"Gimme a sec..." she slurred as she slumped to the floor in an undignified heap of ratty hair, torn clothes, and sewer splotched skin. Her stomach chose at this moment to rebel, yet again, and her face assumed a greenish tint as she fought off the nausea that threatened to bring up her recently eaten apple.

For a moment she panted, her mouth filling with saliva as she held her spinning head between her knees. Finally the worst of it passed and she looked up at them with harrowed face.

"The Seven have Fallen. The Highs are now Low. Flames have been Put Out. Sparks Smolder in the Darkness. One has Flared. The Hawk Hunts..." she said clearly with the last of her strength. With that she gave into her body's demand and she slumped to her side unconscious with a final muttered, "Keep your hands off my..."
This message was last edited by the player at 19:16, Thu 04 Dec 2014.

Unfortunately for Lya, the onset of a sickened condition as the poison and it's antidote worked their way through her body distracted her from the reaction of those in the room. She did hear a few gasps though before she fainted away.

~~~~

A cold sensation on her forehead and neck brought her awake. She was lying on a cot and had a rough and not-very-nice smelling coat across her upper body. Over her was the leader of the ruffians who had guided her and Ervik to their delivery location. He was patiently swabbing the remnants of her sweat with a moist bit of cloth.

"Ah, there ya is..." he said quietly with a smile. "Musta been a worm in hat apple ya ate!"

Lya took in the unfocused face of the ruffian leader as he dabbed at her. Her nose wrinkled involuntarily at the smell of the coat lying on her chest. Her head still swam a little but her stomach, for the moment at least, seemed to have decided to behave itself.

"Um..." she said.

She tried to sit up but winced as a stabbing pain behind her eyes forced her to lie back again. Her head felt like the gods had hammered at it on their Forge. Worm my pretty little behind she thought savagely. That was the last time she volunteered to let herself be poisoned. What was she thinking? It came to her then. Gold. Damn.

The thought of her payment drove her to sit up on the cot despite the pain as she waved off her rescuer's hand. The torrent of inevitable questions followed.

"How long have I been lying here? Where am I? Where's my payment?"

She caught herself in mid-spate and gave the concerned looking man a smile calculated to be both warm and a tad sheepish. "Sorry. Thanks for caring for me. I don't think I ever got your name?"
This message was last edited by the player at 00:05, Sat 06 Dec 2014.

"Relax," said the leader of the ruffians. "Ya've not been out long. It's fairly common t'have that reaction. Why'dya think there's these cots down here? Here, take a drink..." He handed her a dented metal cup full of cool water. As she sat up to take it, she noticed another cot stretching away from her at her feet. Upon it was the still unconscious form of Ervik. She realized that she knew very little of him, their acquaintance had been a flurry.

She remembered a few more bits and pieces now of what had happened after they'd been drugged by the Captain. There had been a struggle on a beach somewhere. She'd been captured and Ervik had come to help her, and then... she'd awoken in the back of a wagon. It was all still a bit strange, but at least her memories had not been lost in a swirling void like she'd felt earlier. Her stomach churned once more in response to that thought.

Across the dimly lit room, was the table once again surrounded by the same group which had originally been in the room. Waldric was at the head, the woman at his right hand, and the others around the rest. They were discussing in hushed tones the things which Lya had told them. Once in a while they'd point to a map.

The other ruffian which had accompanied them down here was sitting on a stool near Ervik. He wasn't getting the same care she'd gotten... his nurse was leaned back against the wall snoring!

The ruffian leader smiled as Lya lowered her cup. "That's yer second attempt. I ain't tellin' ya my name... I don't trust ya!" He finished with a wink. "When yer companion wakes up and ya feel up to it, I'll escort ya across town. There's a safehouse set up near the Central Market. Ya can use it until ya find a place of yer own. As for yer reward, ya'll have to ask Waldric..."

[Private to Lya: I'm not sure where Ervik went off the rails. He hasn't logged in all week, and the last PM I got from him said he's been delayed, but hasn't left the game. Soo... I really don't know what to think. At this point in the story though, you can just continue to RP and if Ervik is needed for something, we can wake him up and I'll NPC him until his player returns. Sorry about that.]

Reward. Hah. It was payment clear and simple. And she wanted her well earned gold. Now. And as for not trusting her. Bah. Talk about trusting. As if it weren't a major leap of faith to drink that first vial down knowing full well what could have happened to her. It didn't bear thinking too long on.

"Well Nameless" she said, returning wink for wink, "Time for me to see to my interests...and those of Waldric over there."

