Casius, garbed in his equipment, offered a short bow to the Cardinal when he gave them their assignment, and went along with the others.
Once put into the Nine Lessons, he considers the words, a smile on his face. "'Deception is a tool. Self-Deception is death. Deceive always thy enemy but never thyself.' Words to live by. I suspect the Nine Lessons will be a series of chambers, each designed to teach us something we need to know to serve the Cardinal going forward. This first chamber might be a puzzle of some kind, and the most obvious answer is likely incorrect. Saulric, open the doors. Lazarus and I will be right behind you."
The cloaked and afraid-looking man rolls his eyes as Kira smacks her forhead.
Where am I? What is my task now? Do they all speak that much? he silently wonders.
As the awkward silence stretches on, he eventually tries painfully to grin. "Anastasius... I do not know you and obviously do not trust you." he says, a shadow passing over his face.
Casius says, "Lazarus, Saulric, let's see what the Cardinal has waiting for us below." Casius descends the stairs, idly toying with the binding of his whip, depending on what they found below.
Saulric nods before opening the doors with his shield in front of him.
Lazarus follows at a leisurely stroll.
|
"Wade Willhelm, son of Wulfric Willhelm, I am a mystic and a smith. We shall preform our tasks better without your posturing Anastasius. the Aasimar says boredly as though this were obvious, not even looking up from sharpening his scythe. "we don't have to trust each other in the broader sense, given that we know that if someone tries some sort of petty betrayal they'll be cut down like the dog they would have proven themselves to be
Anastasius grinds his teeth and seems to swallow his pride. He nods and bows with still a grin in the corner of his mouth.
"My mistake, my lords. I am, nobody but a humble antiquarian. I meant no disrespect. Betrayal was never an option." he says, opening an ancient book and displaying the pentacle of Asmodeus set in it.
Down the stairs, you eventually find yourselves in a chamber lit by a small oil lantern hanging from the center of the chamber. The chamber has no furnishings just the door and three figures holding a conversation.
Anastasius, a rather small man with dark hair and green eyes, has an old book open, facing the other two. He quickly closes it and stores it in a bag. The man speaks with a high-pitched voice:
"Well, and who might you be? I am Anastasius."
You notice a flick of white hair here and there in his hair. He keeps a well-groomed face and wears long robes with the symbol of Mitra on his heart. Jewelry hangs around his neck and wrists. The man keeps a stern expression, his face being hard to read.
Casius looks about the chamber briefly as they enter, noticing it lit by nothing more than an oil lantern, with a door on the far side. Seeing the man wearing robes with the Mitran symbol, his first instinct is to grab his whip and subdue them, but he remembers the lesson. Do not allow yourself to be deceived. There is more to this than an apparent Mitran priest with his two followers. He is quite imperious, though. Certainly has the attitude of a pious Mitran.
"Greetings, Anastasius. My name is Casius. May I ask why a priest of Mitra journeys so far from his temple?"
Behind Casius follows another older man. He is shorter with a harsh face and salt and pepper hair. He wears robes of red and white and a carved wooden basinet hangs around his neck. A short sword hangs at his hip. He simply observes the group, seemingly content to wait for an answer to Casius's question.
Kira looks up, concern flashing across her face for just a moment before being replaced with a confident smile.
She stands with a black, sleeveless coat, hanging open over a red top. She is particularly short, especially considering her obvious elven heritage. She looks over the newcomers trying to appraise them. What is that symbol, the one wears? Hmm. These men, they come in with their weapons, no scars or scratches. They could not have entered by force, therefore they must be sent by Thorn, let's see what they know of the man, that will tell us our play here.
Finally Kira steps forward, touching the old man's elbow, "Master Anastasius, I believe these men must also come from Cardinal Thorn, perhaps they can tell us what we are waiting for down here."
As Anastasius sees the man seize his whip, a grin grows on his face. He tries to discern the man's true motives to act like he does and understands quite easily what happens.
"Mitran priest, you say?" he answers, almost spitting the words out of his mouth.
"You couldn't insult me more, dear." he says on a calm and soft tone.
Anastasius turns his head as Kira speaks and nods, licking his lips.
Master? I'm beginning to like what happens...
"Well, and we have here a devout of Lorcan! I was... taught that he serves Asmodeus well."
Looking at everyone in the room, he opens wide his arms with what feels like a genuine smile.
"Pleased to meet you all! I'm only but a mere antiquarian, but I have learned the hard way that deception in this world is always a smarter option. Dear follower of Lorcan, you should conceal your symbol. I have found that knowledge is... spicier when concealed from your neighbor."
Kira's act as a servant causes Casius to dismiss her at once.
Casius smiles. "My apologies, Anastasius. The symbol on your clothing made me think you served that insipid sun god. A clever deception. Your servant's knowledge of Cardinal Thorn seems to show you are in some way allied with him? Did the Cardinal tell you to wait down here? I'm afraid he gave us no instruction regarding you, but Tiadora referred to these rooms as 'The Nine Lessons'. I suspect there are nine lessons we are to learn down here. Perhaps you are, as well?"
Lazarus simply smiles at the man's request, but he doesn't move to hide his symbol. This man was clearly used to trusting what he saw. Even if it was true in this case, which it was, that quality was something to watch for in the future. Such a man could be manipulated. Again he stays silent, content with Casius as the Talker.
