Chana wrinkles her nose at the halfling from behind her veil. He didn't smell quite right. Was he looking uncomfortable? She shrugs, then steps over close to Photine to whisper in her ear. "From what I saw, someone here looked aww-ful guil'y. I'll tell you who the next time we separate a little from the group."
With her face hidden behind her veil, she watches Gulbend for a moment and then turns back to the door. "How's the trap looking Amandine?"
Rather than risk snipping the wire, Amandine opts to simply disconnect it from the door frame. With some precise, careful work, she is able to disarm the trap and render the door safe to open.
With the trap disarmed, Chana steps forward to open the way. Hopefully back into the rest of the Senate- or at the very least to somewhere safer than this death trap.
'Wot you finkin' Snips, we gettin' out of this place or not?'
With slow, cautious movements, Amandine disconnects the wire from the door. Malphene, Gulbend, and the nobles all watch the device above with wariness - keeping to the edges of the room - until it is clear that the way is clear.
Passing through a brief antechamber, you enter into a long-disused guard post. Two sets of lockers line the northern and southern walls here. A set of rusted swords stands on display in the opened southern lockers.
A pair of halfling servants sit in a corner, but they immediately perk up as you enter. Their faces brighten, as though they have witnessed salvation itself.
"Oh, thank the heavens!" one of them calls out. "Imistos! You're alive!"
"Hullo," welcomes Greenly to the new halflings. "Your friend has been, like, very brave and helpful."
Amandine steps back from the door. "That's that. It won't be a problem now."
She opens the door and beckons everyone through. "We should keep moving. We need to hurry."
The two new halflings are a surprise. But the thing that surprises her most is them calling the Gulbend by the name "Imistos".
Amandine probably wouldn't have thought so much of it, but he halfling has vibed her as somehow off more than once before. She quickly glances at Gulbend to see how he reacts to them.
The two new halflings, much like Imistos Gulbend, are dressed like the servants you saw in the gala above.
Gulbend hustles over to meet with his fellows, the magic lantern jostling wildly in his hand as he goes. They talk softly among themselves, seemingly relieved to find each other safe.
At first they simply ask how Imistos came to be down here, to which he gestures to the senate aide badge he's been wearing - obviously having transported him much as yours did.
The halflings begin gesturing towards the party and nobles, but they suddenly huddle close together and hiding their mouths, as though they noticed you following the movements of their lips.
Photinè squints after the halfling as he greets his fellows, curious of the newcomers.
Chana cracks her knuckles, expecting very much that these are no ordinary servants.
Maybe its that they're halflings, or that Chana is totally worn out, but she can't quite concentrate enough to make out what they're whispering about.
These are no mere servants, and it would be a deadly folly to trust them any further.
Photinè's eyes widen almost imperceptibly, and her stance becomes defensive as she picks up on the halflings' malicious intent. She places herself between Chiara and Amandine, gently brushing against them to gain their attention.
"You may want to prepare yourselves," she murmurs, and begins whispering arcane phrases under her breath.
Chana nods at Photine and steps forward to interpose between the three 'servants' and her ally. She doesn't draw a weapon, but her hand hovers over her scimitar in fairly obvious fashion.
Amandine doesn't want to do anything as obvious as drawing a weapon on the halflings, so she prepares her herself to strike at one of the halflings' minds.
It will almost certainly have to be the little rat Gulbend.
The halflings break their huddle and turn to you with smiles.
"These are my cousins," Gulbend says jovially. "I'd feared they'd been killed in the horridness up above. Our master had starved us before the gala, and they haven't eaten in many hours. Might we spare a moment to rest and share some food?"
Gulbend sets down the magic lantern and raises his hands plaintively as he makes his suggestion. However, you are fairly sure the three small servants have taken notice of the subtle changes in your posture and gestures.
"I'm not sure food is wot your lookin' for, are ya?" Chana stands uneasily, not sure exactly what con the three halflings are running, and for what purpose.
