"I'd tell you, but that would be giving you information for free. We didn't come to you at random, of that you may be sure." Taurven tells the githzerai.
Taurven looks in turn to Karla, Gargamal, and Eamch. "It seems like a waste of time riddling with this fellow. But he did say that his drow friends are right here in town. That's a place to start."
“I can get you home, and I can get the drow to stop rampaging through your plane. But it won’t be easy; the drow are stirred up everywhere, some plot by the Queen of Spiders, a machination if so you want to call it, a conspiracy must be what’s happening. Three things I’ll require in return, three errands, three small tasks. The first is simple: Go to the Tower of the Prophet, open the Eye there, and ask how to blind the spider queen.”
He says dismissing you, clearly bothered by Taurven behavior.
Even with your bad roll, he don’t seem to be the one behind all of this, although you cannot be sure of his motives to offer help as he did.
Gritting his teeth in anger, Gargamal get up and makes ready to leave.
"I will run you errands, but be warned. If this turns out to only benefit you and does not help in curbing the Drow, I will be back!"
He nods at Karla and looks to the others before heading for the door.
”Our intent, purpose and ambition is one and the same. To bring down the spider queen. ” the Gith says and the hatred in his voice is finally palpable. There’s no doubt his hate for the Drow goddess.
Hearing the hatred in the Gith's voice, Gargamal turns and stares at the man for a few seconds, then nods his head.
"If that is so, then we are allies with a common goal, and I heartily thank you for your help."
The Githzerai and the Githyanki were once one race referred to as the People. They were thralls, slaves to the Illithids, and were completely subservient for many years. Zerthimon, one of the People and now a God-like figure to the Githzerai, was the first of The People to gain true self-awareness and resistance to the mental shackles of the illithids. He made others aware of their predicament and showed them how to resist the illithids as well. The process was kept underground for a great time until enough of the People were turned that a full-scale uprising against the illithids was staged. The People were victorious, destroying the last vestiges of the illithid empire (some say the most powerful empire to ever exist in the multiverse) upon the Blasted Plains.
It was in the light of this victory that Gith, a warrior-queen and leader of the rebellion, declared that the People would not rest until they had discovered and destroyed all remaining illithids in the multiverse; then, the People would be free to conquer all of the planes of existence and bring war to all other races. Many of the people's hearts shared this goal. Zerthimon argued that the People already knew freedom and should begin to mend the damage done to their race. He too expressed a goal that was in the hearts of many of the People. Still, Gith insisted that hers was the only path and that they would be "under the same sky" in the matter.
Zerthimon then told Gith that there "cannot be two skies." This became known as the Pronouncement of Two Skies, a declaration of war that splintered the People into the races of githyanki and githzerai. Battle was waged on the Blasted Plains, and the githyanki retreated to the Astral Sea while the Githzerai withdrew to the Elemental Chaos. The two races have remained enemies ever since.
Giths usually tends to Chaos or Order, and don't give much importance over aspects of good or evil.
Taurven shrugs. He doesn't know. "All we got was more questions. I'm taking the weird voice's advise on this one."
@Eamch
”It’s a well know, visited and contemplated place. The tower belongs in the clerk ward, but I would suggest, encourage, advice you to hire a guide.”
Gargamal gets outside and mounts Azreal, his elk and heads off towards the clerk ward.
"We can find someone in the ward to show us to the place, no sense paying for the travel to the place. Agreed?"
"We can try." Taurven shrugs. He can usually find his way in strange towns.
Taurven starts bothering people about directions.
Looking around for one of those floating things with pictures for words, Gargamal will politely inquire of it where the Clerk Quarter is, and if possible the Tower of the Prophet.
The Dabus, as always don’t offer any information about how to reach the tower of the prophet. Asking around, mounted in riding lizards and Elks, the party moves from the lower wards towards the clerk ward.
The trip takes hours, which turns into days. Each time, you spend the night in some nearby Inn, finally, on the third day after talking with Rule-of-Three, you reach the tower of the prophet.
The tower is made of yellow stone and shines with inner light even during antipeak. Two sword archons guard the entryway, their eyes watchful and their straight-backed posture perfect. Clerestory windows are set just below the eaves, with a single round stained glass window over the entryway.
Inside, the Tower of the Prophet makes you a little dizzy. The whitewashed walls seem to rotate sharply in all directions at once around a single golden construct suspended in the air above the center of the floor. This construct looks like a sphere forged in the anvils of Mechanus, but it shines brightly, and its whirring sound is barely noticeable above the noises made by its watchers and worshipers. Three bearlike wardens fully 7 feet tall stand in prayer beneath the gleaming sphere, their arms lifted and their lips moving. A human in armor with three aasimar attendants is kneeling directly beneath the golden globe.
One of the bearlike wardens approaches you. “I am Humbart. How may I serve?” he asks.
The Tower is a monument in honor of Osiris, Athena, Bahamut and Tyr.
There’s no prophet as per say, but there’s a golden eye, a construct linked to Mount Celestia.
They call it the Celestial Eye of the Prophet.
Three days is a long time. Taurven uses it wisely, learning what he can about the Tower of the Prophet.
He also tries to think back, and remember if he has heard anything about the place, in his travels.
"Hello. Quite the nice tower you have here." Taurven greets the bear-like fellow. He keeps a neutral tone of voice as he speaks.
Humbert takes a careful look at each one at time, finishing talking to Carla again.
”I understand you are a group, however I must ask your friends to wait outside while we conduct business, if that’s what you came here for.”
