Gloucester Chronicles: part one

The unofficial record of the gang's activities

1149AD

Maelglyn, the leader of a gang of lowlifes, thieves and murderers, hears news of his brother Alfred. It seems that Alfred had heard about a great treasure trove to be found in a ruined abbey near the Bristol road. So Alfred gathers his gang and goes off to the abbey and has not been seen since.

Maelglyn, when he hears of this, wants to do two things a) find his brother, make sure he's OK and b) if possible get the treasure and put one over Alfred. So he gathers his gang and after 2 days of long and arduous walking with bad cat meat pies they finally reach Berkley Castle. The gang are not used to walking far, being city boys going to the next district is a long way. They are not impressed with the fact that they still have further to walk, but the thought of treasure keeps them going. After a good fight in a local pub, with only one 'accidental' death (well he was asking for it said Tostig), and a small amount of rotten leather being bought (bugger knows why), the gang leave Berkley and head onwards.

Finally they reach their destination, a small village with suspicious farmhands. Still a bit of coin loosens them up and the gang stays the night in the barn. The next day they head straight out for the ruined abbey, where Bill finds a load of tracks going into the catacombs and only two coming out. Tostig ventures his opinion over Bill's tracking prowess, which Bill accepts with good grace (either that or a broken nose).

Inside the darkened catacombs are loads of dead people, the richer ones further on in. The gang ends up in a large room with many unopened caskets. Upon spotting some blood and following it they open one of the caskets up and find not only the original occupant but also an addition, one of Alfred's men. It's at this stage that Wulfear hears some noises from back the way they came - he spots a waking corpse, a skeleton to be exact. Wulfear warns everyone, and as usual Tostig ventures an opinion on Wulfear's mental condition. When Maelglyn sees one of them, he tells Tostig to stop being stupid and get to fighting them. Tostig does start fighting but turns on Maelglyn himself.

As the fight ensures, panic reigns, Wulfear is taken by two of them, whilst Bill and Simon make a break for it. Tostig stops beating up Maelglyn when he realises that there really are skeletons, and Edwin backs up Maelglyn in his bid for freedom. Eventually everyone except for Wulfear gets out, and Maelglyn is so pissed with whoever set up his brother that he doesn't take his anger out on Bill and Simon for leaving him down there. He knows that Alfred got the tip in Bristol and so the gang decides to go down there and sort out whoever did this. Bill is sent off to get the lay of the land, and contact an old friend of Maelglyn's called Harold. Harold is an old boss himself and now runs the Black Hare, his son Neil is in charge of the gang now.

Once Maelglyn has recovered a little the gang head off down to Bristol (not before Edwin has 'words' with a certain leather saleswoman and her cats). At the Black Hare, Harold warns Maelglyn that he should go elsewhere as he's expected there. As they leave a rough looking fellow follows along, Maelglyn quickly hatches a plan to capture him. This is quickly done and with no blood split for once, and the interrogation begins. After a few threats, one rather admirable one from Edwin, the fellow gets to talking, it turns out that he's a Fell. Now the gang have heard of the Fells, they are as black-hearted folk, as any know, they even make Tostig and Edwin look like saints! Worse is to come, they were set up by Bill - he's also a Fell, a spy in their very midst.

Poor Bill, still it just goes to show that you can't work both sides of the fence, not with Maelglyn's gang anyhow. Of course he talks before they do any major work on him, seems he's been spying for a good two years now and he's pissing his pants before Tostig and Simon get to work on him. To make sure they can't be identified the gang strip them both, and find a chain with a small black stone about their necks - now this might be useful so Maelglyn pockets these. Anyhow after those two loose ends are tidied up, and the gang are about to leave the now blood soaked alley, Harold spots them and comes along. He gives Maelglyn some advice, get out of Bristol, it's too damned dangerous, and he means Damned. These Fells are rotten to the core, he's seen bad and he's heard worse. They know things that they shouldn't and do things you wouldn't believe.

They set up Alfred, the first time he was here he met a high up in the Fells, Harold doesn't know his name. That time they talked Alfred went off after the hidden 'treasure', of course after this is came back spitting blood! Still the Fells calmed him down and he told of a blade he found and was willing to deal, however even Alfred's iron guts gave out at having anything more to do with the Fells and he decided to skip town. He hasn't been heard of since and Harold says he must be dead.

Now Maelglyn is pissed as Hell on hearing about what these Fells did to both Alfred and himself, so he swears to get them. Harold says that he'll help but now's not the time. So the gang quit Bristol and head back on home to Gloucester.

Once Maelglyn is back he goes and delivers the bad news to Alfred's wife. She hears what he has to say and then offers up Alfred's savings, some 300d, to get the remains of the gang and get some new guys involved, and make sure that the Fells pay for what they've done. Finally she also gives him a sword that Alfred thought was special.