Edrakk produces a crystal bomb and throws it Green, hitting him and his nearby allies. He then moves away.
Jisara steps forward and conjures lubricant underneath the creatures.
Red loses their footing and slips, but Orange and Blue both manage to remain upright despite the slick ground.
Vitalis swings twice at Orange, managing to hit both times, though the creature remains standing. He then takes a moment to think things over, during which Chance does a brief flourish as he casts loremaster’s etude.
Chance casts inspire courage then telekinetic projectile at Red
Red Stands up and is the first to move, as the creature rushes at Jisara! At the last second, though, the creature tries to leap over her.
Red leaps off the witch’s shoulder and lands, immediately turning around to bite at Jisara!
Vitalis immediately turns heel and swings his glaive to intervene but the beast still manages to scratch Jisara minorly with its teeth.
Critical success
Success
Orange and Blue likewise move forward, intending to slip past the tiefling!
Orange leaps over Jisara’s shoulders while Blue slips between her legs as the two turn back around and bite and claw at the tengu and tiefling!
Failure --> Success (incapacitation)
Critical success
The creatures in the back then crouch to the ground and suddenly leap off the wall, jumping forward and avoiding the grease and caltrops. They then bite and claw at those closest!
Failure --> Success (incapacitation)
Failure
The PCs’ senses are overwhelmed by the surrounding stench of these creatures!
Failure
Edrakk
Failure
Jisara
Failure
Technically a failure due to the sickened 1 from above failure
Failure
Vitalis
The PCs all feel nauseous from the pungent aroma permeating throughout, all save the stalwart paladin Vitalis.
Round 2
==============
Edrakk (-7) {sickened 1}
Vitalis (-6)
Jisara (-8) {sickened 1}
Chance {sickened 1}
Red
Orange (-28)
Yellow (-4)
Green (-9)
Blue
Purple (-4)
==============
@Vitalis: You do actually get to know the result of your check before you use a Hero Point, and that 19 actually hit. I’ll instead say that you used the Hero Point on the nat 1 and rerolled it into that nat 9 (that was intended to be a reroll), getting an 18 on the second Strike, which also hits.]
Vitalis gives the ghast biting at Jisara (red) a gash across the face for its offence.
Vitalis shares what he remembers. "These are ghasts. Their bites carry disease and can transform you into one their kind. I'd say to keep our distance but..." He looks around. "We're already surrounded. Let's amend this situation, shall we?"
The paladin attacks the wounded ghast that bit Jisara once more. Then turns his attention to others.
Jisara's face pales considerably as the ghasts surround her, though it could just as easily be due to the stench. She takes on a defensive posture before hurling a loose rock at one of her attackers.
Chances gags on the stink coming in waves off the ghasts. Holding his nose, he looks back over his shoulder and screams silently before continuing his song and waving the dead guildmistress's sword in the face of the nearest ghast, hoping to keep it from biting him.
Edrakk shrinks down a bit as he glances nervously between the ghasts on all sides. As the smell starts to overwhelm him, he coughs a bit in an effort to rid his lungs of the awful stench, before taking a couple of swings at the ghast in front of him.
Vitalis slices down Red and Orange and manages to damage Blue.
Jisara steps over and launches a rock at Blue.
Chance continues singing then unleashes a burst of concussive force.
And all three of the ghouls flat-out explode from the force of Chance’s silent scream!
Edrakk gags.
He then slices twice into Blue, managing to knock the ghast down.
As they look around the ghoul-infested room, all the PCs find odd is the strange capstone. Chance notices that not only is the capstone magical, but it’s a magical trap—one that, despite 40 years, is start far too potent for the PCs to properly disable on their own. However, with the knowledge gained from the maps of the Lucky Bones, they realize that beneath this capstone is the only way to get in to the smuggler’s den below through the Lucky Bones itself—thus, the Gray Spiders must have had a way to bypass it. Jisara notices that the gems that make up the cloaked figure’s eyes are actually buttons, so perhaps those are the key to bypassing the trap.
