I woke up bright and early the next day using Prestidigitation to clean my teeth and body. With that over with I quickly donned my armor and clothes going downstairs to have some breakfast. The breakfast consisted of little more than bread and gruel but with some Prestidigitation I was able to flavor it so that in my mind I had an excellent Nuttella Crepe and Bacon. With breakfast over with, I left the inn after returning the key and headed toward the stables.
On my way through the street however I was interrupted as I felt a tugging sensation to my side where I carried my coin purse.
Sleight of hand: 18 vs CMD 14
"Shit !" I cursed spinning around catching a glimpse of the retreating form of a kid dressed in rags.
"Oi you there stop" I said taking off after him. The kid glanced back and kept running, leading me on a wild goose chase through several streets and alleyways. Until I finally had him cornered in a deadend "Ok now kid give me back the coin and we'll leave this be no one needs to get hurt or anything" I said catching my breath from all that running.
"Heh that's where youre wrong you're definitely going to get hurt" said a voice from behind me followed by some laughs.
Whirling around I saw 4 bums with knives standing at the entrance of the alley blocking my way. "Don't even bother screaming for help, the city guard doesn't come around here" said one of them smiling with yellowed teeth.
I let out a sigh "I dont have the energy for this" I said.
"Now then just put down all your stuff and we won't gut you like a fish". Said the same bum twirling the knife in his hand.
"Enough talk , Grease," I said, casting the spell on the ground beneath their feet. I saw as the cracked stone floor became coated in a shiny substance.
Grease DC 15
Bum 1: 5
Bum 2: 8
Bum 3: 15
Bum 4: 1
Initiative:
Bum 1:15
Bum: 2: 17
Bard: 12
Bum 3: 2
Bum 4: 1
I watched as my spell took hold and caused 3 out of the 4 bums to fall to the ground on their asses. The first 2 who fell recovered quickly getting back up as I rushed forward with my sheathed sword lashing out at the first one (17). The blow rang true and I struck the Bum across the head (6 dmg) causing him to hit the wall and fall to the ground unconscious.
The third bum who never fell tried to move towards me but fell immediately. 11 vs DC 15. The last one got up but decided to just put a hand to the wall. "You knocked out Jory you bastard screamed Bum 2 as he slashed out with his sword (15). The blow actually hit me this time, slashing my arm(5 dmg).
"Ouch you fucking cunt" I yelled as I struck out again with my sword (19 Crit. Crit Confirm (18). (11 dmg). The blow rang true and there was a sickening crunch as the sword hit him in the head and into the wall causing some bleeding when his head hit the ground. 'Shit didn't mean to hit him so hard' I thought to myself.
"You killed him, we won't let you get away with this screamed bum 3 who got up and attempted to move toward me only to fall once again (10). The last bum, actually being intelligent, decided to take a careful step back as he ran out of the alley "I'll be back" he yelled out. I rolled my eyes "What a coward" i said using Mage hand to throw a punch at the last bum (2 dmg). I did this a few more times knocking him out before handing my clasping my sword back to my belt. I cast Cure Light wounds (+6 hp) and healed myself back up and then turned toward the kid who started this in the first place.
"Please don't hurt me, mister, the gang forced me to steal from people or they would kill me and my family. I swear" he said, offering the coin purse to me as he cowered in fear.
I snatched the coin purse away from him "Yeah yeah I don't hurt children kid" i said hanging it back on my belt.
Optional quest received
Clear the filth
There's a gang threatening children and stealing from travelers. You can't let something like this stand. Or can you?
Defeat the gang operating in White harbor
'Well normally I wouldn't stick my nose where it doesn't belong but hey xp is xp" i thought to myself. "You said this gang was threatening you and your family right?"
"Yes sir" he said wiping some tears from his eyes now that i said i wouldn't hurt him.
"Any idea where they gather or operate from?" I asked, giving my fingers a snap to get his attention.
"Yes when we get money and sometimes they have us bring it to their hideout at some old building by the docks" he said nodding.
"Would you be able to lead me there?" I asked an idea forming in my head.
