The Night Man tilts his head to look at Bjorn then speaks as the little girl, "Well, we have some pretty ribbons and bows that make us disappear, but you're a boy! You would get your boy dirt all over them!"
A buzz comes from the Night Man, and you slowly realize the sounds is really a multitude of voices speaking very quickly. It seems the voices are having a discussion.
The scholar voice emerges again, "As a sign of good faith, we shall give you this: our mutual friends left the city a week ago. So while your concern about being watched may be justified, you likely have more freedom than you realize."
"That's both good and bad news," Alexei muses, then returns to thinking over their offer.
"Why is it bad news? That means they won't be watching us right?"
"Oh that makes sense." Lucius nods.
"And a week away with the Warden's soul," Alexei whispers, still frowning hard.
"Agreed," Korvus adds his consent to Bjorn's. "But I do find the fact that our quarry were in Lepdistadt until less than a week before the museum robbery to be a rather suspicious coincidence..."
Alexei sighs, but grudgingly nods. "If you are every bit as honorable as you claim, then we shall assist you," he says to the Night Man. A hard look comes over his face, and he continues in a deadly serious voice, "It will be hard for you to work from the Way once we uproot and destroy them, so I apologize in advance for taking away one of your clients." Though the claim is grandiose, the Chelaxian looks like he is completely serious about his intention to decimate the Whispering Way.
"Yea, we need the help right? You got a deal then."
The Night Man nods once, then the room goes dark. Even those with enhanced vision cannot see anything.
As quickly as the darkness fell, vision returns as the lamps brighten the dim room. The Night Man is nowhere to be seen.
"Gotta admit, that was different. Does this kind of thing usually happen?"
Harold takes another drag of his cigar as he contemplates again, not one of his strongest suits but he can get the old brainpan firing when he needs it too, "Well since we're not supposed ter come aaaht an' say what we know i' was someone else first ov all, I'd say we should probably pursue da most obvious caaahrse fer anyone else what 'appens ter be watchin' us an' look in'er da 'Beast' angle. If deese Freelancers either made use ov awer are workin' wiv da 'Beast', we should check i' aaaht first. That may lead ter mawer breadcrumbs that'll take us further in aaahr search. At da same time, we probably could check in'er any uvver strange fngs goin' on abaaaht town. As part ov aaahr investigashun, ov caaahrse. If anyone new moved in, somebody might ov noticed a change in activi'y somewhere in town." The half-orc taps out another section of his cigar as he grins at Lucius, "Those what operate in da shadows can be a might bi' eccentric. No worries though, they usually keep their word in matters ov business. Now then, we probably should get some sleep an' get ready ter see da Judge later in da morn. Wouldn't do ter keep da Honor waiting."
"That's putting it mildly. I hope you're right on that second part."
Harold nods at Lucius, " Let me tell yew one ov da only good pieces ov advice me muvver ever gave me, 'Don't ever fully trust anybody unless yew got their balls in yaaahr 'and an' a sharp knife 'andy.'"
"I get it, I think." Lucius replies to the graphic comment.
Alexei pales slightly. "I am rather pleased that I have not met your mother, Harold," he says, uncomfortable. "But yes, we should turn in for the night. Good night, gentlemen." The oracle returns to his room, removes his armor and hops into bed, sleeping well for the first time since they left Ravengro.
Korvus nods in agreement with Harold's assessment of the situation and retires for the night, noting the day's events - minus any mention of the meeting with the Night Man - in his journal before going to sleep.
Early the next morning, guards bang on your doors to rouse you, indicating that you are to accompany them to meet with the Town Magistrate and Captain Ollwind regarding your status.
After some grumbling, you are placed in a carriage and rushed through the town back to the same building where you met with the Captain the previous evening. As you come around a corner, you see something that you did not notice last night - a massive wooden figure has been erected outside the courthouse. It seems to resemble a humanoid figure, except that it has a metal cage in the center of its abdomen.
Your carriage enters the underground yard again, but this time, you are led through different doors and into a large room where you are told to divest yourselves of equipment. You are told that you are going to meet Judge Daramid, head Judge of Lepidstadt, and nobody is allowed in her chambers with arms or armor.
After entering the chamber, you see rows of benches rising up all around you, with three massive chairs behind large desks at the far end of the room. In the center of the room, a circle made of granite has been laid into the wooden flooring. Runes are carved into the granite, though they appear mundane in nature.
