The cooks stares at Brother Cyrus form almost a whole minute, measuring the Paladin from head to toe with suspicious eyes. He doesn't seem to take a liking to Cyrus, but is convinced enough that the visitor means no harm...
"Pfff... Angry mob, angry schlob!" he cusses. "As long as those c$@@s don't come to my kitchen, I don't give a f#*# what they do. And if they do come here..." he fiercely slams his cleaver blade-first into a nearby table... The handle reverberates as the blade sinks deeply into the wood. "I'll part them head-to-cock!"
"The only thing that smells bad in this kitchen are the uninvited guests! If you want to know the source of the stench, just follow the rats and vultures!"
- - -
You go back upstairs, where Eitylen stands before three doors. The one at the center is slightly ajar, while the others are fully closed and seemingly locked.
Torch light flickers through the cracks of the central door... The other two have no light or sound coming from them.
"My thanks." Cyrus steps back out onto the deck scratching his chin. He scans the sky above and the deck for any signs of vultures or rats.
Brother Cyrus sees a few rats scuttling around the ship... But nothing else. There aren't any vultures around, and even the seagulls seem to have left the area.
A few meters to his left, Eitylen and Tai Leng stand next to three doors.
Leng knocks on the door to the right.
There's no answer.
He then tries the left.
Who stays in those rooms? -Eitylen Asks to the captain.
No answer comes from the left door either.
Eitylen Hurries for the merchant. Better to ask permission, after all we are not a legal authority here.
Leng goes through the center door.
Eitylen rushes towards the merchant and dockmasters, and meets them on their way back from the ballast, going to the ship's stern, at the back. The elf then asks for permission to check the cabins..
"I suppose there's no problem... They are only locked because we don't want the crew messing them up. Our passengers did leave already, so you can check their cabin. It's the one to the right of the captain's... Here are the keys. Return them when you're done."
He hands an irong ring with three keys hanging from it to Eitylen.
"The cabin to the left is mine. I'll be there in a moment, after showing the stern to the dockmaster here..."
- - -
As you open the door, you see an old man with fancy sailing clothes leaning over a desk, using a compass to scribe on a large map that lays wide-open in front of him. He seems very clean-cut, with fading blond hair is tied in a ponytails under his hat, mustache and beard carefully trimmed and silver-framed spectacles. A long, dark blue coat rests on his shoulder.
By the side of this table, stands a woman with a straight back and a serious look in her face. She wears the shirt of formal attire and a blue jacket with the insignia of the Blue Shell Armada, but her pants and boots, while clean and well-maintained, are not dissimilar to those worn by common sailors.
The room is very clean, specially for a ship. But its only unusual characteristics is a harpy-shaped doll on top a music box playing a simple but sweet melody... And the complete absence of the stench plaguing the rest of the ship and the docks.
The two seafarers look up from the map and straight to you.
"Well, that's unusual..." says the man with a soft tone, as he calmly stands into a straight postures. "It's not everyday that stowaways are daring enough to enter the captains cabin without even knocking."
"Shall I..." starts speaking the woman, while simultaneously reaching behind her back.
"Wait!" quickly adds the man, softly grasping her shoulder before she can say more. "He seems unarmed. Let's give him a chance to explain himself... There's always time to throw him to the sharks later..."
He slowly approaches you, hands crossed behind his back, like an officer inspecting his soldiers...
"Now, stranger..." he says, calmly but commanding. "Who are you and what is your business here. In my cabin. On my ship."
Eitylen returns to the cabin and use the key to open the door.
Leng also keeps his own hands clasped behind his back, and maintains a loose stance.
"We're investigating the horrid stench that has overrun the docks. My friends came along with the Dockmaster to see if your ship was the source, since there is an angry mob gathered outside on the verge of burning your ship just on the suspicion. I'm surprised you haven't heard all the ruckus, frankly."
"Your door was open, and there was no reaction when I knocked on the two adjacent doors, so I quite assumed it was empty. You must have been very engrossed in your work."
