Ortik's eyes widen as he sees the seal on the letter. "Jakob's got the right of it, Demitri," Ortik says with some trepidation in his voice. "They have their fingers in every criminal enterprise in Old Korvosa, one way or another. That's not the worst of it, though." He gives Kerri and Lyla a worried look.
"Two by two," he says quietly. "Hands of blue."
The two 'guardsmen' on the floor are starting to wake up.
Well, sort of. They're starting to writhe on the floor, clutching at their eyeballs and groaning.
Verik sits on the floor, not saying anything.
Parns is snickering at Baldrago's & Malder's plight. "Serves 'em right, getting colored up to the eyeballs. Blighted madmen..."
"I think you owe it to your victims to give them a decent burial," Jakob says to the captive guards. "Why don't you lift up that grate and find what you can of their remains down there?"
Karri nods, "Yes, Boys, why don't you recover some of the remains for us..."
Baldrago & Malder are rubbing their eyes.
"Wh--I can't see! I can't see!" Malder starts to panic.
Baldrago tries to keep his composure. "Can't. Reefclaws are down there: vicious little bastards. I doubt there's enough to bury--"
He's cut off by Parns speaking up. "Well then, it shouldn't be that hard to carry them up now, right?"
After all the ex-guards are tied down, Lyla dismisses Field-Marshall Kroft's image. She recognizes the Arkona seal, but is unaware of any foul play commited by the noble house; still, from what Jakob, Demitri and Ortik say, she realizes that they must be knee-deep in the Korvosan crime scene. Not wanting to look ignorant, she replies to Ortik as though she is in on the subject.
"Hands of blue... does that mean House Arkona is pulling the strings of the Cerulean Society? I know for a fact that that goldsmith runs some shady busines with the thieves' guild."
Parns' eyes widen as 'Field Marshal Kroft' fades from sight. "Mother of Abadar..."
Baldrago and Malder are restrained, ensuring they can't take off running. "I want a lawyer." Is all that Baldrago says.
Verik offers no resistance to being bound.
"Good luck with that. Don't think anyone would represent you for this."
"You'd be surprised who'll step up, my friend," Ortik says to Demitri. "Assuming there are still some barristers left." He glances to Lyla, and merely nods his assent to her question. "There will be time a-plenty to talk on House Arkona later, around a warm fire and mugs of mulled wine." He glances over again to their captives, then back to her. "And where there aren't so many extra ears."
He walks over to the edge of the pit, and looks in. "Reefclaws, eh? Well, that'd take care of the bodies for sure. How many of them, Baldrago?"
"Reefclaws," Jakob says, thoughtfully. "Seems like a fair match. One vicious little bastard against another." He drags Baldrago towards the pit.
Malder speaks up. "There's about three of them down there: they moved in before we did. We kept them around to..." He trails off once Baldrago gives him a look that just screams 'Silence, you fool!'
Baldrago pales as Jakob drags him to the open grate and starts squirming against his bonds.
"Wait! Waitwaitwait!"
"What is it? Speak!"
"Th-this isn't how a real Guardsman would act! This is vigilantism!" Baldrago protests. In all likelihood, it isn't helping his case.
Malder and Parns remain quiet, whereas Verik finally looks up at Baldrago. He offers no input, but fixes Corporal Westlake with a look that could have been chiseled from solid stone.
"Well luckily there aren't any guardsmen here. So shut your mouth. All I see are a bunch of low-life scum going into business for themselves instead of helping this city when it needs them the most."
"You've spent time beating beggars in Old Korvosa, haven't you? You know the law is only for the ones that can buy it, and it doesn't look like you can afford it." He holds the man with his heels on the ground, dangling over the pit. "Can anyone think of a reason I should spare this filth?"
Baldrago's eyes widen in pure, naked fear. He glances between Jakob, the grate, and Verik.
Malder closes his eyes. Parns looks away.
There's a visible s**t-eating grin on Parns' face.
