Corran looks to the rest of the team.
We need to get out of here. We have no idea if our homes are safe, how far this, "police action", of The Grand Prince's is spread. Or...
Corran gets a panicked look on his face and he taps his badge again
Lady Martella! Did The Princess get out? Has she been taken?!?
He moves to the southern door in the bedroom and opens it.
"I don't know! I don't have eyes on her. Gotta go, will check in."
That is most interesting. Xavien, you and my brother seem to have found a quite compelling puzzle. Do you mind if I take a look at the two items?
Lady Ianthe struggles to parse out a power or purpose for either the prism or the globe.
"Want a second set of eyes? We didn't take all the same classes, after all."
Lady Aurelia doesn't seem to be able to parse it out either. Looks like some physical trial and error might be in order.
Kenton and Leo, waiting for the more magically inclined to figure out the puzzle notice something they missed before... On the wall by the door to the eastern hall is a strange device, a hand-sized panel of brass and green glass.
Knowledge (Arcana):
Corran takes a quick peek at the orb, and shakes his head in confusion and disbelief.
Then he continues south, looking for a way out.
Leo wonders if there is a light source that could be used to shine through the panel. "bring one of those magic lights over here would you please?"
Corran opens the door. Stacked wooden crates cover the southern wall, and more crates occupy the northwestern corner. Wooden shelves fill much of the eastern half of the room, each tier filled with dust-coated bottles, crockery, and glass jars. The darkness in here makes this room difficult to scope. With Xavien's dancing light, he can see that it's definitely the busiest room of the four thus far.
What really strikes the man is that there's no way out. These four rooms lack a way out.
Corran calls back, Some kind of storeroom. There's still one door we have yet to open, right?
Corran casts Light on his signet ring and looks around.
Corran confirms that the remaining door leads back to the first room. This room really does have a LOT in it. A routine check with light in the chamber reveals changes of clothes, condiments, pickled vegetables, preserved delicacies, salted meats, and a well-stocked toolkit.
While all the foodstuff here has long since rotted, the toolkit is well stocked and in excellent shape,
A thorough search of the contents would take half an hour with the whole party helping.
Another time. We need to get out of here. Leo sounded like he was on to something. Corran makes his way to Leo and the mysterious panel.
The panel registers a faint aura of evocation.
And so does the orb. Hmm.
Bring the orb and the prism over here! Ianthe and Aurelia... Can two sources of Evocation interact? Maybe this is some kind of energy key-and-lock.
"Two sources of evocation, interacting together, can be dangerous. Let me see..."
"Two sources of evocation, interacting together, can be dangerous. Let me see..."
Spellcraft or Knowledge Arcana: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (2) + 7 = 9
Inside the locked cabinet is something that resembles an immovable crystal ball built into the wall.
Can we just put the prism into the crystal ball?
Oh, do be careful, brother, Ianthe implores as she takes cover behind the same table that Corran did against Leo's attempts at the lock.
Corran looks at the prism and the crystal ball for a moment and notes Ianthe.
Leo! Come put this prism into this ball.
"No way out and no other leads?" Xavien chuckles. "Come, I shall do it."
After giving the others a moment to find whatever cover they wish, Xavien slots the prism into the crystal ball.
Leo stands right behind Xavian ready to assist and to generally back seat drive.
Immediately upon placing the prism in the orb.... Nothing happens. Well, not precisely, the orb turns black. Well, not precisely. It looks as though the orb is showing you something within it.... and that something is pitch black.
"Aha! I think I understand. Aurelia and Corran, would you be so kind as to perform a circuit of these rooms?"
"Aye! A peephole."
With a chuckle, Aurelia agrees. "Be right back."
She then heads off through all of the rooms they had previously been through.
Now now, if there are peephole shenanigans afoot with Aurelia, then I want to participate. Corran assists in any way he can make himself useful.
Aurelia makes a complete circuit, but the view in the crystal ball never changes, and she doesn't see a sensor anywhere.
"I think this is looking outside this safehouse. Think for a moment."" Leo begins. " we were brought here as some sort of emergency exit from danger. Wouldn't you want to know who's on the other side of the door when someone knocks?" Leo pauses for a moment. "That begs the question: where is the door?"
