Session 9: For the Love of Shallya

Hilde Muntz

Wigand had received a note from Hilde Muntz, the Shallyan Initiate, saying:"if you want to better your lot, I can introduce you to people. If you're interested, return this message to me next time i am on the ward". Warily he followed up on it, meeting her in an empty ward. She told him, she could introduce him to the group she was part of (The Black Cloak Lurkers Below), which aims to overthrow the nobility, and replace them with a meritocratic  government. Hilde hates the ignorance and callousness of the nobility, and would like to see them gone, but is by no means violent herself. Wigand distanced himself, claiming that what she wants can't be done in a peaceful way.

The next morning everyone meets up to see Herr Lothar, who is still propped up in bed. They explain what they have found so far and continue their research. He tells Wigand to look into the Doktor von Bora announcement he overheard, telling him the name rings a bell, but he can't remember why.

On the way Schraeder's house they witness some thugs stabbing someone in an alley. Rather than getting involved, they continue on their way, finding the house and search it properly.

The authorities have failed to find any next of kin. The house was rented from agents Blau and Stradanus. Searching the house elicits little. There is a single large bloodstain on the hall carpet, and drag marks up the stairs into the gutted room. The fire gutted one room (the main bedroom), but did little other damage. A drawing of a howling wolf can be found drawn in blood upon the guest bedroom wall. There is a small study/library, but the books have all been cleared and were burnt in the fire. There is a small household shrine, but that was also placed in the fire.

A visit to the watch at the East gate strikes gold. Careful greasing of some palms result in the news that the Professor and Schraeder did leave the city through this gate on 31st Nachexen. Noone has seen Elfrieda however.

Doktor Von Bora

Gotwin and Wigand met up with Doktor Hubertus von Bora, a travelling scholar is in need of a secretary and bodyguards to help him continue his work studying the local spirit beliefs and myths of the people of Ostland. He has hired a crier and made inquiries at the local temple to Sigmar for likely candidates. Doktor Hubertus von Bora is a professor at the University of Altdorf on sabbatical to conduct research into the various aspects of spirit worship within Ostland and the borders of
Kislev. He needs a bit of extra power, as with the surge of attacks by the Cult of the Howling One, the roads are a lot less safe than they should be. Details are left to contact each other the next few days.

They return with this information to Lothar. The other things that Ludwig and Castian had found, is that in the stack of paper they got from the Watch, there seems to be little that ties the papers together. They are a curious and incoherent mix of a general nature whose sole purpose appears to be repeating the Professor’s name.
Ludwig stays behind and offers his apologies to Lothar in regards to the whole Lieberung debacle. Lother tells him he doesn't blame him for trying to seize an opportunity, but that this whole thing poses a serious treat. Clearly this Lieberung character has been involved in some dark and unsavoury business, if people, or even organisations are using men such as Kuftsos to hunt him down, men who'd shoot first and asking questions a lot later. And Ludwig is the spitting image of their target...

On the way out of the temple they run into a shocking scene, Three men have one of the Shallyan laymen, Jurgen Futz, pinned to the wall, two of them are stabbing their daggers into his body repeatedly. They drop his body as they notice Gotwin, Castian and Wigand and tell them to stay out of this, as it doesn't concern them.

Gotwin and Castian are quick to disable one of the attackers, while Wigand kills the second one. The third turns around and flees the scene. The young orphan girl who helps at the temple, Marla Hengist, arrives at the scene, screams and faints upon seeing the scene of carnage in the pristine white corridors, and so alerts Sister Isolde, Nina and Hilde Muntz. Wigand and Gotwin drag the semi conscious attacker outside into the portico, while Castian helps the Sister clean the blood of the Shallyan floors, a thing unheard of.

Outside they try to interrogate the culprit, who remains cocky, telling them they better let him go before the watch comes, that he has no fear of the watch, as they owe them anyway, and similar things. In the end they can squeeze some info out of him. He is part of a group of thieves, the Steel Fist (which marries up with the brand of a crude fist they found on the two bodies). The attack had nothing to do with the Shallyan priesthood, but revenge on another group, the Black Lurkers Below, who had stolen from the Steel Fist and had been given enough warnings that were ignored.
Unsure to let this guy get away, Wigand and Gotwin decided not to let this happen, and knocked him out to discuss what to do. Gotwin ended the man's life with a quick stab, and was immediately plagued by regret of this.
The watch arrived, and overpowered Gotwin and Wigand quickly, but released them as soon as Sister Isolde had explained what happened.

Having noticed that Hilde had disappeared as soon as she had witnessed the blood in the corridors, and the statement of the Steel Fist member about the Lurkers, Gotwin and Ludwig searched the temple, only to find her on her knees in front of the altar of Shallya. Talking to her firmly made her admit that the Lurkers had indeed hit one of the Steel Fist gambling operations, stealing a substantial amount of money to fund the Lurkers' printing of pamphlets. She begged to ask Christina to come and help her, to escape from the city, as the Steel Fist was targeting every person affiliated to the Lurkers. When Gotwin and Ludwig seemed reluctant, she offered to get them in touch with a man she overheard them talking about: Gerd Breytenbach, Schraeder (supposedly dead) servant, who was in hiding at the Hospital for the Maintenance and Education of Exposed and Deserted Children.

The group notified Christina, who didn't reply to anything they said about Hilde, but just nodded and closed the door. Then, they packed all their belongings and moved to another inn, across the bridge, and nearby the Hospital for the Maintenance and Education of Exposed and Deserted Children.

A visit their resulted in a meeting with Gerd, who told them that the house was attacked whilst he was away with the Black Cloak Lurkers Below. He does know that Professor Stradovski arrived to see his master, and that they left together the following day. The message concerning Schraeder’s father was a fake.
He does not know where they were going, but he heard them mention the manor at Levudaldorf, and knows that his master had visited there on guild business on a number of occasions.
He had worked for him for 8 years. He disliked his master, who was a cruel man in private, and he suspects that he was doing vile things to the maid Louisa as she had been acting peculiarly over the last few months.
The only social activities that Schraeder was known to engage in was worship at the Sigmarite cathedral, the occasional visit to the Temple of All Gods.

Rumours:

• The Talabeclanders are preparing to invade. There have already been a number of border raids. There will be a mobilisation soon to deal with this and the trouble caused by Nordlander and Kislevite raiders. Better keep your head down. 
• There is nothing to be afraid of. There are whole loads of private wars between nobles that have nothing to do with Ostland. As long as they leave Wolfenburg alone, they can continue to kill each other over a few pigs.
• A doctor was killed by another doctor, who then burnt his house down.
• Some local thugs are having some sort of turf war.
• A group of bandits have invented some Ulrican mumbo-jumbo of a wolf spirit, and are using it as cover for their brigandage. 
• Valmir von Raukov is dealing with some shady mercenary group calling themselves the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Kislev. He is clearly up to no good.
• Grand Master Aldred Treitszaur of the Order of the Purging Hammer in Grenzburg is a fearsome warrior and friend of the Grand Prince. He should replace Valmir von Raukov.
• The Ostland chapter of witch-hunters has expelled Magnus Greel, the Butcher of Brizban, and a dozen of its members for criminal behaviour. Apparently they tried to destroy an entire village owned by the Templars (Sigmar) of the Purging Hammer.

... and then Gotwin saved everyone...