Chance, with his knowledge in assorted random things, knows that the gemstones are (from left to right): malachite, moonstone, ruby, and turquoise. Edrakk chimes in and says that these gems are actually just well-created fakes, and any expert with gemstones would immediately realize that these ones are essentially worthless.
But Chance doesn’t fully listen to the tengu, instead humming under his breath.
Suddenly, Chance begins singing—though he seems to be improvising a melody rather than singing one he remembers.
”’Contract terms are by the book!’
Crooned the Devil to the Crook.
‘If you change them I declare
I must know you’re playing fair!’
‘In yon vault your papers lie,’
Crowed the Crook in swift reply.
‘Door’s locked tight by magic word,
Speak the phrase so it is heard!’
‘Moonstone, Moonstone, Ruby bright
Open Turquoise, Malachite!’
As the Devil voiced the phrase,
To the vault he cast his gaze.
When his back was full displayed
Canny Crook plied silver blade!
‘None shall mourn your foolish death,’
Voiced the Crook with victor’s breath.
‘Devils’ single greatest flaw:
Doubtful wits entrenched in Law!’”
Triumphantly, Chance moves to the capstone and presses the gemstones: moonstone, moonstone, ruby, turquoise, malachite. And with an ancient and rusted click, the capstone opens!
Beneath the capstone is a 10-foot diameter shaft. The old, rusted rungs of an iron ladder set into the wall descend down the shaft into the area below. However, 10 feet below the floor level of this chamber, the shaft descends into dark water. The water seems to go down further—perhaps about 15 to 20 more feet—and seems to open up into a larger chamber below. The PCs all look at one another as they realize the same thing: The tunnels below the Lucky Bones are now flooded!
"Well, crap," Jisara says, looking down into the dark waters. "How are we supposed to get it unflooded?"
Vitalis pats Chance on the back. ”Well done, Chance. That vocal performance was quite impressive.”
Then he looks down into the pit. ”Well…luckily, I’m a decent swimmer. If someone can provide a magical light, I can explore a short distance and see if there are any pockets of air or determine if we need to procure magical means to breathe.”
Just as Vitalis is starting to remove his armor, Chance shushes the paladin and listens closely. He motions for the others as he puts an ear near the shaft. It is very faint and slightly distorted, but there seems to be voices coming from beneath the water.
”Pa mor hir nes i'r meistr ymosod ar y pentref?”
”Dim syniad. Gobeithio ei fod yn fuan; Rwy'n blino ar y lle hwn.”
”Wel, os ydych chi wedi diflasu, fe allech chi bob amser fynd i chwarae gyda'r corachod hynny.”
There are clearly voices speaking down in the water, in a language that none of the PCs speak, nor one that they recognize (though, it doesn’t help that the water distorting the sound in pinning down exactly what language is being spoken).
"Thanks, Vitalis. It's always easier to remember those long poems if you put them to music."
The gnome peers into the murky water and shudders. Looks cold.
"Well, crap," Jisara says, looking down into the dark waters. "How are we supposed to get it unflooded?"
"I have absolutely no idea."
When Vitalis puts his armor glaive aside, Chance unbuckles the guildmistress's +1 striking shortsword and offers it to him.
"I know it's a little smaller than your usual gear, but you might be better off taking this blade with you instead of just relying on your dagger." He grins, and adds, "Try not to lose it, though. I've only just gotten used to having it around."
Note to self, Chance thinks as he lies on the dank floor, head hanging over the shaft, one hand cupped around his ear. When we get out of here, I need to buy a scroll with that language comprehending spell!
"Are you sure about going down there, Vitalis? You'd be alone and facing at least two potentially hostile ... somethings."
Vitalis stops taking his armor off and responds to Chance. ”Well, no. Not anymore. Maybe we can draw them out instead.”
