"They saw us with you... well the Foxglove that wasn't foxglove. I don't know if you two will be safe here by yourselves. You could come with us to an inn, or we could stay here. We have our bedrolls." Cleo asks and thinks aloud.
Bacon is no longer giving off excellent smells and is very happy.
Feeling more and more stupid, Brelin starts to think aloud
This house was probably being watched, it was too much of a coincidence that he passed here right when we arrived. Also...
She uses this time to tell the group about the needle he found.
This has poison in it, it's called Blue Whinnis, a knockout poison. She shows them the needle Could it be from some type of weapon? Just some way to administer the poison to an unaware victim?
She turns to the sisters
Any idea how it got there?
"Where did you find it?" Cleo asked, looking about the room, worried about needles all over the place now.
Time to check the place out Furnok makes little notes with numbers and says things like 'Enhance' an 'Focus' as he scans for threats
Cleo thinks the poisoned needle could potentially have religious significance, but in the same way that songbirds are significant to Shelyn, or bees to Calistria. There are gods of poison, but it's unclear who or what it would mean.
We could go to the Desnan temple. I have a letter of introduction. That MIGHT help us get an audience with someone we could talk to about all this. We could find out if there have been any other murders similar to this in Magnimar recently, ask them about this Xanesh person etc....They might be a good source of information. I'd rather talk with them than the city watch.
I found it out side, on a wall
Brelin suddnly gets (more) suspicious and peeks out the window
Do you think we're still being watched now?
Brelin doesn't notice anyone trying to spy on them.
Despite the terrible day, the trip into Keystone is surprisingly pleasant. None of the guards seem to be interested in the party, even when they make their way to the tower. They pay the fee of five gold pieces to use the elevator from the top of Naos to the bottom of Lowcleft. A group of strong men lower the wooden platform through an intricate system of pulleys until the party reach the bottom, at least 300 feet below.
Lowcleft seems to be quite different from the Naos district. One clear feature is how colourful and vibrant the buildings are. Despite being made of stone, most of these buildings have scarves draping from the balconies, magical lights illuminating in many different colours as people approach. It becomes a bit more clear what this district is about when the party walk past The Courtesan and Unicorn, a brothel with curvy Varisian dancers wearing thin silk outfits.
The Cobbled Shield weaves through a small crowd of workers getting off shift and immediately walking into Lowcleft. Past them, the party enters Keystone. Much more relaxing than Lowcleft, Keystone looks pretty tame with its wood and stone buildings, parks, and places of worship. There are several temples and shrines here. Cleo spots the signature wooden lodge with a pair of antlers mounted on the wall, holding a bow between them. A short ways away lies an old and full graveyard, with the church of Pharasma centered in it. Several blocks down from there is a circular two-story building, made of simple stonework. Four entrances, each at a quarter-length of the circle, open up into hallways on either side, and a large courtyard in the center. From above, it would look like a ring made of stone. The courtyard is covered with partially wild flowers and grasses. This is the temple of Desna, known as Cynosure Tower.
There are many acolytes that live in or frequent the temple, but the priestess is an old and wise woman. Bevallu Zimantiu is her name, and she is known for having the power to bring back the dead, should they be willing.
Well this is a refreshing change. Plus this city looks like it could have a dozen Sandpoints in it.
"It is... something. That is what it is." Cleo worries they'll get swallowed by the entire thing by making a single wrong turn.
Cleo bows to the head priestess, introducing herself as a cleric of Erastil, and each of her friend's by their names and whatever titles they have come up with, even Aggah the always hungry.
"Wabbit, this is when you'd give the nice lady your letter."
With the nudge/kick in the rear from Cleo Wabbit hands over the letter
Brelin barely registers the city. She feels that all eyes are on them, scheming and plotting their demise
Still quite healthy given her age, priestess Zimantiu strides gracefully through the wild flowers. She has long white hair, spectacles, and a constant half-smile. Her eyes seem ever curious, always trying to piece together who she sees.
"Greetings to all, and a special hello to you, Ms Mvashti." Zimantiu says when looking Brelin in the eyes. "You look much like your mother Niska. I knew her before Sandpoint was founded, like it was yesterday. How does she fare? Or has she passed away now?"
"Stars guide you on this pleasant evening, to what end?" Asks Zimantiu. Wabbit hands her the letter, which she peers over her spectacles with. "Abstalar is such a kind man. I wish he could get out more and see the world."
"Welcome, heroes." She says after reading the letter. "I will do anything I can to aid you in your journey. What obstacles on your path do you desire to overcome?"
