After patching up the holes in the Queen Physicians' robes with thick thread, Falenas and Takota threw the robes over their armor. Falenas could hide some of his alchemical equipment on his belt with ease and hide his dagger in his sleeve but Takota had problems of his own with the disguise. Takota could hide his handaxe and mithral dagger under his robes, and after some adjustment, could reach for his quiver of crossbow bolts. His crossbow, on the other hand, was too large for him to hide, and after some thought, Falenas offered his bag of holding. They had to stretch the bag's opening out but were able to fit in Takota's crossbow, which was loaded in case violence did break out. Falenas took a moment to clean off some of the fresh blood from the robes and slipped on the mask along with Takota.
The two walked side-by-side out of the alley, disguised as Queen's Physicians. Falenas kept his mask on until they came in sight of the Hospice of the Blessed Maiden when he slipped it up for a few seconds. Takota kept watch while the alchemist quickly took three of his alchemical extracts: one meant to enhance his intelligence, one meant to enhance his awareness of his surroundings, and one that allowed him to read the thoughts of others. He slipped his mask back down and adjusted it so that it was secured. With a nod, Falenas led the way to the hospice with Takota stepping up to walk beside him.
The two opened the front door of the hospice and stepped inside the reception room. Falenas took note of a few sick patients waiting and a bored woman at the desk before his gaze fell upon a leather curtain. Without a word, Falenas made his way to the curtain with Takota following beside him. The alchemist took a quick glance toward the woman at the desk, reading her thoughts with ease. He didn't press into her mind but could at least tell she didn't think they weren't Queen's Physicians. Falenas knew a fair bit of deception from his life along with picking up a few lessons from his partnership with Griffin. As long as they acted like they belonged, they weren't likely to be questioned.
The two stepped through the curtain and found themselves in the sick ward of the hospice with tight rows of beds before them, each holding a sickly patient. Their groans and wheezes echoed throughout the large room as they suffered from blood veil and Falenas furrowed his brow, keeping the thoughts of the patients out of his mind. There were four Queen's Physicians walking around the room, tending to the patients, and Falenas was surprised to spot two Gray Maidens standing guard by a door toward one of the corners in the room. He glanced up when he heard light footsteps above him and noted the catwalk. Thanks to his enhanced senses, Falenas caught sight of silver armor from someone walking above the catwalk and came to the conclusion that there were more Gray Maidens.
The presence of the Gray Maidens complicated matters. They were an unknown quantity when it came to their infiltration of the hospice. They were appointed agents of Queen Ileosa and it would make sense that they would guard the Queen's Physicians in case of trouble. Falenas didn't know if the Gray Maidens were aware of the Queen's Physicians but suspected that they had to be. Ileosa organizing the Queen's Physician and the Gray Maidens around the same time frame and having them work together couldn't have been a coincidence. He and Takota approached the pair by the door, and while Falenas was tempted to look deeper into their minds to learn how much they knew, that wasn't a risk he could take. At the very least, he could tell that the guards weren't suspicious of them.
"We have a meeting with Doctor Davaulus," Falenas told the guards, his voice muffled behind his mask.
The Gray Maidens nodded and stepped away from the door. It had been a gamble to talk to them about a meeting since Falenas didn't know where Doctor Davaulus' office was but he reasoned that the Gray Maidens had to guard something important such as the man in charge of the building. Falenas and Takota stepped inside the room and closed the door behind him. While Falenas had expected an office, he instead saw that they were in a workroom lined up with wooden lockers along with a table and four chairs. Falenas glanced in the direction of a cargo lift and noted that it rose up toward the ceiling, where there was a hole. A cargo lift wasn't standard for a hospice but this building had been a warehouse once. Falenas and Takota stepped onto the lift with the ranger looking over the lever that controlled the lift."
"That's odd," Takota whispered quietly. "There's a hole in the slot of the lever."
"So there is," Falenas nodded, spotting the small indent Takota noticed. "It could be a missing button?"
"Could that stop us from going up?" Takota asked.
"Only one way to find out," Falenas said and pulled the lever. The cargo lift started to shift up with them on it.
"So the missing button isn't to have the lift go up," Takota said, not as quiet as before with the creaking of the cargo lift. "Are we overthinking this?"
"I think we are but not in the way you think," Falenas said and held up a finger. "The button could be what the lift needs to go down."
"As in from the second floor to the first?"
"From the first floor to whatever's below the building," Falenas corrected Takota. "There's nothing we can do about it for now. Griffin may have been able to get the lift to go down without the button, but for now, let's focus on our meeting."
