Olo is at a loss for words as the boat slows drifts off down the river. Will I survive this, I wonder? In the back of his head he hears soft laughter.
Zeltor is silent throughout the whole ceremony, feeling he has nothing to offer - almost not given half a chance to get to know the strong girl, he is pained by her loss nonethelss as she proved to have an open mind, by willingly accepting him into the group, with implicit trust in a stranger, a very rare quality these days.
After the ceremony is over, Molasbar will head back to the Bristleback Inn. He'll indulge in some wine, knowing that his tender stomach will likely make him pay for it later. He'll wait for the next day to help with the sorting of the loot taken from the bandits.
After the ceremony that evening, Odo has plenty of wine and ale on tap at his inn, free of charge; he doesn't bring up the events of the day nor does he pry into what occurred in the dungeon. Later on in the afternoon Amelie surprises the group with a freshly-baked blueberry pound cake, and promises a hearty dinner to lift their spirits.
Kiley is offered the same as the dungeoneering group, although it's clear it's out of politeness more than anything. She feels somewhat left out, strangely, despite the obvious sadness abounding.
The next day, Lyte, one of your hired guards, arrives in Bristleback's Inn while you're eating breakfast. He sets a hefty, jingling sack of coins on the table, and sends Captain's Skorma's thanks and most sincere condolences.
Kiley thanks Amelie for the offer of the cake, but turns her down. Tension was turning her stomach into knots. She wasn't foolish enough to delve the dungeon, but she didn't know who she could trust. Finally, after downing a tankard of ale, she picks up her gear and approaches the party that had just lost one of it's members.
"Pardon, but may I sit with you?"
Molasbar nods and gestures. "Please, join us."
Without a word, Zeltor nods and gets up, making space at the table and offering his chair while he retrieves another one for himself.
All the while he eyes the woman intently but showing no aggressiveness.
Zahar was quiet most of the day and during the festivities. He scoot his chair over to make room for the extra chair being introduced. "What's your name?", he casually asked the woman as she sat in Zeltor's seat. He pinched a small piece of the pound cake off and offered it to his companion beneath the table. Kasuri lifted her head, sniffed at the cake, and then seemed to lose interest entirely. Zahar shrugged and popped the morsel into his mouth as he awaited an answer from the newcomer.
"Thank you."
She sits, and stays silent for an awkward moment before speaking again. The clipped syllables probably giving away her Chelish upbringing.
"I know that I'm intruding, but I was hoping that I could join your group. I know that this is presumptuous of me, but I am not foolish enough to delve that dungeon alone."
With poor social skills at best, Olo sits quietly most of the evening in the inn. He sits with his companions, but seem lost in thought which seems to be happening more often. When the woman approaches he sits straightens his back - not to impress her reflexively as he becomes more attentive. Ssss... He begins to see purple tendrils come forth and make their way towards the woman before he visibly shakes his head and looks around to see if anyone else had seen them . Control yourself, Olo. .
"Probably a good decision not to chance it alone. Its been dangerous enough in a large group. What's your story?"
Kiley's eyes dart around the table, before she manages to calm down a little.
"I am from Cheliax. I've been hearing rumors about this place, so I thought I would come see if they were true. If what I saw today was anything to go by, I am guessing the answer is yes."
From his spot at the table, Zeltor pipes in - "We are not yet certain regarding many of the rumors surrounding this place - our companion fell facing brigand vermins..." - a somber look crosses the tieflings' semblant.
"Please take no offense when I ask, why would you want to delve such place? I am Zeltor by the way"
"Why else would anyone delve into such a place? I am after gold and treasure."
Kiley's eyes continue scanning the table. She seems to have calmed down, but there's a nervous tension in her posture, like a spring wound far too tight.
Zeltor keeps on observing the young woman - she seems nervous and tense, but he simply nods with a smile.
"As far as reasons go, that one seems as valid as any other to me" - he adds while he takes another sip at his tea.
"And we've seen in our last encounter that extra force of arms is always a benefit. I am willing to accept your company on our next sojourn."
Ninivic folds his hands under his chin, "Gold and treasure, eh? What did you say your name was?"
"A thousand pardons, sir. I must have forgotten my manners. My name is Abigail Cerravinci."
The woman apologizes, and then hesitates for a moment be giving her name.
Olofire sits silent as he observes the interactions. Something seems off about the woman. Perhaps because he is despondent about the recent passing of Raseri, he does not care to hide his suspicious stare.
