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Faustinia smiles kindly at Catina’s concern. “I trust your magic and I trust my ability. And if it becomes too much, I am currently surrounded by three who are capable of healing me, am I not?” she says, nodding around at Catina, Petals, and Arael. “The spells should protect my belongings as well, but thank you for your concern, Petals,” she adds with a smile.
Once the protective spells have been cast, Faustinia starts in trying to open the Crux.
Her first attempt is a good test run, and she feels like she's getting the hang of how the puzzle is assembled when she goes off in the wrong direction. As the box flashes with heat, she quickly yanks back her hand reflexively, despite knowing that Catina’s spell will protect her. She blinks as the fire lightly brushes up against her fleeing hand, feeling its warmth but not its burn. Confident that she understands the Crux now, Faustinia makes a commendable second attempt. She has nearly completed tracing her finger around the edges, then guesses wrong for the last path. Having contorted her arms around to hold the Crux as she traced the path, Faustinia can't release the thing as it flares again, obviously getting hotter.
She starts again immediately, but fumbles the third attempt only a few edges in, forgetting which direction to turn early. If this thing didn't make my vision swim like those staircases in the Knot… she complains in her head, brow furrowed. The next attempt is better. She focuses on Petals’ song to keep up her concentration, and gets about as far as her first attempt. And all the while, even though she manages to avoid the worst of it, the fire from the Crux grows more and more vicious.
She takes another deep breath. There were only a few possibilities she could see for the solution, but not enough to try all of them with her next four attempts. Her fifth try she takes slowly, following the part of the combination that she knows as far as she can. She pauses there, then traces another image. It glows soft and red: the penultimate step. She moves on to the next one, and when it too goes softly she takes a sharp inhale as the Chelish Crux opens.
---
As the Chelish Crux opens, your ears are overwhelmed by a hellish scream! The scream comes from what appears to be the severed head of a woman (pic)!
The head is undoubtedly the strangers object in the crux. It continues to shriek ad scream without giving any sign of stopping.
Of course, there’s more inside the crux.
Leather Portfolio: This leather-bound portfolio bears a single mark on its cover—an embossed and very stylized letter “D.”
Scrolls: These three magic scrolls consist of a scroll of heal, a scroll of remove curse, and a scroll of scrying.
Silver Box: This is a small silver box engraved with dancing skeletons and containing four stubby candles.
Wands: This is a matched pair of slender oak wands; one is a wand of break enchantment (8 charges), and the other is a wand of death ward (7 charges).
_______________________
Varius watches with rapt attention, occasionally trying to help out, but Faustinia is moving too fast for him. He lets out a cheer as the Crux is opened... and then there's a head.
"WHATTHEHELLISTHAT!" he yelps, jumping back as the screaming starts. As the head just keeps screaming and screaming he tries to reason with it, letting others examine the items as they are retrieved.
"Uh... hello... head? Can we talk?"
The head screams and shrieks at Varius with hate.
"GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWHHHHHHHH!!!! YYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYKKKKKKKKKKKHHHHH!!!!"
Catina hoves a few steps away from Faustinia as the noblewoman works on the Crux. On the first failure, she sees Faustinia flinchs and worries that she failed to apply her protection spell properly. After all, she had never tried to bestow total immunity from the elements. However, she doesn't spot burns on the woman's hands and decides to stay put. She's not surprised that Faustinia seems to handle the puzzle with confidence, even if she slips up. Just when she thinks it might be time to call upon divine aid, she sees that her companion has solved the puzzle.
She's about to cheer, but is immediately interrupted by the Hellish scream and puts her hands to her ear instead. "WHAT IS THAT?" she tries to shout over the deafening noise. Not waiting for an answer, she grabs her cloak and flings it over the gruesome severed head, hoping that this shuts her up. It's nothing like a parrot, but maybe it'll work?
Catina notices that there's other things in the box, but for now she's too distracted by the screaming to pay them much notice. "There's supposed to be a key here, shouldn't there?"
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Varius takes a step back as the head screams at him. He returns the favour.
"BWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWGGLGLL!!! WAHARRRGARBL! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!"
When that doesn't work, he looks to the others.
"Well, I'm out of ideas."
Oh... Oh that is not right, not in the least little bit. Petals swears a few good sailor curses she learned waiting tables.
