Morin read the coded message over before handing it around for the others to look at.

"Now, I'll be the first to admit, I'm no expert on codes or spycraft.  But I AM a professional writer, and as a writer, I'm getting a weird vibe from this whole letter.  I mean, your tone here, it's wounded, it's accusing it's recipient of ignoring their responsibilities to the person writing the letter.  You're complaining about being abandoned in enemy territory, and demanding that the recipient come to them in order to make things right.  That...doesn't exactly sound like an all clear."

After a bit of thought Morin shook his head.  "This is a pretty tricky situation, you know.  Maybe you did already tell your boss what we found in the day or so since we last talked to you, and this letter is our only way to call it off.  OR maybe they don't know shit, and sending this letter would be the thing that brings in reinforcements!  Decisions like this make for great drama, I'm absolutely putting it in my play."

As if remembering something, he turned to the others, with a nod.  "Well, I've got all I want out of this guy.  Anyone else have something they want to do before we go?"  He waggled his eyebrows at the furious barbarian suggestively.  "Cael, it looks like you've got an idea in mind."

Cain takes a look at the message as well, trying to discern if Sanvil is lying to them. Again.

09:56, Today: Cain rolled 21 using 1d20+4 with rolls of 17.  Sense Motive.

Cael raises his blade, preparing to strike the man down, but despite the anger visible in his face and shoulders, looks to the others to confirm they mean to murder him. Sanvil scrambles back against the wall of the cave, his feet still bound, and explains, "No, wait, listen! Copper is technology, they use it in wiring. Money is the league. I'm saying the ruins were poor, the league should stay where they are, and I will sort through what there is like usual. I'm supposed to be a merchant and smuggler; people expect me to be writing in code so I always add extra, misleading bits. If they don't hear from me after that, they will investigate! You need me!"

[Private to Cain: Cain didn't believe he was telling the truth when he said he had already contacted the league in the first place. His claims about the code are probably true, but you can't be sure there's not more in there or how it will be interpreted.]

After examined the message, Cain shrugs. "I still think he has not yet contacted the League over this, but he could be telling the truth this time. So, what do we do with him?"

OOC: I'm fine with either handing him over to the council for them to deal with him, or just letting Cael avenge Synn, assuming he wants to do so. Maybe Cael and Synn were friends, but maybe they just met the first time right before meeting us.

"We could leave him here."  Zorden suggested.

"Gag him, tie him to that scrap we were using, and leave him in the dark.  We'll give the council his letter and they can decide if they think its genuine, and if they want to send someone to retrieve him."

Morin thought about Zorden's suggestion  "I mean, I'm all for leaving the letter issue up to Kyte and the others, but we can't just leave Sanvil down here.  The second we're gone, those skulks are going to creep down that tunnel to see what all the noise was about.  That is, if they ain't here already."  The gnome looked around the room, suddenly suspicious of every nook and cranny.  "In fact, I'd bet a silverdisk there's one in this room right now, all chameleoned up and just watching to see where this goes.  I don't want to risk Mr Smooth here talking them up, or we could have an even worse fight on our hands when we get back."

Looking around, it seemed like nobody was particularly enthusiastic about executing the League spy on the spot.  Even the barbarian was hesitant about chopping Sanny's head off.  "Okay, I get it.  None of us wants to be the guy who cuts a prisoner's throat while he's tied up and begging for his life.  That's...I mean, hey, that's probably a good thing!  We're a band of morally upright heroes, we are, handing off the evildoers to the proper authorities!"  He spared a glance for the downed Ropefists, who by now would be rapidly approaching room temperature.  "Well, one of them!" 

Turning back to the prisoner, Morin flashed a smiled as if he hadn't just openly tried to have the man killed.  "Okay Sanny, let's go.  We're gonna throw a blanket on you when we get out of these caves and haul you down to the church like you're one of the dead bodies we've been pulling out of this hole every trip.  Father Kyte and the rest of the council will figure out what to do with you."

Ionaya steps forward to Sanvil's face and says, "Your actions have caused death and misery.  I'd kill you myself, right here and now,
and even this kind gnome couldn't save you. Yet, you have your uses. The major use you have to me is to restore Khonnir from what these
machines have done to us! If you do that, you will have earned the life we're letting you keep now."

She pauses, gathering her thoughts and then turns back to him with a friendly smile.
"Sanvil, is there some kind of technological alchemy that might save our Councilor Khonnir and in doing so, improve your status with us?"

None of the party are healers but the ropefists each still draw breath and at least don't appear to be bleeding out.

Cael lowers his great blade, the quiet, brooding tribesman ready and willing to finish the traitor but nodding in agreement to taking him to the council.

