Quill's greatsword smashes into the gnoll, cutting deep into her hip. For a few seconds she writhes on the ground, thrashing against boxes and screaming in agony before Selmy's blow knocks her mercifully unconscious. Bojd, for his part, thrusts toward his goblin, which dances away from him, smirking as it disappears through what was once a secret door and into the darkness.
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"No, at this point, we'll get in more trouble if we don't report what's happened. If we don't disrupt the lights when Shava and her goblins do their deed, our little scheme's over for good. We need to warn them." She turns, muttering to the want, and then dematerializes, popping into existence in a dark corner near the staff-only door. Then, she waves in a hurry-up gesture.
Her head swivelling to where the goblin disappeared, Quill hesitates for just a moment. "What do you say?" she asks, grinning at Bojd and Selmy. "Do we follow?"
"About time!" Selmy growls as the Gnoll finally stops moving. He turns to celebrate as Bojd races off after the last goblin. "Great. I guess we're chasing it!" He frowns at Quill to show how much he likes the idea but he follows after his colleague all the same.
Jynn gave a slight sigh of relief before whipping out the wand and popping down to join her.
She shook her head as she appeared beside her. "We're gonna get in trouble you know.." she said as she tried to figure out how best to screw up the hobgoblin's plans. She grinned as she waited for the opportunity.
The party dashes off after the goblin, who flees into a narrow tunnel carved into the tower's brickwork behind the secret door. It opens into a ten-foot-wide hallway, one side of which plays host to a handful of rusty and ill-maintained iron gates, each sporting a large locking device. Inside separate cells sit a pair of women, one still dressed in a dancer's clothes and one in her finest outfit (though her hair has long since fallen out of the elaborate patterns she'd placed it in), as well as a well-dressed but filthy young man.
For his part, the goblin heads down a flight of rickety old stairs, looking over his shoulder to make certain he's safe.
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For her part, the hobgoblin rolls her eyes at Jynn. "Of course, but if Cavallah finds out what we've been up to, or if the Watch shows up, we're sunk either way. Now, we need to get downstairs."
It takes a few moments for the lift to drop Jynn and the hobgoblin down into the storage rooms, but almost before it stops, she's on her way through the door to the right. "Shava! Shava, we have a problem!" She stops shouting as she sees the gnoll, breathing faintly but obviously not in any condition to respond. "Well...Kerrither is not going to be happy. Let's go, we need to get our prizes out of here and on to the next group, and then we need to shut this down for good, and we only have Act Three to do it in." She bustles away through the open secret door.
Selmy notes the odd architectural mash-up as they continue their chase, but when he spies the women and man in the cell he slows. "Bojd! Be careful, holler if you need help, I'm going to set these people free." He shouts to his colleague.
Turning toward the imprisoned people he attempts to pull the bars apart though he doesn't expect much result.
"How long have you been down here? Do you know who holds the key?"
After slowing a moment as Selmy begins pulling at the bars, Quill shakes her head and follows Bojd and the goblin. "The prey's getting away, Selmy!" she calls, in an attempt to bring the man back to the chase.
Jynn follows after rather curious to see what this operation really is about.
As Bojd rushes by, the woman in the tattered dancer's outfit stands and begins saying something, only to be cut off by the man dashing down the stairs. While Selmy shakes the bars, the woman begins yammering at him, panicked that he'll leave as well. "Did you kill the bugbear? Is there another show going? Won't you get us out first? I can tell you about Azisth and what's going on here!" She obviously means to say more, but before she can, first one hobgoblin and then a second slam into the room through the secret door!
As soon as he notices the hobgoblins Selmy lets go of the bars and moves toward the closest one than throws a punch, growling at his new foe as he does.
Jynn seems a bit alarmed as he sees the others before him and he stops in the doorway. He looks about before preparing a spell and holding it for the hobgoblin to reach for a weapon or attempt to use that lovely little wand.
Despite the group’s best efforts, the goblin manages to make its way down the stairs and out of sight. When they’re able to catch up, all that left of the room it fled to is a handful of crates and the arcane residue of a powerful spell going off when it’s looked for. A closer inspection reveals a map, written in a language that’s identified as Dakhaani, one of the goblinoid’s major languages, and over fifty letters in the same script, all coded heavily.
