Brother Cyrus cleans himself thoroughly back at the Inn before heading to the Temple of Calistria.
Eitylen can easily find the Snatch & Grab Inn. It's a small hostel by the docks, mostly populated by sailors, fishermen and dock workers. There, Eitylen meets the owner of the place, a fat man known as One-Eyed Moe (which is rather odd, as the man still has both his eyes).
"Yeah... That Ted guy had been spending a lot of extra silver lately... He'd order our best meals and wine, and even bought fancy clothes to meet that broad of his... What's her name, again... Marina... Marcila... Marrie? Well, I dunno." he gives up on working his memory and goes back to cleaning the dirty mug on his hands. "Anyway... I haven't seen Ted for over a week. If it were not for the guards knocking on my door and scaring away my clientele, I'd not even know that he was dead..."
"Oh yeah!" he adds "A friend of his came by a couple days ago... He said he was going to bring Ted some of his stuff. He even had the key to Ted's room!"
It isn't particularly difficult to find Madame Le Fey' assistant. Just paying attention for a couple hours is enough to tell you who she is. She's a tien woman in her late 20s (or early 30s) with short black hair and dark eyes. She wears a jade-colored tien dress with a golden leaves embroidered on her sleeves.
While she moves and acts quite discretely, she is followed by two younger girls who aren't quite as careful, and let slip the name of Madame Le Fey a couple times when talking to merchants.
The temple of Calistria is more welcoming and warm than most, and a beautiful girl in rather revealing clothes, a black see-through top and a short skirt cut on the sides, comes to Brother Cyrus' side as soon as the young man enters the room. If she's surprised by the presence of a priest, she conceals it very well.
"Hello, handsome... Can I help you?" she says with a velvet voice.
A friend,..umh, can you describe that friend?
Cyrus enjoys the view for a quick moment before speaking.
"You flatter me milady though I am of no comparison to yourself. I am however here on behalf of the deceased and terrorized seeking information to exact just retribution. So unless I need to thoroughly interrogate-" He says with emphasis and a wink, hoping she finds the double entendre amusing. "-you for the information, do you or anyone else at the temple have any information on the young Viper girl murdered at the docks the other day?"
"I have gold and no small measure of healing ability to recompense the temple of course."
"Sure!" says One-Eyed Moe "Difficult to forget a bloke like that. He was very skinny and so pale that I thought he was sick, but he said he was fine. Between you and me... I think he was a junkie.. Twas a hot day, but he was using long sleeves and even had gloves on him. Tis the kind of thing that I see on blokes who want to hide the marks from their visits to opium dens..."
The innkeeper sighs as before continuing his tale "Damn bastard spent hours in Ted's room, made a whole lotta noise moving the furniture around, then left without even leaving a tip... Of course, I'm the one who gotta clean the room later... I hope someone shows up to grab Ted's stuff soon... Can't have an occupied room without anyone paying for it..."
He then goes on to blabber about money and cleaning chores for a while.
Well, here is a tip if you let me examne ted's room - I give him a couple og gp and then take 20 in perception for a 24.
"Oh... I see..." The girl's words are delivered with a suddenly serious tone. "I... I'll call someone..."
The girl swiftly walks away, but returns a couple minutes later.
"Lady Hazel will see you now..." she says, before leading you into a somewhat secluded door. The girl knocks, and a soft voice answers. "Come in, please"
Inside the room, stands a graceful elven woman with long black hair and honey-colored eyes. If she were human, Brother Cyrus would guess that she has no more than 20 years on her, but being an elf, it's impossible to tell.
Unlike the other inhabitants of this temple, this woman seems more worried with practicality than allure, although her black and yellow leather armor still shows off enough of her skin and curves to instigate imagination. On her hands rests an artfully crafted yellow and black cigarette holder, which she takes to her lips a few times. The cigarette's smoke smells more like incense than tobacco, though.
She sits behind an expensive-looking desk, on top of which rest a couple daggers, a bottle of wine and a small statue of a wasp.
