Play by Post D&D: The New Begining

[Glitch Girl]

BB: You're right.  Corrected in previous post.

At least one of the men jumps noticibly.  The comand, for his part, seems merely slightly startled. 

"Two of Lord Niles guards, one of the servants, and most serious, the Lord's cousin Edgar visiting from abroad."

[BentonGrey]

A rumbling sound, like the distant crashing of waves on pebbled beach emanates from the sea-elf, his eyes narrowing slightly.  The sound, although distinctive, is hard to attach a meaning to, and his gaze is still studiously neutral.

OOC:  These guys probably aren't the real wrong-doers here, and most of them probably don't know any more than they were told.  However, I wonder about that commander.

[BlueBard]

BB: You're right.  Corrected in previous post.

At least one of the men jumps noticibly.  The comand, for his part, seems merely slightly startled. 

"Two of Lord Niles guards, one of the servants, and most serious, the Lord's cousin Edgar visiting from abroad."

"A serious matter indeed," Whisper nods.  "However, the master of this house is correct; this wood is not under human authority.  I wonder that armed men even dare to enter this wood.  The wood folk, the tree folk, the faerie... let alone the Elves... make this a dangerous place for mortals to tread.  If your murderer fled here, I have no doubt that the forest will serve justice for you."

[Lord Elcorion]

seeing that the men for now are remaining peaceful, annia will allow the eldritch charge to fade from her mace, though she will keep it in hand for the moment.

[Uncle Yuan]

"He sounds very dangerous.  We'll be on our guard."  I glance at Ambrose - how does he seem to be handling the news?  And does he show any indication of shoeing these men away now that they've checked the cabin?

[Glitch Girl]

"A serious matter indeed.  However, the master of this house is correct; this wood is not under human authority.  I wonder that armed men even dare to enter this wood.  The wood folk, the tree folk, the faerie... let alone the Elves... make this a dangerous place for mortals to tread.  If your murderer fled here, I have no doubt that the forest will serve justice for you."

"You may be right," he replies, "but you know the old saying 'Nature makes a poor assasin'.  We are under orders to bring him back dead or alive and-"

The odd oceaning rumbling that seems to be coming from the Sea Elf is disconcerting to pretty much everyone in the cabin and derails the commander's train of thought.

"What was that?" he asks aloud.

"He sounds very dangerous.  We'll be on our guard."

"Um... yes.  Good idea," the man tries to focus back on the conversation.

"Good," smiles Ambrose, "You'd best hurry if you wish to find him before something else does."

Orloid:
Ambrose seems to be keeping a poker face throughout most of the exchange.  You did see him frown a bit when he heard the list of charges and his eyes flicker towards the fireplace but since he was behind the leader, none of the guards saw him. 

[BlueBard]

"Perhaps I have been unclear," Whisper replies to the commander with an edge in his voice.  "I am an Elven Ranger.  This forest is under the protection of my brothers and I.  We are well aware of your presence and I have come here to meet you with a message.  Incursion by human soldiers will not be tolerated by the spirits of the wood.  You need a guide to tread the paths of this forest under the protection of the Elves and you have not sought our leave to be here."

Whisper is well aware that he may be the -only- Elven Ranger currently in this part of the wood, though others may certainly be aware of human presence.  Still, it does not hurt to keep the forest shrouded from the humans in superstitious dread or to enhance the air of supernatural mystery about himself and it definitely would not do for the humans of Oakenhold to get the idea that they have sovereign rights here.  He feels sure that Ambrose would agree with this sentiment.  Even if they must turn Daniel over as a murderer, this precedent of human military incursion in the wood should not stand.

To GM: Is this wood part of Whisper's home of Darkhollow, or another?  And is there Elven authority here?

[Glitch Girl]

Whisper
[spoiler]Your normal stomping grounds are further east than where you are now.  This area isn't under any specific charge, sort of falling in between the edges of elven boundaries and man, not that the average person is aware of that.  You consider Ambrose more of a caretaker of this region than anything[/spoiler]

The commander, obviously off-balance from... well, pretty  much all of you, and now faced with a possible political incident, stammers out "I don't mean to intrude in your woods, sir, but this murder, he cannot be allowed to go free. I... If... Would you come with us.  As a guide.  Then there will be no question of any incursion?"

[BlueBard]

Whisper
[spoiler]Your normal stomping grounds are further east than where you are now.  This area isn't under any specific charge, sort of falling in between the edges of elven boundaries and man, not that the average person is aware of that.  You consider Ambrose more of a caretaker of this region than anything[/spoiler]

The commander, obviously off-balance from... well, pretty  much all of you, and now faced with a possible political incident, stammers out "I don't mean to intrude in your woods, sir, but this murder, he cannot be allowed to go free. I... If... Would you come with us.  As a guide.  Then there will be no question of any incursion?"

