Shae Aloni, awakens first. She finds herself in a 5 by 5 ft stone cell with a locked reinforced wooden door. She is naked save for a simple smock and has no memory of how she ended up there. The last thing she knows for certain was cooking a meal in her tent for herself and her pet centipede, Pinchy and based on her level of hunger she surmises that she had been unconscious for no more than a day or two. The cell is clean and well maintained but it has obviously been used previously judging by the marks and scratches on the walls. She begins to call out, insisting that she does not belong here and that a mistake has been made.
Yartik awakens next. He rouses naked but for a smock in a similar cell, unable to see in the total darkness. Like Shae, he has no memory of how he came to be there remembering only that he was training with his fellow legionaries. His massive body barely fits within the confines of small cell and as he seeks to find some measure of comfort he hears Shae's cries from nearby. The pair converse briefly before Yartik tries to smash the door open with his prodigious strength.
The banging against the door rouses Unndral Vex, he awakens in another cell, dressed only in a smock like the others. The last thing he remembers is trailing an animal in the Undercity before waking up in the cell. He hears the commotion in the cell beside him but chooses to remain quiet for a time.
Naivara awakens last. She too has no memory of how she came to be locked in the cell dressed in only a smock. Her last memory is being in the Undercity en-route to meet a contact with information relating to the death of his master. She hears the crashing of Yartik nearby and calls out to signal her presence to the others.
Eventually Yartik's persistence and strength prove more than the door can handle, and he manages to break free of the confines of the cell and into what seems like a much larger room based on the echoes of his words and movement.
Naivara, bouyed by Yartik's success via brute force unleashes a series of eldritch blasts eventually overcoming the structural integrity and forcing the door to open.
It is then that they hear the sound. Starting as a faint hissing sound then building to a loud wooshing before dissipating as though a flush in a drain.
"There is water somewhere," Unndrel says, finally signaling to the others of his presence.
Naivara repeats her eldritch blast to force open Unndrel's cell, while Yartik persists with strength to free Shae. The four of them a free of their confines and those who can see in the dark look around their surroundings, spying 6 other cells (all empty) and a thick metal portcullis blocking the only visible way out of the cell area.
Again the, hissing builds to whooshing and flushing. The group determine the sound is coming from a dirt filled fissure that has opened in the ceiling above the cells. They take turns to clear the dirt away and eventually expose a rough natural passageway leading into the darkness but (most importantly) out of the room.
The four squeeze their way through the narrow passage, Yartik having the most difficult time until they come to a vertical shaft, looking up they spy a spot of sunlight many hundreds of feet above them, while below is a tunnel filled with water. As they decided what to do next, the water level rose the sound growing louder as it neared the passage they had squeezed into. The level rose until it covered the opening of the tunnel then quickly flushed away some 30 seconds later.
Unndrel points out that going up is not an option, but perhaps they could use this water to make it safely down into the tunnel below. The group agree and they wait for the next time the water rises.
It comes again and the four of them slide out of the passage and into the water filled shaft. As the water subsides the group is lowered into the tunnel below, only Unndrel suffering some minor injuries as the water swirls away.
Once at the bottom they see a long water filled tunnel stretching into the distance in both directions. With nothing else to go by they decide to follow the current.
Some time soon after the see a side passage lit by a flickering light. The group pull themselves out of the water and into the side passage, snapping off the continual flame torch that marked the maintenance tunnel entrance, then stepped through a sealed door and into a network of tunnels.
The crackle and hum of Izzet machinery is everywhere in the maze of rooms and intersecting tunnels. They eventually spy a grate in the passageway that overlooks a large chamber, as they peer into the chamber below they spy a strange site. A goblin reads from a book, a dagger in one hand raised above a moving figure on a stone slab. Surrounding the slab are 4 others, another goblin, two viashino and a human, watching the macabre display with interest.
Yartik seeks to kick the grate open and stop whatever is about to happen but the grate is too small for him to squeeze through. He spies a set of stairs on the opposite side of the rooms and begins to run quickly along the passage, hoping it will take him to the chamber below.
They pass one room with a series of hooks, holding leather coats and some various tools in boxes below them. The others take the coats and makeshift weapons while Yartik continues to run toward the chamber. He eventually finds the stairs but is called to a halt by Shae before he blunders in on the scene.
Shae enters first, casting entangle at the feet of the four onlookers. Two of them manage to avoid the vines which appeared from the stone and ran for a rough hewn tunnel on the opposite wall, but the others are stuck fast. Unndrel Vex moves toward the goblin who still brandished the knife above the figure on the stone slab, but as soon as Yartik entered the room the goblin dropped both book and knife and ran for the rough hewn exit as well.
Yartik ran across the room but was unable to catch the fleeing goblin.
"What is going on here?" Naivara yelled, her voice taking on an ominous tone. One of the entangled, a small Viashino collapsed to the ground begging for mercy, while the other - a human - managed to blurt a hasty reply. "We were just doing what Gunder wanted. He promised it would help us. Nobody's getting hurt."
"What of the poor wretch on the slab?" Shae pointed out.
"That's just a zombie," the human managed weakly.
Unndrel moved closer to the slab, verifying the clearly terrified human's claim. It was indeed a zombie, and very poor one at that.
The encounter over, the group learned that Gunder is a member of the Shatterbang Brother's gang. They take money from poor unfortunates from the rot farms and perform "rituals" they claim will help elevate them out of the Undercity. The book is little more than a Simic anatomy text with zero arcane value. The poor wretches tell the group that the tunnel the goblin fled down will eventually take them to the surface but they should be careful because the Shatterbang gang will force them to pay to pass through the exit.
The group let the unfortunate's go and follow the tunnel upward. After many twists and turns the tunnel ends at a door. Shae places an ear against it and hears the sound of movement beyond. Yartik, barely contains his patience and tries the door handle finding that it was not locked, but is stopped by Unndrel before attempting to open it advising them to wait.
Their patience is rewarded as after a long 3 or 4 minutes the sound of scraping is heard - like something being dragged away from the door - and then the door begins to open. Yartik launches himself at the door and smashes into the room. The goblin opening the door is knocked off his feet and Yartik gores him brutally with his horns. In the corner of the room a second goblin - armed with a crossbow - sits stunned by the violent death of his companion.
Naivara comes in behind Yartik and positions herself before the goblin, striking him with a concussive force. The goblin shrieks in pain and strikes back with his sword, hitting the half-elf before fleeing up the stairs and out the door onto the street.
Yartik gives chase, catching the fleeing goblin before he is able to lose the lumbering minotaur in the backstreets and alleyways. He subdues the goblin and restrains him using his dead companion's clothes as a makeshift rope.
With the now unconscious goblin slung over his shoulders the four of them seek out a Boros patrol. They are quick to find such walking the streets, and they show some alarm at Yartik's clothing and blood soaked horns. but as soon as he shows his legionary tattoos they relax and offer the group their assistance. Yartik hands the goblin over and the Boros gift him a weapon and a cloak before advising them to report their kidnapping to the proper authorities as soon as possible.
They agree this is a wise course of action but Shae feels that they should go to their homes to get some supplies first. Shae's home is nearest so they go there first. Everything appears to be as she remembers but Unndrel uses his ranger skill to investigate a bit further. It appears that Shae was indeed taken from her home because while there was no sign of a struggle he did see signs of other's presence and clear signs that she had been dragged out of her tent.
Shae hosted her new companions in her humble tent and feeding then what little food she had - a simple mushroom broth - the group made their way to the home of Unndrel Vex.
Vex resides in the Under City, in the ruins of a once flying castle that crashed many centuries ago and had since been buried by years of urbanization. After a thorough check he determined that his house was exactly as he'd left it before his capture.
They offered to accompany Naivara and Yartik to check their homes but Yartik indicated that - given Vex's house was untouched - his barracks would likely be the same. Naivarra too felt that her house would also be free of any clues.
Yartik felt that he had to return to his barracks and make an official report of what had happened, the others opted not to accompany him but they agreed to meet at The Slush Bucket tavern at 10pm that evening to discuss what to do next.
Vex went back inside his house, Yartik made his way back upside, Shae returned to her hovel, while Naivara went to make a report of her own.
Naivara picked her way through the undercity to a secluded space where a statue, it's arms spread wide, loomed in the darkness - a former fountain in what was once a city square. She carefully checked the area to ensure that she was alone before she approached the statue and stepped into it's chilling embrace. As soon as her hands made contact with the cold stone she felt a familiar tickle in her mind and she shared her recent experience with her handler. Once her story was complete she waited for a response. As usual there were no actual words, but the meaning was clear - she was to find out more. Knowledge is power for the ones she calls master.
Yartik returned to his barracks, suffering frequent jokes and derision from his squad mates at his dishevelled appearance. His sergeant stopped the lumbering minotaur before he could reach his bed and gave him a dressing down followed by a please explain. Yartik related what happened and his sergeant grew skeptical. "You'll be telling that story to the Captain, and if even one detail is different from what you just told me you'll be spending the rest of your life cleaning latrines! Now go get cleaned up and meet me in in the CO's office in 30 minutes recruit."
Yartik did as he was ordered and after a quick wash and a change into uniform he reported outside his commanding officer's door. After a brief wait he was admitted within and was asked to tell the story yet again. The sergeant listened intently his gaze never wavering as he stared Yartik down. After he'd finished his report the Captain looked to the sergeant who gave a single - almost reluctant - nod. "Right," said the Captain, "you'll be telling that story again before our Azorious liaison in morning. And I'll expect your fellow victims to be present to corroborate your version of events."
Yartik pointed out that he was due to meet them later this evening and his Captain instructed that he not be late.
Shae arrived at the The Slush Bucket - a tavern on the (wide) border of the Upper and Under City - first. She found a table out of the way and waited. Vex arrived next, he took a few coins from his purse and ordered some drinks before Naivara got there. The trio discussed their plight - basically naked, equipmentless and all but broke while they waited for Yartik.
The big minotaur arrived exactly on time - dressed once more in his legionary uniform. His entrance caused more than a few of the patrons to stop and stare while others flat out got up and left the tavern. The barman fixed him with a baleful stare as he marched directly across to the trio at the table.
Yartik explained that he'd been ordered to report to the Azorious in the morning and the others were expected to be there as well. After a brife back and forth they all agreed and the night was done.
The next day they met at the appointed time at an arrestor station not far from Yartik's barracks. The were ushered inside and all 4 of them told their tale - only Vex decided to omit the details of the goblins and their "sacrifice" in the sewers. The Azorious official took their statements and verified that they believed their statements to be true to the best of their knowledge and then bid them stay - he wanted to consult with his superior.
After another 30 minute wait - nothing moves quickly amid the sea of process and paperwork - they were led upstairs to a far less busy part of the building where yet another official was waiting to met them.
"I am Nassius Ven," the man said, "Representative from the Office of the Guildpact. I understand that the four of you have recently escaped from captivity and are interested in tracking down whoever might have captured you." The group nodded, and Nassius bid them take a seat. "You are not the only ones to have gone missing in recent months. We have had several such kidnappings take place but you are the first to have managed to get free. Unfortunately I have no need of your assistance in finding the perpetrators - we already have people looking into that - but I could use your help with another matter in exchange for sharing what we learn with you."
After a brief negotiation where Nassius agreed to re-equip Vex and Naivara and cover their living expenses for a week the four of them agreed to help Nassius recover a prisoner who had escaped during a prison transfer a few days ago.
The group were issued contracts - which they signed - and became official deputies to the Azorious in pursuit of the escaped convict Krenko - gang boss from the Foundry Street area of Precinct 5.
A nearby tavern was selected and the group took up residence as they began their investigation.
Vex went to the site of the escape and verified the story told by the Azorius guards of spirits rising from the ground to encircle the group as they walked. The spirits moved about the guards in rapid circles attacking them and once the melee had ended Krenko had vanished from amid his wall of guards.
Shae naively offered the bulk of her coins to the barman, who - luckily for her - recognised her naivety and advised her to be more circumspect with her questioning and offering of bribes. Not all people would have her best interests at heart. The barman had no real information at the time but was later able to point the group toward a sewer entrance where several goblins were seen a few nights ago.
Yartik learned from his Boros contacts that the Shattergan Brothers' a rival goblin gang were starting to become more belligerent as if they were getting ready to move in on Krenko's old territory - now that he'd been put away. Cleary they did not yet know he'd escaped.
The group entered the sewers based on the barman's information and soon found evidence of recent passage. It was slow going and with a combination of Vex's tracking skills and Shae's ability to speak with animals they'd followed a path below the city.
The group paused as they sought the way forward. Vex was unable to find sign of passage so Shae used her magic to speak with a nearby rat to find the way forward but before they could act on the information gained 3 giant centipedes emerged from the darkness and attacked the group. The battle was brief and the hungry insects were dispatched without serious injury to any of the party.
They continued to follow the days old goblin trail to it's conclusion, a sturdy ladder leading up to a manhole cover in the street. They ascended the ladder and emerged in the centre of an alleyway that ran between a number of warehouses. It was late at night and the alley was deserted giving the group plenty of time to study the area.
Shae checked the nearby doors finding them all locked and listened at each of them but heard not a single sound within. Vex watched the rooftops for any sign of movement while Naivara climbed up a drainpipe to try and gain access to the roof. Unfortunately she lost purchase and fell heavily to the ground, with Yartik on hand to soften her fall and keep her from serious damage.
None of the warehouses offered a single clue as to where the goblins might have gone after emerging from the sewers.
The group decided to stay in the area and wait it out, hoping for anything that might aid them in their hunt for Krenko, the goblin gang boss.
Hours passed and nothing.
With the lightening of the sky, the noise of people starting their day grew louder and traffic in the area increased markedly. The alleyway remained quiet for now but the larger roads nearby became much busier. Eventually Shae grew tired of waiting and took Pinchy - her pet centipede - from her hair and with the aid of her animal speaking magic asked the creature to enter beneath the still closed main doors of the surrounding warehouses. Pinchy found nothing save that one of the warehouses - a large windowless building marked with a faded boros sigil - smelled of smoke.
Soon the warehouses began to open, and Yartik approached one of the workmen to ask about that particular warehouse. He learned that it was used to house equipment for the legion up to a few weeks ago when a fire broke out inside and destroyed the building's interior. It had been abandoned since then.
The group decided that they should try and get inside that warehouse. They had no qualms about breaking in but were concerned that doing so would leave sign of their presence and preferred instead to try and open the door cleanly. Yartik, figured that since the boros had used it then it was possible that they still had a key, so he took himself to the nearest Boros watch station to make enquiries. He learned that there had indeed been afire but the legion no longer had access to the building as it was turned back over to the building owners as the bureaucratic tangle of who was at fault in the fire played out.
With no other alternative they used their crowbar to prise the door open at the side of the building and went inside. The fire damage was extensive and it was somewhat surprising the whole place had not collapsed. Inside it was all but empty save for two unmoving lumps that upon investigation turned out to be the murdered bodies of two goblins marked with the symbol of Krenko's gang.
Frustrated and tired the group had no choice but to concede that this trail had gone cold. Vex and Yartik returned to their room while Shae and Naivara decided to sleep inside the warehouse in the vain hope that the goblins might come back while they rested.
The barman greeted Yartik and Vex as they entered the tavern where they stayed and informed them that a package arrived by courier while they were out. He reached below the bar and handed Vex an official looking box stamped with the seal of the Azorious. Vex placed his thumb on the locking mechanism and the box opened to reveal a satchel with a sheaf of papers.
Upstairs in their room he read through the documents. Nassius had sent them an update on their kidnapping investigation indicating that his team were narrowing in on a suspect. He also provided some more information about Krenko sourced from the prison he was originally sentenced to. They learned of two of Krenko's known associates - Falish a rouge izzet weapons maker who is known to work out of Tin Street, and Mr Taz - no details except the name. They also learned that Krenko was captured with a magic dagger in his possession.
Vex and Yartik slept comfortably in their beds while Naivara and Shae slept roughly in the warehouse without incident. Eventually they came together once more and discussed next steps.
With trailing goblins turning up nothing the group decided to try and make contact with Falish, since the details regarding Mr Taz were scant. They decided that maybe they could claim to have come into possession of Krenko's magic dagger and contact Falish in an attempt to sell the weapon to her, figuring that if she did know how to find Krenko she might seek to return the weapon to him.
After a great deal of discussion they knew that pretending to have the weapon would not be enough it would best if they could actually have it - or at least a decent replica - in case things did work out. With that in mind they returned to Nassius to request access to the weapon.
Nassius listened to their proposal and decided that it was worth the risk and agreed to loan them the dagger. Another round of paperwork was signed and assurances were given and the group walked away from the meeting with Krenko's magic dagger in hand. Heading for Tin Street to try and track down Falish.
Naivara used her magic to alter her appearance, choosing to present as red-haired human with ties to the Boros legion. She walked the streets approaching various likely lads with questions about where she might go if she wanted to offload some shady merchandise. After numerous failed attempts she learned of a tavern - the Millstone - run by a minotaur called Wyroon who'd been run out of the legion a few years back.
Mindful of the time remaining before her magical disguise wore off Naivara entered the Millstone and spoke with Wyroon who provided her with the location of two people who might be interested in buying her item - one of those people was Falish.
The next day Naivara returned to Tin Street - once again assuming the guise of the red-haired boros woman and made her way to the address Wyroon had given. It led to a solid looking metal door in an alleyway not far from the Millstone. Naivara knocked loudly and after a brief wait the door was opened by a dirty faced human with a mane of curled hair dressed in thick leather coat; Falish herself.
Naivara explained why she was there and Falish, although somewhat disinterested at first became intrigued as Naivara explained the dagger and its provenance. The pair agreed to meet again in three hours - this time at the Millstone - to complete the transaction. Naivara also giving Falish her address - the actual tavern where she and her companions were staying - in case Falish needed to contact her for any reason.
The two of them shook hands and Naivara departed, never intending to be at the Millstone at the agreed time.
She had planted the seed, it was time now to wait and see what might grow from it.
The group advanced in experience and are now at level 2.
Having set their plan in motion the group settled in for what they felt might be a long period of waiting, needing to stay close to their accommodation in order to see what attention their actions might have earned them.
Vex and Shae awoke first and went downstairs as soon as the kitchen opened, selecting a table that afforded them with the opportunity to hear what was said at the bar as well as providing good coverage of the downstairs common room.
A messenger, draped in the characteristic blue and black of the Dimir entered the tavern and proceeded to the bar, he spoke briefly to the barman and the two Devkarin elves heard their names mentioned before the barman pointed in their direction. The messenger turned and handed Vex a package and left the room without another word.
The package, adorned with Azorious symbols was similarly sealed as one they'd received a few days earlier and Vex placed his thumb on the lock to open it. Inside was a letter from Nassius Ven, it read:
Brave adventurers. Please be aware that the investigation into your abduction and unlawful imprisonment has come to an end and further assistance in that matter from you is no longer required nor advised. Thank you. Nassius Ven.
Naivara and Yartik came down soon after and they too enjoyed a hearty meal from the kitchens before a second messenger, dressed like the first in Dimir black and blue, entered the common room. He approached the bar and the group overheard him ask for Red - the pseudonym used by Naivara in her meeting with Falish the previous day. The barman checked the register and confirmed they had a booking under that name then placed the package into storage beneath the bar.
Naivara waited a few minutes before going upstairs to adopt the illusory guise of Red and came back downstairs, going directly to the bar to ask for the package. The barman handed it to her and went about his business.
Unlike the official Azorious package this was a simple leather scroll case sealed with only a piece of string. Inside was a letter, it read:
Red, I hope this message finds you well. I am sorry that I missed seeing you at our appointed meeting last night, and I hope that this does not mean that you have found another buyer for the item we spoke about. If you are still interested in making a deal please let me know at your earliest convenience. Regards, Falish.
Naivara went back upstairs to drop the disguise and came back down to share this news with the others, inspiring a ranging discussion among them as to next steps. Eventually they decided to try and lure Falish here and try and get her to talk, first using Shae's charm person and should that fail then via Yartik's intimidation.
Naivara penned a response to Falish assuring her that the deal was still very much on and that she should come to the inn where they stayed later that evening to make the exchange. Then she left the tavern and used a series of expeditious retreats to move swiftly through the streets to a nearby Dimir messenger station where she arranged for the letter to be delivered to Falish's door.
As Naivara made her way back to their tavern she spotted a goblin in the streets nearby who seemed to be taking an unusual interest in the place. She looked around for others but either there were none to be found or they were better hidden than this one. Thus finding nothing else she went back inside to the table where her three companions yet remained.
Time passed, and soon after lunch a couple of goblins entered the tavern talking to each other in their at-once-guttural and high-pitched tongue. The pair approached the bar and -now speaking common - loudly asked to book a room for the next few days. The barman took their names and their payment and handed them a key which they took and went upstairs - resuming their conversation in their native language.
Another conversation took place as the group processed this event. They surmised that Falish - or perhaps Krenko himself - was having the place watched and was now seeding the guests with his own people.
Evening approached and Yartik and Vex went upstairs to wait in their room which was directly opposite the one which they had booked for Red and be ready with the door slightly ajar. Shae and Naivara left the tavern to look around.
Naivara, using one of her growing collection of illusory forms took up a position outside the tavern with the hope of seeing Falish approach. While she waited a speaker took position on a wooden box and began spruiking about how the guilds have failed and that the guildpact was forever broken, and citizens should stop perpetuating the archaic and outdated structures that have so damaged society these past years. Most people ignored the man, but a few stopped to listen to his message. Before long a group of Boros legionnaires muscled their way through the small crowd and arrested the man for preaching against the guilds. Even as he was being led away in chains he continued his tirade, using he arrest as further proof of how the guilds have corrupted society.
Shae spotted yet another goblin who seemed to be watching the place. Shae thought she might be able to get some information from the goblin so she cast charm person upon the unsuspecting target.
Unsure if the spell had worked or failed Shae sidled up to the goblin and offered a cheerful greeting. The goblin turned, surprised at first but his expression quickly softened as the magic worked its way into his mind.
"Hi," the goblin said with an expression that clearly indicated he was searching his memory for a name but coming up empty. "What are you doing here?" "I'm staying in that tavern over there and I spotted you out here so I thought I'd come say hello to an old friend." Shae replied. "You're staying in that tavern?" The goblin pointed. "Yes." The goblin's expression turned serious and he leaned closer. "I'd probably find somewhere else to stay if I were you." "Why's that?" "I can't get into specifics, but let me say that things are might get a bit rowdy." "Oh, does this have anything to do with Krenko?" "Shhh!" the goblin hissed. "Don't say that name." "It's just that I heard someone say it in the common room." The goblin grew thoughtful. "Really? Well that is interesting. Look, I don't mean to be rude but I gotta be somewhere. Take my advice, find somewhere else to stay."
Shae backed off and the charmed goblin headed off down the street. Shae used her wild shape to transform into a small dog and followed the goblin to wherever he was going. The goblin expertly weaved through the people in the busy street and came to a halt only a block or so away where another goblin waited. Shae got as close as she dared in the hope of overhearing their exchange but much of it was spoken in the goblin language, she might not have understood the words but the message was clear. Shae's charmed goblin was being thoroughly rebuked for having left his post and told in no uncertain terms to get back there.
Naivara having seen Shae transform went back inside to let the others know that she was following one of the goblins. She walked upstairs - still in the guise of a random man - and knocked on the door to their room. Given it was ajar her knocks pushed the door open and Yartik and Vex were quite surprised to see the stranger standing there. Already on alert for trouble the pair grabbed their weapons and confronted Naivara.
The commotion drew the attention of the two goblins who had checked in earlier. They peered out of their door - only 3 doors down from where the group were staying - to see what was going on.
Naivara raised her hands and assured them there nothing to worry about. Vex amd Yartik, recognising Naivara's voice lowered their weapons and ushered her into the room.
Shae, still in the form of a small dog was on her way back to the tavern as well when she spied 3 goblins ahead of her walking purposefully toward the door. Shae ran, using her size and speed to quickly close the gap reaching the tavern entrance just as the three goblins entered and closed the door behind them.
"Elakar," the larger of the 3 goblins called from the door. "Been a while. Glad to see you looking so well. I hope nothing will soon happen to change that." The barman's skin visibly paled. "Hi Malkon, I wasn't expecting you for another three weeks." Being dinner time the tavern had quite a number of patrons in the common room, and most of them were consciously trying to avoid making eye contact with the belligerent goblins by the door. "Got some other business to attend to," Malkon said as he stepped toward the bar, leaving his two armed comrades by the door. "I understand you have a guest here called Red?" Elakar reached down and retrieved the guest register, he scanned the ledger and looked up. "Yes, she's in room 6." Malkon smiled and strode upstairs letting out a loud whistle as he reached the top.
Naivara, Yartik, and Vex heard the whistle clearly and Vex placed an ear to the door to try and listen in on whatever was going on in the corridor. He heard footsteps approach the door to Red's room one set from the direction of the whistle and two pairs from the room which held the goblins. Before long there was a loud knock on Red's room, a few seconds later came another knock. "Wait here," said a voice and a single set of footsteps could be heard heading for the stairs.
"I'm hungry," Vex declared loudly. "Let's go downstairs." He then opened the door to his room to find two goblins standing either side of Red's door. The pair watched closely as Vex, Yartik and Naivara left their room to go down to the common room.
"Key!" called Malkon, as neared the bar. The barman, Elakar, quickly reached below the bar fumbled about for a moment then tossed the key to Malkon who caught it deftly, before returning upstairs.
Naivara, Vex, and Yartik found a table - taking note of the two goblins by the door. Naivara spotted Shae in her dog form and called her over.
It was tense few minutes as everyone waited to see if the tension would turn to violence. Before anything happened Malkon returned from upstairs alone, tossed the key back to Elakar and signaled for his companions by the tavern door that they were leaving. "See you in three weeks, Elakar." Malkon said as he followed his companions outside.
There was a frenzied discussion between the group and they quickly decided to try and follow Malkon and his goons to see where they might go. Shae and Naivara were selected to do it since they could be less conspicuous with their ability to change forms.
So out they went into the night, easily able to follow the three goblins as they walked the area around Foundry Street. The pair recognised that they were walking toward the warehouse area where they found the two murdered goblins a couple of days ago., and it was very near to that burnt out warehouse that the three goblins split up, each one walking down a different road. Shae, having adopted the form of a cat, chose to follow Malkon, as did Naivara - both of them figuring he would be the best one to lead them somewhere important.
Malkon, clearly experienced at taking a circuitous route soon lost Naivara - who returned to the tavern hoping that Shae - in her cat form - was better placed to keep him in sight.
Eventually Malkon led Shae to another warehouse, used a key to unlock the office door and stepped inside. Shae climbed to the roof of the building and looked through a window. Inside she spotted a number of goblins in the large open area of the warehouse. The window was rather grimy so she was unable to pick out individual faces but it was clear that the goblins were living in the warehouse. Having learned what she could Shae returned to the tavern to share what she'd found with the others.
They decided to go in that night. Shae and Naivara took the opportunity to have a long rest and recover their powers and then the group headed back to the warehouse where Malkon had gone.
Vex, Yartik, and Naivara hung back while Shae - this time in the form of a giant centipede - entered through a small gap between door and wall to check get a closer look inside. She saw two goblins sitting by a small fire talking quietly in their language while eight others slept in bedrolls and swags on the floor by the fire. She also spotted a large canvas tent, and after gnawing her way inside she found Krenko asleep inside.
She then looked for a way to get the others inside without alerting their quarry, and noticed a crane on the roof which ran along a set of rails that led to the rear of the warehouse and beyond outside. She followed the tracks and changed back into her elf form to open the door that allowed the crane to exit the building where she affixed a rope to lower herself to the ground.
She carefully made her way back to the others, avoiding a couple of watches she spotted on the roofs of nearby warehouses and led them back to the rope where each of them quietly climbed up and in.
The group made their way toward the sleeping goblins. Shae, climbed across the ceiling in spider form until she was directly above the smaller of the two goblins on watch. Vex and Naivara walked carefully on the walkway that encircled the building toward a set of stairs near the office in the middle of the building. Yartik strode confidently down the nearest staircase and made his way toward the larger of the two goblins on watch not making much attempt at stealth.
Despite the noise the lumbering Minotaur made while picking his way amid the clutter of crates and storage containers the two watchers seemed ignorant of his presence, inattentive to their duty of keeping look out.
Yartik reached his quarry first, stepping out from the jumble of stored goods and into the cleared area behind the larger goblin. As soon as he crossed the threshold an alarm bell rang alerting the unsuspecting goblin to Yartik's arrival and ruining his chance at a surprise attack.
Shae, who was waiting for the fight to start lowered herself on a silken thread and attacked the second of the two goblin watchers. Her bite struck home dealing him a grievous wound and the poison she injected killed the hapless creature instantly.
Yartik swung his weapon at the larger goblin but the creatures chainmail armour deflected the blow and the goblin struck back with its scimitar in two wild swings one of which struck home, wounding the minotaur.
With the 8 sleeping goblins now awake and scrambling for their weapons, and still some distance away from the melee Niavara cast a hex on one of their foes while firing an eldritch blast on another, missing entirely.
Vex also stepped into the clearing, causing another alarm bell to sound and closed on the goblins who until the sound of the second bell were focused on the minotaur. His attacks landed but his enemies held their feet and struck back.
Shae, concerned that Krenko might seek to flee, lowered herself next to the tent and engaged more of the waking goblins.
Malkon, the goblin Shae had followed to find this place recovered first and drew his weapon to strike at her. The blade bit deep and Shae sought to flee the area but before she could get away his second blow cut her down and she fell back to the floor having reverted to her elven form.
Naivara finally reached the fray, triggering another alarm bell before she launched her attacks on the goblin gang members.
At this time, perhaps concerned at the number of alarms, Krenko peered out from the tent and assessed the situation. He could see the combat had split into four separate groups, and even though it looked as though the goblins had the upper hand he decided to duck back in to gather his effects and don his armour.
Yartik struck at the chainmail clad goblin who seeming to anticipate the blow grabbed a nearby companion and used him as shield. The minotaur's strike bit deep and the hapless goblin fell.
Vex, used his hunters mark to focus his attacks, struck down two of the three goblins around him, and Naivara moved through the combat to help Shae who still hadn't recovered her feet upon the death of her spider form.
The battle continued with all combatants suffering wounds, Krenko once more poked his head out of the tent and found that the tide had turned against his men. He clutched a satchel under his arm and stepped out clearly looking for a chance to flee.
Naivara finished off another of the goblins and moved to block Krenko's escape. Shae seeing Yartik was badly wounded moved through the melee, earning herself a minor wound in the process and used her magic to heal the bleeding warrior.
Malkon and Vex fought the pair seemed evenly matched with neither able to get the upper hand, armour and blade moving to block each others blows.
Yartik, rejuvenated by Shae's magic finally cut down the chainmail clad goblin he attacked to begin the fight leaving Shae free to approach Krenko without fear of attack.
Shae drew Krenko's magic knife as she approached the goblin boss. "I think you should surrender," she said, making sure the gang leader could see the weapon clearly.
Krenko's eyes fixed on the blade, and seeing that his companions were all but defeated dropped his satchel and raised his arms.
Malkon, clearly angered by Krenko's surrender, disengaged from Vex and charged his former boss with his blade held high. He swung twice, cutting the gang-leader deeply. Vex, fearing that Krenko might be killed, ignored his other opponent who escaped, closed on Malkon and killed him.
Shae ordered Krenko to stand with his arms behind him as she manacled their quarry. The goblin complied with their wishes and waited patiently while the group began to search the bodies. After a short time he spoke. "I think you'd better get out of here soon if you know what's good for you." Yartik, cuffed the goblin boss over the head. "you don't give the orders here, worm." Krenko shrugged. "Your choice of course, but if there's any loyalty left in my gang those alarms should have reinforcements arriving here any minute." "Where's your stash?" Shae asked. Krenko smiled. "As if I'm going to tell you that." With an evil glint in her eye Shae removed Pinchy - her pet centipede - from it's place in her hair and held the creature close to Krenko's face. "Would you like a big juicy eye, Pinchy?" Krenko recoiled in horror. "Get that away from me." "Where's your stash?" She pushed Pinchy closer. "I won't ask again." "I don't have it!" Krenko squealed. "They took it all when I was arrested, I swear." Shae searched Krenko's face, the genuine horror convincing her of his honesty. "We should go." Yartik announced, grabbing the manacled goblin wrapping him up in a cut away canvas from his tent, and hoisting him over his shoulder.
The group ran through the streets, taking a circuitous route through the many warehouses, leaving Naivara and Shae behind to check for signs of pursuit but nothing came. They eventually made their way back to the burnt out warehouse where they found the two murdered goblin bodies a few days ago. Once there they took a short rest while they argued about what to do next. Eventually they agreed that Yartik should go to the Azorious HQ and let Nassius know that Krenko was in their custody.
"You don't have to turn me in, you know?" Krenko said after Yartik had left. "If you let me know I can introduce you to Mr. Taz. He has all kinds of connections, he could be a very useful ally." "Who's Mr. Taz?" Vex demanded. "It's not for me to say." Krenko replied. "If he deems you worthy he will introduce himself. But unless you let me go he'll never know you exist." "You're going back to prison." Krenko shrugged. "Oh well. I got away once, I can get away again. But think about what I said while your Legion buddy is gone. Mr. Taz is not someone to ignore lightly."
Yartik reached the Azorious Citadel and waited for a meeting with Nassius Ven, who was very pleased to learn that Krenko had been apprehended. Nassius enquired about the health of the group and agreed to meet them at the burnt out warehouse with a team of trusted men later that day and Yartik returned to the group to await their arrival.
Sure enough, a few hours before sunset there was rap on the broken down office door which pushed open to reveal a man dressed in the uniform of an Azorious Arrester. "I believe you have something for us?" he said. "What's the secret phrase?" Naivara said in reply. The man's face betrayed his puzzlement and he leaned back into the alley. "Was there supposed to be a secret phrase?" "What nonsense is this?," exclaimed Nassius' familiar voice. "Of course there isn't," he said while pushing himself into the room. Naivara laughed as the official turned his befuddled gaze upon her. "Sorry, man. Couldn't resist." Nassius laughed awkwardly and smoothed the front of his shirt. "Of course, Of course." He scanned the group, spying Krenko among them. "Where is Shae?" "I'm out here," she responded - having stepped out of the office as the others arrived to slip Krenko's magic knife into her boot. "Sorry, nature called." Nassius nodded and signaled his men to take Krenko away, barely containing his relief when the guards stepped in and exchanged Shae's simple manacles with a set of far more impressive looking chains. He watched as Krenko was led out of the room before turning to the group, withdrawing an envelope from the satchel at his side. "Take this," he said, handing the item to Vex. "This will tell you how you can collect your payment. The full amount is there, and," he looked around to make sure they were alone, "I put a little something extra there for you. Now, if you could please hand over the knife that can conclude our business and I will be on my way." The group looked to Shae who last had the knife. Shae looked at the floor, a guilty expression on her face. "I lost it." Blood drained from Nassius' face. "What?" "In the confusion of the fight and the escape I guess I must have dropped it in the warehouse where we captured him?" The others seemed equally shocked, Vex openly eyeing her with suspicion. "Can you go back and get it?" "Maybe," Yartik replied, but not right now. We're still pretty beaten up from the fight. Nassius nodded. "I see. Well I can give you a 24hr grace period. If you return the blade into our custody by this time tomorrow we will call it done otherwise the insurance clause of our contract will have to take effect." "Insurance clause?" Shae asked, it was clear that she hadn't read the documents she signed at all. "Yes, a 500gp compensation will be required, if I recall the terms of the contract." "500gp?" Yartik exclaimed. "Indeed. So please, if you can return the knife that will make things far simpler for everyone." Nassius looked around the group. "Thank you gentlemen, and ladies. Thank you for your service." With that he turned and left the area accompanied by his men and a very resigned looking Krenko.
Vex opened the envelope Nassius had given them. It held a document that said they could collect their payment from a nearby Orzhov Shrine, he said that they all needed to be present of they would not be able to collect their funds.
The group discussed next steps and all agreed that they needed some rest before attempting to recover the knife. Shae questioned the need to return the knife at all but Yartik particularly felt that they had to try and get it back. Naivara agreed, stating that being indebted to the Azorious was not something that they should get into. So they agreed to go and collect their payment and then get some rest before meeting up to tackle trying to regain the magic knife.
Once at the Orzhov Shrine they presented the attendant with their papers and he returned after a brief moment with a locked metal box, instructing them to each place their palm upon the surface in order to release the lock. They did so and inside was their 200gp payment along with a letter written in Nassius' neat hand. It read:
Brave adventurers, please accept my sincerest of thanks for the work you have done in apprehending the missing Krenko, I am very glad that you have been successful in that endeavour. By way of thanks I wish to share with you some information regarding the investigation into your recent unlawful capture. As I had informed you the official investigation has been closed and we have been assured that there will be no further kidnappings in this area, but the individual responsible has not been brought to account for their crimes. As you know that sometimes where official channels close it falls to unofficial channels to pick up the slack. I direct your attention to a residence at 1359 Parkview Parade in Precinct 6. The one responsible can, I understand, be found there. Do with this information what you wish. Whoever the perpetrator is they have connections so do be careful. Regards, Nassius.
Further discussion ensued and they agreed that recovering the knife remained their first priority before doing anything about this new information Nassius shared. They each took their portion of the reward and agreed to meet up tomorrow morning at The Loxodon and the Wheelbarrow, a tavern not far from where they emerged from the undercity the day they escaped their capture.
As the group dispersed Shae hurried to catch up to Naivara. "I need to tell you something," she said as they pair walked. "I actually still have the knife. I had it the whole time." Naivara raised an eyebrow. "Why the deception?" "I didn't see the harm in maybe keeping it. I figured they'd let it slide and that way we get a magic dagger." Naivara shook her head. "The Azorious don't know the meaning of letting it slide. I'm surprised Nassius even gave us the day to return it." "So you think we should just give it back?" "I do. It's not worth us being on the hook for anything when it comes to those crazy bureaucrats." Shae thought about that for a moment. "Fair enough. I'll tell the others in the morning."
The next day, a refreshed group met at the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow where Shae revealed her deception to the others. There were a brief exchange of viewpoints as they debated the merits of what she did but in the end they agreed to return the knife immediately and focus instead on investigating the address Nassius gave them.
The Azorious Citadel was on the way, so after a brief detour to return the knife they arrived at Parkview Parade and looked around. The first thing they learned was that there was no actual park that the street had a view of. Instead, despite being a predominantly residential area the street looked over a place called Medori Park, where a series of warehouses were constructed years ago by an Orzhov Pontif over what used to be a city park.
The group set themselves up in a cafe that gave them a view of the address in question - a three story stone residence on the corner of Parkview and another street. Shae, Vex, and Yartik stayed seated while Naivara used her magic to assume multiple guises walking up and down the street. Several hours into their vigil a horse-drawn carriage pulled up to the house and a tall human male got out dressed in a black suit with a cane. The man approached the front door, unlocked it and went inside. They continued to watch the house, when half an hour later the same man stepped onto the balcony to smoke a cigarette.
They discussed what to do next, and decided that the direct approach was called for. So they approached the house and pressed the buzzer by the door. "Hello," a crisp male voice said through the intercom device beside the door. "Can I help you?" "We're here to discuss the Simic situation," Naivara, who had been elected the speaker for the group, said in response. There was a brief pause before they heard a buzz and click as the front door opened. "Come inside, make yourself comfortable. I will be down presently."
Looking at one another, perhaps surprised that this worked, they entered the house. The entry way was narrow, with a second door directly opposite the front door. Shae opened this to reveal a comfortably appointed lounge room, an open fire to one side and grand circular staircase on the other. They all entered that room with the exception of Vex who stood in the entryway still unsure if this was a good idea. Above them were the sound of footsteps approaching from the level above.
The group waited in the comfortable and inviting lounge area, the dancing flames of the fire infused the characters with a pleasant warmth bringing welcome relief from the cool of the outside. Only Vex remained by the entrance, unwilling to risk walking into what he felt was an obvious trap.
The footsteps above grew louder and the characters forcibly wrested their attention back into focus as they waited for their host to arrive. Shae - standing closest to the stairs - saw him first, a tall, thin human male dressed in black suit with a white shirt as he came into view. The man paused at the landing midway down the stairs and surveyed the gathered adventurers. A broad grin broke over his handsome face as he took them in. "How wonderful," he said before continuing down the stairs to the well stocked bar tucked in below the stairs. "This is an unexpected surprise, I get so few guests these days." The man spoke in even tones his caramel smooth voice betraying nothing except genuine joy at seeing them. He picked up a glass and took a generous pour of a brown colour spirit and stepped back to the bottom of the stairs. "Please, help yourself to refreshments." He indicated the bar before taking a long swig of his drink. Nobody moved. The man shrugged and looked around the room again. "What an excellent collection. Where is your fourth member?" "By the door," Yartik said, almost unable to keep from answering. The man nodded. "Really, there's no need to stand out there in the cold," he said raising his voice to ensure Vex could hear him. "I'm ok where I am," Vex responded. "Suit yourself," he took another swig. "Now, what can I do for you? You said something about the Simic?" "Why do you want us? Was it for experiments?" Shae blurted. "Experiments? I'm sure I have no idea what you are talking about. I have no interest in any such thing." "Then why capture us?" she pressed. "Were we selected at random, or was there something special about us?" The man smiled, and turned his attention fully onto the stain covered druid. "Of course you are special, Shae. You all are." He raised a hand and moved it to indicate each of them. Naivara swooned despite herself, the man's energy was infectious and it was difficult for her to resist the force of his personality. "Who are you?" she gasped. "Oh, how rude of me. Normally we'd have had this conversation before now, I am Juri, and it is a very great pleasure to remake your acquaintances Naivara, Yartik, Shae, and you too Vex." "Why did you choose us?" Shae said, a slight edge to her voice betraying a nagging doubt in her subconscious. "Casting is an art, you see. I consult of course but I like to leave the details and selection to Juj, it's something of a passion for her. I must say that I have always been exceedingly pleased with the results." He took another sip of the drink. "I see no reason to think you are any less worthy." "Casting?" Yartik managed, his mind felt like it was running through treacle. "You're Rakdos aren't you?" "Of course," Juri smiled. "And you, my bovine champion will be a star." "What did you want with us?" Naivara said. For the first time since he entered the room a look of mild annoyance crossed Juri's handsome face. "Vex, I really must insist that you come here. All this shouting is giving me a sore throat." Vex, his curiosity getting the better of him, left his place by the front door and moved closer. Juri's expression softened upon seeing the ranger now standing by the door to the lounge room. "Excellent. Now we can talk like civilised people. I am here to answer all your questions." "How can we be sure that you won't try and capture us again?" said Shae. "I can assure you I have no reason at all to need to do that." "Why is that?" Vex asked. "Well, isn't it obvious?" Juri's practically beamed. "You're all already here." The revelation triggered something in Shae's subconscious, a foreign smell - unnoticed before now - caught her attention. "Gas! He's trying to poison us," she blurted and moved her shirt up to cover her mouth. "Just relax," Juri replied. "Take a deep breath and let it wash over you. Submit, and we can proceed to the next stage sooner." "You bastard," Naivara said as she unfurled her whip. She lashed out with the weapon but her attack missed, the leather cord striking the staircase balustrade. Juri looked at Naivara, an expression of mild disappointment on his face. "This really isn't necessary." He placed a hand in his pocket and there came faint buzz and click. "Yartik, he locked the door!" Vex pointed. "Let's try and break it down together." The big minotaur charged from the room with Vex, the pair slammed into the wooden front door with crushing force causing it to splinter but it remained closed. The force of the blow knocked the wind from their lungs and as they fought to regain their breath they felt they limbs stiffen into immobility. Shae, now holding her breath, ran into another room at the front of the house - some kind of office or den - and moved to smash the windows. He blow was firm but the glass - if indeed that is what it was - refused to break. "Really, Shae," Juri called after her. "This really isn't necessary." Naivara focused her magic and directed a hex at Juri, oddly the magic failed. She then brought her whip to bare once more this time her attack struck true but the stiff leather cord passed through Juri as if he wasn't there. "Well, that looks like it would have hurt." Juri said with a chuckle. "He's an illusion!" Naivara called, the effort wasting precious reserves of air. "You're wasting your time trying to hold your breath," Juri offered. "You were mine the moment you walked inside." Naivara glared at the Juri illusion before she too ran and launched herself at the front door. Her strength sapped away as she struck doing no further damage and forcing a lungful of tainted air into her body. Her muscles stiffened and she fell still. "It's just you and me now, Shae," Juri said standing at the doorway to the front room. "Let yourself go, you'll be more help to your friends that way. I can tell that you four will prove to be spectacular. Go on, give in to me, breathe." Juri's words penetrated the growing fog in her mind and Shae could see the wisdom in his suggestion. Resolutely she opened her mouth and breathed deeply, as if the act were one of defiance, and waited while a feeling of numbness washed over her. The last thing she saw before the blackness was Juri's raised glass before a triumphant smile.
