Shoe Thief

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Fighter (Rune Knight), Level 05 HP: 49 / 49 Armor Class: 21 Conditions: N/A Location: F7 --> D7 Action: Paste Making Bonus Action: Value brand giants might Reaction: N/A

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Kathryn didn't have to see it to know that there was a battle taking place. The sounds of magic being cast, blunt force instruments, and that god awful wailing noise that was piercing through the halls. Kathryn had no way of knowing if the wailing was someone she knew, some hostile, or some other third party person. Hopefully no one innocent... But she wouldn't know until she went down there. So heavy thud after heavy thud she stomped down. Worried that each step her weight and speed would snap the wooden stairs beneath her. Despite her speed though, she flew and jumped into action the moment she forced herself through the no longer hidden doorway,

First thing she noticed was that the wailing had finally stopped. Thank fuck for that she thought. Worried she would lose her mind to that before any real harm could be done. The second thing, the second dead dude Kathryn had just been able to see BB toss into the runic circle within the room. Seeing Lizbeth off to her side, Kathryn knew she had to get between this undead monstrosity and her squire. "AAAAHHHHHHH" With a Violent and Angry roar Kathryn's rune's began to glow. Sparks coming off each and every one. One of the metal buckles that held her cloak in place began to glow, heat up, and an audible ping as the buckle gave from the stress as the spiraling and sparkling runic magic began to grow too much for the metal buckle.

Kathryn was still a novice in her magic. A novice who decided to skip a few steps to learn more advanced steps. Something that registered for Kathryn the moment she engaged her magic? She was in a basement, with no where near enough room to do what she was about to do. Either because her subconscious guided the magic, or because it came with idiot proof safety features, she simply only grew a few inches. That didn't slow her from rushing past Victoria, charging up to the soon to be poor bastard flat on the floor in the middle of the room.

Letting the hammer elegantly slide to her side, it swung down quickly, forcefully, and violently as a blow landed with enough force to send bits of bone and cloth scattered across the floor. As the hammer hit with such force, the brick work caused the magical hammer to ever so slightly, bounce. Using that momentum Kathryn swung back again and landed the hammer down with enough force to send ribs chunks of shirt, and the skull flying across the room. This time the hammer hitting the brickwork through the bones with enough force that it seemed to bounce significantly less than the first hit.

Dragging the hammer out of the remains of her latest victim Kathryn looked around the room her confused expression hidden by her helmet. "Ten seconds. I leave for ten fucking seconds and you all unleash a localized apocalypse?" Kathryn said trying to sound serious, but only ended up chuckling. Adrenalin running high from the excitement of the fight.

@Sigil

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Fighter (Rune Knight), Level 05 HP: 49 / 49 Armor Class: 21 Conditions: N/A Location: Tap Room --> Basement Action: Tea Time Plus Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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"Let's... look into that yeah. The ritual sounds nice." Kathryn said in response to Victoria's blood splatter across the room. "I am glad you seem to be better now though." Kathryn quickly tried to correct so she wouldn't seem like she only cared about the state of the room. Kosara seemed worried about the cage, and it seemed that fear was warranted with some of the others too. When BB mentioned calling out if she needed help Kathryn simply replied. "I will let you know if I need help, but the same goes for you lot. If any of you need a big strong princess to help save the day just call up yeah?" Kathryn joked giving a mock flex before making her way up. Though she technically wasn't a princess. A lady sure, but not a princess.

At the door, Kathryn was both relieved and upset to see the Mosswaters. Thankful it wasn't an angry local who would want retribution for something that someone in the party did. Or some vengeful villain looking for retribution. But also upset because she was ready to push this tea meeting aside due to rather pressing matters going on. Opening the door with the biggest smile she could muster Kathryn greeted the two halflings. "Good afternoon Tarace, Barbal. Apologies for my tardiness we've had a busy day following up last night's events." She said trying to not give any hints as to how concerning things were getting. Kathryn wanted to do her best to keep the halfings out and away from the potential carnage that could be present in the coach house.

