It seems the new arrivals are both Elves and Humans, and some of them help in the digging while others help with clearing away the dirt. It's possible that there were more that went topside, but as they arrived mid-shift, there's no way to tell without asking or going up.
Bryn can see that the bandit focuses on him and on Arren whenever he's not looking at the front of the dig. Especially whenever one of them passes by him, and on Bryn more often than on Arren. He seems alert, as the fact that they're both armed doesn't go unnoticed, whether or not he knows they weren't armed just earlier today.
Neither Arren nor Bryn notice any significant change in behaviour among those already present, nor any suspiciously different behaviour among the new arrivals. As far as they can see, none is carrying a concealed weapon, but then again, it could just be well concealed. But then again, almost everyone around holds or is within reach of a pickaxe, shovel or even the traditional, trusty heavy rock. Despite the undisputed effectiveness of sharpened blades, anything can be used effectively as a weapon when the target isn't properly armoured and trained for battle. Speaking of armour, besides Arren and Bryn, only the senior bandit is armoured, and he too dons a mere leather armour.
Hugo doesn't respond to Arren but resumes working as if nothing happened. Nevertheless, following Arren's remark, there are fewer whispers of uprising spreading around, and those that he hears are less heated.
((Unless something happens, the workers will break through the dirt barrier during this shift. Before we get to that, I want to give you a chance to do anything that might affect what happens, so I'll only be responding to your posts and won't move the story forward, to avoid any retconning later, as your actions might alter the coming events in more than one way. Please tell me once you're satisfied and ready to move on.))
(OOC: Would Bryn believe he could cast spells with somatic component (no verbal) within 30ft of (and in sight of) the blockage without being seen by the senior bandit?)
(OOC: "Just like that", probably not. The bandit oversees progress, even if from some distance (keeping him in line of sight with that area) and remains vigilant of Bryn (unlikely that he'll just happen to miss that) while Bryn is within line of sight. After all, he did see Bryn's magic that night at the hostelry. Given that the components are only somatic and that there are other workers walking around, the very least Bryn could do would be to try casting his spell quickly while someone passes between them. This, however, is a plan Bryn thinks is likely to fail (I'll set a high DC, but I'll let you roll just in case luck is on your side). Bryn can improve his odds if he can manage some other, longer window during which he is either not the focus of the bandit's attention, or while he's concealed for long enough, somehow.)
(OOC: no worries, if senior bandit never takes a break during the shift, then I am ready to proceed. Not going to do anything Bryn considers highly likely to be seen)
Arren doesn't take any further direct action. He uses each trip in and out of the tunnel to keep an eye on the two senior bandits—watching for any shift in posture, tension, or subtle signs of preparation—as well as checking what he can of the persons hauling the barrels up the well, in case trouble might come from above.
Since the soldiers agreed that letting the bandits be the first to enter whatever lies beyond the barrier might be better—and because Arren's priority would be keeping the captives safe rather than claiming whatever is inside—he simply continues working and observing, waiting to see how things unfold and what, if anything, the bandits uncover.
Work resumes for a while. Tension isn't gone, and despite the soldiers' effort to break it, it only seems to grow with time. Eventually, a call of surprise rises from the front of the dig when one pickaxe breaks through the dirt blockage and the loose dirt collapses to the other side, revealing the rest of the tunnel behind.
"Halt!" The senior bandit calls, peeling himself from the wall he leaned against, quickly striding towards the blockage. "Thank you all for your hard work today. Go and rest in the camp for the rest of the evening, please. Your shift is almost over; this is enough progress for today."
The workers standing in the narrow passage created by excavating away the dirt exchange looks for a moment. "No," one of them says, standing at the closer side of the passage and blocking the bandit's path. He holds a mere wooden crate filled with dirt as he was heading to empty it into the barrels by the well. Not even an effective improvised weapon, but he stands straight and firm in front of the bandit. Other workers around raise their tools to the ready, displaying their support for the worker. "We've been working our asses off here for many days now, all for your 'divine cause'. The gods showed you the place, and they brought us here as well. We deserve our share of what's inside. We won't let you take it all to yourselves, criminals."
