Edoardo purses his full lips in thought. "Well, I could-" His words are cut off by the harsh clangor of the iron bell of the Temple. Edoardo's eyes widen, and he surveys the city below, as if to locate the problem. "I am sorry my friends, I must attend to the Ember if an emergency is being declared."
Visibly twitching at the loud noise and twisting around to look for some unknown danger. Sucking in rapid and shallow breaths.
Ibinu exclaims, "Oh no, what sort of unknown danger could that be! Maybe we can help!"
Observing Kallik, then Ibinu, Edoardo's face stays carefully neutral. Over his shoulder, he mutters a quick phrase in Ifrit that is difficult to hear. In a cautious tone, he says, "Perhaps I will hear more of what your problem is being." His Ifrit accent grows thicker; he seems distracted, or nervous. He gestures for you to descend to the next landing.
"I trust Ee-nam, and I am trying to extend that trust to you." His eyes flicker to Fiordelise, as if truly noticing this stranger for the first time, but he decides not to say anything. "I request the truth, now, or I will be helping Ee-nam while you are being escorted for questioning."
Ibinu let's out a sigh. "Okay, so Inam is in some trouble. She told me that So Khong invited her to his quarters and then attacked her. She defended herself and he died. She didn't know who to trust to go to with what happened. Immediately after that we got dragged into a dangerous case of Temple corruption, which makes it even harder to find someone to trust plus we were concerned about an ongoing danger to the Temple and Town." He takes a deep breath and continues, "that investigation originally started several weeks ago. We had taken it to Master Ly Van who advised he would look into things. Then today we found him almost dead at the hands an Elen that had been experimented on with forbidden magics. We followed that Elen who tracked down the one responsible for the experimentation. Inam is currently with that person attempting to figure out what is going on and requested your assistance with both things."
Crossing her arms and turning to glare at Ibnui before he starts talking. Watching the sylph pour out information before speaking up, "Inam defended herself and that is her right. You have Inquisitors torturing people and trapping theirs souls in their bodies so they cannot find peace. That was from the lips of the Inquisitor Inam is with."
Edoardo suddenly seems very tired. Fine lines of worry make themselves known, and his vibrant red skin pales by several shades. Softly, he says, "And that is why you came here, and that is the trouble Ee-nam is in. I see." He nods to himself.
Looking at Ibinu, he speaks decisively. "I just need to tell my comrades that I am going. Then, you will lead the way." He shakes his head. "Volcano help us."
Edoardo speaks to the other guards. It becomes heated for a few moments, but ultimately Edoardo has the final word. With a grim look on his face, he motions the three of you to go. The blare of the iron bell accompanies you.
On the way down the steps, he looks to Fi. "And who are you in all this?"
Fiordelise looks to Edoardo. "I am Fiordelise of House Incarna, I am here because I trust Inam. I do not seek to call the temple my enemy but I have seen the enemies within it and do not extend my trust to it."
A content smile creeps across Kallik's lips at Fiordelise's words. Turning quickly while responding to Edoardo, "Try not to take to long."
Quickly walking to the door and out into the hall. More than once stopping in her journey to look around and clearly trying to remember where she is planning on going. Finally the door she wants is in sight. Walking into her shared quarters and looking for the wash basin/pedestal thing that is there.
"Where is she going now?"
Kallik cleans the blood off of her hands. The water in the basin turns a light red as the last remains of the ifrit swirl in complex patterns. The black stain on her fingernails, however, remains.
Kallik stomps to Inquisitor Ly Van Sinh's chambers. The inquisitor is still resting in his bed from the earlier altercation with the dead undine. Bian, the young undine who makes up the fourth in your group, is sitting on the floor and playing a card game with Egret.
The very young, very thin sylph child turns toward the door as it opens. She stands up, and is about to run toward Kallik, but stops dead in her tracks. Cringing away, she says in a small voice, "Sissy, are you mad at me? What did I do?"
Ibinu follows along, letting Kallik enter the Inquisitor's chambers first.
