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Good evening Tobias. I am Zherohd Zhi. My companions and I were hoping to do some research this evening. Normally I would prefer to enjoy the performance, but our time in the city is unfortunately quite limited. Would you be so kind as to show us to the rare books collection? I'm sure you'll find that the Arch-Exarch's request is quite clear.
Zherohd hands over the request to Tobias as he tries to politely gloss over exactly what it is that we're here to research.
(+2 if Tobias happens to be an outsider)
"Terrible shame, that; I would be there myself if not for drawing the short straw for shifts this week," Tobias murmurs, taking the proffered slip of paper and adjusting his glasses to read it. His eyes widen at the letter of permission, although he quickly regains his composure. "Goodness me, that's certainly a name and a half. Must be important research you're doing here! Well, then," the salt-and-pepper-haired sage nods for the group to follow him, "if you'd come this way..."
Tobias escorts the Pathfinders down the hallways of the library, down a short flight of stairs and then to the western wing. Though there were few people upstairs, there are even fewer down here, and the air is mustier, more untouched. He finally stops, unlocking the left side of a pair of tall oaken double doors with a gilded key and steps aside to allow you passage.
"Here we are then, gentlemen." The large room beyond is dominated by a carved darkwood table big enough to seat more than a dozen people at the same time. The walls are lined with rows upon rows of inset shelves, upon which numerous rare tomes of knowledge are stored. The only entrance or exit is the double doors you entered through, and there are no windows that might shine damaging light onto the precious books within--instead, the place is lit by magical lanterns. Two stone statues depicting bearded scholars with only books are the only decorations within; compared to the rest of the library, this room is surprisingly utilitarian.
After a brief explanation of the cataloguing system in this restricted section, Tobias then turns to leave. "Just remember, the library closes in two hours, right when the performance concludes, and all visitors must leave at that time. I will come to escort you out at that point. Good luck!" The door swings closed behind him, and you are left alone to determine your next course of action.
Not long after Tobias makes his leave, you hear a dull roar of vast applause, followed by the distant sound of music. The performance has begun... and so too has the ticking of the clock on your heist.
Most of the books in this section are workbooks of famous composers, original copies of musical treatises, and withered manuscripts describing various operatic traditions from beyond the Taldan empire. Despite their academic value, the texts here are nevertheless of little use in completing your mission. Both of the marble statues hold blunt styluses--sometimes used to help read old, fragile texts--that point to the books they are holding. The eastern statue's stone book is blank, but the western statue's is enscribed with a single column of words that reads:
Innovation
Respect
Knowledge
Courage
Integrity
Honour
Excellence
Glory
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As they're led into the library by Tobias, Mohok thinks, Well, nothing better than a guard who wants to be elsewhere. He won't be paying much attention to us, that's sure.
Passing through the tall, oaken doors, Mohok studies the room before them, truly impressed by the grandeur of the library, and wondering if all libraries are like this. He sees Zosimos studying one of the statues, and the sharp-eyed half-elf's actions remind Mohok of the clue to finding the hidden entrance, ...honor, courage, glory...right.
He wastes no time in pointing out some of the finer details on the western statue, hoping that together they can find the entrance quickly.
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As he is led from the grandeur of the library proper to this dank hole in the wall Valerio feels ever so slightly unimpressed; though if what he had been told was true, he hoped substance would make up for the lack of spectacle.
He casts a few long glances about the room. More opera? You would think the Taldans did nothing but wear ridiculous costumes and sing...
His eyes finally settle on the two statues, and much like the others he deduces within these words must lie the secret of completing their mission and, perhaps, other secrets worth collecting.
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I'm not much for finding the little clues and hidden loot I'm afraid. Since we're apparently not going to be closely watched, does anyone object to my bringing in some outside assistance?
Good. Be right back.
Zherohd steps between some shelves and begins the ritual to summon Cademon.
Tippy, Valerio, and Cesare discover that a section of the west wall is hinged to swing outward, although the actual hinge is neatly hidden by careful laying of the wood flats decorating the wall.
Only Cesare, however, also notices that the right arm of the western statue can be roated up or down by several degrees, allowing one to shift the word that the statue's stylus points at...
And indeed it does! Mohok wisely shifts the stylus in the order specified. As soon as the statue's arm hovers over glory, a low click can be heard from beyond the wall. A gentle push determines that the door can now be opened and closed from this side.
Beyond, a brief stone passage leads to the upper landing of a spiral staircase. The floor here is carved in intricate and artistic patterns, providing better footing than a polished floor might. Spaced evenly along the walls (and following the staircase down, it seems) are wall sconces that hold glowing glass spheres enchanted with continual flame spells. The passage and stairs seem to be immaculately clean, with not a single trace of dust or dirt visible anywhere; seems whoever's on cleaning duty does a damn good job of it. The air in here is somewhat cool and dry, the ideal climate for preserving valuable texts.
Cademon follows the staircase down about twenty feet before reaching the true basement. There's a small landing here as well as a pair of closed wooden doors made from strong oak. He confidently determines that there is nothing here for anyone to worry about.
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Mohok is about to start down the stairs, assuming he's the best-suited of this scholarly group to lead the way into an unknown basement, when Zherohd appears from between the rows of shelves, with his strange new friend.
"Where'd he come from?" the puzzled half-orc asks, then gives a dirty look back in response to Cademon's face-making. Watching the creature entering the secret stairway, Mohok shrugs and says, "Okay, I guess he's scouting this one."
As Zherohd suggests, Mohok pulls out the magical card he was given, wondering if anyone could fall for an illusion of him reading a book, then sticks it to the bottom of the chair and steps back to see what happens.
He then walks back the to stairs and listens at the top for a moment. Hearing no screams, splashes, smashes or anything else to worry about, he draws his blade and walks down the stairs.
