20 Drai's Side Quest

I was having a chat with Drai about the strengths and weaknesses of various professions, in this case the close-quarters prowess of fighters versus rogues. Drai however, being a hands-on kind of guy, wanted to test the theory in practice, and volunteered to serve as a member of the town watch for a few days. As a single action, I applaud that, but it also sets a dangerous precedent to the thieves' guild if the constabulary starts hiring adventurers as vigilantes even as experiment. Something good came out of this; now Drai summarises his findings as "the role of a fighter when there are rogues around is to be a sitting duck waiting to be killed." I wonder what Emma thinks of that... the rogues I spoke of that with had a raucous laugh over Drai's words, and agreed. As they put it, "fighting fair is for show and for idiots." They too were worried about an experienced battle priest joining the town watch, and for good reason.

The guardsmen had gotten something right. They had traced the Dulltone gang to a derelict building that had once been a mansion. The Dulltones are not guild members anymore so don't enjoy the protection thereof, which means they find their safehouses where they can - if they can. To be a maverick rogue ... a rogue rogue? ... one needs to be very discreet or very good, or have friends in high and low places. Far as I know, none of that applies to the Dulltones, so they are just a disruptive presence.. causing suffering and damage to the general populace, excuses to the powers-that-be, and harm to the guild. As such, I wouldn't be surprised if that the location of their hideout was leaked to the town watch by the guild.

The watch sent a dozen to catch four, with Drai there to keep them alive. Drai's magics blasted the door to pieces along with the staircase beyond it, and impressed the watchmen who promptly approached. One of the Dulltones had been hiding under the stairs and had to flee. An eager would-be hero charged after him, but Drai stopped him with a verbal command, Heel!, humiliating the guardsman, teaching him a lesson, and saving his life. After that the team moved on more slowly and cautiously.. but entering the house caused one of them to take a crossbow bolt straight to the forehead, instant damage so extensive that not even a priest could heal such. After that the guards closed ranks with shields high, but scattered to all directions when a glass bottle was tossed among them from a window above. Two of them charged into the building, fearing fire or poison gas.. and there was silence. The Dulltones brought one of them to the door, with a leash on his neck, pleading that the guards back off so that he would not be killed.

That stopped the guards, but it didn't stop Drai. He surprised the guards by stripping off his armor before heading in to capture the Dulltones single-handedly. The guards protested, stating such was a suicidal move, but Drai had a reason for it. He didn't want his armor to slow him down or jingle, and then filled the whole lower level of the building with fog before entering. Unseen and safe he started preaching in the mist and ignored the crossbow bolt that missed him so close he could feel the draft. His voice carried well, and even though the Dulltones couldn't see him, they heard him and soon two of them could do nothing but listen to his words - the two that had kept the guard on a leash, and been ready to slay him. The other two used a pre-planned escape route and left the building.

When Drai had had enough with the sermon he took a triangle, and chimed it.. causing a discordant noise to blast through the building, hoping to catch the remaining two Dulltones with it. The captive guard was hit with it too, but Drai's healing skills saved his life, and the guards captured the two Dulltones that had been listening to Drai's sermon, and were now stunned and bleeding from the ears.


With one guard killed and two wounded in addition to all earlier crimes, it seemed unlikely that the two captive Dulltones would find clemency. A thorough search of the house found that the Dulltones had been hiding there for a long while, and even some of their loot was reclaimed when Drai led the guards to search the upper floor. However, the remaining Dulltones, Bill and Jake, were not apprehended, so only Joseph and Avery were taken into custody.