Unable to reach the cleric, Masym turns to the man with the spar, and drives him back with his spear, though can't manage to damage him at all. Marcus has no such problems with the other man, cutting him down with one swift swing of his blade, before sheathing it like the rest isn't his problem... yet.
Londo once again reaches out with his mind ... this time to contact Luscilia's, and draw a new kind of fear to the surface. Not something terrible, or horrific, as is his usual tack... but instead the bittersweet feelings of happiness and peace. He then uses those to amplify feelings that her very reason for being on the path she is on, has been mistaken. That all her choices have been the wrong, all her beliefs false! Zarisha feeds on that confusion and doubt, gliding forward once more and striking her hard across the chest, driving home the unending miseries of erroneous choices!
It is all too much for her fanatical brain to process, as she suddenly is overcome with misery and fear.
But none of that is enough, as Fifi continues her holy crusade, stepping forward once more, and bringing her red hot scimitar down one last time. With a terrified scream, the priestess of the God of the End of the World, reaches the end of her reign of terror, and collapses in a heap on the dock, not even the comfort of knowing she will soon be with her god, to keep her company.
The last standing thug hesitates for a moment, as his leader falls, trying to decide what to do... but the choice is taken from him, when he is struck from the side by a small glob of Kioshi's arcane acid, and tumbles screaming off the side of the dock, hitting the water below with a splash.
The night suddenly goes silent, as the sounds of combat fade, only the heavy breathing of the survivors, the gentle creaking of the boats on their moorings, and the quiet snoring of the two sleeping men, interrupting the evening reverie.
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Londo sits down and huffs and puffs. Out of shape and breathing hard. Let's not do that again. All these undead...My powers aren't so great against these things and they hit HARD. Marcus, you get to be the distraction next time. He fishes out his wand and applies its healing power to whoever needs it, including himself and Zarisha!
He then gets up off his butt and limps over to Fifi Lady Crusader....I take it you want Sarenrae's light? he says offering his wand.
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Fifi's eyes grow dim once again, and the flame atop her head grows back into the same size as before. As the cleric goes unconscious, she will say with a cheeky smile-"Just kidding! Wouldn't want you dying on us!"-as she winks and takes back all of the threats she made about her meeting her god. To Londo's suggestion, she will smile and give the ex-crusader a big hug in thanks-"Thanks! Londo, and all of you guys, that was amazing! We pulled it off, somehow!"
As she strengthens her grip on Londo, and finally lets go, she recomposes herself, cleaning up the blood that might have splattered on her. Relieved, the ifrit paladin will say-"Well, that takes care of that! We should tie up this Luscilia, and ask if there's any more cultists that might retake the operation - wouldn't want the snake's head growing back."
She will search through Luscilia's pockets, and disarm her, and tie her up with her rope, alongside the other cultists.
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Midge presses her hand to her chest and blasts herself with some healing magic.
Then Midge stows her wand and morningstar, and hurries over to the others. She helps tie up these dastardly slavers and the psycho lady, and helps move them onto the ship. When its done she looks at the others and grins. "Nice job, everyone." Then she pats Fifi on the arm. "You did good, kid."
"We need to get the victims to the guard. Then they can come arrest these fools," she nudges an unconscious thug with her foot.
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Kioshi comes down to the group now.
”We should definitely bind them and interrogate them to understand what they were up to! Especially the cleric needs to be stabilised so she does not die! I am not an expert in healing so could you please do that?“ Kioshi asks.
He then starts to pet his lizard and looks at the sleeping men and the heavily hurt woman and shakes his head!
”It is truly unbelievable how some people are pulled into the darkness and believe in things which would destroy the society that helped them to grow up and that they could have contributed to to make it a better place!“
You will find a couple vials of liquid on Luscilia. As well, she is wearing well crafted half-plate armor, and has an equally well made heavy flail. Wadded up in one of her pockets is a crumpled piece of paper.
On the sailors that came to her aid, you will find little at all, beyond simple leather armor and the makeshift weapons they were using.
You can easily tie up the two sleeping sailors. The one that fell over the side you see no sign of, and did not hear any splashing after he fell. One of the others is dead, not surprising based on the bite mark on his throat. The last is still alive, and you are able to stabilize him. Luscilia is unconscious, though in no danger from her wounds, most of which were caused by Fifi and not life-threatening. Still, given the beating she took, it will be a couple of hours until she comes around on her own. The heavily injured sailor, even longer. The two sleeping ones, well, they will awaken after a couple of minutes on their own!
