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Nguyen was interrupted by a knock on the hidden door. "Who the devils could that be," he replied. Opening the door
Raelc was standing there with another person. The cook said "I'm sorry about this," in Common, "but the courier says it is important. He wishes to see your friend about a note from an important person." It takes a second for the tone to sink in, but then Nguyen realized it. Perhaps it is time already? he thought. The courier came forward and passed along a note to Nguyen, mistaking him for the true receiver of the message. He turned around and left before Nguyen could say anything. Nguyen nodded to the cook and shut the
Greetings, Young Adventurer:
I am writing this to invite you to have a conversation with some esteemed persons about an expedition into the wilds of the Worldwound, to be more specific could be harmful to those entrusted with this letter. The gentleman in questions wishes to speak to you and several others in one hour's time about this potential arrangement. To meet with him, please walk four blocks to the South of this establishment that you are presently in, and then wait to hear the following phrase: 'I though' I saw A puddy tat.' It may sound crude, but several of us this far North do speak with a bit of a broguish accent. Please respond with the following phrase: 'I did in fact see such a cat." You will then be led to a Respectable establishment and we will have our meeting in peace. Please be prompt as we do not have time to dally.
Good Evening to You,
A.T.
Over the next thirty minutes, you try to gain more information from Lt. Ripley. She mentions some of the battles fought, but also mentions the three gates that allow passage into the city. There was a temple (to Orcus, you presume), but she swears that one of her flying scouts informed her on that last morning before departing that the temple was no longer in sight! Given how tall it was ("If it wasn't for the Worldwound and the walls fortifying Tsar, you could probably see that ugly temple from the Camp on a clear day."), she is still not sure that is the case. She also mentioned some of the rumored contingency plans the General Zelkor had created. One of which she knew for certain was that at least one knight and his entourage was somehow entombed so that on a given day, they would rise and continue the attack on Tsar, even if all else failed. To this day, she does not know of any such attack force doing such a thing, however.
Soon enough, each of you are approached by a courier, each with the same missive, addressed to each of you. Upon opening the letter, you read the following:
Greetings, Young Adventurer:
I am writing this to invite you to have a conversation with some esteemed persons about an expedition into the wilds of the Worldwound, to be more specific could be harmful to those entrusted with this letter. The gentleman in question wishes to speak to you and several others in one hour's time about this potential arrangement. To meet with him, please walk four blocks to the South of this establishment that you are presently in, and then wait to hear the following phrase: 'I though' I saw A puddy tat.' It may sound crude, but several of us this far north do speak with a bit of a broguish accent. Please respond with the following phrase: 'I did in fact see such a cat." You will then be led to a Respectable establishment and we will have our meeting in peace. Please be prompt as we do not have time to dally.
Good Evening to You,
A.T.
Thank you in advance for your cooperation. I assure you that, once you reach the meeting place, Alli can take her blindfold off.
A.J.
Numair reads the missive, then turns to those that remain.
An intriguing message. What do you make of it?
[Dice=Perception]1d20-1
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And so it begins... Calendir ponders as he reads through the missive.
He thanks the courier with a nod while turning to the others with a wide grin they had not seen yet in his face since they first met, cryptically offering: I think it is time to get Lagash now that things have calmed down somewhat - I will be back shortly! With this he dashes out the door and into the night.
Macavity, please make a Perception check.
+1 vs. traps or +2 vs. Humans
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So much more than a travelling companion you are Lagash - we have always come out on top, even against unexpected turns or odds, always... And today I fear that we are about to embark on something that may bring no victories ar joys - there is too much foulness surrounding the Worldwound and its history to make it anything even remotely similar to the life you deserve my brother... As always, the choice is yours.
As the familiar scene plays out, with Calendir stalking Lagash as they have done so many times over the years, the big cat's ears perk up as he sniffes the evening air.
Yes, I am upwind from you.. Calendir cannot help a grin at teasing his companion.
With a mad dash, the feline easily crosses the open expanse until the nearest copse of trees, climbing a tall, elder oak in one, two, three bounds. There, crouching, he waits for his brother to make his move, a familiar scent with an ever so slightly difference from the usual... Fear? Excitement? Maybe a mix, nothing that would make Lagash pause for long - an impossible somersault, and three gigantic leaps take him across, effectively travelling above the ground, the branches cracking slightly from his massive weight - it felt good to travel without the weight that Calendir insists on covering him with - the metal is light, but always it ruffles his fur, making him want to scracth and scratch... There!!
