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A large, long-cold fireplace stands in the east wall of this expansive parlor, but the furnishings are all rotted. A dank stench of mold lingers in the air. The ceiling overhead has collapsed, leaving the room open to the sky. The floor in the room’s southern end has followed suit, leaving a gaping hole into darkness.
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Elluin asks Numbers, "Are you certain that's stable enough to hold you? I will gladly attempt to improve its stability as we explore it. At the very least, would you take a rope and tie it somewhere where it will not hurt if you fall into the pit?"
Elluin pulls out 50" of rope and his Repair Kit out of his backpack, offering the first to Numbers, and starting to work on the floor with the other.
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"B-but what do they need it for...then again I have heard stories of cursed coins! Krazza doesn't value a curse, thanks for the advice Noravia!" he continues his conversation with the tiefling as they find the sinkhole.
"Hopefully not a monster! Maybe just from being an old house...let me help secure the rope." he says finding something sturdy, checking it with a few tugs. He keeps holding on to the rope just in case.
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Elluin replies, "Finding - and possibly recruiting - the scholar at the College of Mysteries would be a satisfactory next choice. I suppose we should go to the College and ask where she is?"
Elluin reminds the party that she gave us a Lesser Silvertongue Mutagen.
He strongly dislikes the idea using this! But he is trained in Deception, Diplomacy, and Intimidation, and you have seen that he actually is highly charismatic. Anyone else actually interested in using this?
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Numbers falls into a conversation with a couple of knowledgeable post-doc students at a local bar.
Tavvar Hamavsi and her research has been a major topic of conversation in the College of Mystery over the last few weeks. She’s been working on a ritual to create partially real shadow illusion manifestations of the memories from people, places, and things, so as to create 'as it was' historical records of important events .
However, the higher-ups have been pushing Tavvar hard; the 'publish or perish' culture at the College demanding that she produce results... so she has been forced to cut corners when it comes to safety, against her better judgement.
Consequently, she has been working on the ritual for several days at the Blakros Museum (which has excellent wards, so that if something does go wrong, it will be contained) after its normal hours of operation, with some assistants aiding her...
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Numbers moans upon hearing the name of that dreaded portal to the Nine Hells and quickly orders a double shot of tequila, downing it in one gulp when it arrives.
"Oh, why did it have to be that place? Of all the gin joints in the world, she had to walk into mine..."
He blinks and shakes his head as if to reorient himself after the shot.
"Wrong universe. What was I saying? Oh yeah, not that accursed place! That pestilent building has been the bane of Absalom for a decade or more. And now we have to go to it and try to stomp out yet another warped experiment gone wrong. Yeah, that's the ticket!"
He slides off the bar stool and rushes to tell the others the bad news.
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When the party arrives at the museum, you find the front door closed, with a sign on the front noting: Closed for private function. Knocking, after a few minutes, results in a middle-aged man holding a mop opening the door.
"Hello? How can I help you? I am afraid that we aren't admitting visitors at this time..."
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"Not visitors. Here for Tavvar Hamavsi on behalf of Pathfinder Society. Very important, can you point us to them? Although I wouldn't mind visiting...I bet there are some impressive things here...maybe some draconic artifacts." Krazza says in his most official sounding voice before dragging on a bit.
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Elluin manages to smooth things over.
"Oh, you're Pathfinders, here to see Tavvar? I guess that makes sense..."
He then directs the party to the unobtrusive staircase in the museum's northeast corner.
"She's in the tower on the third floor. You can reach it across the second floor. I should warn you: The shadows on the second floor are a... bit weird. They seem to be harmless enough..."
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Elluin replies, "Krazza, I was thinking of my other short companion - it rarely benefits to tell someone that they are about to suffer a horrible disaster unless there is some obvious precursor already in process. Or if you have a lot of time to convince them, and they are willing to look at your documentation. I do wonder if the aforementioned shadows on the second floor may be a less obvious precursor?"
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Heading upstairs, the party passes by a short corridor containing a series of staff offices, each of which is locked. The one at the end has a plaque saying 'Nigel Aldain, Curator'.
