"No, no kids.  Not yet."  Dabbert says in a whisper as he listens to Akkron's story.  "Maybe someday.  That is why I am here.  So the ones I love, or may love, have a someday."  

He warrior thinks about this for a moment and then nods, as if to agree with himself like he's said something exceptionally poignant, which, for him, it probably was.  

"It uh...is probably no consolation, and I can't apologize for what happened to her, but I wish it weren't so."  

With their trek seemingly undetected, or as far as he can tell at least, he stops across the street in the leaning shadow of one building and crouches, waiting to see if they've been followed, or if there's an impending ambush, and then just observes the tower.  

"Akkron, your uh...spider."  

"There isn't much to be done now but try to protect others from her fate," Akkron says regretfully.

Akkron nods and calls the spider out of its pocket dimension to check the tower for any threats hidden within.

For those navigating up the tower: you cross the sands without any event. There is no door but a large crack in the masonry is easy enough to squeeze through. Slash marks redecorate the expensive interior as rich tapestries and wooden furnishings appear ruined by blade, elements, and blood. As you progress you find some discarded weaponry and a few corpses in various states of decay as structural damage seems becomes more frequent. Holes in the floor and fallen chunks of the roof above attempt to impede your success.

You will need either athletics or dexterity checks to continue climbing. Also an investigation check to see if you get anything from the battle damage. 

Akkron grinds his teeth as he sees the mess within the tower. He knows all too well that he is not an especially talented athlete or acrobat. Well, no use just staring at the rubble.

It isn’t pretty and there’s plenty of clawing and heaving but you are able to navigate through the difficult terrain. As you clamber you do notice that the scrapes and slash marks all seem to be from the same type of weapon. However, some are scraped through scorch marks, others have a rare drip of water in their fissure, while others are etched deep with acid. 

Slip, being a tabaxi, has no trouble climbing. He can fix a rope and drop it down to the others (so they would advantage).

With Slip’s assistance you all continue your climb. Structural damage becomes more haphazard and less difficult to navigate around. As the stairs level out into a hallway you are met with door: a large wooden door set with ornate iron and a smaller one flanked by an extinguished lantern. Between the two lies another corpse in a pile of wet rubble, far more in-tact than the others you’ve encountered. 

Dabbert watches the Tabaxi clamber up through the tower with little issue to drop down a rope, and takes the moment to look over the slashes, over the scorches and other damage.  He smells, he touches.  He handles the fabric of damaged tapestries and moves them around, flips over and moves damaged furniture; looks for anything that can tell him more before starting his way up the rope cautiously...

It doesn’t take your previous investigation check to notice  that this body is dressed in the same manner as the headless ones you found in the priory. The robes are mildewed but still preserved a bit better than the ones your skeleton body guards once wore. In the wall there is a hole that matches a stab wound in the  front and back of the body. Around the slain monk blood and water dapples the flagstone floor. 

Before you go on, which party members are all here? 

A little more investigation information for Slip: somebody  was defending with a blade that could do elemental damages. You’ve familiarized yourself with  countless fighting styles and it looks like whosever was in the tower wasn’t a studied swordsman - the fight seemed dirty like they were trying to get the job done quickly. Additionally you also find impact marks in the stone, as if a few bludgeoning strikes have missed as well.

You turn this over in your mind until you find the soaked monk. The residual moisture and area of effect tells you that  this one was hit with a Cone of Cold, the shade of the tower preventing the desert heat from completely evaporating the evidence. The elemental blade marks and ice magic click in your mind: the monks’ opponent was in all likelihood a Hexblade Warlock. 

Lorlin looks at the rope briefly, but instead flies up with her boots and catches up to her others.

Slip shares what he learned

Other than that all that is left in this part of the tower are those two doors: big and small.

Slip turns and asks "Big door or small door?"

Akkron considers for a moment... then decides that it would be best not to go in blind.

"I'm going to send in my familiar to check what's on the other side of each," the lich says. "Give me a few moments."

He sends the spider to look under each door briefly, first the large one and then the small one. He uses an action each time to see what the spider sees for a round, before returning the spider to its pocket dimension.

Have your spider make a Dex Saving Throw. (Threshold to beat is an 11).

Dex Save: 16

...seriously?

Alright, let's try this again.

Dex save: 8

Your spider slips under the big door. A richly-furnished study is completely ransacked and a body lies in the center. Black horns curl from its dark hair and indigo skin. It grips something in the fetal position. Looming above is a man dressed like the dead monks you’ve found. Lashed to his body are pieces of a wooden alter like a makeshift armor. He raises a greasy jeweled icon and batters at the corpse’s death-clenched hands, muttering angrily in celestial. 

Your spider skitters away, all too familiar with humans trying to swat it. The second door is marginally better. A second monk sits dead on a toilet. Three small knives stick out of its chest. It’s arms are stiff straight in the air, holdings it’s own head frozen in a scream. 

"I think the villain of this story might be behind the big door," Akkron whispers to his companions. "Let's try to take him alive, if we can..."