Stepping forwards and pulling out his new no.3 hookpick, the halfling checks the hole first for deadly or even dangerous traps, then he fiddles at the lock gently at first and then with a steady increase of frustrated pressure.
Bedu steps back and gives his pick a hard stare as he puts it away. "Apologies," he mumbles waiting for the skeleton keys to show him up again.
Tessa watches with curiosity. "How's it going up there Bedu? Are we in?"
Looking over to Erick she leans in and whispers, "I think you may end up needing to go that route after all."
Erick nods, and digs the skeleton keys out of his pack. "Well, let's try these, this is probably a very complex lock." He says diplomatically.
Gavin smiles. Despite his gruff demeanor, the knight really did have a kind heart. From the orphans, to offering the kobold a job, to letting Bedu save a little face, Erick was letting the facade slip a bit.
Then Gavin remembered the imminent task at hand. Raising his flail, he prepared to charge into the room and swing at the first woman he saw...
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the door gives up to one of the skeleton keys and opens up.
A single chair sits in one corner of this room. a few notes lies scattered over a table to the southwest.
The notes appear to show some names of people in the lotus dragon and their actions, some presumably to the dragons favor and some mistakes or betrayals.
Among the notes you spot 3 clearly different handwriting.
a few names repeat themselves, apparently evaluated more than once but those who gets eventually tagged for demotion seems to appear no further in the notes.
"Looks like something to take along and go over in depth later..." Erick says softly, tapping his coat's breast, where his inside pocket resides.
Nodding, Gavin makes his way towards the door at the far end. "Agreed. It can wait until we're out of here. Shall we see what's beyond this door?"
Erick folds the papers up and slips them into his pocket as quietly as possible.
Bedu gathers in what information there is and scans for mention of the name of their Lady and her brother. But Erick is right, time to move on so he readies to leave handing over the untidy documents quickly.
One stubby hand pulls at his waist and frees the waterskin so he can take a refreshing slug at it. He offers it round the others, including Ismaire.
"Alas, no wine to befuddle our wits, just a small water break from a small friend. Ha!"
Taking his copper cup, Gavin makes a quick blessing to Cayden Cailean, and passes the cup around, now filled with an amber ale. "Wine no, but if you've got a thirst for something more potent than water, all you have to do is ask. A little liquid courage before we see if that door contains our lady of the Lotus?"
Erick passes on both. "Thanks, but I never drink before battle. Stomach wounds are worse if you've got a belly full of liquid."
Bedu pulls out a small mug, much like a thimble compared to what most others use and mixes the water and ale delicately, drinking with a small smack of his lips, "many thanks, my friend."
Tessa half-laughs at Erick's comment. "Ah, c'mon! You never know if it's your last drink or not! Enjoy every moment as if it were your last."
Tessa snatches the cup and remarks with a smirk, "I'll take Bonestihl's share if you don't mind." With a wink she tilts the cup back and lets out a refreshing, "Ahh.. Well I've had better, but if this is what we've got then so be it!"
"I will pass as well. I don't want my spells to go awry during the coming battle." Ismaire takes a moment and centers herself. "I am ready when you all are."
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The door opens to a corridor, turning upon itself and ending into a door, slightly opened. through which you can say some of the training dummies from the room before heaped on the floor, possibly the replacements.
Another door lies towards east and...
You can hear the sound of a chain. seems like in the next door there might be some kind of chained animal.
Gavin holds his finger up to his mouth, and then slowly, and as quietly as possible, makes his way back into the training hall.
"Chain being drug across the floor in there. Animal perhaps?"
Then he makes his way back into the hall and opens the door, unless one of his companions has a better idea...
Ismaire and Cormag slowly move up to Gavin. "It might be a prisoner shackled to a wall too. But from what we've seen, its probably another animal." Ismaire stays near Gavin with Cormag in step with her.
Erick just pulls his weapon, and get's ready...
Bedu moves up just behind Erick and readies his crossbow, training it on the door just in case.
"I am ready Gavin. Let us hope it is merely a roast pig leftover for us to eat."
Gavin looks back at Bedu. "That would be nice, Bedu. Pig or something to poke? Let's find out."
Twisting the handle on the door, Gavin swings it open...
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When Gavin Opens the door he is welcomed by an inhuman shriek.
You had encounters with this kind of creature before, a Rhagodessa, a huge spider with deadly mandibles and hooked pedipalps.
This one seems to be linked to the middle of a chain that on one side leads to the door at the north and the other further inside that small room. still the chain is loose enough for the arachnid to reach every corner of the room and, possibly, even the corridor you are occupying.
Bedu exhorts the others since he can only hear the inhuman shriek, not pig. definitely not pig. He prepares to move up as well if the others charge on.
"End the noise, quick everyone, silence such a racket, please!"
"Hey, I remember these things."
She waves her rapier playfully to the Rhagodessa, "Hey! I taught you daddy a lesson awhile back, wanna come and play? Keep your eyes on me you ugly excuse for a spider!"
Tessa attempts to move into a position around the creature to allow flanking, striking the foul creature once more.
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the best shrieks and launches itself towards Gavin lunging with one of its pedipalps.
