Our first order of business was to get a feel for the layout of the monastery. The refectory was adjacent to the ante-chamber. A fierce-looking Klingon was eating as we arrived. He paid us no mind, although Koress referred to him as Godrin, a Dahar master. A couple of acolytes were milling around the place, cooking and cleaning.
Koress took us further into the asteroid, showing us the quarters of the four supplicants currently seeking a glorious death here at K'Chara. He explained that they were:
Godrin, Dahar Master
Chen'ra, Dahar Master
Renchal, Noble
Selenya, Warrior
From here we moved through to Koress' private quarters and then on to the Ossuary where the dead were prepared for burial and interred.
As we walked, Koress explained that Valerie's body was currently being embalmed.
Koress was happy for us to carry out an autopsy and Mabrin did a great job without the usual technological tools of his trade. He was able to determine that Valerie's cause of death was heart failure brought on by an electrical shock administered by something like a Klingon pain stick! We knew then that we were dealing with murder.
We spoke first to Selenya. She was not co-operative and my usual strategy of antagonising Klingons was not particularly effective with her. She claimed at the time of the murder (the time estimated by Mabrin), she was meditating alone in her quarters. She grew angry with the questions and we were unable to continue the interview.
We spoke next to Chen'ra, the Dahar Master. He said he was with his Par'Mach'kai, Godrin, at the time of the murder. Chen'ra was a jovial Klingon when he got warmed up, and he gave us a bit of background on K'Chara. He was very keen on explaining his exploits and prowess in the field of battle. Tren was convinced that Chen'ra was concealing something.
Next we spoke to the most objectionable Klingon I have ever met. Renchal was vile and unhelpful until Tren used Klingon diplomatic tactics and showed his superior prowess in battle! Tren was able to empathically detect that Renchal's bitterness was due to him secretly being part of the disgraced house of Duras. Tren was also certain that Renchal was lying when he claimed to have been on guard duty in the antechamber at the time of the murder.
We were able to interview Godrin separately from Chen'ra. He was less friendly than Chen'ra, but he backed up his Par'Mach'kai's alibi for the time of the murder. Tren was convinced that Godrin was lying too. We convinced Godrin to move to a quiet spot where we could talk. Godrin asked if in return for information, we would take him with us on the Arizona when we left. After we agreed, Godrin explained that at the time of the murder, he was in the ante-chamber, using the comms system to arrange transport for himself and Chen'ra off the asteroid. After so many years alone, he had decided he would rather live out his years in happiness with his Par'Mach'kai than die a pointless death alone at K"Charra. We deduced that this meant that Chen'ra's alibi was not solid and that Renchal could not have been where he said he was (on guard in the ante-chamber) at the time of the murder.
We returned to the quarters to speak again to Selenya, but we discovered her dead, her throat slit. A search of her quarters revealed strange, esoteric documents outlining a death ritual designed to rid a family of a curse. We applied pressure to Renchal again and discovered that he had been attempting to blackmail Selenya as he knew she and Chen'ra had been meeting secretly. Renchal had believed that in some way that Selenya could help him restore his family's honour. Chen'ra finally confessed that he had been helping Selenya carry out her death ritual to rid her family of an ancient curse.
We now had no viable suspects, so we decided to search for evidence. We felt that the best hiding place for a pain stick in the monastery would be the ossuary. As we began searching the sarcophagi, we quickly discovered something unexpected. A portable holoemitter!
And the adventure continues...