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junker-town · 4 years

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The Cowboys’ stubborn refusal to win has defined their 2019

Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

Dallas couldn’t score a single touchdown against the Eagles in a must-win game.

The Cowboys’ only path to the playoffs is to win the NFC East. They may have flushed that scenario down the toilet by losing to the Eagles in Week 16.

The 17-9 loss doesn’t eliminate Dallas, but it did hand the division lead to Philadelphia with one week left to play. Now the Cowboys have to beat Washington and hope the Eagles lose to the 4-11 Giants in Week 17.

The Cowboys’ entire 2019 season has been defined by stretches of brilliance that are promptly ruined by the team stubbing its toe. Just a week prior to the loss to the Eagles, the Cowboys put together their best performance of the season in a 44-21 blowout of the Rams. It was a glimpse at what Dallas can do when both the offense and defense play well on the same day.

That win was followed by the Cowboys delivering a lifeless performance in what could’ve been an NFC East clincher. After the game, Eagles running back Miles Sanders talked about Philadelphia knowing how high the stakes were. Meanwhile, Cowboys defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence said, “talent without direction is nothing at all,” a statement that encapsulates the team’s year, whether he meant it that way or not.

The season was on the line for both teams, but only the Eagles played with a sense of urgency. The loss was a microcosm of the Cowboys’ frustrating season as a whole:

4 ways the Cowboys blew it against the Eagles

When the Cowboys and Eagles met for the first time back in Week 7, Dallas had no issue tearing through the Philadelphia defense. In a 37-10 win, Ezekiel Elliott had 111 rushing yards and Dak Prescott threw for a touchdown and ran for another.

In the two months since that loss, Philadelphia has suffered a litany of injuries. Receiver Alshon Jeffery went on injured reserve earlier in December, and the Eagles were without Nelson Agholor, Lane Johnson, and Jordan Howard in Week 16. Somehow, this much more banged up version of the Philadelphia roster beat the Cowboys.

Here are a few ways how:

1. The Cowboys receivers dropped everything

By the end of the game, Dallas had six total drops. Some came at the most inopportune times possible. Just before halftime, Amari Cooper dropped a pass that would’ve resulted in a first down near midfield:

Third and 14, Amari Cooper drops the ball. pic.twitter.com/kd3GY59wLW

— DIE-HARD Fans (@Eaglesfans9) December 22, 2019

Michael Gallup’s drop in the final minutes of the game had a much higher degree of difficulty. But his mistake cost the Cowboys at least 35 yards in field position:

This drop may have been the worst of them all. Dak finally throws a dime on a vertical route and it bounces of Gallup's hands. pic.twitter.com/jPOh7qgcwj

— John Owning (@JohnOwning) December 23, 2019

Over and over again, when there was a play to be made, Cowboys receivers couldn’t get the job done.

2. Dak Prescott sailed several passes over the heads of receivers

The play that will likely haunt the Cowboys most from the loss to the Eagles was Prescott overthrowing Tavon Austin late in the game. What should’ve been an easy 75-yard touchdown instead fell incomplete:

Tavon Austin runs a great route to generate separation on the vertical route but Dak just misses him. pic.twitter.com/0xGACtyB1X

— John Owning (@JohnOwning) December 23, 2019

That was one of a few bad misses for Prescott, though. He also missed Cooper in the second half on a-third down pass that would’ve put the Cowboys in Philadelphia territory.

Third down and 11, Dak overthrows Amari Cooper who was wide open for the first down. pic.twitter.com/ehEzrY21On

— DIE-HARD Fans (@Eaglesfans9) December 22, 2019

Prescott missed practice time for the first time in his career prior to Week 16 due to a shoulder injury. He was removed from the injury report later that week.

After the game, Prescott didn’t want to blame his shoulder for his inaccuracy.

Dak Prescott said his shoulder injury did not impact his play today: "I missed some throws. I can't say I have pain or felt it in my shoulder. It could've been a lack of reps this week, who knows? It definitely wasn't my shoulder. It wasn't anything I was feeling. I felt great."

— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) December 23, 2019

Still, finished the day just 25-of-44 passing. The six drops hurt his throwing totals, but he didn’t do himself any favors either.

3. The defense didn’t break much, but it sure bent a lot

Holding the Eagles to 17 points probably should’ve been enough for the Cowboys to win. Giving up 431 yards of total offense didn’t help the team’s cause, though.

With the Philadelphia offense able to steadily chip away at the Dallas defense, the Eagles finished with over 36 minutes in time of possession. The Cowboys had the ball for less than 24 minutes.

After the Cowboys turned the ball over on downs with less than two minutes left, the Eagles were able to get two more first downs to put the game on ice. The final dagger was a 38-yard run for Miles Sanders that could’ve been a touchdown if he wanted it to be.

Miles Sanders seals the game for the @Eagles! #FlyEaglesFly #DALvsPHI pic.twitter.com/jYq4qkFcfo

— NFL (@NFL) December 23, 2019

The Cowboys are among the worst in the NFL at forcing turnovers and couldn’t get one from the Eagles.

4. Jason Garrett (surprise, surprise) held the team back

To start the second half, the Cowboys steadily made their way into Eagles territory before the drive ended with a turnover. On a third-and-short, rookie running back Tony Pollard tried to burrow his way for a first down, but lost the ball and it was recovered by the Eagles.

The @Eagles defense forces a big takeaway! #FlyEaglesFly : #DALvsPHI on FOX : NFL app // Yahoo Sports app Watch free on mobile: https://t.co/csMF3GLW6Z pic.twitter.com/icqAOQR0Lt

— NFL (@NFL) December 22, 2019

Pollard has been a solid change-of-pace back for the Cowboys, and had 131 rushing yards in Week 15. However, his fumble against the Eagles — one of only two times he touched the ball all game — came in a situation tailor-made for Elliott.

It was also a mystery why Cooper was absent for some of the most important moments of the game. Garrett tried to explain to the media that fatigue was a factor. That seems like a stretch considering he was gone almost the entire last drive of the game.

Jason Garrett just said Amari Cooper wasn't hurt in the game. Tried to blame fatigue but media reminded him Amari was out for multiple plays. I am absolutely floored @1053thefan.

— Shan Shariff (@1053SS) December 23, 2019

Cowboys brass tried to further clarify Cooper’s absence, but didn’t make it any less baffling.

A #Cowboys source disputes the notion WR Amari Cooper was benched. Instead they wanted to give Tavon Austin a shot at the DBs because Eagles having hard time w smaller quick guys. They got in hurry up mode so they had to wait to put Cooper back in. “Rotation change, not bench.”

— Jane Slater (@SlaterNFL) December 23, 2019

The last offensive play for the Cowboys was an incomplete pass in the end zone to Gallup with both Cooper and Randall Cobb on the sideline. Garrett has been on thin ice for a long time and his decision-making was questionable again in Week 16.

A trip to the playoffs isn’t impossible, it’s just not likely

The odds are stacked against the Cowboys now. To get into the postseason, they need:

A win against Washington

The Giants to beat the Eagles

It’s hard to know which Cowboys team will show up on a weekly basis, but they should handle Washington with ease. The tough part of the scenario is hoping New York can beat the Eagles. However, the Giants have won back-to-back games after an overtime loss to Philadelphia in Week 14. That leaves some hope for Dallas.

According to ESPN, there’s still a better than one-in-four chance the Cowboys get in, although it’d be significantly higher if they actually won some close games.

The Cowboys are now 1-6 in one-possession games this season, 2nd-worst in the NFL (Bengals are 0-8). The Cowboys still have a 28% chance to win the NFC East, per FPI. That requires a Cowboys win and Eagles loss next week. pic.twitter.com/O730K2J686

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) December 23, 2019

If the Eagles can avoid disaster, the Cowboys will miss the playoffs. That’s inexplicable for a team that came into the week ranked in the top 10 in total defense and No. 1 in offense.

The loss to the Eagles was everything wrong about the 2019 Cowboys all summed up in one game. A roster talented enough to be a postseason contender was its own worst enemy from start to finish.

