Hey! Where's my 500 gold!
Shohreh smiles at the priest and inclines her head in gratitude. "That is most gracious of him. Thank you for bringing this to us so quickly."
Seeing this as an opportunity for an academic breakthrough, Lowls made efforts to try to find this empty city and ascertain why there were three monoliths identical to the ones in his hometown. He delved into occult tomes and shirked his duties as the count of Versex county in favor of this lead.
Lowls eventually found a lead in the Mad Poet, so he went on a set of quests to get items to appease the Mad Poet.
Lowls left Thrushmoor and went down the Sellen River. His first stop was to Cassomir (where y’all are currently).
Miacknian Mun is apparently a contemporary of Lowls and Kolgradd when they all studied in school. There was some controversy and Mun had to leave the country. Then Lowls “introduced” Mun to Jevar and the two became alchemical pen pals. As such, Jevar is aware of Mun’s address in Cassomir (or at least the address he last had when they were corresponding).
After Lowls finished his business in Cassomir, his next presumed destination would be Katheer, and the presumed destination after that would be to Casmiron to the east.
Jevar wonders if there are colleagues of Miacknian Mun in Cassomir who still correspond with him regularly, or at least more recently than himself. He proposes to the group that he take a couple of hours in town to see if he can find any still-warm connections.
Separately, he wonders if Lowls may have worked with any others aside from Miacknian before he left Cassomir. Perhaps others who became "inspired" (or infected, as it were) to help bring back the Great Old One. Such a person may be able to give up more particulars about Lowls' plan.
Assuming those searches turn up nothing, Jevar imagines the group won't want to waste time moving onto Katheer.
Separately, he wonders if Lowls may have worked with any others aside from Miacknian before he left Cassomir. Perhaps others who became "inspired" (or infected, as it were) to help bring back the Great Old One. Such a person may be able to give up more particulars about Lowls' plan.
A man matching Lowls’s description was seen a couple weeks ago. He apparently met with Miacknian Mun and then left on a merchant vessel the next day. No one knows whether or not Miacknian was with him when he left.
Kolgradd asks after Miacknian Mun and any of his cohort while shopping at the various magical forges in Cassomir.
When he meets Jevar later, he is both intimidated by the number of scrolls he has around his person, and embarrassed to admit he got nowhere with asking around.
"The trails getting colder as we speak. Perhaps its time to drop in at Miacknian's home?"
Hmm... I presumed he no longer had a home here, but maybe you're right!
Jevar ponders what they could find there, if it only existed...
Everyone knows that a wizard shopping for their first wand is no swift process - and the same could be said for a musician looking for their first conductor's baton. The shopkeep (who has to run back and forth between the lobby and the back storage rooms) seems more upset by the process than Boodiddly, who takes the opportunity to chat up his fellow shoppers at Bertlegard's Emporeum of Wonders. Thankfully, the strange spelling of the shop's name is an easy conversation starter - and an easy topic to shift to other strange folks in town, such as a skunk-bearded scholar and who he might have been here to visit.
Miacknian Mun is apparently a respected (if secretive) member of Cassomir—enough to earn him a spot among the city’s ostentatiously-named Esoteric Knights of Evolvement, a group of like-minded alchemists, ship-builders, engineers, and socialites. Lowls was apparently seen a couple weeks ago visiting with Mun—the two apparently had dinner and were seen going to Mun’s home—an old infirmary in town. The next day, Lowls was seen leaving on a ship headed for Katheer.
*
*
*
*
The gales of the Inner Sea have taken their toll on this grim old pile, thick with the fetid odor that blows across Blackwood Swamp when the wind is high. A venerable building rises from a windowless ground floor to a high steep gable several stories above. A single great iron door scowls at visitors. A small and austere garden decays out front, surrounded by a rusting iron fence six feet high and pierced with a gateway. Perched upon the gate are a murder of crows.
There is more than a bit of confusion as the former-amnesiacs arrive at this tall building—it looks as if no one has entered here for years. Jevar double-checks the address and, indeed, this is the address that he knows—the one his letters to Miacknian Mun have gone to. With a shrug, the former-amnesiacs approach the front door.
