The Prisoner

The game occurred in three sections. The first was in Perpignan where Des and Adrian rescued Bernardo from a jail sentence likely to end in execution for murder. There were some amusing charades performed by Anton the Magical Ferret as part of the complex rescue operation.

With Bernardo in tow, the group encountered Sassone kneeling over Francois' unconscious and bleeding body. They did what they could for him, sent word to the covenant, and got Francois to the church for healing and recuperation. Francois became conscious long enough to let the group know that Filius had been taken, apparently by the same Moors that set Bernardo up.

The second portion of the game occurred largely in the wilderness. The group (Des, Bernardo, Adrian, Sassone) tracked Filius' captors through the Pyrenees south of the border. During the trip they encountered a hedge wizard skilled in illusion and some sort of mental magics that got the party well split up, and some members attacking other members. Sassone managed to seek God's wisdom and insight, see the invisible hedge wizard, and cut him down. Subsequently the group encountered a cave in which an ancient relic lay: the sword Ice Flame. Trapped in the cave by a stealthy group of Basques, they battled the undead guardian of the sword. Bernardo managed to attack and destroy him. The sword was taken and the Basques fled. Then, on the way to the captors destination, a city called Zaragoza, the group was beset by some outriders. There was a brief battle and Des managed to take down the one that might have gotten away. The fatigued party made their way to the city.

The third portion involved getting into the city, finding Filius, rescuing him, and making an escape. Bernardo scoped out the environs and determined that the city would not be a safe place for a bunch of Franks, and determined that old Roman sewers would give access and a hiding place. Various hijinks ensued during which people were injured (on a whimsy, Adrian faced a horrible sewer monster for a brief moment before exercising the better part of valor). The group discovered an ancient member of the Order of the Stained Cross (the group the Abbot belonged to, and that both Filius and Sassone belong to). With his help, they discovered who took Filius and where he was likely being kept. They broke into the house (again with many mishaps and near mishaps), poisoned the occupants, and began the search for Filius. A bad landing from one of Adrian's uses of the One League Stride ring nearly did for the group, but clever knife work by Des and Bernardo saved the day. Sneaking through the building, Des, Adrian, and Bernardo made it to where Filius was being kept, and eliminated the guards. However, their actions to this point were discovered and they began fighting for their lives. Sassone, who had been waiting on the roof (to keep from giving away their positions) heard the noise and came to join the fray. The battle was a close one, with horrible demonic creatures that suck the energy (fatigue) and life (wound levels) were unleashed on Bernardo and Adrian. Sassone prayed (again a whimsy) and managed to protect the group he had not yet reached from the demons, and Bernardo, Des, and Adrian made short work of the people. The group made their escape from the city with an unconscious Filius and eventually made their way home.

The End.

