"Okay, boss!" Denair climbs onto one of the tables so she can pummel the guard on the ground level.
But his armor holds firm.
Meredith too rushes past the guard and towards the bookcases, clearly intent on following Dalen's lead in climbing up. Denair decides to keep the lone guard on the ground level busy and moves up, taking a swat at him which misses handily. But he can play at that game as well, swinging his guisarme at the strange-looking creature and leaving a sizable gash along her side!
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Round 1/Round 2
Jan
Frankie
Brayden
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Illuvia
Spider Swarm
Green
Blue
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Meredith
Dalen
Denair
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Orange
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Lazarus
Active Conditions: Bless
Lazarus, Jan, Frankie and Brayden are UP!
Unbothered by trifles such as distance, Lazarus coolly points his trusty wand at Illuvia and sends a missile streaking forth to slam into her chest.
"Gah! You will pay for that!" she hisses through clenched teeth. Meanwhile on one balcony Jan dispatches one of her cronies in a shower of blood while Brayden attempts to do the same but finds himself distracted by the spiders that pour towards him.
Down below, Frankie continues to keep to the shadows and creeps towards some of the bookshelves. The spiders up above don't seem to worry him too much, long as they have other prey to chase.
Up above, Green finds himself caught between the proverbial rock and a hard place - face Brayden's katana or the spiders looming behind? He glances over his shoulder again at Illuvia, before shuddering and taking a step back from the samsaran. Reaching into his pocket he pulls out a small bag and flings it at Brayden!
The pouch strikes the samsaran in the chest and bursts open, splattering him with a goopy, sticky substance that gets in all the cracks of his armor, slowing him down.
Green then steels himself as the spiders surge forward, enveloping him in a writhing mass of legs and tiny fangs!
Screaming in agony and terror, the man flails uselessly at the spiders for a few brief moments before collapsing to the floor.
Spotting both Dalen and Meredith heading towards and up the bookshelves, Iluvia retreats back up the stairs to the third level balcony. She smiles grimly at Dalen as she begins casting another spell, directing a dark ray at the warrior.
It's a Ray of Enfeeblement!
As the ray strikes Dalen, she feels an unbearable draining, wasting sensation as her strength begins to ebb and fade away!
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Round 2
Jan
Frankie
Brayden
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Illuvia
Spider Swarm
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Meredith
Dalen
Denair
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Orange
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Lazarus
Active Conditions: Bless
Meredith, Denair and Dalen are UP!
Denair trades power for accuracy and bops the guy on the head.
"Oh, sorry boss! I'll be there soon!"
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Dalen no sells the ray, not even flinching as it saps some of her strength. Her eyes burn with fury born of righteous anger as she climbs up onto the balcony then comes behind Meredith, a wicked grin slowly spreading on her face.
"I've got to say, I'm impressed. I'd always thought that Lady Tellimius would be the biggest b@%@~ I'd ever have the displeasure of crossing paths with, but killing one of your own men? That gets you to the top spot, thought not by much," Dalen says, her voice one of mocking praise.
Dalen and Meredith both scale the bookcases and clamber over the railing of the balcony; Dalen ignoring the sudden sapping of some of her strength and Meredith approaching with fluid but oddly skittery movements - much like the spiders currently swarming over the fallen henchman.
Illuvia's eyes are cold as she regards the two approaching women, her mouth set in a small, determined line. "Unfortunate. And yet he could have fled past the Blueberry - the choice was his! Those chosen by the Queen serve her cause, some unto death itself! Tell me, Lady Hayseed, what cause would you die for?"
Down below, Denair gives Orange a solid BOOP on the head but he seems to be made of slightly sterner stuff than the other two were; he takes a step to the side and tries to make another retaliatory poke at the strange plant-creature-thing!
Luck doesn't seem to be on his side now, however.
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Round 2/Round 3
Jan
Frankie
Brayden
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Illuvia (-5, Shaken 1rd)
Spider Swarm
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Meredith
Dalen
Denair
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Orange
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Lazarus
Active Conditions: Bless
Lazarus, Jan, Frankie and Brayden are UP!
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Frankie sees the legs of the man, finally close enough to help! "AAAiiiiiEEEE!" He says as he jumps up from behind the table, a dagger appearing in his hand from out of no where!
He cautiously pokes at the man, trying to tickle his ribs with the point of his little dagger. "Have at you evil scum! Denair and I will vanquish you!"
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Brayden jumps and pulls his knees up to his chest, preventing the goop on his boots from coalescing into a glue-like blob.
