The cage of light tightens. Jox staggers, but the dark current in him latches onto the Second Senator’s veins like a hooked blade.
The senator jerks upright, eyes wide and glassy, then folds as his own blood turns traitor beneath Jox’s will. He claws at his chest, choking on panic.
Across the seal, the Hooded Leader recoils, horror cracking through their menace. The trapped bandit whimpers, unable to move, as the plaza fills with the iron stink of blood and spellcraft.
Valerius
Enough, Jox. Stop this, and I will give you more than one name.
The senator’s knees hit the stone. Jox keeps hold of him, and the pressure inside the man drives him into a helpless collapse.
Valerius
The harvest was ordered. Your parents were only the first taken. I will name the others, if you spare him.
✓ Quest Accepted
Force the Hooded Leader to name the others
“Can I sense if the leader is lying about the names?”
YES, AND MORE (Likely, rolled 8)
jox
The dark current in my veins pulses with a cold, rhythmic truth. Their fear is genuine, and the names they hold are heavy with the weight of the past.
Valerius
I am not deceiving you, Jox. My name is Valerius, and I have spent years haunted by the order I carried out that night. If you release him, I will give you every name, and the location of the archives where the harvest records are kept.
“Does Jox successfully force the senator's blood to bend while simultaneously choking the bandit leader to demand names?”
YES (Likely, rolled 34)
jox
The blood of the senator responds to my command like a puppet on a string, and the leader's throat tightens as I tighten my grip on the air itself.
Valerius
The names you seek are etched into the bloodline of the High Council, starting with the man you hold... his name is Malakor.
“Jox raises his hand, and the senator’s blood suddenly begins to twist and pull under his control. The senator’s eyes redden as blood begins to seep from them. At the same time, Jox grabs the remaining bandit leader by the throat, tightening his grip as he demands the answers he came for. and starts asking for names”
SUCCESS (Legendary Magic, rolled -1)
The violet ring jerks tighter, and the senator’s body arches hard enough to snap the air with a crack of light. Blood threads from his eyes in thin red lines as Jox’s grip on the hidden pulse inside him takes hold.
Valerius
Enough... wait. Malakor serves the inner tally, but he is not the first.
Jox closes his hand around Valerius’s throat. The hooded leader claws at his wrist, then freezes as the pressure sharpens and the name spills loose from fear.
Valerius
Senn. The harvest clerk was Senn. He kept the records beneath the eastern granary.
The unconscious senator drops a little lower in the spell, held up only by the trembling sigils. The bandit nearest the vault flinches but cannot move, staring at the blood on the stone.
Valerius
If you keep pulling, he dies. If you stop, I give you the rest.
The ring of sigils wavers between steadiness and collapse, bathing the plaza in unstable violet glare, while Valerius waits for Jox’s next command.
Quest Complete
Force the Hooded Leader to name the others