"Very well," Xavien nods. "Let us try a different tack." He unplugs the small crystal prism from the ball and walks over to the panel. "Stand back!" he warns, and taps the prism to the panel.
Xavien takes the prism out, and the orb turns back to regular crystal. When he touches the panel with the prism, a light begins to shine in the ceiling of the northeast room!
Ingenious. I wonder if there are other panels about?
It makes sense to Corran that the entrance/exit--if a physical one exists--would be close to where we all appeared. Corran will go back to the servants quarters and start searching the walls there and in the south Hallway.
Perception is +5
Xavien takes the prism out, and the orb turns back to regular crystal. When he touches the panel with the prism, a light begins to shine in the ceiling of the northeast room!
Magical lighting. I wonder if there are more panels--one--one for the southeast room, maybe?
Leo takes a walk to the northern door and inspects the ceiling
Corran goes back to the first room. Obscured by the shelving, he finds a similar panel with glass to the one in the northwest room. He doesn't see anything like that in the hallways though.
He calls Xavien over. When he taps the panel with the prism, a light in the northwest turns ON, and the light in the northeast turn OFF.
"Hmm." Xavien taps the same panel again, then returns to the northwest room and taps that panel a second time as well. "As much as I am reluctant to admit it, we may be forced to conduct a thorough search of the storage room."
"Agreed. let's see what's in that mess."
Xavien conducts a quick experiment on the rooms. He hits the light in the southwest room, which causes the light to go out in the northwest and on in the northeast.
When he touches the panel in the northwest, the lights in the northeast turn off. Now everything is dark again.
"Right. Let us get to it, then." Xavien taps the panel in the bunkroom to turn on as many lights as possible, then leads the way to the storage room.
Xavien taps the SW switch. Now there is light in the NE room.
"Let us inspect every nook and cranny!" Xavien says cheerfully. He sings while he works.
Aurelia follows the lead of the others, bringing her own light and helping with the search.
This is a very bizarre failsafe complex. We can assume that the creator intended to retreat here if they and their family were in danger. The crystal ball is likely a means to check if the danger is gone and they can return to wherever they were. Why make it so difficult for themselves to leave? If the danger is gone, wouldn't they want a clear way to exit? And, why put light switches in rooms that are not for the room you're in and want to illuminate? I can understand making it difficult to enter if you don't have a family badge, but this is all very irregular.
Ianthe follows everyone else and helps with the search, if with only the barest hint of enthusiasm.
Leo foes his best to search the area with the help of his companions...
Corran will aid another as well, granting his +2 to Leo.
The party takes about 30 minutes to make a search of the suite. It leads to a few discoveries, though what they mean will take a bit more time.
It's not lost on the party that they don't hear from Martella in this time.
First, the party finds "light buttons" in the other two rooms.
Second, the party finds an extremely impressive fresco in the southeastern room, depicting Galitian Maramaxus, hero of the Fourth Army of Exploration, battling the dwarves of the Five Kings Mountains. A brass plate identifies the fresco as “Noble Galitian Maramaxus, hero of the Fourth Army of Exploration, champion of Taldor.”
Finally, the party finds a slot large enough for a gold coin in the floor of the master bedroom. There's no indication or hint as to what it does, but it's intentionally carved out of the stone floor.
What does Corran know about The Fourth Army of Exploration? About Galitian Maramaxus?
History is +7
Rolls, and
Corran doesn't remember much about the actual campaign, but the name of Maramaxus is one he's heard aplenty. Galitian Maramaxus was renowned in Taldan history as a hero of the 17th-century AR expedition by the Fourth Army of Exploration. The Pathfinder Chronicles report that he was buried with a brooch awarded to him by Grand Prince of Taldor Tralian V. His grave was also reportedly plundered by Andorens some time around 4709 AR. He's held to be the quintessential Taldan, an archetype of all the country holds dear.
"Isn't this guy displayed in the bar as well? Could this be a clue on how to get out of here?"
We should test the newly found "light switches", and see what each one does. Corran will lead the effort to do so.
Does the prism fit into the floor slot?