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As they walked back to town, Kip asked Carver a bit more, "So your organization's founder explored this island, but now you're here to explore it again since you guys don't know what's here? Sounds like maybe Simon was right about secrets and hiding information, though I'm not sure why he stomped off like that. Not a good way to actually help anyone. Anyways, do you have anymore information about the history of the island that you've been keeping tucked away?"
Carver shakes his head. "I know as much about Ancorato as anybody else. I hope we might be able to find some of the sites Durvin Gest mentioned in his chronicles. They could give insights into this place as it existed during the height of the Azlant empire."
"Do you have copies of those chronicles here we could read?"
"Yes, you are welcome to borrow my copy of the first volume of the Pathfinder Chronicles."
Once he has finished speaking to Ramona back at the colony, Carver stops by your house to lend Kip the premier volume of the seminal publication.
"Excellent! Perhaps I can uncover some clue that will help direct our investigations." After he finished tending his garden for the evening, Kip settled in to study the chronicle in detail, well into the night.
The first Pathfinder Chronicles volume features an account of Durvin Gest's exploration of the ruins of Lost Azlant, and also details the exploits of Selmius Foster and Gregaro Voth. Gest's discoveries along his journey include a cache of ioun stones, and mentions several Voth recounts his story of the exploration of ruins in the Forbidden Jungle, and Foster describes racing a marid and an efreeti through a number of challenges.
Of course, it's Gest's journeys which are of relevance to Kip. The grippli reads about various points of interest which may be on Ancorato: an abandoned Ulfen settlement on the east coast, a cave behind a waterfall on the northeast side of the island, a sunken laboratory long swallowed by the earth, a crystal monument on a small island northwest of Ancorato, and an ancient observatory located somewhere in the mountains.
Once they made their way safely back to town Ema went back to their home and for a while to wait for Simon. She knew he would be back soon enough and that they would need to talk about things. She planned to keep calm much better than she had earlier. She thought that the fact Carver was going to bring over his copy of the First Chronicle might actually help smooth things over considerably.
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Simon is very pleased to see Kip when he returns to the house, yet he is embarrassed about the earlier outburst. Not knowing if he should attempt to broach the subject or not, he covers his insecurity with excitement about the tracks.
"Kip! You made it back.
I found Lyra. She discovered more tracks from the swarm of little robots on the beach. With two points of reference, she thinks she can make a guess about the location of whatever they are guarding.
It sounds like Ramona wants us to go investigate. Isn't that exciting? Maybe we'll find some clues about the previous settlers."
Ema was sitting there waiting on Simon and gave him a wary look when he came inn the door. It seemed that he was going to avoid the subject if he could and she let him a he explained what Lyra had discovered. She agreed with what he said about Ramona's suggestion and thought it was a very good idea. Still, things needed to be dealt with and putting it off wasn't a good idea. Looking at Simon warily Ema asked, "So, I see you've gotten through you earlier bad mood. Shall we talk about what happened Simon?" One eyebrow arched and she had that tone that implied the answer was something that would get him in trouble either way he responded.
Ema let Simon squirm a moment, or so she hoped anyway, before gesturing to the seat to her right. It put him at a right angle to her where they could see each other but not be across from one another and said, "So first off Carver brought by his copy of the First Chronicle, mostly for Kip but we can all read it freely." Her tone was arch as she made the statement, obviously referencing his belief that Carver was hiding things from them and keeping information to himself. "As for carver keeping his identity quiet it isn't uncommon for Pathfinders to do so. They often lead dangerous lives and make enemies so their anonymity is needed for their protection. As for myself I am not a Pathfinder, in fact I turned down Carver's first offer yesterday of membership, and didn't accept it today either. He's correct that I have worked with them before though." She sighed and motioned the others to join them. She considered a moment what to say as she did and decided how much of her past to tell them. A large part would depend on just how well Simon took everything so far.
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Simon looks at his feet and scuffs at a piece of dust.
"Yes, I suppose we can't just sweep it under the rug. I am sorry, Ema, for lashing out at you. That wasn't fair of me, or helpful."
Simon takes the offerred seat, and reacts with great surprise when the Chronicles are mentioned. "Truly?! Those volumes are supposed to be held private to Pathfinders, I thought. Those that weren't destroyed outright because the information in them was too dangerous anyways.
I have certainly seen alleged smuggled copies before, but I've always held the information in those copies to be suspect at best. Are you sure you won't get in trouble for letting me look at the book?"
Simon grimaces as Ema brings the subject back to his reaction to Carver.
"Look, I'm not sure that you can fully appreciate just hiw difficult the Society makes things for those of us who actually want to do real research into the past.