Bian looks almost accusingly toward Kallik. "Why are you back so soon? The iron bell is ringing!"
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Kallik stands there furiously scubbing at her hands but the black stain will not come off! Letting out a little growl before taking the time to remove any of the blood that got on her clothing and armor. Alternating between breath slowly in attempts to calm down and the rapid breathing of nearly losing her temper again.
As much of the signs of battle are removed as possible. Turning to leave and honestly seeming surprised that there are other elen in the room for a moment. Locking her hands into tight fists and looking at Fiordelise and clearly trying to keep her voice even, "You mentioned healing. Is that still an option?"
-----
Swift strides bring her back to Egret and she looks stricken at the way Egret stays back. Locking her hands behind her back. Shooting a glare at Bian then looking back at Egret and shaking her head, "Never. You have done nothing wrong."
Keeping her place near the door and sounding a little broken, "I wanted to make sure you were still safe and you are."
Fingers twitching while locked together behind her back and the muscles in arms are shaking. Unlocking her hands and holding out only one to show the black stain to Egret while crouching down. Keeping the other hand behind her back and speaking in that same broken tone, "This got on me before I went to find you. Do you have any on.. on you?"
Egret is somewhat calmer now, but still clearly worried about you. She looks around on her arms and legs, but there is no sign of any black ichor. She shrugs. "I don't think so. What is it?"
Edoardo is looking out in the hallway as the iron bell continues to clang. "If we wish to meet up with your friends, we should be leaving now. A few more minutes, leaving will, eh, not be so easy."
Ibinu looks at Bian and Inquisitor Ly Van Sinh and quickly recaps. "So... we are in a tad bit of trouble. We followed the thing that caused his..." he motions to the Inquisitor, "injuries to find that Inquisitor Ky La was at least partially responsible for that thing's condition. Ky La, his companions and we were attacked by some sort of fire demon in the Steam Slums and while fleeing, Ky La was knocked unconscious. Inam and a the remainder of this lady's companions are with him trying to get more information." He motions to Fiordelise, then continues. "We are going with Eduoardo to try to figure out what happens next. Please fill in Ly Van Sinh when he awakens, we may need some Temple backing pretty soon."
Swallowing around nothing before responding, "Not sure yet but I just wanted to make sure you were still here and fine."
Standing back up and twisting her fingers together behind her back again, "I have to leave to finish something but I promise I will be back in a little while, ok?" Uncertainly overtakes her voice.
"Of course." Fiordelise is still rather confused as to what's going on, and about Kallik in general. But she calls forth the required energy and pushes it into her wounds
Egret nods. "Love you Sissy."
Edoardo takes you through some lesser-used corridors of the Temple. As always, the black-on-black obsidian hallways are slightly confusing and unsettling. The iron bell's loud song seems to echo throughout the entire Temple.
Edoardo curses softly as you round a corner. There is a small, doorless entryway to the outside, but there is a guard standing watch. As you approach, Ibinu and Kallik recognize Sophia, the guard that Ibinu saved from darkspawn corruption with his Blessed blood. The young ifrit's eyes still carry triangular burn-scars, but aside from that she is rather pretty.
"Ibinu? Kallik? Edoardo? Are you all okay?" Without thinking about it, she comes over and gives Ibinu a small hug.
Ibinu stands frozen for a second as the memories click, then slowly returns the hug. I'm glad I got so many hugs the last few weeks,
I could actually figure out how these work eventually!
"Um... thank you. Yes we are doing okay at the moment, though are in a hurry to go help our friend..." he stammers, looking to Eduardo for help.
Edoardo says, "Listen, these are, eh, extra-ordinary circumstances, si? Let's just, eh, allow our good friends to see to their emergency, okay?"
Nodding and mumbling, "You to little one."
---
Looking back and forth and then settling a glare at at Ibinu. Closing her eyes and taking a deep, hopefully calming breath, before speaking, "We're fine but in a hurry. If you could please excuse us we really do need to get going, it is important. Like most of things that we have had to do since getting here. You understand right? "
Sophia raises an eyebrow at Kallik's unexpected eloquence. Her eyes flick to Ibinu, and she smiles. "Sure, I understand."
