Erik Soong's Call of the Netherdeep

"We talked with Prolix," Morgan says, absentmindedly rolling a gold coin across his knuckles. "He didn't tell us much, but he was very passionate about the fact that Aloysia must be stopped, and that she leaves a trail of death wherever she goes."

He pauses, catching the coin before sending it spinning again.
"Then he spent a while explaining that she's part of the Consortium of the Vermilion Dream—'a genuine cult hells-bent on power,' as he put it." A grin creeps onto his face. "We don't have much more than that as evidence."

The grin fades.
"But our friends are in danger. That much seems clear. And I think it's safe to say that taking a closer look won't be a waste of time."

Morgan slips the coin away and tilts his head.
"So... do you have any advice for a group of crazy people who want to get close to Betrayers' Rise and still live to see another couple of sunsets?"

Verin looks down at his arms, specifically the cuts on his arms where he was skinned. Those incisions are still barely visible, but they are fading. Thanks to magical healing, when he fully recovers there will be no sign at all that he was skinned alive. He looks at the fading scars for an extended time in silence. 

"Yes, my advice is to not go at all. But your friends apparently already went. The guards I stationed there report back every shift; they are fine. That means Aloysia found a way past them..." He pauses again, considering the likeliness of Aloysia's benevolence. "We have overlapping interests. I want the threat of Aloysia eliminated and you want your friends back. Your investigation mission has become a kill and recovery mission. Find your friends and take out Aloysia. If you can find actual evidence that Aloysia means my people no harm, fine, but otherwise, bring me her head. I will match what I have already paid you, so you stand to become rather wealthy.

"Your investigation, admittedly, has turned out to be rather disappointing. Though, I can't blame you for diverting from that investigation to save my skin... literally. I will put someone on Prolix. I have people I have not used yet who have a reputation of getting answers. One way or another."

Ylis wanders through the building nearly getting distracted by food when she hears the voice of the Taskmaster.

tsk tsk naughty boy

When she sees him she waggles a finger in his direction, "Did you know there is a grouchy woman looking for you?"

Verin shifts uncomfortably. "You must be referring to Bautha. I'm fine." He says and begins to sway on unsteady feet. "I am probably doing better than anyone else in history that has had 70% of their skin shorn from their body."

Though he speaks with confidence, Thelyss avoids Ylis' eyes. 

"I'll go get her and tell her you're not coming. She's gonna lock you up and have her way with you." Ylis giggles and goes in search of the master priest.

Quote from Erik_Soong >>

Verin shifts uncomfortably. "You must be referring to Bautha. I'm fine." He says and begins to sway on unsteady feet. "I am probably doing better than anyone else in history that has had 70% of their skin shorn from their body."

Though he speaks with confidence, Thelyss avoids Ylis' eyes. 

"She literally said, and I quote: 'if he doesn’t get back into an Infirmary bed within the hour, I'll will have him relieved of duty by his own guards and placed in soft restraints until he actually heals to my satisfaction'. If I were you, I would do as she says. I belive she is not bluffing.” said with a smile before leaving with the party.

Nivi does not know Bautha by name, but surmises that she must be the healer they had spoken with just earlier.  She cracks a grin at Ylis' admonishment.

"Not for nothing, Dawnrabbit's got a point, Taskhand.  Might be feelin' better than other flayed guys, dunno, but speakin' as the one that pulled you off that crucifix, you're still looking like if I gave you a little kick, it'd be like droppin' an open burlap sack full of chicken soup on the street."

Her pale green eyes regard him more seriously for a moment.  "How DID Desu get to you anyway?  I mean... don't know her, but know her line of work.  She's got a reputation, yeah?  And after all the shit the Clasp's pulled here in Bazzoxan, you sure these new recruits from Rosohna... ones that just got here... you sure these ain't more Clasp plants?  Infiltrating your Watch now that the sewers and demon-pact fell through?"