Alas, another one of Kathryn's biggest weaknesses was used against her. Empathy and Kindness. They had brought wine, a gift basket, and supplies for tea time. And! They were clearly freezing. Kathryn stood no chance to turn these two gentlemen away. "Here here, come in." Kathryn ushered the two in, guiding them away from view of the basement stairway and towards the table closest to the open fire. "Fire's still going so we can get tea going pretty fast here. I must apologize gents but I am afraid I do not break many stereotypes, and like way too many nobility, the best tea I can brew is a hot leaf juice at best, and sad water at worst." Kathryn joked with a smile before making her way over to the bar in the tap room. "However, we may have some pastries that Kosara and I baked up the other day still. And when I held the title of Queen of the Bar, I am told I made a great bar tender." Kathryn joked a little more to lighten the mood. Though she left out the part that she was not a bartender at the same time she was queen of the bar. The bartending work came as punishment from Ser Lucas after her self proclamation of queen of the bar to help work off the damages she caused during her evening reign.

When the blood curdling scream came from the basement, Kathryn couldn't be sure who was screaming. But she could be sure that no matter who it was something bad had happened. Did one of the dead guys wake up? Did someone trigger a trap? Did Lizbeth get some evil magical effect from what Kathryn had given her? Did they find someone? Something?! With worry on her face, Kathryn turned to the mosswaters, rushed up to them, and quickly rushed over her person to pull out her silvered hand axe and dagger, placing them on the closest table to the duo. "If anyone comes up those stairs other than myself, Lizbeth, or one of the other party members, run for the main house. These weapons should cause harm to anything else that may come up if you get cornered." Kathryn said coldly, matter of factly before equipping her hammer and shield. "If things go quiet, and we are not back up right away, run for help. Someone may be hurt." Kathryn said grabbing her helm, and slamming it down hard enough it hit the metallic rim of her chest plate. Then! She ran as fast as someone pushing 7 foot tall in full head to toe metal and bug plate could run. Cape flowing behind her as she ran, a harsh flap as she turned the corner into the basement.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Fighter (Rune Knight), Level 05 HP: 49 / 49 Armor Class: 21 Conditions: N/A Location: Tap Room --> Front door Action: Perception vs the evil dice bot Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Kathryn listened intently as the bard explained her adventures. At first worried, then confused, then both at the same time. "My... My room?!" Victoria looked fine now. But there was a splattering of blood all over her room?! Did V use magic to recover? Maybe she landed on Morty and it was his blood? But also... how does one even clean blood? Kathryn had scrubbed it a couple times from her tunic with poor results. Victoria was able to answer a bit about her questions regarding magic and dead people. Reminding her of Toombas Kathryn felt sickly again. The undead were not something she enjoyed working with. Morty was easier but not by a ton. And he was tasty. "So... we can ask our new friend some questions, and see what he knows?" Kathryn asked hopefully. BB seemed to have much the same hope it seemed. Though his mentioning of the contract gave Kathryn some pause. "If you think you can make something of it, feel free to take it and read it over." Kathryn said hopeful that maybe BB would have some luck.

Daxos seemed to have a much better idea of what he was doing than Kathryn did. He searched the room with an expertise that Kathryn couldn't hope to match. And when he asked for some help to look into something, Kathryn was all to eager to help! And so was Kosara as she not only jumped at the chance, but cast... a flying hand?! "Mage hand... I see." Only to eventually reveal... a boot. Hidden in the straw in the cell. "I don't know how much help that will be to us... Not unless there is a key or a note hidden within it? Or it can be used as a bargaining chip with her new dead friend here?" Kathryn tried to joke.

The magic wands that were recovered were something else. She wished she could put into words how interesting they were to her, but it was clear as day she was probably the least qualified for magical duties with or without magic tools. "Victoria? Do you have a spell that can tell us what they do? Or maybe the wand we found the other day could help out?" She was pretty sure that is what it was. Though now that she thought about it, grandpa L'Rose sure did love his magic wands.