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Once out the door Kallik looks over at Fiordelise, "See perfectly courteous." He voice is a mix of irritation and amusement.
----- ---
Reaching out and grabbing Ibinu by the arm and waving the others forward not intending to speak to Ibinu with others around beyond mumbling, "Just a moment.. please."
Tugging him backwards a little while glaring forward at the other two. Turning back to Ibinu and holding out a hand infront of his face, "That oread died in my arms and coughed this up. It did not wash off and something is wrong."
When he sees the fingers and hears the concern in her voice he rubs his forehead and takes a deep breath to calm himself, switching on investigator mode. "Alright, let me take a look." Inspecting the fingertips he looks for obvious medical or natural reasons for the staining first.
If nothing triggers he will consider the possibility it may be Arcane or Religious in nature.
If none of that matches anything he knows he will share the following educated guess.
"Kallik, is it possible this is some form of curse related to your rage? That it isn't something that came off that Ifrit you killed, but is because you allowed something a foothold into your soul by giving in to the anger and unleashing it?"
Edoardo quirks an eyebrow at this brief delay in their supposedly urgent task, but shrugs and turns to Fi. "So, eh, House Incarna, si? Weren't you caught up in all that crazy cose with Macario v'Manco?"
You certainly remember that Kallik's black claws sprouted before she attacked the ifrit.
This is not a natural phenomenon - you are certain of that. You seem to recall the black ichor that was spilling from the dead oread from earlier.
Which reminds you the four of you never did anything with that corpse, either - it is still in the obsidian cube where you originally fought it and put it to rest with Inam's tears. You are fairly confident that taking a sample of those remains could help you figure things out. As you are walking away from the Temple, you see that very cube about a hundred feet away.
"Yes, though I wish it were otherwise, I lost friends in that... chaos. The thing that was Macario seemed fixated on me especially." she fixes Edoardo with her gaze "Do not expect me to be a weak link, my sword is ready to defend myself and my city."
"Of course." Fiordelise is still rather confused as to what's going on, and about Kallik in general. But she calls forth the required energy and pushes it into her wounds [dice=Cure Moderate]2d8+4
Letting out a small sigh and briefly closing her eyes before opening them to stare at Fiordelise with no malice to be seen in her eyes while mumbling, "Thank you." Quickly though her fingers start twitching and she rushes out the door.
----
Jerking her hand back and glaring at Ibinu, This stain came from the oread not the thief. Him I was always going to find and return the favor." Grin lips twist into a malicious grin.
Holding her hand up again but keeping it nearer to her than Ibinu this time. Her grin fades quickly replaced by the now common glare, "This is something else and I thought you might be able to help. Or that you should know. I because I.." looking around and trying to glare at the world, "Something feels wrong."
Dropping her hand and shifting uncomfortably on her feet while looking down. Dispite looking rather downtrodden her fingers start twitching again and Kallik's voice takes on more of the wrathful rumble, "I have always had an anger that sits below my skin, that I keep buried in my belly until I need it. This was not some curse that happened. I was born with it. But now.."
Closing her eyes for a moment then glancing up at Ibinu only for her gaze to drop right back to the ground. Lips twisting into a snarl, "Now it is different.
He points out a small blocky building a short bit away, "I need to compare the stains with those from the Oread who's soul we released. I'm pretty sure it is that building over there and I'm going to check it out. I suggest you get our friends and bring them over. Seeing another of the torture victims might help this whole thing click for Fiordelise and Edoardo."
Kallik motions Fi and Edoardo over for on more quick stop; life in Hearth can be rather complicated these days. She leads you over to a cube-shaped building that appears to be a utilitarian extension of the Temple.
Ibinu is already inside the twenty-foot obsidian cube. A strange tableau greets you: a distracted alchemist bent over a pale oread corpse; a dead oread, who looks disturbingly similar to Kallik, only graced with a look of utter serenity in death; and, for some reason, a dirty, rickety cart in the corner.
