“It is your choice not to trust us, and your choice not to face Karile,” says Lightbringer, though something about his tone suggests that he thinks such a choice is wrong … or cowardly. “But I swore I would see the children safe. I believe that you do not mean them harm, but I do not believe they will be safe in your custody. And they will make too convenient hostages. I ask you again, please release them to us.”
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Marrius stares at Lightbringer for a moment, then sighs and gazes upwards. "Dolurrh," he murmers, "Alright, we will stay here. But Karile is your concern. I have washed my hands of her.
"But I'll give you some advice. With her, things are never what they seem. Be on your guard. And you are on her territory - she will have the advantage, irrespective of your numbers."
A voice calls thinly from over the side of the ship - the pilot of the skycoach. "Heeeeelp...." Marrius rolls his eyes.
"Sal, go and get that man." The gname nods and, after handing a pile of Featherfall tokens to Janosz, takes off to rescue the Tharashk employee.
He glances over at Ezreal. "You seem to have a problem with me, friend. Let me guess - you're Navy, right?"
"I am. Graduate of Rekkenmark as well. Perhaps you'd be pleased to know your desertion merits it's own lecture these days."
Lightbringer ignores Ezreal's rather undiplomatic comment, and nods his head deeply in respect. “I think there have been many lies or half truths spoken about you Marrius; you seem a good man. Thankyou. We may have some influence with House Tharashk,” he glances briefly over at Trose, “which we will attempt to use on your behalf. After we have dealt with Karile. We will heed your advice, but we should leave, now.”
Lightbringer seems willing to trust Marrius at his word , giving him a brief military salute, then turning to look for his companions, preparing to disembark.
Lightbringer ignores Ezreal's rather undiplomatic comment, and nods his head deeply in respect. “I think there have been many lies or half truths spoken about you Marrius; you seem a good man. Thank you. We may have some influence with House Tharashk,” he glances briefly over at Trose, “which we will attempt to use on your behalf. After we have dealt with Karile. We will heed your advice, but we should leave, now.”
"Good luck. For your sake and mine."
"I am. Graduate of Rekkenmark as well. Perhaps you'd be pleased to know your desertion merits it's own lecture these days."
Marrius snorts derisively. "I'm sure they are full and frank about all the facts. Try asking the Admiralty about Operation Seed." He then dismisses Ezreal with a wave and looks to his injured crewmen.
That was a far out encounter!!!
I dug it.
Glad we didn't kill more people inadvertently....;)
Let's go get this dame and all her mooks.
Ezreal quirks an eyebrow at Marrius's attempt to absolve himself of guilt and snorts, "Regardless of your justifications you abandoned your country when it needed you most and the dead in your wake could care less about your rationalizations. Karranth hasn't forgotten you Marrius. The long winter allows plenty of time to remember those who have wronged us. Perhaps we will meet again when we have time to... discuss this at length."
Ezreal turns and calls out to the driver below, "You have an hour to get your transport secure before it will fall! Call the guard or whatever you have to do!"
That said he grips the featherfall token, gives Marrius a sarcastic salute and steps off the edge of the ship.
Ezreal quirks an eyebrow at Marrius's attempt to absolve himself of guilt and snorts, "Regardless of your justifications you abandoned your country when it needed you most and the dead in your wake could care less about your rationalizations. Karranth hasn't forgotten you Marrius. The long winter allows plenty of time to remember those who have wronged us. Perhaps we will meet again when we have time to... discuss this at length."
Ezreal turns and calls out to the driver below, "You have an hour to get your transport secure before it will fall! Call the guard or whatever you have to do!"
That said he grips the featherfall token, gives Marrius a sarcastic salute and steps off the edge of the ship.
