Turn 34

Earthday: 20th of Planting

Floyd made sure he collected the evidence from Master Gedrin before he left the Silver Consortium. Floyd then made his way with the rest of the group back to the College Lane, to wait and see what Kagan's group had discovered.

Returning the tavern, the group sat in their fast becoming usual booth.  Porrin quickly brought over a metal pitcher full of ale, and set a full cup in front of each. He then went back to the bar where he picked up a platter of cheese and biscuits, which he brought back to the table. "Compliments of the Constable," he said with a grin. "But don’t be gettin’ too used to it." He then returned to the bar, took out an old broom, and began to sweep up the entryway.

Darenna nods in agreement to Kepe. "You are right, Kepe! There must be 2 of them, because if it was the one who attacked me, Cord surely would be dead. Let's see what we can find out."  Cord thinks upon it for a moment before replying. "You may be right. Miriam said I was found by a Friar Warren. I was going to ask him, but I first wanted to seek out the rest of you. Perhaps we should find this priest and see if when he found me he saw anything strange or out of  place, well, other than me that is."

Kagan agreed with Cord, but as it had been a couple of hours, he felt it may be best to return to the College Lane and meet the others. "They should be returning by now, and may themselves have important insights for us. Let us first see what they have found, before returning to the hospital." The others nodded in agreement, and the four turned back down the street, retracing their steps to the College Lane. Entering the bar, they found the others seated at the far end, sipping ales and discussing quietly what they had discovered. Before Porrin was even aware of them, Cord called out, "Hey, Porrin, how ‘bouts another pitcher, huh?"  Porrin nodded quickly, and slipped over to the casks of ale where he began to fill another pitcher. By the time he finished, everyone had seated themselves around the table, anxious to see what each had found  out. As soon as Porrin left, having brought another pitcher and four more mugs, everyone began to talk all at once in a cacophony of unintelligible mutterings.

Turn 35

Earthday: 20th of Planting

Floyd lifted his cup of ale and washed down a mouthful of cheese and biscuits. "Welcome back Cord, greetings everyone. I hope your mission proved more successful than ours." Floyd indicated the bag of evidence with a nod of his head. "As you would suspect the Wizards of the Silver Consortium proved rather cryptic. Master Gedrin's divinations seemed to indicate there is more than one killer. And that to find them we must not seek, but protect the sleeping ones, lest they suffer like fates. Whatever that means."  

"Good to be back my friend," responded Cord with a grim smile "Especially after coming so close to become one of their victims... Well, i guess we didn't have to be master diviners to realise that! But that the solution lies into protecting not seeking...now that would be an option...anyway, i understand that we include some magic users in this group as well, right? Have we tried anything? I know not of the ways of magic, but i trust that being close to the scene of the crime, even less powerful magic users than Master Gedrin might prove to be more useful - at least more specific!"

Kagan chewed on a bicuit thoughtfully, "Sounds to me like it means they will be back to finish what they started with Toby to me. Like we don’t have to go looking for them, if we just protect the our young friend they will come to us. What do you think?"

"We protect." Graeneth declared vigorously. "But we still want to flush the killer out, so that may have to be done subtly. Having said that,  the assassin had no qualms killing the guards, and attacking Darenna. I suggest we adjourn to Toby's house as soon as we're done here."

Cord sighs audibly, "Hell, i'm more of an action guy...'tis not good sitting around, waiting for the enemy to strike...i'd say we should be more aggresive, after all we have the city watch backing us up! Of course this doesn't mean that we'd left Toby unguarded...   Ok, now, i know some of you might not like this, but it could prove quite helpful in our cause...why don't we use Toby as a bait? (pauses to let his words sink into the people's mind and braces himself in order to absorb the reaction heat)"

"Toby may be bait whether we like it or not," replied Harlan. "The killers seem to be developing a habit of returning to finish their business. We ought to make the best of the situation."  Then, more thoughtfully, "I'm still concerned if there are others like Toby who also need defense. But I don't know if there's any way to investigate this, except to check with the Constable to see if there have been other such instances."

"Tie boy to tree, wait for Tiger?" Kep'e says with a smile "What Magic men say about sleep. Boy sleep, maybe, we sleep, catch sleepy Tiger. "

Cord smiles at Kep’e, not being accustomed to the nomad’s way of  speaking. "Well, i didn't actually mean tie Toby to a tree or something!" he said with a wink.

"I thought that as long as the killers think that Toby is well-protected they would think twice before making a second attempt at his life. This might prove safe for Toby temporarily, but it won't give as the  assassins, and you know, we can't be around forever!"  I was thinking of maybe pretending to be leaving, or having Toby and his mother leave Verbobonc, seemingly unprotected, so that they draw the assassin's attention...dangerous, but it probably is our best chance..."

"How we watch Tiger, maybe Tiger watch boy, watch us now.  Easy to scare, Tiger hard to catch."

"Kep'e," said Harlan with a smile, "you've got a way with words!  ...Tiger's have a good sense of smell. As in smelling a trap."  

"That's why i thought to make the Tiger feel safe..." answered Cord, pausing after. "Oh, and i still have to meet that priest who helped me after i was hit by the arsonist..."

"Bait?!" Graeneth's voice rose slightly as if to object. "I did suggest some means of subtlety. A house full of bristling guards will certainly scare our killer away, which leaves him no choice but to attack when we're away - such as this very moment, for instance. Although he's only struck in the night."

"Indeed," replied Cord, "thought i doubt if they'd make a second attempt so soon..."   Pretending to leave town might be too obvious, especially since we're assuming he knows we're trying to go after him. More discreet to pretend we're dispersed across town as if we're doing further investigations."

"Yeah, but what about having Toby and his mother leave town?"

"How do you propose we do this though? The killer struck too quickly the last time for us to do anything useful. We left only one of us, Darenna,there, and that wasn't enough. And I suspect..." at this point the paladin looked as if he had a flash of inspiration, "..he might try burning down the place again!" Graeneth appeared intense. "He won't confront us directly. We are too many. Some arson, or a little magic, will accomplish his work for him."

"Pretend to be dispersed in our investigations. Instead, take up discreet positions in the surrounding areas where we can watch the house. Leave two or three at the house itself. By Mayaheine we'll get him."

Cord nods in agreement.

Floyd looked from face to face as each individual tried to formulate their ideas into some course of action. As the discussion moved around the table Floyd reminds everyone. "Don't forget Master Gerin said sleeping ones, that means there may be more than just Toby out there. I think we need to find out what makes Toby special so we can identify who the other sleeping ones are."

"Astute observation!" said Harlan. "But who are the others? Perhaps we could learn more about Toby. It may be more than coincidence that he was witness to the foul murder. Although I'm not anxious to try another spiritual connection to the theater ruins, maybe I should try and see if I can get more out of Toby. He was very withdrawn yesterday. I'll need to give it some prayerful thought first, however. And prayerful thought requires a prayerful draft. Porrin!"

"Excuse me! What's this ‘spiritual connection’ deal?" asked Cord. "Can you talk to spirits? Have you communicated with the spirit of the dead or with Toby? I have heard of priests being able to speak with dead people, but i never witnessed such a feat! Have you tried doing so?"

Kagan listened to the dialogue intently. His face grew grim when the subject of using Toby as bait arose. He sat his mug down on the table carefully, and idly watched the wet ring it left on the table as he tried to calm his emotions.

"Let me make this perfectly clear up front. I will in no way allow this boy to be put in anymore danger than he already is. I blame myself for not being closer when the last attack occurred anyway, and I will not allow that to happen again if it is in my power to stop it. I will help you all in anyway I can during the day, but honestly I feel that at night my place is with Toby." I think what u suggests make sense in an abstract way, Cord. But its easy to talk about risking a stranger or an adult, but my conscience will not permit me to be a part of this with a child"

Harlan leaned forward, "A wise man once told me that if you want to keep something safe, put it out in plain view. I think the hard truth is that Toby is in danger regardless of where he is. If we put him in plain view, maybe we can keep him alive and catch the fiends as well."

"Hell, i don't mean sacrificing the kid! Just...tempt the killers! Yeah, just that!"  You can't help but get the feeling that although Cord seem to mean what he says about not sacrificing Toby, something seems amiss...

Kagan found his voice raising and got it once again under control.  "I don't want to impede this investigation in anyway. I know that Toby will not be safe until this is settled, but I have to live with myself if something went wrong. I hope you understand. However, I agree that there must be something in common with the other murders in Dyvers. What do we know  for sure of those murders? Perhaps we should try again to see if there are any parallels."

Kagan slowly relaxes and sits back and waits to see what the others think.

"Quite probably...would you suggest that we split into two groups and have some of us travel to Dyvers?"  Floyd a bit concerned by Cord's cavalier attitude backs Graeneth up.  "Toby is an innocent and must be protected. But there is enough of us here to do that and carry on with our investigations. Whoever is questioning Toby to find out what makes him special can be guarding him at the same time. As far as the murders in Dyvers are concerned we will have to wait to see what Publius's investigations reveal. There is nothing more we can do there."

Floyd leaned back in his chair and lapsed into silence for a moment, contemplating Graeneth's last comments. "If we plan to catch this murderer in a trap, we need to find a way of getting back into the house without being seen. I'm confident I can do it, but what about the rest of you."

Kagan listened to Harlan and Cord. He remained calm during Harlan's comments but grew flushed hearing Cord's attitude.

He looked to Harlan and said mildy,

"Harlan I agree if what you are putting in plain view is a diamond or a painting, but not a child. I am afraid that wont sway me. The problem with it is this....What if your wrong?? Im not saying that it wont work,  just that it MIGHT fail. And I cant live with that risk"

Kagan turned to Cord and all trace of civility disappeared from his face. When he spoke his voice lashed like a whip. "And YOU... I won't even pretend to dignify your comment with a reply. You come in here and speak as if there is nothing at risk here. You act like you dont care about anything but yourself and I wont let you risk that boy! Maybe all this is a big game to you but that boy didnt ask to play and I will be damned if he has to!  And I will back that with my cudgel if need be!"

Kagan slammed his chair back and rose. "I'm sorry everyone, I'm afraid that my feelings on this have gotten the better of me. I think I need some air now. I will take a walk and find you all later."

Kagan flipped a coin onto the table and heads for the door and exits.

Jeremy watches as Kagan slips out the door of the bar, making no move to intervene. He only knew him for a short time, but he had not seen him react so. Looking back to the others, he let out an audible sigh.

"Don't take it personal, Cord," he said, reaching out and filling Cord's now empty mug. "We've all been stretched to our limits these last few days. I guess Kagan's been holding it in more than the rest. Anyway, I believe your idea quite sound, about waiting for the killer to try to get Toby. I mean, he's going to soon or later, right? So we may as well use that to our advantage, be prepared when the time comes, and catch this beast."

"I don't...people's beliefs are their own...if he thinks Toby is his kid and wants to act this way, be my guest...what he doesn't realise is that the killers *will* come again after Toby and that our best chance is to set them up...i only hope that he doesn't learn the hard way..."

Replacing the pitcher in the center of the table, Jeremy sliced off a large piece of cheese which he then stuffed into his mouth. Speaking with his mouth full, he continued. "What bothers me is what Master Gedrin said." Glancing at Floyd, Harlan, and Graeneth, he swallowed his cheese, then washed it down with a gulp of ale.

"Remember what he said when we left? He told us to remember what had  been said as well as WHO had said it. I've been thinking, wasn't it the dead spirits of those slain by the killer, cursed to wander the afterlife aimlessly since their eyes were gouged out?"

"Bad magic," Kep'e said "This Bad magic Tiger. Not know where Tiger be, Tiger leave no trail, maybe know where Tiger go. We go here," he said pointing in one direction "we go there" pointing in the opposite "no find Tiger. Tiger find boy, maybe Tiger find boy again. I go find Kagan." he said and headed for the Tavern exit himself.

Kep'e walked to the exit moments after Kagan left the Inn and went outside looking for him.

OOC- He will run up to Kagan and say loudly as he does so "Ho, Kagan,

I talk with you OK?"

Kagan was walking rapidly away from the inn when he heard Kep'e call out for him to wait. He forced himself to stop and wait for Kep'e see what he had to say. As Kep'e approached he tried to calm himself down and forced himself to smile wanly.

"What can I do for you Kep'e? I dont suppose you came to warn me that the others are looking for a very tall tree and a very short rope?" Seeing  Kep'es puzzled look, Kagan gave him a reassuring grin. "It was just a bad  joke is all, I'm just trying to cheer myself up. Care to take a walk with me?"

OOC If Kep'e agrees Kagan will walk towards Verboektown near where Cord was attacked.

As they walked down the street Kagan asked Kep'e casually, "So what do you think of Cord's tale, Kep'e?"

Kep'e looked at Kagan with a serious expression on his face. "I tell Darenna. Tiger kill Guards, try kill Darenna, Not kill Cord.

Cord lucky, maybe, maybe Cord not lucky, Cord Tiger? maybe Cord help Tiger, Maybe no. Tiger kills, no kill Cord, why?"

Kagan takes a moment to think thru Kep'es broken speech til he figured out what Kep'e meant. "Yeah I agree Kep'e. I dont really want to mistrust him but something just didnt sound right. Remember when Cord talked about that Temple of Zodal he woke up at? Well he also said they all wear Gold robes?

That has been bothering me since I heard that story. We have been looking for a killer wearing a gold cloak and along comes Cord telling us that he was at that temple with some gold clothed figures. Also before he was attacked he said he was chasing someone wearing a black cloak, but that he was attacked and saw a gold, or yellow cloth before falling. To me that is just too convenient. I know nothing of this Zodal, but I hear may good things about them, but perhaps we need to check with my church. Im sure they can tell us of this temple and this Zodal."

Kagan looked again at Kep'e to see if the nomad was able to follow what  he was saying. He had told it all hurriedly, almost as if he was convincing  himself as much as he was Kep'e. He hoped he hadnt said too much before finding out Kep'es feelings on the matter. At least it had helped Kagan work some of Cord's inconsistencies out in his head.

"Kep'e I want you to know that I am not saying Cord is in this, merely that he said some things that made me wonder about these priestsof Zodal. Cord may be innocent of any wrong doing, but we may want to keep this to ourselves  until we check with the brothers at my church. So tell me, What do you think of what I have said?"

"Good, you me find Gold robes Zodal? Tell Publius, he double careful watch  Boy? Maybe tell guard, he tell Publius?"

Kagan thought about what Kep'e said. "Yeah maybe we should tell  Publius. We may be way off of the target here but it just seems odd is all. Maybe we should let Publius at least know of the gold robe connection and let him make his own conclusions about Cord and the temple's involvement. I hope we're wrong about Cord, but something seems to be amiss."