”Maybe we can draw them out instead.”
Vitalis kicks some chunks of exploded ghoul into the pit and waits to see it draws any response.
Edrakk watches the water as Vitalis drops the pieces of ghoul in. Edrakk eventually chirps, "I-I still think it might be a good idea to look. At the very least, it'd be good to see whoever's down there face-to-face, and they might not be hostile if we talk to them. And I'm a pretty good swimmer too, so it wouldn't just be Vitalis by himself."
As Vitalis kicks down the ghoul chunks, there’s a small bit of commotion coming from below the water, in what can only be described as curiosity followed by brief arguing. Suddenly, something swims up and peeks its head out of the water: a humanoid creature that appears to be an unholy cross between a man and a fish. The fish-man looks upward to see the PCs looking down at him, which causes its fishy eyes to go wide as it goes beneath the water once more. As it descends, that same fish-person is clearly yelling in a language that none of the PCs understand, as it is clear that something is going on beneath the waves now!
Jisara recognizes the creature as a skum, vicious fish-people that lurk at the depth of the sea. These creatures are malicious and (despite their appearance) fairly intelligent, having grown accustomed to the cold depths of the sea. And the PCs just alerted them to their presence.
Realizing that they are not currently fit to deal with undersea combatants, the PCs decide to cut their losses and head back to the Tooth and Nail.
As the PCs arrive back at the Tooth and Nail, they are almost immediately cornered by Setrona. ”Hey, guys, can I talk with ya for a sec?”
She leads them back into the back room. ”So, uh…an intense-looking Tian woman came by earlier asking about you four. Figured y’all would like to know. Short, dark hair and a nose chain. She’s not here now, but I thought I’d let you know. Just, uh, keep a lookout.”
Just as the group are about to break, Setrona puts a hand on Vitalis’s shoulder. ”Also, your boss wants to talk to you. Bunch of organizational jargon that I didn’t fully understand, but it sounded important. Probably shouldn’t keep him waiting.”
”The Order of the Torrent is in a desperate time; our members can be counted on two hands, and the only one who has completed the Test is your lictor. Our order has not seen such unfortunate circumstances for forty years. These times are desperate, and we unfortunately toe the line of anarchy with the assistance of the Silver Ravens, but without doing so our order would have been obliterated. We strive to bring peace to this world, such that the orders of Hellknights are no longer necessary—that is the first link of the Chain. But we have grown stagnant in our current situation! The order is less than a dozen armigers living in the basement of a tavern. This will not stand! Unfortunately, we cannot afford to leave this basement, lest the capriciousness of Lord-Mayor Thrune’s ninth proclamation destroy us. Thus, we must find another way to exit this stagnation. We. Need. More. Hellknights! Not armigers, but Hellknights!”
The lictor turns to Vitalis and Hortense. ”Vitalis Tanessen. Hortense Lierre. You two are the most capable members of the order, but you are not without faults. Hortense, ever since the velstrac incident,” Right on cue, Hortense shivers, though she tries to hide it. Octavio is unfazed. ”You have been plagued by intense fears and trauma—do not try to hide it; I have seen you waking up at night in a cold sweat. You have allowed these fears and trauma to overtake you, and from it your discipline suffers—an important link in the Chain.
“Vitalis, while I am surprised that you have upheld your emotional discipline given your faith, said faith has also caused turmoil in another link of the Chain: your mercilessness. All are guilty of an infraction against order, and as such none are worthy of mercy—including and especially members of the order. Exceptions pave the path to anarchy. Your faith in Shelyn has blinded you to these facts, Tanessen; if rumors are to be believed you showed a devil mercy by banishing it to Hell rather than have it pay for its chaotic actions with its life. I am aware of your paladinic vows, but not even the devils of the Nine Circles are free from transgressions against true order.
