Daxori finishes the gnome off as he tries to scramble away, his life blood spilling across the floor.
Finishing off the Gnome before he can escape, Daxori turns her attention to the half orc. Taking a tactical step beside Kendrick and attacks the half orc.
Daxori's halberd nearly severs the half-orc's shoulder, dropping him to the floor. He finally stops laughing. One lamb continues to struggle trying to open the door, tears running down his face. The other lambs make a break for it, storming past Nuriel and running for the southern door. The human man curses loudly, shouting and calling the kids cowards and promising to find all of them. He waves his wand at Kendrick, hurling another glob of acid at Kendrick. With nowhere else to go, he jumps into the river below.
"Where do you think you're going?" Kendrick shouts after catching his breath from a second acid burn. He charges across the floor and plunges his sword down at the man.
Seeing the opposition down or fleeing and not liking the unknowns behind her. She charges the ‘south’ door along the catwalk and attempts to kick it open.
”Gonna check this other door.”
Kendrick stabs down at the man, only a few feet below. The man unleashes a blood-curdling scream as Kendrick's bastard sword sinks deep into his face. Nuriel finds that the wooden door, despite being mottled with mold and grit, remains solid and still closed.
Daxori moves quickly up the stairs to back up Nuriel.
The human man dips beneath the surface of the water, blood clouding the surface of the water. A moment later a large dorsal fin can be seen approaching. The remain lambs flee the building as quickly as they can, discarding their pitch forks as they run.
Rubbing her shield arm, still tingling from her impact with the door. Nuriel casts a quick glance over her shoulder, to see if anyone else saw that.
"Have all the children escaped?"
Reaching for the door handle she turns it to open it.
If it is locked she will attempt to kick it open.
Kendrick jumps back from the river with a gulp. "Whoa, hey did you just see that? Big scary fish!" He backs away and moves to get close to Nuriel, sword still ready. He sends his conjured lights to hover over her head.
Nuriel's kick easily sends the door flying open. A wooden desk sits in one corner of this room, its side preventing the western door from opening all the way. The table is heaped with dozens of slate boards covered with chalk scrawls, while to the east a cabinet slouches against the wall.
One of the floorboards behind the chair in the northeast corner of the room is in fact a cunningly hidden trap door. The door is wedged shut and barred from below, and must be smashed open from above (break DC 15). Once opened, the trap door reveals a 1-foot-square hole that opens directly to the room below. It’s a 10-foot drop to this lower chamber, but a Medium creature would need a successful DC 30 Escape Artist check to wriggle through the hole (a Small creature needs only a successful DC 15 Escape Artist check to do so), so there is little threat of falling in. A rope and pulley system used to transport meals and other supplies between the two rooms makes clambering down from the hole once one squeezes through easier (Climb DC 5).
Stepping into the room.
"Trap door by the chair."
Moving over to the desk to check out the writing on the slate boards.
"One more room to check. Back where we entered."
Daxori moves to join Nuriel in the trap door room.
"Let's check it out before we see where this trap door lead us.
Moving to the front room and the unopened door. She glances back over her shoulder.
”So Kendrick, just how big was this fish? She says with a little smirk.
She will try the door. If unlocked she will open it. Otherwise, another break attempt.
The unlocked door reviews a small room with a pair of bunk beds against the far wall on either side of a boarded-over window.
There is nothing of value in the room.
"Hard to tell," he answers earnestly, "Under water, you know? But it was big. Joke all you want, but you didnt see it!"
Looking the room over.
"Nothing in here."
Moving back to the trap door. She shakes her head, noting its small size.
"There has to be another way into the lower level. A door we missed. Maybe on the lower level or outside."
Looking at the door on the east wall.
"Or it could be on the pier."
The door to the east is locked from the inside. The only uninvestigated area would be the boat docked at the rear of the fishery, accessible by the pier running around the east side of the building.
Turning to Nuriel, "We should get Kendrick and investigate the boat, assuming he is done with the fish." Daxori says with a little smirk.
Daxori then sticks her head out the northern door and lets out a whistle. "Hey Kendrick, were heading out to the boat."
Narrowing his eyes, Kendrick focuses his will and sends the conjured lights to the rear door. He cautiously walks by the hole in the floor looking for that fin again. "You shoulda seen that thing," he grumbles.
A slippery boardwalk clings to the side of the fishery, held together by barnacle-encrusted pilings that have had half of their thickness worn away below the waterline, twelve feet below.
After taking a few steps on the groaning pier.
This sounds bad. Wish I knew something about construction.
She pauses, to stare into the dark water below.
Really wouldn't want to encounter Kendrick's fish in its element.
Looking to the others.
"You think it'll hold?"
Nodding to the pier.
As long as you stay spread out, and move slowly, the boardwalk should hold.
Moving more than your normal speed in 1 round will require a DC 10 Acrobatics check on slip and fall into the water below.
Two or more medium creatures adjacent to each other for more than 1 round will cause the wood to collapse and the characters to fall into the water below.
"Well, uh. If he's is on that thing, he had to get to it somehow, right?" Kendrick thinks aloud while peering at the ship and walkway.
It's almost impossible to tell the condition of the ship without getting closer to inspect it, especially given the time of day, but suffice it to say that if the fishery is in poor condition, the ship won't be any better.
With a shrug and a barely concealed gulp Kendirck moves forwards cautiously, watching the water for fins.
