Judge Khard stands and begins shaking his head, "Unfortunately, sir, the court..."
The other male Judge, Kasp Aldaar, interrupts. "Is unable to provide more than fifteen minutes for a recess. The court has other business today and cannot spare a moment more on this case. I trust you will use the time wisely."
Otto is on his feet in an instant, but Aldaar raises his voice, "Sit down, Otto!" he roars. The prosecutor hesitates a moment, then bows his head and returns to his seat.
Khard glances at Aldaar for several seconds before looking at Judge Daramid. She keeps her eyes on Leon, but speaks, "Fifteen minutes, and not a second more."
Judge Khard returns to his seat. "The gallery will remain seated while the parties retire for a short recess."
The Judges stand and process out of the courtroom, accompanied by the herald and the various clerks, finally followed by the head bailiff.
Kaple leans over as murmuring increases in the courtroom. "How did you do that? They never grant recesses during a trial - and it was Aldaar who supported you! He's the most hardline Judge up there!"
He smiles and shakes his head, "So what do you want to discuss?"
"I'd like to check in with the others and find out if they've discovered anything that might be relevant. I also want to make the most of our closing argument, so I thought taking the time to really hash it out would be a good idea. Mithias is a lot smarter than I am, but they seem to listen to me more. One of the privileges of noble birth, I suppose. I wanted to pick his brain before I started flapping my mouth in front of everyone."
Turning to Mithias as they began to exit the courtroom, Leon smiled. "Good job up there. I don't think they will be able to ignore your credibility."
Jean put his arms across his chest and thought about all he had heard. "I can understand wanting to win a case and trying to undermine your opposition, but that Otto is trying very hard to make us out as villains in all of this. Disregarding him, however, we've made several interesting discoveries yet no conclusive evidence for today's trial. Just a number of people who seem very interested in making sure that Son is judged guilty."
"Makes sense. If they're behind it, having someone else takes the fall takes a lot of pressure off them."
"Even if this was supposed to be a mock trial, there's still a chance we can convince the jury. Have you learned anything I might be able to use?"
"We don't have anything concrete but there's a shop we want to investigate afterwards that hopefully will have all the evidence we need to clear this case up. We just didn't want to leave you guys out of it, in case the real criminals are still there."
"Better get this over with then." Leon said taking a deep breath and going back into the courtroom.
Once everyone was seated and ready to proceed, Leon took the floor.
"Members of the Jury, the prosecutor has tried everything in his power to convince you that the person sitting in the cage there is inhuman. A monster who murders children and has plagued the countryside for years, like a story told to frighten children come to life."
"I am sure some of you are frightened by what you see in the cage. It is true. He is not like us. Perhaps you've known someone in your life who was different from you. An elf or a dwarf perhaps. Someone with the blood of orcs, or even the taint of demons running through their veins. Someone who, at first, was difficult for you to understand and accept. Someone who's very nature was frightening."
"Perhaps you didn't like them. Perhaps you still don't. That's fine. No one is asking you to like someone who you don't know or don't understand. What we are asking is if not understanding someone is enough to make you think they deserve to die."
"Because that is what this is about. There is no evidence at all that the person there in that cage murdered those children. Even Elder Lazane, the only credible eye witness, agreed that the person in the cage there may not have been the murderer. We know that the Beast was attacked by Redjaw. We know that the person in the cage does not bear those scars."
"There is no proof. We do not know what happened that night. All we know is that a person has been put into a cage because of what they might have done."
"So think about that person you met. The one who was different. Think about what people said about them. The things people thought they might have done."
"Now think of the things people have said about you over the years. How many times have people thought you did something that you didn't do?"
"If you were on trial, would you want them convicting you based on the kind of evidence we've seen today? Or would you hope that someone would demand proof?"
"Take a look at the person in the cage there. The only thing he is guilty of is being different than we are."
"Will you kill him for that?"
"Is that justice?"
As Leon stands up to speak, the entire gallery begins cursing and screaming. All manner of obscenities fly around the room, echoing off the hard surfaces. The judges, especially Khard, who have until now allowed such behavior to continue for a time, seem taken aback by the vehemence of those observing the trial. Khard's face slowly turns red, and he raises his voice, "That is ENOUGH! Bailiff, you may take anybody who doesn't shut their mouth into custody THIS INSTANT!"
