Into the Ruins - Exalted 3e IC

[Sherwood]

Amara narrows her eyes at the three in front of her. With her hand on the hilt of her blade, she says, "If the three here are lying, perhaps we don't need them in one piece after all. They can still speak if I cut off an arm from one. Well, once the screaming in pain stops, that is. Who wants to be first?"

OOC Psychie I have a Cha + Presence of seven dice. I'd like a roll for intimidation. Any bonus dice that my threat gives?

 

[Psychie]

Amara narrows her eyes at the three in front of her. With her hand on the hilt of her blade, she says, "If the three here are lying, perhaps we don't need them in one piece after all. They can still speak if I cut off an arm from one. Well, once the screaming in pain stops, that is. Who wants to be first?"

OOC Psychie I have a Cha + Presence of seven dice. I'd like a roll for intimidation. Any bonus dice that my threat gives?

You can have two extra dice.

 

[Sherwood]

Rolling with a willpower point tossed in for the extra success.

A total of seven successes

 

[Rykon]

Amara narrows her eyes at the three in front of her. With her hand on the hilt of her blade, she says, "If the three here are lying, perhaps we don't need them in one piece after all. They can still speak if I cut off an arm from one. Well, once the screaming in pain stops, that is. Who wants to be first?"

OOC Psychie I have a Cha + Presence of seven dice. I'd like a roll for intimidation. Any bonus dice that my threat gives?

Aredin shrugs with a menacing grin, "I can't argue with that. They've been caught red-handed in an attempt to sacrifice a village and then try to lie to our faces about it. Evidently, the stories didn't set a loud enough example with Fahn Credys, I'll see if we can fetch a rusty cleaver, meat hooks, and some nice coarse-grain rock salt. Reckon the Riverlands will run red with fattened sharks once again."

[Narratively assisting the threat, I can try and roll dice to boost Amara's result, but I think it's a strong enough roll on its own.]

 

[Psychie]

The three shy back from Amara like she just sprouted horns and fangs. One man leaps to his feet, points at the woman and screams out, "It was her! ALL HER! We would have never tried to raise that monster of it weren't her idea! Do what you wish to them but just don't hurt me!" Aredin can tell right away he's telling the truth this time.

This gets a venomous glare from the woman, and her hand slips into her robe and comes out with a wicked dagger in hand. She lunges after the man, but since he was on his feet and she was on her knees he is able to leap away and not get stabbed.

This doesn't seem to deter the woman as she snarls out, "You are unworthy and will be purged like the rest of these weaklings! I'll kill you myself!"

Both Amara and Grey Stone are close enough to do something to stop her. What do you do?

 

[jaydude]

As these events happened, Grey Stone would move forward and attempt to grab the wrist of the woman before she could attack her former compatriot a second time. Specifically the wrist attached to the hand holding the dagger. She'd already caused enough hurt here.

[It's not been stated that the woman's anything more than a mortal, so presumably I don't need to make any rolls.]

 

[Psychie]

The woman is either stronger than you had anticipated, or she is being fueled by rage, because it is a real effort even for Grey Stone to hold her as she struggles to get to the one she's trying to stab. She struggles like a cat about to get dunked into a rushing stream and she's none too happy about it, using any and all nasty moves she can think of trying to get free.

After a few moments of struggles and angry words, she seems to deflate as she realizes that she cannot get free, and she lets go of the knife and it falls to the ground.

The man that was the target of her rage keeps back, obviously not trusting her. "See? She's mad! It was all her fault that this happened!"

Rykon Aredin knows that this is not a hundred percent true, but not an outright lie, either. This man has some guilt in this, too.

 

[Sherwood]

Amara glares at the one man that was the target of the knife attack, saying, "You seem to realize that I'm not screwing around. Good. Now, tell me what you were told that you were doing when you tried to suck the life out of the people of this town. Remember we know when you lie to us, so if you value your limbs you'll tell us the truth. Spill the details now."

