Mauro call up from outside "You guys get it?"
"Cool, I'm coming up, I want to see this 'mechanical bug'"; Mauro comes inside and joins the cluster looking at the thing.
...
Mauro's excited, "Never seen anything like that before!". Seeing Brodigan poking at the bottom plate he asks, "Do you want to borrow some of my tools for that? Mauro will help him with the delicate task of taking off the bottom plate
1 rank +3 trained +1 wis +2 racial +3 Skill Focus
1 rank +3 trained +2 dex +2 MW tools
Mauro will also rack his brains, trying to remember something about this kind of construct...
1 rank +3 trained +2 int
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Asher is still craning his neck around the group of the smart people. After catching it, he is attached to it, as if it was a small pet.
Seeing not much more in the records and papers, Bey walks out the doorway and looks to see his companions. Upon seeing them he walks over to see what they are gathered around.
Very carefully, Brodigan manages to delicately pry open the flush panel of the clockwork spider's underside. A small key is inside.
Looking at the internal parts, it seems as if this clockwork spy is powered by winding it using the key in the key slot. They also notice a recording gem connected inside. (The recording gem is necessary for the clockwork spy to record.) Those working on the tiny creature realize an additional check is needed to reprogram the device into only listening to your commands.
Luckily, Mauro is prepared with his tools and rewires the creature, despite the clockwork seeming to have a few ancient, unrecognizable parts.
The mechanical arachnid's eye goes dull for a moment and its body shudders. For a brief moment, it seems as if Mauro failed. But then, the creature's eye is lit to a vibrant red and it pushes itself into a standing position. The clockwork spider scuttles towards Mauro and tilts its head as if awaiting instruction.
The party now has a loyal clockwork spy in its possession. It obeys one individual at a time (the last person to wind it.)
-
At Ramona’s request, you all rowed one of the ship’s two boats ashore to investigate. The investigating you’re doing here is of vital importance and the party feels a sense of urgency and worry. There aren’t enough supplies and rations to take the settlers back to Almas, so everyone will need to disembark somewhere. Furthermore, there should have been 60 settlers already here working. Until the party finishes the investigation and can report back, the Peregrine waits at the emergency extraction point.
It’s about lunchtime and the party has investigated about half of the settlement. Starting at the dock, the party realized someone intentionally sunk a canoe. A canoe that was probably built here at the settlement. Then, there were the pavilion tents and barracks, which looked abandoned with a variety of personal effects left behind. The tool house seemed to be full of supplies – supplies the settlers need to relocate. And the provisions building had an infestation of cockroaches, drawn to the rotting food. And then there was the chapel of Erastil, where the book On Government was burned and a settler by the name of Silas Weatherbee hid and died within that altar's hidden compartment. And then, there were the pests like the monkey goblins and ankheg nymph who felt emboldened enough to encroach past the partially built palisade.
There is still much to investigate with only about half of Talmandor’s Bounty explored. But nobody aboard the Peregrine would probably have ever expected Talmandor’s Bounty to be in this sort of state!
The mechanical spider has left Becky at a loss for words. She's also reluctant to touch the thing out of fear of breaking it. The last thing she needs right now is for her mother to ground her.
"Ok, a mechanical spy says that this wasn't just some freak occurrence, not if whomever it was left watchers... Stuff the thing in that teakwood box we found , and we should move on. We need to get this scout done to go meet the Peregrine"
Mauro will lead to the next building .
"The little clockwork buddy is so cute!" JeVeAnne gushes as she follows Brodigan who is moving to the next building with Mauro.
Asher stows the bow behind him and pulls his longsword, staying even with Mauro. He is holding it one handed to get used to the buckler he is now wearing on his off arm.
So, this little git’s going to be the town mascot once we find the previous expedition?
The party proceeds to area 9.
The name “Arkley” is carved into a wooden sign nailed next to the doorframe of this log cabin. A single, closed door faces northwest, and the structure has two wooden-shuttered windows. The architecture is otherwise the same as many of the other buildings.
