*Scamper, scamper, scamper...*
Corum shouts: "Karthak, your prisoner is escaping."
After moving 30' towards Tilda, The elf launches some magic rockets at the elder witch while holding his wand of disruption.
The wolverine rushes to help.
She's glued to the ground. Could someone bind her again?
Gromsch follows further the old witch and throws his last tanglefot bag.
If hit: Entangled and Speed halved. Ref DC 15 or glued to the floor.
Karthak exits the house "Yea yea lazy elf. Not on duty but I'll nab'er. Instead of keepin yer pointy nose in books all the time, maybe learn to swing a weapon fer when yer outta finger-wiggle juice, eh?" He trudges over "Awww they're all covered in sick."
He then collars them both, and once they are free from the sticky substance... drags them back to the house. He pulls a ball-gag from his pocket, blows off the hair and lint, then pops it in the old hag's mouth. "Not worried bout the young one, shes been outta juice for a day er two." he explains.
Drulsk addresses Gromsch - now that the fighting seems to have ended. "Master... I am obviously grateful, but... I am curious what brings you here?" As the others come around he thanks them for their help, and he introduces Gromsch (mostly to Corum and Karthak the ones he knows)
"This is Master Gromsch. I was his apprentice for many years. His knowledge of Alchemy is without equal."
It would seem he has no memory of writing to you for help.
Seeing that the fight seems to be over, Varian casts detect magic and scans the bodies of the two dead witches. He strips the bodies of any magical items and then drags the bodies back to the house so final disposal can be decided.
Any magical items off the bodies, he displays for the others, though shrugs in confusion regarding their powers, not having taken the time to attempt to identify them.
Sunny gasps a little in shock at the treatment of Tilda and will do her best to make the young girl comfortable.
"Hey guys? Guys! There be somat wrong with tha' Mayor!" She exclaims and points back at the room she was about to enter.
"Tha' lass were helpful in pointin' out some things. We should be doin' our bestest ta' be helpin' her, not..." And Sunny points at Tilda's treatment, "Y'know..."
Warden Horne and the now trembling watchman help Varian with the bodies, and then Braxton and Lyrralt - who appear to be in unrousable comatose states. Two other watchmen come, and Warden Horne tells them to stick around on guard.
Warden Horne tries to rub the the migraine from his temples and forehead, then turns on the authoritative tone again.
"Alright. Like I said. We are going to talk to Mayor Doyle, and this girl... and straighten out what exactly is going on."
They both carry several magic items.
2 shawls
1 smoky vial
2 wands
2 rings
2 "belt pouches" with a total of 4 small cut stones (just less than an inch in diameter) 2 pale purple/pink pyramid shape, 2 gold rounded cube shape. the pouches themselves are magic as well, the stones fit into little pockets, and the pockets gather and snug around the stone placed inside. The leather flap then is flipped over and fastened. There are four little pockets in each pouch.
Their belts are finely crafted, certainly well-made enough to give a second look, but they do not radiate magic
no coin at all
While waiting for the chat to commence, Varian casts detect magic again and tries to identify the items.
The shawls, pouches, and rings are identical. By identifying one of each, you are able to determine the properties of both sets.
After you remove the stones from the pouches, you determine the stones are magic as well.
The wands are not the same, and their properties are beyond you right now.
Two rings of protection +1
Two Ioun stone pouches (hold 4 ioun stones and allow effects to transfer to wearer)... must be affixed to a masterwork or magic belt.
The vial is something you have not encountered. When opened, it conjures a "programmed" phantasm of a smoke mephit which attacks a targeted foe within 30 feet for 3 rounds.
"That witch has instigated another attack on innocents again. There will be serious consequences."
Corum points to Tilda.
Tilda smarts off to Corum and his finger "Serious consequences? Like lock me up in a room with a dwarf force-feeding me plates of food-shaped salty slop? Iiii am starting to think - they way he eats, that's not muscle on your dwarf friend... hes just retaining water." She then narrows her eyes and glares at Gromsch as she is jostled around by Karthak getting a better handle on her. "You owe me a pair shoes Ork-o."
To Tilda with an mischievous tone of voice:
And you owe me hours of my precious lifetime I had to stand in the laboratory to make these little valuables!
Turning to Druslk:
I don't understand, Druslk. I have here a letter written by yourself, which calls me for help in an situation including a poisoned well.
Drulsk looks confused and takes the letter...
"I have a matter of great urgency, and don't know who to turn to. I have come to a village in Varisia known as Doyle's Run. The water seems to be tainted all through the village and surrounding areas - even the fountain in the center of the village, but the substance is beyond my abilities to identify. There are ruins of great importance below this village, and the locals have been less than friendly. I hope however I can repay you will suffice as compensation for your time.