Greenly watches her new friends and companions attack the porter and his cousins and decides she might as well join in, drawing her sword.
Though she's unsure of their motives, Photinè remains convinced of the halfling's murderous intent and prepares to release her spell at the first opportunity.
The jovial softness flees from the halflings' faces, and their own hands slide like snakes to the rapiers at their hips, no longer seeming like ornamental parts of their servants' attire.
Before he can even draw his weapon, Gulbend is dumbstruck by Amandine's magic, left Dazed in place for a moment.
One of the other turncoat "servants" slides around the dazed Gulbend and attempt to skewer Greenly with his thin blade, judging the "big, coarse one" to be particularly dangerous. However, Greenly simply plants her foot upon the approaching halfling's head and keeps his thrust well away, spitting a wad of chew upon his lapel for good measure.
Chana springs into action, dashing just beyond the nearest halfling's reach and circling part way around him . She draws her scimitar and slashes at the halfling's exposed back with her weapon in both hands!
"Who are you lot, really?" Chana hisses out as she strikes.
Wreathed in the green flame and voices of her ancestors, Greenly casually skewers the halfling at the end of her boot.
Greenly's devastating attack utterly rends the hapless halfling in twain, clearing a bloody path for Chana to get closer to the dazed traitor, Gulbend. However, her swing is thrown off by a misstep in the slippery pool of blood, and the scimitar's blade whizzes by Gulbend's ruddy hair.
|
Oliva does a few mental gymnastics to finally figure out what is going on, and decides to help her party. She's just about to yell out "Don't kill th-" but Greenly utterly destroys one in a single blow. She decides to say instead "Take prisoners!" as a slight alternative.
She moves in with her halberd and tries to smack the rapier-wielding Halfling with the haft of her weapon.
Gulbend manages to resist Photinè's spell, which was not strong enough to affect both halflings.
The surviving halfling cousin ducks beneath the swing of Olivia's halberd haft, and he deftly sneaks around her, moving too nimbly for easy strikes. He attempts to drive his rapier into Olivia's kidneys, but the noble knight turns and parries the thrust.
Muttering some less than decorous words, Malphene marches forward, drawing the weapon she claimed earlier, and drives the blade into Gulbend's gut.
Malphene accepts the dirty look from Olivia, then rolls her eyes and says, "Fine, my next one won't be as bloody. I just wanted at least one good strike on the little wretch."
Amandine notices that Olivia is perilously standing between the two halfling scoundrels. Olivia has also made it clear she wants someone to interrogate, and Amandine has to agree it's an excellent idea.
As much as she'd like to spill some of Gulbend's blood, there may be something more helpful to Olivia's situation she can do instead. She makes her way past Photine, nearer the remaining halfling "cousin", drawing her rapier as she moves. But, instead of continuing forward to use the blade, she concentrates while extending her hand. As she opens her fingers wide, a spray of brilliantly multicolored light flashes out to bathe the halfling.
Amandine's magic overwhelms the vicious halfling, leaving him helpless and stupefied.
Gulbend, shaking off his magical daze, thrusts his needle-like rapier at Greenly, but even his strongest strike is paltry to the mighty hired sword. He shuffles away from the wall of opponents before him, hoping to preempt being surrounded.
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Greenly opens her mouth to reply to Olivia, but then Mr. Gulbend STABS her! "Don't worry Lady Liv," she grumbles, "I'm not gonna, like, kill him, I can totally pull my punches."
As she sidles over to follow the little cretin, she reaches out a hand of friendship. "Hey, remember how much fun we were having? I picked things up and you carried them for me? Why'd you have to be such a little creep, dude?"
Of course, she forgets to pull her punches.
Chana advances upon Gulbend, hefting her scimitar in one hand. "Why'd you cross us anyway, Imistos? We didn' do wrong by you."
She throws a sideways swing at Gulbend, similarly not thinking to take any prisoners - it's not in her nature. On the street taking a prisoner is a luxury that only the strongest can afford, and as far as she reckoned, it was more trouble than it was worth. Prisoners had a way of stabbing you when you least expected.