When the knocking began Kathryn still found herself mildly jumpy. Instantly her hand went for the head of the hammer on her belt. But soon enough retracted as the voice sounded more impatient than hostile. Kathryn tried her best to see who it could be, but alas, no luck. Deciding she wasn't a ton of help in the basement, she spoke up in offer of her services. "I will go see who that is, maybe see what is going on. Do let me know if I can lend a hand though." She announced to the group before giving a curtsy and making her way up to the front door.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Fighter (Rune Knight), Level 05 HP: 49 / 49 Armor Class: 21 Conditions: N/A Location: Tap Room Action: Insight Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Kathryn listened intently as BB explained some of his theories and observations. When BB spoke up about how the gift may not be a particular item, Kathryn wondered a bit more what that might mean? "Are you thinking the room as a whole? Maybe the runes in the floor are a ritual to be finished up and that will give us a useful answer?" But with her own testings coming inconclusive and lacking a solid answer, it led to Kathryn with more questions than she could answer. Though some of it was protective magic, Kathryn could be unsure much otherwise. Kosara's comment about how the room seemed like an experimentation room sounded all too likely. It reminded Kathryn of the basement of the town building back in Avonshire. She didn't like that all too much at all.

To her relief Lizbeth had not noticed anything of note when Kathryn had caused her magical energy to jump from herself to her young squire. Kathryn had even learned a bit about how Lizbeth's magic worked. Though she didn't really understand Lizbeths magic, she was pleased to know that Kathryn hadn't accidentally taken that from her. Even if her undead form did unsettle her. "You seem like you are yourself getting a better grasp on how your powers work. I'm glad at least I didn't mess that up for you." Continuing to watch the scene unfold with Victoria removing a stone from the wall, and giving Kathryn a brief thought of "We shall figure out what is going on even if we gotta tear this place down brick by brick." It seemed they were getting closer to that point.

The magic crystal made Kathryn uneasy. She had no basis for it but it made Kathryn think of cursed magic. Dark, evil, corrupting cursed magic. But that could just be because of how it seems to be tied in with all the other creepy stuff so far. Kathryn gave Kosara a reassuring nod in reply to her comment how she didn't need to get paid to want to help Lizbeth. Kathryn would be willing just to help. "We will help you Lizbeth. And we appreciate anything that can help. And, we will respect what is yours as we go along. Be it keeping you informed, passing things along to you, or informing and including you in our actions as we take this step by step." When Kosara gave the reassurance that they would not keep anything they found for themselves without full intentions on returning it, Kathryn spoke of gently but firm. "Kosara is right, we have no intentions of stealing from you. We're on your side." Kathryn ended her statement warmly. A soft smile on her face to help give reassurance.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Fighter (Rune Knight), Level 05 HP: 49 / 49 Armor Class: 21 Conditions: N/A Location: Tap Room Action: Insight Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Lizbeth seemed... Okay? The voice seemed to be gone, and the young lady of the lands didn't seem to explode so that was also good. Kathryn in this particular moment looked almost as if she had accidentally backhanded Lizbeth and she had blacked out from the sheer force. BUT! She was still standing, and whatever magic went from Kathryn to Lizbeth seemed to have... not done anything. "I don't... know what happened. You don't look too different? You look less..." Dead. "Like your other form. Maybe the magic is defective? Or maybe the effects were really minuscule?" Did they really luck out in that regard? It would be nice to get a win like that.

As everyone returned to the basement, Kathryn followed and attempted to join about with the others too investigate the room. At first everyone seemed to be sorting out whatever their afflictions were. Though when BB had Sneezed Lightning?! Kathryn had jumped back. "are..... are you good dude?" Kathryn asked as she relaxed herself again. At the very least Kosara and Daxos seemed to not have been too severely effected by the wild magic surge. As Victoria explained her findings, Kathryn did her best to follow along with the bard's understanding of magic. Sure, Kathryn could be considered a smart cookie, however, her understanding of the arcane was limited too "Oh wasn't that pretty can you do that again?". It wasn't the best to say the least. Even her own runic magic she didn't really understand that well. She had learned the basics many, many years ago. And had neglected her studies since.

