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[LB] In the Hangar of the Hand of Sorrow (ALL 1.2)
All,
Klaxons are sounding and the entire Hand of Sorrow is on alert. The tumult you've caused won't soon be forgotten. Marines from the Hand of Sorrow who survived will tell tales of the only escape from the brig. Each of you played a part in getting you here, from sneaking, to finding your way in the many corridors and halls, fighting and casting magic. In the kickass musical montage action scene that brought us here, what did we see you do? What's one highlight moment of your contribution to the progress here to the hangar?
All of you come out of a corridor after a near miss past a small unit of marines, and now you're on a metal catwalk twenty feet above the deck below. You're looking out onto a wide hangar., looks a bit like this:
To starboard, you see nearly the entire right-hand side of this expansive hangar is open to the air. The hangar is filled with biplanes and odd steamships of non-military folks. Natasha, you recognize a ship from one of the noble houses, which one is it?
Vance, Kale and Snargle, there she is, The Owl. You know she needs fuel before you can get out of here. There's a unit of marines stationed nearby and a few dozen engineers working on the ships here. As soon as you're seen, you know those marines have orders to shoot on sight. There is a control tower on this level, maybe five soldiers directing traffic and communications for the main hangar of the Hand of Sorrow.
And Vance... you know that this ship has a battery of flak guns that they can train on any ship nearby. You should probably have a plan for that, too.
What do you do?
Klaxons are sounding and the entire Hand of Sorrow is on alert. The tumult you've caused won't soon be forgotten. Marines from the Hand of Sorrow who survived will tell tales of the only escape from the brig. Each of you played a part in getting you here, from sneaking, to finding your way in the many corridors and halls, fighting and casting magic. In the kickass musical montage action scene that brought us here, what did we see you do? What's one highlight moment of your contribution to the progress here to the hangar?
All of you come out of a corridor after a near miss past a small unit of marines, and now you're on a metal catwalk twenty feet above the deck below. You're looking out onto a wide hangar., looks a bit like this:
To starboard, you see nearly the entire right-hand side of this expansive hangar is open to the air. The hangar is filled with biplanes and odd steamships of non-military folks. Natasha, you recognize a ship from one of the noble houses, which one is it?
Vance, Kale and Snargle, there she is, The Owl. You know she needs fuel before you can get out of here. There's a unit of marines stationed nearby and a few dozen engineers working on the ships here. As soon as you're seen, you know those marines have orders to shoot on sight. There is a control tower on this level, maybe five soldiers directing traffic and communications for the main hangar of the Hand of Sorrow.
And Vance... you know that this ship has a battery of flak guns that they can train on any ship nearby. You should probably have a plan for that, too.
What do you do?
Comments
My contribution was that I did what I was told, which was feat in and of itself. However, it did give me the opportunity to admire the way Naomi could plow through Imperials with just her two fists.
I glance over the catwalk as we arrive to the hangar, searching for the one that will grant us our escape. One ship that catches my eye belongs surely to the Whitethorns. They are known for dressing to the nines, even when on a simple errand, and they spared no expense when it came to their means of travel. I wonder briefly if a member of the family is aboard. They would find the marines scrambling to recapture escapees a hilarious story to share at the dinner table. My attention then travels from the resplendent ship to the Captain of The Owl.
"Captain, what do you want me to do?"
Montage:
The crew (and passengers) are surrounded by way too many brass-clad goons in a way too little room. The captain gives Kale a look. Kale puts down soot-covered goggles and spits in greasy gloves. Captain Vance and Snargle cover their eyes right before Kale claps the gloves together.
The whole area erupts in a flash of blinding light!
As the goons blink and swing their batons blindly, the captain runs out of the cloud of light as it fades leading Lady Blackbird, Snargle is right behind guiding Naiomi (or is it the other way around?), and Kale sprints past all of them, goggles still down, with a huge smile.
Fighting isn't all I'm good for! One of the guards managed to hit the door switch, and another of those big doors started to roll shut with Vance, Snargle, and myself on one side and the rest of the group on the other. My fault: I didn't realize he was going for the switch until the door started to close with that loud, grinding sound they make. Also my fault for using the switch as a convenient place to smash the guy's face into and breaking it off.
Before I could talk myself out of it, I stepped between the door and the wall with my back to the door and my legs braced against the wall. I don't think I could have held it open forever, but I kept it open long enough for Kale, Lady Blackbird, and Jonas to get through. I'm pretty sure I have bolt imprints running down my back from the door now, and my legs feel a bit like jelly -- but the job got done, right?
