3 Iron Guardsmen have been dismissed.

Rats! They're bad for business, gnawing on things, eating all the food or else doing their nasty, nasty business on top of the food they don't eat. And they're a danger to pets and children, at least. Concerned citizens have written in to complain, and there's a crier out on the streets proclaiming the situation to be outrageous and demanding someone do something about it.

Not the local rat catchers, though. They mention the unusual size of these rodents, and don't seem to keen to actually stick their noses in this. Someone else will have to do something. So here we are, outside the home and office of a local merchant, who's been leading the effort to get this issue taken care of, at an appointed time. It's a warm, sunny afternoon.

There's a young man standing just outside, in the shade of the doorway, with some papers in hand. He looks like a clerk of some sort.

Calaudrin checked perception at difficulty 7, rolling 14 higher.

Walking through the district is a slightly uncommon sight. A woman with dark red hair, thin leather tunic, and bared feet makes her way through. Around her waist is a leather belt of sorts that holds various pouches filled with various things. She is unarmored and unarmed. That wild dark red hair is tied up on her head with various little flowers adorning it. Maeve is generally a very peaceful person. The apothecary pads her way through the area, humming a tune to herself.

Someone asked nicely, and so, despite the doctor's orders, Alexis is here. Lady Eirene Malvici may never forgive the Sword of Blancbier for this. Still, she's here now, her glaive resting over her shoulder, and wearing a surcoat of chain over her tunic, biting her lip idly, as she waits, and giving the merchant a small nod.

Calaudrin's job should really not involved giant rats. But he has a thing about rats, especially ones that are exceptionally large and cause problems. As he arrives on the scene, he slows down and squints at the man waiting for them. "Fulbert, is that you? /Again?/" He glances up at the building the man is standing in front of.

Recently returned to duty, Sparte's armor is dent free and as nice looking as it is going to get - which is to say, don't expect to see your reflection. He is way too eager to get back into doing things to help the city, even if that thing happens to be ROUS control. He rolls right in behind Calaudrin, pulling off his helmet to grin at the other man. "You kicking off some of the dust with this too?" Another redhead oddity, though Sparte's hair is less flower-laden and more comb-breaking.

The pale, lanky young man looks up from his papers and blinks at Calaudrin for a moment. "Oh. Officer. That's right, that's me." he quietly announces, adjusting his somewhat oversized sleeves in those dark clerical robes he's wearing. "The shop closed. Poor Mistress Durand. And now we got this problem! At least no one's dead this time, just - animals from what I hear. I don't believe the story about the rats taking children, but it's no good for business either." he smiles wanly, then peeks past Calaudrin at Alexis and Sparte with a nod and steps forward from the shadow of the shop, tucking some papers into his garment. Then he spots Maeve. He heard there were four people coming, after all, "You're here for the rats, too? Good! It's a big problem." he's intent on recruiting every passer-by.

"Well, we got a rat catcher on the job, and he thinks he knows where the trouble is, he just won't step inside. People have no pride in their work these days." says the clerk, 20 years old if that, and shakes his head disapprovingly. "This way then."

"Guardsman Fatchforth, a pleasure to see you again." Alexis offers brightly. Giving a quick nod to the merchant - and the other two volunteers. "Dame Alexis Wyrmfang. Sword of Blancbier. An honour to make your acquaintance." She sets her glaive to the ground, keeping it resting against one shoulder. The damn thing is still two feet taller than her. Giving the clerk a nod of her head, ready to follow. "If they're unusually large, then, maybe he's right to want assistance." She suggests.

Maeve walks up upon the scene, quietly overhearing the tale the lanky man has to offer. "Giant rats?!" Maeve blinks. "Ooo! How interesting! You know.. rats are very intelligent creatures." She rubs her hands together. "I am eager to assist. Maybe these creatures an be rounded up or something."

"Have /you/ gone in?" Calaudrin asks Fulbert with a deadpan, just barely do the corners of his lip twitch upwards. When he hears the familiar voice of Sparte, he twists and looks over his shoulder and grants the man a crooked smile. "I was told recently that I needed to get some hobbies. Might as well be rodent control." The others are given a faint nod of his head, his eyes sweeping over them in curiosity. "First Officer Calaudrin Estardes of the Iron Guard." If all the Iron Guard junk on his armor and uniform wasn't a dead giveaway.

"Sword of -" Fulbert repeats, staring at Alexis for a moment. He's impressed. "They're really not -that- big, from what I hear." he almost sounds like he's apologizing for that. Then he blinks at Calaudrin, "Me? No. I don't work in the warehouse. I work in the shop. It's just - the Master's got his gout. He couldn't be here. Better gout than dead though, though you wouldn't think so from all the yelling."

"He saidthe rat catcher he'd meet us there. That's what I was told." Fulbert explains, combing his hair away from his ears as he leads the way away from the merchant's offices and further south, turning towards the back streets and alleys where the sun doesn't shine as brightly. "There it is." he points.

