"No complaints from me either," agrees Hannelia. "Though I will be happier when Roger returns." While she has confidence that the pirate is more than capable of dispatching their foe, there's a note of concern in her voice as little about the fight here went to plan. She gestures to a row of market stalls on the far side of the square form where the trio of them are gathered. "He went down an alley behind those stalls," she says to Emma. "But it's a bit of a maze down there. We should probably go and check he is ok, just in case."
Round 12 | Battle Map
Emma channels divine energy to Nerissia. With a belated YIP!, Alocer arrives on the edge of the square.
Given the ranger’s chattering teeth, the shae risks icing him again before bolting for freedom. Unfortunately, she over-estimates how frozen Roger is and drops her guard, leaving herself open for a reprisal.
|
Bolds are UP!
ORDER: Shae, Majara, Emma, Roger, Nerissia, Hannelia
Looking up at Alocer's arrival, and satisfied that everything in her immediate presence is in hand, Hannelia follows her own recommendation. She sets off at a run to the other side of the square and the various passages leading off it. "Roger?" she calls out, hoping for a clue to the pirate's whereabouts.
Hearing Hannelia and Emma discuss Roger's whereabouts, Majara nods decisively. "Given what she did to the group of us, I don't like Roger's odds tangling with her alone. Nerissia-- you showed up in the nick of time-- unfortunate that you got hurt in the process, but we're all on our feet now. Let's go make sure Roger is."
"Stay safe, Nerissia, we'll be back in a moment," Emma says, adding hopefully as a silent addendum in her head.
Then she turns and books it in the direction that Hannelia and Majara had headed off in.
Once she gets closer, clanking and puffing, she follows Hannelia's cue.
"Roger? Roger!"
Roger’s blade fails to wound the shae but he does ruin her spell. She immediately spins on her heels and flees westward. However, the ranger isn’t ready to give up his quarry. He chases the shae through the twisting alley, leaping over objects she tosses in his way, desperate to slow his pursuit. She makes a hard turn into a smaller alley. Hot on her trail, Roger swings… and his blade shears through her immaculate dress and her armored corset to strike her umbral flesh. If she were human, her spine would be sheared. Despite a lack of organs, the blow to the shae is as devastating. She crashes into a wall, spins for the force of the blow, and slams into the ground – quite dead. Her body quickly begins to dissipate. Like a black fog she is dispersed into the morning air and her now empty dress collapses. All that is left is her exceptional falchion , her cleverly armored corset , and her rather stylish (formerly) white dress.
"Roger!" Majara calls, echoing both Hannelia and Emma. They play an odd game of Marco Polo until they find their piratical friend. Majara lets out a huff of relief.
"I've come across you unconscious too many times," she tuts. "Right, since you're on your feet-- and that... woman-- isn't-- I've got to go make some apologies to Glory."
Majara does glance sidelong at the gear that no longer has a body in it. "Did she... evaporate?"
Having tracked down Roger, the pirate having successfully ended the shadow woman and with it, the imminent threat, Hannelia feels herself relax a little. "Ok," she says. "If you're tending to Glory, Majara, we should see if there's anybody else who still needs help and then find out what happened." She looks at Emma as she says this. "I saw Bitborium in the square, I'll see if he can fill me in if you can do the same with the constables?" she suggests to the paladin.
After checking on the needs of any wounded townsfolk and guards, Hannelia approaches the gnome with a wave of greeting. "Master Bitborium," she says, "I am glad to see you well amidst all of this carnage. Do you need any aid?" She scans the area looking for the gnome's distinctive stall. "Were you present the whole time? Did you see what happened here, where the woman and the dog came from?"
Roger eventually bumbles his way back to the group, carrying her blade and all that's left of her.
"I think I got her, though she turned into fog after she hit the ground. Everyone alright? Think we can gleam any clues?" He tosses the weapon, armor, and clothing on the ground.
Now that it's all been settled and handled, Nerissia finally deems fit to stand up and brush all of the dirt and fur off of her before rejoining the group. The blood, both hers and the hounds', won't come off as easily but she knows how to get it out of most materials fairly easily.
Listening to the group talk, however, makes her even more confused than she was.
"Would someone mind catching me up on the whole...situation in general I guess? What in the Nine Hells is happening?" she asks, keeping her voice surprisingly calm while petting Alocer.
"Master Bitiborium," she says, "I am glad to see you well amidst all of this carnage. Do you need any aid?" She scans the area looking for the gnome's distinctive stall. "Were you present the whole time? Did you see what happened here, where the woman and the dog came from?"
Bitiborium looks himself over and pats himself down. ”No, no. I appear to be fine. Thanks for asking.” Hannelia spots the gnome’s stall in the SW corner of the square; it seems undisturbed. ”I can’t say I was here for all of it. That is to say… I was dusting and tidying my inventory when I heard a sort of distant hullabaloo, people shouting, that sort of thing. I popped my head out and saw the dark figures entering the square. They might have come from that alley across the way, I’m not really certain about that.” From the direction he points, they entered from the south, and near the middle of the southern ‘face’ of the square.
