"Yes...Of a sort." She moved ahead of Ashe and knelt by him. "He helped us against some, former crew of his. He then sailed off without us though. Her hands glowed as she started healing the worst of the wounds. "This is far from the sea...How did he end up here?"
She then shook her head. Focus. They could gather answers like that later.
She leant by Dalious. "Cicero was with you? Where?
"I appreciate it." Cicero's eyes began adjusting to the dark cave. He squinted and then he spotted it. A red blood trail leading up the stairwell some 40 meters away. "The captain went this way. Let's hope he didn't bleed out." Cicero remarked nervously pointing to the trail.
As the two followed up toward the stairs they heard the sound of a large door unlatching and swinging open. Soon after it closed with a thud. "Did he get out? Cicero thought to himself. He kept his blade at the ready. Then they heard voices above.
The ramblings of Dalious were easy to distinguish. That's when he heard them. Gwyneria and Ashe were conversing with the half dead pirate. Cicero glanced at Fyr and pointed up, "Friends." He whispered.
When Gwyn mentioned his name Cicero called up, "Down here!" He waved enthusiastically and began ascending the stairway. The light shown through the cracks in the door just beyond the group. He stopped abruptly when he spotted a dark-clad figure that resembled a guard. But when he saw her conversing he breathed a sigh of relief and continued. It was just Ashe.
"Gwyn, am I glad to see you!" Cicero gave an enthusiastic yet awkward hug as the elf was busy tending to Dalious at that moment near the ground.
Then he continued, "Manzur and I got separated. Managed to free the slaves, yes that's right. These demonfolk are getting free labor and intended the same for us. At least that is what I surmise. Ashe, I barely recognized you in that. Very nearly took me for one of them. Dalious, you don't look so good..."
Then he turned to Fyr almost forgetting the tattooed warrior, "I must've forgotten my knightly manners, Gwyn, Ashe, this is Fyr. A slave turned freeman. Fyr, these are my companions.
Almost as an after thought he rubbed his sore ribcage. "My ribs hurt, when you get a chance. That is if you still have energy."
When he felt the cold blade reach his throat, Dalious knew either his life was over in this instance or it would soon be over. He was too wounded to fight back.
Gwyn saved his throat being slit, having spoken up for him. When he heard Gwyn's description of their friendly encounters he huffed. "Yes, we are the best of friends!!! She helped me defeat negligent pirates...the sailing off part was me being kidnapped. I ...".
"I ended up here through slave work... he informed. "Cicero. He's probably dead..." Then he heard him call out. "Uhh, just kidding that's totally him!'
He listened to Cicero tell him that he didn't look so good and responded,", I'm in my prime sir."
Dalious gave an over exaggerated bow to Fyr upon introduction, half because he had never fully met the man and half because he already knew him in a sense. Then Cicero spoke of healing his ribs, so Dalious pointed a finger at him. "First come first serve!! he exclaimed!
Ashevelen removed her sword from Dal's throat and swiftly put it back in its scabbard.
"Sounds like he did you dirty. You sure you want him alive? " said Ashe to Gwyn as she approached Dal to heal him.
Before she could say anything else, Cicero's voice could be heard. Upon hearing about Manzur's fate, Ashe let out a long string of swear words.
"That bastard, Manzur! He got paid in advance for training and disappeared? Great. Just my luck..." shouted Ashe in frustration.
Pointing at her borrowed clothes, Ashe chuckled. "Good, that's what the bastards upstairs thought too. Tell them they're going to have fun with a woman and suddenly everyone forgets about who you are. "
Approaching Fyr, Ashe looked him up and down before giving him a nod. "Pleasure to meet you, Fyr. As Cicero said, I'm Ashe and I don't appreciate my name being thrown around to every stranger we meet. So, you know, keep it to yourself. "
Sometimes, probably, it was a good thing to be heads taller than everybody else. In this case, Fyr felt like his height just saved him from everybody seeing the confusion in his face as the scenery unfolded in front of his eyes.
The one man, Dalious, seemed to have diverted a tad too much of the daily mushroom production into his own mouth. Of course that was assuming that these damn things actually had any fancy properties similar to fly agarics and not just their excruciatingly bad taste and little nutritional use! At least that was what Fyr hoped in this very moment, because otherwise he'd have to learn to live with the man's somewhat... exuberant ?... attitude. Or was he just judging things way too harshly right now because he hadn't had anything real to eat for weeks ?
