The Skinsaw Murders

After a short walk through the square to clear their heads, Yola and Sasha head back to the garrison jail to question Ven Vinder.  Hemlock meets them on the way in, saying, "oh you're back.  If you want to question Ven you'd best hurry, I just gave Vachedi the ok to release him - his wife corroborated his story.  He was home all night.  We also have probably a dozen or so folks that will vouch for seeing him working at his general store the day the three con men from Magnimar were killed.  There's no way he's our man."

In the face of such certainty, the two women decide instead to meet up with Malvick and compare notes.  Over lunch at the Rusty Dragon, Malvick relates what he learned at the mill, while Sasha goes over their interview with Ibor Thorn.

"Well, there's only one lead we haven't followed up on today," says Malvick.  "I guess we should go back and talk with Sevilla again.  Maybe he's recovered from his fever enough to give us some useful information - he's as close as we have to an eye witness after all."

So the three head back to the garrison again and down to the jail.  Ibor Thorn has also been released.  The only remaining occupant is the sickly Grayst Sevilla, still lying glassy eyed on the floor.

"Bah, this is ridiculous!"  Sasha snorts.  "How do we know he's not faking this?"  Sasha motions to Vachedi, "Open the door.  This guy and I are going to have a talk."

Vachedi looks skeptical.  "You sure?  He's not right, that one."

"He's wearing a straight jackt.  I'll be fine, just open the door."

The big Shoanti shrugs and complies. Sasha enter the cell, Yola moving in protectively behind her, while Malvick watches from the doorway.  Sasha wrinkles her nose at the rotten smell coming from the man, but kneels down beside him and jabs at him with a finger.  "Hey, hey, anybody home?"

Sevilla moans and rolls over to look up at her.  He seems to have trouble focusing, but struggles to his knees.  "There, that's better."  Sahs says, smiling.  "Now my name is Sasha.  I know you've been through a lot, but my friends and I just want to ask..."

Sevilla makes a sharp intake of suprise and his eyes lock onto Sasha's intently.  "Sasha!"  he whispers. "He said you would visit me.  His Lordship.  The one who unmade me so.  He has a place for you.  A precious place.  I'm so jealous!  He has a message for you.  He made me remember it.  I hope I haven't forgotten.  The master wouldn't approve if I forgot.  Let me see...let...me...see..."

Sasha rises to her feet.  "He said if you came to his Misgivings," Sevilla hissed, looking up at her, "that if you joined the pack, he would stop his harvest in your honour!"  His message delivered, he collapses back to the floor with a low moan.

Appalled, Sasha turns to her friends, her face a mixture of shock and anger.  Before anyone can speak, an inhuman shriek issues from Grayst, and the man launches to his feet, as if propelled by some otherworldy force.  His tongue lolls from his open mouth - too long, and his eyes are nothing but white staring orbs.

Yola yells out a warning, grabbing for her weapon as Sevilla tears free from his straight jacket and lunges at Sasha's back.

* * *

" And that's the extent of the murder we stumbled across in Magnimar. While it was rather disturbing I didn't think much of it, not exactly the first person to be murdered in the shadows of that district - BUT!"

Li Kao jostled his gourd about excitedly, refilling Mr. Quints clay cup with a splash of wine.

" You can imagine my profound furor when I heard that your small, honest village had suffered a similar event. Most mysterious, MOST mysterious..."

 

Quint accepts the refill and answers, "Yes, quite sad, young love cut down in its prime.  Never met that Harker fellow, but that Vinder girl  always seemed like a pleasant sort, helping her parents run the store and all - not like her sister, the little minx.  But you want to know about Thassilon yes?"

 

Quint takes a long sip from his cup as Li Kao nods.  "Much of the lore of that empire has been lost to time.  What we do know has been gathered from carvings from their many monuments that still dot the coutryside, or from the myths and traditions of the native Varisians and Shoanti.  What I can tell you is that it was a vast empire ruled by powerful wizards.  The sheer size of the monuments they left behind, like the Irespan bridge in Magnimar, or the Great Stairs that lead up to the Storval Plateau, testifies to their power, and the unatural way that they have resisted the march of time testifies to their skill at magic."

 

Quint grows more animated as he warms to his topic.  "Now, most of my colleages will tell you that the hieght of the empire was about 7000 years ago, but I believe it is even older - at least 10,000 years since its collapse!"

 

The old man gets up from the table to retrieve a large well worn journal from the shelf.  "This seven pointed star, did it look like this?"  He opens the jounal and on the page is sketched the exact symbol that Xer described seeing on Silas' chest.  Li Kao  nods and refills Quints cup again.  "I thought so!" The scholar continues exitedly.  "This is the Sihedron Rune - one of the most important symbols of ancient Thassilon.  It represented not only the seven virtues of rule that the empire was founded on, but also the seven schools of magic recognized by the empire.  But,"  Brodert notes with a smirk, "Much of what we understand about Thassilon indicates that its rulers were far from virtuous.  I believe that the the seven classic sins of today are a corruption of those original virtues of rule."

 

Quint closes the journal and leans back with a sigh.  "In any event, the Sihedron Rune was definitely a symbol of power."  He steeples his fingers and looks thoughtfully at Li Kao.  "The fact that our murderer used it might point to the fact that he is some sort of scholar."  As soon as the words leave his mouth, Quint looks alarmed and leans forward.  "Not that I had anything to do with it you understand!" 

 

* * *

 

Sasha wheels around just in time to be bowled over by the charging Sevilla-thing.  The two crash to the cell floor.  It's putrid breath makes her gag as she fends off its clawing grasp, its long tongue trailing spittle.  Then Yola is there.  A geat downward swing from her two bladed sword cleaves the thing's skull apart, spraying bloody filth across Sasha's face as it collapses lifeless on top of her. 

 

Malvick and Yola drag the corpse off Sasha, who bolts to her feet.  "That's it!"  she screams, "I am so done here!"  She storms past the others as she wipes blood and brains from her eyes, shaking visibly. 

 

Yola and Malvick stay at the garrison.  The local preist Father Zanthus is called in, who confirms that the body of Grayst Sevilla is undead, the the thug was perfectly human when Malvick brought him in.  After disposing of the body, the two head back to the Rusty Dragon.

 

There they find Sasha well into a second bottle of wine.  The three order some food, though none have much of an appetite.  At one point Sasha looks up as the tavern door opens.  "Xer!"  She charges up from the table and bounds on unsteady legs across the room to the short haired stranger who just entered.

 

“SASHA” screams Xer as she races towards her friend with arms wide open. She meets the other woman with an enthusiastic almost scandalouse looking kiss. “It has been so long since I last saw you what the hell are you doing in this part of the world?” She locks an arm around Sasha as she walks with her towards the table. “Before I forget Hemlock says he wants to meet with you and the others first light tomorrow. Probably partially my fault we ran into some old man raving like a loon about walking scarecrows.”

Xerlina waves the issue away with her other arm. “But back to the important stuff:  What has been going on with you? I am sure you have been working your way in and out of trouble as normal.  Let me tell you, some monks are not to be trusted.  The monastery sold me out, the buggers.”