”It's like they were on a stroll - bold as brass. Folks started yelling, running, and such… Then that watchman,” he nods toward the corpse, ”drew a blade and blocked their path. She drew and they fought. The dog killed that other woman like she was a hare. She bolted and it chased her down. Then it was mayhem with screaming, arrows flying, howls, and all the rest.”
"Well I'm glad you're unharmed," Hannelia says, "and I'm very grateful that you entrusted Glory to our care. She has already shown her qualities." Her voice shakes slightly as she says, "We might have had one more corpse without her." She follows the gnome's gaze as he indicates the bloody bodies strewn across the market square. "And there are more than enough as it is. This is a dark day," she says solemnly.
Hannelia visualises what Bitborium is saying, having witnessed the shadow mastiff's savagery up close it's all too easy to imagine their entrance and how the carnage unfolded. "Thank you, that's very helpful. If there's anything I can help with, please let me know, otherwise I'll see if the guards can confirm things."
An unpleasant thought strikes her: in a different scenario, she can envision a tiefling huntress and her fennec companion striding into the square. Not the slaughter that followed their arrival, of course, but she knows all too well the suspicion and dark looks that many of the Saringallow locals would be throwing Nerissia's way in those circumstances. It's probably nothing, but now that it's come to her, the idea of a dark mirror sits uneasily as she goes to join Emma in talking to the watch.
"Would someone mind catching me up on the whole...situation in general I guess? What in the Nine Hells is happening?" she asks, keeping her voice surprisingly calm while petting Alocer.
As she tries to shake the thought, Nerissia joins her en route. "The short answer is we don't know any more than you do,"she says to her question. "We weren't here either when it all kicked off but we heard the screaming so ran to get here. But I'm hoping Emma might have started to get some answers."
Emma and the guards are already talking so Hannelia waits for an opportunity to ask, "Master Bitborium," she indicates the gnome, "thinks the woman and dog came from that direction. Can you confirm this?" she asks. "He also said that the commotion started as soon as they arrived - do you know what they were doing to cause people to flee and panic? I know their appearance was fearsome but that's a very strong reaction by itself. Oh," she says, "did the hound bay?" She thinks of the fear that gripped her at the dog's howl. Given how two of her stout-hearted friends had fled in the face of it, that would certainly explain the panic that seems to have taken hold of so many.
It takes an hour or so to tend the wounded, repair the damage (largely due to fleeing sheeple), conduct interviews, and compare notes. Bitiborium’s account is largely confirmed. Majara and Roger discover a missing piece of the puzzle. No one witnessed the arrival of the shae and mastiff, unfortunately, but they were first spotted by a pair of soiled doves in the street near Willita’s. The shadowy pair immediately proceeded into the alley beside the bawdy house and walked north to the market square. The shae’s prints are hard to spy in the alleys but three hundred pounds of mastiff leaves prints that Roger has no problem following.
As the last bits of glass are being swept up in the market square, Constantine is found. The relieved priests find him wandering near the Temple of Erastil. The team is quickly summoned to see the psychic sensitive’s state. Unfortunately, Constantine is nearly catatonic. His eyes are open, he walks (when led), and his mouth moves but he doesn’t speak. He doesn’t respond to any attempts to draw his attention or communicate with him.
Added to this perplexing mystery, Nerissia and Majara note that Constantine’s right hand is closed. With a little coaxing, they are able to open his fist. The tip of Constantine’s fore-finger looks raw and a bit bloody. His hand also has a thin coating of rock dust. In his palm is a small, common, nail. It is also dusted with rock and the tip is quite dulled.
The benefit of her height is that Majara’s eyes are close to Constantine’s hands. She spots a few slivers of wood in the wounds on his finger as well.
It takes a bit of time to tidy but order is restored to the square soon enough and Hannelia assumes that trade will no doubt follow in pretty short order.
Having corroborated the stories and seen for themselves, she frowns as Roger points out the footprints. "We find ourselves here again," she says to the pirate. "Totally different reasons but that's twice in as many days. I can't see an obvious connection though. I don't know if we're missing something or if we just don't have enough pieces. But strange things seem to be happening in a way that's not normal." Hannelia looks to Nerissia. "Have you had any more of those dreams?" she asks.
* * * * *
She breathes a sigh of relief at the news that Constantine has been found and is at least safe. A new wave of concern roils up inside Hannelia as the acolytes explain that he's currently mute and apparently mentally elsewhere. Try as she might, her gentle words are unable to get through to her friend in his current state.