Their teams swoop into a place poorly informed and ill equipped, lying to the locals about their intents. They usually end up killing a few people, destroying valuable historical evidence, and removing important artifacts to be sold to the highest bidder or secreted away. When they are done, they invariably expect the locals to be thankful for some reason.
Those of us who come after have to deal with a suspicious and resentful populace and a historical site that has been damaged.
I had been starting to look at Carver as a kind of mentor. To find out that he was a Pathfinder felt like a betrayal, and still does.
Plus, I am a half-orc. I won't live as long as the rest of you. This island is basically my one shot to make a name for myself outside of the shadow of my father's fame. Learning that the entire island is old news is crushing.
All I have left is to try to tell the real story. The story that the Society wants to keep hidden.
Maybe it is too late for apologies, but I think we are stuck together regardless, so maybe we can learn to accept each other."
Simon trails off and waits to see hiw the others feel.
"Sometimes its best to just ask! I've been reading, and it seems like the earlier pathfinder expedition did just a cursory survey. All the real secrets are still left to us to find, but Gest pointed out some cool looking stuff to go dive into. Did you know the early Ulfen once had a settlement here? Or that there's a crystal monument off on one of the little satellite islands? Or an ancient Azlanti observatory in the mountains!? It's like he was in a hurry to plant flags at all the places he went, but didn't take the time to actually experience any of it. It's all there for us to find!
Anyways, there's plenty of time. And I thought half-orcs lived a long time, just like humans. And if you're really worried about it, you could learn to be a wizard! I hear they live forever."
Ema frowned slightly at Kip's words of living forever. For some reason she felt there was something...wrong about the idea but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. She looked up at Simon and said, "It's never too late for apologies Simon, and I understand better now why you have the opinions on the Pathfinders that you do." She sighed as she said, "Truthfully I've only known them from an employee's point of view."
Contemplating where to start Emalliandra decided at the beginning was best and said, "The first thing I remember is walking through the countryside of what I now know to be northern Varisia naked, no memory of who I was, nothing. I remembered how to take care of my daily needs and could speak only one unfathomable language." She looked into the distance as if parting the veil of time and said a few words with a gesture and caused a nearby cup to float over to a pitcher, the pitcher to rise and pour water into it, and then the cup to float across the room to her. When it arrived she took a sip and then continued, "I was taken in by a caravan of Varisian Nomads and they helped me learn to speak their language. I traveled with them for a time and eventually left them when we ended up in Magnimar where I decided to seek out the local Venture Captain for the Society. The Caravaners told me that if anyone would recognize the language I spoke it would be them and they were right."
Taking another sip Ema shifted in her chair before she went further and said, "The Society hired me because of my knowledge of that strange tongue, what is called Ancient Azanti, not only could I read it flawlessly but I could speak it too and I managed to correct several mistranslations for them. Eventually I stumbled on a book of magic and began to study it, learning strange skills, cheats if you will, that let me summon creatures and modify my spells somewhat. I ended up going to Andoran after a rather...unpleasant duel with a foolish young wizard who thought I was a cheating whore. I ended the duel before it barely began and then headed out to get somewhere safe from his reach. I worked as a translator again in Andoran ad when I heard of this colony I had to join. I saved my money, got accepted, and now here we are." She looked directly at Simon and raised an eyebrow in inquiry as she asked, "Does that satisfy your concerns about me now Simon? I never formally joined the Society but I have been an ally of them and have never had a reason to doubt their intentions."
Kip sat in rapt attention, though occasionally he would interject with things like "What happened to your clothes?" and "Did you cheat? Was he super embarassed?"
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"Oh, I am sure the Pathfinders mean well, but you can't accept the face value of anyone.
Secrets just keep the world from advancing. Maybe you should ask Carver about the fifth chronicle sometime. I've heard the Society burned every single copy of it. Deemed it too dangerous even for other Pathfinders."
Simon is contemplative for a bit.
"You may be right, Kip. Gest was a fortune seeker. He probably stopped once he found that enormous cache of Ioun Stones that they used to build their fortress in Absalom with. There may, in fact, be more to discover.
Or, more likely, he looted and destroyed the entire island and just allowed the barest accounts to be published in the Chronicles you are holding.
Either way, I suppose there is only one way to find out."
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In light of her private revelations, Simon stops and begins to study Emalliandra.
He's never really taken that much notice of her before, other than a mild irritation that she would choose to use her body to solve personal conflicts rather than the impressive intellect that lies behind the outer shell.
He finally notes the purple eyes and the bone structure of her cheeks. "You woke up with no knowledge of your past, and were only able to speak Azlanti?
I'll admit, that is odd. Do you recall having a head wound? I've heard of head injuries causing people to lose their memories, but never losing the ability to speak their natural language.
