He turns on the captive then, eyes filled with anger.
"Tell me who sent you." He growls. "It's the difference between dying quickly or slowly."
[dice=Intimidate]1d20+6
"We...we were hired by...by...I think Marouf said something about an asp. Marouf...he...he was our leader. He was the one who took the contract, said we had to work with that girl to capture at least one of you and question you about what you'd discovered. Then we were to kill you. That's all I know. Really. Marouf knows more...knew...more. I think you...you killed him." He gulps.
Mahjik crouches down to captive, his nose flaring a little - perhaps the only sign of how shaken he is. "That... girl. She must be a regular about town. Who is she. Who else associates with her. And where can we find her, when she's trying not to be found?"
"But I'm still growing and when we make it to the city, I'm going to build a monument in her memory and now his to."
"Oh, 'the city!'" Douena chokes out furiously. "I'm so sick of the city! If it weren't for the city, neither one of them would have died! All because everyone's so desperate to get to the city and claim its treasure for themselves! At least Aerys died fighting the cannibals, fighting for her own right to stay alive and uneaten! Why did Jask die? To defend the Pathfinder Society's interests? And then they send us to this supposed 'safe' house, where their agent is too much of a lush and pervert even to stick around to make sure it's actually safe. I'll bet he's back at the Shrunken Head right now. I'm not taking another step that benefits the Pathfinder Society! I hope they all get there, the Pathfinders and the Aspises and whoever else thinks it's more important than people's lives, and get swallowed up by whatever evil thing is coming out of there! It would serve them right!"
"Pezock, knowck him out. Don't kill him. The others will want to talk to him, and I just might rip his face off." Waiting for the man to be knocked unconscious before he leaves, Makoa heads for Douena and Urza.
"You don't want the Society to get to the city, Douena, don't want to help them? Fine. I'm still going there. Not for the Pathfinders, but to make sure whoever sent those men and killed Jask tonight DON'T get it. I won't let murderers get something Jask wanted, not while I draw breath. You may come with me, or stay here, or leave and go somewhere else."
"And you." He growls as he turns to Urza. "Glory? Through being able to burn down anything and everything, as uncaring as a forest fire? Sounds like an excuse, a way to hide. Like Aerys and the bottle. Place the blame where it lies, with the cannibals we killed, at the twist of fate that took her from you. From everyone."
"Now, if someone can get my wounds closed a bit, I would like to suggest we go after the men who got away while the trail is fresh and I can still follow the scent."
Urza calms down. "Makoa, fire does more than burn. It also tempers. It is an agent of death as well as renewal in the grand cycle of life. The fire has tested us time and again and, yes we have been burned," Urza looks meaningfully towards Jask's body. "and though the world is lessened for our losses, we are made stronger. Ever since we translated the wall markings of that evil vampire-snake temple I knew we were chosen. Maybe I am being arrogant, but I believe it to my core. Douena, you are wiser than we have given you credit for and we are worse off for not listening to you more, but I won't waiver from our course. I hope you come with me on this journey, I hope all of you do."
"There's the Urza I know."
"Pezock, knowck him out. Don't kill him. The others will want to talk to him, and I just might rip his face off." Waiting for the man to be knocked unconscious before he leaves, Makoa heads for Douena and Urza.
Pezock's beak can sometimes make it difficult to tell his facial expressions, there's no doubting that he gives the beakish equivalent of a smile--a big smile. With the butt of his sabre, he whacks the man across the side of the skull and knocks him out. Pezock sighs with contentment.
"Now, if someone can get my wounds closed a bit, I would like to suggest we go after the men who got away while the trail is fresh and I can still follow the scent."
"Only the girl got away," Ishirou says. "She will be in hiding, but we know what she looks like. Also, she knew Cheiton. Maybe he knows her and can help us find her."
"Then I am going to lean against this wall until I feel steadier. It's been a while since I felt this... way, we'll say."
