Asher's Story S2E1

 

 

Echos from the Past 

 

The morning after. The storm has past. Asher and Prewitt leave The Veil Society's safety for the comforts of home.  Trudging their way through high water and looters, they make it to our hero's apartment to catch their breaths. With socks no longer sopping and bellies full, calls are made to families to check-in. All seems well so a text is made to Rina, Asher's handler, to see if there are any appealing bounties.

 Rina knows one will catches Asher's eye. Onso Azgaar.

Seems during all the storm's chaos, the bomber escaped prison and is in The Grand Arcanum Theater. Which is under renovations. The perfect hiding spot to wait-out the storm unmolested. 

The heroes rent a boat to reach it, rain still coming down, and break their way into the majestic building. Doing a good job of staying quiet, and using a flashlight because their dark vision is unreliable when searching for the hiding convict, the two finally make their way to the auditorium. But the bomber has laid traps. 

With Prewitt staying behind, and safe, Asher carefully makes his way through a patch of mana mines hidden amongst the garbage, and eventually is confronted by Onso, still in prison orange. The convict, determined to not be taken back to prison, attempts to shiv Asher. But the gunslinging bounty hunter is too swift and bloodies Onso with shot after shot.

Once again, the dwarf is no match, and is captured.

Taking a boat, and then walking the rest of the way, the heroes and their prisoner make their way to The Fang, the spire at the heart of Æther City.

Chaos, same as in the rest of the city, is met inside. But Onso is eventually handed off and Asher collects his well earned bounty.

His phone then rings.

A panicked Cinna tells her son that his grandmother, Verity, has been kidnapped by the Ember Blades. They are the ones who have been randomly attacking Asher on the streets. Most likely sent by the half-elf's new nemesis, Blaze. Zalazar's bride. 

But where have they taken Verity?

Asher reaches out to all of his best connections with Rina being the one that presents him with a lead. Seems that Barlo, Zalazar's former enforcer has been going by the alias Egemond Harlo and extorting protection money from local businesses. 

Might he know how to find Blaze?

So, with the name of a shop on Magus Row, Asher and his assistant Prewitt travel to the untouched (by the storm, by magical mean?) section of the city that is renowned for it stores. 

What the two learn in the shop is that, indeed, Egemond Harlo has been forcing the owner to pay protection money while the Authority is busy with the chaos enveloping the city. The owner, a kiff, also tell the heroes that Harlo is known to hang out in a local tavern called the Kicking Donkey and most likely can be found there.

The tavern is close-by, and is swamped with patrons drowning their sorrows. Making their way through the crowd that spills out onto the street, Asher and the young gnome discover that the man going by the name Egemond is crashing with his drug addict girlfriend in a near-by apartment. The bartender gives the bounty hunter a slip of paper with the address.

Seems it's time to have a talk with Barlo...

The apartment building is old. And with garbage piling in the halls, the scent in the air is rank. No place anyone respectable would live.

Knock, knock...

No answer come from the second story apartment, but sounds can be heard inside. So Asher knocks harder, and finally bashing down the old door leading to a filthy room empty of the voices he heard. 

But there is a locked door, obviously leading to a bedroom, that Asher blasts open with his Dragon Pistol. 

The disheveled brusier, Barlo, stands inside the room, ready to fight, while his gaunt girlfriend shrieks in the corner.

Asher again uses his pistol to bring Barlo to his knees while, unfortunately, Prewitt misses her throw with one of her special grenades. 

Asher is encased in a web of sticky tendrils momentarily before breaking free to cuff the now prone Barlo who has slipped on well-placed grease patch from a grenade of Asher's gnome assistant. 

The goon is then dragged out to the main room and beaten during an interrogation. And, after holding out, finally gives Asher the location of Blaze's safehouse and a glass key to enter it.

The bounty hunter leave to rescue his grandmother, but not before carving a "V" (for Verity) in Barlo's face.

The young gnome looks away...