Besel seems suprised by your openness, "So your not members of this Shadow Lodge?" He says mussing for a moment before continuing. "Its true that he was my friend but i only sent those goons because Dekar said he would owe me a favor."
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Searlas nods with a look of understanding and quiets his voice a little.
"No... we are not members of this Shadow Lodge. We are in fact, members of the Pathfinder Society sent here to discover who is behind this illegal lodge. The lodge in this city is not sanctioned by the Pathfinder Society as our superiors have no desire to affect change in the power structure of a town that has no desire for our presence. As for the goons... we would have preferred to speak with you before that incident, but with any luck they will all recover and be all the wiser for it."
Searlas leans forward and quiets even more before continuing.
"This Dekar fellow you mentioned though does pique my curiosity. Why would he suggest such a course of action? Arbitrarily ambushing the first folk at the crime scene seems like the actions of a distraught friend, or someone looking for a scapegoat. Considering we were ambushed on the way to Korvosa as well, I truly believe someone is out to get us. If my suspicions are founded, we should tread lightly. Leading with an ambush that threatens innocent merchants, and murdering a friend of a powerful man such as yourself show that whoever is behind this has a lot of gall. For all we know he could torch the whole town just to see our reputation ruined."
"With Dekar, who knows. He is a person shrouded in lore and legend. No one know what he looks like or what motivates him. I doubt he has anything against you though. It's probably this shadow lodge that he has a problem with. They musy have done him a slight in some way." He replies.
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"You think that perhaps this shadow lodge has harmed him, and he has taken these rash actions in retaliation? Maybe we should track him down and discuss the facts. He might have another piece of this puzzle. With any luck, if we are able to figure out Dekar's motives we should be one step closer to finding justice for Horis, and a solution to this shadow lodge problem."
With this Besel laughs almost uncontrollably, "HA! That's funny. You really aren't from here. Dakar is the most secretive man in Kaer Maga, and that’s saying something. If you want to talk to him, you might as well climb to the top of the walls and shout for him all day. You don’t find him, Pathfinders, he finds you.”."
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"Same here. Been on the training field and behind books. Not in the ACTUAL field." he chuckles
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"I walked and followed caravans all the way from Quantium to Absalom. Apparently having 'Survived the Mana Wastes' on your list of life achievements gets you into the Pathfinder Society without any of the training courses."
He pauses, pensively, then shakes his head and shudders. "Well, that and being fluent in 8 languages. Although it's times like these that I really wish I was given even a clue about what I was getting myself into. Not that I regret it, but I suspect I could have had quite a few less headaches at this point."
"I dont know much about it myself. At first i thought it was a code word of some kind, then pathfinders in the city started to show up dead." Besel says.
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"Murder? This is sounding very dangerous. We must be careful then. Maybe hide our Pathfinder badges completely? " he suggests
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"Well, you said that Dakar owes you a favor so I'm sure you have some way to contact him. Just know that we are doing what we can to get justice for Horis, any help would be appreciated."
Searlas gives a respectful nod and moves off to the bar to speak with Azuk, Hania, and Harison.
"So... where to go from here? I think we have a few leads and options, but things seem as though they are going to get dangerous fast. As you can probably tell, my skills are more suited to the pursuit of knowledge, and as such I'm closer to dead weight once swords are drawn. Been studying a few crippling spells, but so far nothing that can sway a confrontation. Since I'll probably be doing by best to make sure you guys are between me and the baddies, you should probably be the ones calling the shots here and making sure we play to our advantages."
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"Well, the only rules I know of are Explore, Report, and Cooperate. If concealing our connection to the Pathfinder Society allows us more freedom to explore, easier access to communication for reporting, and doesn't adversely affect our ability to cooperate, I'd say stepping outside of our comfort zone in order to more closely follow those tenets is quite the honorable thing to do. In fact I've been led to believe that undercover operations are a norm with the Society. Obviously if any of this strikes hard against a personal creed we can do our best to find an amicable solution."
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"I do understand that Sarenrae favors honesty. I do believe we can make sure to introduce ourselves in a way that keeps sensitive information to those with a need to know, but does not require overt falsehoods. As of now, we are simply representing friends of Horis and are seeking justice for his murder. As it stands, if someone directly asks us if we are Pathfinders, the very fact that they asked that question will be a clue in and of itself since that would imply that they already know about Horis' connection with the Pathfinder Society. I do believe answering truthfully to that question will either give us an ally in the know, or a foe who we will be prepared to deal with. Either way we gain information. If we find ourselves in a situation where honesty would endanger us, we'll handle the parts you may find... distasteful. If you find yourself forced to answer a question dishonestly, feel free to answer with your sword instead."
You wonder the streets of Kaer Maga, asking after a location on Dekar. Most of your questions are blown of and ignored but you do learn that Dekar is a very secretive person. Very few people have ever met him and no one knows his real name.
