RUL: from Grotto to Glory

"Information for your life. It's a fair trade. Oh and also that armor and any weapon or provisions you are carrying."

The hobgoblin glares at you, obviously regretting his decision at the moment. “Tenabris, the dark ones.” He answers reluctantly. “I’ll give you my armour, but I’ll need my sword to survive on my own.”

(Meep, the closest hobgoblin has a shortsword and leather armour. There is nothing else on him, no money or provisions. It seems they weren’t planning to go anywhere far.)

(Anyone looting the other two dead hobgoblins, roll perception.)

Jaylen points his staff menacingly at the Hobgoblin, allowing it to crackle with the Thunderous energy of his Booming Blade cantrip

"Strip. Then answer all the questions my friend here has for you until she is satisfied. No funny business and you can leave with a weapon. On my life. One false move, however, and this staff will split your skull asunder and my other friend here *gesturing to Meep* will eat your remains"

Meep not finding everything good, will bite off one of the hobgoblins fingers about the same time Jaylen points in his direction

Halhace will wall forward with a bit of lighting crackling in his hands as he casts shocking grasp on nothing, but letting the hobgoblin get the message that ue would have no problems ending it if things came down to that.

Holding tighter, perhaps just enough to draw a little blood, and using Thaumaturgy to make her voice dark and booming: "Details!  Just keep talking until we tell you we've heard enough - my friends here are more gracious than I am.  Who or what is Tenabris?  Why are you so scared of them?"

Kamos: (to the hobgoblin) "If you don't want to answer her questions, i'm more than happy to snap your neck in two."

Intimidation: 10 (if it applies)

Kamos: (to the party [in infernal]) "Please let me kill him, even if he answers your questions."

In infernal to Kamos "I understand your fury, I would see him dead too. But I made a promise to let him walk away, with a weapon. I ask you to help me prove we are not the savages they are. That we are better than them. I know your blood burns for vengeance, and I will not keep you from it if you must take it. But I also know you are more than that. A warrior of poise and control. Show them that they are not our equals. We rise above."

In infernal "If he doesn't sing like a canary, he dies.  They wouldn't show us such mercy, but if he talks he can go so he can take a message back with him."

Kamos: (to the party [in infernal]) "This isn't about vengeance or anger, slavers don't deserve to live. i might take pleasure in killing him, but this is the right thing to do."

In infernal "It's not a matter of what her deserves. His lot deserve a fate far worse than we could provide, you won't get any argument on that from me. But of our souls? What do we deserve? It is one thing to take a life in self defense in the heat of battle. It is quite another to be judge, jury, and executioner all in one on a prisoner that is of no threat. Besides, Dhara is right. His return to them will let them know how formidable we are. It will discourage them to waste lives pursuing us. And even if it fails to do that, it serves as a reminder to them that we are more. That we have the strength to show mercy when they would offer none. That we are no ones slaves, and that they are no ones masters. And if he doesn't cooperate, we will execute him quickly, as is our right."

Kamos: (to the party[in infernal]) "I am not familiar with this word, soul. we deserve to be free, everyone does. if we let him live, he will just enslave others. I do want my freedom, but i don't want it to be at the cost of others. i won't kill him if everyone here wants to spare him, but its a mistake, and others are gonna pay the price for our choice."

Meep would look through the remaining corpses while people were talking far too much in a language he didn't understand

Perception 8

In common, so everyone can hear "if you know not of the Soul, friend Kamos, then I pray this is a journey of discovery you allow me to walk at your side" Jaylen smiles broadly and claps Kamos on the back. He turns to the Hobgoblin "You had better get to answering the lady's questions. I can't imagine her patience lasting much longer."

In Draconic to Meep and Halhace "Thank you friends for helping me end this conflict as quickly as possible without risking further injury to our comrades. I fear the small minded will always find you two more intimidating than I. Perhaps rightfully so, but for all the wrong reasons. Playing to their stereotypes of you was wickedly clever gentlemen!"

The hobgoblin unties the scale mail and drops it to the ground by his feet. Under the armour he is not wearing a shirt, just common trousers which are of bad quality and very battered. You can see his torso is covered in old scares, but there is a burn mark that stands out. On top of his chest, burned deep into his flesh, is a circle with a lion paw in the middle.

“The dark ones..” He sighs and continues. “The Tenabris are an organisation that is pretty much running this.. empire.” He says the last word reluctantly. “They are interested in you, over something you possess. I... don’t know more.”

"And what, they hired you?  Sent you here to kill us?  And then what?"

Any recognition of seeing this symbol anywhere before?  History: 1

Jaylen will reach down and take the armour carefully.

Meep, the next hobgoblin body is 90ft away from the party. It’s surrounded by the sleeping camels and a pool of blood that has spilled from the hobgoblins throat. On the body you find a leather armour, crossbow, light and a shortsword. The camels all have a simple worn-out saddle and one of the camels has an arrow sticking out of its torso. The last dead hobgoblin is another 30ft away, and the only thing on the body is the leather armour.

Dhara, the marking reminds you of the empires' ruling councils’ crest, but the formatting is different. The burn mark looks more like a property stamp, or some sort of branding.

“No...” He looks shocked at Dharas’ comment. “No no, I don’t work for the Tenabris. I haven’t seen one of them either, not really. I work… worked for Lentuls and the city of Grou. The place you all ran from.”

Jaylen, you pick up a scale mail. The hobgoblin looks at you as you start moving towards him, but does nothing else.

Halhace will listen to what the hobgoblin says and then look to the others. "Perhaps it would not be wise to let the creature go so soon if you wish to spare him as what is to stop him from going back to our former captors to report we are outside of the city and free."

Jaylen turns to Halhace "You make a fine point, but I am at a loss on how we would secure his good behavior for, say a day, so that we have a good head start from any potential pursuers. We have to sleep sometime. I suppose we could bind him in rope, set a watch to gaurd him as we take turns sleeping, then release him in the morning?"