[WFRP] The Hour After Midnight (II)

[LCP]

Raffy

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Maria smiled wryly, shaking her head.

“The Society is meeting tonight. They’re not expecting us, but I want you there with me.” She touched him lightly on the arm. “And you’ll be no good to anyone if you’re collapsing from exhaustion, or whatever nonsense the doctor has diagnosed you with.”

Now that the adrenalin of the chase was ebbing, the nonsense in question was making its presence felt – there was a significant part of Raffy’s brain that wanted to do nothing more than follow Maria’s suggestion at once, the very fact of being able to sit down sending shut-down signals clamouring up his spine.

“You’re safe here. Let us do for the worrying for now, and we can talk when you’ve had a chance to rest.”

[hr]

Lothar, Ithelus & Pieter

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The house was deathly still – moving as silently as he could between the ground-floor rooms, Pieter opened their doors one by one, peering inside. Nearly empty, they looked as if they had not been disturbed in many months – crossing over to the shuttered windows, he opened one to look around the dust-sheet-cloaked living room, the now strongly slanting sunlight cutting across the room in shafts of glittering dust-motes.

Lothar had found a trapdoor, much like the one in Puderbrand’s lair – opening it, he found himself looking down into a narrow, bare cellar, earthen floor and stone walls devoid of any sign of human habitation. Upstairs Ithelus had little better luck – a couple of bedrooms and a tiny, poky room that might generously be called a study, both just as empty as the rest of the house. Nowhere was there a track, a fingerprint, the barest disturbance of what dust had settled since the house had been locked up, save the marks they had made themselves.

OOC: If you want to search the house for anything in particular (i.e. looking in the furniture etc.), just say what you're looking for.

[Another_Poet]

Elfless in Altdorf

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An incredulous expression dawns over Raffy's face. She's thinking of going... where? He shakes his head, not yet having any clue how to argue with the stubbornest woman he's ever known.

"We'll.... maybe," he mutters. Feeling the exhaustion, he reclines on the chaise lounge. Several times he sits back up abruptly and adjusts things or checks that he can reach everything. With his weapons arrayed all about him like a child's dolls, and the warm winter clothes still firmly in place, at last he drifts into the cozy dreamy sleep of a long nap.

((How many of them said they are armed? Any?))

[LCP]

Raffy

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Only dimly aware of the others moving around him, Raffy slipped away into a fevered doze. As he slipped away, he dimly took in a few details of the room, his attention having previously been on Maria – it was a funny place. From the lack of windows, he would have said a cellar, or undercroft – but it was furnished, dark wooden bookshelves, curtained alcoves and a panoply of other objects giving it an almost cosy feel. It certainly looked like it had been in use before now: thick rugs layered the stone floor to compensate for the lack of a fireplace, enough furniture to entertain a small party scattered around the broad floor. There were books, little curiosities, even a lectern – with relief, he noted two ornamental, foreign-looking sabres crossed on one wall. At least they had those...

Warmth and exhaustion overcoming him, he drifted off into a deep, deep sleep.

OOC:

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Alright, now you are on hold, I'm afraid.

The fever has now taken hold, brought to crisis by your sleepless night, near-fatal duel and running about like a madman: from here on, Raffy suffers a -10% penalty to Strength, Toughness and Agility tests, although his SB & TB are not affected. The rat-bite rash and its effects, however, subside.

Further symptoms may yet manifest themselves. It's a magical mystery ride!

[-Sentinel-]

Pieter, Ithelus and Lothar

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"Looks like a dead end," said Pieter, disappointed. "Either they met outside the house or at the house of Blaucher Street. So, what's next?"


OOC: What time is it? About late afternoon?

[goblinpaladin]

Lothar

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"The other house, I guess," Lothar said with a sigh. "Unless there's a secret door here, or something. Would either of you know how to find one? It's either that, or the scribe rentin' the other place is in on it."

[-Sentinel-]

Pieter, Ithelus and Lothar

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"While we're here, it couldn't hurt to look for a secret door," said Pieter dubiously. "But if there's one, it hasn't been used in a while. This house hasn't seen a soul in weeks."

He lit one of his torches, climbed down the ladder to the cellar and examined every inch of the earthen floor and stone walls.


OOC: Is a Perception test necessary? I'll let you roll it for me (Int 47) in case it's supposed to be a secret test.

[goblinpaladin]

Lothar et al

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Lothar spread his hands. "Makes sense to have tunnels or the like runnin' about."

[LCP]

Lothar, Ithelus & Pieter

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Examining the cellar inch by inch, Pieter could find no indication of a secret door. It looked like an ordinary cellar - albeit one bare of any contents.

[goblinpaladin]

Lothar etc

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"Right. Well. The other one, then?" Lothar managed to look mildly ashamed at being wrong.