The din and cursing quickly dies down as the Bailiff stomps toward the gallery.
Khard, still quivering in anger, motions to Leon and brusquely says, "Counsel, get started."
As he gives his closing statement, a curious thing happens. Most of the faces in the gallery are hostile and angry, and many shake their heads in disbelief as he speaks. But slowly, individuals begin glancing at one another, and the faces seem to lose their edge. By the end of his speech, the gallery is silent, and only a few of the more hotheaded commoners still appear to harbor ill will toward Leon and the rest of the defense team. Most seem to have at least heard what he said, if not actually taken it to heart.
Khard looks at the judges on either side of him before rising. "I declare today's session at an end. We will reconvene tomorrow morning. Until then." He bows low as do his counterparts, then he leads them back into the secure chambers behind the courtroom. As the clerks, heralds, and Bailiff follow the judges out of the room, Kaple looks at the group, "That was some excellent work. I don't know if it was enough, but it sure cast some doubt on Otto's story."
"We'll be starting again at eight in the morning. I'm guessing you have business to attend to, but if you need me, I'll be in my office or the library here in the courthouse until the evening meal."
Gears begin turning, and the cage holding the Beast is slowly lowered back into the floor. He looks in your direction and gives you a small smile before disappearing into the holding cells below.
-----
So ends the first day of the Trial. It is roughly noon and the next session does not begin until the following morning. What would you like to do?
Once the group is back together and alone, Firavel speaks. "Wow... that was boring. Remind me to ask the guards to kill me rather than put me through a trial," he says with a sigh.
"In any case, now that this part is over, we might want to follow the rest of the trail we discovered earlier while you guys were law-talking. In fact, it seems there may be a connection between the Morast crimes presented today and the Karb Isle ones. Recall the vial of bleach? Vorkstag and Grime seem to be the connection. And that's where we wish to... visit. Them being some kind of skin-walkers, for lack of a better term."
"We thought it best to have everyone together before heading there... This will likely turn violent very quickly."
"Lycanthropes? We should probably pick up some silver blanche before we make our move. Mithias, do you know how to make it? Is there a shop in town we can pick up some supplies?"
"Lycan-whats? No they literally walk around in other people's skin."
"Oh. Not like werewolves? You mean they- Oh that's just gross. I guess that explains the skinned face we found. Is that what all the business about the surgical tools is about?"
"This is just getting more and more awful."
"That basically sums it up. Our source did warn us that there were more than just a few people involved so i think we need all the numbers we can, I didn't want to draw him out in the city but i think we need my 'friend' on this one."
"Probably a good idea. You might want to wait until we're staged near where these skinwalker things are holed up."
The Chymic Works is a large brick building with several chimneys blowing out colored smoke that rises into the sky before disappearing.
A large gate blocks the only apparent entrance into the building. Knocking and calling out results in a small malformed man sticking his head out of a second-story window that overlooks the gate. In a gravelly voice he calls down, "Yes, who is there? What time is your appointment?"
Jean glanced quickly at the others. He was not a good liar but he did know something about being angry and getting what you want.
"Appointment?! We don't have an appointment, but what we do have is gold and a desire to purchase the best equipment in town. So unless you want to be the one who tells your employers that you drove us and our business to a competitors shop, I suggest you let us in."
Jean hoped that the threat of lost business and angry employers would make the creature react more than think.
Sethis stays out of sight, hopefully in a nearby alley where he can summon his eidolon without anyone seeing.
Firavel keeps to the shadows, staying out of sight and looking around, casing the joint, to see if there are other methods of entry.
The little man looks confused, "Er, what? Equipment? But.. but we don't sell any equipment. Do you mean you want to talk about what equipment you need to store the chemicals?"
"That's right. Are we in the wrong place?"
Firavel steps forwards. "Come now, my good man. This is foolish conducting a conversation by shouts. Let us in and we can talk like civilized men. We're all in the business of chemistry after all. One of the most civilized of professions."
"Chemicals... Right, yes. We've uh... come to deal with your knowledge in chemicals."