"Kagan," Kep'e said slowly choosing his words with care " maybe Cord, maybe not Cord, I not know. Town not plains, not hunt here before. Words different, smells different, people different. Some things same. Tiger kills, Bad magic Tiger maybe not kill Cord, maybe do something? You say maybe gold robes, Zodal be bad magic Tiger? Maybe use bad magic on Cord?"

Kagan thought about his words. He hadn't considered that Cord was under some spell or charm. "It's possible Kep'e, or if they didn't use magic on him, they still might have been the ones who attacked him. I think we should definitely need to at least check this idea out. If nothing else just to prove that we're wrong."

Floyd finished his ale and seeing Kagan and Kep'e leaving the College  Lane said. "Well we can't stay here all day and drink Porrin's fine ales. I suggest we go and check on Toby. Maybe ask him some more questions to find out what makes him so special. Then decide what our next move is going to be." Commenting on Jeremy's points he adds. "Is there some way to identify who these spirits are?"

Remembering that Publius has paid for the drinks already, Floyd pockets the coin left behind by Kagan. ...only to have Graeneth notice his little indiscretion. [OOC: *wink* - I couldn't resist :) ]

"I believe that belongs to someone else," Graeneth said with as serious a face as possible, although he seemed to

be attempting to suppress a little smile in the corner of his mouth. An astute observer might have concluded that, contrary to popular misconception, paladins were not as stiff-necked as many perceived them to be.

Then quickly turning to Jeremy as well, "What's this about spirits? I remember Gedrin's words, but they made no sense. Why should we bother with the source of his words. Unless," and here the young paladin thought very hard," unless in some way the spirits of those murdered are themselves perpetuating this."

"They were killed, and then their eyes were gouged out for some ritualistic reason. But perhaps they're souls are not gone yet. They are still with us for some reason. Perhaps they seek revenge. No, that cannot be it, otherwise they would not have spoken what they spoke through Gedrin."

"The connection seems too obvious. Toby is a boy without a soul, one whose spirit seemed to have left him. Is someone stealing souls for some foul purpose? And now to complete the ritual they need the body from which the soul was stolen? Is that why the spirits warn us to protect the sleeping ones, bceause they suffered this similar fate? Are the spirits who spoke through Gedrin the spirits of those whose bodies are soulless? They need their bodies protected from whoever it is trying to steal them. We must return to Toby, and we must find out if anyone else in this city is suffering from this same trouble."

It was obvious to everyone that Graeneth's intense expression revealed a holy man deeply caught up in trying to get to the bottom of this matter and bring the killers to justice.

Jeremy listens to Graeneth, smiling a bit at the Paladins chain of  thoughts. "Well," he began, surpressing a chuckle, "I didn't mean all that. I just thought, we should look at what was said considering who said it. I mean, they were the spirits of the dead, right? So, they  don't want others to meet their fate. What fate? I think they're  refering to being in limbo because of their lost eyes. Kep'e, don't your people have similar belief's?"

Turning he saw the nomad slipping out the door in pursuit of Kagan. "Oh, well, anyway. So, who can we save from that fate? Who are these  sleeping ones? I believe they are spirits of the dead who are in danger of losing their way too. Dead whose eyes were not gouged out."

"The soul I connected with that night at the ruins of the theater might as well have been dead." The words come hard as the memories are still most vivid. "There was nothing... nothing but the vile acts of the evil murderer." Harlan relates the events that were revealed to him that night to Cord. Almost as an afterthought, he pays careful attention to Cord's reaction to the story (trying to gain some insight into why he seemed so eager to use Toby as bait).

"I agree with Floyd though. I don't think we need to leave the city to find more trouble.  Maybe Publius can help us there. He and his soldiers make regular rounds.   If we can get him to make his guard mount a bit larger than normal, no one would notice them departing Toby's place with one less "guard. If  we're patient and careful, we can get two or maybe even three in before morning.

That plus you, Floyd, makes three or four. The regular departure of the soldiers might even make the killer think he's got clear sailing."

Harlan tries to present the plan confident;y, but he knows this is not a common thief that they're up against.

"Whatever we do, we'd best get going soon. If the pattern of recent events continues, we'll see some kind of action tonight."

Cord seems confused by the story..."Damn! Why can't this magic stuff provide some clear answers? How do you people manage to work with such riddles?"

He seems quite frustrated...

"Guys, I've got something that i need to take care of...if you agree on some plan of action, i'd be happy to join...I'll be back in a couple of  hours, if you need to leave earlier, leave a message to Porrin, will you?"

Harlan realised that while he was talking, Cord was looking at him intensely...But before anyone could make another comment [ooc: dm breaths a sigh of relief]

Cord slips out the door and walks back to the Hospital of Zodal.

Being caught pocketing the coin by Graeneth, Floyd looks guilty for a moment but quickly recovers. "I'll make sure Kagan gets it back Graeneth."

Graeneth looked at Floyd mildly, "I'm sure there were other more important things on your mind."

The rest of you leave the bar, leaving Porrin to clean up your empty mugs. Outside, you turn left and head back to Toby’s house. Entering the Civic Center, you hear a commotion from the far end. Jeremy glances at Graeneth with a "not again" look, thinking that the three warriors they met the day before may have returned. However, as they gaze across the nearly empty square, past the few carts of the remaining merchants, they see a man charging across the flagstones, swinging a large axe and screaming like a madman.

The townsfolk's faces twisted in fearful horror as he raced through  them, recoiling lest he strike them down on his way. Then, a man in crowd turned to meet the axeman, drawing a broadsword from his waist. As he spun to meet the charge, the axeman planted his feet, slowing down and transferring the momentum of his charge into the swinging axe.

He swung the blade in a viscous downward arc, but the swordsman neatly stepped inside it. Grabbing the axeman’s cloak in his left hand, he brought the hilt of his sword up, smashing it into his face. The axeman stumbled back, quickly bringing his weapon back to the ready. The two then circled each other warily, waiting for the other to make the first move.

Turn 36

Earthday: 20th of Planting

Silently, Kagan and Kep’e slipped around the side of the entrance. With wary glances to assure nobody is about, they creep up to the doorway beyond which they could hear Cord speaking to a young woman.

"Have you heard about the murder in the burning house? You know, the night that I was brought here, there was a fire in a nearby house...I think I’ve told you all about it, haven't I?

Well, it seems that the fire was no accident...we suspect that it was set deliberately to cover the traces of a murder...a horrible murder...anyway, there was this guy, a priest of Celestian I think, who had a way of viewing glimpses of the past...he told me that he used a spell in the crime scene, in order to find something about the killer...he described some incomprehensible scenes to me, or at least I couldn't make out anything out of them, and then he told me that within the chaos, he saw...(pauses for a bit)...he saw a flash of gold...Golden robes waving before his eyes...

Since I heard of this I have an awful feeling for the temple here...I can't explain it, I know there's no logic behind it, but I can't help but feel that what happened back there bodes ill for this temple (waving his arms around)

I knew of no one else to turn to, so I came to you...help me please!"  

Miriam says, "We are the only church in Verbobonc whose priest don golden garments, but surely none of us would commit such foul crimes. It is our calling to preserve life and comfort the ill, not to slay and torture. But, I will look around, discreetly, just the same."

"Excuse me," interrupted a smoothly deep voice from behind Kagan and Kep’e. "May I be of some help"

Turning around, you see a large priest dressed in the golden robes of  Zodal standing at the foot of the steps below you. Though he wears the nondescript cloth of his priesthood, you are immediately held by his ice-blue eyes which seem to see straight into the inner reaches of your souls. His face is also striking in that his features are nearly perfect, blending aspects of strength and pride with softness and humility. Short blonde hair, immaculately combed, falls to just above his shoulders and into the recesses of his hood, neatly folded about his neck. With his arms crossed before him, inserted into his sleeves across his chest, he awaits your reply.

Kagan tries not to jump at the voice behind him. Turning quickly, he puts a smile on his face which he hopes will put the large priest at ease. "Hello good priest. My name is Kagan and this is Kep'e. We just arrived and was looking for a young companion of ours, one named Cord.

We understood that he was here and thought we would stop by, as there was something I needed to discuss with him. I thought I heard his voice ahead somewhere through that door, but I hated to barge in and interrupt. Could you perhaps let him know  we are here?" Kagan tries to look perfectly relaxed and guilt free.

Kep'e was startled at the voice behind him and embarrassed that someone had managed to sneak up on him unawares. His first instinct was to whirl around, his second would have been to skewer the person startling him but he had learned to restrain himself. What was a survival trait on the plains had caused him no end of difficulties on his travels in these southern lands. He smiled widely, especially upon hearing Kagan’s words but also to cover his embarrassment. Behind his smile Kep'e took an instant dislike to this gold robed shaman, he could have at least given a cough to warn them of his approach.

Meanwhile, Cord had continued. "I don't think that one of your colleagues performed such a vile act, it sounds as much absurd to me as it does to you...but I feel that there is a connection between the priesthood and the murderers, maybe the killer wore golden robes in mock of Zodal and what he (she?) stands for...I don't know, there is no rational explanation about this...I only know that these thoughts came to me instinctively and up to now my instincts have served me well...

As for you asking questions...Miriam, I don't know if it's a good idea...if...if really somebody from the temple is involved, you could be facing grave danger! I would never forgive myself if something happened to you! I was hoping that maybe we could talk to the high priest about this and that we could get some insight from such a wise person, not that you actually look around yourself!

Do you think we could pay a visit to Friar Warren? I'd like to talk to him a bit, maybe he could give me valuable  information..."

Whether they visit the Friar or do whatever might come to mind, the last few moments they're alone, Cord stops Miriam, holds her hands and looking her straight in the eyes...

"Promise me that whatever you might come across you will do nothing before talking to me! Promise me!"

Before she could answer, the two were interrupted by Kagan, Kep’e—both looking a bit sheepish as they entered—and another priest of Zodal.

"Ah, the man I found," said the priest, walking towards Cord. Casting a smile at Miriam, he approached Cord. "You left in such haste, I pray your wound sufficiently healed. But please, allow me to introduce myself. I am Friar Warren."

Graeneth, Harlan, Floyd, Dayte, Jeremy, Darenna

Seeing the first exchange of strokes, Graeneth stepped right up to the two men, effectively intruding upon their dueling circle. "Gentlemen!"

Graeneth put his booming voice to good use. "I am not the City Guard, but surely this matter can be settled peaceably!" Graeneth stared levelly at both men, hand firmly on his sword.

Before he could finish his sentence, the woodsman, whose rage filled every inch of his body, leapt to the attack. With a step to the right, he feinted a high swing then pulled down low with all his might, cutting at the swordsman’s feet. The swordsman was not to be fooled, however,  by the faint, and he quickly stepped back out of the way, stabbing forward with his sword as he did so.

Glancing quickly at Graeneth, the swordsman shouted in warning. "Beware the bandit’s ax," he said, his eyes never leaving the axman, "‘tis edged with deadly poison."

Dayte panted as he regained his footing - this man was more trouble than he had thought. His rage began to subside as the exhaustion of his tireless pursuit caught up to him.

"Poison?!" Dayte yelled questioningly, his rage finding a new footing in his breast. His eyes never flickered from the bandit's, and to him there were no others about, no-one to intervene - just Dayte and the bandit.

With a roar that sounded like nothing so much as a wounded bear, he swung the ax again with all his might, trying to fell him much as he might a rotten tree.

With an understanding nod to the dueling swordsman, and a communicative glance towards Harlan and Floyd -- "Go check on Toby if you have to" -- Graeneth addressed the man with the ax.

"What is your complaint, good man? Speak your piece!" Graeneth, with no less authority in his voice, "I am Graeneth of Mayaheine, and I will hear you out!" His right hand was now firmly on his sword, his left clutching the scabbard, ready to parry the deadly swing of the ax if need be.

Hearing the word "poison," Harlan seems to forget about Toby for the moment. He watches nervously as Graeneth edges a bit too close to the melee for comfort. His hand instinctively reaches into one of his pockets -- just to make sure that that clove of garlic is still there.

"Be careful, Graeneth! Poison is nasty stuff."

In a fluid movement, one he had practiced a thousand times, Dayte swung the ax around and cocked it behind his head, ready to bring it down with full force upon whatever piece of this worthless scum he could land it on. usually his target was a piece of wood that needed split, but on this occasion he would make an exception and dirty his blade on the filth before him.

The ax rose up, above his head, and the look in his eyes showed all that beheld him that this crazed half-elf was about to cleave his prone opponent in twain. As it reached its zenith, something passed through Dayte, a sensation, a calling, a knowledge that what he was about to do was somehow not right. Still ready to drop the ax upon the bandit at a moment's notice, the mad look left him and a calm, emotionless edge came to his visage.

"Yield, bandit, and I will let you take your chances afore the Gnarley court," he demanded. "It is more than you afforded my friends!"

If the bandit wavered in relinquishing his weapon, even for a moment, Dayte resumed his attack.

Floyd hearing the shout by the swordsman that the ax was poisoned decided that the axman was the bad guy in this confrontation. Having made that decision he maneuvered himself to a position behind the axman, hopefully without him knowing. When the axman inflicted a wound on the swordsman Floyd decided to act. He attempted to strike the axman from behind with the pommel of his short sword, in the hope of bringing this fight to a quick finale.

At the axman's pronouncement everyone froze, glancing towards him questioningly. In the instant Graeneth looked in his direction, the swordsman struck out. With the quickness of a mountain cat, he had pulled a small dagger from his belt and thrust the blade into Graeneth's side, just below his armpit. The blade found it's mark, tearing its way through his chain links.*

[ooc: that means you've been wounded.]

Graeneth stumbled back in pain, knowing instinctively that the blade had bitten deep. Placing a hand over the wound which now bled profusely, he turned towards the swordsman. However, before he could act, the axman's ax came crashing down on the swordsman's extended arm, smashing through flesh and bone like it was rotten wood. The swordsman dropped both his dagger and sword as he fell to one knee, reaching out to his now-useless arm.

Harlan gasps in horror at the sight of the severed limb, "Damn!"  Looking hastily at the gawking crowd, Harlan shouts, "Can no one help stop this sadness? At least call for the city guard!" Turning his attention to Graeneth, he tries to assess the damage to his friend. If Graeneth will allow him, Harlan will attempt to help stop the bleeding by tying a strip of cloth around the wound. Harlan will look closely at Graeneth and the wound for signs of poison.

Harlan helps Graeneth to a position a bit removed from the fighting. He places one hand upon Graeneth's forehead and the other on his wounded side. He begins a quiet prayer to Celestian, "Through the power of the stars and the immenseness of the heavens. . . may your body be healed."

Quick as a flash Graeneth's sword spun out of sheer reflex andleveled itself at the swordsman's face. The wound continued to bleed, and Graeneth had his left hand pressed against his side.

"Call the guard." Graeneth glared at neighboring bystanders who were too afraid to stand too close, yet were curious enough to watch from a distance. "Now. Another despicable trick like that, and I swear your head will accompany the arm." Graeneth's sword pointed unwaveringly at the backstabbing villain as his kicked both sword and dagger away from the fallen man, knowing that the axman was ready for any sudden move from the swordsman, and stood and waited for the arrival of the City Guard.