Yartik woke first. He surged upright and took stock of his body, his equipment, and his surroundings. He seemed fine, more than fine in fact - well rested as though he'd had a good night's sleep. His arms and armour were all present and his backpack rested against the leg of the chair he'd awoken in. He looked around the room, the same comfortable lounge in where they'd spoken to Juri. The others, Naivara, Shae, and Vex were all present, seemingly asleep on the couches and chairs in the room.
Yartik woke them all.
Vex, upon realising his plight went immediately to the front door. The damage he and Yartik had inflicted remained. Energised he brought his strength to bare against the already damaged structure. Before long he managed to break it down and push himself through onto the porch.
While Vex was busy with the door, Shae ran upstairs. She passed level 2 with barely a glance and continued up to level 3, stopping only when she spied a pair of armoured feet standing near the top of the stairs. She waited to see if the armoured figure had noticed her and then slowly crept forward when to seemed they hadn't. As she drew closer to the top it became clear that this was just a full sized suit of plate armour positioned against the wall and she relaxed, calling down to Naivara to ask her to come up.
Yartik watched as the group went their separate ways, and shrugged while he too went exploring. Opening the north door that led into what looked like a dining room.
Vex, now on the porch, scratched his head. Where the street and freedom should be was only an opaque grey void. He reached a hand out and was somewhat surprised to find the barrier hard and unyielding. With a curse he returned inside to the room where they'd all awoken. "Shae, where are you? I need your crowbar."
Shae and Naivara were still on the stairs to level three looking at the suit of armour. It stood at attention with a longsword - point down - gripped in both hands. Naivara used her whip to try and pull the sword away from unmoving form but her attempt was not good enough and the leather cord slipped free without success. They both heard the call from downstairs and - deciding that perhaps they should all stick together decided to return below.
Vex had moved into the office / den area at the front of the house and checked the windows - unsurprised that they too have been covered by the opaque grey void that blocked the exit from the porch.
Shae and Naivara arrived in the room with Vex and she handed him her crowbar. Vex took the solid metal pry and set about trying to lever the windows open to no avail. "Yartik, I need your strength here." The minotaur arrived a few seconds later and gave it a go as well, but he too had no luck moving the window even an inch.
"Damn it," Vex cursed. "It's like we're rats in a cage being played for someone's amusement." A light went off in Shae's mind. "That's exactly it! I knew I'd heard that name before. Juri, from Juri's Review." "Juri's Review?" Naivara said. "What's that?" "A filthy Rakdos spectacle," Yartik growled. "The legion has been after that slippery bastard for years. I can't believe I didn't put two and two together when he introduced himself." "I wouldn't worry about too much," Vex offered. "It's clear we were somehow drugged or there's no way he could have caught us all again so easily." That was when Shae heard it, an underlying noise that sounded a lot like applause. "Did you hear that?" The other's listened and soon they could all hear it too. It sounded a long way off but the sound of the crowd was unmistakable. "How exactly does this Juri's Review thing work?" Naivara asked, suddenly overcome by anxiety. "It's different each time," Yartik said, "but the concept is always the same. Basically a group of adventurers work their way through some kind of challenge the winners being rewarded with cash and other prizes." "And if we don't win?" Vex queried, though he probably already knew the answer. Yartik shrugged. "It's Rakdos. I am sure that there's plenty of blood." The crowd noise became abruptly louder and the cheers and whoops of joyful revellers was clear for all to hear. "I guess we can assume that escape won't be an option," Vex said as he tossed the crowbar back to Shae. "We'll just have to go in to get out." Naivara swallowed. "We need to stick together. We stand our best chance if we explore this place as a group rather than doing things on our own." The others nodded and as one they set about exploring the house.
The group explored the ground level, the dining room, kitchen, pantry as well as the lounge and den that they had already entered. Along the way they collected a few items, a decorative (and blunt) longsword that hung over the fireplace in the lounge, plus crossbows and crossbow bolts of different sizes hidden in a locked cabinet in the den. Other than that the ground level did not provide anything else of interest beyond a decorative theme of natural forests and windmills in the art and fittings of the house.
They then climbed the stairs to the second level. On the landing they were confronted by 4 suits of armour, holding spears, standing either side of two doors on the north and south walls. Shae and Naivara, in their haste up the stairs the first time completely failed to register them. Now they paid them more heed, using Naivara's whip to part them from the spears and then further using it to knock the stacks of metal to the floor in a series of loud crashes. Satisfied that the armour was not a threat the group opened the door to the south which revealed a ballroom that ran the entire width of the house and would have overlooked the road - had not the view from windows been obscured by the opaque grey wall.
In the ballroom was a harpsichord and a long cloth covered lounge that ran the length of the south and west wall. The east wall was adorned with a fireplace - burning brightly. Three mysterious lumps were visible beneath the cloth. Naivara approached the nearest of the lumps while Vex strode confidently to the harpsichord.
Naivara moved the cloth aside and beneath it was a skeleton slumped unmoving on the lounge.
Vex, with no discernible musical talent, began to play the harpsichord. Despite his lack of skill he managed to luck upon a simple yet tuneful melody. As soon as the first notes began to play the skeleton (and the other lumps) stiffened and stood up. The one nearest Naivara extended a hand - as if inviting her to dance with it. The other lumps - now out from beneath the cloth - were revealed to be skeletons as well. They took hold one another and began to dance around the polished wooden floorboards of the room.
The sound of laughter rippled from the invisible crowd followed by raucous applause.
Naivara, taken a little off guard, shrugged and accepted the skeleton's offer and soon those too were dancing around the room to the sound of Vex's clumsy music. Vex continued to play but his luck ran out and whatever tune he was managing collapsed and became a discordant mess. The skeleton's froze and their benign expressions darkened as they turned to violence. The combat was swift, but bloody leaving Naivara with several wounds before Yartik, Shae, and Vex were able to reduce the skeletons to kindling.
A library stood past the doors to the other side of the landing. The books therein bland and uninteresting, but Yartik spotted an anomaly in the layout of the floor and discovered a secret door that led to a smaller room filled with books of an arcane nature as well as another skeleton. This one inanimate but clutching a rolled up piece of paper, upon which was written a note. It read:
My most wonderful performers.
I am never one to hold a grudge, but I will admit to a feeling of mild distress when I learned of your escape. All of which is behind us now that you have returned to take your place in this most spectacular revel. Your performance today will place you among the most famous of souls who have played this part in the years before you. May your sacrifice be made in the name of pure entertainment. After all, the most memorable and impressive performances can only be given once.
Juri
With nothing more interesting on the second floor, the group took the stairs to level 3 where they were once more confronted by the suit of plate-mail armour. This time a lasso was formed from a rope and tossed over the head and shoulders of the armoured form. The group retreated back downstairs leaving Yartik with the rope to try and pull the armour over. He began to run back down the stairs, the rope went taught for a moment before slackening off again and he soon found that the armour was chasing him, to the delight of the crowd. Another combat and another victory to the heroes as they beat the animated armour into several pieces.
But their relief didn't last very long. In the very next room, which apparently once belonged to the family nanny - a dust covered and cobweb filled room, quite the contrast to the rest of the house - they were attacked by the spectral form of the woman. Shea was badly injured in the fight and was forced to invoke her spore form to bolster her flagging health.
The crowd were loving it.
A secret door was found revealing a set of stairs that led to the attic. A dusty and unkept part of the house. At the top of the stairs were a series of doors, one of which sported a rusted yet serviceable looking lock. Yartik withdrew a key he'd found in a desk in the library and unlocked it. The room beyond was a sad and squalid place. An intricate dollhouse stood beneath a bricked up window on the far wall. Two straw pallets rested on the floor on either side of the room in the centre of which were the bones of two young children surrounded by their dust covered toys.
Wary of undead, Naivara and Shae unleashed their magic and reduced the bones to dust before they entered the room. Shae approached the dollhouse which bore a striking resemblance to the house they'd been exploring. As soon as she unhooked the latch to reveal the interior the temperature of the room fell and two ghostly children materialized.
"Don't touch that," the tallest - a young girl - said with a huff. "We don't like it when people play with our toys." "Yeah," said the boy. "We don't like it." There was a hint of menace in his tone.
The ghostly children stood, hands on hips with grumpy expressions on their young faces. "Look what you did with our bodies?" Shae gasped, suddenly realising who those two skeletons must have belonged to. "I am so sorry. We were afraid that they would jump up and attack us." The girl's brow furrowed. "Why would they do that? They're just old bones." "We've seen skeletons that can move." Naivara pointed out, "you're might have done the same." "Yes," the boy said, "daddy used to tell us stories about those. Very scary." The girl nodded. "That was before he locked us in this room, of course." "Your parent's locked you in here?" Vex queried. "For our protection, they said." "Protection," Yartik snorted, "from what?" The boy shrugged. "They never said." "I'm guessing it had something to do with all those creepy visitors they'd been getting," the girl said after a moment. "Where are your parents now?" Shae asked. "Their bedroom is downstairs. I reckon they might be there. Mother has been ill." "How long have you been trapped in here?" said Yartik. The boy looked at the dust where his body used to be. "A long time, I think." "That's a very pretty dollhouse." Shae said, her gaze fixed on the well made item. "Yes it is," the girl beamed, "it's an exact copy of this house. Right down to the last detail." "May I?" Shae said and moved closer. The girl nodded. "Sure, just don't break it." Shae opened the front wall and looked inside. The layout definitely did seem to match the rooms that they'd been exploring. She took note of the entrance, the dumbwaiter and even the secret door leading to the staircase up to the attic where the group now stood. It was there she noticed a spiral staircase that led from the attic down through to bottom of the house without a single door that opened onto any of the intervening floors. "Where does this staircase go to?" She asked. The girl's expression grew wary. "That's where the monster's are. You don't want to go down there." "Monsters?" Yartik's heart quickened. "What monsters?" "We don't know, we were never allowed to go down there." "Maybe that's what mummy and daddy were protecting us from," the boy offered.
The group then used the doll house to question the children on the purpose of the rooms that they had not yet visited, mostly just a collection of bedrooms and storage rooms. The group agreed that it would better to finish exploring the rest of the house before venturing down the staircase to whatever dangers might lurk below. Then, after promising the children that they'd be back, they went through the rest of the house. Heading first to the master bedroom to confront the parents.
The room as large, with a blazing fire in the fireplace and a comfortable looking bed beneath a window on the north wall. A table with some chairs sat in the south-east corner at which sat a well dressed male corpse, while a female corps lay on the bed beneath several layers of thick woolen blankets. The man rose as soon as the group entered and pointed back toward the door, mouthing what were no doubt indignant words but no sound escaped his rotting lips. Yartik leaped forward and brought his weapon to bare dealing the undead man a grievous blow. The woman too, sat up and joined the fray but the pair proved no match for the group and they soon dispatched the zombies without suffering any lasting injuries.
The search through the house continued. They moved from room to room without incident, taking nothing save for a porcelain doll that Shae took an immediate liking to. She placed the dusty toy into her backpack with such childish glee that the others began to suspect that she'd somehow lost her mind.
With the whole of the house explored, the group took the time to have a short rest - tend to their wounds and recover some of their abilities - and generally catch their breath before tackling whatever awaited them at the bottom of the stairs. Shae used her time to clean the dust from the doll she'd taken and introduce her to Pinchy - the centipede who lived in her matted hair. "Look, Pinchy," Shae said. "I finally have one of my own." Shae's face took on a distant look as if reflecting on something from her distant past. "I am going to call her Mirabelle." Shae raised the doll by the arms and held her up so that their eyes could meet. "Hello, Mirabelle." "Hello, mummy," the doll replied. Shae gasped, almost dropping the doll in surprise. "Did any of you hear that?" "Hear what?" Vex said, looking at Shae with a curious expression and eyeing the doll with suspicion. "Um, nothing, never mind." Vex stood up and began to move toward Shae. "Are you alright over there with that doll?" "Of course," she said while quickly tucking the doll into her backpack. "Why wouldn't I be?" "This whole place is weird and filled with weird things," he gave her a long stare. "Just be careful, ok?" "Sure, I'll be careful," she checked that the doll was safely stored away and stood up. "Is everyone ready to get going?"
The group entered the staircase and made the descent. It was soon apparent that the stairs descended far below the bottom of the house, just how deep they went nobody could know for certain but they were all aware it was definitely a long way down.
At the base of the stairs were a network of tunnels carved out of stone. Vex had some experience with stonework and he could see that these tunnels were quite well made, certainly not the work of amateurs. A sound like rhythmic chanting echoed off the walls giving no clue as to which direction it came from. The sound was distinct from the crowd noises which had gotten much louder too now that they were in the tunnels.
They moved methodically through the network of passages coming soon to a series of rooms with metal doors that looked as though they belong in a mausoleum. Shae looked closer, noting an inscription on each door and found that their own names had been placed on the doors. Shae pulled open the door with her name on it and entered the room beyond. It was a small five by ten foot room with a stone slab in the middle atop which rested a stone sarcophagus. Using the crowbar as leverage she prised open the lid and looked inside to find an empty coffin lined with satin and comfortable pillows. The others did likewise and found the same, in their search they found two other similar rooms with names on the doors that they did not recognise. Unlike their tombs the doors on these were closed and Vex recalled that there were two more cells in the prison where they first woke up. Perhaps in those tombs were two other unfortunates who had been captured afterward that had been killed when their escape was discovered.
They continued to pick their way through the maze of intersecting passages and rooms, exploring the area with no specific goal or direction in mind. At one stage they opened a door and were attacked by three ghouls lurking in the shadows of the tunnel beyond. The fight was brutal and Yartik suffered several wounds - luckily his minotaur constitution allowed him to fight off the paralysis effect - before they were able to dispatch the fearsome undead. A little further along they entered a well appointed room furnished as a study with a door on the opposite wall and a passage leading to what appeared to be a comfortable bedroom to the right. The group had taken quite a beating and they were looking for a place where they might make camp for the night. This room seemed like a good option so Naivara went to listen at the door while Shae checked out the bedroom. As soon as Naivara placed her hear to the door her face became stuck and a gelatinous pseudopod formed to try and grapple her. With an effort she managed to wriggle free of the snare but it was clear that the door was not what it seemed. Once more Yartik stepped to the fore to battle the gelatinous creature striking mightily with his weapon several times while Naivara used her magic. Vex too stepped forward being struck hard by the pseudopod as the creature fought for it's life. The combined might of their attacks killed the thing and caused it to lose form and melt away to nothing more than a slimy liquid. Inside they found two blackened discs with symbols on it that matched those Vex had seen in the books he'd taken from the secret room upstairs.
Shae entered the bedroom alone, the comfortable bed seized her attention and she almost failed to notice the ghasts that leapt out of two dirt filled alcoves on either side of the room. Shae squealed and ran, she was not in a position to face these two hideous undead on her own. She ran back past the others and into the corridor to get away. The ghasts gave chase but Yartik, heroically, stepped in their way. The big legionaire bore the brunt of their ferocious attacks and was badly wounded before he was able to bring first of the foul creatures down. Naivara and Shae could see that Yartik was on his last legs and called for him to step aside so that they could assist, but the dauntless minotaur stayed put until even his mighty constitution could not save him being paralysed. The others seeing their companion made helpless redoubled their magical attacks and thankfully managed to kill the final ghast before it to finish Yartik off once and for all.
Their foes defeated the group made camp in the bedroom where the ghasts had emerged to rest and heal their wounds
The group settled in for a long rest in what appeared to be some kind of bed chamber. They each took turns on watch while the others rested. During their rest, Naivara awoke to find herself seated upon a comfortable chair in a 10 x 10 foot room with no apparent windows or doors. Sitting in a similar chair opposite her was Juri - the one whom they'd spoken to in the house before being recaptured.
"Welcome, Naivara," Juri said with his usual casual charm. "This is the part of the show where we get to know our contestants a little better." Naivara rolled her eyes and sighed. "I have no interest in playing this stupid game." Juri smiled. "That is your choice but I must point out that the quality of your rest depends on your co-operation." "Go screw yourself." Now it was Juri's turn to sigh. "As you wish." He waved his hand and the room faded to black.
The remainder of the long rest passed without incident and the group awoke feel rested and ready for whatever came next, except Naivara who felt like she hadn't slept at all. She asked if they might wait another hour for her to recover before they moved on, and Shae also asked for the hour but while Naivara rested Shae spent it fussing with the doll Mirabelle. The pair chatting to one another about anything and everything while Vex looked on suspiciously.
The hour passed and now, feeling somewhat better, Naivara indicated that she was ready to press on.
They backtracked through the network of passageways determined to find the source of the rhythmic chanting that had been ever present in the background since they entered the tunnels. They soon found a passage where the noise seemed louder and went down that. After a dozen or so steps the passage turned to the right and revealed a set of stairs leading down.
They descended the stairs which switched back on themselves several times before reaching the bottom and another passageway the sound of chanting loud and perfectly clear now. "One must die. One must die. One must die." over and over again. The crowd noise, which had also been kept muted and in the background, grew louder as well - and the entire group could practically feel the frenzied excitement of the unseen but ever present audience.
Naivara moved down the passage first stopping at the threshold of a large underground chamber a hundred or so feet long and at least half as wide. A inky black pool of water filled the room with a stone walkway leading the entire way around. In the center of the pool was a raised platform that looked very much like a fighting ring.
Naivara returned to the others and they all moved forward and into the room. As soon as they crossed the threshold the rhythmic chanting stopped and the sound of the crowd rose to a fever pitch as a long spotlight shined from the ceiling some fifty feet or move above them onto one corner of the ring when Juri stood arms outstretched to the applause of the adoring crowd.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the moment you have all been waiting for," he turned a full 360 degrees as he spoke before rounding on the group in a flourish. "Our champions have arrived, and you all know what that means, right?" "One must die!" the crowd screamed in response. Juri cupped a hand to his ear. "I can't hear you," "One must die!" the crowd roared again, the cacophony almost deafening. "I'll go!" Shae said, a broad grin on her face as she stepped forward. The crowd screamed in appreciation and Juri clapped his hands together bringing everyone to a hush. "Just you?" "I'll go to," Yartik added. "And me," said Vex. Juri turned to Naivara and raised an eyebrow. "What about you, Naivara, not too tired to participate I hope." "Screw you," she said with a snarl, "but yes, me too." Juri beamed and threw his hands in the air. "Did you hear that? They have all elected to play. Did I not promise you a show unlike anything you've seen before?" The crowd screamed. "Enter the ring, champions one and all." At his words a stone path rose from below the water's surface and linked the outer walkway to the central platform. Juri clapped as they crossed onto the ring. He waited until they were all present before continuing. "Chosen by Judj, reviewed by Juri, now they will face..." he paused his face expectant. "The executioner!" the crowd screamed in response. Juri turned and indicated the opposite side of the arena where a giant hulking figure stood, the light behind him caused his shadow to all but cover the ground before them. The giant started walking forward and Vex wasted no time. He quickly raised a crossbow and fired at the enormous slab of flesh and muscle that strode toward them. The fight was joined and the crowd screamed with blood-lust, each crushing blow or sweeping cut brought them maddened joy.
A brutal battle followed. The giant used it's powerful fists to land crushing blows on the characters, reaching occasionally into a pouch by its side to launch rocks at Naivara who used her magic to leap back onto the outer walkway. Blows were traded, first Vex went down, then Yartik but healing magic and potions revived them and allowed them to struggle on. In the end the party prevailed and the giant was finally brought low. Shae immediately fell upon the creatures corpse and started scooping out the dead giant's eye.
Juri re-appeared at the end his showmanship gave them no clue as to how he felt about the result.
"What a finish!" he screamed, turning to address the crowd. "Please show your appreciation for our incredible contestants." He then turned to face them. "Congratulations. What a fantastic end to a wonderful review." "What now?" snarled Naivara through blood soaked teeth. Juri didn't respond, turning instead to look up at the ceiling. "You've been a wonderful audience, and these worthy champions. Give them one final round of applause and please do join us next time when we do this all again." The crowd clapped and screamed and Juri basked in the moment for several seconds before moving his hand in a cutting motion at his neck. Immediately the sound of the feverish crowd ceased and for the first time what must have been days there was silence. "So what happens now?" Vex asked. Juri smiled. "You're free to go, if you search that wall you will find a hidden door. Follow the passage beyond to freedom." He scanned their faces looking at each of them intently. "You have been wonderful." He clapped his hand to his heart and bowed at the waist, so low that his head almost touched the ground. Niavara sneered. "Screw you!" Juri's image disappeared and the group were left alone in sweet sweet silence.
They searched the wall where Juri had indicated and there was indeed a hidden door there with a passage beyond. They entered the passage and waked for about 200 steps before they reached a T intersection. "Let's go left," Shae said confidently choosing the path with no particular reason. They continued walking, and Shae noticed that the path they followed was going ever so slightly down. None of the others seemed to have noticed this so she kept the information to herself. "Right," she said at the next T intersection. They walked a little further when behind them came an audible clang, as if a door had closed somewhere. The passage turned right, and then right again until their path led them back to where they started. They traveled back toward the huge room where they faced the giant but a thick metal wall blocked their path. "We probably should have gone left again at that second intersection," Shae said with the benefit of hindsight.
They returned to the passage and traveled another few hundred steps with several turns before the path ended at a sturdy looking door. Yartik listened at the door and heard the sound of quiet conversation beyond. The group readies weapons and opens the door. In the room beyond are 3 Rakdos performers dressed in their full motley, they face the characters as they enter the room.
"Welcome," one of them said. "We've been waiting for you." "Is this the way out?" Shae queried. "Of course," another replied, while motioning to several large sacks hanging from hooks on one of the walls. "We only ask that you wear those." Shae raised an eyebrow. "What are they?" "Body bags," chimed in the third with a wicked grin.
The battle was joined. One of the performers raised a trumpet to their lips and spewed a cone of fire at the group. Yartik and Shae copped the full blast of the flame while Naivara and Vex managed to avoid the damaging fire, another tossed knives striking Vex with two of them, and the third stepped forward and closed on Yartik with a wicked looking spear. The fight was quick and bloody, Yartik fell but the others managed to prevail and healed the big minotaur with one of the potions they'd recovered from the dungeon.
Naivara used her disguise magic to mimic the appearance of one of the performers and then scouted the way ahead. Vex found a trapdoor in the floor that when open revealed a staircase going to down, leading to a portcullis blocking the entrance to a large chamber with 6 familiar looking cells. Thinking he'd found a way out he opened the portcullis and climbed up to try and find the hole they'd used to escape their capture the first time. Unfortunately the passage had been thoroughly blocked and bricked over. Checking the cells he saw that they were all empty.
Yartik found a large leather bound book with a series of crossed out names listed. He turned to the last page and saw their own names (still not crossed out) at the end of the list.
Naivara returned saying that the way out was just ahead, through an empty foyer and out onto the street.
The group followed Naivara around the corner and into a room filled with knick-knacks and other curios. Shae's eyes boggled at the sheer volume of interesting things on the many shelves. Yartik opened a door that led to a storage room filled with all manner of equipment, weapons and armour. He looked around and found his own equipment among the piles of supplies. This must all have been taken from the people who'd been kidnapped before them. Vex spent a few minutes hunting through the items for a pair of ornate swords that he named "talon and claw."
They could have spent hours poring through the vast number of items but mindful of their circumstances and the state of their health, Shae and Naivara grabbed several items from the room of knick-knacks - including an old looking stone tablet 6 x 8 inches in size bearing the symbol of the guildpact along with an interesting looking arcane script - and then exited the house through the front door and onto the street.
Once free they fled down the road to put some distance between themselves and their captors. They stopped several blocks away. Yartik insisted he present the ledger to his Sergeant but the others just wanted to go somewhere and rest. There was a brief discussion before they agreed to meet at the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow to discuss next steps.
Yartik went to his Boros garrison to try and present the ledger but he did not seem to get very far, as according to their records Yartik was still on secondment to the Azorious and therefore the ledger would seem like it was their problem. His sergeant indicated that the legion faced enough problems with raiding Gruul that they didn't need to inherit the issues of other guilds.
Somewhat deflated, Yartik took the ledger and returned to the others at the tavern.
The gang, Naivara in particular, took a long overdue and well earned rest at the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow. It was a welcome opportunity to lick their wounds and take stock of their gains.
Shae used the time to further strengthen her bond with the doll, Mirabelle.
Naivara revealed that she was not in fact a member of the Selesnya Conclave but refused to confirm or deny her membership with the Dimir.
After a comfortable night's rest they spent the several hours moving through the many shops and merchants of Precinct 6 to find buyers for the various gems ad objet d'art they had taken during their escape from their Rakdos captors.
Once done with the selling their haul, Shae and Naivara went to a library to hire a sage to learn more about the stone tablet they found with the image of the guild pact upon it. The sage, a man called Katrin, was very intrigued by the item and promised to have some initial findings for them by the following day.
The following day, Yartik - still unsure about the status of his employment - decided to pay a visit to the Azorious arrester station where Nassius Ven worked to see if he can get him reinstated with the Legion. He and Naivara entered the build and asked after their previous employer. They were immediately flanked by guards and escorted to an interview room near the holding cells where they were instructed to wait.
A few minutes later and officious looking woman entered the room and plonked a sheaf of papers down on the table before sitting down opposite the pair. "You're here looking for Nassius Ven?" she said to nobody in particular. "We are," Yartik replied. "And you are?" "I am Yartik, this is Naivara." "I see," the woman sat straighter and took a folder from the pile of papers before her, opened it and began to skim through it's pages. "You two recently did some work for Nassius is that right?" "It is." "There were four of you, correct?" "Yes." "And are you currently still in residence at the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow?" "We are." "Can I ask what this is regarding?" Naivara interjected. "Has something happened?" The woman glanced up from the paperwork and gave a perfunctory sigh. "When was the last time you spoke with Nassius?" Naivara shrugged. "I don't know exactly, maybe five or six days ago. Why?" The woman lowered the files. "Nassius is missing, and I am trying to determine if you had anything to do with his absence." Yartik's eyes widened. "He's what?" Naivara shook her head. "I don't know what to tell you. He was upstairs in his office the last time we saw or spoke with him." "That's right," Yartik added. "Ok," the officious lady tapped a finger to her chin. "According to the official records you and your companions were hired to help with the re-capture of an escaped criminal, yes?. How is that task going?" "Look," Naivara said. "I don't mean to be rude, but who are you?" "I am Imperator Hildene, investigator for the Azorious guild assigned to look into Nassius' disappearance. So, how is your work for Nassius progressing?" "We are done," Yartik said. "That's why I am here. I wish to have my status with the legion reinstated." "Done, you say." The lady picked up the files again and flipped a few pages. "Ah, yes. I see here that the criminal Krenko was remanded to Night Haven Prison yesterday. So that means you might be free to assist with locating Nassius, correct?" "Wait," Naivara said. "Did you say Krenko only reached the prison yesterday?" "According to the official documents I have here, yes." "But that doesn't make any sense, we delivered Krenko to Nassius personally the day before we last saw him, maybe as much as a week ago." The woman frowned and took up a pencil to make some notes. "That is interesting. A week ago, you say." "Yes," Yartik said with a nod. There was a brief pause while she made numerous entries in different documents, none of which seemed to make any sense to either of them before she raised her eyes and looked at the pair of them properly for the first time since she entered the room. "So I assume your previous fee for 50gp per head will suffice?" "Actually," Naivara said before Yartik could get a word in, "we have recently come into some more lucrative opportunity so if you can find a way to increase that we might be interested." "I see," the Imperator said with only a hint of annoyance. "I will need to check with the bursary before agreeing to a change in rate." "What about my secondment?" Yartik queried. "Are you able to file the documentation to restore my place in the legion?" "That I can do," Hildene said with a smile. "Though I wouldn't expect anything to happen to soon. The wheels of bureaucracy can turn very slowly when it suits them." Now it was Yartik's turn to be annoyed. "Listen, ma'am. I-" Naivara placed a hand on the minotaur's shoulder. "Are we free to go?" The woman nodded. "You may. I just ask that should you decide to move your place of residence you let us know so we can contact you if anything comes up."
Shae and Vex spent the morning visiting various apothecaries and vendors of exotic liquids and unguents with the goal of fleshing out their poisoners kits. After a few false starts they were directed toward one particular merchant who was able to help them with what they needed. They spoke for a bit and enquired if there was a market for harvested glands of poisonous spiders, snakes, and the like. He said there was always a market for such things but often a shortage of people willing to venture into the proper locations to try and acquire them. At which point the pair came up with a plan to visit the rubble belt to try and find some giant spiders.
The entire group visited the library to meet with Katrin at the end of the day and were met by a very excited looking individual. Once introductions were made he ushered the group into a booth and began to lay out what he'd been able to learn about the tablet thus far.
The tablet was old, perhaps dating to the time of the forging of the guildpact itself. The writing on the back was inscribed in an ancient runic language that he was unable to translate fully but seemed to suggest the existence of an here-to-for unknown 11th guild. A prospect which - if true - Katrin felt the repercussions of such knowledge would be vast and far reaching, especially if it were found that this 11th guild still existed to this day - though he very much doubts that is the case. Katrin asked that he be allowed to continue his research on his own because it had been a long time since something so interesting had crossed his path. The group agreed and asked that Katrin keep them in mind if he needed anything recovered or sourced to assist him in unravelling the mystery.
Following breakfast the next morning the group entered the rubble belt, passed the permanent files of Boros Legionaries stationed to protect the urban population from Gruul raiding parties and warbands, and walked deep into the wilderness. Shae cast locate animal to find a small clump of giant spiders and she sensed several within the 5 mile range provided by the spell. They selected on such cluster and began their march. At first the terrain consisted mainly of damaged and abandoned buildings interspersed with trees which became more damaged the further they walked until eventually the area was mostly grasses and trees with occasional ruins. It was late afternoon when they reached the general area Shae's spell indicated. Yartik and Naivara were tasked with finding somewhere for them to camp the night while Vex and Shae hunted for the nest of spiders. Vex used his skill as a tracker to find the place a mostly collapsed vine covered tower amid the trees. The pair took note of it's location then returned to the others to camp the night.
They camped and had an uneventful night, fires burned in the distance and depending upon the wind they heard to occasional sound of drums but the area near to their camp was clear.
The next morning they awoke with the sun and headed to the ruined tower where Vex and Shae had located the spider's nest. Shae kicked off the confrontation by entering the hollow shell of the tower and setting the webs alight. That got the spiders attention and 4 of the giant creatures descended to engage the group. The fight was violent and bloody, Shae assumed a spider form herself but her much smaller version was no match for the giant creature before her. Yartik and Vex engaged with sword and hammer while Naivara tried to keep her distance and attack at range with her magic and whip but the agility of the spiders meant that despite her efforts the creature was able to close the distance and attack. In the end, the group was victorious and they were able to successfully harvest 3 of the 4 poison glands.
Flush from their near death experience fighting the spiders the group decided to try and harvest some more poison glands from other creatures in the rubble belt. Shae cast her Locate animal spell and pinpointed the location of a poisonous snake a mere mile away.
The group walked to the area where they found a shallow pond amid the rocks and scrubby brush. A snake - about 3 feet long and thick as an adult human's arm - was sunning itself on a rock only a dozen yards away. It was then that Vex remembered that the apothecary said that he had no need for snake venom as he is able to milk that himself, it is the more exotic creatures that he has difficulty sourcing. They decided to leave the snake alone and instead track down a giant scorpion.
Shae cast her spell again which indicated that there was one such creature 3 miles from their current location. The group decided to wait for nightfall before beginning the hunt because the bright sunshine was a problem for the Devkarin elves who are used to the darkness of the undercity.
After a long rest the group made ready to head off. Shae cast her spell again which showed that the scorpion had moved from where she'd previously located it, which was just as well because the original location would have placed it not too far from a large Gruul bonfire which might have posed some trouble for them - getting caught by the Gruul was never a good idea.
The group headed toward the scorpion, Yartik muttering that this was not a good idea - the others paid him no heed and so they carried on their way. It was slow going in the moonlight with Yartik having to pick his way carefully in the darkness because a bright light at this time might prove dangerous.
Hours later they reached the area where the scorpion was located. Vex searched the vicinity and found the solitary creature in a small dell spotted with a smattering of trees and long ruined walls. The others came forward and the fight was joined.
Vex fired the opening volley while Shae cast dancing lights to give Yartik enough light to see. Yartik charged forward and the scorpion charged too and the pair met with a solid clash of bodies as blows were exchanged. Naivara kept her distance as usual and attacked with her whip while Vex joined Yartik in close combat. The scorpion grabbed Yartik in it's huge pincers and stabbed him with its sting. Yartik screamed as the poison coursed through his veins, badly injured and more convinced then ever that this course of action was unwise.
Shae, perhaps realising that Yartik was in deep trouble transformed into a spider and used her web to try and keep the scorpion from bringing its stinger to bare. The ploy seemed to work and with the combined attacks of the others the scorpion was finally brought down.
Yartik collapsed to the ground - badly hurt, but alive. They harvested the stinger and the creatures massive claws then took a short rest before making their way back toward District 10 and civilization.
Just before sunrise Naivara and Vex heard the sound of multiple somethings or someones passing nearby. They called the group to halt and waited for whatever it was to move along and once they were sure the threat had passed they continued on.
It was mid morning when they neared the breach back into the Tenth District and as they crested a rise to give them a view of the area they saw a large contingent of Boros and Gruul facing off in the ruins. Griffons and Rocs flew overhead in numbers and the two groups clashed with practiced abandon. The party wanted none of that but Shae and Vex were keen to get back into the city proper so they veered away from the opening where the battle raged and moved off toward an area where the city walls still stood to separate the rubble belt from the urban sprawl.
It was not long when their movements attracted the attention of a trio of Boros Skyjacks who turned their griffons toward the group as it tried to stealthily pick their way toward the wall. Mirrabelle spotted then approaching legionnaires and shouted a warning to Shae's mind giving her the chance to alert the others to the approaching soldiers. Vex, Naivara, and Shae all took cover while Yartik stood tall and raised his arm to show the mark of the legion tattooed upon his forearm. One of the swooping riders must have seen it and pulled out of his dive but the two others did not. Shae was hit by a crossbow bolt from one of the soldiers and Yartik slashed by a griffon claw from the second. As the griffon's wheeled back for a second pass the soldier who stopped waved them off instructing them to circle the area while he landed.
"What are you lot doing out here!" the legionary asked once his Griffon had settled on the ground. "We're trying to get back into the city," Yartik replied. "Can't you see there is a bit of an engagement underway at the moment?" "Yes, that's why we are going this way," Yartik pointed at the 100ft tall wall still some ways off ahead of them. The legionary shook his head. "I can't have you going for the wall. It won't be the first time Gruul tried using spies to reach those walls." Yartik shook his head. "We are not Gruul spies, I can assure you." The soldier shrugged. "Fair enough, but I can't allow you to get any closer to the walls. If you're only interested in getting back to civilization then you'll have to wait for the action to be over. We should have the Gruul under control in a few hours at most. But if we see you take even one step closer to those walls we will not hesitate to kill you." He looked at each of them. "Have I made myself clear?" The group indicated their understanding and the soldier launched back into the sky to resume his patrol.
With little other option the group set up camp and waited for the battle to end. Hours passed with no break in to the fighting so they decided to camp for the night hoping the way back in would be clear by morning. It was and they finally made their way back to the city 5 days after they left to hunt for the spiders.
Shae and Vex took their harvested glands directly to the apothecary where they spent the day with him studying and practicing the poisoner's art. Both of them realising that they had a lot to learn before they could claim to be proficient in the practice. Yartik and Naivara returned to their tavern where Yartik asked the barman if he knew of any Simic who might be interested in the scorpion claws. The barman said he did know of someone and he took the giant pincers saying he'd let them know once the deal was made.
The following day a message arrived for Naivara, it was a note from the researcher they'd spoken to asking if they might pay him a visit at the library. He had a opportunity for them to assist him.
The next day all four of them went back to the library to meet with Katrin who was very excited to see them. "I've made some interesting progress toward translating what is written on the tablet," he said not even bothering with the usual pleasantries. "But I have run into a bit of snag that I hope you might be able to help me with." "Go on," Vex said. "We did say we would be keen to lend a hand however we can." "For the right price," Naivara added. Katrin blinked, "Of course. Naturally I would pay you, no cause for concern on that front." Naivara smiled. "Excellent, then by all means do continue." "Well I already told you that the tablet is old, very old. Likely dating to before or around the time of the signing of the Guildpact some 10 millennia ago, unfortunately there is very little else that has survived existence since that time. Of course the guild Paruns' like the The Firemind, The Ghost Council, and the Demon Lord are still here but I do not feel they would be interested or inclined to offer assistance in this matter. As such I had to try and find something else which may still linger, and what I discovered was a secretive group known as the Cult of Yore. Have you heard of them?" They all shook their heads. Katrin nodded. "I'd be surprised if you had. Even the Dimir would be proud of how well this group remains hidden and how they hoard knowledge." He paused for a moment to chuckle at his own joke. "In any case I am sure you are all aware of the trouble caused by the Nephilim a few decades ago during the decamillennial which threw the entire guildpact into chaos and threatened to undermine the very fabric of our civilization. Well it seems from what I have been able to discover that the Cult of Yore actually venerate these Nephalim who saw them as the embodiment of the Old Gods - whatever that means." "This is all very interesting," Shae said, her tone suggesting otherwise, "but what has any of this got to do with us?" "Well as it happens the Cult of Yore are, or rather were, record keepers of a sort and I believe that I have found the location of one of their archives." "And?" Shae replied. "I'm not really one for reading a bunch of dusty books." Katrin chuckled. "With luck the archive won't just contain books, but also papyrus scrolls and tablets of clay or stone." "And I'll be even less able to read those." "I don't need you to read them, I need you to collect them. You see the archive is rather deep in the rubble-belt and I am hoping that you four would be able to go there, access the archive and return with a few samples of their work." Yartik's brow furrowed. "I don't understand. How will we know which books to bring back?" "The actual works themselves don't matter, just their types. My theory is that if you can bring me some books, some papyrus scrolls, and some tablets I will be able to trace the evolution of their writings and work out a way to translate the symbols on your tablet." "So how much are we talking about?" Naivara asked. Katrin shrugged. "A few samples of each kind should be sufficient, say three of each - but try and find the best examples of each." "I meant, how much will you pay us?" "Oh. I see. Well I think I could maybe afford to pay you 100gp each upon a successful return." Naivara considered for a moment. "That seems reasonable." "Hold on a moment," Shae interjected. "Where exactly is this archive?" "In the rubble belt, I'm afraid. Quite a way inside Gruul territory based on the information I have." Yartik swallowed, the memory of their fight against the scorpion still fresh in his mind. "I see." "I think 100gp is not representative of the risks to us in this," Vex said. "The rubble belt is a very dangerous place." Katrin nodded. "Very well, I might be able to stretch to 150gp each but please bare in mind I am a scholar not some wealthy Orzhov Oligarch." The four looked to one another and nodded. "It's a deal," Vex announced.
The next day, after having purchased provisions and with Katrin's directions to the ancient cult archive in hand the group headed back into the rubble-belt. They travelled for several nights through the wilderness being careful to steer clear of obvious Gruul encampments and keeping a cold camp during the day to avoid attracting any unwanted attention. They moved this way for several days until one day, as the sun was at it's highest their luck ran out.
A single figure emerged from the scrubby trees and headed directly at their camp. Shae - who was on watch at the time - alerted the others as she and Mirabelle kept the newcomer in sight. As soon as the figure closed to within 30 feet he screamed in an ululating voice and charged with weapons drawn. The signal to attack given, other figures emerged from concealment and arrows flew into the group and the battle was joined.
Eventually after a brutal and bloody combat their attackers lay dead group emerged injured but victorious.
The group licked their wounds and completed a long rest before continuing on, a new appreciation for just how dangerous it can be out here in the wilds of the rubble belt. They moved only at night as the Devkarin elves preferred the darkness and it made it easier to avoid the Gruul clans and their nightly bonfires.
The next few days were tense but uneventful. Several times they were forced to stop and hide while marauding bands of Gruul or beasts passed by around them but for the most part their journey was trouble free. Eventually they reached a small stream that Katrin had remarked upon. If his information was accurate the archive was supposed to be located further upstream near a series of small cascades. As it was almost sunrise they decided to find a place to make camp and take a rest before proceeding.
Vex and Shae decided to try their hand at fishing. Being from the rot farms of the undercity the pair had little experience with water this clean and free from unidentified floaters nor the act of fishing itself. They fashioned spears from the slender branches of a nearby tree and stepped into the water. Vex had no luck at all but Shae was able to snag five wriggling fish, one for each of them - including Mirabelle (though the doll declined hers as she doesn't really like the taste of fresh water fish "too muddy, you see") - and she cooked them up for dinner for everyone to enjoy.
Their repast over they settled into wait out the day. The time passed quickly and it wasn't long before sunset that Vex's keen senses detected the smell of smoke in the air - as though from a campfire. He alerted the group and Shae took the form of a hyena and went ahead to try and find the source of the smoke.
She followed the water upstream - the smell of the smoke getting stronger - until she reached the base of a small ridge. The stream formed a small waterfall here and the ridge itself blocked the smoky smell. Shae decided to follow the base of the ridge to try and find an easy way to the top. She didn't have to travel far as she soon found what may once have been a road or path - now overgrown with shrubs and small trees - that cut a gentle incline to the top. She padded along the road until she reached the ruins of what might once have been a very fine manor before time and destruction had taken its toll. The stream she'd been following widened to form an ornamental with the rotted remains of a small jetty extending from the opposite shore. The roof of the old manor was completely gone and several fires glowed behind what remained of its walls, their warmth and light reflected in the burned out remnants of wide beams that once must have held up the roof. Fearing that she might be spotted - a lone hyena might be out of place in the area - Shae returned to the others to report what she'd found.
They packed up camp and made their way forward on foot, following the route that Shae had taken previously. When they reached the bottom of the ridge, Vex headed off to scout the area on his own. He moved stealthily through the trees and undergrowth and even crossed the stream at the top of the cascade they'd seen in order to get closer to the building. He made his way to where one ruined wall almost me the pond and peered around the corner. He looked onto a sort of lawn area, though unmaintained and terribly overgrown with weeds, where he spotted a humanoid figure of a type he'd never seen before standing beneath an oak large enough to make even a Selesnyan guild member homesick, beside which stood a very large dog. Worried that the creature's keen senses might spot him he melted away and returned to the others.
Once back, Vex and Yartik set to planning their attack when Shae suggested that perhaps rather than run in and start killing they might try and talk with them instead. Yartik, given his experience with Gruul, didn't think much of her plan but the others agreed to give it a try, so Shae and Vex approached the edge of the ornamental lake closest to the tree where the watcher stood with the huge dog-like creature while Yartik and Naivara crossed the stream and lay in wait in case - in Yartik's estimate - the inevitable combat took place.
"Hello there," Shae called out once the others were in position. The dog by the sentry's side stood and emitted a deep growl. "Who there?" the sentry said in a deep guttural voice and placed a hand on the beast's shoulder, the tusks protruding from his lower lip gave his words a breathy quality. "I am Shae, and my companion here is Vex. We are devkarin elves of the Golgari. Who are you?" "I Guttruk, Stone Breaker clan. What want?" "We come looking for books. Would you allow us to approach and enter the building?" "Wait!" the sentry said, "I bring Haggard. He speak, he decide." With that he patted the dog then turned and went up the steps to what might once have been the main entrance of the building. The dog remained behind, it's eyes never leaving the pair of them as they waited. "Have you ever seen a dog that big before?" Shae asked. Vex shook his head. "I don't think that's a dog at all." "Wolf then." "Of a type, I think it's a dire wolf - very dangerous." "What about Guttruk, have you seen anything like that, kinda looks like a goblin only much bigger and those tusks..." "An Orc, I believe, never seen one until now though as they tend to avoid urban areas." Guttruk returned a few minutes later with a second Orc, this one wearing an ornate headdress and held a gnarled wooden staff, beside him strode an enormous brown bear." Vex gulped. "I hope they don't all have enormous animal companions. I don't fancy fighting those if this talking plan of yours goes bad." "I Haggard," the newcomer said - his voice equally gravelly. "Speaker for Stone Breaker clan." "Well met, Haggard. I am Shae and this is Vex, of the Golgari. We seek entry to this building behind you to look for some books." Haggard scoffed. "No books here, books burned years ago." "Would it be possible for us to come and look around anyway, they might yet be some remaining just hidden." "Books burned," Haggard insisted. "Business over. You go now." "We have money," Vex offered. "We can pay you." "Stone Breaker no want money," Haggard replied with a shake of his staff. "Need nothing from city people. Now go." Shae sighed. "This isn't going to work is it?" she muttered under her breath. "Look's like Yartik was right." "Worth a shot though," then louder she added, "Sorry about this..."
She ended the conversation by launching into a spell. Instantly the ground around the two orc's and their animal companions was changed to spiky growths that weaved and entangled anything trying to move through the area. Haggard and Guttruk reeled and called out for aid while Vex launched an arrow at the dire wolf. With that the battle was joined. More members of the Stone Breaker clan emerged from the building and moved to attack Shae and Vex avoiding the spike growth with warnings from their two companions trapped within it's area. Yartik and Naivara stepped forward and intercepted the newcomers and battle ensued. The Stone Breaker clan fought hard their members and animal companions proving formidable and they nearly brought the group down but finally through healing from Vex, Shae and even magic potions they were able to prevail and defeat their opponents. As the final blow was struck the Stone Breaker clan was no more.
