(Heart of the Dragon) Blood

[Cayce]

In the Pit

For a moment, a sudden conflagration of flame spread over the masked ninja's form, but it died just as suddenly as it'd come, disappearing in wisps of smoke.

And then, cutting through the black vapors wreathing the Paladin's form, was that terrible, serrated, pus spewing blade, stabbing Morgan in the gut, impaling her against the wall of the pit. A burst of blood and mucus erupted from her mouth, and the world disappeared in a haze of fear and pain.

  7 successes

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2017-03-22 03:01:26		The Grub rolls 20 to Pus seeping sword! (str+weap+spec+dmg) (10 Again, WillPower)		6, 10, 10, 1, 1, 10, 8, 7, 1, 6, 8, 5, 8, 3, 6, 7, 4, 2, 4, 3, 1, 8, 1		7 successes

Morgan takes at 6 Lethal, putting her at 2agg, 7 lethal, and bleeding out. Origins , roll STA please.

By the Banners

The feathed hob trembled, terrified of both what he'd said, and what he couldn't say.

"I'm sorry milady," he pleaded, "but I manage the odds at this here Pit, and I hear the talk that flows through here, I'm no buyer or seller of Privateers! Buh-but! But I know who is! That I do! If you'll stay till after the games then I can arrange a meeting for you--"

He was cut off by an overpowering roar from the crowd, and the Hob's head jerked left and right towards the other banners, as quick and precise as any avian, and then hurried over to his own banner rope.

"Apologies, milady, but I must get prepared for the next bought, and pay out the winnings from this last match!"

Leaving Mhairi Ankaa a moment to look back towards the pit, and see the grisly remains of the contest...

In the Booth Malcolm Green

Cups were swiftly brought and the Whiskey was poured, giving Green a chance to speak. And, the more he did, the more he noticed the finger in the scintillating robe to the side of the fat blob fixing her attention solely upon him and completely disregarding the fight. A pair of luminous eyes, brilliant and shining, the iris shifting impossibly from one color to the next, just as the lanterns within the market did, and for a moment, a brief moment, the Mountain felt himself being drawn into them before he brought his attention back to the fight in the Pit.

Just in time, he saw that pus slathered blade punch through the Paladin, erupting out her back and sticking deep into the wooden wall of the Pit. The Crowd erupted in a violent roar, as the Grub turned away from his spitted enemy and pulled his helm off once again, revealing his surprisingly hum drum farmer-crossed-with-bobcat features to the crowd once again.

"I FOUGHT TO SAVE MY LIFE!" he yelled out, his commander's voice penetrating the roar of the crowd, "BUT IF YOU SEEK A DEATH, SOMEONE BETTER DAMN WELL PAY ME FOR IT! NOW, CAN ANY OF YOU AFFORD IT?"

The roar died to a fierce murmur, and the being with those bewitching eyes waved a signal to the fat blob, which immediately rose and ponderously thudded towards the front of the booth, facing the crowd.

"Here ye, here ye," he wheezed out, the bookies by the banners loudly repeating his words so that they could be heard.

"In honor of the combat just fought, an auction will now be held. Buyers may bid on the life, or death, of the impaled one! Bids will start at two pounds of Rhoth flesh!"

"A whole Rhoth!" a Lost yelled form the crowd, her stitched, patch-work doll mouth yawning wide in a mad smile.

"Do you have anything to offer?" a mellifluous, enchanting voice asked beside Green, those Bewitching eyes once more staring at him. "I would strike a deal with you, if you are in...dire straights."

Everyone can present a bid! Int+occult to learn more about what to offer if you're feeling lost!

[Malcolm Green]

Green pauses. His eyes flicker.

  

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2017-03-22 03:53:20		Green to hide his emotions rolls 7 to Manipulation + Subterfuge (10 Again, WillPower)		1, 6, 7, 9, 9, 10, 9, 1		4 successes

Green wants to leap down into the Pit and tear the Grub limb from limb. He wants to scream, to howl. He suddenly desires to toss aside the blob and lay his hands on the willow, shrouded form (Sal?) once and for all! Damn them all! But instead...

Instead he quaffs his drink and shudders with pleasure.

"Good burn, yeah!"

He turns away from the grizzly scene; back to the blob and its prismatic boss.

