Chapter 12: The Enemy

Part 1
You enter the castle town of Thanacross, domain of Count Hobbes of Thanacross, at night. Just as the wave of travelers you accompany enters the town, soldiers move to surround the town’s borders. Among these travelers are a worried young girl with pink hair, a spectacled young cleric in a bulky white robe, and a serious looking man in the robes and cap of a high ranking bureaucrat. Inside the town, you observe what looks like a rally in which hundreds of villagers are screaming and waving flags as an armored man announces “Tonight will be the night that the Black Sword is brought to justice!” You learn that ten years prior, a gang of outlaws known as the Black Sword murdered six important public officials of the domain in the forest, and have sporadically been killing employees of Thanacross ever since. Rumored to live deep in the surrounding woods, they had never been caught. Tonight, they killed again, and the soldiers and volunteers of the town, lead by Sir Barchus rem Thanacross, plan to hunt them down for good. A grizzled bartender greets you as you pass his establishment. His eyes seem to linger slightly on Pippin. “My condolences, travelers, things get rabid around this town every so often ever since this Black Sword first appeared. Sometimes I feel like we’ve lost our minds. You all can post up in my tavern’s spare rooms for the night, its cheap and quiet.”

What do you do?

Part 2
Having been fooled by Jack into ingesting the Tonic of Truth, Sir Barchus answers Jack's questions about the Black Sword and their possible motivations. He explains nonchalantly to those around him that ten years ago, a group of loyal castle officials agreed to go off into the woods and slaughter each other, creating a foul criminal entity known as the Black Sword to take the blame. Doing this would create a menace that unites the people of Thanacross in their fear and rage, justifying and distracting them from the increasingly high taxes and strict laws. Every few years, another employee of Thanacross was killed, to maintain the relevance of this menace, and a passionate, futile search would occur. Upon finishing this explanation, Sir Barchus perks up, startled. “Oh dear, what did I just spill? A foolish man I have become.” He turns to the shocked members of the search party. “It’s a shame, really. That I was the only one to survive this devastating Black Sword attack.”

A group of hunters break off in their horses, muttering that “the people must know the truth.” Sir Barchus unsheathes his sword, and begins to chant.

“Steel siren come along

Greet our ears with your fearsome song

Grant enemies a death most rare

Let us sow chaos in the air

Screaming sword, I name thee, Wagner!”

From the blade, a metallic mouth opens and unleashes the loudest, most horrible noise you ever heard in your life. It grates your skull and bleeds your ears.

He swings his sword into the side of one of the men attempting to flee, rupturing his body into a formless shower of meat, and it unleashes a soundwave that knocks around twenty nearby men to the ground off their horses, shaking violently, their bodies broken.

Sir Barchus turns to the rest of the search party, which includes Jack, Calen, and Nicole, covered in blood and gritting his teeth savagely.

What do you do?

Part 3
“This is the hat of a Thanacross castle official! I have urgent information to share with you regarding those behind this Black Sword plot!” Nicole says.

Sir Barchus’ sword’s whine muffles and he instructs Nicole to quickly get behind him and they’ll talk after he’s done with the killing. People begin to slowly back away trying to avoid the knight’s attention.

“In the name of the Crown; I should place you under arrest for security fraud on a major transport route,” Pippin says, holding up his royal seal, “but I have another proposition. Just leave me be. As you may be aware, these seals, like the caps of tax collectors, are monitored by Sjavar Hallelujah, so the crown will know if you kill a palace guard. Is that worth it to you? I will not tell this foul truth to my colleagues, as I have no wish for my company to return to this backwater dump, but rest assured, if my killing called them here, my lieutenant would butcher the likes of you in his sleep.”