As Majara persuades him to relinquish the nail Constantine had been clutching, she looks in puzzlement at the nail. "Where did this come from?" she asks, speaking to Constantine, though with little hope that he will respond, but also hoping the party might have some ideas. "It looks like he prised this out with his hand," she says. To the priests she asks, "Where was he found? We probably can't search everywhere between there and the temple but perhaps we could look in the vicinity." Hannelia brushes her hair out of face. "Or am I just trying to give meaning to things which have none?"
"Where was he found? We probably can't search everywhere between there and the temple but perhaps we could look in the vicinity."
The priest leads the group (minus Constantine who is gently held by another parishioner) to the south-east corner of the building. ”Constantine was found around here… but he wasn’t here earlier. When he disappeared this morning, we scoured the immediate area for him.”
”Do you mind if we have a Quick Look around?” Hannelia asks. ”I don’t know if you saw but he was clutching a nail. From the looks of it he pulled it out himself, though I couldn’t guess why and he doesn’t seem able to tell us currently.” She shakes her head at the slightly odd nature of the request. ”Chances are it doesn’t mean anything, but if there’s a chance it leads to buried treasure, well, you can take the man out of the pirate crew…” She flashes Roger a grin that she doesn’t really feel.
Majara jogs to Glory and inspects the plant, and the pot, for damage with a grimace.
"I apologize for that," she says in a quiet voice to the plant. "Not my right mind when it happened. I'll take steps to secure you better, so that such a mishap can't happen again. We were lucky, your pot's intact, just chipped...."
She checks the leaves, the stamen, winces over the injury that their need had inflicted, then carefully lifts the plant so they can rejoin the others. "If it helps soothe the sting, you saved a good woman's life."
****
Constantine's state is a cause for further concern, and the nail especially so. She frowns at Constantine's unhappy little prize, and the damage he did to himself in the acquiring of it.
"I agree it looks like he pulled it out. Tsk, his poor hand. I wonder if we might be able to borrow a hound from the city guard? That might be able to help us retrace his steps, figure out where he wandered while witless. His scent, you know."
With a sigh, the gnome pulls her hair back from her face and ties it back. "We have dead guardsmen, townsfolk panicked, who knows how many injuries, and most likely the mayor and the guard will want to know why. We as yet have no real answers. It is... understandable and yet unfortunate the guards initiated hostilities - it doesn't seem like this woman was actively aggressive before then, though who's to know what she would have done...."
Majara tags along with Hannelia to look over the wall without much hope of seeing anything right there. "We should check that bit of wall where we found him earlier, too."
”Indeed. Too many questions and too few answers, you’ve got the right of it,” Hannelia agrees. ”I don’t know that being stopped by a guard is really starting hostilities, even if it may have been overly aggressive. I know folks here can be jumpy at times but even so, the response was hardly proportionate.” Her mind jumps back to the carnage in the square. ”Impossible to know exactly what happened though.”
After venturing over to speak to the guards briefly, Emma joins Majara and Hannelia, deep in thought.
"Impossible to know," Emma agrees. "Though that doesn't make the lack of answers any easier to swallow."
She chews on her lip for a moment, considering. "This was... bad. Not just because two of us were gravely hurt, but the damage done to bystanders and the guard alike. Majara has the right of it - people are going to want answers, and they're going to latch on to whatever explanation seems the likeliest. I think..."
She trailed off again, looking around, then lowering her voice a tad. "I think Constantine may have been a factor in why the creature was here at all, though I would venture a guess as to say it was unwilling or unknown on his part, based on his current state. Something or someone either coerced, controlled, or otherwise manipulated him into doing... whatever it was he might have done that resulted in this."
Emma shrugs. "I don't know how or why, or even what the intended result was. But I think if we find that anything else has gone amiss while this was going on..."
Emma lets the thought hang in the air.
Then she looks at Majara, and at Glory. "Thank you again," Emma says, inclining her head slightly. "To the both of you, but in particular, to you, Glory. I likely wouldn't be standing here otherwise. I'm in your debt."
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
I wonder if we might be able to borrow a hound from the city guard? That might be able to help us retrace his steps, figure out where he wandered while witless. His scent, you know.
"Were you bonked in the head during that fight, before I got here?" Nerissia scolds, wagging her finger at the gnome in an over-exaggerated manner. "You keep forgetting Alocer, your lovely companion hunting fox. If we have anything of his with a strong scent, there's a chance Alocer can hunt down wherever he came from."
I think Constantine may have been a factor in why the creature was here at all,
Her face drops from her jovial playful mood into a much more serious attitude at the paladin's words, and her grip on her bow noticeably tightens almost as if by habit. "If that is the case then I am afraid we cannot just afford to leave him be in the world, free to unleash all manner of beast upon the innocents here. Us dashing heroes won't be here to save the day all the time, you know."
"Were you bonked in the head during that fight, before I got here?" Nerissia scolds, wagging her finger at the gnome in an over-exaggerated manner. "You keep forgetting Alocer..."
Majara looks blank, then gives an exaggerated grimace of her own, smacking her small palm into her forehead. "I did. How can I possibly keep forgetting........... hrmn. Hrmn, hang on..."
