Anklebiter seems to have lost interest in the interrogation. He crab-walks over to Kelendra's body and gently closes her eyes, then folds her hands over the gruesome wound in her stomach. The little Goblin sighs.
"Goodbye, healer-girl. You were the only person I've met who enjoyed snake in green sauce since I left home. I liked you."
Lefrik eyes Kelendra's form, then looks at Smeed murder in his eyes, "This breathing thing he does. I find it offensive."
"It'll be bad if we just gut him," Anklebiter says from where he's making Kelendra's body more presentable. "People won't want to loan Saul money anymore, and then he can't pay us for having fun, right? Please pick up healer-girl, giant friend Lefrik Olegson. I find it offensive to leave her here. This man might feed her to the big monkey."
Lefrik sets his jaw, then nods to Anklebitter and gently brings their fallen comrade up into his arms.
"There's no need to gut him," Calla says, no hint of warmth in her voice. "Let him live to suffer with the knowledge of what he's done."
"Are we certain she's dead? If so, let's return her body to Saul and then go find Larur before he ends up in a similar state."
"Wait, I think she might be breathing..." he holds her out to Calla, "Try to heal her... if she's not dead, she's very close to it."
"Do I look like I know how to heal her?"[b] Calla asks scornfully. [b]"Hold on a moment."
The priestess of Calistria pulls a vial from her belt pouch. "Hold her mouth open," she says and pours the potion down Kelendra's throat.
Anklebiter squeaks excitedly, his ears quivering, and he casts a sly look at Smeed out of the corner of his eye. "Maybe your soul won't be gobbled by demons for eternity when you die," he tells the man.
Hope springs into Bruendor's eyes as Lefrik and Calla work to save Kelendra's life. He then turns back to Smeed. "Pray she is saved, Smeed. Your chances of walking out of this room might just depend upon it."
The potion closed the worst of Kelendra's wound, the entrails drawing up and the garish slash partly closed over. Color returned to her ashen cheeks, and breath returned to her lungs, though it was still raspy. The woman didn't awake, but her heartbeat was regular and her body looked and felt more alive than moments before.
Smeed stared at the woman, and then said in a shaky voice. "In my knapsack, in the buttoned pocket, there is another curative. Give that to her. It is the least I can do for her."
"if you are lying..." Lefrik's eyes narrow, "But no. I don't suppose you want to die, and you must know we'll kill you if this is a trick."
Chattering with agitation, Anklebiter scampers over to the knapsack and retrieves the potion. "Here!" he squeaks, handing the curative up to Calla.
Calla pours the potion down Kelendra's throat. "Too tough for you to do yourself," she sarcastically asks the goblin as she does so.
"He's tall," Anklebiter says, pointing at Lefrik. "You want the poor dear to wake up with a Goblin hanging off her perch?"
Lefrik watches the potion go down the throat of the woman.
The magic potion did its work and Kelendra's eyes opened to see Smeed's room from an odd vantage point.
"Perhaps you should leave the getting stabbed to me. I have more blood to lose." Lefrik chuckles, glad to see they have not lost her. He glances over to Smeed, "he gave you the second potion, in an attempt to make amends."
Kelendra blinked her eyes in the bright light that unnaturally filled the forest. It streamed from everywhere and everything. At the light's center stood the most beautiful elven woman she had ever seen, glowing butterfly wings stretching from her perfect form. "Desna? Kel whispered, tears of joy filling her eyes.
But the force pulled her back, stronger than any power she could muster to stay, it dragged her from the light, from the perfect form, from the idyllic forest, back into darkness. "Now is not the time my little one" the voice echoed in her head, as the light faded into the distance, vanishing to a point as complete darkness enveloped her.
Then the pain, searing hellfire across her stomach, the agony of death itself. Kel gasped and tried to grip at it, but her limbs were too weak, all strength washed from her. Thankfully the pain subsided quickly and a chattering voice filled her head. ""You want the poor dear to wake up with a Goblin hanging off her perch?"
Kel blinked her eyes again, but this time instead of the light filled forest, she found herself lying on the floor of an unkept flat, a grinning goblin and scruffy barbarian leering at her while a half elven woman pulled back an empty vial from Kel's lips.