A dangling sign above the iron door held by a trio of smiling angels reads, “Give succor to the troubled.” A great iron knocker hangs at the door’s center.
As the former-amnesiacs approach the door, they suddenly “hear” the sounds of lapping water—almost like an auditory hallucination—and the sound of clicks and mental static, which (for some reason) the former-amnesiacs know as a language that they somehow understand.
“̤̫͢T̯h̯e̢͓̞̣̲̳͚͕ ̰͚̺̲b̗̯̬̳̻͉̀l̘̗͟o҉͔t̳̳̠͍̥ ̜̹̕q͠u̶̝iv̜̖͉̩̱̣e̪͎̝͖r̬̺͕̩͓s͉̳̱̕. ̻̹͖̞T̴̥͍͙̦͖h̻̻͍͚̱̯̲͡e̹̮̳ ̮̤̭̜͜l̶̩̞̬̥a͓̹̫̫̻k̨͙̺͚͎̻̟e̼̭̱ ͚̮̝͝r̛̥̮̬̰̮͇̱ip̡̦̳p̝̝͔͓̙͉̬͘le͕̥͚̮͓͎s̤͠.̟̪̭̝͞ ́H̖͍̠͎̦͟is͏ ͚̖st҉͖͍͔͕̜a̱̗̜͎i̖̞n̞̮̞̖͔͘ ̜̲i͇̖͘ͅs̴͚͓̭ ̥̟͕̦͝h̭͉̩̀e̮͉̭͈͢ŗ̖̭͓̜e͎͖̪̣͜.̞”̨̟̪̙̬̖̺̫
The ringing of a massive bell snaps the former-amnesiacs back into reality—though, no such bell appears to be anywhere nearby. Perhaps that bell was another auditory hallucination?
Whatever the case, the former-amnesiacs can do little more once they realize that they all collectively experienced the same thing. Thus, Kolgradd places his hand on the iron door knocker and uses it.
”Oh goodness. One moment, please!”
A man’s voice echoes from the other side of the door, followed by silence, then the sound of nearby mechanical whirring, then the sound of several locks and deadbolts being undone. Finally, the door opens slightly as a man peeks his head outside. The man is fair-skinned with unkempt blonde hair and a set of well-used spectacles. The most prominent feature of the man is the crisscross of scars on the right side of his face.
”My sincerest apologies, gentlemen and lady, but you have arrived at an inopportune time. I currently have my hands full with an experiment for the navy and it requires my complete attention at the moment. Please come back tomorrow, if you would be so kind.”
Without even waiting for a response, the man ducks back inside, closes the door, reapplies the locks, and causes the mechanical whirring to occur once more.
After the hallucination, Kolgradd becomes irritable, and the brusque dismissal doesn't help.
"That's him. He's changed, but those scars don't lie"
He leans into the door and bellows.
He then starts eyeing up the door for sturdiness.
Once again, after mechanical whirring and unlocking several locks, the man pokes his head back out and spends several long seconds staring at the former-amnesiacs.
”My apologies, but you must have me confused for someone else; I don’t believe I’ve ever met any of you in my life. Please, if you must speak with me then come back tomorrow.”
And once again, he ducks back in, reapplies the door’s locks, and causes a mechanical whirring.
He then starts eyeing up the door for sturdiness.
The door’s definitely locked and fairly reinforced, but it’s not so much so to be a problem for Kolgradd.
Jevar continues to look around at the environs of this strange house with a dubious expression.
This is where Miacknian lives? It sure fits the theme of our misadventures.
He leans into the door and bellows.
After Kolgradd's yell, Jevar adds in a holler of his own.
After the second rude shut out, Jevar rubs his chin and starts to think of less "honest" means of entry.
He begins muttering about options out loud...
Let's see... thieve's picks, invisibility and slip by him, meld into the wall and enter, send Oreb through a high window. I could slip one of our old letters under the door to spark his memory about who I am. He seems too busy to notice it though...