It's a warehouse. It's not very large, but it's weathered the recent siege rather well from the looks of it. The ground floor seems to be masonry, the upper floor wood. And there's the rat catcher. You can tell, because he's got a rat's tail pinned to his tunic. It could be a fake rat's tail. It could be real. Also, he has some resemblance to the rats he catches. Short, beady eyes and prominent incisors, and an unfortunate choice of drab brown attire.

Alexis gives a nod of greeting to Calaudrin, happy bring the glaive over her shoulder again. Walking along, letting the actual guardsmen take the lead on this one. And, once they meet the ratcatcher, she gives him a little nod of greeting as well. Looking over to Maeve. "Rats are intelligent, you say?" She inquires, politely. "Maybe we can get them to surrender peacefully?"

Sparte glances over to Alexis, giving her a bright smile. "Dame Wyrmfang. I'm, um, glad you survived." His smile shifts to a sheepish grin, before turning his attention towards Fulbert and Maeve. "Sparte Fatchforth. Um, nice to meet you both." He doesn't really speak up more on the way to the warehouse.

Maeve follows along, her footfall quiet against the paved streets. As they make their way down the darker corners, Maeve becomes a bit more unnerved. "So.. drab.." She mutters to herself. Then, there is the rat catcher standing there, awaiting their arrival. Her gaze flickers to Alexis, "I doubt it. A wild rat is more likely to bite off your face than surrender to you. They are quite smart, but they can be skittish and agressive!" As they draw near the ratcatcher, Maeve falls quiet, glancing about the darker areas nervously.

"I was once swarmed by a bunch of rats. Guardswoman Grayhope had to peel them off of me as I danced around in shock and horror." Calaudrin should probably be more reluctant to admit to that story, but he seems at ease fessing up. As the rat catcher comes into sight, he squints at the man and frowns. Sparte's greetings to the two girls cause him to smirk quietly to himself. After a time, he'll catch the other man's elbow to say something quietly just before the arrive at the warehouse.

Fulbert stops, looks at his paperwork, then turns to the small assembled party, "Here it is. We've had some trouble here, and the rat catcher there says this is the place." he shrugs, apathetically, and nods to Calaudrin, "I'll just head back to the shop then, if you don't need anything else, Guardsman. Got inventory to do. I'm sure you've got things well in hand. Well in hand." he sounds hopeful.

Meanwhile, the rat catcher salutes. "Balaric of Arx, journeyman rat catcher, at your service." he announces, then rubs at his grimy nose with a look towards the warehouse. "This is the place alright. Bound to be full of them. Good luck!" and that seems to be the extent of the rat catcher's participation.

Fulbert pipes up, "Here's the key." and olds up a big tarnished thing.

Maeve turns her gaze to Sparte and smiles faintly. "I'm Maeve." She says in accented words. "Nice to meet you too." She looks to the key, then to Balaric, then back to the group, "Well. I have medicines if we get hurt!" She says with a smile.

"...Why wouldn't I survive?" Alexis wonders, quietly, to Sparte, her brow furrowing. Reaching out to take the key from Fulbert, offering it to Calaudrin. "Bite our face off. Okay. So no offering oversized rats bacon bits." She decides. Letting out a small sigh. "What would you like me to do, First Officer Estardes?"

Sparte gives Calaudrin a small shake of his head in the negative before getting his helmet back on. He then goes about tightening all the straps he can reach and trying to make sure his armor is secure as possible. It might just be good prep for battle, or it might be the talk of rats swarming people.

"Journeyman rat catcher? I did't realize that was even really a thing." Calaudrin mutters, largely to himself though it's possible the others hear him. "I bet he's making it up." The key is offered to him and he takes it dubiously, watching the Balaric disappear. "Alright, I guess we're going to go inside and see what's going on. Keep your eyes and hears open. Hopefully these things aren't too aggressive, but I'm never that lucky."

Balaric's on his way with another salute, but a few yards away he stops and turns to comment, "Won't do you any good just killing these here, of course." Balaric comments with the gruff, world-weary, knowing tone of a veteran. "They'll have a nest somewhere. A little colony. A little rat village. Could be hundreds down in the catacombs." he twirls the end of the rat tail pinned to his tunic and shakes his head, "Probably not thousands. They're so big, right? Hundreds sounds about right. Well anyhow, good luck!" he salutes yet again and resumes walking.

Fulbert starts backing away from the warehouse a little faster, eyes wide, "I'll just go and do the inventory then."

Maeve looks to the warehouse and pauses. Then she looks back to the others and cants her head. "So.. Who wants to go in first?" She smiles faintly. "I know a bit about animals.. maybe I could work on locating their nest."