Kathryn though was not mentioned by name, felt a little called out with the retelling of Arnaud L'Rose's understanding of magic. It seemed that it overlapped a lot with Kathryn's understanding. Though at least Kathryn had learned the basics. More than ten years ago. But still. "So its not only supposed to be physically hidden, but also hidden in terms of magic?" Kathryn said before looking over at the items V was pulling out. She had some anxiety about them. A lot of crazy dangerous magic out here. While the others worked on that, Kathryn figured she has had pretty decent luck on desks so far. How hard could it be to look through a desk? Clearly not that hard right? Well, Kathryn had stepped aside to search the desk, and after a brief search, much of what she found she either couldn't make a lot of sense of, nor could she find anything that seemed to notable. Deciding that was a dead end, she then decided that being the party's Rune Expert, she could 100% handle something like the big scary magical symbol on the floor! She was alas, the Runic expert of the party.

Turning her attention to the floor, she already began to feel far more confident. NOW! She was beginning to make sense of things! Now! With an understanding of her rather limited proprietary scope of magic! She could lend a hand! "Well... A couple of these runes look like they could be for protection enchantments. Or maybe sine sort if divination magic." Welp. That is what happens when you skim the basics, skip all the middle steps with all the context and explanations, and then jump into the early tiers of rather insane runic magic. Though that would explain why the first few times she used her powers she barfed up a colorful rainbow. "I...don't have much else..." She said a bit defeated but to no one in particular.

BUT! She did have another idea to work with. "Hey V? You're good with uh.... dead things. Right?" Kathryn said still uncomfortable with the term necromancer. "Can you make the dead guy work for you? Answer questions? If it dispels again like in the other cellar we found I'm sure we could.... figure something out?" Kathryn said before trying to awkwardly do a neck snapping motion as if some poor victim was within her arms, building up the motion for several seconds before finishing. And stopping just short as she decided that maybe it was a bit too much for the conversation.

"Hmm... Another idea we could try." Kathryn spoke up, deciding what of her gear she was willing to risk parting with just incase something happened. Opting for the old hand axe that had not been magically infused with silver, she pulled it out, and let it drop into the runic circle like shape. Only for... Nothing to happen. "Well, worth a shot yeah?" Kathryn joked before reaching down to pick up the aging tool.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Fighter (Rune Knight), Level 05 HP: 49 / 49 Armor Class: 21 Conditions: N/A Location: Tap Room Action: Insight Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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With Victoria gone, the basement in chaos, the the young girl Kathryn was beginning to see like a sister having a very justifiable nervous breakdown, it was becoming clear that Kathryn was a bit out of her own depth. Though she would help where she could, her abilities with all things arcana were limited to useless. Even her understanding of runic magic was rather poor by comparison to practiced experts. She did hear the call from Daxos to hold position, but by that time she was more worried about Lizbeth than her own well being.

Lizbeth seemed to have slowed down some, enough for Kathryn to catch up. "Its going to be okay Lizbeth." Kathryn stopped her own pace. If the young girl was really panicking this badly she didn't want to push her too far. "If you'd like you can run up to my room? It may be far enough to uh... limit whats going on." Kathryn said sheepishly. "I'm not really an expert at magic. Sorry..." Kathryn sighed keeping her distance. When Victoria came in, Kathryn felt a bit revealed. Though Victoria was wrong on the wild magic surge, she was still the expert on the matter. "Just um... just a bit of magic yeah?" Kathryn said in jest. Mistakes happened. She wouldn't hold this against V. There have definitely been times Kathryn had made a mistake or two.

"let me know if I can lend a hand V, otherwise I'll be here." Turning to Lizbeth, she seemed very spent. She seemed weak and tired out. In need of support. Kathryn was not the usual for physical affection of any kind. It was just outside of her comfort zone most of the time. But Lizbeth seemed like she really needed it. "Its going to be okay Lizbeth." Kathryn offered up before stepping up to Lizbeth, getting down on her knee, and giving her young squire a heavy hug. The hug felt nice from Kathryn's side of things. Until... she felt different. Like a huge rush had left her, escaping to get away from her, and entered into Lizbeth. It felt... almost like lightning jolting between her and Lizbeth. "Oh my gods Lizbeth are you okay?!" Kathryn jumped back hoping to avoid a repeat of the effect.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Fighter (Rune Knight), Level 05 HP: 49 / 49 Armor Class: 21 Conditions: N/A Location: Basement II Boogaloo --> outside after lizbeth Action: Introductions Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Kathryn felt a little embarrassed to have just called Victoria's magic peak, and to them have it blow up in everyone's face. She was already on semi rough terms with her dragonborn friend. However, this seemed to only make things worse. For a bit he seemed tense... very tense. Then... relaxed. As if he had just gotten a full body massage. Kosara seemed to fair... differently. She seemed... almost unchanged. Now that she thought about it, so did Blackberry, and Victori- Where the fuck was Victoria?

