Dr. Si's Curse of the Crimson Throne - Seven Days to the Grave

Ambrus · Aug 13, 2010

OOC: Dj'hân had closed and locked the purple door before fetching the others.

Opening the door for his companions once he hears the distinctive knock, Dj'hân quickly closes and locks it once Manachan is inside. He smiles impishly while motioning towards the room at large. "Welcome to my boudoir..." The tiny urchin then runs back into a side room waving for the towering human to follow him. "They're over here. C'mon."

Dr Simon said:
This connects to the building next door (boarded up on the outside), which contains a messy-looking bottling room and two people bound, gagged and unconscious. One is a man dressed with the distinctive purple neckerchief of a Lavender guard, the other is the Vendra woman.

The grinning little halfling hops up onto the unconscious man's head, holds out his tiny arms wide and takes a bow as if for an appreciative audience. Straightening up, Dj'hân nods towards his pseudodragon companion, who remains at the ready with his barbed tail poised to strike. "Majenko caught both of em unawares afore either knew what hit em." The tiny dragon offers Manachan a crocodile's smile. "The lady there came in to pack up cause she was afraid you guys had been sent by Devargo. This here..." The urchin taps his foot atop the man's head. "...is Orris; he's the one whose been brewin the lim... lim... stuff for her. She told him to pack up too before you all figured out it was a sham."

[sblock=Dr Simon]OOC: Could I get a more detailed list of what was found? Is the woman's dagger masterwork? How many charges does the wand of remove disease have? Can Dj'hân positively identify the properties of the other wand and the protective jewelry? How many pieces of jewelry are there exactly? Does the workroom contain a full alchemy lab, additional alchemical supplies or other doses of the liniment? Was Vendra carrying the proceeds of her many sales? What was she busily packing? Thanks.

[/sblock]

Maidhc O Casain · Aug 13, 2010

Manachan enters and looks around the room. He allows his face to show that he's impressed by the work of the diminutive team.

"You've done well, Dj'hân, Majenko . . . very well. OK, let's sit on them and wait for the others to finish their business."

Ambrus · Aug 13, 2010

Dj'hân grins widely at the praise. Then, dutifully, he sits down on Orris' head and begins fiddling around with the new contents of his liripoop.

Dr Simon · Aug 14, 2010

OOC: I think, if everyone is happy, this section can be wrapped up. I'll give full details of the spoils over in the OOC thread and if you're all okay with moving on, post a denouement (with segue to next section) in the IC.

Dr Simon · Aug 15, 2010

Vendra and Orris are taken into custody. Amongst the volunteers for Edmond's experiment, only a few actually have blood veil but the Luxurious Liniment produces no immediate change in them. The Marshal insists on checking over the course of a few days, just to be sure. Of the volunteers, only a few return but no-one has improved.

The simplistic nature of the preperation room alone suggests that the "cure" is worthless; Brindom and Mamusia Lela had to go to considerably greater lengths just to help Brienna get better by herself, and so the two crooks are escorted to the Longacre Building for incarceration - a mercy considering the harsh punishments now being meted out by the Grey Maidens. The other guards and the shop girls have gone, but the Marshal isn't too concerned with their complicity.

As payment, Julius Ishani Dhatri gives Edmond a fully-charged wand of remove disease, one of the first to be made. Few people are grateful that Lavender's has been shut down, but by removing a fake cure, many lives were saved.

But the disease wasn't halted, and the bodies began to pile up. Corpse-gatherers worked day and night, taking cartloads of the dead to mass graves in Grey Quarter. A few days after dealing with Lavender's, the Marshall sends word of a disturbing rumour that she has heard - carters from Old Korvosa have given up the long trek across the city, and are dumping corpses in a place called Racker's Alley. Edmond and Dj'hân know of this place, in the houses next to Fort Korvosa. Since this is in your neighbourhood, the Marshall reasons, can you check out the rumours?

Neurotic · Aug 15, 2010

News are dire indeed. Edmond closed the doors of his house to all outside contacts. Old Jeremiah gets one (and only one) call to relocate before he gets sick. Children are confined to the house and dry rations and other long lasting food is supplied for at least a week, preferably a month if available.

