Marita lowered her hands, no longer under the threat of being shot. It seemed that they had a bit of time to chat before returning to the Public House and Victoria, ever the opportunist, leaped at the bit to make sure they would be able to obtain silvered weapons. She really shouldn't have been surprised, but it seemed that she hadn't entirely grasped the scope of her comrade's penchant for avarice quite yet. Upon Mallard's statement of payment, Marita decided to chime in for the first time since entering the storefront cum fortress.

"It was a good thing you brought the gold Robert lent us to pay for the purchase, Victoria." If one looked closely enough at Marita's face they would find it as grim and set as it had been for the past while, yet at the same time swear that there was a hint of a smirk hidden in the scowl. Did Marita believe that Victoria would really shirk the bill onto her or have everyone pay for their weapons separately? Truth be told, if left entirely to the bard's judgment, there was a decent chance she would only cover her own weapon. But Marita wasn't going to leave it to the fickle whims of the bard.

The half-elf had been so eager to request material goods with which to skewer other beings, she neglected to procure the far more valuable asset, information. He mentioned them telling him their story before he told his, so she might as well fill him in on what they've been up to. The question was how much to tell. Not because she was worried about the security risks, but they had limited time and he likely knew the truth of the matter, so going on about concocted hypotheses would only chew through valuable time.

"We were sent here by the sheriff of Darenby to investigate the disappearing persons phenomena going on over here. We've only been in town for about a day and had even less time to properly investigate since we helped the L'Roses a bit when we arrived here. It was an in for investigation, but I helped out Robert by working under him as a barmaid last night and now they're about the only people in this township other than the L'Roses that I feel I can trust."

"Trust has become a very expensive thing in Avonshire. Some of 'em? They came back looking and talking just like who left, but they were different. Colder almost. Thought they were more cunning than everyone else. Like they had some secret club. Wasn't until Robert went missing. Says he can't talk about it, but he give me enough to piece together. That's why these manacles are for him. Harvest moon rises tonight."

"Can't even trust the damn rats no more. Little spies, sniffing around like they always have. But they listen you know? To those that know how to talk to them."
"My family left as soon as I figured it out. I stay here, keep folk thinking we're still around. Gives them time to get far from here before the moon gets full. I'm locking myself up here until it's over, then I'm leaving that dawn to find them."

"You know what this is, right? Could be anyone. The ones that accepted it, they let go. The ones that didn't... I don't care to find out what happened to them."

"I'll say the word once, and quiet as the grave," His voice dropped to a whisper, even as he worked feverishly at the silver inlay in the manacles, "Wererats."

Just then a rare sight appeared in the silversmith's. Marita smiled. Not a simple smile or a smirk, but a smarmy, self satisfied grin that stretched from ear to ear. It was sublime, the validation that washed over her hearing it straight from the horse's mouth. All that time spent worrying about what was going on in this godsfosaken town, the looming threat of the time limit and a dozen other things, and she had nailed it essentially on her first serious guess. But she did not allow herself to revel in it; this was a serious moment and they still had things to discuss, not to mention with the three most conspicuous members standing out in the open outside the shop, who knew how long until they attracted trouble. She quickly recomposed herself before responding.

"I don't know if you're familiar, but Robert is under a Geas, a set of magical instructions that he has to follow, lest he die. It takes quite a powerful spellcaster to be able to use one of those, and that almost has me more concerned than the other problem. I take it you don't know who could possibly be the culprit." She didn't have much hope that he would know, if this mage were the mastermind behind this entire situation, they likely kept their identity secret, but it wouldn't hurt to ask.

Marita frowned, now that she thought about it, some more things were starting to line up. He just mentioned the Harvest moon. What were the chances that they were sent to investigate this matter during one of the busiest times of the year during a big festival rather than a more quiet time when there would be fewer complications to juggle?

"Actually, from what I've picked apart there's a few big pieces missing from the puzzle. What do they actually want? And how does the Harvest Moon and the festival tie into everything?"

Kosara had fun dancing in the rain and in the puddles. Correction, she had a LOT of fun! Splashing about was just so satisfying, even when she heard the pastry named dragonborn call out to her a few times to get her to stop because she’s apparently splashing him too. She just giggled and continued dancing. Well it wasn’t that bad, surely! Just a bit of water! She just danced, not like she was targeting him specifically. She was sending water everywhere around her with stomping or spinning. She wished it rained like this back home, it would be one incredible spectacle to dance under rain for a public! Maybe she could learn a spell or find an enchanted artifact that would make it possible? She had to send the idea to her family, if they could figure it out, it would certainly make the Oasis even more popular and bustling!

Eventually she turned to look at him briefly when he posed a question and just laughed a bit and nodded as she spun around, sending her braid flying. It was actually shifting her mass a bit because of how wet it was, but not enough to hinder her. Just enough to make it behave differently than normal and she liked how weighty it felt.” No!” She replied and did another spin with a huge grin on her face.” I’m from the desert, so there’s hardly any rain and even when there’s any, it’s way shorter and weaker. I don’t know we’ve ever had rain like this back home. I mean I saw it rained more up north when I began traveling here, but I never stopped enough to pay attention so far! Such a mistake on my part!” She quickly added, giving him a huge grin briefly before hopping away, only to nearly slip and fall over when she heard a certain grumpy constable that had seemingly appeared out of nowhere. Alright that wasn’t right, she had lightly noted somebody making music, but didn’t expect it to be Mr Grumpy.

“Hello Mr Sir Constable Cavendish! Also company!” Kosara chose to greet him loudly, energetically and with a huge happy smile as she did a salute in the rain, sending water about again. Also didn’t miss to greet the constable’s stooges. Had to be noted, she was happy enough right now to call him by his real name without butchering it in some form or another subconsciously. Him appearing wasn’t going to BREAK her fun. No sir! That said, she tried to be a bit loud and hoped that anybody inside the silversmith might note the chaos outside. Kosara would have no qualms escalating things into a fisticuffs for the right reasons, but she wasn’t sure what was happening, despite strong leanings that Mr Grumpy was possibly part of the ones up to no good. So she attempted to give a bit of a warning to the folk inside. Wasn’t sure if they’d hear, but it was worth a shot.” Thank you! It’s very fun!” She quipped and hopped nearby.” Why would you want him to resist though? Aren’t men of law always wanting people to resist less cause it makes it easier?” The pale tiefling also asked, voice completely filled with curiosity this time around. It was a fair question she wanted to hear the answer to. Usually in her travels most guards grumbled about extra work while Mr Cravenfish seemingly wanted MORE work. Did he like fighting that much?