Jean was seemed embarrassed and looked away from the little man, he was obviously back-pedaling from his initial aggressive attempt to gain entry and trying to replace it with a Firavel's more docile approach.
The man looks continues to look perplexed, but responds, "Well, let me see if the boss is available." He ducks his head back inside.
A few minutes later the gate opens and reveals the man who spoke to you from the second story room. He wears a dark smock that is covered in various patches and old stains. His garment covers his back which juts out with weird humps and bumps, as well as his right shoulder that is significantly higher than the other. He bows low before you and ushers you inside the gate, closing it behind you.
"Welcome, welcome. Please come into the office, Grand Sirs, one of our owners is happy to spare a moment for you."
He leads you into a small room containing a long table and several chairs. A pitcher of water and glasses have been placed on the table. Another of the malformed men stands near another door that apparently leads into the main building. This one has strange scales covering part of his face and head, giving him a distinctly reptilian appearance on that side of his body.
A few seconds pass before the door opens. A man enters followed by another of the men, this one with an oversized left hand. The man stands at the head of the table and takes a moment to look over each of you. "So, my employee tells me that you have an urgent matter to discuss with me. I am one of the principals, what can I do for you?"
What you find most surprising is that you have seen this man before - you followed him to The Flying Griffon after the riots last night...
Sethis follows the man seemingly oblivious to the their appearance while keeping the Wyldling outside, hidden in a nearby alley way, waiting.
"Thank you for seeing us on such short notice. My friend can provide the details better than I but suffice it to say we are in an unfortunate rush to locate a suitable source capable of providing certain chemicals in quantity."
Jean wasn't entirely sure what to do at this point. He had only ever dealt with real monsters before now. Normally, he could act as he was trained to and slay them without any source of confusion or hesitation. But these were men. If what the young man had said was true, and Jean was fairly certain he had been, then they had some evidence that these men, were in fact, monsters parading around in the skin of men! Not only that but he had followed these men the night before from the riots.
Jean didn't like this situation at all. He did not want to break the laws of the city and knew if he drew his blade, unprovoked, he would be in the wrong here. He also knew that these... monsters would use that to their advantage and would not so easily show their true nature. At best they had testimony from a witness who was not likely to come out of hiding again and everything else they had was just circumstantial evidence. He could not just sit by and let their activities continue unchallenged.
"Yes, we have heard of your specialty in dealing with chemicals. Mithias, the vial if you would. Could you identify this for us?"
"Indeed, I am Augustus Heiger, one of the principals of this establishment. I understand you have questions about properly storing certain chemicals?"
He glances at the offered vial, then takes it and sniffs lightly. After a moment, he responds, "It appears to be residue from a potion that confers darkvision upon the drinker - the ability to see in darkness."
"Like how dwarves see? Handy. This place is pretty well lit though, even at night. Wonder why someone would want something like that."
Jean glanced at the man quickly but he didn't catch any hidden motive behind him. He then moved onward.
"Well it seems you are quite exceptional indeed. This is good, now, before we get down to business we also came across several other things we would like you to examine for us. The first is a case of tools, pristine quality but possibly with some other trace chemicals we would like you to identify." Jean paused for a moment, hit with a sudden inspiration.
He was able to hide his reaction from the vial, it's not an unusual thing for him see or make. But the mask... no one would react normally to seeing that kind of mask. He wouldn't likely be able to hide from the direct approach.
"But that would likely take time in a lab. So we have another item to show you first. Mithias, the other item we found." Without turning his head Jean looked directly at the man, watching for any sign of reaction.
Mithias fishes out the leather mask,
"Ah yes, we came across this item in close proximity to the alchemical infusion. It appears to be a mask made from the face of a man. It's well cured and it was removed from its owner with surgical precision. You wouldn't happen to have run across anything of this sort previously?
Augustus looks at the mask for a moment, and a curious look passes across his face. He scans the faces of the heroes and says, "Indeed, I have seen ... similar ... items before."
His eyes narrow, and his formerly friendly manner changes, "Why don't you tell me what you really want?"
"Mostly we just want information. Don't suppose you're feeling chatty?"
"That depends on what you want to know, and whether or not we can make a deal that allows me to walk away unharmed after we finish talking."
It's clear he knows something... And it's clear that his primary motivation is his own safety.