Between the gummybear song and Victoria suddenly disappearing, between Kosara warning everyone about the rings. And with Kathryn still unsure what the hell was going on, Kathryn found herself worried for what future effects they would eventually see? Maybe it was under powered? Maybe it was something so minor it wasn't visible? Like... snacks in a pouch. A single one goes missing, its hard to tell if its small enough. "Lizbeth its going to be okay." Kathryn tried to say quietly to keep as few people drawn on her conversation as possible. "I can promise you I have done worse to draw unwanted attention to myself." Kathryn tried to joke.

In the moment of chaos, Lizbeth had rushed out the door trying to gain some distance. Kathryn worried with what was going on, that Lizbeth may not be safe alone. She also wanted to let Lizbeth know she didn't have to go through this alone. "Kosara is right, enough weird shite is happening right now. Don't touch anything evil looking, I am going after Lizbeth. The rest of you look for Victoria yeah? Maybe there is another room hidden here she got sent too." Or worse, maybe back to the main study? If she was a magically inclined person who did things I would rather people not see, a way to get back and forth from her discrete studies seemed best.

Rushing after her squire Kathryn didn't call out, she didn't even try to cut Lizbeth off. She just did what she could to keep up while attempting to sing the tune the small girl just sung. "Oh I'm a gummy bear!"" She attempted to sing, and to her credit better than she usually did. On the professional side, what a waste. On a friend to friend moment? It works. "Yes I'm a gummy bear, oh I'm a yummy tummy lucky wucky gummy bear! Oh a gummy gummy gummy bear!" She was also however unfamiliar with the song. She knew she was getting words wrong, but she tried to sing along trying to help drown out the thoughts. A part of her worried she was pushing too hard to help. Maybe the best thing to do was leave her alone? Maybe she was making it worse? Kathryn wanted to help though.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Fighter (Rune Knight), Level 05 HP: 49 / 49 Armor Class: 21 Conditions: N/A Location: Basement II Boogaloo Action: Introductions Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Lizbeth seemed determined to get in the room. Kathryn could hardly blame her, but she worried. Apart of Lizbeth still wanted to experience her childhood, but the more that the would be squire continued on this path, the harder it seemed to Kathryn it would be to retain some of that childhood life. A part of Kathryn wanted to spend a day to just have Lizbeth get a chance to enjoy her life a bit. If today went well, she would have to make that happen. If it went poorly, a day of mourning with sweets and somewhere comfortable to sit while Kathryn did what she could to help.

When Bb mentioned what happened last time they went into an isolated room Kathryn felt very suddenly self conscious. Sure, when it came to battle being the biggest and strongest was nice. However when it came to her self image issues all Kathryn would do was worry she wasn't good enough. The idea of getting even taller again gave the half giant some concerns. The additional comments on the stonework being recent Duergar work was... intriguing unfortunately. "Its probably safe to assume Master Urmdrus even if he doesn't know about this doorway, he may at least have an idea who could have worked on it." Kathryn wondered if that lockbox had staff records in the main study. Maybe they could see who was on payroll?

Kathryn again felt more surprised than anything when Kosara climbed off her person. "Okay... and we're getting down now." Kathryn said raising her arms so Kosara could move without too much getting in her way. As Kosara brought up the idea of getting master Urmdrus to help with the door, Daxos explained he could get it open long before anyone could get to the Master Urmdrus's workshop, find him, and convince him to come back. Assuming he was there. "He may also know if there are any traps, or he may even have a key." He may also be complicit in whats going on. But she didn't want to share those thoughts. Especially in front of Lizbeth who's circle of trust must be struggling right now.

