torsdag 15. september 2016

Further investigations and a breakthrough

After the tumultuous events of the day, I suddenly recall that we all but forgot to check Rigo for marks of Chaos! Granted, it's not very likely given the source of the accusations, but then again Rigo has been the center of some weird events....but thank Sigmar, there is no mark on his body.

Wary of being attacked by roving bands of stevedores (that's a first!), we pay one of the busboys to fetch the street urchins to the inn. After half an hour's time, they arrive. They've kept Taugen's house under surveillance, and as suspected [etter å ha funnet lappen på Steinhager sitt kontor om at den indre sirkelen skulle møtes etter solnedgang på spillinga før] a lot of "rich people" and their bodyguards met there yesterday, seven in all.

A messenger boy arrives at the inn and presents a letter from one Friedrich Magrius, who bids us meet him at the Golden Trout, the inn of the wealthy in town. After some mucking about we bring one of the urchins with us so he can point out whether Magrius is part of this Inner Circle, i.e. Chaos filth that must be purged. I'm skeptical about secret societies in general, a belief that has only been strengthened by this experience. I will suggest as prudent policy to my Order that all secret societies be treated as Chaos worshippers unless evidence says otherwise. Some innocents may be wrongfully targeted, but they will find their reward in the afterlife anyway so I see no problems.

---- Relevant info fra to spillinger før ----
The circle in the middle of the church/demon room was a star with a goat's head, the symbol of the Ordo Septinarus. Reputedly a secret-ish society local to Bögenhafen with a reputation for doing Good Things around town.
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When we arrive at the Golden Trout, the kid signals that Magrius is indeed part of the inner circle who met at Taugen's house yesterday. The Chaos fiend tries to play innocent and convince us to leave them alone, bribing us with good food and wine (I obviously decline). After a while my patience runs out, and I slam the letter we found at Steinhager's office on the table, declaring him a servant of Chaos. His face contorts into a mask of fear and then hatred, before he yells for the guards. I would prefer to smash his ugly countenance in with my hammer there and then but recognize the dangers of doing so.

An unlikely partnership

After Yavandir fruitlessly follows Magrius to the town hall, we decide to follow the trail indicating an exit in the sewers from a thieves' guild. Sure enough, the inn topside (did I mention deep dwellers are surprisingly useful?) proves to be the home of some fairly shady characters - and the town guards. After a...misunderstanding nearly results in us and the guild going at each other, the local crime lord finds a cooperation more fruitful, given that the Ordo Septinarus' success might end up in the town being swallowed. We stay in the back room while they dispatch agents to watch Taugen's various warehouses.

After a while, we get word from the street kids who come to meet us. Apparently they've seen an actual demon through the window of Taugen's place! I see no reason to not believe them. A frontal assault is unfortunately out of the question, as Rigo "gently" reminds me. Hrmphf.

We hear that the magister we met earlier has fallen prey to an illness very reminiscent of the one that ended Carl Taugen's life. We go to his house, and this is indeed the case. Neither me nor Yavandir are able to do anything for him. We talk to Helmut Steinhager, the scorned brother. He is eager to take down his brother, but he proves of little practical value to us. The same goes for the almost broke merchant Rügerbroder. Taugen apparently knows everything and is able to send messages across long distances at instant speeds. Further evidence of Chaos.

At night we decide to check out the cellar of the Golden Trout. The guild has a backdoor entrance through the sewers. Fruitless. Sigmar! Let us fight Chaos head on instead of this useless mucking about!!


Trouble at the waterfront

When we return, one of the agents of the guild hasn't reported back. We decide to check out the warehouses she was supposed to cover. After a while, we find the place where she probably went missing. There are stevedores guarding the place outside. Thanks for the heads up, stupid Chaos agents! Yavandir climbs up to the top floor and after a while (and barely staying out of the way of a guard patrol) he finds a way in. Sure enough, there's another pentagram/star on the floor very similar to the one we destroyed in the sewers. 5-6 stevedores are inside, and the still living body of what we assume is the thief is in one corner.

Outside, the source of Yavandir's intense sense of dread finally reveals itself as the servant of Taugen we've seen before. He directs the guard patrol in our direction, we run away. Then he suddenly materializes from thin air inside the warehouse and informs the stevedores that there are "rats in the ceiling". Curses!

Enough with this - we smash the doors of the warehouse and storm inside. I give the stevedores one chance to lay down their arms, but they foolishly refuse. After a short battle we've slaughtered most of the lowly Chaos servants. We block the door so the guards can't enter, smash the star, exit through the roof and set the building on fire. Hurray, finally some action and some heads severed from the bodies of our enemies! Pray this trend continues!

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