As Karthan grips the bow, knocking an arrow for the first time, the echo of his father's voice ghosts thru his mind. This is my son, in whom I gladly entrust the future of all things. You are my honor and strength.
The two were wraiths in the alley way, one with the shadows and the moon. As they came to the mouth of the alley, the sounds of battle became clear. To the left, around a sharp corner of a building, there were three men surrounding a fourth figure. They brandished cudgels, the man they surrounded wore a breastplate beneath greys and reds. The fourth did not appear afraid, only grimly determined and focused. He held a bastard sword before him in the high guard.
Just beyond the grouping, a familiar form stood as a grim conductor over the three thugs...it was Harole, the half-orc henchman to Kreig. He was taunting the lone man in greys...
"Oy, any thoughts fore we spill yer brains?"
The lone man's eyes darkened then unfocused as he took in the scene. "Come to me then, let me bless you."
Mal flashes instructions in elven handspeak...Stay at the corner, we'll target Harole on three...
He crept from the corner and came to rest at the first kiosk outside of the alley mouth.
The half-orc sniffed at the air, a touch of anxiety in this shoulders...
...he shrugs off whatever he smelled and focuses on the battle. One of the thugs moved in on the surrounded man in greys and reds. The assailant's strike was turned aside by the bastard sword. Harole rested a Morningstar on his shoulder, fist clenching at the ready to dive in once their chosen target was wounded.
Mal'undil brought his crossbow up and held up three fingers to Karthan...
Three...two...one...fire!!
Hit!!
As Karthan readies his bow, taking aim a his chosen quarry…his father’s voice echoes once more…become the hunter, my son… The ranger’s focus tunnels, all he sees are the vital areas on the half-orc’s body…the jugular…a cluster of nerves at the small of his back…his kidneys…liver…the spine…
Stealth
In response to the bows whispers Karthan responds "Swift death to our enemies."
first rapid shot
damage
second rapid shot
to confirm critical
additional damage
Inititive roll
The first bolt takes Harole in the trunk, just below the armpit and puncturing his lung. Before blood begins frothing with his next breath, two arrows whisper the half-orc's death lament; the first arrow takes him in the small of the back, a straight shot through the left kidney and into his spleen.
The second arrow from Karthan's bow penetrates the neck, just below the skull, severing Harole's spinal cord with the broadhead emerging from the vile warrior's right eye.
(Harole slumps to the ground, mace thumping silently on his back and coming to rest.)
Karthan 9
Mal'undil
Lone Stranger
Baddies X3
At Initiative 26...
The lone man in greys and reds brings his sword down on the man next to him. Hit!!
Confirmed!!
"Die, agent of Chaos! Go and meet your god in the Abyss..."
The thug next to him collapses, his torso nearly cloven in two from the shoulder down to the sternum.
At Initiative 15...
Mal reloads, then gestures to Karthan to take aim on the thug (at the bottom of the map) then takes aim and fires.
Miss!!
Mal curses under his breath as the string on his crossbow snaps. He lets the weapon fall against the shoulder strap, freeing his hand to draw his short sword (next round).
Karthan splits his attacks between the two remaining thugs.
first rapid shot
thug is still flat footed until 6
second rapid shot
"Where is that cunning runt Krieg?!"
At Initiative 5...
One of the men, the one furthest from the sword wielding warrior, looked over in horror. He was staggering with the arrow wound and noticing for the first time that the half-orc was dead.
"Oy, Harole's down Git!" he shouted to the other thug. Then turned and ran deeper into the plaza and out of sight. Running at full speed.
The other thug tried to sidestep away, calling out to guys fleeing comrade. "Don't leave me 'ere!!"
In the distance, echoing off of the warehouse buildings, the first combatant replied. "I'll go get the boss!"
The second thug continues his maneuver, trying to get away...
Miss!!
The second thug, Karthan's arrow protruding from his thigh, manages to begin his escape, moving 30 ft away. (5 squares)
At Initiative 26...
The Lone Stranger pointed at the back of the fleeing enemy and shouted..."Don't you want to beg for mercy before you tuck tail and run back to your filthy master?!?"