Pre-Game Lore It is late in the Spring of 798. Filius, Inrisor, and Francois have left on their errand (“Filius and Inrisor's Excellent Adventure”). Events which have occurred, but not been noted are: The bell and the doors have been installed Hanse has seen to everyone being given a tabard with a design reflective of the covenant The villagers' (No Hedes-ians) flocks of goats have given birth of a goodly number of kids Albus and Orella are sitting and having breakfast together. It is a beautiful Spring morning, and they seem to rarely have time to spend with one another between their studies and the running of the covenant. For the first time in ages, Orella is at the covenant in Spring. They are sharing a couple of mugs of warmed ale (the last that Terryn brewed) and bowls of porridge. As they are discussing things as brothers and sisters do, the recently installed bell begins chiming. For a brief instant, the entire great hall is obscured by fog. Then they can see through the fog. The shouts of “Alarm, Alarm!” are accompanied by a grog (Bob the Younger) bursting into the great hall and shouting that they must come to the wall. On the way to the wall, they get out of Bob's manic rantings that a dragon has landed on the fields outside the covenant. Rather than being skeptical, they have been expecting something like this. They take a moment to prepare themselves, and then mount the wall. Indeed, out in the fields is a large dragon. It appears to be about 100 feet from nose to tail, and stands 40 feet or more at the shoulder (at least size 10 for those of you who care). It is a rust color, and its scales gleam red-gold in the dawn sunlight. It is trampling some of the crops as it chases down some of the goats pasturing here. It then notes the people on the walls, turns toward the covenant and advances. In something of a surprise, it speaks in Frankish, and asks what people are doing on its lands. Bob replies, “These ain't your lands! They was give to us by the Church! By the Abbot hisself, God rest him!” The dragon lazily looks toward Bob, opens its mouth, and a stream of coruscating white-gold fire streams from the dragon's mouth to Bob. All that is left after a moment is a greasy pile of Bob ash. Nothing is recognizable as once having been human (as a point of note for those who are paying attention, Bob was inside the Aegis, and the effect of the fog; also the magi can gauge this jet of flame as more powerful than anything they have seen Filius do). The dragon turns back to Albus and Orella and says, “I care nothing for your Church or your Abbot. These lands are mine. If you are to continue living on them, you must pay rent. You will bring me my fill of goats each Spring, and you will bring me 100 pounds of gold each Autumn.” With that, the dragon turns and continues hunting goats. Shortly, it flies away. Bernardo Lore You took a little trip to Perpignan on business at the very start of Spring. There was an annoyance someone wanted handled and a black-mail payment to pick up. So, you planned carefully, and managed to talk your target's horse into running him into a tree. You watched from a distance, and the horse began galloping and then, at an opportune moment took a jump allowing the man's head to connect with a lowish branch. From the way his head lolled, you would guess it broke his neck instantly. The bloody, smashed part of his head was probably ancillary. Satisfied, you headed back to the city to collect the rest of your payment, and indulge in some well deserved rest at a nice establishment. Having collected your pay, and the money you have gouged out of a certain demon worshiper (interesting how you can think it but not say it), you were wandering through Perpignan on your way to the inn you favor. You stopped at a food vendor's for a snack when a cut-purse grabbed your pouch with all your “hard-earned” cash. You, of course, gave chase. A few corners later, you lost sight of the little ragamuffin, but, from the attitude of the crowd ahead, could tell someone was moving through them at a breakneck pace a few moments ago. You cut down an alley to circumnavigate the worst of the crowd, and when you popped back out onto the street, lo and behold, there was the thief running directly toward you. You prepared to apprehend the little bugger when he sprouted a knife accompanied by a large red stain on the front of his chest. You heard shouts of “Murderer!” and see an Arabic man in fine dress mounted on a gray dapple pointing at you. The crowd got ugly immediately, and for perhaps the first time in your life you were glad for the appearance of the local guard. So, the Arabic man agreed to testify against you, claiming you threw the knife killing the child. You could not refute this in a simple way, since, though that was not your knife, yours was missing. Also, no money pouch was found on the urchin. The only bright spot in this fiasco is that the palsgraves (judge) was not in town. You were summarily locked up, and have been rotting in a cell for weeks. You have begun to wonder if the covenant will ever notice you are missing and overdue. You have also begun to wonder about other events. You felt the pouch taken, but did not notice your missing knife. There was no pouch on the urchin, but you know that is the child who took it. And, most of all, why would an Arabic man you have never seen accuse you of a crime he has to clearly know you did not commit. Whose knife was that, anyway? Des and Adrian Lore After checking around town, the two of you determine that Bernardo has been accused of murdering a child and is locked up in a cell in the local constabulary. The accuser is a wealthy Arab. He is supported by a number of locals. You have not had the opportunity to find and question the Arab. The locals' stories conflict a bit, but support the basic facts. The details of the event are a little muddled, but the murder seems to have happened on the open street in front of witnesses. You have been unable to determine why he killed the child, but it seems fairly clear that he did. The palsgraves (judge) has been out of town, so Bernardo has not yet been tried and executed (the case seems to be fairly open and shut). It is clear that no one actually knows who Bernardo is, nor that he is associated with the covenant. The security around the constabulary is not the tightest you have seen, but it is not lax. Breaking him out directly might be possible, but could not be done unnoticed, and would certainly involve killing or disabling several guards. The palsgraves is now back and Bernardo is scheduled to be judged later today.