Trying to gather his thoughts, Mival turns his excited green eyes to the prospect of adventure and change: "Where do you want us to start? Do you want us to speak with the Lords from Below? Or would you prefer us to explore the rest of the dungeon first without passing through their den?"

"I was wondering about that.," says Spira, more serious again.  "Now that we've found you, our original mission can be said to be over, and now the goal is to give you a chance to come back to your mom a hero.  I don't necessarily see any need to talk to the other Lords Below unless and until you want to take your leave of them."

"Lets see ... I take it from what you say that there's a good part of the ruins which are still totally unknown even to the Lords.  It would be a most heroic thing to make sure there are no real monsters hiding there -- beings who, no matter what their outer bodies look like, have death and destruction in their souls.  There also might be some magic left over from the days of Rassalantar that would benefit the people of the town he founded.  So I'd personally vote for exploring the rest of the keep first."

(and a newly crafted unique avatar for Spira has now been uploaded: )

(she was quite calm when this portrait was painted, so the blue streaks and swirls that show the non-Asmodean part of her lineage are very pale, barely visible under the prevailing red of her skin)

"That's right!" Mival confirms. "The Lords from Below have taken over a few chambers in a small, easily defendable area and made some deals with the nearby monsters - but they haven't explored the entire dungeon! Kara told me wonders about the hero Rassalantar. If even half of that is true, it's entirely plausible that there are some wonders left that belonged to him!"

"And no, I don't need to say goodbye to them" the Doppelganger shrugs. "My father is with them - but we Doppelgangers aren't particularly loving parents... he practically ignores me, I don't think he cares about me at all. And you know what? I don't mind him either. I mean... in theory, I'm glad he gave birth to me. But in practice, I won't miss him any more than I would a stranger."

"I'm forgetting something, though.," Spira says as she turns apologetically to Tethis.  "You did say your shawl was in the possession of one of the Lords from Below, so we'll have to stop there at some point to have any hope of getting you free.  But on that particular mission, the fewer Lords from Below who even see us the better ... much less having to speak with them in any other circumstance than a total failure of a more stealthy approach.."  She winks slyly at her brother.  "Luckily we have an expert at stealthy work with us.  I can assure you that Gaer has had a great deal of practice getting past the most watchful sentries."

Gaer winks back: "Both Roxana and I are good at that. Countless attempts at eluding the watch of a worried sister have been invaluable training for me... But... what's the plan? Do you think we can steal the shawl undetected?"

"I guess we'd need to know where this shawl is located," Roxana says to Gaer. "But I imagine we could do it. As Spira says, I'd rather not have to fight all of them. None of possible."

"Bytwoeff always keeps the shawl with him when he's here in the den..." Mival muses, "But when he's not here, he leaves it in the room he shares with five others... and I don't think I saw him when I passed by. He should be out. He's often out, objectively. He's a very 'sociable' Doppelganger - as long as you don't irritate him."

"But do you really think" the Doppelganger stares incredulously at Roxana and Gaer "you can steal a shawl from a room where there are potentially five other individuals!? You must be terribly skilled..."

Rash considers the question.

"Ummm... I won't lie, I really am not an especially stealthy type," he admits. "I guess we could fight, but I'd rather not if we don't have to. I'm really not a fan of killing people when there are other options. So it kind of sounds like we're sending Roxanna and Gaer ahead."

"Well, that could prove difficult if we added no more to the plan," Roxana admits. "We would want to make the odds better.  It would perhaps if we understood the layout a bit more. Is there a map? Or could we make one? Even if it's crude?" 

"I don't know where to draw it, a crude map..." Mival looks around, slightly frustrated "But I can describe the room where Bytwoeff and the other five usually stay: it's large, but it has only one entrance and the entrance is made difficult by the fact that part of the floor (already from the entrance corridor) has collapsed (in fact, by diving it is possible to swim to a level below...). To avoid living in a permanently flooded area, we have built as best we can a 3' small wall around the perimeter of the collapse that is inside the room. This keeps the rest of the room from flooding. In addition, the old furniture (as well as the doors) from this area has partly been recycled to build a defensive 5' tall barrier that runs along the eastern side of the collapse. Just in case someone tries to attack... however, there is usually no one actively on watch, because Tethis is already acting as sentry. Not far from the barrier, there is a table with 6 stools and a little further on the inhabitants of the room usually keep their belongings. The mantle should then be placed there. So it would be a matter of 'swimming stealthily' (I don't know how possible that is) into the room, then 'stealthily emerging' and, possibly taking advantage of the cover of the table, 'stealthily' trying to steal the mantle. And go back" the other's look is a bit skeptical. "It would seem like a difficult undertaking to me... but I admit that I have no idea of ​​the capabilities of real adventurers like you!"

"Alternatively," the Doppelganger seems equally skeptical, but mentions it anyway, "perhaps you could bargain with the Lords Below... 'Purchase' Tethis' freedom in exchange for riches or services... Tethis is regarded as a prized possession, but again, the Lords Below do not wish her harm for its own sake... they might agree to 'sell' her to you (and you could then free her) for a suitable fee or benefits they perceive to be 'equivalent' to having her."