Gargamal stays seated on his Great Elk, looking at the Archons as he waits for Karla to finish with the priest.
"I saw a food cart across the street. We can go get some lunch, while Karla speaks with these fine folk."
Taurven heads to the cart, where he gets a small sausage served on a roll with peppers mustard sauce and onions.
Gargamal dismounts and wanders over to the cart as well. Azreal wanders the street, poking his giant head into this and that.
Humbart raises a stopping hand as you and Eamch tries to enter and says ”You may enter sister. Your friend must remain outside.”
Eamch give his ‘I’m here if trouble arises’ speech and leaves as Karla and the bearlike celestial enter the tower.
Once inside, it listens to Karla’s question.
”The ‘Eye’ as you so called it, is a construct from Mechanus, with a direct link to the Seven Mounting Heavens of Celestia. Anyone with a justified reason may ask a question to it.”
Humbard says nothing as he walks you to the eye.
The eye that gives this place its name is a strange object, with a segmented, insectlike covering of brass and copper fi ttings. The light from the glowing altar-tripod hovers around the Eye as well, lighting up every mote of dust near it. A number of levers next to it control its functioning. One of the large bearlike archons stands beside the levers, alert and watching you.
The bearlike Archon removes a golden key he wears around his neck and offers it to you. "Ask the Eye."
There’s indeed a place for a key. You approach the eye and looking around for confirmation and finding none, insert the key, turn it and ask your question.
The brass segments of the Eye snap back one by one, releasing a ray of light so bright it seems like a solid pillar. It points up at the ceiling, reflecting down to the pillars and making the temple floor as bright as noon. As each segment snaps away from the Eye, the light shines directly at more and more of the temple interior; when the final segment drops beneath the Eye, revealing it completely, the light touches you. You can’t see anything around you except as flickering shadows; solid people and pillars look transparent in this light. You feel it as a source of warmth and inquisitiveness— living light that burrows into your body to your soul. Voices echo within the light.
Somewhere nearby, you distinctly hear the scratching of a quill on paper, a sound so soft that you don’t understand how you can perceive it in such a large, noisy temple.
The sound of a quill moving over paper stops. You hear the clank of metal, and suddenly you are wrapped in black shadow, blinded.
The light is gone, but you still see traces of it shining overhead. With a final clunk, even that light is gone. The world seems black, even though you see pillars and walls and creatures around you. A piece of paper in your hands shines with an echo of the vanished light.
"This food cart is pretty good. Face time with the gods is hungry work, I bet."
There’s a good and fair restaurant nearby the tower of the prophet.
It’s divided in several cubicles each decorated in honor of a god: Akadi, Angharradh, Asgorath, Asmodeus, Bane, Chauntea, Corellon Larethian, Cyric, Garl Glittergold, Grumbar, Gruumsh, Horus-Re, Ilsensine, Istishia, Kelemvor, Kossuth, Lathander, Lolth, Maglubiyet, Moradin, Mystra, Null, Oghma, Selûne, Shar, Silvanus, Sune, Talos, Tempus, Torm, Tyr , Ubtao, Yondalla.
Eeach Great Deity of Faerum has its own cubicle. Each cubicle, a table for six. Serving each god, one representing the faithful, dressed in the gods color and garb.
Several of the cubicles are already filled: Bane, Corellon, Cyric, Asmodeus, Lolth, Modarin, Sure, Talos, Selûne, Mystra and Lathander.
As soon you enter the cute waitress at the door take a loot at your party and notices Karla Symbol. She smiles pleasantly saying ”I’ll take you to Torm, if you follow me.”
Distracted by reading the odd note, Gargamal lets the others lead him to their seat. He finally seems to come around once seated, looking a little confused at the place they choose to have dinner.
As you enter, another waitress is waiting at the cubicle. She greets you with right-hand gauntlet held upright with palm forward.
Insides, it’s decorated with symbols and histories, the most prominent of all is a painting with the god mounting a golden dragon.
Beneath the image, this is written:
Salvation may be found through service. Every failure of duty diminishes Torm and every success adds to his luster. Strive to maintain law and order. Obey your masters with alert judgment and anticipation. Stand ever alert against corruption. Strike quickly and forcefully against rot in the hearts of mortals. Bring painful, quick death to traitors. Question unjust laws by suggesting improvement or alternatives, not additional laws. Your fourfold duties are to faith, family, masters, and all good beings of Faerûn.
--
The menu is something amusing as well. Every dish is named after some feat or characteristic of the deity; Dutiful dark ale, the Banquet of Justice, Civilization’s wine and so on.
Taurven tries to spy on the party in the Lolth booth, without being obvious about it. For instance he doesn't stare, and uses the pretext of asking about the restrooms, as an excuse to be nearer to the booth. But not too near.
Taurven does a good job, pretending to go in the restroom to spy on the drows. There are five of ‘em, well dressed and apparently not carrying any weapons, for a moment, they notice you and one pretend to be shooting an arrow at the other, while the other pretend to fall dead. They laugh and continue talking, in a language you can’t understand.
Taurven has a spell that lets him understand languages he doesn't already know. He decides against using it. The drow just seem to be carousing, and they did notice him. Better to play it cool. He finds the others in the Torm chamber.
"The drow mooks just seem to be partying. I didn't pry into it too far."
Once Taurven returns, Gargamal sets down the parchment and sighs.
"Well I do not know for sure what to think. It is obviously clues to find Lloth, but some of them are much too cryptic for me. It seems that we need to find a number of objects and then pass through these "gates". What do the rest of you think? Any idea where we should start?"