That's a devil, a loud ANNOYING DEVIL!! Ugh... called an Ash Wing cause is looks like a corrupted angel, black feathery wings. Except no wings on this one is there? I remember a lot of horrible stories about them. An Erinyes, I think is another name. She looks to Faustinia for validation.
The portfolio might have more information on the key? That D is the same as on the Pathfinder lodge, isn't it? For Delvehaven.
Varius looks over to Petals over the din of the erinyes.
"Probably a key to the lodge then!"
Conversing over the terrible screams of the severed head proves to be nearly impossibile. The Erinyes continues to scream obscenities in Infernal, however, so the group must find a way to solve this problem. Catina's cloak does not completely deal with the issue.
I don't like that priest..."
Catina groans when her trick with the cloak doesn't work, and she strains to hear what Petals is saying. "THIS IS USELESS", she shouts as she pulls back the cloak again and moves closer to the head with her hands again to her ears.
"Hello?! Please listens to us! We're get that you must have been stuck in that box for a really long time, but it's over now. Could you please calm down and stop shouting?"
--
Having a conversation with screaming severed head seems a little odd to Petals. But as Catina tries it, she understands wanting it to stop. ugh... she shakes her head in disbelief before shouting her attempts at reason. "Please! All screaming is going to do is get you locked back in that box again! If you talk instead of SCREAM, we might be able to come to an understanding!"
Varius opens his mouth to speak, and then glances over as Petals manages to get a word in over the screaming of the head. He looks down at his silver swords, deciding that if Petals' sweet voice won't get the head to shut up, maybe some threats will. Later.
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Faustinia reels back, wincing at the sudden shrieking head in her hands. She nearly drops the Crux and its contents, head and all, but instead rushes to place them on a table. She confirms Petals’ identification, talking over the head to say, “Yes, an erinyes. A Fallen one. And yes, that matches the mark of Delvehaven that I know on that portfolio.”
Faustinia plugs her ears and backs away, all her careful concentration shattered by the piercing screams of the erinyes’ head on the table. As the others try to fruitlessly converse, Faustinia carefully rolls the head out of the opened Crux, removes the portfolio and takes the various wands, scrolls, and candles, carrying them in their container. “Deal with this thing! I need to go somewhere quieter!” she shouts over the obscenities, taking the box and its contents away to a private room with a solid door so she can hear herself think.
“Additionally, I was wondering about our proposed arrangement. It’s one thing to keep making these little agreements, but long term that seems a little too unstructured for me - and, I suspect, for you,” she adds. Livia may be a little batty, but she is still a creature of Hell. She cannot be trusted, but perhaps I can appeal to her sense of order. “I was thinking about what kind of arrangement we could have. I’m not ready for you to become my familiar, but perhaps we can come to some other arrangement. A contract, perhaps,” she suggests, waiting to see how the imp responds.
---
No one could exactly well why, but Petals manages to stop the constant cries and shrieks from the head. Perhaps is her sweet elven voice, or the threat of putting the head back into the Crux, or maybe a combination of both. In any case, the severed head has stopped screaming. She looks Petals in the eye with a fiery look. Perhaps now you can ask some questions to her...
Catina is aware that she didn't make the best first impression against the screaming head - the erinyes, but she's willing to engage it in conversation nonetheless. "Thank you for calming down. That's...really appreciated. Who are you? Have you been inside the Crux for all this time? Are you a guardian of sorts?" She looks at the others, not quite sure what to make of the devil-head, and whether it would be safe to just let it sit there and talk to it.
The hate in the erinyes' eyes has not faded, even as she answers to Catina. All the conversation takes place in Infernal. "In the damned name of the Nine Hells, who the f@$* are you? You monstrosity, pathetic, vile mortal..." The devil spits at Catina. "I'm Khazrae Kuelata, and I was one of the most powerful of my kind. Then it all ended because of a mortal spellcaster...Dargentu Vheed...Bloody idiot!"
______________________
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Faustinia emerges from the private chamber with the magical items, carefully opening the door at first then proceeding as normal when it’s clear the shrieking has stopped. “It sounds like you managed to quiet her down,” Faustinia comments as she returns. She flinches a little bit when the head starts to make noise again, but relaxes once she sees that it’s talking instead of howling. She looks unimpressed by the head’s temper, but perks up at the name of the former mayor. “Vheed, you say? It makes sense that he would have something to do with this, considering where we found you,” Faustinia comments, remaining vague to not give the head too much of a conversational edge. “What happened?”