The women and man in the cells on the floor above provide little knowledge of what the goblins and gnoll wanted beyond that the vast majority of prisoners only stayed a couple of days, always disappearing during the next show. The man and one of the women turn out to have been theatergoers that simply stumbled upon Daask’s operation and had to be taken in as well.
For her part, Koiessa Vala is pleased to have the mystery solved, but reveals that among the dancers taken in the prior weeks was her cousin. She takes the letters and map from you, paying the Wandering Eye Inquisitive Agency heavily, and explains that the night’s show fell apart when the limelights didn’t move about as needed for Act Three. Armed with a healthy 2300 Wroats and the satisfaction of a job well done, the Wandering Eyes head back home.
There, Tavick Tarker reveals that he’s had enough of the dangers of inquisitive work, and that he’s going to pursue a career with the Korranberg Chronicle. The next few days are spent interviewing replacements for him, eventually settling on a warforged veteran of the Last War…
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”There was no money left after the rent to pay for more than the cleaning supplies, so I’ve been busy working with what I had.” Jesaeli sits in her chair behind the reception desk, poring over a ledger, while the party drinks the morning’s coffee in the company’s office. ”It still needs a lot of work, and that’s before we can even start thinking about upgrades.” She’s right of course, but the disaster the party appeared to have taken a lease on is already much better. True, the chairs in the waiting room still look garish, and the newspaper’s still yellowed, but at least the rats and the dust bunnies have been persuaded to find a new home and there’s a fire in the living quarters. Even more promising, the window in the office lets in a touch of light that filters through its much-cleaner surface. Not that the view is all that impressive; it’s a rainy day in Sharn, and the nearest tower is only a hundred feet away.
*Ting-Tink!*
The half-elf receptionist whips her head around as the doorbell rings, black hair swishing spasmodically, and sets the ledger aside to greet whoever’s coming through the narrow doorway. ”Welcome to the Wandering Eye Inquisitive Company! Our investigatives will be with you shortly; please have a seat and relax in the meantime.” She turns on her chair, looking at you with wide eyes. ”Well, go talk to her!”
The woman turns out to be a short, thin-looking halfling, her pale face seemingly that of someone recovering from an illness. She coughs into a handkerchief pulled from her knee-length jacket, clearly waiting for introductions from the party...or perhaps just trying to think of what to say herself. Her jacket bears the seal of Morgrave University and the symbol of its archaeology department, though it’s crumpled and dirty from hard use, and her red-brown hair seems greasy, as if she hasn’t had a chance to wash in a while.
After being accepted by the Wandering Eye Inquisitive Company, Pierce takes the time to visit his contacts within the city starting with Professor Dannigan letting him know that his long nights at the University will likely be over for the time being.
"Professor I have joined a group of Inquisitives. Should you need my assistance, please look for me at their offices The Wandering Eye".
Next Pierce visits Turn seeking out the ever elusive Abraxus Wren. As expected, the man is not available. "Well Turn, please be advised that you can now find me at The Wandering Eye Inquisitive Company if any cases come to your attention that Wren has no interest in. It would help me a great deal if I could bring business as a new associate. If you have need of me, that is where you should seek me first".
Finally Pierce visits the offices of the Sharn Inquisitive. Dorius is not in so early in the morning so the Warforged leaves the Gnome reporter a note. "Dorius, I have joined with an Inquisitive agency, finally! The are the Wandering Eye Inquisitive Company. Have you a need for me seek me at their offices. Hope all is well". Pierce cares nothing for whether all is well or not but he has been working on etiquette, reading several books on it and these breathers seem to respond well to it so Pierce has decided to add it to his repertoire when dealing with them.
As he approaches the, his, new office he considers his interview. Should I have told them I was a veteran of the Last War when I am not? No matter they will see the value in what I can add to their agency and even if they find this fib out by then I shall be too ingrained for them to object to such a small falsehood...
Pierce finally makes his way to the Agency for his first day as an Associate. The rain pelts off of his Darkwood plating soaking it in a way that the armor of most "normal" warforged would simply resist. He stand before the door soaking in the sight of its doors as his anatomy soaks in the rainwater.
