Well if any of us are people persons and good at tricking others, then it might work.
"We should certainly see if we can discover who these individuals are. They could be the key to unraveling a mass infiltration!" Max looks for any other identifying features - particularly a way to place a name to these faces.
"Well the city did fall to a demon invasion, maybe there is a cult in the city that helped out?"
"Also I agree with the Guard, maybe we should hang on to it for a while in case we need it."
Yes, one does Alter Self so that might work. I do wonder just what is planned though since getting separated isn't a good idea.
"If one of us is convincing enough, the rest of us can pose as initiates or prisoners, should it come to that." Kel said with a shrug. "You'd be surprised how far walking quietly behind a guy who seems like he should be there will get you."
"Who has that scale? Let me trade you for the one I have. If anyone's going to be taking the risk of posing as one of them, it should be me."
Kel picked up one of the spiked gauntlets and a Glaive, and started to reach for one of the Iomedae tabards and holy symbols but stopped.
"Mr. Kozs, ah, what do you think about all this? I don't mind impersonating a Baphomet cultist if I need to, but I don't feel right wearing the garb of a Crusader. I'm not one. I don't want to disrespect you. Or Her. Or whoever it was these two got their clothes from."
Kosz remains stoic, his face hidden by his helm.
"Should you truly worship the goddess, I see no harm. But it isn't right to wear the garb of a holy man when you are not a follower. It would disrespect the goddess to pose as one of hers for personal gain."
Kel nodded. "You're right. I don't, so i won't. Thanks."
He took the tabards and the holy symbols anyway, but he tucked them safely into his old backpack rather than leave them here in the dark to rot.
In the dark of Kel's mind, Asara cried.
She would never take you. Not with me. She doesn't want me anymore.
Tina suddenly has a craving for something called popcorn. ;)
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"Well, if we run into a large number of the cultists, we may have no option but to trick our way out of things, " says Deia. She takes the scale out of one of the pockets of her bandolier and offers it to Kel. "Here you are. I hope we don't need to use this."
Continuing, she says "I wouldn't want to carry around dead bodies if we had a choice. It's quite foul and would slow us down too. Taking their gear as props may help our case, though."
"This armor is not only a prop, but also affords rather effective protection. Perhaps some in our number might be able to make use of it?"
"Well we may as well make use of their equipment, let's use these evil doers own equipment against their allies. I think that is fitting."
Kel passes Deia his scale. "Thanks."
I will take the other chain shirt, I am used to handling nasty substances.
Tina gets the other chain shirt.I'll change when we get to Lann's tribe.
"I think we're done here." Kel said, wrapping up the amulet of Baphomet and putting it in his pocket. The holy symbols of Iomedae were about to go into another pocket, but after a pause, he put them both around his neck.
"Go ahead, Lann."
Max seems distracted, studying the strange spore-cougher to understand how its hallucinogenic properties work. He will cut a spore sample from the creature with his dagger if possible. But the urgings of his companions eventually pierce his attentions. "Hm? Oh, right. We'd best keep going."
"Very well then. If you have finished here, we will continue to Neathholm."
Lann makes his way to a passage leading north out of the spore-cougher's lair. A 15 minute journey brings you into a circular cavern. At the far end is a large stone door flanked by four mongrels armed with spears.
On seeing Lann, the guards greet him warmly, though they cut their greetings short as the party comes into view.
"Lann! Welcome home! We were worried after the tremors, and the main tunnel was sealed so we..."
The guards glare at the party, before continuing.
"Lann, you know that Uplanders aren't allowed in Neattholm. Why did you bring them here?"
Lann approaches the guards and tells them what has happened.
"These Uplanders not only helped to save Crel, but they helped to kill the spore-cougher. Without them, it's likely that we would not have made it back alive. All they wish for is a place to rest and a path to the surface. They have proven themselves friendly, and so I say we should let them in."
The guards all nod while one goes up to the door and pounds on it. Slowly, the door opens to the inside and the cavern that houses the city of Neattholm is revealed.
A small, dark lake ripples in the center of this two-hundred-foot-wide cavern, the walls and ceiling aglow with thick sheets of luminescent fungi. In the center of the lake, over two dozen low stone buildings cluster on a rocky one-hundred-foot-wide island. Lights glow in the windows of the buildings, giving the settlement an almost welcoming look. Rafts made of mismatched planks of timber bob along the length of a crooked pier at the lake’s closest shore. A ferryman sits nearby, waiting for whoever may want to cross.