He suddenly looks up at the others, realizing he's talking out loud to himself.
"He's working on something for the navy,"[b/] Shohreh muses. [b]"Perhaps I could try to convince him that we are here on their behalf?"
"It's worth a try, he doesn't seem to remember us"
Kolgradd looks annoyed. "Might be Lowls bought a bread roll with his memories" he add bitterly.
"I don't want to smash the door in, but we need to get in there. A ruse that gets us in is better than having the guard called on us"
Jevar will start of light, sending Oreb up to an upper window to see if access can be gained for a little scouting.
As Oreb scouts out, he finds that each window has a set of iron shutters that seem to be able to be opened and closed from the inside.
Each and every one of these shutters are closed. Oreb cannot see inside the building whatsoever.
Jevar readies his last pen-pal letter from Miacknian. He figures the man is about to get overly irritated at what they'll do next.
He takes out his thieves tools and shows them to the group.
Any better ideas?
“I mean, what if we did leave him be until tomorrow?” Boodiddly muses aloud before shaking his head. “No, you’re right, he’d probably flee. But before we go scratching up his keyhole, perhaps it’d be more convenient to use the back door?” He wiggles his eyebrows conspiratorially and draws from his sleeve a silver door knocker in the shape of a bird holding a wreath in its beak.
“I mean, what if we did leave him be until tomorrow?” Boodiddly muses aloud before shaking his head. “No, you’re right, he’d probably flee. But before we go scratching up his keyhole, perhaps it’d be more convenient to use the back door?” He wiggles his eyebrows conspiratorially and draws from his sleeve a silver door knocker in the shape of a bird holding a wreath in its beak.
Back door it is!
Jevar runs his fingers over the main picks and stowes them away for now.
Boodiddly uses his insistent door knocker right next to the front door, which causes an entirely new door to be created. The former-amnesiacs then open this newly-created door.
Beyond the door is a cozy chamber with a curiously carved wooden coatrack topped with stuffed bloodseekers, among which hang several fine garments that suggest their wearer is a gentleman of some standing. Numerous fancy bottles, strange alchemical objects, and a hefty cudgel sit on recessed shelves. Directly opposite the door is a fine portrait of a thin man in his fifties, with neat blond hair and immaculate attire. A chemical scent fills the air.
Standing right below the fine portrait is the portrait’s subject, only with much more unkempt hair—indeed, this is the same man the former-amnesiacs met at the front door. According to Kolgradd, this is the man of the house—Miacknian Mun
Mun certainly is surprised that there is suddenly a new door in his house, but seems to shake past that fact very quickly. As Kolgradd steps into Mun’s abode, the man himself moves to stand in Kolgradd’s way.
”Gentlemen. Lady. This is most unorthodox. Please, I must insist that you vacate the premises. Please, there is much that must be done and I cannot be interrupted.”
The former-amnesiacs get the sense that Mun is not “angry” with them, but more like he’s lecturing a petulant child.
Kolgradd puts a hand on Mun's shoulder.
"I'm sorry for the intrusion Mun, but this is important. Fate of the world stuff"
"Indeed," Shohreh says in a soothing tone, "it is most vital that you take the time to speak with us."
Jevar holds up the letter.
Mun... we wrote to each other. In former lives at least. I admit I'm only just re-learning the details of that life.
He holds the hand forward, offering it in case Mun is willing to confirm.
We'd heard Lowls visited you a short time ago. If it's okay with you, we'd like to ask more about that. What do you think?
Kolgradd recoils from the touch as Jevar's introducing himself.
"That's not human!"
He quickly draws his new long hammer , that both gives off cool mist clouds and a magma heat haze at the same time.
"What are you?" he demands, holding the hammer aggressively.
Mun... we wrote to each other. In former lives at least. I admit I'm only just re-learning the details of that life.
He holds the hand forward, offering it in case Mun is willing to confirm.
We'd heard Lowls visited you a short time ago. If it's okay with you, we'd like to ask more about that. What do you think?