Wabbit tells the story of Aldern, Iesha the terrible house and ritual murders.. The letter from some Xanesh person here in Magnimar and the horrible murders just outside the city. have there been any murders like that before in this city? Have you heard of this Xanesh person?
oh...and then we get inside the city. And some Aldern doppelganger lures us into a house and almost fireballs us to a crisp
It's a long story, long enough that Zimantiu has tea brought for anyone who wants it. She sits down at a table in the open, and listens to the entire story told by everyone who wants to participate. Amaya is paying full attention to Wabbit, now that she gets to hear the entire adventure. Ameiko explains a few parts from her understanding, such as when Foxglove was in the Rusty Dragon inn. It's an insane story, one that most people would consider beyond belief. Zimantiu asks questions throughout. It's clear that she disapproves of some of it, such as the dark ritual, but never outright judges anyone's actions. With everyone's story told, and with evidence such as the letters, keys, etc, Zimantiu believes the party.
Now with the sun setting, candles are brought out to the table.
Priestess Zimantiu starts answering questions.
"I have never heard of Xanesh, or Xanesha, but it sounds like a Varisian name, although not a common one. There used to be grisly murders in this city, but no longer. Now the city suffers more from missing people. It has gotten quite drastic, with people missing every week or so. The guards have been searching for months now, and no one's turned up."
You look much like your mother Niska. I knew her before Sandpoint was founded, like it was yesterday. How does she fare? Or has she passed away now?
Brelin doesn't let her guard down and tries to disguise the look of grief that immediately comes to her face She's doing fine. Just fine
She keeps to herself during the day, slowly warming up to the priestess
The news of the missing people interest her though
Did anyone found who was doing the killings? Any of the missing person managed to return?
The story of your adventures does sound insane, Cleo thinks, and rather worrisome.
Cleo looks at Brelin, her own face becomes a mask of concern for her friend, patting her gently on her arm.
"Is there any kind of pattern for the disappearances? It might be connected to our search, but either way, we can look into it... not that we'd have any better luck than the authorities."
Zimantiu apologises to Brelin. "I'm sorry. Please let me know if you need anything."
On the topic of missing persons, she answers "I can't say I know much about it, but I don't think they found the killer. It just turned from killings into abductions. None have escaped or survived, as far as I know. All I can tell you is that none of my acolytes have been victims of the attacks. I think the only church that was targeted were the Abadarians."
Do you think the Abadarians would be willing to talk with us if we came offering help?
"It gives us a place to start at least." Cleo looks over to the little girl they've tangled up in all this now "Mess Zimantiu could Amaya and Ameiko stay here for a little while, I'm worried whoever tried to kill us may try to do the same to them. If that is okay with them of course"
"No. I wanna go back home." Amaya says defiantly. Ameiko closes her eyes and breathes in.
"They are welcome if they want to." Zimantiu replies. "I don't know if you will be able to help each other, but I will cast some spells to receive guidance. Could you please meet me here again by sunrise?"
If you really want to get back home, we should secure your house. Check the rooms and make sure windows and doors are locked and you two should stick together
The Cobbled Shield makes their way back to the Kaijitsu estate . While definitely night time, the numerous street lamps and magical lights keep everything much brighter than what the group is used to in Sandpoint. Voices are constantly heard from around corners and behind open windows. Some of them laugh, some of them gossip, some of them moan, and some of them sing.
Just as the group is nearing the estate, they're approached by four men and a woman. The men are dressed in half-plate armour bearing the arms of Magnimar, while the woman is dressed in robes with the same arms. They each bear a longsword at their hip, along with gear such as manacles. The woman also possesses a spell component pouch.
One of the men initiates the conversation. Unlike the others, he wears lighter armour and wields a rapier. "Good evening, folks. Where are we heading on this fine night?"
These are elite guards of Magnimar called the Honour Guard, sometimes just called the H.G. Normally they are sworn to protect the Justices and the Lord-Mayor, but they're sometimes sent on missions that regular guards are ill-equipped to handle. They're a mix of traditional melee combatants, spellcasters specializing in abjuration or enchantment magic, and investigators. Unlike most, members of the HG are forbidden from divine magic in an effort to remain loyal to the nobility.
It's known that the HG and the Nailknights (Hellknights) step on each other's toes constantly, who in turn step on the toes of the Iomedeans and Abadarians. It can be a real judicial nightmare to determine who has jurisdiction. It depends not only on location, but also on what matter.
Generally, regular guards focus on keeping the peace inside the city. They're meant to handle drunks, thugs, and the odd brigand. Nailknights are meant to operate as shock troops outside the city, usually in the wilds or on the road. Iomedeans handle evil and undead threats, and work with the Pharasmins regularly. Abadarians focus on collecting taxes and stomping out thieves' gangs. None of these ever function even remotely as clear cut as that.
