Nessa noticed many of the same things as Cameron did, the deja vu, the sensation of something happening, or having happened, but she couldn't place it. In the end she simply shrugged and said, "Who knows, maybe it was another life or something." She considered the thought a moment more, her wings folding down around her, and then with a perfectly sober expression and a hint of sadness in her tone Nessa said, "That would just be Sylee wouldn't it?"
As Cameron pulsed divine energy to heal them all Nessa felt a tingly fluttery sensation from it. She knew what he'd just done of course but it wasn't often she had felt diving energy of that sort from anyone but Calistria. It felt...different, maybe a bit too good but certainly not bad. When they were done healing and started to leave Nessa slipped up next to Cameron and attempted to slip one arm through his on their way to wherever they were heading feeling an odd sense of reassurance in his closeness.
When they reached their safe have Nessa found the best perch she could and hopped up onto it. So ensconced she listened to what Kwava had to say intently. While being talked to tended to bore her severely Nessa found this topic quite fascinating. It also seemed to confirm several things they had already suspected. Still she was rather wary of just trusting the elf and tried to pick up on what he might be hiding from them.
Noting the nasty wounds Sari had sustained and the cuts and bruises on everyone else, Cameron said, "Before we go, gather round and I'll ask Desna for a blessing for the journey." Hand on his butterfly pendant, Cameron offered a prayer and a shimmering radiance burst out of him leaving a faint trail of butterflies.
"Simply amazing" - Hedran smiled as the healing energies washed over them - "Mastery of the Arcane is one thing, but mastery of the Divine is definitely different altogether - thank you Cameron"
---
After Kwava's recount, Hedran pauses a moment in pondering the situation - "I still don't understand why he would want to kill us, seeing as we were oblivious to all this - there must be some reason"
Then he turns to both of the newcomers - "You can count with my help on your task here - you have offered yours back there, and I intend to repay in kind" - he nods - "As for Saul... We could just pretend we know nothing about this? And keep playing his game? Maybe even introduce you two, and try to have him hire you?" - he looks around at the others.
After Kwava's recount, Hedran pauses a moment in pondering the situation - "I still don't understand why he would want to kill us, seeing as we were oblivious to all this - there must be some reason"
"I agree with Hedran," says Thyra. "Do we know his motivation for these actions? I can't think of any reason why he would just suddenly have us killed."
She continues, "As for this Shin’Rakorath. What can you tell me about them? I'm not familiar with them."
When the question is raised as to Saul's motivations Kwava shrugs "I can't be certain what his motiviations were. Perhaps he recognized your growing power and worried he wouldn't be able to control you much longer, or perhaps he worried you would discover something he didn't want discovered. In any case, it is clear he no longer wanted you in the picture."
When Hedran suggests going back and acting if nothing was wrong the elf shrugs but as Hedran mentions introducing them he shakes his head "No, as I said, our mission is to find the renegade elf and bringing, at least myself into the light only risks tipping our hand. Perhaps Cameron could go and assist you though if he likes, with his mixed heritage and more experience in human civilizations he will likely not draw as much attention as I might." He looks to Cameron for him to give his thoughts on the matter.
When Thyra asks about the Shin'Rokorath he smiles "I wouldn't expect you to be familiar with them. While they are a wide-reaching society of elven mercenaries, their missions generally only pertain to elven matters so they tend to stay clear of others. Shin’Rakorath is elven for “Lanternbearers”."
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Sarai raises an eyebrow. She typically had a pretty good sense of underhanded practices, but this had caught her with her knickers down.
"Why wouldn't he just fire us?" she wonders. "Not to doubt you after you helped us, but do you have any evidence of this treachery? I mean, we pretty much have to take your word for it?"
Kwava replies "You are correct, you would have to take us on our word, the only evidence we have is what the two of us saw. Did you check the rat-men for anything that might provide proof?"
~Z"
With the note almost making no sense it is fairly obvious that it is some sort of code.
"My ally Saul Vancaskerkin is sending a group of victims to the Boneyard. They’ll be at the old rendezvous tomorrow night. Kill them all—we don’t want to induct them to our gang. Feel free to keep whatever valuables they have in their purses. When I see proof that they are all dead, you’ll be paid and I’ll consider you part of the family.
~Z"
Cameron nods at Hedran with the ghost of a grin on his face. Truth be told he found the powers Dena let him invoke to be all kinds of awesome, but everyone seemed to treat you better if you pretended to be serious.
"No, as I said, our mission is to find the renegade elf and bringing, at least myself into the light only risks tipping our hand. Perhaps Cameron could go and assist you though if he likes, with his mixed heritage and more experience in human civilizations he will likely not draw as much attention as I might."