”Incorrect. I have never written to you, and I never visited with Haserton Lowls.” Mun makes sure his emphasis is evident.
Kolgradd recoils from the touch as Jevar's introducing himself.
"That's not human!"
He quickly draws his new long hammer , that both gives off cool mist clouds and a magma heat haze at the same time.
"What are you?" he demands, holding the hammer aggressively.
Mun flinches. ”Sir, please refrain from shouting. I am sure the revelation is surprising, but there are precious experiments on the premises that sudden noise could contaminate. And would you please put away your weapon—who knows what that could break.” His tone of voice does not suggest sarcasm or condescension, but rather genuinely concern about the experiments and possible damage.
“But, since you asked, I am Ian. Ian Mun. Father,” he motions to the giant portrait that bears his own uncanny likeness. ”Is busy at the moment and he left me to attend the situation. We are very busy, so could you please see yourselves out?”
Jevar recoils and pockets the letter, looking between "Mun" and Kolgradd. Finally he sighs.
"Father", you say. I suspect you weren't created via conventional methods.
He leans into Kolgradd.
For all we know, this precious experiment is to create more copies...
Turning back to Ian, he states more forcefully It's vital that we speak with your father. The sooner he attends to us, the sooner we can leave. If we steps outside with us, we can even leave your previous experiment uncontaminated by our presence and busines. Though part of me wants to get a closer look...
I’m terribly sorry about the intrusion,“ Boodiddly adds as he finishes putting the door-knocker back into his sleeve, “but we don’t have the luxury of waiting until tomorrow. Once we’ve spoken with him, we’ll be out of your hair in no time. You can introduce us, can’t you?” Somehow he resists the urge to mimic the man’s condescending tone and instead keeps his voice light and pleasant.
"Father", you say. I suspect you weren't created via conventional methods.
Ian cocks his head. ”I don’t follow. Miacknian Mun is my father. I came into this world in the same way as my brothers. So I would classify that as the ‘conventional method.’”
I’m terribly sorry about the intrusion,“ Boodiddly adds as he finishes putting the door-knocker back into his sleeve, “but we don’t have the luxury of waiting until tomorrow. Once we’ve spoken with him, we’ll be out of your hair in no time. You can introduce us, can’t you?” Somehow he resists the urge to mimic the man’s condescending tone and instead keeps his voice light and pleasant.
Ian’s eyes shift as he realizes the pickle that he is in. ”I…I’m sorry, that really is not possible at the moment. I’m sure I could answer some of your questions in Father’s stead, if that’s sufficient for you, but there really isn’t much more that I can do beyond that.”
Shohreh holds back an exasperated sigh, and instead keeps up her smile. "Ian, I am sure that you will do your very best, but I am afraid these are questions only your father knows the answer to. We would likely be gone already, had we been able to speak with him right away. What experiment is he conducting that occupies him so?"
"I, uh, really can't say. Non-disclosure agreements and whatnot."
Oreb rounds the corner and picks up speed, attempting to get the layout of the house a find Miacknian.
"Where is your father?"
Kolgradd barks out in frustration, and then , starts to move around the room, putting his hammer back on his back and examining its contents.
He peers into bottles, pokes the bloodseekers, and generally looks for anything of occult significance. Should he be disappointed, he'll continue to the southern door and open it, paying no mind to the strange facsimile.
Oreb nearly flies into the closed door and circles back to land on her wizard's shoulder, frustrated.
Oreb rounds the corner and picks up speed, attempting to get the layout of the house a find Miacknian.
This side room contains a small library, and a number of interesting old maps are framed and hang upon the walls. Two comfortable leather captain’s chairs are drawn up to a curious table made from a small preserved owlbear. A decanter half full of red liquid and a leather case lie on the bizarre table. The door to the west is half-open; Ian had apparently come from that direction.
Oreb glances around the room a bit, but does not find anything of noteworthy value.
