"Gwyn," Helena murmurs, laying a hand on her friend's shoulder. "It's alright. We're all safe now." Patting the shoulder a few times, she adds, "Cerin's right, though. We should keep moving."
"Um, yeah, we should go," Orik says awkwardly, clearly chagrined at the ineptitude he displayed just a moment ago. He walks out of the rabbit hutch, blinking as his eyes adjust to the light again.
"Sorry," Gwyn says as she stands up. "Sorry, just bad memories."
Kyrian walks over to Gwyn as he helps her stand back up on her feet. "Hey, keep your chin up. The past is the past, so forget about it. We're alive, and we've got each other. Now lets keep on, I've got a friggin score to settle with these bastards... I wanna find that little idiot who somehow managed to make a lock I couldn't pick..." he finishes with a scowl as he gets ready to press forward.
You take a few moments to collect yourselves. You briefly groom the now-calm warhorse and make sure that it's set for now with grain and water. Cerin thinks twice about releasing the rabbits into the courtyard, and decides to release them into Tickwood on the way out.
You drag out the bodies of the two goblins who tried to ambush Cerin and quickly search them. Their gear seems to be of higher quality than that of most of the other goblins you've fought today. They are each carrying several stoppered dried-out gourds that contain liquids. Six of these radiate magic. Their dogslicers appear to be of masterwork quality, and between the two of them, they have 40 gp worth of cash, gems, and jewelry-- obviously stolen.
2 potions of cure light wounds
2 potions of feather fall
2 potions of jump
4 flasks of alchemist's fire
4 smokesticks
2 thunderstones
You then turn your attention to the door to the north. You do not hear anything beyond it, nor do you see any traps. The unlocked door opens easily to a short, narrow corridor that ends in a door to the east. Hearing nothing beyond that door, it opens to another short corridor with doors north and south. Again hearing nothing, the door to the north leads to yet another corridor, while the door to the south opens into a cramped room devoid of anything save a battered round table and a few poorly-built chairs. Orik remembers this as the room that Ripnugget, Nualia, and the rest of her band had used to plan the raid on Sandpoint. You take a moment to search the room, but nothing of any interest turns up.
The corridor leading north has two doors to the west. The first door has a crude drawing drawing on it of a goblin squatting over a pile of dung. Beyond the door is a nauseatingly malodorous open-pit latrine. The second door opens to a staircase leading down into darkness.
[spoiler=Orik]Your quarters are on the lower level, but you were encouraged to use the other stairs down... the ones near the entrance. You haven't actually used this set of stairs before, and aren't really sure what's down there... you were always kind of afraid of crossing paths with the bugbear Bruthazmus and his goblin cronies while you were alone.[/ooc]
Kyrian looks into the stairwell, and then towards Cerin. "Well, if we're goin down there, then I say weapons out at the ready. I don't want to get caught off guard right now."
Gwyn spins a dagger and her long, curving knife about her hands before holding the latter ready while the former returns to its sheathe.
"As ready as I'll ever be," she says with a grin
The stairs descend into darkness about 30 feet, carved into the solid rock. There is a wooden door at the bottom of the landing, and no one hears any signs of life on the other side. You open the door cautiously.
A large table surrounded by chairs fills much of this room. A slate board to the north is covered with scribblings in chalk, but the map of Sandpoint that has been carefully inscribed on it leaves no doubt as to the purpose of this room—this is doubtless where the recent raid was planned.
Doors on the southern wall of the room lead east and west.
Gwyn goes for the eastern door, then the western, listening to what's beyond. She's half tempted to replace the scribbles with an unflattering depiction of what she thought of the people attempting to raid the town.
That'd take too much time, though.
Gwyn does not hear anything beyond the door to the east, but hears the sound of whispering followed by a "Shhh!" beyond the door to the west. Gwyn also notices that there is light shining through the cracks of the door to the west.
Kyrian knocks up an arrow in his bow, following Gwyn's lead towards the door. Looking at her, giving her a nod, indicating his readiness at her motion.
Gwyn grins as she hears the whisper. Standing up she faces the others.
"Looks like the doors are clean," she points to the western door and mimes a person sneaking with her hands. She then points to Helena and Cerin, then the eastern door before miming opening a door. "the eastern door," points to Kyrian and Shalelu mimes drawing a bow, "seems as good as any." She points to Orik before pointing to a spot by the western door. "Unless you've got a better idea."
She then moves into a position she can flank with Orik from beside the door as quietly as she can before nodding to her doorknocker.
Kyrian backs up, keeping his eye on the door, raising his bow in anticipation.
"Oh yeah, the meeting room," Orik says quietly as the group finishes descending the stairs. "Not sure what's behind either of these doors, but I did see Nualia and Lyrie leave through that western door once. Couldn't tell you where it goes, though."