"A whole Roth, eh? I'm sure I can best that... I got samples of Goblin Fruit in my bag. I know of quite a few groves, if you get me."

  hints are good

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2017-03-22 03:54:33		Green to think on his feet rolls 8 to Intelligence + Occult (10 Again, WillPower)		9, 6, 8, 7, 3, 1, 10, 6, 5		3 successes

"... Well. I did come here to strike an accord. Between you and me. Between us. As in, yeah, your Market and the 'Hold. And if we can... you know... work something out for the member of Freehold whose laying out there, then so much the better. Morgan is a great scout... Not exactly good in a set piece fight, yeah."

Green shuffled as he attempted to shift his bulk on the unwieldy throne. In the end he gave up and simply sat on the floor, propping an arm on his knee.

"Sorry, I prefer to sit on the ground. Easier to look at you. And I like to look straight at the... uh... person... I'm talking with, yeah?"

[Morgan Bellanar]

"...darn," gurgled out of the pinned Beast.

  I bleedin' out

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2017-03-22 08:15:34		Morgan Bellanar rolls 7 to Stamina to stabilize (10 Again, WillPower)		3, 4, 4, 6, 6, 3, 5		failure

The blood wasn't stopping any time soon. The blade's festering heat was being off set by how cold she started to feel. And things were going very very slow for some reason.

Morgan fails to stabilize.

[Mhairi Ankaa]

"Tell me." Mhairi demands of the Feathered creature. Her tone dead, at the sight of Morgan laying in a growing pool of her own blood.

A frown don't not grow upon her moonlit face, but Mhairi knows she's almost bitten through her lip to control herself in the face of Morgan...dying. "I already declared my intention to have that scavenger." Mhairi gives a put upon sigh, "This is not my home, and the rules of the Market should be upheld...Rhoth flesh." Autumn was on her side, and her memory was enough to gain a hint or several of what the hob had meant. "Upon my form I carry none. I will need to bid a servant, to see to that which I covet."

Rhyming. Sure. That sounded like the Them.

  5 suxx to hide emotions!

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2017-03-22 12:16:16		Mhairi Ankaa rolls 7 to Hide Emotions! (Manip 2 + Subterfuge 2 + WP) (WillPower)		8, 10, 3, 8, 3, 8, 10		5 successes

  5 suxx Hints are indeed good!

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2017-03-22 12:06:18		Mhairi Ankaa rolls 5 to Hints are good (int 2 + Occult 1 + 1Pledge +1 A.Mantel) (10 Again)		7, 8, 1, 10, 10, 9, 9		5 successes

[Cayce]

As both Mhairi and Green green ponder it, they realize that the most valuable currency in the Flesh Market is precisely that: Flesh. Fruits might be accepted here and there, but their value is less than they would be anywhere else in the Hedge, for it is bone and blood, skin and fur that are most valuable here, whether that is in the form of a slave, worker, or choice cuts and trophies from some beast. As such, to outbid a whole Rhoth, they would have to offer something from themsevles...or they could use the power of a pledge to give them time to go collect a more valuable sort of payment.

Of course, in Green's case, such an idea was lended extra weight when the Lady with the ever-changing eyes leaned closer to him.

"You mention you are from the Freehold, and yet you mention the Wyrm."

That last word was curled out from her mouth with such visciousness and spite that even the Mountain couldn'thelp but feel a momentary shiver pass through his earthen bones.

"There is no love lost between he and I, and so I will offer you this: promise to return to me within one month with the Wyrm's tongue, and his eyes, and I will provide a more valuable payment to win the life of your...friend? Friend."

And, meanwhile, by the Banners, the Bookie turned back to Mhairi, nodding. "I can put in your bid, to made good on later, should you but tell me what it is, milady. Perhaps it is the bones of an escaped slave, blessed by the Wyrd? Or mayhaps it's something still living, like the animals from the Flesh World?"

Morgan gains one more point of aggravated as she continues to bleed upon the sword.

[Malcolm Green]

Green struggles to keep his eyes on the prismatic creature.

"He's your enemy, yeah?" Green tried to block out the noise of the baying crowd. "The Wyrm is... Well, he is our enemy too. He has stalked our Freehold and toyed with it for many years now. Stolen property. Hurt our friends. Burned down our home. Slain a Sovereign." He surprised himself at how calm his tone was. "I was hoping to entice you into an alliance or something..."

"Its why I came to see you. To see if we could strike an accord for... Well, surely you've heard the... uh... wisdom - The Enemy of My Enemy is My Friend? Its why I bought news of the Wyrm's mercenaries and how they plan to ransack this place; maybe even try and take it from you... I uh had no idea another of my kind was about in your Market; I thought it was just me."

