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Salouris peeks over the window sill to see the complex scene before him. Glancing from the goblet to the wire to the mummified hand necklace, the elf's eyes widen.
"Careful," the occultist whispers. "There must be something in that goblet. Most likely alchemist's fire; I would place good odds the hostages are doused in oil. We need to take him out before he topples it."
Daragor crashes through the window above the main hall, taking a few cuts in the process. The hostage taker turns around in surprise and his eyes immediately dart to the goblet hanging over the table.
Round I - bold may act!
Surprise: Daragor (break window and jump)
1. Daragor (7/12hp), Rimble, Hush, Hskoro, Sidney, Salouris
2. Kidnapper
Daragor grits his teeth against his wounds and fires a deadly shot at the kidnapper, who coughs loudly in surprise as the bolt passes through his lung. He doesn't look so good after that.
Meanwhile, Hskoro heaves against the door... ...but it doesn't budge. Not even a little bit.
Round I - bold may act!
1. Daragor (7/12hp), Rimble, Hush, Hskoro, Sidney, Salouris
2. Kidnapper (11 dmg)
A flask of fire explodes against the wall somewhere off to the kidnapper's left, a glowing harbinger of what is to come. "YOU MADE ME! YOU KILLED THEM!" The man reaches a hand up to his macabre necklace, and Salouris concentrates on the goblet. Salouris tries pushing against the cup, but that only ends up helping as the goblet tips towards the Aspis agent. A tiny orange bead falls from it and descends (in slow motion, of course) toward the crowd of initiates below.
It explodes in a massive ball of flame. Daragor, Sidney, and Hush get caught in the blast as well.
Round II - bold may act!
1. Daragor (0[4]/12hp), Rimble, Hush (10[14]/17hp), Hskoro, Sidney (16[20]/23hp), Salouris
2. Kidnapper (11 dmg)
3. Initiates (three stable, seven dying)
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Why in the nine hells...? Hush is so completely taken by surprise at such an insane plan that he forgets to duck and cover, taking the full scorch of the spell. He runs toward the hostage-taker, hoping to prevent the man from doing anything else as stupid.
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Quite suddenly, the front door explodes in a shower of splinters. Framed against the outside light stands Ambrus Valsin himself, scimitar at the ready, next to an eight-foot half-orc baring teeth and fists. Valsin cuts down the kidnapper and a cleric of Pharasma rushes in from behind him to deliver a burst of healing to the company!
Valsin surveys the scene with a grim look and shakes his head. "You there," he shouts at the Pharasmin, "get these initiates to safety. The rest of you, back out into the grounds. There's more fighting to do." As he walks away, you can hear him muttering and blaming himself for not taking care of the situation on his own. "If I wasn't in such a hurry to back to Skyreach... bah. Back at it then."
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The thunder of hooves nearby captures your attention as Seelah of Katapesh, Paladin of Iomedae, rides by. A host of Pathfinders in her wake spread out in every direction combing the area for enemies, Pathfinders in need, and the wounded.
Seelah draws up her steed, pulling it around to face you.
She says "Blessings and well met, Pathfinders! You look as if you are heading into more trouble."
She tosses you lot a whistle, like the ones you've seen soldiers on the field of battle use to direct troops.
She then says "If you are ever in need of aid, blow the whistle and Pathfinders within earshot will come to your assistance."
With waiting for a response she turns her horse about and thunders back off into the fray without waiting for a response.
The party patches up and heads back out into the grounds. Despite valiant defense by the Society, he Grand Lodge’s campus is overrun with marauders and monsters, while support staff, initiates, and visitors run in peril for their lives.
Yet, nearby groups of Pathfinders cluster together and argue about what to do about it, which team should stand back and support the other, and who has the best idea of what is happening. "You there!" A venture-captain approaches from the direction of Skyreach.
"Janiff Ivulxtin, Venture Captain. You look like you know what you're doing, so I'll give it to you straight. Most of the higher-ups are in and around Skyreach trying to figure out how--and why-- the Aspis are here." He points at one of the nearest huddles of Pathfinders. "Out here there's a leadership gap. But there are important tasks that need doing. Center House has wards and defenses, but it still needs to be cordoned off and protected. Same for the Repository. Somebody's also got to start rounding up visitors and getting them to safety in this sector. I also need someone to stall the District Guards at the Gate--they can't be let onto the grounds."
"I am giving you temporary authority to ensure these tasks are done. Find a team of Pathfinders for each and then get back into the fight."
From this vantage point, there are four Pathfinder groups within sight. The nearest is not far from Center House.
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Heh. Me with authority. Lovely. Hush reverses his grip on his swords, so that the points are behind him and toward the ground. Much more of a doer than a director, he isn't entirely sure where to go from here.
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The elf attempts to quickly note the venture-captain's words.
"Center House must be guarded, Repository guarded, visitors ushered away, Guard stalled. Understood."
Noticing a set of Pathfinders near the Center House, Salouris begins to head towards them.
