Spoiler: Ambiance The Bloodcasts return to Schönvor, choosing to set up camp in the dead of night on the outskirts of town. They had chosen to not inform the mayor, and while none of the Bloodcasts noticed anything truly out of the ordinary, O'Rourke Ulster did hear the odd snap of a twig in the distance, as if a not so skilled scout was keeping an eye on them. They make camp for the night and went over their plans. In the morning, William Arny and Marissa Morgann prepared to enter the town to search for any clues concerning the Duskborn gang, or the validity of the corruption claims. As they made it to the center of town, they quickly realized the Mayor was absent, on "foreign business" as a few nervous townsfolk shared with them. As they approached the town square, William's keen eyes noted two guards leaving the town square, muttering to each other and sending a glance their way. It took the pair another hour to discover what they had truly come there for but eventually convinced a friendly shopkeep to list the missing townspeople. "I saw most of them walk into the Mayor's office, looking right angry they were. They came out nice and fine, but they were gone by morning time!" With this unsettling news, they returned to the campsite. Meanwhile, Everett Von Der Ebene scouts around the outskirts of town, attempting to discover tracks or clue that will give them some indication as to where the Duskborn are hiding out. Zelgius Pavise followed with her, trying to stay aware and quiet as they marched. While they attracted no attention, the pair simply could not find any trace of activity. No disturbances in the grass. Nothing. It was only as they turned back toward their camp did Everett see congestion of tracks leading back toward their very own camp, and they were mighty fresh. Swearing, the two sprinted back to camp. Everett, Zelgius, Marissa, and William all gathered back at camp at the same time, only to discover the camp was littered with Duskborn corpses. Their companions were gone, and the entire place looked like it had seen a bloodied battle. Were it not for Everett Von Der Ebene's tracking skills, the four of them would have been left clueless. They recovered what they could from the field before hurrying off in search of their companions. Earlier that day, about half an hour before the four would return to camp, the remaining five bloodcasts were met with roars from the treeline. Unmistakeably, Duskborn, had crashed into their camp with weapons drawn. Were it not for Seraphina von der Ebene's quick thinking, the lot of them would have been overwhelmed by the 20-odd Duskborn who had sprinted from the treeline. "BACK TO BACK!" She roared, drawing shortsword and lifting her kite shield, striking an inspiring stance as she gathered the others around her. Maiev realized it only a second after; all of these Duskborn were wielding swords, axes, and maces, but not a one had a bow in hand. As the five remaining Bloodcasts formed ranks, they easily cut down half the Duskborn in the span of a minute. The rest of their attackers broke ranks at that, fleeing toward the Schön river. As they ran, Ivar expertly slid his blade through the neck of a fleeing Duskborn. The five Bloodcasts hesitated for only a moment, before attempting to give chase to the sluggish Duskborn, convinced they could catch up to the group. Maiev trailed behind the others, holding a small pack she had snatched up, and the chase was on. Alas, just as they seemed to be getting closer, the Duskborn would manage to pull ahead. As the fleeing Duskborn came into sight of the Schön River, the Bloodcasts finally began to close the distance between them. Alexander Donsly alone looked to either side and realized the treeline was nearing its end, and sprinted ahead, shouting for his fellows to get down. Were it not for Alexander, they all would have met their end that day. Crossbow bolts ripped out of the treeline, five of them finding their mark on Alexander's form, while the rest of them managed to hit the ground just in time. Alexander fell in a heap, as the fleeing Duskborn turned with weapons bared, suddenly looking very confident. Out of the treeline walked none other than The Mayor Von Redwood of Dragenthal, holding a crossbow in his portly fingers. Six other men wielding crossbows came stalking forward from the treeline, each holding a Bloodcast in their sights. The fleeing Duskborn stood behind the Mayor, clanging their weapons eagerly until the Mayor shut them up. "Here I thought those ridiculous rewards would keep you upjumped cutthroats away from my town. I needed my boys here to stage a kidnapping, for my own daughter, and still, those damnable townsfolk came complaining to me about them, suggesting I could stop