Blood Ties, Part 13

While Ceriss might be able to give you useful information herself—and you do want to make more headway with her—you want to stop this bastard as well. And right now you judge that the best way of pursuing that would be to search the surrounding area before the trail goes cold.

You study the situation in more detail, searching for any clue to the direction your quarry might have gone. You notice a scared girl huddled against one of the nearby buildings, not too far where Ceriss is levitating. Her dress is torn, and she's watching the scene with wide eyes. Most likely his attempted victim, her abduction thwarted by Ceriss' timely arrival.

Tracing the path of destruction with your gaze, you try to frame a picture in your mind of how the conflict went. From how the craters are laid out, the killer seems to have fled eastward, dodging her attacks... until he dove through the window of a vacant shop. You can see the thick wooden bars on the windows have been smashed inward, and with great force, while the flimsier shutters likewise lie broken inside.

Circling surreptitiously around, you see that the killer must have run straight through to the rear exit of the building, throwing aside the bar from the inside and running out into the alley behind. This seems to have been where Ceriss lost him; there are no further signs of damage from her spells from that point on.

You follow the cramped alley away from where Ceriss would have been, until you find the next junction connecting it to the main streets. But from there, the trail only leads into the growing crowd, drawn out into the streets by the explosive commotion. You move through the growing press of people, asking various onlookers if they had noticed anyone fleeing the scene who matched the (admittedly vague) description you were given of a tall man in a long coat.

Unfortunately, no one you talk to can recall anything of the sort, let alone what direction he ran in. Either they all arrived too late... or the killer avoided their notice as well.

Acting on a hunch, you search the surroundings for any connection to the city's sewer system, wondering if that might be a possible way the killer could have moved without detection. About a block down, you do find a grate... but it does not seem to have been designed for easy access. It's bolted in place, bolts that would have to be removed to enter the sewers at this point. And from the look of how rusted in place they are, that hasn't been done in a long, long time.

Except...

It would be very difficult to notice for most observers, but your keen eyes detect something... just slightly off about the grate. Kneeling, you carefully run your fingers around the edge, and discover that there's a small, hidden catch at the corner of the grate. The bolts are fastening the grate to its frame, just as intended... but someone has subsequently altered it, so that the entire assembly can be removed if the catch is thrown.

In contrast with the rusted-tight bolts, the wear patterns of this method of access shows signs of quite frequent use. The actual materials used in its construction are crude—certainly not added by the city itself—but the design is truly ingenious. And depending on how many more of these there are, it truly could allow surreptitious access to nearly anywhere in the city.

The grate is small, and the sewer below is cramped, but you think you could fit through if you really squeezed. But especially after the time you've already spent, you don't have anywhere near enough time for such an in-depth search right now. Instead, you continue to ask around through the crowd, though with a particular eye toward if they saw anyone moving toward that nearest sewer grate.

Unfortunately, the results are once again little to go on, with no one you ask remembering anything useful. As you continue to make your inquiries, however... you gradually begin to suspect that you are being watched.

It's nothing obvious. Still, your inhuman perception is warning you that something is off, as tiny, mostly-subconscious details start to build up. But you trust your instincts, and even as you continue to interrogate members of the crowd, you try to surreptitiously locate the source.

It takes longer than you would have expected... but eventually, you manage to catch your observer in the act. It's a frail, hunched old man, with a wrinkled face, wispy white hair, and a rheumy, vacant expression. The crowd seems to jostle him too and fro... but you realize that despite the impression of dotage, he is keeping a close watch on you.

Even as you manage to confirm it, you can also tell that he knows that you know. Your eyes meet for a brief instant, his expression briefly taking on a look of surprise and distaste. You start to move toward him... but he immediately melts back into the crowd, abandoning his observation.

That's not enough to dissuade you, however. You follow after him, threading through the crowd yourself, your heightened senses able to track his movement. The quiet chase continues, you intent on your quarry, the old man continually checking back over his shoulder as you steadily gain in your pursuit...