Baldrago turns to Verik. "Verik! Verik, you know this isn't right! Help me! PLEASE, FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE! HELP ME!" He's now thrashing wildly, trying to break free of the ropes.
It doesn't help. Between the tightness of the ropes and Jakob's grip, all he can do is pathetically wriggle about.
Verik continues to stare at Baldrago. His expression never changes.
Well, Marissel speaks up from the corner, If he's able to show he's useful to us, I'd say that'd earn him a pass. But do you know enough to be useful to us?
Baldrago seizes upon this chance, turning to Marissel with a look of extreme desperation.
"What do you want to know? I'll tell you anything! Anything! Just please don't kill me!"
"Tell us exactly what deal you have going on with house Arkona. Now, before my friend loses his grip."
Baldrago starts running his mouth.
"Verik--Verik told us that we'd do more good if we cut all ties with the Guard! Said he had an arrangement with the Arkonas--said he had a plan to help the poor! Got a tip that there was an old fishery that had some spare food left--wasn't touched by the riots. Brought those barrels back, kept them in the meat lockers in case we completely ran out of meat. Never touched them again--kept getting daily shipments of pigs and nothing else to slaughter! Thought I could make some money on the side without Verik knowing and I had no idea it'd end up with me like this--"
He doesn't appear to be stopping. In fact, he's beginning to turn blue.
"Slow down before you pass out. So what's the side job? Does it have to do with all these bones?"
Marissel perks up, A fishery? Where I'd this fishery? When did you get the tip?
Baldrago takes a breath.
"The jobs were for some other nobles that needed someone to disappear. Karralo, Malder & I would gear up, find the guy, beat him down, and drag him back here to dispose of the body. Parns handled the money and assured the nobles they'd never hear from the guy again."
He nods at the grate. By now, three creatures that have the front end of a lobster and the back end of an eel have crawled to the top of the carcass heaps. They click their pincers menacingly at Baldrago.
"In short, everything I already told you." Parns says.
Baldrago turns to Marissel. "We got the tip just before the riots went down. Some fishery on the waterfront--it was due to be torn down soon anyway. Some gnome got his head sliced off there: we only grabbed two barrels and ran off in case whoever did it came back."
"Like I said. A hit squad. Give me the names of these nobles."
"I don't know their names! I don't even know their faces! They weren't foolish enough to show me their faces when they hired us!"
Baldrago keeps glancing down at the reefclaws looking up through the grate.
"What about the names of who you were ordered to take out?"
"We didn't get any names. Just descriptions of some schmuck we were told to take out. Never any children."
"Is that it? Anything else you want to confess?"
Baldrago winces.
"...I just soiled myself."
Demitri just puts his palm to his face. "You're pathetic. Let's get these scumbags back to Kroft so we can tell her what's going on. I'll collect the evidence." He will start collecting papers.
Marissel looks at Demitri, And the meat. They've got Lamm's fish. And they got the tip while we were still there. Marissel looks troubled and steps closer, Who could have told them? Who could have known? And how many of these places are there?
"I don't know. But I don't like this. Maybe Kroft will know more."
Jakob pulls Baldrago back and dumps him on the floor, safely, still frowning. He looks at Verik. Then he looks at the pit. Then he walks to Verik.
"Who told you about the fishery?"
Verik looks up at Jakob from Baldrago.
"A local crime boss calling himself Devargo Barvasi. He said we'd find a supply of food there that we could use." He snorts. "Of course, with my luck, it's probably filled top-to-bottom with rusted nails, broken glass, and diseases of all kinds. Either that, or he was sending us to remove some competition."
He makes an effort to stand with his bonds. "I'm ready to see Kroft, please."
The silver dagger is still where Demitri left it upstairs when he goes to collect relevant papers.
Marissel nods. Let's go then. As they prepare to leave Marissel asks one more question, Who supplied the pigs, and who brought them?