Kathryn stood frozen a bit once the door to the silver smith was closed. Kathryn turned back with a look of confusion and shock still on her face, but she figured things turned out better then last time. So that was good. Now it was in the hands of Victoria and Marita from here. And as long as the trio outside didn't do anything too outlandish, she figured they should be all set. She turned with a bit of a grin as Kosara went playing in the rain. It was cute and adorable, though it made Kosara seem a lot younger then she actually was. Then upon a moment of thinking, she had no idea how old her tiefling friend was. For all she knew of tieflings Kosara could be as young as 12, or older then 50. She would have to clarify that up when she got the chance. Blackberry was was trying his best to keep dry, and much to Kosara's efforts it wasn't working. Kathryn had to suppress a chuckle as the two worked out their dispute in the rain. "My uncle also said there's not a lot of rain in the desert. He said the heat was lethal as well. If you spent too long in it you would shrivel into a raisin, or burn to a crisp. Is there any truth to that? I've never been to one myself. And my Uncle was a bit... Bias when it came to talking of his tales of travel." She loved and missed her uncle, but he was an intense man who saw much of the world as on his side, or out to get him.

She looked over just in time to see a rather big growing pain in her side. Constable Cavendish. She hoped, she hoped so badly that he was just a stressed aging man who was ready to go to the extreme to protect his home. Though at this point that logic could only go so far. He was making shady behind the scene deals, had attempted to lure Kosara and herself out and away to likely deal with them. Kathryn pulled the shield off of her back and slid it onto her arm. Though she made sure to keep her hand free and unarmed. She was on guard duty, and she would do everything she could to convey being a professional blade master, without coming across as threatening. But she had a feeling the basket had been tossed down stream just a few too many times, and they were running out of stream to send this basket down. He was looking for a fight, and like Kosara mentioned he was all too eager for it. Kathryn had tasted power like that. Heir to a keep, lands, and even a small army if things went to plan. She was also a massive brute who could over power most humans with relative ease. She had skills in combat that could rival many guards and soldiers. And the idea of using any of that power the way that Constable Cavendish was so eager to use it would have made Kathryn sick. He held power over others, and he wanted everyone else to know it. Well now she had.

"Mister Cavendish." Kathryn spoke sharply like the woman of authority she was raised to be. A woman who's words were law the moment they left her lips, and with the deep power that only a person her size could give to her words. "What is the meaning of this. What has this man done to deserve your ever so eager wraith." Like Kosara, her voice was loud. It boomed as she locked eyes with the constable. Something about the way the question was put to Cavendish made him pause his otherwise unerring march up to the silversmith's door. He even gave a cocky grin, patted the head of his very shiny warhammer with one hand, and responded, ”You are one tower of a lady, you know that? Okay, I'll humor you. Let's say I'm the Law in this township and I can take anyone I want away and put them to the question. I can, I have, and I do. But you want something that looks nice on paper? I'm dead sure that Jacques Mallard is plotting against the ones that rule over this place. And I say, if you aim to get in my way or help him in the least, you and your friends are next. Put that in your flagon and choke on it.”

Kathryn didn't like that answer. And it only confirmed her worst fears. He was a power hungry lunatic with a boner to be large and in charge. She didn't like the way he played with that hammer of his. He wondered if he would be the way he was if he didn't have something like that at his disposal. Would he play his power games like this if his big showy tool was taken from him? Kathryn was worried she would have to find out. She stepped forward making sure if any of the guards attacked any of the trio they would have to get through her first. There was a small part of her that was optimistic, that the fancy hammer he held was little more then a light show and that he was just competent with it. Enough to scare his own men when he touched it. She still didn't want things to come to blows. Like before, there were no good outcomes. "Mister Cavendish. I know we don't see eye to eye, but you strike me of a man who has more education then most people. One who understands the issues of international relations and how delicate they can be. I would plead with you to consider your next actions carefully." Kathryn took a deep breath before correcting her posture to that resembling a woman of her rank in court. Though a lot harder to achieve with the build of someone who could lift others with ease, layered on with layers of steel chain mail, and the oaken reinforced shield. Kathryn spoke up in her commanding voice yet again, though not as sharp as her opening statement. "My name Kathryn Pyke of Arcanaple. Decedents of the mountain clans of Silvertongue's peak, and a proud member of house V-" She stopped.

Choked being a more accurate description. Her confidence and determination to keep this situation under control had finally wavered. Though only about a full second passed, it felt like several minutes before Kathryn could pull the words up again. And though with a commanding voice, the confidence that gave it power had worn to dust. "A proud member of house VanEmber, off shoot of house Ember. I am here on personal business with Mister Mallard and have full intentions on seeing it through. If you plan on going through me to accomplish your mission, you must surely know you're gambling with the affairs of people in stations much higher then your own." She took a deep breath, losing the posture of a lady of the court in favor of a woman ready to stand her ground. "You have shown your intentions to be cruel and dishonest. I can not let you continue on in good conscience. Stand down and go back to Municipal Building and reconsider your actions. But you will not enter that silver smith." Kathryn spoke ready to stand her ground. The basket had been tossed, and he was looking for a fight. Maybe she could get him to back down, but she figured that the moment had passed. "To you lads following our dear constable, the offer goes to you too. Go home. And don't get wrapped up in this man's antagonism. Following orders is no excuse if those orders are immoral." She expected things to kick off, and was prepared for it. Though she was up front of the trio, she made sure to stay out of their weapon reach. That left little room to maneuver though once things kicked off.