On the way here, Cyrus had both guns drawn, but he never had to fire them. The crew was working like a well-oiled machine, getting everyone through with minimal noise and minimal mess. Cyrus' key contribution was that he knows these ships like the back of his hand. Not one wrong turn, not one surprise: Cyrus led them to the hangar like he lived here. Because he did, at one point.
When the crew gets to the hangar, Cyrus turns to Snargle and says "Ok, Snargs, she needs some fuel. What do you think? Can you siphon some from one of these here imperial hunks o' junk? Otherwise, we ain't getting far. After that, I want you to sneak into the Owl, if you can, and be ready to get it off the ground as soon as we're ready to go."
Cyrus then turns to Kale and says "YOU know as well as I do that they'll shoot us right out of the sky if we don't disable their weapon systems. Seems like this kind o' monkeywrenching is up your alley, eh? Right by the control tower there should be a panel that you can bust into that will let you temporarily disable the ship's guns. Should buy us enough time to get out."
"Everyone else, we're going to quietly take that control tower..."
I gander down at the control tower.
Ah, that panel there? Should be easy enough.
Turnin back, I wink at the Cap. Ay ay, Cappin
(Looking at Burgler, [Quiet], [Sneak], [Hide], [Dextrous], and maybe [Perceptive] to sneak down there.)
The engineers in the control tower are watching the hangar bay, directing a few takeoffs and a landing simultaneously. They're doing their job. None appear armed.
OOC: Kale, if you want to roll those dice, that works for me. The challenge for you is difficult (3).
On the way to the hangar? Snargle didn't do so much. Little things like getting really small and running through the giant boots of Marines, then climbing up and pushing a door release button so everyone else could rush through. Lots of sneaking and crawling to get this far, and Snargle looks at the open hangar like a delicious knot that Snargle can untie by slicing it through.
Where is the breaker box that shuts off the lights in the hangar? Snargle would really like to know.
The closest breaker box is beneath you, near the port-side ladders on the first floor. If your guess is right, this place was done in series, so if you destroy that breaker box, you turn out the lights. But yes, the control tower is on a different circuit.
All,
As Kale slips across the catwalk for the access panel to the weapons controls, a shrill whistle comes over the loudspeakers as they suddenly crackle to life.
"Attention crew of the Hand of Sorrow," the voice begins. But Vance, you know his voice anywhere. "This is Captain Hollas speaking. Our wireless transmits have revealed that the escapees from our brig are led by none other than the infamous outcast Cyrus Vance. I am offering fifty crown to the man who brings this scoundrel to me. One hundred if he's still breathing. That is all."
Vance, what was the last thing Hollas said to you at your court-martial?
Kale, what was it that Vance told you that night when the both of you were trashed, the reason he was drummed out of the Imperial Navy?
Snargle, what's the real reason Vance was kicked out of the Navy?
Snargle dashes around the catwalk, fast as lightning, to the side beyond the breaker box and cog door, past the Marine. Flips off the catwalk, catching the rail and letting arms lengthen to drop Snargle to deck level. Snargle opens the panel and just rips out wires.
The hangar isn't engulfed in darkness since the hangar is open to the everbright sky, but there are long shadows that move and shift as the starlight breaks behind occasional clouds.
Infamous?! 50 Crowns if he's NOT breathing?!
What could this man have possibly done to the Imperials other than give them the most spectacular one finger salute the Empire has ever seen?
I peer over the side as we approach the control room. Are the lights on inside the ship belonging to the Whitethorns? Has anyone left it to see why the lights have gone out?
((OOC: If a guard tries to shoot the Captain, she is going to try and shoot first...non-fatally.))
There are a pair of guards moving on the catwalk towards you now, but they haven't noticed you. You're going to have to deal with them before you can disable the turrets outside.
Lady Blackbird,
If you're trying to cover the captain as he leads you and Naomi to the control tower, then that's a challenge of three. If you're trying not to kill anyone, it's a four.
(Rolled: 8d6 . Rolls: 4, 1, 6, 6, 5, 1, 6, 4. Total: 33)
"I always knew you would fail me..."
That damned voice rang in Cyrus' ears. "I worked so hard," he thought. "Worked my way up from nothin' to be where I was, and that no good richie, Hollas, who practically had his position handed to him on the day he was born said I'm a failure?" Nothing stung Cyrus quite like being called a failure. When you're pegged for nothing, every little step you take feels like a giant leap, and he hated being told it all amounted to nothing.
