Gur laughs at Lee. "Axe, and yes." A second later, the mask of grim determination is back on.
You check the area surrounding the bog, and eventually find what you're fairly sure is Aleece's pale, broken body lying half-submerged in the bog a few yards past eh clearing. A worn trail from the clearing shows where the body was dragged away - no doubt to be a meal for the spider later.
The bog is littered with the remnants and belongings of what seem to be previous victims.
Sad. Leepili remarks with regret. He looks about the ground, at prior victims. Preys on unwary travelers it seems.
He kicks around through the grass and weeds.
"Careful, Leeoli. Eggs."
Rufus gently pulls Aleece free from the bog. "She has a lovely face," he says sadly.
Among the bodies and detritus Leeoli finds a potion, a magnifying glass with a goden handle, a small wooden box containing a set of brass weights, a walnut traveling case with a pair of superior locks and their keys sealed in wax, and a jar of what look to be garlic cloves.
You wrap poor Aleece up in her clothing as best as you can, and gently carry her back to the Kin. As soon as you surface from the trail, the weeping starts in earnest. Many among the Kin are too saddened with grief to do much more than console each other. Kaleb hangs his head low, then slowly walks over to you.
How...how did this happen?
Dura looks over the trove Leeoli found.
"How many people has this monster killed?" she sighs, thinking about all the lost people, lured by that creature's lies.
"Hey, hold on a moment... this box slides open," she says, revealing the secret compartment.
---------------------------------------------
A potion of fox's cunning, it seems. Let us bring them their daughter.
Leeoli places an arm on the grieving man. A predatory spider. We've destroyed it so that no other will grieve as you.
"We're so sorry for your loss," Dura adds. "If it's any consolation, I don't believe she suffered."
Kaleb shakes his head and lowers it his eyes downcast. He takes out a gaudy kerchief and wipes at his eyes, then re-folds it and tucks it away. He shows a bit of a flourish - his showman nature present even in his grief.
I thank you for your help; you certainly didn't need to assist us and you wouldn't have been the first to pass us by. I know we're not the most welcoming sort, but I assure you that these are good people. Aleece is....was...one of us, and we care for our own.
He takes out a dagger and holds it, hilt out, for someone to take.
A reward, then...please take this. Let it not be said that the Crooked Kin are beggars; we are happy to pay those who help us. This dagger is magical in nature - it is particularly damaging to people that can take on other forms, or shapes. He turns his eyes up to scan his people, then turns back to address Dura, as if figuring she's the leader of the group, or perhaps just the easiest to talk to. We are to travel on to Lepidstadt without delay - we have many shows scheduled. But, I'm afraid of what horrors may lurk ahead, and my people would most certainly appreciate the presence of armed and capable adventurers. Would you like to travel with us as we continue the journey? We don't have much to offer, but you'd at least have a wagon to yourself, and we can offer a standard guard's wage.
"I for one do not need pay, as I will be heading that way anyway. And, I have no need of your dagger. What I will take is a good meal and a nice fire to sit by at night. As long as I have that I will protect you from anything the road may offer." Gur attempts his best smile, which turns out more a fearsome grimace than a show of human empathy.
As our roughly spoken friend indicates, we did not help for the the dagger but because you were in need. Call it a gift and we'd reconsider, and we'd reciprocate. In terms of traveling with your troop as guards, I accept. actually I do need the pay..and accept it with honor..
"You needn't give up your weapon on account of this. Who knows when it may save your own life? As my friends have stated, we would be glad to accompany you to Lepidstadt. I would be interested to hear how all of...this... came to be. "
"We're headed that way anyway. Sounds like it'll be nice to travel together." Dura feels bad for what happened. She also feels a little bad that she pre-judged these people.
In a flash of insight, Leeoli realizes that this man and his troop did not want to accept charity. Pride, or the stigma associated with their people, neither he or his troop wanted to incur a debt. He graciously accepts the knife, and begins to make arrangements. I will leave you to grieve, and prepare for the evening.
Kaleb solemnly hands over the weapon and looks up with a grim expression. We're very much in your gratitude; I fear we did not expect the open road to be quite this dangerous.
Preparations are made quickly, even though some of those most close to Aleece are too overcome with grief to participate. A wagon is cleared easily enough, as Aleece's sisters no longer wish to be along without their entire family intact. You set out with the group, talking among them and meeting some folks who, despite outward appearances, are much the same as any others, if not more congenial for finally finding someone who would talk with them directly instead of avoiding them like outcasts.
