We learned that her name was Shyeela, and while she didn’t know where Shealis was, she was familiar with the case and was interested in what we wanted with the case.
After I finished searching the bodies, I searched Shyeela, finding nothing of interest beyond a flask of liquor and pouch of gold, both of which I returned.
Once we explained that we were opposed to the Ragesians and planned on taking the case to Lyceum, she told us the case was hidden among firewood. Searching through the wood, I retrieved a thick steel case etched with swirling patterns.
We freed Shyeela and returned to the safe house in the temple, and told Torrent we had the case. She told us, “We need to step things up. The council has agreed to the Ragesians’ demands. They’re going to let in the inquisitors. They’re sealing off the city. We have to get out and we have to move fast!”
When we asked how we could get out of the city, she said, “One city councilman may be sympathetic to our cause, and help us get out.” She explained that we should seek councilman Erdan Menash’s house one district west of Summer’s Bluff and the 90-foot statue of Emperor Coaltongue.
After a short rest, we headed out. Torrent said she would meet us there.
On the way, we saw two flying shapes—one with feathered wings, the other with bat wings—cross paths overhead, and a loud crack sounded out. The bat-winged shape spiraled out of control and crashed onto the roof of a building further down the street with a death groan. A moment later, the shattered lance of a Gate Pass griffon rider fell out of the sky, its tip having snapped off in the neck of the Ragesian wyvern.
The building atop which the wyvern crashed was directly along the path to the councilman’s house. As we approached, we saw a rope tossed down from the roof of the building into the street.
The wyvern appeared dead, a broken lance tip driven into its throat. We followed the rider’s tracks through the snow to the kicked open door of a house. Inside we found a pair of adults, murdered by someone wielding an axe. A young boy was gagged, but still alive, unconscious in the corner.
Ulfgar circled the house, Cyrus ran upstairs, Eyvindir examined the boy, and I rushed through the room on the first floor, while Xireas stood by the entrance.
“I found him,” I yelled, spotting the Ragesian in the first room. We traded blows and he hit me hard. As my companion joined the fray, he jumped out of the window. At the same time, I felt something unseen tugging on my pack.
Ulfgar, Cyrus, and Eyvindir chased the Ragesian while I struggled to rid myself of an invisible assailant and secure the case. Soon, Cyrus ran back in and tossed his handaxe and whatever the creature was, apparently a tiny flying creature, which was suddenly gone with pop. They had killed the Ragesian veteran, Flaganus Mortus.
We brought the child to the safety of a neighbor (discovering that the child was Eddie, son of Philip and Mary Murphy) and continued on our way to Erdan Menash’s house.
Eventually we arrived at a three-story building inside a low iron fence. We entered and found two guards in vivid green, yellow, and purple. The guards offered to let us stay inside to wait until Erdan returned.
The inside was full of bizarre creations, with exotic weapons of all sorts adorning the walls—whips, urgroshes, double axes, double swords, a monk weapon, a heavy crossbow designed to look like a porcupine—all made more exotic by red and yellow frog pommels, or bunny-shaped striking heads.
When Erdan returned, he was noticeably frustrated, complaining in a high-pitched, wheezing voice about the morons in charge of the city allowing the inquisitors in.
Once Eyvindir explained our situation, Erdan offered up his exotic weapons (I took the porcupine shaped heavy crossbow) and wrote us a note asking Captain Herreman, who runs a small cavalry detachment that regularly patrols the southern border, to take us along on his patrol to the south. He fitted us each with a riding horse and we were on our way.
A quarter-mile from the southern exit gate, we found Herreman’s barracks consisting of several three-story buildings with attached stables, housing a hundred soldiers.
Captain Herreman was a grim, middle aged half-orc with a thick beard and big tusks. Upon receiving the letter from Menash, he outfitted us with studded leather armor and military saddles for our horses that let us pass as members of his unit.
Near sunset, when a single bell rang from the west of the city, Herreman guessed that it meant the inquisitors had been let into the city. He gathered six guards and we rode to the gate.
Once outside the gates, Herreman said going any further at night was dangerous, and directed us to a safe camping spot two miles from the city, an abandoned tower that was once a watchpost for the city.
As soon as we were out of sight of the gate I changed into my chain mail, and we took a little-traveled road south from the city toward the border of the Innenotdar Fire Forest, thirty miles away.
It was twilight when we arrived at the watchpost. A horse was tied up outside the tower. Inside we found Torrent, who was glad to see us. After catching up, we rested for the night.
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