The two grew silent when the lift came to a stop on the second floor. Falenas opened the door in front of them and stepped into the next room with Takota following behind him. Unlike the sick ward below them, the tiles of the floor were notably clean, likely as a sign that no sick patients were brought to the second floor. A pair of Gray Maidens stood guard in front of double doors that were engraved with grand gazelles. Falenas and Takota approached the guards and the alchemist was quick to note that unlike the pair on the first floor, these two were suspicious of them before they could say anything. Falenas pushed his worry aside and pressed on, knowing that he had come too far.
"We have a meeting with-"
"Doctor Davaulus didn't have a meeting scheduled this late," one of the Gray Maidens interrupted Falenas harshly.
"I see," Falenas nodded and his hand reached down to one of the vials on his belt. "We have a note from him saying otherwise."
"You do?" the other Gray Maiden questioned, clearly not swayed by his lie.
"Indeed we do," Falenas tilted his head to face Takota. "What are you waiting for? Take it out of your bag."
Takota caught on to Falenas' plan and reached into the bag of holding at his side. The two were still a small distance away from the Gray Maidens, so when Takota pulled out his crossbow, they weren't close enough to stop him. Takota fired a bolt into the shoulder of the Gray Maiden to the left and quickly pulled out another crossbow bolt. Falenas tossed the vial he reached for at the pair, which exploded loudly. The injured Gray Maiden fell but the other charged at Falenas with her longsword drawn, uncaring for the flames that threatened to consume her. Falenas had just enough time to take his dagger out of his sleeve to parry the longbow before Takota put an end to her life with a crossbow bolt that pierced through her helmet. The two fallen maidens remained on fire but there was nothing between them and the door.
"This complicates matters," Falenas commented and slipped off his mask. "I hope whatever we find makes up for the fact that we killed two Gray Maidens, even if they might be involved with the Queen's Physicians."
"We'll find the evidence we need," Takota said firmly and took off his mask. He dropped it to the side and reached for the door's handle. "It's locked."
"I don't see a key on either of the maidens," Falenas noted and turned his head back to the cargo lift when he heard the mechanisms creak once more. "And it would seem as though escape is no longer an option. If only my bombs were more silent."
"What's the plan?" Takota asked, looking over his shoulder. "We're trapped here until they send reinforcements."
"We continue on," Falenas declared and turned back to the door. "If Doctor Davaulus thinks he can hide behind a locked door, he's going to be in for quite a surprise."
Falenas reached for a vial of poison that he kept from the Dead Warrens and quickly coated his dagger's blade with the venom. He was careful not to cut himself and reached for one final vial. Falenas downed the foul mutagen down and tossed the vial away. His body twisted in an inhuman manner as he grew taller and his slim body grew muscles. While the mutagen threatened his mind, one of his earlier extracts, imbued with the cunning of a fox, allowed him to retain most of his intelligence. While Falenas prepared his armor to adjust to the change his mutagen brought, the stolen robes ripped as they no longer fit on him. With a shrug, he tore the robes off and approached the door. Takota set his crossbow, which he had reloaded, up against the wall, and wielded his handaxe and mithral dagger in each hand. He nodded toward Falenas, not showing much shock over the alchemist's transformation.
Together, Falenas and Takota shoved their shoulders against the door, breaking the lock and throwing it open. The room the door previously blocked was lined with rows of bed like from downstairs which came as a surprise to Falenas. There were over a dozen in all and each held a patient that was restrained by leather straps. It was only when Falenas spotted the alchemical worktable to the corner that he realized the patients were being experimented on, likely against their will. If that wasn't enough to have him grow sick of the Queen's Physicians, then seeing three of the so-called healers raising their clubs to execute the patients was.
A door on the opposite side of the room opened and Doctor Davaulus stepped out from an office. He glared at Falenas and Takota, who stood side-by-side with their weapons drawn. As the Queen's Physicians backed away from the patients to fight the adventurers, Davaulus muttered something under his breath and turned invisible. Falenas might not be able to see the rogue doctor but he could hear his smug thoughts on how he was going to escape without anyone being able to stop him. He focused on Davaulus' arrogant thoughts even as the trio of Queen's Physicians grew closer to him and Takota.
With a smirk, Falenas tossed his dagger forward, his brute strength allowing it to fly past the Queen's Physicians and towards the workstation. Doctor Davaulus screamed out in pain and his invisibility faded away as the dagger impaled itself in his shoulder.