The group took a rest from the epic battle and patched their wounds as best they could, their remaining stores of healing potions had dwindled to just one which Naivara held onto. Once they'd recovered they spent a few hours searching the ruined building for any sign of the so-called archive.
As they poked around the overgrown walls and rotted floors Yartik noticed something curious engraved into a stone that would have once been at floor level - Boros symbol, badly defaced but still recognisable to a member of the legion. Seeing the symbol triggered a memory from his military history class during his cadetship within the legion and he walked out to the courtyard to take a look at the building as a whole. The design of the structure coalesced in his mind and he recalled that the design of this complex matched that of an ancient Boros garrison.
Why would the Boros of old be here guarding an old library? The question passed through his mind only briefly before his attention was drawn to something else, a strange wisp of glowing light near the base of the tree where the first orc stood with the wolf.
"What was that?" Shae said, staring at the tree as she stepped into the courtyard. "You saw it too?" Yartik replied. "That light." Shae nodded. "Where did they go?" The pair peered toward the tree but whatever they'd seen was no longer there. "Naivarra, Vex, come out here," Yartik called. "What's up?" Vex queried as he and Naivara joined the others. "There might be someone, or something, out here," Shae explained. "Yartik and I both saw some lights, as if a person were holding a candle." "Over there," Naivara said pointing at a smaller tree growing beside what looked to be a low pile of stones. Yartik strode toward the flowing ball of faint light, his weapon ready. The light floated toward him and Yartik stopped moving, allowing whatever it was to approach. The light continued moving until it passed through his body with what felt like a breath of warm air as it travelled through the big minotaur's body. Yartik spun around and the light now floated between him and the others. To a fighter with an axe everything must look like a tree and he swung his weapon through the floating ball. The axe passed through without meeting any resistance but in response the light emitted out a arc of electricity that crackled around the legionary's body. Shae immediately began to cast, and encased the glowing ball in a corona of greenish light. "That should help if the thing decides to go invisible again." Perhaps sensing that the odds were not in it's favour the non-corporeal being darted back though Yartik and disappeared into the ground amid the pile of rocks. "Damn, that really hurt!" Yartik yelled in obvious pain, and strode the place the creature - or whatever it was - had fled and waited ready to swing again. "It's your own fault," Shae pointed out. "You struck it first, you oaf." Yartik looked a little offended. "Still hurt." The group waited but whatever had just attacked them did not return. Yartik inched closer to the pile of rocks, holding his torch down low to try and peer beyond the stones. "I think there's a staircase under here," he said as his squinted in the flickering light. "Might be the archive or whatever is underground." "I hope so," said Vex, "because we've searched everywhere up here and there's not so much as a scrap of paper." Naivara approached the minotaur as he crouched by the filled in staircase. "Someone really wanted to make sure this this entrance stayed blocked." "I agree," Vex added. "Sure are a lot of rocks covering it." "Right then," said Shae. "You lot best get cracking on clearing them out while Mirabelle and I keep watch."
They worked for hours, had a long rest, then worked some more. It wasn't until nightfall on the second day that the stones were cleared enough for Yartik's bulk to make his way down. Piles of rubble littered the ancient courtyard all taken from the carved stone passage with nothing more than their hands and the strength of their backs. It was good honest work and the first time in weeks that Yartik had felt productive.
With the passage cleared and everyone rested the group descended the rough cut stairs. Down they went, some thirty steps before opening out into a large room. Looking back it appeared that the steps broke into the wall of the room from above rather than rising from below. The quality of the workmanship in the stairs was obviously inferior to the stonework inside the room, but the passage of time, water damage and the incursion of roots from above made such a conclusion difficult to support. The room had two exits one blocked by stones from the collapsed ceiling above and the other stuck from water damage. Yartik once more put his strength toward the problem and the door reluctantly pushed open to reveal a passageway beyond and another room beyond that.
Like the first room the second one had suffered under the relentless onset of time and parts of its ceiling had collapsed trapping two skeletal figures under the rubble. Shae carefully approached the ancient remains and kicked at one of their exposed legs but it was soon apparent that these were nothing more than inanimate remains of someone long ago dead. A search of the bodies yielded two necklaces adorned with a symbol that none of them had seen before. Naivara pocketed one and Shae took the other and they continued exploring the tunnels.
On and on they went, finding room after room, all mostly devoid of furniture while others had limited sign of the furniture that had long since decayed to dust. One room looked to be some kind of chapel but being free of any Orzhov symbology they concluded that perhaps this was some kind of ancient lecture hall or theatre.
Eventually they came across a flight of stairs leading down. They descended these and at the bottom they were greeted by a familiar sight - the glowing ball was there in a passage below waiting, one of three such passages accessible from the stairs. As soon as they had all left the staircase, the glowing ball drifted off slowly then came back, then repeated the movement.
"It looks like it wants us to follow it," Yartik said, the memory of being shocked still fresh in his mind. "Maybe it wasn't trying to hurt us," Vex offered. "Perhaps it just wanted to lead us down here." "To what end?" Naivara said. Vex shrugged. "No idea, but we might never have found the covered stairs without it." Shae's brow furrowed. "True, but there's no reason to suspect that it means us no harm. Remember what it did to Yartik." "It seemed perfectly harmless until he struck with his axe," Naivara pointed out. "Sure," Yartik reluctantly agreed. "But I still wouldn't trust it." "Agreed." Vex said after a moment. "Let's explore on our own, if it really doesn't want to hurt us it won't mind us looking around a bit first." They all nodded and struck out in a different direction.
They entered a large room with a series of smaller rooms attached in various directions. As they contemplated which to explore first the glowing ball appeared at one of the other entrances and floated across the large room to a closed door - one of the only doors they'd seen since the very first room in the level above. The ball passed through the door like it did Yartik earlier and disappeared from view.
"Looks like that's where it wants us," Shae said. "Like we agreed, we will leave that door for later on." "Shh," Naivara hissed urgently and pointed behind them. "Someone's coming." Looking in the passage behind them they saw the figure of a tall man dressed in ancient looking scholars robes and carrying several sheafs of paper and more than a few books. So preoccupied was he about keeping the precarious pile of items balanced it didn't appear that he had noticed them yet. The large room provided no cover whatsoever so the group hurriedly darted across to one of the many smaller rooms and peered back through the door. The scholar entered the room a few seconds later and - without giving them a second glance - walked to another of the smaller rooms. Vex, after signalling the others to be quiet, stealthily padded over the room the scholar chose and looked through the entrance. Inside the man had selected a small cubicle and sat down with his back to Vex giving him a clear view of everything he was doing.
The scholar spent a few moments arranging the papers and books around him with practiced ease and then opened one of the books and started writing, seemingly thoroughly absorbed in whatever he might be working on. Vex looked on for several seconds when he noticed something strange. Moments after the scholar let go of any item it faded away, only to appear again as he reached for it again. The quill in his hand stayed visible but the inkwell he used to keep the nib inked came in and out of view only as he dipped the quill into it. Vex studied the scene with renewed interest and noted two more things; first the man made absolutely no sound even though he scratched away with his quill, and second that the man was slightly translucent. Vex was looking at a ghost of some kind.
As the realisation dawned a second scholar entered the room and crossed the floor to where Vex was standing. Vex turned just in time to see the newcomer walk past him, completely unaware or unconcerned at his presence, and sit down at one of the other small cubicles.
Vex's experience with ghosts was limited but he knew that they could be terribly dangerous when disturbed or interacted with in an improper way, so he backed away to where the others huddled and explained what he'd observed.
The glowing ball emerged through the door once more, floated there for a few heartbeats and then disappeared inside again.
"It definitely wants us to go into that room," Yartik said with a certainty that belied his ignorance. "It does look that way." Naivara agreed. "Maybe there's something inside that it wants us to find? Maybe that's where the tablets and books that we're here for are hidden." "Or maybe it's where something is waiting to kill us," Shae noted somewhat darkly. "That second ghostly scholar practically walked through me to get into that room," Vex said. "It didn't acknowledge my existence at all. So far the only thing down here that seems to recognise us is that glowing ball thing. I say we find out what it wants." "Fair enough, but one of you ends up dead then don't say I didn't warn you." "By one of us you mean me," Yartik snorted. "It always seems to end up being me." Shae nodded. "Sure, you then. Maybe if you stopped charging into things you'd get hurt less." "It's how I was trained. Besides," Yartik smiled. "Where's the fun in that."
Naturally there was something in that room waiting to kill them.
Like always the fight was tough, and - as predicted - Yartik fell to the terrible undead creature that attacked them once the door was opened. But, as has so far always been the case, the group prevailed and they defeated the foul desiccated corpse through teamwork and sound spellcraft, but the small glowing thing escaped.
After the fight, the group barred the door and took a long rest to recover from the battle.
They checked what remained of the furniture in the small office but found little but dust and the leather remains of what might long ago have been book covers. The time passed safely with no further sign of the little wisp of light that had led them to the fight.
After taking their rest they awoke refreshed and ready to tackle the rest of the complex, all save Yartik who didn't feel entirely himself. A persistent cough prevented him from fully catching his breath and while he felt physically strong he knew there was something amiss.
"I'm not feeling too well," Yartik said as he strapped his weapons about him. "We just rested, how could you be hurt?" Naivara said. "I don't know," Yartik replied with a snort. "I just am ok?" "Are you injured?" Shae asked. "I can maybe heal you if you need it?" Yartik shook his head. "No, There's no wound I just feel a bit off. I should be fine once we get moving." "Well you were nearly killed by that thing," Vex added. "Perhaps you've been infected or something." Yartik shrugged. "Maybe. Right now I am just a little be short of breath, I'll let you know if it gets worse or anything."
Once they'd finished breakfast the group emerged from their shelter and re-entered the complex and resumed their search. As before, scholarly ghosts continued to move in and out of the various rooms ignoring the group entirely as they travelled through the darkened halls. They eventually entered a wide chamber that curved in a circular path to the left and right, directly ahead was an opening, flanked by two - statue still - humanoid figures and blocked by a shimmering field of energy. As they stood there one of the scholarly ghosts passed through them and walked between the flanking guards and passed beyond the shimmering veil.
Shae, always the impatient one, strode confidently forward and attempted to follow the ghost into the next room but as soon as she neared the opening the guards crossed their halberds and blocked her path. She stood there for a moment waiting to see if they did anything else but they remained as still as before in this new position. As soon as she backed away they uncrossed their weapons and resumed their original stance.
"Maybe it's because you're not wearing one of the necklaces that the scholars all seem to be wearing?" Naivara suggested. "But I am wearing it," Shae pointed out as she revealed the pendant from beneath her clothes. "Maybe they need to see it to let you through?" Yartik said. "Ok," Shae shrugged and proceeded to walk forward again this time holding the pendant up so it was plainly visible to anyone. As before, the guards crossed their halberds to block her path. "Anyone else got any bright ideas?" she scoffed. "They are so silly, aren't they, mummy?" Mirabelle added inside Shae's mind. "I know," Shae agreed. "Sometimes it can feel like I am back working with a jar of worms." Mirabelle tittered. "You are so funny, mummy." Shae nodded. "I am glad you think so. My wit must be entirely lost on these buffoons." "Who are you talking to?" Vex said. "Mirabelle, of course." Yartik rolled his eyes. "Well, does your little doll have any useful suggestions?" "As a matter of fact, she does. Now if you'll just give me a few minutes I need to prepare a ritual."
The others waited while Shae incanted her detect magic ritual. Once she was done she raised her gaze and studied the opening and the figures on either side.
"Well," Shae said finally. "The shimmering veil covering the opening is definitely magical, but the two guards are not." "And?" Naivara queried. "Abjuration magic, to be exact." "Ok," Vex said. "What does that tell us?" Shae looked at the lanky ranger with a confused expression. "That the shimmering veil is magical, weren't you listening?" Now it was Vex's turn to roll his eyes. "I am pretty sure I could have guessed that without the need for your spell, Shae. Have you learned anything else?" "Well I've learned that you're an idiot." Mirabelle opined inside Shae's mind causing her to chuckle. Vex arched an eyebrow. "Is something funny?" Shae looked up, still chuckling from Mirabelle's comment. "What? No, never mind." Yartik sighed, "Now what?" Shae stood up and pushed the others aside. "Now this."
Shae once more began casting, and this time a flaming sphere appeared in the space between the two guards. The heat from the ball of fire could easily be felt from where the group were standing some 30 feet away so it must have been terrible right next to it. Both guards dived off to either side in an attempt to evade the extreme heat, one managed to protect themselves from the flames but the other was not quick enough and was badly burned. As soon as the guards recovered from the surprise attack they levelled their weapons and advanced upon the group their burns healing as they closed. The one that Shae hurt worst with her fire directed it's gaze at her, the vengeance written plain in that stare chilled Shae to her core and she fled as far from the oncoming creature as she could.
Once again the group were forced to fight for their lives. Naivara moved around the wide circular passage with Shae drawing one of the guards with them, leaving Yartik and Vex to fight the other. The fight was hard fought and it took Shae a long while to overcome her fear and strike with more than just self defence but the others were able to handle the guards and before long they both lay dead, and as the group caught their breath the two bodies - once so seemingly full of life - decomposed to dust in a matter of moments.
Shae, suppressing a shudder at the memory of her fear, strode once more toward the shimmering veil blocking the opening. "Wait," cried Vex, just a fraction too late, his words drowned out by a mighty crack as ball of fire exploded from the opening as soon as Shae crossed the threshold. The fire caught the four of them and sent them reeling against the far wall. Whatever wind they'd caught after the fight knocked out again. Luckily, none of them were killed in the blast, and once the dust settled and they'd patted the flames out they turned as one to look at Shae. "See," she stood pointing at the opening. "The veil has been lifted."
They all decided that now would be a good time to take a short rest before they continued. As they rested they took the opportunity to survey the wide circular passage where they'd fought the two guards. As best they could determine, it completed a semi-circular path with a mini-amphitheatre at either end, a series of raised steps curved around the walls at either end - three levels high with the top-most step some ten feet above the floor. They surmised that perhaps the scholars used these areas to give impromptu lectures to their peers.
Vex noticed a gap between the second and third tiers in the amphitheatre at one end and soon discovered that the seats could be pushed back beyond the far wall to reveal another passageway beyond. Their was a brief discussion to decide which way they would proceed but in the end they decided to investigate the opening that they'd fought so hard to gain entrance to.
They entered the room beyond the magically trapped opening. It was a huge cylindrical chamber about 60 feet across and more than 200 feet deep - even Vex's amazing vision could see to the bottom. A circular path spiralled around the edge of the chamber hugging the walls which were lined with shelves. Here and there they could see the ghostly scholars reaching onto the shelves either taking or removing ghostly books. In it's hey day this must have been an impressive sight - the walls lined with tomes and scholars and sages flitting here and there on missions of research and learning. What remained now was mostly dust and rotted leather.
They spiralled down, checking the shelves as they went for anything that might have been spared from the ravages of time. The further down they walked the older the style of binding - paper became vellum, became parchment, became papyrus which further ceded to wood, then clay and stone tablets. As the style became older more of the content on the shelves remained intact. They managed to salvage only a few scraps of paper near the top of the spiral but managed to find more complete examples in clay and stone as they descended.
Shae, who grew very frustrated by the slow pace the others were taking as they searched the shelves, walked further and further ahead of the group until she was finally able to see the bottom of the enormous chamber. As she completed yet another loop of the spiral she spied a congregation of the ghostly scholars sitting in rows on the floor of the chamber with another - more elaborately dressed - scholar standing at a pulpit at the head of the group. Like all the other ghostly scholars they'd seen the group emitted no sound but it was obvious that a lecture of some kind was in progress.
"Hey, you lot." Shae called back up to the others several turns of the spiral above her. "Can you guys see this?" Naivara stuck her head over the edge. "See what?" Shae pointed at the ground. "That! A whole heap of the ghosts all together." Naivara peered closer. "Where?" "On the floor," Shae said loudly her voice echoing in the huge cylindrical chamber. As one the ghosts all looked up, their spectral visage directed at Shae. It was the first time any of their number had acknowledged their presence and the feeling was not pleasant. "Eeep!" Shae gulped, and quickly started running back up the spiral toward the others. "What's wrong?" Naivara called. "Shh!" Shae said as she hustled up the incline. "They're all looking at me." "Who are?" "The ghosts you idiot, stop talking." A few hurried steps later Shae rose to the level where she could no longer see the ghosts. The feeling of being watched remained for a few minutes but at least she no longer had to look at their angry faces. "Have you guys got enough of these book things?" Shae asked when she reached the others. "Are you ok? You look like you've seen a ghost," Yartik said nudging Vex as he did so. Shae fixed him with a withering glance. "Very funny, cow boy." Yartik chuckled. "I know." "So," she looked at Naivara instead. "Have you got enough of these old relics?" Naivara shrugged. "We have a few examples of each, it depends on what we might find on the lower levels." The colour drained from Shae's face. "They're pretty much more of the same as these one's here. I don't reckon we need to go down any further." Vex looked at her flatly. "Is that because you got scared down there?" "Maybe, but it doesn't change anything. It's just more bits of etched stone, one's about as good as any other I'd reckon." Naivara nodded. "Shae's right. We have what we came for, I think we should go back up and head home." "What about that hidden passage we discovered?" Vex queried. "Why don't we check that out first and then decide to go back or not." "Sure, sure," Shae replied hurriedly. "Let's just get moving back up and out of this room."
The group returned to the top of the chamber and re-entered the room where they'd fought the two guards. The pile of dust where their bodies had fallen remained but Vex noticed that there were four small piles of dust in the shape of a booted foot forming in the place where the guards stood. As a precaution Vex took out a piece of cloth and wafted the area to blow the dust clear - he might not be able to stop whatever process was happening but he could (maybe) slow it down some.
They entered the passage that had been concealed behind the amphitheatre steps. It led to what was once a comfortably appointed room. The furniture was still largely intact but dry and brittle due to the passage of time. They surmised this might have been a lounge area where the scholars took their ease. They continued through the lounge to another passage on the opposite side. This one led to another cylindrical chamber but this time there were two spirals meaning that in order to get across to the other side they had to go all the way to the bottom in order to cross to the other side and come back up again on the other spiral to the reach the passage on the opposite side.
They traversed the spiral to the bottom where they noticed another two guards standing on either side of a shimmering barrier just like the one they'd see earlier. Vex queried if they wanted to get into another fight but Shae reasoned that they could use the spirals to their advantage and attack the guards from a distance. They knew what to expect now so as long as they were smart about they could get through this with limited risk to the group. The others agreed and they planned accordingly and for once they managed to overcome their opponents with none of their group being left with injuries.
With the guards defeated Shae was keen to try and get past the magical barrier covering the tunnel opening, but the others were not as keen to risk triggering the magic - the memory of the explosion last time still very much fresh in their minds. Instead they opted - despite Shae's objections - to investigate the other (unprotected) tunnel that led out from the base of circular room opposite the one covered by the barrier.
After just 30 feet the passage ended at a door. Vex put his ear to the ancient wood and listened. Hearing nothing he opened it and entered the room beyond. Like many others it appeared to be devoid of anything interesting, whatever furniture or decoration once stood here had long since decayed to dust. Two more doors led from the room.
The others set about searching for anything that might have survived the passage of time and Shae stood back, thoroughly annoyed at the banality of it all. There was a magical barrier behind them, if there was anything valuable remaining in this place at all surely it would be behind there, not tucked away in an unguarded room like this.
"Why won't they listen to you, mummy? Mirabelle queried inside Shae's mind. "I don't know," Shae replied, making no attempt to hide her frustration. "Maybe they're all scared." "You're not scared are you, mummy?" "Of course not. I'll prove it to you."
Leaving the others to their tedious searching, Shae turned and strode back down the hallway toward the magical barrier. Without breaking her stride she shape changed into a large gecko lizard and walked directly through the shimmering veil. As before, and completely without surprise, there was a brief fiery explosion. Even though Shae was fully expecting the conflagration she didn't manage to avoid the blast and she suffered burns to large parts of her lizard body.
Hearing the blast, the others stopped what they were doing and ran into the circular room to find Shae's smouldering lizard body padding down the corridor once blocked by the magical barrier.
"She's gone crazy," Yartik observed. "Aye," said Vex. "I wonder if that stupid doll has finally driven her mad." Naivara shook her head. "I suspect Shae was fully capable of making poor decisions before that doll came on the scene." Yartik hefted his weapon and moved into the passage behind her. "We should follow before she blows anything else up."
The passageway opened into the base of the circular room where the ghostly lecture was underway. The same circular room that the group had already entered from the entrance at the top of the spiral. As before the spectral scholars paid her no heed as they went about their business.
A bit disappointed that her brash action did not take her through to anywhere new, Shae was about to turn around and go back when she noticed another tunnel leading out from the room, a passage that would have been hidden by the spiral walkway when viewed from above. With a curl of her lizard lips she walked carefully around the room to the other passage, giving the scholars a wide berth.
Yartik arrived in the circular room in time to see Shae's lizard body disappear into the new passageway, and he too made his way over there, careful not to draw the attention of the scholars. When he reached the passage he waited for the others to arrive and he signaled them over.
The passage, like so many have, ended at a wooden door. What was different this time, though, was that the door was locked. The first locked door the group has encountered since entering the complex. This fact made Shae rather happy and she clapped her hands together excitedly while Yartik put his shoulder against the brittle time worn wood and shoved. With minimal effort the door gave way and they were able to enter the room beyond.
Inside was what appeared to have once been another area for quiet study, but it had been modified. Steel bars blocked the entrance to the former study nooks and thick chains were fixed to the walls beyond, hanging from one of which was a humanoid skeleton - it's arms locked in silver manacles attached to the chains.
Yartik and Vex entered the room first, weapons ready in case anything was laying in wait. It was soon obvious the room was clear and the rest of the group came in to take a look.
Almost as soon as they crossed the threshold Naivara became aware of a sibilant whispering that tickled at the very edge of her hearing. She pointed it out to the others and soon Vex and Yartik could hear it too. Shae, it seemed, was unable to hear the sounds - perhaps her lizard form was preventing her from detecting it.
Yartik tried the steel bars, they were solidly fixed and no amount of brute force it seemed would make them budge.
The longer they stayed in the room the louder and more insistent the whispers became, until Naivara particularly became convinced that she could make out the word "secret" being said over and over again. The constant repetition became uncomfortable for her so she left the room and waited in the passage where the sounds could not reach her.
"Now what?" Yartik said, looking pointedly at Shae. "You got us in here, so what do you want us to do?" Shae moved her head in the direction of the manacled skeleton. "Yes, I can see that," the big minotaur replied. "The bars are too strong for me to force open." "Besides," interjected Vex, "it could be animated and attack us the moment we get in there. We need you to use your magic to see what's what." Shae rolled her eyes and reverted back to her normal form with a humph. "Fine. You guys search the room while I perform the ritual."
Her spell cast, Shae looked around the room focusing first on the skeleton. The bones did not glow with any kind of magical aura, but the silver manacles the unfortunate prisoner wore definitely radiated magic, strong magic of a type she wasn't able to narrow down to anything more general than abjuration magic. She passed on her findings to the others who visibly relaxed at the realisation.
"But, what about the voices?" Naivara asked, still unwilling to enter the room. "What voices?" Shae queried. "The whispering, offering to tell us secrets," Yartik replied. "Can't you hear them?" Shae shook her head. "No." "Would you like to hear them, mummy?" Mirabelle interjected. "What?" "The voices, would you like to hear them?" Shae's brow furrowed. "You're blocking me from hearing them?" "Of course. No telling what it might be trying to get you to do." "But you'll let me hear them if I ask you to?" "I will always do as you tell me, mummy. I hope you know that." "Do you think I should hear them?" "Don't know." "Can you let them in for a second, and then block them out again?" Mirabelle shrugged. "Maybe, but once they're in I might not be able to stop them again." Shae considered this for a moment. "In that case, please continue to block them out. Thank you Mirabelle." "I will, mummy." Vex was looking at Shae with a very concerned expression. "What was that all about?" Shae waved him off. "Nothing to be worried about. Mirabelle was helping me. Now we know there's nothing magical here so there must be a mechanical way to get past those bars somewhere. Have you found it yet?" Yartik nodded. "Maybe. There's a hidden door in this corner."
They opened the hidden door to reveal a small 5 by 5 foot square room with two levers on the far wall, both set to the down position. Yartik stepped forward and flipped the switch on the left causing the bars on the empty cell to raise and unblock the entrance. He then did the same to the lever on the right and - predictably - the bars on that cell opened as well.
Yartik then moved into the cell with the manacled skeleton to take a closer look. As he neared the sibilant whispers in his mind became more and more insistent. "Free me, I will tell you a secret if you free me." He couldn't make out the words exactly but the meaning was very clear.
Yartik looked at the manacles. They were silver in colour, still polished despite the years, with runes engraved within that glowed faintly with a blue light. He turned his head to view them from different angles but they appeared to be a solid metal disk with no visible clasp or locking mechanism.
"I don't see any way of opening them," he called to the others who hovered by the doorway watching him take all the risks. "Why do you even care about this?" Vex asked. "Whatever the secret is - if there even is one - it's likely to be irrelevant after all this time." "Aren't you in the least bit curious?" Shae said. "Not enough to risk getting attacked." "The skeleton is not magical," Yartik pointed out. "Shae said only the manacles were." "Then what is it that is whispering to us?" Yartik shrugged. "I don't know, but whatever it is isn't hurting me." Vex scoffed. "Nor will it, until you free it of course." "If you can't open the manacles maybe you can pull the hands through them." Shae suggested. "Good thinking." Yartik reached out a tentative hand and gripped the skeleton's forearm. It was surprising that the bones hadn't already fallen apart so he was certain that a strong yank should separate the hands from the arms and free the former prisoner.
The minotaur took a deep breath and jerked down with all his considerable strength. The bones held. He tried again in case his grip had somehow slipped with the same result. Whatever magic existed in the manacles must be what is keeping the skeleton intact.
So, if he couldn't free the skeleton from the manacles perhaps he could free the manacles from the wall. Yartik borrowed a crowbar from Vex and set to work levering the pin that fixed the manacles to the wall, slowly and steadily he worked at it until finally the pin came free and the skeleton's arms dropped to the ground.
That was when the alarm sounded.
The group looked around in shock at the sudden noise, which soon gave way to the sound of approaching booted feet. They all ran out of the room and into the circular chamber at the base of the spiral where they spotted four armed and armoured figures jogging in formation down the passage. The newcomers moved with precision, two of them nocking arrows in bows and taking aim at the group while the others entered the prison room and stood either side of the skeleton's cell. As soon as it was clear that nobody was going to attack they two with bows moved carefully into the prison room with their fellows and stood ready to prevent anyone else from coming inside.
"Well that tears it," Naivara said. "Let's take what we came for and get out of here." "There is still that other area that we haven't explored yet." Shae said. "There's got to be treasure down here somewhere. I am sure of it." "What if there isn't?" Vex said. Shae shook here head and sighed. "What kind of adventurers are you? Flee at the first sign of any trouble." "First sign?" Naivara's eyebrows arched. "You're joking right?" "I thought it was funny, mummy." Mirabelle added inside Shae's mind.
Yartik snorted. "Shae's right. We're here, we're rested and we're strong. Let's keep going." Without waiting for a response, Yartik strode out of the circular chamber and back to the room where they'd found the doors earlier that day, one of which now stood open. "Are you guys coming or what?"
They continued exploring the complex, finding empty room after empty room. Some were clearly rooms where the ancient librarians must once have slept, others rooms where meetings or other consultations might have once been held, but like the rooms above these two had suffered the ravages of time and little of use remained.
They entered another room, this one furnished like an office, with a desk toward the rear of the room and stone shelves cut into the walls on either side. What made this room stand out from the rest was not the fact that the furniture appeared to still retain it's structural integrity but rather the desiccated husk seated behind the desk, it's undead face staring at them as they entered.
"Do you have an appointment?" the figure asked in a deep - gravelly - voice. "I um, er, yes," Yartik stammered, he held his arms wide to keep the others from entering the chamber. "I am sorry for being so late." The creature glared. "Yes, well. What is your business?" Yartik stopped for a moment to think. "Ask it about the skeleton we found?" Shae said, poking her head into the room. "Why is this slave speaking to me?" the creature bellowed. "Slave?" Shae said, offended. The figure looked at Yartik squarely. "Control your minions or I shall have you ejected from the library." Yartik swallowed. "Yes, of course." He turned to face the others. "Stay back here," he whispered. "I'll see if I can learn anything." "Apologies, good master," Yartik said as he turned back into the room. "It won't be a problem again." "See that it isn't." "Well, yes, then I was hoping you might be able to tell me a little about your prisoner." The figure's eyes narrowed. "My what?" "Your prisoner. The one manacled to the wall at the base of the circular chamber." "How is it you know of this?" "We were just there, and-" The figure leaped over the desk with a terrifying howl that echoed throughout the complex. It's clawed hands raked Yartik's body cutting him deeply before the minotaur could react. The big warrior pushed the undead creature back and then stepped out of the room pulling the door shut behind him. "Run!" he called as he ushered the other three ahead of him. The group ran, retracing their steps to a 40ft wide passage that led to an enormous set of double doors. But before anyone could catch their breath the undead figure stepped out of a dimensional rift in space and resumed its attack.
The fight was brutal, with Shae and Naivara using their magic and the creature casting spells of its own as it sought to shred them with its claws. In the end though sheer weight of numbers won out and the undead was eventually killed - but the battle had taken just about everything the group had.
Once the fight was over they returned to the office and searched it thoroughly finding nothing of any value except a small silver key with strange runes carved into it that seemed to glow with a faint bluish radiance.
The group took a long rest at the base of the circular room where they fought the undead guards, and used the time to recover from their exertions. Once it was over the others were ready to face whatever came next but Yartik still wasn't feeling 100%, if anything, the big warrior felt worse now than he did before. But he was not one to complain, or to draw attention to weakness, so he donned his armour with a silent wince and strapped his weapons on without a word to his companions.
"What's the plan?" Vex asked once everyone was geared up and ready to go. "We unlock the skeleton, of course." Yartik said matter-of-factly. "And find the secret." Shae added. "So you're still keen to go through with this folly?" Naivara queried. Shae turned to face her. "Of us all, I'd have thought you'd be most keen to find out a secret hidden for millennia." Naivara's brow furrowed. "Why's that?" "Because their stock and trade for your guild," Yartik scoffed. Naivara sighed. "I have no idea what you mean." Vex rolled his eyes. "See, even our Dimir friend here isn't interested in finding out what it is." Shae turned now to face her fellow guild mate. "So what's your problem with us finding out?" "I just think it's too great a risk. Think about it. Either there is no secret and this whole thing is a ruse to get us to unlock the skeleton and it attacks us, or there is a secret but because if how old it is it's no longer relevant or important., and when you let it go the thing attacks you." "Why do you think it's going to attack us?" Shae asked. "It might be grateful for us to free it from its imprisonment." Vex shrugged. "Sure, that might happen too. But is it even worth doing to find out?" "And let's not forget the four guards who ran in there when we tried to pull the thing free of the wall." said Naivarra. "I had forgotten about them," Yartik admitted. Shae tapped her chin. "Maybe they're not even there any more. It's been hours since we did that." "Hold on." Yartik said and disappeared down the corridor to the base of the second circular room with access to the makeshift prison. He returned less than a minute later. "They're still there. Standing vigil in the room outside the cells." "So we kill them first, then free the skeleton and get the secret." Shae offered. "This is stupid, you're stupid, and I want no part of it," Vex spat. "If you're determined to follow through with this madness then you're welcome to it, but I am out. I will wait for you back up top near the tree in the courtyard. Come get me when you're ready to leave." "So what? You're just going to abandon us?" Shae said. "I will wait one day, if you don't come up by then I will assume your stupidity got you killed and I will make my own way back to civilization. " Vex turned to Naivara, "Are you coming with me?" Naivara sucked her bottom lip for a moment. "Nah, I might stay with them and make sure they don't do anything too stupid." Vex took a long look at each of them before storming away up the spiral. "Idiots!"
The others watched him go and then made their way to the cells where the undead guards waited to prevent them from freeing their prisoner. A battle ensued where Shae used her radiant magic to good effect while Yartik blocked the passage prevent the guards from escaping Shae's spell. Naivara hanged back occasionally attacking the undead with an eldritch blast but never getting close enough to be injured herself. In the end the three of them prevailed and the undead guards lay motionless.
Yartik once again used the lever to open the cell door and entered the room where the skeleton remained locked in the manacles. He took the silver key they found in the head librarian's office and brought it close to one of the restraints. As the key was brought close a small hole appeared in the seemingly solid surface allowing the key inside, and with a click one of the skeleton's arms was free.
The whispering voices became more and more urgent sensing perhaps that freedom was close at hand.
Yartik repeated with the other hand and the manacles that once kept the prisoner secure vanished in a subtle fizz of energy. At that same moment, the skeleton - once held tightly together - fell completely apart whatever magic that kept it intact gone with the disappearance of the manacles.
But before the skull had a chance to hit the ground a swirling black mist of erupted from the ancient bones and passed right through Yartik's body causing the big warrior a great deal of psychic pain. The shock of it caused him to cry out and sent him staggering back. Naivara, hearing the injured cries ran into the room to help but she too fell victim the black mist's attack as it passed through her body on its way out of the room.
Shae saw the mist approach and cast her moonbeam spell at the passage entrance forcing the creature to pass through the searing radiant light as it sought to flee the area. The damage from the spell plus the effort of passing through both Yartik and Naivara were enough to burn the mist away in a scream of pure mindless rage.
With the creature - whatever it was - dead, Shea ran in to check on her companions. "Are you guys ok?" Yartik picked himself up off the floor and shook his head, still reeling from the encounter. "A bit of a headache, but no physical injuries. No worse than a bad hangover." He look across to Naivara who remained staggered. "I'm pretty sure I feel better than she does." "What was that thing?" Naivara managed. Shae shrugged and Yartik shook his head. "No idea," they said in unison. "So, what's the secret?" Shae asked, as she glanced between them. "What's the - " Naivara made an effort to stand upright. "you're joking, right?" Shae had the good sense to look a little sheepish. "Well yes, that's kinda why we did this whole thing, wasn't it?" Naivara simply stared. "Maybe Vex did have the right of it," she said after a few heartbeats and stormed off. Yartik watched her go and snorted. "She must have got hit by that thing a whole lot harder than I did." "So did you get the secret or not?" Shae persisted. Yartik thought for a moment. "It didn't really say anything when I set it free, but now that I think about it there is some knowledge kicking around in my mind that I don't recall having before... 'The gods will not stay dead'. Does that mean anything to you?" Shae considered for a moment. "No, how about you?" Yartik shrugged. "No idea, not even really sure what a god is to be honest." Shae recalled her druidic lore for a moment. "Gods are super powerful beings from mythology I think, not sure myself exactly. So is that it? That's the secret?" "I don't know what to tell you, that's all I got. Maybe Naivara got more, she was hit harder than me."
The pair left to go find Naivara who had already started ascending the spiral in the direction Vex went earlier that day. Yartik and Shae called out from below but Naivara ignored them and continued walking. With a glance at each other Shae and Yartik started going up the spiral as well.
They all regrouped up top and had a long back and forth about whether to go back to civilization or to return and finish exploring the complex. Shae was still hoping to find something useful and magical down there. Eventually she and Yartik convinced the others to return below and finish what they'd started.
In the end there was no useful and magical item for Shae to claim as her own, just more dusty and rubble filled corridors and rooms. They did find what must once have been the original entrance to the library - it's huge steel bound doors and colonnaded entrance covered in tonnes and tonnes of rock. It was clear that centuries (perhaps millennia) ago the archive had been buried to keep the knowledge contained therein hidden from the world, and that a Boros garrison had been built above the now buried building. It too had been eroded by time and the depredations of the Gruul, and now the place was protected only by obscurity.
With their search concluded, the group - including a very disappointed Shae - started making their way back to the 10th district.
Their journey was largely uneventful. They travelled at night, careful to avoid the numerous bonfires of the Gruul. At one stage they caught the faint sound of carnival music. Shae transformed into a black panther and padded toward it for a closer look where she came upon a Rakdos Carnival complete with sideshows and a brightly lit big top which was the source of the festive - and enticing - music. She padded back to the group excitedly and told them what she'd found but noone seemed interested in attending the show - especially Yartik who was still feeling poorly from whatever disease he'd contracted in the library. The sooner they made it back to civilization the better.
A few days later - after being away for almost 4 weeks - they returned home, and made their way directly to the library where they handed over the remnant books and tablets to a very excited Katrin. He eagerly took the treasures they'd returned with and promised to pay them immediately. Shae asked for her money to be deposited in the Orzhov bank account she'd opened before they left while others preferred cash. Katrin explained he did not have their payment with him but if they returned tomorrow he would be able to make good on their deal.
From there the group visited their apothecary contact to try and organise a cure for whatever had taken hold of Yartik. Sadly he was unable to assist, suggesting that perhaps this particular affliction would require magical attention. Likely that only capable of being provided by the Orzhov clerics. They thanked the apothecary and decided to return to the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow to discuss next steps.
Naivarra decided to waste no time, and used her contacts to try and find options for Yartik's cure, having to deal with the Orzhov was not something anyone relished so Naivara wanted to see what other options existed.
In the meantime the others returned to the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow and try to clean up and get a long overdue night's sleep in an actual bed. Vex arranged for their accommodation and after he gave their names the barman noticed that there was a message being held for them, it arrived shortly after their departure all those weeks ago. Vex finished the arrangements and took the letter to the table where the others waited and opened it. It was a handwritten letter, that read:
Fearless adventurers, I apologise for my presumption but I find myself in a somewhat difficult situation and I fear I have nobody else to turn to. My life has been ruined and I am forced into hiding, both from unknown parties who seek to kill me, and from the law who I have so faithfully served for most of my life. I have nobody else to turn to, and I need your help to clear my name. I am at my wits end. If you want to contact me please have a message delivered to the below address and I will contact you to make arrangements.
Desperately, N.
"Who's N?" Mirabelle asked inside Shae's mind. "Nassius? The Azorious legislator," Shae replied aloud. "He's the reason you and I met." "I like him already," Mirabelle beamed. "We should help him." "Screw him, I say." Vex scrunched up the letter and tossed it on the table. "He delivered us to those Rakdos clowns." "He did try to warn us," Yartik pointed out. "Plus it was the best fun I've had in my life," Shae added. Vex looked at her and shook her head. "In any case, we should wait for Naivara to get here before deciding anything." They didn't have to wait long. "Well I have some options," Naivara said as she sat down at the table. "None of them are particularly good." "What are they?" Yartik said with a cough. "There is a Simic doctor operating out of an office near Zonot Seven that has had some success treating magical diseases with what he calls 'replacement therapy'". "Pass," grunted Yartik. "Next." "There's a Golgari druid in the rot farms that can help you to function in society while embracing your affliction. He can cure it apparently but he won't because he doesn't see it as a curse." "Circle of life," Shae said with a sagacious nod. "Hard pass." "This one is a little confusing, but there is a Cleric who either has either been excommunicated or is still with the Orzhov but they don't like to acknowledge his allegiance. He can definitely handle it but he is likely to ask for some kind of service in return for the treatment." "What kind of service," Shae asked. "I think it will involve killing of some kind. Regardless it can't be good if even the Orzhov are not prepared to publicly stand with the guy." Yartik snorted. "Definitely not interested in that." "Which leaves with the final option, a bona fide Orzhov cleric. He definitely has the ability to cure you but he won't be cheap." "How much, are you talking?" Vex queried. Naivara shrugged. "Not really sure, but I am told this guy is not as pompous as some so he's likely to be less expensive than one of their more uppity pontiffs." "I don't like the idea of getting into debt with the Orzhov," Yartik said after a moment. "You'll probably like the idea of being dead even less." Naivara pointed out. Yartik sighed. "True." Naivara nodded. "Then I guess we'll be off to see the cleric in the morning." "Can't we go right now?" "I'm afraid not. He only sees petitioners between sunrise and midday, after that he is busy with 'matters of the church' as they call it." Yartik snorted. "Fine then, I guess I have no choice." "Right then," Vex began, "now that we've got that sorted there's the matter of Nassius to discuss. Here, Naivara," Vex handed her the letter. "Read this." Naivara took the paper and read. When she was done she sat back in her chair and laughed out loud. "What's so funny?" Shae asked. "Before we left for the archive, an Azorious Imperator offered to pay us to help them locate Nassius. I said no because the price she was offering was too low. Looks like we can cash in on that reward pretty easily now." "You can't turn him in!" Mirabelle demanded. "He put us together, mummy. We have to help him." Shae's face took on a pained expression. "She's right, Nassius deserves the chance to tell us his side of the story." Naivara looked at Shae with a frown. "That's not what I said at all." "In any case," Shae continued. "Why don't we arrange to meet him and give him the chance to explain. If we don't like what we hear, we turn him over - if there is something being done to him, we can decide if we want to help." Yartik nodded. "Sure, but after we take care of my thing, right?" Vex put an arm on the minotaur's shoulder. "Of course."
The next morning the group sent a messenger to deliver the note to the address in Nassius' letter then went to see the Orzhov cleric Naivara told them about. They found the church easily and entered it's brightly lit and welcoming interior. Rows of pews greeted sat facing an empty pulpit where no doubt a self important preacher would stand during service espousing the virtues of loyal servitude to the guild. Now though, the pews were empty but for a smattering of petitioners on their knees presumably praying to whatever power they felt might help them. An acolyte saw the four of them standing by the door and approached them, arms wide in greeting with a genuine seeming smile on his youthful face. "How may I be of service today, gentle petitioners?" he said when he reached them. Naivara stepped forward. "We seek Father Kavolic, one of my companions is cursed and I am told the good father is able to help him." The young man nodded, his welcoming expression unchanged. "Very good, please follow me." He led the group through the main worship hall to a smaller chapel off to the side of the building. There were several people waiting, dressed in their church clothes, that were at a sharp contrast to the torn and bloody outfits the group wore. "Take a seat here," he indicated the pews, "the his eminence will be with you in a moment." They all settled in to wait, it was obvious that their dishevelled appearance made the other petitioners uncomfortable and Naivara decided to have a little fun with it. "Make sure you don't cough on anything, Yartik," Naivara said with a wink. "We don't want a repeat of what happened to Ashok." "Ashok?" Yartik said, confused. "Yes," Vex isaid, playing along, "Ugly business that. Blood on these cushions would be difficult to clean." "Oh, right, yes. I see, yes," Yartik said clearing his throat dramatically. I'll do my best, but I can only hold back for so long." The other petitioners looked horrified, and moved a little further into the corner or the room. The door opened a short while later, and a man entered followed by an older gentlemen in priestly robes. He placed a hand on the first man's shoulders. "Go in peace, my son." The man nodded and left the chapel without a second glance at anyone. The priest clasped his hands together and looked around. "Who's next." As one the crowd pointed at Yartik. "He is." The cleric nodded and ushered Yartik, and the others inside. The office was luxuriously appointed, heavy wooden shelves lined the rooms packed with books and religious looking knick-knacks. A large desk sat to one side with a very comfortable looking chair behind it in which the cleric sat while offering far less opulent chairs to the others. "I am Father Kavolic," the priest said once everyone was seated. "No please, tell me what I can do for you?" "I have been cursed," Yartik stated. "Mummy rot, I am told." "I see," Father Kavolic looked them all up and down and then sat back in his chair, "and you wish to begin preparations for your funeral rites?" "No. I want to be cured." "Cured, you say? It is possible, but forgive me, from your appearance I would suggest you lack the means to pay for such a treatment." "We have money," Naivara said. "How much will it cost?" "Treatment of such an affliction usually costs somewhere between 3000 and 5000 gold pieces, depending upon the progress of the disease. Judging by your appearance I would guess that you came by it fairly recently?" Yartik nodded. "Almost two weeks ago." "Two weeks?" Father Kavolic gasped. "My goodness, you must have a stellar constitution to have lasted this long. Most would have succumbed to the curse days ago. I dare say you are very lucky to be alive." "5000 gold pieces!" Vex gasped. "At most we could afford maybe a tenth of that." Yartik swallowed, his face paled. "Is there a cheaper treatment available, perhaps one that will buy me enough time to afford the complete cure?" "Are you a member of the Orzhov guild?" "No, Father. I am of the Boros Legion." The priest looked at each of them. "All of you? You don't look like legionaries." "I have an account with the Orzhov bank if that helps?" Shae suggested. "It does not," the cleric said matter-of-factly. "How long does he have left if we do nothing?" Naivara asked. "I cannot say. From previous experience I would expect your friend to be dead already, but here he is. It's possible he might last another week, maybe two, but one thing is certain. If left untreated this curse will kill him eventually." "Is there something we could maybe do for you?" Yartik offered. "Some arrangement that we could come to, perhaps." "Of course," Father Kavolic said his hands spread wide, "You have come to the Orzhov, my son. Arrangements is what we do best." "I won't kill anyone." Yartik said. The priest smiled. "Nor would I ask you to. You said you are a member of the legion." "I am." "Currently serving, and in good standing?" Yartik nodded. "As far as I know." Father Kavolic looked to the others, "And collectively you feel like you can manage to pay 500 gold pieces?" "We should be able to cover that, yes," Naivara said. "Then there is something you can do for me. A few months ago I had some items stolen from me. Your Boros guildmates found the perpetrators and the items but so far me property has not been returned to me. It is - as I understand it - sitting on a shelf in one of your garrisons protected by a level of bureaucracy even the Azorious might be proud of. I want it back." Yartik bristled. "I won't steal it for you!" "Nor am I asking you to. I have all the proper paperwork, signed and notarized. All that I am waiting for is the legion to send a representative to come and file it for me. I have been waiting weeks for said representative to show up." "Let me get this straight," Naivara interjected. "All he has to do is take some paperwork to a Boros Garrison, and collect your things and you will cure him of the curse?" Father Kavolic nodded. "That and you pay me 500 gold pieces." "What is it that they are holding that could be worth you giving him a 4500 gold discount?" "The items that were stolen were quite valuable to me, one could say that they are irreplaceable but they are of little value to anyone else. Just some ledgers, contracts, and records of business transactions - nothing that would be overly useful or important to anyone but me I'm afraid. Getting them back - after all this time - is why I am prepared to be so generous to your friend here." "I'll do it." Yartik said after a moment. Father Kavolic smiled. "Excellent, please wait here while I get the paperwork for you, and please hurry. There's no telling how long you're got before the rot kills you."
