Zed kicks aside the pile of ashes and advances on the assassin. He stands before him for a moment, then clubs him with the butt of his weapon.
Zed knocks the man unconscious.
Zed doesn't turn to see the state of his allies; not that he doesn't care, but because he knows he's completely unable to help and that others will handle any healing. But the would-be assassin is right in his domain. He brings out a length of rope, cutting it off with his dagger and tying the old man up. "Do we want to find a dark room to interrogate him in, or would the wilderness work?" He asks.
"Shall I resort to the mind probe?" asks Constantin simply.
"Shall I resort to the mind probe?" asks Constantin simply.
Zed nods, lifting the assassin with one hand to present to Constantin.
"Think about the questions that you want me to ask, Zed," says Constantin. "I'll try to probe his mind, but I have to know what to ask in order to get it to respond. If it doesn't work... we can go back to doing it your way."
Constantin kneels down and places his hands carefully on the man's face. His fingers flicker over the contours briefly, looking for the right places to make contact. He spends a few moments cradling the man's head, getting a read on his phrenological characteristics to aid in finding the proper tactile contact points.
"Let's start with 'who hired you to kill us' and 'how did you know we were coming'." Zed suggests.
" 'For what did the Whispering Way trade the Seasage Effigy? For what did they need that item? Where did they take it? How long ago did they leave?' "Kaz rambles distractedly as he ransacks the clothing of the old man.
"Let's start with 'who hired you to kill us' and 'how did you know we were coming'."
Memories swim to the man's mind of being tasked by Vrood with an important mission, should things go awry. If so, a group of adventurers will be along matching your descriptions and as a loyal follower of the Whispering Way it was his duty to eliminate you.
Vrood gave a detailed description.
Safe passage into the Realm of Shadow.
It was essential for them to get to a particular location but where that is or why they needed to get there he doesn't know.
They came to Thrushmoor to gain access to ships crossing the Lake. They intended to go as far south as Andoran but beyond that he doesn't know.
They took fresh horses from the livery and left just one day ago.
"Where are the rest of the members of the whispering way in the local town?" Zed suggests.
A successful Will save ends the spell. Otherwise, the creature can attempt a Bluff check with a DC equal to 11 + your Sense Motive modifier. If it fails its Bluff check, you gain the answer you desire. If it succeeds at its check, you gain no information.
You receive no answer.
He has no idea who that person is.
From there they hope to reach a place of perpetual Undeath, beyond mortal or immortal understanding.
Perpetual undead.
Pharasma, I think you DO want me alive a little longer. At the very least let me get rid of this before returning to you.
"Is that it than? What do we do about him?" Zed says, indicating the failed assassin. His face seems to suggest that his disinterest would be fine with doing anything from jailing the man to killing him and dumping the body.
Vala sags with disappointment, especially when the old fool doesn’t recognize Kendra or give them any idea what Jonathan had done with her remains. She steps forward, frowning, and grabs the man by the jaw, pursing his lips as she turns his head from side to side regarding him. Stepping back, she sighs and asks as she shakes her head, ”I don’t suppose there’s anything else you’d like to add to your report, dear?”
"We should put him down and be done with it", Vermundr adds coldly. "If the Way can turn a judge, there's little chance a small town like this is clean."
Zed stands quietly, notably not putting his weapon away yet as Vermundr speaks.
"Regardless, we should find out what the situation is with the local law officers," says Constantin. "If they are legitimate, this man should face justice for his acts. If not... his trail of assassination has to stop. Especially since he worked for Vrood."
Vala looks to Vermundr and Zed first, then shakes her head as she turns to Constantin. ”You saw what this wretch tried to do to Hazel. No, he’ll not find shelter in a jail cell or have opportunity to hurt any others or escape. Send him to his miserable master and let’s be off.” Then, as if realizing her own words, she turns to Hazel, ”Are you alright, dear? Let me take a look at that cut.”
While she tends to Hazel’s injury, she offers sharply over her shoulder, ”If none of you care to end that slime, I will. Just give me a moment to finish here.”
Constantin shakes his head and says softly, "This man was a trained killer, an assassin-for-hire, likely with a history of same. That means he has other victims. Other families, people wondering where their beloved ones went or how they met such a gruesome end, also deserve to know that the man responsible was caught and finally stopped. I don't care if we execute him now - his survival is really a fluke given the circumstances - but we at least need to make the gesture of closing the loop on his other crimes, for the sake of any other survivors."
"After all, this is not only about us and our crusade. Vrood has impacted many other lives and they, too, deserve better. Doing things because they are just what we want, without regard for how they affect others, that was Vrood's way, not ours."
