Agnar keeps step with Treshiell, both to further heal her wounds as well as keeping himself in reach should the beast continue to go after her.
Even as Treshiell and Agnar bring their magical powers to bear, Kereek's blast catches the wolf man full in the body, filling the air with the smell of burning hair. Kundal turns to him with a growl, and Orin takes advantage.
His blade catches the unprepared werewolf full on the chest, nearly splitting him in half. He drops to the ground, unconscious and bleeding badly, and the wolfen aspect quickly fades away, leaving only a dying man on the ground.
Kereek stands by, ready to fire again if the man should rise and attack. However, if he doesn't, Kereek stares at him.
"Is him knowing he am wolf and eat people? Maybe Jon Jon want to give him trial, since Jon Jon is very very lawful? Jon Jon like law, order, mercy, nice things like that. Kereek am confused." Kereek looks conflicted, then darts forward and dumps a Cure Light Wounds potion down the dying man's throat. He'll then stand ready, in case he needs to roast the man again!
"We'll get him bound and taken back to the castle. Judgement will come later. For now, at least we know the people are safe."
Treshiell looks down at her midsection where the hole in her ragged dress is the only evidance that an axe just went through there. She places her hand where the wound was and looks pleased when her hand doesn't come back covered in blood. "We appreciate your zeal", she says to Agnar, Orin and Prazil nodding to each in turn. Then she steps up to the limp werewolf, draws her dagger and raises her hand to drive it through the kellid's throat.
"Ummm, Treshiel? We am not have had trial yet. Trials am always come before executions." Prazil turns to Kereek, "That am right, right? We am not able to am execute person then have trial?"
Treshiell holds the dagger high but turns to Prazil. "By the Swordlords of Restov, acting upon the greater good and authority vested within them by the office of the Regent of the Dragonscale Throne, the bearer of this note is granted the right of exploration and travel within the wilderness region known as the Greenbelt. Exploration should be limited to an area no further than thirty-six miles east and west and sixty miles south of Fort Kazimir. The carrier of this charter should also strive against banditry and other unlawful behavior to be encountered. The punishment for unrepentant banditry remains, as always, execution by sword or rope. So witnessed on this 24th day of Calistril, under watchful eye of the Lordship of Restov and authority granted by Lord Noleski Surtova, current Regent of the Dragonscale Throne", she recites in a casual tone. "Our authority stems from the swordlords so dosen't the charter still hold?" she asks then looks at her dagger. "Or perhaps a sword or rope is prefered?" she asks the kobold.
Prazil blinks obliquely at the witch, opens his mouth to speak, then closes it. He does this twice more before finally saying, "Umm... what?"
Kereek shifts nervously. "Umm, Prazil am right. Kereek no know if wolf-man know what him am doing. Him might need help if him no know what him am doing." Kereek moves in front of Treshiell's knife. "Kereek am thinking maybe not all monsters am monsters. Is Kereek monster because him make mistake? Kereek am thinking maybe it time for mer-see. Jon Jon am telling Kereek mer-see when bad people no know they bad. Maybe we take time, find out before Treshiell kill wolf-man?"
"Aye, Treshiell, but this isn't banditry. It's murder. We're not standing in the wilds. This is Hartsland. The power no longer comes from that charter, it comes from Jon. If he decides sword or rope will do, then we'll do so. He's no threat to anyone now. Let's do as Kereek says. This land knows the rule of law now. It's up to us to uphold it, not subvert it."
In an aside to Orin.
"Come on, man, help us out here."
Orin grabs Treshiell's wrist And looks her deep in the eyes saying "No! This is not justice, it is murder" breaking their gaze Orin quietly says to her "And I can't let you go down that path for once you do you are lost. Trust me, I know." he then leans in and whispers in her ear "If it needs to be done, then I'll do it."
After her quoting of the original charter Orin looks perplexed "The Charter guided us while we were in the employ of the Swordlords, which we are no longer. Besides, how do we know if he is unrepentant if we don't allow him the chance? When he attacked he seemed more a feral animal driven by raw emotion than a thinking, reasoning man. How do we know he was even in control of his faculties while under this curse?
He releases his grip on her arm, his violet eyes pleading "Please, let Jon decide what to do with him. There are too many unknowns just to summarily execute someone. What kind of leadership examples would we set if we don't at least try to find out some of these unknowns?"
With a final, barely audible, plea "Please, no." Orin steps back from Treshiell to allow her to make up her own mind and course of action.
