A Foul Breeze

[Diful Takveh]

The man answers Havelock, "I saw no-one emerge from the room, and the lady would not meet with any members of her family as none of them are left alive. None but those of the Lightning-Bearer family are permitted to carry or wield weaponry with the family crest. As far as I know, milady only kept her thinblade in her room, but I make it my business to go in there as little as possible. I fell on the floor after I ran into the door." After answering these questions and Havelock releases him from his enchanting gaze, the man collapses, only holding himself upright through respect of the one asking questions.

You can now see the guard, one line of three abreast and carrying tower shields followed by two crossbowmen rounds each corner. A man walks out, let through by those carrying tower shields on his right. His long black hair comes down over his left eye and flows down to his cloak, seeming to join the fabric which hangs loosely about his entire body. His right eye looks straight ahead and focuses on nothing in particular, as expressionless as the rest of his face. Below his cloak, you can see pants and shoes just as black as the cloak. In fact, the only article of clothing that isn't black is the navy collar which peeks up out of the neck of the man's cloak. A hand strikes out of the cloak and grabs the dagger from midair and brings it back inside the cloak before either Havelock or Nemuro can do anything about it. The man turns back around and takes a step towards the spot where he entered. Without turning head or body he speaks,

"I'm going to have to ask you to come with me, and do bring that sorry excuse for a receptionist with you."

[forsaken1111]

With false cheer, though internally annoyed at the rudeness displayed by this man, Havelock replies, "Of course my good sir, we will accompany you and cooperate in any way we can. Come along my friend, I'm sure these fine gentlemen have this situation well in hand. It is an unfortunate business but they look rather efficient don't they?"

[LordChaos13]

"Yeah sure, but do tell your guards to work on their skills, I mean really three abreast towers and a few crossbowmen? Anyone good enough to blow a door off its hinges with a word can blow through them with ease. Teamwork like that works only for those without magic facing nonmagicals and even then diversification is key.
I assume you want to speak with me about the door as well?"
Striding (well 'striding' emulating the walking even if it does mean nothing) through after the guard chief.
Absently half-turning, hand reaching out tugging sharply. The receptionist grabbed and bodily pulled dragged through midair a couple feet behind the Elementalist
"The body was found tied to it's chair with rope, one for each arm the other on the neck just below the cut. The head was removed by her own thinblade after her death and placed on the visitors chair. She was taken by surprise with the dagger in your coat to the forehead, likely by an invisible foe due to the placement of said weapon. The painting behind her seems to be replaced with one depicting fear or shock in some magical way, either through manipulation of the painting or replacing with a completely new one I cannot tell.
It also bears the word False written in blood I presume to be hers due to similar states of aging though it was a field assumption and again magical forgeries.
I believe there were 3 people in the room due to her facial expression, she was taken by surprise and looking at someone when she died, meaning the assassin would have had to draw the dagger and thrust it into her skull before her expression could change an iota unless she was looking at another.
The murder weapon itself was not usually held within the office meaning it was carried there though by the deceased, the assassin or the accomplice and bears the family crest of the deceased which may only be borne on a weapon by her immediate family."

[Diful Takveh]

The guard kicks Nemuro back against the wall and six daggers fly out from under his cloak. Nemuro is quick enough to dodge or deflect all but one of the daggers which pins his right sleeve to the wall. "I would suggest not using such vile language when speaking of our lady in her own house, and as for their skills, they're only here to make sure you don't run." In one swift motion, the man pulls the daggers out of the wall and continues walking.

[forsaken1111]

Havelock is a bit startled but manages to keep most of the surprise from his face, "Calm down please, everyone. We are...were in the Lady's employ and we wish nothing more than for this situation to be resolved and the guilty party brought to justice. And whyever would we run? Only the guilty or the stupid run, and we are neither."

[LordChaos13]

"Heh sorry I forgot myself for a second, usually when dealing with the dead they are inhuman and likely deserve it. New experience meeting a victim."
A brush of air smoothing his clothes out
"Her eminence Lady Lightning-bearer, did you know of any enemies? You are her family's hired guard you'd know of any incidents that might have led to this. Perhaps in the family? Would explain the dagger, though I'm sure your house is impeccable and united the question is simple formality."

[forsaken1111]

"Nemuro, while I do appreciate your dedication to duty perhaps we should follow this gentleman in silence until we reach whatever destination we are bound for? I'd really rather not have to patch you up."

[LordChaos13]

"Aww but I do so love giving you the practice. Then you'll be more experienced when Im actually in need of healing." Silencing himself and moving beside his friend, the receptionist pulled in front of him held aloft by the same air as Nemuro. Nemuro's legs stopping their motion simply due to the lack of a reason to move them

[forsaken1111]

Havelock nods to Nemuro with a wane smile and addresses the apparent guardsman who took the dagger, "While we're all being cooperative and friendly, might I know your name sir?"

[Diful Takveh]

Instead of walking back into the lobby area, you are led through a door directly at the end of this hallway. The group immediately turns to the right in a hallway that is thankfully not covered in portraits of the lady. As with the other walls in the establishment, the walls of this hallway match the blue of the lady's favorite dress. A group of three others make their way past you, careful not to break the formation around you.