“Before you air your frustrations with me, first remember the Chain; emotions are a distraction and a vulnerability. Master the discipline of your emotions so that the foes against order do not have a weakness to exploit against you. Secondly, I must state this: we must not be deluded. True order is an impossibility; wherever mortality stands there will always be anarchy in mind and intention. Hellknights cannot be expected to perfectly uphold order in everything—some members of other orders would call me a radical for saying this, but even the Measure supports my stance; if all Hellknights were expected to be perfect paragons of order at all times and in all places, then there would be no Hellknights.
“Armiger Vitalis Tanessen. Armiger Hortense Lierre. By the authority as lictor of the Order of the Torrent, as upheld by the Measure and the Chain, I declare you two worthy to undertake the Hellknight Test!”
All of the Order of the Torrent remain silent, but some cannot help but smile and be happy for their brother- and sister-in-arms.
“I have connections within the Order of the Scourge, some of whom would be willing to come to Kintargo in clandestine fashion. It will take time, but holding a Hellknight Test without a signifier in the order will be possible. There is simply one final thing that must be accounted for: As dictated in the Measure, armigers cannot be forced into the Hellknight Test; they must consent to participation, and cannot be reprimanded for refusal. Now I must be clear,” Octavio’s face softens as he begins to show a modicum of empathy. ”The Measure is clear: The Test of the Hellknight is single combat against an immortal champion of Hell whose power mirrors those of the armiger’s. A standing Hellknight must oversee the combat, and all available members of the order must stand witness. If the armiger prevails and is capable of doing so, they must recite their vows to the order. If they fail, they die. There is no alternative, and I will not attempt to sugarcoat it. Once you enter the arena of the Test of the Hellknight, you will leave it either a Hellknight or a corpse; no exceptions. There will be no retries, do-overs, or resurrections. You will live to be a Hellknight, or die an armiger. These are the risks associated with the Test. Now tell me: Do you consent to the Hellknight Test?”
Hortense hesitates for several seconds. She swallows a mouthful of spit and finally says ”I wish to take part in the Test.”
Octavio nods, then turns and stares at Vitalis, waiting for the paladin’s answer.
The next several hours are spent reading through the Gray Spiders’ various tomes and ledgers the PCs recovered from the Lucky Bones. The Gray Spiders seemed to have had quite an impact on the city— their thievery and abduction activities were quite profitable, and the city is much better off without them. Study of the texts reveals numerous links to the city of Vyre, the nearby City of Masks, and it was to this city that most of the abducted victims were sent—many appear to have been scheduled for sacrifice or sold into slavery.
There are also schematics and notes of what appears to be a magical pump. The pump is kept in the smuggler’s tunnel and is used to expel water from the surrounding chambers and maintain breathable air within. One of the Spiders’ final fail-safes in the event of a raid was to shut off the pump and flood the surrounding chambers to prevent anyone from giving chase beneath the water.
Stuffed inside another ledger is a short poem called Hell’s Coda—the one that Chance recited to open the capstone. The gemstone couplet is circled.
If you succeed at a subsequent Society 15 check, open the spoiler below
One particularly interesting ledger, though, is a set of deeds for a number of warehouses and waterfront buildings in Vyre that name one Molly Mayapple as the legal owner. Other notes with the ledgers indicate that these deeds are stolen, and that the Gray Spiders intended to use the deeds to blackmail Miss Mayapple, yet the raid by the Hellknights cut this plan short. In one note, a particularly interesting bit of text reads 也许苹果可能是一只老鼠，但那并不能免除她被蜘蛛吃掉的责任！
Vitalis struggles to remember a time he showed a devil mercy. Finally, he recalls Blosodriette. Then he wonders how Octavio knows the details of that encounter. But regardless, Vitalis says nothing and accepts his superior's criticism.
"Now tell me: Do you consent to the Hellknight Test?”
Without hesitation, Vitalis responds, "Yes sir! I will take the Hellknight Test and I will succeed! This is my destiny!"
