Azalia grumbles
Even crazy sea elves that stink of fish smell better than you, freakshow.
She swings at Yellow.
The first thing that Marten notices is how this group of goblins is perfectly arranged for a molten orb spell. He calls forth the ball of molten metal and then he notices the various states of undress. For obvious reasons, his aim is off. "Oh my."
The orb splashes against the wall next to the hobgoblin, bathing the hobgoblin and the green goblin in front of him in globs of molten metal.
Anneka barely has time to process the horrors before them before she's slammed her eyelids shut, reaching out with her force of will to keep the brute locked down where he is.
Drazh has seen horrors in his life. He had seen things which had kept him awake at night, which had driven him to drink, which fueled his violence. But this was something entirely different. It was something he could never unsee. He rushed forward, swinging his hammer...but his aim was not what it could have been...had his foe shown the decency to at least wear pants. Still a glancing hit was enough to fell one of the female goblins.
Miron gazes upon the sight with no reaction worth speaking of, and then speaks in a cold voice. "Naked, you stand more easily dispensed with." And then Miron begins to launch arrows but the first misses.
Having grown up with the fey of the woods--more than a few undiscriminating satyrs among them--Ferocia is completely unfazed by the nudity and indecency. She lets out a growl, takes a step into the room, and tears into the naked goblin wearing purple makeup with brutal efficiency.
Azalia grumbles "Even crazy sea elves that stink of fish smell better than you, freakshow." Swinging her sword she puts down the already injured green goblin.
Bruthazmus breaks free of his shadow with great effort. "I'll make you all pay for this!"
The remaining female goblin squeels in terror and tries to dart past actually managing to slip by Ferocia but not Drazh.
Marten
Anneka
Drazh
Miron
Ferocia
Azalia
Bruthazmus HP -3
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Drazh destroyed the fleeing goblin, and then moved up to Bruth. ”Gods, what is wrong with ye?” He asked as he prepared to swing. He had expected the place to be empty or for there to be an ambush. But to be rutting around after their trips? It boggled the mind. He tried to harness his anger to get himself back in the moment.
Not trusting his aim, Marten opts for a spell that does the aiming for him and targets the hobgoblin.
Ferocia steps forward and lashes out at Bruthazmus with her claws.
Correct aim, loose.
Miron corrects his aim and looses a second arrow at the bugbear.
Azalia drops her sword, draws her bow, and shoots at their remaining opponent.
Anneka invokes her luck charm for the benefit of Azalia.
Not trusting his aim, Marten opts for a spell that does the aiming for him and targets the hobgoblin.
Anneka invokes her luck charm for the benefit of Azalia.
Drazh destroyed the fleeing goblin, and then moved up to Bruth. ”Gods, what is wrong with ye?” He asked as he prepared to swing. He had expected the place to be empty or for there to be an ambush. But to be rutting around after their trips? It boggled the mind. He tried to harness his anger to get himself back in the moment.
Correct aim, loose. Miron corrects his aim and looses a second arrow at the bugbear but it's hide is thick and he is agile.
Ferocia steps forward and lashes out at Bruthazmus with her claws.
Azalia drops her sword, draws her bow, and shoots at their remaining opponent.
Bruthazmus tries to get past the two dwarves but is dead within a few steps.
+1 elf bane arrows x4
Potion of cure moderate wounds
Studded leather
Heavy flail
Mwk composite longbow with 20 arrows
4 pp
Miron steps over the goblin corpses and picks up the composite longbow and the arrows.
"This will be useful in future engagements."
Turning to the others:
"Shall we go further down once again? And check the southern rooms?"
Ferocia helps Miron loot the room without a care for her surroundings. Once she's picked the place over she follows the others down the hall.
"Sounds good."
Four pillars support the domed ceiling of this room. Several dark alcoves containing standing sarcophagi grace the walls, and a statue of a stern man wielding a glaive and holding a book stands in the southern part of the chamber.
The figure depicted in that statues is presumably this Runelord Karzoug.