The door slammed shut and then followed by the dull thud of something being moved behind it. BlackBerry supposed that this was one of the better outcomes from the whole scenario, and now it was up to Victoria and Marita.

"Perhaps the item Robert's requested isn't quite done?" He commented after a few quiet moments, thankfully devoid of any screaming coming from the building.

Damn it all. He thought. If the man really objects that much to me hiding under his roof from the rain he can come out and tell me himself.

He scuttled back under the overhang, beside the ever stoic Morty, and sighed when he escaped the oppressive drizzle. A flash in the distance made him tense and he instinctively counted the seconds; one, two, three…then the thunder whispered in the distance. He relaxed at the thought that the storm had now mostly moved on. For a moment he considered trying again to listen in to the sounds inside but decided that if the other two were in trouble they would make it known one way or another.

'Once bitten, twice shy.' A memory chided him.

He mulled over Kosara and Lady Kathryns words and the idea of somewhere with hardly any rain…

"That does sound rather nice. I have always held the belief we could do with a touch less rain." He shifted the weight of his bag in an attempt to unstick the robes on his back. "I shall have to visit, if there is anywhere in particular you would recommend?"

It was rather charming actually to see Kosara finding such joy in something as mundane and inconvenient, at least in his eyes, as rain.

He also wanted to hear if it was true someone could shrivel up like a raisin in the desert's heat. On the surface it sounded a bit silly but then again they were about to deal with Were-Rats so who was he to say what was silly or impossible these days.

A shrill whistle cut through the air, heralding the arrival of three others walking over to them. The shadows of the man's gaunt face accentuated the cruel twist of his smile. Constable Cavendish looked just as mean as BlackBerry had imagined when the man had been mentioned in the earlier conversation, and the hammer he held looked just as cruel. He could easily picture the man taking money from others, just as Kathryn had said and no doubt much worse.

BlackBerry tried his best to stifle a chuckle, it came out more as a snort, at Kosaras comment. Probably not the best idea from either of them but BlackBerry couldn’t fault a snide comment or joke at some unsavoury character's expense. Quickly he wiped the smile from his face.

BlackBerry listened intently while Kosara and Cavendish traded words. He undid the button clasp as the scene unfolded before him; Kathryn building herself up as an impenetrable wall of force between the guards and the silversmith and giving the three ruffians a verbal dressing down as she did so. He then winced when Lady Kathryn fumbled her words. He knew how that felt. But, there was a glimmer of information she had managed to goad from the man.

It was worth a try but as far as BlackBerry cared there was only one way to deal with bullies like them. He took the several steps needed to be by Lady Kathryns side, casting a quick look back to make sure Morty was standing guard, and readied himself for the fight he could feel brewing in the air around them all.

Perhaps they could hold off the storm though for however much longer the others inside needed. Maybe the three of them could get a message to the others somehow? Then again Lady Kathryns voice did carry far down the street so hopefully those inside had heard.

"Might we be so lucky that they would back down?" He whispered to Lady Kathryn with no small amount of incredulity.

He kept his hand on his sword, still kept safely in its sheathe. For now.

Though Victoria's mouth remained in a sociable, warm smile, her eyes widened with some combination of emotions a little less genteel. Her head turned to her companion in their endeavor, Marita, with this look of repressed emotion squarely fixed. Proper control over her features (an effort refined by years of showmanship and performance) asserted itself, but her eyes still entertained some sort of more-or-less good natured retribution brewing. Finally, a quiet head shake and hint of smile revealed itself which seemed to relate, "Well played."

Fine. Victoria had been "gotten". She was gracious enough to roll with it for the sake of their mission. "Fortuitous indeed, Lady of the Faith," started Victoria, the flourish common to her gestures somehow finding a spiritual sister in her voice, as if she was giving a tiny sample of her more public oratory works. "Robert's generosity and forethought to our needs bears remarkable fruit, of course." She smiled and reached into a pocket on the inside of her coat, producing the five gold coins she had taken from the table back at the Public House. Victoria stacked them neatly on the counter toward the center of the room, along with her sword belt which still contained her slim cut & thrust sword.

The idea of keeping it on her was the initial instinct being as they were confirmed to be in the middle of a hostile situation. This thought was shattered by the realization that, if the enemy was indeed a were-creature, her favorite pointy implement would be useless against them anyway. She had her magic, a long, reliable dagger, and she had her Morty. Morty couldn't do much against them either, though it would be amusing to the extreme to command the animated foodstuff to chomp down on a wererat leg and run for it. Or bar a door. Or act as a smoked, salt-cured tripping log. Merely buying time for the group's survival made this poor, dead beast a worthwhile investment. For a half-second, Victoria wondered what other accomplishments could be had when her abilities blossomed more fully. A grim smile followed and she put it out of her mind. There were more pressing matters at hand - namely keeping herself and her present party alive. And reasonably intact. "We've three more outside, Monsieur Mallard," she informed, hoping that the additional numbers wouldn't throw off the timing of his work.

Outside, regardless of whatever else was or was not occurring, Morty just stood there dumbly underneath the building's overhang, unmoving, like a sack of flour that lost its will to continue.

Weather: Raining, though some lighter. The occasional roll of mild thunder still sounded without any particular malice, and the sky was still overcast to the point of obscuring the sun. It was still cool but not overly cold, though the damp air might have made one give a dissenting opinion. Overall, no change from a half hour prior.

Time: Still mid-afternoon.

Ambience: Inside of the building, a man who presented as crazy worked diligently over his small pot forge. Outside, a different man who presented as an antagonist approached Jacques's front door, and he brought allies. The rain remains and water continues to run down the streets and into drainage, making the cobblestone street navigable but somewhat slippery to the unwary. There's mischief afoot.