 

[Purr]

Psychie Whether or not Amara's and Aredin's threats are just meant to scare or meant to dismember if they don't get what they want is a matter O Mighty Fat Tyrannosaurus Rex finds himself having less interest in with every passing heartbeat. He is from a simpler realm, one might call it a holy realm. There was no ugliness of this nature in the Celestial Wildlands, at least not from its native humans. Yes, animals killed each other all of the time, but almost never out of cruelty.

Da Chonk realizes quickly that he does not have the stomach for this style of information gathering and there is not a single bit inside of him that feels bad about it. If anything, Da Chonk inwardly approves of Grey Stone's disarming of the seemingly mad cultist. He cannot help but wonder if the woman is carrying more than one knife.

He was certainly learning more about the Circle he was traveling with.

Spoiler: Short-term Goal #2

2. Learn about each member of the Circle as to better understand them and why they do what they do.

"Well if those three can't be trusted to answer truthfully or take responsibility, maybe this one will know better. What say you?" Aredin added, making a point to emphasize that the other three prisoners were known liars.

This is Da Chonk's answer: Looking down at his cultist-laden reptile foot, Da Chonk carefully takes a moment to remove the cultist himself and put the fellow before the Circle, especially Aredin. Perhaps they would know better what to do with him. (O.O.C.: I don't imagine this takes a roll but if it does, let me know?)

Aredin's deadly blade strikes home, cutting deep into the shadowy figure and with the power of the Unconquered Sun behind you, the figure vanishes from sight with a blood-curdling scream that no human could have made. Whatever it was, it appears to be gone.

Da Chonk uses the senses of this great hunting beast whose form he now wears. He sniffs and searches about the area where the figure vanished from in case something was missed or some evidence the Circle had not yet found was here. After his search, Da Chonk reverts to his human form and stretches his arms, grateful that his own arms are more proportionate than that of the Tyrannosaurus Rex. He searches again (sometimes different forms provided different perspectives).

As you look about, you also see the townsfolk are returning to normal rapidly, far faster than you would expect. In fact, you feel quite invigorated yourself, feeling very good despite your lack of long rest. Something other than just time is at work here.

Seeing the return of the townsfolk to themselves makes O Mighty Fat Cat's heart glad. (O.O.C.: If there is time in his action) he approaches any of the townsfolk who look of an age to have lived here for some time. These people, he asks courteously. "Hello dere! How healthy you look now! How are you feeling? An' do any of you know de cultists here?" He points one finger back at the cultists.

 

[Psychie]

Amara glares at the one man that was the target of the knife attack, saying, "You seem to realize that I'm not screwing around. Good. Now, tell me what you were told that you were doing when you tried to suck the life out of the people of this town. Remember we know when you lie to us, so if you value your limbs you'll tell us the truth. Spill the details now."

With the woman being restrained, the man that was the focus of her rage looks to Amara with an anxious expression. "We- we were promised . . . eternal life . . . for our cooperation in making this ritual happen. Lady Ramis," he points as the woman, "seduced us with promises of great power and wealth to go along with immortality. At first, it was harmless to the townspeople, but we needed more Essence to make the barriers between us and the Underworld break and to bring forth the avatar of the Neverborn. We sold our souls piecemeal to the dark powers, all hoping for some great return on the lives of those that were to be sacrificed. I never meant to go so far."

Aredin can hear that he is mostly telling the truth, or at least, the truth as he knows it. His story goes against you and Mercy have seen that this was supposedly a ritual to bring forth a demon from Malfias. It probably means that this man was lied to by those behind all of this, because he personally believes that he is telling you the truth.

Seeing the return of the townsfolk to themselves makes O Mighty Fat Cat's heart glad. (O.O.C.: If there is time in his action) he approaches any of the townsfolk who look of an age to have lived here for some time. These people, he asks courteously. "Hello dere! How healthy you look now! How are you feeling? An' do any of you know de cultists here?" He points one finger back at the cultists.

