The Fall From Grace

[DeletedUser]

Crux listened to the High Inquisitor and followed him into the throne room with the other inquisitors present with him.When he entered the throne room, he was taken aback by the good moods and all the laughter and chatter going on in there. He always used to remember the throne room to be a boring hall full of fat and arrogant nobles along with the kind king.
When the High Inquisitor asked them to enjoy but stay put, Crux obeyed his orders and began mingling within the crowds. He firstly went towards the bar and started drinking up. Crux, as he was a heavy drinker, challenged many foes to a drinking contests where he stood as the best. You could see many bodies passed out near the bar while the assassin kept on drinking.
He took a break and went over to keep an eye on the nobles to see if any suspicious action is taking place. He saw many nobles drinking, eating and shouting to their heart's content while he remained hidden for them, keeping an eye on them. Crux was a little drunk but still kept on concentrating. He grew hungry and went over to the food to check out what they have in store. He said, "The turkey does look delicious, I might have a few bites." He then ripped the turkey's leg and began chewing it. He also ate a lot of grapes and drank wine. He then came back to his original place spying on anyone who came near the nobles.

 

[DeletedUser]

Raerrith

"The man in the leather hunting jacket and green riding gear with the ladies on his arm, he has about five daggers concealed on his body Sir. I'd recommend keeping an eye on him." Oren whispered into Raerrith's ear before moving back into the crowd.
Raerrith's eyes scanned the room, until he found the man Oren was referring to, a tall nobleman dressed in a riding uniform, the man had a handsome face with high cheekbones.
He was sat at one of the tables, with a pretty noblewoman on each arm.
Raerrith recognized him.
Making his excuses, the High Inquisitor bowed to the King and stood up, before moving over to Oren, who was shadowing the man.
Raerrith crept up behind Oren, before whispering in his ear; "That's Baron Vorashti, he's from the Eastern kingdoms, he fought for the King during the civil war, and as a result the King granted him citizenship and his own Barony. He could be our connection to the Eastern lands." Raerrith whispered, he continued; "The two ladies on his arm are Iss'ane Cladenhon, daughter of Count Cladenhon, and Belia Lousther, daughter of Lord Lousther. Keep watching and report any developments."
Raerrith turned away and walked back towards the King's table, eyes swivelling from side to side, watching both the nobles and the other Inquisitors.

 

[Deleted User - 819397]

Dist kept up his air of innocence until Raerrith commanded he release Briccone. "Oh, alright then hehehe." he chuckled, waving one of his hands lazily to release the grass from his control. He then went to the throne room with the others, sighing. He hated this time of the day more than anything...his chair clearly marked who he was, so he couldn't mingle as freely as the others. They could simply change their voices and stay slightly out of sight so as to avoid giving themselves away if they so desired. Dist's chair was too large to ignore, however, and he couldn't do that. Instead, he took up his regular post above the room, chair slowly revolving on the spot, so as to give him a 360 degree line of vision. He had grabbed a piece of pork as he'd flown up, and as he so needed, he'd go and get more to eat before returning to his post.

From his revolutions, he could see Crux blatantly ignoring Raerrith's demand not to get drunk as he downed glass after glass of alcohol. Crux...he was the only one who Dist couldn't understand why Raerrith would keep him on as Inquisitor. Everyone else had some sense of duty or honor, or in his own case, desire to learn more. Crux was a loose cannon. He saw Oren approach Raerrith and mutter something, and watched closely for his reaction. When it was fairly neutral, he relaxed and resumed his slow revolutions.

After Crux had downed most likely a quarter of the castle's alcohol, Dist couldn't take it anymore. He had his chair fly over to slightly behind Raerrith and descended. "Sir, Inquisitor Crux is bound to die of alcohol poisoning if someone doesn't stop him soon...I'm frankly surprised he can still stand, from the amount he's consumed thus far." His voice was clearly annoyed; clearly even the half-crazed man knew better than to disobey the High Inquisitor. He then returned to his post, continuing to scan the crowd for threats.

 

[DeletedUser]

Raerrith

"Sir, Inquisitor Crux is bound to die of alcohol poisoning if someone doesn't stop him soon...I'm frankly surprised he can still stand, from the amount he's consumed thus far." Said Dist's high-pitched voice from behind him.
Raerrith turned to see the Inquisitor, "Right, I'll go and deal with him. Return to your post, oh, by the way, keep an eye on Baron Varashti."
Raerrith moved through the crowd towards Crux, who was downing yet another tankard of mead.
Along the way Raerrith signalled for Shyther to come with him, the two Inquisitors fell in step, not speaking, they moved towards their target.
Reaching Crux, Raerrith grabbed the Inquisitor's tankard out of his hand and passed it to a servant, who scurried out of the room.
"Right, you've had quite enough to drink Inquisitor Jade." Raerrith growled. He only ever used his subordinates titles when he was angry or irritated, now was one such occasion.

