Myrna sighs. The Crusader was right. Whether they solved the mystery or not, Nordvick would need to be imprisoned for his crimes. There was simply no other way to maintain order. Perhaps she could advocate for exile, if she deemed that he was deserving of freedom. Anyhow, she addresses the gnome who spoke up.
"You're right," she says with an audible sigh. "Coercion or not, Nordvick, you have committed terrible crimes." When the conversation began she could not have imagined that it would be eight murders.
"Does anyone carry manacles? We can cuff Nordvick somewhere and keep an eye on him while we figure out who killed Kellvar, and how to get out of here."
She turns to the shadow-woman who had offered to investigate the cellar. The last time people had investigated alone, they had apparently been attacked by ghosts, so she offers her axe. "Anna, I can accompany you into the cellar if you need me to."
Hinagiku remains silent throughout her meditation except for when she witnesses the murder, at which point she mutters a short prayer for Kellvar’s soul under her breath. Having witnessed the event, the monk lets the flow of time recover its grasp on her mind and organize her sensation so that she can resume interacting with the world meaningfully.
”Everyone, I have peered into the past and seen Dehliana murder Kellvar… but things can be deceiving, so I will go and peer in the past in her room too so that I can make sure it was her and not someone using magic to appear like her. ” with that said, Hinagiku makes her way to Dehliana’s room, leaving doors creaked open for rat Ehren to follow her, but ignoring him to preserve his cover.
In Dehliana’s room, she proceeds to the same routine as she did in Kellvar’s room, first waiting a few minutes to bait a possible murderer and then freeing her mind from the chains of time to peer into the past.
"Alright, thank you Nordvick." Sana says to the innkeeper before her attention is drawn to the riotous gnome. She's on the verge of chastising her when Myrna speaks up first. She pauses when the giant asks her question, and shakes her head. "We should wait for the Archdruid and Priestess to come back downstairs."
"Well, truth be told, I hadn't considered locking anyone up. Not because of lack of guilt, but more because of lack of ability for any of us to get out, alongside being in a room full of Crusaders." Sana says as she slips across the room, having heard Hinagiku via the message. She's careful, when she passes the others in the center of the room, on her way to Dehlianna that she whispers in a way that won't be carried via the message spell, and past Narikopolus.
"There's something up with the noble, as well. The way she holds herself... she's a lot more capable than she's pretending to be. She's somewhere between a somewhat talented martial type, and an exceptionally talented and dangerous caster type.
She keeps going after the brief aside, towards Dehlianna, before pulling a seat out across from her. "May I?" she asks as she motions to the table, her hand moving to a piece of cutlery that was still wedged into the table, pulling it out with a slightly annoyed look, before turning her attention to the 'Medium'.
Myrna nods when Anna asserts that they should wait for the Archdruid. When the woman suggests that they not lock up Nordvick, however, she frowns. "I'm not worried about him running or escaping, you're right. It's more about the symbol." She gestures to Nordvick. "Someone please handcuff and watch him while we investigate." Next she approaches Annavinia. Both Beatrix and Anna had said something about her. She had also caused a big commotion upstairs, coincident with the ghost attacks, and her presence here was the most out-of-place.
Getting close to the Chelaxian noble, she sits beside her. "I don't want to sound prejudiced, but a Chelaxian noble showing up in the middle of a mystery surrounding a devil sounds pretty coincidental to me." Without bias or expectation, she asks the next question: "So, Ms. Narikopolus. What are you really doing here? I know you're a scholar, but a remote Crusader outpost seems like an unusual place to study. Do you have any connection to tonight's events?"
Ehren watched Hinagiku from underneath the bed, his beady eyes darting back and forth, prepared for the possibility that Kellvar's murderer might reveal themselves. By the time she has finished meditating, however, no such thing has happened. When the monk reveals that Dehliana was apparently the killer, the druid's tiny face twitches in consternation, but he does not remark on the revelation just yet, if only because doing so aloud would betray his flimsy disguise.
Instead, a few seconds after Hinagiku leaves the room Ehren follows, scurrying along the wall of the hallway. Once they are in Dehliana's room he takes his position under the bed again. He has his doubts that the killer would be so brazen as to attack now - especially if they truly are Dehliana - but it is a risk he is unwilling to take.
