Dreng keeps up a brisk pace, especially for someone of his age, as he dodges the carriages of the wealthy and their servants as he heads into the upper-class Ivy District.
"You’re probably wondering where I’m dragging you, eh? Seven years ago I sent young agents much like yourselves on a preliminary exploration of the necropolis below the Drownyard in the Precipice Quarter. The Drownyard is the name that was given to the old Tri-Towers School, once home to some of Absalom’s wealthiest progeny. It was destroyed in the great earthquake of 4698 AR, and we thought that all of the children,teachers, and staff had perished.”
“But let be back up a bit. Eight years ago, the Society discovered an ancient necropolis under the Drownyard. It dates back to the third century ar, and if you know anything about Absalom’s history, you’ll know that we know almost nothing about those early years. It took me almost an entire year of negotiating with the parents of the children who died in the Tri-Towers Yard to convince them to grant us access to the site, and when we did, what did we find? A lot of spooky stuff: undead, haunts, and some nasty bugs. But we also found something completely unexpected: a survivor. A little slip of a girl named Junia Dacilane somehow survived in a death-like state for 10 years. The only thing that kept her alive was a ring of sustenance that she had found among the crypts. Junia’s mother, Lady Miranda Dacilane, was of course beside herself when we pulled her living daughter from the ruins and she vowed to not only give the Society full access to the property, but personally underwrite our archaeological efforts there. Soon thereafter I set up an archaeological dig at the Drownyard, and we’ve been pulling out fascinating fragments from Absalom’s early history ever since. Every year I visit Lady Dacilane to renew our contract to maintain the dig, but this year it seems that she wants us to jump through an additional hoop. She wants us, or rather you, to escort her daughter back to the Drownyard. It seems that Junia’s become a bit obsessed with her alma mater, and since the Precipice Quarter is no place for pampered young noblewomen, she needs an escort. Think you can manage that?”
He quickly adds, “Oh, and don’t forget to call the Drownyard the Tri-Towers Yard while we’re at Dacilane Manor. No one who lost children in the earthquake likes to be reminded of that tragedy... even the ones who got their child back.”"
Dreng shoots Leia a look. "We're not coddling her, and I'm sending you along so that exactly NOTHING bad happens to her. The Precipice Quarter can be a dangerous place for a well-equipped warrior, never mind an aristocratic teenager. We're simply protecting our investment. Lady Dacilane has been a generous contributor to our cause, and without her we never would have been able to set up our dig in the Drownyards."
Turning a corner, a massive, ornate carriage pulled by two enormous, black-winged axe-beaks comes barreling down the cobbled streets, its drivers barely in control of the notoriously foul-tempered creatures. "Get out the way!" the lead driver shouts, pulling on the reins with white-knuckled desperation.
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"Oh, you not Packminder, then? Packminders usually kill monster. No, *always* kill monster. But Sad Rock *not* monster. Packminders not care about what monsters do. Only kill because monster."
Responding to Sad Rock: I am a Pathfinder. Pathfinders explore, report, and cooperate .. and sometimes kill things ... and some Pathfidners kill a lot of things ... even when they don't have to ... and that is bad.
Egmund's scrunches his face as he searches his memory.
Ms. Ollystra Zadrian says that we need to do good and help people ... not just kill everything ... only stop the evil things that do bad ...
Egmund moves to help the driver or other people in more danger if that is possible otherwise he starts to yell to get other people out of the way of the out of control wagon.
Oooof
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Reflex
"Ms. Ollystra Zadrian says we need to do good and help people...not just kill everything..."
Sad is about to respond with a question when the flying carriage comes at them. He dives and rolls away, his rocky body becoming a rolling stone.
"Hey! Sad was walking here!" Sad says, his ire rising, his hands almost reaching for his mighty club.
After he picks himself up, he responds to Eggman.
"No. Yes. No. Yes," Sad replies. "Many packminders hurt everything, especially monsters. But Sad *not* monster. Sad good packminder."
It's clear from the sad look in Sad's eyes that this concerns him greatly. He may feel like an outcast doing a hard and confusing job far far from home. He may feel that way.
* * *
: "Sad good babysitter. Put baby in backpack, very safe there," Sad offers helpfully. "Sad good at protecting. Have good club." Sad holds up his club to show Dreng.
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"Many packminders hurt everything, especially monsters. But Sad *not* monster. Sad good packminder."