The party recalls that the name Arkley, or specifically Rayland Arkley, as the leader of the first group of colonists who arrived on the Liberty’s Herald.
The only door is shut and latched, but not barred. The inside of the house stands in contrast to most of the other buildings in the settlement in that it is relatively organized and tidy. It contains plain wooden furniture, with simple amenities such as wall racks for weapons and armor, a modest dining table and chairs, and a sitting chair with a makeshift cushion and footstool.
The entire house is a study in normalcy.
Bey walks to the door and looks around. He walks in when it is apparent that the house is uninhabited. Seeing nothing much but common everyday items, he realizes he is rather tired. He walks to the cushioned chair and sits down. He stretches out and closes his eyes just waiting for the rest of the group to decide where they are headed next.
I need a rest. Maybe we should set up a camp here for the night and then maybe explore a bit more. I'd be willing to stay with camp once its set up if that is necessary. Bey suggests.
"And what were you up too last night, Bey? I'll give you it's lunchtime, so you can put up your feet for a bit, but we've got more work to do today!" Mauro is jovial, but obviously in no mood to camp, not with the whole afternoon ahead of them...
While Bey puts his feet up, Mauro tosses the place,
1 rank +3 perception +1 wis +2racial +3 skill focus
"Gotta side with Mauro here. Bare minimum we should check out the rest of the settlement just to make sure we have fewer potential threats when we do decide to call it a night."
He then looks at the obviously tired summoner and says, "But by all means, take a load off for a bit, maybe grab a bite to eat."
And with that, Brodigan begins looking around for anything in this cabin that might give them more clues about what happened.
Desperately wanting to be helpful, JeVeAnne starts looking around the cabin for clues, but spares a kind smile for Bey when he expresses his desire to rest.
JeVeAnne points to a beam well above her head and says, "That probably shouldn't be there...?" Anyone who looks where she's pointing sees a piece of folded parchment resting on a crossbeam.
Looking where his apprentice pointed, Brodigan adds a, "Well spotted, Anne. And then looks around at his fellow casters asking, can anyone cast mage hand? I didn't prepare that one today. I can detect magic, though," and he casts detect magic.
"Anne, if I lift you, I think we can reach it together. Does that sound like a plan? Mauro offers Anne a lift to get the parchement...
Becky shakes her head when Brodigan asks if she can cast mage hand. She moves closer to Bey and asks the halfling, "Are you out of spells?"
Nah! Haven't used any yet. I just am not able to keep up physically. I spent around 3 years bedridden due to sickness and am still on the heal from it. Unfortunately, the majority of my spells only affect those creatures that I bring to help. My dad tried to teach me to invoke energy and such but I had no knack for it.
I'll have to introduce you to my friend Posh sometime though.He's a bit shy so give him sometime and I'm sure I can get him to come out.
Bey says with an enthusiastic tiredness in his voice.
"You have wonderfully keen eyes Lady Anne!" Crispin is happy to finally be of some use. He casts Mage hand and carefully gathers up the parchment. Using to magic to gently unfold and study what is written on it.
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...
...
...
Asher ignores the mass mage hysteria and walks up to Crispin to read the note.
Abeowin, after all of his searching in the assistant office, wasn't able to find any additional clues.
Mauro comments that someone left a spy behind in Talmandor's Bounty, then stores the clockwork spider into the teakwood box. The spider obediently settles into the box, awaiting orders from Mauro, who was the last to wind the key. Anne accurately notices the clockwork is rather cute. Asher makes a joke, asking if the clockwork spider is going to become the town mascot.
Inside the Governor's House, Asher spots a sheet of folded parchment resting on top of a crossbeam. Crispin uses mage hand to gently bring the parchment down to the party. Unfolding it, the party realizes these pages are the Talmandor's Bounty colony charter!