With an effort Lya rose off the cot onto unsteady legs and made her way slowly over to the table, one hand on her still uneasy belly. Waiting politely until the little group at the table became aware of her and deigned to look her way she said, "Well. I think it's time for you all to honor your part of the bargain. I'd like my payment for services rendered if you don't mind. Once I have that and I've settled in I would be more than happy to lend a further helping hand. I can't say that I would be happy living in a world that this one looks to be shaping into. I hope I don't have to drink any more poison or get trussed up again to prove my intentions to you."

Lya finished speaking and, after nodding to her audience, walked over to where Evrik was lying and sat down beside him on the cot taking cloth and water in hand from where they were lying neglected at the side of the snoring man and began gently wiping the worst of the sweat and grime from her companion's face and neck.

Waldric looked up from the maps he and the others had been scouring during their discussions. He smiled at Lya warmly though his face was drawn by worry. The others wore similar masks and the feeling of stress, even desperation was palpable.

"Glad to see you on your feet Lya. I apologize for the effects of the poison, but hopefully your memory has returned enough so that you understand the risks involved with a message falling into the... wrong hands. You've done us, Zeland and the whole of the Seven Kingdoms a great service, one that will never be foot-noted in the chronicles of our time, but nevertheless will have been noteworthy."

He walked around the table and came to face the bedraggled woman who'd put her life on the line for a... job, perhaps though, deep down it had been more. Waldric handed her a small leather purse. It was heavy to the hand... gold. The usual standard of trade throughout the Seven was silver, which was much more available than gold. Only when large transactions were required did they occur in the form of gold, and only then in the absence of gems or other commodities. Gold was rare and highly coveted. It had been almost three hundred years now since the Dragon called by the minstrels, Hell-Keeper, had raided the strongholds of the Seven and had attempted to enslave at least two colonies of dwarves, all in order to slake his lust for the precious metal. It was that lust which ultimately consumed the beast. A crazy dragon is a destructive one, but was more easily defeated by a band of heroes tasked by the leaders of the Kingdoms. It was the first expression of unilateral unity they'd shown in nearly a millenia. Much of the precious gold extant in the world at the time had been lost in the depths of the world when Hell-Keeper had been destroyed.

Now Lya had a pouch of the stuff for her own. Waldric was not finished giving rewards however. From within his sturdy vest he produced a small scroll. It was a set of directions which would lead to a prize, a cache of hidden items, powerful and said to be magical in nature.

"If you and your companion there would like to help, I will allow you to memorize the information on this scroll. With the Capital now occupied, the Oraxian army is seizing any and all enchanted items it can find. There are stiff penalties for anyone found in possession of them, no matter the degree of their power, usefulness or necessity. Many have already disappeared, where we do not yet know. If you were to recover this cache for us, we will reward you, and your friend there, with one each of the items you return. Be warned though that this is not a task to be undertaken lightly. The City is a dangerous place right now, and the little resistance we've been able to mount has been retaliated against very brutally." He held out the scroll. "What do you say?"

[Private to Lya: The purse contains the equivalent of 100 GP, though not all in coins. There are some bars and jewelry, etc. That's equivalent to 2000 Silver, which is quite the tidy sum. I'm adopting the silver standard in this game, so prices for equipment should be in silver instead of gold. Lya's got enough to be fairly well-funded for a while.]

Smiling warmly Lya said, "I say...that this looks to be both a profitable first step in our association and something in which I can be of help to Zeland. So, yes, I am happy to accept"

Lya took the pouch and secreted it away in her shirt. Then she took the scroll and opened it to study and commit it's contents to memory before handing it back and going over to where Evrik lay on the cot.

After mopping the sweat from his forehead and neck she looked up and said, "Since you are interested in finding magical artifacts would I be correct in assuming that you have someone with some degree of skill in identifying their nature and use? If so I have an item or possibly two that might bear a bit of scrutiny while we wait for Evrik to wake."
This message was last edited by the player at 15:54, Tue 09 Dec 2014.

Waldric shot a glance at the woman, whose name Lya still had not managed to ascertain. She nodded and gestured to one of the other men gathered there. "It may help for Lya to know what she possesses so that she may understand better how to mask anything she might have which can be sniffed out..."

The man she had pointed to came forward a bit from the shadows of the room cast by the oil lamp which they'd been using to read their maps by. He had been so nondescript that Lya soon realized she'd overlooked him entirely. He reached up and pulled back a deep blue hood. He had shortly shorn gray hair and a beard of the same color. Mingled among his wrinkled face were the darker lines of tattoos, marks of arcanum. His hands were gnarled and this fingernails slightly claw-like. The robes he wore beneath a thin raggedy smock were the same deep blue of his hood. When his lips parted, Lya could see his teeth were all filed into points, but had rounded over the ages of his life. His skin was slightly gray-ish, and his eyes... his eyes seemed to look right into her.