Egmund nods along with Sad Rock's response and after the wagon incident has resolved looks Sadrock in the eyes and says, "Yes and Eggman is a good Pathfinder too."
: "I will protect her also and not call the drownyards the drownyards."
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Davnet listens carefully to Captain Dreng's briefing, wondering why he is dressed as a military officer.
"Captain, it seems unwise to take an impressionable young human back to the scene of her trauma," he begins. "Perhaps we can discuss with Lady Dacil-LOOK OUT!"
Davnet tries to dodge the oncoming carriage.
As Davnet yells the warning, Dreng lets out a high-pitched shriek and he jumps out the way, flatting himself against the wall of a red-painted house with a conical roof. As the carriage barrels by him, he raises a fist. "Watch where you are going, you idiots. You're not paid to kill people."
He brushes water from his pants and jacket and then resumes his brisk pace, not waiting for all of you to catch your breath.
The Venture-captain barely nods as he listens to your comments. "I'm glad you seem to have the situation in hand ... sort of. Just don't embarrass me in front of Lady Dacilane. She's pretty conservative for someone who lost all of her land in the civil war."
"Now were any of you on the original mission that rescued Junia? Might look good if we had some of the original crew here."
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"Well, eight years ago I was just a teenager myself, but I remember reading the chronicles. I might even have the proper issue in my backpack!"
She takes out two chronicles and looks at their indices
Lilybeth informs the others about her findings and repeats them in Terran to make sure Sad understands as well.
"I read here that Deris Marlinchen departed the Tri-Tower’s Yard, do you have any information of his current whereabouts?"
Dreng shakes his head. "No, I don't. From what I remember he was quite a disturbed man and did not take the recovery of his daughter's body well. Thought she was alive that whole time. He was from a wealthy family, so I'm sure he was taken care of in some way."
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Leia shakes her head indicating no, she wasn't aboard for the original rescue years ago.
"great. so since the place has gotten _more_dangerous, we're going to start doing tours. Are we at least going to take her down during daylight? not at night when the haunts are probably worse? There's undead and vermin that come out at night. "
"Captain Dreng, do you have any advice on how to handle the haunts? "
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Sad Rock listens to the Calistrian librarian's notes in Terran. He nods occasionally, but has no questions of his own.
"Sad Rock only be in Absalom 3 years," Sad holds up 3 of his stony, glittery fingers as if others might need the help to know how many 3 is.
He takes a moment to go introduce himself to Leia.
"Me Sad Rock. But Sad Rock *not* monster," Sad says, offering Leia a closed fist, expecting a Lastwall fist bump in return to complete the ritual greeting.
"great. so since the place has gotten _more_dangerous, we're going to start doing tours. Are we at least going to take her down during daylight? not at night when the haunts are probably worse? There's undead and vermin that come out at night. ""Captain Dreng, do you have any advice on how to handle the haunts? "
Dreng maneuvers around a large puddle that has formed in the cobblestone street in front of him. "The engineers could have done this better, and an elevated pedestrian section like they do in Anuli would not hurt either," he mumbles to himself.
At Leia's question he quickly looks back to see who just addressed him. "I don't know what she will want, but I suggest that you advise her to travel there during the day. I'd rather that you are not all killed, if it can be helped."
As he finishes the sentence, the group arrives at what looks to be your destination, Dacilane Manor. It is an imposing four-story townhouse of heavy masonry with a parapet roof that is festooned with numerous leering, demonic gargoyles. After knocking on the door, a middle-aged halfling woman in a large apron answers it. “Please come in. My lady will join you momentarily in the drawing room.”
After the halfling servant (slave?) returns inside, he finishes his thought to Leia. "We can talk about the precise details of the Drownyards once we are inside. Let us not keep the lady waiting." Dreng closes his umbrella and shakes the rain off of it, stepping inside.
Dreng clears his throat in embarrassment for having made a mistake. "Yes, yes, of course."
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Davnet follows the group, mentally making a list of items he might need to pick up before their visit to this haunted district.
Haunts... we should pick up one of those haunt trap things they use in Ustalav that I've read about. Siphons? That was it. Also something to deal with incorporeal undead creatures... the Drownyards sounds like a perfect place for ghosts and the like.
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Sad Rock is on his best behavior within the Dacilane manor which mostly means: don't touch anything and only eat what is offered. He introduces himself when addressed, of course, but is very reserved...even for a rock.
Sad takes some time to make faces back at the leering gargolyes, feeling an eerily similarity between them and himself.