It's true Kwave like most full blooded elves had a certain disdain for all things human, but considering tieflings where wandering openly around town Cameron wasn't convinced Kwave would make the waves his friend feared. Still they couldn't risk the renegade finding out, so with a token show of reluctance for Kwave's sake he agreed, "I doubt many folks would pay much attention to me if I was to walk into the Gold Goblin... Still I doubt Saul keeps his secrets out in the open."
"What's this supposed to mean? I think the gist is clear--this was a setup. But I can't make heads or tails of this. Anyone else?"
Cameron replied, "I can't really make out that letter but I saw Saul give another letter to that brute Bojask who went to speak to the ratmen to set this whole thing up. If you ask me Saul has something to hide. We've been watching him for weeks now and I get the distinct impression he really isn't that bothered by the whole casino thing. Doesn't make sense considering the effort to set it up, not to mention being mildly blasphemous! Gotta ask yourself why did he do that? I think you, no we need to watch Saul and find out what he's really up to. If he's harboring our renegade like we suspect, they're going to need food and water. Saul or maybe that Bojask are going to be playing nursemaid."
Thyra takes a look at the letter, then hands it back to Sarai, shaking her head. "Can't make heads or tales of it. Sorry."
She turns her attention back to the conversation at hand. "So if Saul truly did turn on us, then how do we deal with it? To be honest, I couldn't stand playing the same role with this information tickling the back of my mind, but we need to be sure. Can we find someone to translate this note for us? Someone trustworthy?"
As the others debate, Hedran takes a long moment to look at the note, reading it carefully.
"I have a spell which can assist with understanding this code, but I have not comited it to memory today" - Hedran points out - "I can risk my own interpretation, as I have some mastery over linguistics, but it may provide us with an incorrect interpretation" - he adds - "What do you think?"
Thyra nods at Hedran, "I think we could all use a rest before we pursue this. Best to be facing this problem at full strength."
Kwava nods to Thyra's suggestion "You are welcome to rest here. It is safe and Cameron and I will help to keep watch over the camp."
"Deal" - Hedran nods first at Thyra, then at Kwava - "I wonder if Saul will not find it strange we do not return? Assuming he knows we survived?"
"It may be better for us," Thyra responds, "but if our new friends here are telling the truth, then I personally think we owe it to them and ourselves to see this through. All in all, the main reason I came to Riddleport was to investigate that Blot in the sky, on behalf of the church of Torag. This seems like the best clue I've found so far. I would certainly appreciate having the aid of those I have begun to consider as friends and allies to help." She gives Sarai a friendly smile to emphasize her words.
Cameron's thoughts never strayed far from the mission. He thought about the layout of the Gold Goblin, he'd only seen it from outside but it was a decent size with several levels. He glancing at Kwave before asking the others, "Suppose for a moment you where Saul and you wanted to hide somebody, where would you put them? At the Gold Goblin? Or has he got an apartment somewhere?"
Nessa considered all that was said far harder than nearly anything she'd ever thought of before. She definitely felt that they were being told the truth about the situation and the fact she felt comfortable with Cameron was equally important. While she wasn't much of a thinker Nessa was smart enough to realize that these two would be a big help. She also realized that keeping them secret from Saul might be smart and of course keeping themselves a secret from Saul would be equally important. Nessa looked up at the pair and said, "I think I agree with them,' she gestured at her min...companions, "I think we should keep all of us secret from Saul for now while we plan what to do."
Nessa looked to Cameron as he asked where Saul would keep a stray elf and said, "I don't know. I've seen most of the casino now, the only area I haven't been to is in Saul's bedroom. He does have a safe in his office that might hold a clue or there could be something in the bedroom that is useful." She considered things and then said, "We need to know if he has any place else that he owns or might hide something. I would ask at the temple but I don't think any of us should be seen outside of here."
Nessa looked at Cameron and Kwava, "One of you should go there and ask for Lavender Lil. Tell her I need the information and to call in any marker she needs to get the information. If she can get you in to see the First Sting she would likely have the information if anyone does but she won't give it away for free." Nessa looked at Kwava in a prticular, "and it is one of the few places you wouldn't stand out since most elves passing through town, few as there are, pay a visit to the temple of the Savored Sting."
"Wait... are you saying you want to go back there and act as if everything is normal...?" Thyra asks Nessa, seeming to lose her composure just a bit. "I'm not so sure that I can do that. Aside from the fact that I'm not a very good liar, I'm not sure that I want to spend more time playing nice with someone that just attempted to throw away our lives only moments ago."
Nessa shook her head, "No, I mean we should keep a low profile and gather information." she looked to Cameron and Kwava, "Or rather one of them go to the temple and try to get the information for us."
"So we lay low for tonight, and confront Saul tomorrow" - Hedran looks at the others - "We are agreed? Mid morning might not be a bad idea, as costumers are not in the casino" - he adds - "And when we do, we also move to check the basement?"