Examining the walls you find a secret door leading into a corridor. You can hear a distant sloshing.
The sound of sloshing water flls this room, which has almost entirely collapsed into a large tide pool. What few walls do remain intact here bear detailed and impressive carvings of incredible treasuries filled to overflowing with coins, gems, jewelry, and other items of value. To the east, the walls depict a carving of a towering mountain, its peak carved in the shape of a stern face just above a great palace. Below, the side of the mountain’s valley cradles an immense city of spires.
3,500 sp
630 gp
40 precious stones worth 10 gp each
Jade amulet of natural armor +1
The greatest treasure in the room is the ancient helm. The helm isn’t solid gold (some of it is bronze) but it’s still worth 3,000 gp if the you can haul its 300-pound weight up out of the hole it’s been
resting in for hundreds of years.
Welcome to Level 4!
Miron will help to drag out loot as far as he is able. And he agrees that Ferocia should have the amulet for now.
Azalia helps as well, and agrees that Ferocia should take it.
With the immediate threats to Sandpoint seemingly dealt with, Miron's focus shifts to matters that had been left aside.
He researches widely, trying to gather clues about the ruins and their creators.
He liaises with the Mayor, Father Zantus and any other religious figures who happen to in Sandpoint, particularly on the matter of cleansing or sealing away the pools. He extols these as an intolerable threat to the citizens of Sandpoint. The very least he will accept is that the tunnels be sealed off but he will push for a means to end the threat of the pools mutating powers for good.
He meets with the town authorities, Milgen and any other militia heads, to try and coordinate future defense of the town and citizenry.
Miron is a sworn inquisitor, and he will not allow himself to forget it, or his duty.
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Back in Sandpoint, Drazh stared at the helmet. It had been a team effort to haul it back. Ferocia had claimed an amulet that hardened her skin. Marten had claimed a Spellbook, Azalia had an enchanted blade, Miron had a magical breastplate. And he...had this.
The familiar on his shoulder hopped down and paced around it. He could feel it’s excitement. He was sure that the others thought him crazy when he claimed the massive helmet. He was certain that the townspeople thought him mad when he had spent nearly every last gold crown he had renting this forge and the supplies he needed.
But he was not crazy. That he knew. The helm...within it, under the gold and bronze, was Mithril. He could smell it. He could feel it calling to him in his soul. With a grin he went to work.
For days Drazh worked. He didn’t eat. He barely slept. He had a vision! The core of the helm was made of Mithril. And he knew that he could make it into a suit of armor. Something worthy of Torag’s name. His familiar, a gift from the gods, worked furiously beside him. It kept the billows going, it cooled heated metal, and it brought him the tools he needed.
By the third day, the proprietor was getting worried. The sound of hammer on anvil did not cease. It was as if though there was an entire team of craftsmen in the small forge. On the fourth day she peeked inside. What she saw was a dwarf, with giant bags under his eyes, cursing as he worked.
On the fifth day she snuck in food and water. The two were wolfed down without a word.
On the seventh day the ranting started. It was all in dwarven, but a few words crept in that were common. Vengeance. Giants.
On the ninth day the dwarf cried as he worked, calling out for his wife. The name Brunhilda was roared to the heavens. He was shaking, seeing things. At times he thought he was at Grung Varn. His clothing had been soaked through with sweat several times over.
On the tenth day she had come back with a physician. The dwarf had finally passed out. Before him was a suit of fullplate, made from Mithril. It was covered with gold filgree, the names of the dead written upon it.
A miracle had occurred. Something which should have take years had been made in a week and a half. It had nearly driven him to madness. It had nearly claimed his life. But the hand of the divine was evident in the marvelous construction.
Miron also makes a point of seeking artists willing to accompany him to the now-cleared dungeons of Thistletop. He wants accurate, portable renditions of this "Runelord Karzoug" and any other image that might prove useful in future.
He will of course offer reasonable monetary compensation in exchange.
