Stuck in the Middle With You

[Bjorn]

"You might live, if you talk," Bjorn says in a quiet voice.  "I can't make  you promises, because this is no small matter, and it goes past myself. But mercy isn't beyond us."

His face hardens, then, and he stares down at Mattias.  "Not talking, however, is not an option we can permit to you.  As long as you stay silent, Mattias, you will live, no matter how much you beg to die."

Face softening again, he shrugs.  "But you say you don't care," he points out.  "And if you don't care, why stay silent and make things harder?  What does it cost you to talk?"

[Brian]

He looks doubtful.  "I cannot feel pain," he says.  "You should know why, if you know where my wards are.  Torture won't work."

[Bjorn]

"I know where your wards are," Bjorn says, agreeably, with a faint smile.  "Now, do you care to find out if I can remove them?"

[Brian]

He smirks.  "I'd love to see you try," he says.

[Bjorn]

"Well," Bjorn says conversationally, "let's start testing my hypotheses, shall we?  Could you hand me your spear, please?"  The last is directed at a nearest guard.

To Philip, he writes, The wards are on his bones?  As he says that, he studies Mattias carefully, watching for a reaction to the use of the mindboard.

[Brian]

He seems more interested in the spear that the guard hands you than the mindboard.

[Dracos]

~Yes, but shouldn't we wait for a healer to be on hand?   Damage the wards healing him immediately after until they are all removed?  Or see if the mages can remove them.~

Dracos

[Bjorn]

He can't be healed.  First we'll try the linear approach.  Watch his left shin carefully.

Bjorn studies the spear for a second, hefting it in both hands to get a feel for its weight.  "Your wards," Bjorn says thoughtfully, "seem to be linked to your bones.  Which, logically, raises the question: if your bones break, what happens to the wards?"  

Reversing the spear in his hands and taking it in a baseball-bat grip, Bjorn steps to the side.  "Stand back," he advises the rest of the group, and then looks at Mattias.  "I'd tell you to brace yourself," he says calmly, "but then, this won't hurt anyways, will it?"

[Dracos]

Stands back, keeping a sharp eye on Mattias' bone, the wards on it and near it, and the effect of them.

Dracos

[Brian]

Mattias settles back, largely indifferent.

[Bjorn]

Bjorn steps in and swings the haft of the spear at Mattias' left shin, using every bit of his control and skill to try to break the bone.

[Brian]

It's a jarring blow, and you've wreaked some severe skin and muscle damage, but the shattered spear is suggesting you slammed it into stone, not a man's shin.

Behind you, a portal opens, and Radagast, Eske, and Parthipan spill through it.

[Bjorn]

"Ah, well," Bjorn says, tossing the spear to one side.  "That's one hypothesis down."  

Turning to the others, he says, "Ah, thank you for coming.  We were just discussing how to remove Mattias' protective wards."

[Brian]

Eske blinks at this.  "Well, he had them carved into his bones," he says somewhat doubtfully.  "I have a hard time imagining a way to get them off, myself...."

Radagast frowns, and looks over the situation.  "I'm not entirely certain it could be done and leave him living," he offers.

[Dracos]

"He had to get them in there somehow and survive it once.  How precise are your gates, loremaster Eske?" Dracos questions.  "Could we fill in the carvings that make up the wards?"

Dracos