The Pub of the Blind Gnome is particualarly busy this evening; probably because of the storm brewimg over the dilapidated town of Grissum. Inside the weathered walls, many souls bussel about their bussness. A group of local hunters sit sipping ale at a table. The town drunk sits chugging beer after beer as a number of onlookers chant "drink, drink, drink, drink!". The bartenter atends his custemers and shares stories of long ago with all that are willing to hear. The waitress scurries around the pub; all the while being followed by a dwarf who has had a little too much to drink. A small, worried looking man clenches a feather hat in his hands and lookes nerviously around the room, as if he is looking for someone. Among these people are countless other patrons with no particular atributes to make them stand out.
The pub itself looks like it's seen better years. Amoung many things, lies a broken picture frame showing a painting of a gnome wearing a blindfold and chugging ale, a mop that lookes like it would only dirty the floor if it were to be used, and a crackeling fire place with several patrons seated near it. The various chairs, tables, and stools in the bar all look like they could use a good cleaning. Yet most of the patrons don't seem to mind. Quite the contrary, this is the best looking building in town. A lone musician plays her harp in the coner. Although her playing is pleasent to the ears, the woman's singging voice could nearly wake the dead.

Place yourself in the pub. Describe what you look like and what you are doing.

Barthan a young man with a fair face though it was dirty and age-worn beyond his years stepped into the bar his brown hair flowed down into his armour which was also dirty but bloodstained as well. He attracted attention initially silencing the bar but he did nothing out of the ordinary none of the patrons bothering him as he sat down in the corner waiting patientlly. He was waiting for nothing of cause but the sight of a fit man in armour tended to accelerate "job"-finding rates.

Zan looked around the bar in disgust, but he was comitted to stay now. He'd rather be in this dump than outside in the storm, with Nyra possibly lurking about. The tall half-elf mentally sighed, and then found a seat at the bar, idly listening to the barkeep's tale and scratching at his beard, which was beginning to get a little scruffy. He waved over the waitress.
"I'll have whatever's on tap here, darling" he said, flashing his teeth in a convincing but fake smile. She smiled back and scurried off, and Zan tried without success to keep himself from laughing. He hated it when people acted the way he did, but he just couldn't control himself sometimes.
He had come to Grissum to find work as the gold he had stolen would soon run out, given his way of spending. He sighed. There was also the matter of the noble he had taken it from. What if the man came looking for him out here?
The waitress returned with his ale, and he handed her a few coins without bothering to look at what they were.
"T-thank you, my lord!" she exclaimed. Zan grunted, but for the most part ignored her, which seemed to upset her. He didn't care. He was too deep in thought about the future. He ran his fingers through his long, dark hair and sipped his ale, and decided to it would probably be best to move on past Grissum once the storm abated.

Trayth sat near one of the dusty, rain-streaked windows, rapping his fingers on the tabletop as he gazed out at the ongoing tempest. Even with such weather, he would have given anything to be outside, deep in a forest somewhere, rather than in this god-foresaken place, surrounded by filthy, stupid humans and their ilk. He had already recieved many a threatening glare during his time here; for the most part, he ignored them, though he wanted nothing more than to make for the door before some idiot with too much ale in him took it into his head to attempt to pick a fight. Only the need for work kept him here. He had no skills to speak of, beyond the ability to hunt, and in any case, his goals were such that the work he chose needed to have a decently high payoff. He claimed no great knowledge of such affairs, be he could well guess that one didn't set out to unseat the most powerful nobles in the region without spending a great deal of gold somewhere in the process. And so, here he was, sitting on a hard, uncomfortable bench, drinking foul, overly-strong human alchohol and waiting for some sign that someone here might be offering work for such as he.

Kairn looked like he was a no-nonsense sort of guy, and by Heironeous he was. His hard features were almost always set in a scowl, relaxing only at the sight of children or of a well done religious ceremony. It need not be a ceremony of Heironeous, or even of a good deity, it only needs to be disciplined, and quiet. The quiet part always seems to be a problem. And that is how Kairn ended up here.

