After the party finishes getting reunited with Logan they head over to the Vanderboren mansion in the Merchant District. The little Halfling housekeeper, Kora, meets them at the door and shows them to the private dining room where they'd had breakfast 1½ days ago.

Lavinia is happy to see them, although it is clear that she has been upset by something.
This message was last updated by the GM at 13:59, Mon 09 Nov 2015.

"Did you hear the news? Poor Keltar Islaran has been killed! How could anybody do something like that to a lovely old man like him?!"

"But enough of that, how is the search for my brother going? Have you located him yet? Is he still in the city?"
This message was last updated by the player at 13:59, Mon 09 Nov 2015.

Angati looked at Lavinia for a long while with a cold stare that could have frozen a dozen penguins "Have a look at this first of all" she said handing her the hand-written document they had found in the dungeon. "This comes from a man, that like us, your brother tried to kill. Unlike us, he did not survive... nor did Logan here, whom we have just had to bring from the dead... we did meet your brother indeed..."

She paused for a second "Now... before you utter a word, read the paper and think twice what you are going to say, because I swear that if you insist on defending your brother after this, it will mean that you don't care one bit about reality or about your employees, and we will not take this lightly".
This message was last edited by the player at 14:42, Mon 09 Nov 2015.

Lavinia looks like she is going to say something. She looks like she is going to answer immediately, and jump to her brother's defence like always. But Angati's defiant challenge makes the young noble woman swallow hard, and stay quiet. She accepts the scribbled curse from Penkus and reads it is silence, but the look on her face goes from concerned, to disbelieving to outraged.

"And you have further proof? You said my brother tried to kill you, so am I to understand that you actually met him?" she asks hoarsely.

Logan is unable to maintain a civil demeanor.  "Yeah, we met him.  Your wonderful peach of a brother stabbed a man I knew, dumped his corpse in a hole, then sealed us all in with a dozen undead and a mad undead priest."  The rogue stroked his stomach, wincing at the memory.  "Thanks to your brother, I actually fracking died, and it was only the luck of the gods that everyone else here lived, escaped and was able to bring me back."

Kassius started slightly when Lavinia mentioned the murder of Keltar Islaran. That was the dockmaster, the one who had been confused who Kassius was working for. He had told Kassius that he wouldn't be intimidated. Apparently that was correct, but perhaps the decrepit old man should have been scared. Someone in this city clearly meant business. He wondered what happened to those animals that Islaran had shipped off in such a hurry.

His mind lost in thought, Kassius didn't bother responding to the woman's ridiculous request for proof of Vanthus' deceit. Logan covered Kassius' own thoughts on the matter. He just wondered how she would respond to this news.

Lavinia looks up at Logan, and sees him properly for the first time. His skin bears the sallow yellow pallor of one who is not in full health, and as Logan gestures to make his point his shoulder length hair moves and his missing left air becomes visible. "Oh my!" exclaims Lavina. "Oh no, no, no. You saw him actually stab someone? And not in self defence?" she asks them, as though imploring them to say her brother was still innocent in some way.

The young noblewoman sinks her head into her hands and begins to wail despairingly. "Oh, how could it come to this? My little brother who used to play and get into trouble with me!"

She wipes away tears from her face and looks up again. "This simply won't do. He must be brought to justice, and made to account for his actions. And I must try and put right the damage he has done... Starting with you Logan."

She claps he hands loudly. "Kora! Oh Kora!" The wizened old halfling woman appears a few seconds later, a tray of cold cuts for dinner in her hands. "Oh be a dear Kora, put down that tray in here and go out and get two potions of restoration." She pulls a purse from a small side table. "Use our regular apocrethy, and do hurry dear."

The old woman doesn't even blink an eye and is out the door on the errand in a flash. Lavinia turns back to the party. "I didn't want her to hear the next part of the conversation anyway." She swallows.

"I know you all probably think me silly, and also naive, but he is my brother and we should assume the best about our family. That has now proven to be incorrect. I want you to continue your investigation and bring my brother to justice, alive if possible but <sob> if... if that isn't possible then please just make his end merciful."

Alohan bit his tongue during this circumstance. He hadn't the wit, or the command over the common tongue to fully convey how he was feeling. How could he describe the desire to pummel a man -and not just best him in pa uma- but to truly beat a man's life through their face. He couldn't express to Lavinia how much he wanted to hurt her brother, no matter how justified. And he felt guilty. Not just for how he felt but for how much he would enjoy the act when the time came -if the time came. Despite Lavinia's desire to bring him back alive, Alohan would be hard pressed fulfilling her desire.

He remained silent finding a bowl of tropical fruit and nuts in the other room. He returned, and proceeded to eat.

Angati had held her breath throughout the conversation. When Lavinia finished speaking, she released it in a sigh.

"Good. I guess we can continue working for you then". She looked at the others for confirmation before moving on "So, first things first... as you may well imagine, we wish to keep the information that we are well alive secret for as long as we can, please do instruct Kora, and anyone else in your service about this".