"You are welcome to join us Abigail. I believe the plan is to depart first thing in the morning?" - Zeltor looks around the table in confirmation.
"If no one objects I can meet you down here as soon after dawn as you are able."
The woman looks around the table a nervous smile on her face, especially in light of Olofire's obvious suspicion.
"Well, I think it is decided then. In that case, perhaps we should make sure you know what you are in for."
Molasbar slips out his journal book and moves so that he is sitting next to Abigail. He'll start at the beginning and, over the next couple of hours, let her know what they've encountered so far, how they've over come it.
At one point, he pauses and asks "I've found that all of us, coming from different places and different walks of life, have picked up rumors on what we may be facing. Is there anything that you've heard that you care to share with us? It may be helpful, even life saving depending on the nature of it."
Ninivic waits for the others to go to bed before speaking privately with "Abigail." He takes a drink from his mug and asks, "You're not here for gold and your name isn't Abigail. My companions are inclined to trust you...I'm not. Too many dead tricked by the demons. What are you hiding?"
"N-nothing. What makes you think I'm hiding anything?"
Crap.Crap!CRAP!
"Abigail's" eyes don't focus on the ratfolk gunner. Instead they seem to be locked onto a patch of wall well to the side.
"I learned long ago to tell when someone's not being entirely truthful. Now, you're somewhat at the end of the world here, so you may have your reasons. But before we go back into that hellhole where we've already lost three people, I'd like to know who you are and what you're hoping to accomplish. Stupidity already cost the life of one companion that it didn't have to."
I hope this isn't a mistake...
Kiley sighs and looks Ninivic in the eyes.
"I'm running from the Hellknights. My name is actually Kiley Sherrow, and I was,still am, trying to hide."
"Well, its nice to meet you Kiley." The ratman reaches his hand over to shake Kiley's. "Hellknights, eh? Didn't see too much of them at the Worldwound. You run into trouble with them down in Cheliax or someplace else? From what I've heard they can be a little...extreme in their devotion to a cause."
"Yeah, they tend to not like deserters that much." she says as she shakes the offered hand.
Kiley chuckles only a moment while what she just said registered. Suddenly the laughter stops as her hand claps over her mouth.
Nice. Lets see how deep you can step into it this time!
The women lets out a sigh and pulls down the hood hiding her face in shadow. Faint, delicate, white scars trace complex patterns across her cheeks and on her hands. Her features hint at a slender frame beneath the cloak and her wrists look almost too frail to wield a weapon.
"There are two great shames for a noble family in Cheliax. Birthing a tiefling, or birthing an aasimar. My parents sent me off to join the Hellknights. I lost control, nearly killed several people and ran."
Gold eyes look down at her tankard. Guilt obviously weighing heavy on her heart.
"The penalty for desertion among the Hellknights is death. They wanted my head so bad they posted a bounty on it. I was in Varisia when I started hearing whispers of it, but I also heard about this place."
She takes a deep breath, more to calm her nerves than anything else. She looks up at the ratfolk gunner and continues.
"I thought if I could get here, then I could hide as an adventurer in plain sight. I was thinking of going alone. Less risk of getting clapped in irons out in the wilds if no one knows you well enough to rat you out. Then I saw the woman you brought back, dead. I'm not stupid. I can see that the rumors about how deadly this place is might be understating things a bit."
A pause fills the space around the table with a heavy silence as Kiley takes a pull on the tankard. It only lasts a few seconds, though it seems more like several minutes.
"I'm sorry I lied to you, all of you. I'm scared. I don't know who to trust, and I sure as hell ain't going in there alone."
She cradles her head in her hands and talks to the table. Her muffled voice cracks as the walls she'd worked to keep up crumbled a little.
"Please, let me go with you. I know I'm asking you a lot and painting a nice big target on all of ya'lls backs, but I don't know what else I can do. The more I move the more likely I'm going to run into a Hellknight, or a dozen, then I'm as good as dead."
Molasbar watches in stunned silent as Ninivic confronts the newcomer, and her response. It never dawned on him to not take her at her word, and now he sees how that could have been sheer folly. He considers how to handle such things differently in the future, and nods appreciatively to Ninivic.