Jacques picked up his pace as best he could without sacrificing quality, though he maintained conversation as best he could. Marita seemed to have the questions, so she was the one that the silversmith addressed first. "Figured that magic was involved. I know a little more than the next man in this town about magic, least enough to recognize 'geas'. Can't say who or what's responsible - like I said, I'm aiming to wait out the worst and leave town when daybreak comes. Details can sort itself out when my family's safe." Another unrolling of braided silver wire, another application of heat, and another tapping of swirling patterns to the interior of the metal cuffs. "Near to done..." he murmured. Speaking a little louder, he continued the discussion. "Don't know what they want, except to turn people. They've been getting aggressive with it, if the disappearances indicate anything. But... the Harvest Moon? You haven't sussed that one out yet?"

He set down his work and stared directly at Marita, giving only a glance or two toward Victoria. "The Harvest Moon. One begins with autumn and marks the start of the main crops coming in, but in Avonshire we recognize another. It marks the end. Grain harvests are in, pork gets cured away for the cold months. Things are pickled and preserved. But none of that's important. Harvestide marks the last full moon of Autumn. That's tonight and it lasts for three nights. There are infected wererats in Avonshire (whether they know it or not) that are going get very active as soon as the moon rises, and I don't know how many there are. The festival is incidental."

With Victoria, he was a little more terse. The general feel of this less loquacious attitude was easily explained by his desire to finish up work which he had almost completed. "Five gold. That will do. Yes." Jacques spared a glance over to her sword on the counter, stating, "You got that sword north of here. Someplace with money. Nice blade. Um... I can do five weapons about this size before nightfall. Four hours, maybe five, I can give you all something decent. But my door doesn't open after dark tonight, and it won't until daybreak."

Finally, Jacques rose from his workstation and handed the wrist/ankle manacles over to Marita, as well as the accompanying chain which connected them. His demeanor looked better composed now, if still ragged around the edges. He then too up Victoria's sword and inspected it more closely. "Slender, but it will take a fine inlay. Yes. Bring whatever else you want silvered, soon as you can. Hmm... filigree? No... swirls maybe. Nevermind. Function over form, but I will make them look presentable, hmm." His stability appeared to slip momentarily.



Cavendish continued undisturbed by the imposing manner and speech of Kathryn. With the exception of a quick glance up in either direction, his gaze remained focused in front of himself, to the door he wished to enter and the people putting themselves in his way. He shifted his hammer off to one side, preparing to swing as soon as he got within the appropriate of his target which might have been the door or its fleshier guardian, either way would have sufficed.

The Constable ignored Kosara completely, not giving more than a silent glance in her direction. He seemed to study Baronfjord but again, did not address the unfamiliar Dragonborn. To Kathryn, he scoffed, saying, "Well then, m'Lady... aren't you just extra fancy?" A sneer followed, which seemed to be the answer given by the two guards at his rear flanks. One of them went so far as to hiss out a scathing bit of laughter. Cavendish went on, unperturbed at this display, "Anyone who stands in front of me, or tries to stop me, isn't getting a trial. Hells, it won't matter what happens to you in a few hours anyway. So you do whatever feels right." An unsettling smile formed on the man's features. He strode forward, the guards now moving to flank him on either side. They hefted spears as if to receive a charge and moved forward with their leader.

Inside of the shop, Jacques's head turned toward the boarded up windows. He raced toward one and peered out through a tiny slit between the wooden slats. Fear rose in his voice as he stated aloud, "No, don't... don't let them take me! I'm as good as dead if.. Hurry!"

One might swear that a glint of red swelled in the edges of the Constable's eyes as his lips curled into a satisfied smile. He had to look up to lock eyes with Kathryn, the tall and powerful warrior who stood before him, though if her stature was a concern for him he showed nothing of it. No words, nor posturing were wasted at this time. She stood in his way. If he had his druthers on the matter, soon she would not.

With blinding speed that one wouldn't imagine from a man of his stature, Cavendish suddenly reversed his grip on his hammer and darted forward. The shaft of his hammer lay across his forearm, its well-crafted head providing just a little extra oomph when connection was made. Cavendish had only a couple of feet; nevertheless enough room to build up sufficient momentum to knock the woman prone. He casually stepped over Kathryn's fallen form and nonchalantly ordered to his guards behind him, "Pincushion that bitch and anyone else who tries to stop us."

The Constable strode to the front door of the Mr. Mallard's shop and gave the door a stout kick. The door, presently latched but not barred, shuddered and swung open. A look of surprised amusement came over his face. The women he had earlier referred to as "The Barmaid" and "The Pretty One" stood between him and the silversmith.

This was not a fight that they needed right now. They weren't ready. Ill-equipped, if what they suspected was correct, if even the Constable was involved. but none of that mattered in the face of what had become a direct attack. Victoria didn't have a lot on information on what was going on at first, but just as soon as the door came open, things became obvious. The Bard had just earlier opted to slide her violin off of her back, with the idea being to use it as a casting focus if the worst was coming to pass as her dagger, however utilitarian and useful it might be, was simply not the tool for this job.

Even braced for an inevitable fight, Victoria was startled when Cavendish readily got through the door. He hadn't quite entered yet when Victoria drew her bow over the strings of her preferred instrument. It was a single note held solidly for half of its span, growing ragged around its apex and fading into quiet discord. As the sound of the violin abated, it was replaced with a whispered chant from Victoria's lips, her melodic voice both beautiful and eerily unsettling. Simultaneously, Cavendish began to look around himself fearfully, trying desperately to cover his ears without dropping his hammer, regardless of the fact that stifling his hearing did nothing to help the whispers echoing inside of his head, bouncing about and doing harm to his psyche. He stumbled back down the short few steps in front of the door, grunting and hunched over in reaction to the unwelcome presence of what sounded like lost souls hissed promises of death and madness eternal within the confines of his mind.

More keenly aware of what was going on outside now, Victoria issued a mental command to Morty, still outside, altering his standing orders. To the observer on the street, nothing changed with the preternaturally still, burlap wrapped beast. The poor, dead bastard was merely waiting for its trigger before it would leap into action.

NOTE: Cavendish is now at L16.

@rivaan - Kosara is up next. Huzzah!

