"Are you already acquainted?" asks Joie. It sounds decidedly monotone.
Dorak shakes his head. "I'm afraid not. But, I do know folks at the Property Office. I thought I could trust them..."
"Right. No further questions. You may go."
Joie gives a nod. "Understood."
She pivots and exits, heading for the room where the rest of the group is.
There's a knock at the door.
"I...don't suppose you wanna gloat or something about your lawyer coming to get you?""Don't need to." The ghoul responds. "He'll get here and take it all out of your hands."
Daerokh may not have been the best at reading people, but even he could read this...guy.
"Maybe you could tell us who your lawyer IS so we can get him here faster? From the way you're speaking it sounds like he should have been here by now, and he's not."
When Joie knocks, Daerokh goes to answer it.
"Ah, Joie, good. Come in. His lawyer hasn't shown up yet."
He opens it wider to usher her in.
"Maybe you could tell us who your lawyer IS so we can get him here faster? From the way you're speaking it sounds like he should have been here by now, and he's not."
The ghoul pauses, his red eyes boring into Daerokh. "...his name is Thayn Xanviar. Tall fellow, black hair, dresses in greys and reds, looks like he'd catch fire if left in the sun for too long."
"You being literal there? Vampire lawyer or something?"
"Not quite. Only half-vampire: most people would call them 'dhampir'." The ghoul shrugs. "Sounds more dignified than the name Those of the Blood call them."
"Huh...learned something new today, and I'm not quite sure I wanted to."
Daerokh shudders at the idea of a vampire and a human ****ing.
Faithe let Daerokh ask the question for the moment, she had no need to just yet, though she did give him a rather pointed look as she said, "You are a ghoul, of course you've killed before, you kill and you eat, not necessarily in that order," her tone was matter of fact, "it is what you are."
When the ghoul revealed his lawyer's identity Faithe said, "A dhampir, and one who likely works for his parent. very interesting." She was thoughtful then as she considered and said, "if it wasn't you then who was it?"
The ghoul offers no confirmation or denial of Faithe's claim, instead shifting in his seat. "Some opportunistic little wretch of a human. Worked in the city morgue. Always smelled like smoke."
"That doesn't quite help your case, you know: it only shifts you from the active murderer to the guy who hired that murderer. Or bullied him into it. Scribes are still dead, and you're still involved," Daerokh replies.
Having nothing else to do and never one to just patiently wait, the young man opened the jewelry box to have a look around. These poor folks had just lost someone they loved, so he had no intention of taking anything, but curiosity and boredom always got the best of him.
Tuco lifts his head up, "Think we has everythin' 'ere?" He turns to face Jase, "Whatchu got 'dere?"
The Tailor started to pack up all of the paper, "Hope it be a clue, I wonder what 'dem other's be havin' luck wit'."
Inside the jewelry box is an assortment of earrings, necklaces and other adornments of varying quality. Among the clutter is a single ring with what looks like a red and black shard of... some sort of stone.
It pulses like a beating heart.
--------------------
The ghoul snarls. "We'll see. Where's my--"
There's another knock at the interrogation room door.
Jase idly looked about at the baubles inside, looking a bit disappointed though he hadn't really expected anything different. He shrugged at Tuco's question, though his eyes widened as he reached into the box and pulled out a ring with a strange black and red stone, the thing pulsing disturbingly. "Ummm, you want to take a look at this?"
Tuco looks at it, his face having an almost ruby glow on it, "'Dis it? All 'dem bloods bein' spilt for a stone..."
He looks at Jase, "We keep it quiet-like yeah? Les go, I dun wanna be them guy to takes it but it's too dangerous to be leftin' 'ere with 'dem mourning fellas." He pokes Alorea, "You know 'em, dey yous client so what you say?"
The ghoul snarls. "We'll see. Where's my--"
There's another knock at the interrogation room door.
Daerokh, being the polite boy he is goes and opens it to peek out.
"Hello?"
Standing beyond the interrogation room door is a chiseled-looking man with very pale skin and long, flowing black hair. His pale blue eyes pierce into Daerokh's with a stony glare. His onyx-black clothes are obviously of fine make and impeccably tailored, and he carries what looks like an ivory scroll case in one hand.
"Thayn Xanviar, barrister of the courts of Geb. I understand a national of Geb is being held here as a suspect in a murder investigation?" He asks, his voice a smooth baritone that flows like a shot of smooth brandy.
