Talia takes her time to think up her approach, before visting Jaxira on her island. "Greetings against Jaxira, do you remember me?" she asks carefully, aware of their previous conversation.
Before Talia heads off to visit Jaxira, Talivar suggests to Kilarra and Uruelleth, "Let's discreetly keep an eye on bloodwatch patrols? Maybe we can spot an opportunity to take some of them out..."
Assuming nobody disagrees rather nonchalantly Talivar goes shopping buying some small things, all the while he's really watching the patrols seeing if they have any patterns or weaknesses.
Jaxira looks up from planting a sapling. She seems to be doing the same thing she was when you last saw her. Redfeathers looms above as before, but he doesn’t look quite as menacing this time.
The druid nods at Talia’s question. “Yes, I remember you. Back with more questions about the island’s wildlife?”
-----
Talivar does a good job of appearing to be shopping. He spots a couple different patrols during his time observing. They patrol in pairs and seem to move like clockwork. Both members of each patrol always appear alert, looking from side to side as they make their route. However, Talivar does note that their patrol path occasionally leads past an empty alley or a quiet intersection. In such places, no one is near the two members of the patrol, but they don’t linger there for long.
"Actually, I had something I wanted to speak to you about, but firstly, I wanted to try and figure out what type of person you are. There has been something nagging at me that I couldn't quite answer, so I was hoping you could"
Talia pauses for a moment before asking Jaxira directly "You mentioned arriving here involuntarily. I know that there's only a few ways that happens. You mentioned wanting to make this a place full of beauty, vibrance and elegance and I get that. What I don't get, is how you make a city with an active slave trade, supported by the pirates and Red Mantis, beautiful and elegant. The slave trade is like a weed, smothering the beauty. Why do you stay?"
After getting tired of making small talk to the various street hawkers and merchants of Ilizmagorti while watching the bloodwatch, Talivar spoke to the others in hushed tones, "It might be easier to ambush them when off duty. You know trawl the bars and brothels looking for ones we recognize and either follow them or entice them somewhere. Thing is I feel that lacks a certain impact, might as well be a random mugging. Maybe we should set our sights higher and take out one of these pairs? If so how? I don't want two to snowball into twenty."
Jaxira stands up from her work, giving Talia her full attention. She touches her wrists as Talia mentions the slave trade. She seems to do so almost unconsciously.
Once Talia finishes, she replies, “I didn’t have a choice, at first. I knew no one who could help me and I was too afraid to ask anyone anyway. I hid here in the Preserve. It wasn’t as tamed as it is now, but there was still life and things to eat. In time, I realized I could make a difference here, however small.
“If I could clap my hands and be rid of Ilizmagorti’s slave trade, I would do it in a heartbeat, but that is beyond my abilities. What’s the best way to deal with a weed that you can’t uproot? You plant around it. Cover it with things of beauty. That’s what I’ve tried to do since coming here.
“Not all the pirates are bad, strictly speaking, and even the Mantis have a code and rules that they govern by. While their ultimate goals are of course evil, their day-to-day governance of the city is normally just. When faced with situations and circumstances that I cannot control, I try to make the most of them. Shelyn would not have me give in to despair.”
Talia shoots Jaxira a calculating glance "What if the weed could be uprooted after all? Would you help with that?
Jaxira considers Talia's question, studying the shaman as she does so. Then she says, "Perhaps weed was the wrong description. It's a parasite. One that's encompassed almost all of the city. To remove it would risk killing the city itself."
Jaxira pauses to look up at Redfeathers who shuffles its talons on the branch it's resting on. The bird stares at Jaxira and an understanding seems to pass between the two.
Continuing, the druid says, "But weed or parasite, if it could truly be destroyed, purified, cleansed... yes, in a heartbeat."
Talia nods happily "Good. In that case, I'll keep in touch. There is no point rushing something like this for the reasons you just outlined. I canlet you know if I think of something."
Jaxira seems invigorated by the conversation and nods. "You know where to find us."
"Let's nab a pair as they pass an alley or something," Kilarra says to Talivar.
Talivar nodded with grim intensity, "Got anywhere in mind? We'll have to be quick and brutal and then melt away. I have a couple of tricks up my sleeve they've not seen before, ones I think might help."
Kilarra knows of a couple alleys in Redshore that could be suitable, particularly late at night. They're maybe not the most reliable, but they could probably work if the attack is executed quick enough.