Leo Cartridge

(OOC: Since MoW has gone AWOL, I'll be taking over his character until he comes back.)

Leo walked through the doorway into the feasting chamber, he moved through the throngs of people, trying to find the others, eventually he saw Briccone standing by a stone pillar. "Hello" He said cheerfully. "Do you know where Raerrith is?"

 

[DeletedUser31931]

Oren listened to Raerrith's explanation and nodded before moving away. He slipped through the crowd before grabbing a position at the table about five seats up. He began to dine immaculately as he had seen the nobles do all the whilst keeping an eye on Varashti. The man was seated about ten seats down from the king so out of a quick stabbing range what with all the tables in the way. That left throwing daggers or that he was waiting for something. Oren resolved to find out what he was looking for. Oren excused himself and slipped up from the table going over to the bar and ordering a small goblet of mead. Sipping it as he returned down the wrong side of the table as he reached Baron Varashti he tripped and flew forwards throwing his mead at Varashti. It went all over Varashti's jacket as Oren had planned. As Oren scrambled to his feet he crossed the two metres between him and Varashti. "I'm so sorry sir, I lost my footing and went everywhere." he said adopting the accent he had picked up from the Inquisitor whom he had saved, the accent of nobility. He pulled at his jacket as he said "look at that mess!" as he had hoped the jacket swung round to reveal the daggers, they were not throwing daggers but if someone had enough skill then they probably could use them to that purpose. "I am so so sorry good sir. Is there anything I can do or shall I call a servant over to wash it for you."

 

[DeletedUser]

Crux kept on drinking until Raerrith ordered him with his last name. That was when he knew he had to stop so he quietly put down his trankard and stood up. He saluted the High Inquisitor and replied with a drunk smirk , "Sir, I'm not drunk....and I won't fall. Oh, and by the way I saw a noble with two lovely girls. They're suspicious and I think you already know that so I'm sorry and I'll keep watch over anyone you want, Sir."
Crux then walked away from the bar and fell down. He then went over to the nobles and started talking with them, searching for information. No one suspected him since they thought that Crux, the drunken fool could never be an Inquisitor. He heard a noble say, "That man right there is the traitor from Eastern Kingdom and helped us in war." Crux's drunk behavior reduced and he went over to the place where he was, dressed as a server.

 

[DeletedUser]

Raerrith

"Sir, I'm not drunk....and I won't fall. Oh, and by the way I saw a noble with two lovely girls. They're suspicious and I think you already know that so I'm sorry and I'll keep watch over anyone you want, Sir." Slurred Crux.
"You better, now go and continue your job. Properly, and no more drinking!" Raerrith commanded, he turned and moved back through the crowds towards the King's table, along the way he bumped into Daniel. "Found anything?" Raerrith whispered into the Inquisitor's ear.

Shyther

Moving away from Raerrith, Inquisitor Shyther moved through the throngs of noblemen, sipping a tankard of wine as he went, taking care not to drink too much.
He didn't want to end up like Crux, a drunkard barely hanging onto his post.
Shyther watched from afar as Oren 'spilled' his mead over Baron Vorashti, not waiting for the result, Shyther turned and moved to the other side of the room.
He looked upwards to see Dist, hovering in midair, keeping a vantage point.
The madman, why did Raerrith voluntarily fill his team with such imbeseils? Dist was an impure lunatic.
He may be a powerful mage, but he was a liability, at any moment Dist could turn against them, and right there he'd be in the perfect position to assassinate the King.
Maybe that was it, maybe Dist was the murderer...Shyther mused, mulling over his thoughts as he took another sip.

Vorashti

"I am so so sorry good sir. Is there anything I can do or shall I call a servant over to wash it for you." Oren apologised.
Vorashti looked over his sodden clothes, before replying; "Not to worry, I shall clean it up later, besides, I like being wet." He smiled, the two girls on his arm laughed as if he had made some sort of joke.
"Come! Sit with us!" Vorashti beckoned Oren to sit down. "What do they call you?" Vorashti asked as he dabbed at the mead on his jacket with a cloth.

