Cardona yawned, "How about Earhart's Ravens flush out whatever is blocking the well, and we have Urslingen's watchers dealing with the library. I've got something special in mind for The Mailed Fist, I think you know what I mean..."
Von Urslingen and Braccio eyed Cardona suspiciously before agreeing guardedly. Earhart smiled contentedly, having got what he wanted.
Eberhard then tottered over to the podium and announced, "It is decided. The Ravens will investigate Kuto's well, and The Watchers of Dawn will escort Delenn into Mantors Library and make it and the archives safe for civilians."
He banged his staff against the podium, and cried "Meeting adjourned!"
With that everyone began filing out, with a hubbub of excitement in the air.
Azarra can't see everything that is going on, but she is sure that Earhart got what he wanted in that exchange... but so did she, and presumably von Urslingen, without whom they would likely have not been successful, so she remains grateful and quite relived that they got the assignment.
Still, they would have to be ultra careful about Delenn. Political machinations were bad enough, but it also might be a trap to get rid of their group.
Zane couldn't help but be pleased as the Watchers of Dawn were assigned the Library task, but still frowned as he watched Cadorna, certain the seemingly bored young man was far more politically savvy than he let on. Still, that was a battle the other councilors would have to fight. The priest gave a respectful nod in the direction of Von Urslingen, then turned to his present companions, ready to depart and discuss whenever they were.
Raising the banner high, the knight bellows,
Ware evil when the Watchers of Dawn arrive!
"Ha! Them silverfishes better start running, because Ishta is about to take away their dusty ol' mouldy tomes. Now, should we go and tell her the good news or do we want to say hi to the beautiful she-elf?"
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Zane grinned at the gold elf's voice booming through the area, thinking it quite fitting in the current setting. The priest looked up at Cadorna, wishing there was something more the group could do on that front. As Kardas spoke, the cleric shook his head. "Let's talk with Ishta first about our success here and some of the interesting things we know about our venture partner."
It was late afternoon by the time you had been awarded the contract and the watch had escorted you the short distance past the Cracked Crown inn and on through the western barricade. Ahead of you broods Mantor's Library. It's a blocky sandstone building with strange sloping roof that looks rather like a pyramid. Chiseled into the pyramid roof on each side is the scroll of Oghma God of Knowledge. Angelic statues stand at each of the building’s corners. The walls of the building are also carved with smiling angels, some armed with spears and shields. Angels bearing frowns and concerned faces grip a curious round, ocher-rusted, iron doorway set into smooth sandstone walls. A braided copper bell pull hangs nearby. At some point in the past, presumably during the sack of Phlan, the great iron door was ripped off it's hinges.
In front of the library is the overgrown tangle of what was once a beautiful formal garden. The ponds are now so choked with vines and weeds that no water is left. Worryingly, among the grass are many dozens of statues. Each one different and incredibly life like, most seem surprised, but a few seem to have been rendered as if in great terror running from some unseen threat. A couple of these seem to be shielding their eyes.
You approach the library's door, and you can see short way within, making out a central corridor with many doors branching off into the gloom. You can also see a side corridor but not where it goes. The library is eerily silent and gloomy, perhaps unnaturally so.
"I don't remember these being here..." remarked Delenn, pointing out the statues. She had been silent on the way but now seeing the old library seems to have awoken a desire within her to speak, "The building doesn't look that big, but it extends a good distance below. The top level ought to be relatively safe, or at least there should be no active defenses there. The lower levels will be extremely dangerous however for the uninitiated, assuming they stand inviolate the wards will trip the moment we descend and we will need to enter the Libraries heart to reset them. Have a care with what you touch down there, some of the artifacts are extremely dangerous... Anyway I'll spare you the lecture, I've been assured you can handle this. Well anyway, shall we?"
She indicates the door.
When they meet back up with the whole party, Azarra brings everyone up to speed on the fact that Delenn is misrepresenting herself, and warns everyone that she might turn on them after gaining access to the sealed portion of the library. She also tells them which specific history books to look out for in order to protect the women they saved earlier, and to be on watch in case their guest tries to destroy books as well.