Vala sighs, shaking her head gently as she continues to keep her hands and eyes busy with Hazel’s injury. ”Constantin, sweetheart, if you want to chase that errand across Nethys knows how wide a swath of the Inner Sea with naught but names and without the associated whens and wheres, you’re welcome to, dear. But I’m not turning from Jonathan’s trail until he’s been dealt with and Kendra’s body and soul are safe once more.”
"That's a job for the constabulary - but we should at least make sure that someone knows so that there's a chance that the job will get done."
Constantin rubs the bridge of his nose. "I feel like... remembering this is part of remembering our essential humanity. No offense to the nonhuman among us. Derlith has architected all of these horrible things, Vrood helped him, and many people have suffered along the way. We're not the only ones who've taken the hits from their plots, but we seem to be the only ones with the power to do something."
"Kendra is... so very important to me, we absolutely have to save her. But other people who have been caught in this crossfire - they were just as important to other families and other friends as Kendra was to us, and who is left to give them justice? To let them know that this wasn't a fluke or bad luck, but the work of evil men and women who are finally being stopped?"
"And when we do rescue Kendra, if we bring her back, if we restore her and are able to right what Derlith has done... how could I ever look her in the eye and tell her that the quest to save her came at the cost of lives and loves of others? How could I expect her to live with that?" says the psychic in a haunted voice.
"I love her, Vala, and so do you, and when we get her back we'd better make sure that when we tell her what it took and what it cost she doesn't look at us in horror and ask us what we became and what we allowed in the name of vengeance and on the road to save her."
"That's very noble of you, Constantin, but terribly impractical. You can't chase the Whispering Way and dig up the next of kin of every victim they've caused harm to. We can't change who this cult has hurt. We can't undo it. We could bring comfort and closure to some and tear open old wounds for others, but how much would our focus there afford the Whispering Way to accomplish in the mean time? And the last time we involved the constabulary, well, look what happened to dear Benjen."
She sighs softly, patting Hazel's cheek and smiling sweetly as she pulls away. "There. That should do, dear." Turning then to Constatin, she continues, "I wish we could do both, sweetheart. I wish we could vindicate and comfort every life that's been harmed by these foul men. I don't think we have the time or the energy to pursue both though. And, given that choice, I'd rather do everything in my power to stop those evil necrophiles from causing more harm than to console those already scarred."
"I do not think that we can turn this man over to local authorities: Even if they are trustworthy, I doubt that there are many cells in a place like Thrushmore that could hold him."
Kaz looks down, uncomfortable. " It rather goes against the grain of the whole of my career, but I do not think that we can afford to let him live. I have no doubt that his crimes merit death - it just chafes against me to flout what should be a trial and execution. But I feel we must."
"Constantin, my normal course of action would be exactly as you describe - but I feel the risk of his escape - and the harm that he may continue to bring - outweighs the benefit we could bring by properly investigating and closing his past crimes."
He straightens, looking grim.
"And speaking of the harm he may continue to do, after his death we must take steps to prevent the corpse from rising as undead."
As the debate about what to do continues, the assassin's eyes flicker open and he groans in pain.
"Wh...what did you do....?" he asks distantly. Adrenaline floods his body and though he cannot break his bonds, he looks up at you in spite. "The Whispering Way will endure! Your time is limited but we are eternal!"
He clenches his teeth tightly and you hear a crack. Suddenly his mouth is filled with black liquid that begins spilling over his lips and you watch on in disgust as his eyes roll back in his head and his entire lower jaw and neck dissolve with the stench of acid!
He slumps to one side, dead.
Potion of shield of faith +4,
Large scorpion venom (4 vials);
+1 mithral shirt,
+2 dagger,
masterwork daggers (2),
disguise kit,
80pp
Suicide drugs in the teeth. We will have to keep that in mind for next time.
Vala shakes her head as the assassin falls over. "A coward to the end then." She frowns deeply and sighs. Looking to the others, she asks, "Before we rush for the lake, do we wish to make for whatever amounts for the lawful authorities here? Regardless of how justified we were in defending ourselves, I don't think bringing the body along with us is an option. That seems like a poor first impression to make and Nethys knows how long we'll be here trying to disrupt this wretched man's kin."
You walk through the narrow cobbled streets, suddenly acutely aware of the array of weapons you carry and the hurrying of people as they pass by. On a few occasions the streets become busy and you have to politely push your way through, the narrow streets not really supporting the number of citizens these days – evidence of a small fishing community growing as export money begins flowing in.
For the best part of an hour you search the centre of town, criss-crossing through a weird maze of buildings but unable to find something akin to a gaol or guardpost. The people you try to stop and ask for directions mumble something unintelligible and shuffle off and one you are certain gives you deliberately wrong directions that leads you back toward the lake shore.
Eventually, you become informed of a place called Fort Hailcourse where the guard is barracked but also find a pair of guards on patrol.