Inside the room, Haunt can see one of the scrits (barefoot, for the record) standing in front of a giant wasp nest, pointing back to the door and making pleading motions, and speaking in a language you don't understand.
Though Haunt is attempting to be sneaky, the grease from his previous trip makes the doorknob slip out of his paws and start to swing open. When he grabs for it, he pushes it open harder, and the bells he was brandishes jingle, giving him away.
The scrit stabs a finger out at you and yells in common, "My wasp friends, ATTACK!" The wasps buzz around their hive, but don't do anything else out of the ordinary.
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Laesah peers into the next room, her attention drawn by the angry insectoid buzzing.
The anadi shares what she knows of the wasps with her friends, then rapidly transforms into her full arachnid form just after shouting out:
”I will draw the attention of the gremlins! Get them, my friends!” She then skitters into the room, hopeful that her spider form will unnerve the scrits.
Laesah gets a very good look at the wasps and realizes they don't have any intention on joining this fight, and couldn't do much even if they were somehow compelled to - the gremlin is accomplishing nothing with these appeals.
When Haunt reveals the skrit Much frowns at Harker, who decidedly did not bark at that door. She then immediately forgives him based solely on his adorable, deformed pug face.
”I will draw the attention of the gremlins! Get them, my friends!”
Laesah's mad dash and transformation breaks Much's dog-loving reverie. She sets out with all speed to support her friend.
Keep up Haunt, you'll miss the fun!
"Keep up? You can see I'm right..." Oh.
Why are there holes in the floor when this whole library is built on a single gigantic tree stump?
Haunt runs in and smacks at the green gremlin twice with the flat of his blade, while shouting anxiously, "Where's the other one?"
Haunt slaps the gremlin with his blade, and its eyes cross for a second. Their knees buckle woozily, but it doesn't fall down.
"Where's the other one?"
As if in answer to the question, a high-pitched groan of effort rises from behind the bookshelf.
The groan turns into a shriek of terror as the bookshelf rocks back. Like college vending machine, it falls back upon the pusher, crashes atop the blue gremlin and crushes it. A rivulet of blood seeps out, and the single shoeless foot that sticks out from under the pile twitches. That is one dead gremlin under there.
The green gremlin howls, looking at the bookshelf and the useless wasp nest and slumping to the ground. Arms covering his face, he whimpers pitifully.
Harker bursts into the room to bark furiously at the remains of the dead gremlin, ignoring the weeping gremlin.
Much looks on, hands on hips.
"Aku mencintaimu, Harker, tapi tuhan apakah kamu bodoh..."
"I'll take our fearless pug back and search the first room, if you all want this one."
Much sweeps up the still-valiantly barking Harker and makes her way back to search the first room.
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Laesah blinks slowly at the toppled bookcase, imagining what its effect would’ve been had the dead scrit succeeded. She takes a moment to shift back into her human form then fixes the snivelling gremlin with a glare.
”You need to tell us why you’re all so malevolent and who’s leading you. Now.”
Her voice comes out squeaky and breathless.
”You need to tell us why you’re all so malevolent and who’s leading you. Now.”
The gremlin looks up at you, barely able to hold eye contact. "We came here because of poor Drellop, right?." The gremlin says, pointing a shaky, ink-stained finger at the crushed gremlin. "They were friends with Kurshkin and we heard there were lots of books to eat and wizards to torment. I've heard of a boss bigger than Kurshkin, but I never met one - there's always some bigger boss, yeah?"
The gremlin looks around sadly. "Just let us go, right? We'll leave and never come back to this place. Imagine it... a scrit killed by books... If that's not a sure sign of a cursed land, I don't know what is, yeah?"
Much and Harker find a couple of scrolls mixed within the books. Namely a scroll of negate aroma and a scroll of faerie fire.
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Haunt watches the bookcase tip backwards, realizing with horror that the missing gremlin is on the other side.
Oh, nuts.