---
Catina is taken aback by the hate coming from the erinyes, but holds her ground. She finds that the Infernal tongue comes easily, and she translates for her companions' sake. "Vheed? Is he the necromancer?" she asks. "What does he have to do with Delvehavan?"
Petals is quiet happy it stopped screaming but does not like the vile words she flings at her friend. She'll say to Catina "Remember this thing is a violent evil creature that enjoys the suffering of others. It matters not a sliver what it thinks of you." she'll squeeze her shoulder in support. "Remind her she can spend another eternity locked in that box if you continues her hatefulness." Petals pulls her hammer out in case it somehow becomes a danger. Not that she wants devil brains splattered around the shrine.
She'll gesture to Varius for her and him to flank it on the sides. Simple things under control has a habit of biting them hard.
Varius moves into position, really pleased he can start using his badly-remembered Infernal.
"Us desire uh... know Delvehaven. You.. what? Want."
Livia flies about again, before landing on Lady Faustinia’s shoulder. In conspirational tone, she adds “I believe that Khazrae’s humiliating fate has driven her mad, and the years of sensory deprivation in the crux must have only worsened her condition. Despite this, she could prove immensely valuable to you. I heard about your intentions. The old Pathfinder lodge, Delvehaven. Well, perhaps you don’t know, but when the House of Thrune reopened the lodge and installed a loyal group of puppet Pathfinders, they charged Westcrown’s mayor, Dargentu Vheed, with organizing the reclamation of the lodge. He actually lived in the lodge for a year while he was having some extensive renovations done to his manor, and kept Khazrae on display on a shelf for some time as well. This means that she’s seen and heard many things about the lodge.”
“I lived there with my…master…” answers Khazrae, concerning Delvehaven. She then trails off into a litany of curses against the man, Dargentu Vheed, for several minutes unless interrupted forcefully. Something which occurs as soon as Lady Faustinia gets back into the room. “” commands Arael to the severed head. “Your forked tongue profanes these sacred walls! Get back to telling us about Delvehaven, or I will put your right back in the Crux!” Arael’s authoritative tone is supported by a well-known threat, and the head seems to take the latter very seriously, immediately getting back to her previous point.
“My memories aren’t quite clear about the place, but if you were to bring me to the site and show me around the rooms within, I’m sure I’d be able to give you some advice on how to handle some of the wards and guardians, assuming they haven’t changed since the last time I was there.”
Immediately after saying this, Khazrae lapses into another foul-mouthed and ear-splitting state of rampant shrieking.
________________________________
First we need to find something to gag the demon head with and if we can't (or if the demon chews through anything they jam in her mouth)... Now that you figured out how to open the box! Petals screams to be heard over the stupid head Can you do so again without danger?! thinking shoving the head back in the back will be the only way to keep it quiet.
Varius finally snaps. He yanks out his sword.
"SHUT UP! You know why this sword is silver? It's for stabbing devils like you! If you don't stop screaming I swear I will do things to you that would make Asmodeus cry!"
Looking around wildly, Varius finally yanks some spare clothes out of his pack before he forcibly stuffs them in the mouth of the erinyes. He then leans in very, very close with his sword leveled at her eye.
It's not that Catina enjoys the raging screams of the erinyes's head, but the alternative is hardly better for her. She puts her hands to her ears and looks away as first Arael threatens it and then Varius joins in. She looks miserable. It's only a head! How much damage could it do, besides being annoying? Her mind tries to find a more reasonably approach. Could we find some way to put the silence spell on an object, keep her from being a nuisance, or worse?
She tries to voice her concerns, when doing so is possibly without shouting. "It seems like we're stuck with her, if we want to have the best change possibly of entering and searching Delvehaven. But we have to find a way to get her to cooperate. We don't want her screaming like that when we're trying to be stealthy, and I don't want us to have to threaten her at every turn either. Any ideas?"
She then thinks of something else. "Could we find out some more information about this Dargentu Vheet? Maybe some discreet asking around, of perhaps he was famous enough to be mentioned in writing? We'll need to make the next couple of days useful anyway, while we wait for the equipment to be sold and such."
