Kat sniffs the air. ”Upstairs. That’s where the trail leads.” She takes a moment to drink her two defensive extracts, Barkskin and Shield, finally.
Dervak will activate his wand of Shield (now at 41 charges) and move up the stairs. The wand only lasts a minute, but he has a lot more charges of that than he has spell slots.
Bookshelves stacked with various books and folders, as well as bizarre curios, line two of the walls of this wide-open room. A sturdy wooden desk accompanied by a stuffed leather chair sits in one corner of the room, while a small table in the opposite corner holds a taxidermic monkey posed like it’s playing a tiny violin. Unnerving paintings cover
the wood-paneled walls.
You have little time to take in the room as another of Mun's skin homonculous screams with unbridled rage.
Dervak moves into the room, Str-rages, and casts Long Arm.
Theophilus wanders up the stairs. He takes another pull from the bottle. He views the unseemly room. He looks at the yucky skin thing with exhaustion.
You would think that this is bad for business!
He gets out of Dervak's way.
I think the record is 12 seconds. Go!
He delays.
Dervak cuts into "Mun" and finds this version of him is just as empty as the one before. The gapping hole carved into the construct doesn't slow it down and he slams into Dervak incomprehensibly screaming as it goes.
Dervak takes another hit and starts to wonder if he should focus more on defense. Or maybe get some healing.
He hits back.
If that drops 'Mun,' he will end his rage.
Disappointedly handing some coins to the White Rabbit, the Witch pulls out a Wand; tap, tap, tapping on Dervak.
The old woman moved up and tried to whack the construct with her axe.
Kat dashes into the room and around to the other side of the construct. She draws her spear along the way and deactivates the merciful effect on it with a command word, her eyes swiftly picking apart each of the construct's weaknesses.
With a final chop from Mara's axe the skin golem collapses in a ragged pile.
Even though the room is lit it appears dark and gloomy, an effect of the dark-stained wood paneling on the walls. The artwork leers at you and the juxtaposition of gorgeous paintings and grisly anatomical drawings is dreadful.
Kat glances at one of the paintings on the wall closest to her, a strangely angular landscape, which might be buildings or some demented space. She looks away just in time, as the shapes begin to writhe.
Mara started to search the room, looking for documents. "There's got to be some useful information here somewhere!"
Theophilus takes a sip from the bottle. He hands it down to the White Rabbit. He takes a long pull, smiles; as he hands it to Dervak.
Correct me if I am mistaken; but were we not here just for a book? I mean; a book? We may need to rethink our hobby fascination!
The White Rabbit shakes his head.
Mara replied to Theo, "The question is whether the book is here, or still in the Mysterium in Katheer. I think Lowls was supposed to get the book and bring it here to Mun, but we don't know if that happened or not." I wonder what exactly is in the Necronomicon?
Mara begins to thoroughly search the room, looking for clues. Her eyes set on a circular painting that depicts a sunken submerged city with strange lights glowing in the sodden streets. She considers the possibility of a wall safe but is suddenly disturbed by how realistic the painting is.
She feels out of breath and slightly nauseous but manages to tear herself away.
Mara feels like she narrowly avoided being cursed.
"What's going on? Anything I can do?"
Dervak avoids looking at whatever seemed to bother Mara.
He takes a swig from the wine. "We are here for Mun, I think. Find out what he told Lowls about retrieving the book. And find out if Mun too is an agent of the Inmost Blot or other entities like that."
"Might have came here first for the book, but we've got Mari to find now, too."
Theophilus takes his hat off. The distressed gentleman bows to Kat.
My sincerest apologies, dear Kat. I only meant that nothing mundanely done by us remains mundane.
Mara replied to Kat, "There are ways of divining the best course of action. I could even contact agents of the Dawnflower for answers. It takes some resources, but could make a difference."
Theophilus looks ready to get ready for a Starring Contest with random paintings.
The White Rabbit holds him back and points upstairs.
Perhaps, we return here at a more prepared time; and proceed upstairs.
Theo begins heading that direction. He checks for traps, ambushes and candy. He really has a hankering for a tootsie roll.