This large room has an odd opening in the center of the floor, though a series of worn handrails prevents careless falls to the ground below. The chamber is filled with books and intriguing objects of a medical nature. The chamber below appears to be a sort of operating room—one that one might use for surgery. As Oreb flies around, though, she notices something in that lower room: A man-made construct pieced together from tubing, wire, steel, and vats containing offal held in an oily liquid the color of decaying vegetation.
The construct does not seem to notice Oreb—or if it did, it doesn’t care—though Jevar does definitely get a slight moment of panic as a result of his empathic link with his familiar.
"Where is your father?"
”He’s…um…predisposed at the moment…”
paying no mind to the strange facsimile.
Kolgradd begins prodding at the curios in the room, which prompts Ian to say ”P-please, those are very delicate! Do be careful!” But, as he thought, Kolgradd does not find anything more than simple trinkets. At which point, he moves toward the southern door—already slightly ajar.
Ian moves to interpose Kolgradd. ”Sir, please! Much in this building is very delicate, and I cannot justify you—“
But Kolgradd cares little, using his strength to push Ian out of the way. As Kolgradd reaches for to open the door, something in Ian snaps.
”I SAID ‘PLEASE STOP’!!!”
Round 1
==============
Boodiddly
Ian Mun
Shohreh
Kolgradd
Jevar
==============
“Ian, you said you could answer questions, but you haven’t been able to say anything meaningful.” Boodiddly sighs deeply, invitingly. “So let’s all take a moment to pause and try this again. We need to speak with Miacknian, and it is important enough that we can’t leave without doing so. But we have no desire to stay here and make you nervous by poking around your things. So help us get out of your hair sooner rather than later, hmm?”
Critical Failure --> Failure (incapacitation)
Ian’s eyes calm as he is swept over by Boodiddly’s magic. The man clears his throat. ”Apologies, I…am unsure what came over me there. But, I really cannot condone this. You…really cannot speak with Father right now…”
"What can you tell us?" Shohreh asks, moving so as to place Kolgradd between herself and the clone.
Jevar gets a suddenly look of concern, his gaze darting around at his companions as he realizes he probably can't relay the sense he got to them out loud (at least right now).
She found something worth inspecting...
He wizard steps further in, looking around the room as if trying to locate Oreb.
My raven seems to have gotten away from me. I think I'll just head back this way and retrieve her to get her out of your hair and away from your delicate instruments...
He starts to casually move towards the Southern door and will pass through it unless Ian protests.
Ian protests, but he's not in the state of mind to do anything more than a minor inconvenience
"Hold on a second Jevar"
Kolgradd takes his hammer off his back again as soon as the brief angry look passed across Ian's face.
"If there's more of these things in the house I don't want to have to fight them all at once."
"Can we tie him up Boodiddly? Take his stuff? Go through his pockets?"
"Ian, you didn't answer her question. You've spent a lot of time saying what you can't say. So what can you tell us?"
"If there's more of these things in the house I don't want to have to fight them all at once."
”Oh, there are. I have three brothers. Ian, Mick, Nick, and Aki. But Father took Aki with him when he…I shouldn’t have said that.”
Jevar halts in his tracks at Kolgradd's directive. Understanding Dwarven he listens to the debate about tying up Ian. For now, he sends Oreb the impression to hold steady above the construct's pit but stay out of its sight.
Kolgradd takes off his pack, then draws out his rope and puts his pack back on. He hangs the rope off his belt for easy access, puts his hammer on his back, and when everyone is ready, approaches Ian, arms wide.
"We've gotten off on the wrong foot here..."
He then speaks aloud an arcane word of accuracy, and tries to grab Ian and restrict his arms.
As soon as Kolgradd attempts (and fails) to grab Ian, Boodiddly’s spell on him breaks.
Round 1
==============
Boodiddly
Kolgradd
Ian Mun
Shohreh
Jevar
==============
In response to being thrown off, Kolgradd watches whatever-Ian-is carefully and prepares to disrupt anything he throws at them.
◆ Disruptive Stance
He then lunges at Ian again:
◆ Grapple
◆ Draw Long Hammer
"Sorry Boodiddly, he's a wiry bugger!"