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"Well, that's a good start at lea-" The tiefling begins to mutter as the secret door is unveiled, only to be cut short by the sudden appearance of their new "friend". "At least if we're caught snooping, I can see that drawing at least as many questions as our presence..."
At Zherohd's suggestion Valerio withdraws an illusionary card; his tail slithering within the folds of his pack to retrieve it. "I wonder if it will be a match for the original?" He muses to himself with a grin, placing the card beneath a nearby chair.
Not waiting to see the disappointment shimmer into existence, Valerio makes his way to Mohok's side and stays close. A strong, weapon wielding demon hunter? The perfect companion.
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Tippy pulls his card out and sticks it to the bottom of his chair. Watching some of the other illusions, he resists the urge to try drawing funny moustaches on the illusions, figuring it probably wouldn't work anyways.
As Mohok pauses to listen at the top of the stairs, the lithe halfling slips in past him.
Stealth:
Perception:
The Pathfinders set their illusions up on the upstairs desk and; Muesello's magical tinkering has done a good job as the copies are really just that—perfect down to the last detail. You might discover a previously unknown freckle or an early-onset grey hair from this angle...
You all head inside the secret door—leaving the secret door open?—and find absolutely nothing to worry about on your way down. Even at the bottom of the basement, the performance is still audible, albeit barely; you actually have to pause and concentrate before the whimsical tunes from up above float on into your ears.
Eventually, someone gets the confidence to open the door to the east, and it swings open without a sound. The long stone hallway beyond stretches out from where you are for over a hundred feet, with several sets of similar study wooden doors to both your left and right sides. The centre of the southern wall bears a ten-foot-square field of carved divots in what appears to be a completely random array. However, above it, engraved neatly into the grey stone is an inscription that reads:
"The keenest eyes cannot see everything. Always remember to see the big picture."
"Our monarch's virtues are our own."
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While Tippy and Zosimos study the strangely patterned wall, Mohok says, "That's what it says - but there's no statue to move, wonder how it helps us?" He then turns around, treads quietly up the stairs, and pulls the secret door shut behind them before descending again. Hard to keep our being down here a secret when we leave a big chunk of wall open behind us, he thinks to himself.
There doesn't appear to be any moving parts or buttons or anything on the wall. It's just an inscription of sorts, as far as you can tell.
... There are no benches in the hallway. There are, however, a series of doors... Four of them, in fact!
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Scout the hallway Cademon. Don't open any doors. And do try not to set off any traps; I'd prefer not to have you disappear on me anytime soon.
Presumably what you guys are seeing is a hint of how to get past some sort of lock, or maybe how to avoid some sort of trap. But we can't spend too much time standing around thinking about it. Which door should we try first?
Zherohd will follow Cademon into the hall at a safe distance.
There's nothing in the hallway (besides the giant magic eye, that is) and nothing on the doors that might elucidate their contents. And you can hear nothing beyond any of them, for that matter.
A couple of minutes are wasted checking every nook and cranny for hidden things that are not there! There's no inscriptions, no hidden devices, no nothing. Just a plain ol' hallway.
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Mohok walks to the door that Tippy has examined so carefully and reaches a hand toward it, saying to the group, "I'm not much of a student of history or royals. Or much of anything for that matter. Do any of you know anything about Taldan monarchs? If not, I'm going to start opening doors."
He waits a moment, his mightily muscled hand paused before the door know, his eyebrows raised and expectant as he looks to his companions for an answer.
Mohok summons every iota of bravery he has and challenges the mysterious and potentially terribly dangerous door. He braces himself for the worst but no shocks of electricity, no spontaneous fireballs, no volleys of poison-tipped darts come his way. In fact... the door isn't even locked. It swings open easily, its hinges as well-greased as the last one you came through.
The group looks in on what appears to be a recital hall. Unlike the worn stone of the hallway, this room has a well-worn wooden floor. The opposite wall is lined with bulging shelves that support books, a variety of instruments--everything from common violas, flutes and harps to more foreign Minkaian shamisen and Qadiran zithers--and dozens of rectangular woven bamboo baskets that contain loose sheaves of paper. Several chairs are pushed against the wall, providing a viewing gallery of sorts, and a portrait of the Grand Prince hangs just beside the door, surveying everything in the room with magisterial authority. The brass plaque on the frame of the portrait reads: "Persevere, persevere, persevere!"
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Cademon saunters on up to the other door on this side of the hallway and lets himself in. The well-lit classroom he finds himself in holds many chairs aligned towards two giant chalkboards that hang on the wall to his right; both have been dusted free of their last lessons, though. An hourglass sits atop a heavy-set desk at the front of the class. Along the opposite wall, several shelves hold books on sundry topics--particularly dealing with theory-heavy subjects like hand signals, ciphers, and Taldan traditions and ceremonies.
Simple but colourful tapestries hang along the north wall, giving the room a bright appearance despite the lack of sunlight and the dour portrait of Grand Prince Stavian III affixed to the south wall. A brass plaque on the frame of the portrait reads, "To serve Taldor, I must first learn the history of Taldor."
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Mohok says in his rumbling voice, "Well, I'll be no use studyin' them books. But I might be able to figure out which books get the most use, in case that helps us figure out where to find the information we're after."
He begins to study the floor of the hallway, unfortunately disturbed by his fellow Pathfinders at this point, as well as the door frames, doorknobs, bookshelves and other furniture, to try to determine whether any of the reading rooms or particular shelves of books get more visitors than others.
As he passes Tippy standing guard outside the smaller room, he says, "Hey, feel like lending me a hand? Or an eye, really? Well, two eyes? I've done a fair bit of tracking in my day, but it's not easy to do inside like this, and another person or two looking for little details could be a help."