Kenji stared at the dead man on the table.
He was of a rough sort, with a stubbled beard, a gap in his teeth and the bagged hands of a sailor. Stripped down to his loincloth, it was obvious the thug had lived a life of work, with the scars from where he was shanked while riffing up a rival gang, and then there was the scars around his neck from where he had survived a hanging.
But the most important features was the great black spiderweb tattooed in his right shoulder, the hole in his gut that had killed him, and the creature hiding in his throat. Pushing his hand into the man's mouth and down his throat, he grabbed at the squirming thing and pulled it out for all to see.
The spider had beady black eyes, bladed claws, and from its abdomen stretched a nerve-ending. The thug started to convulse, even while dead, he became erratic, limbs flailing in every direction before finally calming into mild spasms.
"What the fuck is that?" Arwen muttered, the spider in Kenji's hand beginning to screech and whine. Clawing at his wrist, Kenji quickly placed the specimen in a glass bottle.
"I don't know. From this man's own memories he isn't sure, just that his Mob boss ordered he get an 'enhancement' one day that sometimes made his body have a mind of its own. He'd wake up sore and be told he trained all knight with weights, he'd be fighting and his body wouldn't freeze, and something inside him egged him on to keep giving up more and more for the gang. But he didn't know there was a damn spider moving him around like a puppet, although he did at least know where we can get more information."
Kenji turned to the first group, "Kragg, you'll lead our assassins and rogues on a stealth operation. Go to these locations and bring back as high ranking members of The Spider gang as you can. May the Truthblade be with you."
"May the Moon watch over us all," Kragg grunted and grasped at the scroll detailing his mission. Bounding into the main hall, his yelling for the required adventurers to assemble was audible until the door slammed shut.
"Almanac and Violet, you'll lead time to the 'Antique Society'. They're a group of wizards that deal in exotic goods, this thug was apparently ordered to guard their establishment at times, and they might have some clue as to what this spider is. Assume they have a connection, do not go in unprepared for trouble."
"I don't like entering another wizard's domain..." Almanac muttered and seemed annoyed when he received several strange looks, "don't know what wards they've set up. I'm no ward breaker, if they set traps then the fighting will be not to our advantage."
"Then take Taki and Hartog, worst comes to worst that gives you a balanced team with two damage dealers, a healer and a tank. But not getting into a brawl would be even better, you're not there to fight, just ask questions, ok? Maybe bring some gold to loosen lips if you get my meaning," slappomg across Almanac's folder, Kenji turned to Arwen.
"I need you to get me into the noble's warrior tournament."
Flashing white teeth, Arwen seemed pleased by the notion, "will we be fighting then?"
"You will be fighting, I'll be acting as your sponsor. You said you could get us access to the noble class, right? Well according to this gangster his leaders love the arena, and that makes me think at the very least the other nobles might have some idea as well."
"I'll be going with you," Violet informed him. "Don't give me that look Kenji, I actually have experience with nobility. You'd be like putty in their hands without me, and not to mention you have no titles. If me and mother come then there will be no need to lie about our origin, and you can just be the poor Houseless Knight we picked up and are looking after like a stray dog."
Pausing to consider whether he should be offended, Kenji nodded.
"A better idea, that suits you alright then Almanac?"
"Please, now that I'm solely in charge my part of all this will be a breeze," Almanac laughed, yet an icy glare from Violet shut him up. "No offence, but me and Hartog are already long time companions in arms, while the young Taki of the Furbolgs has been nothing short of delightful during his stay here."
Kenji turned to Taki, he continued to seem lost in some daydream.
"Taki, are you alright?" Kenji asked, "you haven't been speaking much."
Shaking his head slightly, Taki refocused on Kenji. "I'm fine, just tell me...this is another person like that witch, correct? These members of The Spider...they seek to corrupt this city like they did my homeland?"
Kenji could practically see the dead leaves falling from the sky, and swore himself a fool for not realising sooner. Being one with the earth was a great thing until the whole damn thing died, and ever since the Furbolgs had been a dreamy people, always thinking, always silent. As if a part of them had died along with their lands.
Of course he wanted to stop that happening again.
"It's likely one of the 18 are here, yes. But we should be cautious, this might be a network of hideouts spanning several cities, in which case we should continue to focus on information collection first and foremost," although in Kenji's gut he believed Oldeth was the centre of the web, the hive-like nature of the city too perfect for a member of the criminal underworld. He just wished he knew how the spider living in this man's neck worked into the rest of this. Had it something to do with their leader's powers? Had they made some pact with a monster? Was this an existing practice in this world, and Kenji just hadn't found the right people to explain it to him?
"Let's move out, the sooner we get this done, the sooner we get answers."
Together they filed for the door, then prepared on their own missions. The regular guild members would continue to scout the city, some few not having returned prompting larger expeditions to go in search of them. Yet as large as Oldeth was, as monumental, as gigantic and expansive...it would not hide the cancerous growth of it's underbelly long from Kenji.
The fury inside of him would not allow it.