Nivi pauses, realizing that Verin had not answered her original question.  "So yeah, we go, take out Aloysia and bring back these six she conned into backing her up.  Any scouting report you got for us on Betrayer's Rise would be nice.  I mean other than saying we die if we go."

As for the gold, Nivi seems almost... awkward... accepting it.  Not that she does not want (and need!) the gold or that she thinks it is undeserved, but she is clearly unaccustomed to being rewarded monetarily for good deeds.  And my family?  Pretty sure my lord mother and father never took gold for all the shitload of good works they were always doing.  Sister or brother either.  Course, it's easier to say no to gold if you're already some rich noble...

Verin offers Ylis and Frekor a worried smile, but Nivi's questions draw him back to the reality of his present circumstances. He goes to a chair and one of the guards in the room tries to carry it for him, only to be waved off. Verin drags it back to the table where he slumps into it. He looks suddenly very tired. "The alarm went off of another incursion of demons. My people manned their stations and were beating back the wave. Injuries and losses were unusually low." He pinches his brow. "Then we heard cries behind our line. I thought it might be one of those bastards that can phase through walls, not terribly scary if you can gang up on them. I took six that were nearby. Gaelas, Yhaztre, Mayril, Yasrena, Zorr, and Janzhree. But it wasn't a demon that slipped past the line, it was an entire gang of men and women. My Aurora Watch held their own until that... woman, carved them up. Spilled them all over the alleyway. By the time I summoned my echo, it was over. Some invisible turd smashed me on the head. That was it. Next thing I know, I am on a metal table being peeled like an apple.

"No, I hadn't thought that the new recruits were Clasp. I didn't even know the people that got me were Clasp. I thought they were just demon-worshiping cultists or something. The Clasp is here? I thought they were smugglers and operators of black markets. When did they upgrade to kidnapping high profile targets?"

Verin sighs. "We haven't gone deep into Betrayer's Rise. It's too dangerous. We locked it up and only let those go in who aren't ours and who we can vet. People like the Cobalt Soul, who we did let in about a week ago now. Uh... we do warn them of the dangers too, of course."

Verin shuffles through the maps, finding the one he seeks under a box on a far table. He winces as he stands from a stooped position and walks stiffly and slowly to hide a limp. He hands the map to Nivi. "It's as far as we ever got before something would happen. Demons would attack in there, or out in the city, or a trap would spring. Maybe darts, or someone would suddenly become ill or deathly terrified. You might see an illusion of a cave-in like the one that drove a team into a real one, marked on the map. It's like having the Betrayer God's army there gave the building itself life and, if I may say, it is an evil. Blasted. Fortress. Mortals are not welcome in there, or, maybe they are not welcome to leave once they go in. Either way..." He offers the map. 

Quote from Erik_Soong >>

Verin offers Ylis and Frekor a worried smile, but Nivi's questions draw him back to the reality of his present circumstances. He goes to a chair and one of the guards in the room tries to carry it for him, only to be waved off. Verin drags it back to the table where he slumps into it. He looks suddenly very tired. "The alarm went off of another incursion of demons. My people manned their stations and were beating back the wave. Injuries and losses were unusually low." He pinches his brow. "Then we heard cries behind our line. I thought it might be one of those bastards that can phase through walls, not terribly scary if you can gang up on them. I took six that were nearby. Gaelas, Yhaztre, Mayril, Yasrena, Zorr, and Janzhree. But it wasn't a demon that slipped past the line, it was an entire gang of men and women. My Aurora Watch held their own until that... woman, carved them up. Spilled them all over the alleyway. By the time I summoned my echo, it was over. Some invisible turd smashed me on the head. That was it. Next thing I know, I am on a metal table being peeled like an apple.

"No, I hadn't thought that the new recruits were Clasp. I didn't even know the people that got me were Clasp. I thought they were just demon-worshiping cultists or something. The Clasp is here? I thought they were smugglers and operators of black markets. When did they upgrade to kidnapping high profile targets?" 

Nivi exhales a long breath.  "Yeah.  Sounds about right for Desu, sneaky piece of work."  (Nivi says as if there is no irony in her using that description).