This chamber is a veritable museum. The dozens of books, jars, and glass containers of various sizes placed on nearly every horizontal surface in this lab contain chemicals, unidentifiable sludge, the dissected bodies and alien-looking parts of creatures, and a rainbow of various slimes, molds, and fungi. Some of the largest containers are draped with a thick brown cloth. The stench of bleach, ammonia, and other unidentifiable chemicals fills the air. There is no obvious way upwards even though there should be at least one more floor and possibly an attic space.
The floor is sticky in some places and slick in others. A large jar labeled "Number 61" is the source of Mari's scent. Floating in the jar is something that looks like a drowned sheet caught in an unseen current, somewhat reminiscent of a strange amorphous sea creature. Kat's heart sinks in her chest when she sees the all too familiar face that mouths silent words before the roiling folds of skin fold back in on itself.
When Mari's face appears again she appears to be pleading with Kat. She peers at the rubber stopper at the top of the jar.
Mara Wrinkled her nose in disgust, as she looked around the room.
When she saw Kat's attention on jar 61, she looked closer, then recoiled in horror from what she saw.
"How terrible! What...what's happened?
"Maybe we should take the whole jar? I'll conduct a divination to determine the best course of action, but I don't know if it should be here."
Dervak looks around the gruesome scene. Is this what happens when you take to learning? You make your house look like this?
At seeing the floating skin-creature in the jar, Dervak shudders. But he does not look away.
"I think Mari wants us to open the jar.
It's a risk. I am no scholar, but I do have instincts, and sometimes they are right. If she is suffering in there, and she wants us to remove the stopper, I would do that rather than spend time on research. Besides, Mun or more of his servants might come by."
"Kat, it should be your decision, but I suggest opening the jar now. I think it might lead to her reforming, it might do nothing and we just re-stopper it again and try the Divination, and I think only a small chance that something bad happens.
You are a bit of an alchemist, Kat, aren't you? Is that knowledge helpful here?"
The Witch views the contents of the chamber with detachment. He scans for anything magical. He then sees the jar with the...err...floating skin.
Kat's face lights up with hot tears as she grits her teeth in anger. "Mari...what has that f&&*er done to you...." She doesn't seem to hear Dervak, or if she does, she gives no indication of it. She hesistates, not wanting to do something rash and lose all chance at Mari returning to her ever again.
Kat realizes that the process that Mun used to create hollow homunculi of himself was used on Mari but failed in some fashion. She surmises that the fluid she’s suspended in is a preservative and would die if she was out of it for very long, but short exposure to air would not be harmful. The other thing she realizes is that Mari is not technically alive but a construct that resembles life; however a portion of Mari’s mind is still attached to the construct. She further deduces that Mun must have flayed Mari’s skin off as a part of the creation process. It might be possible for Kat to correct the process and make Mari fully into a hollow homunculus if she knew the method, but it would take potent magic to restore her completely.
Searching the room the party finds two scores of acid flasks and alkali flasks, two dozen alchemist’s fire, a dozen elixirs of fire breath, and half a dozen green glass bottles of bladeguard. Also is a pamphlet written in Kellish on the subject of the Mysterium in Katheer.
Mara hears the sound of a soft lullaby coming from a recessed cupboard. When she investigates she finds a sealed translucent green bottle which contains what appears to be a human brain. The sound comes from a curved horn made from brass and ivory sprouting from the top of the bottle. A nameplate is stamped onto its base that reads “A. Weigs.”
Mara tried to reassure Kat, "Somehow, we'll figure out how to revive her. Don't give up hope!"
What a horrible thing to happen! I feel so bad for Kat.
After finding the pamphlet, she read it out to the others, translating it into common.
Dervak takes a different tack in reassuring Kat.
"Mun will pay for what he did," the warrior says coldly.
Theophilus takes copious notes on their findings. He occasionally hands written-on sheets of parchment to the White Rabbit, who promptly stuffs then (unceremoniously) into a sack.
I supposed that he didn't find the Necronomicon here; and he went to this Mage School?
