The Lord-Mayor raise an eyebrow.
"And what would that accomplish? This cult is dangerous. I couldn't risk moving against them until I knew the scope of their operation", he says with the tone one might use with a child.
"But you've done more than remove Ironbriar. If this is correct, you might have found the one giving him orders."
Wait... he isn't upset?
"So..." begins Pirknok slowly, "when you wuz... I mean was... looking fer thuh killer..." he trails off, hesitating to voice his sudden idea. After a moment he frowns. "Was it rilly to find out wut we knew uhbout him?"
His brow furrows and he looks down at his feet, sure he hasn't worded his thoughts very well at all.
"What do you know about all of this?" Eli asks. "I mean... can you share what you have learned? Maybe we can help rid us both of a threat..."
"You know more than I do at this point", the mayor admits. "I knew there were murders going on in my city and members of justice council were covering them up. I knew they were tied to some kind twisted religion."
"If you want to learn the truth, I suggest you find the head of Ironbriar's organization. Find this 'Xanesha' and end the Brotherhood of the Seven for good. In exchange, I'll do what I can to keep you safe from Magnimar's peacekeepers."
Ventus, who had been remaining silent, broke into a grin, "So now we're deniable assets? Look at that little brother," he said slapping the dwarf on the back, "You got us turned from wanted murderers to expendable resources." It was obvious he was not unhappy with the turn of events but more a mix of amused and relieved.
The portly Mayor snorts derisively and even though he's a few inches shorter than the strapping Ventus, you get the sensation he's looking down on you.
"Dangerous killers or not, Magnimar does not looking favorably on vigilantes. The Order of Tears in particular has it out for you. I make no promises about my ability to throw them off your trail."
"We were defending ourselves!" Eli exclaims. "And we are deputies of the Sherriff of Sandpoint, so we had a right to investigate."
"It's too bad we're in Magnimar", the Mayor answers coolly.
"I don't care what authority you have in Sandpoint."
"C'mon, Eli, let's do what the powerful politician says before he changes his mind and throws us to the wolves," Ventus said in a low whisper, interceding. It was an old game and one that reminded him to be glad to have been out of big cities for a while.
"Your honor, we'll continue our investigations and try to be more subtle. If it comes down to it, would you rather us machete our way through the cultists or hand over information to you? No promises on our end of course."
"Do what you have to in order to end the threat to Magnimar", he says coldly.
"But as you surmised, if you make a mess and fail to deal with the Brotherhood, I won't protect you from what's coming your way."
Pirknok frowns at the sudden hostile turn this conversation has taken. Holding up one hand, he waits for everyone to stop talking before he himself speaks. When he does, his voice is calm and soothing. He addresses the mayor first. "We came ta you b'cause Eli sed you wuz thuh only wun we kin be sher izint involved. I ain't frum yer culture... an' I can't say ah rilly unnerstan' how people... speshully leaders... kin be as brokin as that Ironbrier wuz... but ah'm here now an'... ah wanna help by endin' this. So... if you don't have ennywun else who kin fight it, I... we still will. An' we'd rather you unnerstan' that we're on thuh same side."
Turning to the rest of the party, he searches their faces for the agreement and peacefulness he knows is within. "It don't help ennythin' ta be gettin' thuh mayor mad at us. We're in this tagether."
"The sooner we start, the sooner we can leave this place," Kaplan mutters.
"This is stupid. If we're being heroes, we should be treated like it!" Jessamy says indignantly. "But if he needs us to do his dirty work, well, I guess that's what we'll have to do. Once we catch these killers and prove ourselves, well, people will know who's responsible!"
She nods decisively, seemingly happy with her decision.
Eli, his face dark with anger, sighs. "We'll do this. Let's get it over with." he says, turning to go.
Pirknok frowns, gives the mayor a last inscrutable look, and also turns to go. He's nothing like our elders... maybe Eli was wrong, and he is involved in all this somehow. They're all so confusing...
Content that the party seems to be in agreement with him, the Mayor reverts to his foppish persona.
”Very good. Have a good day!”
