Scarlet d'Ardelle rolled 5,5 using d20+3,d6+2.  Rapier.

JFC, I really need more lessons...

Urvan, I'll assume that you've learned more of the secret passages in the past two years, and that you know a couple of different entrances, including one or two you can get to without being observed.  Iwo's rooms are not secret rooms, it's just that you know a secret way into them.  They include an office and his bedroom, but also have a secret compartment that have the items he would not want housekeeping, for example, to know about (including the skulls and the sensitive of your mother's books).  While you're generally welcome in there as long as you're not observed, it is his private space and you wouldn't just hang out in there except in special times.  While this qualifies, you shouldn't make too much of a habit of it.

Anyway, you said you would risk a written message.  What is the message and where do you leave it?

As the injured bully runs away, Scarlet takes a moment in realization that she has now bloodied her new rapier.  It was a gift from her mother, of all people, who was acknowledging the Scarlet's right to learn martial arts.  No doubt it was her success at trend setting that Mother admired -- several of the other girls had also taken up the training.  Scarlet wipes the blade clean and re-sheaths it before she turns to look at Erikus.

The pathetic lad is sitting on the ground, hugging his knees and rocking while moaning softly.   Somehow, without stopping the moaning, he is reciting a chapter from Raising Savannah Cats and Other Large Felines under his breath.  It is a chapter describing how much sleep cats need (14-20 hours a day) and an appropriate exercise regimen for them.
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:55, Wed 10 Aug 2022.

Scarlet meant to chase the bully and at least give him a nasty scar before turning him in for attacking a highborn, but something stops her in her tracks, as she cleans and sheathes her blade. It is the first time she actually uses against someone with grievous intent and she's shaking with adrenaline, pain and fury.

"Who are those pigs, Erikus? What did they want with you?"

Urvan waits in his mentor's quarters for about two hours before he hears the key in the lock.  He waits in the bedroom, just in case Iwo has a guest with him, but there are only Iwo's nearly silent footsteps coming in before the door is shut.  Iwo sniffs, then calls out quietly, "Urvan, are you still here?"

---

Scarlet is unable to get anything coherent out of Erikus.  He does, finally, stop his moaning and he starts doing whatever chores she assigns him, but she can not get him to talk about the encounter.  After a final walk with each cat, they are put into their cages where they make themselves comfortable.

Urvan was unsure quite how much time had passed, it had been some time since he had experienced this much time in private and he had perhaps overindulged.

"Yes sir" he answered quitely, and turned to look to the man while still on his knees. "You saw her?" he asked, already having guessed the answer.

Iwo says, "Of course.  Do you have some reason to be worried?"

Urvan tells him about the conversation with Talaiporía, causing him to suck in his lips and tap his chin.  "Well, she knows I was up there, and she would have figured out that there was a boy living there, so she has to suspect you came back with me.  She probably knows, or suspects, my role here at the palace, and she was bound to put it together.  Our options are to get you out of here, maybe come up with a new cover story for you somewhere else, or else to try to beef up your cover story and maybe try to provide her with other leads.

"If you want to stay, we'll have to make a deal with the count of Tamecia.  No one from Tamecia has shown up, yet; possibly they won't at all.  But she is going to get to them.  We have to get to them first.

"Also, she is going to try to catch you off guard, probably some time that you're under stress anyway.  It might be her or it might be somebody else.  Make sure that you stay in character at all times.  And don't try to avoid her, just be a normal page.  She'll notice if you are watching her and especially if you are avoiding her.

"Well, what do you want to do?  I can find a life for you in another village, but you'll have to take up a trade, basically drop out of sight altogether.  But your opportunity to work directly for the crown will be gone."

Fuming, Scarlet leaves Erikus, hellbent on discovering who those thugs were and having her revenge on them. She asks around after them, three big lads, one of them bleeding from an arm.

Urvan knew at once that he would rather die than to leave his position. The Gods had seen fit to show him some mercy that terrible day, and he was now about to go against their will.

He was meant to be here, just as Iwo had been meant to find him.

"No, I will stay." He told Iwo with conviction. "And I will seek out the Count of Tamecia myself, if you will write the letter. How should it be done?"he volunteered.

Scarlet sees a fist-sized spot of blood where there first gush from the rapier pulling out landed; then she sees another small spot right at the exit of the tent.  Beyond that, however, the closing darkness and the significant foot traffic hides any further drops from sight.  She looks at the blood on the rag she used to clean off the rapier and thinks, if only I had some way to follow the track that these drops of blood left behind.