"Kiley, I'm less concerned about the Hellknights than the running. I've met all sorts of people on the front lines over at the Wound. A lot of them had something they had to get away from." He pauses to have a drink of his ale. "The Drezen Rats are a pretty tight bunch. I don't always see eye to eye with my officers, but one thing I do know is that I need to stand with my unit. Lots of times it looks pretty hopeless, but if everyone is there doing their job, we'll make it out. I'm not saying we never retreat. I've run from the demons more times than I can count and this place looks to be just as bad. But, we do it together." He stops drinking, puts his mug down and looks Kiley in the eye. "Now what I have to know before I'm ready to go down with you is why you ran and if you're going to do it again. We already had a mess down there once because of this idiot Reggie who didn't know how to work with the group. I don't mind facing a squad of Hellknights down the road if you're going to be a good companion and stand by us. But, if you're going to be running first sign of trouble, I think you might want to find another group."
"They tried to kill me. I lost control, and I ran after it was over."
Pain flashes in her golden eyes, but her voice is steady now.
"Who tried to kill you initially? The Hellknights? Or someone you were pursuing?"
"The Hellknights."
Her head is once more cradled in her hands. Fear, bordering on panic edges her voice.
"They took me out into the yard and gave me a stick. The other armigers were given weapons, sharp ones. The last thing I remember was getting nicked and taking one of their weapons right out of their hands."
Her whole body shudders as she takes in a deep breath, then another.
"Next thing I remember was everyone lying around me in pain. Some with deep cuts in their limbs, others with broken bones. I panicked, and I ran."
"Well, remind me never to get you angry. I'm good with you going with us, but if you get squirrely, you're out. We've already seen how dangerous it is down there. It sounds like you can fight, but we need your head too."
"Okay."
Kiley looks much more timid, but she understands what's asked of her.
"You have my word that as long as you fight, so shall I."
Ninivic chuckles, "You got it, I'm sure we'll be doing our share of running, we'll just do it together."
"Then I think we are settled. And perhaps as we begin our next delve, we should consider what criteria, if any, we need to accept someone to our group. And perhaps we should give our group a name. If we don't, the townsfolk are bound to start calling us something. I'd hate to start being known as the Company of Ragged Bastards, just because some militia man remarks "here comes those ragged bastards" when we come back some time."
"Worth a try Molasbar, though we had a saying back in our unit that you never get to nickname yourself...I suppose a proper name however..."
The next morning, after getting up moments before the sunrise and soing a jog of the ferry as usual, Zeltor settles for his spartan breakfast.
While he looks at the gathered spoils from their lasty foray, he cannot avoid a sour grin - "What a meager price for one such as Raseri... Then again, no coin is worth a life" - resolute he gets up, thanks the inkeeper and goes out to soak inn the normality of the small towns' comings and goings, a reprieve from the gloom of Rappan Athuk.
During the morning he visits the merchants and sells the gathered equipment from the bandits. After that is done, he secures the gold to be returned to his companions and heads to the authorities.
"Thank you, Zeltor, for taking care of the transactions."
"I have acquired a spell. It allows me to detect portals that are well concealed in a limited area. I think we should return to chambers we have already explored and put it to good use to make sure nothing has been missed. It may take a while and I will have limited abilities while prepared to use this spell, but it may be well worth it."
Back here you mentioned 25 gp for each bandit and something extra for Jack, but didn't specify his bounty. I didn't see anything else.
"Excellent idea Molasbar. We'll have to see what we can find. If time permits, I may see about some work on my weapon before we return."
The morning after Raseri's death, it seems that the sky has decided to mourn her passing by raining great tears upon the earth. Overnight, enormous storm clouds massed over southern Mendev, bringing with them a bone-chilling torrential downpour and gale-force winds that batters at windows like an attacking demon horde. A couple of you are awoken in the morning by the feeling of dripping raindrops seeping through a crack in the roof above your bed, or almost trip over a puddle that formed just outside of the Bristleback Inn's washrooms, or even find their bedroom window suddenly thrust open by a severe wind blast.
In the morning, Odo requests all the guests to help out doing some emergency repairs, with anyone willing to brave the tempest helping him patch up a couple of dislodged tiles on the roof or hammer temporary planks over the windows. Others are directed around by Amelia with buckets and mops, catching any leakages and cleaning up any spillages as they appear.
Considering the weather conditions, the group decides to wait out the storm instead of potentially putting themselves in danger on the trip to the dungeon. Unfortunately, the weather continues for the next couple of days, seeming almost as if it would never let up. On the second day of the storm, Odo recruits the entire town to sandbag the river edge, worried that its banks would burst.
