Vedika moves up quietly, putting a finger to her lips as she reaches each child's cage. She draws her lockpicks again, quickly and quietly springing each door.
Nethen keeps back as Vedika starts trying to free the children. He doesn't want to scare them, and nor does he want the group to be caught by a roving guard, so he stations himself behind a damp and mossy wall to keep watch.
Ariadne moves forward, taking up a spot a few feet behind Vedicak as she works to unlock the cages, keeping an eye out for any guards, and ready to interpose herself between them and the rogue or the cages, should any arrive.
Kayleigh continues to provide Vedika with light as she picks the locks on the cage doors. She tries to smile reassuringly at each captive while raising one finger in front of her lips to ask each to remain silent.
The first cell contains a young Vishkanya girl, she looks up warily as the door opens and her face goes into shockas she sees Vedika. It is Sita!
She looks to be reasonably well fed and clean. The cell is spartan but clean.
Her mouth opens...
What are you doing?
Kayleigh shakes her head vigorously at Vedika's sister. Bringing her glowing morningstar closer to her face, the cleric again places one finger in front of her lips before exaggeratedly mouthing a few words: Guards nearby! More prisoners to rescue!
Could this be a trap? A doppelganger? Sita under a dominate spell? Vedika neither knows nor cares. She reaches in to wrap her arms around the girl and hold her close, rocking back and forth slightly as the tension finally starts to leave her body.
Finally she releases her little sister and whispers, "Let's get out of here. Quick and quiet, you know the drill."
It is your sister Sita, she is clearly bursting with questions but holds her silence as instructed. He also clings to Vedika as if her life depended on it.
The next cell holds a young Strix girl who hisses at you with hostility. She is chained to the wall by her arms to stop her attacking the guards.
Her wings have been clipped to prevent her flying and she shows the marks of beatings.
What are you doing? She doesn't speak common.
When it becomes clear that the strix girls can't speak Common, Kayleigh mutters a quick prayer to Milani and tries to recall what she knows of strix in general before she huddles with the others. "Can anyone communicate with her?" she asks. "If not, it might be best to rescue her last, lest she try to find her own way out or make a ruckus and thus alert the guards to our presence."
After a pause to further consider the situation, Kayleigh adds, "Maybe I could conjure up some water and heal some of her wounds to earn her trust...."
"Only if she also speaks Draconic," says Vedika warily in response to Kayleigh's query. "You're right, though, establishing our good intentions would probably help."
Kayleigh approaches the strix girl cautiously, keeping her glowing morningstar low and in a non-threatening position. Again pressing one finger to her lips, the cleric puts on a bit of a show of examining the strix girl's many wounds. Presenting her holy symbol, she inches closer to cast a cure light wounds spell on the most beat-up part of the strix's body.
If all goes well, the cleric casts a create water spell to fill her waterskin before offering it to the captive. Tapping on the girl's manacles, Kayleigh then points to Vedika, smiles, and pantomimes the act of picking the restraints' locks.
Again, if the strix remains calm, she beckons Vedika to approach.
Vedika cautiously approaches, hands up, just a pair of probes between her fingers in her right hand and clearly visible. She moves slowly to make sure that the strix girl doesn't try to bite or kick her as she comes close.
Ariadne keeps her eyes peeled for any sign of a guard.
Nethen stays outside the cells with Ariadne, watching and listening carefully for any wandering guards that might jeopardize their plan.
The Strix girl can't really resist as Kayleigh approaches her, she responds with confusion to being healed. While beaten she isn't badly hurt. Damaging the merchandise is severely discouraged.
Seti waves at her and makes calming gestures, it seem they know each other a little. Seeing a fellow prisoner walking free settles the Strix girl a lot.
While she remains wary she allows you to give her water, and just rubs her wrists when Vedika removes her manacles.
She stays close to Seti and follows you cautiously.
The last cell contains a human girl? She cowers away from you when the door opens.
What are you doing?
Vedika produces her lockpicks again with a flourish and a grim expression and says, "We're all getting out of here together."
"Are you hurt?" Ariadne asks gently in Common (Taldane), before repeating the question in Varisian and, Shoanti.
The girl doesn't respond and eyes you warily. As Vedika gets closer her appearance shifts until she looks like a younger version of her?
She flinches as she shifts, as if expecting an unpleasant reaction to her instinctive change.
What are you doing now? All three prisoners are now free, if very traumatized.