The room is well lit, thanks to a big glass window at the woman's back, but there isn't much to bask on the sunshine. Other than the desk, a couple chairs and the desk, the only object in the room is a 6ft. tall statue of a beautiful elven woman with a giant wasp by her side. Brother Cyrus immediately recognizes this to be a depiction of Calistria.
"Welcome, sir. Please, have a seat." she says. Her voice even more alluring than that of the girl who greeted Brother Cyrus at the door. "My name is Lady Hazel, I understand you have some inquiries for me..."
"Sure... Here you go."
One-Eyed Moe throws a key to Eitylen, then goes back to his chores.
Theodore's room consists of a bed, a tiny nightstand, a desk and a closet. All of them completely out place, as if they were repeatedly pushed around the room. The floor is covered by clothes, books and a collection of minor objects, such as pencils, razors, paper sheets, pillows, empty bottles and copper coins.
Whoever has been here was looking for something rather desperately. Nothing seems to have been left untouched. Even the mattress has been ripped apart, as if someone expected something to be hidden in its stuffing.
A collection of glass vials lay next to the bed. Their contents long gone, except for the dark stain that they left on the floor when spilled. Theodore's alleged "friend" took the time to examine each and every substance before discarding the vials.
Cyrus tilts his head in respect of the statue before taking a seat.
He stumbles slightly in his speech as he finds the more simplistic outfit far more alluring than it being on display.
"I uh...erm-" Cyrus shakes his head, clears his throat and attempts to reassert his practiced eloquence. "-My apologies good mistress, I've never grown accustomed to the sight of ones truly blessed with Calistria's beauty. I'm here investigating the murders of late and looking for leads. A young Viper girl was murdered last night on the docks and I'm well aware that The Lady in the Room's followers are well informed. Anything you could tell me would be invaluable."
Cyrus shifts in the chair.
"If it's no trouble" He adds.
"And I have no small amount of services I could provide in recompense." He adds again.
The woman laughs for a moment.
"Your flattery would be much more effective if you hadn't forgotten to introduce yourself, sir." she says with a sly smile.
"Your presence here confirms what I feared. The dead girl is in fact Marilia.. Tsc. I told Veronica to be more careful with her girls..." she takes a long drag of her cigarette and slowly blows the cinnamon-scented smoke away. "I'll help you with your investigation, sir. At very least, you're likely to be far more competent than those damn city watchers..."
"I can't tell you much about that girl, other than the fact that she seemed to enjoy her life here... Until she didn't. A few weeks ago, she quit. She said her good byes and left. The other girls wanted her to stay, and even pointed out how delightful this place is, but all she said is that her new home was small, but it was theirs. hers and her man's. They were moving in together."
Eitylen took the time to do a new search, assuming the otherguy did not foudn what he was looking for (26 again)
I Then go to find what the others have discovered.
Cyrus chuckles to himself over his mistake. "Brother Cyrus is what I go by, Lady Hazel. My apologies for the late introduction. I tend to forget the pleasantries my mother taught me when I'm feeling stressed."
"Hmmm. I'm sure you have quite the influence in this town. Do you know of a way I might be able to meet with Madam Le Fey? I've heard the fee is notorious and only have a small sum to my own name."
Cyrus pauses.
"Do you think anyone might have resented their relationship?"
Leng, having little to no subtlety when it comes to the social arts, simply walks up to the assistant and begins talking.
"Hello m'am. My name is Tai Leng. I am investigating the murder of a young Viper girl, named Marilia. I heard you mention Madame Le Fey's name a number of times a little while ago, and was wondering if you could help me with something. I'd like to meet her, simply to talk. I was hoping she might be able to shed some light on the circumstances surrounding the poor girl's death. Or you, if you know anything, I suppose."
One-Eyed Moe speaks when he sees you leaving
"Good bye, sir. Don't forget to come visit next time you need a discreet place to stay!"
Eitylen returns to the Mad Shark, where he's welcomed by the usual girl. The one who intervened in Joel's discussion with the city watcher.