It paid to be honest sometimes. Also, there was an element of deniability as the Mountain strove to turn the negotiations around. He kept his eyes on Sal.

"Now I would love to take you up on your offer. But I doubt I could fulfil my side of the bargain; I am no match for the Ol Wyrm... And I'm much diminished from what I was... I want us to be friends. Yeah and I don't want to insult you with failure or false expectations there. But thanks. Uh think over what I said... About the other stuff - an accord, alliance, pact or something. Against mutual enemies."

At last he turned his head to the milling mob.

"I think I have something that might interest them more than a Roth. I think... Yeah... Out of left field but worth it."

[Cayce]

The Lady with the iris of swirling color thought for a moment, and then signaled to one of the hunched, rodent creatures that had brought them cups just moments before. The creature bent down so that the Lady could whisper in its ear, and then it scurried off to speak to the corpulent mass wheezing at the front of the booth. The fat rippled as it nodded, and then the blob of fat expanded is it took in a massive breath. Nevertheless, when it spoke, it's voice still wheezed, and so it was up to the bookies by the banners to shout the message in stereo.

"The Lady Salome offers payment for the life of the defeated! A feast there shall be, of the finest cuts of meat, the most potently fermented of milks that the Hedge has to offer!"

Another ragged cheer went up, the crowd swayed by this lavish offering, though a few scowling faces could still be seen in the crowd, no doubt angered by having had the auction so abruptly ended.

"Come," the polychromatic Lady ordered, rising from her chair. "Your friend will brought to us. It is better we discuss matters in a less noisesome environment. And, if you have any other of your kind scurrying under foot, summon them now. I would speak to all of you."

She waited patiently, for Green to make whatever announcement he needed to, and then waited once more for the Lost to reconvene before she led them all deeper into the market, a stretcher carrying the body of the Paladin of Shadows along in their wake. The lights of the lanterns flared when the Lady Salome past beneath them, the flames leaning against the glass, pets seeking the affection of their mistress, but the Lady paid them no mind.

Finally, they all arrived at a strange tree that had grown in the middle of the market, it's boughs wreathed with thorns like many of the trees that grew throughout the hedge, but this tree was enormously wide, and almost comically squat in comparison, and more importantly, it's roots appeared not to be embedded into the earth, but rather into a mound of still living beings. Faint groans issued from hundreds of throats as the procession approached, the bodies of hedge beasts, hobs, and Lost writhing, spitted by the fearsome roots of the tree, roots that pulsed like veins, as though this each sacrifice to this terrible tree was merely an appendage of this monstrous pulmonary system.

The Lady gave them no mind, and her slippers mounted the pile of roots and bodies, carrying her upward towards a door that was set in the trunk of that terrible tree. The door swung open before the Lady, and she stepped through, heedless of whether or not she was followed. No doubt, she never imagined that they would choose not to.

And, once inside, it was clear to the lost that this was only partly a tree. The passages and rooms that formed the interior all faintly pulsed, the wood hued red, as though they were stepping inside a massive beast rather than a plant. They walked for some minutes, feet sinking softly into the "carpet" of the halls, until finally they were brought to a receiving room oriented towards a throne, and a massive, ten foot by ten foot cage.

Strangely, boughs of the tree grew into the cage, creating a twisted maze of crimson leafed limbs, and among this maze, the flick of a large, squirrel tale could be seen. A tale that was attached not to some creature from the hedge, but rather a woman in a tattered dress: the Former Dread Queen, Terri Nutkins...

The Lady Salome reclined in her thrown, and merely raised an eyebrow at the Freeholders, no doubt expecting, and perhaps relishing, the magnitude of their response.

Sorry for fast forwarding, but I didn't want to lose momentum

[Morgan Bellanar]

Morgan offered no commentary of the outcome, travel, nor the decor of their benefactor. Being unconscious prevented any verbal slips getting her into trouble today. Again.

IIRC, Morgan is unconscious until at least one lethal is reduced to bashing. So she can't contribute much right now.

[Mhairi Ankaa]

Assuming that since Green knew Mhairi and Morgan were going to be in the Market the Wisp will be Summoned...

The Feathered Hob turned to her and a horrible thought springs to mind, she knows what will win the bid, mouth opens to make her damning announcement only to halt when the proclamation rings out from the booth overlooking the Pit.