"My ax-wielding friend," Graeneth pronounced through gritted teeth, "thank you for the save." He paused, and then continued. "Though I could have avoided... this," and here the paladin held up his bloody palm, "if you had been wiser in your actions and more forthcoming with your words." His words carried a clear hint of frustration in his tone at the bull-headedness of the axman.

Graeneth then allowed Harlan to tender his attention on his wound. "Thank you my friend. Yes, poison would be a serious concern."

Seeing the attack on Graeneth by the swordsman and the response by the  axman Floyd pulled up short in his attended attack. Speaking from behind the axman Floyd said, "Drop your weapon, this fight is over."

Dayte glanced back, noticing the man behind for the first time. He looked at the bandit, now in the pathetic last stages of bleeding to death. His conscience was clear - he gave the man a chance but he would not surrender. Before he ended up being cudgeled from behind, however, he held the ax out at arms length and opened his palm, so that it slid down until the ax head rested on his wrist. He then began to lean on the ax, making no effort to stem the blood that was gushing from the bandit's arm onto the Plaza's cobblestones.

"I don't think I'll let you arrest me today," he said to the man behind him.

He nodded to the man that had been stabbed.

"You okay?" he asked. "My apologies, but my temper sometimes gets the better of me. The bleeder here is a bandit that was terrorizing the Gnarley forest - I gave him the benefit of the doubt once before and he killed my friend. I swore it would not happen again and had tracked him here - when I saw him, the 'red mist' came down and I was not even aware there were others nearby. I am Dayte Wintercloud, of the Gnarley Forest Rangers."

With his left hand the man pulled a necklace free from his tunic, bearing the golden oak leaves of those rangers.

"Has someone called the guard?" he asked matter-of-factly. "Perhaps they ought to know of what has passed here."

"It's okay Floyd." Graeneth nodded to his companion. "We'll let this ranger explain himself to the Guard, and it'll be up to the authorities to decide what action to take next."

"I have heard of the good work of the Gnarley Rangers, Dayte Wintercloud. I am Graeneth of Caronis, holy defender of the Order of  Mayaheine, of the Church of Pelor. I accept your apologies if you will buy me a drink after this. And if you have no other business to attend to in this city perhaps I could interest you in an evil that is afoot, a mystery to unravel."

Harlan relaxes a bit at Graeneth's recognition of the ranger's necklace and acceptance of his story. Harlan politely introduces himself to the ranger then turns to Graeneth, "The drinks may have to wait, Graeneth. We've got pressing business to attend to, and you and I both know that you should get some rest to complete the healing. It's beginning to get  dark -- we shouldn't tarry too long."

Turning back to Dayte, Harlan says, "I am not as fortunate as my friend to have heard of the achievements of the Gnarly Rangers. I will bring an eager ear to the table, but only after we tend to some urgent matters."

Harlan takes another look around the [crowd?], to see if there is anything/anyone out of the ordinary. Finally, he looks at the swordsman to see if there is a chance to keep him alive at least until the guards arrive. <He won't go near the guy initially. He just wants to get an estimate of his condition dead/dying/etc..>

"Of course Harlan, I need no drink as yet." Graeneth smiled a little smile. "Thank you for your healing. Goodman Wintercloud, my companions and I needs urgently be at another place. It is a matter of life and death and we must take our leave, unless you care to join us?"

"Assuming the guard allow me my freedom, I would be happy to join you all," Dayte said. "You sport a wound that I should be wearing stranger, so I think I owe you a drink at the very least. As for your task at hand, I may be able to assist if you wish to tell me more. "

Dayte looked about, rather nervously, for the coming guards.

"I gather you are in a hurry, but if you vouch for me on their arrival, perhaps you might save me a night or three in the local gaol. Speaking of local, can you tell me exactly where I am? I am afraid that beyond the forest's bounds I have never ventured."

Harlan inspects the fallen bandit as Graeneth and Dayte exchange greetings. His right arm is nearly severed, and he is moaning quite loudly, lying in a pool of his rapidly spilling blood. Wary of approaching, Harlan finally does so after Graeneth kicked away the man's weapons. He kneels down and binds the man's wound, knowing there will be no way to save his damaged limb. He looks up into Harlan's eyes with a mixture of fear and thanks, before slipping unconscious.

Within moments the watch arrives on the scene, including the same man from the day before. "You two again?" he says, indicating Graeneth and Jeremy. "What is it now?" Quickly you begin to explain when Dayte jumps in and explains that the wounded man is a bandit whom he'd chased for some time, clear from the Gnarley Forest where the man had slain Dayte's partner and friend. He had sworn to bring the man to justice. Glancing down at the now unconscious bandit, the guard chuckles dryly. "Well, looks like you've got him. As for you," and he points at Graeneth, "Publius has vouched fer ya, so I guess yer good. If you can do the same fer this one," and he jerks a thumb towards Dayte, "then I reckon that's that."

He leans down, looking at Graeneth's wound. "You best see ta that one," he says. "Seems the wretch stung ya, but good." Glancing down, Graeneth became aware of the tremendous pain in his side once again. He immediately slumped over a bit, clamping his hand tight over the wound as Dayte reached out to support him.

"Well Dayte, if you will swear upon your god that you have done rightly, then, yes I will vouch for you." Graeneth gave the guard a positive nod of weary dismissal as he braced himself against the woodsman's arms and stood upright again. "Harlan, your prayers haven't been that efficacious, have they?" Graeneth managed a wry smile. "Still, we must get to Toby's. Give me a moment and I should know if the wound is more serious than it should be." He closed his eyes, laid his hand on the wound and began to pray with the certainty that a regular wound would be healed by his prayers. Floyd appeared eager to be on his way as he waited for Graeneth to finish healing himself. "If your feeling up to it Graeneth I think we should make a move and check on Toby. This sojourn although entertaining has side tracked us." Floyd then turned to the Ranger.

"Greetings Master Dayte, I am Floyd Gladon. My companions and I are on our way to protect a young child from a vicious murderer. If you wish to accompany us I'm sure your skill with an ax can be put to good use. Rest assured we are working on behalf of the city watch, and any help would be appreciated." Dayte patted his axehead with his free hand. "I seem to be on a roll with vicious murderers today, Floyd," he said, nodding to the bandit. "It is the least I can do to make up for what happened t o your companion because of my ill-conceived arrest."

Dayte follows his new companions on their way to this young child.

"Tell me more," he asked as they made their way to wherever they were going. Floyd set a reasonable pace on the way to Toby's. Showing concern for Graeneth he says, "If we are going to quickly for your injuries Graeneth cry out." Responding to Dayte's request for more information, Floyd relates events from the discovery of the Theater on fire to the present. Something about Graeneth's wound makes Harlan think twice.

"That wound was caused by a small dagger. Seems more serious than such a small weapon should be capable of causing. . . unless it was aided by magic or poison." Harlan looks carefully at the dagger for signs of either. Turning to the guard, Harlan says, "I suggest having that blade checked. I'm not an expert at these things, but something's not right." Seeing that Floyd, Graeneth and Dayte are ready to move on to Toby's, Harlan joins them, "Well, so much for the quiet approach we talked about. . ." "No, I am all right," Graeneth still wasn't too sure whether he should consider Harlan's concern seriously. Was the dagger wound more damaging than should be expected? "The dagger left a deep wound, but no more than that." "Let us hurry. The others must have reached Toby's already I hope, since they did not wait for us."

"Master Dayte, the boy whom we are protecting is in some sort of trance," Graeneth continued to fill in where Harlan and Floyd had left off, "as if his soul was not present. We're still trying to understand the connection between that and the fact that there have been a number of attempts on his life." Proceeding through town, the rest of the group brings Dayte up to date on the events of recent days. He nods throughout, occasionally venturing a question or two.

You soon turn into the park, and make your way to Toby’s house. Four city guardsmen stand watch silently in front of the doorway. They eye you warily as you approach, and everyone breaths a sigh of relief. From what Darenna told of the last guards, these are indeed a more formidable lot. Three are wearing finely crafted chainmail, emblazoned with the crest of the city while one wears leather armor with the insignia of the city watch. The three soldiers, and it is quite obvious that this is what they are, stand ready, hands on their sword hilts, as you introduce yourselves to the watchmen. Only then, when he realizes who you are, do they relax although you can see in their eyes the cool awareness of professionals.

Noticing your puzzled looks, the watchman quickly explains. "After the events of last night, er, this morning, the Viscount assigned a squad of his own men-at-arms to defend the boy. Publius wasn’t all too happy about it, but you know the constable. He just took it in stride and went about his work." Glancing behind him, he continues, "Aside from these three, there are three more guarding the front and two patrols of 2 sweeping the neighborhood. Publius thought it a bit much, but what the Viscount wants, well, you know." Jeremy turns to the others, shrugging his shoulders. "Well, guess using Toby is academic now. The killer can’t be dumb enough to try against these guys," he says, nodding towards the three soldiers.

Turn 37

Floyd makes his way towards the kitchen door. "Well I suppose we should go in and check on Toby, just to be sure. We can wait inside for Cord, Kagan, and Kep’e to return. And while we wait perhaps Toby's mother will let us question Toby again, he might have remembered more." "And we might check on Darenna again. With these guards maybe she might relieve herself of the responsibility of being with Toby," Graeneth added as he nodded to the Viscount's men.

Without a word, Dayte followed Floyd into the house, glancing at the guards - he certainly could have used their help earlier. Harlan accompanies Floyd and the others into Toby's house and looks around for things that might be out of place. If Toby's mother will allow it, Harlan will want to talk to Toby. She is a little hesitant, but her fear for Toby’s safety outweighs any misgivings. She leads Harlan gently to his upstairs bed, then stands back as he kneels beside him.

With a prayer to Celestian, Harlan begins again to read Toby’s mind. This time, he is stunned by the fear he reads in the young boy’s thoughts. Fear so great that no other emotion seems present. After a look towards Toby’s mother, Harlan continues to look more deeply into his mind. He feels as if he’s swimming through dark water, swirling with muddy eddies. Suddenly the way clears and he sees a small room. From his earlier experience, he knows it to be the office of the theater manager. He sees a man in gold robes rushing forwards, attacking a woman violently, horrifically beating her, mutilating her. Then the mud swirls again, and he finds himself surrounded by flames, rising out of sight above and constantly flashing forwards as if trying to grab him. As the flames press forwards, Harlan is thrust out of Toby’s mind and he reaches out to steady himself. Placing a hand gently on Toby’s head, Harlan whispers a prayer of protection over him, then rises, asking the others to follow. Downstairs, he relates everything he saw to the rest of the group.

Kagan jerked in spite of himself upon hearing that this was the person that found Cord. He still remembered Cord saying that he saw a flash of a gold or yellow robe before he blacked out. Kagan watched the priest warily as he pondered what he had learned.

Kep'e checked the draw on his saber and watched the gold robed Shaman closely. He couldn't help smiling. Maybe he would have to behead the Shaman and thereby regain the small amount of pride lost when he had been surprised while stalking Cord. Cords looks surprised at Kagan and Kep'e "What are you doing here? I thought you were going to guard Toby!" then he frowns as realization dawns inside his mind as to what Kagan and Kep'e are doing there...his eyes darken in anger, then he sighs audibly and casting a "this ain't over" look at both of them, he turns to the Friar

"Greetings...you are correct, I did leave in a great haste, as there was pressing business to deal with...i never had a chance to properly thank you for your kindness and help, but I'm afraid this will have to be postponed for some more time...Friar, I'd like to talk to you about the night that you found me wounded...As you may already know i was after a man whom i perceived as responsible for the arson that night. Can you please tell us what did you see?" Turning from the gold robed shaman for a moment Kep'e caught the look which Cord was casting his way. A redness passed across his eyes and the knuckles on his hand turned white while he gripped the hilt of his saber. "Kutya.." he said, a vile curse in his lands. "Te akarni ba meghalni? Jo." He drew his saber and gestured to Cord. "Huzni az on kazni!" He said and catching the look of incomprehension in Cords eye he slowly repeated. "You want fight, Good, Draw Sword."

Kagan is surprised by the nomads words as he is questioning Friar Warren, but he never takes his eyes from the priests face as he awaits an answer to his questions. Kagan hopes that Kep'e has the sense not to fight in this temple, but at the same time he is sure that it wont come to blows..well at least yet.

*clearly surprised at first, then barely controlling his voice* "You son of a bitch!!! As if stalking me was not enough, you dare draw your blade against me? The matter *will* be settled! But not here...we shall meet outside the city gates in an hour..." He then makes to leave, only to turn again towards Miriam, the anger in his eyes replaced by sorrow "I'm so sorry that i've put you into this...remember my words and... be careful!"

Hoping to delay the the confrontation, Kagan rushes ahead with his questions. "Good Friar, you say that you found Cord lying there. Many thanks for your assistance of our friend. Did u happen to witness the attack or, do you perhaps remember seeing anyone in a black robe there anywhere close? Or did you find him there much later?" Kagan will watch the priest's face for any change in expression as he asks, but he seems to ignore Kagan completely. Instead, he is intent on the confrontation between Cord and Kep’e. As the two seem as if they are about to fight, Kagan notices the slightest bit of a smile cross Friar Warren's face. It lasts only a second and is more reflected in his eyes than anything else, but for a moment you could swear he enjoyed what was happening.

Kep’e’s first reaction would have been to cut down this insolent dog whether he now draws his sword or not but he is not evil so would not perform an 'evil' action. However, when Cord turns his back to speak to Miriam, Kep’e took it an insult, for it is such among his nomadic peoples. Already having drawn his saber, when Cord turns he put the blade at Cords throat hard enough to pierce the skin. Suddenly everyone freezes, especially Cord, as the seriousness of the situation becomes apparent. Miriam gasps, holding her hands to her face, her eyes revealing her fear for Cord. When Cord shows no fear Kep'e will wait a moment , then draws back his blade so that it leaves a shallow cut across Cords chin. He then moves his saber back to a guard position and waits for Cord to draw his own weapon.