The bandit, although keeping his cool for the moment, it seems, places one hand on the hilt of his sheathed sword, keeping it there for the time being, but ready to draw it if deemed necessary. "You go rest for tonight. We don't even know if that's the last obstacle in our way, or if anything inside is of monetary worth at all. Your resistance now is nothing more than an insult to the considerate treatment you've experienced so far. Lay down your tools, they're not weapons, and you do not have the skills to fight back. I'd rather not hurt you if I can, but I won't hesitate to make an example if I must."
"Don't underestimate us!" One of the workers calls. "Some of us were bodyguards before and can handle a weapon! You caught us with numbers before, but you're only one here right now! Two, if you count the unarmed one! We greatly outnumber you, and we have these soldiers here to protect us! Right?" All eyes now turn to Arren and Bryn. The workers are ready to revolt against the bandits, given a sign.
Currently, the 'senior' bandit stands alone. Predak is by the well at the moment and out of sight.
"Considerate treatment!?", 'Tace' repeats and laughs. "Look, I am not here to incite violence, but we are not fools. You can call it what you want, but you have enslaved these people against their will. You may not be whipping and beating them, but don't insult them by trying to persuade them how benevolent you all are".
He doesn't move or make any aggressive motion as he speaks, remaining still and calm a little distance away from where the confrontation is.
"As it happens, I was more concerned with our captors turning violent when we broke through, and didn't fully consider the prospect of an uprising. I was also a little worried about why the tunnel had been blocked in the first place, and what dangers might lie beyond. That is actually why I came armed. But here we are. I would just say, there is no way the bandits didn't have a plan for this eventuality. So if you all really want to do this, you need to be prepared for some serious repercussions, both here and down at the camp", he explains, trying to sound as neutral as possible and just lay out the consequences.
"So what do we do, sir?", he finally asks, looking to the Sergeant.
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It seems the new arrivals are both Elves and Humans, and some of them help in the digging while others help with clearing away the dirt. It's possible that there were more that went topside, but as they arrived mid-shift, there's no way to tell without asking or going up.
Bryn can see that the bandit focuses on him and on Arren whenever he's not looking at the front of the dig. Especially whenever one of them passes by him, and on Bryn more often than on Arren. He seems alert, as the fact that they're both armed doesn't go unnoticed, whether or not he knows they weren't armed just earlier today.
Neither Arren nor Bryn notice any significant change in behaviour among those already present, nor any suspiciously different behaviour among the new arrivals. As far as they can see, none is carrying a concealed weapon, but then again, it could just be well concealed. But then again, almost everyone around holds or is within reach of a pickaxe, shovel or even the traditional, trusty heavy rock. Despite the undisputed effectiveness of sharpened blades, anything can be used effectively as a weapon when the target isn't properly armoured and trained for battle. Speaking of armour, besides Arren and Bryn, only the senior bandit is armoured, and he too dons a mere leather armour.
Hugo doesn't respond to Arren but resumes working as if nothing happened. Nevertheless, following Arren's remark, there are fewer whispers of uprising spreading around, and those that he hears are less heated.
((Unless something happens, the workers will break through the dirt barrier during this shift. Before we get to that, I want to give you a chance to do anything that might affect what happens, so I'll only be responding to your posts and won't move the story forward, to avoid any retconning later, as your actions might alter the coming events in more than one way. Please tell me once you're satisfied and ready to move on.))
Varielky | Werhann
(OOC: Would Bryn believe he could cast spells with somatic component (no verbal) within 30ft of (and in sight of) the blockage without being seen by the senior bandit?)