Daxos seemed pretty sure about the lack of a magic trap, and the ability to... remove the door from the frame?! Well damn. That is one way to do it. "Not an idea I would have had, but it is impressive work none the less." Kathryn offered up to Daxos. Kathryn had to respect the craft. She was a metal worker herself mostly, but trade skills were something she absolutely was into. As the door was removed with precision, BB made a move to help remove it, Kathryn would lend a hand in assistance moving it out of the way. BB's concern about another wild magic surge was met with Victoria using her skills in magic to assure everyone that things would be fine. "BB, Victoria knows more about magic than anyone I have ever met. If she says its safe I'm sure its fine." However, Kathryn would be forced to eat her words with as much enthusiasm as her drinking habits made her drink hard liquor.

The room itself was unsettling to Kathryn. The mini cells reminded the warrior of the basement of the township building. The pieces of people being sewn together to make those... creatures. The table with chains only helped to bring that fear back. The urge to start raining hell grew only more as a deep male voice began to speak out. Sure, Kathryn wanted to freak out. Sure, she was ready to freak out. But! Once she realized what the voice was, once she began to process the words being said, she decided that she was way, too fucking sober for this. "What in the loving fuck is a gummy bear?" Kathryn mumbled as her thumb struggled to open the water skin filled with brandy.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Fighter (Rune Knight), Level 05 HP: 49 / 49 Armor Class: 21 Conditions: N/A Location: Basement II Boogaloo Action: Introductions Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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To say Kathryn was a little full of herself in this moment was an understatement, she was excited, proud of herself! Nothing could slow her down! Not only was she a physical force of nature that few could even hope to challenge, she had a brain that actually did something helpful for once! When the door opened, she held a hand on her hammer in case anything jumped out. But she found herself rather... disappointed. Another door. Not only that, another locked door. "...shit balls..." Kathryn grumbled seeing it. Stepping into the small hallway she was able to note that the hallway was in fact, dusty. There was not a ton to observe, but the dust was telling. It meant there was little to no traffic in a very, very long time. It was a backup study, so there was no telling how little it was actually used. But if this was the study that Lizbeth's grandfather did his arcane work in, she was surprised it had been so long. Sure, he had died months ago, but this seemed rather under used.

Turning around, she noticed another thing, the secrete door she opened could be resealed with a lever from the inside. Made it easy to keep the room secrete even when working in it, and in a pinch it could make a last minute panic room. Something to keep in mind if things went wrong. Not that anyone here would choose to hide over fighting, but it may come down to it if things get particularly bad. As Kathryn moved around some more, other than throwing off her center of gravity some, she kept forgetting Kosara was attached to her person. Her armor hugged her tighter than Kosara did, and the tiefling woman's weight didn't really effect Kathryn's strength too much either. But the repeated cheers kept reminding Kathryn that there was in fact, a full grown woman hanging off her back. "Yeah I don't really know if we have what we need to get through the door without brute forcing it. But without knowing what is on the other side, that may be a bit risky. Plus I don't think Lizbeth and Cecily would like us destroying the building too much." Kathryn did try for the crowbar again to see if that would fit into the lock, and it wasn't even fucking close. Then the key from the original study! Also, no dice. "Mother fucker." Kathryn mumbled. She really should have picked up a trick or two when it came to locked doors.

Kathryn then took a moment to step outside of the small hallway to make room for another potential expert. Maybe Victoria had a trick up her sleeve? Or maybe BB knew how to pick a lock? But he also only had one arm... That seemed hard without a second arm, but BB was one of the few people that could go toe to toe with Kathryn in a strait up brawl, so she hesitated underestimating him ever. But in the end, it was Daxos as the dwarf seemed to actually be able to pick a lock! Holy shite! Moving aside so he could work Kathryn found herself a bit deflated when his picking seemed to fail, but he seemed to have another solution. "I was hoping to get in without property destruction, but our options are beginning to run out. If need be I could probably brute force the door, but I worry about if something is waiting on the other side for us." Kathryn said with some concern in her voice. "Plus, I want to keep the cleanup and repair work to a minimum once we are all done here. The less debris the better."

