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As you enter in this room, you can see that much of the floor is covered in a sea of grain, that makes your movement a little difficult.
Despite the 'grain swamp', you also notice some 10-foot-high ceiling that are covered with flow hatches, all of them are full of grains.
There are also open passages to the north and another to the west.
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Although Xugra could move better than the others through the grains, the rest of the party don't worry about the grains, and cross the room in their time.
While walking and looking for any track of the murderers, Tanna and Xugra noticed a faint trail of blood leading from the antechamber to the northeast silo.
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+2 underground
When you enter in the northeast silo, you notice three strange figures. They are shrouded in mist, and their movements just doesn't make sounds. At distance, you can't distinguish if they are humans or not, despite their apparently humanoid form. Although you can't see clearly their faces, the vapor that surrounding them seems to animate their cloaks and weapons.
Two of them are stand guard, while another is unpacking some ceramical vials from an ancient rusted metal chest.
"By the gods! The Black Echelon!", screamed Yargos while trying to positioning himself in a safe place.
COMBAT (Round 1)
Bold may act
Maran, Tanna, Xugra, Tomren
Bad guys
Nemrok
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The grains didn't represent such problem to Xugra, who crosses through it relatively easily.
When he got adjacent to his enemy, Xugra feels the mist that shrouded the creature making the air more heavy, what makes him have the creepy sensation that he is moving in slow motion.
When Xugra raises his greatsword against the creature, for a few seconds he could saw his scary 'face': under the hood of that cloak resides a floating human skull — a bleach-white, bony visage with empty eye sockets that somehow speak of the creature’s undying determination.
Despite his devastating blow, nobody in the room could listen the sound of his attack. The fighter simply cut the Black Echolon in two pieces, and an empty cloak drops on the floor.
COMBAT (Round 1)
Bold may act
Maran, Tanna, Xugra, Tomren
Bad guys
Nemrok
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Tanna takes aim at the ghoul by the chest...
Heavy Crossbow, crit 19-20/x2
[dice=Ranged Hvy Xbow Atk vs. ?]1d20+2
[dice=crit conf.]1d20+2
[dice=Damage?]1d10
[dice=addtl damage]2d10-Posted with Wayfinder
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...Two of them are stand guard, while another is unpacking some ceramical vials from an ancient rusted metal chest.
-Posted with Wayfinder
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Tomren hits one of them with his spell, which seems to hurt it hard.
Tanna explodes the head of the other with her precise shot.
Maran moves forward and stays ready to attack anything that comes close to him.
The remaining echelon expands the mist around him and it fills almost the entire room, then makes a short step back.
Nemrok recognizes these creatures from one of the Pathfinder Chronicles that he was reading months ago. They are undeads very similar to a usual skeleton with a few more tricks.
To all: Treat the area with the yellow circle as in a "fog condition".
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While Nemrok walks through the room, Maran feels another sinister presence emerging from the grains.
The dwarf had a quick reflex and tried to hit the creature twice, once for his prepared attack, and another while the black echelon was standing up, but both misses his target.
COMBAT (Round 2)
Bold may act
Maran, Tanna, Xugra, Tomren
Bad guys
Nemrok
More Bad guys
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Maran is quick in stab the echelon who raises behind him, making it fall on the ground.
Xugra moves and cuts the other in two pieces.
Tanna drops her crossbow and moves to aid her allies.
Tomren casts his spell and engages in melee.
The last echelon moves more close to the party.
COMBAT (Round 2)
Bold may act
Maran, Tanna, Xugra, Tomren
Bad guy
Nemrok
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Despite the low vision from his target, Nemrok's magic was capable to hit the last echelon and it fall into the ground, like the others before it.
End of combat.
When the last of them is defeated, the fog is dissipated and you can see the chest with some vials at the same time that Yargos enters the room.
"Good, Pathfinders! You're amazing! You defeated them as if they were nothing, very good", he turns to the vials "these are the gut wither poison, that the black echelon would use to poisoning the grains, unless you saved the day."
Yargos was very happy but suddenly he becomes worried again. "We don't have much time, my friends. Let's go to the Grandmaster Torch, as we initially planned."
You don't find nothing special at the grains' silos, only the chest with the vials.