Hinagiku leaves for Dehliana's room, and repeats the same process to peer into the past - time again unfurling before her backwards. The room remains empty for some time, before Dehliana enters the room backwards through the door.
She then stands in front of the mirror for some time, fussing with her hair and make-up. Then she moves backwards, and is seen in reverse stashing a rolled-up bag underneath a movable floorboard under her bed. A few moments later, Hinagiku sees Dehliana stash the dagger, rolled up in cloth, inside of the bag, before vanishing from sight in a flash of coiling shadows.
Just a minute before vanishing, Dehliana reappears. She sits down in front of her mirror, and is again putting her make-up on, but has stopped to speak to a tiny, red-skinned devil-man. They spoke for awhile just before Dehliana left the room. Hinagiku does not hear what they are saying- her vision is completely mute.
A few minutes back, the tiny red-skinned devil-man vanishes from sight, though with Hinagiku's blindsight, she can still sense his presence. Invisible, the devil transforms into a dormouse, the form he assumed prior to speaking the Dehliana, and exits the room backwards from underneath the door. Hinagiku looks back up at Dehliana, who is brushing her long blonde hair.
Imps typically are restricted to a few forms - they can transform into boars, spiders, rats, and ravens, according to what you've read.
BUT, some particularly powerful and valuable imps can transform into a larger array of creatures, using magick similar to that used in beast shape II.
Imps are tiny devils most often used by diabolists as familiars. Capable of shape-changing, weak divination magic and the ability to become invisible at will, they are versatile and coveted familiars for any up-and-coming wizard or witch, as long as they are confident that they can stay one step ahead of any ulterior motives such creatures may harbor.
Myrna knows the general imp statblock as representing the archetypical imp.
As a small group of Crusaders surrounds Nordvick and cuffs him, the burly chef runs up to the bar, red faced and angry. "Now you wait one minute! I don't know what's going on here, but there's no way-"
"Reggie, please, stop, not now-" Nordvick says, obviously humiliated by the proceedings and unwilling to let Reggie drag things on even further. The larger man stops and furrows his brows together into a scowl, but otherwise doesn't intervene as others quickly bind the dwarf into manacles and pat him down for weapons or reagents.
At this point Myrna has moved on to questioning Annavinia. She is visibly intimidated by Myrna's appearance and size, though she tries her best to play it cool, even if it is unconvincing. "I said, no I have no idea what is going tonight. I don't know anything about a murder. As I was explaining to this other Crusader here," she nods towards Beatrix. "I am here on research. An ancestor of my esteemed noble house founded this quaint inn a long time ago, and I was seeking information about why such a wealthy and esteemed member of Narikopolus would have traveled so far from Cheliax to set up a home in a such a-" She looks around, and clearly is about to say 'dump' or something like it, but thinks better of it given the company. "Such rugged territory. Look, if you want to see my notes..." She starts rummaging through her pack, but comes up empty. "I'm sorry, I must have left my journal upstairs. If you'll escort me there, it will give you everything you need to know about my research. Don't worry, I'll be sure to help you with any words you don't understand if your Infernal is rusty."
Sana does not recognize the gnome.
Dehliana has 6 BAB but no major resistances or weaknesses.
Myrna believes that Annavinia is telling the truth.
Dehliana smiles warmly at Sana when she sits across from her. "Of course, go right ahead!"
She watches the proceedings with a solemn expression. "Well, it seems like we've found the murderer! Poor thing, what a guilty conscience he must have," she says in a soft voice only Sana can hear very well.
Li'an continues to watch the scene unfold as Nordvick is manacled for admitting he had murdered eight people. She tunes out the drama involving the chef intervening to consider the situation based on what she knew up until this point.
