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All I hear is doom and gloom
But when those drums go boom boom boom
And through the night your face I see
Baby take a chance
Baby won't you dance with me
Yeah
Baby won't you dance with me
Ah yeah
Jack performs a dirge of doom, a song so full of foreboding it leaves the first group shaken, even more susceptible to Hugo's greater command.
Hugo's divinely empowered command forcibly stops half of the mob fleeing before him in their tracks. A number of the remaining looters get turned back by Marcus darting foward with his assault, while the remainder of the group unleash a barrage of projectiles at the Pathfinders in response.
The group on the opposite side of the Lodge grounds gets a rude surprise as Charleston, Gerdur, and Geatan appear abruptly in their path! The archer completely decimates their numbers, leaving 3/4th of the group knocked unconscious on the ground with his assault. Gerdur is easily able to clean up the remainder of the looters attempting to flee the area.
Round 2:
Jack, Marcus, Hugo (Near Group 1, -18 b/f DR)
Charleston, Gerdur, Geatan (Near Group 2)
Group 1 (1/2 halted, all shaken, -15)
Group 2 (Unconscious)
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Observing the effects of Hugo's and Marcus's attacks against the first group of looters, Jack adds his own contribution to stopping them, if it's still necessary, or, after Charleston alerts the team to a third group of looters, aiding the efforts to stop them, instead.
"Keep your distance, friends! This is going to hurt!" Jack warns the team. He ceases his dirge of doom, but the effects linger for another few seconds.
Pulling a tuning fork and a quartz crystal from his spell component pouch, the bard casts a spell, and a wall of sound springs into existence, surrounding the looters in a ring of sound 20ft high. The translucent barrier of pure sound is silent except for a faint hum, but it bursts with discordant noise when it touches the looters.
The looters on the perimeter suffer the worst, but even the looters in the center are rocked by the sonic blasts.
The first group of looters are quite effectively corralled in place by Jack's wall of sound, the remainder that isn't held in place by Hugo's command easily knocked unconscious by Marcus and Hugo.
The third group attempts to scatter when their ruse is revealed, but the brutal onslaught of arrows and Gerdur's attacks is too much for their numbers to resist; leaving them all unconscious.
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"Well, friends, what's next? If we think the grounds are secure enough, then Eliza ought to be able to begin sending in her reserves, while we continue to investigate, don't you think?"
The smell of smoke reminds him that there's still a task or two remaining. "We probably ought to see to that fire, before the Lodge burns to the ground. Some folks might be trapped by the flames."
"Once we identify what’s going on, we can finally put a stop to Vahlo's and Torch's devious plans."
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"Well done everyone. The fires do raise alarm however maybe questioning one or two of these looters for some more information about who and why they are looting. If none are still awake, I can wake one up."
While walking around gathering what documents and items the looters had and putting it in his bag of holding.
"No reason to leave these laying around.”
Jack's menacing presence completely cows the looter into submission as he spills the beans. The group learns the following information from the looters.
-Torch and his agents arrived just before Vahlo enacted his overt schemes. A confrontation ensued between Torch and Vahlo at the Repository, leading to the ongoing chaos across the Grand Lodge. Torch managed to damage Vahlo, though the Decemvirate member quickly recovered and entered the Mausoleum to amass more undead forces to keep Torch’s agents occupied.
-After Torch and Vahlo confronted one another at the Repository, Torch left Zurnzal, a half-orc assassin, to take charge of a secondary team. Zurnzal now leads Torch’s most senior agents to secure several high-import items within the Repository. He then plans to stash them in areas outside the Grand Lodge.
-Both Torch and Vahlo’s current whereabouts in the Grand Lodge (or beyond) remains unknown. It is highly likely that Zurnzal might have further information.
The looters do not have any equipment worthwhile for adventurers of the group's caliber beyond the papers and historically valuable artifacts.
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Jack sums up what he learned from the interrogation:
"So, Torch and his agents got here before Vahlo enacted his overt schemes. Torch confronted Vahlo at the Repository, and chaos ensued. Torch hurt him, and Vahlo fled into the Mausoleum to bring in more undead to deal with Torch and his agents."
"Torch left his half-orc assassin Zurnzal in charge of his most senior agents to secure several high-import items within the Repository. Torch plans to stash them somewhere outside the Grand Lodge."
"Who knows where Torch and Vahlo are now. Zurnzal probably has further information." The bard shrugs, nothing more to tell.
"Let's head to the Repository," Jack suggests, "Deal with the fire, and find Zurnzal."