The gnome starts rummaging in the dozens of pouches that hang from her bandolier. As she hunts for whatever she's hunting, she says, "Well, I'm sure we could take his shirt and be given a fresh clean one. That should be a strong enough scent for anyone. And his blood-- that finger's bleeding, a bit, and there might be-- might, I stress-- might be some of that wherever he was before this."
The solemn addition Nerissia makes earns a nod from the alchemist. "Yes, I think that if Constantine is somehow connected to this, we have to figure out a better form of security. He wasn't just 'left to be' in the world as it was - but we've been burdening the priests with him, and they have many duties that aren't just minding him. A full time guardian may need to be arranged.... if, in fact, Constantine was connected. That seems.... circumstantially coincident, right now, Miss Blackford. Why, what is it you think Constantine did other than... dig a nail out of something? Yes, perhaps his disappearance and the shae's appearance are related. But that seems hardly certain to me, thus far. I'd want stronger evidence."
Finally, the gnome finds what she is looking for-- a bottle with a pale blue, faintly luminescent substance inside. "Ha!" cries Majara, one finger aimed accusingly at the lid of this little flask. "Yes, that'd do it. Lid was crooked."
Majara's tone indicates satisfaction as if she'd proved something, though she doesn't explain what. She pops the lid with a few quick hand movements, then screw it on again, carefully and intently.
"I suppose at least partially, I'm worried that the town officials might jump to such a conclusion. It's less about worrying about what he did and more so worrying about what others might be using him for. He's been incapacitated, true, but he's still a potentially powerful individual. He was doing better for a time, it seemed, but then..." Emma fell silent, letting the moment hang.
"I'm not trying to accuse him of anything. Perhaps he's just particularly vulnerable to whatever is causing these disturbances. He has been more on edge lately, it seems. That could be all it is."
Perhaps I'm just paranoid, she thinks silently, a phantom pain flaring in her chest.
But it wouldn't be the first time an ally had been used against them.
"I'm less worried about the officials," Hannelia chimes in, "more the townsfolk. Mayor Trinelli strikes me as decent, at least. But she does have to look out for the whole community and it would be a brave move to speak out publicly. And whether she did or not, the Sarini name is going to remain dark in some quarters for a long time - and rightly so, given the things we learned - no matter what Constantine may do."
"I think that's more likely," she says to Emma, eager to defend her friend. "It's not in his nature to be dealing with shadowy beings like the shae regardless of his mental state. But more importantly," Hannelia looks to Nerissia, "I don't believe he would be capable of summoning such creatures here. That's powerful magic. I would be more concerned about someone - or something - using him though. I don't like it but it could be possible." She frowns, finding neither the implications nor the possible measures to prevent it particularly palatable.
To Majara she says, "I think it's a bit much to say that he is burdening the temple. Looking after those in need is their duty. But I agree that it's not possible for them to provide constant watch over him, nor that he has needed it to this point. I'm sure we could afford to pay for it, but..." She tails off, shaking her head and regathering herself. "But I want to ensure that he is getting proper care, that will help him. And ideally we would want somebody who... might be able to subdue him, if if it came to it. He is a capable warrior," Hannelia adds in a small voice. The concern in her hazel eyes is as obvious as it is genuine.
"Maybe we could speak to Father Ruvarra about us arranging additional support for him here. Familiar surroundings might be good for him and aid his recovery. And it means we're close by." She puffs out her cheeks, considering the alternative. "Or maybe the manor might be better. I don't know whether his ancestral home would be soothing or the reverse given the history, but he's less likely to come to harm away from town. It does mean he's further away from us though. What do you think?" she asks.
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
Majara jogs to Glory and inspects the plant, and the pot, for damage with a grimace.
"I apologize for that," she says in a quiet voice to the plant. "Not my right mind when it happened. I'll take steps to secure you better, so that such a mishap can't happen again. We were lucky, your pot's intact, just chipped...."
The plant’s enthusiasm doesn’t seem to have flagged any. With leaves and stamen, it gives the gnome a: ദ്ദി
Then she looks at Majara, and at Glory. "Thank you again," Emma says, inclining her head slightly. "To the both of you, but in particular, to you, Glory. I likely wouldn't be standing here otherwise. I'm in your debt."
The leaves and stamen curl and reconfigure. <3
Our heroes examine the area near the wall of the church. There is little to note on the ground… no boards lacking nails, etc. What is present is on the wall itself. There is a freshly-etched (judging by the stone dust below it) floral-ish motif. And, yes, it does look like a nail may have been used to carve it.
Following Alocer’s nose, our heroes sleuth out Constantine’s rough trail. It generally heads south-ish and meanders down alleys (and some legitimate roads). The trail is most easily detectable around the market square. It seems Constantine paused in spots around the market square. And here, our heroes note more of the floral-ish designs… in various states of ‘doneness’ carved into stone and wooden walls. Here, they also note the floral design is actually circles upon circles to form the ‘daisy’ pattern. Some are carved with a metal nail… and the earliest ones (in wooden walls) are carved with, you imagine, was a finger nail.