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Kat holds the jar close. "He's going to pay for this, Mari. We're going to get you back to normal. I won't let anyone hurt you anymore. I'm going to keep you safe until we can find the magic we need."
Kat wipes at her eyes. "Thank you, everyone. Thank you for getting us to this point. I wouldn't have found her without you lot. I'm in it still. We gotta beatdown this bloody Mun and find Lowls. We're gonna get justice and fix Mari, right?" She appears to be psyching herself up to continue as much as anyone.
With the stopper removed you’re able to hear a faint burbling voice coming from Mari. Speaking is clearly difficult for her, ”Kat no. Please don’t. Lowls is out of your life if you just move on. If you had stopped before...” Mari slumps down in the jar before finishing the sentence. She rises again, ”You’re not going to stop. You’ve always been stubborn like that. It’s part of why I loved you so much. I overheard their plans, they were going to steal a book from a place called the Mysterium. He said it would bring him unspeakable success and fame, he kept talking about the dangerous wards in the Soul of the Mysterium and of a guardian known as the Keeper. Once they had the book they were planning on contacting someone called Biting Lash in Okeno. They planned on buying slaves.”
Her face rests on the surface of the liquid giving you the impression that she’s looking up, ”You’re not safe here. Mun made deals with small blue men who appeared from the basement. Some looked like they were climbing the air to get to a trap door.” With that bit of information locked in place Mara and Kat notice the incredibly subtle trap door in the ceiling. ”Mun’s ‘anomalous friend’ lives in the attic.”
Kat raises her hand, tentative, then strokes what is left of Mari. "Thank you, Love. You always did understand me better than anyone. Just don't talk in the past tense. This ain't over. I'm gonna keep you safe. I've got an extradimensional space to stick you in so nothing can hurt you until we get someplace less dangerous, right? Don't be scared. You are a second and a reach of my hand away, even if it feels like more, right?"
It's incredibly hard to read Mari's expressions and the tone of her burbling voice, "How long Kat? A day, a week? A month? Would you want me to live like this for another hour even? To have a profound emptiness, to live in a jar, to not even know the joy of taking a breath. Please Kat don't make me suffer any longer."
Dervak knows what he would do, but he says nothing on that matter. It is for Kat to decide.
He looks to the ceiling. How high is it? Can he reach the trapdoor with Long Arm active?
Long arm would allow you to reach.
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Kat sets her jaw. ”I’m not killing you. I didn’t go through all this so I could just bloody kill you. I’m going to get you brought back, and I can’t do that if I get rid of the one piece of you I have left. I don’t care if you hate me for it. I don’t care if you leave and never see me again. You just don’t deserve to go out like this.” She stoppers the jar and puts it in her bag. She looks at her comrades, finally realizing once more that they are here. ”Not a bloody word. Not. One. F+$!ing. Bloody. Word.” She draws her spear and strides off forward.
Theophilus and the White Rabbit decide to help Dervak reach the trap door.
They both offer out their hands cupped to lift him.
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Dervak points to the trapdoor, his Long Arm from the battle still active. "Want me to get that?"
Theophilus will tap tap tap Dervak.
"Thanks, Theophilus."
Dervak opens the trapdoor.
The smell of chemicals and flesh fill the room. Sagging ropes tied through rings in the walls of this room form a lattice, from which hang at what first appear to be curtains hanging throughout the room. Closer examination reveals they are scores of skin, taken in unimaginable agony judging by the looks on the faces that waft eerily in an unseen breeze. The skins are sickeningly whole.
A figure sits sobbing on a pull down stairs leading to an attic space, another of Mun’s doppelgangers. It is rocking back and forth, mumbling, and makes no aggressive move. Hiding amongst the skins, Dervak, notice a pale blue humanoid with bulging white eyes, wild hair, and four fingered hands. Kat and Mara, , know that it is a derro, a fey creature that lives deep underground. All derro are insane by most humanoid standards, and have been known to abduct people to perform bizarre experiments on them. They cannot survive sunlight very long. They frequently use poison. Kat smells, but does not see, another creature in the room , another derro.
Four exact duplicates of the visible derro appear.