The first of the two women to introduce herself to him gave off a quite different first impression. Fyr gave Ashe an appreciating nod in response as well, but of course he was unable to understand all of the words from her he had picked up previously. Manzur ? Training ? He apparently was missing some pieces of the puzzle, but maybe that was not important right now anyway.
Speaking of importance, they still were in this damn cave and he had no idea about how deep even!
"Erm... hello everyone!" Was that simple statement awkward ? "So yes, I hope we can become friends!" and he gave everyone a brief look. "We should find our way out of here quickly though! Does anybody have any clue ?"
Fyr started looking at everybody's feet and tried to memorize how they and their shoes, if any, looked like. That would help him distinguish their own traces from those of the guards. Maybe following the traces on the ground would guide them somewhere...
Dalious listened to them all speak. Fyr talked something about becoming friends and he rose an eyebrow. "... awkward," he whispered toward Cicero as Gwyn finished up healing his foot.
The pirate stretched the foot, felt it and smiled. It was as if it had never happened, simply amazing in his mind. He was one to hate magic, mostly in terms of combat, but he fully appreciated healing powers. "Gwyn...you heal almost as good as you look... Anyways, I think we need to go that way though I'm not exactly sure. Only way I've never been...
As his foot felt better he started limping toward the direction he thought they should all go. His mind went back to what the newcomer in the mask, Ashe, had said. Something about Manzur taking money in advance for training then ditching them. He remembered Cicero claiming the knocked out guy, who he took the spear he was currently carrying, was named Manzur. It all connected somewhat in his mind. Except that the spear spoke...
"Hmmm...some people are just shit outta luck," he spoke to Ashe. "But not you...this was his spear. And...since we're all...friends... I'll take up Manzur's claim since his spear belongs to me now. I will train you young one in anything you do desire. Though, I don't think you'll need a mask for such training. Also...thank you for not killing me. You've passed my first lesson....which is...you know, exactly that."
Gwyneria stilled a bit in surprise at Cicero's hug, then finished healing Dalious and returned it as she could. "As I am you. Then swiftly looked to see the injury. "Especially with how you keep managing to injure yourself. She placed her hands over the wound and started to heal what she could, thankful that Dalious hadn't been as much on the verge of death as he'd seemed.
1d20 = 11, success!
Her touch instantly healed the wound, thankfully also minor. She then listened to the others before glancing over to check if the newcomer, Fyr, was injured. She'd need to work to spare herself some for what might come ahead, but she could still take care of what she could. She nodded at Fyr's greeting. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance.
Fyr would notice that her feet were clad in finely made, light, but travel-worn boots in the style of the same frozen land he called home, though of high quality make.
Cicero watched the unlikely group interact with one another. They seemed to get along for the most part. Just then, a former slave made his way up the stairwell. He held a piece of parchment in his hand and waved it toward the group, "Hey! we found something on the slaver!" he handed it to Cicero in respect, "Thanks for fighting for our freedom." he stated in a kind of hero worship.
Cicero took it in his hand and smiled. Then he replied, "You all had the desire for freedom. We just gave you an opportunity. As for this map, I think we have a layout of this cave."
"Indeed..." She peered over his shoulder to look over the map. "Currently, we seem to be here...At the bottom of the spiral staircase between the main dungeons and the area you fell in." Her finger pointed to the bottom of the map's spiral pattern, below a larger area to the north and what seemed to be a pit to the south, both areas the slaves knew full well. "The only way back up to the upper level seems to be these stairs. We know we already took care of some these guards in the first room, though we don't know how often that position is rotated."
Fyr patiently waited as the injuries some of the others had sustained were taken care for. To him, that healing magic felt like something on the verge of a miracle. He had not really seen such a thing before -- in the village he came from, injuries were usually treated using herbs and other methods coming from decades, if not centuries of tradition. Not quite as fast as Gwyn's magic, he had to admit silently.
Speaking of Gwyn... Was she a noble ? Those things around her feet must have cost a lot! Yet still the general design was not entirely unfamiliar to Fyr. He had seen similar shoes before the few times he had visited one of the larger cities of his homeland and made a mental note about asking her about this later, but right now it felt a little inadequate to start a small talk while they were still in grave danger.
Fyr gave a dedicated nod and gentle smile in Gwyn's direction, then looked over to the stairs she mentioned. "We should decide on who goes first. I doubt they are broad enough to do anything else than go up one after another." Who knew if new guards were already waiting for them at the upper end or close by ? They should have the room to use their weapons properly -- and enough sight. If he went first, he'd probably block everybody else's vision.