The guest cabin unexpectedly nice... It has a feather bed, a nice work desk, a well-made chest, and even a couple fancy cabinets. All of the furniture is nailed to the floor and/or walls.
There are torches in all four walls. The chest and desk drawers are all closed, probably locked.
Despise its unremarkable decoration, there's something odd about this place... The stench from outside is completely absent, but the cabin smells of burnt oil and wet fur.
"Those doors lead to different rooms. And I don't have time or patience to deal with that riffraff. That's a job for Holgues and his sellswords... If they fail, I trust my men can take care of themselves."
"But your words only answer one of my questions, strangers..." he adds, this time with an sterner tone. "You wear no uniform and carry no bage or insignia. Who. Are. You?"
- - -
It looks like this bedroom hasn't been cleaned since its last occupant left.
You notice the torches on the walls have cobwebs on them; They haven't been replaced or lit in weeks. Maybe months.
Using the keys given to you by the merchant to unlock the chest and drawers. The former is completely empty, but the latter contains an old pair of gloves, with more than a few holes and stitches in them. The left hand is particularly mangled, with its ring and little fingers missing entirely.
There are a few feathers on the floor, by the bed. The mattress has a few large cuts and scratches on its side, as well as a few burn holes... The smell of burnt hair is particularly noticeable on the bed sheets.
Cyrus steps into the room with Eitylen.
"Well this...this definitely looks suspicious. But it doesn't smell the same I guess?"
You don't notice anything else.
A few moments later, you're joined by the merchant and the dockmaster.
"So..." says the dockmaster. "Is anything strange around here?"
"As you can see... Other than the sorry state our passengers left our bed in, everything is perfectly normal!" the merchant replies before you can answer.
Can you check for magic or evil things Cyrus?
"Good idea." Cyrus begins to detect evil in the vicinity...and double checks the rooms we already scanned.
While there's no specific source of evil in the cabin, something still feels wrong... As if traces of evil magic still remained in the room.
No other place in the ship causes the same sensation. At least, none that you checked.
The merchant and dockmaster find your behavior strange, but ignore it and proceed with their inspection. So far, nothing seems to have bothered the dockmaster.
"I feel faint traces of evil magic, but nothing else in the ship causes the same sensation. Something...wrong happened here."
"Those doors lead to different rooms. And I don't have time or patience to deal with that riffraff. That's a job for Holgues and his sellswords... If they fail, I trust my men can take care of themselves."
"But your words only answer one of my questions, strangers..." he adds, this time with an sterner tone. "You wear no uniform and carry no badge or insignia. Who. Are. You?"
"Tai Leng is my name. I have no particular title and my occupation is...mercenary? Maybe? It is hard to describe. Really, I am just a private citizen who wanted a drink after my last job, but was disturbed by a loud mob and a foul stench. Hence why I'm here."
I take one of the feathers just in case.
I guess you can try to leave the dock for a moment to see if the stench disappear or not. If the stench stays then you will be out of suspicion
The dockmaster twists his face in an incredulous look, not really convinced... then looks at the merchant beside him.
"What?! Don't look at me! If something happened in here, that's the passenger's doing, not mine."
The dockmaster shrugs...
"Don't worry... It's not like I can indict you of anything based on the intuition of some random passerby." the dockmaster turns to the door and speaks again. "Well... Let me check the other cabins as well... If there's nothing wrong there, we can finally be done with this search."
"Of course, of course... This way, please."
- - -
The man speaks gravely...
"Well, mr.Leng you found your way into the ship of Captain Lex Durstein. And entered my cabin without even bothering to knock..." his voice is calm, but not friendly. "This is not something most captains would oversee... But if you're with the dockmaster, it's not worth the headache. So I trust you'll be more careful from now on."
The woman doesn't move one inch. She simply glares at you unblinkingly... One hand holding a heavy book close to her chest, and another still concealed behind her back.