The pedipalp hooks scratch Gavin's flesh but do not manage to really sink in and take hold of it. The Rhagodessa shriek again in rage seeying that its attack did not succeeded when Tessa charge at the beast, leaps almost as if she was offering herself to the beast and then lands with her hands over the chitinous mouth of the beast and performs a cartwheel over the beast own back.
the beast is still confused by the maneuver when Tessa shiny blade stabs it from its blind spot.
"Gah!" Gavin swings his flail at the Rhagodessa, much like one would swat at a large bug that is buzzing uncomfortably near.
Of course, such a panicked approach has little chance of inflicting any real harm.
Ismaire hears the commotion down the hall so she says to everyone. "Someone break the chain so we can lure the creature into a more open space." Ismaire moves back a bit with Cormag seeing if everyone else will use her idea, or continue to fight.
Erick grunts and drives his blade forward with both hands.
Tessa pushes her blade into the creature for additional damage. She shouts to Ismaire, "Oh, I think I've gotten it's attention now."
Bedu takes the momentary silence as a sign and stops calling for greater battle. He peeks round the corner just to make sure the enemy is gone. Then his eyes widen at the corpse.
"Well done, my friends. I am glad to have you between it and my proud stomach."
"Are we sure it is dead?" Ismaire moves forward a bit.
Tessa nods to Ismaire. "Good idea, I'm on it." She walks over and slices open the throat of the beast.
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The beast has no reaction except for a few post-mortem twitches of the legs.
Looks like it's dealt with.
The chain that ties the beast is also tied to the northern door and disappears on the wall. You figure out that by pulling the chain on the other side of that wall the spider would be confined in the small room and the door would close behind it and is probably how is intended when guests are expected.
The room is otherwise uninteresting and barren save for a few rotting remains of flesh, possibly from previous victims.
The door to the east, slightly opened as most door in this complex are, remains unexplored.
Erick checks the door to the east, looking for traps. If he finds nothing, he motions to the pudgy one to do the same. He guards the pudgy one while he works.
Tessa gives the beast an extra smack as she walks past it, satisfied with her accomplishment. She whispers to Erick, "See anything?"
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Erick cautiously opens the door looking inside the new room, even before he opens it completely he notices the end of the chain that held the Rhagodessa partially coiled around a winch on the northwestern corner.
Making sure that no one is waiting on the other side, Erick opens the door fully.
A large Hexagonal table made of oak takes up the majority of this room, surrounded by six chairs. the north wall bears a huge map of Sasserine, on which dozens of tiny flags have been placed. To the south, a five-foot-tall and ten-foot-wide slate bears a tangled mess of chalk scribblings.
Upon further examination you can identify some of the places marked in the map by colored flags.
The Vanderboren estate is marked with a golden flag as well as several establishments in the city which includes the d'Bourgemont's tavern.
A red flag protrudes from the Islaran estate, a blue one from the Kellani Estate.
A few of the city watch garrisons are marked with either a blue flag, a gold flag or both.
On the slate on the south you can see a track of the coming and goings of ships in the harbor, as well as notations of which ones have been "holed".
On the lower left corner there is some writing in a language that none of you is able to recognize.
In the upper right corner of the slate you find something most interesting.
Inside a box there is a list of names:
Bedu the Barber
Erick Bonestihl
Gavin d'Bourgemont
Kutsya Saltenlock
Tessa Steele
at the side of that box in big letters a note
"VANTHUS! FIX THIS NOW!"
Gavin rubs his chin, staring at the map, his face flushing red with anger when he sees his parents' tavern flagged with gold.
"So, my parents' tavern was burned down, but the Vanderboren estate still stands... Islaren was murdered, hence I suppose the red flag... The Kellani's are blue. Blue probably means, ally, if what we suspect is true... So, some of the watch garrisons are also allied with the Dragons. Still don't understand what the gold flag signifies..."
"And what does this 'holed' mean, in regards to the ships?"
Sighing, Gavin pulls the list of names from the box, before passing it to the nearest person. "It also seems that Vanthus is merely a lieutenant. He's taking orders from someone else. At least we're causing them some irritation!"
"Holed is what you do to a ship if you want it to sink. Maybe there is a protection racket on the docks - one that included our first actions on behalf of the Good Lady Lavinia. This is a work of art as well, probably of value as evidence and treasure. Could we perhaps take it with us, divine providence that someone left it for us?" smiles the nodding halfling.
Erick looks over the flags. "The gold flags seem to be problem spots, or spots they want to keep eyes on. If the blue flags are indeed allies, then that means that there are certain garrisons they have allies in that are still problematic for them. 'Holed' means 'put a hole in', as in, the ship is sunk or severely damaged. There were rumors about ships missing, if I remember correctly."
"Yes, we appear to be annoying them, and I'm sure that will increase now. Take the papers and make a copy of the map, or at least make notes of the allies and gold flags, we may need that knowledge going forward."
"I am not on that list, so they definitely don't know about my assistance... yet at least." Ismaire goes to grab some of the paper and at Erick's suggestion starts to copy down a rough copy of the map.
"These Lotus thugs know we have visited. I say we take the map itself if we can and annoy them some more. Perhaps Vanthus will be more than told off for his failures to catch us. Perhaps we should sleep carefully from now - entering this den makes us a very serious problem - more like a charging camel than a stinging wasp."