the Duskborn if I wanted to. Well, no more hiding for me. But that won't be a problem now. With the armor ripped from your pathetic corpses, my Duskborn will be able to handle any more troublemakers that come through. Do you know how long I've been working this town, ready to-" As he monologued, Maiev gingerly reached a hand to her back. She produced a small flask of oil and a lighter, trying not to draw attention to herself. Alexander, in his dazed state on the ground, saw this. Before anyone else could react, Alexander, despite two bolts sticking out of his left shoulder and three in his right leg, dragged himself to his feet, glaring down the Mayor. Von Redwood ceased his rant and gave a snort, before firing at Alexander point-blank. Up came Alexander's shield. The Mayor laughed and began loading the crossbow again, firing at Alexander who could only try over and over again to raise his shield in time, the rest of the Bloodcasts unable to move for risk of being fired upon by the Duskborn. And then, the Mayor fired a shot which connected to Alexander's chest. At that moment, several things happened at once. Everett, who had a moment before led William, Zelgius, and Marissa to the treeline, sank her shortsword into the back of one of the Duskborn. Marissa did the same on the other side of the treeline, her bastard sword sliding through the back of an archer's neck. William and Zelgius had failed to ambush the archers without attracting attention and were fired upon by the turning archers point blank, both shots missing by inches. Maiev, unaware that the four had come upon them, had thrown the flask of oil right at the mayor's gut, before preparing the small lighter and throwing it just after. By sheer luck, each and every other crossbowman missed their shots, as all of the able Bloodcasts sprung into movement at the same time, bearing down on their foes in a furious attack. And the mayor Von Redwood, his sizeable gut drenched in oil, shook with fear as the lighter soared above him, landing behind him. Unbeknownst to the mayor, the lighter slowly licked at a patch of grass, as he stood stock-still in fear. Seraphina's shortsword felled three of the Duskborn in the span of 10 seconds, slicing and stabbing faster than any of them could do much more than bear their weapons. O'rourke knocked out a crossbowman with one punch to his jaw, before finishing the job with his longsword. In only a few moments, the Bloodcasts had felled every single Duskborn, and only the Mayor, frozen in place and drenched in oil, remained. It was Marissa who approached the Mayor, holding a blade to his neck as Everett and Seraphina desperately attempted to keep Alexander alive. The bolt in Alexander's chest had, surprisingly, not driven deep due to his armor, but he was still in grievous pain and could hardly move. The Mayor, his portly hands shaking, reached into his pocket and held out a sizeable coin purse. He began to back up in fright, stammering "It's-it's yours, take it. I'll tell you who sent me here, I'll-" and as he backed up in the smoking grass behind him, flames shot up to his gut and engulfed the Mayor in fire. A gurgled, desperate shriek rang out through forest a sound that would remain with the Bloodcasts for some time, and ran towards the Schön river, just in sight. The remaining Bloodcasts, weary, exhausted, and shocked from their battle, watched in horror as his portly form collapsed just a few feet from the river, engulfed in flame. A day later, Alexander was patched up and sent back to Regalia on a separate carriage, his wounds serious enough he would not fight for a week. The 10 captive townspeople had been recovered from a nearby abandoned farm with little incident, thanks to the tracking skills of Everett. They confirmed what Von Redwood implied, they had been kidnapped for speaking out against him, suspecting him of corruption. The rest of the Bloodcasts had small cuts and bruises but had otherwise come out of the mission unharmed. Marissa held a single note that had been found in the coin purse, written in a language none of the Bloodcasts would understand until they reached Regalia, and even then the letter would be taken and given to a State official. The official revealed the language through a slip of the tongue, but otherwise suggested the Bloodcast return to their duties. When they did arrive back home, despite being congratulated for rooting out the corrupted Mayor Von Redwood and saving the town of Schönvor from the Duskborn, they would be left with a haunting question. Why was Mayor Von Redwood, in Dragenthal, in possession of a letter written in Kathar Elven? @JoyShake @TheHufflePug @Karukona @Walnoodle @KingdomKnightz @Antimreoir @Winterless @MasterMordax @TheMoistestMan