The Cowboys have slalomed between unstoppable and completely inept all season. They picked the worst time possible to have an awful day, and it probably cost them their postseason chances — and Garrett’s tenure as coach too.

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auburnfamilynews · 5 years

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Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

An in depth look at Auburn’s three touchdowns and the key plays that helped lead to those scores.

For about two and half quarters, it looked like Andy Burcham was about to have the same first day on the job experience as Rod Bramblett had in his debut. The Auburn offense was struggling, outside of one drive inside the redzone that ended in a pick, there just wasn’t much good happening.

But in the 3rd quarter, Auburn’s offense started to find itself. Following two outstanding runs by the best interview in college football, Mr. JaTarvious Boobee Whitlow, Eli Stove found daylight on the speed sweep for a huge gain.

On the previous play, Auburn used this same sweep action and the Ducks defense didn’t widen at all with Stove. I suspect the coaching staff saw the same thing which is why they decided to hit this on the very next play.

Auburn is using an unbalanced line here with Prince Tega Wanogho lined up outside of Jack Driscoll to the right side. John Samuel Shenker is an eligible receiver backside which is something to file away for the future. The Ducks respond by shifting their Tite front, which typically has the nose tackle head up on the center and the ends lined up on the inside shoulder of the tackles, over a gap to account for the extra gap to the right.

The Tigers actually leave both the nose and play side end unblocked by what looks like design trusting that they won’t have enough time to get up field with Stove coming across full speed. Mike Horton down blocks the backside end while Driscoll releases to the middle linebacker. Wanogho reaches the outside linebacker and does a good job getting him up field and out of the way for Stove. Stove cuts behind Tega and follows his fullback Spencer Nigh who is pulling around to take on the corner. Sal Cannella does a great job sealing the safety and then it’s just Stove’s speed taking over.

That huge gain put Auburn at Oregon’s 11. Auburn then goes hurry up (it might actually be back) which seems to catch Oregon in a moment of confusion. One Duck is sprinting off the field which actually leaves Oregon down a man. Nix quickly recognizes that no one is covering Eli Stove, snaps the ball and gets it out quickly to Eli. Stove makes one man miss and Auburn finally finds paydirt.

The throw was a little high and probably a step further down the field than it needed to be but big props to Bo for recognizing the situation and taking advantage. Also props to Stove for being ready and making a nice play to make sure it resulted in a touchdown. It was nice to see #12 back on the field making an impact again.

After failing to convert on a 3rd & 2 on the next drive, Auburn got the ball back again early in the 4th quarter with a desperate need for a touchdown. That drive became the Boobee show gashing the ducks for 46 yards on 5 carries. His longest going for 31 yards.

On the previous play both Prince Tega Wanogho and Eli Stove left the field gimpy. Bailey Sharp came in for Tega while Matthew Hill checked in for Stove. The Tigers are running a Split Zone RPO concept that they used quite a bit last night. Nix is reading the end on the left side. If he crashes, Nix will pull it and dump it off to Hill. If he goes up field, like he does on this play, Nix gives it.

Two things make this play: Boobee’s footwork and Driscoll’s block. Kim and Horton are combo blocking the center with Horton ideally getting to the OLB at the 2nd level. That doesn’t happen partly because Jack Driscoll takes his man and shoves him into Horton’s backside. Whitlow, meanwhile, draws the linebacker in (who happens to be Troy Dye, a potential 1st round draft pick) with his initial path, jump cuts outside and then shows his burst exploding by both Dye and the safety to get the edge for a big gain.

That play put Auburn in business. Three plays later the Tigers are on the goal line but Boobee is on the sideline exhausted from murdering Duck defenders. That’s when Gus finally remembers he has a 6’5” 235 lb freakazoid standing on the sideline and sends in Joey Gatewood for his one and only carry of the day.

It was extremely effective.

