Bay 12 Games Forum

"Yes, there's so much! I mean, quite a lot of it is complete sensationalism and mostly urban legends and speculation, but some of it is really useful for actual chronicling and well-researched, you know? There was one I read that claimed Kyle was actually a half-dragon and that's why he was so strong. That's completely crazy, but that's the kind of thing people write about the heroes, you know?"

Karin, inside, sighed a breath of relief. Clara's secret was safe for the moment.

"History, m-mainly."

"I-I see. Uh....well, I hope we can all get along, as long as we're together. Besides, being at each other's throats isn't going to be too helpful, right, as long as we're looking for the treasure when we're being hunted down by the other people who want the treasure too. Sorry if I'm talking too much, but you know, it's easier to talk to other people if you just get some practice in talking to them, and I'm usually not used to talking a lot and oh, I'm babbling again, aren't I? Oh, sorry, sorry....."
Karin just takes her face into her hands and plants it firmly onto the table, more than slightly embarassed.

"I-I see. What do you think about them? I-I know Clara, a little bit....but what about the others?""

"Hm. Troubling. Beowulf, tend to yourself for the moment, I'll figure out a way out of here."
Erica calmly adjusts her glasses, not at all fazed by the men banging on the door before her. She'd been in worse situations in her time as a bodyguard. Compared to the assassins and the scoundrels she had to deal with, these mere bandits were brazen, but no different. She breathes in deeply, looking down at the tome in her hands, all she was able to wrest. Her bow had gotten lost in the struggle, and she felt she wouldn't be finding a replacement any time soon.

Erica had to prioritise.

Right. Locked in the clothesroom, four men at the door. Beowulf was injured, but alive. He had supplies on him. He'd be fine. No windows, so no climbing out that way. The walls were stone, no knocking them down. The only way out was forward, into the thugs trying to kill them. Maybe they could hold them, one at a time, a choke point. Use the naturally small doorway; they couldn't pile in more than one at a time, and Beowulf and Erica could easily handle one thug. For now, magic through the door. It would do for now. Whittle them down through attrition, strike when they were weak.

That was solved.

The second priority was the lord, Joachim. The others were either dead or got help. Time later to mourn if they were dead. Erica needed to get herself and Beowulf out of here and then find their charge and get out of here; this was no longer a safe place, a safe rendezvous for the princess and the lord. He was somewhere in the house, somewhere deeper, or maybe not. Erica had lost track of them in the madness, the chaos had separated them. Erica quietly cursed herself for losing track, for making such an amateur mistake-

No. Not now. Later. Later was the time.

Take down the thugs first. Break out of the clothesroom second. Find Joachim third. And if Erica could get down to the bottom of whoever killed her comrades and threatened her charge, that would be the next priority on her list.

Now was the time to strike.
"When you can, help me bolster this door. We need to keep them as far away as possible while I weaken them."
16-21, dunk on the thug

"Yes, that's also possible. Something about this whole situation seems really off to me, something I can't articulate without knowing more. Not that I'm backing out, but I want to get to the bottom of this."

"Tarnum Darek.....I can't say I know much about him either. Maybe if we can, we should figure out how he plays into this, maybe it could help us find more leads to where the treasure is. And you're right, the treasure deserves more than being used by criminals, especially if it turns out to be something historically important.

Judging from what the paper says, it's a letter of some sort, and they probably know who it was addressed to. Where did you even find it? As far as I know, nobody's conducting any large archaeological dig in the middle of Auroch, right?"

Karin weighed her options. On one hand, she didn't know a single one of these people. They were in a fairly dangerous part of Auroch (Karin herself was only there in search of leads to the treasure), so they had to be fairly dangerous people themselves to get around, either that or locals who'd been here all their life (and judging from the accent of the person talking to her fellow countryman, Clara and Amber's presence, most of them definitely weren't locals). For all she knew, they could easily be on their way to anywhere but the treasure Karin wanted or worse. This Sieve personality was seeming more and more suspicious; Karin had noted that whoever this masked man was, he was trying to push him out of the conversation, and that she had been watched on her way in. She knew full well she was being watched, but for her to be blatantly approached by people so soon after arriving? There was something to this, and she'd find out what.

On the other hand, Clara was with them. Clara was a decent sort of person, and Karin knew enough about her to know that hanging around common bandits and scoundrels wasn't something she'd do, unless something horrible had happened between now and the last time they'd met. It was also a chance to work with Amber, who was apparently Catherine's daughter. Most of the people there seemed relatively unsuspecting, the masked man and the person of ambiguous gender aside, though Will gave her an odd feeling, as if there was something going on behind him that Karin couldn't quite get at. In any case, this was a dangerous part of Auroch, and travelling alone would be less prudent, especially considering the treasure that Karin was looking for.

The treasure that Karin wanted for her mother, the treasure that could make her mother rich enough to live in luxury if Karin believed even one or two of the rumours about it.

And that was what Karin was here for, wasn't it? Her mother.

That decided it.
"I'd be happy to help, if you'll have me."