"This is Embram of the..." but then she paused, "...once a member of the Arcaeum Ethyrn... He may be able to assist you."

Lya looked at Embram for a moment and then walked back over to the table and opened her pouch. Reaching into it she took out the ring she'd found on the leader of the raiders that had attacked the garrison and laid it on the table.

She then reached and drew her locket from where it nestled warmly and pulled it over her head. Opening it carefully she pulled out the little piece of paper and then laid both it and the locket on the table.

Stepping back a pace she gestured at the items on the table and looked up at Embram.

"Those are the items I have reason to believe, or suspect at least, might have magical properties. In general I believe that the locket is used for protection and especially against a specific sort of magic. I'd like to know as much as you can glean from them all though."

Lya gave Embram a smile despite her inner misgivings at the sight of him. If these people thought he was alright then she'd be guided by them. For now.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:31, Wed 10 Dec 2014.

The hand of the wizardly Embram stretched forth and hovered briefly over the locket. He then carefully reached down and picked up the small vial with the sharpened nails of a thumb and forefinger and held it before him to the light of the lantern. The ruby colored fluid glistened in its clear gem container. From within his robes, Embram produced a small globe about the size of an apple. Inside there seemed to be a bit of smoke that swirled lazily. He held this in one hand and peered into it as he held the vial of fluid behind it. The effect was that it magnified the image, and then the globe began to glow warmly.

"Ahhh..." murmured the wizard with a brief smile on his gray lips. "This is a powerful little cocktail, a mixture of a mother's tears and blood... It is an old magic of the sort which cannot easily be recreated, for it was created by the breaking of a heart." He set the vial down and held the halves of the golden locket before his crystal ball.

"Hmmm... yes, fairly simple runes of protection, but the work of this gold is exquisite, obviously that of a master, a rarity among humankind, but not of dwarven make or that of the elves..."

Next, Embram placed the thin paper into his hand and with a muttered word caused it to grow! Soon it was the size of a standard parchment, though still very thin and rather translucent. Upon it was written in a beautiful but faltering hand, a letter. "The spell I've cast upon this reverses the enchantment of shrinking it was under. Now you may read it at your leisure." With a wave of his hand, the vial inserted itself back between the pieces of the locket and they rotated into place around it. It floated gently back to the table.

Next, the wizened one turned his attention to the ring Lya had produced. He waved his hand over it as he had done with the locket, but quickly drew it away. His penetrating eyes glared deeply at Lya. "Where did you get this girl?" he hissed. He looked around at the others in the room. The woman and Waldric leaned in closer. "Have you worn this? Speak truly and now!" Embram demanded.

Startled a bit by the wizard's sudden demand Lya nearly jumped but controlled herself and, lifting an inquiring eyebrow, said, "No. During the battle for the Garrison between Hogship and Gilgamar I was fortunate and killed their leader. After the raiders had retreated I made my way to his corpse looking for my rightful spoils of war. I found some gold coins and this ring. I took the ring off his finger and placed it, along with the gold, in the pouch you just saw me pull it from. I thought it might prove informative or powerful or both but had the sense to realize it might not be wise to wear. It has been there, untouched by me - or anyone else to my knowledge, therefore, until just now when I pulled it out and set it on the table.

There were several raised eyebrows and even a gasp or two at Lya's tale. Everyone watched her nervously and not a few were the hands which strayed toward weapons. Finally, a low laugh eased the tension.

"You? That was you? Word of such deeds travels far in these times, even to an occupied city like this'n. 'Course the story has likely grown by the time it reached us, but still, your tale precedes ya..." The nameless leader of the ruffians said with a smile.

His easy manner seemed to relax the others, all except the wizard who kept his penetrating gaze drilling into Lya's countenance like a wood auger.

"I've heard the story myself of an unusually beautiful battle-maiden who slew the leader of an Oraxian strike force by shoving a spear down his throat... Is this truly you Lya?" This question was asked by one of the other men in the room, one of military bearing if Lya's guess was correct.

Lya could not help but feel the gaze of the wizard continue to bore into her. He suddenly seemed menacing, threatening and as she looked around the room in the dim light she could see the expressions of wonder and skepticism turning to jeers and snarls. The room grew darker and the walls seemed to be closing in, and suddenly Lya felt trapped!

"...Kill them! Kill them all, lest they slay you!" came a voice in her mind.

The wizard's eyes began to glow a bluish color and his pupils seemed to disappear...

"...Start with him!"