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Back just in time to hear Arael’s scolding, Faustinia pays close attention to the devil’s head and her reaction. She nods along as Khazrae explains her usefulness. Faustinia winces when she starts howling again, but flinches as Varius threatens further injury on the already beheaded (or perhaps de-bodied?) erinyes. She shares a nervous look with Catina, as if Varius were threatening to smash some valuable treasure. “Please, there’s no need to injure this fiend further. Or do you not want her valuable insight?” she scolds and pleads with Varius.
Faustinia then turns to answer Catina’s questions. “Actually, thinking back, I do know a few things about Dargentu Vheed. I was still young at the time, but I believe Vheed was mayor at the time of Delvehaven’s ‘renovation’ under Chelish watch. In fact,” she adds, thinking back, “I believe he was the one put in charge of the project. I think he even lived there for a time, and he certainly wasn’t coy about his consorting with fiends. I believe if Khazrae says she was there, we can trust that much.” Shooting a look at the angry men, she adds, “And although she is no doubt devious in her own way, we could use her assistance, for which we’ll need to gain at least some semblance of trust with her.”
Petals moves over to the others to say as quietly as possible with still being able to heard over the screaming devil. If she's even an ounce of what she says she is, one of the most powerful of her kind, she has lead thousands of people to Horrible deaths! her bright blue eyes shift to each of them, clearly worried We cannot take the chance she will get free to do so again.
Varius stares back at the group, wild-eyed as he continues trying to jam cloth into the devil's mouth. "I think her death, or perpetual imprisonment should rest solely on whether or not she shuts her face hole."
The severed head of the devil immediately complies to Varius’ intimidation, and shuts up. After a few seconds, however, she resumes shrieking, screaming blasphemies and curses. “Put it back into the Crux!,” orders Arael to Varius. The half-elf had to scream louder than the devil in order to allow the Chelaxian man to hear him.
Once the tremendous series of blasphemies and screams is over, and the head of Khazrae has been put again into the Chelish Crux, the group spends some minutes conversating about what the head has revealed and how to use her to their own’s advantage. While Arael remains suspicious, and would prefer the group not to trust the screaming devil-head, Ailyn’s approach is more pragmatic, and she suggests exploiting the head not differently from what the group would have done with other resources. Eventually, the choice depends on the Irises themselves.
After a short debate, the group also decides to analyze the contents of the leather portfolio. It contains a number of important clues that the Irises can use to learn more about Delvehaven, to prepare for their journey there, or even to aid in their exploration once they enter the old building. Here’s a short summary of the information contained in the papers.
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Ledgers: These sheets of paper serve as accounting ledgers for Delvehaven. All of the ledgers are dated from the years of 4674–4676, the period when Delvehaven was under the control of the House of Thrune. Of particular interest is a passage on the top paper that indicates the strong possibility that the Delvehaven Pathfinders hid a portion of their treasure and clues about how to enter the deepest vaults in an off-site hidden cache somewhere in or near Westcrown, but that no indication of where this cache might be located has yet surfaced. The ledgers cease abruptly at the end with no explanation.
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Missing Pathfinder List: This single piece of parchment lists the names, descriptions, and in many cases final fates of several Pathfinders. See below for more details.
When Aroden died and Westcrown fell into chaos, the Pathfinders stationed at Delvehaven locked down the lodge. The majority of the junior members fled Westcrown entirely, but the final fates of five of Delvehaven’s more powerful and important members has long been a mystery. The House of Thrune took a deep interest in the fates of these Pathfinders, for if they could be found, they or their spirits could be interrogated to learn more about how to access the lower reaches of Delvehaven. A letter to Dargentu Vheed catalogs not only the names of all these missing Pathfinders, but also gives clues as to where they may have ultimately ended up.
Ailyn seems to be particularly intrigued by this list. All five of these Pathfinders are listed as “missing” by the Decemvirate back in Absalom. “If you could discover the fate of these five, their names and fates could be etched upon the Wall of Names in Absalom and bring closure to this awkward chapter of the Society’s history. And that would earn you a hefty reward as well, about 1,000 gp for each Pathfinder whose fate you can secure proof of…”
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Poem Cipher: What appears to be a page torn from the back of a book sits in a larger piece of folded parchment. The torn-out page presents a poorly written poem called “Cugny’s Wedding,” about a man who falls in love with a mermaid but drowns when he tries to seduce her. The poem is covered with spidery script, as is the folded parchment that cradles it. A quick study of the parchment indicates that someone believed the poem was a code or cipher that hid the route to a cache of Pathfinder treasures kept outside of Delvehaven (as indicated in the ledger portion of the Delvehaven papers).
