Nethan nods in agreement to Al's last passage, "I'll answer for him, that sums it up. And I agree with Al, we need to gather these bloodstones and raise the Herald. Thus, we will be one step closer to stopping Tar-Baphon, Eldred being used as a power source or perhaps more sinister things, and maybe even bring Aroden back from slumber or death? For the first time since we have been down here, nothing has been more clear until now." At which point, Nethan hands the Eldred ranger his bow. Then he looks to the group, "We need to return the Inn, I believe your wizards are spent?" Nethan then looks to Al for affirmation.
"A bath wouldn't be amiss either!" Elise adds in a hopeful tone. It was always nice to enjoy the perks of civilization when one spent so much time out on the roads.
"I second the motion for a bath. All in favour say 'Aye'."
"Eh. Unless the smell gives us away to our enemies, I see little need. Cleaning is for women and wounds."
Elise leans in closer to Dreyyn and sniff exaggerated in the air. "Well then ..." she laughs with a teasing grin.
Nethan smiles at Dreyyn's comment, "If baths are for women, that means I can take mine with Amelia." Nethan winks and smiles at Amelia.
"Sounds like the Aye's have it. Let's head back." turning to their new 'friend' "Why don't you come with us?"
The Eldred ponders a bit then says "No more or less dangerous than my previous job and definitely sounds more interesting. So why not, let's see how far down the rabbit hole I can go." The Eldred gets up still tied up.
"Would be nice to be out of these though, feel free to give me back by bow when you feel I can be trusted. I'll just stay out of your way if any danger would crop up." The Eldred shrugs "Oh by the way call me Spook. It ain't my real name but one that is easy to remember."
Returning to the inn the group rest up, . With the info they have given Daeron they are able to find out where this girl is being kept. Or at least where she was yesterday. Daeron doubts that the girl has actually moved anywhere but knows that the location they have now triangulated will still be worth investigating.
The area where they have tracked down is in the house district. Though the region they need to investigate is fairly large it seems to be all part of the grounds belonging to a single house so at least they've narrowed that down. Daeron has told the group that the house is that of the Nkosi family. That name seems familiar to the group.
Daeron brings the group round to have a discussion about what to do next. "So we've locked down the general region of our target which is good. The problem is now is that it's a noble house. No doubt well guarded. However I'm not sure if the house is necessarily harbouring the girl or if she is being kept underneath the location. Though knowing some of the politicking that goes own then the army might have asked the Nkosi family to keep the girl as a favour. What do you think we should do? Go in without much pretence or investigate a little first? Considering they will be attacked by outsiders there should be little repercussions politically in the city.. I would think..."
Refreshed by a warm bath and a long nights sleep in a proper bed, Elise wakes up feeling like a brand new human. In good mood she devours her breakfast before joining the meeting, brushing and braiding her hair as Daeron speaks. A faint aroma of pines and roses hung softly over her person this morning. Like herself, she had washed and cleaned her clothes and gear and it was now all impeccably clean showing no signs of the previous journey.
"I'd say we should at the very least take a good look before we go charging in. And perhaps find a suitable distraction too. How's the neighbourhood?"
Hmm. Nkosi - that rings a bell ...
Spook seems a bit embarrassed by question his name. "Errr.. you sure you want to use my real names. It's long, boring and frankly rather stupid name. Never liked it, though if you really want I can tell it to you." Spook then gives his ever more used shrug "As for my employer it was a guy called Saratoga, local crime lord. Just another man who wants a piece of the pie. I wouldn't look into him too much, he just offered a lot of money though is not that influential in the crime world."
Dreyyn and Spook just look at each other for a while. Neither seemingly wanting to make conversation. Though when a game of dice is suggested he shrugs and joins in.
Daeron replies to Elise saying "The neighbourhood? Positively lovely." with a twinge of sarcasm in his voice. "Lots of nobles pretending to like each other while secretly wanting to lop of each others fingers. That's my opinion of it anyway. No real thieves or crime there, other than fashion maybe. The grounds themselves have a lot of servants who are commoners, there might be some smuggling operations for some of the finer goods pilfered from the Nkosi household. I doubt the master would notice a missing goblet or two."
---Dice!---
Intrigued by is reluctance, and perhaps driven by spite, Elise tries to get Spook to spill his beans by offering him a drink or three during the game of dice. Besides, it was good to relax a bit and pretend things were normal for a moment.