As Sir Barchus looks confused and contemplative, Mika unleashes two arrows in rapid succession at his sword hand. All hell breaks loose. Calen and several other men in the search party bolt away in the confusion. Sir Barchus drops the screaming sword and several armed men converge on him. However, the mighty knight draws a short sword from his belt and easily dispatches them even without his primary weapon. Mika gets a few more shots on him, though her aim is obscured by the swarm of people surrounding him. A wounded Sir Barchus emerges victorious from the mob, and charges at the rest of the survivors, short sword in hand. However, Pippin leaps forward and cuts him down in a surprise attack. “Vannerett ek luciena,” he says as he decapitates the murderous knight. Pippin picks up Wagner and puts it in his belt. “I think I’ll be taking this, if no one objects.” A threatened Nicole explains to the survivors that she was just trying to trick Sir Barchus and she is in no way affiliated with Thanacross.

Kate scurries around town trying to find one of the other travelers that arrived in town. She eventually finds the pink haired girl in a small inn on the outskirts. Upon approaching her in her corner, the girl’s image in Kate's vision blurs and fades as she feels a knife poking at her back. “Don’t move,” says a very young but hardened voice. Upon seeing Kate's reaction, she lowers the knife and apologizes. “You’re not from Vardaheim, are you? Father wouldn’t have sent a simple thief after me, and I’ve covered my tracks too well to be caught so soon. How may I help you?”

Kate asks her about herself and if she has any useful information, to which the girl chuckles and simply tells her she is just another fugitive and to not trust nobility.

Jack has arrived in the town square with the rest of the survivors and has spread the word of the Black Sword conspiracy, encouraging the townspeople to riot, then disperses. Chaos erupts. A group of rogue soldiers attack the group of soldiers escorting the tax collector’s carriage to the castle and burn it.

The knights of Thanacross begin to gather around the front gates of the castle. Dozens of would be attackers already lie dead before the front steps.

The primary group of rioters, including Jack and Mika, stumble upon two tall armored men accompanied by an elegant looking knight. “Sir Arcelot,” one of them says, flashing a cowardly grin, “show these rebellious fools the power of the Sword of Condor Cross.”

“No,” the knight says, folding him arms and dropping his sword, “I have learned that I serve an unjust and dishonest estate. While I may never atone for it, I can at least discontinue the service.” He looks at the rioters. “Do what you will with me, it is more than deserved for lending my sword to such madmen.” The two armored men back up nervously.

What do you do?

Part 1
Calen joined the search party with Sir Barchus, looking for an opportunity to betray them to the Black Sword.

Part 2
Calen runs away from Sir Barchus after chaos breaks loose upon Mika's arrows and Pippin's proposition.

Part 3
Calen does push ups in the bar and performs a two man con involving the value of a coin with an inebriated Michael, winning some money from patrons.

Part 1
Jack makes a deal with Jatin for half of his Tonic of Truth and follows Sir Barchus in the search party. He has Mika perforate his waterskin with a rock and offers him his own, which is laced with the potion. He then asks Barchus what he knows about the Black Sword.

Part 2
Jack tells Mika to shoot at Sir Barchus, focusing on his hands and face and trying to get him to drop his sword. After Barchus' death, Jack runs back to the town with a group of other survivors and spreads the word of the truth about the Black Sword being a lie to manipulate the people, with the intention of starting a riot.

Part 3
Jack tells the surrounding rioters to leave Sir Arcelot alone, and picks up the repentant knight’s sword. The other two soldiers accompanying him are killed by the rioters. Jack then requests the men still following him look for a man in a blue royal military police uniform, embarking on the search himself. He narrowly avoids the attention of soldiers now fully patrolling the town to suppress dissenters as he searches for Pippin. Jack's men find Pippin and ask him to accompany them back to the bar. Pippin pays for a room at the bar and then agrees to deliver Jack’s forged cease and desist letter from the crown, which he is in the process of creating. Jack unsuccessfully tries to stop Pippin from leaving with Nicole. He decides to finish writing his letter and find Pippin afterwards. As he, Mika, and the men leave, they find the soldier presence in the area overwhelming, and forced to move between hiding places throughout the night as they look for Pippin.

Part 1
Jatin and Solomon read the two potion books, The Arcane Around You and I, and Habits, Dwellings and Features of Land Beasts at the bar while hanging out with the bartender. Meanwhile, he has the Rose Lady tell him about the mystical landscape of forests, learning about Fauna Regalia, nature elementals, and Birth Trees. He also gave Jack half of his Tonic of Truth in exchange for one guaranteed question from Ba'az.