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Ferocia spends the first day in Sandpoint rudely bothering the various priests and arcanists in town to find a way to cleanse or destroy the evil well under Sandpoint. Unfortunately, her foul reputation and poor manners ends up causing most to shut their doors in her face. Luckily, Miron seems to be making headway, so she leaves the task to him.
She returns to her parents and siblings at the Mercantile League, but gets tired of having to wait for an appointment. In the end she leaves a message with their secretary: "The town's not going to get destroyed. You're welcome."
Then she stalks out of the stuffy, crowded offices and heads out in the stuffy, crowded streets.
She hates this place.
Then why does she stay?
She loves this place.
Then why does she want to leave?
She doesn't know what she thinks.
She goes back to work with the constabulary, as she had promised she would. She goes on patrols through town, looking properly stern and attentive. She stops a few muggings, tosses a few drunks into the tanks, passes a few urchins some coin before they steal some. Boring work. Nothing special.
As the days roll by she gets grumpier and grumpier. The noise, the smell, the people -- everything was getting to her. She needed to get out of here. Had to. She's go mad in this dump of a town.
How much longer was Belor going to be?!?
She spends her nights drinking. Gets in a few fights. Finds herself in the drunk tank.
Just like old times.
She can't take it anymore.
Two weeks after returning to Sandpoint from Thistletop, Ferocia ran out of town in a daze. The crowds made her dizzy, the smells made her ill, the drink made her stupid. She stumbled into the woods, and was gone.
She came alive in the woods. She always did. She scavenged for food and hunted. Slept under the stars. Bathed in an icy stream. She sang. She smiled. She was home.
But, it wasn't home. She couldn't stay forever.
She sang goodbye to the birds, and the bears she had befriended. Gave the oaks one last climb in farewell.
A week after leaving Sandpoint, Ferocia trudged into Sandpoint with a smile.
It wouldn't last. It never did. But, for the moment, her wild soul was at peace. She was happy.
Sadly no sage or holy man as of yet can determine a way to destroy the vile well beneath Sandpoint but it appears to be inert for now. It is suggested that once a few sketches can be made for further research that the area is sealed up with bricks and it be checked regularly to make sure it is no breached again. Perhaps in time the area can be unbricked and the magical well destroyed.
Sheriff Hemlock comes back with the soldiers from Sandpoint but the goblin threat has dispersed for now thanks to our unlikely heroes. Shalelu has reported that with the unifying force the goblins tribes have gone back to their usual affairs... but a wary eye is kept towards Thistletop, it is a place held in esteem by the goblin tribes and sooner or later one will move to claim it, if Sandpoint is fortunate it will be after a bloody clash between two or more tribes. Sheriff Hemlock offers each of you part time hours as deputies if you'd like to take them.
The people of Sandpoint are amazed by Drazh's new magnificent and extravagant armour.
Miron finds himself going down a scholarly rabbit hole. Ruins like it scatter Varissia. Magnimar is known as the City of Monuments and boasts the titanic bridge known as the Irespan, her estranged twin sister city of Korvosa perches it's palace upon the ruins of a pyramid and though less than Magnimar has many ruins among it. Kaer Maga is built upon and ancient foundations perched upon a cliff face known as the Asylum Stone. The great stone arch known as the Cyphergate gives the city of Riddleport it's very name. Storval Plateau has the wondrously large dam known as Skull Crossing... the lands of Varissia are dotted with the ruins of the fallen empire. Even Sandpoint could boast some buried ruins about the lighthouse though the historical significance of them is of far less note given recent discoveries.
The Runelords ruled over the Empire, accounts are hard to come by but from what Miron can uncover they were great and terrible.
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After the goblin raid and the raided tomb, after the horrors beneath the town are unearthed, and after the ensuing violence at Thistletop, it is hard to return to normality. Biscuits and bread lack their former fascination, and Anneka finds her mind wandering at all hours to Nualia, her sinister machinations, and the ancient and ruined chambers with its shrine to Lamashtu and vestiges of an ancient "runelord".
Even so, at least she had expected to be able to return to her normal life. Not that much about her life had been normal in recent years, but she hoped she could stop feeling anxious all the time.