The wadded up piece of paper you find on Luscilia looks like it was intended to be tossed, but got shoved in a pocket instead. It takes a couple of readings before you realize it is what amounts to a love letter, addressed to Luscilia, but written by someone who appears to find death and the end of all things romantic. It is signed by someone named Dalirio Teppish. You can't imagine Luscilia thought too highly of it, given its crumpled state, and the fact it has a few greasy stains on it, as if it were used as a coaster... then eventually scrap paper... for scribbled on the back, in a different handwriting, is a set of crude directions to what looks like a cooper's warehouse not too far from your current location, in the south end of the Shipyards.
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Fifi suggests maybe Midge and her go towards the nearby garrison with the hostages, and ask for back up in taking the slavers into custody, mentioning Orfeo's title and the urgency to arrest the criminals.
Kioshi, Londo, Marcus and Masym can keep watch and tend to their wounds, and keep watch on the slavers, and then just leave them to the city guard.
"In any case, we must decide whether or not we want to squash the remains of this cult tonight, or tomorrow. One option means we won't be in top shape for combat, but the other allows for possible escape, even if the chances are low. My vote is on going tonight, but I admit I might be biased towards reckless courses of action. What do you all think?"-Fifi says as she helps get the hostages out of the ship.
Fifi will find that the rescued prisoners attitude towards has has chilled noticeable since she left them in the hold. Most of them seem to be avoiding standing too close to her, throwing the occasional sideways glance, but otherwise avoiding eye contact altogether.
None of them will eagerly agree to go anywhere with her, silently worried that she's just waiting for a chance to murder them when no one's looking.
It would seem Kioshi revealing her affiliation has been bandied about while you were topside.
You're not sure how city officials will react to this same news.
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"Alas, it seems our best bet is to send in the Midge-Masym duo!"-she says smiling, feeling hurt but trying to play it off with a laugh.
"And yes! The missing Pathfinder agent! That urges me to take the more straight-forward approach if anything."-she says shrugging, the flame atop her head wavering a bit in nervousness.
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Masym rolls his eyes at the attitude of the prisoners towards the ifrit lady.
Wonder if they would feel better if they were still locked in the hold?
"C'mon Midge, let's take care of these prisoners. I think time is running out here so we'd better hurry!" He turns to Fifi and gives her a reassuring smile, "Once we track down where he is being held, we move against them immediately. And don't let them get to you here. We need you to focus on the task at hand. Trust me, you did just fine Fifi."
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"Time really is of the essence. Shall we, instead, tie all of the slavers and take care of the rest of the cult before they wake up? We could leave the hostages to their own, but might risk them getting mugged in this dark dock."-she says, pondering a bit.
"It really is a difficult situation. We have a LOT of people to take care of, like a daycare center in the middle of the dark."-she says looking at the decrepit pier she's standing in.
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"Now now friends, we are in the presence of a rather important person, we should of course, allow him to exercise his authority. He did, in fact, deputize us... as it were... myesss."
Marcus returns to Orfeo. "Well sir! As your deputies, we have secured those who committed this most heinous of acts, and prepared them for delivery to the local constabulary. As... of course... this was all done as a part of your decree and planning, it is only right that you be allowed the honor of... I do believe the phrase is 'making the collar.' My associates I'm sure would be happy to escort them but at the end of the day, you personally taking care of a cadre of nihilistic kidnappers... well..."
Marcus taps the side of his nose and winks. "One's reputation is worth it's weight in gold is it not? Besides! You went through the crucible more than us... we were merely lucky to have been able to assist. You've earned it!"
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Kioshi is slightly embarrassed that he spilled the beans regarding Fifi‘s worship of Sarenrae.
”I am truly sorry Fifi ... and hope that you can forgive me!“ he says to her and looks apologetically into her eyes.
Looking at the rest of the team he continues.
”I would also first bring the prisoners to safety and these evil beings into custody before we advance to the next location we found out about ... but we should then proceed as fast as possible to rescue our fellow Pathfinder and any other further prisoners!“
You think your grandfather had some dealings with them once, back when they apparently stood at the right hand to the Grand Prince himself.
They were once one of the more wealthy and influential families, with holdings all across northern Taldor. A Teppish once sat on the governor's seat in the Cassomir Prefecture. Another member of that family led legions of thousands against the Qadirans during the Grand Campaign. In fact, it was a Teppish that negotiated the Treaty of Wildwood that guaranteed Taldor the renewable resources of druid-protected blackwood trees that would forever supply the empire with the ships built right here, in Cassomir's Imperial Navy Shipyards!
Of course, you can't fly that large without making yourself a target. Supposedly, almost half a century ago, a series of rival houses launched attacks on their holdings and wealth... even going so far as to have a number of the Teppish patriarchs assassinated. In a few short years, what was once a proud and wealthy family, were reduced to laughingstocks in the Opparan social scene and left with few possessions, even less gold, and no power at all.