Three days later, a delayed and thoroughly drenched merchant river trawler arrives at the Ferry, and a couple of new faces turn up at the Inn to wait the storm out with you. Amongst the merchant's crew is a pair of individuals who stand out from the rest--a demonic, red-skinned tiefling and a scarred, golden-eyed ifrit. You soon get to know the two, none of you having any particular other things to pass the time. Both express interest in delving the dungeon depths, and, recognising safety in numbers, the party agrees for them to join them in Rappan Athuk.
Luckily, on the fourth day, the rain seemed to abate, with the first hint of sunlight welcoming you in the morning. The showers continue on and off throughout the day, but towards the afternoon the merchant decides the weather is good enough for him to leave. Much to the surprise of the party, Olofire announces that he will be leaving with the trawler back to Egorian and then back south again. "As much as I want to understand... myself, I'm too scared of dying here... Please, don't be like Raseri. Let's give up this foolishness." Somehow, he manages to convince Zahar to join him, the druid deciding the threat of losing Kasuri was too much for him to bear. "I will have to find a way to save her somewhere else." That evening, the two set off down the mud-murky river, wishing you the best of luck in the dungeon.
The next morning is bright and hopeful; the ground is sodden and muddy, but the banks of the river are receding, and the storm clouds have completely dissipated. Your group has changed significantly since your last expedition, but the future is looking good... at least, so you hope.
When it comes to helping out with the repairs, leaks and clean up, Molasbar will gladly put his presdigitation cantrip to extensive use in the effort.
With the arrive of the two stand out strangers, Molasbar is willing to take them on with the group without much question knowing they will likely not live out the month.
During the storm, Molasbar will look for times when he can sit down with Rasmus Pye over meals or drinks and converse on esoteric subjects with what he considers an intellectual peer.
As Olo prepares to leave, Molasbar tells him "I am sorry, but I cannot go with you. My time with the elves has made me only too keenly aware that my days are numbered, whether by danger or decay. I believe a solution may lie within Rappan Athuk, and I must try to recover it. Travel safe, friend. And find yourself welcome if your path leads back here."
When we are ready to head out, Molasbar will memorize Detect Secret Doors twice, plus Burning Hands in his arcane school bonus slot. That would give him two castings, plus a third with his bonded object casting.
If we make it back to RA uncontested, Molasbar will start with the room at the base of the stairs, with the six doors in six alcoves. When he starts to cast the spell, he will have chalk in hand. He'll check walls, floors and ceilings (and any sort of statuary in a room) before moving on. He'll check corridors between rooms in the same way. He will ask Ninivic to lead the way, to make sure that any traps they have disabled previously have not been reset.
From the main room, he'll go north to the rooms where they fought the gelatinous cube. If he finds any secret doors, panels or compartments, he won't open them or wait for others to check them; he'll mark them with chalk and keep moving to make the most of each casting's duration.
Once he's checked those rooms, he'll go down the passage behind the secret door that Reggie found. Where it T's, he'll go south first (to where the passage leads to the bottom of the pit behind the soutwest door in the starting room. Then he'll go north, past the T and on to the bandits' hideout room.
All of that must certainly be more than a day's worth of casting. And that is assuming no encounters...
Molasbar will be methodical to a fault, and between each casting denote on his map what sections he has covered so he knows where to pick up the next time.
Is there any sort of naming or numbering convention for the rooms that we can use to make describing where we are doing some of this a bit simpler?
Ajax follows the group enthusiastically, wearing a perpetual grin on his face. While swapping tales with his new fellows he showed particular interest in any undead that lurk the dungeons (most notably the zombie attack).
He explains that he was once a slave, descended from demonic salamanders and forced to do the bidding of a small sect of Orcus, his facial scars the indicators of a torturous youth. He has a skill for healing wounds, although he has no idea where his gift originated from, simply appearing by accident when Mendevian knights rescued him.
As a follower of Pharasma and/or Sarenrae his primary goal is to use his gifts to destroy the undead plague of the Worldwound although he despises demons also. Orcus in particular, as the demon-lord of the undead, has attracted his attention and he seeks revenge for his tortured youth.
He traveled to the Ferry with two warriors from Mendev, but they abandoned him after deciding the region was too dangerous for them after all.