"Well then, thank you, spider bros, for taking care of that henchman for me, but I must be going." Brayden slowly hustles down the stairs at half speed, sticky tar causing each of his boots to SPLOCH SPLOCH SPLOCH as he moves along the wooden floor.
Having the perfect means of engaging Illuvia from a distance Lazarus fires another missile at the woman, which burrows into her shoulder and leaves a small, smoking hole!
"Ngh! House Thrune and my Order...I owe them everything!" Illuvia gasps with pain. "They saved me from the gutter; without them I would have ended up a common criminal or whore! My loyalty and my service - my gifts to them in return!"
It took some care and patience but finally - Frankie's time to shine is nigh! With a high-pitched, shrieking battle cry he leaps out from behind the table he'd been hiding behind and attempts to poke Orange with his dagger. Orange, having been focused on Denair, is caught completely off guard as Frankie's blade slices into the back of his leg!
"Ahhhhhh!"
Jan, now with a clear shot to Illuvia, races across the upper balcony and begins taking the stairs to the higher balcony where the woman is already being menaced by Meredith and Dalen. Though he can't quite close the distance completely, it's enough to completely block Illuvia in, unless she wants to risk jumping over the railing.
Meanwhile Brayden declares discretion to be the better part of valor when faced with many tiny spiders and retreats back the way he came as quickly as he's able, the goo from the tanglefoot bag slowing his progress the entire way.
With no other direction given, the swarm continues to surge along after Brayden, rounding the corner and beginning to spill down the stairs after him!
Surrounded but still unwilling to give up, Illuvia takes a step back from Meredith and begins casting a spell. A roaring jet of flame suddenly erupts from her hands, washing over both Meredith and Dalen!
Glancing downward, Iluvia's eyes widen at the sight of Frankie. "Child, what are you doing here!? This is no place for a little one like you!"
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Round 3
Jan
Franki
Brayden
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Illuvia (-8, Shaken 1rd)
Spider Swarm
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Meredith
Dalen
Denair
============
Orange
============
Lazarus
Active Conditions: Bless
Meredith, Denair and Dalen are UP!
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Dalen just barely gets her arms up in time to protect her eyes and face, but the wave of flame sears her clothing and she feels as if her lungs had been cooked. Still, she's standing and the slavish devotion Illuvia shows does nothing to quench Dalen's ire. Pain lances up her arms as she tears her sword from its scabbard, but she ignores it. Weakened, hurt, but no less agile than before, she goes around Meredith, hopping onto the rail before landing in front of Illuvia. The ranger grips the hilt of the sword in both hands and thrusts foward, aiming for the exposed skin of the woman's belly.
"Doesn't change the fact that you still bedded down with devils," she growls, "just like the truth doesn't change just 'cause some tarted up c### thought it'd be inconvenient."
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Meredith is caught off guard as the flames engulf her.
"Dalen's right. It's better to die free than live on as a slave. We'll see how kind they are once you return after failing your mission."
With Dalen blocking her view, Meredith decides to cast Long Arm upon herself. Vines surge along her arms, giving her mace the reach it needs. "You see, one of my friends is in danger. Unlike your House and your Order, I don't give up on them."
"Oh, hi Frankie!" Denair waves as he emerges from... somewhere. "Heehee, it's like I'm flanking with the Boss."
She swats the final enemy aside. "Speaking of which... I gotta help her."
Though both Dalen and Meredith are too slow to dodge the flames that wash over them, neither of the two women are dissuaded from their course. Dalen nimbly scrambles around Meredith to jab her sword into Iluvia's belly while Meredith calls on some magical miracle-gro to extend the reach of her arms.
Down below, Denair slaps the lone guard aside with a powerful blow that sends him flying into a nearby bookcase before he tumbles to the ground, still. She then scrambles up the wall towards Iluvia and the others.
Jan steps up behind Iluvia, once again calling for her surrender lest she face the consequences. The only reply he gets is a desperate glare that Iluvia throws at him from over her shoulder and so he swings both axe and shield in an attempt to cut her down...and while she ducks the axe, the shield slam catches her firmly across the shoulder!
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Round 3/Round 4
Jan
Frankie
Brayden
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Illuvia (-17)
Spider Swarm
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Meredith
Dalen
Denair
Lazarus
Active Conditions: Bless
Lazarus, Frankie and Brayden are UP!
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Frankie turns to see who's talking to him as the guard gets walloped by Denair, walking closer as he speaks "Where's Zephiro? He was supposed to help me with my reading and writing earlier and you said you took him away for bad things! He is a good man, he helps teach us kids to be smart, so we don't end up stealing and being bad people. Why would you do this to us? He was our only chance!" Frankie starts to sob, hoping to tug on her heart strings, especially after her speech about growing up on the streets.
