HeroesofChaos/ChapterTwoB
The infiltration into the warehouse was essentially split into two groups, those who would assault the roof, and those who would assault the ground floor. The strung-out Chahailis, Kaiju, and Jasala would take to the roof. Mako, Jannarin, and Huyla would sneak in through one of the back doors of the place.
- Group One: It didn't take long for Mako and his group to sneak in. The warehouse had a large number of guards in it, but they were mostly common thugs and relatively easily avoided. As they began to case the place, they soon discovered the warehouse's dark secret. In the flooded in basement of the place, where the only light was from the glittering castemarks of the Heroes they found something horrible waiting. The water was foul and brackish and came up to their chests, but what was most foul were the dozens upon dozens of large cages hanging from the ceiling like birdcages. Only there weren't any birds inside them, but humans. Streetwalkers, carpenters, merchants, children, parents, sailors, soldiers, all walks of life were being kept in these cages. They all had the look of desperate starvation intermingled with animal fear that all in such a hellish place would have. Jannarin almost vomited from some of their horrible conditions. One by one, louder and louder, they began to beg for help, for a few bread crumbs, for death, for release, for anything at all. Soon, it was as if a dam had burst and the cacophony of pleas had drawn the attention of one of the patrols. Swiftly submerging themselves in the black water to hide, they listened as the thugs sloshed into the mess to see what was going on. However, the thugs weren't leaving the water quick enough and Jannarin couldn't hold her breath forever. Finally she couldn't go on and burst forth from the slimy muck to gasp loudly for air. Torches turn immediately on her, only to be snuffed out immediately by a vengeful Mako, who had swam around behind them and cut their legs out from underneath them with his daiklave. The Heroes moved swiftly out of the basement, but had every intention of coming back later and freeing every man, woman, and child.
- Group Two: It took even less time for Chahailis and her group to infiltrate the roof, six stories up. It was unguarded and they quickly entered into the top floor, where they began combing the place. Room after room they searched for clue but found naught but count mundane stored items. Then they stumbled across the veritable motherlode. In one dark storage room much like any other, which they almost passed up, Kaiju saw a faint glimmer and heard a low moan. Investigating further, Kaiju and the others quickly found, resting on a tressel table, artifacts. Soulsteel artifacts. A reaver daiklave, a pair of hearthstone bracers, and a Dragon Tear Tiara were found, all of them Kaiju noticed, bore the sigil of the Lover Clad in Raiment of Tears on them. What sort of tangled web of alliances had the Heroes stumbled upon?
Eventually the two group met up on the third floor, which was really just the upper part of floors one and two, as the first three floors were one big open area like one would find in any warehouse. It seems floors four through six were for smaller storage. The one place that nobody had investigated yet was what appeared to be a large office of some sort in the corner of the third floor, accessible only by steps. As Kaiju burst in through the door, he very nearly fell 3 stories downward. The so-called corner office actually opened up into a large room the size of a large gymnasium, it's floor covered in straw. There was a door on the other end of the room and stairs leading down from the entrance to the ground floor. Oh, and there were two tyrant lizards sleeping right in the way of the other door.
Yes. Two tyrant lizards. Both of them had large golden collars on, one inscribed with His, one inscribed with Hers.
Yes. Two tyrant lizards named His and Hers.
This gave the Heroes a bit of a pause. It was too risky to try and fight the bastards, and besides, there was too much chance that if Franco were on the other side he'd spook from the noise and book. So stealth once more was the only answer. Which was fine for those with superhuman agility and charms or the power to shapeshift, such as Jasala Chahailis and Mako. Jannarin however had none of those. And so it was with great daring, and skill, that Kaiju scooped her up and leapt high over head, landing as quietly as he could on the other side of the lizards, thankfully not waking the loudly snoring mega-reptiles. Evidently, Huyla pointed out, Ses was fond of his kind guarding his possessions. Worse though, Huyla was looking at the snoozing lizards and it was clear she was forming a plan of some sort...
Meanwhile, Chahailis and the others were opening the door and entering into what looked like a large, well appointed office. A fat man with his feet up on his desk was clinking coins and giggling like an idiot to himself. As the Heroes all stepped in, the man, Franco, not even paying attention spoke...
"Not now, I say! I don't want to deal with another goddamn dead slave until I'm done counting my mo..." and that's when he saw the looks on his assailants faces. You've never seen a fat man move so fast. In a burst of energy given out of panic, he sent his stacks of silver coins flying and then bolted for a nearby window. He was in the process of trying to fit his fat ass through the much too small window when Mako pulled him out and demanded to know what the hell he was thinking trying to fit through that. The man squirmed and squealed like a girl until a dagger was up against his throat. And then he saw, and recognized, Huyla. His next words were "I'll talk...".