"Wait you want to go there? Are you crazy you may have been able to take out those 3 but there's 17 more men in that gang and some aren't just peasants" he said with wide eyes.
I let out a laugh "Oh yeah i'm definitely not built like that "I said "But lucky for us i know just the men to help us on our little escapade.
With that the boy walked with me over to the Inn Eric and Kristoff told me they were staying at. I found them both in some training yard not far from the Inn in the midst of a spar. Upon my approach Kristoff took his eyes off Eric leading to him being knocked on his ass. "What's got you so distracted?" said Eric, turning around and seeing me. "Oh Jon what a surprise I thought you would have ridden for Winterfell by now. What's happened and who is this child?" he asked.
"Well that was the plan but on my walk to the stables i was pickpocketed by this kid, and then accosted by some peasants normally that would be it and i would continue on my way but this kid brought to my attention something concerning. Apparently there is a gang operating out of White Harbor, one that enjoys preying on children". I said looking toward them for their reactions.
I saw both mens faces quickly morph into anger at my words 'Got it in one' I thought 'The honest types are the easier types to convince' I thought to myself. "Now as an honorable citizen of the realm myself I was equally as appalled by these actions which is why I came to find you. Together I think we could take down these briggands so that their reign of terror comes to an end."Besides, if they are as good of a fighter as Kristoff we have nothing to worry about", I added jokingly.
Charming Performance: Comedy (Diplomacy) : (Nat 20!) = 33
Party Formed: Eric Fighter(Two handed Fighter) Level 2, Kristoff FIghter level 1
My convincing was a critical success as they both let out a laugh "I'll let that joke pass as were friends Jon but don't get too comfortable" he said coming over giving me a playful jab on the arm.
"So what's the plan and how many men are in this so-called gang?" Asked Eric grabbing a drink of water from his waterskin.
"Well here's the thing, there's kind of a lot. According to the kid there's about 20 men in that gang. I took care of 3 of them already but that still leaves 17" I said. Kristoff let out a whistle at that "Phew kid, that's quite a few men and while your mysteries may be all well and good I think that might be too many for us 4 alone" he said with concern in his eyes.
"See normally you'd be right but I've got some skills that should be able to even the odds if we play our cards right. So here's what we're going to do" I said, explaining my plan.
Stolen story; please report.
The plan began as close to midnight as we could get as that was the only way it would work. The way they told time here was pretty wacky as they had special candles that would be lit in the day which would burn until midnight when a new one would be lit. It was a hassle convincing the innkeeper to let us have her but with some of my boyish charms I managed to get it from her.
Together with Eric and Kristoff we made our way to the hideout by the dockside being led by Peter the little peasant boy. As soon as he showed us the hideout I commanded him to go elsewhere as it would get dangerous. Looking down at the hideout there were 3 guards at the door. The two guards talked amongst themselves with not a care in the world after all as the only gang in the area they ran the streets , no one would be dumb enough to attack them. Unfortunately for them I'm a dumbass. Now the goal of this was to subdue the gang members with as little blood spilled as possible. There would be some casualties of course but my goal was to at least get some to bring before Lord Manderly for some sort of compensation.
I started the plan off by casting Sleep on them from our hiding place. I used rose petals to cast the spells which were bought by a random florist earlier in the day, and immediately all 4 men passed out onto the ground. "Ok now gag them and hogtie them one at a time" I whispered.
Quickly we went up to the unconscious men and I would put the gag on to prevent them from screaming as they awoke to being hogtied. They struggled of course but with the gag in place and the two men restraining them they were subdued with ease. Whatever noise of protest they made fell on deaf ears as enemies put to sleep by the spells wouldnt awaken from noise. The candle also went out by the time we were done meaning my spells should hopefully be recharged.
With that part of the plan done I cast Guardian Mote on myself and commanded them to enter through the door. The abandoned building was pretty big and upon cracking the door we saw no one immediately but about 50 feet away from the entrance was a dining table currently in use by a couple of the Bums. While I could see perfectly in the dark, the angle didn't let me count how many. To our left and right were doors and the plan was to clear out all the room before heading into any open areas to avoid being bum rushed. We went to the left first and cracked the door ever so slightly. I saw 4 men asleep. I turned to them and signed 4. With that we waddled in slowly, careful to not make any noises. Unfortunately we weren't the stealthiest bunch and a loud creak sounded out from us stepping.
