Following the mighty battle:
A heavy weight was felt upon the shoulders of Salvius and Luciano as they watched their comrades fall before the mighty warrior Xerxes. The money they'd bet would be difficult to recoup. Below, healers carried the two warriors off the field.
OOC: Carth and Trunky, play from there.
It was many hours later that Cedric awoke, torchlight illuminating the cool room he was laying in. There was no feeling of armor on him, and the shuffling of nearby feet could be heard by his ears. Against his back he could feel a pallet as his eyes adjusted to the light.
OOC: Cor you can go from here. Asrana you are on hold for a sec.
Meanwhile, snoring away the day, the barbarian Bran had little awareness of what was occuring...
OOC: Tatsu, last chance. You can get your character sheet into me or be attacked by level draining lich. o_o
Dracos
Salvius looks at the troll with mingled disgust and annoyance. "Rediculous! That's the last time I ever set out to help a halfling," he grunts to his companion. "Well, we'd better go check up on the losers," he continues, looking around for a guard.
Cedric sat up, and looked around the room, trying to find his armor and weapons, or notice whether there were other people visible to him.
OOC: How healed am I supposed to be by now?
To Salvius:
The crowds are quickly departing the arena after the fight. Salvius looks, but from his spot he cannot see a guard in the mess.
Dracos
To Cedric:
Cedric's body felt sore all over as he rose to a sitting position, looking around. He could spot the unconscious Altania sitting on another pallet next to him. Standing beside him was a white robed man, with a short brown beard, bright green eyes, and a slightly tanned cast to his skin. On his robe was visibly the symbol of Mars. "Ah, I see you have awoken."
Glancing down, Cedric could spot his armor, bundled up on the floor beside his pallet.
Dracos
Salvius starts bustling out after the crowd, looking for an arena official, or at least someone who looks in authority.
Bran yawned and stretched, sitting up in his bed. He felt... stiff - like he had been sleeping for over a day. Strange, that... he felt hungry too.
Brans shambled out of bed, got on his armor, gathered his possessions, then went down to the common room for breakfast and to see if anyone else is up.
Heading downstairs, he found the place rather loud and lively, a dozen and a half or so folk gathered around a couple tables and the bar. The innkeeper, who'd he seen yesterday was busily keeping tabs on the couple of serving wenches the inn employed.
Dracos
Luciano frowned as he watched his comrades fall in battle. He clenched his fist, if only he were involved in the fight as well...
As he began following Salvius, his thoughts were that he had to fight to replace his gold...
Luciano gave a small grim smile as his day suddenly got brighter.
"Yes," Cedric answered, pressing an arm against his throbbing forehead. "Are you the one who treated me?"
"Indeed, young warrior. I am the priest Kelvor, follower of great father of War, protector of Rome, Mars. You took quite a beating from Xerxes out there, but you and your companion will come out of it well enough."
Turning, Kelvor glanced over at the slowly stirring Althania. "And it seems your companion is also about to return to the land of the living."
Dracos
"Thank you for your help, priest Kevlor," Cedric said, reaching down for his armor and beginning to put it back on.
Altania hissed as she sat up, wincing at the headache throbbing in her skull.
"Wha?" she asked noone in particular, looking around herself. As realization dawned, a dark expression settled on her face.
"We lost," she muttered darkly.
Cedric nodded his head slowly. "I feel this is Sonic's way of telling me there are worthier causes than freeing the halfling." Frowning, he mused out loud, "Perhaps he-who-shall-not-be-named has offended the Great Porcupine One somehow...?"
Kelvor nodded, "Yes, you lost, and now that the two of you are well, my job here is finished. Unless there are any further pains?"
Dracos
"There are, within my pride. I don't suppose you have anything for that?" Cedric asked, exchanging a glance with Altania.
Bran eyes the wenches in question for a moment, then orders and eats a hearty breakfast before looking around for the guys he fought with yesterday.
Kelvor smirked slightly, "Nothing for that I'm afraid."
Dracos
Snorting, Cedric continued putting on his armor and armaments.
Altania sighed, standing up in silence. Not returning Cedric's glance, she began dressing in her armor and gear as well.
To Luciano and Salvius:
Traveling down towards one of the arena exits, you see two guards standing alongside the exit, busy herding people out.
Dracos
The wench he orders it from looks at him strangely, "It's dinner time. We got beef and soup and ale. It'll be three gp for the food."
Dracos
"My apologies for not doing better in that battle," Cedric said, having finally finished donning his armor and collecting his weapons. "Here, allow me to at least help you recover somewhat." Putting his right arm on Altania's shoulder, he concentrated on his gift, willing his companion to heal.
Altania almost flinched from the touch, her eyes a little uneasy as she let herself be healed.
"Thank you...but it wasn't your fault. Xerxes was too powerful for us by ourselves," she sighed, continuing to don her gear.
"At least not all is lost," Cedric commented, feeling his power activating and doing his bidding. "If my memory serves me right, we should be getting paid for facing that monster in combat. Would you like to visit Mr. Romansk's stable now, or leave that off for later, when you are feeling better, Miss Altania?"
Altania nodded, her posture stiffening again. "Alright...may as well get it over with."
Sighing, she tied the last knot in her gear, and stood up, holding her gauntleted hand with her right. "I'm ready."
Bran scowls. Expensive food... but he had the money and was hungry. They better be large portions.
He eats his breakfast... err... dinner?... and leaves.
Now, to find something... maybe go to the arena and see what's going on there. It's evening - maybe some kind of entertainment?
Cedric nodded back at her, and the two walked outside, headed towards Romansk's stable.
Bran stepped outside the inn, the sky filled with stars up above as he stood starstruck in the middle of the road, pondering where to go.
Dracos
OOC: Either choose a destination or a direction. Or I'll randomly decide for you.
To Cedric and Altania:
Heading out through the corridors, they found their way shortly thereafter into the streets of Rome. It was clearly quite late out now, the constellations high in the sky above them. As they walked out, a familiar figure hailed them, waving an arm and walking towards them. Cedric's eyes recognized the fellow as the servant who'd answered the door at Romansk's stables.
"Greetings, gladiators. I've come to deliver your pay and a message. Romansk would like you to return to his office tomorrow in the morning." The man lifted a moderately sized cloth bag, jingling with coins.
Dracos
Bran heads towards the ARENA (!!!)
"Thank you," Cedric said, reaching for one of the bags. "Please tell Mister Romansk that I'll be there."
Altania nodded, reaching for the other. "As will I," she agreed softly, murmuring to herself incoherently for a second.
OOC: Read what I type next time, please ^_^
IC:
The servant nodded, "Well then, I'm off." Turning, he started off towards Romansk's place.
Dracos
"We might as well get back, too," Cedric said, putting away his money bag and turning towards Altania. "Our friends know where to find us, after all."
Bran stalked off towards the arena, arriving to see crowds leaving it.
Dracos
Altania nodded a tad stiffly.
As she and Cedric headed back towards the inn, Altania looked up at the sky, her childhood rising unbidden in her mind.
No...can't wander now. Let down everyone, you have to survive now, more gold, more fighting. Or...can I...I could, but that wouldn't be good. Maybe this'll work out. Just maybe.
Arriving back at the inn, Cedric and Altania found their way easily to their rooms, resting and recovering for the next day.
Dracos
Brans looks for some kind of postings or official or something to tell him what just happened.
Bran can see no officials, but notices the doors of the Arena swinging closed.
Dracos
Pushing his way to the guards, Salvius calls out, "Hey, where did the human gladiators go? They're friends of mine."
A guard glanced at Salvius and remarked, "They were taken to the healers. They might still be there, but then, they might have already been released to go back to their homes."
Dracos
"Right." Figuring that it's not worth the effort of finding the healers, Salvius is about to go the inn when he realises the late hour, and instead goes back to the Temple of Mars for some shut-eye (and utter devotion, of course.)
Bran frowns, then shrugs. It's been a wierd day - he might as well go back to the inn.
Deciding that going to the temple of Mars wouldn't do much good for his disposition, Luciano separated from Salvius and started to make this way back toward the inn.
OOC: Everyone else, you arrive successfully back at the inn. Congrats, you've survived a day. Now for lightning bolts to end that ^_~.
IC:
On his way back to the inn, Bran heard the sound of flesh smacking against flesh. It came, from his left, down an alleyway, or so his ears told him.
Fearless Leader
Bran frowned. On one hand, it wasn't his business if people mugged each other. On the other, he WAS feeling restless, and a good fight would be welcome.
He moved down the alley cat-quick to see what was happening.
A large fellow lifted a merchant up against the wall, backhanding him again. Long, flamboyant red hair ran down his leather armored back. Muscles spread across his body powerfully. A smaller figure stood in the shadows behind the guy, softly commenting: "Now, Now... you wouldn't want to get Erdrick angry here. He's not very nice when he's angry."
Dracos
Bran stops and eyes the tableau for a moment, then shrugs. Looks like it'd be a good fight.
"Hey, now - what's going on?" (in a hearty and loud voice, of course)
Not having any of that "gold" to pay to stay the night, Luciano leaned against the side of the building, hoping the new day would come soon so he could fight.
"Nothing at all citizen. Please, be on your way. Do not mind our little dispute." The voice from the shadows replied.
Dracos
"Citizen? Me?" Bran snorts.
"Whatever. Leave."
The voice was cold.
Dracos
Bran pulls his lips back in a half-smile.
"Was that a threat?"
A snapping of fingers was heard as two other figures stepped out of the shadows, "It could be. Though I'd recommend you take it as a friendly suggestion."
Dracos
Bran casually banters "Four of you? An awful lot for a little merchant. I had no idea Romans were so..."
He trails off, amusement in his voice, and shakes his head mock-sadly.
OOC: As you are going into battle, we will handle this online sometime this week. After I get the time to fucking data crunch these guys -_- Damn cold.
IC:
"Prepared? Think what you will. You've had your chance." A snapping of fingers is heard and the shopkeeper is tossed to the wall. The red haired figure disappearing and the voice ending as the other two drew knives and approached.
Dracos
Following the violent events of the night... A new morning rose upon the city of Rome...
Dracos
Another day of FREEDOM! thinks Salvius as he arises. Going about his morning rituals, he ponders getting a sign to hang above his door; "Today is the First Day of the rest of your Life" would be suitable, he thinks.
After that, he leaves to have a bath.
Upon getting sparkling clean as any reputable citizen should be, Salvius gets properly dressed, and heads to the tavern where everyone else was staying.
Dammit, he knew being a Cleric of Mars was supposed to be somewhat above worldly matters, but losing 300gp *Stung*.