Azarra smiles and responds to Delenn:
No matter how much experience any of us have, reminders are always good. We don't want to get killed because we forgot a precaution.
Ishta takes the information heavily. "Okay... so, instead of expecting any help, we should expect a Magic Missile in the back."
She then proceeds to reveal what she has discovered about the basilisks.
Before entering, Ishta casts an incantation.
Kardas smiles.
'New' statues, huh? It doesn't take a genius to put one and one together. Kardas flashes Ishta a worrying frown but otherwise remains quiet on the matter. "Keep your eyes open and your wits about you, always. Let's go."
With that being said, the swordmage wraps a shawl around his forehead like he were a Kara-Tur martial artist. From its lurking position above his rugged brow, it only needs a short tug to be brought down over his eyes.
We should not be too surprised at this revelation. Alas, this place is a sun baked carcass that attracts flies. It is our duty to clear out the spoiled meat, along with any attracted vermin! Stay vigilant! Be ever watchful
The knight salutes his fellow Watchers of Dawn members.
Helm guards us!
Ser Armithia leads the way. When the building, foliage and statues present themselves, the Paladin cast Detect Evil. He will attempt to continually concentrate, scanning the way, as they proceed.
Zane eyed the statues in the courtyard uneasily as Delenn pointed them out, but listened attentively as the elven woman went over the defenses of the building in relatively vague terms. Even if she intended to doublecross the group, she'd still want them to navigate the Library successfully, so the priest was pretty sure it was safe to absorb the information as-is.
As the party came across yet more statues locked in various states of surprise and horror, Zane's unease increased. When Kardas constructed a makeshift blindfold, the cleric held up his hand to halt the group, then turned to speak with them. "My friends, I might be incorrect, but I believe there are lenses that are crafted to protect against creatures that might petrify you with a glance. I know it might set us back a few hours to travel back to Phlan, but if we can procure some of these goggles I would feel much more comfortable."
Azarra picks up smoked goggles for the party.
These spectacles have lenses made of smoked glass that help protect against creatures with gaze attacks. You are always treated as averting your gaze when dealing with gaze attacks, and you gain a +8 circumstance bonus on saving throws against visual-based attacks (any attack that a blind creature would be immune to). You have a –4 penalty on Perception checks while wearing the goggles, and all opponents are treated as having concealment (20% miss chance).
Fortunately getting back to civilized Phlan from here is only a few hundred yards away, still it takes half an hour for Azarra track down a supplier of smoked goggles. In the end she found an alchemist who mostly sold them for blacksmiths. Apparently their normal use is when forging magically heated metals which can be painfully bright to look at.
You pass through the ruined iron doors and unto the hush and gloom of Mantor's Library. The building was constructed on a grand scale with 15' ceilings and walls of finely polished sandstone (Climb DC 20). In front is a corridor extending deep within, dotted with numerous doors. You move to get a closer look at the nearest pair of doors and you notice the scent of passing time while you marvel at the dozens of exquisitely carved faces decorating each door. The faces depicting a wide range of moods and are stylized, reminding you of times and hairstyles long past. The sandstone walls are graced by angelic figures; they hold aloft keystones, dance as sconces, and lurk in corners. The angels are made of white marble but have grown a skin of pollution from the city’s smoke and dust, giving them a sickly honeyed hue.
Eyes scanning the angelic figures to find any clues, the gold elf stands in front, guarding the group.
Zane smiled at Azarra as she returned with the goggles, fitting the things to his face and securing them. He felt he looked foolish, but better that than an added decoration in the Library's courtyard. He eyed the faces carved in the doors with mild interest, certain that a historian would have a field day with the portals alone.
As everyone filed in, the priest shrugged and gestured Kardas and Ser Armithia forward a few steps to the first set of doors in the main corridor, motioning for the Rashemi to open his first, should he choose.