At the far end of the room, Captain Ollwind stands in front of and to the side of the center desk. A woman with a long face and pointed nose sits perfectly upright on the other side. The dark robes she wears indicate her position. Looking around, you see that only Ollwind and Judge Daramid are in the room with you.
The woman's voice cracks like a whip, "Thank you for coming. I understand you are here for several reasons, some of which may be dispensed with immediately. If you are owed money, you shall receive it when you leave this chamber. I would also appreciate the book you were to deliver to me. Please give it to the Captain after we are finished."
"Your situation is somewhat troubling, as any association with the crimes at the University invariably tie you to the Beast. As such, it is only a matter of time before the common folk learn of that association, and consider taking matters into their own hands. I have no doubt that you can take care of yourselves, especially if you were scions of Petros Lorrimor. That said, I will not knowingly allow my city to become ruled by mob justice and vigilantes. Captain Ollwind has proposed an interesting solution, and after some consideration, I want you to hear it for yourselves."
Captain Ollwind, facing you the entire time, gives you a wink while the Judge continues.
"Currently, you are scheduled to have a trial immediately after we finish with the Beast. Until that time, you have two choices. You can either spend it in the city jail waiting for your turn, or you can join the defense team of the Beast."
"If, by some miracle, you are able to prove its innocence of the crimes against it, I will have no choice but to set it free. Since the Prosecutor has not charged it with the museum theft, the Beast's involvement in that affair will be expunged. And if that monster is cleared of the heist, your records will be cleared as well by default. If the Beast is guilty, the Captain already has your statements and proof that you were not involved, and after the Beast is destroyed, the mob will subside, the charges against you will be dismissed, and you will walk free."
"Rest assured, I also have my own reasons for wanting you to take this on. I have absolutely no doubt that every citizen of Lepidstadt wants the Beast to burn for crimes real or imagined. But I want to be absolutely sure that we are condemning the right criminal to death. I have no problem sending a man... or Beast... to Punishment, but I have not fought against injustice my whole life just to turn a blind eye to it now. I want to be as certain as I can be that this Beast actually committed the crimes of which it is accused, and to be blunt, I don't trust anybody in this whole city - present company excluded - to actually try to find the truth. As outsiders, I believe you may be more inclined to actually look where others would not."
"But to show that I am also generous with those who help me protect the law in Lepidstadt - if you agree to help with the defense, not only are you offered the protection of this Court, but upon the trial's completion, you shall each receive 300 platinum coins, regardless of the outcome."
"What do you say?"
The smirk on Captain Ollwind's face is almost enough to make you scream. Apprently this is his brilliant plan - go to jail, or become the barristers.
-----
I have to say, I'm starting to like the Captain. :)
Alexei looks slightly dumbstruck. "...You want us to represent it?" he asks, the sheer ridiculousness of the situation sapping him of his better judgment. The Sarenraen begins to stroke his beard, unsure of how to handle this situation.
Korvus allows himself a small smile as Judge Daramid finishes making her offer to the group. "Your Honor, we would consider it a privilege to accept this duty and join the defense team for The Beast," the half-orc wizard declares. "Of course, I assume we will be allowed to interview the creature as part of our investigation?"
"Well I did want to see the Beast. I mean, did you want to sit in jail, Bjorn? I'm in." Lucius fails to hide his enthusiasm.
Harold holds up a hand to calm Bjorn, "Not all those deemed monsters are guil'y ov what they stand accused. Sometimes folks' prejudices an' ignorance 'eap imagined crimes on 'em simply cause i' is easier ter blame somethin' what appears so differen' awer 'ideous van ter believe i' might 'ave been done instead by one ov 'emselves. I've been on da uvver side ov such accusashuns befawer simply cause I was da biggest, meanest, an' ugliest bastard on da streets. Don't mean I did 'alf ov what they thought I did but I got blamed fer i' all da same." The half-orc's voice carries with it the hint of long buried injuries that give his words the touch of personal conviction.
The big man turns to the Judge and Captain as he fingers his bowler hat in his hands, "If we are supposed ter defend dis 'Beast', I take i' what i' ain't a wild beast wiv little in da way ov reason? Be best ter put da fn' down if i' can show little understandin' ov its acshuns uvverwise."
