"I'm glad to hear you're on board", the sheriff says (apparently still rather dismissive about the whole dark magic business).
The shoanti stands and nods to Ameiko, "Now I have to get going. I have a few other stops to make tonight. Thanks for your time."
***
Less than an hour after the sheriff's departure, a well dressed but clearly drunk tien man staggers in shouting in his native language.
Pirknok nods at the sheriff's request. "Ah'll be reddy."
***
The dwarf stands up when the drunk man enters, walks right in front of him, grins, and speaks softly yet menacingly in Shoanti. "Ik nak, tshamek... mikor dag ru vi korkor mi dak. Vi kron nakorn vrek Komon, vri mak dag kun mik nor, vakai?"
"I had no problem whatsoever understanding him, oh wait, I'm probably not a good person to base that particular statement off of." Ensu is behind the dwarf, trying to calm the man down, hoping to avoid another lost barrel of good mead. "But he does have a point, good sir; there are probably better ways to seek out who you are looking for."
Doran turns to the man shouting in a foreign tongue, fixing him with a disapproving glare. He doesn't yet move to reach for his weapon, but this is the second time in a week that some drunk has come starting trouble here in the Rusty Dragon. "What'd 'e say 'en, mate? 'S'ard t' un'erstan' a fella when 'e's drunk an' speakin' Taldan, le' alone some foreign tongue," the Chelaxian gripes.
The older man look to Pirknok in recognition and glares fiercely.
"Don't talk to me in the tongue of filthy savages. I'll have you taken into the street and flayed for talking to me like that!" he spits (in common).
"I'll have you all beaten you hear me... ALL OF YOU!"
The crowd looks uncomfortable but apparently not surprised. Whoever this man is, he's apparently done something like this before.
"Wha's th' problem, mate? We di'n't do nothin' t' ya," Doran states bluntly, standing from his seat at the bar.
"The problem? The problem is you and your kind! Your antics put Sandpoint in more danger than you prevent. You should have left defense of the city to the professionals!"
The older man, despite being quite intoxicated, seems to of your involvement on the night of the festival.
Doran stands to his full height, his eyes glaring daggers. "I di'n't see you on 'em streets, ol' man. I di'n't see you riskin' yer life t' save people you don' e'en know. Who in d' nine 'ells d' ya think ya are t' be talkin' down t' me? D' ya know 'ow many more folks 'ould be dead wit'out us?" he growls, but doesn't raise voice. "Look, if ya ain't gonna tell us what yer problem is, ya old drunk, git goin'," the Abadaran states, hand resting on the hilt of the dagger sheathed in his belt, the other gesturing at the door.
"Who am I? WHO AM I?! I am Lonjiku Kaijitsu and I own this city!"
Just then Ameiko comes in from the kitchen with a dripping ladle in her hands.
"What's all the commotion up here?", she shouts.
Recognition instantly registers on the woman's features and she moves closer.
"I was just telling this filthy band of vagrants what I thought about them attracting more trouble to this town", Lonjiku rants as his daughter moves intercept him.
Doran looks towards Ameiko as she enters, wilting visibly as he realizes that this man must be her father, the name Kaijitsu finally making him realize that this old drunk is a far more influential man that he had believed. He leans backwards against the bar counter, a dour look on his face, but no apologies leave his lips.
The older man look to Pirknok in recognition and glares fiercely.
"Don't talk to me in the tongue of filthy savages. I'll have you taken into the street and flayed for talking to me like that!" he spits (in common).
Pirknok surges forward in rage at the man's comment and swings a fierce left hook.
"Come on Papa, let me get you home..."
Lonjiku snaps at Ameiko and the two launch into a rapid and heated discussion in tien.
Ameiko seems to finish the conversation with some kind of denial to which Lonjiku responds with a hateful glare.
"You're as dead to me as your whore mother", he hisses.
The burly dwarf's fist slams into the jaw of the drunken older man sending him to the ground in a bony heap.
The, up until now, passive crowd finally finds its courage and several men stand to intervene. A couple crowd around the fallen Lonjiku while several more surround and restrain the raging shoanti dwarf.
Ameiko simply stands in stunned silence although it's difficult to tell if it's due to her father's venomous words or the dwarf's aggression.
Doran slams his hands on the barstool, looking furious. When Pirknok decks him, the tanned Abadaran can only smirk. Trying to calm himself, he heads over to Ameiko, to see if she is alright. "C'mere, luv. Le' th' o'er folks take care o' yer dad," he suggests, trying to keep a composed expression on his face.
Pirknok struggles against those restraining him, glaring daggers at the prone man.
Ventus gets in between Pirknok and the drunk.
"Calm down," he says standing his ground despite having seen what the dwarf was capable of in a rage.
Ameiko looks to Doran, blinks a few times, and then comes back to her senses.
"Shaemus, see my father back to the manor", she says in a pained voice.
A tall rangy ulfen man nods at Ameiko's request and helps the reeling and barely conscious Lonjiku up. He wraps the older nobleman's arm around his neck and then walks out of the Dragon, taking Lonjiku with him.
"Thank you, all of you. He's not always like that. He's just having a bad night", Ameiko says with watery eyes.
"If Pirknok ha'n't clocked 'im, I might 'ave made sure 'e had a much worse one," Doran grumbles. "I don' care if 'e does own San'point, ya don' talk t' a lady like 'at. E'en if 'e's yer dad."
The dwarf's breathing slows and he shakes his head a few times as if to clear it. Both hands gradually relax, and he watches the man being dragged out. He sighs, and looks around for a place to sit down.
