Theo looks around.
He smiles weakly and shrugs.
Mara had temporarily forgot about the boy in the excitement. "Let's go find him!", she declared, and went to check the cells, before proceeding to the stairs.
Mara finds nothing unusual in the cells and when she heads up the stairs she finds that the southern door to the courtyard is ajar.
Theophilus casually walks up to the opened southern door.
What magicks transmuted this door a jar?
Remembering the dogs in the courtyard, Mara moved over to the door. Ready to close it should the canines be near, she looked out for signs of Holissa.
The fort’s courtyard is muddy, with patches of grass and weeds sprouting from the soil along the walls. A brick well stands at the center of the courtyard and a grate for grilling food stands against a wall to the south. Four Ustalavic Hounds lay in the courtyard variously at the well or nestled in doghouses. They see the party and start to growl, one lets out a weak bark.
Mara and Ellery get the feeling that the dogs haven't been fed for a few days.
To the south a set of double doors leading to the lobby is open.
Ellery eyes the dogs and makes some hand signs.
Mara replied, "Maybe we can find something in the kitchen. By the way, there's a locked cabinet in there — maybe you could pick it."
Mara suddenly remembered, "Oh wait, we did find a key ring — Let's go try that!"
She walked back around to the kitchen, checked the cabinet for traps, and then tried the available keys.
Mara and Ellery notice a small crevice near the lock. Looking carefully they both can see that there is a needle attached to a spring. Unless the trapper just meant to annoy anyone who tampers with the cabinet it is very likely poisoned. Furthermore Ellery is able to see how the trap mechanism is attached to the lock and thinks that using the correct key will not trigger the trap. Looking at the key ring there are two keys that could fit the lock.
Ellery fiddles with the trap, attempting to thwart the poisoned trap.
Ellery easily jams the trap . Then Mara uses one of the keys to open the cabinet. Inside is a cloak of elvenkind, two amulets of natural armor +1, a headband of vast intelligence +2 (spellcraft), 1,268 gp, 142 sp, and 343 cp.
Everyone remembers that a room downstairs that had smoked trout and other dried fish hanging from hooks fixed to the ceiling. Also in the room were a number of boxes and clay jars sealed with wax.
After gathering the gear a loud thud is heard coming from the general direction of the lobby.
"We could feed the dried fish to the dogs," Mara suggested. The discussion was cut short by the sound from the lobby. "Let's go and see what that is, before it comes to us!"
She moved back towards the spiral staircase, and opened the door to the entrance hall.
Peering into the lobby everyone sees that the front doors have been unbarred with the wooden bar laying nearby. Through the front door Holissa is running as fast as he can into Thrushmoor.
Theophilus gladly accepts the Headband.
"That's for the best, I think," Mara said as she watched Holissa disappear into the distance. She shut the front door and said to the others, "Let's keep moving. We need to look for Cesyll, and her notes. I would imagine she knows we're here."
She went into the dining room, and listened at the eastern door.
Theophilus places an ear to the door also.
Dervak is not terribly interested in the missing boy. "If he has any brains he's cleared out of here."
He waits patiently while Ellery opens the lock. "Good work. Uh, I'm sorry I thought you were a traitor. Honest mistake."
"That headband makes you smart? Maybe I should get one. How much smarter can Theophilus be?"
Dervak listens to Theophilus's musings with increased attention, trying to discern if the witch sounds even smarter.
Then he goes and throws some dried fish to the dogs while the others listened at the doors. "Should we check these wax-sealed boxes and jars in here?"
But meanwhile the party has moved on to another door.
"Want me to go first?"
Dervak likewise listens at the door, draws his falchion, and moves in when Mara opens it.
Dervak feeds the dogs and they greedily eat everything offered. If anyone looks at they other stores they are various foods that will keep for a long time. 100 rations.
The dogs their hunger satisfied cease growling and barking when Dervak is around. One of the hounds licks Dervaks fingers and wimpers submissively.
Hearing nothing the party enters.
The walls of this semicircular room are clad in wood up to half of their height, and decorated with murals of the town’s civil life on the upper half. A bench runs along most of the curved outer wall, under three grated windows fitted with stained glass. Opposite the bench are a trio of highbacked chairs and a desk with a stool. Two more benches sit in the middle, near a central pillar that supports the ceiling. A single door is in the northern wall.