The Judge nods as several of you begin accepting the assignment. "Master Grimsley, I believe the creature is capable of rational thought, or as you say, we would simply put it down as we would a rabid dog."
"Assuming all of you accept, I will have you registered with the clerk of the court. Barrister Gustav Kaple is currently in charge of the creature's defense. He is currently in his office on the third floor of this building. I suggest meeting with him as soon as you are finished here. I assume he would have no problem with you meeting the Beast, but he would be the one to permit it as the Lead Defender in this case."
"Are there any other questions for us?"
"Nope. I can't wait."
Alexei nods, still looking unsure. "I suppose all we can do is try, at this point."
Harold nods in agreement, "We'll do it."
"Excellent, Barrister Kaple is upstairs."
Captain Ollwind leads you to a staircase and leads you upward. You quickly ascend and head toward an office in the rear of the building. He opens the door and ushers you inside.
An older man sits behind a desk covered in folders and papers. He is bald and the bags under his eyes indicate a lack of sleep. Despite his appearance, he quickly scans each of you as you enter his office.
"Barrister, these are your new assistants for your case with the Beast. They are very motivated to help, and excellent investigators."
Ollwind turns to the group and grins, "Good luck." He quickly leaves and closes the door behind him.
Barrister Kaple leans back and steeples his fingers, "I guess I don't want to know how that conniving Captain got you involved in this. But if you are here, I'm going to use you."
He leans forward again and indicates the chairs in his office for you to sit. "To brief you on the current situation - our client has been charged with three crimes. Any of them individually could see a penalty of death, but the prosecutor is covering his rear by bringing all three crimes at the same time. His case is solid - there are witnesses to each of the crimes. I've interviewed each of them, and they are not lying. Despite the mob mentality that some people have, the witnesses are not simply making up their stories, so they are going to be difficult to fight against in the courtroom.""
"While my duty is to defend my client to the best of my ability, the evidence is overwhelmingly against the Beast. What I need from you is to find anything you can to create doubt in the mind of the justices. But it has to be real evidence, no fabrications or elaborate stories of fanciful magic. Facts alone are the only salvation the creature has left."
"But time is of the essence. The preliminary hearing was yesterday, and the trial begins in earnest tomorrow. Whatever you can do must be done as soon as possible. The evidence from the Morast killings will be the first presented, so that should be your first stop."
"Now, what questions do you have for me?"
After being escorted to Kaple's office, Alexei enters the room, a look of combined curiosity and worry on his face. His first look at the Barrister gives him the sense that the man has a tremendous load on his shoulders, and the man's explanation reinforces that judgment. However, the oracle is impressed by how knowledgeable the Lawyer sounds, and feels a bit of pity for the man to be stuck in this situation. "Well, if his crimes were witnessed, and the witnesses aren't lying about him committing them, how could we ever disprove the Beast's guilt?" the bearded Chelaxian asks, looking a bit pained at having to pose such a question right off the bat.
Barrister Kaple stares at Alexei, then allows a small smile to form. "That is precisely why I love my job!"
"I have seen nearly everything in my years of service to the court, and I tell you as sure as we are sitting here - even with such a strong case against us, there are still ways to create doubt in the minds of the judges."
"I suggest you speak with the people who will testify against us. Take what they say, examine it, and see if you can discover anything we can question about their stories. After all, we don't have to prove they are lying to win. We just have to give the judges enough of a reason to find in our favor."
Harold grunts acknowledgement to the Barrister as he listens quietly to the case against the Beast. The cards seem stacked in favor of the Beast's guilt but the half-orc shakes his head at Alexei's statement, "Say yew didn't know me an' saw me a 'undred feet down da street kneelin' down beside a body wiv a fresh pool ov blood coolin' under it. I 'ad me sword aaaht an' was touchin' da body befawer 'earin' somethin' an' runnin' off. Now usually, if I didn't come back ter explain myself, yew couldn't be thought wrong in'er believin' I was da one who killed da fellow an' was makin' sure 'e was dead when in reality, I 'ad 'eard a scream, drew me weapon an' ran ter see what 'appened. When I found a body there, me first reacshun was ter see if da geezer could be saved then I 'eard what I thought was da murderer an' ran off in chase. Maybe somethin' similar 'as 'appened 'ere thuff free cases ov such does make a tall order ter swallow in one sitting."