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"But first... " Jack strides over to the gate to speak to the halfling bard. After telling her what the team learned about Torch and Vahlo, and Zurnzal's activity in the Repository, he asks, "Is there anything more you can tell us, Janira?"
Then he looks around for the Pathfinder they'd met earlier at the gate and fills him in on all that's transpired. "Pathfinder, report all this to Venture-Captain Eliza Petulengro, then return to your post here, understood?"
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Hugo nods So it would seem our path is clear. Let us proceed to the Repository and Mausoleum post haste. High crimes have been committed but some efforts may be to save relics. One thing is certain, Vahlo is the primary transgressor in this undead infestation.
Before reaching the fire, Hugo will offer to include anyone in a communal resist fire who is interested and not already immune to fire.
Is there anything more you can tell us, Janira?"
Jack finds the halfling speaking with the Pathfinder at the gate with an unnatural intensity, the guard appearing very uncomfortable with the attention. She seems focused on her chronicling, paying little mind to Jack's questions.
"...Favorite...Color...?" Janira asks, holding a roll of parchment with a quill in position, her eyes unnervingly unfocused.
"Errr...Blue?" the Pathfinder replies uncertaintly. He looks up at Jack with relief as the halfling makes several remarks on her paper. "Do you know why Janira is acting like this? She has been asking me odd questions for the past several minutes..." He listens to Jack's recounting of the recent events, his eyes widening as the bard continues.
"That sounds like mighty important information!" he exclaims, as Janira interrupts him to ask for his boot size. "For bloody sake, size 10. Anyways, I would be happy to pass it along. Eliz-" he pauses and looks nervously in Hugo's general direction. "Venture-Captain Eliza ordered me to maintain watch at the gate. My relief comes in a few minutes, I'll relay your message as soon as I can!"
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"Excellent, Pathfinder," Jack says, confident Eliza will get the report soon enough. "Janira's under the effects of a dominate person spell."
"You're doing great, Janira. But don't forget, you also need to organize the Pathfinders to defend Skyreach."
Satisfied, Jack rejoins the team and heads for the Repository. "I never actually met Zurnzal," he says. "Once with the Aspis Consortium, later he must have allied himself with Torch."
The group makes it way towards Starhall, smoke and flickering flame continuing to be seen coming from the upper story windows of the building. The seared corpses of multiple humanoids lie scattered in various points nearby, all of them wearing similar equipment to the ones the looters that were captured earlier wore. The doors to the building appear securely locked against casual entry.
Your recognize this creature as an "Exscinder Archon," a lawful good being from Heaven that focuses on rooting out texts that are deemed too harmful or evil for mortalkind to possess. It possesses the ability to conjure texts of any kind to itself, as well as the ability to irrevocably alter them to its desires.
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Stepping around the scorched corpses lying about the exterior of the burning Starhall, Venture-Captain Jack reaches for his keys, but Hugo beats him on the draw.
Entering the building, Jack looks around the multi-floored archive, containing the Society's documents and studies about the Planes of existence. He hears the footsteps echoing throughout the smoke-filled halls and tracks down the source. Following the sound, he ascends several stairwells leading to a section of an archive, where a humanoid creature with wings of flame and a fiery sword is perusing a set of scrolls. After contemplating the documents for a moment, the creature incinerates them with the flame from its sword, before moving several feet to pick up another paper.
"This creature ss an Exscinder Archon, a lawful good being from Heaven that focuses on rooting out texts deemed too harmful or evil for mortalkind to possess." Jack whispers to the team. "It possesses the ability to conjure texts of any kind to itself, as well as the ability to irrevocably alter them to its desires."
"Excuse me, friend." Jack greets the heavenly firebug. "What's going on? We saw the flames and were concerned, especially when we saw the bodies incinerated outside the building. The contents of these archives must be secured, it's true. But destroying them might not be necessary. Help us help you. Did someone order you to do this?"
The archon turns its attention from its destruction to look at Jack, Hugo, and Geatan. An emotionless voice sounds in their minds.
I am bound to destroy all indicated documents in this archive by the ones who conjured me to this location, to protect them from falling into corrupt hands. Twelve individuals in masks that blocked even my sight from their faces. The archon turns to look out a nearby window at the burnt corpses outside.
The ones outside attempted to abscond with what I was charged to destroy. They will not make that mistake again. The archon says with the utter finality of eternity.
"Nice wings. I have some, too." Gerdur offers.