When they had arrived and been briefed by Myrna, she'd been skeptical that an actual devil was involved. Stories of the original inn aside, it seemed unlikely that one would remain here after the original owner had left. While the murders definitely fit the MO of a devil, the apparent lack of a contract, from what she understood, was an issue. Either Nordvick was the single stupidest person to ever attempt to sell their soul, or the creature itself was not a devil. It still seemed more likely that a quasit or some other demon was masquerading as the storied devil that haunted the location. Still, if there were an imp present, it would likely be maintaining invisibility just to minimize the chance of being spotted, something she was quite familiar with from her time in Drezen when she spent some time stalking Chelaxians for fun until she found an imp to test her magic on. It had been Oh-So-Satisfying to watch the creature's confusion as it was burned to a crisp by her flames.
Li'an's face betrays a brief grin as she remembers the immolation of the devil, and her eyes flicker with flame before she returns from her brief reverie to the situation at hand. Reaching up she touches her closed eyelids, granting herself the ability to see invisibility. While the creature wouldn't be able to make use of its invisibility within the area of her illumination, it could easily hide out in a corner of the room shapeshifted and hiding. She then looks carefully around the room, checking out the corners and rafters for any signs of a rodent or other small animal that might be an imp.
Hinagiku had hoped for Dehliana’s sake that someone had impersonated her, but watching the medium reappear while wreathed in the same shadows dispersed any thoughts to the contrary. There remained the possibility that she had been ensorcelled by the imp… but nothing in her expression or composure suggested that. Just in case anything else interesting might have occured, Hinagiku concentrates an extra minute to watch what else went on in the room before letting the grasp of time once more reassert its hold on her mind and thoughts. Shaking her head, the monk comes out of her reverie and extends a hand for Ehren to climb on her before standing up.
”Everyone, I watched the past from Mrs. Dehliana’s room and it seems that she is guilty. I saw her use shadow magic to teleport out of her room. It is the same shadow magic that I saw when looking into the past from Mr. Kellvar’s room… everything points to her. There was an imp in the room with her just before she left for the murder. It is getting around as an invisible dormouse. I will be right downstairs.”
After sharing the information with her companions, Hinagiku makes her way down to the main room. As soon as she takes the scene in, her ears twitch; she was not expected to see someone in chains yet.
"A murderer, not the." Sana responds equally quietly. "I have my suspicions that someone else was involved with Kellvar." she whispers conspiratorially. "He was a capable Crusader, and Nordvick is..." she tilts her head in the direction of the accused. "not."
"So... I wouldn't call this whole murder mystery thing over and done with." she says, fingertips of Opal drumming on the tabletop. "Honestly, my money's on the noble. Too many coincidences there, and the rest of the evidence is just too sloppy." she says with a small shrug, keeping her voice low.
"But... that's not really what I wanted to talk about. I know better than to ask a magician to reveal their tricks, but I had a fair share of entertainers in my life growing up... I'm told your whole thing is just an act." she continues, raising her eyebrows, "I'd assume illusions and such... but I'm concerned about that ghost. We only saw it during that interaction and it's otherwise not even shown up. So, I was wondering if that was part of your act, and if not, if you have any ideas regarding what's going on there. You looked surprised when he showed up, so is it safe to assume he wasn't part of the act? I also assume you're pretty well-read on the subject, so I'll also ask: Any thoughts on what's got this place locked down or how to end the effect?"
Hinagiku thinks that Dehliana appears afraid of the imp.
Dehliana shrugs, following Sana's line of sight to Annavinia and Myrna. Everyone else in the common room who isn't busy getting Nordvick sorted is also watching them, intently. "I guess you do have a point, perhaps they've worked together?"
She turns back to Sana when she turns the conversation back to herself. Dehliana brightens - this was clearly her favorite subject. "Oh, you've heard, have you? Oh well, we can't always be what we seem," she says brightly, hand waving away her own past fraud.
"No, I have no idea who or what that ghost was, or whatever could be happening here! But I am confident with so many Crusaders around that these strange matters will be dealt with soon. After traveling through the Worldwound, not much surprises anymore, does it? And I thought the River Kingdoms were full of all sorts of dangers... how naive I was!"
Making her way through the crowd, Hinagiku approaches Sana and Annevinia. As Sana accuses the noble, Hinagiku turns toward Dehliana, curious about her reaction to the statement, perhaps relief at not being the one accused.
Hinagiku thinks that Dehliana is being truthful here. She seems earnestly interested in figuring out who the killer is.