Yargos takes you into the sewer maze of the Puddle District, a waterlogged labyrinth of dangerously flooded tunnels known as the Siphons. There you find the receiving room of Grandmaster Torch, one of Absalom’s most notorious information brokers. Yargos warns you that Grandmaster Torch has powerful friends and bodyguards and that you would be wise to keep your weapons sheathed.
Once there, Yargos requests an audience, and all of you are brought before the Grandmaster, a charming, soft-spoken man, but one whose entire body is covered in horrible burn scars.
Grandmaster Torch lounges in a shallow pool nursing his scars while two servants gently recycle the water over his charred form. His two heavily armored, half-orc bodyguards remain close at hand. After a brief introduction, Grandmaster Torch, turns to you: "good evening, Pathfinders. What would I do for you?"
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Nemrok bows to Grandmaster Torch and takes a step forward.
Greetings Grandmaster. I'm Nemrok Blacktusk from the Pathfinder Society. Absalom is in great danger as an ancient force from the Past rises to try to do what they were unable to do in ancient time.
A foolish man, uses a codebook to launch what was call "the Black Echelon". We need your help to ensure that this time, the danger will be gone forever. To recover the book and the man responsible for this, a man named Nessian.
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"Hmmm", Grandmaster Torch grins, "Nessian, huh? It is a very valuable information, you know?", he moves slowly in the pool, "his power is growing in the underworld, sell an information like that could cost a life or more. But everything have a price in this world, my guests. And I assure you that I know where he is and the price for this information is 6,000 golden pieces", then, he looks to everyone of you, eyes on eyes.
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"Might there be some sort of barter arrangement that we can come to? The Society, as you know, wields great power in certain areas that may interest you. And we may possess some other skill you may be in need of? I am a gifted healer and could look after your... wounds."
The dwarf impressed human stammers at the end.
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After considering your arguments, Torch looks at the metal chest that you are carrying and tells you, "well, that chest that you are carrying gave me an idea. First, it can be part of the payment, and I'll appreciate it. Second, I’ve recently come into possession of a series of safes. Unfortunately, the safecracker I employed has turned out to be quite useless. If you can coax even three of the five safes open, I could be persuaded to disclose Nessian’s location and dispense with my regular fee entirely. These chests are remarkably unique and I have the foreboding suspicion that, in this case, the receptacles just might be worth more than their contents, so I’d rather you didn’t smash them open. Oh! One more thing: if my diviner warns me you have crossed me and stolen the contents, there will be repercussions."
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"Which part of 'remarkably unique chests' you didn't understand, dwarf?", Torch rebukes Maran.
Once you accept his offer, you were directed to a side room, where you can attempt to tackle Grandmaster Torch’s safes.
These are the five chests:
1. This is an iron cask with a lock that is a laughing devil’s head.
2. This is a red box that has been inset with a trio of golden faces: the first appears stern, the second angry, and the third fumes with hatred.
3. This is a stone chest, with a lid covered with a relief of carved ivy.
4. This sealed stone chest has no visible lock or hinges. No decoration or writing of any kind can be found.
5. This is a rectangular chest with a strange stylized writing wraps around the whole of it. Stranger still are the ten small pores that run along the box’s lid.
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Nemrok casts his spell and feels the magic force flowing through the room. After a few moment, he identifies that the chests 2, 3, 4 and 5 emanates magic auras, which are different one from another. Unfortunately, he can't distinguish the schools of magic of them, maybe they were created by a real strength power.
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With Nimrok's assertion on the magical auras, Tanna recounts the times of her youth as an orphan with the Dwarves in the Five King's Mountain poking around the craftsmens' workbenches. The dwarves were skilled craftsmen and Tanna, when not working in the infirmary, would watch with wonder as they crafted their wares. She turns her attention to chest number one with the devil, paying extra attention for traps.
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Chest 4: It seems like a solid block of stone, with no locks.
You notice that the devil’s head can be turned in both directions, like a combination lock, but without numbers to act as a guide.
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There's something carved here in this chest. It seens like a riddle... Mara says appointing to chest
Though different now sounds my name, the spelling still remains the same. Once prior leap of might, now becomes bird of white... Hah, anybody get a clue about it?
And this one seens like a solid block of stone to me... - Maran says appointing chest