The fight kicked it off rather quickly and by surprise, Kosara vaguely realized as Cavendish bashed Kathryn into the ground, rather impressive feat considering size differences and one that rose red flags in her mind." Hey!" She shouted in protest as the man rushed towards the door and bashed it in while ordering his men to turn Kathryn into a pincushion! The never of that man." No you don't you meanies! Don't you hurt my friend!" She shouted at the two guards with the spears as she turned to face them, face locked in justified glorious childish like expression of anger as she stared at one of the guards.

Her posture lightly hunched forward as she pointed her harns at the man." CELETIAL BLAST!" She shouts as sparkles of golden gather at the middle point between her horns and unleashing a point blank beam of golden energies right at him! It hits true, searing at him with just fury! In return Kosara hears a really loud hissing from the man. Why is he hissing, he isn't a snake! Though the reflection of dim red from his eyes gives her a momentary pause before she narrows her own eyes in fury and bares her teeth. They had explored and investigated enough so far. They had information that there were wererats here and possibly other monsters like coffin and tree goblins! Maybe even many others more! This just confirmed it in her mind." YOU ARE A MONSTER AND I SHALL DEFEAT YOU!" She growls, eyes darting between the two men now as she pointed a finger at the men!

(@Sigil I tag thee GUARD ONE! I TAG THEE WITH A CELESTIAL BLAST!)

He was ordered to "pincushion" the woman on the ground in front of him, and damnit, he was going to. There was a momentary distraction as Constable Cavendish came practically tumbling back out of the building in obvious distress, but he'd be plucked like a supper chicken if the man's last order was ignored. The Guard raised his spear in a two-handed grip and prepared to bring it down. He didn't foresee being blindsided by magic.

The searing pain of that accursed devil-spawn's attack very near put Mr. Guard to a knee. He certainly wasn't expecting to be physically hurt by these outsiders. But if one was going to, it was going to be with magic. Unlike the storybooks, spellcasting types didn't walk around wearing robes and scholarly hats all the time, he was finding out. No matter, he had orders from a man that he did not want to cross, and a fresh sear of pain to vent. He glared at Kosara, letting his mask slip a little, but brought the weapon to bear on Kathryn. Some of it was out of spite.

The spearhead slams down upon the prone form of Kathryn, unable to penetrate the thick armor at first. Again it comes down, this time widening a gap and finding the softer flesh beneath. The Guard sneers maliciously, but not at his target. His eyes found the Tiefling who hurt him instead.



The other Guard in Cavendish's entourage heard the order given as well, and readied himself to move on it with expedient precision. He too had noticed the effect upon the Constable and now something more blatantly painful happen to his fellow Guard, and stuck to his orders like a professional. But in this instance, they had overriding orders in the event of certain circumstances coming into the skirmish. He glanced up in the same direction that Cavendish had twice or three times earlier, to the upper windows of the building across the street, placed a hand to the side of his mouth, and yelled, "MAGIC!" as if to signal something to come.

The Guard promptly set to likewise "pincushion" the downed Kathryn. He advanced menacingly, slamming his spearhead down in something close to frenzy, multiple times to find an opening in the armor and inflict as much damage as possible, like a message needing to be punctuated in hot, arterial red. Unfortunately for his side, he couldn't find a solitary point of penetration, leaving a series of spots that would yield nothing but roundish bruises if left to their own devices.

@Remipa Awesome Kathryn has taken 9 points of piercing damage.

@Arty Fox TAG - you're it.

BlackBerry blinked and the world turned sideways; Kathryn had been knocked to the ground by Cavendish and now being set upon by the other two guards. Cavendish had already strode past with frightful speed, but he wasn’t BlackBerry’s main concern right now, hopefully the other two in the silversmith could handle themselves. Right now he needed to get those two guards away from Kathryn, give her room to get back up.

The Guardshad revealed their true colours.

The shortsword scraped out of the sheethe and flashed dimly in the radiant light of Kosaras spell He held the sword aloft in his hand, keeping his left side, armed with the sword, forward in an almost fencing stance. The guard had the advantage with the pole, but BlackBerry hopefully had speed to avoid any attacks.

“Get away from her, you brutes!”

He strode closer to them hoping they would back off, they were too close. He swung viciously at the closest Guard, then drove forward. He watched its point sink deeply into the Guard with grim satisfaction. The Guard hissed and sputtered, crumpling back slightly. The blade withdrew with barely a wisp of blood upon it, quite easily, as if its physicality actively rejected the invasion of sharpened metal. The terrible wound that must have been inflicted wasn't present, however, as what damage was inflicted immediately rights itself.

BlackBerry looked aghast between the new hole in the guards armour, completely devoid of any sign of a wound or even any bloody, and the Guards wicked grin.

Oh. These weren’t just any thuggish guards.

“Fine.” He spat. Right foot slipping closer forward to his left and he sunk slightly into his knees. “Let's try something else.”

He felt the energy swirl inside him. From his core it pulsed and up through his chest where it split and poured out to his shoulders. Fire ignited at his shoulders, coiling , writhing, living columns burned into life and throwing out an otherworldly force at the offending Guards. The fiery limbs, burning without heat, sculpted themselves into the vague shape of arms and hunched around BlackBerry’s frame; a boxer's guard, right fiery hand close to his cheek and the left fiery hand held at the same at the same height but further forward, still allowing space for him to hold the short sword out and keep the Guard at bay.

@Dragoknighte - Your turn!

Marita had assumed that trouble would find its way to their location sooner rather than later, but she didn't expect this amount to literally force its way in. She had really wanted to avoid coming into conflict with the lawmen of this township, but Cavendish seemed intent on forcing it, not to mention the chances being exceptionally high that he was in league with the wererat conspiracy overrunning everything. Whether he was there for them or for Mallard didn't really matter at that point, she wasn't having it either way.

Victoria was quicker on the draw, performing some sort of mental attack on Cavendish, which forced him back outside of the shop. Marita walked out after him while she reached over to her beltline. While she had disarmed herself of her main weapon and shield, she hadn't completely left herself defenseless. The cleric produced a dagger, long and slender with a black handle and a wickedly sharp edge. Even if it wasn't a reliable way to harm those with the curse, she doubted that they would be able to shrug off a dagger to the throat or eye.

