Shrugging at the chancellor he replied.
Unless he's in this room then how could I, I've just arrived.
Smiling as the guard he had sent out returned with 3 others carrying a large parcel he bowed again to the king.
My lord, in honor of what I hope is to become a profitable relationship for us both I have a gift for you.
Motioning then to his guards they removed the covering to reveal a full set of silver plate armor inlaid with gold with the kingdoms sigil of a green background with a golden oak tree in the middle etched onto the chest plate.
As a result of the gift, the king receives a suit of plate armour that will provide +1 to personal combat rolls in battle. £5 is deducted from Richard's wealth as a result.A pair of guards move into position either side of you. Your own four guardsmen start to react, [5 vs 6] but you hear a pair of clonking noises behind you and shouts of alarm. You turn to see what is happening, but the guards escorting you grab you by each arm and start dragging you away down the corridor. Behind you, the squad of Wardens attacks your two remaining guards, who have managed to draw their blades. [2 vs 3] They are cut down immediately and you are dragged away to the dungeons, a bag thrown over your head.
You are clamped to some sort of table, and when the bag is lifted the Court Jester is stood in front of you grinning like a maniac.
Outside...Richard's treasure-loaded wagons sit quietly in the courtyard, guarded by a dozen liveried horsemen. [Sneak: 4 vs 2] As they sit waiting, Wardens begin moving surreptitiously into positions nearby. A courtier emerges from the palace, greeting the captain of Richard's guards.
"Greetings, fair servants. I am here with instructions from your master that he wishes to gift the entire contents of these wagons to the Crown. If you would kindly permit access the servants will unload the chests."[Deceit: 5-2 vs 3] The commander frowns.
"I'm afraid I can't release any of the contents of these wagons without a direct order from master McGrieve."The courtier nods in understanding and two dozen Wardens step out of hiding, surrounding the wagon.
"In that case, I am seizing the contents of these wagons under the authority of King Arcadius III, Sovereign of Meridia. Please comply fully with our demands or you will be executed on the spot."[Intimidate: 4+1 vs 5] The commander and his cavaliers draw their swords, and the footmen on the wagons draw crossbows and hastily load them. The Wardens draw blades and shortbows in turn.
"I'm afraid that's not possible."[Nerve: 1 vs 4]
"A shame. Kill them a-" The courtier's words are cut off in a spray of claret as the commander's blade arcs through his throat.
[3 vs 3] The courtyard explodes into chaos as bolts and arrows fly, cavaliers riding down Wardens and Wardens cutting the flanks of horses. [2 vs 4] The Warden captain goes down quickly in the fighting, cut down by the cavalier commander, as his fellows try and capture the wagons. [5 vs 3] Before the commander has any time to savour his victory, a bodkin-tipped arrow shatters his skull into fragments upon the palace courtyard. [1 vs 6] The remaining cavaliers, rallying at the death of their leader, join together and charge upon the remaining Wardens, running them down and forcing them into a retreat. The onslaught is so successful that the surviving half-dozen Wardens flee completely. Wasting no time, the cavaliers gather the wagons and the bodies of their dead and cut the rope to the palace drawbridge, escaping into Meridon proper.
Three cavaliers were killed in the melee, but eighteen Wardens are butchered as well.
[1-2] The result is a nightmare; the cavaliers, seeking vengeance for the death of their kin and tangentially the freedom of their master, spread the tale of the king's betrayal among the citizens of Meridon. Showing their dead as proof along with rumours floating from the palace, it doesn't take much before a violent mob forms. [6] Two hundred angry burghers arrive at the castle gates that evening, led by the cavaliers. They demand the release of Richard McGrieve, restitution for the deaths caused and most of all they demand blood.
And to top it all off, the £40 is never even captured by the Treasury.
5 blades are to investigate the ogres each of them working alone in civilian clothing to avoid detection.
The remaining 15 are to split into small mobile groups then hunt down and kill every bandit or brigand they find within the borders of the kingdom and claim the loot from them for the order. No prisoners and only attack by surprise when they have the advantage.
[3+1] Of course there aren't actually ogres in the kingdom, neither of the ogre temples are the seat of an archbishopric, but the human "ogre bishops" are certainly subject to scrutiny. You investigate the troublesome Bishop of Viridon first, and although you do not yet find evidence to support it your agents report rumours that the Bishop is a pederast. Although not illegal, it is socially unacceptable (ogre canon only accepts homosexual ogres, not humans) and would be somewhat scandalous.
[6+1] The bishop of Asterbury, on the other hand, is apparently a paragon of virtue in every way, upholding the faith, virtues and divinity of the ogres to the letter. The last report you receive from the blade investigating him suggests that this may not be entirely true but that she is on the edge of getting major evidence against him - then she goes silent and disappears. You have no idea if she's gone into hiding, been killed or what. You only curse her sense of theatrics for giving you vague hints instead of just telling you what she suspected before disappearing.
[3+1] Your campaign of bandit extermination is fair successful if not complete, driving most bandits into deep hiding if not killing them outright. Since banditry was not a major problem in the country, the most you are able to gather from their stashes of loot is a total of £2 in various items of wealth. This is not reported to the Crown and instead placed in the blades' private keeping.
Previous action stands. Keep off the road for now. Try to rouse Alexis. Swear in German. Don't follow Grewie.
[5+1] You are travelling along the road for a half day, struggling with the comatose body of the spymistress, when you spy of all things a mule hitched to a post. The mule appears to be completely abandoned, but loaded up with a saddle and saddlebags full of provisions, marked with a tri-knot symbol. You decide to not look said mule in the mouth, but take possession of him and off-load your burden onto his back. With your new asinine companion carrying your old asinine companion you make excellent time and return to the capital within the week.
"...Let's get out of here. Alexandra's a sm--capable girl. She can get out on her own...and if not, so much the better."
Grewie starts putting distance between himself and the village.
Head for the village/town where the nearest leader of a clan with major relations with the kingdom lives.
Except the Alvlings, of course.
Before you go, Hulen (presumably) relates to you what he knows about the clans and gives you his map or a copy. With this in mind you have a choice between Odfjord and Jalbron. You decide to head toward Jalbron, being closer to the border and thus easier to hop back to Meridia in case of trouble.
[1] Unfortunately, your journey is not without incident. You sight band of Alving warriors on the morning of the third day, [1] and despite your efforts to evade them they catch up to you and surround you. You notice with some distress that tied to their belts are the heads of young Meridian women; you never saw the faces of the blades, but you think there may be a close familial resemblance to Alexia.
[3+1] Before you can say anything, one of them grabs your coin pouch and tears it off your belt while the others restrain you by the arms. He starts emptying out the contents, then freezes stock still. The warrior carefully replaces the coins and then shouts at his fellows in a harsh accent to release you. They do so, looking confused. He offers you your coin purse back with a look of fearful reverence.
"Forgive me, honoured sir," says the warrior. "I had thought- But never mind. You must be careful; there are Meridian assassins in the hills, seeking out the clan chiefs. I assume you are headed to Jalbron. Please allow us to escort you, the ways are not safe."
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Topic: You are a Lord II (Read 33941 times)