Lann makes his way to the rafts, motioning for the party to follow him.
"Welcome to Neathholm. It may not be much, but it is home."
Thank you for your hospitality.
"Wow." Kel says with an honest smile. "Looks pretty impressive to me."
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Deia walks though the stone doors and sees the island with the buildings on it.
"Wow is right!" agrees Deia. "You built all of this? It's nothing short of amazing, being hidden under the city and all."
Deia keeps up with the rest of the group as they move toward the rafts, taking in the surroundings.
The ferryman brings the party across the lake, and they are greeted at the island by an armed escort. One of the guards approaches Lann and whispers something into his ear.
Lann motions toward the largest house on the island, situated almost squarely in the middle of the town. "It has been requested that you meet with Chief Sull. I need to make my report to him as well, so, if you would follow me, I will take you to him."
Looking around, you see that most of the buildings on the island are built of stone and sparse timbers. While they have a ramshackle appearance, they don't look to be in disrepair. Instead they look like they were built as temporary dwellings that then were later reinforced to be permanent. You can see people peeking out of windows in curiosity, all of them deformed in some way or another. A few people in the street stop and stare.
Horgus lets out an almost gagging cough as he takes in the island.
"Ugh. I thought it was bad enough dealing with three of these people, and now we're on an island full of them. It's disgusting. I've never felt so... dirty..."
"I disagree, Horgus. I think this is wonderful! These pitlings have formed a community down here, right under our feet, and we've not known about it! It's truly amazing! I can't wait to learn more about them from their chief."
"It is pretty intriguing..."
Max marvels at the hidden city beneath the ground. "How long have you been settled here? Has it been years? Generations? It appears as if a temporary home has blossomed into a fine city."
-Posted with Wayfinder
Rex to the Mongrels as they ferry over to Neatholm, "I don't think you should be ashamed of this place, it is pretty impressive. Unbelievable you built a community down here and we city dwellers had no idea."
Tina just follows behind silently.
"Horgus, why do you dislike them so much?"
"Just look at them! They're abominations! Hideous, filthy creatures. I'm really not sure what's worse, their kind or yours. On the one hand, your kind is the result of having relations with the very beasts we've been fighting, but at least you're not hiding. On the other, you've got them. They may have been decent folk at some point, but they're tainted by the Abyss just as you are. And then they hide from us! We can't even keep an eye on them! Who knows what they've been doing and plotting down here. They've even admitted to aligning themselves with the cult of Baphomet!"
Well that escalated quickly.
"He asked me why I didn't like these people, and I answered. If he didn't want the truth, he shouldn't have asked the question."
"When did they admit to aligning themselves with the cult of Baphomet?" asks Max.
"When we found those dead cultists, the goat-snake-thing said that they had seen more of them before and that they were allied with them. I really don't know why you're still trusting them after that."
Different tribe was aligning with them, and please don't go on about how 'they are all the same'.
Max frowns at Horgus's explanation, then nods in agreement with Tina's statement. "We have enough real enemies down here as it is. Maggots, demons, mutated rats, who knows what else? We should not go out of our way to turn friends into enemies, particularly based on facts that are not true. And have you so quickly forgotten that Kel stepped in between you and a deadly viper? I hope you will bear that in mind as we see Chief Sull."
Max is terribly worried that Horgus will offend the mongrels' leader, and hopes his little speech will help avoid that calamity.
"I haven't forgotten, but that doesn't mean he's suddenly cleansed of his taint. We're embroiled in a centuries-long war against the Abyss, and he and they are both products of our enemy. They're practically, or literally in some cases, family. You'll have to forgive me if I don't trust the relatives of my enemies for fear that they are my enemies as well."
Kel wasn't angry. He'd been treated worse. At least Horgus was honest about his prejudice. Kel shrugged.
"Horgus, those cultists were in disguise. I'm pretty sure Lann meant that they were allied with them thinking they were Iomedeans. They've been nothing but helpful so far, and they know these tunnels. If we want to get back to the surface, they are our best bet."
"As for my kind, I'm not going to defend them. I can only hope my actions will speak loudly enough to set me apart."
"Think of all this as a business negotiation. They have something we want. Simple as that. I'm sure you've had to do business with people you didn't like before. This is no different. Can you do that?"
You hate him.
I hate what he believes.