Turn 39

Cord just growls "outside", then moves out of the temple, readying his quarterstaff for the upcoming fight. Miriam reaches out, placing her hand on Cord's shoulder. "No, Cord," she pleads, tears beginning to fall from her eyes, "do not fight. Please." Cord turns to Miriam, his face softening, winicing in pain seeing her crying. "Miriam...i did not pursue this fight...but you saw this barbarian! What can i do? How can i be sure that if i let him go now, he doesn't come back some other time to threaten me again? Or even threaten you!" then seeing her lovely face deep in sorrow, he moves close to her, caresses lightly her cheek and whispers "you mean so much to me..." Cord turns to Kep'e and calmer now says "Barbarian, i am willing to put this incident behind, just for once, just for her sake. I don't know why did you follow me like thieves, nor why did you threaten me. Yet i am willing to stop this now, before blood

*mentioning blood, Cord's hand moves to the spot that Kep'e nicked him, his eyes clouding once again, but he seems controlled and continues in calm voice* is shed. The choice is yours..." Kep'e laughs at this bravado. "Kutya" he says almost affectionately. "Dog... you eyes, you words say fight. maybe you... how say...small dog, Ah... you Cur, go bark, bark, but no teeth." he sighs growing bored with this dog who barks and threatens but crys on his womans shoulder and protests that his dark threatening looks and insulting words and gestures are just the yapping of a lap dog. Kep'e looks at the small stain of blood on the tip of his saber and says "Sword drink little dog blood..." he then wipes the blood off against his pants and turns his back on Cord, a gesture of contempt, and faces Kagan with a shrug "Waste time, Man no man, little dog. No find Tiger here" he says to Kagan.

As soon as Cord realises that Kep'e does not pursue the fight, he ignores him (in fact everybody else), and turns to Miriam again, speaking softly "We need to talk...alone"

Kagan heard the interplay between the combatants, fearful that Kep'e and Cord will soon come to blows. But for some perverse reason that he can’t explain, he didn’t take his eyes from Friar Warren. As the two left the temple, Kagan flashed Cord a smile, rolling his eyes a bit as he did. But turning to leave, he caught Friar Warren’s eyes locked on his. Although he seemed slightly bemused and smiled goodbye, something caused a chill to run down Kagan’s spine. As if a centipede with hooks for feet crawled down his back. Once outside, he turned to Kep’e. "Your ways are definitely different, my friend," he said with a laugh. "Let us pray they get you out of more trouble then they get you into." Before Kep’e could respond, he added, "And though you may have been right about there being no tiger there, I do believe we have found us a wolf."

After Harlan has finished speaking Floyd asks. "Can we assume that Toby saw the murder and can identify the killer if he seems him again." Harlan looks over toward Floyd, "Well, if Toby can't, I'm sure I could. I don't think I could erase those memories if I tried. Where do you suggest we look? We'll also have to be real careful about acusing someone base on what I read from Toby's mind. If we're right, the murderer won't be cooperative. If we're wrong, well. . . let's just not be wrong."

"A good tenet to live by in all life, master Harlan," Dayte commented, "but a hard one! As for where to look, were there any clues in Toby's thoughts - such as the attacker's clothes, his words, his actions or surroundings? Maybe those would give us a starting place. Or were there any clues found earlier that I didn't know of?" Dayte hated to admit it, but he was enjoying himself. After catching the last murderer he sought, he fancied his chances at another - although this one would be much more difficult than tracking a clumsy bandit through the Gnarley's foliage.

In answer to Harlan Floyd says. "If we are suspicious that our golden robed murderer has some connection with the Temple of Zodal, it might be a good idea to take a look around and see if you recognize anyone." To Dayte, Floyd adds. "The images Harlan detected are from the fire in the Harvester Theatre. The only real clue is the golden robes, and the ritualistic method of the murder." Jeremy then added, "Well, there seems no reason to remain here at the moment. Let us return to the bar to meet the others. Publius said he would return, did he not? Perhaps he has found something useful." "I will remain here," replied Darenna quickly. "Let me watch after Toby and his mother. I shall return later, after supper." Without delay, everyone returned to the College Lane, where they met up with Kagan and Kep’e once again. Over a quick meal of roasted chicken and biscuits you related to each other the events of the last couple hours. Jeremy is the first to mention the fight, or near fight, between Kep’e and Cord. "I think that was nothing more than a misunderstanding," he said tentatively, looking anxiously at Kep’e. "Let’s just hope it goes forgotten." Dayte looked skyward at the mention of the argument. "As you may have seen, I am somewhat prone to losing my temper myself," he admitted. "If I do, someone just slug me one to the back of the skull and I'll apologise when I awaken." They could tell the mostly serious and unhumourous Dayte was trying to make light of the situation as best he could. "So what next, my new companions?" he asked. "I have little idea of what is going on here, so I fear it is your call for now. Do we just wait about for them t o come back for the boy, or do we have a lead to follow in trailing these laggards?"

Floyd follows Kep’e and Kagan's story with interest. To Kep'e he says. "That Cord is a hot tempered one." He then asks Kagan. "Why are you suspicious of Friar Warren. Do you think we should keep an eye on him, maybe follow him and see if he leads us to our murderer?" Turning to Harlan he says. "Maybe you should take a look at the friar, you may recognise him from the images you got from Toby."

Kagan came away from the temple in a much better mood. He was sure that the friar was not all that he seemed to be. At the very least he was involved in some capacity.  Kagan felt the Friar gave it all away with that one secret smile he saw flicker in his eyes during the dispute between Kep'e and Cord. Kagan regarded Floyd intently. "I'm not just suspicous of him, Floyd, Im saying he is our man or at least one of those involved. I dont know if he murdered those people, but he damn sure knows who did. You should have saw the way his eyes gleamed when Kep'e and Cord started to fight!  Kagan realized his voice was raising and quieted down sheepishly. "I get a little carried away sometimes is all. But I thought about what you were saying about using Toby as bait, and while I will not condone it, I do have a counter offer. What if the Friar were to hear that Toby was healed and was going to testify to Publius come morning?" Kagan grinned gleefully at Floyd as he continued. "Now I am not suggesting that Toby stay there during this. I would want him well away from there just in case that someone took the bait. But Im sure that a man of your many talents could set up a little surprise for any unexpected visitors, heh? I bet it would get someone's attention. Perhaps if we had Cord inform Miriam of the good news of Toby's miraculous healing? In range of the Friars ears? I bet it would at least get some response, but what do you think, Floyd?" Dayte seemed interested at the description of this Friar. "I have heard tell," he said in soft tones, as though wary of spreading such gossip, "of a beast of lore that lurked in the deep Suss. Olven tales said that it lived on fear, thriving on the very essence of that emotion, growing stronger with every worry and every fright. It would create illusions and dreams to frighten people and thus create its sustenance." As he paused for breath he could see the others were watching him, wondering whatever his point could be. "Well it might be nothing," he said, "But it seems to me that this friar is that way interested in aggression, or dispute, or even chaos. Perhaps he creates these emotions amongst people - Cord, Kep'e, maybe you could think about what happened and truly let us know if such a confrontation is within you? Or are we dealing with something more here?" Dayte took a gulp of ale - it was dryer and less tasty than the beer and mead he was used to within the Gnarley, but what did he truly expect?

"I like Kagan's plan - you can count me in to the full. Remember, I am not known to these people yet, and may be of some use to you in that way. Perhaps I might seek the Friar's assistance in overcoming my darker nature which I let slip in the market square today - then, when he learns of Toby's recovery he might enlist my aid to solve his problem. Maybe I am thinking too hard - whatever, I will do whatever I can."

"Cord. Cord Dog" Kep'e answers Floyd "You say Hot , Cord Hot Dog?" A nearby townsman, a butcher from his garb, listens with interest thinking of the pack of stray canines which haunt his back alley. "Hot Dog" he thinks to himself, "theres an idea". Floyd pushed the remains of his chicken around his plate, unsure what direction their investigation should take now. When Dayte and Kagan outline their plans the remains of his meal was quickly forgotten. "A fine idea Dayte and one worthy of consideration. I think Kagan's plan should be considered first as it might bring things to a head tonight. This killer needs to be apprehended as soon as possible. If it is a cult that is behind these murders I don't think they would trust you immediately Dayte. And if they are as powerful as they seem they may detect that you are not what you claim, and you could be in great danger. As nobody has seen you with us I think you should assume the role of one of Publius's men guarding the house." So all we need know is Cord to plant the seeds for us in the Temple of Zordal. Then we can see what develops. We will need to get some of us in the house and Toby out to a place of safety." Jeremy listened to Floyd, absentminded chewing his own food. He noticed Floyd turning the ring on his finger, and a smile crossed his face as he thought about some of the stories Floyd had told him. "Yes," he said looking around the table. "It does seem a good plan." Then, looking at Kep'e and Kagan, he added, "if we can get Cord to play his part." Kagan pushed back his unfinished plate. "If no one objects I would like my part in this to simply be keeping an eye on the boy. If no one offers a better suggestion, I know he would be safe at Cuthbert's Temple. If one of you can figure out a plan to get him out of the house quietly, then Im sure that I can keep him safe tonight. And as Floyd was saying, maybe this will be well on its way to solving itself by morning. Is that satisfactory to everyone? Floyd, do you have a idea about how to sneak him out of the house?"

Kagan smiled at Jeremy's comment. "Oh he will play his part alright. And he will pull it off with flying colors. This is his chance to shine. He will go for it, I'm certain. If he doesnt mind putting Toby at risk then he shouldnt mind risking that priestess friend of his." Kagan has a rather smug look on his face, contemplating Cord's reaction to this argument. "This is his chance to get a shot at the killers." Without waiting for answer Kagan says jokingly, "And if not then I will have to turn Kep'e loose on him again." Kagan reaches over and puts a hand on the arm of Kep'e. "We can't let ourselves turn against each other. Whoever is responsible for poor Toby is the real enemy here. Our goal here is to make sure he is captured......and punished"

"I'm not too sure about moving Toby out," Graeneth mulled over his drink, obviously a little disturbed about the report on Cord and Kep'e. "He has enough guards already. Letting it out that Toby has recovered, well, will certainly lure the killer out again." "Anyway we can watch this priest of Zodal? Or at least we could monitor the temple. This friar, or somebody with him, clearly bears watching."  Kagan pondered what the warrior said and sighed. "Then were right back to where we were earlier, because Im not going to leave him there as bait for someone to come after. I think we can get him out of there without any major hitches. I want him somewhere else just in case this works. I dont feel that leaving him there gains us anything. I just dont think that he is safe if we do this." With the vivid images from Toby's thoughts racing in and out of his mind, Harlan seems not fully engaged in the conversation. He nods now and then to indicate that he is not completely out of sorts, but offers little help. However, hearing the talk of using Toby as bait stirs him a bit, "I know I said that was a good idea before. . .but now I'm not sure. He's awful vulnerable. I know Darenna is quick with a sword, but I'd feel better if another one or two of us were closeby when the murderer eventually returns." "Floyd, you're right. I think there's no question we need to do that. The question is 'How?' If Kagan feels the Friar is involved somehow, that makes him dangerous in my book. Whoever the killer is, he's managed to stay a step ahead of us so far."

Kagan chewed on his lip and considered Harlan and Floyd's conversation. "Um I dont know alot about how you do these things Harlan, but rather than go into Toby's mind again to look at the killer, what if you went in mine and looked at the Friar? Would that even work? If so it might save us some time and save you some unneeded pain." Kagan looked sheepish. "Or is that even possible? Im not sure but it seems it would work?" Harlan that is the one thing I can assure you of. I will be there, not to mention as many of the brothers as Publius thinks is necessary to make him safe. While this murdering bastard does seem quite brazen, even he would hesitate to enter my church. As you may know, its been rumored that we are a rather overzealous lot." Kagan grins and finger his cudgel lovingly, "All rumor of course".

The smile on Floyd's face grew larger as the discussion moved around the table. He obviously knew something he had not revealed yet. He stopped playing with the ring on his finger, rapping his knuckles on the table he called for attention. "If you would allow me a moment gentlemen, I think I have a cunning and devious plan that will satisfy everybody." Once everybody had given him their full attention Floyd continued. "As I see it, we need to get Toby and his mother out of the house and a few of our heroic group in to wait in ambush. But we need to do that without being detected." Floyd suddenly disappeared from view, after being invisible for a moment he reappeared. Wiggling the finger with the ring on Floyd continued. "This ring of Invisibility will allow us to get in and out of the house undetected. Now I know you must be thinking it can be used by only one of us, but that will be Dayte's part in the plan. If he assumes the role of a guard at the house. He can patrol the grounds and enter the house occasionally as part of his routine. Every time he enters the house he can be accompanied by one of us, invisible of course, then he can bring the ring out for the next hero. Toby and his mother can be smuggled out in the same way." "How does that sound?" Kep'e pushed back his chair with a loud scrape. "Magic" he said "Maybe work, Shaman stuff. Shaman make Tiger warrior no see, Dog warrior still hear, still smell, see grass blow kelet...blow east, wind blow west. Shaman stuff maybe work, maybe no work. Tiger hunt, eyes, nose, ears... how say...whiskers. In high grass Tiger no see, still hunt, still find."

Kagan grinned broadly at Floyd's theatrics. "Well Done Floyd! That definitely falls under a cunning and devious! Good Show! Floyd listened to Kep'e carefully, trying to understand his broken common. "Quite right, magic is not perfect. That is why Dayte is so important to the plan. Like you say the Dog warrior still hears, still smells, and can detect the grass move. But if anyone detects these signs they will be put down to Dayte. He will be used to cover the movements as well as carrying the ring back and forth." Floyd gave Dayte his best smile and added. "Not that I think you smell Dayte!"

"Lie in wait for the killer, while Toby and mother are elsewhere? It's a good plan to catch a killer, but it still doesn't sit well with me. I'd really be happier with or near Toby. Staying put in one place would make me uncomfortable." Graeneth pursed his lips regretfully. "Maybe I could watch the outside. And then there is the matter of tailing the friar." "Well perhaps you would be happier if we left Toby there as bait Graeneth?!" Kagan shakes his head at the warrior. "If you like you can stand guard at our church and I will go help the others, but Toby stays clear regardless, agreed? I still dont know that this will work and I cant let anything happen to him"

Floyd attempted to answer Graeneth's concerns. "I am sure Toby will be safe in Cuthbert's Temple with Kagan while we lay in wait for the murderer. But your point about having someone outside the house is a good one should the murderer try to flee when the trap is sprung." Jeremy listens to both Floyd and Kagan, then leans over the table. "I, um...I've got an idea," he says a bit hesitantly. As the others turn to look at him, he leans back. "Why don't we have a couple of us, say Graeneth, Darenna, Kagan, and you Floyd," he says, looking at his friend, "sneak in with the ring, like you said. But, instead of sneaking Toby out, we hide him inside. He's a small boy, Floyd could just hold him, while wearing the ring. He'd be perfectly safe, especially if they're in a more out-of-the way spot. Graeneth and Darenna, fully armed and armored I might add, would easily be able to overpower our killer, especially with Kagan's help. Kep'e and Dayte would be outside, along with Harlan, ready to track him if he escapes, though with the guards, that would be unlikly." "We're right back where we were again, Jeremy. We dont want to sneak him out because the killer might still be able to see him even if invisible, so the answer is to hide him inside where he wont be seen?