Childlike: Benefit: You can take 10 on Bluff checks to convince others you are telling the truth, so long as your story makes you appear innocent. You gain a +2 bonus on Disguise skill checks to pose as a human child, and ignore the check penalties for disguising yourself as a different race and age category while doing so.
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Lazarus turns his attention to the swarm of spiders, reaching into his spell component pouch and hurling a handful of sand at the vermin while uttering an arcane phrase and sketching runes with his long blue fingers.
Sheets of hot, shifting and burning sand, a foot deep, spread over the ground in the northwest corner of the room. The sand itself burns, and periodic flames rise from the grit.
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Brayden watches the burning pile of sand cover the skittering mini monstrosities, his smile wide. "An excellent move, brother! I would stay here and guard you, but I am afraid I can do little to stop these spiders. And on the other hand, I do not think I can reach the others in time to help them with miss lawful." Sighing, the samsaran continues to sploch up the southern stairs.
Stepping in to save his brother-from-another-mother, Lazarus hurls...sand?...at the oncoming swarm of spiders. But as the sand expands to cover the northwest portion of the room, it grows hot and the spiders begin to pop and crackle in the fire! Now with one less hazard to worry about, Brayden continues his slow, sticky plod across to and up the southern set of stairs though he doubts there'll be anything left of Iluvia for him at the rate things are going.
As Frankie scolds Iluvia for taking away his (apparent) one chance at being able to make something of himself, the woman's expression grows legitimately pained - even with her own circumstances so dire.
"Child, I don't doubt that Zefiro has done many admirable things in his life...but there are rules that must be followed in order for everyone to have the best chance at a safe and productive life," she calls out. "Zefiro broke one of those rules and must be punished! What do you think would happen if we were to allow everyone to do as they please and ignore the rules put in place by those in charge - even if they do other things that are kind? There would never be any peace in Cheliax!"
With little else in the way of options, Iluvia then adopts a defensive posture as she begins to try and cast another spell...
It's Inflict Moderate Wounds!
...and manages to get the spell off but is unable to lay her hand on Dalen to activate it! And down below, Iluvia's spider swarm fares little better; spiders continue to pop and crackle as the mass now tries to escape the burning sands...
...and rather unfortunately continues on its original course down the stairs. Luckily for Lazarus, the thick sands do serve to slow the swarm down and it isn't quite able to escape completely!
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Round 4/Round 5
Jan
Frankie
Brayden
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Illuvia (-17)
Spider Swarm (-2)
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Meredith
Dalen
Denair
Lazarus
Active Conditions: Bless
Everyone is UP!
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"Telling the truth isn't going to bring chaos. It just embarrasses those in power," Dalen says before feinting with a cut to Illuvia's neck then reversing the flow of her blade to bite into the woman's exposed hip. "You are beaten. Yield," she growls, holding her face just inches from Illuvia's, daring her to hit her with her best shot.
"No!" Iluvia cries, moving to dodge Dalen's swing as she goes for the neck. "I will never-"
But she doesn't get a chance to finish as, thrown off guard by what turns out to be a clever feint on Dalen's part, Iluvia catches a blade to the hip that practically cuts to the bone. Her eyes briefly widen with shock and surprise before collapsing to the floor, the flaming ball of spiders winking out of existence and the spell charge still held in her hand dissipating into a dark mist.
Combat Over!
With Iluvia and her henchmen defeated, an eerie silence falls over the Corentyn Museum of History. Whether you take mercy on Iluvia, slowly bleeding out on the floor, or let her descend into the grasp of Asmodeus, it's certain that it won't be long before her presence is missed and others are sent to investigate this place.
Either way, once you set about rifling through the possessions of Iluvia and her henchmen, you find several things...
Potion of Cure Light Wounds x3
Masterwork Arrows x10
Tanglefoot Bag x3
Thunderstone x4
Leather Armor x2
Longsword x2
Longbow x2
Arrows x40
Chain Shirt
Javelin x3
Masterwork Guirsame
Masterwork Sap
Manacles
Wand of Identify (22 charges)
Sickle
Spell Component Pouch
You also find two other items of interest: a golden pendant bearing the insignia of the Sisters of the Golden Erinyes as well as what appears to be an arrest warrant.
Also known as the Devil Nuns, the Sisters of the Golden Erinyes are among the most well known of the monastic orders in Isger fostered by the Church of Asmodeus in the aftermath of the Goblinblood Wars. One of their primary missions is to take in children left orphaned by the wars, and raise them as worshipers of Asmodeus.
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"That stupid... Sirmium bureau? Does anyone know what that is?"