The peculiar thing is that even though Nualia has been defeated, Anneka cannot shake a lingering uneasiness, a quiet but pervasive feeling that things are not quite right. She might have dismissed these feelings as paranoia or figments of imagination but she also now harbors a secret that she dare not reveal, even to Miron and the others. The darkness in her dreams is returning, and with it her powers are growing. She has tried to place the source of this anomaly, and aside from the violence and bloodshed they had all faced, her thoughts turn back to those ancient ruins, the magical well beneath the city, and of course, the seven-pointed star. A star whose symbology aligned perfectly with her own visions. What is the connection, and why does the ancient past seem determined to haunt her so?
Her attempt to remedy these worries is to stay busy. She attends temple daily and visits upon Miron, offering prayers to Abadar and hopes for a more ordered, normal life. She worries after Ferocia, hopeful that she isn't eaten by a cougar or bear out in the woods--and so she offers prayers to Gozreh, too. She asks in upon Marten and Azalia, hopeful that they might shed some insight on the seven-pointed star. She comes upon rumors of Drazh's strange activities and amazed to see his perfectly-fashioned suit of armor, its radiance almost blinding.
Yet despite all this, she still lays awake each night, listening to the silence of the nocturnal world and eagerly waiting the coming of the dawn.
Miron reluctantly agrees that bricking up the tunnels is the best solution that can be found for the pools right now. He does pen letters to members of the Abadar clergy in Magnimar and Korvosa, in the hope of nudging knowledge from an errant scholar.
He accepts Hemlock's offer of deputy position and part-time hours. It will be a useful extra layer of authority - and income. It also gives him more structured means to shape the local authorities into a more coherent force for defending and maintaining order in Sandpoint. The town will *not* be caught be badly unawares again. Not if he has any influence in the matter.
He appreciates the company of Anneka.
Miron revisits Tsuto's journal and recalls the notes Nualia left behind, and he makes a point of thoroughly examining both for any missed clues.
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Marten spends his time reconnecting with his brother and getting to know his brother's family. It's full of ups and downs. The quiet uproar he brought to the household at the state of his niece's and nephew's tutoring endeared him to his brother's wife, but started an argument with his brother about Marten not trying to control his family's lives. The next day, when he was discovered enthusiastically discussing the magic formulae for increasing the velocity of a force spell to his niece and nephew (a concept that they were too young to comprehend but they were caught up in their uncle's enthusiasm), it upset their mother but merely made their father laugh. This was somewhat countered by the following day, when Marten was droning on about the best materials to make quality parchment: his brother's wife was pleasantly surprised that Marten knew an honest trade while his brother groused that it was a near-useless trade.
It wasn't until Anneka called that Marten's brother and his wife seemed pleased that the wizard was associating with someone "normal" and relatively well-liked in town. They were further pleased when Marten gave them coin to cover his room and board. They were surprised to learn that Marten didn't turn his nose up at part time work as a deputy. Marten nearly did, but he's making an effort to be welcome in his brother's home. He's slowly making progress.
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The notes outline her plans to send an army of goblins against Sandpoint and burn the town to the ground, not only to offer it all as a burnt offering to Lamashtu in hopes of being made a half-fiend, but also to fuel the runewell in the catacombs below
She was a foundling raised by Sandpoint’s previous religious leader, a man named Ezakien Tobyn, and her childhood was lonely and sad. Her unearthly beauty made the other children either jealous or shy, and many of them took to playing cruel jokes on her. The adults in town weren’t much better—many of the superstitious Varisians viewed Nualia as blessed by Desna, a sort of “reverse deformity.” Rumors that her touch or proximity could cure warts and rashes, that locks of her hair brewed into tea could increase fertility, and that her voice could drive out evil spirits led to a succession of awkward and humiliating requests over the years. Poor Nualia felt more like a freak than a young girl by the time she came of age, so when Delek Viskanta, a local Varisian youth, began to court her, she practically fell into his arms in gratitude.