The people around you are all returning to normal with a rapidity that is surprising. They seem confused and disoriented, but there is no level of aggression that there was from the zombified people that there was before. The man that Fat Cat addresses blinks a few times, looking around him for a moment before answering you. "I feel fine. For the first time in a long time, I feel fine." He looks over at Grey Stone and the woman and he says, "Cultists? What do you mean? What are you doing to her? That is Lady Ramis. She is trying to find some way to end this curse on us. If it were not for her, we would probably have this curse on us forever."

 

[Purr]

"I feel fine. For the first time in a long time, I feel fine." He looks over at Grey Stone and the woman and he says, "Cultists? What do you mean? What are you doing to her? That is Lady Ramis. She is trying to find some way to end this curse on us. If it were not for her, we would probably have this curse on us forever."

O Mighty Fat Cat folds his large arms across brawny chest and gazes doubtfully at Lady Ramis. Looking down towards the fellow, he speaks in his usual musical way, his words rising and falling like notes on a scale.

"Me friends and I broke de wicked spell - de ritual - she and de other cultists had cast up on all of you. Dis is why you feel fine. Dey be usin' your whole town's life force for dere gain.

"Plus, you see dat knife in my friend's hand?" O Mighty Fat Cat makes a stabbing motion. "She just try to put it into de talking man over dere to stop him from talkin'. Good people don't do dese tings, yes?

With a raised eyebrow and a deep tone filled with uncertainty, the Lunar asks, "You suuure dis woman tryin' to save you when it is all of your life force she be stealin'? Look how she is dressed. She was chanting up an evil storm just a minute ago. Before we stop her and de unholy demon ting we banished. Look at your whole town and den look at her before you answer."

As much as Da Chonk would like to call upon his own few Lunar powers to try to convince everyone listening, he does not do so (unless he feels some kind of counter-magic or hypnotic sway that he must combat socially). Instead, he leaves the facts to stand for themselves - for facts have their own power. Especially when truthfully told.

 

[Chowlett]

Silent Glade can see that Aredin and Mercy have the interrogation well in hand, and finds the milling villagers oppressive - simultaneously so coddled behind their stone walls, and yet so vulnerable, like his old village. So he fades back into the shadows, and returns to the rooftops. Without straying too far, he starts to explore the rest of the town now that the danger has passed, eyes open for any further information that might shed light on the situation.

 

[Rykon]

With the woman being restrained, the man that was the focus of her rage looks to Amara with an anxious expression. "We- we were promised . . . eternal life . . . for our cooperation in making this ritual happen. Lady Ramis," he points as the woman, "seduced us with promises of great power and wealth to go along with immortality. At first, it was harmless to the townspeople, but we needed more Essence to make the barriers between us and the Underworld break and to bring forth the avatar of the Neverborn. We sold our souls piecemeal to the dark powers, all hoping for some great return on the lives of those that were to be sacrificed. I never meant to go so far."

Aredin can hear that he is mostly telling the truth, or at least, the truth as he knows it. His story goes against you and Mercy have seen that this was supposedly a ritual to bring forth a demon from Malfias. It probably means that this man was lied to by those behind all of this, because he personally believes that he is telling you the truth.

"Well, then she lied to you as well to us. Now, how many were in on this plan? Is this everyone?" Aredin asks directly.

 

[Psychie]

"Well, then she lied to you as well to us. Now, how many were in on this plan? Is this everyone?" Aredin asks directly.

The woman screams out, "Tell them nothing! Do you hear me? Nothing!"

The man seems a bit shaken, but after looking at Amara, he stutters out, "S-six of us. Only six. The Lord is there," he points to the one that Mercy killed with her Skycutter, "and Marc was the first to fall, into the fire. Dennis there doesn't look good at the moment, but he should live."

This time he's telling the truth.

 

[Psychie]

O Mighty Fat Cat folds his large arms across brawny chest and gazes doubtfully at Lady Ramis. Looking down towards the fellow, he speaks in his usual musical way, his words rising and falling like notes on a scale.