Success!!
The thug staggers and braces himself against a statute.
The stranger points towards the center of the plaza and shouts, "The dwarf you seek departed that way with your monk friend. The monk is hurt."
At Initiative 15...
Mal turns and runs after the first thug drawing his short sword as he goes. "The sewers," he calls over his shoulder.
Knowledge Religion
Karthan runs as fast as he can after Mal and in the direction of the fleeing dwarf knowing his fairy meat legs would out pace his stunted stems.
Karthan arrives on scene, from his vantage point he can make out the now familiar dwarven features of Old Oak Kreig. The dwarf is yelling at the just arrived thug, but in his right hand, gripped by the neck and hanging over an open sewer grate is the unconscious and bloodied form of Lau Fu Shan.
The dwarf is brandishing Bruiser, his greatclub in the other hand as he yells at his minion. "Yuh get yer good fer nuttin hide back dere 'n deal wit 'em! I'll have yer hide ifn ya don't" Lau's unconscious body swings like a rag doll in the dwarf's grip.
"Please ay, don't send me back!"
At Initiative 15...
Mall tries to not focus on Lau's chest, worried he'd not see his friend breathing. To his left he sees Karthan arrive and flags him to stay hidden. Then the rogue skirts further south and steps out of the shadows, no weapon in his hand.
"Kreig...let him down nice and easy. Grey cloaks will be here soon...better you're on your way."
The dwarf focuses on Mal, Lau's neck getting squeezed all the tighter as Kreig ground his teeth. "Outta 'ere halfbreed, lest ya end da same as 'im..."
Mal quickdraws his flight dagger and lets it fly...
Hit!!
Kreig's eyes burn with hatred as Mal's dagger strikes true.
Stealth to hide in the shadows as bid by Mal.
However seeing Lau's neck being squeezed and Mal attack spurs Karthan to act.
Swift death to my enemies!
First rapid shot at the thug!
Damage
Second rapid shot at Krieg
damage on stunty pants
allyoucan! Pow pow pow pow!
"You made a big mistake crossing me dwarf, you should have stayed behind that bar. You think creatures like the Rook and me give two s##%s about a human? Their lives are like fruit flies compared to ours. And you took the bait your greasy bearded freak. When I am done mopping your life's blood off the cobblestones with your head I will take your job at the bar. Surprised?! Well I must admit I am, how could someone who has been around the block as long as you have fall to the new kid who literally just got off the boat? I figured it would take a few weeks at least to ferrit you out."
Inititive
At Initiative 5 - Thug
He ducks the incoming arrow and panics. "No way, boss...don' need no part o dis!" The remaining thug turns and runs, fear driving him to the east side of the plaza...
Top of the Round At Initiative 26...
The man in greys and reds is waiting for him, bastard sword flashing in the night.
Hit!!
The thug's death goes unnoticed as Kreig charges the elf...
At Initiative 15...
Mal quick draws his short sword and leaps into the fray, desperate at the sight of the anger building in the dwarf's black eyes... the way Lau's form feel to the ground...
Hit!!!
At Initiative 12...
Kreig shrugs off the rogue's attack, drops Lau to the flash stones just to the side of the open sewer grate and launches himself at the elven ranger, froth at his lips as he curses in dwarven.
Miss!!
Kreig swings Bruiser in a murderous arc, bellowing as he brings the great club down.
Hit!!!
"I'm gonna feast on yer flesh, fairy-meat!!"
Intimidate
Karthan smiled back at the dwarf through blood stained teeth. "Yeah I was hoping you would say that because. You just dropped your hostage, which was the only thing that held Mal in check! Your charge just made you easier to hit!
You are about to be flanked! You just abandoned your avenue of escape! Oh, and I never wanted your piece of s*%# job, I just wanted you to charge me so I could make both my attacks!"