"Erm Lavender Lil..." Cameron exchanged a glance with Kwave. Of course he'd visited Callistrian temples before, it was of his elven heritage so he had a pretty good idea what somebody called Lavender Lil probably did for a living. He understood of course, but he preferred the freedom Desna espoused and certainly wouldn't be paying for any 'services'. The First Sting had to be the high priestess, completely out of his league and he knew it, better to deal with this Lil. "She owe you a favor or two then?" he asked Nessa before turning to Kwave, "Do you want to go or shall I?"
"So we lay low for tonight, and confront Saul tomorrow"
Cameron nodded, "Early morning, just before dawn is often a good time for sneaking about, or so I'm told..." He glanced at Kwave once more who was much better at that kind of thing.
Nessa nodded in agreement with Cameron's thoughts on Lil and said, "Yes, she does serve in that capacity. She would also be willing to owe me a favor and I trust her more than most." She smiled slightly, "Besides that we're also as close to being a couple as Calistrians ever get."
Kwava smiles to Cameron "You should go to the temple. I'll scout out the ambush sight to see if anyone came looking into what happened there."
As you all settle into the camp and eventually pass out, the night passes quietly at least for most of you.
You see your childhood home once again, you're at the table eating some fruit and hear your parents in the other room. You can't make out what they are saying but it sounds like they are arguing. Eventually they come into the dining room and in the heat of their argument they don't even realize you are there. Your father says "The dwarves hired me for a job and I'll be damned if I am going to let them down. I know it is deep in the earth, but it is perfectly safe. You know how good of an engineer I am, they wouldn't have asked for my help if they didn't realize the expertise I had!" Your mother replies "Well, just don't forget your obligations to your family too!" You are doing your best to keep focused on your food, it isn't the first time they have argued in recent days and as it has become a more regular occurrence you have decided it is just best to act like you aren't there. Your father grabs a sack and heads for the door "I'm not shirking my responsibilities to the dwarves or to my family... just trust me." Without waiting for a response he heads out the door and slams it behind him as you notice out of your peripheral vision your mother goes to the window, sobbing as she watches your father walk away from your home.
Suddenly there is a loud bang, as you hear a door being thrown open and shouting. It is dark, it must be night, but there is light from the moon. You hear your fathers voice shout "Grab what you can, we need to go now! Get Thyra!" There is an urgency and fear in his voice you don't remember ever hearing before. You hear things banging around inside the house and then you hear your father shout "No! It's too late... hurry go hide Thyra!" Suddenly your door flies open and you know it is your mother although you can't quite see her face in the dark as she is a blur moving over to you quickly. She pulls up some boards in your room under your bed and stuffs you inside, as she is about to close the boards back over you she says "My love, stay here and don't make a sound. No matter what you hear or see, you stay here until the morning when you don't hear any sounds."
The planks are laid back down and you can just see slivers of light through the cracks. You can feel your small hands over your mouth as you cover it to keep any sounds from escaping. Moments later you hear your mother scream and your father shout. You hear the clash of metal and the thump of crossbows then you hear a thud as something hits the ground in the other room. You hear your mother crying, quiet for a moment and then a softer thud. Soon after there are footsteps in your room, they move about eventually stopping over the planks on top of you. You close your eyes and hold your mouth tight. There is quiet for some time, when you think it is safe you open your eyes and through the cracks you see a person, you can't make out much but it looks like maybe an elf. They definitely have long pointy ears like you have heard an elf has. Their hair is stark white and almost shines in the moonlight. As you try and squint to get a better look they move away and out of your room. Eventually everything goes black and it is just darkness.
It feels like an eternity of darkness and silence aside from your mothers words echoing in your head "... stay here until the morning..." Suddenly you feel warmth on your face and you wake up to realize you are still in the camp from last night, seeing your companions around you, as the new day sun is just starting to shine.
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Sarai sleeps poorly that night, missing a comfortable bed and worried about what all this could mean.
When dawn comes, she is already dressed and packed. Once the others stir, she says "We should try to gather what information we can and scout things out before we go back. I hope Saul thinks the task was completed."
'Ohhh boy, what am I getting myself into?!' thought Cameron, but his reply to Kwava was confident enough, "All right then. I'll try and track down this Lavender Lil... I wonder if she'll be disappointed or relieved when she find out what I'm really after."
He waved once to the assembled group before heading back into town. He had a fairly good idea where the House of the Silken Veil was from their initial investigations, although it seemed too obvious so neither of them had visited it till now. Still to be sure he asked Nessa for directions before leaving. Apparently the temple was an octagonal pyramid topped with a blood-red steeple, it sounded had to miss.
