☆ Event Log: Snatched, Part Two

[faileas]

Event Log: January, Snatched - Part Two

I. A Great Escape (20th, Evening) It's been a miserable six days for the Mirrorbound and refugees kept locked away in a basement cell block, subject to all kinds of torment and experimentation. They're a resilient sort, though, and their efforts to organize and bolster each other are not in vain. As the time passes with no sign of the City Guard drawing close to their operations, the Rathmore family grows overconfident, and characters can hear them talking to each other about another mass-kidnapping in the works. The best opening comes late on the night of the 20th. A few of the family's numbers are out - notably, Thomas Rathmore, his wife, and his mother are attending an emergency meeting of Parliament, and Constance is making an appearance at the Coven. This leaves the more inexperienced cousins in charge, the lesser known Rathmores with no particular skill outside of cruelty. Changing of the guard begins as usual, a handful of Rathmores delivering some sparse rations and taking their time to choose a few prisoners to remove from their cells, but this time, the Mirrorbound bite back. Thanks to the collaborative efforts of Daenerys and Asura, along with the prisoners preparing an organized revolt, a fire started in the torture room provides chaos and cover - and one dead Rathmore cousin, whose body gives up some of the keys to a handful cells. Time to play the cards you've held close to your chest over days of torture, your held-back spells, your tricks, your items that weren't confiscated. A mass escape isn't likely, with so many people still present in the building and so many of the captives injured and tired, but with enough of a distraction in the form of a prison riot, which may be enough to overpower the three Rathmores initially left in the cell block, a handful of scrappy Mirrorbound may make it out to safety before reinforcements arrive. a. The Escape Attempt There is one door out of the cell block, the main, heavy, warded door that the Rathmores enter and exit from every few hours. It's locked down tight - but it's possible to power through it, pick the lock, or charm it open. On the other side of the door, in the greater basement area, they'll find themselves free of the Bond dampening. Witch magic make take some time to return, depending on whether they were drugged or only charmed, but it'll be important to move quickly. The Rathmores' basement area is large - the size of the mansion above and the grounds put together, and they'll find themselves on the lower of two levels. The cellblock turns out to be a room within an even bigger room, with the stairs at the opposite end. The dangers are numerous: magical and mechanical traps set in areas marked off-limits, illusions intended to confuse and turn people around. There is only one completely safe path from the cellblock door to the stairs, unless they take the time to disarm the traps and illusions with their returning magic and abilities. That safe path is faster but more exposed, with two or three Rathmores in pursuit, and also the other people that could occasionally be heard outside the door - young aristocrats in on the kidnapping, who thought the Mirrorbound would be sent home. They're just as surprised to see you as you are them. In fact, it's not difficult to overpower these non-Rathmore kidnappers; they're obviously shocked to see Mirrorbound still here, in such states, and some are quite angry, or scared to learn what they've inadvertently gotten themselves into. A good handful flee instead of fight, but some others follow through on the shouted orders to go after you. Use the chaos your appearance causes to your advantage. Once escapees reach the upper basement level, up the stairs and through a hidden door, a few more traps remain, but up here, it looks more like a normal basement; servants' quarters, empty for some time now, storage rooms full of antiques, and winding hallways connecting them. It's easier to hide in this dusty maze to escape any pursuers, and eventually, they find the servants' exit out onto the back grounds. From there, freedom is just a run and a decorative, wrought-iron fence away. b. The Chaos Back in the cells, everything descends into chaos. The Rathmores are furious; while two or three of the cousins go after the escapees, the rest begin to gather down in the cell block, put out the fire, and the interrogations begin. They don't bother taking prisoners out to torment them now - they can't, with their torture room charred and smokey. Their main focus is forcing prisoners back in, and locking everything down with magic and heavy chains, to ensure no one else gets out. They grow more vicious now, and they begin speaking directly to the captives - they want to know which ones got free, how they managed it, who helped them, where they're going, who they're going to tell. Those who refuse to talk will be gagged or muzzled or simply beaten without finesse, and they'll move on to the next captive. Preying on the Mirrorbound's camaraderie with each other is the tactic they quickly turn to, hurting one to try and make another talk. The talk outside the main door grows louder in these few hours, angrier. Occasionally one of the Rathmore cousins will go out to spin some lies, or simply shout down any protesting. Some of the enchantments were damaged in the riot, though - they can hear you, just as well as you can hear them, muffled but still mostly clear. The more they hear from within, the more the confusion outside grows; all the better for the escaped Mirrorbound. ..."What's going on? Those were Mirrorbound that got out-" "We thought you were sending them home!" "You told us there was no risk, that this would make them leave-" "You don't need to worry about that! Go back upstairs!" "Someone needs to get a message to our Uncle Thomas immediately-"... They're all panicking as their grand plans, flimsy as they may have been, start to crumble around them. It's just a matter of time, now. The OOC post for the escape plotting is here if anyone needs to refer back to it! Eight characters will be escaping first thanks to a joint effort. The rescue will be underway within two hours of their escape, but those two hours are likely to be unpleasant for characters who remain in captivity. Any NPC maimings or proposed deaths need to be reported on the City Tracker; please note that mass murder / killing NPCs will still have consequences and needs mod approval first, but we're happy to work with players however we can.