"Janiff Ivulxtin, Venture Captain."
One of the Pathfinders in the group nudges another. "Uh, Jayson?" The half-elf he'd elbowed turns around to squint at Salouris. "Er, right. Um." He at the stone door of Center House with a hint of trepidation. "Maybe, maybe you can find someone with more experience?" Another woman behind him shudders. "It is haunted, isn't it? Maybe it doesn't need to be guarded. Ustalav all over again..." A visible cringe goes through the group at the mention of that gods-forsaken nation.
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Still shocked by almost fatal incident with the hostages, Daragor is at the edge of his nerves, and seeing the insecurity and reluctance of those people was the last drop. He put his huge crossbow at his shoulder, an act that made him look like a giant, or a cyclops.
"Now you here me you bunch of fools... look around, people are dying here. This is not the time for you to whine about this s***! Are you pathfinders or not? Now, grow a pair and DO YOUR JOB!"
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The elf is about to reassure the hesitant Pathfinders when his colleague bellows out a more forceful response. Well, when in Absalom...
"Yes, we all have struggles. But we get past them by proving why we were worthy of getting confirmed! Dig deep, turn the horrors to your side!" Salouris cries out as he motions to his skeletal slave, bearing a large Glyph of the Open Road on his chest signifying his control by the Society.
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"Is this really necessary?", thoughts Rimble after hear Daragor's harsh words.
It was not his style, but the gnome feels that the Cyclops's speech tended to be more 'persuasive' than the reptile's fluffy words, so he aids the Shoanti:
"C'mon, move your asses! We have a great battle to win here! Do you want to see your names on the Pathfinder Chronicles, or not?!"... "Hey, you", he turns to the woman, "what do you mean with 'Ustalav all over again'?", he asks her, not hiding his surprise.
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Walking up behind Hskoro, Sidney tried his best to preach towards the unsettled group, [b]"I say guard the other area for the better of the society! Did Sarenrae back down when the hungry beast? No! Now, get yourselves together, and do your jobs, or are you willing for others to lose loved ones? That seems a bit selfish to me, but then again, I am but a simple man that wants to help those in need.[b]
Jayson answers Rimble's question. "We, uh, lost a friend there... barely got out ourselves. That was two weeks ago."
Although Daragor's show of force threatens to break these Pathfinders' spirits entirely, his words are backed by softer voices and turned to an advantage. The group comes to realize that the situation is desperate and they're as likely to die running as guarding. Some timid nods later, they start setting up a defensive position in front of the door.
That issue settled, the party goes on to accomplish the next task. En route, they encounter Professor Nigel Aldain, who is unarmed and looks desperately out of place. "Oh, Pathfinders, good! Can you take me to a safe spot? I was nearly eaten by giant frog a minute ago--barely got away!" Nearby is another gaggle of (relatively) idle Pathfinders, led by a sturdy-looking dwarf.
When asked to escort Nigel Aldain and other innocents back to Skyreach, the dwarf gives a gruff reply. "I'm quite confident the professor can find his own way. What gives you the right to order Shorvan Anvilhammer about? You're no Venture-Captains!"
"A likely story," Shorvan scoffs at Rimble. "You just want to be bossy!"
"You mussst sssee the need for action here do you not?"
"Yeah, action. Not escort duty." The dwarf crosses his arms.
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Salouris approaches the petulant dwarf.
"The state of emergency gives us the right! VC Ivulxtin authorized us and we are in turn telling you that you need to make sure the professor - a noted ally of the Society - is brought to safety. Don't you remember your training? The Siege of Absalom? The crisis of Devrie? Look around: special circumstances are in place and emergency protocols are in effect."
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To accentuate Salouris's words, Hush takes the professor's hand and puts it on Shorvan's shoulder. He jabs a finger in the direction of the gate to safety.
[dice="Diplomacy" aid]1d20-2[/dice]
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The dwarf gives Salouris a hard stare. At first the elf thinks he might spit in his face, but he shrugs instead. "Alright, fine. Come on, kids, let's get short-beard here to safety," he barks to his much taller companions.
Next, the party makes its way towards the front Gate. The District Guard shouts demands for entry from beyond the shut gate, and a few Pathfinders loiter nearby, checking their weapons and looking around for something useful to do. They don't like being asked to stall the guard, though, and blanch at the request. A halfling woman in the group pipes up a few excuses in a hurried whisper. "Us? Um. Don't think we'd be the best at, er, that. What if the Guard doesn't take no for an answer? I doubt we could stop them. Will we be arrested? Will someone post my bail? Maybe a Venture Captain should be doing this?"
To accentuate Salouris's words, Hush takes the professor's hand and puts it on Shorvan's shoulder. He jabs a finger in the direction of the gate to safety.
Professor Aldain recoils at having his hand grabbed by this strange masked man. Fortunately, the scuffle occurs near the back and doesn't interrupt the staring contest between dwarf and elf.