 

[DeletedUser]

Crux then continued spying on Baron Vorashti when Oren spilled his mead over Vorashti. Crux said , "There goes his cover. Man, he doesn't know how to gather information." Upon saying this, he moved closer to the Baron and Oren as to signal him to stay careful and collect information about him from the Baron. Crux then was called by one of the nobles to go get the food. He said, "Great, now I run errands for nobles." He then climbed down the staircase, into the kitchen where he saw some very unusual knifes. He thought they were of Eastern origin because of strange inscriptions on them. He went towards one of the cooks and found out they were from Eastern kingdom and were with Vorashti to make the desserts and main course the best.
Crux then calmly but quickly went to report it to Raerrith. He went and said, "We have Eastern Chefs of Vorashti." He then went to the kitchen to bring the desserts and returned with full hands. He went on towards the Nobles and placed it there. As a reward they gave 5 gold coins. Crux said, "No matter what the job is, the nobles pay a lot."

 

[DeletedUser]

(OOC: Groove, when you are doing something like that, remember all NPC reactions are handled by me, as is the story, so it's best not to say something like that, but instead say something like; 'Crux went down to the kitchens, there were strange knives scattered around, he went over to one of the cooks and inquired about the knives.' Then I'll handle the NPC interaction from there, however I'll leave your last section as it is, just remember in future.)

Raerrith

Raerrith turned as Crux waxed lyrical about somehting to do with all the cooks being from the Eastern lands. Raerrith frowned at the news, all the chefs were citizens, that was made sure of by Raerrith. So what was Crux babbling about? He'd go and have a look later, Raerrith mused. He turned back to Daniel.

 

[DeletedUser31931]

Oren sat beside Vorashti and slipped casually into the name he had taken as Samuel's adoptive son (samuel being the inquisitor Oren had saved) because when Samuel had taken him under his wing he had pretended to adopt Oren to explain why they were spending so much time together and it was useful in case he ever got into a situation where he needed a false name which even came with a false identity. Oren owned a small house in the forest where he went sometimes when he needed some peace which was under the false name and he thought it would probably be a good name to get the false name put down on the guest list in future to help keep it sounding true. "My name is Jacob Bordel." Oren said pulling up a chair beside Vorashti. "I can't help but wonder, why are you wearing a riding jacket to a royal dinner? I mean, surely you live in the castle and have no need to ride here unless you live in the outlying lands."

 

[DeletedUser]

Vorashti
"That's exactly it, Jacob." Vorashti replied, a smile on his face. "My barony is near the Eastern border, the province of Threryodor, have you ever been there?" Vorashti took hold of his tankard and took a gulp of mead. "It's a lovely place, just as lovely as these two girls here." Vorashti grinned, the two girls chorused with irritating laughter.
As the laughter subsided, the girl on the left, Iss'ane Cladenhon, turned to face Oren.
"I think I've seen you before," She said; "Weren't you running around Tonll street earlier today?"

 

[DeletedUser25825]

Name: The Scourge
Age: Late Twenties or Early Thirties
Gender: Female
Occupation: King's Sorceress/Extractor of Truths
Equipment: Black Robes and Cowl, a black gypsy bag, a gnarled staff, a platinum ring, a gold ring, and a kris dagger.
Appearance: The Scourge is 5'8" tall and weighs approximately 130 Lbs. While few know the actual truth, it is rumored that she is fairly attractive. Whatever the case may be, most have only seen her in the dark robes, cowl, and the death's head skull visage of her station.

Bio: Very few know much of anything about The Scourge's past, and none but High Inquisitor Raerrith and the king himself know her true identity. What is definitively known about the woman is she showed up at court shortly after King Herenduil's ascension to the throne. The Scourge is aptly named. Woe be to the king's enemies who are tossed to her vices and sorceress ways. Rumors state there are very few who survive her questioning, and always the sweet release of death is welcomed by her dungeon's visitors.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

PHYSICAL: 3

Strength: 1
Dexterity: 2
Stamina: 3

SOCIAL: 5

Charisma: 2
Manipulation: 3
Appearance: 3

MENTAL: 7

Perception: 3
Intelligence: 4
Wits: 3

TALENTS: 9

Alertness: 2
Intimidation: 3 (2)
Intuition: 2
Subterfuge: 2

SKILLS: 5

Discipline: 3 (2)
Interrogation: 4 (2)

KNOWLEDGES: 13

Academics: 2
Enigmas: 2
Investigation: 2
Sorcery: 5 (4)
Occult: 2
Research: 3 (2)

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

An ornate black and silver carriage being driven by four black stallions rode into the courtyard of the castle and was stopped in front of the main entrance. The footman quickly hopped off the back and hurried to the door of the carriage. He had no sooner opened the door and pulled the step out, than a lithe woman was stepping down from within the carriage. He bowed and scraped backward from the woman. It was not an uncommon sight. Many cowered away from her.