"Curses! Not good enough. It seems you won this one Spook - let me get you a complimentary drink! Now, about that name ...?"
---The Meeting---
"Hmm." Elise muses. "How's the nightlife? It sounds like a mainly residential area - shouldn't be so many on the streets then?"
Since Spook was tied up and under group scrutiny, Nethan kept his bow for the night. Being shrugged off by Amelia, nothing new really, Nethan goes to his room to recover from today's activities. Before taking a bath, he first does some sit-ups and push-ups. After his bath, he studies to recover his spells. Then proceeds to take accounting of the party treasure. Afterwards, he decides to take a cat nap and tries to recover for some nightlife. However, the cat nap turns into deep sleep and never makes it for the nightlife.
Dreyyn cleans himself at the protestations of his less rugged peers, before setting in to cleaning his armor, lest sweat break down the padding underneath.
It is reflects Alþórel, slowly coming out of his meditation, one of the lesser known temptations of magic. Succubi and immortality are all very good, but endless hot baths os the one most people don't think of.
Still... work to do... just a few more minutes
Spook sighs at the pestering, though he does answer anyway "Gnaeus Duronius Aeacus Prolix Malus Excubitor. Do we really need to use that name?" He said his name in an elven accent instead ofhis wobbly common one. "Spook is easier, one syllable. No way to mistake it."
---Meeting---
"Nightlife?" Daeron folds his arms and looks up blankly at the roof. "Well there are balls, if you mean that kind of nightlife. If you could get invited to one or we could sneak you in that way. As long as you are all suitably dressed or passed off as some of the staff. Which means you'll still need to be dressed up a bit to look presentable. Though on the streets themselves I doubt there are many people there save a few guards to make the nobles feel save. Definitely not enough to cause any issue to you."
"My parents had quite a few titles. I inherited some of those titles. Though admittedly they are quite ironic now because of what I use to fight. My parents must be rolling in their graves, well actually they might still be alive. I don't know, definitely not getting back though." Spook gives a somewhat awkward laugh.
Alþórel's meditation runs deep, and long. Dreams of previous lives flick to and fro. A million chaotic scenes passing by, like falling snowflakes in winter. He has the foreseeing on him. There is something that he needs to know. Something here...
There!
The memory he had been hoping for. A shivering Alþórel huddling with primitively armed, barely-clothed humans around a fire in a cave, rocks piled against the entrance. Had the invaders gone? A week had passed since this tribe sort shelter with him - but the cannibals were known for patience and cunning.
After days of trying he finally managed to separate his senses from his body. He remembered the eerie feeling as he passed through the rock, and saw that the other human tribe still waited for their prey.
Yes!
That was the memory he had been looking for.
"If we could get close enough then I could try scrying. It's been a long, long time... but I had a dream, last night..."
---Meeting---
Elise laughs at the suggestion of her at a ball. Now that would be a sight! But I wonder if I would look good in a dress? Hmm ... Her laughter quickly fades away into a thoughtful look as she gazes into the distance. With a grimace she snaps out of her thoughts.
"I was mostly thinking about if we could sneak in at the dead of night ... How well do Eldred see in darkness anyhow?"
---
Having seen Al's memories once, Elise couldn't help but wonder how long ago "a long, long time" was. But his idea was good.
"If we can atleast get close after nightfall - perhaps that would be close enough for you to scry?"
"I think it might - I'd need to know exactly where to look, though."
"Still, if we know where we need to go, should we just plan on a quick, possibly violent, entry and exit? Would further confirmation actually help?"
Dreyyn remains silent on the matter, choosing to occupy his mouth by eating roasted meat chunks.
Daeron muses at Alþórel's idea "We could dress you up in some other colour or grey for that matter and just burst into the place. No one would be none the wiser." Daeron gives a satisfied chuckle.
"To answer your question Elise, it depends on the generation. I am thankful that I'm not that young, so my eyes are relatively suited to the night. Many of the leaders of the houses are 3rd generation so are also able to see in the darkness. Many of the guards though are much much younger, so will likely have no nightvision to speak of and can likely only see with torchlight.
"What can you see with your scrying Al? Knowing the location of say the barracks before we move in would be more then helpful. A little errant flame and they would be amply distracted ... or simply barring their door! Or the holding cell - so we can go straight for it!"
"Hmh. That is good to hear - it would feel silly to strike at night if they see better then us!"
