Running Out of Time Part 2

## Episode 25 - The FeyWild West

In the Town Square, Seline and Talia go to find Captain Wilde. On the auction block the 10 42nd are chained up awaiting trial. James reiterates that Mayor Whendlewood hopes to save face with these summary trials and executions. He also mentions District 3 having an undead problem. District 3 only has three towns of any size outside its capital city and its people are finding difficulty in settling the sandy area. Incidentally, no one has yet seen Jim Walker but Captain Wilde thinks it's unlikely they'll see him anytime soon if the rider and their message travel by normal means given the distance between Crankshaft and Duskdown. When Seline talks to the prisoners, She finds that two of them are rather stoic about their current situation. While they are willing to die for the natural order, they are convinced that day won't be today. One of them tries to bare their teeth at an unimpressed Talia.

> **Talia Argent-Grey**It don't work if you don't have fangs, brother.

Talia and Seline tell Captain Wilde about the prisoner’s thoughts on his survivability for today. He says that the DMP have been strategically scattered just in case. As the trial starts and the prisoners plead not guilty, 3 hooded figures make their way through the crowd. While the prisoners are pleading their case, Seline and Talia try to move up behind the three hooded figures. As Talia and Seline are making their way through crowd and the mayor has started sentencing the prisoners, the taller of the three figures straightens up to his full height (a head and shoulders above the others in the crowd). He raises his gun in the air and fires a single shot only to have Talia shoot his hand immediately afterward. The crowd immediately begins to scatter. As the crowd clears the figures (now with their hoods down) are visible... a halfling is now tending to large men's bleeding hand and the human with them has their guns out. Talia shifts reflexively when the large man's clawed up face reveals him to be Venassi and 42nd General Jim Walker (a Goliath). Seline's Hold Person only affects the halfling. Talia orders them to drop their weapons. Seline attempts to Hold Person on Jim Walker losing the Hold Person on the halfling but it fails. Talia asks Rhenalle to check the 3 for Venassi amulets but they're not wearing them around their necks. Walker identifies himself and states that he is here because he heard that some of his people got in trouble and wants to say his piece. Walker claims to have been alerted to a rogue element in the 42nd in Crankshaft and arrived in an attempt to deal with it. He agrees that 42nd prisoners are guilty and with their intended sentenced to hang but asks that they be remanded in his custody so that the 42nd can punish their own. The mayor refuses his request. Walker claims to have lost more than 50 members of the 42nd to this rogue element the within it.

> **42nd General Jim Walker** *(gives Seline a look)*Soon there won't be any second organization hiding within the 42nd.— General Jim Walker at Crankshaft under Zone of Truth

The mayor orders Walker and his two flunkies to leave Crankshaft before the trial proceeds. Walker appears to concede while making a cryptic threat. After he shoulders his way between Talia and Seline on his way out, Talia shows him Retribution.

> **Talia Argent-Grey**You dropped this.— to Jim Walker about Retribution

 Jim recognizes his lost weapon and they exchanged threats and insults before Walker leaves. The crowd grumbles about Walker and the DMP while the trial continues. Seline, Talia, and Captain Wilde discuss what Walker's showing up at the trial means. When the hangings begin, Talia realizes Walker was a diversion. Seline sends Cortez to look around for trouble. Through Cortez, Seline sees 5 people searching through the burning pyre of 42nd bodies in the southwest part of town while a woman with the large duffle bag is making her way into the mine. Seline passes this on to Talia and Captain Wilde. Seline and Talia run for the mine only to find the gate guard is dead inside the open gates. Seline goes for the Crankshaft house while Talia runs into the mine. She follows the tracks down avoiding a hole in the floor one of the shafts. Talia passes where Seline and she originally faced the Gardener of Titania. She slows before she sees a woman setting something up out of the duffle bag. When Talia orders the woman to stand with her hands up, She hears the bomb ticking. The woman lunges for Talia who quickly shoots her in the knee caps. Unfortunately, the shot takes the woman’s leg off mid-thigh and she falls unconscious rapidly bleeding out. Talia relieves her of her amulet before casting cure wounds on her. Talia picks up the bomb with 10 seconds remaining.

## Characters

### Players

* Seline Argent-Grey
* Talia Argent-Grey

### NPCs

* Captain Wilde
* Mayor Whendlewood
* 42nd General Jim Walker
* Rhenalle