The Talmandor’s Bounty colony charter is the legal document that declares the island and the colony to be under the protection of the nation of Andoran, outlines the colony’s relationship to the Bountiful Venture Company, and enumerates the rights and responsibilities of all colonists. It bears the sealed signature of three members of the People’s Council, representatives of the Bountiful Venture Company, and every colonist that came aboard the Liberty’s Herald.
The party signed a similar document themselves before joining the colony. (Except the colonists listed are the ones that traveled via the Peregrine.) This document should have been stored in the Government House (area 10), where it would be safe and Rayland Arkley would have access to it anytime he wanted.
Abeowin informs the party he may need to rest soon and Mauro points out it's only about lunchtime. The summoner sits on one of the cushioned chairs and feels something hard on his bum. He leans to one side and pulls out a silver pocket watch (worth 775 gold pieces) from the cushion. Such timepieces are rare in the Inner Sea region, and this one also functions as a compass. A study of the symbols on the watch’s face indicates it is of original Azlanti design, and it is amazingly still in working order.
Further inside the building, there is a separate bedroom featuring a wooden bed frame and pallet mattress, a boot rack, and a large unlocked chest of folded clothes and other personal items.
Tucked under the mattress in the bedroom is a traveling spellbook (worth 920 gold pieces.) Twenty-nine pages have been used, with 21 blank pages remaining. The book contains 10 0-level spells, eight 1st-level spells, and eight 2nd-level spells. One of the cantrips is arcane mark. Inside the front cover is an arcane mark that reads, “Hendrake.” A spell component pouch is tied to a brass ring bound into the spine of the book. Anyone who read the arcane mark "Plum Tree" in the Government House recognizes the handwriting.
+2 int
Mauro comments "I thought Arkley was a warrior, not a mage. Why is there a spellbook here?" He looks over the charter and it's accumulated signatures - are there enough signatures to fill a four page list of people (like what was cut out of the logbook)?
"Is there a Hendrake listed in the ledge pages?" Becky asks.
Curious at the sight of a spellbook, Brodigan mutters a few arcane words and scans the room .
The four sheets of parchment look like they were severed from a book.
Looking at the charter, there is a colonist named "Una Hendrake."
Nothing in the building pings as magical to Brodigan. The entire house is a study in normalcy. Well, except for the Azlanti pocket watch (which is a rare, historical find) and the colony charter you found resting on top of a crossbeam.
Let’s not dally too long. More settlement needs to be explored before the light fades.
He points out to area 8.
Shall we?
"Yep, let's keep moving, we have a rendezvous to keep with the Peregrine"
Crispin is browsing the discovery intently and wanders after the party with his nose buried in the book. He vaguely hears them talking and simply nods in agreement to whatever is decided.
The party proceeds to area 8 on the map.
The south side of the palisade fence is the only finished side. A large gate set in the fence can be barred from within. The gate is open, however, and the large wooden bar leans against the fence. Beyond the gate is an unpaved road where homes have been built or are in various stages of construction.
Just outside a nearby building (area 7) there are a strange set of tracks that appear to be about a week old.
This long, rectangular building appears to be a home, though larger than many beyond the palisade to the south. It has three windows, all covered with wooden shutters, and a single door facing northwest, which is unbarred and slightly ajar.
Simple wooden furniture is in disarray throughout this residence. Tables and chairs are knocked over and pushed aside, though none appear willfully broken. Articles of clothing and household items are scattered across the floor as if they were examined briefly and discarded.
Although the home has been ransacked, there is no evidence of foul play or personal violence. A casual search reveals any number of common domestic items, such as boots, spare cloaks hung on pegs, cookware, and plates and mugs—sundries that one might find in any dwelling.
There are two additional rooms which branch off from this main one.
-
In the first additional room, a large pallet bed is visible through an open interior door. It seems to be a bedroom.
-
The third room, which has no windows, is next to the bedroom but is completely empty.