You are a bit short to be Azlanti, but you do have several of their characteristics. I suppose a number of ancient bloodlines must have blended together perfectly to create such an effect.
Still, this tale of your past is odd. Blood speaks, certainly, but I don't believe for a second that you just materialized on that field. No family ever came looking for you?
Hmmmm. Well, maybe I could have pieced together some of the secrets of your background way back then, but there is nothing for it now.
As for my trust of you, I never meant to put that into question. The Society, though, I don't trust them. Feel free to join up, if that is your desire. As long as you don't try to stop me from telling the real story, we won't have any problems."
"What if you're actually an ancient Azlanti spirit that managed to possess this body, but you lost your memory from wandering the world for so long without a body!"
Ema considered what she could recall of her first memories and said, "No, I don't think I had a head injury, granted the first few days are very hazy. As far as I know I have no family, certainly no one ever came anyway, and now you're probably right Simon, it's far to late to learn anything useful at this point from where I started, if I could even find it again." She looked at Kip as he threw a theory out at her and considered it thoughtfully for a moment before she said, "I don't think so Kip, but I suppose it is possible. I know I've felt drawn here as long as I can remember, granted that's only around two years but still," she shrugged and finished, "who knows?" She gave a little giggle at the end of her words and looked at Victrix to see if she had any questions or thoughts.
Victrix is quiet for a while before she speaks up again.
"Yeh've been a good sort since yeh've sailed with us, yeh've been a great 'elp in a foight. An' yeh don't seem ta be inclined ta do the colony harm." She shrugs. "I don't see any reason ta treat yeh any different than before."
With the air cleared between the four of you, you eventually turn in and rest for the night. In the morning, though, Ramona finds you with a concerned expression on her face. One of the colonists was attacked during the night. She leads you to the home shared by Daib Joiner and Geoff Tamor.
Daib explains that he awoke in the middle of the night to find someone trying to choke him to death. Geoff got up to get a drink of water and returned to find some stranger in their bedroom trying to kill Daib. Geoff struck the assailant on the head with an iron skillet, but this only seemed to daze the individual, who staggered out the door and disappeared into the night. The pair describes the would-be killer as a "horrible little naked man, with gray skin and long, rubbery arms." It sounds like another choker.
"I don't want to cause a panic with the other colonists, but this culprit must be found and prevented from causing any more harm," Ramona says.
Simon finds small, starfish-shaped footprints leading away from Daib and Geoff's house. He follows them south to the former Levin farm, which is now occupied by Faedwyr Trundlebrook and his wife Helena--the same home in which you confronted the drunk choker during your initial exploration.
The tracks become more difficult to follow as they head up the hill, but with careful examination, Simon keeps them in sight. They lead to the well just outside the farm house. The well descends forty feet, and the rock walls are uneven with a few cracks and crevices that could serve as usable foot- and handholds.
With his darkvision, the half-orc can see a narrow break in the wall just above the waterline.
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"It does, in fact, appear to be a choker.
These are the same type of tracks we saw from when the previous choker pushed the ale into Faedwyr's house."
Simon pauses for dramatic effect.
"It appears that we will have to deal with this infestation of chokers before we can return to investigating what happened to the previous colonists.
Lets collect our gear, make whatever preparations you need for an underground adventure, and head down into the well."
Simon will gather his own supplies and then secure his rope at the top of the well.
"Do you think the chokers could have gotten some of the missing colonists?"
"Then the freaky bastards'll live long enough ta regret it."
You climb down the rope and squeeze through the narrow hole in the wall (except for Kip, who can pass through easily). Beyond the hole, the walls are rough and uneven, while stalactites hang from the stone ceiling of a cave. The air is cool in contrast to the warmth of the island's surface. A natural tunnel meanders in a northerly direction.
It wind northeast for 100 feet or so. Stalactites and stalagmites are common, as are fallen rocks, but the tunnel is passable. The ceiling height varies but remains within 10 to 15 feet.
The passage splits into two tunnels. The faint dripping of water into small pools echoes softly down the cave tunnels. The walls in this chamber show signs of being rich in crystalline rock.
"Wow... Ema, do you think you could learn how to make magic gems? Simon, any idea how hard it is to mine it? Who would have thought there'd be such an expansive cave hidden in the well? Do you think my constant stream of questions might attract the very monsters we're here to track down?" Kip gulped audibly at the end and cautiously drew his rapier.
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"I am not a miner, but I am certain that there are people in the settlement that would be overjoyed if we found a surviving vein of precious gems.
It will be hard to pinpoint our exact location while underground, but we'll do our best."
Simon will begin doing his best, with the help of the compass, to sketch a map of their travels.