Karthan drops the bow and brings his elven long knives to bear in a spinning dance of the blades. His cuts precise and lighting quick in contrast with the dwarfs brute manner.
right hand
left hand
"Don't look now but a paladin is about to take your head. I suppose you could strike me down, but then he strikes you down and he heals me, or you focus on the paladin and Mal spills your guts so that my sister can read your entrails, and then there is the matter of the elven cat, oh yes Krieg you stepped way out of your element. You didn't know who all i was allied with did you?! That's right don't look at the sword that is coming for your rotten little neck! Hear those footsteps? Here he comes!"
At Initiative 26...
Sacerdos adjusted his thinking, seeing the monk go down...
The other half-elf was looking too, fear then growing anger in his eyes. He may be out of the fight, maybe compromised. There was no telling until in the instant Sacerdos had to contemplate the situation.
He moved into position opposite the elf, as he passed the rogue he shouted to him. "Stay focused, stay in the fight!"
His blade sang in the night air, biting into the dwarf's shoulder.
Hit!!
Missed!!
At Initiative 15...
Mal'undil looked to his fallen friend, blood mixed with the various water rivulets and ran into the sewer drain.
The half-elf saw the monk's chest, the wounds...His teeth bared, fire in his belly and hatred in his heart, Mal'undil turned and launched himself at Kreig...
Hit!!
"What have you done?!?"
At Initiative 12...
Surrounded, bellowing in pain, the dwarf turns his head skyward and begins laughing. The moon dares to cast its glance downwards, silvery light falling upon Kreig's face.
What Karthan had thought was spittle and froth was given a crimson cast in the new moon's light. There were bits of gore in the dwarf's beard, flying outward from his teeth as he laughed.
"I et 'is heart ya half-breed bastard!! I et his heart so I could see yers cry like babes!!"
Kreig swung his great club in a low arc, aiming to take Mal'undil...
Miss!!
...the dwarf's growls of frustration mix with his insane mirth as he arcs his swing back downwards for his second strike at Mal...
Hit!!
He nearly loses his footing with the downward strike, but rights himself just in time. Kreig spits a horror-ridden mixture of his own blood and Lau's blood onto the half-elf and grins. "On wit it den, half-breed...you 'n yer lady frens..."
Karthan is momentarily taken aback by the dwarfs revelation and the realization that the dwarf is spitting pieces of Lau upon them. The blackest part of him wished to take the dwarf alive, to make him pay as he had caused Lau to suffer, but that was the path of evil and chaos.
"How about we leave him alive and return him to The Rook and let him explain why it is he openly attacked the followers of Eristil."
Karthan hoped he didn't have the chance to answer and he weaves the blades of the knives together before they dove looking for vital and exposed locations on the putrid dwarfs body
right hand
left hand
At Initiative 26...
The other two were wounded, but between the three of them they had the dwarf cornered. Sacerdos would not suffer the scum to live, judgment was passed for the dwarf earlier. There was no turning back.
But he also respected the fact this vile creature was not his to kill. He fanned the fingers of his left hand and prayed to his benefactor, then pointed his sword at the dwarf. "I am Sacerdos e'Niihl of Magnimar, and in the name of Ragathiel, you will not move..."
The dwarf turned, snarling at Sacerdos, great club coming up with all the strength he could muster...then froze in place.
He sheathed his bastard sword and nodded to the rogue and elf. "This villain is yours, but I cannot allow him to leave this place alive."
at Initiative 15...
Mal'undil's breathing had to be shallow, he felt broken ribs beneath his chain shirt. The taste of blood probably meant something was leaking on the inside too.
"How about we leave him alive and return him to The Rook and let him explain why it is he openly attacked the followers of Erastil." Karthan suggested.
Then the man in greys and reds stepped forward, in the back of Mal's mind a confirmation on the symbol made when he mentioned Ragathiel.
Mal's left arm held his midsection, he coughed up blood and spat it upon the paved stones. There were memories, unbidden, surfacing across his mind. The first time he'd met Lau, gambling (and losing) against the monk while playing stones. One of the three times he remembered the monk making a joke...and Mal actually getting it.
All the times Lau picked him up when he'd fallen...
He drew back his short sword and stabbed Kreig through the neck, a shout of anguish escaping his lips as he did so.
Kreig, freed of his life force, was also freed of the Hold spell, collapsing in a heap to the ground.