Your student
Drulsk"
"This is my signature... and handwriting. I must have sent this before my capture. I have no memory of it, or even the suspicion of the water supply. I thank you, and am humbled you have come."
Sunny, with Suny still by the hand, moves over toward the door she was going to open/look into before the affair with the witches.
Corum looks at the wands.
He then helps with any other items including those on Tilda or the last hag.
"We will see what the warden has to say about this. Siding with evil, Tilda, can only lead to heartache. Karthak's company cannot be that bad.....Well maybe it can?"
He then moves to the alchemist and extends his hand.
"Your arrival was timely and your intervention well orchestrated. Hopefully you can stay to help save a town."
Knowing that the pouches require masterwork or magical belts, and that the hags' belts were not magical, Varian collects them anyway, expecting that they are in fact probably masterwork and needed to use the pouches.
To Drulsk:
You're capture? It seems, that you all have much to tell.
To Varian:
I have a few weeks to spend here till my new apprentice runs out of goods to sell. Then I'll have to return to check the situation in my shop.
But first I think that an overview of the current situation would be helpful.
Warden Horne leads you into the house. A table is set out, and chairs for most of you... stacks of crates available for those so inclined. The old hag is bound and gagged in another room with Karthak the Dwarf keeping watch.
At the head of the table sits Mayor Doyle, next to him sits Tilda - who is bound at the wrists, but not gagged. Warden Horne stands behind Doyle, and calls the briefing into session after reaching for, and consuming a sugared pastry puff on the table.
"Mayor Doyle... We would like to know exactly what is going on here, and how to stop it. My reluctance to pressure you into talking has worn pretty thin. Tell us what we need to know, and answer any questions my deputies here may have."
Suny moves to place herself next to/near poor Tilda.
Zed quietly takes in the room, then settles his gaze on the Mayor as the question is asked, then adds "These are dangerous times and people are scared. We truly want to help, but we need to know everything that is going on"
Mayor Doyle sits shelling and popping peanuts... He gives Zed -what looks like a genuine smile. "Well that is ten-thousand years of a tale there, my friend. I believe I will require a larger glass of refreshment. Perhaps... something a little stronger. Oh... and a more specific line of questions. Do you wish to know of the forces you face? Or the power available - both now wielded and yet untapped? How about what happens if Magnus Horth the Returned takes me alive and drinks the memories within my blood? Do you wish to know what will become of this little part of the world if certain parties take command of all the artifacts involved? So much.. and it all seems rather tiring to me. I say... until the noisy scrum outside this morning, it has been rather relaxing here... bunking up as it were."
He is a tough read... it seems like he has serious walls, and his superiority complex is probably a whitewash, but... that seems entry level for such a tough first read.
His face remains as stone as he considers the Mayor Oh he has no idea, this isn't a game I normally lose. "Get the good Mayor something nice to drink" Then he turns to the mayor, and Zed brings his elbows on the table, folding his hands and resting his chin on his interlaced fingers. "As for your question, yes. I wish to know everything. It seems like a rather interesting tale"
Corum calls:
"Karthak, get this witch manacled and locked up. After the first attempt on our lives, we should have been more careful."
He looks at Suny:
"I didn't know you two were friends. And you have a double and neither one of you have yet to cause problems. What gives?"
"And you would be right.. it is."
"Before the apocalyptic event on our world here, a group came here from another world... a dying world in which new births came soulless. The others of this world found a solution in eternal undeath. For this group, that was unacceptable."
He accepts the glass, and takes a sip.
"They had been contacted by a group which consisted of essentially their counterparts of this world... and when I mean here, I mean the underground complex beneath us which is now mostly in ruins. The peers of this world were arcane theorists and researchers... a secretive organization known as the Silver Sun. With the knowledge of these otherworlders, huge advancements were made... but there was a price. They were not easily appeased, and the task of doing exactly that was given to a new - even more secretive, subsect... the Black Sun."
"After three prototypes which would later be integrated - the Academy, the Barracks, and the Library, they created an entire world - similar to a demiplane, but connected through portals to the planes of fire, earth, air, and water. Light and Dark, Good and Evil... those come on their own."
"In this world they contorted time.... in the center their bodies were to sit in relative stasis, on the surface time would flow much faster, but still at a tiny fraction of our time. They would have clones created for them who would live their lives among the humans who knew nothing of this or even the peculiar nature of their world. And when they passed on, a ritual was enforced by the empowered rulers which masked the true nature of their afterlife... a return to the center of the world where their memories would be consumed. And then their corpse would be recycled as ingredients for the Ugothol ritual."