Yartik took the paperwork from the priest and then went back to their room at the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow to freshen up and put on his legion uniform. He then went to the garrison holding the cleric's items while others went to organise the money. He handed the forms across to a bored looking desk sergeant who looked them over then disappeared into the back for a few minutes. He returned with a box 1 foot height and two feet long sealed with tape around the edges. The sergeant asked him to confirm the requisition number on the box matched the number on the paperwork and the asked Yartik to sign the ledger to confirm taking possession of the box. With that all done he met back up with the others.
"Did you look inside?" Shae asked as soon as she saw Yartik with the box under his muscular arm. "No," Yartik forwned. "Why would I?" Shae rolled her eyes. "Aren't you curious? Let's open it." "It's sealed with tape. He'd know that we opened it." "He never told us not to," Shae pointed out. "And besides, it looks like we can get same tape from anywhere. It doesn't have any special markings or whatever." Yartik sighed, and looked to the others. "What do you guys think we should do? Open it or not?" Vex shrugged. "I don't much care either way." "I don't think we should,"Naivara said. Shae look at each of them. "You people are so boring, how can you even call yourselves adventurers." Naivara shook her head. "I'd prefer not to do anything that jeopardizes Yartik being able to get the cure. If we turn up and it looks like the box has been opened then the priest may go back on his deal. Whatever is inside, it's just not worth it." Shae considered that. "Fair enough. Let's go get that cure then." The group returned to the church and waited in the chapel outside Father Kavolic's office. As soon as he saw the four of them standing there he ushered them inside. Yartik presented the box to him and the priest proceeded to cut the tape and open the box in front of them. Inside were several leather bound books and folders with bundles of paper inside them. The cleric took one of the books, flicked it open to a random page and began to scan down the list of words and numbers, he then set that aside and repeated the process with another two of the books. Satisfied by whatever he'd seen the priest turned to the group with a wide smile. "Do you have the money?" Naivara handed across a pouch with the wealth of coins inside. "Here it is." "Excellent." Father Kavolic took the pouch and set it down on his desk without even looking inside, then turned to Yartik. "Right now, my son. Let's go and take care of this curse of yours."
The others were asked to wait in the worship hall while Yartik and the priest went off to an antechamber on the other side of the building. Here the room had been cleared of furniture and Yartik was told to kneel in the centre of the space. Father Kavolic stood before him and chanted in an arcane tongue for several long minutes while Yartik waited. When the words were done the priest placed his hands on the minotaur's shoulders. The pain was intense, but brief, and after the searing agony cleared Yartik's breathing eased and the feeling of lethargy and pain in his joints left him. He was whole again.
The following morning, back at the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow a messenger arrived with a response from Nassius. He asked for the group to meet him inside a warehouse in Precinct Six at midnight that night - the note said that the office door would be left unlocked.
The group spent the day relaxing with Yartik finally feeling like himself again for the first time in weeks. Vex and Naivara thought they might be able to make a little extra money bounty hunting so they went to a local Wojek office to see what was on offer. There was no shortage of options, ranging from simple thugs, pickpockets, and petty thieves to notorious criminals, murderers, and even renegade wizards of some renown. Notably, Nassius' name was among the most wanted - with a bounty of 200 gold pieces. Not a lot by the adventurers standards but a small fortune for the common folk. Nassius' bounty was definitely on lower end of the scale, but it said something about the resourcefulness of the man if he had evaded capture for all this time. The pair took the list with them to discuss some options with the others if nothing came of their meeting tonight.
A few hours before the appointed time they made their way to the warehouse to give themselves a chance to scope the area out in advance of the meeting. Nothing appeared out of the ordinary and even with Shae using her wild shape ability to transform into different animals to search the rooftops and nearby alleyways they found nothing to put them on edge. When the time came they entered the warehouse through the office door - unlocked just as the note said it would - and entered the warehouse proper. Inside was a maze of crates stacked so as to make it impossible to see the full length of the room. At the centre glowed a series of ever-burning torches that marked out a circular clearing in the middle of which Nassius - looking decidedly bedraggled - waited.
"That you so much for coming," he said when he saw them approach. "I am so glad you're here. You don't know what this means to me." Naivara snorted. "You took an enormous risk in trusting us, especially after what you did in sending us to that house of horrors." "You actually went there?" the colour drained from Nassius face. I thought I was very clear in my note that you should stay away. It was a dangerous place." "Then why tell us about it at all?" Vex countered. "It was part of our arrangement, your help apprehending Krenko in exchange for details of whoever kidnapped you. I was merely fulfilling the terms of our contract. I never for a moment thought you would be so foolish as to actually pursue it." "Well I am glad we did," Shae interjected. "It was the most fun I have ever had in my life." "Fun?" Yartik snorted. "You have a very strange notion of what constitutes fun." "Wasn't it, though?" Shae continued. "You got your magical cloak, and I... Well I got my Mirabelle." Nassius watched the exchange with a confused expression. "What is a Mirabelle?" Shae removed the doll from her backpack and held it proudly for Nassius to see. "Only the most wonderful thing I have ever had in my entire life, and if it weren't for you telling us about that house I might never have been able to find her." "I... See..." Nassius shifted idly from foot to foot. "Well I am glad you all managed to get through the ordeal without anyone being hurt." "Oh, there was plenty of hurt," Yartik said, "thankfully none of it was permanent." Vex looked at Nassius flatly. "Why have you asked us here?" "I need your help. Ever since that business with Krenko my life has been turned inside out. People are trying to kill me and even my former colleagues are after me with some slanderous story of my involvement with the Orzhov. Everything that I have worked for my whole life is gone and I have been in hiding ever since." "And what do you imagine we might be able to do about that?" Naivara queried. "Why get to the bottom of it, and help me clear my name." Shae laughed. "We are not legal masterminds, Nassius. Just a few short weeks ago I was shovelling fungus in the rot farms, and the others led similarly mundane lives. What hope do we have in negotiating the legal minefield you're stuck in the middle of." Nassius nodded. "The legal issues I can deal with on my own, it's the threat on my life I cannot handle. If you could find out who wants me dead and put a stop to it I will be able to beat whatever trumped up charge is brought against me." "Can you pay us?" Naivara asked. Nassius shook his had with a sigh. "Not until I am cleared. My assets have been frozen, so until I am able to mount a proper defense I am afraid I have nothing I can offer you but my everlasting gratitude." "Ok, but after your clear of this issue, how about then?" "Name your price." "5000 gold pieces," Vex said without a moment's hesitation. Nassius swallowed. "I, um, I don't-" Naivara smilled. "Then how about you name our price, Nassius. How much can you afford." Nassius thought for a moment. "I could probably pay you 3000 gold pieces, assuming I am able to clear my name." Naivara considered that . "That is a goodly amount. Nassius, you have a deal." "Oh goody," Mirabelle said. "We are going to help the nice man, I am so pleased." "There was never any doubt," Shae said, "so why don't you tell us what happened."
Nassius went on to explain that on the night after Krenko was handed over to him he woke to the sound of intruders in his home. Not being one to confront them he sought refuge in the panic room he and all Azorious officials have installed in his home. The intruders were clearly not there to steal anything because they spent a good long time trying to gain access to the panic room but to no avail - and they eventually gave up after a few hours. He then sought refuge at work where upon his arrival arresters were dispatched to take him into custody on the charge of being in league with the Orzhov, apparently evidence was found to implicate me in some kind of wrongdoing. Luckily before they were able to clap me in chains there was a kerfuffle - one of the criminals they had in custody caused a ruckus - and he was able to slip away. He's been in hiding ever since.
The group agreed to look into what was going on, and decided to start first where the attack happened in Nassius' home. With Vex's newfound magical ability to assume the appearance of another person he would masquerade as Nassius and see if they might draw anyone out.
With the rudiments of a plan in place, they went their separate ways. Nassius saying that if they wished to contact him they should leave a message at the same place and he would reach out to them. He cannot afford to compromise his hiding place as it has kept him safe the past several weeks.
Shae left the warehouse and went directly to Nassius' home address. She strode up to the front door of the house and transformed into a cockroach and slipped in via the gap under the door. Once on the other side she returned to normal form and strode into the kitchen where Nassius told them he would keep his keys. The keys were still hanging from hook right where he told them they would be so she snagged them and did a quick circuit of the house before exiting - in the form of a cat - out a skylight in the attic roof and met the others back at their tavern.
The following morning the group made their way to Nassius' house. Vex used his magic to appear like the wanted Azorious official while Naivara and Yartik walked beside him in the role of bodyguards. Shae trailled along behind, in the hopes of keeping her association with them a secret while she kept her eyes on anyone who might be paying them undue attention.
They arrived without incident and Vex - as Nassius - used the key which Shae had obtained the night before to unlock the house and enter with Yartik and Naivara close behind. Shae took up position in the street not too far away, adopting the role of flower seller to act as cover for her extended loitering.
Hours passed with nothing interesting happening. Vex, Yartik, and Naivara waited inside the house while Shae hung about outside. Once the sun went down Shae transformed into a cat and entered the house through the same skylight window she'd used to escape the previous night.
The following day they went through the same routine. This time Vex, Yartik and Naivara actually left the house to purchase supplies with Vex once again assuming Nassius' visage. Once again, the day passed without incident.
The next day a messenger arrived at Nassius door. Yartik answered and the messenger asked if Nassius was present. Yartik said yes and the messenger handed him an envelope then turned away without a backward glance. Yartik closed the door and went to the lounge room to open it in front of the others.
Dear Mr Ven, I am very pleased to inform you that the chair you have ordered is ready for you to pick up at your earliest convenience. Roget, of Roget's Custom Furniture.
"What do you think?" Yartik said. "Do you think it's legitimate?" Vex shrugged. "No idea, but either way it's the first nibble we've had. I say we see where it leads us." Yartik nodded. "Agreed, it's either something or it's a new bit of furniture... We get something regardless." "Let's let Shae know what is going on," Naivara said, "and then pay this furniture place a visit."
Vex assumed his magical disguise and the three of them left the house on route to Roget's Custom Furniture. Naivara stopped to buy some flowers from Shae and delivered the message about where they were going so that Shae could follow along behind.
After several stops for directions they found the place a short distance away from Nassius' house. The shop was unassuming, a simple wooden sign hanging above the door with a single barred window facing the street. It was agreed that Vex would not attempt to speak during the interaction because the magic he is using did nothing to disguise his voice, so Naivara was first to enter the store.
A bell rang, alerting the a young man standing behind the counter of their entry, and he came over to where they congregated by the door. "Can I help you?" Naivara handed him the note. "We're here to collect a chair for a Nassius Ven." The lad examined the note briefly and nodded. "Please, if you'd just wait here I will be back in a moment with your order," he said then turned and walked through a curtain that divided the showroom from the rest of the store. "See anything you like?" Naivara said to Yartik who was perusing the wares on display. "Actually I do," Yartik said. "Looks like quality workmanship, wouldn't mind a few of these pieces in my place when I can afford one." Before long, the curtain opened once more and an older man entered the showroom followed closely by the young man who greeted them, the pair were carrying a cloth wrapped item that must be the chair in question. They deposited the item at Naivara's feet, and stepped back. The older man's face broke into a smile when he spotted Nassius by the door. "Mr. Ven, so wonderful to see you again. I do hope that you will find this piece both sturdy and comfortable." Vex nodded and coughed. "Indeed," he managed between coughs. "Forgive him," Naivara interjected. "The master has been quite ill in recent weeks." The older man recoiled. "I see, well, that is not good. When you are recovered I look forward to seeing you back again, I know you had your eye on a custom dresser to fill that large bedroom of yours." Vex nodded and coughed again. Yartik reached down and collected the chair and the three of them left the store. "Well that seemed thoroughly mundane," Naivara said as they walked back to the house. "Good thinking with the cough, made your silence entirely reasonable." "Thanks," Vex said. "It would have been suspicious if I didn't acknowledge the man at all. I'm glad you picked up on the ruse so quickly." Yartik snorted. "If you two are quite finished patting each other on the back we need to get back. I am really keen to try out this chair."
As before, Shae joined them after sunset where she found the three of them in the ground floor lounge area. Yartik sitting in the newly acquired chair. "What's it like?" Shae asked as she came down the stairs. "Really comfortable, and really well made," Yartik said. "It handles my bulk without even a hint of looseness." Naivarra shook her head. "He's been sitting in that thing practically since we got back." "So do you think it was legitimate?" Shae queried. Vex shrugged. "The shop looked like I'd expect of a small retailer, and the craftsman seemed to recognise Nassius and certainly acted the part of the proud craftsman." "The only person who would be able to confirm if this was something he'd expected is Nassius," Naivarra pointed out. "So let's ask him," Shae suggested. Yartik nodded. "Good idea, but it'll be a couple of days before we get a response. We have to leave the message at the drop and he'll get back to us with a time and place." Shae scowled. "That's not good enough. We need a faster way to communicate, if this is part of a setup then two days might already be too late." "You make a valid point," Vex said. "Let's get a message to him first thing tomorrow and see if we can figure out a more efficient way to keep in touch."
The group retired for the night. Naivarra sleeping in Nassius' bed, Yartik in one of the spare rooms, and Vex in the other, while Shae took her rest in the attic on the level above. They did keep a watch standing on the landing between the three bedrooms to ensure that they could be alerted if anything happened.
Naivarra was on watch when she heard a noise that sounded like the front door being opened on the level below them. Stealthily she padded first to wake Yartik, then Vex before climbing the stairs to the attic to alert Shae. By the time she came back down everyone was ready and she indicated she'd try and sneak down to seek the source of the noise.
Naivara noticed 3 things when she reached the bottom of the stairs. First; the front door was indeed open, Second; the newly delivered chair was missing, and third; a figure was closing in on her from the shadows intent on violence.
The combat that followed was unusual in that it was fought largely in silence. The attackers - initially two Mind Drinker Vampires - battled Vex, Naivara and Yartik on the ground floor, while the third - an extremely stealthy swordsman - fought Shae on the stairs. In fact it was only Mirabelle's timely warning that prevent Shae from being taken completely unawares. As it was Shae was eventually laid low but the group did manage to kill one of the two vampires before the other and the stealthy swordsman escaped - having confirmed that Nassius was not actually in the house.
When the battle was over, Vex used his healing skills to stabilize Shae but he had no more magic to bring her back to consciousness. It was then that Naivara broached a rather sensitive topic. "So," Naivara said her eyes fixed on Shae's unmoving form. "While she's out like this, should we maybe take the doll away from her." "Why?" Yartik said, his gaze moving frantically about the room. "That doll is clearly doing something to Shae's mind. Who know what kind of madness the doll is brewing in there." Vex rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Perhaps, but truthfully I think Shae was a bit broken even before the doll came on the scene." Naivara nodded. "Even more reason to take it and burn it, if you ask me. She was already a bit out there then she's already that much closer to whatever craziness the doll is planning." Yartik strode across the room and first opened the door to the kitchen. "What makes you think the doll is doing anything?" he said as he turned and strode back to check the under-stair storage. Vex watched the minotaur zip around the room. "What are you doing?" "I'm looking for that chair," he said as he crossed over to check in the study. "Why would they take a chair?" Vex opened his mouth to respond but then thought better of it, and watched instead as Yartik disappeared upstairs. He turned back to Naivara instead. "Let's say you're right, and the doll is messing with Shae's mind or encouraging errant behaviour, and taking the doll away will prevent all that. How do you imagine Shae will react?" "What do you mean? We will have helped her." "Do you think she's going to see it that way?" Vex pressed. Naivarra considered that for a moment. "Perhaps not a first, but eventually she might come to see the right of it." "Sure, that could be true," Vex agreed. "But how do you think she's going to react until then. If you take the doll and destroy it, at best she's going to get angry and leave, at worst she gets violent and tries to kill us. Neither of those outcomes are any good if you want my opinion." "Ok," Naivara nodded. "I can accept that. So what then? We do nothing, let her keep the cursed thing?" Vex shrugged. "For now, yes. We keep an eye on her, and if things really start to get crazy we step in and confront her directly. Not like thieves rifling through her pockets when she's down." "That's good thinking, Vex." Naivara said finally. "I never pegged you as the considerate type, I hope you're looking out for all of us like that." Vex scowled. "Don't get all touchy feely on me, Naivarra. I know you guys would do the same if it were me." "You know," Naivara cocked her head slightly and smiled, "I'm not sure if that's true." Vex sighed. "So can we talk about these assassins now? Any idea who sent them?" "Mind drinkers usually means the Dimir," Naivarra said. "Occasionally one of their number might be affiliated with a different guild but two of them... No this definitely seems like the Dimir are involved somehow." "And the other guy?" Vex asked. "Definitely a professional. Did you see the way he moved, and those blades injecting poison? Simic enhancements for sure, and good ones judging by the results." Naivarr said indicating Shae's unconscious form. Vex raised an eyebrow. "So you're saying that the Simic and Dimir are working together?" Naivarra shook her head. "Probably not, just that the swordsman had some expensive work done. I suspect he's Dimir as well." "How does that help us?" "No idea," Naivarra rubbed the back of her neck. "I'll put some feelers out tomorrow and see what I can turn up." They both turned as Yartik came stomping down the stairs again. "It doesn't make any sense!"
The group decided to hole up in the master bedroom. If the assassins decided to come back they figured that they should all be in the same place. Yartik carried Shae's unconscious form and laid her out in Nassius' bed while the others set about dealing with the body of the fallen vampire. They hacked off the creature's head and burned it in the fireplace and the body they dragged outside and dumped in a nearby alley - careful to ensure that they were not seen doing so. Then, once everyone was together and a watch order agreed, they set about taking a long rest to recover from the battle.
"Mummy, Mummy, Mummy, Mummy, Mummy." Shae came to with Mirabelle's insistent calls bombarding her mind. "What is it darling heart?" "Promise me you won't le them take me, Mummy." Mirabelle said, the desperation in her voice evident. Shae's heart raced. "Who wanted to take you?" she said, keeping her voice low. "Naivara! She wanted to burn me!" The others looked over at Shae muttering to herself on the bed. Naivara sighed. "Here we go." "What?" Shae tried to keep the alarm from her tone. "What are you saying?" "The half-elf scum said she wanted to take me and throw me in the fire while you were unconscious. She would have done it too if Vex hadn't talked her out of it. I was wrong about him, Mummy, he's nice." Shae gasped. "And Yartik?" "The cow-man wasn't around, he cared more about that stupid chair than me." Shae stretched, trying to appear calm as she sat upright, and immediately uttered a series of arcane words before pointing at Naivarra. Naivarra felt the magic overwhelm her, her muscles stiffened and froze until she was unable to move. "Now that I have your full attention let me say this just once." Shae strode forward so her face was inches from Naivarra's. "Never threaten Mirabelle again!" Naivarra struggled against the magic that held her, forcing her muscles to move until finally she broke free of the spell and shoved Shae back, retaliating with a hex of her own. Shae felt the magic enter her and suddenly her already paltry muscles felt even weaker. Naivara stood up and attempted to grab Shae, but some lingering effect from Shae's magic caused her to stumble so Shae was able to avoid the clumsy attack. Yartik, initially taken aback by the exchange rose and placed himself between the two of them, clearly ready to use his bulk to restrain whoever decided to attack next. Seeing the minotaur before her, Shae turned abruptly and went to her pack to fix breakfast. Naivarra's face was red with rage, but she took a few deep breaths, turned and walked out of the room and down the stairs. Vex rose from the bed and followed her. "Where are you going?" Naivara continued walking out the front door. "Leave me alone, Vex." Vex sighed and followed her into the street. "What else did you think would happen? That's why I warned you against doing it last night." Naivarra stopped, turning to face him. "Well I got the reaction anyway, so if you'd let me do it then the doll would be gone and, who knows, Shae's outburst might have actually been worth it." "Maybe. What are you going to do now?" "I need some time to myself." "Where will you go? Let me know and I'll come find you in a few hours after you've both had some time to calm down." "I'll find you," and with that Naivarra and turned to walk away. Vex watched her go for a moment and then returned to the bedroom where Shae was quietly eating her breakfast. Shae looked up as Vex entered the room. "Thanks for protecting Mirabelle," Shae said between mouthfuls. "You don't know what that means to her." Vex's eyes narrowed. "I didn't do it for the stupid doll, I did it for you." "She's not a stupid doll!" Shae insisted. "She's saved me, no, saved us, more times than I can count. If I had my way Mirabelle would be a fully fledged member of the party." "That's never going to happen," Vex said flatly. "Looks like there might now be an opening," Mirabelle chimed in cheerfully, causing Shae to barely stifle a chuckle. "Is something funny?" "What? No, um, yes, never mind. I understand you won't let her be one of us, I have come to terms with that but I need you to understand that Mirabelle is more to me than just a 'stupid doll'. She is my daughter and I will never let anything or anyone cause her harm." Vex waved her words away dismissively. "Fine, whatever." "Arrgh! You can be a real prick sometimes Vex, you know that?" Shae stood up, grabbed her things and stormed out of the room. "I need some time alone to clear my head. If Naivarra comes back tell her all I ask is for her to apologise, as long as she means it, I am willing to get past this."
Shae, still angry about the threat against Mirabelle's life walked the streets aimlessly. She could not fathom why Naivarra would seek to murder Mirabelle, what possible reason would she have for choosing to cause such pain? The question vexed her and thinking about it just made her more and more incensed. She needed somewhere quite to meditate and to get a handle on the maelstrom of thoughts swirling around in her mind. She decided to visit the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow for some alone time.
Shae reached the tavern at mid morning got the key from the barman and went upstairs to rest.
Naivarra walked around the city for a long while, fuming - not so much because of Shae's reaction, that was to be expected, but mostly because neither Vex nor Yartik said anything to back her up. They just sat back and let Shae vent her fury without so much as a word, and even when Vex did come outside to talk it amounted to little more than an "I told you so". These people were supposed to be her friends, and you should be able to rely on your friends to support you. After several blocks she realised that stewing on it was not helping her feel any better so instead she decided to focus on the problem of protecting Nassius. If Mind Drinker's were involved then the Dimir would know and perhaps she could get some useful information or direction from her handler in the guild.
As she'd done countless times before she picked her way through the undercity to the vine-choked statue in the disused fountain in the abandoned village square. She touched the statues hands and waited for her contact within the guild to sense her presence. She did not have to wait long. "It has been a long time since you have reported in, agent," the sibilant voice whispered inside Naivara's mind. "I had feared you dead." "Apologies master, I had been in the wilds of the rubble-belt for many weeks on an errand that I feel you may be very interested in." "I see, begin your report then." Naivarra spent a long while recounting her recent journey and exploration of the ancient archive. Paying particular attention to the types and numbers of remnant tomes and tablets that still remained hidden there. Her handler listened with interest but became particularly intrigued when she mentioned the prisoner and "the secret" it promised to share in exchange for its freedom. She described the encounter and allowed her handler to trace the strands of thought that comprised her memory of the fight and she could practically feel the excitement when her handler came across the fragment the creature left behind. "The guildpact will fall?" her handler said, the words sounding ominous in that persistent whisper. Navairra shivered as a wave of cold descended upon her body. "Yes, a poor secret since this has already happened." "Perhaps, but this pearl of knowledge is attached to something more, something greater that your conscious mind is yet to process. Like the paint on a Rakdos Performer's face... A gaudy veneer that hides a deeper malice. There is yet more to be learned from what this creature left behind." "I had no idea." "It is not a criticism, agent, just a statement of fact. There is more to this secret than that which have currently understood." "I see." "I shall take a copy of this memory for further study." It was not a request. "There is another matter I wish to discuss with you. My group and I have been engaged to protect an Azorious official from threats against his life. Last night we were attacked at the target's house by what I surmise to be Dimir agents. I wish to understand how I should proceed with this engagement." "What is the name of the Azorious official?" "Nassius Ven." "Please stand by." Naivarra's connection to her handler was ended but she remained in position and waited for contact to be re-established. Again, she did not have to wait long. "You are required to stand down, or ensure that Nassius Ven is either dead or brought into custody." Naivara was somewhat taken aback. "I see, what shall I tell my companions? We have been hired specifically to bring an end to the threat on the man's life." "You and your friends are immaterial to this goal. If you stay away we can bring the matter to a swift conclusion, if you wish to remain involved then see to it that Nassius dies or that you hand him over to the Azorious in chains. Do you know where the target can be found?" "Not directly, but I have a way to get in contact with him. I will do that now to arrange a meeting then pass the details of that meeting on to you." "Very good. We shall await your subsequent communiqué." With that the connection was broken.
Naivara left the secluded fountain and went directly to the place where they could drop messages off to Nassius and left him a note informing him of the attack at his house the night before and that they needed to meet urgently to discuss next steps. From there, her mind still reeling from the events of the morning, she decided to head to the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow for some alone time.
She arrived at the tavern and asked for the key. The barman informed her that one of her roommates had already taken the key and was upstairs in the room. Naivarra sighed, it seemed that even this small pleasure will be denied her. Could this day get any worse? Frustrated she ordered a drink and took a seat at the table with a view of both the stairs and the entrance.
Shae roused from what felt like a rejuvenating rest. She gathered her things and came downstairs, spotting Naivarra sitting at one of the tables. Shae stopped and stared. What was she doing here? The pair eyed each other for a long moment before she continued her descent and crossed the common room to where Naivarra sat. "Are you here to apologise?" Shae asked, hopefully. "Bugger off, Shae," Naivarra said without looking up. Shae opened her mouth to respond but decided against it. Instead she moved to a different table and sat there trying hard to maintain the same air of forced indifference Naivarra managed with what, to Shae, seemed like practiced ease. They sat like that, conspicuously ignoring each other, for over an hour. The common area filled during the lunch rush and quietened down again after but they remained. Locked in an unvoiced competition to see which one could look the least bothered by the others continued presence. A little after the lunch rush ended, a messenger - dressed in their usual blue and black livery - entered the tavern and approached the bar. He exchanged a few words with the barman who scanned the room. There was a moment of mild surprise at seeing Shae and Naivarra seated at different tables so he shrugged and pointed at them both. The messenger turned, and started walking for Shae's table - presumably because it was closer to the door. Naivarra stood up and intercepted the messenger. "I'll take that," she said as she reached the young boy. The messenger shrugged. "Barman said either of you. So here you go," he said as he handed Naivarra the envelope. As soon as the message was in her hand Naivarra turned and quickly exited the bar, using her magic to allow her to move faster as she heard Shae's cries of objection behind her.
Shae realized she had no chance of catching up with the fleeing Naivara so she decided to return to Nassius' house. Thinking that maybe that was where Naivarra was going.
Naivarra ran for a few blocks using expeditious retreat to move as quickly as she could, and took a few twists and turns down some alleyways to make sure that Shae was unable to trail her. When she felt like she was safe, she unsealed the envelope and looked at the letter inside:
Fearless adventurers, I am sorry to have put you in harms way like this and wish to meet to discuss what we might do next. Meet me at midnight in Marshall's Stables in the smelting quarter. The front door will be unlocked. N
Naivarra read the letter several times, committing the details to memory before setting the note and the envelope alight. She then returned to the statue in the abandoned fountain to pass the details on to her guild. If they wanted Nassius dead they'd now know exactly where to find him.
Shae reached Nassius house and knocked on the door. "Where have you been?" Yartik said as he opened the door. "Is Naivarra here?" Shae asked as she squeezed past the big minotaur and entered the house. "No, she's been gone all morning." Shae was surprised by that. "Really? I thought for sure she'd be back before me." "Why do you say that?" Vex said with a slur. It was obvious by the way he leaned against the doorjamb - and the number of empty bottles - that he'd spent the day drinking. "Because I just saw her at the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow." Shae said, taking a swig from the dregs of one of the bottles and grimacing. Brandy was definitely not something she would want to drink a lot of. "She intercepted a message for us and I figured she was on her way here." "Well we haven't seen her since this morning, have we Yartik?" Vex stood slightly upright and moved carefully to the couch. "Yartik and I have been busy playing charades all day." Yartik snorted. "Vex has been playing charades - and drinking - I've had my hands full making sure he didn't end up cleaning out Nassius liquor cabinet." "Excellent suggestion, Yartik," Vex said. "Let's open the '79." Shae rolled her eyes. "Well I reckon Naivarra has betrayed us. If she didn't come here then where did she go and why did she steal that message and run off like that." "Wait, what message?" Yartik said. "Beats me, Naivarra took it before I could look at it. Pay attention." "Maybe the message was meant for her, not you." Shae shook her head. "Then why was the messenger coming to my table?" Yartik's brow furrowed. "You were sitting at different tables?" "Yes it was quite the stand off. You should have seen how we ignored each other. It was incredible. I'm pretty sure I won though because Naivarra was the one who ran off first." "Ok, so she took a message - that may or may not have been intended for her - and ran off." Yartik said trying to make sense of Shae's babble of words. "That's right." "And this is proof that she has betrayed us?" Yartik continued. "Exactly." "How?" "Because she's not here, of course." "She's got a point, you know?" Vex added from the couch. "It is suspicious." Yartik looked between them. "Or it could be the emotional ravings of a petulant little girl who almost had her toy taken away from her last night." "I am not a toy," insisted Mirabelle. "I thought the cow-man was nice, now I am not so sure." "Mirabelle is NOT a toy, and I am not making any of this up. I just told you what happened, it's all true. Why don't you ask Naivara when she gets here." "If she get's here." Vex added.
Naivarra delivered the details of Nassiu's planned meeting tonight to his guild and then decided it was time he returned to the others to let them know that they should stand down. She definitely did not want them to be there when the assassins showed up to finish the job. For all their faults they did not deserve to get caught in the cross-fire.
She arrived at the house at mid afternoon, and knocked on the door. "What are you doing here?" Vex said, from his breath it was clear he'd been drinking. Naivarra looked confused. "Why wouldn't I come back?" "Never mind," Vex said and stood aside to let her in. "Come in." "Wierd," Naivarra said as she entered the house and walked in to the lounge room to find Yartik and Shae standing there staring at her, putting her immediately on edge. "What is going on here?" "Why did you steal my note?" Shae demanded. "It wasn't 'your note'," Naivarra said. "It was addressed to all of us." "Ok," Vex said pushing himself into the room. "I got rid of it." Shae pointed and wiggled her finger. "See, I told you." "Be quiet, Shae," Yartik said. "Let the adults speak. Why would you get rid of the note, Naivarra?" Naivarra took a deep breath and looked around the room again before responding. Shae looked like she'd just won something. Vex was obviously tipsy. Only Yartik looked to have his head on straight so she directed her response to him. "The message was from Nassius, requesting a meeting with us tonight. I found out this morning that the Dimir do indeed have a contract out on Nassius so a didn't want us to get stuck in the middle of all of that. My Dimir contact made it clear that if we stay out of it they will leave us alone." Yartik breathed in a let it out slowly. "So you chose the Dimir over us?" Naivarra nodded. "That's one way to look at it, yes." "And what's the other way?" Vex chimed in. "That I decided that your lives were worth saving, that we are in way over our heads and I found a way to get us out of a sticky situation." "But for that to happen Nassius has to be killed? Murdered?" Yartik added. "I can't abide that, Naivarra. I just can't." "I have done nothing all day but to put your needs above my own. First I try to help by freeing Shae from what could be a malevolent force that has twisted itself inside her mind and not one of you makes even the slightest effort to acknowledge that or even back me up. Then I risk my network of contacts within the Dimir to keep the three of you from danger in what will ultimately be a failed enterprise, and all I get is recriminations and suspicion." "You betrayed us, Naivara," Vex said. Naivarra stared at him flatly. "If you truly believe that then you no longer deserve my help." She looked at each of them in turn. "If you've got half a brain between you you'll stay well clear of this Nassius business from now on. If you decide to keep poking your heads in then you deserve to have them cut off. I am leaving. You won't hear from me again."
Naivarra turned and left the house, quickly getting lost in the sea of traffic.
"Now do you believe me?" Shae said once Naivarra was gone. "Shut up Shae," Yartik said. "I think your little temper tantrum has caused enough damage for one day." Shae pouted. "But she did do all those things I said. She admitted it." "Kid's got a point," Vex said. Shae turned to face the ranger with acid in her eyes. "Who are you calling a kid?" "Act like a child get treated like one," Yartik said matter-of-factly. "Now go upstairs and play with your doll while we figure out how to move forward from this mess." Shae's jaw dropped, she was so angry she could no longer form words. SO she stood up and went upstairs, all the way to the roof where she spent the next few hours casting spells to write enormous words in the sky. "Nassius abort meeting. Danger!"
"What do you want to do?" Yartik asked Vex once Shae had disappeared upstairs. "Well we can't go back to the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow, and we need to somehow tell Nassius that Naivarra has betrayed him to the Dimir." Yartik thought for a moment. "I know a place we can stay. The Titan's Key Tavern near the Red Wastes in Precinct Four. It's not as quiet as the Loxodon but I think it will suit us." Vex shrugged. "Sure, I'm not fussed. We need to get a message to Nassius immediately. I'll go to the drop off and let him know about Naivarra's betrayal and instruct him to contact us at the Apothecary. I am sure he won't mind holding messages for us if we ask him." "Pay him you mean." Vex nodded. "That too." "Hurry, time is of the essence. If Nassius doesn't get the message he is a dead man." "I know but until we hear back from him there's little else we can do."
With the group now relocated to the Titan's Key tavern in Precinct Four near the contested border to the Red Wastes they took some time to consider what lay ahead for them given the events that led to Naivarra's departure. Shae and Vex took a few days to further hone their poisoner's arts while Yartik spent the time trying to get to the bottom of his status within the Boros Legion. Technically he remained on their roll but he was listed as being deployed to the Azorious until further notice. Clearly Inspector Hildene had yet to file the requisite paperwork to return him to active duty so he remained in a kind of bureaucratic limbo. He considered that for a while, a few months ago the thought of not being among his squad-mates would have been impossible to imagine, but he'd found a kind of peace with Shae and Vex, even Mirabelle - Shae's crazy rag doll - has proved to be a fun companion now that she is able to speak.
The days bled one into the other - none of them willing to make any firm suggestions regarding what they might do next - but they have certainly grown to enjoy the crowd of the Titan's Key. One morning they were awoken by a loud explosion somewhere out in the Red Wastes. Yartik grabbed his maul and stuck his head outside the door.
"What was that?" he asked to the person poking his head out from the room opposite. "No idea," the man said. "But I was warned that staying here could be interesting. Especially with the Gruul Blood and Fire festival coming up." "Blood and Fire?" Shae queried, poking her head out below Yartik's. "What's that?" "A month long fracas among the Gruul clans where they select their new guild master," the man said. "Happens every year and it is always loud." "A new guild master, every year, no wonder the Gruul are so disorganised." The man smiled. "I didn't say they changed their guild master every year. Borborygmos has been the leader of the Gruul for decades, and every year he murders dozens of contenders as he proves why he has been there for so long." "Why do they gather here, I though the Gruul hated civilization." "Skarrg," Yartik replied. "Their guild hall and the only building those savages won't try to tear down is just outside the walls." "Isn't Borborygmos on the list of bounties the Azorious have posted," Shae offered. "Maybe we should try and take him in if he's going to be nearby." Yartik and the man in the door opposite laughed. "Good one," the man said once he'd settled back down. "Thanks for that, little lady, it's always best to start the day with a good joke." He gave Shae a wink and ducked back into his room closing the door behind him. "What?" Shae said when she noticed Yartik looking at her. "You were joking, right?" the big minotaur said with a serious expression. "Of course I was," Shae said, incredulous, "like we're going to waste our time chasing bounties." "Well what are we going to do?" Vex said. "We can't just sit in this tavern all our lives." "Magic," Shae said, "there's magic all around us. Just look outside and you can see flying ships, flying castles, candles that burn forever, our lives are literally surrounded by amazing magical items. I mean just look at Mirabelle, she is truly a wonder." Yartik shrugged. "Yes, and?" "Well I want more." "Mummy, no!" Mirabelle said from her position on the bed. "I don't want to share you with another doll." "Of course not, dear heart!" Shae gasped. "There's no love left in me for another, you are my everything." "I love you too, mummy," Mirabelle said. "I don't care about money, but I very much want to have magic items to protect me - a cloak, like yours, Yartik." "You can have my cloak if you want it." "No I don't want your cloak!" Shae snapped. "I want my own damned cloak!" "I am sure you can buy them," Vex suggested. "I reckon someone in the common room knows a place where you can get them." Shae's gaze moved from Vex to Yartik. "You two are clearly missing the point, I don't want to go to a shop and buy the items - even if I could afford them it would make the whole thing meaningless. Come on, guys, you know how it felt when exploring the archive looking for those dusty old tomes, or when we fought our way free from Juri's Review." Yartik winced and scratched at one of his scars. "Yeah, painful." "Sure, but also incredible. It was fun, exciting, and part of the reason I love Mirabelle as much as I do. I remember what I had to go through to get her and our shared experience has brought us together. You don't get that from buying stuff from a shop." Vex raised his hand. "Fine, fine, you've made your point. We should go on an adventure, find magic items, I get it." "Go on an adventure?" Yartik said. "Just like that?" "Yeah, sure. Why not?" "Ok, then how do you propose we start out? Do you have any idea where we might go?" "Downstairs. I bet there are plenty of folk that come to this place looking for people just like us." Vex nodded. "She's right. Just last night I heard some old human, a crazy Izzet fellow judging from all weird gadgets he had on him, asking for a group to help him reach some temple in the under city." Shae slapped Vex's arm. "That's perfect. Do you know if he found anyone?" "No idea," Vex shrugged. "Well if he shows up again tonight I'm going tell him we're in." Yartik sighed. "Sure, as long as it gets us out of this room I am ok with it. It's been too long since I've hit anything that will hit me back."
Sure enough, the crazy Izzet fellow was there when the trio arrived at the common room for dinner. He wasn't difficult to spot given his shaggy white hair and the array of ominous glowing or blinking items arranged on his body. Despite the dinner crowd the man was given a wide berth so Shae had no trouble sliding up at the bar beside him. "I heard you were looking for a group to accompany you on an adventure," she said with a smile. The man turned and looked the young devkarin up and down. "Indeed I am, young lady. Do you know any likely lads willing to traverse the undercity for a righteous cause?" Shae leaned in a jerked her thumb at her companions. "How bout those two?" The man looked over to Vex and Yartik who loomed nearby, his eyes widened when he spotted the minotaur's muscular frame. "Oh yes, they will do nicely. Thank you, my dear, will you introduce me to these men?" "And me. We're a trio, where I go they go," Shae said and extended her hand. "My name is Shae. The big one is Yartik and the other is Vex." "Tark," the man said as he shook Shae's hand firmly. "Is there somewhere we can go to discuss terms?" "Sure, we got a room upstairs. You can follow me."
Shae led Tark upstairs to their room where he explained that he was on a pilgrimage to lay to rest his assistant, Statto, who was tragically killed in a laboratory experiment the two of them were working on. Statto, a goblin, used to tell you stories of a shrine where his grandfather used to play as a kid. Apparently, Statto always wanted to pay the place a visit because his grandfather would speak of the vast treasure that was supposedly hidden within the shrine. Statto was planning to go there as soon as the experiment the pair of them were working on with was done. Unfortunately he died and Tark thought it would be a fitting tribute to find the place so that he could scatter Statto's remains in this place that had meant so much to him.
Unfortunately Tark was unable to pay them because the previous group he'd hired took the money he promised them and left him high and dry so he had nothing except the map that led to the location of the temple.
The group agreed to terms, an equal share of whatever treasure the temple would hold and decided to head off first thing in the morning. Vex was familiar with the ways of the undercity so he would lead the group to a point and Tark would use the map to get them the rest of the way there.
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This thread will hold session logs and other campaign information for my first D&D campaign set in Ravnica.
Session 1: The Collector - Part 1
The Characters:
Yartik - Boros Minotaur Fighter (Level 1)
Naivara - Selesnya Half-elf Warlock (Level 1)
Unndrel Vex - Golgari Devkarin Ranger (Level 1)
Shae Aloni - Golgari Devkarin Druid (Level 1)
Events:
Shae Aloni, awakens first. She finds herself in a 5 by 5 ft stone cell with a locked reinforced wooden door. She is naked save for a simple smock and has no memory of how she ended up there. The last thing she knows for certain was cooking a meal in her tent for herself and her pet centipede, Pinchy and based on her level of hunger she surmises that she had been unconscious for no more than a day or two. The cell is clean and well maintained but it has obviously been used previously judging by the marks and scratches on the walls. She begins to call out, insisting that she does not belong here and that a mistake has been made.
Yartik awakens next. He rouses naked but for a smock in a similar cell, unable to see in the total darkness. Like Shae, he has no memory of how he came to be there remembering only that he was training with his fellow legionaries. His massive body barely fits within the confines of small cell and as he seeks to find some measure of comfort he hears Shae's cries from nearby. The pair converse briefly before Yartik tries to smash the door open with his prodigious strength.
The banging against the door rouses Unndral Vex, he awakens in another cell, dressed only in a smock like the others. The last thing he remembers is trailing an animal in the Undercity before waking up in the cell. He hears the commotion in the cell beside him but chooses to remain quiet for a time.
Naivara awakens last. She too has no memory of how she came to be locked in the cell dressed in only a smock. Her last memory is being in the Undercity en-route to meet a contact with information relating to the death of his master. She hears the crashing of Yartik nearby and calls out to signal her presence to the others.
Eventually Yartik's persistence and strength prove more than the door can handle, and he manages to break free of the confines of the cell and into what seems like a much larger room based on the echoes of his words and movement.
Naivara, bouyed by Yartik's success via brute force unleashes a series of eldritch blasts eventually overcoming the structural integrity and forcing the door to open.
It is then that they hear the sound. Starting as a faint hissing sound then building to a loud wooshing before dissipating as though a flush in a drain.
"There is water somewhere," Unndrel says, finally signaling to the others of his presence.
Naivara repeats her eldritch blast to force open Unndrel's cell, while Yartik persists with strength to free Shae. The four of them a free of their confines and those who can see in the dark look around their surroundings, spying 6 other cells (all empty) and a thick metal portcullis blocking the only visible way out of the cell area.
Again the, hissing builds to whooshing and flushing. The group determine the sound is coming from a dirt filled fissure that has opened in the ceiling above the cells. They take turns to clear the dirt away and eventually expose a rough natural passageway leading into the darkness but (most importantly) out of the room.
The four squeeze their way through the narrow passage, Yartik having the most difficult time until they come to a vertical shaft, looking up they spy a spot of sunlight many hundreds of feet above them, while below is a tunnel filled with water. As they decided what to do next, the water level rose the sound growing louder as it neared the passage they had squeezed into. The level rose until it covered the opening of the tunnel then quickly flushed away some 30 seconds later.
Unndrel points out that going up is not an option, but perhaps they could use this water to make it safely down into the tunnel below. The group agree and they wait for the next time the water rises.
It comes again and the four of them slide out of the passage and into the water filled shaft. As the water subsides the group is lowered into the tunnel below, only Unndrel suffering some minor injuries as the water swirls away.
Once at the bottom they see a long water filled tunnel stretching into the distance in both directions. With nothing else to go by they decide to follow the current.
Some time soon after the see a side passage lit by a flickering light. The group pull themselves out of the water and into the side passage, snapping off the continual flame torch that marked the maintenance tunnel entrance, then stepped through a sealed door and into a network of tunnels.
The crackle and hum of Izzet machinery is everywhere in the maze of rooms and intersecting tunnels. They eventually spy a grate in the passageway that overlooks a large chamber, as they peer into the chamber below they spy a strange site. A goblin reads from a book, a dagger in one hand raised above a moving figure on a stone slab. Surrounding the slab are 4 others, another goblin, two viashino and a human, watching the macabre display with interest.