Meredith tries to keep Illuvia alive. Failing that, she grabs one of the stray potions of Cure Light Wounds. "I'll save her life, but I know she won't be thankful. Frankly with the punishment she's going to get it may not be worth saving her hide." She hands Dalen some rope and then pours the potion down the woman's throat.
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"Also known as the Devil Nuns, the Sisters of the Golden Erinyes are among the most well known of the monastic orders in Isger fostered by the Church of Asmodeus in the aftermath of the Goblinblood Wars. One of their primary missions is to take in children left orphaned by the wars, and raise them as worshipers of Asmodeus."
Lazarus frowns. "Their charity has a harsh edge. I know a fellow Pathfinder, Jake Spade, who was raised by the Sisters. He'd sooner forget his time among them."
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"Save your resources, Meredith. You may have need of them, before this is over." Lazarus casts an orison, stabilizing the fallen Iluvia. "She'll live."
He holds up the woman's spell component pouch, eyebrows raised, asking if anyone has need of it. If not, the wizard-priest pockets the thing. "I'll hang onto that wand of identify, if no one else can use it. I've less need of the healing draughts than some of you."
He looks around, "Where's Zefiro?"
Between Meredith and Lazarus you manage to stabilize Iluvia's bleeding, though you're wary of expending further resources on her just yet. There's no sign of Zefiro or anyone else lurking nearby - but you do know that the curator's office is just beyond the balcony where Iluvia made her stand. Perhaps more clues as to his whereabouts or how to rescue him might be found there?
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Frankie's dagger quickly disappears once more up his sleeve now that he's safe. He quicky and happily helps remove the useful items from the men downstairs. "Hey look at all this cool stuff! Like these bags of goop! I'm grabbin' some of this stuff for our next water balloon fight!"
Frankie scoops up a tanglefoot bag and a thunderstone, as well as the nicely made sap. "Huh check this out! Its kinda like one of those nerf bats!" He starts flailing it around towards Denair, smiling.
He's happy to help explore further as they try to find Zephiro.
He hides his ferocity behind a smile... Denair hops around and plays with Frankie a bit. Boss seems okay.
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Lazarus nods at the young boy, "Well done, Francis. Please collect our loot."
The samsaran follows Jan up the stairs, ensuring he's got his wands of bless and magic missile in his hands, ready for what lies beyond the door to the curator's office.
Sid pokes one red eye out of the folds of Lazarus's robes. *Keep an eye on that kid, boss. He'll f%@~ing rob all of us blind!*
The wizard-priest coughs to cover up his familiar's latest candid outburst.
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Dalen thanks the others for their help and suggest that they get Frankie out of the museum as soon as they can. She spends the next few moments think about what she wants to do and begins gathering up some of the other equipment, namely the arrows, both masterwork and regular, and the manacles. She gathers up the enemies that are still breathing and puts them near the entrance to the library and sets a chair so that anyone entering can see. She then waits until Frankie is gone before getting to work. After an hour of moving unconscious people, shredding their clothing into cloth strips to bind them with, and then wrapping everything up in a pretty bow, Illuvia and her surviving henchmen are sat in the middle of the main aisle in the library, naked as the day they were born save the winding cloth strip that's tying them all together. Though, to get free, they were going to have to undo the bow and expose all their glory to whoever checked on them in the morning.
The final touch was a letter addressed to Illuvia that Dalen quickly pens before leaving it nestled in the woman's bosom, and leaving the museum altogether.
My dear Illuvia,
I write this to you in the hopes that should we meet again, that you'll not leave me unsatisfied. In truth, I find your judgement and supposed merits suspect in that moment of fury and passion we shared and even before. When nest we meet, I pray that you will have acquired dress more appropriate to our midnight rendezvous. If and when our paths cross I shall expect more from you than cheap tricks and fleeting pleasure.
Sarcastically yours,
The Hayseed
Once Frankie is done piling all the loot up in a neat pile in the center of the room, he merrily skips up the stairs and gives the door leading into Zefiro's office a good once-over in case that nasty Iluvia left a trap or other surprise while Dalen remains below to keep an eye on the door leading out of the wing. To his relief and good cheer, the door seems free of traps and other obstacles and so Frankie quickly steps aside as Jan moves up and flings the door open.
Just as you remember from your previous visits, book shelves and display cases stand in the corners of this large office. An oaken desk sits in the middle of the room with large windows set in the wall on either side of it. Doors to the south open to a raised terrace, and a large painting of Abrogail II hangs on the north wall. It looks like Zefiro's office has already been haphazardly searched by Iluvia and her men as many of the books are carelessly tumbled and jumbled together on the floor, not to mention the contents of the desk drawers have also been dumped out - more papers as well as supplies such as ink bottles and pens.