***
“So…What do we do now?” Arael has a faint smile on his face as he looks at the Irises with a mix of perplexity and curiosity.
Catina breaths a sigh of relief when the Erinyes head is put back into the Crux. The sudden silence is a relief, as is the thought that Varius can't make good on his threats of physical violence. She listens to Faustinia's knowledge, impressive as ever. "That makes sense," she remarks as she tries to piece together all the information they've found so far.
Along the others, she sets herself to pouring over the contents of the leather folder. "There's a lot of very useful information here. I'm glad that all our troubles in the Knot were worth it, at least. These ledgers don't make much sense yet, but I'm sure they will when we're actually inside Delvehaven and have things at hand."
Something in Ailyn's remark about the dead Pathfinders makes her frown. "I'm sure it will bring them peace if we figure out what happened to them, and that you give them the proper acknowledgements." She frown again. "But such wouldn't need a hefty reward, would it? That seems odd to me." She shrugs and moves on from the topic. "Still, following up on some of these might be worthwhile, before we go to Delvehaven. Going to Nidal is out of the question of course, and it seems like we might only have a chance to search for Mr. Bisby when we're in Delvehaven. But both of these," she points, "might be a good lead. Coriana and this Venture-Captain Ghoelfin. Both of them fought togethers - some place called the Father's Bulwark? There's hints to where there bodies might be." She looks at the others, suddenly a bit unsure. "These people wanted to use those candles to wrangle the secrets from their dead bodies. Do you think..." she hesitates a bit, "... if we tried to do the same, but with good intentions, that this would be OK?"
The tiefling girl reads over the poem and shakes her head. "If there is a cypher in here, it must be a really difficult one. If Liriam perished in Delvehaven, maybe he left some clue to the cypher somewhere? We'll have to look our for that when we explore."
--
She makes a couple of paces as she thinks. "We have some days while we wait for sales and purchases. Should we look into the fates of Coriana Heavenscape and Aiger Ghoelfin? That might give us the best possible preparation before we... venture into Delvehaven."
Varius lets out a sigh of relief as the shrieky head is placed back in the Crux. "Ye Gods that probably took a couple of years off of my life."
---
After the group has investigated the ledgers carefully, Varius listens to Catina's plan before he concurs. "Whatever is closest and easiest. Unless someone happens to have a friend in Nidal, Heavenscape and Ghoelfin are our best bets. Dealing with the Sisters does not fill me with much joy, but neither does dealing with House.. Lucca?"
Varius tries to think if he knows anything of them.
"The Pathfinder Society always rewards the help of those who are not part of the Society itself, especially when their help has put them in danger", explains Ailyn to Catina. "And considering that this matter cannot be addressed by the Society directly, I believe that they will be more than happy to reward you for your services."
***
"That would be OK, Catina", assures Arael. "Using necromancy to good ends is not considered an evil act and does not break any code of any faith of the good. And your idea is brillant." Arael smiles, enthusiastic.
"Lady Faustinia, what do you think about it? Petals? Should we use the candles as Catina suggested? In that case, our priority should be,
as Varius suggests, to retrieve the bodies of the dead Pathfinders in order to question them."
Petals will nod, speaking with the dead doesn't bother her. There's a lot of information, with a lot of leads. The former pathfinders seems a good place to start as any. Especially their loremaster, Liriam.
Catina gives Varius a quizzical look. "These Sisters of Eiseth. You know of them?" The name doesn't immediately ring a bell for Catina.
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Faustinia seems distracted as the others go over the portfolio’s contents. Her eyes read over the pages, but mechanically, and she doesn’t seem particularly focused, staring off into space occasionally. She is even uncharacteristically silent when Catina presents the chance to speak on the nature of magic, shuffling pages as she looks over them with glazed eyes.
“Hm?” she replies to Arael’s direct question, blinking at him as though waking from a daydream. This manages to focus her somewhat, and she answers as if not even realizing how lost in thought she was to be embarrassed. “Yes, retrieving the bodies should be a priority. Once we get into Delvehaven, we should try to find the body of the Loremaster. But in order to get inside, we may need more answers first.” Faustinia thinks, trying to remember if she’s heard of these particular groups before. “We have the best opportunity to find Coriana Heavenscape’s body, as well as the Venture-Captain’s. Arael, do you know much about the Sisters of Eiseth or House Lucca?”