Yartik seeks to kick the grate open and stop whatever is about to happen but the grate is too small for him to squeeze through. He spies a set of stairs on the opposite side of the rooms and begins to run quickly along the passage, hoping it will take him to the chamber below.
They pass one room with a series of hooks, holding leather coats and some various tools in boxes below them. The others take the coats and makeshift weapons while Yartik continues to run toward the chamber. He eventually finds the stairs but is called to a halt by Shae before he blunders in on the scene.
Shae enters first, casting entangle at the feet of the four onlookers. Two of them manage to avoid the vines which appeared from the stone and ran for a rough hewn tunnel on the opposite wall, but the others are stuck fast. Unndrel Vex moves toward the goblin who still brandished the knife above the figure on the stone slab, but as soon as Yartik entered the room the goblin dropped both book and knife and ran for the rough hewn exit as well.
Yartik ran across the room but was unable to catch the fleeing goblin.
"What is going on here?" Naivara yelled, her voice taking on an ominous tone. One of the entangled, a small Viashino collapsed to the ground begging for mercy, while the other - a human - managed to blurt a hasty reply. "We were just doing what Gunder wanted. He promised it would help us. Nobody's getting hurt."
"What of the poor wretch on the slab?" Shae pointed out.
"That's just a zombie," the human managed weakly.
Unndrel moved closer to the slab, verifying the clearly terrified human's claim. It was indeed a zombie, and very poor one at that.
The encounter over, the group learned that Gunder is a member of the Shatterbang Brother's gang. They take money from poor unfortunates from the rot farms and perform "rituals" they claim will help elevate them out of the Undercity. The book is little more than a Simic anatomy text with zero arcane value. The poor wretches tell the group that the tunnel the goblin fled down will eventually take them to the surface but they should be careful because the Shatterbang gang will force them to pay to pass through the exit.
The group let the unfortunate's go and follow the tunnel upward. After many twists and turns the tunnel ends at a door. Shae places an ear against it and hears the sound of movement beyond. Yartik, barely contains his patience and tries the door handle finding that it was not locked, but is stopped by Unndrel before attempting to open it advising them to wait.
Their patience is rewarded as after a long 3 or 4 minutes the sound of scraping is heard - like something being dragged away from the door - and then the door begins to open. Yartik launches himself at the door and smashes into the room. The goblin opening the door is knocked off his feet and Yartik gores him brutally with his horns. In the corner of the room a second goblin - armed with a crossbow - sits stunned by the violent death of his companion.
Naivara comes in behind Yartik and positions herself before the goblin, striking him with a concussive force. The goblin shrieks in pain and strikes back with his sword, hitting the half-elf before fleeing up the stairs and out the door onto the street.
Yartik gives chase, catching the fleeing goblin before he is able to lose the lumbering minotaur in the backstreets and alleyways. He subdues the goblin and restrains him using his dead companion's clothes as a makeshift rope.
With the now unconscious goblin slung over his shoulders the four of them seek out a Boros patrol. They are quick to find such walking the streets, and they show some alarm at Yartik's clothing and blood soaked horns. but as soon as he shows his legionary tattoos they relax and offer the group their assistance. Yartik hands the goblin over and the Boros gift him a weapon and a cloak before advising them to report their kidnapping to the proper authorities as soon as possible.
They agree this is a wise course of action but Shae feels that they should go to their homes to get some supplies first. Shae's home is nearest so they go there first. Everything appears to be as she remembers but Unndrel uses his ranger skill to investigate a bit further. It appears that Shae was indeed taken from her home because while there was no sign of a struggle he did see signs of other's presence and clear signs that she had been dragged out of her tent.
End of Session 1
Session 2: The Collector - Part 1 / Krenko's Way
The Characters:
Yartik - Boros Minotaur Fighter (Level 1)
Naivara - Selesnya Half-elf Warlock (Level 1)
Unndrel Vex - Golgari Devkarin Ranger (Level 1)
Shae Aloni - Golgari Devkarin Druid (Level 1)
Events:
Shae hosted her new companions in her humble tent and feeding then what little food she had - a simple mushroom broth - the group made their way to the home of Unndrel Vex.
Vex resides in the Under City, in the ruins of a once flying castle that crashed many centuries ago and had since been buried by years of urbanization. After a thorough check he determined that his house was exactly as he'd left it before his capture.
They offered to accompany Naivara and Yartik to check their homes but Yartik indicated that - given Vex's house was untouched - his barracks would likely be the same. Naivarra too felt that her house would also be free of any clues.
Yartik felt that he had to return to his barracks and make an official report of what had happened, the others opted not to accompany him but they agreed to meet at The Slush Bucket tavern at 10pm that evening to discuss what to do next.
Vex went back inside his house, Yartik made his way back upside, Shae returned to her hovel, while Naivara went to make a report of her own.
Naivara picked her way through the undercity to a secluded space where a statue, it's arms spread wide, loomed in the darkness - a former fountain in what was once a city square. She carefully checked the area to ensure that she was alone before she approached the statue and stepped into it's chilling embrace. As soon as her hands made contact with the cold stone she felt a familiar tickle in her mind and she shared her recent experience with her handler. Once her story was complete she waited for a response. As usual there were no actual words, but the meaning was clear - she was to find out more. Knowledge is power for the ones she calls master.
Yartik returned to his barracks, suffering frequent jokes and derision from his squad mates at his dishevelled appearance. His sergeant stopped the lumbering minotaur before he could reach his bed and gave him a dressing down followed by a please explain. Yartik related what happened and his sergeant grew skeptical. "You'll be telling that story to the Captain, and if even one detail is different from what you just told me you'll be spending the rest of your life cleaning latrines! Now go get cleaned up and meet me in in the CO's office in 30 minutes recruit."
Yartik did as he was ordered and after a quick wash and a change into uniform he reported outside his commanding officer's door. After a brief wait he was admitted within and was asked to tell the story yet again. The sergeant listened intently his gaze never wavering as he stared Yartik down. After he'd finished his report the Captain looked to the sergeant who gave a single - almost reluctant - nod. "Right," said the Captain, "you'll be telling that story again before our Azorious liaison in morning. And I'll expect your fellow victims to be present to corroborate your version of events."
Yartik pointed out that he was due to meet them later this evening and his Captain instructed that he not be late.
Shae arrived at the The Slush Bucket - a tavern on the (wide) border of the Upper and Under City - first. She found a table out of the way and waited. Vex arrived next, he took a few coins from his purse and ordered some drinks before Naivara got there. The trio discussed their plight - basically naked, equipmentless and all but broke while they waited for Yartik.
The big minotaur arrived exactly on time - dressed once more in his legionary uniform. His entrance caused more than a few of the patrons to stop and stare while others flat out got up and left the tavern. The barman fixed him with a baleful stare as he marched directly across to the trio at the table.
Yartik explained that he'd been ordered to report to the Azorious in the morning and the others were expected to be there as well. After a brife back and forth they all agreed and the night was done.
The next day they met at the appointed time at an arrestor station not far from Yartik's barracks. The were ushered inside and all 4 of them told their tale - only Vex decided to omit the details of the goblins and their "sacrifice" in the sewers. The Azorious official took their statements and verified that they believed their statements to be true to the best of their knowledge and then bid them stay - he wanted to consult with his superior.
After another 30 minute wait - nothing moves quickly amid the sea of process and paperwork - they were led upstairs to a far less busy part of the building where yet another official was waiting to met them.
"I am Nassius Ven," the man said, "Representative from the Office of the Guildpact. I understand that the four of you have recently escaped from captivity and are interested in tracking down whoever might have captured you." The group nodded, and Nassius bid them take a seat. "You are not the only ones to have gone missing in recent months. We have had several such kidnappings take place but you are the first to have managed to get free. Unfortunately I have no need of your assistance in finding the perpetrators - we already have people looking into that - but I could use your help with another matter in exchange for sharing what we learn with you."
After a brief negotiation where Nassius agreed to re-equip Vex and Naivara and cover their living expenses for a week the four of them agreed to help Nassius recover a prisoner who had escaped during a prison transfer a few days ago.
The group were issued contracts - which they signed - and became official deputies to the Azorious in pursuit of the escaped convict Krenko - gang boss from the Foundry Street area of Precinct 5.
A nearby tavern was selected and the group took up residence as they began their investigation.
Vex went to the site of the escape and verified the story told by the Azorius guards of spirits rising from the ground to encircle the group as they walked. The spirits moved about the guards in rapid circles attacking them and once the melee had ended Krenko had vanished from amid his wall of guards.
Shae naively offered the bulk of her coins to the barman, who - luckily for her - recognised her naivety and advised her to be more circumspect with her questioning and offering of bribes. Not all people would have her best interests at heart. The barman had no real information at the time but was later able to point the group toward a sewer entrance where several goblins were seen a few nights ago.
Yartik learned from his Boros contacts that the Shattergan Brothers' a rival goblin gang were starting to become more belligerent as if they were getting ready to move in on Krenko's old territory - now that he'd been put away. Cleary they did not yet know he'd escaped.
The group entered the sewers based on the barman's information and soon found evidence of recent passage. It was slow going and with a combination of Vex's tracking skills and Shae's ability to speak with animals they'd followed a path below the city.
End of Session 2
Session 3: Krenko's Way
The Characters:
Yartik - Boros Minotaur Fighter (Level 1)
Naivara - Selesnya Half-elf Warlock (Level 1)
Unndrel Vex - Golgari Devkarin Ranger (Level 1)
Shae Aloni - Golgari Devkarin Druid (Level 1)
Events:
The group paused as they sought the way forward. Vex was unable to find sign of passage so Shae used her magic to speak with a nearby rat to find the way forward but before they could act on the information gained 3 giant centipedes emerged from the darkness and attacked the group. The battle was brief and the hungry insects were dispatched without serious injury to any of the party.
They continued to follow the days old goblin trail to it's conclusion, a sturdy ladder leading up to a manhole cover in the street. They ascended the ladder and emerged in the centre of an alleyway that ran between a number of warehouses. It was late at night and the alley was deserted giving the group plenty of time to study the area.
Shae checked the nearby doors finding them all locked and listened at each of them but heard not a single sound within. Vex watched the rooftops for any sign of movement while Naivara climbed up a drainpipe to try and gain access to the roof. Unfortunately she lost purchase and fell heavily to the ground, with Yartik on hand to soften her fall and keep her from serious damage.
None of the warehouses offered a single clue as to where the goblins might have gone after emerging from the sewers.
The group decided to stay in the area and wait it out, hoping for anything that might aid them in their hunt for Krenko, the goblin gang boss.
Hours passed and nothing.
With the lightening of the sky, the noise of people starting their day grew louder and traffic in the area increased markedly. The alleyway remained quiet for now but the larger roads nearby became much busier. Eventually Shae grew tired of waiting and took Pinchy - her pet centipede - from her hair and with the aid of her animal speaking magic asked the creature to enter beneath the still closed main doors of the surrounding warehouses. Pinchy found nothing save that one of the warehouses - a large windowless building marked with a faded boros sigil - smelled of smoke.
Soon the warehouses began to open, and Yartik approached one of the workmen to ask about that particular warehouse. He learned that it was used to house equipment for the legion up to a few weeks ago when a fire broke out inside and destroyed the building's interior. It had been abandoned since then.
The group decided that they should try and get inside that warehouse. They had no qualms about breaking in but were concerned that doing so would leave sign of their presence and preferred instead to try and open the door cleanly. Yartik, figured that since the boros had used it then it was possible that they still had a key, so he took himself to the nearest Boros watch station to make enquiries. He learned that there had indeed been afire but the legion no longer had access to the building as it was turned back over to the building owners as the bureaucratic tangle of who was at fault in the fire played out.
With no other alternative they used their crowbar to prise the door open at the side of the building and went inside. The fire damage was extensive and it was somewhat surprising the whole place had not collapsed. Inside it was all but empty save for two unmoving lumps that upon investigation turned out to be the murdered bodies of two goblins marked with the symbol of Krenko's gang.
Frustrated and tired the group had no choice but to concede that this trail had gone cold. Vex and Yartik returned to their room while Shae and Naivara decided to sleep inside the warehouse in the vain hope that the goblins might come back while they rested.
The barman greeted Yartik and Vex as they entered the tavern where they stayed and informed them that a package arrived by courier while they were out. He reached below the bar and handed Vex an official looking box stamped with the seal of the Azorious. Vex placed his thumb on the locking mechanism and the box opened to reveal a satchel with a sheaf of papers.
Upstairs in their room he read through the documents. Nassius had sent them an update on their kidnapping investigation indicating that his team were narrowing in on a suspect. He also provided some more information about Krenko sourced from the prison he was originally sentenced to. They learned of two of Krenko's known associates - Falish a rouge izzet weapons maker who is known to work out of Tin Street, and Mr Taz - no details except the name. They also learned that Krenko was captured with a magic dagger in his possession.
Vex and Yartik slept comfortably in their beds while Naivara and Shae slept roughly in the warehouse without incident. Eventually they came together once more and discussed next steps.
With trailing goblins turning up nothing the group decided to try and make contact with Falish, since the details regarding Mr Taz were scant. They decided that maybe they could claim to have come into possession of Krenko's magic dagger and contact Falish in an attempt to sell the weapon to her, figuring that if she did know how to find Krenko she might seek to return the weapon to him.
After a great deal of discussion they knew that pretending to have the weapon would not be enough it would best if they could actually have it - or at least a decent replica - in case things did work out. With that in mind they returned to Nassius to request access to the weapon.
Nassius listened to their proposal and decided that it was worth the risk and agreed to loan them the dagger. Another round of paperwork was signed and assurances were given and the group walked away from the meeting with Krenko's magic dagger in hand. Heading for Tin Street to try and track down Falish.
Naivara used her magic to alter her appearance, choosing to present as red-haired human with ties to the Boros legion. She walked the streets approaching various likely lads with questions about where she might go if she wanted to offload some shady merchandise. After numerous failed attempts she learned of a tavern - the Millstone - run by a minotaur called Wyroon who'd been run out of the legion a few years back.
Mindful of the time remaining before her magical disguise wore off Naivara entered the Millstone and spoke with Wyroon who provided her with the location of two people who might be interested in buying her item - one of those people was Falish.
The next day Naivara returned to Tin Street - once again assuming the guise of the red-haired boros woman and made her way to the address Wyroon had given. It led to a solid looking metal door in an alleyway not far from the Millstone. Naivara knocked loudly and after a brief wait the door was opened by a dirty faced human with a mane of curled hair dressed in thick leather coat; Falish herself.
Naivara explained why she was there and Falish, although somewhat disinterested at first became intrigued as Naivara explained the dagger and its provenance. The pair agreed to meet again in three hours - this time at the Millstone - to complete the transaction. Naivara also giving Falish her address - the actual tavern where she and her companions were staying - in case Falish needed to contact her for any reason.
The two of them shook hands and Naivara departed, never intending to be at the Millstone at the agreed time.
She had planted the seed, it was time now to wait and see what might grow from it.
End of Session 3
Session 4: Krenko's Way
The Characters:
Yartik - Boros Minotaur Fighter (Level 2)
Naivara - Selesnya Half-elf Warlock (Level 2)
Unndrel Vex - Golgari Devkarin Ranger (Level 2)
Shae Aloni - Golgari Devkarin Druid (Level 2)
Events:
The group advanced in experience and are now at level 2.
Having set their plan in motion the group settled in for what they felt might be a long period of waiting, needing to stay close to their accommodation in order to see what attention their actions might have earned them.
Vex and Shae awoke first and went downstairs as soon as the kitchen opened, selecting a table that afforded them with the opportunity to hear what was said at the bar as well as providing good coverage of the downstairs common room.
A messenger, draped in the characteristic blue and black of the Dimir entered the tavern and proceeded to the bar, he spoke briefly to the barman and the two Devkarin elves heard their names mentioned before the barman pointed in their direction. The messenger turned and handed Vex a package and left the room without another word.
The package, adorned with Azorious symbols was similarly sealed as one they'd received a few days earlier and Vex placed his thumb on the lock to open it. Inside was a letter from Nassius Ven, it read:
Brave adventurers. Please be aware that the investigation into your abduction and unlawful imprisonment has come to an end and further assistance in that matter from you is no longer required nor advised. Thank you. Nassius Ven.
Naivara and Yartik came down soon after and they too enjoyed a hearty meal from the kitchens before a second messenger, dressed like the first in Dimir black and blue, entered the common room. He approached the bar and the group overheard him ask for Red - the pseudonym used by Naivara in her meeting with Falish the previous day. The barman checked the register and confirmed they had a booking under that name then placed the package into storage beneath the bar.
Naivara waited a few minutes before going upstairs to adopt the illusory guise of Red and came back downstairs, going directly to the bar to ask for the package. The barman handed it to her and went about his business.
Unlike the official Azorious package this was a simple leather scroll case sealed with only a piece of string. Inside was a letter, it read:
Red, I hope this message finds you well. I am sorry that I missed seeing you at our appointed meeting last night, and I hope that this does not mean that you have found another buyer for the item we spoke about. If you are still interested in making a deal please let me know at your earliest convenience. Regards, Falish.
Naivara went back upstairs to drop the disguise and came back down to share this news with the others, inspiring a ranging discussion among them as to next steps. Eventually they decided to try and lure Falish here and try and get her to talk, first using Shae's charm person and should that fail then via Yartik's intimidation.
Naivara penned a response to Falish assuring her that the deal was still very much on and that she should come to the inn where they stayed later that evening to make the exchange. Then she left the tavern and used a series of expeditious retreats to move swiftly through the streets to a nearby Dimir messenger station where she arranged for the letter to be delivered to Falish's door.
As Naivara made her way back to their tavern she spotted a goblin in the streets nearby who seemed to be taking an unusual interest in the place. She looked around for others but either there were none to be found or they were better hidden than this one. Thus finding nothing else she went back inside to the table where her three companions yet remained.
Time passed, and soon after lunch a couple of goblins entered the tavern talking to each other in their at-once-guttural and high-pitched tongue. The pair approached the bar and -now speaking common - loudly asked to book a room for the next few days. The barman took their names and their payment and handed them a key which they took and went upstairs - resuming their conversation in their native language.
Another conversation took place as the group processed this event. They surmised that Falish - or perhaps Krenko himself - was having the place watched and was now seeding the guests with his own people.
Evening approached and Yartik and Vex went upstairs to wait in their room which was directly opposite the one which they had booked for Red and be ready with the door slightly ajar. Shae and Naivara left the tavern to look around.
Naivara, using one of her growing collection of illusory forms took up a position outside the tavern with the hope of seeing Falish approach. While she waited a speaker took position on a wooden box and began spruiking about how the guilds have failed and that the guildpact was forever broken, and citizens should stop perpetuating the archaic and outdated structures that have so damaged society these past years. Most people ignored the man, but a few stopped to listen to his message. Before long a group of Boros legionnaires muscled their way through the small crowd and arrested the man for preaching against the guilds. Even as he was being led away in chains he continued his tirade, using he arrest as further proof of how the guilds have corrupted society.
Shae spotted yet another goblin who seemed to be watching the place. Shae thought she might be able to get some information from the goblin so she cast charm person upon the unsuspecting target.
Unsure if the spell had worked or failed Shae sidled up to the goblin and offered a cheerful greeting. The goblin turned, surprised at first but his expression quickly softened as the magic worked its way into his mind.
"Hi," the goblin said with an expression that clearly indicated he was searching his memory for a name but coming up empty. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm staying in that tavern over there and I spotted you out here so I thought I'd come say hello to an old friend." Shae replied.
"You're staying in that tavern?" The goblin pointed.
"Yes."
The goblin's expression turned serious and he leaned closer. "I'd probably find somewhere else to stay if I were you."
"Why's that?"
"I can't get into specifics, but let me say that things are might get a bit rowdy."
"Oh, does this have anything to do with Krenko?"
"Shhh!" the goblin hissed. "Don't say that name."
"It's just that I heard someone say it in the common room."
The goblin grew thoughtful. "Really? Well that is interesting. Look, I don't mean to be rude but I gotta be somewhere. Take my advice, find somewhere else to stay."
Shae backed off and the charmed goblin headed off down the street. Shae used her wild shape to transform into a small dog and followed the goblin to wherever he was going. The goblin expertly weaved through the people in the busy street and came to a halt only a block or so away where another goblin waited. Shae got as close as she dared in the hope of overhearing their exchange but much of it was spoken in the goblin language, she might not have understood the words but the message was clear. Shae's charmed goblin was being thoroughly rebuked for having left his post and told in no uncertain terms to get back there.
Naivara having seen Shae transform went back inside to let the others know that she was following one of the goblins. She walked upstairs - still in the guise of a random man - and knocked on the door to their room. Given it was ajar her knocks pushed the door open and Yartik and Vex were quite surprised to see the stranger standing there. Already on alert for trouble the pair grabbed their weapons and confronted Naivara.
The commotion drew the attention of the two goblins who had checked in earlier. They peered out of their door - only 3 doors down from where the group were staying - to see what was going on.
Naivara raised her hands and assured them there nothing to worry about. Vex amd Yartik, recognising Naivara's voice lowered their weapons and ushered her into the room.
Shae, still in the form of a small dog was on her way back to the tavern as well when she spied 3 goblins ahead of her walking purposefully toward the door. Shae ran, using her size and speed to quickly close the gap reaching the tavern entrance just as the three goblins entered and closed the door behind them.
"Elakar," the larger of the 3 goblins called from the door. "Been a while. Glad to see you looking so well. I hope nothing will soon happen to change that."
The barman's skin visibly paled. "Hi Malkon, I wasn't expecting you for another three weeks."
Being dinner time the tavern had quite a number of patrons in the common room, and most of them were consciously trying to avoid making eye contact with the belligerent goblins by the door.
"Got some other business to attend to," Malkon said as he stepped toward the bar, leaving his two armed comrades by the door. "I understand you have a guest here called Red?"
Elakar reached down and retrieved the guest register, he scanned the ledger and looked up. "Yes, she's in room 6."
Malkon smiled and strode upstairs letting out a loud whistle as he reached the top.
Naivara, Yartik, and Vex heard the whistle clearly and Vex placed an ear to the door to try and listen in on whatever was going on in the corridor. He heard footsteps approach the door to Red's room one set from the direction of the whistle and two pairs from the room which held the goblins. Before long there was a loud knock on Red's room, a few seconds later came another knock. "Wait here," said a voice and a single set of footsteps could be heard heading for the stairs.
"I'm hungry," Vex declared loudly. "Let's go downstairs." He then opened the door to his room to find two goblins standing either side of Red's door. The pair watched closely as Vex, Yartik and Naivara left their room to go down to the common room.
"Key!" called Malkon, as neared the bar. The barman, Elakar, quickly reached below the bar fumbled about for a moment then tossed the key to Malkon who caught it deftly, before returning upstairs.
Naivara, Vex, and Yartik found a table - taking note of the two goblins by the door. Naivara spotted Shae in her dog form and called her over.
It was tense few minutes as everyone waited to see if the tension would turn to violence. Before anything happened Malkon returned from upstairs alone, tossed the key back to Elakar and signaled for his companions by the tavern door that they were leaving. "See you in three weeks, Elakar." Malkon said as he followed his companions outside.
There was a frenzied discussion between the group and they quickly decided to try and follow Malkon and his goons to see where they might go. Shae and Naivara were selected to do it since they could be less conspicuous with their ability to change forms.
So out they went into the night, easily able to follow the three goblins as they walked the area around Foundry Street. The pair recognised that they were walking toward the warehouse area where they found the two murdered goblins a couple of days ago., and it was very near to that burnt out warehouse that the three goblins split up, each one walking down a different road. Shae, having adopted the form of a cat, chose to follow Malkon, as did Naivara - both of them figuring he would be the best one to lead them somewhere important.
Malkon, clearly experienced at taking a circuitous route soon lost Naivara - who returned to the tavern hoping that Shae - in her cat form - was better placed to keep him in sight.
Eventually Malkon led Shae to another warehouse, used a key to unlock the office door and stepped inside. Shae climbed to the roof of the building and looked through a window. Inside she spotted a number of goblins in the large open area of the warehouse. The window was rather grimy so she was unable to pick out individual faces but it was clear that the goblins were living in the warehouse. Having learned what she could Shae returned to the tavern to share what she'd found with the others.
They decided to go in that night. Shae and Naivara took the opportunity to have a long rest and recover their powers and then the group headed back to the warehouse where Malkon had gone.
Vex, Yartik, and Naivara hung back while Shae - this time in the form of a giant centipede - entered through a small gap between door and wall to check get a closer look inside. She saw two goblins sitting by a small fire talking quietly in their language while eight others slept in bedrolls and swags on the floor by the fire. She also spotted a large canvas tent, and after gnawing her way inside she found Krenko asleep inside.
She then looked for a way to get the others inside without alerting their quarry, and noticed a crane on the roof which ran along a set of rails that led to the rear of the warehouse and beyond outside. She followed the tracks and changed back into her elf form to open the door that allowed the crane to exit the building where she affixed a rope to lower herself to the ground.
She carefully made her way back to the others, avoiding a couple of watches she spotted on the roofs of nearby warehouses and led them back to the rope where each of them quietly climbed up and in.
Session 5: Krenko's Way
The Characters:
Yartik - Boros Minotaur Fighter (Level 2)
Naivara - Selesnya Half-elf Warlock (Level 2)
Unndrel Vex - Golgari Devkarin Ranger (Level 2)
Shae Aloni - Golgari Devkarin Druid (Level 2)
Events:
The group made their way toward the sleeping goblins. Shae, climbed across the ceiling in spider form until she was directly above the smaller of the two goblins on watch. Vex and Naivara walked carefully on the walkway that encircled the building toward a set of stairs near the office in the middle of the building. Yartik strode confidently down the nearest staircase and made his way toward the larger of the two goblins on watch not making much attempt at stealth.
Despite the noise the lumbering Minotaur made while picking his way amid the clutter of crates and storage containers the two watchers seemed ignorant of his presence, inattentive to their duty of keeping look out.
Yartik reached his quarry first, stepping out from the jumble of stored goods and into the cleared area behind the larger goblin. As soon as he crossed the threshold an alarm bell rang alerting the unsuspecting goblin to Yartik's arrival and ruining his chance at a surprise attack.
Shae, who was waiting for the fight to start lowered herself on a silken thread and attacked the second of the two goblin watchers. Her bite struck home dealing him a grievous wound and the poison she injected killed the hapless creature instantly.
Yartik swung his weapon at the larger goblin but the creatures chainmail armour deflected the blow and the goblin struck back with its scimitar in two wild swings one of which struck home, wounding the minotaur.
With the 8 sleeping goblins now awake and scrambling for their weapons, and still some distance away from the melee Niavara cast a hex on one of their foes while firing an eldritch blast on another, missing entirely.
Vex also stepped into the clearing, causing another alarm bell to sound and closed on the goblins who until the sound of the second bell were focused on the minotaur. His attacks landed but his enemies held their feet and struck back.
Shae, concerned that Krenko might seek to flee, lowered herself next to the tent and engaged more of the waking goblins.
Malkon, the goblin Shae had followed to find this place recovered first and drew his weapon to strike at her. The blade bit deep and Shae sought to flee the area but before she could get away his second blow cut her down and she fell back to the floor having reverted to her elven form.
Naivara finally reached the fray, triggering another alarm bell before she launched her attacks on the goblin gang members.
At this time, perhaps concerned at the number of alarms, Krenko peered out from the tent and assessed the situation. He could see the combat had split into four separate groups, and even though it looked as though the goblins had the upper hand he decided to duck back in to gather his effects and don his armour.
Yartik struck at the chainmail clad goblin who seeming to anticipate the blow grabbed a nearby companion and used him as shield. The minotaur's strike bit deep and the hapless goblin fell.
Vex, used his hunters mark to focus his attacks, struck down two of the three goblins around him, and Naivara moved through the combat to help Shae who still hadn't recovered her feet upon the death of her spider form.
The battle continued with all combatants suffering wounds, Krenko once more poked his head out of the tent and found that the tide had turned against his men. He clutched a satchel under his arm and stepped out clearly looking for a chance to flee.
Naivara finished off another of the goblins and moved to block Krenko's escape. Shae seeing Yartik was badly wounded moved through the melee, earning herself a minor wound in the process and used her magic to heal the bleeding warrior.
Malkon and Vex fought the pair seemed evenly matched with neither able to get the upper hand, armour and blade moving to block each others blows.
Yartik, rejuvenated by Shae's magic finally cut down the chainmail clad goblin he attacked to begin the fight leaving Shae free to approach Krenko without fear of attack.
Shae drew Krenko's magic knife as she approached the goblin boss. "I think you should surrender," she said, making sure the gang leader could see the weapon clearly.
Krenko's eyes fixed on the blade, and seeing that his companions were all but defeated dropped his satchel and raised his arms.
Malkon, clearly angered by Krenko's surrender, disengaged from Vex and charged his former boss with his blade held high. He swung twice, cutting the gang-leader deeply. Vex, fearing that Krenko might be killed, ignored his other opponent who escaped, closed on Malkon and killed him.
Shae ordered Krenko to stand with his arms behind him as she manacled their quarry. The goblin complied with their wishes and waited patiently while the group began to search the bodies. After a short time he spoke. "I think you'd better get out of here soon if you know what's good for you."
Yartik, cuffed the goblin boss over the head. "you don't give the orders here, worm."
Krenko shrugged. "Your choice of course, but if there's any loyalty left in my gang those alarms should have reinforcements arriving here any minute."
"Where's your stash?" Shae asked.
Krenko smiled. "As if I'm going to tell you that."
With an evil glint in her eye Shae removed Pinchy - her pet centipede - from it's place in her hair and held the creature close to Krenko's face. "Would you like a big juicy eye, Pinchy?"
Krenko recoiled in horror. "Get that away from me."
"Where's your stash?" She pushed Pinchy closer. "I won't ask again."
"I don't have it!" Krenko squealed. "They took it all when I was arrested, I swear."
Shae searched Krenko's face, the genuine horror convincing her of his honesty.
"We should go." Yartik announced, grabbing the manacled goblin wrapping him up in a cut away canvas from his tent, and hoisting him over his shoulder.
The group ran through the streets, taking a circuitous route through the many warehouses, leaving Naivara and Shae behind to check for signs of pursuit but nothing came. They eventually made their way back to the burnt out warehouse where they found the two murdered goblin bodies a few days ago. Once there they took a short rest while they argued about what to do next. Eventually they agreed that Yartik should go to the Azorious HQ and let Nassius know that Krenko was in their custody.
"You don't have to turn me in, you know?" Krenko said after Yartik had left. "If you let me know I can introduce you to Mr. Taz. He has all kinds of connections, he could be a very useful ally."
"Who's Mr. Taz?" Vex demanded.
"It's not for me to say." Krenko replied. "If he deems you worthy he will introduce himself. But unless you let me go he'll never know you exist."
"You're going back to prison."
Krenko shrugged. "Oh well. I got away once, I can get away again. But think about what I said while your Legion buddy is gone. Mr. Taz is not someone to ignore lightly."
Yartik reached the Azorious Citadel and waited for a meeting with Nassius Ven, who was very pleased to learn that Krenko had been apprehended. Nassius enquired about the health of the group and agreed to meet them at the burnt out warehouse with a team of trusted men later that day and Yartik returned to the group to await their arrival.
Sure enough, a few hours before sunset there was rap on the broken down office door which pushed open to reveal a man dressed in the uniform of an Azorious Arrester. "I believe you have something for us?" he said.
"What's the secret phrase?" Naivara said in reply.
The man's face betrayed his puzzlement and he leaned back into the alley. "Was there supposed to be a secret phrase?"
"What nonsense is this?," exclaimed Nassius' familiar voice. "Of course there isn't," he said while pushing himself into the room.
Naivara laughed as the official turned his befuddled gaze upon her. "Sorry, man. Couldn't resist."
Nassius laughed awkwardly and smoothed the front of his shirt. "Of course, Of course." He scanned the group, spying Krenko among them. "Where is Shae?"
"I'm out here," she responded - having stepped out of the office as the others arrived to slip Krenko's magic knife into her boot. "Sorry, nature called."
Nassius nodded and signaled his men to take Krenko away, barely containing his relief when the guards stepped in and exchanged Shae's simple manacles with a set of far more impressive looking chains.
He watched as Krenko was led out of the room before turning to the group, withdrawing an envelope from the satchel at his side. "Take this," he said, handing the item to Vex. "This will tell you how you can collect your payment. The full amount is there, and," he looked around to make sure they were alone, "I put a little something extra there for you. Now, if you could please hand over the knife that can conclude our business and I will be on my way."
The group looked to Shae who last had the knife.
Shae looked at the floor, a guilty expression on her face. "I lost it."
Blood drained from Nassius' face. "What?"
"In the confusion of the fight and the escape I guess I must have dropped it in the warehouse where we captured him?"
The others seemed equally shocked, Vex openly eyeing her with suspicion.
"Can you go back and get it?"
"Maybe," Yartik replied, but not right now. We're still pretty beaten up from the fight.
Nassius nodded. "I see. Well I can give you a 24hr grace period. If you return the blade into our custody by this time tomorrow we will call it done otherwise the insurance clause of our contract will have to take effect."
"Insurance clause?" Shae asked, it was clear that she hadn't read the documents she signed at all.
"Yes, a 500gp compensation will be required, if I recall the terms of the contract."
"500gp?" Yartik exclaimed.
"Indeed. So please, if you can return the knife that will make things far simpler for everyone." Nassius looked around the group. "Thank you gentlemen, and ladies. Thank you for your service." With that he turned and left the area accompanied by his men and a very resigned looking Krenko.
Vex opened the envelope Nassius had given them. It held a document that said they could collect their payment from a nearby Orzhov Shrine, he said that they all needed to be present of they would not be able to collect their funds.
The group discussed next steps and all agreed that they needed some rest before attempting to recover the knife. Shae questioned the need to return the knife at all but Yartik particularly felt that they had to try and get it back. Naivara agreed, stating that being indebted to the Azorious was not something that they should get into. So they agreed to go and collect their payment and then get some rest before meeting up to tackle trying to regain the magic knife.
Once at the Orzhov Shrine they presented the attendant with their papers and he returned after a brief moment with a locked metal box, instructing them to each place their palm upon the surface in order to release the lock. They did so and inside was their 200gp payment along with a letter written in Nassius' neat hand. It read:
Brave adventurers, please accept my sincerest of thanks for the work you have done in apprehending the missing Krenko, I am very glad that you have been successful in that endeavour. By way of thanks I wish to share with you some information regarding the investigation into your recent unlawful capture. As I had informed you the official investigation has been closed and we have been assured that there will be no further kidnappings in this area, but the individual responsible has not been brought to account for their crimes. As you know that sometimes where official channels close it falls to unofficial channels to pick up the slack. I direct your attention to a residence at 1359 Parkview Parade in Precinct 6. The one responsible can, I understand, be found there. Do with this information what you wish. Whoever the perpetrator is they have connections so do be careful. Regards, Nassius.
Further discussion ensued and they agreed that recovering the knife remained their first priority before doing anything about this new information Nassius shared. They each took their portion of the reward and agreed to meet up tomorrow morning at The Loxodon and the Wheelbarrow, a tavern not far from where they emerged from the undercity the day they escaped their capture.
As the group dispersed Shae hurried to catch up to Naivara. "I need to tell you something," she said as they pair walked. "I actually still have the knife. I had it the whole time."
Naivara raised an eyebrow. "Why the deception?"
"I didn't see the harm in maybe keeping it. I figured they'd let it slide and that way we get a magic dagger."
Naivara shook her head. "The Azorious don't know the meaning of letting it slide. I'm surprised Nassius even gave us the day to return it."
"So you think we should just give it back?"
"I do. It's not worth us being on the hook for anything when it comes to those crazy bureaucrats."
Shae thought about that for a moment. "Fair enough. I'll tell the others in the morning."
The next day, a refreshed group met at the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow where Shae revealed her deception to the others. There were a brief exchange of viewpoints as they debated the merits of what she did but in the end they agreed to return the knife immediately and focus instead on investigating the address Nassius gave them.
The Azorious Citadel was on the way, so after a brief detour to return the knife they arrived at Parkview Parade and looked around. The first thing they learned was that there was no actual park that the street had a view of. Instead, despite being a predominantly residential area the street looked over a place called Medori Park, where a series of warehouses were constructed years ago by an Orzhov Pontif over what used to be a city park.
The group set themselves up in a cafe that gave them a view of the address in question - a three story stone residence on the corner of Parkview and another street. Shae, Vex, and Yartik stayed seated while Naivara used her magic to assume multiple guises walking up and down the street. Several hours into their vigil a horse-drawn carriage pulled up to the house and a tall human male got out dressed in a black suit with a cane. The man approached the front door, unlocked it and went inside. They continued to watch the house, when half an hour later the same man stepped onto the balcony to smoke a cigarette.
They discussed what to do next, and decided that the direct approach was called for. So they approached the house and pressed the buzzer by the door. "Hello," a crisp male voice said through the intercom device beside the door. "Can I help you?"
"We're here to discuss the Simic situation," Naivara, who had been elected the speaker for the group, said in response.
There was a brief pause before they heard a buzz and click as the front door opened. "Come inside, make yourself comfortable. I will be down presently."
Looking at one another, perhaps surprised that this worked, they entered the house. The entry way was narrow, with a second door directly opposite the front door. Shae opened this to reveal a comfortably appointed lounge room, an open fire to one side and grand circular staircase on the other. They all entered that room with the exception of Vex who stood in the entryway still unsure if this was a good idea. Above them were the sound of footsteps approaching from the level above.
Session 6: The Collector - Part 2: Juri's Review
The Characters:
Yartik - Boros Minotaur Fighter (Level 2)
Naivara - Selesnya Half-elf Warlock (Level 2)
Unndrel Vex - Golgari Devkarin Ranger (Level 2)
Shae Aloni - Golgari Devkarin Druid (Level 2)
Events:
The group waited in the comfortable and inviting lounge area, the dancing flames of the fire infused the characters with a pleasant warmth bringing welcome relief from the cool of the outside. Only Vex remained by the entrance, unwilling to risk walking into what he felt was an obvious trap.
The footsteps above grew louder and the characters forcibly wrested their attention back into focus as they waited for their host to arrive. Shae - standing closest to the stairs - saw him first, a tall, thin human male dressed in black suit with a white shirt as he came into view. The man paused at the landing midway down the stairs and surveyed the gathered adventurers. A broad grin broke over his handsome face as he took them in.
"How wonderful," he said before continuing down the stairs to the well stocked bar tucked in below the stairs. "This is an unexpected surprise, I get so few guests these days." The man spoke in even tones his caramel smooth voice betraying nothing except genuine joy at seeing them.
He picked up a glass and took a generous pour of a brown colour spirit and stepped back to the bottom of the stairs. "Please, help yourself to refreshments." He indicated the bar before taking a long swig of his drink.
Nobody moved.
The man shrugged and looked around the room again. "What an excellent collection. Where is your fourth member?"
"By the door," Yartik said, almost unable to keep from answering.
The man nodded. "Really, there's no need to stand out there in the cold," he said raising his voice to ensure Vex could hear him.
"I'm ok where I am," Vex responded.
"Suit yourself," he took another swig. "Now, what can I do for you? You said something about the Simic?"
"Why do you want us? Was it for experiments?" Shae blurted.
"Experiments? I'm sure I have no idea what you are talking about. I have no interest in any such thing."
"Then why capture us?" she pressed. "Were we selected at random, or was there something special about us?"
The man smiled, and turned his attention fully onto the stain covered druid. "Of course you are special, Shae. You all are." He raised a hand and moved it to indicate each of them.
Naivara swooned despite herself, the man's energy was infectious and it was difficult for her to resist the force of his personality. "Who are you?" she gasped.
"Oh, how rude of me. Normally we'd have had this conversation before now, I am Juri, and it is a very great pleasure to remake your acquaintances Naivara, Yartik, Shae, and you too Vex."
"Why did you choose us?" Shae said, a slight edge to her voice betraying a nagging doubt in her subconscious.
"Casting is an art, you see. I consult of course but I like to leave the details and selection to Juj, it's something of a passion for her. I must say that I have always been exceedingly pleased with the results." He took another sip of the drink. "I see no reason to think you are any less worthy."
"Casting?" Yartik managed, his mind felt like it was running through treacle. "You're Rakdos aren't you?"
"Of course," Juri smiled. "And you, my bovine champion will be a star."
"What did you want with us?" Naivara said.
For the first time since he entered the room a look of mild annoyance crossed Juri's handsome face. "Vex, I really must insist that you come here. All this shouting is giving me a sore throat."
Vex, his curiosity getting the better of him, left his place by the front door and moved closer.
Juri's expression softened upon seeing the ranger now standing by the door to the lounge room. "Excellent. Now we can talk like civilised people. I am here to answer all your questions."
"How can we be sure that you won't try and capture us again?" said Shae.
"I can assure you I have no reason at all to need to do that."
"Why is that?" Vex asked.
"Well, isn't it obvious?" Juri's practically beamed. "You're all already here."
The revelation triggered something in Shae's subconscious, a foreign smell - unnoticed before now - caught her attention. "Gas! He's trying to poison us," she blurted and moved her shirt up to cover her mouth.
"Just relax," Juri replied. "Take a deep breath and let it wash over you. Submit, and we can proceed to the next stage sooner."
"You bastard," Naivara said as she unfurled her whip. She lashed out with the weapon but her attack missed, the leather cord striking the staircase balustrade.
Juri looked at Naivara, an expression of mild disappointment on his face. "This really isn't necessary." He placed a hand in his pocket and there came faint buzz and click.
"Yartik, he locked the door!" Vex pointed. "Let's try and break it down together."
The big minotaur charged from the room with Vex, the pair slammed into the wooden front door with crushing force causing it to splinter but it remained closed. The force of the blow knocked the wind from their lungs and as they fought to regain their breath they felt they limbs stiffen into immobility.
Shae, now holding her breath, ran into another room at the front of the house - some kind of office or den - and moved to smash the windows. He blow was firm but the glass - if indeed that is what it was - refused to break.
"Really, Shae," Juri called after her. "This really isn't necessary."
Naivara focused her magic and directed a hex at Juri, oddly the magic failed. She then brought her whip to bare once more this time her attack struck true but the stiff leather cord passed through Juri as if he wasn't there.
"Well, that looks like it would have hurt." Juri said with a chuckle.
"He's an illusion!" Naivara called, the effort wasting precious reserves of air.
"You're wasting your time trying to hold your breath," Juri offered. "You were mine the moment you walked inside."
Naivara glared at the Juri illusion before she too ran and launched herself at the front door. Her strength sapped away as she struck doing no further damage and forcing a lungful of tainted air into her body. Her muscles stiffened and she fell still.
"It's just you and me now, Shae," Juri said standing at the doorway to the front room. "Let yourself go, you'll be more help to your friends that way. I can tell that you four will prove to be spectacular. Go on, give in to me, breathe."
Juri's words penetrated the growing fog in her mind and Shae could see the wisdom in his suggestion. Resolutely she opened her mouth and breathed deeply, as if the act were one of defiance, and waited while a feeling of numbness washed over her. The last thing she saw before the blackness was Juri's raised glass before a triumphant smile.
Yartik woke first. He surged upright and took stock of his body, his equipment, and his surroundings. He seemed fine, more than fine in fact - well rested as though he'd had a good night's sleep. His arms and armour were all present and his backpack rested against the leg of the chair he'd awoken in. He looked around the room, the same comfortable lounge in where they'd spoken to Juri. The others, Naivara, Shae, and Vex were all present, seemingly asleep on the couches and chairs in the room.
Yartik woke them all.
Vex, upon realising his plight went immediately to the front door. The damage he and Yartik had inflicted remained. Energised he brought his strength to bare against the already damaged structure. Before long he managed to break it down and push himself through onto the porch.
While Vex was busy with the door, Shae ran upstairs. She passed level 2 with barely a glance and continued up to level 3, stopping only when she spied a pair of armoured feet standing near the top of the stairs. She waited to see if the armoured figure had noticed her and then slowly crept forward when to seemed they hadn't. As she drew closer to the top it became clear that this was just a full sized suit of plate armour positioned against the wall and she relaxed, calling down to Naivara to ask her to come up.
Yartik watched as the group went their separate ways, and shrugged while he too went exploring. Opening the north door that led into what looked like a dining room.
Vex, now on the porch, scratched his head. Where the street and freedom should be was only an opaque grey void. He reached a hand out and was somewhat surprised to find the barrier hard and unyielding. With a curse he returned inside to the room where they'd all awoken. "Shae, where are you? I need your crowbar."
Shae and Naivara were still on the stairs to level three looking at the suit of armour. It stood at attention with a longsword - point down - gripped in both hands. Naivara used her whip to try and pull the sword away from unmoving form but her attempt was not good enough and the leather cord slipped free without success. They both heard the call from downstairs and - deciding that perhaps they should all stick together decided to return below.
Vex had moved into the office / den area at the front of the house and checked the windows - unsurprised that they too have been covered by the opaque grey void that blocked the exit from the porch.
