THUGS THAT GO BUMP IN THE NIGHT
Now this is more like it, Pez thought to himself as he unlimbered his greatsword. Dealing out justice to these ner-do wells was just what he needed to relieve his boredom. As he and Ruphus had been returning from their mercy mission to the orphanage, they had taken a shortcut through this alley. Suddenly, three figures had stepped from the shadows, their faces painted in masks half black and half white. The saps they pounded against their palms made their intentions all too clear.
“Ye’d best be stayin’ away from that orphanage if ye know what’s good fer ye,” one of them said as they began to fan out.
“Stand aside evildoers, lest the Sword of Justice smite you where you stand!” Pez cried, moving to protect Ruphus. The cleric rolled his eyes, and whispered, “Perhaps we should not provoke these fellows, Pez. The do have us outnumbered after all.”
“Bah!” was the only reply from the warrior as he lunged at the assailants. His first swing went wide, and the thug quickly back peddled, dropping his sap and drawing a shortsword from under his cloak. His partners did likewise, “So you wanna make this fer keeps, do ya? Suit yerself!”
Pez felt a sharp pain in his right thigh as one of his opponents slashed him from behind. The one in front dodged and feinted, just beyond his reach, all the while drawing him away from Ruphus. He could hear the priest begin an incantation, but it was cut short by a grunt of pain. He whirled, putting his back to a wall. Two of the thugs now had him cornered, and separated from Ruphus completely. The third one slapped the cleric repeatedly with the flat of his blade, keeping him off balance and preventing him from either casting a spell or bringing his mace to bear.
Suddenly, an arrow whizzed out of the darkness, barely missing the head of one of the would-be assassins.
At the same time, shouts came from the far end of the alley, nearer to Ruphus. Pez’ sharp eyes picked two new forms out of the darkness, and one of them appeared to be a child. Nevertheless, they both expertly wielded sharp blades, and within moments they had Ruphus’ attacker flanked, then quickly on the ground, bleeding from several wounds.
Pez used his opponents’ momentary distraction, and buried his sword in the belly of one. The man fell in a heap, while his partner gaped open-mouthed. Seeing the odds were no longer in his favor, he turned and fled towards the mouth of the alley. As he fled down the street, Oso loosed another arrow after him, this time scoring a hit, though not a fatal one. The thug continued to run, and was soon lost in the darkness.
Pez hurried to Ruphus’ side, finding the priest battered, but intact. “Our thanks to you,” Ruphus said to the newcomers, “we owe you our lives.”
“Yep, I’d say you do,” Tilly nodded, “What’s the going rate on a priest’s life these days?” Sal slapped the halflings on the back of the head, “You’ll have to excuse my cohort. Hunger has made him delirious. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Salzar, and this is Tilly.”
“Tillian Wanderfar, that is,” Tilly said with a bow and a flourish.
“Again, we are grateful,” Ruphus replied, “We would be honored if you would return with us to our temple. Food and shelter would be provided for you, and I’m sure the high priestess would like to offer her gratitude as well. This includes you stranger.”
The elven archer had remained silent during the exchange, but nodded slightly, “You can keep your gratitude, but a hot meal would be welcome.”
Jenya greeted her three guests warmly, “I have spoken with Ruphus and Pez and learned of their harrowing ordeal, as well as your remarkable heroism. We are in your debt. It is rare to see such selflessness these days. Our city could use more people like you. Tell me, are any of you currently employed?”
“Well, that depends on what you mean by ‘employed.’” Tilly began. “Ahem. What my friend here means,” Sal interrupted, “is that we are temporarily between assignments, and are more than happy to entertain new offers.”
Oso merely sipped his drink, listening intently to the interaction.
“I’m pleased to hear that,” Jenya continued. “As it so happens, our church is looking to hire…persons with your talents. I’m sure you have heard of the abductions taking place recently. Two nights ago, the kidnappers struck an orphanage under our care. Four children were taken, two boys and two girls. No of the other residents or staff heard or saw anything. The orphanage has barred windows and excellent locks protecting its doors. The children are locked into their rooms at night to prevent any mischief. So you see, the circumstances surrounding this crime are exceptional, to say the least.”