"Look around you," Douena snaps. "There's more of them dead than of us. Does that make you feel better? Then why do you think killing more people is going to make a difference? This isn't personal to them. They didn't even know Jask; they only attacked us because we're working for the Pathfinders. Well, I hate the Pathfinders as much as they do! Let the Aspis Consortium and the Pathfinders kill each other. I'm not doing the Pathfinders' dirty work for them. Let them fight their own battles." She pulls off her tiara and throws it on the ground in a pool of Jask's blood.
"Douena, it was your goddess that lead us to that temple. Desna, the goddess of journeys, sent you visions that put us on this path. We need you. In this battle of good versus evil, we are the champions of good. Even if you don't want to indulge my arrogance, you have to realize that they won't just let you back away. They will come after you. Where ever you are. They will come to find out what you know without a care of who is near you." He fights the urge to point down to Jask. "If they don't kill you, they will capture you and try to use you against us.
We aren't doing the Pathfinders' dirty work. We got the Pathfinders to subsidize our adventure. Also, we will have them as allies when we get to the city. It won't only be the Aspis who will want it. If you recall, we left that city without ever talking to the Sargavan government and there were others very interested in directions to Saveth-Yhi."
"We killed the cannibals on the island because we could kill them all and be safe. We can't kill every Aspis Consortium agent on Golarion -- or even in Sargava. And like you say, there's more people out there who also want to kill us. You want to go kill a little girl and feel like you've struck a blow for good, Urza? Go ahead, but you're doing it without Desna's help. And I will never ever ever be an ally of the Pathfinders! I don't want their blood money or their treasure or anything else they want to give me. They're no more on the side of good and benevolence than any of the other horrible people trying to find the city. Gelik forced us into an alliance by blabbing; we never even found out if there was anyone good out there who could help us. We could have found a temple of Desna; she smiles on adventurers and explorers and finding long-lost places. But, no, we just jumped into a race with a bunch of groups that are all out for their own selfish interests, the Pathfinders along with the rest of them!"
"Now, if you really want to find the city first, then we should leave now and get out of this horrible house and never see that awful dwarf again. Get back on the road away from this stupid detour that did nothing but cost us time and our friend! Decide what it is you really want: to be first to the city, or empty vengeance?!"
"I want to be first to the city." Makoa says from his wall. "If only because it would mean we got there before Jask's killers. I... I don't really care what's in the city anymore."
Ishirou kneels beside Jask's body. "I do not know what to think anymore," he says. "I used to wish only for riches. Now, I know the value in friendship and loyalty. I wish vengeance for our lost friend, but I do not believe he would want us to seek that vengeance." He lays a hand on Jask's forehead and lowers his head, his eyes closed. After a moment, he stands up again, remaining silent.
Urza stands there for a moment puzzled before replying, "You heard the woman. Let's go." Urza goes to pack what few items he has.
"Why? Now we're not safer outside the city than we are inside it. Until we're done with what we need to do here, there is no point in leaving. But there is value in stopping whoever put the hit on us tonight - even if we run, they'll be able to follow us and ambush again. Here we can pin down whoever is pulling the strings and get them out of our hair."
"There was nothing we 'needed to do' here! We only came here because the Pathfinders told us to; the city was the other way, remember? Whoever's pulling the strings is back in Eleder," Douena replies fiercely. "That man who came to see us at the inn. And even he's probably the puppet of someone else. It's like thinking you could get rid of the Pathfinders by killing Gelik! We can waste our time running around Kalabuto tracking down Aspis footsoldiers or we can do what we said we were going to and go find the city. Or you can. I'm not staying in this town any longer; I never wanted to come here in the first place."
"That's fine then, you're right," Mahjik concedes. "We won't be able to stop whoever is hunting for us any time soon. We happen to be working with the Pathfinders, but we weren't attacked because of that - we were attacked because we're the first ones here and have valuable information. I rather suspect we'd have to worry about ambushes from the dark even if we had set out on our own. Or for that matter allied with the Aspis."