Cedric woke up, and went through his morning routine before gathering his things and going to get some breakfast.
Downstairs was relatively low key at this hour, a hearty breakfast being served.
Dracos
Cedric got himself a portion, and then sat at a table to eat it, while waiting for Altania to show up.
Luciano woke up and stretched, getting rid of the kinks he got from sleeping on the ground. He then wandered off to public baths, liking the new sensation of being clean. That being done, Luciano wandered back to the inn and started searching for Cedric or Altania.
Shortly, Altania rolled out of bed, her dark mood having yet to leave her. Going about her morning activities as quickly as ever, but just as silent,, despite her freedom.
Slipping on her gear, she went downstairs, grabbing breakfast and quietly joining Cedric.
Cedric finished eating his breakfast in silence, only pausing once to nod at Altania in acknowledgement as she joined him. Finally done, he turned towards her and asked, "Shall we go and see Mr. Romansk?"
Altania finished a moment later, slowly nodding in agreement. "Mm," she rplied softly, looking at the table.
I wonder if he'll even want us after that... Altania thought to herself, holding back a sigh as she stood.
Bran wakes up from his own nap - after getting back to the inn late - and, gathering his belongings, goes downstairs for a quick breakfast before heading out.
Signalling a girl to get him some food, he saunters over to the others he recalls from a couple days ago to see what they're up to.
Salvius wanders into the tavern, his face lightning up when he sees Cedric and Altania. "Friends!" he says, walking straight towards them. "I trust you are healed up nice and well?"
"Indeed," Cedric replied. "T'was nothing a good night's rest couldn't fix."
"Good, good. Do you intend to fight more today?" he continues.
"Mr. Romansk asked us to come and talk with him this morning," Cedric replies. "If luck is with us, he will offer Miss Altania and I to sign a contract with his stable. Perhaps you would like to accompany us?"
"Certainly!" booms back Salvius. "There is precious little opportunity to give real homage to Mars within the city. Perhaps an extracurricular activity is required for me, as well."
"Your presence will be welcomed, then," Cedric says with a nod. "Right, Miss Altania?"
Bran pauses, hearing the tail-end of the conversation.
"Mind if I join you?"
Altania nodded to Cedric and Salvius, her mood lifting a little with the apparent lack of hostility.
"Mm...the more people, the more likely to win..." she murmured half to herself.
Blinking at Bran, she unconsciously shifted her weight towards Cedric, waiting for someone else to reply.
"I don't see why not, Citizen," Cedric replies with a smile.
Salvius represses a snigger. "Well, regardless of who is coming, we should leave now, to see if we can get a fight today before the arena plan is finalized."
With that, he starts walking out the tavern.
Nodding in agreement, Cedric follows Salvius.
Joining the small group, Luciano promptly announces, "I would like to join you in your next fight. I need to do things that I am more, familiarized with."
He carresses his chain unconsiously...
Salvius cannot hide a look of annoyance as he glances down at the chain-wielding maniac.
"Of course. If you promise not to speak," he replies.
Altania takes a slight step away from the strange chain obsessed man, staying close behind Cedric.
The new person had been rather useful in the first battle, but he seemed a little too strange to get near.
Taking charge midway, Cedric leads everyone to Romansk's stables, as he is the only one aside from Altania who knows their location.
"I promise nothing, only that I will give it my all in battle." Luciano doesn't bother looking at the mouthy former commander. He looks at Altania and blinks. One would think being a gladiator would accustom one to being a bit, bloodthirsty. Luciano attempts to smile reassurely, realizes he doesn't know how, and continues following Cedric silently.
Bran observes the route and takes mental notes on the way back to the inn - getting lost here wouldn't be a good thing. He wonders what'll be happening today.
Arriving at Romansk's stables, they found it largely as they did the previous day. The sound of active business being heard from within.
Dracos
'No time like the present,' Cedric thinks, before walking to the door, and knocking on it.
OOC: Waiting for a reply. Up to 15 minutes, if need be. Flarny is in no hurry. ^^
About ten minutes later, the door opened, the servant peeking out, "Ah, greetings Cedric. Here to meet with Romansk as per his request, I take it? But...who are these others?"
Dracos
"When Miss Altania and I last spoke with Mister Romansk," Cedric replies, indicating his female companion with a wave of his hand, "he mentioned that it would be prudent of us to join with others to create a team. We just took his advice, as an opportunity appeared. Is that a problem?"
The servant shook his head, "As long as they are trustworthy. Please, follow me."
The servant lead into the building, leading them upstairs to the richly garnished waiting area. "Please wait here while I inform Romansk of your arrival."
Dracos
EDIT:
OOC: Everyone check in here. Waiting on you guys.
Cedric nods, and settles in to wait.
Luciano slouches against the wall to wait, idily thumbing a spike on his chain.
Bran looks around. A very rich man... what does he want? Bodyguards?
Salvius looks about the area, fairly impressed by the architecture and surroundings.
Nothing like His Temple, though..
Altania finds a somewhat more secluded spot to wait in, not wanting to disturb anyone.
After waiting a few more minutes, the door opened, Romansk, dressed in red robes and wearing an elaborate clearly foreign style of hat with a few feathers sticking out of it. Smiling he looked around the room taking in the group before turning to Cedric, "Who are these? Your contemporaries from the arena?"
Dracos
Bran grimaces slightly (remembering his humiliation at the arena) and then nods.
"Yes, Mr. Romansk," Cedric replies.
"Well then, while you lost the fight last night, you weren't completely unimpressive. I think I could probably turn a profit by funding you. So here is the offer, you and your team will work exclusively for me. You'll fight when I tell you to fight and only when I tell you to fight. I will also be taking thirty-five percent of your winnings as my fee. In exchange I will arrange arena contracts and provide you with access to my network of work partners. If this is acceptable, I'll have a contract drawn up immediately."
Dracos
"How often would you arrange for us to fight, Mr. Romansk?" Cedric asks curiously.
"It would depend on a few factors. Mostly when is it most profitable for me. Likely I can get you a fight every week or so."
Dracos
"And what would be the duration of our contract?"
"It is a year long contract with an option of mine to extend it to five years depending on how you do," Romansk responded, scratcing his chin.
Dracos
"Perhaps it would be more fair to set your fee at twenty percent of our wins, Mr. Romansk?" Cedric asks. "As things stand, your fee is twice and a half more than the amount of money any of us would get."
"Yes, but it is a fair break between your group and mine, And naturally, you will be using more resources since there are more of you to split them."
Dracos
"But Sir, this arrangement will barely take care of our lodgings and spare weapons. Surely, there must be more in it for us than that, after putting our lives on the line. Will you not reconsider lowering your fee?"
"Food, lodging, weapons and a bit of wealth, what more do you need?" Romansk responded.
Dracos
"A horse would be useful," Cedric muses. "And I've always wanted to own a house of my own. Maybe even a business on the side. Something that deals with herbs. One fifth out of eighty percent of our total wins would bring me that much closer to my goals, Mr. Romansk."
"Hmm, But there must be some value in my own work. Some incentive. Twenty five, Seventy Five."
Dracos
"That sounds reasonable, Mr. Romansk," Cedric agrees. "Shall we have the contract drafted?"
"Before that," puts in Salvius. "How much do you expect the group to earn in total per fight? An average will do."
"Eh, I can probably set you guys up for about two-thousand per fight now. Maybe more, maybe less. We'll see."
Dracos
"Hmm. That's roughly 300 each per fight.. not too shabby," muses Salvius. "By all means, sign me up."
Romansk snapped his fingers, a waiting servant stepping into the room. "Any other concerns before I have this contracted drafted?"
Dracos
"I don't believe so," Cedric says.
OOC: As no one else brought up a concern in the overlong allowed time. I assume no other concerns.
IC:
Romansk nodded, indicating to his servant to make the necessary correction and then proferring Cedric the document to sign.
Dracos
Luciano grunts slightly, then shifts his weight from the wall. Hopefully a fight would be arranged soon.
Bran stretches his arms unobtrusively as he waits.
Cedric reads through it, and finding it in order, signs it.
OOC:
He better find it in order, too. :p
OOC: :p
IC:
Romansk nodded, adding his own illustrious signature to the paper. "Now then, I will look into arranging a fight soon for you. My servant knows of your current residence, so that should not be a problem. If you have any immediate concerns or needs of equipment, contact Hans," Romansk gestured behind him. "He'll help you."
Dracos
Cedric nods, and bids the man farewell, before taking his leave.
OOC: Just going outside, to decide what to do next with the others.
Salvius nods, and exits. Turning to Cedric, he speaks; "With a bit of work and a bit of luck, we should be having a celebratory dinner tonight. I, for one, can't wait to get started."
"Indeed," Cedric agrees. "But that still leaves the question of what we do before this fight... or between fights, in the future." He sighs. "It's been so long since I had so much free time, and I find myself at a loss about what to do with it."
"Hah! If it's any comfort, many feel that way after being released," replies Salvius. "At least, from what I've heard. Perhaps you'll find your way in the arena.
If nothing else, at least you'll have some funds once you're done.
As for now.. well, with any luck, we won't need to wait long," he finishes, shrugging.
"Perhaps I should try and seek employment?" Cedric muses. "Something to do between the battles, which would occupy my free time and bring back revenue." He glances at Salvius. "I'll be sure to inform you in case a missive arrives at the inn where we're staying. Is there anyone at the Temple of Mars that we could leave a message with, to pass on to you in the case of your absence?"
Salvius shrugs. "Nobody I can think of in particular. You could write a message and leave it in my room, if need be. However, I believe I will stay with you for the time being.
As for employment.. well, you said something about a herbalist business, correct? I know a few things about herbs as well, perhaps a joint venture may be a feasible option."
"That sounds interesting," Cedric says, intrigued. "How about we visit a nearby tavern for some drinks, and ask around about a few vacancies and opportunities in the field?"
"Sounds like a plan," replies Salvius, nodding. "I can tell you that the Temple of Apollo has a hand in herbalism, so we could try there first."
Bidding the others fairwell, like to Mr. Romansk, Cedric leads Salvius to the tavern he visited after being freed.
OOC: ...which name I could tell you if we had logs.
Salvius follows Cedric to the tavern, chatting aimlessly about nothing in particular, because he's a talkative guy.
Bran frowns for a moment, then shrugs and goes back to the inn. He didn't have anything to do, so he might as well sharpen his sword, inspect his armor, and do all the other chores of a warrior's life.
Arriving at the Red Liquor, they found the door open, the bar running it's moderately busy afternoon business.
