Realms of Dread IC, Chapter One

[VAN]

"Do you mean going and investigate by yourself Shana? Will be great if you can get more information about Nell. Learn more about Delthrin will not be easy though, doubt he will have many friends...but we can go to speak with Nell's parents. I know that will not be very pleasant for them, but we may learn a couple of names or what else was doing Nell. More details we know about her life will be better. Don't forget also the soldier/fighter thing, we should check if there were other adventurers here during the fire and learn something about them too."

[Archedius]

"There are machines designed for beheading. I also do not recall that the bodies had restraint marks or rope according to what witnesses have told us. If you are going to execute someone by beheading- you always restrain them somehow. Going with that line of thought, we're either looking for something with inhuman strength and precision, or someone with an enchanted weapon."

"I'm going to the Purple Dragons to ask about any known enchanted weapons in the city."

[VAN]

"There are spells that can hold someone and make him unable to move. But someone should be pretty evil and cruel for doing something like that. Anyway the Purlpe Dragons is an idea. I can go to ask Captain Rask Delthrin's last name and ask about adventurers in town."

[Archedius]

"If the victims were ensorceled, that bodes well for us as it means the guilty party is wasteful." He flashes a wicked smile.

[kintire]

I also do not recall that the bodies had restraint marks or rope according to what witnesses have told us.

"They didn't tell us they didn't either."

"well, I'm not insisting on being on my own... if anyone else wants to come along they're welcome. Some back-up is probably no bad thing... but it might be better if no one who was officially with the militia on the last visit comes obviously with me. I'm trying to keep this unofficial..."

[Ken of Ghastria]

"If you are going to execute someone by beheading- you always restrain them somehow."

"That's still assuming that the people were alive when they were beheaded," says Blaise. "We don't know that, either. Certainly if someone wanted to execute a few people and take their heads - for whatever unpleasant reason - what better place to dispose of the victims' bodies than in the middle of a group of other corpses? It would give the killer extra time to destroy any evidence and confuse the authorities about when, exactly, these people were killed.

"However, Ino, I don't believe that these people were held by magic and THEN decapitated. After all, if someone had enough magic skill to hold someone in place, then he would've had much easier and less messy ways to kill his victims than wielding a heavy axe."

He drinks his wine and sighs. "We still don't know enough. I'll go with you, Shana, if you don't mind. I agree that going with the same people as last night would raise eyebrows."

[kintire]

Always happy to have your company Blaise!

[BigBadQDaddy]

Alain looks up from his study of the floor and adds coolly, "I cannot believe that these murders or executions are random. There has to be some form of connection."
"I know that the watch has been too busy with what has been going on to investigate any missing persons...but they have to have been receiving reports of people who are missing. And in such case, there would have to be a list. Granted, the list would be enormous I am sure, but I would not be surprised that it would also elude to some connection between a few of them. And if we could discover that, at least we could devise a list of possible suspects. Perhaps I could inquire with Capitan Rask about this."

[VAN]

"The hold spell is a low level spell and both wizards and clerics can cast it. But yes maybe the victims were already dead and then beheaded."

At Alain's idea Inovidil smiles.

"Great idea the list Alain! I agree that must be a kind of connection between the victims. If you want we can go to Captain Rask together."

[Archedius]

"That could be true as well, in the time I spent with Goblins, the champions of the horde would often adorn their property with the skulls and rotting heads of noteworthy individuals they killed. A most barbaric practice. Took some getting used to...waking up with a goblin skull over your hammock."

Archedius lets his scarred face pucker for a moment,

"I will return to the inn in two days time. I wish you all luck with your leads." Abruptly, he leaves the room with his hand clawing at the right side of his chest.

Once out of the room and alone, he allows the gut-wrenching pain in his chest and abdomen to show on his face and limps out of the inn. He looks behind him to make sure he's not being followed before seeking the darkness of a narrow alley. The same familiar panic grips him as his mind flashes back to the war.

Archedius smells the stench of war and feels himself hemmed in on all sides by his soldiers and the tide of rotting flesh slamming into the lines. Blood, urine, excrement, bile, rot fill the air as people die all around. His spear is broken and his shield is weighed down by a shrouded corpse.

His right hand seeks out for his sword and draws it forth before spotting an opening and jamming it into the thing's skull. His shield now freed, he hacks and stabs into the throng. Rardi is in the line behind him and her prayers to Lathander break through the din of battle and reinvigorate him.

Suddenly, the horde parts in front of him and Archedius nearly falls forward. Steadying himself, he sees to his horror why...a mockery of an angel glides towards him along the ground, grace intact, flesh not so. Her too wide mouth opens and the air is rent with a terrible keening. Gritting his teeth, Archedius unconsiously takes a step forward, then another before he notices that he has left the protection of the line.

The corspe-angel-thing curls her hand towards him, beckoning him into her hollow embrace. "Walk with me" He drops his shield. "Your wife is dead." He drops his sword and limps forward. "I can show you eternal love". The rotting angel looms larger and larger as Archedius approaches. "I will never die." The stench would've made him die right there had it not been for the loss of his will. The voice burned into his mind, erasing all rational thought.

She towered above him and picked him up, squeezing his armor causing it to buckle slowly. It lowered what was left of it's face down to his and forced his mouth to open and vomitted corruption down his throat. His mind bounced back as it dropped him to ground and he grabbed onto a rib and pulled forth a hidden dagger and thrust it into the fiends shrivelled heart. It took a step forward before dropping to the ground with a crash. Before it lay still, it locked eyes with Archedius and smiled, "No grave will ever be able to hold you; you will walk in death."

