After the capture of the traitorous, murderous Ser Andro Valador on the docks of Shalara’s Alienage, the bodies of three of the would-be assassin squad were carted away by the City Watch, while the three surviving assassins and Ser Andro were taken into the custody of the Royal Guard, by command of the Constable of Kar Landsar, Ser Haldar Venera.
The Hand of Fortune, with Ser Vulk as their spokesman, met with Ser Haldar in his office in Kar Landsar. He accepted the group’s credentials as official representatives of the Earl of Kinen, and was polite but cool. He made it clear he was responsible for the law in Shalara, and that the prisoners were now his responsibility.
All of the renegade knight’s possessions confiscated from his person were safely locked in the Constable’s own secure chests, and two guards were posted outside his prison door. Being a nobleman, however charged with felonies, he was to be accorded the basic courtesies of his rank – a clean, if small and sparsely furnished, room on the top floor of the castle’s Red Tower.
Vulk managed to convince the Constable, with lurid tales of the seemingly infinite reach of the conspiracy they believe to be behind Ser Andro, to allow one of their own to stand watch with the Royal Guards. Devrik volunteers for this duty, to be spelled in the evening by Erol.
He also convinces the Constable to allow them to see the three badly punctured surviving assassins, in the hopes of eliciting vital information from them. Five of the would-be killers had already been identified as known associates of the local Zalik-mal, but the apparent leader was still unknown.
Unfortunately, the Cantors of Mara who were just finishing up their care of the prisoners, in the dungeons beneath the castle, were adamant in their insistence that any questioning now would threaten their patient’s lives. The three were still in healing comas, from which they refused to rouse them. To the groups chagrin, the Constable backed the Healers, although Vulk and Mariala were allowed to examine the men.
Mariala confirmed her earlier discovery of the unique “anti-league” tattoo on the left wrist of the supposed ring-leader; Vulk confirmed that they were well tended, and likely to eventually recover. It was grudgingly agreed, on both sides, that morning would be the time to attempt questioning.
Leaving Devrik outside Ser Andro’s prison door, the group visited the Temple of Alea & Mara to seek treatment for the various wounds and injuries of the recent fight. They were given treatments, and after making suitable donations to the temple, they retired to the Earl’s townhouse to get some much-needed rest. Two days of 25-hour-a-day surveillance of the Swift Wind, and the fruitless search for Ser Andro’s hiding place, had left everyone exhausted.
After a half-day of rest, the group dines at a local inn, where they hear various tales, already growing distorted, of the now-infamous Gold Coin Riot of several days ago. The best version, to Drake’s annoyance, has the felonious knight Ser Andro Valador as the one who threw down the coin, seeking to hire an army of ruffians – variously, to cover his escape, mount an assault on the Earl of Kinen, or (mostly wildly) to assassinate the King. But the beloved Constable was on the job, and the renegade nobleman is now languishing in the dungeons of the royal castle, awaiting the King’s Justice!
After eating, Erol repaired to the Red Tower to relieve Devrik on guard outside Ser Andro’s door. Devrik elects to stay, getting some sleep in an adjoining, unoccupied, cell. When a serving girl brings up the prisoner’s supper, Erol is suspicious and examines it closely… half a capon, stewed vegetables, a small loaf of bread, a wedge of hard cheese, a small bowl of salt, and a skin of sour white wine.
Despite tearing the meal apart, Erol found nothing suspicious, and questioning the serving girl revealed the kitchen had taken the usual precautions against poisoning. Nonetheless, he insisted the wine skin should not be given to the prisoner, setting it aside as he took in the tray. Ser Andro questioned the lack of wine, and sneered at the quality of the food, but didn’t refuse to eat it. He was sprinkling salt over the chicken and the veggies as Erol exited the room, the Royal Guard locking the door behind him.
It was only a few minutes later that the guard closest to the heavy door thought he heard a strange noise. The others gathered close and listened, at which point a thump and a crash were clearly heard. Unlocking the door in haste, they entered the room to find their prisoner laying on the floor amid the wreckage of table and chair and meal, his body twisted as though on a wrack, and his face contorted into a frightening rictus of pain and fear.
Erol was the first to his side, but the staring eyes told the tale even before he checked for a pulse – Ser Andro was dead! He instantly dispatched one of the stunned guards to alert the Constable, and left the other to watch the body as he went to wake Devrik.
Devrik’s first reaction, on hearing the news, was to head for the kitchen to seek the assassin. He soon had the cowering cooks, scullery maids, and kitchen boys terrorized almost into incoherence. Eventually the Constable’s men arrived to save them, and a proper timeline soon emerged.
