Fat Tom leads the party through a myriad of alleyways until you reach the Marley's loft. Tom leads the way as you make your way up the stairs, and Tom opens the door, knocking as he enters.
"Hey Marley, I brought them folks like you-"
Tom's voice drops off as both he and you survey the carnage. Clearly there was some sort of struggle here; walls are torn up and stained with blood, chairs are overturned, and Marley's wall safe is open, and looks to be cleaned out. Tom swears in disbelief before his vision falls to a furry dead body in the middle of the room. Gasping, he runs over to it, feeling for a pulse. He looks back at the party and shakes his head.
"Dead. Damn it all! Damn Hyann to hell! He's the only one who uses gnoll thugs in this town, why the hell would he pick a fight with Marley? And why NOW? Come on, I know a warehouse north of the inner bay; Hyann likes to keep stuff there. The body is still warm, so if Marley's still alive, that's where he's being kept."
[sblock=Ash]You are familiar with the warehouse in question, and your knowledge of Daunton's ganglife leads you to believe that Tom's assumptions are correct; Hyann is most likely the one who caused the ruckus here.[/sblock]
Tom starts to leave, then suddenly an idea hits him. He turns and faces the empty vault.
"You know, they MIGHT not have taken everything. We should check, to see if there's stuff in there. Stuff that they didn't take. Er...stuff that can help us save Marley. I'm sure he won't mind."
While you are all sure that Marley probably won't mind if you "borrow" some of his stuff to help save him, you don't think Tom's motives are as puritanical as he would have you believe. But that thought becomes moot as Tom takes a few steps towards the vault.
Something shadowy drops from the ceiling onto Tom, lashing out at him with what appears to be claw-like hands. The thing rips through flesh as though it were butter, and the poor man is ripped to shreds before he can so much as let out a scream. In the light, you can get a better look at the thing; it is humanoid in appearance, wearing noble's clothing that is now stained with Fat Tom's blood. The thing turns to face the party, and it is evident from its large empty eyes that it is indeed an Echo. However, scars criss-cross what would normally be a flawless ivory face, and the thing is wearing a wry smile. You clearly recognize the beast as Marley's Echo, but it is different from the ones you fought underneath the bridge. Rather than hunched over, this Echo is standing upright, and suprisingly, it uses one finger to beckon you forward, its smile indicating that it will indeed relish the combat to come.
Roll for initiative!
[sblock=OOC]I'll make up a map some time today. It is assumed that you all drew your weapons when you saw what happened to Marley's flat, so you're all armed and at full hit points. Good luck! Trust me when I say that you are going to need it.[/sblock]
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