"Impossible!" Doctor Davaulus gasped.
"It's not impossible," Falenas said, shaking his head. "You're just not as smart as you think you are!"
"Falenas, catch!" Takota called out and threw his mithral dagger up in the air.
Unlike Falenas' dagger throw, Takota threw his weapon slowly in the air between him and the alchemist. Falenas caught the dagger by the hilt in time to parry a club swing from one of the Queen's Physicians. Takota kept one physician back with his arm and slammed his handaxe into the third physician, who screamed out in his mutagen, Falenas believed he could make quick work of his foe. Doctor Davaulus pulled the dagger out of his shoulder and turned invisible with magic once more, leaving his men to handle the fighting for him. Falenas stabbed his opponent in the shoulder only for the physician to strike the alchemist across the head with his club. His mutagen allowed him to endure some blows but Falenas could feel the blood in his mouth from the strike.
Falenas may have been stronger with his mutagen and retained enough of his intelligence to be a threat, he had no formal training when it came to melee. The Queen's Physician he fought wasn't a skilled warrior either and their fight became brutal. Falenas stabbed his foe twice but his blows weren't deep enough to end the man's life. The Queen's Physician swung wildly at his club, striking Falenas first across the shoulder and then against his ribs with enough force that the alchemist felt both blows. Fortunately for Falenas, Takota's time with the Sable Marine Company helped him become a stronger fighter. With his two foes dead on the ground from their wounds, Takota slammed his handaxe into the face of the final Queen's Physician, breaking through the mask to end his life.
"Good work," Falenas nodded in thanks to Takota.
"Thanks," Takota nodded back. "What about Davaulus?"
"Damn," Falenas cursed. "I couldn't keep hold of the magic that allowed me to read his thoughts."
"Don't you have another?" Takota asked and grabbed a healing potion from under his robes. Falenas noticed the bruising across his exposed skin and realized Takota had taken some hits against his opponents.
"Not now, no," Falenas shook his head and reached for one of his healing extracts. "Fortunately, I don't need to read Davaulus' mind to know he's panicking. There aren't any windows in this room and I don't see any in his office either."
"He can't escape," Takota said.
"Indeed," Falenas smirked. "As long as we stand in the doorway, the only way he'll make it out is by pushing his way through us. He might try one of his tricks but doing so will break his invisibility."
"He could make himself invisible again," Takota pointed out.
"If Davaulus' magic was truly powerful, he would use it to kill us instead of hide," Falenas shook his head. "No. If I had to take a guess, he can't turn invisible again."
"Are you sure?"
"Quite sure. If he could, he would have done something by now while we've been talking."
Takota nodded and looked over his shoulder when he and Falenas heard the cranking of the cargo lift. "Reinforcements are coming. This doorway isn't exactly a place to hold out against our enemy."
"Quite right," Falenas admitted. "But between us and the lift door is about fifteen feet of narrow space. Not the ideal space for a large group of melee warriors but perfect for us given how deadly we are from a distance."
Falenas took his healing extract to help deal with pain from the attacks he endured and reached for one of his explosive bombs. Takota quickly downed his healing potion as well and reached for his crossbow, careful to not give Davaulus enough space to slip away. Davaulus was waiting for his chance to escape and they couldn't afford to let him get away. If he was the mastermind behind blood veil, his escape would be dire news for Korvosa. Falenas liked his odds even considering how many Queen's Physicians and Gray Maidens there were on the first floor. Between his bombs and Takota's crossbow, anyone coming out of the cargo lift was not going to make it to them unscathed.
When the cargo lift door opened, Falenas threw his bomb as a Gray Maiden stepped out of the lift. The bomb struck her and exploded, consuming her in flames along with the others still on the lift, who screamed out in pain. Takota finished off the first Gray Maiden with a crossbow bolt and started to reload as another climbed out, followed by members of the Queen's Physicians. Falenas noted that there were four physicians and three maidens still alive but they were on fire. When he threw his second explosive bomb, three of the Queen's Physicians fell along with one of the Gray Maidens. The surviving physician charged Takota, and while he slammed the ranger across the shoulder, it wasn't enough to stop him. Takota shot the physician point-blank in the chest with his crossbow as the remaining Gray Maidens fired upon them with bows. Falenas gasped out in pain when one cut across his cheek while Takota gritted his teeth with another embedded itself into his thigh. One of the Gray Maidens fell to the ground, unable to bear the flames any longer, while the other one remained standing only for the fire to burn her bowstring away.
Suddenly, Takota screamed out in pain, and Falenas glanced at his friend in time to see Doctor Davaulus turn visible. Davaulus, wielding a rapier, had pierced through the back of Takota's shoulder and the tip of the blade pierced through to the other side. He pulled his rapier free and Takota dropped his crossbow from the pain of the attack. Doctor Davaulus grinned, thinking that he had won the battle, only for Takota to turn on him with his handaxe in his free hand. Takota caught Davaulus across the cheek with his first swing and the doctor wasn't quick enough to escape a second blow that cut through his clothes and across his chest. Davaulus backed away with Takota following after him.
Falenas wanted to help Takota but there was the matter of the remaining Gray Maiden. While she was still on fire, that wasn't enough to stop her from pulling her longsword free of its sheath so that she could charge into melee. Falenas turned to face the Gray Maiden but wasn't swift enough to protect himself with his dagger. Her sword cut deeply across his shoulder, and with a scowl, Falenas stabbed his dagger out to her. He could feel the heat of the fire but he wasn't burned as his dagger found its mark between a vulnerable spot in the Gray Maiden's neck, underneath her helmet. Falenas pulled his dagger out, and with no further enemy reinforcements, turned around to face his final foe.
The fight between Takota and Doctor Davaulus went further into the room previously blocked by the locked door and it proved to be a bloody match between the two. While Falenas didn't believe that the doctor was skilled when it came to magic, the same couldn't be said of the way he fought in melee against Takota. Davaulus bled from several handaxe slashes across his chest and shoulders, but each time Takota struck, he found a chance to strike back against the Shoanti. His rapier first caught Takota across the chin, barely missing his neck, then again at his thigh to hamper his movement. When Takota moved in to slam his handaxe on his foe's head, Doctor Davaulus parried the attack with ease and jabbed with his rapier. Davaulus' blade pierced through Takota's chest, and when he pulled it out, the ranger dropped his handaxe and collapsed onto the ground.
"Takota!" Falenas cried out.
"He put up quite the fight, but fortunately, my rapier was crafted to inflict greater pain against humans," Davaulus commented and stepped over Takota's prone form. "Its enchantment may not be effective against an elf such as yourself but I will make quick work of you nonetheless."
"A rapier such as that isn't something a doctor typically has," Falenas commented, holding his dagger out to defend himself.
"Bold words coming from someone who murdered his way this far," Davaulus taunted with a laugh.
"You're not an actual doctor though, are you?" Falenas stepped back, buying time to come up with a plan. "The ambush against Takota, the specialized equipment meant to kill others, and the way you use your magic shows me the truth. You're an assassin."
"If only you had realized that before," Davaulus stepped up, assessing Falenas for an opening. "You could have warned Griffin."
"Griffin?" Falenas blinked in confusion. "What does he have to do with this?"
"I would explain but it doesn't matter since I am going to kill you."
"Bold words coming from a terribly injured man," Falenas shot back. "I can finish you off."
"I've seen the way you fight with your dagger, and to be honest, I'm not afraid," Davaulus grinned. "You're a smart man, but when it comes to a fight, you're all brute force."
"Perhaps I can't beat you in a duel," Falenas admitted, and with his free hand, grabbed one of his bombs to hold up. "But I don't have to fight you. Surrender now, or when I throw this bomb, you will die."
"Takota stills draw breath," Davaulus told Falenas. "If you throw a bomb at me, you're going to kill him."
"That's a risk I'm willing to take." Falenas said, his hands trembling.
"Then I'll call your bluff."
Davaulus charged forward, and when Falenas threw his bomb, the assassin was able to shift aside so it shattered behind him and by Takota. Falenas only had his dagger left, and while he tried to parry the rapier away, Davaulus saw through his maneuver with ease. Davaulus slipped his rapier away from Falenas' dagger and jabbed toward his chest. With only a second to spare, Falenas leaned to the side, and while the rapier pierced through his clothes and hardened skin, Davaulus missed the nearest artery. While Davaulus didn't strike anything vital, Falenas knew that having sharp metal in his body wasn't good for his health. He gritted his teeth in pain and dropped his dagger to the ground.
Davaulus grinned, thinking victory was assured, only for Falenas to laugh. Davaulus' eyes went wide in surprise.
"What's wrong with you?" Davaulus asked in a demanding tone. "You're about to die and you're laughing!"
Falenas stopped laughing long enough to answer Davaulus. "I just can't believe how much of a fool you really are!"
"What?!" Davaulus gasped and pushed his rapier deeper into Falenas. "You think I'm the fool out of us?!"
"I don't think, but rather, I know you are," Falenas leaned into Davaulus and grabbed his forearm with both of his hands. "Takota, now!"
In his haste to strike down Falenas, Davaulus had made two mistakes that cost him his life. The first mistake was dodging the bomb that Falenas threw at him. Davaulus may have expected the bomb to blow up, but in reality, Falenas purposely drew attention to the bomb so that his opponent would avoid it. When the bomb landed by Takota, the positive energy within the bomb ran over him and the ranger regained consciousness. Davaulus looked over his shoulder in time to see Takota stand up, his handaxe in hand and a glare clear in his eyes. The second mistake Davaulus made was leaving his rapier in Falenas long enough for the alchemist to grab his arm. Davaulus' sadistic streak gave Falenas the opportunity he needed to hold him in place for Takota. Davalus was far from strong, and even when he tried to pull away, Falenas' mutagen-enhanced grip didn't budge.
Takota charged forward, and while Davaulus tried to pull his rapier free, Falenas kept the blade pierced into his shoulder. It hurt him greatly but Falenas couldn't risk Davaulus landing a single hit on Takota with his enchanted rapier. Realizing he had been beaten, Davaulus turned to face Falenas and pushed his rapier deeper into the alchemist. Falenas groaned in pain but kept his grip, knowing that Davaulus wouldn't escape from his fate. Finally, Davaulus let out an anguished scream of panic and Takota slammed his handaxe on the back of the assassin's head. Davalus fell limp and his corpse collapsed to the side when Takota pulled his handaxe free of his skull. Falenas yelped out in pain and pulled the rapier out from him to drop to the ground.
"That was a close one," Falenas sighed in relief. "Well fought, Takota. You saved me back there."
"And you saved me before then," Takota said with a nod.
"Davaulus did something with Griffin before we arrived," Falenas told Takota and tore a piece of cloth from a surviving portion of his stolen robes to hold onto his bleeding shoulder. "He told me so but didn't say what."
"That's concerning," Takota grunted. "What business did Griffin have with Davaulus?"
"We may have caught on to the true nature of the Queen's Physicians but Griffin might not have," Falenas shook his head. "Are you feeling well after everything?"
"You didn't heal me completely but I'll live," Takota answered.
"Good," Falenas said. "I need you to get Cressida and let her know everything we found out. Tell her we need reinforcements at the hospice and that she needs to be discreet about it. Most importantly, we need her to get the rest of our, or rather, your group."
"I'll see it done," Takota nodded, determined. "What about you?"
"Someone has to stay and help these patients," Falenas said and gestured to the confined sick with his free hand. "I'll stitch myself up the best I can and do what I can to keep everyone stable. I'll also try to find more definite proof that the Queen's Physicians were up to something. Cressida will need more than our word or else we'll never step outside of a prison cell again."
"Or we could be executed," Takota added with a painful smile.
Falenas chuckled. "Indeed we could. Go with haste, Takota."
With a final nod, Takota made his way to the lift that they came up on. It had been a long night but Falenas realized that he had made excellent progress into discovering the true nature of blood veil. If he and Takota had the help of the other adventurers, the fight against the Queen's Physicians and the Gray Maidens may not have been so close, but Falenas couldn't see Alexander and Viera going through with such a plan. Now that the fight was over, he felt it was necessary to bring his former companions in to help deal with whatever was below the hospice. Falenas didn't know if Viera would want to work with him but she may be willing to compromise once she knows what happened to Griffin.
Falenas turned to Davaulus' office, which he hadn't had a chance to explore since breaking through the door. He could feel his extract of Fox's Cunning run out, but even with his mutagen impacting his intelligence, he should be able to find the proof he needed for Cressida. Davaulus likely didn't have time to dispose of everything that incriminated him and the Queen's Physicians. It was only the matter of finding the right document that linked the Queen's Physicians to the creation of blood veil or that showed Davaulus did something with Griffin. The patients the Queen's Physicians took on would be fine for a few more minutes, and with a plan in mind, Falenas made his way into Davaulus' office.
A/N: So, this chapter was one of my favorite chapters to write, especially with the fight. I had to change my notes after I misread part of the map but I think it worked out great.
Also, while going through my notes, I was surprised to see that there's only a handful of chapters left for Seven Days to the Grave. This story will be coming to an end soon enough.
Until next time.