Dracos
"Greetings," Cedric says, arriving at the counter with Salvius. "A drink for me and my friend, if you will."
"Certainly, sir. Anything in particular you want to drink?"
Dracos
Luciano heads over to Hans. "Sir, I am in need of a weapon. It comes to my mind that in some situations, a long ranged weapon would come in handy. Although not as proficient in them as I would like, could you show me what you have in bows?"
Cedric orders the same drink he ordered last time he was there, having found it decent, getting the same for Salvius.
OOC: Logs can be posted into the body of a message, or several messages (one per session). -_-
The barkeep nodded, quickly providing their drinks. "Enjoy, good sirs."
Dracos
Cedric smiles in gratitude, and drinks from his glass. "Excuse me," he asks the barkeep, "but perhaps you could tell me where one might find employment in this town, if they have some skill in herbalism?"
"Herbalism, eh? Hmm, well, what were you looking to work in? There's a few herb gardens that could use a part time gardener."
Dracos
"Are there any that could use two?" throws in Salvius. "We were hoping to be working together."
"Well, let's see. I don't know any personally but... why don't you check on that big herb garden run by the Mr. Sorheyz up in the northern sector of town."
Dracos
Salvius nods, finishing off his drink. "Well, thank you kindly, sir."
Cedric finishes his drink after Salvius, and thanks the barkeep, asking, "How much?" while taking out his money pouch.
"That'll be four gold, sirs." The barkeep smiled.
Dracos
Cedric pays the man, and after putting the gold away, nods at Salvius. "Shall we go?"
"Yar," replies Salvius, heading out. "It shouldn't be too hard to find," he continues, heading north.
OOC: Cor, Rat, you are paused until the others decide what the fuck they are doing. Giving them a chance so you don't get a full day ahead of them. You'll arrive there in a couple of hours of walking.
To: Luciano
Hans nodded, "I know an excellent bow maker if you wish to purchase one. We do not keep wares here."
Dracos
"I'll have to take that offer later, don't have much gold on me at the moment."
Luciano grimmaces a bit remembering the lost bet.
OOC: Kay, Ye UNCULTURED BUMS! Where's the rest of you playing? I got cor and Rat heading off to do stuff and the rest of you sitting in his office for days.
IC:
Romansk glanced out of his office, slightly perturbed by the fact some of the new gladiators were camping in his office, "You may leave, gladiators."
Dracos
And lo, after many hours of walking, Salvius and Cedric came upon a large garden, encircled by protective fencing. A metal sign outside indicated in fancy letters that this was indeed the "Sorheyz Gardens".
EDIT: Added info:There's a metal gate and fencing around. You can see through it dozens of gardeners working the herb gardens inside. There is no bell near the gardens but the door has a handle on it. If you look around you can see a building in the back of the gardens. There are no other signs that you can see.
Dracos
Cedric looks around to take in the view, and then grabs the handle of the door, opening it. Motioning to Salvius, he heads through a path in the gardens towards a building he sees in the back.
"I'll be watching the fights," Luciano says to no one in particular, then walks out and heads toward the coliseum.
Salvius followed Cedric, checking out the state of the place as he does so.
OOC: *Drags herself out of the depths for a second*
IC:
Altania jerked her head up, returning to consciousness after nodding off. Looking around and seeing Cedric already gone, and everything else apparently in order, she shrugged, and slipped out the door.
Moving onto the streets, she decided to wander for the moment.
So long since I've had my own time...do I really like it? I guess life is better, but a failure here means more, it's not just my life anymore. Not that it was ever worth much before. Her left hand twitched slightly at the thought, pain rising with memory from a small scar on the back of her hand, continuing through to her palm.
That's still my question...is it worth living this life? I guess I have to, I'm signed to something. I have to live. Bringing her left hand up and turning it over, she looked at the small pinprick scars dotting the flesh, shivering before jerking it away, and looking around for a tavern of some kind.
The place looked relatively well maintained, the house there quite well kept. Outside the building was a bell chime near a wood door where the path ended.
Dracos
Cedric makes his way for the wooden door, and rings the bell chime.
A servant clad in relatively cheap threads stepped out, "Greetings, travelers. Is there something you are looking for at our gardens? Perhaps a tour of the property?"
Dracos
To Altania:
Heading north from his stable, Altania found her way to the Red Liquor. The door obviously open for business.
Dracos
"Greetings," Cedric replies. "We were hoping to inquire about employment. My friend and I have some experience with treating herbs, and heard that this was a good place to ask."
"What type of employment? Part time or full time? And have you worked in a herb garden previous to this? What kind of experience do you have with the tending of herbs?"
Dracos
"Part time," Cedric replies. "I've tended to a small, private herb garden outside the empire a few years back." He shrugs. "My master and me mostly concentrated on two types of herbs -- those that ease healing, and those which add a bit of taste to one's meal."
Having introduced himself, Cedric waits for Salvius to do the same.
Salvius nods at Cedrics description. "Much the same, on my part. I was formlerly within the legion, and many of my duties involved caring for the wounded. A knowledge of herbs proved a great help in many cases."
OOC: This is all handled by skill checks.
IC:
The servant nodded lead the two through a series of plants, testing their knowledge of various plants.
"Well, you two obviously know something of plants. There is room for a part time gardener and helper boy, if you two want to take the job. It'd be twenty two gp a day for you, Salvius as a part time gardner and twelve gp for you as a helper, Cedric."
Dracos
Salvius nods. "What times would you have me work, sir?"
"If you work here, you'll be needed from eight am to two pm."
Dracos
OCC: Bran had gone back to the inn to fix his armor, polish his sword, do some exercises, practice his Latin (since it looks like he'll be here for a while) and otherwise productive things - see last post.
IC: Bran decides to go out to the arena again - this time, to watch any events to see what kind of competition will be up ahead.
Bran, you see Luciano at the ticket counter. It appears that it costs 3 gp for the nosebleed section seats.
Dracos
Bran scowls. How much for ring-side seats? If you can't see the details, what's the point?
"That would be fifteen gold, sir."
Dracos
"Salvius and I are working as gladiators in the arena," Cedric says, frowning at the times. "We have roughly a fight per week, but we don't know the exact time until the day before the next fight. Would it be possible to work something out, given that limitation on our time?"
Luciano heads over to Bran. "Ah, I don't quite know how to ask this, never having the need to, but you let me borrow 3 gold? I will pay you back after our next fight."
Corwin:
"Hmm, well, we'd pay more for reliable workers, but I'm certain we could work something out. So you want to work about five-six days a week is it?"
Dracos
"Pretty much," Cedric agrees, "with a notice the day before a scheduled arena appearance."
Bran frowns slightly at Luciano, and then wordlessly hands him three gold coins, and then gives the ticket man 15 for the up-close seats.
"Thank you." Luciano rolls the unfamiliar words around on his tongue, then hands over his 3 gold coins. Hopefully much blood would be shed and his day would be complete.
"Four days a week," replies Salvius, bluntly. "8 to 2 is acceptable, however."
The ticketer gives Bran a ticket for the front row seats and Luciano a ticket for the nose-bleed section and gestures for them to head in.
Dracos
Luciano heads in, curious as to what it would feel like being a spectator rather then a participant.
"Hmm, deal. Four days a week. Eighteen GP a day for you, and tweleve for you," He pointed to Cedric. "Is that acceptable? If so, I'll show you the ropes."
Dracos
Cedric nods.
OOC: Yay! Just one more week, and we'll finish the conversation!
Salvius nods, too.
OOC: And, like, we're not doing anything else, so can we please just skip all the exciting job specifics and move on to some ACTION?
Bran sits down at his seat up front, and inspects the arena, waiting for the next fight.
A week passed in laziness, the gladiators somehow getting by as they stayed at the relatively comfy inn. Their manager, Romansk, had send them a message the previous day informing them of an upcoming fight today at noon. As the sun rose over the horizon, illuminating the city, a ruckus occured outside the inn.
Dracos
Cedric wakes up, and looks outside the window, to see what's causing the ruckus.
Outside, he sees a crowd gathered outside the inn, bloodstains along the wall and some body, hard to make out details from this range, along the wall.
Dracos
Luciano wakes up with a start and gripping his chain tightly, slinks to see what caused the commotion.
OCC This doesn't mean my char is charging off to find out what's wrong, he's going to stop at a safe and prefarably hidden distance from what is making the noise and then decide what to do.
Edit: Luciano is slinking downstairs and outside.
Cedric puts on his armor and grabs his sword, going downstairs in search of the innkeeper.
Walking down the street in the early morning (early to rise, late to bed, and, uh, was there something else to the phrase? Or maybe he'd gotten it all wrong..), Salvius sees the commotion, and wanders over to investigate, peering over the crowd..
Cedric:
Getting downstairs, the innkeeper doesn't seem to be in the main room.
OOC: Might be a day before I get to Rat, synching something.
Dracos
Not finding the innkeeper, Cedric attempts to get closer to the crowd and peer over the people's heads to discern what's happening.
Shuffling past the crowd, Cedric and Salvius could see a pudgy looking merchant, a fancy hat with some gold trim covering his face. A line of blood ran along the ground from him to the right of the inn. He appeared to be asleep, save for that.
Dracos
Cedric looks around the crowd for any familiar face, as there are so many of his fellow former gladiators staying at that inn, intending to ask them whether they know anything about what happened.
Cedric easily makes out Salvius standing nearby.
Dracos
OOC: Yeah, Luciano, you are out there too, but not seen since you are sneaking about!
Cerdic makes his way to Salvius, trying to get his attention with a wave.
Luciano's eyes narrow at the corpse. Taking extra care to stay hidden, he begins searching for anyone else that might also be sneaking in the shadows.
OCC: Luciano is searching for any suspicious character hiding, or trying to hide. Actually, they don't have to look suspicious at all ^^
Salvius waves at Cedric, approaching him. "Know what happened?" he asks.
Cedric greets Salivus, before shaking his head. "I'm afraid not. I was going to ask you the same thing."
Salvius sighs. "I'll see if he's still alive, though I doubt he is," he says, heading towards the body to check if there was anything he could do.
Agreeing with Salvius, Cedric follows him, ready to help if asked.
The body seems quite dead as they examine it. A small but deep wound in the back, between the shoulders, is apparently what killed him.
Luciano sees two men examining the body.
Dracos
Luciano decides to stay hidden and keep searching for the time being.
OCC: What happened to the crowd? O_o
Salvius shakes his head. "He's dead," he says to Cedric. "Perhaps a falling out with his backers.."
He walks away from the corpse and the crowd. "The guard will take care of it. It's not really any of my business, anyway."
