Dragon's Egg - Act V

[tbgg]

Trembling, I hunch my shoulders and take a slight step backward as if readying myself to avoid a blow. I give the man my eyes for only a brief second before turning to look submissively at the ground.

"Bald-hart," I say in a soft, girlish tone, speaking the name in two distinct syllables. "Baldhart. Please."

 

[Legendary Sidekick]

Baldhart

I say to Callan, "I wouldn't exactly be lying. I really do need to talk to Conal about the orcs, though…" I lower my voice. "…I imagine you're mentally prepared for the possibility that Conal isn't in any condition to speak."

I turn to Tumi, and I see that's Cali… not that I've ever seen the woman at the door who basically looks like the 'typical northerner' Cali described to me.

"Good to see you, Sigrid," I say with a smile as if I wasn't just telling Callan the captain of the guard may have been murdered during the night.

 

[tbgg]

I quickly dash inside of Tumi's house, cutting as wide a berth as I can manage around the man, then dashing over to stand as close to Baldhart as I can without blocking the view out the window, my back to the wall. I stand trembling, still looking at the ground, but manage a shy, "Hi Bal-dy."

 

[Legendary Sidekick]

Baldhart

Huh. I guess the disguise magic only works if you act out your character. I'm not sure I understand the timid act, but Cali is clearly not a timid person—saving Dalla and the kids is proof enough for me. So maybe she needs to be different from herself in a way and…

Interesting as this is, figuring out magic I can never cast is not going to help us save Conal… or discover his dead body. But I really should ask later, and play along with the act now.

"You don't need to be nervous, Sigrid. We're just going to talk to a prisoner… which I suppose is something to be nervous about, come to think of it. But he'll be behind bars and you can be behind me. You're okay with this, right? I ask because… I've… never seen you like this before."

 

[tbgg]

I nod my head gravely, indicating that I am okay with this plan, though I allow my eyes to dart uncertainly at Tumi.

Once we are on our way to the prison, I will watch for a stick I can write in the dirt with and pick it up. I will also keep as much distance as possible between myself and the men in the group, making Baldhart a shield between myself and them if I can manage it.

Sigrid and Cali need to seem like totally different people if my disguise is to work. If people underestimate Sigrid, I can use that.

 

[Legendary Sidekick]

Baldhart

I offer a sympathetic "Oh…" and add, "Tumi's not a man who would hurt you. Um. I think Siggy and I need a little girl-talk before we head out."

Once alone with Cali… ((Stepping outside, if Cali's willing, and assuming no one stops us.))

"My thinking is that a different look needs a different personality. I'm actually quite intrigued by what you're doing, so if you want to explain how you do what you do, I'd look forward to this as a conversation for later. For now, I just want to make sure I don't miss signals or assume you're giving them when you're not.

"So about the looks at Tumi… if he or any of the men had a spell on him, making him say things like 'Sam's fine,' would you notice that sort of thing? Sorry. Aside from making a naked valkyrie appear from a flame, I'm pretty clueless when it comes to magic."

 

[tbgg]

I follow Baldhart outside, then glance around to make sure we are alone. Assuming we are, I reply, "To recognize magic on Tumi, I'd need to cast a spell for detecting magic on him, though I don't actually know that spell - it's still a bit too hard for me, although if Tumi were wearing an illusion, I know the spell for detecting those. But you said not to cast anything in front of the locals, so I won't do that."

"With the scarred man, it's different. If he's not in his cell, and I don't honestly expect him to be, then either he's fled, he's cast a charm spell of some kind on Conal, or he's disguised himself as Conal or someone else in the prison. If he's fled, that should be pretty obvious. If he's charmed Conal, Conal will be co-operating with him or otherwise behaving out of character for a guard captain, and I trust you and Tumi can figure that out. If he's disguised himself as someone inside, because I've seen the man before, I'll have a chance of recognizing him if I study him, though it's not foolproof. He has the same chance of recognizing me, which is partly why I'm playing Sigrid as very different from myself. We'll have to hope that his appearance as the scarred man was not itself a disguise, because then I don't know what he actually looks like."

"As for signals, I'll touch you on the back if I recognize him, but I need a way to tell you which one it is if there are multiple men in the room. You're, um, a bit tall for me to whisper in your ear."


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[Legendary Sidekick]

Baldhart

When Sigrid tells me she doesn't expect the man to be in his cell, I nod and add, "I'll be ecstatic if Conal is still alive."

As for the signal… "Right. Signal. Stand beside me and tap one of my fingers as subtly as you can, if that signal doesn't sound weird. If you're on my left, tapping the pinky would mean it's the person farthest to the left. Ring second from left, middle third, index fourth. Thumb is fifth, and if you're on my right, same idea with pinky as farthest right and so on.

"That sounds convoluted when I say it. If for some reason the signal won't work, like if there's a crowd and no way of knowing who's on whose left, we'll make whispering work somehow. Even if Mother always told me whispering is rude and conspicuous. Diplomacy lessons. Not a story for now.

"Anyway, I never thought I'd ask this but, shall we go question the prisoner?"

 

[tbgg]

I tell Baldhart, "I'll tug your hand on whatever side I'm on if I need to whisper to you. I think I get what you're saying about tapping fingers. And yeah, let's get this over with."

For the benefit of any who may see us, I hunch my shoulders as though I have just received a scolding and duck my head, then follow Baldhart whenever she leaves.


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[Legendary Sidekick]

Baldhart

I tell the others we're ready to question the prisoner. If Bressel isn't with us, I suggest we check the gate first.