Her companions! Kel's eyes filled with tears again, this time spilling down her cheeks as the barbarian advised on the finer points of combat. ""Perhaps you should leave the getting stabbed to me. I have more blood to lose." Fine advice indeed. Kel slowly, gingerly, tried to get back to her feet, her legs shaky beneath her.
Lefrik helps her settle to her feet but keeps an arm ready if she needs support.
Anklebiter giggles happily, and hugs Kelendra's leg for a moment.
"I eulogized you!" he says as he lets go, and hops over to hug Calla's leg. "It was pretty stupid, I guess." Still cackling with mirth, the Goblin hops away before someone can kick him.
Bruendor allows himself a relieved smile, both at Kelendra's recovery, and that the greenskin had enough sense to try to hug him. His compatriot's life now saved, he turned his full attention back to Smeed. "You're a very lucky man, Smeed. I think it'd be best for everyone if you put your back to Riddleport. We'll let Saul know that you've forgiven his debt to you, and that his business with you is concluded. If we hear you've decided not to take us up on this extremely generous offer, then we'll make you regret harming Kel tonight. Do we have an understanding?"
A grim look passed over Smeed's face at Bruendor's words. "I hear you. I'm not sure Boss Croat will be too pleased to have his prime moneylender driven out of town, though. You'll have to reckon with him on that. Still, maybe a warmer climate would be good for me. Begone, and I'll pack up. Tell Saul to watch his back. Croat won't forget this."
"Hey, this is just as much a favor to you as it is to Saul. You think Boss Croat will be happy to hear you're forgiving Saul's debt? He'd find you and throw your lifeless body into the river before we ever found you - and not before he makes an example of you to his men. I still don't buy you've nothing to do with Larur's disappearance, but you would have told us what we wanted to know by now if you knew anything. Come on, everyone. Let's get out of this cesspool."
"Another option, should you wish, Smeed," Calla suddenly says. "You can work for me, instead. I'll protect you should Croat find out you've forgiven Saul's debt. Nothing will seem to change, but the messengers you send to supposedly collect debt will instead carry messages with details you've learned of happenings in the city. I will want to know everything that goes on with Croat, who of importance owes you money, and any other details that will help me, my companions and our employer."
"No thank you! Not to be insulting, but Croat has more years of experience in hurting people who fail him than you've been alive. I'd rather cut my losses and run. Now, take what you want and go. All I'm taking is my pack, here, and you can have the rest. And I'm leaving now."
With that, he slipped out the window and was gone. There was no sound of a heavy fall, but as Calla leaned out the window, she could see the man running down the alley.
Lefrik raises a brow watches him go , "Fast fellow. I must confess, Riddleport and I don't agree. Too much skullduggery, too much sneaking and shadows even you don't count the hovering one."
"You'll find that everywhere you go, Northman," Calla says, perhaps surprisingly without sarcasm. "They're just more open about it here."
The half-elven inquisitor quickly takes a look around the abandoned room, hoping to find anything of use.
Kel still wobbles on her feet, occasional gripping Lefrik's arm to keep her from falling. She looks around the place with still blinking eyes, hoping to find anything of value to reward her companions for saving her life.
Perception:
"How open is open? I sometimes wonder if we even know our employer as well as we think, or if he is hiding some things from us. He seems to have a gift for trouble."
He has no problem with Kelendra using his arm as a handhold
Poking around, Calla finds a small pile of goods that were obviously used as collateral for various loans the moneylender put out. The scattered nature of the pile makes it clear that Smeed rummaged through it and pulled out some items in a hurry before he left. Still, there were a number of valuable items in the pile, including a nice looking crossbow, some jewelry, a cigar box, and a small pouch that turned out to be filled with platinum coins.
Is there a way to make lists on here?
mwk light crossbow, 10 bolts, gold ring (50g), garnet necklace (150g), 5 cigars (5g each), 8 pp
And 160XP to everyone (you should all be at 680XP).
"Good stuff," Anklebiter says. "But no big Dwarf. Where do we look next? Do we get a... yuck... dog for tracking the blood-scent?" Anklebiter cocks his head. "Or maybe a Goblin dog? Do they sell those in Riddleport?" He grins.