"I see," Cedric says with a frown, walking back towards the inn. "Have you had breakfast yet? If not, would you care to join me?"
"I've eaten," replies Salvius, "But I could use a drink. Sure, I'll join you." With that, he follows Cedric..
Cedric steps back into the inn, and heads for the dining area, looking for the innkeeper again, or any of her staff.
Bran ambles back from a morning walk to see a body, and shrugs. Another merchant in trouble. Entering the inn, he looks around.
Cedric spots the innkeeper, heading back into the inn as she starts her work.
Bran spots Cedric and Salvius entering the inn.
Luciano notices the crowd dispersing as a pair of guards approached.
Dracos
Salvius waves over the innkeeper. "A mug of water."
The innkeeper nodded and came over, planting a mug of water on a nearby table, "Will you two be having anything else?"
Dracos
Luciano shrugs and heads inside the inn to find his comrades.
Cedric orders breakfast, asking at the end, "Would you have any idea what that ruckus outside was about?"
"Nay, it was horrible though. Just went out there this morning to clean the steps and there he was, just leaning against the wall, bloodstains around as you could see!"
Dracos
"Terrible," Cedric echoes the innkeeper with a nod, and waits for his food.
The innkeeper soon brought a serving of eggs and ale for breakfast.
Dracos
Salvius stretches. "I'd say we have three or four hours or so before our fight. Any plans for the day?"
Luciano shrugs. "Nothing, except preparing for the fight."
The fight has been his everything for so long, he doesn't know how to live without it...
Bran sees Salvius and Luciano sitting down and goes over to join them, catching just "... ring for the fight", and has a seat at their table with a nod.
"I wasn't talking to you," says Salvius, bluntly.
"I answered anyway," Luciano replies just as bluntly. He nods at Bran in return.
Cedric finishes the food quickly, and nods at Salvius's question thoughtfully. "Perhaps we should first look for Miss Altania?"
"Wasn't she staying with you?" replies Salvius, tactfully ignoring Luciano.
"Not in my very room," Cedric replies. "But in this inn, yes. And it's curious that we haven't run into her yet."
Salvius shrugs. "She should turn up sooner or later. Have you seen her much this week?"
"Between work and training for the upcoming fight, I didn't have much chances to socialize," Cedric says, frowning. "We could ask the innkeeper, or wait for her at the arena."
"You're right," replies Salvius, shrugging. Waving over the innkeeper, he describes Altania and asks if she's been seen recently..
"Well, Let me think... Oh yes, she headed off two days ago. Handed back the keys to her room. Said she had some thinking to do."
Dracos
Luciano narrows his eyes at Salvius but decides to let it go for now. The upcoming fight is all that matters for the moment.
"Curious." Cedric frowns, scratching his chin. "Well, she probably just left this inn. We can just meet her at Mr. Romansk's stables. Shall we go there and wait for our next fight?"
"Yes. Though you'd think she'd notify us of any changes in arrangements.. no matter," replies Salvius, standing up.
Cedric nods again, and stands up as well. "Well, we might as well be off," he says, leading the way to the arena.
Salvius follows Cedric, pondering intense philosophical thoughts..
Is it true that by tightening your boots when they are loose, your belt untightens itself out of spite? And once that is fixed, your shoes become too tight?"
After a while Luciano shakes his head to clear it of his musings. "Shall we go?" he says, turning to Bran.
"Sure, why not?" Bran answers, and gets up to follow.
Luciano ambles toward the arena.
'Feels strange not to have someone kick you awake right before a match,' he ponders silently.
Arriving early at the arena, the four gladiators headed to Romansk's stables, where they were greeting by their stable manager, Romanask.
"Here early? All pumped and ready for battle, friends?"
Dracos
"Of course, Mr. Romansk," Cedric replies, before recalling something. "Is Miss Altania around? I'm afraid I dont know of her current place of residence."
"I am ready," Luciano states simply.
Romansk blinked, "She's not with you? No, she's not been around."
Dracos
"Curious. We'll wait as much as we can for her to arrive then, I suppose," he says, glancing at Salvius.
Bran goes off to the side to stretch as he waits - no sense in just sitting around before a fight.
"I think she left the city," says Salvius. "But I suppose I shouldn't jump to conclusions."
Romansk tapped his fingers, "That might make things difficult for you guys if she doesn't show up. You'll be up against a swarm of some weird beasts they've brought in from afar. I believe they called the animals kobolds or some such."
Dracos
"Kobolds!" says Salvius. "They're little red buggers, they like to set traps. But we shouldn't have any fear of that.. they tend to come in a great swarm, but once they close distance, only their numbers push them through.
Do you have any idea how many they have brought in?"
"A large cage full."
Dracos
"Wonderful. We should have our backs against the wall," says Salvius. "With their numbers alone, they will otherwise outmanouever us. If we can limit the fight so that we deal only with one or two at a time, it will be to our advantage."
"Since you've heard of the beasts, I'll trust your judgement," Cedric tells Salvius.
"Yes. Though, with Altania gone, it may prove a problem.."
Salvius looks at Romansk. "Though there might be a potential replacement. There's a halfling we fought with before we were free, went by the name of Azen, if I remember correctly. This sounds like his sort of fight, perhaps you could look into that for us?"
"Azen? Slave in the arena a while back? I could look into it, but I make no promises."
Dracos
"That's all I can ask," replies Salvius. "Now, just the wait remains."
Romansk nodded, "You can stay here until your match if you desire."
He headed out, to go see if he could find this 'azen'.
Dracos
Cedric nods as Salvius talks about Azen, remembering the little guy in passing, before settling in to wait.
Azen! Luciano manages a half grin, he has not forgotten the quest in which to free him.
He settles down to wait, idlly stroking his chain as the familiar call to battle rises in him.
After a few hours, Romansk returned, "I am sorry, gladiators. I checked in and this 'Azen' has already been sold. You are on your own. Are you ready for the arena? It is almost time to go."
Dracos
Bran straightens up and nods, adjusting his weaponry in a last-minute inspection.
Romansk lead the four of you from his stables to the waiting area. It was still a little early for the match as your ears could pick up the pitched sounds of combat from the arena. The wood of the arena door hid the current battle from your eyes.
Dracos
Salvius starts muttering praises to Mars under his breath, first invoking His Blessing on his party, and then asking for greater strength..
OOC: Bless and Bull's Strength on myself, in that order. >_>
Cedric follows the priest's example, imbuing his sword with great power.
OOC: Casting Magic Weapon on my bastard sword.
Luciano begins slowly stretching, then checking his armor and weapon as the call of battle rises within him faster and faster.
OOC: Fucking ethics.
IC:
The sound of the battle coming to the close could be heard as the feeling of divine favor warmed their spirits. Salvius's muscles twitched as they swelled slightly with new strength.
The wait wasn't long now as the door opened, the light from the high noontime sun brightly shining into the waiting area as the crowd could be seen outside waiting anxiously to see the next team of gladiators.
Dracos
Salvius walks out, waving a hand to the crowd, and flexing his considerable muscles.
OOC: Oi, oi, oi, tell me what the bonus to my strength was. Vitally important.
Luciano follows Salvius, clutching his chain. If all went well, new trophies would be aquired today.
Cedric was the next one to enter the arena, his mind on the strange kobold creatures they were about to face.
Bran walks through next, swinging his large sword in an elaborate figure-eight to feel the balance (and put on a bit of a show).
The sun was bright as it beat down upon them, the crowd none too impressed with their demonstration as a whole as the four gladiators stepped out.
The field had been constructed with a few 'trees' (wood replicas) about the field to give the crowd more of a sensation of battle on the warfront.
One of the senators was apparently presiding today over the arena, his hawklike eyes looking out over the gladiators as he clapped once.
The huge doors on the opposite side of slowly swung open, many gleaming eyes visible as a hissing sound was heard. The creatures getting prodded out with wood prods into the harsh sunlight.
There was a lot of them, maybe thirty or so at a quick count. Small, around Azen's height. Their skin was scaly and visage reptilian as they carried swords and hammers. Hissing they screeched angrily at the crowd.
The crowd cheered at the display, excited at the odd creatures.
Dracos
Luciano frowns. At times like these he wished he had a bow. Turning to his companions he asks the same question.
"Do any of you have bows to use, or should we begin advancing?"
"We should find a defensible position," says Salvius. "The wall looks good. Move it!" he barks. "With those numbers, they will simply surround us and beat us down."
He starts heading towards the wall of the colliseum, urging on his fellow gladiators to do the same. "If we can limit their numbers so only a few can get at us at a time, we can win; they rely almost entirely on numbers."
OOC: Salvius is also Power Attacking for +1, bringing his damage to a to +7.
Bran heads for the wall. While he'd prefer a "tree" to put backs to - arguing at this point would be foolish.
OCC Notes: Bran will start raging the first round the kobolds come into range.
Cedric follows Salvius quickly, staying on his right flank.
Luciano brings up the rear, seeing that he is the only one with some reach.
The kobolds hissed, disliking the light. It was a few moments before they began to move, in fairly organized pattern, strange grunts coming from a few in the back as they waved little hammers about and danced around as the crowd looked on curiously.
Dracos
Salvius mutters a few choice arcane words under his breath and makes a thrusting motion with his hand...
OOC: Casting 'Sound Burst' in the middle of the pack.
Also, throughout the combat, Salvius is Power Attacking for +1 throughout the combat. Between the other spells he cast, he's netting +11 to hit and +7 damage.
A loud scream goes up from the small creatures as a vortex of sound blasted into their ears. Blood errupted from several of their ears as they collapsed.
The chanting though continued, as the sense of providence left the gladiators, the kobolds that remained charging in wrath, their swords swinging, hungry for the flesh of humans.
They swarmed, cutting several times around the larger humans.
Dracos
OOC:
Math isn't finished. I'll post the damage positions when I get home.
I hate math. Math hates me.
there are 3 around Trunky
there are 3 around Cedric
There are 3 around Bran
There are 3 around Salvius
And two are hanging back, chanting again.
Bran takes 7.
Salvius takes 5.
Cedric takes 5.
Luciano takes 2.
Keep track of your own HPs please, I have enough to handle with this many characters around.
Luciano roars in anger and launches his chain against his nearest attacker.
OCC: Luciano is going to attack the three surrounding him and then go after the chanters, providing that he does't invoke AoO in the meantime.
Salvius lays down some SMACK on the kobold that dared to strike him.. eyeing the spellcasters at the same time.
Cedric attacks his middlemost opponent, calling upon Sonic to lend his blessing to his sword.