The ghoul's eyes brighten and a smug rictus grin appears on his face.
Jase just stared at the stone with sick fascination as Tuco spoke, resisting the urge to try the ring on and see what happened. While his curiosity wouldn't be sated, the small, sensible part of his brain cautioned that something VERY BAD might happen if he did so.
"Quiet, agreed. I'm sure they've already had people nosing about, and it will go better for them if no one finds out they're holding out, even if in ignorance." The young man looked over at the lovely sylph as the half-orc asked her opinion, tucking the ring into his pocket and putting the jewelry box back where he'd found it.
"Ooh, pretty!" Alorea says, eyes sparkling. "Let's take it and go. We can perform a more thorough examination once we have some privacy."
"What took you so long?" Daerokh asks dryly.
"Bad traffic." Thayn curtly replies before shouldering his way into the interrogation room. "But I am here now, so we can dispense with the--"
He stops when he sees the ghoul seated at the table. His eyes widen in surprise, then narrow with what sounds like a resigned sigh.
"--Mexerius?" He asks, his tone turning from mildly annoyed to decidedly irritated.
The ghoul, Mexerius, leans back in his chair. "Glad you could make it, Mr. Xanviar. These jokers want to lock me up for murders that I had nothing to do with. Typical, you know--"
"Enough." Thayn cuts Mexerius off before turning to the others. "What charges are being brought against him this time?"
-------------------
As the group turns to leave, Trev walks up to them. "Did you... did you find what you're looking for?"
Jase looked to the young man and nodded, pointing at the small stack of paper in Tuco's hands. "Tuco here made plenty of notes...we'll compare them with our companions and see if it turns up anything the first folks missed. We'll be in touch, ok?" Hardly slowing down as he spoke, Jase kept moving towards the entry to the home, smile in place as he reminded himself that carrying the stone away from these people was for their own good.
Tuco just waved the notes and smiled, he didn't want to rock the boat when the swashbuckling fellow was so kind to right it.
Stepping outside he counts to ten in his head before speaking up, "Wes gotta regroup fast. Ain't seemin' to be good if we founds only a sliver."
He wonders what the fastest route to the precinct is and stops for a moment, "Always gonna be on one of us yeah? I ain't givin' it to someone who I can't throw y'know?"
"Bad traffic." Thayn curtly replies before shouldering his way into the interrogation room. "But I am here now, so we can dispense with the--"
He stops when he sees the ghoul seated at the table. His eyes widen in surprise, then narrow with what sounds like a resigned sigh.
"--Mexerius?" He asks, his tone turning from mildly annoyed to decidedly irritated.
The ghoul, Mexerius, leans back in his chair. "Glad you could make it, Mr. Xanviar. These jokers want to lock me up for murders that I had nothing to do with. Typical, you know--"
"Enough." Thayn cuts Mexerius off before turning to the others. "What charges are being brought against him this time?"
Daerokh's eyebrow raises at the lawyer's reaction. Even he could see that this was going to be an interesting conversation.
"Well, there's a number of things I can think of, off the top of my head," he begins, counting on his fingers. "Squatting in a condemned building, possession of stolen property, bribery, extortion and either murder or conspiracy to commit murder. For that last one, we're just trying to determine which. You've probably seen the headlines about the murdered scribes? Our investigations into them led us to your client."
Faithe was content to let Daerokh lead things at this point as she just wasn't made to handle recall and knowing which questions to ask. Sweet talk someone, intimidate them, those she could do. With that in mind Faithe remained in place as her companion dealt with this...lawyer. She had to admit the dhampir wasn't quite what she expected, granted she'd never met one before, and he certainly wasn't the devil she half expected to see.
From her dim corner of the room Faithe looked the dhampir, Mr Xanviar, over curiously. She wondered if he worked for that bastard Jerrad or someone else. She figured that many would find this dhampir a bit disturbing, pale as he was, but it didn't bother Faithe any, in fact she found him almost, but not quite, handsome to look at. Faithe didn't realize just how distracted she had become as Daerokh continued his explanation. If she hadn't been she might have wondered when Joie would arrive.
The group leaves the Iverness home without further incident.
---------------------
"...oh, is that all?" Mr. Xanviar purses his lips and looks over at his client.