"You're forgiven, sir." says Lady Hazel with a a quick laughter
"Anyway... Every relationship has someone to resent it... But I don't think this is the case here. Marilia isn't the first victim. Not even the first viper victim." Lady Hazel takes another drag from her cigarette, then goes on "One other girl disappeared a couple weeks ago. No one knows what happened to her. There was no corpse left behind. No blood. No signs of struggle. Nothing. The watchers are convinced these events are unrelated, that the first girl simply decided to skip town without telling anyone... But that doesn't make any sense. She was a very successful courtesan. Beautiful too... Golden eyes, almost silvery skin... Sang like an angel. She was graceful and had her way with words. She loved what she did and she did it well. Her name was Louise... Veronica had high hopes for that one."
Lady hazel lets escape a loud sigh before speaking again
"Even so... I doubt Veronica will meet you, priest. She's too proud (and too angry) to let outsiders see her in her moment of need..." she opens a drawer from her desk and starts fumbling through it 'til she pulls 2 small pieces of paper"Look... The fee to enter the Viper's Nest is not that steep (assuming you just want access to the 1st floor, that is), it's just good high enough to keep common sailors and general riffraff out. You look like a trustworthy gentleman, so I'll give you a personal invitation card, if you think that'll help you. It's good for you and an unspecified "+1". Just... Wear something nice, okay? And if you really want to see Veronica, you better have something solid to show her. No offense, priest, but as far as we know... You're no more competent than any other mercenary or bounty-hunter in town."
Lady Hazel gives you the two pieces of paper. They are small black cards with the words "Viper's Nest - The Sweetest Poison You'll Ever Have" and "invitation for two - first floor" written in emerald letters. The symbol of a coiling viper can be seen on the other side of the card.
"One last thing, Brother Cyrus..." she says "Whatever killed Marilia is not limiting itself to vipers. I've heard of other, far less notable, victims... Unfortunately I can't tell you anything about them other than the fact that they exist."
The woman seems somewhat startled by Tai Lengs sudden appearance and straightforward attitude, although not enough to lose her composure. When he mentions to have heard the name of Madame Le Fey, the woman sends a quick and harsh stare into the eyes of her young companions, who almost seem to shrink when they meet the woman's gaze.
"Another bounty-hunter... Of course." her tone is serious and somewhat proud, almost arrogant. She has a faint tien-shu accent, somewhat diluted away, but definitely still there. "And this one doesn't even have the courtesy of letting us shop in peace."
She slowly raiser her right hand with an open palm directed at her side. Tai Leng now notices she was gesturing for someone else, a shoanti man in light armor, mostly covered by a dark red cape. When he sees the hand gesture, he stops walking and slightly bows his head, then backs away... disappearing in the crowd as if he had never been there.
"Because you too have the blood of dragons in your veins""I'll assume you're a honorable man and assume that what you tell me is true, that you're not just another fool lying for a chance to meet Mistress Le Fey. So I'll humor your question... her face becomes even more stoic as she speaks her next words "There is nothing to know. That girl hard instructions to stay inside after sundown. She disobeyed and paid the ultimate price for doing so. It was foolishness that caused her death. The city watchers are already on the case."
One of the young girls speaks softly "M-Maybe he can help... There wouldn't be any harm in tel-" but the tian woman harshly interrupts her "Quiet, girl! Mind your business!" the young girl instinctively take a step back and lowers her head, before speaking even more softly than before "Y-Yes, Mistress Xue. Please, forgive my manners."
The tian woman turns back to Tai Leng after reprimanding the girl
"If you'll excuse me sir... I have a duty to attend. she nonchalantly walks past Tai Leng and goes on her way, is quickly followed by the two girls.
As they leave, the girl who stood silent clumsy bumps on Tai Leng's shoulder. "Forgive me, sir. I'm too clumsy for my own good.". Before Tai Leng can speak, she takes a couple quick steps to catch up to the other girl.
Tai Leng may not have had the chance to reply, but he was perceptive enough to notice the piece of paper she slipped into his shirt. A black card with emerald letters that read "Viper's Nest - The Sweetest Poison You'll Ever Have - personal invitation.".
