Cayden stayed close to his companions. Though he worried that he may be a bit out of his element already.
Despite this he was ready to protect his allies and put himself to the front if and when he needed to.
Aemur looks around, focusing on the floor, before responding to Kolmac. Now that you mention it, it seems an obvious question. Although given the way the air feels in this place, "down" may be a more complicated direction than the word alone suggests...
"I can try teleporting somebody downstairs, but I'd prefer not to since it's impossible to know what might be down there and it'll take too long to get them back out again. I think we should try to excavate a small hole for us to go down, or look for some hollow floor boards-- being careful not to fall in ourselves, of course."
Aemur nods at Eshkeval's words. I do not want to be teleported down by myself, no thank you. There's got to be a way down if there is a basement... He takes the stave of his glaive and starts thumping the floor softly, listening for changes in the sound.
There are definitely changes in sound, but just no indication of how to get down there.
"I'm guessing there's probably some sort of secret device or compartment."
Eshkeval will begin searching around the room.
Otherwise, Cayden would mostly listen to the party. He was a courageous man, but felt mostly out of his depth dealing with what felt like another world entirely. But he was ready to start tearing things apart if that's what his allies needed of him.
Perception gets you sight -- boards, tightly-fitted and carefully laid; and sound -- no birds from outside; and smell -- forest air, and maybe something odd?; and touch -- smooth wood; and taste -- well, hopefully no one is licking the building. As far as a way in? No one seems to have an idea how the place was built, how a secret doorway might be constructed, how to learn more...
Sometimes, you need to accept what you don't know, and go with what you do.
Aemur shrugs as he completes a second circuit. There doesn't look to be any way down inside, at least not without magic we do not have. Perhaps we should exit the building and look around the outside? It may be that there is a root cellar of some kind with only an exterior access... Aemur sounds doubtful as he says that; he does not really believe there would be a root cellar, and it seems strange to him to have a basement with no way to access it.
"It's possible that whatever we're looking for was intentionally kept sealed, unable to enter the outside world. But then in that case, why the warning?" Eshkeval ponders. "It probably would have been better to leave no note and thereby invite zero curiosity, wouldn't it?"
"There's something down there the Baron doesn't want anyone to find. He probably hoped the remote location and warnings would be enough--maybe he even had a hand in the destruction of that camp, if there was concern they would stumble across this place. We need to find out what's down there."
"If we can't find a way down, we'll have to make one. Let's try over here, where Aemur was tapping the floor--a change in sound probably means a change in what's underneath."
He'll take a few swings with his handaxe, seeing if he can make an opening or get some leverage to start pulling boards out of place.
Strength check?
Kolmac looks over the group. "Cayden, maybe you could give it a try?" He'll offer up his handaxe, unless Cayden has a more suitable tool.
Between Kolmac and Cayden, a section of the floor is swiftly demolished.
What's underneath is not what you expected. Not in a million years.
There's a room underneath the one you're in, with a black stone altar at the far end. On the altar is a backpack, and some other stuff it's hard to make out from where you are.
And there are two small skeletons, the size of little boys.
Aemur's planar sense is causing all the hairs on his body to stand up at once.
"Folks? I got a bad feeling about this... I think we found our missing children. Something else came through first, and whatever it was, it's not from around here... " Aemur is visibly shaken by the sight of the skeletons, and by the presence of the altar. "Why would the baron work with someone capable of this? This... This can't be something he knows about. I don't know him, but I know small towns, and this just isn't .... " He trails off, still looking around and expecting something to jump from every shadow. Not out of the shadow - from the literal shadow itself. Every pool of darkness is suspect, in Aemur's slightly irrational state.
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Eshkeval's eyes widen as he covers his mouth. Such a terrible horror to befall innocent children. What kind of unjust world would allow such a thing to occur?
Swallowing the breath he didn't know he was holding, Eshkeval steels his nerves and steadies the shaking in his hands. There was still work that needed to be done.
"I'm... I'm going to take a picture of this. We need some way to recount this scene. Even if nobody else believes us, we need to have as much information as possible. I'll do my best to make sure it's all 100% accurate."
With a heavy heart, Eshkeval takes out his sketch book, and begins to sketch the scene of the crime, taking into account as many details as possible, noting every size and statistic to the closest of his ability. He will also draw a schematic of the building, as well as a map towards the area.