"The dead were fortunate - their fate was otherwise much worse. You might learn that, one day, that your "country" is just made up of different people. Some are good, some are bad, and some are in the pocket of the cult of Vol. And some of those people are admirals who plan to use weapons of horrific power that might, or might not, have won the battle, but at a cost too terrible to imagine. I don't know where you were during the War but I bet you weren't at Sineer's Point. So don't tell me how Karrnath feels about me, because Karrnath doesn't know what happened - the Navy will have made sure of that. Now, get off my ship." Some of the member of the crew have wandered over during this exchange, and they now stand glowering.
"Let's go. Deepest regrets, Marrius, for this rude intrusion. If I might obtain an address to send some weregild for your slain crewman, I will certainly follow through.
I want to let you know, though; you're not alone in your feelings about country...there may be an entire nation of the disenchanted, united only in that, and certainly not by country of origin. I think, the next war is one of conscience and ideas. It smolders even now..."
Janosz activates a token before jumping overboard. "So... We get another skycab and go to the factory, then?"
"So... We get another skycab and go to the factory, then?"
The party touch down in Lower Central, the towers rearing up around them. They head for the nearest entrance to the Cogs, the portion of the city underneath all the skyscapers where industry rumbles and the dark secrets of Sharn's ancient history lurk. The entrance itself is a large archway with a ramp, twenty feet wide and lazily spiralling through masonry and then solid granite as it descends deeper and deeper. Traffic trundles up and down - warforged hauling carts, dwarven engineers carrying surveying equipment checking the walls, and the ever-present scampering goblins. The degree of heat and the level of noise gradually increase. The engines, running on the volcanic power of the lava pools beneath the city, send out a palpable throb through the rock is more felt than heard, and the temperature rises to become mildly uncomfortable.
The ramp, after about ten minutes of walking, empties out into the Cogs. These are no secluded, empty dungeons, but an industrial complex full of yelling foremen and the thunder of traffic, with elemental-powered wagons roaring at dangerous speed down wide tunnels lit by everbright lanterns. Warforged workers, in concentrations hardly seen since the War, stoically march in groups about their labours. Raw materials are fed through factory gates - iron-clad portals in the tunnel walls - and manufactures of all kinds emerge for sale in Breland and beyond. It is extremely noisy, hot and dirty.
Beggars are also common, though mostly ignored, and the occasional gnoll or bugbear heavy and their entourages shoulder their way through the crowds. Some parts of the Cogs have no industry, lacking access to the boiling rock that powers it. There live some of the most wretched and desparate individuals in Sharn (a dubious superlative), many goblinoids, and Daask is also strong there.
The Cannith Forgehold is the largest individual site in the Cogs, with several entrances. The gates are huge - forty feet wide and high - and made of soot-streaked grey metal (surely not adamantine - the cost would be almost unthinkable). Wagons and people file in and out, each carefully checked by a small army of attentive warforged guards. Above the gate, the gorgon symbol of House Cannith glares down at all visitors.
A small queue files through the gate, the guards checking for identification.
"Bloody hell." Janosz' brows knit with worry as he watches the enormous gate and the horde of troops guarding it. "There's no way the guards will let in a bunch of guys carrying as many weapons as we do. Hell, they probably won't let in more than one person, period. Perhaps we could pile into the tent, which someone could carry inside? Trose? D'you think you could talk your way past the gatekeepers? Having the entry glyph will help a lot, of course."
Lightbringer nods slowly. “You may be right friend Janosz,” he says. “I would volunteer for this mission – I do not fear it, and I am not unarmed without my weapons. However, my oaths forbid me from telling direct lies. That may be a problem if I am questioned.
“Trose is a good speaker, but his Tharashk dragonmark may work against him if it is noticed.”
"Alright bird, it's time to earn your keep. You are our eyes and ears for the moment. We need to know if they are checking ID papers, if they ask why you want in or just want to see the pass, and if they are holding weapons or any other gear that catches their eyes. And listen... there are too many goblins around here. Stay to the shadows and out of reach if you want to stay out of someone's pie."
Kadesh blinks twice, cocks its head to the side and squawks coarsely, "Metal men don't eat pie. Don't see me either." The raven flaps off down the corridor high above the entry queue and settles on the gorgon head of House Cannith.