[LCP]

Lothar, Ithelus & Pieter

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Carefully closing up the house behind them, the three headed back the way they had come: as they passed through Leitpold Square again, they saw a large group of people huddled in a circular crowd beneath the statue, talking excitedly. The sun was dipping over the rooftops, a chimney's silhouette bisecting its disc as it cast long, sharp shadows across the streets.

Verter's house had a small sign outside, advertising the scribe's trade - it was a middling-sized building, a sunken stone staircase descending to a basement door in the front, while the front door itself was at the top of two worn steps. Knocking, Lothar found it answered by a small, wan-looking man, his skin smooth and white as if the colour had been leached from it with blotting paper. He licked his lips nervously with a pale tongue, eyes flicking from face to face.

"Hello - um, hello?" he said, uncertainly. "Are you looking to have something written up?"

OOC: I'm taking moving on to be fairly uncontroversial - please correct me if I'm wrong. If you're interested in the crowd beneath the statue, please also feel free to interact with them before reaching Verter's house.

[goblinpaladin]

Lothar

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"Not exactly," said Lothar, casually placing a hand on the hilt of one sword. "I'm with Captain von Brucker, an'm afraid I need to take a look 'round your place, here. Just routine checkin', but it is to be done immediately."

<should he demand evidence we're with the captain>

The soldier gestured to Ithelus, "Show him the writ, Ith. Pieter, you make sure there's no other ways out."

Intimidate: (1d100)[94]

[LCP]

Lothar, Ithelus & Pieter

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Verter's eyes widened in alarm.

"Whatever for?", he stammered.

[goblinpaladin]

Lothar

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Lothar smiled clapping the man on the shoulder as he stepped forward. "Probably nothin', like the last place we was lookin'. Don't sweat it." Looking around, he scratched at his stubble. "Got any extra tenants? Or is it just you?"

[LCP]

Lothar, Pieter & Ithelus

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"Just me," said Verter, still looking profoundly ill-at-ease. "Look, I don't mean to make trouble, but I mean - you don't look like guards..."

When Ithelus had shown him the captain's writ, he grudgingly stood aside, opening the way to the dingy house within. Stepping over the threshold, Lothar looked around: this place was smaller than the vacant house, its crooked staircase winding around a corner to save space. Two doors led off from the ground-floor hall, a patched but well-kept coat hanging on a hook on one wall: apart from that, the place seemed almost bare.

[goblinpaladin]

Lothar Pieter Ithelus

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Looking around, Lothar sighed and gestured for the trio to split up and look around. From the slump of the soldier's shoulders, he didn't look hopeful- but he made for the right-hand door.

[-Sentinel-]

Pieter, Ithelus and Lothar

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On the way to Verter's house

I wonder if they're talking about revolt, thought Pieter with a glance at the people around the statue.

A lot of things were happening today, apparently, and he knew only a small part of them. He hated to be in the dark... His natural curiosity drew him closer to the gaggle of people.

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If necessary, Gossip 51: (d100)[78]

At Verter's house

This time, Pieter decided to stay under Lothar's orders. Smiling almost apologetically to the scribe, he went left and began searching the rooms.

[LCP]

Pieter, Ithelus & Lothar

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Leitpold Square:

Approaching the crowd, Pieter tuned in to what they were saying, doing his best to remain unobtrusive.

“...her throat cut from ear to ear, a right horror-show...”
“...they’re saying it was that Sparrowhawk, that they nearly caught him escaping out a window!”
“...the Baron’s beside hisself, they say.”
“What I want to know is, who’ll pay for the Cathedral now? It was her daddy’s money, and what reason’s he got left to fork up?”
“They’ll levy tithes, you’ll see. Von Kemperbad ain’t lettin’ all that stone go to waste.”
“Hells he won’t! I pay my taxes, I’m not paying a penny more...”

OOC: For narrative purposes, it may be best to have Pieter have hung back to hear this and then catch up with the others at Verter’s doorstep, to make things run more smoothly.

[hr]

Verter’s:

The right-hand room contained a work-desk covered with ink-pots and stacks of parchment, as well as a small, neatly-kept pallet bed: the left-hand room, an economically-furnished kitchen. At the top of the stairs was another door, blocking out the upper floor – it was locked.

As Lothar searched, Verter followed him, hanging behind and to the right like a nervous shadow.

“I don’t know what possible reason there could be,” he blathered. “I mean, I’m not questioning – I’m not arguing, no, but – well, I suppose, with all that’s been happening, of course, but...” – he trailed off. “The riots, and these murders – I mean – I mean I couldn’t have anything to do with that. I’m just a scribe.”