The sword emerged from the dwarf, then fell to the ground as Mal'undil turned back towards Lau. He fell to his knees next to him and lifted him up. "I'm sorry you died alone..." he whispered. "Forgive me, my brother."
End of Initiative
Sacerdos took a few steps back and drew forth his crossbow, reloading the weapon. As he worked, he surveyed the area, verifying there were no other threats.
perception
"If he is not beyond divine intervention we could see if the clerics of either temple would raise him Mal. We could at least try to have it done."
The sound of heavily booted steps, marching at the quickstep, coming from the alley to the south of your position.
To your left, Sacerdos frowns with consternation, he hears the boot steps too. The stranger looks ready to depart, perhaps ahead of whomever is about to arrive. But he looks to you, then to Mal'undil and reconsiders. He slings his crossbow over his shoulder, careful to remove the bolt and holster it in the quiver on this right side. He readies himself, a grim cast to his face, for the owners of the booted steps to arrive on scene.
Your focus expands outwards, you notice three more bodies, all with weapons near their fallen forms. Similar cuts of cloth to the other thugs you dealt with earlier. There...head smashed into one of the kiosks was a fifth. It is apparent that the battle was joined prior to your arrival.
Karthan picks up his magical bow and quickly wipes and sheathes his long knives and prepares to meet whomever it is that comes.
"My thanks to you stranger, my name is Karthan Dawnsetter, may I know yours so you are no longer a stranger to me? This man was as a brother to my companion, this dwarf and his goons were followers of a dark god and preyed on the weakest most vulnerable among us."
"I am Sacerdos e'Niihl of Magnimar, Inquisitor to His Empyreal Lord Ragathiel, may His eyes fall upon us and His wing protect." He placed splayed fingers over his breast and bowed respectfully. Upon closer inspection, you note the tell-tale upturn to his ears, marking him a half-elf. But as opposed to Mal'undil, it seems his human side is the dominant with regards to features.
Sacerdos moved closer to the elf, whispering softly. "I'm sorry, but there is no returning from the wounds your friend has received."
He stepped away and addressed them both, rather than wait for the guards to arrive and miss the chance later. "These villains lay in wait to assault him. I entered the fray as soon as I caught up with them. My task had been to make contact with this monk, inquire about an object in the possession of your group so that I might reclaim it." He paused and bowed his head, eyes closed in patient resolve, hands relaxed and at his sides as he knelt. "I have forgiveness to ask of you both. If I had made contact sooner, or had better skill in battle, I would have been able to prevent this end."
In the distance, the boots were getting closer.
Karthan's eyes narrowed, "Which item? And what group are you operating with? It seems everytime I turn around one group or another is operating in secrecy all towards the same end, but none of them together."
I could cut the pieces of heart from that beasts stomach and jam his great club up his rear!"
It wasn't quite the response he'd expected. But then again, there was a great deal of labyrinth within the shadows Sacerdos had to deal with on a daily basis. He watched Karthan for a while. He'd studied them while they were in the Toiling Gent, watched their interactions in the common room...there was something in their bearing that Ragathiel told his servant Sacerdos could be trusted.
"I'm searching for a Kukri, a blade forged in Taldor but found use in Magnimar. It bears a ruinic sickle upon it's blade and was last in the possession of a Varisian dancer. I've spent nearly a year tracking the weapon. I must reclaim this blade for my order, it is a soul prison." He turned his head to the side, the guards would be there soon. "I would share more, but those guards that will be arriving soon are none I will deem trustworthy. I will share with you more out of the debt I hold to your group."
"Very well, let us get through this next drama and we will talk."
Karthan glanced towards Lau's earthly shell, "If he had shared his purpose he would still be alive. I think he would be glad that this dwarf and his goons are now dead. There was another dead monk in the ally, he must not have come alone."
After the Plaza Battle
“No,” Sacerdos responded. “Not a monk. As with the other humans here, they were part of a small group of thieves and murderers called the Stag Heralds. They lay in wait here for your monk companion. They did not ask any questions…at least none that I heard.”