"When'd the Clasp upgrade to kidnapping higher-ups like you?  Guessing after I got kicked out back in Tal'Dorei!  Weren't doing it back then, far as I know.  Since then, some crazy bastard decided to ally with demons and raise Desu to Spireling.  You ask me?  They went after you for the demons.  Part of the deal.  Offing you is the demons' wet dream, right?  Anyway, what's bothering me is, what does the Clasp get out of all this?  Other than Desu wanting to be a demon princess, like it's a good thing.  But yeah, if I know the Clasp, they ain't giving up.  So watch yourself, Verin, yeah?"

(Accepting the offered map, Nivi shows the others and nods a quick thanks to the Taskhand for intel on Betrayer's Rise.)

Morgan listens in silence from the back of the room. As the discussion goes on, his expression grows darker and darker. The idea of killing someone for money (or being mistaken for the kind of person who would) doesn't sit well with him.

If anything, it feels insulting.

"I won't kill her, nor take part in killing her," he finally snaps. "Unless this Aloysia turns into another ******* devil... or we have strong evidence that she's actually done something wrong."

He pauses and looks at Verin.
"To paraphrase what you just said, our investigation was shit."

The word hangs in the air.
"We can't even claim we talked to her. We have rumors. That's it."

Morgan crosses his arms.
"If we started killing people because they have a bad attitude, half the people in this room would be dead."

He lets out a long sigh.
"Let's find our friends and her first...."

A brief pause.
"... then let's find out who she really is."

“YOU were Clasp?” Verin leans back on his heels before relaxing again. “You saved my life and I am grateful for that. Maybe it’s because of the unspeakable torture I endured, but I almost arrested you on the spot with that reveal. Heh… We have no prisons in this city, so I am sure you could figure out what would come next.” He rubs the scars on his arms thoughtfully. “But I can’t execute someone who risked their life to save mine, even once they reveal a damming past that makes my skin crawl. Maybe you can help me with something else then.

“You suspect that the new arrivals from Rosohna might have a few in their ranks that are more than they should be. Do you have any means of identifying them?”

Verin cocks an eyebrow at Morgan’s outburst. “That’s… fair.” Verin’s shoulders slump in defeat. “I wasn’t only skinned down there. They strung me up and forced me to watch my people sacrificed to fiends for some sick ritual. Men, women… children. I had to watch them all be gutted like pigs so that... Desu woman, could get demon wings. Believe me when I say her appearance now matches her heart.” A tear rolls down his cheek. He treats it like a badge of honor to be able to still feel for his people and does not wipe it away. “I may be a little hasty in signing a kill order, but I would kill anyone except the Queen to save just one life in this city. If you find that she does mean my people harm but you haven’t the stomach for killing her, I will entrust her to your custody when you come out with her. But you will have to leave the city after. I won’t harbor a threat here any longer.”

Quote from Erik_Soong >>

“YOU were Clasp?” Verin leans back on his heels before relaxing again. “You saved my life and I am grateful for that. Maybe it’s because of the unspeakable torture I endured, but I almost arrested you on the spot with that reveal. Heh… We have no prisons in this city, so I am sure you could figure out what would come next.” He rubs the scars on his arms thoughtfully. “But I can’t execute someone who risked their life to save mine, even once they reveal a damming past that makes my skin crawl. Maybe you can help me with something else then.

“You suspect that the new arrivals from Rosohna might have a few in their ranks that are more than they should be. Do you have any means of identifying them?”

Nivi shrugs fatalistically.  "Aye, Clasp.  Back in Tal'Dorei.  On the run since then.  Haven't kidnapped or put down anyone here in Bazzoxan, but been part of the black market in healing potions, which you won't like.  Slacked off on that when I saw a Clasp symbol by a sewer entrance, went down there, and found out they're allying with demons here.  Girl's gotta draw the line at demons, yeah?  Glad I found a like-minded crew to work with on that."