Stealth: 10
I let out a cringe looking toward the sleeping form of the peasants hopeful they didn't wake up.
Sleeping Peasants : Perception 2
Thankfully they were in deep sleep and we were able to get to their bedside with no problem.
I used Mage Hand to quickly float their weapons over to me from their bedside and nodded toward them to begin the next part. They walked over to their sleeping forms and unsheathed their weapons. I cleared my throat loudly and said "Up and adam gentleman". They quickly came to and saw the swords at their throats. "Now you scream you die and trust me those swords arent made of wood" i said loudly.
Versatile performance Comedy (Intimidate): 26
The men were thankfully swayed by this attempt and remained still and quiet as I got to work gagging and tying them while the knights held the swords to their throats. The Guardian mote disappeared in the time it took to do this and we left them tied as we moved onto the next room. We went across the hall and I cracked the door but no one was in there so we moved on. Similarly the room adjacent to it was also empty. The last room had 2 sleeping peasants but this time there was one awake writing something by candlelight. Hearing the door open he lazily called out " I already told you i don't want to drink" he turned a bit to speak and was surprised "Who the he–". I quickly walked in and cast Sleep, making him slump over on the desk. We quickly tied him up and similarly subdued the other 2 without a sound as my Performance(Comedy) was almost too high to fail.
At last it was time to fight or hopefully not fight. From our position I could see that there were 5 men sitting at the table drinking and talking. I quickly casted Sleep on the table but through some cruel twist of fate only one fell asleep. "Ha looks like Lenny cant handle his drink" the rest laughed. With that we went into the light.
Seeing us the men quickly sprung to their feet, one grabbing the knife he was using to eat.
"OI who are you? Where are Gerald and Tom" Shouted the one with a knife in his hand.
"Well my good me–" I was quickly interrupted by one of the men who we'll call Bum 1 rushing toward Eric attempting to punch him. Eric to his credit dodged the blow but this meant the melee was officially started.
Initiative
Bum 1: 18
Bum 2: 14
Bum 3: 13
Me: 11
Bum 4: 10
Eric: 3
Kristoff:4
Bum 2 ran toward Kristoff for a punch which Kristoff dodged easily (8). Bum 3 decided to rush towards me to try and hit me but maybe because of the drinks in him his blow went wide not even necessitating a dodge from me (1). As he was right in front of me I used my sheathed sword and attempted to whack at the man in front of me (15). (5 dmg). "Fuck" he yelled , as the blow caught the man in the head but he was still standing.
Bum 4 rushed forward to double team Eric, slashing out at him (9) but Eric blocked the blow with his bastard sword and immediately struck out at him (23) (12 dmg) knocking him out instantly.
"I'll get you for that you bastard" said Bum 1 deciding it would be a smart idea to try and bend down to pick up the knife right in front of Eric and was punished for it as Eric kicked the man in the face (14) (4 dmg) knocking him on his ass. Bum 1 tried getting up but it provoked another attack from Eric who knocked him out with his sword. "That's how you do it lads" he beamed.
Kristoff let out a huff and struck out at the one threatening him with his Long sword (18) (7dmg). The blow caught Bum 2 in the stomach causing him to curl over in pain but he still had some fight left in him as he struck out for another punch (7). The punch was feeble and Kristoff swatted it away easily with his sword.
The one in front of me threw another punch at me (18) which connected on my torso knocking a bit of air out of me but nothing major (2 dmg). "Go to sleep Bum" I said, striking out with my shortsword (13)(8 dmg). The blow was enough to knock him out but it did open a pretty gnarly wound on his head from the contusion. "Let's get this over with, there could be more in the back rooms and we're making too much noise" I said aloud to Kristoff.
