Scene III - 16th of Lharvion, 998 YK
"A Master Inquisitive and an Angry Baker"
"A Master Inquisitive and an Angry Baker"
The next morning, Gerard, Esan and Morgan headed straight out to Clifftop, where they had learned they could find the office of Victor Saint-Demain. Clifftop is the adventurer's quarter of Sharn, and it is in Upper Dura. When they arrived (once again, using a skycoach) they saw that it was already quite busy. All sorts of strange folk wandered these streets, and they were not looked at twice. They found Saint-Demain's office on the edge of the district. He had converted an old abandoned water tower into a laboratory, and built his office right next to it. They knocked, and he answered after a little while. Once he learned that they were also investigators, he let them in and happily answered their questions. He advised that they should check in with the local bakers to learn as much about the baking powder they had found as possible. He also confirmed their suspicions that most of the Sharn Watch was incompetent, explaining the quick end to their investigation of Svans' death. They thanked him and left.
When they returned to Oakbridge later on that afternoon, they checked in at the Bluebird Inn and learned from the innkeeper (Graff Pendrong) that there were two bakers in the neighborhood. One was Borgo Delborde, the jovial dwarf who worked at the inn as a cook. The other was Kroga Brax. He lived down the street, and he had a temper so sour that he had to be an excellent baker to stay in business. Luckily for him, he was one of the best in Sharn. They spoke with Borgo first, since they were already at the inn. He didn't seem to know what they were talking about, and they didn't press him.
When they went to Kroga's, they decided to make a good first impression by buying some expensive baked goods. When this didn't work, Esan used his dorje of telempathic projection to alter Kroga's mood. This had moderate success, and they soon got him friendly enough to speak at some length about the baking powder. Kroga pointed out that he used much finer grains, but in his good mood did not think to get angry about the fact that he was being implied as the killer. The good mood deteriorated quickly, possibly because of Kroga's naturally mean disposition. They caught a glimpse of his wife Kelinda, who seemed nervous about something, but didn't get a chance to question her. They returned to the Bluebird Inn, somewhat frustrated by the dead ends they had reached.
That evening, Corlina danced again, and Drummer drummed, and during all of this the companions questioned Sarfina, Graff's wife and co-owner of the inn, about Kelinda. They learned that Kroga was a violent-tempered man who regularly beat his wife and their children. Kroga hated Borgo, but he was a coward, and almost fled in terror the one time Borgo finally got sick of his surly demeanor and said something confrontational. They decided they would scope out Kroga's bakery the next day, and wait until he left so that they could question Kelinda. Once again, they went to bed.
*Drummer had been chopped up with some sort of heavy slashing weapon, like an axe. They quickly found an axe in the nearby woodbox which seemed to be recently blunted by striking a metal object repeatedly. Conclusions were not hard to come to.
*A metal plate had been pried from Drummer's torso with some sort of dagger. It was in the exact same spot where Svans' skin had been flensed off.
*There was blood on the floor, and a single bloody handprint on the door. The handprint had three fingers. They suddenly remembered something they had seen, but not thought important at the time - Lucian Cruzgar had three fingers! But this seemed almost too easy, too damning to be true. They also realized that this must be the killer's blood, because warforged don't bleed.
*Borgo and Drummer had been good friends, perhaps best friends. Maybe Borgo would know something about the killer, and at the very least, he needed to be told about his friend's murder soon. He didn't work today, so the investigators decided to go to Borgo's apartment, where he most likely could be found.
They arrived at Borgo's door shortly after; it wasn't hard to get anywhere in Oakbridge, especially in the early hours of morning. They knocked on his door, but there was no answer. They knocked harder - still no answer. Morgan sent his crow, Corvus, around the corner to look through Borgo's window. When Corvus returned, he indicated that Borgo was in there, but he wasn't moving. Gerard broke down the door.
Borgo was laying in bed covered in a pool of his own blood. A thorough investigation turned up the following:
*Borgo was killed in his sleep, his throat slit by a curved knife identical in make to the one that had pried Drummer's torso plate off and killed Svans previously.