While Eshkeval sketches, Dairkal is relieved to see the skeletons do not move. Meanwhile, Aemur hypothesizes that the spot here is one of the pools of evil left over from the Days of Darkness. He also idly notes that there are two skeletons here, and that you encountered two minor tree demons. Possibly only a coincidence, but still...
Kolmac takes in the scene and quickly connects the dots. "Oh. Oh no." His mind races through a number of scenarios...and most of them point to the baron or someone in his employ. "We need to determine who is responsible for this as quickly as we can. If it is the baron or someone in his employ, we will be in great danger as soon as they realize we've uncovered their secret. What I don't understand is...why go to all this trouble to hide and protect this place, unless there's more at stake than those unfortunate children." His eyes return to the altar and land on the backpack.
"That is wise, Eshkeval. I'm going to take a closer look at the altar...I'll do my best to keep out of your way." He'll carefully approach the altar and take a closer look at the backpack and other items, while giving the skeletons a wide berth.
Also, as he crosses the room, is there any sign from underneath of an intended method of entrance?
Dairkal lets a small sigh of relief that there were no skeletons they needed to fight. Two near death experiences were enough in the last day, thank you very much.
He begins to slowly and methodically survey the room, painstakingly scouring the underground altar for anything of use, be they in plain sight or cunningly hidden.
Kolmac finds no other means of entry.
Dairkal, examining the altar, sees nothing unusual, but his fingers -- trained to work with fine tools, wires, and other elements of devices -- discover a small, nearly invisible swivel, with turns to reveal a small space inside. Inside is a necklace, bearing an irregular, vaguely circular chunk of obsidian. Inside the obsidian, you imagine you can see a point of red light, like an ember.
Standing in the middle of the room, Kolmac's shoulders tense as an he becomes aware of an unfamiliar sensation. Surveying the room and seeing nothing out of the ordinary, he reaches out with his magical senses instead, picking at the sensation like a scab...and then something snaps into place, a silvery sheen passing over his eyes as he peers into the ethereal plane for the first time.
Planar Sense
Turning to the rest of the group Dair informs them "Found a necklace, with a spooky chunk of obsidian. Uh, not gonna touch it, in case it's cursed or something worse." He steps back a bit, and gestures to the hidden space.
Standing in the middle of the room, Kolmac's shoulders tense as an he becomes aware of an unfamiliar sensation. Surveying the room and seeing nothing out of the ordinary, he reaches out with his magical senses instead, picking at the sensation like a scab...and then something snaps into place, a silvery sheen passing over his eyes as he peers into the ethereal plane for the first time.
Planar Sense d20+8
Kolmac, new to the sensations of other planes, very nearly understands... something. But "very nearly" is all he gets, as that silvery sheen dissipates and he's left, gasping and grasping at the implications.
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Aemur eyes the necklace with wary distrust. "Does anyone else see the red heart of that cursed thing? I think you are wise to avoid touching it, Dairkal. And yet we should probably retrieve it in some manner... I can fashion a kind of sling from some branches to carry it from a distance." Aemur is itchy to be out of the basement, and making something from natural materials seems like a marvelous excu... reason... to depart, at least for the moment.
Eshkeval remembers reading about such things -- either in regards to Lady Llewella of Fairpoint (see Aviona "In the King's Guard" PBP game) or elsewhere. It represents the Eye of Deception, the unholy symbol of the demon prince Graz'zt.
"That thing..." Eshkeval spits out with disgust, "represents the Eye of Deception, the unholy symbol of Graz'zt the Demon Prince. As much as I would want us to burn it and this altar to the ground, we will definitely need evidence, and it might be wise to take it with us," Eshkeval continues.
[dice=Spellcraft]
Eshkeval is unaware of any magic wards around the thing. He suspects that if he says the demon prince's name while holding it, Grz'zt might be able to see him through it -- or even show up in person.
Upon hearing that the necklace is the unholy symbol of Graz'zt, Dair wracks his brain, trying to recall if he had heard anything about his worshipers in this area.
After several seconds of gazing at the forsaken amulet, Eshkeval will continue to speak in a reserved tone, "From what I can tell, there does not appear to be any magical wards on the Eye of Deception. That said, I strongly suggest not mentioning the name of this holy symobl's deity while holding, lest we attract said deity's attention. But aside from that, it should be safe enough to pick up and take with us. "
When preparations are done, and the area is successfully mapped out in it's entirety, Eshkeval will Dimension Skip the party up to the ground floor for them to exit.