"Hundreds of rats?!" Calaudrin whips around to stare hard at the man as he finally leaves. "We'll go in first." He makes a gesture towards himself and Sparte. He turns to Alexis and glances back at Maeve, "Keep an eye on her. Just in case her animail whispering doesn't work out." Then he'll step forward, push the key in the lock and swing the door open. As long as nothing stops him, he'll step inside.

"Yes, sir." Alexis brings her fist to her chest, and shoots a small smile as she looks up at Maeve. "I'll keep you safe," She promises. Even if she favours her right arm some.

Sparte slides up behind the resident rodent expert, shifting a bit. "My... Weapons require a bit of swinging room. Just as a warning, if it comes to that it may be better to retreat and leave me there. I'll probably be fine. Probably."

Balaric's not done yet. Sure, he's just turned the corner of the warehouse, but then he reappears. Tis time he's far away enough that he needs to yell. "There's always poison, of course! Traps! Could set a trap for their rat lord! Anyhow, good luck!" the rat-faced catcher walks away, rubbing at a scar on his ear.

The door opens with a loud creaky sound, and inside there's a faint squeak that almost blends with the noise from the rusty hinges. It's a warehouse, a wide open floor, an half of an upper floor, with a rickety wooden staircase leading up to it. It's full of barrels and sacks and crates. It smells of food, some of it likely decaying in its bags and barrels, and there's a faint musty aroma and a sharp pungent note of rat pee.

Maeve shakes her head. "I'll be alright!" She hopes. She glances to the men as they enter the warehouse. Swallowing once, she moves to follow. "You know.. I wonder if rat poop would make good compost for the forest... I don't know. Maybe I will take some samples and experiment on the soils." Her gaze does a double-take at Sparte. "No way! No no no. That is a horrible thought! Redrains do not leave anyone behind! Hmph." She blinks, adjusting her vision to the dim light of the warehouse. A smirk crosses the apothecary's face. "Poison. That's easily done."

Maeve checked perception + survival at difficulty 25, rolling 23 higher.

"I'll cover your back, Sparte. I don't like close quarters fighting anyway." Calaudrin reminds him, giving his bow a little shake. "IF YOU WANT TO COME BACK HERE AND WORK YOU GET BACK HERE!" He hollers at the rat catcher who just keeps reappearing, over and over. He doesn't expect Balaric to really come back again, which is why he more fully enters the warehouse. Inhaling the pee scented air, he exhales and makes a disgusted face. And now, he'll begin to look for the cause of the infestation.

Calaudrin checked perception + investigation at difficulty 25, rolling 37 higher.

Sparte checked perception + investigation at difficulty 25, rolling 12 lower.

Sparte gets a small round tin pot filled with a mixture with a strong menthol smell from a double wrap sword belt made of quality leather.

"...What's a -rat lord-?" Alexis asks, dubious, as she moves along with Maeve. She seems to be the clever one, after all. Wrinkling her nose at the scent, breathing through her mouth as much as possible. She lowers her glaive, now, and finally brings her left arm to bear, to hold the weapon in a ready position.

Alexis checked perception + investigation at difficulty 25, rolling 8 lower.

Sparte pulls out a small tin with some sort of ointment. He carefully dabs a little bit out, wiping it on the grill of his mask near where his nose is. "Well this place smells disgusting. Anyone else want some?"

It's either the disturbed sacks and barrels and the pattern of paw prints on the floor, or the rat droppings and the scent of urine. Either way, Calaudrin and Maeve find their way to a dreary, dimly lit corner of the warehouse. There are bags of grain, but they've been gnawed through, the grain spilled on the floor and stinking rather strongly of rodent presence. And there's a grate there, iron bars set flush with the stone floor.

Maeve blinks at Alexis. "I have a feeling we will soon find out. I wasn't aware of rats having heirarchy! See! I -told- you they were smart!" She lifts a finger and taps at her head with a smirk. The stinky smell does not seem to phase the apothecary. She has recently spent her days farming poop to make compost. She walks with the group, pointing out various things to help find the way. She looks to the grain sack and furrows her brows. "Hey guys.. careful." She motions to a wiggling lump in the grain. "A couple of them are in there!" She is now rummaging in her pouches.

Alexis is on guard duty. So while she aims her glaive in the direction of the wriggling, she's more interested in interceding against any harm that will head towards Maeve. Continuing to breathe through her mouth, she shoots Sparte a smile, and happily accepts some of the goop from his tin. "Thanks," She tells man. Glancing to Calaudrin for guidance in how to deal with wriggling lumps in grain.

"Thank you, Sparte." Calaudrin will reach for the tin once it's free and take a quick swipe. Then he'll hand it back over to him. Making his way through the warehouse, he'll eventually arrive with the others by several sacks of grain. They're moving so he nudges one with his foot until something pops out. A large cat sized rat. He stamps his foot at them to try and scare them off, "Get out of here." He mutters, he wants to check out the grate that's on the floor. "Best kill it." He comments to the sword swingers.