*Borgo was missing a patch of skin in the same place where Svans' and Drummer's torsos had been missing pieces.
*Borgo's window lock had been flawlessly picked. This was the entry and exit point for the killer, who did not linger long or steal anything.
*Flour was found near the window. They looked across the street, and saw that Kroga's chimneys were already puffing smoke. It was time to pay the last baker of Oakbridge another visit.
Esan listened at Kroga's door, and heard the sound of a woman sobbing to a man's increasingly frustrated screams. He did not knock - instead he kicked the door in. Kroga was standing over his wife, who was covering her face and crouching in a corner, looking abused. The heroes confronted the cowardly baker, who at first blustered, but caved in quickly to Morgan's threatening advances. Morgan took Kroga inside into another room and bodily threatened him with terrible things that might not be physically possible, but the cruel, stupid man seemed thoroughly convinced, and promised to treat his wife better. Meanwhile, Gerard and Esan gently questioned Kelinda, who swore that she was only nervous because of Kroga's demeanor. Kroga had a perfect alibi - his wife, who had spent the whole night in his company. Kroga most likely had the motive to kill Borgo, but he didn't have the spine.
With nothing else to do here, they rushed off to Lucian's residence, across the whole district. On the way, Gerard and Morgan picked up the rest of their gear at the Bluebird Inn, where the Sharn Watch had already arrived. After informing them that there was another body at Borgo's apartment, they continued to Lucian's.
When they returned to Oakbridge later on that afternoon, they checked in at the Bluebird Inn and learned from the innkeeper (Graff Pendrong) that there were two bakers in the neighborhood. One was Borgo Delborde, the jovial dwarf who worked at the inn as a cook. The other was Kroga Brax. He lived down the street, and he had a temper so sour that he had to be an excellent baker to stay in business. Luckily for him, he was one of the best in Sharn. They spoke with Borgo first, since they were already at the inn. He didn't seem to know what they were talking about, and they didn't press him.
When they went to Kroga's, they decided to make a good first impression by buying some expensive baked goods. When this didn't work, Esan used his dorje of telempathic projection to alter Kroga's mood. This had moderate success, and they soon got him friendly enough to speak at some length about the baking powder. Kroga pointed out that he used much finer grains, but in his good mood did not think to get angry about the fact that he was being implied as the killer. The good mood deteriorated quickly, possibly because of Kroga's naturally mean disposition. They caught a glimpse of his wife Kelinda, who seemed nervous about something, but didn't get a chance to question her. They returned to the Bluebird Inn, somewhat frustrated by the dead ends they had reached.
That evening, Corlina danced again, and Drummer drummed, and during all of this the companions questioned Sarfina, Graff's wife and co-owner of the inn, about Kelinda. They learned that Kroga was a violent-tempered man who regularly beat his wife and their children. Kroga hated Borgo, but he was a coward, and almost fled in terror the one time Borgo finally got sick of his surly demeanor and said something confrontational. They decided they would scope out Kroga's bakery the next day, and wait until he left so that they could question Kelinda. Once again, they went to bed.
Scene IV - 17th of Lharvion
"Double Homicide"
Early that morning, Esan heard a piercing scream downstairs. He woke the other two and went down to investigate. He found Sarfina standing at the basement door, which was ajar, and she was staring inside with a shocked expression on her face. Drummer, who was also the janitor of the Bluebird Inn, had lived in that basement until sometime last night, when he had apparently been hacked into a thousand pieces. Investigation turned up the following:"Double Homicide"
*Drummer had been chopped up with some sort of heavy slashing weapon, like an axe. They quickly found an axe in the nearby woodbox which seemed to be recently blunted by striking a metal object repeatedly. Conclusions were not hard to come to.
*A metal plate had been pried from Drummer's torso with some sort of dagger. It was in the exact same spot where Svans' skin had been flensed off.
*There was blood on the floor, and a single bloody handprint on the door. The handprint had three fingers. They suddenly remembered something they had seen, but not thought important at the time - Lucian Cruzgar had three fingers! But this seemed almost too easy, too damning to be true. They also realized that this must be the killer's blood, because warforged don't bleed.
