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Hengist frowns grimly, sunrod held aloft. "I see thee, Black Echelon. But you do not terrify me. I am Hengist!"
Striding forward, and passing Dru, he wades into the grain.
He moves with startling grace, though the grains mill about his waist like water. (The more hygienically minded Pathfinders may wish not to think about the risks inherent in his entering the grain clad in a loincloth and sandals.) He falls silent as he closes with the Black Echelon, but his fist lashes out with preternatural grace.
Move: Up through the grain to engage yellow and green.
Standard: Attack!
Hengist proves that he is mighty indeed, as he scatters the Echelon across the floor.
Bold names may go
Dru - Readied attack of some kind
Kara
Lady Alya
Black Echelon (Red, Green, Yellow)
Giladref
Hamith -2
Hengist
Unsuccessfully Hidden Black Echelon (Purple, Blue)
Hamith casually brushes aside the flailings of his foe before abruptly ending them.
Bold names may go
Dru - Readied attack with a mace
Kara
Lady Alya
Black Echelon (Red, Green, Yellow)
Giladref
Hamith
Hengist
The remaining member of the Echelon reels at Giladref's bolt of force but remains intact.
No fear can show on its face, but you can see a glimmer of intelligence as it glances at the ceramic vials of foulness at its feet.
Bold names may go
Dru
Kara
Lady Alya
Black Echelon (Red -4)
Giladref
Hamith
Hengist
And with a dull thwack, the last agent of the Black Echelon falls, the vials still unbroken.
The pots of toxin are still unspilled, but their seals are broken. Examining the poisons you recognize it as Gut Wither, a lethal ingested poison. Aside from the poison and some rusty sickles, you find nothing else.
Yargos impatiently urges you to return to tracking down Nessian, Didn't you say you know where this Grandmaster Torch is?
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"Yes but we need to tell someone about this, the seals are broken, and the grain has to be putrefied."
She, lifts one by one the pots and takes them to safe spot away from the grain. Then quickly jots down a note in her note book, rips it out and puts in with them. Its stats the grain must be checked and purified of toxins.
She then says
"Grandmaster Torch, Yes I know where he holds up, A twisting labyrinth of old, mostly flooded tunnels known as the Siphons, I can led us to the entrance, but all of you, be careful, its a place where you need your wits about you."
When Grandmaster Torch, a notorious information broker is talked off she nods and leads the party to his twisting labyrinth of old, mostly flooded tunnels known as the Siphons."He costs but he does tend to know, she says heading in"
Following scratch-signs warning of dangers, or simply areas where visitors aren't welcome, Alya leads the party unerringly through the Siphons. After requesting an audience from the hulking half-orcs clad in ugly black plate you are brought before Grandmaster Torch.
He might once have been a handsome man, but now it is impossible to tell. He lounges in a shallow pool, soothing the horrible burn scars that leave scarcely any of his skin unmarred.
His face twists into what you hope is a welcoming smile, but his eyes dart from face to face, filing away details for later consideration.
Welcome, pathfinders. How can I assist you today?
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As she leads the others into the Grandmaster Torch den.
She nodded at him as she came in and then stood to one side as the others talked. As Kara outlined what they where after she added at the end.
"And we have information to trade Torch, could be a sweet deal for both sides, but time counts here, ours and your information has an expiry date. "
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As he passes the rough neighborhoods and half-orcs, he hears the voices of his mentors at temple ring out from his childhood again in every sweeping broom, footfall in an alley, drip, drip, drip of water somewhere close.
You will not allow lesser evils to sway your purpose. Nothing shall guide you but the Inheritor's blade. There is always light behind the clouds.
At Grandmaster Torch, Hamith nods solemnly and says, "As my companions have said. We need Nessian's location now. The very fate of the city could rest on this information. Nessian has dabbled in things of which he does not know, and now endangers us all, including you. Help us." He looks down at the man. "Please."
Everything still has its price. Normally I would ask for a fair amount of remuneration for sensitive information such as this, say... 600 platinum pieces. But you bring up some excellent points, and perhaps you can simply do me a quick favor instead.
I’ve recently come into possession of a series of safes. Unfortunately, the safecracker I employed has turned out to be quite useless. If you can coax even three of the five safes open, I could be persuaded to disclose Nessian’s location and dispense with my regular fee entirely. These chests are remarkably unique and I have the foreboding suspicion that, in this case, the receptacles just might be worth more than their contents, so I’d rather you didn’t smash them open.
Oh! One more thing: if my diviner warns me you have crossed me and stolen the contents, there will be... repercussions.
You are directed to a side room with a variety of beautifully made chests:
The lock of the first chest, an iron cask, contains a laughing devil's head.
The second chest is a red box that has been inset with a trio of golden faces: the first appears stern, the second angry, and the third fumes with hatred.
The third chest is made of stone with a lid covered with a relief of carved ivy.
Once prior leap of might, now becomes bird of white
The fourth chest is also made of stone and has no visible lock or hinges on its lid. No decoration or writing of any kind can be found.
A strange stylized writing wraps around the whole of this rectangular chest. Stranger still are the ten small pores that run along the box's lid.
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Hengist picks up the iron cask and examines it.
He rattles it around. "Hmmmmm. I hear nothing interesting...and see no way to open it! A confounding puzzle indeed."
He then picks up the "chest" that appears as an unadorned stone box, without visible hinges or lock.
After running his hands over it repeatedly and slowly, he growls, "Blast! There is nothing here. No way to unlock or unlatch."