When she stepped outside and she Kathryn on the ground bloodied and surrounded by guards with spears, her sneer turned into a snarl as flames lit behind her eyes. Cavendish and his troop had been swaggering around town, self assured in their authority to do as they pleased. She had given them the benefit of the doubt up to this point, but no more. She was going to show them what it truly meant to have the Law on one's side.

Cease this at once.

Marita's command was backed up with the power of Order itself and demanded those that heard her do as she said. The cleric had used her Voice of Law several times before now in specific ways to cast her spells, but this was its purest expression: the ability to speak with a fraction of authority a deity possessed. Cavendish struggled against the command before dropping his weapon while one of the guards let go of his spear immediately. The other holding a bloodied weapon held firm and laughed at her command, not quite realizing the situation he was in as the only man currently on his side of the battle wielding a weapon. It wasn't an ideal outcome, but now Kathryn would at least have a chance to get to a better position.

@Remipa Awesome

Kathryn was really hoping for things to not break out into a clash. There was no good ending for them without jumping through so many hoops they were bound to trip. But that choice had been taken from her as the war hammer was brought up towards her. Seeing this she attempted to bring a shield up to protect herself before it could make contact, only adding another piece of debris in its path before the hammer struck her in the chest sending her flat on her back. As the constable stepped over her limp body she vaguely remembered reaching out towards towards him in one final effort to stop his advance towards the silver smith. While she collected her thoughts she did little more then lift her hand from the ground as a large magical blast went off next to her surprising her and she brought herself up to her hands and knees, only to be struck back down by glancing metal against her armor, then again with another strike. This time she felt the blade pierce her armor and felt the wound inside of her. Resisting the urge to shout in pain she let out a pained grunt as she bit her lip. She felt as more and more metallic points glanced off her, and now more then ever she was thankful for the protection this looted set of armor had provided for her. She did wonder if it would have done a better job had it not been falling apart as bad as it was.

The word "Magic!" being called out helped to wake Kathryn from her initial shock. She fell to her rear and she went to stand up, seeing Blackberry stab the guard with his sword, only for him to recover near instantly. She stood up shield in hand, weapon still not drawn ready for payback against this senseless violence. She offered these goods a chance to back down, and now they would face the punishments for not doing so. Though she didn't consider herself an especially violent person, nor a spiteful one. She had her flaws, and she intended to let these lawmen who abused their power to know those flaws. That's when she noticed Cavendish running from the silver smith's door Marita following. She wondered what had happened within that door to trigger that mess, but she didn't have long to think as Marita commanded the fighting to stop. She had no idea if she was commanding everyone, something to do with being a religious woman, or just the lawmen. But watching Cavendish go docile and drop his weapon. As well as one of the other guards. her mind trailed back to that weapon. A tool used by the Constable to wave his dick around and to bring his word of Law into town. The idea made Kathryn sick, but now it was out of his possession and she intended to keep it that way.

She took the chance at making a break for it, she stood up and booked it across the street. Her efforts were met with a sheering pain in her back as the last guard stabbed her in the back, puncturing where the links in her chainmail were weak and cutting clean through. "FUCKING... Bitch!" Kathryn snapped pulling herself off the spear. She turned to see the sly grin of the guard to had stabbed her. She still hadn't drawn a weapon yet and she had already lost track of how many times she had been stabbed, some more successful then others. She took a deep breath and attempted to collect herself and made a lunch for the hammer, Cavendish who had finally collected his senses saw her move and made to stop her. Bringing his foot up to kick her back, maybe down again. Kathryn brought up her fist and struck the bottom of his foot, bending it nearly parallel with his leg as he regained his footing, and Kathryn grabbed the warhammer. The first thing she noticed was how easy it was to hold. It was light, felt like it should be considerably smaller then it was. Seeing Cavendish though brought rage back into the warrior princess. Here was a man who abused his power, attacked those who either couldn't defend themselves or with out any provocation, and who took joy in the harm he brought to others.

Kathryn lifted the hammer with rage in her eyes. "AAAUUUGH" she screamed as she brought the hammer to side swipe his knees, lifting up his leg, and slamming him between the hammer and the road beneath him. That seemed to have done some harm to him, and to inflict wounds he wouldn't easily recover from like his friend. She jerked the hammer off him with some force before locking eyes with the guard who had gotten two good blows on her, with a look on her face that showed that Kathryn hadn't forgotten about his cruel acts. And he would be punished for them. She then turned down to look at Cavendish, any sense of mercy she had before the fight started gone. Replaced with someone who was ready to end this fight.

@Sigil CAVENDISH

"...MAGIC!"

The cry went up mere seconds prior and a lot seemed to happen in that time. From the direction which Cavendish had been looking before this meeting turned to violence (and by extension the same direction the guard yelled his proclamation after Kosara cast her very painful cantrip), a quick flutter of movement could be seen. Across the street from the silversmith's shop stood a building with a double-peaked roof, each peak bearing an attic window, and each shutter attached to these attic windows suddenly flung open. Others under the command of the Constable knelt behind these windows bearing crossbows, keyed into the threat of magic users. And so the conflict continued.



The utterance of that word, "Magic", in a loud voice was all the prompting necessary to put these Guards into their pre-decided roles for the conflict. But when shutters opened and the time to drill someone to death with a crossbow bolt from afar, no one was actively priming a spell. Sure, there were two people who were mostly unarmed which were visible, but only one with big, nigh spectral arms floating around themself. He took aim at the Dragonborn with a simple and effectively crafted light crossbow and depressed the trigger mechanism.

The bolt flew unerringly, nigh perfectly with just enough of a spiral, riding the wind like a leaf upon the surface of a river. It was almost poetic in its travel across the thoroughfare. A critical success, one might say. The bolt found a new home with Baronfjord. One might suspect that it was an unwelcome tenant.

@Arty Fox Baronfjord has taken 10 points of piercing damage.



