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Yarg mutters out a prayer (orison - Guidence) before finally turns his burning eyes on the old woman.
You're a drunk - we can smell it on your sweat, and we see the empty bottles around your house.
This - maybe - is forgivable. The old need some prop to help with the pains of age - but unless you come clean about where the children are being sent during the day and for what tasks I can tell you that Ollysta Zadrian will use ALL of her influence to not take her aid away but also launch into measures that will ensure you lose everything you have... Everything.
Your only chance is to come clean with me... and beware I have the blood of demons in my veins. I can SMELL lies.
Intimidate
Sense Motive
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Chasik will walk up to the two boys arguing. And after a few moments will intervene in their discussion, what are you boys arguing about exactly? This is just a game, isn't it? What could I do to resolve this little scuffle? Should I get Ms. Baldwin to settle the disagreement? as he make a slight turn towards the door.
Chasik,
The boys' eyes widen and they hurriedly shake their heads. "No! Don't call Auntie!"
"I just reckoned Tomas bumped me when I was playing just now..."
"And I told you I didn't!!"
"Shh!" The third says, jerking his head towards Chasik. "Shaddap or else he'll go get Auntie!"
----
Gilga seems rather taken aback by the sudden change in attitude of the men in her living room, and she shrinks back into her chair, a look of fear crossing her old, wrinkled face. She nevertheless bites back with a glare, "I knew I shouldn't have let you demon-tainted freaks into my home! You monsters!!"
If looks could kill, the room would be filled with corpses now as Gilga continues, her tone of voice flinty. "I send the healthy orphans into town from time to time to do simple work. It pays for their board here, and it develops their skills as well! When they get older and move out they'll have something to fall back on!"
"I may..." she heaves a sigh. "I may drink a little too much than is healthy, sure. I admit that much. Seems most days I need it just to make it through the day in this house. These children are killing me! But maybe I can... go talk to this Ollysta woman and get some help. How about that?"
"Is that it? Are you done now, bullying an old woman? How about you just get out of my house right now before I call the guards!"
You are also fairly sure that she's not telling the whole story with regards to why exactly the children are being sent out to work. For one you are not 100% sure that's legal, but at the same time, it IS a good point that the children would learn skills out on a job no matter what. Either way you sense that she's reticent to say much more on the matter.
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Suddenly Garret speaks up
Guys, relent. I can understand that it is more difficult than we can imagine to run a home for orphins. I think misses Baldwin should be praised for preparing these youngsters for an adult life. I am satisfied by the answers given and suggest we leave the package and report back to the temple
Chasik,
The boys seem rather scared by your looming stance, and they rapidly shake their heads even as they take a few steps away from you. The game of marbles has been completely forgotten by this point.
"Auntie... Auntie can be mean," one of them says fearfully, obviously having trouble weighing up who was scarier - Gilga or Chasik. "B-But I love her cooking and she tells fun stories at bedtime!"
"Yeah! She just gets angry easily is all, yells at us..."
"She gets especially mad if we're too noisy when we go help out at her friends houses... or if we tease her cats."
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Everyone else,
Auntie Baltwin glares at everyone except for Garret. "The halfling is right on the mark! You monsters just don't get it! So used to just forcing your way around the world!"
"The kids are learning practical skills. Cleaning, mostly, but some light handywork or yard work for the bigger ones, sometimes even cooking. I get payment for the work they do to help offset their board here - you know, it ain't cheap feeding a dozen mouths by myself!"
"Now GET OUT!"
The boys shrug and shake their heads.
"We go help out in other people's houses... cleaning and stuff, you know? Auntie says it's good to help out, and I'm happy to have something to do in the daytime."
"Plus, we get pocket money if we do real well! That's where I got these marbles from!!"
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See? Just a little house work, no need to continue with all the fuss. That's all these gentlemen wanted to know. Now,if we can all just settle down and maybe have another of those wonderful cookies, things I'm sure will be better.
Grymlind smiles broadly, as he looks around for the plate of food, somewhat oblivious to the severity of the scene.
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You get pocket money if you clean real well, well that sure is nice of the people and Auntie. How about you kids go finish that game of marbles, and no more "bumping" into each other alright, play nice Chasik says with a warm smile to relieve the stress on the boys, giving them each a "penny candy" for being honest
to sense motive of the boys last answer.
to calm the boys down and send them away happy with a candy...