Its just too risky for me, and thus goes against my oath to keep him safe." Kagan looks sorrowful. "I do apologize for being so difficult in this manner, but it was how I was raised and taught." "As was I." You all turn around at the sound of the familiar voice to see Publius standing in the doorway of the bar. Striding over to the table, he grabs a chair on the way and sits down. "Kagan,"

Graeneth paused to give the man a level stare, "No one believes in protecting the innocent more than my goddess. Jeremy's suggestion has merit. We've got the inside and the outside covered. The killer must get past the Viscount's men and the warriors in our group. Floyd, rogue that he is, has demonstrated a nobility of heart in helping those who are weaker. Moving the boy to your temple adds the risk of movement and discovery without an appreciable increase in protection. If the killer wants to get into the temple, he will. We would still need to set ourselves up there in the off chance that he knows we smuggled him there,and that would be spreading our resources too thinly." "I will not be leaving the boy alone if I can help it. I will be the first to lay down my life."

Kagan shakes his head and sighs, "Graeneth, Im not doubting for a second your willingness to lay down your life for Toby, Im simply questioning why exactly he has to be there for you to do it?" Kagan stared back at the warrior, "And as for no increase in protection, I will assume then that you have no knowlege of my church and let that drop." Kagan rises wearily, "So once again it appears that we are ready to risk this boy life, which leaves me right where I started. I just want you all to know that I object to this plan. I want to catch the killer but not at the risk of Toby again. I do apologize for being difficult on this issue, but I just wanted you to know how I feel. If you will excuse me, I need to get back for prayers"

As soon as the Friar leaves, Cord turns to Miriam silently looking her. Then he sighs and reaches out to her, caressing her hair and cheeks soflty, all anger gone from his eyes, then he smiles and says teasingly "What have you done to me woman? I barely recognised myself when i rejected the barbarian's challenge!" then continues in a softer, more serious tone "Never before has a woman meant so much for me...and i barely know you... what have you done to me?" Saying these words Cord has moved closer to Miriam, his caress no more playful and teasing but instead showing all his affection for her. Depending on her reaction, Cord will kiss her whispering "i need you..." or, well, as i said it depends on her reaction! Miriam looks up into your eyes, and tells you that she too feels the same. After a short embrace, you move to another room where you sit down and speak for a good while. Eventually, you realize it is getting late, and promise to return on the morrow. Just as Cord was about to leave, he's suddenly struck by the idea that he didn't do what he originally came for in the temple and pinches Miriam playfully saying "you made me forget what i came here for", then he thinks for a while and in a serious tone now "Ummm, i just thought of something that you can do for me...would it be possible to find out wether some member of your church came here from Dyvers the past few weeks?" She says she will check and let you Cord know, along with, perhaps, other things. With a smile and a lengthy kiss goodbye leaving Cord wondering and even yearning for those "other things", you leave Miriam and return to the College Lane. Returning to the bar, you find the others sitting at your now-regular table, discussing plans with the Constable, Publius. Grabbing a drink from Porrin, you make your way to the table.

Graeneth grabs Kagan's wrist lightly as he moves to leave, "Forgive me if I have offended you, friend Kagan, or your church. I'm not doubting your genuine concern for the boy either. How can anyone of us bear the thought of Toby coming to more harm?" Graeneth chooses his words carefully, "I have no doubt your temple is filled with holy men of unflinching determination. But we are clearly dealing with a killer who might be skilled in the art of stealth. It is not just a golden-robed man in the theatre but a black-clad one here last night. Can you bear the thought of being here waiting while the murderer is making plans to sneak into your temple? I cannot." "What if the killer decides to strike enroute to the temple? We could prevent that by going to the temple together, but then we leave no one in the ambush. I don't want the boy here either but can we risk otherwise? You cannot risk having Toby around, and I cannot risk leaving him somewhere else. Will keeping the boy invisible satisfy your fears? Will you still lay down your life even if you object to the plan?" He releases Kagan's arm. "We need your prayers." As Kagan rises, you all see Cord entering the bar. He grabs a drink from Porrin, and move slowly towards the rest of you.

Kagan softened at the warm words. "I thank you for saying that Graeneth truly I do, but perhaps on one account I didnt make myself clear. No matter where the boy is, I will be with him from beginning to end. I will not leave him to try and catch the killer. If we must do this I will not leave him no matter what or for anyone. I am bothered by how easily that we are willing to use this boy, no matter how good the goals are. Perhaps it is the only way, but I am sorely vexed by that thought." Looking around and smiling at the others and clapping Graeneth lightly on the shoulder Kagan says, " Forgive a quarrelsome cleric my friends. I am sure that your intent is nothing but the best for the boy, but this is still something I have to come to grips with. Please forgive my leaving you at this time, but I must meditate upon this." As Kagan leaves lost in thoughts he almost walks into Cord without seeing him. "Oh excuse me sir...Cord! Well you arrived just in time. Your the man of the hour!" Giving him a big wink he leaves Cord staring after Kagan in puzzlement. Careful not to spill his ale, Cord gives Kagan a puzzled look and nodding to the assembly in greetings... "I am? How's so?" Floyd adds his voice to Graeneth's as Kagan moves to leave. "The best way to protect Toby is to catch the murderer. I think this plan offers that best opportunity to accomplish that." "Have none of you any faith in your abilities?" he asked. "You are just sitting here throwing sticks into the millstream, blocking it with one minor doubt after another. The more solutions you come up with, the more problems you will produce. What you have to do, in the end, is chose the best plan and stick with it, _making_ it work." He cleared his throat. "When hunting it is always best to flush your prey out into the open - let us not give them that chance. I favour the plan where the boy remains inside - hide him somewhere safe, if anyone can get past us then nothing can save him. We concentrate our own force all in one place, scattered about the boy, without making that obvious, and still leave a final defence of invisibility."

Jeremy fidgets around a bit, then sits up straight. "Um, I may have another plan." With a sigh, he pulls out his belt pouch and draws from it a small rock. He looks around, then places the rock on the table and speaks. "I never told anyone about this before, but this rock is no ordinary rock." Looking down at it, he seems to almost reach out but instead crosses his hands on the table. "It has the magical power to open a portal in even the most solid of stone. I have ever kept it secret, but now it seems just what we need." Looking at Kagan and Graeneth, he picks up the stone and continues. " I have an idea that should satisfy both of you. I shall use the magic of my stone to open a doorway into the neighboring house. Kagan and I can enter it, taking Toby with us, and the boy will be asuredly safe. Then, the rest of you can deal with the killer if he attacks." Glancing around the table, with a wink to Floyd who could probably have made great use of the stone's magic in the past, Jeremy continues. "This way Toby will be safe and we may have a good chance of catching the killer. What do you all think?"

Kagan leaned over to Harlan and whispered back. "If you identify this cursed priest as the killer that will make all this chatter about a plan moot anyway. Because I will go over with the brothers from the temple and drag the dog out and have him arrested and sent to trial. Of course that is after he resists being arrested of course" As Kagan says this he has a less than pleasant look on his face. Floyd could not keep his eyes off the rock that Jeremy placed on the table. "An interesting item Jeremy, perhaps you can show me how it works sometime. I'm sure I could put it to a profitable use." Addressing the group Floyd is keen to get going, inactivity doesn't suit him. "Well I think Jeremy has solved our problems. We need to start putting this plan into action. If Publius can get Dayte on the guard detail at Toby's, we can start smuggling people into the house. Who is going to volunteer to do what then?"

Kagan slowed as he walked out upon hearing Jeremy's idea. He turns and walks back and smiles at Jeremy and then turns to the others and says quietly, "That is very acceptable to me gentleman, I will let you work out the details, and thank you for being understanding of my feelings in this." Kagan walks out whistling. "Sounds fine by me," Dayte said. "Better get me different clothes though." Dayte twanged at his Gnarley Greens. "I don't look much like your average guard in these."

And so, the group known as the Heroes of the Harvester Theater began their preparations for the night’s work. Publius returned to the Constabulary where he set the plan in motion by telling the watchmen that the boy, Toby, had come out of his dazed state. He was being kept under guard until the morning when he would be brought before the Viscount himself to identify the killer. The news spread more quickly than the fire which sparked the entire affair, and soon the entire city knew of the morrow’s events, or so they thought. Meanwhile, the rest of the group had split up according to their earlier plans. Dayte was given a watchman’s cloak, and he took his place amongst the guards outside Toby’s house. Graeneth, Floyd, Kagan, and Jeremy are able to easily enter the house, where they joined Darenna.

There, Jeremy worked the magic of his stone. Placing it upon the ground before the wall, he leaned down towards it. With a quick glance back over his shoulder, he cupped his mouth and whispered something to the stone, which began to shimmer with purple and gold swirling lights. The swirls grew until they were roughly man-sized, and began to merge with the wall. Suddenly, the center grew clear and everyone could see through, into the room beyond. "Quickly now," said Jeremy, waving at the others. "Through the portal while the magic lasts." As Kagan slipped through, taking Toby and his mother in tow, Jeremy wished the others luck. He picked up the stone as he stepped through the magical opening, which began to shrink upon itself until all that was left was the wooden wall of the house. With Toby safe, Darenna and Graeneth donned their armor and prepared to meet the killer, while Floyd, slipping his ring upon his finger, disappeared from sight. Harlan slipped upstairs, where he hid himself as best he could and made ready to block any possible escape through the upper floor. Outside, Dayte stood guard with the remaining couple watchmen, Publius having staged a pretext to call the others off. In the bushes about 30 feet from the house, Kep’e crouched, silent as a cat. His keen senses alert to anything out of the ordinary, the break of a twig, a rustling leaf, or the telltale smell of a city dweller.

Only Cord was not present, having returned to the temple to watch for Friar Warren. He made his way quickly, yet cautiously, doubling back twice to assure himself he wasn’t being followed either. Luna was barely a sliver, and not even that to most untrained eyes, so Cord had to stay close to the temple if he hoped to observe the priest leaving. He slipped into a small alcove across the street, from where he could observe the front exit from the temple. A soft light glowed back towards the College Lane, and any attempting to slip out the back would be easily visible, silhouetted as they crossed the courtyard. All was set, with nothing left to do but wait. The night passed at a snails pace, each minute a seeming eternity to heroes who anxiously awaited the arrival of their quarry. They fidgeted, their muscles and bones aching, and they fought sleep which seemed to hover just behind their tired eyelids. But still nothing happened. The minutes ran into hours, and soon they could see the telltale glow which heralded the coming of dawn. A cock crowed, and around the they could feel the city stirring. And still, there was nothing. The long night gradually gave way to the dawn, and the dawn to morning, but nothing happened. Cord, too, waited through the boring hours of night, but saw nothing. Not a soul stirred on the streets, except a few scattered drunks and watchmen. As they sat, perplexed and a bit upset that their long planning seemed to have gone for naught, Publius arrived at the house. He never saw Kep’e, who smiled knowing that even one as capable as he seemed failed to notice the hidden nomad. Upon reaching the house, he nodded to Dayte to accompany him inside, and the two slipped through the doorway into the waiting swords of Darenna and Graeneth. With a sigh, they lowered their weapons, shoulders sagging at the sight, for they recognized the look in the constable’s eyes and knew that bad news lurked behind them.

"There’s been another attack," he said dryly as Harlan made his way down the stairs. "Last night, at the Constabulary. Somebody broke into the basement where the corpses of the two watchmen awaited burial. Their eyes were gouged out, just like before." Floyd knocked on the wall in a predetermined pattern, and shortly, the familiar pattern of scintillating colors appeared, coalescing into a portal. Through the portal stepped the others, with Toby and his mother in tow. As Jeremy stepped through, it again shut behind, leaving the room in an odd silence. Publius then repeated what had happened, that someone had entered the Constabulary basement and performed the vile act of disfigurement upon the two bodies. They were discovered when a priest unwrapped the shroud of one of the guards to perform a final ritual anointing. No other evidence was found, and nobody saw anything.

Turn 40

::Putting the stone away as he mumbles:: "....dropping like flies.....at least they were already dead...."::walks over to Floyd and leans over to say:: "Could be a diversion to get us out of the house so the boy is unattended." Floyd ponderd Jeremy's words for a moment. "If the mutilations are a diversion, then that would mean we were observed entering Toby's house. If that is the case all the precautions we took were for nothing. I can't believe that is true." Floyd goes quiet, disappointed his plan failed. "I suppose that just leaves Friar Warren in the Temple of Zodal as our possible lead."

"Actually Floyd there is another possible explanation. We discussed all of this in the main room at the inn. Its not impossible to believe that someone there is a spy." Kagan fingered his holy symbol nervously. "I say that Harlan use his spells to read my mind's image of Friar Warren and if that is who he saw in Toby's mind then I can take care of our dear Friar. I think that if Harlan were to tell Publius this finding then I'm sure they have someone who can verify this and make it official. I'm willing if Harlan is." Cord sighs audibly at these words... "Do you people always rely on magic to do the work for you? Kagan, if Harlan could recognise the man from a vision deep in your mind, wouldn't he just be able to describe him to us? At least his major characteristics! I thought that Harlan just got an impression of flowing golden robes, nothing more specific...Harlan? And in any case, i would advice you not to speak ill for Friar Warren, not unless you have some solid proof. Do I need to remind you that he saved my life? Sure, you suggest that he posed as "saving" me, while he actually was the bad guy, but think about it! No one was there and it was dark. Why not just kill me?

We didn't even give the man a chance to speak for himself!  I plan to go talk to him about that night, as my intention was last night...I believe that whoever was that struck me down was about to finish me when he saw Friar Warren coming and decided that it was best to leave. Warren found me unconscious and took me to the temple. End of story. The golden robes that Harlan visioned might hint for a connection to Zodal's temple, but we can't be certain. And even if we were certain about the temple's connection, how can we be sure that Warren is involved? By the way, since there were similar assassinations in Dyvers a couple of months ago,and a logical assumption would be that since the ritual was the same, the killer is probably the same, we could search for people that came here from Dyvers the past few weeks...this might give us a lead, so i've already asked Miriam to check if there's some member of the temple that came recently from Dyvers..."

Graeneth's sense of discipline and self-restraint prevented him from swearing on hearing the news of the the desecration of the soldiers' bodies. "Did the killer know we were waiting? Or was it his priority to gouge out the soldiers' eyes? Why not make another attempt at Toby? I wonder if Cord saw anything strange over at the temple of Zodal." "Give me a few moments with Friar Warren alone, and we'll see if he is involved or not." Floyd suddenly realized that he had spoken out loud. An embarrassed look spread across his face. "Not that I would attempt it without everyone's agreement." Floyd then turned to Harlan. "Ok, it looks like the next move is down to you. Work your spells on Kagan, and lets see if we need to have a chat with Friar Warren." Floyd watched Cord for any sign of disagreement.