Still Cameron managed to take several wrong turnings on the way but as promised the temple was rather hard to miss. He brushed past the silken curtains that cover the entrance and inhaled the exotic incense, 'Wow that brings back memories, not all of them pleasant...' Inevitably one of the temple attendants noticed his arrival and asked, "Well hello there... Looking for anything in particular?" Cameron smiled nervously as he replied, "Well actually, a friend suggested I see Lavender Lil... Is she around?"
Thyra blinks several times against the light of morning, her breathing coming a little harder than normal. It takes her a moment or two to gather her thoughts and sort through what she just experienced. Again these dreams. Why are they suddenly coming to me, and so vividly?
Her morning prayers, lacking a nearby forge that won't sacrifice their cover, wind up being simple. Having finished her usual requests to renew her magic, she adds, "Father of Creation, grant me guidance and insight over these dreams. Lay the foundation towards an answer, so that I may find peace."
She spends another few minutes getting ready and donning her gear before she's ready to join the others.
"We should try to gather what information we can and scout things out before we go back. I hope Saul thinks the task was completed."
"I'm not sure what help I can be with this," She replies to Sarai. "As we've already discovered, I'm about as nonchalant as a rolling boulder. I can gather information from the local riffraff, but I'm sure that word would eventually get back to Saul before we face him."
Hedran had been up bright and early, wanting to get to work on memorizing the required spell sooner rather than later.
The ritual is a simple one, without any overly complex materials involved - only soot and salt - but it quickly and easily allows Hedran to decipher the contents of the note.
"I somewhat agree with Thyra here - I may be able to gather some information, but I have no skills to disguise myself, so as soon as I walk the streets I can be recognized, even if I try to go unnoticed" - the half-orc points out - "So either we stay put and wait while you try to dig some information up, or we head to confront Saul right away"
"My ally Saul Vancaskerkin is sending a group of victims to the Boneyard. They’ll be at the old rendezvous tomorrow night. Kill them all—we don’t want to induct them to our gang. Feel free to keep whatever valuables they have in their purses. When I see proof that they are all dead, you’ll be paid and I’ll consider you part of the family.
~Z"
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Hedran's translation of the note seemed to remove all doubt--Saul had tried to kill them.
Sarai's anger began to boil. "We did nothing but serve him at a thankless job. He could have fired us if he didn't want us around. But I'm not going to let this slide."
She tries to consider what might have led to this. "Did we see something we shouldn't have? I mean, we fought off the thugs that attacked because of the liquor we acquired for Saul, but I can't think of anything else that has happened."
As they decide what they might do, she says "Perhaps we should go in the evening, just after the Gold Goblin closes. I could sneak in a window and look around--perhaps try to see if this elf is really hidden somewhere. You all stay close enough that I could call for help, if needed. If nothing else, we could have some more information before we go in with blades drawn."
She tries to consider what might have led to this. "Did we see something we shouldn't have? I mean, we fought off the thugs that attacked because of the liquor we acquired for Saul, but I can't think of anything else that has happened."
Thyra nods in agreement. "I have to wonder if the assault on the casino was meant as either a test, or a first attempt. Either way, there is no sense on dwelling on it. The only way we will get our answers is by confronting the man himself."
As they decide what they might do, she says "Perhaps we should go in the evening, just after the Gold Goblin closes. I could sneak in a window and look around--perhaps try to see if this elf is really hidden somewhere. You all stay close enough that I could call for help, if needed. If nothing else, we could have some more information before we go in with blades drawn."
"Agreed, but sending you in alone would be foolhardy. If possible, one other should go with you."
"If going under the cover of night, then we should all go together, and wait outside while Sarai scouts" - Hedran ponders - "Covert actions are not my specialty"
Heading to the door you knock and eventually hear a woman call out "Enter." Opening the door you see a gorgeous tiefling woman with jet black hair and tiny horns on her forehead half-dressed, standing in front of a mirror. She has some lavender in her hand that she is crushing and spreading across her bare chest as she turns to look at you with a smile "Have you come to worship with me this morning?" she asks as she gives you a wink.
"Agreed" - the half-orc nods, then turning to Cameron - "Take no unnecessary risks"
It was all a bit mysterious but Cameron hoped thoughts of vengeance would distract the priestess from other painful methods of worship. As he thought that it occurred to Cameron that he might have been intended as a present for Lil and he wasn't sure how he should feel about that.
As the rest of you wait around at the camp Kwava eventually returns, with a grave look on his face. "When I returned to the site of the ambush, there were no bodies. Some other tracks came and it looks like they dragged the bodies off. Unless it was just random, I suspect it was others working for the same people. As such, it is likely that by now Saul is aware that his plan has failed."
"I suppose that we shouldn't been too surprise," Thyra comments. "We just need to stay on our toes and be prepared for anything." She picks herself up, wiping away any stray bits that stuck to her. "I'll go walk the perimeter for a bit. It'll give me a chance to do have some time for devotion." She hefts her hammer over her shoulder as she saunters off into the trees.