A Perilous Request

After Gavril and Ciprian had followed Njano she motioned them to move a little further away from the group of Gnolls and her guards.

"Who did you say you were looking for?" she asked.

"We are on the trail of Count Lowls of Versex," Ciprian responded.

"Lowls, Lowls. This name has no meaning for me.  But you showed me another name,"

Ciprian again showed Njano the piece of paper with then name Biting Lash written on it.

"I invite you to come to my estate tomorrow morning where we shall discuss this out of shot of the ears here in the Auction yard," Njano suggested.

Ciprian and Gavril looked at each other and a silent assent was agreed, though with caution.

"We would be honored to meet you.  Can you give us information on where your estate is?" Ciprian queried.

Njano gave the pair directions to her estate in the foothills to the north of Okeno.  She then dismissed the pair.

While the pair was talking with Njano, the female human guard was staring intently at the four other party members, with apparent hatred in her eyes.  The Halfling directed his gaze at Ciprian and Gavril's backs.

As Ciprian retreated he excused himself as he moved past the Halfling the Gnolls and the dark armored woman guard.  As Ciprian moved to the rest of the party the woman glared him,  She narrowed her eyes and made a cutthroat motion as the group left.

"I will try and find a necklace for you," Ciprian taunted.

"I'll see you another time," she replied threateningly.

The party hurried their way out of the Laughing Fleshfair to the streets of Okeno once again.  They took a different route back to their inn, passing the Bank of Abadar and the Honeyed Palace on the opposite sides.  The group was nervous about being followed and took extra time watching all around themselves.  The still saw Gnolls walking completely freely pushing past others with disdain and apparent immunity.  No actual uniformed city guard was noted, but there seemed to be small patrols of humans who still deferred to the Gnolls.

The group passed through several different levels of neighborhoods, the nicest apparently north of the Laughing Dog.  At the inn the group took a meal and retreated to their rooms for rest and healing/restoration.  Ursina cast restoration on Armania to reduce her Night Terrors and on Erevel to reduce her Phobia of Oozes.  The Ursina took time to cast Sense Madness to check the Sanity level of each hero along with any given madness affecting them.

The night was spent without incident, no night terrors or other problems. After memorizing spells the party headed for the dining room for breakfast and then headed out to the estate of Njano. Entering a canyon along a river the group saw a palace is graced by spring water falling from high in the Stonespines. The water is used to great effect there, with a whole wing built above a lake.  At the door the party was met they are met and escorted to the Bathing Room by an angrily cordial bodyguard.  She again glared at Ciprian after she led them to the Bathing Room a high, open room with cloth screens swaying lazily in the breeze. Njano was in her bath when the group arrived. The princess was partly submerged in milk, attended to by a group of four slaves. These slaves offered her and the heroes dates and figs as they talk; one of them wafted large fans to cool her majesty.

Njano explained that the name Biting Lash might mean something to her if only she wasn’t so distracted. One of her beloved—a friend called Dahab—has been kidnapped. She has many rivals and is unsure who would do such a cruel thing to such a kind man, but those who have him have sent a part of him—his right ear—with an message saying that other parts would follow unless the princess met the kidnapper at a place called the Shipwreck at dawn, though the day is not specified. The note and ear appeared outside her home here yesterday. Naturally she does not wish to meet with this extortionist.

"How could we help you?" Ciprian piped up.

"If you find and retrieve Dahab alive, my distraction may abate enough to remember what Biting Lash means and where this figure might be found," Njano replied.

"Can we see this ear?  And the note," Gavril inquired.

"Certainly," Njano responds as she has the Halfling retrieve a box for her.  Inside was the ear and a folded piece of paper.

“Esteemed Princess, greetings from the unworthy. I am honored to bring your beloved serf to bosom as my guest, but his appetite is so great that unless I act, he’ll eat everything I have. I therefore return him to you piece by piece, part by part, unless you wish to discuss his fate at the Shipwreck at dawn.”

Ciprian noted the grammar used was peculiar, and it was highly likely the writer primarily communicates in Infernal.

"Is this language normal?" he asked.

"It seems a little unusual, but perhaps the kidnapper is trying to hide their identity," Njano responded.

"We will certainly do our best to find this Dahab and return him to you."

"With that assurance I will also add that Dahab acted as one of my spies and information brokers. He had contacts around and about Okeno, in particular at the Black Circus where he knew a beast tamer called Rahmir, and he frequented the domed temple of Gozreh, where he knew a builder called Azeem."

"Where is this place called the Shipwreck?" Gavril asked.

"It is along the waterfront south of the shipyards and entertainment area. It is a juddering mass of ship’s timbers that have been lashed together in a portion of the Ships’ Graveyard to form an open plaza. A series of towering houses, many of which are modified sterns from large ships, overlook the broken place."

Njano now indicated the meeting was over, dismissing the party, who were led out by the female bodyguard.  The group decided to head to the Shipwreck and scope out the place.  Gavril lamented not asking where the Black Circus was located.  Ciprian was concerned that the party was getting itself in over its head.  Anyone who would challenge Njano would be a very advanced enemy.

Before the group made their way to the Shipwreck, they saw flying creatures over buildings surrounding a square.  The creatures shot arrows at the party, followed by a heavy attack from another building.  Before they could react black tentacles began growing up from the street below their feet.  Only Gavril managed to avoid being grabbed by the tentacles and the damage from the tentacles.

Armania fired Starfall at the enemies but none of them fell prone or became blind.  She then dimension stepped away from the tentacles to a sheltered place behind a building.  Another flurry of arrows attacked the party from the flying creatures.  Ciprian identified the flying creatures as Erinyes, fallen angels with black smeared wings.  The creatures have damage reduction except for good, resistance to acid and shot on the run.  He then tried to identify the caster of the Black Tentacles.  This was a Handmaiden Devil.  He then grabbed Paullus, who was bleeding profusely, and dimension doored next to the archer on the top of building.

Gavril moved hasted close to the Handmaiden Devil.  The Black Tentacles then did more damage to Erevel and Ursina who were left in its grip.  The Devil, who had twin tentacles stretching from the crown of the fiends feminine head, while her lower body bloomed in a gown of writhing tendrils, moved to Gavril and attacked with its tentacles.  One tentacle landed and grappled Gavril and transferred him into her lower body’s nest of cage-like tendrils. 

Erevel tried to break out of the tentacles but failed while Ursina moved her hands around like a spell and disappeared from sight.  Paullus attacked the archer with his flaming sword, the archer dropped his bow and returned a rapier attack.

DM's Notes:  There was no new XP for the night.