Bust out the 2010 playbook ya’ll. Apologies for getting super technical here but Auburn uses what you might call VERY LARGE MAN personnel on this play. Auburn has a total of seven offensive lineman on the field for this touchdown. Tega is back in the game lined up once again in an unbalanced look to the right of Driscoll. Bailey Sharp takes his place at left tackle while Tashawn Manning checks in at left guard. Why is Manning at guard? Well that’s because Marquel Harrell is lined up at fullback/h-back/upback/giant-man-back to the right of Gatewood. Both Spencer Nigh and John Samuel Shenker are in the game with Sal Cannella as the lone wideout.

I am going to guess this is a run ya’ll...

Gatewood does a fine Cam Newton Superman impression going over the top behind Harrell’s block who folds in the Oregon defensive line. You would like to see him not lose the ball but not a huge deal as long as you break the plane. I suspect Gus might wish he had run this concept four straight times when taking over inside the 5 yard line earlier in the game...

I suspect everyone remembers the final touchdown on the night correct? With only 2:04 left on the game clock, Bo Nix would need to orchestrate a game winning drive in his first start as a collegiate quarterback as a true freshman.

No problem.

Well maybe there were a few problems, starting first with Auburn immediately finding themselves in a 4th and 3 situation. That’s when Nix made one of the biggest plays of the night.

Auburn comes out in a bunched look with Seth Williams and Sal Cannella both aligned only a few yards outside of the offensive line. Spencer Nigh is lined up just outside of Driscoll’s hip while Stove is splitting the difference between Nigh and Canella but deeper in backfield. Stove is going to run an end around to try and occupy the backside of the defense (which it does). Nix fakes it to Stove before rolling out.

Credit the Ducks, they were all over this play. Williams is running a drag route just past the sticks while Cannella appears to be running a deep out. Boobee is in the flat giving Nix three reads on this play. Oregon has everyone well covered and the playside edge defender even beats Nigh’s attempted block to get pressure. But the beauty of rolling a mobile QB out like this is it gives him the opportunity to tuck it and go if he has nothing.

That’s exactly what Nix does. After spending most of the night seeming hesitant about using his legs outside of escaping pressure, Nix decides to stick his foot in the ground and dive for the first down. He gets it by just the nose of the football. Hope is still alive.

After a smoke draw play goes miserably (Boobee misses a WIDE open hole on this play btw), Nix hits Nigh on a quick 3 step drop for a nice pickup. That sets up 3rd down which Auburn is able to convert thanks to some hard running by Boobee. Nix spikes ball to stop the clock and then tries to hit Williams on a back shoulder play but he’s well covered and the throw isn’t great.

All of a sudden, it’s 3rd & 10 with Auburn just outside of Carlson’s range. There’s only 21 seconds left on the clock. Auburn once again needs its true freshman QB to make a big play.

Auburn is running a flood concept here with Williams running 15 yard out route, Shenker on a 5 yard out and Sal with what looks like a deeper over route. Oregon appears to be in Cover 3 which means that both safeties and the field side cornerback are responsible for the deep third of the field. Shenker occupies the flat defender while the linebacker is sitting in his hook zone. Williams’s route threatens the CB deep so he bails to make sure doesn’t get beat deep. That leaves a nice little hole between the deep CB, the sitting LB and the occupied flat defender. Nix for one of the few times that night drops back and gets this ball out on time at the end of his drop. The throw is perfect and on time, catch made and Auburn has a first down.

The Tigers then go hurry up with everyone thinking if they run one more play it’s gotta be some sort of quick out route where the WR can get out of bounds. You know play it conservatively like Chris Fowler speculated on the broadcast.

Nope.

Instead, in a play not that all too dissimilar to his dad’s first touchdown, Nix decides to go for the throat. Defending a 2x2 look, the Ducks actually have seven defenders in the box and only one safety deep. I am not 100% sure what coverage the Ducks are trying to run here but it’s obvious they were expecting a quick hitting route because they have five guys sitting in zone coverage just about 5 yards deep.

Stove’s out route actually sucks two defenders: the linebacker & field side cornerback. That leaves Seth Williams one on one with the deep safety who breaks desperately to try and get in position to make the play. Nix throws this ball short, allowing Williams to come back for it and make an outstanding play boxing the DB out with his body and powering into the endzone. Also huge props to Whitlow for stepping up and taking on the blitzing linebacker which gives Nix the time to step up in the pocket and deliver the game winner.