Emboldened by his colleague on the other side of the attic, Guard 4 let out a mighty "AHA!" and took aim for himself. Yes, the blue lizard-fellow was going down, and he would be the one to take its skin for a charming belt and boot combo. Maybe some gloves if there was enough left over. Or a vest. Definitely a vest over the other selections. Okay, vest if nothing else. Ah, the plans he had.

His crossbow twanged with fury and the utmost of stabbiness, releasing its payload into the air. If intent could be weaponized, this fine device would be throwing boulders as the stoniest of giants might. Yes, this was going to hurt.

Unfortunately, the bolt flew so wide as to be laughable, causing the ranged antagonist to facepalm. This was an almost utter failure.

This was unexpected. Damn these people and damn his cousin Gregory for sending them. By no means was this the end of the discussion. If Cavendish had his way, they would set fire to the silversmith's after every one of these people were tied up inside. Including that fly-in-the-ointment Jacques Mallard. Needless to say, he had to turn this fight around, and quickly.

Cavendish righted himself with a remarkable demonstration of dexterity. It still cost him a precious moment, but this was not his place to fall and people would know it. As he rose, the Constable's fingers closed around the hilt of a vicious-looking shortsword at his belt. He kept low, and set himself to the utilitarian labor of a simple and unrelenting series of motions designed to aerate someone's midsection. He was aiming to cripple and set an example of this tall, critically annoying woman.

The first such blow landed in what might have been a critical spot, were it not covered with stout (enough) armor. The shortsword clanged and turned, incapable this time of penetrating Kathryn's physical defenses. He was so flustered by what had transpired that his second attack was even more poorly executed. Even if Kat were wearing no protection at all, this wouldn't have been effective.

Such failure was unacceptable. Perhaps it was nearing time for other methods to be implemented.

This was not going exactly as hoped. But when blood began to flow, can it really be said that things were precisely hitting the plan? Unless one was the aggressor, probably not. The thought of being the aggressor wasn't far-fetched, in Victoria's mind, though she took some satisfaction in the knowledge that they were defending someone from the onslaught of villainy. Especially since the object of their defense was fixing up her sword for her (for five gold coins she rightly pocketed earlier), though such materialism was not completely the issue. Either way, Victoria was who she was, and today she was on the side of righteousness.

The purple-clad Bard took her first steps out into the open of this brouhaha, violin in hand. It was time to fulfill her established role in this, or really any adventuring group, rather than act in substitute to another. So she lifted bow to strings ans started playing. It was spirited and demonstrated talent; likely also a lot of chutzpah to play a song in the middle of a mortal struggle. But as notes filled the air, the effect of it was palpable.

To start, Victoria looked to Kathryn and softly vocalized a note. A single, melodic syllable escaped her lips, washing over the stalwart warrior with a minor amount of soothing, healing energy. Secondly, the song from her violin became recognizable to those who had heard it previously. This played in The Infamous Pear back in Darenby, when she and Kosara put on a performance for the people gathered. The message passed along was a supportive, "You've got this," at that time, and the song's meaning carried through on this occasion as well. Kosara looked like she was ready to perform some manner of combative action and Victoria wanted to give an advantage, considering she was out in the wide open, more exposed than most in this fight.

@Remipa Awesome Kathryn gets 6 points of heals.

@rivaan Kosara is now Inspired, 1d6 that can be added to one ability check, attack roll, or saving throw. Additionally, it can also be added to a spell that restores hit points or deals damage. ALSO - TAG, you're up next!

The fight had… basically went with little difference from moment’s earlier. Others joined and then the guards decided to stab at the fallen Kathryn.” OI!” She shouted in righteous anger at them as the scuffle progressed. There were magics and skills used. Kathryn got up and joined the fight somewhere behind her where ol Grumpy was. Then suddenly the sound of shutters hitting something was heard and Kosara barely had time to follow the line of sight before seeing a pair of guards INSIDE the buildings… were they prepared or what?! And they fired crossbows! This was getting weirdly complex and honestly confusing. Berry monk was using some astral thingies of some variety that she hadn’t seen before and it looked somewhat impressive and shiny.

Moments later she felt a tingling from the music indicating that the bard was supporting her. She could practically hear the words in her head! The guards in front of her seemed rather irate, especially the one she blasted with a celestial bolt. She was NOT apologizing! He was a monster, she was certain of it now!” Don’t get all angry at me monster! And stop moving! I gotta hit you real good for attacking Kathryn while she was down!” She angry shouted at the man as the energy once more formed at her horns, forming a ball of golden light that shot out as a beam of energy at the guard she had attacked just earlier. She was going to take him out, and then kick him a few times, and possibly if she got the chance break Cravenfish’s leg! Mind you when she had heard her grandpa use that threat, he had meant an entirely different ‘leg’, but Kosara had taken it as his honest to god legs. On that note…

“I’m coming over for you two next! Cowards! Monsters! Evil! Come here and fight light men!” She shouted at the guards that were most cowardly hiding in the buildings and shooting at them.

@Sigil GUARD 1 IT's TIME TO DU-DU-DU-DU-DU-DUEEEEEEEEEEEL! Your turn!

The Guard was obstinate. He had no intention of dying on this rainy autumn day, though he had to admit that getting knocked around by magic - magic, of all things - frigging hurt. This most recent attack slammed into him with less force than before, but still, OUCH. This was not his favorite way to spend an afternoon, and to be quite frank, those attacks were piling up to a very negative outcome.

This was rural living; the only practitioners of the arcane were supposed to be the occasional Cleric (and there really wasn't much of a religious presence in this town) or a hedge magician of some kind who stumbled onto a useful trick or two. Hells, the last person of any magical ability who lived here left this place a while ago for bigger and better things. Now there were a group of them and one in particular was giving him a hard time. Well, no matter. She had sealed her fate the moment she openly cast an attacking spell in front of the crossbowmen. Then blatantly taunted them. Then didn't bother moving or taking cover. All he had to do was hold on for a liiiittle longer.