Annavinia stands for a moment expectantly, but when no Crusaders offer to escort her back to her room, she sits back down. She doesn't hear anything Dehliana or Sana are saying - they are the opposite end of a very large room.
"Well, then, if we're finished here, don't let me hold you from your investigation, Crusader," she says.
The other heroes stand around and wait while Li'an spends the next twenty minutes scouring the room for any invisible dormice. The room is filled with all sorts of strange bits and baubles - statues, taxidermied animals, masterwork weapons on display, ornate light-fixtures - that there are all sorts of crannies such a small creature could be hiding in. She doesn't find anything.
While this happens, the Crusaders relax at ease. One contingent is assigned to guarding Nordvick, while others continue to test the bounds of whatever foul curse is keeping them from leaving the inn. Fenton meets back up with his group - almost exclusively made up of other young Crusaders his own age - and says to the others, "I'm going to take this troop and explore the perimeter. We haven't determined if we've secured the first floor yet," he says authoritatively.
Sana knows Fenton well enough to know when he's faking it - he's very intimidated at the prospect of taking charge when such esteemed heroes are in his presence.
"Oh, hi, Daisy!" chimes in Opal as Hinagiku comes to the table, before stage-whispering, in a conspiratorial tone, "She smells so pretty. Like flowers. From heaven."
"I don't think so, honestly." Sana replies, also quietly. "Though, I've gotta admit, I'm also a bit suspect of Nordvick having killed eight people to save his own skin. Even a true blue diabolist would balk at that as a starting number. One or two... sure. But eight is mind-boggling. Even if he confessed, there's a ton of magic that can make someone confess to things they didn't do. Probably a few ways to make them believe it themselves." she adds, crossing her legs beneath the table.
"So... do you actually have any medium abilities? Like talking to the dead in some way, even if it's a rather low powered spell to do so? I'd suspect the dead people are still intact enough to ask a question or two." she says, before shrugging, "If you don't... you're clearly a skilled actress. Why are you wasting your time wandering dangerously from place to place entertaining people, when you could have a nice cushy job in a playhouse?"
Sana's ears twitch visibly when she hears Fenton speak, though she doesn't immediately respond. "Do you think we should tell her what you saw up there, Daisy?" she asks, though her gaze has wandered over to the halfling. Once he was ready to start searching, she was certain that she was going to volunteer to go with him and his team.
As Sana talks to Dehliana, and Hinagiku comes close as well, Unafe walks over.
She lets the "medium" answer Sana's questions while Li'an readies a spell, and then interrupts.
"Dehliana, your game is up. We've used magic that clearly showed you teleporting into Nordvick's room, murdering him, and then returning to your room. And conversing with a devil, to boot.
"So time to cut the bu!!$hit. Why did you murder him? Who's the devil, and where are they now? Answer honestly; you don't want to get into any deeper trouble than you already are."
Knowing that Dehliana had been teleporting, Li'an prepares to use her magic in an attempt to lock her down should she attempt to flee. "Don't bother attempting to teleport away," Li'an adds when Unafe's done accusing her. Things still didn't quite add up, the devil might have been successfully getting people to murder others, but so far there was no clear gain for the people doing so. "What deal did you make with the creature? What are you getting out of this for murdering Kelvar?"
Still in rat form, Ehren sits on Hinagiku's shoulder and quietly watches the proceedings. While not the most inconspicuous disguise at this point, there was little point in dropping the transformation just yet. As everyone starts to press Dehliana for answers, Ehren opens his spirit sense and focuses on the 'medium,' on the off chance that their devil might come into the vicinity.
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Hinagiku, mouth half open, had been about to decline Sana’s suggestion to reveal her vision to Dehliana when Unafe got ahead of her and confronted the medium. Truly, the monk thought, the two of them were quite the opposites. But, sometimes opposite worked well together. So, taking advantage of the situation, Hinagiku continues to read Dehliana’s expression.
Dehliana shakes her head at Sana. "Oh, no, I don't, sorry to say. I guess you could say I'm here on some personal research of my own, except my pilgrimage is more religious in nature..." She stops when she sees both Unafe and Li'an looming over her, threateningly.