"It seems our host has seen the scavengers worth." Gods and Demons please let Green have been responsible for this change, please let the Mountain have made an alliance with the Market Owner, please let this save Morgan! "And to think she was going to clean my gutters." which the Paladin used to do around Edna's before Mumphert came along. But you never knew how a Hob would take her words.

Moving swiftly from the Feathered Hob and the banners, Mhairi thought that if this wasn't Green, then she would only have a limited window to work with, and getting her Paladin to safety was paramount.

Then as quickly as fell-flames caught the movement of Morgan's too still form, the Mountain summoned the Freeholders....Autumn's Queen lets out a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. Green was already seeing to Morgan's safety...unless...well. Mhairi didn't want to think about that 'unless'.

The mass of Hobs part ways for the Wisp easily, the Fear coming them gave way for a sharp and wicked smirk to grow upon the Queen. Which in turn, pushed the Hobs farther, and their fear-scent grew. A wicked cycle that with the sight of Morgan's bloodied form imprinted upon Mhairi's mind, she didn't try to quell.

Finally the Wisp sees her Paladin, pale upon the stretcher and the Mountain...glad as she was to see them both, she nearly missed the polychromatic Lady...but she didn't. The Autumn Queen gives the Lady a curtsy, she tried not to make it seemed rushed but Morgan was there. When the Wisp felt like it had been enough time she lept to Morgan's side, and tried to figure out if she could do anything to help.

Then, they walked. Until finally they reached the tree. The sight of it made Mhairi sick, those poor people. It took a moment for the Wisp to realize that the Lady wanted them to follow her. Sucking in a breath, and apologizing with every step Mhairi followed the Lady.

In the throne room, a silent mantra of 'pleasantries, pleasantries, pleasantries' rang in her mind, "You have a lovely-Terri!" fell-flames lock onto the Truefriend. Her head shakes in denial. No. No, Autumn's former Queen couldn't have been. No, Mhairi would have just not known! "Terri." comes a pitiful anguished whisper.

  1 success to help Morgan!

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2017-03-24 21:52:27		Mhairi Ankaa rolls 4 to Patch job! (Wits 3 + medicine 1) (10 Again)		7, 1, 2, 9		1 success

[Malcolm Green]

Green disappears briefly to check on Morgan... and attract Mhairi's attention... before he follows Sal as she makes her way to her fastness.

The mountain had never been this deep into the Flesh Market, not even when he came disguised. The revelation had him pausing to talk in the view. His grunt was... impressed. The mountain either chose not think on the plight of the unfortunate's bound to the Hollow, or else he reckoned them to be part of the scenery. If anyone had registered the look in his eye though, the most disturbing thing would have been that he simply took it in his stride.

As the Wyrd grew, so it twisted the perceptions, so one became less human. How much longer would the big Elemental accept a cage of meat when he could become one with the Earth?

Green marched boldly into the Hollow, his footfalls heavy and measured. He gave another grunt when he saw the spacious Hollow within the tree. His head lilted to one side as he watched the mistress of the Flesh Market take her seat on the throne, then he turned and gave an appraising nod to the cage.

"She yours now? I had you pegged for a powerful Hob. Guess I was wrong." Green could have been talking about the weather.

"Really impressive digs you got here." He clenched and unclenched his fits, working out their tension. "I'd love to talk about you how you grew this place. Yeah - but thats for another time I guess. So... Yeah, I'm gonna sit, if you don't mind. I know my place anyhow and I'm not exactly one for protocols or what you call 'em?"

  

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2017-03-24 22:26:53		Green to hide his emotions rolls 8 to Manipulation + Subterfuge + Mantle Effect (10 Again, WillPower)		10, 9, 9, 6, 1, 9, 1, 9, 1		5 successes

He'd sit regardless what the Mistress of the Flesh Market said.

"Well I'm... We are here to talk about building an alliance or friendship pact thing, yeah? I figure both our groups - your Market and our 'Hold - have an enemy in Baron Fairweather. I also reckon his new mercenary army has designs on your Market for themselves. So I reckon the time has come to parlay; to work something out between us. That Dragon is out to crush us... and if he don't have plans for you that Jenny One-Horn whatever definitely does, right? And besides, I doubt he has been good for your trade: rampaging armies, bad dragon's, burned trods... Well I say thats bad for your business, right? So lets talk."