☆ 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

[prayerwheel]

[ First of all, Azura's helpless now-NPC'D cellmate drops to the ground. Fuck that noise.

Azura spends a good 10 seconds looking at her rescuer, the axe, and the ruined door in a state of complete and utter bewilderment. What just happened? Is that Edelgard? Did she just hack down a door with a wiggly bone axe? Is she going to kill the jailer? Is she going to kill her in a blind berserker rage?

She makes the subtlest of noises, coughing quietly to get the blood out of her nose, shifting into a defensive stance. Look, El. It's her. Please don't axe her. With all the grime and blood on her skin, her messily cropped hair, the way she's holding the sharp edge of her pendant between her fingers like a makeshift weapon, and the assorted injuries she's gotten, she looks more like a beaten street wanderer from medieval Europe than Azura.

But, you know, she's trying.]

[unyieldingmarch]

[Edelgard's eyes flicker from jailer to captive the instant that she hears a sound, any sound. Recognition blossoms in her gaze, a flicker of pain and concern quickly quashed by the righteous fury that mounts at the sight of someone she knows in such a state. Her attention snaps back to the jailer, taking in the torture implements at his belt, the strands of Azura's long hair that still likely litter the filthy floor, and the man's twitching hands.

Hands that seem to be going for a knife.

All the fight was not gone out of him, it seemed, because in his panic he decides to do something about his situation. A hound at bay is at it's most dangerous, and a man is not all that different from a dog when backed into a corner. The knife is out of it's sheathe in a flash and he's stepping close to Edelgard, succeeding in getting beneath Aymr's reach in the tighter confines of the room.

The dagger flashes in the torchlight, aimed squarely at the Emperor's face, but the blow never lands. The axe is one weapon at her disposal, but not the one she intended to use in this conflict anyway. Up comes her gauntlet-shod hand, a vicious backhand that knocks the knife aside and sends him spinning to the floor with a broken jaw.]

How dare you! [She all but roars, advancing a step and planting an armored boot on his chest. The fight dies in his eyes beneath the pressure and he sags, whimpering, and leaving the Emperor to contemplate her friend. The person beneath her feet may as well not exist for the moment as some of the rage flees from her heart. He's not a threat, so she can't legally continue the beating.

Most unfortunate.]

Azura. Can you walk?

[prayerwheel]

[ Azura watches this in a daze, because...yeah, that about fits what she thought Edelgard might be like in a fight, given her disposition and the fact that she's an axe fighter, but it's still terrifying and impressive to see in person. ]

I--

[ She swallows thickly, letting her shoulders drop. Okay. Okay. They just had to make it out of here, now. The end was in sight. It was probably going to be okay. ]

...yes. My legs are fine. My right arm is broken, though, so I doubt I can hold a proper weapon.

[ she'd been beating on the guy with her left arm. desperate times call for desperate measures. ]

[unyieldingmarch]

You will not need to.

[With shove to the man beneath her, she sends him rolling across the floor, before whirling towards Azura with a flap of her cape. Catching the clasp, she spins it around her shoulders to give her something to hide herself with and provide some warmth.]

The people who did this are all wretched, cowardly creatures. They will not stand before me, Azura. Stay close to me, and I will walk you out of this viper's nest.

[The end is definitely in sight...and the end wears scarlet, it seems.]

[prayerwheel]

[ It takes her by surprise, so much that she almost drops the cape. But Azura nods and fumbles to put it on. And--right, her cellmate. She helps them up from the ground and tucks them under her good arm.

She wants to say something, offer to help somehow, but Edelgard clearly has things covered, and her arm is beyond broken. There's literally nothing she can do beyond use her feet, now. Azura follows her for a few steps before croaking out in a voice that sounds cracked: ]

...thank you.

[ (If she weren't bleeding and running on pure adrenaline right now, "Edelgard is really cool" would be a thought occurring to her at this moment.)

[unyieldingmarch]

[Turning her head back to regard Azura and her cellmate, the Emperor favors the Princess with a wan, sickly smile. It's hard to look at her, so bloodied. After their conversation earlier, knowing that this is just one more tragedy dumped upon Azura's head, she feels a bubbling sense of rage and grief.]

I could do no less, for a friend. Think nothing of it, Azura.

[With a nod to the cellmate, Edelgard grips Aymr and steps back into the hallway, through the broken ruin of the door. The weapon is both that and a torch, casting shadows at strange angles as she strides forward.]

My only regret is that I could not come sooner.

[prayerwheel]

You did, though.

[ Azura returns her smile with one she can muster, one that's very tired hurting, but one that's nonetheless very grateful. ]

You all came for us, I mean. And it was thankfully before any of us perished, mangled though we may be.