FLASHBACK! (3 Months)
Kairn sits quietly in the back pew of a temple to Kord, as a band of 4 drunks stumble in from a late night/early morning of drinking. The procede to slump into pews halfway up the aisle, and make general asses of themselves. Kairn's temper flares, and he proceeds to lift all four by the backs of their collars, two to a hand, and hoist them outside. He gives each a solid flouncing, before one of the clerics from the temple comes outside ot see what the noise is. Immediately calls the guard to have Kairn arrested for assaulting 4 devoted followers of Kord.

Flash to Heironeous' Temple Master's quarters.
Kairn's master Hralg banishes Kairn from the temple until he can find a way to redeem himself.

So Kairn has waited in this tavern and others like it, waiting to save some peasant from a wrong, or hear news of some horrible monster in need of a good slaying so that he can be absolved.

Sitting at a dirty table, nursing a mug of ale, Umbras looked around the inn, noting the faces of strangers as he rubbed his thumb along the rough edges of the figurine sitting in his pouch. Two days since he had found this first clue and no sign of Perthos - maybe he had left, or hired one of these other outsiders as a go-between. Either way, Umbras knew he needed to find out, needed to hunt the man down and get vengeance, not only for his own humiliation years ago, or the more recent robbery of all the valuables and money he had once had access to, but for the murder of his mother and father in their sleep. For that, the man had to die.

Running his free hand through his short, unusually clean brown hair, his gaze paused for a moment on a large, armour-clad figure, then moved on again - no, the man he was looking for was a thug, not a soldier, and the features didn't match besides. Black hair, cut short, not longer and brown; a longer, badly set nose that had been broken more than once, not short, relatively straight; narrow lips, set in a scowl, angled eyebrows over deep green eyes - a very distinct appearance to be sure, and one that nobody in the bar right now matched.

With a sigh, Umbras continued his vigil, his penetrating blue eyes ever moving, his lips twitching between a scowl and a smirk depending on what he witnessed and where his thoughts led. Though he was an attractive man, no woman's eyes lingered when he face was set in such an intense expression, and his slight frame wasn't noteworthy enough to keep the attention of the trained fighters in the room.

Of course, he couldn't care less if he was getting attention; it was probably for the best that he didn't, even. If he could find Perthos without alerting him to his hunt, so much the better.

(sorry lancolot, but i wanna get this game started.)

The nervious looking man starts to walk slowly towrds Kairn. His beady eyes glancing back and fourth even more quickly than before. Persperation is clearly visable on his forehead. He still cleanches his feathered cap in his hands. As he shuffles nearer to you, Kairn, he eventually meets your eyes. Seeing the serious, grim look on your face, the odd man reatreats back to his table. He sits back down, drinking his ale, and glances around the room; as he was before. A few minutes pass. Then, the door creaks open. In walks a figure, dressed in a black cloak. His hood shades his face, but vissible nontheless is a croocked nose and a set of deep green eyes. He storms in the direction of the confused man, pushing down the waitress who happend to be walking past him. A glint of steel pokes out of the mans cape, but he quickly covers it. As soon as obviously rude person reached the small, bewildered man, he grabes him by the throat and lifts him into the air. "Thought you could hide from us, did you?" hissed the new arrival out of his narrow lips. He then slams down the petrified victim onto the table; smashing it.


What do you do?

Trayth's contemplation was disturbed by the sound of some manner of commotion coming from a table nearby. He glanced over, just in time to see a black-cloaked figure slam someone else through the surface of one of the inn's heavy tables. His initial reaction was shock; this man was obviously incredibly strong, to be capable of breaking the thick, solid planks of the table like that. But his usual nervousness quickly overtook such thoughts. Loosening his dagger in its sheath, he began to edge towards the door, even as he kept an eye on the ungoing struggle to make sure that nobody made a move towards him. He had no idea what had precipitated this brawl, but as far as he could tell, there was no reason for him to intervene. Besides, in all likelyhood, intervening would only make him the focus of their rage; it didn't take much to get the tallfolk to attack a halfling, least of all when they were already out to commit acts of violence.

Barthan with no other information about the fight stepped to help the obvious attacked party. He whispered to whatever deity as he ran to grant him power to save the man who had just been attacked. He rushed as best he could to move in between the two combatants as well he was not prepared for combat but he had to hope his armour would be enough against an unarmed man.

OOC: Move between the two men and cast cure light wounds on the attacked man. If I cannot make it in a move action can I rewrite what barthan has done this round?