[-Sentinel-]

Pieter, Ithelus and Lothar

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Leitpold Square

Were they talking about the Baroness? Pieter's mind raced as he considered the implications of her death. First off, it meant that the Lector had just lost his most important political ally (or rather, cat's paw) in Delberz: the Sigmarite church would be weakened considerably. But the initiate did not believe for one second that Rafale was responsible: he had no motive to murder the Baroness, and he was certainly not subtle enough to get through her bodyguards, kill her and get away with it.

He caught up with Ithelus and Lothar and repeated to them what he had just heard.


Verter's:

"What makes you think it has anything to do with the murders, Mr Verter?" said Pieter with a smile, although his eyes were cold. "If you're innocent, you have nothing to fear."

Great. Now I'm talking like a Sigmarite.

"Unlock this door, please."

[LCP]

Pieter, Ithelus & Lothar

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"I - I can't," said Verter. "I don't have the key. I only rent this floor."

[goblinpaladin]

Square

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Lothar shook his head. "Bad news, that. For Raffy, for the city- goin' to be total chaos from here out. Lockdowns, the Lector steppin' up the Hounds." He sucked on his pipe and scratched his scarred cheek.

"Just gotta hope we find what we need t' find sooner rather'n later, I guess."

House

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Lothar clapped the poor scribe on the shoulder again. "Oh, not to worry. I suspect yer more of a bystander. Scribes've never done anythin' seditious." He grinned.

Turning to the door, he frowned. "Hrm. Well, there's two ways about this- and I'd rather not break a man's door if we don' have to. Luckily, we brought a locksmith," he turned to Ithelus with a smile.

[Exeson]

Ithelus, Lothar and Pieter

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Raising an eyebrow at Lothar, Ithelus pulls out his cloth bundle. Glad to know we are broadcasting my talents. He gets on one knee and begins examining the lock. Then he selects a pick and a torsion wrench and begins working.

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(1d100)[85]

[LCP]

Lothar, Ithelus & Pieter

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The lock was well-made - nearly breaking his pick, Ithelus cursed and drew it out as the tumblers clacked back into position, trying to smooth out the bend it had picked up with finger and thumb. It looked like von Gamow had paid a decent locksmith to fit out this property.

"An elf locksmith?" stammered Verter, hesitantly. "I - um - I hadn't heard of you before. Sir."

[goblinpaladin]

Lothar

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Lothar glanced at the scribe and shook his head. "Know a lot of elves, do you? Hey, Ith, can you try again, or is it never gonna happen?"

As the elf seemed content to look morosely at his bent metal pin, the soldier shrugged. "Makin' a habit o' this..." he said as his shoulder smacked into the door.

[LCP]

Lothar, Ithelus & Pieter

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With a solid crunch, the door parted company from its hinges: flinching back, Verter watched as it clattered to the ground, muttering something to himself about "the Lord's men..."

On the other side, a landing much like the one in the house before waited, three narrow doors leading off into the upper-storey rooms: the window at the end of the corridor was shuttered up, cutting out the sunlight rather effectively.

[goblinpaladin]

Trio

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"Oops."

Lothar cleared his throat. "Uh. Rather a bit more force than intended, 'm afraid." He looked back to Verter. "I'm sure that Lord von Gamow will be reimbursed by the city; a door's a small price to pay for the safety of his valued tenants."

Looking back to the trio of doors, Lothar stepped forward- seemingly at random, he went for the middle...

[Exeson]

Ithelus & co.

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Ithelus shrugs, 'it's funny what you pick up when you hang around humans.' His tone however is deadpan. He goes for the door on the left.

[LCP]

Lothar, Ithelus & Pieter

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The first door: a narrow bedroom. Dust-sheets, sparse furniture – same as before. The second door, the same again: over the bed, a portrait of an unidentified woman looked down over the room, the painting’s age giving the varnish a thick, yellowed sheen. Behind the third door was what looked like an infant’s room, barely bigger than a broom-cupboard, with a disassembled cot in one corner. None of them looked as if they had been used in a long time.

The light filtering through the windows was beginning to take on a reddish tint - sunset was not far away.

[goblinpaladin]

Lothar

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The soldier glanced out the window, and ran both hands through his hair somewhat frantically. "Sod. I was sure this was- wait. Wait," he said, spinning to face the others. "Wasn't there a basement door? 'Ere, Verter, who rents that?"

[LCP]

Lothar, Ithelus & Pieter

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"No-one!" said Verter, agitatedly fluttering his hands. "All shut up, just like here. It's just me in the house." He looked from face to face. "Lord von Gamow is very picky about his tenants, he won't rent to the Fields folk. I only got in because I had references from his friends."

[goblinpaladin]

Trio

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Lothar took a deep breath, released as a sigh. "Right. One last roll o' the dice- 'm sorry for the trouble, Verter. Chasin' down a lead, an' it's almost sunset- if you follow me."

He heads for downstairs, and the other door- and doesn't look like he's waiting for Ithelus' lockpicks.