"You are therefore prepared to present to me evidence of the crime?" Whisper asks him.  "For Elven Justice demands it.  If you cannot produce such evidence, you must be obliged to make formal petition or to permit me to investigate the charges myself.  I am comitted to do all I can to see that justice is done, of course."

I am of course betting heavily on a human's ignorance of Elven law.  We are not nearly so formal as that.  But no respectable Elf would ever deliver punishment, especially of a capital nature, without some convincing evidence of wrongdoing.  Our taste in punishment, of course, tends toward poetic justice in fitting the crime.

For my part, I have little intention of serving as guide myself unless absolutely required.  I might prevail upon Ambrose to suggest someone, unless someone else comes readily to mind...

[Glitch Girl]

"Of course but... but we don't..." The man stops and thinks for a second. "Wait... formal petition? That doesn't sound..."  He thinks again, this time looking at each of you, including Og and Dakkon.

He sighs wearily, like someone who's not paid enough to deal with people like you all, "Very well. I'll relay your message to the council.  Who should I tell them to petition?"

[Uncle Yuan]

Orloid watches the interplay with silent amusement, a trace of a smile at the corners of his mouth.  Never much one for prevarication he finds Whisper's dance of words quite fascinating . . .

[BlueBard]

"Of course but... but we don't..." The man stops and thinks for a second. "Wait... formal petition? That doesn't sound..."  He thinks again, this time looking at each of you, including Og and Dakkon.

He sighs wearily, like someone who's not paid enough to deal with people like you all, "Very well. I'll relay your message to the council.  Who should I tell them to petition?"

"The Elven Court, of course," Whisper answers matter-of-factly.

He's not too worried about a formal delegation showing up at the Elven Court.  Hopefully any Elven officials will be fast enough on the uptake to realize a perfect opportunity to establish Elven authority in the area, if the humans are that confused about who holds sway.  At any rate, this particular party of soldiers will be long gone and give us a chance to do some investigation.

[Glitch Girl]

"Of course," he sighs. He turns, motions a "let's go" to his men, and starts to head out the door back into the rain without another word.

"Good luck," Ambrose says cheerily as he watches them leave from the doorway.  Theyu appear to be talking amongst themselves as they move off into the woods.

[BlueBard]

"I believe I shall track them a little while, to be sure of them," Whisper announces.  He looks at Orloid and Ambrose.  "Do see what you can find out from our injured friend while I am away."

Whisper draws his Elven Cloak close about him and exits the cabin once the men are just out of sight.  He softly gives Swift the command to stay.  He then follows the soldiers at a distance.  He is moving as softly as he can, doing his best to stay out of clear sight, and following what tracks they may leave.  He wants to make sure of what direction they are travelling in and that they do not split up.

OOC: Time to give everyone else a chance to drive the plot for awhile :)

[Lord Elcorion]

"quite a clever ruse.. and word play such that the good bard might wish to take a few lessons. but i mearly jest. this buys us time. i suggest we use it to our advantage. i still feel this map is our key to the mystery of the Flame, or at least a piece of the larger puzzle. i do not feel that it would be wise to not investigate into it."

[Panther_Gunn]

this buys us time. i suggest we use it to our advantage. "

"We get food now?  yum!"  :thumbup:

"i still feel this map is our key to the mystery of the Flame, or at least a piece of the larger puzzle. i do not feel that it would be wise to not investigate into it."

".....oh.  That.  Yeah, that, too.....I guess."  :(

[Glitch Girl]

(Whisper's scouting will be handled via PM)

Ambrose nods after Whisper as he passes, and shuts the door behind him.

"Quite a clever ruse.. and word play such that the good bard might wish to take a few lessons. but i mearly jest. this buys us time. i suggest we use it to our advantage-"

The Ogre brightens up. "We get food now?  yum!"

"-I still feel this map is our key to the mystery of the Flame, or at least a piece of the larger puzzle. i do not feel that it would be wise to not investigate into it."

".....oh.  That.  Yeah, that, too.....I guess."  Og deflates noticibly.

"Think the lass may have a point," says Ambrose. "But first, I want to hear what our friend here has to say about the charges," he directs a hard look in the direction of the fireplace.

Starbuck
[spoiler]You can feel Daniel shudder as Ambrose looks right at him... well actually near him, but pretty close.  The effect is still the same.[/spoiler]

[Viking]

(OOG: I don't know if GG's house rules are such that a spellcaster can choose to cancel one of his spell effects at will.  E.g., dropping Invisibility.  If this is a legitimate rule, then Starbuck drops both invisibility spells.)