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Egmund tries to get as much water and mud off himself as he can before stepping inside the manor.
Once inside he retrieves a cloth from his backpack and continues drying/cleaning himself up as well as he can. He even goes so far as to try and clean up any water that the other PCs might track in.
His task complete he looks to the halfling to see if there is a place to drop his pack looking to leave it behind before continuing farther into the house.
He is also on his best behavior which generally means: Being attentive and not saying anything unless specifically addressed, keeping a pleasant look on his face, staying away from breakable items/artwork as much as possible, moving very slowly and carefully to avoid collisions, and doing what is asked of him by either the host or Mr. Dreng.
The interior of Dacilane Manor is just as imposing as the outside. A wide foyer with a grand staircase leads to the second floor, while open double-doors lead into the drawing room. Heavy black draperies cover all the windows, shrouding the manor in shadows. All of the furniture in the common areas is oversized, expensive, and gothic, made of dark-stained mahogany wood.
Lady Dacilane enters a few moments after you enter the sitting room. She is a stern-looking, yet non-unattractive Chelaxian woman with sharp features, a fair complexion, and black hair accented with gray and white. She is dressed in a well-made, floor-length black gown streaked through with crimson. A plain-looking silver pentagram necklace is her only jewelry. Dreng immediately jumps up to greet her, bowing and kissing her hand in a formal fashion.
"Good morning, Lady Dacilane, it is so good of you to meet with us. As you have requested, I have brought a small contingent of my fellow Pathfinders who may serve young Lady Dacilane in her visit to the Precipice Quarter."
He then goes down the line, introducing each of you in turn, but leaving time between each of you in case you wish to add something.
"This young Kellid man in the armor is Egmund Jessup, a paladin of a minor Osirian god whose name escapes me right now. A valiant man to have by your side, to be sure."
"Next here is our oread man, Sad Rock. He has been training with us for some time, and originally comes form distant Tian Xia, if memory serves."
"Do not be alarmed by the fetchling, madam. He means you no harm and has been a loyal member of the Society for some time. Originally from Shadow Absalom, of course, but now wholly at home in our considerably brighter city."
"Our first female member is Lilybeth Zey. She ... ah, um ... " It seems that Dreng has come up somewhat short when it comes to Ms. Zey. "Well, she likes books, and is very knowledgable, I can tell you that!"
Clearing the slight embarrassment from his throat, he continues.
"Finally we have Leia Oroboros and her two-headed wolf eidolon. She is a summoner, as you can plainly see."
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"a paladin of a minor Osirian god whose name escapes me right now."
Calling Osiris a minor Osirian god seems a bit weird, even for Captain Dreng. The whole country is named after that specific god! Is Drangle replaced by a shapeshifter -again- or is he just nervous...
"Do not be alarmed by the fetchling, madam."
I read that some members of the shadow race take offense at the name fetchling and that they prefer to be called kayal. A Venture-Captain should know these things!
"Our first female member is Lilybeth Zey. She ... ah, um ... " It seems that Dreng has come up somewhat short when it comes to Ms. Zey. "Well, she likes books, and is very knowledgable, I can tell you that!"
What's going on with him! He seems even more absent than normal! Does he fancy Lady Dacilane?
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"Odin, why don't you go back home for a bit and dry off. " she indicates around a corner, he walks off and bends around the corner into nothing out of sight. She summons a small air elemental to whirl around and blow dry her, doing her best to dry off a bit and joins the others inside, dismissing the elemental.
Leia bows a bit at being introduced and winks. "A pleaseure, Lady Dacilane. "
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Danvet makes sure he is standing in a well-lit area, so that he seems less... unnatural in the shadowy manor. When introduced, he bows low to the lady, ignoring Dreng's language now as he did Lilybeth's back at the bar. It is wise to ally her fears in language a lightling will understand...
"An honor to meet you, Lady Dacilane."
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"Me Sad Rock. But Sad Rock *not* monster," Sad says, offering Leia a closed fist, expecting a Lastwall fist bump in return to complete the ritual greeting.
Sad looks irritated that Leia has decided to ignore the polite rocky man that Leia no doubt considers to be a monster.
"Sad not monster! Sad good packminder!" Sad says, hurt and angry. He spins away from Leia, trying to keep a stiff upper lip. He goes to stand around less-prejudiced-against-oreads pathfinders, like Lily and Eggman.