"And has a motive been determined for these charges?"
Daerokh shoots Faithe and Joie a look that says "How much do we tell him?"
Jase continued to smile as they walked outside, then let out a pent up breath, his expression turning serious as he addressed the other two. "Who knows how powerful this stuff is? A sliver might be all it takes! Let's head to the station and see what the others have been up to. We can drop off the notes and then brainstorm with the rest of the group."
The young man kept the stone in his pocket, resisting the urge to keep his hand in there to make sure the stone was present. There would be too much temptation to slip the thing on, and who knew what would happen in that event? Jase hurried to the precinct with Alorea and Tuco, hoping the ghoul was in custody by now and they could go somewhere private to talk with the others.
Tuco started wondering, what more could this day hold? he shook his head, imagining an undead lawyer trying to get its ghoul friend off.
That seems ridiculous.
You reconvene at the Auburn District precinct in time to see Joie marching stoically past the lobby.
-----------------
"Well?" Mr. Xanviar glares at Daerokh and Faithe. "Come on, I don't have all day."
"Joie? You okays?"
He goes to her as she marches out, hoping their almost good news would offset her staunch walking.
Jase approached Joie with Tuco and Alorea, content to let the Nexian woman answer the half-orc's question and be silent, for now. She had proven a worthwhile battle companion, but he wasn't sure how much he trusted her with the knowledge of the ring in his pocket. At least away from the others, at any rate.
Without any idea what they should tell him Faithe simply shrugged from her shadowy corner and said, "He needs to know what we know if he wants to defend the murderous monster, tell him everything we know." She would do it herself but, sadly, Faithe had lost track of everything, she never was particularly good at the more intellectual pursuits.
"Okay," Daerokh replies. He turns to Xanviar. "Well, all of the scribes who've been murdered were looking into something called 'bloodstone.' And from what we've gathered, it sounds like this bloodstone's incredibly important in Geb. So your client, patriot that he seems given your description of him, is either having the scribes killed to take what they know because he's looking for said bloodstone, or having them killed to keep knowledge of it hidden because he doesn't want OTHER people finding it."
Mr. Xanviar listens to Daerokh's explanation, his lips pursing to a thin, grim line.
He looks between the ghoul and the two interrogators. "Well. That's... that's certainly something I've never heard before."
Mexerius' eyes widen. "Xanviar?"
"My client would like to plead insanity."
Mexerius starts to rise from the table. "What?! Like the Hells I will! I didn't do anything!"
The pale barrister shoots a venomous glare at the ghoul. "It is patently obvious that my client is not of sound mind, if he claims to have committed these murders, in person or by proxy, in the name of something that does not exist and never has existed. When will the trial be held?"
Jase waited about as long as he could before he started fidgeting, then he casually started walking down the hall, hoping to see where the others might be and what was going on. Hopefully the ghoul was locked up and they were well on their way to getting the promised reward.
Faithe knew she wasn't the brightest person around. She knew that she was about as smart as most people and that meant she realized her limitations, especially when it came to figuring out what people really meant. She wore her heart on her sleeve as the saying goes . Despite this she could only stare in incredulity as the lawyer went for an insanity plea deal. It wasn't that she didn't understand it as a means to reduce a sentence but more because the ghoul had done nothing to imply insanity, quite the opposite really, and she knew it showed cunning in needling her just as far as it could get away with and not provoke her into ending it's miserable unlife.
Faithe's eyes stared out at the lawyer from her shadowy corner as she tried to understand the reason for trying something so obviously stupid. Finally she just looked at the dhampir and realized that despite being fairly handsome he was an idiot. She looked at the ghoul and actually felt some sympathy for it all of a sudden. She may have thought they should kill it on sight but even she had her limits.
Faithe looked at the ghoul and asked, "Um, Mexerius?" She waited for the ghoul to look in her direction a moment and then continued, "Are you sure he's your lawyer and not a mental patient?" Her gaze shifted back to the supposed lawyer again and then she said, "If so that sucks, I thought he was kind of handsome before." She shifted from the shadows enough that her pale shoulders were clearly visible as she shrugged and just looked confused.
Mexerius' betrayed expression doesn't change. "Xanviar! This isn't funny, you pulsing son-of-a--"
Xanviar looks over at Faithe. "It's bold of you to assume that this the first time he's committed an offence of this nature."