Sighing and walking back to Fiordelise and Edoardo with slumped shoulders. Looking up at them with a glare before pointed back towards the rapidly retreating Ibinu. Mumbling, "Come on." Before turning around and following the sylph.
Kallik remains outside of the cube like building, fidgeting.
Though Ibinu is only inside for a minute or less, it feels like an eternity as the iron bell clang, clang, clangs. The sound is loud enough to give all of you a little jolt every time it sounds.
The sylph alchemist comes back out, and nods. You all continue on your way.
Byron, Fiordelise, Odebie, and Osric escort Inquisitor Ky La toward the Dims Watch. Edoardo, the guard that Fi and a few of the others fetched from the Temple, stays close to Ky La.
Garbage Alley's offal soon becomes Cleaver Street's leavings. Frozen bits of meat and entrails dot the broken cobblestones. Late lunch crowds are headed back to their respective businesses. You see mostly sullen ifrits and serious-faced oreads trudging through the inch or so of dirty snow.
You pass by a young boy sitting on the ground, panhandling. The pale blue undine, no older than six, is missing his left leg. He says nothing as you go by. Across the street, the candle-and-snuffer insignia of the Dims Watch is covered by sticking snow.
The weather-beaten hinges creak as Odebie pushes the crooked door open against the deepening snow. He shoulders it closed as his companions--as well as the inquisitor--finish getting inside. Even in a poorly heated building like the Watch, simply being out of the wind and snow is a relief.
Immediately, three young (almost too young to be on the Watch, in Odebie's opinion) oreads spring up from the side benches of the foyer. They are wearing homemade leather armor, and toting warhammers, albeit in a slightly clumsy way. They have utility knives at their belts, and little else for equipment.
The three of them salute Odebie. The one on the left, slightly taller than the other two, says, "Privates Mahkáh, Mató, and Matóskah reporting, sir."
Odebie, you've met these three a few times in the past week or two, but mostly just you saw them sparring in the training yard now and then as part of their first few weeks on the Watch. You still have trouble remembering which brother is which.
Byron is happy to talk at length about the process of experimentation that led him to produce the sample of white obsidian he used against the darkspawn, but he's a bit more vague about the exact process that actually worked. He's even more vague about his future plans, saying only that he 'suspects there must be a way to produce the same results without resorting to the use of a ruby' but that it 'will take time experimentation and likely access to very rare and expensive reagents which I do not have the means to acquire at present'.
He also asks, since it's clear the Temple has had contact with white obsidian before, what Ky La knows of its properties, as Byron hasn't been able to test it extensively yet.
Stiffling a combination yawn and sigh, Odebie looks at them in puzzlement. "Yes? How can I help you?"
The one on the left seems unsure of what to say next. He looks to his comrades, then back at Odebie. He shrugs. "Lieutenant Dove told us to report to you?" He manages to make the declaration a question.
"Oh. Well... the alchemist and the inquisitor are on Temple business, I don't recommend interrupting them unless you feel like being bored to death. I don't... okay. In about three hours we're going to need every pair of feet we have in the Steam Slums, and I need a nap. You," he points at the leftmost brother, "run to the Temple library. Tell them Inquisitor Ky La needs to know about mephits. I'll take a book, but try to bring back someone who knows what they're talking about. You," he points at the middle brother, "the same, but the history of the Steam Slums and King Fret - that ugly statue in the middle of the place. Be stubborn, and keep dropping the Inquisitor's name. And you," he points to the last brother, "where's the Lieutenant? I should warn him what's coming."
The privates salute you again. All three of them are solid oread stock: sizable muscles, walnut-brown, oak-like skin, and a mop of dark red hair.
Mahkáh is definitely the taller one. He repeats your words under his breath as he runs off at a youthful sprint toward the exit.
You still cannot tell between the other two brothers. The rightmost brother dashes toward the stairs after a quick "I'll go get the lieutenant!" The middle brother starts to follow toward the stairs, then stops himself. He smiles at the group of you with a slight embarrassed air, then makes his way toward the door.