Finally after memorizing every detail of the entrance he steps in through the front door. Already a halfling customer has arrived and Pierce sees that Bojd who he met briefly on his interview is already meeting with a halfling wit the seal of the University on her jacket.
Pierce steps to the side of the door to listen to the interaction without disturbing the flow of the conversation, yet anyway.
Jynn yawns a bit as he makes his way into the reception with coffee in hand. His other hand smoothing out the rough black beard that was upon his choice of faces when he didn't wake up with the urge to be bit playful. He took a sip as he turned and looked at the client before seemingly stopping mid gulp.
She may be a bit comely to look at at the moment but given the right light and a bit of cleaning up, she would certainly be a sight to behold. He spit the coffee in his mouth back into the cup when Bojd spewed forth a rather straight forward question without even any type of pleasantries first and set his cup down before clasping a hand upon the man's shoulder.
"Ah, forgive my friend he is quiet the eager soul when it comes to a puzzle or a case. Allow me to welcome you to this lovely establishment...Don't let the looks fool you, we are quite capable I assure you. I suppose introductions are in order? Yes, well you have already heard from my esteemed associate Bojd here. Over there trying to become one with the wood is Pierce I believe...or that might be a hat rack, I always get the two mixed up. Oops, sorry sorry probably not here to be entertained by my jokes, eh? I am of course Jynn, would you care for a spot of coffee or water perhaps?" he said as he moved about and grabbed a chair to come to sit right in front of her with his hand extended to greet her.
"Sure, it's still not much, but it's home," Quill beams, from what she seems to have claimed as 'her' chair, a comfortable, if somewhat lumpy, piece of furniture upholstered in a faded pea green, located next to a bookcase. "You're doing a good job with the place. It'll be better once we have a cat or two, though," she adds with a cheeky grin.
Before Jesaeli can argue, she's gliding smoothly to the door to meet the halfling, her black hair swept back off her face with a flick of her wrist. "Thanks for choosing Wandering Eye Inquisitives, ma'am; my name's Quill, and these are my associates." She sweeps a hand around to indicate the others. "How about a cup of tea for that cough?"
Pierce enters the room and approaches Bojd extending his hand face unreadable as are the faces of all Warforged.
"It is a pleasure to be here". He turns to the disheveled halfing trying to get a better look at her features and also to see if any sort of recognition registers in her face when she sees Pierce who is distinctive for a Warforged based on his Darkwood plating, "I am sorry to interrupt Madame Halfling you have come for help and I can assure you by the grace of the Sovereign that you are in the right place".
"Cats are a great idea Quill." Selmy says quietly from his seat by the window. "Bean isn't getting enough exercise here, a few play mates would be good for him." At the sound of his name the husky lifts his head and places it in Selmy's lap, a not so subtle request for a scratch behind the ears.
Complying, Selmy looks over the client but doesn't say anything, he just gives a nod, knowing his colleagues are more likely to get information out of the halfling than he is.
The halfling eyes the chairs dubiously before climbing into a bright yellow one, lying back and opening a pouch to pull out something, which she pops into her mouth. ”Thanks for the offer, but I’ve got the remedy here. It’s something I picked up in Xen’Drik, and it’s related to what I need to talk to you about.”
As she chews the herb, her face wrinkles as if it’s sour. ”Assistant Professor Annika Del’ray. I’ve been in Xen’Drik with Morgrave University’s archaeological expedition for the past few months. We were working on excavating a cyclopean observatory, under Professor Arand. The cyclops’ view of astronomy is totally revolutionary, it’s got a lot of implications to our understanding of how Syberis interacts with Eberron itself, and Morgrave could be on the cutting edge of this research!
But you don’t care so much about that.” Annika looks down thoughtfully, collecting her thoughts. ”What you care about is what I need. Professor Arand stole my findings!
Like I said, I picked this up in Xen’Drik. It wasn’t so bad until the expedition got back to Sharn, but I’ve been in bed resting it off for three days, and I had to hire a ride to get over here. Sometime while I was gone, someone stole my astrolabe. It’s a complete cyclopean one, in good condition. Probably the only one on the continent.” She produces a drawing. ”That doesn’t do it justice, I’m afraid. What I need you to do is get a confession from Professor Arand, preferably in public. Oh! And you have to do it before tonight, because he’s holding a lecture at Morgrave, and the public’s invited. I’m sure my astrolabe is what he’s going to talk about!”