Vitalis looks bemused at the Hell's Coda. "It seems Barzillai Thrune knew of this poem. Owning it now is contraband. We best hide it somewhere safe. I doubt we need it anymore since Chance already knows it so well but my tenets forbid me from destroying it."
*
*
At least one of those days has to be used by someone to buy/sell stuff.
Vitalis will purchase a lifting belt for 80 gp, and a +1 armor potency rune for his full plate for 160 gp. I'll spend a day of downtime for buy/sell. Roleplaying-wise, Vitalis would want to bring his armor to the armorer himself.
He'll spend three days downtime for Gather Rumors action with the Fushi Sister's aid to see if he can dig up any information on Lorelu to see if he can get any clue to stop the ghost rejuvenating. I don't know if anything will come of this but it can't hurt I guess.
Gather Rumors +16 Loyalty, +2 Ally Bonus
Then Vitalis would like to spend the last three days researching what devil/devils he is likely to face in the Hellknight test with emphasis on their strengths and weaknesses. (I don't know how many days this would actually take. I think GM decides. If more than 3, I'll do this instead of the Gather Rumors.)
Whatever roll that might be, but I'm guessing it would involve my Lore (Hell) +10. Maybe I can use a library or I can discuss with the other Hellknights.
Jisara sends Vitalis to town with a shopping list, and upon his return sequesters herself in an improvised workshop for most of the rest of the week.
Once that's all taken care of, the witch turns her attention to teaching her cat a new spell, and fixing up a few odds and ends around the tavern.
Jisara sends Vitalis to town with a shopping list, and upon his return sequesters herself in an improvised workshop for most of the rest of the week.
Chance uses his share of the sale proceeds to purchase a staff of divination, and spends 7 days of downtime huddled with one of his former professors, now retired, who is willing to teach him the haunting hymn cantrip. This replaces detect magic, which Chance can cast from the staff. He also purchases two vials of holy water and a feather token (ladder) to replace items previously used. Jisara has agreed to transfer the +1 potency and striking runes from the shortsword to his rapier for him.
Costs:
Rune transfers, 10gp
Learn a spell, 2gp
staff of divination, 230gp
Holy water, 6gp
Feather token, 3gp
Edrakk hands Vitalis a somewhat long list of items and, more notably, alchemical formulae, and spends the next few days helping out in the tavern's kitchen, and another day copying all of the formulas into his own library.
As Jisara and Edrakk go about their lives of work, they find some of their earned money gone—some had been stolen by pickpockets before they noticed, other times it was a poor attention (like when Edrakk accidentally tipped a barmaid a gold piece instead of a silver piece), and even other times it was just bad luck (like when Jisara dropped her wallet and several copper coins just fell down an open drainage grate).
*
*
As the PCs are going about their day, Setrona’s employee—Insome—taps Vitalis on the shoulder and says ”Hey, uh, your tailor is here and wants to chat?” The man seems just as confused as Vitalis at his sentence. Wary, Vitalis asks the other PCs to come with.
Seated at one of the tables of the Tooth and Nail is a vaguely-familiar (though you’re not sure where from) face: a horned, red-skinned, and orange-eyed man in his late-20’s to early-30’s. Despite his obviously-fiendish features, the tiefling smiles warmly as the PCs approach. The man produces a single red rose in a vase of water from the seat next to him and hands it to Vitalis. ”For the health of the Eternal Rose.”
The tiefling sits back down. ”I suppose I should properly introduce myself: I am Hetamon Haace, pleasure to make your acquaintance.”
"May her beauty never fade." Vitalis accepts the rose and greets the tiefling warmly. "Hetamon. Welcome. I remember you from the work you've done for my family. But what bring you here on this fine day?"
All of these devils have varying strengths, but similar weaknesses: silver and holy damage.
Hetamon smiles. ”Oh, I was just in the area and wanted to see how you were tending to the other roses I sent you.”