"Oh ho, this is interesting, this is the first sign of something more than people disappearing into thin air; this place has been ransacked! Let's take a good look around" Mauro will search the house...
vc dc 15 (main)
1 rank +3 trained +1 wis +2 racial +3 skill focus
vc dc 12 (bedroom)
vc dc 15 (third room)
"Interesting, an abandoned wedding ring? That's not something you take off and leave behind normally. Presumably Livvy is whomever this belongs to..."
Continuing his search, "I think there were barrels stored in this third room, but they've been removed..."
Brodigan doesn't notice much of anything in the first or third rooms, but in the room with the pallet bed, the wizard takes a moment to peek under the bed and then turns to his party mates saying, "Not the most subtle place to hide something," and points out a small metal chest which seems to be locked. "Not much of a locksmith myself. Care to take a look," he says in general, though looks at least vaguely in Mauro's direction.
As the group moves about the house, JeVeAnne is on high alert mode trying to keep her friends safe from threats.
Becky tries several times to pop the lock on the chest Brodigan found. She comes close a couple of times but then becomes frustrated. In the end, she admits defeat, hands the chest to Mauro, and hangs her head in shame.
Mauro notices a gold wedding band is sitting on a windowsill. “My dearest Livvy” is engraved on the ring’s interior. Referencing the town charter, there is a settler named Livvy Felton, who is noted as being the wife of Father Adran Felton!
Brodigan peeks under the bed in the bedroom and spots a small, locked metal chest. He encourages his companions to come and take a look! Becky answers the call, pulling out her tools. Unfortunately, her skills fall short and she's unable to unlock the chest.
Meanwhile, Mauro investigates the other adjoining room, identifying there used to be barrels stored here based on the dust rings.
Anne keeps watch but the building seems quiet other than the noises made by the party.
Bey pulls out his magnifying glass and looks at the watch in detail. Seeing nothing much with the magnifying glass, he just puts it in his inside pocket to use and examine further later.
First
Bedroom
3rd room
Bey looks around in each of rooms but doesn't notice much til in the third room. He notices barrel markings on the floor.
I must be more tired than I thought, I am missing a lot of things. Bey says as others turn things up in the main and bedroom.
I wonder what else I've been missing! I haven't been this tired in a while. I'm just glad I'm not slowing down the others. Bey thinks as they wander the house.
At the gate, Asher looks to see where the tracks originated from since they look to have come from inside the settlement. He’ll do a quick direction check and then join the others in the house.
When he enters the house, he looks through the rooms quickly and then does some checking for additional tracks and signs since there are signs of ransacking.
If he doesn’t find anything interesting, or just things already discovered, he’ll stand sentry at the door, looking for any approaching danger.
And while others who have such skills work on the lock, Brodigan casts detect magic and takes a look around the house,
Mauro looks at the chest and watches Becky's efforts and says "Hey Becky, give me a hand here - that looked like you almost had it twice, but you needed a third hand."
Mauro sets up with his tools, and with Becky's help takes a few tries:
vs dc 25
1 rank +3 trained +2 dex +2 MW Tools +2 aid another
With the two of them working, it pops open on the first try!
"Oooh, this is interesting, expensive spell components, incense, diamond dust, powdered silver..."
Abeowin pulls out his magnifying glass and walks around each room. The bed in the bedroom looks like it hasn't slept in for about a month. As Asher stands at the front door, staring at the ground in front of the house, he's confident some barrels have been rolled out of this house. Brodigan casts detect magic but there doesn't seem to be anything magical in the house.
Mauro unlocks the chest with Becky's help. Inside, they find five bags, each of which holds 5 pounds, of powdered silver (worth 25 gp each), four blocks of incense (worth 25 gp each), and a pouch with 100 gp worth of diamond dust. These are expensive material components for bless water, augury, and restoration, respectively.
"Asher, you say they rolled some barrels out of here, and that's what left that wide flat track... What say that we follow it. If nothing else, it's the only thing that's been taken from the settlement."
Agreed! But let’s stop at anything of note on the way.