He vomited more than he had ever done so in his life before, just as he was doing in the alley right now. He knew what to expect and dreaded it all the more for it. A mass of rotting flesh slid out of his throat and onto the dirt.

Archedius stood up to wipe the blood from his mouth and nose and waited. After a few seconds, the mass began to quiver and move of its own accord. With a snear of disgust, he put his weight onto the thing and crushed it under his boot before walking off.

He mentally checked off what to do:Enchanted weapons list at the Purple Dragons first...then a personal visit to Deltherin second.

[ewancummins]

Purple Dragons barracks and headquarters


The Purple Dragon headquarters is located in the Dock Quarter of Marsember, so that the soldiers can guard the city's vital port and shipyards.

Archideus arrives by skiff outside the massive combination barracks and administrative center of the local detachment of Cormyrean soldiery. It's almost a castle, really: arrow ports, shuttered and barred windows, heavily re-inforced oaken doors, watchtowers set on the corners of the flat roof, and twenty yards of open courtyard all round the building. Regular patrols sweep the area, and Archideus can see pavises set up along the roof's edges, with crossbowmen peeking out from behind some of them. A squad of half a dozen Purple Dragons clad in head -to-toe mail , equipped with spears and large shields, stand watch outside the main entrance.

[Archedius]

Archedius does his best to wipe his face clean and walks towards the guards at the gate. He gets to a comfortable distance,

"I am Archedius Tagaris, leader of a task force under Watch-Captain Rask. I have a request for information regarding enchanted weaponry in the city."

[ewancummins]

Purple Dragon HQ-

Archideus is kept waiting for a short time, during which he is examined and his identification scroll [issued to all memebrs of the special team]is taken away for verification. Once that's done, a soldier leads the old man inside and takes him straight to the registry offices.


In the office, Archideus is shown a room full of scrolls and notebooks, all neatly put away in several large wooden shelves.
The head clerk seems eager to help. The portly middle-aged man, who wears a Purple Dragon uniform but no armor or sword, just a dagger, explains:

''We keep copies of the sword-charters and smiths' licences here, but you won't find any listing of magical weapons. It would be impossible to track individual weapons, for a number of reasons. Still, if someone is carrying a magic weapon, there's a fair chance he has a charter to bear arms. ''

The clerk adds,
''If you want information about those who is licensed to manufacture and sell weaponry, that's a much smaller list. I believe there are only one or two smithies that turn out magical blades, and those are marked with red ink If you need help finding anything let me know.''

...............

Palace of Celestial Delights-

Shana and Blaise enter the brothel within a few minutes of each other, but there's no obvious indication that anyone is paying special attention to either of them, except that the doorman clearly recalls Shana from the previous night's visit.
The big brute says to Shana,


''Back again, eh?'',

but doesn't give her any trouble or ask further questions.

Inside, the place looks pretty much the same as Shana's first visit. For his part, Blaise may not have visited this particular establishment before, but he's no doubt seen its like in other cities: cheap but fancy-looking decorations, peeling plaster on the walls; and women in various costumes and of diverse appearances, all of them trying their level best to look appealing [some are quite pretty].

Shana spots Xanthippe standing to the left side of the main ground-floor room. The Chessentan prostitute is engaged in quiet conversation with a well-dressed young man.

A pair of lovely exotic looking girls in brocade dresses giggle as Blaise walks past them. Both young women have delicate features, big sea green eyes, light golden tan complexions, and silky black hair which hangs down past their shoulders on loose braids.


Rardi stumps into the place through the front door a few minutes after Shana and Blaise have entered.

.................


Militia HQ, outside Watch-Captain Rask's office-

When Inovidil and Alain arrive at the Captain's office, they are detained by his aide, who explains:

''He's meeting someone important just now...but I doubt you'll have long to wait.''


Sounds of muffled conversation emanate from behind the office door. After a minute or so, the door opens and a man steps out. It's Delthrin the Deadmaster, dressed in fine quailty clothing and not a robe, but most assuredly the same man Inovidil and Alain had visited yesterday.


The necromancer turns to face back into the office and says-

''Thank you very much, Captain Rask. I'm sure it won't be any trouble. You may rely upon me.''

Delthrin doesn't seem to have yet noticed Ino and Alain standing in the waiting area , but he will surely spot them if he comes down the hallway that leads toward the exit.

[kintire]

Shana will be careful not to interrupt Xanthippe as she's working, but will chat with her if she gets the chance. She will also be quite careful not to attract customers away from the girls: she's not really interested in them anyway. She will ask permission to do a short illusion show (mostly as a reason for being there). Mostly, however, she will try to gossip with the girls about Nell... and plenty of other things, to hide her interest. Softly softly...

[VAN]

As Inovidil recognizes Delthrin says to Alain with low voice:

"Alain, this is the necromamcer we were talking about! I doubt he gets out very often from his spooky house...maybe he is here not only to meet Rask but also someone else."

A smile appears at Ino's face:

"It's a great opportunity to follow him. He has never seen you so most probably he will not notice you. I'll follow him alone. You can go inside and ask Captain Rask the questions we said and what Delthrin wanted from him, if anyone ask you about me tell them that I had to do something else. I'll meet you or in Captain's office if Delthrin just heads to his house or back to the inn when I find out his real reason of coming here."

Without waiting his answer Inovidil looks around and when is sure that noone is paying attention to her she turns invisible and waits Delthrin to get out of the building to follow him.