Kagan stared at Cord intently. "Just out of curiosity Cord, Did you mention in front of him that Toby had recovered? That was part of the plan that we discussed. If not then I am not surprised that he didn't show up. And as for his guilt...I saw his face when you and Kep'e were about to kill each other-Maybe you need more proof of his guilt in this murder, but I don't. The man is evil. He scared me." Kagan shudders remembering that icy look. And if your going to go talk to him do you really think he will just break down and confess? I imagine he will give you a speech about how hurt he is that you feel this way and that he forgives you, then you will come back all ashamed and demand that we leave the poor friar alone, and I tell you now CORD, I wont be leaving him alone. In fact until I'm convinced of his innocence I intend to be a real thorn in his backside. I might just go there for services ALL the time. And I also think that your endangering Toby by letting him know we suspect him. All I ask is if you go and warn him you let us know." Kagan leans back in his chair and stretches tiredly.

"When did you propose that I talk to him, after being so close to shedding blood inside Zodal's temple, or during my stalk last night?  I don't know what you saw in his eyes at that point, but i'm fairly certain that whatever it may have been, it can't be enough to judge the man as a hideous assassin!  You all choose to ignore the fact that he could have simply killed me that first night, yet he got me to the hospital and helped me recover! Is this what you'd expect from such a vile monster? Sure, maybe he enjoys violence! He ain't the only one! Your friend Kep'e enjoys it so much that he's actually asking for it! I enjoy i good fight as well! Maybe the killer is one of us? And whatever the case may be, i never intended to go and tell him that we suspect him to be more than he seems to be! I only want to ask him what happened the night of the arson! It seems to me that you play judge, jury and executioner...you need an assassin so badly that i bet if Warren gave some excuse you'd kill him with no second thoughts..." Kagan smiles innocently, "Why yes, as a matter of fact I would, Cord" But I will wait to see what Publius finds out before I do it."

*smiling grimly* "That's ok with me, but try to remember that Warren may have saved my life. I would suggest that you wait for solid proof before you act..." No problem, I will wait to see if Harlan recognizes him, but understand this Cord, that priest is no priest. Maybe he did or didn't save your life, but that man is evil. I saw the way he looked at you and Kep'e and the gleam in his eye when he thought there was going to be bloodshed. No priest of Zodal would countenance bloodshed in the very temple. To be honest Cord, I fear for your friend, Miriam, as well you should too, I think ."

"Miriam...i *do* fear for her safety...maybe i should spend more time with her..." Cord, the very same man that a couple of days ago suggested that the heroes use a little child as a bait for the monstrous assassin, seems to actually mean these words. "I have yet to meet this friar," said Graeneth, "but as a holy servant of Mayaheine I am granted the sense of evil in all its forms. Perhaps we could arrange to meet Friar Warren again." "Yeah, maybe we should. Graeneth, i was hoping to have a chance to talk with Warren before Publius's men get him. Would you like to join me?" While as much in need of rest as the others, Harlan took advantage of the quiet night to catch up on some needed prayers to Celestian. He listens intently to the talk of the recent discovery.

"If last night's eye gougings were a diversion, they didn't work because we didn't know about them until now. Makes me think they were either the completion of a ritualistic murder or a very cruel joke. In any case, I don't think our time here was necessarily wasted -- Toby's safe." Harlan turns to Kagan. "I think I'm getting better at this mind reading business," he says as he begins the now familiar motions. Harlan loses awareness of everyone in the room except Kagan as the spell begins to work...

Jeremy goes to the corner to study his spell book and contemplate the situation, stopping to check on the boy along the way.  Moving closer to Cord to here his reply after being asked if he mentioned Toby's health to the friar:: "That is a good point, Cord. Did you mention that Toby had recovered so that the Friar could over hear you?"::standing with his arms crossed:: "If you didn't happen to let it slip, then we have been wasting our time setting a trap for someone that won't come."

He then turns back, watching Harlan’s casting with new interest. With his hands placed upon Kagan’s head, Harlan closes his eyes meditatively. After what seemed an eternity, Harlan opens his eyes and looks at Kagan. It was difficult to read the thoughts on Harlan’s mind, he seemed almost sad. With a smile and a pat on the back, he turned to the others, reporting that he found nothing useful except surety within Kagan’s mind that the Friar is evil.

Publius listened intently to everything that was said, the tired expression quickly replaced by one of decision. "Fine," he said, interrupting the others. "I'm bringing in this priest right now." Before anyone could object, and he turned his eyes on Cord, he continued. "He seems our best suspect, and if he's innocent, we'll know." He steps back outside and looks around as if searching for something. Finally, he shakes his head and turns to one of the watchmen. "Take a couple men and find that priest, Friar Warren. He's at the Hospital of Zodal. I want him back at the Constabulary by the time I get there." As the watchman scampers off, Publius returns back inside. "Kagan, you think you could summon one of your order's priests? I need one who can detect lies." Kagan looked at Harlan, unsure of what had transpired, and made a mental note to find out later. He then nodded to Publius. "Surely," he replied with a devilish grin. "We are quite adept at getting to the truth." Kagan then left, heading for the Church of St. Cuthbert.

Darenna remained behind with Toby while a squad of watchmen continued to guard the house. The rest of the group followed Publius back to the Constabulary for the meeting with Friar Warren. Cord and Graeneth were about to head for the Hospital of Zodal themselves, hoping to catch the priest before Publius’s men; however, Publius stopped them short. "My men will fetch him, you can count of that. And they will not wait for you. Best to just wait for them. They’ll not be long." Sullenly, they followed Publius and the others into the building. Publius led them all to the same room where they had met before, leaving them to wait while he saw to something. Within a short span of time, Kagan appeared with another priest whom he introduced as Canon Helver, his superior. When he went before him with Publius’s request, the Canon quickly reacted, surprising Kagan who never expected one of such rank, the assistant to the Bishop in fact, to conduct such work. He was not wearing his traditional garb but instead had the cloak of one of the town watchmen. He stood off to one side, a seemingly bored expression on his face as he pretended to not pay attention. Soon, Publius returned and opened the door. He paused for a moment to allow a gold-robed priest to enter before him. Friar Warren stepped through the door with an air of confidence which bordered on superiority. He stood tall and proud, even noble, and scanned the room with a disarming smile. "Gentlemen," he said with half bow. "I am at your service." Publius motioned for him to sit, offering one of the vacant chairs around the table. With a polite nod, Friar Warren swept his robe to the side, bundling it to his right as he sat. He then crossed his hands within his robe sleeves and waited patiently. For a moment, nobody spoke, Publius just sat there, watching the priest with the eyes of a Bakluni trader.

TURN 41

Something was nagging at the back of Dayte's mind - and its name was Cord.

In the short time Dayte had met this man, he had seemed very out-of-place. First the near-brawl he had hear of, which his companions said was out-of-character, now this defense of the Friar. As Cord spoke of the incident where Warren saved his life, a thought began to form in his head. Still, he did not want to falsely accuse the man without any proof, so when all was quiet, he went and spoke with the mage Jeremy, hopefully not interrupting his studies. He told Jeremy of his worries.

"It is not that I think he is in cohorts with this Warren," he explained, "But I have heard tell of magics that can make people friendly with mages despite their better judgment, even defending them against true friends. This time when Warren might have killed Cord, perhaps he found a better use for him as an ally and has magically enlisted his aid." Dayte scratched at his stubble, and tried to ignore the dull pain in his head. "I was thinking," he continued with a pause. "Perhaps you might quietly check out our friend Cord, see if there is any magical influence over him. If so, it might then be easy to manipulate this Warren using Cord before we negate the magic - it does seem strange that no attempt was made on the boy." "What do you think, Jeremy? Or am I over-reacting - is Cord acting strangely or not?"

As the priest strode into the room Dayte, who had seemed somewhat in a tired daze over the past hours, shook his head, as though awakening. He stared over at Kep’e, wondering if the strange 'waking dream' he had been seeing, of scorching heat, miles of endless white sand and men who dressed like his Baklunish companion sitting atop strange brown hump-backed riding beasts had somehow sprung from this man's mind. Perhaps he was remaining too long in the depravities of this so-called civilization, surrounded by mischievous sorcerer's, priests of dark religions and people who could read the thoughts of others. He regarded this Friar Warren - perhaps his opinion of the man was tainted by Kagan's viewpoint, but there was something annoying about his smug self-confidence. Dayte's thoughts were dark and pessimistic - there was no way they would learn anything of this man's misdoing, he was too self-assured for that. Undoubtedly he had covered them with magics. He thought that Floyd's idea of beating the truth from him might be the closest thing to a practical plan, but of course that was out of the question. Dayte sighed but remained quiet for the moment, allowing his companions to proceed as they saw fit, for he had little to contribute for now.

Pondering Dayte's words Jeremy stares out into nothing for what seems like an eternity, then turns to face Dayte. "I have a spell that will detect anything of magic in the area, but I don't know how it would work on some one effected by magic. When no one is paying attention I will cast the spell to see if it turns anything up or not. If you see anyone watching me cast the spell, tell them that I am just practicing the motions or something like that. If the others knew that I was casting a spell to check out one of our own, they may be upset by it." Preparing to cast the spell [detect magic] to see if he can learn anything about Cord, Jeremy reaches into his pouch for the spell components that will be needed to work his magic. Reaching deep into his mind to recall the motions and language needed for the spell Jeremy starts to chant under his breath and cast the spell to determine whether some form of spell has been cast upon their friend Cord. With everyone engaged in the questioning, which lasted about two hours to this point, you secretly cast your divination spell. Almost immediately, the aura's of multiple dewomers leapt into sight. It seemed everyone in the room wore or carried some item of power. The only exception was Friar Warren who showed no sign of spellcraft at all. Nor did Cord himself show signs of magical charm or ensorcellment, although his hand ax glowed faintly.

After the short pause, Publius began to question Friar Warren. He began with simple questions such as the priest's past, where he was from, etc. It was established that he hailed from Crockport, in northern Furyondy. Since a boy he had been a member of the church of Zodal, often accompanying Shieldlander armies in their nearly constant battles against the dreaded minions of the Horned Society. When he felt he had seen enough death and bloodshed, he left the region and traveled south, ultimately reaching Verbobonc about 4 months ago. He has since tended the needs of those seeking shelter or solace at Sister's of Mercy, the local hospital. "Where were you on the night of the fire, three nights ago?" asked Publius. "Sleeping," replied Friar Warren. "I retired early that evening and didn't hear about the fire until the following morning." "And the next night," continued Publius, "did you retire early then as well?" The sarcasm a plain to those who had grown accustomed to Publius's ways, but it seemed completely lost on Friar Warren who simply smiled warmly. "Why, no, I did not. You see, I found your friend here," and he indicated Cord with a quick glance, "lying in street that morning. He seemed to have been beaten rather severely, and I brought him back to the temple to see to his wounds. That evening I remained in the temple, in case of further need." He cocked his head to the side with a touch of smugness and added, "You may ask the young maid, Miriam, if you doubt my word." Publius almost seemed to growl at the priest's response, but he remained calm, asking further about the last night. This time the sarcasm was plain to see. "And last night, I suppose you can account for yourself then as well, can you not?" The priest's smile seemed a cross between disdain and amusement. In fact, he almost seemed to be enjoying himself. "Why, yes, I can. Last night was spent with the other priests of Zodal in common prayer. It is a practice we share once every month. The prayers last throughout the night, until the cock's crow and dawn's first rays herald the coming day. I had, in fact, just retired to bed when your deputies summoned me." Nobody spoke for about a minute as Publius and Friar Warren watched each other across the table. Then, Publius broke the silence. "Did you kill the theater manager and cause the fire three nights ago?" Without showing the slightest hint of surprise, or any emotion at all, Friar Warren answered, "No." "And my men," asked Publius, "did you kill them?" "No." Putting both hands on the table, those nearest Publius could see his knuckles whiten as he gripped the edge. "Did you enter the Constabulary last night and mutilate their bodies?" "No." Publius glanced up behind Friar Warren, catching the gaze of Canon Helver. The disguised priest frowned, shrugging his shoulders slightly and shaking his head slowly to show the priest had evidently told the truth.

Kagan was gritting his teeth in anger over Warren's smug answers, but he did see a loophole in Publius's questioning. Unable to resist he stood and said with a tight smile upon his own face, "Publius if I may, you did overlook one small thing." Before waiting to see if Publius would allow him to speak, Kagan turned to Warren and asked mildly, "Ah, I do have one question Friar. Do you know what person or group of persons is responsible for the above crimes?" "Do you know how they can be reached?" Kagan looks the friar in the eye as he asks with a cold smile playing about his own lips as he waits for an answer. Publius looks over at Kagan, obviously upset, but not over the Cuthberite's action. With a nod, he sits back to hear him out, then turns to await Friar Warren's response. The priest continued to smile as he listened to Kagan. He then spreads his hands before him in a gesture of humility. "I am but a simple priest," he replied evenly. "I know nothing of what you speak, though it is true that I have seen such evils in the northern borderlands. But," and he turned his head to scan the table, "I do not know who has committed them here in Verbobonc." Kagan and Publius both caught Canon Helver's look, another shake of his head. Seeing that Kagan had interrupted Publius's questioning. Floyd decided to ask one of his own. "Might I ask Friar Warren when you came to Verbobonc about 4 months ago did you travel alone. Or did someone accompany you." Floyd being concerned at Friar Warren's confidence decides to offer Publius a suggestion. Moving close so that the Friar can not over hear what is being said. Floyd asks Publius. "If Kagan is right and the Friar is evil, why don't you ask Canon Helver to test him." Publius whispers back quietly, "Oh, he is doing that, be assured." Then looking back to Friar Warren, he awaited his answer. "Why, no," replied the priest a bit flippantly. "Only a fool travels alone these days, even within the borders of a state such as Furyondy. The roads abound with those who would just as soon rob you blind and leave your corpse for the vultures. No, I came upriver on a Rhennee barge." After the Friar's flippant answer, Floyd continues his line of questioning. "Yes, but did you bring anyone with you to the Temple of Zodal. Or do you still have any contact with anyone who accompanied on your journey. Also did you spend any time in Dyvers during your journey?"

However, before he could reply, Kagan interrupted again. "So you dont know what person or group is responsible? Or dont want to tell me? For some reason I dont believe you." Kagan leaned over the table, his anger having gotten the better of him. Seemingly, without thinking he reached for the smug priest's robes intent upon wringing his neck. His eyes never left Warren's.

"Kagan!" Dayte yelled, reaching forward to stay his hand. Grasping the man's hands he tried to pry his vice-like grip, his face turning red with the effort of peeling Kagan's determined fingers from Warren's neck. Then he noticed Kagan's eyes latched onto Warren's, and Warren's onto Kagan's. Something here was wrong! His hands still trying to force Kagan to relinquish his grasp, Dayte pulled himself onto the table between the two men and deliberately blocked Kagan's view of the Friar's eyes. Perhaps there was too much suspicion in his mind, but it seemed too much coincidence that another of their group should be possessed with mad anger in the Friar's company, and somehow he thought the eye's had all to do with it. "Kagan, what are you doing?!" he yelled. "The good Friar is here to assist us, let him be!" He had as much conviction in his words as he had gold in his belt pouch, but there was no need to let the Friar know how sure they were of his involvement. "People are not guilty, just because *you* don't approve them Kagan!" said Cord from across the table.

