After a hurried summons to the Grand Lodge in Absalom, a quick conversation with Venture-Captain Alissa Moldreserva, and a wet, stormy trip across the Inner Sea to Andoran, the small, warm Pathfinder Lodge in Augustana is a welcome break from travel. “I can’t believe we are wasting our time on this matter,” says Caudron Wallace, the venture-captain of Augustana as he paces the main hall. “Frankly, I want as little to do with it as possible, so I’m passing it on to you.” Wallace nods toward a door at the back of the room. “The vagrant through there was found collapsed on our front steps gripping a wayfinder of all things. We still don’t know who he is. Talk to him, for the tale he tells is amazing if true, and then come back here.”
|
Evarice is playing her piccolo, again. Pretty well this time, too. She's wearing a tricone hat that she won off of a Gnoll pirate slave trader, although it is clearly dyed green.
The symbol of Shelyn bounces off her belt as she stands up and finishes her dance.
"That went better than I thought it would." The elf smiles, proud of herself. "We'll see what we can do, Venture-Captain."
|
The robes she wears bear the personal symbol of the wizard Nex. Her straw-blonde hair is tied back in a practical ponytail, and her skin is the kind of pale that burns in the sun.
She sits down and watches Evarice's performance, clapping after it ends.
"How lovely! Shelynites make everything much more delightful."
Her voice has the clear tinge of a Garundi accent, as well as the cheerful, matter-of-fact tone of precocious youth.
"Oh! I am most sorry! I have forgotten to introduce myself. Greetings, everyone. My name is Imrana. I am a wizard, personally sworn to serve the Great Nex and to oppose Geb and undead everywhere. I am here seeking ways to help free the Great Nex."
She bows, then pulls out a tome and writes out notes in shorthand.
"Oh, if I ask any questions, please do not mind. I have been in stasis for 4139 years."
She goes back to writing, humming an upbeat tune.
|
An odd looking gnome sits in the corner, waiting for at least someone to look his way. His blue hair flows upward out of the brim of a ruined wizard's hat which has its top torn off.
Once noticed, his bristly blue beard starts swaying around with every motion. "I am Aloisius Rudolpho Atama Lanlen, the Mashugana Master gnome! Through my craft and power, I seeking to earn even more names for myself! If there are none to be had, I will make one up!" He moves over to Imrana as he speaks, nudging her elbow. "You can never have too many names, you know."
If he managed to mess up her writing, he offers to prestidigitate it back to normal.
With the Venture Captain promising a story, Aloisius bounds to the indicated door as fast as his wee legs will carry him and bounces around, waiting for someone to open the door. Someone, of course, who can reach the doorknob...
VC Wallace ignores Varian’s question, and jabs a thumb at the door.
When you enter the room at the back of the main hall, you find a small sitting room with six comfortable chairs and a few bookshelves filled with the latest Pathfinder Chronicles. An old, withered man sits in one of the chairs, half-dozing when you enter. His skin is shockingly pale and his features are sharp with high cheekbones and a jutting chin. Despite his incredibly filthy visage, matted white hair, and infirmity, when he awakens, he regards you with a look of absolute, confident superiority.
“My loyal subjects, welcome! I know that some of you might not recognize me in my current state, but it is truly me, Gandros, the long-lost Prince of Augustana. I have been in hiding since the untimely death of my father, the Emperor, preparing for my return to glory. Unfortunately, I bear ill news. The army I have been gathering in the otherworld has been infiltrated by agents of our enemies. When last I called my forces together for inspection, dark assassins attacked me and I barely escaped with my life.”
He takes this opportunity to roll up his sleeve and reveal a series of recently inflicted claw and tooth marks on his right forearm. He then launches into a breathless retelling of how he came to be in the Lodge, without pause or acknowledgement of interruptions.