[unyieldingmarch]

I was not about to leave you, or anyone, to the depredations of bigots who would claim to be noble.

[She has little regard for nobility in Fodlan, but this has solidified her disdain towards the nobles of Aefenglom as well. They are as nobles are in her world, corrupt and selfish.]

I desire to help the people of this city, but my obligation is to the Mirrorbound and refugees first and foremost. Those without the means to defend themselves, those outside of the system that these fools would think of as inconvenient.

I assure you, Azura, I will never willingly abandon you or any of these people. So please, think nothing of my arrival.

[prayerwheel]

That isn't what I meant.

[ Azura's eyes flicker shut for a few seconds before she forces them open again. If she rested for too long, she risked falling asleep in the middle of this hallway.

She herself has to think about what she actually meant, because the response that left her mouth was more automatic than thought-through.

... ]

I'm not...thanking you for being a hero of the people. I'm thanking you for being mine, right now. That's all.

[ Does she expect Edelgard to drop her off somewhere safe and then go axe in more doors and drag out more people? Yeah, pretty much. It wasn't a personal rescue, but it was a personal thank-you. ]

I read hero of the people and started hearing the Soviet national anthem...

[unyieldingmarch]

[Edelgard definitely does intend to go back into the fray, yes. But she's also well aware that there were more people storming the Rathmore mansion than just her, and that she could...and should...take the time to make this personal.]

Of course, Azura.

[She looks back over her shoulder, the ghost of a smile flickering across her pale lips.]

I value you. I came for you. I came for others, too, but these fools made it personal when they touched you.

[There's something in her voice as she says it. Fools. Real anger, real fury. These heathens took others from among Her people, and no one was more personal than any other. Any was too many...but this was something unforgivable. Something she might have to deal with quietly, later.]

just gals bein comrades

[prayerwheel]

[ A moment like that would get to her on a normal day, albeit in a much more subtle way. A shifting of posture, the inability to look her in the eye. Considering what Azura's gone through this past week, and her previous experience of being kidnapped and no one ever coming to rescue her, though, it's--intense. ]

I...Edelgard...

[ "I came for the others, too, but I came for you."

Right now is not the time to start crying, but she can't help it. She'll go and ugly-cry and snot-sob later, when she's alone, but she feels tears running down her cheeks now, before she can process it. She swipes at her eyes with her bad arm for the little good it does, and nods. ]

Da...

[unyieldingmarch]

[Edelgard notices this. She can't not, and since there is no immediate danger, she'll do what she can to help relieve some of this tension. Tucking her weapon into it's sheathe she nods to the other prisoner escaping with them.]

There is a Coven guard at the end of the hallway, the way is clear to go on. I need a moment.

[The other nods, and scurries ahead, leaving Azura and Edelgard alone in a ring of orange light, Aymr's click-clacking movements stilling as if it senses something in the air.]

Azura...it's alright. Please, let it out.

[She doesn't miss a beat, pulling a handkerchief from a belt pouch and holding it to the Princess's cheek, blotting up tears.]

[prayerwheel]

[ Yeah, they're probably pretty eager to get out of here. Azura nods to them and they're outtie.

She doesn't say anything at first, just lets her bad arm hang down and tries--tries--to steel herself against all of this, because here she goes being like this in front of Edelgard again, even if she has a reason for it this time. A perfectly understandable reason that no sane person would argue against, but she still feels like she needs to be hiding this.

After a moment, she puts her hand up to El's to halt her. ]

It's-- [ she gulps] I apologize, I just--I need to leave this place.

[unyieldingmarch]

[Edelgard pulls back, pressing the damp cloth into Azura's good hand.]

Would it be too undignified of me to carry you out? I can manage easily, and it will be faster.

[She won't if Azura is determined, but she should offer. She knows she should.]

[prayerwheel]

[ On one hand: her feet hurt, she wants to cry, and that would overall be nice.

On the other hand: her dignity is pretty crumbled as it is.

Truly a difficult choice. ]

I would prefer that you didn't.

[unyieldingmarch]

Then that is how it shall be, Princess Azura.

[Edelgard moves to the side though, shifting her arm beneath the uninjured shoulder.]

You must, however, allow me to do this. There's nothing undignified about needing a helping hand...but falling on the stairs would be.

[prayerwheel]

[ Entirely fair. ]

Very well. I'd hardly like to injure any other part of me, yes.

[unyieldingmarch]

Then, we shall go.

[And away they go. Edelgard is careful to make sure Azura is seen emerging from the dungeon without a helping hand, but she's still close in case her friend falters.

She will not take the woman's dignity, and perhaps walking free on her own will help rebuild it.]