In the kingdom of Talingarde, many crimes may send you to Branderscar Prison, but the sentence has but one meaning. You are wicked and irredeemable. Each of you received the same greeting when you arrived. You were held down by rough hands and branded upon the arm with a runic F. The mark signifies ‘forsaken’ and the painful scar is indelible proof that each of you has betrayed the great and eternal love of Iomedae and her chosen mortal vassals.
Condemned, you face at best a life of shackles and servitude in the nearby salt mines. Others might await the “gentle” ministrations of the inquisitors so that co-conspirators may be revealed and confessions extracted. Perhaps, some of you will be spared this ordeal. Perhaps instead you have come to Branderscar to face the final judgment. In three days, the executioner arrives and the axe falls or the pyre will be lit. Through fire or steel, your crimes will be answered.
You have all been chained together in the same communal cell dressed in nothing but filthy, tattered rags. Manhandled and mistreated, any finery you once possessed is either ruined or long lost. No special treatment has been given any prisoner – male or female, commoner or noble – all of the forsaken are bound and imprisoned together. Your feet are secured by iron cuffs tethered by one long chain. Your arms are secured to the wall above by manacles. A guard is posted right outside the cell day and night. Little thought is given to long term accommodations. At Branderscar, justice comes swift and sure.
Escape seems hopeless. You have all been well searched and every attempt to conceal anything on your person has failed. And if you could somehow slip your bonds and fly out of this prison, where would you go? Who from your former life would want anything to do with the forsaken? Despised, alone and shackled – all that you can do now is await your doom.
For each of you, your old life is over. For each of you, hope is a fading memory. For each of you, justice will be fairly meted. And who can blame fair Talingarde after what each of you has done?
The three of you recall the events earlier in the day.
The prison creaks as you are rolled along. A chill wind whips around your bodies, a telling sign you are near some body of water, though you cannot see it. Your heads have been covered in hoods, your mouths gagged. Iron shackles bind your hands in front of you, attached to the floor of the wagon, while another pair of shackles bind your ankles, keeping your stride short. The only clothing you wear are rags that were provided you shortly after your capture.
The wagon stops for a moment, and you hear one of the men guarding you speak to another, though the words themselves escape you. The sound of an opening gate can be heard, then the wagon moves forward, taking you to what can only be your home for the next three days, Branderscar Prison.
The wagon stops just a short distance in, the cage heard to be unlocked. The guard can be heard speaking, "Bunch of bloody criminals", "they'll get what's coming to 'em", "keep an eye on 'em". The cage unlocked, rough hands come in and drag the four of you out, sharp tips that can only be swords prodding you onwards.
The three march single file, blind and shackled, the only guide the taunts of the guards, as you are lead into what must be a building. Rounding a corner, you feel an opressive heat wash over you as a rough voice calls out, "It would seem we have some new guests. The first thing we do here is your initiation." Several of the guads start to chuckle at his statement.
The first of the prisoners is brought forward. "Take a look boys, this here dwarf ain't no normal dwarf. He's a Duergar, down from the Darklands, up here trying to purchase good Talirean folk as slaves. You know how we handle scum like this?" With that, he pulls a brand out of the forge as the guards extend out your arm. He shoves the brand into your arm, leaving the imprint of a runic 'F' there. "Forsaken like you, marked for life. However long that'll be."
The Duergar is dragged away as the next is brought forth. "This here boys, she comes from under our feet even lower than the last scum. A dark elf, pretty little thing. Wonder what her head will look like when the thing it's attached to is snapped for the murderin' #%$^@." As before, her arm is extended and branded by the guard.
The last of the prisoners is led forward, a goblin. "I'm sure you all know what this is. The little firebug burned down a building the drow was escaping. Apparently the little bugger has taken a liking to her. Well, let's see how he like a little burning." The final prisoner is then branded.
"Take this lot away." The three of you are taken away, led up a flight of stairs. You can hear the sound of a cell opening, where the four of you are led inside and locked up. Your hands are attached to the wall's behind you, and a chain on one wall is looped through your ankles, binding the four of you together. You are able to sit. When all are secured, your masks and gags are removed, your first signs of your new accomodations. As your eyes adjust, you see the three of you are in a cell. There is a strange, very large doorway off to the right.