Mara looked around the room and checked the desk, searching for any notes that might tell her something about Iris Hill.
Rowan also searches the room.
Ellery also assists with the searching of the room he also makes some hand signs, including a confused thumbs up to Dervak after he apologized for thinking he was a traitor.
Theophilus cast Detect Magic, as he searches the chamber.
The search of the room turns up nothing unusual. If you had to guess this room was the courtroom used for the town.
Dervak listens at the north door.
If he hears nothing, he opens it. The sudden quiet is disturbing and he hopes that the monsters haven't run off... if they could all shapeshift like the one that impersonated Ellery, hunting them in the town will be incredibly difficult.
Mara put away the healing wand and took out the Sarenrite wand of bless. She moved behind Dervak as he prepared to open the door.
The Mad Hatter stands--literally--at Dervak's shoulder.
So. How you doing?
Hearing nothing but eerie quiet Dervak opens the door.
Two wide cabinets with reinforced doors stand against the north wall and the ascending stairway in this room. A perforated metal bin sits near the fireplace in the northeastern corner. Another door to the south leads back into the dinning room. The cabinets are locked but as it happens you have a key. Inside are the town’s more recent legal records, copies of trial records,
building permits, ships’ logs, notary deeds, contracts, and other such paperwork.
Mara looked quickly in the cabinets, reciting a prayer and scanning for magic auras. "There could be some interesting information in here, but I think we should clear the fort of enemies before we spend any time at it," she suggested.
A single paper sticks out of the assorted paperwork and Mara spies a familiar name "Nemira." Scanning the paper it documents an official interrogation of Count Haserton Lowls IV about the unexplained death of his mother, Nemira, made at eh request of her elder brother in Kerse. The response from the count was that his mother died suddenly of the same strange disease that claimed his father, and was buried privately in the family crypt under Iris Hill. Despite a strong protest from Nemira's family and the offer of a substantial bribe, the magistrate was unable to gain legal access to Iris Hill to investigate further.
Theophilus looks around nervously.
We're going down there, aren't we?
"Into the crypt? To look at the dead body? If you say so. But first we have to find the rest of the things that were in this fort. I don't think we got all of them."
Mara read the document concerning Lowls' mother. "This is very interesting!", she exclaimed, before passing the piece of paper to others to read. "I think it's worth looking into, although I imagine we'll have to deal with Melisenn before we can look in the crypt."
She replied to Dervak, "Shall we check the rest of the ground floor?"
Dervak thinks a minute.
"That ghost said something about Nemira. We should figure out the connection. But yes, let's continue on."
Theophilus casts Guidance.
He also checks the door and area.
Theo but not Mara hears the someone or something walking in the room beyond.
Theophilus nods at the door. The gentleman mimics words, talking, and then he does a silent raspberry.
Ellery raises an eyebrow at Theo's mimicry, then makes some hand signs.
Theophilus takes out his Wand and taps Ellery, Mara and himself.
The Witch then puts it away and begins doing some stretches.
Dervak watches Theophilus.
I'm not sure that new headband is working.
He shrugs, watches everybody else getting ready, and waits for orders.
With preparations made and Theo limbered up, Mara opens the door. This spacious room is fitted with bunk beds, small chests, and stools. A rancid smell lingers in the room. A brightly colored, long-necked amphibian that has six legs, a fanged snout, and numerous finlets running down its spine is in the room. It is sticking its long tongue into a jug filled with curdled milk. When it sees the group it screams in a high pitched voice with words that run like thick pus into your years.
It drops the jug of rancid milk which does nothing to help the smell in the room.
As soon as Dervak hears the language, he feels a sense of alarm, but then he recalls not all beings who speak that tongue are hostile.
He lowers his sword.
I really need to learn this language!
Mara spoke to the amphibian in its language,
The creature's finlets undulate unnaturally and says,
It moves closer to Dervak,
The creature then bobs its head up and down vigorously.
Anyone who doesn't speak Aklo swears that they hear the creature say 'Mara' several times.
Mara recognized the creature now.
She explained to the non-Aklo speakers, "Its the creature we met in the asylum. It's lost and is trying to get home, which I would guess is on another plane. It's possible that the Star Stellae could function as a portal, so we might just be able to help it."