*Borgo and Drummer had been good friends, perhaps best friends. Maybe Borgo would know something about the killer, and at the very least, he needed to be told about his friend's murder soon. He didn't work today, so the investigators decided to go to Borgo's apartment, where he most likely could be found.
They arrived at Borgo's door shortly after; it wasn't hard to get anywhere in Oakbridge, especially in the early hours of morning. They knocked on his door, but there was no answer. They knocked harder - still no answer. Morgan sent his crow, Corvus, around the corner to look through Borgo's window. When Corvus returned, he indicated that Borgo was in there, but he wasn't moving. Gerard broke down the door.
Borgo was laying in bed covered in a pool of his own blood. A thorough investigation turned up the following:
*Borgo was killed in his sleep, his throat slit by a curved knife identical in make to the one that had pried Drummer's torso plate off and killed Svans previously.
*Borgo was missing a patch of skin in the same place where Svans' and Drummer's torsos had been missing pieces.
*Borgo's window lock had been flawlessly picked. This was the entry and exit point for the killer, who did not linger long or steal anything.
*Flour was found near the window. They looked across the street, and saw that Kroga's chimneys were already puffing smoke. It was time to pay the last baker of Oakbridge another visit.
Esan listened at Kroga's door, and heard the sound of a woman sobbing to a man's increasingly frustrated screams. He did not knock - instead he kicked the door in. Kroga was standing over his wife, who was covering her face and crouching in a corner, looking abused. The heroes confronted the cowardly baker, who at first blustered, but caved in quickly to Morgan's threatening advances. Morgan took Kroga inside into another room and bodily threatened him with terrible things that might not be physically possible, but the cruel, stupid man seemed thoroughly convinced, and promised to treat his wife better. Meanwhile, Gerard and Esan gently questioned Kelinda, who swore that she was only nervous because of Kroga's demeanor. Kroga had a perfect alibi - his wife, who had spent the whole night in his company. Kroga most likely had the motive to kill Borgo, but he didn't have the spine.
With nothing else to do here, they rushed off to Lucian's residence, across the whole district. On the way, Gerard and Morgan picked up the rest of their gear at the Bluebird Inn, where the Sharn Watch had already arrived. After informing them that there was another body at Borgo's apartment, they continued to Lucian's.
Scene V
"The Three-Fingered Maniac"
Gerard barely resisted the urge to draw steel as they knocked on Lucian's door. They had seen the way he moved, even when he was deep in his drink. His expertly crafted swords had probably not been stolen, either, and his war stories could not all be bluster. They knocked again, and heard Lucian crashing around inside. The place smelled of refuse as he opened the door to his studio. He inquired to their visit's purpose in not as many words, and Gerard got straight to the point, demanding to see what was under Lucian's shirt. Lucian realized that he was being implicated in the murders of Borgo, Drummer and Svans when they explained their purpose, and he didn't want anything to do with it.
He jumped backwards, drawing both swords and crouching into a defensive stance, all the while uttering curses at them and calling them 'agents of the Claw'. They realized that this would come to blows, whether they wanted it to or not...
"The Three-Fingered Maniac"
Gerard barely resisted the urge to draw steel as they knocked on Lucian's door. They had seen the way he moved, even when he was deep in his drink. His expertly crafted swords had probably not been stolen, either, and his war stories could not all be bluster. They knocked again, and heard Lucian crashing around inside. The place smelled of refuse as he opened the door to his studio. He inquired to their visit's purpose in not as many words, and Gerard got straight to the point, demanding to see what was under Lucian's shirt. Lucian realized that he was being implicated in the murders of Borgo, Drummer and Svans when they explained their purpose, and he didn't want anything to do with it.
He jumped backwards, drawing both swords and crouching into a defensive stance, all the while uttering curses at them and calling them 'agents of the Claw'. They realized that this would come to blows, whether they wanted it to or not...
1 comment:
Good stuff. It's really helpful reading a re-cap of the adventure, especially when it's a mystery.
Post a Comment