The food had been prepared, and the usual esoteric means of detecting poisons had been employed, before being put on a tray by the cook, who then looked around for a serving girl to take it up. The cook claimed he sent no salt up, but the girl maintained that the small ceramic bowl of salt, and the wooden salt spoon, were on the tray when she picked it up. Several people remembered seeing a nondescript man in the kitchens around that time, but no one could place him near the tray with any certainty.
Meanwhile, Erol had quickly found a castle page and sent him to the Earl’s townhouse to summon the rest of group. By the time they arrived the castle was in a turmoil, and the investigation well under way. The Constable was furious, as were the Hand, and both blamed the other for awhile.
But once Drake was able to identify the poison as White Death, a rare and insanely deadly poison used only by professional assassins, and the news from the kitchen revealed the method, people calmed down a bit. Mariala and the Constable quickly realized the other prisoners might also be in danger, and rushed down to the dungeons to check.
But Vulk was determined not to lose their best shot at convicting the Constable of Dür and exposing whatever conspiracy he was involved in – he once again decided to push his healing gift to the limit, and try to revive the dead knight. Despite Drake’s arguments that he had no antidote for the poison, and that none existed, Vulk prayed to Kasira for luck laid his hands on Ser Andro, focusing his healing energies into him.
And Kasira smiled on him – sort of. With a gasp, Ser Andro drew in a sudden breath, and turned his head to look into Vulk’s eyes in amazement. But before he could draw a second breath, his body arched wildly and his face once again writhed in incredible agony. Vulk heard bones snap as the man’s body twisted itself beyond its limits in his second death throes.
In less than a minute Ser Andro was dead again.
Mariala and the Constable arrived just in time to witness the poor bastard’s second passing, bringing equally bad news from the dungeons. While the two Zalik-mal prisoners were alive, if still sleeping, the supposed leader was not. No sign of struggle or trauma could be seen – the body looked as peaceful as the others, but was quickly cooling. The only odd thing Mariala had noted was that the tattoo on the left wrist was now gone – vanished as if it had never existed!
Despite being near to collapse from his attempt at psionic resurrection, Vulk acceded to Mariala’s wishes and headed for the dungeons to see if he could have more luck with this new corpse. But even as he laid hands on the body, he sensed something different about this one… nothing he could explain, just a feeling of even deeper emptiness than he had felt with Andro.
The resulting aural shock from this second failed attempt at revivification, despite his prayers to the Lady of Luck, caused Vulk to collapse in a pale and shaking heap on the dank stones of the dungeon. His friends were able to revive him after several minutes, but he was still weak, and required the help of two husky men from the Royal Guard to assist him back up to the constable’s office. He seemed to rather enjoy that part of it…
The Constable was now much more open to letting the Hand look through Ser Andro’s possessions, in the hope of salvaging some clue from the fiasco of the last several hours. Drake cataloged the items, which consisted of several sets of clothes in the duffle bag, a leather scrip containing 5 gp, 50 sp, 7 pearls (worth 100 gp total he estimated), an aquamarine worth 50 gp, and 3 rubies worth 100 gp each, and his dagger with the family crest on the hilt.
And best of all… a handwritten list of names and towns, tucked into an inner pocket of one of his tunics:
Joet Garin – Zebarin
Yon Cass – Shalara
Savin Dolastar –Kolosür
Jarath Pudos – Shalara
The group recognized the first name as that of the assassin who had poisoned the woreen at Zebarin, killing several people and almost killing that keep’s Constable.
The second name, Yon Cass, was recognized by the Constable as a known member of the local Zalik-mal, and in fact one of the would-be assassins killed in this morning’s fight on the South Haven docks. He also thinks the last name, Jarath Pudos, sounds familiar, but can’t quite but his finger on it, but immediately dispatches a rider to Kolosür, with a request to the authorities there to seek out and detain the third man listed, Savin Dolastar.
At which point there was little more to do until the Earl arrived. The surviving prisoners were vigorously questioned the next day, the 29th, with Erol and Mariala in attendance, the latter to use her truth sensing spell. As expected, they could shed no light on their mysterious leader… Yon Cass had assembled them, the stranger had directed them, and that’s all they knew.
The bulk of the 29th was spent resting, contemplating recent events, studying, praying, reading the Tarot, and shopping for various needed items… Vulk bought coudes to protect his elbows, which were finally recovering from recent wounds, and very good leather gauntlets to protect his hands. He also got a pair as a gift for Devrik.
The Earl’s steward arrived in the early morning of the 30th, to prepare the mansion, and around midday Lord Clarin and his entourage arrived. His first action, once dismounted, is to seek out Ser Vulk and the others to demand a report on his renegade brother-in-law.