Ariadne's eyes widen slightly in surprise as the girl alters her form to appear like Vedika. Noting her flinch, her expression softens. "She's probably been beaten for shapeshifting before."
"And it seems like the sort of talent a degenerate like the Pet Maker would look for," Nethen says, disgust in his voice.
"We need to get these kids out of here safely, but we can't go back down to the sewers with them. We need to find another way out," he suggests.
"Well then we'll need to take out the guards down here before they call anyone above." Ariadne replies quietly.
Vedika says quietly, "I think the Pet Maker is collecting "exotic" people to serve special tastes. Not just human children... but people you don't just find on every street corner."
At the thought of his clientele's...desires...an angry growl rises softly in the back of Ariadne's throat, the knuckles on her sword hand going white from the grip on her weapon. "Let's go take these bastards out." she hisses "Have the kids hang toward the back.".
Kayleigh simply nods at the words of the others, a look of raw determination replacing her normally serene and naive countenance. She raises her glowing morningstar into a more attack-ready position.
.
"Let's hit them hard and fast before they can call for reinforcements," Nethen suggests as the group advances towards where they'd been told that further guards were waiting. "Ariadne and I in first?" he asks.
"I'll cast a bless spell and then follow you both into the fray," Kayleigh says quietly.
Vedika flips her hand over and then back and a shuriken seems to sprout between her fingers. She licks it and says, "If someone would do the honors?"
Nethen holds his whip coiled loosely in his hand as he steps forward. He looks around to check that the others are ready then wrenches the door open and steps through to confront the guards.
Just before Nethen throws open the door, Ariadne takes a trio of gold coins from her belt pouch, casting a spell to charge them with powerful kinetic energy.
Once the door creaks open, Vedika doesn't wait: She whips a shuriken right through.
Nethen swings the door open to the surprise of the two guards and the officer in the room.
Vedika sinks her shuriken deeply into the back of Orange.
Kayleigh Blesses you all.
Ariadne prepares a Coin shot spell.
Iorghil casts Flare on Orange
Who manages to close their eyes before being Dazzled.
The party may act first as you have surprise on them. Green looks to be in charge and tougher than the guards you've fought so far.
Kayleigh moves into the room and engages the nearest guard, swinging her morningstar with purpose.
for
Nethen steps into the doorway and cracks his whip out at the brute who appears to be in charge, trying to wrap it around the man's legs and drop him to the floor.
Nethen finds the officer too steady to trip.
Iorghil manages to trip him with his Barbed chain spell though.
With a snap of her fingers, Ariadne sends the enhanced coin whipping toward the already wounded guard facing off with Kayleigh.
Ariadne adds to Orange's troubles with a coin to the back.
Everyone but Ariadne can now act!
Kayleigh shifts towards the center of the room to allow her new friends easier access into the chamber (though it puts her somewhat between Nethen and his target). Gritting her teeth, the healer tries to become a dealer of damage, again swinging her silver morningstar with bad intent . Instead, she displays bad timing and form, missing by a mile.
for
Nethen moves further into the room to let the others in, flicking his whip back from the guard leader with a snap of his wrist. With the big man too firmly planted to trip Nethen instead aims the whip at his neck and cracks it out.
Vedika rushes the doorway, then dives sideways at the last second to clear the line of fire for the folks behind her while twisting out of the way of the guard facing Kayleigh.
As she comes up from her dive and roll, her sap seems to materialize in her hand and comes across the side of the guard, knocking the wind out of him.
Iorghil misses.
Nethan flogs the guard leader.
Vedika hits Orange.
Green stands up and draws a Halbard.
Orange swings at:
Yellow swings at Nethen.
The blade snipping a hair but not cutting anything vital.
Ariadne may act and then everybody else.
Ariadne Charges down the hall, barreling past Vedika and Kayleigh to drive her blade into the wounded guard trying to strike her companions.
Kayleigh grimaces and then again swings her morningstar, trying to copy some of Ariandne's technique. Her grimace turns to an "O" of surprise when her blow lands...kinda hard!
for
Ducking under the guard's clumsy swing Nethen steps inside his polearm's reach and tries to crack his whip across the man's neck.
Kayleigh & Ariadne finish off Orange.
Nethen misses Yellow
Iorghil moves forward and reaches between Kayleigh & Araidne to cast Color spray on Green.
Vedika?
Vedika steps in to whallop yellow with her sap.