"Ladies, I can't say I understand exactly what it is you're going on about. What is this about a devil?"
Dehliana is lying.
There are no unusual auras visible to your spirit sense on Dehliana. However there is one on Sana.
Sana simply sighs as she notes Dehliana lying. She had expected some degree of competence on the part of the murderer. The trail of evidence had simply been too obvious, with seemingly no effort made towards actual obfuscation besides literally hiding the murder weapon amongst her own possessions. Assuming the bag belonged to her in the first place. She shoves the cutlery back into the table and stands up from the chair, letting it scoot back from the force of her legs.
"Will someone please ensure that Annavinia is well-guarded during this proceeding?" Sana asks to no one in particular, hoping to press the Crusaders into keeping the noble safe... and under watch.
While the heroes confront Dehliana, Fenton takes his exit from the room with a group of twelve other Crusaders. Lann, who had previously been talking to Fenton, walks over to stand next to Hinagiku, not realizing that Ehren was riding on her shoulder incognito.
When Sana brings up keeping Annavinia on guard, the little owl-eyed gnome is quick to volunteer herself, along with four other Crusaders. They stand in a formation around Annavinia, who eyes each of them up and down in turn skeptically.
From the corner of her mind’s eye, or its esoteric equivalent, Hinagiku senses Fenton’s expedition heading for the basement. Caught in the conversation between her companions and Dehliana, she feels as though there is not much she can do, though it would probably be best for one of them to go with the group. Lann with Ehren-kun perhaps?
After a brief and subtle wave at Opal to finally return its greeting, Hinagiku momentarily turns away from the conversation. Leading to a really strange pause from which only her calm serenity keeps the awkwardness at bay. She gently picks mouse Ehren from her shoulder and gives him to Lann, to whom she whispers: ”It is Ehren-kun, I think he might be curious about what is going on downstairs.”
Turning back, Hinagiku finally joins in the conversation about the devil. She lowers her tone so that only her companions and Dehliana can hear what she says, she did not want to make a scene after all.
”I also possess some kind of ability to divine the world Mrs. Dehliana. I do not truly see spirits though, but I can see the ghosts of the past and I have seen you speak to an imp in your very room. Please, could you tell us the truth and help free us find this devil so that we may put the spirits of this haunted place to rest? What did the devil want, why did it come to you, and where is it?” Hinagiku asks, in her kind tone, despite how strongly it appears to clash with Li’an and Unafe’s demands.
Unafe nods meaningfully to Hinagiku's request.
"She's giving you a chance to do this the easy way. You'd be wise to be VERY forthright."
Sana, who had been keeping an eye on Fenton ever since he had mentioned heading downstairs, turns her head visibly as the halfling begins to lead his team out of the room. She pauses, sucking in her lower lip for a moment, tilts her head in each direction, and looks back and forth between the ongoing interrogation, and the door he had headed for. She gives a small shrug having made up her mind. "I'll leave Amber here... priorities and all that." she says, excusing herself and heading for the door. It wasn't her Fenton from back home, but she'd be abyssed before she let something happen to him just because everyone was distracted. "Scream really loud if you need me, and I'll do the same. Remember, that Amber can bring you to me when need be."
Myrna, upon learning that Dehliana may have been lying about her involvement in the murders, silently fumes. The woman had played on her sense of mercy and generosity, and she had been rewarded for it. In times like these, Myrna considered letting loose, grabbing Dehliana by her collar, and roughing her up a bit. Maybe even more than a bit. There were, of course, many reasons why she shouldn't or couldn't do that, but she considered it long and hard while the others posed questions for the false medium.
Instead of gratuitous violence, she settles instead for a temporary observation. Dehliana's next words and actions would decide her fate.
Lann looks back and forth between Dehliana and his friends, figuring that the medium can only deny their accusations so many times before either coming clean or doing something extraordinarily foolish. It takes a few seconds for him to realize that Hinagiku is trying to get his attention.
