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Meant to mention, the claw marks are indeed identical to those which killed Archie Walder.
Almara responds to your questions, "Jherizhana is in her private wagon. We were not expecting the Sister, so she did not have a chance to meet her here. And being an inquisitor of her goddess, I expect she came on her own authority."
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"The sphinx is in her cage? Then what was in this one?" Teric shakes his head. "We will need to speak to her. Either to us or to the sheriff and I think you want it to be us."
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Almara shakes her head. "You misunderstand. This is her cage, but she is in her private wagon. She is as much a member of our family as anyone else here. She is not a captive or a mere creature."
At that moment, the Sheriff arrives, obviously having hurried by her shortness of breath. Once she composes herself and takes in the scene, she agrees with Teric that she will need to speak with the sphinx immediately. She also spouts off a little at Almara. "First a well-liked businessman and now a divine agent?! Add to it an out-break of pickpocketing and cut purses running in my town ever since you lot came about! Now I will ask this once before I really lose my patience: Where is the sphinx right now? Why is she not locked in that cage?"
Almara reiterates that the sphinx is in her private wagon, which is where she's been all night.
The Sheriff's eye twitches and you can sense something in her patience breaking. Her next words are sharp as any sword and hotter than the mightiest conjuration magic. "You've brought a dangerous creature into this community - a creature you clearly cannot keep track of, let alone control. I can't say I know for certain there's wrongdoing here on the part of your people, but after a point it ceases to matter. For the safety of my town, I 'm putting this circus under quarantine. I don't want any of your people leaving these grounds unless it's to leave town completely. I'm giving you two days to get packed up and go."
She turns to you next. "If you are still set on proving this group innocent, you have two days to find concrete proof of who is behind this. Reasonable doubt is not enough. Now, I still have some collating of information on shiver dealers to do, so I leave you to solve yet another murder."
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Teric nods. "The sheriff is right. Almara, we need to get this under control. Now the sheriff has other matters to attend to, so we will question the sphinx. Then we can determine and report the danger of the creature, and we will address the rest of the circus members. This is for their safety as well as the town's. A mob was gathering earlier and who knows what could set off another. Your people must stay together while we investigate this or we cannot guarantee their safety."
"Sheriff, in return, I expect you to inform the townsfolk not to enter or approach the circus until we settle this."
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Zinkyudo considers trying to set the sheriff straight on the sphinx's guilt, explaining about the different kinds of tracks, and the marks on the dead sister's neck, but hesitates. All we've got are a bunch of clues suggesting that Jherizhana is not the killer, but no real idea who is. We need to find out more before we can make that case.
Agreeing with the suggestions to talk to the sphinx, and Teric's idea that the circus folk need to be kept safe and left alone, Zinkyudo joins the party in heading to the sphinx's cabin.
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Almara seems to resign something internally and leads you to a wagon behind the main tent. She knocks three times and opens the door. Jherizhana lounges at the far end of the wagon. She stands at the party's entrance.
"That is close enough, my friends. This is but a small wagon and eight of us," she nods to the dinosaur in the midst. "Pray tell, what is this commotion that is disturbing our peace?"
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Castiel asks Betsy to wait outside.
"My dear lady. It seams that there were several murders and the most recent one was in your tent. Would you have any idea why someone would want to place the blame on you? The sister was killed with a garrote but someone made it seem as if claws did the job. And why the sister would want to talk to you?"
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Jherizhana shrugs. "Likely they wish to put the blame on that which is unknown. Perhaps the Sister wanted to find out if I did it herself. Even among the humble there is a sense of pride.
"No, sir, I have been residing here since last we met. No one seems to want to revel in the mystery of the mighty sphinx with these events taking place." She cocks her head to think a moment before looking down at her own paw. "I cannot think of anything aside from other sphinxes what would make a mark like mine."
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"Remember, Teric," Zinkyudo chimes in, "we saw that Walder was killed by some clawed creature, but the claw marks on the ground where he was killed were not like Jherizhana's. They weren't lion-like - though I'm not sure what they were. And some person, or people, had left a few footprints behind when they tried to cover their tracks and leave only the clawed pawprints. So two different murders have been committed and made to look like they were done by some large, clawed creature."