---
Catina is still a little uncomfortable with the plan to retrieve corpses with the intent to use necromantic energies in order to talk with their spirits, but she makes an effort to take heart from Arael's reassurances. "Well, I suppose we have a plan then. First order of business is to get some information, I suppose. That should be safe enough while we wait for our equipment to finish the enchanting process."
--
I can go back to work then. Petals says with a sigh The tavern has been attracting all sorts these last few weeks. Drinking loosens tongues and fogs the memory of who was the one asking. Might help get clues. and the normalcy would be lovely for the quite tired elf.
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“I only know a few things about the Luccas,” Faustinia adds, ready to get back into informating gathering. “The only real remaining member of House Lucca is named Rance. While his family was notably powerful before Thrune, they are essentially known now for having crumbled from that into nothing.” Faustinia adds, somewhat uncomfortably, “Not so unlike House Xerysis, to be honest. Rance is notoriously contemptuous of Thrune and the rest of Westcrown’s government, not quite reaching publically treasonous speech, though. And I believe they scrape by with a… shall we say, semi-legal fighting pit. They call it the Devildrome,” Faustinia says rolling her eyes, unimpressed by the gouache name.
“I’ll see what I can do to get in contact. My estate certainly isn’t publically involved in politics these days, so he may be open to a meeting. I also would like to do some studying while we have time: that spellbook we found promises to be interesting.”
---
Varius bursts out laughing at the mention of the Devildrome. "The Devildrome?! Gods save us, that's the worst name I've ever heard."
He calms down before shrugging at Catina. "Not really. But it sounds ominous and probably Asmodean. Let's take a bit. Frankly, I haven't been leisurely and drunk for a while and need to return to the manner in which I am accustomed. Also, it's an excellent way to meet people and get them to tell me things."
The Irises of Westcrown decide to accept Arael’s suggestion and wait for a few days before setting their plan in motion. In the meanwhile, the other members of the Eyes work relentlessly in order to sell the good the party has found in the Asmodean Knot, and after two days, everything has been sold, and all the items the Irises asked for have been obtained.
The individual members of the elite group of the Eyes of Westcrown have spent these days of rest doing what they needed the most in temples, taverns and libraries.
Lady Faustinia received an answer to her letter the day after she sent it. It reads as follows.
Eminent Lady Faustinia of House Xerysis,
I highly appreciated your interest. I’m a gentleman, despite my family does not number anymore
into the list of the most powerful of Cheliax, and I’ve been taught the etiquette. As such, I cannot
refuse your offer and I accept to meet you. I will meet you at the Devildrome, at the northern edge
of Parego Dospera. Because of the curfew, it is not advisable to meet once the sun has set. Therefore,
I will meet you one hour before noon in my office, near the front of the Devildrome. Once you get there,
identify yourself to my loyal guards, and they will let you in.
P.S. I’ve witnessed your astounding performance in The Six Trials of Larazod.
My most sincere appreciations for your wonderful work.
Sincerely yours,
Rance Lucca.
Petals thinks asking is as dangerous as going in blind so tries to gather information on the Sisters of Eiseth.
Petals busies herself serving food and drinks, entertaining, and trading insults with Yakopulio. Every once in a while she slips in a question to a patron about her latest tale of wonder and woe, staring none other than a Sister of Eiseth. A group Petals knows nothing about and finds it hard to relate to the character without some knowledge of her past, just a little bit.
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With some time to rest, Faustinia sets to work copying some more options into her spellbook. She adds a few from the Chelish expatriate’s book when she’s at home or in the temple, and goes to the library with the newly found coin to fill in a few magical gaps in her knowledge. She also sends out for another purchase: a thick iron rod, flared at the ends to make it look a bit longer, with lengthy curving lines crisscrossing along its length.
---
Faustinia is pleased with Rance Lucca’s response, feeling like this is going smoother than their last endeavors - or at least more firmly within her control for now. Faustinia brings the other Irises with her, giving them advice quietly along the way. “Now, please address the man only as Lord Lucca. He is a man who has little respect but expects much, as far as I know, so best to be careful. He seems to have liked The Trials, so perhaps we can leverage that.”