Grymlind pockets a few biscuits before he is forcefully scooted from the house by his wiser comrades, and Gilga Baltwin slams the door in your faces as you leave. You meet up with Chasik outside who is rather unsuccessfully trying to give a couple of scared-looking kids some cheap candy.
You report what you learned back to Ollysta Zadrian in a rather damning report, speaking of the old woman's drunkenness and the shady rumours you've heard; the Sarenite paladin seems more disappointed rather than angered, on the whole. She promises to look into things further with the resources of her church, and thanks you profusely for your efforts.
Now you have three more tasks remaining: where to now, Pathfinders?
Travel to the Wise Quarter from the religious centre of Absalom is quick and easy. The population wandering the streets soon changes from a veritable mix of laypeople and religious sorts to primarily scholars and students garbed in robes and often carrying around large tomes or chatting away about some esoteric subject to their peers as you pass. A few give you a rather disapproving look indeed. The district is home to many prestigious academies and troves of knowledge, such as the Arcanamirium - the largest school of magic in Absalom - and Forae Logos - the largest library in the city.
The rich estate of Dremdhet Salhar is visible from a distance, standing out with its ruddy sandstone walls and tendency towards curved, Osiriani-style architecture. A guard greets you as you reach the tall, wrought-iron gate at the entrance; he seems to have been expecting you, and allows you passage into the mansion grounds. The front lawns are kept cut short, and numerous meticulously maintained low-lying shrubs and wide-boughed trees are arranged in very particular intervals. A rectangularly-shaped man-made pond is set in the very centre, water tricking out of the mouth of a statue of a woman bearing a vase.
Before you make it up the stairs to the front door, the portal swings open to reveal a bald-headed servant of Garundi descent who bows deeply to you and directs you inside.
"Grand Councilmember Salhar is unfortunately not present currently," the servant explains calmly with an apologetic bow. "Earlier this morning he was called away on important Council business. However, his most trusted advisor--Amenopheus, the Sapphire Sage--is available to negotiate any business you may require."
The servant leads you down well-decorated hallways and past expansive rooms, all featuring artwork from around the globe. You walk by an enormous library filled to the brim with books of all shapes and sizes, and an opulent dining hall with a table that could practically seat an entire army. After a few minutes, the group arrives at a simple study near the end of a long hallway. Politely knocking at the door, the servant opens it and allows for you to enter.
A tan-skinned old man sits behind a desk here, flipping through pages in a large, leather-backed tome. Scraps of paper jut from the book marking over two dozen different places. The wise sage silently gestures you into the study with one thin hand while closing the tome with the other after finishing what he was reading. After you're given a chance to enter, he addresses you with the barest hint of a smile.
"Good day to you, Pathfinders. I am Amenopheus, the Sapphire Sage, advisor to Master Salhar. It is a pleasure to meet you." He nods his head to you. "I understand you were sent here to discuss archaeological permissions, correct? I spoke with Master Salhar at length on the subject before he had to leave; I should thus be able to assist you with what you need."
Amenopheus sighs a little as he continues. "Since Osirion was reopened to exploration a decade ago, adventurers, historians, and treasure-seekers flock to my country by the hundreds, perhaps thousands. While most families with ancestral burial vaults maintain guards and keep their sites out of the hands of casual thieves, not all families have the wealth or power to restrict everyone, and as we all know, not every defense is perfectly secure. Unscrupulous tomb robbers and maligned merchant organisations cause Osirion to veritably bleed relics into the Inner Sea--something we, the descendants of Ancient Osirion, cannot afford. We Osiriani have thousands upon thousands of years of rich history coursing through our veins, and while that power has been out of focus in recent years, we are content to wait, knowing our enemies will wear themselves down. As they fall into arrogance, folly, or greed, we wait for our return to power, knowing we bear the riches of our ancestors at our feet..."
"Ah, but I ramble too much. Please do forgive an old man's obsessions." And thus returns the thin-lipped smile. "Master Salhar remains impressed by the Pathfinder Society. He has orated in your favour a handful of times in front of Absalom's Grand Council, in fact. His previous relations with the Society has caused him to agree to grant permission to the Pathfinder Society to explore his family's vaults below Sothis, which I imagine your venture-captain would be most pleased to hear. The only thing he requires is that you retrieve the map of the vaults from his own vault here."
Amenopheus nods to the servant, dutifully waiting in the hallway with his head turned from the room. "The servant here will lead you to the basement and show you the room." The Sapphire Sage's eyes twinkle as he smirks knowingly, then he turns back to reading his book as though he had never been disturbed.