"Me friends and I broke de wicked spell - de ritual - she and de other cultists had cast up on all of you. Dis is why you feel fine. Dey be usin' your whole town's life force for dere gain.

"Plus, you see dat knife in my friend's hand?" O Mighty Fat Cat makes a stabbing motion. "She just try to put it into de talking man over dere to stop him from talkin'. Good people don't do dese tings, yes?

With a raised eyebrow and a deep tone filled with uncertainty, the Lunar asks, "You suuure dis woman tryin' to save you when it is all of your life force she be stealin'? Look how she is dressed. She was chanting up an evil storm just a minute ago. Before we stop her and de unholy demon ting we banished. Look at your whole town and den look at her before you answer."

As much as Da Chonk would like to call upon his own few Lunar powers to try to convince everyone listening, he does not do so (unless he feels some kind of counter-magic or hypnotic sway that he must combat socially). Instead, he leaves the facts to stand for themselves - for facts have their own power. Especially when truthfully told.

The former zombie-like people currently around you number just over twenty, and as they watch the drama being played out in front of them, their confusion slowly shifts into anger. It's one thing to have something bad happen that is no one's fault. But when you can blame someone, that is a whole different animal.

The woman identified as Lady Ramis is starting to sense the tensions starting to build in the crowd, and she turns to look at the people that are starting to approach. "Don't be fooled by these strangers! It must be them that's behind our nightly curse, not me! Who are you going to trust? Me, or them?"

 

[Rykon]

The woman identified as Lady Ramis is starting to sense the tensions starting to build in the crowd, and she turns to look at the people that are starting to approach. "Don't be fooled by these strangers! It must be them that's behind our nightly curse, not me! Who are you going to trust? Me, or them?"

Aredin chuckles with a smile, raising a voice to the crowd. "The answer is very simple. It will be the unrestrained party who ended the curse the very first night of our arrival. Every single one of them warned us to undergo lockdown as soon as we entered. Why? Because they never had any evidence or faith that you were solving the problem." Aredin pantomimes feigned shock and gasp. "But how could that be? Well of course the source of their misery and suffering wouldn't show any results or progress in ending this curse. These are kind and patient folk, but not stupid ones. Now it's time you face their justice for trying to sell their souls to hell."

[Charisma + Performance, full excellency assuming 3 appearance dice. 12 successes on winning the crowd.]

 

[jaydude]

"I concur," Grey Stone said. "It is for the people you have wronged to decide your fate."

 

[Purr]

O Mighty Fat Cat nods to Aredin's performance and Grey Stone's wisdom. It seems to Da Chonk the Circle was of one mind about this.

With the woman being restrained, the man that was the focus of her rage looks to Amara with an anxious expression. "We- we were promised . . . eternal life . . . for our cooperation in making this ritual happen. Lady Ramis," he points as the woman, "seduced us with promises of great power and wealth to go along with immortality. At first, it was harmless to the townspeople, but we needed more Essence to make the barriers between us and the Underworld break and to bring forth the avatar of the Neverborn. We sold our souls piecemeal to the dark powers, all hoping for some great return on the lives of those that were to be sacrificed. I never meant to go so far."

The people around you are all returning to normal with a rapidity that is surprising. They seem confused and disoriented, but there is no level of aggression that there was from the zombified people that there was before. The man that Fat Cat addresses blinks a few times, looking around him for a moment before answering you. "I feel fine. For the first time in a long time, I feel fine." He looks over at Grey Stone and the woman and he says, "Cultists? What do you mean? What are you doing to her? That is Lady Ramis. She is trying to find some way to end this curse on us. If it were not for her, we would probably have this curse on us forever."