As Calaudrin disturbs the grain and the sacks, they start moving. One large brown shape suddenly darts towards the grate and squeezes through the bars, vanishing below. Another large rat squeaks and chutters and puffs itself up at Calaudrin's book, baring very large, very sharp incisors. An empty bag starts moving around. It is likely it has a rat inside.

Alexis wields a glaive in Oathlands steel.

Maeve pulls out a pouch from inside a larger pouch. Within that pouch are several vials. "We won't be able to kill all of them with swords." She says quietly. "However, we have found one of their feasting places." The vial is uncorked and she sniffs it. She steps forward, commenting. "Somethings are great in small quantity.." The vial is turned over and the clear, sweet liquid is poured into the grain. Some random stick or wooden pole thing is used to stir at the grain to disperse the poison. Of course, she is hoping the rats are distracted by the stronger fighter-y types.

Alexis checked dexterity + huge wpn at difficulty 15, rolling 30 higher.

Leta GM Roll checked dexterity(3) + dodge(2) at difficulty 15, rolling 17 higher.

Alexis checked strength at difficulty 1, rolling 29 higher.

Maeve checked intellect + alchemy at difficulty 30, rolling 24 higher.

Dash the Guard Corgi, 2 Iron Guardsmen arrive, following Silas.

Dash the Guard Corgi, 2 Iron Guardsmen leave, following Silas.

Sparte puts away his tin, eying the tampered with grain pouch. "I'll be sure to warn the ratcatcher so this doesn't go into someone's dinner later. I admit, I don't get it. Worried about retreat, but so quick to pour poison."

That poor rat bristling at Calaudrin doesn't fare too well at the end of an actual glaive, once its attempts at darting aside are foiled. It's not dead, but it's not going anywhere anymore. The sack of grain starts moving around, with a rat inside, no doubt.

Given some time, while thies goes on, Maeve might figure out how to place the poison in the right locations and, perhaps more importantly, the right amounts, to ensure lethality without contaminating anything else in the vicinity. Hopefully.

Maeve stops her work and looks up to Sparte, her brows furrowing. "This food is rotten. Noone will be eating this except the rats.." She actually seems a little hurt at that. "It's actually pain meds made from poppy. It's original intention was not for poisoning. However, if you wish to go into the hive and kill them all.. I will gladly leave. This is a much more humane way to kill these things." The empty vial is set back into thepouch filled with vials. She moves away from Sparte, working at another spot that could be a feasting area. "We might want to open that grate and go inside. I have a feeling it might lead us to the nest. We could actually take a sack of poisoned grain with us to leave there."

Alexis takes a moment to put the rat out of its misery, because well, you don't leave a living being to suffer. Eyeing the sack, she leans on her glaive and tugs the cloth away, to make sure that it -is- a rat beneath there. "Well, one down," She murmurs. "Gods only know how many to go."

There is, indeed, a rotund and confused rat trying to escape while wearing a sack of grain, perhaps to contradict Maeve's statement regarding the cleverness of these creatures.

Calaudrin shakes his foot at the rat before stepping back. He watches as the others deal with the animals before kneeling down and trying to pry the grate off of the floor. "We need to find the rat city." He'll agree on that much. It's likely he agrees with the idea of poisoning all of them, especially since he comments: "We should contact someone about completely shutting this place down until the rat problem is taken care of. Throw out all this crap and clean once their gone."

Calaudrin checked strength at difficulty 15, rolling 3 higher.

Sparte sighs as he looks around at everyone before gesturing to the sack where one seems to be stuck. "If you want to find the nest, you wound one. A bleeding wound, deep gash on a leg or similar, and let it loose. It'll run to someplace it considers safe, and you just follow the trail. I've seen it done to foxes and other animals that attacked farms. I'm not keen on it." He shakes his head. "And none of us have any business going through that grate without a light. I can get a lantern, but it'll be a few minutes."

Calaudrin makes a lot of unflattering grunting noises as he just BARELY prys the grate off. Then he falls on his ass. "I need to stop smoking..."

"I was thinking of letting that one go," Alexis admits, looking at the fat rat. "I mean - it mostly seems confused and scared..."

As the grate is yanked off, it's possible to peer down below. There isn't much light filtering in from the outside, but there is enough to make out a rather ample space and a very rusty ladder. It looks almost like a basement of sorts.

Maeve glances to Sparte and nods. "Good idea." She looks in her pouches, "I will prepare a sack of grains to take into the rat city itself.." She counts her vials. "I can make probably three more sacks with what I got."

Sparte heads out to grab some lanterns for the group, rather than be witness to the rest of the current discussions. Bonus - he actually gets to experience fresh air!

But the fresh air smells like menthol, alas.

Calaudrin pushes the deceptively heavy grate aside and will wait for Sparte to return. "I second injuring one and letting it run back down into the hole." While Sparte is out running errands, he'll pull out his case of smokes and light one. It'll calm his nerves before he moves closer to the confused rat and rather deliberately steps on it's tail with some force. It's ugly business, but someone has to do it.