“Do you have any idea who would want to steal children, or why?” Salazar asked.
“As a matter of fact, I might. Our high priest, Sarcem, is away on Church business. In his absence, I am acting high priestess. As such, I have access to the Star of Justice, a badge of office, so to speak. With it, I have been able to perform a divination. I asked the Star ‘Where are the children who were abducted from the Lantern Street Orphanage?’ The response I received was cryptic: The locks are key to finding them
Look beyond the curtain,
below the cauldron
But beware the doors with teeth
Descend into the malachite hold
Where precious life is bought with gold
Half a dwarf binds them, but not for long
“Well, that certainly is…not helpful,” said Tilly, “What in the Hells is half a dwarf? I’ve heard of halflings, half-elves, half-orcs, even half-ogres, but never half-dwarves. Who want to mate with a dwarf? Yech!”
“I’m afraid I am at as much of a loss as you,” Jenya replied, “but I wish to employ you as investigators. I will send Pez along with you as the church’s envoy. You will be paid well for your efforts, if you succeed. Are we agreed?”
Before Tilly could blow the deal, Salazar hastily spoke, “We would be more than happy to help you out, my lady. Rest assured you have hired the best that gold can buy.”
Oso stared into his cup, mulling over the proposal. On the one hand, why should he care about the fate of these humans? If they all slaughtered each other, so much the better. However, he couldn’t help feeling that something more was at stake here. Perhaps investigating further would be worthwhile to him in the long run. “I’m in,” he said simply. “When do we start?”
It was late by the time the new companions knocked on the door of the orphanage. The door opened a crack, and the wizened face of an elderly halflings woman peered out. “Who’s out there, and what are you doing here at this hour?”
“Our pardon, Grandmother,” Tilly piped up, “but we are poor travelers, looking for shel…oof!”
“Silence, fool!” Pez growled, lifting the halflings up by the scruff of his neck, and depositing him unceremoniously on the ground. “It is Pez, Gretchen. I have returned at the behest of high priestess Jenya with these investigators. We would question the staff further, and search the premises for evidence and clues.”
Gretchen sighed, and unlatched the door, “You can come in and look all you want, but you won’t find anything new. I’ve already told the guard everything I know, and then had to tell it all again to those fellows the Lord Mayor’s office sent over.”
“The Lord Mayor’s office?” Pez asked. “When were they here?”
“Just this afternoon. Couple of elvish fellows…Ferio and Fellian I think their names were.”
“I see,” Pez said, “Well, we won’t be long. Please, show us to the children’s rooms.”
“Uncle Pez! Uncle Pez!” the children shrieked, racing to surround the tall elf, “Tell us another story! Tell us all about the Blood War again!”
“Ahem,” Gretchen frowned disapprovingly, “not now children. It’s time you were all in bed. ‘Uncle’ Pez can come back and entertain you some other time.”
“Tilly,” Sal whispered to his friend, “I’m going to check out the doors and windows here in the boys’ room. How bout you go do the same in the girls’. And mind your manners!”
Tilly grinned and dashed down the hallway.
In short order, the entire house had been searched top to bottom, and nothing unusual presented itself. “These locks haven’t been tampered with in any way,” Sal told Pez, “and they are some of the finest I’ve ever seen….and believe me, I’ve seen a few. Tell me, dear lady,” he said, turning to Gretchen, “who provided you with these locks?”
“Keygan Ghelve, a locksmith hereabouts, and he charged a pretty penny for them too, I can tell you.”
“Perhaps a visit to this locksmith is in order,” Sal told his companions, “He may be able to tell us how locks of this quality could be so easily bypassed with no sign of forced entry.”
The next morning, Keygan Ghelve looked up from his workbench at the strange group who had just entered his shop. Two elves (one a big’un), a halflings and a shifty-eyed human. Granted, the gnome had seen his fair share of strange customers, but this lot looked like trouble. Immediately, his palms began to sweat. “Can I help you gents?” he asked, glancing furtively towards the curtained doorway behind him…