Furnok lets their silver tongued paladin handle this
we're just escorting this young lady back to her home in the Kaijitsu manor over there. I hope all is well on this beautiful night
Wabbit engages his evil-dar determined not to be fooled by some fake uniforms
Wabbit senses that two of the men possess a faint aura of evil. Neither of them are the man currently speaking to Wabbit.
The man speaking to them seems to accept Wabbit's answer. "I'm afraid it isn't all well. We're currently investigating the murder of two nobles, Lord and Lady Foxglove. Witnesses say that a group of mercenaries left the scene after the house exploded and was set aflame."
Oh dear! Such disaster. Hopefully the fire was kept from harming more people.
Cleo keeps her mouth shut, since she is crap at lying. Her cheeks get all red and her eyes can't stay on the person she is talking to, unless she concentrates REALLY hard and then she looks freakish, with staring bulging eyes.
Wabbit feels uncomfortable and oily at the thought of cooperating with a group of lawmen that contains evil members, understanding however that in this city evil men might actually be allowed in the watch.
it's interesting that you would be investigating the murder of Aldern and Iesha Foxglove as we know that both of them died in Sandpoint not long ago. It's interesting because we came to the city to investigate ritual murders and abductions occurring in this city and see how they are connected to similar ones in Sandpoint.
Wabbit pauses to read their reactions
why do I tell you all this freely? Because either you are a legitimate arm of the law in this city in which case we have nothing to fear from you. In fact, maybe we could help each other to prevent further murders and abductions from happening here and in Sandpoint.
OR... you may be a part of the group that has already tried to kill us since we've been in the city. Which would obviously present some difficulties.
Cleo prefers to deal with it this way as well. Not being a good liar or truly being involved in lies at all. She nods encouragingly to her cousin and looks for the men's reactions.
The man leading the conversation listens intently and waits before speaking. "I would like to hear your side of what transpired today, and the events leading up to it." He turns to the female guard wearing robes. "Saila, please contact the garrison. Ask them about recent updates from Sandpoint, as well as the Foxgloves. Then, do a sweep."
The woman takes out a bird figurine made of silver, writes a note on some parchment, and then animates the bird to send the message. Then she casts a spell. "We're not alone. The Varisian woman has a sensor around her."
She casts another spell, sending a spray of glitter over the party's heads. It catches something in its wake, a large, unblinking eye right over top of Brelin's head. As soon as it is detected, the eye implodes into a pile of gore and falls to the ground.
This is a version of the Scrying spell. Someone was able to see and hear everything that has transpired. It is unknown how long this spell has been active for.
Looking at the now visible pile of gore What the heck is that?
"A scrying sensor." The Saila answers. "Someone's been watching you with magic. It's a fairly powerful spell. Do you know about it?"
my guess would be whoever tried to blow us up and maybe connected to whoever killed our friends in the varisian caravan outside the city yesterday.... S
Does the name Xanesha mean anything to you?
Exploding, flying eyeballs. See new things every day
Though the others don't notice, Furnok sees Saila's eyes widen at the sound of Xanesha's name. She knows something.
The man says "Sir, would you be willing to come back with us to the tower and give full details of what happened? I think this is enough that it should be in writing."
A silver bird flies over to Saila and perches. She reads the note attached, and says "They received a letter from Mayor Deverin in Sandpoint. Allegedly Lord Aldern Foxglove turned into an undead and... killed his wife and wiped out all the farmlands in the region?? A Furnok of Ferd rose from the grave to save the town, along with a Wabbit the Halfling, Cleo Gingerberry, Brelin Mvashti, Helgarr the Shoanti, and Wilhim the Gnome. They killed Foxglove, but not before several people died."
The man replies "Okay, we need to get this story written down. We should have a team conduct an autopsy of the Foxgloves. They may be impostors."
"There were corpses?" Cleo finally says, in a bit of shock from exploding eyeball. "The house was a trap set to kill us, but it didn't occur to me that they would sacrifice themselves to do it. I didn't think... again." she mutters the last word.
Cleo is tired "We will come. Maybe we should have done that first thing." the 'not before several people died' echoing in her ears. As they depart, Cleo will try and catch the guardswoman "Salia, was it? You've heard the name Xanesha, before?"
Rather hard to examine charcoal Furnok thinks.
The man says "Sir, would you be willing to come back with us to the tower and give full details of what happened? I think this is enough that it should be in writing."
Yes, I'm willing to go to the tower with you and answer whatever questions you have. If you happen to be a part of the group that tried to kill us...then you've done a masterful job and completely fooled me, well done. I guess I'll truly know when you release me with my head intact.