Amenopheus appears to not be interested in answering any questions, and so the group follows the servant back through the spacious estate. He leads you down study stone steps into the cool basement, and from there down a curving hallway. Eventually, you wind up in front of a plain, wooden door. The servant opens the door, gesturing to the room with a bow, and waits silently for you to enter. Once you do so, the servant suddenly shuts the door, and you hear the loud and scraping sound of a lock being set behind you.
The plain stone room contains three chests: a copper-banded chest of smooth, dark wood; a red lacquered chest; and what looks to be a cube of solid steel. Behind the chests sits a low table holding a clear glass jar half full of liquid and a covered wicker basket. Written on the back of the door is the message: "Within these cases lies your quest and your way out."
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Now what is this? I thought we just needed to get a map, it seems not as straightforward as it sounded.
Let's be very careful, it may be that there are other things that are not as they seem.
With that Garret starts examining the copper-banded chest. He takes care not to touch anything at this stage.
Nothing much happens, either when Yarg cautiously pokes the basket or when Garret inspects the copper chest. Neither notice anything particularly interesting about their targets.
Yarg doesn't smell anything funny about the glass. It seems to be filled with water... maybe?
Garret, when you touch the copper chest, it suddenly fades away into a faint outline. The others in the room still see it as normal, though. Looks to be an illusion.
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Grymlind mutters quietly from the back of the group while peering around his companions.
Once satisfied, he takes a small step forward and points a wand at Garret, then Balak, before retreating to back of the group once again. As long as no one notices his actions, he takes a hit from the wand as well...just for safety sake.
Magic detects on:
The copper chest (a faint purple aura that you can't identify; you would guess illusion, however)
Something inside of the wicker basket (a faint orange transmutation aura)
The steel chest (a kind of shimmering faint white aura - you're not sure of the school, however)
The red lacquered chest (an aura the exact same colour and shade as the thing inside the basket - you guess transmutation)
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Chasik will sit towards the back of the room and turn around abruptly when the door is suddenly shut and locked , Really, you had to lock the door?! Well this is certainly not good
Chasik will then walk up to each chest and then finally the jar and basket and looks them over.
copper
red
steel
jar
basket
Chasik doesn't determine anything odd or unusual about the chests and the rest, although when Garret points it out to him he does indeed see the copper chest largely disappear.
The two-foot round wicker basket does not appear to be restricted in any way, its lid resting gently atop its wide rim. Balak hears a low hissing coming from the basket when he draws near it.
The gallon-sized clear glass jar is about half full with clear liquid. At the bottom of the vessel sits a jewelled brass key. Balak can smell a faintly acrid scent lingering around the liquid in the jar.
The copper-banded chest has very little that is remarkable about it, except for the fact that it is illusionary.
The smooth, red lacquered chest appears devious. The solid metal plate surrounding the gaping keyhole pulses with glowing amber runes.
The steel cube chest has only the faintest crack where its lid meets the base, and would be completely featureless save for its narrow keyhole.
The runes don't read anything in particular; they're more like the sigils that appear around a summoning circle, or perhaps the designs in the border of a scroll.
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Garret tries to touch the copper-banded chest again, when it disappears for a second time he points it out to his companions:
Check this out, this chest is not entirely real, must be one of those illusions we were taught about in that session with the Scrolls.
Seeing his companions moving about a lot more carefully than him, Garret follows their example and goes on to examine the other items.
Garret discovers nothing else that hasn't already been pointed out by one person or another.
Inside the basket, a blue stone key rests atop a pile of crumpled linens. The hissing sound Balak and Garret heard is now much more audible.
With the lid off, Grymlind can see magic on the key - in fact, the magic appears in otherwise invisible rune shapes that match the keyhole of the red-lacquered chest.
Balak pours the liquid out in the corner, but it splashes on him a little, searing the flesh on his hand. It's probably good he didn't stick his hand in the jar!
Nevertheless, he's able to pour it all out and get the jewelled key inside out without a problem.
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Chasik will visibly tense up when the lid is lifted from the basket and the hissing is very much audible. When asked about a way to retrieve the key without disturbing its contents, he ponders for a moment. While thinking, he watches Balak dumps out the liquid and singe his clothes as the acrid fumes burn his nostrils.
Well, what if the hissing is the illusion? What if the key is real? I have heard of magic deceiving ones senses. I don't know if it true? I will stick my hand in to test out my theory. With that, Chasik will stick his hand in the hissing basket and grab the key, expecting the worst and hoping for the best.