Sanvil, for his part, relaxes and resigns to being brought to the council--it's not the freedom he'd been arguing for but it's better than the alternative. He looks to Khonnir at Ionaya's question and says again, "I'm no doctor, but he looks pretty cut up. Maybe concussed? Lobotomized? Irradiated? My vitality serum helps if its radiation, but you need a healer to check him out."

Scouting the area on the way back to the exit from the caves the rest of the party finds what Cael had: the body of Synn bound, badly beaten, and her throat slit in what must have been an execution. Her pistol is missing but otherwise it looks as if Sanvil and the ropefists were saving looting her belongings and stripping her Neraplast armor for later. Sanvil looks away and shakes his head, commenting, "It really is a shame what they did to her..."

Khonnir sticks near the familiar Cain and Ionaya, unable to understand anything going on but keeping his distance from the bodies of the fallen and the now statue-like robot.

Before they left, Zorden bound both the gangers' hands and feet with strips of the ion tape charged with applications of the zipstrip.

He didn't know if they were in danger of death but he didn't want them getting up and causing trouble if that wasn't the case.

Once back towards the entrance he took a moment to look around.  Sanvil's comment caused him to look up towards the man, tail twitching in agitation.  Though in lieu of putting a bullet into the man and rolling him into the black water, he paused to pull some of the spare clothing from Khonnir's bag and used it to temporarily shroud Synn's body.

"We'll need to come back for her."  He commented quietly.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:43, Thu 29 June 2023.

"Yes... what "they" did to her." Cain comments Sanvil's words dryly. Seeing someone they fought along side with just a few hours ago in this state was almost enough for him to finish off the weaseling merchant once and for all. Almost. "We should take her body with us now. There's no telling when we would be returning, and by then some beast might make a meal of her."

Saying that, he looks around to see if there are any clues as to what happened to the monster Synn left with.

OOC: Besides, if we take her body now, we can loot the armor before we bury her. Not like she needs it.

Seeing Cain looking about, Sanvil notes, "Her monster fled. Probably out of the caves since we didn't see it again."

Cael looks between the helpless Khonnir, the bound Sanvil, and the lifeless Synn and then Zorden, Cain, and Morin, and figures he'll have to make multiple trips through the rancid water. He shakes his head and says solemnly, "I didn't know her well, but I know of her tribe. I'll return her to them once this traitor is locked up." The barbarian punctuates his words by shoving the merchant into the water and towards the submerged tunnel.

Morin had been content to let the two ropefists bleed out on the ground after falling in battle. But he paused after the revelation that they were somehow both still alive after all the blasts and stabs they had recieved.  With a resigned sigh, the gnome made some makeshift bandages out of the attackers clothes, and began the process of binding the gangster's wounds and waking them up.  "Nothing good would come from leaving them for the skulks to find.  And as long as we're being merciful, it just wouldn't feel fair to let the ringleader live while the hired help dies in the dark.  Besides, if their boss is somehow involved with the torch going out, maybe they'll be useful after all!"

After reviving the ropefists, Morin quickly explained that they were being hauled back to town to face the town's justice, and that they should just do what they're told.  He figured their interrogation could come later, once everyone was out of the cave proper.

Given how many bodies would have to pass through the water tunnel while dead, bound, or otherwise helpless, Morin agreed that the process would take a few trips.  The way he saw it, the best way to do things would be to bring out Synn's body first, then arrange for a wagon and some privacy while they brought out the more...sensitive human cargo.

Before they leave, Ionaya steps over to the bound ropefists. Making certain she has their attention she says to each of them,
"Why should we let you live, when you tried to kill us? Give me one good reason to spare your lives, else we will leave you bound and wounded so
you can watch helplessly while creatures feast from your flesh."

She looks to Sanvil, "You say this vitality potion can cure the Councilor? Which one is it? What does it look like?"

"That's ... not at all what I said. I keep telling you I don't know what's wrong with Councilor Baine." Sanvil repeats himself as he looks between Ionaya and Khonnir.

As the ropefists come to to have their lives immediately threatened, they try their best to plead their case, "We just wanted to be on the right side when the Technic League comes." "You're the ones bringing them here." "You don't mess with the league." "What would happen if we refused to help him?" "He made it seem like we didn't have a choice, and after what he did to the lady I believe it."

Sanvil cringes and tries to keep out of the way as the hirelings cast blame at him.
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:32, Wed 28 June 2023.

Cain is hardly surprised by the revelation that Sanvil was indeed the one to kill Synn. Looking at the prisoners they were supposed to get out of here, he can't help but feel it would be easier had they just left them all for dead, Sanvil included. "Maybe we should get a message to the Council first, ask them what to do with the prisoners."

