The Tarmen estate is located at the edge of the city, and rolls into the surrounding hills. The smells and sounds of the city fade into the distance, replaced by the sighing wind and buzzing insects.
Angelique finds the property easily enough and, at a glance, can see most of it. A large manor house sits on a small bluff, surrounded by trees. It is a large, palatial house but has seen better days. the paint is peeling, some of the brickwork is cracked and the lawn is high and unkempt.
She sees small shacks for the plantation slaves, and then the plantation itself. Rows and rows of theilu trees, marching into the green shadows of the hills. Near them are three large drying barns. No one seems about.
Angelique suspects that if the Professor was anywhere on the estate, he would probably be in a building of some description. Angelique suspects that the house is most likely, but Angelique decides to investigate the large drying barns first, merely for process of elimination before investigating any further.
The first two barns are empty, vast cavanerous buildings, filled with the spicy scent of the bark. The ground is covered in the fine dust Angelique found at the docks. The buildings are cold, empty, filled with spiderwebs.
The third, just as the bard is about to give up however, seems active. She sees footsteps leading inside, into a small side-door. Putting her ear to it, Angelique can hear some quiet sobbing, moaning and a strange chanting voice rising above it.
Angelique glances around for a stick or branch, soemthing to make into a firebrand, assuming the barn might be a little dark, before lighting on. Upon searching the barn, she hears the rather suspicious noises and sets her shoulder into the door, swinging it open.
Armed with a lighted torch, she pushes into the door. The drying barn is dim, a vast cave of shadows and dust. It is bigger then the other two, with huge bays disappearing into the dim shadowy corners.
The bard's attention is focused on the center, where she sees two figures. One a woman, crudely lashed to a small altar, lit by glowing magical lights. She is thrashing, moaning in fear and pain.
Over her, chanting is Professor Herclu, a mad look in his eyes and a sharp dagger in his hand.He doesn't even seem to notice Angelique's entrance but the bound woman, her dark Gardund skin gleaming in the candlelight, makes eye contact. She is terrified.
With one hand poised to throw the firebrand, Angelique gestures, spraying the Professor with Grease. Usually, she would consider negotiation but she suspects Herclu might be desperate, and she's concerned stall tactics might only work in his favour - thus, extreme threats were needed.
"This offer is only good for five seconds, stop your chanting, and the ritual for the temporary present, and we can talk this out. Ignore me, and I'm setting all that grease alight. Maybe it will kill you, maybe it wont, but I'm sure its going to play havoc with your ritual, so you might as well stop and talk for the meantime.
The Professor remains upright, as the thin film of Grease covers him. The chanting breaks off and he stares at Angelique, unbelieving, a look of contempt on his face.
'You would challenge me? A Professors of the magical university, who had been studying arcane arts for longer then you have been alive? You think a fire is going to stop me?" he laughs, "Silly girl, I cast Protection from Fire before I even started this ritual. The demons love to use it as well."
He grimaces, waving the knife, 'I did not do the crime you think. I was willing to leave you alone but now you know too much. Die."
He moves a hand and two beams of bright light lance out towards Angelique.
Just before it hits Angelique, the rays hit some sort of wall of force, blasting mere air. Herclu stares then, behind her Angelique hears a voice.
"Enough." Turning slightly, she sees Headmaster Toff. The small, old man looks the same. He has not grown taller or look wiser. But now he radiates power and authority. "Enough, professor. Put down the knife."
Herclu's face twists into rage now, "This is my work, I am making progress..."
Toff shakes his head and waves a hand at the bound girl, "This....ends now. Do it or I will make you. You know my power."
Herclu looks like he is willing to try a fight. But he looks at Toff and at Angelique, measuring the odds. Finally he shakes his head and puts down the knife.
"I did not kill those boys though. At least call off your dogs on that, Headmaster."
Toff turns to Angelique and unexpectedly nods, 'I think he is telling the truth, Angel. There was another murder last night, in the early hours. A gravedigger was killed, and two graves dug up and scattered, as if something had eaten them. Does this fit with any of your theories?"
Despite this idle conversation, Angelique can feel raw magic burning off the man, focused on Herclu. The headmaster does not trust him, at all.
Angelique strolls around Herclu and casually cuts the girl free from the alter. "Regarding your question headmaster this both fits with my theories and doesn't fit. There's a pattern of killings pretty much at the exact time Herclu does one of these ritual things, but Herclu does have a point, there is zero motivation for him to kill those students, since to my knowledge, he gained nothing out of it".
Angelique pauses for a moment. "Technically, there are not many people that really benefited from those students being murdered. There is Jessi of course, that had a disagreement with the students themselves, as well as Chalmen Steroff, a new student in the building who was apparently teased or bullied. Then of course, you have the people that might like to frame the academy and make use of the public reaction. This could pretty much make anyone a suspect except its unlikely someone with noble blood, they tended to lose the most out of this. There's a cleric I have run into occasionally but I'm mentioning him only as a passing interest".