The rat makes a loud squeaky sound as its tail is stepped on, and scrambles madly to run away, though its little paws mostly just tangle up the bag further around it, since it can't actually go anywhere, before turning about and trying its best to bite at Calaudrin's boot, which is pointless.

The rat makes a loud squeaky sound as its tail is stepped on, and scrambles madly to run away, though its little paws mostly just tangle up the bag further around it, since it can't actually go anywhere, before turning about and trying its best to bite at Calaudrin's boot, which is pointless.

Maeve checked command + animal ken at difficulty 40, rolling 11 lower.

Maeve looks to the rat with a bit of empathy. "Oh..poor thing. Poor poor thing." She actually feels badly for the creature suddenly. She moves closer to Cal, "Hold on.. It is tangled. We can tie a bell onto it's neck.." She has a bell? She does in one of those pouches! It is a small bell. "We can hear where it goes." She moves closer to the frightened animal, crouching down. "Hey there lil guy.." She tries to reach out with the bell on a string, but the critter is having nothing to do with it! She jumps back with a squeak and furrows her brows. "No. It is too frightened." So.. she just reahes out for the corner of the bag and tugs at it to simply free the critter.

"Oh, for fucks sake." Calaudrin watches the aggravated rat fight the bag and then bite his steel boot. "I'm going to dump this thing out on the ground after gets back. Then it can go for a run." Or Maeve will try and tie a bell around it's neck and calm it down. That doesn't seem to be working out, so he'll just rock on his heel and smoke.

Alexis stays close to Maeve - just in case the rat gets aggressive. She has one job here today, after all.

Once released, the rat flees. First, it cunningly flees in the wrong direction, but after a confused scrambling through the vicinity it eventually takes a detour around a barrel and scampers for the open grate, vanishing into the darkness below.

Once they get down there, with Sparte's lanterns and Maeve's bags of poisoned grain brought along, there's time for a look around.

This basement hasn't been used as a basement in a long time, probably. The ground is stone and dirt, littered with the rotten remains of barrels and crates and bags and dead vermin. One wall's caved in and wooden supports have been installed to ensure it caves no further. It is damp, the area directly beneath the grate is stained from decades, perhaps, of run-off and assorted liquids being poured through it. The markings on the walls also suggest it's flooded sometimes. There are furter signs of rats here, droppings and urine in plentiful amounts.

Past the cave in, however, there's an opening, a stone wall collapsed. And beyond that, a tunnel.

Maeve watches as the rat scampers off. "Alright.. let's go!" She says to the others. With a lantern in one hand and a bag of grain in the other, she makes her way through the grate. She steps to the side of the bottom of the ladder as others come down. She isn't trying to lead the expedition tonight. That's the fighter-y type's job! She turns, shining her light down the corridor, waiting for someone to take point.

Alexis hauls two sacks of grain, struggling a bit with both that and the glaive, but happy to have a clearly defined task ahead. Stepping to the side as well, wrinkling her nose, and studying the area. "Well, looks like we're going to have to go deeper."

Calaudrin climbs down the ladder and drops into the basement. He looks around with a frown on his face and flicks his smoke to the ground, crushing it with his heel. "This place is disgusting." Much of this looks similar to the surface and he stomps his way over to the tunnel, apparently planning on just going right on in.

Sparte takes one lantern in hand, letting Maeve take the second. He gives a low whistle, examining the damaged wall. "I expect a hole, maybe. Not that." He takes the lantern, fixing it on a hook that sticks out from the side of his belt. A little awkward, but at least his hands are free. "Whatshisface really cared about the property maintenance."

Maeve checked perception + survival at difficulty 35, rolling 8 higher.

Calaudrin checked perception + investigation at difficulty 35, rolling 3 higher.

Sparte checked perception + investigation at difficulty 35, rolling 31 lower.


The purpose of this tunnel isn't immediately apparent. It is not very wide, cramped between stone walls and an arched roof above above, but there would be room for all four to walk side by side with ease. There is a sort of channel cut into the floor, the stone worn smooth there, though occasionally seeming to be dotted with a faint crystalline residue, or mold, and the tunnel seems to have a very slight slope. Perhaps the channel drained something, once, but it seems to have been mostly dry for a while.

To those among the group who are most perceptive, even in the dim light of the lanterns, the direction with the most traces of rats is -probably- to the left. But it's a long walk, a good couple of minutes before anything but featureless tunnel isvisible. Well, there are also cockroaches, and cracks in the stonework, and assorted litter from Arx above. Faintly glowing mushrooms with long stalks. A tarnished coin. Eventually, besides the droppings here and there, the rodents themselves come into view. Little eyes shine in the dark, but they hastily retreat away from the glow of the lanterns, leading them deeper.

Alexis checked perception + survival at difficulty 35, rolling 25 lower.