"Since then... various secrets have been lost and found, absconded and retrieved, hidden and recovered over the past hundred centuries. We had been working on a few choice bits, and kept any knowledge from peoples' minds for quite some time. Not the most pleasant experience to inflict on assumedly innocent people, but I'm sure most would agree - if they had an inkling, that it is well worth the cost."
Mayor Doyle takes a moment. "Hmm. Perhaps you know not enough to even form a question? I will break it down into manageable chunks. First. We go after... the Crone."
Tilda sits up and protests "What?!"
Mayor Doyle responds "What... did you think I would suggest this rabble going after Magnus himself? You think my judgement is that clouded? No. Buck up chippy... you will be free from her." Somehow his maintained eye contact soothes her protestation.
He turns his attention back to the group. "The Crone has the easiest access to the village, and a portion of her coven even takes up residence here. What you take from the dead hands of her sisters will help you against the other factions. Do this and I will provide more assistance to you. I must be certain we are on the same page after all."
He looks at Suny:
"I didn't know you two were friends. And you have a double and neither one of you have yet to cause problems. What gives?"
Sunny slides a protective arm around Suny,
"There be lots of strange things a-foot. I gots a lot of story ta' tell but m'self an' me sister," And Sunny gives the other blond Elf a reassuring hug, "We's got a lot of bondin' an' quality time ta' be gatherin'." She replies to Corum then looks to the Mayor.
"Here, you seem so well informed. Why should we all think of trustin' yerself, then?" She asks.
Corum smiles: "I don't have a double and am happy in my own homely body. I have been for a century."
He fixes the mayor with an icy stare. "You keep on talking and don't hold back. I'll tell you when to stop! I will let you know if I get too scared! You don't get to decide what is relevant."
Mayor Doyle is suddenly troubled looking at the state of his fingernails... regardless he must have caught some of Corum's "leaning" by his response.
"If you care for me to continue, that is fine. Although some memories are lost with each transfer and splitting of my consciousness, I do remember enough of my ten thousand years to fill a morning with a tale or two."
"However if you find my demeanor too subdued, and wish to remind me of my role as prisoner... we can do that instead. Your house, your rules." He then gives Corum his full attention for about three seconds.
"Oh... one thing. I could be out of your reach with the utterance of seven syllables. But... this is not what I want. I want the Crone dealt with. Raid the boarding house within which her coven of clones and thralls reside. Find out where Gilvorgionne Crone lays her weary head at night, and end her."
Next to him, Tilda the witch child sits quietly, and quite visibly emotionally conflicted with his plan against the Crone.
Sunny does her best to comfort the little one.
Tilda shows a flash of genuine appreciation as Sunny starts to comfort her, but it does not seem to relax her.
Tilda's age is difficult to determine. She is the size of a fourteen year-old, but her eyes and mannerisms appear much older... almost like a child turned vampire. Right now her attention is focused on those she sees as the drivers of the conversation and decision makers.
Sunny frowns at the 'Know it all' Mayor. Though with her hands full with Tilda and Suny she holds her tongue for the moment.
You cannot determine what his hidden agenda is, or really anything yet... You might be overthinking.
"Before you leave, I could use a glass of water... I don't suppose any of you are able to conjure some?... I have a glass here." He kicks back the last of his drink, and slides the glass forward. As he does he glances at his cane in Corum's possession, and opens his mouth as if to speak but doesn't. He then gives his glass another little nudge on the table.
"So...jus' fer them whut's not completely in'a un'erstandin' of folks ways. Why is it we's slidin' int'a doin' things fer you selfs, agin'?" Sunny asks.
Varian, rather than display his ability (or lack thereof) to create water, steps forward and fills the glass from his waterskin. "There you go," he offers the mayor with a little smile.
Unable to determine just how much of what the mayor says might be real and how much fantasy or conjecture or even outright lies, Varian doesn't quite know what to make of the fellow.
As Varian starts to fill the glass from his waterskin "Thank you... really, but that is quite alright."
He then responds to Sunny "If you believe that ending the Crone is not in your best interest, then I suppose that is a valid question. To be quite honest, I believe it would be. One not insignificant reason is the fact the Crone will not rest until this poor child is returned to her... Raised by a witch... terrible thing. Just be careful hmm... she's a real charmer ahem heh." He smiles smugly looking down as he checks his progress on pushing back his cuticles.
He then looks back up at Sunny "If your question is really why protect this village, the ruins underneath us hold great power and arcane knowledge. The varied forces I once controlled now wait to see if the village is truly unprotected."
