|
The short thing compliments Kara on her tracking skills before grumbling about the dishonor of thieves and assassins.
-Posted with Wayfinder
|
Lizbeth raises her eyebrows at Leb's forwardness, a smirk forming on her lips as the two more reserved members of their group give in to their baser urges. She peers at the tracks but they mean little to her and she follows the girl to the shrubbery peering around.
"Maybe they have dropped something? So what have we found so far? Two Skulks who killed a guard and were set upon the path by their dealers and falsified tracks? I guess We have to talk with the circus for their side and 'talk' with these dealers. Where first gang?"
|
|
The fierce one has a look around himself.
Then he decides to be a little more thorough.
-Posted with Wayfinder
You find no further clues, but Lebraerio does manage to make a nice cast of the best footprint Kara could find.
As you head back towards the path between the carnival and Ilsurian, you are met by a agitated crowd heading for the circus. They pay you no heed, but you do hear a cry of "The thievin' Varisians are trying to bleed the town dry!"
|
|
Lizbeth saunters up the crowd alongside Rilia, the rather unkempt and wild looking Vishkanya a stark contrast to the seductively dressed elf. Brushing down her baggy trousers she smiles warmly at the crowd.
"Bleeding the town dry? How would that be? They host a fair here yet force no-one to participate, you choose to come here and have fun and to spend your own money. Please, tell us which Varisian pointed a crossbow at you and made you enter the fairgrounds? We shall see them arrested.
If not, we have an investigation afoot and you are disturbing a potential scene." she asks sweetly.
They crowd responds with whoops and shouts about arresting the "filthy Sczarni" being to good for them.
A major commotion has broken out in the fairgrounds centered on a show-down between four armed locals and two circus guards. The locals rain down insults and accusations on the guards, who in turn grip their weapons tighter and tighter.
One of the irate, armed locals turns his head towards the unwelcome interruption that is Kara.
"Damn Varisians! Thieves the lot of them! A lot of folks have had their coin purses cut and emptied while at the cirkus. They're all Sczarni, I tells you!"
|
Kara thinks to herself,
Well, isn't that sort of expected at any large gathering? I keep a close watch on my purse at the cirkus. Just as well, though, they seem very upset.
She calls out to the crowd of locals.
Very well. Come forward if you have been the victim of a cutpurse at the cirkus.
To the cirkus guards she says,
One of you, go and fetch Mistress Delisen.
And again to the locals,
Someone go and fetch the Sheriff. We shall resolve this, but there is no need for bloodshed today.
Oh, dear. I fear I may have incited a riot by assembling everyone together this way.
|
They crowd responds with whoops and shouts about arresting the "filthy Sczarni" being to good for them.
A major commotion has broken out in the fairgrounds centered on a show-down between four armed locals and two circus guards. The locals rain down insults and accusations on the guards, who in turn grip their weapons tighter and tighter.
"Whoa! Weapons?" She looks aghast at her fellow rabble-mates. "You can't be a proper mob and go straight to weapons! I mean the cheek! Who's in charge here?"
The entire crowd, circus guards included, suddenly goes silent and focuses on Kara.
Rilia feels like the loudest townsman is the de facto leader of the mob, but she also notices something painfully obvious; the entire argument is about to explode into violence barring some silver-tongued miracle.
|
|
Lizbeth rolls her eyes as they chase after the mob, this can't go well she thinks to herself as the heavily armed mob start to get riled up. Visibly wincing at Kara's tone to the crowd she quickly steps ahead and tries to use some of her exotic charm to sway the crowd.
"Now now, there really is no need for weapons here. We are the official representatives of the sheriff in this case, if you have any grievances then simply submit them to our dear Scribe here." she points towards Leb with a flourish,"and we will include them in our investigations."
|
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
*Facepalm* Damn it. Doesn't she know that in these parts 'fetch' is a euphemism for a particularly acrobatic sex act involving a farmyard animal? Hmmm. Maybe I can rile them up enough to chase Kara, thereby sparing the circus folk.... I could try and fascinate Mr. Loudmouth or put some of them to sleep.
|
|
Meanwhile, laying out in a spa, under a layer of alchemical face-cream and a pair of cucumber slices, in a fluffy white terry robe, Archimeles ponders the great mysteries.
"I wonder how the others are getting on without my stoic leadership skills. Oh! Hey! Tonight is dance night! Perhaps I can persuade hot little oracle to come with tonight."
The rest of the party saves Kara's bumbling attempt at defusing the situation, and the townsfolk disperse with quite a lot of grumbling. With barely enough time to pat yourselves on the back for a job well done, a carnie rushes over to you, his eyes wide with fear.
"Come quickly! There's been another murder!"
"It's some priest from the town. Almara sent me out to find you immediately!"
His eyes go even wider at the mention of the location.
"It's... It's... It's in Jherizhana's private tent. I'll take you there!"