The amurrun sheaths his sword and crouches down to look the surviving skrit in the eye. "Listen to me," he says, trying to project more gravitas than he usually has. "This has to stop. I don't know who your bigger boss is, but you came because of your friend, and he came because his friend was killed. Well, Kurshkin died because he was trying to kill people and they defended themselves. And Drellop just did it to himself! There's nobody to get revenge on, so there's no reason for any of you to come back. Nothing good is going to happen if you do."
"So tell your friends: quit bothering us. Tell everyone you can. Tell every pugwampi, skrit, and other gremlin you meet to stay away from the Magaambya. And tell them that if someone tries to convince them to come back here, it isn't going to end well for them." He stands up and offers the skrit a hand. "I am sorry about your friend. Go wake up the others and get them out of here."
The skrit stops shaking and looks up at Haunt. His jaundiced eyes really taking in the catfolk for the first time. "Wait, I know you." He says, slowly. "Well, heard about you, anyway. You're that cat fella we were supposed to go out of our way to muck with, right?"
He stands up, and unfastens a bracer he was wearing on his left arm and hands it to you. "For your trouble, yeah? And for what we done to ya." He sighs, looking over at his crushed friend. "There's a match to this on ole Drellop, if you want it. No use to him now, is it? I'll do like ya say - grab the lads, and be off now, right?"
And with that he exits. You hear him begin to rouse his allies and then Harker starts barking again. The skrit yells, "Ah, leave off, ya grubs! Oy! heroes! You lot have company, yeah?"
Much sees them first, since they are in the main chamber, but bugs start to pour out from under the doors to the south and east!
And we're back in initiative!
The blue silverfish goes first and heads right at Much, triggering an AoO...
...which knocks a big chunk out of the bug, but it still attacks.
The second attack hits Much so hard she forgets she's carrying a stone-rope and instead sinks her teeth into the silverfish.
The foul taste brings Much back to her senses and reminds her to ready her weapon.
"Team, you should probably get in here!" Much tries, and partially succeeds, at keeping the panic out of her voice. Scanning the room, she reassesses the situation.
"You know what? Strike that. I hate swarms. I'll come to you."
Much moves to the door and gives her friends a weak, bloody grin before turning back to guard the entryway.
◆ Strike
◆ Stride
◆ Spell (shield)
The next giant silverfish takes no heed of what happened to the last one to go for Much and heads out, again taking an AoO as it closes in.
It takes a glancing blow and attacks once, having spent a lot of effort crossing the room.
The attack snaps in low, and Much effortlessly steps over the pincers.
Following the giant silverfish, the swarm begins to roll towards the combatants, flowing over Much, biting and pinching her.
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The bugs roll over Much and and she feels her gorge rising as they slide under her clothes and over her skin.
Despite her best efforts and jaws bravely locked close in protest, bugs on her privates is too much to bear. Much's breakfast launches back out through her nostrils in two surprisingly elegant arcs.
Haunt accepts the scrit's bracer with a nod and puts it on. He's just starting to try to figure out how to get the other off Drellop's corpse when Laesah's call alerts him to the new threat.
"Oh, that's just gross. He tries to remember everything he can about the weaknesses of swarms and silverfish.
◆:
Laesah and Haunt get some shots in (7 to a silverfish, 5 - after all the pluses and minuses - to the swarm), as the red silverfish scuttles in to harass Laesah.
The first attack is easily evaded, but the second set of snapping mandibles digs into her thigh, drawing blood.
Silverfish still roil on and around Much's feet in a deeply concerning manner.
I have to get rid of this swarm.
Much takes a moment before attacking to comport herself; jumping up and down to clear her armor of any remaining invaders, and blows hard to clear bile from her nose.
◆ Clear her sinuses
◆ Strike at swarm
◆ Flank green
Much's first strike smashes into the mass of writhing insects with such force that it loses it's cohesion. The few survivors dissipate, fleeing for safety under the shelves, no longer able to harm anyone.
Not satisfied, the stone rope arcs out again, crashing into the giant silverfish and splitting it in two. A pulpy, ichorous mess in between the two segments of bug.
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Laesah stoically takes the piercing wound to her leg. With a practiced presence of mind, she steels herself to the chaos of melee and calls out to her friend.
"Haunt! As we practiced in fight club! Flank with me!" Laesah sidesteps the remaining silverfish and brings her crane wing blows down on it as her amurrun friend moves into position.