Harold leans against the barrister's desk as he points at the paperwork, "Now what abaaaht da Morast killings yew was talkin' bout? We need all da grit'y details as we're new in town."
Alexei looks thoughtful as he considers Harold's example. He waits to hear what the Barrister has to say about the killings, while stroking his beard in thought.
Kaple flips open a folder and lays it out in front of him. "Let's see. A village elder, Lazne, is the prosecution's witness. He says that several people were killed around the village, and the town eventually formed a group to trap whatever was attacking them. They claim to have caught the Beast late one night, but it broke free of its restraints and fled into the swamp."
"I believe Lazne is coming into town tomorrow, so you can probably find him in Morast today."
"What so you know about Lazne? What's his deal?"
"The people were apparently beaten to death, though in nearly all of the cases, no bodies were found. It has been suggested that the Beast consumed them, though no actual proof of that exists."
He flips through the file for minute, "All of them were simple villagers from Morast, nobody special."
"Lazne is an elder of the village, one of the oldest members of his community, and something of a leader, though he is not elected or appointed. The villagers respect seniority, and so he is heeded by many for his wisdom and advice. But he has lived his entire life in Morast. He knows everyone there, and is related by blood or marriage to most of them. My sense of him was that he is like many other uneducated villagers around Ustalav - superstitious, paranoid, and suspicious of outsiders."
Alexei looks incredulous. "So he actually didn't witness anything, then? That's a good start, at least. We definitely should speak to him, though. If we can find a chink in his logic, we can surely convince others that his testimony is not as damning as it may sound!" The oracle's face begins to pick up as he realizes the job that has been foisted upon him and his companions may not be as impossible as he had thought.
"And there's no proof that they even died."
Harold nods as he taps his chin with a sausage-sized index finger, "How far away is dis village? And 'ave yew talked ter da 'Beast' abaaaht its side ov da story on deese charges? Does i' even speak da Common tongue?"
Glancing at Alexei, "Not exactly true - remember, he and his fellow villagers caught the Beast in a trap, and he got a good look at it as they chased it into the swamp. At any rate, his physical description of the Beast was enough to convince the prosecutors of his veracity. And furthermore, the tracks left by the Beast as it fled from the villagers matched those found near the scenes where the others were killed."
Looking over to Lucius, "Unfortunately, the circumstantial evidence indicates they are dead."
Barrister Kaple arches an eyebrow at Harold, "And there is my challenge - I think the Beast can understand me, but it has not responded to any of my attempts at communication. Once we're done here, I'll take you down to meet the creature. If you can get it to talk, then so much the better."
Alexei nods, a bit of the wind taken out of his sails, but still enthusiastic. "That would be for the best," he says.
"Well, there goes that theory. Yea, let's try to speak to the beast.'
Kaple nods and stands up. "Follow me."
He leads you out of his office and to a stairway leading down. He proceeds to the bottom floor and opens an iron door flanked by two guards. Inside the room you see a towering abomination siting in an iron chair, bound with no less than a dozen sets of manacles. Stitching holds together this grotesque patchwork of flesh and bone, beast and man, though the wires are so taut they look as though they may fly apart at any moment. Its mouth is twisted in a permanent sneer, and a shock of lank, dark hair clings to its scalp. The creature slumps in its chair, a despondent expression upon its monstrous face. An iron cage surrounds the creature, and you are kept at least fifteen feet away from its reach.
Barriester Kaple steps forward, and in a pleasant voice greets the Beast, "Good morning. Are you prepared to aid in your defense yet? We must speak about it if we are going to have a chance at saving you."
Getting no reaction, Kaple turns to you, "See, as I said, no communication. Perhaps you will have better luck. I am returning to my office to continue my preparation, please come see me when you are finished here."
He exits the room, leaving you alone with the Beast of Lepidstadt.
Alexei looks the Beast over, a bit taken aback at it's body. "Well, seems it's as interested in us as we are in it, though," the Chelaxian states, having noticed it sneaking a glance at him and his compatriots. Gesturing to each of them, and then bowing slightly, the oracle says, "Well then, I am Alexei Dawnreach, and my friends and I, here, will be assisting Barrister Kaple in your defense."