Treshiell looks down on the werewolf lying at her feet. Her expression and whole posture is eerily calm when comparing it to the hate and fury that fueled her actions during the fight mere moments ago. "Did he need to steal to be eligible for execution?" she asks and tilts her head sideways. "What is the difference between this man and the hermit we killed in the woods? We had nothing to suggest that either was stealing or unwilling to repent."
Kereek ponders this, his head turning this way and that. "Kereek am not sure. Kereek am finding law and mer-see and civil-eye-zay-shun be very confusing." Kereek steps back, nearly stumbling over the unconscious man. "All Kereek am knowing is two-leg big feets like trials and executions in public. It am making them feel better to know murderer am treated like person."
"Far away woods am different than town, too." Prazil helpfully adds.
"Far away woods am different than town, too." Prazil helpfully adds.
"Why?" Treshiell asks with curiosity.
"Ummm... far away woods not have rules? Agnar's mean cousin was for being stabby and bitey with big cat and not for being sick like Kundal? Kundal am sick, yes? Prazil am not understand everything you all am for saying all the time, but that am what Prazil am thinking is happened. Why am you for thinking woods and town am being the same?" The little kobold scratches his head quizically once he's asked his question, not even sure what's been said by whom about what or when it was said. He sighs deeply, trying to maintain connection with the conversation, but obviously loosing his footing as the conversation shifts to moralistic philosophizing and its trademark complex sentence structures.
"Ummm... far away woods not have rules? "
"Why is that? We would think that laws hold a greater legitimacy if they where applied through out Hartland, not just near Thronehold. The werewolf stalked the edges of our settlement. We would think that a repentant soul would take steps to avoid hunting its prey, not taking steps to ensure he's close to it." Treshiell looks at the confused kobold. "וואָלט איר ווי צו פאָרזעצן דעם אין דיין געבוירן שפּראַך?" she offers.
Would you like to continue this in your native language?
"Had someone healed the old man before his ultimate demise, then we would have been obliged to treat him as a prisoner and return him to the city for judgement, as it was no one did so his life was forfeit the minute he attacked us. Kundal here attacked you, ...us, and I would have been just as satisfied to let his life blood leak out onto the stones but Kereek interrupted that by healing him. Now by the conventions of civilized society we are beholden to treat him as a prisoner lest we be no more bloodthirsty than the creature he became.
The old man, no matter how crazy he might have been knew what he was doing when he stabbed me in the back. I do not believe this poor sod had any such awareness."
"Prazil am thinking Orin am confusing Prazil for Kereek. Prazil am big, strong kobold. Also have grey scales. Kereek am have red scales. Though Orin not able to tell kobolds apart, he am say better than Prazil what Prazil am thinking. Plus Prazil am not sure which woodses am belong to Hartsland and which woodses am far away and not for Hartsland. Though, now Prazil say it, Prazil am not sure that am for mattering much. Someone tell Prazil what we am saying?"
"Prazil am also not sure how Orin bend space and time to Orin's will and change things that am happen before. Prazil am impressed though."
"Should we then extend everyone the same courtesy or is this one special?" Treshiell says and sheates her dagger. "When is his trial?"
"Soon, I hope. We need to show the people they can expect to be protected under Jon's rule, and to expect justice," Agnar says, helping Orin to restrain the prisoner and haul him back to the keep.
As the debate over the man's fate winds down, Orin will begin binding the man's hands. He will then search the unconscious body for any hidden weapons or other things. "That would be up to Jon. The sooner the better I say."
Picking up the body Orin will carry it to the castle. Once the prisoner is secured in a cell He will join the others. "None of us seem to know anything about this affliction so I would suggest a trip to the Beldame might be in order depending on Jon's verdict."
Other than his hide armor, the great axe and four javelins, he has 11 gp to his name as well as a vial of some sort of liquid in a pouch.
The rest of the night passes uneventfully. The next day, Kundal awakes in the room where you've secured him, though he still looks the worse for the wear.
"What happened?" he asks groggily.
"You turn into big wolf and eat people. We stop you. Now you is accused of murder and cannibalism and all sorts bad things. Is you knowing you is wolf?" Kereek casually responds.
"You have killed citizens of Hartsland", Treshiell informs calmly. "You tried to kill me. For that I took your eyes. It is not yet decided what your attack on the citizens will cost you."
"That's what we were hoping you could tell us. As Kereek has said two townspeople, a young boy and a girl, were brutally killed over the past two days as if by a giant wolf. I followed the tracks to point where they changed into human footprints. We began to suspect some sort of shapechanger at work and lo and behold you came sneaking into town last night as some sort of half man/half wolf thing.