 

[SeverinR]

(Unless Aliron has an encounter I would assume they are at the gate. But will wait to see)

 

[Steerpike]

Tumi's Place

Tumi gives "Sigrid" a brief look-over when she comes in, but not much more than that. He seems used to the idea that the party has additional members he hasn't met. His place is starting to get crowded, though. It's not a large dwelling, and three elves and four additional humans tend to crowd the place. When Baldhart and Cali go outside, Tumi continues to observe Big Sam, who remains leaned against the guardhouse next to the door.

Callan moves over the where Liadan and Cadell are, inside of Tumi's, and says "We don't see many elves in the north, as you might have guessed. What's your motivation for coming up here, putting your lives on the line in this cold land? The dwarves keep to themselves, for the most part. Always thought it was the same with elves--maybe even more so. Let the humans deal with their own problems, right? But you two aren't like that. Why?"

When Cali and Baldhart come back in, the group is ready to approach Big Sam. Callan asks: "Should we leave a few here? This is a good-sized group, and almost all outsiders."

"I'll watch from here," Burnbright says, looking to Nissa and Baldhart for confirmation

The Gate

Aliron joins Bressel at the gate with no difficultly. The guards see less than pleased to see him, and even less pleased when Aliron shows up. It's not that they're hostile, more like a bit on edge (even more than one might expect in a town plagued by orcs).

"Ah, this comrade..." one of the two guards says. He clears this throat, then proceeds. "Wouldn't happen to be a gray-haired gent? About so high. Scar over his eye?" As he asks the question, the other guard's hand moves toward the hilt of a sword at his side, in what he probably thinks is a casual fashion.

 

[Ireth]

Cadell

I look over at Callan when she approaches, and tilt my head slightly at her question. "I was sent north by my former queen for reasons I still am not certain of. I joined with this company to ensure that the Taint would not spread south to the land I came from. When I brought word back to the queen of my dealings with the dwarves, she was not pleased. Nor were certain others in the court. Long story short, I was exiled."

Liadan nods as Cadell speaks. "When I heard of that, I had no wish to serve a queen who would punish her subjects for befriending those of other races. I turned my back on her out of love for Cadell, and came north to help him and our companions fight the Taint. Keeping to our own business does us no good when evils from elsewhere spread to our borders."

 

[Legendary Sidekick]

Nissa

I remove my backpack and say, "If it's an emergency, no one will complain about the wings. If it's nothing urgent, you won't need me." I tell Burnbright, "I'll keep you company while the group is small."


Baldhart

I express my agreement with Callan, then head out, waiting for the others.

 

[tbgg]

I scurry after Baldhart, again keeping my distance from the men in the group as I exit Tumi's house.


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[Steerpike]

Ballara

Callan nods quietly as Cadell and Liadan speak, then says: "It is good that you're interested in what happens outside your own realms. That was not my experience with most elves in the southlands, though there were a few who were less insular than the majority. We are glad to have your help here."

When the group leaves, Callan elects to stay with Burnbright. Tumi knows Big Sam better than she.

"Don't be gettin' into my stuff," Tumi cracks over his shoulder as he leaves.

Callan snorts. "You don't have anything I want to see, believe me."

Tumi grunts and his ears redden, but he leads the way toward the gate without a rejoinder. As the group approaches the gate ((please indicate whether you're going with Tumi and Baldhart or staying with Burnbright and Callan), they see Bressel and Aliron standing before the two city guards. The guards are clearly on edge, though no outright hostility is evident. They seems to be questioning Aliron and Bressel as to who they are and what they're doing in Ballara.

 

[Ireth]

Cadell and Liadan follow Baldhart and Tumi toward the gate, both watching the guards to make sure their unease doesn't escalate to hostility as they question Aliron and Bressel.

 

[tbgg]

Noticing the tension between the two guards and the man and Elf I don't know, I debate whether any of the 4 could be the scarred man in disguise. I finally decide that while disguising himself a party member could get him closer to the girl, other party members would be likely to recognize something amiss, particularly if they don't automatically fear magic and are on the lookout for trouble on her behalf. Disguising himself as a guard would get the scarred man out of the prison, and if the guards are primarily trained to deal with with more physical encounters, they might be less likely to watch for signs of magic. Also, since I don't know how many guards there are, the scarred man in disguise might be able to pass himself off as a new guy, or someone come from a nearby town to help, if his goal is to hide in plain sight for a time or he got pressured into duty before he could make his escape.

Although I am not really expecting to discover anything, I lower my gaze to the ground and intently study the two guards from beneath lowered lashes, trying to identify evidence of the scarred man in disguise.





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[Legendary Sidekick]

Baldhart

I trust Cali will do her thing and signal if there's anything weird.

I ask the guards, "Is everything okay, gentlemen?"

((Defensive stance if an unarmed monk can do that without it looking obvious. Otherwise, normal stance but mentally prepared that something might go wrong.))

 

[SeverinR]

Bressel:
"this is the comrade that I was waiting for. We are not here for violence, we are here to help, if we can. My friend is dark and mysterious, but he is harmless, look he wears no armor and his weapons are put away. We would like to enter your town, if we could."

Aliron:
Stands calmly and tries to look non-threatening, slowly he lowers his hood, so they can see his face. But he can't help but look around towards the terrain behind him, always alert for a surprise attack. Listening for any sounds, looking for any movement.
"Evening gentlemen." He tries a weak awkward smile.