Eric crossed the distance between them in a second slashing at Bum (17)(10 dmg). The blow caught the man in the back of the head leaving another bloody contusion but he was at least still breathing for the moment.
With the battle over I was just about to clip my sword when the back rooms door busted open and 3 men clothed in leather armor stormed out swords drawn. 'Shit these must be the knights the kid was talking about'. "Unsheathe your swords" I told them quickly.
Initiative:
Me: 20
Knight 1: 19
Eric: 15
Kristoff: 7
Knight 2: 5
Knight 3: 4
I was quick on the draw this time and began my Bardic Performance/Draconic Rage using my voice alone to activate it quickly singing Eye of the tiger to activate it. I unsheathed my sword myself, pointing it toward one of the knights as a sort of challenge.
Knight 1 charged forward with a short sword toward Eric slashing out (13). Eric blocked the blow with his sword deflecting it before slashing out with a blow of his own (20). The blow struck the man across the chest slashing through the leather armor like butter (13 dmg) killing the man instantly.
Kristoff charged forward, striking out with his sword (17). Knight 2 attempted to block himself but Kristoff was too quick running the man through with his sword (9 dmg). The blow was fatal but the man didn't die instantly as Kristoff pulled the sword out letting the man slump over bleeding.
The last knight charged toward me. I guess seeing me as an easy target or maybe just trying to flee but regardless he ran towards me swinging his sword wildly (14). Due to the effects of Draconic Rage my body was not as agile as it could have been and the sword caught me in the arm causing a gash to form on my arm (3 dmg). The pain made me stop singing "Ow you dumb fucker" I said slashing out at him myself still empowered due to Lingering Performance (23). My blow ripped through the man from chest to shoulder causing a deep gash (9 dmg) which caused the man to go down screaming in painful death throes.
I wiped the sweat from my brow as I looked toward Eric and Kristoff. "Well that was exciting," I said, holding my bleeding wound. "Now if you two would be so kind as to start tying them all up, I've got to tend to this wound. Tie up the two dying knights first so I can heal them." I said casting Cure Light wounds on myself. (+3 hp). The healing aura didn't feel like much but it did top me back up.
I quickly went to the one I had injured who had quieted down as he choked on blood and already had his hands tied by Eric. Cure light wounds i cast (+9 hp). This time the healing aura was plentiful and I watched as the man went from dying with a large gash on his chest to perfectly fine, although he did still cough up some blood presumably what was still in his throat.
I then went to Kristoff's opponent who was unconscious already from blood loss Cure light wounds (+4 hp) this time the healing wasn't as plentiful and while it stabilized him for the moment he was still in very bad shape.
"Shit bring the two ones we knocked out that were bleeding," I said to them. They brought the two men over and I closed my eyes and focused letting a healing pulse flow out of me (+4 hp). The two men who we knocked out with the sheathes looked much better but the last man was still pretty bad.
"Unfortunately that's really all I can do until tomorrow , we can hold pressure at least until he can be seen by a maester '' I said, holding some pressure on the wound with a rag. "Ok so one of you go get the city guards. I'll stay here with the others and guard the rest of them." I said from my position on the ground.
Eric decided to go get the guards while I waited with Kristoff. "Man did you have to be so rough with him?" I said to Kristoff jokingly.
He rolled his eyes "They got what was coming to them for coming at us with live steel" he said. The rest of the time was spent with Kristoff transferring the tied up men to the main rooms as I stayed and held pressure. I began to sing Lazy song to pass the time and 10 minutes later the City guard arrived with Eric. We explained what happened to them and the men were taken away with us being told to go back to our inns and that Lord Manderly would have words with us in the morning.
I walked Eric and Kristoff back to their inn and thanked them bidding them farewell for the night. They had wanted to drink some ale after a celebratory battle but I refused, wanting nothing more to sleep .I then went back to the inn I was at the previous night and paid for another night. I received the same room which was a nice coincidence but it was just most likely not cleaned. I settled into my nightly routine of cleaning with Prestidigitation . I also had to use Mending on my clothes from where they had been slashed today. With that I went to sleep , the guards said they would send for me so I didn't have to worry about waking up.