Freezing completely atop a tree, the cat is a magnificent sight, his eyes, green slivers reflecting the moonlight are the only give away, but Calendir knows where to look, and knows also that his scent is now gone, after maneuvering downwind from his friend.
They both know what to expect, as the animal lands effortlessly, and almost without a sound on the leave filled ground - he is near!! The blood rushing into his ears, he can listen to his heart pumping, mixed with the forest around - an owl in the distance... the remains of the evening patrons in the village far away... The hair in the back of his neck stands up - they are friends but Lagash is a hunter and cringes at being hunted. A slightest air movement... Something cutting silently through the air at him... With an impossible up and backwards bound, that only a feline could perform, he dodges Calendir's charge while swatting him away with a soft paw, claws retracted but a solid hit.
Hitting the ground in a roll, Calendir stands up impossibly fast, "almost" as fast as his cat, and lunges forward again, this time the two colliding solidly with one another and rolling away in the ground, exchanging mocked blows and bites until they tire each other out and simply lay back looking at the overcast sky.
It will not be easy Lagash, it may even be the end of us two... You are free to go brother...
Standing up and shaking the leaves from his back, standing up over the ranger, the cat moves closer and nudges him to stand up, ever practical - I guess you are right - enough stargazing huh? - he laughs at a comment they had gotten used to, that usually signaling the end of idle times for the two companions - Come, it is time to meet the others... - Calendir calls out to his brother while he runs off, and towards the village - with a low growl, Lagash follows suit.
A few moments later, the half-orc strides into the tavern with a bright glow in his eyes and a smile on his face - alongside him follows a huge mountain cat - his homogenous golden fur impeccably kept for a wild animal, covering the muscular yet lithe frame of the feline, his eyes like impossibly deep, green orbs staring at each one of the seated adventuring companions - Everyone, this is Lagash - Calendir proclaims, his arms now wrapped in a tight hug around the animal's neck.
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Calendir takes the necessary steps to outfit Lagash with his light shirt, woven from mithral links, and greased off to dull its glow. The cat seems to struggle and shuffle a bit but the ranger soothes him down with a mumbled conversation that eventually convinces the cat.
Elen smiles bashfully and tentatively takes the pearl from the enormous hand. "Certainly, umm... Ruul wasn't it? Um, this will last about 7 hours, if that's alright..."
Elen waves her hands and mutters some arcane phrases, and the minotaur's imposing body is sheathed in a transparent image of a suit of armor, which immediately vanishes but leaves him geeling more protected. She then uses the pearl, and repeats the process on herself, this time using a platinum and gold rod she retrieves from her pack for the casting. She hands the pearl back, murmuring her thanks.
Elen looks over the note and its postscript, raising an eyebrow at Ally.
"It's ok sweetie, it will be just like a game of blind man's bluff!"
Alliriyallin seems to have no sense of body modesty whatsoever, and though she notices the bull's attention, she doesn't seem to care.
Kallistiel looks at the others who received the missives before reading through her own.
A 'respectable establishment'? Well if it has one clean chair, I suppose it would apply if it were being compared to this dungheap.
She looks up from the letter as the mountain cat enters the tavern accompanied by one of the recipients. "I did... I did tee a puddy tat...," she mutters quietly.
"Well I, for one, will be happy to see where we're being led. Trap or not. I felt like I needed to bathe as soon as I entered this establishment. A cesspool would be better."
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Both wizard and raven read the missive together, then glance around at the others. He lingers over the fine vintage, in no hurry to leave, and notes the exit and then re-entrance of the ranger, now with his companion. Our party has near as many companions as pathfinders. he marvels to himself. Excellent. Our odds of success increase. Finally, as some of the others are making moves to depart he seems to reach some conclusion. Well, right. Time for business. Imbukar? he says, addressing the raven for the first time as he stands. With a wave of his hands he is no longer dressed in wizardly robes, but full plate armor. The raven, still on his shoulder, looks at him just for a moment, tilting it head questioningly, and then vanishes.