Greenly's mighty smack, coupled with the green flare of her totem spirits, leaves Gulbend reeling. The treacherous halfling yet stands, but not for long at this rate. Chana's swing, though, only catches empty air as Gulbend lurches out off the way of her scimitar.
Photinè huffs at her spell's anticlimactic resolution and turns her frustration on Gulbend, echoing Greenly and Chana's inquiries with a haughty edge in her voice. "Yes, why cross us when you know very well we've dealt with much worse and will continue to do so after we destroy you?"
Amandine closes in on the blinded halfling. Although she knows Olivia wants a prisoner, Amandine isn't so skilled with her rapier to try fancy tricks like trying to bonk him on the head and knock him out. Instead she goes the tried and true route of poking at him with it. She doesn't figure she can hurt him so much that she'll do more than make it easier for Olivia to subdue him.
Photinè's intimidating words leave Gulbend vulnerable, giving Olivia an opening to crack him in the noggin with the haft of her halberd - knocking the halfling out. Amandine's swing, redirected against the remaining, stunned halfling, only misses as she avoids clattering blades with Olivia as she knocks out Gulbend.
Greenly gladly ties the two halflings to her folding chair and straps it once more to her back, allowing the two small folk to act as a sort of impromptu backpack, complete with everything their traitorous porter was formerly carrying.
While Greenly is corralling the halflings together, Chana strikes at the orange one's skull with the flat of her scimitar.
"If we're going to knock out our- uh, turncoat? porter, we might as well do the same for the other one, right? Before 'e shakes off the spell."
As Greenly lays the bleeding, unconscious Gulbend upon her portable chair and measures out her length of rope, Olivia and Malphene subject the remaining stunned halfling to a barrage of fists and weapon hafts. With aid from the rest of the combined party, it is not long before he, too, is rendered unconscious - just in time to join his surviving fellow upon Greenly's backpack of captives.
The battle against these anklebiters is won just in time to heed one last mental missive from Martella.
"Reached safe house. It's located at the Dignif- "
Her words in your minds cut off abruptly, leaving you very bewildered and concerned.
Martella?
Photinè's artfully made-up brows furrow in concern as she immediately wracks her brain for anywhere in Oppara that begins with Dignif-.
"Safe house sounds real good 'bout now." Chana mutters as she eyes the KO'd halflings. "Somewhere safer than here. We must be getting close to the rest of the Senate, don't you think? Gulbend, or Imistos; his friends were waiting for him here, after all."
"Not sure what's going on with Martella, but no sense waiting here."
She gives the door to the north a cursory check for dangers, then opens the way.
"Nothing's coming to mind. It seems the word must be 'dignified', but it's a big city and there's probably dozens of places that use the word in their name."
Amandine follows Chana.
Photinè, Chana, and Amandine all recognize that the words "Dignify" or "Dignified" are rare in place names within Oppara. Collectively, you can think of only a handful of such places, and once you are free, it would take no more than a couple hours to check upon each of them.
2 Potions of Gaseous Form
2 Mithril Chain Shirts
3 MWK Rapiers
1 Potion of Neutralize Poison
1 MWK Padded Armor
1 Dose of Arsenic
2 Doses of Medium Spider Venom
1 MWK Dagger
1 MWK Thieves' Tools
1 Poison Pill Ring
1 Wrist Sheath
1 Silk Handkerchief (worth 5gp)
3 Silver Unholy Symbols
While stripping the would-be killers of their weapons and possessions, finding a worrying amount of poison upon them, you also find that all three of them each carry a silver holy symbol of peculiar design, depicting a dagger and circle, hidden in their pockets.
These are unholy symbols dedicated to Thamir Gixx, an obscure halfling god of assassins, greed, and opportunity.
You also find a scrap of parchment rolled up tightly and tucked away in one of the halfling's pockets. Whatever this missive may say, it is written in their native tongue.