“I fled back through the magic portal to this realm. Grievously wounded, and with the assassins in close pursuit, I leapt into the dark river. I floated past the Almsman’s Sanctuary, but couldn’t climb out of the water. I did manage to grab one of the bridges, but a plank fell in with me. I held on for dear life and continued to drift downstream. I went over a waterfall and then emerged in the lake of ships and crawled to shore. Augustana has changed since I last walked my city’s bright streets, but I managed to find this house, bearing the symbol of my father’s empire.” He holds up the wayfinder hanging from a chain around his neck. “I knew I would find help here! If you remove the threat from my kingdom below and help restore me to my rightful place as Emperor of Andoran, I will grant you any boon within my power!”
|
|
Aloisius pipes up. "Not to be overly nosey, or ungrateful that you come to us, but is there no one of your... ummm... subjects? That can help you? We have no idea who you are, and you even say your kingdom is down below, which reminds me of a song some demon sang, but that's beside the point." Finally, the gnome takes a breath before his face takes on the same azure colour of his beard.
"But seriously, we'd be happy to help. Can you go over that series of events again? I wasn't paying much attention."
|
|
Imrana's brow wrinkles as she thinks back on the histories she has read.
"Um, I have spent a great deal of time reading about what I have missed these past 4000 years, and I am fairly certain that there has never been an Emperor in Augustana."
She looks at the wayfinder, biting her lip as her mind works.
"The symbol of his father's empire? This man is quite strange."
Taerel can't see any distinguishing marks on the wayfinder. Detect magic shows the item to be magical, with an aura of evocation. It appears in all respects to be a fully functioning wayfinder.
Evarice can detect no hint of deception or lies coming from the man. He fully believes he is the emperor of Andoran, and that he is currently being pursued by assassins.
Hearing Imrana's comment, he gets a haughty look on his face. "I've told you what I can of my journey. Now I suggest you get to work on removing the threat from my kingdom!"
Any further attempts to talk with the man are met with glares and stony silence.
|
"Very well, Prince. We will see what can be done. Excuse us."
Taerel returns to Wallace. "So, what do we do with this man? Is there reason to believe his story to be true? I see no reason to not believe him, but then again, the story sounds fantastic. I believe that he believes it to be true, but I am having a hard time believing it myself."
|
|
"His directions are vague, his story is suspect. I wouldn't know where to look, honestly. And yet, he seems sincere." Evarice leans against a wall, deep in thought. "He had mentioned a magic portal of some kind, but without more specifics I wouldn't know where to look. I suggest we speak to the Venture Captain and follow his recommendation."
VC Wallace is able to supply a little more information.
“My diviners say that there is some truth to his story. There has never been a Prince of Augustana, nor an Emperor in Andoran, but the old fellow has a surprising amount of knowledge of the pre-revolution noble families of the city. He may be the lost scion of some noble line. If so, he’s fallen far. From the filth and stink on him when we found him, we’re fairly certain he’s been living in or near a sewer. The wayfinder is also a mystery, but for now, it makes him one of ours. However, I’m more interested in his supposed gate to the otherworld. If it exists, I want to know about it. Implausible as it may seem, I’m certain that his injuries were caused by otherworldly beings. We must take the possibility of a portal seriously. I don’t want to dirty my hands with this, but you don’t have that choice. Retrace the old man’s path through the sewers. The Almsman, whom he repeatedly mentions, is rumored to be an eccentric priest who runs some sort of hidden beggar’s sanctuary in the sewers. He may know where our prince’s portal is, if you can find him. But be warned; a local gang calling themselves the Steel Wyverns claims the sewers near the Almsman’s Sanctuary as their own territory.”
VC Wallace shows you the spot on the map of the likely sewer outlet from which Gandros came. It’s near the north end of the crowded Augustana harbor, near where the north harbor wall hits land.
Asking around provides you with a little more information:
|
|
Still quite glum at the thought of traipsing through the sewers, Varian corners a likely-looking thug to extract some information.
"The Steel Wyverns were once the most powerful criminal organization in the city, but they have been in decline for decades. Now they are a rag-tag gang of thugs and petty crooks. The wyverns prefer to fight with spiked chains, which they call “Wyvern stings”. "
|
|
[ooc]Wrong order, dice![/dice]
"Thank you, Venture Captain. A trip through the sewers is nothing to be worried about, besides infection, of course. We'll verify his story and see who this Almsman is. Such selfless service- I admire that."
Evarice takes time to gather information on the Steel Wyverns and the Almsman. "Indeed, the Steel Wyverns have been in decline. Good for us, and good for this city."