But that's neither here nor there, now. Hollas will have to wait. Cyrus has to get his crew safe to the Owl. Blackbird is laying down some nice.... cover fire, if you can call it that. Now's the time to dash over.
Let's go, folks! Move yer bones!
I glance over in Vance's direction as the announcement comes to an end. It's an appraising look -- I'm wondering how one man could be worth so much. Apparently, I've underestimated him...but I'm also impressed. Anyone capable of upsetting the Imperials to the sum of one hundred crowns is a man I count among my friends.
But, then again, most of my friends have tried to kill me, so I can't say we're all that close.
The lady is deadly accurate with that pistol -- something that's easy to forget, even for me. Especially for me. I admire her skill, but only for a moment; as soon as I have crossed that open gap, I turn. "Come on, girl!"
I suppose, what with our cover broken, I should resume calling her by her proper title -- but "girl" is a lot shorter than anything else, anyway.
While the daylight on the level below is murky with the long shadows of the many biplanes, up here on the second level you're exposed.. The men in the control room are expecting you, a couple grab rifles as you move forward, and they lean out to take pot shots at you.
But Lady Blackbird's aim is perfect. She hits one man's right hand, sending his rifle skittering off the catwalk. The other takes a shot in his left leg, and doubles over in pain. As the three of you dash across the catwalk, several marines below spot you, call out alarms. A few shots are fired, but they miss. For now, you're too far away, moving too quickly.
You're able to make it to the control room, which is a tall room with huge, thick windows looking onto the hangar and the sky outside. There's one door in, but through the windows you see three more guards inside. One is an officer, with a revolver drawn, the other two have rifles aimed at the one door into the place. Jonas is charging in, regardless. He assumes you're coming, too, Naomi.
Defeating these dug-in marines is a difficult challenge (3).
Snargle,
You've cut the lights, and now the place is going wild. Shots firing, shouting, the announcement, all a chaotic. Where are you headed now?
100 Crowns?
Well, tis a bit less as I’d thought to be truthful. That one time Cap bought me an Snargs a jug a Grease Whiskey--couldn’ta been on the Owl for more than a coupla turns of the flag at that point--he told me bout the time they drummed im outta the service.
Said they ordered him and the Cap’s squad to gun down a horde of ogres that had set themselves up on some rock a bit too close to the Expansion. Only turns out it was less of a “horde” and more of a starved out camp--only two ogres even among em. Cap said, rather than roast a group of refugees he spat on his brass-beatin commander an got locked up for the trouble.
Jus look at im. All pearly and, and heroic up there leadin that like a damned Salt Angel in the livin flesh.
Oh! Kale, pay attention to what yer doin!
Seems I gotta coupla creepers headin my way. Haven’t spied me yet though. Should be pretty easy to slip betwixt em with all this shade Snargs to generously providin.
Though, not much goes easy for good ol Kale.
1+Bugler, [Quiet], [Sneak], [Hide], [Dextrous], [Perceptive], and [Darkness].
(Rolled: 8d6. Rolls: 1, 1, 4, 3, 2, 6, 5, 4. Total: 26)
Also, Rich: can I play it like this- 3 to defeat the guards, but with extra successes (4? 5?) can I do it non-lethally? Cyrus would prefer to not kill them, just incapacitate them and get them out of the way.
So...
1) Doing a thing,
2) Warrior
3) Battle Hardened
4) Shooting
5) Two Gun Style
6) Pistol
7) Naomi's help
8) Blackbird's help
9+10) 2 of my dice from the pool.
That's 10.
(Rolled: 10d6. Rolls: 4, 1, 6, 4, 2, 3, 4, 2, 1, 6. Total: 33)
Snargle doesn't wait any longer. Dragging a fuel hose from the depot, Snargle runs toward the Owl undeterred by the shifting shadows. Snargle darts and dodges, flips over barrels, pads quiet through the darker patches, through confused marines and engineers alike, and makes ready to hook up the hose.
If you want to sneak the fuel line past those marines, while they're on high alert and even shooting at some of your friends, I think that's Challenging (4). The plus side is that if you pull it off, you can remove the "Needs Fuel" check on The Owl. If you get 5 successes, you can even board her unnoticed.
- Do a thing.
- Goblin.