Calaudrin picks up the coin from the ground. How much do you think the Iron Guard pays these guys? Probably not enough. He slips it into his pocket. Then he pushes onwards, frowning when he sees glowing mushrooms. "This is beginning to feel oddly familiar. If I'm right, these rats are likely to be hostile." The eyes glint in the dark and he wields his bow. Nocking an arrow just in case.

Maeve is in an apothecary paradise! She has to stop on occasion and take samples! Oh yes.. there willbe samples. GLOWING SHROOMS! Hell yes! She willpick them all carefully and seal them in a pouch. "Familiar?" Maeve inquires. "Have you seen glowing mushrooms before?" Pluck pluck, stash!

Alexis remains dubious to glowing mushrooms and stinky caves, and is a bit too busy balancing grain sacks and her glaive and trying to be at the ready to protect Maeve (she'll have to drop the sacks for that) to really... Well, do much but follow behind Maeve. "I've seen some in some caves in the Oathlands. But never anything that size."

Calaudrin checked perception + investigation at difficulty 30, rolling 13 higher.

Maeve checked perception + investigation at difficulty 30, rolling 0 higher.

Sparte slowly draws his sword when Calaudrin says the rats might be hostile. "Right, well, guess we earn our pay then. Gonna second the sword though, never seen anything like this."

Sparte checked perception + investigation at difficulty 30, rolling 22 lower.

Sparte wields a massive rubicund claymore with garnet inset guard.

The tunnel branches suddenly. The nearest scampering rat darts off into a rising passageway to the left. There is a grate in the way, iron bars stretching from the roof to ceiling, but obviously someone's already removed three of the central bars. They're lying in a corroded, rusty pile against the wall. And there's more than enough room for a person to step through the gap.

There's more squeaking and chittering, just ahead, and the sound of tiny claws clicking against the stone. At the top of the slope, the tunnel widens again.

Maeve glances one way and the other. She is unsure which way they should go. Though, she decides to follow their ears and turns down the passage that has the bars. She lifts the lantern to shine some ligh down the corridor and frowns. Her gaze turns to the bars and furrows her brows. "I wonder if the rat catcher was down here." She glances to Alexis, "I wonder if that rat catcher is in on all this.." She shrugs before moving onwards with the others, squeezing through the bars when it is her turn.

"What, because he kinda looked like a rat?" Alexis inquires. With the chittering getting closer, she sets down the grain sacks - they can be moved later, after all. For now, she's going into protective mode.

"He seemed to know an awful lot about rat city as he was running away." Calaudrin comes to the opening in the grates and fingers where the cut is in the metal. "This isn't an old break. I wonder who did it?" His expression is suspicious but he steps through the opening anyway. He's prepared to follow this all the way to the end of the line.

Sparte turns so his light shines over on the grate that has had the iron bars removed. "Well... We wern't the first people down here, that is for sure." Sparte adjusts his sword grip to a more defensive, reactive one as he moves forward alongside Maeve. Doing what the iron guard does best, guarding her.

At the top of the slope, the tunnel opens into a wide circular room. There's a trapdoor high above, which our heroes would immediately notice because of the frayed rope ladder that dangles from it. It's still intact, more or less, and likely more recent than the structure, but it's been gnawed and worn and looks very fragile.

The cause of the gnawing is all around. There are a lot of rats. There are a lot of openings too, a series of small grates set into the wall, seeming to converge here from elsewhere, as if this was once a central point in the local tunnel system. And beyond the grates there seem to be more rats, scampering in the shadows and away from the light of the lanterns. Some are considerably larger than cats.

More peculiarly, there's a series of small wooden cages piled up against one of the walls. They're inhabited by rats, but the bars and doors have long since been chewed through, and the rats are free to scurry in and out, climbing over each other, darting everywhere. They turn their eyes and quivering whiskers towards the newcomers, but they don't immediately attack.

Maeve checked intellect + alchemy at difficulty 30, rolling 21 higher.

"Yeah," Alexis concludes, seeing the cages. "...There's definitively been someone here. Placing, uh. More rats?" She quirks her brow. "...Why would you need -more- rats?"

Maeve stops, shining her light around in the room. "Uh.. don't attack unless we have to.." She says quietly. Her sack of grains is set in front of the tunnel they just came through. "Let's set the other sacks near the other tunnels..."

"They're probably mutant rats." Calaudrin comments tiredly, watching the other cages warily. If he can get close enough to get a good look without aggraving the rat population, he will. He doesn't shoot his bow unless he has to.

"It means this wasn't an accidental infestation." Sparte eyes the damaged cages, still stalking along behind Maeve to protect her if things go south. "Someone kept these cages here. Why is a bit trickier to sort out."

Calaudrin checked dexterity + animal ken at difficulty 15, rolling 15 higher.

Maeve checked dexterity + animal ken at difficulty 15, rolling 7 higher.

Alexis checked dexterity + animal ken at difficulty 15, rolling 4 higher.

