As you continmue to look around you hear a voice coming from above you.
"Good evening!"
Tess looks around to see who or what is greeting the group.
Elric looks up. "Hi?"
"It seems I am not the only one searching for the Whispering Way. But alas, it appears that they deserted this place some time ago. My name is Quinley Basdel, and I'm searching for my mother's killer. Perhaps we might be able to assist each other?"
Standing on a balcony above you is a very pale skinned man with silvery white hair. He is dressed in a chain shirt and carries a rapier.
Know. Nature
Tessara, you recognise the creature as a dhampir, the offspring of a vampire and a human.
"Why has your search lead you here? We're certainly open to assistance, but you have to understand that we're a bit leery of strangers."
Tess whispers about the dhampir to the others. ”Tread carefully. It might take more from the vampire side,” she warns.
[b]"I heard rumours that the Whispering Way were responsible for my mother's death. The vampires of Caliphas have a long history of enmity with the Whispering Way so it seemed a logical route to investigate. I managed to find some clues about the city that led me here.[/i]
"Do you have any clues that will narrow things down in the city? Or, even point us in the right direction? A contact maybe?"
"The Vampire Underground. Long ago, the streets of Caliphas were raised to install a proper sewer. The ground floors of many of the city's buildings became basements, their basements became subbasements and so on. The vampires claimed some of these areas for themselves. I can you take you there but we may have to get past a few guardians on the way."
"Can you guarantee our safety once we've arrived? Vampires don't have the best reputation, and I don't want to end up as anyone's thrall."
"Once we get past their guardians. I can get you an audience with Luvick. If you tell him you can find whoever's killing his people, he'll listen to you."
"Excellent. This is a good led. Let's go."
"Excellent, the closest entrance to the Vampire Underground is at the Glass House, a greenhouse in Restoration Park. I shall meet you there in one hour, will that be acceptable?"
"That is acceptable to me. The Whispering Way is a plague on this area."
"I'm not sure I trust vampires as partners, but it seems that we have a common enemy, at least."
”Vampires? I still hate the sound of this. I mean we know what we have to do, but I still don’t really like it,” Tess grumbles.
"Well when we have what we need if they turn on us or prove to evil, we can eliminate them."
You arrive at the south entrance to the park. Officially the park is open from dawn to dusk but there is no gate. To the northeast you can see a statue and to the southeast you can see a set of standing stones. To the south you can see a greenhouse like structure.
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”As a general rule, I don’t trust statues. I expect trouble from them,” Tess whispers.
"Let's head to those standing stones. They seem like the most macabre setting for such a meeting.
"Sounds good."
The standing stones appear to be a trio of stones set in a small circle.
Perception
Creeden, Eleric and Jaboa notice faded bloodstains on some of the stones.
"Blood ritual? shall I cut myself and see if anything happens?"
Eleric casts detect magic. Does he see anything?
Feeling deeply uncomfortable with colluding with a dhampir and possibly Vampires against the common enemy of The Whispering Way, Ortensia was quiet.
She followed her companions with a terse purpose, scanning the surroundings for any sign of sinister goings on.
Nothing shows up as magical.
Ortensia as you cast psychic significance you see that over the centuries this has been a meeting point for vampires where they have taken their meals from helpless victims. The bloodstains seem to be remnants of that activity.
Tess pulls her cloak tighter around her neck as the others look around.
Ortensia couldn't stifle the full body shudder that made her reedy figure jerk.
...Urgh. The Vampires feeding grounds.
"Well that is slightly less sinister than I thought. Let continue forward."
Nothing detects as magical as you move along
The statue is a life sized alabaster statue mounted on a block of granite of Sesasgia Caliphvaso, the countess who refounded the city of Caliphas after the defeat of the Whispering Tyrant.
Ortensia peered at the statue of the city's founder, probing it with her mind.
She stopped herself from making contact with it, hand outstretched to the weathered alabaster.
You do not get anything recent from psychic significance. You do get fleeting impressions of when the statue was first built about 200 years ago.
"Not much here. Perhaps they are waiting in the greenhouse?"
That's impressive. Two centuries and still intact.
"Let's head in and see what we see."
A small rise of steps leads to a wide portico. Two massive pillars
of stone support a roof overhead and flank a pair of ornate,
gold-clad doors inscribed with sun motifs. The doors are closed shut
”Everyone ready?”. Tess took a deep breath and headed for the doors.
Elric will check for traps.
Eleric you do not find any traps but it is clear that the doors are locked.