Knowing her father wouldn’t approve of a relationship with a Varisian (he wanted her to remain pure so she could join a prestigious convent), they kept the affair secret. The couple met many times in hidden places, a favorite being an abandoned smuggler’s tunnel under town that Delek had discovered as a child. Before long, Nualia realized she was pregnant. When she told Delek, he revealed his true colors and, after calling her a slut and a harlot, fled Sandpoint rather than face her father’s wrath. Nualia’s shock quickly turned to rage, yet she had nowhere to vent her anger. She bottled it up, and when her father discovered her delicate condition, his reaction to her indiscretions only furthered her shame and anger. He forbade her to leave the church, lectured her nightly, and made her pray to Desna for forgiveness. In so doing, he unknowingly nurtured her growing hate.
When the minor runewell in the Catacombs of Wrath below Sandpoint flared to life, Nualia’s own anger was a magnet to its magic. The wrathful energies suffused her mind and she flew into a frenzy. Seven months pregnant, she miscarried her child later that night, a child whose monstrously deformed shape she only glimpsed before blanching midwives stole it away to burn it in secret. As the child had been conceived in the smuggler’s tunnels below town, in close proximity to a hidden shrine to Lamashtu (the goddess of monstrous births), the child itself was deformed and horrific. The double shock of losing a child and the realization she had been carrying a fiend in her belly for 7 months was too much. Nualia fell into a coma. As Nualia slept, she dreamed unhealthy dreams. Fueled by the wrath from below and the taint of Lamashtu, Nualia became further obsessed with the cruel demon goddess and the conviction that her wretched life was inflicted on her by those around her. She came to see her angelic heritage as a curse, and the demon-sent nightmares showed her how to expunge this taint from her body and soul, replacing it with chaos and cruelty. When she finally woke, Nualia was someone new, someone who didn’t flinch at what Lamashtu asked of her. She jammed her father’s door shut as he slept, lit the church on fire, and fled Sandpoint.
The locals assumed Nualia had burned in the fire, a tragedy made all the worse by the death of Father Tobyn as well. Yet Nualia lived. She f led to Magnimar, where she enlisted the aid of a group of Norgorber-worshiping killers known as the Skinsaw Cult. With their aid, she tracked down Delek and murdered him. Yet his death did not fill her need for revenge—it only quickened her need for more of the same, for Sandpoint and its hated citizens still lived.
Seeing a kindred spirit in the tortured woman, the mysterious leader of the Skinsaw Cult gave Nualia a medallion bearing a carving of a seven-pointed star called a “Sihedron medallion.” Nualia learned that she had a larger role to play, and that her dreams were a map to her destiny. Taking the advice to heart, Nualia returned to Sandpoint and found herself drawn to the brick wall in the smuggler’s tunnels where she and Delek had conceived her deformed child. Nualia bashed down the wall, and in so doing, discovered the Catacombs of Wrath and the quasit Erylium, also a follower of Lamashtu. For many months, Nualia studied under Erylium’s tutelage. During this time, Nualia received another vision from Lamashtu—a vision of a monstrous goblin wolf imprisoned in an underground room. In Nualia’s dreams, she learned that this creature, a barghest named Malfeshnekor, was also one of Lamashtu’s chosen. If she could find him and free him, he would not only help her achieve her vengeance against the town of Sandpoint, but he would be the key in cleansing her body of what she had come to see as he “celestial taint.” Nualia wanted to be one of Lamashtu’s children now. She wanted to become a monster herself.
After three weeks Sheriff Hemlock asks you all to come meet with him. You know there were some unexpected deaths recently with some even saying they were murders. Those of you who have taken on the job of part time deputies were out of town at the time.
He nods as the last of you arrives “First, let me thank you again for all you’ve done for Sandpoint. It’s fortunate you’ve proven yourselves
so capable, because we’ve a problem I think you can help us with—a problem I wish I didn’t have to involve anyone with, but one that needs dealing with now before the situation grows worse."