Majara suggests returning to Gunty’s Bakery. Here, too, our heroes now find the curious ‘daisy’ carved on the wall. It doesn’t appear to have been as freshly carved as the other symbols are, and Alocer’s nose doesn’t lead the group over here. So clearly this carving happened on another day.
Majara frowns as they retrace Constantine's steps... yes, back to Gunty's. Something is drawing Constantine to these spots. And before he had the metal nail, he was willing to use his more biological one.
"Right. Now I'm more willing to grant this is a type of evidence that Constantine might be up to something," she admits in a low voice only for the others' ears. "Not that I think he's intentionally doing anything malicious. But that something might be acting on him, or through him, yes-- possibly."
The gnome rubs at her sharp little chin as she studies the "flower" on the wall, wracking her mind to think if she has ever seen such a symbol in the past, in a book, anything.
She observes the daisy, fingers tap-tap-tapping on her chin. "I need a map. Be right back."
Gunty's is close to Saringallow Sundries, where a few coins gives her the "tourist" map of the town. Majara starts noting where they've found these scratched markers, and gazes triumphantly on....
....nothing very much in particular. With a little huff, the gnome returns to the others.
"I thought there might be a detectable pattern as to where these are appearing," she explains. "If there is, it's not one I can see. Although we could easily be missing some of his work."
It takes Majara a moment to puzzle out where she’s seen such marks before (for indeed she has). She’s noted them on the doors of cottages and barns in largely rural areas where ‘evil’ is believed to be afoot. They are commonly called ‘witch marks’ though they have little to do with witches. Scholars call them apotropaic marks. They are used by the common folk (in lieu of clerical services) to protect a building or its occupants and ‘ward off’ evil, demons, witches, occult malefactors, and the evil eye.
While Majara disappears to procure a map, presumably with something in mind that she will share upon her return, Hannelia inspects the marks.
Although she's fairly certain it has a meaning, and she can vaguely recall having seen something similar before, somewhere, maybe... she's can neither place it nor identify its purpose.
Hannelia nods after Majara reappears and the need for the map becomes clear. "There are an awful lot of buildings and walls in town," she says, stating the obvious. "And these marks might not always be obvious. But yes, anything Alocer can nose out is very helpful. We should perhaps consider also marking on any of the other strange occurrences. They may not be related, at least not all of them, but there could be a pattern that suggests a focus."
She glances back in the direction of the temple, and Constantine. "Do you think we should ask him? Constantine, that is. Not that I think he's likely to be able to tell us," Hannelia asks quietly.
"Otherwise, should we return more directly to the search for our missing man before Constantine's own disapearing act and the chaos at the market?"
"One thing's for sure, the marks don't mean nothing. That's not something that happens accidentally, like a cart scraping alongside a wall or the like. Someone, whether Constantine or someone else, did that on purpose."
"Do you think we should ask him? Constantine, that is. Not that I think he's likely to be able to tell us,"
Nerissia shakes her head, though whether in answer or frustration at the situation is unclear.
"If he does remember why he did it and did in fact do it intentionally, he's likely not as close a friend as you think he is. I didn't know him...before, so I'll let you think on that. He won't likely have any real useful information anyway, unfortunately."
”No, they’re definitely deliberate marks,” Hannelia agrees. ”They’re too obvious a pattern to have been made by accident, even once.”
As Majara explains what the witch marks are, Hannelia mutters, ”Of course,” belatedly realising that she has seen similar marks but without truly understanding their purpose.
She frowns at Nerissia’s comment. ”That would depend on his motive. You don’t need me to tell you but this is a suspicious town,” she says, ”and fear of magic and diabolism runs deep. With good reason, considering the depravity of the Sarinis,” she adds. ”It really depends on what the marks are trying to indicate. They could be showing people of malicious intent, or maybe just magic users, or simply places of activity. They could also be targets, I suppose.” A look of consternation crosses Hannelia’s face. ”Or it could be something more benign - they are targets but the marks are designed to protect the occupants. They could be to ward those who dwell in the marked houses in a way that is acceptable to superstitious folk because they have been marked out by someone or something.”
”Right now we don’t know what connects the buildings or, I’d guess more likely, the people inside them, and we don’t know whether the marks were made to harm or to help or whether there was any judgement involved at all.” In lieu of having a ponytail to tug at, she runs her hand through her hair. ”Perhaps that sets out our next task: compile a list of the buildings and their occupants and look for anything that connects them to each other. Or anything that might tie them to our other mysteries.”
"Talking to Constantine is a good idea, though I'm not sure we'd get much from him at the moment. Perhaps we should give him a day and try then." Emma looks at the marks, then at the others. "Though I suppose the argument can be made that it would be worth trying sooner rather than later."