Delenn hadn't commented when Azarra returned with just five goggles. However when the party debates which way to go, she speaks up, "So to get down to the lower levels we will need to access the angelic gate. We can't see it due to the gloom, but that's straight ahead in front of the far wall. There we will find a five-foot-wide circular valve made of ensorcelled star metal, engraved with the depiction of four angel faces smiling and looking upward to the ceiling. To open it we will need to turn the four Angel statues on this level to face it. There is one in each of the four lecture theaters on this level."
Ser Armithia turns his gold helmeted head in her direction.
You are our guide, Lady Delenn. We are here as escorts. This is your mission.
The knight returns to his duty.
Azarra is starting to feel like a heel, not bringing back goggles for Delenn, and wonders for a moment if she is wrongfully judging her, but then shakes it off. She trusts her contact, and is fairly certain that Delenn will turn on them at some point.
Unfortunately, treating her badly makes her realize that making choices like that just cause her to become part of the cycle of hatred and cruelty that she is against.
She triggers her Ioun stone to drive away the gloom, and then gives Delenn the goggles that she brought for herself, knowing that she can't live with her decision, whether the woman turns out to be evil or not.
She also casts Light on Ser's shield.
When everyone is ready, she casts Open on door K (from where she is).
Delenn replies to Ser Armithia in Elvish, "I shall guide you as best I can. Please bear in mind however it has been a long time even for one of the people since I was last here and things may have changed, at least on the first level."
She raises an eyebrow at Azarra before accepting the goggles with a "Thank you. It appears the library isn't quite as deserted as it seems, see the tracks there leading into the Geography classroom." She points to human footprints that you can just barely see despite the illumination provide by Azarra. Strangely however the light only penetrated 20' at best and the distance was still too dark to see.
"That's concerning." remarked Delenn, "It appears some of the wards have been tripped. I'm not familiar with the ones on this level, this is a public building and that never happened while I was here. The ones below in the restricted archives are a different matter of course."
Azarra's spell causes the door to open. Apparently it was unlocked.
Zane listened to the elven woman's instructions and information, confident Delenn was being truthful with the group. Maybe not truthful about her motives, but truthful about wanting to get to the heart of the Library. As Azarra's light has a hard time penetrating the darkness permeating the area, the priest narrowed his eyes, looking about warily. As the half-elf magically opened the door that the tracks lead to, Zane would follow Ser Armithia over to investigate, assuming the gold elf would do so. If not, Zane would take a few steps over himself to peer inside the open portal.
Ser Armithia stands in the now opened door; shield raised, sword ready.
He peers inside with his Detect Evil and Deathwatch eyes active.
"Shall we make sure we're alone?" Ishta points at the footprints.
Kardas brandishes his sword upon hearing Ishta's words. "But of course, Ishta." Whatever lurks inside these halls most likely won't be swayed by words. The Raumathar is happy he brought his tools of the trade to deal with those who aren't open for dialogue.
As Zane moves to follow Ser, Azarra murmurs to him I'll stay behind you.
Without goggles, Azarra is somewhat concerned about being turned to stone, so she stays behind Zane, looking only at him. It's a good excuse to check him out thoroughly, after all. She will only look elsewhere if it seems safe.
"What if she isn't bad, after all? We might be judging based on smoke." Ishta can't help but think that taking a bad decision could end up with all of them dead - even more than in any other situation they've been - but it doesn't really have to be because of Delenn.
The geography lecture theater has a central podium to the south with ranks of chairs neatly stacked along the western all. The walls contain great murals, maps of Faerun accurate as of about one hundred years ago. A great many navigational instruments and scrolls are contained in display cabinets on the eastern wall. The room smells of parchment, time and old dust, yet it is surprisingly clean.
Ser Armithia doesn't spot the presence of evil, but he does notice huddled in the corner a wildeyed wizened old man, his clothing torn and tattered. He is weakly clutching an ancient looking broom and apparently talking to himself, although you can't make out any of the words.
Delenn brushed past Ser Armithia and remarked, "Well that's unexpected. Unless I'm mistaken, those rags he's wearing where once the uniform of a groundsman. If that's what he is, then he is very old indeed for a human."