At which point, rumor has it, they did what any self-respecting Taldan family does... they turned to a life of organized crime. No one heard much about them since then, mostly the name has been attached to banditry outside the city... but even those instances have long passed, and most believe the last of the Teppish line was wiped out years ago.
Once the sailors are secured, the rescued nobles make it up to the deck of the ship, some scared, some relieved, most just glad to be free.
Orfeo of course, is his usual annoying self, muttering something about being stuck down in the smelly hold and why it took you so long.
All of them recognize Luscilia and give her a wide berth, despite the fact she is obviously unconscious. Many of them give Fifi a wide berth as well, some dark mumblings happening when they think she can't hear them.
At first you're not sure Marcus' bluster is working, the young Bozbeyli mostly just looking annoyed and confused ... but eventually he seems to catch on to the opportunity being presented, and he puffs up a bit at the well-deserved praise.
"Of course, I have endured a great ordeal. It is only right those responsible be punished severely!" He crows. "Lest others get the same idea." He doesn't look directly at Fifi here, but the subtext is clear. "That it should be the aggrieved that drags them to that punishment, even better!"
Of course, once he realizes that three of the prisoners are unconscious, and unable to walk on their own, his tone changes again. He starts trying to command some of the other rescuees, most of whom ignore him, as they try to figure out if anyone knows where the nearest guard post is. You're not sure any of them spend much time observing the city they live in, outside of their own personal circles. Eventually, one of them will mention he knows the way... though judging by his cagey response when he finally reveals it, you suspect he might know for reasons of avoiding it, more than in case he needed it.
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Fifi, once again feels hurt and aggravated by the berths and glances that come her way, but she tries to disguise it with a big smile, trying to change the topic-"Now that we know where the nearest guard post is, it should take us a shorter time to carry the slavers to the guard post. We should try and do just that, then hurry over to the last cultist base."-she says, a bit uneasy, her right heel tapping on the rotting dock as she tries to look away from the hostages she just saved.
To Kioshi's apology, she will gently tap him on the back reassuringly-"Don't worry about it. Once we bid farewell to these people, we should be fine."-she says, maintaining a smile.
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Midge, who was more than happy to escort the victims to the guard post, rolls her eyes when the pompous little nobleman does the job for her. ...And he quickly finds it too hard.
"Enough bickering. We don't have time for this. Come on. We'll all go." Midge does her best to hoist the lightest of the unconscious prisoners up onto her back.
But she can't even get him up off the ground. Instead she grabs his hands and tries to drag him down the road!
He'll be filthy and scraped to heck when he gets there, but at least she's got him moving...
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Marcus quietly beckons for Fifi and Midge. "Time to... as they say... make tracks... He's got this under control and we have a job to do... myesss...
Once out of earshot, Marcus briefs his compatriots. "If she has been... dabbling in the affairs of the Teppishes... we may be in a little deeper than originally expected... myesss. That is a name that once stood at the right hand of Grand Prince Stavian... and eventually synonymous with organized crime. Now... well... usually assumed dead... but old lineages do tend to pop up in strange places... and they never leave their baggage behind.... myessss..."
Eventually you work out how to get the unconscious prisoners moving, and escort them and their conscious mates, as well as the rescued abductees towards what you hope is the nearest guard station. Luckily, the one man's directions prove accurate, though you find the route he chooses seems to go down the darkest and least savory of alleys to get where it's going.
Orfeo doesn't help with the prisoners at all, but he seems to puff himself up more and more the closer to the guardpost you get, until by the time it comes in sight, he is practically brimming with unearned confidence and bluster!
Unsure how the guards might react to Fifi's presence if one of the abductees starts talking about her affiliations, especially given that the level of negative response to Sarenrae tends to be proportional to the size of the population... and Cassomir is one of Taldor's largest cities! You can't imagine that it will be positive, anyway, so to spare any unwanted confusion, and avoid getting detained answering questions in general... or having to listen to whatever Orfeo is about to say with a straight face, you part ways with the rescued men and woman there, and let them go the final block on their own.
Instead, you turn back the way you came, heading towards the warehouse marked on the crude map. It took almost twenty minutes to reach the guard post, but as you head back you realize that you didn't take the straightest route at all. That, combined with not having to drag along any unconscious bodies or a dozen entitled nobles and injured prisoners, it ends up only taking you ten to get back to where you were. From there, its another ten minutes until you are peering through the darkness at a large building, just outside the dim light of the nearest city-maintained lanterns.