Team Two,
Keep watch over Martella's stooges while we dispatch her Ladyship. They seem useless, but our contract specifies eliminating Lotheed AND anyone she is working with. If they're particularly noteworthy - say a senator or noble - keep them alive and we'll interrogate them along with Lotheed. Have Imistos bring any such targets to the Dignified Repository.
-The Fantabulous Killer of the Brotherhood of Silence
.....
The next set of doors prove to be neither locked nor trapped, and the empty room beyond leads to a long stone staircase rising up from this long forgotten sublevel. At the top of the stairs, you see evidence that the door was once plastered over - as though this level was sealed away entirely. However, the plaster has been recently chipped away.
The door opens onto a cellar in the servants' quarters that has seen far more recent use. From here, you are able to easily return to the halls of the senate building where, just hours earlier, the Opparan elite were toasting the gala. Now the distinguished building is a charnel house, littered with the bodies of civilians, Lion Blades, military personnel, and even members of the Ulfen Guard.
A few combat-fatigued soldiers still wander the halls, taking records of the dead.
Photinè reads the note aloud, and taps her finger on the last line. "I'm sure this "Dignified Repository" is the safe house Martella spoke of. They must have ambushed her there," she says, giving the unconscious halflings a sour look.
Swallowing the lump in her throat that arises at the sight of the dozens of bodies, Photinè averts her eyes from the macabre scene and approaches a wandering soldier. "Please, we've been... In hiding," she says somberly, gesturing to herself and the others. "Precisely what happened? How has the rest of city fared?"
Chana pulls all the equipment and weapons off the three halflings and distributes the items across the party.
Listening to Photine's translation, Chana taps one of the halflings' rapiers against her foot. "So- sent to kill us just because we worked for Martella one time. Expected us to be some weaklings, I'll bet."
"What I don't get is how Martella thought the Dignified Repository would be a safe house, and these assassins thought it'd be a good place to bring captives too. This Brotherhood gang must've plotted this out real deep. Knew exactly where Martella would head to." She nods at Photine's comment. "Let's see if we can't save her"
---
While Photine heads to talk to a guard, Chana crosses her arms and gazes across all the dead people. 'Like a gang war smashed through 'ere. That damn Stavian is nuts.'
The weary soldiers approach as if in a daze, clearly overwhelmed by the carnage left for them to countenance.
"The senate is on lockdown due to the political turmoil," one of the soldiers explains in a grand understatement. "Foreign assassins have struck at Taldor. The surviving senators have fled to their homes and strongholds, and the Imperial Palace has been sealed and secured by the Ulfen Guard. I have no news of Oppara at large."
The soldiers then calmly direct you to leave the senate building so they can continue to record and contain the grisly damage. Most of your noble wards are eager to comply, desperately hoping to sequester themselves in the safety of their manors. Of course, before they depart, they each heartily thank you for saving their lives - promising to reward you handsomely for your heroism.
The exception is Malphene. Dame Trant practically seizes one of the exhausted soldiers by the pauldrons and demands to know what has become of her father's body.
.....
Once you descend from the one hundred stairs to the streets of Oppara, you find the senate grounds and the surrounding city much transformed. While only a scant few hours before, the city jubilantly celebrated the Grand Day of Exaltation, a deadened peace has fallen. The numerous lanterns and torches have been snuffed, the crowds have vanished, and the pedestrians who remain on the streets speak in more hushed, furtive tones.
Nevertheless, passersby are quick to speak of the rumors that have spread to supplant the as-yet unclear official reports. While some talk of foreign assassins, others insist that the infamous Pathfinder Society staged a failed coup. Some even claim that the grand prince himself attempted to execute the entire senate.
Greenly waits with Malphene, determined to see her safely home, though before the others leave, she approaches Photinè. "Hey, I know we're, like, not friends or whatever, but that voice in my head, the one that everyone was like, 'wow what did she mean, by, like, dignify?'? That's your boss right? Uh, I, like, wanna go with you guys to rescue her, if you'll have me."