“Put simply, we have a murderer in our midst— one who, I fear, has only begun his work. Some of you doubtless remember the Late Unpleasantness,
how this town nearly tore itself apart in fear as Chopper’s slayings went on unanswered. I’m afraid we might have something similar brewing now."
“Last night, the murderer struck at the sawmill. There are two victims, and they’re… they’re in pretty gruesome shape. The bodies were discovered by one of the mill workers, a man named Ibor Thorn, and by the time my men and I arrived on the scene, a crowd of curious gawkers had already sprung up. I’ve got my men stationed there now, keeping the
mill locked down, but the thing that bothers me isn’t the fact that we have two dead bodies inside. It’s the fact that this is actually the second set of murders we’ve had in the last few days. After the first deaths I had some of my regular men on it but at this point it stinks of strange, you've shown you can handle strange so that's why I am asking for your help with it."
“I come to you for help in this matter—my men are good, but they are also green. They were barely able to handle themselves against the goblins, and what we’re facing now is an evil far worse than goblins. I need the help. But I’m afraid you’ll need the help too. You see, I’m afraid that this particular murderer knows one of you as well.” He slides a bloodstained note across the table with Azalia's name written on it.
“You will learn to love me, desire me in time as she did. Give yourself to the Pack and it shall all end.” It is signed -Your Lordship
"More than a little disturbing I'm sure you'll agree."
Ferocia gives Belor a big grin when she sees him. "Good day!" she blurts out, looking quite full of energy.
At mention of the word murder, she frowns. "Well, there goes my good mood. The goblins, then the Glassworks... This town can't take another Chopper. Not now." She sighs deeply. "What have we got?"
"Gruesome? What do you mean, gruesome? Worse than Lonjiku and his workers?"
At the sight of the note, she quiets. She reads the note, then passes it to the others. "Looks like you've got an admirer, Azalia. Any idea who it might be?"
She crosses her arms and thinks on something for a while. "So, this Pack. It's what? A gang? Cult? Secret Club? Does anyone know?"
"I've never heard of this pack before but there are a few other leads to consider. I'll do my best to keep people calm. Given how well ye dealt with the goblins it'll do the people good to know you are all working on the case."
"About the first murders. Three con men from the town of Galduria were found murdered in an abandoned barn south of town a few days ago—their bodyguard survived the assault but has gone insane and was sent to Habe’s Sanatorium—a privately run respite for the insane."
"The most recent murders took place at the Sandpoint Lumber Mills—the bodies are still present, and little has been done with the crime scene itself. This should be the first place you should investigate in my opinion. I'd like to clean the mill up right away and get the bodies buried."
"I have interrogated Ibor Thorn, the man who discovered the bodies at the lumber mill, and don’t suspect the frightened man knows much more."
"Ven Vinder is a merchant and my only suspect, although the sheriff is fairly certain that Ven is innocent and that the murders were committed by someone else."
"There is a symbol carved into one of the bodies, a star shape. The star carved on one victim’s chest certainly has significance to the killer, but I'm at a loss as to what it means. Perhaps an expert on runes, such as Brodert Quink) can be consulted? He might be able to shed some light on it's meaning"
"The Lumber Mill it is, then. Who died, by the way? And why do you suspect Vin?"
"Poor Katrine Vinder is the stranger of the two victims. She was mangled horribly. She didn't work there but seeing as she has- had a reputation for being promiscous that might add to it."
"Harker’s body has been horribly desecrated. The poor man has been affixed to the wall by several hooks normally used to hang machinery.
He's not a pleasant sight. His bare chest is defaced as well,
with a star carved into it. He's one of the two owners. The other is Ibor."
"Ven Vinder, well he's not too happy with how his daughter carried on. He was enraged when I told him about his daughter. It could be a crime of passion leading to manslaughter but he seemed to be enraged at finding about that his daughter died. I've got him cooling his heels in a cell while he calms down, he attacked me when I told him."
Anneka is so absorbed in the note that she fails to read lips, and so she only catches the latter half of the Sheriff's explanation.
...a star carved into it..."