But first! He really, really wanted to stab her. His spear was still in hand and he intended to use it. Teeth were bared, slightly elongated incisors in view and lisping out a hiss of aggression as he spiraled the weapon in his hands, looking for an opening. It was an easy find, as it turned out. The tip of the weapon pressed against Kosara's flesh. It met unexpected resistance at first as the woman's mage Armor held, but a concentrated shove helped to get past it, barely. Blood was drawn. It was a minor victory at best. He wrenched the spear free and made for the same spot again, hoping that he had found a weak point in her defense, only to pass his spear through empty air. Full miss.

@rivaan Kosara has taken 5 points of piercing damage.



Guard 2 had a decision to make. None of his options were particularly great at this time and it looked like the two opposing forces were more or less evenly matched if his allies in more elevated positions got a couple hits in. But this was all wrong. This was supposed to be an easy, overwhelming win for them. There weren't supposed to be this many people capable of using magic. There weren't supposed to be this many people here at all. And the Constable? Either he was the one being overwhelmed, or he was holding back for some purpose unknown to him. This was not exactly going to the battle plan. But they could still pull out a victory. This was far from lost.

Between himself and the other Guard next to him, they could probably both gang up on the slender Tiefling and fill her full of holes before she could compensate for the rush. But this would place his back to the strange Dragonborn with three arms, two of which were ...interesting... at best. And painful. The Guard to his side was damaged but not down yet. No, he would go by the ancient and well-polished art of looking after his own skin. Be it that their orders were to concentrate on the tall woman, they had to get by these two to get to her.

Baronfjord it was, then. This was an unusual opponent, and he hadn't his spear on his person. Maybe if he could dip low and snatch it up, he could attack under the magic appendages and hit the scaly flesh behind them. If he was able to strike a final blow, he might even claim the unorthodox combatant's shortsword for his own. Yeah, they would turn this fight in their favor, and this azure outsider would go down first. The crossbow bolt had already done an remarkable job, all he had to do was finish it. The Guard made his move.

The low assault of a matter of a couple of feet was executed flawlessly as his boots shuffled in exactly the right balance of speed and coordination. No jerky movements were these, but the practiced steps of a men intent on skewering his prey like one might a charging boar. His lithe, strong fingers wrapped around the haft of his dropped spear and his other hand touched the ground briefly, giving him the exact balance necessary to insert the point of his weapon between the ribs of his enemy. His thrust was executed without tangible flaw to his martial technique, and he was in the exact position to put this person down.

Then he missed. Utterly. TWICE.

Looking very foolish, the Guard righted himself and stepped back, sighing as his own ineptitude, and breathed out a quiet, "...well, shit."

@Arty Fox Your turn!

Marita showed her full force as a Cleric as she entered the fray and brought the attackers to a standstill ,dropping their weapons, with a powerful command. For a moment there was a respitful pause. Just enough time for Lady Kathryn to regain her footing and use one of the weapons their attackers had dropped against them. BlackBerry watched the hammer strike home, it didn’t appear to cause as much as Kosara’s attacks but still a darn sight more than his own sword strike had done.

Are Rodent-thropes immune to swords?

Pain exploded from his abdomend, dragging out a ragged cry from his lips. He looked down to see the end of an arrow sticking out, having driven into him through his admittedly flimsy robes, and probably hitting something important. Hopefully, that would be a problem to solve later.

Something pinged gleefully off the building behind him, another arrow? His eyes shot upwards following where the arrow now stuck out from just below his ribs and traced it’s journey back upwards and across the street…

There! Two more Guards peeked out from the shutters with the crossbows in hand already loading up another salvo.

Oh no these are organised thugs!

“Archers. In the Attics across.” Quick, succinct, he called to the others.

The pause had left him open and vulnerable! The other Guard made his move, well practised steps and movements that BlackBerry couldn’t help but appreciate for a moment, and plucked the abandoned spear from the ground and lunged at BlackBerry. BlackBerry then took back a small step, already angled side-wards to the man, he let the attack slip by with barely a whisper. A silent ‘Thank you’ went up for Tymora after seeing how sharp the spear was glinting in the light.

In one smooth motion he sheathed his shortsword, knowing now it wouldn’t be much use, and stepped around and closer to the Guard who had just tried to attack him. His thinking being he could use the two guards between him and the crossbowmen as some sort of cover, but given how high up the attackers were it probably wouldn’t do much.

Now in place, BlackBerry dove forward to attack the Guard in front of him. A short step forward and his left fiery limb shooting out at the Guard only for the jab to stop a few inches short, he was out of range! The limb snapped back into place. Another step forward and planted hard on the cobbles, this time just a little further forward, and swung a tight circle with the right limb whilst twisting first at the hip and then up to his shoulder to really power up the motion. It struck hard against the Guards armour, the satisfying sound of it almost rivalled the searing pain from the arrow sticking out from his stomach.

He stepped back quickly and shifted uncomfortably in his stance. BlackBerry repressed a wince, but the grimace of pain was clear on his face.

His eyes flicked from the Guard to the view of the attics beyond…waiting for another volley to land.

@Sigil Guard 3 is up!

His orders were simple, and simply put. There were only a few things that could hurt them now, and magic was one of them. The crossbow wielding Guards were there purely as a deterrent should the unlikely event of the odd magic user be present. It looked like there was more than one. At this point, he couldn't be sure how many of them there were, or even if they all were. So he had to make his decision on who to shoot at based upon which of these people were actively showing magical effects.

The first, and most obvious one was the reptilian fellow missing an arm (in the traditional sense). Big, glowy arms were a dead giveaway, even if he didn't seem to be using magic in a traditional sense. There was a woman who didn't seem to be doing anything obvious in the way of sorcery, but looked suspicious. Then another who was, for whatever moronic reason, playing a damned violin in the middle of a fight. But nothing obvious from her except for apparent foolishness. But there was one who was out in the open and cast a spell with which this person was quite familiar.

The two Guards in their elevated locations glanced to one another, with the same thought in mind. But the one who took aim was the only one who spoke:

"Tiefling." the crossbow twanged once, propelling a bolt in Kosara's direction. It scored a respectable enough hit before he ducked back to reload.


@rivaan Kosara has taken 5 points of piercing damage.

@Dragoknighte Your turn. Huzzah!