Without turning back, the man answers you, "Her ladyship indeed has many enemies, most predominantly among the other twelve lords of the city. An attack from her family is not possible as she is-- was the only surviving member of her family."

The man glances back, his eye seeming to look through Havelock as if he wasn't there, "As for my name, you may call me K."

[forsaken1111]

"Very well then 'K'. Would you happen to know how the murderer replaced the large painting with one showing fear and pain? Do you perhaps think that some magic was used? And where precisely are we going?"

[Diful Takveh]

K turns his head back forward, "That is a task more suited to our investigative department, three of whom walked past us just now. It is not my place to say if magic was used or not, but I would operate under the assumption that it had." He continues walking for a few moments before turning to a door on the right, "This is where we are going." He opens the door and walks inside while the muscle form a wall around you, preventing you from leaving without moving them or flying overhead.

[forsaken1111]

"Oh good, we've arrived." Without any visible worry, Havelock enters the open door after K.

[LordChaos13]

Nemuro also walks through without any worries, though he does slide into an advanced stance in case an escape or attack is needed

[Diful Takveh]

The two of you head into the room, dragging your unconscious friend along with you. The room is a square about 20 feet on a side, and is partitioned by tables that form a squared ring about the center. K stops immediately outside the only entrance to the center, a gap between the tables on the side facing the door from which you entered. "If you are not guilty, I would advise you to wait in here until you are questioned. If you are, well, you'll die whether you wait here or not."

The center area doesn't look very comfortable. The six chairs are bolted to the floor in a ring facing outward.

[forsaken1111]

"My good man, if we were guilty we'd have fled the scene ages ago. What sort of murderer waits around for the authorities? Not that your response time was all that good. It was at least seven minutes before you arrived. In any case, any of those in the waiting room can tell you that we were present in the room when the scream was first heard. I have nothing to hide here, and have no problems waiting given the tragic circumstances. I could do with a spot of lunch though, do you think you could have something sent up?"

Havelock gives K a winning smile and lays on his best mortal charm. (1d20+18)[22]

[Diful Takveh]

K continues looking just to the right of your head. "It is not unheard of for our lady's clients to scream as she describes what will happen if they fail to uphold their end of the bargain, and each of us has been reprimanded at least once for disturbing our ladyship's meetings." He lifts up the hair covering his left eye revealing an empty socket surrounded by tissue scarred in the shape of the Lightning-Bearer family crest. "She did, on occasion, use the interrupting guard member to demonstrate. I would say that it was a rather effective method to say the least." He lets the hair fall back, covering the empty socket once more in a flow of black hair. "As for a meal, I do not believe you will be held long enough that that will be necessary. That is, if you truly aren't guilty."

[LordChaos13]

"Oh good, I could use some meditation." The Elementalist comments, rising into the air settling upside down on the ceiling legs crossed in a classical meditative pose

Eyes closed, his hands flickering with flames. A corona of heat surrounding him as he dumps fire and air into the air around him

[forsaken1111]

"Indeed. We shall wait while you complete your investigation."

Havelock takes a seat, looking around the room with a bored expression.

"I do hope they move this along. They'd do well to utilize our talents in this rather than have us sit in a room quietly."

[LordChaos13]

"Oh yes, I'd love to see you use your talents in front of them." The normally dry tone accompanying the barb instead flat and toneless

[forsaken1111]

The warlock smiles, revealing one abnormally sharp incisor among his otherwise normal teeth, "Oh yes, that WOULD be interesting. So how do you think they pulled off that trick with the painting, do you think? Its almost as though they swapped the expressions of the painting and the body."

[LordChaos13]

"That never occurred to me. Perhaps. Would make sense, and cause one to be led down a false trail, expecting invisible instant killers instead of paralysis spells or reacting fast enough a change of expression could occur."

[Diful Takveh]

A loud snap is heard from the doorway, and the air holding both Nemuro and the less than stellar receptionist ceases to flow, dropping both of them to the ground each with a loud thud. Havelock looks toward the origin of the sound, a tall, thin man with neatly combed brown hair and round spectacles held at the end of his almost-outrageously-long nose. He walks over to the table and adjusts his glasses with fingers seemingly far too long to be natural appendages. "So, these are the two who decided to take it upon themselves to interrupt her ladyship's business?" He clacks the bony fingers of his right hand on the table a few times, "And the one who fell from the ceiling is the one who destroyed her door and damaged the paintings in the hallway?" K nods once to each question. The tall man clacks his fingers a few times more, "And with what business did you suppose you could threaten our poor receptionist and barge in to our lady's office unannounced?" This question is directed toward Havelock as Nemuro is still untangling himself from the chairs he had fallen into.

[forsaken1111]

Havelock stands to face this new arrival, leaning slightly on his cane and smiling congenially.

"Good day sir, My name is Havelock and there seems to be some misunderstanding. We moved to the Lady's aide after hearing the poor receptionist scream. You see, we are in the Lady's employ and feared for her safety. Alas, we arrived too late to prevent the tragedy of her demise. We will of course pay for any damages done to the Lady's estates out of the promised payment for our services. We intended no offense and were thinking only of the Lady's safety."

