|
Tracking down Miss Feathers is not hard, she is almost in the exact spot expected in a tavern across from the Blushing Rose Brothel drinking scotch. Though she stands a full head taller and muscles ripple beneath her white sequin dress, Miss Feathers looks right at home sitting with half a dozen more traditional working ladies. Miss Feathers’ deep, booming voice and hearty laugh fills the otherwise quiet tavern, and she’d be easy to find even if it weren’t for the signature boa of feathers draped around her neck.
|
|
Miss Feathers motions with her hand and the other working girls clear out quickly.
“Oh, finally. Look, let’s get through with this quickly. This girl’s got drinking to do. I appreciate what you do, blah blah blah, but I don’t need to be seen with you. I only told Ollysta a little bit, but here’s the score. Some of the girls at the Blushing Rose went missing, and Madam Rose was none too happy. She figured I’m a girl who can take care of herself, so she sent me around to look into where they got off to or to see whether maybe another cathouse snagged ’em. This guy Gelwin—a customer—had seen some of them. I ask him and he says they’d been feeling down and he sent them to this lethe house he’d done some forged contracts for. I go looking around and they rope me into this weird ritual. I ain’t felt right since, and I knew it was some magic business that your sort should look into. Those girls still haven’t showed up. Gelwin’s gone, too, though I can’t say I want him to start coming back around. I seen some other Pathfinders—at least that’s what they said they was—that put this in my mind. Didn’t seem like the real helpful type, so I sent my letter instead.”
She hands you a slip of paper with an address in the Hospice district.
Thank you. How long ago was that?
Ok, and where did you see this "Pathfinders"? How many were there?
|
|
In a block filled with several boarded-up houses and businesses, this graying wooden structure appears to have once been a tavern many years ago. The sign in the front has been pulled down and the front windows are boarded up, but unlike the other houses on the block, the door is open and a few patrons can be seen entering and leaving the place.
|
|
Patrons exiting the lethe house can be questioned; almost all of the ones leaving look buoyed and happier than when they went in.
A wealthy-looking youth has a haunted look on his face and wears a bright red fedora.
An emaciated man with hollow eyes is garbed in ragged clothes
A young Varisian woman makes a meager living selling small Shoanti crafts.
A youth who came to Kaer Maga chasing a merchant’s daughter.
Amiri will address the "youth who was chasing a merchant's daughter" when he's some dozens of feet away from the place, as she plans on putting some adrenaline into his veins.
"Hello, how are you doing, citizen?" She grabs him by the shirt and gives a little push on the man, pressing him against a nearby wall.
"Awake of whatever you've been doing in there. I want to find the Lissalan cultists and I'm in hurry! Tell me and you will leave this place walking..."
|
Quelion approaches the young man in the fedora, sitting down next to him and offering a small drink of water. "Here, this helps with the effects, I'm told." "I'm looking for a few individuals of particularly shady and vicious character, worshipping a diety you've likely never heard of and who isn't relevant anymore. Although in this town, I've probably described a full tenth of the population."
Amiri asks the group for a quick word.
I don't know about you folks, but Lethe is a drug and these people do not look healthy. We should put the whole place down and ask questions to the ones we capture. Cause from the drugged we will get nothing.
She points to the building:
"We know those inside are related to the cultists. We came here to kill them to prevent a runelord from awakening." She makes a sarcastic face. "Unless you have other ways to avoid that?"
|
Thoth gives the barbarian a nervous and reluctant smile
"I can't really think of anything off the top of my head to prevent the awakening of the Varisian Boogie Man. Can we at least verify that the cult is not forcing their drugs on an impoverished people before we systematically slaughter them all? We should not punish the innocent with death sentences if we can help it."
Thoth looks the Barbarian in the eyes.
"How often have our mission briefings detailed the exact minutia of our endeavors? I'm merely stating that there may be more than meets the eye. That's often the norm and not the exception when exploring for the decemvirate."
With that Thoth shakes his head, and looks to his friend Lady Seelah for a suggestion.
"In any case our objective lies inside. Maybe we can play the Lethe addicted if you like, or be drugdealers from another city that want to "expand" their business. That may grant us some info or put us in contact with their master."
|
"Let cut off the evil at the roots ... anyone that appears a victim we will let drift away like the leaves of a dying tree. For their sake, they had better not oppose us. If they do then the evil of the drug has taken control of their souls and we may need to purge them of the curse in as quickly and efficiently as possible. "
"Lol, you do look merciless today Seelah, you sound like me! What has gotten into you?!"
"Wait, you mean you took this out?" - says Amiri, showing her Sihedron Tattoo. "My oh my, I guess it's just fair, but this may save my life once in a while..."
|
|
"I could not afford the 4,827 gp to keep it even if I wasn't disgusted by it.", Seelah says referencing the chronicle sheet from cultist's kiss, " ... besides, I seem to start over between engagements .. never changing, always returning to how I began ...", Seelah trails off, a look of concentration, and confusion on her face as she tries to grasp at something that is right on the tip of her tongue, just at the edge of her vision, but she just cannot coalesce the thought into understanding.
"Hmmm, that seems to happen to me sometimes...Ha ha, things I've just gotten my hands into just disappear! Wait, where's my tattoo?!?" She looks at where the tattoo was a moment ago and finds just regular scarred skin..."Dafuq?"