Roland shows a blank face devoid of emotion as he calmly flies inbetween the two hostile parties, not a feather falling from his flickering and dovelike wings. He looks to the Crusaders. "Good sirs, I am Roland Sandar, monk. Instead of drawing blades and leaving these people leaderless or with the harsh and sudden forced adjustment of your church's assimilation, I would kindly request that you allow myself and perhaps some of my companions grounds enough to serve as a neutral party and ultimate judicator in this matter. If you do not wish to comply with this request and it does in fact lead to violence, you will in fact be met with more hostility than you have bargained for." He turns and looks to the Baron. "As shall you sir if you wish to judge before trial." He stays hovering, ready to dart to the ground at a moment's notice, unsure if his party will back him on his dangerous gamble, but indifferent to the matter. This man is used to traveling alone. "Excuse me, young man," the baron states, "but *I* am in charge here. Not you. And, if you had been *listening*, I asked them for their proof. The laws state that if a person is accused of a crime, the accusers must present proof of the alleged crimes before the lord makes his judgement." He steps around Roland, and faces the lead Crusader. "My statement stands. Present your proof." Roland looks down to the baron, shaking his head with a sigh. He's quite ready for the violence to erupt due to the pompous noble's ambition, and begins to silently seek ways to free the captured half-orc whilst in midair. The Crusaders bristle at the baron's tone. "Are you saying we made a mistake? He is a bandit, despite his claims to the contrary. This must truly be a backwards country, where elves rule over the true people this world was created for and the guilty are not asked to explain their actions when dragged to trial!" The head Crusader turns to stare at Roland. "Back off, little man. You meddle in affairs that are none of your business." "Call me little if you so wish it, my words are still words, and one would be foolish to not hear them if one had any desire to prevent unnecessary bloodshed. Both parties currently telling me that this is none of my affair see it as no affair of the people, the women and children gathered among this crowd who will either be forced to witness an unjust lynching or the dispathcery of two men in platemail who don't realize that they should be paragons of their faith instead of drunken chanters of it." Korg simply steps near the edge of the crowd when the disturbance forms, his immense bulk clad in the dull grey spined plat armor and his greatsword on his back. Realizing who the armored men are and hearing the beginnings of an argument, he grins... casually reaching back to adjust the greatsword across his back, though not in any way that's *exactly* threatening. Tanda nudges Korg before she finds a spot out of the crusaders' line of sight and unslings her bow. 'Somehow,' she thought, 'I get the feeling it's all going to end in tears. Damn all fanatics anyway! If these three think they're looking for puppies to drown in a river, imagine their surprise when they find a wolf pack instead...' Korg nods slightly at the nudge, continuing his shit-eating grin. He's making no moves to start anything, but is fairly obviously in the mood for a brawl... as usual. Segev, for his part, rolls his eyes when Roland sticks his nose in. He begins whispering under his breath while swaying and gesturing with a small piece of leather. When he finishes, he puts away the bit of leather in his spellpouch. Only then does he glide over to Roland's location, and place one hand on Roland's back, gently nudging him away and back towards the others. Turning to the Baron with a wan smile, he says, "I am sorry, my lord. My friend has a tendency to wax philosophic at the most inappropriate times. Please, do not let us interfere with your rendering of justice as you see fit here in your lands. Should you desire or require any assistance in administering your justice, I humbly offer my services. I am sure my friend's meddlesome tendencies indicate his willingness to help rather than a desire to interfere." He continues intimating to Roland through silent nudging that he should back off unless invited while turning to the men in shiny plate and foolish regailia. "Good sirs, I must congratulate the three of you in detaining so remarkably powerful a criminal. Surely a bandit capable of terrorizing an entire village without so much as a cohort, let alone a gang, must have been a terrible opponent indeed. Three big, strong men such as yourselves must feel especially brave, ganging up on one apparently so weak; I am sure we all must appreciate how nigh-godlike his strength must be, for surely if he were only as threatening as he appears, it would not take so many. I applaud you, gentlemen, your 'bravery' is truly a credit to your one true god and the callibur of his worshipers." His tone demonstrates the sarcasm intended, though his words are as polite as possible. "Let us now see if your wisdom matches your courage. Surely, the proof your brilliant investigatory skills have gathered of this half-human's guilt can persuade all gathered, this noble Baron in particular, of your correctness. It