When ordered to stop you attacked us. When we defeated you you changed back into a complete human form and Kereek healed you." he pats the kobold on the shoulder "and as such, we" he glances at Treshiell "decided to turn you over to Baron Surtova for him to decide what form of justice to mete out. So whatever you can tell us about your...affliction might just help you in that regard."
The man's face pales.
"I fear it might be me. I been havin' bad dreams, lately, full of blood and fury. In the morning, I've woken up in the forest, covered in blood. I been cursed somehow, I think, given the taste of the beast."
Kereek stares hard at the man, trying to determine if he lies or not...
You don't think he's lying, Kereek, but you aren't certain.
Kereek stares hard at the man for some time, then shrugs. "Kereek not know if wolfman lie or no. Maybe Jon Jon know better?"
If someone goes to find Jon, you're informed he's meeting with a diplomat from Numeria all day; he can leave, but only if it's a real emergency. His message is he trusts you to do what's best.
Kereek comes back from trying to see Jon looking disappointed. "Jon Jon is diplomatting. Jon Jon say he trust us do what is best. What you think Agnar, Orin? Is you thinking wolf-man is bad bad or victim? If him not know he am wolf, how am we making him better? If him not know, am he bad bad?"
"If he's cursed, then it is beyond his control. Yet he's murdered two people. Even if he can be cured, he still needs to answer for their deaths somehow."
"So... wait. Prazil am confused. Am Kundal two people? How am that even work? Like, if Kereek was Kereek during day but then Prazil at night? Where am other head?" Prazil scratches his head in befuddlement, the moral and philosophical implications behind the discussion far beyond his understanding or awareness.
Treshiell takes a seat crosslegged infront of the cell and fixes her eyes on Kundal behind the bars . Thaal curls up in her lap and starts to sway his head slowly from side to side. When the witch speaks it's with a cool, calm and and hazy tone . "So, tell me Kundal, how long have you had this affliction?" she asks and waits for an answer before following up with her second question, "During that time, how have you tried to seek help or rid yourself of it?"
Kereek scoffs at Prazil's supposition. "Kereek never be Prazil! Never never never! But... Maybe other head stored in butt? Orin, you big hero, you check in Kundal butt, see if him have wolf head in there?"
Sense Motive:
"Ummm...no, I will not" Orin looks at Kereek aghast not sure if the kobold is serious or not. Ignoring the request Orin asks Kundal "How long have you been having these blackouts? Answer the lady, if you suspected a curse have you sought a cure for it?"
Kereek shrugs. If a brave hero like Orin is afraid to check the man's rectum, what hope does a small kobold have?
"Is cure for wolf-man-ism?"
"I've never had the dreams before, least not that I remember," Kundal says.
He shrugs. "I didn't know what was going on, or that I could do anything about it."
Orin thinks he's telling the truth, but isn't sure.
Treshiell turns back to the rest of the group. "He doesn't seem eager to repent", she says and turns back to Kundal. "Tell me, Kundal. Have you stole anything lately?"
"Steal anything? No. Why would I do that?"
"Kereek no think he is bandit, Treshiell-please-don't-make-spiders-come-from-your-mouth. Him is killing two peoples, but him is no bandit. But is him responsible for killing when him is wolf and am not-man? If him no know him is wolf, him am not responsible. Him should have come to Big Heroes for help! But maybe him make not-smart decision, but is not-smart same as guilty? Kereek once accidentally set fire to Chief pet weasel, am Kereek murderer? ACCIDENT!" He suddenly stops and points at Prazil viciously. "AM ACCIDENT!"
Prazil raises his hands over his head as if being robbed, "All Prazil am ever say was it was very lucky fire only covered weasel right after weasel bite Kereek on tail. Chief am lucky accidental fire not burn everything in cave!"
Kereek glares at Prazil. "Accident. Kereek have small accident." He mutters something under his breath. "Anyway, maybe it better to make wolf-man man again and make him make world better than kill wolf-man man and him never have chance to make better. Kereek think maybe second chance is sometime good thing, eh?"
"Unfortunately no one knows how to cure him or even if we're able to do so. I suggest we keep Kundal here under arrest until we are able to find out more about this curse. I suggest that we ride out to the Old Beldame add ask her what she knows about this."
"Prazil am for liking that plan, Orin. We am talk with Beldame."
"Kereek agree. Old Beldame is very very smart. And Kereek like looking at silly scarecrow!"