Evelyn looks at the chest before turning to the strong men in the party. "Could you try to bust the lock, provided the thing's not trapped?"
"Um, the thing is trapped," Nicat says. "It's some kind of spring-blade, crusted with filth. It might be hurting me just talking about it, in fact."
He looks at Conner, "Feel like smashing a lock? Maybe while keeping your distance?"
"Um, better idea. I don't much like the idea of being poisoned and that thing might shoot out or something. How about we find something to tip it over with? Bash it around a little and set the trap off safely."
"But what if the chest is full of fragile, uh, goblin baubles?" Nicat responds to Conner, concerned about breaking whatever might be in the chest. "Is that a thing?"
He studies the situation a moment, then says, "Maybe you can smash the lock with your sword, while you keep yourself a bit away from the pokey trap?"
The spring-blade seems rigged to strike if a key is inserted into the chest's lock and turned left.
Nicat tips his head to one side, then back to the other, then gives Conner an excited whack on the side of his very long leg. "Hey, you know what? It looks like the trap only goes off if you stick a key in and turn it to the left, but turn the key right, it's okay. And didn't Ekan find a key in Ripnugget's room?"
He turns to Ekan and says excitedly, "Let's try the key! You want to do it?"
"I'll risk it, others might want to back up a bit just in case," Ekan gives them a moment to do just that, then takes the key sticks it in, and turns it to the right.
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The lock *clicks* and the chest opens.
Inside the chest are:
--An unorganized pile of 7,432 copper pieces, 2,490 silvers, 89 gold pieces, and 3 platinum pieces;
--A leather pouch of 34 badly flawed malachites worth about 1 gold piece each;
--A Medium-sized chain shirt;
--A Medium-sized masterwork scimitar;
--A pair of masterwork manacles;
--A golden holy symbol of Sarenrae worth about 100 gold pieces;
--A jade necklace worth about 60 gold pieces;
--A fine blue silk gown with silver trim worth about 150 gold pieces.
Eostre's eyes light up at the sight of the treasure.
"We need to bury this or something until we're done here! We'll be rich!"
Ekan steps aside to let others get a good look at the treasure within. "Nicat, after this you maybe able to pay your tab at the dragon." a gentle smile to assure this is but a light tease.
"I can carry most of it, Ekan can probably get the rest. I don't want to try and get the horse to carry anything in her condition."
Ekan nods in silent agreement.
Nicat's eyes glitter with excitement as he considers the hoard in the chest. I bet Shae would look great in that gown...or out of it.
"I'll say, Ekan," Nicat agrees happily, "and I'll take Shae dancing too! How about we just lock it up for now, since we have the key? Then we'll go downstairs and find the other bad guys."
"Makes sense," Evelyn replies to Nicat.
"Let's go. There are goblins to defeat!"
And possibly more worrisome things...
The party leaves the goblin treasure behind for now and proceeds down the northern staircase. The staircase is sparsely lit by only a few torches, and the surrounding stone walls are cold and slightly damp with moisture.
The party emerges into a rectangular room. A large table surrounded by chairs fills much of this room. A slate board to the north is covered with scribblings in chalk, but the map of Sandpoint that has been carefully inscribed on it leaves no doubt as to the purpose of this room-this is doubtless where the recent raid was planned.
"Well, we knew there were bad guys here," Nicat comments as he looks at the map, "and this sure confirms they're the very same bad guys we've been looking for. Let's find 'em."
He moves to the door on the western wall and gives it a once-over, then opens it.
Evelyn enters the room with the map and takes a look around.
"I hope they're still here, and haven't moved elsewhere to... to do whatever it is bad guys do... elsewhere..."
Conner stands by the eastern door while the group explores the room.
"I agree. I made Tsuto a promise, and dwarves don't break promises. Especially promises regarding grudges," Eostre says, glowering a bit as she mentions Tsuto's name.
As Nicat tries the western door, he realizes it appears to be held shut from the inside.
Nicat calls to his friends, "There's someone on the other side of the door holding it shut! And I hear someone casting a spell, a woman's voice!"
He steps aside, drawing his sword and says, "Conner, can you yank that thing open?"
Evelyn goes total defense, just in case.
Eostre immediately begins spinning her glaive again.
"Open the door sharpish, Nicat! If I can see what our lady friend's attemptin' to cast I can try to counterspell it!"
Conner steps up to the door and aims his boot at it...
Evelyn tries to aid Conner with what little strength she has.
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The combined efforts of Conner & Evelyn are enough to throw the door open, sending the chair pressed up against it flying into the opposite wall!
