Stepping out of the library, and working their way to the back of the keep, Nathan and Phil part with the others.
Dracos glances up. "You know, I'd never thought I'd say this but...I miss the sun."
Dracos
"I don't, really. Accursed daystar."
Dracos ponders this a moment and then nods. "Accursed daystar indeed."
Dracos slowly guides the way back to stormrider camp.
Dracos
"Although it is kinda cold."
"No kidding."
Dracos
You pass through the kitchen again, and emerge into the moonlight night.
Ekim is working on something in his forge again, though it's got much quieter sounds than his normal efforts, suggesting he's working on something more intricate than usual.
Dracos eyes the forge curiously, but unless Rez wants to stop goes on to continue back to the stormriders camp.
Dracos
Rez, curiously, decides to go and stick his head in and have a look. They have time, after all.
So he does so. Politely knocking, first.
Ekim doesn't look up from his work.
Which is, on closer inspection, hand-forging (with special tools -- this is the first time you've seen Ekim use anything but a hammer or his bare hands) what look like shells. There's a small stack of nearly completed bullets sitting to one side. They look pretty bulky, probably the right size for an old fashioned revolver.
Rez blinks.
"Morning, Friend Ekim. Are . . . those for Radagast?"
"Morning," he says, nodding. "I don't know what they are," he warns you, in his deep, rumbling voice before you can ask. "But they are hard to make. I find it interesting."
Rez looks at the bullets curiously, checking whether they have cases or they're just the projectiles.
"Pretty strange work. Creative of Radagast. Wonder if he designed them himself." Dracos hummed in an interested tone.
Dracos
"I think so," Ekim murmurs, turning a cylinder over and carefully tapping on it with a hammer. His huge form is surprisingly precise, and the cylinders look like they may very well have been machines, for the quality that Ekim is turning them out with. "He asked me to make many things ... and these are only some." Turning a wary eye back to Nathan, he adds, "Though, I feel it is not wise to pry deeply into the affairs of lorekeepers."
"I've always been too curious for my own good, Friend Ekim," Nathan winks, "And while it's occasionally gotten me in trouble, I would never have retrieved my ancestor's blade without learning such things."
Ekim pauses his work a second time, and studies you appraisingly. "This is true," he says after a moment. "Tell me, Friend Nathan.... What goes on in the castle? I hear little, but sense that all is not well."
Dracos eyed Nathan, turning slightly and glancing around to make sure no one was listening in on the conversation, gesturing slightly to indicate he'd keep an eye out for listeners.
Dracos
"Treachery and suspicion. When we travelled out to meet the stormriders, we found those who would betray us to the dreadmarch . . . and Lord Kevin suspects it in the keep as well."
Rez pauses.
"More than suspects, now. Some lorekeepers tried to kill Radagast last night, and it's believed that there are more traitors waiting for their moment to strike."
Phil sees no one nearby, except a single servant, just leaving a chicken coop with a basket of eggs. She seems not to notice him, and heads towards the keep. "Kill Radagast?" Ekim asks, sounding confused. "Why?"
"Madness and lies. Someone apparently sent an order that Radagast was a traitor." Dracos answered, glancing back at Ekim.
Post
Ekim looks upset about this, and nods. "Radagast said that these were weapons," Ekim confides, pointing at the shells. "I don't know how, but now I understand why he asked for more of them."
"It's good to hear that he has tricks up his sleeve. Bleh. Bad enough with the dreadmarch outside without this cloak and dagger stuff keeping us distracted here. Anyone bother you about that sword at all?"
Dracos
"Not a one," he says, lifting the edge of his shield to check. The sword is there, laying flat on the clean-swept brick. Nodding, he sets the shield back down (it 'thuds' heavily). "It remains safe."
Dracos nods. "Good to hear. Don't know how far others might be, so be careful, Ekim."
Dracos
Ekim nods. "I will be," he rumbles. "And you as well, my friends."
Rez bows respectfully and follows Drac back off towards the stormrider camp.
Dracos leads the way back, looking out for his commanding officers.
Dracos
In short order, you find Sir Warrick Aubron, Lord Roger Lowry, Sir Erik Kethel, Sir Harold Volter, Lord Farwell (you never actually learned if that was his first or last name), and a man you've not yet met before named Lord George Barrock (he's wearing the caribou torc, now).
Your reach them at the same time a contingent of guards from the keep run up to your group. One of them says, "Sirs and Lords, Lord Kevin humbly requests your presence for a meeting of strategy before the battle is to commence."
Judging by the moon, you've got about two hours to go.
Rez starts to look around for Alec, before realizing that he'd probably better not bring him along to the Sekrit Stratuhgee Meeting . . . and so tags along with Drac.
Such is the plan. However, Alec finds you.
The guards lead everyone beneath the keep, where Alec is asked to wait outside with a reasonably large number of guards (twenty of them).
When you enter the room, you see a large table there. Lord Kevin is behind it, deep in conversation with Radagast.
Lammermore is sitting nearby, wearing casual clothes -- he's still pretty heavily bandaged, but looks at least able to move around. To his left are two vassals of hammar and some older looking (but wiry) guy that you've never seen before, and Mirallia.
To Kevin's left is Radagast, and then Dorian, and then Devin. He gestures for you (and company) to take seats for yourself next to him.
Phil and Nathan now go to No Spill Blood (http://pishoque.net/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=37756#37756).
Alec rejoins the cluster of Storm-riders as soon as your party exits the meeting room. "So, how did it go?" he asks.
Dracos rubs his head. "Not as good as could be. But not as bad either." Dracos glances over at Lord Rogers. "Good plan though there."
Dracos continues leading the way back to the storm-rider camp.
Dracos
Rez rolls his eyes amusedly at Alec - behind Drac and the other Lords, of course.
"Well, we ought to round up our men and get into place," Lord Rogers says, waving as he heads towards the main Oxen-clan encampment. "We'll meet again on the fields in glory!" he adds with a shout.
"Aye. Get your men ready, commanders. Hey Nathan, going to keep up today?"
Dracos
The last of your commanders (Farwell) is just leaving when Bjorn catches up to you.
Rez smirks. "Try not to let an orc through your guard again, oh great Lord."
He snaps his glance across to Erik as the aforementioned moves to leave, though - "A quick question, Erik . . . is your wife alright?"
Erik pauses from where he'd been about to dash off, and turns back, blinking in surprise. "Y...yes," he says, nodding. "She's fine. Thank you for asking." He flashes you a grin before turning away and running off.
"Something up, Bjorn?" Dracos turns to him.
Dracos
"Yes," Bjorn says, shortly. "You've managed to offend the entire Keep command, so I've been sent to watch you and keep a leash on you for this battle."
Rez snorts, looking torn between annoyance and amusement.
"Well, at least we're keeping the team together, this time."
Bjorn snorts indelicately. "The team's place is on the front line," he says, "so let's get going." Eyeing the over-sized barbarians, he suggests, "You two get to hold the shields."
"Whee. Oh well. Will have to watch my words a lot closer.'
Dracos
"I don't know if my sword will approve of that tactic, Bjorn."
"You drop the shield when it's time to swing the sword," Bjorn points out. "Now, let's go. You need to get your men in position."
With that, you head off to prepare for the keep, aquiring shields, and milling about before the gates of the keep. The other vassals of Hammar and the storm-rider commanders step out, yelling everyone into formations, shieldmen and pikemen and storm-riders arraying themselves reasonably quickly in ordered ranks.
This thread now merges with Stuck in the Middle with You (http://pishoque.net/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=38138#38138).