"Indeed," agrees Starbuck.  "Though I dare say that Daniel's willingness to volunteer his story of his theft with little prompting on our part is a point in his favor."

[Glitch Girl]

Both Starbuck and Daniel reappear.

Daniel looks clearly shaken, even moreso than usual.

"IswearIdidn'tkillanyonewhentheysawmeIranIdidn'ttouchanyoneIdon'tevenknowwhatthecousinlookslikeI'veneverkilledanyone [gasp] You believe me, don't you?"

[Uncle Yuan]

I raise one eyebrow (the right) at Daniel's outburst.  It's actually to be expected, guilty or not.

As he finished up his little tirade, I murmur a brief prayer . . .

GM:[spoiler] Detect Lies - one of the spells allowed through the Mind domain[/spoiler]

. . . then I give him a direct look, straight in the eye, and say, "Take a deep breath, Daniel, relax, and say that again so we all can understand you."

[BentonGrey]

"And know that if you lie, I shall see how well YOU can breath under water....."  the sea elf adds darkly, his long azure fingers dancing strangely on the hilt of his sword.  "I care not to keep company with thieves, but much less with murderous ones."

[Glitch Girl]

At Orloid's command, Daniel swallows once, takes a deep breath.  He's about to speak when Dakkon adds his warning.

Daniel turns to Dakkon and pleads "Look, I didn't kill ANYONE!  I've NEVER killed anyone!  When I was in there, the guard saw me and I ran.  I didn't even look back.  I... I  don't even know what Niles' cousin looks like, and now I'm wanted for his murder?  Oh gods..."  He sags down into a heap, head in hand as he slouches by the fire.

Orloid
[spoiler]You feel no change in the aura around Daniel, it would seem he's telling the truth.[/spoiler]

[Uncle Yuan]

Continuing - "But you stole only what you told us, the gold box full of papers and maps?"


"And you lost it in a river while being pursued?"

[Glitch Girl]

 

"But you stole only what you told us, the gold box full of papers and maps?"

"Just the box, that was it... and this," he adds reluctantly.

He reaches into his pants pocket and pulls out a small ornament, barely two inches tall.  It looks like an amazingly cute fluffy kitten made out of ivory with huge soulful emerald eyes.

"Thought the eye might be worth a coin or two," he continues quickly, "but they're just glass. I don't think it's real ivory either.  Just junk."

"And you lost it in a river while being pursued?"

"The river was flowing a lot faster than I expected, it was either that or drown."

Orloid
[spoiler]There's a flicker in the aura as he says "that was it", but it subsides as he show you the kitten, and remains calm through the rest of the questions[/spoiler]

[Viking]

"Well," muses Starbuck, "let's see if we can't set our intrepid rogue to recreating some of what was lost, shall we?"

He produces parchment, a quill, and a stoppered bottle of ink from his pouches.

"You said that you had a good memory for symbols and the like, yes?  Try to draw as much as you can remember from what you saw of the maps - whether pictures or foreign words.  In the meantime, if I could take a closer look at that ornament..."

GM:
[spoiler]Starbuck will quietly cast Detect Magic, and see if the little kitty shows anything new.[/spoiler]

[Glitch Girl]

Sure," Daniel hands Starbuck the tiny cat and takes the paper and pen.  He flattens it out on the floor and starts to draw.

Nathan looks over Starbuck's shoulder as the bard examines it. "How odd," he remarkes.

Starbuck
[spoiler]An aura of magic completely fails to radiate from the kitten as it stares up at your sweetly.[/spoiler]

[Viking]

Starbuck raises an eyebrow at Nathan's comment.

"Yes, Nathan?  What do you make of this ornament?"

[Glitch Girl]

"It looks like something my little sister would like. I think its supposed to be cute, but those eyes... they're so big it's kinda... not cute."  He leans sideways, still peering at it, grimacing a little. 

[Panther_Gunn]

Og looks over everybody's shoulders at the "ivory" cat.

"ooh.  Can Og have?  Kinda like pretty rock.  Og keep it with other pretty rocks.", he says, as he rattles a *different* pouch than what he paid the bar tab with.  It makes a clatter-y sound, and noticing that it came from the *other* side of the belt-line, everyone is pretty sure it'll never get taken by a cutpurse.

[Uncle Yuan]

OOC:We kind of jumped past the "verifying his story" part . . .

After Daniel answered Orloid's questions, Orloid looks up to everyone else and shrugs, "Looks like this human noble thought that a simple theft would perhaps not be pursued as vigorously - he's telling the truth."