Kadesh casts his eye over proceeding for a few minutes, then swoops back to Ezreal's shoulder.
"Metal man takes nice shiny, holds in hand, asks people name, who they go see. Metal man gives back nice shiny, people go in."
"Hmmmmm...."
"Two plans: One of us takes the glyph, walks up to the guards and tells them he's there to see Karile. The guards look him up and down and then let him in, while the rest of us ride along in the tent. The obvious problem with this is that the glyp belongs to Marrius, and the gate guys might sense that something's up. Second plan: We get into the tent, which someone - I'm thinking Arek - then rolls up into a little rag. Kadesh then takes the rag in his claws and flies inside. Once he settles in a secluded spot, we get out."
Lightbringer has been thinking, a slow but steady process.
“Marrius seemed confident that this glyph would get us in here. Maybe he cannot be trusted,” he looks at Ezreal, “but it would seem he had little reason to deceive us – and perhaps something to gain by us succeeding. We are perhaps over-thinking this. Perhaps we just need to have faith.
“Why do we not all try to enter, on the strength of this glyph, with weapons if needs be concealed or within the tent. That way we can use all our strengths to gain access, rather than relying on one of us.
“It is a fact that many of my brothers and sisters are not great thinkers. We should be able to convince them that we are to enter.”
He stands straight and looks ready to move. “We waste time here. Will we try it?”
Let's roll.
The group marches up to the gateway and enters the queue, behind an elemental wagon carrying ore. Fairly quickly, they are at the front, and the warforged sergeant at the gate extends a hand.
"Identification," it grates.
Lightbringer hands over Marrius’ glyph.
The warforged holds the glyph tighly in its hand and pauses for a moment.
"Name."
Lightbringer waits for someone else to answer.
"My name is Alehandro Borha; I was hired as a ship's surgeon to Marrius. Something went wrong....I....it's too hard to explain. We need to talk to Karile..."
Diplomacy 14+ap4+9=27
"My name is Alehandro Borha; I was hired as a ship's surgeon to Marrius. Something went wrong....I....it's too hard to explain. We need to talk to Karile..."
Diplomacy 14+ap4+9=27
"My name is Alehandro Borha; I was hired as a ship's surgeon to Marrius. Something went wrong....I....it's too hard to explain. We need to talk to Karile..."
Diplomacy 14+ap4+9=27
"That is not the correct name."
Thw warforged is standing there, waiting for a response.
I'll say, "Marrius."
The nod is almost imperceptible. "Who are you here to see?"
"Karile."
The warforged nods again. "You may enter. Miss d'Cannith is in Facility Five. You will by guided by an avatar. Follow the avatar. Do not deviate from the path the avatar takes. Do not attempt to enter any parts of the Forgehold other than your designated destination. Do not interfere with any activities of processes within the Forgehold. Do not attempt to remove any items from the Forgehold without express permission. Failure to comply with these requirements may result in expulsion from the Forgehold. House Cannith will not be held responsible for any resulting injuries or fatalities incurred through an individual's failure to comply with these requirements. Thank you."
The warforged steps out of the way of the gate. In the gateway, an globe of golden light about the size of a human head materialises, floating at about chesh height.
"Follow the avatar," repeats the guard, then he moves to deal with the next arrival.
Let's follow, what say you all?
"Aye."
Janosz shakes his head with relief and amazement as the party enters the Cannith facility. "Did we get real lucky there, or are those guards really that dumb?"
Once the party gets away from the gate, Janosz pulls his Quiver of Ehlonna out from underneath his cloak and starts re-arming.
Only buff I know I'll do is prayer and a bull's strength on myself; I'm waiting til right before we walk in if it proves doable. Anybody want aid or shield of faith or bull's strength? I have some scrolls of that; might as well bust them.
Also, note to self:
protection ritual on Runzyl, Trose, Ezreal, and Janosz; means I'm down 3 turn undead attempts.