He gestures with his finger to "hold the floor" a while longer "If it helps, I will try my hand at an analogy. I found myself with the leashes in hand of mad dogs. My fall let loose those dogs, and they will do a good deal more than tear up the furniture. I understand I bear some guilt, and consider it my responsibility to do what I can to help. I think it unwise to go after the biggest dog with the runts nipping at your heels before you even reach the big bruiser."
Corum fixes Tilda with his gaze.
"You tried to kill me and Karthak because the Crone made you? You have an interest in ending this Crone?"
Tilda cocks her head, and responds to Corum. "I tried to kill you because you interrupted me, and people are much easier to control when they're dead. Sure... why not... take her out."
You've noticed she seems to enjoy using shocking statements like a jab against the "righteous". There is less enthusiasm than usual behind the jab here. She still seems conflicted about the Crone being killed, but the part that is OK with it (or sees the benefit) is winning over in her head.
Sunny frowns and gives Tilda a light 'Pat' on the head to show she's displeased with the young girl's attitude.
"Here now. That be a good way fer a young snipe like yer self ta' get a right seein' to." Sunny warns the girl.
Corum activates a wand and points it at Tilda.
"Who wants to get the crone?"
Tilda scowls when physically reproached on the head by Sunny. She then cranes her neck around to see Corum with his question. An expression ripples across her face.. as if the very question affected her.
Warden Horne then comments on Corum's question.
"Since this is most definitely in the jurisdiction of the watch, I wish I felt confident we could deal with the problem. If you are willing to continue your assistance... the watch will do what we can to help you. We will cordon off the boarding house in question when you are ready."
Hm, could one of you make a short summary of the things, which happened here. I have problems to follow the whole stroy.
"I will fill you in as best I can, Master. We should also speak of the matter I mentioned in my letter. But first..."
"From what I understand, there are ruins under this entire area. The artifacts and arcane discoveries within have been researched in secret for centuries. There were derro who used a powerful magic to wipe memories of any who somehow gained knowledge of the operation.
The minds of the villagers here have likely been manipulated their whole lives."
"A few days ago, the derro responsible for the mind manipulation was killed. Shortly after, it was discovered the Mayor was in charge of the entire undertaking... with several factions in his command. Now as word spreads to the enemy that the Mayor is no longer in power, the factions appear to be preparing, positioning themselves, or waiting for some reason before moving in... Actually, I don't know what power he wields to have kept himself in command this long."
He begins to enumerate the enemy...
"We discovered there were some among the villagers who were shapeshifters. The dark ritual which leads to their creation has been discovered... it requires the use of two humans as ingredients to create the creature known as the Ugothol.. or Faceless Stalker... It appears that is a responsibility of the derro."
"Many of those you see here were being held in a duergar-occupied stronghold underneath the lumberyard to the west.
"The witches we fought just now, and the child witch here are aligned with one known as Gilvorgione the Crone."
"There is also someone who refers to himself as Magnus Horth the Returned. He is a necromancer who has special recipes for crafting undead. He allegedly has an army of a thousand undead at his command."
"From what the Mayor has just said, it seems many off these factions.. or at least those who lead them, have been using these Ugothols - and other discovered rituals, to transfer their consciousness... effectively living forever though copies I suppose."
Zed remains in silent contemplation for a time, then stirs "Well I'm not one to sit and let the chips fall where they may. Let's get out there"
Corum looks at Tilda:
"To go along, you must agree that you are subject to our rules. If you can do that, fine. If not, you get to drink with a dwarf and enjoy his witty conversation."
Sunny nods along to/with Drulsk's summary of events. As his exposition continues on, Sunny hugs Suny closer. When the tale shifts to Tilda, Sunny absently reaches out and gently ruffles the young girl's hair. When Corum gives the girl his ultimatum, she squeezes Tilda's shoulder,
"We's gon'a keep an eye on tha' young-in." Sunny says to Corum.
Then she deftly takes Tilda by the hand and leads the pair of them out, "We's jus' gon'a go an' get all ready fer tha' task of findin' whut's her face...an', um, stuffs..."
*Scamper, scamper, scamper*
What can I sat? Sunny has a soft spot for strays. :P
Will answer any questions etc when I have more time and not typing on phone.
Tilda shakes her head at Corum's proposal "If she is going to die, it is best if I stay away. Keep the members of the coven separated as best you can. And don't you worry... the dwarf is fun when I know he isn't allowed to hurt me. I have been sooo close to getting his face as red as his beard."
Warden Horne heads for the door.. "I'll get my men ready to surround the place on your signal."