...until, completely without warning, a burly man from the crowd just suddenly grabs you from behind as you try to squeeze past him. Caught off-guard, you try to escape his grasp, wondering as you struggle just what the fuck is going on. Are they secret allies of the old man? Hired muscle?

Unfortunately, your meager combat prowess is not sufficient to break his hold. Nor does it help when a second man runs up and drives his fist into your face, snapping your head around and causing stars to flash across your vision. He punches you again and again, alternating between bloodying your face and slamming home body blows.

Fortunately, the rest of the crowd soon reacts to the bewildering turn of events, and starts trying to pull the three of you apart, with the whole thing quickly descending into a chaotic scramble. Eventually their attempts provide enough of an opening for you to twist yourself free, slipping down through his weakened grasp and scrambling blindly away through the press of bodies generated by the growing brawl. Wiping blood out of your eyes and glancing back through the tumult, you can tell that the two men are still trying to chase after you... but at this point the crowd has them pretty well restrained.

Unfortunately, the brawl has also attracted Ceriss' attention, and you see her swooping across the rooftops. And, glancing to the east, you can see the first hints of dawn starting to creep over the horizon. As late as it is, you can't afford to be detained in the aftermath of a brawl like this. Not if you want to get back to Janessa in time to ensure you don't blow your cover.

And of course, a quick check reveals that the old man is long gone.

Rather than let yourself get caught up in this mess, you slip away into the shadows, shapeshifting back into Niko as you race back toward your current residence. Fortunately, there are no more delays or problems, and you manage to slip back into the small manor without detection.

You were, indeed, cutting it close. Even as thoroughly as you wore her out last night, Janessa—campaigner that she was—is already close to waking. Indeed, the shifting of the bed as you slip back under the covers is enough to disturb her, soon bringing her most of the way to wakefulness.

She awakens to find your arms around her from behind, and offers a sleepy smile back to you as you run your hands along her muscular body with (faked) innocent inexperience. "Oh, hello Niko," she murmurs contentedly. "Did you sleep well?"

You nod affirmatively. She yawns, sitting up in bed as she shakes off her residual weariness, then favors you with a fond, loving look. "What do you plan to do today? It's still two days until your next meeting with Lord Kovar."

As she continues to speak, she rolls out of the bed and begins fishing for her clothes. "I'd offer to show you around the city... but you remember I promised Ceriss when we were there than I'd ask some of my old military contacts if they might be willing to offer any help hunting this killer. So that's what I'll be doing today. Considering what she's doing for you... it's the least I could do."

That's a good question. You could arrange an encounter with Ceriss sometime today, "accidentally" stumbling across her as she goes about her court duties, bringing Niko closer to her. There's also that strange comment the Madame made about history repeating itself. Might Ceriss be willing to talk about that herself?

Or perhaps you could ask someone else. That old dwarf bounty hunter seems to be an old acquaintance of the Madame's as well; he might know more now that you have a specific lead. And it wouldn't hurt to get his perspective in general as well, to coordinate with the other people chasing this maniac.

There's also Annabeth, Ceriss' student, with your standing invitation to call on her. Getting her alone and subverting her to your side in one way or another might help create an opening in your seduction of Ceriss, though it wouldn't progress your investigation of the killer in any way.

The prostitute who actually caught a glimpse of the killer is still out there as well, and given what the Madame said about her nightmares, if you could see her in person, your dreamwalking power might be able to glean details from her buried that even her own witness might be unable to consciously remember.

And of course, there's the suspicious old man. What is his connection to all this? Who were those men who attacked you when you tried to follow him? You could choose to spend the day tracking down as many answers as you can find to those questions.

Finally, there's the catch you found on that sewer grate. You could sneak down beneath the city streets, looking for evidence—or a trail—as to what might be going on beneath the eyes of the city, and where such a trail might lead.

Either way, you fear that time is of the essence. The situation is obviously shifting, as the various players react to each other's moves. Not to mention that you don't know when the second heroine might be arriving to help study you, which might complicate your efforts even more.