Regnel smashes the last undead to bits, scattering bones across the silo's floor.
Jaxal recognizes the poison as Gut Wither. It's known to cause painful stomach lesions and vomiting. Ingesting it can easily be fatal to the young, the old, and the infirm.
Even though the container is opened, it looks like none has spilled into the grain.
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Avendar goes up the stairs to see what the skeleton up there was trying to do.
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With the immediate danger seemingly past, Regnel leaves the granary to see if Yargos Gill has caught up with them yet.
While he's waiting for the old scholar to catch up, he goes back to consulting his historical volumes to try and learn more about the ancient Taldor invasion and the undead that are seemingly connected to it.
Now that he's heard some of the names and seen their tactics, 'Black Echelon' sounds familiar.
Eight hundred years ago, a hidden armada of ships from Taldor floated off the coast of the Isle of Kortos like a thousand locusts, waiting for the signal to invade Absalom. The plan was simple, but deadly: When the misty weather of Desnus took hold, a fifth column of infiltrators known as Black Echelon would weaken strategic defense points and destroy Absalom’s warning system from within. Once their bloody mayhem was complete, the hidden saboteurs planned to signal the fleet, welcoming them to lay siege to a city now brought to its knees.
Fortunately, the leaders of the Black Echelon infiltration cell were discovered and assassinated by brave heroes of Absalom. The signal lanterns lay dark, and the rest of Black Echelon sat idle. Several hours later, the fleet’s hiding place was discovered. A quick counterattack by Absalom’s navy ambushed the would-be invasion force and Taldor’s armada was destroyed to the last mast.
A moment after the party has secured the site, a breathless Yargos arrives. "Thank the gods, you've done it! You kept them from poisoning half the city! Is Nessian here? Of course he's not here. He wouldn't be here..."
"I don't know where he is but I know someone who will - an information broker. I don't trust the man but we've got no choice. The codebook... it can do a lot more than summon the Black Echelon to poison the city granary. We have to get it back and stop Nessian!"
Yargos sucks in a breath and nods. "You might have heard of him, he goes by the name Grandmaster Torch. Follow me!"
***
After finally catching his breath, the aged scholar leads the party down into the Puddle's sewers, through a waterlogged labyrinth of dangerously flooded tunnels known as the Siphons. After possibly the hundredth turn, the party finds an iron door caked with rust. Opening it reveals a large well appointed chamber, occupied by a man of middling height but covered in hideous scars. He's guarded by a pair of monstrously large half-orc thugs.
"To what do I owe this visit?" the scarred man asks in a soft voice.
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Before leaving the granary, Selima and Thirsty check the last room to be sure they leave no threats behind them.
***
Sewers now... Clearly being a Pathfinder is a much filthier job than they had me believe.. She set to cleaning away the foul waters from her clothing with prestidigitation as soon as they were on dry flooring. Unable to stop herself even though they would have to leave through the same.
"We need information. There is an insidious threat to Absalom that must be stopped. The mastermind of this terrible plot is called Nessian. We need the benefit of your vast knowledge if we are to find him in time, sir."
The scarred man nods. "I may be in the business of knowing things..."
At Johendar's question the man offers a slim false smile. "Poison? Mr. Nessian is moving up in the world it seems. My little birds say he has something in the works - something bigger than poisoning a few beggars and harlots. Something that will have all of Absalom aghast. I may be able to help you but first you must help me..."
"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 them open, I could be persuaded to disclose Nessian’s location and dispense with my regular fee, no less than 6000 gold, 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."
"Splendid", the scarred man replies. He gestures and one of his massive thugs steps forward. The orc grunts something unintelligible and gestures for the party to follow him.
The thug leads the party through a wooden door and into the next room, a small chamber with three chests atop sturdy stone pedestals. The thug takes up a position near the door and crosses his tree-trunk arms across his chest. "Get to work", he mutters.
The first is made of plain blackened metal combination lock. The lock of this iron cask contains a laughing devil’s head.