Turning to the sphinx, he says, "I don't suppose you have any notion why someone would want to make it look like you're killing the people of Ilsurian?"
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The sphinx is taken aback at Borax's suggestion. "If I did not know any better, I would think you thought I did it." Her gaze levels at Borax, a wry yet proud grin on her face. "Besides, you and I both know that wounds inflicted on a corpse show different signs than those on a living body. The results would be irrelevant."
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"You're mistaken. Wounds on a freshly butchered pig would be nearly identical to those on a human. Pig flesh is as close to human flesh as any animal could be. The objective here is to see if the animal that is killing these creatures is assuming the form of a sphinx. There are all types of magic in this world and certainly some that could allow someone to pose as yourself. If the claw marks do not match, then we know we are not looking for an impostor. This should also serve the purpose of assuring the sheriff of your innocence."
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Teric nods, then looks back at the sphinx with a frown. "Prudent questions, Castiel. Perhaps we can find the answers at her temple. She could have told someone of her plans and suspicions. If the Sister was murdered because she confronted the real culprit, maybe we can find some clues."
"Jherizhana, I have a suggestion. I know you won't like it, but it may be necessary to prove your innocence. Will you consent to being locked in this wagon for the next day? We can put a chain on the door and bar the windows. If my suspicions are correct, the killer will continue his spree. We may be able to turn the tide of doubt if you are still here locked up and without any way out. We, of course, would need to hold the keys to prevent any accusations of the circus freeing you."
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The sphinx listens to Borax's explanation but brightens at Torg's comment. "I am glad that there is some reason in our midst. And let us not forget, such an experiment would muss up my fur with all of that blood."
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Zinkyudo blinks his large, amber eyes a couple of times, then says quietly, "The deaths are not the only things that are not what they seem..." He reaches out with a slender arm, attempting to pass his hand through the sphinx's body, which seems very slightly transparent to him.
If she's not a real sphinx, she can hardly have flown down and torn the victims to pieces, can she?
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"Ah isn't this a disappointment. The Sphinx is not real. I guess an illusion of sorts. The jig is up lady, please come out."
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Borax again gets the same faint illusion aura from the sphinx.
As Zinkyudo approaches the sphinx, it shies away from his touch. Before he can make contact, it vanishes into thin air. You are left alone in the wagon.
Until a woman steps from behind a large curtain which concealed her presence. "You are one of the first people to ever see through the guise," she says. You do not remember seeing this woman around the carnival in the past, though you do recognize her face; it is the same face as the sphinx had. She asks the person closest to the exit, "Could you knock on the door please? Three times?"
At the signal, Almara steps in and briefly takes in the scene. Her shoulders sag slightly in resignation. "I was afraid of this." She steps in and locks the door behind her. "Now you know the truth about the sphinx and why it is preposterous that Jherizhana, or rather Ika here, did anyone any harm.
The girl, Ika, steps to you, her mannerisms shy and quiet compared to the sphinx's proud stature. [b]"I'm really sorry about misleading you. I didn't really want to. But I kept the illusion going and more people got hurt and killed. Now we're being forced to leave and it's all my fault!"
Almara steps past you to console the girl. "You have nothing to apologize for. Those murders are not on your hands." Turning to you, "I was the one who insisted she remain hidden, even from you. But the question remains, now that you know this information, what will you do with it?"
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"Well, it'll make it hard for you to come back and put on a show here," Zinkyudo responds, "but it proves the sphinx didn't kill anyone, since it doesn't exist! I think the thing to do with this information is share it with the people here. Have Ika do one last show, where she shows who she really is, and let people see there isn't really a sphinx here. They can hardly say that Ika dropped from the sky and tore someone apart with her claws, can they? And then you all can travel on to your next stop, and Ika can become Jherizhana again."
He considers this notion a moment, then says, "Some of my more clever colleagues may have other ideas. Teric, Castiel, Borax, any way we can use this to try to flush out the real killers? If Ika keeps up her illusion, they might try again to frame her and we might catch them. Then again, if we fail, another person will die."
