flavoring."
"Can it harm you that way?" I was worried.
"No, no. I can still use it. It just tastes awful!" Grobnar was so upset.
"Maybe you could just add something that goes with the olive oil, like garlic..."
Though the idea of him happily singing away with garlic breath all the time, was not a thought that appealed. But he had been so sad...
"Oh, thank you, Lady Elondra! That should help immensely! Maybe tarragon or pepper..." he wandered off towards Sand, probably to cadge some spices, since we didn't let him cook anymore.
I hoped he doesn't tell anyone about my idea... but, who was I kidding?
x x x
--Bishop
I rested with Karnwyr for a bit while the room was being stripped of all papers, notebooks, and magic. An excited Grobnar interrupted Sand, but then gained a small packet from his magic bag before Sand went back to his task.
Casavir also waited in a crouch while most of the party was scavenging. Elondra had a look of dread on her face that was alarming, but when we started to react, she waved us back. We could ask later.
She returned to her perusal of items on the bench.
After we finished with that room, we moved on. One of the last doors on this floor had been remade into a cell, unsettling in its familiarity. I looked at M'Lady, and she had gone pale, and swayed on her feet before straightening up.
Grobnar began to sing softly, something soothing. Elondra winced, and took two big steps back. Sand and Neeshka silently began a quick search of the room.
I had stepped back to hold her while we waited, and Casavir joined us as well.
But I was noticing something was odd in the room, and I heard Karnwyr laughing in my head. M'Lady was shaking, and I know I was worried, until I saw her eyes and saw it was... laughter. She pointed at her nose, and took a deep "sniff."
I took a deep breath, even as I heard Casavir doing likewise. Karnwyr was laughing again. The cell smelled of... garlic and olive oil?
My puzzlement must still be showing, so Elondra pulled both of us close for a kiss and whispered, "Grobnar mis-flavored his tonic, and added the garlic to make it palatable." In a breathless voice, she finished, "And I'm afraid I suggested the garlic, so please don't..."
Casavir interrupted this with a bark of laughter, to join what I was hearing from Karnwyr.
By this time, even Sand and then Neeshka were beginning to react, though Sand almost immediately began to glare at the happy bard. M'Lady got the bard's attention, and thanked him for his effort, but said he should save his magic for combats.
Then we reached the last room. And when we looked in, she grabbed a hand from each of us.
It looked like a luxurious bedroom, but then I spotted a large pair of full-length portraits on the far wall. One was of a middle aged woman in robes with a sour look on her face. The other was of a middle aged man, in a graying goatee and robes, with a smug look on his face.
Elondra whispered, barely audibly, "That's him."
Sand replied in a soft voice, "Well then, lets separate him from more of his resources..."
M'Lady excused herself, and went back around the corner into the hall, and we went along with her. She slid down the wall, until she was crouching by the door and staring at the far wall. She didn't even react when I waved my hand in front of her eyes. I know Casavir was concerned, too. I slid to one knee beside her, put one arm around her shoulders. Casavir raised his brow, and mirrored me.
I put an edge in my voice and drawled, "I dunno, paladin, that wall doesn't look like much of a threat to that city of lily-livered nobility. Does your vaunted holy sight tell you it has evil intent?"
He paused a moment, before replying, "Nay, ranger. I believe it is just a wall."
Elondra blinked, sighed, and leaned back, putting an arm around each of us. After a few minutes, she gathered herself, and stood again. Then she peeked through the door to check on the others, who must have been fine.
But it wasn't that long until the others came back out.
Neeshka was glowing with satisfaction, and said, "We found some goodies and clues, but you might want to take a moment to contribute to the joy."
She pulled out several daggers, and presented them to M'Lady over her arm, as if they were bottles of wine.
Elondra peeked in the room again, laughed, and accepted the daggers. We peeked around into the room again, and saw that someone had inked concentric circles on his face, and a good bit lower. There was already a couple of daggers in his shoulder and throat. M'Lady left a neat grouping of daggers in the lower target, with the last in the eye, and then swept out of the room.
I wanted both to wince and to kiss her.
