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Message: <blockquote data-quote="DispelAkimbo" data-source="post: 1021715" data-attributes="member: 1916">Jalderin, Jaider and Eben go to the inn where the Helmsblade Brothers were staying. Once inside, the innkeeper behind the bar looks them over and addresses them."You guys palace officials? Come about that guy upstairs in the room have you?" The three have no idea what the man is talking about, but Eben, eager to seize every advantage they can in uncovering the plot agrees with the innkeeper."Yes that's right, we've come about that guy upstairs. Which room is he in?""Room two, above the tap room there." He gestures to a stairway at the side of the room. Jalderin goes outside and into the alleyway at the side of the inn to ensure that no one leaves the room from the window. Eben and Jaider head upstairs to room two.After a few minutes knocking, they try the door and find it locked. Checking the keyhole shows the key to be in the lock on the other side. Eben suggests to the innkeeper that on official palace business he should user his master key to let them into the room. A silver piece ensures that the innkeeper agrees.Jaider turns the door handle and pushes the door slowly open. Inside laid on the bed is the sleeping form of Zander Helmsblade. Eben slowly steps into the room and moves over to the bed. He removes the long sword and dagger from Zanders belt, being sure to not wake him, then steps back and motions for Jaider to enter. Jaider does so, walks over to the window and signals to Jalderin in the alleyway below to come up and join them. He does so. While waiting for Jalderin to come up, Eben gives the room a quick search. He notices mud on the bottom of Zanders boots, and a lump inside the mattress that Zander is laid on.When Jalderin arrives at the room, the three try to awake Zander Helmsblade. They nudge him, prod him, shake him and eventually try slapping him, but he will not wake up."We don't know if this truly is Zander Helmsblade or not." Jaider points out."True, but if it is then he is a wanted criminal, and if it isn't then I'm sure whoever it is knows something concerning this plot." Jalderin replies before picking the sleeping form up and putting him over his shoulder to take back to the palace.Eben slits open the side of the mattress and removes the lump from inside it. Removing the leather wrapping from the lump reveals another Khadish throwing dagger, with a coloured ichor on the blade."Possibly the same poison as was used on the king." Jaider suggests. They take the dagger with them and head back to the palace, meeting up with the plainsman, Margarian on the way.***Once back at the royal palace, Jalderin searches the sleeping form of Zander Helmsblade and finds a note hidden about his person. It reads:"MUST REMEMBER - When I was six years old I broke my arm and also held my brother under the water with a spell to prevent an orc from seeing him. He thought I was trying to kill him.""Intriguing." Comments Jalderin. "It looks as though this sleeping person has been told to impersonate Zander Helmsblade, and has been given personal information about them that should be able to verify they are who they claim to be.""So, we have the body of Zelda Caervelyn in a prison cell whom claims to be Zander Helmsblade, and we have the body of Zander Helmsblade that appears to be someone else who has been told pretend to be Zander Helmsblade?" asks Margarian. Jaider, Jalderin and Eben all nod. "So what's the bounty on Zander Helmsblade and can I beat him up yet?""No!" the three others answer in unison. They send for the royal physicians assistant, who turns up promptly and introduces himself as Phil."Phil, we need you to examine this man, work out why he won't wake up and then wake him up." Eben asks, showing Phil the sleeping body. Phil spends several minutes examining the body and performing some simple tests before he turns and announces his diagnosis."He appears to be under the influence of a man-made chemical, something alchemical. I can try to counteract it, but it will take me an hour to make the compound and probably another hour for it to work." They agree and gesture for Phil to begin his work. "I must warn you though," he adds, "the patient may only be awake for moments, he could lapse into a deep sleep again at any point." Phil then sets to work very carefully mixing ingredients and compounds to form the remedy.He completes his work and returns to his quarters. Taking a sample of the mud from Zander Helmsblade's boot with him to analyse in the mean time.***By mid afternoon Zander Helmsblade slowly stirs from his sleep and his eyelids eventually open. He looks around himself at the people stood around, all looking at him quite sternly."Who are you?" Eben asks."Zander Helmsblade" he replies."How did you escape?""Escape from where?" Zander asks with a frown."What is the last thing you remember?""Myself and my brother arrived in the city this morning, we got a room at an inn and then....I don't know what happened. Where am I? What's going on?" Ignoring the questions, Eben ploughs on with his inquisition."How old are you?""Eighteen.""Have you ever broken a bone in your body?""Dunno, maybe as a kid, can't remember." Eben senses the person impersonating Zander Helmsblade is floundering slightly, so he tries to lull them into a false sense of security and then trick them into slipping up."We need to confirm that you are Zander Helmsblade, can you give us some information that only you and your brother would know. Perhaps a tale of something when you were younger?" Zander Helmsblade then eagerly launches into his story of the orc, his brother and holding him underwater with his magic."Excellent!", compliments Eben, "that was exactly what we were looking for. Now, just to make sure, tell us a second tale." Eben stands back, arms folded, a look of smug triumph on his face. The look soon fades though as he realises the only answer forth coming from Zander Helmsblade is the soft snoring of someone in a deep sleep."Damn it! I should have seen that one coming." Eben kicks a chair, the frustration of the investigation getting to him."Never mind, it's progress at least." Jaider says, patting Eben on the shoulder in condolence. "But our new question is, who would have known the tale of the brothers, the orc and the riverbank, other than the brothers and ourselves?""The Jailer?" Margarian suggests."Exactly, so now we have another person to be wary of."Jalderin adds, "So the Jailer must be working for whomever is behind all this, or someone else in the chain of authority must be. Either way its leads us to someone on the inside and not an outside nation."