"If you guys have any other business in this house, I suggest that you take care of it now. I do not want to have to come back here more times than I deem necessary."
Upon hearing that the necklace is the unholy symbol of Graz'zt, Dair wracks his brain, trying to recall if he had heard anything about his worshipers in this area.
Not a whisper.
"Demon worshippers? I suppose that would explain the strange nature of those plant monsters we ran into. We will need to be cautious dealing with the locals from now on, lest we tip off whoever is behind these foul deeds."
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Something that has been floating around in Aemur's subconscious suddenly crystallizes at Kolmac's words. "There were two plant monsters, weren't there? And two skeletons? I wonder if that's a coincidence... Dairkal, how many missing children are you aware of?"
Aemur is more than willing to allow the more confident members of the group to decide the next step; he is still shaken from finding the skeletons in the first place, and aside from notifying the authorities - some of whom seem to be involved in covering up these deeds - he isn't sure what course of action could possibly lead to halting this horror.
Dairkal paces the room slowly, thinking . "Two children were reported missing. And I believe there was a backpack at the house from yesterday. Kolmac, was there anything of note or out of place in that pack?"
The backpack from the ghoul's house was empty. The one from the altar contains a banana, a hawk feather, a slingshot and 3 rocks sized for it, and 2 matches. The latter suggests a boy's backpack. The former suggests a plant.
"I suppose we should take that with us. We can return it to the boy's family after we find the ones responsible for these events."
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"That's a good idea, Kolmac. It will at least give them something, for whatever comfort that can bring." Aemur looks around at the small group, hesitating before voicing his concern. "Who should we go to with this? I cannot believe the Baron knows, but we have seen evidence of lies and corruption within his own guardsmen... Who can we trust?"
Aemur's words come slowly, his tone somber. The reality of the situation has him unsure which is the worst discovery of the day; the black altar and its grisly surroundings, or the realization that the authorities that should be protecting the people may be involved in the predations.
"Eshkeval and I are meeting with the Baron's architect tonight...perhaps we can press him for more information on what happened to this project. Cayden, do you perhaps know the Baron's foreman? You and the others could take the same angle with him, see what you can find out about the abandonment of this site without raising too much suspicion."
"I doubt the Baron is involved, more likely someone in the guard is covering their own tracks, but he may not take kindly to us interfering in his matters anyway. We should keep a low profile."
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"While I do think that the parents of the young children would appreciate the update, do you guys really think that they'll stay silent on the issue?" Eshkeval asks Aemur.
"Chances are they might not be satisfied without the full details of the story, and when we can't even assure that we can trust the local constabulary, could we perhaps be putting them in harm's way if we let them move forward with such sensitive information?" Eshkeval continued.
"Honestly, I'm not sure how safe we are now, armed with this knowledge. We have no idea what we're up against!" Eshkeval exclaims, with a tiny hint of panic beginning to seep through his voice. But just then, the panic vanishes and is replaced with a look of tepid realization.
"We have no idea who we're up against, but then again, whoever is hiding this information has no idea who they're up against, either...Theoretically, we may still yet have the element of surprise. From here on out, we need to gather as much information as possible about our potential culprit, while simultaneously staying out of our culprit's radar."
"We'll need to work quickly, though. I imagine it's only a matter of time until the perpetrator returns here and sees they've been discovered. We'd best return to town before anyone takes note of our absence."
Aemur looks uncomfortable at Eshkeval's reasoning. "I understand what you are saying, but I think the parents need to know. If we keep what we know from them, how are we better than those wishing to keep it covered up for their own ends?"
Aemur is deeply troubled by the situation, and the lack of guidance as to who to trust and what to do next. As they return to camp, he will be puzzling out anything he can think of to help determine who caused these happenings. A thought comes to him, and he asks Cayden as their resident guide: "Cayden, would it be possible to determine at whose order this area was declared off limits and closed? if we knew who tried to hide it, that could help narrow the search for answers."
"Cayden, would it be possible to determine at whose order this area was declared off limits and closed? if we knew who tried to hide it, that could help narrow the search for answers."
Cayden: