CH. 6: Nobody Expects the Occupation

[HorizonsDream]

"Uh, I'm not sure that he can help us or not," Kendra admitted. "And if he can, we have to have that discussion with him away from his master. I just wanted to see how he was doing after the death of his uncle."

[JadedDM]

Haahqae, Gregeddin and Tulbas (Temple of Takhisis)
The priestess walks to a bookshelf, looks around a bit, then removes a single volume from a shelf. She blows off a layer of dust on the cover, then brings it to Tulbas. The title reads, 'Haven, a History of.' Opening it up to the table of contents, Tulbas can see that the book begins with the city's founding and ends on the year it was written, 345 AC--the year the Seekers took over. It was written by a Seeker monk. "This was left over when we took over the building," the priestess says.

She then goes to a different bookshelf, bends down to pick up a tome from the bottom, then returns it to Haahqae. The title reads, 'Dragon of All Colors and None.' "This was written by our high priestess," she says. "You should find it quite informative." Opening it up to the table of contents, the gnome sees that the beginning of the book is about the goddess herself, including her history. The middle of the book is about her teachings. The ending of the book focuses on the church, including its organization and function.

Kendra and Arulia (Market District)
As the two women talk outside of Kendra's house, the door opens and Norris steps out. "Ah, there you are. When I returned from the Trade Guild meeting and you still weren't home, I was beginning to worry. Dinner is ready. Will, uh, you be joining us, as well, Miss Seroth?" he asks.

[Haahque]

"Yay! I imagine the high priestess would be one of the best people to write a book on Takhisis." Haahqae exclaims, he's somehow managed to get to read a book on Takhisis and he'll get information on the Belzorites, which incidentally might even help with the quest at hand. For now, Haahqae flips open the book handed to him to devour the information contained within, starting at the beginning and reading as much as he can before someone deems to interrupt him.

[djhyland]

Arulia looks between Kendra and Norris, her face crestfallen. "Thank you for the invitation, Mr. Greylock, but I cannot. I would love to join you, but my family is waiting for me." She lifts her bundle of purchases from the market. "I'm already late as it is, and I still need to make all of this into dinner."

Before she turns to go, she asks, "Will I be seeing you again tomorrow, Kendra?"

[mgbevan]

Thinking carefully about the librarian's words and the selection of books available, Gregeddin wonders if there was another way to solve this cryptic puzzle, he asks the hooded figure, "May I enquire, if there is a person who deals with, um, reforming heretics of other faiths. Or perhaps... there's no way to put this pleasantly, an executioner who might have some experience with the last pleas or religious ramblings of non believers? Their knowledge could prove useful in our endeavours."

[JadedDM]

Haahqae, Gregeddin and Tulbas (Temple of Takhisis)
Haahqae eagerly starts reading about Takhisis. The first chapter is about Takhisis herself. The following is an excerpt.

"The divine power of control is Takhisis’s (tah-kee-sis) realm. She subjects the soul to her commanding will, encouraging it to grow and improve strictly in accordance with her plans. Takhisis demands the soul’s surrender to dominance, relinquishing power to those who are greater and more influential. In turn, she encourages the soul to command and subjugate others, creating an unbroken chain of power and fealty that extends upwards from the Abyss and incarnates in the spiritual fervor of her faithful. Fully aware that she is the ultimate power in the world, Takhisis knows that she alone has the divine right to one day bring all of Krynn under her draconic wings. As Queen of Darkness, Takhisis rules the night and infiltrates the daylight, always waiting for her next opportunity to seize the world’s throne."

Meanwhile, the priestess considers Gregeddin's request. "I see where you are going, but I'll remind you that the Belzorites have remained hidden since before we even arrived in the city. Therefore, questioning an inquisitor is probably a dead end, as we have not found and converted any Belzorites. Their desire to remain hidden is quite strong; I imagine they don't speak of their beliefs to others, not even for conversions, for fear of being discovered."

[BishGada]

Tulbas listens to the librarian answer and think to himself, 'They hide themselves really efficiently. And we couldn't find any trace of magic... Impressive.' Then he flips through the last pages of the book. The writing ended six years ago so the Belzorites could be beginning their formation at that time.
He looks for any direct mentioning of the Belzorites or other less obvious mention of strange cults that are not the Seekers.

[mgbevan]

"Indeed you are right." Gregeddin admits, he stands hands on hips deep in thought.
After some moments still struggling to come to any breakthrough, he begins thinking aloud.

"Perhaps the Belzorites may have been preaching under a different name to avoid detection..."

"They used illusionary magic, which could require components, we could tail customers in the mageware shop or other magical suppliers... but they probably wouldn't be so daft to buy components over the counter..."

"Maybe they use a symbol or secret sign to identify other members or designate a meeting place, if we new their code we could lure them out..."

[HorizonsDream]

"Tomorrow morning," Kendra says with a smile. "Be careful going home."

Now that was she was going to be left alone with her husband, all she really wanted to do was go back to Toom's place and see Sadron. ~Stop acting like some love sick puppy,~ she told herself as she looked up to Norris. "What's for dinner?"

[djhyland]

Arulia smiles at Kendra's confirmation and waves as the door closes. Turning, she hurries back to her family's home, groceries in tow. Once inside, she sets her bundle down, greets those of her family that happen to be around, and starts working on preparing the dinner.

[JadedDM]

Haahqae, Gregeddin and Tulbas (Temple of Takhisis)
Tulbas flips to the end of the book and indeed finds numerous references to the Belzorites. He gleams the following information.

Belzor, sometimes called 'the Scaled One,' was symbolized by an enormous viper. Those who followed Belzor carried poisonous serpents on their person to the dismay of those who crossed them. A charismatic leader named Julian had gathered a following, while performing “miracles” around Haven and Gateway. Julian led the people to believe that he was a cleric, when in fact he was nothing more than a minor illusionist who had never taken the Test of High Sorcery. His illusions and tricks, as well as his demeanor, led him into the hearts of the peasants of Haven.

It took Julian nearly ten years to consolidate his hold over the Haven area. He would perform many 'miracles,' such as apparently healing the crippled, making them able to walk, and the blind being able to see in order to win over the peasants. After his foothold there, he sought to expand to other parts of Abanasinia. While his missionaries succeeded in Gateway, they failed miserably in Solace. Belzor’s following lasted for years, even after the death of Julian. His wife, Judith, became high priestess, and the cult degenerated into extortion scams. It was a young, untested mage who exposed Belzor to be a fraud, using a spell to reveal the tricks the priesthood had been using in their High Temple in Haven. Faith in Belzor dwindled afterward, especially with the death of the High Priestess, Judith. The Seeker faith then took over, filling the vacuum left behind.

"Perhaps the Belzorites may have been preaching under a different name to avoid detection..."

"If they did, it was before we arrived. All false religions are now illegal, so pretending to follow another false god wouldn't help them any," the priestess says.

Kendra Greylock (2527 Market Street, Greylock's Gorgeous Gems)
Kendra and Norris head inside. "Salmon," Norris says in response. "How was your day?" he asks. Kendra finds a plate has already been set for them. Norris gestures for her to have a seat while he brings out the food.

Arulia Seroth (323 Three Forks, Seroth residence)
Arulia returns home before curfew kicks in, and after greeting her family, she begins work on dinner. As she cooks, the family discusses their respective days. Her parents' largest concern is the new tax hike, and how it will hurt them.

"There was a big meeting at the Trade Guildhall today," her father says. "I didn't go, but Karn did." Karn being the master blacksmith in the city, and therefore Thoron's boss. "He's convinced they can talk the prefect into reducing the tax, but I can't say I'm so optimistic. We've seen what this army does to people who don't tow the line. What if they decide to round us all up into those wagons and ship us off to the gods know where?"

"Surely they wouldn't do that to all of the merchants...the city's economy would collapse," Vera points out.

Thoron sighs. "That's what Karn says. But I don't know. I'm not convinced they really care about the city or its people."

"I heard a trio of strangers showed up at the meeting and volunteered to speak to the prefect on the guild's behalf," Vera says. "A human, a gnome and an elf. It almost sounds made up."

[HorizonsDream]

"Uneventful," Kendra says. "This city is kind of...dead now," she comments as she starts cutting up her food. "I don't think I've ever seen the market place so empty."

[BishGada]

"They used illusionary magic, which could require components, we could tail customers in the mageware shop or other magical suppliers... but they probably wouldn't be so daft to buy components over the counter..."

When Tulbas hears Gregeddin mention the mageware shop he feels a stab in his heart. Despair runs through him. He feels weakness and his sight blurs. He immediately tries to recover but as the process takes more than a few heartbeats he is not sure whether the others noticed this change or not. He tries to avoid their looks staring at the history book in front of him. "Ahmm.. So far no news. Do you know by any chance where one would easily find a poisonous snake?" He asks the librarian and then start reading the sections mentioning the Belzorites again, searching for their gathering places or special rituals that might suggest where to locate the cult.
When he is done he asks, "Do you have more history books? Otherwise we should leave. Can we borrow material preaching about Takhisis ways?" he asks the librarian politely.

[mgbevan]

Gregeddin pauses for a moment, raises his finger as if to speak but nothing comes to counter the librarian's point.
"Oh wait yes, they could have used a different name when under seeker rule perhaps? Tulbas and Haahae, keep a look out for viper-toting religions under a name other than Belzor." Gregeddin's triumph was shorted lived though, because the difficulty of finding this cult was proving an adequate challenge. He would endeavour to keep his spirits high for it was only the first day of searching.

[BishGada]

"I didn't see any reference to any other viper-toting religions in Haven after the Belzorites power diminished." Tulbas tells Gregeddin and looks at Haaque skeptically waiting to hear his answer.