Several guards stand outside the cell, one of them the man who performed the branding. "My name is Seargent Tomas Blackerly. I'm in charge of these soldiers here, and I plan to make your next three days miserable." With that he turns and leaves the cell, only two guards left by the far doorway.
DOT
Iymiira moans in pleasure as Blackerly brands her arm
As she is led away, Iymiira playfully comments,"I hope my room has been prepared to my specifications Innkeep." She gives a sultry look to any guard brave enough to meet her gaze.
A few minutes after Blackerly leaves the cell, Iymiira begins to cry out, Guard. Guard! GUARD!!!" She waits for but a moment before calling out, "Guard, my manservant has apparently neglected to bring the necessary items for my sponge bath. Would you be a dear and fetch them for me?" Iymirra taps her foot against the stone floor impatiently and expectantly.
It's so hard to find good help these days.
As the guard leaves Null looks at his surroundings and mutters,
"Not bad, besides the shackles no different than home really.
Upon seeing the goblin and drow, Null thinks:
Well, they look a little scrawny but at least it's a start. Hope the stock improves.
Null speaks in Undercommon,
Wonder if I can break these chains?
No stranger to the Duergar from her family's dealings with them in the slave market, Iymiira responds in kind,"That would be great; while you're at it, see if you can break open the cell door so my manservant here can go find us some food. I'm famished."
To the drow,
"Your suggestion is not without merit. If I cannot break the door, your manservant could serve as nourishment as well".
Let's see what these chains are made of. Things sure would be easier if I could move my fingers!
-> Summoning his dark strength, Null attempts to break his binds. Either the chain itself or the chain from the wall
"Mistress, goblins do not good they taste. Better to feast on human guards, much more fit and preserved." Firetongue looks about as the duergar begins to break the chains, quietly clapping at the show.
As Null begins to work at the shackles, the guards at the door spring into action. One comes up to the noise, yelling at him, "Stop that now, you hear!" The other pulls out a horn and blows it, calling for aid from below. Shortly a dozen guards have arrived in the room, all armed with padded clubs, and burst into the cell. All three of you are quickly beaten and subdued for your actions.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A time passes and you all begin to recover to consciousness, sore but alive. A fresh set of shackles have been placed on Null, thicker than before. You barely have a chance to register much more when Blackerly enters the room. Coming up to the cage, he looks inside and points to Null. "You have a visitor."
Iymiira whispers to her fellow prisoners in Undercommon, "This guard appears to be in the sway of some form of enchantment. Perhaps this is our chance. Be ready."
I will have to trust you Drow. My magic fails me in these shackles.
In Undercommon, I do not take kindly to be beaten like a child. These humans deaths are assured.
Iymvirra tells Blackerly, "Proceed, his visitor should not be kept waiting."
She then turns to Null in Undercommon, "Be wary, whoever 'persuaded' Blackery is most likely more than they seem. And make note of the layout and defenses, it will come in handy soon enough. Especially if you decide to pummel Blackerly prematurely."
Iymviira laughs playfully.
Asmodeus has planned this as a test, I know it. Perhaps this dwarf, and maybe even the visitor, are a part of his plan. Soon the halls of this prison will run red with the blood of these humans. A fitting sacrifice to the Prince of Darkness.
Null looks at Iymvirra knowingly.
Show me this vistor then. I tire of these games.
You are escorted to a room just down the hall from the prison cells, a meeting room. In the room is a hauntingly beautiful woman with platinum blond hair and vibrant and unearthly green eyes. “Oh, dearest,” proclaims the unfamiliar woman. “I’m so relieved you’re alive!” She quickly turns to Tomas. “Could we please have a moment alone, good sir? For pity’s sake?”
Tomas goes blank for a bit and then quickly agrees. “Of course, my lady. For you,’ tis no problem.”
As soon as the guards leave, the woman's demeanor immediately changes. She drops all pretense of grief or concern. She is immediately all business. “Have you forgotten me, dearest?” the unexpected visitor says with a smirk, dropping her pretense of grief. “Call me Tiadora. We possess a mutual friend who would like to meet you and your fellow cell-mates. Unfortunately, our friend is unwilling to visit you in your present rather shabby accommodations so it seems you must escape. Don’t be so dour. Just because it’s never been done before is no reason you can’t be the first.
“If you manage that, cross the moors on the outskirts of town. On the old Moor Road you’ll see a manor house with a single lantern burning in the second story. There our mutual friend waits. That is all I know. He did want me to give you this.”