II. The Cavalry (21st, Very Early Morning) The City Guard is closer than the Rathmores think. Thanks to Mirrorbound investigative help, not always strictly legal but still appreciated nonetheless, they've all followed the clues back and determined a possible address. By the evening of the 20th, several members of the Guard and Witches from the Coven, along with any Mirrorbound who followed the trail, are camped out at a manse nearby, the home of a wealthy widow eager to see her nasty neighbors knocked down a peg. Without solid evidence, the Guard can't get a warrant cleared to search the property owned by a Mr. Barclay, assistant to Thomas Rathmore, but solid evidence comes as soon as eight Mirrorbound manage to fight their way out of captivity, returning to friends and Bonded. They are the last piece of the puzzle, and now legal action can be taken. Theodore Rosethorne, leading a small group from the Coven, sends out a magical message to just the Mirrorbound - they've been found. Anyone who wishes to help bring their missing fellows home, anyone who can help with much-needed healing, or anyone who wishes to bring their captors to justice needs to show up now, because time is of the essence. The Guard can't mobilize more men quickly enough in the middle of the night to be useful and they need all the hands they can get, without a floor plan of the mansion or solid ideas of the captors' numbers. They can barely wait an hour for more hands to arrive before it begins. a. The Rescue Sowilo, Theodore's Bonded Fae and a skilled hand at illusions (and seeing through such), leads the rescue efforts, along with some of Theodore's Witches from the Coven. With information from the escapees, they plan to go through the back, take the servants' exit, and make their way down to the basement levels, while Theodore's assault team will go through the front doors, making as much noise as possible. Sowilo's illusions will keep their presence masked at least until they get into the house. The aim is to get through as quietly as possible, find the cellblock, and secure a safe route to take the prisoners out without them getting hurt any worse than they are. It's easier said than done. Magical and mechanical traps of various types litter both basement floors, and heavy illusion work has been placed to obscure the way. Splitting into smaller groups to disarm the traps and deal with the illusions will be necessary, as the entire group will make its way down to the cellblock as quickly as possible. Sowilo hopes they face little to no resistance, with Theodore's group doing their job, but a few, Rathmores and otherwise, are bound to try and stop them; in that case, they will have to fight. "Make sure you can argue a case for self-defense, if you have to hurt them," Sowilo will tell the rescuers and later the freed prisoners on the way out, wings fluttering agitatedly. "Let them be arrested and publicly humiliated in court - ruin their whole family line for generations to come." He's not happy about it either, and will overlook some of the captors getting a taste of what they deserve, but deaths are not permitted on his or the Witches' watch: anyone who takes things too far will find that the person they're attacking has simply vanished - a convincing illusion - before they're handily knocked out with a spell. They face less resistance than the assault team, but less is not none; a few of the Rathmores are determined to salvage their efforts, and some of their unwitting aristocratic cronies have sided with them. Once they reach the cellblock, dismantling the enchantments that keep the prisoners restrained and addled is the first order of business for some. Others can start unlocking cells and helping people out of their restraints. Protection for the escapees on their way out will also be necessary, as well as medical attention back at the temporary base camp. The main focus has to be on those lost friends and loved ones, bringing them back out to freedom and making sure they're tended to - not on revenge. b. The Assault Theodore Rosethorne, along with some members of the City Guard and some Witches from the Coven, leads the assault. While the rescue team goes around the back, they plan to go through the front door, as loudly and conspicuously as possible. The mansion is large and needs to be swept from top to bottom for perpetrators and evidence that can be used in court. Those joining up with this team are warned that it needs to remain legal - the Mirrorbound and the refugees, all of them, have a very shaky, uncertain legal status within the city, and a mass murder could severely harm what good will they have from the locals as well as their status here. After all, many are still neutral to positive on the Mirrorbound, but that could change in an instant. The Coven will take as much responsibility as they can, but they cannot accept the blame for a senseless slaughter. Splitting into smaller groups will be necessary in order to cover more ground quickly. The aim is to locate, subdue, and arrest as many of the culprits inside as they can. The Guard provides magic-suppressing cuffs, and the Coven a basic knock-out spell, but since many will not go so willingly, some degree of force may be unavoidable. If there's one thing the rich fear, it's a legal black mark on their family name and reputation - the Rathmores will fight back harder than their underlings, but they're also the ones they need alive to face the justice system. Those outside the family, those who only knew about the kidnapping portion, are a mixed bag - some might fight back, siding with the Rathmores, but some might give themselves up once the realization of what happened in that basement sinks in. Once they make their entrance, things move quickly. Several wealthy aristocrats either flee or fight, but their attention is thankfully pulled away from the basement and toward the upper levels. There are dozens of rooms to search, and many are cluttered with an old hoarding family's antiques, furniture piled against doors and windows blocking access to some areas, hundreds of nooks and crannies among the sheer amount of stuff provide cover for culprits to hide in. It's going to be work to ferret them all out and bring them in. Worse still, the Rathmores have collected dozens of cursed or enchanted objects that may be used as weapons against the forces of justice. Some degree of force is expected, but still if anyone tries to take things too far, they might find themselves slapped into cuffs or knocked out with a spell themselves. Any NPC maimings or proposed deaths need to be reported on the City Tracker; please note that mass murder / killing NPCs will still have consequences and needs mod approval first, but we're happy to work with players however we can.