Kagan jerked away from Warren angrily, tearing himself from Dayte in the process. "Leave me alone Woodsman! "Maybe your not sure about his guilt but I am!" Ignoring everyone, Kagan stormed from the room. As he slammed the door behind him he couldn’t help but smile grimly. Clutched in his hand was a small fragment of the friars robe. Hopefully Warren and the others didn’t notice him grabbing it away during the scuffle. He didn’t know if it would do any good but perhaps this, Master Gedrin from the Consortium, that he had heard Jeremy speak about could divine something from the scrap of cloth. If not he was no worse off than before, other than his new friends now thinking him completely crazed. Hopefully this would reveal something. Perhaps if nothing else, Warren would take Kagan's insult personally and target him for some sort of reprisal. Anything to shake up that smug bastard of a priest! Kagan walked towards the Silver Consortium to see Master Gedrin, with purpose in his step. He only hoped it wasn’t in vain.....

Graeneth was trained to be restrained in the light of any sort of adversity. Kagan's outburst revealed the priest's frustration and he was glad for Dayte's quick hand. It was all Graeneth could do to keep silent and respectful of the proceedings and allow Publius and Canon Helver to do their jobs. Graeneth was discomfited by the over-smug Friar and it seemed clear that he was not a trustworthy man. Yet his answers appeared truthful enough. Graeneth closed his eyes and tried to sense if there was any aura of evil surrounding the man, but he felt nothing untoward about the man at all. "Excuse my companion's outburst, Friar," Dayte said, staring at the now-slammed door. "I would apologize for him, but I fear there is more to this than a loss of temper. There is a malevolence creeping through our company whose source seems to be outwith, I hope you will understand. Your continued assistance here is of great value." Dayte shook out his hands, sore from the sudden exertion at peeling Kagan's grasp.

"As was obvious, our questions so far have been routine to establish your innocence in this matter. We have brought you here in this manner for one reason - misinformation. It may seem to those who are doing these foul deeds that somehow we have tied you in to these matters, a dire error on our part. Thus we gain an advantage - they relax, believing that we are off on the wrong track, and possibly make a mistake. I think we should have explained that from the start." "What I would ask is that you assist us - we need to create the impression that we have arrested you in relation to these matters to buy us some time and freedom. I know that it will interrupt your day, but as Toby is healed and will soon testify we should have the matter resolved soon. Once we have taught those we suspect we will declare our workings in public and exonerate you." Dayte smiled at the priest - whatever his reply it would suit their purpose. If he accepted they would have him out of their way, and cast a seed of suspicion with his allies in these matters - if he were involved, those responsible would surely send an assassin to prevent his revelations. If he refused this would further suggest his involvement - and the confirmation that Toby would testify would get back to his friends, prompting action in that direction. He looked to his new friends in a 'trust me' manner - he wished that he might have discussed this plan with them but it had just come to him, prompted by Kagan's actions, and they had no means to discuss it.

"Just one last thing, Friar," Dayte said, turning back to the priest. "Do you know anything further that might help us find these people?" The broadest of the broad questions - 'but a wide net can catch the big fish," he thought to himself. Seeing and understanding Graeneth's actions, Harlan quietly whispers to him, "While you're at it, you might want to examine others in the room who are not completely known to us." While Harlan has no reason to suspect the Cannon, he wanted to leave no stone unturned. Turning to Dayte, Harlan agrees that there is merit in arresting the Friar regardless of his guilt or innocence. "I'm still a bit troubled from my reading of Kagan's mind. While I learned nothing that will help identify the killer, Kagan's belief of the Friar's guilt was quite strong. Either Kagan's right, in which case the Friar is not only guilty, but also involved in an elaborate and somewhat convincing cover-up, or Kagan's wrong, in which case someone went to a lot of trouble to make Kagan believe as he does. A third possibility, help us all, is that Kagan is taking leave of his senses, possibly by some, er.. magical source. Regardless of whether Kagan's right or wrong, we need to make some progress." Now a bit louder, for the group to hear, "Dayte's plan is a good one. Word is out that the Friar has been brought in for questioning concerning the murders. He may be safer under the watch of the City Guard and at the same time help us in our search." Cord's eyes brighten at the prospect and addressing Warren and Publius "Friar, I would be delighted at having a chance to make up to you for helping me a few days ago! If you decide to accept official protection, either for yourself or your subordinates, I would happily be a part of it! With Commander Publius's permission of course..."

When Publius just nodded, all eyes turned back to Friar Warren. He seemed perfectly calm and even smiled as spoke. "Why, I have no objections. If this may indeed help to ferret out this murderer, then we must all do what we may. I am only sorry I can offer you no useful information. I had planned to see one of our order today, a priest who lives in the woods nearby and gathers many wholesome herbs which we use in the healing arts. Perhaps you would accompany me?" Publius agrees that Cord should accompany the Friar. Not only could they keep an eye on him, but it would get Cord out of town for a bit. He hadn’t seen Kep’e around, and was worried that the two had started something which Kep’e, because of his unusual customs, could not ignore. At any rate, at least it would be one thing less to worry about for the time being.

Seeing everyone turn on the priest, Jeremy gets up and walks outside to catch some fresh air. While out side he decides to walk around the house to see if there is any sign of some one watching them. It had been a long night. Kep'e yawned and flexed slightly to loosen some stiff muscles. No Tiger this time he thought to himself. He had watched the boys house all night and now another day had come. Hunting was always like this, wait, wait, wait, and the more you wanted the prey to come the longer the waiting. The sun had risen and there was a small commotion at the entrance to the house. He could see Publius and some of his warriors enter then after a few moments Publius left accompanied by his new companions. Kep'e let them get a little ahead then followed them himself. They made their way through the streets and back to the place of food and drink. Rather than enter he found a dark opening between these wooden tents, "houses" he said to himself, settled down and kept an eye on the main entrance. After only a little while he saw Kagan exit. He watched to see if anyone else left or followed. Kagan stood outside, looking very upset and seemingly cursing. He then pulled some object from his pocket and stared at it for a moment. From his position, Kep’e could not see what it was, but Kagan then looked up and smiled. Slipping the object back into his pocket, he turned and headed down the street towards the Civic Center. As Kep’e stood there watching, he saw Jeremy exit the building as well. He glanced around intently before noticing Kagan walking purposefully down the street.

TURN 43

Once Dayte was out of the room he went to ask Jeremy if he had found anything interesting. Having said his piece, Dayte also left the room - there seemed little point in pursuing the matter with the priest. Either he was telling the truth or he was using magic to cover his dishonesty.

Seeing Dayte exit the house, Jeremy walks over to him to discuss what he found out while casting his detect magic spell from earlier.

Approaching Dayte, "The result of my spell didn't tell us what we wanted. It revealed several items of magic in the room, but didn't tell me if anything about Cord himself was magical in nature." With a confused look on his face he continued, "One thing that confused me was that there was nothing magical about the priest. Not even any of his clothes or items. For a person of his high position, that seems strange to me. It may be that he has somehow cloaked himself and all his clothing, etc. Including Cord. It could also mean that we roused him from his bed and that he didn't put on anything of a magical nature, if he dressed in a hurry. We are pretty much still left at the same place we started." Shrugging his shoulders Jeremy continues, " I am going to walk around the house to see if I can tell if we are being watched or have been watched to this point. Feel

free to join me to continue our conversation. There has to be something that we are overlooking." With that Jeremy starts to walk around the house paying attention to the outlying areas that would provide a good hiding place for a spy.

"He is obviously hiding himself with some form of magic then," Dayte surmised. "I know little of specifics, but is there no way you might dispel any magical protection he has?"

"If he is powerful enough to block my attempts at detection, then I doubt that I will be able to dispel any magic that he is using." Stopping and folding his arms in deep thought, Jeremy contemplates the situation. Snapping out of his trance, Jeremy looks to Dayte,

"You know he may not even be the one behind this." Seeing a puzzled look on Dayte face, Jeremy continues, "He may be a pawn in this as well. Who ever is behind this is obviously with no small amount of power, and could be controlling the priest as well. It may be that this cult that we are searching for has channeled the power of their god or whatever it is that they follow into a power that has some ability to hide itself from us while it works. I'm not sure what to think at this point, but I do believe that the priest has something to do with it, whether he is a willing participate or not remains to be seen. For now we need to keep our thoughts to ourselves until we have some time to do a little searching on our own."

Responding to Dayte's question, "If he has the power to mask the presence of magic from my detection spell, then I don't think that I have the power to dispel the spell he is covering up with. It is possible that he cast the spell that would cloak him, but how would he do it while on the way over hear with out some one noticing? We may want to talk to the guards the escorted him from the temple to see if he was praying on the way over here or mumbling to himself. That will give us an idea as to whether it is him or if he is a patsy also." Turning around to look back at the house, "I will attempt to dispel the magic if I can. It may take some time though. We could always just stab him and then after he is dead, I can recast the detect magic spell. If anything shows as magical on him after he is dead, then we know he was using magical protection to hide it." Giving a wry little smile to Dayte to let him know that he is only half joking, Jeremy continues to walk around the house.

With that said, Jeremy continues to walk around looking for signs of a spy or other watchful presence.

********

Floyd remained in his seat as Kagan, Jeremy and Dayte left the building. "I hope you don't mind me repeating myself Friar, but I didn't get an answer in the commotion with Kagan. Did you bring anyone with you to the Temple of Zodal. Also did you spend any time in Dyvers during your journey?"

The priest looks over to Floyd with a questioning look on his face. He places a hand to his lips and he thinks for a moment. "No, I traveled alone across the Nyr Dyv, and the Rhennee I sailed with skirted Dyvers completely. If I recall, they were, how do we say, unwanted in the city? At any rate, we made straight the Velverdyva and Verbobonc."

The questioning cooled off after that. With half the group having departed and nobody else seeming to get anywhere, Publius decided to end the session. It was almost midday, and the Friar returned to the temple to gather his things for the walk, accompanied by Cord and three watchmen. As things had taken a bit longer than expected, he apologized that they would not return until nightfall. As they were leaving, Cord heard Miriam call out from behind him. She smiled and waved to him as the group crossed the street to begin their walk.

For Cord and the Friar, the passed rather uneventfully. The walk took the better part of the afternoon, and when they reached the priest of the grove, Friar Warren gathered a sack of supplies from him. After a brief meal of rabbit stew, washed down with fresh water from a nearby brook, they made their return trip to the city, arriving without incident just

after nightfall.

While journeying with the Friar, Cord apologised for the inconvenience and found the priest quite unconcerned. He accepts your apology, shrugging his shoulders in the knowledge that men will often act without reason or right when under duress.

You then ask wether he saw anybody when he found me unconcious, but he just shakes his head. "No, my young man. I saw and heard nothing. Quite fortunate for you, I'd say, that I came along. Suren you had received a nasty blow."

"Hmmm...what i don't understand is why the assassin did not kill me...not that I mind!" he said with a laugh. "Still it doesn't make sense...i thought he just was about to finish me when he saw you coming and prefered to escape, but if this was the case, surely you would have seen him as well! Well, i guess we'll have to wait and see..."

"Could you use Zodal's aid to help us?" you asked as you walked behind him.

"Indeed you have and i owe you for this...still, i meant some other kind of aid...consulting, divination, such things....*pause, then blushing* forgive my ignorance Friar, i have heard tales of such wanders, but i don't know wether Zodal grants you the power to perform them..."

"But, I have," he replied, turning back with a smile. "Did I not bring you back to our temple? Did I not heal your wounds? It is in such fashion the power of Zodal is seen."

Thanking him, you continue on, eventually reaching your destination, a modest farm with a large barn behind. Friar Warren conducts his business, retiring to the barn with another priest, while you take a short walk around the area. Coming out of the woods you see a second priest emerge who is no more than a young boy, carrying a basket in his arms. He walks over to you and says hello, and you see his basket is full of herbs and a few pieces of fruit. He hands you a large strawberry, which you thank him for and toss into you mouth. As he turns towards the barn, you ask quickly. "Excuse, me, but do you know of any priests of your order who may have come from Dyvers recently?"

He turns back to you, a somewhat confused look on his face. "Other than Friar Warren, you mean?"

Cord looks the boy shocked

"What do you mean? Friar Warren came here from Dyvers? When? And yes, i mean

other than him...Tell me, who was in charge before Friar Warren came here? What happened to him? Tell me lad...i understand that there's a chain of command in Zodal's

hierarchy, right? Who's second in command after Friar Warren? And a word of

warning..."sadness in his voice. "Do not tell anybody about our discussion...Not

to Friar Warren, nor to the priest who's acolyte you are...for the love of Zodal, don't say a word!"

The boy is obviously taken aback by your reaction, his look of confusion quickly turning to fear for he knows he has become a part of something he would rather avoid. You calm him down, and he tells you about Friar Warren. It seems that Friar Warren did come to Verbobonc from Dyvers, traveling alone with some Rhennee about 4 months ago. He had been at the Dyvers church for a short while before coming to Verbobonc. He is well respected for his long service in the north, but is not in an official position in Verbobonc. He is what they call a Soltair, a wandering healer. They travel the world, often alone, using the gifts of Zodal to bring mercy and healing to those in need. They are, in essence, outside the orthodox hierarchy. Wherever there is a church, as in Verbobonc, they rank the same as any priest and follow the orders of local superiors. However, they are not obligated to stay if they disagree and when on their own answer only to Zodal.

"Tell me then lad...who is Zodal's high priest here in Verbobonc? How can I reach him? Please, this is very important!"

When finally Cord's discussion with the young priest ends, he will once again warn him to speak to noone of their discussion. Cord will try to hide his growing anxiety from Warren and will find an excuse to leave him as soon as they go back to the city so that he can talk about these news with the rest of the party and Publius. He tells Warren that he wants to find out wether there are any news concerning the murderer (or something) but that he will return to Zodal's church as soon as possible for his guard duty.

You find out that the head of the Church of Zodal is Patriarch Marlex. Then, getting the young priest's word that he will say nothing, you wait for Friar Warren to finish. Together, you return to town, without much conversation.

************

Meanwhile, Kagan returned to the Silver Consortium, intent upon discovering for himself if his hunch were correct. After a heated argument with a couple of the attendants, he finally gained another meeting with Master Gedrin. The wizard frowned a bit at Kagans so quick return, and listened as he explained what had occurred. "Ah," replied the sage, "so thats what the spirits meant by sleeping ones, the dead guards. They hoped you would spare them from their fate, walking limbo with sightless eyes." Shaking his head slightly, he sighed, "if spirits would be less cryptic, much more could be gained through such communions, do you not think? But, alas, such is their etheral nature, I imagine."