After searching around for about half the day a man stops you, "You're the lot thats been asking about Dekar." He says this as a statement then continues. "He would like to have a word with you." He lifts up a black hood and gestures towards a carriage. You also notice that where this street was bustling with activity moments ago, its now deserted besides you and a small group of men all holding hoods.
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Ti-Jean put his left hand on his sap ready to draw if there an attack. ""We only want to talk to Dekar, nothing more."
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Searlas shrugs. "If it will make you feel better..."
He bows his head, ready for the hood, but keeping his senses open for the sounds of blades being drawn, or the telltale look on a mans face when he readies himself for combat.
"I have a dagger in my waistband just below my knapsack. It is my only weapon. Feel free to hold onto it."
A few quick glances around spot any loose stones or litter as Searlas mentally prepares himself to unleash a flurry of telekinetic projectiles if things get ugly.
"As my associate said, we only want to talk to Dekar. I understand he is very secretive and that the hoods are to protect his location, but I do hope the ride wont be too discomforting. It would be a shame if we got off on the wrong foot."
"I think Dekar, and you by proxy, will find that we are all in this together."
"It's a requirement to see Dekar. You wont be harmed in any way/" He says.
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"Welp... lets get this over with. I don't suppose we'll be taking the most direct route now will we."
Searlas glances over at Hania. "Hmm, I'm the canary aren't I... wonderful."
He begins muttering to himself, starting to look much happier. "Finally someone reaching out to us to talk. Just the old bag em and spin em routine... much better than the billy club to the head. I'm so sick of that."
The bags are placed over your head and suddenly the world goes quiet. Your shoved, not harshly, into the cart and still no sound can be heard. Not even your own breathing. You ride around in the wagon for what seems like hours, then your all ushered out and you find yourselves in a building.
You find yourselves in a nice club or private residence with carpeted floors, potted plants, slaves waving fans, and a giant, backlit screen along one wall. A shape, decidedly vague in outline, can be seen
behind the screen, and a voice speaks. “You’ve asked for me and now you have me. What do you wish to know?”
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Searlas, thinks for a moment, then begins to speak. "Succinctly put Azuk. As I'm sure you are aware, I am Searlas Savy, and these are my traveling companions Hania, Gedulon, Ti-Jean, Harison, and Warden. We are outsiders, however we have been led to believe that the construction of this this... unsanctioned... Pathfinder lodge is an action liable to change the balance of power in this city - likely in a way that you would object to. We came here to investigate these rumors and do our best to shut down this project. Upon our arrival to this town, we found ourselves assaulted by goblins in a rather elaborate ambush. Our contact in this matter was found murdered at his home, and the information that has been spread lead a man with the same goals in mind to devise an ambush to have us take the fall. Our investigation has lead us here as we believe that you also, seek the same resolution as we do. It seems that making our intentions known to people like you is the best course of action."
His delivery is somewhat stiff, almost as though reciting a speech from memory, and he pauses while holding a seemingly practiced deferential pose.
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"Ending any unfortunate business this has caused so we can proceed from here in a much more calm manor and even ground with those involved" he nods
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The man behind the curtain chuckles, "“I don’t give anything away for free, Pathfinders, but I will give you the information you want in exchange for a future favor.”
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"As long it doesn't involve hurting good people i am willing to do every dirty trick possible."
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"Open ended favors rarely end well for all of those involved in my experience. They usually end up with one side furious, the other side overly defensive, lots of cursing, and me with a headache. Even if I had nothing to do with it. Could we perhaps negotiate a more definite agreement? After all, from the sound of it, handling this shadow lodge problem would seem like a favor to you in and of itself. It would seem under these circumstances as though we are already friends and just don't know it yet."
"You would be able to think of me as a venture captain for the favor. It will be something for which you pathfinders are well suited. I just dont know it yet. And if you want my help and to know whats going on, thats the price." He says finshing in just louder than a whisper.
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Searlas lowers his voice to Dekar's finishing volume. "Well, you seem reasonable, and you seem to understand our position, our way of doing things. As you can probably tell we have certain activities that we feel are off of the table as far as negotiation is concerned, but since you understand us I am willing to take you on your word that the favor is something we'll be able to do for you."
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"Then it sounds like an up front favour. Dont make us regret it. Is all we ask. But other than that. I accept these terms"
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"Wonderful, I knew pathfinders were smart. The shadow lodge is trying to start a little war with the pathinder society. One of there leaders is in the Naderi Theater in Bis, where he’s been training and collecting his goblin minions." He says.
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"Well, if he wants war it seems that he has found it."
Searlas looks around at his compatriots and continues. "Sounds like we've got a shot at taking care of those goblins at the source."
He looks back at Dekar and continues. "I do believe this information will prove valuable to us. It is a pleasure doing business with you."
Looking back at the party he thinks for a moment and adds "Perhaps we should see if we can track down any of the wardens who accompanied us here. I suspect they would be very interested in this information, and probably even willing to lend a hand or resources. Even if they don't I can't imagine them tipping off the Shadow Lodge to our interest, so it can't hurt."