Adventure 6 - To The Graves And Back

With Cuthbert Lyons wounded, captured, bound, and manhandled into a chair in the upper study of his lakeside estate, the interrogation began.

John Henry took the lead from Watch Officer Karel O'Neill, who stood aside in shock, trying to comprehend treachery from the patriarch. Neelan watched on, interjecting commentary and refining questions as apporpriate. Keigan wandered out of the room, perhaps not trusting himself to treat the well-known and influential citizen with all due courtesy.

Cuthbert accepted the blame for his family upon himself, fully admitting to being part of a conspiracy to kill or drive off the Harris family from the region. He also implicated Richard Graves, the Burgomaster of Creek City, as the instigator of the family feud. Graves dug up some bad blood between the clans - a wedding where a Harris youth spurned his Lyons bride at the altar, causing her to die of shame and heartbreak days later - and twisted Cuthbert's own pride and family loyalty into a murderous tool. Graves had promised Cuthbert a reascention of the Lyons name, but the promised wealth, land, and respect never came and, with the interference of the frontier heroes, the Lyons clan was ruined. Cuthbert cited his folly costing himself his two sons.

Cuthbert pledged his aid to the Watch and the heroes, if it meant getting to see Graves standing beside him on the gallows.

The group debated what to do next: accusing a burgomaster, one anointed by the Crown, was not a course of action to be undertaken lightly. Karel, still reeling from the revelations, reminded the group that he needed to make haste and report to Watch Captain Ducal as soon as possible. It was an hour or so before dawn, and the night's battle had left the heroes exhausted, but they agreed that the news was too important to wait. Besides, there was worry that the news would reach Graves prematurely, allowing him to prepare for the inevitable confrontation.

Upon heading downstairs to the main floor of the estate, the group encountered Tayzen Laster, the grizzled hunter who had led them from the site of the ruined stagecoach. He introduced them to a younger hunter, Robert Pennyworth, a member of the posse who had expressed an interest in staying with Tayzen and finding the root of young Osmund's murder. The group raised no objection, the posse were collected, and the throng headed south to Lugton, bearing the captured men-at-arms and their fallen comrades along.

In Lugton, the posse dissolved, each man anxious to return to his home. Abel rejoined the group long enough to bid farewell, as he was headed to Blanchard on his own. He promised to look into the matter of Androw Lyons, the town apothecary, assessing him for guilt and protecting him from retribution (Cuthbert revealed that Androw had to be coerced to mix up the poison that was slowly killing Father Samuel of Creek City). Hammish, recovered from his ailments, joined the heroes and caught up on the events of the evening.

"Ach! I canna believe I missed it!" he cried woefully.

Despite exhaustion, Karel and the group decided to press on in an attempt to outrun the news of the estate battle to Creek City. With care, they pushed their horses and managed to arrive in the township by dusk of the following day. They headed straight to the Watch office, after covering Cuthbert's head and torso in a sack to hide his identity.

Watch Captain Ducal was initially cautious, to the point of drawing steel, but devoured Karel's recount like starving man. He began suiting up in his chainmail and suggested arresting Graves that evening, while simultaneously sending word to the Axemen that corruption was afoot. The party debated using Cuthbert to send a letter to Graves and draw him out, in an attempt to meet him on their own terms. But Ducal's enthusism won out, and the group headed to the burgomaster's manor, John Henry at the rear and grumbling, "I've got a bad feeling about this..."

At the manor, the lack of torchlight through the windows was a ominous sign. The house was deserted. Ducal entered the front door and found a letter waiting for him. It read:

Ducal knew the property, but not much else. The land was typically off-limits.

Unwilling to face Graves in the unknown when exhausted and depleted, the group took to the tavern to begin a propaganda campaign. Concerned that bringing the well-liked Graves into town clapped in irons would start a riot, Keigan used his considerable charm to start a rumour that "we'd have BIG NEWS soon, folks. Big and SURPRISING news." Meanwhile, Ducal arranged to have the evidence kept safe with the owner of the Red Lamp saloon, and set Rusty Tannerson - the stagecoach driver that brought the adventurers to Creek City a few weeks ago - off to Sandorton to summon the Axemen.

Eventually, the group rested, made ready, and headed west towards Graves' private land.

Within a hour of so, they came upon a clearing with the sound of the swift-flowing Treyburn. They approached cautiously, but were shocked and dumbfounded by what they saw.

Standing in a shallow pool on the near side of the river was a wooden monolith. Standing 50' high and 25' around, the pillar rose into the morning light like a tribute to some foreign god. Carved into the wood were giant faces of woodland creatures: a bear, a wolf, a hunting cat, a rodent, and, at the top, a fearsome eagle with wings outstretched. In the carven eyes of the eagle, high above the clearing, fire burned steadily.

The clearing was barely that. Trees, both large and small, covered the area, but were spaced far enough apart of permit visibility. Tangles of undergrowth marred the forest floor, but the area still seemed mostly navigable. Pacing at the edge of the pool was a large bearded figure.

When Ducal called out, the figure lifted its head and smiled. It was Graves, but he looked different than the last time the party encounterd him. He was dressed in odd leather armour, apparently tanned from the hide of a deer. His hair was held back with a deerskin headband, paint covered his cheeks and forehead, and his beard was braided with beads and coloured line.

Graves revealed that he had no intention of 'revealing' anything to Ducal, and that the Watch Captain (and, through happy circumstance, the new heroes of the town) had been lured to this riverside glade to die. Graves put his fingers to his lips and blew a piercing whistle.

Two giants stepped out from behind the monolith, and charged.