"Oh!" he remarks, perplexed by why the monk is handing him a rat, until she she explains that the rodent is actually Ehren. It certainly explains the silvery coat - under intense scrutiny, it was doubtful that anyone would mistake him for an ordinary rat. Lann scoops up Ehren in one of his large hands, staring into his beady eyes for a second before plopping him onto his shoulder. "I think we'd better stick together for a bit, at least until we clear things up here."
Li'an waits for Hinagiku and Unafe to work on Dehliana, given that the additional information might be useful in attempting to track it down. She had a spell in mind for finding it given her search of the room had failed so far, so it was just a matter of whether the woman would prove herself useful before Li'an went on the hunt.
Dehliana taps her chin for a moment, considering Hinagiku's question. "An imp? I don't know what you're talking about - I don't have an imp. Are you sure you haven't gotten me mixed up with her?" she says, discretely pointing at Annavinia across the common room.
She tilts her head for a moment, looking Unafe up and down. "Or... what? Are you some sort of monster the Crusaders use to torture those you deem cultists? I've read all about how Crusaders treat those different from them, burning them alive!" She asks after a moment, her voice small.
Sana follows Fenton and a small band of five other Crusaders out through the door closest to the scene of people confronting Dehliana. They close the door behind them as they head into the hallway. Fenton walks over to the first door they encounter. He holds his longsword in his right hand, as he gestures at the other Crusaders to ready their weapons. He opens the doorknob with his left hand, and pushes it open.
He immediately turns, squaring his shoulders should they encounter a ghost or enemy. The door opens revealing a small bathhouse. The trickle of water echoes through the steamy air as water drips from a copper faucet into a porcelain tub. Candles burnt down to waxy pools cast eerie shadows on the tiles. A word appears on the fogged mirror opposite the tub as though traced by an unseen hand, spelled out deliberately: G-U-I-L-T-Y.
The floor and wall is constructed of chopped porcelain tiles. A luxurious claw-foot tub positioned beneath a dripping wall pipe to the north is in danger of overflowing. In addition to the tub, a wash basin and standing oval mirror have been readied for guests. Waning candles provide dim illumination throughout the room.
The corpse of an unfortunate woman lies crumpled in the center of the room, clutching a straight razor in her lifeless hand. Her simple clothing indicates that she likely worked here at the inn, or else somewhere else in the larger fort complex.
Sana and Fenton don't have much time to take the sights in, however, because a sudden force from within the room sucks Fenton right in, with a gust of powerful wind that blows Sana's hair back! The door slams shut a moment later.
"It was in your room befor you came down for dinner, maybe it appeared to you as a dormouse. humm... why would you think I saw all this but that Mrs. Narikopolus was there instead of you?" Hinagiku continues with her usual gentleness, while ignoring the clear fear in the medium's voice and despite the fact that she is accusing the woman of murder.
Li'an studies the woman, trying to make sense of whether she was lying or actually unaware she'd committed the murder, since it was unlikely that Hinagiku was wrong.
Dehliana taps her finger on her cheek, maintaining eye contact with Hinagiku. "Oh? I have seen a few mice in this inn, now come to think of it. As well for your divination, I'm sorry, I may have missed this, but who exactly are you and what authority do you have to accuse me like this? Are you some sort of cleric?"
Dehliana is lying.
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Myrna grumbles and massages her temple with one hand. After a few moments, she sighs and marches towards Dehliana. She reaches out to grab the medium. "Stuff a sock in it, Dehliana. You're under arrest pending investigation." She restrains Dehliana while someone can figure out binding her for real.
Gesturing to the nearest Crusaders, she orders, "One of you, manacle her. Gag her as well. I don't want to hear any more of her words, and we don't want her able to use verbal spellcasting."
"As for the rest of you -- we need actual, actionable proof. Unless you can show your visions to the rest of us, Hinagiku, and unless they're completely infalliable, we need something else to go on." She looks down at Dehliana. "I'm willing to take this all the way to the Grand Inquisitor if necessary. His blade on your neck can determine your guilt objectively one way or the other. Until then, you'll be under arrest and in my care."
"And these ghosts. We need to get out of this inn to bring Nordvick and Dehliana to justice. Somehow we still need to lay them to rest."
Having watched the confrontation from a corner, Lt. Medici steps forward. Not many spells remained in her repertoire, but the situation was still ongoing. She would need to continue serving.