The archon looks at Gerdur with an otherworldly intensity for several moments. I recognize the touch of Heaven in your blood, as well as the one with the honeyed words. You understand the importance of my task then, and will assist me in this important duty? The archon meaningfully surges the flames on its sword as it gestures towards a nearby stack of papers.
"At least stop long enough for us to ascertain the veracity of any orders you received as there has been at least one breach of protocol."
The archon lets loose a continuous string of chanting words in Celestial in everyone's mind, the words rising and falling in an a rhythmic cadence that almost requires the medium of telepathy to even realistically imitate.
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Hearing the telepathic Celestial transmitted by the exscinder archon, and with Géatan Émond's whispered identification of parts of the binding 'code' of the spell, Jack offers the creature a suggestion.
"The one who bound you has twisted your good nature and lawful purpose to pursue his own foul ends. Better to protect the archive from corrupt individuals by standing guard instead of incinerating the documents," the aasimar says in Celestial.
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Hugo hears and understands the words as well. Heeding Geatan's comments, he adds his voice to Jack's argument in Celestial.
As a keeper of the law for Abadar, I implore you consider the validity of these contrary orders, especially if they are counter to your own ethos. You must obey your primary directives first and foremost.
The archon considers Jack's and Hugo's words for several moments. Your reasoning has merit and virtue behind your words. I feel the binding on me will allow me to do as you say. I will protect this place from further corruption. The archon sweeps its wings wide, the motion abruptly causing all of the fires in the building to suddenly gutter out of existence. The archon then begins to purposefully patrol the hallways to ensure the building remains secure.
Entering entails descending down a set of stairs into the building. This reveals a massive room, obscured by coiling blue mist that moves around the chamber in thick wall-like sheets that rise up to the ceiling some eighty-feet above. The floor and walls of the chamber are stone, but the outer walls remain partly obscured by the bluish fog. Items of all sorts can be seen through the mist, including a variety of statues, exhibits, arcane apparatuses, bookshelves, and even a distant meditation area briefly visible through a temporary break in the fog. Stone plinths burn with colored fire, each illuminating part of the immense repository chamber.
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"It's interesting that the archon said twelve masked figures summoned him and ordered him to destroy the archive," Jack muses as the team makes its way to the Repository. "Torch and his allies? Vahlo and his allies?"
Observing the signs of a struggle outside the featureless building and the opened secret door, the bard studies the scene. "What happened here, I wonder?"
Passing through the entrance with the rest of the team, Jack descends the stairs. Before stepping into the massive room at the bottom, the bard pauses, observing the obscuring, coiling blue mist that moves around the chamber in thick wall-like sheets that rise up to the ceiling some eighty-feet above.
"Magic, no doubt," he whispers via the message spell.
Jack casts detect magic, scanning the stone floor and walls of the chamber, the bluish fog, and the items he can see through the mist, including the statues, exhibits, arcane apparatuses, bookshelves, and the distant meditation area briefly visible through a temporary break in the fog, as well as the stone plinths burning with colored fire, each illuminating part of the immense repository.
The aasimar also looks and listens for any sign of Torch's half-orc assassin Zurnzal and his followers.
“I agree with Gaétan the other members of the 12 must not know.
"Actually, we know a bit more than you might think," a neutral voice says uncomfortably close behind and to the right of Charleston's shoulder. A humanoid figure, clad in concealing dark blue robes and hood, appears out of thin air to the side of the group on the stairs. The individual's face is concealed by a rune-inlaid ivory mask adorned with peacock feathers, blood-red crystal tears, and silver rings.
"The archon was a safeguard, to hide secrets best left unknown from the public eye in the event the Lodge was invaded. Your handling of the situation was rather expertly done, in our opinion." The figure turns soundlessly in place to quickly glance at the nearby Pathfinders. "I am one of the Decemvirate. Our masks conceal our identities, even from the other members of our inner circle; we were not aware of Vahlo's maneuverings or his nature as an undead sleeper agent for the Whispering Way. Currently, our attention is divided due to the ongoing battles at the Gallowspires; I am the first to be aware of the situation here at the Lodge." The Decemvirate turns to the Venture-Captains present.
"Your assistance several years ago was most...helpful. I know not if this was conveyed previously, but thank you for your service to us," the masked Decemvirate inclines their head slightly in respect. "At the bottom of the stairs to the Repository, look for a flagstone marked with the Glyph of the Open Road. Tap with two short and three long knocks; you will find a token of our appreciation there that you might find helpful with this evening's trials."