OOC: You'll need to make a saving throw here vs spells in order to resist the sudden urge to follow the instruction of the voice! d20 <= TN 14

20:04, Today: Lya rolled 9 using 1d20 with rolls of 9. Saving throw vs spell.

Embram raised a hand as if to release a spell, but held it as Lya struggled with the compulsion to attack her hosts. The voice was very compelling and it took an effort to resist. The illusion of menace faded away and she found herself in the dimly lit room once more. While many hands were gripping weapons, only one was partway drawn. They had backed away from her, not advanced as it had seemed a moment ago.

The wizard was still on his guard and his magic was at the ready. "What else do you possess, girl, with which you struggle. Show me quickly!"

Lya gasped as she felt the compulsion. Where had that come from? She'd laid out everything she'd taken since leaving...well not everything. She opened her pouch again and emptied out the gold coins she'd taken off the leader's body.

"Those gold coins are the ones I already had on me and, mixed in with them, are some I found on the body. Other than that the only other thing I've acquired on my travels is a sword. I would draw it but I fear the compulsion might be too much for me and I doubt you'd trust me in any event. It's in the sheath strapped to my back. There are two. The longer one is the one I found on the body of a dead nobleman. The short one is the one I used to kill the raider leader. It went in his mouth and out the back of his head. You can check both if you like. I know nothing of magic nor how it works. For all I know you may as well check all I have and even me."

Lya had a hard time getting that last bit out. She didn't like hands laid on her and she certainly didn't want people pawing at her or undressing her but...she didn't want to have that awful compulsion either. The sooner this was taken care of the better. This caused her to think some more.

"You may want to bind my hands first."

She held out her hands clasped together in front of her and her face went red with shame as she looked down at her feet.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:26, Sat 13 Dec 2014.

With the totality of Lya's inventory layed out on the table from which the maps had been removed, Embram began his investigation. After hearing Lya's account of her vanquishing of the Oraxian Raider with her shortsword, he had a fairly good idea of where to begin. As his hand passed over the blade, it began to grow as predicted, a deep reddish color. He motioned to a couple of the men, one of which was Waldric, to bind Lya's hands, which without protest they were able to do with some cordage someone had in a backpack.

The voice in Lya's mind seemed now to be coming from before her now, obviously from her sword! "...Take me up! Strike them!" it commanded, shouting inside her skull. She felt her arms begin to struggle at her bonds. She felt the strong hands of Walderic and the other man holding her.

Then the blue-robed wizard began a low chant and his hands worked the air in intricate patterns which trailed bits of light. His voice rose in volume until the incantation was complete, and then he released his spell!

There was a tearing sound then as if a large tapestry were being torn apart and the images there upon it being ripped asunder. Lya felt a great pressure in her mind and searing pain in her arms and wrists as her muscles struggled against her will. Finally she felt them relax again... her will had won.

The blade itself began to vibrate and shake on the table and then it rose up on its own! The nameless ruffian leader and his sleeping companion, who was now very much awake, drew their own concealed blades. Then Lya's blade shot toward the wizard! It stuck steel as the ruffian leader stepped in front of Embram to defend him. Sparks flew, and then Lya's blade shattered, pieces falling to the stone floor!


Then, in the darkest part of the deepest shadows in the room, two red eyes began to glow. A feeling of hatred and malice swept over them all, and the entity, even in a weakened state, tried to dominate their minds. As providence, or luck, would have it though, the simmering and rageful demon found itself in the presence of those possessing strong wills of their own, strong enough to risk their lives resisting the likes of this red-eyed monster.

Embram shouted and thrust his hand in the direction of the demon. A white lance of energy shot across the room and struck just between the glowing red eyes. There was a howling of fury as a runed circle formed on the floor and the demon was sent into some nether realm of which only wizards and the godly dare to hold knowledge of.

Then there was silence. Embram seemed to diminish and sagged tiredly against the table. Before him, was the demon's ring, but it no longer bound the red-eyed entity to this realm. The group let out a collective sigh, and Walderic unbound Lya's hands.

"Be glad and thank your Gods that you came to be in the presence of one like Embram before this thing came to dominate you completely..." said Waldric.

"Yes," wheezed the wizard. "If you'd have placed upon your finger that ring, and had subsequently drawn that blade... you'd have become the soul-prisoner of that demon... You are a strong one girl, and lucky..."

Lya looked from one to the other of them, rubbing her wrists.

"I don't understand" she said. "How did that thing get into my sword? As far as I know it wasn't controlling me at all so how can you say that it would take me over entirely?"