"Should we follow the halfling, then? Or perhaps investigate the cellar?"
Dehliana opens her mouth to protest, but stands down when she is suddenly surrounded by armed Crusaders. She submits to arrest, and is bound and gagged and moved so that she is next to Nordvick, the other captured murderer.
As soon as Sana feels the magic, Sana reaches for Fenton as she steps back... but she's too late, the door slamming shut. "Oh come on! Don't act like he's the bad guy, you could have locked the door before he came in." she yells at the wood, even as her form fades in color. Meanwhile, in the other room, the bobbing ball of light begins to grow brighter.
"Ghost stole Fenton into the Bathroom, door's probably locked, going in anyway. Sana whispers into the message spell, just as her form jets directly through the door, seeking to interpose herself between Fenton and any threats... and introduce them to Rainbow Sparkle. "If you can get the razor out of the room, do it." she says to Fenton.
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Unafe feels her fist clench, and with effort restrains herself.
Breathe. Remember Hinagiku, her calm, her control. Don't take the bait.
Still clearly upset, but somewhat more controlled, she resumes, "I am the Clan-Liege for one of the oldest Sarkorian clans, and a protector of the sacred saurians. I work with the crusaders because--despite their flaws--they are working to fix this demon-infestation, while you...you murder, and then lie about it with a smile."
Unafe feels some relief as the phony spiritualist is bound and gagged...a relief that vanishes as soon as she hears from Sana. In a heartbeat the saurian warrior rushes toward her and Fenton.
Ehren watches from Lann's shoulder as Dehliana is arrested, glad that Myrna is taking control of the situation. Still, her unwillingness to confess is problematic - without an understanding of her motives, they cannot be entirely certain of what they are up against. Hearing Sana's message, Ehren's head perks up, his tiny mouth curved into an approximation of a frown.
"More ghost trouble. We need to go help Fenton," he whispers into the underfolk crusader's ear, opting to use his friend as impromptu transportation.
Sana simply walks through the door and into the room, where she quickly interposes herself between Fenton and any possible threats. She finds the room empty of ghosts... but she hears a strange rattling emitting from the walls.
An enormous snake-head emerges from the drain in the bathtub, the bones in its face clicking into place as it squeezes through a drain impossibly tight compared to its full girth in a process not too dissimilar from what Unafe herself was capable of in her reptilian form. The snake raises itself from the tub, its forked tongue darting out and tasting the room, before hissing and lunging at Sana in front of it. Its prey is much faster than it had accounted for, however, and Sana is able to dart out of the way before it reaches her. It recoils back towards the tongue, eyeing both her and Fenton in turn.
From behind of Sana, Fenton's eyes glaze over and he simply walks over to the overflowing sink behind of them and dunks his head fully into the water. He doesn't remove it. Bubbles start to softly stream from underneath his face to the surface, creating turbulence in the waterline around his curly red hair.
As expected by Unafe, Hinagiku reacts little to Dehliana's continued charade. She even lays a calming hand on the clan-liege's forearam. And, just like her, she is glad for Myrna to join in and officially arrest the medium. As she would need to later tell the crusader, there was no way for her to share her visions. But, this was not something to state in front of a crowd, much less the culprit, so Hinagiku simply gives a non-commital nod.
In unison with Ehren's mouse head perk, so does Hinagiku's vulpine head. At the clear emergency of Sana's message, Hinagiku immediatly follows Unafe to the room.
As the rattling noise grows louder - not unusual in old houses with long pipes, probably just some steam - Sana looks over her shoulder just in time to see the snake's head emerge and lunge, gathering her full attention as she balances on the balls of her feet, just out of reach of its lunge.
"Oh, stick a forked tongue in it. I'm busy, you... snake." Sana says, giving the snake a cross look as Rainbow Sparkle dances in her hand, interrupted by a sudden bubbling noise from behind her. She turns, expecting to see another snake, or perhaps the ghost, only to find her friend... apparently drowning himself. Klaxons go off in her head as she considers her options. Would inhaling a potion of protection from evil while something tries to drown you work? Could she break the sink quickly enough to prevent more damage? Should she... do the thing? A sudden feeling not unlike hunger but still quite different bubbles up from the pit of her stomach at the thought. It was the right thing to do, she could save him and purge the ghost at the same time. Her breath hitches as she wrenches her eyes closed for a split second. No, Yui. she thinks as strongly as she can.