Kardas would've pointed at Raumathar and Nar on the map if it weren't for the presence of the old man. Knowing that he shouldn't be alive, the Raumathar shivers as he considers how this man is still breathing. What wicked spell must be binding him to this place? "Hrm. It doesn't make sense, unless he's cursed - or bound, which might as well be a curse - to take care of this place forever. I, eh, my 'people skills' aren't all that, so it is up to you," and he eyes his companions, "to decide whether or not we talk to him."
Zane's concern for the half-elf was masked by the ridiculous goggles on his face, but he nodded his agreement as she moved to the back of the group. The priest hoped that they'd have enough time to warn Azarra, should something that could cause petrification come about. As the group stumbled into the room with the graybeard, his eyes lighting up as he put two and two together. Perhaps this man had known his grandfather!
Zane approached along with Delenn, gentle smile in place (even though he must look strange to the man with the smoked goggles on). "Hello, sir. Do you need some assistance?"
"What the..." is the only thing Ishta could think when they found the man. As Zane tries a friendly approach, Ishta only starts to wonder what things could have this man witnessed... if he is a man after all.
Azarra thinks that it sounds safe, and she is getting ancy, so she leaves the protection of her Zane-shield and approaches the man, trying to catch what he is saying.
Zane approaches the man who stares at him with milky eyes and starts wringing his hands and babbling, "The big one, the evil one in the
castle of flowers—he is coming, it is coming! He is wrapped in fire, so crule, so cruel! Don’t go there! Don’t go on the hill! Not to Valvejo, he isn't human! He isn't human! He will unmake you..." Variations of this screed go on for sometime before he becomes completely incoherent.
"What's that supposed to mean? And what should we do with him?"
All the hints and bits of useful knowledge fly right over Kardas head. Instead, all he does is worry about Azarra opening herself up to this blabbering bag of insanity. "Careful, Azá, this man has been running with the horses for far too long ..."
The Paladin ignores the human. The knight guards against any threats.
Ishta suddenly remembers, and tells aloud about Valjevo Castle.
Zane listened to the madman in consternation, trying to determine whether the fire-wrapped evil bad was what had caused the man's insanity, or if it was just a part of his warped mind. As the old man settled into rambling in a foreign tongue, the priest turned to the others and held up his hands in a perplexed motion. "I suppose we should see if there is anything of interest in here before moving on...do you think we should bring him along?" The cleric's tone imparted his opinion that he thought it wasn't a wise idea.
(+2 if it is an ancient language, but I don't know that)
Wary of his likely insanity and knowing that Kardas is right and she should be careful, but still wanting to see his tattoo, Azarra moves closer so she is right next to the man. She murmurs soothingly to him, not touching him or trying to disturb him, but attempting to see more of his left shoulder.
In response to Ishta, she says
Well, it sounds like we need to check out that castle in case he is right and it needs to be cleansed... but also that maybe we should take more people with us, or get a lot stronger first.
In response to Zane she says
Yeah, we should look around, but I don't think we should disturb him. After we clear the library we should send some qualified mental health professionals out here to make sure he gets the help he needs.
Delenn regarded the old man for a moment, before saying, "Poor soul seems quite mad. There's nothing we can do for him, however I could do with a hand with the statue that ought to be in here."
She opens a door on the north western corner which leads into a study cubicle. The small room contains a sturdy but worn desk and a small rickety chair. The desks contains ancient quills, dried up ink post, and a number of timeworn sheets of paper for taking notes. This particular study cubical has a statue of an angel in front of the northern wall.
Delenn tries to turn the statue head but it seems stuck, she throws her whole body weight into it but nothing happen. With a sign she tells you "We need to turn the head to the north, but it looks like the mechanism hasn't been oiled in some time. We may have to force it."
Ser Armithia will attempt to turn it. He will welcome any assistance.
With the group having decided that leaving the mad man behind was best for the moment, Zane gave the poor soul a last glance before following Delenn to the cubicle. As first the elven woman, then Ser Armithia, start to try and turn the angel's head, the priest looked about the room for any surprises. If he found none, he would shrug and then go and try to assist the gold elf's efforts.