OOC: Attacking him along with the Smite Evil ability.
OCC: Sorry about the delay, cleaned out my cookies and deleted the one for here by accident... and forgot my password.
Bran roars as he attacks the pathetic little creatures that attacked him.
MECH: (raging (new AC 14), 'intimidating rage' on one and attacks the next, +11 to attack, does 2D6+6 damage)
OOC: *grumbles about screwing up*
IC:
Luciano's chain whip lashed, crushing the skull of a kobold before him. The blood squirting out from the small creature as it fell.
Salvius' strike laid low the one in front of him, it's two comrades screeching and turning back as his blade cleaved through it's skull. The small body split in two, it's split form crumpling before him as he swung at the back of one of the fleeing pair, skewering it.
Cedric's sword glowed with holy might as he cut down the kobold before him, it's two friends escaping backwards screeching in fright as they swarmed near the clerics.
Bran raged, his eyes bulging with fury as he lifted his sword, the kobold squeaking "I HAVE FURY!" as it crushed beneath his blade. The remaining kobolds fled under this brutal showing, rushing away from the warriors as a sense of despair weighed down the gladiators arms.
Dracos
Luciano's glee at crushing one of his enemies' head turns sour as he feels a depression overcome him. Eyes searching he grits out, "We have to kill their blasted mages..."
"You're the one with the chain!" bawls Salvius. "Use the bloody thing!" he says, promptly dropping into another prayer to Mars..
OOC: Throwing out a Spiritual Weapon.
Luciano beings to stalk forward, still looking for the mages. "I'll need backup," he informs his group as he advances.
Hopefully with his reach he would be able to destroy them quickly...
Cedric sheathes his sword, and grabs one of his throwing knives, tossing it at one of the kobolds fleeing from him.
OOC: Requested by Ratty. Quick Battle! No dice!
IC:
Salvius prayed, his hands raised in hommage to Mars as he sent a blade of spirit forth upon the kobolds, mercilessly cutting them down as they fled.
Cedric's knife thudded into a the back of the fleeing kobold, taking one down as it's small green bodies hit the floor.
Luciano stood there boldly awaiting backup as he towered above the two clerics who turned to flee!
Bran stands there dumbly, his mouth agape. Doing the BARBARIAN THING and ...well, nothing really.
The remaining few kobolds scattered, jibbering mindlessly towards the walls.
Dracos
Salvius ditches his shield and axe, going for his crossbow and taking a peg at one of the other clerics.
Salvius drops his axe and shield and goes for his crossbow, aiming to take out one of the clerics..
Cedric draws his sword again, and stalks towards one of the kobolds cowering near the walls, ready to smite him once he gets close enough.
Luciano gives a small grim smile as he launches his chain to entangle one of the clerics. "Don't run.." he says softly...
OCC: After Luciano is done with one cleric he will go after the other, if Rat doesn't get to him first.
Bran charges the nearest pipsqueak. MAIM! KILL!
The cleric screetches in absolute horror as he's entangled by Luciano's whip. The kobold prays rapidly to his god, a rock falling from the heavens to clunk Luciano in the head, sending him to the ground in a rather sudden bout of sleepiness as Bran's sword sliced through the hapless cleric.
Cedric's deliberate stalking frightened the kobolds further as they dashed to either side, the screaming in fright, the crowd laughing at the strange event.
Finally, Salvius lined up a shot with the remaining cleric, his crossbow bolt penetrating the skull of the fearful little green man and sending him spinning to his death against the colliseum wall.
Dracos
Salvius quickly reloads and lines up another shot at the kobold closest to him..
OOC: What about my wonderfully cool sword?
Bran proceeds to the next target, still roaring semi-coherent phrases
The remaining kobolds are promptly and violently cut down by the raging Gladiators.
The crowd looks a bit disappointed though, sort of a 'Is that it?' atmosphere brewing.
Dracos
Cedric poses, stepping on a kobold and crushing its head for good measure.
Salvius gives a mighty snort, striding over to Luciano and kicking him awake. "Is that it?" he bellows. "Give us a foe more worthy of our blades than these stinking beasts!"
Naked wenches with chains stratigically placed dissappear as Luciano is rudely jerked from Morpheus' realm. After picking himself up and and glaring at Salvius, he looks around for something to kill. Seeing nothing, he heads to one of the cleric's corpses, and sets to get him a trophy.
The crowd looks over the odd scene of the two vocally posing in victory...and the other crawling along to one of the bodies of the puny kobold and doing something to it's body and acts...confused.
The doors open for them to depart the arena as the senator stands, waving them out.
Dracos
Salvius storms out the arena, frustrated by the inability of his companions to put on a good show.
Romansk frowned when Salvius entered the waiting area. "You guys need to learn to put on a better ending show." He tossed Salvius a moderately weighty bag of gold. "Your pay for the match. I'll see about getting something more exciting lined up next time."
Dracos
Salvius shrugs. "Give me some talent to work with," he replies, walking out. "Tell them I'll meet them at the inn."
He continues walking..
Cedric retrieves his knife, and exits the arena after Salvius.
Luciano stuffs his new trophy in his pouch and then trots along. Remembering that his fellow comrade was usually tired after his raging, he turns about face and trots back.
Heading to Bran he asks, "Do you need any help?"
Spotting his manager, Cedric heads towards him. "It seems the crowd wasn't impressed much by the battle's end, Mr. Romansk," he says, frowning.
"Indeed. Crawling on the ground is not the best way to impress them. You guys have to work in unison. Like a gladiator team. You are only as impressive as your weakest link. I can pull in more money for you guys if you show off with more coordination."
Dracos
"We will have to work on that." Cedric nods in seriousness, before asking, "You've mentioned money?"
"Yes, I gave it to Salvius already. It wasn't that much."
Dracos
"Oh. How much was it, Mr. Romansk?" Cedric asks in curiousity.
"Just about a thousand gold was your share of the winnings."
Dracos
Cedric nods. "Did our companion say where he'll meet us?"
Seeing no answer forthcoming from his companion, Luciano shakes his head slightly. That murderous rage was powerful, but it sure tired one quickly.
Luciano slings Bran over his shoulder and walks out of the arena in the direction Cedric had gone.
"He said he'd meet you guys at the inn." Romansk shrugged.
Dracos
OOC: >> GM is an idiot. Fixed. Corwin, edit your post please.
"I shall stop by the temple he resides at later, then." Cedric nods at the manager. "Good day to you, Mr. Romansk."
Saying goodbye to him, he returns to the inn he's staying at.
Bran wonders when the next fight will be, and if it'll be a better one than those pipsqueaks.
Luciano hears a curious grumbling from his comrade as he hauls him out of the arena.
Cedric arrived without mishap at his current residence of the inn.
Dracos
OOC: Guys, can you like, speed it up?
Salvius shows up at the inn, a hefty sack of gold over his shoulder. Seeing Cedric, he waves. "Good day, friend!" he says, cheerfully.
"Greetings," Cedric replies, gesturing Salivus towards the table he's sitting at, an empty mug next to him.
OOC: He's used the Lay on Hands on himself to heal while in transit, k?
Salvius sits down, plonking the sack on the table. "It's suitably heavy," he notes.
Cedric nods, looking at the sack with appreciation. "As would a thousand coins be."
"Did Romansk tell you? I never asked," replies Salvius, shrugging. "Still, it feels about right. A thousand or so coins, give or take."
"He did," Cedric replies, shrugging. "Would you like to wait for the others to return before dividing it?"
Salvius hums. "It may be better to divide it somewhere else," he replies. "It would be unwise to open such gold in an inn. Perhaps we should withdraw to my temple, and divide it therein? We can at least be assured of no trouble."
"I have nothing else planned for today," Cedric replies. "I've already taken care of my wounds from the battle. You have too, I presume?"
"'tis but a scratch," replies Salvius. "They were just kobolds.
Come, let us go," he finishes, walking off..
Cedric leaves a message with a waitress on where he would be, should someone look for him, and follows Salvius.
Upon arriving at the Temple, Salvius retreats to his private room. "Here, we can count it now," he replies, dropping the sack on his desk. "Equal amounts each, I presume?"
"Unless you wish to divide it by kobold heads," Cedric replies, shrugging. "Either way is fine by me."
"Kobold heads is good," notes Salvius. "How many did we kill each, again?"
OOC: Drac, for conveniances sake, gimme the tally. >_>
Luciano ignores the grumbling in favor of walking to the inn and idilly peering around to look for his fellow glaidators.
OCC: Sorry about infrequent posting, had exams (over now and straight-As).
Bran walks into the inn, having been admiring a *ahem* pretty lady on the way back, and looks around for the others. Getting the message left, he heads for the temple after asking for directions.
"..well, it's difficult to remember the exact tally," continues Salvius.
"However, I'm fairly certain that I can personally account for at least half of the beasts."
"I believe I've taken out somewhat over a fifth," Cedric says.
Luciano blinks as the weight on his shoulder suddenly disappears and then walks through the door, but then dismisses it as the aftermath of a kobold priest spell.
He then follows Bran to the temple.
OCC: Sunhawk, maybe you should read earlier posts before posting ^^;;
Salvius nods, dumping a few other pouches on the table. "There are exactly a thousand pieces," he notes. "I counted earlier. I'm sure the other two will be here any moment, now."
Cedric nods, and settles in to wait for the others to arrive.
And lo did the others arrive, Luciano having put down Bran and lead both of them into the temple.
Dracos
"So, how much did we get?"
"A thousand," replies Salvius, calmly. "We are planning to divide it up on a headcount basis. How many kobolds did you slay personally?"
OOC: This is what we call pissing off the GM
16 points of damage each.
IC:
And lo did knives appear in the back of Bran and Luciano and Cedric, painfully as the bag of gold vanished! The footsteps of FROTHING THIEVES kicking out the door and dashing off could be heard and seen!
The howls of pain from some of the acolytes outside are heard!
Dracos
"My door!" cries Salvius, snatching up his trusty Axe and shield to give chase, keeping alert for a BACK ATTACK as he rushes after the thieves..
Four thieves can be seen, charging down the hallway, two dead acolytes by the side of the hallway, victims of this crazed and frothing assault!
Dracos
Salvius snatches out his crossbow and takes a potshot at the closest thief.
Bran is stabbed and crumples.
The crossbow bolt hits the shoulder of the nearest thief, causing him to spin around, bashing against a wall before slowly getting up and turning towards the group, frothing from his lips!
Dracos
Luciano hisses in pain before stumbling after the thieves, readying his chain to launch the second he's in range.