Lya sighed and, shaking her head, began picking up the bits and pieces of her scant possessions. The she paused and looked back up.

"Thank you though. Thank you for getting rid of that thing." she nodded to Embram. "And thank you all for helping." she nodded at the rest of the group. "Do you think maybe you all could put your weapons away now? Maybe? I've had enough of being pulled one way, pushed another, doubted on the one side, judged on the other."

Looking down again she continued pulling her things together.

The men slid their weapons away and made a few muttered apologies to the half-elven lass. The wizard gestured away her expression of gratitude. "We do not fully understand how this is happening, but it appears that certain of the Oraxian officers are in fact demonic in nature. They possess not the power of true demons, but perhaps that's how they've been able to infect our part of the world... Upon death, they sometimes are able to enter into the weapon which delivered the killing stroke, then use it to influence its wielder whereupon the next time it is used, the demon-thing enters the body of the victim of the blow. Thus, the leadership of the Oraxian Army is not diminished, and in certain ways is even made stronger. For as the soldiers gain ability and skill from experience in battle, and their demonic officers can continue to infest new hosts, the Army's prowess grows. Waldric was right. You yourself might have become the host if you'd worn the officer's ring while wielding the possessed sword. Like I say, we are still learning..."

Someone brought the wizard a stool upon which he slumped. "Furthermore, and this is important for all of you to remember, magic as I possess and utilize can banish and bind only. The ability to truly destroy these demonic entities belongs to the clerical orders which rely directly on the delegated powers of their Gods... the problem lies in this: some religious and monastic orders are beginning to grudgingly report that their Godly Powers are beginning to wane!"

A hush fell over the room as he said this, for the implications were dire. Priests having difficulty communing with their Deities? "What connection does this have with the Army of Orax?" asked the woman.

"Again, we do not fully understand it, but the working theory, at least among the practitioners of the arcane arts such as myself, is that something is growing to interfere or even block the Gods from influencing this world! I am not a very religious man myself, but even I can see that They are needed now more than ever, but Their influence only weakens. So far, magic of the elemental variety, or that which is derived from the ether itself, does not seem to be affected... so far. Perhaps that is why items bearing enchantments are being sought and destroyed. Perhaps... they pose a certain threat because they cannot be limited like Deific power seems to be!"

Lya nodded pensively before finishing up with her packing and setting her possessions to rights.

"Alright. I would like to get myself settled in this city if such a thing is possible, now, what with the Oraxian army in control. I don't know my way about so if someone could take me to a good Inn I would be grateful. From there I should be able to look about for a place. That's important to me. There are other things I need to do as well. Shopping for the most part. How do I contact you all? And how will we proceed? I am willing to go after that cache for you in the next few days. Hopefully that will be soon enough."

Lya slung her pack over her shoulders and looked about the small group expectantly.

On the cot, Ervik remained in his stupor. The antidote to the poison seemed to have taken a much stronger bite on him than it had Lya. Embram turned his gaze toward the slumbering half-elf. "You should probably leave your friend here with us. We'll look after him, and we may need to cleanse him as we did you. The taint of these demonic soldiers is spreading, and rapidly. Keep this in mind, and keep aware... if you discover anything else that you think I should know about, please get the information to me quickly." Then Embram walked and swapped places with the rouge who'd been slumbering near Ervik.

Waldric took over again, confident and seemingly used to being in a position of leadership. Again that hint of noble bearing dawned on Lya as he did so. "These two can escort you through the city. Weapons and magical items are outlawed, so you'd better hide that sword of yours when you get the chance, or sell it, and carry something a little less obvious. I might suggest some different clothing which blends in more, but these two can help you with that. Like I said earlier, there is a safehouse where you may come if the need should arise. You're probably right, staying at an Inn would allow you a little more flexibility in your comings and goings, but you'll see that the city lacks the spirit of productivity and hard work it used to exhibit. You'll need to learn to fit in, and quickly."

"Should you make progress in the recovery of this cache, leave word at the safehouse and you'll receive further instructions... Embram will get your friend to his feet soon, some take the poison differently and I imagine the dosages were not very exact." He smiled and extended his hand. "Good luck to you Lya and stay strong."

"Stay strong..." the others murmured in unison.

The ruffian leader and his compatriot hoisted their weapons and gear and made ready to escort Lya from the secluded headquarters of this band of the resistance.