 A third option occurs to Gaer: "Since the shawl is unattended, Rubybreeze, quick and clever as she is, could probably fly in unexpectedly, steal it, and bring it back to me... But that would certainly make us... look bad (to say the least)... in the eyes the Lords from Below. If that matters anything to us" he shrugs.

"Hmm, Rubybreeze..." Roxana mulls over the thought then looks at the Doppelganger. "Do you really think these Lords would be willing to negotiate?  I guess we probably ought to be asking what their intentions are here.  They don't have any plans to do anything bad in Rassalanter do they? They just want to hang out here and...  be left alone?" 

"Anything bad in Rassalantar?" Mival looks surprised. "No... what good would they get out of it? We Doppelgangers may be selfish and indifferent, but we don't actively seek evil for its own sake."

"Yes, hang out there... Be left alone..." the Doppelganger recaps. "Perhaps deceive the people of Rassalantar every now and then, for their own gain or amusement... but they certainly don't intend to become 'Dark Overlords' of some sort."

"Bargaining, that's what Mekkunod, our 'ambassador', often does - with other monsters worth bargaining with" Mival explains. "I don't see why he wouldn't do the same with you. But as I said, Tethis is seen as a valuable possession... she won't come cheap."

"I can imagine how flattered Tethis is," Gaer can no longer contain a scathing comment, "to know that she's considered a 'possession'... but at least a 'valuable' one!"

"I've told you before, that Doppelgangers tend to be selfish and indifferent..." the other blushes "I actually 'feel' that the way Tethis is being treated is 'wrong'... I'm sure my mother Kara would disapprove... But I think that feeling such a deep love for one's mother is unusual for Doppelgangers... and that it contributes to making them the way they are. I've just... been lucky."

Roxana nods at his response. "Ok, I was just wondering. I have to admit, the treatment of Tethis made me wonder just exactly what the Lords Below might plan. But I get it, you see it as selfish and indifferent and not evil." Roxana mulls over the information, clearly uncertain of how to decide. "I prefer negotiating. But it does bother me to think that we're negotiating over Tethis as though they have any right to hold her here!" 

"Indeed!" Gaer is very grim as he states, "I don't like to 'negotiate' over the freedom of someone these 'Lors from Below' have essentially enslaved! They are no better than the Zhentarim who captured me and Dawnborn! They may not mistreat her... but they are enslaving her all the same!"

"It is clear that the light of Lathander needs to be brought down here..." Dawnborn speaks softly "The light of respect, of compassion... of change, change of wrong and dangerous ways. But I cannot say whether this light can be assimilated with open negotiation... or whether it needs to be forced in with the support of arms."

"Hmmm..." Anita is doubtful "If these 'Lords from Below' are really like the Zhentarim of Mhurren Flick, they might even change... as I was able to change... but, even in my case, a show of force was necessary, first... Those who feel powerful, are unfortunately often not very receptive".

"If these are slavers, they're criminals" Darvin is much more blunt. "Not much different from the ones Spira and I were called to arrest. Period. We shouldn't tolerate them. Even if we ransom Tethis... what's to stop them from enslaving someone else when they see the payoff?"

Spira gives Darvin a thoughtful look that he finds a little difficult to read ... not entire disapproval of his hard-headed and pragmatic approach, exactly; but not quite agreement either..  All she says to him, though ... quietly ... is, "I was called on to arrest Gaer once or twice too back then, darling.  Remember?"

Darvin seems a bit embarassed, as he lower his eyes and the tone od his voice: "Gaer never went... this far... He never kept a girl as slave for his own interest... But I see your point. Thank you for reminding me there are lots of shades of gray, between back and white".

"Ok." Roxanna finally speaks up. "Tethis, you said the Lords from Below are to the east.  What about this wider passage to the south? Where does it go?"  She looks at Gaer, and he likely knows her well enough to realize that she is still trying to piece things together and perhaps formulate a plan.  "There must be some way to create a distraction. Get most - preferably all - of them focused on something else so perhaps Gaer and I would have a better chance of snatching the shawl." 

Tethis admits, a little embarrassed: "I really don't know... The Lords from Below have forbidden me to leave this room, except to go to them... So I know very little about the rest of this place!"

But Mival does know something! The Doppelganger intervenes: "I tried to explore around a bit, while trying not to get into too much trouble. That passage leads to an area where the floor has collapsed and the depth of the water is so deep that you have to swim to continue. At the edge of the collapse, an... unusual ferryman is available for those who want to pay for his 'navigation services'. His name is Geados and he is a fiend. But despite this, he seems more interested in bargaining with passers-by than in slaughtering them".

"Just before Geados there is a secondary branch..." Mival remembers "But it leads to an area where the dense giant spiderwebs present discouraged me from going".

"Alright," Roxana responds slowly. "Those sound like interesting explorations.  That is what brought us here. But I suppose we should deal with this shawl first. It seems there's little choice but to head down towards the Lords from Below."  She looks at Tethis and Mival. "Perhaps at least you could go ahead of us to see if the coast is clear?"  She looks at the others, "Any thoughts? Could one of our companions help scout ahead? See if we can avoid a fight?"