Session XXXVIII: Oh Sh*t! Its the Cops! Report

General Summary

As Mindhome's brains splattered on the ground, Dalvanak scooped them up and ate them. With the town watch's whistles heard in the distance, the party decided to flee the scene. Garlith led the party out of the arcade and through the streets to a dodgy end of the city. They encounter two half-elf drug dealers  named Jael and Bahb the Silent, who attempt to sell them drugs while bemoaning the loss of a good supplier. They are interrupted when they hear the cops whistles sounding and they misty step away.    The party make it to the Widdershins and Zaufanie greets them at the ship and says that a packet ship brought a contract for them. The contract came from a prestigious trading house on Bral to pick up  powderpuff leaves, a component of smokepowder. He tells the party that they should set a course for Anandia, to the northern pole where the capital of Longburrows in the county of Crispyleaf. There, the party needs to contact Harrison Looseleaf. Rudewort mentions that Crewman Provato is missing. Crewman Gups went missing several weeks ago, but he was dirty, even by goblin standards so no one really cared and thought he slinked off the ship. He did find a rat tail. Some hooves were located in the crew quarters today, but there were no sheep on board.  Upon approach, a horn of long sounding sends a message from a smaller asteroid orbiting Dragonrock. It says, "Prior to your docking at Dragonrock, you must present your papers at the customs office here on Wrymling Rock. A small armada is patrolling around Dragonrock and seems to be docking at this smaller asteroid. The party decide to dock.   On Wyrmling Rock, a small detachment consisting of an officer, a noncommissioned officer and five soldiers approached the Widdershins. The officer, Captain Ilya Stepanovich Volkonsky, asked to talk to the captain or bridge officer and Garlith responded. He informed them that they will need to register their ship at the Fang, the headquarters of the 1st Guards Separate Streltsy Regiment. The party was taken to the Sub-Colonel Volodymir Andreivich Volkonsky. He explains the extra precautions are because the automatons on Dragonrock went on a rampage in the city. The 1st Guards Separate Regiment was established along with the 1st Dragonrock Fleet. Tensions with the IEN are rising, but they could not argue since the rampage was too great an excuse to object.  Volodymir is a grizzled veteran of about 40 years, a long scar on his left cheek and a close cropped haircut. He wears a battered but serviceable breastplate. He accepts the party's paperwork and warn them. The political situation has spiraled to the point that retainers of the various Boyars are fighting in the streets.  Upon docking at Dragonrock, the party found that the air was tense. Ordinary citizens walk the streets with dangerous weapons as they size up people who pass them by. Seeking to find a way to refit the ship without getting involved in the local politics, the party go to find their contacts.   They find Father Myshkin and Brassons at the Ocean's Wake. They will be discussing how the automatons went nuts and began attacking people. Myshkin will say it has baffled the streltsy. Tensions have been rising with the elves and the boyars are at each other's throats. The Lampadniks have support among the boyars now and they were gaining mercenaries before the 1st Guards was set up to vet ships coming to the city. Myshkin explains that getting supplies will be difficult since most of the trading houses are aligned with a Boyar family and the ones that are not are too small to resupply a ship like the Widdershins on their own. He further explains that, while his family does not like the Kynaz for modernizing, Grigori Popov is a heretic and destroying the fabric of the city.  Travelling to the Golden Hills Distict, Garlith notices that someone is following them. Ducking down an ally, he sees someone he knows from his smuggling days: Cheap Street Charlie. Pulling him into the ally, Garlith asks what is going on. Charlie is letting Garlith know that his debt has come due and Gribbit, the consigliere for the Boss, wants to see him in person to pay it off. Charlie indicates that more than just the Bag Men have been watching him as he glances at Grewarum.    Heading into the Golden Hills District, the party find the formerly cheery and brightly decorate district is now a fortress. Improvised crenelations and cover dot the town homes and the outer homes are barricaded and fortified. New gates greet every street with more guards. A gnome streltsy stops them as he recognizes them and says Captain Suvorov wants to talk to them.   Taking them up a back entrance and through a secret door, they find the captain in his office, evidently camping out in it. He briefs the party on the situation. Non-humans are flocking here, seeking refuge from the Lampadniks engaging in violence. No one has been murdered, until last week. There was a murder. It was a gnome caught in the Immediacy after dark. Evidence shows it was a Lampadnik and a high up one. An impression of a signet ring worn by the higher echelons was made against the cheek of the gnome in the struggle. He can't trust anyone except the lieutenant. He is paranoid of the desk sergeant--the cheery one. He asks they find any way to gather evidence as he will back them in whatever fight they get into.    Leaving that district, they head to the Government District to speak with Colonel Yussopov. After taking the party to a powder storage room, he briefs them on what he knows. He tells the party that there is a network of what he calls Apparatchiks, low level bureaucrats who have been covering up everything. The shadow mansion, the golden hill murders, Mr. Popansa, the automatons, the missing gauntlet, all of them are connected. Small amounts of supplies and other things go missing as well. He suspects the Lampadniks are connected as well but can't prove it. He has no contacts in the criminal world, but suspects there may be information there.  Finally, the party found Gribbit the Goblin, consigliere of the Bag Men. After some discussion, he offers to wipe out Garlith's debt if they find the Boss who went missing the night before. After some more discussion, Gribbit leads the party into the Boss's office where a Pepe Sylvia level of conspiracy theory crafting is festooned about the office.    The party found that the Boss was on to an organization called the Tenth Pit, who seem to be working in the city. The gist of the ramblings is that the Boss suspects that the Tenth Pit is trying to take over Dragonrock through infiltration and diversion. The party have some leads about where to find out more: the House of the Tenth Pit, located somewhere near the Temple of Ptah and the House of the Dead; the Grunwold Almshouse in Elements Square; the Shady Dock tavern in the Docks District; and Manor Holstmann, located in the Knife which is south of the Docks District. The party head to the Shady Dock Tavern and search for clues among the stink and the booze.