He leads to the grandios tent, and inside, there is a dead human woman. Her robes denote that she is of the faith; which one specifically, you can't tell. The body bears claw wounds similar to the ones found on Archivin Walder.
|
|
Lizbeth looks at the body with an untrained eye and tries to search the ground, however she is flummoxed by the situation and keeps glancing at Kara's legs, wondering what had quite got into the girl Rillia and I must be rubbing off on her, poor creature.
Latching onto Balfour's discovery the Vishkanya beams at the Dwarf and throws an arm around his broad shoulders.
"Well well a regular Sniffer Dwarf! Glad we picked you up!"
She turns to the Carnie and notices that someone is missing from the room.
"Where is the Tents owner? DOes she have an alibi?"
|
This is a job for the most amazing investigator alive (at least in this group!)
Leb look at the dead priest
See the light rope burns here, around her throat? She was strangled, probably with a garrote
He then looks at the ground
No feline paws on the ground, but humanoid footprints. Don't get too close, or you'll walk on them.
And finally, observing the vials found by Balfour, Lebraerio analyse their remaining content, wondering what kind of priest the deceased was
As Lizbeth turns to the carnie, she sees that he has left the tent.
Rilia and Lebraerio think that the body is that of a Erastil priest. Giving the empty vials a good sniff, Lebraerio concludes that they contained alchemical fluids of some sort.
Shortly after Lebraerio concludes his search, three people arrive a the tent; Almara Delisen, Master Venlock, the circus's chief enforcer and sheriff Feldane. The sheriff gives the body a brief, dejected look before turning her attention to you.
"What in all that is holy happened here?"
|
|
This is a job for the most amazing investigator alive (at least in this group!)
"Yes, I found the vials over there."
The sheriff gives the rope burns a long, hard look.
"This is, or rather was, Sister Esrelda, a local cleric of Erastil."
She looks at the body for a moment, the wheels clearly turning in her head.
"Not everything is as it seems, but doesn't change my immediate problem of two prominent citizens murdered, and now a rash of pickpocketing at the circus. I demand to see the sphinx herself. Where is she right now? Why isn't she in that cage?"
Mistress Delisen flushes at the sheriff's directness, but relectanty answers.
"Jherizhana does not truly reside in a cage, but rather a large, comfortable, and private wagon of her own. She willingly enters a cage - one that could never truly contain her - so the curious may regard her while feeling safe."
A look halfway between rage and trepidation falls over sheriff Feldane's face. She sighs before delivering her statement.
"You've brought a dangerous creature into this community - a creature you clearly cannot keep track of, let alone control. I can't say I know for certain there's wrongdoing here on the part of your people, but after a point it ceases to matter. For the safety of my town, I 'm putting this circus under quarantine. I don't want any of your people leaving these grounds unless it's to leave town completely. I'm giving you two days to get packed up and go."
|
|
Balfour gives a long sigh and scratches his beard.
"Mistress Delisen, I think that agreeing to this quarantine would be the safest bet for the villagers and for your people. I don't think you have much more to do in this town, but we will make sure Jherizhana's name is cleared and we will find the true culprit; hopefully within these two days. Explain the situation to Jherizhana, maybe even ask her to place herself under the sheriff's watch, anything to calm down the rabble. I'm sure she'll understand."
Balfour pauses and raises his eyebrows, then nods with satisfaction at his sharp thinking.
"And Sheriff", he adds, "Keep an eye on your people. We don't want them to lynch these innocent people or anything."
|
|
Lizbeth leaps when Leb points out they may disturb the scene, her nimble feet landing away from the body and the foot prints. Startled by the disappearing Carny she is about to point this out to the group when the Mistress and Sheriff arrive almost simultaneously I do hope she hasn't lost our Skulk captives she thinks with a sigh, unconvinced with the Sheriffs competence and generally distrustful of 'Law types'.
When the Sheriff had finished her power trip, Lizbeth sighs and speaks. "Yes, Balfour my boy you are absolutely right! It will be up to the Sheriff to keep her townsfolk in order, as I have never seen a great pawed creature use a garrotte before, but plenty of miffed folk can indeed.
Mistress, it is best if you keep to this to keep your name and reputation. May I have a word with you please?"
Assuming the Carnival hostess agrees, Lizbeth moves away from the others and keeps her voice low.
"Mistress, would you by any chance know of any illicit trading going on in your Carnival? Specifically Shiver?"
The sheriff nods with a grave look on her face at Balfour's mention of lynchings.
"If it were entirely up to me, no one else would die. Unfortunately, Ilsurian breeds a rather independant and militaristic mindset, due to the history of its founding. As for locking up the sphinx, I'm afraid my meager town watch and myself are no match for such a beast, and as such, more harm than good could come from even trying it."
Under two eyes, Mistress Delisen shows abject shock at the mention of drug trafficking in her circus.
"We are decent people! While we might be odd and rough around the edges, no one would dare misuse the Umbra Carnival in such a manner, at least not while I'm still in charge."
Returning to the hodgepodge assembly, Mistress Delisen answers Lebraerio's question.
"It was Afina, the poor girl. She was doing some errands and wound up finding the body."
Lebraerio feels that the construction of cages is not his forte, and can't say much about it.