would be a pity to let your 'doubtless' intelligence, and your god's equal wisdom, remain hidden. Please, continue, gentlemen, my Lord Baron." Lannstucht steps forward and places a comradely restraining hand (with a grip of steel) on Roland's shoulder. Addressing herself to the baron, she smoothly cuts in on Roland's tirade. "Please forgive my hasty companion, Sir. I am certain that he, as indeed the rest of our party, intended no affront towards your obvious authority. I observe that these men, while without question worthy zealots according to their own beliefs, are by no means convinced themselves of the guilt of the captured party. As these men are, of course, thoroughly concerned with the proper course of law and truth, they should have no qualms presenting their case to your court. If I or my compantions may be of assistance, you have but to ask." Roland is led away from the commotion by both Segev and Lannstucht. Menaria hears the commotion and listens to the bickering of both sides. 'Prejudice and purgery. Never ending are the wrath of fanatics,' Menaria thought as she moved closer to the Baron. She eyes the Crusaders cautiously as she attempted to remember who their 'One True God' is. "*IF* he is guilty of what you say, can we not talk about it peacefully? Perhaps a trial should be done. If the man is a bandit it should be found out whether or not he is guilty of any further wrong doings." She smiles warmly at the Crusader's leader. Korg just snorts at all the high-minded talk, amused that he of all people knows more of the zealots than some of the more intelligent members of his party. Or maybe they have some weird plan to try to avoid bloodshed... but it seems like trying to argue with a pack of rabid, half-starved dogs. He wait to see which of the Crusaders is going to lose his patience first and lash out, ready to wade in as soon as that happens. The leader of the three looks at Menaria with a weird look on his face. "Madness," he tells his companions. "Sheer madness!" In the meantime, while everyone's attention is distracted, the baron makes a simple hand wave, and the half-orc's shackles loosen, although they don't fall off. While the guards, townsmen, and the rest of you are distracted, a very quiet wolf sneaks through the gates. It carefully gauges its progress, warry of all present as it makes it way to the half-orc, making remarkably good use of objects to hide behind. It appears to be following a particular scent, but intelligently keeping away from any that'd make him known. The half-ork feels the loosening of his shackles and gazes intently at the Baron & the others who seem to have suddenly taken an interest in him. He had noted the movement of the Baron's hand at the moment his shackles loosened and now stares at the Baron. When the Baron glances his way he gives the Baron a toothy grin and a slow nod and then lies quietly. He closes his eyes and murmurs silently to himself, invoking the spirits of the earth and sky to curse the three zealots and be their Bane. Watching carefully and intently at the half-orc, the wolf lies quietly and carefully in wait nearby, simply observing the scene from a safe (and obscure) location. Glim takes one look at the Crusaders and slips around to his wagon. Once there, he'll get his pistols, musket, and other necesssary gear before heading back around to where Tanda's at. "One truly must wonder, lass. Are all Churchers victim of the brain worms?" Tanda makes shushing sounds. "Quiet, gnome!" After a few moments, she whispers, "Brain worms, cast-iron chastity belts over their groins, rods up arses, the works." Roland scowls at the lead crusader, cracking the knuckles on both of his hands and growling audibly at the leader. He assumes a fighting stance, giving the baron a briefly apologetic look, digging his heels into the ground and preparing to jump, despite the large distance between he and the crusaders, he seems to think himself able to reach them. Katrina rolls her eyes as her new companions try to take justice into their own hands, speaking quietly. "Whatever any of you think of the Baron's keeping of his town, I do not think you will be gaining any allies by usurping his authority." 'Ananzi, see if you can get close, but stay in the shadows. Watch the three but do not attack. Paia, track them from the air and attack only if they do.' Katrina prepares for a possible fight, as well, as the rest of the party seems intent on making trouble. Lightly, she rests a hand on the hilt of her sword, as the bird and fox take up their positions. The wolf stays its position, despite giving the fox a predatory gaze and 'sizing up' the rest of the assembled adventurers. It stays waiting until the orc, or the party, or *someone* does something other than talk. "Screw this!" the head Crusader replies. "I hereby claim this village in the name of Redwater and the One True God. By our rules, all magic-users and non-humans are to be put to death, starting immediately!" "I don't think so," the baron states, stepping a few steps back, waving and chanting. Three bolts of energy strike the lead crusader. Enraged, the lead Crusader tries to hit the baron from on horseback, only to have his sword glance off the armor the baron had on. The other two crusaders dismount; the first immediately