"Unfortunately, the Almsman is quite humble - so humble no one would talk about him. I suppose they are trying to protect his identity."
When you finish your questions for VC Wallace, you head down to the docks to find the sewer entrance. After a brief time searching, you finally find the sewer outfall. The outfall is a roughly 15 foot diameter pipe that extends out from under a breaker, and is somewhat hidden from the docks above. Filthy waste-laden water fills about a third of the pipe, and flows out in a swift current. The odor of the sewage is revolting and almost intolerable. There is no ladder to access the pipe, or platform to walk upon. If you enter the sewers this way, you will need to wade or swim through the sewage.
|
|
Evarice changes to her work clothes (only a tad less fancy than her priestly clothes)
"Of course we do. This is nothing compared to a Goblin's den, trust me."
Evarice casts Purify Food and Water as a gesture. The clean water quickly sloughs off into the bay.
Evarice does look around for an alternate entrance, though. No point risking infection.
|
|
Seeing there being no easy (or at least dry) means of entering the sewers, Aloisius runs back to the market to buy a potion. Once there, he is told that he's too short and runty and inexperienced to get what he wants. So he decides to drop someone's name, a certain former Paracountess, and the merchant hands over a vial of the stuff at no charge.
"Hahaha! That's what I thought!" he declares as he returns triumphant to the party. Once rejoined, he downs the potion and flies above the water's grimey surface into the sewer entrance and awaits the rest of the group.
Finding no other way into the sewers, the group (except for Aloisius) plunges boldly into the muck infested waters of the sewer outfall. The sewage is revolting, and most of you struggle to keep your feet in the swift current. With some determination, the party is able to make its way into the sewers.
After about 100 feet, the party spots a walkway, and is able to pull themselves out of the sewage channel.
|
|
Imrana begins digging through her bags. She pulls out a wand.
"Um...before we get too far along, would anyone like Mage Armor? I have this wand..."
She pulls out a potion.
"...And I have this Enlarge Person potion for someone more inclined to be in melee combat..."
And she pulls out another wand.
"...And I also have this Cure Light Wounds wand I just bought. I cannot use it, but maybe one of you can?"
Most of the group seems to have withstood the sewage bath fairly well. Taerel, however, develops a slight headache and experiences some lingering nausea.
The smell of waste and rot is strong in this large chamber where filthy water flows in a series of cascades between tiered stone tanks. A raised platform along the east wall is connected to the passage’s walkways by several thick wooden planks creating a makeshift bridge. On that platform is what looks to be a makeshift alchemy lab on a rough-hewn table—beakers, glass vials, dirty bottles, and moldy buckets cover the entire surface of the table.
There are three men in this room. One is over near the lab, working on some sort of concoction. The other two are lazing around near the makeshift bridge. Once they spot you, they jump up face the group. ”Hey you lot! This is Steel Wyvern territory, and you ain’t got an invite. So I suggest you drop your gear and your money, and take off back where youse came from! We might just let you go with hurtin’ you first.” The two then start to twirl their spiked chains menacingly.
The thugs seem to think twice once they have a chance to size up the party. However, they glance quickly at each other, and regain their courage somewhat.
”All right. Don’t say we didn’t warn yuz!”
Initiative:
1st:Evarice, Aloisius, Varian, Taerel
2nd: Thugs
3rd: Imrana
|
|
"I'm calling a citizen's arrest! Prepare yourself, for Sheyln guides my glaive today!"
Evarice casts Divine Favor upon herself.
Round 1
Evarice and Varian move to get a better position on the thugs, casting spells to enhance their abilities. Both Taerel and Aloisius take aim at the alchemist, blasting him with beams of cold energy.
The first thug jumps to a platform towards Evarice and Varian, but slips on the landing. He just barely manages to hang on to the platform, and spends the rest of the round righting himself.
The other one jumps to the southern platform, and takes a swing at Aloisius.
The chain whistles past the gnome's head, just missing him. Obviously, he still feels intimidated by the party.
The alchemist grabs some items off his workbench and moves closer to the party. He lobs something at Taerel.
His throw goes wide, with object falling into the sewer channel.
Initiative:
1st: Evarice, Aloisius, Varian, Taerel
2nd: Thugs
3rd: Imrana