Handro stepped inside the inn at that exact moment. A quik glance around the inn, told Handro that a fight was about to start. *sigh* what do I care. Handro sat down at a table in corner, his burnt-orange rope clearly visible showing that Handro was a monk. so whatever am I here for? Handro, without anything else to do, began to take interest in the fight. Those pityful weaklings are wasting their lives figthing in some inn situated in nowhere. They should try to contact immortals instead to gain invaluable knowledge Handro followed the fight arrogantly, thinking that he could stop it at any time, but did not care to do so. For that would be to interfere with things none of his business.

Umbras stared in shock, for the moment unable to move - there he was, in plain sight, attacking someone in the inn. He had expected this to be a long chase, following from clue to clue and contact to contact, putting his skills to the test, and now it looked like he had a chance right now.

Pulling out one of his daggers, he slipped silently into the crowd around the brawl, keeping his weapon concealed for the moment. Slipping around to the man's revealed back, he lined himself up for a lunge and waited for a good opportunity to present itself.

(game terms, I'm moving to where I can get a flank, or even better, rear attack, then going for it. Sneak attack. :D)

"cleric of the light, you know nothing of what you medel in. Stand aside!" roares the figure who caused the fight. The man then starts to reach for somthing in his cloak, but is stopped short when a dagger sinks its tip into the cloaked man's shoulder.

Meantime: As Trayth moved for the door, a hand rested on his shoulder. "Hey, this little boot-licking halfler is scared. Get a load of that, Jorren!" laughs a voice, belonging to the thugish looking man holding the halflings shoulder. Another brute-looking human began to chuckel at this. Seeing that his behavior is getting a response, the first man took it a step further. "Hey halfler, go do what you boot-lickers are good at and get beat nice and good!" With that, he pushes Trayth closer to the brawl.

The cloaked man thrusts his elbow backwards, making contact with his assailent. He then sprints to the door, pushing past all in his way. On the way out, he shouts, "We'll be back. Like always."

Though Kairn certainly didn't like the shifty little man who looked as though he was going to cut his purse from his belt earlier, he hadn't seen the man do wrong, and now this innocent was being attacked for no apparent reason. Kairn didn't feel too comfortable fighting out of armor, but he still had his trusty mace, Cocytus, with him as always.

Unslinging it from his belt, Kairn charged the black clad man, taking a good hard swing at his head.


( Not sure of the distances involved, but I'm taking a called shot to the head as soon as possible)


EDIT: Woops, Albino posted just before me.

As the cloaked figure exits, Kairn shifts his grip for a strong downward strike onto one of the halfling's assailant's shoulder, hoping to incapacitate his arm without doing too much damage.

(Change called shot to head, to called shot to shoulder with hopes to break or dislocate the arm)

Darn it i'll never catch that'un now though I can find out who the attacked one is.

Barthan tries to talk to the man on the ground "Who was that? and why is he after you?".

He then moves the man onto a chair and continued. "Scuse me for the rudeness,you all right? I hope my magic fixed you up? Though I can give you treatment if you need."

He sits down next to the man his chair creaking under the weight and waits expectantly for an answer.

OOC: If at any point the man should have done something feel free to disregard the rest of the post.

The halflings attacker roarsin pain, but makes no agressive action. Jorran rushes to his freinds aid. Seeing what Kairn did, Jorran begens to speak, "Hey mate, look why you goin' round hittin people wid that thing!?" He then runs out the door yelling "Guards, guards!!"

The shifty looking man seems to have calmed down a bit. "Thank you stranger, I don't know what may have happend if you had not interveened. I am Folgerth, a man of science if you will. Now, i would love to sit and explain what happend, but i require your asistance. I need to escape this town, now! Will you help me stranger." and then louder, "will anybody help a man in need!"

"I am sorry to ask but what will I get out of this endeavour?" Barthans gaze never faltered. "I will help you anyway but I do not live on nothing I'm afraid"

"I don't have anything to give as a reward. But... hmmm mabye my freinds could help out. They are wealthy beyond imagine. They will reward you. I will explain everything on the way there. But hurry, grab all your gear and equiptment, we must set out now!"
Reaper, take a sense motive check.