"Hey! Cultist-man!" He calls to the cultist whom this "lady" Ramis wants to kill so badly, the one who had explained all to the Circle prior to the villagers coming out of their ensorcellment. O Mighty Fat Cat stares him in the eye while touching the townsperson's shoulder in a gesture of reassurance hoping to draw the cultist's attention to him. "You say you sold your soul to de Devil? Well, here before you is an opportunity... to get some of it back! You give dis man here your name. You tell him and all here what you done. Just like you told us. And den? Den you beg him and all de people you wronged for dere forgiveness - even though you know you're not deservin' of none of it!

O Mighty Fat Cat does not seek to command the cultist but to make the decision the cultist's own. No one else can make it for him, so the jungle deliverer believes.

"Do this ting now and mebbe de Devil don't have all of your soul, yes? In dis way, you begin de journey to becomin' your own man again while denying de Devil at de same time! You tell your story again."

O Mighty Fat Cat opens his hands in a gesture of hope.

"Begin again with your name! Tell again what you told us!"

 

[Psychie]

The man that Fat Cat is talking to looks at the big Lunar with a helpless expression, then bows his head in surrender. In a trembling voice, he says, "Mills Oleg. My name is Mills Oleg, and yes, we are the ones responsible for what has been happening to everyone. It was Lady Ramis that approached me, hoping to include me in the ritual to summon a great power from the Underworld, something that promised us power over death itself."

The audience of locals do not appear to be overly pleased with this confession, and an angry murmur can be heard growing in intensity, with many angry looks being directed at Lady Ramis.

Mills continues, telling everyone how they would meet every night, trying to break the barriers between worlds to summon what he refers to as the Master. He seems to be clueless to the fact that this was really a demon summoning ritual, and if successful, they would be responsible for a literal hell on earth.

All the while that Mills is talking, Lady Ramis is looking more and more like a trapped animal, desperate for any means to escape.

One of the townspeople there then steps forward and says, "I'm Kurt Vander, and I would say that we all owe you our lives. You have our thanks. I am no magistrate, but I think that these people have much to answer for. We have a small jail that will hold them until we decide what to do with them." There is still an angry muttering from the others here, but Kurt raises his voice and says, "We are not murderers to kill them like this. They will face a trial and let our laws deal with them."

One angry voice calls out, "We know what the law says. They killed dozens! Would have killed all of us! Let's return the favor and save the city the trouble of a trial!"

Kurt clenches his fist and says, "We've all suffered at their hands but are we animals to turn into a lynch mob? Are we no better than our tormentors? If not, I will have nothing to do with this. But if we try them as the law says, that's different."

The impassioned words reach their target, and the angry growl slowly fades away. The surviving four cultists are all hauled away, with the shrill voice of Lady Ramis begging for her life as they take her out of sight.

Kurt looks to the assembled Exalted and asks, "You have saved us all. How can we repay you for the debt we now have to you?"


Chowlett
Silent Glade is elsewhere in town, feeling that the anger in the town is fading away, with some people hesitantly coming out of their homes to look around in wonder that the curse on them has been lifted. What are you doing at this time? Where do you go?

 

[Purr]

A great and wide grin crosses O Mighty Fat Cat's face, his ebony skin shining the moonlight under Luna's gaze. The sound of his voice carries with it a combination of serenity and happiness as he looks up to the moon. He searches himself for a divine prayer as grateful as it is heartfelt to shine like moonlight from the depths of his very soul. His large hands reach toward the clouds as if he could grasp and cradle them all with his fingertips.

"O my Luna! Holiest of the lights in the sky! Most graceful and beauteous ting over all Creation! I thank you for givin' me de courage, de spirit, and de words to help make tings right! I thank you for me Circle wittout whom de wicked Devil would still be scourgin' dese innocents down to dere souls. I pray dis Devil neva to return. O my Luna! Please show me how I can repay all dat you have given me! Me many forms, me simple words, even me heart beatin' strong inside me chest! Me village and everyone inside of it - may you bless dem always!"

His head bowed, his hands folded together against his brow, O Mighty Fat Cat bellows without shame. "Everyting dat I am... is comin' from you, O my incomparable Luna!"