He is understandably furious when he hears the whole story, but the bulk of his ire is directed at Ser Haldar, once the whole tale is told. He does grouse that Vulk should have insisted on holding Andro at the townhouse, but in fairness recognizes that the group was hardly in a position to oppose the legal authority of the capital city.
As much to avoid the disruption as the entourage settles in as anything, he quickly sets out to see the Constable of Kar Landsar. It is a rough meeting, but in the end the Constable is able to placate the Earl’s anger by agreeing that his agents could have free reign in the city as they work to uncover the agents behind Ser Andro’s assassination (and, almost certainly, behind the attempts on the Earl’s own life).
The next several days are spent moving about the town, seeking answers, enjoying the vast, tumultuous Summer Fair, guarding the Earl as he attends to the business of his fiefdom (wool prices, cloth contracts, etc.), and watching the movements of Jarath Pudos.
The identity of the man was revealed on the evening of the 2nd of Kilta, when the Earl attended a dinner at the town home of Lady Ethalyn Landsar the Elder, the King’s niece. Vulk and Mariala were guests, to fill out the company (most of the city’s nobility had already relocated to Kolosür for the upcoming Tournament), while Drake acted as their table servant and Erol and Devrik mingled with the guests’ armsmen and groomsmen in the courtyard, kitchens and stables.
Ser Danyes Bernan, the infamous Constable of Dür, was also in attendance, much to the annoyance of Lord Clarin. The two men sparred all evening long, in a subtle duel of verbal wit that the Earl came away from the victor, at least on points. It was during the meal that Drake and the others realized the Constable’s table servant was Jarath Pudos.
Drake made a foray with Jarath, in an attempt to perhaps infiltrate the Constable’s household, but was rebuffed with a contemptuous sneer… while it didn’t seem that Ser Danyes had recognized him as Draik Bartyne, it was obvious they knew who their enemies were in the Earl’s camp.
As Devrik, Erol and Drake spend the bulk of their time over the next several days taking turns watching and following Jarath, Mariala spend much time with Carissa, exploring the city and the Fair. During this time she heard much about the young maiden’s unhappiness at the her father seemed determined to marry her off to some old lord or another, when what she really wanted was to become a Healer of Mara.
Mariala did her best to try and explain the ways of noble life and a noblewoman’s responsibilities to her clan and house, but Carissa was buying none of it. It all came to a head on the 4th, when the Earl and much of his entourage took a day trip to Meluka, the seat of the Archkleros of Nolkior, for a meeting and formal luncheon.
When her father made it clear he was negotiating to send her to the abbey’s famed boarding school for a year or two of “finishing,” she flew into hysterics and ran off. It took an hour of searching before she could be found; Mariala was the one to finally coax her from her hiding place and convince her to dry her tears and make a fitting apology to her father and the Archkleros, as well as to all the servants who had been put out looking for her. The Earl’s countenance promised this was not the end of the matter, but nothing more was said on the ride home, or that evening.
The next morning the confrontation was again delayed as the Earl took Vulk with him to visit the Enclave of the Holy Oak, the Herald’s College of Nolkior. He wished to examine various family records concerning several young noblemen he was considering as prospective bridegrooms for Maid Carissa.
When they returned for the midday meal in the Great Hall of the townhouse, Lord Clarin summoned his daughter to discuss her behavior of the day before. But a panicked serving woman came back to cry that the girl was missing! A quick search of the house and grounds soon revealed that the Earl’s young squire, Arbos Urhano, was also not to be found.
No horses were missing from the stables, but immediate fears of kidnapping were allayed by Mariala’s discovery, with the girl’s maid, that her two best dresses and various pieces of jewelry were also missing. None of the squire’s meager possessions seemed to be missing, however.
The Earl, quietly furious and very grim, gathered every noble, guildsman and servant on the estate to the Great Hall and ordered that no public outcry was to be made. Only the City Watch and the Royal Guard were to be alerted. He dispatched guards to every city gate and to the docks, and split the remaining members of the Progress into groups of 4-6 people, commanding them to scour the city.
The Hand of Fortune, considered by the Earl at this point to be his most effective retainers, is given free reign to search as they see fit. Mariala and Devrik consult their Tarot decks, but gain little certain insight. The Temple of Alea & Mara is, of course the most obvious destination for the runaway, but they report no sign of her.
By sunset, as the searchers filter back and the rain begins to fall, the atmosphere at the townhouse is somber – no clue can be found. A sleepless night for the Earl, and no news by morning, lead him decide on a public announcement. Against Vulk’s advice Lord Clarin also offers a reward of 100 gold Crowns for his daughter’s safe return.