Once they all arrive, an hour before noon in the Rego Cader, Faustinia locates the entrance she was told about in the letter and finds some guards to address. Even just north of the wall in the “Dead Sector,” a certain anxiety lingers as they pass swiftly through these dangerous streets. Still, there is work to be done and Faustinia tries to steel herself against this peripheral paranoia. “Greetings. I am Lady Faustinia Xerysis, and I believe Lord Lucca is expecting me,” she says to whatever obvious guards are posted outside the Devildrome.
---
***
After a few days of the rest, the Irises are ready to set their plan into motion and start their investigation. As such, they decide to attend the meeting Lady Faustinia managed to arrange with Rance Lucca. Getting to the Devildrome is not easy, of course, but the party already knew it. The walls to Parego Dospera are heavily patrolled, especially during the day. The guards are asking questions to whoever wants to pass the gates to the ruined portion of the city.
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When the imp confirms her diabolical presence, she nods. “Don't get too close, please; I need space for this,” she informs Livia, as one might to an assistant. Faustinia places the dove cage on her desk and casts a bright flash of scintillating colors at it.
Once the poor creature is knocked out, Faustinia quickly removes it from the cage and lays it out on her desk, drawing her dagger. She hesitates for a moment, brow furrowed as she looks down at the unconscious bird, its little chest rising and falling as it breathes. Gritting her teeth, she plunges the blade into the bird’s chest, wincing as the blood starts to flow. With trembling arms Faustinia struggles to break through the dove’s tiny ribcage, then sticks the tip of the blade through its quickly fading heart. She pries it loose, cursing with the effort, then lays the dagger-pierced heart on the desk. Breathing heavily, she whispers, “There you are.”
---
Faustinia considers the options for making the trip to the Devildrome once the Irises are assembled and ready to go. “We could try to get there through the sewers,” she suggests, but with a skeptical look. “Last time we skulked through there, though, it wasn’t particularly pleasant. It would be much simpler just to make a ‘donation’ to the gate guards. I believe the going rate is two gold per person these days, and it would save us the smell.”
Her eyes flick up, looking past the ceiling as she is struck with an idea. “If we don’t want to be seen at all… I think I could probably make use of some sort of spell. If we found a section of the wall that was relatively free of guards, I could put up an illusion to make it look like the area is empty while we climbed over. It would save us the stink of the underground, if we wanted to be more discreet,” Faustinia suggests. “What do you all think?”
---
The imps grins as she produces a very long scroll detailing the contract of your collaboration. It seems to you that all the clauses you specificed are there, but the scroll is so long and filled with clauses that it could still contain a hundred traps. You will need at least three full days of study before being completely sure about every single thing written in the contract.
At the end of this period, you will have to make a Linguistic check. If you have more than 3 ranks in Knowledge (planes) you get a +2 bonus on this check. You could also consult a specialist, if you want.
In any case, I consider you to have spent two days studying the contract already, so that leaves us with another day of study required.
Catina frets as the prepare for going to the 'Devildrome'. She talks with Petals about going out and gathering information as well. Ultimately, she decides against it: It seems like Faustinia can provide enough information about House Lucca, and if that goes well visiting the Sisters might not be needed anymore. No need to draw unnecessary risk. Besides, if Petals wasn't able to get any information, she isn't sure she'd fare any better.
As Faustinia gives them their final briefing, Catina nods gravely, listening carefully to the noblewoman's warnings. Her face shows plainly that she dislikes the plan to go there by sewers. She nods at the plan to bribe their way across, and Faustinia's estimate of the required 'donation' matches her own. "I think the plan to conceal our passage with magic is really clever, but there's also risk. If someone sees you casting, they'll surely know we have something to hide. Just offering the 'donation' seems safer. Plenty of people do it, I think, so it's less suspicious."
--
"Oh no" Petals moans in obvious distaste at the mention of the sewers. "I've... ended up down there before and never ever want to go back... unless we have to." Thankfully there are other options. At Faustinia's mention of a guard free wall she pipes up "We could leave the city proper, and enter through a breach in the walls. The whole area has fallen in disrepair so there are plenty."