He peeked onto the map and frowned. "I wish the parchment would tell us where our stuff is..."
Ashevelen took a close look at the map and mapped it out in her mind. Doing her best to commit the map to memory. It always paid to be wary on one's surroundings, especially in tunnels like these. It was easy for one to be ambushed in the dark or get stuck in a trap.
" Who goes first? Isn't it obvious? The one that has a guard's armor. The one that can easily pass between them with a prisoner and if Cicero would be so kind to see if he can find one for himself, we can drag the three of you around. Apologies Fyr, Dal, but you've been here longer than Cicero, they would recognize you and that's too big of a risk. I'm sure we can find someone naïve enough who can tell us where your equipment is stored and even if we don't...at least we'll have the element of surprise on any that might come to see the commotion that you and the rest have surely caused. Sounds like a good plan, yes? " said Ashevelen. Talking fast but carefully looking at each member of the group in the eye as she mentioned their part in the plan.
The group settled on Ashe's plan. However, Cicero had yet to gather his own disguise. It was then revealed that above them were the two guards who were waiting on the other side from earlier. The two guards spoke out in their demonfolk language, "Back already?" One said suspiciously.
Cicero whispered to the others, "What's the plan?"
They could try to talk them out of the situation, fight or something else.
"Let me talk, you just grunt when asked questions. " quickly whispered Ashe to Cicero as she took the lead.
"Yes. They don't need these downstairs, different job for them. Jas? I think that was his name, not sure, I'm bad with names. Average guy, nice smile, you surely know him. He said that there's a potential cave-in risk. Taking these over to check it out. " replied Ashevelen in the demonfolk language with ease. It was a language she hasn't spoken for more than a few sentences in years but, with any luck, she would be able to fool those two.
When Cicero asked what the plan was, Dalious used hand gestures to describe what he and Fyr were about to do. They were to gather the rest of the prisoners and clear out the guards, he motioned to him and Fyr and then created what he was trying to tell Cicero with theatrical motions. Then he hushed at Cicero with a finger to his nose and a shhh so they would be unheard, tapped Fyr on his shoulder, and then motioned for the two of them to back up and reassemble with the other former prisoners.
His motions seemed to be clear as he tiptoed backwards toward his destination. Once he and Fyr were out of hearing distance from the two guards they just encountered he told the large man, "Phew, that was close. Didn't expect guards so soon...the others will be fine I'm certain. Let's gather the others and come back and murder every one of these bastards, what do you say? They'll clear the up ahead, we take out the back stragglers. That way we don't get overwhelmed by surprise numbers. Sound good?
Fyr, to put it frankly, couldn't understand a damn word. To him, the demonfolk language sounded more like an aberrant noise than any real means of communication. It did seem though that whatever Ashe and the guards were exchanging did have some effect for no violent action broke out immediately. To make matters worse for him however she wasn't the only one using weird languages at this point for Dalious suddenly started to... whatever that was. The tapping on his shoulder actually was pretty much the first thing he was really able to interpret, so he followed the other man.
"I can't say I like us splitting up at the very first opportunity after reunion again, but indeed I was about to point out that it doesn't feel right to me to leave my former 'co-workers' behind after they have helped us. Bypassing all those guards means that they'll live another day to keep imprisoning those we have left behind."
The gang leader by now made a fairly dead impression, and a rather deprived-of-all-items one, too. The other slaves were still in the cavern and it was easy to pick up the tension that had built up. It almost seemed as if Fyr was disrupting a heated debate about whether to stay here and wait or to break out when he raised his booming voice.
"Listen, people! We've got work to do..." Fyr reached for the digging tool he had grabbed earlier and raised it, at least as far as he could without his arms ramming it against the cavern's ceiling. "And that work is to shove our shovels up those demonfolk stomachs! They want mushrooms ? Well, how about turning them into mushrooms by leaving their bodies here to rot! Who's with us ?"
Dalious and Fyr made it to the slaves. There were so many voices going off at once about what to do next, it seemed the pair interrupted the current debate going on. Dalious, being a former ship crew captain, felt it was his turn to speak and bring the group together under one unity. As he opened his mouth to speak, he was startled by the booming voice of Fyr beating him to it. Immediately Dalious knew this meant something a little more to the man, much as his crew meant to him before...except for when they all betrayed him but that was another story.
