Lady Drusilla inspires her comrades to be more courageous as the cheesy rat takes a nasty arrow shot and is hanging on for dear life. Caith doesn't allow his target the opportunity to draw another breath; smashing it flat onto the floor.
The cheese rat gnashes its teeth at Caith, creating the smallest of scratches; Caith's hearty constitution is surely great enough to fend of any disease the rat may be carrying.
As The Longstreet Kid bravely puts himself between the rat and Lady Drusilla, the final rat attacks Caith; drawing a bit more blood than the first but not enough to cause the dwarf to break a sweat.
,
,
As Caith continues to make rat pancakes, Thorleif skewers another rat...who scurries into the hole to take his chances with surviving the waters instead of suffering the same fate as its pack mates.
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Thorleif moves to the hole and, peering down, looks for the last rat. Not seeing it, he stows his bow and says with a heavy sigh "Such a pity. I'd have prefered to give it a clean death and not let it suffer."
Then, after saying a quick prayer over the other two rats, Thorleif turns back to the group and says "Well, now that that's over, here's what I propose; I'll take the rowboat out and move under the hole. I'll leave my pack up here, just in case. In the mean time, either the Kid or Milady can move out and attach the crane ropes to the crate . I'll be underneath to catch either of you should you fall. Once the ropes are hopefully attached, Caith can operate the crane and move it to a more stable part of the warehouse. Hopefully we can do this quickly and move on to our next destination without too much more trouble."
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Caith nods at Thorleif.
"Sounds like a plan. Before we do that..could you use this stick on me,..those rat scratches are stinging"
Caith digs around in his backpack for a wand of cure light wounds
(Assuming Thorleif will use it on him )
Caith then spits in his hands and gets ready to operate the crane.
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"Well then, we have a plan. Mister Storvin takes the boat, mister 'Kid' will try to tie the ropes to crane. And provided mister Kid succeeds and does not merely plunge into the cold depths of the sea, mister Skullcrusher will operate the crane and get the chest. Make haste, we have plenty of tasks ahead of us."
With very little difficulty Thorleif is able to navigate the boat directly under the whole in the warehouse floor. Climbing up the crane proves to be the easy part for The Kid...but with no small amount of trial and error and plenty of "supervision" from Lady Drusilla the group secures the crate and lifts it to more sturdy flooring.
The rescued crate holds a smaller mahogany box inside, which contains five books and a few loose sheets of paper in a leather folder. The titles and subjects seem completely unrelated to each other: Practical Thaumaturgy In Accordance with Creation, Geographic Anomalies of the Inner Sea, Under Kaer Maga: A Trial and Travel, Physiology of Dragons: An Illustrated Reference, Lost Sarusan.
The leather folder contains cargo manifestos, warehouse inventories, and other financial logs from a dozen different merchant houses and trade guilds.
The crate also contains 10 sets of masterwork thieves’ tools, three flasks of alchemist’s fire, a flask of acid, a dozen jars of various inks, a footprint book*, adamantine weapon blanch, three bags of powder, a deck of marked cards, and two sets of average loaded dice.
As you leave the docks and head back to The Pickled Imp, both Lady Drusilla and The Kid notice a pair of street thugs paying close attention to the party. By the time they point the two out to Thorleif and Caith they have already blended back into the crowd.
After Guaril thanks you for the return of his property you make your way to The Temple of the Shining Star. Upon your arrival you are greeted by Ollysta Zadrian; a paladin of Sarenrae who is young in her years but holds herself with the poise of a queen and warrior simultaneously
“Thank the light of Sarenrae you have arrived! I knew Ambrus would come through for us in the Silver Crusade. I desperately need you to bring medicine to an orphanage and let me know if the headmistress, Gilga Baltwin, is deserving of our charity. Since our quest began, the needy have clamored for our aid, and I suspect some are abusing our generosity. It may sound cruel, but there are plenty of dishonest people out in the world eager for easy gold.'
“Do you know of the Silver Crusade? After discovering so many factions splintered the Society, a number of us banded together to proliferate the cause of charity and kindness using the Society’s resources. As it is said, ‘The Dawn brings new light’ and I’ve made it my life’s work to use our recent darkness to bring a new light to the world and to the Pathfinder Society."
"I apologize for straying off point. Will you bring this parcel of medicine to Auntie Baltwin’s Home for Recovery in the Eastgate district?”
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Drusilla glares suspiciously at Ollysta. "Delivery duties? While I'm sure you have a noble purpose, I don't quite understand why you'll have to trouble Pathfinders for this task, inexperienced or no. Aren't other people for such things, like delivery boys?" she says, not hiding contempt in her voice.
"Or perhaps there is something you are not telling us?"
Although taken aback by Lady Drusilla's abrupt nature, Ollysta manages to maintain her composure. "If it were as simple as dropping off a parcel I would certainly have hired a delivery service. However as a Pathfinder with proper training would note I asked that you keep your eyes and ears open to surmise whether Ms. Baltwin or someone associated with her has dishonest intent with regard to the aid we've been asked to provide."
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At the sight of Ollysta Zadrian, Thorleif bows deeply and quietly says "Lady Ollystia, it is an honor to meet you in person. May all the hopes and dreams of the Silver Crusade come to fruition under your guidance. I will assist you on this matter in any way that I can. Pray tell, though, what has led to the suspicion of this headmistress, and what should we be looking for while we're there?"
As you make your way to Auntie Baltwin's Home for Recovery you decide it would behoove you to ask a few locals what they know about the orphanage and the headmistress’s quality of character. While most witnesses admit she is a mean old bag, they also all reply they think it is great what she’s doing for the children.