Demitri will collect the silver dagger as well.
Verik looks over at Marissel, resignation on his face.
"Vimanda. Vimanda brought everything."
"Might as well collect the earnings as well," Ortik says. "I'll see if I can calm the hogs down. If we can't, well...I always did wonder what pork tenderloin tasted like." With a shrug, he starts heading towards the pigsty.
The silver dagger fits snugly wherever Demitri chooses to stash it.
As Ortik opens the doors to the pigsty, the strong odor of pigs mixes with the smells of the abattoir. Through the doors, Ortik can see a pair of pens, both of which hold a mean-looking, fat boar. They rise and eye Ortik suspiciously, obviously ready to attack if the dwarf enters their pens.
"They're in the south pen, under the water trough." Parns says, wrinkling his nose.
Looking to Ortik, Karri asks, "Do you want me to color the bacon?" She tries to dead pan the jest, but smiles at the end.
"Let's call that Plan B, Karri," Ortik says as he slowly approaches the south pen. From the relative safety of the pen's exterior, he whispers soft susurrus to calm the irate boar hog and allow him access to its filthy pen.
The boar paws the ground and lowers its head, its eyes narrowing and focusing on Ortik some more.
It eventually backs down, retreating to a corner of its pen. It appears to be convinced you mean it no harm... for now.
As the boar calms down, Ortik slowly opens the gate. "Karri," he says as he begins to poke around in the slop. "Be ready with Plan B?" He makes his way over to the water trough and examines the muck beneath it for the cache Parns mentioned.
The boar begins to grow restless as Ortik pokes around under the beast's water trough. The smell of pig droppings assaults Ortik's nose, but he presses on.
Under the trough, thanks to the directions of Parns and his own keen eyes, he finds three full bags. They jingle when he picks them up.
Ortik wrinkles his nose at the stench of the pig's leavings, but there was a second reason he volunteered to search the pen beyond his ken with the natural world: he wasn't afraid to get covered in s**t. Once he withdraws the coins, he tosses them to Karri. Removing a few crusts of bread he pocketed from Madame Zellara's table the first day, he tosses them towards the boar. "For your trouble, friend," he says, closing the pen back up. Not wanting to leave the other boar out, he tosses a few that way as well. "Share and share alike," he says with a wink to the boar.
The boars begin gobbling the bread crusts down with gusto and stop paying Ortik any attention.
Inside the bags:
--> The first bag contains 450 gold pieces.
--> The second bag contains 740 silver pieces.
--> The third bag contains 800 gold pieces worth of jewelry and gemstones.
Lyla pinches her nose as Ortik steps out of the barn. "Ugh, that shower didn't last long."
"Look at it this way, Lyla," Ortik says, scraping the worst of the muck off his hands on the corner of the barn. "Who's going to accost a man covered in pig s**t and force-marching some prisoners?"
"Alright, as long as you let me wash those coins and throw away the bags after we get home!" The last word slips out naturally, and forces the girl to realize that, with Althea gone, maybe Zellara's place is indeed her home now, along with these ragtag cast of folks. She stuffs her hand in her pocket and clasps Zellara's deck, clinging to the departed fortune-teller.
With the Cow Hammer Boys' loot in hand and the prisoners bound and marching, the group sets off from North Point. The walk back to Citadel Volshyenek is mostly quiet, with only the shuffling of the prisoners' feet breaking the silence. A few shady folk eye the party, but keep their distance.
As you approach the gates of Citadel Volshyenek, the party sees two guardsmen standing at the entrance: Sergeant Grau Soldado & Private Simon Clay. Soldado eyes the party with a mixture of curiosity & suspicion, whereas Clay doesn't pay nearly as much mind, instead picking at what appears to be a scab on his arm.
Incidentally, Private Clay looks like he just crawled out of a sewer: his uniform is covered in stains of dubious origin & wrinkled. He smells like it too.
"Verik? What the hell's all this about?" Soldado asks.