"Actually, let me go, I've got something for such occasions," Tella says as she puts a hand on Eliseera's arm.
Elsie pauses just before she takes the first step. "Very well, you look certainly capable of this. Be careful." She then steps aside and allows the tiefling to proceed.
The Stirge prepares to ascend as well, hanging out in the middle of the pack. "Mahaas is about to get a real surprise," he says, looking forward to the encounter.
"Elise, let me follow him, don't want him doing anything stupid again. you know, even his lordship was better than Stirge, when he was with us." Darc says quietly through curled lips into Elise's ear. "An I don't want no harm on Tella, she's not big enough to look after herself." Darc adjusts his cloak, pulling it tightly about his person and ready to follow 'Stirge' up. Loudly he lets the group know, he expects someone to catch him should he fall, and laughs as they all look at him, a jovial wink in his eye.
Elsie gets a vexed look in her eye but, due to long experience working with Darc, knew when he got the set look on his face there was no budging. "OK but be careful. I'll keep an eye out to make sure he does not try to slip away from you."
Groaning and creaking as each of the group climb, the ladder threatens to rip itself free of the wall... yet Ruby's working of the blighted stone somehow holds it fast. Closer to the balcony at the top of the ladder Tella climbs, the hard cobbles of the quayside some fifty or sixty feet below her... and, with the crows flocking overhead, she steps off of the final rung and on to the balcony...
"Careful, the balcony's greased," Tella tells the others quietly before pointing out the safe path. She mutters an incantation, causing the safe spots to change color.
Proceeding cautiously, the Stirge catches up and cautiously avoids the greased portions of the balcony. "Looks like Mahaas really doesn't want to be bothered," he notes.
"Tella, nice work spotting that grease, do you have power such as those to gain entry through the door?" Ask Darc carefully stepping on the magically laid path. "Otherwise, I'll make way for Elise, I know she has some talent that way."
Once the others show her the safe path to the door, Elsie nods briefly. "Usually there is more than one trap..." she whispers as she examines the door closely.
"Sadly, no. The thieves don't want to teach me, nor does the guard," Tella says with an expression of chagrin on her face.
"Guess the lack of door chime should have been a hint," Tella says, chuckling a bit as she picks her way across.
Varian will also check out whatever manner of door there may be ahead. Hopefully he won't end up in as much trouble as the last door he had inspected.
With the grease, badly yellowed by crude rendering and then further highlighted by Tella's magicks, quite obvious - it proves relatively easy for the group to pick a safe passage across the balcony to the door with its tattered red paint.
...the smell of dog once more rises in the Stirge's nostrils - and more besides, a pungent mixture of urine and worse seeps around the edges of the door and hangs in the still night air. Holding his breath as best he can, the Stirge works with Eliseera to examine the door for traps - finding none but alerting something at the other side. Low growls quickly give way to insistent barking... a sharp and angry noise punctuating the stillness of the quayside.
Elsie winces at the sharp barking, knowing the group's element of surprise is wasted. Pulling out one of her favorite weapons, a sap, she motions for Darc to prepare himself as she reaches for the handle, awaiting the group's signal...
The Stirge is startled as he is tripped up again by dogs, and goes immediately for his greatsword. "Why are these rotten curs so perceptive?" He quickly meets the eyes the others. "Ready? In on the count of three . . ."
"Anyone got any food," Tella asks as she quickly comes to the conclusion that she really doesn't have anyway to get past a dog inside a door she needed to get through.
Darc nods silently to Elise, This is gonna be messy.... he readies to rush in and meet the dog head on.. no matter what the mangy cur might bring with its tough jaws and teeth. If he can grab the thing before it can do Elise harm, she can apply her deadly rapier.
The room beyond the red door is a vile place. At least forty mangy street cats - an assortment of ragged fur colours and in various stages of emaciation - skulk in a large number of cages behind piles of rubbish, and a pair of wild-looking terriers - the source of the barking - stare out from the ruptured decay of a horsehair chair. Below a glass window so thick with grime that it resembles a blackboard sits a larder, cupboard and a tiny iron stove. Nearby, a dripping tap fills an iron pot to the brim with rust-coloured water.
"What is going on here? Is this guy using feral cats to feed the dogs or something?" He eyes the barking dogs to see if they're rearing to attack. If they're just barking, the Stirge moves toward the next door and sees if he notices anything unusual.
Elsie allows the Stirge to take the lead here, drawing her ever-trusted rapier and readying herself for trouble.
"This... this is no way to keep a pet," Tella mutters, her face pale.
The dogs, surprisingly small for the noise that they had been making whilst the group were out on the balcony, are quiet now… warily watching the group as they enter into the dilapidated room. The cats too are silent, skulking backwards into their cages and trying to make themselves as hidden as they can… and when Ruby calls out, having given up on the idea of stealth, there is no response. There are three doors to the east leading from this room and, given the size of the warehouse building, there may be many more rooms in which Mahaas could be waiting for the group… for surely, with the commotion raised by the dogs and Ruby’s call, Mahaas knows the group are here…
…that is, if the vicious minded gnome Mean was being truthful in what he told the group.
"Assume there are more traps in this place. Let's go." Having already inspected the door , and seeing no immediate threat from the small dogs, the Stirge tries the next door.
While the Stirge examines the door, Elsie peeks out both the windows for any signs their wily foe might be slipping out of the tenement.
Tella pulls out a copper coin and begins a muttering chant as she focuses on the doors.