"Now... I think we told you that your brother was planning on getting married, or at least had a girl convinced so,... one of the Santos family". She paused a bit before moving on "Now, this is conjecture, but I'd say that he has attacked her family, killed the ones that were in his way and kept the girl for him... taking control in one sweep of the docks, and the girl... When we last talked with her, she was pretty aggressive towards her father, as I think he forbade the wedding, so maybe she has seen the killing of a part of her family as necessary".

"Now, we were thinking of tracking the girl to try to get to your brother, but as she has disappeared, we are now a bit at a loss... so... any hints as to how we could track him would be ideal... or if you know of anything that might be able to pull him to you or us... that would be even better".

"What? The whole Santos family?!" Lavinia looks like she is going to object, but then she sees the dark look forming on Angati's face and thinks better about it. She sighs, and continues.

"I don't think that following up on the Santos lead is going to work. I hear that many of them have been killed and the rest ran away when their home was set on fire. Any that remain in the city have gone to ground."

Lavinia lifts up Penkus' last note. "But what about this? It mentions the taxidermist's guildhall in the Sunrise district, and says that the Lotus Dragon's lair is under that. Surely that is a good place to start?"

Angati sighed, a little reddened.. of course, she had the perfect excuse "Oh dear... that's the ravaging of old age on me... you just wait till you get my age" she said with a little smile "Thank you I get forgetful at times".

Anansi was having the time of her live making fun at her sister  sitting on Lavinia's lap which made things really hard. "Please excuse me for a minute" she said as she stood up and moved a bits apart to deal with her sister out of sight.

Anansi alternates between 'sitting' on Lavinia's lap - her ghostly buttocks not quite making contact with the fine lady's thighs - and turning around and sticking her tongue out at her.

"Silly fancy lady thinks she's so smart!" says Anansi with a pout. Then the ghostly child spreads her arms out wide. "Angati, look at me, I'm a bird! Let's go outside and fly! Or at least skip together!"

The apparition is very happy about 'surviving' Parrot Island and wants to celebrate in her own way.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:33, Tue 10 Nov 2015.

Angati replied to Anansi very softly "Tonight ok? I'll take you wherever you want to go within my power after we are done here ok ?" she whispered to her..

Angati finished calming down Anansi somehow and returned, her face recomposed. She sighed "Well.. I guess we will start there. How about we get going ?".

Turning towards Lavinia she said, "I am glad you see it this way, I will do all I can to bring him to justice and avoid his killing" she paused a bit before adding "We will keep you informed" 'if its in our interest' she added to herself.

She left the house with the others, and after a while walking, when they were all well out of risk from any prying ears she whispered to the others "We kill him, any chance we have, I don't want that kind of enemy in my back ever again".

Logan nods eagerly.  "Yes, I'm certainly eager to finish up this bit of business.  Trapping us in those tunnels..."  Logan shakes his head.

When they had separated from Lavinia, Logan was enthusiastic with his agreement to Angati's proposal.  "After what Vanthus put us all through?  There's no way he's living to try anything else.  I agree, he's got to be stopped.  At least Vanderboren's come around."

"Anyone know where the taxidermist's Guildhall is in Sunrise?  I thought that was mostly just houses for people?"

There was one person in the team who knew where the taxidermist's guildhall was. Kassius had lived in his grandfather's house in the Sunrise district since he was a boy, and the guildhall wasn't more than two blocks from his grandfather's house. But since it was now eight o'clock in the evening and dark, the party decided to meet again the next morning at the tavern Angati and Logan were now staying at - the 'Fifteen Horses and a Mule' in the Merchant's district. (This is location 63 in this district. Chosen by your DM since he got sick of waiting round for you guys to decide which one you were staying in!)

The next day was humid and hazy, even though it was only a few hours after dawn. The team set off from the tavern and Kassius led them directly to the guildhouse on Water Street. In was in the most run down part of the district (although still positively sparkling compared to Shadowshore) and sandwiched between two derelict buildings with boarded up doors. The taxidermist's premises don't look like much - all of the windows facing the street are also boarded up - but a side door down an alley does have a 'We're OPEN!' sign hanging in the window.


The Sunrise District
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:29, Thu 12 Nov 2015.

Logan looked up and down the street.  "Well, should we just barge in the...er, side door?  We could try and sneak in through one of those boarded-up windows.  Such things wouldn't get too much attention in Shadowshore, but I'm sure the local watch would be paying more attention here."

"well, one or two of us could just enter on a pretext. This is a taxidermist - stuffing animals and making displays of them, right? Say, Kassius, couldn't you come up with a reason to visit a taxidermist? Buying or selling trophies or something? I'll go along and back you up if you want?"

"Yeah, sneaking in through boarded up windows is usually frowned on around here." Kassius says with a chuckle.

"I'll go in, say that I'm looking to buy some live exotic animals. Figured that a taxidermist might know some suppliers. Has the advantage of actually begin true. Maybe he will know something. Still, keep an eye out for trap doors or other such things. Supposedly the lair is below here."

He glances over to Celene, seeing if she was coming, and then walks up to the door, knocking and pushing it open.