You meet Hap Tarvin, the flee man - a hunched man with a distorted appearance and Lidia Gerod, the Bearded Lady. Standing nearly 7 feet tall and with a fine beard cascading down to her waist, she seems to be the mother hen of the other members of the troupe. Aleece's sisters Lettie and Poppy have the same affliction that their sister did, and they remain in their wagon the entire time.
Price Zar, the Human Caterpillar is a Mwangi man with no arms or legs - much different than S'jeer, the human woman with four arms dressed in silks. There are also three clowns - Gerik, Josef, and Tam, each which have an extra limb. They're impressive acrobats and jugglers.
The giant man you saw earlier is simploy called Trollblood...as it seems that is what he has in him. He is nearly always near the Wolf Child, who is a small boy covered in hair. The boy seems far too feral to be sane, but Trollblood keeps him calm.
Leeoli nods politely at the introductions. A third arm seems useful. I might have to think on how to create one for myself.
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Gur keeps to himself mostly. If one of the folk start up a conversation he will be polite and share in the company.
Rufus feels strangely at ease with the traveling troupe. Never having had many playmates as a child, he understands loneliness and the affirmation of feeling like one "belongs". He talks to each member of the show that will speak to him, asking them about their experiences both in and out of the cadre. He might confess a temptation to share with them his own peculiarities, but the hold habits are too firmly ingrained within him, and instead he only makes copious notes in the evening before he attempts to sleep. Later, he would discuss the scientific implications with Leeoli...
Dura does her best to help the girls with the loss of their sister. It isn't much, but she let's them pet Daniel if they like. She's actually very interested in the feral child, wondering if that's what her life would have been like under different circumstances.
All in all, she stays pretty talkative to the group, happy that they happened along and that they're heading in the same direction.
"Anything in particular drawing you to Lepidstadt?" she asks Kaleb as they travel along.
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Leeoli notices subtle changes in Rufus. Of old habits extinguishing, and new power taking hold. At the fire that evening, he catches the man examining what appears to be a small glass vial, and appears to reference the little notebook Rufus keeps in his pocketCould he be? He continues his surveillance throughout the evening, and his suspicion is confirmed: Rufus has kept hidden from him--perhaps out of shyness--a singular mind for alchemical machinations. He seemed most expert, and appears to have access to extracts he have not yet grasped the trick to making. Why did the man keep this from him?
Leeoli approaches Rufus who stares into the fire with a somewhat wistful expression on his usually somber face. He places a hand gently on his shoulder, which seems to awaken him from his reverie. Friend. Why have you kept this from me? He points to his pocket. He points to the alchemical stains on his fingers. His expression was plain..the game was up. He shakes his head. We are brothers in craft now as well in friendship..this is fortuitous indeed...though I believe you surpass me in alchemical insight. Still we may learn from each other!
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Rufus sits by the fire, quill in hand, attempting (in vain) to balance one of his father's alchemical equations in his journal. Over and over he follows the symbols toward some logical conclusion, but always finds himself steered in a new direction, so that the proof evades him. This is only one of many such diagrammes, for his father's writings are full of such esoteric scribblings.
It's no wonder you went mad, he thinks to himself, just as Leeoli appears beside him, eyeing his work.
He slams the journal shut, hopping to his feet. Glancing side to side, he draws Leeoli away from the fire, toward the shadows where they both belong.
"It's true, Leeoli, I haven't shared some measure of the information I've uncovered. Father's work, it was, how should I say, too controversial for the learned maesters of the University. There are...ethical concerns to be considered. Of the white essence you know, for you yourself have achieved a similar success in violet hue. Other combinations of aether and spirit, well...there have been some minor side effects, though which not entirely unexpected, render the inquisitive mind vexed in attempted elucidation of rubric..."
"...All this is to say, I don't fully understand the combinations myself. Father's intellect was beyond mine. But each day I unravel new clues, ciphered intimations buried in footnotes and margins that lead unto marvelous and confounding avenues of hypothesis..."
He again casts his gaze about to avoid prying eyes before withdrawing his little black book. "Here, let me show you..."
Kaleb glances at Dura for an instant, as if surprised at the very normal treatment he and his troupe were getting. They were no doubt used to being looked down upon by nearly everyone. As you can imagine, a troupe such as ours in some of smaller towns of Ustalav is often seem with suspicion...sometimes even disgust. We're on return from one such...unsuccessful attempt...to our semi-permanent home in Lepidstadt. The larger city is often much more forgiving and even interested in our peculiarities. He shrugs, almost sheepishly. It's a living, there....elsewhere, it's just another spectacle.
The remainder of the trip is uneventful, and you arrive at your destination in the early evening. Upon your arrival in Lepidstadt, you find an almost carnival atmosphere in the city. There are whisperings about the "trial of the Beast", which has apparently already started. A huge pyre in the shape of Lepidstadt's famous Punishing Man has been erected in the main circle outside of the courthouse, and locals eagerly add fuel to the effigy in preparation for what they see as the Beast's eventual execution.