Moving quickly for a man in armor the wizard walks towards the door. Shall we?
All of you make your way down the four blocks towards the meeting point. As you stand there, you notice that this area is mostly barracks and a few warehouses. It's possible that those buildings could be armories for the soldiers billeted nearby. It is a clear night, with gas lanterns every fifteen feet or so, mostly as a precaution against things that may attempt to sneak into the city.
Within a couple of moments, just as you begin to wonder what kind of trickery you were put up against, all of you see a fog start to creep in. It is odd for two reasons; one is that there is no wind or obvious weather condition that would indicate a fog would roll in. Also, it is coming from all directions, not just one.
Before you know it, all of you are surrounded by a thick fog, almost as if you had stepped into a cloud. None of you can see each other, nor can you see the buildings or the gas lanterns. This is clearly magic in the making. Before you have a chance to arm yourself, you hear this, as if it is coming from the fog itself:
Bao stealths the four blocks up a wall and over the rooftops. He can't really travel with the group, since he hasn't been introduced. After watching the group and rendezvous location from the roof, he climbs down a wall out of line of slight of the group and Stealthily approaches the group with five minutes before the appointed time.
He responds quietly in Common to the spoken phase of "I though' I saw a puddy tat!" with "I did in fact see such a cat.'
Ruul tightens his hands into meaty fists as the fog envelops and separates him from the others. He remains calm and tries ti determine the nature if the spell.
[dice=Spellcraft]1d20+16
When nothing immediately hostile occurs, the bull responds to the voice, "I did in fact see such a cat"
Numair wasn't really paying attention to the instructions and replies,
I saw a cat like that
"What kind of a cat?" you hear back.
As the group begins to head out of the tavern, Elen catches Numair's sleeve and whispers to him.
"I also wish to bring this to your attention. I noticed you gave the message but a cursory glance, and you may not have seen this." She explains about the odd capital letters to Numair.
Elen listens for any response he may have, then hurries with him to catch up with the group.
During the walk, she responds to Ruul's questions. "Oh... ah... I can see why you would think so... It's not at all an unreasonable thought, but you see, Mr. Spiritskin... well, how much do you know about the Planes? Have you heard of Elysium, the outer plane that epitomizes the intersection of freedom, chaos, and creativity with benevolence and charity? Azata, celestial beings of many types, live there, and are beloved by my Goddess, Desna. Ally is a Lyrakien, a musical, mysterious, magical creature, and she disdains clothing both because of her love of freedom, her innocence, and, yes, an inherent resistance to cold." She smiles lovingly at the naked creature riding her shoulder, who responds with a cheeky grin and a playful wink at Ruul.
When the fog rolls in and the voice speaks, Elen nudges Numair and mutters, "Wrong words!" then speaks the proper counter-sign herself. She then mutters further, "A puddy tat, or cat? Would that be some kind of pudding-cat? Perhaps a magical crossbreed of a black pudding and a cat of some sort? What kind of foul magic could create such a thing, and what would its powers and abilities be, I wonder?"
"Oh yes, life unfettered is what we Azata are all about. Some of us do wear clothes, the Bralani and Ghaele mostly, armor for their various crusades and duels and quests and such. And the Lillend sometimes wear clothes, either a work of art in clothing form they've fashioned, or one that someone's given to them. They're often unclothed as I am, though. And the Brijidine -- well, if they did try to wear clothes they'd probably burn them up!" She laughs musically. "But mortals are so silly about nudity sometimes, mostly because you are generally nude when reproducing. As celestials, we don't reproduce that way -- although some do at times, with mortals -- we're born of mortal souls who ascend to the upper planes -- so sex to us is of no special importance than any other recreation, and so we put little importance on nudity, either."
After this conversation, Elen reminds her friend that she needs to be blindfolded, and hands her a tiny strip of cloth, which she ties around her eyes.
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Numair responds to Elen in kind.
Thank you for your insight. I entirely missed the hidden message, as I found the missive to be dreadfully boring, as they so often are. Have you the ability to cast 'Message'? I find it useful for keeping my staunchest allies alert.
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Numair coughs, chuckles, and speaks again to the disembodied fog-voice.
Ahem...
Waiting for another response, he shifts uncomfortably in the mist, not enjoying communicating with someone he cannot look in the eye.