- Warp shape
- Glide
- Nightvision
- Agile
- Quick
- Tumbler
- Plus ALL SEVEN pool dice
So, Snargle's rolling 15 dice. Snargle says, "Yo."(Rolled: 15d6. Rolls: 4, 4, 4, 3, 6, 2, 1, 2, 1, 1, 1, 1, 6, 2, 4. Total: 42)
Jonas charges in first with a growl, taking a rifle shot to the shoulder. Naomi, you're right behind him, just barely duck the spray as you charge forward to slam one guard into the wall behind him.
Vance, you slip around behind the both of them and snap off a shot at the officer, hitting his damn thumb. I mean, who shoots that well? Seriously, the guy nearly loses the thumb, and doiubles over in pain. As you bring your left-handed pistol to bear on the last rifleman, Lady Blackbird gives a quick, sharp gesture and a burst of wind blows his rifle aside. It fires with a crack, but the bullet hits the wall, harming no one.
He's wide open for a shot, so you fire off a pair of shots, one in each shoulder. He is knocked to his ass by the shots and his head hits the deck pretty hard.
The control room is currently yours!
What do you do?
You so hit Key of Daredevil, you maniac!
The gunfire right above your head distracts those guards enough for you to slip down and hang off the side of the catwalk. Their eyes are scanning upwards and they miss you as they rush past and start up the ladder to back up their control room allies.
You shimmy back up onto the catwalk and walk over to the turret controls. Easy enough to pry it open with a, why you just happen to have a prybar, fancy that. And open. I assume you're not being terribly careful here? Some ripping and disconnecting and you are pretty sure those turrets are inoperable.
Now... you know Snargle's trying to fuel the ship, but damned it all if you can't spot him. And the good captain and Lady Blackbird are a level above you fighting marines.
What do you do?
Ah, the sweet music of Cap's pistols. I'm tempted to go up and lend my hand, but I'm just as like to make things stickier. The Cap knows what he's doin besides, not to mention those two pitties and the Lightning Lady. I'm less the fightin type and more the hidin type.
Lookin over at that fancy ship though, there's another type I can claim--the sabotagin sort.
Course, that's nearly the whole length of the hangar away. I wonder how hard it'd be to pad over in the shadows all the way to the Whitethorn without no one the wiser.
Mayhaps I could scurry up in one of these brass wings and steer it over there with some amount a armor?
If you want to sneak over to the Whitethorn ship undetected, that's pretty Easy (2). There's definitely a lot going on right now.
(Rolled: 8d6. Rolls: 4, 2, 1, 2, 5, 2, 3, 3. Total: 22)
There, that wasn't so hard, was it?
I've seen Jonas take worse than that -- he's walked away from things that would have sent lesser men home to hide behind their mama's aprons for the rest of their lives. Still no reason to let it fester.
I make sure these Imperials aren't holding out on us -- I collect their weapons, just to make sure none of them do anything stupidly heroic, and offer Jonas the handkerchief from the one now missing his thumb. It's a pretty thing, all sewed up with fancy lace with initials in the corner -- from a wife or a lover, no doubt. It gives me a tickle to take it and press it up against the wound in Jonas's shoulder. "No fussing now," I warn him, then add over my shoulder: "Do what you need to do, Captain."
You sneak past the fuel barrels, noticing that there's a line running off towards The Owl. You have to slip around a couple guards, but as I said, they're pretty well distracted with the gunfire, some orders being shouted about the breaker box, and other orders about keeping watching, bringing out torches for light.... a small chaos.
Then you come upon the magnificent ship of House Whitethorn. The Whitethorns are the most ostentatious of all the Imperial Houses. Among their number are many Dreamblooded artists and they patron almost half of the commoner architects, painters, and sculptors.
Of course, their ship is pretty. Looks like this when it's aloft:
You're sure there are many riches upon the ship, and it seems scarcely guarded, except for the pair right outside. Of course, the royal quarters are a deck below, in the fore. You also have the captain's quarters, which are on this deck.
What do you do?
You're on board The Owl. She's just like you left her. Are you heading to the Engine Room to try and get her primed? Or checking out your precious cockpit to get a view outside?
Huh, I thought this might be some kinda war galley that shiny-toothed Hollas could use against us. Now's I'm up close it's more likely the ride of that Caess lady. Or Lady Caess I should say.
My aim was to muck up Hollas's ship but ...
I take a gander up at the Control Tower. Looks like the Cap an them's got it figured out well enough up there. I should probably make sure there's nothin valuable--er dangerous I mean--up in this ship right quick.
Where are you heading first? Captain's quarters or noble's rooms?
Hm, the captain could have some interestin, but I can't help but think of my own Cap.