I will probably talk more about Nix’s overall performance tomorrow. Suffice it to say, he looked like a true freshman in his first collegiate start against a well schemed defense. Auburn’s offense overall struggled most of the night until midway through the 3rd quarter. But when the moment was presented to them to make a drive and a play to win the game, they came through.

So much of what went wrong Saturday night can be fixed with more reps and coaching. What you can’t coach or teach is the mental toughness to not lose confidence or trust after struggling so much of the night. Bo showed that last night. Heck most of this Auburn team showed it too. They all got their butts whooped early but gradually as the game went on they seemed to find their footing. They battled until the end which gave them a chance to win. When the moment arrived, they seized it.

War Damn Eagle!

from College and Magnolia - All Posts https://www.collegeandmagnolia.com/2019/9/3/20847523/2019-touchdown-auburn-oregon-edition-boobee-whitlow-joey-gatewood-bo-nix-seth-williams

#IFTTT #Blogger #auburn #auburn fast #wareagle #AuburnFamilyNews #war eagle #sec #football news #aubu

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dungeons-n-nerdlings · 7 years

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Friday Femme Fantasy AGE - Episode 3

Our Adventure Continues....

We pick up where we left off in Episode 2

As our three main heroines, Fern, Sharpwit, and Bertha were escorting their charge up to the gates of Soleia, they actually stopped a small-ways back to discuss how to get Andrew’s men through the gate without raising suspicions.

At the same time Sharpwit when through the items Count Powers gave her and found the letter of introduction that he had given her. She carefully opened the letter and a couple of things stood out.

The letter opened with “Dear Michael” not “Dear Dechion”.

There was no mention of harm to his daughter, only confidence that he could help her.

These two things together raised enough suspicion on Sharpwit that she got the other letter from April and compared them. While they looked the same to her initially, Bertha was quickly able to point out the small differences that were clear signs of a forgery.

After some discussion with Lavender and April, they decided to get rooms at an inn, then go over to Dechion ahead of Lavender, and see if they could determine the truth.

Sometimes You Just Need A Little Dumb Luck...

The group makes their way to the center of Soleia to the area known as “The Stone City”. This is a part of down that was rebuilt nearly entirely of stone after the previous area burned to the ground.

The inn that Sharpwits uncle recommend was not hard to find. It is a huge 4 story building with a large sign showing an adventurer bent over to pick up a gold piece and a gout of dragon fire missing him with the words “Dumb Luck” in side of it.

The group makes their way up the front steps where they see an emerald golem sitting with his feet up on the rail. He turns out to be actually animated and well mannered, making Bertha second guess her opinion of golems.

He quickly covers the rules of fighting, that no weapons should be used and the loser of any fight cleans up around the bar until someone else loses.

The group heads inside and finds a very impressive bar/tavern area, and learn there is a small casino on the 2nd floor along with rooms and suites on the 3rd and 4th floor.

Sometimes You Just Need To Punch Something...

The group, consisting of Sharpwit, Fern, Bertha, Lavender, April, Andrew, and two of his men ended up getting a 4 room suite on the 3rd floor. Once in the room Lavender and April took the largest room, Andrew and his men took another, Fern and Sharpwit took the 3rd and Bertha got a room to herself.

Fern and Sharpwit decided to go to Dechion, leaving Bertha and Andrew behind to watch over Lavender and April, who were getting cleaned up and enjoying the amenities of the suite’s master bedroom. Once Fern and Sharpwit left Bertha and Andrew debated on going to the casino. Once Bertha put her foot down that she was waiting on the girls, Andrew left to go gamble.

A short time later Andrew returns with a pouch of silver where he had won over 150 silver playing cards. He again offers to watch the girls while Bertha goes, as there is no reason for two of them to wait around for them to get cleaned up.