"A dog might be able to help, but let's look around outside first. Perhaps we can find a clue on our own."
So saying, Calla will scoop up all the loot except for the crossbow and bolts and go back to the trash heap and look for more clues.
"Bruendor, you take the crossbow and bolts." suggests Kel.
"I'll donate my share of the loot to the acquisition of a Goblin Dog if we find no leads in the ally, it's the least I can do for such brave companions."
Calla found evidence of the passage of dozens of feet, discarded remains of a half-dozen meals, and one very surprised cat. But, there was no more evidence of Larur, or the person who placed his cloak in the rubbish bin. There was just no way to know what ruly happened - not from this mess, anyways.
"Very well. At least something good can come out of this night." Bruendor shoulders the crossbow and bolts. "And if purchasing a goblin dog makes the greenskin happy, then I'm against it, whatever it is."
Calla lets out a bark of laughter at Bruendor's comment.
"Any thoughts on where to look next? This seems to be a dead end. Maybe we need to go back to Saul and see if he has anyone else who might have been after him or Larur, though it could also be random crime, I suppose."
"I've never tracked within a city proper before, so I am not sure how one traces quarry here."
As he says this, he takes his own look around the mess regardless.
"Saul will wish to know of this encounter anyway; especially that he has Boss Croat's anger even more now."
Bruendor scratches the back of his neck in frustration. "I hate giving up on Larur like this, but I've found a great deal of nothing here. Are there any mystical investigations that can be done? I'd hate to lose another dwarf just because we didn't thoroughly investigate his disappearance."
Anklebiter mutters a word and makes a gesture.
Anklebiter detects nothing of magic in the area.
"I get squat," the little Goblin says, shrugging. "Nothing magic happened here. Not recently, anyway."
"None of us are finding much, Anklebiter." The Barbarian assures the greenskin. "At least when it comes to clues."
Kel casts a cure light wounds on herself and a little color returns to her cheeks.
"Let's not leave this place without taking the time to look for any hidden doors or secret panels. People like Smeed always have stash spots in their homes. Let's take all the time we need, Larur's life may depend on it."
Though you search high and low, Smeed apparently hasn't installed any hidden doors or compartments. His ledgers are meticulously kept, and give a good account of everything he has loaned over the last ten years.
"We should head back... our employer DOES need to be informed...and it seems, warned."
"Damnation!", Bruendor spits, kicking the wall. "I hate not even being able to bring back a corpse. But you're right, Lefrik. Let's go warn Saul. Word's going to spread about what we did quick. There's going to be Hell for this."
"Is it worse or better that we don't really know whether he's dead?" Anklebiter asks. "I like to be sure. 'Cos it seems odd to stuff that blood-soaked cloth in the rubbish so close to Smeed's place."
"Depends upon who grabbed him. If he was grabbed by some of the people I've heard about in Riddleport, death would be a kindness." Bruendor tried not to think about that day years ago beneath Janderhoff, when his patrol was ambushed by strange albino creatures. It didn't work. His throat was parched, his lips dry. Gods, he needed a drink.
Back at the Gold Goblin, Saul looked pleased to hear that Smeed was out of his life, though he still expressed concern about Larur's fate. "I sent Bojask out to his house, and he said there was signs of a disturbance. Blood everywhere, at least 2 people plus Larur. I don't think we're going to find him now, poor dwarf. He was my best floor manager and a decent friend."
"As for Smeed, if he was willing to run and leave everything behind, it just makes him look more guilty in my eyes. I don't care that you had him cornered, that's just nuts. And you can bet Croat isn't going to take this lightly. He may or may not come after us, but he'll move heaven and earth to find Smeed after this. No, the man was guilty."
"Still, we made out okay, didn't we? And now the extra money can be rolled back into the Goblin. I think that deserves a raise to all of you. How does 20g a week sound?"
"But if someone killed Larur at his house and then stuffed his cloak in the rubbish near Smeed's, doesn't that mean someone wants you and Croat to go into outright battle?" Anklebiter asks. If anyone gives him any funny looks, he blinks his red eyes and says: "What?"