Kira relaxes a little, Lorcan, I knew I'd recognized it from somewhere. Kira bows her head a little, "Ah, good. It is good they are not your enemies," for the moment at least, "perhaps then it would be wise to know if there were any more instructions for these "Nine Lessons." Kira's voice remains obsequious and a mere suggestion as she stays behind Anastasius, still playing a servant for the time being.
Casius narrows his eyes. That didn't sound like something a servant would say... He suddenly chuckles. "Deception is a tool. Self-deception is death. Deceive always thy enemy but never thyself." He looks at Kira, then at Anastasius. "We did get further instructions, yes. Would you like to come with us to learn these Nine Lessons? I will tell you of our objective if you do. But first..." he toys with the leather thong of his unholy symbol, hidden beneath his shirt, "I'll show you mine if you show me yours."
Anastasius looks with unease at the man displaying Lorcan's symbol who chooses to remain silent. He then focuses his attention on the talkative man before him, surprised by the attitude of the half-elven woman. Rolling his eyes, the merchant shrugs.
"I... have no servants. As for lessons, we might learn something from those who don't speak so much." he says.
Looking at the empty room, Anastasius chuckles nervously.
"Well, yes. I will try to learn these lessons."
Then on the tone of confidence with a lower voice:
"I don't think we really have a choice, do we?" he says, opening the old book with a leather binding that was open in his hands when the trio arrived. Inside are writings in a language unknown to the other members of the party. A silver unholy symbol of Asmodeus is set inside the book, on the other side of the back cover.
"Voilà."
Casius pulls out his own silver unholy symbol of Asmodeus and nods to Anastasius before putting it back. "Our task is that, somewhere in these Nine Lessons, is a pendant of silver and sapphire we are to retrieve for the Cardinal. It is currently dusk, and we have until dusk tomorrow to recover it. I am sure failure will be punished...harshly...so we must not do so. What I said earlier about deception being a tool is the engraving above the entrance to this room. Though it appears to be a straightforward single room, lit by an oil lantern, with one door clearly leading onwards, I believe there is a trick here, and we should carefully search the room before examining the door. Do you agree?"
If he does, Casius will go check the wall to his left for any secrets.
Anastasius nods. He opens a page in his book and reads out loud:
"αφήστε τα μάτια μου να ανοίξουν!"
Saulric grunts and keeps an eye on the three newcomers not willing to trust them so easily in a room about deception.
Kira finally stands erect. Though it does little to change her height, her entire demeanor changes. A light laugh escapes her lips, "Not my best performance admittedly. But with so little information, it is best to be careful. So, the Nine Lessons, and this one about deception? Well, let's see what we've got." She pulls a coffee bean from a pouch at her side, "I'm Kira by the way," she says before concentrating on the bean and muttering to herself. "Kharanth." Her eyes glow for a moment, then Kira begins to wander around the room, examining the walls.
Kira pauses against one wall, "Ah, there it is." She presses at small stone, and a part of the wall opens up. "I believe this may be the secret we're looking for."
"Excellent. You're quite perceptive. Let's see what we're looking at."
Casius looks through the opening - cautiously.
The short passage ends in a wooden door with another inscription: “Following the herd is for fools. Fear not their icy derision. Instead, fear only thy Infernal Lord.”
Anastasius smiles.
"A wonderful collaborator. Nice catch." he says, following the group.
”Indeed. Should we check and see if there are any traps on the door before we open it?”
Casius suits action to words, checking the door for traps.
Kira steps forward, "Yeah, I think that would be wise." She examines the door and the surrounding area, looking for possible issues.
"Indeed..." says Anastasius, not doing anything.
"The heard... What could it be? Something to do with Mitra?" wonders at loud the man.
The Lorcan priest finally speaks. I suspect it had to do with blind trust and faith in a system without knowing enough about it. Like sheep, they are led to slaughter by their shepherds.
The door doesn’t appear to be trapped.
Kira finally stands up, "This should be good," she says, looking back. "Though if you want to back up a bit, my feelings won't be hurt." Kira smirks, then turns back to the door. Once anyone who chooses to steps back, Kira pulls it open and looks inside.
Casius nods in thanks as Kira searches the door, then says, "Well, let's see what the herd and icy derision are." He opens the doors.
Inside the stone chamber, there are four doors – each facing a cardinal direction, with one door covered in a strange pulsating violet mold. The entire chamber seems strangely cold. This room is also lit with a small oil lantern that hangs from the ceiling. There is a small amount of frost on the lantern’s glass panes.
Anastasius follows Kira and Casius inside the chamber. He gives a curious look at the mold.
Casius exhales into the cold room. "Well, I'd say we found icy derision. I'm not sure what the herd is, though. Does anyone know anything about that mold over there?"
Kira traces the path with her eyes, then looks up, "I don't know anything about the mold, but I can see that a good dozen individuals have walked to both those two doors," she says pointing to the other two. "We can't go back the way we came, and following the herd is for fools, so that leaves the door with the mold on it." She begins to move towards the door with the mold, but still keeps her distance as she walks a wide arc around the door.
Casius nods. "I agree. Should we try to burn the mold away?"
Ansastasius smirks.
"Quite the opposite. It feeds on warmth and is the source of this room's strange temperature drop. Cold damage will destroy it instead."
Well then, can you provide? Saulric asks the man.
Anastasius raises his eyebrow.
"Hummm... Yes, yes... It is feasible..."
He puts out his old book, puts a finger on his mind and begins to speak a strange tongue.
After a few seconds, his right hand begins to glow blue and a ray of cold touches the mold.
Kira smiles, "Very nice Anastasius." Kira walks up to the now mold free door and checks to make sure it is not trapped.