She was dressed in black robes, a cowl and cape. Her face was covered in macabre markings that gave her the visage of a death's head, and it suited her well. She was known only as The Scourge, and the name suited her well. She was King Herenduil's sorceress, and feared by almost the entire court. It was well known that she was most probably one of the most powerful magic users of the kingdom. To top that prestige, she was also taxed with being one of the High Inquisitor's best Extractor's of the Truth, or to put it more bluntly, a master at torture and pain.

The Scourge paused only briefly to look around the courtyard; ignoring the looks of fear and consternation she received from those still present. She draped a black bag over her shoulder and grabbed an ever-present gnarled staff, before she began to advance on the front entrance. The guards opened the doors and she moved through them without giving pause. Her black cape billowed about her legs as she moved with purpose down the corridor toward the throne room. Her dark eyes constantly moved about the corridor as she continued down its length. She was on the far side of the kingdom when the call was received for her to return. She looked like she was ready to make heads roll; and if she were present, that may very well be the case.

 

[DeletedUser31931]

Oren listed to Vorashti and was surprised when the girl said she had seen him, then he guessed he had been in a chase with a assassin earlier and thinking quickly he said "You have me my lady, I am secretly a thief running from the scene of the crime!" he laughed and then said "Actually I was late for a meeting with a friend and I didn't want to miss them since their time is generally limited."

 

[DeletedUser]

Vorashti
Vorashti laughed at Oren's response. "Of course!", he poured Oren a tankard of mead. "So where do you hail from?" Vorashti asked, curious.

Shyther
Inquisitor Shyther stole his head away from looking up at Dist, as the thoughts ran through his head.
He turned and began to move back through the crowds, he paused for a while by the bards, who were performing a song about a goblin.
They finished the song to raucous applause. Shyther turned and continued his movements, eyes sweeping from side to side.

 

[DeletedUser]

Name: Sir Tobias Krane
Age: 31
Gender: Male
Occupation: Master at Arms
Equipment: Half Plate, Ceremonial Plate, Sword.
Appearance: Sir Krane is a tall and well muscled man. He is always impeccable as his position demands. He keeps his long red hair tied back and his beard neatly trimmed. Every aspect of his clothing and appearance is well maintained and to the highest standard.
Bio: Sir Krane is from a long line of landed knights but as a third son he was not to inherit. Where his brother (second born) used this as an excuse to become somewhat of a black sheep, Tobias used it to prove his own worth. He joined the guard and worked his way up the ranks through sheer determination and a drive to be the best. Eventually he earned the esteemed title of Master at Arms before gaining the attention of the Inquisitors. Sir Krane’s expertise is in martial warfare and he does not have a mind for subtleties. Despite this he prides himself of being just, honourable and above all courageous. He has little patience for thieves and vagrants.

ATTRIBUTES:

PHYSICAL:

Strength: 4
Dexterity: 3
Stamina: 4

SOCIAL:

Charisma: 2
Manipulation: 1
Appearance: 3

MENTAL:

Perception: 3
Intelligence: 2
Wits: 3

TALENTS:

Alertness: 0
Athletics: 0
Brawl: 2
Dodge: 3
Empathy: 0
Expression: 0
Intimidation: 0
Intuition: 2
Leadership: 2
Streetwise: 0
Subterfuge: 0
Performance: 0

SKILLS:

Animal Ken: 0
Crafts: 0
Tracking: 0
Riding: 2
Shooting: 2
Melee (Small Weapons): 3
Melee (Large Weapons): 3
Thievery: 0
Stealth: 0
Survival: 0
Discipline: 3

KNOWLEDGES:

Academics: 0
Herbalist: 0
Enigmas: 2
Trade: 1
Investigation: 2
Sorcery: 0
Linguistics: 0
Medicine: 0
Occult: 0
Research: 0
Science: 0

____________________________________

Sir Krane made his way steadily through the castle towards the courtroom. His ceremonial armour clinked and rattled as he moved and his bright silver sword swung gently on his back. Everything was polished to perfection.
Sir Krane nodded to the guards who he passed, noting if any where improperly dressed or poorly turned out. He would have to address such issues when the time arose but for now he was needed. He needed to find the High Inquisitor.
Finally arriving at the courtroom, Sir Krane ignored the cavorting and drinking around him and marched neatly over to Raerrith where he bowed, saluted with a clenched fist to his chest and then, standing to attention, said, ‘Reporting for duty sir.’