“Think you can handle this without me?” The rogue had gotten to his feet and rejoined them in silence. There was the growing fire of vengeance in his eyes.
“If you seek to visit this dead villain’s employer, I’ll gladly go to wash this world of his presence. But the Rook’s responsibility for this event began and ended with a public humiliation of the dwarf earlier this evening.” At the rogue’s raised eyebrow the inquisitor continued. “Apparently your elven friend here left quite an impression on the dwarf. When he left the second time from the Toiling Gent, the dwarf called out to the Rook, calling for the elf’s blood. Even going so far as calling the Rook weak for taking a linking to the…well, I will not repeat what he said at that point.”
“The Rook booted him?”
“No, but he humiliated him in front of the patrons and scum in the tavern. Indicated that it took a person named Feyd and an elf one night to handle what shouldn’t have been a problem in the first place. He wondered if the dwarf should be assigned to the scullery retinue instead of running the tavern.” He paused for a moment, thinking on other aspects of the evening. “I assumed he meant you were Feyd,” he gestured to the rogue, then to the elf, “I’m assuming he also meant you since you were the last one to visit prior to the outburst.”
A group of soldiers, Grey Cloaks to be precise, were marching through the hazy alley to the south. Sacerdos moved forward to great them, hands held outward , palms up, to indicate he held no weapons. Over his shoulder he spoke once more. “The Greys, they will know this Kreig, yes?"
The rogue nodded, his eyes unfocused as a swirl of thoughts raced back and forth.
"Good." he moved off. "Stick around Feyd, I would have questions for you in regards to this Rook person. At the conclusion of my mission here, I would be obliged to rid your city of his filth if it pleases my Empyreal Lord.”
"Stag Heralds? Yet another group crosses our path. Do you know of them? It seems regardless of where we turn we are at the center of something. The paladin named it discordia earlier, but to me it appears more like a confluence."
"Mal, why don't you return to Caleb's, let him know what has happened, I am also beginning to fear for him. If they would come for Lau like this . . . "
I will take this stunted cannibals head, along with the others, back to the Toiling Gent. I will open the doors, spill their heads down the stairs into the common room and when I have their attention I will announce to the entire room, "This is what befalls those who call for and then seek out my blood, look upon them and remember! I have no quarrel with the Rook and seek none with anyone else in this room that doesn't cross me. Krieg and his boys thought me weak, they thought wrong. He called The Rook weak . . . People with weaknesses get killed by people who lack them, notice both The Rook and I are still very much alive." And with that I will throw down their shattered weapons and leave that rotten place.
"That might be best." He folded arms across his chest and thought for a moment. Kreig was a savage, most definitely capable of murder, but to consume another's flesh in such a vicious manner? Of the tenets of Droskar he knew, the consumption of one's enemies was not one of them. "I'll see to it Lau is returned to the Erastil grounds, they can see to it his body is properly interred. Then I'll head to Caleb's shop."
Behind him, he heard more footsteps, the Grey Cloaks along with the inquisitor were approaching. The leader of the contingent was familiar to him.
"The Stag Heralds," he continued to Karthan. "...they're a small group off of the Barbers. Blades for hire...I think Zandra mentioned having a run-in with them outside the Toiling Gent. Kreig here probably gathered some up for a some cheap muscle."
His mind was all over the place, too much for a single day to reconcile. He turned back to Karthan, there was something in the elf's tone..."Stay away from the Rook, keep your pride in check. I want to hear more of what this Sacerdos has to say before we go back and level the tavern."
"Mal'undil?" It was Sacerdos, testing out the name.
Mal nodded. The inquisitor only nodded at an internal confirmation. Meanwhile, the sergeant for the Greg Cloaks stepped forward and nodded greeting. "Mal'undil, is what this man says true? Lau Fu Shan has fallen?"
Another nod from Mal. A lump in his throat cut off his voice.
"My condolences," The sergeant bowed, as did two other Grey Cloaks in the group who were also familiar to Mal.
Sacerdos cleared his throat and spoke into the silence. "The dwarf is there, and his minions are scattered throughout the plaza. I will be happy to pay for any damage caused by our battle."
