Idril is enraged at her paralysed state, afraid a fairy will conduct a coup de gras, reduced to a damsel in distress...
Erodel drops another tooth fairy.
"Alright! Kill those vile things! You can do it!" A couple people are cheering you on from a second floor window of the tenement to the north.
"Poke them again, master gnome!" Asha urges her companion on, wishing the blessing of the spirits on him.
Covered in the sickening glitter,Bastargrae gagged back nausea. Again, he twisted his wrist and jabbed again.
Again,he scored a telling blow that punched a length of steel through a bulbous,pallid skull.
Begone,vermin!
Bastargrae wounds the creature, but does not bring it down.
The two remaining fey continue their fervent assault. Bastargrae and Idril each receive minor bludgeoning from the tooth fairies' pliers.
Finally recovering from the paralysis, Idril spun up and lashed out at the Tooth Fairy at (J,4).
for a possible slashing damage.
Bastargrae struck true once more,however his strike merely delivered a brusibg poke that only scraped skin instead of puncturing vitals.
Most disconcerting, wings offer a truly formidable capacity for evasion...
Relieved that everyone had shaken off the unnatural stillness, Asha sends the spirits' blessing once more into Idril, hoping that the nimble dancer can make an end of this struggle.
The two remaining tiny fey continue wildly swatting at you with their oversized pliers.
Again the dancing Idril allowed her bladed scarf to gently drift out and caress a Tooth Fairy...
for a possible slashing damage.
Erodel and Idril bring down the last two tooth fairies... the final one explodes into a cloud of glittery white powder with a wretched stench.
Mindful to keep up appearances, Indio swiftly turns around and sweeps his hat off his head as he takes a bow towards their adoring fans, then in on single circular motion he stands up with his hat replaced.
"A pleasure to be of some small measure of entertainment."
He then turns to the others.
"We best search this building, there may still be more of them inside."
The boards are easily removed from the window.. you can see there is barely enough space for you all to enter. It is fairly dark inside, but there is a dim glow on the far wall.. the source of which is obstructed by debris.
Indio enters first, then, using a small amount of power, he illuminates the surroundings.
"We should not linger here over-long, there is always a risk of Dottari discovering us."
Idril waived to onlookers, then slipped through the window.
She nodded at Indio's words; "Let's make this quick then."
With a gesture, she summoned Dancing Lights and looked around.
Dozens of teeth have been affixed to the wall in spiraling patterns. With Indio and Idril's illumination you see a gold tooth glint in the center of the stolen teeth.
On the far wall there is an alcove of crumbling stone, and something wrapped in strips within. On the ground below is a tiny grisly shrine of bone, teeth, and hair.. nestled inside is a glowing stone.
"So creepy..." Commented Idril, wringing her hands.
Indio rubs his chin.
"Gruesome...
Normally I would not look to acquire and make a profit on something like a gold tooth, but needs must when the devil drives.
And in Cheliax, the devil always does."
Taking a step closer, Indio focuses his power and examines the aura of the glowing stone.
"What strange ritual could this be...?" Asha muses as she examines the pattern on the wall and the altar.
The bundled form in the alcove looks as though it could be a tightly bound body.. about halfling size. You see iron chains coming from the wrappings into the wall.. holding it in place. The leathery strips appear to have symbols or writing burned into them.
Indio frowns and then narrows his eyes in concentration, trying to discern more information.
Bastargrae looked ashen....It seems we've discovered a past victim. And the tooth faeries were our murderers.
Overcoming her revulsion, Asha examines the body more closely. "Uh, it's wrapped in sinews... from a tiefling... so I believe you are right. We should, um, give it a proper send-off. Perhaps try and find out the victim's identity. Or victims..."
The signs on the strips of sinew are vaguely familiar, but the girl can only recognize the language, without being able to decipher their meaning.
"Hmmm, not particularly valuable, but it may see some use in the days to come."
Indio begins to look for stairs, doors or any other signs of further travel possibilities.
My companions are all reacting rather strongly, I cannot fault them for that.
Perhaps my upbringing have simply left me somewhat...cold?
"Um... should we take the body somewhere?" Asked Idril tentativly, already by the exit. All the cult stuff was wigging her out.
"Like to a Coroner or doctor to examine it in better light? Or maybe just burn this place to the ground?"
"Whoever it was, they deserve better than this." Asha wraps the body in her cloak and lifts it up.
You leave the lair of the tooth fairies with the small wrapped body. Still five hours from dawn, you must decide where to go.
"Alright then. I move we declare victory and run away now." Idril said matter of factly. "How say the rest of you?"
"Hmmm...
If we work under the assumption, the tone of voice seems to indicate that he considers assumption to be a dirty word, that we were dealing with only this pack of fey, then this would indeed be the thing to do."
Smoothing his moustache, Indio frowns a little before continuing.
"As we have no evidence for or against it being a single pack, we may need to wait and see.
An irritating prospect to be sure..."
"You are right. We cannot leave with the job half done. We should make sure this menace is ended." Asha is not at all sure how one goes about hunting murderous fey, so she defers in that regard to the others' expertise.
Gritting her teeth, Idril agrees to stay and look for other nests in the area.
"Ah, I fear you misunderstand me. When I say we must wait and see, I do not suggest we stay here.
If we lack any skill in tracking creatures like these, we have no hope in finding them except wandering at random, which I am not inclined to do.
What we should do is instead call it a night and look for more clues in the morning."
"Thank god!
"I mean... Yes, Thank god! Lets get out of here then..." Said Idril with relief.
Come along,my compatriots. Let's not dwadle.
You reach the Cloven Hoof Society. You find Zea, the most recent victim (asleep on the davenport), and two other tieflings in the lit common area just inside the entrance.
Zea steps toward you, and speaks softly. "Is it done?"
"That particular nest has been eradicated.
Now we shall wait for morning, and then search for signs of any possible other such nests.
However, I am reasonably positive that there was only one."
"We have also...ah, retrieved your teeth, allowing our healer to perhaps restore them to their proper place."
Asha nods at Indio's words. "Perhaps it is best to let her sleep and recover for now. I can certainly tend to her once she wakes. And please let people know what to look out for." With a few words, the girl describes the foes they had encountered and the grisly little shrine they found in the ruined building.
"Do you perhaps have any idea what that could have been about? Anyone has gone missing lately around here? I mean... more than usual."
Zea bows her head "Thank you."
She looks to the two unmet tieflings, one shrugs the other shake his head... Zea responds. "None that I've been told of... Murdered yes, but missing...." She shakes her head. "But let's have a look."
Zea removes the sinew wrapped around the head of the body to reveal the face of a tiefling child... missing all but one tooth. Zea sighs, and nods. "I'd seen him around... one of many urchins in the Nursery. We can put him to rest in the morning, if we may."
She glances to the window. "It's late. We only have one room available, but it's yours if you like."
"Most gracious of you, we accept of course."
"Please wake us at sunrise if you do not mind."
Indio will find a chair and sit down.
After taking his seat, he places his cane across his lap, pulls his hat down over his eyes and tries to catch a little sleep before morning.