"Yeah, I know a place," Kilarra remarks. "This way."
Kilarra accepts Talivar's fly spell, knowing it will be helpful to hop down off the roof. She hides, then drinks a pair of potions before right the fight, turning invisible.
When they get ready for the ambush, Uruelleth uses one of his oils of keen weapon unless Talia had one memorized for him.
Rather than attempting to hide, he simply waits near the ambush spot with the plan of rushing in using his speed to close the distance.
You all take your places, waiting till night to strike. Several patrols pass in the meantime, but none seem particularly concerned about you, or even notice you, for those seeking to conceal your presence.
Once night has fallen and stars fill the sky, only the light of the street lamps illuminate the streets below. In the distance, you hear the sound of boots crunching into the ground. It seems the patrol you had in mind is soon to arrive.
The sound of crunching boots soon materializes into a pair of Blood Watch guards walking down the street. The pair seem unaware of your presence as they approach, though they do occasionally look from side-to-side, apparently alert for any sign of danger.
As they reach the intersection you've chosen for your ambush, the time comes to strike.
Talia swiftly uses her Evil Eye hex on one Blood Watch, before using Slumber on the other one, trying to disable two at once.
Waiting was always the worst bit before the battle. Once it started Talivar knew there wouldn't be time for introspection, there wouldn't be time to imagine the hornets nest they where about to knock over. There wouldn't be time to ponder the torments The Mantis might have in store for them, and for his little girl... Thinking of her and his wife always made him angry, so much so that he found his hands balled into fists and covered in an inch of frost. The ice cracked when he released his fingers and he eased beck into the shadow of the chimney stack behind him. Soon. The patrol would be here soon...
And there they where here. He glanced around and a feral grin stole across his features, payback time! He waited until they where almost below before casting his spell, suddenly a huge jolt of energy caused his heart to lurch and he bean moving with incredible speed!
Uruelleth waited like an ambush predator, calm but alert. Soon Gorum would bring his enemy close enough for him to strike. All he had to do was be ready. In preparation, he cast shield, to better ensure his enemy bled and not him.
When the time came, he burst into action.
Kilarra moves forward while the group has the element of surprise.
Talivar glanced around and a feral grin stole across his features, payback time! He waited until they were almost below before casting his spell, suddenly a huge jolt of energy caused his heart to lurch and he began moving with incredible speed!
Talia swiftly uses her Evil Eye hex on one Blood Watch. He succumbs to her hex.
Uruelleth waited like an ambush predator, calm but alert. Soon Gorum would bring his enemy close enough for him to strike. All he had to do was be ready. In preparation, he cast shield, to better ensure his enemy bled and not him.
When the time came, he burst into action. His blade slices into the unprepared guard, cutting deeply, but not fatally. In an instant, the guard also seems disoriented and unsure of his surroundings.
Kilarra attacks the wounded mantis with her sabres, switching to the other mantis if the most wounded falls.
Kilarra attacks the wounded mantis with her sabres, switching to the other mantis if the most wounded falls. Her first attack proves ineffective, but her second lands, finishing what Ruel started. Moving on to the second mantis, Kilarra misses once again before following with a solid, but not spectacular blow.
Talivar casts Icy Prison on the remaining living guard. The guard becomes completely encased in ice in an instant.
Talia
Guard 1 tries desperately to free himself, but fails miserably.
Talivar glided down to see the results of his handiwork and was grimly satisfied to see the helpless bloodwatch encased in thick ice. Glancing at Kilarra and Uruelleth he nodded. Hopefully they'd put the bugs down cleanly and without too much noise.
Once it was all over he quietly said, "Time to see Betty again..."
Uruelleth will cast fly on himself and haul the bodies up to the roof of a nearby building.
Talivar wasn't the strongest man but he figured he should help, so he took hold of the feet while Uruelleth dealt with the rest. Once the bodies where arranged to their satisfaction he whispered, "I'm tempted to leave their stuff alone, this is supposed to be the handiwork of the shadow stalkers, not a random mugging."
"I'd prefer to avoid framing the shadow stalkers unless we can help it. I know its great cover but I don't think antagonizing them is a good idea, unless we know for certain that they would be happy taking the credit. I'd rather we loot them and leave the bodies in the street, and the Cult or the Shadow Stalkers can still claim ownership of the kills if they choose to. If they don't, then it leaves the Mantis uncertain as to which faction killed the guards."