"Ah, well met, Rose of Kintargo. We were wondering when you'd decide to reveal yourself."
"Master Haace," Jisara says after a pause, her tone guarded. "What do you want?"
"Master Haace," Jisara says after a pause, her tone guarded. "What do you want?"
The tiefling chuckles. ”Oh, there’s no need for such formalities; Hetamon is sufficient.”
"Ah, well met, Rose of Kintargo. We were wondering when you'd decide to reveal yourself."
Hetamon clears his throat loudly several times, masking Vitalis’s words, his eyes shifting around the mostly-empty tavern. He leans forward slightly and lowers his voice ”You’re not very subtle, are you?
“Yes, I am the leader of the Rose of Kintargo. We of the Everbloom have been keeping a close eye on the city since the Night of Ashes, but we do have a chance of properly opposing the Inquisitor as we are now. My flock has been observing the Silver Ravens for some time—you managed to defeat Thrune’s favored enforcer and liberate the Order of the Torrent. Those are no small feats. I propose an alliance. The Rose is more than willing to assist such rebellions based purely on the teachings of Milani alone; we merely waited to see if the Ravens were a worthy investment. Unfortunately, I cannot guarantee my flock’s direct aid at this moment in time; to come out right now would play all our cards at once. In the meantime, though, we would be able to keep the dottari and other government officials distracted from the Ravens’ business, and when the time is nigh we would strike with the force of the Everbloom’s fury! My flock is especially good at magical crafting; we have been creating and stockpiling magical equipment for some time in anticipation of the upcoming uprising against Thrune. I even made some deals and managed to acquire some items from Absalom that we managed to reverse-engineer.
“So, what say you?”
”My flock is especially good at magical crafting; we have been creating and stockpiling magical equipment for some time in anticipation of the upcoming uprising against Thrune. I even made some deals and managed to acquire some items from Absalom that we managed to reverse-engineer.”
Chance has been content to let Vitalis and Jisara take the lead in the conversation with Haace, as they already know him. At the offer of access to magical equipment, however, he stands up on his chair and leans forward on the table.
“What kinds of magical equipment are we talking about, if someone were interested in this purely hypothetical uprising?”
Vitalis grasps Hetamon's hand firmly and shakes it. "We look forward to working together. Just keeping the government distracted and out of business, as you said, would be a huge boon on its own. And any further aid would be more than welcome."
"You've stated your offer directly, but alliances are a two-way street. Are you looking for more from the Silver Ravens than just our cause?"
Just leaving the kitchens, Edrakk quietly takes a seat next to his allies when Hetamon beckons them, listening intently to his offer.
"I can't think of any reason not to." he says to himself. "How will we be able to contact the Rose if we need you?"
“What kinds of magical equipment are we talking about, if someone were interested in this purely hypothetical uprising?”
”Truth be told, I’m not fully sure myself; my flock can get a bit out of control at times. Though I do have some magical fabrics that I occasionally sell at my establishment.”
Just leaving the kitchens, Edrakk quietly takes a seat next to his allies when Hetamon beckons them, listening intently to his offer.
"I can't think of any reason not to." he says to himself. "How will we be able to contact the Rose if we need you?"
”Well, I will assist the Ravens as a liaison to the Rose. More often than not you can find me at my establishment in Redroof: the Devil’s Threads. Or you could send me a message on one of your silver ravens.”
Vitalis grasps Hetamon's hand firmly and shakes it. "We look forward to working together. Just keeping the government distracted and out of business, as you said, would be a huge boon on its own. And any further aid would be more than welcome."
"You've stated your offer directly, but alliances are a two-way street. Are you looking for more from the Silver Ravens than just our cause?"
