To Exile: "Sorcerer," screams Red Fang, "you take me for a fool as well? That I would leave myself unprotected against the likes of you? Tales of your deeds have spread to these lands. You were once of the Vasar, were you not?

"That is twice that your lot has insulted me. Once more and this arrangement is off. But no matter, I will tell my men to lower their weapons. Think you not that I have other means of defense against your kind, sorcerer?

"Speaking of which," he begins, as his assistant returns to him, holding a nondescript clay jug, "this should suffice."

He pulls a lid off of the jug and tells his archers to stand down.

Now, what do you make of my situation?

To Voltan, "Ha!" cries Red Fang, puffing on his cigar, "this one is smarter than he looks! Give that man an ale!"

<One of Red Fang's men apparently takes this command literally and pours you a mug of ale>

"In fact, the woman that has been kidnapped is indeed quite dear to me. You see," he says, his eyes now pointing at the floor, "the woman they have is... my mother."

"In all my days, in all my exploits, never have I encountered such treachery. I want you to send a very clear message to these brutes," continues, his voice now screeching and nearly incoherent, "No one. Messes. With. Red Fang's. Mommy!"

"Your mother? Well now, that is rather low, even for city guards."
Rohan pondered for a moment, reflecting heavily about the loss of his parents. He felt sorry for the brute, even if his love for his mother was more extreme than usual.
"I don't know about my fellow guild members, but I have no problem taking her back for you. It wont be cheap, though."
And then it hit him.
"Wait, what was your mother doing near the city? I thought your people stuck to the outskirts, far from the bustling cities you rob from, not in the nest of your enemies. Shouldn't the city guards have been at the walls at the farthest? Are you even sure it was the city guards and not some rogue faction?"

His eyes light up. Ale.

"Now this. THIS is how you negotiate a situation." He grins as the man brings over the dirt mug and hands it to him.

"See, this, this is something I'll be glad to handle for you. Corrupt guards are bad. Smugglers have a place in the world, but corrupt guards extorting good businessmen will lead to ugly precedents and bloody rebellion."

He waits for the negotiations to progress.

To Rohan, "The ransom notes claim that the kidnappers are from the city guard. I say that this may be a rogue element within the guard because of the way they took her. They stole her from my camp under cover of darkness, murdering two of my men in the process. If the city guard had located my base, I'm not sure why they wouldn't have simply come in full force and fought us. No, they must have been in smaller numbers. A private group within the guard, seeking only to enrich itself and not caring for the laws of the city."

To Voltan, "I would send my men to perform this work, but as I said, the ransom notes threaten my mother's life if they see one of my men in the vicinity of the city. Shall we talk terms? If this arrangement is agreeable, I will provide you with a couple of leads that I've dug up that may aid you in the investigation. All that would remain to be negotiated is your price."

"For starters, I would offer permanent immunity from my men in the wilderness. If they should set upon you in the wild for any reason, you shall show your guild symbol and they will let you alone. And we could offer temporary sanctuary to you any time we encounter you in the desert. This is just the start of my offer, what else can I add to sweeten the deal? Name your price. This is my mommy we're talking about here, after all!"

"We will get her back for you. But there may come a time when the Guild needs a favor. I expect you to return it, Bandit." The Sorcerer stated as he sat back down, a smile on his lips. The Bandit had played right into his hands, and now he settled in to wait for the price to be determined. Exile didn't care, honestly, the Bandit had heard of him, and his time among as a Vasar. "Well. What have ye to offer, Brigand?"

To Exile: "As I said, I offer immunity from my men in the future. We also offer sanctuary should we meet again in this desert. Beyond that? Well, what would you like?"

He ponders for a moment, places his cigar on the table and picks up the clay jug he was handling before. He puts the lid back on it and points it in your direction.

"Why don't you all take some time during your journey to think about what else you might like from me? If you return with my mother, you'll have the upper hand in negotiations, anyway. I can tell you that I don't have the kind of gold that is being demanded from me in ransom, but perhaps there is something else you might want? One of these jars for each of you, for example? They are more useful than you might believe. I shall demonstrate when you return. If you return, that is."

He uncorks the jar again.

Bronan, who is standing but a half-length from an unsuspecting archer, decides against spreading chaos for the moment and resumes his posture, just as Red Fang responds to the sorcerer. Bronan shakes his lion-like mane as if privy to some secret joke, then returns his gaze to Red Fang.

"Eh," he begins, "don't mind him. He's a mage. Ha!" Bronan barks that last with unconcealed mirth, but quickly resumes his sombre countenance in a space, his gaze unwavering towards Red Fang's once more. "The city watch has always had its fair share of corruption. Speak your terms; I care not the reason if the price is right, although I must say it gnaws at the back of my head, the kidnapping of one's parent."

The Mage raised a finger, as if in warning towards Bronan, before turning back to the Red Fang's Leader once more. "We'll do it. Have no fear of that. Corruption needs to be stamped out. The Price will we say upon delivery of the stolen goods." The Elven Mage stated, pushing himself up. "I'll see to it myself, if I must. Though it may take a few days."

"If it is possible, I would very much like to see the sight where she was abducted," Rohan said to the leader. "If it isn't too much of a hassle. I feel that it would aid in tracking her down and seeing what we are truly up against."
The bandit leader seemed to be in deep thought over letting an outsider roam freely around his camp.
"Otherwise, I'm sure her suffering will be prolonged since we wont know what we will be dealing with."

Voltan smirks, stroking the empty sheath for his Nordic broad sword.

"See, we don't have to be unreasonable here. I'm sure we'll get mommy back in no time. And maybe these fake guards have extorted other people... I could finally hit my retirement... Unless they were extorting you to pay off bigger fish."

He frowns, his borderline paranoia getting the better of him for a second.

"Indeed. Where was the old bird taken? Oh.. and uh... " He taps his mug. "This mug seems to have sprung a leak. it's all dry. Better bring a keg."

Would you guys be keen on having a PbF over at RPGGeek? I must redeem myself for the failed Leverage game that I abandoned over 2 years ago.

*hides behind table to avoid incoming stones*

I was thinking of using a rules-light, easy-to-understand system like Risus. Alternatively, Landeril would you be interested in taking over GM duties? :D

Sure
Sure. Seems I'll be taking over GM duties.

Since I have no idea where Stoic was going with this. I'll be using the same world, but starting a different quest within the week(Either tomorrow or next tuesday depending on my work schedule), and as I am the GM, I will only be using Exile as part of the story.


Message me if you got any questions