Returning to the business at hand, Master Gedrin took the piece of torn fabric. He then left Kagan alone for about an hour as he retired to another room to examine it. When he returned, he handed the piece back to Kagan, explaining that there was, indeed, some residual magical properties imbued in the cloth. "Most is lost with such and rending, however, to those with the knowledge of the craft, thehow does one say?the footprints

still remain, if for only a short while. In another hour even I would have found nothing."

He couldnt answer exactly what sort of magic the cloth had held, but Kagan was content with his findings nonetheless. After expressing his gratitude to Master Gedrin, he left the Silver Consortium to find his companions.

***********

The rest returned to Tobys house, anxious for the boys safety. They found him safe and well, though he yet seemed unable to speak. They helped with some of the daily chores, and even made a trip to the market to buy food. There, they ran into Kagan, just leaving the Silver Consortium.

With Kagan, Graeneth, Jeremy, Harlan, and Kepe all together, Floyd decides to ask everyone's opinion on what to do next. Given Kagan's discoveries concerning the Friars magical clothing he suggests. "The Friar is still our prime suspect. Our questioning proved fruitless because of his magical protection. So with that in mind do we lay the same trap tonight at Toby's house?"

"You'd be better at explaining your findings regarding the priest," Dayte said to Jeremy. "Other than that, I have little else to add. If his magics against detection of lies are short-term, then they should wear off. Perhaps, to prevent his anticipation of questioning, someone should ask him questions at a regular interval - say every hour. That way if he has the ability to cloak untruths, he will soon use it up. I definintely think there is something wrong with that priest - what it is, I have no idea."

"Is someone researching the meaning of the boy's memories - what significance do the priest's robes have? It would help for us to even know who our enemy is."

Returning to Toby’s, you see Publius standing on the porch. He’s pacing back and forth, unaware of your approach, one hand stroking his chin contemplatively. Seeing you, he turns, almost seeming to sag under some unseen pressure. As you walk up to the house, he sighs audibly.

"There’s been another murder. The girl from the temple, Miriam, about an hour ago. Her body was found in an ally, near the market." Taking a deep breath, he continued quietly. "There wasn’t much left. Whoever…whatever did it…" Publius just left the sentence unfinished, the look in his eyes telling all you needed to know.

As Floyd approached Toby's house his concern grew. Seeing Publius pacing back and forth didn't help. But his concern for Toby, although unwarranted soon turned to disgust as Miriam's murder was revealed. Floyd's thoughts immediately turned to Cord. "I know I have not known Cord for very long, but it is obvious he has taken a fancy to this Miriam. I think we should be careful how we break this news to him. He does seem to have a bit of a temper and we wouldn't want him to do anything rash."

Nodding in agreement with Jeremy about re-setting the trap, Floyd adds. "I think we should keep Cord away from Toby's and in the dark about Miriam's murder until the morning. Although if the Friar is the murderer, Cord must be in great danger being alone with him right now."

"I have little to add, my friends," said the woodsman. "I am still wrapping my thoughts about this terrible business and I seem to be coming up with more questions than answers. Still, I feel we are neglecting the borader question of 'who' is behind these incidents - it would seem to be a cult or sect of some sort, and if so, there lies their weakness."

"No group can form, especially for such a dark purpose, without leaving a trace. If we knew who they are, and we already know something of their ritual dress and habits, we would be better set to find them. I know little of spiritual matters outwith my home, perhasp one of you would be better to investigate. For now I am happy to go along with your plan of a re-run..."

Publius looks over towards Toby's house, nodding in agreement. "I think we should try again, but I'm worried. Why kill the girl? And who killed her? I was sure the Friar was our killer, but now, how could that be so? She was killed long after the Friar had left."

Kagan stepped back stunned at the news that Miriam was dead. It seemed he had just warned Cord to watch out for her, but Kagan never dreamed that it would happen so quickly. A red rage gripped him as he reached for his oaken cudgel and turned to head back thru town. As Kagan walked off he snarled back at Publius, " Just because he didnt do it doesnt mean he doesnt know about it. And I will be damned if he will ever do it again! We have discussed this matter to death and I for one say that there are other ways to drag answers from this dog!" Kagan storms off with muttered curses and a grim stride to his step.

Floyd called out to Kagan as he stormed off. "Wait a moment, think your actions through. Using that cudgel of yours to beat an answer out of the Friar might not work. If we are faced with a cult as we suspect, the Friar might be happy to die before he gives up the murderer. Let us try the trap again tonight. If that doesn't work then you can use that cudgel to persuade the Friar to talk."

Turning to Publius Floyd added. "It might be a good idea to keep the news of Miriam's death from Cord until the morning. If you could have Cord intercepted at the city gate on his return. And find a way to keep him busy until the trap has had another chance to work."

Kagan ignores Floyd and continues angrily upon his way. But as Floyd's words sank in he came to walk slower and slower. His rage drained away to be replaced with some rational thought. The were very few people in this town aware of this cult to any extent, and one such person was Canon Helver. Perhaps a long talk with him would help reveal some clues as to what was going on in Verbobonc. Kagan turned towards the church and headed toward some answers he hoped.

"Almost everyone connected to this case have been killed, one by one, "Graeneth brooded, still disturbed that he picked up no aura from the Friar earlier, "even

the guards and Miriam. That still leaves Toby and his mother, and all of us, including Cord, Publius and maybe even the Canon. We are safe because we have stuck together so far, but Cord is out there, and Kagan has stormed off." "I'm agreeable to laying in wait again tonight." Something seemed to occur to the paladin, and he looked puzzled for a moment. "Is it not true that both Cord and Kagan have reacted angrily and emotionally when confronting the Friar? I wonder if there are repercussions to that."

Kep'e had drawn his saber partly out of its scabbard. A strange feeling had come over him. Out on the plains he had never felt this, but here in the southlands, among these crowded huts of wood and stone, this feeling had begun to appear. He wanted to lash out, but here it seemed even ones enemies were of the same tribe and the judgement of an eldar was not the law as it was among his own kind. This gold shaman, on the plains he would have been bound before the wind, left to face a trial against nature and there the truth would have been known. Yet here he is freed and let to wander, and now another is dead.

This feeling which seemed to be part of the Southern lands was frustration, and Kep'e could see that it struck out at all those around him as well.

With Kagan storming off, the rest of you wonder what to do next. Publius agrees that lying in wait again for the killer is not a bad idea. Further, he will send guards to fetch Cord, and keep an eye on the "good friar." As you're ready to part, a servant of the viscount hurries up to Publius. Apparently, the Viscount has requested his presence. Turning to you, he says he'll return to Toby's afterwards. In the meantime, prepare for tonight. Having done all possible to lure the killer into thinking this is his last chance to kill the boy before he tells his story, he believes the plan is bound to succeed. He then turns and follows the Viscount's servant down the street and around the corner.

The rest of you return to Toby's. [ooc: if you have anything you want to do before you get

there, let me know.] There you wait the next couple hours until nightfall, when two guards arrive with Cord in tow. They left three to "guard" the friar while these two relieve the those on duty at the house.

Cord nods to the escorting guards a "thanks", then turns to the rest of the group and in a serious tone, "Greetings friends...how did you fare with your investigations? I hope you have met with the same success as i have!"

"As you all know i was escorting Warren to his daily business around town this day...what i found out is that Kagan's hunch - by the way, where is he? - was quite correct! I can't tell for certain that Warren is the man we're after, but i *can* say is that he has something to hide...something concerning his actions in Dyvers..."

"During the questioning Friar Warren was asked wether he passed by Dyvers before coming here, right? And he said that he didn't...now, why would take such precautions as magical protection from mind scrying if he were to make such a blunt mistake is out of my comprehension, yet he did...i was talking to a young priest of Zodal, about the church here in Verbobonc, and i thought to ask him this very question, that is if he knew of a priest who came here from Dyvers and do you know what he replied? "Other than Friar Warren?"...

"The head of Zodal's church here in Verbobonc is Patriarch Marlex. I would suggest that as soon as we make a few discrete question as to if he's still conducting ceremonies as usual, we consult him on the matter and then maybe...force the truth out of Warren's lips..."

"Tell me though...what news do you have?"

Hearing Cord ask of what news they have, sends a chill down Jeremy's spine,, which he is unable to hide. Standing up he walks over to Toby to check on the lad and wonders to himself how Cord will react to the death of Miriam and to his friends hiding that fact from him. Turning back to the group he starts thinking out loud where all can hear him, "The fact that the Friar has obviously lied about going to Dyvers, and he had to know that we would find out about it........He is either much more powerful than we judged him to be or he is just a pawn in this whole thing as are we. Anyone with the ability to pull off these crimes and leave no clue behind has got to be of gifted intelligence, yet to slip up over a little lie, under some not so harsh questioning? There is some one pulling his strings, that I feel pretty sure about." Realizing he was speaking out loud, Jeremy stops and takes a seat by the table, where he continues to mumble about "pawns" and "Genius" and "Must think we are stupid" and "We'll show him"....

At Cord's arrival at Toby's, Floyd is relieved to see him safe. "I'm glad to see you have returned to us safely Cord. We shall make a visit to the Friar first thing in the morning. After we see what tonight brings."

Addressing the rest of the group Floyd suggests. "I think we should prepare our ambush." Turning to Jeremy Floyd asked. "Are you going to hide Toby and his mother in the same manner as last night. I will stay in Toby's room invisible, ready to spring the trap. What do the rest of you intend doing?"

"A positive lead at last," Dayte said. He had been stumoed by the situation at hand, and thought that htings were going no better than the man who in desperation fumbles around for purchase on a wet rockface. Now they had a foothold, and soon, hopefully, some handholds too.

"To the Patriarch then - once this story is confirmed we can go at the Friar with renewed vigour, and have justification to use open and mroe direct magics to dispel his ability to conceal his deceit."

Dayte felt much better now, hopeful that some of the darkness they floundered in would soon be a shade brighter.

"Glad to be back my friend! But please, fill me in concerning tonight's actions! What trap have we laid and what is my role in it?"

A nagging doubt about Cord begins to surface. Floyd realises he spent most of the day with their main suspect, the Friar. The fact that Cord returned unharmed, wouldn't mean that some sort of magic had not been used on him. After all the cult had proven devious and cunning opponents up to now.

Floyd then answers Cord, a little unsure how far to trust him. "Having informed the Friar about Toby's recovery. We plan to lay in wait for the killer, to see if he attempts to silence Toby tonight. As for your part, perhaps you could stay with the main party to cut off the killers retreat should he step into our trap. Or do you have another suggestion?"

"Nope, nothing from my part." replied Cord. "..ok then, let's take positions...i'm pretty good with the bow and my elven heritage has granted my excellent nightvision. I think

i should be posted on high ground, so that we take best advantage of my talents..though if i might add, the killers have seen through our trap once and i sincerely doubt if a similar one would work..."

"I'm concerned about Kagan as well. I shouldn't worry," Graeneth wondered, "but alone we might be in danger."

*********

Leaving the others, Kagan returns without delay to the church. There, you request another meeting with Canon Helver. You learn that the Canon has been called away to the Viscount's Citadel, where he is in a meeting with the Viscount, the Bishop of Trithereon, and the Patriarch of Rao. You stand mute, wondering if a meeting with such important religious leaders has anything to do with these murders.

It was well into the night when Canon Helver returned to the church. Impatient with the manner in which things had been going, Kagan had waited by the door to ensure he would see him. The priest seemed quite tired when he entered, and Kagan quickly recognized the look of concern on his face. After a quick greeting, the Canon requested that Kagan join him in prayer in the chapel. The tidings must have been grim indeed, and Kagan followed without question.

The customarily plain and unadorned chapel instantly brough Kagan at ease, and he settled in next to Canon Helver as the two knelt in silent prayer. Kagan prayed his heart out, asking for guidance, patience, even assisstance in the finding of this killer. Eventually, after what seemed an hour of silent prayer, he looked over to Canon Helver who had not visibly moved the whole time. Respectfully, Kagan waited for his superior to finish, pondering what could have shaken the man so much. After nearly another hour, the Canon finally completed his prayer, looking up to the ceiling with tired, pleading eyes. With an audible sigh, he stood up, glancing at Kagan as he followed him out of the chapel and to his office.

There, Canon Helver explained the cause of his distress. A bandit was caught that morning, he told Kagan, slain in the market by a Gnarley Forest Ranger. A rather unimportant event, or so it seemed. However, what the guards found on the man had shocked even the Viscount. The man had worn what seemed an ordinary cloak of black cloth, nothing to be noticed. One of the watchmen removed the garment, thinking to sell it for a few coins when he noticed a strange design sewed on the inside, a large yellow eye, surrounded by fire. The cloak had been worn inside out to hide the design, and the watchman thought it may be important so he brought it to Publius. Recognizing it, Publius quickly brought it to the Viscount who immediately summoned the heads of the most important churches to him. "You see," said Canon Helver, grimly locking his gaze on Kagan, "the flaming eye was the symbol of the Demon Queen of Fungus and her Elemental Cult."

*********

The group settled into their positions again, hoping that this time they would be able to draw the killer to Toby’s house. With the absence of Kagan, the plan was altered a bit. Jeremy again used his magical portal to enter the next house, bringing the vacant boy with him. They would wait there, with Darenna to guard them just in case, while the rest remained in the house. Floyd climbed the stairs, slipping into the dark shadows of the corner. Graeneth, Cord, and Dayte took positions around the room, where they were hidden from site and could quickly move to block the front and rear exits. Harlan awaited upstairs, not sure of his role, but ready to render whatever assistance he could. Finally, Kep’e remained outside. With his excellent outdoors skills, he could hide amidst the foliage, ready to spring on the killer or track him if he again escaped. Publius then set a couple of guards before making his way back to the Constabulary. For him, the hardest part of the evening was leaving it to these "adventurers." Still, they had more than proven their determination. Hopefully, their ability would be equally great.

The night passed uneventfully, bringing thoughts of the previous evening’s futility. All was quiet within Toby’s house, but, unknown to the brave heroes, the danger would come from next door. Just as they had sought to protect Toby by moving him there, so too did the killer think to bypass his guards by entering through the neighboring house. Toby and his mother slept next to Jeremy, who had by now dozed off himself leaving only Darenna to look after them. She sat next to the wall, paying more attention to sounds from next door than to her immediate surroundings. She leaned towards the wall, placing her ear to it, but gave up on hearing anything from the other side. With a sigh, she leaned back, turning to glance at Toby’s sleeping form. As she did so, heard a creek from upstairs. The family which lived within had been moved out by Publius, so she knew there should be nobody above. Carefully unsheathing her sword she silently moved over to Jeremy, giving him a light shove. As he awoke, she place a finger to her lips to quiet him, then pointed upstairs. As Jeremy glanced up the stairs, he heard another board groan under someone’s stealthy step.