Fyr spoke strong and true, saying they were to shove shovels through the enemies stomachs. The crowd cheered with yeas and woos, and Dalious nodded in approval as the speech went on. Then he spoke of turning the slavers into mushrooms by killing them or something and Dalious rose an eyebrow. "uhhh yea!! Mushrooms you sons of b!+@#&$!! And not the edible kind, bastards!!".
Cicero acknowledged Dalious' hand gestures and made out what he thought was his plan. As for The demonfolk, meanwhile, listened inquisitively to Ashe's response. After some time, it appeared as if she convinced them. They allowed her to pass along with Cicero and Gwyn. However, Fyr and Dalious managed to snake their way back downstairs without being spotted.
Cicero whispered to Gwyn and Ashe once they had passed, "Those two have gone back to gather their comrades. We can continue forward and perhaps make life easier for them when they inevitably break free. Gwyn, what path should we take on the map?"
Below, Fyr made a rousing speech to their comrades as Dalious chimed in encouragingly. The former slaves cheered in unison, "Dey won't keep us down anymore!" one shouted. They had already been armed with shovels, picks, and even the dagger of the former gang leader. A few of them wore primitive leather they had stolen. Two of the slaves donned Fyr and Dalious with leather gambeson they had stripped from their former tormentors. Fyr's was a little small on him so a slave cut into the neck area and arms so that it would fit around his massive torso. Dalious' was still wet from the former wearer's blood. His friends seemed to have gotten carried away in their revenge.
Any weapons or armaments the two decided to equip would be utilized. Any tactics or plans the two agreed upon would be implemented. The prison break was in effect.
Gwyn's eyes furrowed as she took in the map. "That way would be the way out." She pointed back the way she and Ashe both came then showed it down on the map. "Unless they had a guard change, they should be able to clear it on their own. However, there do seem a number of guards that way." Her finger pointed the opposite way, through a door that she and Ashe had not gone through. "So if we don't want them to be attacked from behind, we should seek to take them out."
A gambeson... It felt quite a little weird and that not only because he had not worn any protective gear in a long time, but also because back in his homeland, they used different stuff in general. It was quite the tight affair in his case to say the least, but Fyr could clearly see that it was way better than nothing and gave the former slave who had donned it an appreciative nod.
None of them seemed to be willing to stay behind, none of them seemed unmotivated or afraid and even Dalious right next to him seemed to be driven by the urge to exact revenge upon those demonfolk. Fyr turned around and tightened his grip around his shovel, then decided on his callout to start the attack: "I want my axe back!" As if slaying all the guards had any real potential to get him closer to knowledge about its whereabouts... but at least then he'd be able to search with all the profoundness and privacy necessary!
Given the number of marching feet, Fyr did not even start to hope that they'd manage to approach the guards unnoticed. He did count on them not expecting such a large number of people under so little control however and exchanged a brief grin with Dalious. "Are you ready for something ?" A brief pause, then he continued: "I mean, you look like quite the quick and maneuverable person. I'm sure I could help you to be even more of a surprise to them..."
It didn't take long for the stampede to reach their first destination however. "We need to talk about my idea before the next fight! It was too late now, but there certainly were more guards to come after these, which they hopefully would be able to dispose of quickly. Fyr thrusted forwards giving the impression of a wandering earthquake, his shovel in one hand and his other fist ready to strike. It was not as much of a bloody mess as it had been in Cicero's case earlier, but a much more mangled one on the individual level as Fyr managed to deflect the guardsman's blade with the shovel first and then made it break through the demonfolk's ribs and stop the heart from beating. The other one ? Well, there was Dalious and plenty of former slaves it would have to deal with...
The slaves started putting on a bloodied leather gambeson to the pirate, without his consent which he gagged over a few times. He winced in discomfort but let it slide.
Then, just as the slaves got rowdy and started moving, Fyr asked him if he was ready for something.
"I was born ready, mate." the pirate responded. "I mean yea I work out and I'm in my prime so good observation. I've....wait...what are you getting at!?"
"Sure!"
Dalious observed as Fyr destroyed one of the two guards. He rose his spear toward the other to make him yield, pausing any of the slaves that may have tried to kill him.
"Stop!" Dalious shouted to the mob. "Leave this one alive, so long as he answers my questions. We will break a finger for every answer that displeases. Where is the armory, where our belongings are? In fact, lead us there if you know, otherwise, Fyr is breaking a thumb. Secondly, tell us where the rest of yous are or you lose two thumbs."