The dogs, whining rather than growling as the group move through the room, make no attempt to do anything other than move away people as they pass... and so the investigators, on Mahaas' trail, look around. Eliseera, peering through the filthy windows of the building, tries to see whether there is any sign of movement outside... and, as far as she is able to tell, sees nothing but empty streets. The Stirge, moving ahead of the others, examines the three doors to the east... from beyond the northernmost door, which is quite badly warped in its frame, there are scratching and skittering noises - something, or possibly many somethings, are moving on the other side. The other two doors, listened to in turn, seem less likely to lead to an 'occupied' room...
...meanwhile Tella, reaching out detect the consciousness of anything that might be here, finds that the building is densely populated with creatures of animal intelligence, and one instinct above any other seems to dominate their 'thoughts'... hunger. Three, far brighter sparks are also present... three humanoid intelligences somewhere to the east - and their thoughts, so easy to read, are of readiness... and of a determination to defend this place from whoever has broken in.
"To the three of you hiding and waiting to crack our skulls," Tella calls out in a sweet, clear voice, like that of a ringing bell, "please kindly don't do that. We're only here to talk to Mahaas."
"Bunch of scratching from this door. Best try another."
With that simple declaration, the Stirge checks out the middle door and will open it if it seems clear.
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Tella's call receives no response... and so, the Stirge, having satisfied himself that there was nothing moving behind the middle of the three doors, pushes it open...
The room beyond and its jumbled contents, an assortment of junk that even Uriah Mean would hesitate to call 'wares', lie under a thick film of lichen and mould caused by leaks in the roof. There are many doors from this room - one towards the northern room where the Stirge heard scratching, one southwards... and then a further two heading west - towards the 'thoughts' that Tella could feel.
"I ain't liking this Elise, even by Castorhage's standards this is on the bleak and dark side. My slum is like a palace compared to this. Still onwards and .... well, just onwards." The big man grumbles as he follows 'The Stirge'. He looks around the rotting collection of things, kicking the rotten wood of a child's rocking horse as he goes. It crumbles under his foot, as several small beetles move onto the next wooden meal. "Well, which way now?"
As Darc follows the Stirge Elsie shakes her head slightly trying to calm his nervousness...and her own. Something does not feel right here... As she trails the group she keeps her eyes peeled on the other door, nearly certain one of them would disgorge a swarm of monsters.
As Darc and Eliseera move through the junk, finding little of note, there is no sign of anything - other than the occasional rat - moving here. The others, staying vigilant as they move past the terriers, follow... and then, with Ruby the last to pass through the door, her attention is suddenly drawn by a scuttling noise... the oven door crashes open and an eyeless, bone white creature resembling a blob of semi-translucent flesh with eight spindly, spider-like legs charges her...
As the spider-like creature ambushes Ruby, the Stirge is slow to respond. Though, who would've thought to check the oven for such a thing?
Eventually, though, he moves into action, slashing at the creature from the other side of the doorway.
;
He swings wildly, but perhaps not entirely ineffectively.
"I might have known, place is crawling with all sorts of nightmares, and this is the first. You're best back in the oven and cooked!" Darc moves forward and with his arms wide, attempts to grab the creature, but the tangle of legs Darc as he fails to get purchase on the bone white thing.
Elsie motions for the others to fall back. "Try drawing it further inside" She calls out, knowing that would make it easier for her to flank it. Still knowing the other guards lurked nearbyby she retreated away from the battle and next to the doors ready to strike.
Tella backs away from the creature with a look of fear, but soon has her emotions under control. With a deep breath, she gathers up her mental energies and focuses on the thing with far too many legs, her eyes blaze for a moment as she touches the first two fingers of each hand to her temples.
The biting pain from the Spider-like creature's attack isn't only from its needle-sharp legs... a burning poison takes hold and sends Ruby reeling...
Tangling with the small creature after the Stirge's blade missed wildly, Darc can't quite get a hold of it... and, worse still, receives a stinging bite in return...
...and whilst Eliseera keeps guard - Tella focusses her mind.
The creature, continuing to scramble around Darc and attempting to sting him once more, appears to be... singing? Even though there is no obvious mouth or other such feature, the unmistakable refrain of children's rhymes are emanating from it...
"Little Timmy went down to the river... his parents were all of a shiver... and then, one, two, three... the Lyme, she gobbled him up!!!"
The two terriers, who are clearly terrified of the creature that was lurking in the oven, have bolted and, whining loudly, pawing at the door to be let out...
"Like Elise says, draw it in!" The Stirge feints, trying to get the creature off-balance, before taking another hack. He wants desperately to put an end to this singing monstrosity. Should the blade strike, it unleashes a powerful scream that can only be heard by the Child of Spines.
;
Tella takes a step back and draws in another deep breath. Her eyes then snap open and glow white as she unleashes another psychic attack.
Elsie watches the battle unfold closely, a part of her wanting to leap in and end the threat of the spider-like creature, but also knowing reinforcements could be on their way.
Focussing on the abomination from the oven, Tella again attempts to violently assault its strangely child-like mind...
Skipping backwards, Ruby has the presence of mind to stab at the beast with her spear... but it is a small, and quite agile, thing - and, giggling to itself, it almost skips over the jabbing weapon. The giggling stops however when the Stirge steps one way and then swings his blade the other... catching the creature off guard and hacking one of its spindly legs clean off of its body. Cowering now, the strange sac that comprises its 'body' seems to tremble...
"Darn pesky little creature, let's get you a little tired shall we ..." Darc takes up a fighting stance, his fists held high whilst he bounces on his toes, his eyes and face concentrate on dealing hurt to this creature. His limbs become a fast blur as he unleashes several kicks at the thing.