Knowledge Local
"I have a contact at the University, perhaps I can use him to allow our group to make an introduction to this Professor Arand", Pierce states to the rest of his new comrades.
Prefessor Del'Ray sighs, rubbing her thumb against one temple. "Astro-labe. It's like a...a model of the cosmos. The drawing doesn't do it justice, especially not this one, but it's got a gear train and you can crank them with a hand-crank to make the parts move. This one used to have an elemental bound to it, but it seems to have left.
I don't think I was drugged. It's just a Xen'Drik illness. I think Professor Arand was just opportunistic and when I was sick, he decided to claim my work. And I only just found out about this theft; the Sharn Watch could take weeks to conduct a proper investigation and this needs to be fixed tonight. Now, are you going to help, or do I need to Information Acquisitions?" She crosses her arms in front of her chest, looking up at the party.
"How much does the job pay?" Selma grunts, not worried about being tactless.
"What sort of evidence are we looking for? How can we be sure we've found what we need?" He continues to pet Bean as he questions the halfling. "You were working under Arand, so what makes the discovery yours? "
"Haven't had a client we couldn't help yet," Quill grins, conveniently neglecting to mention the fact that the group has only had one client. "Is there anything you can tell us about Arand that may be useful to our... extraction?"
Professor Del'Ray looks up, eyes narrowing slightly. "Pay? You're looking at the opportunity to help right one of the greatest wrongs in the last ten years of archaeology, and you're worried about pay?" She taps her foot impatiently against the chair-leg, then looks away. "I'd like a confession from him that he stole it, or barring that, some sort of documentation. If that can't happen, I'd at the very least need you to attend his lecture. Maybe he'll let something slip there. I can pay you a hundred Wroats a month for a while, but my salary doesn't let me do bulk sums. Maybe we could come to some sort of agreement? What's your usual fee?"
"Professor Arand is a veteran. I think he mostly served on the Karrnathi front, as some sort of special task group. He has a lot of Karrnathi friends that pop in, but he's usually free for students to pop in mid-afternoon; that'd be the best time to catch him. You have to get my astrolabe back before he does something unbefitting its intricacy. He's got a history of selling finds!"
Pierce looks from this Professor to the group and back to the Professor. He holds his own comment though, having just joined he does not believe it is his place to say anything, at least not yet!
Annika grimaces at the price, then winces at Bojd's continued mispronunciation. Then, before she can talk herself out of it, she reaches out and shakes. "Agreed. And it's Astro-labe. I have a lecture I need to get back to, but if you have any other questions, I have office hours this evening, just an hour before Professor Arand is scheduled to begin his lecture. I'll talk to your secretary and get a contract drawn up and signed before I go, though." She steps over to the counter and, after a few minutes, shakes Jesaeli's hand and leaves the office.
"Well...it's not exactly lucrative, but I suppose that can't be helped." Jesaeli frowns and presents the contract, which stipulates payments on the first of each month for a number of months not less than 5 or more than 15. "It could be a good idea to check in at the Karrnathi embassy, if you think his friends could be a lead. It's in the Ambassador Towers district. Or I suppose you could just head straight to the University, if you think you're low on time. Or maybe there's something I missed? I didn't overhear everything."
"It's more money than nothing." Selmy says matter of factly when Jesaeli speaks up. "I'd prefer to speak with Arand directly but a trip to the embassy is not a bad idea. I won't be doing the talking, I promise." He almost blushes remembering his poor attempt to gather information on their last job.
"As this is my first day how do we decide such matters? Do we split up to make more effective use of the little time we have or pick one course of action and follow through on it together? I believe it may be prudent to split up, a deadline of tonight does not leave much room for error", Pierce states in his odd detached Warforged voice.
Jynn looks at her and raises a brow "Tell me dear, do you need a bit of undercover protection? Would it help to have someone less suspicious by your side and make sure nothing happens to you or to get info that an outsider wouldn't normally get? I happen to be a man of many talents and disguises. I'm sure if you can show me an assistant or something of that nature who might be taking a minor vacation....I could pass as them." he offered as he looked around the room trying to see what the others thought of the idea.