Luciano quickly finds himself in range, though in the narrow corridor leading out of Salvius' room, he'd risk hitting salvius with a whip strike.
Dracos
Salvius rushes towards the thief, trying to break his head open with his axe in retalation for breaking his precious door.
OOC: Charging if there's enough corridor to do so, and taking a Power Attack for.. hmm, 4, because he's rabid and dosn't look like he has much defence.
Cursing, Cedric drew his sword and followed his two companions into the corridor.
Cedric found the hallway crowded, his two friends in the way.
Salvius charged, managing to get his axe out and slashing at the thief even as a knife penetrated his shoulder painfully. The theif's bloody face smashed against the wall as he collapsed dead.
OOC: 9 damage.
Maneuvering first past the chain-wielding gladiator, then the priest, Cedric charged after the rest of the thieves.
Luciano curses inwardly a great many deal, then unslings his greataxe and charges with that, carefully avoiding his companions.
Salvius grits his teeth and mutters a MIGHTY SPELL OF HEALING POWER under his breath.
OOC: Sacrificing a prepared Magic Weapon spell to cast Cure Light Wounds on myself. I'm sure all of you need healing, too, so do me a favour and gimme your HP totals, so that I may accomodate your needs.
As the two barrel down the corridor towards Salvius, Salvius feels his wounds close.
The corridor though was not large enough for three people side to side, so it left one of the two chargers to stop or bowl Salvius over.
Meanwhile the thieves continued into the main temple hall, whipping hooks up through a window and beginning to haul themselves out, still frothing.
Dracos
Cedric charged after the frothing thieves, using his power to recover as he did so and throwing a dagger at one of them once they were within range. Luciano waited for the other man to charge, before following, as Salvius had stopped next to the corpse of one of the thieves.
OOC: Should be on 26 hp now, after the Lay on Hands thing (what was left of it after the battle, anyway).
The daggers missed by a hair, sliding past the thief and bouncing off a wall.
The thieves swiftly began to climb the ropes towards the window as the door opened, a loud voice proclaiming, "What in the name of Mars is going on here?"
Dracos
Luciano ran after the thieves, sending his chain flying at the climbing men.
Cedric turned towards the voice, saying, "Murderers escaping. Frothing murderers, who killed two acolytes."
"Murderers who BROKE MY DOOR!" bellows Salvius, rushing over into the main hall and trying to yank down the ropes, preferably the one which has the rouge who has all his money.
Bran staggers upright and snarls, blood dripping down his side. He hears bellowing and heads towards it, unsheathing his great sword - nobody stabs him in the back and gets away with it!
Salvius finds the rope difficult to dislodge, even as the thief is forced to hang tight to the rope as it's swung and yanked about.
The High Priest sees what is going on and hears Salvius' explanation, raising a hand in prayer to mars he summoned a spear of light, which he cast with martial prowess at one of the thieves, skewering him through the stomach and sending him flying down to the floor below.
Dracos
Salvius continues to give the rope mighty tugs, hoping somebody will nail the thief while he's unable to move, or possibly just pull the whole thing down.
Reassured that the older priest wouldn't misunderstand things, now, Cedric throws more daggers at the thieves, taking careful aim.
Luciano's chain missed, but Cedric's daggers did not, knocking the thief off that Salvius was swinging around. The other thief escaping in the meanwhile.
Dracos
Salvius rushes out the temple in a blind rage, trying to find where the other thief went.
The other thief could not be found as Salvius charged into the streets outside the temple!
Dracos
With a huge mental effort, Salvius calms himself down, and returns to the temple, intent on searching the bodies of the fallen thieves for: A) More Loot, B) Identifying marks.
Cedric retrieves his knives, trying to stay clear of the not-quite-frothing Luciano.
GAME BEGINS AGAIN
Searching the body, Salvius found spider tattoos on the back side of the thieves wrists. There was also a small vial strapped to the forearm of each thief. They each had knives on them. Luckily, he seemed to have killed the one with the bag of gold, but the others were not carrying any money on them.
Dracos
"Spider tattoos," says Salvius to the Head Priest. "Any idea where they might have come from? Sounds very much like a thieves guild."
"Nay, I do not recognize such things," The high priest frowned thoughtfully, "Though it is an insult that they even entered this sacred temple in disguise and stealth."
Dracos
"Perhaps a grudge?" replies Salvius. "They did not seem in full control of their faculties."
"Maybe, this will be looked into." The high priest nodded, going to look after the downed acolytes.
Dracos
As Luciano was trying to stop himself from taking souvenirs from the thieves, Cedric approached Salvius, his knives with him once more.
"Have you made any enemies?" Cedric asked. "Though it would seem foolish of them to attack you while you're surrounded by both fighters and other priests of Mars."
"They weren't attacking me at all," notes Salvius. "They took the gold and attacked everyone but me, in fact."
"They did attack your room," Cedric points out, before shrugging. "I, for one, haven't seen them before in my life. In any case, can you give me my share of two-hundred gold?"
"Oh, sure," replies Salvius, reaching into the bag and miraculously pulling out exactly two hundred pieces. "If they have a grudge against anyone, it would be the temple as a whole.
Get yourself some healing," he finishes.
Cedric nods, pocketing the gold. "Like you've said earlier, it's just a scratch."
Salvius shrugs, then walks off, in search of an acolyte for his own healing..
Cedric heads for the inn he's staying at, where he hopes to address his wounds and rest for a bit.
Cedric: You find the inn without too much trouble. It's largely as you recall, though it seems to be lunchtime.
Salvius: You find an acolyte soon enough. How do you address him?
Dracos
"Excuse me, young priest. Could I trouble you for some healing?" asks Salvius, politely.
OCC: Sorry, network down for a couple days.
Bran slumps against the wall for a moment to catch his breath and then goes to look for a priest to heal the knife wound in his back.
Cedric goes to his room, hoping to tend to his wounds and change into clean clothes, before seeking out the owner of the inn. He pays her 300gp for a month's stay, and returns to his room to rest.
Bran realizes he is in a temple, and there are plenty of priests within getting help distance to ask.
The acolyte looked over Salvius and nodded, "Oh certainly servant of Mars." The acolyte chanted a short prayer to mars, holding his hands up towards Salvius. Salvius felt his wounds close as the acolyte finished his prayer.
Dracos
OOC: you recover 12 hp.
Salvius nods his thanks to the priest, before returning to the head priest; "Is there anything I can do to help?"
Bran grabs a passing acolyte and asks for directions to the hospice (or the equivalent area of the temple), then makes his way there to get healed.
"Yes, you can. Bring this to the Imperial Halls immediately."
The high priest handed Salvius a sealed scroll he'd just finished.
Dracos
The acolyte looks at Bran strangely and says, "I can heal you for ten gold."
Dracos
"Yes!" replies Salvius, taking the scroll, bowing, and.. "Er, how do you get there again?"
"You...oh, wait, you've been in the arenas for a while haven't you? Head down the road and keep going. It's on the left. You'll recognize it. Now get moving."
Dracos
Salvius does so, going in the aforementioned direction..
And Salvius arrived...his breath momentarily taken away by the gigantic roman building before him, a dozen guards out front dressed in polished Roman Legionaire garb.
Dracos
"Huh. Praetorians. Arrogant bastards," thinks Salvius, marching boldy towards the front door, expecting to either be stopped by a guard or to find reception..
And stopped he was, by a broad shouldered guard, "State your business."
Dracos
"I have a message from the High Priest of Mars," replies Salvius, presenting the seal.
The guard looked carefully at the seal and nodded, "You may pass."
He turned opening the gate and allowing Salvius in. "Complete your business in haste, Servant of Mars."
Dracos
"My thanks," replies Salvius, marching forward into the elaborate building..
Heading into the building he was guided to and fro, eventually being allowed to enter the presence of Emperor Regilius who turned from the window to see him. Emperor Regilius was a towering man, dressed immaculantly in ceramonial armor. A hint of steely gray brushed his beard and hair, his eyes hawklike as he examined Salvius as he entered.
Dracos
"Greetings, my liege," says Salvius, bowing deeply. "I bring a message from the High Priest of Mars. May his light shine upon you and bring you victory in all pursuits."
"And may his spear never fail you." The emperor took the missive, cracking the seal and glancing over it. "You may depart, I will send one of my own messagers to the High Priest later."
Dracos
Salvius bows again, and takes his leave, returning to the temple to pray a bit and have some dinner.
Bran willingly hands over ten solidi, and then, after being healed, asks where his companions went, and then goes off to find them, feeling quite depressed. What glory has he found in being mauled by lions, killing a couple of thugs in an alley and some little shrimpy... things, and then getting stabbed in the back by a thieving coward?
Bran, in an apparent bout of depression, follows Luciano back to the inn.
Do you guys eat and rest there?
Dracos
Luciano heads for the inn, ordering himself some lunch.
Bran sits down beside Luciano and gets some food (MEAT!) himself.
Luciano promptly gets lunch at the usual cost.
Dracos
Full, Luciano orders a room at the inn for the night, to rest and heal.
Yay, and assuming they rest the rest of the night...it's a brand new day...
Salvius, you hear a knocking on your door.
Dracos
"It's open," calls the priest, just finishing his morning prayers.
A priest enters, "Greetings Salvius. I hope the morning finds you well?"
Dracos
"Well enough," replies Salvius. "What brings you to my room?"
"The high priest has a mission that he thinks you would be willing to attend to."
Dracos
"I see," replies Salvius. "I'll go and talk to him, then."
The priest nodded, and departed from the room, leaving Salvius to finish his breakfast.
Dracos
After finishing his Morning Duties, Salvius heads on to see the High Priest.
The high priest was in his chambers and was in prayer when Salvius arrived. Salvius was though let in to see him regardless.
Dracos
Salvius waits for the high priest to finish (barring him taking a rediculously long time to prayer like those stupid christian monks. Heathens, all.)
About five minutes later, the high priest turned towards him. "Greetings. I have a mission for you Salvius, but it will require you to head to the front. Are you willing to accept such a mission for the honor of Mars?"
Dracos
Salvius looks mildly uneasy at the prospect.
"I apologize, sir, but.. the front? While I am truly eager to serve Mars in any capacity necessary.. understand that when last I was at the front, my unit was decimated and I was sent to the gladiator pits.
I will accept if necessary, but I implore you to find another area where my talents might be used?"
"Well, I could send a base acolyte, but I thought you would like the chance to be the representative of our temple for the third roman batallion down in new scotia under General Kizar. Considering your history and all, I figured you would value the opportunity..."
Dracos
Salvius shrugs. "Glory is one thing, sir, but, as they say, war is quite another.
