Surexeria spends her time in the hideout studying the folks present, trying to get reads on them while watching for sneaky activity...
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Mawl is in agreement. It is good to have someone who is good at sense motive.
"Do we have any fairy dust? When we fought those things in the tiefling section, maybe one of them followed us and is invisible? Do we have any way to make them appear? Can Vendy see invisible stuff?"
Sholti is pleased to finally have met Rexus. She'd been hearing about him almost constantly and it's good to be able to put a face to the name.
She also spends plenty of time in the Wasp's Nest watching for just anything that seems out of the ordinary. She also looks through some of the papers Rexus had been working on, fitting them to his conclusions. The papers are something that hadn't been mentioned at all and she's curious.
Periodically Sholti also casts Detect Magic and scans the hideout thoroughly for auras.
"The glitterdust spell is quite useful for revealing invisible creatures, at least for a short time. I don't know how to cast it yet but I could probably activate a scroll. Perhaps I should purchase one?"
Horillo spends mornings working with the dogs, teaching the big dog to guard the cleric when he is present.
Before in the afternoon, returning to the wasps nest and keeping watch on the interior. He watches with interest any of their companions, that they have used to collect money for the resistance, small though it is.
As he hears the words regarding spells. he adds, "There are mundane methods that can also be used, flour, paint can be just as effective and much easier to get hold of and a lot cheaper. I would be able to summon a bat that could find an invisible foe, but only for a very short time."
"In the meanwhile, we could try mapping the undercity, we may have use of it's protection to travel unheeded." he adds.
"I agree that we should know as much as possible of the undercity. Maybe the bat might be a great idea. If we haven't seen anyone, yet things have been happening, and I really can't believe it is one of us, I think there must be an invisible intruder. Maybe one of those tooth fairies followed us in after our encounter."
The groups spends some time looking through the Wasp Nest trying to track down any leads as to who may be betraying them. Sholti, new the the nest gives the place a thorough look and use detect magic in the process. When she get's to Rexus's room she detects magic in one of the corners of the room near the ceiling. She stares at the spot for a time when all of a sudden, the magic aura starts to move as she hears a shrill voice "Ha! You finally found me... well let's see what you're made of then!"
Sholti draws her scimitar and begins her Battle Dance performance. "Who are you?" She shouts before shouting again very loudly. "Something's in here and it's invisible! I need help! Come quickly!"
"Who are you?" She shouts before shouting again very loudly. "Something's in here and it's invisible! I need help! Come quickly!"
Sholti draws her weapon as she yells out to the others for help and asks who the invisible thing is. All she gets in reply is a snicker, and she hears arcane words being spoken but nothing has happened yet.
Sorix, hearing Sholti's cry for assistance, hurries over. "I can't see it either! But I'll try to blast it with a color spray if we can figure out its location!"
Horillo runs towards Sholti's cry for help , but sees nothing but space and hearing a sniggering sound. "Sholti, where is this thing? Can you point it out."
”How about we try catching them and finding out why they are doing what they are doing before we decide to gut them or not. Maybe they’d prefer to sign on officially? If not, THEN we gut them!” Surexeria suggests with a smirk.
Sholti points out the location as best she can.
"There's a magical aura over in that corner, about 10' high. You can't see it but it talks!"
”Well let’s try talking. That sound good to you, buddy? We don’t really want to hurt ya. How about we talk this out and see if we can come to an accord? What do ya say...parley?” Surexeria asks.
As the group filters in to help Sholti, Surexeria calls out to the invisible creature. Suddenly the arcane incantation stops and the shrill female voice calls back. "An accord eh? I like deals and bargains... what did you have in mind?"
”How about you start with exactly why ya have it in for this fine band of misfits? Maybe we don’t have ta be enemies? S~%#, from what I can tell nobody even knew you were here, so they probably don’t know what they’ve done ta piss ya off either. And...ya know, the least ya could do is show herself so we can look one another in the eye and build some trust, savvy?”
From the corner of the room you hear snickering "We aren't quite to that level of trust yet... Anyway, see the problem is I am bound here and this place is kind of boring. I mean it is better than that old nasty cellar under the livery but not by much. So, I was doing what I could for some amusement and maybe a way to get out of this place."
”Bound here? What, you like chained or somethin’? And s~+@, I fancy myself as somewhat entertainin’,” Surexeria says as she puts her hands on her hips. ”Hang on,” she says as she steps out and comes back with a chair. She sits it in front of her, back towards the voice, and straddles it reverse, leaning forward on the back of the chair. ”Okay. Since you don’t trust us, and we obviously can’t trust you yet, let’s find a way ta fix that, eh? Tell us what you want, and we will see if we can come to an accord...”