OOC: Dragging Khonnir, a dead body and three prisoners through the town could draw a lot of attention to us. But so could getting a wagon, I'm afraid. I wonder what time of the day is it? It would be easier to do this quietly if it's the middle of the night.

Anyway, looking at the map, number 7 - Olandir Estate is right next to the exit from this place (pond at number 9), and it belongs to leader of the Council. She would know what to do with our prisoners, I hope? And number 6 is the garrison, which is probably the closest this town has to a prison. It might be best to first have someone get a message to the councilwoman. She could then get the guards to the pond to escort our prisoners to wherever she wants them to.
This message was last edited by the player at 06:23, Wed 28 June 2023.

"We'd need to send one of us to do that, while the rest stay here."  Zorden figured with regards to Cain's suggestion.

Ionaya nods thoughtfully and says coldly to the ropefists while ensuring they remain bound with their mouths covered, "Thank you for your excuses. My hands are clean and free of you, I will not kill you, nor will I help you." Turning to the rest of the group she says calmly, "Forgive me for saying this but we have enough trouble as we are taking your friend's body, councillor Khonnir and Sanvil from this place. I say leave the thugs behind and let us be gone from here quickly, before more machine or other trouble finds us, we can deal with other issues once we are safe."

She looks back to Sanvil, "Be joyous, Sanvil Trett, you get to live."

"You want them dead?" Morin asked, his face taking on the kind of serious expression he rarely sustained for longer than a few seconds.  "Okay." With an shrug, Morin walked over to the pile the party had made out of their attacker's possessions.  Picking up Sanvil's heavy longsword with a grunt, Morin held the handle out for Ionaya to grab. "Here.  Take this and stick 'em in the neck.  I'm fine with that!  They're bad guys, it's okay for a hero to kill them!  But if you don't cut their throats right now, then I'm taking them out of the cave with me.  I'm not just going to leave them down here, tied up in the dark to die of thirst, or have some cave-beast or skulk  eat them alive.  Why would we even want to do that?  Sadism? Squeamishness?  Either way, it's not very heroic!"

With a hint of his usual grin already returning, he looked around to the rest of the party.  "Anyone?  Last call on summary executions.  Stab now or forever hold your peace."
This message was last edited by the player at 23:48, Wed 28 June 2023.

Ionaya gently taps Morin on the shoulder to get his attention, when he looks at her she stares into his eyes and says slightly angrily,
"But they are not worth the effort, Morin. Either killing them or saving them, they aren't worth the effort."
Shaking her head, the anger quickly fading from her face, she adds, "If you want to save them, I will remind you that they would have killed all of us.
But I will neither aid nor slay them, out of respect for my saviors and their fallen. If these thugs live, I hope you will save their next innocent victim
from your decision."

Gently pushing the sword away, she walks back over to Khonnir to prepare him for their next journey.

Cain tries his best to defuse the situation.

"Eeeeasy now, what's done is done. For better or for worse we did not let them all bleed out back in the caves. Might have been easier had we done just that, but there is no point in now fighting over it. Look, Olandir Estate is, what, 50 yards from here? And Serantha Olandir is the head of the Council. So, let's just get out of here, find her and dump this problem on the Council. Let them deal with this, our job was to find Khonnir."

Cain is a big fan of "someone else's problem" method of problem solving.

OOC: Basically, I propose one or two of us to go and ask the head honcho for guards to escort the prisoners wherever she wants them, and then we can forget they ever existed. And if she wants them dead, well, that's too bad for Sanvil and the lot, but it's not really our problem any more.

"Save them from our decision."  Morin corrected Ionaya cheerfully, before dropping the issue altogether.  Carelessly tossing the sword back onto the loot pile, he turned to head out for the underwater tunnel.  "Welp, I'm off to see what good Lady Olandir thinks.  Who's coming with?"

"I'll go if nobody else wants to, but I'd prefer to stay and keep an eye on our friends here. Just in case they get any bright ideas."

OOC: Since we are going with this, should we all swim out, and then send someone to look for the councilor?

Zorden looked to Ionaya and Cael.  "You two want to help get Khonnir out and go along with Morin?  Probably the sooner the councilor gets out of here, the better."

In reply to Zorden (msg # 518):

Ionaya falls quiet and looks away for a moment, then says softly with a hint of embarrassment, "I... I am of the air.
I will do what I can for Master Baine, but I will need assistance myself to pass back through the water."

"Oh, don't worry."  Morin reassured Ionaya.  "We've got a ropeline set up from one end of the water tunnel to the other.  All you gotta do is go hand-over-hand for maybe fifty feet.  No swimming, no fumbling around for the right path, it's easy.  If I can do it, so can you!  Even Khonnir here shouldn't have much trouble, as long as we keep him between us."