Nonetheless, I will go. Kizar is a good general, I have heard. When do you wish me to leave?"
"Tomorrow. You will take a squad of our loyal recruits with you to assist you along your journey and at the front."
Dracos
Salvius nods. "I see. Is there anything else I should know?"
"That shall be all, Captain Salvius."
Dracos
Salvius bows, and retreats to his quarters to ponder this recent turn of events..
Morning annoyingly shines into the eyes of people who apparently slept in.
Dracos
Cedric wakes up, and goes to get some breakfast.
Luciano springs out of bed, then winces and rubs the kinks out of his muscles. Sleeping in armor was a tad uncomfortable. Heading downstairs, he searches for his companions and a bit of breakfast.
OCC: The virus is squashed, I can post again. Yay!
Luciano sees Cedric!
Luciano and Cedric quickly get: Breakfast. A traditional roman breakfast in fact. The inn is sort of empty at this hour, so they are pretty free to talk if they want.
Dracos
Luciano is still somewhat sulky about not getting a hit in on the thieves, so he plays around with his food keeping an ear open if Cedric initiates a conversation.
"Got any plans for today?" Cedric asks Luciano as he eats.
"Eh? No, not really. Maybe explore the city a bit, get used to this new life."
The idea of being truly free hasn't sunk in completely.
Bran is awoken by his growling stomach. As he yawns and winces at a twinge in his back (still sore in spite of the magical healing), he rolls out of bed, gets dressed, and wanders down for a bite to eat. Seeing Cedric and Luciano eating breakfast, he orders some food and sits down beside them to eat. He has no plans for today - if nothing occurs, he'll do a bit of shopping and spend some money at a couple taverns and brothels, but for some reason he feels restless.
He gets food, the three of them are now sitting at the table together, it's around elevenish.
Dracos
"Oh yes." Luciano turns to Bran, digging in his pocket. "The three coins I owe you."
"I've been thinking of visiting Salvius and inquiring whether he had found out anything about those thieves," Cedric says, finishing his breakfast and standing up. "If they weren't after him, as he had said, then maybe one of us was their original target after all. I wonder why, though...."
Luciano grimaces in distate. "I think I will wander around the city then, I don't particulary like that temple."
He then shrugs. "I have been a slave all my life. All those that have held grudges against me were those who have faced me in the arena." He gives a evil half smile. "And all those are dead."
Breakfast concludes as you guys sit there chatting.
Dracos
Cedric nods to himself, and heads towards the temple of Mars.
The sun is shining brightly today as you head over to the Temple of Mars. The roads seem a bit quiet though. A little while after you leave the inn, you arrive at the Temple of Mars where Salvius is staying. You are now standing outside the temple.
Dracos
A small figure entered the inn and looked about. "I'm looking for some people that have been seen staying here."
Luciano and Bran, you see the halfling warrior Azen walking into the inn!
Dracos
Cedric heads inside, traveling towards Salvius's room.
Salvius, you hear a knock on your door.
Dracos
Cedric is outside.
Luciano blinks, then blinks again. "Azen!" he greets the short one while walking over to him. "They told us you were sold!"
The halfling walks up to the two humans. "Hiya. And they're right. I was sold. But I don't mind it. It's much better then the Arena pits."
Tilting his head to the side he looked at the two. "Soooo. Where are the others? I was hoping to catch you all here."
Luciano shrugs. "Cedric went to visit the priest in his temple, I didn't care to go along."
"So tell us, how has life been treating you thus far?"
Azen smiled at his comrades. "Well, like I said. It's much better then the pits. My new master treats me fairly and doesn't require me to do hard work. I run errands here and there. Which kind of brings me to the reason why I'm here."
He looked around a bit and frowned at the fact that the area was so open. "Can we discuss this somewhere more private?"
"Ah, uh..." Luciano peers around a bit with a slight frown. "I suppose we can talk in my room, I don't know of any other place intended for privacy."
"Sure, lead the way." Azen waited for the man to show him the way.
OOC: I guess we should wait for the other players. >_>
"Come in," says Salvius.
Bran stays silent as he follows Luciano and Azen to Luciano's room, having nothing to say. What might this reason be? A job, perhaps?
Luciano leads the way into his room, and once there, shuts the door. "Do you wish to wait for Cedric to return?"
"Nah, we can fill him in later. And the rest."
Azen looked around the room, checking for exits and other such stuff. He found himself a seat and plopped down in it. "Well, I looked you guys up because I need a little bit of help on my current errand for my master." Sighing a bit, he continued. "Unfortunately, all his other people are busy with other endavours. So I was told to go seek out some help."
"I am to go to Istanbul and deliver a letter to a friend of my master. Unfortunately, I alone am not enough to do it. Which is where you come in. For a 'small' fee, you'll accompany me and serve as 'bodyguards'."
He grinned at the two. "So how does that sound?"
"Sounds good to me."
Bran pauses for a moment, then continues.
"Do we get paid?"
Opening the door, Cedric enters the room, greeting Salvius with, "Good day."
"Greetings," replies Salvius. "What brings you here?"
With a slight grimace Luciano replies, "I don't hold great love for Romans or slave owning masters, no matter how 'fair' they might be."
After a pause, "Where is this 'Istanbul?' What is it like?"
"Yes, you will be paid. It's not much, only 250 gold per week each. You will also get part of any spoils that come along."
Looking up at Luciano, he gives some details on Istanbul.
OOC: Drac, you might as well fill all of us in together. >_>;;;
"Curiousity," Cedric replies. "I've been wondering whether you found out anything else about those thieves."
Salvius shakes his head. "Nothing," he replies.
"I suppose I'll have to let it go, then." Cedric shrugs. "After all, what are the chances of that frothing thief that escaped coming back for revenge?"
Nodding to himself, he says, "I suppose I'll see you at work," as he prepares to leave the room.
"You won't," replies Salvius shaking his head. "I've been comissioned to travel to the front," he says. "Leaving tomorrow."
"Travel to the front?" Cedric asks, surprised. "Which front?"
"*THE* front," replies Salvius. "In New Scotia. I'm being assigned to General Kizar's unit. It's very prestigious, apparently.
I've been blacklisted from the regular army, you see, but going as a Representative of the Temple of Mars counters that. If I survive, I'll be decorated, both by the legions and the temple."
"I wish you luck," Cedric says, smiling. "May you participate in great battles and come out unscathed!"
"I'll settle for coming out unscathed," replies Salvius, dryly.
Cedric nods, still smiling, and bids Salvius goodbye, leaving back for the inn he's staying at.
Luciano tries to hide his interest in this exotic sounding 'Istanbul' but a hint of boyish wonder shines through his face, momentarily erasing the warrior image and reflecting his true age.
OCC: Where IS Istanbul anyway? Isn't that somewhere in Turkey or something?
OCC Part 2: Read this post after Dracos' next post then.
Azen explained of Istanbul:
Istanbul is a far off eastern land of exotic wonders and tanned tall warriors. Famous for it's silks and spices. It's noramally acessible only by sea, but my master has given me a route to get their by land. It's on the border of the roman empire and it's silks are quite valued.
Dracos
"So, I take it that you're in? What about the others?" Smiling cheerfully he added. "And can you be ready by sunrise tommorow?"
"I dont know," Luciano seems indecisive. "If Cedric also agrees I guess. I can't fight in the arena by myself, doesn't draw crowds or something."
"Ok, I understand that you want to wait for the others to agree too. Hmm. You still haven't said where they are." Azen stuck his tounge at Luciano then turned to Bran. "How about you?"
"I already said Cedric went to visit the priest in the temple."
Luciano sounds a tad exasperated. Just a tad mind you.
"And, well, I have known the people in this group for far longer then I've known anyone else. I would like to, to continue staying around this group." Luciano grumbles past this incredibly deep and emotional statement, at least for him. He then concentrates on polishing the spikes on his chain as if it were the most interesting thing in the world.
"Ok, so you said where Cedric is. And I guess that 'the priest' is Salvius. That still leaves one more. Altania." The halflings face twisted in a half smirk. "She was pretty good in a fight."
Bran nods and breaks into a (rare) smile.
"Sure."
Istanbul sounds like an interesting place - and perhaps this trip is a chance to win glory in the eyes of his forefathers and gods!
"She...left. She said she had some thinking to do, so she just disappeared."
Azen nodded. "That explains it then. I guess we'll have to have a smaller group then. Oh, well. I'm sure I can work with that."
CEDRIC, you see the inn.
Dracos
Cedric goes inside the inn.
Cedric, you are in the inn, you see several barmaids, but none of your comrades in the main hall. They might be upstairs.
Dracos
Cedric checks upstairs for Luciano or Bran.
Luciano opens the door when Cedric comes a'knocking, hand on his chain. "Oh, its you. Look who's back!"
"Greetings," Cedric says to Luciano. "It seems that our team for the arena has been further diminished. Salvius is being sent to the front by his temple."
Luciano mumbles something insulting about temples and Romans in general before ushering Cedric into the room.
Cedric shrugs at the insult, but takes the invitation and enters the room.
"Azen here has a proposition for us. Bran already has agreed, I am still undecided."
A cheerful smile was directed at Cedric. "Hiya. How's life treating you?"
Letting the man reply, he continued. "I want to hire you guys to act as bodyguards. I am being sent by my master to Istanbul to deliver a letter. You each will be paid 250 gold per week. You also will get part of any spoils that we might come across. Interested?"
"Life's been treating me well," Cedric replies, returning the smile politely. "Are you being sent this week?"
Azen nodded. "Yes. The schedule was to start out tommorow morning, but I can wait another day if needed."
"That won't be necessary," Cedric says, shaking his head.
"Well, it looks like I am in as well then."
"Good. I'll be here an hour after dawn." Standing up he gave a small bow to the others. "Now if you will excuse me, I have a couple errands to run before we leave."
Azen went to the door. "It'll be interesting working with you again."
Bran nods, then goes back to his room to sleep.
Assuming none of you ungodly slow people have anything else to do, the sun sets and rises again on a new morning...
Dracos
Luciano once again wakes up, and packs his meager belongings. He heads downstairs for a quick breakfast and then a trip to the bathhouse.
Cedric packs, and then heads downstairs to wait for Azen.
Luciano returns bathed to the inn.
Dracos
Azen steps through the inn door exactly one hour after dawn. "Morning, good fellows. Ready for the ride?" He's dressed same way as yesterday, though his movements are a bit more relaxed.
Cedric nods. "All set on my end."
"Ah, what does what one need when one goes travelling?" Luciano asks a bit stiffly, somewhat embarrased at not knowing.