Hetamon chuckles at Vitalis’s words. ”We of the Rose are more than happy to assist the Silver Ravens without direct compensation; the Everbloom teaches that we should confront oppression to defend the common folk, and the Ravens have shown a sufficient force to reach this end. However, I would be lying if I said I didn’t have a bit of an ulterior motive for approaching at this particular time, though this is less of a quid pro quo and more of a personal request. Tell me, have you heard about the recent murders?”
Hetamon clears his throat loudly several times, masking Vitalis’s words, his eyes shifting around the mostly-empty tavern. He leans forward slightly and lowers his voice ”You’re not very subtle, are you?
Jisara lets out a quiet snort, but makes no further comment.
"Tell me, have you heard about the recent murders?”
"Which murders?" Jisara asks, her tone genuine as she leans forward with interest. "Have there been slayings by the tooth fairies? Or have they already been replaced by some new predator?"
"Tell me, have you heard about the recent murders?”
"You mean more than the usual amount of murders?"
Vitalis wracks his brain for a moment.
"Actually, there have been a few odd coincidences as of late. A month back, we heard of an unusual murder in Old Kintargo, cut up in the same way that the Temple Hill Slasher would do. And prior to that, the tieflings in Red Roof whispered that the Temple Hill Slasher had returned when we investigated a tooth fairy incident. And when we were passing through Hocum's Fantasmagorium, the Slasher's statue was defaced. You don't think he could have actually returned, do you? Or has someone else could have taken up the mantle. At the time, we hadn't had time to investigate further."
"Was someone close to you murdered, Hetamon? If so, I apologize for the joke earlier. How can we help?"
”Tooth fairies? That’s…new. But regardless, the Slasher is seen as a looming boogeyman in Kintargo; if someone goes mysteriously missing or died in unknown circumstances, it is almost knee-jerk to suggest the Temple Hill Slasher.
“However, you guessed correctly; one of my flock has fallen to the murderer’s blade. I found Myrletta last night, and I’ve been trying to keep it unnoticed by the dottari for as long as possible; I do not trust the guard’s ‘justice,’ and I fear they would accuse me simply for being the one who found the body. That, and, you know,” Hetamon gestures to his horns.
”I managed to cash in some favors on short notice and I managed to acquire a talking corpse scroll, if we need it. With a murderer on the prowl I fear what may become of this city. I know we do not know one another very well, but please assist me for this! I would be forever indebted to you.”
At the mention of the rare scroll, Jisara's tail involuntarily thumps against the floor in excitement. "That," she says, trying to keep the emotion out of her voice, "is quite a find. Those must have been some favors. You said Myrletta was one of your flock; was she a tiefling as well?"
Another murder?!?
Chance pulls out his journal and pen, and begins firing off questions at Hetamon and taking notes.
“The victim’s name is Myrletta? Did she use a last name? Where did you find her? How was she killed? Did she have any enemies? Where’s her body now?”
He looks up from his notes at the other Silver Ravens.
“Um, that is, we’ll have to discuss it among ourselves before we commit to taking on this investigation.”
At the mention of the rare scroll, Jisara's tail involuntarily thumps against the floor in excitement. "That," she says, trying to keep the emotion out of her voice, "is quite a find. Those must have been some favors. You said Myrletta was one of your flock; was she a tiefling as well?"
”No, actually; Myrletta is—was—a human.”
“The victim’s name is Myrletta? Did she use a last name? Where did you find her? How was she killed? Did she have any enemies? Where’s her body now?”
”Yes. Orlentz. A random alley in the southwest part of Old Kintargo. I’m not a doctor. Not that I knew of. At the Devil’s Threads.”
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Jisara shrugs at Chance when he looks up at her. "Let's not kid ourselves. We've gotten ourselves a reputation as do-gooders, due in large part to that one"--she jabs a thumb at Vitalis--"and it's going to take more than feigned protestations of 'oh, we'll have to think about it!' to undo that."
She turns back to Hetamon, a hand subconsciously trying to flatten out the wrinkles in her clothing.
"We do have other issues that require our attention, but, for me at least, this takes priority. Mas--Hetamon, how do you feel about cats?"