Edmond gathers his chldren around and calls Kester forward
"Kester, this dagger is silver and magical, I give it to you as sign of trust and your authority over the group. You're to keep little ones safe until I return. If they start to fall ill, isolate them best you can and provide food and water to them. Send the message to the Temple and the Marshal.

The rest of you, be calm, it'll become worse before it gets better, but we'll see this through! Have faith and listen to Kester while I'm gone.

I'll return as soon as I'm able.

The cleaning shouldn't take too much time."

While we're at the house, Edmond asks Brindom to provide food so supplies last as long as possible.

"Brindom, Dj'ahn, since we have two wands for disease, what say you we keep one here and carry only one with us? Just in case something happens to us? And I'll instruct Kester if he doesn't hear from us regularly he's to return it to the temple."

With that, he gets his adventuring gear and calls his companions
"Ready?" as they head out into death's maw once again. On the way he supplies with ample supply of oil for burning the dead off the streets if needed.

He confers with Dj'ahn and leads the group to the leader of corpse gatherers (local knowledge +9)

HolyMan · Aug 16, 2010

Brindom helps over the next few days where he can but his abilities are minor compared to the priest's of the temple.

When the marshal sends her request he takes a few moments to perpare his gear. While in his room packing Brindom notices the vial of Lavender's Luxurious Liniment sitting on his shelf.

Nobody is going to pull the wool over my eyes again, the young cleric thinks to himself. And by Erastil me and my friends will get to the bottom of this disease and cure everyone we can.

Pack over his shoulder and bow in hand he heads down to join the others.

[sblock=OOC]
sblocks aren't working so these two are set for when they are. Sorry Neurotic Brindom can't cast create food & water that's a 3rd lvl spell

so I took purify to help with what food does come in the house he will make sure it is ok to eat. [/sblock]

[sblock=Stats]
HP: 48/48
AC: 20
Fort: +5
Reflex: +4
Will: +6
BAB: +3
CMD: 16

WEAPONS:
longbow +8, 1d8 (arrows 20/20)
short sword +3, 1d6

Abilities:
channel energy(2d6) 5/5
Touch of Good 6/6
Calming Touch 6/6

ITEMS:
potoins(2) clw-1d8+1
scrolls(2) cmw- 2d8+3
wand of remove disease 7/7

SPELLS:
0- create water, guidance, purify food&drink, stabilize
1- protection from evil, deathwatch, cure light wounds, shield of faith, d- bless
2- status, lesser restoration, cure mod. wounds, d- shield other
[/sblock]

Dr Simon · Sep 2, 2010

The corpse gatherers are not an organised group as such; although answerable to the city magistrates they are really anyone witha cart and a lack of squeamishness. However, they each have their allotted districts and streets.

Finding the group assigned to the area around the Mer'Cauthon house isn't too hard, and from them you learn that the team assigned to the area near Racker's Alley haven't been seen for several days.

"Reckon the plague got 'em," says the dead-gatherer. "Same's it will to all of us soon."

Neurotic · Sep 2, 2010

"Nah, Old District will keep. We're isolated enough and sick will flock over to the temple and the palace. And there are Arcona's, they will not let their district get too dirty. Finally, I will not let that happen. Keep up god work and will pull through."

Edmond leads the group toward Racker's Alley

Dr Simon · Sep 7, 2010

Rackers Alley.

Here the buildings press up close on the walls of Fort Korvosa, haphazard construction piled high and top-heavy leaving dark and narrow streets, the oldest of Old Korvosa.

Rackers Alley is notorious even amongst these pokey alleyways as a trysting place for thieves and murderers. From the street end, it is obvious that the rumours heard by Marshal Kroft are true. The non-human members of the party, all with sharper senses of one kind or another, can easily make out the sickening pile of corpses in varying stages of putrefaction; men, women, children of all species piled carelessly down the far end of the narrow gap between neighbouring buildings whose upper storeys overshadow the alley.

But Brindom and Edmond don't need super-human vision to see the grimly suggestiveshapes of the pile, nor to hear the clouds of flies buzzing over, or smell the gruesome foul-sweet smell of decay.

So, the Marshal's question has been answered, but... slight, but evident, movement can be seen shifting in the pile of corpses.