"Hard to say. For all we know, its not Connie when these are being carved."
"The symbols are protective, in intent," Majara confirms. "Designed to ward off evil. I think that we should at least try to talk to him, though judging by the state we left him in, I doubt he'll be able to say much. Maybe this evening, he'll be in a better state. I agree with the idea of compilation of the sites - I want to keep marking them on the map, see if there's any pattern. But in the meantime we do have a missing person to check on. And the matter of the shae and her hound. --ack, we could have tried to track the mastiff by its scent to whereever they entered the town!"
This is said with another little thump of her hand against her forehead. "Let's see if there's any scent remaining, it's been a bit of time but of the three issues facing us that one is the one that has come the nearest to killing us, and that gives it priority as far as I'm concerned. Of course, they might all ultimately be connected."
"We have had a lot going on, pulling us in different directions," Hannelia says. "We should probably try and see if there's still a scent though. Perhaps we should split up to cover more ground? Maybe you'd like to accompany Nerissia and Alocer to see if you can pick up on the dog's trail while Emma, Roger and I go to the docks and see if we can pick up on the trail of Verno? I'm not convinced we'll get anything definitive - too much time seems to have passed and people's memories aren't as reliable as we'd like them to be - but the more we can eliminate, the more we know. Right now it seems pretty likely that he never left Saringallow," she pauses a second, before adding, "At least of his own volition. Given nobody seems to have seen him in a couple of weeks, it looks like he's either gone to ground or somebody is hiding him, either here or elsewhere."
On the assumption of agreement, the group splits and Hannelia, Roger and Emma make their way to the docks as they had intended before the twin distractions of the appearance of the shae and her hound and the disappearance of Constantine. Upon arrival, Hanelia casts around looking for anybody she recognises as a barker.
Majara leads the way back to Willita’s where she and Roger had backtracked the hound prints from earlier. Here, again, the prints are obvious in the muddy alley but disappear on the cobblestone street. However, trusting Alocer’s nose and doing a wider sweep of the road, leads our heroes to an alley almost directly across from Willita’s. It is strewn with trash and bric-a-brac. It seems to be the neighborhood dump site. The adventurers carefully walk across the debris, deeper into the alley. Alocer stops and turns her head, repelled by the smell that eventually registers with her olfactorily-challenged companions. Human effluviant – like an open latrine – offends every nostril.
Whether they want it to or not, for Alocer the scent trail ends here. Her nose cannot sort the mastiff’s scent from this assault of persistent, fetid, stink. Nerissia imagines this must be close to the smell of an open sewer… then she notices the signs of collapse on one side of the debris field, a jagged hole in the ground, and the sight of old bricks and cobblestones, unevenly lining the hole like a beggar’s teeth. It seems this is the smell of a formerly closed (now open) sewer… While spotting prints atop the debris is a serious challenge, Nerissia sees enough scuff marks that she is reasonably confident that the mastiff emerged from the sewer.
Meanwhile…
Emma, Hannelia, and Roger make the rounds along the docks. Given the still-jangled nerves of many locals from the howling, chaos, and carnage, added to the fact that the threesome were instrumental in ending the latest threat… the Saringallow Seekers find the relieved locals in a very cooperative mood. Even a couple of Roger’s erstwhile detractors offer to buy him a drink later!
Our heroes systematically move down the docks, speaking with barkers and boat captains. The single-boat operations barely keep passenger records. Those with books, gladly open them for the heroes of the day. Verno is on no one’s manifest (or memory) on the day he checked out of the Witch’s End. However, on the seventh such interview, the trio sees their luck change. They speak with a barker for one of the larger ferry services. He recollects – and the records confirm – that Verno booked passage on the River Empress (bound for Elidir) the day before she was scheduled to leave. She set sail the next morning and Verno wasn’t aboard. The barker adds, ”He even paid when he booked and never asked for it back. Wish I had that kind of money to throw away!”
It would appear word in town travels fast as news of the fight with the shadowy figures has circulated to the docks. People are both on edge and chatty but it takes several conversations before finding any record of Verno.
"Nice problem to have," Hannelia agrees as the barker confirms that their missing man was both scheduled to return home and never did, at least on that particular boat. "I don't suppose you can recall if anything seemed off with him?" she asks. "You know how you can tell if someone's behaving strangely, like they're desperate to get away?"
She turns to Emma and Roger. "We now know that he was intending to go back to Elidir. I doubt we will get absolute certainty one way or the other but certainly missing passage that you've already paid for suggests he never left Saringallow."
The barker cocks his head at the question. "Off? No... He was excited - all smiles. He blabbered about getting home to some girl. Plunked down his money like it would get him there faster."
”Most people like going home,” Hannelia replies, even as her mind turns to Shel and she silently acknowledges that home isn’t necessarily a happy place for everyone. She has no reason to doubt Verno’s mood as anything other than genuine, however. ”Thank you,” she says to the barker, ”you’ve been very helpful.” Dipping into her coin pouch, she hands the man a silver piece for his trouble.