"So do what you need, Verin.  Execute me, whatever.  Life expectancy's not long either way.  Clasp knife who was bad at taking orders and doesn't lie, or part of a do-gooder crew that dives head-first into trouble.  Then and now.  Way I see it, it all ends the same way for me."

She considers the Taskhand's question about vetting the new Rosohna recruits for possible Clasp plants.

"Tough one, not gonna lie.  Clasp would have no staying power if getting the drop on them was easy.  You saw me hand-talking with Desu down there, mostly questioning her life choices.  Ironic.  But she was confident.  No way a Clasp agent lying low answers to hand-talk like that.  Might show some surprise on their face for a second.  But you need me for that and, I'll be playing the part of a corpse in Betrayer's Rise, so..."  Nivi taps a finger to her lips.

"Could split the new arrivals into squads.  Let slip to each group some natural-seeming orders, including one piece of bad intel, different for each set.  Intel on where and when to ambush and take you out.  Different times and places.  Then set your own traps there.  Draw out an ambush, it tells you which group has the moles.  That's all I got Verin, unless you got a Zone of Truth handy like the paladins who used to go after us back in Tal'Dorei."

Ylis grabs Morgan by the pinkie, "Come on Morgan, the guy just had his skin peeled off. It's making him say crazy stuff....It would be like.... if somebody stole your hat and cut it up in front of your face."

"We got other stuffs to do." as she walks him outside.

Jacaranda remained at the door, she listened intently but much of it was simply words to her....she knew little to nothing of criminal organisations and less of how a city might operate as an organism. She felt bad for Verin seeing his failure and the suffering of those he was supposed to be caring for reflected in her own situation.

She watched Frekor and Morgan with a warmth she wouldn't have expected when she first met them, though Ylis was still her anchor she fully embraced the boys as hers now and that only added to her worries.

Nivi she had not even begun to unravel yet, she was competent and confident but their lives were so very, very different......that one would take some time.....Sky even more so....though there were less layers to peel back there it seemed.

" Thankyou for your time, Taskhand. I wish you a full and fast recovery from your ordeal.  I will keep you and those you lost in my prayers....such as they are."

She nodded to Ylis, " Lets go get them."

Quote from Damian_May >>

She watched Frekor and Morgan with a warmth she wouldn't have expected when she first met them, though Ylis was still her anchor she fully embraced the boys as hers now and that only added to her worries.

 

(OOC: I don't know if you guys have read Frekor's backstory on the recruitment thread. So without spoiling, it's funny to read that Randa sees Frekor as a son since she sees him as a 'one of the boys'.")

"What crimes has Aloysia been directly accused of committing?" Sky asks the Taskmaster suddenly.  "Is there currently a warrant out for her arrest? I understand that in times of war, some laws fall silent ... but I think you will have to do a better job convincing several in this party to outright kill a woman who isn't under suspicion of specific criminal acts.  I must agree with Morgan; I am not sure my deity would be interested in cold-blooded murder.  And if it's a killing for just cause, well ... I need to know the just cause."

He pauses.  "I'm very glad to see your health is improving."

(Passive Insight:  19)  Getting the sense that Verin still has an open point of dialog for Morgan and Sky about Aloysia, and that others may wish to talk to the Taskhand (such as Sky about his armor?), if Verin has nothing further for her, Nivi winks at the drow commander as she takes her leave.

"Take care of yourself, Taskhand.  You look like shit.  Execute me when I get back.  Deal?  I mean, if we're both still standing by then."

Setting aside some of her newly-acquired gold for Sky (150gp), Nivi starts trying to figure out which illicit place of business she is going to drop double price at for a Poisoner's Kit.  She does also hand Morgan twenty gold pieces.

"For the Incense, yeah?  B!itch of a lady sister always told me I'd die in debt.  With that knowing look on her face.  This is to make her a liar."

Shiv looks on impassively from Nivi's shoulder, blinking slowly.  (10gp worth of Incense for Find Familiar, but double price while in Bazzoxan.)