When checking the door to the west, Gwyn notices that something is written on the door in an odd-looking script.
Gwyn notices the presence of the writing just as she hears the whispering and strains to hear it, but she can't quite make out what was said. She then signals her friends and attempts to mislead whoever is on the other side.
Cerin notices that something is written on the door and, before taking his assigned position, moves in to take a closer look. As he examines the sigils, he suddenly realizes that it's a magical trap! He has a split-second to react before the runes glow an angry red and then burst in an fiery explosion!
The blast blows apart the door itself, leaving only a few splintered boards still hanging on the hinges. You can now see into the next room.
An overturned wooden worktable partially blocks the entrance to the room. Wooden shelves on the north walls are cluttered with an odd collection of fragments of stone statues and tablets, books, and scrolls alongside picks, shovels, brushes, lanterns, and other archaeological excavation equipment. The shelf is partially pulled away from the wall, and someone is obviously taking cover behind it. There's not a lot of space, and you can see that it's a Garundi woman wearing rather provocative clothing. A ghostly hand floats above her head.
Initiative order: Bad guys, Kyrian, Shalelu, Helena, Orik, Gwyn, Cerin.
Round 1
The woman hiding behind the bookcase casts a spell, pointing at Cerin. The ghostly hand floats toward him, but the gnome ducks out of the way.
Good job with the door there Cerin, just what I like. A nice loud entrance to signify everyone here that we've just arrived!" Shifting over and putting his focus on the other door while keeping his peripheral on the stair case, he gives a slight taunt on his bow, getting ready to fire at whatever comes first.
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Cerin is thrown back by the blast, barely keeping his feet as he almost bumps into Shalelu. Shaking his head to clear it, he drops to one knee and croaks out, "Ambush! By the door!" pointing with his sword to the right of the doorway as he falls to one knee and drops his shield to fumble at his pouch for a potion.
The only thing that goes through Orik's mind as the flames race towards him is a single thought: Typical. Then the burning starts, and he begins to swear profusely.
"Dammit, Lyrie!", he yells, sheathing his sword for the moment, withdrawing a potion from his pack. "Knock that s**t off for a minute! We need to have a talk!"
Gwyn winces as the trap goes off. She'd missed that and now Orik and Cerin are both hurt.
"Trust me, talking is the less painful option. The other one involves sharp, pointy things and new holes in people," Gwyn adds almost casually, "you really don't want that, do you?"
Helena freezes, spear gripped in her shaking hands. She can get behind talking.
Orik and Gwyn call for a parley, Cerin backs up and digs for a potion, while Helena, Kyrian, and Shalelu cover the door with spear and drawn bows.
You didn't get a clear enough look at the spellcaster to see what spell she cast. You do know that it wasn't the ghostly hand above her head (that was already there), but the spell she did cast is interacting somehow with that ghostly hand.
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The sorceress' expression turns angry, and she remains behind the cover of the wooden bookkcase. "Orik?! What the hell are you doing here? And who are they?" Her hands remained raised as to cast another spell.
A different, familiar-sounding voice in the room says, "Who are they? They're the Sandpoint Heroes!" The voice says that last phrase in a mocking, nasal, sing-song tone. "So, you turned traitor, huh Orik? Doesn't surprise me. I thought you you'd be afraid to get your hands dirty. You're not the big tough guy you pretend to be, are you, Orik?"
At the other voice's explanation, the sorceress rolls her eyes. "Whatever. I'm giving you one last chance to get the hell out of here before I turn you into a newt!"
"Shut the F**K up, Tsuto," Orik snarls back at the mocking voice. "This whole s**t-show is doomed. Ripnugget's dead, Gogmurt is gone, and the Thistletop goblin tribe is no more. I've no interest in dying for Nualia and her crazy plot - whatever the Hell that is. This doesn't have to end in bloodshed, Lyrie. You and I have no real beef with Sandpoint - it's Tsuto and his half-angel f**kbuddy Nualia that do. There's no need for the two of us to get any more entangled in this scheme of theirs than we already are."
Kyrian's eyes narrow at the mention of Tsuto's name, lowering his bow as he reaches for one of his blades. "Figures that rat would be here. I've got a score to settle with that bastard..."
Gwyn pinches the bridge of her nose.
Greeeaaaaaat.
"Lyrie? Tsuto? Can we talk out here rather than shouting through the door? I'm-- We're not going to hurt you unless you do something to hurt us. I'm sure we can work something out," She says, trying to inject more confidence in her voice than she felt.
This Tsuto guy sounds just like that a%*%*&~ back at the Acadamae. One comment and I'm turning his hair pink and purple and his skin green.
Fluff flits to her shoulder, her feathers ruffled nervously.