Leta GM Roll checked perception(3) + survival(3) at difficulty 1, rolling 27 higher.

Calaudrin manages to come near the caves without disturbing the rodents over much, stepping lightly and avoiding treading on any tails. Over on Maeve's side of the room, however, the rats are getting agitated, and bristling and chittering, and there are a lot of sharp incisors on display.

Maeve looks to the rats. If they get swarmed, it could be bad. Slowly, she moves, setting her sack of grain down. A small knife is produced which she uses to cut open the grain and allowing it to spill forth. Hopefully with the presence of a new 'food source' it will calm the critters enough they don't feel a need to attack. Things are tense! With her sack dispersed, she steps rather close to Alexis, "Over there.." She whispers in nervous tones.

Having gotten to where he wants to be without causing any kind of rat rebellion, he checks around to see if there's anything unusual. Besides that the rodens were beging caged. Slips of paper, signs of humans? His hand remains on his bow, alert to the situation brewing not far from him.

Maeve checked dexterity + animal ken at difficulty 27, rolling 20 lower.

Calaudrin checked perception + investigation at difficulty 20, rolling 28 higher.

The rat Maeve steps on keens. The humans can only hear a squeak, but the rats hear deathly panic. And while many of them simply vanish into every available tunnel, the meaner-looking ones squeak and rush the interlopers.

Leta GM Roll checked dexterity(4) + brawl(2) at difficulty 15, rolling 35 higher.

Calaudrin kneels own by an empty bowl and spoon, picking up bits of fabric and spoons. His mouth purses into a line when the rats start to rush them. He draws his bow into place, nocks and arrow and fires on the closest animal that wants chew on his face.

Sparte checked dexterity + huge wpn at difficulty 35, rolling 24 higher.

Sparte rushes right back at the rats when it looks like combat is going to happen. "Squeek squeek yourselves!" Stompy metal boots not made for subtelty, check. Big sword being used to bunt rats, check. Terrible battle cry, double check.

Maeve checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 35, rolling 24 lower.

Calaudrin checked dexterity + archery at difficulty 20, rolling 34 higher.

Alexis checked dexterity + huge wpn at difficulty 35, rolling 18 higher.

Alexis uses her glaive - the flat of it - to mostly punt and sweep the rushing rats out of the way, as best she's able. Hitting 'em with the sharp end may be a bit of a big ask in the cacophony.

Leta GM Roll checked dexterity(4) + brawl(2) at difficulty 34, rolling 5 higher.

Alexis is the victim of a myriad of bites to her mostly unprotected ankles!

Alexis takes minor damage.

Nibble nibble

Sparte takes minor damage.

Maeve lets out a startled cry as the rats suddenly lunge forward! Thankfully, Alexis is right there swinging at the rats. However, there are so many! One gets by and tried clamps down on her bare ankle, however Sparte is right there! She takes the last bag and stays behind the warriors. "Back over this way! Almost there! We drop this bag and make a break for it!"

"Ow! Ow! OW!" Alexis protests, wincing in part as she is forced to use her sprained arm in ways the doctor most decidely counter-manded. She'll have to do some sort of penance to Gloria, no doubt. Still, she shakes her leg and moves backwards, and bats and stabs with her glaive at the rushing horder. "This is... Not the kind of foe I was trained to fight," She admits to Sparte. "Guess we learn..."

The rats around Maeve react, not quite as one, but in a sufficiently confusing mass of teeth and tiny claws and fur and whiskers and chittering aggression, suddenly trying to launch themselves at her. But they are swatted aside, and instead go for the knight and the guard protecting the apothecary. Armor makes it hard for teeth to find purchase, so they climb and scurry and look for openings to bite into, and the sheer mass of them could easily contribute to reinjuring old sore spots or even sprain an ankle.

Calaudrin's arrows fly into another of the large rats, but at least they haven't quite figured archery yet. Not enough to pay complete attention to the guard, though a few rats start rushing his way nonetheless.

Leta GM Roll checked dexterity(4) + brawl(2) at difficulty 15, rolling 36 higher.

A nibble here, a nibble there, and Sparte is just annoyed now. He steps up and into the mass, sword flailing as he is halfway buried by the little bitey buggers. It isn't slowing him down, just making the guard annoyed. "That's it! OFF!"

Alexis checked dexterity + huge wpn at difficulty 36, rolling 28 higher.

Sparte checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 36, rolling 15 higher.

Calaudrin is a fair shot and he'll try to knock down some of the larger ones as they rush his companions some more.

Calaudrin checked dexterity + archery at difficulty 36, rolling 24 higher.

Maeve checked dexterity + dodge at difficulty 36, rolling 21 lower.

Leta GM Roll checked dexterity(4) + brawl(2) at difficulty 44, rolling 13 lower.