Handro watched the event unfold, but did nothing to interfer. He did not care what happened, although he took a strange interest in the black clad man who exited, there was something strange about him, something that made Handro's back tickle. Somewhere inside Handro's head a quiet voice spoke: The goddes must have placed you here with a reason, she does nothing for naught.

handro rose to his feet and looked around, the man who had been assasinated must be the clue, Handro thought. So he went towards the table were a clerk looking man assisted the hurted person, who asked for help.

"I would gladly help you." handro said to the man without demanding any rewards whatsoever.

While Handro talked to the man he looked over his should at the hafling and paladin who were in trouble. Handro heard the shout for guards.

some trouble I have gone into here... I have the feeling this is meant to be. May the goddes light my way

Handro looked the assasinated man into the eyes "tell me what to do?" he said with confidence in his voice.

A little taken aback by Handro's dramatic line, Folgerth spoke: "I just need to get out of this place and into the small village of Hidail. Pease, we must move quick though. That stab wound did not harm him much, and he will be back with more. He always is."

OOC: 4 on the sense motive check. +4 for wisdom so an 8.

"Fine let us go" Barthan was already rushing for the door.

Kairn gives the man he smashed a good, stern look.
"You would do well to remember not to pick on the weak."

After turning away from the two men, Kairn lifted his rather heavy pack, and reached his hand out to Folgerth.
"Well friend, I think we are both in the same boat for the time being. I do not enjoy avoiding the law, but I do believe the law would favor those who were in need of a righteous arm to steer them clear of sin. Come let us be gone from this place."

Zan had watched the whole scuffle break out with mild amusement, not interested in intervening. But Folgerth's mention of a reward, and adventure, to another town . . . it was almost too good to be true. Zan got up from his bar seat and approached the man.

"Well met, friend Folgerth. You may call me Zan, and I would be honored to assist you in any way that is possible." Zan added a little florish of his cloak at the end of his little speech, and then straightened, acting very much the noble paladin, and trying to hide the fact that all he wanted was the reward and a safe way out of this mudhole.

OOC: just stalling till everyone gets into it...

"Thank you all. I never expected so many helpfull beings would aid me. What of you, stranger. You stabbed a man, will you accompany us?"

Trayth's silence was due mainly to surprise; the last thing that he had expected would be to have a human step into the brawl on his account. Surrepetitiously returning his dagger to its sheath, he turned to thank the man, only to see that he had gone off and joined some sort of conversation near the table where the brawl had taken place. As he began to listen in, he quickly noted that the small shifty man was asking for some sort of assistance; and from the look of the crowd that had taken shape around him, this would be the very sort of assistance that Trayth could give.
He quickly made his way up to the group and looked up at the man.
"I didn't like the look of that cloaked type." He said gruffly. "Nor of his friends by the door. If you're looking for help against them, then you've got mine."

Umbras sighed, looking at the man in front of him - he was likely a criminal himself, the sort of person he would normally be looking to thwart at any possible opportunity. At the same time, Perthos had attacked him once already, and traveling with him would likely provide another opportunity to get his revenge.

"Explain why that man attacked you," he said, "and I may decide to help you."

"I'm sorry, but if you with to hear the story, we must leave NOW." Folgerth made for the door and trodded out into the streets of Grissum.

OOC By the way, i think i gave you guys a wrong impression. Folgerth is not shifty like sneaky. I meant for him to look very nervous. Sorry if that was confusing at all.

Trayth sighed, and followed suit, struggling to keep pace with the quicker strides of the tallfolk around him. He kept his hand on the hilt of his dagger; there was no way of being certain that the man's cloaked friend wasn't waiting outside for just such an opportunity, or that those two thugs wouldn't be waiting around for a chance to get even with the one who had attacked them.

Zan followed the rest of the party, eyeing each of its strange members discreetly. Four humans, all very peculiar and garbed in different ways, as well as a halfling. Zan had nothing against the little folk, but many did. And then there was this Folgerth fellow, who seemed to have made a very powerful enemy. This could prove to be an interesting little adventure.

He idly scratched at his beard, and ran his fingers through his hair, making sure that his elven ears were covered. With such a varied group of travelers, Zan didn't want to take the chance that one of them might find his mixed heritage offensive. As they walked, Zan decided to simply remain behind the rest and watch them. At least, for the time being.