Shae and Naivara arrived in the room with Vex and she handed him her crowbar. Vex took the solid metal pry and set about trying to lever the windows open to no avail. "Yartik, I need your strength here." The minotaur arrived a few seconds later and gave it a go as well, but he too had no luck moving the window even an inch.
"Damn it," Vex cursed. "It's like we're rats in a cage being played for someone's amusement."
A light went off in Shae's mind. "That's exactly it! I knew I'd heard that name before. Juri, from Juri's Review."
"Juri's Review?" Naivara said. "What's that?"
"A filthy Rakdos spectacle," Yartik growled. "The legion has been after that slippery bastard for years. I can't believe I didn't put two and two together when he introduced himself."
"I wouldn't worry about too much," Vex offered. "It's clear we were somehow drugged or there's no way he could have caught us all again so easily."
That was when Shae heard it, an underlying noise that sounded a lot like applause. "Did you hear that?"
The other's listened and soon they could all hear it too. It sounded a long way off but the sound of the crowd was unmistakable.
"How exactly does this Juri's Review thing work?" Naivara asked, suddenly overcome by anxiety.
"It's different each time," Yartik said, "but the concept is always the same. Basically a group of adventurers work their way through some kind of challenge the winners being rewarded with cash and other prizes."
"And if we don't win?" Vex queried, though he probably already knew the answer.
Yartik shrugged. "It's Rakdos. I am sure that there's plenty of blood."
The crowd noise became abruptly louder and the cheers and whoops of joyful revellers was clear for all to hear.
"I guess we can assume that escape won't be an option," Vex said as he tossed the crowbar back to Shae. "We'll just have to go in to get out."
Naivara swallowed. "We need to stick together. We stand our best chance if we explore this place as a group rather than doing things on our own."
The others nodded and as one they set about exploring the house.
The group explored the ground level, the dining room, kitchen, pantry as well as the lounge and den that they had already entered. Along the way they collected a few items, a decorative (and blunt) longsword that hung over the fireplace in the lounge, plus crossbows and crossbow bolts of different sizes hidden in a locked cabinet in the den. Other than that the ground level did not provide anything else of interest beyond a decorative theme of natural forests and windmills in the art and fittings of the house.
They then climbed the stairs to the second level. On the landing they were confronted by 4 suits of armour, holding spears, standing either side of two doors on the north and south walls. Shae and Naivara, in their haste up the stairs the first time completely failed to register them. Now they paid them more heed, using Naivara's whip to part them from the spears and then further using it to knock the stacks of metal to the floor in a series of loud crashes. Satisfied that the armour was not a threat the group opened the door to the south which revealed a ballroom that ran the entire width of the house and would have overlooked the road - had not the view from windows been obscured by the opaque grey wall.
In the ballroom was a harpsichord and a long cloth covered lounge that ran the length of the south and west wall. The east wall was adorned with a fireplace - burning brightly. Three mysterious lumps were visible beneath the cloth. Naivara approached the nearest of the lumps while Vex strode confidently to the harpsichord.
Naivara moved the cloth aside and beneath it was a skeleton slumped unmoving on the lounge.
Vex, with no discernible musical talent, began to play the harpsichord. Despite his lack of skill he managed to luck upon a simple yet tuneful melody. As soon as the first notes began to play the skeleton (and the other lumps) stiffened and stood up. The one nearest Naivara extended a hand - as if inviting her to dance with it. The other lumps - now out from beneath the cloth - were revealed to be skeletons as well. They took hold one another and began to dance around the polished wooden floorboards of the room.
The sound of laughter rippled from the invisible crowd followed by raucous applause.
Naivara, taken a little off guard, shrugged and accepted the skeleton's offer and soon those too were dancing around the room to the sound of Vex's clumsy music. Vex continued to play but his luck ran out and whatever tune he was managing collapsed and became a discordant mess. The skeleton's froze and their benign expressions darkened as they turned to violence. The combat was swift, but bloody leaving Naivara with several wounds before Yartik, Shae, and Vex were able to reduce the skeletons to kindling.
A library stood past the doors to the other side of the landing. The books therein bland and uninteresting, but Yartik spotted an anomaly in the layout of the floor and discovered a secret door that led to a smaller room filled with books of an arcane nature as well as another skeleton. This one inanimate but clutching a rolled up piece of paper, upon which was written a note. It read:
My most wonderful performers.
I am never one to hold a grudge, but I will admit to a feeling of mild distress when I learned of your escape. All of which is behind us now that you have returned to take your place in this most spectacular revel. Your performance today will place you among the most famous of souls who have played this part in the years before you. May your sacrifice be made in the name of pure entertainment. After all, the most memorable and impressive performances can only be given once.
Juri
With nothing more interesting on the second floor, the group took the stairs to level 3 where they were once more confronted by the suit of plate-mail armour. This time a lasso was formed from a rope and tossed over the head and shoulders of the armoured form. The group retreated back downstairs leaving Yartik with the rope to try and pull the armour over. He began to run back down the stairs, the rope went taught for a moment before slackening off again and he soon found that the armour was chasing him, to the delight of the crowd. Another combat and another victory to the heroes as they beat the animated armour into several pieces.
But their relief didn't last very long. In the very next room, which apparently once belonged to the family nanny - a dust covered and cobweb filled room, quite the contrast to the rest of the house - they were attacked by the spectral form of the woman. Shea was badly injured in the fight and was forced to invoke her spore form to bolster her flagging health.
The crowd were loving it.
A secret door was found revealing a set of stairs that led to the attic. A dusty and unkept part of the house. At the top of the stairs were a series of doors, one of which sported a rusted yet serviceable looking lock. Yartik withdrew a key he'd found in a desk in the library and unlocked it. The room beyond was a sad and squalid place. An intricate dollhouse stood beneath a bricked up window on the far wall. Two straw pallets rested on the floor on either side of the room in the centre of which were the bones of two young children surrounded by their dust covered toys.
Wary of undead, Naivara and Shae unleashed their magic and reduced the bones to dust before they entered the room. Shae approached the dollhouse which bore a striking resemblance to the house they'd been exploring. As soon as she unhooked the latch to reveal the interior the temperature of the room fell and two ghostly children materialized.
"Don't touch that," the tallest - a young girl - said with a huff. "We don't like it when people play with our toys."
"Yeah," said the boy. "We don't like it." There was a hint of menace in his tone.
Session 7: The Collector - Part 2: Juri's Review
The Characters:
Yartik - Boros Minotaur Fighter (Level 2)
Naivara - Selesnya Half-elf Warlock (Level 2)
Unndrel Vex - Golgari Devkarin Ranger (Level 2)
Shae Aloni - Golgari Devkarin Druid (Level 2)
Events:
The ghostly children stood, hands on hips with grumpy expressions on their young faces. "Look what you did with our bodies?"
Shae gasped, suddenly realising who those two skeletons must have belonged to. "I am so sorry. We were afraid that they would jump up and attack us."
The girl's brow furrowed. "Why would they do that? They're just old bones."
"We've seen skeletons that can move." Naivara pointed out, "you're might have done the same."
"Yes," the boy said, "daddy used to tell us stories about those. Very scary."
The girl nodded. "That was before he locked us in this room, of course."
"Your parent's locked you in here?" Vex queried.
"For our protection, they said."
"Protection," Yartik snorted, "from what?"
The boy shrugged. "They never said."
"I'm guessing it had something to do with all those creepy visitors they'd been getting," the girl said after a moment.
"Where are your parents now?" Shae asked.
"Their bedroom is downstairs. I reckon they might be there. Mother has been ill."
"How long have you been trapped in here?" said Yartik.
The boy looked at the dust where his body used to be. "A long time, I think."
"That's a very pretty dollhouse." Shae said, her gaze fixed on the well made item.
"Yes it is," the girl beamed, "it's an exact copy of this house. Right down to the last detail."
"May I?" Shae said and moved closer.
The girl nodded. "Sure, just don't break it."
Shae opened the front wall and looked inside. The layout definitely did seem to match the rooms that they'd been exploring. She took note of the entrance, the dumbwaiter and even the secret door leading to the staircase up to the attic where the group now stood. It was there she noticed a spiral staircase that led from the attic down through to bottom of the house without a single door that opened onto any of the intervening floors.
"Where does this staircase go to?" She asked.
The girl's expression grew wary. "That's where the monster's are. You don't want to go down there."
"Monsters?" Yartik's heart quickened. "What monsters?"
"We don't know, we were never allowed to go down there."
"Maybe that's what mummy and daddy were protecting us from," the boy offered.
The group then used the doll house to question the children on the purpose of the rooms that they had not yet visited, mostly just a collection of bedrooms and storage rooms. The group agreed that it would better to finish exploring the rest of the house before venturing down the staircase to whatever dangers might lurk below. Then, after promising the children that they'd be back, they went through the rest of the house. Heading first to the master bedroom to confront the parents.
The room as large, with a blazing fire in the fireplace and a comfortable looking bed beneath a window on the north wall. A table with some chairs sat in the south-east corner at which sat a well dressed male corpse, while a female corps lay on the bed beneath several layers of thick woolen blankets. The man rose as soon as the group entered and pointed back toward the door, mouthing what were no doubt indignant words but no sound escaped his rotting lips. Yartik leaped forward and brought his weapon to bare dealing the undead man a grievous blow. The woman too, sat up and joined the fray but the pair proved no match for the group and they soon dispatched the zombies without suffering any lasting injuries.
The search through the house continued. They moved from room to room without incident, taking nothing save for a porcelain doll that Shae took an immediate liking to. She placed the dusty toy into her backpack with such childish glee that the others began to suspect that she'd somehow lost her mind.
With the whole of the house explored, the group took the time to have a short rest - tend to their wounds and recover some of their abilities - and generally catch their breath before tackling whatever awaited them at the bottom of the stairs. Shae used her time to clean the dust from the doll she'd taken and introduce her to Pinchy - the centipede who lived in her matted hair.
"Look, Pinchy," Shae said. "I finally have one of my own." Shae's face took on a distant look as if reflecting on something from her distant past. "I am going to call her Mirabelle." Shae raised the doll by the arms and held her up so that their eyes could meet. "Hello, Mirabelle."
"Hello, mummy," the doll replied.
Shae gasped, almost dropping the doll in surprise. "Did any of you hear that?"
"Hear what?" Vex said, looking at Shae with a curious expression and eyeing the doll with suspicion.
"Um, nothing, never mind."
Vex stood up and began to move toward Shae. "Are you alright over there with that doll?"
"Of course," she said while quickly tucking the doll into her backpack. "Why wouldn't I be?"
"This whole place is weird and filled with weird things," he gave her a long stare. "Just be careful, ok?"
"Sure, I'll be careful," she checked that the doll was safely stored away and stood up. "Is everyone ready to get going?"
The group entered the staircase and made the descent. It was soon apparent that the stairs descended far below the bottom of the house, just how deep they went nobody could know for certain but they were all aware it was definitely a long way down.
At the base of the stairs were a network of tunnels carved out of stone. Vex had some experience with stonework and he could see that these tunnels were quite well made, certainly not the work of amateurs. A sound like rhythmic chanting echoed off the walls giving no clue as to which direction it came from. The sound was distinct from the crowd noises which had gotten much louder too now that they were in the tunnels.
They moved methodically through the network of passages coming soon to a series of rooms with metal doors that looked as though they belong in a mausoleum. Shae looked closer, noting an inscription on each door and found that their own names had been placed on the doors. Shae pulled open the door with her name on it and entered the room beyond. It was a small five by ten foot room with a stone slab in the middle atop which rested a stone sarcophagus. Using the crowbar as leverage she prised open the lid and looked inside to find an empty coffin lined with satin and comfortable pillows. The others did likewise and found the same, in their search they found two other similar rooms with names on the doors that they did not recognise. Unlike their tombs the doors on these were closed and Vex recalled that there were two more cells in the prison where they first woke up. Perhaps in those tombs were two other unfortunates who had been captured afterward that had been killed when their escape was discovered.
They continued to pick their way through the maze of intersecting passages and rooms, exploring the area with no specific goal or direction in mind. At one stage they opened a door and were attacked by three ghouls lurking in the shadows of the tunnel beyond. The fight was brutal and Yartik suffered several wounds - luckily his minotaur constitution allowed him to fight off the paralysis effect - before they were able to dispatch the fearsome undead. A little further along they entered a well appointed room furnished as a study with a door on the opposite wall and a passage leading to what appeared to be a comfortable bedroom to the right. The group had taken quite a beating and they were looking for a place where they might make camp for the night. This room seemed like a good option so Naivara went to listen at the door while Shae checked out the bedroom. As soon as Naivara placed her hear to the door her face became stuck and a gelatinous pseudopod formed to try and grapple her. With an effort she managed to wriggle free of the snare but it was clear that the door was not what it seemed. Once more Yartik stepped to the fore to battle the gelatinous creature striking mightily with his weapon several times while Naivara used her magic. Vex too stepped forward being struck hard by the pseudopod as the creature fought for it's life. The combined might of their attacks killed the thing and caused it to lose form and melt away to nothing more than a slimy liquid. Inside they found two blackened discs with symbols on it that matched those Vex had seen in the books he'd taken from the secret room upstairs.
Shae entered the bedroom alone, the comfortable bed seized her attention and she almost failed to notice the ghasts that leapt out of two dirt filled alcoves on either side of the room. Shae squealed and ran, she was not in a position to face these two hideous undead on her own. She ran back past the others and into the corridor to get away. The ghasts gave chase but Yartik, heroically, stepped in their way. The big legionaire bore the brunt of their ferocious attacks and was badly wounded before he was able to bring first of the foul creatures down. Naivara and Shae could see that Yartik was on his last legs and called for him to step aside so that they could assist, but the dauntless minotaur stayed put until even his mighty constitution could not save him being paralysed. The others seeing their companion made helpless redoubled their magical attacks and thankfully managed to kill the final ghast before it to finish Yartik off once and for all.
Their foes defeated the group made camp in the bedroom where the ghasts had emerged to rest and heal their wounds
Session 8: The Collector - Part 2: Juri's Review
The Characters:
Yartik - Boros Minotaur Fighter (Level 2)
Naivara - Selesnya Half-elf Warlock (Level 2)
Unndrel Vex - Golgari Devkarin Ranger (Level 2)
Shae Aloni - Golgari Devkarin Druid (Level 2)
Events:
The group settled in for a long rest in what appeared to be some kind of bed chamber. They each took turns on watch while the others rested. During their rest, Naivara awoke to find herself seated upon a comfortable chair in a 10 x 10 foot room with no apparent windows or doors. Sitting in a similar chair opposite her was Juri - the one whom they'd spoken to in the house before being recaptured.
"Welcome, Naivara," Juri said with his usual casual charm. "This is the part of the show where we get to know our contestants a little better."
Naivara rolled her eyes and sighed. "I have no interest in playing this stupid game."
Juri smiled. "That is your choice but I must point out that the quality of your rest depends on your co-operation."
"Go screw yourself."
Now it was Juri's turn to sigh. "As you wish." He waved his hand and the room faded to black.
The remainder of the long rest passed without incident and the group awoke feel rested and ready for whatever came next, except Naivara who felt like she hadn't slept at all. She asked if they might wait another hour for her to recover before they moved on, and Shae also asked for the hour but while Naivara rested Shae spent it fussing with the doll Mirabelle. The pair chatting to one another about anything and everything while Vex looked on suspiciously.
The hour passed and now, feeling somewhat better, Naivara indicated that she was ready to press on.
They backtracked through the network of passageways determined to find the source of the rhythmic chanting that had been ever present in the background since they entered the tunnels. They soon found a passage where the noise seemed louder and went down that. After a dozen or so steps the passage turned to the right and revealed a set of stairs leading down.
They descended the stairs which switched back on themselves several times before reaching the bottom and another passageway the sound of chanting loud and perfectly clear now. "One must die. One must die. One must die." over and over again. The crowd noise, which had also been kept muted and in the background, grew louder as well - and the entire group could practically feel the frenzied excitement of the unseen but ever present audience.
Naivara moved down the passage first stopping at the threshold of a large underground chamber a hundred or so feet long and at least half as wide. A inky black pool of water filled the room with a stone walkway leading the entire way around. In the center of the pool was a raised platform that looked very much like a fighting ring.
Naivara returned to the others and they all moved forward and into the room. As soon as they crossed the threshold the rhythmic chanting stopped and the sound of the crowd rose to a fever pitch as a long spotlight shined from the ceiling some fifty feet or move above them onto one corner of the ring when Juri stood arms outstretched to the applause of the adoring crowd.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the moment you have all been waiting for," he turned a full 360 degrees as he spoke before rounding on the group in a flourish. "Our champions have arrived, and you all know what that means, right?"
"One must die!" the crowd screamed in response.
Juri cupped a hand to his ear. "I can't hear you,"
"One must die!" the crowd roared again, the cacophony almost deafening.
"I'll go!" Shae said, a broad grin on her face as she stepped forward.
The crowd screamed in appreciation and Juri clapped his hands together bringing everyone to a hush. "Just you?"
"I'll go to," Yartik added.
"And me," said Vex.
Juri turned to Naivara and raised an eyebrow. "What about you, Naivara, not too tired to participate I hope."
"Screw you," she said with a snarl, "but yes, me too."
Juri beamed and threw his hands in the air. "Did you hear that? They have all elected to play. Did I not promise you a show unlike anything you've seen before?"
The crowd screamed.
"Enter the ring, champions one and all."
At his words a stone path rose from below the water's surface and linked the outer walkway to the central platform.
Juri clapped as they crossed onto the ring. He waited until they were all present before continuing. "Chosen by Judj, reviewed by Juri, now they will face..." he paused his face expectant.
"The executioner!" the crowd screamed in response.
Juri turned and indicated the opposite side of the arena where a giant hulking figure stood, the light behind him caused his shadow to all but cover the ground before them.
The giant started walking forward and Vex wasted no time. He quickly raised a crossbow and fired at the enormous slab of flesh and muscle that strode toward them.
The fight was joined and the crowd screamed with blood-lust, each crushing blow or sweeping cut brought them maddened joy.
A brutal battle followed. The giant used it's powerful fists to land crushing blows on the characters, reaching occasionally into a pouch by its side to launch rocks at Naivara who used her magic to leap back onto the outer walkway. Blows were traded, first Vex went down, then Yartik but healing magic and potions revived them and allowed them to struggle on. In the end the party prevailed and the giant was finally brought low. Shae immediately fell upon the creatures corpse and started scooping out the dead giant's eye.
Juri re-appeared at the end his showmanship gave them no clue as to how he felt about the result.
"What a finish!" he screamed, turning to address the crowd. "Please show your appreciation for our incredible contestants." He then turned to face them. "Congratulations. What a fantastic end to a wonderful review."
"What now?" snarled Naivara through blood soaked teeth.
Juri didn't respond, turning instead to look up at the ceiling. "You've been a wonderful audience, and these worthy champions. Give them one final round of applause and please do join us next time when we do this all again."
The crowd clapped and screamed and Juri basked in the moment for several seconds before moving his hand in a cutting motion at his neck.
Immediately the sound of the feverish crowd ceased and for the first time what must have been days there was silence.
"So what happens now?" Vex asked.
Juri smiled. "You're free to go, if you search that wall you will find a hidden door. Follow the passage beyond to freedom." He scanned their faces looking at each of them intently. "You have been wonderful." He clapped his hand to his heart and bowed at the waist, so low that his head almost touched the ground.
Niavara sneered. "Screw you!"
Juri's image disappeared and the group were left alone in sweet sweet silence.
They searched the wall where Juri had indicated and there was indeed a hidden door there with a passage beyond. They entered the passage and waked for about 200 steps before they reached a T intersection.
"Let's go left," Shae said confidently choosing the path with no particular reason.
They continued walking, and Shae noticed that the path they followed was going ever so slightly down. None of the others seemed to have noticed this so she kept the information to herself.
"Right," she said at the next T intersection.
They walked a little further when behind them came an audible clang, as if a door had closed somewhere.
The passage turned right, and then right again until their path led them back to where they started.
They traveled back toward the huge room where they faced the giant but a thick metal wall blocked their path.
"We probably should have gone left again at that second intersection," Shae said with the benefit of hindsight.
They returned to the passage and traveled another few hundred steps with several turns before the path ended at a sturdy looking door. Yartik listened at the door and heard the sound of quiet conversation beyond. The group readies weapons and opens the door. In the room beyond are 3 Rakdos performers dressed in their full motley, they face the characters as they enter the room.
"Welcome," one of them said. "We've been waiting for you."
"Is this the way out?" Shae queried.
"Of course," another replied, while motioning to several large sacks hanging from hooks on one of the walls. "We only ask that you wear those."
Shae raised an eyebrow. "What are they?"
"Body bags," chimed in the third with a wicked grin.
The battle was joined. One of the performers raised a trumpet to their lips and spewed a cone of fire at the group. Yartik and Shae copped the full blast of the flame while Naivara and Vex managed to avoid the damaging fire, another tossed knives striking Vex with two of them, and the third stepped forward and closed on Yartik with a wicked looking spear. The fight was quick and bloody, Yartik fell but the others managed to prevail and healed the big minotaur with one of the potions they'd recovered from the dungeon.
Naivara used her disguise magic to mimic the appearance of one of the performers and then scouted the way ahead. Vex found a trapdoor in the floor that when open revealed a staircase going to down, leading to a portcullis blocking the entrance to a large chamber with 6 familiar looking cells. Thinking he'd found a way out he opened the portcullis and climbed up to try and find the hole they'd used to escape their capture the first time. Unfortunately the passage had been thoroughly blocked and bricked over. Checking the cells he saw that they were all empty.
Yartik found a large leather bound book with a series of crossed out names listed. He turned to the last page and saw their own names (still not crossed out) at the end of the list.
Naivara returned saying that the way out was just ahead, through an empty foyer and out onto the street.
The group followed Naivara around the corner and into a room filled with knick-knacks and other curios. Shae's eyes boggled at the sheer volume of interesting things on the many shelves. Yartik opened a door that led to a storage room filled with all manner of equipment, weapons and armour. He looked around and found his own equipment among the piles of supplies. This must all have been taken from the people who'd been kidnapped before them. Vex spent a few minutes hunting through the items for a pair of ornate swords that he named "talon and claw."
They could have spent hours poring through the vast number of items but mindful of their circumstances and the state of their health, Shae and Naivara grabbed several items from the room of knick-knacks - including an old looking stone tablet 6 x 8 inches in size bearing the symbol of the guildpact along with an interesting looking arcane script - and then exited the house through the front door and onto the street.
Once free they fled down the road to put some distance between themselves and their captors. They stopped several blocks away. Yartik insisted he present the ledger to his Sergeant but the others just wanted to go somewhere and rest. There was a brief discussion before they agreed to meet at the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow to discuss next steps.
Yartik went to his Boros garrison to try and present the ledger but he did not seem to get very far, as according to their records Yartik was still on secondment to the Azorious and therefore the ledger would seem like it was their problem. His sergeant indicated that the legion faced enough problems with raiding Gruul that they didn't need to inherit the issues of other guilds.
Somewhat deflated, Yartik took the ledger and returned to the others at the tavern.
Session 9: Interlude
The Characters:
Yartik - Boros Minotaur Fighter (Level 3)
Naivara - Dimir Half-elf Warlock (Level 3)
Unndrel Vex - Golgari Devkarin Ranger (Level 3)
Shae Aloni - Golgari Devkarin Druid (Level 3)
Events:
The gang, Naivara in particular, took a long overdue and well earned rest at the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow. It was a welcome opportunity to lick their wounds and take stock of their gains.
Shae used the time to further strengthen her bond with the doll, Mirabelle.
Naivara revealed that she was not in fact a member of the Selesnya Conclave but refused to confirm or deny her membership with the Dimir.
After a comfortable night's rest they spent the several hours moving through the many shops and merchants of Precinct 6 to find buyers for the various gems ad objet d'art they had taken during their escape from their Rakdos captors.
Once done with the selling their haul, Shae and Naivara went to a library to hire a sage to learn more about the stone tablet they found with the image of the guild pact upon it. The sage, a man called Katrin, was very intrigued by the item and promised to have some initial findings for them by the following day.
The following day, Yartik - still unsure about the status of his employment - decided to pay a visit to the Azorious arrester station where Nassius Ven worked to see if he can get him reinstated with the Legion. He and Naivara entered the build and asked after their previous employer. They were immediately flanked by guards and escorted to an interview room near the holding cells where they were instructed to wait.
A few minutes later and officious looking woman entered the room and plonked a sheaf of papers down on the table before sitting down opposite the pair.
"You're here looking for Nassius Ven?" she said to nobody in particular.
"We are," Yartik replied.
"And you are?"
"I am Yartik, this is Naivara."
"I see," the woman sat straighter and took a folder from the pile of papers before her, opened it and began to skim through it's pages. "You two recently did some work for Nassius is that right?"
"It is."
"There were four of you, correct?"
"Yes."
"And are you currently still in residence at the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow?"
"We are."
"Can I ask what this is regarding?" Naivara interjected. "Has something happened?"
The woman glanced up from the paperwork and gave a perfunctory sigh. "When was the last time you spoke with Nassius?"
Naivara shrugged. "I don't know exactly, maybe five or six days ago. Why?"
The woman lowered the files. "Nassius is missing, and I am trying to determine if you had anything to do with his absence."
Yartik's eyes widened. "He's what?"
Naivara shook her head. "I don't know what to tell you. He was upstairs in his office the last time we saw or spoke with him."
"That's right," Yartik added.
"Ok," the officious lady tapped a finger to her chin. "According to the official records you and your companions were hired to help with the re-capture of an escaped criminal, yes?. How is that task going?"
"Look," Naivara said. "I don't mean to be rude, but who are you?"
"I am Imperator Hildene, investigator for the Azorious guild assigned to look into Nassius' disappearance. So, how is your work for Nassius progressing?"
"We are done," Yartik said. "That's why I am here. I wish to have my status with the legion reinstated."
"Done, you say." The lady picked up the files again and flipped a few pages. "Ah, yes. I see here that the criminal Krenko was remanded to Night Haven Prison yesterday. So that means you might be free to assist with locating Nassius, correct?"
"Wait," Naivara said. "Did you say Krenko only reached the prison yesterday?"
"According to the official documents I have here, yes."
"But that doesn't make any sense, we delivered Krenko to Nassius personally the day before we last saw him, maybe as much as a week ago."
The woman frowned and took up a pencil to make some notes. "That is interesting. A week ago, you say."
"Yes," Yartik said with a nod.
There was a brief pause while she made numerous entries in different documents, none of which seemed to make any sense to either of them before she raised her eyes and looked at the pair of them properly for the first time since she entered the room. "So I assume your previous fee for 50gp per head will suffice?"
"Actually," Naivara said before Yartik could get a word in, "we have recently come into some more lucrative opportunity so if you can find a way to increase that we might be interested."
"I see," the Imperator said with only a hint of annoyance. "I will need to check with the bursary before agreeing to a change in rate."
"What about my secondment?" Yartik queried. "Are you able to file the documentation to restore my place in the legion?"
"That I can do," Hildene said with a smile. "Though I wouldn't expect anything to happen to soon. The wheels of bureaucracy can turn very slowly when it suits them."
Now it was Yartik's turn to be annoyed. "Listen, ma'am. I-"
Naivara placed a hand on the minotaur's shoulder. "Are we free to go?"
The woman nodded. "You may. I just ask that should you decide to move your place of residence you let us know so we can contact you if anything comes up."
Shae and Vex spent the morning visiting various apothecaries and vendors of exotic liquids and unguents with the goal of fleshing out their poisoners kits. After a few false starts they were directed toward one particular merchant who was able to help them with what they needed. They spoke for a bit and enquired if there was a market for harvested glands of poisonous spiders, snakes, and the like. He said there was always a market for such things but often a shortage of people willing to venture into the proper locations to try and acquire them. At which point the pair came up with a plan to visit the rubble belt to try and find some giant spiders.
The entire group visited the library to meet with Katrin at the end of the day and were met by a very excited looking individual. Once introductions were made he ushered the group into a booth and began to lay out what he'd been able to learn about the tablet thus far.
The tablet was old, perhaps dating to the time of the forging of the guildpact itself. The writing on the back was inscribed in an ancient runic language that he was unable to translate fully but seemed to suggest the existence of an here-to-for unknown 11th guild. A prospect which - if true - Katrin felt the repercussions of such knowledge would be vast and far reaching, especially if it were found that this 11th guild still existed to this day - though he very much doubts that is the case. Katrin asked that he be allowed to continue his research on his own because it had been a long time since something so interesting had crossed his path. The group agreed and asked that Katrin keep them in mind if he needed anything recovered or sourced to assist him in unravelling the mystery.
Following breakfast the next morning the group entered the rubble belt, passed the permanent files of Boros Legionaries stationed to protect the urban population from Gruul raiding parties and warbands, and walked deep into the wilderness. Shae cast locate animal to find a small clump of giant spiders and she sensed several within the 5 mile range provided by the spell. They selected on such cluster and began their march. At first the terrain consisted mainly of damaged and abandoned buildings interspersed with trees which became more damaged the further they walked until eventually the area was mostly grasses and trees with occasional ruins. It was late afternoon when they reached the general area Shae's spell indicated. Yartik and Naivara were tasked with finding somewhere for them to camp the night while Vex and Shae hunted for the nest of spiders. Vex used his skill as a tracker to find the place a mostly collapsed vine covered tower amid the trees. The pair took note of it's location then returned to the others to camp the night.
They camped and had an uneventful night, fires burned in the distance and depending upon the wind they heard to occasional sound of drums but the area near to their camp was clear.
The next morning they awoke with the sun and headed to the ruined tower where Vex and Shae had located the spider's nest. Shae kicked off the confrontation by entering the hollow shell of the tower and setting the webs alight. That got the spiders attention and 4 of the giant creatures descended to engage the group. The fight was violent and bloody, Shae assumed a spider form herself but her much smaller version was no match for the giant creature before her. Yartik and Vex engaged with sword and hammer while Naivara tried to keep her distance and attack at range with her magic and whip but the agility of the spiders meant that despite her efforts the creature was able to close the distance and attack. In the end, the group was victorious and they were able to successfully harvest 3 of the 4 poison glands.
Session 10: Interlude
The Characters:
Yartik - Boros Minotaur Fighter (Level 3)
Naivara - Dimir Half-elf Warlock (Level 3)
Unndrel Vex - Golgari Devkarin Ranger (Level 3)
Shae Aloni - Golgari Devkarin Druid (Level 3)
Events:
Flush from their near death experience fighting the spiders the group decided to try and harvest some more poison glands from other creatures in the rubble belt. Shae cast her Locate animal spell and pinpointed the location of a poisonous snake a mere mile away.
The group walked to the area where they found a shallow pond amid the rocks and scrubby brush. A snake - about 3 feet long and thick as an adult human's arm - was sunning itself on a rock only a dozen yards away. It was then that Vex remembered that the apothecary said that he had no need for snake venom as he is able to milk that himself, it is the more exotic creatures that he has difficulty sourcing. They decided to leave the snake alone and instead track down a giant scorpion.
Shae cast her spell again which indicated that there was one such creature 3 miles from their current location. The group decided to wait for nightfall before beginning the hunt because the bright sunshine was a problem for the Devkarin elves who are used to the darkness of the undercity.
After a long rest the group made ready to head off. Shae cast her spell again which showed that the scorpion had moved from where she'd previously located it, which was just as well because the original location would have placed it not too far from a large Gruul bonfire which might have posed some trouble for them - getting caught by the Gruul was never a good idea.
The group headed toward the scorpion, Yartik muttering that this was not a good idea - the others paid him no heed and so they carried on their way. It was slow going in the moonlight with Yartik having to pick his way carefully in the darkness because a bright light at this time might prove dangerous.
Hours later they reached the area where the scorpion was located. Vex searched the vicinity and found the solitary creature in a small dell spotted with a smattering of trees and long ruined walls. The others came forward and the fight was joined.
Vex fired the opening volley while Shae cast dancing lights to give Yartik enough light to see. Yartik charged forward and the scorpion charged too and the pair met with a solid clash of bodies as blows were exchanged. Naivara kept her distance as usual and attacked with her whip while Vex joined Yartik in close combat. The scorpion grabbed Yartik in it's huge pincers and stabbed him with its sting. Yartik screamed as the poison coursed through his veins, badly injured and more convinced then ever that this course of action was unwise.
Shae, perhaps realising that Yartik was in deep trouble transformed into a spider and used her web to try and keep the scorpion from bringing its stinger to bare. The ploy seemed to work and with the combined attacks of the others the scorpion was finally brought down.
Yartik collapsed to the ground - badly hurt, but alive. They harvested the stinger and the creatures massive claws then took a short rest before making their way back toward District 10 and civilization.
Just before sunrise Naivara and Vex heard the sound of multiple somethings or someones passing nearby. They called the group to halt and waited for whatever it was to move along and once they were sure the threat had passed they continued on.
It was mid morning when they neared the breach back into the Tenth District and as they crested a rise to give them a view of the area they saw a large contingent of Boros and Gruul facing off in the ruins. Griffons and Rocs flew overhead in numbers and the two groups clashed with practiced abandon. The party wanted none of that but Shae and Vex were keen to get back into the city proper so they veered away from the opening where the battle raged and moved off toward an area where the city walls still stood to separate the rubble belt from the urban sprawl.
It was not long when their movements attracted the attention of a trio of Boros Skyjacks who turned their griffons toward the group as it tried to stealthily pick their way toward the wall. Mirrabelle spotted then approaching legionnaires and shouted a warning to Shae's mind giving her the chance to alert the others to the approaching soldiers. Vex, Naivara, and Shae all took cover while Yartik stood tall and raised his arm to show the mark of the legion tattooed upon his forearm. One of the swooping riders must have seen it and pulled out of his dive but the two others did not. Shae was hit by a crossbow bolt from one of the soldiers and Yartik slashed by a griffon claw from the second. As the griffon's wheeled back for a second pass the soldier who stopped waved them off instructing them to circle the area while he landed.
"What are you lot doing out here!" the legionary asked once his Griffon had settled on the ground.
"We're trying to get back into the city," Yartik replied.
"Can't you see there is a bit of an engagement underway at the moment?"
"Yes, that's why we are going this way," Yartik pointed at the 100ft tall wall still some ways off ahead of them.
The legionary shook his head. "I can't have you going for the wall. It won't be the first time Gruul tried using spies to reach those walls."
Yartik shook his head. "We are not Gruul spies, I can assure you."
The soldier shrugged. "Fair enough, but I can't allow you to get any closer to the walls. If you're only interested in getting back to civilization then you'll have to wait for the action to be over. We should have the Gruul under control in a few hours at most. But if we see you take even one step closer to those walls we will not hesitate to kill you." He looked at each of them. "Have I made myself clear?"
The group indicated their understanding and the soldier launched back into the sky to resume his patrol.
With little other option the group set up camp and waited for the battle to end. Hours passed with no break in to the fighting so they decided to camp for the night hoping the way back in would be clear by morning. It was and they finally made their way back to the city 5 days after they left to hunt for the spiders.
Shae and Vex took their harvested glands directly to the apothecary where they spent the day with him studying and practicing the poisoner's art. Both of them realising that they had a lot to learn before they could claim to be proficient in the practice. Yartik and Naivara returned to their tavern where Yartik asked the barman if he knew of any Simic who might be interested in the scorpion claws. The barman said he did know of someone and he took the giant pincers saying he'd let them know once the deal was made.
The following day a message arrived for Naivara, it was a note from the researcher they'd spoken to asking if they might pay him a visit at the library. He had a opportunity for them to assist him.
The next day all four of them went back to the library to meet with Katrin who was very excited to see them.
"I've made some interesting progress toward translating what is written on the tablet," he said not even bothering with the usual pleasantries. "But I have run into a bit of snag that I hope you might be able to help me with."
"Go on," Vex said. "We did say we would be keen to lend a hand however we can."
"For the right price," Naivara added.
Katrin blinked, "Of course. Naturally I would pay you, no cause for concern on that front."
Naivara smiled. "Excellent, then by all means do continue."
"Well I already told you that the tablet is old, very old. Likely dating to before or around the time of the signing of the Guildpact some 10 millennia ago, unfortunately there is very little else that has survived existence since that time. Of course the guild Paruns' like the The Firemind, The Ghost Council, and the Demon Lord are still here but I do not feel they would be interested or inclined to offer assistance in this matter. As such I had to try and find something else which may still linger, and what I discovered was a secretive group known as the Cult of Yore. Have you heard of them?"
They all shook their heads.
Katrin nodded. "I'd be surprised if you had. Even the Dimir would be proud of how well this group remains hidden and how they hoard knowledge." He paused for a moment to chuckle at his own joke. "In any case I am sure you are all aware of the trouble caused by the Nephilim a few decades ago during the decamillennial which threw the entire guildpact into chaos and threatened to undermine the very fabric of our civilization. Well it seems from what I have been able to discover that the Cult of Yore actually venerate these Nephalim who saw them as the embodiment of the Old Gods - whatever that means."
"This is all very interesting," Shae said, her tone suggesting otherwise, "but what has any of this got to do with us?"
"Well as it happens the Cult of Yore are, or rather were, record keepers of a sort and I believe that I have found the location of one of their archives."
"And?" Shae replied. "I'm not really one for reading a bunch of dusty books."
Katrin chuckled. "With luck the archive won't just contain books, but also papyrus scrolls and tablets of clay or stone."
"And I'll be even less able to read those."
"I don't need you to read them, I need you to collect them. You see the archive is rather deep in the rubble-belt and I am hoping that you four would be able to go there, access the archive and return with a few samples of their work."
Yartik's brow furrowed. "I don't understand. How will we know which books to bring back?"
"The actual works themselves don't matter, just their types. My theory is that if you can bring me some books, some papyrus scrolls, and some tablets I will be able to trace the evolution of their writings and work out a way to translate the symbols on your tablet."
"So how much are we talking about?" Naivara asked.
Katrin shrugged. "A few samples of each kind should be sufficient, say three of each - but try and find the best examples of each."
"I meant, how much will you pay us?"
"Oh. I see. Well I think I could maybe afford to pay you 100gp each upon a successful return."
Naivara considered for a moment. "That seems reasonable."
"Hold on a moment," Shae interjected. "Where exactly is this archive?"
"In the rubble belt, I'm afraid. Quite a way inside Gruul territory based on the information I have."
Yartik swallowed, the memory of their fight against the scorpion still fresh in his mind. "I see."
"I think 100gp is not representative of the risks to us in this," Vex said. "The rubble belt is a very dangerous place."
Katrin nodded. "Very well, I might be able to stretch to 150gp each but please bare in mind I am a scholar not some wealthy Orzhov Oligarch."
The four looked to one another and nodded. "It's a deal," Vex announced.
The next day, after having purchased provisions and with Katrin's directions to the ancient cult archive in hand the group headed back into the rubble-belt. They travelled for several nights through the wilderness being careful to steer clear of obvious Gruul encampments and keeping a cold camp during the day to avoid attracting any unwanted attention. They moved this way for several days until one day, as the sun was at it's highest their luck ran out.
A single figure emerged from the scrubby trees and headed directly at their camp. Shae - who was on watch at the time - alerted the others as she and Mirabelle kept the newcomer in sight. As soon as the figure closed to within 30 feet he screamed in an ululating voice and charged with weapons drawn. The signal to attack given, other figures emerged from concealment and arrows flew into the group and the battle was joined.
Eventually after a brutal and bloody combat their attackers lay dead group emerged injured but victorious.
Session 11: The Archive
The Characters:
Yartik - Boros Minotaur Fighter (Level 3)
Naivara - Dimir Half-elf Warlock (Level 3)
Unndrel Vex - Golgari Devkarin Ranger (Level 3)
Shae Aloni - Golgari Devkarin Druid (Level 3)
Events:
The group licked their wounds and completed a long rest before continuing on, a new appreciation for just how dangerous it can be out here in the wilds of the rubble belt. They moved only at night as the Devkarin elves preferred the darkness and it made it easier to avoid the Gruul clans and their nightly bonfires.
The next few days were tense but uneventful. Several times they were forced to stop and hide while marauding bands of Gruul or beasts passed by around them but for the most part their journey was trouble free. Eventually they reached a small stream that Katrin had remarked upon. If his information was accurate the archive was supposed to be located further upstream near a series of small cascades. As it was almost sunrise they decided to find a place to make camp and take a rest before proceeding.
Vex and Shae decided to try their hand at fishing. Being from the rot farms of the undercity the pair had little experience with water this clean and free from unidentified floaters nor the act of fishing itself. They fashioned spears from the slender branches of a nearby tree and stepped into the water. Vex had no luck at all but Shae was able to snag five wriggling fish, one for each of them - including Mirabelle (though the doll declined hers as she doesn't really like the taste of fresh water fish "too muddy, you see") - and she cooked them up for dinner for everyone to enjoy.
Their repast over they settled into wait out the day. The time passed quickly and it wasn't long before sunset that Vex's keen senses detected the smell of smoke in the air - as though from a campfire. He alerted the group and Shae took the form of a hyena and went ahead to try and find the source of the smoke.
She followed the water upstream - the smell of the smoke getting stronger - until she reached the base of a small ridge. The stream formed a small waterfall here and the ridge itself blocked the smoky smell. Shae decided to follow the base of the ridge to try and find an easy way to the top. She didn't have to travel far as she soon found what may once have been a road or path - now overgrown with shrubs and small trees - that cut a gentle incline to the top. She padded along the road until she reached the ruins of what might once have been a very fine manor before time and destruction had taken its toll. The stream she'd been following widened to form an ornamental with the rotted remains of a small jetty extending from the opposite shore. The roof of the old manor was completely gone and several fires glowed behind what remained of its walls, their warmth and light reflected in the burned out remnants of wide beams that once must have held up the roof. Fearing that she might be spotted - a lone hyena might be out of place in the area - Shae returned to the others to report what she'd found.
They packed up camp and made their way forward on foot, following the route that Shae had taken previously. When they reached the bottom of the ridge, Vex headed off to scout the area on his own. He moved stealthily through the trees and undergrowth and even crossed the stream at the top of the cascade they'd seen in order to get closer to the building. He made his way to where one ruined wall almost me the pond and peered around the corner. He looked onto a sort of lawn area, though unmaintained and terribly overgrown with weeds, where he spotted a humanoid figure of a type he'd never seen before standing beneath an oak large enough to make even a Selesnyan guild member homesick, beside which stood a very large dog. Worried that the creature's keen senses might spot him he melted away and returned to the others.
Once back, Vex and Yartik set to planning their attack when Shae suggested that perhaps rather than run in and start killing they might try and talk with them instead. Yartik, given his experience with Gruul, didn't think much of her plan but the others agreed to give it a try, so Shae and Vex approached the edge of the ornamental lake closest to the tree where the watcher stood with the huge dog-like creature while Yartik and Naivara crossed the stream and lay in wait in case - in Yartik's estimate - the inevitable combat took place.
"Hello there," Shae called out once the others were in position.
The dog by the sentry's side stood and emitted a deep growl.
"Who there?" the sentry said in a deep guttural voice and placed a hand on the beast's shoulder, the tusks protruding from his lower lip gave his words a breathy quality.
"I am Shae, and my companion here is Vex. We are devkarin elves of the Golgari. Who are you?"
"I Guttruk, Stone Breaker clan. What want?"
"We come looking for books. Would you allow us to approach and enter the building?"
"Wait!" the sentry said, "I bring Haggard. He speak, he decide." With that he patted the dog then turned and went up the steps to what might once have been the main entrance of the building.
The dog remained behind, it's eyes never leaving the pair of them as they waited.
"Have you ever seen a dog that big before?" Shae asked.
Vex shook his head. "I don't think that's a dog at all."
"Wolf then."
"Of a type, I think it's a dire wolf - very dangerous."
"What about Guttruk, have you seen anything like that, kinda looks like a goblin only much bigger and those tusks..."
"An Orc, I believe, never seen one until now though as they tend to avoid urban areas."
Guttruk returned a few minutes later with a second Orc, this one wearing an ornate headdress and held a gnarled wooden staff, beside him strode an enormous brown bear."
Vex gulped. "I hope they don't all have enormous animal companions. I don't fancy fighting those if this talking plan of yours goes bad."
"I Haggard," the newcomer said - his voice equally gravelly. "Speaker for Stone Breaker clan."
"Well met, Haggard. I am Shae and this is Vex, of the Golgari. We seek entry to this building behind you to look for some books."
Haggard scoffed. "No books here, books burned years ago."
"Would it be possible for us to come and look around anyway, they might yet be some remaining just hidden."
"Books burned," Haggard insisted. "Business over. You go now."
"We have money," Vex offered. "We can pay you."
"Stone Breaker no want money," Haggard replied with a shake of his staff. "Need nothing from city people. Now go."
Shae sighed. "This isn't going to work is it?" she muttered under her breath.
"Look's like Yartik was right."
"Worth a shot though," then louder she added, "Sorry about this..."