Of Zefiro, there is no sign.
That painting...at first glance it appeared to be firmly fixed to the wall but when you look closer, you spot what appears to be a tiny latch on the left side of the frame.
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"Thanks Jan! You're so brave and strong. You sure you didn't escape the slaver people?" Frankie strolls into the room and immediately is drawn to the large portrait "Doesn't she look like someone that ran out of wine!" Frankie shudders as he goes to straighten the painting, and to his surprise it swings open.
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"Ah, a hidden compartment or door? Nice one, Frankie, even if unintentional." Brayden steps up to the painting and peers around. "A image of Her Infernal Majestrix is not in any way unusual in these parts. I have heard that in other Chelish cities, businesses must hang such a portrait at the front entrance or risk being shut down."
As Frankie moves to straighten the painting, it suddenly swings open and reveals a secret door that leads into another room! Several bookshelves, a desk, and a display case crowd this cramped room. To the left stands a statue of Aroden.
A quick perusal of the books and papers that you find in this room reveal that this is where Zefiro apparently stored all of his secret research and illicit - in the eyes of the government - projects. Among other things, you find an early (and now publicly redacted) diary filled with tales of infernal war crimes committed by Thrune, an Aspis Consortium cargo manifest for a shipment from Taldor to Khari, and Zefiro’s holy Arodenite scriptures.
You also identify key records that the Pathfinder Society would want preserved.
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Dalen looks up to see Meredith as she works on cutting Illuvia out of her dress and grins.
"You think so? I didn't want to kill her, but I wasn't about to just patch her up without some punishment. I figure if the only way after us has them losing what little dignity they have then we'll be free from here without much trouble. Heck, we could be back on a boat for Absolom before she wakes up and realizes her predicament! Now I just need to figure out if should tie them up just sitting there or in some compromising poses."
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"Good eye, Francis," Lazarus praises the 'little boy,' when he reveals the hidden door behind the portrait.
Examining the fascinating contents of the secret room, the samsaran realizes, "Some of these documents are key records that the Pathfinder Society would want preserved."
The wizard-priest begins collecting up what he can carry into his handy haversack.
After spending some time thoroughly searching Zefiro's secret room, you're convinced that you've found anything and everything that could've possibly been hidden away there. Lazarus quickly gathers up the diary and the other papers and stows them into his Handy Haversack for safekeeping.
When those who had been examining the office and the secret archive room step back out onto the landing, they can see below that Dalen seems to be busy slowly cutting the unconscious Iluvia and her surviving men out of their clothing for...some reason. Perhaps it's best not to ask too many questions? Especially since the activity seems to have done wonders for Dalen's mood!
She waves the rest of you to go on ahead and that she'll catch up very soon. So, with little time left to spare, the rest of you take your leave of the Corentyn Museum of History and begin to hurry back to the docks - even with Iluvia and her men left alive and in such a compromising position, you're certain it won't be long until the local guard and the Hellknights come looking for you. You'll need to get out of the city and fast.
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Dalen decides that less is more and goes for the simpler option of just tying them together without posing them too much. Once she's done, all of them are tied up in one long ribbon of cloth made from their clothes with a bow over Illuvia's chest. As a final touch, she adds a gift tag.
To: Queen Abrogail II
From: The Hayseed
Having stolen some of the blowhard's dignity and left her letter to the mage, she leaves the museum with a spring in her step and practically skips up the plank to the ship after finding her companions again.
"I wish I could see her wake up and be found," Dalen says with an impish smile as she watches Coretyn recede behind the ship as they sail for home. "Never did like bullies or those that try to twist the truth to make themselves look better. I bet she'll be as red as her dress once she sees what happened to her."
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"Lots of stuff in here! Neat stuff..." Frankie looks around like... a Frankie would!
"Is this stuff very important then? Just looks like.. more stuff?" After Lazarus explains their important his face lights up with some level of recognition. "Shouldn't we take it all? Or something? If they find it won't it be bad for Zephiro? We don't want him getting in even more trouble!"
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Admiring the ranger's artistry, Lazarus whispers to her, "Dalen, check this out." The wizard-priest gesticulates and utters an arcane phrase, then spends a few moments in front of each of the unconscious figures, including Iluvia.
When he's finally finished, he steps back, slender blue hands on his hips, smiles, and nods once, satisfied with his handiwork.
Each of their faces is marked, as if by a large quill pen, with long bushy eyebrows, raccoon-like eyeshadow, and a curling, handlebar mustache.
Lazarus hides a grin as he turns to Dalen. "Who says samsarans have no sense of humor?"