The group decides to go with Petals’ suggestion, which seems to be the most reasonable one in that it does present the fewer risks, although it demands the highest amount of time. The Irises, therefore, exit the city through one of the many gates in the western walls, and after following the ordinary path together with farmers and traveling merchants, they leave the road and turn east. After about twenty minutes, the ru-ined walls supposed to separate Parego Dospera from the lands outside of Westcrown rise against the horizon. The party just needs to find a natural entrance now. A breach caused by a collapse provide them with what they need, allowing the Irises to enter Parego Dospera without having to pay or lie for it.
The main problem, now, is to find the Devildrome. Parego Dospera is an area filled with crumbling ruins, shallow pits and dust. The occasional ruin predator hunts the broken streets of the once-beautiful district, but the group knows how to move carefully and avoid danger…or perhaps luck is with them.
Fortunately, Lady Faustinia studied the geography of the area when she had a project of paying some workers to dig up the treasures she thought hidden behind the ruins of a Xerysis old estate. As a result, she’s able to navigate the ruins of Parego Dospera quite well, and the few information she managed to gather about the exact location of the Devildrome are enough, for her, to lead the party safely at its in-tended destination.
The Devildrome is, from the outside, a rather unassuming block of apartment buildings. There’s an office near the front of the crumbling stone buildings Lucca has claimed to host the Devildrome, and a few, mus-cular men keeping guard on it. This must be the place.
When Lady Faustinia introduces herself, the men nod together and one of them opens the door. The other one gestures to get inside, addressing to all of the heroes. Once the Irises are inside the office, Rance Lucca stands up from his comfortable-looking chair behind the desk and symbolically opens his arms. “Oooh, welcome, welcome my friends! It’s a great pleasure to have the opportunity too meet the celebrated he-roes of the Six Trials in person!” A confident grin of Rance’s lips makes clear that he feels perfectly at ease in your presence. His joy in seeing you seems to be genuine. “A rather unassuming party, I must say,” ensues the man, lighting his pipe, “and nonetheless one to be reckoned with!” The man breathes some smoke in. “Now tell me, as much as I’m honored of your visit, I’m also a curious man. What brings you to me?”
Catina follows Petals as they make their way out of the city. She hasn't been out of the city often, and the trip reminds her of the last time; when they had to rescue Arael from captivity by the Hellknight armigers. She's better able to appreciate her surroundings now. As they make their way trough the gap in the wall, into the Parego Dospera, she muses "Does anone know whether the shadowbeasts are confined to the city, or do they venture out in these lands as well? Just something that never occured to me."
--
When Faustinia leads them to the Devildrome, she's not quite sure what to expect. Still, she had expected something more than a block of unassuming appartment buildings. It feels disappointing, somehow... That feeling is quickly replaced when they are introduced to Rance Lucca. 'Gaudy' is the only words that comes to mind. Catina makes a bow that she hopes is adequete, and keeps her words to a simply "Thank you, Lord Lucca." She naturally assumes that Faustinia will do the rest of the talking.
|
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On the way outside of the city, Faustinia focuses mostly on looking for gaps in the city wall. Catina’s question catches her attention, though, and she answers, “It’s possible. That someone knows, I mean. I don’t know if they would exploit the walls just as we do, but unless they are somehow bound to the city itself, I wouldn’t risk coming out here at night. Likely shadow is their domain, and while the fields at night might offer the prey of a lonely traveler, the city proper has more nooks and crannies for them to stalk.”
---
Faustinia gives Rance a well-practiced smile as she greets him. “Lord Rance Lucca, it’s a pleasure to see you. I must say, I’m surprised you are a fan of the theater. Although I suppose the Six Trials is no ordinary play, is it?” she asks.
“Now, I’ll have none of this ‘your honor’ to have us visit,” Faustinia teases with a smile. “It is our honor to have an audience with yourself. We will try not to abuse your gracious patience to make this time for us, so I will be direct. I know you are a man of business and a shrewd one at that. My fellow thespians and I are looking for something that we believe is in your possession: the smashed, petrified remains of Aiger Ghaelfin.” Faustinia smiles kindly again. “Of course, we would not ask for such a thing without the appropriate recompense. What can we offer that would be a suitable trade?”
Petals will give a suitable curtesy to the man and a smile. And then promptly lets Faustinia do all the talking. Standing out of the way.
She's never been to this place, but has heard a hundred tales. The elf is truly bubbling with excitement, doing all she can to contain it and not be an embarrassment. Bloodsport is not something a good person wants to see. In truth it isn't the blood part of it, but the gladiatorial combat. Heroes of the ring, the patrons would gush about.