She ended the conversation by launching into a spell. Instantly the ground around the two orc's and their animal companions was changed to spiky growths that weaved and entangled anything trying to move through the area. Haggard and Guttruk reeled and called out for aid while Vex launched an arrow at the dire wolf. With that the battle was joined. More members of the Stone Breaker clan emerged from the building and moved to attack Shae and Vex avoiding the spike growth with warnings from their two companions trapped within it's area. Yartik and Naivara stepped forward and intercepted the newcomers and battle ensued. The Stone Breaker clan fought hard their members and animal companions proving formidable and they nearly brought the group down but finally through healing from Vex, Shae and even magic potions they were able to prevail and defeat their opponents. As the final blow was struck the Stone Breaker clan was no more.
Session 12: The Archive
The Characters:
Yartik - Boros Minotaur Fighter (Level 3)
Naivara - Dimir Half-elf Warlock (Level 3)
Unndrel Vex - Golgari Devkarin Ranger (Level 3)
Shae Aloni - Golgari Devkarin Druid (Level 3)
Events:
The group took a rest from the epic battle and patched their wounds as best they could, their remaining stores of healing potions had dwindled to just one which Naivara held onto. Once they'd recovered they spent a few hours searching the ruined building for any sign of the so-called archive.
As they poked around the overgrown walls and rotted floors Yartik noticed something curious engraved into a stone that would have once been at floor level - Boros symbol, badly defaced but still recognisable to a member of the legion. Seeing the symbol triggered a memory from his military history class during his cadetship within the legion and he walked out to the courtyard to take a look at the building as a whole. The design of the structure coalesced in his mind and he recalled that the design of this complex matched that of an ancient Boros garrison.
Why would the Boros of old be here guarding an old library? The question passed through his mind only briefly before his attention was drawn to something else, a strange wisp of glowing light near the base of the tree where the first orc stood with the wolf.
"What was that?" Shae said, staring at the tree as she stepped into the courtyard.
"You saw it too?" Yartik replied. "That light."
Shae nodded. "Where did they go?"
The pair peered toward the tree but whatever they'd seen was no longer there.
"Naivarra, Vex, come out here," Yartik called.
"What's up?" Vex queried as he and Naivara joined the others.
"There might be someone, or something, out here," Shae explained. "Yartik and I both saw some lights, as if a person were holding a candle."
"Over there," Naivara said pointing at a smaller tree growing beside what looked to be a low pile of stones.
Yartik strode toward the flowing ball of faint light, his weapon ready.
The light floated toward him and Yartik stopped moving, allowing whatever it was to approach. The light continued moving until it passed through his body with what felt like a breath of warm air as it travelled through the big minotaur's body.
Yartik spun around and the light now floated between him and the others. To a fighter with an axe everything must look like a tree and he swung his weapon through the floating ball. The axe passed through without meeting any resistance but in response the light emitted out a arc of electricity that crackled around the legionary's body.
Shae immediately began to cast, and encased the glowing ball in a corona of greenish light. "That should help if the thing decides to go invisible again."
Perhaps sensing that the odds were not in it's favour the non-corporeal being darted back though Yartik and disappeared into the ground amid the pile of rocks.
"Damn, that really hurt!" Yartik yelled in obvious pain, and strode the place the creature - or whatever it was - had fled and waited ready to swing again.
"It's your own fault," Shae pointed out. "You struck it first, you oaf."
Yartik looked a little offended. "Still hurt."
The group waited but whatever had just attacked them did not return. Yartik inched closer to the pile of rocks, holding his torch down low to try and peer beyond the stones. "I think there's a staircase under here," he said as his squinted in the flickering light. "Might be the archive or whatever is underground."
"I hope so," said Vex, "because we've searched everywhere up here and there's not so much as a scrap of paper."
Naivara approached the minotaur as he crouched by the filled in staircase. "Someone really wanted to make sure this this entrance stayed blocked."
"I agree," Vex added. "Sure are a lot of rocks covering it."
"Right then," said Shae. "You lot best get cracking on clearing them out while Mirabelle and I keep watch."
They worked for hours, had a long rest, then worked some more. It wasn't until nightfall on the second day that the stones were cleared enough for Yartik's bulk to make his way down. Piles of rubble littered the ancient courtyard all taken from the carved stone passage with nothing more than their hands and the strength of their backs. It was good honest work and the first time in weeks that Yartik had felt productive.
With the passage cleared and everyone rested the group descended the rough cut stairs. Down they went, some thirty steps before opening out into a large room. Looking back it appeared that the steps broke into the wall of the room from above rather than rising from below. The quality of the workmanship in the stairs was obviously inferior to the stonework inside the room, but the passage of time, water damage and the incursion of roots from above made such a conclusion difficult to support. The room had two exits one blocked by stones from the collapsed ceiling above and the other stuck from water damage. Yartik once more put his strength toward the problem and the door reluctantly pushed open to reveal a passageway beyond and another room beyond that.
Like the first room the second one had suffered under the relentless onset of time and parts of its ceiling had collapsed trapping two skeletal figures under the rubble. Shae carefully approached the ancient remains and kicked at one of their exposed legs but it was soon apparent that these were nothing more than inanimate remains of someone long ago dead. A search of the bodies yielded two necklaces adorned with a symbol that none of them had seen before. Naivara pocketed one and Shae took the other and they continued exploring the tunnels.
On and on they went, finding room after room, all mostly devoid of furniture while others had limited sign of the furniture that had long since decayed to dust. One room looked to be some kind of chapel but being free of any Orzhov symbology they concluded that perhaps this was some kind of ancient lecture hall or theatre.
Eventually they came across a flight of stairs leading down. They descended these and at the bottom they were greeted by a familiar sight - the glowing ball was there in a passage below waiting, one of three such passages accessible from the stairs. As soon as they had all left the staircase, the glowing ball drifted off slowly then came back, then repeated the movement.
"It looks like it wants us to follow it," Yartik said, the memory of being shocked still fresh in his mind.
"Maybe it wasn't trying to hurt us," Vex offered. "Perhaps it just wanted to lead us down here."
"To what end?" Naivara said.
Vex shrugged. "No idea, but we might never have found the covered stairs without it."
Shae's brow furrowed. "True, but there's no reason to suspect that it means us no harm. Remember what it did to Yartik."
"It seemed perfectly harmless until he struck with his axe," Naivara pointed out.
"Sure," Yartik reluctantly agreed. "But I still wouldn't trust it."
"Agreed." Vex said after a moment. "Let's explore on our own, if it really doesn't want to hurt us it won't mind us looking around a bit first."
They all nodded and struck out in a different direction.
They entered a large room with a series of smaller rooms attached in various directions. As they contemplated which to explore first the glowing ball appeared at one of the other entrances and floated across the large room to a closed door - one of the only doors they'd seen since the very first room in the level above. The ball passed through the door like it did Yartik earlier and disappeared from view.
"Looks like that's where it wants us," Shae said. "Like we agreed, we will leave that door for later on."
"Shh," Naivara hissed urgently and pointed behind them. "Someone's coming."
Looking in the passage behind them they saw the figure of a tall man dressed in ancient looking scholars robes and carrying several sheafs of paper and more than a few books. So preoccupied was he about keeping the precarious pile of items balanced it didn't appear that he had noticed them yet.
The large room provided no cover whatsoever so the group hurriedly darted across to one of the many smaller rooms and peered back through the door.
The scholar entered the room a few seconds later and - without giving them a second glance - walked to another of the smaller rooms. Vex, after signalling the others to be quiet, stealthily padded over the room the scholar chose and looked through the entrance. Inside the man had selected a small cubicle and sat down with his back to Vex giving him a clear view of everything he was doing.
The scholar spent a few moments arranging the papers and books around him with practiced ease and then opened one of the books and started writing, seemingly thoroughly absorbed in whatever he might be working on. Vex looked on for several seconds when he noticed something strange. Moments after the scholar let go of any item it faded away, only to appear again as he reached for it again. The quill in his hand stayed visible but the inkwell he used to keep the nib inked came in and out of view only as he dipped the quill into it. Vex studied the scene with renewed interest and noted two more things; first the man made absolutely no sound even though he scratched away with his quill, and second that the man was slightly translucent. Vex was looking at a ghost of some kind.
As the realisation dawned a second scholar entered the room and crossed the floor to where Vex was standing. Vex turned just in time to see the newcomer walk past him, completely unaware or unconcerned at his presence, and sit down at one of the other small cubicles.
Vex's experience with ghosts was limited but he knew that they could be terribly dangerous when disturbed or interacted with in an improper way, so he backed away to where the others huddled and explained what he'd observed.
The glowing ball emerged through the door once more, floated there for a few heartbeats and then disappeared inside again.
"It definitely wants us to go into that room," Yartik said with a certainty that belied his ignorance.
"It does look that way." Naivara agreed. "Maybe there's something inside that it wants us to find? Maybe that's where the tablets and books that we're here for are hidden."
"Or maybe it's where something is waiting to kill us," Shae noted somewhat darkly.
"That second ghostly scholar practically walked through me to get into that room," Vex said. "It didn't acknowledge my existence at all. So far the only thing down here that seems to recognise us is that glowing ball thing. I say we find out what it wants."
"Fair enough, but one of you ends up dead then don't say I didn't warn you."
"By one of us you mean me," Yartik snorted. "It always seems to end up being me."
Shae nodded. "Sure, you then. Maybe if you stopped charging into things you'd get hurt less."
"It's how I was trained. Besides," Yartik smiled. "Where's the fun in that."
Naturally there was something in that room waiting to kill them.
Like always the fight was tough, and - as predicted - Yartik fell to the terrible undead creature that attacked them once the door was opened. But, as has so far always been the case, the group prevailed and they defeated the foul desiccated corpse through teamwork and sound spellcraft, but the small glowing thing escaped.
Session 13: The Archive
The Characters:
Yartik - Boros Minotaur Fighter (Level 4)
Naivara - Dimir Half-elf Warlock (Level 4)
Unndrel Vex - Golgari Devkarin Ranger (Level 4)
Shae Aloni - Golgari Devkarin Druid (Level 4)
Events:
After the fight, the group barred the door and took a long rest to recover from the battle.
They checked what remained of the furniture in the small office but found little but dust and the leather remains of what might long ago have been book covers. The time passed safely with no further sign of the little wisp of light that had led them to the fight.
After taking their rest they awoke refreshed and ready to tackle the rest of the complex, all save Yartik who didn't feel entirely himself. A persistent cough prevented him from fully catching his breath and while he felt physically strong he knew there was something amiss.
"I'm not feeling too well," Yartik said as he strapped his weapons about him.
"We just rested, how could you be hurt?" Naivara said.
"I don't know," Yartik replied with a snort. "I just am ok?"
"Are you injured?" Shae asked. "I can maybe heal you if you need it?"
Yartik shook his head. "No, There's no wound I just feel a bit off. I should be fine once we get moving."
"Well you were nearly killed by that thing," Vex added. "Perhaps you've been infected or something."
Yartik shrugged. "Maybe. Right now I am just a little be short of breath, I'll let you know if it gets worse or anything."
Once they'd finished breakfast the group emerged from their shelter and re-entered the complex and resumed their search. As before, scholarly ghosts continued to move in and out of the various rooms ignoring the group entirely as they travelled through the darkened halls. They eventually entered a wide chamber that curved in a circular path to the left and right, directly ahead was an opening, flanked by two - statue still - humanoid figures and blocked by a shimmering field of energy. As they stood there one of the scholarly ghosts passed through them and walked between the flanking guards and passed beyond the shimmering veil.
Shae, always the impatient one, strode confidently forward and attempted to follow the ghost into the next room but as soon as she neared the opening the guards crossed their halberds and blocked her path. She stood there for a moment waiting to see if they did anything else but they remained as still as before in this new position. As soon as she backed away they uncrossed their weapons and resumed their original stance.
"Maybe it's because you're not wearing one of the necklaces that the scholars all seem to be wearing?" Naivara suggested.
"But I am wearing it," Shae pointed out as she revealed the pendant from beneath her clothes.
"Maybe they need to see it to let you through?" Yartik said.
"Ok," Shae shrugged and proceeded to walk forward again this time holding the pendant up so it was plainly visible to anyone. As before, the guards crossed their halberds to block her path. "Anyone else got any bright ideas?" she scoffed.
"They are so silly, aren't they, mummy?" Mirabelle added inside Shae's mind.
"I know," Shae agreed. "Sometimes it can feel like I am back working with a jar of worms."
Mirabelle tittered. "You are so funny, mummy."
Shae nodded. "I am glad you think so. My wit must be entirely lost on these buffoons."
"Who are you talking to?" Vex said.
"Mirabelle, of course."
Yartik rolled his eyes. "Well, does your little doll have any useful suggestions?"
"As a matter of fact, she does. Now if you'll just give me a few minutes I need to prepare a ritual."
The others waited while Shae incanted her detect magic ritual. Once she was done she raised her gaze and studied the opening and the figures on either side.
"Well," Shae said finally. "The shimmering veil covering the opening is definitely magical, but the two guards are not."
"And?" Naivara queried.
"Abjuration magic, to be exact."
"Ok," Vex said. "What does that tell us?"
Shae looked at the lanky ranger with a confused expression. "That the shimmering veil is magical, weren't you listening?"
Now it was Vex's turn to roll his eyes. "I am pretty sure I could have guessed that without the need for your spell, Shae. Have you learned anything else?"
"Well I've learned that you're an idiot." Mirabelle opined inside Shae's mind causing her to chuckle.
Vex arched an eyebrow. "Is something funny?"
Shae looked up, still chuckling from Mirabelle's comment. "What? No, never mind."
Yartik sighed, "Now what?"
Shae stood up and pushed the others aside. "Now this."
Shae once more began casting, and this time a flaming sphere appeared in the space between the two guards. The heat from the ball of fire could easily be felt from where the group were standing some 30 feet away so it must have been terrible right next to it. Both guards dived off to either side in an attempt to evade the extreme heat, one managed to protect themselves from the flames but the other was not quick enough and was badly burned. As soon as the guards recovered from the surprise attack they levelled their weapons and advanced upon the group their burns healing as they closed. The one that Shae hurt worst with her fire directed it's gaze at her, the vengeance written plain in that stare chilled Shae to her core and she fled as far from the oncoming creature as she could.
Once again the group were forced to fight for their lives. Naivara moved around the wide circular passage with Shae drawing one of the guards with them, leaving Yartik and Vex to fight the other. The fight was hard fought and it took Shae a long while to overcome her fear and strike with more than just self defence but the others were able to handle the guards and before long they both lay dead, and as the group caught their breath the two bodies - once so seemingly full of life - decomposed to dust in a matter of moments.
Shae, suppressing a shudder at the memory of her fear, strode once more toward the shimmering veil blocking the opening.
"Wait," cried Vex, just a fraction too late, his words drowned out by a mighty crack as ball of fire exploded from the opening as soon as Shae crossed the threshold.
The fire caught the four of them and sent them reeling against the far wall. Whatever wind they'd caught after the fight knocked out again. Luckily, none of them were killed in the blast, and once the dust settled and they'd patted the flames out they turned as one to look at Shae.
"See," she stood pointing at the opening. "The veil has been lifted."
They all decided that now would be a good time to take a short rest before they continued. As they rested they took the opportunity to survey the wide circular passage where they'd fought the two guards. As best they could determine, it completed a semi-circular path with a mini-amphitheatre at either end, a series of raised steps curved around the walls at either end - three levels high with the top-most step some ten feet above the floor. They surmised that perhaps the scholars used these areas to give impromptu lectures to their peers.
Vex noticed a gap between the second and third tiers in the amphitheatre at one end and soon discovered that the seats could be pushed back beyond the far wall to reveal another passageway beyond. Their was a brief discussion to decide which way they would proceed but in the end they decided to investigate the opening that they'd fought so hard to gain entrance to.
They entered the room beyond the magically trapped opening. It was a huge cylindrical chamber about 60 feet across and more than 200 feet deep - even Vex's amazing vision could see to the bottom. A circular path spiralled around the edge of the chamber hugging the walls which were lined with shelves. Here and there they could see the ghostly scholars reaching onto the shelves either taking or removing ghostly books. In it's hey day this must have been an impressive sight - the walls lined with tomes and scholars and sages flitting here and there on missions of research and learning. What remained now was mostly dust and rotted leather.
They spiralled down, checking the shelves as they went for anything that might have been spared from the ravages of time. The further down they walked the older the style of binding - paper became vellum, became parchment, became papyrus which further ceded to wood, then clay and stone tablets. As the style became older more of the content on the shelves remained intact. They managed to salvage only a few scraps of paper near the top of the spiral but managed to find more complete examples in clay and stone as they descended.
Shae, who grew very frustrated by the slow pace the others were taking as they searched the shelves, walked further and further ahead of the group until she was finally able to see the bottom of the enormous chamber. As she completed yet another loop of the spiral she spied a congregation of the ghostly scholars sitting in rows on the floor of the chamber with another - more elaborately dressed - scholar standing at a pulpit at the head of the group. Like all the other ghostly scholars they'd seen the group emitted no sound but it was obvious that a lecture of some kind was in progress.
"Hey, you lot." Shae called back up to the others several turns of the spiral above her. "Can you guys see this?"
Naivara stuck her head over the edge. "See what?"
Shae pointed at the ground. "That! A whole heap of the ghosts all together."
Naivara peered closer. "Where?"
"On the floor," Shae said loudly her voice echoing in the huge cylindrical chamber.
As one the ghosts all looked up, their spectral visage directed at Shae. It was the first time any of their number had acknowledged their presence and the feeling was not pleasant.
"Eeep!" Shae gulped, and quickly started running back up the spiral toward the others.
"What's wrong?" Naivara called.
"Shh!" Shae said as she hustled up the incline. "They're all looking at me."
"Who are?"
"The ghosts you idiot, stop talking."
A few hurried steps later Shae rose to the level where she could no longer see the ghosts. The feeling of being watched remained for a few minutes but at least she no longer had to look at their angry faces.
"Have you guys got enough of these book things?" Shae asked when she reached the others.
"Are you ok? You look like you've seen a ghost," Yartik said nudging Vex as he did so.
Shae fixed him with a withering glance. "Very funny, cow boy."
Yartik chuckled. "I know."
"So," she looked at Naivara instead. "Have you got enough of these old relics?"
Naivara shrugged. "We have a few examples of each, it depends on what we might find on the lower levels."
The colour drained from Shae's face. "They're pretty much more of the same as these one's here. I don't reckon we need to go down any further."
Vex looked at her flatly. "Is that because you got scared down there?"
"Maybe, but it doesn't change anything. It's just more bits of etched stone, one's about as good as any other I'd reckon."
Naivara nodded. "Shae's right. We have what we came for, I think we should go back up and head home."
"What about that hidden passage we discovered?" Vex queried. "Why don't we check that out first and then decide to go back or not."
"Sure, sure," Shae replied hurriedly. "Let's just get moving back up and out of this room."
The group returned to the top of the chamber and re-entered the room where they'd fought the two guards. The pile of dust where their bodies had fallen remained but Vex noticed that there were four small piles of dust in the shape of a booted foot forming in the place where the guards stood. As a precaution Vex took out a piece of cloth and wafted the area to blow the dust clear - he might not be able to stop whatever process was happening but he could (maybe) slow it down some.
They entered the passage that had been concealed behind the amphitheatre steps. It led to what was once a comfortably appointed room. The furniture was still largely intact but dry and brittle due to the passage of time. They surmised this might have been a lounge area where the scholars took their ease. They continued through the lounge to another passage on the opposite side. This one led to another cylindrical chamber but this time there were two spirals meaning that in order to get across to the other side they had to go all the way to the bottom in order to cross to the other side and come back up again on the other spiral to the reach the passage on the opposite side.
They traversed the spiral to the bottom where they noticed another two guards standing on either side of a shimmering barrier just like the one they'd see earlier. Vex queried if they wanted to get into another fight but Shae reasoned that they could use the spirals to their advantage and attack the guards from a distance. They knew what to expect now so as long as they were smart about they could get through this with limited risk to the group. The others agreed and they planned accordingly and for once they managed to overcome their opponents with none of their group being left with injuries.
Session 14: The Archive
The Characters:
Yartik - Boros Minotaur Fighter (Level 4)
Naivara - Dimir Half-elf Warlock (Level 4)
Unndrel Vex - Golgari Devkarin Ranger (Level 4)
Shae Aloni - Golgari Devkarin Druid (Level 4)
Events:
With the guards defeated Shae was keen to try and get past the magical barrier covering the tunnel opening, but the others were not as keen to risk triggering the magic - the memory of the explosion last time still very much fresh in their minds. Instead they opted - despite Shae's objections - to investigate the other (unprotected) tunnel that led out from the base of circular room opposite the one covered by the barrier.
After just 30 feet the passage ended at a door. Vex put his ear to the ancient wood and listened. Hearing nothing he opened it and entered the room beyond. Like many others it appeared to be devoid of anything interesting, whatever furniture or decoration once stood here had long since decayed to dust. Two more doors led from the room.
The others set about searching for anything that might have survived the passage of time and Shae stood back, thoroughly annoyed at the banality of it all. There was a magical barrier behind them, if there was anything valuable remaining in this place at all surely it would be behind there, not tucked away in an unguarded room like this.
"Why won't they listen to you, mummy? Mirabelle queried inside Shae's mind.
"I don't know," Shae replied, making no attempt to hide her frustration. "Maybe they're all scared."
"You're not scared are you, mummy?"
"Of course not. I'll prove it to you."
Leaving the others to their tedious searching, Shae turned and strode back down the hallway toward the magical barrier. Without breaking her stride she shape changed into a large gecko lizard and walked directly through the shimmering veil. As before, and completely without surprise, there was a brief fiery explosion. Even though Shae was fully expecting the conflagration she didn't manage to avoid the blast and she suffered burns to large parts of her lizard body.
Hearing the blast, the others stopped what they were doing and ran into the circular room to find Shae's smouldering lizard body padding down the corridor once blocked by the magical barrier.
"She's gone crazy," Yartik observed.
"Aye," said Vex. "I wonder if that stupid doll has finally driven her mad."
Naivara shook her head. "I suspect Shae was fully capable of making poor decisions before that doll came on the scene."
Yartik hefted his weapon and moved into the passage behind her. "We should follow before she blows anything else up."
The passageway opened into the base of the circular room where the ghostly lecture was underway. The same circular room that the group had already entered from the entrance at the top of the spiral. As before the spectral scholars paid her no heed as they went about their business.
A bit disappointed that her brash action did not take her through to anywhere new, Shae was about to turn around and go back when she noticed another tunnel leading out from the room, a passage that would have been hidden by the spiral walkway when viewed from above. With a curl of her lizard lips she walked carefully around the room to the other passage, giving the scholars a wide berth.
Yartik arrived in the circular room in time to see Shae's lizard body disappear into the new passageway, and he too made his way over there, careful not to draw the attention of the scholars. When he reached the passage he waited for the others to arrive and he signaled them over.
The passage, like so many have, ended at a wooden door. What was different this time, though, was that the door was locked. The first locked door the group has encountered since entering the complex. This fact made Shae rather happy and she clapped her hands together excitedly while Yartik put his shoulder against the brittle time worn wood and shoved. With minimal effort the door gave way and they were able to enter the room beyond.
Inside was what appeared to have once been another area for quiet study, but it had been modified. Steel bars blocked the entrance to the former study nooks and thick chains were fixed to the walls beyond, hanging from one of which was a humanoid skeleton - it's arms locked in silver manacles attached to the chains.
Yartik and Vex entered the room first, weapons ready in case anything was laying in wait. It was soon obvious the room was clear and the rest of the group came in to take a look.
Almost as soon as they crossed the threshold Naivara became aware of a sibilant whispering that tickled at the very edge of her hearing. She pointed it out to the others and soon Vex and Yartik could hear it too. Shae, it seemed, was unable to hear the sounds - perhaps her lizard form was preventing her from detecting it.
Yartik tried the steel bars, they were solidly fixed and no amount of brute force it seemed would make them budge.
The longer they stayed in the room the louder and more insistent the whispers became, until Naivara particularly became convinced that she could make out the word "secret" being said over and over again. The constant repetition became uncomfortable for her so she left the room and waited in the passage where the sounds could not reach her.
"Now what?" Yartik said, looking pointedly at Shae. "You got us in here, so what do you want us to do?"
Shae moved her head in the direction of the manacled skeleton.
"Yes, I can see that," the big minotaur replied. "The bars are too strong for me to force open."
"Besides," interjected Vex, "it could be animated and attack us the moment we get in there. We need you to use your magic to see what's what."
Shae rolled her eyes and reverted back to her normal form with a humph. "Fine. You guys search the room while I perform the ritual."
Her spell cast, Shae looked around the room focusing first on the skeleton. The bones did not glow with any kind of magical aura, but the silver manacles the unfortunate prisoner wore definitely radiated magic, strong magic of a type she wasn't able to narrow down to anything more general than abjuration magic. She passed on her findings to the others who visibly relaxed at the realisation.
"But, what about the voices?" Naivara asked, still unwilling to enter the room.
"What voices?" Shae queried.
"The whispering, offering to tell us secrets," Yartik replied. "Can't you hear them?"
Shae shook her head. "No."
"Would you like to hear them, mummy?" Mirabelle interjected.
"What?"
"The voices, would you like to hear them?"
Shae's brow furrowed. "You're blocking me from hearing them?"
"Of course. No telling what it might be trying to get you to do."
"But you'll let me hear them if I ask you to?"
"I will always do as you tell me, mummy. I hope you know that."
"Do you think I should hear them?"
"Don't know."
"Can you let them in for a second, and then block them out again?"
Mirabelle shrugged. "Maybe, but once they're in I might not be able to stop them again."
Shae considered this for a moment. "In that case, please continue to block them out. Thank you Mirabelle."
"I will, mummy."
Vex was looking at Shae with a very concerned expression. "What was that all about?"
Shae waved him off. "Nothing to be worried about. Mirabelle was helping me. Now we know there's nothing magical here so there must be a mechanical way to get past those bars somewhere. Have you found it yet?"
Yartik nodded. "Maybe. There's a hidden door in this corner."
They opened the hidden door to reveal a small 5 by 5 foot square room with two levers on the far wall, both set to the down position. Yartik stepped forward and flipped the switch on the left causing the bars on the empty cell to raise and unblock the entrance. He then did the same to the lever on the right and - predictably - the bars on that cell opened as well.
Yartik then moved into the cell with the manacled skeleton to take a closer look. As he neared the sibilant whispers in his mind became more and more insistent. "Free me, I will tell you a secret if you free me." He couldn't make out the words exactly but the meaning was very clear.
Yartik looked at the manacles. They were silver in colour, still polished despite the years, with runes engraved within that glowed faintly with a blue light. He turned his head to view them from different angles but they appeared to be a solid metal disk with no visible clasp or locking mechanism.
"I don't see any way of opening them," he called to the others who hovered by the doorway watching him take all the risks.
"Why do you even care about this?" Vex asked. "Whatever the secret is - if there even is one - it's likely to be irrelevant after all this time."
"Aren't you in the least bit curious?" Shae said.
"Not enough to risk getting attacked."
"The skeleton is not magical," Yartik pointed out. "Shae said only the manacles were."
"Then what is it that is whispering to us?"
Yartik shrugged. "I don't know, but whatever it is isn't hurting me."
Vex scoffed. "Nor will it, until you free it of course."
"If you can't open the manacles maybe you can pull the hands through them." Shae suggested.
"Good thinking." Yartik reached out a tentative hand and gripped the skeleton's forearm. It was surprising that the bones hadn't already fallen apart so he was certain that a strong yank should separate the hands from the arms and free the former prisoner.
The minotaur took a deep breath and jerked down with all his considerable strength. The bones held. He tried again in case his grip had somehow slipped with the same result. Whatever magic existed in the manacles must be what is keeping the skeleton intact.
So, if he couldn't free the skeleton from the manacles perhaps he could free the manacles from the wall. Yartik borrowed a crowbar from Vex and set to work levering the pin that fixed the manacles to the wall, slowly and steadily he worked at it until finally the pin came free and the skeleton's arms dropped to the ground.
That was when the alarm sounded.
The group looked around in shock at the sudden noise, which soon gave way to the sound of approaching booted feet. They all ran out of the room and into the circular chamber at the base of the spiral where they spotted four armed and armoured figures jogging in formation down the passage. The newcomers moved with precision, two of them nocking arrows in bows and taking aim at the group while the others entered the prison room and stood either side of the skeleton's cell. As soon as it was clear that nobody was going to attack they two with bows moved carefully into the prison room with their fellows and stood ready to prevent anyone else from coming inside.
"Well that tears it," Naivara said. "Let's take what we came for and get out of here."
"There is still that other area that we haven't explored yet." Shae said. "There's got to be treasure down here somewhere. I am sure of it."
"What if there isn't?" Vex said.
Shae shook here head and sighed. "What kind of adventurers are you? Flee at the first sign of any trouble."
"First sign?" Naivara's eyebrows arched. "You're joking right?"
"I thought it was funny, mummy." Mirabelle added inside Shae's mind.
Yartik snorted. "Shae's right. We're here, we're rested and we're strong. Let's keep going." Without waiting for a response, Yartik strode out of the circular chamber and back to the room where they'd found the doors earlier that day, one of which now stood open. "Are you guys coming or what?"
They continued exploring the complex, finding empty room after empty room. Some were clearly rooms where the ancient librarians must once have slept, others rooms where meetings or other consultations might have once been held, but like the rooms above these two had suffered the ravages of time and little of use remained.
They entered another room, this one furnished like an office, with a desk toward the rear of the room and stone shelves cut into the walls on either side. What made this room stand out from the rest was not the fact that the furniture appeared to still retain it's structural integrity but rather the desiccated husk seated behind the desk, it's undead face staring at them as they entered.
"Do you have an appointment?" the figure asked in a deep - gravelly - voice.
"I um, er, yes," Yartik stammered, he held his arms wide to keep the others from entering the chamber. "I am sorry for being so late."
The creature glared. "Yes, well. What is your business?"
Yartik stopped for a moment to think.
"Ask it about the skeleton we found?" Shae said, poking her head into the room.
"Why is this slave speaking to me?" the creature bellowed.
"Slave?" Shae said, offended.
The figure looked at Yartik squarely. "Control your minions or I shall have you ejected from the library."
Yartik swallowed. "Yes, of course." He turned to face the others. "Stay back here," he whispered. "I'll see if I can learn anything."
"Apologies, good master," Yartik said as he turned back into the room. "It won't be a problem again."
"See that it isn't."
"Well, yes, then I was hoping you might be able to tell me a little about your prisoner."
The figure's eyes narrowed. "My what?"
"Your prisoner. The one manacled to the wall at the base of the circular chamber."
"How is it you know of this?"
"We were just there, and-"
The figure leaped over the desk with a terrifying howl that echoed throughout the complex. It's clawed hands raked Yartik's body cutting him deeply before the minotaur could react. The big warrior pushed the undead creature back and then stepped out of the room pulling the door shut behind him. "Run!" he called as he ushered the other three ahead of him.
The group ran, retracing their steps to a 40ft wide passage that led to an enormous set of double doors. But before anyone could catch their breath the undead figure stepped out of a dimensional rift in space and resumed its attack.
The fight was brutal, with Shae and Naivara using their magic and the creature casting spells of its own as it sought to shred them with its claws. In the end though sheer weight of numbers won out and the undead was eventually killed - but the battle had taken just about everything the group had.
Once the fight was over they returned to the office and searched it thoroughly finding nothing of any value except a small silver key with strange runes carved into it that seemed to glow with a faint bluish radiance.
Session 15: The Archive
The Characters:
Yartik - Boros Minotaur Fighter (Level 4)
Naivara - Dimir Half-elf Warlock (Level 4)
Unndrel Vex - Golgari Devkarin Ranger (Level 4)
Shae Aloni - Golgari Devkarin Druid (Level 4)
Events:
The group took a long rest at the base of the circular room where they fought the undead guards, and used the time to recover from their exertions. Once it was over the others were ready to face whatever came next but Yartik still wasn't feeling 100%, if anything, the big warrior felt worse now than he did before. But he was not one to complain, or to draw attention to weakness, so he donned his armour with a silent wince and strapped his weapons on without a word to his companions.
"What's the plan?" Vex asked once everyone was geared up and ready to go.
"We unlock the skeleton, of course." Yartik said matter-of-factly.
"And find the secret." Shae added.
"So you're still keen to go through with this folly?" Naivara queried.
Shae turned to face her. "Of us all, I'd have thought you'd be most keen to find out a secret hidden for millennia."
Naivara's brow furrowed. "Why's that?"
"Because their stock and trade for your guild," Yartik scoffed.
Naivara sighed. "I have no idea what you mean."
Vex rolled his eyes. "See, even our Dimir friend here isn't interested in finding out what it is."
Shae turned now to face her fellow guild mate. "So what's your problem with us finding out?"
"I just think it's too great a risk. Think about it. Either there is no secret and this whole thing is a ruse to get us to unlock the skeleton and it attacks us, or there is a secret but because if how old it is it's no longer relevant or important., and when you let it go the thing attacks you."
"Why do you think it's going to attack us?" Shae asked. "It might be grateful for us to free it from its imprisonment."
Vex shrugged. "Sure, that might happen too. But is it even worth doing to find out?"
"And let's not forget the four guards who ran in there when we tried to pull the thing free of the wall." said Naivarra.
"I had forgotten about them," Yartik admitted.
Shae tapped her chin. "Maybe they're not even there any more. It's been hours since we did that."
"Hold on." Yartik said and disappeared down the corridor to the base of the second circular room with access to the makeshift prison. He returned less than a minute later. "They're still there. Standing vigil in the room outside the cells."
"So we kill them first, then free the skeleton and get the secret." Shae offered.
"This is stupid, you're stupid, and I want no part of it," Vex spat. "If you're determined to follow through with this madness then you're welcome to it, but I am out. I will wait for you back up top near the tree in the courtyard. Come get me when you're ready to leave."
"So what? You're just going to abandon us?" Shae said.
"I will wait one day, if you don't come up by then I will assume your stupidity got you killed and I will make my own way back to civilization. " Vex turned to Naivara, "Are you coming with me?"
Naivara sucked her bottom lip for a moment. "Nah, I might stay with them and make sure they don't do anything too stupid."
Vex took a long look at each of them before storming away up the spiral. "Idiots!"
The others watched him go and then made their way to the cells where the undead guards waited to prevent them from freeing their prisoner. A battle ensued where Shae used her radiant magic to good effect while Yartik blocked the passage prevent the guards from escaping Shae's spell. Naivara hanged back occasionally attacking the undead with an eldritch blast but never getting close enough to be injured herself. In the end the three of them prevailed and the undead guards lay motionless.
Yartik once again used the lever to open the cell door and entered the room where the skeleton remained locked in the manacles. He took the silver key they found in the head librarian's office and brought it close to one of the restraints. As the key was brought close a small hole appeared in the seemingly solid surface allowing the key inside, and with a click one of the skeleton's arms was free.
The whispering voices became more and more urgent sensing perhaps that freedom was close at hand.
Yartik repeated with the other hand and the manacles that once kept the prisoner secure vanished in a subtle fizz of energy. At that same moment, the skeleton - once held tightly together - fell completely apart whatever magic that kept it intact gone with the disappearance of the manacles.
But before the skull had a chance to hit the ground a swirling black mist of erupted from the ancient bones and passed right through Yartik's body causing the big warrior a great deal of psychic pain. The shock of it caused him to cry out and sent him staggering back. Naivara, hearing the injured cries ran into the room to help but she too fell victim the black mist's attack as it passed through her body on its way out of the room.
Shae saw the mist approach and cast her moonbeam spell at the passage entrance forcing the creature to pass through the searing radiant light as it sought to flee the area. The damage from the spell plus the effort of passing through both Yartik and Naivara were enough to burn the mist away in a scream of pure mindless rage.
With the creature - whatever it was - dead, Shea ran in to check on her companions. "Are you guys ok?"
Yartik picked himself up off the floor and shook his head, still reeling from the encounter. "A bit of a headache, but no physical injuries. No worse than a bad hangover." He look across to Naivara who remained staggered. "I'm pretty sure I feel better than she does."
"What was that thing?" Naivara managed.
Shae shrugged and Yartik shook his head. "No idea," they said in unison.
"So, what's the secret?" Shae asked, as she glanced between them.
"What's the - " Naivara made an effort to stand upright. "you're joking, right?"
Shae had the good sense to look a little sheepish. "Well yes, that's kinda why we did this whole thing, wasn't it?"
Naivara simply stared. "Maybe Vex did have the right of it," she said after a few heartbeats and stormed off.
Yartik watched her go and snorted. "She must have got hit by that thing a whole lot harder than I did."
"So did you get the secret or not?" Shae persisted.
Yartik thought for a moment. "It didn't really say anything when I set it free, but now that I think about it there is some knowledge kicking around in my mind that I don't recall having before... 'The gods will not stay dead'. Does that mean anything to you?"
Shae considered for a moment. "No, how about you?"
Yartik shrugged. "No idea, not even really sure what a god is to be honest."
Shae recalled her druidic lore for a moment. "Gods are super powerful beings from mythology I think, not sure myself exactly. So is that it? That's the secret?"
"I don't know what to tell you, that's all I got. Maybe Naivara got more, she was hit harder than me."
The pair left to go find Naivara who had already started ascending the spiral in the direction Vex went earlier that day. Yartik and Shae called out from below but Naivara ignored them and continued walking. With a glance at each other Shae and Yartik started going up the spiral as well.
They all regrouped up top and had a long back and forth about whether to go back to civilization or to return and finish exploring the complex. Shae was still hoping to find something useful and magical down there. Eventually she and Yartik convinced the others to return below and finish what they'd started.
In the end there was no useful and magical item for Shae to claim as her own, just more dusty and rubble filled corridors and rooms. They did find what must once have been the original entrance to the library - it's huge steel bound doors and colonnaded entrance covered in tonnes and tonnes of rock. It was clear that centuries (perhaps millennia) ago the archive had been buried to keep the knowledge contained therein hidden from the world, and that a Boros garrison had been built above the now buried building. It too had been eroded by time and the depredations of the Gruul, and now the place was protected only by obscurity.
With their search concluded, the group - including a very disappointed Shae - started making their way back to the 10th district.
Their journey was largely uneventful. They travelled at night, careful to avoid the numerous bonfires of the Gruul. At one stage they caught the faint sound of carnival music. Shae transformed into a black panther and padded toward it for a closer look where she came upon a Rakdos Carnival complete with sideshows and a brightly lit big top which was the source of the festive - and enticing - music. She padded back to the group excitedly and told them what she'd found but noone seemed interested in attending the show - especially Yartik who was still feeling poorly from whatever disease he'd contracted in the library. The sooner they made it back to civilization the better.
A few days later - after being away for almost 4 weeks - they returned home, and made their way directly to the library where they handed over the remnant books and tablets to a very excited Katrin. He eagerly took the treasures they'd returned with and promised to pay them immediately. Shae asked for her money to be deposited in the Orzhov bank account she'd opened before they left while others preferred cash. Katrin explained he did not have their payment with him but if they returned tomorrow he would be able to make good on their deal.
From there the group visited their apothecary contact to try and organise a cure for whatever had taken hold of Yartik. Sadly he was unable to assist, suggesting that perhaps this particular affliction would require magical attention. Likely that only capable of being provided by the Orzhov clerics. They thanked the apothecary and decided to return to the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow to discuss next steps.
Session 16: Wheeling and Dealing
The Characters:
Yartik - Boros Minotaur Fighter (Level 4)
Naivara - Dimir Half-elf Warlock (Level 4)
Unndrel Vex - Golgari Devkarin Ranger (Level 4)
Shae Aloni - Golgari Devkarin Druid (Level 4)
Events:
Naivarra decided to waste no time, and used her contacts to try and find options for Yartik's cure, having to deal with the Orzhov was not something anyone relished so Naivara wanted to see what other options existed.
In the meantime the others returned to the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow and try to clean up and get a long overdue night's sleep in an actual bed. Vex arranged for their accommodation and after he gave their names the barman noticed that there was a message being held for them, it arrived shortly after their departure all those weeks ago. Vex finished the arrangements and took the letter to the table where the others waited and opened it. It was a handwritten letter, that read:
Fearless adventurers, I apologise for my presumption but I find myself in a somewhat difficult situation and I fear I have nobody else to turn to. My life has been ruined and I am forced into hiding, both from unknown parties who seek to kill me, and from the law who I have so faithfully served for most of my life. I have nobody else to turn to, and I need your help to clear my name. I am at my wits end. If you want to contact me please have a message delivered to the below address and I will contact you to make arrangements.
Desperately, N.
"Who's N?" Mirabelle asked inside Shae's mind.
"Nassius? The Azorious legislator," Shae replied aloud. "He's the reason you and I met."
"I like him already," Mirabelle beamed. "We should help him."
"Screw him, I say." Vex scrunched up the letter and tossed it on the table. "He delivered us to those Rakdos clowns."
"He did try to warn us," Yartik pointed out.
"Plus it was the best fun I've had in my life," Shae added.
Vex looked at her and shook her head. "In any case, we should wait for Naivara to get here before deciding anything."
They didn't have to wait long.
"Well I have some options," Naivara said as she sat down at the table. "None of them are particularly good."
"What are they?" Yartik said with a cough.
"There is a Simic doctor operating out of an office near Zonot Seven that has had some success treating magical diseases with what he calls 'replacement therapy'".
"Pass," grunted Yartik. "Next."
"There's a Golgari druid in the rot farms that can help you to function in society while embracing your affliction. He can cure it apparently but he won't because he doesn't see it as a curse."
"Circle of life," Shae said with a sagacious nod.
"Hard pass."
"This one is a little confusing, but there is a Cleric who either has either been excommunicated or is still with the Orzhov but they don't like to acknowledge his allegiance. He can definitely handle it but he is likely to ask for some kind of service in return for the treatment."
"What kind of service," Shae asked.
"I think it will involve killing of some kind. Regardless it can't be good if even the Orzhov are not prepared to publicly stand with the guy."
Yartik snorted. "Definitely not interested in that."
"Which leaves with the final option, a bona fide Orzhov cleric. He definitely has the ability to cure you but he won't be cheap."
"How much, are you talking?" Vex queried.
Naivara shrugged. "Not really sure, but I am told this guy is not as pompous as some so he's likely to be less expensive than one of their more uppity pontiffs."
"I don't like the idea of getting into debt with the Orzhov," Yartik said after a moment.
"You'll probably like the idea of being dead even less." Naivara pointed out.
Yartik sighed. "True."
Naivara nodded. "Then I guess we'll be off to see the cleric in the morning."
"Can't we go right now?"
"I'm afraid not. He only sees petitioners between sunrise and midday, after that he is busy with 'matters of the church' as they call it."
Yartik snorted. "Fine then, I guess I have no choice."
"Right then," Vex began, "now that we've got that sorted there's the matter of Nassius to discuss. Here, Naivara," Vex handed her the letter. "Read this."
Naivara took the paper and read. When she was done she sat back in her chair and laughed out loud.
"What's so funny?" Shae asked.
"Before we left for the archive, an Azorious Imperator offered to pay us to help them locate Nassius. I said no because the price she was offering was too low. Looks like we can cash in on that reward pretty easily now."
"You can't turn him in!" Mirabelle demanded. "He put us together, mummy. We have to help him."
Shae's face took on a pained expression. "She's right, Nassius deserves the chance to tell us his side of the story."
Naivara looked at Shae with a frown. "That's not what I said at all."
"In any case," Shae continued. "Why don't we arrange to meet him and give him the chance to explain. If we don't like what we hear, we turn him over - if there is something being done to him, we can decide if we want to help."
Yartik nodded. "Sure, but after we take care of my thing, right?"
Vex put an arm on the minotaur's shoulder. "Of course."
The next morning the group sent a messenger to deliver the note to the address in Nassius' letter then went to see the Orzhov cleric Naivara told them about. They found the church easily and entered it's brightly lit and welcoming interior. Rows of pews greeted sat facing an empty pulpit where no doubt a self important preacher would stand during service espousing the virtues of loyal servitude to the guild. Now though, the pews were empty but for a smattering of petitioners on their knees presumably praying to whatever power they felt might help them. An acolyte saw the four of them standing by the door and approached them, arms wide in greeting with a genuine seeming smile on his youthful face.
"How may I be of service today, gentle petitioners?" he said when he reached them.
Naivara stepped forward. "We seek Father Kavolic, one of my companions is cursed and I am told the good father is able to help him."
The young man nodded, his welcoming expression unchanged. "Very good, please follow me."
He led the group through the main worship hall to a smaller chapel off to the side of the building. There were several people waiting, dressed in their church clothes, that were at a sharp contrast to the torn and bloody outfits the group wore. "Take a seat here," he indicated the pews, "the his eminence will be with you in a moment."
They all settled in to wait, it was obvious that their dishevelled appearance made the other petitioners uncomfortable and Naivara decided to have a little fun with it.
"Make sure you don't cough on anything, Yartik," Naivara said with a wink. "We don't want a repeat of what happened to Ashok."
"Ashok?" Yartik said, confused.
"Yes," Vex isaid, playing along, "Ugly business that. Blood on these cushions would be difficult to clean."
"Oh, right, yes. I see, yes," Yartik said clearing his throat dramatically. I'll do my best, but I can only hold back for so long."