---

Iwo nods his head thoughtfully.  "OK, then.  You'll ride out tomorrow, leave before daybreak, and head west to the main south road and turn south.  That's where the Count of Temecia will be coming.  You'll have to approach every group to find if the Count is with them, then you'll approach him with our plan.  He is going to have to be a willing participant, so you'll have to be convincing.  I know the man.  If he agrees, he will follow through, but you'll need to get him to agree.  He'll need some sort of reward for taking the risk, some future promise.  What do you think would work?  Meanwhile, we'll have to find some other suspects for Erastoo to pursue.  Do you have any thoughts on that?"

Urvan has the feeling that Iwo already has answers to these questions, but he is asking them as a test.

Urvan remained kneeling as he considered the problems Iwo had posited. They had done this in exercise many times, but it had been some time since they had been faced with a obstacle of this sort.

"I could offer the Duke service..." He began slowly. "I'm young, I know, but ruling lands of his size, he may have problems that he would like handled by someone outside how normal retinue."

He suggested.

"As far as another Page that could be used to distract the Priestess for the time being, anyone who arrived at about the same time would fit the purpose. There is nobody quite my size or build, but there are a few that might distract them enough to allow us to finish the business with the Duke." he suggested. "Or we could arrange for hints to a few options, trying to take up more time with more possibilities, as opposed to just one most ideal candidate."

"Tigris! Come, my dear little tiger, mum needs you to do something," she whispers affectionately, petting the CST when she arrives and holding her close to the blood spot.

"Smell this, girl. Got the scent? Now, go! Track! Come on, go go go!" she encourages the feline, ready to follow it wherever she may go.

None of the negative conditions apply, so this is just DC 10
18:30, Today: Zag, for the NPC Tigris, rolled 11 using 1d20+3.  Scent tracking.
18:32, Today: Zag, on behalf of Scarlet d'Ardelle, rolled 16 using 1d20+9.  Perception.

Tigris, eager for the treat she knows will follow a successful tracking, takes off into the darkness.  As she approaches one campfire, Scarlet looks at the people sitting around it but does not recognize any of them.  She lets the cat continue, startling a woman who is roasting something questionable over the fire, but the cat moves on, just avoiding the group.  After another few dozen paces, girl and cat approach a cluster of wagons forming one side of the pen for the horses.  She hears the nickering of animals as they move to the far side of the pen, no doubt disturbed by the scent of predator.

Once the horses have moved on, she hears a voice coming from the gap between two of the wagons.  "You gotta go to the healer.  That's gonna fester, an' you could lose your arm."

A deeper voice, one she recognizes, says, "Naah.  It hardly even hurts anymore.  I'll be fine."

Make a DC 12 stealth roll for a surprise round, if you want it.  Don't forget that even though you may be a charisma rogue, you're still a rogue and get a +1d6 sneak attack damage.  Also, he's sitting, so you'll be attacking at +2 and he won't have a dex bonus.  That is IF you're looking to kill him.  He's just a punk.
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:22, Wed 17 Aug 2022.

Iwo makes a face of distaste at the mention of the Duke.   "Which duke?  You mean Duke Epirus?  It's only a matter of time before he decides he's too important to be part of the empire.  I'd see you sold into slavery before I let you work for him.  He claims to be loyal, but he is quietly forming his own army."  He pauses, "Oh, you mean the Count.  Count Temecia won't need service, and we need him to treat you as a son, not a servant.  I'll draft a letter for you to give him, but I have to confer with the Queen and the Regent what I can offer him for his service.  Stop here on your way out tomorrow morning."

When Urvan suggests another page as an alternative suspect, the old man responds, "No, there are no other pages who arrived around the right time.  You have to open your mind.  It doesn't need to be a page, just any boy that suddenly found employment in or near the palace.

There's a kitchen boy, Cameriere, who arrived around the same time.  He arrived on a boat and managed to convince the cook that he knew his way around a kitchen.  I think Gerroldivus knows him fairly well, the two got into trouble together last winter, if I recall correctly.  If you could just "warn" him, maybe through Gerro, that Erastoo is worth his attention, then he'll act weird enough for her to notice.  It'll have to be something specific, though, people already act odd around her just because of her looks.  Maybe tell him the tattoos are magical, or have an amazing aroma, something that will make him try to get close to her.

There's also a stablehand, Ippéas, who started here about a month after you arrived.  It will be harder to get him to interact with her, but maybe you'll think of something.  I doubt she goes and checks on her own horses.  She likely just walked here from the temple, anyway, it's only about an hours' walk.  I'll put in a word to have him on duty tomorrow morning, and you can chat with him when you pick up a horse.

Iwo writes a letter and signs it.  "Here.  Give this to the stablehand to requisition you a horse.  I know you don't ride much, but you'll have to learn quickly.  Come back tomorrow, an hour before dawn, to get the letter for Count Temecia."
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:23, Wed 17 Aug 2022.