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Fighter (Rune Knight), Level 05 HP: 49 / 49 Armor Class: 21 Conditions: N/A Location: Tap Room --> Basement again! Action: Introductions Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Kosara herself was overall just adorable in her own way. "Just really good bestest friends?" Kathryn asked teasingly. Though they had gone on a date, the night was memorable for all the wrong reasons. She hadn't even been able to talk with Kosara on where they stand? Or where she stands? Parts of Kathryn weren't even sure if such a relationship was allowed. To her knowledge the tiefling woman was not nobility, and she couldn't prove if she came from a wealthy family. And if her father was around, he would be furious that Kathryn was even considering a relationship with someone who likely couldn't produce an heir with her.

Kathryn found herself a bit unsure the best ways to help Lizbeth. She would be lying if she said the undead form Lizbeth held didn't unsettle her just a little bit. But at this point she was sure that this was in fact the young lass she had gotten to know and care for. And she was more than a hollow shell of someone else. Even in this state Kathryn was overjoyed to see Lizbeth get as excited as she was. "Good, keep practicing your magic. Don't think I will let you lighten up your martial training." Kathryn said with a jokish smile on her face. But she was serious. If anyone was to try and harm Lizbeth they would first have to face off through Kathryn. Then Lizbeth could still put up a good fight on whoever remained.

The introduction to Daxos seemed to go well, but Kathryn did let out a bit of a warm chuckle at the comment to her alias. "Glad you like the name, but it is not my name. It is an alias that noble youth take on for adventuring or wondering years. Some do it to avoid tying their problems back to their families, some do it to avoid having their family name effect their adventures. It makes it easier for someone from nobility who are out and about in the world to say what they did was their own achievement and not just because they had their parents name. Though its not a foolproof system. It means youth can get a bit more... Adventurous without blow backs to their family." She paused realizing some of the implications with that statement. "Not that... I've done anything so scandalous to warrant such a thing." Kathryn said in her hasty defense.

Much like that morning when Lizbeth got a brief upper hand on Kathryn during their sparing, Kathryn's fight reflex kicked in once against when Kosara landed on her cape, wrapping around her torso. This time, Kathryn was able to stop herself before any harm could be done. She had instinctively reached up over her shoulder, and her hand had barely grasped one of Kosara's horns before her grip instantly eased. The voice and texture finally registering passed her reflexes. "Okay okay, just don't surprise me so much yeah?" Kathryn said jokingly and thankfully that she didn't react by attempting to forcefully separate the two of them.

Then, in that moment of adrenaline, something clicked. "fork... fork... fork fork... Son of a mother fucker. Its the fucking crowbars." Kathryn let out mildly frustrated that it did not click sooner. But not relieved as she had been booted down so far with her ideas. "I gotta...." She paused, remembering there was a tiefling on her back. Compared to what Kathryn was used to when weight lifting, Kosara weighed practically nothing. And for a moment she had almost forgotten there was a whole ass woman wrapped around her person. "We're gonna go check out something real fast. I think I got the puzzle sorted." Kathryn said hesitantly, but optimistically.

Kathryn rushed to the basement, tiefling attached to her like the assortment of belts and pouches she would normally carry. And sure, now that she was running and going down stairs Kosara was far more noticeable. But only in the sense that her center of balance has absolutely changed. She returned to the shelf and noted several possible prey bars and crowbars that could do the job. When she finds the right one, she presses it in gently, increasing the force as needed so it can set in properly, then turns it a quarter way. There is a grinding stone sound that can be heard as the prybar shifts and a door like space appears in the stone behind the shelving. "Holy son of a fuck bucket." Kathryn mumbled as the door appeared. Kathryn turned excitedly as she had used her brain power instead of brawn and had figured something out! "HEY! WE GOT SOMETHING!" Kathryn said excited barely able to keep herself still before turning around again and attempting to use the handle to open the door.