Lepidstadt is a small city on the banks of the Lesser Mourtray River, most famous for its university and the strange standing stones outside the city called the Spiral Cromlech. Recently renovated, Lepidstadt is a bustling, lively city of students and academics, with newly bricked streets, wide plazas, and grandiose structures built from imported wood and stone. Away from the university and city center, however, the narrow, winding streets of Lepidstadt show the signs of its age, with dilapidated hovels, crumbling stone walls, and cramped courtyards.
As you approach the city, you head north then turn the east so that you can enter through the proper Western entrance of the city. As you near the stone gatehouse, you see the famous standing stones to the northwest of the city.
Dura wishes Keleb and his troupe the best of luck as they split apart. Her attention though is largely diverted by this trial and how it's encompassing so much of the town. "Gur, I'm sure you have a place in town, but I'd be willing to host anyone who'd like to stay for a bit, once our duties are discharged. It's not much, but it's out of the rain."
Dura has a mid-size flat not too far from the University. Many of the students would probably consider it "low-class," but when you have a pet tiger, you make do.
Leeoli nods gratefully to Dura for the offer, but turns to everyone I think we should visit to Dr Crowl with all haste. I would be done with them.
"That is kind of you Dura. I would be delighted to visit your home. I should also visit upon Mother at first opportunity. Her nerves are fretful and I am sure she has been quite agitated in my absence. This trial of the beast has also piqued my curiosity. But you are both correct that societal pleasantries must yield to our task. The professor's instructions should be our first priority. To the University!"
"you may take the others to the Dr. I will see the manual to the judge and await you." Gur does not see the point in telling the group about the small cell Father Eswayne was good enough to let him use. Damerich and Pharasma were thankfully on good terms.
The Beast is said to be made of the bodies of condemned criminals and while human sized he posses the strength of an ogre from the region of Vieland in northwestern Ustalav, and as far as the residents of that region are concerned, a menace beyond compare
You know little of the Punishing Man, save that he was a historical figure of significance in the history of Lepidstadt.
"...and allegedly stitched together from the corpses of executed criminals. Can you imagine? Necrotic flesh infused with life? A terrible combination, but one which begs to be examined." His gray eyes gleam with uncharacteristic life.
Rufus nods at Gur. "As you desire--we can meet you outside her townhouse."
Rufus, Leeoli, and Dura...with Daniel find the Lepidstadt University easily enough - in fact, they all already knew where it was.
When you arrive at the university, you're greeted by the sight of several builders and craftsmen working to repair considerable damage to what appears to be a combination library and workshop. There's a large desk, but behind it the chair lies in broken pieces. A brass nameplate on the desk reads "Dr Montagnie Crowl, Antiquities Department."
A plump little man stands by the desk, reading over papers, but looks up at your arrival. Why...hello...may I help you?
Gur makes his way to the fine townhouse of Judge Embreth Daramid, which lies in the center of the art district, a very upscale neighborhood. Gur generally knows her to be well respected for her even temper and fairness, as she is one of the justices of Vieland and a magistrate of Lepidstadt.
When led into the sitting room, Judge Daramid herself greets Gur. She is in her sixties, with gray hair pulled back tightly into a bun and icy blue eyes. Welcome back to Lepidstadt; have you fulfilled my request?
Rufus, as has become usual of late, keeps his thoughts and eyes turned to an errant page of notes, hardly noticing the people around them as they approach the university...
"Ahem. Is Dr. Crowl available? We've come some distance to call on him."
It seems that this beast is thought to be the result of experimentation by a professor, the first to be murdered by the beast. Dr. Henri Moritz was his name, at least that is what I heard by a passerby on the steps of the University. Leeoli pauses. It is entirely too coincidental that there roamed an undead monstrosity comprising condemned criminals, while we were busy putting down the raised spirits of the dead prisoners of Harrowstone. Entirely too coincidental. There will be trouble afoot, without doubt, and I fear that bringing that evil tome here may have been precisely the unwise course of action. The Whispering Way is active in Lepidstadt, I've little doubt.
Gur withdraws the manual from his pouch, holding it still wrapped in cloth. "The manual. The rest of the tomes are making their way to the university in the capable hands of the late professor's inheritors. If they do not arrive, I will not charge to hunt them down."
Dr Montagnie Crowl, I presume. Leeoli smiles generously, holding out a hand, before withdrawing it slightly But I'd rather not presume. We have not yet met, though we both had a mutual friend with a lovely daughter. We carry an item of extreme sensitivity, and we were charged to deliver it securely to Dr. Crowl. I suspect you know of whom we speak, so please be patient as I make some assurances. The times are dark indeed.