There is a moment of silence, apparently the invisible creature hadn't considered the possibility of getting help from any of you. After a bit the voice speaks up again "Well, I suppose you could take what binds me here to the Sarinis. That is the family I served until my master was murdered by the Silver Ravens and I've been stuck in hiding ever since. How about this? We'll make a little deal, you return me to the Sarinis and I won't do anything to further hamper your little secret society you are building up down here. Honestly, I could care less what you all are up to as long as I get out of this place and don't have to listen to Rexus mumbling and talking to himself about his research all the damn time!"
Surexeria snickers at whoever this is taking a jab at Rexus. ”The Sarini’s, huh?”
Sorix listens to the exchange, trying to process as much as she can. "What, exactly, binds you?"
”Well see, that’s where I think we run into our first squall. See, I’d bet three nights grog rations that the Sarini’s have their noses shoved so far up Barzillai’s ass that they gotta move it out of the way for him to brush his teeth. And that’s no good for us. But, based on our chat so far, I wager there’s some sort of magic involved here? Forcing you to work for them somehow? What if we made an accord to get you released from that deal? Or maybe made you a better offer?”
The invisible voice snickers once again at Surexeria's explanation, but responds "Well it's a contract. The only ones who have the power to break it are the Sarini. I mean, maybe there are other ways but not that I know of and trust me I've thought about it a lot."
Whether or not Surexeria's bargaining goes anywhere, it certainly does give Sholti some space to think about what they might be talking to. She stands down and tries to think of what she might be able to figure out about the invisible intruder.
When it mentions a contract, Sholti feels like she's on firmer footing. She does have some experience there, if only second hand.
"Almost any contract has terms of fulfillment, an agreed upon set of conditions that end it. Perhaps the contract can be fulfilled if not broken?"
”Does it keep ya from doin’ work for other folks? Like, how restrictive is it? I mean, until we can confirm where they stand in all this, or we deal with f&%@-nut tyrant, how about you agree to help us out a wee bit? You’ll get to do something different, raise a little hell maybe?”
There is another moment of pause before the voice replies "Well, no it doesn't keep me from working for someone else but I can't leave this place because I have to stay near the contract so... not a lot I can do unless it is still down here and that kind of defeats the purpose of me getting out of here..."
Mawl makes his way into th room and is standing by in case negotiations go south. Wearing a puzzled look as he cannot see what they are talking with and can't figure out what they are saying.
"So this contract,is it in writing, you seem to think Rexus has it. Were you trapped previously, I mean bound previously to the Livery. Do you mean when we bought all those papers over you came too?" Horillo asks rather perplexed it could have been him helping to bring the spy over. He turns to Sholti and asks quietly, "I don't suppose burning the contract would work, do you? I mean it's on some parchment in here somewhere."
He speaks up into the corner of the room, "What does the contract look like?" then to Rexus, "Have you seen what the devil this piece of paper is, this contract of binding?"
The invisible voice responds to Horillo "Bah... yes it is in writing and yes I was stuck under the livery before and yes when you took that chest of papers with you I had to come along..."
When he mentions the possibility of burning the contract the voice cries out "NO!" There is a pause and then it continues "I mean, even if you figure out what to burn, you'll just end up pissing me off if you burn it and I have a long memory and lots of time to make sure you pay for pissing me off!"
When Horillo asks Rexus about the contract the man rubs his chin as he thinks "There wasn't anything I saw in those documents remotely resembling some sort of binding contract. Although, maybe it was disguised somehow... perhaps that is why I missed it."
At Rexus' words the voice chimes in "Oh come on... why are wasting all this time talking. I'll tell you what you need to know to get rid of me but only if you promise to turn me over to the Sarini's unless one of you lot think you can break the contract. Though I wouldn't expect as much..."
Surexeria scowls. ”Now look here, ain’t nobody went throwin’ threats around, but if you want to play that game, ya just f@@&ed up. You just ‘fessed up to are bound to this slip of paper, and don’t want to see it destroyed. So let’s compromise and I’ll put it in a water tight, weighted map case, and drop it in the bay. Sound good?”
She lets that hang on the air a moment. ”Are we done making threats? Can we get back to actual productive talks? Or should we just close the door with a few of us and just you, and see how long you can really hide? Personally I’d like to reach a mutual accord, but it seems that is entirely up to you.”
As opposed to the normal snickering the invisible voice busts out in straight laughter. "See the problem is you don't know which paper it is so unless you want to destroy all your important research I'll make sure to stop you before you figure out the right one." There is a pause as the laughing stops "You're right though rather than us fighting about it, let's come to an agreement. I already told you what I needed. Let's strike a bargain and be done with all this nonsense."
"Rexus, these papers just contain old historic details surely they can't help us now, let's just burn them all." Horillo takes down an oil lamp from the wall and removes the stopper. Looking in the opened hole, he says "Yes should be enough oil in here." He looks in the corner and says, "It would be much easier to talk if we could see who we are dealing with. Do you have a name? Show yourself and we can decide which pile of papers to burn first. Because I'm not sure I'm really worried about pissing off someone I can't see." Horillo waits momentarily for the voice to respond.
Their is a heavy sigh from the invisible creature and then a reply "Gah... you all are a pain in the ass. Fine, you want to see me, then see me, but no funny business!"