Bertha finally caves to her urges, but opts to play at a table that has full view of the stairs so that she could see any threats going up. Andrew also has two men placed at the top of the stairs as well, so the girls are well protected.

Bertha begins playing cards and drinking orcish ale (it has bits of meat in it), and having a good time. However, her luck turns, she starts to lose and gets into a fist fight with the Dwarf, that she lost too. While the fight had been a great stress reliever for her, she was not wiping down tables and yelling at people to learn to use coasters.

Meanwhile Across Town...

Sharpwit and Fern follow the directions they have to Dechion’s place. They come upon a small house with a white picket fence and small bell at the gate. They ring the bell, the gate opens and they see a sign that says “stay on the path” (which they do) and go up to the door.

A well built human man comes to the door, when Sharpwit asks if he is Dechion Arcane, he says he is, and asks why they are there. After a brief explanation Dechion invites them in to discuss details.

Sharpwit explains why they are there showing Dechion both letters and asking him if his given name is “Michael”. He says it isn’t but it is something that Count Powers would call him out of affection.

Dechion confirms that the letter that April had was the forgery and encourages Sharpwit and Fern to bring Lavender and April back over to his place so they can sort things out, as he would never harm Lavender and he wants to clear up who would suggest such a thing.

Sharpwit and Fern return to Dumb Luck and when they get to their suite, they find it empty. Bertha’s stuff is still there But Lavender, April, Andrew’s and his men's stuff is all gone.

There’s Always Room For More...

Sharpwit and Fern quickly fine Bertha cleaning up on the second floor. Bertha explains that she went to gamble after Andrew said he would keep an eye on the girls. Further, she was playing at a table where she could see anyone coming or going up the stairs..... except for Fern and Sharpwit, she hadn’t seen them go up..

Sharpwit points out she also didn’t see Lavender, April, and Andrew leave. To which Bertha has an explosion of obscenities in Common, Dwarven, and Orcish. She proceeds to rant about how she is going to hurt Andrew when she finds him.

As she finishes her rant, a very large woman and a very tiny man came up the stairs asking if they were talking about Andrew Croner. The group nods in the affirmative, and asks why they wanted to know.

The Hafling (as that is surely what he was) initially said “no reason, just a guess” and the large woman (half-giant for those keeping score) said, “We have a bounty on him, he’s worth 200 silver”. To which her companion halfling looked slightly disappointed.

The Halfling then went on to introduce himself as Fiz of the Burning Flame and his companion was Skalda of the “save my ass from being eaten” fame. Fern, Sharpwit, and Bertha all took turns introducing themselves and quickly our trio of characters became a quintet.

Sharpwit suggested the revisit Dechion and let him know what happened, that might lead them to Lavender, April and Andrew. The rest of the group agreed and as they were heading out the door a voice from behind Skalda asked “Is it ok if I tag along, my vision led me here”.

the group turned around (and Skalda stepped aside) to find an Female Orc Shaman standing there looking determined but smiling. Bertha immediately asks what tribe she is from, and when she answers Bertha lights up and says, “My uncle’s wife is from that tribe! Ok, come with!” and like that the group grew to six. The orc says her name is Eldra and the group heads out.

Things Could Always Get Worse....

The group returned to Dechion, who is understandably confused as none of the new people Sharpwit and Fern brought were Lavender or April. However, after a short summary of what happened Dechion understand and, in fact, can add some information to the pool.

He did some magical investigation on the forged letter while the group was away and found that it was in fact written by a Powers, just not Markus Powers, but rather by his brother Bastion.

Bastion is Markus’ older brother and was disowned by the family. However, as things stand now if Markus was to die before Lavender came of age in two years, Bastion would all of the Powers holding and belongings. Further he is pretty sure that April is April Powers, Lavender’s cousin and a fairly good grifter in her own right.

With this information the group decides to head out after Lavender, April, and Andrew Croner (and his men) as they want to stop April from manipulating Lavender into killing her father, capture Andrew and his men for the bounty, and stop for some breakfast tacos on the way out of town (don’t judge. Fiz is always hungry.)