The note mentioned something about a basement, though you can see no other access points other than at street level. No lights or other signs of activity are evident.
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Londo decides to give the place a good outer perimeter search, looking for something like where the doors are, and if any of them look particularly susceptible to being opened.
He also has Zarisha assume Incorporal form and sneakily pass through the building to get a sense of if there is an obvious basement or creatures/ambush waiting for them. Londo will see through her eyes as she does so.
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”Good that we handled the situation so well! And good that these people are now in safety... although this one noble guy really deserved a little mistreatment!“ Kioshi says while rolling his eyes.
When they arrive Kioshi again casts ‘message’ on Londo and Masym and himself. Then he casts detect magic and checks for auras in the vicinity.
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Fifi will hang back with the rest of the party, waiting for the green light to intrude upon the house. She puts her valkyrie helmet back on-"At least my flame will not alert the people from the basement as we head down the stairs."
"I think we should locate the best possible entrance, go through there, and push as quickly as we can. Wouldn't want them to kill our colleague the moment they hear us."-she says, trying to keep focused on the task to keep her mind off the previous incident with the Taldan hostages.
You approach the warehouse cautiously, casing the perimeter to check for entrances and exits, or signs of anyone at all.
You easily notice a large double door on the front side facing the street, with a smaller postern doorway inset into it, as well as a smaller entrance around the side, but nothing that looks like it would lead to any sort of basement, or any windows, for that matter. Neither door happens to be unlocked.
Zarisha, of course, has no issues with such barriers, the phantom easily sliding through a side wall to the interior, with only a faint slimy film evidence of her passage.
Londo pauses, as his senses are suddenly those of his ectoplasmic other-half. The interior is even darker than the exterior, with massive stacks of barrels in various sizes carefully pilled up everywhere, making sight lines difficult. He is unable to maintain his sensory connection for long enough to scout the entire warehouse, though he sees enough to know it appears to be completely vacant... not entirely surprising given the hour. Nor was any immediately obvious basement access evident. Zarisha is able to look around a little more, reporting back to Londo with her usual charm, that the large door in the front is barred and chained shut from inside, but the side door and the postern door have only a wooden bar set across them, to keep out intruders. Neither of which was designed to stop someone from the inside, especially a ghostly someone, from simply lifting them off.
Of course, in order for someone to have set both bars, they would have had to have been inside as well, as there's no other way out.
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Londo reports back to the group No one is immediately evident, nor was there exactly a neon sign saying Basement this way but...if we come around to the back door, Zarisha can let us in. Someone is inside somewhere however - it would be impossible to bar all of these doors without it. So we should be...quiet. Follow me closely, use a bullseye lamp if you have one. Otherwise hold your light til absolutely needed
Londo and Zarisha guide everyone in the dark to the postern door and she lifts the wooden bar to let the party in.
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Midge raises an eyebrow at Londo. "It's this light or bust. Unless someone else has a bullseye lantern they've been hiding, your gonna have to cope. I'm not going in blind." Midge gives those who can see in the dark a bit of a head start , but then is heading inside with her light spell active on her blouse.
The inside of the warehouse is as Londo described, mostly a large open space, divided by many large piles of stacked barrels and casks, and an assembly area on one side. The light from the Pathfinders reflects off the barrels' shapes erratically as you move around, creating strange shadows that appear and disappear at random.
Still, there is no sign of anyone, the entire structure appearing to be just a single floor. But the letter mentioned a basement, and an access point to it, so you look around carefully.
It is Midge who finally finds what you are looking for, a large trap door, partially concealed by wood shavings along one edge of a stack of barrels.
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Marcus, having begrudgingly learned that his scouting skills leave much to be desired, decides to take a more... "managerial" position.
He sticks close to Kioshi, taking advantage of his light and looks around.
He speaks clearly but quietly. "Hrmm... well clearly there must be an underground passage here... unless we have been led astray of course. I do agree that a modicum of stealth may be advised, but we must be aware of our... strengths and weaknesses... myess. We must stick together and spend every second with the utmost concern for efficiency if we are to emerge with our ward unscathed... myesss..."
He smiles and gives a curt nod to Midge as she uncovers the trapdoor. "Well done Midge."
He keeps his blade sheathed and prepares to descend.
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"Good catch Midge! Way I see it, me and Londo should go at the front, followed by Marcus and Masym, and finally Midge and Kioshi. To be honest, I'm not really good at stealth, so I think our best bet is to at least minimize the risk of getting ambushed."-Fifi says as she takes off her helmet, joining the group's lights with her own.
As the make their way down, she will cast Detect Evil and mantain concentration, slowing the party's advance but alerting them of numbers and relative distance to them.