Part 2
Back in town, Jatin engages in Higher Mind mental exercises from his book on the Arcane while Solomon and the Rose Lady make a Tonic of Habit, two Tonics of Tranquility, and Tonic of Focus.

Part 3
Jatin and Solomon leave the bar, summoning the Chaos Horse and riding it to the highest tower at the top of Thanacross. Blowing a hole in the roof with boomdust bombs, they descend into the room of Count Hobbes of Thanacross. The Count, naked in his bed, still manages a veneer of dignity in his fear. Solomon points a spear at him and a disguised Jatin explains that he is the demon thief Mao'rum and the Count will be let off easy if he tells them what each of the magical items in his treasure stache are, as the two of them loot everything of value they can find. The demon thief, Jatin explains, can tell when humans are lying. Along with a myriad of valuables, they lift a Rod of Piercing, a Bloodstone, and a map of Thanacross holdings across the domain. As they leave, a few bombs are dropped on the knights guarding the gate. Jatin gets a retaliatory arrow bolt in the leg.

Part 1
Kate goes to the apothecary in town and steals several potions and herbs, then pays the apothecary to teach her a few basic medicinal herb mixes.

Part 2
Kate scurries around town trying to find one of the other travelers that arrived in town. She eventually finds the pink haired girl in a small inn on the outskirts. Upon approaching her in her corner, the girl’s image in Kate's vision blurs and fades as she feels a knife poking at her back. “Don’t move,” says a very young but hardened voice. Upon seeing Kate's reaction, she lowers the knife and apologizes. “You’re not from Vardaheim, are you? Father wouldn’t have sent a simple thief after me, and I’ve covered my tracks too well to be caught so soon. How may I help you?”

Kate asks her about herself and if she has any useful information, to which the girl chuckles and simply tells her she is just another fugitive and to not trust nobility.

Part 3
Kate tells Eleanor that she can come with her on her travels, which would be helpful because it would be less burdensome for a child to travel with an adult. Eleanor accepts, as long as they do not draw too much attention to themselves.

Part 1
Finds a place to park his wagon with the Void Crawler in it and spent time talking to the bartender, who tells him about the Thanacross estate's higher taxes due to the Count offending a relative of the Crown years prior.

Part 2
Michael, drunk, decides to go to a brothel in town with the intention of purchasing the services of a medium-priced prostitute. The brothel Michael arrives at is stirred by the news as several of the prostitutes and patrons take up crude weapons and join the riots. Michael runs back to the bar.

Part 3
Michael helps Calen run a two man con involving the value of a coin in the bar while drunk, which earns him a little money.

Part 1
Nick tries to touch the recent corpse with the Librarian's Glove and sees who murdered them. He then runs through the town announcing that he knows who the perpetrator is, and he would tell someone who paid him for the information. He is arrested and taken into a dungeon for questioning by Thanacross men.

Part 2
As Nick begins bargaining with his captors, a group of ruffians storm the jails and slaughter the guards, letting their friends out and greeting them with rough shoulder punches and hugs.

Part 3
Nick goes to a hunting supply station and buys a falcon, which he begins training.

Part 1
Nicole and Pippin join the search party, and she tells Sir Barchus that she is an accomplished tracker in order to gain his trust.

Part 2
Nicole tells Sir Barchus she is a Thanacross official who has inside knowledge regarding the Black Sword conspiracy that she needs to tell him. Barchus instructs her to get behind him and he'll deal with her after he massacres the rest of the search party. After Barchus' death, a threatened Nicole explains to the survivors that she was just trying to trick Sir Barchus and she is in no way affiliated with Thanacross.

Part 3
Nicole runs away to the town after Barchus is killed and tries to find Pippin. She eventually locates him in the bar, upon which she tells him she is the important individual he has been tasked with escorting. Pippin leaves with her.