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Borax was not at all surprised to find the sphinx as an illusion. He had suspected as such, but had decided not to reveal it in hopes of using that to his advantage at some later date.
At the monk's suggestions, Borax nods his head disapprovingly.
"Revealing the illusion will likely change very little with the mob. They want someone to blame and until we find a replacement, they will not easily give her up. People can still claim she's a druid and shape changed or she's got polymorph magic. Worse, it'll ruin her act. We need to find those responsible in the time allotted. If we cannot, then we can always try and prove her innocence by revealing her secret. But I recommend we do that as a last resort."
Plus, if the sphinx secret were revealed, it would spoil any leverage Borax might be able to exert in the future.
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Teric whistles appreciatively and claps as Ika is revealed. "An very well orchestrated con. A wonderful performance, my dear. How did you do it? And with the voice and everything. You have quite the skill."
As the discussion turns back to the murders, Teric frowns. "Borax may be right. Revealing this deception may not do us any good. At best it shows you have not been truthful to the sheriff. At worst, the town will think you've swindled them with magic and that you could have killed the moneylender with magic too. What they do not understand, they fear. This is not a crowd who will be appreciative of the deception right now."
"Ika, where have you been during all these events? It is interesting that whoever our murderer is, they too believe the sphinx is real."
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Almara nods in agreement to Borax's statements. "Indeed. Revealing our secret will not bring these killers to justice. It doesn't change people's opinion of us, or maintain Ilsurian as a venue we're welcome to visit again. All it proves is these bastards were too stupid to figure out they were framing an illusion. No one here is going to come to our shows anymore. We'll be forced to leave town and they'll get away with it."
Ika then explains that she uses a magical cloak to hide herself in the folds of the tent much as she did in the curtaintry moments before. The sphinx is part minor image and part ventriloquism. She can only maintain the illusion for so long and only a few times per day, which is why the appearances of the sphinx are so infrequent. Otherwise, she spends her time hiding her face from the populous, though she does enjoy performing as Madame Masque. At that last confession, she grins and blushes in Castiel's direction.
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Torg watches the scene unfold. What a bunch of magical nonsense. World would be better without it. "Impressive or not, this information does nothing for the case. We should make haste to the sisters temple and home, see if we can draw some kind of connection between the victims before someone else dies. Young lady, we may have a need of your skills in the near future." He indicates Ika, then turns to Almara. "Is there anything else you haven't bothered to share with us? We're trying to help you. A different group of people assigned to this case may have been less willing to look beyond the superficial evidence, this would have been good to know earlier."
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"Ah so interesting. I would love to watch you perform me lady." Castiel smiles back at the lady.
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Zinkyudo shrugs as his straightforward approach is shot down, then says to Almah, ”As I said, my wilier friends might have different ideas. And Torg makes a good point – we’re trying to help you, and you’re not telling us all we need to know.”
Scratching his head a moment, he turns to his fellow Pathfinders and says, ”So where do we go from here? The trail here is cold, and we’ve learned all we’re likely to at Walder’s place. Perhaps the sheriff has come up with some leads on the shiver dealers. Any other ideas?”
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Almara shows no regret in her voice. "If I had told you of Ika's illusion, would it have made a difference? I am sure you can understand why we kept it a secret. She holds our biggest attraction. If word got out that the sphinx was an illusion, we would not be able to perform ANYWHERE, let alone Ilsurian. We can gloss over the fact that our baby dragon is a mere lizard, but a fake sphinx is... We would be out of jobs, homes, and our lives."
At the mention of shiver, her head cocks. "I have heard about this drug here in Ilsurian. One of my workers overheard someone named... oh, what was it... Legg! Filton Legg. He mentioned that he was kicking the habit and the trade altogether. What? People rarely notice little carnies like us and speak freely as if we weren't even there. It's as the saying goes, 'you want to go unnoticed, work as the service staff'. Or something along those lines."
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"Sounds like a good idea, Castiel," Zinkyudo concurs, "though I hope we find some other leads along the way. I don't feel too good about hanging our whole investigation on something the town drunk tells us."
He heads for the door of the crowded wagon, rolling his eyes only slightly at Castiel's flirting while on the job.