Elise whistles. "Breaking into both a manor and the city? I like it!"
"Amelia, that is brilliant! You really do have a flair for this."
"Elise: it's a fascinating question. It is difficult to explain without going into the details exhaustively. Metaphors are dangerous in such a situation, but a great deal easier to understand. Therefore..."
Al proceeds to explain, in excruicating detail, how Clairvoyance works. Specifically he addresses the ability to see or hear, and the inability to move the sensor once cast.
Spook brings his hand to his chin and rubs in pensively while he looks at the ground. "I have a way, it won't be a very pleasant journey on the way back. I assure you though it'll get us out of the city however. It'll require my bow though and I'd ask a low circle spell from either of the mages, first circle should suffice. However you only need to do that once we're about to escape. It is a dimensional 'hop', we will probably encounter an outsider while there but it's a short hop as far as teleportation is concerned so I doubt we'd need to be in there long. In the city itself, I know a route out but we need to run a lot. If you are on the roof tops or flying you will likely be spotted by guards on their spears."
--Break In--
Break in and break out in the middle of the night...
Daeron handed the group a case location of the ground floor of the Manor, located here: Manor Map
The group arrives and finds the gate to be open with two torches to illuminate the opening. The door to the manor looks to be unlocked as it is slightly ajar with an attendant standing near it. The group can't hear any sounds of a large gathering though it likely means there is a smaller gathering in the manor.
--Flashback: The front door--
So what happens if there is a guard on the door..?
Daeron runs through a few things "If it's a guard, just knock him out or otherwise dispose of him. Make sure he doesn't have a chance to get on his spear and fly up into the air, it'll alert everyone to your presence prematurely. If it's anyone else, you probably won't be too out of place so you could likely approach them and talk to them, if you aren't skulking they might think you're supposed to be there, though I would still recommend disposing them or getting them out the way" He looks to the group to get their thoughts.
--Flashback: The front door--
"So unless we want to leave a trail of slaughtered servants, we should get some saps! And some sort of disguise so they won't know who we are immediately - or can give someone our description when they come to it..."
--Flashback: The front door--
"Masks are probably a good idea. It might be possible to go in magically altered so that we can get closer, but... Probably it'd be easier to just veil the entire party from sight. That should let us get quite close to the target or targets."
Flashback: the front door:
"I could do some damage with a sap," Dreyyn said, referencing his sneak attack ability, "so that could work. Invisibility would be best, though."
--Flashback: The front door--
"Saps, masks and invisibility seems like the way to go then!"
--Break In: Front door--
Alþórel has a memorized invisibility sphere if he wishes to used it. Daeron has given them festival masks and cloaks to use, make it look like a bunch of party hooligans raided the place. There is enough saps amongst the group for each of them to have one and a few spares if they lose one or is otherwise lost.
How would people then like to use these to dispatch the door guard?
With the sap in one hand and the other at Al's shoulder (so she wouldn't walk out of the spell!) Elise carefully approached the sentry. While she was invisible - she had realized that she wasn't unhearable. While getting her bearings of the spell, she had collided with Al - and that was definitely not silent. Luckily, there had been no-one around to notice but she kept her hand on his shoulder nevertheless.
Now, with great concentration she carefully aimed the blow at the hapless servants forehead.
Dreyyn will also use the sap!
Flashback: Nethan catches up with the group in the morning for the meeting and is well rested. He nods with the plans so far and thinks to himself, "I'll use a slumber psionic power as a back-up."
--Break-in--
Nethan manifests 5HD slumber power if they fail to bring down the Guard. He targets the power just right as not to affect any party members.
The group of adventurers all approach the hapless servant. With a flurry of invisible saps, knock the poor Eldred to the ground, never truly knowing what hit him.
The door is ajar, looking inside there is no-one else in the main foyer. The group walk in and find themselves in a middling sized foyer. There are doors to the left and right, two sets of staircases that lead upstairs and a corridor leading deeper into the mansion. The place is relatively quiet, however the group does hear the sounds of a violin upstairs. The group also hears the sounds of the clattering of plates further down the corridor and to the right. Servants perhaps?
Dreyyn will move the body behind some bushes or something to hide it from passerby.
--Flashback: The front door--
"So long as at least some of us are invisible, we'd make the obvious people to scout around for a way down."
Dreyyn hides the body in some bushes where there is no light, so unless someone was looking for it they wouldn't be finding it.