After watching Kendrick take a half dozen or so steps along the dilapidated pier, and seeing it didn't collapse. She too moves forward, casting glances into the water as well.
The rotten deck of this ancient sailing ship seems to be barely intact; it's hull is worn and thick with seaweed and barnacles. The ship is held together primarily by the layers of old rope that lash it securely to the pilings that support the fishery and the nearby boardwalk. The rickety walkway leads along the ship's starboard, a foot below its railing. A single wooden door leading into the aft cabin bears a crude painting of a red fish on its surface.
Kendrick focuses on keeping his lights over his head as he boards the crusty vessel and peeks down the stairs. "Dax? Nuriel? You ready?" He whispers.
Looking over Kendrick's shoulder.
"You need me to kick that in?"
"You really like kicking doors, huh?" The big man says with a chuckle.
Daxori cautiously walks along side the boat to join the other two.
"Dammit, I'll open the door"
Daxori is able to force the door open. The air in this room is thick and musty. Thick sheets of cobwebs hang from the walls and mounds of blankets, cushions, and straw clutter the floor. To the south, a narrow flight of stairs leads down into the ship's hold.
Looking at the cobwebs and disarray, Kendrick says, "I don't think he is hiding here. But it doesn't hurt to double check." He moves his lighting over the stairs and walks forward to peek down.
Standing on the dilapidated ship, ready to go to Kendrick’s aid if needed. She spares a moment to look back at the warehouse to see if there is any sign of another entrance from this vantage.
Low light vision.
Kendrick's floating lights cast shadows across the small room and the cobwebs almost seem to dance in the sparkling light. Nuriel catches a glimpse of the tiny spider as it drops down, landing on Kendrick before she can shout a warning.
A drain spider. Like all spiders, they are poisonous.
Drain spiders can actually hide in spaces one quarter of their actual size and squeeze through spaces one-eighth their size. They can also walk across water.
"Whoa!" Kendrick exclaims as he tries to brush off the spider. Given the close quarters he opts for accuracy over power and tries to end the spider before it can take a bite out of him.
A moment before it's cleaved it two, the spider realizes it's tactical flaw in coming to a rest in a spot that it's human prey can maneuver it's sword into. And it was going to be such a large meal for the spider.
The door is easily forced open with some effort. Dark and dank, the ship's hold smells of mildew. Several barrels, crates, and other containers lie stacked here and there. Dust and grime cover the floor, except where river water has collected in puddles.
From her position, Nuriel does not see any other doors on this side of the fishery.
You notice a faint trail leading towards the bow of the ship.
You get a +10 bonus on the following Perception check.
You notice a secret door, towards the bow, on the port side of the ship.
”Look out Kendrick there’s a…”
(Squish!)
”Never mind”
Nuriel is too busy checking for more spiders to notice anything.
Daxori comes to see what all the fuss was about. "Really, a spider." Daxori says as she takes a look around the room.
Despite the creature being dead, Kendrick can't help an involuntary shudder. He scrapes at his clothes, scratching phantom itches as he thinks about spiders climbing under his armor.
"It occurs to me I don't know for sure what Lamm even looks like. This was clearly one of his operations, though. Any chance he was the guy the fish ate? Maybe we need to go back and see Zellara?"
"I know what he looks like, so don't worry about that. The trap door in that office leads to an area below the warehouse. There must be a way in. Maybe on the far side. We should check it out."
She heads back out onto the ships deck.
Noticing Kendrick just standing and looking about, at apparently nothing.
"Hey, big guy you coming? Or are you still counting spider webs?"
Daxori makes her way out, following Nuriel.
"He's dirty old man, and I mean dirty in more ways than one. And even though I haven't seen that bastard in years, I bet he still wears that stupid crusty old hat. I hate that hat!"
Kendrick winces some at Dax' words. He knew how bad Lamm was from his investigations on the street, but his responsibility for Mara was less direct than what he must have done to Daxori. He follows the two women quietly, keeping his lighting overhead.
Returning to the now apparently empty fishery, a thorough search of the building reveals the following.
The room with the trapdoor (A6) looks like an office. On the table are several slates with transaction records, addresses of customers, and other accounting notes. Within the cabinet in the office are numerous scrolls with similar records going back either further.
The upper work room (A7) contains the large trough of fish slurry. There is also a locked cabinet in the room, as well as three discarded pitchforks.
Inside the cabinet is a total of 27gp in various pouches containing numerous silver and copper pieces.
Littering the fishery floor itself (A8) is the gnome's equipment:
small studded leather armor
a small masterwork kukri
a disguise kit
a key
7gp
the human's discarded:
light crossbow
the half orc's:
chainmail
composite longbow (+3 str)
arrows x20
flail
72 gp
identical potions x3
The potions are all cure light wounds potions.
ID potions
Back in the warehouse Nuriel looks over the bodies and examines their gear.
”Just taking their gear would not be right. However pursuant to Section 5 paragraph 2 of the municipal tax code, which states. ‘All goods and property obtained by illegal means or with any illegal monies. Are subject to forfeiture. Said goods and or property can then be redistributed and or retasked at the discretion of the discovering official.’ So who wants what?"
When the key is found, She goes to the office and begins to go over the accounting information. Looking at the others.
”Always follow the money.”
Glancing over at the trapdoor.
”Why don’t you two open that and see where it leads. Or do you need me to kick it in?”