Had she heard that right? "A star?" She interrupts. "A seven pointed star? Sheriff, a pen and parchment, please!" Her hands trembling, she outlines a diagram of her own vision, her seeing wheel within the darkened basement of her home, and the symbol uncovered both in the ruins beneath the town and below Thistletop. "Is this what was carved into the bodies?"
As if Nualia's journal wasn't horrifying enough, now a killer, a serial killer, on the loose. Again! The Chopper, Jervas, had killed himself just after he had slain her brother. The notion that this was the same man was impossible. Perhaps an imposter? Or-- "It can't be the Chopper again, can it? He died! Casp--he, oh it can't be him!" So nervous now she can't keep the paper steady, the throws it to the floor and steadies herself in a chair. Then, after a moment, she steels herself and glares. "I'm coming, too, Ferocia. I have to see."
"A seven pointed one like that yes." He responds surprised you recognised it.
"I doubt it but whoever they are they are clearly very dangerous."
Marten allows the others with more ties to the town to be appalled. It won't help the situation, but maybe it will help them cope. Their emotions will lead them to ask most of the right questions, and then he can ask any that they missed. So far, there's only one obvious item that's been overlooked.
"Habe’s Sanatorium? Where the bodyguard is confined? Please arrange for us to visit so that we can question the man." Marten holds up his hand and turns his head to the side as if he's trying to end an argument even though the sheriff hasn't said anything. "Yes, I heard you when you said the man is insane. He still needs to be questioned."
"And of course, we will all go to the mill. Every set of eyes on the scene is a chance of noticing something new."
As he says this, he signs out his words in Varisian sign language, his spell-caster's fingers fluidly dancing from one word to the next. He's learned the sign language in a remarkably short time.
"And you," he points to Azalia. "If you have any theories who sent you this note, now is the time to tell us."
"Katrine?! Well, no wonder Vin's pissed." No stranger to being tossed into jail for brawling, Ferocia considers this. "He loved his daughter. I can't see this being him. Not if she's dead, too. Still, we'll need to question him anyway. Crimes like this you never know."
When Anneka begins to panic, Ferocia puts a comforting hand on her shoulder. Looking at her, she says, "The Chopper's dead. I saw his corpse. Plenty of us did. This isn't him. But, if the Chopper taught us anything, it's that anyone can be a killer. Remember that."
Suddenly she catches a glimpse of Anneka's drawing. "Whoah!" she remarks, withdrawing her hand from Anneka's shoulder and picking up the paper. "The star on the corpses matches the star under Sandpoint? So... the killer is... what? Interested in old Thassilon? Part of the Lamashtan cult? Connected to Nualia or that quasit?"
Looking at Miron, she asks, "You read her paperwork, right? Did she have any other allies we didn't bring down?"
Ferocia crosses her arms and leans back in her chair. "Did anyone figure out what that star meant? It's a safe bet the killer knows."
At Marten's suggestion to head to the Sanatorium, Ferocia nods. "Definitely. But, before we head out to question him, I want to check out the site of those murders, too." Turning to the Sheriff she asks, "Who were the victims of the first murder? Did they have any connection to the Lumber Mill? And which barn were they found in?"
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"I will cover any costs or damages done by Mister Anviltamer during his current project. You have my word as a clergyman of Abadar. I do not believe he noticed me enter and leave the room, but from what I witnessed of his work, it will be beneficial."
*****
Miron begins reading Nualia's notes in the afternoon.
He keeps reading.
When the light is gone, he stares at a wall, contemplating the depths of madness that Nualia had sank to. And each step that led to it.
He is tempted to simply burn the papers, out of a desire to contain such insanity. But no, they will be sent to Magnimar as evidence against her, along with his own notes on the steps the authorities should take against her allies. He has taken the notes he needs.
He does not sleep well.
The next morning, he swings by Sandpoint Savouries.
Anneka made a point of coming to me, praying with me and what must have been checking upon me. I have been neglectful.
And finds that Anneka has left for the sherriff's office, as a messenger catches up to him.