The momentary silence is broken by a the sound of fists hitting the door.
"Come in." says Captain Durstein.
The merchant and dockmaster enter the room.
"Good night, captain. I'd like to introduce you to the dockmaster in charge." says the merchant... He then sees Tai Leng and adds "I see you've already met one of his companions."
"Yes, I have." Durstein replies politely. "Thank you, Holgues." he then addresses the dockmaster. "Good night, officers. I'm Alexander Durstein, captain of this proud vessel. How may I help you?"
"I'm just checking to see if there's nothing unusual... People are getting angry over the stench, and some have reason to believe it originates from your ship."
"A mistake, no doubt. As I'm sure you could assess for yourself."
"Indeed, nothing here indicates this ship to be origin of the smell... Although I noticed there's some damage to the hull... And one of my companions got some disturbing impressions from your passenger's cabin"
"Ah... The hull will be fixed first thing tomorrow. We have only been in your port for a few hours, and after months of sailing, I couldn't deny my men their shore leaves. Whatever impression you got from that cabin surely is a reflection of its last occupants. We don't get many passengers, but we give privacy to the few who join us."
The dockmaster shrugs his shoulder.
"Too much privacy can be a bad thing. You *are* responsible for all bodies on your vessel..." he says. The captain starts a sentence, but the dockmaster doesn't give him a chance to reply. "In any case... I'm not here for your passenger. I'm here to check if the stench really came from your ship. I found no evidence of that being the case, so I'm leaving. Have a good night."
"You too, sir." answers Captain Durstein.
The dockmaster then leaves the room, and moves towards the boarding plank.
Eitylen also start leaving. He have no authority to be there, but more importantly, looking for those passengers might prove a more important task.
"Sorry to have taken your time, Captain." Leng says, and leaves.
"Well, Nothing to do here" - I guess we go to the Mad Shark.
One of the crewmen confirms that they did in fact have two passengers. A man and a woman.
Captain Durstein simply nods and tilts his hat.
As you leave the ship, you see the dockmaster trying to calm down and disperse the mob. It takes some effort and a few threats of night in a jail cell, but eventually he gets the job done... Most of the angry citizens leave, although some complain about the search not being through enough and similar accusations...
"Well... That should be that." says the dockmaster. "Thank you for your help. At very least, we prevented a pointless brawl."
He speaks one more time before saying goodbye and going on his way.
"My name is Pietro Mostenier. Call me the next time you know of a situation that requires official intervention."
As soon as they step outside the ship, Eitylen and Tai Leng notice the stench now includes a faint smell of ammonia.
So far it seems like an issue for the dock authorities. Eitylen goes to the Mad shark to try to rest.
"Hold a minute friends. Are either of you decent swimmers? My father once caught some of his employees smuggling contraband by tailing the ship with anchored barrels or cages. If it's underwater, that would explain why the smell isn't coming from the ship itself." Cyrus waits for the Dockmaster to leave before discussing a potential lead.
"So long as the water stays calm, I should have an easy enough time."
I just wait to see what they do.
Tai Leng dives in. The darkness and cold are compensated by the relief of not being able to smell underwater.
He quickly finds the ship's rode and follows it towards its anchor. At some point, his path is blocked by a thick, dark green substance mixed in the water...
Just to be safe, Tai Leng swims around the greenish flow... In doing so, he notices it's coming out of a sewage outlet near the bottom of the harbor water, over 30 ft deep. It's fortunate that this isn't the deepest part of Blue Shell's port.
Tai Leng reaches the anchor. It's a pretty well-crafted anchor, although somewhat oversized for the ship it holds... It has the image of a spouting whale carved along its crown and a number of small blue-glowing runes inscribed all over its shank and flukes. Other than that, nothing about it piques Tai Leng's attention...
Leng swims back up.
"There is a suspicious green sludge under the water. The ship's anchor also appears to be magical, though I'm unsure if they're related."
"This issue is not the heroic task I was looking for..." - Eitylen sighs-