"Right!"
Haunt squishes through the muck of the defeated swarm, then tries to identify the weaknesses of the giant silverfish.
Haunt slides into position and Laesah strikes, her first attack punching nearly through the silverfish, the speed and precision of the strike inflicting horrible wounds . Her second attack is more of a jab, connecting much less forcefully but sends the bug spinning towards her teammate.
Haunt's thrust is almost lazy. He places his rapier out and waits for bug to impale itself on it. It obliges, dies, and slides off the end of the blade to the library floor.
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”Infestations abound!” Laesah exclaims as the silverfish dies. ”Too bad that those scrits couldn’t get yummier insects to hang out in the library,” she complains, idly sauntering over to the swarm and downing a dead silverfish. ”I never was a fan of these things; my cousin loved them. I always thought that they were too sweet.”
With the immediate threat managed, you resume your searches. Laesah, before leaving hears moans and whispers coming from the wasp nest, hidden within the buzzing.
Careful examination of the nest reveals that some of the paper used in its construction moans softly. These remnants once belonged to a scroll called A Treatise on the Various Communicative Methods of Non-Vocally-Projecting Entities. The scroll’s title is the only piece that’s still legible; the scrits have smeared the rest into illegibility and then tore it apart, providing material for the wasp nest. This scroll is pretty well destroyed. Haunt, your newfound skill in Scribing Lore makes you doubt that even someone of Ot's capabilities could salvage this.
Much tries, and mostly fails, to clean herself up.
"Infestations indeed. I don't handle bugs well, apparently. Forgive me for the unpleasantness."
"I'll take Harker and search the room to the east. After that, I'd really like to bathe..."
Going through the door to the east you find that this moist room has heaps of partially-chewed books and scattered papers, many of which have been pulped and mashed into strange, nest-like shapes. A crack in the wooden wall drips with moisture and is covered with a profusion of mold.
The books here are all compiled from the same research topic: potential positive uses for spells considered evil by the world at large. It seems someone was building to a thesis by studying these texts but left off the research a long time ago. It looks like between the silverfish and the skrits, many of these books and scrolls have been destroyed. Maybe that's for the best in this case?
You do find some research notes in a drawer that contain a limited version of the create undead ritual, useful for creating zombies of 2nd level or lower.
"Ot gave us that list of books, right? Let's check this room next." Haunt keeps his rapier and amulet in hand, eyes peeled for more bugs.
Much approaches Laesah and the unopened door in front of her.
[b]"If you open the door, I can cover you."[b]
[ooc] Much readies an action to strike if there is anything on the other side of the door. [ooc]
In the southern room, heaps of dormitory furniture have been haphazardly piled up, including several frayed wicker chairs, a jumble of coatracks, and two broken beds. The room is unpleasantly moist, and thin sheets of mold cover the chairs and bed.
Sadly, there's nothing else of interest in this room.
In the southeast, Laesah cracks the door open and looks in. The room is jammed with simple beds and frames. They’re precariously stacked, as if arranged to simply keep them out of the way. Dusty boxes are shoved beneath them. The boxes look well sealed - the skrits and silverfish haven't gotten into these ones.
Laesah, you get the sense that the beds could topple if you moved them unless you used a very deft hand .
If we want to pull them out one at a time or try and knock them over, I'm your lady. Otherwise..." Much's voice trails off and she raises her large paws in shrugging concession of her lack of dexterity.
Haunt steps up and sheaths his rapier. "I can give it a try. No promises, though."
The amurrun looks at the rickety tower of bed frames. "Much, I may need a boost up to reach the first one."
With whatever help he receives, he attempts to carefully remove the topmost bed from the pile and lower it to the ground.
Haunt reaches up, looking to start at the top of the problem and takes a steadying breath. The bed he grabbed begins to wobble dangerously and then Laesah is under him, using her strong, long arms to get him into a better position. The first bed comes down safely and the rest tilt forward. For a moment, the grim end of the scrit flashes through your minds and you see yourselves smashed under a pile of heavy furniture, but with the better angle Haunt has, he's able to keep things from falling apart while delicately removing the rest.