Ending
Jack tells the surrounding rioters to leave Sir Arcelot alone, and picks up the repentant knight’s sword. The other two soldiers accompanying him are killed by the rioters. Jack then requests the men still following him look for a man in a blue royal military police uniform, embarking on the search himself. He narrowly avoids the attention of soldiers now fully patrolling the town to suppress dissenters as he searches for Pippin. Meanwhile, Jatin and Solomon leave the bar, summoning the Chaos Horse and riding it to the highest tower at the top of Thanacross. Blowing a hole in the roof with boomdust bombs, they descend into the room of Count Hobbes of Thanacross. The Count, naked in his bed, still manages a veneer of dignity in his fear. Solomon points a spear at him and a disguised Jatin explains that he is the demon thief Mao'rum and the Count will be let off easy if he tells them what each of the magical items in his treasure stash are, as the two of them loot everything of value they can find. The demon thief, Jatin explains, can tell when humans are lying. Along with a myriad of valuables, they lift a Rod of Piercing, a Bloodstone, and a map of Thanacross holdings across the domain. As they leave, a few bombs are dropped on the knights guarding the gate. Jatin gets a retaliatory arrow bolt in the leg. Jack's men find Pippin and ask him to accompany them back to the bar. Pippin pays for a room at the bar and then agrees to deliver Jack’s forged cease and desist letter from the crown, which he is in the process of creating. Suddenly, a group of soldiers storms into the bar! They noticed the group of rioters congregating there. Noticing Wagner around Pippin's belt, they conclude that he killed their comrade, and charge at him. “Gentleman,” the bartender interrupts, “I honestly care not for whatever political quarrel is occurring, but I must ask you refrain from harassing my paying customers, or I will have you leave.” “Who do you think you are? We could have you arrested to, its a state of emergency,” a soldier replies. Nine soldiers draw their weapons and approach the bartender aggressively. The bartender vaults over the bar, disarms the first soldier, and kills the rest with the soldier’s mace instantly. Everyone in the bar turns to stare at him. The bar’s door is shattered with extreme force, and the stone walls crack several feet around him. A heavily armored knight, Sir Popral, emerges, wielding a massive axe that glows faintly with violet. “What insolence is this? Surrender to Thanacross immediately, barkeep, and I will not kill everyone in this room.” The bartender lets out a heavy sigh and withdraws a broken looking, segmented sword from a drawer. He chants:

“Come ring alive your skin of bells

And arm me with your metal shells

Thy splendid sheen allows no shade

When I draw forth this winding blade

Scale sword, I name thee, Missouri!”

His sword shines and extends several feet, the dozens of plates that form its blade whirring at high frequency. He then thrusts the blade into his own chest, and the plates slide off the hilt and onto his body, covering him completely in vibrating scales, complete with a beaked helmet. He blinks across the room in a second and twirling blades emerge from his wrists. The bulky knight is bisected horizontally and vertically, falling apart in four bloody chunks, armor and all. “Someone clean that up,” he says, as the scales dislodge and fall back onto his sword. Pippin holds out a hand to shake. “Pippin, third company,” he says. The bartender unenthusiastically shakes it. “Cobryn Whitewhistle, former Sixth Captain. But you probably guessed that.” Nicole, Jatin, and Solomon enter the bar. Nicole tells Pippin she is the important family member he is escorting and that they should leave to train with Wagner. A frustrated Jack tries to stop him from leaving, without success. He decides to finish writing his letter and find Pippin afterwards. As he, Mika, and the men leave, they find the soldier presence in the area overwhelming, and forced to move between hiding places throughout the night as they look for Pippin. Daylight breaks. In the sky, you see a streaking figure shining as bright as a second sun, faster than any bird. It stops above the castle of Thanacross. You do not recognize this figure, but nearly everyone in Leonnesh has heard the legends, and can guess. It is Pegasus Morningson, First Blade of the Realm. Cobryn, wrapped in Missouri again, sprouts bare, geometric wings and greets the First Captain in the air. They share a brief conversation which no one can hear. Cobryn then returns to the bar and disarms. Pegasus Morningson raises a long golden spear that is too bright to look at directly and hurls it at Castle Thanacross. Golden light erupts upon impact and the entire castle is reduced to a fine, ashen crater, as if a meteor had fallen. The First Blade flies off to the north as quickly as he came.