Dechion supplies the group with a bracelet that will nullify Lavender’s powers temporarily so she can be brought back to him. He also gave them a compass that points to Lavender so they can track her. The group thanks Dechion, says they will return with Lavender, and head out.

Well, most head out, Fiz decided that the shortest way back to the street is to dive out the front window, where he is promptly grabbed and attacked by the carnivorous bushes that Dechion has outside his windows.

Dechion is stunned for a moment in shock that anyone would think that going out the window would be faster than walking out the door, then he quickly moves to the front door as he gets the bush to release Fiz before he is killed and eaten.

Dechion advises Fiz that the shortest distance is not always the quickest way and he should consider such actions in the future. Fiz nods and thanks him for getting him out of the bush.

Shouldn’t Have Taken That Left at The Wall...

As our six heroes begin to track Lavender with the compass, they find that it is leading them straight towards the city gate they came in through. They figure she is headed back to Culthhaven to attack her father, so this direction makes sense.

However, before they get to the gate the compass quickly shows Lavender moving off to the groups left. The group alters course to follow and before to long finds that the signal is pointing into a large warehouse.

While circling the warehouse to see the options for getting in, the group discovers the body of one of Andrew’s men lying in an alley covered up, but clearly recently killed. The group then becomes more cautious with their movements.

Eventually Sharpwit offers to sneak up and take a listen at the only door they’ve seen that looks like it could open. As she is listening there is a very quiet sound of wood sliding and a voice whispers to her, “You should be here.” To which she answers, “Where am I exactly?” The voice says “You are trespassing in The Court Of The Hand.”

As Sharpwit isn’t from Soleia, she doesn’t reflect the appropriate amount of awe and fear that one might have expected when dealing with the cities largest thieves guild. However, this lack of knowledge doesn’t deter her from her mission.

“We are here looking for a young girl that I’ve been charged with bringing safely to Soleia.” The voice replies, “If she is in here, you’ve really not done your job very well.” Sharpwit replies, “so how can I get her back?” The voice tells her to wait, and then comes back and tells her, “You and the Orc over there may enter, the rest must wait out here”.

Eldra looks confuses, Sharpwit looks confused, in fact, everyone is a bit confused as to why the voice picked Eldra and Sharpwit. But, in the end, they comply and Sharpwit and Eldra enter the building.

The shadowy figure leads them down and through a maze of boxes, hallways, and doors until they reach a large open area where they see Lavender and April hanging in gibbet cages and Andrew tied to a chair beaten and unconscious.

As the two take in the sight around them the figure steps out of the shadows and puts his hood back to reveal an Orc male with a scar running down one cheek. He doesn’t offer his name, and neither guest asks.

Making a Deal With The Devil...

Sharpwit asks the Orc what they needed to do to take Lavender and April out. Their host tells them that they can barter for Lavender’s release but April has cheated and stolen from The Court Of The Hand and must be held accountable. April, having dropped all guise of the “innocent handmaiden” look rolls her eyes at this comment.

“What do you want for Lavender’s release then?” Sharpwit asks? The Orc says that he wants Andrew released from her thrall as he is one of their best agents and currently he’s simpering dolt only set on protecting Lavender. Sharpwit agrees.

Sharpwit goes over and talks to Lavender, who is insistent they must save April and her. Sharpwit explains a little of what she knows, and that she can only get her out right now. As she does she reaches through the bars and places Dechion’s bracelet on her wrist. It glows ever so slightly for a moment and then goes back to normal.

Sharpwit returns to the orc and says that Andrew is free. The orc looks skeptical, but nods towards Andrew where two men with a bucket of water walk out and wake him up. Andrew seems to have no memory of where he is at the moment or why he is tied to a chair, but clearly he is not acting to protect Lavender, and that fulfills the bargin.

Lavender is released from the gibbet cage where Sharpwit, Eldra, and her are led back to the front door by the mysterious orc. The Orc whispers to Sharpwit that if she ever wants a career change The Court could always use talent like hers. She smiles, but says she’s currently on a job.

The three of them rejoin the others and head back towards Dechion’s house.

Our Adventure Will Continue in two weeks...

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