The other petitioners looked horrified, and moved a little further into the corner or the room.
The door opened a short while later, and a man entered followed by an older gentlemen in priestly robes. He placed a hand on the first man's shoulders. "Go in peace, my son."
The man nodded and left the chapel without a second glance at anyone.
The priest clasped his hands together and looked around. "Who's next."
As one the crowd pointed at Yartik. "He is."
The cleric nodded and ushered Yartik, and the others inside.
The office was luxuriously appointed, heavy wooden shelves lined the rooms packed with books and religious looking knick-knacks. A large desk sat to one side with a very comfortable looking chair behind it in which the cleric sat while offering far less opulent chairs to the others.
"I am Father Kavolic," the priest said once everyone was seated. "No please, tell me what I can do for you?"
"I have been cursed," Yartik stated. "Mummy rot, I am told."
"I see," Father Kavolic looked them all up and down and then sat back in his chair, "and you wish to begin preparations for your funeral rites?"
"No. I want to be cured."
"Cured, you say? It is possible, but forgive me, from your appearance I would suggest you lack the means to pay for such a treatment."
"We have money," Naivara said. "How much will it cost?"
"Treatment of such an affliction usually costs somewhere between 3000 and 5000 gold pieces, depending upon the progress of the disease. Judging by your appearance I would guess that you came by it fairly recently?"
Yartik nodded. "Almost two weeks ago."
"Two weeks?" Father Kavolic gasped. "My goodness, you must have a stellar constitution to have lasted this long. Most would have succumbed to the curse days ago. I dare say you are very lucky to be alive."
"5000 gold pieces!" Vex gasped. "At most we could afford maybe a tenth of that."
Yartik swallowed, his face paled. "Is there a cheaper treatment available, perhaps one that will buy me enough time to afford the complete cure?"
"Are you a member of the Orzhov guild?"
"No, Father. I am of the Boros Legion."
The priest looked at each of them. "All of you? You don't look like legionaries."
"I have an account with the Orzhov bank if that helps?" Shae suggested.
"It does not," the cleric said matter-of-factly.
"How long does he have left if we do nothing?" Naivara asked.
"I cannot say. From previous experience I would expect your friend to be dead already, but here he is. It's possible he might last another week, maybe two, but one thing is certain. If left untreated this curse will kill him eventually."
"Is there something we could maybe do for you?" Yartik offered. "Some arrangement that we could come to, perhaps."
"Of course," Father Kavolic said his hands spread wide, "You have come to the Orzhov, my son. Arrangements is what we do best."
"I won't kill anyone." Yartik said.
The priest smiled. "Nor would I ask you to. You said you are a member of the legion."
"I am."
"Currently serving, and in good standing?"
Yartik nodded. "As far as I know."
Father Kavolic looked to the others, "And collectively you feel like you can manage to pay 500 gold pieces?"
"We should be able to cover that, yes," Naivara said.
"Then there is something you can do for me. A few months ago I had some items stolen from me. Your Boros guildmates found the perpetrators and the items but so far me property has not been returned to me. It is - as I understand it - sitting on a shelf in one of your garrisons protected by a level of bureaucracy even the Azorious might be proud of. I want it back."
Yartik bristled. "I won't steal it for you!"
"Nor am I asking you to. I have all the proper paperwork, signed and notarized. All that I am waiting for is the legion to send a representative to come and file it for me. I have been waiting weeks for said representative to show up."
"Let me get this straight," Naivara interjected. "All he has to do is take some paperwork to a Boros Garrison, and collect your things and you will cure him of the curse?"
Father Kavolic nodded. "That and you pay me 500 gold pieces."
"What is it that they are holding that could be worth you giving him a 4500 gold discount?"
"The items that were stolen were quite valuable to me, one could say that they are irreplaceable but they are of little value to anyone else. Just some ledgers, contracts, and records of business transactions - nothing that would be overly useful or important to anyone but me I'm afraid. Getting them back - after all this time - is why I am prepared to be so generous to your friend here."
"I'll do it." Yartik said after a moment.
Father Kavolic smiled. "Excellent, please wait here while I get the paperwork for you, and please hurry. There's no telling how long you're got before the rot kills you."
Yartik took the paperwork from the priest and then went back to their room at the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow to freshen up and put on his legion uniform. He then went to the garrison holding the cleric's items while others went to organise the money. He handed the forms across to a bored looking desk sergeant who looked them over then disappeared into the back for a few minutes. He returned with a box 1 foot height and two feet long sealed with tape around the edges. The sergeant asked him to confirm the requisition number on the box matched the number on the paperwork and the asked Yartik to sign the ledger to confirm taking possession of the box. With that all done he met back up with the others.
"Did you look inside?" Shae asked as soon as she saw Yartik with the box under his muscular arm.
"No," Yartik forwned. "Why would I?"
Shae rolled her eyes. "Aren't you curious? Let's open it."
"It's sealed with tape. He'd know that we opened it."
"He never told us not to," Shae pointed out. "And besides, it looks like we can get same tape from anywhere. It doesn't have any special markings or whatever."
Yartik sighed, and looked to the others. "What do you guys think we should do? Open it or not?"
Vex shrugged. "I don't much care either way."
"I don't think we should,"Naivara said.
Shae look at each of them. "You people are so boring, how can you even call yourselves adventurers."
Naivara shook her head. "I'd prefer not to do anything that jeopardizes Yartik being able to get the cure. If we turn up and it looks like the box has been opened then the priest may go back on his deal. Whatever is inside, it's just not worth it."
Shae considered that. "Fair enough. Let's go get that cure then."
The group returned to the church and waited in the chapel outside Father Kavolic's office. As soon as he saw the four of them standing there he ushered them inside. Yartik presented the box to him and the priest proceeded to cut the tape and open the box in front of them. Inside were several leather bound books and folders with bundles of paper inside them. The cleric took one of the books, flicked it open to a random page and began to scan down the list of words and numbers, he then set that aside and repeated the process with another two of the books. Satisfied by whatever he'd seen the priest turned to the group with a wide smile. "Do you have the money?"
Naivara handed across a pouch with the wealth of coins inside. "Here it is."
"Excellent." Father Kavolic took the pouch and set it down on his desk without even looking inside, then turned to Yartik. "Right now, my son. Let's go and take care of this curse of yours."
The others were asked to wait in the worship hall while Yartik and the priest went off to an antechamber on the other side of the building. Here the room had been cleared of furniture and Yartik was told to kneel in the centre of the space. Father Kavolic stood before him and chanted in an arcane tongue for several long minutes while Yartik waited. When the words were done the priest placed his hands on the minotaur's shoulders. The pain was intense, but brief, and after the searing agony cleared Yartik's breathing eased and the feeling of lethargy and pain in his joints left him. He was whole again.
The following morning, back at the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow a messenger arrived with a response from Nassius. He asked for the group to meet him inside a warehouse in Precinct Six at midnight that night - the note said that the office door would be left unlocked.
The group spent the day relaxing with Yartik finally feeling like himself again for the first time in weeks. Vex and Naivara thought they might be able to make a little extra money bounty hunting so they went to a local Wojek office to see what was on offer. There was no shortage of options, ranging from simple thugs, pickpockets, and petty thieves to notorious criminals, murderers, and even renegade wizards of some renown. Notably, Nassius' name was among the most wanted - with a bounty of 200 gold pieces. Not a lot by the adventurers standards but a small fortune for the common folk. Nassius' bounty was definitely on lower end of the scale, but it said something about the resourcefulness of the man if he had evaded capture for all this time. The pair took the list with them to discuss some options with the others if nothing came of their meeting tonight.
A few hours before the appointed time they made their way to the warehouse to give themselves a chance to scope the area out in advance of the meeting. Nothing appeared out of the ordinary and even with Shae using her wild shape ability to transform into different animals to search the rooftops and nearby alleyways they found nothing to put them on edge. When the time came they entered the warehouse through the office door - unlocked just as the note said it would - and entered the warehouse proper. Inside was a maze of crates stacked so as to make it impossible to see the full length of the room. At the centre glowed a series of ever-burning torches that marked out a circular clearing in the middle of which Nassius - looking decidedly bedraggled - waited.
"That you so much for coming," he said when he saw them approach. "I am so glad you're here. You don't know what this means to me."
Naivara snorted. "You took an enormous risk in trusting us, especially after what you did in sending us to that house of horrors."
"You actually went there?" the colour drained from Nassius face. I thought I was very clear in my note that you should stay away. It was a dangerous place."
"Then why tell us about it at all?" Vex countered.
"It was part of our arrangement, your help apprehending Krenko in exchange for details of whoever kidnapped you. I was merely fulfilling the terms of our contract. I never for a moment thought you would be so foolish as to actually pursue it."
"Well I am glad we did," Shae interjected. "It was the most fun I have ever had in my life."
"Fun?" Yartik snorted. "You have a very strange notion of what constitutes fun."
"Wasn't it, though?" Shae continued. "You got your magical cloak, and I... Well I got my Mirabelle."
Nassius watched the exchange with a confused expression. "What is a Mirabelle?"
Shae removed the doll from her backpack and held it proudly for Nassius to see. "Only the most wonderful thing I have ever had in my entire life, and if it weren't for you telling us about that house I might never have been able to find her."
"I... See..." Nassius shifted idly from foot to foot. "Well I am glad you all managed to get through the ordeal without anyone being hurt."
"Oh, there was plenty of hurt," Yartik said, "thankfully none of it was permanent."
Vex looked at Nassius flatly. "Why have you asked us here?"
"I need your help. Ever since that business with Krenko my life has been turned inside out. People are trying to kill me and even my former colleagues are after me with some slanderous story of my involvement with the Orzhov. Everything that I have worked for my whole life is gone and I have been in hiding ever since."
"And what do you imagine we might be able to do about that?" Naivara queried.
"Why get to the bottom of it, and help me clear my name."
Shae laughed. "We are not legal masterminds, Nassius. Just a few short weeks ago I was shovelling fungus in the rot farms, and the others led similarly mundane lives. What hope do we have in negotiating the legal minefield you're stuck in the middle of."
Nassius nodded. "The legal issues I can deal with on my own, it's the threat on my life I cannot handle. If you could find out who wants me dead and put a stop to it I will be able to beat whatever trumped up charge is brought against me."
"Can you pay us?" Naivara asked.
Nassius shook his had with a sigh. "Not until I am cleared. My assets have been frozen, so until I am able to mount a proper defense I am afraid I have nothing I can offer you but my everlasting gratitude."
"Ok, but after your clear of this issue, how about then?"
"Name your price."
"5000 gold pieces," Vex said without a moment's hesitation.
Nassius swallowed. "I, um, I don't-"
Naivara smilled. "Then how about you name our price, Nassius. How much can you afford."
Nassius thought for a moment. "I could probably pay you 3000 gold pieces, assuming I am able to clear my name."
Naivara considered that . "That is a goodly amount. Nassius, you have a deal."
"Oh goody," Mirabelle said. "We are going to help the nice man, I am so pleased."
"There was never any doubt," Shae said, "so why don't you tell us what happened."
Nassius went on to explain that on the night after Krenko was handed over to him he woke to the sound of intruders in his home. Not being one to confront them he sought refuge in the panic room he and all Azorious officials have installed in his home. The intruders were clearly not there to steal anything because they spent a good long time trying to gain access to the panic room but to no avail - and they eventually gave up after a few hours. He then sought refuge at work where upon his arrival arresters were dispatched to take him into custody on the charge of being in league with the Orzhov, apparently evidence was found to implicate me in some kind of wrongdoing. Luckily before they were able to clap me in chains there was a kerfuffle - one of the criminals they had in custody caused a ruckus - and he was able to slip away. He's been in hiding ever since.
The group agreed to look into what was going on, and decided to start first where the attack happened in Nassius' home. With Vex's newfound magical ability to assume the appearance of another person he would masquerade as Nassius and see if they might draw anyone out.
With the rudiments of a plan in place, they went their separate ways. Nassius saying that if they wished to contact him they should leave a message at the same place and he would reach out to them. He cannot afford to compromise his hiding place as it has kept him safe the past several weeks.
Session 17: Playing House
The Characters:
Yartik - Boros Minotaur Fighter (Level 4)
Naivara - Dimir Half-elf Warlock (Level 4)
Unndrel Vex - Golgari Devkarin Ranger (Level 4)
Shae Aloni - Golgari Devkarin Druid (Level 4)
Events:
Shae left the warehouse and went directly to Nassius' home address. She strode up to the front door of the house and transformed into a cockroach and slipped in via the gap under the door. Once on the other side she returned to normal form and strode into the kitchen where Nassius told them he would keep his keys. The keys were still hanging from hook right where he told them they would be so she snagged them and did a quick circuit of the house before exiting - in the form of a cat - out a skylight in the attic roof and met the others back at their tavern.
The following morning the group made their way to Nassius' house. Vex used his magic to appear like the wanted Azorious official while Naivara and Yartik walked beside him in the role of bodyguards. Shae trailled along behind, in the hopes of keeping her association with them a secret while she kept her eyes on anyone who might be paying them undue attention.
They arrived without incident and Vex - as Nassius - used the key which Shae had obtained the night before to unlock the house and enter with Yartik and Naivara close behind. Shae took up position in the street not too far away, adopting the role of flower seller to act as cover for her extended loitering.
Hours passed with nothing interesting happening. Vex, Yartik, and Naivara waited inside the house while Shae hung about outside. Once the sun went down Shae transformed into a cat and entered the house through the same skylight window she'd used to escape the previous night.
The following day they went through the same routine. This time Vex, Yartik and Naivara actually left the house to purchase supplies with Vex once again assuming Nassius' visage. Once again, the day passed without incident.
The next day a messenger arrived at Nassius door. Yartik answered and the messenger asked if Nassius was present. Yartik said yes and the messenger handed him an envelope then turned away without a backward glance. Yartik closed the door and went to the lounge room to open it in front of the others.
Dear Mr Ven, I am very pleased to inform you that the chair you have ordered is ready for you to pick up at your earliest convenience. Roget, of Roget's Custom Furniture.
"What do you think?" Yartik said. "Do you think it's legitimate?"
Vex shrugged. "No idea, but either way it's the first nibble we've had. I say we see where it leads us."
Yartik nodded. "Agreed, it's either something or it's a new bit of furniture... We get something regardless."
"Let's let Shae know what is going on," Naivara said, "and then pay this furniture place a visit."
Vex assumed his magical disguise and the three of them left the house on route to Roget's Custom Furniture. Naivara stopped to buy some flowers from Shae and delivered the message about where they were going so that Shae could follow along behind.
After several stops for directions they found the place a short distance away from Nassius' house. The shop was unassuming, a simple wooden sign hanging above the door with a single barred window facing the street. It was agreed that Vex would not attempt to speak during the interaction because the magic he is using did nothing to disguise his voice, so Naivara was first to enter the store.
A bell rang, alerting the a young man standing behind the counter of their entry, and he came over to where they congregated by the door. "Can I help you?"
Naivara handed him the note. "We're here to collect a chair for a Nassius Ven."
The lad examined the note briefly and nodded. "Please, if you'd just wait here I will be back in a moment with your order," he said then turned and walked through a curtain that divided the showroom from the rest of the store.
"See anything you like?" Naivara said to Yartik who was perusing the wares on display.
"Actually I do," Yartik said. "Looks like quality workmanship, wouldn't mind a few of these pieces in my place when I can afford one."
Before long, the curtain opened once more and an older man entered the showroom followed closely by the young man who greeted them, the pair were carrying a cloth wrapped item that must be the chair in question. They deposited the item at Naivara's feet, and stepped back.
The older man's face broke into a smile when he spotted Nassius by the door. "Mr. Ven, so wonderful to see you again. I do hope that you will find this piece both sturdy and comfortable."
Vex nodded and coughed. "Indeed," he managed between coughs.
"Forgive him," Naivara interjected. "The master has been quite ill in recent weeks."
The older man recoiled. "I see, well, that is not good. When you are recovered I look forward to seeing you back again, I know you had your eye on a custom dresser to fill that large bedroom of yours."
Vex nodded and coughed again.
Yartik reached down and collected the chair and the three of them left the store.
"Well that seemed thoroughly mundane," Naivara said as they walked back to the house. "Good thinking with the cough, made your silence entirely reasonable."
"Thanks," Vex said. "It would have been suspicious if I didn't acknowledge the man at all. I'm glad you picked up on the ruse so quickly."
Yartik snorted. "If you two are quite finished patting each other on the back we need to get back. I am really keen to try out this chair."
As before, Shae joined them after sunset where she found the three of them in the ground floor lounge area. Yartik sitting in the newly acquired chair.
"What's it like?" Shae asked as she came down the stairs.
"Really comfortable, and really well made," Yartik said. "It handles my bulk without even a hint of looseness."
Naivarra shook her head. "He's been sitting in that thing practically since we got back."
"So do you think it was legitimate?" Shae queried.
Vex shrugged. "The shop looked like I'd expect of a small retailer, and the craftsman seemed to recognise Nassius and certainly acted the part of the proud craftsman."
"The only person who would be able to confirm if this was something he'd expected is Nassius," Naivarra pointed out.
"So let's ask him," Shae suggested.
Yartik nodded. "Good idea, but it'll be a couple of days before we get a response. We have to leave the message at the drop and he'll get back to us with a time and place."
Shae scowled. "That's not good enough. We need a faster way to communicate, if this is part of a setup then two days might already be too late."
"You make a valid point," Vex said. "Let's get a message to him first thing tomorrow and see if we can figure out a more efficient way to keep in touch."
The group retired for the night. Naivarra sleeping in Nassius' bed, Yartik in one of the spare rooms, and Vex in the other, while Shae took her rest in the attic on the level above. They did keep a watch standing on the landing between the three bedrooms to ensure that they could be alerted if anything happened.
Naivarra was on watch when she heard a noise that sounded like the front door being opened on the level below them. Stealthily she padded first to wake Yartik, then Vex before climbing the stairs to the attic to alert Shae. By the time she came back down everyone was ready and she indicated she'd try and sneak down to seek the source of the noise.
Naivara noticed 3 things when she reached the bottom of the stairs. First; the front door was indeed open, Second; the newly delivered chair was missing, and third; a figure was closing in on her from the shadows intent on violence.
The combat that followed was unusual in that it was fought largely in silence. The attackers - initially two Mind Drinker Vampires - battled Vex, Naivara and Yartik on the ground floor, while the third - an extremely stealthy swordsman - fought Shae on the stairs. In fact it was only Mirabelle's timely warning that prevent Shae from being taken completely unawares. As it was Shae was eventually laid low but the group did manage to kill one of the two vampires before the other and the stealthy swordsman escaped - having confirmed that Nassius was not actually in the house.
When the battle was over, Vex used his healing skills to stabilize Shae but he had no more magic to bring her back to consciousness. It was then that Naivara broached a rather sensitive topic.
"So," Naivara said her eyes fixed on Shae's unmoving form. "While she's out like this, should we maybe take the doll away from her."
"Why?" Yartik said, his gaze moving frantically about the room.
"That doll is clearly doing something to Shae's mind. Who know what kind of madness the doll is brewing in there."
Vex rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Perhaps, but truthfully I think Shae was a bit broken even before the doll came on the scene."
Naivara nodded. "Even more reason to take it and burn it, if you ask me. She was already a bit out there then she's already that much closer to whatever craziness the doll is planning."
Yartik strode across the room and first opened the door to the kitchen. "What makes you think the doll is doing anything?" he said as he turned and strode back to check the under-stair storage.
Vex watched the minotaur zip around the room. "What are you doing?"
"I'm looking for that chair," he said as he crossed over to check in the study. "Why would they take a chair?"
Vex opened his mouth to respond but then thought better of it, and watched instead as Yartik disappeared upstairs. He turned back to Naivara instead. "Let's say you're right, and the doll is messing with Shae's mind or encouraging errant behaviour, and taking the doll away will prevent all that. How do you imagine Shae will react?"
"What do you mean? We will have helped her."
"Do you think she's going to see it that way?" Vex pressed.
Naivarra considered that for a moment. "Perhaps not a first, but eventually she might come to see the right of it."
"Sure, that could be true," Vex agreed. "But how do you think she's going to react until then. If you take the doll and destroy it, at best she's going to get angry and leave, at worst she gets violent and tries to kill us. Neither of those outcomes are any good if you want my opinion."
"Ok," Naivara nodded. "I can accept that. So what then? We do nothing, let her keep the cursed thing?"
Vex shrugged. "For now, yes. We keep an eye on her, and if things really start to get crazy we step in and confront her directly. Not like thieves rifling through her pockets when she's down."
"That's good thinking, Vex." Naivara said finally. "I never pegged you as the considerate type, I hope you're looking out for all of us like that."
Vex scowled. "Don't get all touchy feely on me, Naivarra. I know you guys would do the same if it were me."
"You know," Naivara cocked her head slightly and smiled, "I'm not sure if that's true."
Vex sighed. "So can we talk about these assassins now? Any idea who sent them?"
"Mind drinkers usually means the Dimir," Naivarra said. "Occasionally one of their number might be affiliated with a different guild but two of them... No this definitely seems like the Dimir are involved somehow."
"And the other guy?" Vex asked.
"Definitely a professional. Did you see the way he moved, and those blades injecting poison? Simic enhancements for sure, and good ones judging by the results." Naivarr said indicating Shae's unconscious form.
Vex raised an eyebrow. "So you're saying that the Simic and Dimir are working together?"
Naivarra shook her head. "Probably not, just that the swordsman had some expensive work done. I suspect he's Dimir as well."
"How does that help us?"
"No idea," Naivarra rubbed the back of her neck. "I'll put some feelers out tomorrow and see what I can turn up."
They both turned as Yartik came stomping down the stairs again. "It doesn't make any sense!"
Session 18: Betrayal
The Characters:
Yartik - Boros Minotaur Fighter (Level 4)
Naivara - Dimir Half-elf Warlock (Level 4)
Unndrel Vex - Golgari Devkarin Ranger (Level 4)
Shae Aloni - Golgari Devkarin Druid (Level 4)
Events:
The group decided to hole up in the master bedroom. If the assassins decided to come back they figured that they should all be in the same place. Yartik carried Shae's unconscious form and laid her out in Nassius' bed while the others set about dealing with the body of the fallen vampire. They hacked off the creature's head and burned it in the fireplace and the body they dragged outside and dumped in a nearby alley - careful to ensure that they were not seen doing so. Then, once everyone was together and a watch order agreed, they set about taking a long rest to recover from the battle.
"Mummy, Mummy, Mummy, Mummy, Mummy."
Shae came to with Mirabelle's insistent calls bombarding her mind. "What is it darling heart?"
"Promise me you won't le them take me, Mummy." Mirabelle said, the desperation in her voice evident.
Shae's heart raced. "Who wanted to take you?" she said, keeping her voice low.
"Naivara! She wanted to burn me!"
The others looked over at Shae muttering to herself on the bed.
Naivara sighed. "Here we go."
"What?" Shae tried to keep the alarm from her tone. "What are you saying?"
"The half-elf scum said she wanted to take me and throw me in the fire while you were unconscious. She would have done it too if Vex hadn't talked her out of it. I was wrong about him, Mummy, he's nice."
Shae gasped. "And Yartik?"
"The cow-man wasn't around, he cared more about that stupid chair than me."
Shae stretched, trying to appear calm as she sat upright, and immediately uttered a series of arcane words before pointing at Naivarra.
Naivarra felt the magic overwhelm her, her muscles stiffened and froze until she was unable to move.
"Now that I have your full attention let me say this just once." Shae strode forward so her face was inches from Naivarra's. "Never threaten Mirabelle again!"
Naivarra struggled against the magic that held her, forcing her muscles to move until finally she broke free of the spell and shoved Shae back, retaliating with a hex of her own.
Shae felt the magic enter her and suddenly her already paltry muscles felt even weaker.
Naivara stood up and attempted to grab Shae, but some lingering effect from Shae's magic caused her to stumble so Shae was able to avoid the clumsy attack.
Yartik, initially taken aback by the exchange rose and placed himself between the two of them, clearly ready to use his bulk to restrain whoever decided to attack next.
Seeing the minotaur before her, Shae turned abruptly and went to her pack to fix breakfast.
Naivarra's face was red with rage, but she took a few deep breaths, turned and walked out of the room and down the stairs.
Vex rose from the bed and followed her. "Where are you going?"
Naivara continued walking out the front door. "Leave me alone, Vex."
Vex sighed and followed her into the street. "What else did you think would happen? That's why I warned you against doing it last night."
Naivarra stopped, turning to face him. "Well I got the reaction anyway, so if you'd let me do it then the doll would be gone and, who knows, Shae's outburst might have actually been worth it."
"Maybe. What are you going to do now?"
"I need some time to myself."
"Where will you go? Let me know and I'll come find you in a few hours after you've both had some time to calm down."
"I'll find you," and with that Naivarra and turned to walk away.
Vex watched her go for a moment and then returned to the bedroom where Shae was quietly eating her breakfast.
Shae looked up as Vex entered the room. "Thanks for protecting Mirabelle," Shae said between mouthfuls. "You don't know what that means to her."
Vex's eyes narrowed. "I didn't do it for the stupid doll, I did it for you."
"She's not a stupid doll!" Shae insisted. "She's saved me, no, saved us, more times than I can count. If I had my way Mirabelle would be a fully fledged member of the party."
"That's never going to happen," Vex said flatly.
"Looks like there might now be an opening," Mirabelle chimed in cheerfully, causing Shae to barely stifle a chuckle.
"Is something funny?"
"What? No, um, yes, never mind. I understand you won't let her be one of us, I have come to terms with that but I need you to understand that Mirabelle is more to me than just a 'stupid doll'. She is my daughter and I will never let anything or anyone cause her harm."
Vex waved her words away dismissively. "Fine, whatever."
"Arrgh! You can be a real prick sometimes Vex, you know that?" Shae stood up, grabbed her things and stormed out of the room. "I need some time alone to clear my head. If Naivarra comes back tell her all I ask is for her to apologise, as long as she means it, I am willing to get past this."
Shae, still angry about the threat against Mirabelle's life walked the streets aimlessly. She could not fathom why Naivarra would seek to murder Mirabelle, what possible reason would she have for choosing to cause such pain? The question vexed her and thinking about it just made her more and more incensed. She needed somewhere quite to meditate and to get a handle on the maelstrom of thoughts swirling around in her mind. She decided to visit the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow for some alone time.
Shae reached the tavern at mid morning got the key from the barman and went upstairs to rest.
Naivarra walked around the city for a long while, fuming - not so much because of Shae's reaction, that was to be expected, but mostly because neither Vex nor Yartik said anything to back her up. They just sat back and let Shae vent her fury without so much as a word, and even when Vex did come outside to talk it amounted to little more than an "I told you so". These people were supposed to be her friends, and you should be able to rely on your friends to support you. After several blocks she realised that stewing on it was not helping her feel any better so instead she decided to focus on the problem of protecting Nassius. If Mind Drinker's were involved then the Dimir would know and perhaps she could get some useful information or direction from her handler in the guild.
As she'd done countless times before she picked her way through the undercity to the vine-choked statue in the disused fountain in the abandoned village square. She touched the statues hands and waited for her contact within the guild to sense her presence. She did not have to wait long.
"It has been a long time since you have reported in, agent," the sibilant voice whispered inside Naivara's mind. "I had feared you dead."
"Apologies master, I had been in the wilds of the rubble-belt for many weeks on an errand that I feel you may be very interested in."
"I see, begin your report then."
Naivarra spent a long while recounting her recent journey and exploration of the ancient archive. Paying particular attention to the types and numbers of remnant tomes and tablets that still remained hidden there. Her handler listened with interest but became particularly intrigued when she mentioned the prisoner and "the secret" it promised to share in exchange for its freedom.
She described the encounter and allowed her handler to trace the strands of thought that comprised her memory of the fight and she could practically feel the excitement when her handler came across the fragment the creature left behind.
"The guildpact will fall?" her handler said, the words sounding ominous in that persistent whisper.
Navairra shivered as a wave of cold descended upon her body. "Yes, a poor secret since this has already happened."
"Perhaps, but this pearl of knowledge is attached to something more, something greater that your conscious mind is yet to process. Like the paint on a Rakdos Performer's face... A gaudy veneer that hides a deeper malice. There is yet more to be learned from what this creature left behind."
"I had no idea."
"It is not a criticism, agent, just a statement of fact. There is more to this secret than that which have currently understood."
"I see."
"I shall take a copy of this memory for further study." It was not a request.
"There is another matter I wish to discuss with you. My group and I have been engaged to protect an Azorious official from threats against his life. Last night we were attacked at the target's house by what I surmise to be Dimir agents. I wish to understand how I should proceed with this engagement."
"What is the name of the Azorious official?"
"Nassius Ven."
"Please stand by."
Naivarra's connection to her handler was ended but she remained in position and waited for contact to be re-established. Again, she did not have to wait long.
"You are required to stand down, or ensure that Nassius Ven is either dead or brought into custody."
Naivara was somewhat taken aback. "I see, what shall I tell my companions? We have been hired specifically to bring an end to the threat on the man's life."
"You and your friends are immaterial to this goal. If you stay away we can bring the matter to a swift conclusion, if you wish to remain involved then see to it that Nassius dies or that you hand him over to the Azorious in chains. Do you know where the target can be found?"
"Not directly, but I have a way to get in contact with him. I will do that now to arrange a meeting then pass the details of that meeting on to you."
"Very good. We shall await your subsequent communiqué." With that the connection was broken.
Naivara left the secluded fountain and went directly to the place where they could drop messages off to Nassius and left him a note informing him of the attack at his house the night before and that they needed to meet urgently to discuss next steps. From there, her mind still reeling from the events of the morning, she decided to head to the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow for some alone time.
She arrived at the tavern and asked for the key. The barman informed her that one of her roommates had already taken the key and was upstairs in the room. Naivarra sighed, it seemed that even this small pleasure will be denied her. Could this day get any worse? Frustrated she ordered a drink and took a seat at the table with a view of both the stairs and the entrance.
Shae roused from what felt like a rejuvenating rest. She gathered her things and came downstairs, spotting Naivarra sitting at one of the tables. Shae stopped and stared. What was she doing here? The pair eyed each other for a long moment before she continued her descent and crossed the common room to where Naivarra sat.
"Are you here to apologise?" Shae asked, hopefully.
"Bugger off, Shae," Naivarra said without looking up.
Shae opened her mouth to respond but decided against it. Instead she moved to a different table and sat there trying hard to maintain the same air of forced indifference Naivarra managed with what, to Shae, seemed like practiced ease.
They sat like that, conspicuously ignoring each other, for over an hour. The common area filled during the lunch rush and quietened down again after but they remained. Locked in an unvoiced competition to see which one could look the least bothered by the others continued presence.
A little after the lunch rush ended, a messenger - dressed in their usual blue and black livery - entered the tavern and approached the bar. He exchanged a few words with the barman who scanned the room. There was a moment of mild surprise at seeing Shae and Naivarra seated at different tables so he shrugged and pointed at them both.
The messenger turned, and started walking for Shae's table - presumably because it was closer to the door.
Naivarra stood up and intercepted the messenger. "I'll take that," she said as she reached the young boy.
The messenger shrugged. "Barman said either of you. So here you go," he said as he handed Naivarra the envelope.
As soon as the message was in her hand Naivarra turned and quickly exited the bar, using her magic to allow her to move faster as she heard Shae's cries of objection behind her.
Shae realized she had no chance of catching up with the fleeing Naivara so she decided to return to Nassius' house. Thinking that maybe that was where Naivarra was going.
Naivarra ran for a few blocks using expeditious retreat to move as quickly as she could, and took a few twists and turns down some alleyways to make sure that Shae was unable to trail her. When she felt like she was safe, she unsealed the envelope and looked at the letter inside:
Fearless adventurers, I am sorry to have put you in harms way like this and wish to meet to discuss what we might do next. Meet me at midnight in Marshall's Stables in the smelting quarter. The front door will be unlocked. N
Naivarra read the letter several times, committing the details to memory before setting the note and the envelope alight. She then returned to the statue in the abandoned fountain to pass the details on to her guild. If they wanted Nassius dead they'd now know exactly where to find him.
Shae reached Nassius house and knocked on the door.
"Where have you been?" Yartik said as he opened the door.
"Is Naivarra here?" Shae asked as she squeezed past the big minotaur and entered the house.
"No, she's been gone all morning."
Shae was surprised by that. "Really? I thought for sure she'd be back before me."
"Why do you say that?" Vex said with a slur. It was obvious by the way he leaned against the doorjamb - and the number of empty bottles - that he'd spent the day drinking.
"Because I just saw her at the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow." Shae said, taking a swig from the dregs of one of the bottles and grimacing. Brandy was definitely not something she would want to drink a lot of. "She intercepted a message for us and I figured she was on her way here."
"Well we haven't seen her since this morning, have we Yartik?" Vex stood slightly upright and moved carefully to the couch. "Yartik and I have been busy playing charades all day."
Yartik snorted. "Vex has been playing charades - and drinking - I've had my hands full making sure he didn't end up cleaning out Nassius liquor cabinet."
"Excellent suggestion, Yartik," Vex said. "Let's open the '79."
Shae rolled her eyes. "Well I reckon Naivarra has betrayed us. If she didn't come here then where did she go and why did she steal that message and run off like that."
"Wait, what message?" Yartik said.
"Beats me, Naivarra took it before I could look at it. Pay attention."
"Maybe the message was meant for her, not you."
Shae shook her head. "Then why was the messenger coming to my table?"
Yartik's brow furrowed. "You were sitting at different tables?"
"Yes it was quite the stand off. You should have seen how we ignored each other. It was incredible. I'm pretty sure I won though because Naivarra was the one who ran off first."
"Ok, so she took a message - that may or may not have been intended for her - and ran off." Yartik said trying to make sense of Shae's babble of words.
"That's right."
"And this is proof that she has betrayed us?" Yartik continued.
"Exactly."
"How?"
"Because she's not here, of course."
"She's got a point, you know?" Vex added from the couch. "It is suspicious."
Yartik looked between them. "Or it could be the emotional ravings of a petulant little girl who almost had her toy taken away from her last night."
"I am not a toy," insisted Mirabelle. "I thought the cow-man was nice, now I am not so sure."
"Mirabelle is NOT a toy, and I am not making any of this up. I just told you what happened, it's all true. Why don't you ask Naivara when she gets here."
"If she get's here." Vex added.
Naivarra delivered the details of Nassiu's planned meeting tonight to his guild and then decided it was time he returned to the others to let them know that they should stand down. She definitely did not want them to be there when the assassins showed up to finish the job. For all their faults they did not deserve to get caught in the cross-fire.
She arrived at the house at mid afternoon, and knocked on the door.
"What are you doing here?" Vex said, from his breath it was clear he'd been drinking.
Naivarra looked confused. "Why wouldn't I come back?"
"Never mind," Vex said and stood aside to let her in. "Come in."
"Wierd," Naivarra said as she entered the house and walked in to the lounge room to find Yartik and Shae standing there staring at her, putting her immediately on edge. "What is going on here?"
"Why did you steal my note?" Shae demanded.
"It wasn't 'your note'," Naivarra said. "It was addressed to all of us."
"Ok," Vex said pushing himself into the room. "I got rid of it."
Shae pointed and wiggled her finger. "See, I told you."
"Be quiet, Shae," Yartik said. "Let the adults speak. Why would you get rid of the note, Naivarra?"
Naivarra took a deep breath and looked around the room again before responding. Shae looked like she'd just won something. Vex was obviously tipsy. Only Yartik looked to have his head on straight so she directed her response to him. "The message was from Nassius, requesting a meeting with us tonight. I found out this morning that the Dimir do indeed have a contract out on Nassius so a didn't want us to get stuck in the middle of all of that. My Dimir contact made it clear that if we stay out of it they will leave us alone."
Yartik breathed in a let it out slowly. "So you chose the Dimir over us?"
Naivarra nodded. "That's one way to look at it, yes."
"And what's the other way?" Vex chimed in.
"That I decided that your lives were worth saving, that we are in way over our heads and I found a way to get us out of a sticky situation."
"But for that to happen Nassius has to be killed? Murdered?" Yartik added. "I can't abide that, Naivarra. I just can't."
"I have done nothing all day but to put your needs above my own. First I try to help by freeing Shae from what could be a malevolent force that has twisted itself inside her mind and not one of you makes even the slightest effort to acknowledge that or even back me up. Then I risk my network of contacts within the Dimir to keep the three of you from danger in what will ultimately be a failed enterprise, and all I get is recriminations and suspicion."
"You betrayed us, Naivara," Vex said.
Naivarra stared at him flatly. "If you truly believe that then you no longer deserve my help." She looked at each of them in turn. "If you've got half a brain between you you'll stay well clear of this Nassius business from now on. If you decide to keep poking your heads in then you deserve to have them cut off. I am leaving. You won't hear from me again."
Naivarra turned and left the house, quickly getting lost in the sea of traffic.
"Now do you believe me?" Shae said once Naivarra was gone.
"Shut up Shae," Yartik said. "I think your little temper tantrum has caused enough damage for one day."
Shae pouted. "But she did do all those things I said. She admitted it."
"Kid's got a point," Vex said.
Shae turned to face the ranger with acid in her eyes. "Who are you calling a kid?"
"Act like a child get treated like one," Yartik said matter-of-factly. "Now go upstairs and play with your doll while we figure out how to move forward from this mess."
Shae's jaw dropped, she was so angry she could no longer form words. SO she stood up and went upstairs, all the way to the roof where she spent the next few hours casting spells to write enormous words in the sky. "Nassius abort meeting. Danger!"
"What do you want to do?" Yartik asked Vex once Shae had disappeared upstairs.
"Well we can't go back to the Loxodon and Wheelbarrow, and we need to somehow tell Nassius that Naivarra has betrayed him to the Dimir."
Yartik thought for a moment. "I know a place we can stay. The Titan's Key Tavern near the Red Wastes in Precinct Four. It's not as quiet as the Loxodon but I think it will suit us."
Vex shrugged. "Sure, I'm not fussed. We need to get a message to Nassius immediately. I'll go to the drop off and let him know about Naivarra's betrayal and instruct him to contact us at the Apothecary. I am sure he won't mind holding messages for us if we ask him."
"Pay him you mean."
Vex nodded. "That too."
"Hurry, time is of the essence. If Nassius doesn't get the message he is a dead man."
"I know but until we hear back from him there's little else we can do."
The Characters: The Doldrums
Yartik - Boros Minotaur Fighter (Level 5)
Unndrel Vex - Golgari Devkarin Ranger (Level 5)
Shae Aloni - Golgari Devkarin Druid (Level 5)
Events:
With the group now relocated to the Titan's Key tavern in Precinct Four near the contested border to the Red Wastes they took some time to consider what lay ahead for them given the events that led to Naivarra's departure. Shae and Vex took a few days to further hone their poisoner's arts while Yartik spent the time trying to get to the bottom of his status within the Boros Legion. Technically he remained on their roll but he was listed as being deployed to the Azorious until further notice. Clearly Inspector Hildene had yet to file the requisite paperwork to return him to active duty so he remained in a kind of bureaucratic limbo. He considered that for a while, a few months ago the thought of not being among his squad-mates would have been impossible to imagine, but he'd found a kind of peace with Shae and Vex, even Mirabelle - Shae's crazy rag doll - has proved to be a fun companion now that she is able to speak.
The days bled one into the other - none of them willing to make any firm suggestions regarding what they might do next - but they have certainly grown to enjoy the crowd of the Titan's Key. One morning they were awoken by a loud explosion somewhere out in the Red Wastes. Yartik grabbed his maul and stuck his head outside the door.
"What was that?" he asked to the person poking his head out from the room opposite.
"No idea," the man said. "But I was warned that staying here could be interesting. Especially with the Gruul Blood and Fire festival coming up."
"Blood and Fire?" Shae queried, poking her head out below Yartik's. "What's that?"
"A month long fracas among the Gruul clans where they select their new guild master," the man said. "Happens every year and it is always loud."
"A new guild master, every year, no wonder the Gruul are so disorganised."
The man smiled. "I didn't say they changed their guild master every year. Borborygmos has been the leader of the Gruul for decades, and every year he murders dozens of contenders as he proves why he has been there for so long."
"Why do they gather here, I though the Gruul hated civilization."
"Skarrg," Yartik replied. "Their guild hall and the only building those savages won't try to tear down is just outside the walls."
"Isn't Borborygmos on the list of bounties the Azorious have posted," Shae offered. "Maybe we should try and take him in if he's going to be nearby."
Yartik and the man in the door opposite laughed.
"Good one," the man said once he'd settled back down. "Thanks for that, little lady, it's always best to start the day with a good joke." He gave Shae a wink and ducked back into his room closing the door behind him.
"What?" Shae said when she noticed Yartik looking at her.
"You were joking, right?" the big minotaur said with a serious expression.
"Of course I was," Shae said, incredulous, "like we're going to waste our time chasing bounties."
"Well what are we going to do?" Vex said. "We can't just sit in this tavern all our lives."
"Magic," Shae said, "there's magic all around us. Just look outside and you can see flying ships, flying castles, candles that burn forever, our lives are literally surrounded by amazing magical items. I mean just look at Mirabelle, she is truly a wonder."
Yartik shrugged. "Yes, and?"
"Well I want more."
"Mummy, no!" Mirabelle said from her position on the bed. "I don't want to share you with another doll."
"Of course not, dear heart!" Shae gasped. "There's no love left in me for another, you are my everything."
"I love you too, mummy," Mirabelle said.
"I don't care about money, but I very much want to have magic items to protect me - a cloak, like yours, Yartik."
"You can have my cloak if you want it."
"No I don't want your cloak!" Shae snapped. "I want my own damned cloak!"
"I am sure you can buy them," Vex suggested. "I reckon someone in the common room knows a place where you can get them."
Shae's gaze moved from Vex to Yartik. "You two are clearly missing the point, I don't want to go to a shop and buy the items - even if I could afford them it would make the whole thing meaningless. Come on, guys, you know how it felt when exploring the archive looking for those dusty old tomes, or when we fought our way free from Juri's Review."
Yartik winced and scratched at one of his scars. "Yeah, painful."
"Sure, but also incredible. It was fun, exciting, and part of the reason I love Mirabelle as much as I do. I remember what I had to go through to get her and our shared experience has brought us together. You don't get that from buying stuff from a shop."
Vex raised his hand. "Fine, fine, you've made your point. We should go on an adventure, find magic items, I get it."
"Go on an adventure?" Yartik said. "Just like that?"
"Yeah, sure. Why not?"
"Ok, then how do you propose we start out? Do you have any idea where we might go?"
"Downstairs. I bet there are plenty of folk that come to this place looking for people just like us."
Vex nodded. "She's right. Just last night I heard some old human, a crazy Izzet fellow judging from all weird gadgets he had on him, asking for a group to help him reach some temple in the under city."
Shae slapped Vex's arm. "That's perfect. Do you know if he found anyone?"
"No idea," Vex shrugged.
"Well if he shows up again tonight I'm going tell him we're in."
Yartik sighed. "Sure, as long as it gets us out of this room I am ok with it. It's been too long since I've hit anything that will hit me back."
Sure enough, the crazy Izzet fellow was there when the trio arrived at the common room for dinner. He wasn't difficult to spot given his shaggy white hair and the array of ominous glowing or blinking items arranged on his body. Despite the dinner crowd the man was given a wide berth so Shae had no trouble sliding up at the bar beside him.
"I heard you were looking for a group to accompany you on an adventure," she said with a smile.
The man turned and looked the young devkarin up and down. "Indeed I am, young lady. Do you know any likely lads willing to traverse the undercity for a righteous cause?"
Shae leaned in a jerked her thumb at her companions. "How bout those two?"
The man looked over to Vex and Yartik who loomed nearby, his eyes widened when he spotted the minotaur's muscular frame. "Oh yes, they will do nicely. Thank you, my dear, will you introduce me to these men?"
"And me. We're a trio, where I go they go," Shae said and extended her hand. "My name is Shae. The big one is Yartik and the other is Vex."
"Tark," the man said as he shook Shae's hand firmly. "Is there somewhere we can go to discuss terms?"
"Sure, we got a room upstairs. You can follow me."
Shae led Tark upstairs to their room where he explained that he was on a pilgrimage to lay to rest his assistant, Statto, who was tragically killed in a laboratory experiment the two of them were working on. Statto, a goblin, used to tell you stories of a shrine where his grandfather used to play as a kid. Apparently, Statto always wanted to pay the place a visit because his grandfather would speak of the vast treasure that was supposedly hidden within the shrine. Statto was planning to go there as soon as the experiment the pair of them were working on with was done. Unfortunately he died and Tark thought it would be a fitting tribute to find the place so that he could scatter Statto's remains in this place that had meant so much to him.
Unfortunately Tark was unable to pay them because the previous group he'd hired took the money he promised them and left him high and dry so he had nothing except the map that led to the location of the temple.
The group agreed to terms, an equal share of whatever treasure the temple would hold and decided to head off first thing in the morning. Vex was familiar with the ways of the undercity so he would lead the group to a point and Tark would use the map to get them the rest of the way there.