Moving next door, this long, narrow presentation space has seating for around thirty guests, all facing a low stage at the south end of the room. At first glance the room seems empty, but a moment later, it seems as though the shadows of an audience still fill the plush seats. A chill draft sweeps through the room, and of a whispery voice echoes from the podium.
“...and rather than engage in a responsible, controlled study of the codebook, Yargos Gill decided — imprudently — to simply execute the signals listed therein...” The voice trails off into a looming silence.
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Elluin replies, "This is also my first visit to this fine establishment." Looking around as we travel, he adds, "I shall have to return sometime when I have the leisure to give it the examination it deserves. In regards to our current objective - I think I see stairs going up at the far end of the building."
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The party moves on.
Carefully framed spellbook pages hang along this room’s walls, while eldritch relics stand in small display cases in the room’s center. In the far corner, shadows hang thicker than the rest of the room, and it seems a boisterous half-orc woman stands there, surrounded by vague figures, as she welcomes newcomers. Her voice is thin and reedy, but eerily familiar. “Congratulations! Let me spice up that punch a bit for you — to celebrate, of course!”
A gigantic reptilian beast is on display in the center of this expansive gallery, ferociously leering over the collection of taxidermy animals and monsters. Shadows flit between the displays, meandering and shuffling shapes reminiscent of museum patrons. Then a distant shriek echoes off the walls, as the shadow of a stuffed owlbear lashes out at one of the shadow-visitors with its talons. The shadow of the tyrannosaur in the room’s center departs from its source and snaps at the misty image of another patron, tossing its head back and seeming to swallow its meal nearly whole. Other shadows snarl and hiss, scuffling amongst themselves as shadow-guests panic and run toward the exit...
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Droning voices echo off the mahogany walls and domed, plaster ceiling of this luxurious room. The sumptuous furniture has been pushed to the sides of the room, making space for eldritch markings and mystical paraphernalia laid carefully over the plush carpet. The chamber seems muted and dim despite the crystal chandelier overhead, and a bonenumbing chill seeps through the space along with a metallic scent. A ritual is obviously underway here, but it doesn’t seem as though it’s working as planned. Shadowy energy lashes out from a twisting breach in the center of the room, and indistinct shapes flit and scuttle along the walls.
At your entrance, several of the ritual participants look up, surprised, and lose concentration, completely losing control...
Elluin (-)
Numbers (-)
Ritual (-)
Krazza (-)
Henric (-)
Noravia (-)
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Elluin gets off to a good start, them starts to have trouble.
Numbers simply doesn't know where to begin.
The shadow-void at the centre of the ritual pulses...
...as a ball of shadow extrudes itself from the rift, and starts looking around hungrily...
Krazza (-)
Henric (-)
Noravia (-)
Elluin (-)
Numbers (-)
Ritual (1 success)
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Numbers grits his teeth as the pulse of negative energy rolls through him.
Realizing the situation is perilous, he concentrates on the matter at hand, the disarming of the ritual.
Concerned that the researchers will not survive another pulse of negative energy, he steps in front of one of them to block the wave.
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Krazza attempts to manipulate the magical auras inherent to the Ritual, and meets with partial success.
Henric takes a weak swing, and tries to carve some 'bridging' runes, but it is unsuccessful at both.
Noravia moves forward, and draws a scroll...
Elluin has trouble following the lines of magical energy, but just as things as seeping through their grasp, manages to knot some energy lines.
Numbers then reinforces the warding circle.
There is a blinding flash of light!
All of the shadows are sucked back through the rift, as is the shadow-beast, which scrabbles frantically at the edges of the rift, before going through the rift like water down a drain.
The researchers, as one, sigh in relief, and sag to the ground, obviously exhausted.
Their leader, a woman with white hair, smiles wearily.
"Thank-you for the assist. I don't mean to be rude, but who are you, and why did you come here?"
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Numbers pipes up. "That was a cool ritual. Can we try that again and see if we can pull out a shadow thing to play with that tyrannosaur downstairs?"
Getting serious, which is rather hard for this halfling to do, he says, "We were sent to visit you about your employment situation. The college has been a little rough on you regarding your work with rituals. I have no idea why they are so mean. That was a cool ritual. If they would just get off your back you could do so much more with them. Anyway, we represent the Pathfinder Society. The Society is interested in having you work for them. That way, you can do rituals with no pressure."