It's all that steel. It does the fighters some good. It's still a bothersome fight, tossing off a rat here, squishing another there, but they manage to get most of them out of Maeve's away, and get no actual injury. Fatigue, and they'll be sore later, but no actual injury.

There are fewer and fewer rats in the room. Many are dead or injured, yes, but many more are fleeing.

Leta GM Roll checked dexterity(4) + brawl(2) at difficulty 48, rolling 26 lower.

Maeve is so grateful for the warriors. Though as they begin to get bit and take damage, she furrows her brows. Just imagine if this rowdy populace of rodents were unleashed into the city! It would be terrible! Finally reaching her destination,her knife is used to cut the sack of grains, allowing it to spill onto the floor. "Ok! We can go now! Let the rest happen on it's own!"

Alexis is gritting her teeth, her sprained arm aching, but she's making sure to crash into the wall to crush the rats crawling over her surcoat, and keeps sweeping at the ones moving for Maeve still. "Everyone out! I'll take the rear. Go! Go! Go!"

Calaudrin looks like he wants to object to Alexis' proclamation of taking the rear when she's got rats crawling all over her. Instead he'll just nod his head in a weary way, indicating the rest go on. He'll go ahead of Alexis. But not that far, because that's not quite what he's about.

Leta GM Roll checked dexterity(3) + brawl(2) at difficulty 20, rolling 18 higher.

Maeve runs over to the rope ladder. It seems the quickest way out! "Up here! They can't follow!" Though, it is rickety, so likely only one at a time. Maeve hurries to get up the ladder to the trap door.

Alexis checked dexterity + huge wpn at difficulty 18, rolling 31 higher.

Sparte checked dexterity + huge wpn at difficulty 18, rolling 29 higher.

Maeve checked dexterity + athletics at difficulty 15, rolling 10 higher.

Sparte storms around the room like a man possessed, smashing things in frustration. He was on bed rest for days prior, not that most here would know that. This? This is therapeutic. Also bitey. Stomping, smashing, he even stops using his his sword and changes it up to two of the larger rat cages. He begins scooping the rats up and smacking them together in the cages. "Squeek! Squeek! Yourselves!"

"Uh..." Alexis seems only a little disturbed by Sparte's combat choices. "...Up, please?" She asks of the man, before crashing against the wall to shake off some more rats, and bat another bunch away. "Please?"

SQUEEEEEAAAAAAAAWWWWWWK.

That's too loud and too low to be a squeak. Much like tiny dogs make little high-pitched yipping sounds and big dogs can produce big booming barks, so it is, perhaps, with giant rats. And whatever's out there sounds very large indeed.

And so it is. As the remaining rats are bashed and slashed and arrowed into submission, pitiful chittering and chuffing cries before they bleed out or drag themselves into safety, a very large nose prods against the bars of one of the tunnels. The whiskers alone are something like a foot long, and those sharp yellow teeth could likely gnaw through a human torso at surprising speed. One could believe this rat might easily drag a full-grown child from their bed in the middle of the night. Thankfully, it seems too large to squeeze through the bars of this exit, but it peers out at the extermination party with irate, beady ruby eyes, before vanishing in the darkness once more.

A couple of smaller rats climb up the rope after Maeve, but fall off without getting to the apothecary's ankles. There are still many living rats, but they're hiding. Or preparing a counter-attack. It is, after all, eerily quiet.

Maeve reaches the top of the ladder and pushes up the trap door. She pulls herself up and out befre glancing around and looks back down. Laying on her belly, she looks back down. "Come on! One at a time!"

Sparte looks like he might just take that giant rat on, but when it runs of into the shadows he takes a few seconds to huff and puff and calm the heck down. He might be ready to attack just about anything, but he isn't exactly the only one here, is he? "That... Was a really big one, wasn't it." Sparte drops the cages, picking his sword back up and sheathing it. He steps under the rope, cupping his hands. "C'mon, I'll boost you."

"Yeah, I guess that's the rat lord," Alexis agrees. "The one journeyman Balaric spoke of." She gives the man a dubious look. "I told you I'm the last one out. With all due respect, Guardsman Fatchforth - after you."

Sparte detatches the lantern from his belt, setting in on the ground. He frowns a second at Alexis before shaking his head and letting her have her way. "Fine, let's just move."

Sparte checked dexterity + athletics at difficulty 20, rolling 5 higher.

Alexis checked dexterity + athletics at difficulty 20, rolling 3 higher.

Once Sparte and Calaudrin are up and out of the way, Alexis sends her glaive up, then grabs the lantern, and ascends herself, moving as quick as she can - and gladly accepting help from -above- to be pulled through.

The trapdoor, a simple wooden thing, leads to a small room with a low ceiling, though at least a sliver of daylight shines through a narrow slit in the wall, dust swirling in the beam it cuts through the darkness. It smells musty, There's a door, wood and iron. It is locked, but thankfully not too hard to force it open. Once outside, the heroes find themselves in a street, tucked out of the way, in the Upper Boroughs.