* * *
When Sad is introduced, he stands (though his sitting and standing heights are very close) to knuckle his forehead and offer a polite bow.
He is happy to get by the introductions without speaking.
"a paladin of a minor Osirian god whose name escapes me right now."Calling Osiris a minor Osirian god seems a bit weird, even for Captain Dreng. The whole country is named after that specific god! Is Drangle replaced by a shapeshifter -again- or is he just nervous...
[dice=sense motive]d20+4
The Venture-captain seems his normal self as far as you can tell.
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Lady Dacilane enters a few moments after you enter the sitting room.
Egmund having never taken a seat turns to face her as she enters.
"This young Kellid man in the armor is Egmund Jessup, a paladin of a minor Osirian god whose name escapes me right now. A valiant man to have by your side, to be sure."
Egmund straightens slightly as he is being introduced and executes a abbreviated formal bow, "Mi'lady"
He does not register Dreng's casual dismissal of his god or the mispronunciation of his name.
He continues to look at Dreng until the introductions are finished.
Once they are his attention is fully on Lady Dacilane.
The venture-captain launches into a prepared speech about the importance of Lady Dacilane’s ongoing support of the Society’s activities and the many important artifacts they have been able to recover from the Tri-Towers Yard necropolis. Lady Dacilane listens politely, making a few pro-forma inquiries into several details about the management of the site before getting to the heart of the negotiation and addressing all of you directly.
"As I am sure Master Dreng has already informed you, I have a particular request of the Pathfinder Society this year. My daughter Junia has recently celebrated her eighteenth birthday, but she maintains a certain obsession with the traumatic events that befell her at the Tri-Towers Yard so many years ago. I have stopped her from sneaking out of the manor and visiting that place several times, and I feel that her past is keeping her from fully embracing her future. I would ask that you accompany her to the gods-forsaken Precipice Quarter and let her see her fill of the decay and misery. Perhaps those sights will cure her of her unnatural obsessions."
Lady Dacilane then looks at each of you. "Would this be something that you could do for me, and do you have any questions?"
Dreng shoots Sad Rock an annoyed look as if to say, please don't embarrass me in front of one of our patrons by asking such silly questions!
Lady Dalsine, being a woman of good upbringing, ignores the oread's question, but instead answers the paladin's.
"Junia’s experiences during and after the earthquake were terrible, and they have left lasting mental scars. Despite my efforts and those of some of Absalom’s best healers, I have been unable to truly help her. Nevertheless, it is time for her to put her childhood experiences behind her and face her adult responsibilities. Junia has a particular affection for the Pathfinder Society, most likely because it was your members who rescued her from the necropolis. It is my hope that she will be more forthcoming about her condition with you."
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Lady Dacilane then looks at each of you. "Would this be something that you could do for me, and do you have any questions?"
Danvet nods slowly. "Of course, if you feel it is wise, Lady, we shall do this for you. Of course, you are well aware of the danger inherent in your request... please define for us the risk level you deem acceptable. Are we required to take your daughter within the yard itself? Underground into the ruins? I would prefer to know your mind rather than relying upon your daughter's orders, especially when she may be in a perhaps emotional state."
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At Sad's comment, Davnet whispers: "Most humans don't enjoy being inside containers..."
Lady Dalsine
Danvet nods slowly. "Of course, if you feel it is wise, Lady, we shall do this for you. Of course, you are well aware of the danger inherent in your request... please define for us the risk level you deem acceptable. Are we required to take your daughter within the yard itself? Underground into the ruins? I would prefer to know your mind rather than relying upon your daughter's orders, especially when she may be in a perhaps emotional state."
Lady Dacilane nods. "A prudent question. Take her wherever she wishes to go, but if you think you or Lady Dacilane are in mortal danger, then obviously avoid it."
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Egmund nods in response to each of Lady Dacilane's answers.
"Are there any threats to your daughter other than those in the area where we are going that we should be made aware of?"
Egmund's implication is that if the family has any enemies that they might try to harm her daughter while she is out. The tone is one seeking information with no hint of judgment or indication that the answer will change his willingness to protect her daughter to the best of his ability.
"You'll have to ask her that question, but I would prefer if it were handled sooner rather than later. I've got a very busy social schedule for Junia once she gets this out of her system."
Lady Dacilane calls softly, "Angele, ask Junia to come down now."
The halfling servant enters, nods briefly to her mistress and then walks up the stairs.
Lady Dacilane then looks back to you. "Any other questions?"