|
Most consider Master of Scrolls Kreighton Shaine a peculiar figure within the Pathfinder Society. However, ever since the death of Aram Zey, Shaine’s demeanor and eccentricities have been subdued as he threw himself into a seemingly fruitless investigation of the Aspis Consortium agents that attacked Skyreach and murdered the Society’s Master of Spells. Kreighton has enlisted the help of several Pathfinders to follow up on a handful of leads relating to Zey’s death.
To drive home the importance of this investigation, Kreighton has personally escorted you through Absalom from the Grand Lodge to the grim spires of the Blakros Museum. There, Shaine holds out a folded missive before reaching the doors.
"This is a letter of writ indicating that you operate under the direct order of the Decemvirate. It does not compel assistance, but anyone within Absalom will think long and hard before refuse to cooperate. I have reason to believe that an artifact — a magical lantern — played a pivotal role in stealing Aram Zey’s soul after his murder. The curator of the Blakros Museum, Nigel Aldain, informed me that the building once housed such a relic. However, Nigel claims the lantern is now missing from the collection. He has agreed to open the museum’s doors to the Pathfinder Society and cooperate with this investigation."
Shaine quietly looks over each person assembled with a weary stare and turned-down lips. "Search the museum for clues regarding the lantern. If there is a connection between this relic’s disappearance and Zey’s murder, continue to follow any leads you find until you have exhausted all possible avenues of research, then report back with your findings. Precious days have passed since I began my investigation, and every additional day gives the culprit more time to hide; research rarely happens quickly, yet I cannot remind you enough that time is of the essence. The soul of someone I consider a dear friend hangs in the balance."
Kreighton takes in a deep breath then exhales slowly, trying to regain his composure. "I wish you luck, Pathfinders. Do you have any questions before I depart?"
|
|
"Being a arcane devout this mission is of interest to me due to the untimely demise of the Master of Spells. As for the mission, do you have a picture of the lantern or a description to assist us in identification? Do you know of the othes who are searching for the lantern as well? How trustworthy is this Nigel?" Galandaro asks as the others are busy entering...
|
"No questions," Clair says, leaning on her scythe.
While waiting for the answers on the questions her allies asked, Clair absentmindedly twirls some red strands of her hair around her finger. They're the only bit of red hair she has, as her natural hair color is black and she's only painted a couple strands along the edge of her face.
I hope someone dies today. Then I can add him to my collection.
|
|
The assembled Pathfinders have noticed that one of their fellows...seems off. He appears a ferocious, possibly mentally unhinged tiefling with bestial eyes. Though he exhibits the infernal characteristics typical of his kind, he also has draconic features.
He tries to focus on their assignment, but seems to be having some difficulties.
Listen to me, and you will take power from others...beyond your wildest imagination...none shall stand in your way!
Leave me be...I tire of your presence...
The tiefling occasionally thrashes or has his face contort strangely. His erratic behavior is unnerving, and his shifty eyes stare at the others for a moment, though he does not appear to see them.
Despite his apparent difficulties, it is clear he has been listening.
"We'll find where the lamp has gone," he says while trying to focus his eyes. "And if it has anything to do with Zey's death, we'll find the Aspis who did this--and make them pay!"
|
|
"Be careful about who you trust. Anyone might have facilitated the infiltration of Skyreach — even someone within our own organization. Use Nigel as a resource, but be a critical recipient of all knowledge he offers. After Aram’s death, several specialists and I conducted a multitude of divinations at the site of his murder. While many results were inconclusive, we did discern that a female Aspis agent bearing a magical lantern absconded with a vital piece of Aram Zey — we speculate that it was his soul, preventing him from being resurrected. Beyond this, we know little. I inquired with Nigel regarding magical lanterns, and he volunteered information about the museum’s former possession. I have not had the opportunity to speak with Nigel regarding the lantern he once possessed. That responsibility now falls on you, as I must oversee other administrative tasks pertaining to the inquiry." He pauses before admitting, "As well as my other duties, which I have neglected too long. Nigel has a description of the lantern, I hope. We don't know if he didn't have a hand in the theft, but Nigel is a former member of the Pathfinder Society. The Blakros family made it's money by selling goods, relics, and possibly secrets. The Blakros daughters are married to a variety of nobles from various lands." Shaine answers.
The Blakros Museum catalogues every relic that passes through its doors in great detail for both historical significance and value. If the lantern ever entered the museum, there would be a record of it.
The Blakros Museum has changed hands several times and seen a number of conflicts within its walls. If something were stolen from the museum, it is possible that it disappeared during one of those struggles.
The museum’s curator Nigel Aldain is a former member of the Pathfinder Society, and he held his old colleagues in contempt for several years afterward. While it shows good faith that Nigel is cooperating with the investigation, it is not outside of the realm of possibility that he might have had a hand — directly or indirectly — with the lantern’s disappearance.
Long ago, the Blakros Museum was a fortress that belonged to an enigmatic wizard from Absalom’s ancient past: Ralzeros the Overwatched. Ralzeros purportedly possessed strange connections to the Dark Tapestry and disappeared without a trace centuries ago. Some of the museum’s collection includes objects that Ralzeros himself collected.
|
|
"Don't trust anyone..." She looks around, "except them, I suppose", she thought.