I'll head over to the noble's rooms. At least as a first stop.
The Owl is Captain Sir's ship, but it is Snargle's, too. Before heading home to the cockpit, Snargle starts to prep her for flight, hands light and affectionate as switches are flipped and valves opened. Once everything's as ready as Snargle can make it while still taking on fuel, well, then Snargle will head to the cockpit. Snargle's baby needs to be fed before she can play, after all.
You've got a good deal of power at your fingertips here. However, the firefight didn't go unnoticed by the marines below.
Let's put this sabotage to a roll. The challenge works like this.
You declare what difficulty you're shooting for. That's the rating.
- If you get three successes, then you knock out half of the ships (and decrease the challenge for Snargle to fly you all out of here)
- If you get four successes, then you can destroy the controls completely, but you'll need to fight your way to the The Owl
- If you get FIVE successes, then you destroy the controls so utterly that the biplanes are down, and the ship's controls are affected. Marines are not able to reach the control room before you can escape (they come in the right, you go out the left, something like that)
If you fail at the roll, all four (counting Jonas) in the control room will be Trapped and at least two PCs are Injured (you choose who).
The old bird is in perfect working order. The Imps didn't bother with a boot, didn't drain her fluids (the low fuel was legit, you were getting low and then burned a bunch trying to get away from the Hand). You get her fueling, and head for the cockpit.
I'd like to wait to see what a mess you end up seeing out there.
As the smoke clears from the fight, you glance out of the control room down onto the hangar. You catch what looks very much like Kale Arkam on the deck of the Whitethorn ship, he's heading belowdecks.
The noble's state room in this ship is splendid. Seating arrangements for perhaps a dozen people. A well-stocked bar. Expensive paintings on the wall of Whitethorns past, from the dark and alluring Lady Nightmare to the Lord of Daydreams, from different generations, of course.
Past the state room you find two sets of quarters, one for servants, small and functional, the other for the noble. Yes, one noble is here. This whole ship belongs to them. It seems to be a him, from the accouterments in the room. The colors of the sheets and cushions are deep reds and golds, refined and elegant, if a bit showy.
What's the piece in this room that grabs your eye first, Kale?
You recognize the noble in the portrait over the bed. Who is it? How do they know you?
Also, you get the feeling you aren't completely alone on this ship. There's a certain creak to the wood, a motion on the wind that gives you the impression that someone else is aboard.
What do you do?
I’ll just go about pokin through this an that. Ah, I’ll take one of these. This looks nice. I’ve seen some of these sell before.
Oh, but wait a turn. There’s a fancy gold (nah, must be brass, right?) spyglass up on display. This could be the real deal. Somethin to pay for the whole voyage, or at least give us a headstart in the financial department. It’s got Oneiroi-Scope engraved on the side, whatever that’s ta mean. I slide it into one of my pockets, ginger as can be.
Them creaks ain’t givin me much peace of mind--might be time to dive. Turnin about to leave I notice that portrait over the bed. It reads Bishop Avery Redmond Whitethorn under it, but damned if that’s not the likeness of the Bloody Bishop--that shark-eyed sky-devil that used to “adopt” kids from the orphanage on Haven when I was still a bit. Some of the stories I heard about im run, unbidden, through my head.
Nope. Done here.
I drop what trinkets hadn’t made it to my pockets and pad right the hells outta there.
Are you heading up for the Control Room to aid your captain? Or going to The Owl to assist Snargle with preparing the ship?
1) Doing a thing.
2) Ex-Imperial
3) Tactics
4) Imperial War Ships
5) Naomi
6) Blackbird
7) Bonus Die
8) Bonus Die
9) Bonus Die
10) Bonus Die
Going for the 4 difficulty. I think that, between Naomi and Blackbird, we can fight our way there.
(Rolled: 10d6. Rolls: 3, 2, 3, 5, 4, 6, 1, 1, 6, 3. Total: 34)
Kale dashes across the space between the Whitethorn ship and The Owl. You both hear the chaos up in the Control Room, explosions, gunfire, the sound of someone beating stuff with hammers. It's crazy.
I'm assuming you two are getting The Owl up and running? Anything else you're doing?
You make short work of the Control Room. The catwalk to the south is filled with marines charging your position. They don't know how thorough you've been and there's an officer screaming at them to "Take that godsdamned position!"
You can head north on the catwalk, but there are marines coming that way, too. Less, but they've got the ladders.