She takes off her silken veil and wipes away a few fake tears with it.
“Something to remember me by, dearest.”
To Tiadora,
Escape should not be an issue, I have already broken their pathetic bonds once. Tell your friend I am on the way, and that my clothing may be a little red, and wet.
Null looks down at the silken veil as it is handed to him
As Null begins to examine the veil, she clasps it back in his hands, "Some favor's are best savored later, when you have a chance to cause others to become jealous, dearest. And I will let our friend know."
Tiadora only smiles as she rises and the guards return. Immediately, her demeanor once more changes and she is again a perfect picture of grief. “No, I can’t bear to leave you!” She gives Null a kiss on the cheek. The kiss is ice-cold and feels somehow alien and inhuman.
Tomas shakes his head. “I’m afraid it’s time, miss.”
She looks deep in Tomas’ eyes and says, “Thank you for letting me say good-bye. There’s no need to search my dearest. You are such a good friend for letting me see my dearest one more time.”
“Such a good friend,” Tomas repeats his voice almost mechanical. Then the watch sergeant seems to snap out of it and bows politely. “A pleasure, madam,” She leaves unveiled. Her eyes meet Null's one last time and she briefly gives them a wicked smile.
“Three days,” telepathically echoes in the PC’s mind. “Don’t disappoint me, dearest”. It takes but a moment to realize the words appeared in your mind in the Infernal tongue. The visitation concluded, Null is taken back to his cell by a cadre of guards and shackled once more.
The veil has a variety of patches on it.
- 2 Daggers
- A lantern
- A coil of rope
- A small sack with an arcane rune on it
- A set of tools
- A window
- A stack of gold
- A vials marked with a draconic rune for life
- A symbol of Asmodeus
Null is brought back to the cells and chained back to the wall, Blackerly in lead. "Now you all don't be thinking nothing. I don't the rest of you will get the fortune of such a visitor. Not that it'll matter in three days." The guards all laugh as they begin to leave the room, discussion of tonights poker game ensuing. "Don't worry, I happened to acquire a new bottle of brandy for tonight. And your money will help pay for it."
To his cellmates,
That was surely an odd encounter. Some human female by the name of Tiadora was the visitor. She claimed to know me. She then told me a mutual friend of us all awaits our escape. They are waiting in a manor on the outskirts of town. Clearly she must be mistaken, for I knew nothing of what she spoke.
Still, she believes escape is possible, and gave the location of a hideout. It might be a trap, or some human deception, but it is useful information none the less. She also gave me this odd veil, which seems invisible to the guards eyes.
Is it magic Drow?
"That veil goes well with your loincloth," Iymirra says to Null after the guards have left. Her demeanor becomes serious,"We should make our plans as the guards drink their brandy and leave tonight. The moon stings my eyes less than that thrice-damned sun."
Iymiira focuses her gaze on the veil, using her innate abilities to detect if magical emanations radiated from it.
I am sure with my might I could break these thin chains again, however, last time that drew the guards attention.
You, goblin. Can your scrawny wrists slip out of the shackles quietly?
Firetongue pulls against the shackles quietly, "No, Firetongue cannot sneak out of the shackles. Not at all." As he relaxes his hands, he then brings one out of it's shackle to wipe his nose with before setting it on his lap. "What does dwarf think I am, magic goblin?"
Null blinks twice, then looks to the Drow.
What game is this?! Tell your manservant to free us at once. Time is being wasted!
Iymiira's voice sounds off like one who is not be ignored,"Manservant, quit fooling around and free us!
Firetongue looks at Null, "How you want me do that? My hands no free, see?" He shakes his freed hand at Null before realizing it wasn't in the shackle. He pulls his other hand free to rub his sore wrist, "Ah, the human servants have made sure their king is free."
He turns to the drow, attempting to quietly stand up, "Mistress, what you have me do now?" "She no sneaky like goblin, too loud."
Iymvirra attempts to throttle Firetounge for not moving fast enough.
"Drow, while your manservant wastes time, tell me if your magic was successful. What do you know of this veil?"
Null also begins quietly gauging the strength of his new manacles.
Iymvirra replies,"It is magical, however I lack the skills to identify it."
She then looks to Firetongue, "Since you are proving useless thus far, tell us what the Duergar's new veil is capable of."