Mahjik continues: "Now I think it is important that we establish what we are doing. We can still abandon this mad race to a ruined city; or we can stick to it. But before we go towards the lost city - I want to know what your motive for going is. Me, I'm in it for what I'll learn, and I do so accepting that this is not a game. We may very well all die. But you? If I heard right about gnomes, you still have eternity ahead of you. Why risk this? I know I can trust you if you've set your mind to it, but anybody that goes on now halfheartedly is a risk to all of us."
Pezock pokes his head in the room. "I'm in it for the excitement," he says. "I don't care where we go. I just want adventure." He looks over at Jask lying on the floor and seems to clue in to what's actually been happening in the room. "Oh." His voice actually sounds a little more subdued. "I see. I will kill the prisoner in retribution." He turns to head back out of the room, his hand going for his sabre.
Before Pezock is able to do anything, however, the sound of a small explosion comes from downstairs. This is followed by coughing and then vociferous swearing. "Gods blast it!" Cheiton's voice carries up from downstairs. "Who the hell trapped my door?"
Mahjik continues: "Now I think it is important that we establish what we are doing. We can still abandon this mad race to a ruined city; or we can stick to it. But before we go towards the lost city - I want to know what your motive for going is. Me, I'm in it for what I'll learn, and I do so accepting that this is not a game. We may very well all die. But you? If I heard right about gnomes, you still have eternity ahead of you. Why risk this? I know I can trust you if you've set your mind to it, but anybody that goes on now halfheartedly is a risk to all of us."
"I don't have a motive," Douena answers flatly. "I'm not halfhearted. I'm no-hearted. I don't want to kill anyone over treasure and fame, any more than it's fair for someone to kill me over it. Isn't that what they just did to Jask? I certainly don't want to kill anyone to defend the Pathfinder's right to our city. I don't want any part of it. I'd rather go to Sothis and see the big bug. On the Shiv, we made our own plans. We went where we wanted to when we chose to, and we did things our way. Ever since we got back on land, all the decisions have been made for us. The Pathfinders make the plan, and we follow Shokambe wherever they've paid him to take us, and we come into Kalabuto for no reason other than it's what they told us to do. If we hadn't agreed to work with the Pathfinders, they would have sent a group of their own people, and nothing would have happened any differently because it was them instead of us. I feel like the wood that always turns into monkeys. I'm tired of following orders." She shoves out of the room to go back and retrieve her backpack, not wanting to see or speak to the dwarf.
"Me, I don't care much who we give lip service to. I don't feel anybody else controls my actions."
"So... where are we off to then?"
After gathering what little belongings he has, Urza is ready to go. "Everyone ready? We have a city to find.
Mahjik nods, "I'll stay behind a bit, there's a... friend... I'd like to catch-up on. And there's still Jask; I'll see that his remains are cared for."
Shokambe looks over to Mahjik. "Stay behind? How do you intend to catch up?"
Cheiton stomps up the stairs. "Someone blew up--" He pauses suddenly as he sees the bodies lying on the floor at the top of the stairs. "What the blazes is going on here?"
Sasha, dressed again, sticks her head out of the southwest room door. "We were ambushed," she says. "In your safehouse."
"It was a glorious battle!" Pezock declares. "We have a prisoner. Can I kill him now?"
"And Jask is dead because we trusted you," Douena says coldly, her nose red and face tear-streaked as she comes out of Cheiton's room with her belongings. "And we're leaving. Well, I am."
Shokambe looks over to Mahjik. "Stay behind? How do you intend to catch up?"
"That's true," Douena points out. "Any signs we could leave for you to follow, they could follow just as easy." She shrugs her pack-laden shouder at the bodies of their attackers on the floor. "And why didn't you go see your friend instead of spending all afternoon watching women dance? Did you think we were going to stay here for days and days here like we did in Eleder? Urza and everyone said before we came here that we were going to spend one night and be on our way again. What was the point of saving time going through the mine if we were just going to waste it here?"