You hear a series of soft thumps from inside the iron cask as Hengist rattles it around; it almost muffles the sound of Giladref's tuneless whistling.
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She takes her time walking around the boxs, not touching but looking closely, taking out her note book and pen she takes notes.
In order
Box 1
Perception DC 8
Takes 10 Perception+7 = 17
Box 2
Perception DC 12
Takes 10 Perception+7 = 17
Box 3
Perception DC 10
Takes 10 Perception+7 = 17
Box 4
Perception DC 20
Takes Perception spot on
Box 5
Perception DC 10
Takes 10 Perception+7 = 17
Linguistics or Perform DC 7
[Linguistics
"Interesting"
she says.
Then as Hengist the Mighty starts to pick up and shake boxes, seeking it seems to smash the contents, Some comes and places a hand on his arm.
"Hengist would you mind placing that back down. I think it may be alive"
She says this in a kind voice, then goes on reading form her notes.
"right, lets start, please add anything of I'm wrong your you spotted somethings."
She starts
"chest one, humm The Devil's head can be turned in both directions like a combination lock, but without numbers to act as a guide odd"
Moves onto the next page, bending down to look at it, tests it with some small cantrip.
"Well chest two, now this one... appears to react to intense negative emotion. Interesting..."
She folds a page back and moves on to chest three.
"Chest three, has a series of letters cleverly carved in between the leaves on the chest's lid, it says Though different now sounds my name, the spelling still remains the same.
Once prior leap of might,
now becomes bird of white now what could that mean, no idea yet lets move on"
She stands next to Hengist chest 4
"Chest four, the one Hengist has, has strange stylized writing wraps around the whole thing. Then ten small pores that run along the box's lid. Here to here"
She points
"I have a feeling this ones blood driven, it has that vib. May even be a doppelganger, gosh only read about them, would be nice to meet one."
She comes back to herself. Moving on.
"Last of all, Hengist five. As Giladref spotted has a hidden panel on one side of the box, though I can't see how to open it. The strange lettering in the box is actually as he worked out musical notes to some tune, though you don't recognize it. Do you know it Giladref?"
She stands after giving the outline of what she has dedicated.
"So I suggest we leave Chest four until last"
The letters are carved into the lid of The Riddle Vault and are immobile.
Kara is able to get a tone out of The Holed Safe, but not quite a tune.
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Hamith watches Dru and Kara and then walks over to Kara and says, "Let me try." He whistles a tune into the box with a bit of flair.
He then considers the negative emotion box. He places a hand on the lid and forces himself to think of the demons from his childhood, their laughing faces framed in the fires of village after village. The old hatred fills him again, if only for a moment.
Hamith blows on one of the holes, and covers the others in a shifting pattern until he is able to replicate the jaunty tune inscribed on the box.
As he does so the hidden panel in the Holed Safe's side irises open to reveal a scroll collection of a complete symphony written by a Taldan master, now lost to time.
Hamith the Lockbreaker then focuses on old hatreds as looks upon The Box of Golden Faces. There is a sharp ozone smell as the box slides open of its own accord. It contains a collection of ancient stone miniatures of an Ulfen army from the Land of the Linnorm Kings.
The Riddle Vault pops open revealing a sizable collection of rare incense as well as scrolls instructing in their use.
Very well. You do not disappoint. Nessian has carved out a new base of operations in a ruin of half-collapsed siege towers, just outside of Absalom. He's calling it the Pyramid of the Dog Torch beckons to one of his bodyguards, who dutifully provides a map of the city.
There.Torch says, pointing to a more specific location.
As he sends you on your way he reminds you, Should Nessian discover that I disclosed this information, I would view that as most unprofessional on your parts. His eyes narrow, almost disappearing behind blisters and scars, That would be disappointing.
Unfortunately as you head towards the Pyramid of the Dog, you once more see an interchange of lights, this time flashing green and orange from cliffs in the distance.
Yargos groans in despair, That's oneofthefinal codes! It's sending Black Echelon operatives to attack the Metro-Cathedral, that old church of Abadar? With the giant pipe organ?
The codebook said they were supposed to disrupt the Oathday hymns partway through to signal theArmadathat all was ready! It's almost dawn, the hymns will be starting soon!
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She notes the location.
"As always Touch, that is understood, We did not hear this, we where not here"
She says not looking at Touch but at the others in her group.
Then she leads them out once again, then the lights.
"Then we have no time to lose, lets go"
She starts to lead them to the Metro-Cathedral.
As you all draw close to the Metro-Cathedral you can hear the stirring hymns of Abadar playing, a reminder to all of Absalom of the pacts that bind society together.
But as the cathedral comes into sight the chords begin to fall apart, some of the notes falling eerily silent before the whole thing collapses.
We have to restart the hymn soon! pants Yargos.
Normally you would arrive to find a small group of acolytes of Abadar as they exercise their weekly duties. Today, more of the Black Echelon have climbed atop the organ, and up into the pipes, apparently using their aura of silence to stop the workings of the organ, and turn to face the opening doors in unison. The only other movement is a single wounded acolyte, hiding behind the pews.
Traveling from white key to white key requires a DC 5 Acrobatics or Perform (Dance) check, though the DC increases by 2 for each additional key you attempt to cross in a given round.
You can play the black keys while standing on the white keys with a DC 5 strength check, or by climbing up on top of them with a DC 10 climb check.
Bold names may go
Kara
Hamith
Dru
Lady Alya
Giladref
Black Echelon
Hengist
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Hamith bursts forward down the main hall up to the altar.
"We have to get up there!"
-Posted with Wayfinder