"As for right now, I will suggest that we take the left tunnel. Consistent left hand turns will make sure we don't get lost."
The cramped tunnels open up into a larger cavern. Its irregular walls open to dark spaces. A suspicious-looking pile of bones sits in the center of the floor, while the faint scent of blood and viscera has almost—but not quite—faded away.
Four young chokers are in this cavern, each one not even two-feet-tall. They seem to be taking turns trying to lob a small rock into a hole in the cavern wall. When they see you, though, they shriek out in alarm before rushing towards you!
They are upon you before you can react. The tiny creatures crowd together as they lash out at Simon and Victrix. One manages to grab the aasimar by the neck, choking her with a spiny tentacle!
When the evening's discussion had wound down and supper had been ate Sialea went to visit the Blacksmith, as she had said she would, and returned rather late seeming quite satisfied and mussed. She turned in after getting cleaned up and slept soundly through the night and into the morning. When she woke up she went through her normal routine and thought the day would be rather pleasant, at least until they were visited by Ramona and told of the incident.
When they began to follow the trail Emalliandra began to chant, drawing a sigil in the air over her chest, and when she finished the sigil seemed to emit a fiel of energy that wrapped her in it's embrace while her eyes glowed briefly as she tapped into her reservoir of arcane power to make the spell last longer.
Seeing that they would be going into the darkness of the cave, and knowing she couldn't see in there, Ema cast another spell, a simple one, and sent a quartet of of torch-like lights in with them to help light the area up. When they found the chokers Sia was surprised, they actually were kind of cute playing their game, and it caught her off guard when they turned and charged the group. Seeing that Victrix was being choked by one she focused and her eyes glowed again as she drew the sigil that called a gate forth and allowed her summoned eagle to appear right behind the choker that was on Victrix, attacking with a screech as it tried to smite the thing.
Ema's summoned eagle tears into the young choker with its talons. The creature releases Victrix as it falls to the ground.
Kip stepped forward, stabbing out at the creature that just missed Victrix.
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"I wish they were able to understand us. Then we might be able to convince them that we're not food. Their game looked fun..."
With a gasp for air and a glare on her face, Victrix swings her spear at the nearest choker...
Simon draws his glowing sword and slices into the nearest choker, severely wounding it. Kip jabs at the one attacking Victrix, but it dodges his blade. Victrix impales it with her spear, though, and it goes down.
The two remaining chokers both attack Simon. He takes two hits, but manages to avoid getting grabbed.
Kip hopped around in a wide arc, then darted forward, providing a distraction for Victrix.
,
Victrix twirls her spear and stabs out again!
The eagle flew over to the next choker to kill and put it between Victrix and herself before clawing at it with a screech of anger.
Emalliandra chanted and then sent a glob of acid flying at the same target. Unfortunately in trying to avoid her bird and Victrix her attack missed horribly.
Emma's eagle slashes the wounded choker with its talon, dropping it. She tries to blast the other one with acid, but her spell goes wide.
Simon swings his sword in a broad arc that goes over the last choker's head. Kip hops around to flank it with Victrix, scoring a shallow cut. Victrix brings it down with another thrust of her spear.
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"Tough little buggers, for babies. I don't remember the grown-up being quite so tough, but then it was drunk and alone."
Simon wipes off his sword and sheathes it, before rubbing at the painful areas where the tentacles pounded into his armor.
"Kip, can I have a handful of berries, please?"
Taking 8 of the proferred berries, Simon chomps down on them and starts to feel better.
He will take a careful look around and wait to see if the others are ready to continue through the tunnels.
"Of course!" Kip replied, quickly sheathing his rapier and retrieving the berries and goodberry wand. "So, we've found a brood of babies, and we fought an adult before... there's probably another adult down here somewhere? Or do these things do that sort of thing differently?"
The walls of this cave are slick with moisture, and the smell of rotten meat fills the air.
As Victrix steps through the narrow gap, rubbery tentacles whip out from around the corner to try to grab her! One scrapes painfully across her neck, but fails to grab a hold.
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"Ho! These chokers are cunning. We've got to be smarter, it seems."
Simon wants to pull back to force the chokers to come out of their hiding spot, but can see they will be on Victrix before she can move back.
Seeing only one way to help, he drops the sword, retrieves his whip and tries to send one of the chokers to the ground.
Simon's whip wraps around the choker, but he fails to yank it off of the wall.
The creatures lash out at Victrix again. This time one manages to grab a hold of the barbarian's neck, squeezing and choking her to the verge of unconsciousness!
The painful sensation of having the healing she just received choked out of her is enough to cause Victrix to fly into a panic-induced rage. With a vicious yanking of her arm, she tries to dislodge the choker's grip...
...rips it off of her, and retreats to the back of the group!