Once they’re away and able to speak privately, Hannelia says, ”Looks pretty strongly that he disappeared against his will. We’ve not found anything that suggests dishonesty or shady behaviour on Verno’s part and it sounds a lot like he was simply looking forward to being home and seeing his fiancée. I suppose it’s possible something happened overnight that changed his position but I can’t imagine what that would be to cause such a dramatic change of heart and personality. So it’s probably the former.”
”Also,” she says quietly, ”it looks like Constantine has been down here too.” Hannelia indicates a few of the increasingly familiar designs inscribed on various walls alongside the dockside.
Having shown Emma and Roger the markings, she says, ”Shall we go and track down the others? I’d have expected them to have finished sooner than us so perhaps they’ve found something.”
Nerissia sees enough scuff marks that she is reasonably confident that the mastiff emerged from the sewer.
"Ah, man, couldn't have been from a completely clean portal room in a wizards' tower or something?" Nerissia says, grumbling while rewarding Alocer for a job well done, even if she doesn't personally like the end result. "I've been in enough sewers for my entire lifetime, I think, but I suppose adding one more to the tally can't hurt." she says, standing up from her crouched position over the sewer hole.
"That is, if you wanted to actually continue following this lead. I doubt he'd be able to actually find any trail, but we might poke around a little and see what we can find."
Nerissia sees enough scuff marks that she is reasonably confident that the mastiff emerged from the sewer."Ah, man, couldn't have been from a completely clean portal room in a wizards' tower or something?" Nerissia says, grumbling while rewarding Alocer for a job well done, even if she doesn't personally like the end result. "I've been in enough sewers for my entire lifetime, I think, but I suppose adding one more to the tally can't hurt." she says, standing up from her crouched position over the sewer hole.
"That is, if you wanted to actually continue following this lead. I doubt he'd be able to actually find any trail, but we might poke around a little and see what we can find."
"Hmmmm..... Rather not, until the whole group is with us," Majara admits, though she's rather chuffed the trail panned out this far. "That woman and her dog nearly murdered the lot of us as a group - I don't give two of us good odds. Let's reconvene with the others and share what we found. Alocer, remind me to buy you a steak."
Majara and Nerissia are finished with their search well before Hannelia and the rest have conducted all of their time-consuming interviews. The two groups rejoin in time for questioning of the helpful barker.
Majara does visit one of the butcher shops that sell fresh cuts to the townsfolk in order to get a nice chunk of meat for the skilful fox - half reward, half apology. She is accordingly holding a wax-paper-wrapped hunk of meat when they find the others... typical gnome behavior, natch.
"Halloa. Followed the fox to a fetid fissure; thought that we couldn't possibly risk the joys of sewage exposure without you to share in that experience," she says cheerfully. "How goes this bit?"
No answers, yet-- but then they talk to the barker, and Majara mulls on this new information.
"So he arrived. He did his business. He never left. But from all accounts he didn't sound troubled, nervous, a man who knew he was in danger - he simply never showed up for the boat he very much wanted to be on. Foul play is seeming... likelier." The gnome sighs. "This COULD simply be getting knifed in an alley-- a rich man is a tempting target, and Saringallow isn't such a paradise that there aren't those desperate for quick coin. We should check that no bodies have turned up lately, nor been found bobbing in the river. Assuming that there haven't.... maybe asking around the streets near where he was staying last? As to if anyone saw him pass, that sort of thing."
"Yeah," Hannelia sighs. "It's possible. Though Sophi's probably already done that I would imagine? We should probably confirm it at least. Worth a go," she says to Majara's suggestion. "But maybe a bit thin unless they saw him go somewhere in particular? We do at least now know he was here up until the day before he was supposed to leave for Elidir, so with no reason to doubt that he intended to do just that we can reasonably safely assume he disappeared in that window. As much as we can assume anything, I suppose."
"I'm probably going to regret asking, but the sewer you mentioned: is it one large enough that we could enter? Wading through waste isn't top of my list of things to do but regrettably it's something we should probably consider." Hannelia wrinkles her nose at the prospect, almost as if her nostrils are preparing themselves for the foulness ahead.
"Yeah," Hannelia sighs. "It's possible. Though Sophi's probably already done that I would imagine? We should probably confirm it at least. Worth a go," she says to Majara's suggestion. "But maybe a bit thin unless they saw him go somewhere in particular? We do at least now know he was here up until the day before he was supposed to leave for Elidir, so with no reason to doubt that he intended to do just that we can reasonably safely assume he disappeared in that window. As much as we can assume anything, I suppose."
"I'm probably going to regret asking, but the sewer you mentioned: is it one large enough that we could enter? Wading through waste isn't top of my list of things to do but regrettably it's something we should probably consider." Hannelia wrinkles her nose at the prospect, almost as if her nostrils are preparing themselves for the foulness ahead.