 

[DeletedUser]

Raerrith

"Reporting for duty sir." Said Sir Krane's voice from behind him. Raerrith turned to see the Inquisitor, fully dressed in his ceremonial armour. Why the man bothered to wear such an impractical get up Raerrith had no idea.
Sir Krane was a just man, who had a clearly defined sense of right and wrong, and as such, made a good Inquisitor, or so Raerrith believed.
There were others, Shyter for instance, who believed that there was no right and wrong, and that an Inquisitor should only do what is right by him or her.
"Ah," Raerrith replied. "Sir Krane. Where have you been recently?"

 

[DeletedUser]

"Ah," Raerrith replied. "Sir Krane. Where have you been recently?"
There was no doubt at all in Krane's mind that to be a good warrior you had to be able to follow orders. The fact that Raerrith had so far never demanded anything that went against his honour simply made that easier.
'I fear I have been busy on the Kings business in the outlying keeps. He was concerned of possible incursions and wanted to be certain that the men were ready. I am pleased to say that though many weren't, they are now.'
Krane brushed an spec of dust from the gilded bear that was emblazoned on his chest guard. 'I hear there has been some unpleasent business in my absence. How can I assist?'

 

[DeletedUser31931]

Oren drunk some of the mead and replied "I come from the forests of the west, were I saved a man's life, he adopted me in return and thus I took this name, if you want my old name it is Oren but call me Jacob, most of the nobles do." This was part of the agreed lie and it was usually done if he was probed in-case his story should be exposed. "So tell me, what valuables do you have in your jacket? Since I am obviously an assassin I wish to know what I can loot from your stone cold corpse and therefore decide if it is worth the bother of killing you." Oren said this with a smile, whilst he was secretly hoping it would get him some of the answers he needed about why the man was armed.

 

[DeletedUser28032]

Oren was right, Gabriel would get his own back...but not on Oren, no he was only trying to retrieve his property something that Gabriel considered to be an occupational hazard and one that he enjoyed overcoming, Dist on the other hand had meddled where he shouldn't have and was going to pay for it.
Using the pretence of dusting himself off and picking the odd loose strand of grass from about his boots, Gabriel leant against one of the stone pillars and let the others go on without him, in truth he had no intention of going to the feast, what was the point of him going if he wasn't allowed to either drink, woo the pretty girls or relieve the guests of their valuables? No he was going to go back out onto the streets and do some real work however he had something personal to attend to first.
It was as he was mentally laying down his scheme that Leo sauntered up to him, nodding his head in reply to the cheery greeting given by the man "The high inquisitor and the others are in the main hall babysitting the king and the rest of the nobility whilst they feast" there was no attempt to hide the derision in his voice, the only time he had anything nice to say about the countries aristocracy was when he was about to steal from them "You can go and join the others in not enjoying the feast or alternately you can follow me and get some real work done, there’s just a little...errand I need to perform first" Stepping away from the pillar he strides down the corridor in a purposeful manner not even waiting to see if the other thief was following him or not.
It didn't take him long before he'd arrived at his destination, stopping outside of a plain wooden door identical to the others lining the stone corridor.
Checking that the coast was clear he then drops to his knee's and quickly picks the doors lock, pushing the door open just wide enough for him to slide inside he steps into Dist's room.
Gabriel worked on the theory that anything could be stolen if the right tools and methods were employed with just the right amount of skill and so it was as he was stood within the centre of Dist's room that Gabriel decided to steal Dist’s sanity... or at least what little of it remained.

 

[DeletedUser]

Leo

Intrigued, Leo followed Briccone through the labyrinthine corridors, until arriving at Dist's chamber, Briccone picked the lock and slid through the door, opening it a bit further, Leo followed.
Stepping through the doorway, Leo moved to stand next to Briccone. "What are you planning?" He asked quietly.

Vorashti

Vorashti bellowed laughter at Oren's comment, nearly choking on his mead. "I have to admit Jacob, the idea of you being an assassin is somewhat hilarious, you couldn't even hold your ale!" Vorashti replied. the two girls on his arm laughed. "As to what I keep within my jacket, I'm afraid that is my own business, I'm afraid you can't trust anyone these days."

Raerrith

"I hear there has been some unpleasent business in my absence. How can I assist?" Asked Sir Krane.
"Unpleasant business is probably the politest way to describe it." Raerrith began. "In the last month eleven people have been murdered, one weapons merchant, nine noblemen, and even High Inquisitorial Mage Nybairn. I will not disclose much more information here, it is too open. I shall tell you later, but for now, come! Enjoy the feast!" Raerrith explained, although he tried to end his speech with a smile, his stern, weary face could not contort itself to that extent.