"Wise man would seek council from the earth and the trees but not expect them to answer. I've got a pretty good idea where you'll be headed; and one of me is a lot faster than the collected group. Also, even without leaving obvious signs we've not actually been making effort to hide where we're going. I think it'll be easy enough to catch-up," Mahjik replies. "Kalabuto is kind of big and my friend can be hard to find. Cheiton here knows the place well, so I'm hoping he'll be able to direct me to where I need to be. Don't worry your colorful head about it - I'll have caught up with you lot within a few days."
Cheiton looks about at the bodies and the broken windows. "Well, I...uh..." He's obviously flustered. "I...um...I don't know what to say. This is...This is abominable!" He suddenly looks more sure of himself. "I'll get to the bottom of this. I'll find out who's responsible. You have my word! Nobody gets away with attacking my place and my guests!" He barely seems to notice that everybody is in the process of gathering their things and leaving. He just continues to go on about how he'll find those responsible and make them pay.
"Wise man would seek council from the earth and the trees but not expect them to answer. I've got a pretty good idea where you'll be headed; and one of me is a lot faster than the collected group. Also, even without leaving obvious signs we've not actually been making effort to hide where we're going. I think it'll be easy enough to catch-up," Mahjik replies. "Kalabuto is kind of big and my friend can be hard to find. Cheiton here knows the place well, so I'm hoping he'll be able to direct me to where I need to be. Don't worry your colorful head about it - I'll have caught up with you lot within a few days."
"We'll be following the river from here east to the Lake of Vanishing Armies," Shokambe says. "From there, we'll be going north along the main branch of the river, but hopefully you'll catch up to us by then. Be careful. The wilderness can be dangerous for someone travelling alone. The size of our group helps keep many threats from even coming near us, but on your own you may be considered easy pickings."
"If you want, I can come with you, Mahjik. Shokambe is right, there is strength in numbers. Even if that number is only two."
"One is a number," Douena mutters under her breath. "So is three and a half." Her eyes light up momentarily at the name of the Lake of Vanishing Armies, which sounds very interesting; but then her gaze returns to Jask, and her face turns sad and resentful again. She sidles up to Shokambe. "Shokambe, do you know any druids around here, or on our way? Before we got too far?"
Mahjik thinks about Makoa's suggestion, weighing the possibilities in his head. Finally he shakes his head and says: "Unless you rather go with me, I think you will better serve the group with the rest of the party. With the group moving on, any rivals we have will want to scramble to hinder or eliminate our group. Besides, where strength lies in numbers, there lies subtlety in one."
"Cheiton, from what we've gathered these are mostly thugs led by Marouf. They were possibly hired by the Aspis; and we know this little girl was with them but escaped - we saw her earlier today trying to peddle us useless fetishes." Mahjik turns his head sideways for a moment as an errant thought strikes him. "Say, who bought any of those? We should check if they are magicked in some way to help them track our movement."
"I didn't," Douena says virtuously. "Urza did. And Sasha." She coincidentally has detect magic learned today so will examine the wooden toys, if they are presented.
"Didn't Lorenz get one?" Some concern slips into Mahjik's voice.
"No," Douena replies distractedly. "He handed out coins but didn't take anything in return for them."
"Kalabuto is not that big. You will need to be particularly careful while you are here. I doubt that they will let you go about unmolested especially after..." Urza indicates the battle. "Don't forget that there is more than just the Aspis after the city and they seem willing to go to extreme lengths to get as much of an advantage as they can. So, let caution be your watchword. Even to the point of paranoia."
"Wow, try to help a kid," Sasha says as shepulls out the fetish she bought for Douena to examine. "That's what you get for generosity, I guess."
Douena can quickly determine that it and the other fetishes bought by the party are not magical.
"Right, enough standing around," Pezock declares. "Let's get out of here." He begins marching down the stairs.