Leeoli holding his eyes level while producing an extract from his fingers, the formulae of which brings into vision the auras of the undead. He swallows the bitter digestible vial, and hopes he sees nothing of import.
The plumb man smiles at Leeoli and Rufus, then inclines his head in acknowledgement. His face then grows dark, and he sighs and then swallows back his sorrow, though his voice cracks a bit when he replies. Of course; I was very saddened to learn of Petros - such a sudden and unexpected event, and an unimaginable loss for our University and the world in general. I hope that you've helped dear Kendra to cope. How is she?
At the mention of the item, he nods. Yes, yes...the tomes. I hope that they were all there; these are items that should not fall into the wrong hands. Work continues behind him, after a brief moment for the workers to examine the newcomers. Hammering and sawing begins soon after.
Leeoli watches Dr Crowl with interest, but he is definitely of the living kind - his aura vivid and whole.
Well, good to finally meet you. Yes the loss of Petros weighs heavily on us all. He had many friends. Leeoli pauses makes a decision, and retrieves the tomes from his sack. Please keep these safe. We fear that our adversary he leans close --the whispering way--is active int his city..and perhaps involved in the upcoming execution. Please, tell us about what happened here.
Judge Daramid narrows her eyes in inspection and, after a brief moment, nods. She stares at the book, lost in thought, then removes a pouch laden with coin from her desk and hands it over. As discussed, one hundred platinum coins. I thank you for a complete and punctual delivery, as always. Now...what do you plan to do next? And...these friends of Petros, are they trustworthy?
She waves a hand in front of her face, as if to dispel an odor. No, no...of course they are...my late, dear friend trusted them, obviously, and so should I. I may have further need of your services, and theirs as well...would you be interested?
"As long as you have coin and a just cause. What would you have of me?"
Dura tears up a bit thinking about the Professor and his daughter. "It is a tragic loss, indeed. Kendra is holding up fairly well. She was never one to wear her heart on her sleeve. It will take some time, but I believe she'll manage."
She's a bit shocked to hear Leeoli's suggestion that the Whispering Way is in any way involved in the execution. He must have picked up on something she missed. But she's also curious about the construction behind Dr. Crowl.
Leeoli notes Dura's quizzical expression. Ah no great insight Dura, just a hunch. While we were fighting the ghosts of imfamous dead prisoners, this city captures an undead beast comprising the bodies of multiple condemned criminals, well.. it is entirely too coincidental.
"Hmm, I suppose it is a very large coincidence. If so, do you think they may have come here looking for some of Lorrimor's research?"
"Kendra is alive and well," Rufus confirms Dura's assessment. "While Ravengro remains a town of singular gloom, things are looking up."
"If Leeoli's hunch is correct, they may have found it." Rufus mumbles, for the benefit of Dura and Leeoli only.
Judge Daramid inclines her head slightly, and turns to look out her second floor window at the city around her. I appreciate your willingness to help, Gur...and I do believe the cause is just. I feel as if you'll need more feet on the ground so to speak, for this particular endeavor. The inheritors - do you care to work with them again? If so, I'd rather speak to you all at once...there may be much to cover.
Dr Crowl looks relieved at Kendra's state. He looks at nothing for a moment, as if lost in an old memory. Yes, she was always the strong one, that girl. He snaps back to the present and glances behind him.
Oh, yes...well, we had a bit of an incident here recently. I'm sure you've heard of the Beast of Lepidstadt? Well, the Beast broke in here, causing quite a bit of damage before it was captured. We're just now putting back the pieces of the antiquities department, though at least one item may never be recovered.
Recovered because it was lost, or recovered because it was broken? Leeoli inquires further.
"The Beast was here" Rufus's gray eyes grow wide in wonder. "Does there remain evidence of its physical composition or metaphysical aspects? Would you permit me to view the scene in detail?"
"They seem to be worthy of respect, even if they are not the most disciplined. Excepting the red-haired woman... something about her screams stronger than she looks. Might be the big back off cat she walks around with." Gur will leisurely recline on the nearest place he can park his rear and wait.
Because it wasn't found in the beast's possession when he was discovered here, oddly enough. One wonders how it could have done with it...eaten it perhaps? I guess there is a way to find that out, though a gruesome one indeed.
Certainly...you may have a look around as you need, though I'd prefer if you let me know beforehand if you plan to use magic to do so.
"It certainly couldn't hurt to take a look. What was this object, by the way, and what did it look like? Hmm, and are there any magical protections in this place?"