"We do have other issues that require our attention, but, for me at least, this takes priority. Mas--Hetamon, how do you feel about cats?"
"Jisara is right. The swamp creatures aren't going anywhere. Let's put an end to this murder streak."
“The victim’s name is Myrletta? Did she use a last name? Where did you find her? How was she killed? Did she have any enemies? Where’s her body now?””Yes. Orlentz. A random alley in the southwest part of Old Kintargo. I’m not a doctor. Not that I knew of. At the Devil’s Threads.”
Edrakk pulls out a notepad and starts writing everything down. "I'm not quite a doctor, which is probably the worst way I could have started this, but I have some expertise with medicine. I think we should start with Myrletta. We can use the scroll, and maybe try and figure out how she was killed. Maybe the alley after that, if we don't get any other leads."
"We do have other issues that require our attention, but, for me at least, this takes priority. Mas--Hetamon, how do you feel about cats?"
”Uh…I have no problem with them?
“Well, whenever you’re ready, I’ll show you the way.”
As it is closer, Hetamon brings the PCs to the alleyway where the body was found, which has several splotches of dried blood.
Vitalis spots something interesting at the scene: some small bits of white powder that got stuck in the dried blood. Jisara actually recognizes what it is: it’s flux powder, usually used in blacksmithing to make welding metals together easier.
Hetamon’s tailor shop is completely empty—the tiefling had to use his keys to unlock the door. He leads the PCs to one of the back rooms, where a body-shaped lump lies on a table beneath a cloth tarp.
”I only have the one scroll, so you only get to ask it three questions. And I have to warn you, it’s…not pretty.”
Hetamon pulls back the tarp to reveal Myrletta’s body beneath; the human woman is covered with dozens of lacerations and a large amount of dried blood.
Edrakk rolls up his sleeves to give a forensic examination while Jisara searches for anything magically dubious.
”I only have the one scroll, so you only get to ask it three questions. And I have to warn you, it’s…not pretty.”
"...you weren't kidding, huh."
Edrakk quickly gets to work on the examination, in the hopes that focusing on the task at hand would combat his discomfort with the sheer amount of blood. After some time, he pulls out his notepad again and jots some things down. "The cuts are all from a small bladed weapon. She most likely died from blood loss, but..." He takes a second, scratching his head, before continuing, "A lot of these wounds occurred after she died."
Let me know if you would try to Gather Information about the murders.
"Hmm, I could look into any blacksmiths in the area who would use flux powder."
When the body is revealed, he turns his head away from the gruesome scene. With little to contribute while Edrakk and Jisara examine the body, he stands in the room to respond to the others.
"Unfortunately, a small bladed weapon could be a knife that anyone in the city could get their hands on. We need to keep digging."
"Hmm, I could look into any blacksmiths in the area who would use flux powder."
Most blacksmiths in the city are members of the artisan’s guild, which is based in Old Kintargo. The guild is led by the dwarf Vespasio Vespam, whom the Tanessan family frequently works with.
Knowing that Jisara found something magical on the body, the rest of the PCs try to determine the magic as well, but to no avail. Hetamon, however, takes a look at the magic on the body, though he has a bit of a hard time looking at the body of someone he once knew. Eventually the tiefling’s expression darkens. ”The weapon that did this to her…it was magically enhanced to cause very bloody wounds.”
”The weapon that did this to her…it was magically enhanced to cause very bloody wounds.”
"Well that excludes a normal dagger."
"Actually, I heard that the Slasher's weapon of choice was a magical kukri that caused wounds that bleed constantly and that the blood glowed with the color of blood. It sounds like that could be the murder weapon if it was somehow rediscovered."
"If the murderer is hiding out in a blacksmith's shop, I could speak with Vespasio Vespam, the head of the artisan's guild about which blacksmith's are likely to be using flux powder to narrow our search down."