"No matter what you are able to tell us, being helpful and honest to us would definitely be in your best interests. We'd like to avoid any unpleasantness as much as you would."
"You can start by telling us why it is in your best interest to see the Beast be convicted by either the courts or the people."
He looks at the door, then orders the mongrelmen out of the room. They comply quickly, and he closes the door behind them. Looking back at you, he quietly says, "That mask, I've seen something like it before. Without getting into great detail, I invested a substantial amount of money in this business, but I was not involved in the daily operations. It was only after I started asking questions that I realized the owners had some ... secrets."
"Apparently they were heavily involved in some cult activity. The cults had several rituals that were conducted while wearing the skin of others. I brought in my brother, Prosecutor Otto Heiger - perhaps you've heard of him? He investigated everything, and found that they were guilty of stupidity, and grave robbing, but nothing more than that."
"We got rid of the individuals, so I haven't seen them in a long time. But seeing the mask again... well, you're here, so that's the obvious tie in."
He looks at Jean, "Why is in my best interest? Because he's the Beast of Lepidstadt! What more interest do I need?"
"And that gives you reason to insight a riot?"
"Please, do you really think those idiots were going to accomplish anything? We set that whole thing up on purpose; a bunch of the locals were talking about getting a mob together. Me and a few of the other influential people in town decided to help them out. We gave them directions, spread the word about the time to gather, even told what to say. Then we told the City Watch everything."
"The locals got it out of their systems, and the City Watch got to throw their weight around. And best of all - business in Lepidstadt is BOOMING! Nobody wants to leave with so much excitement around The Beast! Everyone is going to stay in town until the end of this trial, and they're going to keep spending their money."
"It was just business. I've even got the letters I shared with my brother in which we discussed setting up the riots. Would you like to see them?"
Something about the man isn't right - you aren't sure, but there is something strange going on with Augustus Heiger.
"Yes, please." Leon said, gesturing for the man to lead the way. "We appreciate your candor."
Jean looked squarely at the... monster standing in front of him. Memories of the first truly insidious encounter Jean had dealt with came rushing back to him.
It was Dusk when Jean had entered the small town of Windom. The air was blowing lightly but it had seemed largely deserted. Just as he was about to decide whether he ought to leave, a group of people came up to him. The small handful of pale, frightened villagers had come begging him to deal with the bandits plaguing their town. Jean had been all too eager to help them back then.
"Show me where, but try not to get too close."
"They're near the old mines. There's only a few of them but they're vicious."
Maybe it had been the way the young girls eyes never moved off of him but something had definitely seemed wrong at the time. Still he couldn't just leave them. He moved ahead of the group following their instructions, as he did he began reaching into his pack for Alchemists fire and Holy Water.
"Heh, just a precaution. He muttered to himself.
When they arrived the villagers all stood back a ways, not immediately in sight of the door. He drew his sword and quietly opened the door. He had been expecting it to be lit inside but it was dark instead. His instincts told him danger was there but he couldn't see very well. The sudden rush of foot steps from behind him caused him to turn just in time to see the older male villager running at him. Apparently he had been sneaking up on Jean while his back was turned.
"Wha.. uugh?!"
Before he could fully react he was tackled and thrown down into the house... into a whole in the ground.
"Master! We have brought you food."
Jean hit his landing fairly well and managed to get to his feet. "What are you doing?!" He hadn't quite comprehended what had happened to him at that moment. He looked up and could only see the silhouette of the man standing in the last remnants of light. But from behind him came the echoing sound of heavy foot steps.
"Heh heh heh. You've done well, now come and restrain him. I want to take my time with this one." He couldn't see the disembodied voice in the dark but he knew it was close. Jean turned to face it but then heard the man jump down from above and land behind him. Worse, he could hear more running feat up above.
Jean wasn't the same as he was back then, he was wiser now, more wary about what people said. He was tired of playing mind games and had no intention of letting this thing out of the room.
"You're either lying or completely delusional, but judging from how your judging us, I'd go with the former. Either way, I'm not listening to another word you say."
With that, Jean drew his sword.
Leon was surprised, but he knew better than to question Jean's judgement when it came to ferreting out the truth of things.
Leon didn't move yet. He tensed and waited.