The covered handcart rests in a warded examination room beneath the Nohara refuge. The elf witness lies bound but breathing on the table, while the masked clerk waits beside route annotations and ledgers.
When the elf’s eyes flutter open, a faint violet sigil kindles beneath her tongue. The ward-candles bend toward it, and the clerk stiffens without touching the prisoner.
The Masked Clerk
Lady Nohara, that mark was absent from Pell Vey’s notation. It may be a command, a warning, or something meant to punish disclosure.
The Elf Witness
The river gate... I remember the crates. I remember a hooded courier, then nothing.
The sigil pulses again beneath her tongue, bright enough to stain her teeth violet. Her breath catches, but the wards hold steady and the sleeping compound leaves no visible harm.
The Masked Clerk
Her answer matches the route page, but not the missing annotation. I can compare each statement, if she remains able to speak.
The Elf Witness
Do not make me say the name. Whoever marked me will know.
✓ Quest Accepted
Preserve the witness’s reliable and specific testimony
“"I will say this now." I say with a smile on my face. "I have poisons that will make you talk. You can either say it now and remain in my custody where you will be safe or... perhaps you want to do this my way?"”
FAILURE (Great Willpower, rolled -2)
Doku Nohara
I have poisons that will make you talk. Say it now and remain in my custody, where you will be safe, or let me do this my way.
Doku smiles and rests one gloved hand atop the locked poison tray. The elf witness studies her expression, then the violet sigil flares beneath her tongue.
The Elf Witness
You mistake fear for silence. If I name the patron aloud, the mark will answer before you can save me.
The sigil constricts her voice to a rasp, forcing her jaw shut whenever she forms the first syllable of a name. The ward-candles gutter toward her.
The Masked Clerk
Lady Nohara, the command is keyed to disclosure, not pain. Poisons may loosen her tongue, but they could trigger the mark before she finishes.
The Elf Witness
I can still tell you this: the patron never used a name. The courier carried a signet bearing a moth with one broken wing.
The threat has not won the name, but it exposes the sigil’s rule and yields a usable emblem. The elf witness remains in Nohara custody, trembling yet alive.
Discover how to bypass the witness’s disclosure sigil
“"I will say this now." I say with a smile on my face. "I have poisons that will make you talk. You can either say it now and remain in my custody where you will be safe or... perhaps you want to do this my way?"”
SUCCESS (Great Willpower, rolled -1)
Doku Nohara
I have poisons that will make you talk. Say it now and remain in my custody, where you will be safe, or let me do this my way.
Doku smiles over the locked poison tray. The elf witness holds her gaze, and the violet sigil flickers as the threat settles into the warded room.
The Masked Clerk
Lady Nohara, her fear is focused. She believes you can preserve her life, and that makes disclosure possible.
The witness swallows carefully. Instead of forcing out a forbidden name, she presses two fingers against the moth-shaped mark and speaks around its command.
The Elf Witness
The patron is Lord Vaust, called the Pale Benefactor in private ledgers. He commissioned the vessel and paid through the three intermediaries.
The sigil dims without striking her, its violet light sinking beneath her tongue. The clerk immediately writes the name beside the moth emblem and route marks.
The Elf Witness
He keeps a winter manor beyond the eastern vineyards. I never saw his face, but his signet bore the broken-winged moth.
Quest Complete
Expose the living patron behind the sealed vessel
Attribute Upgrade: Willpower Great→Superb
Quest Complete
Preserve the witness’s reliable and specific testimony
Attribute Upgrade: Willpower Superb→Legendary