Shortly after the criers are sent abroad with his announcement a merchant and his apprentice roll up to the estate in a cart. In back is the dazed, bloody and battered squire, Arbos Urhano. He had been the first to notice Carissa was missing, but rather than raise the alarm, and thinking to spare her father’s ire, he sought her himself. Unfortunately, he picked the wrong alley to investigate, and was beaten, robbed and raped. He was lucky to be found by the merchant’s apprentice, who carried him home. He was cared for overnight, then brought to the Earl’s home, his livery telling them all they needed to know.
The town went crazy looking for the missing noble girl… everyone who looked even vaguely like her was being accosted in the streets. The HoF did their best to disperse and discourage such actions, but it was a losing battle. The City Watch had their hands full containing the growing frenzy.
Around midday the group came across two mobs in a violent tug-of-war over a girl. On closer investigation, they realize it really is Carissa, but before they can fight through the crowd to her, she was snatched by a shadowy figure, dragged into an alley.
The group followed quickly, but there was no sign of the girl or her captor in the dead-end alley. The only possibility was the large sewer grate at their feet! While most of the party, led by a relentless Devrik, leapt into the sewers in pursuit, Drake decided to return to Ser Danyes’ townhouse, in anticipation of that being the kidnapper’s ultimate destination.
Light and sound ahead proved that they were on the right track, and Devrik dashed into the dark, determined to catch up with the villain and dispatch him quickly, followed close by Erol. Mariala followed more slowly, with Vulk guarding the rear.
In a large circular junction chamber, where two torches on the far wall gave flickering illumination, they found four large, burly street toughs arrayed against them. Behind the wall of muscle they caught a glimpse of Carissa and her captor, who was revealed to be Jarath Pudos when the struggling girl knocked back his hood. With a triumphant sneer he whisked his victim into the right side tunnel, disappearing from sight.
Devrik never slowed down, plowing straight into the two men on the left, while Erol strove to drive through the men on the right. Both rushes threw back their adversaries a pace or two, but neither succeeded in breaking the line. Which, in the end, was unfortunate for the thugs.
It only took a few blows for Devrik to kill one opponent and wound the other, and for Erol to dispatch his own, the first of whom had his sword snap in half at the first parry. Mariala tried to help with Firenerves, but the spell’s failure had little impact on the fight.
Devrik paid no attention to the fallen men, but rushed on after Jarath, who had gained critical ground during the brief fight. Erol was close on his heels, followed by Mariala, while Vulk fought a brief, sharp fight with the remaining thug when he attempted to follow them. Despite briefly losing his sword, Vulk managed to badly wound his opponent into unconsciousness, leaving him to no doubt bleed to death in the sewers.
As they came to the next junction chamber Devrik heard the grinding of stone-on-stone and just glimpsed a secret door in the far wall closing. Unfortunately, before he could leap across the pool of murky water in the center of the chamber, a reptilian horror rose up out of it – a scabrous creature of bilious green and putrid yellow, with the body of a great serpent, the head half lizard/half man, and the long, muscular arms of a man, towering 10 feet over him, it’s head brushing the ceiling. Sharp, thick talons tipped each of the fingers of the hands on those arms, and the body coiled and writhed as the massive tail thrashed about, darting in and out of the pool.
Blocked by the monstrous creature, Devrik tried to slip past it, but was forced to fight. His first blow did little but nick the thick, scaly hide of the beast’s arm, while it’s tail landed a great blow to his own shoulder. Erol also leapt into the fray with his trident, nicking the monster’s other arm but doing no real damage.
Mariala didn’t hesitate to get into the fight herself, instantly summoning her water elemental. It took form in the very pool that the creature still occupied, rising up around it like a murky, translucent octopus, grappling it in coils of solid water.
This allowed Devrik to finally slip past it, and focus his attention on the wall, behind which Maid Carissa must be. But in the heat of his fury and the dim, flickering light of two torches, he was unable to puzzle out the secret of the hidden door. He tried brute strength to move it, but with no luck.
Vulk, coming up behind him, made his own attempt at opening the door, but also failed. As he contemplated the efficacy of prayer in this situation, Devrik turned in frustrated anger and leapt to attack the lizard-creature from behind. Distracted as it was by it’s life-and-death struggle with the water elemental, the monster never saw it coming, and Devrik’s blow almost cut it in two. It died with a last plaintive gurgle, sinking into the fetid waters of the sewer.
Mariala, rather than releasing the water elemental, sent it instead to try and open up the secret door. The elemental seeped into the cracks of the door, cracks too small for an Umantari to gain a hold, but enough for water to get in. Hydraulic pressure soon began to force the door open slightly, enough for Devrik and Erol to get a grip on its edge and force it open all the way. A dark tunnel was revealed, stretching away into darkness…