III. The After (21st On) Activity continues all through the night and late into the morning at the former Rathmore estate. All the Rathmores and a couple dozen other wealthy aristocrats are brought out in cuffs over the course of several hours, while all the prisoners are liberated to receive medical attention and reunite with their loved ones. The Guard take statements from everyone who will give one - what they witnessed, what happened to them, what they know - and all who were affected are told they will be invited to testify at trial. A gathering crowd forms at the end of the street, wealthy neighbors aghast at the horrors they're learning had occurred right in their District. Most are disgusted with the once-prominent family. On the steps of the Parliament building, Thomas Rathmore, his wife, and his mother, all sitting members of Parliament themselves, are publicly arrested in front of colleagues and on-lookers early in the morning. Constance Rathmore is taken out of the Coven roughly in magic-suppressing cuffs, surrounded by a small group of furious Witches, students of the Coven who spent the week trying to find the missing Mirrorbound and refugees with Divination. They escort her to the prison themselves. All who are arrested are transported to holding cells of their own within the City Guard - all except those requiring urgent medical attention, who will remain cuffed to their hospital beds until trial. Nessie and Mhairi make an appearance at one point to give the Mirrorbound their sincerest apologies for what happened, and Mhairi delivers the news that they're pushing for an expedited trial in Parliament, in order to keep Thomas Rathmore from bribing any contacts. They, along with Theodore and Sowilo, and the Guard, are all open and forthright with what will happen next: public trial and a certain conviction, followed by sentencing. They don't expect that the Rathmores will get away lightly; what they did is too public and too horrific for even the anti-Mirrorbound wealthy to stomach. Those others who were involved, who weren't aware of what was going on behind that metal door, they'll still face justice themselves, no doubt. In the meanwhile, those kept hostage will need all the help they can get to reach something resembling normal again. Hug your loved ones, nourish your Bonds with each other, and begin trying to heal together.