One-Eyed Moe speaks when he sees you leaving
"Good bye, sir. Don't forget to come visit next time you need a discreet place to stay!"
Eitylen Give one eyed moe another gold coin. I need the room to remain intact as it is right now, I perhap will come back later today with some colleagues to afurther investigation. There is anotehr gold coin your future If nobody enters the room in the meantime.
One-Eyed Moe quickly places the coin on his pocket.
"You got it! But be quick about it, okay? I can't keep the city watch out for long."
"Many thanks Lady Hazel. I have a feeling my compatriots and I will get to the bottom of this soon. May the gods favor you."
Cyrus takes his leave back to the Mad Shark for a bite to eat and to meet up with the others.
To Tai and Cyrus: I found the sailor Room, somebody else made a mess lookign for something, not sure what. How good are you at detecting magic and all that?
"I'm a dab hand at it. I can give it a look if you need me to."
"Myself, I got this." he flourishes and pulls the card out of his sleeve.
Great!,...What is it?
Leng blinks and looks at the card.
"Ah, whoops." he turns it around so the words are visible (Viper's Nest - The Sweetest Poison You'll Ever Have - personal invitation.).
Eitylen look with disillusion
Just one? ...:(
"Do not worry friend. Fortunately it seems the gods have anticipated our need as I have acquired two!" Cyrus says with a laugh.
After a quick inspection, it's clear that Brother Cyrus' invitation cards aren't exactly the same as Tai Leng's.
Unlike the ones in Brother Cyrus' possession, Tai Leng's card has the symbol of coiling viper printed in silver ink, rather than green, and lacks the words "first floor".
Ok, let see if you guy can find something I miss in the sailor's room,a dn hten we can go to that viper thing. - With two aid another Tai leng can reach 33 in pereption, does that give aditional information? what about detect magic?
The team eventually find hidden compartment in the floor, close to the bed. It's no bigger than a shoe box. and is mostly empty.
Its content is reduced to a few coins and a wooden case with padded walls on the inside. It's similar to the cases used to transport bottles of expensive wine. It can hold up to 6 glass vials.
Tai Leng and Brother Cyrus' spells reveal that both this case, as well as the broken vials and the smudge they left on the floor when broken display faint traces of magic.
"Magic use huh? The plot thickens." Cyrus says while scratching his chin thoughtfully.
"The mistress of the temple mentioned we shouldn't bother Madam Le Fey unless we had more concrete information. Now that we know magic is involved, perhaps it's time to pay that Witch a visit."
So I suppose we rest and then go to see the witch.
After a night of rest, Eitylen mingles with the townsfolk and learns that the witch lives in the outskirts of the city, west of the docks.
She's usually seen about half a mile from the west gate, either fishing or performing some bizarre ritual. It's commonly believed that she lives in a hut inside the forest, but no one could point out an specific location.
I Suppose is desirable to catch the Witch by surprise, or at least don't be surprised, so, uhm , stealth?
Leng follows behind Eitylen as quietly as possible as they search the woods.
While the party doesn't find the so-called witch and her hut, you soon realize that the forest is rather quiet, despite the unusually large presence of crows.
Tai Leng's intuition tells him that the three of you are being observed.
Brother Cyrus simply calls out,"Hail! We've come to speak about matters of mystical importance. I'm not one for cloak and dagger nonsense so we've heard a witch lives in these parts and would like to speak with her about a sensitive matter in Blue Shell."
When Brother Cyrus' words are spoken, the crows look around for a couple seconds, then start cawing frenetically. It almost sounds like... laughter.
"...pretty please?" Cyrus inquires almost whimsically.
Eitylen use his puppy eyes technique
The crows caw again for a few seconds, then suddenly go silent like a grave. A moment later, a womanly voice comes from a slim crow to your right.
"It has... been a while..." she says with a thick varisian accent. "Most... city-walkers... no longer come to visit."
A second crow, this one fat and lacking an eye, speaks with the very same voice.
"What... do you want... stranger...? And why... come to me...?"
That is a great trick... - Say Eitylen and at the same time he give Cyrus a little push in order for the priest to do the talk.