~~~~

The route they took was circuitous and dizzying, but it was now more difficult to blend in for they'd left during hours of darkness, what hour exactly Lya could not tell, but there was little to no traffic in the streets. Gray-clad Oraxian guards patrolled the streets, some with torches and some without. The ruffian leader and his man seemed very adept at avoiding them, and Lya's hereditary ability to see well in low light helped them all from time to time. Finally, they arrived across the street from a cluster of narrow buildings which had all been crammed into a space much too small for them.

"That be the safe house there," whispered the ruffian leader into Lya's ear. "...but approach it from the rear. Knock but once and mutter the word 'Cabbage' when you are asked. When the door opens, place a hand on your stomach as if you were hungry."

Then they took her to an Inn, several blocks away and in a noisier part of the city. It was the lowest part, the part which never slept, the part which seemed to exist in any large city despite whatever attempts were made to disrupt it. They were back near what was once called the Old City, and not far from a dock on one of the twin rivers which ran past the capital city.

The Inn was called the Sleepy Saint, but it was anything but sleepy. A patrol of Oraxian soldiers passed by, but they paid little head to the establishment besides a wontsome glance toward the sign which bore a bottle and a mug.

Lya leaned over to whisper in the leader's ear, "This is where I leave you. Thank you for the escort...and the rescue."

Lya watched the street, her days as a sneak thief standing her in good stead. When the patrols were gone and relative quiet had returned she pulled the cowl of her cloak over her head and hunched over. Nodding a last time to her escort she stepped from the shadows and made her way down the street before crossing and opening the door to the Inn.

Stepping inside she looked about from the shadow of her hood, looking for the proprietor or barkeep before heading in their direction.

"Been a real pleasure," the ruffian leader whispered back with a roguish smile. His partner gave the pretty half-elf a wink. "See ya around..." Then they drifted into the darkness of the city's alleys and were gone.

To enter the Sleepy Saint, Lya had to pass through a gauntlet of unofficial "doormen" who had stationed themselves out in front. They might have been lookouts, bouncers, spies, or sensitive types who disliked the crowded interior. They might have been on the same team, vying teams, or privateers in the game of gutters. Each of them, more than a handful, gave Lya looks ranging from a disinterested glance (hardly!) to a full-on disrobing with their eyes. One of them grinned toothily and rubbed a chin full of graying stubble.

Inside, the Inn was not full, but sort of comfortably filled with the hangers-on of a late evening and the regulars which only left their perches to relieve themselves or sleep it off. A bored looking musician plunked on an instrument that was foreign to Lya. There was a table of rowdies, a table of dark brooders in a shadowed corner, and a mishmash of other standard fare.

The barkeep was a woman of stout Zelander stock, not very tall and nearly just as wide, although were Lya to guess she might decide that the woman was mostly muscle.

"Whatcha need luv?" she asked in a not overly friendly tone, just enough...


~~~~

Let's have you give me an IQ or WIS check please, d20+mod, roll low...
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:25, Tue 16 Dec 2014.

18:32, Today: Lya rolled 4 using 1d20-1 with rolls of 5. INT check roll.
This message was lightly edited by the player at 01:34, Wed 17 Dec 2014.

A few sets of eyes watched Lya just as outside...

[Private to Lya: Things are just a little too normal. It feels like any Inn you've ever been in. While you can't tell exactly which of the patrons are spies or otherwise checking you out, you have that spidey-sense hunch that they are there, somewhere. As some have said, forewarned is forearmed... There is something else about the place that you've felt since waking up outside of the city and especially inside its walls, and that is the sense of disinterest in general about hygiene, manners, cleanliness, life... it's as if people are just too apathetic or lazy to care any more. Most of them that is... The little group of resistors did not act or feel this way to you.]

Lya looked at the woman for a moment and then said, "Sorry. I'm lost. Thought this was somewhere else. Sorry to trouble you.

With a small nod of her hooded head she left the Inn, walking past the men and into the shadows of the street heading in a different direction from where she'd come before, by the use of circuitous routes, coming to the safe house.

Going up to the door she knocked once and said in a low voice, "Cabbage" and waited for the door to open.