Hidden beneath the grimy, blackened goliath that is the Irespan, the lesser works of men huddle like weeds at the foot of the great trees that are the ruined bridge’s stone supports. Near one of these supports leans a decrepit and sagging clock tower, a dying structure of weathered stone, wood, and rusted metal supports that teeters to an unlikely height of over 180 feet. High above, near the tower’s roof and barely 5 feet from the Irespan’s stony belly, a tangle of scaffolding sits near a section of the structure that has fallen away. The tower’s clock face is frozen in time, defiantly (and falsely) proclaiming it to be 3 o’clock, while above, a stone statue of an angel, her wings crumbling, leans precariously, almost as if she were preparing a final leap from her decaying perch.
The immediate area around the clocktower is empty, not even beggars crouch near it. The only sound to be heard is the bustle of nearby taverns.
Pirknok frowns and draws his sword. "Ah don't like this... it looks ruint. How cud sumbuddy be living in there?"
"It's the perfect place. Nobody would go in there to check for squatters," Kaplan says, scratching his beard.
"Yeah..." agrees Pirknok, his voice lacking enthusiasm. "An' we're uhbout ta go in, aren't we."
He sighs and draws his sword before pushing open the door slowly.
"C'mon, did you think this job would be all praise and meat-pies?" Ventus said, drawing his own weapon and following Pirknok in.
"Wull, ah wudint've complaint if it wuz..." remarks Pirknok with a grimace.
"You don't get to be a hero by going into cow fields," Jessamy says impatiently. "Someone's got to get rid of places like this!"
The air inside the clock tower is dusty and dry. Swaths of rubble and mounds of moldering hay stacked a head taller than a man lie in heaps on the stone floor, particularly in the southwest corner. A single wagon sits to the northeast, and six partially collapsed offices line the northern and eastern walls, their doors hanging askew and their ceilings caved in. A wooden staircase winds up into the cavernous space above. High overhead, four immense bronze bells hang from sturdy crossbeams.
Pirknok looks around and tries to understand the building. "Uh... why is there uh wagon in here?" he asks, confusedly.
"Better to look than ask, if we want an answer," Kaplan says flatly.
The older dwarf cautiously makes his way to the contraption and looks it over.
"We're not alone," Kaplan notes, drawing his weapon.
At Kaplan's words and motion, a misshapen monster like a thing from a child’s nightmares bursts from beneath the largest pile of hay. A jumbled mass of body parts incorporating as much cow and horse as man, the creature's considerable girth is topped by an idiot head that leers and drools like a grotesque baby. Its face is cruelly stitched, the lips sewn partially together. It is dressed in straw and dung-covered rags that give off the sickly sweet smell of decay. A trio of what appear to be carved pumpkins hang from cords on its belt, but a second glance reveals these to be horribly bloated human heads with a sick yellow tinge.
Pirknok spots the thing as soon as Kaplan speaks. Without a word he holds his sword high and charges.
Pirknok's furious charge ends with a decisive blow and his ebon-bladed katana drives deep into the creature's fleshy torso. It glares at him with unnatural glowing eyes.
Always rushing into battle...
Kaplan charges the monstrosity as well, scimitar high in the air.
;
Jess' eyes widen as she suddenly sees what Pirknok's charging toward, her hands scrabbling toward her swords.
Eli eyes the structure mistrustfully. "I'll have to be careful with my bombs. Might bring the whole thing crashing down." he says. He might be joking, but maybe not. He draws a bomb and fiddles with it while he enters with the others.
Eli recognizes this creature as a kind of variant flesh golem.
The golem brings a massive limb down on Pirknok’s head.
Balking slightly at the heavy blow it gave Pirknok, Ventus calls upon Beaks and approaches with more caution.
Pirknok gasps in surprise at the painful blow, narrowing his eyes in sudden anger at the thing.
He quickly swings twice at it, powerful strikes of his own intended to take off its head.
Pirknok lands another solid blow, slicing off a chunk of partially rotted cow flesh.
Eli imbibes his mutagen, enjoying the familiar rush and enhanced reflexes. Jessamy moves around the beast and tries to skillfully tumble past its long arms.
But she's not quick enough and the golem tries to swat her with a mammoth fist.
Finding itself suddenly surrounded, the golem sweeps with its monstrous limbs smashing the tiny attackers swarming against it.
"Flank it!" Ventus cries to his mount and approaches, shield raised.