"Then of course, we have the murders, the students, then two dwarven stonemason, and then multiple deaths around a graveyard. In addition, there's teachings of Urgothia in the students rooms. My hunch is that the church is still involved in some way, although I could probably make a broader assessment once I knew what purpose these rituals have, the ones the Professor is attempting".
The Headmaster nods as Angelique frees the poor terrified woman. "Have you considered there is a random element at play here? If you cannot find the thread, maybe there is nothing to find? The sheer violence seems to indicate that to me. What political murder eats corpses?"
He walks over to where Herclu stands seething, sweating. The Headmaster investigates the whole affair then sniffs.
"All this, for bearded devils?" He says, incredulity in his voice.
"Large ones, perfectly under my command!" Herclu says, nearly screaming.
Toff shrugs and turns to Angelique, "Nothing really of interest. The murders were really a bit melodramtic. Animals really would have been just as good. This is just a novelty trick, Angel."
"Its not random". Angelique remarks evenly. "You made it clear that the school has exceedingly high defences to offer protection for its students, and yet something casually wanders in, kills several students and leaves without a trace? The actual corpse eating thing might be a creature, following orders, but it makes no sense hitting a hard target such as these students and then going after easy targets. There is a reason somewhere, and the solution is probably figuring out how whatever killed the students managed to gain entry"
Toff peers at the arcane symbols painted onto the altar while speaking, "Perhaps it was a mistake gone wrong by the students? Such things do happen."
"Ah, but it couldn't have been that, because I was assured that such a thing could not have happened, on my first investigation of the crime scene." Angelique responds, a hint of irritation creeping into her tone. "I must admit, I will be extremely frustrated if it turns out that I had been deliberately mislead from the onset about the possibility of a mistake gone wrong."
The headmaster speaks idly, still investigating the runes "I said there was no way for them to summon anything, and I stand by that. But surely there are other ways, other magics? Have your investigation revealed no chance of anything else?"
Angelique frowns slightly. "There is one person that might have manufactured a weaker strain of the drugs the students were taking, leading to an increased chance of ghoul fever. I think he would only speak to me though, so I'll have to have a bit of a chat..assuming you all permit me a moment more of my time?"
Angelique had always kept tabs on the man who had found that marvelous artifact, hoping that he might have located any future items, and thus she discretely kept a general track of his movements. It was never constant or all encompassing, as she kept her criminal contacts entirely unaware of his existence, but it meant that if she needed to talk to him (as she did now), she had a rough estimate as to where she could find him.
Angelique has kept an eye on Sheron, although it isn't easy. The man has remained hidden, to remain out of the sight of various gangs that think he is dead. He spends most of his time in the massive bookstore, and Angelique is pretty sure he lives there. That said, she thinks he is still criminally active. And apparently up to trouble?
Angelique heads into the bookstore, without bothering to disguise herself. She was most interested in Sheron's reaction, a sudden display of fear could indicate that he knew he had done wrong while curiosity might indicate an unawareness of what had happened. Either way, Angelique carefully walks through the bookstore, glancing around for Sheron and keeping an eye on falling bookstacks.
No bookstacks fall on Angelique as she threads the dusty, piled tomes. With the owners help she soon finds a sleeping Sherdon. He has a quasi-next of a few blankets, a small kettle and piles of books. Angelique notes the books on on two subjects. Old graves and burials of Korvosa and texts on Osrion drug culture.
The dirty, greasy man is snoring slightly.
Angelique prods the sleeping Sherdon with her foot, rousing him from his slumber. "Sherdon, you remember me dont you? Mind telling me precisely whats been going on with the drugs and graves and everything else thats been happening in this city fairly recently?"
The man jerks awake, looking blearily around. His eyes fix on Angelique as he stammers, 'What...what are you talking about? I didn't hurt anyone, what?" He is lying but it seems to be reflex, not anything too willful.
Yet.
Angelique finds a bored tone somewhere and puts it on. "Yeah so you can continue lying to me if you want. Putting aside everything I could do to your for lying, and what I could do to get you to speak the truth, it really wouldn't be a difficult thing for me casually mention the fact you might still be alive, and where you might hang out, to those gang members that were looking for you. I imagine they would love an opportunity to catch up and say hi" she remarks casually.
Sleep vanishes from his eyes, and he sits up straight, 'Now, now." he says, holding hands palm out, "No need for that. I've been a good boy. No violence, no robbery."
He nods firmly, 'I'm a private businessman." He picks a thick economic ledger book, 'I saw a business chance and filled it, that is all. I didn't hurt anyone, I swear."
He thinks he is telling the truth anyway,
"Is that so?" Angelique asks skeptically, appraising the man."I have here a sample of your work, something that unfortunately has an increased ghoul chance than the real thing. In addition, there's been murders around the graveyard, corpses being stolen, that sort of thing. I dont begrudge someone attempting to make a living, but I do tend to draw the line when people start dying as a result. Care to explain your reasoning?"