Not necessarily kill him, Scarlet is not that bloodthirsty and she'd have cooled down a bit during the tracking, but definitely give him a nasty reminder of this day, and possibly bring him to justice for laying hands on a noble.

OK.  ...

Scarlet d'Ardelle rolled 19 using 1d20+7.  Stealth.
Scarlet d'Ardelle rolled 13,4 using d20+3,d6+2.  Rapier.
Scarlet d'Ardelle rolled 3 using 1d6.  Extra damage for sneak attack.

Scarlet pounds from the shadows...

I'm not sure how tough you thought he was, but he's not that tough. 

Scarlet moves silently around one wagon to appear, as if out of nowhere, in the middle of the youths' conversation.  The smaller boy is leaning against the back of the wagon ahead of the one Scarlet circles.  The larger boy is sitting on the wagon hitch, his legs straddling the beam that leads out to the yoke, and cradling his injured arm.

All the training in swordplay comes into focus, Scarlet can practically hear Usuul's voice saying "Arm is too low, out of guard position.  Strike the neck."  Her rapier, almost on its own, slides through the bully's windpipe.  She withdraws her sword to see arterial blood gushing out with the beat of his heart, flowing through his useless fingers.  He tries to speak, but only blood and a strangled cough comes out.  The other boy backs away, his eyes wide with terror and his hands raised.
This message was last edited by the GM at 12:19, Wed 17 Aug 2022.

"I will" Urvan bowed and stood, then went to collect his things.

-

Early the next morning, before the sun was fully up, Urvan was dressed for the road in a sturdy brown tunic, hob nailed sandals and a messenger bag. He was travelling very light, but such was his habit.

At his side trotted Boreas, excited by the prospect of an early restroom break and a walk.

The previous day he had made his pitch to Cameriere, and suggested that Erastoo's tattoo's were in fact magical, and that they could form tantalizing, erotic images if only you could watch them for long enough. He hoped it would do the trick.

As he arrived at the stables proper he greeted Ippéas.

"Good morning." he said in his trademark near whisper. "Is everything ready?"

The sight of her first kill is imprinted in her mind forever now, Scarlet understands immediately.

"There, worry no more about infections," she hears someone say in the coldest of voices as she steps into the light, bloodied steel levelled at the other boy. Her pulse beats a wild rhythm inside her temples.

"On your knees, knave. Try to run and I'll find you like I found him."

20:04, Today: Zag, on behalf of Urvan Kron, rolled 5 using 1d20.  Bluff

Cameriere listens to Urvan's story, a little surprised that the page is now confiding in him.  Frankly, he's a little afraid of the huge lad with the huge dog, so he just nods his head and smiles.

After picking up the sealed note that Iwo has ready for him, Urvan heads out to the stables.  "Good morning," he whispers to Ippéas. "Is everything ready?"

"Ready?" the boy asks as he squats down and holds out the back of his hand for Boreas to sniff.  "Nice dog, goooood boy," he says in a soothing tone, then he turns back to Urvan.  "Great doggo you have there.  'e's a biggun.  So, uhhh, ready for wha' mate?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:14, Sat 20 Aug 2022.

20:17, Today: Zag, on behalf of Scarlet d'Ardelle, rolled 19 using 1d20+8.  Intimidate.

Scarlet is pleased with how steadily she holds the blade.  It really is very well-balanced; at least mother knows to buy quality.

The boy immediately drops forward on his knees, his hands still held up in as non-threatening a pose as he can muster.  "Don't hurt me.  I'm sorry about your friend -- we didn't mean anything by it, we was just having a laugh, that's all.  We weren't gonna hurt him."
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:19, Sat 20 Aug 2022.

Scarlet advances, light and graceful as if in one of her ballets, swordpoint a handspan from the boy's face.

"Explain. And I will spare you," she commands.

She isn't sure she will.

The larger boy gurgles a death rattle.  The smaller boy, still on his knees, manages to squeak out through his sobs, "It wasn't nothing, just a bit of fun."  Sweat drips off his face and snot is oozing down his chin, but his hands remain up, just behind his ears.  "... because he's, you know, a retard.  I'm sorry.  I won't touch him again; I swear it."

Oh, yes. Erikus. This is also about him, right. But mostly about a commoner daring touch her.

"You are right. You won't. If I see you again, you will end up like that pig over there. And believe me, I will remember your face," she says, swiftly cutting his right cheek in a rapid stroke, from ear to lip. Then she takes a couple of steps back and cleans her swordtip on the dead boy's clothes, before she sheathes it and vanishes into the night.

RESERVED FOR FUTURE POST BY URVAN.

The meeting with Ippéas.