(OOC: "Just like that", probably not. The bandit oversees progress, even if from some distance (keeping him in line of sight with that area) and remains vigilant of Bryn (unlikely that he'll just happen to miss that) while Bryn is within line of sight. After all, he did see Bryn's magic that night at the hostelry. Given that the components are only somatic and that there are other workers walking around, the very least Bryn could do would be to try casting his spell quickly while someone passes between them. This, however, is a plan Bryn thinks is likely to fail (I'll set a high DC, but I'll let you roll just in case luck is on your side). Bryn can improve his odds if he can manage some other, longer window during which he is either not the focus of the bandit's attention, or while he's concealed for long enough, somehow.)
Varielky | Werhann
(OOC: no worries, if senior bandit never takes a break during the shift, then I am ready to proceed. Not going to do anything Bryn considers highly likely to be seen)
Arren doesn't take any further direct action. He uses each trip in and out of the tunnel to keep an eye on the two senior bandits—watching for any shift in posture, tension, or subtle signs of preparation—as well as checking what he can of the persons hauling the barrels up the well, in case trouble might come from above.
Since the soldiers agreed that letting the bandits be the first to enter whatever lies beyond the barrier might be better—and because Arren's priority would be keeping the captives safe rather than claiming whatever is inside—he simply continues working and observing, waiting to see how things unfold and what, if anything, the bandits uncover.
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren
Work resumes for a while. Tension isn't gone, and despite the soldiers' effort to break it, it only seems to grow with time. Eventually, a call of surprise rises from the front of the dig when one pickaxe breaks through the dirt blockage and the loose dirt collapses to the other side, revealing the rest of the tunnel behind.
"Halt!" The senior bandit calls, peeling himself from the wall he leaned against, quickly striding towards the blockage. "Thank you all for your hard work today. Go and rest in the camp for the rest of the evening, please. Your shift is almost over; this is enough progress for today."
The workers standing in the narrow passage created by excavating away the dirt exchange looks for a moment. "No," one of them says, standing at the closer side of the passage and blocking the bandit's path. He holds a mere wooden crate filled with dirt as he was heading to empty it into the barrels by the well. Not even an effective improvised weapon, but he stands straight and firm in front of the bandit. Other workers around raise their tools to the ready, displaying their support for the worker. "We've been working our asses off here for many days now, all for your 'divine cause'. The gods showed you the place, and they brought us here as well. We deserve our share of what's inside. We won't let you take it all to yourselves, criminals."
The bandit, although keeping his cool for the moment, it seems, places one hand on the hilt of his sheathed sword, keeping it there for the time being, but ready to draw it if deemed necessary. "You go rest for tonight. We don't even know if that's the last obstacle in our way, or if anything inside is of monetary worth at all. Your resistance now is nothing more than an insult to the considerate treatment you've experienced so far. Lay down your tools, they're not weapons, and you do not have the skills to fight back. I'd rather not hurt you if I can, but I won't hesitate to make an example if I must."
"Don't underestimate us!" One of the workers calls. "Some of us were bodyguards before and can handle a weapon! You caught us with numbers before, but you're only one here right now! Two, if you count the unarmed one! We greatly outnumber you, and we have these soldiers here to protect us! Right?" All eyes now turn to Arren and Bryn. The workers are ready to revolt against the bandits, given a sign.
Currently, the 'senior' bandit stands alone. Predak is by the well at the moment and out of sight.
Varielky | Werhann
"Considerate treatment!?", 'Tace' repeats and laughs. "Look, I am not here to incite violence, but we are not fools. You can call it what you want, but you have enslaved these people against their will. You may not be whipping and beating them, but don't insult them by trying to persuade them how benevolent you all are".
He doesn't move or make any aggressive motion as he speaks, remaining still and calm a little distance away from where the confrontation is.
"As it happens, I was more concerned with our captors turning violent when we broke through, and didn't fully consider the prospect of an uprising. I was also a little worried about why the tunnel had been blocked in the first place, and what dangers might lie beyond. That is actually why I came armed. But here we are. I would just say, there is no way the bandits didn't have a plan for this eventuality. So if you all really want to do this, you need to be prepared for some serious repercussions, both here and down at the camp", he explains, trying to sound as neutral as possible and just lay out the consequences.
"So what do we do, sir?", he finally asks, looking to the Sergeant.