"Yes, she might have asked-- but she doesn't have the benefits of our reputation, or, well, your way with people," Majara counters. "Anyway, it's a possible path for action. As is the sewer, which, yes: I do think we could enter. Nerissia's sure the mastiff clambered out of there."
Majara says this with, again, more cheer than anyone else likely feels about the prospect.
"Let's get some confirmation then. Are Calannie or Halmam around?" Hannelia scans the dock looking for the Dockmistress or her deputy. "They'd be able to give us a quick answer on anyone being pulled out of the river. Then maybe we check with the Mayor's office - may as well try and make use of our reputation, as you say."
She looks over to Nerissia and Alocer, happy to take the huntress' word that the shadow hound came from the sewers. "We should probably prepare and then check them out then I suppose." Hannelia turns back to Majara. "Do you have anything that might help neutralise the smell? Obviously I'm not expecting anything that will affect the whole place but I'm sure our nostrils will all be grateful and only poor Alocer relies on his so I don't think it should hinder us." She reaches into her backpack and pulls out the filter scarf that she had briefly loaned to Sophi. "Something like this should help you breathe easier too."
We should probably prepare and then check them out then I suppose.
"I was afraid you'd say that. I'm okay hunting in the field for months at a time, but I never enjoy a trip down into the sewers." she says, shuddering at some half-remembered vacation to a set of horribly cramped sewers under some city a country or two over.
"We can probably make our own way should it come to it, but obviously any assistance is appreciated as always, little one." she says, ruffling Majara's hair playfully, trying to lighten up the mood amongst all this kerfuffle her curious little group has found itself in.
"Trust me, it doesn't hugely appeal to me either," Hannelia replies. "And I think best to stick together for now? Hopefully it won't take too long to get the answers we're looking for with regards to recently found bodies. Though it probably doesn't need all of us to do that so if anyone does have anything they want to prepare before we venture underground now is a reasonable to do that. Either way, I don't think we should go in until we're all ready and together."
Majara estimates it will take her a couple hours to concoct a nasal spray to counteract the stink in the sewers. In the meantime, our heroes pay a visit to the constabulary. As they walk the streets, the police are out in force – part of it is for security, part for information gathering, and a healthy chunk is to quiet the local nerves regarding the attack. The mayor has scheduled a town meeting for noon, presumably to update and reassure the populace.
The team has no problem getting to meet with the watch commander. He confirms that no bodies, parts of bodies, or anything of that sort have been found or reported. In return, he asks the team for an update on their progress in the search for Verno Aculla. It seems Sophi has been talking up the prominence of his family – planting the seed of Elidir officials taking a hand in the local matter.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Relieved, if not surprised that Verno’s body has not been reported, or indeed anyone else’s, Hannelia is glad to at least tick that off the list. And to get a straight answer, too. ”Thank you,” she says, ”that’s a relief, though we expected Sophi would have enquired. And we’ll do our best to keep any officials from Elidir from sticking their noses in if they’re not wanted. Truth be told, we don’t have a huge amount to report. We know he booked passage on a boat out of town, leaving the following day but he never took it. Everyone we’ve spoken to who saw or interacted with him said he was looking forward to returning home to his fiancee. Nobody’s cast any aspersions his way or given any evidence that this was untrue or that he was involved in anything untoward.” She brushes a strand of hair out of her face.
”So given we don’t have any reason to think he wasn’t going to do as he intended, the most likely scenario at the moment is that he was incapacitated or abducted or something that prevented him leaving on his boat. We’ve found no evidence that he left Saringallow, so again it seems more likely on balance that he did not.” Hannelia pauses a second to ensure the watch commander is following. ”All of this is based on a process of elimination and supposition rather than hard evidence though.”
”Regarding the incident at the market square,” she continues, changing the subject, ”we,” Hannelia indicates Nerissia and Alocer, wanting to ensure the tiefling is getting the credit for her work in a town she knows is likely to be wary of those with devilled blood, ”traced the interlopers back to a sewer entrance. Unless you have any major objections we were going to enter and investigate further. If you want to pass word to Mayor Trinelli feel free. It might be useful in helping to calm things down.” She wrinkles her nose, thinking. ”Maybe better that she doesn’t give away too many specifics though - a “we’re investigating and following up on leads” kind of thing - in case it tips off someone and they go to ground and makes our job even more difficult. You see where I’m coming from?” The question is rhetorical, she’s confident that he does.
”As for whether these two things are related…” Hannelia shrugs. ”We’ve got nothing to connect them, but there have been odd things happening lately. Again, nothing to connect this to either the ruckus in the square or Verno Aculla’s disappearance, but we’ve noticed a number of markings made around town recently.” She describes the appearance of the witchmarks. ”There’s no pattern that we’ve been able to discern so far but if you see any others on your patrols, if you could let us know their location that would be appreciated please.”