“Don’t misunderstand,” Verin holds up his hand to stop Nivi before she leaves. “It was an impulse, an… it’s not my area of study, but soldiers tend to call it battle fatigue. Where the horrors of war haunt a soldier. A few days ago, I would have thought myself incapable of finding those kinds of scars but this Desu… she has found a way to leave her mark, even if the physical cuts will soon disappear. I apologize if you felt I was threatening you. I merely was remarking on how my one direct experience with the Clasp has affected me and that I had to control that impulse. You have nothing to fear from me in my city.

“I will consider your advice and we will proceed carefully to root out other Clasp agents. When you return, I will speak with you further on this matter.”

He turns to Sky and kindly tries to catch Sky up. “You weren’t here for this, Brother Sky, but initially Aloysia’s crimes were attempting to bribe a member of the Aurora Watch to take her into Betrayer’s Rise. Trying to get into that den of evil isn’t the crime, attempting to bribe a soldier of the Queen is. She was placed under house arrest for a few days and then would have been released, but then she violated that sentencing by leaving her rented space at The Ready Room, then fleeing an Aurora Watch patrol. Her crimes so far are such that normally I would just banish her from the city. However, her fixation on Betrayer’s Rise is worrying. No, it is a possible threat to our people. Betrayer’s Rise is an ancient fortress of the Betrayer Gods – the last that fell in the Calamity. The road to this city carves through the final battlefield where many champions of the Prime Deities fell… and many servants of the Betrayer Gods. I fear she would seek to enter that place to find relics of evil power.

“Your friends were asked to investigate why she was interested in Betrayer’s Rise, so that I might avoid taking extreme actions against her, but they have failed to find anything actionable or to dispel my fears. As Morgan said, it was a ‘shit’ investigation so far.” He paces like a caged panther, looking for a way out. “My city is under constant attack by those who serve ancient evils. I cannot afford to ignore anything that might bring ruin to the brave souls who choose to live here in service to not only the Queen, but ALL Exandria; we are the bulwark against the Abyss. We, the ONLY line of defense that prevents them from running rampant throughout the land. Every life we lose cannot be replaced. Those people who were sacrificed beneath the city… they can’t be replaced. These people choose to be here, to cut short their own lives to hold. The. Line. We can’t win! How can anyone win against an infinite army? We can only hold so that others, whose lives are far from here, may never know the lives we live every day.”

He punctuates his speech by slamming his fist on the table, visibly breaking his still-healing hand. None of the guards move a muscle, but they definitely stand with pride. Verin remembers his soldier’s reserve immediately and collects himself, breathing out his frustrations and proceeding to calmly wrap his hand with a sash. He makes no apology for his outburst. “Here, we can broke no suspected criminals. It is why we have no prisons. Small infractions get you house arrest, but if someone means my people harm, steel is our only method of justice. We can’t afford any other way.”

He then looks to Morgan and Sky imploringly. “Find me anything. Anything that damns her, anything that clears her name. If she comes out of Betrayer’s Rise without you, she will find only steel. If you bring her out, I will trust your judgment on what to do with her. You have earned that much from me, at the very least.”

He turns to Randa and gives her an old phrase of parting known among Wood Elves. “May you walk with beetles on your shoulders.” and then to the rest he says, “Sweet water and light laughter till next we meet.”

DM: If everyone is on the same page to leave, I will advance, but I will wait to see if anyone has anything else they would like to say here first. 

Quote from Wysperra >>

Ylis grabs Morgan by the pinkie, "Come on Morgan, the guy just had his skin peeled off. It's making him say crazy stuff....It would be like.... if somebody stole your hat and cut it up in front of your face."

"We got other stuffs to do." as she walks him outside.

Morgan allows himself to be dragged toward the door with a smile.
"Now I understand, Ylis. Thank you for teaching me empathy."

He places a hand dramatically over his heart.
"Those bastards..." He shakes his head. "Now I'm angry at completely hypothetical people."

As they leave, Morgan silently accepts the 20 gp from Nivi and adds them to the group's common stash.