Welcome to Part Two of January's event log, Snatched! An aftermath summary of the trial and sentencing will go up on Feb. 4, the day after the City Tracker deadline, so get your submissions in if you have them! More politically-oriented characters may find an opening in the near future to enact change within Parliament and provide their own representation within the city...

And as a general reminder, please make sure to use content warnings where necessary in your headers!

Comments

let's fight a witch and hopefully not kill them, then talk abt how much we wish we could kill them

[auftauen]

((If you only want Dantes-team tags I am happy to say she went with that option btw! Just let me know!))

[They don't deserve to live.

Even the most well-guarded prisoner still has the slightest chance of passing information; it's idiotic to give them that chance. And some things - some people - just shouldn't be allowed to continue existing.

So Crymaria resents the restraint they're told to exercise, even if she also seems to be respecting it. Perhaps she only understands the limitations of her new powers; if she were the Winter Witch, still, and not just another one of the Mirrorbound, the mansion would be ash by now and herself burnt along with it. Maybe that's why it has to be this way... this way, at least the captured will be able to escape. She's kept most of the magic usage in the assault limited to abjuration support and non-lethal evocation measures: breaking down doors, casting shields and counterspells, and shredding through hoards of ancient knickknacks to unearth the rats beneath them. If she focused on offense... the quarry they're seeking would be little more than tallow and bone.

Crymaria joins this particular altercation already in progress, with just enough time to see some lackey trying to flee an extremely fast and furious turnskin. After blasting aside some stacked furniture so the witch Avenger is fighting has nowhere to hide, she twists her magic again, throwing up a barrier that will hopefully prevent their opponent from dodging another physical attack.]

Go! Now.

[ressusciter]

((whatever works with you! he's more than happy to work with any other Mirrorbound, team or not.))

[he has no time to flash her an expression of gratitude, but he understands what he must do when the cover's blown out of the way. the battery for his speed spell is warm against his chest, and he lunges, one arm going to seize them and the next to slam into their head for disorientation before it curls into a punch. a broken nose, and a blackout from the force of it - the blood is invisible on black clothes, black gloves.

from his pocket, he withdraws a pair of the magic suppressing cuffs, grabbing the witch's wrists and throwing them on with a snap before he pulls back - oh, it hurts to not simply yield to the anguish inside of him and drive their skull into the floor - one step back, then another. breathing hard from the exertion, and finally looking back at the one who assisted.]

...You have my thanks for that.

[it's petty, but he kicks the body over, so he doesn't have to look at their face.]

He was quite the slippery one.

[auftauen]

((Okay! They can be strangers uwu))

It's over in seconds. Crymaria's barely finished speaking before he's launching himself forward and sending the witch to the ground. She bites her lip, and when Dantes thanks her, Crymaria shakes her head slightly.]

You did most of it. All I did was end it faster.

[She kicks a broken chair leg to the side, a brief - and unsatisfactory - means of venting frustration. Any noise, any destruction, in between arresting the perpetrators will keep the distraction going, besides; as much attention as they can keep away from the rescuers the better. The barrier shatters loudly, more like glass than magic.]

I should have hit him.

[Would she have been able to hold back if she had? Now that they're closer and the immediate danger has passed, her hands are visibly shaking.]

[ressusciter]

You could now, if you like. Though I doubt it would be as satisfactory as seeing his face contort in pain.