Oh, oh, I almost forgot, in the gloom of the hangar deck, there are a half dozen marines taking aim in hopes of firing on you if you sit still.
But hey, if you get on The Owl, none of these poor souls are following you anywhere.
Snargle yells out, "Kale, disengage the fuel hose! Snargle needs to get this bird in the air!" Snargle assumes that, since this is sensible, Kale will do what Snargle asks, but starts The Owl up either way. Time to pick up Captain Sir and Lady Freckles and all the rest! The Owl is too sexy for this hangar! It's time to do a little dance to the catwalk!
The Control Room is busy exploding, right?
Vance, you recall that part of the Naval Handbook about the hangar being a hardpoint, right? That it's tied to several critical functions?
Yeah, so the Hand of Sorrow lists to port right about now. Only ten degrees, and you can adjust. But life's getting interesting for everyone.
You crazy basta... whatever you are. That's daredevlish. Give me a piloting roll. For every success you get, that lowers the difficulty for your crew and passengers to board her (you're able to maneuver it so they don't get shot, level up the door so they can jump in, etc., etc.)
You're bringing their challenge rating down from five right now. Meaning, if you roll 5 successes right now, they board with NO trouble.
Sounds about right.
Kale'll also look about for any trickiness the brass-beaters might've left in the Owl while they were traipsin about, trackin mud all over my baby.
EDIT: (Didn't expect a tiny explosion of posts, haha.)
Then I get right to work.
You got it, Snargs. And can I jus say I'm personally delighted we didn't die in here?
This? This is what Snargle was born for. Literally. Snargle's mother had certain rituals performed over Snargle's egg to make sure Snargle had what it took for moments just like this!
1. Doing a thing
2. Pilot
3. Daring
4. Steady
5. Maneuvering
6. Evasion
7. Tricky flying
8. Pool die
9. Pool die
10. Pool die
You make it onto The Owl and leave the Hand of Sorrow
What did it look like when you fought your way out of the Control Room and boarded the skyship?
(OOC: After any descriptions by those three, that will end this scene. We'll pick up with flashbacks Monday morning!)
Well, it wasn't pretty -- at least, the marines that went over the catwalk onto the floor below probably aren't very pretty anymore. Naomi moved ahead of the rest to clear their path for them -- catwalks aren't big enough for a comfortable fight, so it's a lot easier to jostle obstacles off than try to pass by them...especially with armed marines trying to pick us off from the ground. Lucky for me, one of the fellow on the catwalk acted as a short of unwitting shield for me. Not every Imperial has rotten aim, but these guys sure did.
Captain Vance barks out "Unless you want an unceremonious burial at sky, move yer asses to The Owl!" as he draws both his guns and begins to lead the charge.
He's shooting his way across the catwalk, following Naomi's lead, when the whole ship lists to the side, sending him tumbling over the rail. He hits the ground below with a thud. Nothing broken, but the wind is definitely knocked out of him. As he stands up, he's surrounded by Imperial soldiers with guns drawn and hammers locked. He's about to say the sky-pirate's final prayer in his head, you know the one: "Forgive me maker, for tha' drink and gun, if ya' let me into paradise, I'll make sure we have fun!" when Jonas and Naomi crash into the Imperials like a wave of brutality. Jonas helps Cyrus to his feet and he swallows hard, looks at them, and says "You lot just kept me in one piece. I won't soon forget that." Composing himself, he adds "Now let's get to me ship..."
Naomi, Jonas, and the Captain...the three of them make quick work of the Imperials blocking our way to the Owl. It's almost frighting how efficient they are. Once we are aboard, I use a little trick Uriah had taught me to slip away from the crew, my bodyguard, and her ally from the pits. I'm sure they'll first pat each other's backs and exchange praise before we proceed onward to our original destination. I will likely receive neither, being it is that I am a highborn amongst those that have been wronged by the Empire. Besides, my keep knows where I want to go.
I don't have to be there.
I go into a little room that I've learned serves as their 'kitchen', and kneel before its furnace, removing the book that belonged to Caess from where I had been hiding it. Now, she won't be able to use this information against the noble houses. I tear the pages away from the spine of the book, and into the furnace they go. The flames the paper produces make me ache for him all the more. I continue this until none of its pages are left. I toss the cover in as well, and quietly watch as it withers away into ash. The warm glow of the coals feels like his callused hand against my face. I close my eyes, picturing him there. As they begin to cool, his hand slips away. I instinctively reach for it, but as my eyes open, I find that in my hand is nothing but soot.