All of a sudden something pops into view near the ceiling of the room. A pocket-sized picture of condescending glee, this little creature’s face shifts constantly between the mien of an unimpressed professional and that of a joyous but sadistic child. Her scarlet skin seems almost to shimmer and glow with an inner, infernal fire. Fiendish wings keep her afloat near the ceiling while a whipping scorpion-like tail lashes behind this diminutive, red-skinned nuisance. Even so, she is somewhat attractive.
"My name is too difficult for mortal tongues but you can call me Blos. Now can we stop with the threats and get down to business?"
”There, that’s better!” Surexeria says as she offers her hand out to the tiny devil. ”Pleasure ta meet ya, Blos.”
”So...your primary motivation to get back to the Sarini’s is because you are bored out of your mind? Is that the gist of it?”
Mawl sees nothing but a creature that can either help or hurt, so he is examining his potential attack vector should it become necessary.
Sholti stays silent, even when "Blos" reveals herself as a small devil. As long as she and Surexeria are talking, the devil might give up some useful information. Blos has already said a few things that, if true, could be used.
However Sholti is also pessimistic about making any deal with a devil, and stays ready to stop arrangements from being made until they're discussed by the group elsewhere first.
Sorix also stays quiet for the time being, letting a rapport develop between Surexeria and Blos.
Blos curtly replies "Well yeah...." She rolls her eyes at Surexeria I mean, no offense but you lot are a bunch of goody-goodies. Well, all of them except you. she nods to Surexeria. "At least the Sarani's are more open to a little deviousness, or they were."
She shrugs and lets out a sigh "I had been trapped in that stupid basement for so long, who knows the family could have changed. Either way, it's a win-win. You lot get me out of your hair and don't have any more accidental run ins with the law and I get to move on to bigger and better things." A devilish grin crosses her face as she continues "Tell you what, you don't even have to talk to the Sarini's. Just promise to take my contract to their house and slip it somewhere safe and I will do the rest."
”Or, what if you help me out. You’re right, most of this crew are the play nice type. Me? I know sometimes ya just gotta do what you gotta do. But ya gotta be smart about it. And I think you would agree with that, right? So how about this...you and me agree to work together. Help me bury a dagger in a certain pricks throat, and afterwards, I promise I’ll see that your contract makes it to the Sarini’s. If that’s what you want when it’s over and done with. Who knows, you may prefer to stick around with me for a while, but if not, I’ll deliver ya myself. What do ya say?”
Blos looks at Surexeria closely for a moment then starts talking to herself quietly, but loud enough for you all to hear "Hm... well what's a little more time stuck down here. At least this one isn't afraid to stray from the straight and narrow. Could be interesting and it has been so long since I've had someone willing to play." She shakes her head as she continues talking to herself "On the other hand, what's to say they will keep up their end of the bargain. Especially, the one offering... she is just as likely to betray me as she is to hold up her end. Oh maybe..."
She trails off and turns her attention back to the group. She specifically points to Mawl, Sholti and Horillo. "Do you all swear to abide by this agreement. You all seem to be the most trustworthy, so if you swear to it, I will agree to stick around and help your cause."
”Who said anything about being stuck down here! Show me the contract and I’ll tuck it away somewhere safe so you can get out and join in the fun!”
”We need to talk among ourselves before any deals are made. Privately” interjects Sholti. ”On our end this is a group matter.”
Mawl looks around to see to whom this creature might be referring. He is amazed and shocked at being pointed out as someone that does something right for a change. Hmm, I guess this creature can tell when I say I am going to do something...I can be relied upon to do my utmost to do it. But how does it know that?
Surexeria sighs and follows the others out. ”Okay? I felt things were going pretty good in there? What’s the hang up?”
Sholti is nothing less than stunned that Surexeria seems willing to agree to anything based on some brisk, slangy banter and what? A spit and handshake? Once they're all well away from the downstairs, Sholti lays out her thoughts on the subject.
"I wouldn't call it a hang up. I like the direction you're taking things, especially if it puts her contract in our hands. And any agreement must put the contract in our hands."
"We need more than just her account of things and her own promise that her word is good. We are, after all, dealing with a devil while at the same time opposing a Hell-aligned government."
"First we need independent confirmation that the devil's contract works in the way she describes it. Specifically what it limits her from doing. Second we need a way to ensure she won't turn on us as soon as her agreement with us is completed. There have to be tangible consequences for betrayal once the contract is no longer in our hands."
"The two ways that come to mind immediately are either a very extended period of service before she returns to the Sarini family, perhaps years. Or a new, second contract to guarantee her silence about us and what she knows of us."
"That's the very minimum we need. There can't be a deal today, the devil will have to wait a while. But that's not a bad thing, she may feel some pressure to accept terms more favorable to us if she thinks we may walk away without giving her a deal"
"What?! This thing is a devil? How do you kill it and how does it fight you?"