*****
Miron arrives in time to hear out the sherriff, and the comments of the others. He absorbs it all, trying to piece together a conclusion.
And then he begins to reel off thoughts out loud, in a matter-of-fact tone, all the while signing and mouthing carefully.
"We should speak with Thorn, the con-men's bodyguard, Vinder, Quink, and any of your men who have witnessed the bodies or the crime scenes. Which we should also of course look at ourselves."
In response to Ferocia's question, he continues:
"Nualia murdered her adoptive father, Father Tobyn, through arson. The wrongs done to her in youth, and a few terrible coincidences, allowed the influence of Lamashtu from the 'runewells' in the 'Catacombs of Wrath' to corrupt her into insanity and worship. After the church fire, she fled to Magnimar and into an alliance with the Skinsaw Cult, Norgober-worshipping killers, slaying her former lover, Delek Viskanta. Their leader gave her the 'Sihedron medallion' that led her to the Catacombs and the Lamashtu-worshipping quasit, Erylium. She studied under him for months, then freed the barghest Malfeshnekor. I have written to the Magnimar authorities about the Skinsaw Cult, but in the event of difficulties we should consider hunting them as a medium-term goal."
He falls silent abruply, awaiting the responses of the others.
At Marten's suggestion to head to the Sanatorium, Ferocia nods. "Definitely. But, before we head out to question him, I want to check out the site of those murders, too."
Marten nods at Ferocia in a "she gets it" sort of way.
"I have written to the Magnimar authorities about the Skinsaw Cult, but in the event of difficulties we should consider hunting them as a medium-term goal."
"This Sihedron star symbol seems to be a common thread, so far. We should find out what we can about it, I think, but we may not be able to here in Sandpoint. Perhaps Magnimmar."
"The Sihedron symbol is from Thassilon, an empire that stretched across these lands in ancient times. The ruins are dotted throughout settled areas, including minor ones here in Sandpoint. They were ruled by great and terrible 'Runelords', of which the image of one, 'Karzoug', is deep under Thistletop."
Miron pulls out the scroll with the artist's rendition of that drawing to reinforce his point.
Brodert Quink is a scholar focused in Runes and symbols he might know something of use.
"We should meet with any of our persons of interest in town to gather such information as they have swiftly. The examination of the murder scenes will likely take longer than conversation."
Miron begins working out an efficient route from the sherrif's office to the nearest person he listed earlier.
When approached about his daughter Ven becomes enraged shouting at you and accusing members of your group of killing his daughter.
With a neutral expression on his face, Miron calmly retorts:
"Did you kill her?"
He watches for Ven's reaction very closely, with a near-unblinking gaze.
Ferocia seems unsurprised at Ven's anger. "I'm sorry for your loss, Ven. But, people are dead and you punched the Sheriff. You've gotta give us an explanation."
"What was your daughter doing at the sawmill?"
"Why attack Belor?"
"You killed her! I'll make you pay for this! You killed my little girl."
It's quite clear you are going to get little of use from him in his irate state but Miron gets the impression the man is distraught over his daughters death and looking for someone to blame.
"I really didn't.But if you'll answer our questions we can get on with finding her actual killer."
Miron takes note, and then continues, changing tack somewhat:
"If you help us, we can find her killer that much sooner. We have hunted killers before."
He thinks of Tsuto. And Nualia.
I have no idea who wrote this, but it is quite disturbing. I don't remember rejecting anyone's attentions lately, but honestly I could have, and not really even registered it...
Drazh's words seem to strike a cord with the man and he slumps against the bars "They killed my little girl..."
After talking to him for a little while he doesn't seem to have been involved and is deeply upset at his daughters death. Sadly he knows little of value, he doesn't know where his daughter was. She was supposed to be in her room but has a tendency of sneaking out.
Miron looks upon the man, his own facial expression little changed.
How horrific. I can only imagine this man's pain.
"Mister Vinder, you have my thanks and my sincere condolences for your loss. And my word that I will do everything in my power to hunt down her killer."
He turns to the others and speaks/signs softly:
"We should move on."