"Buddies, before we continue, you have to know something that I heard on the streets. The Blakros Museum catalogues every relic that passes through its doors in great detail for both historical significance and value. If the lantern ever entered the museum, there would be a record of it. Besides that, the museum has changed hands several times and seen a number of conflicts within its walls. If something were stolen from the museum, it is possible that it disappeared during one of those struggles, I suppose".
She pauses briefly and asks the Pathfinders: "what do you think?"
|
|
Insidion's eyes shift back and forth, surveying the other Pathfinders.
"My first mission after my Confirmation was at this museum. I've met the man--though I seem to have forgotten much about that mission," the dragon disciple says honestly, having been overtaken by a strange mist during the time at the museum.
|
|
You head to the museum. It is closed to the public for the investigation, leaving the entrance hall uneasily quiet. The curator Nigel Aldain waits anxiously in the middle of the foyer with his hands clasped behind his back, pacing across the tile floor in the shadow of a looming bronze statue.
He offers a practiced smile. "Such a pleasure to see my former comrades-in-arms on this somber day. I mourn the passing of a — ah — charismatic man such as the Master of Spells. An exceedingly tragic loss, that."
Adjusting his spectacles, Nigel motions for you to follow him deeper into the museum. "When I heard about the relic that may have snatched Master Zey’s spirit from the ether, I suspected it could have originated from the personal Holdings of the museum’s first owner — a mad old wizard who saw fit to vanish without a trace centuries ago."
Nigel escorts you from the foyer of the Absalom Gallery, through a pair of double doors, and into a grand display of historical relics from Taldor and Osirion. "The building’s purchase included a sizeable collection, much of which we have kept locked up under tight security due to its unusual and often dangerous nature."
Rather than proceed to another room, Nigel stops before a bare stone wall, and with a deft touch of several mosaic tiles, he opens a concealed door leading into a freight Elevator operated by a series of chains and pulleys. Gesturing toward it, he offers words of cold comfort. "The Collection Esoterica contains several unusual objects of little historical import, but curious magical properties. Only I and select members of the Blakros family even know about this collection. To have an item go missing seems.. well, rather unthinkable, wouldn’t you say?"
Nigel operates the lift, which is a slow mechanism that takes several minutes to make its descent to a subbasement.
|
|
"I became curator of this museum when I married Dhrami Blakros. Before that her uncle Hustavus Blakros ran the museum, brother of Hamaria Blakros, matriarch of the Blakros family." Nigel answers.
"We do have records of all items which ever passed this museum. But I have to admit that this is a lot of information. The information regarding the lantern has to be there. It was part of the Collection Esoterica."
"I noticed it was missing once I spoke with Kreighton just a few days ago — regrettably after the Master of Spells perished. I do not often visit this part of the museum, and I check on the contents even less regularly. Since I discovered the lantern was missing, I performed an audit of my other possessions and found nothing else out of sorts. Nobody showed interest in the lantern before. Only selected members of the Blakros Family and I have access to this part of the collection. I don't think that one of the museum's employees got access to this area." Nigel continues, trying to answer all the questions.
|
|
"I will show you where it was stored." Nigel answers. "The Collection Esoterica is one of the largest collections of occult ephemera in the entire Inner Sea region. Most of the objects are just curiosities with no real magical properties. A handful of them are more than what they appear, though defy simple categorization. They are… elusive in nature, hard to precisely divine the power they hold. A handful of objects came from the personal collection of Ralzeros the Overwatched himself. Only me, Hustavus Blakros and Hamaria Blakros have access to this collection."
The freight elevator comes to a stop in a musty basement with walls of pitch-black stone. Beyond the lift’s sliding doors lies a cluttered archive stacked floor to ceiling with wooden crates, chests of documents, and other containers. The walls contain shelves that are cut into the stone walls, laden with bizarre trinkets and relics from across the world. "Here we are," Nigel proclaims, stepping off the elevator.
"The oddities and archives belonging to the Collection Esoterica. I ask that you not disturb any of the relics in the crates, but you are free to peruse any documents. If you find anything, come let me know. Otherwise, I’ll be working on more pressing matters upstairs. If you wish to call for the lift, simply pull the lever on the right side of the doors at the south end of the archive."
Once you disembark from the lift, Nigel promptly takes it back upstairs, leaving you in the basement.
|
|
As the group disembarks from the lift, Insidion takes a moment to prepare himself with a few defensive spells, just in case anything is still here. A glimmering shield appears in front of him, as well as multiple mirror images.
"Let's look around," the tiefling suggests.
"I AGREE!" one of his mirror images responds, though with a demonic voice.
|
|
Thanks to the Collection Esoterica’s disorganization, researching the lantern is a time-consuming affair. The collection’s paper assets consist of trunks full of ledgers, journals, notes, and manuscripts from explorers dating back nearly 600 years. Most of the information is wholly unrelated to the lantern you seek, though most of the texts contain fascinating bits of lore on occult mysteries across Golarion.
However, more than half of these finds are absolute fabrications. One of Nigel’s predecessors was in the process of sorting through and cataloguing all of this information when she disappeared some time ago.
Clair has a first look at the documents.