guts one of the onlookers, a half-elf that was holding a child close, with his sword. The other one smashes his sword into a dwarf that had gotten too close. Korg's blade clears its sheath, and he steps in to close combat with the nearest Crusader. His sword bounces off the Crusader's shield a few times. Tanda's bow sings, but her arrow bounces off her target's shield. Roland takes a deep breath, and seems to move faster as he closes the distance between himself and the lead crusader. The kick he lands knocks the Crusader off his horse. Lannstucht's own blade clears its sheath, and she rides past the right-hand Crusader on Dunnstacht, her longsword slashing against him in a vital location. She whirls Dunnstacht around, who rears on his hind legs, challenging the other horses. Katrina draws her own sword, holding it at the ready in case she's attacked. The wolf leaps for the left-hand Crusader, only to be deflected by his shield. Segev waves slightly while chanting, and a whispy, floating, disembodied, macabre-looking hand appears in front of him, and it moves to within the Crusaders' area. Menaria, meanwhile, says a quick prayer to Akanksha for divine help. The half-orc frees himself from the bindings, and stands up. He looks like he's about ready to either flee or fight, but isn't sure which yet. Glim takes careful aim at one of the crusaders's horses with his musket, kneeling and using both hands to steady it, and fires. However, he's distracted by Tanda at the last moment, and the shot goes up into the air. Ignoring the thick black smoke coming from his position, he quickly reloads the musket. The baron casts another spell, as three shimmering balls appear, slamming into the lead crusader with a sound akin to a very low-pitched, reverberating gong. Having to choose between the baron, Korg, and the disembodied hand, the lead Crusader decides the baron's the bigger threat, and charges, only to be taken down by Korg, who neatly beheads the Crusader. The other two Crusaders, seeing their leader die, start to back off from the fight, but one shouts "FOR GOD AND COUNTRY!" The one injured by Lannstucht takes a defensive stance, while the one dealing with the wolf swings at the mongrel. Despite taking what would normally be a killing blow, the wolf's wound heals immediately. Having killed his first target, Korg nods to the baron, and spins to attack the one facing the wolf. His greatsword bypasses the shield, and manages to slice off the shield arm. Tanda slings her bow and draws her rapier, closing in behind the defending Crusader. Her rapier, however, fails to penetrate his armor. Roland also nods to the baron, and lands a solid kick on the defending crusader. Lannstucht once again charges the defending Crusader, but Roland's sudden appearance has her force Dunnstacht to a halt before she could deliver the blow. Katrina, seeing how the fight is going, keeps her sword ready in case she's attacked. The wolf leaps at the now-shieldless Crusader, chomping down on the exposed flesh of the neck. The force of the wolf's attack forces the shieldless Crusader down to the ground. Segev follows up with pulling a small piece of fabric out of his pouch while casting. As he finishes, the fabric disintegrates, and the floating, whispy hand thrusts itself through the defending Crusader, who stops moving and starts reeking like the undead. Seeing as how the crowd is starting to panic from the bloodshed spilled in these last few minutes, Menaria starts using her divine power to calm the emotions of those bystanders around her, helping them to leave the scene without panic. The half-orc snarls, heading over to the now-paralyzed Crusader. With tremendous effort, he crushes the joints of the armor with his bare hands. Glim, unaware that the combat is drawing to a close, manages to shoot one of the Crusader's horses, and it goes down. "Now," the baron says, drawing his own sword, and approaching the Crusader on the ground, "get out of my village, before I have you run through." The wolf, seeing the baron's intent, gets off the Crusader. "This isn't the end of this, pointy-ears!" the Crusader yells as he rides off. The baron's bugbear guards finally arrive on the scene. "Have this one," he indicates the remaining Crusader, "placed in the dungeon, to stand trial tonight." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- XP Time! Okay, a bit of a change here. Everyone involved gets 100 XP per mass mailing they've been a part of, sans the very first mailing I sent out starting this off; for most of you, that's 1000 XP total. Katrina, yours started with Mailing 8, so 400 XP there. Wolf and Half-Orc, 100 XP for this one. Introductions can happen later. For taking out the three Crusaders, everyone receives 900 XP. In addition, a search of the dead body will reveal a large metal shield, a masterwork bastard sword, enchanted (+1) full plate armor in decent shape, a plain grey cloak that registers as magical, two potions, and a mighty (+3) masterwork composite longbow. Searching the horses will net you two sets of masterwork plate barding, 1900 gp, a blue quartz gem (appraised at 8 gp), an onyx (70 gp), a bloodstone (40 gp), a moonstone (50 gp), and a star ruby (worth at least 9000 gp), not to mention you now can claim a trained warhorse with full tack.