Iymvirra begins working herself out of her bonds, not unlike the BDSM parties back in Zirnakaynin.
Iymviira easily removes her bonds, giggling playfully as she stands up and stretches,"It's going to be hard to find decent parties on the surface if this is the best they can do.
She moves over to the Duergar to aid him if he has not already broken from his reinforced manacles.
Firetongue examines the semi-clear cloth. "Powerful magic it has. It makes you clean when you rub it over your body, takes away snot! Keep it away, it's evil magic indeed!"
G P
The goblin's knowledge appeared lacking. Let me free myself from these bonds and I will tell you of the veils magic"
Null raises where an eyebrow should be in the direction of the Drow.
"I see your arms are stronger than they look, excellent work."
"These humans would do well to learn how to properly forge and craft metal"
"Now block the door while I discover the secrets of this veil"
Unsuccessfully attempting to wiggle the chains off of Null, Iymviira began trying to help him to break the chains. On the first try, his bonds have been broken.
She whispers in Undercommon,"That most likely drew their attention again. Prepare yourselves."
"Odd, I cannot discover anything about this veil. It is likely woven of powerful magics. I will keep it safe"
Null ties the veil to his loin cloth, then takes up position around the edge of the door. Ready to crush any guards that may enter.
Iymviira takes up a flanking position with Null, readying to darken the area with her power when an unsuspecting guard enters the cell to investigate the noise.
In Undercommon, Iymviira growls at Firetongue, "Manservant, when they come, taunt them into the room and blast them."
Firetongue takes up position near the door, almost seeming to blend into the shadow itself. You wait a moment but all you hear coming from beyond the doorway is a yell from the guards, "Quiet down ya dwarf, you won't be breaking those shackles!"
Aura moderate transmutation; CL 9th
Slot none; Price 7,000 gp; Weight --
DESCRIPTION
This appears to be a fine silk veil of gossamer cloth. Only as it is held and closely inspected can you see small cloth patches of various shapes. One patch can be detached each round as a move action. Detaching a patch causes it to become an actual item. This veil contains:
• 2 daggers
• Bullseye lantern (full, lit and shuttered)
• Hempen rope (50-foot coil)
• Sack full of needed spell components (worth less than a 1 gp) and common clothes in the PCs sizes
• Thieves Tools, Masterwork
• Window (2 ft. by 4 ft., up to 2 ft. deep)
• Potion of cure light wounds
• 100 gold pieces
• Unholy Symbol of Asmodeus (silver)
Note that the window patch will create a window (and therefore a hole) in a nearby wall. If there are no nearby walls, it simply turns into a common wooden window frame. It cannot be placed on a living creature however. Once removed, a patch cannot be replaced.
CONSTRUCTION
Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, fabricate; Cost 3,500 gp
A sudden, knowing look comes across Null's black eyes.
Null whispers in Undercommon,
"Ah, yes. I had forgotten to take the alterations these surface dwellers make to their enchantments due to their lack of superior sight."
Drow, let me show you the secrets of this veil. You may find some of it's properties useful."
Null quietly shows and explains the nature of the veil to Iymiira. He assumes the goblin overhears as well, even though Null isn't quite sure where the manservant might be hiding.
Null whispers,
"As neither of you are skilled enough to use the magical components, I shall claim them. I will also claim a dagger, if there are no objections."
Null thinks to himself- "It is odd the veil contains this symbol to the god Asmodeous. Perhaps the god is beginning to take notice of my peoples plan, and my mission."
"Hmm, well this is certainly... useful. It seems our mysterious benefactor has given us then means to make good our escape. But it looks like the guards are too busy with their brandy to come visit."
"So here's the plan..."
Iymviira explains her plan to the others, in Undercommon of course. She and Null take a flanking position around the cell door with daggers taken from the veil. Firetounge stands against the wall directly across from the door, ready with his fire domain power. Due to the dim lighting we can make stealth checks. Iymviira uses bluff to call the guards over for "a good time". When they get to the cell, they open the door (either to have a good time or because they have seen that the prisoners have escaped their bonds) and come in. This is when she drops Darkness and the guards are slaughtered.
When she finishes explaining the plan, she says, "May Asmodeus's will be done."
As they take their places, Iymviira begins to work her magic, "Oh boys? Boys? It's all cold and lonely in this cell, maybe you could come warm me up. I don't bite... hard." She giggles playfully before taking her position.