Now that the beds are out of the way, the group can get to the boxes more easily. They contain — among other various works — Volumes 1, 3, 5, and 6 of Worlds Between Worlds. Volume 4, the one Ot was interested in, specifically, is stashed beneath a blanket on one of the bottom beds. Additionally, a Bracelet of Dashing is behind the boxes under the bed.
Much can't stop her lips from pursing into a desirous "Oh" when the bracelet is unearthed.
She composes herself before speaking to the group.
"So we have two of the five texts we need. Shall we try the same tack on the Southwest door? I'll stand while one of you opens the door? We could even send Harker in first."
The group arrays themselves around the southwest door, and Laesah pushes it open. It looks relatively unsullied and orderly, compared to the other rooms you all have seen, though time has still taken a toll. Many broken stools and chairs lie scattered in the corners, but there’s also a comfortable armchair with piles of books arrayed around it. Someone might have used this armchair as a reading nook, though long enough ago that dust has accumulated over the books and chair.
Harker doesn't indicate anyone is here, so you move in cautiously and begin looking for the books on your list. After a few moments, a paper crane lands on Much's head, then flits away to alight on a bookshelf. Two other paper cranes also flutter around the room. You remember these as spellskeins, like the ones you murdered in the bathroom. These ones, so far, do not seem hostile, but they are distracting.
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Laesah thinks to herself, then considers the paper cranes.
"I wonder if they can help us find what we're looking for," she muses. She holds out her hand as if to cradle a butterfly, offering one of the paper cranes a purchase on which to alight.
"We...are...looking...for....the Collected Field Notes of the Druid Mata Digemari," Laesah intones slowly at one of the fluttering spellskeins.
She then peers to see if the cranes land on any specific book after her request.
The spellskeins attend to you while you speak, then dart away to confer, however that is done for them. You know from your studies that they do not speak, but don't know how they DO communicate to each other - they do understand common, however.
When they return they make a hesitant flight towards the doorway of the room. Suddenly, one of them folds into the approximate form of a silverfish and leaps leaps towards the other two, chasing them. The crane-skeins fly away hurriedly and hide among the shelves again. Slowly, they come back, now all in their crane forms, and hover in front of you.
With a sharp eye, Laesah looks around the room and finds some interesting books among the piles, including several relating to the ruined city of Bloodsalt, whose long-vanished inhabitants supposedly sprouted wings and flew away. Also among the scattered stacks are ancillary works on Mwangi residents and dragons, bookmarked for useful cross-referencing. Most importantly to teacher Ot, Studies on the Habits and Migration Patterns of Birds and Drakes of the Continent of Garund and An Expanded History of the Lesser-Known Peoples of the Mwangi Expanse are here. Additionally, a slim folio containing an exquisite, but incomplete, map of Bloodsalt also catches the eye.
You get the sense from the amount of dust on the chair versus the rest of the stump library, that this room was used somewhat recently.
Whoever was here left behind an animal staff behind the overstuffed chair, and the folio containing the map also has a narrow scroll of fleet step used as a bookmark.
Seeing Haunt, Harker and Laesah's serious demeanors and scanning eyes, Much leans in and begins to sniff. She isn't sure what for, but she wants to be helpful.
"Now we just need to find the Druid's chest." Much adds between sniffs.
Haunt, even though he feels pretty comfortable in the forest, isn't really able to put the scene together. Much sniffs and gets a nose full of dust, but otherwise learns nothing.
Laesah, however, is really keyed into this room. She's able to deduce that it's probably been a while, maybe as much as a year or two, since someone has been in here, but that's still more recently than the rest of the library. Someone came here and used this as their hideout to read and plan. They seem to have had an interest in Bloodsalt, but beyond that, it's hard to tell who they might have been, or why they would have left some fairly valuable magic items behind.
"Now we just need to find the Druid's chest."
When the spellskeins hear this, one folds themselves into an arrow shape, points out the door, and makes to leave. The other ones turn into silverfish and descend up it, "attacking" it. They fold themselves back into cranes, fly back in front of you, and start shaking.