Talia heads into Betty's shack with the others.
"We haven't forgotten about your earlier request but we have since satisfied the second requirement. Now, as per our agreement, will you tell us where we can meet the Cult?"
Halfway through writing the Shadow Stalkers sigil on the wall, Kilarra raises an eyebrow to Talia, smirks, and finishes her bloody painting.
Heads in hand magical backpack, Kilarra follows the others to Betty's, and goes back to letting Talia do the talking.
Talia wracks her brain to think of anything and everything she knows about a cult in Ilizmagorti, as well as the church of Norgorber. She comes up completely blank when it comes to the cult. In fact, she’s starting to wonder if there’s a cult of Norgorber in the city at all. There have been rumors of such things, but no one’s ever turned up anything substantive. Whispers in the night speak of something sinister about - besides the Mantis - but no one seems to know quite what it is.
No one, that is, except Betty.
As Talia presents the pair of heads to the older woman, Betty cracks a smile.
“You didn’t take your time, did you? Phidris and Liol aren’t exactly the easiest prey you could have chosen, either.
“In any case, I suppose I should go ahead and tell you that there is no cult of Norgorber on the island. There was once, but the Mantis obliterated the entire cult and anyone who had so much as talked to one of its members. That of course means that the persistent rumors of the cult’s existence have infuriated the Mantis. They know they eradicated the cult, but can’t stand the thought of citizens thinking they were anything less than completely thorough.”
Betty takes the two heads from Talia, placing them in a basket and putting it to one side before continuing.
“Those rumors have to come from somewhere, and that somewhere is what is truly behind the cult. It’s not a cult of Norgorber at all. It’s a Nocticulan Slayer’s Guild. They’ve been operating in the city for a few years now. It’s only a matter of time before the Mantis discover their true identity, but they’ve managed to maintain their anonymity for a remarkable amount of time. Except from me, of course.
“I can still put you in touch with them, as they might prove useful to you in some way. I’ll understand if you’d rather not, though.”
Betty looks over at the heads in the basket before concluding, “I’ll take these two to the back and give you a few minutes to talk it over. If you have questions, I’ll answer them when I return.”
With that, Betty picks up the basket of heads and retreats to the back half of the hut.
Talia listens to Betty, calculations flowing through her mind. While she knew some of the Mantis were obsessed with stamping out the cult of Norgorber, the High Killer hardly seemed to be worried about them. Still, that paranoia could possibly be exploited in future, depending how things turned out.
Talia files the information away in her mind for further scheming and nods at Betty's offer "I would like to met such a Guild. Could you put us in touch?"
Uruelleth folds his arms and rolls his shoulders. "Eh, they're smarter than us, staying secret all this time. We meet with them, what's to stop them from blaming us rather than the Norgorbers?" He doesn't sound like that's a bad thing from the tone of his question.
Talivar scratched his ear as he pointed out, "Cant say I'm an expert on obscure cults, but by reputation they're not the nicest lot are they... I'm not sure we could trust them for well anything really."
Glancing at Betty, he added quickly, "Maybe this is a conversation for a different time."
Talia shrugs "Would I trust them? Definitely not. I still imagine that they could be potential allies though. Eventually, the Mantis will discover their identity and in all probability get wiped out afterwards. I'm sure they would appreciate the Red Mantis being taken off the board for security sake. Heck, they probably see an opportunity to 'fill the void' and take over that area of expertise if the Red Mantis suffer a downfall."
Kilarra nods along, then scoffs at the thought of trading one set of assassins for another. Despite her reaction, she doesn't complain.
Betty returns from the back room and nods at Talia’s question. “Of course. When dealing with a guild of assassins, there’s usually a good way and a bad way to get in touch with them. I can give you a location where you might find them. Or, I can inform one of my clients who is a member of the guild that you are interested in them. They might just seek you out themselves if they’re interested in you. It makes no difference to me what you prefer, but I would note that your lives will likely be in significantly less danger if you choose the latter option. Let me know what you prefer.”
Talia ponders for a brief moment "Can you inform your client that I'm interested in them, but also give me a name or location that they might frequent, to be used at a later date if they be tardy or overly cautious and not making contact at all?"
Betty nods and says, "Sure. But she usually only comes by about once a week and she stopped by yesterday, so you'll want to be a bit patient. If you decide you're getting antsy, you might check out the Twisted Anchor. It's a tavern in the Medina. Never been myself, so can't say more than that."