He pauses for a moment, looking thoughtful.

"Might I know your name sir? We would be delighted to offer our services to aid your investigation but I would like to know to whom I am speaking. Also, my companion here does not react well to magical suppression such as that which surrounds this chamber. We have been nothing but cooperative so far, I give you my word that we will attempt nothing untoward, but please for all of our sakes remove the suppression."

[Diful Takveh]

The man looks at you over the rims of his glasses, "You seem a decent fellow. Your companion, however..." He points his hand at the man sprawled out on the chairs and raises it up, causing Nemuro to be pulled upward to hang upside down in the air. "And what were these services you say you rendered for her ladyship?" Unlike K, this man's eyes appear to bore into your very soul, noticing every movement you make from your stance to every minor twitch in your face. With another flick of his hand, he sends Nemuro slowly cartwheeling through the air, sending him in a circular orbit about the room as he tumbles through the air.

[forsaken1111]

Havelock looks up at his friend mournfully before returning his gaze to the stranger.

"My companion and I were contracted by the Lady to perform a certain service, but I'm afraid the nature of that service is confidential. Since I do not know you, and you will not give your name nor title, I do not feel comfortable discussing the Lady's business with you without her consent. For one thing, we are not in the habit of sharing our client's information with strangers, especially strangers who behave rudely and torment innocent men. For another, I do not trust you and thus far you have given me no reason to revise my assessment."

He looks rather stern now, the very picture of an affronted gentleman who is rapidly reaching the end of his patience.

"Now, if you have questions about the attack please ask them. We will cooperate with your investigation. If you do not intend to question us regarding the investigation, then let us discuss remuneration for the damage we caused in our haste and zeal to aid the Lady from what we determined (and rightly so) to be a dangerous situation."

[LordChaos13]

"You bloody Incubus-fathered Erythnul-blessed moron abandoned by Cuthbert! I was meditating, trying to vent as much of the elements as I could so I could adjust their pathways through my emotions. That left me MORE Vulnerable to their effects when they rushed back into me!"
A dark scorching tone underlying Nemuro's speech as he shifts in the air, glaring, his eyes completely white, though you think you see grey flecks rushing, giving the image of a tornado behind his eyes
"Do you have any idea how much it HURTS to have the PURE INCARNATION OF AIR run RAMPANT inside your mind when you have all your guards down then followed by the Purest Flames of the City of Pelor-Scorched BRASS!"

Hands flaring trying to vent some spark, some gust of wind
"Turn it off! Turn it off NOW OR I WILL END YOU! No, no I wont, GRAH! Rushing, have to move, controlled, free, NO! Too free, control, cant vent!"

[Diful Takveh]

The man with the glasses pays no attention to the screaming man helplessly floating about the room, focusing instead on his companion, "As chief investigator, it is my duty to determine any possible threat you might pose to our lady and her establishment, a threat I have every right to believe you and your companion represent." A man in a black suit walks into the room and whispers in the tall man's ear. Once again, the chief investigator raises his hand and Havelock can feel his feet leave the floor. "It seems our lady was killed over an hour ago, 'my dear sir.' And by the testimony of those waiting with you in the lobby, you were only in there for half that time, meaning you have no alibi for the crime." A wicked grin spreads over the man's face, "Of course, you might be innocent, but why should we let you go, especially with your companion spouting continuous threats at me?"

[LordChaos13]

"We have an alibi you GRAH! Please, It HURTS! Asmodeus would be pleased you sadistic torturer! At least I give my foes a quick death not leave them trapped in their worst nightmare!"

[forsaken1111]

"So you are proposing that... what? We murdered the lady, slipped away undetected despite your guards, and then RETURNED to wait in the lobby? If we were able to slip away after having performed the deed, why not just flee to freedom? Why would we still be here? Why would we have willingly walked with your guard into an interrogation room?"

Havelock shakes his head, as if the very notion were absurd.

"And tell me, above all, why would we murder her BEFORE WE'D GOTTEN PAID? This whole situation is ridiculous. If you wish to blame us for the crime at least produce some evidence beyond the fact that we have no alibi. Half the city has no alibi for where they were an hour ago, I'm sure. Have you questioned the guards at the city gates? We passed through the gate to the district not long ago, they will likely have a record as they checked our papers. Any number of my companions could vouch for our whereabouts, though you'd likely dismiss that as biased."

He leans back, exuding confidence and annoyance, righteous anger.

"The bottom line, my dear sir, is that you have no evidence. None at all. If you proceed with this course of action I cannot be held accountable for the consequences. We have cooperated thus far but do not test me. If you wish our cooperation then PUT DOWN MY COMPANION AND ENGAGE IN CIVILIZED BEHAVIOR as I am rapidly losing my patience."

{Intimidate: (1d20+18)[33]}

"And my companion is spewing threats at you because you are currently engaging in what amounts to torture. His condition is not amenable to the anti-magic field which permeates this chamber. Not only does it cause him considerable discomfort, it obviates him of any ability to actally provide you with information for your investigation. Are you some rank amateur?"