Ameiko blinks some of the near tears from her eyes and offers a smile, "It's comforting to know I have such good friends."
She approaches the cooling down dwarf and puts a hand on his burly shoulder as she leans down to give him a peck on the cheek.
"You shouldn't have done that", she chides. "My father may exaggerate about owning Sandpoint but he does own a lot of powerful friends. You may want to stay out of trouble for the next couple days."
Pirknok's eyes widen a bit, and he blushes fiercely. "Ah jus'... he... wull you be a'right?" he stammers.
As the conversation develops, Ensu just rolls his eyes and goes back to his food. Silly nobles and their drink. Obviously not a particularly close family; can't say I'm surprised.
Maybe coming to Sandpoint was a mistake. Perhaps we can pack up and try Korvosa... Eli muses as the news of the Goblins' accomplice is revealed.
Eli, who has had little to say during the sherriff's briefing, jumps up when Lonjiku starts making a scene. Pirknok's intervention causes him to rush in and try to break things up, but just gets tossed around for his trouble. Afterwards, he watches from the sidelines unhappily. He returns to his seat as things calm down.
Momentarily frozen by the realization that the drunken lout disrupting the common room is Ameiko's , Ysme finds herself just another witness as her friends step forward in Ameiko's defense.
"Is he...
often,
like this?.." Ysme inquires of Ameiko.
What did he mean by 'whore mother' I wonder?..
"Was your father close with the deceased past Priest miss Kaijutsu?"
Ameiko: Adult... Dragon...
Lonjiku: Father... Obey...
Ameiko: "I can take care of myself."
"I'll be okay", she offers Pirknok as she stands back upright.
Momentarily frozen by the realization that the drunken lout disrupting the common room is Ameiko's , Ysme finds herself just another witness as her friends step forward in Ameiko's defense.
"Is he...
often,
like this?.." Ysme inquires of Ameiko.What did he mean by 'whore mother' I wonder?..
"Was your father close with the deceased past Priest miss Kaijutsu?"
"He... he's under a lot of stress. I'm certain he doesn't mean half the things he says when he's drunk."
"Tobyn? I don't know if they were particularly close. He's never really mentioned him."
Pirknok nods at Ameiko. "Ef... ef there's ennythin' ah kin do ta help..."—he blushes again—"ah mean... wull... ah gess ah might've made et worse, but... ef there's ennythin', jus' say so?"
"Yes, alcohol does have a tendency to cloud one's judgment. If you ever need a friend to talk to about your family situation, feel free to pull me aside, and I can assure you that anything you say will stay between us. It is a service I have had to do on many occasions, and would gladly do so again for a friend."
"Actually there is something I could use a hand with", Ameiko says with a slightly more genuine smile.
The tien woman shares a glance with Doran and Ysme before explaining.
"I have a brother, well a half brother, named Tsuto. He has a bit of a bad reputation here in Sandpoint and disappeared a few months ago. I've heard rumors that he's in town again."
"Everyone says Tsuto's a bad egg but he's my brother and I love him. I think he can turn his life around if people just give him a chance. I want you to find him if he is in town and give him this", she says as she produces a filled envelope sealed with wax.
"Give it to him and just tell him I'd like to talk."
Pirknok looks at the others, and nods.
Half?
brother...
"You say you have heard rumors your brother is back in town."
"Did he have friends or acquaintances he might be found with? Any places he was prone to frequenting?"
Ameiko sighs.
"I can't say for certain but he was known to frequent places of ill-repute", she admits. "There were rumors he was involved with the Sczarni. I don't really know more. That's why I need your help. I'm too busy during the day to ask around town."
Doran shrugs. "'ope 'e's a tad bit more sociable 'an yer dad," the tanned man states, still looking rather displeased with Linjiku. "But if ya need i' done, I'd be glad t' 'elp ya out."
Ventus shrugs, "I haven't got anything planned tomorrow," glad things had calmed down considerably.
"Well, then, what say we make some inquiries in the morning?"
"Was there any bad blood between him & anyone before the fire?"
"We kin all meet here early. How's thet sound?"
He shakes his head at your line of questioning.
"I'm afraid I haven't a clue who would want to steal Father Tobyn's remains. He was a gentle soul...", the older man pauses.
"Ysmerelda, I'm only telling you this because it's important for you to understand Sandpoint's history - it's bad luck to speak ill of the dead."
"The only person in this world that would have a reason to be upset with Father Tobyn is his daughter, Nualia. He became rather strict with her after she became with child. It seems she had a dalliance with a local rake and the seed took root. When Tobyn learned the truth, he blamed himself and reacted by becoming extremely protective. He demanded that she stay within the cathedral until her child was born."
***
The rest of the night is uneventful and you all meet back at the Dragon sometime in the mid-morning.
Daughter?!" Taken aback by this news, Ysme is silent for so long Father Zantus is probably already turning once more to his bedchambers when Ysme's next question comes up. "Where are her..
,
remains? The daughter's."
"We need to ask the gods about Father Tobyn's Daughter, Ensu! If you can, ask for a spell or spells that will allow that!"
As things settle down, Ensu agrees to help Ameiko; while not overly comfortable with places of ill repute, he's not unfamiliar with them either. He settles into his room early so as to be fresh for what promised to be a long day tomorrow.
Just before Dawn the next morning, Ysme is rapping at Sheriff Hemlock's office door. Once he, or the night watch officer allows her in & they are able to speak privately. "Father Tobyn's crypt was violated during the attack. many bodies were laid in the crypt & how many were taken?"