Nearly swarming with cats and children, this fine upper-class home appears to be clean and in good condition considering the number and ages of its inhabitants. Three young boys shoot marbles in the dirt near the side porch, and inside strewn toys and more cats lie about on the floors. A few children take care of chores, while coughs and sneezes softly erupt from the children’s dormitories upstairs.
"Well, well what have we here!" A woman fitting Auntie Baltwin’s description greets you as you arrive at the door. "Pathfinders by the look of ya...I'm guessing you have a package for me?" Her eyes move toward each one of you, and then down at Caith. "Eh...they sent one of you this time? I hope you've bathed within the last month! I have sick children here who shouldn't have to suffer the filth that your kind carries around."
"Bawdy and brash...and probably has a rash." Auntie almost laughs at her quip. "Well..which one of you has my package of medicine? I have sick children to attend to and can't prattle on with you all day."
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Thorleif steps forward to say "Here's your delivery, ma'am. I was curious, though, if you might be willing to give us a quick tour of the establishment. I myself am a healer by trade and am very interested to see just how you run such a successful operation on your own."
As Thorleif converses with the old lady, he gives Caith a nudge, hinting to go check out the building while Thorleif distracts her.
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Auntie - if it wern't fer such as you, I'd have been dead in th' gutter but now? I's a Hotspur an' helpin' these good pathfinders
Diplomacy
This ere healer was all a-twitter when e' 'eard bout yer place here. I's fer one will be appreciatin' it ifn yer were to educate 'im.
He looks at the dwarf.
Mercy but Master Dwarf, yer a sorry sight an' no mistake. You stay ere with me - I don' want you gettin' this weans infected
Bluff
"Oh bother..come along then." She turns and walks away clearly expecting you to follow.
Despite Auntie's claims that she had "sick children" inside, the house appears to be devoid of children. The only sign that children may live here are sheer numbers of toys and other playthings littering nearly every room in the house save one. "That there is my sitting room" Auntie says. "I indulge myself with one place of refuge in the house; sometimes even I get tired and need a few moments of rest to recharge my energy." A half empty bottle of whiskey sits atop her desk.
...and here is my kitchen! I supplement what donations I get with home remedies that I've learned to create from some of the most skilled healers in the world." She unlocks one of the cabinets and places the package from the Silver Crusade inside. You notice several other packages of the same sort along with several bottles of liquor; some more full than others. She hurriedly closes and locks the cabinet just as a kettle whistles on the stove. "That's right...I nearly forgot that you interrupted my tea time! Would you care to join me...or have you seen enough?"
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"We'd love to, dear, we'd love to. Nothing like a nice cup of tea" Drusilla says and moves closer. Seeing the bottles in the closet, she tries to sniff if Auntie has a smell of alcohol around her.
"Dearest Auntie, is it sure just tea you are drinking this time of the day?"
"Oh my dear lady..." Auntie says in response to Drusilla. "I do need to take the edge off every now and again; but never with the children around!"
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Caith goes outside and looks to see if there are any kids around. If/when he does he tries to put them at ease by showing them how to crack walnuts between a wall and his helmet (with his head still in it). Before handing out pieces of the nuts to the kids.
"Now imagine how it will look when I try to open a watermelon"
says Caith with a wink
The Kid seems right at home with the kids...and makes fast friends with his kind nature and his skill at marbles. "Why is that little man hitting his head against the wall...is he OK?" the children ask. They choose to ignore the Dwarf once the talk of massacring fruit begins and tell The Kid stories about how Auntie sends them into the city to work during the daytime hours; what little they make goes straight to Auntie for "room and board." "Auntie gets really silly at night...then she gets really sleepy. We put ourselves to bed most of the time."
A cat comes out of nowhere and jumps up on Auntie's lap. "I've had many generous folks step up their donations as of late; just saving the extra for a rainy day!"
Lady Drusilla senses that Auntie is not telling the truth.
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Caith sitting on the ground, with his back against the wall. A small teardrop running down his left cheek from not being loved by the children after showing them what he can do to various nuts. He wipes way the tear before looking up at the Kid.
"Do you think the others are alright in there? Do you want to wait out here..or go back in to check on them?"
After a few more moments of pleasantries Lady Drusilla and Thorleif are satisfied that they have enough information to bring back to Ollysta. They meet up with Caith & The Kid on the street and both groups share what they've learned with one another. Before you walk away a tiny, waif of a girl hands Caith a flower. "I think you're funny...but be careful about banging your head! You don't want any more bumps!" With that the entire group heads off to give Ollysta Zadrian a detailed report of your findings. As you do you all have the feeling that you're being watched.
The Salhar Estate
“Good day to you, Pathfinders. I am Amenopheus, the Sapphire Sage, advisor to Master Salhar. I understand you were sent here to discuss archaeological permissions. Knowing this was coming, I spoke with Master Salhar at length on the subject and have this to say.
“Since Osirion was 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 organizations cause Osirion to bleed relics into the Inner Sea—something the descendents of Ancient Osirion cannot afford. We Osiriani have 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.
“Master Salhar remains impressed by the Pathfinder Society, orating in their favor a handful of times in front of Absalom’s Grand Council, in fact. Due to previous relationships between him and the Society, Master Salhar has agreed to grant permission to the Pathfinder Society to explore his family’s vaults below Sothis. The only thing he requires is that you retrieve the map of the vaults from his own vault here. The servant 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.
After leaving Amenopheus’ study, the servant brings the group back through the spacious estate, leading them down sturdy stone steps into the cool basement. Down a hallway, after a couple turns, the party ends up at a plain wooden door. The servant opens the door, gesturing for you to enter. Once you enter the room, the door closes and locks behind you. Written on the back of the door is the message:
“Within these cases lies your quest and your way out.”
In this plain stone room are 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.