Handro walked slowly after the others, eying them one- after one. He was interested in why the goddes has choosed them as his companions. As they walked, Handro's thoughts drifted away to his goddes, trying to find answers to his questions, and more questions to his new answers. Handro's face was impossible to read as he walked along, and he made no contact to any of the fellow "travelers", before he was certain that the goddes would talk to him no more. The wind caught Handro's orange ropes, and he made some steps to conceal his bare legs underneath. The steps were taken with an unhuman grace, yet not like the elves of the forest's. The steps could only be a monk's. After a while, Handro turned to the man who had assisted the Halfling.

"Are you a paladin of the goddes?" Handro spoke, already knowing the answer, for there was no aura of nature around the man.

(assuming everyone follows)

Your strangely colaborated party walks along the streets of Grissum. Suddenly, about 100 ft. away from the town gates, you hear voices behind you. "Halt! In the name of the Rebublic, I order you to halt!" Behind you stands 4 town guards.

"Yep i'm stopping, i'm stopping now whaddya want?"

Barthan backs away behind the man he is protecting pointing at him as he continues "Are ya affer im" he says still pointing "or is it this violent'un ya want with the blood on'im" he then points to the human Kairn now.

It would help to know as he had no loyalty to the human and would have no qualms turning him in. If they had it in for his job he could make a good run for it whilst the guards explained. If they wanted both the best route for survival would be to turn them both in not good he thought but his life was worth more than theirs.

Trayth glanced up at Karn, and then over at the guards. He had ceased to move forward, but he held his silence; he would hear what these men were here for before deciding whether or not he would run. He wasn't going to make himself suspicious if they were here for reasons that didn't concern him, but if they were after him, he had no intention of surrendering peacefully. He knew firsthand how useless human laws were for protecting such as he, and had no desire to spend the rest of his life locked up in some foul-smelling cell.

Just as Kairn looks towards the monk to answer him, he is interrupted by the guards call.
"Hail protectors of the Republic! What business do you have with my comrades? We were just on our way to get this man to safety. Would you care to assist us?"

(Diplomacy Roll: 12 + 5 for skill mod = 17. Thought a Dip roll was appropriate, as Kairn is doing his best not to lie, and instead bends the truth. )

"We have much bussness with you comades. We have been informed that you and you companions have all participated in a bar brawl. We place you under arrest in the name if Grissum!"

Folgerth begens to flee towords the town gate. "I'll explain everything if you help me!" He cries over his shoulder.

"After them, he's trying to flee!" Shouts the guard captain. All 4 guards begen to run after Folgerth.

"I ain't been in no barroom brawl heck I ain't even known these lot two seconds"

Barthan said as beliveably as possible.

Hope this work he thought otherwise I'm as likely dead

(OOC: bluff check= 18+ 9=27)

Kairn will hold ground if the guards believe Barthan, if not Kairn will attempt to flee, but will not strike any guards, and will not be a happy camper for a while.

Trayth shook his head in disgust as the humans made their respective attempts to negociate their way out of this. He already knew that such tactics wouldn't work for him. He was hardly a very persuasive speaker to begin with, and convincing these humans to believe anything that he said was a task that he already knew to be beyond his means. Turning around, he began to run off in pursuit of Folgerth, hoping that the guards' heavy armour would encumber them sufficiently so as to prevent them from outpacing them.

"Stop that man!" cries one of the guards. all four zoom past the men that choose to stay and pursued the halfling and small human. The gates lie wide open, as it is in the middle of the day. Outside lies a land with little trees and many hill.

Handro was about to whisper a prayer to his goddes, but he knew there was no time for it. So using his logic, and counting on luck, he decided to run after the guards and the strange mand, to see what would eventually happen. Handro had already decided that if it was necesarry, he would fight, or even kill, some of the guards, just to get away with the strange man.

Barthan had no reason to go with the man now the guards were after him they would have other towns and cities notified to arrest the man and anyone with him so following a wanted man would be nothing but stupid.

"hey you, you seem to have a good head on your shoulders fancy heading for a drink" he said to kairn rather normally considering what had just happened.

He trudged back to the Blind Gnome not looking back to see if he's being joined.

Hope next time I get a job with someone the right side of the law!