The party fanned out, with young, optimistic Karel in the lead, shouting "Stand down! You are bound by law!" Hamish and Karel quickly engaged one of the giants while John Henry and Ducal engaged the other. Tayzen and Robert began firing arrows into the melee with their bows, while Graves retreated from the shore to the monolith, apparently walking atop the knee-deep water.

With a incoherent scream of fury, the bushes on the south side of the clearing exploded and a short man, dressed in deerskin armour and painted like Graves, burst into the fray wielding a mace and cudgel. Neelan jumped between the attacker and Tayzen, and engaged the new threat with his tumbling, dancing fighting style.

Ducal struck true with a blow on the giant, which drew the beast's attention. With a bellow and a mighty blow, his giant club connected with the Watch Captain's chest, shattering it like an eggshell. Ducal's body dropped at John Henry's feet.

Meanwhile, Karel had become the target of an unseen archer. Arrows continued to pepper the officer as he tried to defend himself from the onslaught of the monster before him.

Keigan overwhelmed the battlefield with his commanding presence, frightening their enemies and forcing some to pause out of hesitation and momentary fear. At one point, even a giant's eyes went wide when the old campaigner threatened to deal with him personally. Meanwhile, Robert's skill at hunting and tracked aided his fellows as he shouted out commands that took advantage of the natural terrain.

Hammish's battle rage fueled the fighter to stand toe-to-toe with a giant and hold his ground. At one point, the warrior dodged a wide blow and countered with a vicious slash through the midsection which caught the giant undefended.

The water of the pool turned red within seconds of the engagement.

Graves, continuing on the concealed stepping stones, circled the battle and attacked Hammish from behind. Keigan, noticing, moved to intercept which sent the burgomaster running for cover behind the monolith, near the edge of the pool and the swiftly flowing Treyburn river. Neelan, not wanting their quarry to escape, dropped his opponent and charged off in pursuit.

With a scream, another enemy dropped unexpectedly out of a tree, landing on Tayzen with his sword. Robert rushed to the hunter's aid, but the lithe warrior did not stay to fight, but rather rushed to the east end of the clearing, where the heroes had left their horses.

John Henry took two mighty blows from the giant's club, denting his armour and injuring the man. With Keigan's help, he carefully retreated from combat, drawing the monster into battle with Keigan and Hammish. Shortly thereafter, both ogres lay dead in the shallow pool surrounding the monolith, but only after one smashed Karel in the shoulder, almost knocking him unconscious.

The continuing hail of arrows appeared to be coming from near the top of the monolith.

Neelan raced behind the monolith to see Graves climbing a pair of ropes leading up the enscarpment on the far bank of the river. Neelan hopped onto the same ropes and began climbing after the burgomaster. As Neelan neared the opposite shore, a storm of arrows flew past him, coming from the opposite bank.

And then, Fate smiled upon the heroes, and Graves lost his footing. He hung suspended from the top rope by a tenuous handhold.

Neelan, taking advantage of the opportunity, jumped at the large man, grabbed him tightly, and pulled him down into the current of the Treyburn with a echoing splash. The waters swept them away, but not before Hammish could run and dive in after them.

Silence descended on the glade. Keigan and Robert, intent on discovering the secrets of the monolith, climbed up its outer surface. The inside was hollow, and a walkway circled the top, allowing archers to use cleverly-disguised arrow slits that overlooked the entire clearing. A crossbeam supported a rope down into the interior of the structure, and Keigan discovered an underwater tunnel that led out into the river. Whoever had been in the tower firing at the group were now long gone.

The unseen figures at the top of the enscarpment cut the ropes, which fell into the river and waved lazily in the current.

Meanwhile, downstream, Graves and Neelan fought a desperate battle to keep their lungs full while trying to escape or apprehend. The grapple bobbed under the surface and then back up, and might have ended badly as the river became more turbulent, save for the arrival of Hammish. The large man grabbed Graves, squeezed him into unconsciousness, and pulled him to shore. The two friends then dragged the burgomaster's unconscious body through the heavy undergrowth back up the river to the clearing.

A quick search found the party's horses stolen, but Graves' own mount hidden off the track some short distance away. Within his saddlebags were 300 coins of gold.

The group, exhausted by their battle and worried about the ramifications of arresting the beloved burgomaster, headed back to town, bringing their captive and the body of Watch Captain Ducal with them.

Experience Awards

Combat XP:
2 Giants: for L4 PCs, +250XP
Beserk warrior: for L4 PCs, +120XP
Tree attacker: for L4 PCs, +120XP
Archers (effectively a trap): for L4 PCs, +250XP
Capturing Graves: for L4 PCs, +250XP
TOTAL COMBAT: for L4 PCs, +990XP

Story XP:
Chapter 1 conclusion bonus: for L4 PCs, +1000XP

RPing and Personal Goal awards:
Hamish (1; +200XP), John Henry (1; +200XP), Keigan (1; +200XP), Neelan (1; +200XP), Robert (1; +200XP)
[ Rationale: Everyone participated well, but the night was dominated by the combat and we didn't actively pursue any personal goals. ]

Player Chits:
Neelan (4; +800XP), Keigan (1; +200XP)

TOTALS:
Hammish: 5430 + 1990 + 200 = 7620 (level up)
John Henry: 5315 + 1990 + 200 = 7505 (level up)
Keigan: 5090 + 1990 + 200 + 200 = 7480 (level up)
Neelan: 5415 + 1990 + 200 + 800 = 8405 (level up)
Robert: 3300 + 1990 + 200 = 5490