From Franco the Heroes were able to glean the following information:
- Belasco was an immensely powerful Scavenger Lord with strong ties with the Guild and who valued his privacy intensely.
- Belasco and Ses had an arrangement. Ses would kidnap and provide Belasco with 100 slaves every three months. In exchange, Ses would be rewarded with artifacts of incredible power. Soulsteel artifacts. This arrangement had been in place and working successfully for almost 3 years.
- Belasco lived in his secluded Bastion estate, a mansion called Cinderfell well within that neighborhoods walls.
When asked about the soulsteel artifacts, all Franco could supply was his belief that Belasco was a tool of the Deathlords, in league with the dreaded Abyssal Anathema. He had seen the man once, and was terrified of him, almost more than he was terrified of Ophilis Ses.
With that, Huyla requested that she be given Franco that he might face justice. The Heroes had learned what they needed to know, and so it was allowed. That was when they discovered Huyla's little plan for the lizards.
Franco was knocked out, and each of his legs tied to the tail of one of the sleeping lizards. A fire was lit in the straw beneath the beasts. Enough said.
As the enraged dinosaurs broke through the warehouse wall, into the warehouse proper, and out the main door, killing anything that got in their way, the Heroes of Chaos and Huyla made their way back into the basement and freed those slaves who had a chance to live and gave sweet mercy to those too far gone. It was a long, painful night. Especially for the Hooded Executioners dispatched to deal with a pair of rampaging tyrant lizards with human remains tied to their tails wreaking havoc in the Nighthammer district.
The Heroes checked into their rooms and collapsed into bed, exhausted, especially Chahailis who had long since crashed down from her high. They awoke the next evening, and as they read their copies of the Nexus dispatch and it's amusing (to them) story of last nights fiasco, they began to plan what was to happen next. They had an address for this monster Belasco. But it was no easy address to reach. The neighborhood of Bastion is walled off from the rest of Nexus, and its streets much more heavily patrolled. After all, with the exception of the Imperial Manse, there is probably nowhere else in Creation with such a focussed number of movers and shakers than Bastion, and they ALL value their security and privacy. Finally, it was decided Kaiju and Mako, in the form of seagulls, would case the joint and scout it out. Meanwhile, Chahailis, when she finally awoke, Jasala, and Jannarin would make sure the Mya's Flowing Mane and it's crew of Kaiju's tribemates was still where and how it should be.
As the boat was ok, we'll merely cover the events of Mako and Kaiju's scouting...
They found the place easy enough. As it's moniker implied, Cinderfell was the color of blackened ash, and it's vast palatial manor stretched on for a good square mile. It was very Gothic in appearance, with lots of arches, flying buttresses, and yes, even gargoyles. And each and every window was carved from stained glass depicting all manner of bloody deeds. Charming place really.
It was also totally unguarded. The sworn brothers flew over the place for a good half an hour and found not one single sign of life in the entire place. No guards patrolling the perimeter, no servants and slaves doing the upkeep, and no self-important visitors and residents heading in and out. Not a living soul to be found. Angry and now emboldened, Kaiju landed on the main terrace that overlooked the front door and then, in true back-handed fashion, shattered the stained glass window and walked into what appeared to be a well-appointed sitting room. Mako quickly joined his brother and then they broke up and started to search the 3-story manor high and low. What they found disturbed them. No life was found of course, but neither did the place look abandoned. In fact, it looked meticulously well-kept. It was practically sterile. As an attempt to draw Belasco's attention, and hearing his sister's voice in the back of his mind again, Kaiju began running his claws along a line of paintings. Mako also took to this idea and they went to work destroying the place systematically. In the dining hall, where all the places at the table had been set, Mako started a healthy bonfire. Nobody came. Finally, the two angry brothers left (although Mako did stop by the library and help himself to a gorgeous black and white jade Gateway set and some books outlining Gateway strategy, which he carried in a carrying case in seagull form).
Saddened, discouraged, and disheartened they returned to their ship, where Chahailis suggested it was time to leave. She wanted nothing to do with Ophilis Ses, whom Huylas said was also Exalted, and nothing more to do with Nexus. Jasala and Jannarin assented to this as well. Mako was torn but Kaiju wouldn't budge. As an argument threatened to ensue, a familiar voice issued from nearby the ship. Huyla came forward to claim that voice. She had followed them to the ship and wanted to pay the Heroes back for their help with the warehouse the night before. When they mentioned the lack of leads at the manor, she cocked her head and suggested that perhaps their was a hidden passage or something there, some secret lair underneath, as if the manor itself were merely a front. Thanks to a secret tunnel between Ses' warehouse, it would be possible for everyone to sneak into Cinderfell estate and inspect things more thoroughly. And so it was decided to give the place one last search.
There would come a time, Kaiju would learn, when the Heroes of Chaos would sincerely dread that decision, but there was no way for them to predict the horror...
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