[he's not going to tell if she was to vent with a few blows. legal applied to what in the end would be seen. Dantes can see her hands shaking, but he will not call undue attention to it - not when she likely needs all the nerve she can get.]

If we secure him to something, he can be retrieved when this is over, and more of them can be neutralized in the meantime.

[it takes time to carry a body out, after all - those cuffs meant he wasn't going anywhere.]

[auftauen]

No, [she says flatly,] it wouldn't.

[She turns away in disgust, removing her gloves only to rub her trembling hands together for a moment and put them back on. Crymaria begins looking around the adjacent areas, looking for something solid and fixed to bind the man to.

That looks like a pipe in the closet. I'm sure there's someone coming behind to clear them out besides. [She swings the door open wide for Dantes to see. They wouldn't want any of these witches' scummy little friends coming in and staging their own ill-planned rescue attempt. ]

The next one we find... I'll remind him what real pain feels like.

[ressusciter]

I'll close my eyes and say you reacted to defend yourself from his spells.

[picking the witch up by the ankle, he none too gently drags them into the closet, fiddling with the cuffs so that he can hook them around the pipe and leave the unconscious witch for whoever passes by.]

That is, if you'd not mind working together.

[auftauen]

We might as well. Anything to finish this nightmare.

[When she thinks about what must be down below, she can only imagine what's down there, can only compare it to her own torment. There's a reason she couldn't go with the rescuers instead of the assault team, why she got involved with the rescue efforts at all.

It's all well and good, even encouraging, to be given permission to do as she pleases in retaliation. Being reprimanded for not exercising enough restraint has always made her week week, impotent. She clenches a fist, gives one last look to the closet, and then waits for him to proceed. But - ]

...I don't know if I'll be able to control myself. I don't know if I'll be able to hold back.

[If that makes him not want to work alongside her, then so be it.]

[ressusciter]

...All the more reason to fight alongside another.

[reaching up to the high collar of his shirt, he tugs it up just a fraction more, feeling his pulse settling down for the moment. the magic gave him more endurance, but it wasn't an endless supply. he had to mind his limits, to stretch this out over a night.

who was he kidding, though. he'd keep going even if his body screamed for rest.]

Detestable as it is, I've resolved myself to hold to the conditions we have been asked to abide by, and to that degree, I will intervene if it becomes necessary, to remind people who they are and what is at stake. Think of me as a safety net.

[auftauen]

Do you think they care what's at stake?

[It's a petty blow for someone with no control over the situation, and it isn't meant to be attacking him. Maybe it's just commiseration, or she wants to judge just how true his anger runs. Perhaps they can both exercise restraint supporting one another...but she wonders if he really means his rage.

Her wrist cracks when she shakes it out, and cold swirls of energy come together to form a new barrier spell, this one position behind them to block off any surprise attacks.]

It's really all about who stands to gain the most, no matter when or where it is.

I... [she takes a deep breath.] I can keep myself from losing control. Don't think I'm weak. I'm not.

[ressusciter]

[there is a cold depth to the look he gives her when she tries to give a lower blow, a glimpse given behind that mask of self control. for half a moment, he looks at her as though he's analyzing her as his opponent at well, that mercy is only the thinnest spider's thread around his wrists that keeps him at bay from tearing apart everything and everyone he sees.

and then it's gone, his control fitting back in as a gem in a watch setting. adjusting his gloves, he starts walking to continue the hunt, and laughs once - a sharp, cold thing.]

If I thought you were weak, I would have offered to protect you, not work with you.

[auftauen]

[It sends a chill down her spine, the way he looks at her. Crymaria grits her teeth against the flinch that passes through her, trying to shrug off the shiver.

But the truth is, it's almost a reassurance to have him, without any sort of hesitation at all, trust in her strength. It emboldens her, and she walks a little taller as they proceed through the ramshackle house, have more confidence in her spells.]

... Then, I won't hold back. [She pauses, realizing that the statement might have another meaning (and oh, she really wishes it could).] I'll make sure I leave them breathing.

That enchantment. How long does it last?