"Is this going to work, Gwyn," the little thrush whispers.
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After gulping down the potion, Cerin feels a bit better and calls out "I'm sure none of us wants to get killed! What's she promised you, gold, power? I can guarantee you the only thing you will get from summoning a demon is burned! Nualia's only using you, she probably plans to sacrifice you to the Mother of Monsters to gain favor for herself!"
Lyrie seems to hesitate at the words of Orik, Cerin, and Gwyn.
Still hiding behind the shelves, she says, "Look, I'm just Nualia's hired expert on Thassilon. What god she worships is her business, not mine. She already paid me my fee, and also promised me all the Thassilonian artifacts we could find... and I've already recovered a good many from this place. If you give me a minute to gather up what I've already collected, and promise to let me get past you unharmed, then I'll be happy to get out of your hair. Deal?"
Tsuto replies, "Lyrie? You can't trust them! And they're going to try to kill Nualia!"
She shoots back, "Tsuto, you might be f**king her, but we're outnumbered. Nualia doesn't pay me enough to stick my neck on the line for her. As long as they let me get to the stairs, I'm outta here. I don't want to give 'em a chance to kick my ass the way they kicked yours!"
"That works for me, Lyrie," Orik says, clearly relieved that she's seeing the situation clearly for once. "What's the word, Sandpoint Heroes?"
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At the mention that she is a scholar, Cerin's interest is piqued.
"Are there any pre-Xin artifacts or is everything you have found from the time of the Runelords?" he asks.
At the look from Gwyn, he adds "Uh, yes of course. If you agree not to harm any of us, we will let you leave in peace. Although I would like to see your discoveries and discuss some ideas with you, if you are planning on staying nearby..." The last part he adds in a low voice when she gets close enough as he tries to get a look at the artifacts she is carrying. "Oooh, is that Cyrussian seal completely intact?!"
"So long as they don't cause any more trouble for Sandpoint," Gwyn says. "I have a question for Lyrie, though. Did you attend the Acadamae in Korvosa"
Kyrian chuckles a little, keeping a grip on his blade while he listens. "Heh, she may have tried to kill us, but I've gotta say... I kinda like her a little..."
After a pause, Lyrie comes out from behind the shelf. The ghostly hand continues to float above her head. "Okay... I'm trusting you not to attack me for now, but if you try anything funny, you'll be sorry!" She takes out a sack from her satchel and starts gathering up several stone tablets, statues, books, and parchments and stuffing them into the sack.
Tsuto steps from behind the wall where he was hiding, glaring at the Sandpoint Heroes with a look of disdain. He then looks at Lyrie and says, "Coward!" He looks at Orik and says, "You too! You're both turning your backs on the glorious day of reckoning. Don't think that Nualia will spare you when the time comes!" He then walks across the room to a door to the west, opens it, steps through it, and slams it behind him. Lyrie watches him leave and shrugs.
As she gathers the things, she answers Gwynn, "The Academe? Sure did. Graduated in the top 10, too. Class of '03." She then scows and mutters, "But was that good enough for the Pathfinders? Noooo..."
To Cerin, she says, "Nothing that early. These are from the end-days of Thassilon. And that seal is Shalastan... which is kinda weird, since I thought this part of Variaia had been part of Bakrakhan..."
"Oh, and I'd be happy to let you take a look... if you're the highest bidder. I hear there's to be an auction of Thassilonian artifacts at the Bronze House in Magnimar in three weeks, and I plan to sell these there!"
After about three minutes, she's done gathering up her things and cautiously makes her way through the War Room and up the stairs. She doesn't say 'good-bye'.
"Lyr, Orik says as the Garundi woman passes by. "I wouldn't mind working with you again in the future - this job was a cluster from the start, but maybe on a future job we'd fit in better. And if you're going to Magnimar, stay out of Underbridge. I've never heard of anything good happening down there."
"Ah, I was wondering if you could tell me about something that would have happened twenty or so years ago. It would have involved master Iradis and a few of his pet students at the time, probably would have involved honey, green marker dye, a nest of psuedodragons, and Thizzle's Weave Disruption," she says, looking as if she was trying to remember everything on the list she rattled off.
Yeah, definitely stay clear of that part of the city. Ordellia is the nicest place I've found. You should stay there if you can," The elf adds.
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Cerin looks at the items as she stuffs them in her sack. "Pardon, it's been a while since I have had a chance to study anything from that period."
As soon as Tsuto steps out, Cerin's blazing sword snaps up to point at him. "Just a minute! We said that Lyrie could leave, not you! You have a lot to answer for!"
With a quick apologetic look at Lyrie and a motion for her to head for the exit, he leaps forward to slash at the coward when he makes a move for the door!
Looking at Cerin with more than a little concern, Gwyn asks, "why? What did he do?"