Faithe looked at Xanviar as she shifted back into the shadows and gave him a confused look. "Um, ok, I'm pretty sure he'd have just been killed by anyone else who caught him so either he didn't get caught or we're talking about two different things." She made a gesture with her hand to continue as she said, "Explain."
The Tailor looked at Joie, and saw Jase walk away. It didn't matter, he had enough undead in his nose for one day. He poked at Joie, hoping to get some emotion from her, "Chief, didn't goes well? Wes found some'tin'. The word bloodstone... It be real is all."
He sniffed, hoping to sense something on her, "Figure bein' all Nexian and such you'd be on 'dis 'ere."
Daerokh looks over at Mexerius, not sure whether to feel pity or disgust. He's so focused on the ghoul's reaction that he misses the dhampir's.
"Sounds like you're being thrown under the coach-wheels, Mexerius. You going to let him put words in your mouth? What's this really about?"
------------------
The ghoul looks over at Daerokh. "Oh, I'll tell you what it's about. It's about blo--"
The barrister sharply clears his throat. "Mexerius here has a history of delusional beliefs compelling him to commit murder 'in the service of Geb'." Mr. Xanviar's lip curls into a slight sneer. "They become especially pronounced when he has gone without proper rehabilitation for an extended period of time."
"YOU LYING SACK OF S#+!! I'M NOT CRAZY!" Mexerius starts to rise from his seat. "IT'S ABOUT THE BLOODSTONE OF ARAZNI--"
"And the nature of his delusions is that he's convinced that something called a 'Bloodstone of Arazni' compels him to murder innocents. For what purpose, I cannot fathom." Xanviar continues.
"XANVIAR!" Mexerius lunges across the table!
------------------
Anyone lingering outside the interrogation room can hear the sounds of someone shouting.
"YOU LYING SACK OF S&!#! I'M NOT CRAZY! IT'S ABOUT THE BLOODSTONE OF ARAZNI--"
A pause.
"XANVIAR!"
Faithe may not be the sharpest one around but she knew a perfect opportunity when she saw it. She may want to end the ghoul but it had a really good reason to work with them now. Faithe quickly brought her scythe out and interposed it between the two, stepping out of the shadowed corner as she did, and said sharply, "Mexerius, don't give him a reason to end you in self defense!"
"Since your lawyer is selling you out wouldn't it be safer to dismiss him and help us instead?" She tried to catch the ghoul's eyes as she said, "I may not like you, I may prefer to kill you, but at least I am honest about it. I think we can work with you on this but not if you keep him," she gestured at the dhampir, "as your lawyer since he is so intent on selling you out like this."
Daerokh yells in shock as Mexerius lunges for the kill and Faithe makes an admittedly badass display, his pelletbow rising instinctively, but then lowering as it looked like Faithe might have cowed both...men.
He waits for them to react before opening his own mouth.
Mexerius and Xanviar recoil from the scythe coming down and almost bisecting the interrogation table.
The ghoul's eyes dart between Xanviar and Faithe before settling on the lawyer. "Get. Out."
Xanviar, duly cowed, flees the interrogation room without another word.
Mexerius looks over at Faithe. "Well. Looks like I've made myself a new enemy."
Jase headed towards the interrogation room, things seeming to get interesting. As he neared the door, he saw the cowed dhampir lawyer opening the door and darting out, the expression on his face bringing a smile to the young man's lips. He wasn't sure who this guy one, but he seemed a slimy sort and that was enough for Jase to take pleasure in the man's uncomfortableness.
As the door was open, the swashbuckler slipped into the room, seeing Faithe's scythe in the desk and Daerokh looking rather amazed. Looking at the ghoul, the scythe, Faithe, then Daerokh again, he chuckled, "Things are going well, I take it?"
"In an unexpected way: Mexerius here was sold out by his lawyer, who you just saw leave in a hurry, and it appears this "bloodstone" we've been hearing so much about is less a substance and more an artifact of some sort."
He turns back to the prisoner and raises an eyebrow.
"So...where do we go from here? I can't imagine Xanviar will let what just happened slide...even if we believed his bullsh!tting, it's clear Geb will consider you a liability now, and you're still on the hook for the deaths of these scribes...so the question is this: how much are you willing to tell before you're a dead man again, this time permanently?"