The second is made of reinforced lacquered wood. This red box has been inset with a trio of golden faces: the first appears stern, the second angry, and the third fumes with hatred.
The third is made of a shiny silver metal. It has no visible lock or hinges. No decoration or writing of any kind can be found. Divination magic can be detected. Illusion magic can be detected on the third.
A detailed search reveals none of the chests to be trapped or dangerous in any way.
The devil's head doesn't depress but it does spin . When Rose turns the devil's head she can hear the tumblers clicking inside the mechanism.
The devil's head doesn't depress but it does spin . When Rose turns the devil's head she can hear the tumblers clicking inside the mechanism.
None of the faces depress or move.
Though they don't turn or depress, Selima notes that the faces seem to animate, reacting most to intense negative emotion.
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"Funnily enough, this one with the faces seems to respond most to intense negative emotion. Perhaps you need to have the right frame of mind to open it? Maybe I can help."
Selima puts her hands on her hips and glares at the safe with the faces. She pulls a frown and imagines being very angry at the box much like she did to help Thirsty focus on the bad men. "You infernal box! How dare you sit there refusing to open, I have traveled through sewage to be here and I will not be turned away. You will open up immediately or face the wrath of a Kelishite Sorceress!"
Despite feeling a bit silly, she manages to effect a fairly frightening figure. But though Thirsty feels her anger, he cocks his head to the side in confusion, sniffs the safe and then looks back up at his mistress befuddled.
Listening to the tumblers, Jaxal skillfully opens the devil-faced lock. Inside the box is a tome entitled “The Inward Facing Circle” written by Coganaris the Wracker a pair of scrolls.
Selima manages to cow the box with her fierce glare. It opens revealing a collection of ancient stone miniatures of a Viking army from the Land of the Linnorm Kings.
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Selima laughs with a wild glee that brings to mind some type of mischievous fey. She gathers up the contents and delivers them to Grandmaster Torch. "That safe there simply needs to be reminded who is the boss, it seems. Isn't that right, my darling?" She purrs as she strokes Thirsty's gleaming coat. The tiger seems relieved that his mistress is happy again.
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Hm... The last time I was in a room with three chests...
Avendar begins feeling around the third chest, hoping to find a seam by touch that eludes his sight--or to prove to himself that the box is a pure illusion.
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Avendar feels around the seamless box for a bit and finds that one whole facing of it is entirely illusion! From inside the hollow container he pulls out a large sack of valuable spell components.
The party returns to Grandmaster Torch with the contents of the boxes in hand and the information broker nods in approval. "Well done. You have fulfilled your end of the agreement so I will fulfill mine. Nessian lairs in a new base of operations nicknamed the Pyramid of the Dog which he has carved out of a ruin of half-collapsed siege towers just outside of Absalom."
The scarred man hands a slip of paper to one of his guards who hands it to the party. On it is a rough map of the area.
"If you hurry you might be able to catch him there", he offers with another slim smile.
As the party exits the sewers the sound of a organ can be heard.
"Gods no!" Yargos shouts. "That's the attack signal. We have to hurry or Absalom will be beset by an army of undead. The naval defenses won't matter. The undead can walk across the harbor!"
"We have to find Nessian and get the codebook. It has the abort code!"
With the whole of Absalom depending on them, the party bolts for the city's exit.
Following the map, it doesn't take long to find it. Nessian’s decrepit lair is not a pyramid at all. Rather it consists of four ancient, battered siege towers, three of which have collapsed inward toward the largest, forming a giant, tepee-like wreck. Each leaning still stands tall providing an excellent vantage point for any inside.
Assuming the towers are manned, Rose sees no way to approach the pyramid unseen.
Sure enough, the party is spotted as they approach. A cry of alarm fills the air followed by the cranking of crossbows.
"Help! They're in my tower already!"
Seeing her ruse take effect, Selima sprints into the door with her tiger hot on her heels and gives Thirsty the command to attack the distracted crossbowman.