He stands in quiet for a few moments as he finishes his prayer. Then with a happy smile free from devils and curses and all other sources of unhappiness, he smiles to his Circle without whom none of this could have occurred.

Spoiler: Deep Forest.

"First Deep Forest video by Don Letts"

Kurt clenches his fist and says, "We've all suffered at their hands but are we animals to turn into a lynch mob? Are we no better than our tormentors? If not, I will have nothing to do with this. But if we try them as the law says, that's different."

The impassioned words reach their target, and the angry growl slowly fades away. The surviving four cultists are all hauled away, with the shrill voice of Lady Ramis begging for her life as they take her out of sight.

Raising a pleased smile to Kurt Vander, a calmer O Mighty Fat Cat looks upon the man with great respect. "Mista Kurt Vander! You may not be a magistrate, but your bravery and your words make you de equal of many such men and women who hold dat title. Mebbe now de spirits and de animals can return to Aldurtown?" He looks about the realm where happiness can play a part untainted by a devil's methods - or an evil human's.

Kurt looks to the assembled Exalted and asks, "You have saved us all. How can we repay you for the debt we now have to you?"

"Not to be speakin' for me friends, but we are on a dangerous journey and we would be fools not to accept anyting you might offer to help us." Just then, Da Chonk pauses as an idea strikes him.

"Oh! Dere is one ting here in Aldurtown I am lookin' forward to tryin'. De patient watchman said de White Elk tavern serves a good brew, yes? Is it a good enough brew dat we might celebrate Aldurtown's freedom together?" O Mighty Fat Cat beams a big smile looks to everyone around him to see how that idea strikes them. "By Luna, all dis runnin' and devil-slayin' and talkin' got me ferociously thirsty!" He adds with a gusty laugh.

 

[jaydude]

"For me, simply being able to protect people from dark schemes is its own reward," Grey Stone began, before turning around to look at his companions, "but I will not decline on behalf of my compatriots. Indeed, one of them may suggest something I would enjoy, but haven't considered myself."

 

[Sherwood]

Amara feels good as she sees the cultists being hauled away, and feels even better at the words of this Kurt fellow. Yes, they were victims of a hateful curse, but they were able to retain their humanity and not just descend into savagery to kill them. Perhaps these cultists can do something to redeem themselves? Who knows.

She turns to the unofficial leader of the bunch of townsfolk and says, "I have little need for money, but a good meal, hot bath and a soft bed does sound very good to me. If it would not be too much of an imposition, that is."

 

[Rykon]

"I concur with Amara." Aredin adds while waiting for the prisoners to be taken away in irons. "We've traveled a long way and have much further to go still. A chance to truly rest and eat is plenty."

 

[Eonivar]

Mercy, still standing by the cauldron watches with great apprehension everything that happens. When Lady Ramis seemed like she was getting ready to run, Mercy found herself reaching for her Skycutter again, but fortunately she did not get to run and was taken away. She silently watched and listened to the resulting actions and nodded in finality at the end solution with the cultists being hauled away.

She walked up to where the rest of her circle stood, and kind of shyly spoke. "Umm...I recommend you take the cauldron and bury it somewhere where no one will find it. It cannot be melted down or destroyed. I would take it, but I have no real place to put it and carry it, it's kind of big." She paused and seemed to think and reconsider a moment. "If we were not busy there is maybe one place we could take it. perhaps once we are done with our task we can stop back and pick it up?" She kind of glanced at the rest of her circle for their input on the matter.

At the mention of a reward Mercy kind of smiled in her quiet shy way and said. "I agree with my dear sister Amara, a bath, food, drink, and a soft bed would be absolutely wonderful!"

Once the villagers were going about their business, Mercy looks at her circle. "What should we do with the Hearthstone we found?"

 

[Chowlett]

Psychie mostly Glade wanted to just get away from the press of people, and has simply circled the town ostensibly keeping an eye out for any further trouble, or anything they've missed. With the crowds melting away, and everything calmer, he returns to the group, dropping lightly from the rooftops.