Cheiton finally clues in that you're all in the process of leaving. "You sure you want to go in the middle of the night?" he asks, but then shakes his head. "Well, I don't suppose I blame you, really. I'd be pretty pissed in your shoes, too. But I promise you. I'll find out whose responsible."
"Why? We already know who did this." Urza looks remorsefully at Jask. "We should not have come here. There is no help you can give us." Urza follows Pezock.
Douena can quickly determine that it and the other fetishes bought by the party are not magical.
"They're not magic," Douena says regretfully. "Just not-very-good carvings. They would have been more interesting if they were."
Cheiton finally clues in that you're all in the process of leaving. "You sure you want to go in the middle of the night?" he asks, but then shakes his head. "Well, I don't suppose I blame you, really. I'd be pretty pissed in your shoes, too. But I promise you. I'll find out whose responsible."
"The 'people responsible' are the ones who told us to come here and trust you," Douena tells him icily. "Oh, and your bed's full of broken glass and probably more dead people," she doesn't-apologize as she follows Pezock and Urza.
"One of them's just unconscious!" Pezock calls from the stairs. "But you can kill him if you want!"
Cheiton frowns and looks seriously crestfallen as you all march down the stairs and out of the house. Only Mahjik is left behind with him . The dwarf looks at Mahjik. "I...I don't know what to say. This sort of thing doesn't normally happen. There's a...a power balance, I guess you could call it...between different factions in this town. People don't make attacks like this because they know the retaliation would be swift. I honestly thought you'd be safe here for one night."
He sighs and walks, slump-shouldered, towards his room. "I suppose I'll start with the unconscious one and see if I can learn anything. Oh, I inquired about your monk. I was rather surprised to get a response. You're to go to the Shrunken Head at noon tomorrow."
---
The rest of you emerge into the dark night. A few clouds have rolled in to block the moon, so the only light is from the stars and the Shrunken Head Tavern nearby. There's a slight coolness to the breeze which helps to offset the mugginess of the night.
"We need to follow the river east," Shokambe says. "We'll need to cross it eventually. If it were daytime, we could hire a raft or ferry to take us across now. Instead, we'll have to find a place to ford it somewhere along the way. There are a few places I can think of to do that." He heads around the side of Cheiton's house and then turns due east, parallel to the river.
The journey out of town is relatively easy. You have to trudge through a bit of mud for a while (which only really proves awkward to Douena due to her size), but that's soon over with and the lights of Kalabuto begin to fade into the distance.
"We need to follow the river east," Shokambe says. "We'll need to cross it eventually. If it were daytime, we could hire a raft or ferry to take us across now. Instead, we'll have to find a place to ford it somewhere along the way. There are a few places I can think of to do that."
"That's all right," Douena assures him. "I got really good at swimming on the Shiv." She sticks close by Shokambe as they travel; his skin color at least reminds her of Jask. She is uncharacteristically somber as they go.
The others remain as sombre as Douena while the night hours pass by slowly. Eventually, you find yourselves wearying from not having enough sleep before setting out. As dawn nears, Shokambe suggests stopping to rest for a while.
The land around you at the moment is fairly unremarkable. Plain grasses stretch over hills to the south. The river rushes by to the north of you. The sound of the rushing water is the only thing breaking the monotony and quiet of the pre-dawn.
Urza trudges along quietly. He continues to pray for his friend under his breath.
Mahjik nods at Cheiton's details. "Thank you, the Pathfinders may not benefit much from this, but you've helped me a lot." He helps Cheiton handle the unconscious prisoner. "I think the powers behind this are powerful, but not wise - quick to throw their force behind opposition rather than covertly achieve victory. They would benefit far more from quietly following in our footsteps than trying to force parity by spilling blood. Though... if the other prisoner spoke the truth, then it wasn't their blood that was spilled, but some hired mercenaries."
He drags the unconscious mercenary into the southwest room, picks him up, and lays him in the bed. He then leaves the room for a few moments to collect some rope and returns, using the rope to bind the man to the bed. "There. He'll keep till morning."