The sergeant waved him off. "No need, Inquisitor Sacerdos. I'm certain there are extensive funds in the dwarf's possession to cover such things." He gestured for three of his group to begin policing up the bodies throughout the plaza. Then he turned back to Mal. "Look, I can have my men escort you back to the Iomedae temple to confer with Chaplain-Protector Duneheim if you feel it is warranted."
"No." Mal responded sharply, then whistled for Gertrude, keen to get hold of his blanket roll so he could cover up Lau's brutalized body. The half-elf sighed and gestured an apology for his tone. "Sorry, Sergeant Wilford, I will see to Lau's body, then be on my way. The evening's gone on long enough."
Wilford bowed once more. "No apologies needed, Mal'undil. You were there for me when I lost men during that affair in the sewers, even saved me from that Bugbear. I owe you, Lau and the Chaplain-Protector a lot." He stepped forward and clasped a gauntleted hand up on Mal's shoulder. "If there is anything we can do to support you in getting to the bottom of this, just send word."
He shifted around and clasped forearms with the sergeant. "Thanks, Wil, I appreciate it."
Gertrude plodded out of the mist, snorting at the scents of death in the plaza. Mal began the process of unfurling his bed blanket and wrapping Lau's body. The sergeant, for his part, along with two other men - Jank and Kiff if memory served the half-elf - helped wrap Lau and place him on Gertrude.
By the time the enemy bodies were accounted, there were five humans, Harole and Kreig. "I've sent a runner to gather a wagon to cart these away."
"If it's okay, send them to the Temple of Iomedae. Give word to Olivia they should be investigated." Mal mentioned.
His heart felt like a thousand stone weight in his chest and it was drowning him in a deep pool of black. Mal was tired, all his energy was nearly gone. He needed rest. He needed to understand what was happening, what he'd been involved with over the past few hours...maybe what he'd been involved with over the past few years and not even known.
He would still visit Caleb. He'd have to deliver the news to the old man, perhaps hold off on the questions until the 'morrow.
"Sacerdos..." He motioned for the Inquisitor to approach. The man had gone off and retrieved a horse from a distant alley. Mal saw a pair of long weapons attached to the saddle; a longspear, maybe a lance at that, and a furled banner.
"Tell us more." Mal was leaning against Gertrude's side, limbs burning with fatigue, his back aching with tension.
“Of course.” He studied the rogue for a moment, thinking better of him judging by the way Sergeant Wilford accorded him honor. Perhaps this Mal’undil was a rogue no longer.
He went to one of the kiosks that had been damaged in the fighting, noting that there were small stools attached to the side. In a moment he acquired them a lay them out for the three to converse in a seated position.
“I come from Magnimar in Varisia, seeking the kukri I spoke of earlier. My assignment started…”
Sacerdos was newly arrived from the Mendevian Crusades. His beginnings were that of a mercenary horseman seeking gold and glory in the north as a sellsword to the Knights of Ozem. In the midst of battle, he was unhorsed by an undead knight of only minor potency. Sacerdos’ pride had saw to it he charged this particular enemy, and it was his pride that lay him at the foot of the vile creature as it swung a heavy flail in jarring circles ready to deliver the deathblow.
Sacerdos had fumbled in the dirt for a weapon, anything to defend himself as the undead knight howled with unearthly joy at the kill to come. His hand fell upon the hilt of a weapon, Sacerdos grasped it and stabbed it forward as the enemy closed in for the strike. The new found blade stabbed thru the creature’s head, from the chin and upwards through the brain.
The Inquisitor drew forth his weapon, a bastard sword that upon closer inspection gave a pale gleam in the moonlight with its quality. “This is Nighteye, a gift from His Empyreal Lord Ragathiel, may His eyes fall upon us and His wing protect.” Out of habit and sense of duty, Sacerdos withdrew an oiled cloth from his satchel and began cleaning the weapon. However, it’s obvious the weapon was somehow unstained from the encounter.
