Celadhel had started for the stairs, but now returned looking a bit queasy.  "If what lies in that room is gallantry, I will politely decline."  The nauseous look on a face so flawless seems like a crime against Sûne.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:37, Mon 07 June 2021.

In reply to Edrie Graf (msg # 105):

(I'm unsure here:  I'm guessing Edrie and Celadhel are at the gate tower)

Heluvianal wasn't sure what Olaf meant, so assumed he meant that the young man ate well but exercised.  Yes but running up and down trees helps, you need strong soil to get strong trees.  He was a bit naive, but tried.  He was also more Naive than he let on when it came to females. Edrie, what do you mean?  Do you think the lady went willingly?

I didn't describe it well--yes.  You're all at the river gate.  The tower rises up over the gate. Celadhel was the first one to try to go inside the gatehouse.

"It was fairly clear from the description that she did not," Tolantra said. Checking that the gate was closed and barred, she made for the gate tower. As she stepped inside, she added, "I wonder if I can volunteer to swing the axe when they drag him back."

In reply to Tol (msg # 109):

He wasn't happy about this information, not the information itself but what it meant.  He tightened his jaw, the lines becoming almost grown-up, then he flexed his muscles and readied his dagger in one hand and his spear in his main one.

Inside the upstairs room, there is a wooden table and chairs, where soldiers on duty pass their breaks. Laid out on the table are three corpses. Two of the corpses are garbed in the duke’s livery and dressed as soldiers. Both appear to have died after being shot with crossbow bolts. The third corpse is garbed in the baron’s livery, covered by the homespun garments of a Daggerford commoner. He appears to have died from a small knife wound. Off to the side are a pile of weapons and shields, including 2 longswords, 1 broadsword, 2 shields, and a longbow and broken arrow.

Tolantra glanced over at Heluvianal. "Still think she went willingly?"

Setting aside the corpses, Tolantra  examined the tower. This was the first time she'd been in it, and if she was to keep watch, she wanted to know where people would be posted and where all the good sightlines were.

This room is a break room--they wouldn't have necessarily been standing right here.  From what the Lawblade said, the Ducal soldiers would have been the last combatants  to arrive in the streetfight/riot between Baron Agwain's disguised men and the patriotic rivermen that recognized Lady Bronwyn and fought to recover her.

"No, just that the truth is often hard to see--especially in a Bard's telling.




"Just to play the Devil Advocate, wouldn't you be prepared to fight for you lady against the henchmen of a tyrannical Duke that refused to conscience the passion of his sister's heart?" She shrugged  "I'm just saying."

She blinked.

"That's odd."
This message was last edited by the player at 03:54, Sat 12 June 2021.

"What's odd?" Tolantra asked Edie.

"It might be nothing. Two ducal soldiers died from wounds inflicted by crossbow bolts, while none of the recovered weapons are crossbows. Likewise, the baron’s guardsman died of a knife wound to the back, while none of the recovered weapons are knives."

Her brow furrowed, "I'm not sure what that might imply."

In reply to Edrie Graf (msg # 116):

Heluvianal looked, watched, examined corpses.  Something was wrong.
Who is trying to start a war with whom? Was this made to look like what you think Tol or does this run deeper and is a 3 or 4 way conspiracy?

"The Duke's soldiers wouldn't be walking into a melee with knives, and I doubt that rivermen got the drop on them to execute a backstab like this. Heluvianal--would you mind looking at this wound? Is this the work of a longshoreman?  I don't see any other wounds here."

Olaf was ever a stout heart in the caves near Bowshot, but this business of man killing man for the sake of lords locked in disagreement disturbed him. "Ah, poor lads.  They cannot have sown many oats in this life. May the Mother's embrace console them and their passing be a boon to those that come after."

"Archers would have been covering from further back, and if the baron's men were fleeing, they would by force have turned their backs to their opponents." Tolantra shrugged. "I'm not great with a knife, but I'll throw mine if it's the only thing I have at hand. This looks fairly normal to me. But when they drag the baron back, they can ask him."

In reply to Celadhel Floshin (msg # 118):

Examining the Wounds, Heluvianal considered both his Herbalism training for any infections or poisons as well as his knowledge of knife Wounds from the animal kills he had done in the forest.

(ooc: Rolled a 2 for either Herbalism {made by 8} or Int {made by 10})

This wasn't a knife thrown in a crowd. The soldier has a single wound driven up from a low angle precisely and cleanly into a kidney.  Streetfighters might frequently jostle around such a wound looking for a vital area.  This one knew what he was striking for and knew that he had found it. In and out.

In reply to Dungeon Master (msg # 122):

Heluvianal wasn't happy about what he discovered and it made him very nervous, looking around him as though searching for anyone hidden.

Then when he was sure he wasn't being watched or over-heard, he spoke This was an assassins blade strike, not, I repeat, NOT a random or purposed hit from a street fight or haphazardly thrown hand.  This has precision, no wonder only 1 strike killed them.

Everyone, be aware of those around you.  As I said earlier, Conspiracy and an attempt potentially at warm, even if just Baronies.  He made a careful note in case he needed to use this tactic himself in the future or watch out for it.

Tolantra nodded. "Good to know. I wish I had been at the fight and seen what happened. The baron still has crimes to answer for, but let's hope he's brought back in such a condition that he can also answer questions."

Taking a breath, Tolantra put the problem of the bodies out of her mind for the moment. Her team had been posted on the gate to keep watch, and it was time to do that. She spread her people out, finding good look-out posts for them. She wanted people looking in all directions, so if they were approached from the city or the countryside, she would have warning.

Scarcely ten minutes after you get the River Gate closed and locked down, six ducal soldiers in the duke’s livery arrive at the River Gate. Their commander announces that you have been relieved of duty and that the duke’s soldiers will be securing all the gates.

"I apologize for the confusion, but I'm acting directly on orders from Lord Llewellyn, who is commanding the town’s defense while the duke is in pursuit."

It's the middle of the night, and your only remaining standing orders from the Lawblade are:



Such orders and the emergency circumstances would provide a fairly wide latitude given the circumstances, and might even allow you to interview members of the court to discover who last saw Lady Bronywn.  Or perhaps you'd prefer to focus on Baron Agwain's men.  Then again, there are these vigilant riverman who seem to have sparked the entire affair--perhaps they bear investigating?

What do you do?

In reply to Dungeon Master (msg # 125):

Heluvianal looks to Tol then Edrie, then back to Tol. This was out of his comfort zone, so he looks around and suggests I'll go chat with some of the others around here if that helps. Not that I'm good with talks but means still in area if needed.

He was sure he could do more but wasn't used to this guarding malarkey, too static.

Are you staying with the group?

If not (and that’s fine) are you looking into Bronwyn, Agwain, or the Rivermen?

In reply to Dungeon Master (msg # 127):

Staying with group. Thought they were going to talk with those around!

Though it wasn't, strictly speaking, her business, Tolantra's sense of curiosity had been piqued. And folks back in the clanhome could attest to what happened when that was the case. Not the least interested in going back to sleep, she decided to accept the invitation and start poking her nose into things. Who knew? If Haela was kind, something could start poking back.

"Let's go talk with the rivermen. I want to know if any of them saw who our oh-so-precise stabber was."

In reply to Tol (msg # 129):

Heluvianal liked this Dwarf, Tol seemed to like being in charge and that meant he didn't have to think too hard.  He was more a doer.