Bran rises and dresses, checking over his gear (weapons, armor, ect) one last time, and then heads downstairs to meet the others.
Azen looks at Luciano strangely. Then gives a quick, short list. Weapons, armor, clothes, food and water, first aid, rope, and money. "If you don't have some of those, we can pick them up along the way."
Facing everyone, he nodded. "Now if that's out of the way, please go get your horses and meet me by the North Gate. I have my pony ready there."
He started towards the door.
"Would you know of any stables nearby?" Cedric asks Azen before he leaves.
Blinking twice, the halfling stared at Cedric. "You don't have a horse?" Then he looked at the others. "You all don't have horses? Well, I do know of a stable near the North Gate. Head towards the gate on Imperium road, you should run into Honest Julius' Used Horses by the time you get to the gate."
"I shall see you soon, citizens." With that, he leaves the inn.
Bran mutters under his breath.
"USED horses?"
He then shrugs and goes off to see this "Honest" Julius. At the least, horsemeat is a possibility...
Luciano follows Bran, mentally counting what little gold he has left. Hopefully, he would be able to buy a horse.
OCC: DM, I have a little under a hundred gold left, I don't know exactly how much.
Cedric twitches slightly, and tries not to think of the manner in which the horses were 'used', but heads in the direction of those stables.
Arriving at Honest Julius Used Horses, they find it to be a mediumish building with a large stables next to it. A young lad sitting near the entryway. A sign beside the entry way stating: "Come on in!"
Dracos
Luciano does so, if not at all comforted by the appearance of the building.
Cedric follows Luciano, glancing at the various used horses on sale.
Honest Lucius, as you can tell from his honest looking face smiles as you enter and comes over, "So what can I do for you boys? Looking for a few horses? Well, that's what I'm here to provide if you got the gold to pay for it."
Dracos
"I need a horse, something that won't die out on me after a few days of travel. And, uh, how much do your horses run?"
Cedric waits to hear the prices.
"Depends the color of your gold. I got some that I'd let go for a bent coin, and some that are a thousand gold a week."
Dracos
"Show me something in the area of a hundred gold," Cedric requests.
"Sure, Sure..."
Julius leads Cedric over to a nice looking horse. "This would be 100 gold a week to rent."
Dracos
Cedric frowns. "How about a horse that costs 25 gold a week?"
"Well, if you want a pony...." Julius points to a younger horse a few stalls down.
Dracos
"Sure, I'll get one." Cedric inspects the horses in his stated price range, trying to find the least used one.
They all look okay to your eye. Nothing special.
Dracos
"I'll take that one," Cedric says, pointing at one of the horses he'd inspected.
"Sure, that'll be 25 gold for the first week with the rest due when you come back." Honest julius lifted his hand.
Dracos
Luciano follows in Cedric's footsteps and rents a 25 gold a week horse, after also inspecting them and trying to find the best looking one.
Cedric pays the man 25 gold, and takes the horse over to where Azen is waiting.
Both Cedric and Luciano discover a rather disturbing observation when they reach for their gold bags: They are not there.
Dracos
Luciano frowns, opens his mouth to say something, closes it, and frowns some more. "Um, I'll hold off on that horse for now."
Turning away, he begins thinking, where in the hell did he leave that bag?
The adventurers realized that time was passing as they meandered about in Honest Lucius' Used Horse stables. The fellow who was sitting outside is now gone.
Dracos
Luciano continues pondering where in the hell did he leave his gold while waiting for his compainions to snap out of their mysterious daze.
Bran instinctively checks for his gold, meanwhile pondering something. Per week? Huh?
Bran finds his gold missing too.
Dracos
Vowing to keep a closer eye on his gold from now on, Luciano waits around while his companions finish their business. Looks like walking was going to be the mode of transportation.
Bran snarls and, noticing the absence of the loiterer outside, runs out to find the about-to-be-hamburgered asshole who dared to rob him.
Bran runs outside and sees....well, nobody. If he runs further he finds... a busy town street with lots of people in it. It's about this time he realizes he never got a good glimpse of the guy and doesn't spot anyone obviously acting suspicious nearby in the crowd.
Dracos
Luciano decides to go on and return to the inn to gather his meager belongings and wait for Azen and the others. He is somewhat frustrated for not noticing the picking of his pouch. This was the second time! Any further thieves would receive no mercy from him.
Bran snarls and stalks back to the inn, vowing to keep a close eye on things around him.
You guys arrive at the inn. It's almost lunch time by the time you get back. You then realize that Azen asked you to meet him at north gate, not at the inn. And he did so many hours ago now.
Dracos
After grabbing and securing his stuff, Luciano makes his way to the north gate, keeping an eye out for thieves.
And without further ado, they make it to the north gate, seeing a quite impatient looking Azen waiting for them.
Dracos
"Sorry, we had some, trouble, in aquirring horses," Luciano says with some surliness.
Bran just mutters angrily and adjusts his sword strap
Luciano shuffles his feet idily and thinks grim thoughts.
"Well, let's go!"
Bran is in the mood for some blood and gore.
Shuffling seems to be the order of the day as Luciano continues in his activity.
Azen looked the trio up and down and noted their expressions. "Well, I can see that. What happened? Julius didn't have any? Strange as he is the biggest dealer of horse flesh in this part of the city."
Looking a bit tired, he got on his pony and turned towards the city. "I guess we can visit one of the others quickly." Then he mumbled under his breath. "Good thing this thing doesn't have a deadline."
"Thieves happened. We'll be walking." It is plain to see that Luciano doesn't wish to elaborate much further.
The halfling nodded in understanding. "I guess we'll try to get something along the way." With that said, Azen urged his mount into a walk that the others would be able to follow easily enough. He rode out of town.
Assuming the others follow, the party finds it a relatively peaceful trip for the first full day as they traveled along the well maintained Roman roads. It's now evening. What do you do?
Dracos
Finding a nice clearing, Azen headed towards it. He was pleasantly surprised when he found traces of an old campfire. Getting off his pony, he tied it securely to an aviable branch.
"I need someone to find some firewood so I can start a fire. Oh, and any of you know how to cook anything decent?" He pulled his stuff from the pony and made sure it was able to graze a bit.
"I was a slave and a fighter, not a cook," Luciano grumbles, "I'll go get the firewood." He unslings his greataxe and goes relieve his stress on helpless trees.
"I'll cook," Cedric volunteers, taking stock of their group's supplies.
While they'd forgotten to really bring supplies, the warriors were able to find some small game to eat luckly enough.
Dracos
Luciano makes himself comfortable on the ground, which is much softer then the cells he used to sleep in.
Bran curls up in a blanket under a tree - being used to sleeping like this all the time (when out raiding, for example). Tomorrow he hopes he'll find some action - and notes that it might be a good idea to keep an eye out for game for dinner.
Once the wood was brought over, Azen started a small campfire. He made sure it would last most of the night, and that there would be some fuel left for the morning and breakfast. "Ok, Cedric. Your turn."
With that done, he wandered near his pony to get his stuff. Then he found a quiet spot on the other side of the camp, and set up his bed where he checked his equipment.
Once he was done with that he relaxed. He didn't have much time to relax recently. Telling the nearest person to wake him when dinner is ready, he caught a nap.
Luciano begins to doze off...
Dinner was prepared, eaten, and the night passed without incident.
Did they continue in the morning?
Dracos
Luciano gets up, stretches, and works the kinks out of his body. He once again prepares his meager belongings in preparation of the trip.
After a quick breakfast was eaten, Azen got the group going again. "We shouldn't have any problems for a while. We're still near Rome and if there is anything to cause trouble, it would have been dealt with already by the soldiers."
Though Azen almost wished for something to happen. It would liven up a boring trip.
Unfortunately, the trip remained monotonous as they traveled comfortably along the well kept Roman roads. If they were looking for trouble, this definitely wasn't the route to it.
Dracos
Luciano plods along, always on alert.
And lo did many such days pass peacefully as they made their way out of roman terratory continuing generally towards the port cities.
Dracos
Plod, plod, plod.
Eventualy the group got to where they had to leave the main road. Azen double checked his directions, then turned onto the smaller path.
"Well, we're getting closer. We should also be more careful now as we're more likely to encounter something on this leg of the trip."
Luciano nods and fingers his chain. Plod, plod, plod.
The path was harsher after they left the roman roads, almost seeming to go in some sort of twisted circle...
And encountering a group of wolves that looked hungrily at them from a distance.
Dracos
Unslinging his chain, Luciano waits for the others to let off a few potshots with their bows before charging in.
OCC: How far is this 'distance' anyway?
Bran, not having much luck in finding large game to feed an equally large appetite, looks back at the wolves with equal hunger and draws his sword.
Azen pulled his ride behind the others and waited for the beasts to close in. He tried counting them then checked the sides and back in case some tried to get around.
Two daggers left their sheaths as he prepared for a fight.
The wolves remain in the distance, looking hungrily on.
Azen: You see about twelve wolves. To your back is plains. To your sides is hills. It's pretty barren out here.
Dracos
Cedric unsheathes his sword, and takes a position next to Bran, letting the wolves come to him.
The distance is maybe a hundred yards. The wolves, being wolves, don't charge the party, merely watching from the distance.
Dracos
"Nobody thought to bring a ranged weapon?" Luciano snorts in disgust and begins advancing slowly, the anticipation of battle enveloping his senses...
Bran shrugs. He USED to have a bow, but that had been lost when he was captured.
He pauses and frowns. Wait... wolves aren't usually man-eaters - not packs, at least. Loners might sometimes be driven to prey on kept animals, but that's about as close as it gets. And attacking a group of humans is... absurd.
"Hey... this isn't normal for woves, friends."
"Leave them for now. We'll set up a trap when we camp just in case though." The pony was steered on a slight tangent away from the wolves, but still in the general direction of their destination. "We lack a healer and shouldn't pick fights with everything we see. It might relieve boredom but it also might relieve us of our lives."
Bran shrugs.
"True enough."
He sighs. If there's hungry wolves right here, there's unlikely to be any large game around... or small game, for that matter. Back to dried fruit and grain pounded into meat...
Taking the silence of the others as agreement, he looked up at the sky, trying to figure out how much longer they were going to march. They tried to move at least eight hours a day, a bit more if the terrain permited it.
As they moved on, he told the others to look for good spots to camp. Either a small cave or a grove of trees. Hoping that it wouldn't be needed, but doing it anyways, he reminded them to keep an eye on the wolves as well.
Rocks fall, everybody dies.
End of Game.
Dracos