A large wooden worktable sits in the middle of this room, its surface cluttered with scrolls, books, stone tablets covered with dense, spiky runes, and fragments of carvings that appear to have been chipped off of statues or bas-reliefs. To the north, a floor-to-ceiling set of wooden shelves sags with picks, shovels, brushes, lanterns, and other equipment one might expect to see at an archaeological site.
There are two people currently in the room--one dark-skinned lady in revealing mage's robes, with arcane power flowing through her fingers...
"Oh, thank the gods. Someone more interesting to talk to. Or at least beat up."
...and the other being none other than Tsuto Kaijitsu.
Peeking through the doorway, Nicat decides he'll only be in the way if he rushes into the fight in the tiny room ahead. He drops his sword, slips his sling off his belt, and calls out, "Desna smiles on us again, gang! She led us straight to the bad guys hiding in their hole! Tsuto, your luck has turned!"
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"HEY! TSUTO!" Eostre yells, "I BELIEVE I MADE YOU A PROMISE!"
She grins in a way that seems more terrifying than pleased.
Ekan rushes the dark skinned woman and moves with a strike, "We have no time for your threats. I do not know your part in this, so I shall try to be merciful. Do not push me to changing my mind"
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Ekan's strike meets some resistance as his fist brushes against some arcane protection, but it's not enough to keep the wizard out of harm's way--his fist strikes her temple with a *THUMP!*
It sends her reeling, but her magic seems to have blunted the force of Ekan's blow enough to keep her from being knocked senseless. Tsuto starts laughing hysterically.
"HAHAHAHAHA! Okay, that was *priceless!* Seriously, you have no idea how long I've been waiting for that to happen." He gloats before striking twice at Ekan...
He manages to slug Ekan in the nose with his first punch, but his second one is easily blocked.
The damage to Ekan's also reduced, as Evelyn's magic transfers most of it to her.
Evelyn feels the by now familiar taste of blood well up in her mouth, but quickly swallows it. She then casts []infernal healing[/i] on herself, and a tiny portion of the internal wound she just suffered closes up.
"ទទួលពួកគេ, បុរស!"
Conner takes a moment to shake his head at people who punch each other in life and death battles, then tries to murder the wizard.
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Conner's sword flies at the wizard's head, but is deflected into the wall by the same arcane force that Ekan's fist had to contend with.
The wizard gives Tsuto a pleading look. "What? Tsuto, after all I've done for you, you *can't* be serious!" She gripes before trying to weave another spell of hers...
...and her face pales as the strain of trying to cast a spell without leaving herself open to attack proves too much for her.
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Eostre gets into position just in time to see the wizard fail at casting her spell.
"You call that casting?" Eostre crows.
"I'LL show you casting! How sensitive are those elf-bastard ears of yours, Tsuto?!"
Eostre begins spinning her glaive and chanting as her runic tattoo lights up her face. Then she takes a deep breath and casts her screaming spell, causing a horrifying cacophony only Tsuto can hear.
Tsuto briefly winces and sticks his middle finger in his ear. "Not very. Thanks for asking."
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Eostre's expression shifts from cocky to furious in an instant.
"SUCK A HILL-GIANT'S C**K!" she screams at him.
Nicat's eyes widen in shock at Eostre's words as he enters the room, but he turns his focus back to their foes. "Lucky us, finding them so easily!" he crows once again.
Focusing on the wizard, he then says, "That's pretty funny isn't it, you come down here to get away and we come straight to you?" As he speaks, he waggles his fingers and sticks his tongue out.
The wizard just glares at Nicat. "No." She says very bluntly.
Struck from behind, Ekan twists upon Tsuto, and tilts his head, "And here I thought your main talents lay only in treachery, Tsuto."
He counters with a flurry of his own
But his blows are deflected and dodged...
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Tsuto nimbly weaves and ducks under Ekan's strikes and counters with two of his own.
Except his blows are just as easily dodged. "And I thought taking shots to the balls was your only talent."
Conner keeps his attention on the wizard, Tsuto doesn't seem like a great threat at the moment. "Surrender and you can walk out of here. Just you though, not Tsuto. He's going to die in this basement." He still cuts into her, however.
Conner's strike rakes across the wizard's unprotected midriff, drawing much blood. She screams in pain.
Evelyn's internal wound heal a bit due to the spell she just cast on herself.
She walks up to the door opening and reaches around the corner, touching Ekan's shoulder to cast guidance on him. "នៅទីនេះអ្នកចូលទៅ! ទទួលបានការកូនឥតខាន់ស្លាថា!"
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The wizard fights to remain conscious as she begins to cast another spell. This one's directed at Tsuto...
...and suddenly, Tsuto vanishes before the party's eyes. The wizard's bloodied grin turns positively crazed with glee.