***Just after they leave the sleeping Zander Helmsblade, they bump into the High Justice, Lord Caervelyn."How is my daughter? I hope that you are taking good care of her!""The Jailer is taking good care of her Milord." Jalderin replies."Good, good. So, how goes the investigation?""Milord, do you have any relations with the Khadish nation?" Jaider interjects."No. Not particularly." The high justice replies frowning."The investigation is confusing." Jalderin admits. "We seem to be going in circles with clue trails one way or another.""Tell me milord," Eben asks, "has your daughter been in trouble before?""Alas yes, she's done various rabble rousing, been accused of theft, she's offended other noble families, and other things.""But as High Justice, does that not cause you problems milord?""It causes my purse problems, but not me problems." The High Justice replies."Ah, I see." Eben says nodding solemnly."Right, now if you'll excuse me, I'll be going to pay my daughter a visit. Good day to you and good luck with your further investigations." The High Justice leaves in the direction of the prison cells.***"So....Daughter....how are you?" The High Justice asks, taking his time on the word 'Daughter'. From her cell, Zelda Caervelyn (who claims to be Zander Helmsblade) take a moment before answering."Things are fine....Father....the food is not quite what I'm used to though. Perhaps you can arrange for some wine and veal to be sent down for me?" Lord Justice grinds his teeth for a moment before consenting. Rowan Helmsblade watches on from two cells down the corridor with interest."Oh and Father, that Helmsblade boy two cells down, he says his family is accused of a crime. What are they accused of?" Lord Caervelyn glances down to Rowan Helmsblade, a look of distaste bordering on a snarl appears on his face. It is still there when he looks back at his 'daughter' and replies to her."Don't you know? Really daughter, you should have paid more attention in your history lessons. The Helmsblade family was found guilty of murder, treason, conspiracy, theft, the list goes on and on. A most unpleasant family I think you'll agree....daughter." Zelda Caervelyn turns her back on the High Justice and ignores him. He soon leaves.***Phil, the Royal Physicians assistant returns to see Jaider, Jalderin, Eben and Margarian."The soil on those boots. There are two possible locales, based on the concentration of minerals and the purity of the water I surmised that the Noble district with its many natural spring fed fountains or the Gardens district with its natural springs would be the only likely places that mud could have come from."After a lengthy discussion on whether it is safe to leave Zander Helmsblades sleeping body with the Jailer, the four leave the palace and begin to search around the Gardens district for fresh soil near a fountain and with matching boot prints in it.Jalderin uses his ranger training and soon manages to find some matching boot prints near a fountain and follows them. They head towards one of the nearby tombs of one of the Sarivale noble families. They examine the damaged crest over the tomb."The Helmsblade family tomb!" Exclaims Jalderin. "That smells of irony to me." He quickly examines the tomb door and finds more intrigue. "It looks as though this door has been opened recently, although dirt sprinkled over the step is meant to make it appear otherwise." Jalderin leans against the tomb door and pushes hard. It slowly moves inwards and soon a one and a half foot gap is present.With the evening sun soon setting, the four glance around a little apprehensively. They light torches and Eben, Margarian, Jaider and Jalderin pass into the darkness of the tomb.***"Your evening meal madam." The jailer states in an unusually polite voice. Zander Helmsblade, looking like Zelda Caervelyn looks up from her cell and eagerly accepts the tray of Veal and Wine that is offered to her."And broth for you again." The jailer mutters splashing a bowl of murky liquid into Rowan Helmsblades cell. The jailer then retreats to his room and leaves the Helmsblade brothers to it."Zander wait! Don't eat that food until I have called upon the land to purify and cleanse it! I half expect us to be poisoned any day, so let us risk nothing.!" Zander agrees and holds the food outside his cell for Rowan to purify.Rowan takes several deep breaths to calm himself and to reach deep within himself to tap the land. It takes three attempts before he successfully manages to call upon the land and cleanse the food. It leaves him feeling nauseous and depressed at the confines he finds himself in. A leg of Veal floats down the prison corridor to his cell, that helps to soothe him a little."Hey look at this!" Exclaims Zander, holding out a key for Rowan to see. "I just found this stuck to the bottom of my plate!" The brothers spend a few moments discussing it and soon decide that it is probably from the High Justice who is trying to get them to escape so that he has a reason to have them killed in the attempt. Instead they agree to not use the key and instead to give it to the paladin Jaider Lightbringer should he return to see them. Hopefully that will help convince them of their innocence.***The Helmsblade family tomb is a stone building that is about twenty foot by twenty foot. The burial chambers in the walls and floor appear to be undisturbed. However at the far end of the room there is a hole in the tomb floor that leads into a tunnel and shows clear signs of recent passage."Look, a button sticking out of the wall behind the door." Eben points out. "If we had opened the door any further then it would have pressed the button and who knows what would have happened.""I'll stay and guard the tomb door. Make sure no one presses the button or traps us in." Margarian offers. The others agree and Eben and Jaider follow Jalderin into the underground passage. It goes away from the palace for twenty yards before coming to a Y junction. Jalderin takes the left tunnel and before long he emerges through a hole in a brick wall and into the city sewers."Looks like we're under a fountain or something." Jalderin points out. The others agree when they notice the water dripping from over head. They soon head back into the tunnel, crawl back to the Y junction and try the other path.The second tunnel veers round for five or six hundred yards and eventually heads towards the Royal Palace Compound."I can see planks above me." Jalderin whispers back to Eben and Jaider. "There's straw on them, looks like it might be the stables." Jalderin moves a plank or two and emerges into the stables inside the royal compound to confirm the fact.</blockquote>

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