Freedom – Session 2

Hearing no sounds from beyond either door, Mira leads the characters out of the east exit into a 40’ corridor. The area is poorly illuminated by a few scattered torches, the flames making the damp walls glisten and writhe. The fighter moves north, peering around the corner to see a flight of stairs leading up. Bordan scouts the south passage, the corridor snaking away left then right into the gloom beyond. Four or five heavy iron bound doors can be seen lining the length of walkway.

In whispered conversation, the characters decide they are ill equipped to make a break for the upper levels and so begin exploring the immediate area for anything of use. Lana listens at the nearest door, hearing a muted hammering sound through the thick oak and iron. The others gather behind Mira and Bordan, and together they burst into the room beyond.

A well-lit 30’ by 35’ room greets them, with workbenches arranged haphazardly around a furnace on the north wall. Some sort of statue has been placed along the eastern wall, with a second heavy door between it and the furnace. This is clearly some sort of repair workshop, as two scowling Iron Brotherhood taskmasters preside over five rag-clad humans who are busy mending armour and weaponry.

2 x Iron Brotherhood Guards. AC6. HP5/8. Shortsword (1d6).

Round 1

The guards are surprised at the interruption. Mira quickly crosses the intervening space and slashes her shortsword across the nearest slavers’ throat. Eyes wide, he drops to the floor dead. Bordan charges past the fighter to engage the second slaver at the other end of the room, attacking wildly with his dagger. The lunge is fast but sloppy, the blade glancing off armour. Within moments, Lana is beside the barbarian, but has similar misfortune.

Dragos and Breka, unable to get to the guard, look around for usable weaponry. Breka searches the nearest workbench finding nothing but broken equipment. Dragos notices a small rack of repaired items and quickly grabs a shortsword. Subira and Ostrik, bringing up the rear, close the door behind them.

Round 2

The guard passes her morale check, and Lana attacks again but is easily blocked. Mira rushes over, her sword finding purchase and sinking into the slaver’s thigh. Subira tries to calm the five prisoners, who look like they are about to bolt. She calmly tells them not to run or they will alert other guards. They falter for a split second, then do as they are told.

The guard nimbly dodges underneath Bordan’s wildly swinging dagger, and lunges at Lana in an attempt to escape through the north-eastern door. Luckily the thief evades the blow just in time, and the guard screams profanities at her.

Q – Does her shouting alert anyone?

A – No.

Round 3

So preoccupied with getting past Lana, the guard opens herself up to attack from the left, and Bordan plunges his dagger into her exposed armpit. She gasps before sinking to her knees, then falls over and bleeds out on the stone floor.

The group searches the room for anything of use whilst Mira and Subira talk to the prisoners. Freed from their bondage, the five emaciated humans eagerly answer any questions. It seems captives with certain skills are sometimes put to work by the Iron Brotherhood. Smiths and animal handlers mainly, the best of which are sometimes kept as slaves at the Citadel rather than sold in the markets of Sokol and Vulk. The prisoners tell the characters they have a reasonable knowledge of the upper areas of the citadel.

Meanwhile, the others manage to strip the guards of their armour, which Breka and Bordan make use of, as well as assembling a small assortment of tools, weapons, and equipment which is shared out amongst them all. A backpack is found into which the group place any miscellaneous items. Ostrik inspects the statue, which turns out to be a small shrine to Rast, the god of death. The mage recalls a snippet of information about the Iron Brotherhood worshipping Rast as their patron deity.

After a few minutes of rest and a short discussion about how to proceed, the group decides to press on exploring the prison level in the hope of finding more equipment and other captives. A plan slowly forms in which they gather as many supplies and freed prisoners as possible before making a break for the stable block in the citadel above.

Featured Image by Jeff Brown.