Sherdon's face becomes guarded and Angelique can see he is looking for a way out, more verbally and physically. "They knew what they were getting into." he finally say stiffly, "I didn't poison them or something. I just offered them a good at a cheaper rate. Not my fault they took it. I heard something nasty happened at the school. It was ghouls?"
"It is your fault though if you mislead them about the quality of the product" Angelique responds, not having a bar of it before sighing heavily. "You know what, I just don't care. I'm a busy woman and wasting time watching you shirk responsibility...quite frankly I have better things to do with my time. I think that I'll be talking to that gang instead. Have a wonderful day.
"Let's not be so hasty!" he says, but he looks crushed. "What...what do you want from me? Don't turn me over to the Red Teeth. They'll tear me apart, slowly." He shakes his head, 'Anything is better then that!"
Angelique keeps her face hard, not really moved by the mans 'crushed' look, but she does wave a hand dismissively. "Fine, fine I wont turn you over. In exchange, I want the details of this business venture of yours, how it started, who got involved, and everything that goes with it. If you tell me that you were not involved, and I believe you, then it probably means someone else you had interactions with would be my real suspect, which might encourage me to...go easier I imagine"
The man sighs heavily and launches into his tale.
Summed up, he apparently tried cash in on his knowledge of all tombs another way then grave-robbing (since Angelique made that prospect seem dark). He heard about an Urgathoa cleric who was selling Orison drugs made from old corpses. Having plenty of those, Sherdon went into business and followed up on the cleric's contacts, generally buying away his clients. His product was far more dangerous then the cleri'cs but people didn't really know that (also, it didn't work nearly as well. Most of the mental boosts were placebo effects).
He made a tidy sum, and the noble sons were his best clients. They suddenly vanished though and Sherdon, worried something happened, has been hiding in his little nest in the Bookshop ever since.
I need this clerics name, something to pin him down, to provide verification otherwise your story could easily be a fabrication" Angelique remarks rather harsher than she usually would, but putting the fear of God (so to speak) into him wouldn't be a bad idea and might well discourage future reckless ventures in future.
It fairly is. See technically, I would probably make sure Sherdon takes some (minor) blame for this, which technically puts my "Angel" alias at risk, so I would probably be moving on anyway. Like, I could easily justify to the gangs what I did but its still an encouragement to leave. Lastwall is a fine place, I know almost nothing about it!
Angelique manages to win several friends in her cleaning up the whole messy affair. Sherdon is tried on crimes of drug smuggling and gets hard labor (but keeps his life and will be free, eventually). The bard manages to blackmail the various noble families into supporting the university (and compensating the other victims). With this new financial support, the Headmaster is able to open more classes to the poor and needier students (as well as removing other corruption). In reward he offers Angelique a magical item of her choice.
The nobles are restless though and Angelique is soon looking to leave Korvosa. The city knows her too well, and the gangs suspect something is up with Sherdon, so it is time to go!
As she is planning to leave, she gets an interesting note, from distant Lastwall. Inside, it contains an interesting offer on her services.
A Precenter Martial, the second highest rank in the land, was killed months ago. The army and Watch have been unable to find even a trace of the killer, and the current man in charge, a Urbino Torren, is desperate and has called for an outside consultant who is willing to 'take actions' that the paladins will not. Angelique has a felling Urbino is acting on his own and not with permission, but is the legitimate investigator.
The letter urges Angelique to come to the Lastwall city of Vallumis, the largest city in the nation and a local commerce port.
Angelique knows little of Lastwall, but on her long trip there, she questions, researches and answers. Going over the information helps pass the many miles to the distant land.
Lastwall is a nation caught between great evils. On one border is the wild and savage Hold of Belkzen, full of orcs eager to raid the lower lands. One the other border stands the cursed realm of Ustalav, the reason Lastwall even exists.
Lastwall was formed centuries ago during the various Crusades to rid Ustalv of the Whispering Tyrant, a necromancer of stupendous power. Although he is long gone, sealed in a distant tomb, the paladins still rull Lastwall, sponsoring raids and attacks into Ustalav, hunting the servants of the long gone Tyrant.
It is a well ordered land, generally seen as uncorrupt, and ruled by honest men with good intentions. It is a military state however, ruled by and for the military. It is ruled by the Watcher-Lord, a man elevated to the post by the Precentor Marshals, of whom there are five.
It is one of these that has been murdered, so the victim is one of the most important men in the land. It is highly unusual for politics in Lastwall rarely get violent and, besides, each Marshal is a highly accomplished fighter on their own count. That said, Lastwall has many outside enemies.
The five Marshals are
Veena Heliu-Battlemage Academy
Quint Parell-Cavalry Academy
Grot Beron- Garrison and Siege School
Saladon Lureox- Infantry School
Keyron Saville- Scouting School
Grot Beron is the man killed, the victim. He was generally regarded as one of the finest soldiers in Lastwall, with a long and distinguished career.