He survived the many battles in the north, owing all of it to his newfound weapon. In his last battle, he lay dying on the field, several wounds open to the sky as his life drained into the ground. It was as the veil of death came to claim him that a group of clerics and paladins flying the winged-banner of Lord Ragathiel came to his aid. They fought off the hordes surrounding Sacerdos and one of the clerics saw to his recovery. The troupe instantly recognized the blade he’d found as a weapon of their patron Lord. They also had confirmation of the Lord’s defense of Sacerdos in battle.
They brought Sacerdos on in their group, seeing his successes as a sign of the Empyreal Lord of his worthiness to join their order. He returned with those that survived the campaign to Magnimar to continue his training and answer the calling of Inquisitorship.
In the years that followed, he bonded with the priests and warriors in Magnimar, seeing to it that the will of the great Empyreal Lord Ragathiel was followed. It was his 5th year of service as an Inquisitor that 3 clerics of his order went missing. Sacerdos accepted the honor and obligation of investigating the disappearances and bring those responsible to justice. There would only be enmity between his blade Nighteye and those responsible. During the year or so since embarking upon the investigation, Sacerdos had discovered a group of cultists worshipping the ancient Chaos deity Andirifkhu.
Sacerdos had discovered that a wealthy noble from Taldor. This noble was the head of an Andirifkhu cult in the north of Taldor. Between dealings as a cult leader and a noble, he’d discovered the writings of an alchemist and wizard pair who’d done research into the transference of souls. Out of that research he commissioned a blade to be forged by a weaponsmith from Osirion. Once completed, the noble took those closest to him in the cult to Magnimar where they imbued the newly forged blade with the properties necessary to not transfer souls, but to imprison them. The goal of this cult was to trap the souls of truly good people within the blade, then commit horrible crimes that would stain the souls of these good men and torture them for as long as their souls were trapped.
This group in Magnimar comprised of the noble, a Cassomiri merchant and a Varisian dancer named Claire. It was this last member that committed the first murder. A betrayal of the Taldoran noble, using the blade to run him through the neck…Claire and this Cassomiri merchant departed Magnimar with the blade, this kukri with the souls of three of his order’s priests trapped within the steel. Sacerdos had nearly caught up with them in the Dockway, the Captain’s Club tavern. That’s where the inquisitor discovered this Taldoran noble, barely clinging to life. He put him to the question, garnering the name of the Varisian dancer and their next stop Cassomir.
From what he learned in Cassomir, the merchant sold Claire into indentured servitude in a local tavern and sought to establish a circle dedicated to Andirifkhu. He nearly managed that but had a habit of entering into business dealings he couldn’t possibly hope to satisfy. It was in one of these dealings that he ran afoul of this Rook character. That is where the kukri was claimed and taken to this island in the possession of a Dhampir. Apparently, Claire was able to escape and work her way into the graces of the Rook, managing to acquire the blade.
Sacerdos sheathed his blade, looking intently at the two before him. “That lead me to the Toiling Gent. I’d been a patron of that filthy establishment for nearly a month, observing the behaviors of the dancer and the Rook and the other assorted scum frequenting the tavern. I was close to making my judgment when you two, the other elf and the monk arrived. So I sat back and continued observing.”
The cart to carry off the dead had arrived while Sacerdos was speaking. The inquisitor muttered a prayer of thanks over the enemies he’d been honored to vanquish then continued the discussion. “I attempted to follow your party when you departed, but was unable to when I couldn’t extricate myself from the table I’d chosen. But when you returned,” he motioned to the elf. “I decided to follow you after Kreig’s embarrassment. My estimation was that somehow you’d managed to vanquish this Lamech the Rook mentioned and possibly had the Kukri in your possession. I awaited you outside the Temple to Iomedae in the hopes of a private discussion.”
“The monk emerged first, so I followed him, losing him in some of the twists and turns of the area. When I managed to catch up to him, he had already been taken into that alley to the north. I fought my way towards him, and that is when you two arrived.” He shook his head and felt the pain of embarrassment. “I should have been faster, should have simply entered the Temple Iomedae, but the dwarf villain seemed blood-driven to seek vengeance upon your entire group. The monk was unfortunate in leaving first, for that is where the dwarf directed his arrow of hatred.”