"Drowning." she whispers into the message spell having little time to think, despite her innate haste.
She could mimic a spell. A shadow pit would only be a few feet deep so wouldn't hurt him, but would leave him out of reach of water. A shadow air bubble would... probably make him not drown, maybe. She could grab him or push him, but he'd always been stronger... this wasn't her Fenton. Sana reaches down into the sink and grabs him by the collar, attempting to pull him towards her and away from the water, but her claws dig through the material and her hand comes back empty. she yells at the door in the corner, still ignoring the snake as panic begins to set in as her hands grasp downwards into the water once more. 'You should have just pushed her out...'
Myrna turns at Sana's call, rushing through the doorway into the next hall over. The muffled cries from through the door tell her that Sana and Fenton are through the door, and she quickly finds the door locked.
With a grunt, she hurls her shoulder against the door, hoping to bash it open so that she can help them.
Myrna slams her shoulder into the door, but she crashes into it at an odd angle, so it barely feels the brunt of her strength.
The snake again lunges at Sana, but misses, sliding long past her. Sana tries to get a grip on Fenton, but she feels an overwhelming presence in her mind. Something about the bucket of water on the floor starts to call to her...
Putting aside the silliness of his friend directing him in rodent form, Lann hurries to the site of the commotion, securing his shield to his arm along the way. He is hardly equipped to hunt a ghost, but he could only assume that this is faster than having Ehren scurry that way himself.
Ehren clings to Lann's shoulder, realizing too late that assuming this form might have been a bad idea. Left with no time to revert to his human shape, however, he readies himself for whatever danger they might be running into. Upon reaching Myrna, the druid finds that the crusader is in the process of trying to bash down the bathroom door. With no time to waste, Ehren reaches out to the door with a diminutive pink paw, its digits outstretched in a clawed grip.
"We will be there as soon as we can Mrs. Sana."
Finding her path quickly barred by Myrna and Ehren, or more precisely by the door that would not budge, Hinagiku finds herself casting a glance at those around, hoping for some miracular solution. And, against all expectations, one appears to come in the form of the light that keeps following Sana.
"Amber... san? I have seen you tranport others, can you transport us to Anna?" Hinagiku asks as she moves next to the wisp.
Amber simply serenely bobs up and down as Hinagiku is enveloped in the little archon's light, and with a flash the priestess slips out of Sana's shadow, just beside her.
Hearing Hinagiku, Unafe also reaches out to touch Amber, asking to be teleported to Sana's side.
The Archdruid's spell springs the door open, just as Unafe and Hinagiku are teleported next to Sana by Amber at the same time. They emerge in what appears to be a small bathhouse. There is a corpse of a woman on the floor, clutching a razor. Fenton appears to be drowning himself in a pool of water in the sink, though his form is strangely limp. He is not resisting, though bubbles emerge from under the water through his hair.
There is also an enormous snake that has emerged from the bath-tub drain. The heroes don't know how long it is, but its head is wide enough to swallow a man whole. Its body contorts and squeezes its way through the much narrower tub, somehow, though it seems physically impossible.
This is a haunt. Positive energy can be channeled to destroy haunts.
Sana can tell the haunt is focused on the three sources of water in the room: the faucet, the bucket, and the tub. Alternatively, the haunt could be destroyed if those items are either exorcised with holy water, or destroyed physically. Sana suspects that the items will be supernaturally stronger than their mundane counterparts to destroy.
Keeping her eyes closed, Hinagiku is able to quickly survey her surroundings with her sixth sense as soon as she appears in the room. The dire situation acts like a cold shower on her mind, washing away the spirit’s suggestions. Not wasting any time, the monk steps towards Fenton.
”Mrs. Unafe, I leave the snake in your care.” she says as she grabs onto the small crusader’s thigh and twists it in a way to force him back without causing any harm.